Born 2 Impress GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

Born 2 Impress GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

Cinnamon Sticks GUEST GROSGRAIN GIVEAWAY!!!!

Cinnamon Sticks GUEST GROSGRAIN GIVEAWAY!!!!

Posna Sarma

Posna Sarma (Serbian recipe)

This recipe is similar to the recipe for Greek dolmas, though it's made with cabbage instead of grape leaves. The usual sarma is made with ground pork and chuck, resulting in a combination of meat, oil and cabbage, however this is a vegetarian version. If you prefer to us ground pork or chuck simply leave out the oil and fry the meat, then add remaining ingredients.

Ingredients

1 cabbage (or sweet cabbage)

5 onions (diced)

2 stalks celery

olive oil

1 green pepper (diced)

3.5 oz rice (cooked)

3.5 oz walnuts (ground)

1 can whole tomatoes

salt

Cut out the hard core of the cabbage and boil the cabbage and then separate each leaf. Heat oil in a skillet and add onions, celery and green pepper. Fry until soft. Add the cooked rice and stir fry the mixture for about two minutes. Remove the mixture from heat and add walnuts and salt. Mix well. Take a cabbage leaf and scoop approx. one tablespoon of the mixture on it. Roll up the leaf, the sides should be folded inside to prevent the mixture from falling out. Place the rolls in a large pan, add the tomatoes and enough water to cover them up. Cook over a medium heat for about one hour.Switch of the heat and keep the sarma's covered until it's time to eat.

Pelmini

Pelmeni (Eastern Europe Ravioli) is a dish that we had while in Kazakhstan. It is widely served in many Eastern European countries.

This recipe makes about 100 pelmeni which serves 10 people.

Ingredients for the dough

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 eggs (lightly beaten)

1/3 cup water

Combine flour and salt and mound on a clean surface. Make a well in the centre and add eggs and water. Incorporate flour mixture with egg mixture by working around the walls of the well until the dough is mixed. Knead on a floured surface until soft and pliable. Form into 100 balls, cover with a moist towel and let rest at room temperature for one hour.

Ingredients for the filling

1 pound ground beef

1 onion (minced)

1 teaspoon dried dill

Salt and pepper to taste

White of one small egg (beaten)

Water, chicken or beef broth

4 oz butter

Mix ground beef, onion, dill, salt and pepper to taste and enough water to make a soft mixture. When the dough is ready, flatten the dough balls into circles with a diameter of 7.5 cm. Place one tablespoon filling on each dough round. Brush the edges with water and fold the dough to form half moons. Pinch opposite ends to one another to seal. Repeat this with the rest of the dough balls. Brush the pelmeni with beaten egg white. Bring a large pot full of salted water to boil, you also can use chicken or beef broth. Without crowding, drop the pelmeni into the boiling water (or broth), stirring to prevent sticking, until the pelmeni comes to surface (about 4 minutes). Remove the pelmeni and put them on a large plate. Melt butter over medium heat and drizzle it over the pelmeni. You can also serve pelmeni with sour cream or a white sauce.

Boiled Cabbage

For Christmas dinner we always have ham and cabbage. I don't cook them together like some people do. I don't like the cabbage taste in my ham or the ham taste in my cabbage. I make a really quick and simple boiled cabbage that tastes really good.

Growing up my family always did turkey and homemade noodles at Chirstmas. My husband's family did ham and cabbage. Since we have turkey and noodles at Thanksgiving I decided to go with the ham and cabbage for Christmas. My mother-in-law did cook her ham and cabbage together, so I did make a change from what my husband had grown up with, but he enjoys the way I make it.

1 Head of cabbage
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
2 Tbsp Butter
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper
1 beef bouillon cube

Cut or shred cabbage to desired size pieces. Place in large pan and cover halfway with water. Add bouillon cube, olive oil, salt and pepper. Stir occaisonally over medium heat. I generally only cook this for about 5 minutes on medium heat, then lower heat and let simmer for about 15 minutes. This gives the seasonings time to infuse the cabbage with their flavors, but not get the too mushy. I like mine with just a bit of the crispness left to the cabbage. Cooking time will vary for everyone depending on how you like your cabbage (crisp or mushy).

Sugar Cookies and Icing

With the holidays coming up, it's time to think about all the yummy snacks that come with this time of year. One of my faves is iced sugar cookies. Here is a simple, but tasty recipe for sugar cookies and icing.

Sugar cookies:

1 cup butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

1 large egg

1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla

3 cups all-purpose flour

1-1/4 teaspoons baking powder

Beat together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla, mix until just combined. Add flour and baking powder in intervals. Dough will seem as if doesn't have enough moisture but continue to mix with mixer until combined (it will come together when chilled). Divide the dough into four equal parts, shape into four disks, wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate about an hour or until firm. Preheat oven to 375 F. Lightly grease baking sheets or line with parchment paper or a non-stick baking mat. Roll out dough between 2 sheets of waxed paper, about 1/4 inch thick for crispier cookies and 1/3 inch thick for softer cookies. Cut out shapes with cookie cutters and place on prepared baking sheets. Bake for 7-8 minutes or until edges just start to turn a golden color. For softer cookies, do not allow the cookies to take on color. Remove from oven, let cool for one minute and then transfer to wire rack. Allow cookie sheet to cool thoroughly before placing uncooked dough on it.

Cookie Icing

1 cup confectioner's sugar

2 teaspoons milk

2 teaspoons corn syrup

1/4 teaspoon vanilla flavoring

Stir sugar and milk together in a bowl until icing mixture is smooth; beat in corn syrup and vanilla until icing mixture is smooth and glossy in appearance. Add food coloring to desired shade. Ice cookie and set aside for the icing to harden.

Crockpot Chicken Supper

This is a really hardy dish that makes the most of flavor and fills you up. You can change they type of cheese to alter the flavor of this dish a bit if you like. Unlike a typical crockpot meal this is not a dish that you leave and let cook all day. Some of the steps require different cooking methods.

Ingredients:
3 slices bacon
6 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
10 oz. jar four cheese Alfredo sauce
4 oz. jar sliced mushrooms, drained
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup diced Swiss cheese

Preparation:
In large skillet, cook bacon until crisp. Remove bacon from skillet and drain on paper towels. Crumble bacon and set aside in refrigerator.
In bacon drippings in skillet, cook chicken over medium heat 3-5 minutes or until light brown, turning once. Place in 4-6 quart slow cooker. Top with mushrooms. Pour alfredo sauce over mushrooms and chicken. Cover and cook on low setting for 4-5 hours, or until chicken registers 165 degrees F on a meat thermometer.
Top chicken with cheese slices and sprinkle with bacon. Cover and cook on high for 10-15 minutes or until cheese is melted. 6 servings

Egg Salad

I decided I was taking the fall thing too seriously. The ingredients didn't necessarily have to be related to fall or Halloween, just the overall presentation. So with that in mind I went with a classic. The egg salad sandwich. While most people think of egg salad as a lunch food, in our house it is a breakfast favorite.

My twist for Halloween was simply to use the Halloween cookie cutters to cut the finished sandwiches into fun, halloween shapes. I had thought of doing that sooner but I figured my kids might be a bit old for it at 12 and 14. They enjoyed it though because it brought back memories of when they were younger and I would do this for them all the time.

This is a really basic egg salad recipe. Sometimes it's best not to mess with a classic though.

INGREDIENTS:
4 Hard-boiled Eggs, peeled and chopped
¼ cup Light Miracle Whip (you can use mayo if you prefer)
1 Celery Stalk, finely chopped
2 teaspoons Red Onion, finely chopped
1 ½ teaspoons Lemon Juice
To taste: Salt & Freshly Ground Black Pepper (about 1/8 to 1/4 tsp of each)

DIRECTIONS:
Gently toss the eggs and celery together in a medium-size bowl. In a smaller bowl, combine mayonnaise, lemon juice, onion, salt and pepper. Fold into the eggs and celery. Season to taste with salt & the ground black pepper. Chill for an hour or so before eating.

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Sweet Potato Pie

I got to have another lazy morning. I made Sweet Potato Pie yesterday afternoon and served it for breakfast this morning. I also served the kids vanilla yogurt on the side so I could at least pretend I wasn't giving them dessert for breakfast again.

I've noticed that most breakfast foods are packed with sugar or grease anyway so I don't think they are any healthier than this particular kind of pie. Anyway, sweet potato pie says fall to me. Now I just have one more day to get through of this crazy fall breakfast theme I have placed upon myself.

1/2 cup softened butter
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 cup Mashed, cooked sweet potatoes
3 lightly beaten eggs
1/3 cup corn syrup
1/3 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 pie shell, Unbaked


Cream butter and brown sugar in bowl until light and fluffy. Blend in sweet potato and eggs. Add corn syrup, milk, salt and vanilla; mix well. Pour into pie shell. Bake in a 425-degree oven for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 325 degrees and bake 35 to 45 minutes longer or until well set.

Apple Cider Syrup

I managed to come up with a fall breakfast that didn't involve pumpkin. The kids were thrilled about that. This was actually a pretty lazy breakfast for me. I served them frozen waffles. Yes, totally lazy and not great... I know. I almost never buy frozen waffles because they're... well, let's face it, they're not that good. They were on sale last week and there was a coupon and since they were practically free after that I couldn't pass up the deal. Since we had them I figured we might as well use them.

I did make the syrup though. This was my first ever attempt at making syrup. I was a bit nervous, but it was a success. It even made those frozen waffles taste good. Fitting with the fall theme for the week, I made Apple Cider Syrup.

INGREDIENTS:

1-1/2 cup unsweetened apple cider

1/3 cup brown sugar, firmly packed

10 whole cloves

1 stick cinnamon

DIRECTIONS:

Combine all ingredients in a small, heavy saucepan. Place over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes or until thickened. It will have reduced to about 3/4 cup. Discard cloves and cinnamon stick. Serve warm.

Pumpkin Fluff Dip

Today's breakfast treat was pumpkin fluff dip. At first I thought it might be a little too dessert like to serve the kids for breakfast. Once I thought about it though I decided it was probably better for them than most breakfast cereals anyway. I served it with sliced apples and graham crackers to dip. This stuff is wonderful.

INGREDIENTS:
1 - 16oz container frozen whipped topping, thawed
1 - 4oz package instant vanilla pudding mix
1 - 15oz can pumpkin
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

DIRECTIONS:
In a large bowl, mix together instant vanilla pudding mix, pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice. Fold in the thawed frozen whipped topping. Chill in the refrigerator until serving. Serve with fruit or crackers.

Things were hectic this morning so I didn't get a chance to take a photo. I thought there would be some left and I could get a good shot after the kids had left for school. I was wrong. They gobbled it all up. I do think they are getting a bit tired of pumpkin though. I am going to have to find an alternative Halloween/fall themed breakfast for the next two days.

Pumkin Smoothie

I'm keeping with the whole Halloween/Fall theme this week at our house. Since I have two kids that are in school I can't do lunches and dinners are hit and miss with activities like hockey and school plays. So I make sure to do something good for breakfast each morning, even if it's something simple. This morning it was pumpkin smoothies.


I wasn't real sure about trying this one. The idea of a pumpkin smoothie was a bit odd at first but I thought what the heck. It turned out to be very tasty. A pleasant surprise.


INGREDIENTS:
1 banana
1 apple, peeled and diced
3/4 cup canned pumpkin
3/4 cup milk or low fat vanilla yogurt
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinammon
(you can also add 4 graham cracker squares if you like a thicker smoothie or fiber one cereal for a thicker, healthier smoothie)


DIRECTIONS:
Combine ingredients in blender and puree until smooth.

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Pancakes

I make these pancakes lightly spiced because of my young son. If you like, you can increase the spices or add others. I use whole wheat flour and skim milk in an attempt to make a healthier pancake. I made these for the first time this morning in honor of the start of Halloween week. They were a big hit.


INGREDIENTS:

2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
4 tsp baking pwder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4cup brown sugar
1 egg yolk
2 cups skim milk
1 cup canned pumpkin
3 TBSP apple butter
3 egg whites


DIRECTIONS:

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and spices.
2. In a separate bowl, mix together the egg yolk, pumpkin, brown sugar, and apple butter. Stir in milk until well-blended.
3. All at once, add milk mixture to dry ingredients and stir just until combined.
4. In a medium bowl, beat egg whites until light and fluffy. Fold egg whites into batter.
5. Ladle batter by 1/4 cup amounts onto a preheated nonstick griddle lightly sprayed with cooking spray, Cook until evenly browned on both sides.


Recipe makes 20 pancakes (when the 1/4 cup measure is used).

Lagman

While we were in Kazakhstan adopting our son we got to try some really amazing foods. Our favorite of these was Lagman. It is a wonderful noodle dish that is a bit like spaghetti and yet completely different than spaghetti. Confused yet? It is like spaghetti in that it is a noodle dish with what we thought was a tomato based sauce on top of it. While the sauce does contain tomatoes they are really not the main ingredient.

The noodles in Lagman are much thicker than sphaghetti noodles. They are more of an egg noodle like you would find in chicken and noodles. I have heard of people trying to make lagman using packaged sphaghetti noodles but that is completely the wrong way to go. The noodles are what really make this dish what it is.

In the past year and a half I have tried a few Lagman recipes but none of them were quite like what we had in Kazakhstan. So I combined a few different recipes adding and removing ingredients until I came up with the following recipe. This makes a wonderful Lagman that was just like what we had in Kaz.

Lagman Recipe

Noodle dough:

4 cups flour

1-1/2 tsp. salt

2 eggs

1/2 cup water

Tudzuk (stew):
1/2 cup butter

4 cups thinly sliced onions

2 lbs. meat (lamb or beef)*

4 cups cubed potatoes

2 cups thinly sliced carrots

4 cups sliced tomatoes

1/4 cup minced garlic

2 cups red bell peppers, seeded and thinly sliced

6 cups thinly sliced cabbage

1 tbsp. salt

2 tsp. pepper

16 cups (1 gallon) water

To make the dough, stir together the flour and salt, then make a well in the center. Whisk together the water and eggs, then pour this into the center of the flour. Stir the dough until a thick mass is formed, then turn out onto a smooth surface and knead for about 10 minutes until the dough becomes smooth and pliable. Divide the dough into two pieces, then cover one of the pieces while you work with the other. Let the dough dry. Once dry, roll out the dough to 1/4 inch thickness, then cut into thin strips.

Begin to prepare the stew. In a large soup pot, melt the butter over medium heat, then saute the onions for ten minutes, until they turn light gold. Add the potatoes. Add the meat and fry until it gives off its juices. Add the carrots, tomatoes, garlic and red bell peppers; mix well and fry, stirring frequently, until the vegetables are half-cooked. Stir in the cabbage, salt and pepper, then cover with cold water. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, until the vegetables are cooked through.

Boil the noodles for two minutes, then transfer them from the water to a colander. Drain the noodles, spoon a layer into each serving plate, and pour the stew on top of them; if you wish, you may add a second layer each of noodles and stew. Serve hot.

*I used flat iron steak to make my lagman and it worked wonderfully. I personally do not care for lamb but many traditional versions of lagman do use lamb.

This is not the best quality photo but it gives a good idea of what lagman should look like. (i need to work on my food photographing skills)

Photos

I haven't been posting photos of my recipes. I first started this blog simply for myself as a place to keep the recipes I love the most so I don't have to go digging through my recipe box or trying to remember which recipe was in which cookbook.

I want to start using this blog as a way to share my recipes. So.... I am going to start posting photos with the recipes. I may do a few posts of photos of foods I have already posted the recipe for and link back to the recipe.

I will probably also start adding some commentary to the posts and not just the recipe as well.

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

INGREDIENTS
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons brown sugar

4 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
5 tablespoons white sugar
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons chopped pecans

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups white sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 1/3 cups canned pumpkin
1/3 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease and flour 18 muffin cups, or use paper liners.
To make the filling: In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese until soft. Add egg, vanilla and brown sugar. Beat until smooth, then set aside.
For the streusel topping: In a medium bowl, mix flour, sugar, cinnamon and pecans. Add butter and cut it in with a fork until crumbly. Set aside.
For the muffin batter: In a large bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Make a well in the center of flour mixture and add eggs, pumpkin, olive oil and vanilla. Beat together until smooth.
Place pumpkin mixture in muffin cups about 1/2 full. Then add one tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture right in the middle of the batter. Try to keep cream cheese from touching the paper cup. Sprinkle on the streusel topping.
Bake at 375 degrees F for 20 to 25 minutes

cilantro lime salsa

1 big ripe juicy tomato, or two medium, or three small.
About 2 tablespoons of finely chopped white onion.
1 tablespoon of finely chopped cilantro.
A little bit of chopped fresh chile. (Add a little and taste, if you want it spicier, add more.)
1/4 of a lime.
Salt

Chop the tomato and add it--juice skin and all--to a mixing bowl.
Add the chopped onion, chile and cilantro.
Squeeze your lime quarter into the mixture.
Add a pinch of salt and taste,

This salsa is all about balance, so taste it and think about whether the sour and the spicy and the savory are all in balance. You can add more lime juice, salt or chile to harmonize the flavors.
That's it. A very simple yet tasty salsa.

Home made tomato soup

TOMATO SOUP
14 quarts ripe tomatoes
14 tablespoons flour
7 medium-sized onions
14 tablespoons butter
1 stalk celery
3 tablespoons salt
14 sprigs parsley
8 tablespoons sugar
3 bay leaves
2 teaspoons pepper
WASH; cut up tomatoes. Chop onions, celery, parsley, bay leaves. Add to tomatoes; cook until celery is tender. Put through sieve. Rub flour and butter into smooth paste thinned with tomato juice. Add to boiling soup; stir to prevent scorching. Add salt, sugar and pepper. For smoother consistency put through sieve again. Fill clean jars to within one inch of top of jar. Put on cap, screwing the band firmly tight. Process in water bath 15 minutes.

Six Layer Dinner

Ingredients:
2 - 3 medium sliced potatoes
2 cups sliced carrots
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup sliced onion
1 pound browned and drained ground beef
1 1/2 cups green beans
1 can tomato-soup

Instructions:
Lightly oil or spray baking dish with cooking spray. Layer ingredients in order given. Cover. Bake at 350 degree for 45 minutes or until tender and thoroughly heated. Uncover and bake 15 more minutes.

Note: For variation, use peas or corn instead of green beans. Use your favorite cream soup instead of tomato soup.

Nutrition Facts:
calories = 230
calories from fat = 60
total fat = 6grams
sat fat = 2.5g
trans fat = 0g
cholesterol = 65mg
sodium = 580 mg
total carbs = 17g
dietary fiber = 4g
sugars = 9g
protein = 25g