Posts Tagged ‘Summer’
Cookbook Review: 101 Cozy Casseroles
Jen has already drawn for the free cookbook, but I wanted to go ahead and share, especially as everyone starts to have an abundance of fresh produce from their gardens and local farmers markets. Well, better late than never! I made this delicious recipe from Gooseberry Patch’s new cookbook, 101 Cozy Casseroles, and enjoyed it for just about every meal I ate the last couple of days before going out of town. I had every intention of writing and posting while I was traveling, but while the pictures were on my camera, I neglected to bring along Rachel Kowasic’s wonderful recipe!
Rachel’s original recipe calls for canned green beans. The day I was looking for a second recipe to make from this fun little cookbook, my neighbors, Harry & Cathy, dropped by with some crisp green beans straight from their garden … decision made! I washed them, cut them up into bite size pieces, and parboiled for a couple of minutes, draining before adding to the casserole.
Ingredients:
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tblsp. Butter
3 potatoes, diced (I used little red potatoes)
Salt and pepper to taste
2 – 14.5 oz. cans, green beans, drained
1 ½ cup cooked ham, cubed
1 cup water
2 sprigs fresh rosemary, chopped
Directions:
In a skillet over medium-high heat, sauté onion and garlic in butter; add potatoes, salt and pepper. Cook until potatoes are crisp.
In a greased 13”x 9” baking pan, combine potato mixture, green beans, ham and rosemary. Drizzle water over all.
Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 350° for one hour, or until potatoes are tender. Serves 6-8.
Enjoy!
Tags: Debbie, Gooseberry Patch, In the Kitchen, Summer
Cookbook Review: 101 Cozy Casseroles and a give-away
It is my turn! As Jen said last week, we’re always excited when we receive the latest Gooseberry Patch Early Reviewer book…I love getting a sneak peek at these books and trying the new recipes, and it is even more exciting to be able to give away a copy of the book. Read through the whole post for directions on how to enter the giveaway.
Memorial Day weekend, a time to remember, and also the unofficial start of summer. And, what says summer better than state fair. I grew up in Sacramento, a child of the suburbs, but every summer we would make our annual trip to the California Exposition and State Fair. I know that we rode rides, walked through building after building of county exhibits, and saw livestock, but my favorite memories are of the fair food – funnel cakes, frozen bananas, and corn dogs. So, when I was flipping through the new book, 101 Cozy Casseroles, I knew that I just had to try Tiffani Schulte’s recipe for Blue-Ribbon Corn Dog Bake. It was easy to make and was a tasty combination of corn bread and hot dogs — and I think it tasted even better when I reheated a piece (in the oven, not the microwave) for lunch the next day!
Blue-Ribbon Corn Dog Bake
Ingredients:
1/3 cup sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 cup all-purpose flour
¾ Tbsp. baking powder
[Here I digress—I don’t know about you all, but I have 4 sets of measuring spoons and not a single one has a “3/4 Tbsp.” measure! But, Google http://www.google.com is my friend, and I found a great conversion chart. http://www.calcul.com/cooking-conversion I learned (I’m sure that somewhere in the deep recesses of my muddled mind I knew this, but it wasn’t rising to the top) that 1 tablespoon equals 3 teaspoons, multiply by .75, and for those of you who also do not have a ¾ Tablespoon measure, you need 2 ¼ teaspoons!.]
Ingredients continued:
½ tsp. salt
½ cup yellow cornmeal
½ Tbsp. butter, melted
¾ cup milk
16-oz. pkg. hot dogs, sliced into bite size pieces (warning – choking hazard – don’t leave them in round discs, cut into half-circles!)
Directions:
In a small bowl, mix together sugar and egg. In a separate bowl, mix together flour, baking powder and salt. Add flour mixture to sugar mixture. Add cornmeal, butter, and milk, stirring just to combine. Fold in hot dog pieces.
Pour into a well-greased 8” x 8” baking pan.
Bake, uncovered, at 375° for about 15-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Serves 6.
Enjoy!
Do you want to win a copy of 101 Cozy Casseroles?
How to Enter
We will be giving away ONE copy of the cookbook to one lucky winner. If you would like a chance to win, leave us a comment in this post and tell us about your favorite summer foods. Leave your comment before June 7 at 9:59 p.m. CST.
Don’t worry about being creative in your comment, the winner will be chosen by a random number generator. Please make sure that you fill out the required fields by putting your first name in the name field and your email address in the email address field. We do not share email addresses and you will not receive emails from Threaded Together unless you win.
Winners
We will choose ONE winner randomly and announce the results here on Threaded Together sometime after June 2.
Rules
No purchase necessary to enter or win. Sweepstakes is open only to legal residents of the 50 states and the District of Columbia and who are 18 years of age at time of entry. For this giveaway, entrants can enter 1 time. We will disqualify any entries that we believe are generated by scripts and other automated technology and Threaded Together assumes no responsibility for late or misdirected entries due to SPAM, technological issues or for prizes lost in transit.No substitutions including for cash are permitted, except Threaded Together reserves the right to substitute a prize of equal or greater monetary value for any prize. Void where prohibited by law. Winners shall be responsible and liable for all federal, state, and local taxes on the value of their prize. Relatives of Threaded Together are no eligible to win.
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Tags: casserole, cookbooks, Debbie, Gooseberry Patch, In the Kitchen, Summer
Clutter-oholics — Summer Trip Mementos
As my girls can attest, I do not have a lot of clutter around the house (and am getting even more “minimalist” the older I get). I collect two things (three, if you count friends!) – cookbooks/recipes and magnets/pins. Both of which are usually purchased during my travels. I enjoy looking at them, but got tired of my refrigerator looking like this (found this picture on some realtor’s website — how your refrigerator should NOT look if you are trying to sell your house!):
So, a couple of years ago I purchased some small sheets of metal at the local “big box” home improvement store and nailed them up on a bare wall out in the garage by the washer/dryer – make sure you have a magnet with you when shopping for the sheet metal … not all metal will hold a magnet (a lesson learned the hard way). Luckily on this last trip I had a work nametag in my purse!
This idea would also work if you have a laundry room with bare walls. I just had to buy another sheet and decided to share this idea to “de-clutter” something you have to look at multiple times every single day (the refrigerator), yet allows you to still keep these memory reminders somewhere where you can enjoy looking at them every single day! Hmmm…I guess when I get every single other home improvement project done around here–after I finish my dissertation–I may think about painting the interior of the garage, the walls are pretty dingy looking! Good thing I have those colorful mementos to look at to take the focus off of the dirty walls! :-)
And, if there are no magnets available at whatever “tacky” tourist trap we’re visiting, I will purchase a pin — and since I don’t wear ball caps, these get repurposed to become “tacks” on the bulletin board in my guest room!
Happy Summer Souvenir Shopping!
Tags: Debbie, declutter, Organization, Repurpose, Summer
Refrigerator Bread & Butter Pickles
It is summer, and the living is easy — 99° here at 6 pm on June 4 — after an absolutely beautiful spring, I think we’re going to have a Long. Hot. Summer. We made the first of our annual visits to A & N Blueberry Farm early Friday morning to pick blueberries (I got 10.5 pounds and Jen got around 7… pretty sure we’re going to have to squeeze in another trip!). They also had some other fresh produce for sale and I picked up some of Sarah’s delicious blueberry jam (because I don’t can), cucumbers and a nice big zucchini … I already have some yellow squash in the fridge, so just might have to make some zucchini bread later this week.
I don’t can, did you catch that above? I love the idea of canning and once helped my friend, Jenny K. (Jen’s namesake!), can about 400 pounds of tomatoes (we washed them in the bathtub). My sister-in-law, Rhonda D., is the canning queen — I love visiting when the pantry is full of homemade grape jelly, corn, tomatoes and other yummy treats from their garden. So, since I don’t can, I freeze and refrigerate! I bought these cucumbers specifically to make some EASY refrigerator pickles.
Ingredients:
7 cups cucumbers (number of cucumbers needed depends on how big they are — I used 4 today)
2 Tbsp. salt
2 cups sugar
1 cup cider vinegar
1 tsp. celery seeds
Directions:
Thinly slice cucumbers — or thickly slice, up to you! I prefer a thinner slice. Place in a colander and sprinkle cucumber slices with salt. Let stand at least 2 hours.
Meanwhile, combine the sugar, vinegar and celery seeds. Let stand until the sugar completely dissolves, stirring occasionally.
Rinse the cucumber slices and drain well. Put the cucumber slices in a large canning jar—my original recipe from about 30 years ago says “or a mayonnaise jar” … can you even buy mayo in a jar these days?? Really cram the cucumber slices in tightly. I finally had an opportunity to use this cute jar that Jen made for our annual holiday cookie exchange!
Pour the vinegar mixture over the top.
And, refrigerate. Done!
Now, try to wait 24-48 hours before snacking on these tasty morsels. Won’t kill you if you don’t wait, but they are better the longer they sit in the cider-sugar solution. I’m not sure if these ever have an “expiration” date … I’ve kept them in the fridge for weeks and they’ve been just fine.
Enjoy!
Gooseberry Patch Recipe Roundup
Tags: Debbie, garden, In the Kitchen, pickles, Summer
Basil-Tomato Tart
As the rest of the girls have recently commented, it has been a busy spring. We’ve been spoiled here along Florida’s NW Panhandle with unseasonably cool temperatures and low humidity – I think this is the latest I’ve turned on the air conditioning in years!! So, any free time I’ve had not dedicated to work and school deadlines has been spent outside trying to mitigate several years of benign neglect to my landscaping, especially in the backyard. It is looking good enough that I wouldn’t be embarrassed if unexpected company stopped by, so now that the house is shut up and the air is back on, I’m chained to my desk in front of the computer!
I got the original recipe for this dish out of a Better Homes and Gardens magazine, probably about 15 years ago; and with a couple of minor modifications, it has been a friends and family summer favorite ever since. It is best with fresh ingredients, so if you don’t have a garden in your backyard or in pots on the deck/patio, head down to your local farmers market to pick up ingredients. We love the Palafox Farmers Market here in Pensacola! In fact, one of my basil plants came from a vendor there last year. It barely survived the winter in a kitchen garden window, but a few days ago I got enough leaves off of it to make this tasty dish. So let the official summer cooking season begin …
Ingredients:
1 pie crust (you can use homemade, frozen, or refrigerated—which is always my first choice)
1 cup fresh basil leaves, coarsely chopped
3-4 tomatoes (I like Romas)
Left: cherry tomato from my garden. Right: Roma tomato I had to buy in order to make this recipe!
1 ½ cup mozzarella cheese, grated
4 cloves fresh garlic, chopped
¼ cup Parmesan cheese (if you don’t use freshly grated, please at least buy the grated in the refrigerator section – do not use the powdered stuff off the supermarket shelves!)
½ cup mayonnaise (do not use Miracle Whip!)
1/8 tsp. pepper
Directions:
Bake the pie crust according to directions. Remove from oven. Sprinkle bottom with ½ cup of the grated mozzarella. Cool completely.
Cut tomatoes into thin slices; drain on paper towels.
Arrange slices in layers on top of melted mozzarella (usually go 2-3 layers, depending on how thin I’ve sliced the tomatoes). In a small bowl, combine basil and garlic with remaining mozzarella, mayonnaise, Parmesan, and pepper. Mix well.
Spread evenly over the top of the tomato slices. Note: I like to let a little glimpse of the tomatoes peek out so I don’t completely cover!
Bake at 375° for 35-40 minutes, until top is golden brown. Let set for 10-15 minutes before cutting into wedges.
Serve with a green salad and you’ve got a refreshing summer meal for brunch, lunch or dinner! Enjoy!
Tags: Debbie, fresh produce, In the Kitchen, Summer
Zucchini Bread
It is summer time and the living zucchini is easy cheap! Do you have an abundance of zucchini from your garden, from a neighbor’s garden, from your local farmer’s market (we love the Palafox Market in downtown Pensacola), or like me, picked up a couple of pounds while grocery shopping the other night because it was about as cheap as we’re going to see it all year … This rich, moist recipe came from another student wife when we were living in married student housing at Oregon State University in 1978 and has become a perennial summer family favorite.
Zucchini Bread
Ingredients:
3 eggs
1 cup oil (I use canola)
2 cups grated zucchini (skins on)
2 cups brown sugar
3 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 teaspoon vanilla
Directions:
Beat eggs. Add oil, sugar, zucchini and vanilla. Mix well. Add dry ingredients. Mix until all combined, but still lumpy. Lightly grease pans (try to use pans that are the same size so that they will finish baking at the same time). Bake 60 minutes at 325°, or until a pick inserted comes out clean. Makes two 8 or 9” loaves. Also makes great mini-loaves and muffins.
