When most people think of Mexican, they think tacos, enchiladas, nachos.... Your traditional Tex-Mex type fare. I've nothing against those types of meals, I love all of them.
But since I'm hosting the Monthly Mingle, and I picked the theme, I wanted something a bit different.
And since I completely forgot that I owned a Mexican cookbook, I went searching the internet for something different.
Introducing Mexican Chicken Wings.
Don't let the picture fool you. It isn't a big, lumpy mass of something, but a pile of chicken wings ready to be shared. Simple to make, with room for personalization, and good for a large gathering.
I found the original recipe here, and went on from it as my inspiration. I made 3 pounds, not 1. I hand crushed my tortillas to give them more texture and crunch. I increased the cumin and only used enough oil to let everything come together. And I "marinated" the wings in the oil and spices for a good hour before I tossed them in the tortillas and baked them.
These were enjoyed by everyone who ate them, with kids asking for more and the adults trying to behave themselves by not pigging out on them.
I served these along side the couscous salad I mentioned a few days ago, and it was a great combination.
Munching through the Fiesta
Let's get this Fiesta started!
Since I'm the host of this month's Monthly Mingle, the Mexican Fiesta, it seems only fair that I kick things off before our July 13th finale date.
So pull up a seat and enjoy some of this lovely Mexican inspired salad that I threw together for Canada Day last week. It has an very non-Mexican base, Israeli Couscous. Interesting way to start my Fiesta, isn't it?
Don't be fooled by the couscous though. This bowl of yummy is full of flavor: lime zest and juice, cilantro, cumin, and a touch of Ancho chili powder. Along with some deliciously flavored pieces of roasted sweet potato, green onion and some red pepper.
This make ahead, healthy salad is a great side dish. Served cold, and best after resting in the fridge for a few hours, it frees up some of the cooks time at dinner, with no last minute fussing or prepping needed. It was very well suited with my main Mexican dish (which I will reveal closer to the 13th), and was well received by everyone but the children. Fortunately, that night, six adults outvoted four children, so I call it a success!
I can't really include a recipe as I didn't follow one or write one down. I simply threw together a few things that I had on hand, tasted it, added abit more cumin, then left to do Canada Day type things with family and friends. 
Hopefully my little salad has provided a bit of inspiration to those of you out there who were on the edge, thinking of joining in on the Mingle, but unsure. "Come on in, the water's great!" as the saying goes. Everyone is welcome!
Just be sure to send me your recipe link before July 13th, then I will be able to include you in the round up. The address is allthingsedible (at) gmail (dot) com.
Can't wait to see what everyone brings!
Happy 37th Birthday to Peabody
If you are a food blogger, you aren't asking who Peabody is right now. You know. You've been to her site and drooled over the pictures. You learned very quickly to not be eating or drinking while reading her posts, unless you like cleaning things up or are interested in buying a new computer.
How about if you aren't a food blogger? Well, have you ever heard of Refund Muffins? Those are Peabody's muffins.
What? You've never heard of Refund Muffins?
Oh my goodness. (Quick, follow the link and go read about them! Remember the warning about food or drink while reading her blog.)
Better now? Good.
Well, last week (yes, I know I'm late,) was Peabody's 37th birthday, which Elle proposed we help her celebrate in true food blogging fashion - by cooking for her! The twist was that we were to cook a recipe of Peabody's, from her blog.
Sure, I could have made Refund Muffins. It would likely have made my kids happy, but I wanted something different, something summery, even if we aren't really experiencing summer conditions. I wanted ice cream.
To heck with the lack of summer, I made ice cream, and really good ice cream. Homemade ice cream that made use of a local fruit and was still smooth and creamy and fabulous 4 days after I froze it (we got side tracked by other events and desserts, how else would ice cream stay in my freezer for so long?)
Raspberry Honey Ice Cream
1 quart raspberries
1/3 cup raspberry honey(or any honey will do, I use a regular honey)
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup half and half (I didn't have any, so used half regular milk and half heavy cream in its place)
1 tsp lemon juice
1- 1 ½ cups sugar(depending on how sweet your berries are)
3 egg yolks
¼ tsp salt
Add the yolks,sugar and honey to a medium-size bowl. Whisk together and then set aside.
Using a double boiler over medium-low heat, add the half and half, cream, raspberries and salt. Regularly whisk the mixture, heating until the temperature reaches approximately 145F. The mixture should begin to turn purple.
Once the cream mixture has reached the desired temperature, slowly add about half of the mixture to the eggs and sugar while whisking vigorously. This will prevent the eggs from curdling. Once the eggs and cream have been thoroughly integrated, pour back the egg mix into the remaining cream.
Whisk constantly and slowly as the mix rises in temperature. Once the temperature has reached 165-170F — or when the mix evenly coats th
e back of a spoon — remove from heat and add the lime juice and vanilla. Whisk them in completely and run through a sieve to remove any raspberries seeds. Move to a new container to cool. The mix can be placed in the freezer for 2 to 3 hours or, preferably, into the refrigerator overnight.
Churn according to your ice cream maker’s instructions. After churning, place in freezer to firm up. I recommend placing a seal of plastic wrap tight against the ice cream after making it to prevent a skin from forming on the ice cream’s surface. Serve once firm enough.
Happy Birthday Peabody! I hope 37 is everything you hoped it would be!
It's time for a Fiesta - and you're invited!
That's right, it is Monthly Mingle time and I get to play hostess this month while Meeta is busy moving! And since I get to hostess this fabulous event, I also get to choose the theme and I've decided it is time for a Mexican Fiesta!
Why, you might ask? (Or maybe you didn't ask, but I'm going to answer anyways.)
Well, because I love Mexican food. My entire family likes Mexican food. What isn't to love about Mexican food? And since no one wants to visit Mexico right now, we can all experience our own little bit of it in our own homes.
As for the Fiesta, well, it has been a long school year, which is almost over. And a long spring that does not seem to want to give way to summer. And any excuse for a party is a good excuse. So let's all find our festive spirit and party!
If you've never been part of the Monthly Mingle before, let me tell you what you do: first of all, copy that little picture above, the badge that says Monthly Mingle on it. Then hit your kitchen, or your bbq, or your drinks cabinet, or wherever you keep edibles, and make something that relates to the theme of Mexican Fiesta. It can be a drink, a main course, an appetizer, a dessert. It can serve one or a crowd. It can be no-cook or require hours of slaving over a hot crock pot. It doesn't matter what it is, as long as it fits within the theme of Mexican Fiesta. Make it up or find a cookbook, just make something.
Then take a picture and put it up on your blog. Please include the phrase Monthly Mingle: Mexican Fiesta. Then send me the link, and a copy of your picture, by email: allthingsedible (at) gmail (dot) com, including the words Montly Mingle in the subject post. (If you don't have a blog, you can join in as well, just email me the details of what you made, with a picture or two.)
Do this before July 13th, and I will be sure to include you in the round up.
Can't wait to see what everyone comes up with. Please feel free to join in. Let's Fiesta!
Monthly Mingle: Caribbean Cooking
I'm cutting it close, but think I will make it in time for Meeta's Monthly Mingle, Caribbean Cooking, co-hosted this month by Cynthia of Tastes Like Home. What a theme to pick, in the middle of the longest, dreariest month of the year, February! Yes, I know February is really the shortest month, but with the very long nights and short days, usually overcast and cold, it feels like the longest month!
Fortunately for me, the weather has been a bit better since we came into March, a wonderful 13C yesterday. It has been so long since I went without a hat or mitts!
And with the break in weather, I was feeling a bit more festive, more in tune with this months theme. Small problem - I have no Caribbean recipes, no idea of what goes into Caribbean cooking!
Oh wait, I have the internet! (I love the internet, how did we live without it?!?)
I found this recipe for a Caribbean Chicken, by Guy Fieri, on the FoodNetwork site, and it looked good and interesting. Not too hot, not too exotic, something with some bright flavors that would be accepted at my dinner table. I did jazz it up a bit by making a vibrant "salad" to go with dinner, which melded well with this chicken.
"Melded well." An understatement. They were both very good, and I will be making this again!
And hopefully, the weather will continue to be as bright as dinner was.
Orange and Pineapple Salad
by me!
2 large naval orange
2 cara cara oranges
2 green onions, chopped
1/2 jalapeno, finely chopped
1 fresh pinapple, cored and peeled, sliced into thick rings (about 6)
1 tbsp olive oil
pinch of kosher salt
Preheat your grill to medium high.
Using a sharp paring knife, trim the ends off the oranges, then cut off the skin and the white pith. Over a bowl, use that knife to cut out the segments of the oranges, catching the juices in the same bowl you placed the orange pieces.
Grill the pinapple rings, 3-4 minutes per side, until they have good grill marks and are a bit softer. Put aside a few of the rings to have with the chicken, then dice up the rest and add to the bowl with the oranges.
Gently mix in the rest of the ingredients, the onions, jalapeno, olive oil and salt. Taste and adjust the seasonings as needed.
Serve with the grilled chicken and the extra pineapple rings.
Caribbean Chicken
From Guy Fieri, Food Network
1 teaspoon allspice
1/4 cup red onion, chopped
1/2 cup green onions, chopped
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup orange juice, fresh (I didn't have any, so used the juice of a lime)
1 tablespoon lime zest
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons freshly chopped thyme leaves (I only had about 1 tablespoon, which was enough)
2 tablespoons jalapeno, seeded, diced (I used one, afterall, I'd like the kids to eat it!)
2 teaspoons freshly grated or chopped ginger
1 clove garlic
Salt and pepper
4 chicken breasts, bone and skin on (I used5 medium sized boneless, skinless breasts, but will use 6 when I make it again.)
Lime wedges
Puree all ingredients except chicken in food processor. Add marinade and chicken to re-sealable plastic bag, mix thoroughly and let marinate, refrigerated, for 4 to 8 hours.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Heat grill to high, remove excess marinade from chicken and place on grill. Grill each side of chicken for 3 to 4 minutes then place on a pan and finish in the oven for 15 minutes.
Squeeze a lime wedge over each piece of chicken and serve with the fresh Orange and Pineapple salad.
Weekend Cookbook Challenge: Love
After 3 years of running Weekend Cookbook Challenge, Sara is hanging up her WCC apron. So to send it out with a blast, I am submitting two things for the final challenge: the Barefoot Contessa's Outrageous Brownies, and my own Grandmother's Caramel Dumplings.
Afterall, the final theme is Love and what is more loving than homemade brownies for a goodie bag, or warm gooey caramel dumplings from the "hands" of my grandmother?
I like brownies, and kept meaning to make these brownies from Ina Garten, but have really always been perfectly happy with my standard brownie recipe. But when Megan started her Brownie Project, I finally caved. I made a half batch, without the nuts, and omg does this ever make alot of brownies! I filled a 9x13 cake pan and ended up with a large container of brownie pieces that lasted us over a week.
There were enough brownies that not only was I able to make a goodie bag up for my other Mom (#2), I was able to send enough for her entire team, extra for her, and still have enough for my guys for the week. The brownies must have tipped things in their favor as her team went on to win the entire tournament this year!
Did you not know that? When curling, eat brownies! (Of course, having said that, now I will have to be sure to deliver brownies to the team next year as well.)
Now on to the second delectable, lovable dessert for WCC, though if this once came from a cookbook, I don't know which one it came from. Personally, I can honestly say it came from my grandmother's cookbook, a red binder that she has had for as long as I can remember, with newspaper clippings, some typed up recipes (some with notes), and a bunch of hand written ones, written on scraps of paper, the back of envelopes, and my personal favorite, on the back of a blank cheque.
That binder now sits in my kitchen cupboard, my grandmother being unable to cook or bake anymore.
There are recipes in that binder that I will never make, not matter how much I love my grandmother, no matter that she was an amazing cook and baker. And there are others I hope my children will take to their own families, this being one of them, for caramel dumplings, a dessert that is warmth and comfort in a bowl. As it should be, since it is flour, sugar and butter, so it has absolutely no health benefits to it at all!
Doesn't that just call out comfort and love to you? Sure, it is homey looking, nothing fancy, nothing exciting, but then face it, a recipe made regularly by a woman now in her late 70's, well it didn't come from a fancy restaurant or a celebrity chef. It was from a time when a woman had to do what she could with what she had on hand and had to feed her large family on a small budget, and local food was all there was to get. It's a retro recipe, a frugal recipe, a recipe that fits in with todays economy. And it is easy to whip up and requires nothing in the way of special ingredients (which is good because I made this batch when I was not feeling good at all, it was my comfort food for the week.)
Yes, I know you can buy a box mix at the dollar store for a caramel pudding cake (or apple or chocolate or lemon) but this is as simple to make and has my grandmother's love it in, so it is much better. Much.
Caramel Dumplings
For the sauce:
1 cup brown suga
1 1/2 cups water
2 tbsp butter
For the batter:
1/2 cup white sugar
2 tbsp butter, softened
1/2 cup milk
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
Preheat your oven to 350F.
Caramalize the brown sugar and butter together over med-high heat in an oven proof pot or skillet. Add the water and bring the mixture to a boil. Let boil until it begins to thicken slightly, about 5 minutes.
Make the batter while the sauce boils.
In a medium bowl, by hand, cream the sugar and butter together. Add the milk to the creaming mixture, then the flour, baking powder and salt. You will get a slightly stiff batter. Drop the batter by spoonfuls onto the caramel sauce, then bake for 20-30 minutes, until the dumplings are a golden brown and the sauce is bubbling up the sides.
Allow to cool for at least 5 minutes before digging in.
Monthly Mingle: Healthy Family Meals
When Meeta and her cohost, Michelle, of What's Cooking Blog, picked the theme of Healthy Family Dinners for this months Monthly Mingle, I'm sure Meeta had no idea that I was going to turn to her for my inspiration.
You see Meeta, in addition to being a photographer, blogger and extrodinairy cook and baker, is also a mother. She knows how important it is to feed her growing child good, healthy food. And she knows how important it is that the food taste good, or that growing child won't eat it. Fortunately, my children, like Meeta's son, are sometimes up for a bit of culinary adventure.
Since I have discovered that my boys love Indian Butter Chicken, I decided to try something similar, but different, which is where Meeta comes in: her recipe for Chicken Tikka Masala. Yes, it involved more work than my oldest son's favorite jar of butter chicken sauce, or even of the homemade recipe I've made for butter chicken, but not huge amounts more. And most of it was just planning ahead.
Having an indoor grill is so handy!The recipe itself is not difficult, and Meeta's instructions are very good, so the only question I had to field to her was about canned cocktail tomatoes. For those of us not in Germany, use canned diced, they work just fine. And if you can't find red chilies, crushed red pepper flakes substitute well. Just be careful of the heat when feeding non-adventurous children.
To go along with this, I also made homemade Naan bread. I don't know where I printed this off from, but it says it was adapted from The Cook's Book, by Dan Lepard, and has some personalized instructions in it, things like, "I used melted butter because I love the flavor." Sounds good to me!
I know it doesn't look like I served a vegetable with this, aside from the tomatoes in the sauce, but I did. I just didn't put it on this plate for the picture. Because then it would ruin the prettyness of the tikka masala spread out across the rice. See that's how food bloggers think, isn't it?
Looking forward to seeing what else makes it to the mingle, with such a great and diverse theme to choose from. And now that I'm finally starting to feel better, I may be looking for some culinary inspiration from other families.
Go see Meeta, here, for the Tikka Masala recipe, but here is the Naan, with my notes now, not the ones on my printout.
Naan Bread
adapted from The Cook's Book, recipe by Dan Lepard, no idea where I got this from
2/3 cup water at 72F
1/3 teaspoon dry active yeast
2 cups cake flour
3 1/2 tablespoons plain low-fat yogurt (I don't think mine was low fat)
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt (I used kosher)
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
sunflower oil, ghee or melted butter for kneading (I too used the butter and am just going to say butter in the recipe, but use whichever you want)
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro or parsley
In a small bowl, mix the water and yeast. Add half the flour, mix together with a fork, then cover the bowl and leave in warm place for 30 minutes.
Stir in the yogurt, then add the rest of the flour, salt and baking powder. Mix together with your hands into a soft, sticky ball. Pour 2 tsp of melted butter into the bowl and rub it over the top of the dough. Pick the dough ball up, butter and all, and squeeze it once or twice. Recover the dough, still in the bowl, and leave it to rest for 15 minutes.
Pour another 1 tsp of melted butter onto the dough, rub it lightly all over, before turning the dough out onto a lightly oiled surface. Knead the dough gently for 30 seconds, then return it to the bowl. Cover and rest for another 15 minutes.
Knead the dough, now a fairly smooth ball, on the oiled surface for a few minutes, then divide it into the number of breads you want to make (I think I had 5). Dust the portions with flour and leave them for 5 minutes.
Heat a wok or a nonstick skillet with a lid over medium heat.
Working with one piece of dough at a time, roll it it out into a teardrop shape, dusting well with flour as you go. The dough should be quite thin when you are done rolling.
Lay the rolled out piece of dough in the hot pan, brushing the surface with a little oil, ghee or melted butter (though it is recommended if you use butter to mix it with a bit of oil so it will not burn so easily, which is what I did.) If using the herbs, have it mixed with the butter before brushing it on. Place the lid on the pan and leave for 1 minute. (This is enough time to prepare your next piece of dough.)
When the naan has risen slightly and is slightly browned on the bottom, flip and cook for an additional minute. Remove from the pan and keep warm in a clean dish towel.
Repeat until all the naan is cooked.
Enjoy with some lovely Chicken Tikka Masala.
It's a party, come on in!
Most of the boxes have been unpacked, at least the important ones. We can all find our clothes, our toothbrushes, the cereal in the morning, and the milk. We even get junk mail already, so we must be settled in enough to have friends and family over for a little get together.
Thankfully our new home is a "bit" bigger than our old one, so fitting 40 or so people in was not a problem, we had lots of room for everyone. Including the pile of boots and coats that come with a winter party!
But what would a party be without including my blogging friends as well? It would be a party without good food, that's what it would be! So I invited you all over to come join us in celebrating our new home.
Here are some of the goodies that fellow bloggers brought to the party, such wonderful "housewarming" presents!
Fellow Daring Baker, and an amazing writer, Kelly from Sass & Veracity brought us a divine looking Orange and Almond cake, or Sformato di Aanci.
You can find her entire feast, a family dinner, ending with this lovely cake, here.
Kelly is right, where food and family are concerned, the more the merrier! 
Newish to the blogging world, and new to me, is the blog Zaayeka, hosted by Navita over in Hong Kong. Boy the blog world is small, that someone would come to help us celebrate all the way from Hong Kong!
Zaayeka means Taste, according to Navita, and with this Creole Baby-Mac Salad with Coriander Viniagrette, she's right! I love the flavor combinations in this salad and wish I had bowl right now.
Enough of this healthy-ness for now, though, let's get back to the sweets!
How about some decadent brownies, with caramel? Oh yes, two of lifes joyful flavors, together in one scrumptious dessert! Oh yes, I like those flavors together.
So I am very thankful that Tart Reform brought some for me to the party!
I wonder if I put some of these in my children's lunch boxes, would I get a "mother of the year" award from my boys, or a "please don't send these to school again" from the teachers? Or maybe a "only send these to the teachers" note instead. Yum, yum, yum!
Chocolate and caramel cannot make the world go round, no matter how much we might want it to. No, indeed, for that, we need bread!
How about this wondeful looking bread, an Oatmeal bread, made with fresh yeast and love, just for me, from my good friend Mary! Mary who has been so patient with me, teaching me long distance how to make her signature sour dough, and is godmother to my starter, Marvin.
I'm so glad Mary included the amount of dry yeast needed to make this bread in her post, since I have yet to see fresh yeast anywhere and would like to make this bread. As soon as I buy some steel cut oats. And whole wheat flour. I'm out of both, how did that happen?
Feeling full yet? No? Good, because there is more delicious items to come.
When I sent out my invitation for the party, I let all my fellow Daring Baker's know that I would welcome their variations of the January challenge to the party. I knew it would be tuiles, they knew it would be tiules, but lots of people didn't know it would be tuiles and I'm sure their curiosity was peaked by that invitation.
Well fellow Daring Baker Deeba, from Passionate About Baking, took me up on the offer and brought some gorgeous tuiles to the party! For some very drool-worthy pictures, go visit Deeba, and tell her I said hi!
Just don't go with an empty stomach, or if you are on a diet. You'll be hungry, fast!
Here, have a seat....
This is going to be such a lovely place to sit in the summer time, in the cool of the shade, with a book. 
Not so much right now, with the snow on it.
I can picture myself sitting there, reading a book, enjoying one of these bacon, ramp and mushroom swirls, brought to the party by my friend Jasmine. Her oven, affectionately known as Beelzebub, must have decided to behave for her so she could bring these for us all to enjoy.
Jasmine and I sometimes have a similar cooking style, putting something together we like, and then afterwards saying, "Recipe? I was supposed to have a recipe?" Fortunately for us, Jasmine was able to mostly remember what went into these, and what she did to make them.
I had the good fortune to meet up with Jasmine last summer, in a whirlwind tour of breakfast and shopping in downtown Toronto, and look forward to being able to meet up with her again - Jasmine, you want to come explore the market with me downtown in Ottawa this summer? 
I wish I could extend this same invitation to another blogger friend, Meeta, who brought this scrumptious looking Tarte d'Alsace to the party all the way from Germany. Alas, Germany is a bit far away to have a fun food and shopping day here in Ottawa.
Meeta doesn't know it yet, but she's my Indian food guru, who I will turn to if I have a question about an Indian dish, such as her chicken Tika Masala that I made a few weeks back (and just realized I haven't blogged about yet - so many yummy dinners, so little blog time!)
Thank you so much, Meeta, for bringing this tart. I think I will not share this with my children, who likely would not appreciate it anyways.
Speaking of not appreciating, here is one I wouldn't even have to hide from my oldest son, who dislikes mushrooms, though he has never really tried them to have that opinion. I, however, love mushrooms, so I was thrilled when Sara brought me some grilled Teriyaki Mushrooms! My inner Hobbit was jumping up and down with joy, tasty mushrooms for me!
And Sara, don't worry, there are still boxes left to unpack, there are rooms to paint, smoke detectors to replace, oh, a looooooong list of things to do (and hardware departments to visit), so you have lots of time to unpack your last boxes!
One of the benefits of blogging in the foodie community is the "friends" you make, all through sharing food and experiences in the kitchen. During this last year I have been fortunate to make a few more friends through my blog, one of which is my pal Megan of My Baking Adventures, and her cooking children, Sabrina and Alex. Her children have actually set a lovely example to my own Alex (the oldest), and have inspired him to get into the kitchen as well. But not to make these tasty fried mozzarella balls, I get to make these, since I am not ready to set him loose with a deep fryer yet.
Though it is his birthday coming up, and he has decided I need to buy a deep fryer for myself for his birthday, so I can make him lots of mozzarella balls. And beer battered fish and chips. He's a boy who knows what he likes, isn't he?
Back to the sweets, how about this amazing looking treat, brough to us from the other side of the world, the upsidedown side, Australia!
Steph has taken a few things I love, and combined them in one decadent bite: a Dorie Greenspan recipe and chocolate. Sorry, not just chocolate, but Quintuple Chocolate! That's FIVE chocolates in one square, alot of chocolate.
Do these not look simply amazing?
Oh my, oh my, oh my, what a way to end a party....
Oh wait, I've forgotten something!
How about my own dish! I can't have a party without making something good and tasty for all my friends, can I?
Seeing how much I love chocolate, and caramel, okay, and butter and cream..., it will probably come as a bit of a surprise to see that I did not make a dessert, but instead a soup. Alot of soup. Enough to feed an army.
It is cold outside, and has been for awhile, so I wanted something warm and hearty, to welcome my guests and make them feel all toasty inside. Which is why I chose the Barefoot Contessa's Cheddar Corn Chowder.
I admit, small lapse in judgement on my part - doubling a recipe that makes enough for 10-12 people was probably too much soup. But it did give me enough to send some home with family, and still have some for dinner the next night.
And, to be really honest, I also forgot to add the cheddar to the soup. And the half and half cream. I know, how could I forge those items? Easily - and you know, it didn't matter, it was still a very good soup! I served it from my big crock pot, with garnishes of green onions, bacon and cheddar cheese. So the cheese made it into the soup, just not the way the recipe was written.
Cheddar Corn Chowder
from the barefoot contessa cookbook, pae 74-75
8 ounces bacon, chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
6 cups chopped yellow onions
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup all purpose flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground tumeric (I didn't add this either)
12 cups chicken stock
6 cups medium-diced white boiling potatoes, unpeeled
10 cups corn kernels, 10 ears fresh or 3 pounds frozen, I used frozen
2 cups half an half (or not)
1/2 pound sharp white cheddar cheese, grated (again, or not, or saved for a garnish)
In a large stock pot on medium high heat, cook the bacon in olive oil until the bacon is crisp. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and save for topping the soup with later.
Reduce the heat to medium, add the onions and the butter to the bacon fat, and cook for 10 minutes, or until the onions are translucent.
Stir in the flour, salt, and pepper (and tumeric, if using), and cook for 3 minutes. Add the chicken stock and potatoes, bringing the mixture to a boil. Simmer uncovered for 15 minutes, until the potatoes are tender. Add the frozen corn to the soup, stirring well. If using the cream and cheddar, add both to the soup, cooking fo 5 more minutes so the cheese can melt. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Serve hot with bacon (and cheese).
Note: If you don't add the cream and cheese, this soup heats up very well the next day.
Thank you all so much for coming to our housewarming party! I hope you enjoyed yourself. Please feel free to come visit us again.
Last day for your Housewarming entries!
It is almost time.
My house is clean, their are flowers in my vases, and bottles of wine chilling. Lis is bringing over the napkins and cutlery, so I am nearly set to invite you all into my new home!
Today is the final day to send me your submissions, be it a dessert, a drink or something savory. Just send me your link, along with a picture, and the name of what you've made, to allthingsedible (at) hotmail (dot) com - and be sure to include the word HOUSEWARMING in your subject line. If you don't have a blog and want to participate, please feel free to join in as well.
I plan to have all the entries up tomorrow for everyone to come on in and enjoy the party.
Just one thing.... With all the snow we've had lately, please be sure to wipe your feet!
Tyler Florence Fridays: Braised Beef Brisket
My first ever Tyler Flore Fridays, introduced to me by fellow blogger and long distance friend Megan, and really, I think the pictures speak for themselves.
I mean seriously, look at all those lovely ingredients, waiting to meld together in the oven. The star, beef brisket, ready to be braised with carrots, garlic, celery, onions, tomatoes, herbs and half a bottle of red wine.
My only complaint (aside from the cost, but I found a source for local, organic beef and it was worth it!) is that this needs more veggies. I plan to make this again in the future, but will more than double the veggies. Especially since I ended up freezing a generous amount of the meat and sauce and still could use more veggies.
Unfortunately, I pulled this recipe off of Food Network's website and it seems to have disappeared since then. I can find one there, this one, but this isn't the one I had pulled off. The one I had suggested a parsnip puree with it, but this is fairly close.
So find some good brisket and try it!
Oh, PS to Megan - I didn't just buy one book - I BOUGHT TWO!!!!!
Weekend Cookbook challenge: 5 ingredients or less
Don't you love it when a blog event and a menu plan come together? I know I do!
I don't often get to make it to this event, the Weekend Cookbook Challenge hosted by Sara of I like to cook, but every once in awhile I manage to catch it. This months theme of 5 ingredients or less, chosen by non-blogger Lynn, was perfectly matched with a few items on my meal plan for the week.
This meal was fairly successful though, so it is the one I'm picking!
I used to really enjoy watching Fixing Dinner on FoodTV. Sandi has such good ideas for meals, that look nice when presented on the tv screen, but that don't always translate well to my kitchen. I've had some successes and some flops, but mostly alot of, "eh, whatever" from her recipes. So much so that I hadn't tried anything from her for awhile (and honestly have spent YEARS browsing her cookbooks and trying to decide if I want them,) but decided to give this one a shot when I ran across a printout of it in one of my binders.
So I didn't go into this recipe with very high expectations, I thought it would be decent and would be a nice change. Plus I was going to make a small change or two to it.
First off, I used pork tenderloin instead of chicken thighs. Easy decision - I had pork in the freezer, I had no chicken thighs. Second, I omitted the Mrs. Dash, partially because I have none, and also because I've never really found it added anything to the flavor. Oh and I replaced the dried onions with half a fresh onion, which to me takes no time at all to chop.
Don't crinkle your nose when you read the ingredients. This turned out nicely - every single person ate it, my youngest went back for more sauce, my husband went back for seconds, and took the remainder in his lunch today.
And it uses 5 ingredients or less, so it is my choice for the Weekend Cookbook Challenge!
Hot and Sour Pork
based on this recipe from Sandi Richard of Fixing Dinner
2 pork tenderloins, cut into chunks
1 cup Catalina salad dressing
3/4 can whole berry cranberry sauce
1/2 onion, diced
1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
Preheat the oven to 350F.
Place chunks of pork in the bottom of a small dutch oven. Sour the rest of the ingredients over top of the pork, then mix well to ensure all the sauce ingredients are well blended and all the pork has been covered with the sauce.
Bake, covered, for 40-45 minutes. The sauce will bubble over slightly, so keep an eye out in the last 10 minutes.
Allow to sit for 5-10 minutes, then serve pork and sauce over rice.
Btw, don't forget about my housewarming party. The deadline for entries is coming soon, on January 30th. Send your entries to allthingsedible (at) hotmail (dot) com, and don't forget to send me your link and your picture.
It is going to be such a fun party!
Magazine Mondays
Do you know how many food magazines you have in your house?
I do.
But only because I recently had to pack them.
And, no, they aren't all unpacked yet.
Ivonne is right. We have all these wonderful recipes from magazines, with beautiful, mouth-watering pictures. Why aren't we cooking them?
Well I am going to try.
If I want variety in my menu plan, and I want to make use of the resources I have, then cooking from the stack of magazines I had to box up and bring with me is a good way to go.
I "think"this came from a Canadian Living magazine. A more recent one, one I had pulled a page or two from before not packing it up. (Yippee! I was right, and found the recipe on the Canadian Living website too!)
It is called Mustard-Garlic flank steak, but needs more garlic to really be garlicky. It was good, tender and flavorful, just not very garlicky. And can someone tell me what exactly the rosemary sprigs did for the flavor?
This took a bit of advanced planning, either marinating it about 4 hours in advance, or as I did, overnight. Which works for me, overnight is a good time to marinate for.
No guarantees I'll be able to put a recipe up each week for Magazine Monday, but like the menu plan, I'm sure gonna try!
Mustard-Garlic Flank Steak
from Canadian Living
- 3 clovesgarlic
2 tbsp (25 mL) dijon mustard
1 tbsp (15 mL) each balsamic vinegar and vegetable oil
1-1/2 lb (750 g) beef flank marinating steak, 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick
4 sprigs fresh rosemary
1/4 tsp (1 mL) each salt and pepper
Using garlic press or knife, mince garlic. In glass baking dish, whisk together garlic, mustard, vinegar and oil. Add steak, turning to coat.
Place 2 sprigs of rosemary on top of steak; place 2 underneath. Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours. (Make-ahead:Refrigerate for up to 24 hours.) Discard rosemary sprigs.
Place steak on greased grill over medium-high heat; close lid and grill, turning once, until desired doneness, about 10 minutes for medium-rare.
Transfer to cutting board; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Tent with foil and let stand for 5 minutes before slicing thinly across the grain.
Canadian Living Magazine: July 2008
Daring Bakers catch up, Lavash crackers
I realize it is January, and not September. And yes, I know it is 2009 now, so I am not even in the same year, but late is better than not at all, right?
Back to September, when the Daring Baker's made Lavash crackers, hosted by Natalie and Shel, I did not participate. My kitchen was immaculately clean for prospective buyers, and rolling out dough makes a mess. Now, however, I am making messes often. Sometimes several times a day. And having a wonderful time doing it too!
So I finally bring you the Daring Baker's lavash crackers: I divided my dough and made half mine with chives and the other half with fleur de sel and cracked black pepper.
There were alot more in the basket before I remembered to take a picture, while hands reached in and out for more pieces.
Fairly easy to make, don't take much time, and nice results. I think I will try using my pasta maker next time, though, for an even thinner dough.
Go here for the recipe, please.
And in the meantime, don't forget my Housewarming Party event, coming soon!
I have some goodies of my own coming, and can't wait to see what everyone else brings.
Come on in and celebrate with us!
It is very easy to join in to this party, and won't require you to have a passport either. Just cook up something in your own home, your choice of savory or sweet, something to eat or something to drink, and bring it on over by January 30th. Post it on your own blog, then send me the link, with the title "Housewarming" to allthingsedible(at)hotmail(dot)com, so that I can include you in the round-up on January 31st.
For Daring Baker's, I've deliberately set the date for after the challenge so that you can have the option of using a variation of this months challenge (a good one!) for your dish.
Oooh I can't wait to see what everyone bring!
Yes, I'm excited to have you all join in our celebration of our new home.
With all this snow falling, be sure to wipe your feet when you come in, while I get you a hot drink.
Settling in, back to routine and a BLOG EVENT YOU DO NOT WANT TO MISS!!!!!
Enough exclamations for you?
Yesterday was back to school for kids everywhere. A new school for my boys, a completely new routine as they are no longer "walkers" but instead are bus kids!
To start their day out right, when I woke them up yesterday, I greeted them with a warm and comfy breakfast, cinnamon sugar french toast.
Your day can never go all bad when it starts out with lots of love, and a sprinkling of cinnamon sugar.
I know you want a recipe, and I'll provide one, but you are really waiting to hear about my Blog Event, aren't you? Well wait no more!
It's...
No surprise, I'm sure, but fun all the same. So bring me your best appetizers, your favorite drinks, a tasty dessert, bring me anything you'd like, the more the merrier!
To be part of my housewarming, just send me the link of your post, showing me what you've made, by January 30th. Then come on over on the 31st to see the round-up!
I'll be posting a few things for the party between now and then, in eager anticipation.
Can't wait to see what you bring!
Cinnamon Sugar French Toast
2 eggs
1 1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tablespoon cinnamon
3 tablespoons sugar
cooking spray
10 slices of bread
Heat a griddle or non stick pan over medium-high heat.
While the pan heats, whisk together the eggs, milk, cream and nutmeg in a bowl big enough to lay a piece of bread flat on the bottom. In a smaller bowl, mix together the cinnamon and sugar.
When the pan is hot, but not smoking, coat with cooking spray. Dunk a piece of bread in the egg mixture, being sure to coat the entire piece of bread. Lay in the pan and repeat until you cannot fit in another piece. Try to leave a bit of room between the slices of bread. Sprinkle a bit of the sugar mixture over each slice of bread, in an even layer.
Allow to cook for about 3-4 minutes, then check to see if the underside is toasted and browned. If not, give it another minute, otherwise turn the slice over and continue cooking for an additional 2-3 minutes.
Repeat until all the egg mixture is gone, which for me was 1o pieces of bread.
Serve warm with maple syrup.
Another one off my list: The BBB's make pitas
I finally get to be an honorary Bread Baking Babe!
This month's recipe was chosen by Ilva, a wonderful lady over in Italy who blogs at Lucullian Delights. I'm so glad she make a recipe that wasn't going to take several days to make, no starters, no hard to find flours (though I have never seen whole wheat pastry, Mary tells me I can mix whole wheat with pastry flour to get whole wheat pastry flour - and it worked!)
And, I can cross home made pita off my list of things I'd like to try and make (which leaves me with Naan bread and Marshmallow fondant for this year, last on that to make list.)
Not quite as simple as making tortillas, but still a nice result. Especially if you actually put your stone on the bottom of your oven and bake down there, rather than having it in the lower 3rd. I had a few puff up in that spot, but as soon as I moved it down... WOW! Did those suckers blow up to be nice and puffy!
I stuffed my pitas with chicken and cesear salad, and served it with corn oh the cobb on the side. Pitas that didn't puff up were great to use in a school lunch the next day, as dippers for hummus.
Thanks for the great choice Ilva! I will be adding this one to my list of make agains.
Strawberries, Cream and More Cream
It's summer, but not a great summer. We've had more rain, rain and rain, than anyone could possibly believe. So much rain that strawberry season this year did not have me out with my children, picking, the way we normally do several times each summer.
No, not us this year, the berries were soft, mushy and moldy, and the fields were muddy. And considering I do 95% of the picking while the children do 99% of the taste testing in the field, I didn't want to sit in mud and I didn't want the boys filling up on mushy berries.
Despite this lovely weather (you did catch the sarcastic tone, right?), I've still managed to find a few good local berries and make a few lovely berry desserts.
Let us start with this lovely one, strawberry and blueberry shortcake. Not any shortcake, but Dorie Greenspan's chocolate shortcake. What a better way to showcase summer fruit and mounds of lovely whipped cream?
I'm not going to put up the recipe for this. You know what book it came from, and if you don't own it by now, with most of the food blogging world posting positive reviews on recipes from it each week, well then maybe this offering will give you the final push you need to go get it.
While you are drooling, or ordering your book, I'll get back to berry desserts.
How about this offering? Strawberry and white chocolate mousse cups, which I made for the annual Trigger's Taekwon-Do Family Picnic. Not your usual picnic fare, but I wanted something different, something light and fruity. Mousse, holds up well, despite the high humidity, and pipped into a plastic cup, is portable.
I set these cups out on the picnic table, along side some milk chocolate mousse cups, and they were snapped right up. People seemed to know if they didn't take one right away, when they came back later for dessert, there wouldn't be any left. And there wasn't, these were a huge hit.
We were fortunate that day, the rain held off until near the end of the picnic, by which time most people were wet anyways from the traditional water fight.
And if the black belts weren't wet from the water fight, the rain was a welcome way to wash off the cream all over their faces from the Cream the Black Belts portion of the picnic. Everyone was a good sport it, and took their "creaming" with a smile. (And I do mean everyone, since this glamorous shot is of our school's owner/trainer.)
**No mousses were harmed in the creaming of this black belt**These are my submission for The Key Ingredient Cook's Kitchen Recipe Contest (KICK).
Strawberry and White Chocolate Mousse
makes 15-18 cups
2 cups chopped, fresh strawberries
1/4 cup sugar, more if berries are not sweet
squirt of fresh lemon juice
3 cups whipping cream, divided into 1 cup and 2 cups
7 oz white chocolate, chopped
fresh strawberries for garnish
Place chopped berries in a medium sized pan, mixed with the sugar and the lemon juice. Cook over medium heat until the berries have cooked and are soft and mushy. Taste to see if you need more sugar - if you add more, cook for an additional few minutes, to be sure the sugar dissolves in the juices.
Move strawberries to a blender and puree. Strain berries into a bowl and allow to cool. You should get at least 1 cup of puree.
In separate bowl, melt chocolate with a splash of the 1 cup of the cream, in a microwave on low, stirring every 20 seconds until almost melted. Allow the chocolate to cool slightly while you whip the remaining cream. When the cream is whipped to firm peaks, carefully fold in the white chocolate.
Spoon the white chocolate mousse into the bottom of 15 - 18 small cups. You will get about a heaping tablespoon of the mousse into each cup. Don't worry if the mousse doesn't seem thick, it will thicken up while chilling.
Place in the fridge to chill.
Once strawberry mixture is cool, whip the remaining 2 cups of whipping cream, again to firm peaks. Carefully fold in 1 cup of the strawberry puree into the cream, being careful not to deflate the cream. Taste the mousse and decide if you want a stronger berry flavor - if you do, add more of the puree.
Carefully spoon the strawberry mousse on top of the white chocolate mousse in the plastic cups. You should get twice as much strawberry mousse on top of the white chocolate. Allow to chill for at least 4 hours or over night before topping with slices of strawberries.
Best eaten if you get a bit of both mousses in each bite.
