Recipe #9 - Paula Deen Baked Potato Soup

So I have had a craving for potato soup for months, but didn't make it because I thought The Critic didn't like it.  Turns out he does, so I made it tonight.  Potato soup always runs the risk of tasting bland, so I went with a tried and true chef - Paula Deen.  I am not going to say this is the healthiest soup, but it didn't lack flavor.  So if you are looking for a lowfat/low calorie soup this ain't it!  But if you are looking for comfort food, then this is definitely the ticket.

The Critic gave it 3.75 stars out of 5 on the "soup" scale. 

Here is the recipe:

Baked Potato Soup

Serves: 8
Cook Time: 20 Minutes

Ingredients

• 8 slices Smithfield Naturally Hickory Smoked Bacon
• 1 onion, diced
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 3 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth
• 5 potatoes, baked, peeled and diced
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
• 2 cups half & half
• 1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, grated
• 1 cup sour cream
• Salt & pepper to taste (optional)

Steps

In a Dutch oven cook bacon until crisp; remove and crumble, reserve drippings.
Cook onion in bacon drippings until tender; stir in flour and cook for one minute, stirring constantly. Gradually add chicken broth; cook, stirring constantly until thickened and bubbly. Put in the diced potatoes, parsley, bacon and half & half; cook for 10 minutes. Stir in cheese and sour cream.


What did I think? I left out the sour cream in the end because I didn't think it needed it and it saved on some calories. I did not care for the bacon in it, but that is a personal preference.  If you are a fan of bacon you will love it.  I topped it with some French Fried Onions which I think added just the right amount of crunchy texture.  Again this is simply a preference. It was far better after a couple days also! Definitely a perfect soup for a cold winter night! 

It's No Longer Just Sinful...

I think I might actually commit murder over this cake!  It is a cake I have featured already in the post - The Best Chocolate Cake Ever.  The cake is the Sinful Chocolate cake, but I made a few changes and put a frosting on it that would bring anyone to their knees! As a matter of fact, Taylor and I were fighting over it for breakfast this morning!

THE CHANGES

1. I baked the cake in 2 9x2 in round cake pans.  Don't use a standard 9 inch pan or you will have too much batter! If that's all you have, only fill the pan 2/3 full and save the rest of the batter for something else.

2. I frosted it with a delicious, ridiculously easy whipped cream frosting! It was so perfect for the richness of the cake.  It was a perfect compliment instead of a decadent addition!

Are you ready for the frosting recipe? You might want to sit down for this!

Whipped Cream Frosting

1 can Ready Made Frosting, flavor of your choice
1 8 oz tub Cool Whip

Add both to your mixer and whip to combine.  Frost until your hearts content!

It absolutely can not get any easier than that!  Just remember to refrigerate the cake after you have frosted it!

Happy Baking!

Creative Outlet - Whose Got One?

Obviously I have been doing something to occupy February besides baking/cooking.  I recently joined a digital scrap booking club called Heritage Makers.  I thought I was doing a good thing for one of my husbands co-workers, but it turned out she was doing an amazing thing for me.  I've always been intrigued by scrap booking, but have never had the time or money to invest.  Plus it creates a mess and there is all that cutting and pasting and yuck. When I discovered digital scrap booking I thought I had died and gone to heaven.  Just this week I got my first projects in the mail and the quality was truly beyond anything I had expected.  I am going to post a few of the projects I have done so you can see that I haven't been slacking this month.

I did this page to answer the question...What is the heart of your home?

I did this page with Reflection in mind.

I did these for Samantha as a way to always remember her best friend. I love you kiddo! 

This was for Taylor's first Junior High play.  She was awesome! Love you babe...

What a labor of love these have been.  I have several projects I am currently working on including an ABC Deck of Cards for Addison, a Family Album and a Heritage Album.  Then there is always the fun of birthday and anniversary cards.  I promise more baking and cooking next month.  Thank you for indulging me this time.

Where Did February Go?

It seems I have let February get away from me.  It has been a month of weddings, parties and wonderful house guests.  Of course, there was Valentine's Day which only remains important because it is the anniversary of me meeting the love of my life.  It is hard to believe it has been 3 years, when it feels like a lifetime ago.  Life is so amazing when you find the perfect compliment to yourself.  However, please don't think I have not been busy in the creative department. 

First I was absolutely blessed to have the opportunity to make cookies for Miss Addison's first party.  I thought I might get off easy and do something simple, but she wanted horses.  So horses I did.  Keep in mind I had never tackled horses before so I was in new territory.  Of course something always goes wrong.  These were no exception.  First, the icing I used to flood the cookies separated when it dried and made a weird pattern on the cookies.  Second, I could not figure out how to put eyes on the darn things without making them looked possessed.  Third, the cookies started to get a little hard so I put bread in the container I was storing them in the night before the party.  Well this had a significant melting effect on the icing of the cookies in the near vicinity of the bread.  Lucky for me I plan ahead and make more than I need.  So by Saturday morning when I'm trying to get to Casper for a vet appointment, basketball game and a party I am dealing with crisis.  I won't even mention my procrastination of the cotton candy making. 

Long story short, I made it to the vet where Toby played with the cat. I made it to the basketball game where Samantha dressed for the JV team and played 3 minutes in the game.  And I made it to Addison's party where she had a hair raising good time.  Everyone loved the cookies and finally my day was done! 

 **Stay tuned for the other creative happenings I have been engaged in this month.

Lessons Learned

I didn't feel like cooking dinner last night and I had to go pick up John from work.  So I tasked Taylor with making dinner.  We were having Sloppy Joes and french fries.  I made sure she had everything she needed and went out the door.  She is still mystified with the temperatures on the stove because she called me to ask what "number" she should put the burner on.  Reminds me of her first attempt at a quesadilla...and turning the stove on 8.  She couldn't figure out why her quesadilla was so "crispy".  I love that kid. 

So John and I come home and the sloppy joes are simmering in the skillet...thumbs up!  The french fries are sitting frozen on the cookie sheet.  I asked her if she planned on cooking them and she started stuttering and waving her hands in various directions.  We were waiting on the oven to preheat.  She says I guess we will have to microwave the sloppy joes or something since we had to wait on the fries. Did I mention I love that kid?  I showed her how to put them on low to simmer.  See I told you...mystified!

Eventually dinner did get done and it was good.  Tay and I talked about why this experience was important in her quest to know how to cook.  I asked her what she learned and she came up with all kinds of answers, but they were gibberish.  Eventually she figured out that cooking is about "multi-tasking".  Really loving that kid now!

Thank you Taylor for your delicious meal and your willingness to learn.  Now I wonder how long it will be before I hear "Mom...what number do I put it on?"

Happy Cooking

Recipe #8 - Homemade "Tagalong" Girl Scout Cookies

In all their chocolate nakedness glory!

Hey all!

My husband was upset with me because I don't really bake anything with his particular tastes in mind.  Unfortunately, this is true!  I'm usually making things for others or trying recipes that look good to me.  It's not that he doesn't enjoy some of these things, but he was feeling left out.  So on Saturday I decided I was going to bake for him.  My husband loves Tagalong Girl Scout Cookies.  I have tried to find a reasonable substitution at the grocery store forever and there just isn't one.  Then I came across this recipe in a blog and decided to give it a try. 





Naked NO MORE!

1 cup butter, soft
1/2 cup sugar
2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp milk

Preheat oven to 350F. In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar. Mix in flour, baking powder and salt at a low speed, followed by the vanilla and milk. The dough should come together into a soft ball.  Take a tablespoon full of dough and flatten it into a disc about 1/4-inch thick. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet and repeat with remaining dough. Cookies will not spread much. Bake cookies for 11-13 minutes, until bottoms and the edges are lightly browned and cookies are set. Cool for a few minutes on the baking sheet then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Filling
1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter (natural or regular)
3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar*
generous pinch salt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 TBS cooking oil or shortening
about 8-oz semisweet chocolate

In a small bowl, whisk together peanut butter, confectioners’ sugar, salt and vanilla. When the mixture has come together, heat it in the microwave (again in short intervals, stirring frequently), until it is very, very soft. Working carefully with the hot filling, transfer it to a pastry bag (or plastic bag with the tip cut off) and pipe a generous dome of the filling onto each cookie. Chill cookies with filling for 20-30 minutes, or until the peanut butter is firm.
Melt the chocolate in a small, heat-resistant bowl. This can be done in a microwave (with frequent stirring). Add oil to thin the consistency of the chocolate for smoother dipping.   Dip chilled cookies into chocolate, let excess drip off, and place on a sheet of parchment paper to let the cookies set up. The setting process can be accelerated by putting the cookies into the refrigerator once they have been coated.

What did I think? I am not a good judge of these cookies because they are truly not anywhere near a cookie I would pick or enjoy for that matter.  But these were awesome because they turned out amazing and I had to do very little tweaking.  This is unusual for a recipe you pull off the Internet.  Except for mine of course!! The cookies even baked for the amount of time the recipe called for.  As per my usual though I had to be the expert and ended up putting my test batch back in the oven 3 times before finally believing the recipe.  So yes truly cook these cookies for the full 11-13 minutes.  The filling was really easy and surprisingly creamy.  I piped it onto the cookies with my handy dandy cupcake decorating gun of magic!  Wow did that make it easier.  I flattened the peanut butter onto each cookie, forming a flat patty before dipping them in chocolate.  They were really beautiful cookies once done.  They are far better than the purchased variety and you can have them all year long.  I believe even the fairly inexperienced baker can pull these off and look like a master.

"They are DEEELICIOUS!"

What did "The Critic" think? 4.5 out of 5 stars  He absolutely loved these cookies.  He was so excited that I thought of him and made him his own cookies.  Not to mention that he has been searching for these cookies forever.  So I scored some serious points Saturday for a couple hours worth of work.  He requested I try a graham cracker crust with these.  Still trying to figure out how to get the crust to stay in one piece, but I will keep you updated.  He said that would bring them to a 5.  Never satisfied I tell you!  But I love him anyway. 

I believe this recipe has become my #1 success this year so far and I don't even like the cookies.  It was a well written recipe and easily executed.  Thank you to the generous blogger who posted it...sorry I didn't write your name down!  She also had a recipe for Samoas, so if I can find it I will be trying those next I think.

Happy Baking!

Recipe #7 - Put The Lime on The Coconut Cookies

Hello All!  Sorry for the lapse in additions.  Taylor had a play last week and that consumed all of our time.  She was spectacular, but it has been a long week getting back into a routine.  However, yesterday I found inspiration in an unusual place.  My local hometown grocery store, Douglas Grocery gives out weekly, inspiration oriented pamphlets.  I had picked one up the week before, but as a busy life often demands, I threw it in the garbage without reading it.  This week I overheard two women discussing it - one enjoyed the crossword puzzle and the other enjoyed the RECIPES.  Now I had to read this weeks edition.  It was there that I found this little gem of a recipe.  I renamed it because this was the little jingle annoying me when I made them. 80)

Put The Lime On The Coconut Cookies

Crust:
1 stick margarine, melted
2 TBS brown sugar
1 1/4 c. flour

Filling:
1 c. brown sugar
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 c. walnuts, chopped
1 c. flaked coconut
2 eggs, well beaten

Icing:
1 TBS lime juice
1 TBS margarine, melted
3/4 to 1 c. powdered sugar

In a large bowl, mix together the margarine and 2 TBS brown sugar.  Add flour and mix well.  Spread evenly in a greased 9x9 baking pan, pressing firmly.  Bake at 350 degrees for 5 minutes.  Mix together well, 1 c. brown sugar, baking powder, salt, walnuts and coconut.  Add 2 well-beaten eggs and mix well.  Spread over the crust and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.  While still warm, pour icing made from icing ingredients.  Cool and cut into bars.

These are really hard to tell when they were done.  Mine were a little underdone.  They tasted fine, but I would bake them for the full 25 minutes or even 30.  Just watch the top closely so it doesn't get too brown or burn if you go more than 25 minutes.

What did I think? These were almost perfect. I already mentioned mine were underdone and so the brown sugar didn't melt and become chewy all the way through.  There was definitely a grainy texture with the sugar.  The icing added a tart little zing to the cookie. I'm not gonna lie though.  I prefer these without the icing.  They would be delicious with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.  You could even squeeze some lime juice over the ice cream.  There is always the option to use lemon also, but then they don't sound nearly as cool.  I will definitely make these again.  They combine two of my favorite things - shortbread crust and coconut.

What did The Critic think?  If his face was any indication when he tasted the icing, then he would have hated these.  I assumed he would not want to taste these because he doesn't like coconut really.  So when he told me they would be much better if I put regular powdered sugar icing on them, I ignored him.  He wasn't too enthused by decision.  I had to agree that I was a bit of a jerk.  Mostly because I wanted to do it the way I wanted.  Don't worry...I apologized!  He enjoyed this cookie more than I thought he would.  He even conceded that the lime wasn't as strong once the icing was on the cookie.  He would eat these again.  I will keep them plain and make him some icing to drown his in. 

Happy Baking!

Recipe #6 - Best Ever Chocolate Cake

It was the name of this cake that made me want to make it.  "Best Ever" is an almost impossible expectation to uphold.  Especially because I am pretty sure I have discovered the "Best Ever" chocolate cake recipe already.  It doesn't set itself up for failure though.  It calls itself "Sinful Chocolate Cake"!  And it is sinful and moist and chocolaty and rich and scrumptious and decadent and did I say DELICIOUS?  Don't worry...I will include that recipe too!  Let's get back to Mr. Best Ever.

The first thing about this recipe that concerned me was it started with the dry ingredients, instead of creaming the shortening and sugar.  I have never seen a recipe like it before.  But I was determined to follow the directions in the recipe instead of playing expert.  So I did.  There were some problems that I ignored. 

Problem #1 - The cake batter "broke".   This means that the fat, shortening in this case separated from the rest of the batter.  I thought it didn't look right, but at that point I just had to go with it and see what happened. 

Problem #2 - Both round cakes sunk in the middle.

I had to do some research into why this happened.  I consulted my copy of "The Cake Bible" and discovered possible causes.  It said that my oven was not hot enough.  You all don't know my oven, but it is overly hot.  I usually have to decrease the temperature or the baking time of things so I don't burn them.  I kept researching because that sounded lame.  Another possibility was I added cold eggs at the end.  Yes the recipe called for the eggs last! I don't know either?!?!  Lastly, it was possible I beat it too long.  The recipe calls for  beating the batter for 2 minutes, adding the eggs and beating another 2 minutes.  It seemed abnormally long to me, but I did what the recipe said. 

My last problem came in the making of the frosting.

Problem #3 - The frosting had clumps of cocoa powder in it.

I know...I know!  I had this problem the last time I made chocolate frosting.  You would think that I would have corrected the problem this time.  Folks...sift the cocoa powder into the bowl!  This will solve the problem and maybe the next time I make chocolate frosting I will remember my own little tip.

What did I think? Despite the problems I encountered, this cake is definitely giving the Sinful Chocolate Cake a run for its money. It was moist, except for the edges.  It had a great chocolate flavor due to the coffee.  I have never used coffee before, but it definitely deepened the flavor.  The frosting is still not the perfect chocolate frosting, but it was a compliment to the cake.  I am on a search for the perfect chocolate frosting recipe. 

With that said...I will make this cake again and perfect the recipe.  It has too much potential to cast it aside yet.  The critic has not taste tested it yet, but I will add his comments after the next making of the cake.

The Best Ever Chocolate Cake

2 c. flour
2 c. sugar
1/2 c. unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. vegetable shortening
1 c. milk
1/2 c. cold black coffee
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans.  In a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. 

2.  Beat in the shortening with an electric mixer on low speed.  Beat in milk, coffee and vanilla until combined.  Increase speed to high and beat for 2 minutes.  Add eggs; beat for 2 minutes.

3.  Pour the batter into the prepared pans; smooth with a spatula.  Make the cakes in the middle of the oven until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 30-25 minutes (my oven took 22 minutes).  Cool the cakes in the pans for 5 minutes, then turn the cakes onto wire racks to cool completely.

Frosting

1 c. unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 c. softened butter
1/2 c. light corn syrup
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 c. warm water
4 c. powdered sugar

1. Combine the cocoa powder, butter, corn syrup, vanilla and salt in a large bowl.  Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes.  Add the warm water; mix well.  Beat in the powdered sugar in two batches.  Beat until smooth.

Sinful Chocolate Cake

1 Devils Food Cake Mix
1 Brownie Mix (9x13)
1 c. mayo
2 c. water
2 eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Stir by hand all ingredients.  Do Not Use A Mixer...your cake will overflow!  Grease and flour one angel food cake pan.  Pour batter into pan and bake for approximately 60 min.  or until toothpick comes out clean.  Cool the cake in the pan for 20 minutes and then remove from pan. 

**Don't skip flouring the pan.  The cake will stick otherwise.

Happy Baking!

Recipe #5 - Belizean Banana Bread

This is not a new recipe, but one I absolutely have to share.  My parents went to Belize a couple of years ago and brought a cookbook back for me.  It is from the Hidden Valley Inn in Belize.  Here it is:

Banana Bread

1 1/2 sticks margarine
1 c. sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 c. very ripe banana
2 c. sifted flour
3/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 c. evaporated milk
1 c. Hersheys cinnamon chips (optional)

Cream butter and sugar.  Add eggs, vanilla and bananas.  Sift flour, salt and soda together.  Add to mixture alternating with the milk.  Pour into a loaf pan.  Bake at 325 degrees for approx. 1 hour.

I added the cinnamon chips as a last minute addition.  It made a subtle delicious flavor to the bread.  I will continue to add this to mine in the future.  The cinnamon chips are sometimes hard to find in grocery stores.  So when you find some, stock up!  I also double my batch and bake them in miniature loaf pans.  They make great gifts.  I just package and freeze them.  If I make large loaves then it goes to waste in my family.  This truly is the moistest bread I have ever had.

The true testimony was my husband, who told me he didn't want to try it because it wasn't really his thing.  But I think he started to feel guilty, so he tried it.  Then I watched him disappear into the kitchen several times.  He ate two loaves himself that night and has went on to polish off the other three loaves I kept out.  If you ask him, he will tell you it sucks!  I always say actions speak far louder than words.

Recipe #4 - Taylor's Shrimp Creole

Tonight was Alabama Shrimp Creole night.  I started off cranky and lacking patience.  Taylor was feeling a bit unmotivated to listen to directions.  But Dad showed up and helped refocus both of us for the most part.  Here is the verdict:

2 out of 5 stars

The critic thought this was a lot of work for something that turned out to be alot like "Rice-a-Roni".  It had very little spice and no real depth of flavor.  The critic thought it wasn't good enough for the money put into it.  Taylor was a little disappointed by the scoring, but again we reminded her it was the recipe and not the chef.  She struggled tonight with wanting to cut corners and we needed to talk about how that affects the outcome. 

What I thought?!  Now that I just sat down and looked at this recipe, I realized that it was very poorly written.  It didn't list all of the ingredients and didn't include the directions for some of them.  So I am not including the recipe for this.  I should have read it more thoroughly before starting.  This will be a good lesson for Taylor.  So I don't think it is fair to actually critique the recipe.  Better luck next time for us!

Recipe #3 - Christmas Cinnamon Rolls

Samantha loves cinnamon rolls.  I buy them for her almost every time she visits.  So prior to her last visit I found a recipe I wanted to try.  Here it is:

Christmas Cinnamon Rolls from Hometown Recipes For The Holidays Cookbook - submitted by Connie Lahey

Rolls
2  c. milk
2 1/4-oz packages active dry yeast
1/2 c. shortening
1/2 c. granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 T salt

7 - 8 c. flour

Syrup
1 16oz package light brown sugar
1/2 c. white corn syrup
1/2 c. milk
1/4 c. (1/2 stick) butter
1 1/2 c. chopped pecans (optional)

Filling
1/4 c. butter, softened
1/2 c. margarine, softened
1 1/3 c. light brown sugar
2 T + 2 t ground cinnamon

1. To prepare rolls, heat the milk in a small saucepan until scalded and set aside to cool to 110 degrees.  Dissolve the yeast in 1/4 c. warm water (105 - 115 degrees) in a small bowl.

2. Cream the shortening and sugar in a large bowl, using a mixer at medium-high speed, until light and fluffy.  Beat in the eggs and salt.  Add the yeast mixture and warm milk.  Reduce the mixer to medium speed and gradually add 3 cups of the flour, 1 cup at a time until a stiff dough forms.

3. Turn the dough onto a floured work surface and knead for about 5 minutes until smooth and elastic.  Place the dough in a large greased bowl, turning once to coat both sides.  Cover and place in a warm area until doubled in size, 1 - 2 hours.

4. To prepare the syrup, combine the light brown sugar, corn syrup, milk and butter in a medium saucepan.  Cook over medium heating, stirring constantly, just until the sugar is dissolved.  Do not boil.  Set aside to cool.

5. Lightly coat 3-5 8 inch round pans with non-stick cooking spray.  Pour 5 tablespoons of the syrup in each pan and sprinkle with pecans, if using over each pan. Punch down the dough and knead two or three times.  Divide the dough into 4 pieces, keeping each covered until used.

6. To prepare the filling, combined the softened butter and margarine in a small bowl; mix well.  Combine the brown sugar and cinnamon with the butter mixture.

7. Working with 1/4 of the dough at a time, roll it into a 19x24 inch rectangle.  Spread 1/4 of the butter/sugar mixture evenly over the dough. Drizzle with 2-3 tablespoons of the syrup.

8. Roll up the dough jelly-roll style, starting at the small end and pinching the seam seal.  Slice* into 15 pieces and place in pan, cut side down.  Repeat with the remaining dough and filling.  Cover and let rise in a warm place for about 1 hour until double in size.

9.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Bake for 18 minutes, or until golden brown.  Do not overbake.  Remove from the oven, let stand for 5 minutes, and invert onto plates.

*I use dental floss to slice mine.  It doesn't squish the rolls like a knife does.  I must also give credit to my Grandmother for that little trick.

I did make some changes to this recipe.  I didn't put syrup in one of the pans because Samantha likes glaze on her cinnamon rolls.  It only took me 3 pans but the recipe said to use 5.  I encountered a couple of problems because I thought I was smarter than the recipe.  I didn't measure the syrup and just dumped a bunch in the pan.  Consequently, my cinnamon rolls were soggy in the middle.  So definitely follow the recipe and measure the syrup.  I also think I didn't let them rise long enough.  They seems to be really small once they were baked.  I won't be sure until I make them a second time.  So don't be me and think you can outsmart the recipe and more is NOT better.  I know that the dough is beautiful in the recipe.  I haven't made much bread to date, so I am not the expert.  I do know that it was easy to work with and roll out.  That's my very low criteria for beautiful dough.

Happy baking!  Stay tuned for Taylor's Shrimp Creole review.  It's hot and waiting as we speak.   

Sugar Cookie Fun with Samantha

I had the immense pleasure last week to decorate sugar cookies with Samantha.  She decorates beautiful cakes, but had never decorated cookies with Royal Icing.  So we took a little trip downtown to Above The Cellar to pick out cookie cutters, icing colors and icing flavor.  Samantha picked out a cowboy hat and a cowboy boot.  I picked out a moose.  We tried a powdered color for the icing.  We both decided that while it is better than the gel, it is not as good as the color in the squeeze bottle.  The powder clumped up and needed stirred alot.  I had some trouble getting the frosting the right consistency.  This did not help Samantha in her decorating.  But she soldiered on and did the best she could with what I gave her.  It was a great time and I am so glad I got to spend the day with Samantha.  Next time we will tackle something a little more complicated and include a recipe.  So Samantha if you are reading this...you better start looking! Love you kiddo.  Thanks for hanging out with me!!

Recipe #2 - Taylor's Mexican Lasagna

Browning the meat

2.5 out of 5 stars

Tonight was Taylor's first recipe she completed on her own.  I offered minor direction and supervision.  She surprised me in her abilities.  I will let her tell you about her experience in her own words.  Here is the recipe she used:

Mexican Lasagna

1 lb lean ground beef (we substituted ground turkey)
1 16oz fat-free refried beans
2 tsp oregano (we substituted Italian seasoning)


Adding the beans

 1 tsp ground cumin
3/4 tsp. garlic powder
9 uncooked lasagna noodles (we boiled ours to reduce baking time)
1 16oz jar salsa
2 c. water (we eliminated this due to already cooking the noodles)
2 c. reduced fat sour cream
1 small can sliced black olives
1 c. shredded Mexican-blend cheese
1/2 c. thinly sliced green onions



Cutting the green onions

 In a nonstick skillet, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain.  Add the refried beans, oregano, cumin and garlic powder; heat through.

Place three noodles in a 9x13 baking dish coated with cooking spray; cover with half the meat mixture.  Repeat layers.  Top with remaining noodles.  Combine salsa and water; pour over noodles.

 Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 60-70 minutes or until the noodles are tender.  Spread with sour cream.  Sprinkle with olives, cheese and onions.


Construction is serious business





What did I think? I did not like this recipe.  Taylor did a great job making it, but the spices added an odd flavor.  It was also very bland.  The critic did not like the beans in it and we both decided we would omit them if we made this recipe again.  Taylor and I discussed how we could make it better, but I'm not sure we will try.

What did Taylor think?
I thought this recipe was awesome. I do have to admit though if it was Italian Sausage Soup vs. Mexican Lasagna, Italian Sausage Soup would win. I thought it had way to many refried beans than I would have liked. My dad so dubbed "The Critic" and my mom said that it wasn't the way I cooked it ,but just the recipe in general. Well, I am  self- proclaiming myself "Critic #2" and i thought that the recipe was great.

Recipe #1 - Italian Sausage Soup

First new recipe of the year - Italian Sausage Soup and the critic has spoken!

3.75 out of 5 stars

For those of you who do not know my husband then let me start by saying he might be the pickiest eater I have ever met.  I on the other hand have a much broader palate.  It is one of the few things we are not compatible in.  So I recruited him to be the critic.  So keep in mind that the critic is a picky eater!  Hopefully you do not have the same problem in your family!

Recipe
5 Italian sausage links (4 oz each), sliced  (16 oz. turkey sausage)
1 large onion, halved and sliced (diced)
6 c. water
1 28oz can crushed tomatoes, undrained (2-14.5 oz cans diced tomatoes w/ jalapenos)
2 small zucchini, quartered and sliced (replaced with 5 diced mushrooms and 1c. corn)
1/2 c. chopped green pepper
1 TBS beef bouillon granules
1/2 tsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. dried oregano (used 1 tsp Italian Seasoning for both spices)
1/4. tsp pepper
3 oz. uncooked linguine broken into 2 in. pieces
3 TBS grated Parmesan cheese (I forgot this when I served it)

In a dutch oven, cook sausage and onion over medium heat until sausage is no longer pink; drain.  Stir in the water, tomatoes, zucchini, green pepper, bouillon, basil, oregano and pepper.  Bring to a boil.  Stir in linguine.  Cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until linguine is tender.  Sprinkle with cheese.

**I used my slow cooker.  It took approximately 4 hours for the flavors to blend and come to a boil.  Linguine cooked perfect in the slow cooker.

So what did I think?  I would make this again.  It was a nice change from the standard vegetable or chicken noodle soups.  I loved how the linguine absorbed the flavor of the soup.  I would have put zucchini in, but I thought I might be pushing the critic.  I also like that it was adaptable to what I had on hand.  Keep in mind the jalapenos added the spice to mine, but if you use Italian sausage that will add the spice to yours.  I chose a lighter version of sausage, which I will continue to do.  I also like that it can be made quickly or in your slow cooker.  I like the slow cooker because I think it gave the soup a better blending of the flavors.  So my recommendation would be...if your meal times are hectic...throw this together the night before and turn it on before leaving for work.  If you are home during the day, throw it together about 1pm and it will be ready by 5:30 or 6!  Good luck and I hope you enjoy!