Happy Valentines Day.

Happy Valentines Day to my Valentines. Darrell, I love you always with all my heart; and I like you most of the time.

Also, my 4-legged Valentine, kisses to Jake from Momma.

And my little Valentines, Hailey and Caleb.

Yes, you might be observing that the last 3 don't actually read the blog, but just saying.

Presents For My Littlest Valentines and Melynda's Cottage Cheese Buns

Can you keep a secret? 

This one is for Step Granddaughter.

I found this guy at Goodwill.

A small box of chocolates.  You Rock.

Not really sure what this thing is except that it probably has M and Ms in it.  She'll have fun figuring it out. 

And one Peeps because I'm a Peeps freek and I'll probably be teaching that.

Not a bad little package, do you think? 

And for Brilliant Baby , a.k.a the Rock Star.

Also from Goodwill.

Foil Wrapped Chocolates.  He unwraps Kisses and hands the foil back to Papa, so this will be age-appropriate.   

 Another Peeks went into his package.  The rest are in my drawer.  Osbornes, stay out! 

Purr-tect Valentine.

Another fun package.  Both went up high in my closet for tomorrow.  Let's just say I had a little Fun with that.

Now.  Other important matters.  I've been meaning to try Melynda's Cottage Cheese Buns for some time.  They went great with our roast last night.  The batter is sticky, but So Pretty and Fragrant.  Yummy 

 http://momssundaycafe.blogspot.com/2010/07/sunday-morning-kitchen-cottage-cheese.html

Daughter-in-law grew up in a house that did no baking.  She watched and we talked about yeast and smelled the dough.  A pleasant time.

Babies like them.  I brushed a little melted butter on top.  But otherwise, it's all Melynda.  Thanks!

Christmas Party; Part 2

Morning of the party and I need to get going.  But first, I need a full belly.  Yogurt, peaches and Honey Bunches of Oats cereal.  A big bowl.  It will be a long day. 

Yesterday the table I'll use for food got it's table cloth.  The big serving dishes came out and got washed.  This morning the table which will be for beverages needs to get set up and a few more food items prepared. 

Ham and Cheese Spread
2 pkgs (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
1/2 c. sour cream
2 T. dry onion soup mix
1 c. fully cooked ham, diced
1 c. shredded Tillamook medium cheddar
1/4 c. chopped fresh Italian parsley

Combine all but the last ingredient and shape in a ball.  Roll the ball in the parsley.  Get it really cold.  Serve with crackers, veggies or whatever.

I bought a veggie and dip tray from the deli and transferred it to my own service dishes.  Saves on cleaning and cutting and can actually be cheaper depending on how you do it.  Added green and black olives.  There is crackers and pita bread cut in 8ths.

I made a bundt cake late in the day.  The one with a box devils food cake mix, a big box of chocolate pudding mix, a sack of whipped cream mix, water, oil and 4 eggs.  I'm not proud of this, but that's what happened.

The whole shrimp cocktail thing is there for me to resolve every year.  There is horseradish in cocktail sauce.  I don't use horseradish in anything else.  The choice:  (1) buy prepared cocktail sauce, or (2) buy horseradish and make cocktail sauce with the left over horseradish going to waste.  I decided to buy cocktail sauce.

Kid Punch
One tube of frozen condensed pineapple juice.  One large thing, I guess that's 2 litters, of Sprite, and quart of orange sherbet into the punch bowl. It is sweet and gets foamy on the top.  One of those once a year things.  This was my mom's recipe.  Their celebrations were modest because of budget, but these little treats are the things we remember, anyway. 

There were some adult beverages consumed but everyone used good judgement.  I have had years when this was a problem.  People, when you go to your bosses' house, don't get drunk.  Just saying.

Oh, and I kept most of the meatballs with Josh's sauce in the warming drawer of my oven and transferred them out in batches so they stayed hot.  There's like three left after everyone left. A treat for husband for later.  If you have a chance to buy a new oven, make sure it has a warming drawer.  I use mine for something almost ever day.

 

This dog goes to work with us every day.  Husband makes sure he is loaded up in a truck headed that way in the morning and headed home at night, so everyone knows this dog.  He was sure to stay close and watch out for any food that got dropped.

I tried to circulate and talk to all of the wives. Hear anything they wanted to say to me.  I'm not a real social person and sometimes have trouble with small talk, but I think that they need to know who we are and that their husband is well thought of.  I heard my Husband doing the same.

The children got a bit rowdy, but Step Son and our Foreman stepped in and handled it

I went to bed just as soon as eveyone not directly related to me left.  Husband and Step Son stayed up.  They hadn't had much to drink.  I think that may have changed after I went to bed.  Then, during the night, the bedroom door opened.  The dog laid his big head on the edge of the bed near my head and Husband was there.  I'll have some clean up in the morning, but until then...

Remember to surround yourself with good but not perfect people.

Christmas Party; Part 1

I was raised by (2) very type A people.  I entered adulthood highly productive and self sufficient but really, really tired.  These days, I go to Yoga class Monday nights and Belly Dance class Thursday nights.  I attend classes with people who are literally half my age.  On those nights when I am really horrible at my class, I plan to be horrible + 1 the next week.  Martha doesn't live here any more.

Saturday is our big Christmas Party.  Employees of our business and their families are invited.  Everything will be Make-Ahead and Do-Ahead, because that's just how I'm rolling. No stress here. 

Dish #1:  Several nights ago, I made meatballs and stuck them in my freezer, basically my standard meatball recipe with the addition of the yogurt.  I made them small and will heat them with the family barbecue sauce.  I've got some fancy little toothpicks with red and green flags.  Wait 'til ya see!!

Party Meatballs
1 lb ground beef
1 egg
1/2 rolled quick oats
1/4 finely chopped shallot
1 clove garlic
2 t. worcestershire sauce
1/4 c. good quality plain organic yogurt 

Combine and shape into small balls.  Place on a flat, foil lined, metal baking sheet.  Bake in 500 degree oven for 8 to 10 minutes.  I doubled this.  I have lots of meatballs.  My camera stayed at work this night, so you'll have to see them tomorrow. 

Josh's Awesome Barbecue Sauce

2 c. catchup 

1 c. brown sugar

1/4 c. apple cider vinegar 

1/4 c. soy sauce

2 t. minced garlic

1/2 t. tabasco sauce

Combine ingredients and refrigerate or use.  Josh makes the most awesome grilled ribs with this.  I've often got a mason jar of the stuff in my fridge and use it to marinade or as a dipping sauce. Not fancy, but real and we like it.  Another fresh one is tucked in there now.  I'll combine it with the meat balls tomorrow.

Our business is a construction company.  Construction men eat.  The meatballs should take the edge off. I'll be finding toothpicks with red and green flags everywhere for months but that's okay. Really.

Dish #2
Hummus and Pita Bread
16 oz can garbanzo beans/chick peas, drained and rinsed
1 t. baking soda
1/2 c. sesame tahini sauce
1/4 c. cold water
1/4 c. fresh lemon juice
1/2 t. ground cumin
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 T. olive oil or more
1 t. salt or more

Everything into a blender or food processor.  Process until smooth.  It doesn't get as smooth as kind you buy in containers. Refrigerate.  We girls will like this.  I can eat my weight in this stuff.  Husband won't touch it.

In next to the barbecue sauce.  The flavors marry and get better with time, so this is a good make ahead thing.

Coming up:  My take on spreadable cheese, shrimp cocktail, my mom's "kid punch" recipe and a few other things.  Check back. 

Remember to plan ahead and be prepared.  And for God's sake, be happy!!!   

Turkey Pot Pie

The Thanksgiving pagent was awesome and fun.  They made their own cute little costumes and sang little songs.

So many happy cute little children.  I haven't been working much the last few days and that's going to have to stop, but, heck, these moments are few and go by so fast.    

I made turkey pie around this time last year.

http://dinnerattheosbornes.blogspot.com/2009/12/turkey-pot-pie-stop-and-smell-pie-crust.html

We are busy this week. We won't be eating turkey on T-Day. So this will be our dinner tonight and lunch tomorrow.  I don't really use a recipe.  Lots of vegetables like carrot, peas and potatoe.  Onion and garlic.  Make a rue of flour and oil.  Add liquids of broth or half and half or both to make a sauce.  Salt, pepper, whatever seasonings you like.  I tend to favor Italian seasonings.  There are recipes out there if you want one.  But this is about lattice crust.

Start one direction.  Cut thin slices with a pizza cutter.  Actually, my mother had a special cutter with a zigzag edge.  Wish I had one.  

Then pull back every other one and start the other direction.

Lay back the opposit set every other one and do another row.

Then lay back the opposite group ever other one and add another row.

  And Another

 

 

 

 

 I'd really like to promote world peace through lattice crust.  If I'm not being clear, please let me know.   A good lattice crust on a casserole changes everything a soothes the savage beast.

Just cut back the extra edges so a 1/2 inch hangs over and smush them against the edge of the casserole dish.  Dab the finished lattice top with a beaten egg and I mean get it wet with the eg everywhere.  Bake until brown and the filling is bubbly hot.  If it is bubbling up between the lattace, consider that a bonus.

Remember to enjoy the moments you will remember when they are actually happening.

 

Taquila Sunrise Cranberry Sauce

Oh, yes.  I'm having a good time getting ready for my guests.  There is something so wonderful about a warm kitchen on a cool day.  Either you know what I mean or you don't.  A warm kitchen on a cool day makes me deliriously happy. 

Here is an original recipe for cranberries that it a little different and daring, but also delicious.

Sunrise Cranberry Sauce
12 oz bag of cranberries
1 c. sugar
1 cup orange juice
1/4 cup taquila

Put the cranberries in a collander in the sink and wash them, pick out anything you don't want to eat.  In a medium pan, combine the sugar and juice over medium until the sugar is desolved.  Add the cranberries and taquila and cook until cranberries start to pop.  About 10 minutes.  Remove from the heat.   Cool to room temperature, then chill.

Of course, the alcohol burns off as it cooks.  And it is really, really good.  Just saying.



Remember to try new things.

This post is linked to http://amoderatelife.com/2010/11/hearth-soul-recipe-hop-23/

Thanksgiving Pie

We'll have a mincemeat pie and a pumpkin pie. 

Why mincemeat?  see this link - http://dinnerattheosbornes.blogspot.com/2010/09/grandma-streckers-old-fashioned-mince.html  Or because I want to.

Why pumpkin?  Because my darling step grand daughter wants it.  Not just pumpkin pie, but pumpkin pie with Cool Whip.  Not some fancy version that is being pushed on Food network.  Just basic pumpkin pie with Cool Whip.  And by golly, that's what she is getting.  I'll use the Libby's pumpkin recipe, not because it is fabulous, but because it is satisfying.   Actually, I make a pretty decent pumpkin cheese cake which I clipped out of Gourmet magazine some years ago, but we'll save that for another year.  

So I planned this out, really I did.  I'm good at planning things out.  It's one of the best things I do.  But really, we had so freaking much fun, that I didn't take any pictures.  Step grand daughter came over to help me make pie crust.  It is one of my greatest fantasies that SOMEONE WILL LET ME TEACH THEM HOW TO MAKE PIE CRUST.  I mean really!  If step grand daughter doesn't learn, there is a younger one.  Remember to teach what you know.

"What is shortening?" says my lovely girl.  "Well,  It's kind of like oil," I say.  "Oil?" says my brilliant girl.  "Uiooooooo!"

But make pie crust we did.   I measured and she mixed.  Well, she measured some.  I cleaned up the spills, some.  But that's okay.  I told her that a cook's best tool is her hands.  We then washed well and mixed the dough by hand.  We said it was like play-do but we will eat it.  Oh, yes.  We had fun.

Dad (step son) came by, for a bit.  Step grand daughter lost interest for a while.  Making pie is not an easy task.  But she came back and taught me a song which had the main lyric "I wouldn't want to be a turkey on Thanksgiving day,  Oh Yeah." 

My mother cut up left over pie crust and sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon, then baked.  We did that today and ate it like cookies.  And yes, that is just as disgusting as it sounds to the adult palate, but children just love it and we ate a ton of it at the Osbornes today. God help us.

Papa joined in. Girls, he is pretty darned good at changing diapers, finding binky, and filling sipper cups. But he is taken, sorry. The truth is that the children often prefer him, because he is so warm and open and just a really nice guy.

The pie crusts are packed away in their pie plates and wrapped in plastic.  We'll bake them tomorrow.

After carefully cleaning the sink, we unwrapped the Butterball that had been defrosting in my fridge the last 4 days.  We rinsed it and dried it and put in the roasting pan.  Step grand daughter and I had an extended discussion about it - mostly where it's boobs were and where it's butt was.  We looked inside it. She pointed out that she could see it's bones.  She wanted to see the giblets, which we simmered on the stove and will give to the dog tomorrow.  Mostly, everything about the turkey was icky and disgusting, but we will eat it tomorrow.

Remember to look eye ball to eye ball at your food and remember to involve others.  Oh, and remember to enjoy yourself.  

Thanksgiving Potatoes

My parents and grandparents were married until one of them died. I think my parents liked each other and truly enjoyed each other's company. But I'm not sure that was true for maternal grandparents who went through huge struggles and grew through it. I think they grew in different directions and at end of life were not happy with each other. I hope for happiness for everyone. Just saying, on that. But, for the young ones, it created a very secure and stable life for the old ones to stay together. My sister and I talk about that we are secure today partly because of the security our parents built for us at a personal price to themselves.

But I married into a family that suffered a divorce prior to my entry. For the young ones, there are pressures from many sides around the holidays. Their significant others have multiple people wanting them for the holidays too.  This is different from the way I grew up.  They need to meet multiple obligations to the older ones around the holidays. How can we not be part of the pressure for them?

Husband and I had a careful talk. Our plan is to be as much support and comfort to the young ones for the holidays with traditions that build upon the past and look toward the future. We'll plan several holiday events. The first one is this Sunday. It will be a table full. These are people we like. I want a good meal for them and a pleasant memory. We've been sick with 2 viruses over the last month. We seem to go from hard time to hard time but here is the beginning of the Holiday season, 2010. Time to get moving.

So there is a Butterball defrosting in the fridge. Nothing fancy, but that's how I do it. I'm making lists, like I do, planning it out and looking forward to Sunday.

I make the potatoes 1 or 2 days in advance.  No fun mashing the potatoes at the last minute and I plan to have fun.  According to my notes, I started making this in 1997.  Trust me.  Nothing fancy, but makes time for the fun stuff, pies and other favorites.

Make-Ahead Potatoes
10 large Russets, peeled and quartered
1 C. sour cream
1 8 oz pkg cream cheese, brought to room temp
6 T. butter,at room temp,  divided
2T. dried minced onion
1 t. salt
paprika

Place potatoes in large pan with enough water to cover and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and cook until they stick easily with a fork.  20 - 25 minutes.  Drain and return to the pan.  Add sour cream and cream cheese, 4T. butter, onion and salt.  Mix with a hand mixer until smooth and incorporated.  Spread into a large casserole dish.  Melt remaining 2T. butter; drizzle over top.  Sprinkle with paprika.  Cover tightly and refrigerate until ready.  Let stand 30 minutes on the counter after taking from the fridge.  Then, bake covered for 350 degrees for 40 minutes and uncovered for 20 minutes.  12 servings or so.
 
More to come.
 
Remember to plan for the future.

Bunny Cake

When I was younger, I dated a fella, named Steve.  Unfortunately, he wasn't that nice of a guy, because his parents were awesome.  They were this big stereotypical Italian family.  And in fact, Steve was 1/2 Italian.  Both of his dad's parents were born in Italy.  They weren't still alive, but I enjoyed the stories and the warmth mixed with a little danger of the Dad.  I learned plenty from him.  But it was his mother!  Not Italian, but more of the stereotypical big warmth than any of them.  This cake is something she did around Easter.  Not the recipes, the decorations that shape it into a bunny.

Here's the old fashioned way to prepare a cake pan, (instead of spray.)  Dip your fingers into the solid shortening and get some.  Spread it with your fingers over the pan bottoms and sides until it is spread evenly and thoroughly covers.  Get addtional shortening in your hands and continue with both pans.  I recommend trying to enjoy this.  Kids love this kind of this for good reason; it's fun. 

Now spoon a little all purpose flour into each pan.  Hold the pan upright, shaking it and tapping it with my right palm.  Rotate the pan moving the loose flour until there is some flour stuck to all surfaces.  If any loose flour remains in the pan, pour it into the next and continue with the same procedure in the next pan.  When the final pan is coated, dump any remaining flour into the sink with the garbage disposal.

I'm not going to share this recipe because it is not original.  It is the basic yellow cake out of this late '70s Better Homes cook book.  If you want this recipe, e-mail me.

But, before you start cooking are your sink's clean.  If not, take the time to empty and clean your sinks.  Put away any clean dishes.  Get anything dirty shoved into the dishwasher.  On one side, start a sink of hot soapy water to receive any dirty dishes as they get created.  

Dry ingredients in one bowl, cream the butter in another.  The slowly start adding the wet ingredients to the dry while mixing.  I've never had a standing mixer.  My old Black and Decker hand mixer has always done what I need.  But if you have one of those nice Kitchenaide standing mixers, here is the time to drag it out. 

Stop from time to time and use a spatula to scrap the sides of the bowl.  It is just me, or does the combination of butter, vanilla and sugar have an intoxiating affect?  Maybe it just reminds me of good things. Take the time to taste.  I'm not embarrased to stand at the sink licking the bowl and you shouldn't either.  Pour the dough evenly into the two prepared pans and place in a preheated oven to bake. 

You test a cake for done with a toothpick stuck in the center.  It should come out clean.  Also the edges start to pull away from the pan.  Let them cool on a cooling rack so air can get all around them.  This will make two cakes. 

My pans are the old fashioned kind with the little thing that you run arround to loosen the bottom, but I prepared them well.  They had pulled away and popped right out.  Had to have husband help take the two handed photo.

I lined the bottom of my cake carrier with parchment, cut the cake in half and set the bottoms together cut sides down.  I cut out a little notch.  The cut out portion will be the tail.  The head is the piece on the cake to the far right on the photo will be the head.  Well, there is going to be some icing before we are done.  The picture below shows the tail in place.  There will be two rabbit cakes.

I made the butter icing recipe from the same cookbook and iced the cake.  I patted shredded coconut all over it.  

Black licorice cut up and stuck on for whiskers.  Belly Jellies for eyeballs.  The ears of index cards cut and colored, then stuck on. 

I wanted the tail pink, so I colored some of the coconut pink.  The grass is coconut colored green.  Food coloring of course.  There are jelly beans in the grass and peeps all around.  This is one.  Another to make and store until tomorrow.  Husband seems amused and entertained.  He knows his wife and is staying out of the way. 

Remember to play.