Warm Cake in 10 Minutes

Last week I stumbled onto a video tutorial of baking a cake in the microwave.  The end result of the cake on the video looked fantastic and I knew I wanted to try to bake one myself.  This recipe is not going to be the healthiest option for dessert and fresh fruit would certainly be a quick option, but.....sometimes you just want cake!

You will need:
Large glass bowl (I used a Pyrex 4 quart mixing bowl; the largest of the nesting sets)
Cake mix of your choice (Choose one that needs only water, oil and egg)
Oil
Eggs

Butter or spray the inside of your bowl.

Follow instructions on cake mix.  If you are making a chocolate cake, substitute strong, cooled coffee for the water to intensify the chocolate flavor.

Pour into prepared bowl.

Microwave on High for 8 minutes.  Set the bowl slightly off center on the turntable so that it rotates evenly.

When it is finished, you should be able to press the center and it will slightly spring back.  Immediately invert onto serving platter.  It looks like a giant, delicious sponge dome.  We used a quick ganache glaze and sprinkles on the one pictured below (banana cake mix).

Enjoy!

Dinner Prep in 15 Minutes

Spinach Lasagna

Ricotta Cheese (about 2 pounds), homemade or bought

2 eggs

8 oz. Mozzarella, divided

1/2 cup freshly grated Parm.

1 box frozen, chopped spinach  (thaw & squeeze until dry)

Salt & pepper

No cook lasagna noodles

Favorite marinara sauce (about 2-3 cups)

9 x 13 pan

Mix Ricotta, Parm, eggs, spinach and half of Mozzarella.  Season with salt & pepper.

Spoon sauce and drizzle olive oil onto bottom of pan. 

Add one layer of noodles.

Use 1/3 of cheese mixture and spread over noodles.

Add layer or noodles.

Spoon some marinara over top.

Add layer of noodles.

Use 1/3 of cheese mixture.

Add layer of noodles.

Use 1/3 of cheese mixture.

Add layer of noodles.

Cover completely with sauce and sprinkle with 2nd half of Mozzarella.

Cover loosely with foil Bake in 350 oven for 50 minutes.

Let stand for 10 minutes and serve.

Taking Care of Business

This winter has been long, cold and icy.  The supposed Polar Vortex enshrouded the Midwest in snow, freezing temps and high winds.  Normally, I would welcome the heaps of glorious snow since my kids love to play outside and it wear them out, thus reducing cabin fever.  That is not an option when the temp drops to negative degrees.  Baking cakes and roasts was a great way to heat the house and the boys loved eating cake late at night!  We all love our cozy cottage of a home, but it feels really, really small when we have been trapped inside for weeks on end.....

Here is a picture of the little guy building "machines" with his wooden blocks.  Our new cat, Roger Wee, enjoys watching him from under the stool.

Stay warm!

Freezer Meals

Kelly & I decided to roll up our sleeves and prepare freezer meals again.  Making a large quantity of food seems like such a huge chore, but each time we have finished I find myself thinking, "This was easy! Why don't we do this more often?"

Following is a list of our recipes with some pictures!

Broccoli & Beef (I had raw beef on my hands=zero pics):

4 pounds lean beef (used a chuck roast from Costco)

6 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup orange marmalade
1/4 cup honey
3/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
2 Tbs. sesame oil
2 Tbs. rice wine vinegar
2-3 Tbs. tapioca
2 Tbs. fish sauce (optional)

1) Mix sauce ingredients and set aside
2) Trim fat from meat and cut into 1 inch strips
3) Divide meat into 4 Ziploc bags
4) Pour equal amount marinade over top and seal tightly

When ready to cook, place in crock pot for 6 hours on low with 1/2 cup water. During last hour, add 1 pound package frozen broccoli florets. Serve with steamed Jasmine rice.


Skinny Chicken Rollatini
(Kelly & I have made this before and our husbands and boys give it two thumbs up)
http://www.skinnytaste.com/2011/04/chicken-rollatini-with-spinach-alla.html

We quadrupled the recipe.

We bake the chicken with out the sauce and freeze after it is baked. When ready to make for dinner, place in pan lightly coated with olive oil and slather your favorite marinara (and cheese) atop. Bake at 350 until heated through.

Marinated Pork Chops

20 boneless pork chops (thick cut from Costco)

1 1/2 cups orange Marmalade or apricot jam
1 1/2 cups freshly squeezed OJ
6 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
1 tsp. cayenne

1) Mix sauce ingredients and set aside
2) Divide meat into 4 Ziploc bags
3) Pour equal amount marinade over top and seal tightly

When ready to prep, thaw and heat grill. You may add a dry rub before grilling, too.
Grill as desired!

Turkey Taco Filling
(Light recipe. Great for tacos or filling lettuce wraps)

6 pounds lean ground turkey (used 1/2 ground turkey & 1/2 ground turkey breast)
3 bell peppers, diced
4 onions, chopped
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 small cans tomato sauce
2 tsp. Adobo
4 tsp. chili powder
1 1/2 tsp. cumin

Brown meat in large pot in shifts. When cooked through, place in very large bowl. Using unwashed pot, cook onion and peppers in leftover juice/fat. When softened, add garlic. Add cooked onion mixture to meat along with tomato sauce & spices. Taste and adjust seasoning in necessary. Let cool and place in Ziploc bags. I used two cups per bag. We add lots of beans and rice to our tacos.

Cilantro Lime Chicken
We (DLP familia) has had this and really like it.

4 pounds chicken breast

4 cans black beans (we used kidney this time b/c I opened the wrong cans)
2-3 bags frozen corn
2 bunches cilantro, chopped
4 cloves garlic. minced
8 limes, juiced

1) Cut chicken into large chunks
2) Drain beans
3) Add beans, corn, cilantro, garlic and lime juice to large bowl and toss.
4) Divide bean mixture in to 4 bags.
5) Add equal chicken to each bag.
6) Seal and freeze

When ready to cook, add to crock pot and cook on low for 6 hours. We serve ours with rice.

East Meatballs
Kelly & I are floating in oceans of testosterone and know that men love meatballs. Toss into pasta, add to a sandwich, make some peanut sauce and serve in lettuce wraps.
These taste a lot like the ones I ate when I was in Italy (college days).

3 pounds lean ground beef
1 1/2 pounds ground pork
1 1/2 pounds ground veal

2 cups Italian or plain breadcrumbs, toasted
Milk
5 eggs
1 cup grated Parm (use the real stuff, grate fresh...no green cans!)
Salt & pepper
3 cloves minced garlic

Place meat in huge bowl. Add bread crumbs and enough milk to moisten. Add eggs and rest of ingredients.

Scoop into meatballs and place in lightly coated (olive oil) pan. Bake in 350 oven until done.
Let cool and divide into bags. Freeze. If you make homemade marinara, these taste great simmered in the sauce and give it a rich flavor!

Meatball Heaven

Pork Chop Marinade:

Turkey Tacos:

Beef & Broccoli Prep:

Ricotta & Spinach Filling for Chicken Rollatini:

Ready for Freezer!

Pounding Chicken:

Thankful for My Grandma

Here I sit, thinking about my Grandma Wilder as I wait for my turkey to cook.  Today we are having my parents and sister's family for a big dinner and I am thankful that it's a joint effort!  My Grandma hosted an enormous crowd every year and I have spent the majority of my 38 Thanksgivings at her home in Indiana. 

She reveled in cooking for her family.....preparations began in advance although the menu never changed:
Turkey (of course)
Stuffing (regular with giblets and oyster)
Mashed potatoes (mountains of fluffy spuds!)
Green beans (the best ever)
Corn
Rolls
Gravy
Waldorf Salad (mostly for my Uncle Charlie)
Apricot Delight (Grandma's favorite)
Sweet potato casserole with marshmallows in the early years, pecans more recently
Cranberry Sauce
Pie
Red Velvet Cake
Angel Food Cake
Grandma's famous sugar cookies

Grandma never seemed to mind the crowd. The kitchen was always full of my mom and aunts, bustling around to lay out the food. Someone was always brewing sweet tea and filling the glasses with ice. Not sure how they managed to have the food hot all at once at 11 o'clock sharp, but they did!

We ate until we could eat no more.  On the warmer days, the kids (that's me!) would go outside to play on the swingset.  On rainy days, we kept busy with coloring and games.  Husker Du, TriOminos and Uno.  Later, Rook and Up and Down the River.

The food fest didn't end there.  Thanksgiving evening meant the highlight for us kids: the traditional Wienie Roast.  (We did this every Easter Eve, too).  The men would build an enormous bonfire in the backyard and we would load up the folding table with hot dogs, buns, condiments, marshmallows, grahams and chocolate bars.  Good times with my pyro family.

When we cleaned out my Grandma's house before it sold, we had one last bittersweet wienie roast for old time's sake.  The fire was super hot that day; we were burning piles of non essential papers.  It was our last wienie roast, but such great memories we have had. 

The final roasting of the wienies:

Thank you, Grandma Wilder, for instilling a deep love of Thanksgiving and family in us!

Upcycling A Huge Mirror

September is right around the corner and I am thrilled to be working with etsy at the Junk Bonanza in Shakopee, MN. 

http://www.junkbonanza.com/

In preparation for the JB as well as some other flea markets, I have been acquiring some larger items to offset the "smalls".  Last June I found a massive mirror at the Village Discount.  The frame was like a Syroco (durable plastic) and the mirror was in good shape.  It looks as though it was from the late 60s.  Unfortunately, there was no price on it and I know how weird they are about pricing things spur of the moment.  The supervisor was in the back with about 20 workers and I don't think anyone spoke English, but he grabbed his teenage son to help me.  The young man was a little embarrassed and he had the pricing marker and asked it $5 was too much!  (!!?@?#>#)  I replied, "That sounds like an excellent price" and snatched up the giant mirror to awkwardly haul it to the cashier.  She looked askance at me when she saw the price and I could tell she was exasperated that someone priced it so well.  (She is a shrewd but lovely lady;)).

Here is the mirror on the back porch, ready for a thorough cleaning, no easy task with all its curls and festoons.  After all the grime was removed with the help of a toothbrush and q-tip, I bean to paint.  The color was a rich orange, almost a deep pumpkin color.  The paint clung beautifully to the frame and tiny bits of the chocolate brown peeked through.  I decided to leave it with the subtle flecks of brown instead of a solid orange. 

This treasure will be heading to Shakopee with me, although I am reluctant to take it down from our family room wall where it has been hanging.  It's such a HUGE piece and brings space to the room and well as being a lovely focal point. 

Long, Hot July

Two months have passed since my last post, although it feels like 2 years.  June was consumed with prepping and recovering from VBS, which was a wonderful week.  T left the last week of June to visit his father for two weeks and we were still enjoying a "surprise" visit from Lisa and Hannah, who traveled from Dubai to spend time with us.

July brought oppressive heat and humidity.  If you know me well, you are aware of how physically ill I become in the heat.  I wish that I could sit outside with a cool drink and enjoy the heat, but two incidents of heat stroke seem to have permanently affected my body.  Fourth of July was a scorching hot day and we went to the (early) Darien parade and had a celebration dinner at our house that night.  The kids splashed in a pool and we stayed in the A/C eating brats, watermelon and ice cream.  That was the last "normal" day in July.....

On July 5th, my sister from Dubai called from my parent's home in distress.  My dad had completely no short term memory and was wandering around confused.  Thankfully, E was home so that I could drive over and pick up my parents to drive them to the hospital.  My dad was diagnosed with a rare episode of something called transient global amnesia and spent some time in the hospital.  My mom was feeling under the weather during this time and we were increasingly worried about her. 

The day after my dad was sent home, we drove Lisa and Hannah to the airport and said our good-byes.  Dad was better albeit tired from restless hospital sleep and my mom was still not feeling well.  Within 2 days, the doctor determined that my mom needed to be hospitalized for kidney failure and some other issues.  We spent another long week in the hospital and my Aunt Betty (mom's best friend & sister) was also admitted.  Ironically, the same hospital and similar issues.  The staff was baffled and said it was the strangest thing ever.

T came home from his visit and we celebrated C's birthday the day after the ladies were released from the hospital. 

My back went out the Sunday after.  Literally could not walk.  Terrifying. 

Honestly, I am getting tired typing all this and rehashing the events of July. 

Through it all, God has been faithful and shown us his love and compassion.  Being confined to bed for a few days made me realize that I am ready to take several things off my plate so I stepped down from Children's Ministry Director at church.  It was a wonderful 18 months of service, but I am exhausted and feel that a huge burden is lifted and I have renewed energy to be a wife and mom.

I will add that there were some beautiful, bright spots throughout the month, the best being the wedding of a lovely young woman named Michelle.  I had the joy of working/mentoring her through her teen years and her mom has been a mentor and friend to me.  They are both women that I am blessed to call my friends.  Her wedding was quite simply "magical". 
Kudos if you were able to read this whole novel.  I hope to get back to posting more recipes, vintage finds and family ideas.