Wow...It's Been a Long Time...New Recipe

Won't even go in to why I haven't posted since October 11!!! To make up for it I'm posting a new recipe. These are THE.BEST.COOKIES.EVER. Enjoy!!

Molasses Cookies (yes, Molasses, don't be afraid, they are fantastic!!)

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) margarine or butter
1/4 cup light (mild) molasses
1 1/4 cups sugar (1 cup for recipe, 1/4 cup to roll cookies in)
1 large egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves (you can use allspice if you don't have cloves)

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In 3-quart saucepan, melt margarine or butter over low heat. Remove saucepan from heat and, with wire whisk, beat in molasses and 1 cup sugar until blended, whisk in egg. With spoon, stir in flour and remaining ingredients until mixed.
2. Transfer dough to medium bowl and freeze 15 minutes or until firm enough to handle (don't leave out this step). Spread remaining 1/4 cup sugar on waxed paper. Roll dough into 1-inch balls, roll balls in sugar to coat.
3. Place balls, 2 1/2 inches apart, on ungreased large cookie sheet. Bake cookies 10 to 12 minutes, until cookies spread and darken. Let cookies remain on cookie sheet on wire rack 1 minute to cool slightly. Transfer cookies to wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with remaining dough. Store cookies in tightly covered container up to 2 weeks.
*Makes 2 dozen

Cake, Cake, Cake...

I made an awesome King Cake for a Cajun themed catering event last weekend. It's made with a yeast dough and has a cream cheese filling. It was soooo good. Here's the link to the recipe - King Cake . This is a cake that has to rise twice, so give yourself some time to make it. The picture isn't the one I made, just an example.

Speaking of cakes, I will take this opportunity to shamelessly plug Southern Comfort Catering. We can do any of your holiday, birthday, or special occasion baking. We don't really do decorated cakes unless it's something very, very simple - we just don't have the time. However, we do make some awesome "Yummy" cakes. Flavors include: Butter Pecan, Strawberry with Strawberry Cream Cheese Icing, Red Velvet, German Chocolate, Chocolate with Sour Cream Chocolate Icing or Cappucino Icing, Coconut, White Almond Sour Cream, Old Fashioned Chocolate Sheet Cake, Carrot Cake, and Pumpkin Rolls, just to name a few. Cakes can be made into any size - including cupcakes. A two-layer 9 in cake or a 9x13 cake or 2 dozen cupcakes are between $25 and $32. We also do other desserts like pies and cobblers. We can help with any other cooking needs as well - from full meals to extra sides for that Holiday Family Get Together. Call either Lynn or I to place an order or get a quote.

Becky - 425-6731 or Lynn - 504-7689 or email

Butter Pecan Cake

Guess What Joshua Wants for Christmas...

We visited friends in East Tennessee over Labor Day and Joshua got to ride the "Warrior". He loved it of course and now wants one. What he really wants is a dirt bike - so he can do jumps and tricks!! Anyone know of a good, used dirt bike out there for sale?

It's Soup Season - Recipe (and a Friday Foto)

The Friday Foto First...My Babies

Now the recipe:

Here is a recipe for an awesome Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice soup - very much like the one at Panera's. I found a recipe on AllRecipes and then messed around with it until I got what I wanted. Enjoy!!

INGREDIENTS
4 cups chicken broth
2 cups water
2 cooked chicken breasts, cut up
½ onion, diced (about ¼ cup or so)
2 celery stalks, diced (about ¼ cup or so)
2 carrots, diced (about ¼ cup or so)
1 package (6 oz, I believe) Uncle Ben’s long grain and wild rice with seasoning packet
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup butter
2 cups ½ and ½ (or 1 cup ½ and ½ and 1 cup milk)

DIRECTIONS
1. In a large pot sauté onion, celery, and carrots in a small amount of butter or oil for 5 mins.
2. Add broth, water and chicken to pot. Bring just to boiling, then stir in rice, reserving seasoning packet. Cover and remove from heat.
3. In a small bowl, combine salt, pepper and flour. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in contents of seasoning packet until mixture is bubbly. Reduce heat to low, then stir in flour mixture by tablespoons, to form a roux. Whisk in ½ and ½ , a little at a time, until fully incorporated and smooth. Cook until thickened, 5 minutes.
4. Stir cream mixture into broth and rice. Cook over medium heat until heated through, 10 to 15 minutes.
5. If soup becomes too thick then add milk until it is the desired consistency.

Bunco's in Season...

My Bunco group's "season" just started. We break for the summer and start back up in September each year. I'd forgotten how much fun we have until that first game night of the season!! The best things about my Bunco group are the fellowship and the food. The game really doesn't have much to do with it at all - except that it's really nice when you win a prize - yes, we play for prizes not cash - cash evidently would be against the law and the will of our pastor!! We all know that now because at this season's first game someone suggested not giving prizes, but cash instead. I thought a couple of the ladies were going to fall out on the floor!!! We did decide that gift cards would be okay, but no cash (we each bet, oops-I mean give, $5 to the month's hostess to buy the gifts and/or gift cards).

The first game night of the season is always a bit crazy and this year's fell right into step. For some reason the main topic of the night seemed to be "boobs" - this is not a usual topic of conversation, we are all very well mannered women - as attested to by our NOT playing bunco for cash. It just so happened that everytime "boobs" were mentioned one of the hostess' sons or her husband - a pastor at our church - happened to have snuck into the kitchen for food!! First of all, the hostess misinterpreted T's comment "I've had them sized once, so I can't do it again" as refering to her "boobs", when in reality T was refering to her rings. So, as "boobs" were being mentioned here and there we notice the hostess' youngest son standing in the kitchen taking it all in. Needless to say there were red faces all around!! Later in the evening the hostess' oldest son comes into the kitchen. Luckily he is spotted and we are careful not to let "boobs" out. However, he states that the younger brother came up stairs and ratted us out, letting it be known that "those ladies are talking about boobs downstairs!!!" Busted!! And, that wasn't the last of it. We were having a conversation about when our PJ bunco night is going to be when the hostess' husband comes down for food. The conversation is safe until T, who has her back to the kitchen and doesn't see Pastor Husband, announces "Well, I won't be wearing my lingerie (pronounced ling-er-ee) because I have no boobs!!" (NOTE: this is the second time T has been caught in the "boob" talk, T may need some therapy!!) Several people point to the kitchen. T turns slowly, sinks in her chair, and turns 15 shades of red. We all bust - no pun inteded - out in laughter. We are, of course, laughing with her, not at her. Yeah right, who am I kidding...we were laughing at her!!!

I love my "bunco buds" and look forward to getting together with them all each month!! It's always great fun, and sometimes quite "uplifting" - pun intended!!!

Four Layer Delight

When I was putting together a menu for a catering gig I came across this dessert recipe. My mom used to make it all the time and it is one of my absolute favorites - and it's easy to make.
Enjoy!!

It calls for chocolate pudding, but you can use vanilla or butterscotch or any flavor you like. You can also make it with blueberry pie filling instead of the pudding - it's absolutely YUMMY!!

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup margarine
1 1/4 cups confectioners' sugar, divided
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/8 cups chopped pecans
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
1 (8 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed (I use the next bigger size of Cool Whip)
2 (3.4 ounce) packages instant chocolate pudding mix
3 cups milk

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Coat a 9x13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.
In a bowl, cream together margarine with 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar. Mix in flour and 1 cup pecans. Press into bottom of prepared dish.

Bake in preheated oven 15 minutes, until very lightly browned. Cool completely.

In a bowl, cream together cream cheese with remaining 1 cup confectioners' sugar. Fold in half the whipped topping. Spread over cooled crust.

Stir together pudding mix and milk and allow to set up slightly. Spread over cream cheese layer. Top with remaining whipped topping and sprinkle with remaining nuts. Keep refrigerated.

Becky

Cake Pics

Thought I'd share some pictures of cakes I've done or helped do.

This first one is one that I merely helped with. The real props for this cake go to Crystal Alexandro - she is one of the most fabulous cake decorators!!! Mr. Duff ain't got nothing on her!! Her cakes are actually made of cake - not steel or wood or rice krispy treats!!

By the way - all the "pearls" you see on the cake are hand-rolled fondant pearls. The fondant is cut out with the end of an icing tip, rolled into a ball, allowed to dry and then covered in luster dust.

Some birthday cakes.

Halloween Cookies

I'll be in my room...

Oh no she didn't. She couldn't have. I must be hearing her wrong. My dear sweet daughter was never going to retreat to her room to be by herself. She wasn't going to be the typical teenage girl. But now she is. My Hannah turned 13 in June and so many things have changed - and not all of them do I like!!

Hannah and I have always been best friends. Really, we have, she tells me so, and I choose to believe her. She has always confided in me, talked to me about EVERYTHING, and loved hanging out with me. As a matter of fact, she still does. I love the rides in the car, the afternoons in her room, and the evenings in the kitchen when we just chat - about friends, our favorite TV shows, anything and everything.

Over the summer something different began happening. Hannah would just disappear. Not for long, but usually for 30 minutes or an hour, sometimes more than that. When I'd look for her, she'd be in her room - alone. Now, she hasn't ever liked being alone. She is very social and likes to be around people, the more the merrier. What is she doing alone in her room? Here are some answers I get when I ask her or go to her room and find her: Reading a book, messing around on facebook, texting someone (duh!!!), doing her devotional (I have no issues with that one!!), talking on the phone to the boy she likes (that's a whole other story!!), etc. I know, I know...this is all very normal for teenagers...but...I miss her. I don't want her to be normal!! I don't want to hear, "I'll be in my room..." I guess I'll just have to make those car rides, afternoons in her room, and evenings in the kitchen extra special now and be thankful that I have them.

Becky

Jambalaya

I lived in Louisiana for 13 years and fell in love with the spicy dishes prevelant through out the state - not just in the southern portion. I love gumbo, red beans and rice, dirty rice, spicy shrimp - anything spicy.

Below is my recipe for Chicken and Sausage Jambalaya. The recipe as given is not too spicy - I have to consider my kids. You can add more cayenne to make the recipe spicier - just be careful, a little cayenne goes a long way. You could also just add cayenne to an individual portion if there is someone who really likes it extra spicy. Don't worry if you don't have the spices listed, just use what you have - salt, pepper, garlic powder, etc. Enjoy!!

Chicken and Sausage Jambalaya
Makes 4-6 servings.

1/2 onion chopped
1/2 green pepper chopped
1 stalk celery chopped

2 bone in and skin on chicken breasts - boiled, deboned and broth reserved
1/2 lb. smoked sausage or polska kielbasa, sliced

1/4 tsp cumin
1/8-1/4 tsp cayenne (I used 1/2 tsp of cayenne and it was very hot!! Like, burning my lips hot after I had eaten several bites.)
1/4 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp thyme
1 lrg or 2 small bay leaves (don't forget to remove the bay leaves before serving)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper

1 1/2 c. rice
1 10 oz can of rotel tomatoes or small can of diced or stewed tomatoes
4 cups of broth - add canned broth or water/chicken buillion to reserved broth to make 4 cups

1. Saute 1st 3 ingredients in olive oil until soft -5 - 10 minutes
2. Add sausage and cooked chicken - cook until sausage is browned - 5-10 minutes
3. Add spices and rice - stir and cook for 5 minutes
4. Add tomatoes and broth. Bring to a boil, then cover, reduce heat and simmer for 20 - 25 minutes or until liquid is absorbed.

Yummy, yummy. You could also do shrimp instead of the chicken. Don't add it when you add the sausage, wait until step 4 when you have 7 or 8 minutes left and add the shrimp then at the end of the cooking so it doesn't get over cooked.

Joshua's Lasagna (plus a recipe for great bread)

Can't find the cable to download pics from my camera, so I'll add pics when I can.

Here's how Joshua's lasagna making experience went down.

Everything started off great: We had the recipe, Joshua washed his hands and put on an apron - which he modeled appropriately for the camera. Now, just let me say that Joshua gets queasy quite easily. All you have to do is mention the words "extra cheesy cheez-its" and he gags as he runs to the nearest receptacle. Sooo...when he pulled the ground beef out of the fridge I could tell by the look on his face that this might be one of those moments.

Joshua: "What animal is THIS from, Mom?"
(He has just in the last few months began to realize that meat comes from some animal, so we get asked this question ALOT.)
Me: "A cow."
Joshua: "Well, it looks like worms!!!"
(Now I KNOW this is going to be one of these moments.)
Joshua: "I'm not touching it!!!"
Me: "You don't have to touch it. I'll put it in the pan and you can stir it around with the wooden spoon."
Joshua: "Uh, okay..." (at this point his skin is quite pale and he has that "extra cheesy cheez-it" look)

He stirs for a minute or so, then it happens.
Joshua (with his hands on his stomach): "I don't feel well. Do I have to finish?"
Me: "What's wrong. Does the meat gross you out?"
Joshua: "Noooo...that's not it. Just don't feel good."
Me: "Okay. Go lay down on the sofa. I'll check on you in a minute."

So, I figure his cooking experience is over and I finish browning the meat myself. Just as I finish up the meat, guess who pops back into the kitchen...my little chef is back and ready to finish the lasagna. He follows the rest of the recipe and puts together a fantastic looking lasagna (which I don't have a picture of because the batteries died and we didn't have any others in the house. I have real issues with cameras!!)

The lasagna ends up being fantastic. Joshua is one proud chef and I'm one proud sous chef. He still vehemently denies that the meat grossed him out...we'll see what happens when he has to handle raw chicken!!!

Moving on to that promised recipe. Hannah and I made spaghetti and meatballs last night and had this fantastic bread to go with it - lots of herbs and garlic. Thanks to Ina Garten.
Garlic Bread

Who's Cookin' Dinner Tonight???

My Joshua LOVES to cook. He REALLY loves to cook anything he can "flip" - pancakes, hamburger patties, grilled cheese, pork chops, fried eggs, etc. I really enjoy having him in the kitchen with me. He approaches cooking like he does skating, boarding, and jumping ramps - on a bike, roller blades, skateboard, scooter, anything with wheels - with a let me in there, gung ho, no fear attitude!!

Yesterday he asked if he could cook dinner one night. I said "Absolutely!!" and pointed him to allrecipes.com (my favorite site to get ideas for recipes) to find something he would like to cook. After searching the site for about 10 minutes he found a recipe for lasagna. So...Joshua is cooking tonight and he is making lasagna. He chose a recipe that is cooked in the microwave (not my favorite way to cook lasagna) so we'll make a few adjustments to the recipe and bake it in the oven. I'll report on how it turns out and hopefully have some pictures to post.

Who's cooking at your house tonight???

Joshua's Sous Chef
Becky

Did you know...?

Did you know that at Kroger and Publix when they have a buy one get one free sale that if you buy just one of the items you get it for 1/2 price. For example, Cheerios are on sale for buy one get one free and the original price is $4.00 a box. You can buy just one box for $2.00. This comes in handy if you don't need two, don't want two or just want to stay within your food budget and can only spend $2.00. Same thing goes for the 3 for $6 or 10 for $10, etc. sales. You don't have to buy 3, you can buy 1 and pay $2. This can really help save money if you're on a tight budget. Love that they do this and that you can pay less for a product even if you only get 1.

Have fun saving!!

Becky

Blackberry Cobbler

I attribute my love of cooking to my mother and my grandma (on my father's side). I grew up in the kitchen watching them and helping out when they would let me. I loved watching my grandmother make cornbread for her cornbread dressing. I was almost always allowed to crumble the warm cornbread in a large bowl and then use my hands to mix in the chopped onion and celery and the sage. The warmth from the cornbread made the scent of the onion, celery, and sage come out and fill the kitchen. I have that same experience today each time I make cornbread dressing.

One of my favorite things that my grandma made was blackberry cobbler. Fresh blackberries cooked with sugar and butter to make a sweet, thick sauce. Strips of dough mingled in the sauce with a lightly browned lattice pastry topping. Warm bowls of cobbler topped with cream. YUMMY!!! Unfortunately no one captured grandma's recipe on paper before she passed away - she didn't use written recipes when she cooked.

The recipe below is nothing like my grandma's, but is very good. I've made it several times and it always turns out good. Top the hot cobbler with ice cream or heavy cream - or just enjoy it by itself. YUMMY!!

BTW - Fresh blackberries are in season right now and you can find places to go pick them fresh!! Go here to find out about Boyd Mill Farm .

Blackberry Cobbler

This is the original recipe. I don't make the dough as stated in step 3. I use Bisquick and milk instead of the flour, butter, and milk. I use 1 1/2 cups of bisquick and 1/3 cup milk. Mix the two together to form a dough and then continue with step 4. If dough is too dry, add a little milk, if too wet, add a little more Bisquick. Also, it is easier to roll if you let the frozen blackberries defrost before using them, if you are using the frozen blackberries.

INGREDIENTS
1 cup butter or margarine, divided
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1 1/2 cups self-rising flour*
1/3 cup milk, room temperature
2 cups fresh or frozen blackberries
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons sugar

DIRECTIONS
1. In a 10-in. round or oval baking dish, melt 1/2 cup butter; set aside.
2. In a saucepan, heat sugar and water until sugar melts; set aside.
3. Place flour in a mixing bowl; cut in remaining butter until fine crumbs form. Add milk, stirring with a fork until dough leaves sides of bowl.
4. Turn out onto a floured surface; knead three or four times. Roll out to an 11-in. x 9-in. rectangle 1/4 in. thick.
5. Spread berries over dough; sprinkle with cinnamon. Roll up, jelly-roll style. Cut into 1/4-in. thick slices. Carefully lay slices in baking dish over butter.
6. Pour sugar syrup around slices (The syrup will thicken when cooking, don't worry that it looks really soupy right now).
7. Bake at 350 degrees F for 45 minutes. Sprinkle sugar over top and bake 15 minutes more.

(*If self-rising flour is not available, use 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour plus 1/4 teaspoon salt and 2-1/4 teaspoons baking powder.)

Welcome to my blog. As stated in my about me, I love to cook. Cooking is my passion and my business. It's absolutely fabulous having a job that is also my passion!! I highly recommend it.

Hopefully I can use this blog to share my love of cooking with you. I plan on posting at least one recipe weekly as well as posting cooking hints and tips and ways to make the most of your money when buying groceries. Have a cooking or money saving question or suggestion? Just leave a comment and I'll try to answer or share it in one of my posts.

I'll also let you know what's going on with my catering company - Southern Comfort Catering. My dear friend Lynn and I started the company in January of this year and God has truly blessed it and us. Can't think of anything better than working with one of your best friends doing the thing that is truly your passion and serving the Lord at the same time. We really see our business as a ministry and have totally put it in the hands of God. He has completely amazed us time after time in the opportunities He has given us. Be looking for a Southern Comfort Catering blog site to be up and running soon. I'll let you know when it's ready.

Got to get back to living and loving life - which right now means folding clothes!!

Until next time.

Becky