the kitchen sink

baking and cooking are in my familys blood. whenever we are with one another, food is often what brings and keeps us all together. i cannot help but share the comforts of these recipes with those of you who appreciate good food like i do.

rum balls

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i’ve known my coworker mark now since 2010, and years ago i brought in rum balls per his special request.  now, these things are not my cup of tea at all, but oh goodness, he could not get enough of them!  these strong little suckers are right up his alley, and he so kindly reminded me last week that i hadn’t made them in quite some time…

say no more, mark!  i grabbed my ingredients, made a quick stop at the liquor store for the good stuff, and got to work tonight.  these rum balls are quite easy to make, but i will warn you now that they are a bit messy.  rum balls don’t roll themselves, so be prepared to get your hands dirty.  the recipe is below, along with all kinds of fun pictures.  enjoy!

ingredients

1 cup milk chocolate chocolate chips

1/2 cup white sugar

3 Tablespoons corn syrup

1/3 cup choice rum (i used captain morgan’s white rum this time, but you could just as easily use a silver rum; you could also use bourbon if that’s more your style)

2 1/2 cups crushed vanilla wafers (about an 11-ounce box will do)

1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

1/3 cup confectioner’s sugar

directions

if you were so fortunate to find a box of vanilla wafers already ground up, good for you!  if you were not so fortunate, crush those little guys up with a food processor.  it’ll take all of about two minutes, and opening up a brand new box of vanilla wafers is, le sigh, divine.  those things might be some of the best smelling crackers/cookies in the world.  just my opinion!

next, microwave the rum for about a minute and then add the white sugar to dissolve it.  i promise that doing so will make the mixture easier to incorporate in a minute.

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oh, and after you heat up that rum, it is going to smell strong.  just a warning.

place the chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl and heat them in the microwave for one minute.  stir, and if necessary, return to the microwave and heat at 20-second intervals, stirring between each, until melted and smooth.

add and blend the rum-sugar mixture and corn syrup with the silky chocolate.

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in a large bowl, stir together the crushed vanilla wafers, walnuts, and chocolate mixture until evenly distributed.

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okay, next comes the fun part.  use your hands to roll the “batter” into little balls, just a skosh smaller than a ping pong ball.  anything bigger is going to be overwhelming, take my word for it.

oh, also take my word for it that it is easiest to roll all of the balls first before we take them for a dip in the confectioner’s sugar.  and yes, your hands are going to get quite icky.  that’s why you have a little brother to take that picture for you, so no one misses any of the fun!

so, the final step is to roll each ball of chocolately-alcoholic goodness around in a bowl of confectioner’s sugar.  i use more like a 1/2 cup of sugar because i like to coat those things well.  after they’re all covered and white like winter snow, pop them in the refrigerator, cover them, and leave them for a week so that all the flavors can blend together.  once you finally do peel off that lid, the rum will be strong and taste even stronger which, if you’re anything like mark, is a glorious thing.

how to roast squash, by kelsey v

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this story is about a girl named kelsey v who needed to roast some squash for an early office thanksgiving potluck.  prizes were going out to those cooks who whipped up the best dishes, so this little chef didn’t waste any time getting her winter squash soup ready.

step one?  roast some fresh squash for the ultimate autumnal flavor.  well, seeing as how this young lady had never purchased or prepared anything larger than a four-inch yellow squash in her life, she was in for a treat.  she perused the shelves at publix, picking out a sizeable butternut and dainty acorn.

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next, all she had to do was take a sizeable knife to those sweet squashes, lop off the ends, gut ’em, and halve them up for the pan.

that oven was all hot and bothered at 350 degrees fahrenheit, welcoming the squashes cut side-down with about a fourth of an inch of water in the pan.  things were going to get steamy!

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the kitchen filled with fall scents as the squashes roasted for a solid hour.  after checking their tenderness with a knife, they were declared perfectly cooked!  they cooled for a half hour, and then came the fun part.

those skins just had to go, so a spoon had services to provide.  the insides were mercilessly scraped out and chopped up and…

…dumped into a bowl for later use!  and she was scared?  they’re just little squashes!

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mm, noodle soup

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i hadn’t really cooked for myself in a solid couple of weeks, so tonight i decided to take on homemade chicken noodle soup.  ah, yes, because soup is so difficult!  especially when i don’t make my own noodles and buy frozen ones…but, hey, who’s judging?  if you are, well, then, i got nothing…except this excellent recipe!  the inspiration came from the pioneer woman, but since i couldn’t find those ever so convenient egg noodles, i went with dumplings instead and married that recipe with ree’s.  the results?  my very “own” noodle soup recipe!  ah, just like that!  sometimes life is easy to us.

if you’re in the need of some ridiculously simple humor this evening, i urge you to take a read of all the photo captions.  i had a lot of time to think them up, considering this meal is a labor of love and took about two hours…and it helps that i think i am hilarious!

below are the steps i took after combining directions from the other two recipes.  enjoy!

ingredients

a whole chicken, cut-up (mine had the bones in and skin on and came in a cool griller pack from kroger)

2 whole carrots, diced

2 stalks celery, diced

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1/4 teaspoon white pepper

1/4 teaspoon ground thyme

2 teaspoons parsley flakes

24 ounces mary b’s dumplings (use half the package or a little more or all of it if you love carbs like everyone in my household!)

3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour

carrot peel graveyard.
quite possibly the most uninteresting thing in the world: chicken boiling.
mary b’s!
things are getting steamy!
look at all these little buddies (almost of varying heights).
stuff, all chopped up.

directions

cover chicken in 4-5 quarts of water.  bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to low.  simmer 30-40 minutes.

p.s.  the smell of boiled chicken is just lovely!  (please sense the sarcastic tone)

remove the chicken from the pot with a slotted spoon.  using two forks, remove and shred as much of the meat as you can.

bring the broth back to a boil and add the frozen dumpling strips (cut to your desired size) and drop into broth one at a time, stirring frequently.

return the bones to the broth, cover, reduce the heat, and simmer for 45 more minutes.

remove the bones with the slotted spoon.

add the carrots, celery, and chicken to the pot, along with all the spices, and simmer for 10 minutes more.

*a quick note here:  i found my soup was underseasoned, which is either due to the excessive amounts of water or not enough spices or both.  fyi.

mix the flour with a little water, stirring until smooth.  pour it into the soup, simmering for another 5 minutes or until the broth thickens a bit.

more chicken!
chicken carcass!
shredding with forks was WAY too tedious. get your hands dirty!
seasoninnnngggssss.
these chips are not an ingredient. they are, however, the suggested snack while making the soup.

zesty corn dip

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corn dip

tori was in town this past weekend to tend to wedding activities (it’s only nine days away – eek!), and like always, she had plenty of things to bring to atlanta from home.  for clark, she brought his winter clothes.  for the kessey girl, she brought me a recipe.  ah, yes, she knows me so well!

this zesty corn dip really couldn’t be easier.  well, i suppose the only way it could be easier is if you didn’t have to do any chopping, but even for the most novice cook, you got it!

ingredients

2 12-ounce packages frozen corn

1 8-ounce block of cream cheese

1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1/2 cup diced green onion, white and green parts

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely diced

1 2.5-ounce package fully cooked bacon, diced

1 4-ounce can diced green chilies

directions

place all ingredients in a crock-pot/slow cooker.

cover and cook on low for 4 hours OR on high for 2 hours, stirring the dip halfway through cooking time.

chicken tortilla soup

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i’ve had a rather relaxing weekend, and i didn’t want to spoil it by slaving away in the kitchen all night to make an outstanding meal.  sometimes i just want something simple, and this recipe for chicken tortilla soup was just the ticket.

my mom made it when we were in high school, and it has become a dish i now know by heart.  i mean, something that only requires a crock pot and no cutting at all has to be a keeper, right?  it’s so insanely easy and wonderfully delicious that i just had to share it with you all.

since this recipe makes quite a few servings, it is great for families.  for those of you who are single like yours truly?  bag this stuff up in single-serve ziplocs, throw them in the freezer, and keep ’em for later when you’re feeling extra lazy around the house.  enjoy!

ingredients

1 box or can (32 ounces) chicken broth

2 cans (15.5 ounces each) chili beans

1 can (15 ounces) great northern beans

1 can (14.5 ounces) mexican-style stewed tomatoes, diced

*sometimes i cannot always find the mexican-style stewed tomatoes.  If you can’t either, just go with the traditional.

1 can (10 ounces) diced tomatoes & green chiles

2 cans (15.5 ounces each) white corn, drained

*tori thinks just one can of corn is enough, but i like two.

2 packages lawry’s chicken taco spices & seasonings

*you do not have to get the lawry’s brand.  i often use kroger’s brand and love it just as much.

1.5 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts

shredded cheddar cheese

chopped cilantro

chopped scallions

directions

set chicken in bottom of large slow cooker (crock pot).  top with chili beans, great northern beans, stewed tomatoes, tomatoes and green chiles, and white corn.

stir in the chicken taco seasonings and add as much chicken broth as needed to fill the crock pot just below full.  there’s a good chance you will not need all 32 ounces of it, but it depends on the size of your cooker.

cover and cook on low 8 to 10 hours.  if you need to get it ready sooner, crank the crock pot to high for 4 to 6 hours.  you just need to let everything sit long enough so that the chicken is cooked through and tender.

use a pair of tongs to shred the chicken in the crock pot.  fill up your favorite soup bowl and top with cheese, cilantro, and scallions as desired.

p.s.  i personally also like to dollop on some sour cream.  you could probably even add a little bit of hot sauce if you like things spicy.

banana cream pie

kdavis 4 Comments

i had some overly ripened bananas lying around the kitchen, and instead of going with banana bread this time, i wanted to try my hand at banana cream pie.  i couldn’t let those nanners go to waste, so i consulted my betty crocker cookbook like every good home cook would and found a recipe right there on page 133.

as i gathered all my ingredients and tools, i began to wonder, just who is this betty crocker that we have come to know and love over the past 90 years?  who is this american icon in our homes?  what is her history?  well, i’m so glad you asked.

as i read through and learned about betty crocker and all her fame, i couldn’t figure out a better way to share it all with you besides providing the link.  it’ll be a quick read and is quite interesting, so i highly encourage you to take a look!  as a self-proclaimed baker, it’s fun to learn about how something as simple as answering cooking questions has become tradition.  quite cool!

read on to find the recipe and all its details.  oh, also, i tried my hand at picture-taking while baking this time.  the shots aren’t terribly exciting, but there’s only so much i can do with these two hands at once!

Continue reading →

greek salad with orzo & black eyed-peas

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last night i decided i needed to actually make something for my brown bags this week at lunch.  i don’t mind eating out, but it gets old quickly when you have a limited window for it.

orzo

i rummaged through my recipe box, looking particularly for something that i hadn’t yet tried.  a few soups looked tasty, but i need it to be slightly cooler before i get those brewing.  i came upon this recipe for greek salad with orzo and black eyed-peas, clearly ripped out of the pages of an old real simple magazine from years ago.  although i didn’t have mine fashioned in these stylish and hip mason jars, my tupperware containers suited them just fine.  enjoy!

ingredients

3/4 cup orzo

1 (15-oz.) can black-eyed peas, drained & rinsed

1 large tomato, diced

2 Tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley

*i could only find italian parsley at disco kroger and it worked just fine

2 Tablespoons red-wine vinegar

2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

1/4 seedless cucumber, halved lengthwise, cored, & diced (1 cup)

*disco kroger also does not have seedless cucumbers, so a regular cucumber would just have to do

1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives, slivered

*i have a strong distaste towards olives, so i left these out

1/3 cup thinly sliced red onion

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 Tablespoon finely chopped oregano

*i found a whole Tablespoon to be way too much – i’d suggest cutting it down to half a Tablespoon

2-3 cups coarsely chopped romaine

1/2 pound feta, crumbled (1 cup)

4 to 8 pepperoncini

directions

cook orzo according to package instructions.  drain in a sieve and rinse under cold water until cool.  drain well.

toss black-eyed peas, tomato, and parsley with vinegar, 1 Tablespoon oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.  marinate, stirring occasionally, 15 minutes.

meanwhile, toss together orzo, remaining oil, cucumber, olives, onion, lemon zest and juice, oregano, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a large bowl.

divide black-eyed pea mixture (with juices) among jars and layer orzo salad, romaine, and feta on top.  add 1 or 2 pepperoncini to each jar.

*note:  assembled jars can be chilled up to eight hours and serve four.  enjoy at room temperature with pita chips.

**kelsey’s note:  i assembled my tupperware this morning before work and had it as a salad for lunch.

late-night brinner

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as they almost always say, those short weeks seem so long, and i’d say these past four days were no exception.  i was glad when happy hour finally rolled around…at seven o’clock this evening.  it was about time!  after a modelo and some laughs with the coworkers, i headed home to the condo.  although the monthly pizza friday at the office was delicious, it was time for some dinner.  but tonight?  tonight i was craving breakfast for dinner, alas, brinner!

what’s the key to a good brinner?  including everything you love in it.  i mean, it’s breakfast for dinner for goodness sakes.  eat whatever you want!  although pancakes are probably one of my favorite breakfast dishes, it’s not fun to eat those all by yourself.  so tonight i kept it simple with some cheesy eggs (oh, yes), sausage, and an english muffin.  shall we?  yes, let’s!

our cast of characters.

our cast of characters.

my kitchen is quite tiny, so i had to shuffle some of the appliances around to make space for everything.  it doesn’t help that there are only four plugs, three of which are regularly occupied by the refrigerator, keurig, and microwave.

look at all that counter space!

look at all that counter space!

first things first, gotta get that english muffin all toasty.  i have had this toaster oven for, hm, about seven years now.  it was passed down to me when my old roommate shanna moved out of our dorm at uga, and it is just wonderful.  i’m glad i’ve kept it ever since.  doesn’t that little fella look perfectly toasted?  i agree.

 

while the muffin was toasting to golden perfection, i whipped up those eggs.  i love to make scrambled eggs when i’m cooking them, but when i go out i always want them over-easy so that i can get that runny yolk all over the plate.  mm, yesssss.

eggs

with the ding of the toaster oven, it was time to top the english muffin.  now, some days i like it with peanut butter.  other days i like it with just butter.  but most days i like it with cream cheese and preserves or jam.  today was one of those days.  if you have never tried this combination, i suggest you do, right now.  get up out of bed and make yourself some brinner!

breakfast for dinner hit the spot tonight.  perhaps it was even a little bit better because i was drinking my milk out of a purple wine glass?  perhaps…

plate

malted milk chocolate chip cookies

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even though i’ve had no work today in observance of labor day, i’ve been quite productive.  i caught up on sleep, cleaned up the house, did laundry, ran to the grocery store, and wrote some wonderful posts for you lovely people.  i also got domestic and baked some homemade malted milk chocolate chip cookies.  they’re one of my favorites, and they’re even better when you dollop on a huge scoop of ice cream and freeze them for your own sandwiches.  quite delicious!

here’s the recipe for all you bakers out there:

ingredients

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup golden brown sugar

3/4 cups white sugar

2 whole eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups all purpose flour

1 1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup malted milk powder

12 ounces milk chocolate chips

directions

preheat oven to 375 degrees fahrenheit.

cream butter with electric mixer.

add both sugars and cream until fluffy.

add eggs and beat lightly.

add vanilla and beat until combined.

add malted milk powder and beat until combined.

sift together flour, baking soda, and salt.  add to butter mixture, beating gently until just combined.

add chocolate chips and stir in gently with spatula.

drop by tablespoon-fuls and bake 11-12 minutes.

’tis picnic season!

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picnic

a couple of weeks ago, i had the brilliant idea for kyle and i to surprise kari, his fiancée, with an impromptu trip to piedmont park, where they would just happen upon a wonderfully laid out picnic with goodies for a fun-filled afternoon.  i was up quite late pulling everything together, but it was certainly worth it.  we spent a delightful day under a tree as the rain lightly fell down around us.  there was no shortage of people watching, giggling, story-telling, and good company.  and then when i thought it couldn’t get any better, we went to the dog park afterwards to watch all the pups romp around in the sun.  the perfect saturday afternoon with my favorite people.

the treats we dined on were so delicious that i knew i couldn’t keep them to myself!  the antipasto pasta salad and pineapple-mango salsa were delicious, but my favorites were the blackberry lemonade, lady marmalade chicken salad, and homemade rice krispy treats.

p.s.  my secret for the rice krispy treats is to double the marshmallow filling.  YES.  you know it’s what you want.  for the rice krispy treats, melt six tablespoons of butter on the stovetop.  add 16 ounces of mini marshmallows and melt.  stir until combined.  measure out six cups of rice krispy treats into a large mixing bowl, add the melted marshmallow mixture (say that five times fast), and fold with a spatula until incorporated.  mash mixture into a 9 x 13 pan that has been liberally coated with non-stick spray.  NOMS.