Recipes – Page 6 – This Old House 2

Christmas throw up and some holiday recipes

As my son has said and he was absolutely right…

Looks like Christmas has thrown up at This Old House 2. Every year I say I’m going to simplify a bit, not drag everything out and cram it around the mantles and shelves and hanging from mirrors and chandeliers… and every year I still do it anyway.

Except the SNOW VILLAGE. Oh, when I was a young brand new wife I couldn’t wait to start collecting my DEPT 56 SNOW VILLAGE!!…OMG it’s gonna be so awesome setting up that beautiful snow village with it’s old cars and light up houses and fences and trees and shops and trees and barn and more trees and street lights that work! River with trout in it! little wreaths on each door! That fake glorious snow!!!.. (actually that pain- in -the- ass- gets- all- over- everything -even in- your -mouth- snow). It’s still sitting in the rubbermaid containers downstairs for the third year in a row. I’m kinda over it.

All three of my christmas cactus are in bloom in the kitchen window…

The keeping room mantle.. ask me how much I love those battery operated candles..

Some new recipes I will try

this year –

Canoli Cheesecake!

Ingredients
7 oz pkg cannoli shells
3 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
2 tablespoons sugar
4 cups whole milk ricotta cheese
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup whipping cream
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon orange zest
5 large eggs
1/3 cup mini chocolate chips
Confectionery sugar for sprinkling

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9 inch springform pan with
parchment. Crush canolli shells in a food processor, add butter and 2
tablespoons sugar and continue to pulse until med-fine crumbs. Press
crumbs firmly onto bottom of pan. Bake 10 minutes. Let cool.

Beat ricotta cheese, remaining sugar and flour in bowl of electric
mixer on medium until well blended. Add whipping cream, vanilla and
zest; mix well. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing just until blended after
each addition. Pour over crust.
Bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes,
then sprinkle top with the chocolate chips delicately, pressing chips in
lightly. Continue to bake 10 more minutes or until center is almost
set. Run knife around rim of pan to loosen cake. Cool before removing
rim of pan. Refrigerate 4 hours or more. Before serving sprinkle with
confectionery sugar. Top with whipped cream if desired. Store leftovers
in refrigerator, serves 10.

I’ve been told by a reliable source that this is very easy to make and delicious.

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recipe and photo courtesy laurenslatest.com

Christmas Funfetti Cake Batter Truffles

Yield: 24 small

Ingredients:

1 cup white cake mix
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon Christmas sprinkles + more for decoration
1 1/2 cups white chocolate chips or vanilla almond bark

Directions:

In a large bowl, whisk cake mix, flour and sugar. Stir in melted butter, vanilla, milk and sprinkles. Mixture should be moist and be able to hold its shape easily when formed. Using a cookie scoop, form mixture into even balls and refrigerate 20-30 minutes.
In the mean time, melt chocolate in a double boiler or slowly in the microwave. Using a fork, drop one of the cake batter truffles into the chocolate and roll around to coat. Tap off the excess gently and transfer to cookie sheet lined with wax paper. Top with more sprinkles, if desired.

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OREO PEPPERMINT CRUNCH COOKIES

see photo and recipe credit above

Ingredients

1 box white cake mix (15.25 oz.)(I use Pillsbury)

1 stick butter, melted (8 Tbsp.)

1 egg

1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 ounces cream cheese, softened

1 cup Oreo cookie chunks

1 cup Andes Peppermint Crunch pieces

1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

Instructions

Combine the cake mix, melted butter, egg, and extracts. Beat until a soft dough forms. Add the cream cheese and beat in gently until combined. Stir in the peppermint crunch pieces and chocolate chips first. Then gently stir in the cookie pieces by hand being careful not to break up the cookie more. Refrigerate dough for at least 30 minutes.
Roll the dough into 36 balls. Bake on a cookie sheet at 350 degrees for 9 minutes. Do not over bake. The cookies will be very soft and look undone. Let them sit on the hot cookie sheet for 2 minutes, then gently remove them with a spatula to a piece of wax paper on the counter.
Very gently tap the tops of the cookies with the bottom of the spatula to even out the tops. Let them sit until completely cool. Store in a sealed container. Makes 36 cookies.

Notes

I like to use a Silpat to bake these cookies. It helps to keep them from spreading too much, but it isn’t necessary.

Has Christmas thrown up at your house yet? If you care to share some of your favorite holiday recipes, or some new ones!.. please paste a link in the comments section below…

Winterizing

We had a lovely Thanksgiving day here at This Old House with the kids and my parents. As most of you know… you cook and clean for two days and the entire meal is consumed in about 15 minutes. Permit me to brag for a minute? My pies were divine and not hard to put together, so I’m going to share the recipes with you….

I’ve seen some awfully pretty pies… mine are not so fussy though.

Their taste makes up for the lack of eye candy 🙂

Kate the Country Girls Favorite Apple Pie recipe HERE

The only things I did different were.. I used four different kinds of apples..

Honeycrisp, Empire, Macoun and Pink Lady

And I used Pillsbury pie crust you simply roll out.

It might be cheating, but boy it sure came out good regardless.

The most decadent chocolate pie EVER recipe HERE

One serious game of Uno

My son announced during dinner last night that in just 16 hours or so our house was going to look
like Christmas threw up in it. TSK!

And.. I promised a Bunny Tale…

There once were two young bunnies….Their names were Cloud and Harley. It was hoped that they were both the same sex so we wouldn’t have MORE bunnies shortly after. I noticed a particular behavior not too long ago that meant they were either gay (not that there’s anything wrong with that).. or heterosexual.. but it was important to know WHICH. So off to the vet we went. Turns out Cloud is a girl and Harley is a boy.

It’s much easier to neuter a boy than spay a girl bunny.

So Harley went under the knife, much to his chagrin.

Meanwhile.. back at the Hutch…

We’ve had some very cold nights already and I couldn’t

stand the thought of those bunnies out there with the wind coming down off

the hill and into their hutch. They use the side rooms as a bathroom only,

go figure. So I clean that out daily and stuffed one of the outside compartments

with lots of hay, which they tunnel in to keep warm. I also cover

the hutch at night with two old waterproof horse blankets.

This seems to be keeping them comfortable.

Nextdoor in the coop, the girls have a water heater and a red flood lamp that keeps the temps above freezing in their coop at night. This seems to work better than an actual heat lamp, with not as intense a heat source, but enough to keep them comfortable. Not everyone feels this is necessary, but it sure makes me feel better and the critters seem happy and look healthy.

If you’ve got outdoor animals, what precautions do you take to keep them

safe and warm in winter months? I have yet to figure out how to keep

the rabbits water from freezing during the day.

Sunny Disposition

If I ask you what comes to your mind first when you think of a cheerful flower, I bet many of you will say the Sunflower. My mom and a group she is affiliated with would agree.. and this year they gave out sunflower seeds to anyone in town who would like to grow them. The idea was to spread sunshiney cheer throughout the town and come together at the end of the season to award prizes in several catagories ranging from largest flower to best arrangement, single flower, photography, etc. The celebraton took place on Saturday and right now there are sunflowers growing at the circle, the gas station, the elementary school, Parmelee Farm, This Old House.. the retirement community up the road.. and many resident gardens as well.

It’s a beautiful thing..this spreading of sunshine, don’t you think? I’m hoping next year participation doubles. These lovely folks shared a recipe the first selectwoman created just for this occasion. It is delicious and unique!

One of the few that actually came up in my garden this year…

Good Family and Good Food

Two necessary ingredients for a nourished life.

We spent some time with family and friends this labor day weekend along with some seriously good food. A dear neighbor gave me this recipe 20 years ago and it’s still a hit with my crowd, so I made it to bring along to a family picnic.

I also found it online so I don’t have to type it out!

Pillsbury Antipasto Squares.. recipe HERE. Easy to make, a crowd pleaser for sure.

The Vineyard Crew, remember them?

I’d post more of the family here, but one of the chief indians did not like

their pictures, so you’ll have to settle for just us.

It’s a new day all – make it a good one!

MV scalloped potatoes and Macs Oreo Truffles

Last year when we were on the Vineyard and had dinner at our favorite waterfront restaurant, the Atlantic – they served the most delectable scalloped potatoes. I asked if the Chef would mind giving me the secret to the divine combination of cheeses in his recipe. The waitress returned to our table and said just this…. Gruyere, smoked Gouda and heavy cream.

Aha!… so with just that information when I returned home I tried it for myself. WOW is this a delicious scalloped potato recipe.. goes with so many meals. We ordered it again this year and it was still just as good.

MV Atlantic Au Gratin Potatoes

So here’s what I do… it’s not a precise recipe, you’ll have to wing it some, but if you’ve made scalloped potatoes before, you’ll do just fine.

Slice your peeled potatoes (six to eight) really thin (I use yukon gold or Idaho baking potatoes) Slice a big sweet yellow onion really thin too. Butter the bottom of a baking dish and preheat oven to 375.

In a saucepan heat and stir the following ingredients until cheese has melted and the sauce is smooth: fresh grated Gruyere cheese, grated Smoked Gouda cheese, approx. 2 cups of heavy cream, about a 2 cups of chicken broth.. a little butter. Salt and pepper to taste. I use lots of cheese to make the sauce rich and creamy.

Put first layer of potatoes slices in bottom of baking dish.. then add a layer of sliced onion.. pour about 1/3 of the cheese sauce over that layer. Then placed next layers of potatoes and onion.. pour 1/3 of cheese sauce over that. Then place last layer of potatoes and pour remaining cheese sauce over the top. Place in oven and bake until golden brown on top and potatoes are soft throughout. (insert fork to test). Approximately 50 minutes. But keep an eye on it, temps and oven performance vary.

Now for the oreo truffles… my son’s girlfriend, who is just a delight and I’m going to embarrass her right here by saying that, makes these awesome Oreo Truffles… they are super easy to make and super delicious too. Recipe HERE.

Easy like Sunday Morning

I’ve got that song on my mind now, don’t ya know. Are you singing it too? HERE if you want the lyrics and song – one of my favorites from more youthful days-

ANYWAY.. that wasn’t what I was getting at. I’ve got two super easy cake recipes for you, because we could all use a little cake from our friends. I get by with a little cake from my friends... Now how many of you are humming THAT tune… another of my favorites. 🙂 Now I’m just being silly.

SO.. the easy cake recipes!

First up is a pineapple dump cake that my blog friend Sally posted. SERIOUSLY YUMMY and so freak’n easy. It was devoured in just a few hours at my house. Nothing left for the next day.

Preheat oven to 350.

Grease or spray a medium glass baking pan.

Combine one box of Angelfood Cake mix (just the mix)

and 1 large can of crushed pineapple in a bowl.

Pour into prepared glass pan and bake for approx. 25 minutes

and top is golden brown.

Let cool and top with your choice of whipped cream.

Delicious, light and easy! Perfect for summer dessert.

This next one I have not tried yet, but it looks like a winner.

One Bowl Apple Cake

Ingredients:
2 eggs
1 3/4 cups sugar…
2 heaping teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 cup oil
6 medium Gala or Fuji or Honey Crisp apples
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, mix the eggs, sugar, cinnamon and oil. Peel and slice the apples and add to mixture in bowl (coating as you go to keep apples from turning brown.) Mix together the baking soda and flour and add to the ingredients in the bowl. Mix well (best with a fork) until all of the flour is absorbed by the wet ingredients. Pour mixture into a greased one 9×13 or two 9″ round pans. Bake for approximately 55 minutes.

Enjoy!

Three new recipes for the keepers file

We had steady rain all day on the 4th, picnic postponed until later today. So what’s a girl to do? COOK! I tried three new things and all came out terrific. They are also easy to prepare and not horrible for your health either.

Chocolate Covered Strawberries… buy some good sized strawberries.. wash and dry. For the red white and blues…. Melt white chocolate and dip strawberries in melted white chocolate, then dip in blue sugar sprinkles. Place on wax paper till dry and chocolate has hardened again. place on decorative plate and keep in refrigerator until ready to serve. This is a fun project to do with kids as long as you supervise the melting of the chocolate.

Betty Crockers Buffalo Chicken Casserole – YUM!!! Recipe HERE

These tomatoes are absolutely delicious and good for you too. Marinate sliced tomatoes with balsamic vinegar for 4-6 hours. Bake at 350 for about 7 minutes or a little tender. (I skipped that step and they were fine). Meanwhile, sauté spinach and garlic with a dash of salt. Put spinach on top of tomatoes and sprinkle with cheese of your choice (I used fresh mozzerella) and broil til cheese is golden!..just about five -7 minutes at most. Delicious!!

Icebox Cake

I had no idea what Icebox Cake was until I married my husband and his family presented it at someone’s birthday celebration. Apparently it was a favorite and once I had a piece I could see the appeal. There aren’t many recipes easier than this…

What’s needed:

a box of Graham Crackers – I use Nabisco Original
2 boxes of chocolate pudding mix – the kind you cook.
Milk for the pudding cooking – 8 cups needed for four boxes of pudding.
2 boxes vanilla pudding mix –
1 or two ripe bananas

How to assemble:

In large glass baking dish, place a layer of graham crackers on the bottom. Cook your vanilla pudding according to package directions, let it cool a little and then pour it on top of the first layer of grahams, gently… or the grahams will slide around. Then slice a banana thin and place the slices all over the top of the vanilla pudding layer. Add another layer of graham crackers, cook the chocolate pudding, allow it to cool some and pour on top. Crush a few remaining grahams and sprinkle across the top. Chill for atleast several hours in the refridge. Use a spatula to cut out squares … enjoy!

Apparently there are many versions of ice box cake. If you have your own version and care to share, please do so in the comments section, either via link or brief description.

Here’s a link to another kind, just as easy, completely different ingredients.. I might give it a go one of these days….just forget about the calorie counting for these desserts.. sometimes you just gotta do what you gotta do.

Ask me how much I love Spaghetti Squash

As a pasta lover, one of the most difficult things to give up in my quest to go gluten free and less carb addicted was giving up Pasta. There are so many things I used to make for my family that involve pasta and bread. The kids still indulge now and then, but they can well afford it. The husband and I really want to avoid it in an effort to shed the extra pounds and in my case, get rid of the gluten issues in my body.

SO.. am so very thrilled to have discovered through FB the wonders of spaghetti squash. Can’t believe I’ve never heard of or tried this before, but folks… I’m telling you… it’s delicious! and it’s a great substitute for pasta! AND… it’s so easy to make and good for you too! * Spaghetti squash is beloved among those who are watching their carbs, as
it is higher in nutrients and lower in carbs and calories than pasta.*

Here’s what I’ve done with it so far, and it was gone so fast you could use the term inhaled... even by my finicky eating son.

You buy a few squash at the grocery store, I think they’re common… and I needed three to feed my family and have enough. You wash them, cut them in half length wise, scoop out the seeds – not unlike pumpkin guts – place them cut face down on a cookie sheet and bake for 25 minutes or so at 350 degrees. The skin begins to turn soft when they are done. Take them out of the oven, allow to cool some, then take a fork and literally scratch the insides, which immediately make spaghetti! Then add the sauce of your choice. I made my favorite Pesto… recipe below…

before removing the “guts”

My favorite Pesto recipe

2 firmly packed ups of basil leaves

1/2 cup olive oil

2 tbs pine nuts or slivered almonds

2 cloves (or more!) of garlic, minced

1 tsp salt

1/2 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese

3 tbs butter cut into pieces

Place all in a food processor and blend until smooth and creamy.

If you are cooking regular pasta, add a small amount of the cooked pasta

water to the sauce, mix well and serve.

If using with spaghetti squash, I added a few tbs of hot water to give it

a better texture.

YUM!

Niether rain nor sleet nor snow…

Farm folks are like postal workers… whatever the weather, we still have to get out there and do our job. The animals depend on it. I often think of all the animals who don’t have responsible care givers, those who will go hungry and cold today because a humans ignorance is letting them down. When I think of all the animals out there who suffer, it breaks my heart to know I can’t help them all. I am so grateful to those of you who take care of the animals in your charge, and extend a hand to those less fortunate. Someday I will figure out how to reach more of them. For now.. I’ve got my crew to care for.

As much as I would have liked to sit at this computer with a cuppa Joe this morning admiring the falling flakes, the horses and chickens were waiting for the sound of crunching footsteps, ensuring their morning feed. When they hear us coming up the hill, the chickens start clucking and Opie begins his rhythmic banging on the stall wall to hurry me up, I suppose.

Thankfully, this morning my assistant barn manager was available to help, as her day job was not accessible due to the storm.

I’ve done this series of iPhone shots in B & W, because that’s our world this morning, not much color.