Lime Pie

Did you have a nice weekend? This is the first time this year we went to the beach. We almost forgot to bring chairs and sunglasses but we did remember the packed lunch. I would have brought some of this pie but I wanted to share some with my Mom. She appreciated it. My sister said she liked it since it wasn't so tart. It wasn't so tart because I had ran out of limes. I had many lemons but I didn't know how the citrus mix would turn out so I opted for less limes. Since I didn't use key limes, this is just lime pie. This is a fast and delicious dessert.

Lime Pie
3 Eggs
2 cans (14 oz. ) Sweetened Condense milk
3/4 cup lime juice
1 tsp lime zest
pinch of salt
1 graham cracker or vanilla wafer pie crust

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs until fluffy.
3. Add the condense milk, lime juice, lime zest, and a pinch of salt. 
4. Mix until incorporated.
5. Pour the mixture into the pie crust.
6. Bake the pie for 15 minutes. 
7. Remove the pie and allow to cool for 5 minutes.
8. Chill the pie in the refrigerator for a couple of hours before serving.

Recipe by Jen of Sweet Morris.

One year ago............................I made Steak Stir Fry.
Two years ago..........................I made Icebox Dessert.

Did you already know..............
-Limes turn yellow as they ripen. 
-Limes are native to Malaysia. 
-The Crusaders introduced limes to Europe.

White Chocolate Ice Cream

My husband loves ice cream. He could eat it with every meal. If he could, he would top his ice cream with some cereal and call it breakfast. He picked this ice cream. It is exceptional and creamy. My son said he doesn't like white chocolate but loves this ice cream. If you are making homemade ice cream this summer, this is the ice cream to make. Yes, we will be having ice cream this weekend.

Memo to self: do not photograph ice cream on a hot day unless you can eat it fast!

White Chocolate ice Cream
8 oz. white chocolate, finely chopped
1 cup milk
2/3 cup sugar
pinch of salt
5 egg yolks
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup half & half cream
2 oz. white chocolate, chips 


Directions:

1. Place the white chocolate in a large bowl and place a strainer over the top. Set aside.
2. In a medium saucepan, warm the milk, sugar, and salt. 
3. In a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks. 
4. While whisking, add one spoonful of the heated milk into the egg yolks.
5. Slowly, add additional heated milk to the egg yolks while whisking.
6. Combine the egg yolks to the heated milk and add back to the saucepan. 
7. Continuing to stir the mixture until the temperature reaches 170 degrees F.
8. Pour the mixture over the white chocolate.
9. Stir the white chocolate until melted and the mixture is smooth.
10. Add the heavy cream and the half & half cream. Mix well.
11. Refrigerate the mixture and allow to chill over at least 1 hour.
12. Once chilled, freeze the mixture according an ice cream maker's manufacturer's instructions. 
13. Stir in the white chocolate chips.

Recipe adapted from The Perfect Scoop. 

One year ago...................................I made Cheese Crackers.
Two years ago.................................I made Macaroni Grill Bread.

Did you already know...........................
-White chocolate does originates from the cocoa plant and contains cocoa butter.
-White chocolate does not contain any chocolate liquor or chocolate solids.
- White chocolate contains very little caffeine.

I hope everyone has a Happy Father's Day!

Popovers with chives and cheddar

One of the first things I learned to bake from scratch were popovers. They are an easy bread to make. I remember my younger sister made them a lot. To me, popovers are eggy tasting. I thought the kids would love them. I made 16 of these breads and I only had 2 left. The only reason why I had two left was because my kids told me they were going to have them for breakfast. Now, I will admit my popovers did not puff up with a dome top but it was due to the cheese topping. I may have added to much cheese.  I made a couple with no cheese and they weren't sunk in the middle like this first batch. We all agree that the cheese ones were the best. If you need a quick bread with your meal, then I recommend these rolls.

Popovers with chives and cheddar
2 cups milk
4 eggs
1/4 cup chives, chopped
1/4 tsp salt
pinch pepper
2 cups all purpose flour
4 oz. extra sharp cheddar cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Place a muffin tin into the hot oven to heat.
3. In a small pot, heat the milk over medium for 3 minutes. 
4. Stir the milk and remove from the heat. Set aside.
5. In a medium bowl (or a large glass measuring up), whisk the eggs, chives, salt, and pepper.
6. Slowly, whisk in one Tbsp of the warmed milk to the egg mixture.
7. Slowly whisk the remaining milk to the egg mixture.
8. Add the flour to the egg mixture and mix until incorporated. There may be some lumps.
9. Carefully, remove the hot tin from the oven.
10. Liberally, coat the tin with nonstick baking spray.
11. Fill each tin about 3/4 full with the batter.
12. Top the batter with a little bit of cheese.
13. Bake the popovers for 24 minutes or until golden brown.
14. Serve warm.

Recipe adapted from Better Homes and Gardens.

One year ago..............................I made Pizza Quesadilla.
Two years ago............................I made Peanut Butter Florentine.

Did you already know................
-Popovers derived from Yorkshire Pudding. 
-Popovers rise due to steam since there are no leaving agents used.
-There are special popover tins which would make a longer and larger popover than a muffin tin.

Pasta with Sausage and Gruyere sauce

Since my children were drawn to the free samples at the grocery store, we purchased some roasted garlic and gruyere cheese chicken sausage. I really couldn't decide what to do with it. I was leaning towards grilling it but what sides should I serve. In the end, I decided to make a pasta dish. It is always obvious when my daughter likes something since she will even eat it the next day. This recipe is one of those meals.

Pasta with sausage and Gruyere sauce
1 lb. shell pasta
12 oz. sausage
1 garlic, minced
1 cup spinach
1/8 cup red bell pepper, chopped small
1 Tbsp flour
2 cups milk
4 oz. Gruyere cheese, shredded
Topping parsley, chopped

Directions:

1. Boil the pasta until al dente.
2. In a large skillet, brown the sausage.
3. With a slotted spoon, remove the sausage onto a paper towel lined plate. Set aside.
4. Add the garlic, spinach, and red bell pepper. Saute for 1 minute.
5. Sprinkle the flour over the spinach mixture. Stir gently for 1 minute.
6. Whisk in the 2 cups of milk and allow to cook for 10 minutes.
7. Stir in the Gruyere cheese.
8. Once the cheese has melted, add the pasta and sausage. 
9. Mix to combine and allow to cook for one minute.
10. Top with parsley and serve.

Recipe by Jen of Sweet Morris.

One year ago.............................I made BLT with aioli.

Did you already know.............
-General stores began with a clerk retrieving the desired products for customers.
-In the 1920s, the grocery store chains began to open.
-The first supermarket opened in the 1930s.

Double Chocolate Nutella Thumbprint Cookies

I love Nutella. I actually prefer Nutella over peanut butter. My husband thinks this is so wrong. These cookies have a nice filling in the middle so they are crunchy and soft. My youngest daughter kept bring them into school. I'm pretty sure they do not meet the healthy snack criteria but I saw her do it for a couple of days. I think she shared a couple with her teacher since it is the end of the year and she is trying for all the bonus points she can get. I guess the cookies may meet the healthy snack criteria if you share them with the teacher? I also brought some to my friend at work. They are a nice cookie to share or not share.

Double Chocolate Nutella Thumbprint Cookies
1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 cups chocolate chips, divided
1 tsp milk
1 cup sugar
1 cup Nutella, divided
1/3 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, combine the flour, cocoa powder, and salt. Set aside.
2. Melt 1 cup chocolate chips with the 1 tsp milk in the microwave for 45 seconds. Stir and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, cream the sugar, 1/3 cup Nutella, butter, and the vanilla extract until incorporated.
4. Beat in the melted chocolate.
5. Add the eggs one at a time. 
6. Slowly, add the flour mixture to the butter mixture. 
7. Stir in 1 cup of chocolate chips.
8. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
9. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
10. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
11. Shape the cookie dough into 1 1/2 inch balls. 
12. Place the cookie dough balls onto the cookie sheet, spaced 2 inches apart.
13. Gently make a thumb indent into the center of each ball to make a 1/2 inch depression.
14. Fill each depression with about 1/2 tsp of Nutella.
15. Bake the cookies for 10 minutes or until the sides are set and the center is slightly soft.
16. Allow the cookies to cool on the cookie sheet for 2 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. 

Recipe adapted from Tollhouse Nestle Cookies Cookbook.

One year ago...............................I made Dulce de leche cheesecake.
Two years ago.............................I made Skillet Lasagna.

Did you already know.................
-Teachers typically spend about 50 hours a week on teaching related tasks.
-Gene Simmons of Kiss was a teacher for 6 months.
-President Lyndon Johnson was a teacher in Texas.