JAM!!

 This weekend I took Doodle to do something I always loved doing with my mom, picking strawberries! I will always remember going in May to a local strawberry farm and picking for what seemed like forever, only to then go home and make freezer jam with my mom. Nothing will ever taste as good a warm strawberry fresh from the field! We went to a local farm about 30 mins away from us and picked 2 gallons of their biggest, sweetest berries. After I picked my gallon, I looked down to see that Scarlet only had about 8 berries in her bucked. Then I realized she was doing way more tasting than picking! Love that girl! When we got home, I even got Jake in on the action by helping me hull all those berries. It was fun talking to him about all the things our families would can growing up. Our jam turned out great, and we even passed a few jars out already. My recipe comes from the back of the Ball Real Fruit Pectin jar.

 Strawberry Jam

Makes 2 (8 oz) half pints of jam

Ingredients

1 1/3 cups hulled strawberries

3 tsp. lemon juice

1 1/2 tablespoons pectin

1 2/3 cups granulated sugar

Directions

Sterilize jars and lids. Combine strawberries and lemon juice in an 8 quart saucepan. Bring mixture to a full rolling boil that cannot be stirred down, over high heat, stirring constantly. Add entire measure of sugar, stirring to dissolve. return mixture to a full rolling boil. Boil hard for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and skim foam.

Ladle hot jam into hot jars, one at a time, leaving 1/4 inch head space. Wipe rims. Center lids on jars. Apply bands and adjust to fingertip tight.

Place filled jars in hot water bath covered by 2 inches of water. Bring to a gentle steady boil. Process jars for 10 minutes. Turn off heat and let jars stand for 5 minutes.

Remove jars and cool. Check lids for seal after 24 hours. Lid should not flex up and down when center is pressed.

The gentleman where we bought the strawberries, said that peaches will be ready in about 2 weeks. I think I see more jam in our future!!

OKRA!!!

 There are lots of things to love about living in Alaska, but for a girl from the South, the worst part was not getting fresh okra! I only found it one time the whole 3 years we lived there, and that was only because Jake's Commander's wife was kind enough to text me an let me know that one of the local Safeway's had it. When I got there it was almost $7 a pound! I won't lie, I paid for over a pound of it. Best $7 dollars I have ever spent too! Thankfully one of the ups of living in the South again is that okra is in abundance. This week I actually found some at the commissary and knew I had to try a new recipes I had found in Southern Living's, "Comfort Food". To go with it I made something that always makes me think of my Aunt Abby, a layered salad. It's something I always secretly hope she brings to family get togethers, because no one makes it as good as she does. The recipe from Devon O'Day's "My Southern Food", comes pretty close! 

 Fried Okra

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups buttermilk

1 large egg

2 cups saltine cracker crumbs (2 sleeves)

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon slat

1 pound fresh okra, cut in half lengthwise

oil

salt (optional)

 

Directions

Stir together buttermilk and egg. combine cracker crumbs, flour, and salt. dip okra pieces in buttermilk mixture; dredge in cracker crumb mixture.

Pour oil to a depth of 2 inches into a dutch oven or cast-iron skillet; heat to 375 degrees. Fry okra, in 3 batches, 2 minutes or until golden, turning once. Drain on paper towels. Sprinkle lightly with salt, if desired.

Seven Layer Salad

Ingredients

1 pound bacon

1 large head iceberg lettuce or 2 head crisp romaine lettuce, chopped

1 large Bermuda onion, chopped

1 (10 oz) package frozen green peas, thawed

1 cup chopped green bell pepper

1 1/4 cups mayonnaise

10 oz. Cheddar cheese, shredded

 

Directions

 

Fry or broil bacon, drain on paper towels, crumble, and set aside. In a large clear bowl, layer the lettuce, onion, peas, bell pepper, mayonnaise, and cheese. Top with the bacon crumbles. Cover with plastic wrap and chill.

This weekend we are taking the kids to pick strawberries! You know what that means: JAM!!



Easter

Easter is my all time favorite holiday!  It even beats out Christmas to me. I think it's because growing up, Easter always was a time for our family to spend time together. All my aunts,uncles, and cousins would get together to hunt eggs and EAT! I always felt like this was the time everyone could show off all the good recipes they had discovered since Christmas! I have to say I'm very blessed, because everyone in my family is a great cook. I went back and forth about going home to see my family, or staying her and spending Easter with Jake. While I love my family very much, and I'm very grateful that we now live close enough to go home, I felt like since Jake and I spend a lot of holidays apart as it is, I should stay with him here. We had a great day! The kids opened baskets and we had a super relaxing day at home. On the menu here was: ham, mac and cheese, corn souffle, roasted green beans with mushrooms and onions, and homemade yeast rolls. For dessert I made a cold oven pound cake with sweetened strawberries and vanilla whipped cream. The yeast rolls and pound cake are from Trish Yearwood's,"Home Cooking with Trish Yearwood".

I think that when every woman gets married she inherits a recipe. For my mom it was chocolate delight. It's something my nanny always made, and my mom is required to make it for every holiday and special occasion for my dad. For me it's corn souffle. It's something my mother-in-law always made and it's one of the only things that Jake request, so I always try to make it for him at the holidays.

Corn Souffle

Ingredients

1 box Jiffy corn muffin mix

1 can whole kernel corn, drained

1 can cream corn

1 cup sour cream

2 tablespoons butter

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix corn muffin mix, both corns, and sour cream together. Pour into a greased 9x9 casserole dish. Dot top of mixture with butter. Bake for 50-55 minutes or until set.

I love any veggie that you can roast! I don't know what it is, but it just makes it taste 10x better. Being back in the South has many advantages and one of this is being able to find so many fresh veggies year round.

Roasted Green Beans with Onions and Mushrooms

Ingredients

2 lbs. fresh green beans washed and trimmed

1/2 red onion sliced

1 package button mushrooms

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons butter melted

1 teaspoon minced garlic

salt and pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place trimmed green beans, onion, and mushrooms on a foil lined jelly roll pan. Drizzle veggies with olive oil, butter, and garlic. Salt and pepper to taste. Lightly toss to distribute dressing. Roast in oven for 20-25 minutes, turning at about 15 minutes. Beans should be brown in spots and slightly shriveled.

Yeast Rolls

I love bread. There I said it! Who doesn't love a delicious yeast roll. So soft and fluffy. I don't think anything could compare. A woman who goes to church with my aunt makes the best yeast rolls! I always hold my breath when ever I think she might make them for something we have going on because they are so good. These come pretty close and it's one of the easiest recipes I've ever seen for a yeast roll.

Ingredients

1/2 oz. (1 packet) active dry yeast

2 cups warm (100 degree) water

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, melted

1/4 cup sugar

1 large egg

4 cups self-rising flour

 

Directions

Dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Mix the butter and sugar with an electric mixer. Beat in the egg. Add the yeast and mix well. Gradually stir in the flour, until smooth. Pour in a 2 -quart, greased, airtight bowl. Store tightly covered in the refrigerator overnight.

The next day, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease miniature muffin tins.

Spoon the dough into the muffin tins and bake the rolls for 18 to 20 minutes, or until browned.

I usually make a banana pudding for Easter, but with strawberries already coming in, I decided to do this pound cake instead. The homemade whipped creams just adds to this!

 

Cold Oven Pound Cake

Ingredients

1 cup ( 2 sticks) butter, room temperature

3 cups sugar

6 large eggs, room temperature

3 cups all-purpose flour, sifted

1 cup heavy whipping cream

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Sweetened strawberries

Vanilla Whipped Creams

Directions

Do not preheat the oven. Grease and flour the bottom, sides, and tube of a 9-inch cake pan.

Cream the butter and sugar until smooth. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition, but do not over beat. Set the mixer on slow speed and stir in the flour and cream alternately, beginning and ending with the flour. Add the vanilla and stir well. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and put the cake in a cold oven. Set the oven temperature to 325 degrees. Begin timing now and bake the cake for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Test for doneness by inserting a toothpick in the center of the cake. The toothpick should be clean when it is removed. Cool in the pan for 30 minutes, then turn out onto a rack to continue cooling.

Slice cake and top with strawberries and whipped cream.

Sweetened Strawberries

1 lb. fresh strawberries, washed with stems removed

1/4 cup sugar

Slice strawberries and place in bowl with sugar. Toss to coat. Place in refrigerator to chill until ready to serve.

 

Vanilla Whipped Cream

1 cup heavy whipping cream

1 tablespoon powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Place a metal bowl and the beaters of a mixer in the freezer for at least 30 minutes. Remove and promptly add cream. Whip on a high speed until soft peaks form. Add sugar and vanilla. Continue beating until stiff peaks form.

Tonight we enjoyed of the the greatest gifts ever given to the South, FRIED OKRA! I tried something new with it tonight, so be sure to come back for the recipe!

Breakfast for the Ladies

 Last week I held a breakfast for some of the ladies in our unit to discuss FRG (Family Readiness Group) upcoming events. I have to say I love having all of us together! We usually accomplish what we are there to discuss, but we also get a little of what in general is going on in our lives. The upside to this post and the spouses here is that most of them are older and have more parenting/Army wife experience than I do. It's always nice knowing someone who has been there and done that. Since we held the meeting at my house I was more than happy to cook! I made a delicious breakfast pizza from Southern Living's, "1001 Ways to Cook Southern" and cinnamon roll cake that I found on Pinterest. Both were super easy and yummy!

Sausage-And-Scrambled Egg Pizza

Ingredients

1 (13.8 oz) can refrigerated pizza crust

1 lb. ground pork sausage

6 large eggs, lightly beaten

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 (16 oz) jar salsa

1 (8 oz) package shredded Mexican four cheese blend

Sour Cream (optional)

 

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Unroll pizza crust, and press lightly into a lightly greased 15x10 inch jelly roll pan.

Bake at 425 degrees for 6 to 8 minutes. Remove from oven, and set aside.

Brown ground sausage in a large nonstick skillet, stirring until it crumbles and is no longer pink. Drain and pat dry with paper towels, set aside. Wipe skillet clean.

Whisk together eggs and pepper. Cook in a lightly greased skillet over medium heat, without stirring, until eggs begin to set on bottom. Draw a spatula across bottom of skillet to form large curds. Continue cooking until eggs are thickened but still moist. (Do not stir constantly). Remove skillet from heat.

Spoon and spread salsa evenly over partially baked crust; top evenly with sausage, scrambled eggs, and cheese.

Bake at 425 degrees for 12 minutes or until crust is deep golden brown. Serve with sour cream if desired.

Cinnamon Roll Cake

 

Ingredients

CAKE

3 cups Flour

1/4 teaspoon Salt

1 cup Sugar

4 teaspoons Baking Powder

1 1/2 cups Milk

2 Eggs

2 teaspoons Vanilla

1/2 cup ( 1 stick) Butter, melted

TOPPING:

1 cup ( 2 sticks) Butter, softened

1 cup Brown Sugar

2 Tablespoons Flour

1 Tablespoon Cinnamon

GLAZE:

2 cups Powdered Sugar

5 Tablespoons Milk

1 teaspoon Vanilla

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9×13 glass baking pan with cooking spray. Set aside.

In an electric or stand mixer add the flour, salt, sugar, baking powder, milk, eggs, and vanilla. Once combined well , slowly stir in the melted butter. Pour into the prepared 9×13 baking pan.

For topping, In a large bowl mix the 2 sticks of butter, brown sugar, flour and cinnamon together until well combined and creamy. Drop evenly over the batter by the tablespoonfuls and use a knife to marble/swirl through the cake.

Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes or when a toothpick inserted near the center comes out nearly clean.

FOR GLAZE: In a medium bowl, mix the powdered sugar, milk and vanilla together with a whisk. Drizzle evenly over the warm cake. Serve warm or at room temperature.

 

Now I'm off to go get to work on my Easter lunch! Pics and recipes to follow!



Broccoli with Pimiento Cheese Sauce

 I love broccoli and cheese! Broccoli is one of my favorite veggies, and growing up it always came covered in Cheez Whiz. This recipe is a new take on a classic. It infuses a little Southern touch to an all American dish. The pimiento cheese sauce gives it a delicious touch. This recipe comes from Southern Living's, "1001 Ways to Cook Southern".

Broccoli with Pimiento Cheese Sauce

 

Ingredients

2 lb. fresh broccoli, cut into spears

Pimiento cheese sauce

1 cup soft white breadcrumbs

2 Tbsp. butter, melted

1/3 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions

 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Arrange broccoli in a steamer basket over boiling water. Cover and steam 5 minutes or until crisp-tender.

Arrange broccoli in a lightly greased 11x7 inch baking dish. Pour Pimiento Cheese Sauce evenly over broccoli.

Combine breadcrumbs, melted butter, and Parmesan cheese; sprinkle evenly over cheese sauce.

Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes or until thoroughly heated.

Pimiento Cheese Sauce

 

Ingredients

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

2 cups milk

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

2 cups (8 oz) shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

1 (4 oz) jar diced pimiento, drained

Directions

 

Melt butter in a heavy saucepan over medium heat; add flour, stirring until smooth. Cook, stirring constantly, 1 minute.

Add milk gradually; cook, stirring constantly, until mixture is thickened and bubbly. Stir in salt and remaining ingredients.

I'm busy finalizing my Easter menu, so be sure to check back on all those yummy recipes! Also, I'm hosting a breakfast for some of the ladies in our until tomorrow, think breakfast pizza and cinnamon roll cake, so be sure to see all those treats as well!

Chicken and Fixins'

 I have a tried and true baked chicken recipe that I make on a fairly regular basis. My mom makes the same recipe and it always turns out great. Last night I went out on a limb and tried something different, and I'm happy that I did! This recipe uses herbs and lemon zest, and then you use the pan drippings to saute` fresh green beans! This was a big hit at our house and I have a feeling it might be replacing our normal roast chicken recipe! I made some buttermilk Parmesan potatoes to go with it, and we had a delicious weeknight meal! The chicken and green beans come from Southern Living's,"Comfort Food".

Lemon-Garlic Roast Chicken

Ingredients

3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

2 tablespoons butter, softened

2 tablespoons lemon zest

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 garlic cloves, pressed

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 (4-pound) whole chicken

 

Directions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Stir together first 7 ingredients. Starting at neck cavity, loosen skin from chicken breast and drumsticks by inserting fingers and gently pushing between skin and meat. (Do not completely detach skin). Rub half of butter mixture under skin.

Tie ends of legs together with string; tuck wing tips under. Spread remaining half of butter mixture over chicken. Place chicken, breast side up, on a lightly greased rack in a lightly greased shallow roasting pan.

Bake at 450 degrees for 30 minutes.

Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees, and bake 40 minutes or until a meat thermometer inserted into thigh registers 170 degrees. Cover chicken loosely with foil to prevent excessive browning, if necessary. Remove chicken to a serving platter, reserving drippings in pan. Cover chicken with foil, and let stand 10 minutes before slicing.

 Sauteed Green Beans

Ingredients

12 oz fresh green beans or 16 oz frozen whole green beans

Pan drippings from roasted chicken

Salt and pepper to taste

 

Directions

Bring pan juices to a boil in a large skillet; add green beans, and cook 5 to 7 minutes or to desired tenderness. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve beans on platter with chicken.

Buttermilk Parmesan Potatoes

Ingredients

2 1/2 pounds red skin potatoes, diced

1 1/2 -2 cups buttermilk

1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

3 tablespoons butter

salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Place potatoes in pan and cover with water. Bring to a boil and boil 15 minutes, or until fork tender. Drain potatoes and return to pot. Add cheese, butter, and 1 1/2 cups buttermilk. Cream with electric mixer and add more buttermilk if necessary to reach desired consistency. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Tonight I'm thinking I might make a broccoli and cheese casserole to go with our left over chicken!

Buttermilk 'n' Honey Pancakes

 Every birthday I always let the kiddos pick something special for their birthday breakfast. This is something that my mom always let us do, along with opening one gift and singing to us. This year for Wyatt's birthday he picked PANCAKES!! If our family goes to Cracker Barrel is almost always guaranteed that at least one of us will order pecan pancakes. There is just something about pancakes and pecans that just go hand in hand. These particular pancakes are super moist from the honey that is added to the batter. And instead of putting the pecans in your batter, you mix with with softened butter and honey!! I could eat a whole batch of these things they are so good! This recipe comes from Southern Living's, "Comfort Food".

Buttermilk 'n'Honey Pancakes

Ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1 cup buttermilk

2 tablespoons honey

Pecan-Honey Butter (optional)

Directions

Stir together first 4 ingredients in a medium bowl. Add egg, buttermilk, and honey, stirring until well blended.

Pour 1/4 cup batter onto a hot, lightly greased griddle or skillet. Cook 1 to 2 minutes or until top is covered with bubbles and edges look cooked. Turn and cook 1 more minute. Repeat with remaining batter. Top pancakes with Pecan-Honey Butter, if desired. Serve with syrup.

Pecan-Honey Butter

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/3 cup finely chopped pecans, toasted

2 tablespoons honey

1/8 to1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions

Stir together all ingredients until blended. Cover and chill until ready to serve.

Excited to be trying a new roast chicken recipe tonight! I love green beans and this recipe has you saute them in the juices of the chicken!

Birthday Fun!

 I can't believe my baby boy is 3 already! It seems like just yesterday we were bringing him home from the hospital. He always brings a smile to face with his quick wit and imagination. He makes me proud to be his mommy for sure! The last few months I've been asking what kind of birthday he wanted to have, and all he would say was he wanted a Ben 10 birthday. Well, I don't watch Ben 10, Jake watches Ben 10 with him. When I went online to try and find some ideas for his birthday everything seemed too old for his age group. So, finally I talked him into a baseball party! While home a few weeks ago I went to Party City and picked up all the necessary Braves supplies! We even all wore Braves shirts for the party. With the theme picked, food was easy. We grilled! Hot dogs, burgers, chips, veggies, fruits, cupcakes, and cake ball (courtesy of Nanny)! Today I'm sharing a great burger recipe and one for homemade funfetti cupcakes. The burgers come from Southern Living's, "Comfort Food", and they are some of the easiest ones I've seen. The cupcakes came from Pinterest and the website SweetPeasKitchen. These were way better than anything that could have ever come from a box. I even got lucky and found red,white, and blue jimmies at the commissary! 

 The Perfect Burger

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds ground beef (75/25 or 25% fat)

1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 1/2 teaspoons coarsely ground pepper

6 (1 oz) Cheddar cheese slices

6 hamburger buns

Toppings of choice

Directions

Preheat grill to 350 to 400 degrees (medium-high). Gently combine beef, salt, and pepper. Shape into 6 (4-inch) 1-inch-thick patties. Using thumb and forefinger, lightly press middle of patties, pressing in but not completely through, creating an indentation in center of patties. Let stand at room temp for 30 minutes.

Grill, covered with grill lid, over medium-high heat 6-7 minutes on each side or until no longer pink in center. Top each burger with 1 cheese slice, and grill, covered with grill lid, 1 to 2 minutes or until cheese is melted. remove from grill, and let stand 5 minutes, Serve on hamburger buns with desired toppings.

Funfetti Cupcakes

 

Ingredients

For the Cupcakes:

 

1 cup buttermilk

4 egg whites

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon almond extract

3 cups cake flour, sifted

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 sticks of unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup sprinkles, plus more for garnish

For the Buttercream Frosting:

20 tablespoons (2½ sticks) unsalted butter, softened

2½ cups Confectioners’ sugar

1/8 teaspoon table salt

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 tablespoons heavy cream

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin pan with paper liners.

In a 2-cup glass measure, combine milk, egg whites, and extracts and mix with fork until blended.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, on low speed combine cake flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add butter and continue beating at slow speed until mixture resembles moist crumbs, with no powdery streaks remaining.

Add all but 1/2 cup of milk mixture to crumbs and beat at medium speed for 1½ minutes. Add remaining 1/2 cup of milk mixture and beat 30 seconds more. Stop mixer and scrape sides of bowl. Return mixer to medium speed and beat 20 seconds longer. Fold in sprinkles. Divide the batter evenly among muffin pan cups.

Bake 18-22 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center of cupcakes comes out clean. Transfer muffin pan to wire rack to cool completely before removing cupcakes. Cool completely prior to frosting.

To make buttercream frosting, in standing mixer fitted with whisk attachment, beat butter at medium-high speed until smooth, about 20 seconds. Add confectioners’ sugar and salt; beat at medium-low speed until most of the sugar is moistened, about 45 seconds. Scrape down bowl and beat at medium speed until mixture is fully combined, about 15 seconds; scrape bowl, add vanilla and heavy cream, and beat at medium speed until incorporated, about 10 seconds, then increase speed to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes, scraping down bowl once or twice.

Place frosting into a large decorators decorating bag fitted with the 1M decorating tip and approximately 1/4″ above cupcake top at a 90° angle to cupcake surface, pipe a spiral of icing, beginning at the outer edge and working inward. Sprinkle with remaining sprinkles.

Yields: 24 cupcakes or 1 two-layer cake

Prep Time: 1 hour and 30 minutes (includes cooling)

Bake Time: 22 minutes

 

 

It was great having friends and family here to help celebrate Wyatt's big day! Stay tuned for any amazing pecan pancake recipe!