brunch...

I belong to a Bible Study group with a wonderful group of women and we meet monthly in each other's homes. We gather at 9 am for breakfast and conversation and after the plates are cleared we go on to our lesson and then end with another cup of coffee and chocolates before calling an end to our morning (which is almost always afternoon by then!) Currently, we are doing a study called "Adventurous Prayer" and this month was my turn to host. Since it was the day after Valentine's day I stuck with the Valentine them and set my table in pink and white.
I revamped the centerpiece from the "white event" into a lighted Valentine tree and printed out vintage valentine postcards on magnetic sheets as favors.
Each month our lessons end with a "trinket to treasure", a small item such as a button or cork that serves as a visual reminder of what the main point in that lesson was. This month, the lesson was on Journaling Prayers and the trinket was a journal. I found $1 cardboard covered journals and pulled out the scrapbook supplies and decorated each one with the 12 main verses in the book.
I didn't take any photos of the food as I served it but as usual, I had plenty of leftovers so here is a photo of the plate of leftovers I served Jeff when he came in for a late lunch.
Fresh fruit, raspberry filled butter braid (this is a sweet roll loaf that is sold as a fundraiser by many of the local school kids), heart shaped mini quiches and mixed berry crepes.

Mini Quiches
recipe from verybestbaking.com
Ingredients

* 1 can (12 fl. oz.) NESTLÉ® CARNATION® Evaporated Milk
* 3 large eggs, beaten
* 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
* 2 cups (8 oz. pkg.) shredded mild or sharp cheddar cheese
* 2 cups chopped, frozen broccoli, thawed and drained
* 1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper

Directions
PREHEAT oven to 350° F. Grease and lightly flour twelve 2 1/2-inch muffin cups.

WHISK evaporated milk, eggs, flour, salt and black pepper in medium bowl until blended. Stir in cheese, broccoli and bell pepper. Spoon 1/4 to 1/3 cup of mixture into each prepared muffin cup, filling almost to rim*. Stir mixture frequently to evenly distribute ingredients.

BAKE for 23 to 28 minutes or until knife inserted near centers comes out clean and tops are lightly browned. Cool in pans for 15 minutes. Run knife or small, flat spatula around inside edges of muffin cups. Carefully remove quiches.

*NOTE: Number of quiches that you get will depend on the size of your muffin cups. Bake time may need some adjusting.

TIPS:
• Quiches can be made ahead and frozen. To reheat, place on baking sheet and bake in preheated 325° F. oven for 25 to 30 minutes or, place 2 to 4 quiches on microwave-safe plate and microwave on MEDIUM-HIGH (70%) power for 2 1/2 to 5 minutes or until hot.

My Notes: I made 8 little heart bakers instead of the muffin sized. I also added some green onion and proscuitto to make them even more savory.

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Basic Crepes
recipe from Allrecipes.com
Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter, melted
Directions:
1. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour and the eggs. Gradually add in the milk and water, stirring to combine. Add the salt and butter; beat until smooth.
2. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each crepe. Tilt the pan with a circular motion so that the batter coats the surface evenly.
3. Cook the crepe for about 2 minutes, until the bottom is light brown. Loosen with a spatula, turn and cook the other side. Serve hot.

My notes: I added 1 teaspoon of vanilla and 1/4 cup of sugar to this recipe to make the "sweet" version as some of the reviewers wrote this. I also read that they are easy to make ahead so I made them the night before separating each crepe with parchment paper putting them into a zip lock bag in the fridge. I prepared my cream cheese filling (8 oz cream cheese whipped with 1/4 c. powdered sugar and folding in some whipped cream until the right consistency), whipped cream and berry topping (cooked thawed frozen cherries, fresh blueberries and fresh blackberries with a little sugar and 2 tablespoons of cornstarch until thickened). I assembled by warming the crepes in the microwave spreading on some cream cheese mixture and a layer of sliced fresh strawberries, rolling and then topping with some of the cooked berry topping and whipped cream. The crepes were so easy to make I made several batches for the freezer in the plain (for savory fillings) and the sweet versions. I look forward to grabbing a few at a time (since they are separated by the parchment paper) for many quick breakfasts and desserts in the future.

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Happy Valentine's Day...pear oven pancake

Happy Valentine's Day to all! We have been celebrating all week at our cute little Valentine table for two :) I bought red chargers after Christmas on clearance figuring they were good for 2 holidays and the beautiful frosted bowl was a Christmas gift from Nathan & Tammy. Isn't it gorgeous?The heart plates were "won" in the Christmas exchange game a few years back, the white plates are my Mikasa Goodwill bargains, the red heeled shoe server was also a gift from my sister which is a conversation piece every time I use it for guests.
We used it one night last week when we had breakfast for dinner and served a Pear Oven Pancake.
I really have to apologize for showing my second serving on an already messed up plate but I was so anxious to try this recipe I forgot to take photos of our first servings!

Pear Oven Pancake
recipe copied and pasted from verybestbaking.com

Ingredients

* 2 tablespoons butter, melted
* 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
* 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, divided
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1 can (12 fl. oz.) NESTLÉ® CARNATION® Evaporated Milk
* 3 large eggs
* 1 ripe pear, cored and thinly sliced
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions
PREHEAT oven to 450º F.

POUR melted butter into 9-inch deep-dish pie plate or cake pan. Swirl to coat bottom and sides of plate.

COMBINE flour, 1/4 cup sugar and salt in medium bowl. Whisk evaporated milk and eggs in another medium bowl until blended. Add to flour mixture; whisk for 30 seconds or until smooth. Pour batter into prepared pie plate. Arrange pear slices on top of batter in pinwheel design, pushing down slightly. Combine remaining 2 tablespoons sugar and cinnamon in small bowl. Sprinkle top with sugar mixture.

BAKE for 15 to 20 minutes or until puffed and golden brown. Serve warm.

My notes: I made it exactly as written but served it with a homemade and winged caramel sauce, melted sugar over medium heat until golden and added a few tablespoon's of butter, a teaspoon of vanilla and stirred until all sugar was dissolved. It was very good and so was the pancake - we will definitely be making this one again so simple and easy.

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jam & toast...

My favorite breakfast is homemade bread toasted with homemade jam. Last week's bag of rhubarb was used in the previously posted muffins, rhubarb bread and rhubarb-raspberry jam. I know bread machines are not used by many bakers these days with the popularity of 5-minute breads but I still use and love mine. When I saw the Rhubarb Bread for the bread machine recipe on Beth's Favorite Recipes I knew I had to give it a try. The freezer jam is one I have made for years both in the raspberry and strawberry versions.

Rhubarb Bread for the Bread Machine
from the blog, Beth's Favorite Recipes

Rhubarb Bread for Bread Machine
1 1/2 lb loaf

1 C. chopped rhubarb
1 C. water
1/2 t. finely shredded orange peel
2 T. butter or margarine
2 C. whole wheat flour
1 C. bread flour
3 T. brown sugar
3/4 t. salt
1/2 t. ground cinnamon
1 t. active dry yeast

Procedure:
In medium saucepan combine rhubarb and water. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, for 5 min. or till rhubarb is tender. Measure rhubarb-water mixture and add water if necessary to equal 1 1/3.C Cool slightly. Add ingredients to machine according to manufacturer's direction.

My Notes: this bread tastes wonderful especially toasted but I made it as posted and it didn't raise as tall as I would have liked. I have this happen with all the wheat flour recipes in my machine unless I add gluten which I didn't have on hand. Beth's notes say she used all white flour so I definitely will make this again using all white flour. If you have the same problem with your machine adjust accordingly.

Rhubarb Raspberry (or Strawberry) Jam
(written on a scrap of paper in my recipe collection - I have been making this for 30 years so I don't remember where it came from)

6 cups diced rhubarb
3 cups sugar
1 package raspberry or strawberry jello
1 bag frozen raspberries or strawberries (the individual flash frozen kind)

Mix the sugar & rhubarb together in a medium sized kettle and let sit for 1-2 hours so some of the juices from the rhubarb mix with the sugar. Heat to boiling and let simmer until rhubarb is cooked and breaking apart about 10-12 minutes. If using strawberries add them about 2/3 of the way through the cooking time and if using raspberries add them add them at the very end and reheat to boiling (you want the strawberries to break down a little and you want the raspberries to not turn to mush). Add the package of jello, stir until completely combined and then take off heat. The jam will thicken as it cools. Put into containers and store in refrigerator or freezer.

My notes: as all those old handwritten recipes go this one is vague on package sizes. I used the small package of jello this time and the jam is not as thick as usual. I do think I used a larger package of berries than usual so I should have used the larger package of jello. This is so good I would eat it with a spoon if I had to - but it is still spreadable consistency :)

Now I need to get another bag of rhubarb to try those bars on Beth's site and I still have to make my favorite rhubarb-pineapple sauce & Jeff's favorite rhubarb crisp! I did add a plant to my own garden this year but have to wait another year for it to get established for my first harvest.

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Happy Thanksgiving...

I hope all of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving! It was a quiet day for J & I, our kids were going to their in-laws and we'll be getting together with extended family for 2 big turkey celebrations over the weekend. Since I originally planned the day as just the two of us, I decided we could just have an easy meal of pheasant pie, one of Jeff's favorites. Nathan came out to help hang some outdoor Christmas lights this am so I invited him & Tammy to a noon meal before they went to her side of the family later today. Even though we ate leftovers and simple food - everything always tastes better on a pretty plate in my opinion...The paperwhites I planted two weeks ago to bloom in 4-6 weeks for Christmas are already starting to pop open so I have my December centerpiece starting early :)

Not exactly "pheasant under glass" but a cute little turkey...
and when you eat at noon you have great light.
There are lots of little turkey items in my house at this time of year but this is one of my "sentimental" favorites. A turkey made by my mom in her homemaker's group in the early 1970's, she passed away in 1977 and having little things of her's around make each holiday more special for me. I know other's would have thrown a pinecone & feather turkey years ago...but I am just too sentimental about these kinds of things...
in fact I crafted one of my own in the early 1980's out of pheasant feathers just so I could be like my mom :)
I served in the kitchen at my church yesterday for a funeral and we were all asked to provide a creamy fruit salad and cupcakes. So a leftover salad was freshened up with some raspberries, persimmon & pomegrante seeds and still looked and tasted great.
Simple frozen green beans and...
more leftovers in the form of cupcakes and we had a festive table.
Since Thanksgiving is usually considered "turkey day", I stuck with the bird theme and used my chicken baker for pheasant pie.
A far from "homemade" dish but one my husband loves...pheasant made into a pot pie with gravy & canned biscuit topping.
The Thanksgiving holiday is almost over and this little turkey smore...
wants to remind you of the next upcoming holiday - National Chocolate Covered Anything Day on December 16th.

Creamy Fruit Salad (recipe from our church cookbook)
1 can crushed pineapple
1 can chunky fruit cocktail
1 pkg instant pudding (vanilla or coconut)
2 cups miniature marshmallows
1/4 cup whipped topping.

Mix undrained fruit with pudding mix until pudding mix is blended. Add 2 cups marshmallows and the whipped topping. May add sliced bananas when serving.

My notes: I made it as typed using the coconut cream instant pudding. If you like this type of salad you will like this as all the church women mentioned it as one of their favorites. I personally am not a fan of canned fruit cocktail. There is something about the grapes in there that just turns me off - so next time I might use mandarin oranges (more ambrosia like) or just canned diced pears. The addition of the fresh fruit today was wonderful.

Pheasant pie - no real recipe
I boil the pheasant with chunks of onions, carrots, celery and salt and pepper. When the pheasant is done - I take it out of the broth and flake it apart (necessary to look for bb's) and put in the bottom of the casserole dish. Then I drain the broth from the veggies, toss the veggies as they are mush by now, make a gravy using the broth and add whatever vegetables I have on hand at the time. Pour over the pheasant meat and top with a can of Grands biscuits and bake until heated through and the biscuits are golden brown.

Today - I am especially grateful to all of you who take the time to come and read my simple blog.

Praline Crepes

Le Pears are really good in the grocery stores these days though I don't think the ones I buy come from France :)I'm sorry I was "shakey" on this shot but the pear half was gorgeous displayed on the plate in person...you'll just have to take my word on it.
Today, I took a recipe for Praline Ice Cream Crepes and made it into Praline Pear Crepes and the result was this...
Jeff was already biting into his while I tried to take a photo of my plate and his initial comments were so good I only snapped 2 shots before biting in myself. This is definitely a winner. Original recipe followed by my notes:

Praline Ice Cream Crepes
(by Marlys Peterson, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church Cookbook, Bismark, ND)

Crepes:
1 cup flour
2 TB sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg and 1 egg yolk
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 cup milk
1/2 cup water
1 tsp vanilla

Mix batter until smooth. Let stand 30 minutes. Brush 6" crepe pan with butter and add 2 TB batter. Tip pan and swirl until set and even in pan. Cook about 2 minutes and then tip out onto waxed paper. Separate crepes with waxed paper. Makes 8 crepes.

Praline Topping:
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup cream
1/4 cup butter

Heat topping ingredient slowly to boiling and simmer 1 minute. Add 1/8 tsp rum extract and 1/4 cup chopped pecans.

To serve, place 1/4 to 1/3 cup ice cream that is cut in a strip down the center of a crepe and roll up. Top each with 2 TB's of praline sauce, warm or cold. Serve immediately. Makes 8 servings.

My notes: I wanted to use pears instead of ice cream so I took a few tablespoons of the praline sauce and put into a sauce pan with two sliced fresh pears and the chopped pecans and let the pears cook over med heat for a few minutes. I spooned some of the hot caramel pears down the center of the crepe and rolled up and topped with the praline sauce. This would be great using bananas or apples too!

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Cherries...

We spent part of our holiday weekend visiting Jayme & Scott and were treated to fresh raspberry pie using their own freshly picked raspberries, and blueberry muffins using their own fresh picked blueberries. They also have an apple tree but the resident deer eat most of them and a cherry tree which isn't J & S's favorite fruit so they usually pick and give them away. She currently has a co-worker making cherry brandy and I picked the last of their cherries to make sour cherry preserves.

Sour Cherry Preserves (adapted from Martha Stewart's recipe)
2 lbs pitted fresh cherries
2 cups of sugar
Juice of a small lemon

Boil until thickened about 15 to 30 minutes.
I knew exactly what I wanted to make with the fresh cherry preserves so I set up a simple table with cherry plates and lots of paper towels...
and fired up the grill for my friend, Carol's (There's always thyme to cook) cherry chipolte chicken wings.
I served them with grilled smashed potatoes and baby peppers.
I followed Carol's directions and used three chipolte peppers and I loved the spicy sweet heat but it was a little "hot" for Jeff's tastes. He said he prefers a honey sweet bar-b-que sauce which is great because then I get the left overs. For the complete recipe click the link above to Carol's blog post on these wings.

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just peachey...

There is nothing like good juicy peaches on a hot August afternoon...eaten fresh dripping down your chin or served with cream and sugar in a bowl...and they are especially good when you make them into homemade peach ice cream!


I am loving my bargain Cusinart ice cream maker and searching for fun new recipes to make with it. The peach ice cream is from a blog called Eliza Domestica and you can click HERE for her post with the recipe. Since all that cream is not very good for our waistlines or cholesterol levels I have found quite a few sorbet recipes to try next.

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