Lobstah Chowdah

Are you ready for Halloween? Have you been watching some scary movies? Has anyone tried to scare you yet? When I made the stock for this soup, I think it looked pretty scary. My oldest suggested I should take a photo of the stock and show you. Don't worry-I decided not to try to scare you until the end of this post. Just remember, I tried to warn you. You may not want to scroll past the third photo.

I will admit the soup is delicious. It isn't overbearing with a strong lobster taste. It is creamy with potatoes and lobster meat. My husband had ordered it at a restaurant once and came home to tell me all about it. Yes, he liked it that much. Then he asked me if I could try making it for him. After I made it for him, he told me that my "chowdah" was better than the one he had at the restaurant. He knows how to say the sweetest things. I have made this for him several times now and wanted to share it with you.

Lobster Chowder
2 whole lobsters, cooked with shell
Stock:
6 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 cup leeks, chopped
1/4 cups cream sherry
2 tsp paprika
3 cups skim milk
3 cups heavy cream
1 cup white wine
Soup:
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 lb. bacon, large diced
2 cups Yukon gold potatoes, large diced
1 1/2 cups yellow onions, chopped
2 cups celery, diced
1 Tbsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
2 tsp fresh chives, chopped
1/4 cup cream sherry

Directions:

1. Remove the meat from the shells of the lobster in a large bowl. Reserve the meat and the shells with the juices in the bowl. (Keep everything except for the tomalley.)
2. Cut the meat into large cubes and place them in a small bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
3. In a large pot or Dutch oven, melt the butter.
4. Add the onion to the melted butter and cook over medium low heat for 7 minutes until translucent. Stir occasionally.
5. Add the sherry and paprika to the pot. Cook for 1 minute.
6. Add the milk, cream, wine, lobster shells, and the lobster juices to the pot.
7. Bring the mixture to a simmer. Once, it reaches a simmer cover the pot partially and lower the heat to low for 30 minutes.
8. Allow the mixture to cool before pouring the liquid through a strainer into a large bowl. Discard the lobster shell. (At this time, the stock liquid can be cooled and placed in the refrigerator overnight to make the chowder the next day.)
9. To make the soup, heat the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven. 
10. Add the bacon to the pot and cook over medium-low heat for 4 to 5 minutes or until crisp.
11. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and place on a paper towel lined plate to cool.
12. Add the potatoes, onions, celery, salt, and pepper to the pot. Saute for 5 minutes.
13. Add the lobster stock to the potato mixture. Simmer the chowder over 15 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. (Add about 15 minutes more if the stock had been stored overnight.)
14. Add the cooked lobster, chives, and sherry to the chowder. Heat gently and season to taste.
15. Serve the chowder hot garnished with the crisp bacon and chives.

Recipe adapted from Food Network's Barefoot Contessa.

Did you already know.....
-The green stuff in the raw lobster is the tomalley.
-The tomalley is the lobster's liver, pancreas and intestines.
-In 2008, the U.S. FDA recommended not to eat the tomalley since it may have accumulate contaminants from the environment.

Lobster Stock simmering

Chocolate Brownie Cookies

My youngest daughter is normally pretty good at being on time. She is ready with time to spare. With my son, I don't know what he does with time. It doesn't matter if he is up early or late. He will still be late. Well, my daughter's last soccer game was moved up a day due to conflicting schedules. This would normally not be a problem except we were suppose to bring a snack to the last game. Since I worked that day, I really needed something quick. While the cookies were baking, my daughter realized that we would be a little late to the game. She was a little upset about it until my youngest son looked at her and announced, "Welcome to my life!" My husband and I just started laughing which made my daughter feel better. I did tell my son the difference was that he did it to himself. My husband and oldest daughter agreed.

In the end, my daughter was rewarded when her friends on her soccer team really liked her dessert. One friend told her that these cookies taste just like brownies and were great. I did hide a few for my grateful husband. If you like brownies from a box, you will love these cookies. If you don't have a lot of time but need a dessert for last minute, you will love these cookies. Oh, how I love brownies anyways but now in a cookie form just make them wonderful! I was in such a hurry that I forgot to add 1 Tbsp of water in the recipe but I was lucky and they still came out great. Welcome to my life!

Chocolate Brownie Cookies (roughly 36 cookies)
1 package of chocolate brownie mix
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, combine the brownie mix, oil, and eggs until well blended.
4. Drop the dough onto the parchment paper by a tablespoonful.
5. Bake the cookies for 12 to 14 minutes or until the edges are set and the center is still soft.
6. Allow the cookies to cool for 2 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. 

Adapted from Hershey's Ultimate Chocolate Brownie Mix box recipe. 

One year ago..................I made Mummy Cake Pops. 

Even if I'm late, I have great hair!

Did you already know...
-According to the Palmer Hotel, they were the first to create the brownie.
-In 1893, the chefs at the hotel created the dessert at the request of the owner Bertha Palmer.
-Mrs. Palmer asked for a dessert that would not be as messy as a cake that would fit inside a box lunch for the Women's Pavilion at the the World’s Columbian Exposition.

Mars Alien Cupcakes not Pluto

Have you seen any aliens lately? I figure I'll see a few next week on Halloween. Well, my sister made these aliens and brought them over. My daughters thought they looked adorable. I'll remind them of their comment when if we are invaded. Cute? Not scary?

One thing about these aliens are they are tasty. I know some people are into trying strange cuisine but I don't think I'll ever try real alien in my lifetime. Would you if they were edible? Or would you be finicky and only prefer aliens from Mars but not Pluto?

Alien Cupcakes
24 cupcakes
2 cups of frosting
1 package of candy melts
4 strings of black licorice, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 black food pen or candy or sunflower seed (for the eyes) 

1. Crumble 12 cupcakes in a bowl.
2. Stir in 1 cup of frosting into the crumbled cupcakes. Mix well.
3. Roll the cupcake mixture into 1 to 1 1/2 inch balls.
4. Place the balls on a cookie sheet and place in the freezer for about 30 minutes.
5. Take the cake balls out of the freezer and add a little frosting to the bottom of the ball. 
6. Place the frosting side down onto a cupcake. Press well.
7. Place the cupcakes with the cupcake ball into the freezer for at least 1 hour or overnight. 
8. Add water to pot with a heat proof bowl on top of the pot to make a double boiler.
9. Place the candy melts in the heat proof bowl and stir until melted. Remove from burner.
10. Take a few of the cupcakes from the freezer.
11. Dip the chilled cupcake upside down into the bowl quickly into the melted candy to coat. 
12. Carefully place the cupcake onto a plate to cool. Be careful not to remove to many of the cupcakes from the freezer at a time of the cake ball will fall off the cupcake. 
13. Stir the melted candy melts between cupcake dips. If the candy starts to harden, reheat or make goblins or crazy looking aliens. 

Recipe adapted from Hello, Cupcake! cookbook by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson.

One year ago...........I made Vanilla Buttermilk Cupcakes.

Did you already know...
-Currently, Mars can be seen low in the southwest at dusk.
-The surface of Mars can be seen in detail from Earth.
-This month, NASA's rover Curiosity is taking samples of soil on Mars and analyzing it.

Halloween PB Cookies

With this cookie, I was trying to make it look like the back of a stegosaurus. I think I failed. When I asked the kids what it looked like, I was told a flower by my son. Yes, my son did said a flower. My youngest daughter said it looked like a scary mouth and teeth. My oldest daughter said witch's warts. At least the girls was thinking spooky. My husband was the only one who said stegosaurus. What do you think? Stegosaurus?

My husband declared these are one of his favorite cookies. Yes, they are that good. I made several with the jelly in the middle like the original recipe called but I didn't like how the jelly turned out. My husband still liked them especially since he isn't a peanut person even if he loves peanut butter. My youngest daughter brought one in for her lunch and her friend saw it. She traded a piece of gum for a piece. After trying it, she traded my daughter another piece of gum for more. In the end, my daughter gave her cookie to her friend who loved it. Don't feel bad for my daughter since she had another one for snack after school. 

PB Cookies with Honey-Roasted Peanuts aka Spike Cookies
1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups smooth peanut butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups firmly packed brown sugar
3 large eggs
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
3 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup honey roasted peanuts

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, cream the butter and peanut butter until fluffy.
4. Add the sugar and brown sugar. Mix until incorporated.
5. Add the eggs and vanilla. Beat until smooth.
6. Stir in the flour, baking soda, and salt. Mix until well combined.
7. Using a 1 3/4 inch scoop, drop the dough onto the prepared baking sheet. Space the cookies at least 2 inches apart. 
8. Bake the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown around the edges.
9. Remove from the oven and carefully place the peanuts vertically into the cookies about half way through.
10. Allow the cookies to cool for 10 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Recipe adapted from The Pastry Queen cookbook by Rebecca Rather. 

One year ago.............................I made Onion Dip. 

Did you already know....
-Stegosaurus dinosaurs name means roofed lizard.
-It is thought the stegosaurus brain was the size of a walnut.
-The cluster of spikes at the end of a stegosaurus is called a thagomizer.
-The thagomizer was first named by Gary Larson in his Far Side Cartoon.

Pretzel Dogs

Near our house, there is a bike path for bikers and walkers. While I was out walking, I passed a tiny woman pushing a stroller. Inside the stroller, there was a Pit bull bigger than her. I couldn't help but smile. He is one spoiled puppy.

Every year, I make the mummy hot dogs for my children. This year I wanted to try something different. So, I made Pretzel buns with bratwurst inside. I knew my husband would love it and I was right. I just wasn't sure about the kids. I shouldn't have worried since they have asked for me to make these mummies again. I will say I was surprised by how sweet the bread tasted but it was still a nice combination.

 Pretzel Buns with Bratwurst aka Mummy Dogs
1 cup milk
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 Tbsp honey
1 packet active dry yeast
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
2 cloves garlic, grated
3 cups all purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1 cup bread flour
8 links of Bratwurst sausage
3 Tbsp water
1/2 tsp vegetable oil
coarse sea salt, for sprinkling

Directions:

1. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. 
2. In a small saucepan, heat the milk, 1/2 cup water, sugar, and honey until the mixture reaches between 105 to 110 degrees F.
3. Slowly, add the milk mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer.
4. Sprinkle the yeast mixture over the milk mixture and let rest for 15 minutes for the yeast to bloom.
5. Wipe out the small saucepan. Add the butter and garlic over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes. 
6. In another bowl, combine the all purpose flour with the bread flour.
7. Add the flour to the yeast mixing bowl with the melted garlic butter.
8. Mix the flour and garlic butter into the milk mixture on medium speed for about 5 to 7 minutes. The dough should be smooth and elastic plus pulling away from the sides of the bowl.
9. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured clean surface and form a ball.
10. Cut the dough into 12 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and place onto the parchment paper lined baking sheets. Cover and place in a warm place to rise for 15 minutes.
11. Roll out each ball into a log and place onto the baking sheet to rise for another 30 minutes. Make sure to cover and place in a warm place. 
12. While the buns are rising, heat the bratwurst in a small skillet over medium heat with 3 Tbsp water and 1/2 tsp vegetable oil until golden brown. Set aside to cool. 
13. Cut each bratwurst in half and set aside.
14. With a sharp knife, slowly and carefully cut each bun down the middle vertically but leave one bun alone.
15. Place the cooled Bratwurst in the center of the bun and press the dough together. Continue with all the buns until the one bun is left.
16. Take the last bun and cut off about 1/2 tsp of dough. Roll the dough into long, vertical pieces. Continue making long pieces until all the dough of the last bun are just pieces of dough like . Secure the pieces of dough over the buns with the Bratwurst inside. Cris-cross the dough over each other and press down to flatten. 
17. Sprinkle with the sea salt if desired.
18. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Place one oven rack high and the other in the low position.
19. Place the baking sheets into the oven for about 15 minutes or until golden brown. Make sure to rotate the baking sheets halfway through baking so the top sheet is on the bottom rack and the bottom sheet is on the top rack.

Recipe adapted from Jeff Mauro of the Foodnetwork. 

One year ago...........................I made Chicken Enchiladas.

Did you already know...
-Other names for the Pit Bull is the American Pit Bull Terrier.
-The Pit Bull usually weighs between 22 to 78 pounds.
-Some dog associations do not accept blue eyed or merle coats for a Pit bull into the registry. 
-The Pit bull was first bread to be an all around farm dog.