It's just never a good idea to lift your infusion blender out of the soup to see if the blades are working. Just like sex, pulling out isn't always the best solution.
&%$#*!@
Sharon.... covered in tomato soup
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Thursday, May 19, 2011
~Thursday Thirteen~ Cookbooks
Here is a small list of what is on my cookbook shelf and Sharon added in some of hers too. Some of these books have taught me a lot of what I know about flavors and techniques. I pull them out whenever I am making out the menu for the week or if someone is coming by that I want to cook for. When making things from a cookbook even if it is from someone that gives you the inspiration to cook...remember that sometimes you could have followed the recipe to the very grain count of salt and it will just turn out to be okay. That is perfectly fine. Make it your own and tweak it if you are brave enough, not all meals need to be spectacular and over the top bursts of flavor. Sometimes it is a Hamburger Helper type night. Don't let your cookbooks intimidate you. Unless it is Julia Childs cause I won't even attempt it.
The recipes are simple and fun to make with kids. My girls love this book cause they can easily follow the recipe and it is a great time to be together. They have been known to tell their friends they can't play cause they are cooking instead...total mom moment there!
I bought this book just before Easter and I found "Strawberry Fluff." I could not stop eating it...however, it made a TON so if it isn't for a huge party of say of at least 20 people then cut the recipe in half and still share with neighbors. I put the fluuff over the top of angle food cake, ate it off a spoon...licked the bowl...you get the picture. 
This is a great cookbook if you are just starting out in the kitchen. There are step by step photos and easy to understand instructions.
Paula Deen is my idol...well besides my mom cause no one is better in my book but Paula is amazing and an inspiration. Look up her story sometime and while you are at it make some of her recipes they are comfort food at its best.
I read her blog its addicting, her food tastes really good and now a few of her recipes are some of my favorites.With a little of my own spin thrown in. 
another great book to get the kids into cooking!
lots of pretty party designs with quick recipes. A lot about presentations and meal plans for parties.
This entire series is awesome. Each book has recipes that are restaurant copycats. I love these books.The next set of books are from Sharon's collection. Im not sure if I got the pictures right but here they are and some of her suggestions!
Mango and rice noodle salad in lettuce cups
Sharon likes the pies, the pies, and there are the pies that Sharon mentions.
Jean Pare's Company's Coming StartersCrab stuffed eggs... totally kill worthy ((I couldn't find a picture of this cookbook but she is too cute to not put a picture of.))
manicotti overboard.. all kindsa yum
shrimp jambalaya... i submit.. ((that means she really likes it))heck ouut other ~TT~ participants here:
Monday, May 16, 2011
Sucky Day Sweet Tooth
Ever have one of those crappy days where all you crave is sugar, fluffy french bread and tubs of rocky road ice cream? You know what I mean... the kind of day where you throw on the yoga pants, that special torn sweatshirt and curl up on the couch with your snuggly to sit in front of the tube watching your favourite Molly Ringwald movies from the '80s. Ahhh I thought so, bishes... back then it was cool to think Emilio Estevez was a little hottie and secretly you wished you were a redhead with full lips the size of industrial strength suction cups.
I'm having one of those days my friends. Its unseasonably cold for even Canada.. rainy, grey... just a miserable day that *gasp* chocolate might not even fix. So, I'm bringing out the big guy.. the "I'll fix your wagon" kinda sweetness that a girl can really rely on to make her feel better.
Ironically though? I'm dedicating this to a good friend of mine, a man, who not only loves rocky road ice cream and sappy movies, but who suggested I post this recipe for peanut brittle. So Mike... this one's for you.
Better than Chocolate Peanut Brittle
2 cups of sugar
1 cup golden corn syrup
1 cup of water
2 cups unsalted peanuts
1 tsp unsalted butter
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp baking soda
1. Take your least favourite baking tray and line with with parchement paper, then use butter to grease it up.
2. In a heavy bottomed saucepan that can withstand some serious heat, combine the sugar, corn syrup and water, bring everyone to a boil over high heat. DON'T stir as it cooks, bring the mixture to a "hard crack" .. better yet get your candy thermometer you got from that useless wedding shower 15 years ago and stick it in until the mixture gets to 300F. Make sure you wet the sides of the pot down with cold water & a pastry brush now and then. Seriously .. do it it will save you grief. Getting to hard crack stage will take about 7 -9 minutes or so... but if you're Whitney Houston it'll get you probation and a permanent ban from Prince concerts. By now the mixture should be dark amber in colour
3. Pull off the heat, add in peanuts and salt gently with a wooden spoon. A metal one will kill the Molly Ringwald karma. GENTLY stir in the butter, vanilla and the baking soda which will make the shitz foam up a bit which is completely normal. Spread the mixture over the parchment and wait until hardens up.
4. Break it into chunks and enjoy.... if you STILL don't think its crazy amazing then next time drizzle melted chocolate over it and watch John Travolta dance it up as Danny Zuko in Grease. Sure technically its the 70's.. but nothings funnier than the butt chin belting out 'Summer Lovin'
Grabs her Menudo collection and heads to the couch.....
Sharon
I'm having one of those days my friends. Its unseasonably cold for even Canada.. rainy, grey... just a miserable day that *gasp* chocolate might not even fix. So, I'm bringing out the big guy.. the "I'll fix your wagon" kinda sweetness that a girl can really rely on to make her feel better.
Ironically though? I'm dedicating this to a good friend of mine, a man, who not only loves rocky road ice cream and sappy movies, but who suggested I post this recipe for peanut brittle. So Mike... this one's for you.
Better than Chocolate Peanut Brittle
2 cups of sugar
1 cup golden corn syrup
1 cup of water
2 cups unsalted peanuts
1 tsp unsalted butter
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp baking soda
1. Take your least favourite baking tray and line with with parchement paper, then use butter to grease it up.
2. In a heavy bottomed saucepan that can withstand some serious heat, combine the sugar, corn syrup and water, bring everyone to a boil over high heat. DON'T stir as it cooks, bring the mixture to a "hard crack" .. better yet get your candy thermometer you got from that useless wedding shower 15 years ago and stick it in until the mixture gets to 300F. Make sure you wet the sides of the pot down with cold water & a pastry brush now and then. Seriously .. do it it will save you grief. Getting to hard crack stage will take about 7 -9 minutes or so... but if you're Whitney Houston it'll get you probation and a permanent ban from Prince concerts. By now the mixture should be dark amber in colour
3. Pull off the heat, add in peanuts and salt gently with a wooden spoon. A metal one will kill the Molly Ringwald karma. GENTLY stir in the butter, vanilla and the baking soda which will make the shitz foam up a bit which is completely normal. Spread the mixture over the parchment and wait until hardens up.
4. Break it into chunks and enjoy.... if you STILL don't think its crazy amazing then next time drizzle melted chocolate over it and watch John Travolta dance it up as Danny Zuko in Grease. Sure technically its the 70's.. but nothings funnier than the butt chin belting out 'Summer Lovin'
Grabs her Menudo collection and heads to the couch.....
Sharon
Friday, May 13, 2011
Annoyed...
Sharon had this moment of inspiration and posted three posts including out ~TT~ but blogger has yet to fix our blog and restore the lost posts. We hope it will be fixed soon. No one hopes more than Sharon does though. Note to self...not safe to not have backups....
Thursday, May 12, 2011
13 Kid Friendly Recipes
Okay here we go. Both me & Charity have kids... mostly normal all things like parenting considered. So for our thirteen today, we're offering up our favourite go-to meals for the young brats... err.. sweet things in our lives that are easy to make, easy to chew and for the love of all things shut them up for 15 minutes.
13 Kid Friendly Recipies:
1. Home made chicken fingers.. an oldie but a goodie and much better than McFrankensteins
2. Chicken quesadillas.... chicken, some veg, cheese, bread.. yay!
3. Octopus dogs... cut lengthwise slices into your hotdog weiner and boil... throw it on to mac & cheese if the kids are particularly rowdy
4. Puppy Chow... peanut butter, chocolate, chex mix & powdered sugar... pic below!
5. Tacos.... expect a mess.. let them clean it up. You work for a living.
6. Dip dip eggs... 5 minutes of soft boiled goodness with toast fingers "soldiers" to dip with
7. Meat kabobs.. chicken beef..meh, throw in some veg if your kid will eat 'em
8. Tuna melts... tuna mixed with a touch of mayo, laid out over a toasted bagel. Top with cheese and pop 'm in the oven
9. Make your own Pizza.. on english muffin, pitas, bagels... kids wont' admit it if they screw up their creation and pride will make the buggers eat it
10. Jello & pudding parfait.... pour jello in the bottom of a wine glass, tilt it and let it set like that. Spoon in some pudding and let them try to figure out how you became so cool
11. Weiner Wraps... serious love for pillsbury for coming up with this idea of croissant rolls around hotdogs
12. Purple Soup... potatoes, purple cabbage, sausage.. seriously a funky coloured dish will make anything more appetizing to a kid and they'll eat it.. no shitz of a lie.
13. Bundles... bread dough stuffed with cheese, onion, meats... ask Charity, its her creation.
13 Kid Friendly Recipies:
1. Home made chicken fingers.. an oldie but a goodie and much better than McFrankensteins
2. Chicken quesadillas.... chicken, some veg, cheese, bread.. yay!
3. Octopus dogs... cut lengthwise slices into your hotdog weiner and boil... throw it on to mac & cheese if the kids are particularly rowdy
4. Puppy Chow... peanut butter, chocolate, chex mix & powdered sugar... pic below!
5. Tacos.... expect a mess.. let them clean it up. You work for a living.
6. Dip dip eggs... 5 minutes of soft boiled goodness with toast fingers "soldiers" to dip with
7. Meat kabobs.. chicken beef..meh, throw in some veg if your kid will eat 'em
8. Tuna melts... tuna mixed with a touch of mayo, laid out over a toasted bagel. Top with cheese and pop 'm in the oven
9. Make your own Pizza.. on english muffin, pitas, bagels... kids wont' admit it if they screw up their creation and pride will make the buggers eat it
10. Jello & pudding parfait.... pour jello in the bottom of a wine glass, tilt it and let it set like that. Spoon in some pudding and let them try to figure out how you became so cool
11. Weiner Wraps... serious love for pillsbury for coming up with this idea of croissant rolls around hotdogs
12. Purple Soup... potatoes, purple cabbage, sausage.. seriously a funky coloured dish will make anything more appetizing to a kid and they'll eat it.. no shitz of a lie.
13. Bundles... bread dough stuffed with cheese, onion, meats... ask Charity, its her creation.
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Jeebus really? My recipe?
Wow.. okay so somebody asked for one of my 13th recipes. Sure it may about predictable as watching Lindsay Lohan escaping jail time, but seriously its the one thing in my house my two kids will eat and not whine about.
Unf*ckupable Mac & Cheese
5 cups of cooked macaroni (or rigatoni, penne, whatever your kids deem cool)
4 tbsp butter
4 tbsp flour (or 3 of butter, 1 or cornstarch)
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 ground pepper
2 cups of milk (2% preferrably, I gag on whole milk and 1% is like albino pee)
3/4 cup or so of sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1/4 cup monterray jack cheese, shredded
1. Heat butter over med/low heat
2. Quickly whisk in flour til smooth and bubbling
3. Gradually add in milk and mix the shitz constantly to cook it and keep it smooth. Nothing screws up mac & cheese like gelatenous clumps.. hence the lower heat bishes.
4. Once thick, add cheese until it melts smoothly.
5. In about an 8x10 inch casserole dish, pour in noodles, pour cheese on top and mix it all up til the mac is all coated and happy. Naked mac, bad.
6. Bake 350 degrees for about 20 minutes. If you are super cool you can add a layer of shredded cheese in the last 5 minutes and flick on the broiler to get a cool crust.
Options? Throw in chunks of left over chicken from some recipe you made earlier. Why not? Gets that stuff out of your fridge before it turns nasty.
See? Easy. I mean c'mon, its me here. Would I steer you wrong??
Sharon
Unf*ckupable Mac & Cheese
5 cups of cooked macaroni (or rigatoni, penne, whatever your kids deem cool)
4 tbsp butter
4 tbsp flour (or 3 of butter, 1 or cornstarch)
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 ground pepper
2 cups of milk (2% preferrably, I gag on whole milk and 1% is like albino pee)
3/4 cup or so of sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1/4 cup monterray jack cheese, shredded
1. Heat butter over med/low heat
2. Quickly whisk in flour til smooth and bubbling
3. Gradually add in milk and mix the shitz constantly to cook it and keep it smooth. Nothing screws up mac & cheese like gelatenous clumps.. hence the lower heat bishes.
4. Once thick, add cheese until it melts smoothly.
5. In about an 8x10 inch casserole dish, pour in noodles, pour cheese on top and mix it all up til the mac is all coated and happy. Naked mac, bad.
6. Bake 350 degrees for about 20 minutes. If you are super cool you can add a layer of shredded cheese in the last 5 minutes and flick on the broiler to get a cool crust.
Options? Throw in chunks of left over chicken from some recipe you made earlier. Why not? Gets that stuff out of your fridge before it turns nasty.
See? Easy. I mean c'mon, its me here. Would I steer you wrong??
Sharon
So I broke my leg...
Okay so Charity has told you I broke my leg playing hockey. Not my fault. So the last 8 weeks I've been ordering take out and making sandwiches. You gotta admit that's a stunning reason not to blog about the cooking you're not doing cause you're laid up like Charlie Sheen in the porn room. Cooking on crutches? Dangerous, let me tell you. Stumbling around with a pan of hot butter or standing on one leg while your red wine reduction fails is not my idea of a good time.
But I'm back on two legs once again so I decided to start of easy. So here it is... soup! And sure you may think that Sweet Potato and Jalapeno Soup is an autumn dish, it is but screw that idea, it's damn easy and I'm recouperating so you have to have sympathy somewhere. Plus its completely delicious and takes 1/2 hour to make so it more than makes up for the fact I'm seasonally challenged.
Sweet Potato and Jalapeno Soup
1 Tbsp peanut oil
1/2 cup chopped red onion
2 tsp minced garlic
3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled & diced into 1 inch chunkers
4 cups chicken stock
1 medium jalapeno, seeded and finely chopped
2 tbsp molasses
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
pinch of cinammon
1. In a large saucepan or if you're fancy enough to own a soup pot, heat the peanut oil over medium heat. Throw in the onions & garlic and saute the suckers up til they're soft.. a couple minutes. Add the sweet potatos and pour the stock over everyone. Bring the party to a boil.
2. Reduce heat and simmer and let them orgy for 10 minutes until the pototoes go soft (a sure sign the orgy is over, non?) Throw in the jalapeno for 2 minutes then remove from heat. With the new immersion blender your husband got you for Mother's Day, zap everything in the pot until its fairly smooth .....
3. Reheat on the stove again and toss the rest of the ingredients in. Seriously that's it. Done. Ladel into a bowl and for shiz and giggles throw on some chopped up italian parsely to make it all gourmet like.
Okay so there we go. A recipe that is fail safe. Now so we idiot proof this? aka Sharon-proof this... do NOT stick your jalapeno juiced fingers in your eyes. Been there, done it. I don't rock the eyepatch look so neither can you.
Peace out, Sharon
But I'm back on two legs once again so I decided to start of easy. So here it is... soup! And sure you may think that Sweet Potato and Jalapeno Soup is an autumn dish, it is but screw that idea, it's damn easy and I'm recouperating so you have to have sympathy somewhere. Plus its completely delicious and takes 1/2 hour to make so it more than makes up for the fact I'm seasonally challenged.
Sweet Potato and Jalapeno Soup
1 Tbsp peanut oil
1/2 cup chopped red onion
2 tsp minced garlic
3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled & diced into 1 inch chunkers
4 cups chicken stock
1 medium jalapeno, seeded and finely chopped
2 tbsp molasses
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
pinch of cinammon
1. In a large saucepan or if you're fancy enough to own a soup pot, heat the peanut oil over medium heat. Throw in the onions & garlic and saute the suckers up til they're soft.. a couple minutes. Add the sweet potatos and pour the stock over everyone. Bring the party to a boil.
2. Reduce heat and simmer and let them orgy for 10 minutes until the pototoes go soft (a sure sign the orgy is over, non?) Throw in the jalapeno for 2 minutes then remove from heat. With the new immersion blender your husband got you for Mother's Day, zap everything in the pot until its fairly smooth .....
3. Reheat on the stove again and toss the rest of the ingredients in. Seriously that's it. Done. Ladel into a bowl and for shiz and giggles throw on some chopped up italian parsely to make it all gourmet like.
Okay so there we go. A recipe that is fail safe. Now so we idiot proof this? aka Sharon-proof this... do NOT stick your jalapeno juiced fingers in your eyes. Been there, done it. I don't rock the eyepatch look so neither can you.
Peace out, Sharon
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