Christmas treats for the furry kids

Every Christmas I make treats for my kids. My kids are dogs and I loved spoiling them too during the holidays. This year, we are fostering a Treeing walker Coonhound that supervised my baking from the kitchen doorstep. He really enjoyed the smell!






We also give some to our "kid's friends" and no of them can resist this treat, see for yourself, I got a few testimony:















Wheat Treats

2 jars baby food meat (chicken, lamb, beef, etc.. - you decide, make sure there is no onion)
1/2 cup non-fat powder milk
1-2cups wheat germ



Pre-heat the oven at 350C.

Mix all the ingredients. Spoon small balls on a cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes.

Make sure to store those in the fridge.


Hope your dogs enjoy!

The Cook/baker's wish list

Dear Santa,
as you already know I have been a good girl, mostly... So here's my wish list:

My Little Cupcake Mould
A bunch of candy melts
Lolly Sticks
Food Color pen sets
and if you won the lottery, a kitchenaid mixer.

That list is mostly to share some goodies Santa. So you see, I am being a good girl. Any Kcup coffee/tea/hot chocolate is also accepted!

I will leave cookies for you on Christmas Eve. If there is none left, I am sorry but I blame hubby. Or Karine... Or Scott....

Love
Melanie

It's pure torture to see all those cool cakes/cupcakes/cakepops and not be able to make some due to lack of material in Quebec stores. Just the Candy melts, I can't find anything so my choices are different variations of chocolate color coating: white, milk or dark. Even adding food coloring doesn't really help. I can't find gel coloring anywhere, I am stuck with the liquid one. Trying to make a red velvet cake with red liquid food coloring does NOT work well.

I'd love to take an afternoon of decorating cake pops with a friend or two and a glass of wine or two... and more...


Just look at those cuties from My Little Cupcake's blog




Cute, no?

Snow day goodies - soup

On a day like this:

You want to warm up with things like this:




and like this:





A week ago today, we had our first snow fall in Montreal. Hubby spent the morning shoveling so I knew a warm soup would make him happy. I planned to make a big pot so that I could freeze left over but I forgot to include one thing in my plan. The husband factor. So no left overs...

1 chopped onion
3 tablespoon soup of butter
2 tablespoon of flour
5 cups of vegetable or chicken broth
1 Cauliflower, cut
1/2 cup of 35% cream
salt and pepper

In a big pot, put butter and tenderize the onion bring close to caramelized. Add flour and mix well. Incorporate the broth and Cauliflower and bring it to a boil. Let it simmer for about 20-25 minutes, until the cauliflower is cooked. Either with a blender or a hand blender bring the mix down to a purée. Add the cream, salt and pepper.

I made my own garlic croutons and served the soup with sauté portobello mushroom.



Enjoy!

3 cheeses and veal cabbage cake

Confused yet? A cake with cheese, veal and cabbage? Did she fell on her head?

No I didn't! I saw the recipe on Ricardo and it seemed so good I had to try it. But as always, I changed the recipe to adapt it to my need, well... my husband's needs for meat. I have to say that is one of the best thing I ate in a long time and much easier then expected. However, next time I will make it I will prepare a lot in advance and make sure to let it sit longer then 5 minutes. That way I may avoid the mess it did on my kitchen floor.

Oh yeah, and I won't make that for a weekday diner either, too fancy!




Ingredients;

10-15 leaves from a Savoie cabbage
1 1/2 cups of leek, finely sliced (I used celery)
2 tablespoons of butter
1/4 cup of white wine
1/4 pound of Brie cheese
1/4 pound of Le Fin Renard cheese (both cheese rind removed and cut in cubes)
3 potatoes sliced in the mandolin
1 sweet potato sliced in the mandolin
1/2 pound to a pound of grounded veal
1 onion, chopped
3 cups of milk
garlic
1/2 cup of cheddar, grated
rosemary
salt and pepper


I started by blanching the cabbage leaves for about 4-5 minutes. Once cooked I drained and set aside.

In a pan I cooked my onions until they were tender, put my veal in and cooked it. Then set aside.

In a skillet I cooked the celery with butter until it was tender then added the wine and let it reduce until it was almost dry. I put salt and pepper then added the Brie and Fin Renard. I stirred until it was all melted and yes, you guest it, set aside.

At this point, husband was asking what was smelling so good in the kitchen and his puzzled look was priceless when I said: a cake...

In the same skillet where you melted the cheese, pour the milk, rosemary, garlic and potatoes. Bring it to a boil and simmer for about 5 minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked. Drain the potatoes but keep the milk, you will cook the sweet potatoes the same way.

When all of this is done, you are ready to assemble.

First, preheat the oven to 375 F and position the rack in the center of the oven.

Line the bottom of a 9 in hinged cake mold with parchment paper. Put one large cabbage leaf in the bottom and line the sides of the mold with 6 leaves. making sure they stick out. Put another leave in the bottom. Put the veal mix in the bottom, add the potato mix, the cheese mix, the sweet potato mix and the shredded cheese. Press between each layer. Put a cabbage leaf on top, fold the leaves toward the middle and put more leaves till you see it's formed properly.

Wrap the mold in 2 sheets of aluminium foil, one at the bottom and one on top, covering the mold. Put the mold in a cookie sheet and bake in the oven for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Now this is where I went wrong. When you remove from the oven, put a plate on top (once you remove the top foil) and let it stand for 15-20 minutes. Not 5 minutes like the impatient person that I am.

Turn the mold so it is in the plate. (if you waited 15-20 minutes you shouldn't have any trouble with that step. If you did like me and only waited 5 minutes, your kitchen floor is probably covered in hot liquid, so are your hands and arms. Told you so!)

Remove the mold and cut in pieces, just like a cake. Serve it with a salad.




Enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Bread Pudding

This will become a favourite at home, my husband is still asking for more!

2 Cups of Milk
4 eggs, separated
1 cup of brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon of Vanilla extract
5 1/2 cups of white bread, cut in small cubes (I used Italian bread)
1/2 cup of chocolate chips (I used dark, as always)

Preheat the oven at 350 F or 180 C
Butter a soufflé mold and sprinkle with sugar

In a bowl, mix the milk, egg yolks, brown sugar and vanilla. Add the bread and the chocolate chips and set aside.

In another bowl, beat the egg whites until you get firms peaks. Incorporate that in the bread mixture by folding gently.

Bake in the center of the oven for about an hour.

I served mine warm, with a berry coulis. Enjoy!

Stuffed Acorn Squash

The perfect fall meal!






I purchased an Acorn squash not knowing what to do with it and after a bit of research on how to cook it I came up with my own recipe. I know my husband enjoyed it and so did my upstairs neighbors!


1 Acorn squash
Cinnamon
half a pound of ground beef (you can use any kind of meat)
2 garlic cloves
olive oil
1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon of green onion flakes
1 small onion
1 can of red kidney beans, rinced
1 small can of tomato paste
1 cup of cooked white rice
half a cup of red wine
a cup of shredded cheese
salt and pepper

I started with asking my husband to cut the squash since my arms didn't have the strength to do it... After emptying it I poured olive oil on it generously and sprinkle cinnamon on it. I place both half on a cooking sheet and baked it at 350 for about an hour.


It tasted great just like that but I had a plan!

In a pot, I put Olive Oil, about one tablespoon, the garlic and onion until it was tender. I added the meat and once it was brown I then added the beans, rice, tomato paste, onion and cayenne pepper flakes and stir till blended. I poured the wine and stir until it reduced.






I emptied the acorn squash and mixed my cut pieces in the meat mix. I stuffed my squash halves with the mix and added cheese on the top. I put it back in the oven at 350 for another 20 minutes... or until the cheese melted.



Of course I had too much stuffing for the squash, but that is why my neighbors are so greatful ;)

Strawberry cream and tea chocolate ganache

I like simple desserts and I have to confess my love for chocolate and strawberries... If you demand that I chose between chocolate and strawberries I may have to do bad things to you if you don't let me pick both. Mum gave me a recipe for a simple dessert a long time ago and I was wondering how to improve it.... This is what I came up with:

Strawberry cream and tea chocolate ganache

(seen with Vanilla/banana and coconut frosting cupcake)

Strawberry cream:

1 box of strawberry Jell-o
1 Cup of boiling water
1 Cup of plain yogurt



Empty the Jell-o box in a bowl, pour the boiling water on it and mix until the powder completely dissolved. Add 1 cup of plain Yogurt and whisk until blend. Pour in small cups and refrigerate.

Seriously, how easier can it get?


Tea and Chocolate Ganache

1 Cup of 35% 2cream
1/4 cup of tea leaves (I used bakeapple tea but unless you are in Newfoundland or had some brought back to you use another one. Orange Pekoe works well with this.)
400g (14 oz) of dark chocolate, in smalls pieces

Put the chocolate in a bowl. In a small pot bring the cream and the tea to a shimmer on low to medium heat. Put a stainer over the bowl of chocolate and pour the cream in, keeping the tea out of the chocolate. Let it sit for about 5 minute. Mix well until the chocolate is completely melted and well blended with the cream. Refrigerate until cooled down and pour on top of the Strawberry cream. I poured mine in a pastry bag before putting it on top of the Strawberry cream so I could have a cleaner look.

I then added whipped cream and a strawberry for decoration.


Bon Appetit!

Chocolate decorations

I didn't think it would be that easy. I simply melted chocolate in a Ziploc bag in the microwave, 30 seconds at a time, cut the tip and started drawing on a parchment paper.

For Valentine's day, I made chocolate rings by making full hearts, putting silver candy balls in it and half circle on a parchment paper. I put those in the freezer for about an hour and with more melted chocolate assembled the rings.






Hubby said he would marry all over again for a chocolate ring.

But he keeps eating it...

Bon Appetit!

Maple Cheesecake cupcakes

I have a friend that is trying to cut process sugar from her diet and baking for her was not easy but I was able to make cupcakes that only the cookie crumbs has process sugar. It was a hit.

Maple Cheesecake cupcakes

Crust

1 1/2 cup of Oreo cookie crumbs
1/3 cup of melted butter
2 tablespoon of maple sugar

Cake

375g of cream cheese at room temperature
1 cup of Maple syrup
4 eggs
1/2 cup of 35% cream

Preheat the oven at 350

In a bowl mix all the crust ingredient and lighy press in your cupcake liners

Bake for 15 minutes and then put aside.

In another bowl beat the cheese and maple syrup. Add the eggs and cream and mix everything together. Pour the mixture in your cupcake lines and bake in the middle of the oven for about 1 hour. Let it cool down then refregirate for about 4 to 8 hours before serving.

I made a special one for hubby :)





Bon Appetit!

PBJ and banana bread pudding

Once more I wanted to use a product Scott brought me back from Newfoundland in another recipe then what it was intended to and I also promised the hubby some bread pudding. I have never liked bread pudding... till now!

PBJ and banana Bread Pudding

4-5 Cups of bread (I used Purity hard bread, hard to find outside Newfoundland but any bread will do) cut in pieces of about 1 inches each
4 cups of milk
1/4 cup of butter
1/2 cup of sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon of Vanilla
1/2 cup of strawberries
1 banana
1/2 of peanut butter chips

Preheat the oven to 350
Butter a 8x10 dish and put the bread in it. Add the strawberries and bananas
Beat the eggs and add the sugar while beating.
In a medium pot, heat milk, butter and vanilla, don't boil.
Pour milk mixture on the bread and fruits and add peanut butter chips.
Bake until the center is bake, about 45-60 minutes.

Ginger Shrimps and carrots couscous

We have, at our house, our occasional evening where it's "make your own dinner" night. In other words we don't feel like cooking and hubby makes himself a sandwich and I, usually, have cheese and fruits.

Well since hubby doesn't like couscous, this is something I made Friday for our "make your own dinner" night.

Ginger Shrimps and carrots couscous

1 sachet of instant couscous (flavor of your choice)
1 cup of small shrimps
1/4 cup of shredded carrots
1/4 cup of chopped onions
1 tablespoon of ginger (less if you don't like it the way I do)
1/2 clove of garlic, minced
Olive oil
pepper and salt

Prepare the instant couscous following the instruction on the box.

In a pan, heat olive oil with the garlic. Add the onions and carrots and sauté together. Add Shrimps and ginger, pepper and salt. Sauté until the Shrimps are pink.

Put on couscous and eat!

Bon Appétit!

Bakeapple Macarons

When my good buddy Scott came back from a visit to Newfoundland, he had in his luggage a jar of bakeapple jam for me. Commonly known as cloudberry, before living in Newfoundland, I never heard of such berries but I was hooked. I wanted to bake with it for a while but never took the opportunity when I was back there. Scott changed that :)

Bakeapple Macarons

1 Cup of almond powder
3/4 cup of powder sugar
3 egg whites
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1/2 cup of sugar
1/3 cup of bakeapple jam (or any other preserve you like)

Put parchement paper on a baking sheet.

Mix together the alomd powder and powder sugar, set aside.

Beat the egg whites with the vanilla extract until they are foamy. Gradualy add the sugar until you have a meringue. Fold in the almond/sugar mixture until smooth. Be careful not to fold too much, you don't want the mixture to fall. Put the batter in a pastry bag and make 1 inches dots on the parchement paper.


Let it dry at room temperature for about an hour.

Preheat the oven at 350.

Place in the middle of the oven. Bake for about 12-15 minutes with the oven door open a litte bit. I used a wooden spoon to open the door (oh and put curious pets out of the kitchen).

Let it cool down completely. Spread the jam on the flat side of the cookie and close it with another one.

Bon Appetit!

TNT Brownies

I made those around Christmas time, originally named Chocolate chip cookie dough brownies, after hubby served a regular cake size piece, with whipped cream, we were bouncing off the walls and it was renamed TNT brownies.

My nephews did not complain on the amount of sugar they put in their mouth eating this however, my brother was ready to shoot me. Be careful with the size you serve, bite size is more then enough!!!

TNT Brownies

You can use any brownies recipe you prefer. I made it simple, I used a boxed mix.

Cookie Dough:

1 cup of butter, softened
1 cup packed light brown sugar
4 Tablespoon of milk
2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
2 cup of flour
1/2 cup of chocolate chips

Cream butter, sugar, milk and vanilla extract together. Add flower and mix until smooth then add the chips and stir together. Spread the mix over your cooled down brownies and refrigerate for an hour or 2.

Chocolate glaze:

1 cup of chocolate chips (I used dark)
1 table spoon of shortening

Melt the chocolate slowly with the shortening, stir constantly. Spread over the cookie dough layer and refrigerate again for a few hours.

Bon Appetit!

Pan fried bread

My husband is not crazy about bread but when it comes to my pan fried bread, seems I can never make enough.

Pan Fried Bread

2 cups of flour
1 cup of warm water
1 sachet of yeast
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon of sugar
2 teaspoon of green onion flakes
1/4 cup of Parmesan

1 clove of garlic, chopped

Olive oil

In a bowl mix the water, yeast and sugar. Let it sit for about 5 minutes. In a separate bowl mix flour and salt. Add the water/yeast/sugar mix and green onion flakes and Parmesan. Mix together until you have a smooth dough.

Add flour to the bowl so the dough won't stick once it rise. Cover with a clean cloth and let it sit, for about 30 minutes in a warm and dark place. (I put my bowl in the micro-wave)

Put flour on your work area and roll the dough until you obtain a good 1/2 inch thick circle.





Cut in 2-3 inches slices. Put oil and garlic in a pan and heat it. Put slices in the pan, cook on medium-high for about 2 minutes each side.



I added more Parmesan while cooking it, cause I am cheese-crazy like that!

It can be served with pretty much anything but I find it goes best with stew and soups.



You can use the spices and herbs you want instead of onion flakes. I made a rosemary version for a stew and again, hubby stuffed his face!

I should try a sweet version of these eventually!

Bon Appetit!

Neapolitan Cupcakes

When I was a child, Mum would buy Neapolitan ice cream and being the chocolate lover that I am, even back then, I would eat the chocolate part and leave the vanilla and strawberry in the box. Yes I did get yelled at a lot for that but I never stopped.

Well on these cupcakes, I didn't leave anything behind! (Even the leftover pudding didn't last long!)

Neapolitan Cupcakes

Vanilla Cupcakes:

3 eggs
1 cup of softened butter
1 cup of sugar
1/2 cup of milk
1 1/2 cup of flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven at 325.

In a bowl, beat the eggs, add the butter and sugar then mix until a light and smooth texture. Add the milk, flour, baking powder and the vanilla. Mix for about 2 minutes until it's creamy.

Bake for about 18 to 20 minutes.

Let it cool down completely.

In the meantime, prepare filling and icing.


Filling:

For the filling I used Jell-o chocolate pudding. After following the instruction on the box, I poured it in a pastry bag and put it in the fridge to cool.

Strawberry Icing:

1 Cup of softened butter
1 Cup of powder sugar
1 Shirriff Strawberry Mousse

Cream everything together.


Cut a a hole in the middle of the cupcake and fill it with Pudding and then cover with icing and decorate as you wish.








As my hubby said, mine looks like boobies...




I also melted a bit of chocolate in a small plastic bag, cut a tiny hole and drew hearts on a wax paper. Once the chocolate was hard I was able to remove it from the paper and put it on the cupcakes.

Bon appetit!

Champagne cupcakes

Thanks to Sprinkle Bakes For this delicious recipe!


We have a monthly poker tournament at our place and while we took a few months off, we celebrated the return and the first tournament of 2011 with Champagne cupcakes! Not only did my guest loved it, they also left with some for their spouses (so they said...).

Champagne Cupcakes

Cupcakes:

1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 3/4 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup champagne

While preparing the cupcakes, preheat oven at 350 degrees.

In the bowl cream together butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time beating between each eggs. Add vanilla. Mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set this mix aside. In another bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup champagne and 1/2 cup sour cream until smooth. Add flour and champagne mixture alternately, beginning and ending with flour.

Now as it was indicated by Sparkle Bakes, it will be very thick. I used a ice cream scooper to fill my cupcake papers halfway and it works wonders! I usually makes a mess but this technique helped a lot!

I baked the cupcakes for about 20 minutes. Once it cooled down, I cut a hole in the middle and filled it with a custard/party filling:


Custard:

1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup champagne
2 tbsp cornstarch
5 tbsp granulated sugar
1 whole egg
2 egg yolks
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 tsp vanilla

In a bowl I whisked the cornstarch in 1/4 cup of heavy cream. Then beat the egg and yolks in.
I then used the remaining heavy cream with sugar and 1/2 cup champagne in a small saucepan and brought to a boil. Once it boil, I removed from the heat.

Slowly pour 1/3 of boiling champagne mixture into the egg/cream mixture, whisking non stop so the eggs do not cook. Return the remaining champagne/heavy cream mixture to a boil. Pour in the hot egg mixture in a stream, whisking constantly until the mixture thickens. Remove from heat and beat in the butter and vanilla.

This was quite the workout lol

I let it cool down before putting the mix in a pastry bag and filling in the cupcakes. I am eating the leftover custard as we speak... I mean write this...YUM!

Champagne Frosting:

1 cup plus 1 tbsp. champagne
1/2 cup of soft butter
2 cups powder sugar

Pour 1 cup of champagne in a small saucepan. Simmer over medium-high heat until reduced to 3 tablespoons. Let it cool down. I put mine in a glass bowl so it would cool down faster.

I creamed the butter and powdered sugar together and then added the reduced champagne while beating it until smooth.

I separated the frosting in 2 equal parts (or at least tried) and colored one in pink with 2 drops of red food coloring. I placed a big scoop of the white frosting in a pastry bag then a pink one. When you frost the cakes, it gives a pink and white frosting. (not shown in the picture because I took a picture once all the good one were gone but do have a few friends that can testified I did such an exploit lol)




Bon appetit!

Zucchini fries

Thank to Closet Cooking for this inspiration.



Sorry about the bad picture, I decided at the last minute to take one and as you see, I keep the best for last, I ate the steak THEN the fries. YUM!


I had some leftover homemade bread that was a little too dry to eat so I put those 2 slices in my wonderful Magic Bullet (unfortunately, this product placement was not sponsored.But since I use it so much, and talk to my friends about it so much, I should mention it.) Along with Oregano, Sage and onion flakes.


2 Slices of bread
1/4 teaspoon of Sage
1/4 teaspoon of Oregano
1/4 teaspoon of green onion flakes
1 tablespoon of Parmesan
2 eggs, beaten
3 or 4 zucchinis cut in sticks

I did a little chain work thing. I had my Zucchinis sticks in one bowl, my beaten eggs in another bowl next to that one, my bread crumbs in a plate and finally my baking sheet.

Preheat the Oven at 425 F and coat your baking sheet with Pam.

I took one stick, dipped in the eggs, then in the bread mix and put it on the baking sheet and so on until they were all done. I sprinkled a little bit more Parmesan on top of all the sticks and placed my baking sheet in the oven for about 20 minutes, until they became crispy brown.

I served mine with Ranch dressing to dip in. It was to die for!

Bon Appetit!

Balsamic marinated Chicken and salad.

I am sorry, I have sin... again...

I went out of my path and made another healthy recipe...

But it was sooooo good!

Balsamic marinated Chicken and salad.

For the salad I used mixed spring lettuce, cherry tomatoes, dried cranberries, red onions and walnuts.

For the marinate:

• 1 garlic clove, fine chopped
  
• 30 ml (2 tablespoon) of butter
  
• 250 ml (1 cup) balsamic vinegar
  
• 30 ml (2 tablespoon) of honey
  

In a pot, softened the garlic in the butter. Add the vinegar and honey. Bring to a boil and let it reduce at medium temperature until it is in a light syrup texture, about 15 minutes.Let it cool down.

Put the chicken breasts in a plastic bag and pour the cold marinate on top of the chicken and let it sit in the fridge for a few hours. The longer it marinates, the more the balsamic taste will be strong.

I grilled the chicken and put it on top of my salad. It was delicious!

Bon appetit!

Smoked Salmon Triangles

English is not my first language and for the longest time I pronounced the l in salmon until one day my hubby (was hubby to be at the time) told me it was pronounced SAMON.

I didn't believe him.

Not because he is known to lie, not at all. But at that point in my life, I have been living in English for so long, someone would have corrected me by now.

So I did a little survey and asked around and of course, he was not messing with me.

Thinking about this, I made myself some nice Smoked Salmon triangles for lunch. He is not too crazy of smoked salmon but I was happy to keep it all for moi!

Sorry for the blurry picture.



I used a package of Pillsbury croissant
1/4 to 1/3 cup of cream cheese
red onion
Smoked Salmon
Fresh Parsley
Salt
Pepper
Garlic powder

Preheat the oven at 350.

I softened the cream cheese and add everything but the Pillsbury Croissant and the Smoked Salmon.

On a cooking sheet I sprayed some Pam and unfolded the croissant dough.You are supposed to have 8 triangles. I put a spoon full of the mixtures in 4 different triangles and added a slice of smoked salmon on top of each cream cheese mixture. I topped it with an empty triangle, pinching the side shut.

I put that in the oven for 20 minutes.

Cappuccino Icing

This is the icing I used for the Cake Balls.





1 1/2 cup of icing sugar
1 cup of powder milk
2 Table spoon of instant coffee
1/2 cup of butter
1/4 cup of milk
1/2 teaspoon of Vanilla extract

Mix everything together.

This recipe has been adapt to use in the cake balls, if you want to use for icing you will need to add 1 1/2 of Sugar and maybe add a little bit more milk.

Chocolate and coffee balls

Now what kind of blog would this be if it was named Fraise et Chocolat and only involved healthy main dishes?

Here comes the sweets!

Choco-coffe balls



Very simple to make.

Bake a cake, any cake, made from scratch, box cakes... I used a boxed Dunkin Hynes chocolate cake. Once it is baked and cooled down just break it into pieces and put it in the food processor and gave it a go. I added my coffee icing (recipe to follow) and blended it until it made a dough.



Easy enough so far?

I let it sit in the fridge over night.
Then it's fun time, make balls! Just roll the dough and put each balls on parchment or wax paper.




I melted dark chocolate and coated each one individually. Put them back on parchment paper and let it sit a bit, then put them in the fridge for a few hours. Decorate the way you want :)





Serve a big glass of milk and enjoy!

Taco Soup

Inspired by Our Best Bites



1 lb. extra lean ground beef
1 onion, chopped (I used red onion)
4-5 cloves garlic, minced
1 packet taco seasoning
2 c. chicken broth
1 big. can diced tomatoes
1 small can tomato sauce
1 can of kidney beans (drained and rinsed)
A handful of fresh cilantro
4 big spoon of medium salsa
Sea salt




Simply cook the beef and onions in a skillet. Add half the package of Taco seasoning and stir until it's blended. Add the can of tomato paste and stir. Put everything in the slow cooker and let it cook for 6-8 hours. It cooked 8 hours in my house and it smelled great the entire day, quite a torture.

As topping I used Pico de Gallo (our best bite recipe), sour cream, shredded mozzarela and cheddar and tortilla chips.




I had one bowl and was full! I just saw hubby go for a second serving and my friend Scott left with a portion of it.

Bon appetit!

Failure

Just a quick note to remind myself on things I should NOT mix.

Cilantro, Parsley, Olive oil, garlic and Parmesan does not make a good pesto regardless of how many other things you add to ameliorate the taste. Grass is NOT an ameliorate taste at all.

Not worth taking a picture, it looked like the inside of a poopy diaper.

Avocado soup/avocado and Shrimp Salad

I will start this blog with a healthy recipe, perfect for summer.

Avocado soup :

o 2 avocados
o 1/2 small onion
o handful of fresh cilantro
o Lime juice
o Cayenne pepper
o About 1 cup of chicken or vegetable broth
o Salt

· Shrimp and avocado salad :

o Tomatoes
o Avocados
o Lime juice
o Fine chopped onion
o Cayenne pepper
o Fresh Cilantro or parsley
o Extra virgin olive oil
o Cooked Shrimps
o Salt

Preparations

Avocado soup

Mix everything in the blender until smooth consistence. Add Salt and Cayenne pepper.

Salad :

Mix everything together.

Put portion of the salad in the middle of the bowl and pour the soup around it, serve cold.


This made my night, I served that as appetizers and had leftovers, of course, that made my next day lunch so much better. When I mixed the soup, I did everything in a big juice jar with a hand blender, it made it easier to pour around the salads without making a mess.