I made a batch of opera cream for Easter and it didn’t quite set up the way it should. It was looser and wasn’t cooperating enough to coat in chocolate for candy. What to do? Turn it into cake filling! I used my recipe for Coconut Lightning Cake . To turn it into a chocolate cake add…
Category: Recipes
Muscadine Glazed Ham
I used my Muscadine Nectar in the glaze for my Easter ham, replacing the honey called for in the recipe. It was a sweet, southern substitution that had me pigging out (pardon the porky pun) on the brown, caramelized, scraps while I carved it! For this ham, purchase a good quality smoked, bone-in ham, seven…
Muscadine Nectar
I have had some muscadine grapes stored in the freezer since last fall. I just couldn’t decide what to do with them after picking them up at the farmer’s market, so freezing seemed the best option. Last week I finally pulled some out and made some muscadine jam. Muscadines are a grape variety native to…
Coconut Lightning Cake with Italian Buttercream Frosting
I have mentioned before that my sisters are talented bakers, especially when it comes to cake and frosting. I can usually manage a cake recipe just fine. Due to past icing disasters, I tend to have icing anxiety every time I make it. Part of the problem is my propensity to devise shortcuts after reading recipes….
Cinnamon Buckwheat Biscuits
Today was supposed to be bread baking day as we’re down to two pieces of bread in the freezer. Unfortunately, mother nature has brought us 80 degree temperatures today and I really didn’t want to heat up the kitchen too much with baking. That would mean I would have to turn on the air conditioner…
Baked Bread Dough Donuts ~ Glittered Clouds
Today is International Women’s Day and it has me thinking about all of the women I’ve known in my life. I’ve been lucky enough to have many great women role models in my lifetime, most notably my mom and sisters. I have learned a lot from them as well as my mother-in-law, sisters-in-law, both grandmas,…
Super Sides ~ Balsamic Braised Carrots
Carrots illustrate the height of pickiness in my family. Some of us prefer them cooked, some prefer them raw. When I serve them as a side dish I like to either pan saute them or braise them in the oven so they are cooked, but still have a bite to them. My kids love them…
Easy London Broil Dinner
We’ve had two days of 70 degree weather and tonight I fired up the grill! On the menu, London broil with grilled asparagus. I use the term London broil loosely here, as it doesn’t necessarily refer to a dish from London, or to a cut of beef but to a cooking method. Generally, marinating then…
Simple Salsa
Simple to make and nutritious, salsa is a great pantry item to have on hand for snacks, meals and for forming the base of sauces, soups and chili. I make my own once or twice a week using fresh tomatoes in summer or canned in winter. Need a quick meal? Saute chicken rubbed with salt,…
Quick Pickled Veggies with Edamame
I have a secret. An un-American food revelation that makes me very strange (according to my husband). So weird he cringes if he’s with me at a deli counter, taking a few steps back to make it look like we aren’t together. He’s thinking “don’t say it!” His composure is that of tweens when their…
Lentil & Chickpea Stew ~ International Year of the Pulse
Today I’m participating in Blogger Action Day for The International Year of the Pulse. What are Pulses? Legumes, or beans and peas. But not just any legumes. Pulses are specifically bean and pea crops grown solely for use as a dried bean or pea food crop. So fresh black eyed peas would be considered a…
1871 Chocolate Jelly Cake ~ Vintage Valentine
Valentine’s Day is approaching and to me, it has always meant CHOCOLATE! The richness of chocolate somehow symbolizes the richness of relationships, of family and love. Plus, it’s yummy! So I knew there would have to be chocolate in the house for Valentine’s Day. I have been researching brownie recipes in digital newspaper archives for…
From Scratch Ranch Mayo
We all have food memories, good ones and bad ones. Both kinds tend to stay with us forever, and influence our future food choices. The memory of a good Bearnaise lingers through several of my food memories. An average hotel luncheon that was elevated by a good Bearnaise flavored with fresh tarragon. A happy company…
Dragon Cayenne Ketchup
Or…what to do with all those dried dragon cayenne peppers! This pepper based sauce is good on anything. Use it as you would BBQ sauce for flavoring chicken wings, drummettes or fingers, burgers or hot dogs. Dunk your fries in it, or mix it into dips for a fiery flavor. It is a quick, easy…
Sesame Snow Peas
I’ve been trying to incorporate more green veggies into my diet and am getting tired of the same old same old. Broccoli be gone! Don’t even speak to me about kale! I know it is the darling of the food world but I don’t care for it (I love the less glamorous spinach and arugula),…
Veggie Avocado Noodle Bowl
This isn’t a recipe really, more like a process. If you have stock/broth and noodles on hand you can turn anything you have into your refrigerator, freezer or pantry into a noodle bowl. I had my Homemade Avocado Pasta Dough rolled into noodles and I had homemade vegetable broth. I pulled out my saute pan and…
Homemade Avocado Pasta Dough ~ Vegan
This recipe offers a vegan alternative to traditional handmade pasta by replacing whole egg with fresh avocado! You still get your dose of healthy fats for delivering fat soluble nutrients, but without cholesterol. It comes together very easily and aside from a short rest in the refrigerator prior to rolling, gets you to the table quickly….
Vegetable Broth ~ For Flavor & Nutrition
Vegetable broth is so quick and easy to make and so healthy and flavorful, there’s no reason not to have it in stock (pardon the pun) in your freezer or fridge! Use it as a base for soups, stews, gravies and sauces. Add it to your macaroni and cheese, alfredo sauce, mashed potatoes or breads…
Gluten Free Italian Wedding Cookies
I tested a gluten free version of my family’s recipe for Italian Wedding Cookies, see that post here: My Family’s Italian Wedding Cookies and they got my gluten free daughter’s full approval! You may make the following gluten free swap for the unbleached all-purpose flour called for in the original recipe: 3 1/2 to 4…
‘Twas the Nightmare Before Christmas!
This was supposed to be a blog post with beautiful pictures of hand dipped and decorated Opera Cream candy to take to my parent’s house for Christmas Eve. Then El Nino happened. Thunder, lightning and torrential rain. Warm temperatures and high humidity do strange things to sugar and chocolate. My candy morphed into something from…
Gathering ~ A Band of Marmalade
Gathering Certainly you’ve heard the phrase pride of lions or gaggle of geese, or at the very least school of fish. All phrases meant to convey a group of something. A gathering. In this case, a band of marmalade. Why a band of marmalade? Because, this marmalade represents a gathering. Actually quite a few gatherings. It…
From Scratch Caramel Sauce
Make this and keep it on hand throughout the holidays. This is the caramel sauce that was drizzled on my brownies, then sunk in and created Molten Caramel Lava Brownies! What to do with it? Serve it with fruit, ice cream, floats, pie and cake. Stir it into coffee or hot chocolate. Or just eat…
My Family’s Italian Wedding Cookies
These cookies were on every family wedding table and every family Christmas table when I was growing up. In my family, they are Italian Wedding Cookies. Each cookie I consumed ~ and there were many, represents some of my best and earliest food memories. Billowing clouds of frosting topped off by (sometimes overly ornate) sprinkles, shredded coconut,…
Sugar Cookie Cutouts
This recipe has been a standard in my family since it came out in the Bon Appetit December 2002 issue. We adapted it a little bit and it is my son’s favorite recipe for Christmas cutouts. They are great decorated with melted chocolate or buttercream frosting. We like a simple confectioner’s sugar glaze that is easy…
Light Sugar Syrup Recipe
I decided this recipe needed it’s own post. I had posted it previously in Homemade Marshmallow Fluff, but as I’m preparing for Christmas baking, I’m remembering how much I used it last year. While I make no claims that this is a healthier alternative to store bought Light Corn Syrup, I like being able to make…
Homemade Marshmallow Fluff
Make this recipe and you’ll never by store bought marshmallow creme again! I like to use vanilla paste to flavor this because I love the vanilla flecks visible in the fluff. You may substitute vanilla bean when you are making the light sugar syrup, or simply use vanilla extract. Homemade Marshmallow Fluff 3/4 cup granulated…
Yankee Cornbread Stuffing
Do you have stuffing or dressing for Thanksgiving? My family has always had traditional stuffing. What is known in the South as Yankee Stuffing. Of course, my Mom makes the best Yankee Stuffing ever! Dried bread cubes with aromatic veggies, herbs and broth; baked in a casserole dish. Cornbread Dressing is traditional in the South…
Countdown to Thanksgiving Tip ~Bake Ahead
Today was bread baking day. I wanted to get cornbread and loaf bread baked for my stuffing recipe. Cornbread is easy, I use the old stand by recipe in my red checkered Better Homes & Gardens cookbook (27 years old). You can find that recipe here: BHG Cornbread For the sandwich loaf you can use…
Countdown to Thanksgiving Tip ~ Turkey Stock
I woke up early this morning with anxious thoughts of Thanksgiving in my mind. What is it I need to do today to get ready? Turkey stock! Thanks to my brother-in-law and his fabulous turkey smoking skills, I will not be roasting a turkey for Thanksgiving. Yay! So today, I roasted some turkey thighs and…
Dried Sugared Cranberries
These are like little gems of sweet, tart candy! Eat them out of hand, or use them in granola or to decorate holiday cookies, cakes and candies. Note: I let these go too long the first time I tried them and ended up with bitter browned cranberry nuggets. That batch went in the trash. Watch them closely…
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