Cocktail Time!

This is my mother.  Isn't she classy?  And pretty?  And  ultra cool?

She visited me last weekend.  After the kiddos went to bed, we set up cocktail time.  I love cocktail time.  It's a nice respite to look forward to at the end of the day. 

My husband and I love this cocktail.  The original recipe is called a White Lady.  We've modified it a bit to make it a longer drink.  It tastes fresh and sweet, but not too sweet.  Watch out, though, they go down smooth, but are a lot stronger than they taste.  One is enough.

We also had some sweet potato fries.  This brand is super tasty! 

White Lady

2 shots gin
1 shot triple sec
1 shot lemon juice
tonic
ice

Rim a glass with sugar.  Mix the liquor and lemon juice in the glass.  Add ice and top with tonic, then stir gently.

Applesauce

All my life, I've not really been able to answer 'what's your favorite color.'  I like a lot of them for different reasons and I like different colors depending on my mood.  Recently, however, I've come to the realization that I absolutely love the peacock blue color that has been popular the last couple years.  I suppose if I was made to answer the popular question, I'd have to chose this color.  It's the same blue as the one in my sweater here:

Now, this is not to say that blue...any old blue would be my favorite color.  Since before we were married, I've teased my husband about what I like to call 'bachelor blue.'  It's kind of a navy, I suppose.  It seems as though every time we tried to pick any towels, sheets, anything...he gravitated to this color.  I also noticed that many bachelors I know seem to love this color as many things in their house.  Do I tease him about this simple to be ornery?  Yes...yes I do.

Now, you may be thinking 'why is she talking about colors under the title applesauce?'  

Your guess is as good as mine.

If I had to pick a favorite food, it would be applesauce and toast.  Technically, that's two foods, I know.  But the buttery wholesomeness of toast coupled with the tart goodness of applesauce, well it's just a match made in heaven.  I eat this when recovering from the stomach flu, when I'm sad or just whenever I can't think of anything else.  Come to think of it, I also like fried eggs and toast...but this post is about applesauce so I promise to stick to the point from here on out. 

Growing up, we had several apple trees in the yard.  This meant for lots and lots of canned applesauce every year.  My brothers and I would take turns pushing the cooked apples through a sieve.  It seemed to take days, but I'm sure I'm being dramatic here.  Imagine my dissapointment when I left home and tried to buy applesauce in the store.  All I found was white, tasteless stuff.  I remember asking my mom how to find the brown applesauce.  She replied 'well, dear, we used to make our own, remember?'  Oh yes, I remembered.



This is about 24 apples, washed and cut into quarters.  You can make applesauce with as many apples as you have, however.

Place the cut apples in a pot and add half an inch or so of water to the bottom of the pan.   Cover and cook over low heat until they are soft and mash easily.  It took my 24 apples about an hour and a half. 

Remove from the heat and either run the apples through a food mill like this (It was my grandmothers): 

Or, mash the apples through a sieve with the back of a large spoon.  Discard the skins and cores. 

At this point, you can reheat it and add some sugar, cinnamon and/or nutmeg to taste.  I like it just like it is.  Plain old apples.  My youngest, Christian, likes it so much he couldn't wait...little stinker. 

You can can this applesauce if you have a ton of apples or just freeze it.

Garlic Mashed Potatoes

8 potatoes peeled, rinsed and diced
5 cloves garlic, minced
4 tablespoons butter
1/3-1/2 cup milk
1/4-1/2 cup sour cream
salt and pepper to taste

In a large saucepan, cover the potatoes with water and bring to a boil.  Cook until tender, then drain.

Melt the butter in a small skillet over medium heat.  Add the garlic and cook, stirring occassionaly, until golden brown.  Don't over cook or the final product will taste burnt.

Mash the potatoes together with the butter/garlic mixture, milk, sour cream and salt and pepper.  Add more milk, sour cream, salt, pepper to reach your preferred consistency and flavor.

Serve these beauties with a roast such as this:

Find this recipe here on my favorite food blog.

And serve to fabulous people such as these:

My sister-in-law, Lauren and her fella, Brent (Hadley's parents)

My son, Christian and my pretty little niece Maddie

Recently, I said that one of my favorite seasonal recipes is molasses cookies.  The same could be said about this fabulous dessert.  I have friends who wait for it every year.  Delani (mentioned in the stuffed mushroom post) actually made a special trip to my house after work yesterday for her share of the goodies. 

Special Notice!!!  Delani is now engaged to Christian who was our stuffed mushroom test subject.  Sooooo exciting!  I'm absolutely beside myself!  Do the abundance of exclamation points prove my happiness? Well...here's some more for you !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I'm really happy.

Anyhow...back to cake.
This makes a ton of cake.  Lots to share.  It calls for a tube pan, but I use my spring form pan with the hole in the center.  That way, I have a regular sized cake plus enough for a loaf pan, or as I did yesterday, a dozen cupcakes.  I like the idea of making them look like muffins.  Makes it more healthy, right?  It's the Costco 'muffin' theory I suppose.  I may or may not have had one for breakfast.  It can't be proved either way. 

I used mini chocolate chips this time.  For best results, warm up your piece of cake in the microwave for about 10 seconds.  It'll melt the chocolate a little and make it extra tasty!

I've not ever made the molasses glaze or whipped cream, though I have served it with regular whipped cream.

 Pumpkin Chocolate Chunk Cake

Non-stick spray for baking

3 cups flour

2¼ cups granulated sugar

¾ cup packed brown sugar

1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice or apple pie spice

1½ teaspoons baking powder

1½ teaspoons soda

½ teaspoon salt

6 ounces bittersweet or semisweet baking chocolate,

chopped into chunks OR 1 ½ cups chocolate chips

15 ounce can pumpkin

¾ cup butter melted

6 eggs, slightly beaten

1 recipe Molasses Glaze

1 recipe Molasses Whipped Cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  With the nonstick spray for baking, generously coat a 10-inch tube pan or fluted tube pan.  Set aside.  In a small bowl set aside ½ cup of the flour.  In a large bowl combine remaining flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, soda and salt.  To the reserved ½ cup of flour add the chocolate chunks and stir to coat.  In another bowl combine pumpkin, melted butter and eggs.  Add the pumpkin mixture to the flour mixture; stir until combined.  Add chocolate mixture.  Stir until combined.  Pour into tube pan.  Bake for 60 to 70 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.  Cool in pan on wire rack for 15 minutes.  Remove cake from pan and cool for 30 minutes.  Brush with Molasses Glaze; cool.  Serve with Molasses Whipped Cream.

Molasses Glaze:  In a small saucepan melt ¼ cup butter; stir in 1/3 cup packed brown sugar, ¼ cup dark-color corn syrup, and 2 tablespoons molasses.  Bring to simmer.  Cook, uncovered, 3 minutes or until slightly thickened.  Cool 5 minutes; spoon over cake.

Molasses Whipped Cream:  In a chilled mixing bowl combine 1 cup whipping cream, 1 tablespoon powdered sugar, and 2 to 3 teaspoons molasses.  Beat with electric mixer until soft peaks form.  Spoon into serving bowl.  Sprinkle lightly with pumpkin pie spice, apple pie spice, or ground cinnamon.  Pass with the cake. 

Chicken Soup with Homemade Noodles

It's that time of year when most people seem to catch some kind of bug.  I have several sick friends, a friend at the end of her pregnancy, a neighbor with a spinal headache, and other special folks with various ailments.  Just this morning I was telling someone how lame it is to feel kind of helpless to help them.  It's no fun to watch your loved ones suffer.  I'm not a health professional, but I do know how to make chicken noodle soup; that quintessential feel better kind of food.  It's always a good idea to make a big batch in order to keep some on hand in the freezer to share when inevitably, someone gets sick.  Looks like I need to make a REALLY big batch!

There are two ways to go about the broth.  There's store bought (soup aisle) and homemade.  I've done it both ways, but when I have the resources, I like to do homemade. 

There are also two ways to go about the noodles.  Either store bought egg noodles or homemade noodles.  Again, if I have the time and ingredients, I like to do homemade.  It's much easier than it may seem. 

Homemade Chicken Broth:

After enjoying your roasted chicken and chicken sandwich place the chicken carcass (I know that's not a great word to use when talking about food) in a large pot and just cover it with water.  Add some carrot tops, celery pieces, onion bits, mushroom stems...just toss in whatever extra pieces you have after chopping the veggies you'll use later in the soup.  You're going to strain these out of the broth anyways, so don't worry too much about them looking pretty.  They add flavor and vitamins to the broth. 

Bring the pot to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer.  Allow it to simmer for several hours.  Strain out the broth, pick the last of the meat off the bones, then toss the bones and boiled veggies.  If you have the time, refrigerate the broth, then skim the white colored fat off the top before reheating it. 

Egg Noodles

1 egg
Heavy cream
1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt

Break the egg into a medium bowl.  Fill half an egg shell with cream.  Add cream to egg.  Stir in flour and salt.  Knead the dough a couple times.



These are Claire's hands, mine aren't near this long and graceful.  She made this batch of noodles.



Roll dough out on a floured board or counter as thin as possible and let stand 1/2 hour.  Cut noodles to desired width.  Either let dry or use right away in your soup.

Chicken Noodle Soup

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion
3 sliced carrots
3 sliced stalks celery
4 cloves minced garlic
3/4 cup frozen peas
1/2 cup frozen corn
1 cup sliced mushrooms
2 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons dried parsley
salt and pepper to taste
Noodles
1-2 cups cooked chicken pieces, chopped
Broth (if doing store bought, 36-48 ounces, buy extra just in case you need it)
Chicken bullion (optional)

Cook onion in olive oil over medium-high heat for a couple minutes.  Add carrots and cook a couple minutes more.  Add celery, garlic, peas, and corn and cook a couple minutes more.  The vegetables should be tender, but not mushy at all.  In a separate pan, cook mushrooms in butter until mushrooms start to brown. 

Add broth and parsley and bring to a boil.  Season with salt and pepper to your taste.  If it doesn't taste 'chickeny' enough, you can add some chicken bullion.  Add the noodles in a few at a time so they don't stick together.  If using store bought, use about 8-10 ounces.  Cook for 8-10 minutes until the noodles are cooked. 

Reduce heat and add the chicken and mushrooms.  Taste and adjust your flavors as needed. 

This recipe is very forgiving and flexible.  Don't like peas?  Don't add them.  Don't have any celery?  Skip it.  It'll still taste great and make your body and soul feel better.  I swear by it.  It'll make your friends and family feel better too!

Our Pirate Adventure

My mother is so many things.  So many wonderful things.  One of these things is whimsical.  She loves the Rip Squeak books by Susan Yost-Filgate and Leonard Filgate.  For my eldest sons first birthday, she bought him The Treasure.  In this story, Rip Squeak and his friends find a treasure map in a book and start off on a grand adventure.

I read this book to my boys last weekend and lo and behold, there was a treasure map in the back!!!  Imagine their faces....priceless!

The map led them to the 'dirt pile' and then into a field where they discovered a box containing pirate hats and a new map.

 The new map led them around the neighborhood, over a bridge, down special pathways and through the 'woods'.

 The directions on the map said to dig, so magically, there happened to be a shovel nearby.

 Treasure!!!  Inside the box was fake money, beads, silly band bracelets and ring pops.  They couldn't have been happier after this grand adventure of their own.

We've read the book a couple times since then and I know they hold their breath at the end hoping for a new map.  Perhaps one day there will be.