Cream Cheese Mints

One of my favorite tasty tidbits to go along with wedding cake is cream cheese mints. We're having anniversary cake this weekend, so this week I made three batches of dough, and one afternoon, Greg's mom, Jan, and her friend, Rose came over to make mints.
They're really easy to make, and it doesn't take long to have several hundred done. Here's how we did it:
1 - 8 ounce package of cream cheese (do not use reduced fat or fat-free)

2 pounds confectioner's (powdered) sugar
1/4 tsp. flavoring (I used peppermint. If you use flavored oils, use lots less.)

To mix the dough, I used my kitchen mixer and dough hook. Start out on the very slowest speed and keep a spatula handy to use to keep the powdered sugar inside the bowl. It will want to spill over the edge.

When the dough starts to come together, you can increase the speed of the mixer.

Once there is no more loose powdered sugar, I stop the mixer and turn the dough out onto the counter. Knead briefly.
Now it's time to color the dough. You want to use paste/gel coloring. The liquid will make your dough sticky. Use a toothpick to put the coloring on the dough. Remember that like paint, food coloring gets darker as it dries.

Knead in the color until all streaks disappear. (I wore gloves to keep my hands from being colored, too.)

Once you're happy with the color, put the dough in an airtight container and chill in the frig. (I left it while I ate a little lunch and worked on another craft for an hour or so.)
Now it's time to mold the mints. You'll need granulated sugar and mint molds. (The gray molds in this photo are the same ones used for my wedding mints 27 1/2 years ago.)

Pinch off a small piece of dough. Try to make it approximately the size of the mold, but you can always add a little more, or pull some off if necessary.

Roll the ball in the sugar, this will keep the dough from sticking.

Then press into the mold.

I like to push it in, then use my thumbs to smooth out the bottom of the mint.

Turn the mint out onto waxed paper.Let dry for several hours, then turn over and let the underside dry for a few more hours.Pack in an airtight container, between layers of waxed paper. These freeze well.

Now go make some and enjoy!

Parle Vous...

Cassoulet?

Cassoulet (from Occitan caçolet [kasuˈlet]) is a rich, slow-cooked bean stew or casserole originating in the southwest of France, containing meat (typically pork sausages, pork, goose, duck and sometimes mutton), pork skin (couennes) and white haricot beans.



Awhile back I came across this recipe online, printed it out, and added it to my ever-growing stack of "recipes to try". Finally, last winter, I made it for the first time. Greg and I both really liked it, so it went into the "keep" pile. I have no idea who posted this recipe. I think it was someone on a freezer cooking email group I used to belong to, so my apologies for not being able to credit anyone.

This is a hearty dish, good for Fall and Winter. It's easy and cooks in the crockpot, so there's little effort or mess. Perfect for a busy day. And the leftovers freeze well.



Cassoulet
Layer the following ingredients in a crockpot that has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Don't stir. Cook on high for 4 hours, or low for 8-9 hours.

1 onion, sliced

3 carrots, sliced (I chopped up several baby carrots)

3 cloves, garlic, minced

3 cans Great Northern white beans with liquid


3 tsp. chicken boullion granules (I don't have that, so I used a very generous teaspoon of chicken base.)

1 bay leaf

1 tsp powdered thyme (I ran out to my herb garden and cut some fresh. Just throw the whole thing in - the leaves will fall off and the stems will be fished out later.)

3 sirloin pork chops, cut in half (I used 2 large-ish bone-in regular chops from a 'family-sized' package)
1/2 lb. smoked garlic sausage, cut in pieces (I used lean turkey sausage. Not as strong a flavor, but a little healthier)
1/4 lb. bacon, cut in small pieces (I used about half that much, and cooked it first)

Now put the lid on your crockpot and walk away. Don't stir this until you're ready to eat. And you'll be wanting to eat, since it smells so good as it cooks!

I'll use this as a one-dish meal since everything is included. That's the beauty of it. Only one crock to wash. We all love that!

Comfort Cooking

Goulash
*(Goulash is a dish, originally from Hungary, usually made of beef, red onions, vegetables and paprika powder.[1] The name comes from the Hungarian gulyás (pronounced goo-yash), the word for a cattle stockman or herdsman.) Wikipedia

My mom was a very basic cook - a good cook, but she pretty much made only simple, mostly fast, easy, and economical dishes. She was feeding a family of seven on a limited budget, so we had lots of inexpensive hamburger, macaroni, potatoes, and chicken.

This dish, goulash, was a staple in our home. It's one of the first things I learned to cook, and when it was my turn to plan and prepare meals for the week, it was always on the menu.

There are tons of recipes for goulash, but this is how my mom taught me:

*Put water on to boil for macaroni. Cook pasta as soon as it boils, while the meat is browning. I used ziti here, but we always used macaroni when I was a kid.

*Dice onion and brown with the hamburger. I used about a pound of 90/10 ground sirloin here. I also added a big clove of garlic. (Mom never used cloves of garlic, though she did eventually discover garlic salt, and I always added a little of that.) While the meat cooks, stir and chop it into small pieces. When it is thoroughly cooked, pour into a strainer and drain the fat. Is there anything that smells like my childhood more than hamburger and onion browning on the stove? I think not.

*Drain the pasta and add to the cooked hamburger in the skillet. Oh yeah, we always made goulash in the skillet.

*Now add one can of tomato soup. Yes, I have sometimes made it with tomato sauce instead, but it's not the same. Use the soup.

*Next, I put in a dollop of yellow mustard and a squirt of ketchup. Yep, a dollop and a squirt. This is a recipe you make to taste, so start small and add more if you think it needs it.

I put in a little bit of salt, not much, since I'm using canned soup. Lots of fresh ground black pepper. Stir up, cook on low until heated through, and then enjoy.

When I was high school, I started putting my own personal twists on the traditional dishes Mom had taught me to make. Sometimes really good, other times not so much. One of the favorite changes I made to goulash was to add cheese. Just before serving, I'd put a few slices of Kraft American cheese in the pan and mix it up. Dad and the boys loved it. Tonight I simply shredded a little sharp cheddar over the top. Oh, and I added some chopped chives (from my garden, Tonita).

I don't know what made me decide this afternoon to make goulash for supper. I haven't made it in probably 10 or 12 years, but I'm glad I did. There was a hearty, hot meal on the stove when Greg got home from work.

It was served with fresh cucumber in Ranch on the side. (Mom would have sliced the cucumber and put it in white vinegar with sliced white onion. Yum. But Greg doesn't like the tang of vinegar, so he gets Ranch.)

I know many of my Adams cousins who read this blog have their own personal memories of Mom and goulash. There are tales of her telling stories about gypsies and such in relation to this meal. I don't know about that, but to all of us, goulash reminds us of our childhood.

An Apple A Day

Recently I was gifted with a huge canner-full of "harvest" apples. I don't know what kind those are, but boy-howdy, they are tart!

You can see in the photo how they were not the prettiest apples in the world, and in truth, I did have to discard several whole fruits along with major pieces of many others. In the interest of "waste not", I did take the time to dig out bad spots and save as much as possible. I am, after all, Elsie's granddaughter. (I remember trying to toss out a very ripe strawberry once. Hoo! Never tried that again!)

Anyway, insects and spoilage aside, I got 8 1/2 cups of applesauce, to which was added about 1/4 cup of sugar to make it palatable. This will mostly be used to replace part of the oil in some baking recipe. (Note: Food mill = good investment)

I also got 14 cups of sliced apples to make into pies. Those are in bags in the freezer. The apples, not the pies.

But I will make pies with them.

Someday.

In the future.

More Zucchini Love

Last night I made lasagna, but instead of pasta noodles I used strips of zucchini. It'd been quite a long time since I did this last, so I worried if Greg would remember he'd liked it before. Guess so - he had two helpings. :o)
This is not so much a recipe as a technique for using the zucchini in place of noodles. Here's how it went: First, a giant zucchini. I've placed the regular-sized jar of spaghetti sauce next to it so you can see how bit the monster is. To the left you can see a little bit of the biggest knife I own. It, too, is huge.

Ah, the giant knife and a strainer-full of zucchini "noodles". If you click on the photo to enlarge you'll see the kosher salt I sprinkled liberally all over them. This draws out the water, thus the strainer. I only left these about 15 minutes - next time I'll prepare them earlier in the day and let them drain lots longer. The finished product was still a bet wet.

Here I have rinsed the salt from the noodles and am patting them dry. See how perfectly sliced they are? No? Well, neither are my fingers, which is what would have happened had I striven for perfection. Believe me. I have scars to prove it.

Ah, the final layer. Here is where you just use your favorite lasagna recipe and assemble as instructed, though obviously using the zucchini instead of pasta.

(Have I mentioned often enough so far that we're using the zucchini in place of noodles?)

And here it is, folks! It was yummy and juicy and I really liked the texture of the noodles, but it didn't have a "squashy" taste.

Let me know if you try it - I'd be interested to hear what you think.

Holy Mexican Caviar, Batman!

This post was written in August 2008 and never published. I must've been wanting a photo of the finished product. Here you go anyway - put this on your list of stuff to make next summer! (Feb. 1, 2011)

With all the rain we had in the Spring (and my procrastination), the tomatoes and jalapenos were planted a bit late and are just now, today, giving forth of their fruits. And look how many fruits they put forth!

I've been patiently waiting for these lovelies and I know just what I'm doing with part of this first batch. Wanna hear? Yes? Good - because I'm telling you. :o)

When our families were here for supper one Saturday night a few weeks ago, I made a new-to-me recipe that was a huge hit, and I'm making it again.

It's called "Mexican Caviar" and it is deee-licious:



Prep Time: 10 Minutes


Ready In: 6 Hours 10 Minutes


Yields: 32 servings


INGREDIENTS:

2 large tomatoes, finely chopped

5 green onions, chopped

3 tablespoons olive oil

3 1/2 tablespoons tarragon vinegar

1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chile peppers

1 (2.25 ounce) can chopped black olives

1 teaspoon garlic salt

1 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS: In a medium bowl, mix together all ingredients. Cover and refrigerate 6 hours or overnight before serving. Serve with tortilla chips.

Light Supper

It's been so hot here that it's tough to think about cooking in the late afternoon. Last week I came across this recipe and thought it'd make a nice light supper. The only change I made was to use some leftover pork meat instead of the ground turkey. Next time I'll leave out the salt - didn't need it with the teryaki sauce.
(I'm not able to load the photo right now - I'll try again tomorrow...)

Asian Turkey Lettuce Wraps
Ingredients:
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 Cup finely chopped onion
1 lb ground turkey breast
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
¼ teaspoon garlic salt
1 12 oz bag of broccoli slaw
1 small can drained water chestnuts
½ Cup Yoshida's Teriyaki Sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
Approximately 15 Butter Lettuce leaves (you can also use iceberg lettuce leaves)
Directions:
1. Place oil into a large 5 qt skillet or other large pan over medium heat. When hot, add onion and cook for 5 minutes to soften. Add ground turkey, salt, pepper and garlic salt. Brown and crumble until cooked through.
2. When turkey is cooked, stir in broccoli slaw, water chestnuts, teriyaki sauce and sesame oil. Cook for another 10-15 minutes or until heated through. Reduce heat to low until ready to serve. Serve spoonfuls inside lettuce leaves. Enjoy!