Monthly Archives: March 2010

*New* Craftacular: Homemade Play Dough

Posted by suzyhomebaker in Craftacular, kid friendly

Riley goes through play dough like nobody’s business. She mixes all the colors, drops most of it on the floor, and then leaves it out to get nice and hard and tossed in the trash. So instead of buying her more I made her some fresh play dough like we used to make for school projects and such. I made it while she napped and was still coloring it when she awoke so she helped me a bit with that step. She immediately took it outside and played with it for quite a while, although I should tell you now, all the colors have become one big mass. Ehh, who cares.

Ingredients (recipe adapted from instructables.com)

2 cups flour

2 cups warm water

1 cup salt

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

1 Tablespoon cream of tartar (optional for improved elasticity)

food coloring (liquid, powder, or unflavored drink mix)

Directions

Mix all of the ingredients together, and stir over low heat. The dough will begin to thicken until it resembles mashed potatoes. When the dough pulls away from the sides and clumps in the center, as shown below, remove the pan from heat and allow the dough to cool enough to handle. IMPORTANT NOTE: if your playdough is still sticky, you simply need to cook it longer.
Turn the dough out onto a clean counter or silicone mat, and knead vigorously until it becomes silky-smooth. Divide the dough into balls for coloring. Make a divot in the center of the ball, and drop some food coloring1 in. Fold the dough over, working the food color through the body of the playdough, trying to keep the raw dye away from your hands and the counter.

It’s entirely edible, if a bit salty, so it’s kid-safe. When you’re done store it in an air-tight container. If it begins to dry out, you can knead a bit of water in again to soften the dough back to useability.

Really Cheesy Mac and Cheese with Cauliflower

Posted by suzyhomebaker in kid friendly, pasta, savory

I love mac and cheese. Really, who doesn’t. It’s the best comfort food, I think. This recipe incorporates cauliflower and tomatoes so I thought Riley would dig it and get a serving of veggies too. Unfortunately, she was not in the mood for mac and cheese the day I made this so Derek and I dogged the entire pan in just a couple days. It was so good. Really cheesey, moist and full of flavor. The Romano breadcrumb topping was great too, adding a wonderful salty crunch. Maybe your kid will be in a mac and cheese mood today.

Derek used a little Frank's Hot Sauce on top.

8 servings

Adapted from Recipe by Bruce Aidells in Bon Appetit

Ingredients

  • 1  1 1/2- to 1 3/4-pound head of cauliflower, cored, cut into 1-inch florets
  • 2 large heirloom tomatoes
  • 5 tablespoons butter, divided
  • Coarse kosher salt
  • 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 3 cups coarsely grated cheese (I used half Gruyère and half sharp Cheddar), divided
  • 3/4 cup finely grated Romano cheese, divided
  • 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
  • 1 tablespoon whole grain Dijon mustard
  • 10 ounces whole wheat Rotini pasta (3 1/2 cups)
  • 1 cup fresh breadcrumbs (from crustless French bread ground in processor)

Preparation

  • Cook cauliflower in large pot of boiling salted water until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Using large sieve, transfer cauliflower to bowl. Add tomatoes to pot; cook 1 minute. Remove from water; peel and dice tomatoes. Reserve pot of water.
  • Melt 2 tablespoons butter in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add cauliflower; sauté until beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes. Cook 1 minute to blend flavors. Remove from heat. Season with coarse salt and pepper.
  • Melt 2 tablespoons butter in large saucepan over medium-low heat. Add flour and stir 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in milk. Cook until sauce thickens, whisking occasionally, about 4 minutes. Add 2 cups Gruyere/Cheddar cheese; whisk until melted and sauce is smooth. Whisk in 1/2 cup Romano, then yogurt and mustard. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat.
  • Return reserved pot of water to boil. Add pasta and cook until tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain; return pasta to same pot. Stir in cauliflower mixture and sauce.
  • Butter 13 x 9 x 2-inch glass baking dish. Spoon in half of pasta mixture; sprinkle with 1/2 cup Gruyere/Cheddar cheese. Top with remaining pasta mixture and 1/2 cup Gruyere/Cheddar cheese. Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter in small skillet. Add breadcrumbs and toss to coat. Remove from heat; mix in 1/4 cup Romano. Sprinkle crumbs over pasta. DO AHEAD Can be made 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.
  • Preheat oven to 350°F. Bake pasta uncovered until heated through and bubbling, about 35 minutes.

Fran’s Old School Recipe: Chiffon Cake with Chocolate Buttercream

Posted by suzyhomebaker in cake, Fran's Old School Recipes

I needed to make a cake and I do like the spongy, light quality of a good chiffon cake. Plus, its been a while since I’ve made a recipe from Fran’s collection. This was a tasty cake and not too difficult to make. I made an 8″ layer cake, filled the middle with Jello chocolate pudding, and iced it with a delicious chocolate buttercream by Nick Malgieri. My only complaint; it is quite spongy so when slicing it tends to squish down, cracking the icing and squeezing out some filling. I put mine in the fridge for a while so that it would slice easier. If you let the slice sit for a bit, the icing will get soft again. I like it either way.

Filling

1 packet jello pudding, any flavor

milk

Follow directions on packet for pudding.

Chocolate Buttercream Icing (adapted from Nick Malgieri)

  • 4 large egg whites (1/2 cup)
  • 1 cup sugar
  • Pinch salt
  • 12 ounces (3 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
  • Flavoring

Directions

One of the best-tasting buttercreams is also the easiest to prepare. See the end of the recipe for flavoring possibilities.

Place egg whites, sugar and salt in medium-sized heatproof mixing bowl over a pan of simmering water and whisk gently and constantly until egg whites are hot (about 140 degrees) and sugar is dissolved, about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat and whip by machine until thick and cooled, about 5 minutes. Beat in butter and continue beating until buttercream is smooth and spreadable. Use immediately or refrigerate, covered, for up to 5 days. Before using, bring buttercream to room temperature and beat smooth by machine. Beat in flavoring, a little at a time, and continue beating until buttercream is smooth, about 2 minutes longer (always flavor buttercream immediately before using it).

Flavorings: Liqueur: 2 to 3 tablespoons liqueur, such as Grand Marnier or dark or light rum. Lemon: 2 to 3 tablespoons lemon juice. Coffee: 3 tablespoons instant coffee (espresso, if possible) dissolved in 2 tablespoons water, coffee or rum. Raspberry: 3/4 cup thick raspberry puree made by cooking down and straining a 10-ounce package of frozen raspberries. Chocolate: 6 ounces chocolate melted with 4 tablespoons water, coffee or milk and cooled.

Putting it all together

After your layers have thoroughly cooled, place one layer on a plate. Top with pudding almost to edges, spread evenly. Top with second cake layer. Start at center of cake with a heaping pile of icing. Start spreading to edges, trying to keep everything even, then begin to ice sides with excess icing. Smooth it all around or ice it rough to look more old-fashioned and homemade. Remember, it doesn’t have to be perfect, it’ll still taste good I promise you. You may not use all the icing. I certainly did not. Save it in the fridge for cupcakes or a late night snack.

Carrot Cake Pancakes

Posted by suzyhomebaker in breakfast, kid friendly

I thought this sounded so scrumptious for a Sunday breakfast, I couldn’t resist making these. They were really good too, tasted very reminiscent of carrot cake with cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger spicing it up. They were not very sweet either so I made a batch with and without the addition of raisins. A big glob of cinnamon cream cheese on top would really amp up the carrot cakeyness. By the way, what a great way to get your kids to eat their veggies.

Ingredients

* 5.6 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1 1/4 cups)
* 1/4 cup chopped walnuts, toasted
* 2 teaspoons baking powder
* 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
* Dash of ground cloves
* Dash of ground ginger
* 1/4 cup brown sugar
* 3/4 cup low-fat buttermilk
* 1 tablespoon canola oil
* 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
* 2 cups finely grated carrot (about 1 pound)
* Cooking spray
* 3 tablespoons butter, softened
* 2 tablespoons honey

Directions

Combine flour and next 7 ingredients (through ginger) in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk. Combine 1/4 cup brown sugar and next 4 ingredients (through eggs); add sugar mixture to flour mixture, stirring just until moist. Fold in 2 cups carrot.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Spoon 4 (1/4 cup) batter mounds onto pan, spreading with a spatula. Cook for 2 minutes or until tops are covered with bubbles and edges look cooked. Carefully turn pancakes over; cook 1 minute or until bottoms are lightly browned. Repeat procedure twice with remaining batter. Combine butter and honey in a small bowl; serve with pancakes.

Number of Servings: 6

I’m loving this right now……Greek Yogurt.

Posted by suzyhomebaker in breakfast, I'm loving this right now......., kid friendly, low-fat

Since I’ve been pregnant this time around I’ve been eating just about everything I can get my hands on. And since I usually get heartburn afterwards I have to pick and choose my foods wisely, or suffer for it later. I usually end up suffering. But everyday without fail (usually after my gym workout) I gotta have a bowl of Greek yogurt with fruit and something crunchy on top. I never ate it before I was pregnant but it is so much better than plain yogurt. It’s thicker, richer, reminds me of whipped cream but without the calories. I get the Chobani brand of plain yogurt and top it with whatever fruit I have in the house, and maybe some granola or chopped nuts. So good, I promise you, and surprisingly without the pain of heartburn afterward and healthy too. Yay!

There's yogurt under there I promise you.

Pizza with sauce and cheese, baby.

Posted by suzyhomebaker in pizza, savory

I stopped buying pizza dough in the supermarket and now just make my own using Jim Lahey’s recipe. It always comes out thin and crunchy, just how I like it. Here’s his dough topped with traditional mozzarella cheese and sauce. I followed my dad’s method of toppings. His pizza is awesome too.

You can link to the Pizza Dough recipe here.

Toppings Ingredients

two 8 oz. bags shredded mozzarella cheese, make one the 4-cheese blend

jar of pizza sauce, any kind will do

oregano

basil

salt and pepper

olive oil

optional toppings: pepperoni, cooked sausage, mushrooms, peppers, sliced onions, anchovies, you name it.

Directions

After your dough is in the pan, evenly spread the shredded mozzarella over top, being sure to get the edges. Using a soup spoon, add a dolup of pizza sauce over the pizza every 2-3 inches. Don’t spread it around. Sprinkle with oregano, basil, and salt and pepper, as much or as little as you like. Sprinkle with a little olive oil over the pizza. Add whatever other toppings you’d like. Bake in 500 degree oven for 15-20 minutes being sure not to burn the cheese. Slice into squares and enjoy.

Banana Bread….two ways

Posted by suzyhomebaker in bread, cake, kid friendly

I love the way the house smells when you’re baking banana bread. I always seem to have bananas on hand too so it makes for a quick treat. I’ve made this recipe a few times but decided to mix it up a bit and make a chocolate peanut butter version. They were both very good and totally different. Instead of a regular loaf pan, I used a small 4 loaf pan. This recipe will work for both types and they freeze well. PS: what a good way to get your kid to eat fruit.

Version One: Banana Bread with Cinnamon Crumble Topping (adapted from Bon Appetit)

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, divided
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup mashed ripe bananas (2 to 3 medium)
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons (packed) golden brown sugar

Preparation

  • Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour 9x5x3-inch metal baking pan. Whisk 1 1/2 cups flour, 1 cup sugar, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl. Whisk next 5 ingredients in large bowl until smooth. Add dry ingredients; stir to blend. Transfer batter to pan. Mix 2 tablespoons sugar, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and brown sugar; sprinkle over batter.
  • Bake bread until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 1 hour. Cool bread in pan 30 minutes. Turn pan on its side; slide out bread, being careful not to dislodge topping. Turn bread right side up and cool completely.

Version two: Chocolate Peanut Banana Bread

Follow above recipe but eliminate the crumb topping. Mix in 8 oz. of semi-sweet chocolate chips or chopped milk chocolate (your preference) after dry ingredients are  incorporated. Instead of crumb topping, add 1/4 cup peanut butter to top of batter and swirl with butter knife. Bake as directed.

Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

Posted by suzyhomebaker in cake

A classic cake with the added bonus of a cream cheese center. This cake was very dense but very flavorful thanks to the almond and lemon. The crunch on top was a nice complement to the creamy cheese center. Definitely something good to bring to a brunch or for Sunday breakfast. I brought it to my Aunt Linda’s this past weekend and everyone really enjoyed it.

Ingredients (Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated)

Lemon-Sugar-Almond Topping

1/4 c. sugar

1-1/2 tsp finely grated lemon zest

1/2 c slice almonds

Cake

2-1/4 c unbleached all-purpose flour

1-1/8 tsp baking powder

1-1/8 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

10 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened but still cool

1 c plus 7 Tbsp sugar

1 Tbsp finely grated lemon zest plus 4 tsp juice from 1 to 2 lemons

4 large eggs

5 tsp vanilla extract

1-1/4 c sour cream

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

Directions

1. For the topping: Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350. Stir together sugar and lemon zest in small bowl until combined and sugar is moistened. Stir in almonds; set aside.

2. For the cake: Spry 10-inch tube pan with nonstick cooking spray. Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in medium bowl; set aside. In stand mixer fitted with paddle, beat butter, 1 cup plus 2 Tbsp sugar, and lemon est at medium speed till light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.  Scrap down sides and bottom of bowl. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add 4 tsp vanilla and mix to combine. Reduce speed to low and add one-third flour mixture, followed by half of sour cream, missing until incorporated after each addition, 5 to 10 seconds. Repeat, using half of remaining flour mixture and all of remaining sour cream. Scrape bowl and add remaining flour mixture until thoroughly combined. Remove bowl from mixer and fold batter once or twice with rubber spatula to incorporate any remain flour.

3. Reserve 1-1/4 cup batter and set aside. Spoon remaining batter into prepared pan and smooth top. Return now-empty bowl to mixer and beat cream cheese,  5 Tbsp sugar, lemon juice, and  4 tsp vanilla on medium speed until smooth and slightly lightened, about 1 minute. Add 1/4 cup reserved batter and mix until incorporated. Spoon cheese filling mixture evenly over batter, keeping filling about 1 inch from edges of pan; smooth top. Spread remaining cup reserved batter over filling and smooth top. With butter knife, gently swirl filling into batter using figure-8 motion, being careful to not drag filling bottom or edges of pan. Firmly tap pan on counter 2 -3 times to dislodge any bubbles. Sprinkle lemon-sugar-almond topping evenly over batter and gently press into batter to adhere.

4. Bake until top is golden and just firm, and long skewer inserted into cake comes out clean (IMPORTANT: skewer will be wet if inserted into cheese filling), 45 -50 minutes. Remove from oven and firmly tap on counter 2 -3 times (top of cake may sink slightly). Cool cake in pan on wire rack 1 hour. Gently invert cake onto rimmed baking sheet; remove tube pan, place wire rack on top of cake and invert cake sugar-side up. Coll to room temperature, about 1-1/2 hours.

NOTE: Be sure to refrigerate any leftovers, covered tightly with plastic wrap. Allow the cake to return to room temperature before serving.

Beef Potato Casserole

Posted by suzyhomebaker in Fran's Old School Recipes, kid friendly, savory

Another stellar recipe from Fran’s collection, I thought this casserole epitomized the 50′s era. It’s a simple to make casserole that incorporates layers of meat, veggies, and of course, a canned sauce/soup. This recipe seems to be from the kitchen of Marion S. Turner, so thanks Marion.

Here’s the verdict: It tasted just as I thought it would. Kinda Hamburger Helperish but definitely not as salty. I added a little salt and pepper to the beef to give it some flavor but the cream of chicken soup gave it an interesting texture and flavor, almost like a cheese sauce. Actually, cheese sauce would be pretty tasty instead of the soup. The onions were a bit crunchy for my taste, maybe sauteing them a bit before layering would help that, but the tater tots added a nice crunch. My husband downed it and all that was left in the dish so I guess he liked it and my daughter ate most of hers, leaving just a little ground beef in her bowl. So this could be a kid friendly dinner as well. There wasn’t much though, maybe if you doubled the recipe it could feed a family of four.

Three feet of snow ice cream

Posted by suzyhomebaker in ice cream

Whenever it snows, it always reminds me of growing up as a kid in NJ. One of the best memories I have is getting together with all the neighborhood kids and sledding all day long. My neighborhood was full of kids, all age groups, but we all hung out and got along. And when they declared a snow day, everyone would bundle up and meet up at someone’s house, preferably a house on a hill, and begin a day of sledding. There were really only two good hills in the neighborhood, ours and the Davis’, and by the end of the day we had sled jumps built, snowmen, sometimes forts, and we were soaking wet. Since we’d end up at the Davis’ hill, we’d end up in Mrs. Davis’ laundry room, stripping down and throwing our wet gear in the dryer. We’d have some hot chocolate, rest up, and get back out there when our clothes were dry. We never really felt the cold.

If we were lucky, and it snowed on the weekend, my dad would take us to Round Valley Reservoir to sled the big hill. I swear, you could probably ski down this hill it was so big, a quick ride, but you could. We’d trek up the hill dragging our snow tubes to the very top. I seem to remember a danger/caution sign somewhere up there but that was ignored. The ride down was quick and if you were lucky you’d spin around a couple times in your tube. Then the long trek back up the hill again that seemed to take forever. I loved it.

This past Wednesday and Thursday we were graced with three feet of snow in addition to the six inches that were already on the ground. Ya, we got a lot. And it wouldn’t have been so bad if the power didn’t go out too Thursday night. We made the best of it, lit the fireplace, had dinner and breakfast with our neighbors by candlelight, but the 55 degree temp in the house was not really comfortable. But the power did come back on last night and we were so happy, clean dishes, clean clothes, and clean people.

With this big snowfall, it reminded me of this snow ice cream one of the neighborhood moms made for us when we were kids. I can remember thinking I was eating acid rain but it tasted pretty good so what did I care. I think she may have used eggs too which may have not been very smart either but I still ate it. I was a kid, what did I know about salmonella poisoning. But I found a version of the recipe that incorporates three ingredients, none of which is eggs. And with three feet plus of snow surrounding my house, I was pretty sure I could find some clean white stuff. By the way, this recipe is less like ice cream and more like flavored shave ice but I like the idea of snow ice cream better.

Ingredients

Big bowl of clean snow (about 8 cups)

1 can of sweetened condensed milk

1 tsp vanilla

Mix all ingredients together till combined. Spoon into bowls and consume, slowly, you don’t want a brain freeze, reminisce.