Lemon Rice Soup

This is a great summer dish and a good way to use lemons if you have a tree. My friend Janice and I went to YassoYani's, a local Greek Restaurant in Stockton, and loved this traditional soup. I fell in love with the fresh flavor of the lemon and the creamy texture of the soup. It was refreshing, yet filling at the same time. So of course, I had to find a way to recreate it and make it better. So with the help of an online recipe I found to start us off and some fresh ingredients from Janis's garden this is what we created....delish!!

This recipe will make 3 bowls, so I suggest doubling it so there is more!

Ingredients:
1 can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 1/4 cup milk
3/4 cup lemon juice
1 cup cooked rice
garlic powder to taste
salt & pepper to taste
1 tsp or more fresh thyme leaves (strip the leaves off the stems)
3-4 leaves fresh basil (cut them into strips)
lemon zest
Optional: shredded chicken

Directions:
1. In a saucepan, heat up the chicken soup and milk over medium heat until it boils. Whisk the soup while its heating to prevent burning.
2. Once heated through, add the rice, garlic powder, salt, pepper, thyme and basil, saving just a bit of the herbs to top the soup. Then add the lemon juice, a bit at a time first then stir and taste. Add more lemon juice if you want a stronger lemon taste. Let it continue to heat through and simmer for at least 5 minutes to let the flavors blend. If you chose to add chicken, stir it in before you are ready to serve the soup.
3. To finish it off, ladle the soup into bowls and sprinkle the lemon zest and remainder of the herbs on top. Serve warm and enjoy!

Pizza for the non-cook (or kids)

This is a great fast snack, lunch, or dinner. It's so easy too that it can be done in about 10 minutes (maybe less, I didn't really time it) and my 2 1/2 year old can help. So for those of you who are intimidated by cooking, or don't have things to cook with, this recipe is for you!

What you need:
Toaster over (or oven if necessary, but my toaster oven heats up faster)
English muffins
Pizza sauce or tomato sauce
Italian seasonings (either all in one, or oregano, thyme, rosemary, sage)
Grated cheese (any kind you like)
Any other toppings you like- this time we used chopped olives

What you do:
1. Turn on the toaster oven to about 400*.
2. Split open 1 English muffin and place on the toaster oven baking sheet.
3. Spread with the sauce, sprinkling the sauce with the seasonings if you want to add some pizazz.

4. Add toppings of your choice.

5. Bake until the cheese melts, about 3-5 minutes.
6. Enjoy!

Easy Gourmet Dinner-Stuffed Portabello Mushrooms

So I love making dinners that look impressive, but are actually really simple. I think this one falls into that category. Stuffed portabello mushrooms are very filling and don't need much else along the side. Makes a great summer meal!

What I used:
1lb lean ground beef (only half is used for the mushrooms, the rest I saved the other things, like burritos)
1/2 small shallot
Minced garlic
Worcestershire sauce
Two cleaned portabello mushrooms
Olive Oil
Montreal Steak Seasoning
Grape tomatoes
Fresh mozzarella cheese (the kind in water)

What I did:
1. Cook the ground beef in a hot pan, letting it brown up. While it's cooking, I added the chopped shallot, garlic, and steak seasoning. When it was almost done, I shook in some of the Worcestershire sauce-about 5-6 good shakes.

2. While that was cooking, I wiped off the mushrooms with a damp cloth, and then scooped out the inside with a spoon to make room for the filling.

3. I then brushed each mushroom with olive oil (top/bottom/sides), sprinkled them with Montreal seasoning and placed them onto a hot grill pan. They took about 5 min each side to soften up on medium-high heat.

4. When everything was almost done, I coated some grape tomatoes with olive oil and the seasoning and threw them right onto the grill next to the mushrooms. I let them cook until they started to burst.

5. To assemble, I filled each mushroom with some of the ground beef and then topped that with some of the tomatoes and mozzarella cheese I diced up.

6. To complete the meal I served it along side some sliced veggies (I had fennel, maybe a topic for another day, and bell peppers) and a couscous/grain mix I got at Trader Joe's.


Variations:
I would have topped it with basil, but I forgot to buy some at the store. If you want to be meat-free, stuff the mushroom with couscous or rice. Really you can use anything to stuff the mushrooms, so be creative and share with us your creations!

PS Trader Joe's is one of my FAVORITE places to shop! It might have to be its own topic one day..a trip to the best grocery store :)

Yummy Cinnamon Rolls

My friend Tobie and I share a love of baking. So we decided to try our hands at cinnamon rolls. She got inspiration from a great website called The Pioneer Woman. Tobie used the recipe for her cinnamon roll dough and then we added our own twist to it. We had to limit our creations to just 3 flavors of cinnamon rolls, reserving our other fantabulous ideas for when we open a bakery, after we win the lottery of course.

So Tobie made the dough the night before and then it looked like this in the morning.


Then we made our game plan. Three kinds of rolls: Brown sugar & Cinnamon, Apple Butter & Cinnamon and Apricot-Orange Almond. Really, the possibilities are endless, but like I said we had to limit ourselves. The dough we used was a very light dough, not too chewy either. It had a great texture to it. My favorite were the Apricot-Orange rolls, they weren't too sweet yet had a lot of flavor.

Basic Method for Cinnamon Rolls:
1. Melt some butter in a saucepan on low heat. We ended up using about 1 stick for all 3 kinds. Grease some pans to put the rolls with melted butter- round cake pans work nicely. Sprinkle flour on a smooth surface for rolling the dough. Don't forget to dust the rolling pin too, to prevent sticking.

2. Separate the dough into sections, we did 3 since we were doing 3 fillings. This makes it easier to roll. You will want to roll the dough into a rough rectangle shape until its about 1/4 inch thick.

3. Brush on melted butter all over the rectangle.
4. Add the filling evenly, trying to cover the entire surface. The one pictured is the Brown Sugar and Cinnamon.

5. Next start on one of the long ends, and roll the dough into one log.

6. Using a sharp knife and a sawing motion, cut the dough into 3/4 to 1 inch thick pieces. We started by trimming the funny ends off and then started to cut nice-looking pieces. The funny end-bits became our tasters. Place rolls into the pans, about 1/2 to 1 inch apart since the dough will rise a bit.

7. Let the rolls sit 20 to 30 minutes to rise, then bake at 400 degrees until light golden brown, about 15 to 18 minutes.


And now the fun part....the fillings!!!

#1 Brown Sugar and Cinnamon
Mix together about 3/4 cup brown sugar and 2tbsp ground cinnamon. Add a pinch of ground nutmeg or allspice (or both) and combine.

#2 Apple Butter and Cinnamon
Apple butter can be found in the jelly/jam section of the grocery store-or use any flavor spread you want. Spread the apple butter first on the dough. Then use the leftover brown sugar mix from the first batch and sprinkle it on top of the apple butter.


#3 Apricot-Orange Almond
I had an apricot-orange jam from Trader Joe's that we used to spread on the dough first. Then we took some toasted almonds and chopped them up and sprinkled them on top of the jam. Yummy!

Pulled Pork Sandwiches

This recipe makes me very proud since it's my very own and always get a lot of compliments. It's very easy too -I have made it for 50 people, and I've made it for 6 people. It freezes well, so you can make a lot now and eat it a month later. I'm still not too sure about the amounts-I usually do a lot of tasting when I make the sauce, so if you need to adjust something, please do. Oh, and did I mention once you put this in the crock pot, you are free to do whatever you want for 8-10 hours! I usually make it at night, while I'm sleeping!


Ingredients:

4 lbs of boneless pork roast, trimmed of visible fat (I always get mine at Winco, its either the Picnic Boneless Pork, usually $1.98/lb or the Pork Sirloin Roast, about $2.40/lb. They are very lean, AND pretty cheap!)
1-2 yellow onion, sliced
2-3 Bay leaves
Hamburger buns/rolls

For the sauce:
1 14 oz bottle of BBQ sauce (I use Kraft-any flavor-since its about $0.89/bottle at Winco)
1/4 Apple cider vinegar
2 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
2 Tbsp Brown sugar
1-2 tsp minced Garlic
1/2- 1 tsp ground pepper
Some Apple juice,orange juice, chicken broth, or water if needed, usually up to 1/2 c
2-3 Bay leaves

Directions:
1. Trim all visible fat off of the pork and place into the crock pot.


2. Slice onion and scatter on top of the pork. Throw in the bay leaves.


3. Mix remaining ingredients in a bowl and whisk together. If you have extra think BBQ sauce you might need more juice, broth or water. If not, add less. With the crock pot the liquid should fill at least halfway up the meat or more so it doesn't burn.


4. Once the sauce is mixed, taste and add anything more you think it needs. Then pour over the pork. Throw in the bay leaves.

5. Put the lid on the crock pot and set for the longest time possible. I have an 8 and 10 hr setting for Low, both work well.


6. Once the pork is done, let it cool for a bit with the lid off. Then remove the pork and shred with 2 forks. Make sure to take out the bay leaves, but keep in the onions, they will be falling apart. Once the pork has all been shredded and put into another container, ladle in the remaining sauce from the crock pot to keep it moist.



7. Serve on hamburger buns or rolls. Enjoy!

*makes about 10 servings

Making Homemade Pasta

My friend Janis and I decided we needed to venture into the world of making homemade pasta, even though we can buy it at the store already made. There is something about making things from scratch. They taste better, or at least we think they do. Maybe its just the love we put into it that we taste. Whatever it is, there was definitely a sense of pride when we served our pasta. Even my 2 year old loved it! Although I'm not sure if he qualifies as a critic when he eats dirt too.

So for the menu, we made a batch of pasta, topped with two different sauces. I didn't realize the recipe made so much! Most of the pasta had a spaghetti sauce with Italian sausage in it. My favorite jarred sauce is Trader Joe's Tomato and Basil Marinara, about $2 a jar - very fresh and homemade tasting. The rest of the pasta was tossed with the leftover pesto sauce I had made from the Bruschetta Burger. Of course, no pasta meal would be complete without garlic bread and a salad.

Now, making fresh pasta is kind of an art form I guess, and I have no idea if we did it right. I did make it with my dad once, so it was probably right then, but since my son is allergic to eggs, I opted for an egg-free recipe. So I got my recipe from Mario Batalli, a fellow Italian and Food Network star, and like I said, we liked it. Find your own recipe and have fun cooking or buy packaged and have an extra glass of wine! If you do make fresh pasta, let me know how you do it. It would be nice to find another crazy person out there who things this is fun like me!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/mario-batali/eggless-pasta-recipe/index.html


Follow the link above to the recipe that I found on Food Network's website. While we were waiting for the dough to rest, I was reading in one of my Italian cookbooks about tips with pasta. It was then I learned that kneading pasta on a wood is best to give it better elasticity and texture. However, we already kneaded it on the cold granite , which could have made it a tight, less elastic dough. Oops! Oh well, it still tasted great!

To form the pasta, I had a pasta maker from my family, that will flatten and cut the pasta into spaghetti or linguine noodles. If you don't have one, no worries. You can roll it out with a rolling pin, and then cut it with a sharp knife into noodles, or form bow ties, or any shape you want. This dough can also be used for raviolis. Which I hope one day to make again and add them to this site. Again, enjoy the pictures, and if you are willing to take the extra time, enjoy making fresh pasta!

Bruschetta Burger

The inspiration for this burger was one I ate at Applebee's once. It was amazing, and I figured I can make my own version at home. The pesto sauce and bruschetta can be used separately too, but put together with the burger, OH WOW! It's heaven on bread!

As a side note, when I cook, I don't always use exact measurements. I remember once watching my grandma cook a family recipe so I can actually have it written down. But it was a lot of "oh about this much salt" and "just throw in some bread crumbs" with no exact science to it. It took me awhile to be confident to do the same, but with practice, it got easier. So, taste your food as you cook it and adjust where you feel you need to. You will soon start to see how much or how little salt you like, or where you feel you need to add something else. You should like the food you cook, so personalize it!

Pesto Sauce


2 Cups basil leaves
1 cup olive oil
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground pepper
1/2-1 tsp crushed garlic

Put all ingredients into the blender and puree until smooth. Pour into a glass jar and keep in the refrigerator. You can also freeze it for up to 6 months. Use it on pasta, rice, over chicken, in a sandwich, or the yummiest burger ever!

Bruschetta

4-5 Roma tomatoes
2-4 basil leaves
1/2 - 1 tsp crushed garlic
Salt and pepper to taste

Chop the tomatoes and basil, toss together in a bowl. Drizzle in some olive oil, add salt and pepper to taste and the garlic. Taste. Add more seasonings is you like, but remember that garlic will get stronger once it sits around. I like to make this, then chill it. Before using it, I taste it and add more seasoning if needed. If you think its too salty, add more tomatoes and oil.

Bruschetta Burgers

Patty:
1-1 1/2 lbs Ground sirloin
1-1 1/2 tsp Montreal Steak Seasoning
1 tsp Crushed garlic
4-5 shakes of Worcestershire sauce
a handful of Parmesan cheese

For assembling:
Ciabatta rolls
Olive oil
Garlic powder
Pesto sauce
Bruschetta
Fresh mozzarella cheese- this is the kind usually in water or vacuum sealed, Precious brand is always good.

Put all of the ingredients for the patties in a bowl. Mix with your hands until everything is combined. Then form patties to the size you prefer, keeping in mind the size of the bread so it fits nicely. I found that making them thinner makes eating it easier once inside the bun. Grill the patties on the barbecue or inside on a grill pan to your liking. While the patties are cooking, brush each side of the rolls with olive oil and sprinkle on a bit of garlic powder. Toast them in the oven or on the grill until golden. When the patties are almost done, place a slice of the mozzarella cheese on each one so that it melts.

Now it is time to finish the burger. Add pesto sauce to one or both sides of the rolls. Place a patty on the bottom half of the roll. Top the patty with some of the bruschetta, and then add the other half of the roll. Stare at it a minute to admire your wonderful creation! Then dig in!

Tips:
*Keep in mind the size of the bread when forming the patties, so it fits nicely. I found that making them thinner makes eating it easier once inside the bun.
*You can heat the pesto up in the microwave or on the stove if it was sitting in the fridge for awhile.
*I found that using a brush is the easiest way to get the pesto on the bread. It really gets it into the nooks and crannies. I like to use cheap wooden paintbrushes from the hardware store, the last forever and can be put into the dishwasher.