Taste of Home

*This photo WILL NOT rotate!  Haha.  Oh Well!

            One of the first cookbooks I purchased for myself after starting out on my own was Betty Crocker’s Cooking Basics.   The Subtitle promises that you can “learn to cook with confidence.”  I would say that this is not too extreme of a claim, as this cookbook has really helped me quite a bit.  It includes recipes with simple ingredients, easy preparation, photo examples, and they are all delicious.

            Now, being that Betty knows best, many of the recipes in this cookbook have a “down home,” hearty feeling to them.  Meals like this are so great on these fall evenings when the air is brisk and it begins to get dark earlier.  Chris and I enjoyed a simple recipe for beef stroganoff recently, and it was all that we hoped for.  The preparation took about 20 minutes, and the recipe serves 6.  So if you are a sack lunch person like me, you will have plenty of yummy leftovers! 

            Confession time-I omitted the mushrooms in my version as I HATE mushrooms.  Chris said, “I think the one thing this recipe is missing is mushrooms!” To that I replied, “it was so weird, I couldn’t find any at the store for the recipe!”

Recipe:

-1 ½ pounds beef boneless top loin steak

-2 tablespoons margarine or butter

-Cooked egg noodles

-1 clove garlic

-1 ½ cups beef broth

-2 tablespoons ketchup

-1 teaspoon salt

-1 medium onion

-1/2 pounds mushrooms

-3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

-1 cup sour cream or plain yogurt

Preparation:

-Cut the beef into strips

-Melt the margarine in the skillet over medium-high heat.  Cook the beef into the margarine for 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until brown.  While the beef is cooking, prepare the egg noodles according to package directions.

-Peel and finely chop the garlic.  Reserve 1/3 cup of the beef broth.  Stir the remaining broth, the ketchup, salt and garlic into beef.  Heat to boiling over high heat.  Once mixture is boiling, reduce heat just enough so mixture bubbles gently.  Cover and cook about 10 minutes or so until the beef is tender.

-While the beef is cooking, peel and chop the onion and cut the mushrooms into slices.  Finish preparing the noodles.

-Stir the onion and mushrooms into the beef mixture.  Cover and cook about 5 minutes until the onion is tender.

-Shake the reserved 1/3 cup beef broth and the flour in a tightly covered jar or container.  Gradually stir this mixture into beef mixture.  Heat to boiling over high heat, stirring constantly.  Continue boiling 1 minute, stirring constantly, until thickened.  Reduce heat just enough so mixture bubbles gently.

-Stir in the sour cream.  Cook until hot, but do not heat to boiling or the mixture will curdle.  Serve over noodles

A Rave Review!

           When your husband tells you during and following dinner multiple times that dinner was “really great,” you can feel confident he enjoyed the meal.  When that same husband goes on to explain that he “loves fish, loves tacos, and even these onion thingies” you can be confident that you just earned a rave review.  That, my friends, is just what I got following the serving of my version of Real Simple’s fish tacos.

            Now I love fish tacos too, and often order them when we are out.  One version I tried recently had this delicious cilantro lime rice that was so amazing.  I asked Chris for his thoughts on my adding something like that to this recipe next time, and he insisted that “simple is better” and that if I “get too crazy with it I will ruin it!”

            I think that I will take his advice to keep it simple, as this recipe took only the amount of time it took to cook the fish in the oven.  During that time, I was able to slice the onion, and set the table.  If you are in need of a quick meal and enjoy fish tacos, try this one tonight!

Slainte!

http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/fish-tacos-10000001046910/index.html

Enjoy!

*Photo Chris snapped of me putting the tacos together :)

Pumpkin and Spice and Everything Nice!

            This time of year, many could consider me to be a pumpkin addict.  I frequent coffee houses more, in search of that pumpkin spice latte fix.  I can’t wait for Thanksgiving so I can get my hands on a good slice of pumpkin pie.  So when I found this recipe for pumpkin cupcakes on the Real Simple website, I purchased the ingredients and made them immediately.

           They were so incredibly easy and turned out great!  The only thing that I would change would be to wait to put the candy corns on top until I was ready to serve them.  For some reason, the coloring on the candy corns ran down the frosting of the cupcakes.  When I ate one after this happened, the candy corn was a bit mushy.  Other than that they were great!  I took them to my office to share with my co-workers, and received some very positive reviews.  After all, what is that old adage?  The best way to spread fall cheer is giving pumpkin for all to share…something like that!           

Slainte!

http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/pumpkin-cupcakes-with-cream-cheese-frosting-00000000021359/index.html

Enjoy!

Dinner Swap?

            As I returned from the grocery store this afternoon, armed with the groceries to prepare the meals on the menu this week, I started thinking about my need to pre-prepare meals and have them frozen and ready in my freezer for evenings or weeks when I just don’t want to cook.  This made me think of this concept I read about in the September 2010 issue of Real Simple magazine.

            The article was titled “The Great Dinner Swap” and detailed the idea of a group of people coming together to share meals.  For example, if 6 people/families were involved in the group, each person would prepare 6 easily frozen meals to share with the other members.  Then, following the swap, each person/family would have 6 different meals! 

            It seems to me that this can be an ongoing thing, or occur just once.  I think it would be fun to do once a month or bi-monthly to allow for a random assortment of meals.  I think that it would also be important for the swappers to live in Lincoln, and perhaps even find a common drop location to exchange the meals.  Is anyone interested in trying this out?  If so let me know!  My email is hkmcquillan@gmail.com.  Email or comment and we can discuss ideas/details.  Below I have added links to the Real Simple article and the tips given for a successful swap. 

Slainte!

http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/recipe-collections-favorites/great-dinner-swap-00000000039507/index.html

http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/cooking-tips-techniques/5-steps-successful-dinner-swap-00000000039528/index.html

Spiced Shrimp!

            This week we enjoyed spiced shrimp with green beans and lime, and I do not think I can accurately describe how much we both liked it!  It was so delicious, I nearly scalded my tongue on the skillet trying to lick it clean.  You’re right, I’m exaggerating!  But it was almost that good.  I don’t think we had a single morsel left when the meal was over.

            From the moment I saw this recipe, I couldn’t wait to pick up the ingredients and try it.  It looked so simple, and I always love a good shrimp dish.  I was thrilled when I found a perfect sized bag of shrimp at Target that boasted it was “large, peeled, and deveined.”  The preparation was very simple.  In fact, typically when a recipe says it takes 20 minutes, I can tack on at least another 15 for my slow preparation speed.  This one, however, took not one single moment more than 20 minutes!  If you love shrimp, try this one immediately!

Slainte!

Recipe:

-1 cup long-grain white rice

-1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves

-2 tablespoons olive oil

-1/2 pound green beans, halved crosswise

-4 cloves garlic, chopped

-1 to 2 red jalapeno peppers, thinly sliced (I couldn’t find these, so I omitted)

-1 ½ pounds peeled and deveined large shrimp

-1 ½ teaspoons chilli powder

-1/4 cup fresh lime juice

Preparation:

-Cook the rice according to package directions; fluff with a fork and fold in the cilantro

-Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the green beans, garlic, jalapenos, and ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper and cook, tossing frequently, for 3 minutes.

-Season the shrimp with the chilli powder, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon black pepper.  Add them to the skillet and cook, tossing occasionally, until opaque throughout, 3 to 5 minutes.  Stir in the lime juice and serve over the rice.

Enjoy!

Quesadilla Casserole!

            Quesadilla casserole, you ask?  Would I lie to you?  Of course I wouldn’t, but I must admit that I was just as skeptical until this tasty delight (now it sounds as if I am describing a Chinese dish) touched our lips.  It was SO good.  I think that this would be one the kids would enjoy as well.

            I made my version in a large baking dish, and was very glad that I did as I had tons of leftovers, which makes my lunch time infinitely more enjoyable.  It must be noted that for some reason the onions didn’t make their way onto my grocery list, so I substituted a red bell pepper, which I thought was a nice addition/substitution.  In fact, I think that if I make this again I will do both onion and red pepper. 

            I was also a bit concerned that my version looked quite a bit different than the picture on the Real Simple website, but was relieved when it was so yummy.  I still need to go back over the recipe with a more fine toothed comb to see where I strayed that resulted in the difference in appearance.  Try this one for yourselves, and if someone can save me the time of identifying where I strayed…let me know!

Slainte!

For the recipe and instructions for preparation go to:

http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/quesadilla-pie-10000001587000/index.html

Enjoy!

Tuna Melt Pie!

            Confession time: I have been subscribing to Rachel Ray Magazine for a couple of years, and really never make any of the recipes from it.  To be honest, I would often get more product ideas (you know, things that I convinced myself that I REALLY needed) than anything else.  I would say it is somewhat similar to me and the Farmer’s Market.

            If I ever were actually inclined to make something out of the mag, it would tend to always be from the “Dinners for 10 bucks (or less)” section.  This would help me ensure that I wouldn’t break the bank because there weren’t too many ingredients.  The few ingredients thing would then ensure that I could actually make the recipe, as it wouldn’t be too complex for my limited skills.

            In the September 2010 issue, I found a simple little recipe for Tuna Melt Pie which looked super yumm-o!  Isn’t that how Rachel puts it?  It worked great for me, especially as I made it the night before as I knew the next day would be way to hectic to prepare a meal, which would then lead to me telling Chris to “pick something up on his way home.” 

            Not that we are above this, but being trained in Marriage and Family therapy, I have read more articles on “the value of a family dinner” and “open communication” than most people even know exist.  The long and short of it, is that I love our time at the dinner table, serving each other food, and discussing our day and the different things we experienced since leaving home in the morning.  It seems to me that this dynamic is gone when we eat food out of a wrapper on our living room floor while watching a show we recorded on DVR.  Wow, can I go off on a tangent or what?!

            Now, back to the matter at hand.  This recipe was quite tasty and I think that it would be a real hit with kids.  It reminded me of the albacore tuna melt I love so much from Lazlos, so I loved it and was happy to eat it for lunch for a few days!

Slainte!

Recipe:

-1 tablespoon olive oil

-1 large onion, finely chopped

-6 ounces, mushrooms chopped (I omitted this as I HATE mushrooms)

-four 5 ounce cans tuna, drained

-2 tablespoons mayo

-1 ½ cups shredded cheddar cheese

-3/4 cup milk

-3 eggs, lightly beaten

-1/4 cup flour

-2 tablespoons butter, melted

Preparation:

-Preheat the over to 450 degrees.  In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat.  Add the onion and cook, stirring often, until softened, about 5 minutes.  Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until they’ve released and absorbed most of their juices, about 5 minutes.

-In a large bowl, combine the tuna and mayo, breaking up the tuna.  Stir in the onion-mushroom mixture, then stir in two-thirds of the cheese.

-In a small bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, flour and butter; stir into the tuna mixture.  Transfer to a 10-inch deep-dish pie pan (I used a corning ware dish) and bake until browned, about 35 minutes.  Top with the remaining cheese and broil until the cheese has melted.

Enjoy!

Bring on the heat...Fajitas that is!

            

           There is this quaint little Mexican restaurant in my hometown called La Hacienda.  If we were to go there tomorrow, I would bet my life that my parents would likely split an order of chicken fajitas.  They love fajitas!  As a child, I must admit, that I was a bit more captivated by the steam and smoke that came shooting out of the pan when the waitress brought them out, than anything else.  However, I will say that I think I always managed to snag a piece or two for myself when they weren’t looking.

            It is because of my parent’s love for fajitas, that I felt this latest recipe for steak fajitas would be a great use of some of the beef they so graciously brought us from one of this summer’s 4-H calves (may he rest in peace).  This recipe is simple, delicious, and was even great warmed the next day as my lunch!  Try it for yourself soon!

Slainte

Recipe:

-1 ½ pounds flank, sirloin, rib-eye, skirt, or strip steak, about ¾ in thick

-1/2 teaspoon salt

-2 tablespoons olive oil

-1 medium red onion, thickly sliced

-1 large red bell pepper

-1 large yellow bell pepper

-1 large green bell pepper

-1 teaspoon minced garlic (about 1 clove)

-tortillas

Preparation:

-Pat the steak dry with paper towels, season with salt and pepper.

-Place a large skillet over medium heat.  After about 1 minute, add 1 tablespoon olive oil and swirl to coat.  Add the steak, cooking for 1-2 minutes until nicely browned.  Flip over, and cook the other side for 1-2 minutes.

-Transfer steak to a cutting board (I then cut it up and had to cook it a bit longer with the peppers as it was too rare for me)

-Without cleaning the pan, add another tablespoon olive oil and toss the onion and bell peppers for 3 to 5 minutes.  Toss in the garlic and the remaining ¼ teaspoon salt during the last minute of cooking

-Serve immediately in flour tortillas!

Enjoy!

Fish Fry!

Since starting out on this culinary adventure, I now often find myself flipping aimlessly through my cookbooks hoping to stumble across meal ideas for the week.  So, when I stumbled across this recipe in my copy of Get Cooking for crispy pan-fried fish fillets, I knew I must give it a go.  I knew this because before I could actually put together ingredients to make a decent meal, Chris and I would often enjoy “fish n chips” that I would make for us using, of course, frozen fried fish fillets and French fries.  Now, I do not want to knock our former version, as it was admittedly quite tasty.  But I must say that this new version, which is literally almost as easy to prepare and easily better tasting will likely become the McQuillan family fish fry staple.  In fact, after we finished dinner and headed out to the pumpkin patch to find out pumpkins, Chris and I joked, “Bring on Lent!”

Slainte!

Recipe:

-1 pound white fish fillets, such as sole, snapper, or cod (four 4-ounce pieces; I used cod)

-1 large egg

-1 teaspoon water

-1/2 cup panko (Japanese style) bread crumbs

-1/2 teaspoon salt

-1/8 teaspoon black pepper

-2 tablespoons olive oil

-1 tablespoon butter

-lemon or lime wedges for serving

Preparation:

-rinse the fish under cold water; pat dry with a paper towel

-break the egg into a bowl, beat with a whisk, adding the water as you beat; set aside

-combine the panko, salt and pepper on a plate.  Have a second plate ready to hold the coated fillets

-dip the fillets one at a time in the egg mixture, then coat both sides with the panko mixture.  Set on the clean plate

-place a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the olive oil, followed by the butter, until completely melted

-carefully transfer the fillets to the skillet and cook each side without disturbing for 2-3 minutes

-serve hot with the lemon or lime wedge

Enjoy!

Bring on the Cheese!

            Bring on the cheese, you ask?  Oh yes, mac & cheese!  I’m not talking the out of the box kind that kids all over the United States eat by the pound for dinner each evening…oh no, I am talking REAL mac & cheese.  Homemade mac & cheese. 

            I must admit, that every new cookbook I get I am always looking at the recipes for homemade mac & cheese while simultaneously foaming at the mouth.  So, when I saw this recipe, which looked simple, easy, and of course, delicious, I had to make it.  The end result was all-American mac & cheese greatness.  The only thing I would change would be to use less bread crumbs, as I think I went a little overboard.  This thought was confirmed by Chris who requested “less breadcrumbs next time.”  My other recommendation, try this for yourself immediately!

Slainte!

Genuine homemade mac & cheese recipe:

-vegetable oil spray for the pan

-1/2 pound elbow macaroni

-2 tablespoons butter

-1 ½ tablespoons flour

-1/4 teaspoon salt

-1 tablespoon dry mustard

-dash of cayenne pepper

-2 cups of milk

-1 cup sharp cheddar cheese

-1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

-bread crumbs

Preparation:

-coat the baking dish with cooking spray

-set the rack as high as possible in the oven, and preheat the oven to 350 degrees

-cook the pasta according to package directions

-to make the cheese sauce, melt the butter over low heat, in the same pot you use to cook the macaroni.  When the butter is melted, add the flour, salt, mustard, and cayenne.  Whisk until the mixture forms a thick paste.  Then drizzle in the milk, while still continuing to whisk.  Do this approximately 2 minutes. Mix in all of the cheddar and ½ of the Parmesan cheese until melted and all blended.

-Combine with past and place in baking dish

-top with remaining Parmesan and breadcrumbs

-Bake for 20 minutes until bubbly and the top is a nice golden brown

Enjoy!

Sweet Treats

            While I feel that I have elaborated somewhat on my love for children, I must say that this love flows in excess to the children in our family.  I discussed in a previous blog about my nephew Kale and his time in the hospital and my need to “do something” in the time of need.  It is important to add that my “doing something” typically involves food, clothing, or toys. 

            Two years ago, my oldest nephew Carson was diagnosed with Juvenile (Type I) diabetes.  Since that time, I have cringed each time I see my sister or brother-in-law pull out his meter, poke his tiny fingers and check his blood sugar.  I have witnessed how truly brave a 3 year-old boy can be, and how modern medicine can help kids like Carson lead very normal lives.  I have wished many times that I could take the diabetes from Carson, even if it meant having it myself.  Most of all, I pray for the day that the cure to Type I diabetes is found.  To find the cure of course, one must “do something.”

            That’s why Carson’s Crew, a team of his family and friends, participates in the JDRF Walk to Cure diabetes.  It is our privilege as Carson’s aunt and uncle to watch Carson and all of the other children come together and fight this terrible disease.  The beauty of the walk is twofold, first being the support you can see all around the children affected, and the second the common hope everyone shares.  Hope for a future free of shots, meters, insulin pumps, low/high blood sugars, and constant worry. 

            I am proud to report that Carson’s Crew raised over $7,500 this year!  We had so much fun at the walk, and were thrilled to host an after-walk dessert reception at our home.  There is really nothing like a dessert reception to say, “take that diabetes!”

            Pictured are the spread of treats, the majority of which were purchased ready-made.  Two tasty treats, however, were homemade by me and the ideas were taken from the October issue of Real Simple magazine.

Slainte!

Ice cream and snickers terrine:

-chocolate ice cream

-vanilla ice cream

-14 fun size snickers bars

Preparation:

-Melt the ice cream, and cut up the snickers bars into thirds

-line a loaf pan with parchment paper

-Mix ice cream and snickers into loaf pan

-freeze mixture

-slice and serve!

Candy corn and pretzel bark:

-candy corn

-white chocolate chips

-miniature pretzels

-dried cranberries

Preparation

-spread parchment paper on a rimmed baking sheet

-melt white chocolate and spread onto parchment paper

-top with cranberries, candy corn, and pretzels

-chill until firm

-break into pieces and serve!

Enjoy!

Monster Mash!

            

            So this post is long overdue, but the recipe is WAY too good to just “skip over.”  In fact, the moment these monster cookies were brought into my home by my friend Ashley (recall the post on my BFFAEAE?) I knew I had to make them for myself.  They are so delicious that I even decided to spread the love, if you will, and baked enough to take to three events that week.  I took them first to work, then gave them to our God Teens group, then took them to RCIA after which I finally remembered and took the pathetic picture shown below which doesn’t even begin to do them justice as it was the only remaining cookie left after all of that sharing.  More or less, this cookie shown is like the sad last-selected puppy in a litter.  The message I am trying to push here-don’t judge these cookies by their photo!

            To give credit where credit is due, Ashley was given this recipe by her friend Heather, whose mother made these growing up for them.  That’s the thing about cookies, everyone has a certain kind that with one bite, can bring them right back to their childhood.  While I would like to say that the mess in the photo shown above was caused by some unruly child in my kitchen, I must admit that only Hurricane Heather is at fault.  It’s as if every time I become a little too smug about starting to be a good cook, catastrophe strikes!  Thank goodness FEMA was free to come in and save me from myself. 

Slainte!

Monster Cookies:

3 eggs

1 C + 2 Tbsp brown sugar (packed)

1 C sugar

3/4 t vanilla

1/8 C white corn syrup

2 t soda

1/2 C margarine - room temp

1 1/2 C peanut butter

4 1/2 C oatmeal

6-8 oz each: m&m's, chocolate chips, butterscotch chips

Note-there is no flour in this recipe

-Cream the margarine and sugars together. Add eggs one at a time, then vanilla and corn syrup. Next mix in soda and peanut butter. Last add oats, m&m's, and chocolate/butterscotch chips and combine well. 

-Then, use a small meatball/ice cream scoop and drop onto a greased cookie sheet (parchment paper really works better) and press down slightly, then bake @ 350* about 11 min. Do NOT overbake. Wait 5 min. before removing from the baking sheet to a cooling rack. 

Enjoy!