My friend at work gave me her favorite blue cheese recipe. I kept meaning to make it but I haven't been cooking lately. I have been lucky since my husband has been the one making supper. Well, I decided we were going to have salads for supper. Of course, I couldn't find her recipe. I remembered the main ingredients and I looked everywhere. She did tell me the site that she found the recipe but it didn't help since there a lot t review. I really need to be more organized. I will probably find it now that I found this recipe. So, I picked one. My children told me this recipe was there favorite dressing recipe of all time. My husband had to agree. I loved it but I liked garlic. This is a creamy recipe.
Blue Cheese Dressing 1 cup mayonnaise 1/2 cup sour cream 1 clove of garlic, minced 1/2 cup buttermilk 3 oz. blue cheese, crumbled 1/8 cup dried parsley salt and pepper to taste
Direction:
In a small bowl, whisk together all ingredients.
Allow to chill before serving.
Recipe adapted from All Recipes.
One year ago...............................I made Dulce de Leche Flan. Two years ago.............................I made Baguette Bread.
The kids loved using my little container to pour their dressing. I guess
it is the little touches that make supper entertaining. They insisted that I should take their photo to share with you. My two cuties!
Did you already know..................... -The mold spores of Penicillium are used to make blue cheese. -Early blue cheese makers used moldy bread to create the mold spores in caves which the mold is naturally present. -Today the mold is injected into the cheese or mixed with the cheese curds.
Recently, my sister came to visit. Since she follows a gluten free diet, I wanted to make her some flourless cookies. Since it seemed like everyone was sick at the time, I postponed making the cookies. I'm unsure if all flourless chocolate desserts are very rich but I seem to pick them. My son loved them. My daughter thought they should have some powdered sugar dusting the tops. I thought they were plenty sweet. I think the addition of mini chocolate chips would have been good. If you want a chocolate, gooey fix, these are the cookies for you.
Flourless Fudge Cookies 2 1/4 cup powdered sugar 1/4 tsp salt 3/4 cups cocoa powder 1/4 cup special dark cocoa powder 3 egg whites 2 tsp vanilla extract Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Grease the parchment paper with nonstick baking spray.
In a bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, salt, and cocoa powder. Set aside.
In a small bowl, whisk the egg whites until frothy.
Fold in the egg whites with the vanilla extract.
Spoon about 1 Tbsp of batter onto the baking sheet. Flatten slightly on top.
Bake the cookies for about 8 to 10 minutes until slightly shiny on top and crackly on top.
Remove from the oven and allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet.
Did you already know................... -Even foods that are naturally gluten free could have added gluten during processing like powdered sugar. -Gluten is a protein found in wheat, rye, and barley. -Potatoes, corn, and rice are naturally gluten free foods.
My friend told me several times that I should try this bakery at the Old Port. Every time I was down there, I would forget. Well, I decided to spend some girl time with my youngest daughter. We went to Portland for manicures. My daughter tried to talk me into taking her to her favorite restaurant but I felt it wouldn't be fair since the guys weren't with us. Instead, I took her to the bakery my friend recommended. My daughter and I picked up an almond raspberry galette, a tart, and a baguette. My daughter loves sweets so she was in heaven. Afterwards, she told her Dad that we will have to go again especially for the galette. While we were at the bakery, I saw a copy of their cookbook for sale. I decided to checked out the Standard Baking Co. Pastries cookbook from the library. For my daughter, I made the galette she loved so much. My daughter loved it even though I picked a blueberry filling. I will definitely make this dessert again and I will be purchasing the cookbook. Now, what will be the next thing we will have to try at the bakery?
Almond Blueberry Galette 1/2 cup sliced almonds 1 cup unsalted butter, softened 2 cups all purpose flour pinch of salt 3/4 cup sugar plus more for topping 2 eggs 1 1/4 cup blueberry jam Directions:
Grease a tart pan with nonstick baking spray. Set aside.
In a food processor, pulse the sliced almonds until grounded. Set aside.
In a mixer, mix the butter, flour, and salt until well incorporated.
Add the sugar and the ground almonds. Mix until incorporated.
Add 1 of the eggs and mix until the dough holds together.
Transfer the dough onto a lightly floured surface.
Working with half the dough at a time, knead the dough about 10 times.
Roll out the dough into the size of the bottom of the tart.
Carefully, wrap the rolled out dough with plastic wrap and place into the refrigerator to chill.
Roll out the other half of the dough into the bottom of the tart pan.
In a small bowl, lightly beat the other egg with 1 tsp of water.
Lightly, brush the outside edges of the tart with the egg wash.
Spread the jam evenly inside the egg wash border.
Carefully top the tart with the other rolled out dough piece.
Lightly, press the dough along the edges to firmly seal the two layers over the jam layer.
Brush the top of the tart with the egg wash.
Sprinkle a little sugar on top of the tart.
Place the tart in the refrigerator to chill for 10 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Bake the tart for 20 minutes.
Rotate the pan and bake for another 20 minutes or until golden brown.
Recipe adapted from the Standard Baking Company Pastries Cookbook. One year ago....................................................I made Broccoli Cheddar Soup. Two years ago..................................................I made Apple Cinnamon Loaves.
Did you already know.............................. -Galette is a French pastry cake. -Galette tend to be flat, round or free forming pastries. -In Canada, galettes tend to be more of a cookie.
My husband has ordered broccoli cheddar soup for the last three times that we ate out. He has even influenced our children so they have been ordering the soup too. Since it is so popular in our household, I wanted to show my husband how easy it is to make. We don't eat out a lot but I think we will be eating out even less now. This soup is so good. He told me that he could easily make this soup for us. Here you go babe!
Copycat Panera Broccoli Cheddar Soup 4 oz. butter, unsalted 1 medium onion, chopped 1/4 cup all purpose flour 2 cups half and half 2 cups chicken broth 1 lb. fresh broccoli, chopped into small pieces 1 cup carrots, julienne 1 Tbsp paprika 2 tsp season salt 1/4 tsp ground mustard 4 oz. cheddar cheese, shredded salt and pepper to taste Directions:
In a large pot, melt the butter over medium heat.
Add the onion and saute for 2 minutes.
Sprinkle the flour over the onion and mix. Allow to cook for 1 minute.
Whisk in the half and half with the chicken broth. Allow to simmer for 20 minutes.
Stir in the broccoli, carrots, paprika, season salt, and ground mustard.
Reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes.
Stir in the cheese and allow to melt before serving.
Did you already know....................... -Broccoli was a popular vegetable of the Romans. -In the 1900s, Italian immigrants introduced broccoli to the U.S. -The head of the broccoli is made up of tiny buds that are ready to flower.
For Mother's Day brunch, I wanted to make my Mom some flower cupcakes. I've been places where a real flower was stuck in the middle of a straw and then stuck into a cupcake. When I started researching which plants were poisonous, it became apparent that maybe it wouldn't be a good idea to use real flowers. The petals of a flower may not be poisonous but the stalk or leaves could be. Since there were going to be children present, I wouldn't be able to observe if they were eating the flowers. Most likely, it would have been my son so I figured I would have to substitute the flower with something safer. Since I remembered how my grandmother had pinwheels, I thought it would be a nice connection with her too. The pinwheels worked great. Plus the kids thought it was wonderful to blow on them. My wonderful sister gave me a grass decorating tip which made frosting the cupcakes easier. Also, none of the kids tried eating the pinwheel.
Photo taken by my son!
Pinwheel cupcakes 12 chocolate cupcakes 1 cup green frosting 12 pinwheels Directions:
Using a multi-opening decorating tip, pipe the green frosting onto the cupcakes to resemble grass. (My sister gave me a Wilton Decorating Tip #233).
Cut the pinwheel stick in half.
Clean the pinwheel stick before inserting in the middle of the cupcake.
Enjoy! One year ago.........................................................I made Abstract Art Sugar Cookies. Two years ago.......................................................I made Seven Cheese Bread.
Did you already know............. -In 2003, Omikami Amaterasu became the oldest mother when she gave birth to a son. -More babies are delivered in the month of August. -By age of 44 years old, 81% of women have given birth.
Blue Cheese Dressing 
The kids loved using my little container to pour their dressing. I guess
it is the little touches that make supper entertaining. They insisted that I should take their photo to share with you. My two cuties!
Did you already know.....................
