Steak Sandwiches with Green Onion Mayo

When I saw this recipe from Miss in the Kitchen pop up in my reader I knew I had to make it, and pronto. I went with a chewy ciabatta sandwich roll and smoked Swiss cheese. In retrospect the cheese overpowered the other flavors, so I would recommend regular Swiss. So tasty. Ready for the recipe?

Bodacious Broccoli Salad

I can't rave enough about this delicious broccoli salad. It is completely bad to the bone -- in a good way. Tangy, sweet and crunchy, a delicious combination.


Bodacious Broccoli Salad
Makes 12 servings

8 slices bacon (I have used good quality pre-cooked bacon pieces with great success)
2 heads fresh broccoli, chopped
1 1/2 cups sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 large red onion, finely diced
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/8 cup white sugar
1-2 teaspoons ground black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

1. Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain, and crumble.

2. In a large bowl, combine broccoli, cheese, bacon and onion.

3. Prepare the dressing in a small bowl by whisking together the red wine vinegar, sugar, pepper, salt, mayonnaise and lemon juice. Combine dressing with salad. Cover, and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Image source: Bodacious Broccoli Salad, originally uploaded by girlychimp.

Recipe from Allrecipes.com

San Remo Seafood Dip

The Olive Garden used to have the most amazing seafood dip, San Remo Dip, on their menu. Like any 'good' chain, they got rid of it. We were appalled, then we went to the interwebs and found our own recipe.

Homemade Baby Food

Last weekend I buckled down and made baby food. Lots of baby food. Shown from left are: (In ice cube trays) chicken breasts with broccoli, potatoes and cheese, mashed avocado, sweet potatoes and sauteed apples, sweet potatoes and squash, herb turkey breast and potatoes, beef and mixed vegetables.

This was one day of work, though most of that time was waiting for the food to freeze so I could transfer to a freezer Ziploc and freeze the next batch of food. Not too shabby.

I have just a few tips for those who are new to making baby food.

• Puree the meats first, and puree them while they are cold, adding liquid as necessary. Once they are very smooth, add in your veggies and fruits and puree.
• Transfer to a container and chill the baby food before freezing, otherwise you get some nasty ice crystals.
• Start setting aside a portion of food from your family meals to puree for baby. As long as you don't go crazy with the salt, it is a very easy way to introduce a variety of foods to baby, and it is in a small enough batch that if they don't like it, you haven't wasted time, money and energy.

Beer Bread

Beer Bread
Makes 6-8 Servings

3 cups flour (sifted)
1 Tablespoon baking powder (omit if using Self-Rising Flour)
1 teaspoon salt (omit if using Self-Rising Flour)
1/4 cup sugar
1 (12 ounce) can beer
1/2 cup melted butter (1/4 cup will work, but I use 1/2 cup)

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Prepare a loaf pan or 8" square pan.
  
2. Mix dry ingredients first, combining them thoroughly before adding beer. (A whisk works great for this part). Add beer, then stir with a spoon until combined.
  
3. Add a small amount of melted butter to bottom of pan. Pour batter into loaf pan.
  
4. Pour melted butter over mixture.
  
5. Bake 1 hour for a loaf pan, if you use a 8" square pan check it around 45 min. and every 5 min then on until done. Remove from pan and cool for at least 15 minutes. (Important, be sure to put an extra pan or some foil beneath your bread as the butter might overflow)

Crock Pot Apple and Brown Sugar Corned Beef

I was a bit skeptical about cooking Corned Beef in the slow cooker, but it turned out great. All of the side veggies tasted delicious, and the corned beef was perfect.  Serve this with your favorite bread, I recommend Beer Bread.


Crock Pot Apple and Brown Sugar Corned Beef
Makes 4-6 servings

1 corned beef brisket
1 quart apple juice
1 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon prepared mustard
8 small red potatoes
2 medium carrots, pared, and cut into chunks
1 onion, peeled, and cut into eighths
1/2 head cabbage, cut into chunks

1. Place all ingredients in a large crock pot (cut meat in half if necessary); stir to mix.

2. Cook on high for 4 to 5 hours or on low for 8 to 10 hours.

3. Remove meat and vegetables and some of the cooking liquid.

4. Slice meat thinly across the grain.
  
5. Serve with vegetables and some of the liquid.

Recipe from Recipezaar

Pistachio Pie

In honor of Pi Day, I set out to create a pie that worked for Saint Patrick's Day as well, a
nd came upon this recipe for Frozen Pistachio Pie. If you are a pistachio lover like me, I hope you enjoy this.

Updated - After trying the frozen version of this pie that uses 2 cups of softened ice cream, I have to say I don't recommend it. Instead, I would use 2 cups of cool whip. It turns out the ice cream version of this basically tasted like melted ice cream that had been refrozen, not good if you have ever tried that. That said, I still think this is a delicious pie. The graham crackers and toffee taste great with pistachio and I will definitely make this again, just modified as seen below.

Pistachio Pie
Makes 8 servings

3 tablespoons butter
3/4 cup butter-flavored cracker crumbs
3/4 cup cold milk
1 package (3.4 ounces) instant pistachio pudding mix
2 cartons (8 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed (2 cups set aside)
1 bag toffee bits

1. In a microwave-safe 8-in. square dish, melt butter. Stir in cracker crumbs; press mixture onto bottom of dish. In a bowl, whisk milk and pudding mix for 2 minutes. Let stand 2 minutes or until soft-set. Whisk in 2 cups whipped cream/ cool whip. Pour over crust. Cover and chill in the fridge for 2 hours.

2. Spread with remaining whipped topping; sprinkle with toffee bits.Serve

Adapted from this recipe

Impossible Banana Ice Cream

Are you ready for quite possibly the most simple recipe for ice cream ever?

I call it Impossible Banana Ice Cream because it has one, and only one ingredient. It is not a sorbet, it is a creamy, luscious, wonderful ice cream. Add the toppings of your choice, like whipped cream, cherries, nuts, and hot fudge.

Impossible Banana Ice Cream
Makes 2-4 servings

3-4 bananas (not too ripe)

And that is it.

I also added some caramel sauce and some mixed nut topping, but that isn't necessary as it is quite flavorful and delicious all on its own.

1. Slice the bananas into coins and lay on a piece of wax paper. Transfer to freezer and let them freeze for 1-2 hours.

2. Add the frozen banana slices to a food processor and process until creamy and extra smooth. This may take a few minutes. I had to stop a few times to scrape down the bowl. After the mixture was initially mixed and in very small pieces, I had to let it thaw for about 10 minutes when my processor blade wouldn't pick up the mixture as it was too hard. If this happens to you, just wait a few minutes and try processing again.

3. Eat within 2-3 days. Since this ice cream has no preservatives, it is best to eat it sooner rather than later. I prefer to eat it immediately after preparing. It should be the perfect soft-serve consistency after you finish processing it.

Recipe from The Kitchn

Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana

The Zuppa Toscana soup from the Olive Garden is a dish loved by many. I don't get out to eat very often so I decided to try making it at home.

I made this in the morning and served it for dinner. I think giving it some time in the fridge lets the flavors develop well. I used regular Italian sausage. Spicy or sweet Italian sausage would also be delicious.

Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana
Makes 4-6 servings

1 lb Italian sausage
2 large russet baking potatoes, peeled, sliced in half,and then in 1/4 inch slices*
1 large onion, diced
1/2 can bacon bits
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 pkg frozen chopped spinach, rinsed and squeezed of excess liquid
3 cups chicken stock
1 to 2 cups water
1 cup heavy whipping cream

1. Cook sausage in a 300°F oven for approximately 30 minutes. Alternatively, cook in a skillet. Drain sausages on paper towels and cut into slices.

3. Place onions, potatoes, chicken broth, water, garlic in pot, and cook on medium heat until potatoes are done. Add sausage. Salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for another 10 minutes. When potatoes are tender, mash some of the slices with a fork to thicken soup slightly.

4. Turn to low heat. Add spinach and cream. Heat through. Sprinkle with bacon and serve.

*You can use up leftover baked potatoes by peeling potatoes cold, cutting them into slices and adding at the end of the recipe and heating through. Set aside one cold potato and mash with a fork to add to the soup when specified in the recipe.

I made some minor changes to the original recipe, which can be found here.

Blogging Authenticity

Authentic -  Definition: not false or copied; genuine; real.

My six year journey of blogging has taught me quite a bit of what not to do. What I once thought was fun, like having giveaways, commenting on multitudes of blogs when really I didn't have anything insightful to say, and mass promotion of my site, are now a complete turn off.

Before I publish any more posts I thought it would be good to set things straight as far as where I stand and why I am publishing this blog.

My goals: To provide delicious recipes and family/kid activities to my audience, with a little of my life views woven in, in an effort to connect with my readers.

On giveaways: In the past I only allowed myself to give away cookbooks to my readers (which were provided by the publisher), but at this point I am not interested in hosting any giveaways. I found myself  focused on how much traffic was generated by such contests, and it just makes me feel icky to go back to that now.

I have seen quite a few blogs get sucked into the trap of promoting companies and products so much that the quality and frequency of their original posts falters. Sites that I use to enjoy visiting that now make me feel bleh.  It is such a shame.  There are a lot of sites that provide a good balance, but I don't even want to start down that road for my own site.

On sponsors/advertising: I think this is great. For quite some time I have not run any ads, but I will be looking into this in the future.

Overall, I think everyone should go with their gut. If it feels icky or somehow like one party is being taken advantage of or something is on the down-low, perhaps it should be avoided.

Old School Tuna Melts

Comforting, cheesy and delicious.

Old School Tuna Melts
Makes about 8 to 1 dozen

Hamburger buns
4 hard boiled eggs, chopped
3 cans tuna, drained
12 oz Velveeta cheese, cut into small chunks
2 Tbsp. diced onion
2 Tbsp. diced red peppers (or even pimento, chopped)
Big spoonful of relish (optional, we don't put it in)
Miracle whip, add enough to have a good consistency

1. Preheat oven to 400-f degrees. Combine all ingredients except the buns. Line the bottom of a baking sheet with foil. Lay down bottoms of buns on top of the baking sheet lined with foil. Add filling to each bun, topping with the other part of your hamburger pun. Cover with foil tightly. (Buns will get too crunchy w/o foil). Bake for 20 minutes.

Recipe by my mom.