Goldfish Marshmallow Pops

My friend, Shelley, and her mom, made these absolutely adorable  Goldfish Marshmallow Pops for a very special family celebration. Looking around Pinterest is such a great place for finding party inspiration! I was so smitten with her photo of the sweet treats, that I just had to share her picture of them on the blog. It's amazing how you can turn marshmallows, blue tinted white chocolate, sprinkles, vanilla cupcake goldfish & pearlized sprinkles into something so precious!  Shelly ~ Thanks so much for letting me share your photo!

Trina's Homemade Strawberry Jam Secrets

Photo courtesy of Trina Schneider Photography

My friend, Trina, recently shared a mouth watering picture of her homemade strawberry jam, bubbling away on her stove... as well as her secret for perfect strawberry jam.  "The secret to great strawberry jam - Oxnard strawberries and a tablespoon of butter in the mix."

Too bad we all don't have access to fresh-picked, California roadside farm stand, still-warm-from-the-field, strawberries.  No worries, it'll just take a little extra effort to find our own 'local picked' strawberries. Maybe we'll have to search for local strawberries at a Farmers Market... or maybe, we'll just head out to our home garden and harvest them from the strawberry patch... or maybe, even go to a local 'pick your own' strawberry patch. Whichever way we go, local berries always taste so much sweeter, and I think they're worth the bit of extra effort to search them out.

Trina, thanks so much for sharing your strawberry jam tips.  I just love hearing about other people's little kitchen secrets!

Dutch Caramel Wafers ~ aka Stroopwafels

Dutch Caramel Wafers (aka Stroopwafels)  ~ These are now one of my favorite cookies.  My friend L, shared them with us last fall, when we visited her in SC...and now I'm hooked!!  If you ever run across these classic Dutch treats, give 'em a try.  I found my bag over at Cost Plus/World Market.  Just let me say, with a cup of tea or coffee, these cookies/wafers are absolutely sublime.  ~ L, Thanks so much for expanding my culinary teatime horizons.  :)

David's Home Baked Bread with 'Chocolate Gravy'

My nephew, David, likes to make this fun, sweet treat ~ Home Baked Bread with 'Chocolate Gravy' ~ for his sons.  A while back he mentioned it on Facebook, and he continues to tease us with photos whenever he makes it. When I asked him where he got the inspiration from, this is what he shared with me ~ I had heard about this many years ago. I looked at a few recipes online and then made my own. :)

I just love it when a certain food inspires you make it, even if it takes you years to get around to it.  It just goes to show... When the timing is right, the kitchen magic happens.  :)  Thanks for sharing your recipe, David!

David's Home Baked Bread with 'Chocolate Gravy'

Ingredients

For the Home Baked Bread...

• use one box of of your favorite Beer Bread mix, made according to the box instructions, BUT substituting Sprite for the beer

For the 'Chocolate Gravy'...  

• 3 tablespoons Ghirardelli 100% cocoa
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup hot water
• 1 cup milk
• pinch of salt

Directions

In a large sauce pan combine cocoa, flour, and sugar. Add hot water and cook over low heat until dissolved.  Stir constantly.  Once completely combined, stir in milk and salt.  Continue stirring until it becomes thick.  You now have your ole 'Chocolate Gravy'. To serve ~ just slice the bread & dunk.  Enjoy!

Easy Cinnamon Red Hots Mousse

Our friend, Dick, shared one of his mother's old family recipes with me.  It's a simple to make, but big-on-flavor type of recipe that was so very popular in the 1950's & 1960's ~ Cinnamon Red Hots Mousse. It's been enjoyed by his family for generations. It's an easy to make sweet treat that can be served as a dessert in a pretty glass...or as an old-fashioned type of 'sweet fruit salad'.  Just serve it on a lettuce lined salad plate and you've got a hip, retro starter salad.  Your call, it works great at both ends of the meal.  Cool.  Either way we've had it, it's always a favorite.  Who can resist a bit of spicy cinnamon candy slipped into a dish?  Certainly not me.  :)

With its pretty pink hue, I think it would make a nice addition any holiday table, be it ~ Valentine's Day, Easter, or as his mother always did, at Christmas time.  Hope you enjoy this blast-from-the-past recipe as much as we do. 

Easy Cinnamon Red Hots Mousse

Ingredients

• 1  15oz can of crushed pineapple, with juice
• 1/2 cup Cinnamon Red Hots
• 2 cups mini marshmallows
• 1   8oz container Cool Whip, thawed (regular or fat free)

Directions

Into a large bowl add the crushed pineapple.  Stir in the Cinnamon Red Hots.  Allow mixture to stand in the fridge for 24 hours.  Add marshmallows and Cool Whip, stir well.  Let mousse sit for an hour.  Serve as a dessert or as a starter salad.  Enjoy! 

Janet's Homemade Fresh Fruit Spa Water ~ Meatless Monday

A few months ago my friend, Janet, shared a super looking photo/recipe for her homemade fruity spa water...it's her version of a 'healthy soft drink'.  It's a simple and colorful mix of fresh sliced fruit and mint that looks so refreshing and inviting.  Super easy to make and low calorie since you are getting the fruit flavor/essence from the soaked fruit slices, not actually from juicing the fruit. 

To make your own pitcher full, just wash and slice an  ~~ orange, tangerine, cucumber, lemon, lime, mint leaves (8-10), and then add all to a pitcher with 3 quarts of cold water.  Let the fruity spa water sit for a while, so all the fruit flavors can mingle...then enjoy your healthy 'soft drink' chilled.  As Janet says...this homemade stuff ROCKS!

 

Bill's Easy 3-Minute Microwave Fresh Corn on the Cob

Woo Hoo!!!  It's now farm-fresh corn season!  Last night, we purchased our first bag of sweet corn, fresh picked from our neighbor's corn field.  (see my last summer's post on their sweet corn/field ~ HERE)  This corn is so sweet, it really just needs a quick dunk in boiling water and it's good to go.

As a few of us were chatting over the pile of corn for sale, picking our ears (heehee, that sounds so funny!) our neighbor, Bill, told me how he likes to cook his corn. His way of cooking corn sounded so quick and easy, and perfect for lunch at work, or when you want just one ear of corn...or, maybe even for dinner.  It was getting late...we were hungry...I didn't want to wait for the pot of water to boil...so I tried his method.  Happy to report, Bill's way of making corn has to be the easiest way ever to prepare this golden veggie of summer ~ I'm a convert!  Thanks so much for the corn cooking tip, Bill!!

Bill's Easy 3-Minute Microwave Fresh Corn on the Cob

cooks up to 4 at a time

Ingredients

• fresh picked corn ~ shucked, prepped and washed 
• butter, salt/pepper

Directions

Wrap each of the prepped/washed corn on the cob in its own wet paper towel.  Place up to 4 ears on a microwave safe plate and microwave on high for 3 minutes.  Repeat if more ears (heehee) are wanted ~ just wet/reuse the paper towels each time.  Top the cooked corn with butter, salt and pepper.  *(my hubby wanted me to mention that you should not put the corn picks in the microwave, add them to the cob when you're ready to serve ~ so here is that note for all those who might not know this bit of info :)  Enjoy your super-quick-to-prepare corn on the cob!

Last summer at the corn field...

Roy's Deluxe Tomato Soup

We all enjoy Roy's Deluxe Tomato Soup, especially when it's cold outside.  Add a grilled ham and cheese sandwich, and life doesn't get much better.  Roy likes to doctor up a basic can of condensed tomato soup by adding a can of diced stewed tomatoes to it.  He'll use the canned juice from the stewed tomatoes to replace some of the water called for.  (he always adds less water, since he likes his soups thicker)  When I make it, I like to use fire roasted tomatoes and some dried basil, for another layer of flavor.  How do you like your tomato soup?

Baked French Toast with Stouffer's Harvest Apples

Baked French Toast with Stouffer's Harvest Apples ~ What a wonderful way to start your Sunday.  We had an assortment of breakfast goodies to choose from, and going back for seconds was a given!

Our dear family friend, Dick, had us over for a lovely Sunday brunch recently.  He laid out an impressive spread of breakfast delights that we all enjoyed!  One of the specialities of the day was ~ Baked French Toast with Stouffer's Harvest Apples.  He follows this recipe from the Stouffer's website, using his favorite sourdough bread.  He likes to prep the French Toast the night before he wants to serve it and then bake it in the morning.  That way the bread is fully soaked with the egg mixture and there is one less thing to do the morning of the brunch.

I can't think of a finer way to spend a Sunday ~ enjoying the day with good friends, good food and good conversation.  How about you?  :)

Desy's Country Potatoes & Cheesy Scrambled Egg Skillet Breakfast

My niece, Desy, recently posted this picture to Facebook.  It's a satisfying, home cooked skillet breakfast, full of ~ diced golden fried potatoes, eggs, onions and cheese.  It was one of her dad's favorite breakfasts.  I asked, and she gave me the recipe, so I thought I'd share it on the blog.  (she adds mushrooms, but, her dad preferred his without)  Enjoy!

Desy's Country Potatoes & Cheesy Scrambled Egg Skillet Breakfast
 serves 3~5

 Ingredients

• 6 medium russet potatoes, diced
• 1 small purple onion, minced*
• 4 green onions, minced*
• 1 cup mushrooms, diced
• 6 eggs, well beaten
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• cooking oil
• salt/pepper, to taste

Sweetheart Apple-Caramel Cupcakes

Sweetheart Apple-Caramel Cupcakes ~  Super quick & easy, made from a box of Duncan Hines Decadent Apple Caramel Cake Mix.  Perfect for any occasion, but really pretty when dolled up for Valentine's Day!

Today, when Roy and I returned from a pre-Valentine's Day lunch date, we found a sweet surprise waiting for us on our front porch.  Our dear family friend, Dick, had brought over a plate full of Sweetheart Apple-Caramel Cupcakes! (that's my name for them, since he is such a sweetheart!)

Mike's Game Day Shrimp & Oyster Gumbo

My friend, Sharon, shared some food pictures on Facebook during Super Bowl weekend ~ there was some serious cooking going on over at her house!  Last time I saw some of her food photos, I posted her recipe for No-Bake Double Decker White Chocolate-Peanut Butter Cracker Cookies on the blog.  This time the photos that caught my eye were of her husband's ~ Shrimp and Oyster Gumbo.  Mike made a huge ~ Vat 'o' Gumbo for their Super Bowl party.  That's one party I would have loved to attend!  :)

Jen's 'Little Treasures' Carrot Cake ~ Celebrating National Carrot Cake Day, February 3rd! ~ a Guest Cook Post from Jennifer's Kitchen

My friend, Jennifer, shared her family's favorite carrot cake recipe with me, complete with photos.  Since February 3rd is National Carrot Cake Day, I thought today would be the perfect day to post her recipe on the blog.  So, here it is, in her own words on how her traditional, tempting, fruity, rich and spicy carrot cake came to be.  Enjoy!

Kathleen's Gourmet Cookies ~ Snowflake Whoopie Pies and Chocolate Cherry Cordials Cookie ~ Perfect sweet treats to share with the ones you love!

Last week (at the TWIGS Soup Dinner that I recently wrote about) I was introduced to Kathleen ~ a fantastic lady who's a gourmet baker/cook.  I'm totally in awe of all the incredible cookies that she created for the dinner party.  Her 3-Tier Towering Assortment of Gourmet Cookies was a real thing of beauty and it would've been right at home in the fanciest of Parisian bakeries.  I was so impressed with her cookies that I just had to do a separate post on them, because the photos of her cookies are some of my all-time favorites that I've taken...

I felt like I was back in Paris when I first saw this gorgeous display of gourmet cookies...

Chocolate Cherry Cordials Cookies

Kathleen was kind enough to share the recipes for my two favorite cookies of the evening ~ Snowflake Whoopie Pies & Chocolate Cherry Cordials Cookie.  She's been making the recipe for Snowflake Whoopie Pies for such a long time that she no longer remembers which cookbook she originally found the recipe in.  The whoopie pie's almond flavor is so enticing, the filling so creamy and decadent ~ I dare you to eat only one! 

This is the link for the Chocolate Cherry Cordials Cookie recipe.  It's full of all the flavors that I love ~ chocolate, cherries and rum ~ all rolled up into a cookie.  Absolutely delicious and truly a winner!

Snowflake Whoopie Pies, Chocolate Cherry Cordials Cookie, Pecan Cookies and homemade Turkish Delight.

Is it just me, or does the name Whoopie Pie make you giggle?  I just love the name ~ Whoopie Pie!  It makes me smile every time I hear it. (I guess that's the little kid in me)  I think you could easily change up the icing design on these Whoopie Pies to suit your mood ~ a red heart for Valentine's Day, a green shamrock for St. Patrick's Day, etc.  It's a universal Whoopie ~ how cool is that?!  teehee  :)

SNOWFLAKE WHOOPIE PIES

Makes 14

Ingredients

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

Large pinch of salt

½ cup unsalted ground almonds

½ cup unsalted butter, softened

¾ cup superfine sugar, plus extra for sprinkling

1 large egg

1 tsp almond extract

½ cup milk

1tbsp edible silver balls

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350F degrees.  Line 2-3 large cookie sheets with parchment paper.  Sift together the all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt.  Stir in the ground almonds.

Place the butter and sugar in a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy.  Beat in the egg and almond extract followed by half of the flour mixture and then the milk.  Stir in the rest of the flour mixture and beat until thoroughly incorporated.

Pipe or spoon 28 mounds of the batter onto the prepared cookie sheets, spaced well apart to allow for spreading.  Bake in the preheated oven, one sheet at a time, for 10-12 minutes until risen and just firm to the touch.  Cool for 5 minutes, then using a palette knife transfer to a cooling rack and let cool completely.

Buttercream Filling

6 tbsp unsalted butter, softened

½ cup heavy cream

2 ½ cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted

For the filling, place the butter in a bowl and beat with an electric mixer for 2-3 minutes until pale and creamy.  Beat in the cream, then gradually beat in the confectioners’ sugar and continue beating for 2-3 minutes until the buttercream is very light and fluffy.

Icing

For the icing, sift the confectioners’ sugar into a bowl and gradually stir in enough water to make a smooth, thick icing.

To assemble, pipe or spread the buttercream on the flat side of half of the cakes.  Top with the rest of the cakes.  Spoon the icing into a small paper pastry bag, snip the end, and pipe snowflake patterns on the top of the whoopie pies.  Decorate with silver balls and sprinkle with superfine sugar.  Let set.  Enjoy!

The cookies all looked so lovely and smelled simply divine, I had such a hard time choosing!

All of Kathleen's cookies were so lovely to look at and were so luscious to bite into, that I'm even tempted to try making them myself.  It takes a lot to get me to venture beyond my 'comfort baking zone' (me being a challenged baker and all), but I think I must with these two recipes.  I just can't imagine not having them again.  Hmm...my birthday is coming up soon, maybe this year I'll make cookies instead of a cake for our little celebration...  OR, I keep thinking that these two cookie recipes would be perfect for a Valentine's Day sweet treat.  Roy and J would be thrilled (me, too!) to have a plate of either (or better yet, both!) of these cookies instead of the old standby ~ a boring box of chocolates.  I think I just talked myself into making these cookies sooner, rather than later! 

Shortbread Jam Sandwich Cookies, Pecan Tassies, Turkish Delights & Red Cinnamon Cookies

Hope these pictures of Kathleen's cookies inspire you as much as they do me.  I'm ready to get out all my baking supplies and make them right now.  How about you?  :)

Sharing Soup with Friends ~ TWIGS 6th Annual Stock Your Freezer Soup Night

Last night I was invited to attend the TWIGS 6th Annual ~ Stock Your Freezer Soup Night.  What a fabulous event!  I had such a wonderful time and met a houseful of beautiful and charming ladies.  The night was full of good food and drink, interesting conversations, the sharing of foodie recipes and a true feeling of kindred spirits, kinship and love.  I'm so thrilled to have been invited to share in their annual event.  Here are some images from that delightful evening...

Wintertime at the lake...

It started with wandering around the lovely home of the hostess, Debbie...

Enjoying bubbly conversation, fine wine and tempting appetizers...

Then it was time to head into the kitchen for the soup tasting, sharing of recipes and then the hardest part...

...deciding which soup to choose for your dinner!  There were so many of us, that it took two very large and beautifully decorated tables to accommodate us all.  The conversations were lively and everyone had a smile on their faces.

After we all had our fill of soup, we then descended on the sweets table.   It was a presentation worthy of the finest French bakery.  I am in awe of those ladies who are such talented bakers.  Thank you so much, it was delightful!

I had a hard time choosing my favorite soup, but in the end, Inge's secret recipe for her famous ~ Goulash ~ won my heart.  I thoroughly enjoyed the Sweet Potato Biscuits and Shaker Lemon Pie that Debbie made.  I had many (!) of the incredible Gourmet Cookies that Kathleen created ~ they were AMAZING!  Sorry to say, but, I was too full to try Carol's homemade apple pie (made from her own backyard apples), but I heard it's the best around.  After everyone was finished with dining, they then filled containers with their favorite soups to take with them for the journey home.  What an easy and clever way to add variety to your meals and to ~ Stock Your Freezer!

By the end of the night, I was totally stuffed.  This foodie was so very happy to have been invited to share in this fun-filled evening.  A big Thank You to everyone ~ it was so nice to meet you all! :)


Here's the menu and all of the cooks who made this super soup extravaganza possible.  I've also compiled a slideshow of the evenings festivities for your viewing pleasure ~ click here ~ for the show!  (changing the slideshow time to 5 seconds seems to be the best way to view it ~ 3 seconds is just too short)  Enjoy!
 
~ Soups du Jour ~ Appetizers ~ Desserts ~

Myrna ~ Cheeseburger Soup

Lisa ~ 13 Bean Soup

Anita ~ Swiss Chard Bean Soup

Lynell ~ Mediterranean Vegetable

Barbara ~ Tomato Soup with Brown Butter Croutons

Janet ~ Potato Leek Soup

Inge ~ Goulash

Madeleine ~ Pasta e Fagioli (Pasta Fazool) Soup

Kay ~ "Cooker Restaurant" Soup

Carole L. ~ Chicken Leek Soup

Kathleen ~ Lemon Chicken Spinach Orzo Soup ~ 3-Tier Assortment of Homemade Gourmet Cookies (dessert) ~ Cheese Ball (appetizer)

Carol D. ~ Homemade Apple Pie, from her backyard apple tree (dessert)

Debbie ~ Sweet Potato Biscuits & Cornbread ~ Shaker Lemon Pie (dessert)

Betty ~ Cheese and Crackers (appetizer)