I love this dish. I grew up with my mom fixing this and its delicious. I’d never attempted making it for myself cause I always envisioned hubby hating it. I mean why would he like Tofu? Its good for you! lol. I figured this was a good way to start introducing Tofu into our diet a little… its inexpensive, good for you and cooks quickly! I won’t go as far as saying hubby loved it, but he certainly liked it enough to have several helpings

Some people probably think this is strange cause they think of Tofu as a Vegetarian substitute for meat. But there’s nothing that says you can’t eat it with meat! If you’re trying to ease your way into Tofu, this is a pretty good starting place! For the meal, I fixed this Tofu, Mom’s Chinese Style Tilapia, some steam broccoli, and rice.

Sorry I was like smiley face happy in this post. Guess its just feel good food for me!

Mom’s Tofu & Beef

1/3 lb ground beef
3/4 cup scallions (whites & greens)
16 oz Tofu, diced (i use Soft)
4 Tbsp low sodium Soy Sauce
1 Tbsp rice cooking wine
1/4 tsp ground garlic powder
ground ginger, as desired
1 egg, beaten
1-2 Tbsp Sriracha chili sauce

Add ground beef to skillet and brown. Drain excess oil and return to skillet. Add 2 Tbsp soy sauce, 1 Tbsp rice cooking wine, garlic powder, ginger. Let simmer for a few minutes over low heat. Increase heat to medium and add tofu, 2 Tbsp soy sauce (or more if desired), srirachi chili sauce, and green onions. Cook a few minutes until Tofu is hot ~5 minutes. Pour beaten egg over Tofu and stir. Continue to stir to coat Tofu. Cook a few more minutes to thoroughly cook the egg. Serve hot.

I’m not big on the traditional mayo smothered Potato Salad. I just don’t like mayo that much! And our friends who we’ve spent the last four July 4th Holidays with, recently became vegan so Mayo drenched Potato Salad wasn’t an option anyway. With a little hunting I found a lot of recipes that were a Mustard Vinaigrette based sauce/dressing. So I went to work in the kitchen and the result was amazing! They got huge raves and I definitely plan to make this again!

Mustard Vinaigrette Potato Salad

2 lb small boiling potatoes
2 tsp sugar
2 tsp cider vinegar
1 Tbsp white wine
2 Tbsp coarse-grained deli mustard*
1 Tbsp olive oil
salt & pepper, as desired

Cover potatoes with salted water by 2 inches in a large pot. Simmer, uncovered, until fork-tender, about 20 minutes. Drain in a colander and cool slightly.

While potatoes are simmering, whisk together sugar, cider vinegar, white wine, mustard and olive oil.

When potatoes are just cool enough to handle, cut in half (or quarter if potatoes are larger). Once potatoes have cooled, add dressing, then season with salt and pepper and stir gently with a rubber spatula.

Can be made ahead and chilled, covered. Bring to room temperature, then stir and season before serving.

Its daring bakers time again!

This time it was another new challenge… Danish Braid. The guidelines this time around required that we use the basic dough recipe and do the apple filling and/or a filling of our choice, but the filling had to be made from scratch. I made the apple filling for one large danish braids and did a cream cheese filling for the rest of the dough (hubby’s favorite kind of danishes) and made a bunch of smaller danishes.

The apple Danish braid was amazing. So delicious! It’d be great for a weekend brunch. It was pretty time consuming so not something I’d make again frequently but I’ll definitely give it a whirl again! And next time I’ll remember to put sugar in my cream cheese filling

A special thanks to Kelly of Sass & Veracity, and Ben of What’s Cookin’? for hosting this month’s edition of Daring Bakers. Be sure to checkout the Daring Bakers Blogroll to see what my fellow bloggers created this month!

DANISH DOUGH

Makes 2-1/2 pounds dough

Ingredients
For the dough (Detrempe)
1 ounce fresh yeast or 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1/2 cup whole milk
1/3 cup sugar
Zest of 1 orange, finely grated
3/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped
2 large eggs, chilled
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
3-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt

For the butter block (Beurrage)
1/2 pound (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour

DOUGH
Combine yeast and milk in the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and mix on low speed. Slowly add sugar, orange zest, cardamom, vanilla extract, vanilla seeds, eggs, and orange juice. Mix well. Change to the dough hook and add the salt with the flour, 1 cup at a time, increasing speed to medium as the flour is incorporated. Knead the dough for about 5 minutes, or until smooth. You may need to add a little more flour if it is sticky. Transfer dough to a lightly floured baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Without a standing mixer: Combine yeast and milk in a bowl with a hand mixer on low speed or a whisk. Add sugar, orange zest, cardamom, vanilla extract, vanilla seeds, eggs, and orange juice and mix well. Sift flour and salt on your working surface and make a fountain. Make sure that the “walls” of your fountain are thick and even. Pour the liquid in the middle of the fountain. With your fingertips, mix the liquid and the flour starting from the middle of the fountain, slowly working towards the edges. When the ingredients have been incorporated start kneading the dough with the heel of your hands until it becomes smooth and easy to work with, around 5 to 7 minutes. You might need to add more flour if the dough is sticky.

BUTTER BLOCK
1. Combine butter and flour in the bowl of a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and beat on medium speed for 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and the paddle and then beat for 1 minute more, or until smooth and lump free. Set aside at room temperature.
2. After the detrempe has chilled 30 minutes, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll the dough into a rectangle approximately 18 x 13 inches and ¼ inch thick. The dough may be sticky, so keep dusting it lightly with flour. Spread the butter evenly over the center and right thirds of the dough. Fold the left edge of the detrempe to the right, covering half of the butter. Fold the right third of the rectangle over the center third. The first turn has now been completed. Mark the dough by poking it with your finger to keep track of your turns, or use a sticky and keep a tally. Place the dough on a baking sheet, wrap it in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
3. Place the dough lengthwise on a floured work surface. The open ends should be to your right and left. Roll the dough into another approximately 13 x 18 inch, ¼-inch-thick rectangle. Again, fold the left third of the rectangle over the center third and the right third over the center third. No additional butter will be added as it is already in the dough. The second turn has now been completed. Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes.
4. Roll out, turn, and refrigerate the dough two more times, for a total of four single turns. Make sure you are keeping track of your turns. Refrigerate the dough after the final turn for at least 5 hours or overnight. The Danish dough is now ready to be used. If you will not be using the dough within 24 hours, freeze it. To do this, roll the dough out to about 1 inch in thickness, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and freeze. Defrost the dough slowly in the refrigerator for easiest handling. Danish dough will keep in the freezer for up to 1 month.

APPLE FILLING
Makes enough for two braids

Ingredients
4 Fuji or other apples, peeled, cored, and cut into ¼-inch pieces
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
4 tablespoons unsalted butter

Toss all ingredients except butter in a large bowl. Melt the butter in a sauté pan over medium heat until slightly nutty in color, about 6 - 8 minutes. Then add the apple mixture and sauté until apples are softened and caramelized, 10 to 15 minutes. If you’ve chosen Fujis, the apples will be caramelized, but have still retained their shape. Pour the cooked apples onto a baking sheet to cool completely before forming the braid. (If making ahead, cool to room temperature, seal, and refrigerate.) They will cool faster when spread in a thin layer over the surface of the sheet. After they have cooled, the filling can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Left over filling can be used as an ice cream topping, for muffins, cheesecake, or other pastries.

DANISH BRAID
Makes enough for 2 large braids

Ingredients
1 recipe Danish Dough (see below)
2 cups apple filling, jam, or preserves (see below)

For the egg wash: 1 large egg, plus 1 large egg yolk

1. Line a baking sheet with a silicone mat or parchment paper. On a lightly floured surface, roll the Danish Dough into a 15 x 20-inch rectangle, ¼ inch thick. If the dough seems elastic and shrinks back when rolled, let it rest for a few minutes, then roll again. Place the dough on the baking sheet.
2. Along one long side of the pastry make parallel, 5-inch-long cuts with a knife or rolling pastry wheel, each about 1 inch apart. Repeat on the opposite side, making sure to line up the cuts with those you’ve already made.
3. Spoon the filling you’ve chosen to fill your braid down the center of the rectangle. Starting with the top and bottom “flaps”, fold the top flap down over the filling to cover. Next, fold the bottom “flap” up to cover filling. This helps keep the braid neat and helps to hold in the filling. Now begin folding the cut side strips of dough over the filling, alternating first left, then right, left, right, until finished. Trim any excess dough and tuck in the ends.

Egg Wash
Whisk together the whole egg and yolk in a bowl and with a pastry brush, lightly coat the braid.

Proofing and Baking
1. Spray cooking oil (Pam…) onto a piece of plastic wrap, and place over the braid. Proof at room temperature or, if possible, in a controlled 90 degree F environment for about 2 hours, or until doubled in volume and light to the touch.
2. Near the end of proofing, preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Position a rack in the center of the oven.
3. Bake for 10 minutes, then rotate the pan so that the side of the braid previously in the back of the oven is now in the front. Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F, and bake about 15-20 minutes more, or until golden brown. Cool and serve the braid either still warm from the oven or at room temperature. The cooled braid can be wrapped airtight and stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 days, or freeze for 1 month.

Source: The Secrets of Baking by Sherry Yard

Its summer time. I’ve been craving ice cream daily. I tried making a batch of frozen yogurt but the first attempt was not sweet enough and was too yogurty. I’ll give it a few more tries and hopefully be back with a winning Fro Yo recipe. For now though, I figured I’d stick with sorbet.

Peach Mango Sorbet

2 cups fresh ripe peaches (peeled and diced) 
2 cups diced ripe mango
1/4 cup fresh-squeezed lime juice
1/4 - 1/2 cup sugar *

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth. Refrigerate fruit mixture until very cold. Pour into ice cream maker or frozen dessert machine and finish according to the manufacturer’s directions. Best served immediately.

* I always taste the fruit while I’m cutting it. The better the fruit, the less sugar I use.

My 21 (soon to be 22) year old sister in law is spending her summer working on a ranch in Colorado. Since she’s far from home and off by herself, I thought I’d send her a little bit of home… some cookies! Especially since her birthday is just around the corner I knew I wanted to send her some snickerdoodles, but wanted to send something else. Oatmeal Chocolate Cookies sounded good but I was also craving pecans and they go so well with oatmeal so I started hunting. And there they were.. perfection. The original called for orange zest (2 tsps) which I had the intention of adding but discovered hubby had eaten the last orange I think it’d make a great addition although 2 tsps might be a little strong! I’ll have to experiment with the orange in the future. I loved the hint of spices… these are definitely going to be a regular in our house!

Oatmeal, chocolate chip pecan cookies

8 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground clove
1 cup rolled oats
2 cups chopped pecans
10 ounces dark chocolate chips/chunks

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a large cookie sheet with parchment or a Silpat (rubber nonstick baking mat). Using an electric mixer, beat the butter in a bowl until light and fluffy. Add both sugars, salt, and vanilla, and beat until well mixed, about 3 minutes. Stir in eggs, one at a time. Sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove in a separate bowl. Add half of the flour mixture to the butter with the mixer on low speed. Once the flour has been incorporated, add the second half. Stir in the oats, pecans, and chocolate chips. Drop the dough, by the tablespoon, onto the cookie sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden. Remove from the oven and cool the cookies on a rack. Store at room temperature in a cookie jar or other airtight container.

Source: Adapted from Sparks in the Kitchen by Katy Sparks with Andrea Strong, 2006.

I haven’t made these in probably a year and I’d forgotten just how good they are and what an easy meal they make. I usually avoid processed foods like canned biscuits but these are just so good! One of my favorite things about this recipe is how adaptable it is. I’ve included the basic recipe below but I’ll give you a couple ideas for modifications:

• Substitute one cup of chicken for 1 cup of cooked broccoli florets, chopped
• For each chicken pocket, add 1-2 dash of wing sauce or sambal like Jamie does. I haven’t tried the sambal but I bet its good. Hubby’s fav is the wing sauce
• Add other ingredients - the original recipe actually calls for pimentos. I’d like to try adding caramelized onions soon

There are so many possibilities! And if you use leftover rotisserie chicken like I did, this is one very quick weeknight meal!

Chicken Crescent Pockets

3 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 tbsp butter, melted
2 cups cooked chicken. diced/shredded
2 tbsp milk
salt & pepper to taste
1 (8 oz) can reduced-fat Pillsbury Refrigerated Crescent Dinner Rolls
3/4 cup seasoned croutons, crushed
Oil in a spray can*

Heat oven to 350°F. In medium bowl, combine cream cheese and 1 tablespoon softened butter; stir until smooth. Add chicken, salt, pepper, and milk. Mix well.

Separate dough into 4 rectangles (combine two crescents). Firmly press perforations to seal. Spoon 1/2 cup chicken mixture onto center of each rectangle. Pull 4 corners of dough to center of chicken mixture; twist firmly. Pinch edges to seal. Place on ungreased cookie sheet. Gently spray tops of chicken pockets with olive oil; sprinkle with crushed croutons. Bake at 350°F for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown.

* the original recipe calls for melted butter which you can certainly do but I use olive oil in my Misto and lightly spray the chicken pockets so the croutons will stick

Source: Adapted from Southern Living Homestyle Cooking, 2002

I’ve been out of the blogosphere for awhile now. Too long. And I apologize. A blog without updates is awfully boring. But I’m back!

Back in March, Deborah of A Taste & Tell had a little contest for her cookbook of the month event. She chose my recommendation, The Pastry Queen by Rebecca Rather for her April Cookbook of the month and so she sent me a copy of Melissa Murphy’s cookbook, The Sweet Melissa Baking Book. I remember when this cookbook hit the shelves and I saw reviews of it popping up all over the blogosphere, so I was beyond thrilled to add it to my collection.

I haven’t done much baking since we haven’t been at home a single weekend since March. This weekend was my first chance to bake so of course I immediately grabbed my newest baking book! Snickerdoodles immediately stood out especially because this recipe does not call for shortening and I make so many chocolate goodies I figured I’d mix it up a little and do something without chocolate!

They are fabulous. I love them. This recipe is perfect and I particularly love that they don’t have shortening! Thanks Deborah for the great cookbook! I can’t wait to try more!

Snickerdoodles
Yield 3 dozen cookies

For the Dough:
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tarter
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

For the Cinnamon Sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 cup sugar

Directions:
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar until smooth, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the eggs and mix until combined.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt. Add to the butter mixture and mix on low speed until combined. The dough will be soft and too sticky to roll. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.

Position a rack in the top and bottom thirds of your oven. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper or aluminum foil.

For the cinnamon sugar: Combine the cinnamon and sugar in a small bowl.

Using a 1-ounce cookie scoop, or a tablespoon, shape the dough into balls and then roll them in the cinnamon sugar.

Place the cookies 2 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheets. Flatten them slightly with your fingertips so that they stay put. Bake for about 12 to 13 minutes, or until the bottoms are slightly golden in color. These cookies are supposed to be chewy, so do not overbake. Remove to a wire rack to cool.

Snickerdoodles keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days. For longer storage, freeze well wrapped in plastic wrap and then aluminum foil for up to 3 weeks. Do not uncover before defrosting.

Source: Sweet Melissa Baking Book by Melissa Murphy, 2008.

Between bachelor & bachelorette parties, wedding showers, weddings, Mother’s Day, Hubby’s Birthday, My Birthday, an aunt’s graduation, a cousin’s graduation… this month has been very busy to say the least. Its been a full month since I last blogged. Which also means, I didn’t have time for this month’s daring bakers challenge.

It looks like it was truly a challenge this time around as everyone made a time intensive Opera Cake. Definitely check out the Daring Bakers Blogroll to see what everyone did! And a special thanks to Lis and Ivonne for hosting this round of Daring Bakers!

Its been a busy month, thus the lack of blogging. We haven’t been home a weekend yet, and as usual work is keeping me very busy during the week. We drove a grand total of 600 miles this weekend to attend a wedding & hubby’s cousin’s graduation party and I’m glad to be home with no plans for this weekend yet (although I should be going to my family reunion)!

i do have to say i had the best ever jalapeno cornbread at the cousin’s grad party… i’m going to be busy the next few weeks trying to duplicate it! it was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G. actually all the food was.

I will be back soon with some food related posts! (with a new camera too! happy bday to me!)

I skipped last week’s meal planning since I was out of town 3 days and quite frankly, i think we may have eaten out most other nights except when I made the pizza! Its been really busy around here lately! Here’s this week meal planning. Saturday night I’m hosting a bachelorette party/lingerie shower & hubby will be out of town for the Bachelor party.

Meal Plan #1
Chicken Enchiladas
Black Beans

Meal Plan #2
Grilled Pizza (again… it was so good!)
Salad

Meal Plan #3
BBQ Chicken
Ranch Beans
Grilled Corn

Meal Plan #4
Tortellini in Creamy Marinara
Salad

Meal Plan #5
Roast Chicken with White Wine Sauce
Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Asparagus

Meal Plan #6
Mexican Chicken Skillet (Rice, Chicken, Black Beans, Corn, Peppers)

Have a wonderful week!