Spatulas, Corkscrews & Suitcases

RECIPES OF THE MONTH

 


Nutella S'mores, Apple Bread Pudding, Zucchini Bread, Blackberry Cobbler, Baked Flounder, Chicken Tetrazzini, Banana Nut Muffins, BLT Pasta Salad, Corn Pudding and Deli Style Macaroni Salad.

I Got My Bakin' MoJo Back!
Yes, I'm still alive! And I'm back with a bunch of new recipes! July & August were very busy months with tons of company, sailing and searingly hot temperatures that left me with almost no will to bake or cook. We don't have AC on the boat, and when that sun beats down on the deck, it heats the inside temps to over 100 degrees. There were days I just packed up my laptop and went to the library to escape the heat. The gas grill was my best friend for weeks! I got my MoJo back now that the days have turned cooler, and I've started baking and cooking again! Even our son Brad got the baking bug yesterday and made a batch of cookies, just because he could!

Recipes of Some of the Month!
This is just 1/3 of the things I've written since I've been AWOL the last 4 weeks. I'll post more in the days to come. PLUS, I have another Giveaway planned, so keep your eyes peeled for that as well! As always, feel free to print these Examiner and Suite101 recipes out, and make sure to email them to your friends too!

BLT Pasta Salad Recipe
Bacon, Lettuce & Tomato Macaroni Salad – A twist on the classic BLT Sandwich! Use spiral pasta to hold more Italian dressing, add crisp bacon, romaine lettuce and vine-ripened tomatoes. Great for lunch, brunch or supper!

Macaroni Salad Recipe with Mayonnaise
Classic deli style macaroni salad with onions, peppers, celery, hard boiled eggs, mayonnaise and celery salt. Hamburgers & hot dogs, barbecues, cookouts & picnics, could all use a big helping of this easy macaroni salad!

Chicken Tetrazzini Recipe
Chicken Tetrazzini casserole with leftover roast chicken, spaghetti, butter, mushrooms, onions, sherry, cream and spices. This lip-smacking dish is perfect for pot lucks and large family dinners.

Corn Pudding Recipe: Scalloped Corn
Easy side dish casserole for quick meals & holiday entertaining. Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix is the secret ingredient! Don't let the name 'Corn Pudding' throw you off. This is an amazing veggie casserole. Red peppers and green scallions give it festive color, while canned and creamed corn give it great texture.

Baked Flounder Recipe with Cracker Topping
Baking flounder, sole or cod is a quick & easy way to prepare this mild white fish. Just a few simple ingredients, and tender baked flounder is ready to serve.

Red Onion Jam Recipe
Large red onions simmered and cooked down with butter, sugar and balsamic vinegar, makes an amazing relish or jam that's perfect for burgers, cheese, appetizers, tarts & galettes or dipping. Quick & Easy!

Banana Nut Muffins Recipe
Moist & flavorful muffins loaded with ripe bananas, walnuts and chocolate chips if you like. Banana streusel muffins freeze well, so bake a double batch for later. Great for brunch, snacks, picnics or with a cup of tea!

Nutella S'mores Recipe
Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, campers and kids  will love these s'mores made with Nutella Chocolate Hazelnut Spread, honey graham crackers and toasted marshmallows.

Zucchini Bread with Chocolate Chips
Moist & flavorful Zucchini Nut Bread recipe loaded with chocolate chips, cinnamon and walnuts. Easy quick bread recipe can be baked in mini loaf pans or cupcakes with cream cheese frosting!

Apple Bread Pudding Recipe with Fresh Apples
Fall dessert recipes with fresh apples, Vermont maple syrup and apple juice concentrate make this apple bread pudding with whip cream a perfect cool weather snack.

White Chocolate Frosting Recipe
Melted white chocolate coating, blended with butter & cream cheese frosting. Decorate Red Velvet Cupcakes, Coconut Cake, Chocolate Cupcakes, or frost a cheesecake. 

Fresh Peach Pie Recipe with Streusel Topping
Flaky pie crust loaded with fresh ripe peaches & spices, topped with sweet brown sugar praline streusel.

Blackberry Muffin Recipe with Fresh Blackberries
Blackberry Muffins with brown sugar & pecan streusel topping. 

If I Were an Oscar Mayer Wiener.....

In Honor of Oscar Mayer
I wrote an article yesterday for Examiner.com called 'Oscar Mayer Bologna & Wienermobile Man Dies at 95'. I added a YouTube video of the little boy that sang the jingle in the 1973 commercial at the end. After writing the article, I felt like we needed to remember him by having Oscar Mayer wieners for supper (OK, truth be told, it made my mouth water just thinking of them). I also wanted Red Bliss Potato Salad to go with the wieners. I surprised myself by having everything I needed on the boat, so I didn't need to go out to the store. How many boaters can say that, huh?

When John came home he saw the potatoes and the wieners and put 2 & 2 together. Grilled hot dog buns, Oscar Mayer wieners, green relish, yellow mustard, minced onions and celery salt. Oh, and the potato salad. We sat down, had supper and watched the video. Man, did that take us back. Everybody knew those songs!

Go check out my article and let it take you down memory lane! Here's another video that isn't in the article. Enjoy!

BEEF COOKBOOK GIVEAWAY WINNER!

Congratulations!
Congratulations to the winner of  the cookbook giveaway, 'BEEF' and other bovine matters by John Torode. For those of you who weren't lucky enough to win, please stop by The Taunton Press and order yourself a copy. Thanks again to all who entered and please stay tuned for the next giveaway, 2010 Wilton Cake Decorating Yearbook.

And the Winner Is.....Jon!
Jon had the winning number - 22. Here's Jon's comment. Man, I wish I were going to his house for dinner!

"Once or twice per month, it's MY treat. Boneless well marbled 1-1/2" ribeye is my favorite. Marinated with Kikkomans Terriaki glaze for 1/2 hour before grilling to a Pittsburgh finish over real wood charcoal."
Posted by: Jon Seeber | June 22, 2009 at 05:28 AM

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22
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Again, thanks to The Taunton Press for giving away this book, and congrats to Jon for playing along. May his pinic table be filled with grilled ribeyes!

COOKBOOK GIVEAWAY REMINDER

'BEEF' by John Torode
Just a reminder. Today is the last day for the 'BEEF' cookbook giveaway. Deadline is midnight tonight, 6/23 EST, for John Torode's 'BEEF' and other bovine matters. This really is an awesome book, and needs to be part of your summer cookbook collection! Come on over and enter. Tell your friends about it, and I'll love you forever!
Leave a comment on the original post only.........

COOKBOOK GIVEAWAY - BEEF by John Torode

 


'BEEF' and other bovine matters
The summer grilling season is here, and 'BEEF' is What's For Dinner! If you're a meat lover, or looking for new ideas on how to cook, serve and eat beef, this delicious book will not disappoint. 

'BEEF' by John Torode is a beautiful hardcover book with 256 pages and retails for $34.95 U.S. Not only does it have over 100 recipes, it's also loaded with full color photos so you know what the dish is "supposed" to look like!
 

How To Enter the Giveaway?
Leave a comment on this post only. Tell me, what's your favorite way to cook beef? Do you like a big juicy grilled T-Bone Steak, a flavorful pot of simmered Beef Stew, or a whole roasted Beef Tenderloin? Do you have other ideas? Tell me what they are!

No duplicate entries or comments. Deadline is next Tuesday, June 23rd, 2009, at midnight EST. I'll pick the winning comment using the Random Generator and post the results here. USA & CANADA entries only.

Thanks to The Taunton Press for letting me give away a copy of this very delicious book. Check out their website for detailed info. (If you're not lucky enough to win the book, you really should consider buying it. 'BEEF' is totally worth every penny!)
Feel free to Tweet this or Facebook it to your friends!

BACON BROWNIES & RECIPE ROUND-UP!

 

Grillin' & Chillin' Time!
I can't believe Memorial Day is next weekend! Time really does fly when you're having fun!
I'll be gearing up for the holiday during the week, so be sure to check out my pages on Examiner.com and here too, for more recipes & holiday ideas! I'm craving lots of salads, grilled burgers or seafood and strawberry desserts. What are you craving?

• Bacon Brownies Recipe - Come on, you just gotta try them out of sheer curiosity!
• Bacon & Cheese Strata Recipe - See, I can use bacon in "real" food! Make-ahead Overnight Breakfast Casserole. Refrigerate it overnight, bake it the next morning!
• Grilled Marinated Salmon - Great for the up-coming holiday weekend - Super easy foil packets!
• Grilled Yellowfin Tuna Recipe - Quick & Easy slap-it-on-the-grill meal.
• Cucumber Dill Sauce for Seafood - Perfect cool accompaniment for seafood of any kind.
• Grilled Sweet Potatoes - Throw these on the grill along with whatever else you're grilling!
• Homemade Butterscotch Pudding - Just like Grandma's. Skin or no skin?
• Mocha Cake with Chocolate Frosting - Delicious moist cake with a dairy and egg-free bonus.
• Carrot Cake Recipe & Cream Cheese Frosting - My famous Carrot Cake...or cupcakes!
• Grape-nut Pudding Recipe - Family favorite pudding recipe!
• Sourdough Starter Recipe - Well, because I could, that's all!

And finally, I just received the go-ahead on my 2nd Examiner topic - National Food Blog Examiner. So, if any of you have an active food blog with dripping good photos, I'd love an exclusive interview. Lots of press and exposure! Shoot me an email and I'll send you my questionnaire.

LEFTOVER EASTER HAM?

                                                      

Leftover Ham Recipes
Did you have ham for Easter? Have lots of leftovers? You can use the ham bone in Split Pea Soup, or you can dice up the rest of the sliced ham for omelettes, Broccoli, Ham & Cheese Quiche and lots more. Check here for the rest of the story ;-)

SUPERBOWL CHILI RECIPE

                                   

Vegetarian or Hamburger Chile Recipe
Everyone loves a hot bowl of chili during a football game! Here's a great SUPERBOWL SUNDAY CHILI RECIPE. Make it either vegetarian or add ground hamburger, chicken, pork or ground turkey. Anyway you make it, it's gonna taste great!

This Chili recipe freezes well, so if you make a big batch, don't worry, you can have it next week and the week after that! I usually serve it over a bowl of brown jasmine rice and sprinkle it with cheese! Add a side of CORNBREAD or biscuits and your favorite bottle of cold beer, and your party will be an instant hit!

AWARD WINNING CHILI RECIPE
Oh, and the best part about this chili? I won a trophy for it. It was voted Best Vegetarian Chili Cookoff back in 2004! I was shocked to say the least. There were quite a few other contenders, but I won fair and square. I didn't even try rigging the contest, and didn't know any of the judges, honest!

                                                      

How Do You Find This Award Winning Chili Recipe?
Just like the Spinach Artichoke Dip Recipe, click here to find my Award Winning Chili Recipe on Suite101. As always, you can print it off, email it to a friend or bookmark it for later. While you're there, click around for more of my recipes. There's something there for every taste!

                                                                      

SPLIT PEA SOUP RECIPE

                                                   

Split Pea Soup With Barley
It's late fall and the weather has been cold, raw and windy. Time to take out that stock pot that's been stuffed in the pantry all summer and make some chunky, thick and hearty SPLIT PEA SOUP! Although this Split Pea Soup takes a good two hours to simmer, the recipe does go together rather quickly, and your house will smell heavenly while it merrily bubbles away! Ultimate cold weather comfort food at its best!

                                                                             

The Split Pea Soup was thin while it was cooking, but it thickened up real fast!

This SPLIT PEA SOUP is very chunky with barley and carrots. The longer it sits, the thicker it gets! Even though my recipe for Split Pea Soup, found here at Suite101, is vegetarian, don't let that scare you meat eaters away! You'll probably notice by the pictures that I added kielbasa to it at the very end. The recipe makes a large amount, so I cut up one pound of turkey kielbasa, but you can use any variety you like best. Serve the soup with hunks of fresh French Bread to sop up the bottom of the bowl.

                                                                          

SPLIT PEA SOUP WITH BARLEY freezes real well, so make a big batch, portion it out in Ziploc containers and you'll have a few lunches for the rest of the week! Bon Appetit!

AWARD WINNING VEGETARIAN CHILI RECIPE - Hamburger Chili Too!

                                            

Award Winning Vegetarian Chili
This Vegetarian Chili really did win an award! It was a nice shiny trophy for the best Vegetarian Chili evah! Well OK, not really, but close! My son Brad entered my chili in the Country Home Chili Cook-Off Contest in Vergennes, Vermont while he was working there in 2003. When he came home with this trophy, I was shocked! I asked him if I was the only one entered, and he laughed and said there were plenty of contestants, but mine was the best. He loves his Mom, so of course he tells me what I want to hear!! Click here for my Award Winning Vegetarian Chili Recipe.

                                                                     

                                                                              

What is TVP?
This yummy chili has all the standard ingredients in it. Onions, peppers, garlic, beans, tomatoes, spices and TVP. WHAT? What is TVP? TVP is short for Textured Vegetable Protein. It's a soy product that mimics all sorts of meat. The first impression you'll get when you see this *interesting* food(?) is that it looks like dried dog food chunks. I know, appetizing isn't it? It all depends what you reconstitute it with. I soak mine in a mixture of BBQ sauce and boiling water, so it has a nice smoky flavor when it's all done. You can find TVP in health or natural health food stores like Whole Foods. It comes in chunks or small granuals. Its a great source of protein, so if you're a vegetarian, TVP will help get your protein. Because it's dried, it weighs virtually nothing, and it keeps for a very long time if stored in sealed dry containers or zip-lock bags. TVP is one of those foods that's good to have on hand just in case the lights go out!

                                                                         

Vegetarian Chili or Hamburger Chili, You Decide!
I've been making this Vegetarian Chili for many, many years. How many? I don't have enough fingers and toes to count that high! I can see the confused and quizzical look on your face that leaves you thinking, "Was Donna 10 or 15 when she started making this chili?" Yes, believe whatever you want. John and the kids always loved when I made my chili. But I would pay dearly from the nuclear fallout - the stinky cloud that would engulf our home - just hours after we got up from the table.

                                                            

Meat-Lovers Chili Too!
For all your meat-loving friends, you can make this chili with hamburger, ground turkey, sausage or chicken too. Just brown the meat with the onions, peppers and garlic before you add the rest of the ingredients. I add corn and fresh cilantro to mine as a variation and serve it over brown jasmine rice. Add a pan of cornbread and dinner is served! You'll love it. I know you will!

So...click here for my Award Winning Vegetarian Chili Recipe.