Showing posts with label FOOD. Show all posts
Showing posts with label FOOD. Show all posts

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Fall is a time for harvest, frosty mornings, the smell of wood stoves, colored leaves and pumpkins, but best of all is the smell that fills the house when those pumpkins are brought into the house and cooked into delicious soups, pies, muffins and squares.

 I just discovered this recipe somewhere on the web 
and tried it for the first time last week. 
We loved it!
It meshes two of our favorite deserts
...cheesecake and pumpkin pie 
into one and is so much easier to make.
The pecans and cinnamon add a nice flavor and crunch to the bars.
This recipe is a repeater!
 
PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE BARS


PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE BARS
1 c. all purpose flour
1/3 c. packed brown sugar
5 tbsp. butter, softened
1/2 c. finely chopped pecans or walnuts
1 (8 oz.) pkg. softened cream cheese
3/4 c. sugar
1/2 c. pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground allspice
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Combine flour and brown sugar in medium bowl. Cut in butter to make a crumb mixture. Stir in nuts. Set aside 3/4 cup mixture for topping. Press remaining mixture into bottom of 8 x 8 inch baking pan. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 15 minutes. Cool slightly. Combine cream cheese, sugar, pumpkin, eggs, cinnamon, allspice, and vanilla in large mixer bowl. Blend until smooth. Pour over baked crust. Sprinkle with reserved topping. Bake an additional 30-35 minutes. Cool before cutting into bars. Makes 32 x 2 inch bars. If you double recipe and put in a spring form pan it makes a wonderful cheesecake (increase baking time).

On a healthier note, 
I bought ten pounds of carrots and have been busy
cooking and pureeing them for the freezer to be used later in soups
...found a great recipe for Carrot and Sweet Potato Soup I'm anxious to try...
and grating them for this yummy 
Carrot Bran Muffin recipe I found.
 
Carrot Bran Muffins 


Carrot Bran Muffins
1 1/2 cups of flour
1 cup of bran
1/2 cup of brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp of cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cloves
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 eggs
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup soured milk (sour with vinegar) or buttermilk
1/2 cup of oil
1 tablespoons of molasses
1 1/2 cups of grated carrots
1 cup of raisins
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix your bran with the milk and let it sit.
Combine all your dry ingredients and whisk them together.

To your bran mixture add the eggs, molasses and oil, and mix well.Add raisins. (to plump up your raisins heat them  for a couple minutes in a large measuring cup with hot water them for 2 minutes in the microwave0. Drain. Add the grated carrots and mix well. Then add the dry ingredients and combine well.
Line the muffin tins with cupcake papers... they do come out beautifully instead of sticking to the liners. Bake at 350 degrees until the tops spring back when touched, about 15-20 minutes depending on your oven. This will make 16 medium sized muffins or 12 large ones.

Monday, August 8, 2011

Fresh And Good

Life is like a box of chocolates...
you never know what you're gonna get.
~Forest Gump~

We are fortunate that we get a steady supply of fresh, free range eggs, brought to us each week by one of my Daycare parents. Like a box of chocolates, we never know what shades we're gonna find, brown, white or green... but we do know that they will be a good size, fresh and clean...and at $2.50 a dozen...you can't ask for more than that.


Dark yellow yolks
...thick 
and creamy.

Monday, April 4, 2011

Fasting...but not in my mind!


A day of fasting in preparation for a scheduled colonoscopy for the following day did not dissuade me from checking out a new recipe passed on to me from my daughter. While I enjoyed my green tea, I was really craving the mouth watering, melt in your mouth chocolate goodness of these Fudgy  Coconut Flour Brownies. My daughter made these in place of a cake for my birthday a few weeks ago and I know they will become a family favorite...in fact, they are on the menu for our Easter meal. She found the recipe at Always Order Dessert by Alejandra Ramos. Check out her blog...there are oodles of wonderful recipes.

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

WHAT'S ON YOUR PLATE TUESDAY!

One enormous burger
...actually
... on the menu
it's listed as a
"bodacious" hamburger.

After reading about these super sized hamburgers in the local paper, we headed to a little bistro in Port Williams, "The Tin Pan Bistro" to check them out for ourselves. At $7.25 per burger we were hoping they would live up to their reputation and they did. The size of a small luncheon plate, ( just over 2/3 of a pound of beef in each burger) even the hubby could only eat half, but the waitress was quite happy to wrap the rest to take home. The dinning area was small...four tables...and not much to look at, but the burgers were good and the dishes being delivered to other tables looked delicious as well. I recommend you try it out but avoid lunch time as there will probably be a lack of seating.
Oh...and leave your bank cards and credit cards at home
...it's a cash only establishment!


Good food is meant to be shared and since I hate eating alone,
I invite everyone to join me for a virtual coming together
at "Getting Back To Basics"
where we can sit around and talk about eating,
share some recipes,
photos, or quotes about food
and maybe share a few laughs as well.

So whether you're a connoisseur of fine food
or good wholesome home cooked meals,
a vegan or a "raw foodist, "
... come, join me at my table on Tuesdays for some fun.
Grab my badge and place it on your side bar with a link back to me
so more will see it and take part.
See you on Tuesday
...oh, and feel free to bring a bottle of wine to the table.

Bon Appétit!

Marisa


Tuesday, May 18, 2010

WHAT'S ON YOUR PLATE TUESDAY!




Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

...to die for...


Good food is meant to be shared and since I hate eating alone,
I invite everyone to join me for a virtual coming together

at "Getting Back To Basics"
where we can sit around and talk about eating,
share some recipes,
photos, or quotes about food
and maybe share a few laughs as well.

So whether you're a connoisseur of fine food
or good wholesome home cooked meals,
a vegan or a "raw foodist, "
... come, join me at my table on Tuesdays for some fun.
Grab my badge and place it on your side bar with a link back to me
so more will see it and take part.
See you on Tuesday
...oh, and feel free to bring a bottle of wine to the table.

Bon Appétit!

Marisa



Tuesday, April 27, 2010

WHAT'S ON YOUR PLATE TUESDAY!


Onion Mushroom Meatloaf/Sweet Potato Fries/Salad and Raw Baby Carrots


Yes, it was as good as it looks!

Tahini Garlic Salad Dressing
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons flavored vinegar ( I used basil vinegar I made with basil from my garden)
1 teaspoon Honey Dijon Mustard
1/2 teaspoon garlic paste or more to taste
2 teaspoons tahini

Pumpkin seeds (Optional...to sprinkle on top of salad)

Add all ingredients to a bottle and shake well. Toss with your favorite salad ingredients ( I used lettuce, red peppers, tomato, chopped avocado and chopped apple) Spoon onto a plate and sprinkle some pumpkin seeds on top.

Onion Mushroom Meatloaf
1 pound lean hamburger
1 to 1 1/2 cups sliced mushrooms (reserve a few to garnish the top)
1 large onion chopped fine
1/2 pepper (I used red)
2 eggs
3/4 cups seasoned bread crumbs
1 package onion soup mix
pepper to taste
3/4 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Mix all the ingredients (except cheese and reserved mushrooms) together in a large bowl. After you've mixed it well, spoon into a large loaf pan or an 8x8 inch baking pan. Top with reserved mushrooms. Bake for 45 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle on cheese. Bake another 15 minutes.

Bon Appétit!

Marisa



Monday, August 17, 2009

ZUCCHINI CHOCOLATE CHIP MUFFINS

For those of you who asked
for my
Zucchini Chocolate Chip recipe...

Zucchini Chocolate Chip Muffins
3 c. flour
1 ½ c. sugar
2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. Cinnamon
1 tsp. Salt
2 eggs
1 c. vegetable oil *
*(I used ¼ c apple sauce, ½ c. oil and ¼ c. milk instead of a whole c. of veg. oil)
½ c. milk
2 tsp. Vanilla
2 c. grated zucchini
1-1 ½ c. chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Combine flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. In a separate bowl combine oil, eggs milk and vanilla; mix well. Stir into dry ingredients. Fold in zucchini and chocolate chips. Fill greased muffin tins ¾ full. Bake for 20-25 min.
This will make 1 1/2 - 2 dz. muffins depending on the size of your muffin tins.