Granny's Tasties #2

Italian Cream Cake Recipe

2010-11-24T07:41:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day here in the USA and most of you are busy preparing the meal. Rather than get into how to roast a turkey or make your special pie, I decided to post my favorite cake of all favorites. Yes, that is right--tada--Italian Cream Cake. I first had this cake last Christmas and fell madly in love with it. This says something as my mother's date and nut cake with whipped cream frosting was always the very best. It still is but now I must add another.

Anyway the picture above says it all. Not sure where I picked up the picture but that is what it should look like. It not only is delicious inside but the butter frosting adds to it. Someone told me I could order one from a bakery for $25. I believe it. I did a search on the internet and found the following sites to look over and pick one to do.

1. PIONEER WOMAN http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/07/billies-italian-cream-cake-recipe/

2. SOUTHERN FOOD-ABOUT.COM http://southernfood.about.com/od/coconutcakes/r/bln329.htm

3. HOME IS WHERE THE HOLMANS ARE http://homeiswheretheholmansare.blogspot.com/2010/06/italian-cream-cake.html

All the recipes are pretty much the same except Ree Drumond(PW) gives very detailed how-to directions and her frosting is delicious. Anyway this is what I am going to make for my guests for Christmas. Oh, I already am all set for Thanksgiving.

Have a happy Thanksgiving with family and friends.

THANKSGIVING OR BLACK FRIDAY

2010-11-21T12:13:00.000-08:00

Which day holds more meaning for your household? For me is it Black Friday as I am going to my friend's house for dinner with the family. Always a joy as I am not doing the main job of cooking.
I did volunteer to bring sweet potatoes as I love them with turkey. So here is a different twist on the dish. I feel like it came from BH&G but not too sure. I usually go with the mashed potato casserole but want to try something different.

1 tablespoon vegetable oil,
2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled, quartered, and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 cup canned reduced-sodium chicken broth or water
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
Coarse salt and ground pepper
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Directions In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high.
Add sweet potatoes; cook, stirring once, until beginning to brown, 2 minutes.
Add broth, packed brown sugar, and fresh lime juice; season with salt and pepper.
Bring to a boil; reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook until crisp-tender, 10 minutes.
Uncover, and cook over medium-high until sweet potatoes are tender and liquid is syrupy, 7 to 9 minutes more (there should be only a small amount of liquid remaining).
Remove skillet from heat; add butter, and swirl skillet until melted.
Season with salt and pepper.
Really quite simple and not too much fuss. Maybe you might like to try a change.

Otherwise the rest of the meal is pretty standard with turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, dinner rolls and veggies. Oh yes, pumpkin and apple pie.

My other adventure this year is a PUMPKIN ROLL. My friend makes/sells these each year and are yummy. I looked at a lot of sites and here are two pretty much alike.
http://www.recipesecrets.net/forums/recipe-exchange/11990-thanksgiving-recipes.html and the other is http://southernfood.about.com/od/pumpkins/r/blbb465.htm?nl=1. Anyway I am going to make one between now and Christmas, just for me.

As far as Black Friday, I am not getting up at 4a.m. but would like to check out a new TV and a laptop. I thought I would go shopping today and tomorrow to see just how big a 40" really is and would I like it in my living room.

Hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving with family and friends.

Cool summer desserts

2010-06-27T08:55:00.000-07:00

Pic by Kraft
I was looking for some desserts that would be cool and found a nice long list of no-bake desserts by Kraft but I picked out the Rocky Road no-bake cheesecake. Mainly because I like chocolate and it did look cool and really easy. Being I am serving it at home I don't have to worry about taking it out in the heat of the day. I feel sure there are many more cool, summer-looking dishes that would make for great get-togethers with your friends.

Do you like brownies or should I ask who does not like brownies? If you don't just move along cuz I found a great, new recipe for you to try. This is what Rachel OF INSIDE THE KAGANOFF KITCHEN calls "Dark Chocolate Chunk Brownies (12 insanely dense brownies)." As Rachel says "These are very elegant brownies and would make a great addition to a fancy dinner party served with vanilla ice cream, strawberries and a sprig of mint." To me that is exciting enough for me to make them TODAY.
Make something interesting and cool today. No point in getting the kitchen all heated up with the oven going. Temp here on the Gulf Coast is in the high 90's with over 100 humidity. So all a/c are pumping and will pump until early evening or later.

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY--2010

2010-06-18T14:01:00.000-07:00

Interesting survey by Ree Drumond of Pioneer Woman. She asked us to name a man we would like to dine with. Some one who inspired us, etc. The top three men people were Father, Grandfather and Jesus. If you would like to view many of the men mentioned and their count, go to Ree's site where you can see if your man was submitted. For me it was a no-brainer selecting my Father as he was a great influence in making me who I have become. Three people who responded were selected(at random) to win a Kitchendaid mixer. Great prize for answering a survey. Thanks Ree for being so generous. Maybe one day I can be a winner to a survey--any survey, any day.

Food Bloggers Moving On Up

2010-06-08T08:46:00.000-07:00

Well I just finished reading about Christy's New York City Adventure and it was a hoot. Christy is the food blogger/author from Southern Plate and lives in a small town in Alabama. This was her first trip to New York City where she was meeting with publishers of her soon-to-be published cookbook. Not only that but she went alone. You have got to read about her New York City adventure and have a few laughs.
It is so great that we are able to share these adventures with Christy as well as Ree(The Pioneer Woman) being on TV and touring the country promoting her cookbook. Thanks much to Christy and Ree. These are two of my favorite food bloggers that share great recipes for us as well as down-home personal family stories and now, publishers of their own cookbooks. There are many food bloggers that are sharing their sites with recipes that perk up our daily cooking. I know that my cooking skills and menus have really perked up in recent months. It would be nice to occasionally send a thank you to these lovely folks for sharing their ideas.

A DEFINITE MUST DO TODAY

2010-05-19T09:16:00.000-07:00

You need to do this today and get in your vote for the 'top-50-mommy-food-blogs'. Very interesting list of food bloggers for you to see who is nominated and who is at the top. You can even add your own blog if you wish and get in on this. I voted but I also wanted to see some new food bloggers that are out there with some new and different ideas. I find food blogs are usually very interesting and they all have their own great ideas whether it be recipes or tips. Take a look.
Alert: GOOSEBERRY PATCH is coming out with a new cookbook this week on slow cooker/casserole cooking. Check it out this weekend. They really put out great recipe books with not very involved steps to ending up with a nice dish. They publish a list of stores where their books can be purchased. I have seen them at Cracker Barrel Restaurants. They are on Twitter and Facebook as well where you can add comments to their posting which I think is very informative for all who like their books. Occasionally they put out a recipe from a member.
CAKE BALLS--I never heard of them until this week. Serious Eats came out with an article/recipe recently that explains it all. Basically to make them is to bake a box cake, crumble it, add frosting and roll into balls. Sounds wierd but ooooh so tasty. Great for luncheon dessert or for a summer tea. This all came to my attention by an article in the Dallas News about cake balls. Naturally I had to investigate.
Next post will be about a great southern tradition---banana pudding. Come vist again, soon.

Join the 'Circle of Friends'

2010-05-11T07:32:00.000-07:00

Here is an interesting and fun group to join up with at Gooseberry Patch. They have a great site with interesting recipes as well as published cookbooks. The recipes are tasty and very easy to make. Many come from online members. They publish a very colorful monthly desktop for you to download to your computer. All in all the site has alot to offer.

Blueberry Muffin--Really Big

2010-05-02T06:24:00.000-07:00

Found some interesting sites about food this weekend. One is from Emeril and the other is about a very large blueberry muffin.
Emeril is offering some of his recipes available for download here. (This is a .pdf file so you will need Adobe to read it.) It seems he has allowed us to view some of his recipes from his fabulous New Orleans restaurants from appetizers to desserts. It is well worth downloading.
The realllly large blueberry muffin is being touted from a segment on the Simpsons. Check out the article here about what the chef at a famous resort put on his menu. I can't imagine ordering a four pound blueberry muffin for $25 except for the fun of it. First of all you need alot of fresh blueberries and also need to have many people to share helping to eat it. Fun, fun!
Enjoy your weekend

ANNUAL EASTER POUND CAKE

2010-04-01T08:11:00.000-07:00

Today is a good day to make a "lemon pound cake" using the recipe I posted a year ago on my old recipe blog at Granny's Tasties @ http://grannycbb.blogspot.com/. This has become an annual recipe at Easter time. Here is the recipe
if you might be interested in making a loaf pound cake.
************************************************
I just finished baking a 'lemon pound cake' in a loaf pan from "Taste of Home". Strawberries are available again, so I planned the baking in time.
Ingredients: Loaf Lemon Pound Cake·
2/3 cup butter-flavored shortening
· 1-1/4 cups sugar
· 2 tablespoons lemon juice
· 1 teaspoon lemon extract
· 2/3 cup milk or 1/2 c yogurt
· 2-1/4 cups cake flour *
· 1-1/4 teaspoons salt
· 1 teaspoon baking powder
· 3 eggs
· Confectioners' sugar
Directions:
In a large mixing bowl, cream shortening and sugar
until light and fluffy.
Beat in lemon juice and extract.
Add milk; beat for 30 seconds.
Sift cake flour, salt and baking powder;
gradually add to creamed mixture.
Beat on low speed for 2 minutes.
Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Pour into a greased wax paper-lined 9-in. x 5-in. x 3-in. loaf pan.
Bake at 300° for 1 hour and 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely. Remove waxed paper. Dust with confectioners' sugar.
* I used 1 3/4 c regular flour + 1/4 c corn starch**
Have all your ingredients measured and at room temperature.

If you are interested in looking at recipes from my old blog, please go to this addresshttp://grannycbb.blogspot.com/ and look in the left column for "recipes on this blog" title. Here is listed all the recipes and the date to search for the item.
Happy Easter to everyone and happy baking.

St. Patrick's Day is Wednesday

2010-03-13T08:59:00.000-08:00

HOW-TO CORNED BEEF AND CABBAGE DINNER

Every year I look forward to this day to celebrate St. Paddy's which means making my corned beef and cabbage meal. You can find recipes all over the web that for this meal but a recipe is really not necessary for many people. By this I mean all you have to do is buy a slab of corned beef which includes the spices and a nice head of cabbage(big or small.) Get your slow cooker out and place the corned beef in it covered with water. Add the spices to the water. Turn it on low and go about your business for the day as it will take 8 to 10 hours to get tender enough to eat. Remove the corned beef and let it rest for a half hour before cutting. Cut cabbage into quarters and place in enough water to cover or even use the juices from the corned beef which has the spices in it. Cook cabbage until tender. If you wish potatoes as well, add them to the cabbage water. Once cabbage and potatoes are tender, slice the corned beef and set up your plate for eating.

If you wish to find out more how to make this meal, check out Epicurious.com and About.com for the how-to. There are many recipes for this meal where you can start from scrach and even add your own spices. These two sites are my favorites cuz they have variations for you to try. My suggestion as stated above is the simple way to go.

There are other ideas for celebrating the day such as Irish Soda Bread, green cheesecakes, and a grasshopper drink. Have fun and enjoy your day.

IF YOU LIKE CASSEROLES

2010-02-26T18:53:00.000-08:00

These recipes really applie to folks who like to make casseroles. I do and did alot of this when I was feeding four very hungry children and I had to stretch the meals. Maybe they were not too fond of them but it certainly filled their stomachs and noone went away hungry. One of the boys used to make sure he had a good helping left on his plate so he could take it back to college. I assume he had a microwave cuz it just would taste better heated.
Anyway I just found two great casseroles by the same Chef John. One is with chicken and asparagus and soups. The other is with tuna and noodles and soups. Either one could easily be doubled if you would like to take it to a covered dish gathering. I doubled the chicken recipe because the kids liked it so much and sometimes changed out the asparagus for some other vegetable. Asparagus was not really their favorite.
Even now I make these and other casseroles but not in such quantity. The whole idea for me is to have something easy to reheat from left-overs that still tastes as good or better. Another idea is to make potato casseroles(no meat) that will go with most meat entrees. Like chicken, pork or beef. Sometime when you go out to Cracker Barrel try their potato side which is great. I will look for the recipe and post it another day.
Have a good weekend and enjoy your cooking time. Make enough for next day reheats.

'Sweet-Chili-Thai-Sauce'

2010-02-22T09:27:00.000-08:00

If you have been watching the Olympics you may have caught the ads for the dipping sauce at McD for their nuggets. I decided to do some searching for the ingredients and how-to make my own. I have a great recipe for chili sauce from my grandmother that I think is great. We make it when the time is right for fresh tomatoes, etc. Seems this is a similar sauce to what I found at many different sources but it is known as 'Sweet-Chili-Thai-Sauce' and somewhat different ingredients. Lots of chilis, naturally, rice vinegar(never used it).
Anyway I made a list of sites to get a different view of how to make it. So far I have not picked any particular recipe to start with. Maybe I need to get over to McD to taste it to see if I like it.
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Sweet chilli sauce is a popular condiment in Western and Malaysian cuisine. It is commonly made with chillis and some sweetening ingredient such as fruit or a refined sugar.

chinesefood.about.com/od/fusionrecipes/r/chillisauce.htm
allrecipes.com/Recipe/Sweet-Chili-Thai-Sauce/Detail.aspx
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Sweet-Chili-Thai-Sauce/Detail.aspx
www.cooks.com/rec/search/0,1-0,sweet_chilli_sauce,FF.html
www.recipezaar.com/Thai-Sweet-Chili-Sauce-120670
www.recipezaar.com/Thai-Sweet-Chilli-Sauce-81949
www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Sweet-Chili-Sauce-10443
This recipe is really different from a blogger in Denmark. Decided to go back and read the blog for whatever else might be there.
foodandthoughts.blogspot.com/2005/03/best-sweet-chili-sauce-evah.html
sweetsunshine.com
www.thenibble.com/zine/archives/sweet-sunshine-chili-sauce.asp
www.shesimmers.com/2009/02/how-to-make-thai-sweet-chili-dipping.html
www.grouprecipes.com/s/sweet-chili-sauce/recipe/1/relevancy
Links to the best recipe sites on the net for hot sauces, chilli sauce and spicy food recipes. Looking for Mexican or Thai recipes then you will find them here.
www.chillisauce.com/sweetchillisauce.html

Lent has arrived!

2010-02-20T10:16:00.000-08:00

Just skimming along at all the foodie blogs for something to make with Lent upon us. Being part of the Catholic Church all my life, the regulations continue to change. When I was younger it mainly consisted of fasting everyday and definitely fish foods on Friday. Now that I am older the fasting part is done with but I still need to have no meat on Fridays. Sooo, I went with the tuna casserole on Ash Wednesday. I made enough to freeze portions for another meal or two. Last night I made the bestest Salmon Filet. Soooo simple yet filling.

I feel sure my favorite sites will offer some ideas. Today I found a great recipe for Clam Chowder @ Gooseberry Patch on Facebook. True, I need some else to go with it, like dessert. Lo and behold, GP also had a recipe submitted for Mint-Chocolate Brownies. Looks like a did well for next Friday's meal. Meanwhile I shall be looking for other seafood meals. Being as I live on the coast of Mississippi where seafood is plentiful, I should be able to find some delectable fresh fish. Desserts-- I usually do not have a hard time with finding something in the freezer or just fruit cocktail and cookies.

Maybe someone out there might post their favorite seafood recipe for me to use.

Girl Scouts are on the march!

2010-02-15T18:21:00.000-08:00

Girl Scout Cookies are arriving all over my town in MS. Last year I got the word at Wal-Mart, Blockbuster, the bank and many other places. One place they were not was at church. I figure my church community needed the charity more. It is a great organization for girls to belong and need our support.
With the change in weather here in the south, I started my own baking on Friday and kept the house warm as well with the oven on. I started out making Buttermilk Biscuits from SOUTHERN PLATE and moved on to Chocolate Chip Cookies from Martha Stewart. Then it was time to think about what to have for family dinner. I pulled the traditional pot roast from the freezer and got that started on the stove top. Once that was going, I needed a break to sit down at the computer and check out some of my favorite foodies being as it is Mardi Gras time. Here in Biloxi the parades started on Sunday and will go on thru Tuesday. I was looking for a recipe for King Cake and found it was easier to buy one that would take alot less time. Forget the King Cake for this year.
With Lent starting on Ash Wednesday I looked thru my recipes for meatless recipes. Found a Tuna Noodle Casserole that will do for one of the meals @ CD Kitchen but I have many more weeks ahead to prepare. One of my favorites is cheese pizza which is a given from Domino's. I bring it home, unbaked, and doctor it up with black olives and mushrooms. No point in paying for the extras when all I have to do is open a few cans. Right!
There you have it. Girl Scout Cookies are here. Mardi Gras is beginning and finishing on Ash Wednesday. Enjoy!

The YEAR OF THE SAINTS

2010-02-09T11:32:00.000-08:00

Sunday was the day for all football fans to watch the great game of the SUPER BOWL #44. I was one of them. As I patiently sat thru all the pre-bowl channels, I decided to go ahead and get started with the food. After all it was 5 p.m.
During the week I had gone thru all the sites that had all the goodies to have while the game was on. Here are a few of the places that had good recipes: SOUTHERN PLATE, PIONEER WOMAN GOOSEBERRY PATCH, Pillsbury, Bisquick. Now these ideas can be made for any gathering in the future. SP had a great chili recipe but PW outdid herself and had the bestest variety. Find her Super Bowl page and see for yourself.
So I had laid out for me all these goodies and I indulged. By half time I had enough of the small stuff and went on to the chili and natchos. In between I was jumping up and down when the Saints scored or had a great play. Needless to say, I had cheered enough but had lots of energy for the climax when the Saints intercepted a Colts pass and won 31-17. I am sure it was crazy in the French Quarter as they showed how it looked.
When you have time check out the great sites I mentioned with all their great recipes.

What's new for 2010........

2010-01-29T08:19:00.000-08:00

I know I am about a month late to wish you a Happy New Year. I had a great holiday but as usual I picked up a sinus infection that just doesn't want to go away. Our weather here in MS has been crazy with the high and low temps and lots of rain. Enough on that subject.
Today I found a widget to add that I thought you could use. Look in the right panel for "Search Food Blogs" pic where you can look for other food blogs for more fabulous recipes. I also found a spot where you can vote on your favorite food blogs for 2010. Here is the site URL http://2010.bloggies.com/ where you can vote as well as await the notice of the winners. It was fun looking back at who the winners were in years past.
Here is a list of some of my favorite blogs where you can find great recipes on a daily basis. I have put these folks on my Facebook and Twitter of which I have become addicted. You may want to get on their email list and then you can catch 'what's new' in your mailbox.
Southern Plate--http://www.southernplate.com/
Pioneer Woman--http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/
Chef John--http://foodwishes.blogspot.com/
Gooseberry Patch--http://www.gooseberrypatch.com
There are many, many great foodie sites to peruse but lately I have stuck with these before and now, after the holidays. Newsletters are also a big source for a variety of foods/ideas/recipes.
My latest cooking binge is 'buttermilk biscuits'. All the sites I mentioned have biscuit recipes you may wish to get, make and make again. Sure beats store bought. Never thought I would ever say that. I usually cut the recipe in half so as not to have too many of them waiting every time I open the frig.

How is your garden doing?

2009-08-13T08:28:00.000-07:00

Today I was looking thru my email at the food blogs I had recently received with new ideas and recipes. This caught my eye as I had just purchased an eggplant yesterday with two different ideas for what to make.
The first was to make a batter-fried eggplant patti to serve as a side dish along with whatever broiled meat I plan to serve. This is a rather simple recipe that I will explain as follows:
My next idea came, as I mentioned above, as I was reading my newsletter from Moms Menu which I read faithfully from beginning to end. Cindy Sanchez is Editor in Chief of this site which has many great ideas in each newsletter and it is well worth your while to sign up for it. Anyway this is where I found the recipe for Eggplant Parmesan which is shown in the picture above. One suggestion I have is you can buy a jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce and use this as the tomato sauce in the recipe and it will serve the same purpose. The parmesan cheese makes the dish, of course. The more the better.

2009-08-11T13:09:00.000-07:00

Just happened to look over at my neighbor's garden and noticed it was looking rather puney with rather high weeds amongst the rows of vegetables. I feel as tho something happened this year and what came up did not produce. He usually has the best looking tomatoes as well as beans, okra, squash and green onions. Anyway I was looking at Chef John's site and he put on his video for "fried green tomatoes". This uses the tomatoes that are really green before ripening to ruby red and can be rather tart. Once you batter and fry them and eat along with fried chicken and biscuits, you have a lucious meal. You don't have to be a southerner to like this dish but I feel not too many of you Yankees have had the chance to eat it.

Nothing Cooking today

2009-08-10T16:24:00.000-07:00

The big reason for no cooking today is because it is my birthday. I never cook on MY BIG DAY every year because I need a day off now and then. My family is good about it and manage to come up with a surprise each year which makes me feel great. Even the family decided to go to a restaurant instead. They asked me where I would like to go and I decided on the Beau Rivage Buffet. It is so terrific with not only the great variety but the desserts are something else. So besides a beautiful steak(medium), baked potato and nice green salad, I chose a chocolate, chocolate dessert with a chocolate base, chocolate filling and shaved chocolate top. The picture is not what I had but it does look very appetizing. Yep, I do love chocolate.

Make It Fast, Cook It Slow!

2009-08-01T10:47:00.000-07:00

I just happened upon this slow cooking cookbook via looking at President Obama's food likes and dislikes while perusing MSN.com. Now that is a long way around to find a cookbook.
Let's start with MSN.com web site where they have one-liners for topics to click on to read more. One that caught my eye was about President Obama's food likes and dislikes. The click thru took me to a discussion of his family recipe for making chili. It seems Good Morning America ran the recipe according to Huffingtonpost on 03-04-2008. I clicked thru to a few different sites to see what the recipe entailed and there I was at crockpot365--the site of President Obama's chili recipe. Each site had its own take on his recipe but this was made using a slow cooker. I proceeded to look thru the site being it had lots of recipe ideas to do with slow cooking.
Let's end with the slow cooking cookbook authored by Stephanie O'Dea namely "Make It Fast, Cook It Slow: The Big Book of Everyday Slow Cooking." This cookbook, available October, 2009, has a wide variety of recipes which has piqued my curosity. There are many, many slow cooking cookbooks available but I believe I will try to get this one.
So if you like to have slow cooking meals, give this a looksee. Right now my slow cooker is in the process of humming away for tonight's dinner.

Pioneer Brand Gift Basket Giveaway

2009-07-27T14:30:00.000-07:00

Here is a great site to get some really good, down-home cooking. Christy Jordan is the owner of http://www.southernplate.com/2009/07/pioneer-brand-gift-basket-giveaway.html-- The Southern Plate site. I have been treading over there for over a year now and the recipes are fantastic. She also talks of other things to do with cooking and does have her own cookbook. All of this is available to you once you enter her site.
Here is the good news today to get in on the Pioneer Brand Gift Basket Giveaway. Look at the picture and that tells it all. Once you post a comment your email will make her list.
Today, Monday, she has two great recipes for ground beef which are just so easy for a quickie for the family. I love having this kind of recipe available when company drops by or I just don't know what to have for dinner.
Anyway, drop by Southern Plate and check it out.

2009-07-02T07:22:00.000-07:00

Here is the latest on the contest by All You Magazine. You know, the one that has all the great coupons to clip as well as other great articles on food and family.

First off click on the following and go to the http://www.commonsensewithmoney.com/2009/06/all-you-magazine-grocery-challenge-and-subscription-giveaway/ Common Sense site and get in on the offer to receive a subscription to All You Magazine. See the details there.

While you are there also find the link to the site for the contest by All You. You can do all this right there. Get in on the fun.

The Skinny Chef

2009-05-28T13:30:00.000-07:00

Just found a great site if you are trying to get some weight off and eat well. The owner is Jennifer Iserloh and the site is named The Skinny Chef where I found lots of great recipes with great ideas. When you go there look for Buttermilk Chicken and Chocolate-Zucchini Brownies. Course there are lots more recipes but these two just hit me enough to try. Chicken and brownies are two of my favorite foods where I am always looking for new ideas.

Lemon Pound Cake for Easter

2009-04-07T08:34:00.000-07:00

If you are interested in looking at recipes from my old blog, please go to this address http://grannycbb.blogspot.com/ and look in the left column for "recipes on this blog" title. Here is listed all the recipes and the date to search for the item.
Happy Easter to everyone and happy baking.

Food, Fax and Saveur Recipes

2008-09-06T11:59:00.000-07:00

I found a point of interest today for those of you who are interested in replacing kitchenware. Houseware companies launch their fall/winter lines this month, so summer merchandise will be on sale. Not a bad idea considering how long I have had my kitchenware, pots and pans, etc.
Here is another tip if you ever need to fax information. There are two sites that you can send a fax free which is good considering I do not have a fax machine. Here are the sites-- http://www.FaxZero.com (send for free), and http://www.K7.net where you can receive faxes and voicemail for free, if you don’t mind a 206 (Washington state) fax number. As long as it is free why not use them. I went to both sites to see if there was a glitch but I did not see anything. However if anyone has used them or has a comment, please let us know.
I did receive an email today from Saveur(my favorite food mag) with two interesting food recipes.
One is for Boston Cooking School Brownies. This recipe for a gooey and rich brownie was originally published in Fannie Merritt Farmer's The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book (Little, Brown, 1911).
The other is for spiced apples which make a great foundation for apple pie or strudel. Spiced Apples. Check them out if interested.
BTW, PLEASE VOTE FOR MY SITE OF GRANNY'S TASTIES2 as there is a contest going on at DivineCaroline.com. Look (here) in the top right margin for the badge and click on it to go vote. I surely would appreciate it.

Gustav passed us by!

2008-09-01T18:11:00.000-07:00

Not alot going on today as we have been thru quite a weekend just waiting to see what Gustav was going to do. Being on the Gulf Coast of Mississippi it was just where is it going. Luckily where I live on the coast, we only got wind and rain but not flooding. Down around Gulfport it was not so good with Highway90 being flooded and further up Hwy49 bayous were overflowing causing much damage along with the wind. Anyway I am home, safe and sound and only need to go out tomorrow and pick up all the tree branches that dropped.
If you are still getting lots of squash and maybe your neighbors are still giving it to you from their gardens, here is a recipe you might want to look at for a good hot dish. About.com put out a fine recipe to try.
BTW if anyone knows of a site for purchasing decaf coffee pods for my Senseo coffee maker, please let me know. Every now and then I would like a cup of coffee and I only drink decaf. Thanks.

TWO SIMPLE IDEAS

2008-08-15T14:54:00.000-07:00

I imagine you are going thru heat withdrawal just like alot of the country. So how about a tall glass of lemonade.
Here are the ingredients:
1 qt. water
1 cup sugar
1 cup lemon juice
Put all these items in a quart container(or larger). Place a lot of ice in a few tall glasses and pour the mixture over the ice. Try to let it sit long enough to get cold. Duh!
I am making Crab Louie for supper and needed a dressing. I found this one that should do the trick.
1/3 cup mayo
2 TBSP + 2 tsp chili sauce
1 TBSP sweet relish
Mix all this together and put in refrig until ready to make salad.
Crab Louie Salad is just lots of lettuce for the base. Use a can of crab meat or fresh crab if you have it and spread this over the base of lettuce. The rest of the ingredients are what you like to add. A hard boiled egg(cut in half), cold asparagus spears, tomatoes diced or cut in quarters, and avacado-- whatever makes for a good salad. The dressing itself is a thousand island dressing drizzled over the crab and lettuce bed. The other items are placed around the outside of the salad to eat as you go along. I usually like saltines or hot french bread to go along with this salad. It is a meal entirely in itself depending, of course, on how big you make it. This salad can be found along the coastline where crab are plentiful and is a luxury. This also could be made of shrimp.
Hope everyone has a good weekend. For us they are predicting rain for the weekend to go along with all the heat.

Celebrated the big day

2008-08-10T13:58:00.000-07:00

Here we go, another year tacked on to my life. It has been great just to see how the world is evolving what with elections coming up, the stock market up and down, food and gas prices are horrendous, and the heat index sitting in the high-90's. This could really get to anyone BUT I took a day off from all this mess and said "Thank You, Lord for another year." Not much me or you can do with the above mentioned chaos, so I took sometime out for me. I proceeded to have a lovely lunch and said "Well, now what!" which turned out to be fun. I went to my favorite casino and played many different slots for hours. Nooooo, I did not win and did not lose. That is good news. Got a free bloody mary on the house and even tho I would have liked another, I knew one was enough. Living in the South for so many years has turned out to be a joy(until hurricanes come thru) being as I love the food and seafood available all year round. Without being gushy, I have been truly blessed over the years with a lovely husband and sweet pets to enjoy. My travels have taken me all over the USA and overseas. Now I am enjoying my passion, cooking old and new recipes. Enjoy your day as I am enjoying mine.

Summer fruits and vegetables

2008-08-03T11:32:00.000-07:00

I was visiting Slashfood.com and found two interesting items to bring up today. The first one is on blueberries. They are in season and possibly you might be able to find someplace where you can pick your own. Someone in my family went out picking and came home with twelve pounds. Now that is alot to work with but they will enjoy. Anyway this site at Slashfood lists(scroll down the page) many different ideas for using blueberries for muffins, pies, etc. You may just find something of interest to use the pickings.
Also at Slashfood-ate I browsed all the blog entries back to 2006. These articles were written by numerous people and covered a large area of food and cooking. I noted that the blogs usually refer to food sites for the topic of the day and this is how I have acquired food blogs I would never had found otherwise. Also I found if I click on the author it will show all that the person has written recently. Usually in the middle of the page there is a list of all those who write for Slashfood over the years. It is a very interesting site to peruse.
I just wondered how your gardens were doing this year. With the price of food, having your own garden would sure help cut the cost of purchasing fresh vegetables. I may have to head to the farmer's market as my neighbor's garden did not put out too much this year. BooHoo! At Slashfood I also found a list of items(scroll down on the page) for all the zucchini that is coming forth.
So Slashfood.com has given me and you great ideas for lots of recipes including those for blueberries and zucchini. Check out the site and see who is writing what.

Soup on a really hot day!!!

2008-07-28T15:36:00.000-07:00

I know it is warm out there most everywhere but I really liked this soup. Every now and then Donna Rattray @ About.com hits on a recipe that I have been looking to make. It certainly is not hard but very filling. I thought I had saved the pic but can't find it.

Potato Soup With Country Ham and Cheese

Ingredients:
6 tablespoons butter
3 leeks, white only, thinly sliced
6 to 8 ounces diced country ham, or smoked ham
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3 cups chicken broth
4 cups diced peeled baking potatoes
1 tablespoon fresh chopped parsley, or 1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
2 teaspoons fresh or freeze-dried chopped chives, optional
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 cups half-and-half or whole milk
1 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
salt, to taste
Preparation:
Heat butter in a large saucepan over medium-low heat. Add sliced leeks and country ham. Sauté, stirring frequently, until leeks are tender. Add flour and stir until well blended. Add the chicken broth and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. Add potatoes; bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes. Add parsley, chives, if using, and pepper, to taste. Add half-and-half or milk and cheese; stir until cheese is melted. Taste and add salt if necessary. Serves 6.
Meanwhile stay cool.

Not alot going on---Just too hot!

2008-07-26T18:48:00.000-07:00

Our weather here in the South is just plain miserable. I don't feel that much for cooking but rather like salads or something really easy to go along with a salad.
Today I found something at OLD Bay and made a good recipe for Crab Cakes but I chose to finish them in my small oven rather than frying them. They were just as crispy and very delicious.
Ingredients
2 slices dried bread, crusts removed
milk
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon McCormick® Parsley Flakes
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon OLD BAY® Seasoning
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten
1 pound lump crabmeat

Directions
In a large bowl, break bread into small pieces. Moisten with milk. Add mayo, Worcestershire sauce, parsley, baking powder, OLD BAY, salt, egg and crabmeat. Mix lightly and shape into patties. If time permits, refrigerate patties 30 minutes to help keep them together when cooking.
Broil or fry until golden-brown on both sides.
I made a salad to go along with this with some hot garlic french bread.
Vegetables are coming like crazy now which helps for side dishes and salads. Zucchini and yellow squash make for good sides as well as eggplant. Green peppers and small onions make good in salads and potato salad. The small red potatoes are great in a pot of fresh green beans. So as you can see, the garden saves alot of trips to the grocery store for veggies. The tomatoes are just about ready to pick in a week or two so I have made "fried green tomatoes" which is a great hit. As far as fruit the peaches are just about thru but watermelon is always a hit.
We are right in that hot time now and look forward to fall. But the vegetables make it bearable. I hope you are near a farmer's market or maybe have your own garden to take advantage of all that is growing.

How to Substitute Salted or Unsalted Butter

2008-07-12T10:06:00.000-07:00

Today I found the answer I have been looking for when it comes to how do you substitute unsalted butter and vice versa when baking. Note: This article was moved from Granny's Tasties #1. Here is the rule according to Chefs Cary and Kevin @ CHEFSLINE. When recipes are written with just “butter,” and do not specifiy salted or unsalted, you want always to use unsalted butter. As a general rule, most professionally developed recipes call for unsalted butter. When baking a cake, you will usually get the best results by including salt as an ingredient. If your recipe does not include salt as an ingredient, or if your recipe calls for salted butter and you are using unsalted butter, then you should add salt to your dry ingredients. Use 1/4 tsp of salt for a 1 stick of butter recipe and 1/2 tsp. of salt for a 2 stick of butter recipe. Mix the salt with your dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, cornstarch – again, it depends on your recipe) and you’ll be good to go.You want to use salt in your baking for flavor, to control leavening, and generally, you just won’t get the best results on these two fronts when you bake with salted butter.
Here is more info about Chefsline and that is you can get help instantly if you are having problems while cooking. It is a 1-800 number which helps. So it seems you get recipes from great chefs and some help instantly if need be. Sign up for the weekly free email while you are there as well. Imagine! Great resource when you need it.

I have returned to the heat of the south

2008-07-09T19:35:00.000-07:00

I had a fantastic 4th holiday and hope you did too. My consumption of food was an ongoing thing from morning til night. Naturally I am avoiding the scale cuz I really don't want to know.
Chicago has the best restaurants in the world and I managed to go to a few new ones. First off my friend served the best port wine by DOW. Now that has a fantastic flavor and so smooth.
I wanted to eat from menus that are not part of the routine here in the south. The first meal had chunks of tenderloin filet with onions, mushrooms and green peppers in a wine sauce along with a baked potato. Almost like green pepper steak but certainly a cut above that. Next meal I had a tenderloin filet and chicken breast combination plate with mashed potatoes and green beans. The finale started with a Bloody Mary with an artichoke/cheese dip as an appetizer. Then I ordered chicken linguini with cajun spices as the main meal.
As you can see I really enjoyed this trip which included lots of shopping, visiting with family and friends and certainly good food. Meeting old friends and renewing our friendships was the high-light of the trip. I have already started a list of things I want to do next time that I just did not have time for. Like a rainbow cone on Western Avenue, a SOX baseball game, getting to a musical downtown and so much more.
For now, however, memories of the past week are very vivid and certainly enjoyable.

Happy 4th, y'all

2008-06-30T18:20:00.000-07:00

I will be out-of-town over the 4th where it will be as hot as it is right here in the south. I doubt we will be BBQing but I understand there will be fireworks. Every little town out in the burbs will be having their own party. I hope everyone enjoys the 4th their own way and make sure it will a safe one.

Give your computer a rest for a few days and clean it up. This pic should give you some ideas.

Take care, y'all.

Shrimp Season is now open on the Gulf Coast

2008-06-29T10:35:00.000-07:00

(previous post)
I am certainly looking forward to this summer with the shrimp season opening. I understand they will be pricey due to the increase of cost of fuel but the shrimp will still be a great item for summer salads, cold shrimp, fried shrimp and casseroles. I found something interesting on how to prepare the jumbo shrimp over at SEASONED WITH ABANDON. The recipe suggests cooking the shrimp in less time so as not to become tough and then stuffing the shrimp using crab meat.
Here is the recipe:
Crab-Stuffed Shrimp
Serve 4 shrimp as an entree, or 1-2 as an appetizer.
For stuffing
1 cup chopped mushrooms (about 1/4 pound)
3 tablespoons minced shallots
1 tablespoon minced garlic (about 3 cloves)
3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley leaves
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 pound lump crabmeat, picked over
1/8 cup minced ham or prosciutto
1/4 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup grated parmesan
1/4 cup white wine
24 Ritz crackers, crushed into coarse crumbs
For Shrimp:
16 jumbo shrimp (about 2 pounds), shelled
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon paprika
Garnish: chopped fresh parsley leaves
Accompaniment: lemon wedges
Preheat oven to 375°F. and butter a large baking dish.
Make stuffing:In a large heavy skillet cook mushrooms, shallots, garlic, and parsley in butter over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until softened and liquid mushrooms gives off is evaporated.
Add ham and crabmeat and cook over moderately high heat, stirring, 3 minutes.
Stir in broth, wine, parmesan and cracker crumbs and remove skillet from heat. Mixture should be fairly moist.
Butterfly shrimp by cutting lengthwise along inside curve, almost completely through.
Split open shrimp and devein. Mound about 2 tablespoons stuffing onto each shrimp, pressing gently, and put shrimp, stuffed sides up, in baking dish.
Melt butter and drizzle over shrimp.
Add a small amount of wine or broth to the pan.
Sprinkle shrimp with paprika and bake 20 minutes, or until stuffing is golden.
Garnish shrimp with parsley and serve with lemon wedges.
This is fantastic and will make a great meal along with salad and maybe a baked potato.
What I like about it is there is no rich cream sauce and it is baked versus a fried shrimp platter.
NOTE: Here is an idea for using summer squash in a casserole. I cannot find where it was posted but here is the recipe without any quantities.
My mom slices the yellow squash, puts sliced fresh tomatoes on top, and then sliced sharp cheddar cheese slices on top of that. Bake till veggies are tender. I'm sure you could use different cheese, too, but there's just something about cheddar cheese and tomatoes. Can't get much easier than this. I definitely want to make this even if in a small quantity.

Chocolate is back!!!!

2008-06-28T16:04:00.000-07:00

This dessert is fantastic to look at (isn't it)as well as to eat. Anything made of chocolate can only be good. The recipe title is Malted Chocolate Mousse Cakes, from "DESSERT FIRST" who adapted it from Pichet Ong's The Sweet Spot, which sounds exotic. The pictures says alot as well as looks heavenly. This is purely a company type dessert just by its appearance.

The following meal is something just great for summertime cooking. It is called "Zucchini Strand Spaghetti" from Smitten Kitchen who pulled it from Food Network's Michael Chiarello. As I commented to the chef this takes the place of spaghetti sauce and meatballs for me. It is suggested that just get the zucchini cut and cooked before adding to spaghetti as she says otherwise "it will be crunchy". It is so easy to make and can do great with a salad and hot garlic bread.
This last item is something I would never have believed but "chicken fried bacon" is served to the patrons in Sodolak's Original Country Inn in Snook, Texas. Here in the south "chicken fried steak" is a part of southern cooking in many households. The best way to describe this is to watch this video YOU TUBE showing how it is made and served pretty much the same as "chicken fried steak"(batter and gravy). "Serious Eats" had this on their blog and I just had to post it here. Wait until you watch the video.

This is it for the "FIRST ENTRY" on my new food blog. Hope you enjoyed and will try something new when you want something different.

What was old is NEW AGAIN STARTING HERE!

2008-06-22T16:06:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Granny's Tasties #2. I am just starting a new blog due to log in problems which came about due to changing my email log in. Unless blogger can straighten out the problem and move my originial to the new log in, this will be where I will be posting to. Most of the information in the right magin will be the same as before. If you wish to find recipes or articles from #1, you can find them at GRANNY'S TASTIES ORIGINAL SITE. Even if they do straighten out the old site log in, I will continue on here being as I have gone to alot of trouble to carry over "what was to here". If you look on the right I list a site with the recipes that I have posted before prior to July 2008. I will add to that listing the address that will take you to the old postings. Otherwise everything will be sameo--sameo from before. Thanks for your patience in this transition cuz I am truly trying to keep mine.