SPEEDY SZECHWAN SHRIMP

Szechwan shrimp is supposed to be pretty spicy, but we are "heavy-spice" cowards, so I adjusted the heat WAY down on this recipe and it was still very tasty. It is nice, light and healthy and made a great Sunday meal served over my garden rice.

Peel and devein a pound of large shrimp and set aside.

In a bowl, mix the following and set aside.
4 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 teaspoons cornstarch
2 teaspoons honey
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (I used a scant 1/4 tsp.)
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger (I used some fresh ginger)

Heat 1 tablespoon of canola oil in a large skillet, over medium high heat and add 1/4 cup sliced green onions and 2 cloves of minced garlic. Saute the onions and garlic about 30 seconds then throw in the shrimp and saute them for a couple minutes or until pink. Stir in the sauce and cook until the sauce thickens up (it will just take a minute at most).

NOTE: Since I was sure that the sauce was going to be too spicey for hubby, I took the shrimp out of the sauce and put them under the broiler to crisp them up a little, but that's not necessary. The sauce was excellent tasting if you can handle the heat. I served these over garden rice.

GARDEN RICE
In a large sauce pan that has a tight fitting lid, saute half of a small sweet onion (diced) and half cup diced celery in 1 tablespoon butter or canola oil. Stir in one cup of raw long grained rice and coat the rice with the butter. Add one cup (diced) of your favorite veggies (I usually use a frozen mixed veggie) and one ear of corn sliced into one to two inch sections. Add 1 and 1/2 cups of chicken broth and 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper. Bring to boil, stir, put lid on, lower heat to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, turn off heat and let it sit for 5 minutes. Serve shrimp over garden rice.

NOTE: We love corn on the cob "coins" cooked in chicken broth right along with the rice and other veggies. It gives the corn a wonderful flavor.

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NO-BAKE CHOCOLATE CHEESECAKE

I made this for Father's Day. It is one of those recipes that is super quick to put together, looks and serves beautifully and everyone raves about it. It is super creamy, chocolate-y, ultra-smooth to the tongue and it has a chocolate chip cookie crust, what more can a person ask for?

 This recipe makes a nice thick cheesecake that is pretty enough for company!

(1) 16 & 1/2 ounce pkg. refrigerated chocolate chip cookie dough (or 2 cups of home made chocolate chip cookie dough) at room temperature.
(2) 8 ounce packages of cream cheese (room temperature)
(1) cup of white sugar
(4) one ounce packets of Nestle Toll House pre-melted chocolate (see note)
(2) 8 ounce containers of Cool Whip (thawed)

For the crust:
Preheat your oven to 375. Evenly spread the cookie dough into an ungreased 9" spring form pan (2 piece pan). Bake for 15 minutes or until lightly golden. Let this cool completely (leave it in the pan ).

For the filling:
With an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese, sugar and pre-melted chocolate until very well blended. Beat in the two containers of Cool Whip until you see an even color throughout the filling. Spoon the filling into the cooled crust. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

Frosting:
This does not have to be frosted, but it is pretty with either a drizzled frosting or a simple chocolate glaze & sprinkles.

NOTE: This recipe calls for Nestle Toll House Choco Bake which is a pre-melted chocolate. It comes in a box of eight, one ounce packets. I found it at Walmart, of all places, right with the other baking chocolate.
NOTE: Make sure the cookie dough and cream cheese are at room temperature.

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PEANUT BUTTER CAKE

I love recipes that are perfect the first time you try them; this peanut butter cake is one of those recipes. It is delicious warm or cold, it is more moist on day two AND it has an intense peanut butter taste and a peanut butter-honey frosting topped with mini-chocolate chips. It is sure to please kids and adults alike.

Our next door neighbor came over, today, on his new riding mower. I sent him home with several pieces of this cake wrapped in foil. He later told my husband that he drove the mower home in slow speed so he could eat two pieces of the cake as he put-putted his way back to their house. I think that is a pretty serious thumbs-up for this recipe, lol.

 2 and 1/4 CUPS ALL PURPOSE FLOUR
2 CUPS LIGHT BROWN SUGAR (packed)
1 CUP PEANUT BUTTER
1/2 CUP BUTTER (room temperature)
1 TEASPOON BAKING POWDER
1/2 TEASPOON BAKING SODA
1 and 1/4 CUPS MILK
2 TEASPOONS VANILLA EXTRACT
3 EGGS

Preheat your oven to 350 and grease and flour a 10 x 15 cake pan. In a large bowl, mix the first 4 ingredients with an electric mixer; blend at low speed until crumbly. Add the next 5 ingredients and blend at low speed until everything is wet, then beat at medium speed for 3 minutes.

Pour into prepared pan and bake, in the middle of your oven, for 35-40 minutes or until the toothpick test comes out clean.
Let the cake cool (in the pan) for 10 minutes, then spread the frosting on the hot cake (recipe follows) and sprinkle one cup of mini-chocolate chips over the frosting.
 
PEANUT BUTTER-HONEY FROSTING

1/2 CUP PEANUT BUTTER + 2 TABLESPOONS HONEY + 1 TEASPOON VANILLA EXTRACT + 2 CUPS POWDERED SUGAR + 4 to 5 TABLESPOONS MILK
Warm the peanut butter and honey in the microwave just until it gets soft and easy to stir, then add everything else and beat until smooth. Spread over hot cake and sprinkle with one cup of mini-chocolate chips.

NOTE: As you can see from my photo, I double the frosting (but I stick to the one cup of mini-chocolate chips).

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CANDIED APPLES

What says summer fun, more than candied apples? They are very easy to make (if you follow a few tips at the end of this post) and would be a nice addition to any summer birthday party, barbeque or even for a 4th of July picnic!

 The ingredients are very basic:

10 small (snack size) apples
10 popsicle sticks
2 cups white sugar
1 cup light Karo syrup
1 & 1/2 cups water
1/2 teaspoon cherry UNsweetened Kool Aid powder

Wash any wax or soil from the apples and thoroughly dry them (remove stems). Insert wooden stick into the stem end of the apple (push about half way into the apple).

Line a baking sheet with waxed paper and spray it with cooking spray (keep this close to your work station).

In a medium size, heavy-bottomed sauce pan, attach your candy thermometer and make sure that the glass tip is not setting on the bottom of the pan (it will give you a false reading). Put all of the candy ingredients in the pan and cook on medium high, stirring constantly, until it comes to a boil. DO NOT STIR THIS AFTER IT COMES TO A BOIL. Turn the heat down just a little, so that you have a nice gentle boil and then keep an eye on the thermometer. Cook until it hits 300 or hard crack stage; this can take up to 30 minutes, but on my stove it takes about 25. Keep a close eye on the candy after it reaches 285 because those last 15 degrees go faster than you think. DO NOT STIR!!

Remove the pan from the heat and work fast. Holding the apple by the stick, dip it into the pan (hold the pan at a tilt, so the candy will "pool". Twirl the apple and then let the candy drip off of the apple for a few seconds and then place on the prepared waxed paper. DON'T GET THIS STUFF ON YOUR SKIN!!!!! Apples will be hard and ready to use five to ten minutes after they are dipped. If you are going to add sprinkles or any decorations, you will have to add them with lightening speed because these cool off and become hard FAST (an extra person would be a big help if you are going to add sprinkles).
NOTE: Keep a bowl of ice water near your work station just in case you get some of this on your fingers (definitely not safe for younger kids).

NOTE: In the first stage of making the candy, try not to splash any liquid onto the sides of your pan (it can make crystals in the candy).

NOTE: I keep an electric frying pan, preheated to 200, at my work station. When the pan of candy comes off of the stove, I set it on the DRY, warm frying pan so that it doesn't cool down too fast and lengthens the amount of time you have to dip the apples.

NOTE: The best tip I can give you is to have EVERYTHING at your fingertips BEFORE you start dipping the apples. Once you are at that stage, you have zero time to run to the pantry and find something.
NOTE: Any candy left over can be poured out onto a pan that has been sprayed with cooking spray. When it's cooled, you can break it up and eat it (tastes like cherry life savers.

NOTE: There is a teaspoon of UNsweetened Kool Aid powder in each small envelope, so you can get two batches of candied apples per Kool Aid envelope (any flavor will work).

NOTE: Clean up can be a pain if you don't have a dishwasher. If you have a dishwasher, just put all of the stuff in the hot cycle.

NOTE: These are best eaten the day they are made. If you HAVE to make them a day ahead of time, do NOT cover them because the moisture from the apples will degrade the candy coating.

NOTE: Someone told me (I haven't tried it) that you can candy grapes, cherries and other small fruit (use their stems to hold onto instead of using a stick).

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THUMBPRINT COOKIES

My hubby is a cookie-aholic...he has to have cookies around! This classic cookie is his second favorite (right behind peanut butter). When the kids were little, I only made these around the holidays, however, since I find myself making a lot of jam in the summer, I've been making these more often. This batch was made with raspberry-red currant jam (both grow in the woods around our house).

1& 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup butter (room temperature)
1/3 cup white sugar
2 egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 egg whites, slightly beaten
3/4 cup finely chopped pecans or walnuts
1/3 cup favorite jam

Beat the butter for 30 seconds; add sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks and vanilla, mix well. Stir dry ingredients together and add to to butter mixture, beat until well blended.

Shape pieces of dough into one inch balls and coat them with egg whites and then roll them in chopped nuts. Place them on a UNgreased cookie sheet and use your finger to make an indentation in the center of the cookie (I know it says "thumbprint" but your finger works better lol). Set the cookie sheet in the fridge to chill for half hour or so (or freezer for 15 minutes).

Bake for 17-20 minutes in preheated 350 oven, or until golden. Cool on wire rack. When the cookies are cool, fill the depression with 1/4 teaspoon of your favorite jam.

Hubby's Cookie Jar Photo

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CHICKEN POT PIE

In my dictionary, Chicken Pot Pie is (should) be listed in the definition of comfort food. This recipe makes a 9x9 pie, packed with chicken, onions, celery, mushrooms, broccoli, red bell pepper, fresh green beans, white sauce and it is all baked together in a seasoned double crust.

2 cups of cooked chicken (bite size pieces)
1 tablespoon butter
2 cups of broccoli (bite size)
2 cups of mushrooms (sliced)
2 cups of fresh green beans (bite size)
1/2 cup red bell pepper (cut small)
1/2 cup celery (sliced thinly)
1/2 cup onion (chopped finely)
4 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons all purpose flour
2 heaping teaspoons chicken bullion granules
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 & 1/2 cups milk

When I make this recipe, I use boneless, skinless chicken thighs and cook them in the crockpot the night before (set on low & covered with chicken broth & salt and pepper). In the morning, I take the chicken out and cut it up and refrigerate it until time to make the pie (deli chicken works too).

In large frying pan, melt 1 tablespoon of butter and saute the broccoli, mushrooms, green beans and bell pepper just until they start to get tender and reduce in size (set aside).

In a medium size, heavy bottomed saucepan, melt 4 tablespoons of butter over medium high heat. Saute the onion and celery in the butter until they start to turn sweet and then add 3 tablespoons of all purpose flour, 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper and 2 heaping teaspoons of chicken bullion granules. Let this simmer gently (stirring) for about a minute (this will remove the flour taste), then add 2 & 1 /2 cups of milk and whisk like crazy to avoid lumps. Once mixed well, stir gently until this mixture boils and gets nice and thick (consistency of gravy).

To Assemble pie:
Divide pastry crust dough into 2 pieces (one piece should be about 2/3 of the dough and 2nd piece 1/3 of the dough). The recipe for the dough follows, or you can use ready made. Roll out the larger piece, into a 13" square and fit it into the bottom of a 9x9 baking dish. Lay diced, cooked chicken in the bottom of the crust then top with the sauteed veggies; pour the sauce over everything. Roll out the remaining dough and lay over the filling, pinching the edges. Cut steam vents in the pie and bake in preheated oven (at 425) for 35 minutes.

CRUST
2 cups all purpose flour
2/3 cup + 2 tablespoons butter flavored Crisco
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon celery seed
5 tablespoons cold water

Cut the Crisco into the dry ingredients until it is about the size of very small peas. Add the cold water and mix until everything is moist and the dough comes away from the side of the bowl cleanly. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rest while you saute the veggies. Roll dough out on lightly floured counter.

NOTE: Put a cookie sheet (that has an edge) under the pot pie as it cooks, just in case there is a spill-over.

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BERRY RIPPLE TEA CAKE (KNOWN IN MY HOUSE AS THE BEST COFFEE CAKE IN 10 YEARS!) (Seriously!)

Usually, when I hear the word "coffee cake" I think of a sweet treat that is at it's best right out of the oven and it usually needs either a cup of coffee, tea or glass of milk to wash it down. Well, dear friends, this coffee cake IS the exception to that rule. My husband and I finished this cake in a single day with NO trouble (a cake this size usually lasts us three or four days). We just couldn't stop eating it!

"Three B's" blog posted this recipe a few days ago and it caught my eye (she has some great recipes). She made it with a combination of raspberries, blueberries and strawberries and her beautiful photographs encouraged me to give it a try.

I used all strawberries which added to the sweetness of this buttery cake.I sure hope you give it a try, you will NOT be disappointed. Make the fruit filling first. In a heavy bottomed sauce pan, mix:

12 ounces of frozen raspberries (I used 12 ounces of frozen strawberries that I chopped finely in my food processor).
1/4 cup granulated sugar (I used 1/3 cup)
1 tablespoon cornstarch
Heat the above ingredients, over medium heat, stirring until it is thick and bubbling. Set aside while you make the batter.

Cake Batter:

2 & 1/4 cups all purpose flour

3/4 cup white sugar

3/4 cup COLD butter sliced in to thin pats

The directions say to use a pastry cutter, but I put the flour, sugar and butter in my food processor and pulsed until I had fine crumbs (much easier). Remove 1/2 cup of these fine crumbs and set them aside. To the remaining crumbs, add:

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 egg

3/4 cup buttermilk (no substitutions)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract (my addition)

Mix the above ingredients into the four/sugar/butter crumbs and mix only until everything is good and moist (don't over-mix).

Preheat your oven to 350 and grease and flour a (2 piece) 10" round tart pan (I used Baker's Joy spray). Using your fingers, press 2/3 of the batter into the prepared tart pan, pushing the batter evenly across the bottom and one inch up the sides of the pan (flouring your finger tips helps here).

Once you have the batter spread out and pushed up on the edges, gently pour in the fruit filling and spread it around the bottom. With the remaining 1/3 of the batter, place small pieces of batter in an irregular pattern on top of the fruit (I used a one teaspoon measure to get the right size). Be very careful not to push the batter pieces down into the fruit, you want them to float on top of it as much as possible. Finally, sprinkle the reserved crumbs over everything. Bake in a 350 oven (I placed a heavy cookie sheet under my tart pan) for 30 to 35 minutes (my oven took 35 minutes). The finished cake will be golden brown and smell heavenly!! I am certain that any fruit would work with this coffee cake; the strawberry version would be hard to beat though! When the cake is done baking, place it on a cooling rack for 15 minutes before you take it out of the pan.

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MOCHA CUSTARDS

We really enjoy these simple little mocha custards. Made with every day ingredients and baked for 30 minutes, they are a sweet ending to a week day meal.

2 and 1/4 CUPS MILK
1/3 CUP SUGAR
3 TABLESPOONS UNSWEETENED COCOA POWDER
1 TABLESPOON INSTANT COFFEE CRYSTALS
3 EGGS, LIGHTLY BEATEN
1 and 1/2 TEASPOONS VANILLA

WHIPPED CREAM AND COFFEE BEANS FOR DECORATION (optional)

Preheat your oven to 325. In a medium, heavy bottomed saucepan, mix milk, sugar, cocoa and coffee crystals. Cook and stir just until sugar and coffee are dissolved (don't let it get too hot).
In a medium size bowl, beat the 3 eggs and gradually whisk in the hot mixture into the eggs. Add vanilla and pour into six 6-ounce custard cups. Place the filled custard cups in a 9x13 pan and place the pan on your oven rack. Pour boiling water into the 9x13 pan to a depth of about one inch (being careful not to get any water into the custards).
Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean (my oven takes 35 minutes). Carefully remove baked custards and let them sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes. Lay plastic wrap right on the surface of the hot custard and put them in the fridge for at least 2 hours and up to 24 hours. Decorate with whipped cream and coffee beans.

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SPINACH and ORANGE SALAD

I am addicted to a great super-simple salad. It is basically baby spinach, orange segments, avocado and sliced almonds. The orange segments make the salad so juicy, that I don't even need a dressing, although there is an orange vinaigrette for those who would like one. It is refreshing and quick to fix (not to mention it also goes with anything from the grill).

4 cups fresh baby spinach
2 oranges, peeled and sectioned
1 large Haas avocado peeled, and sliced
2 tablespoons sliced almonds toasted

This recipe makes 4 salads. Rinse and dry baby spinach and divide onto four plates. Slice the ends of the orange off and use a knife to peel the orange. Slice in between the segments so you get only the best part of the orange. Arrange the orange and avocado on the spinach and top with toasted nuts.

Orange Vinaigrette:
In a jar, put 1/3 cup fresh squeezed orange juice, 1 teaspoon finely shredded orange zest, 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar, 2 teaspoons salad oil, 1/8 teaspoon salt, dash black pepper. Put the lid on the jar and shake well.

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(FAUX) ENTENMANN'S APPLE COFFEE CAKE which is my 100th post!!

If you like Entenmann's coffee cakes, you will adore this recipe. It is similar, but OH! so much tastier. It is basically a sweet (yeast)dough that is easily mixed in your stand mixer for 3 minutes, then it sits for 20 minutes, is formed and stuffed with apples, then put in the fridge for two hours and finally baked for 30 minutes. It is SO worth the little effort it takes and it makes two nice big coffee cakes. I hope you try it this weekend! (Click on this photo to see the full Yummm factor).

 Make the apple filling first so it can cool. In a large frying pan, melt 1/3 cup of butter and saute five Granny Smith (peeled, cored and sliced) apples over medium heat for about eight minutes or until almost tender. Stir in 3/4 cup white sugar and 1/4 cup brown sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon. Cook gently, stirring, until thickened (about 15 minutes). Set aside to cool.

For the dough, put the following in your stand mixer:

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour4 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 heaping tablespoon yeast

Whisk the above ingredients together to mix well.

In a small bowl, whisk the following ingredients together and then add them to the dry mixture.

1/3 cup melted (but not hot) butter
1 egg
3/4 cup hot tap water

Knead the dough with your machine, on medium speed, for three minutes. If it seems too dry, add an extra tablespoon of water. After three minutes, scrape down the sides of the bowl (dough will be very soft and sticky), cover and let it sit for 20 minutes.
After 20 minutes, divide dough in half (makes 2 coffee cakes) and roll each half out on floured surface to a 12x14 rectangle. Place each rectangle on its own parchment lined cookie sheet. Put apple filling down the center and then cut the sides like this: Fold the little strips back over the apple filling (no need to pinch it, just lay them over). Cover each coffee cake with plastic wrap and refrigerate for two hours. After two hours, take out of fridge and let it sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, top each coffee cake with struesel topping (which is made with 3/4 cup sliced almonds + 6 tablespoons all purpose flour + 1/4 cup powdered sugar + 3 tablespoons butter + 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon - cut butter into dry ingredients until fine crumbs).
Bake at 375 for 15 minutes, then turn heat down to 350 for another 15 minutes. Remove from oven and place on cooling rack. Drizzle simple vanilla glaze over the top and decorate with more sliced almonds.

This is what the luscious coffee cake looks like inside...Yummmm!

This sounds like a lot of steps, but it really is easy to make. Once you make it, you'll never be happy with Entenmann's again!

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Budget Minded FAUX CRAB CAKES

I don't know about you, but I can not afford fresh crab unless it is a very special occasion (certainly not for the every day crab cake). Even though crab is harvested right here in Alaska, it is not on MY table very often because of the price.

Are you familiar with crab flavored surimi? I use it in casseroles and crab cakes with very good results. Some people have an issue with the texture of surimi. However, I have found that if you break the surimi into pieces and give them two or three very quick pulses in your food processor, it will "flake" just like real crab. I don't think you will fool anyone into thinking it is fresh crab meat, but the quality and taste of surimi is SO much better than it used to be (if you haven't tried it in a while).

Tonight, I made big crab cakes and served them like a fishwich, I guess you could call them a crabwich. They had a very good crab cake consistency and flavor, not to mention they were very easy to make and affordable.

For those of you not familiar with surimi, it is made from Alaska cod fish and seasoned to taste like crab. It comes in 16 ounce pouches in the fresh meat isle. Make sure it says "flake style" and "crab flavored".

In a large bowl, mix:
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
16 ounce pouch crab flavored surimi (flake style)
3/4 cup dry bread crumbs


Put the surimi in your food processor and pulse it two or three short blasts (until it "flakes" like crab meat). Set aside.

Whisk the first seven ingredients in a bowl until very smooth then add the bread crumbs and flaked surimi. Mix well with hands. Cover and refrigerate until ready to cook (or at least half an hour).

If you are making larger sandwiches, form into 4 large patties (working on waxed paper). Rinse your hands once in a while because the crab cakes are easier to form and work with if your hands are wet/damp.
In a large frying pan, or electric skillet, melt 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon vegetable oil. Fry patties until they are golden brown.
NOTE: These are also very good, in a smaller version, served with tartar sauce and lemon.

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