Chicken Pesto Pasta

This post is so I remember to make this again when basil is plentiful in the garden.

Today my husband pruned our garden and I found myself with handfuls of fresh basil. It was time to make pesto. Pesto is easy to make in a food processor. I made my pesto based on this on this recipe, using the optional Parmesan cheese.

 https://www.loveandlemons.com/pesto-recipe/

The one substitution I made was switching out walnuts for the pine nuts. A chef once told me this is a common substitution for pesto recipes.

I cooked up 4 servings of large shelled pasta in salted boiling water with a few drops of olive oil in the water. This pasta took 14-16 minutes to cook.

While the pasta was cooking, I cut two chicken breasts into bite sized pieces and seasoned them in kosher salt and fresh ground pepper. I slathered about 1/4 of the pesto sauce over the chicken pieces. Then I sautéed them in olive oil.

When the pasta was done, I drained it and put it in a large bowl. I put the sautéed chicken into the bowl with the pasta and added the rest of the pesto to the mix and stirred it up until coated evenly. A sprinkle of Parmesan and this was then ready to serve.

Here are the ingredients I used for the pesto.

Ingredients

Basic Basil Pesto:

• ½ cup walnuts 
• The juice of one small lemon
• 1 small garlic clove
• ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper 
• 2 cups basil leaves
• ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more for a smoother pesto
• ¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions I used:

Chop everything up in the Cuisinart with the chopping blade getting a head start with the walnuts and then adding the other ingredients until all are mixed well into a soft paste. Pulse more and add olive oil if needed to get the consistency desired.

4 Bean Salad

Classic 4 Bean Salad

Ingredients

1/2 Red Onion, chopped fine and then placed in cold water to soak for at least 10 minutes (this takes the sharp edge off  the taste)

1 Can Cannelini Beans

1 Can Kidney Beans

1 Can Garbanzo Beans

1 Can Cut Green Beans

1 TBSP of Mixed Italian Spice (suggested Penzey's Italian Mix) and/or 

1 Cup loosely packed fresh Parsley leaves, finely chopped

1 teaspoon of fresh Rosemary, finely chopped

1/3 cup of Apple Cider Vinegar

2-3 TBSP of Granulated Sugar

1/4 Cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1+1/2  teaspoon of Course or Kosher Salt

1/4 teaspoon of fresh ground Black Pepper

1. Chop red onion and set aside in cold water if you haven't already.

2. Rinse and Drain all beans.

3. Put all the beans together into a large bowl.

4. Drain the chopped red onion and add this to the bowl of beans. 

5. Add the Spice mix, Parsley, and Rosemary to the bowl of beans and gently mix.

6. In a seperate medium bowl add Apple Cider Vinegar, Sugar, Olive Oil, Salt, and Pepper and whisk until all is mixed in and evenly distributed.

7. Add the Vinegar/Oil mix to the large bowl of beans and mix until coated.

8. Put in the refrigerator to soak for a couple of hours.

Vegan Lemon Chickpea Orzo Soup or Vegan Avgolemono - cooked in an Instapot

This soup is one of my Daughter's favorites and it just made a nice offering at a pot luck. There's no dairy, no meat, and can even be made gluten free if you are careful with your ingredients. What is this magical mystical wonder food? I'm talking about Vegan Lemon Orzo Soup or as the Greek say, Avgolemono. You can make this in a regular stock pot, but I like to cook it in the Instant Pot because I can keep it warm for a long time as if it were in a slow cooker. There is no pressure used on the Instapot, but I use the saute and warm settings. Your slow cooker might have these settings, too. Otherwise, just make this in a pot on the stove, it will cook beautifully either way. 

I originally found this recipe on simple-veganista.com. Of course I have a couple of tweaks, but it's pretty much theirs - credit where credit is due. This is a perfect recipe if you have a lot of lemons.

Here is the Recipe for Lemon Orzo Soup

Ingredients

1 TBSP Olive Oil

1/2 a Large Onion or 1 Small Onion, Diced

3 Carrots, peeled and diced

3-4 Cloves of Garlic, minced

8 Cups of Vegetable Broth

1 Cup of Orzo (or Gluten Free Orzo or Rice)

2 Cans of Chickpeas, drained and rinced

1/3 Cup of Tahini

The Juice of 3-4 Fresh Lemons (about 1/2 cup or more)

A Large Handful of Baby Spinach or Kale

1-2 TBSP of Fresh Chopped Dill

1-2 tsp of Large Crystal Salt 

About 1 tsp Fresh Ground Pepper

Preparation

Heat oil over medium heat on the saute setting in the Instapot. 

While the Instapot is heating, prepare the broth if needed. I use the Knorr Vegetarian bullion, so I always mix it up first. I don't worry if the broth is not perfectly mixed or heated, I just want it to have some pre-mixing. 

Once it the Instapot is hot, add the onion and carrots. Saute for about 5 minutes, add the garlic and saute for another minute or so.

Add the broth to the pot and bring to a boil.

Add the orzo and chickpeas, reduce heat to low and cook at a gentle boil for 7-9 minutes or when the orzo is tender. (If you are using rice, add about 10 minutes to let the rice soften.)

Turn off heat, add tahini and fresh squeezed lemon juice, stir well. 

Add the baby spinach or kale and stir in.

Stir in the dill.

Season with salt and pepper.

Irish Soda Bread

I know, we haven’t posted in forever, but this blog is a food memory repository for our family and this one deserves a write up. 

During Covid lockdowns we found ourselves shopping for groceries online and having them delivered. One service included some recipes and this one satisfied our need for bread when yeast was in short supply.

A simple recipe with only 4 ingredients, this Irish Soda Bread can be made from scratch in under an hour. Pair with a soup or a salad for a delicious meal.

Irish Soda Bread

2 Cups Buttermilk

3.5 cups (1 pound) of Flour

1 tsp Salt

1 tsp Baking Soda

Take out a heavy pot or pan (I use a rose shaped bundt pan). Spray pan with spray oil or Pam and set aside.

Preheat oven to 450* Fahrenheit

Sift flour into large bowl, add salt and baking soda and mix them together.

Stir in buttermilk to the mixture with a wooden spoon until dough forms a soggy mass. Don’t over-mix.

Put dough into the prepared heavy pan. Give the top a few slices with a knife to let the dough expand.

Bake for 45 min. uncovered. 

If you find your oven runs hot, you can bake for 45 min covered and then uncover and bake for 15 min more.

Serve warm with butter.

Bread-maker Oatmeal Bread - a no egg recipe

It is late March in Los Angeles.  We are in the midst of the only Worldwide Pandemic that has been seen in generations.  We are "Sheltering in Place" staying in our homes to avoid getting and spreading Covid-19, a disease that is extremely contagious and that kills 2-3% of the people who get it. 

In these times of quarantine, I find myself cooking so much and looking back at our blog which was started to save and share family recipes and memories.  How we came together and cooked for each other will be a memory our family won't soon forget. I feel blessed to have food and bread machines and family.  Now seems like a good time to share again. 

This recipe was adapted from the Bread Machine Baking cookbook to accommodate a lack of certain ingredients.  Unlike at any time in my generation, it is difficult to shop and things like eggs run out quickly.  A quick trip to the store is not taken lightly so we adapt.  The adaptation was a success.  This hearty bread is crunchy on the outside and lighter-than-expected spongy on the inside.  The oats popped up as a nutty detail to chew.  It was good paired as a sandwich with savory insides salami and cheese as well as a sweeter snack with honey.

Bread Machine Oat Bread

1 cup Water
2 1/2 teaspoons Yeast
3/4 cup Steel Cut Oats
1 tablespoon Melted Butter or Vegetable Oil
1 tablespoon Molasses
1 tablespoon of Brown Sugar
1 teaspoon of salt
2 1/2 cups of All-purpose Flour

Place the water in the bread-maker
Stir in the Yeast
Add the Steel Cut Oats and let sit for 10 minutes to soften the oats.
Add the rest of the ingredients in order.
Select basic, standard, or white bread on the machine and select start.

Carrot Parsnip Soup

One of my favorite recipes to make on a cold winter's day is Carrot Parsnip soup.  Filling and warm, chock full of healthy ingredients, this recipe nourishes you from the inside out.

Carrot Parsnip Soup - originally from Gourmet Magazine as doctored up by Candice Colbert

1 Onion, chopped 

2 Carrots, diced

2 Parsnips, diced

1 TBSP Butter

2 Cups of Chicken Broth (or veggie broth if desired)

1 clove of Garlic, diced or smashed

Dash of Salt and Pepper

In a medium to large sauce pot, cook the onion, carrot, parsnips, butter, and garlic over a moderately low heat stirring occasionally for 10 min.

Add the broth and seasons.  

Simmer for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

With a hand blender, food processor, or blender, puree the mixture until smooth and ready to eat.

Down for a Decadent Delight - Bananas Foster Nutella Crepes

Low on funds, but still want a delicious breakfast?

Make crepes I say!  

After a friend asked for some low cost recipes I was inspired to make a meal I haven't made in forever, Bananas Foster Nutella Crepes.  This recipe has few ingredients, which are low cost, and often in the pantry.  Plus, it's a way to use up bananas that are going a bit black. 

Crepe batter from The Moosewood Cookbook.

Here's what you need:

Crepes:

1 large egg

1 1/4 cup of milk

1 cup of flour

1/4 tsp of salt

a little oil for the pan

Mix all crepe ingredients in blender or whisk in a bowl until smooth.

Heat a nonstick or stainless omelet pan.

Brush a bit of oil over the pan.

Pour batter in the pan, enough to coat the pan in a thin layer.

Cook for about 20 seconds and then flip the crepe and cook about 10-15 seconds more or until firm.

Put crepe and repeat process until batter is used up (about 4-6 crepes depending on the size of the pan)

Filling:

1 Tbsp butter

a couple of rotting bananas, sliced into circles

Nutella or Peanut Butter

In another pan melt the butter and add the bananas.

Cook on a medium heat until bananas are pleasantly caramelized. 

Spread Nutella or peanut butter on a crepe and put filling over it.  Fold over or roll crepe up.

Cost of this meal (enough to feed 4) - maybe $2.00 - $3.00 worth of ingredients, and yet you are eating like a king!

Halloween Lunch!

Yep, I still make the occasional Bento.  The kids are 9, and still need some magic in their lives, or at least creepy pizza fingers!

Happy Halloween!

Recipe for a week of meals for 4 for $100.

As a woman who has had to stretch a paycheck or two on occasion, I have been thinking of sharing a menu for a family who has little to spend on the weekly grocery bill. I used a budget of $100 for the whole family of four for the week.  I tried to make somewhat balanced meals with fruits, veggies, dairy, and meats everyday. Many of the items on the shopping list can be purchased more cheaply, and you can always find ingredients for more.  I used an average price you would find at a California store in 2015 for most of the ingredients.

This menu is assuming you are starting from scratch as if there was no pantry.  If you have some staples like spices and flour, you are really far ahead of the game. Use this as a loose guide and improvise and improve as needed.  Please send comments and any corrections you see that need to be made.

Shopping List:

24 Eggs	$6.00
1.25 lb ground turkey	$3.50
1 lb ground beef	$3.50
1 lb of chicken breast	$4.00
2 cups fresh spinach (about 16 oz)	$2.50
1 bag panko crispy bread crumbs	$2.50
1 red onion	$0.75
1 bulb garlic	$0.50
Salt	$1.00
2 pears	$1.00
Black Pepper	$1.50
ketchup	$1.75
Pack of Burger Buns	$2.00
10 lb Sack of Potatoes	$4.00
Bag of Rice	$2.00
Box of cherry or grape tomatoes	$3.00
4 Apples	$2.00
8 Bananas	$1.75
2 cans of soup	$3.00
Spray oil (like Pam)	$2.25
1.5 - 2 Gallons of Milk	$5.00
1 lb Butter unsalted	$3.50
Old Fashioned Oatmeal canister	$3.00
Brown Sugar	$2.00
White Vinegar	$1.00
2 Tuna Cans	$4.00
Sliced cheap wheat bread	$1.50
Mayo	$2.00
Box of Corn Flakes	$2.00
Cheddar Cheese Bar	$3.00
Broccoli Crowns	$1.50
Bag of whole Carrots	$1.00
1/2 lb of sliced turkey	$3.50
3 lb chicken thighs	$4.00
5 lb Bag of flour	$2.50
1 lb bacon or turkey bacon	$3.00
Ranch dressing	$2.50
Romaine Lettuce	$2.00
Yogurt Cups 2 for a dollar	$2.00
Baking powder	$1.50
Splurge - 2 liter of soda or bag of chips	$1.00
	$100.00

Day 1

Breakfast

2 Apples sliced for all to shareOatmealBrown SugarMilk

Lunch

Egg Salad Sandwiches (4 eggs)Home made potato chipsCarrot sticks

Dinner

Meatloaf Cupcakes with Home Made Mashed Potatoes instead of packaged potatoes (use soy sauce instead of Worcestershire sauce).Home Made Mashed potatoes are: about 1-2 pounds of potatoes, 1/4-1/2 cup of milk, 2-3 TBSP of butter and salt as desired.  Boil potatoes for about 20 minutes or until soft.  Drain water and mash up potatoes with other ingredients.Meatloaf recipe makes 6 servings (2 cupcakes a person) - eat 8 cupcakes at dinner and reserve 4 for a brown bag lunch.

Day 2

Breakfast

Toad in the hole (4 eggs cooked over easy in a piece of toast with the center cut out.)

Lunch

Meatloaf cupcakesHome made potato chips - preheat oven to 450 degrees F, slice 3-4 potatoes very thin. Boil the potato slices in water for 3-5 minutes. Drain the water and sprinkle with salt and pepper (add chopped garlic if desired). Spray oil a cookie sheet and bake for 15 minutes or so until chips are golden brown. (eat half, save half for tomorrow).

Dinner

Rice and soy sauce1/2 lb Chicken with sauteed spinach and garlic 

After Dinner Snack (dessert) 

Muffins

1-3/4 cups of flour

4 tsp brown sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 Cup milk

1 egg

4 tsp unsalted butter, melted

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 2. Spray a 24 cup mini-muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray (I use a silicone pan with spray)3. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.4. In a small bowl combine egg, milk, and butter. Pour over the flour mixture and stir, just until blended (do not overmix).5. Spoon the batter into the cups, only filling the cups until they are just to the top, not over the sides.6. Bake 20-25 minutes.

Day 3

Breakfast

Corn Flakes (with brown sugar if desired) & Milk

Lunch

Wheat Bread and Tuna Sandwiches (2 cans of tuna, mayo, 1 hard boiled egg)Carrot sticks with Ranch

Snack

Leftover Muffins

Dinner

Baked potatoes with butter, broccoli and cheese topping.Romaine lettuce salad with a few tomatoes, a little shredded cheddar, and thin sliced carrots.Bananas sauteed in butter for dessert

Day 4

Breakfast

OatmealBrown SugarMilk

Lunch

Grilled Cheese Sandwiches (Wheat bread, buttered, cheddar, and tomatoes)1 can of soup2 Apples sliced for all to share

Snack

Any leftover muffins

Dinner

1/4 lb Burgers made with garlic, salt, pepper, soy sauce served on buns with lettuce.Homemade french fries with KetchupCarmelized 1/2 Red Onion.  Try simplifying a gourmet recipe like this: http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/how_to_caramelize_onions/ by using what you have on hand, spray oil, white vinegar

Day 5

Breakfast

Jiffy Corn Muffins (need 1 egg +1/2 Cup milk)Yogurt cups

Lunch

Cherry tomatoesSliced turkey and mayo or ranch with lettuce sandwiches on hamburger buns or sliced bread.2 pears sliced and shared

Snack

Splurge items like soda or chips or if you did not have that extra dollar, try a simple rice pudding with rice, milk and brown sugar.

Dinner

Chicken Adobo - Recipe here - maybe make half if the chicken thighs are not cheap.  Borrow a bay leaf from a friend or skip it.rice 

Day 6

Breakfast

Corn Flakes with sliced bananas & Milk

Lunch

Rice and Soy Sauce, leftover chicken adobo

Snack

Biscuits - Here's a recipe http://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1013741-all-purpose-biscuits

Dinner

Quiche - Pie crust + 1/2 lb bacon, 5 eggs, milk, any spinach, broccoli, tomato and onion that is left over

Day 7

Breakfast

Spinach, tomato, and egg scramble (Spray oil into the pan, saute spinach and tomato until spinach is wilted.  Scramble up 4-5 eggs, a little milk, salt, pepper into the pan.  Cook until fluffy.)Toast with butter

Lunch

Bacon and Cheddar slices of whatever cheese is left on last of the hamburger buns, biscuits, or sliced bread - with mayo or ranch dressing. 1 can of soup

Snack

If you have enough butter left you can make shortbread cookieshttp://amydouglass.blogspot.com/2011/02/butter-brown-sugar-flour.html

If not, and you are hungry, have some oatmeal with brown sugar and milk.

Dinner

Carrots cooked in brown sugar and butter1/2 lb Chicken, sliced, dipped in a little milk and 1 egg, and coated with a mixture of panko crumbs, salt, and pepper.  Spray a lot of oil into a pan and cook or spray a cookie sheet and bake at 400 degrees F, 10-12 minutes on each side or until cooked through.Mashed potatoes or baked potatoes with butter.

Pinning my Food

Oh my gosh it has been forever since I posted.  I have moved on in my digital life, but I come back to family of food for recipes and memories.  Lately I have been collecting food ideas on Pinterest,
That platform is a fabulous idea generator for food and much more.

One great idea I found was for this 4th of July.
Mine was layered a little differently:
It's all about the sugar content,

I used Pina Colada Mixer on the bottom, Cranberry Cocktail in the middle, and Gatorade Cool Blue on the top.  For adult drinks I mixed the Pina Colada with Rum shaken with ice in a bar shaker first and then layered the rest, and the red and white layers flipped due to the changed sugar content.

Here's the original post from the Like Mother Like Daughter Blog:




















http://likemotherlikedaughterblog.blogspot.com/2014/06/layered-drinks.html

It was a hit!

I am trying this recipe tonight.




















http://thefrugalgirls.com/2013/04/crockpot-orange-chicken-recipe.html

Thanks to all who share their tricks and treats.
Feel free to pin from the Family of Food Blog.
Happy Pinning!

Mmmmm Meatloaf Cupcakes!

My Mother saw a meatloaf recipe online and mentioned them to me.  A few hours later, this was born.  Meatloaf cupcakes! Thanks to Betty Crocker who posted the basic recipe here.  I happened to have all ingredients except parsley (which I replaced with spinach) and real mashed potatoes which are hard to cook to the right consistency.  I used an easy to make powdered potatoes package for the "frosting."  As usual, I put my own spin on it.

Here is the recipe as I made it.  Get creative with your own recipe!

Meat Loaf

2

eggs, lightly beaten

1.25

lb ground turkey

1

cup panko crispy bread crumbs

1/2

red onion, finely chopped

1/4

cup coarsely chopped spinach

2

cloves garlic, finely chopped

2/3

cup ketchup

2

teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

Salt and pepper

For the garnish

Idahoan Mashed Potatoes, Four Cheese

Panko and Parmesan mixture (about 2/3 cup panko and 1/3 cup parmesan)

Ketchup

Spinach cut into thin strips (chiffonade)

Cherry Tomatoes

Shredded Cheddar

Chives

Thank You For This Gift

Today an extremely generous neighbor, and fabulous photographer, Diana Lundin,  shared a bounty of fruits and vegetables that she had on hand for a photo shoot.  She kindly shared this gift with me and some other lucky neighbors as she could not use the perishables all herself and she did not want such great food to go to waste.  Here is something special she did with real produce before, check out How to Make a Red Heart.

I hope it is OK to reveal that the wonderful fruits and vegetables came from Melissa's Produce http://www.melissas.com/. I tell you this because this produce was incredible, both in quality and in variety.  There was honeydew, okra, pixie tangerines, chili peppers, baby bok choy, persian cucumbers, spaghetti squash, swiss chard, habanero peppers, yams, mint, chinese long beans, fresh dill, chives, apples, cumquats, ugli fruit, apricots, cabbage, carrots, rutebega, kale, green onions, rutabaga, and so much more!

I was given a variety of these organic delights for my family of food.
Eager to try the fresh ingredients, I quickly formed a dinner around what was in the selection.

The kids had a small taste of the apricot while I prepared the meal. 

Our entire meal came from this practical cornucopia with the exception of the marinara sauce for the spaghetti squash, not pictured.  That came from a party where we won treats for an Oscar related contest, so it was in fact, another gift. 

Our main dish was spaghetti squash cooked by roasting in the oven for 1 hour after piercing the skin with a fork a few times.  When it is done, you scoop out the seeds and then scoop out the strings of squash.  That's it, that is all you have to do.  Spaghetti squash is the secretly easy - special effects wow moment - of food.  This particular squash was big and delicious. The bowl pictured here is from only half of the squash and we even had a bit left over.

 

Next came the Ugli Fruit and the cumquats.  None of us had ever had Ugli Fruit before.  It peels easily like a large "Cutie" and tastes like a combination of citrus.  There was a tough fibrous bit that none of us ate, but the juice was incredible.  My daughter said it was her favorite fruit in the world and was greatly disappointed that we only had one.

The cumquats were tart and tangy and all were enjoyed.

These Kale chips were made with the most beautiful Kale I have ever seen.  Usually I get the Trader Joe's Kale in a bag, but this stuff was a whole different creature.  I selected 5 large leaves, washed them, dried them, sprayed them with olive oil, and seasoned them with 21 Season Salute from TJ's and a bit of salt.  I was very happy with the outcome.  It was crunchy, healthy, tasty, and let's face it, soooo LA.

Lastly, we had the honey dew.  Again, I only served half of it like the squash, because it was so big.  This honeydew was heavy on both the honey and the dew.  It was incredibly sweet and so juicy, had I had a glass under it while I opened it, I could have made myself a honeydew cocktail.

Look closer.  Doesn't it look great?

My daughter had to be reminded to try some of the other food as she was so in love with the honeydew.  She was not wrong, it may have been the best honeydew I have ever had.

It turned out to be a vegan feast, chock full of fabulous flavors, satisfying in every way.  I do not believe it could be healthier.  If I were counting Weight Watchers Points this meal may have counted up to zero.  Does marinara sauce have points?  What fortune!

In short, Diana is terrific for thinking of her neighbors and not letting this treasure go to waste,
Melissa's is terrific for hiring Diana and providing amazing excellent quality natural food, and G-d is terrific for putting my family in the position to receive this abundance.  I thank you all for this gift.

Bread Machine Cornbread

I experimented with a Yogurt Cornbread in the Breadmaker.  It turned out sweet, more chewy than a non-yogurt cornbread on the sides, but pretty tasty, and pretty much like a sweet cornbread on the inside.  The flour on the edges are due to my breadmaker's quirks.  The reviews were positive, though.  After two helpings, my daughter said to post it!

2 Cups Flour
1 Cup Corn Meal
1/2 Cup Sugar
1 tsp Salt
1 Cup Plain Yogurt
2 TBSP Melted Butter
1/2 Cup warm water
1 tsp Yeast

A Nice Welcome, Crème Caramel LA

Recently my family of food moved to a new place and lucky for me, I ours is not the only new family in the neighborhood.  As of the day I walked into Crème Caramel LA they had only been open 102 days.  This boutique bakeshop specializes in a creamy flan-like crème caramel custards.  The friendly face in the picture is Mike, who upon my entering the shop, evangelized these desserts and converted me from a casual passerby, to a true believer.  It was the tasting that did it.  He let me try flavor after flavor until I couldn't find any one I liked better than the ube pie.  The purple yam vegetable pie was something I had never tried before, but had I let my preconceptions stop me, I would have missed the best dish of all.

Before I checked out, I met the effervescent owner, Kristine, who told me a bit more about her cooking and the Filipino influenced sweets she serves.  I was impressed with her vision and am excited to have this innovative entrepreneur in this part of the San Fernando Valley.  I walked in expecting to pick up a small cookie, and left with an ube upside down pie, a baguette, and a box of "Unicorn Poop", a dolloped meringue rolled in multi-colored sugar, for the kids. 

Crème Caramel LA

Custard Dessert Bakery [coffee] [eats] [sweets] 

Hours: Tues.-Sun. 8a.m. – 4p.m. | Closed Mon. 

14849 Burbank Blvd, Sherman Oaks, CA 91411 

(818) 949-8352

Los Angeles Wine and Pairing Event Sept 18th - LA Tasters!

Friends of the Blog, LA Tasters is having a Wine and Food Pairing event on Sept 18th at Seasons 22.
 
If you enjoy getting out, meeting new people and love trying food one bite at a time, then
LA TASTERS is for you.

Facebook Link

Wow! Blueberry Octopus Cake!!!

There was this delicious looking recipe in the One Pot cookbook I got from the library.

I had fresh blueberries and all of the ingredients needed (well, not buttermilk, but you can fake that with a cup of milk and a teaspoon or two of vinegar), but I did not have a pretty bundt cake pan as shown in the picture in the book.  So, being one not to give up so easily, I found a pan that most closely resembled the the size of the one in the recipe.

The pan I found happened to be shaped like an octopus.

It was a gift from our neighbor for the kids' birthday one year.

It worked like a charm.

Who knew it would come in so handy?

I have to say, it is the best looking Octopus cake I have ever made.

Won't the kids be surprised tonight!

From the Garden

From the garden today, two beautiful green peppers.  What shall I make with these?

Here are some possibilities:

Sideways Stuffed Peppers

Chicken Fajitas

Pizza topping

Cut up with Hummus 

Roasted Peppers

Kabobs

Stir Fried Pepper Beef

Chili

Wait a minute... It's Breakfast time...

I'll make Bell Pepper Toad in the Hole (aka Egg in the Hole or Rocky Mountain Toast)!

Here's what to do...
Cut the top off of the pepper, clear out the seeds.

Slice the pepper and saute on a medium heat in olive oil for a few minutes.
I used Salt, Ground Black Pepper, and 21 Season Salute from Trader Joe's to season.

Crack the eggs carefully as you can in the middle of the peppers.
Sprinkle with seasoning.

Gently flip the egg and cook to desired consistency.
Mmmmmm, Tasty and garden fresh!