Asian Chopped Salad

My little food blog has officially reached over 1,000 views!  WOW!  Thank you for reading my blog!! And for all the blog spam creators (yes, there are weirdos who write code to spam blogs so you think you get more hits than you really do) I'm happy to get 1,000 views whether all those clicks are real or not!  ;-)

Now for the Asian Chopped Salad ...

I love to cook but sometimes I get lazy and just don't feel like doing anything too creative (maybe I'm wasting my food creativity time on blogging, oops!).  When a lazy day rolls around I rely on quick & easy recipes (or there's always frozen pizza).  The Asian Chopped Salad from Sam's Club is one of my go-to EASY recipes.  I hope you're not laughing at me right now because I'm thinking/hoping I'm not the only one that has lazy cooking days.  Also, my blog has no rules so I don't have to create a new recipe every time I write an entry or maybe I'm just adding to my laziness by making a loop-hole to blog about a bagged salad, lol.  Anyways, everything you need is in the package and I simply add two grilled chicken breasts to the mix.  The bag contains cabbage, carrots, ginger sesame dressing, celery, almonds and wonton noodles for less than $3 ($2.58 to be exact).  Its super simple, super easy & healthy too.  For those of you who don't belong to Sam's Club, no worries, Dole makes an Asian Salad Kit that can be found at the grocery store.  Oh and one more thing - Ken's Steak House Salad Dressings makes a great Asian dressing if you feel like the little dressing packet in the kit isn't enough for you.

INGREDIENTS
1 bag of Asian Chopped Salad
2 chicken breasts, grilled & chopped

Mix everything in a bowl and serve!  Serves 2 people.

 

Oatmeal Cranberry White Chocolate Cookies

There's a little chill in the air this week as we get ready to begin the fall season.  I put my fall place mats on the kitchen table and exchanged a summer flower arrangement for one with fall colors.  I'm sad that summer has come to an end but also excited to begin a new season because fall brings with it all the birthdays of our family ... my husband, daughter and myself are all fall babies.  Burgundy is one of my favorite fall colors and it makes me think of the color of cranberries in an oatmeal cookie recipe that is perfect for fall.  The brown sugar and honey in these cookies make them chewy while the cranberries and white chocolate chips add great flavor and texture,  finally dust them with salt (if you dare) and you will keep people coming back for more.

INGREDIENTS
2 sticks of butter or margarine, softened
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tbs honey
2 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 cups oats
5 oz dried cranberries
2/3 cup white chocolate chips
coarse sea salt (optional)

Beat butter & sugar.  Add eggs, vanilla and honey mixing well.  Combine dry ingredients and add to the bowl.  Mix well.  Add cranberries and chocolate chips, stir until combined.  Refrigerate for 1-2 hours.

Preheat oven to 350'F.  Drop cookie dough by 2 tablespoonfuls onto cookie sheet, dust with sea salt (optional) and bake for 10-12 minutes.  Let cool on cookie sheet for 5 minutes then transfer to cooling rack to cool completely.

Makes 3 dozen cookies.

Recipe adapted from Food.com

Crab Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

This is the entree I prepared last week for our anniversary dinner.  The original recipe came from a Pampered Chef " Celebrate" cookbook*.  I made a few changes including the addition of lump crab meat and they turned out to be DELICIOUS!!  Some recipes are considered "guest worthy"and this is one of them!

We had a nice evening celebrating our anniversary and continued the celebration Friday evening with a visit back to Hotel Hershey (the scene of the crime a.k.a. wedding venue).  They did some major renovations to the Circular Dining Room including the name which is now The Circular.  We were very impressed!  The dress code is more casual...men are no longer required to wear jackets (although most still did and I even saw one guy in a tuxedo). They built a bar in the middle of the room and have some very talented mixologists on staff.  If you're looking for a romantic night out or if you're a foodie, this is the place to go...the food and service is outstanding and the view is just as beautiful as it was 8 years ago.

Okay, back to cooking at home...these portobellos are as impressive as anything you'd find in a fine restaurant, they're simple to prepare and take less than 30 minutes to bake.  I served them with sauteed spinach and pinot grigio.  One piece of advice is to make sure you buy lump crab meat ... its okay to substitute less expensive crab for dips and other recipes but this is the star of the show and you don't want to mess with the taste, texture and look.  Hope you enjoy them!

INGREDIENTS
2 Portobello mushroom caps (about 4 inches in diameter), remove stems
2 teaspoons Italian salad dressing
1/2 cup chopped cherry tomatoes
1/3 pound lump crab meat (you can use the other 2/3 pound to make crab cakes another night)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil leaves
1 garlic clove, pressed
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese
2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon panko bread crumbs

1.  Preheat oven to 425'F.  Brush mushroom caps with salad dressing and place them gill side up in a baking dish.

2.  Chop mushroom stems, cherry tomatoes and basil.  Place in a bowl and add the pressed garlic, cheese and bread crumbs.  Mix gently.  Fold in the crab meat ... do NOT over stir!

3.  Scoop the mixture evenly into the mushroom caps until its piled high on top.  Bake for 18-20 minutes.



*Recipe adapted from Pampered Chef

The Motivating Menu

A few months ago I purchased a white board for in the kitchen.  It immediately turned into a "Menu board" and it has been motivating me to cook ever since. This little board begs to be written on in the morning and is a cooking cheerleader as you pass by it throughout the day so I highly recommend this kitchen addition if you are looking for some culinary motivation.

Today my husband and I are celebrating our 8 year anniversary which is a BIG DEAL considering he almost filed for divorce when he read my OKRA Secret blog entry!!!  Just kidding!  Marriage can be hard work sometimes and so can menu planning ...not knowing what to make from day to day, pairing side dishes with entrees, pairing courses and wines, etc.   I don't always have a super creative menu with multiple courses, sometimes its just an entree and side dish and on lazy days it might even say "Hawk's Club" (ha, that's an inexpensive alternative when we don't feel like cooking...its a restaurant down the road from our house) but no matter what it says, it feels good to have a dinner "game plan" and on the days it does have multiple courses it makes me feel focused.

Tonight's menu starts with a champagne toast to celebrate our anniversary. Then we will have Caesar salads followed by crab stuffed portobellos paired with sauteed fresh spinach and for dessert warm chocolate pudding cake (if successful will be like the hot lava cakes at restaurants).  I'm excited to be cooking a special meal for my husband tonight and happy to be celebrating not just these past 8 years but our future together.  I can't thank him enough for allowing me to be a stay-at-home-mom which at the same time has allowed me to spend more time getting creative in the kitchen and sharing a food blog with you!  Slainte (cheers)!!

What's on YOUR menu tonight??

Mojito Cupcakes

The mojito is very easily one of the most popular summer cocktails.  It is said to be the national drink of Cuba and is made with white rum, sugar, lime juice, mint and club soda.  These ingredients paired together make it a very refreshing summer drink.  What's even better than a refreshing summer cocktail???  A CUPCAKE version of a summer cocktail!  No need to sell me on this idea, I was ready to bake these babies the moment I saw them online!!  I only wish I found this recipe at the beginning of the summer versus the end of August ... my apologies!

Talk about a great cupcake!  These are light, moist & airy with a hint of mint and lime, not too sweet and just right for summer.  There's a bunch of steps but its well worth your time and effort. Just think, you can bring these to a Labor Day picnic this coming weekend and be the hit of the party!  

Cupcakes

1 box of white cake mix

1 cup lemon-lime seltzer water

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup white rum

3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint leaves

2 teaspoons finely grated lime peel

1 tablespoon lime juice

3 egg whites

To Brush the Cupcakes

3 mint leaves

2 tablespoons white rum

Frosting

1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, at room temperature

4 1/4 cups powdered sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons lime juice

3 tablespoons white rum

1 teaspoon finely grated lime peel  

1) Make the cupcakes:  Heat oven to 350'F.  Fill 24 muffin cups with paper liners.  In a large bowl beat the cupcake ingredients with an electric mixer on low for 30 seconds then on medium for 2 minutes.  Divide batter evenly among muffin cups and bake for 18 minutes.  Cool on cooling rack.  

2) Brush the cupcakes:  muddle mint in the rum.  Drain with a sieve and brush over the top of the cupcakes.  

3) Make the frosting: Whip the butter with an electric mixer on medium speed for 5 minutes.  Reduce to low speed and gradually add the sugar. Add lime juice and rum and mix until fluffy.  This makes enough frosting to pile it high on the cupcakes.  Pipe onto the cupcakes and garnish with a lime wedge and mint leaf.

Recipe adapted from  Betty Crocker & Brown Eyed Baker

Blueberry Crumb Bars

I just got back from a relaxing week at the beach.  It was also a week away from my kitchen, a week away from baking, house cleaning & laundry.  We stayed in a beach house in Delaware right on the beach with two other families.  Breakfast went from early risers to late sleepers and only about 3-4 of us eating at the same time.  Dinner, on the other hand, was a sight to behold of 11 people all wanting to be fed at once.  It was interesting for me to see my daughter (an only child) in the mix of 5 other children...she fit right in and for a week it was as if she had a bunch of siblings.  Anyway, we got home yesterday and I spent hours doing laundry and today was a much needed trip to the grocery store.  ALDI had blueberries on sale for $1.29...awesome deal considering they cost $3.99 at Giant. Well, needless to say, the blueberries jumped right into my cart.  I was thinking of maybe using them in pancakes but I remembered seeing a blog a few weeks ago about blueberry crumb bars so I searched for the recipe.  This recipe is on a bunch of different sites actually but the one I remembered seeing was on Brown Eyed Baker.com.  I didn't change a thing except that I cut the recipe in half (the recipe below is the full version).

It was so enjoyable to be back in my own kitchen after being away and although I did some cooking on vacation I was anxious to do some baking.  My daughter helped to stir the ingredients and even stole a few blueberries.  The bars turned out perfect and I served them with vanilla ice cream.  We used forks but they are sturdy enough to pick up with your fingers like a brownie.  I was thinking of doing low-carb this week but I'm guessing I won't be able to resist having one of these with my coffee tomorrow morning.  Happy baking!

INGREDIENTS:For the Crumb:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
1 egg

For the Blueberry Filling:
4 cups fresh blueberries
½ cup granulated sugar
4 teaspoons cornstarch
Juice of one lemon

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9x13-inch baking pan.

2. Make the Crumb: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Use a fork or pastry cutter to blend in the butter, and then the egg (the dough will be crumbly). Press half of dough into the prepared pan.

3. In a separate large bowl, whisk together the sugar, cornstarch and lemon juice. Gently fold in the blueberries to coat evenly with the sugar mixture. Spread the blueberry mixture evenly over the crust, drizzling any excess juice in the bowl over the filling. Crumble the remaining dough evenly over the blueberry layer.

4. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until the top is light golden brown. Cool completely before cutting into squares. Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container or wrapped in plastic wrap at room temperature or in the refrigerator.

Original Recipe

Kath's OKRA Secret

This is not a recipe for Okra.  This is not even a recipe for anything really... its simply a food secret I wanted to share. You're welcome!

Did you ever have a piece of chocolate candy or peanut butter cup you just wanted to keep for yourself?  ...a little hidden treasure just for YOU that you can enjoy ALONE??

Maybe I'm the only one but I never liked sharing. Perhaps its because I don't have any siblings close to my age or maybe I'm really selfish like the birds from "Nemo."  Getting married was a real eye-opener in the sharing department especially since I have always been the person responsible for grocery shopping.  I guess I always viewed the items I bought as mine (is that wrong?).  Eight years later, I tolerate sharing but there's still a big part of me that doesn't like it especially when I have, for example, a diet coke chilling in the refrigerator and I go to get it only to find out its already been consumed by someone else (husband - guilty as charged).

We shouldn't have to share everything in our life, right??  Every once in awhile its okay to be selfish and have a treat that's just for YOU!  But where could you possibly hide something from the rest of the people in your house before they get their hands on it and eat it before you have the chance?  The answer my friends is OKRA!  This is my "Outstandingly-Kreative-Really-Awesome Secret."  It doesn't have to be Okra ... any vegetable that your family dislikes will work.

Step 1:  Purchase a bag of your family's least favorite vegetable from the frozen section of your grocery store.
Step 2:  Open the bag and discard the contents.
Step 3:  Wipe out the inside of the bag with a paper towel.
Step 4:  Refill with your favorite chocolate candies and close with a chip clip.
Step 5:  Place bag in the freezer.

Husbands and children will NEVER look in the frozen Okra bag. Never, ever!  Your candy will be safely hidden until you're ready to treat yourself to something that's just for you.  Believe me on this one ... my chocolates in this picture survived MONTHS from my husband and teenage stepkids. Time will tell if my husband reads my blog!