Quick Eats: Patriotic Cobbler.

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Happy Independence Day, America! Although the sky is looking depressingly cloudy today- I’m hoping it clears up by tonight so I can get an unobstructed view of some fireworks after a family cookout later on this afternoon. I did commemorate this National holiday by doing the most American thing I could think of last night- seeing “Magic Mike: XXL” in the theater with some friends (and it was really, really fun,) but I also wanted to bake or cook something with some red, white, and blue elements in it to offer up to visitors over the next couple of days.

Last year on the Fourth of July, I had whipped up a simple recipe with some strawberry and blueberry fruit bowls and smoothies. This year, using the same ingredients but taking it a step further- I created what I consider to be a very patriotic mixed berry cobbler that was easy to make in no time at all- and it tastes amazing!

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YOU WILL NEED:

* 9×13″ baking pan

* 1/3 cup of butter

* 1 1/2 cups of flour

* 1 1/2 cups of granulated sugar

* 1 1/2 cups of milk

* 2 teaspoons of baking powder

* 1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon

* 1/2 teaspoons of salt

* 5 cups of chopped strawberries and whole blueberries

* 1/3 cup of chopped nuts (any of your choosing! I used walnuts with the one I baked.)

* 1/3 cup of brown sugar

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OKAY, HERE’S WHAT YOU DO:

1. Preheat your oven to 375°F and add the 1/3 cup of butter to your baking pan. Place the pan in the oven to melt the butter.

2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, granulated sugar, milk, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Stir/whisk the mixture until it is smooth and thin in texture and there are no lumps.

3. Once the butter has melted in the baking pan, retrieve the pan from the oven and pour the batter inside of it. DO NOT STIR. Some of the butter will pool along the edges and top of the batter- and that’s a good thing. That’s what you want!

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4. Sprinkle the strawberries and blueberries evenly over the batter and butter. Once you have the fruit where you want it- sprinkle the chopped nuts and brown sugar on top.

5. Bake the mixture for 45-50 minutes or until the top crust is a nice golden color.

6. Serve by itself or with a scoop of ice cream on top.

7. Enjoy!

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One of these cobblers can serve quite a few people, depending on how big a scoop they take, and what I really love about this recipe- apart from how delicious it tastes- is that you can substitute the strawberries and blueberries for other types of fruit and it will still come out great!

I’m actually going to grab a serving before I get ready to head out for the day’s festivities.

Have a great Fourth of July, everyone!

Mar 16

Quick Eats: Carol’s Cookies

Comment 1

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It’s hard to believe that in just a few short weeks, the season five finale of “The Walking Dead” will air and undoubtedly bring a week’s worth of misery following it’s ending (after an extension to 90 minutes instead of just it’s usual hour-long time slot.)

It’s been a bizarre season thus far, to say the least- and one I will pick apart following the finale once I’ve wrapped my head around whatever direction it looks like the sixth season will be heading in- but one thing I’ve enjoyed immensely is watching the character development of former battered housewife turned bad ass assassin turned even more bad ass spy Carol Peletier over these past few episodes. This season has, without question, belonged to Carol and her rise to leadership and full-on “Flawless Queen” status (right alongside Michonne.)

In a recent episode, Carol- playing possum while trying to feel out the new community of Alexandria and it’s residents to determine whether they are friend or foe- sweetly shares a cookie recipe with the head of the community’s pantry in which she supplements eggs with applesauce.

The good folks over at AMC, knowing that people might want to try this in their own kitchen, put together a helpful recipe card for quick reference- and having done a post inspired by the “Walter Mitty” clementine cake not too long ago- I decided to make my own Carol Cookies and share the results!

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The only part of the recipe I changed was the 1/4 cup shortening (because I find it gross,) where I substituted butter, instead.

The cookies baked incredibly easy and tasted surprisingly delicious- like crispy chocolate chip cookies without the actual chips in them. I plan on making these again for the finale, and might even wear a hideous floral printed cardigan when I do- just like Carol.

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Feb 03

Quick Eats: Buffalo Chicken Dip

Comment 1

SuperBowl20151

Wow. That’s really all I can say about Sunday night’s nail-biter between the New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks. Just wow. Despite living in Massachusetts, it’s well known among my circle of friends that I’m not the biggest Patriots fan (it has nothing to do with the team or the coaching staff- who I’ve grown to admire and respect throughout the years- but more with the often overwhelming, aggressive, and obnoxious behavior of some of their more vocal die-hard fans that all but ruin the fun for myself and others.)

Regardless, even though I had been low-key hoping the Seahawks would be victorious- I have to give credit where credit is due. The Pats played their hearts out and earned that win. I’m happy for them, and happy for their fans. I’d even go as far as showing my appreciation at the duck boat parade scheduled in the city for tomorrow morning, as is the tradition whenever one of our sports teams wins a championship- but with the recent blizzard 2.0 blanketing Boston shortly after the game came to an end and my having to be at work- it looks like I’ll have to live vicariously through my friends’ Instagram and Twitter photos. Have fun, everybody!

For the actual Super Bowl, my friend Stef had a bunch of us over her apartment to watch the game, eat some snacks, and have a couple of beers while we cheered and jeered touchdowns, interceptions, Katy Perry’s halftime show- and that really, really awful Nationwide commercial (seriously. What WAS that?) Not wanting to show up to the get together empty-handed, I put together a dish of one of my favorite, easiest, and quickest party recipes to make- buffalo chicken dip.

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YOU WILL NEED:

* Baking dish/pan

* 1 package (8 oz.) of cream cheese

* 10 oz. boneless white chicken (some people use chicken in a can, but that sounds a little gross to me- so I opted to purchase a pre-cooked rotisserie chicken from my local deli and carve that up instead. Whatever is left over can be used to make chicken salad, sandwiches, etc.!)

* 1/2 cup buffalo wing sauce

* 1/2 cup blue cheese (or ranch, depending on preference,) dressing

* 2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese

* Tortilla chips, crackers, or celery/carrot sticks to use for dipping

OKAY, HERE’S WHAT YOU DO:

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F.

2. Spread the package of cream cheese into your un-greased baking dish/pan.

3. Layer the boneless chicken, the 1/2 cup of buffalo wing sauce, and the 1/2 cup of blue cheese (or ranch) dressing on top of the spread cream cheese. Depending on what particular degree of flavor you’re looking for- you can add or deduct any of the ingredients to make the dip spicier or more mild.

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4. Sprinkle the 2 cups of Monterey Jack cheese on top of everything.

5. Cook uncovered in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until the cheese on top is completely melted.

6. Let the dip cool for a 10-15 minutes. Serve with tortilla chips, crackers, or celery/carrot sticks.

7. Dig in and enjoy!

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Overall I think the dip was a success (it was nearly gone by the time the game ended!) and it’s something that can be made again in no time at all before (or even during) the next party, too- be it sports-related or not!

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Jan 12

Quick Eats: Clementine Cake

Comments 5

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One of the best movies I’ve seen in recent years has to be Ben Stiller’s “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.” The story. The visuals. The soundtrack. The entire film is beautiful from start to finish and is one of the only movies I can recall leaving the theater after seeing and not only being moved to tears by how perfect it was- but feeling immensely satisfied- like every dime that had been spent on my ticket was worth it.

I’ve since watched the movie a handful of times On-Demand, each viewing just as enjoyable as the last- and the most recent being just the other night. One of the minor, but re-occurring plot devices in the film is the clementine cake Walter’s Mom (played by Shirley MacLaine,) bakes. No spoilers here- because I highly recommend anyone who hasn’t seen the movie yet watches it as soon as humanly possible- but I felt inspired to try my hand at baking my own!

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YOU WILL NEED:

* Food processor

* 8-9 inch springform pan

* Parchment paper

* 6 eggs

* 5-6 clementines

* 1 1/4 cup of white granulated sugar

* 2 1/4 cup of ground almonds

* 1 teaspoon of baking powder

OKAY, HERE’S WHAT YOU DO:

1. Pre-heat your oven to 375°F.

2. While the oven heats up, butter the springform pan and line with cut and fitted parchment paper.

3. Poke washed clementines 5-6 times with a knife or fork before placing in a covered, microwave-safe dish/bowl and heating for 3-4 minutes or until the clementines are soft and mushy.

4. After letting the clementines cool for a few minutes, place them- peel and all- into the food processor and grind until they reach a smooth, puréed texture.

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5. Beat the 6 eggs and 1 1/4 cups of sugar in a large mixing bowl until the mixture is light in color and thick in consistency.

6. Add the puréed clementines, the 2 1/4 cup of ground almonds, and the teaspoon of baking powder to the eggs and sugar and continue thoroughly mixing.

7. Pour the mixture into the springform pan and bake in the oven for approximately 45 minutes. It may need to stay in for a little longer to ensure the middle is cooked through and evenly. If this happens, be sure to cover the top of the cake with a thin layer of tin foil to prevent the surface and edges from getting burnt.

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8. After removing the cake from the oven, let it cool. Once it’s cold- and therefore won’t crumble into pieces on contact- remove the pan and parchment paper. Glaze and decorate.

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To create the glaze, I just mixed some powdered sugar, a little butter, and a cup of freshly squeezed clementine juice- and topped the cake with some candied sliced clementines (simmered sugar and water!) The total cooking time, sans-cooling the cake pre-decorating- was about an hour to an hour and fifteen minutes- and the cake can serve up to 8 or 10 people!

And of course, the last step to this recipe is to stuff your face, (and be sure to bring a few slices along when you set off on an adventure into the unknown- just like Walter Mitty!) The cake is decadent, tangy, and goes really well with a nice cup of coffee or tea!

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And to close out this fun foodie post, here is my favorite quote from the movie- taken from a screen-grab as Walter examines a gift left for him in the beginning of the film. The saying, the “Life Magazine” motto, is lovely- and has become my mantra for 2015 because of how powerful it is.

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Sep 27

Quick Eats: Pumpkin Spice Muffins.

Comment 1

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I’m sure that most of us- if not all of us on more than one occasion- have had to whip up something quick and easy to serve guests and/or ourselves in lieu of of meticulously planning and preparing a meal from scratch. I’ll never shame cooking and baking shortcuts or anyone that uses them. I work full-time and have other obligations that require my full-attention. I can’t always clear a couple of hours in my schedule to spend in the kitchen mixing, chopping, seasoning, etc.

Such was the case earlier today, when wanting to enjoy the flavors of the season (namely: pumpkin) came with a time restraint. I opted to use pre-packaged boxed pumpkin bread mix to create pumpkin spice muffins for a late breakfast- taking advantage of the extra minutes the mix bought me to add a tasty salted caramel twist with extra ingredients I had laying around.

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Pillsbury had the right idea with their packaged ‘Quick Bread’ mixes. Some milk, a little oil, a couple of eggs and some vigorous stirring- and you’ve got yourself a thick batter in minutes that can be poured into your pan and placed in the pre-heated oven. I even found these Fall styled baking cups for an added touch of cute. When all the batter was evenly distributed in the cups, I had exactly a dozen muffins with little to no leftover batter in my mixing bowl. I don’t like being wasteful, so I was pretty happy about this.

While the muffins began to bake, I got to work on giving my cream cheese flavored icing a little tint of orange with food coloring to make them look nice and festive. Some of you may be wondering “who puts icing on a muffin?” which is a completely fair question to ask. As much as I enjoy the taste of pumpkin, a lot of times the ‘spice’ part of it tends to be overwhelming. I like to sweeten it just a little and I find that pairing it with cream cheese usually has a delicious result. I don’t frost the muffin like it was a cake or anything- but a nice, thin layer along the top really evens out the flavor.

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After the muffins had cooled and had been properly iced to my liking- I added a handful of roasted and salted peanut seeds to the top of them to give them a salty crunch. The final touch was then lightly drizzling melted caramel over the seeds and letting it harden and set.

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The entire baking and decorating process from start to finish took about a half hour- and the finished muffins were delicious- the perfect combination of sweet and salty. I served them with warmed apple cider, and to make things a little more fancy and Autumn-esque- I decorated the placements with fake Fall leaves.

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Jul 04

Quick Eats: Red, White, and Fruit.

Quick Eats: Tomato and Mozzarella Sliders

Quick Eats: Homemade Crab Rangoon

Comments 4

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Growing up, ordering Chinese food was always reserved for Christmas Eve and New Years Eve, the two nights out of the year when my mother didn’t want to go anywhere near the kitchen and when most restaurants closed early. We’d sit around our Christmas tree (and on New Years Eve- the television- to watch the ball drop in Times Square,) stuffing our faces with chicken fingers, pork-fried rice, beef teriyaki, etc. and then chow down on the leftovers the following day.

In my early twenties, ordering Chinese food, while still a family tradition, became synonymous with last call at the local bars. We’d place a pick-up order while we finished our final drinks for the night, walk downtown to pick up the food, and nine times out of ten- eat almost all of it while walking to whoever’s apartment we were crashing at for the night. Nothing hit the spot after a couple of whiskey sours than a heaping serving of chicken lo mein.

And now, a few years older, ordering Chinese food (still a Christmas Eve tradition at my mom’s house!) often results in me getting a stomach ache and asking myself how I was able to eat the gigantic portions of it like I did when I was a kid. The only thing that doesn’t seem to make me feel gross after mass consumption is crab rangoon, a long-standing favorite on any take-out menu.

Instead of shelling out money for an order of crab rangoon at one of the many Chinese food places by where I live, I decided to make my own this afternoon. To me, it’s a sort trial and error type of recipe to attempt- but they came out pretty good- if I do say so myself!

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YOU WILL NEED:

* 1 Can of bulk crab meat

* 1/2 Brick/package of cream cheese (THIS CAN VARY. The last time these were made, only a small amount of cream cheese was added, and the result, while good- didn’t really taste like traditional rangoon. Depending on your preference, you can add more or less cream cheese. I prefer a little more.)

* 1 Package of won ton wraps (I found mine in the produce section at my local market)

* 1 1/2- 2 Cups of cooking oil

* 1/2 Freshly sliced lemon (or a teaspoon of lemon juice)

* 1 Egg – beaten

* A pastry brush

OKAY, HERE’S WHAT YOU DO:

1. Using a bowl, thoroughly mix the can of bulk crab meat and the 1/2 brick of cream cheese. I find using a fork to mash the ingredients together is helpful. From there, squeeze the 1/2 of freshly sliced lemon over the crab meat and cream cheese (or add the teaspoon of lemon juice) and continue mixing. Add salt and pepper for seasoning.

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2. In a pan, add the 1 1/2 cups – 2 cups of oil. Begin heating the oil on your stove top at medium/high.

3. While the oil is heating, lay out the won ton wraps out on a flat surface. Add a teaspoon of the crab/cream cheese/lemon juice mixture in the center of each wrap.

4. Using a pastry brush, dip the brush tip into your beaten egg, and sweep along each edge of the won ton wrap. This allows the edges to stick and stay together when you fold them, and prevents them from breaking apart when you cook them in the oil shortly.

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5. Fold together each corner of the won ton wrapper, creating a pocket. By now, your oil should be hot and ready to use.

6. Carefully drop the pockets into the oil. They’ll immediately begin to sizzle as they cook. Using a spatula, you can turn the pockets over in the oil to make sure they’re crisping and browning evenly. Once they reach your desired level of crispiness, use the spatula to remove them from the oil.

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7. Set your cooked pockets on folded paper towels to absorb excess oil and allow them to cool.

8. Enjoy! (Chopsticks optional.)

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These tasted so delicious- even better than the ones I’ve had in take-out orders in the past. I think the next time my family gets together for the holidays, I’ll whip up a batch of these to switch up our tradition- just a little bit.

Nov 10

Quick Eats: Butternut Squash Ravioli

Quick Eats: Baked Seafood Casserole

Comments 13

Good afternoon!

I’m currently sitting at my desk waiting for my hair to dry and trying to accessorize for a themed lawn party I’m attending later on this afternoon at Castle Hill.

‘Til then, I thought I’d share a recipe for one of my all-time favorite dishes that I whipped up the other night for dinner. If you’re not a fan of seafood, then this isn’t the meal for you, but if you love it as much as I do- this won’t disappoint. My serving size was for four people, so the amount of ingredients and measurements may vary depending on how many portions you’re looking to cook.

Also, my apologies for not taking photos as I was cooking the casserole. I was in a bit of a rush and only had time to snap a couple of pictures of the finished product before I proceeded to stuff my face.

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YOU WILL NEED:

* 1 baking dish.

* 4 Individual tinfoil serving trays.

* 1 1/3 Tablespoons of butter.

* 1 1/3 Tablespoons of olive oil.

* 1 Can (18 2/3 ounces) of cream of mushroom soup.

* 2/3 lbs. of peeled shrimp.

* 2/3 lbs. of peeled scallops.

* 2/3 lbs. of cooked lobster meat.

* 1/3 Cup of chopped onion.

* 1 2/3 Cups of Ritz Cracker crumbs.

* 1 Lemon.

* Salt & pepper for flavoring.

Please note, I know some people like to add rice, mushrooms, celery, and different types of cheeses to their seafood casserole, and you absolutely can if you wish- but this recipe is more my personal preference.

OKAY, HERE’S WHAT YOU DO:

1. Melt the 1 1/3 tablespoons of butter in a frying pan, and then add the 1 1/3 tablespoons of olive oil.

2. Add 1/3 cup of chopped onion to the mixture and saute.

3. Once onions are lightly sauteed, add the can of mushroom soup. Stir thoroughly.

4. When soup & onions are mixed evenly, remove from heat.

5. After buttering the baking dish, throw in the shrimp, scallops, and lobster meat. Feel free to mix them around so that they are spread out around the dish and not just lumped together in the middle.

6. Add your soup & onion mixture to the baking dish.

7. Sprinkle the Ritz Cracker crumbs on top.

8. Bake uncovered at 350°F for 45 minutes.

9. Scoop the portions of your seafood casserole into the individual tinfoil serving trays to keep them warm and mess-free.

10. Cutting the lemon into four wedges, garnish each dish with a slice- and add salt & pepper for a bit of extra flavoring.

11. DIG IN!

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Legally Redhead

The Life and Times of Ashley Elizabeth

Tag Archives: quick eats

Quick Eats: Patriotic Cobbler.

Quick Eats: Carol’s Cookies

Quick Eats: Buffalo Chicken Dip

Quick Eats: Clementine Cake

Quick Eats: Pumpkin Spice Muffins.

Quick Eats: Red, White, and Fruit.

Quick Eats: Tomato and Mozzarella Sliders

Quick Eats: Homemade Crab Rangoon

Quick Eats: Butternut Squash Ravioli

Quick Eats: Baked Seafood Casserole