New Projects

I have two new Blog projects I'm working on. They're both quite lengthy and taking more time to write, than I had imagined.
I hope to be completed with them this weekend.
More to come........

In the meantime:
Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!

Baked Polenta from Spoon Fork Bacon

I don't cook with Polenta as much as I would like to. As a fan of Cast Iron, I like this Polenta recipe made in a Cast Iron Skillet.

3 TBS Olive Oil, divided
1/2 pound of real Italian Sausage, casing removed or Vegetarian Field Roast Italian Sausage, casing removed.
2 oz. Cremini Mushrooms, sliced
1/2 Yellow Onion, diced
1 clove of Garlic, minced
1 TBS minced thyme

Polenta:
4 1/2 C water
1 1/2 C coarse Yellow Cornmeal
3 TBS Butter
4 oz. Goat Cheese, crumbled + additional for topping
2 TBS grated Parmesan
Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Pour 1/2 TBS Oil in a 10" Cast Iron Skillet:
Brown the Sausage.
place Sausage in a bowl and set aside

Pour remaining Oil in the skillet and saute the Mushrooms for 2 - 3 minutes.
Add Garlic, Onion and Thyme.
Saute 3 - 4 minutes. Season with Salt and Pepper.
Add Mushrooms to the Sausage mixture , mix well and set aside.

In a medium saucepan, bring the water to a boil, season with Salt and Pepper.
Whisk Cornmeal into the water, reduce heat to medium.
Continue stirring for 5 minutes.
Add Butter, 4 oz. Goat Cheese and Parmesan, stir until fully incorporated.

Lightly oil the skillet and pour 1/2 the Polenta into the pan and spread out evenly.
Reserve 1/2 of the Sausage mixture and set aside.
Spread out the remaining Sausage over the Polenta and spread out evenly.
Top with the remaining Polenta and spread evenly.
Sprinkle with remaining Sausage .
Sprinkle with additional Goat Cheese.

Bake 20 - 25 minutes
Cool 10 minutes.

Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!

Beet Sliders / Gatsby's Diner / Sacramento, California

It's difficult to find a recipe that's different when beets are the main ingredient. This was very appealing to me as a vegetarian and a fan of beets.
The recipe says to discard the liquid that the beets are cooked in. I keep the liquid to use in a soup.
I have a recipe for what I believe are the Best of the Best Pickled Beets. The recipe is on the blog. I also have a recipe on the blog for Roasted Vegetables that includes Beets.
If you haven't tried beets, I hope you do.


5 quarts water
1/2 C sea salt, plus a pinch
1 TBS dried dill
6 dried arbol chiles
1/4 C coriander seeds
1 TBS caraway seeds
1 large carrot, coarsely chopped
2 stalks celery, coarsely chopped
1/2 large yellow onion, coarsely chopped
4 TBS seasoning sauce (recommended: Maggi)
6 to 8 whole beets (depending on size)
Olive oil
Green Goddess Dressing, recipe follows
Sliced red onions, for serving
16 to 18 slider buns, toasted
Directions
In a large stock pot, combine and the water, 1/2 C sea salt, dill, chiles, coriander, caraway, carrots, celery, onions, seasoning sauce, and beets and bring to a boil. Boil on medium heat for about 1 hour.

Remove the beets and let cool, discarding the liquid. Once cooled, remove the skin from the beets with a vegetable peeler. (Remember to wear gloves, as the beets will stain your hands as well as other surfaces.) Cut the beets into 1/4 to 3/8-inch slices. Place the beet slices, a drizzle of olive oil, and a pinch of sea salt into a skillet over high heat and saute until glossy and tender, about 2 1/2 minutes on each side.

Remove the beets from the skillet and serve with shaved red onion and Green Goddess Dressing on a toasted slider bun.


Green Goddess Dressing:
1 bunch fresh tarragon, stemmed, finely chopped
1/2 bunch fresh parsley, stemmed, finely chopped
1 bunch green onions, finely chopped
1/2 C buttermilk
1 TBS lemon juice
1/2 C white wine vinegar
1 C sour cream
2 C mayonnaise
Salt and pepper
Combine the herbs, green onions, buttermilk, lemon juice, and vinegar in a mixing bowl. Let macerate for 10 minutes. Add the sour cream and mayonnaise, and blend with an immersion blender until creamy. Season with salt and pepper.


Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!

Mexican Truffles

Mexican Truffles:

6 oz. Cream Cheese , softened
2 C Powdered Sugar
8 oz. Taza Mexicano Chocolate, melted and cooled slightly ( Cinnamon, Chipotle Chili, Guajillo Chili, Orange or Coffee ) These are the choices of flavors. Choose your favorite or make a variety to serve.
2 tsp vanilla
1 C crushed Kellogg's Cinnabon Cereal
2 tsp ground Cinnamon
1/4 tsp Cayenne Pepper

In a large bowl:
Beat Cream Cheese until creamy
Beat in Sugar, Chocolate and Vanilla
Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour

In a small bowl:
Cinnabon Cereal
Cinnamon
Cayenne Pepper

Scoop out the chocolate mixture with a small cookie scoop and roll in your hands to make a misshapen truffle.
Roll each truffle in the cereal mixture

Refrigerate in a covered container

Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!

Asparagus Casserole , adapted from Trisha Yearwood

I love asparagus any way it's prepared. So this recipes was very appealing to me.
I have adapted it a bit. 

Two bunches fresh asparagus
4 TBS butter
4 TBS all-purpose flour
1 C milk
Pinch salt
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
5 ounces Gruyere Cheese or Emmenthal Cheese, grated
4 hard-boiled eggs
1/2 cup saltine cracker crumbs (about 10 crackers)

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Trim off the tough ends of the asparagus. Place the asparagus in a large pot of boiling water, keeping the bundles together with rubber bands or string. Boil for 2 minutes, reduce to a simmer and cook an additional 5 - 7 minutes until the asparagus is bright green and still crunchy. Reserve 1 C of the liquid.

Run the asparagus under cold water to stop the cooking.

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan. Mix flour and cayenne in a bowl. Whisk the flour into the melted butter to make a roux. Cook for 1 minute, then whisk in the milk and 1 cup of the asparagus cooking liquid. Add the salt and continue cooking until the sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. Add the grated cheese and cook, stirring, until melted, about 1 minute.

Arrange the asparagus in the bottom of a 9"X13" baking dish, alternating the stem ends so each serving includes both heads and stems. Thinly slice the hard-boiled eggs and arrange them over the asparagus. Pour the cheese sauce over the eggs and asparagus and sprinkle with the cracker crumbs. Bake until lightly browned and bubbles appear around the edges, about 20 minutes.

Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!

Saltine Crackers with Chocolate and Pecans, Christmas Candy

Here's a vintage Christmas recipe. I've been making it for decades.

Here's what you'll need:
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
A Jelly Roll Pan lined with Aluminum Foil sprayed with a Vegetable Cooking Spray.

35 - 40 Saltine Crackers
16 TBS Butter
1 C Brown Sugar
8 oz. of Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips  (about 2 Cups)
1 C Chopped Pecans

Arrange the Crackers,( Salt side down),  in a single layer in the Pan.

In a Saucepan on Medium High Heat:
Butter, until melted.
Brown Sugar
Bring to a Boil for a few minutes as it begins to turn Caramel in Color.
Remove from Heat.
Pour over the Crackers and spread evenly with a Metal Offset Spatula.

Bake for 3 - 5 minutes. It should begin to bubble.
Remove Pan from Oven and Sprinkle with Chocolate Chips.
As they Melt, Spread evenly with a Metal Offset Spatula.
Sprinkle evenly with Pecans.

Refrigerate until Chocolate hardens and it's cooled completely.

Remove and Break into Pieces.
Transfer to a Holiday Serving Plate.

Enjoy!
Peace in the Kitchen!

Back to blogging more!

With the holidays behind us, Christmas decorations are down. I'll have more time to get back to blogging. I'll try to find a new subject to blog about, I'll research additional recipes from my Aunt Faye's recipe collection and I'll continue to research and post some great vegetarian recipes.
I look forward to it all and I hope you all do too.


Update,
I had to get my car inspected this morning and I was told it would take an hour. I decided to walk across the street to Starbucks and spend the hour there. I had my IPad with me so I could stay busy. The seating at Starbucks is tight and I was sitting next to two woman that were talking about putting on an event of some sort. I wasn't really being nosy but I could tell by the conversation that it involved food. When one of the women started talking about Kool Aid Pickles and asked her friend if she had ever heard of them, to which her friend replied, no, I had to say something, since I was very aware about the history of Kool Aid Pickles. After all, you can find the recipe on my blog. As the conversation continued among the three of us, it became very clear to me what my next topic for the blog would be. And, no it's not pickles!
I'm in the process doing the research and the stories and recipes will soon follow. I hesitate to give out the topic at this time , so all I will say is....... more to come!


Hippy in the Kitchen!
Peace!