Butternut-Acorn Squash and Sweet Potato Soup

Nothing says fall like rich, hearty, warm, luscious soups. It's raining (or snowing) outside and you are curled up cozy with a fire going, something yummy on the stove, chilling and reading a book under you're favorite blanker right?

Of course! I mean, that is the best part of soup! You can throw together a bunch of ingredients and sit back and relax for awhile.

I had a butternut squash chillin' in the fridge that I had intended to use to make a pasta creamy squashy dish that involves wild mushrooms. MMMM Mushrooms.

I digress.

There isn't enough there to make a whole pot of soup, but maybe I could combine some other stuff with it...Hmmmm there is an acorn squash that I bought...ummm....let me think...ummmm...well, it's still ok, and some sweet potatoes.

Those 3 sounds good together.

So we need:
1 butternut squash
1 acorn squash
2 sweet potatoes
4c chicken or veg broth
2c milk or half and half (i used fat free half and half)
1 onion cut into small pieces
3 cloves garlic, murdered thoroughly
a little smoked gouda to sprinkle on top
salt and pepper to taste

Let's get down to business. We must cook the squash an potatoes. Get out your handy dandy baking sheet. Slice the squash' in half and clean. If you garden, save a few of those seeds for the garden next year. Slice the sweet potatoes in half as well.

Brush with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Put in oven uncovered and bake about 30-45 mins at 350 or until squishy.

When squash is about done, saute onion and garlic (poor murdered garlic) in a tablespoon of butter, salt and pepper until onion is thoroughly cooked through. Add chicken stock and let simmer while squash finishes.

Take squash out of oven and let cool a little, enough you can handle it. Mind you, I don't wait. I just dig right in and say ouch a lot. I'm impatient.

Scoop out flesh from all veggies and discard skins, add flesh into pot.

*Giggle* Flesh..

It's like flesh... you know...

Oh nevermind...

Add the milk and heat.

So now you have options. There are a few ways of handling this.
Option 1: If you have an immersion blender (the stick) the blend away. Make it all kinds of creamy and yummy by liquifying the veggies.
Option 2: If you have a regular blender and do not like chunky butternut squash soup, then scoop the flesh into the blender and get it al creamy then add it to the onions and broth, then add the milk.
Option 3: (what i did because I am immersion blender-less and my regular blender I got mad at for being stupid and put in the giveaway box) Use a whisk to break up the squash/potato in the soup pot. You get a well textured soup, but not creamy.

Heat thoroughly and serve. I topped mine with some shredded smoked gouda and a sprinkle of parsley. The parsley was mainly to make it look all pretty for the pictures...but it didn't taste half bad either :-)

Pair with some french bread or a spinach salad. (make salad while squash is cooking and chill) MMMMM.

This, by the way, can easily be adapted to a crock pot (peel and chunk the veggies and dump into crock with liquids) or can cook for a length of time on low heat. You know, so you can finish that book.



___________________________________________________________

Butternut-Acorn Squash and Sweet Potato Soup______________________

1 butternut squash
1 acorn squash
2 medium sweet potatoes
1 onion
3 cloves garlic
4c broth (chicken or veggie)
2c milk (or half and half)
salt and pepper
1/4c shredded smoked gouda

Cut squash in half and potatoes. Brush or spray with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast in oven uncovered at 350 for 30-45 mins. Saute onion in stock pot with garlic. Add broth. When squash and potatoes are soft, scoop out flesh and follow one of 3 options.


Option 1: If you have an immersion blender (the stick) the blend away. Make it all kinds of creamy and yummy by liquifying the veggies.
Option 2: If you have a regular blender and do not like chunky butternut squash soup, then scoop the flesh into the blender and get it al creamy then add it to the onions and broth, then add the milk.
Option 3: Use a whisk to break up the squash/potato in the soup pot. You get a well textured soup, but not creamy.


Add milk and heat.
Serve with shredded cheese on top.

Makes about 8 servings

Pumpkin Cranberry Orange Pancakes with Caramelized Pecans, Cheesy Eggs and Bacon

Yes another pumpkin thing. You'll live. It's fall. I like pumpkin. So there.

I had some leftover pumpkin and cranberry sauce from the pumpkin cinnamon rolls and cranberry pancakes made about a week ago and they needed to get used.

I decided that pancakes would be a good idea. I was tired of my fried egg on toast that is the usual morning breakfast. Along with coffee. Must have coffee.

And its Saturday, which means for some odd reason I need to make a real breakfast. Something from the kids about since I'm home and they are home and we have no place to go, I should make a real breakfast...vs cereal or toast. Whatever.



What you will need:

• Pumpkin
• Cranberry sauce
• Flour
• Eggs
• Baking powder
• Baking soda
• Sugar
• Vanilla
• Orange extract or frozen orange concentrate (if you use concentrate, eliminate the sugar)
• Vinegar
• Salt
• Pumpkin Pie spice
• Eggs (1-2 per person), salt and pepper, milk (1tbs per egg more or less)
• Bacon

So this is super simple. These are fat fluffy pancakes so therefore are filling. 

Get your bacon started now, get eggs mixed up with a pinch of salt and pepper and little milk. Use paper towels (or we have a cloth towel dedicated for draining grease to be more environ friendly) to sop up grease as bacon gets done. You can also cook the bacon in the over on a baking sheet with edges. This makes them all done at once.

In a medium mixing bowl, mix together with a fork, flour, soda, powder, sugar, spice and salt. Add vanilla and orange extracts, 2 eggs, 1c pumpkin, 1/4c cranberry sauce, 2tbs vinegar (to make baking soda all fizzy and happy. This is why they are sooooo fluffy!) Mix together with dry ingredients.

Warm up 2 skillets, one large for your pancakes, unless you have one of those electric griddle thingy's, then use it. The other skillet is smaller, for pecans. MMMMM pecans. If you made bacon, you can use some of the grease to coat your pan for pancakes and for eggs. Just makes for added yumminess.

In the smaller skillet melt 1Tbs butter, 1/4c crumbled/chopped/not whole pecans. When butter is melty, coat pecans and add 1Tbs of brown sugar. 

Coat your big skillet/griddle with butter (hold a stick by the wrapper and with open end, rub all over pan. Hands stay clean, no excess of butter.)

Cook until edges look dryish. Sorry, no bubbles on these. Flip and cook on other side for a few seconds.

Keep pancakes warm in oven at 250 on an oven safe dish. 

Turn off the pecans, and let them cool.

Finish off bacon/sausage (if you didn't use oven method) and use same pan for eggs (minus a lot of the grease). To get rid of the grease, I keep a tin can or jar with lid next to stove. Sometimes I am lazy and run it down the garbage disposal (gasp) with hot water. You can keep bacon warm with pancakes in oven, as the get cold fast.

When pancakes are ready sprinkle with pecans and drizzle with syrup. Make the kids set the table and enjoy!

________________________________________________________________________

Pumpkin Cranberry Orange Pancakes____________________________________

1c flour

2t baking soda

1T baking powder

2t pumpkin pie spice

1t salt

2T vinegar

1t vanilla

1t orange extract or 2tsp orange juice concentrate

2 eggs

1c pumpkin

1/4c cranberry sauce (canned)

Pecans:

1/2c pecans

1T brown sugar

1T butter

Mix dry ingredients together. Add wet ingredients and mix gently with a fork. Heat pan of griddle to medium-high heat. Drop pancake batter by 1/4 cupfuls onto greased pan. Cook until edges start to look dry and pancake puffs. Flip and cook for a 1-2 minutes on opposite side.

Pecans: Heat butter in small skillet over medium heat until melted. Add chopped pecans and brown sugar. Heat until glazed evenly. 

Honeyed Apricot-Peach Cream Cheese Tart

Yesterday I kept toying with the idea of whether I was really in the mood to make something or not. I have these lovely apricots and peaches and pears I bought last week at the produce market that are in need of being used before they go bad.

Gorgeous right?

So, this morning, I made a tart for breakfast. With scrambled eggs and sausage of course, because, well, it's Saturday which means I have to make a decent breakfast before running off to work. Any other day of the week would be an egg on toast. Weekends, working or no, I feel the need to make breakfast.

Maybe I should have waited until Sunday. I'm off Sunday. Oh well.

Assemble thine ingredients:

Fruit (I ended up using 3 apricots and 2 peaches very thinly sliced)

flour

sugar

1 stick butter

1 block cream cheese

honey

ginger

coffee. It's saturday morning. Coffee is a necessity.

Get out your handy dandy food processor. Attach normal blade that can take off your fingers and the flat top with the hole in it. Grab the cap too, because we are playing with flour and well, the whole kitchen does not need to be dusted...unless of course you want the family to think you slaved all morning, then by all means, dust away.

 Throw in butter(cold) and 1 1/4 c flour and 1/3c sugar. Keep the butter wrapper. 

Why?

Why, why, why. SO many questions!

Prepare for history lesson... commencing in 3-2-1...In the depression era, there was little money and little food. You had to *gasp* make use of every tiny part of the things you had because there was no room for waste. Think pinching pennies to the max. Using things like the part of veggies you trimmed off for broth, water for boiling used for bread or other meals, and butter wrappers are excellent for lubing up pans and dishes before baking in them. 

Keep you butter wrappers in a plastic baggy and use them, instead of a cooking spray to lube up your bakeware. Not only are you saving money, but the environment (less waste).

..End of lecture for today...

Turn on food processor and make lots of noise until it is blended and crumbly looking and the butter stops clunking around. No clunking is usually a good sign.

 Turn off noisy machine. Add water through the top hole 1 Tbs at a time, pulsing between each. Wow. That sounded dirty.

Keep adding water until it just barely comes together to form a dough.

Drag out a small baking sheet or jelly roll pan. Lube up with butter wrapper. NOW you can recycle it. It is paper after all.

Turn dough out onto pan and scrape together and fold once or twice, just enough to make it into a solid dough. 

You are supposed to chill the dough for an hour before using it. I spread it out onto the bottom of the pan and threw it in the freezer for 10 minutes while oven was heating.

If you have some extra butter (or wrapper), baste over top of dough. Toss in oven for 5-10 mins just enough to get the dough to harden a little. The butter will make it a pretty pale goldenish color.

While dough is in oven, thinly slice your fruit. And I mean thinly, or it will take too long to cook and you'll have burnt dough and raw fruit. No good.

Nuke your cream cheese in a microwave safe bowl for about 30 seconds. Enough to make it squishy enough to work with. Add 1 Tbs honey and 1/8t (pinch) of ginger. Mix.

Pull dough out of oven and dump on cream cheese mix. Spread evenly over crust with back of spoon. Layer on your fruit slices in whatever arrangement is aesthetically pleasing to you. 

I did rows... because I did. 

Toss back in over on TOP rack for 15-20 mins or until fruit is starting to shrivel a little. Using your fancy basting brush, baste honey (heated works best) over top about 10 mins into cooking.

While in the oven, scramble your eggs and fry up your sausage. And have more coffee. We need coffee.

And you are done. This one takes about an hour start to finish, so if you are working, make sure you start it more than an hour before work so you actually get some. 

Damned computer. Always get sidetracked...

Penne with Pesto Cream sauce and Stuffed Mushrooms

I have made a decision regarding the food blog.

I originally started posting as meals, because everyone usually makes a meal. Then I went to the individual recipe thing as that seemed to be the format many liked. Then I realized that everyone who writes a blog is doing the same thing as everyone else. They are either copying the Pioneer Woman's format on their food blogs or just post individual recipes.

I have decided that most of us make more than just one thing when we cook, and a good majority of people who look at recipes and new ideas are women or parents or people who cook for more than just themselves.

This makes things easy on me as well as my readers. You guys get a one page meal with multiple recipes and how to get everything ready in sequence, AND I don't have to make a million posts for individual recipes. This saves us both time in our busy, hectic lives.

There is a search option, so I am guessing people will use that if they are looking for something specific.

That being said, here is the next meal-like recipe. Jill, I made the stuffed mushrooms just for you so I could fulfill the request for the recipe :-)

I needed something to go with the Stuffed Mushrooms and pasta or steak is always a good option. As steak is not in my budget, this became a vegetarian meal.

Now, before you run off, adding steak or chicken is a cinch and is very yummy. That makes this meal easy for split households as well. Cut your meat up into strips and saute with some olive oil and garlic and serve over the top of the noodles. Or grill/fry/bake your meat of choice and serve off to the side. The steak with blue cheese butter is a good meat dish to go with this.

Looks totally yummy right?

So... Grab your ingredients. You'll need 8-10 large mushrooms, frozen spinach, bread crumbs, an egg, cheese of choice,  medium sized onion, noodles, alfredo sauce, pesto sauce and capers if you have them. Also grab some chicken or vegy bouillon or better than bouillon if you have it. 

Ok. Now. Micro-nuke the spinach. My 8 mushrooms took about 1/2 c of thawed spinach. 

Stem the mushrooms and clean out the fluffy white flesh the stems leave on the inside while the spinach is getting de-icy. Chop 1/2 the onion and the mushroom stems into tiny bits. 

Get out your cheese and shred if needed or in my case, using goat cheese...

I crumbled it. 

Like this. Amount is up to you. I used about 1/2 c.

Mix the ingredients together. Spinach, onion, stems, cheese, 1/4 c bread crumbs, 1 egg, 1 tbs garlic powder and a pinch of basil. 

Oh yeah, forgot to mention those. 

Spoon stuffing into mushrooms and mound. Yes, your hand will get dirty 'cause you have to kinda mold the stuffing to the top a bit, but its ok. That's what sinks are for. 

Mushrooms stuffed, pop in oven at 350 for maybe 20 mins.

Meanwhile, as the mushrooms are getting all happy boil some water and get the pasta going. Pop in a couple of teaspoons of bouillon to make it taste even better.

Mix half the pesto and half the alfredo together in a microwave save thingy.

Get a salad made or whatever veggie you intend on making.

Check the mushrooms. Now top with some more cheese, and put under broiler for about 2 mins. 

When they come out they should look like this. Ish.

When the noodles are done cooking, drain them and nuke the sauce.

And then you are done. Plate the noodles, top with sauce.  

And see what the beautiful mushrooms look like inside... MMMMMM.

Stuffed Mushrooms
8-10 large mushrooms
1/2 c spinach, thawed
3/4 c goat cheese crumbled or mozzarella shredded plus 1/4 c.
1 Tbs garlic powder
1/4c bread crumbs
Mushrooms stems, minced
1/2 onion, minced
1 egg

Stem the mushrooms and clean out cavity or any remaining stem parts. Mix together rest of ingredients except 1/4c of cheese. Spoon into mushrooms and mound slightly over top. Bake at 350 for 15 mins. Top with other 1/4 c of cheese. Broil until cheese melts and is slightly browned. 

Penne with Pesto Cream Sauce
1 lb Penne
Jar of pesto
Jar of alfredo sauce
3 Tbs capers

Boil pasta. Mix 1/2 jar pesto with 1/2 jar alfredo. Drain pasta. Add capers. Top with sauce. 

Serve with salad, bread or other vegetable. 

Sweet Potato Quinoa Salad

It is friggin hot. I have been banished to the great state of Kansas for the month, and if you have never been to the midwest during summer, let me tell you again. IT'S FRIGGIN' HOT!

Don't ever come in the summer. Actually, there really is nothing here really anyway, other than a lousy football team and a baseball team that finally has started the grueling process of pulling their heads out of their butt-cheeks.

So today, it went from 108 to 97 which is cold, considering. Humidity is 400% but hey, you take what you can get.

Have I mentioned I miss home?

Tonight, amongst the groaning and moaning if ye old air conditioner, I chose to make something easy, light and yummy. Always yummy.

Dah, dah, dah!

Sweet Potato Quinoa Salad.

MMMMMM. Let me tell you how much of a hit this was, may I?

Too bad, I'm going to anyway. 

The kids liked it. 

.

.

.

.

Yes. Pigs did fly, actually. They wore silver sparkly capes and top hats with red plumes and were singing dancing queen. 

Oh wait. That was Priscilla Queen of the desert. My bad.

Anyway, this is super easy and not so hard on the a/c either. It's getting enough of a workout, let's not heat up the inside too.

You will need:

• Quinoa
• Sweet Potatoes
• Cilantro
• Bell pepper, color of choice
• Onion
• Tomato (roma is best)
• Avocado, ripe but not overly squishy. 
• Balsamic Vinegar
• Lime juice (preferably from real lime not plastic lime-looking container)
• Mushrooms (optional)
• Chili powder, salt and pepper

Add 1 cup of quinoa to 2 cups of water and 2 tsps of Better than Bouillon into pot. Chicken is fine unless you are veggie, then use the veggie version. Bouillon lumps are ok too. Bring to a boil, cover and turn to low. It should be done in 10-15 mins. 

Chunk up your sweet potatoes in bite sized pieces, and boil in another pot with a good pinch of salt.

While they are cooking, slice your onion in half, then cut into thin slices. Chop peppers and tomatoes and avocados into bits. Mushrooms into chunks. Cilantro chop roughly (aka dirty chop). Throw all of these in a good sized bowl. It makes a lot. 

Ok. Now clean up the mess from throwing. 

See cooking is fun! You get to throw shit, play with knives and fire, I mean seriously when can you have this much fun but in the kitchen?

                                      

The sweet potatoes will be done first. Drain them, rinse in cold water and dump into other stuff you threw already.

When quinoa has soaked up all the liquid, fluff with a fork and dump into the bowl. Add 2-3 Tbs of balsamic vinegar and the juice of 1/2 the lime. A pinch of salt, chili powder and pepper and if it is a little to vinegary to your taste buds and a teaspoon of sugar.

NOW you can mix it. The less you mix this the better. Avocado becomes all squishy with too much mixing. 

I served this with Broccoli Slaw. Quinoa is an excellent source of protein, therefore can be a meal in itself. If you are not vegetarian, baked or grilled chicken is an awesome addition. If you are using it as a main dish, double this recipe and add some good old bread and butter.

Sweet Potato Quinoa Salad

 1c Quinoa

2 Sweet Potatoes

1/2 bunch Cilantro, chopped

1/2 Bell pepper, color of choice, diced

1/2 Onion, diced

2 Roma tomatoes, diced 

1 Avocado, diced

3 Mushrooms, diced (optional)

2 Tbs Balsamic Vinegar

1 Tbs Lime juice (preferably from real lime not plastic lime-looking container)

1 Tbs Chili powder

1 Tbs Garlic

Pinch salt and pepper

Bring 2 cups water or broth to a boil and add quinoa. Reduce heat to low and cover pot. Chop sweet potatoes into chunk and boil in broth or water until barely fork tender. Assemble remaining veggies into bowl. Mix together vinegar, spices, and lime juice. Add potatoes and quinoa to veggies. Pour sauce over top and mix lightly. 

Mango-Chipotle Chicken Burritos with Black Beans

I cheated.

No.

I did.

I was craving some really fresh, summery, yummy mexican-ish type food.

I had chicken. I had tortillas. I had.... hmmmm....

Oh yeah. That random bottle of salad dressing my mom shipped to me along with the other 42 bottles I have. Something by Kraft called Mango-Chipotle. Hmmmm.

Chicken. Mango-Chipotle.

This works.

So...maybe a put it together yourself burrito?

As you can see it was kid approved.

Yup. That'll work. And we could totally use that dressing for a marinade/cooking sauce for the chicken. Oooooh! And we have an entire gallon bag of black beans, so we could make mexican style black beans.

OMG. It's healthy too! So much protein!

We like protein. Protein is good.

So let's get started

3 large boneless skinless chicken breasts, cleaned and laid out in either a glass pan or jelly roll pan lined in foil.

Smother chicken with dressing, slice up some onion and toss it in, and cover with another piece of foil. Seal the foil. This is important. It will allow steam to be captured which results in fabulously tender chicken cooked relatively quickly.

Throw in oven for 20 mins or so. Baste with dressing every 10 mins.

So that's twice. You'll be ok. It's easy to remember. Twice.

That's it?

Well... uh... ya.

That's it. So easy.

So.... There are several ways this chicken can go. If you are in a tropical mood, make up some mango salsa, cook up some coconut rice, and maybe make a small arugula salad with feta cheese and a vinaigrette.

If you are in a mexican mood, when it comes out of the oven, you can serve over black beans and rice with sour cream and salsa, OR....

Make up some black beans, grab out tortillas, chop up some lettuce, tomato and cucumber, and make a build your own burrito.

I took option 3.

So. I have a gallon bag of black beans in the freezer, mainly because I cooked them, then realized I didn't have any ziploc baggies in less than a gallon.

Sigh.

So. Defrost your beans, about a quart's worth depending on the number of people you are feeding, obviously. Or 2 cans.

Saute some onion bits. Add 1 tsp garlic powder or 4-5 cloves fresh and 1Tbs taco seasoning. Splash in some worcestershire sauce and just a drop or 2 of liquid smoke, if you have it.

Toss in beans and a little water with a chicken bouillon cube or 1 tsp of chicken(or veggie) Better Than Bouillon. Pre-made broth works well too. By a little I mean maybe 1/2 c. Add more if the beans suck it all up. You want the beans to be a little soupy.

Let them cook until heated through and broth is thick.

Meanwhile, check your chicken. If it is done, pull off top foil and put back in oven a few minutes to brown the top just a touch.

Assemble other ingredients on the table.

Cut chicken into pieces and transfer it, and onions onto a plate. Feel free to shred chicken, that works too. I cut mine into large slices and let the creators decide how they wanted to further alter it for their burrito.

To create burrito, layer chicken, beans, veggies, sour cream and salsa. Wrap and enjoy.

As you can see, my son opted for beans on the side and no onions or salsa.

What a bum.

Banana Butterscotch Streusel Muffins

You know those bananas you bought last week, 'cause you were craving bananas? You bought a bunch because it feels weird to buy just one or two, right? And then you ate only one or two and the rest just sat... and sat...and sat...

and now....

They are perfect for banana bread!

But wait! Banana bread so Boooooorrrriiinnnngggg. Snore.

What's that? You have other random baking stuffs in your pantry?

OOOOHHHHHH!

Well then, let's snazz up banana bread, shall we?

Stop licking the screen. You don't know where it's been.

No seriously. Stop.

So, how abouts we do butterscotch banana bread, maybe even with some coconut thrown in?

Yeah, see that's what I thought!

Let's start with those poor pathetic bananas.

They need a little squishing. But, I'm lazy, as we have found throughout our cooking journey together. I let my kitchen aid mixer do the work.

Generally, you should cream the butter and sugar together first, but, I got carried away. Toss the bananas in a bowl, peeled of course.

Now laugh. 'Cause they look like light yellow poop.

See?

Ok. now throw in 1/2 stick of butter and 3/4 c sugar.

Mix to get all mooshy. Don't worry, it'll be liquidy.

While it's doing its thing (if you are using a stand mixer), measure out 2 cups of flour, 3/4 teas baking powder and 1/2 teas salt. Mix together with a fork.

Add 2 eggs to butter-sugar-banana mix as well as 1/3c sour cream and a splash of vanilla, rum or almond extract. Any of the extracts are good, but each brings a different flavor. Coconut extract is yummy too.

Once it is all mixed well, add flour mixture and blend well.

Now add butterscotch chips and coconut if you so wish. I added coconut later, not to the mix, because I have non-coconut lovers in my house.

I know. Shameful.

Anyway. Grab out your muffin tins. These make roughly a dozen small or 6 texas muffin sized muffins. Spray them down with some sort of lubrication. Pam, butter, or whatever is in your misto bottle is fine.

Fill your cups almost to the top, a little more than 3/4 full to get that store-bought muffin top. If you want, sprinkle some coconut in the bottom of some of the cups before adding batter and a little to the top after, to mark which ones you did that to. This is how I got coconut into select muffins for my split house.

Pre-streusel topping.

Ok. Now. Before you put it in the oven, mix 2 Tbs butter, 1/4c oats, 1/4c brown sugar and if you have them, a few sliced almonds or pecan bits.

Note. Almonds are a superfood, so this addition makes the muffins healthy. :-P

Spoon topping over the top mounding it slightly.

Toss the pans in the oven for maybe like... mmmmm... 15-20 mins.

Go play on Pinterest or in my case, start dinner while they were cooking.


When the buzzer reminds you that there is something in the oven, remove them and let them sit until you can touch them and not receive 2nd degree burns.

Enjoy your caramelly, butterscotchy, banana-y goodness.

MMMMMMM.

Creamy Coleslaw

Among the summer yummies that we think of is, of course, coleslaw. Imagine KFC style coleslaw or better yet, your favorite BBQ place's slaw. Creamy and melt in your mouth good right? Well, if veggies could melt.

This one is it's match, let me tell you.

And so simple.

Sigh.

So simple.

I promise you will not be able to resist taste testing... multiple times. This ended up being my dinner before dinner. 

And then half the bowl is gone, and you remember you had the family to share with... oops.

Oh, well. Make some more.

So we start with a head of cabbage. One small whole head will feed a bunch of people. Medium for a family reunion. Large for a family reunion plus all the in-laws.

Shred the cabbage however you feel is easiest. I used my handy dandy Cuisinart food processor with the shredding plate for mine. Made it nice and fine, kinda like you'd get at a restaurant. A plain old hand held grater works too, or cut it by hand.

While your shredding, grab an apple, zucchini, 2 carrots, 1/4 onion sliced, and if you are feeling adventurous, some red cabbage or radicchio.

Now for the magic. The sauce.

Ready for it?

Ready?

Mayo, sugar, apple cider vinegar, and a pinch of salt.

Yes, that's it. 

Told you it was simple.

Actually the magic is in the apple and zucchini you put in the salad. A little sweet, a little soft, makes it all the yummier. 

Mix all your ingredients together.

That's it.

No seriously.

Chill it 'till your ready to serve... and to keep from eating the whole thing!

Mom's Famous Potato Salad

This is Mom. Mom and Granny have taught my sister and I well when it comes to cooking. 

Remember those home-ec cooking classes you had to take in middle school? Ya, my sis and I rocked those classes. And we of course owe it all to the 2 amazing women that raised us. Granny has forgone cooking unless it is her famous pumpkin and pecan pies at xmas and on occasion cookies and cake. 

Sometimes biscuits. 

Mom still forges on, always coming up with new alterations to recipes she has tried. This one, however, is an original.

SHHHHHH. Family secret here.

SHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

GO take the computer into the closet to view this most secret recipe k? Cause once you try it and if the restaurants see it, they will forgo that nasty stor bought crap and go to this. AND then it won't be a SECRET anymore. 

Wait what?

Everyone can see the internet?

Seriously?

No, for real?

Well Shit. Fine. You can leave the closet then. 

So for this yummy-ness, you will need potatoes. 

DOH!

Any type will do. I am cheap today so it's good all russets for me.

Oh! Eggs! You need to start a pan of water and eggs to boilin' 'cause eggs are yummy in potato salad. I use about 2-3 per 5 mid-size potatoes. See above for my idea of mid-size.

Wash all the dirt off of your taters. If you are against skin, then by all means peel. As I said, I'm lazy. That and skin has all the nutrients, so it gets left on.

Chop potatoes into chunks. 

If you are confused about how to get them more or less the same size, I'll post a how-to later. New page and all with how-to basic stuff for those new to cooking. Even size is important so the cook evenly and you don't have half mashed half chunks. 

EWWWWWW.

Drop your chunks into water. 

In a pot. 

'Cause you have to cook them. 

Let them boil until just barely fork tender. This means you use a fork and stick it into the potato. If it goes in easily, fork tender. Get it? 

Good.

While they are getting boily, chop some onion into bits. You can also add green pepper and celery chopped into bits if'n you want. I dislike crunchy stuff in my potato salad so I refrain. 

Also, if you have some sweet pickles, chop those up too. I happened to have some of mom's famous 14-day pickles made the old-fashioned way in a big ceramic crock. So I chunked those up and mmmmmm. They are like candied pickles. So yummy.

If you have only sweet relish, that's fine too. A couple of tablespoons should be enough.

Dump all of the above into a bowl and set aside until the taters and eggs are ready.

Now for the sauce. The all important, bring it all together ingredient in every salad. And my specialty. 

Sauces. Sauces are my specialty.

Grab out the mayo, apple cider vinegar, sugar, salt/pepper and if'n you like, some dill. 

For the 5 said mid-sized potatoes and other stuff, you will want about 1c of sauce. 

This is the hard part, because I don't actually measure any of the sauce ingredients, I just dump in what looks right, so, by all means, adjust for your taste. 

Mayo type will alter taste too. I use Miracle Whip's Olive Oil Mayo. It is slightly tangy but not like regular Miracle Whip and is creamy like real mayo.

SOOOOO.... For my mayo...and for real mayo too...

1/2 c mayo

3 T apple cider vinegar

2t sugar

pinch of salt and pepper

pinch of dill.

That's it. Whisk or mix with fork until smooth. Taste. Make sure that it is a good balance of acid and sweet and salt. In other words, your taste buds should sing and you should want to continue eating the sauce by spoonfuls. Yes, it is THAT important.

If you are using regular Miracle Whip, reduce amount of sugar to 1t or add a little sour cream (1 or 2 Tbs) to the mix to make it the right flavors. 

By now your eggs and taters should be done. Drain and rinse taters in cold water. I let them sit with the sprayer on them while I play with the eggs. Drain and cool off eggs with cold water. If you add ice to the water, it shocks them and they peel super easy. 

Chop eggs into bowl.

Add potatoes. 

DO NOT MIX YET!

This is important. The potatoes are in that delicate, if-you-screw-with-them-too-much-they-will-fall-apart stage. We want to mess with them only once, with exception of taste testing... 

repeatedly.

Dump sauce on top, and with a giant spoon, gently mix by bringing the bottom yumminess to the top in an up-and-over motion. Do this on all sides of the bowl until it is mixed evenly-ish. It will never be perfect, but will be darn close. 

And TADA! Potato salad. 

Be warned. It is addicting. You can't get enough. 

And it may not ever make it to the dinner table.

Mine was half gone within about an hour of making it and setting in the fridge. 

Damn gnomes. 

Download Recipe Card Here

Strawberries 'N Cream French Toast with Bacon

Looks good right?

I had an epiphany yesterday when bringing home fresh strawberries and french bread still warm from the oven. You can see me in an 1800's style dress with a basket of fresh goodies right?

Ha!

Anyway, I thought... You know, cream cheese with those strawberries would be yummy... Ooooh! I could make a cream cheese filling for French toast and top that with fresh strawberries.

With this plan in mind, 5 seconds later, my children pipe up from the back seat. "Tacos sound good for dinner! LET'S HAVE TACOS!"
"But I was thinking french toast."
"I don't like french toast!" "I want tacos"
"Are you sure...? I have strawberries..."
"Ooooh! STRAWBERRIES!"

*shakes head*

So we had tacos. I didn't want friggin' French Toast anyway.

Tonight, I made dinner before they had the opportunity to tell me what sounded good.

See look at me being all sneaky and stuff. (They were outside enjoying the 2 seconds of sunshine we had today)

See my beautiful strawberries?

Unfortunately, we are going to have to murder them slightly to make dinner. But it's ok. They'll be yummy. I might add I bought this 3 pound container last night... and it's half gone. 

Nope. No strawberry-a-holics in this house. Not a one.

Ok. So let's start this the way I didn't cause I was being stupid.

Cut your now day old, lovely, crusty French bread into 1/4" to 1/2" slices. 

(insert french accent here) Lika dis...

Next, for this lovely loaf, get 2 eggs, some milk and almond extract. Or if you have no almond, amaretto will do in a pinch or if you have to, vanilla.

Yes, amaretto. No, the alcohol. Yes, seriously.

I used both. It was delish.

Onward.

Break open said eggs. (Do I really have to tell you this?)

Scramble the eggs.

(Insert accent here) Lika dis...

That funny looking thing is called a whisk. Forks do in a pinch. Don't panic.

Add milk. Oh. About...2 cups.

Add about 1/4 c of sugar, dash of almond or vanilla or amaretto or a combination. Whatever you have on hand. I wouldn't necessarily do almond AND vanilla, but almond and amaretto are very nice.

Sorry, no picture for that one, but trust me they are in there.

Whisk all together really well.

Do not put the whisk in the...sink.

Take it back out and wash it 'cause you will need to agitate (ooh big fancy word) the liquid to keep sugar suspended.

It's heavy. It likes to sink.

That's your physics lesson for today.

Next drown your lovely bread in the mix until happy (about 10-15 secs per side) and place on baking sheet. You will use said sheet later, again.

We wouldn't want you to have the whisk mistake again, no would we? See I warned you well ahead of time. Oh. Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Less dirty dishes = happy cook.

Ok set the bread aside. If there is any dip left over, pour over the slices. They'll soak it up.

Get the bacon going.

MMMMMM. Bacon.

Time to murder the strawberries,

MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Ok. I'm done now.

Let's start the filling.

These are the ingredients in the filling. Plus a little almond extract. It ran away before I could take the picture.

Don't you hate it when ingredients grow legs and run off.

Grab the cream cheese. It's best if slightly soft. Makes mushing easier. Dump it in a bowl.

Add about 1/2c of yogurt, 1/2c marshmallow fluff and 2 Tbs sugar.

Squish together until smooth. Check on the bacon.

I cheated. I do that. 

Add almond extract. Mix in.

When it's done, it should look (insert accent here) lika dis...

So the bowl is messy. Cooking is messy. I'm a real cook, not food set person. 

Add a few chopped strawberries to the mix. I used maybe 4 little ones.

K. Throw it in the freezer to stiffen up a bit. 

Time to murder the strawberries a little. 

Chop them into bits. Check on the bacon.

Add sugar to make them happy. Add amaretto if you have no children to worry about. No intoxicating children, no matter how tempting to get them to sleep earlier.

Time to cook the toast. 

Heat up a skillet, griddle, or cast iron.

Slather it down with butter. 

Check on the bacon. Drain slices on paper towels. Throw on baking pan and into oven if they are done before everything else.

Cook on each side only until golden brown and return to baking pan. 

Once all of them are done, slide into the oven for about 7-8 minutes. 

Whew. Take a swig of that amaretto. Go pee. Dance a jig. Whatever.

Time to assemble.

Take one slice of toast and cut in half. Top one half with the filling from the freezer. Place other half on top. Cover in strawberries.

Grab some bacon and your good to go!