The Great Cooking Magazine Challenge May 2011 Edition

So its that time again! I'm putting out the challenge to flip through those stacks of cooking magazines and clippings or printed out internet recipes and try something new :-) I do this challenge mostly for myself - to justify my many cooking magazine purchases and subscriptions. But I know many of you out there are just as guilty as me!

I have a linky below where you can come back and show us what you did for the challenge. I got a new Everyday with Rachel Ray in the mail this week and thought I would give a couple things that caught my eye a try today. First up is BLT Mac & Cheese


Randy and I both grew up eating "the blue box" as my friend Kathleen calls it. Kraft Dinner is how my Canadian husband refers to it. I still love it, but we have graduated to Velveeta Shells and Cheese. High Class I know! But I am always trying out mac & cheese when its offered on a menu. I've tried to recreate it at home a couple of times but haven't been that happy with the results. This recipe was actually pretty good, maybe because it comes somewhat close to looking and tasting like Kraft! lol

BLT Mac 'n' Cheese

4 slices bacon, cut into 1 inch pieces (I used the Hormel pieces in the bag..hey it saves time!)
12 oz pasta (elbows or rotini)
2 1/4 cups milk
1/2 tsp turmeric (gives it that nice orangey-yellow color)
6 oz cream cheese
2 cups finely shredded orange cheddar cheese. (About 8 oz)
6 oz cherry tomatoes quartered (I used two small chopped)
Salt, Pepper
Onion powder, garlic powder to taste (my addition)
Grated Parmesan cheese (my addition)

Preheat oven to 375°. Cook bacon until crisp if not taking the short cut that I did, then drain. Meanwhile in a large pot of salted water cook pasta until done & drain. In same pot bring milk to simmer over medium heat. Whisk in tumeric & cream cheese. Stir in cheddar cheese until melted. Add pasta, bacon and tomatoes. Season with salt, pepper, tiny bit of onion & garlic powder. Transfer to 9x13 casserole and bake til heated through, about 20 minutes. Sprinkle with grated parmesan before serving.


In the same June/July edition of Rachel Ray's mag there was an article about updated & homemade Popsicles. There were a few I'd like to try, but settled on the "Cappuccino" because the ingredients to me sounded more like Vietnamese Coffee which I love. Very simple to make and would be a good use of left over coffee.



Cappuccino Popsicles

3/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk (I ended up using a big more in the espresso part)
1/2 cups brewed espresso (I used prepared instant espresso powder I keep on hand for recipes like this)
2 tsp dark unsweetened cocoa powder, plus some for dusting (I only used 1)

Combine the cream and 1/4 cup condensed milk, stirring well. Divide mixture between your popsicle molds. Freeze until almost solid, about 1 hour. Meanwhile in a bowl whisk together espresso, cocoa and remaining condensed milk (I used more than 1/4 cup because I like sweet coffee!). Refrigerate until cold. Divide the espresso mixture between molds insert stick and freeze until solid - about 4 hours. Run warm water over molds to remove the pops. Dust cream layer with more cocoa powder. Yummy!

I hope I gave you a little inspiration. Go search your stacks, do some cooking and blogging and come back here to link up! Putting a link back to my blog in your post would be neighborly too :-)





Happy Mother's Day to all you Mothers out there including my own! Love you Momma!


I'm joining for the following parties
Sweets for a Saturday
Weekend Cooking
So Sweet Sunday
Sweet Indulgences Sunday
What's On Your Plate?
Meatless Mondays

Loony Toons ~ Subtitled Daffy Does Hot Pom Toddy

Today was maybe not such a good way to start the New Year..or maybe a good way..I'll get it over with quick. I seem to have picked up a bug of sorts and have been hacking my brains out today. I'm not a big fan of cough syrup and rarely have any on hand, so I figured it might be time to improvise. Hall's Lemon Honey drops can only carry you so far. Enter the Hot Toddy...cough syrup's kinder and more tasty cousin. Now I've never actually had a Hot Toddy before today, so I had to go search out recipes on the net. There are many..but one that called for Grenadine piqued my interest. *Light Bulb* Grenadine is made from Pom Juice..which I still have a stash of in my fridge. From this was born the Hot Pom Toddy! Anyone making an early 2010 Christmas list..you can put me down for Irish Coffee Cups. Although Daffy is pretty cute.



Hot Pom Toddy

1-2 Tablespoons Honey (I like it sweeter)
Juice of 1/3 lemon
1 oz Bourbon (or Whiskey or Rum)
2 oz Pom Juice
1 tea bag (I used Bengal Spice, but I think Lemon would be great too)
Enough hot water to steep the tea

Coat the bottom of a Irish Coffee Cup (because the Hot Toddy is such a pretty color you want to show it off) with honey. Add lemon juice, liquor and Pom Juice. Prepare hot water and steep tea. Pour prepared tea into waiting cup. Garnish with lemon slice or cinnamon stick or both!

I have to report that I didn't cough once while I was drinking this.....the jury is still out on how long the effects will last. Might need to try a second! I should sleep like a baby tonight.

Outdoor Wednesday ~A Taste of the Tropics

So maybe my post title is a little deceiving..but bear with me til the end and you might get a little inkling of truth. We are experiencing very frosty temps here in the Pacific Northwest. The thermometer registered a whopping 10°F when I left the house for work this morning. Luckily (from a commuting perspective) we have been precipitation free, so snow or icy roads to contend with. There has been some pretty frost though.


Now I know some of you that grew up in or live in areas that get tons of snow and very cold weather every year are saying whats the big deal!



But there is something magical to me to see all of the icy sparkles


The crystal formations are pretty cool too


The green beneath the frost seems so unlikely


And the contrast with red is stunning


The most amazing are the signs of summer trying to hang on


Just barely......


So are you shivering yet??? How about that taste of the tropics I promised to warm you up...or at least a taste of a really good candy bar (coconut lovers turn away). This hot chocolate featured in this months Food Network Magazine is like a Mounds in a cup.....so rich and coconutty. A little of this stuff goes a LONG way..so beware and look for your tiny cups.


Cocoa Colada

1 14 oz can coconut milk
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
4 oz chopped milk chocolate
1/4 cup toasted coconut

Bring milk and water to a simmer over low heat. Add sugar and chocolate and whisk to melt. Spike with coconut rum if desired (I didn't have any but did add a 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla) Top with toasted coconut.




These were great with a few shortbread cookies! I used a recipe shared by my friend Susan at Savoring Time in the Kitchen. Its utterly amazing what 3 simple ingredients can be transformed into. Don't skip the sugar sprinkling step...I think it makes the cookie!!

Shortbread Recipe

1 cup soft salted butter
1/2 cup Baker’s Sugar (superfine)
2 cups all purpose white flour (you can substitute ½ cup of rice flour and 1-1/2 cups AP flour for a different texture)

Cream the butter until very light and fluffy. Cream in the sugar a little at a time until the sugar dissolves (this takes a while).

Mix in about 1-1/2 cups flour gently by hand. Turn out on a lightly floured board and knead in only as much flour as is needed to make soft shape-able dough that holds together well. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Roll out about 1/3 inch thick and cut into shapes with a knife or cookie cutters, or pat into a 1/3 inch thick round (or rectangle) pan by hand (I use a 9x9x2 pan), prick with a fork every 1-2".

Bake on ungreased cookie sheets at 300 degrees for 30 to 50 minutes, (depending on the size you are making...cut-outs will take less time, pan shortbread will take more time) until pale golden brown all over. I like to sift more superfine sugar over the top when they come out of the oven. Let sit for a few minutes before removing to a cooling rack. If you are making pan shortbread, cut into small squares with a very sharp knife right away, then allow to cool.

Check out all of the other Outdoor Wednesday posts over at A Southern Daydreamer

June Garden Walk

With so much going on in my garden right now I feel like I have been neglecting it here on my blog. So I'd like to invite you on a little garden tour to make up for it! Jigs is waiting out front to welcome you.


Stop for a second a take a peek at one of my containers. I did a little patriotic theme. The little white flowers are 'Diamond Frost' euphorbia...I got the idea from my pal Barb


So lets head to the back yard. We will go in through the gate to the left of the house..right into my new little garden room I'm working on..my secret garden Randy called it this week :-) From my little bench you can see into the back yard.



One of the first things that greets you are these big pink poppies


And this sweet columbine


And in the little bed to the right 'Ebb Tide' is blooming. Its supposed to be one of the truest purple roses.


The pineapple fountain is just past this rose


Straight ahead the campanula are blooming. I love how they look against the backdrop of the euphorbia.


This pretty iris called Portrait of Larrie, is in the same area and the color is very similar to the campanula


Moving a little ways along the back border is this neat verbascum..I'm not sure of the variety but it has a really pretty dusky rose color.



Peony time is almost over, but they were really nice this year since we didn't have rain to beat them down.



I love the way this one has the dark pink at the base of the petals.



Along the way are a few clematis too. This one was sold to me as Jackmanii, but I doubt it! Still, it's very pretty and coming into it's own this year. It starts out very dark and velvety and ends up a much lighter purple.


As we get close to the arbor we find some daylilies beginning to bloom. Here is the rambunctious but very pretty "ditch lily".



And the very fragrant and early bloomer Hyperion


And here we are at the arbor. The first year we moved in we bought two Golden Showers yellow climbing roses and planted one on each side.


We still have some growing on the right, but the one on the left has reverted back to the root stock which is a brilliant reddish pink. Around the time those are done, tiny Super Fairy will be blooming and it looks like it will be quite the show this year.





Hiding underneath the arbor is one of my favorites. They grow wild here, but I have invited this one into my garden.



And this one that's a shade lighter



Just past the foxgloves, the red hot pokers are starting their show. Don't they just scream summer?


Almost at the end of the back border..right before the strawberry patch is this pretty pink spirea intermingling with one of my favorite hardy geraniums.



And this hiding in the right hand corner of the above pic..a sweet little yarrow. At least for now. In a week or two I will get tired of it because it refuses to stand up. See how the stems are horizontal? It's supposed to be about 4-5 feet tall but it's only inches from the ground!


In the corner right by the shed is sweet Josephine


The garden is past the shed along the side fence. No yield yet, but things are looking green!


Past the garden is my shady corner. I think I need to "thin" next year. It's realllllllly filled in. The hydrangeas will be blooming soon!


Coming up to the corner of the house...you might recognize the Valentines Day gift Randy got me. It looks like he might have to extend...I think I'm growing Jack's beanstalk!!!


The white clematis is one I got from my friend Karen, a local gardenbuddy (wave if you're out there Karen!). I don't know the name..she's a whiz at starting them from seeds. I think it's kind of like Mrs. Bateman though.



I hear the bubbling rock! Never mind the gnome....he was having a bad day!


Heading around the back of the house and around to the other corner is Nelly Moser (I think)


How about we sit for a while on the bench?


And maybe have a nice cool drink (had to get in a little Kitchen). It's my favorite summertime drink and really easy to do. Pour your favorite lemonade in a glass over ice (homemade is nice but store bought is great too) and add a shot of Pomegranate Italian Soda. I buy the Safeway brand. I could drink a gallon!



Thanks for stopping by!


I'd like to use this post as my entry into Outdoor Wednesday. This is my first time to join. There are usually some very beautiful posts so be sure and go check out all of the other links at A Southern Daydreamer