Kreacher's French Onion Soup (Serves 6)

Miss V has checked out the Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook a few times and we have made a few things from it.  Well she has been asking to make something else and I told her that she could pick one recipe and we would make it.

4 medium onions

1/2 stick butter, melted

1 baguette

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese (subbed grated Swiss)

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon sugar

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

6 cups beef or chicken stock (I used beef)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Peel the onions, cut them in half from pole to pole, and slice as thinly as possible.  In a heavy soup pot, heat the butter.  Remove the pot from the heat.

 

Remove one end of the baguette and slice six 1-inch-thick slices for the croutons.  Dip pastry brush into hot butter and brush onto one side of bread.  Place the slices butter-side up on a baking sheet and sprinkle with the cheese.  Toast the bread in the oven for about 10 minutes or until browned. (I waited until the soup was finished and my husband was home from work)

While the bread toasts, return the pot to the heat and add the onions.  Season with salt and pepper.

 

Stir in the sugar and continue to stir over medium-high heat until the onions have browned, about 15 minutes.

 

Blend in the flour.  Gradually, add the stock while stirring and bring the soup to a boil.  Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook uncovered for 30 minutes.  

 

Ladle the soup into bowls and float a cheesy crouton in the center, then sprinkle cheese around the crouton.

 

This came out really good!  We did substitute shredded Swiss cheese for the Parmesan.

 

Garlic Herb Croutons

2 French baguette (about 12 ounces), preferably day-old, cut into 1/2-inch dice or you may use Cuban Bread

1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tbs Dried Italian Herbs
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
A couple of Garlic cloves peeled and smashed

Preheat the oven to 300°F.
Heat the olive oil in a small sauce pan and add garlic.  Let simmer until you smell the garlic.  Make sure to not to over heat the oil and burn the garlic.  I simmered it about 15 minutes then removed the pan from the heat and allowed to cool for 15 minutes.

Combine all of the ingredients in a large mixing bowl, and toss quickly to coat the croutons well.

Transfer the croutons to two baking sheets and spread them out in a single layer. You may add a bit more oil and seasonings.

Bake, rotating the baking sheet front to back midway through, until crisp all the way through and golden, 25 to 30 minutes.

Remove from the oven and set aside to cool completely.

Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

Yield: About 8 cups

 

 

 

Serve on top of your favorite tossed salad.

 

Quinoa and edamame salad wth sesame-ginger dressing

Here is another salad that I have made this month.  I did double the recipe.  The original pin just went to a magazine, but the recipe was listed in the pin.

2 cups cooked quinoa
1 1/3 cup shelled cooked Edamame
1/2 cup shredded carrots
1/2 cup chopped cucumber

Dressing
1 1/2 tbs toasted Sesame Oil
2 tsp rice wine vinegar
2 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp fresh grated ginger
1/2 tsp garlic powder

In a small bowl make the dressing then toss with the other ingredients.  Refrigerate for a couple hours to allow flavors to develop.

This came out ok, but I think I would make a little more dressing.  The quinoa really absorbed the dressing so quickly that some of the grain was kind of dry.

Lemon Orzo with Mint and Feta

Yep another Pinterest recipe.  I have been on a kick of making different kinds of salads that keep well in the fridge.  You can find the original recipe on Fork, Knife, Swoon.

1 1/2 cups dry orzo pasta

2 tbsp olive oil

1 lemon, zested and juiced

1 large English cucumber, seeded and chopped

1 tbsp fresh mint, finely chopped (Miss V did this for me with scissors)

1 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped (Miss V did this for me with scissors)

1 cup crumbled feta cheese

kosher salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste

 

Cook the Orzo according to package directions.  Drain and place into a medium bowl and coat with the olive oil.  Allow to cool.

 

In another bowl combine the lemon juice, zest, cucumber, mint, parsley.  Stir in the cooled orzo and feta cheese.

 

Season with salt and pepper.

 

Chill in the fridge for a few hours to allow the flavors to develop.

 

 

This came out pretty good.  I think next time I would like a little more lemon zest.  We had this with grilled chicken and I had some more of my Roasted Edamame Salad.

Chicken Caesar Lasagna Rolls

I have neglected my blog again and I am sorry about that.  I have made a few new things in June, but just haven't made myself sit and blog about them.  I am going to catch up today.  For the most part I have been making lots of old stand by recipes.

I found this idea on Pinterest months ago and well it just looked really interesting and I decided to make it this week.  You can find the original recipe at Mother Thyme.

First thing you want to do is make the sauce

3 tbs unsalted butter
2 tbs flour
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup Caesar Dressing
Salt and pepper to taste

Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in flour until blended. Gradually whisk in milk and Caesar dressing whisking constantly until the sauce is thick. Remove from the heat and season with salt and pepper to taste and set aside.

Next cook the lasagna noodles.  I ended up using 4 whole wheat noodles and 6 white noodles.  Drain and rinse under cool water.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Make the filling

1 pound shredded chicken.  I like to roast mine in the oven with salt and pepper.  Let cool then the shred them.
1/2 cup Caesar Dressing
1 egg
15 oz ricotta cheese
1 cup shredded mozzarella, divided
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 tsp dried parsley flakes
1 tsp garlic powder
Salt & pepper

In a large bowl, stir together the ricotta, egg, 1/2 cup mozzarella, parmesan, parsley, garlic powder, Caesar Dressing, salt and pepper.

 Place 1/3 cup Caesar Sauce in the bottom of a 13x9 glass baking dish.

Dry the noodles and lay them on a clean surface.  Divide and spread the filling on the noodles and carefully roll the noodles.  Place them seam side down in the baking dish.

Pour the remaining sauce over the noodles and sprinkle the rest of the mozzarella cheese over the top of the noodles.

Bake for 30 minutes until hot and bubbly. 

Serve with a large green tossed salad.

I totally forgot to take the after pictures.  We have been having some really wicked storms at dinner time.  Anyway these were really good.

Fage chocolate frozen yogurt = epic fail

I used my Bzz Agent coupons to bur the Fage Greek yogurt and followed a recipe I found online.

- Fage Greek Yogurt- 0%, 24 oz
- Granulated Sugar, .75 cup
- Cocoa, dry powder, unsweetened, 6 tbsp
- Vanilla Extract, 1 tbsp

- Combine Ingredients in a Bowl

- Chill Mixture in Refrigerator for an Hour

- Churn in Icecream maker as per instructions until set.

This tasted absolutely disgusting.  I even added some chocolate chips to help it taste better.  It did not help.  It tasted so sour and tangy.  

Miss V wouldn't eat it and I ended up tossing it out.

Quinoa Vegetable Salad with Lemon-Basil Dressing

A few weeks ago I bought a box of Quinoa at the store.  I have seen lots of Pins with great looking salad ideas.  So yesterday I picked one out from The Garden Grazer.  I made it, but it was very bland so I tweaked it a bit and here is what I used.

1 cup uncooked quinoa
15 oz. can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1 large Beefsteak Tomato
5 or 6 mini peppers (red, yellow, orange) diced
1 1/2 cups frozen corn, thawed
4 green onions

For the dressing
2 Tbsp. olive oil
Zest and juice of two lemons
1 1/2 tsp. basil
Salt and Pepper to taste

Cook Quinoa according to package directions.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl whisk together olive oil, lemon zest and juice, and basil. Set aside.

Slice green onions, dice tomato and peppers.

When quinoa is done cooking, let cool. I spread it out on a plate to cool quicker

Then place all salad ingredients in a large bowl.

Pour dressing over top and mix well to combine.  Adjust seasonings.

Cover the bowl and place in the fridge to cool for a couple hours and allow the flavors to develop.

This is a super salad to keep in the fridge this summer.  It was very light and very tasty!

Here is what I had for dinner, Burger with Mozzarella Cheese, fresh Basil leave, Balsamic Vinegar on a wheat bun and the two salads.

Roasted Edamame Salad

My friend Cori made this yummy salad for the Teacher Luncheon last week and we all loved it.  I HAD to get the recipe.  She sent me the link and it is from Alton Brown, I just love AB!  You can find the original recipe on Food Network.

I actually doubled the recipe.

24 ounces fresh or frozen shelled edamame, about 4 cups

1 cup fresh corn kernels, about 4 ears of corn

1/2 cup finely diced scallion

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoon olive oil

1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 cups chopped fresh tomato

1/s cup chopped fresh basil leaves

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Place the edamame, corn, scallion, garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper into cookie sheet and stir to combine. Place on the middle rack of the oven and roast for 10 to 15 minutes, just until the edamame begins to brown. Remove from the oven and place in the refrigerator until completely cool, approximately 30 minutes.

Add the tomato, basil and vinegar to the edamame mixture and toss to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning, as desired. Serve chilled or at room temperature

I can't even begin to tell you how yummy and fresh this tastes.

Samoas Cupcakes

So I found the recipe on Pinterest months ago and it kind of popped back in my head when I signed up to bring a dessert for our Mom's night out.  You can find the original recipe at Sweet Peas Kitchen.

I did totally cheat and used a box cake mix.  I ran out of time on Thursday.  I don't think it made that much of a difference.

Since I was going to put them in 8 oz jars I decided to make a whipped ganache to put between the layers of cupcakes.  I cut each cupcake horizontally in half.

Make and cool 24 chocolate cupcakes.

Make, cool and whip ganache.

Toast 1 cup of shredded coconut in the oven.

Make the caramel frosting:

2 sticks unsalted butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup whole milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 cups powdered sugar

To make the frosting, melt the butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the salt and brown sugar and heat the mixture to boiling, stirring constantly. Cook over low heat for 2 minutes, until the sugar is dissolved. Stir in the milk and return to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in vanilla. Be careful it does bubble up.

Cool to lukewarm, about 30-40 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Once the caramel frosting mixture is lukewarm, transfer to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the powdered sugar and beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Adjust consistency with a little more milk or powdered sugar, if necessary.
Place a cupcake half in the bottom of the jar.  Place a dollop of the whipped ganach.  Place another cupcake half and dollop of ganache.  Top with another cupcake half.  Pipe on the caramel frosting.

Sprinkle on the toasted coconut.

Melt 1/4 cup of milk chocolate chips and drizzle on top of the coconut.

I did leave the coconut off of 3 jars.

And this what all the ladies enjoyed before dinner...

Lemon Blueberry Cupcakes with Lemon Buttercream in mason jars

Yesterday I posted about making mini cheesecakes for a Teacher Appreciation Lunch.  Well I also made Lemon Blueberry Cupcakes with Lemon Buttercream.

The recipe for the cupcakes actually was supposed to be for a full three layer cake.  Well our Teacher Lunch is outside, it is hot in SW Florida and it is a pain in the butt to cut cakes and serve them.  So I kind of did thing my way...the easier way.

For the cupcakes

2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 cups sugar

2 tsp grated lemon zest

1½ tsp lemon extract

7 egg whites, I cheated here too and used Egg Beaters (the white only version)

3 cups cake flour

4 tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

1¼ cups milk

 

Blueberry Jam/Preserves thinned a bit with Lemon Juice

 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Use paper cupcake liners and put them in 24 muffin cups. 

In a mixer, cream together the butter, sugar, lemon zest and lemon extract until light and fluffy. Gradually add the egg whites 2 or 3 at a time, beating well between additions and stopping occasionally to scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Combine the flour, baking powder and salt, whisk gently to blend. In 2 or 3 alternating additions, beat the dry ingredients and milk into the butter mixture, scraping down the sides of the bowl several times. Beat on medium-high speed for about 1 minute to smooth out any lumps and aerate the batter.

Scoop 1 cup of the batter into a small bowl. Fill your muffin cups 2/3 full.  I actually over filled mine by accident.  Totally wasn't paying attention.  I did have left over batter so I had to fill another 6 cups after baking the first batch. Add 2½ tbsp of the lemon blueberry jam to the reserved batter and blend well. Drizzle heaping teaspoons of this blueberry mixture over the batter in the pans. Use a skewer to swirl the blueberry mixture in short strokes to drag it down through the lemon batter without mixing it in.

 

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.

 

Remove the cupcakes to a wire rack to cool.

 

Lemon Buttercream

 

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

3 3/4 cups confectioners' sugar

1 lemon, juice and zest of

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/8 teaspoon salt

Combine butter, sugar and salt and beat till well combined.
Add lemon juice, zest and vanilla and continue to beat for another 3 to 5 minute or until creamy.

Fill a piping bag with the frosting.

So what I did was cut each cupcake horizontally in half.

Place one half on the bottom of an 8 oz mason jar.  Place a 1/2 tbs of the Blueberry jam on the cupcake.  Pipe a bit of the frosting on top of the jam.  Add another cupcake half and repeat the layers.

For each jar I used three cupcake halves.  This made 13 8 oz jars.

I stored them in the fridge over night.  I let them come up to room temp before the Lunch. These also were a huge hit.

Mini Cheesecakes in a jar with fruit sauces

Yep another wonderful idea thanks to Pinterest.  I put myself in charge of desserts for the Teacher Appreciation Lunch this week.

You can find the original post at The Italian Dish.

2 cups graham cracker crumbs (16 whole graham crackers, ground)
2 tablespoons sugar
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
4 8-ounce packages of cream cheese, room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
4 eggs, room temperature
1 cup sour cream (I used Fage Greek Yogurt thanks to my Bzz Agent Kit)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
zest of 1 lemon
24 4 oz mason jars

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F.

Spray the mason jars with non-stick cooking spray, making sure to spray the bottoms so the crust doesn't stick.

 

Blend the graham cracker crumbs, 2 tablespoons of sugar and melted butter in a bowl.  Place about 1 heaping tablespoon of the crumbs into each mason jar and tamp down to make the crust (I used a part of my apple corer).

 

In a large mixer bowl, mix the room temperature cream cheese with the 3/4 cup of sugar until smooth.  Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix well.  Add the Greek yogurt, vanilla and lemon zest and mix until well incorporated. Fill each mason jar with about 1/3 cup of the filling, leaving room at the top for your topping.

 

Place the jars in a large roasting pan or two deep baking dishes.  Fill the pan with hot water halfway up the mason jars.  Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes. Remove jars with tongs and place on a wire rack to cool.

 

For the toppings I made a mango sauce, raspberry sauce and fresh blueberries.

 

For the Mango Sauce I did halve the recipe linked above.

 

6 oz. frozen cubed mango, thawed, or 1 1/2 cups chopped fresh mangoes, cubed
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoons lime juice

 

Puree mango in food processor until smooth. With processor running, add all remaining sauce ingredients; process until smooth and well-blended. Serve cheesecake with sauce.

 

For the Raspberry Sauce

1 12 oz bag frozen unsweetened raspberries thawed in a fine mesh strainer over a bowl

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 tsp lemon juice

 

Once the berries have thawed force the juice from the berries by gently pressing them with the back of a wooden spoon.  Throw away the seeds.

 

Stir in the sugar and lemon juice.  Spoon the sauce over the cheesecakes.

 

 

 

By far the mango was chosen first and everyone raved about it.  I only took home one raspberry and two plain with blueberries.

Pina Pineapple Sherbert

As you all know, I love Pinterest!  I found a quick way to make Sherbet.

1 cup sugar
1 envelope unsweetened Kool-Aid
3 cups milk
1/4 cup water

In a small saucepan mix kool-aid, water and sugar over medium heat until smooth and sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from heat and cool in the fridge for a couple of hours.

Mix in 3 cups of cold milk to the Kool Aid and combine well.

Then pour into your ice cream maker and process for about 15 to 20 minutes.

I then like to scoop it out into individual servings.

It definitely was sweet, and I think I would use a bit less sugar next time.  I did pick up lots of different flavors so that Miss V can have lots of variety now that it is hot here in SW Florida.

Mother's Day Gift and Mango Blueberry Sorbet

See what Miss V picked out for my Mother's Day Gift

My old Krups one just wasn't working so well anymore...I couldn't have been happier that this is what she picked.  The freezer bowl went into the garage freezer immediately.

Today I finally had a chance to try it out.

3 cups of thawed Mango Chunks
1/2 cup of thawed Blueberries

Simple syrup made from 2 cups water and 1/2 cup of sugar.

I used the blender to puree the mango chunks with a bit of they syrup until smooth.  Then added the blueberries and checked for sweetness.  I didn't use all the syrup.

After blending, I did strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve.  Then poured it back into the blender container and placed in the fridge for a few hour.

The set up the ice cream maker and turned it on.

It tastes wonderful and I love my new ice cream maker.  I am definitely going to have to get another freezer bowl.

S'Mores Snack Mix

I spotted these little bags of Hershey Drops and picked one up.  My brain kicked on when I was at Sweetbay and saw the mini Graham Crackers.

One 8oz bag of Hershey Drops
2 Cups mini marshmallows
4 Cups mini Graham Cracker Squares

Put the ingredients in a bowl and mix.

Put into an airtight container and snack away...

Shredded Chicken for Tacos and Nachos

On Tuesday morning I decided to make some shredded chicken that could be used for Tacos and Nachos.  Miss V has been on a chicken taco kick lately.

6 large boneless skinless and can be frozen Chicken Breasts

1 can of diced tomatoes, not drained
1 jar of salsa
1 tbs chili powder

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

1 tbs brown sugar

 

Put the chicken in the bottom of your crock pot.

 

In a bowl combine the rest of the ingredients and pour over chicken.

 

Cook on low for about 9 hours.

 

Take the chicken out and shred with two forks.  Place back in the crock pot to keep warm.

 

The first night we had chicken tacos; flour tortillas, cheese, lettuce, sour cream, tomatoes, avocados.

 

Last night I made a plate of nachos and everyone else had tacos.

 

 

Baked Honey Mustard Chicken

I had pinned this recipe awhile ago.  I decided to make it last night for dinner.  You can find the original recipe at Good Life Eats.  I did change a few things like using chicken breasts instead of tenderloins and baked it in my large skillet since I don't have a Le Creuset Braiser.

So here is what I did:

1 pkg (about 1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast)
2 tbs Dijon Mustard
2 tbs Grainy Dijon Mustard
1/4 cup of honey
3 tsp olive oil
1/2 a medium onion chopped
1 garlic clove minced
salt and pepper
fresh rosemary sprigs

Preheat oven to 400

In a small bowl combine the mustards, honey and 2 tsp of the olive oil.

Saute the onion until soft and then place the garlic in the pan.  Cook for 30 seconds then remove pan from the heat.

Place the chicken breast on top of the onion/garlic mix.  Pour the mustard mixture over the chicken breasts and place the rosemary sprigs around the chicken.

Cover with lid and place into the oven and bake for 30 minutes.

Remove lid and bake for another 20 minutes.

Miss V picked out some Cheddar Broccoli pasta and steamed broccoli.  I also poured some of the sauce over my piece of chicken.

It was really good!  I will definitely make this again.