This recipe,  Farfalle (Bow Tie) Pasta With Chicken & Sun-Dried Tomatoes, posted to Food.com by Just Call Me Martha, got 7 rave reviews at my house, including two 5 year old girls!  Thanks to a couple previous reviewers, noting the company-worthiness of this recipe, I chose to make it for dinner last night.  Our 5 year old's best friend and her parents were bringing grandma over to dinner and play cards while she's in town.  It's always a little difficult to cook for someone new, and to be honest, I was really nervous this time.  I was choosing a recipe that would normally be on the maybe list for my own family, simply because it's a cream sauce, and in the past we have enjoyed only a handful of white sauced recipes.  I knew I wanted chicken and pasta though, so the sun-dried tomatoes and the previous reviews pushed me to give this one a shot.  I cannot tell you how happy I am!  This recipe is SO simple to prepare.  It really does only take 10 minutes to get the onion, garlic, herbs (I used fresh basil), tomatoes, and chicken prepped.  The cooking is so easy that I was stirring the chicken/cream mixture and the boiling pasta in between hands of cards, and the end result tastes like you worked all day on it.  The sun-dried tomatoes aren't overpowering, even though I probably used an ounce or so more than called for, and the only thing we needed at the table was more salt & pepper.  Following is my version, which calls for a cup less of cream, crushed red pepper and extra sun-dried tomatoes.

Farfalle (Bow Tie) Pasta With Chicken & Sun-Dried Tomatoes
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into strips
2 onions, finely diced
3 ounces sun-dried tomatoes, julienned
2 Tablespoons fresh basil (or 1/2 teaspoon dried)
1/4 teaspoon thyme
1/4 teaspoon oregano
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 cups heavy whipping cream
salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 lb farfalle (bow tie) pasta

 In large skillet, heat olive oil over medium high heat.  Add the chicken, onions, sundried tomatoes, basil, thyme, oregano and garlic.  Sauté until chicken is almost cooked through, and then slowly stir in the whipping cream and Parmesan cheese.  Bring mixture to a simmer, and continue to cook (stirring occasionally) until slightly thickened.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  While chicken mixture simmers, bring water to boil in large pot, and cook the pasta until al dente; drain. Serve pasta and sauce with a sprinkle of freshly grated Parmesan cheese, black pepper and a sprig of fresh basil.

Hard-cooked eggs using a silicone veggie steamer

Thanks to a recommendation by Connie Lea in the Gadget Forum of Food.com, on hard-cooking eggs with a steamer, using the Steamed Eggs (Kai Meung)  recipe posted by Peter J, I think I've found the best way to cook and peel them without over-cooking or tearing the whites into a million bits.

I've tried so many tips and techniques over the years, but this is the recipe that's impressed me the most.  Often I find that even though peeling is easier, a little over-cooking usually happens.  Most recently I tried Hard Cooked Eggs in the Oven (Baked Eggs), and although results were nearly perfect, there are still some adjustments to be made to avoid over-cooking, which adds a grayish tinge around the outer edges of the yolks.

A few years ago I received a silicone vegetable steamer as a gift, but I've never really made use of it.  Well, except it does make a nice buffer between my deep-dish glass pie plates.  :D

I would have tested this recipe using an electric steamer/rice cooker, but that broke long ago and hasn't been replaced yet.  So, I pulled out the silicone steamer and decided to give it a test run.  It's basically the same idea as the metal steamer basket I grew up seeing in my mom's kitchen, except it's safe to use in a non-stick pan. 

I added approximately a cup of water to the pan, although I didn't measure it.  I just made sure that the water was high enough to boil, but low enough to avoid touching the basket.  Turn the burner on high, put a lid on it, and bring the water to a boil.  It took just minutes to bring this small amount of water to a boil.  Definitely a plus when making hard-cooked eggs in a hurry!  ;)

Put your room temperature eggs in the basket and replace the lid.

Steam the eggs for 12 minutes.  When the timer rang I moved the pan off the heat and removed the lid.  Allow the eggs to cool for 15 minutes.  Run under cold water, crack and peel.
I loved that the yolks were nicely centered and there is absolutely no sign of overcooking.  The eggs had a little creamier texture than the baked ones, and not at all rubbery like boiled eggs always are.

Besides deviled eggs, which always have to have bacon in them at my house, and traditional egg salad sandwiches, my family really enjoys this recipe for Tuna Egg Salad posted by BreLeigh

And one of my favorite Taste of Home breakfast recipes for Bacon 'N' Egg Lasagna (photo courtesy of Lori Mama)

What's your favorite method for hard-cooking eggs, and your favorite ways to use them?

Father's Day 2012

I wish I could say that I've been planning a gift for Father's Day... you know, since last month. But I'd be lying. Often I will start thinking and working on things way early, but I don't seem to get anywhere until the last minute. I guess I just work a little better under pressure.

So this morning, I am surfing the web and find the cutest idea for a Father's Day gift for anyone with 3 small kids. Sure, I have two. But seeing as how they're 14 years apart, and one is out of the house, I kinda think of them both as only children. So, I take this idea and twist it around until it works for me and Sophie to do.

I'd love to give credit for the original idea, but I can't for the life of me remember the name of the blog, or find it again. The original blogger took a photo from the knees down of each of her 3 children, wearing the same pair of their father's work boots. The best photo was the last one. The only one young enough for diapers and the boots came all the way up to the bottom of the diaper. So funny!
Even though that was so cute it was giggle-worthy, the sentiment was a very serious biblical quote. I don't know the quote myself and didn't plan on using it, so I don't remember it either.
If anyone knows who's blog that idea was on, please leave it in the comments section and I'll be more than happy to link it here. :)

Anyway, since I don't have 3 kids to use for this idea I started thinking about how to do it with just one. I let Sophie pick out a pair of shoes, a shirt and a hat of Bryan's. Then I took photos of her in each item, uploaded the photos and converted them to black and white. I printed out the photos on glossy photo paper, cut them to size, and came up with the saying, which I then printed out on white card stock. I gathered a thick black frame I had stuffed in the craft room closet, a piece of red card stock (cut down to the same size as the fake photo insert the frame came with), and some double-sided tape. Then I mounted the photos and the saying onto the red background. As Sophie would say, "Waalaa!"

I think Daddy's really going to love this one. And it occurs to me now that I DO know why I can't ever get anything done before the last minute! I have a hard time not giving the presents out early. In fact, I'll be struggling not to give him this gift tonight instead of waiting until tomorrow. LOL

Here are a couple of the other photos I took but didn't make it into the final project.

Orange Cream French Toast

My family loves all things syrup related. Of course, anything that can be eaten with syrup can be eaten with jam, right? I grew up with the jam or syrup option on the table, and since I think options are a good thing, I love trying different flavors of jam and syrup. So, imagine my surprise when I discovered that my five year old thinks the pancakes, French toast or waffles are the optional ingredients.

Yes, one random afternoon I walked into the kitchen to find Sophie standing on a chair with her head in the pantry, drinking maple syrup straight from the bottle! I began hiding the syrup as if it was a key to the liquor cabinet. I considered putting a Mr. Yuck sticker on it too, but realized that might send a slightly mixed message next time I tried pouring it over her pancakes.

A month or so later I was searching for recipes to use up a crate of fresh Florida oranges, and I found a delicious French toast recipe. The Orange Cream French Toast from the Timberwolf Creek Bed & Breakfast in Maggie Valley, North Carolina, was posted to Food.com by Sharon123. It's orange, it's cream, it's stuffed... does breakfast get much better than that?

I think real vanilla is a must for this recipe, so I used my own homemade Madagascar vanilla bean vanilla, along with the fresh orange zest, and we were not disappointed. Bryan was going to be the hardest to impress with a French toast recipe, because he tends to be more of a pancake guy. So, I knew this was a good recipe when he requested it again before I'd even tasted it myself! Sophie said the filling tastes like frosting and we all agreed that it tasted a bit like a frosting we would use on orange cinnamon rolls.

I meant to slice my French bread thick to make plenty of pocket room, but the loaf was sold sliced, and I didn't notice it until I was home. I made pockets in the bread as best I could, and then used a pastry bag fitted with an open star tip to fill them. The only real bump in the road was when I realized we were out of maple syrup. I gave my family some options that included both my favorite ginger syrup and blackberry syrup, but they declined everything after trying their first bite with butter only. They found this recipe to be so well balanced, that syrup was not required! Bryan said he probably won't even bother with the maple syrup next time. I was impressed that this recipe was flavorful enough to enjoy without syrup, but since orange and ginger is a classic flavor combination, I topped mine with the ginger syrup, and found it to be absolutely delicious as well.

If you don't have a pastry bag or decorating tips for filling, it's not a problem. Feel free to use a Ziplock bag with a corner snipped off, or simply use the orange cream as a spread when the French toast is hot off the griddle. This versatile recipe went immediately into our "Best of 2012" collection and I hope you will enjoy it just as much as we did! Following is my interpretation and instructions for the recipe.

Orange Cream French Toast
1 loaf day-old French bread
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons sour cream
1 orange, zest of
½-1 teaspoon real vanilla
6 large eggs
1 1/2 cups milk (approximately)
1-2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
Powdered sugar, for dusting
Orange slice (optional garnish)

The night before you make the French toast: Use an electric mixer to combine the cream cheese, powdered sugar, sour cream, vanilla, and the orange zest. Cover and store in the refrigerator overnight.
In the morning, crack the eggs into a glass measuring cup, measure, and then pour in an equal amount of milk. Whisk eggs and milk together with a dash of vanilla, and then pour mixture into a deep, flat bowl or a pie plate. Pour about a Tablespoon of vegetable oil onto a folded paper towel and spread the oil over the surface of the griddle. Pre-heat the griddle on medium heat or to about 350°. Slice the day-old French bread into 1-1/2 inch thick slices. Cut a pocket into each slice and fill generously with the cream cheese mixture. Dip the slices into the egg mixture, turning to coat both sides, and then place on the griddle to cook for about 2-4 minutes. Combine the cinnamon and nutmeg, and sprinkle the cooked side of each slice with the spices before turning to cook for another 2-3 minutes, or until golden. Dust cooked slices with powdered sugar, and garnish with a fresh slice of orange, if desired. Serves: 4

Calling All Caramel Lovers!

Since I'm not an ice cream lover, my kids have never really had the weekly family visit to the local ice cream parlor. I suppose it could be considered selfish, but unless someone else suggests a visit, I forget about ice cream until a birthday rolls around. However, within the last couple months our friends have introduced us to a fun and unique frozen yogurt experience. My main objection to an average ice cream (or frozen yogurt) parlor is that we're forced to choose a size of cup, and often even the child-size is way more than I want. I hate paying for a large portion of ice cream that I won't be able to eat.

My love of U-Swirl started when I realized that they charge by weight. Not by how heavy-handed the server is, but because it's a self-serve operation. The basic idea is for the customer to walk a buffet line of 20 frozen yogurt machines, filling their cup with any amount of all flavors they choose, then move on to a topping bar of around 50-60 toppings, ranging from Captain Crunch Cereal to fresh fruit. The last stop before weighing our masterpiece is the sauce bar, which is stocked with approximately 15 squeeze bottles of sauce; everything from fruit sauces to marshmallow cream. What's really great about having all these choices is getting a preschooler through this extensive line in less than 2 minutes. If I took either of my kids at this age to a standard ice cream parlor, it would take 10 minutes for them just to make an ice cream choice. By the time we got toppings on, we'd be fighting amongst ourselves, and Family Fun Night will have been officially called off. At the U-swirl register your treat is weighed and you pay for only what you've filled. My cups usually have a couple bites of a couple different flavors, maybe some waffle cone chips, and a drizzle of caramel. The kids' cups are always a disgusting looking mess, but their pride in creating such masterpieces is always worth the rolling of my stomach.

After a few visits to U-swirl, fully enjoying my caramel topping, I found a new recipe for Classic Caramel Sauce. Posted to Food.com by lululovesfood, this recipe is very simple to make, but does require some patience to melt the sugar without burning it. This caramel is so delicious that I wanted to put it over everything! As it turned out, my favorite use was for dipping green apple slices, but it also made a delicious copycat version of Shari's restaurant's Cinnamasation French Toast. I made a basic cinnamon French toast, then topped it with pecan pieces, maple syrup and a drizzle of caramel. Delicious! This caramel can easily be drizzled over popcorn, ice cream, pound cake or fruit. It's rich, but not too sweet, and with this recipe handy I'll never need to buy another jar of caramel sauce!

Classic Caramel Sauce

1 cup sugar
6 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

Measure and gather all three ingredients at the stove. Set a small, heavy sauce pan over medium/high heat. Add the cup of sugar, and begin stirring constantly. Melting the sugar may take a while but hang in there. Once it begins to melt it happens very quickly. When melted, the sugar will turn amber or light brown in color. Continue stirring constantly, and add the 6 Tablespoons of butter. The sauce will begin to bubble and foam a bit with the addition of the butter. When the butter is melted, stir in the 1/2 cup of whipping cream. Continue stirring to incorporate the cream, but the sauce will start to come together. Once it is all combined, turn down the heat and serve. Leftovers can be stored in a sealed jar or plastic container in the refrigerator. It can be re-heated for drizzling by setting the container in a pan of hot water for several minutes, a few seconds in the microwave, or eaten straight out of the fridge for dipping apples.

Banana French Toast - A new way to use an old banana

I know I'm not the only one that has experienced this scenario: I buy beautiful (still slightly green) bananas one day, only to find that splotchy brown color that kids refuse to eat, starting only a few days later.

I've tried almost all the tricks for extending the life of fresh bananas. I've taken them apart, kept them together, put them in special bags, and I’ve hung them. I’ve even pampered my bananas in the palm tree banana hammock. None of these techniques worked for any noticeable time, but there are two other options that I haven't tried yet. Supposedly, wrapping the perfectly ripened bananas in brown paper bags and refrigerating them will allow the skin to darken slowly, but the fruit will maintain that perfectly ripened flavor.
There is also a gadget I stumbled on called the Banana Bunker. It's a sturdy plastic container, shaped like a banana, with a section of bellows like a bendy straw. Storing your single banana in the Banana Bunker will allow your family to carry around a healthy snack in purses, backpacks or briefcases. I don't carry around bananas, so this is one gadget I won’t be testing out, but I did find it interesting.

I keep a Ziplock bag in the freezer, and just toss the bananas in as soon as they hit the ugly stage. Some folks prefer to remove the peel and chop them into chunks before freezing, but I only bother if I’m making pre-measured fruit smoothie mixes. When the banana is frozen, the skin turns black right away, but the fruit will be perfect for mashing when you’re ready for it. When ready, remove the number of bananas needed, and let them thaw for a few minutes before removing the skin. The bananas at this point will be mushy, and half mashed already, but that just saves me from doing all the mashing myself!
Often my frozen bananas will be in there for months before I feel like making anything with them, and occasionally I would like something different than bread or cake. That's where this recipe comes in!

Last weekend I had two of those ugly bananas to use up, and didn't feel like banana bread. I found this interesting recipe called Easy Banana French Toast, posted to Food.com by TheDangerChef and had to try it. I've seen lots of recipes for banana stuffed French toast, but I'd never seen a recipe that adds the banana right to the egg mix and uses it as part of the batter. My 5 year old mashed the bananas and measured the spices. I made some adjustments, other than just doubling the banana, to the original recipe. It needed more egg and the addition of some milk to cover six slices of sandwich bread, so you’ll find my version below. I served it with peanut butter, butter and maple syrup. My family LOVED it!

Banana Battered French Toast
2 bananas
2 eggs
¼ cup milk
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8-1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 slices bread

In a shallow bowl, mash bananas with a fork until most of the lumps are gone. Whisk in the eggs, spices and vanilla extract. Preheat a griddle (350°) or a frying pan and wipe down with a thin layer of canola oil, or spray lightly with non-stick cooking spray. Dip slices of bread into the egg and banana mixture and transfer to griddle. Cook 2-3 minutes on both sides, or until lightly browned.

Avocado Salad

Winter seems to be hanging on just a little too long this year. We've had a couple nice, 60° days that let us put the top down on the car and enjoy the fresh air. Of course both times we awoke to snow the following day! Crazy, crazy weather. In my quest for springtime and sunshine I have made a few recipes lately that remind me of warmer weather.

Today's Avocado Salad is full of fresh flavors and vivid colors. It's got a little bite to it, but the fresh tomatoes, and lime juice mellow and compliment the spiciness just perfectly. It's really very easy to make with just a little veggie prep. But, even easy things can get complicated when making three recipes at a time, entertaining two 5 year old girls (letting them juice and zest about 8 lemons and limes), and visiting with friends. I accidentally forgot to add the can of black beans that was staring me in the face all night, to the salad. When I realized it the next morning, I added an appropriate amount of beans to the leftovers, and tasted it. Aside from the avocado being a little less pretty than the evening before, the flavor was even better, as the dressing ingredients had married well overnight. With or without the beans, this was a refreshing and delicious salad that would make a nice barbecue side or even a hot weather main dish. If I decide to take this recipe to a picnic or barbecue this summer, I plan to make the dressing ahead of time, or even the day before, to allow the flavors to meld. I'll transport the veggies in the serving bowl and the prepared avocado in a separate container.
This recipe is one I made for the Food.com Pick-A-Chef event. I've "adopted" a chef nicknamed X in Bayside, NY, and all three recipes I chose to make from her remind me of summertime. Feel free to adjust the amount of jalapeno and cayenne to suit your family's taste, and enjoy!

Avocado Salad (with beans)