Make This! Egg Salad

I love  a good egg salad. I've been substituting sour cream for mayonnaise for years and thinks it's so delicious.

I found a new recipe that I was meaning to try and I'm so glad I did.  I found the recipe in an older Sunset magazine and snapped a photo of it.

I grated the eggs on a box grater instead of using an egg slicer and the result is a prettier salad.

Mint & Egg Salad

4 large hard boiled eggs
1-2 cups slivered mint leaves
1 cup sliced green onions
2 tsp red pepper flakes
2 tbs. olive oil
juice of 1/2 a lemon
*I added 1/2 a tsp of cayenne pepper and several shakes of Tabasco sauce as Omid and I like spicy food.

I toasted some bread, added a base of arugula and then a generous dollop of the egg salad. Omid really liked it so I'll be making this recipe again.

Make This! Scotch Eggs

These are so easy and delicious.

Perfect for a grab 'n go breakfast (after the initial prep/bake)!

Boil however many eggs you want to make. Omid usually hard boils one dozen eggs. We use the 3 lb. Jimmy Dean sausage roll from Costco. Measure 1/3 cup of sausage per egg.

 Flatten the sausage into a patty and form around peeled eggs.

 Roll the sausage & egg in seasoned breadcrumbs.

Bake at 375* for 20-25 minutes. Flip over and bake for another 20-25 minutes.

Make This! Mason Jar Lid Mini Pies & Blueberry Hand Pies

I found these cute mason jar lid pies last 4th of July & had to make them again this year. Omid and I went blueberry picking on the 3rd and picked 20 pounds of blueberries. I baked the mason jar lid pies and then decided to try to make mini hand pies. I used the same filling recipe as Living the Gourmet uses for the mason jar lid pies.  I like my own pie crust recipe (from my sister B) and used that instead as it's super easy to make(in a mixer!) and tastes delicious on it's own. The recipe is below.

For the mason jar lid pies, place the lid upside down in the ring.

I used a 4" round biscuit cutter and cut out an additional 1" beyond with a knife to fit the dough in the rings. Last year, I pre-baked the pie shells, but they shrunk too much. This year, I did not pre-bake the shells. The pie crust was baked all the way through and most importantly, no shrinkage.  One pie crust recipe was enough for 6 mini pies.

For the hand pies, definitely double the pie crust and filling recipe. You will be glad you did! 

I used the 4" biscuit cutter. I was only able to get about 4 blueberries in each pie, as my berries from Meadowglenn Farm are each about the size of a quarter! No joke!

Once filled, brush egg white on the edges and pinch together, then seal with a fork. Place one slit in the top for steam to escape. I also brushed beaten egg yolk on top (it was leftover from the egg white and I didn't want to waste it).  

Bake on parchment paper at 400* for 15-20 minutes. Brush the vanilla glaze on the hand pies while they are still warm.

*Note:The last time I made these, I pre-cut all the pie shells in advance, then filled and baked the pies.  This made the whole process move a lot quicker. :)

Pie Crust (for one pie crust - double the recipe for a two crust pie)

1 1/4 cups flour

1 Tbs. sugar

1/4 tsp. salt

3 Tbs. ice cold water

8 Tbs (one stick) cold butter, cut into 16 pieces

In a stand mixer, mix flour, sugar & salt. Add the butter & toss into the flour mixture until coated. Mix on medium low until the mixture resembles coarse cornmeal with the butter pieces no larger than small peas. Add the water & mix until the dough just comes together. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap & let the dough rest in the refrigerator for 15 minutes before using. 

Blueberry Filling via Living the Gourmet

1 cup blueberries

1 tablespoon vanilla - I only used 1 teaspoon

2 tablespoons brown sugar- I only used 1 TBS as my berries were super sweet already.

1 tablespoon cornstarch

Vanilla Glaze

1 cup powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp lemon juice (or more to thin glaze)

Make This! Broccoli Cheese Soup

How are you all holding up? This stay at home order makes me want to bake, bake, bake. I'm not though, as then I would eat, eat, eat.  

Yesterday was cold and rainy so soup was the natural choice for dinner.  After seeing what we had in the fridge that needed to be eaten soon,(Costco bag of broccoli) I decided to go through the blog archives to see what yummy recipes I hadn't made in while.

I located this recipe from a post dated February 17, 2011.  This soup is a really fantastic comfort food. I changed the recipe last night: cup of grated Dubliner cheese, left out the carrots,  and used whipping cream instead of half & half.  Make it! Your family will love it!

Broccoli Cheese Soup

1/2 onion, chopped

1 T butter (for sauteeing onions)

1/4 c flour

1/4 cup butter, melted

1 pint half & half (I used heavy whipping cream)

2 cups chicken stock

1/2 pound fresh broccoli, chopped

1 cup carrots, shredded

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese

1 can diced green chiles

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1 tsp cayenne pepper. (I added because I like spicy food)

Sautee onion in 1 Tbs butter over medium heat until onions turn translucent. Set aside.

Cook the 1/4 cup melted butter and flour, whisking over medium heat for 3-4 minutes. Slowly add half & half while continuing to whisk. Add chicken stock while continuing to whisk. Let simmer 20 minutes.

Add broccoli, carrots & onions. Cook over low heat until veggies are tender. Add salt & pepper.

Pour the mixture into a food processor and blend until smooth. Return to the pot over low heat. Add cheese. Stir in nutmeg & serve. Enjoy!

A Recipe and A Sign

My sister B called me today asking if I had a specific recipe our Dad used to make. I looked through my recipe box and was unable to locate it. I remembered that whenever I wanted to make this recipe, I would just call our Dad and ask him how to make it.  I was so sad. One of his signature comfort food recipes and none of us written it down.

Thankfully, I thought to look through this blog index and wouldn't you know...I had written it down and shared it on the blog!

Better yet, our Dad had left a comment. He passed a little over two years ago, and to see this today was such a gift!! #signfromabove

This recipe isn't healthy, but it is delicious!

Super Duper Chicken
4 chicken breasts
1 can cream of chicken (or cream of anything soup)
3/4 soup can of white wine
4 slices Swiss cheese
croutons
slivered almonds (optional)

Grease a 9x13 Pyrex. Place chicken breasts in Pyrex. Put Swiss cheese on top of chicken. Mix soup & wine together. Pour over chicken. Sprinkle croutons & almonds. Bake at 350* for 1 1/4 - 1 1/ hours.

NOTE: I always make my own croutons for this dish. They taste much better! Use lots of butter if you make your own.

30th Anniversary, Paint Your Pet & Make This!

Three posts in one!

On March 30, we celebrated our 30th wedding anniversary! Yay us!

Friends Tom and Katie were in town. The four of us ate at El Gaucho.

So much food, so much fun!

Fun fact: the four of us are WSU love stories! GO COUGS!

Chocolate crème brulee and bananas foster for dessert

Tom & Katie brought us a beautiful bouquet for our anniversary.

We extended the visit to brunch the next day. The weather was so nice, we spent the entire day outside.

Naseem stopped by for a quick visit between trips. We had always wanted to go to a Paint your Pet night at The Loaded Brush. Lucky for us, one was happening during her visit.

It was worth every penny and did not disappoint. 

You just email photos of your pets, they are pre-sketched and you do the rest.

Sweet Pea!

Look at that face! #Remykins

I really didn't want to paint over the sketch, as I thought it was perfect with just this green background.

The instructors did a great job of capturing Remy's personality.

Artist hard at work!

I asked for help (several times).

The instructor, Nathan, was awesome! He really encouraged us to try our best 

and stepped in when asked and fixed mistakes.

#artists

We loved this class so much, we will definitely do it again!!!!

Nas and I always bake something when she visits. Omid and I are trying to cut down on sweets. I decided we should try to make arepas for breakfast.  They were super easy! We followed the recipe on The Minimalist Baker's website.  I found the arepas flour at Walmart. We doubled the recipe so Matty could have some to take home (they are not only gluten free, but Vegan too).

Just mix warm water, corn flour and salt.  The dough should resemble sugar cookie dough. The dough has to rest for 5 minutes. Pat out into desired sizes.

After pan frying for 3 minutes per side, bake the arepas for 15 minutes (to cook the insides).

We made arepas benedicts. Arepas, pulled pork, avocado, poached egg, lime-cumin crema sauce. They were not only delicious, but so filling too! Make them! You won't be disappointed!

Make This!! Corn Fritters

Make This: Corn Fritters

I found this recipe on Smitten Kitchen's website this a.m.

I didn't have all the ingredients but improvised and used what I had on hand. They were absolutely fantastic! I'm happy the recipe makes a lot, as I'm looking forward to having these for breakfast tomorrow morning with a sunnyside egg on top!

Here is the link to Smitten Kitchen's recipe. My adapted version is below.

Corn Fritters adapted slightly from Smitten Kitchen

2 cans yellow corn, drained

4 bunches of green onions, chopped

1 cup arugula, chopped
1 red pepper, diced

1 cup grated cheddar cheese

3/4 tsp salt

1 rounded tsp coriander

1 rounded tsp cumin

1/2 tsp turmeric

1 tsp coarse ground pepper

1 tsp cayenne pepper

4 large eggs

1 cup, plus 2 Tbs flour

oil for frying

Drain corn and combine with pepper, herbs, cheese and spices.  Add eggs and mix well. Add flour & mix well.

Heat 2-3 Tbs of oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Scoop out corn mixture.  I used a 1/4 cup measuring cup to scoop out the fritters and they turned out large. Next time I would use the measuring cup, and only fill it halfway for smaller fritters. Fry the fritters about 3 minutes on each side (until very golden brown).  Drain on a paper towel. I did not add more salt after the fritters were finished as I felt they were seasoned enough. 

Enjoy!!

Make This!!

Make This: Cauliflower Couscous Salad

I absolutely positively love the recipe site, The Kitchn. So many great recipes on there. This salad is one of them. My changes are in red.

To minimize mess and save time, purchase a bag of cauliflower rice from Costco. I bought the bag of florets, but making the couscous made such a mess.

I also doubled the dressing as it didn't make enough the first time and lacked the punch I was looking for. Adding the cumin and cayenne pepper did just the trick! Make this salad. It's delicious! 

Mediterranean Cauliflower Couscous Salad Adapted slightly via The Kitchn 

Serves 4 to 6

• For the chickpeas:
• 1 cups
  (15-ounce) can chickpeas (1 1/2 cups), drained, rinsed, and patted completely dry I used two cans.
• 1 tablespoon
  olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon
  ground cumin double
• 1/4 teaspoon
  salt
• 1/8 teaspoon
  cayenne pepper double

• For the dressing: I doubled the dressing & added cumin and cayenne pepper
• 2 tablespoons
  freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1
  clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon
  Dijon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon
  salt
• 1/4 cup
  extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper

• For the salad:
• 1
  large head cauliflower, cut into florets I used one bag of Costco Cauliflower florets. The best bet would be to purchase cauliflower rice
• 1 1/2 cups
  cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2
  medium red onion, diced
• 1
  English cucumber, finely chopped
• 1 cup
  fresh parsley leaves, finely chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon
  red pepper flakes
• I left out the pine nuts (1/3 cup) and the Kalamata olives (1/3 cup)
• Salt and pepper

Roast the chickpeas: Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and heat to 400°F. Place all the chickpea ingredients in a medium bowl and toss to combine. Transfer to a rimmed parchment-lined baking sheet and spread into a single layer. Roast until slightly browned and crisp, stirring halfway through, 35 to 40 minutes total.

Make the dressing: Place the lemon juice, garlic, mustard, and salt in a small bowl and whisk to combine. Drizzle in the olive oil while whisking continuously. Taste and adjust seasonings if needed; set aside.

Make the salad: Place the cauliflower florets in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment (work in batches if needed). Pulse until the cauliflower reaches a fine, crumbled consistency. Be careful not to over process; you don't want to purée the cauliflower at all. 

Transfer the cauliflower to a large bowl. Add the remaining salad ingredients and toss to combine. Drizzle the dressing over the salad and toss to combine. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed. Top with the roasted chickpeas and serve.