Fondue!

This weeks recipes I tried out last week when my friend Brit visited to celebrate my 22nd birthday! I thought, rather than spending tons of money to go out to a fancy fondue place, we could spend less, stay in and do our own :) It turned out amazingly, tasted so good and was a great fun time. Feel free to experiment with the cheeses or chocolates, we tried adding some gouda after we tried the recipe and it was great! Lets face it, nearly everything tastes good dipped in either cheese or chocolate!

Cheese Fondue

• 1/2 pound imported Swiss cheese, shredded (We used Monterey Jack instead)
• 1/2 pound Gruyere cheese, shredded 
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 garlic clove, peeled
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
• Pinch nutmeg
• Assorted dippers (Crusty bread, Broccoli, Sausages, Apples, anything that tastes good in cheese, and you'd be surprised on how good the apples go with it!)

In a small bowl, coat the cheeses with cornstarch and set aside. Rub the inside of the ceramic fondue pot with the garlic, then discard. Over medium heat, add the wine and lemon juice and bring to a gentle simmer. Gradually stir the cheese into the simmering liquid. Melting the cheese gradually encourages a smooth fondue. Once smooth, stir in mustard and nutmeg. Spear dippers with fondue forks or wooden skewers, dip, swirl and enjoy!

Milk Chocolate Fondue

• 2/3cup half-and-half
• 12oz milk chocolate or 1 bag (11.5 oz) milk chocolate chips
• Dippers (pound cake cubes, strawberries, pineapple chunks, apple slices, marshmallows)
• Optional: You can add a few tablespoons of liquor if you want to make it an adult party, Orange Liquor, Amaretto, etc.

In 2-quart heavy saucepan, heat half-and-half and chocolate over low heat, stirring constantly, until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth; remove from heat. Pour into fondue pot or chafing dish. Spear Dippers with fondue forks; dip into fondue. (If fondue becomes too thick, stir in a small amount of half and half)

Breads n stuff

I love to bake, I'm really not all that great at it but I love to do it and this week I decided some baked goods would be amazing so I did an oldie (but a good one!) and tried something new. I made Cinnamon Pecan Twists with maple glaze, a much loved pastry in my family, and tried a recipe for french bread off pinterest. The french bread didn't turn out so great, but I didn't knead it all that much so I wonder if it might do better with more of that. It had a decent taste and was alright, considering it only took an hour to have fresh baked bread in my house :) This weekend I also had an early birthday weekend with my best friend Brit, and we had amazing fondue, which I will share pictures and recipes with next week :D for now, bread.

Cinnamon Pecan Twists with Maple Glaze

• 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
• 3 T sugar
• 1 t cinnamon
• 1/8 t nutmeg
• 2 cans Pillsbury refrigerated crescent dinner rolls
• 2 T margarine or butter, melted
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1/4 t maple extract (I use maple syrup, not quite as strong but easier)
• 2-3 t milk

Heat the oven to 375 degrees and grease down one large or two small cookie sheets. In a small bowl combine the first 4 ingredients, mix well. Unroll both cans of dough, separate into 8 rectangles and firmly press the perforations to seal. Brush each rectangle with the melted butter and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of the pecan-sugar mixture. Starting at the long end roll up each rectangle and pinch the edges to seal. Using a sharp knife, cut one roll in half lengthwise forming 2 strips. With the cut side up, carefully overlap strips 2 times to form twist (a picture of the process is at the end). Press the edges to seal and place on the sprayed cookie sheets. Repeat with remaining dough and sprinkle with any remaining cinnamon-pecan mixture. Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until golden brown. While cooking, combine the last 3 ingredients in a small bowl, adding enough milk for desired drizzling consistency. Drizzle over the warm rolls and serve!

(step by step, rolled, cut, open and twist!)

Quick French Bread

• 2 1/2 Cups Warm Water
• 2 T. Yeast
• 2 T. Sugar
• 1 t. Salt
• 3 T. Oil
• 5 1/2 -6 Cups Flour

Sprinkle the yeast and sugar over a bowl of the warm water. Let it sit for about five minutes until you see the yeast get all bubbly on top. Stir in the salt, oil, and flour. Knead the dough for a few minutes until it is smooth and pulls away from the bowl. Then cover your bowl with a warm wet towel and let the dough sit for about 15 minutes. You can turn your microwave on for two minutes and set your bowl of bread dough in the warm microwave for the 15 minutes. This warm envirmonment makes the bread rise a lot faster. Next, divide the dough into two long loaves. Place both loaves side by side on a greased cookie sheet. Then take a knife and slash the tops of each loaf diagonally. Allow the loaves to sit for a few minutes while you preheat your oven to 375. Bake for 30-35 minutes until golden brown. For an extra cruchy crust, mix together one egg white with 1 T. cold water and brush on cooked bread and cook for another 3 minutes, but I found that my oven gave me a good crispy crust.

Eggs Benedict and Excuses

My dad was a drill sergeant, and always used to say to me "Whats the effective range of an excuse?" with the proper answer being "0 meters drill sergeant", so I'll keep this short. Our house got infested with fleas, it was bad and I took this weekend as the chance to get rid of them once and for all. It'll be a while yet til I know if it worked, but it took up a good chunk of my weekend picking all the stuff up, cleaning my house and then waiting outside of it while the bombs did their work, but enough of that! I wasn't able to get to everything I wanted to do this weekend, but I do at least have one recipe for you! I wanted to revisit breakfast and try some new things. My husband loves eggs benedict, and I have never made them before, so I decided to try to do that. I made my own Hollandaise sauce, and honestly? I wasn't a huge fan. It took forever to make and I wasn't impressed with the flavors I got from it. I included the recipe here but really I'd suggest you just do the sauce from a pack, much easier and I enjoy it more myself. I promise next week I'll have a full post, and will hopefully make up for this mess!

Eggs Benedict

Poached Eggs:

• 4 quarts water
• 1/4 cup white vinegar
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 8 large eggs

Put 4 (6-ounce) custard cups in a 6-quart pot. Add 4 quarts of water or enough to cover the cups by at least 1/4-inch. Add the vinegar and salt to the water and put the pan over high heat. Heat just until the water begins to boil and the cups clatter against the bottom of the pan, 20 to 25 minutes. Adjust the heat to keep it simmering and steaming without the rolling boil. Break the eggs, 1 at a time, into another custard cup or ladle. Pour the eggs slowly into each of the cups, timing them about 10 seconds apart. Cook for 5 minutes each. Serve immediately or remove eggs from cups and transfer to an ice bath to stop cooking. Refrigerate for up to 6 hours in the ice bath. To reheat, bring water to a simmer, turn off the heat and add the eggs. Wait 1 to 2 minutes or until warmed through. You can do it without the cups, but they help keep the eggs in place and help prevent the eggs ripping open.

Hollandaise Sauce:

• 3 large egg yolks
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne, divided
• 3 to 4 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice strained, divided
• 8 ounces cold unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon-size pieces
• 1/4 teaspoon sugar

Whisk together the egg yolks, water, salt and 1/4 teaspoon of the cayenne in a small saucepan for 1 minute. Put the saucier over low heat and whisk vigorously, moving the pan on and off the heat every 10 to 15 seconds, for approximately 3 minutes. Add 1 piece of butter at a time, every 30 seconds, while continually whisking and moving the pot on and off the heat. Once half of the butter, or 8 pieces, have been added, add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. Add the remaining 8 pieces of butter, 1 at a time, every 30 seconds, while continuing to move the pot on and off the heat. After the last piece of butter has been added, add the remaining 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, the remaining 1/4 teaspoon cayenne, and the sugar and whisk for 1 to 2 minutes. Taste and add more lemon juice, as desired. Move immediately to a short, wide-mouthed thermos to hold for up to 2 hours. Reheat over low heat for 45 seconds.

To assemble: 

• English muffins
• Poached eggs
• Hollandaise sauce
• Ham or Canadian bacon

Toast the english muffins or place under the broiler until brown and a lil crispy. Fry up the ham or bacon until warmed through and browned a bit. Layer starting with the english muffin, ham, egg and then top with the hollandaise sauce and enjoy! We love these in our house, hopefully you like them too!

Pasta and creme brulee!

This week is a pretty random week, I was really busy with work and getting sick, again (the joys of working with children) so I decided to go with a favorite in my house, and something really easy and quick to do. The original recipe calls for grilled chicken, but I love to do my oven roasted chicken, so I used that instead, and I much prefer that flavor for it, but feel free to use grilled chicken if you want. For my oven roasted chicken, I just take skinless boneless chicken breasts, rub them in olive oil and season them with salt and pepper (and garlic powder sometimes, as we're a big garlic family) wrap them in tin foil and bake them in a 350 degree oven for about an hour. I wanted to try something fun for dessert to go with it, and am a big fan of creme brulee so I decided to brave that out an see how it went. It turned out so delicious, so smooth and creamy!

Chicken Penne Al Fresco

• 4 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
• 2 cups grabe or cherry tomatoes
• 3 cups uncooked penne pasta
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 3/4 cup dry white wine
• 1/2 t salt and pepper
• 1 1/4 cup lightly packed fresh basil leaves coarsely chopped
• 1 oz parmesan cheese, grated
• 2 cups diced grilled (or oven roasted) chicken breasts

Fill large pot with chicken broth and wine, bring to a boil before adding pasta, cook until the pasta in tender, and keep all the remaining liquid in the pot, do not drain! While the pasta is boiling, in a microwave safe bowl, put the sliced garlic, tomatoes, and drizzle it all in olive oil. Microwave on high for 4-5 minutes, stirring well after 2. Crush the tomatoes and add to the cooked pasta and liquid, adding the salt and pepper as well. Add the chicken, basil and cheese, reserving a bit of the cheese and basil for a garnish if you'd like. Mix well and serve.

Creme Brulee

• 1 quart heavy cream
• 1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
• 1 cup vanilla sugar, divided
• 6 large egg yolks
• 2 quarts hot water

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Place the cream, vanilla bean and its pulp into a medium saucepan set over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat, cover and allow to sit for 15 minutes. Remove the vanilla bean and reserve for another use. In a medium bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup sugar and the egg yolks until well blended and it just starts to lighten in color. Add the cream a little at a time, stirring continually. Pour the liquid into 6 (7 to 8-ounce) ramekins (I used bowls and just kicked up the cooking time). Place the ramekins into a large cake pan or roasting pan. Pour enough hot water into the pan to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake just until the creme brulee is set, but still trembling in the center, approximately 40 to 45 minutes. Remove the ramekins from the roasting pan and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 3 days. Remove the creme brulee from the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes prior to browning the sugar on top. Divide the remaining 1/2 cup vanilla sugar equally among the 6 dishes and spread evenly on top. Using a torch, melt the sugar and form a crispy top. Allow the creme brulee to sit for at least 5 minutes before serving. If you don't have a torch, like me, I used the broiler setting on my oven and just put it in for a few minutes, it doesn't have the same effect but is still tasty.

Salad and Sandwich

I was originally thinking about doing a soup and salad for this week, but realized it's still hot at least in my part of the world, and soups are, in my opinion best saved for a chilly day. So I decided to do one of my favorite salads that I had done before for some company, a walnut and pear salad with a home made honey dijon dressing. For the sandwich I thought over a few options, and decided on a Louisiana specialty, the Po' Boy. It's usually made with either roast beef or a fried seafood filling, and I decided to go with the shrimp. I'm not a huge fan of shrimp but on this sandwich it worked out really well, I really liked it!

Walnut and Pear Salad

(I have no idea why my computer won't load this photo the right way up, too sick to fight with it right now lol)

• 2 t butter
• 2 T liquid honey
• 1/2 t ground allspice
• 1 1/2 cups walnut pieces
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 3 T liquid honey
• 2 t dijon mustard
• 1 t ground ginger
• 1/4 t salt
• 1/4 t pepper
• 6 cups spring mix lettuce
• 2 Large unpeeled pears, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup grated smoked gouda cheese

Combine the first 3 ingredients in a small frying pan. Heat and stir on medium heat until the butter is melted. Add the walnuts and heat and stir until bubbling and golden. Transfer to greased baking sheet and let stand for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until cool. Combine the next 7 ingredients (olive oil through pepper) in a container with a tight fitting lid and shake well. To put the salad together, put the lettuce into a large bowl and toss with half of the dressing. Spoon the lettuce mixture onto 6 plates. Arrange pear slices over lettuce in a fan shape and sprinkle with cheese and walnuts. Drizzle with the remaining dressing and enjoy!

Shrimp Po' Boy Sandwich

• 1 pound medium shrimp, shelled, deveined and with tails removed
• 3/4 cup fine cornmeal
• 3/4 cup flour
• 1 Tbsp Cajun seasoning
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs, beaten
• Peanut oil for frying (or really any kind of oil)
• 1/2 head iceberg lettuce, shredded
• 2-3 tomatoes, sliced about 1/4 inch thick
• 4 small French sandwich rolls

Remoulade Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup mustard, preferably Creole mustard

• 1 1/4 cups mayo
• 1 teaspoon pickle juice or vinegar
• 1 teaspoon hot sauce (Crystal, Tabasco, etc)
• 1 large garlic clove, minced and smashed
• 1 Tbsp sweet paprika
• 1-2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning

Mix all of the remoulade ingredients in a bowl before hand and set aside for 30 minutes or so, as the sauce gets better over time. Pour enough peanut oil in a large frying pan to come up about 1/4 inch, and set the pan over medium-high heat until a small amount of flour sizzles immediately when you drop some in. Mix the cornmeal, flour, Cajun seasoning and salt in a large bowl. Working with a few at a time, dredge the shrimp in the egg, then in the cornmeal-flour mixture. Shake off any excess and fry until golden on both sides, about 2 minutes total. Set the fried shrimp aside on paper towels to drain. To assemble the sandwich, slice the sandwich loaves almost all the way through and smear remoulade on both the top and bottom. Lay down a layer of shredded lettuce on the bottom of the sandwich, then arrange the shrimp on top. Lay 3-4 slices of tomato on the shrimp and press the top of the bread down on the bottom, compressing the sandwich a little. Serve at once with hot sauce and a beer. (My favorite suggestion!)