I love family movie night but with 2 active teenagers with busy schedules, family movie night doesn't happen very often. We had a movie night planned for last month in spite of the fact that my son wouldn't be able to join us. (It's possible that he chose to do something else since the movie was "The Lorax.") I decided homemade corn dogs would be a perfect snack to eat while we watched the movie. I found this recipe in a recent copy of Cook's Country magazine. Homemade Corn Dogs 1 1/2 corn meal 1 1/2 cups flour 1 Tablespoon baking powder 1 teaspoon baking soda 2 teaspoon sugar 1 1/2 teaspoons salt 1 3/4 cups buttermilk 4 eggs 8 hot dogs Canola Oil
Place remaining flour in shallow plate. Dredge hot dogs in flour. The corn dogs were a big hit. I was really surprised that only 1 of the skewers broke from the weight of the corn dog. I still think I need to use bigger skewers next time. If you ask me, the best part of a corn dog is the corn bread. This corn breading was really good but not quite as sweet as the kind that you find at the fair. Maybe it's my overactive sweet tooth talking but I think I might add just a little bit more sugar to the batter next time I make these. Ciao!
0 Comments
I have a new favorite appetizer - spanakopita bites. They're a combination of 2 of my favorite things - spinach artichoke dip and phyllo dough. I came up with this idea to make a tiny cup out of phyllo dough after reading through a blog on "What's Cookin' Chicago?". They had a similar version of this phyllo cup filled with spinach dip that inspired me to create my version of this bite sized treat. It took me a couple of tries to figure out how to make the phyllo cups but once I had it figured out - it was pretty easy. Spanakopita Bites Spinach Dip (Any kind will do.) I used my favorite spinach and artichoke dip recipe. phyllo dough melted butter Brush 1 square at a time with melted butter and stack on top of each other until you have a stack of 5. (Working with phyllo takes practice and patience - don't rush it.) Gently press the entire stack into a greased mini muffin tin. Fill each shell with a scoop of spinach dip. These were awesome warm - right out of the oven. But they were still good after they cooled to room temperature. I know what you're thinking - phyllo dough is too much trouble. Don't worry - these little square are a great way to learn to work with phyllo. They're more manageable than working with big sheets of this flaky pastry. Go on - give it a try and if you need help - just email me and I will be there to help you out. Practice makes better phyllo bakers and it also makes better cross country runners. These are a few of my favorite pictures from yesterday's meet. Ciao!
One more member of the Davis family apprehensively entered the world of braces last month. This is her before and after picture on the fateful day that she got her braces. (She was less than excited - can you tell?) Her mouth was pretty sore for a couple days so her diet consisted mostly of mashed potatoes and applesauce. I wanted to make her a special treat to help ease the pain so I whipped up some jello parfaits. I made the parfaits in two different forms: magic mousse and a traditional jello and cool whip layered parfait. I made both kinds of parfaits out of one 3 ounce box of strawberry jello.
Pour mixture into parfait glasses and refrigerate. (Kids love to watch as the jello separates.) There you have it - a simple, soft and braces-friendly dessert. I'm happy to report that the initial soreness of the braces has subsided and she is getting used to eating more substantial food. That won't stop us from eating parfaits but now we can enjoy them with a sandwich.
Ciao! I'm going to show my true roots now and let you in on a little secret - I'm an oatmeal eater and not a fan of grits. (I'm pretty sure I could be asked to leave the state of Georgia for a comment like that.) I know there aren't too many people in the south who share my love of oatmeal but I am a true Midwestern girl and oatmeal is my comfort food. I'm not talking about the overly sweet and salty oatmeal that you buy in the packets, I'm talking about really great, creamy and nutty steel cut oats. The biggest problem with steel cut oats is the amount of time that it takes to get them creamy. I found a recipe for Steel Cut oats in Cook's Illustrated this month that I can put together before I go to bed and then finish in about 10 minutes in the morning. This recipe may just convert some diehard grit eaters to oatmeal eaters. Steel Cut Oats 2 cups water 1/2 cup steel cut oats pinch of salt
This recipe makes 2 generous bowls of oatmeal. (One for me and one for my son.) The other 2 oatmeal eaters in the house still prefer the packages of oatmeal. (I'm still working on them.) I like to "doctor" mine up with nuts and fruits. Maybe I will try some pumpkin oatmeal soon too. Oatmeal is so good for you. It's hearty and delicious and nutritious - a trifecta of breakfast foods. Go ahead - try Steel Cut oats - I promise not to tell anyone.
Ciao! I recently experienced one of the major hazards of outdoor grilling - rain storms. As soon as I put my pork chops on the Big Green Egg, the sky just opened up and the rain poured down. I was excited about the bonus plant watering but not so happy about having to dodge lightening strikes to check on my dinner. By the time the pork chops were finished cooking, I was absolutely soaked but fortunately the dinner was unaffected. (Have I mentioned lately how much I love my Big Green Egg?) I grill pork on the Egg quite a bit but I found this slightly different take on grilled pork chops in my Cook's Illustrated magazine recently. I think that brining the pork really helped to keep the meat moist. No one in my family even suspected that there was anchovy paste on the meat either - what they don't know wont hurt them in this case. Grilled Pork Chops 1 1/2 quarts cold water 3 Tablespoons salt 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil 1 1/2 teaspoons honey 1 teaspoon anchovy paste 1/4 teaspoon pepper
Place oiled side down on hot grill. Grill 10 minutes. Brush other side with mixture and flip. Finish grilling. These pork chops were super yummy. They were nicely browned (thanks to the honey) and moist (thanks to the brine) and juicy inside. This is my new favorite way to grill pork chops. Despite the rain, it turned out to be a pretty great meal.
Ciao! |
Like my page on facebook.
Follow me on Instagram
Categories
All
Archives
April 2024
|