Delicious slow churn

Guest post written by Hannah Baker




Each summer I try to come up with new versions of tried and true ice cream flavors. It takes a lot of planning and yields a lot of batches of ice cream that my family just hates eating. (Not!)

I go through ice cream makers pretty quickly, which isn’t at all surprising. Some of the past flavors I’ve developed my own recipes for are butter pecan, birthday cake and banana. Those are all pretty plain, but I’ve got them nailed down perfectly. This summer I’ve been working on some flavors that will also work in the fall like pumpkin spice and apple cinnamon.

I have a friend who is kind of an ice cream making expert and invited her over a few weeks ago to help me out. As she was giving me some tips on the pumpkin spice flavor I had trouble hearing her over the noisy ice cream maker. I hadn’t had the same problem in years past and knew it wasn’t the ice cream maker. I thought that I must need some miracle ear hearing aids, so I got fitted with some just last week.

As for the ice cream, I can’t wait to start sharing it with my friends and family once it officially becomes fall!

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Grilled Tomatoes and Mozzarella

Yummm.  If you are a tomato fan then you gotta try them on the grill!  These don't take long at all and they go great with just about anything.  First what I do is cut the stems off and spoon out seeds and extra juices. These are garden grown tomatoes so mine are super juicy.  While cooking, they naturally will dispense juices so taking out the seeds and juices before hand will reduce the runny juice effect after you cook them.  I then drizzle the tomato with olive oil, salt and pepper, and garlic powder. 

I also marinate my mozzarella cheese with a Balsamic Vinegrette for oh so good flavor!!  You could even marinate your tomatoes in balsamic dressing for a few hours or more for even more flavor.

I get my grill nice and hot and place the tomatos cut side down on the grill.  Once the skin starts to shribble a little, I take them off and melt the mozarella cheese on top. 

So simple and easy.  If your gonna be grilling and have tomatoes on hand give this one a whirl.  I personally could just eat the cheese or tomatoes by themself after they've marinated in the balsamic vinegrette!  ;) 

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Grocery Shopping By Recipe

Contribution by Elmo Farmer




Cooking is one of my greatest passions. I love to cook and experiment with food. I love to pour over countless recipes until I find a couple of really good ones. I cut and paste the recipes onto a single page and print them. Then I write out my grocery list based on the recipes. A quick inventory of the stock I have on hand helps me narrow down my grocery list. I normally stock up on bulk and non-food items, but I prefer to shop on an as-needed-basis for fresh meat that hasn't been frozen as well as perishables like fresh fruits and vegetables.

I don't use a lot of coupons but I do check the sale ads to compare prices. I normally shop at the store that has the best deal for the meals I have planned. Once I know what I'm getting and where I'm going, I lock my house up and set the adt alarm just before leaving for the grocery store.

I normally go directly to the grocery store and stick to my list. Because I base my list on my recipe selections I know exactly what I need. In order to save a few dollars I avoid impulse shopping by sticking to my list. I also prefer to shop alone so I stay focused. It keeps my shopping trip short and sweet. Then I can get back home to doing what I really love to do - cooking!

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NEW Lunch Meat Recall

OH MY.... Seems everytime we turn around there's a new recall alert.  Right now select MarketSide meats are being recalled.  I believe this is exclusively Walmarts brand of deli meats are in the Grab and Go Sandwich that are recalled.  For more information please check out CNN for details HERE.

The products subject to recall are:




-- 25.5-pound cases of "Marketside Grab and Go Sandwiches BLACK FOREST HAM With Natural Juices Coated with Caramel Color" with the number 17800 1300.


-- 28.49-pound cases of "Marketside Grab and Go Sandwiches HOT HAM, HARD SALAMI, PEPPERONI, SANDWICH PEPPERS" with the number 17803 1300.

-- 32.67-pound cases of "Marketside Grab and Go Sandwiches VIRGINIA BRAND HAM With Natural Juices, MADE IN NEW YORK, FULLY COOKED BACON, SANDWICH PICKLES, SANDWICH PEPPERS" with the number 17804 1300.


-- 25.5-pound cases of "Marketside Grab and Go Sandwiches ANGUS ROAST BEEF Coated with Caramel Color" with the number 17805 1300.




The meats were produced on dates ranging from June 18 to July 2, 2010. The "Use By" dates range from August 20 to September 10, 2010.

 
 
 
Thanks Kings Court IV

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Ham and Swiss Quiche

Can you say YUM?!  This is one of my favorite quiches.  I'm a Swiss cheese fan but only with the right cast of characters.  I used smoked ham for this recipe.

Ingredients
1 cup cooked and cubed ham
1 cup of Swiss shredded
2 green onions sliced
1 frozen deep-dish pie shell now thawed
3/4 cup of half n half
3 eggs
a little pepper
Couple dashes of Accent
Few shakes of dry thyme
Pinch of Nutmeg

optional chopped tomato

Directions
Preheat oven to 350
First wisk your eggs.  Then with the exception of the pie shell, add your remaining ingredients and whisk in a medium bowl.  Then pour the mixture into your pie shell.   Bake uncovered for about 45 minutes or so until nice and firm.

Enjoy!!

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Simple Ham Pot Pie

Pot pies are one of my favorite comfort foods!!  Usually after a big holiday is when I make them using my leftover ham, turkey or beef roast.  Today I had some smoked cooked ham which I just cut into small bite size cubes.

In a medium sized bowl I combined cream of mushroom soup, a half bag of frozen mixed veggies, plenty of salt, plenty of pepper and my favorite spices.

I then pour this into a deep dish frozen pie crust that is already thawed. (I added cooked potatoes as well)

I then take the another thawed pie crust and  easily take it out of the pan and place and mold it on top of my pie.

Don't worry about it if your crust isn't perfect on top, I don't unless the cooking police are coming over.  You can patch these parts up so your insides don't leak out.  I also cut slits into it for steam and bake at 350 for about 40 minutes or so.

I like mine super crispy so I tend to cook mine longer.  This is super easy and you can twist it up to make with your favorite meats or veggies. I even add a little Texas Pete to mine to give it a little pizazz, but it's all what you like.

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Egg Recall?!

I don't know how many of you heard about this yet but certain eggs have been recalled due to salmonella poisoning.  228 Million eggs to be exact!  My mother in law brought me a print out of the particular eggs that have been recalled and we have the "brand" or "packaged" by the manufacturer in our very "fridge"!  Only the plant number is different.  We all had a stomach bug this past weekend and it's just made us wonder....
This should be something you'd might want to check! For more information you can visit MSNBC.com's link HERE about the salmonella outbreak.

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FREE Pampered Chef eCookbook

Now through September 30 you can download the Pampered Chef cook book! Each time someone does Pampered Chef will donate a meal to Feeding America up to 140,000 meals!  Simply go HERE to snag yours!

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Vitalicious Review

I am all about Vitalicious.  They sell a line of muffin tops, yum!  That's literally all I care to eat off a muffin since that is the most moist and flavorful part.  Vitalicous is a company specializing in using all Natural ingredients.  Their products have no additives or preservatives.  They do sell the actual muffins if you prefer that, as well as brownies, baking mixes, coffees etc.  

I was sent a super sampler box for review full of a wide variety of their muffin tops and a box of their brownies!  I get a chocolate craving every now and then so the brownies definitely hit the spot.  Plus I don't have to feel guilty about eating them.  I indulged these with a glass of milk.  It is recommended that you freeze them once they arrive to maintain the freshness factor.  I like that about Vitalicious because your getting the freshest product possible.  I heated my brownie in the microwave which made it even better like right out of the oven!

They muffin tops were convenient and great for additions to breakfast.  They came individually wrapped as well which is great for the go.  You can heat your muffins in the toaster, microwave, or simply leave at room temperature to thaw. My favorite out of the muffins was the Raisin Bran.  There are literally chunks of raisins in the muffin and the bran flavor reminds me of the cereal.  Their muffins are moist and soft.  They certainly don't lack in taste and quality either.

Fun Facts 

* Vitalicious has been featured in popular media such as Good Morning America, InStyle Magazine and MORE!
* Muffins come in a wide variety of flavor -  Apple Crumb, Fudgy Peanut Butter Chip, Deep Chocolate, Chocolate Mint, Raisin Bran, Banana Nut, Golden Corn, Banana Fudge, Double Chocolate Dream, 
Dark Chocolate Pomegranate, Blue Bran, Cran Bran, Apple Berry, and select varieties available in sugar free!  
* All their products contain up to 15 vitamins and minerals!
* To purchase or check out the site further simply visit their web page here.  Be sure to take a gander at the delicious recipes they have available!

Have you tried Vitalicous products, if so what are your thoughts?!

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The Easiest Stuffed Bell Peppers

Stuffed Bell Peppers are a neat little trade up from the everyday meal.  I've seen recipes where they take a ton of ingredients and time, but this one does not.  It's as basic and easy as you can get for any busy mom.   Basically I either do one of two things - I either make a meat sauce just for the peppers similar to that of spaghetti sauce OR I make good use of leftover spaghetti sauce and use that for my stuffing.  Bascially what you want to do is find you some really nice big bell peppers and then cut the tops off.

You can either dice your tops and use them in your sauce or save them to put back on your bell pepper.   You also want to take out the insides of your pepper.  I don't get picky and take out every last seed since they really aren't hot and it doesn't affect the meal in any way.   I make up about 1 - 2 cups of uncooked rice for my family but you can adjust up for yours.  I mix that with my tomato sauce.  Sometimes I even add extras like cheese, mushrooms, hot peppers, hot sauce etc. 

You'll want to mix your rice in with your tomato sauce and then you are ready for stuffing.  You just fill your peppers up and put them standing up in a pan.  I typically just use a casserole dish or pan. 

If  you didn't use your bell pepper tops for the sauce then you can throw those back on as well.

Bake uncovered at 350 until they are soft.  I like mine very soft so I cook mine until they are wrinkled. 
It's best to let these sit for a few minutes before eating because they should be piping hot. 

Enjoy!

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Semi-Homemade Croutons

This is so very simple to do. I call this "semi" because I don't actually make the bread from scratch.  Basically if I have bread beginning to get stale, I make croutons.  You can use any kind of bread really. However, if it's not seasoned you will want to do that.  To season I sometimes just add garlic powder, italian seasoning or whatever I find appealing.  Then bake in the oven until crispy and there you have it!  Today I used up some garlic bread that was very past it's date.  I didn't season it because it already was.  Here's what I did below:

I cut my garlic bread into cubes and placed in a pan and coated with olive oil (not too much).  Then I placed these in the oven at 350 and baked until they were nice and crispy.

I try to use these right away however; they can be placed in a ziploc baggie until your ready but the sooner the better as these are now fresh croutons!!

Enjoy!!

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Chicken With Mushroom Gravy

This is a recipe that I don't make very often but it's nice when you want to switch things up a bit.  I am very found of balsamic glaze which I think adds nice flavor to this dish. 

Ingredients
2 lbs chicken cut in strips
1/2 red onion chopped
4 oz portabello baby mushrooms
1 6z jar marinated artichoke hearts cut up
flour
1tbs butter
olive oil
half n half
chicken stock or broth
balsamic glaze (can be found at your grocery store)
fresh chopped parsley optional

Directions
Cook your chicken about 3/4 of the way done in olive oil and butter.  Then add your onion, mushrooms and artichoke hearts and cook until they are tender.  Next, toss in some flour and alternate between half and half and chicken stock until you reach your desired consistency.  I also add some generous dollops of balsamic glaze to it which adds a nice flavor! Serve over noddles - linguini preferred.

Enjoy!

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