Pantry Revisited

In our Chocolate with Francois group, the recipe for this month was Francois Payard's Flourless Cake.  Apparently these cakes are popular in France.  They are easy to make, but oh so rich.  If you do not like chocolate, and I am serious here, you would not like this cake.  I'm sure my friend Kayte would not even look once at this recipe! My friend Joanne, of Applecrumbles , was the host this month.  Joanne makes the most fabulous foods, a lot of them are vegetarian dishes but she also prepares meat dishes for her husband.  And her photos are amazing! Okay back to this cake.  It was easy.  You mix it up, cook in a water bath, then freeze. I probably kept it frozen for a couple of weeks.  Francois said if you cook in a regular cake pan it might be difficult to unpan it and he was right.  I ended up using my hairdryer to blow across the bottom of the pan and then it came right out.  It was not a pretty cake.  And my photos ...

This month in our group MKMW we virtually went to Great Britain to find a recipe to share.  My friend Sarah lives in London so naturally I went straight to her for an opinion.  She sent me the recipe for Toad in the Hole.  Now I've made Toad in the Hole before where you just cut a hole in a slice of bread, drop an egg in, and bake.  This is not the same thing. The only change I made was you were supposed to wrap the sausages in proscuitto and instead I had some ham I needed to use so I just put some chopped up ham in mine.  We loved this dish and I hope you will if you make it.  Check out MKMW and see what everyone else came up with for Great Britain.  I cannot wait to check it all out. Go here for the Toad in the Hole recipe.

Last Saturday night in our dance club, my friend Pam brought the most delicious pecan pie muffins.  I had eaten them once in a restaurant near my house called The Three Eared Rabbit but I had never made them.  I asked her for the recipe, but today, I couldn't wait any longer so I made up what I thought the recipe would be.  They did not taste "exactly" like hers, but these are to die for if you love pecans. 1/2 cup softened butter 3/4 cup brown sugar 1/2 cup flour 2 eggs, beaten 3/4 cup broken pecan pieces I sprayed my mini muffin pan with olive oil spray and this made ten muffins. 350 degree oven.  Cook for 15 minutes or so.  Remove immediately from muffin pan. You will be in afternoon love too!

This week's TWD was a sorbet recipe.  Steph of a Whisk and a Spoon chose this for us.  Steph has some wonderful treats on her blog.  Check them out! I treated myself this month to a new ice cream maker - the Cuisinart.  I was tired of the old salt and ice routine.  This was the perfect time for me to use it.  It does not hold a lot of ice cream, but that is perfect for us since it is just the two of us. I followed Dorie's recipe and then at the last minute I added just a pinch of kosher salt, and a handful of butterscotch morsels.  Oh this was so tasty!  Now I'm thinking peanut butter morsels would have been even better.  Our only problem with it was it melted very rapidly.  As soon as we spooned it into our bowls, it started to melt.  So a lot of it tasted like chocolate water.  Did I do something wrong? You can get the recipe at Steph's blog.  It is really easy to make.

Do you ever want coleslaw but that mayonnaise just sitting there in the sun keeps you from enjoying that wonderful dish?  Try this Asian Slaw.  It has no mayonnaise in it.  I made it Sunday for a pool party we attended and everyone seemed to enjoy it.  I still kept it on ice just to be safe and because it really is better cold.  At the end of the party as we were leaving, it dawned on me that I had forgotten to put the sugar in it!!!  Everyone said that was fine and not to put the sugar in next time.  But I think it is better with a little sweetness. Easy to make. Mix 16 oz coleslaw mix 3 oz chicken or beef flavored ramen noodles broken up 1 8 oz bottle Paul Newman's oil and vinegar salad dressing Sprinkle the ramen noodle seasoning in 1/3 cup sunflower seeds 1/3 cup almonds 1/2 cup sugar stir and refrigerate for a couple of hours before serving.  Delicious!!

There's just something about a chocolate cake . . . . . This week in our Ina Garten group (Barefoot Contessa), the theme was Sweet Baked Love. If you have baked something from one of Ina's fabulous recipes, please leave your linky below. The members of our group are Chaya - Bizzy B. Bakes; April of The 21s Century Housewife and The 21st Century Housewife’s Kitchen; Louanne of Louanne’s Kitchen; Mia of Bright Morning Star; Yummy Chunklet and me. Check out their webpages to see what they cooked this month for their "love bake." For me, it had to be this cake. The batter is a bit runny after you add the coffee, but it all works out in the end for a beautiful cake.  Now that I am enjoying my new Keurig coffeemaker, making just one cup of coffee for a recipe is a snap. I did not butter my parchment paper as Ina suggests in the recipe. I always cheat and use spray olive oil. Cakes always come out easily when I do. It baked in 30 minutes - a little less than the rec...

Get the recipe here http://www.doriegreenspan.com/2007/08/cooking-in-a-cocoon-salmon-and-tomatoes-en-papillote.html I did not take a photo.  But last night I prepared Dorie's Salmon and Tomatoes En Papillote only substituting tilapia for the salmon.  It was fabulous.  Cooked up so easy and quick - just 12 minutes in the oven.  I used parchment paper instead of foil. I also made a potato gratin from my new book Cooking Light Vegetarian and a squash casserole that I tossed together with cheese, egg, onion and breadcrumbs. The husband was in heaven.  I strongly recommend cooking the fish this way.  Dorie never fails. Again, sorry there are no photos today.

I've never had a lot of luck with scones.  That is, they have always seemed rather bland to me.  This week's TWD recipe was chosen by Lynn of Cafe Lynnlu We did not have much in the way of breakfast foods this weekend, so I decided Saturday morning to go ahead and make the scones.  I had all the ingredients except for raisens so I substituted dried cherries.  These were fast to prepare - you don't want to over handle the dough - and they cooked quicker than Dorie's instructions.  My only disappointment was that I hurriedly cut them and they were not all the same size.  Does not affect the taste however.  Chandler was busy on a carpentry project and he was delighted to enjoy a little mid-morning snack of scones.  These were a big hit and I will definitely make them again and again.

I have always had a fascination with angels.  I love reading about them, looking at photos of them, admiring statues of them.  Have you ever studied about angels?  I thought I would take a minute this morning in my "quiet" time and just read what the Bible has to say about angels.  I know that angels are mentioned in the Bible from the beginning (Genesis) to the end (Revelation) so they must be important. The word “angel” is from the Greek word aggelos.  Aggelos means “messenger.” In Hebrew the word mal'ak  means angel. Angels are not glorified human beings.  They are spirits.  I think of angels as beings that communicate with God and then somehow pass that information on to us.  In Matthew 22:30 we read that angels do not marry or reproduce.  Also, there is no mention that I can find of an angel being a chubby little baby.  They are all adults.  I also think when they took human form in the Bible, they were mostly ma...

This week in our Ina's Garden group, the theme was Vegetable Delight and I am the host for our group.  I chose Ina's Zucchini Graten.  I am not in love with zucchini, but I do like squash casseroles so I was hoping Ina's zucchini would spur me on for this abundant summer vegetable.  It was very good and the topping was so crunchy and delicious.  I'm not "in love" yet, but it was a very good dish if you like zucchini. I used Vidalia onions in it - they are the best - so sweet and delicious.  This was easy to prepare.  Chandler loved it.  I served it with a pork tenderloin and a tortellini salad.  I would highly recommend you try this for a wonderful side dish. If you have made any Ina Garten squash dish, please leave your linky below.  Just be sure as a courtesy to mention our group in your post.  Thank you.  Check out our webpage for upcoming themes and recipes.  http://gartenofina.blogspot.com/ Our theme for July...

Last night some of my twitter friends and I made an Indian dinner together.  It was my first time to "cook together" with someone while tweeting about it.  I added a little drama to the session when my first attempt at chopping onion caused me to drop my knife.  On its way to the floor, it made a slight detour and swiped my leg which took me to the ER for a few stitches.  Ouch.  My kitchen looked like a murder had occurred!  When I returned, I cleaned up everything and still managed to cook along with Kayte and Margaret .  I think Leslie cooked later.  Abby and Katie used tofu in theirs.  The meal was delicious. We made Bal's No Butter Chicken  and Madhur Jaffrey’s Corn With Aromatic Seasonings as a side.  The sweet cream of the corn was a nice coolness against the spicey hot chicken.  Although this recipe is not too hot.  It is just right.   I am definitely going to make this again soon.  It was...

The host this week was Bridget of The Way the Cookie Crumbles .  Check out her link and you will find the recipe there for these delicious muffins!! When I was hosting a couple of months ago, I kept going back and back to this recipe because it just sounded so delicious.  I'm glad Bridget chose it.  They are fabulous!  Of course, I'm on a new heart healthy diet that strictly forbids me to have any caffeine, but I had to take just a bite of these fresh out of the oven.  One bite won't hurt a fly, right? These are rich in chocolate with nuggets of bittersweet hidden inside.  Delicious.

Today is the end of my seven days of devotionals.  These are just my thoughts and in no way reflect a professional opinion in any way.  Thank you all for reading along and for your emails and comments.  You have all inspired me! Are you looking for a miracle in your life?  Most people are at some time or another.  I'm going to give you my thoughts on miracles and please feel free to comment and tell me your thoughts.  When I think of miracles, I think of something happening that is against the laws of nature.  If someone cut my ear off, for example, and then just stuck it back on without medical help, that would constitute a miracle in my mind.  Or if a car were coming straight at me on the highway and then suddenly before impact it flew in the air above me.  Many people refer to childbirth as a miracle.  While I think it is a glorious and wonderful event, I see it more as a natural occurrence rather than a miracle.  It is ...

Worry - we all do it, just some more than others.  And yet, worry does not accomplish anything.  It is a complete waste of time.  It never helps any situation.  The more you worry, the more your brain is clouded so that you are not free to make positive decisions. In the Bible we read that there is no need for worry - God will take care of you and all your needs.  Matthew 6:31-33 says "So do not worry, saying what shall we eat?  or What shall we drink?  or What shall we wear?  For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.  But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." Jesus said in Luke "Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?  Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest." You can avoid worry even in your darkest hour by trusting in God.  Wikipedia says "Most people ex...

How many of us pray on a daily basis?  Prayer develops our relationship with God. If we never spoke to our friends, family, or spouse, those relationships would quickly fall apart.  In the same way, lack of prayer causes your relationship with God to suffer, so it is important to keep those lines of communication open. There are different types of prayers.  There are individual prayers, community prayers, prayers for forgiveness, prayers for healing, prayers for help and guidance, prayers for financial aid, prayers for thanksgiving, etc.  One can pray with words or sometimes I personally like to pray with song.  When I take time to play the piano and I sing hymns to God, that is my private time with Him.  As believers, we can pray from our hearts and use our own words to convey our feelings.  Your prayer does not have to be eloquent or wordy, just from your heart.  You can kneel to pray, stand, go in a closet, fold your hands, wh...