For the Love of Olives

There is this amazing restaurant in the town that I grew up in that serves really yummy tapenade.  It's one of those things that I eat and think "ooh, I need a recipe for this" and then by the time I get home, I forget about it, and life goes on...  Well, not today!  I will  no longer miss out on the olives that olive-haters leave behind!  The coolest part about this recipe is that I learned how to roast red peppers too!  So with Kalamatas from good ol' Costco (yes, I have a GIANT jar in my fridge), a lemon from my tree and the experimental red pepper, I went to work.  Lemme tell ya...  It's pretty tasty!

The Tapenade Recipe
Roasting Red Peppers instructions

I tried the first suggestion of roasting the pepper on my stove-top...  Let's just say that someone as accident prone as me should not be playing with fire!  Next time I will use the broiler so as not to combat a flaming vegetable.  Since the article is long, here are the highlights and a variation of what I did.  You need a gas stove or bar-b-que:

1. Wash your pepper.
2. Broil red pepper in oven with door open (so flame stays lit), turning the pepper with tongs so that it gets burned evenly.  You want the outside to be black all over.
3. As soon as it is done, stick it in a bowl with a plate over the top and allow to cool completely.  Do not let the steam out!  I let mine sit for about an hour and a half.
4. Get out a bowl and place a small-mesh strainer over it.
5. Take a paring knife and slice the first layer of skin lengthwise down the pepper.
6. Cut around the stem and pull the stem and seeds out and place them in the strainer letting juices drip into the bowl.
7. "Open the pepper like a book" and remove any excess seeds.  Carefully scrape the burned skin off of the pepper and into strainer.  Be careful, it gets slippery... and remember that anything that comes off of or out of the pepper goes into the strainer!
8. When finished, discard the stuff in the strainer (garbage, compost, whatever) and place the pepper in the bowl with the juices!  You can stick a lit on it and refrigerate it for later use, or do what I did...  Slice it up and dump the whole bowl in the food processor for the tapenade!

I also did not use capers in mine, but I plan to next time.  I spread the mixture over thinly sliced sourdough and it was delicious.

Unbaked #7 - The Toy Mouse, for Mouse

See the cat?  Her name is Mouse.  She is the most needy, obnoxious cat I have ever met, but my hubby loves her, and well, that's the only reason she is still around!  Since I love my hubby (and not his cat), I made her a toy  to keep her occupied and out of my hair.  Here are the instructions for the crocheted toy...

What you need:
Cheap, scrap yarn, and not very much of it!
Size J Crochet hook
Stuffing (like you'd use if you were sewing a pillow, or shredded paper?)
Scissors

1. Chain 3 and slip stitch them together.
2. Chain 2 and turn.
3. Double crochet in each of the first 3 chain.
4. 2 Double crochet in each previous double crochet.
5. Double crochet around and around until your "mouse" is as long as you want it.
6. Skip every other double crochet until the backside is closing in.
7. Before closing it completely, turn it inside out and stuff with stuffing.
8. Slip stitch the "tail end" closed, add one more chain, snip about an extra 2 inches of yarn and pull your crochet hook through that last stitch to secure with a knot.

There you have it!  Something to keep the cat busy so you can blog, check Facebook, bake, nap, clean house, or whatever ;-)

My Favorite Pasta Salad

This is a super duper easy pasta salad I love to make for summer potlucks, and summer is just around the corner!  I made it for a friend's birthday tonight :)  It was pretty yummy if I do say so myself!

1 (12 ounce) box of Tri-Color Rotini

Your favorite Italian Dressing

Feta Cheese

Artichoke hearts in water (not oil), sliced

Kalamata Olives, sliced

1. Cook pasta according to box directions.  Drain and rinse with cold water.

2. Stir in enough dressing to coat the pasta.

3. Add artichoke hearts, Kalamata olives and feta cheese.  As little or as much as you want!

4. Refrigerate for two hours.

Add more Italian dressing for extra flavor & tang!  I also like adding red onion and baby corn too.  After I've stirred it all together I like to sprinkle the feta cheese on top and add an artichoke "flower" and olives for decoration because, after all, it's all about the presentation, right?!  Enjoy :)

Sweet, but Not Too Sweet Scones

These scones are soooo easy to make!  Just make sure you have a stick of butter in the freezer at least a day in advance.  They can be as sweet, or not sweet, as you want them.  I use this awesome pan that my hubby's grandmother gave to me, and they turn out more evenly baked... but you don't need the pan :)  I used my pizza stone prior to owning the pan, and they turned out yummy then too!

Here are some tweaks:

Instead of 1/2 cup raisins, use: 1/4 cup white chocolate chips, 1/4 cup dried cranberries

or

With raisins, add 1/2 tsp cinnamon into the dry ingredients.

Since this recipe serves 8, I made them a little flatter for a brunch for my brother-in-laws wedding and used a small glass to cut them into circles.  Each batch made 12 scones instead of 8.  I topped them with icing and they were a hit!

White chocolate icing:  1/2 cup white chocolate chips; 1 Tbs milk.  Heat on low in a small saucepan until melted and smooth.  (Add more milk if needed)  Drizzle on top of cooled scones and allow to dry.

Cinnamon icing:  1/2 cup powdered sugar; 1 Tbs milk; 1/2 tsp cinnamon.  Mix ingredients in a small bowl with whisk until smooth.  Add more sugar or milk to obtain desired consistency.  Drizzle on top of cooled scones and allow to dry.

As you can imagine, these scones are so versatile, and I'm sure there are so many other goodies to put into them!  On Friday, I got to watch the Royal Wedding with my aunt and my cousin, and we made them plain and topped them with my aunt's home canned peach butter.  Matched with delicate china brimming with hot peach tea, these were a delectable treat.  The company was great too!

Melt In Your Mouth Lemony Goodness

Who doesn't love a good lemon bar?  Ok, I guess not everyone is keen on lemon flavored sweetness, but here they are nonetheless!

I found this lemon bar recipe shortly after we got married when I was searching for more ways to use all those lemons falling off the tree in my front yard.  What I didn't notice when I made them the first time was that it called for "confectioner's sugar" (aka powdered sugar), and I used good ol' granulated sugar.  When I realized my mistake (about the 4th time I made these bars), I figured...  it works, why change it?!  I have to admit I did try using powdered sugar for the "crust" once, and they tasted funny!  My hint is to mix the crust just enough that it sticks together, but that it's still crumbly, and to make sure you dust the bars with powdered sugar just before they are served because otherwise it just soaks in.

The Very Best Brownies

My mom & I found this recipe for Easy Double Chocolate Chip Brownies when I was in middle school trying to raise funds for winter camp.  Years later, while trying to impress my boyfriend (now husband) with my mad baking skills, everything went wrong and the charred brownies flew out of the oven and onto the floor barely missing my beau's feet!  We had a good laugh about it, but they've turned out right every time since then...  I still can't believe he actually let me try again!  That's true love!

My tips:
I keep my giant 72 ounce bag o' chips from Costco in the freezer at all times!  I don't put nuts in the brownies because I don't always know if the people I plan to share with can have them.  I only bake them for 17 minutes and serve them quickly after they come out of the oven with whipped cream, chocolate sauce & caramel sauce.  They just melt in your mouth, and the little bits of chips that you stir in at the end add that extra-chocolatey-ooey-gooey-goodness!

Unbaked #6 - The Shell Scarf

I saw this scarf pattern in a craft store and wouldn't you know they had free copies hanging right next to the example scarf!  I thought I'd try it out & share.  Well, my first run was a bust!  So I searched for the shell stitch as the pattern suggested, and to no avail I just couldn't seem to find what I was looking for... but since my dear friend Google rarely leads me astray, I eventually found this Front Post Stitch link that looked like the scarf I saw hanging in the aisle!  Hooray!  So here it goes...  I changed it around a bit to make it work for me.  I used a large wooden crochet hook that was my great-grandmother's, and some "country blue" yarn that cost a whopping $2.97 (+tax) at Wally World.

If you take the instructions one step at a time with patience, you will be happy with the outcome.  I pulled out my scarf at least 5 times before getting it right!  Once you get it down, it's a piece of cake!

In the first three steps, every time you seen chain, it is referring to the beginning chain of 20.

SECTION ONE:

Getting Started:

1. Chain 20 stitches loosely
2. Going backwards down the chain from where your hook is, in 4th chain from the hook, create 2 double crochets, chain 2, and 3 more double crochets in same stitch (or 4th chain).
3. Continuing down the chain, skip 3 chains.  In 4th chain, create 3 double crochets, chain 2, and 3 more double crochet in same stitch (or 4th chain. 

REPEAT STEP 3, 3 TIMES.  You should be at the end of your original 20 chains.  

SECTION TWO:

For the remainder of the scarf:

From here on, you will continue to repeat the following instructions until the scarf gets to your desired length.

1. Chain 3, turn.   Create a front post double crochet in the next 2 double crochets of the previous row.  (This is where is gets tricky & you might need to glance at the link if you don't already know this stitch)  Chain 2, then 3 double crochets in the chain 2 of the previous row.
2. Skip the next 3 double crochets and skip that next chain 2 also.
3. In the NEXT set of double crochets, create a front post double crochet in each of the three double crochets, chain 2, and then 3 double crochets in the chain 2 of the previous row.  

REPEAT STEP 3, 3 TIMES.

REPEAT SECTION TWO UNTIL YOUR SCARF IS AS LONG AS YOU WANT IT TO BE!

Good luck and have fun!

Fruity Chicken Salad Sandwiches With Helpful Chicken Boiling & Shredding Tips

I am notorious for making food that is not "in season."  While the rest of the country is making comfort foods, I am busy in my California home preparing summer picnic dishes like chicken salad sandwiches and lemon bars!  This chicken salad is one of the most flexible recipes I make, and it's great to have on hand for quick lunches.  Here's what you need to have a taste of summer all year long:

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, boiled & shredded - see below for tips (I boiled enough chicken for this and my enchilada recipe...  Yay for a time saver!)
mayonnaise (or greek yogurt - thanks to my dear friend Kerry for that idea!)
1 celery stalk, chopped
1/2 apple, thinly sliced & chopped (the size of the pieces matter only to your palate)
1/2 cup dried cranberries

salt
pepper
garlic powder
your favorite bread

1. Put the shredded chicken in a bowl and mix in mayonnaise about a Tbs full at a time (I end up using about 3 Tbs) until the chicken kind of sticks together.  If you like your salad really moist, you'll want more mayo.  
2. Add the celery, apple, and cranberries, and stir until mixed.
3. Add salt, pepper & garlic powder to taste.  (I probably use 1/8 tsp of salt, 1 tsp of pepper & 1 tsp of garlic powder...  We love garlic, what can I say?!)
4. Grab 2 pieces of your favorite bread, spread a little mayo on (if you like), and put the salad in between!

There's your sandwich!

When grapes are on sale I like to use them instead of cranberries.  Also, if I know we won't be around other people after we eat, I add some thinly chopped onion too.  The garlic alone is enough to keep even our closest friends away!

Chicken Boiling & Shredding Tips: 

A little hint on the chicken...  I buy a 10 pound bag of frozen chicken from Costco every few months.  I stick how ever many frozen chicken breasts I need for my meal into my largest saucepan, and fill it with water until the chicken is just covered.  I put the saucepan over high heat and let it boil until the chicken is no longer pink.  It takes about 30-40 minutes depending on how many chicken breasts I'm cooking.  If is starts to boil over, I pour in about a tsp of olive oil, and/or turn it down to medium high (salmonella scares me, so I don't usually turn it down unless I need to go out of the kitchen).  Once the chicken is cooked, dump it into a colander and rinse it under cold water for a moment.  Take two forks and use them to pull the breasts apart in opposite directions.  Do this until the chicken is shredded to your liking.  If the chicken is too hot to handle and you're not planning to eat it for a few hours, or until the next day, stick it in the fridge!  Or better yet, make extra & freeze it for next time :)

Enjoy!

Beef For Dinner? Yep, In My House!

Thanks once again to my mother-in-law for the magazine subscription or else I would not have stumbled upon this simple beef stir-fry that has become a monthly staple in my house!  About a year after my hubby & I were married, he asked me sweetly "do you think you could make red meat once in a while?"  I have never liked the taste of beef, but in order to score some points in the wifey book and make something I could stomach I went on the hunt!  I substitute Trader Joe's brand instant chicken broth packets.  Since I use chicken more than beef anyway I figured it wouldn't make a huge difference.  We didn't notice a change in the taste, and now I don't have to waste a can or box of broth.  I just use the full cup of the broth packet mixed with water.  The trick is to mix the cornstarch with all the other ingredients before adding it to the broth or it will get all clumpy & gross.

I also made a cold cucumber "salad" with thinly sliced cucumbers using my mandoline, a little soy sauce and some rice vinegar.  I tossed it all in a bowl together and stuck it in the fridge when I put the meat in to marinate.  That way it was chilled by the time we ate.  It was a nice addition to the meal!

Apples in My Muffins!

I received a new cookbook for Christmas!  I found a recipe that I had most of the ingredients for, and it had apples so I had to try it!  Instead of running to the store, I just improvised!


2 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. raw sugar
2 t. baking powder
2 t. baking soda
2 t. cinnamon
2  eggs
1/2 c. oil
4 medium apples, peeled, cored & chopped (I used Galas)
1/2 c. pecans
1/2 c. dried cranberries

1. Preheat the oven to 350° F.  Grease that muffin tin!
2. Mix flour, sugar, powder, soda, and cinnamon (in your mixer, YES, I finally used mine again).
3. Separately, in a medium bowl, mix eggs, oil, apples, pecans, and dried cranberries.
4. Pour the egg mixture into the flour mixture and set that mixer on slow speed, and make sure to scrape the sides & bottom of the bowl.
5. Spoon the mix into muffin cups until it just reaches the top.  Use less if you don't want that nice "muffin top" experience.
6. Bake for 20 minutes and cool muffins on cooling rack.

These are not very visually appealing when they come out of the oven, but I had friends over the morning that I baked them, and they pretty much devoured them!