Berry Smoothie

Ahh the aquarium glasses. If you don't remember HERE is the story of how I obtained the aquarium glasses. I had to make a blood pact (well or maybe just a promise) that the glasses would make an appearance in the recipe book. Here is round 2! Feeling okay about it Jen and Penny?

Now on to the berries. The ingredients for this berry smoothie (recipe compliments of Ali) have made a long journey. Jeff and I originally bought the ingredients at the whole food when we were shopping for the Latin Soup. We then brought them to his parent's house as a dessert. Everyone was too full so we trucked them over to my parents house for a late dessert. No go...too cold of weather for a smoothie. So the ingredients followed me to Denver and days later...the smoothie happened. I happily added all of the ingredients to the blender and pushed 'start'....hmm, nothing. Checked the plug, checked the outlet, checked the blender...buh humbug! Why berry smoothie, WHY! My roommate had a food processor that I thought I could make work, only it was too tiny to fit all of the ingredients. Therefore, I added bit by bit, blended it then put it in a separate bowl to make room for more.

Dish count: Blender, food processor, bowl, spoon, two glasses, straw (6)

Good thing you were so good berry smoothie!

Berry Smoothie

• 1 cup milk

• 1 cup frozen unsweetened strawberries

• 1 cup frozen unsweetened raspberries

• 3 Tbsp. sugar

• 1 cup ice cubes

Place the milk, berries and sugar in a blender; cover and process until smooth. Add ice cubes; cover and process until smooth.

I FINISHED COOKING!

So I have been slacking on putting this post up because I have been a busy bee. Or perhaps, it was due to my great sadness in ending the project...not! Although I loved cooking through family recipes and getting to know my way around the kitchen, it was not without negatives. My wallet was shrinking, my pants were growing and tummy was hurting. I am relieved to be done with the project!

My official end date was: January 16, 2011
My first post was: January 25, 2010

Just under a year! How's that for knocking out a goal?!

Since I am way behind on my posting, you will still have posts and recipes from family and friends. Exciting huh? After that I will end with a recap of the recipe book process....so be looking out for that. The book still needs to go through a large amount of editing, but I will post when I am ready for printing!

3 lbs Pork Loin

It was a no brainer that I had to save this recipe for when there would be people around to eat. Three pounds of pork, I mean come on! I would have been eating pork for weeks. I am going to have to give up credit on this one...my mom made the marinade and Rob did the grilling. I just swooped in at the last minute to snap a photo and eat. This recipe is REALLY good and great for special occasions or large groups.

3 lbs. Pork Tenderloin

• ½ cup soy sauce

• 6 Tbsp. honey

• 2 shallots, peel and chop
• 2 garlic cloves, peel and chop
• 2 bay leaves crumbled
• ½ tsp. salt
• 2 tsp. pepper
• 1 tsp. dry mustard
• ½ tsp. ground ginger
• ½ tsp. (or more) fresh parsley, chopped
Puree all in blender. Marinate 3 lbs. pork tender loin in puree for 4 hours minimum. Overnight is best. If 4 hrs leave out last hour. Cook on grill 20 minutes turning constantly. Do NOT baste with sauce. Boil remaining sauce for 5 minutes minimum.

Salmon Feta Pockets and Baked Noodles

Jeff and I had a nice dinner together of Salmon Feta Pockets and Baked Noodles. We didn't feel like getting the grill going because it was cold, so we baked the salmon in the oven instead. I think it turned out pretty good but I would like to try the recipe with the grill sometime. I have a confession that I must confess or it will eat me up inside....I made my salmon feta pocket with chicken. There! I said it! I am not quite ready to say that I love salmon...so changes had to be made. The baked noodles, from Gail, were great! They tasted like glorified macaroni and cheese. Yum!

Baked Noodles

• 1 small bag egg noodles – as thin as you can get

• 1 – 12oz chunk of extra sharp cheddar cheese (New York white if you can find it)

• Milk
• Butter
• Salt
• Pepper

Cook the noodles. Grate the cheese. Put noodles into a casserole large enough so that noodles fill only half. Add all of the cheese except 1 cup. Save that for the top. Add milk and stir into noodles and cheese. Make sure there is plenty of milk. It should be somewhat soupy. Add some butter and salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle the reserved cheese on top. Top with several pats of butter. Bake at 350°F for one hour.

Grilled Salmon, Bacon and Feta Pockets

• 4 – 6 oz 1in thick salmon fillets

• ½ cup ranch

• 3 slices bacon

• ¼ cup feta cheese crumbles

• 2 tomatoes chopped

Preheat grill place salmon skin side down on foil, add 2 tablespoons ranch, 1 tablespoon chopped bacon, 1 tablespoon feta. Fold up sides of foil, leaving the top exposed. Place on grill for 8-10 minutes. Top with tomatoes and serve.

Swiss Cheese Fondue, Potato Casserole, Pork Chops a la Ursula, Caramel Dumplings

Dinner night! Thank you to my friends who came over and helped me eat. Jeff and I dominated in the kitchen for this one! Jeff always jokes about how he is my sous chef. He does all of the boring chopping a prepping, while I get to do the cooking. It worked out though, and we seamlessly cooked through the dishes even with some spare time to sit and have a drink before guests arrived.

Swiss Cheese fondue...yum!

Potato Casserole. Anything that requires Corn Flakes as an ingredient is going to be good. Recipe from my mom.

The pork chops were so incredibly tender and flavorful. This recipe is from Rose.

Caramel Dumplings: we all agreed that they weren't really a dumpling but they tasted great. The warm brown sugar taste went great with the cold ice cream.

The Swiss Cheese recipe can be found here.

Mr. Dell’s Original Potato Casserole recipe can be found here.

Pork Chops a la Ursula

• 4 Pork Chops
• Egg
• Italian breadcrumbs
• Butter
• Several Onion slices
• Low-salt bullion (2 cubed for 4 chops)
Dip pork chops in egg and Italian breadcrumbs. Brown in butter. Add water to cover chops, along with several onion slices and low-salt bullion (2 cubes for 4 chops). Simmer 45 minutes to an hour, adding additional water, if necessary.

Caramel Dumplings
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup hot water
• Butter
• 1 cup flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• Pinch salt
• Cut in 2 Tbsp. butter
• ¼ cup sugar
• ½ cup milk
Boil brown sugar, hot water and butter for 5 minutes.
Mix the rest of the ingredients in a bowl with a spoon until mixed and then pour the brown sugar mixture into a 9x13 pan. Drop by the spoonfuls the batter into the brown sugar syrup and then put into the oven and bake for about 20 minutes. Makes 4 dumplings.
Let cool a little bit and put in a bowl with ice cream or milk - yummy!

Southwestern Sloppy Joes

Sloppy Joes have always been a favorite of mine. This recipe takes up the taste factor a notch and adds a Southwestern flare. I wish I had some grand hilarious story for you about how I messed this recipe up, had a crisis at the store, forgot to drain the meat, or added the wrong ingredients. It seems that the recipe is idiot proof! This recipe is from a family friend, Janet.

Southwestern Sloppy Joes

• 1 Tbsp. canola oil

• 1 medium onion, chopped

• 1 medium garlic clove, minced

• 1 tsp. chili powder

• ½ tsp dried oregano

• ¾ lb lean ground turkey

• 7 oz canned corn with red and green peppers with Mexican seasoning (also called Mexican), rinsed and drained

• 1 ½ cups salsa

• 1 Tbsp. dark brown sugar, packed
• 4 hamburger rolls, split

Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Swirl in the oil, then add the onion and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 4 minutes. Add the chili powder and oregano, and cook 1 minute more. Add the turkey and corn and cook until the mixture is nearly dry, about 4 minutes. Stir in the salsa and sugar and cook, stirring occasional, until slightly thickened and the turkey is cooked through, 4-5 minutes longer. Spoon over the opened rolls and serve.

Oatmeal

I love oatmeal and I love crock pot cooking! This recipes combines both in a warm breakfast treat. The oatmeal expands a lot in the crock pot so be prepared to eat! This recipe comes from my friend Rose.

Oatmeal

• 2 cups steel cut oats (not instant or rolled oats)

• 6-8 cups water, depending on how long the oatmeal will cook

• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• ½ cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 2 apples, peeled and diced
• 1 cup raisins

• 1 cup sliced bananas

• ½ cup chopped walnuts

Spray Crock Pot with nonstick cooking spray. If you’re planning to cook the oatmeal 8 hours or longer, use 8 cups of water. If you want to cook it less than 8 hours, use 6 cups of water. Put first seven ingredients (through raisins) in slow cooker and cook on low. Just before serving stir in bananas and walnuts. Sprinkle with additional brown sugar if desired.

Kinipfoli and Pizza Pasta

Both of these recipes are great if you are trying to save a buck or two. Per usual though, things that are not that expensive are pretty hard on my stomach. I guess my tummy has expensive taste!  I knew I would need some reinforcements to chow down on these dishes, so Devon and Luke came over.

Kinipfoli comes from Amanda and her Dad, Kevin. It is a traditional German dish from what I gather. Kevin was well known in his college house for being an excellent Kinipfoli maker and would often make the dish for his roommates. It is a great recipe for college guys...very few ingredients, cheap and filling. Not really full of vegetables, but who needs vegetables when you have butter and saltines? It was so good tasting and really fun making the noodles from scratch.

Kinipfoli

• 2 eggs

• Salt

• 1.5 cups flour

• Milk

• Saltine crackers

• Butter

Beat 2 eggs. Add 1 tsp. salt to the eggs. Pour egg/salt mix into a bowl containing 1.5 cups of flour and mix well, these will be your noodles. Add milk to the noodle mix "as necessary" and divide noodles to make various sizes. Boil noodles in water until they float. In another pan melt some butter, and crush up some crackers, not too crushed, you want to have various sizes of crushed crackers but you don't want them real tiny (usually takes about one to two of those individual packages). Just add butter to the crackers as you see fit, it really just depends on how many crackers you decide to use. Crackers should NOT be soggy, you just want to brown them in the butter. Mix browned crackers and noodles together in a bowl or pan.

*Just a couple side notes from yours truly (Amanda): Make sure you have salt handy on the table while eating, you’re definitely going to want to add some, but it differs from person to person so they can add according to personal taste. Also, may I suggest milk as a beverage to go with this dish. That's how I like it anyway.

Pizza Pasta comes from a cousin of my brother-in-law, Rob. Did you get all that?

Pizza Pasta

• 2 pkgs. Ramen noodles – any flavor

• 2 to 3 cups spaghetti sauce

• 25 pepperoni slices – halved

• ¾ cup chopped bell green pepper

• ½ cup grated cheddar cheese

• 1 cup grated mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350°F. Cook noodles and drain. In pan put sauce, pepperoni, peppers, and cheddar cheese. Stir till cheese is melted. Lightly grease an 8x8in pan and put in noodles. Put in sauce mixture. Sprinkle mozzarella over it. Bake 15 minutes – till cheese is melted.