Football Sunday

With football season in full swing, and Superbowl Sunday arriving in a few short months, I thought I might search for some tasty "football food" recipes.

Every Saturday and Sunday, my husband watches college and professional football games. Sometimes he watches the games alone and other times I watch with him, but he enjoys watching the games with his guy friends the most! When the guys get together to watch the games, they usually eat take-out foods or order home-delivery pizzas. I thought this Sunday I would cook them something special: spicy Buffalo Chicken Wings, homemade pizza, and frozen ice cream pie.

I've provided the recipes so you to try them yourself:

BUFFALO CHICKEN WINGS*:


Ingredients=
1 quart vegetable oil for deep frying
24 chicken wings, tips removed and wings cut in half at joint
4 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar
5 tablespoons hot pepper sauce
salt and pepper to taste
Directions=
Heat the oil In a large skillet or deep fryer to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Deep fry chicken wings in oil until done, about 10 minutes. Remove chicken from skillet or deep fryer and drain on paper towels.
Melt the butter in a large skillet. Stir in the vinegar and hot pepper sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add cooked chicken to sauce and stir over low heat to coat. The longer the wings simmer in the sauce, the hotter they will be. Serve warm.
*http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Buffalo-Chicken-Wings-I/Detail.aspx

BISQUICK PIZZA CRUST*:


Ingredients=
1 1/2 cups Bisquick baking mix
1/3 cup very hot water
1 tsp vegatable oil
Directions=
Heat oven to 450. Mix the bisquick and water about 20 times. Turn onto a surface well dusted with bisquick mix and roll to coat it. Knead the dough till smooth and no longer sticky, about 60 times. Roll into a 12 inch circle and place on a greased 12 inch cookie sheet, brush the top with oil.
Put your desired ingredients on top. Bake on lowest oven rack till crust is brown, 12 to 15 minutes.
(I am going to put store bought pizza sauce, shredded mozzarella cheese, pepperoni, and ground sausage on top of mine, but if you do not want to buy your sauce, here is a sauce recipe:

PIZZA SAUCE*:
Ingredients=
1 cup tomato sauce
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon basil
1/4 teaspoon oregano
Dash of black pepper
Directions=
Mix ingredients together and spread over the pizza dough. The website I found this recipe on also suggests that you can put the tomato sauce on the pizza and then just sprinkle the spices on top of the sauce instead of mixing it together first for more flavor.
*http://oldrecipebook.com/pizza.shtml

FROZEN ICE CREAM PIE:


My husband's sister gave me this recipe for Frozen Ice Cream Pie. It is easy to make and extremely good!
Ingredients=
1.5 Quarts Vanilla ice cream
Frozen Turtle Pie
8 ounce container of Cool Whip
Directions=
Thaw frozen pie until it is slightly soft. In a large bowl mix pie with slightly thawed ice cream and Cool Whip. Serve in individual bowls.
(You can use any of your favorite icecreams and pies for this recipe)
Enjoy!

Breakfast in Bed

This morning I thought that I would do something nice for "hungry hubby." We both had the morning off, so I decided to be a good wife and serve him some good ole breakfast in bed.

The breakfast in bed routine is something that is so common that it is often overlooked or forgotten about, so I figured I would give it a shot.
When we were on our honeymoon, we had mimosas every morning with breakfast, so I decided I would bring us back to that special time and try out Paula Deen's recipe for Mimosa Punch:


Ingredients
1 (12-ounce) can thawed orange juice concentrate
1 liter club soda
1 to 2 bottles sparkling wine
Directions
Put 1 can cold but thawed orange juice concentrate into a punch bowl or in a large pitcher. Stir to soften. Stir in 4 cups cold club soda. Then add the sparkling wine and stir gently. Pour into Champagne flutes or coupes and serve*.

Then I just made the classic bacon, eggs, and biscuits I know he loves.
I got up very quietly this morning, cooked a quick breakfast, and woke him up with a yummy suprise.

It was very easy to do and I know it made him very happy and meant a lot. Why not show your loved one how special they are by suprising them with breakfast in bed as well?

*http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/mimosa-punch-recipe/index.html

Setting the Table

As I have been researching and experimenting with cooking, I have learned that it is not as hard as I once thought. I am actually having a lot fun learning new recipes and "making hungry hubby happy."

Since many of our friends and family members will be coming over during the Christmas season, I want to make a good impression not just with the food, but with its presentation as well.

As a little girl, my mother would always ask me to set the table for dinner. "You will need to know how to do this some day," she would say, as I rolled my eyes. Well, sure enough she was right. I am glad that she taught me how to properly set a table, because it sure will come in handy as I entertain guests.
Although I'm sure many of you had the same lesson growing up, it never hurts to refresh our memories. Here are a few tips on how to set the table from, you guessed it, Betty Crocker:

Place the flatware one inch from the edge of the table, arranging the pieces that will used first the farthest from the plate, so you can use the flatware from the outside toward the plate. The forks are typically to the left, and the knife (with the blade toward the plate), then the spoons to the right.

-If using a butter plate, place it above the forks.
-If serving a salad with the main course, place the salad plate to the left of the forks. The salad fork may be placed at either side of the dinner fork.
-Arrange glasses above the knife. The water glass is usually at the tip of the knife, with beverage and wine glasses to the right of the water glass.
-If serving coffee or tea at the table, place the cup slightly above and the right of the spoons.
-Place the napkin either in the center of the dinner plate or to the left of the forks at each place setting. There are many creative ways of folding napkins to make any meal festive.
-Before offering dessert, clear the table of all serving dishes, plates, salt and pepper shakers and any flatware that won't be used for the dessert course.

When it comes to setting the buffet table, there are many ways to make it look great. Divinedinnerparty.com has some really good tips on buffet table setting (http://www.divinedinnerparty.com/buffet-table-setting.html).

Holiday Entertaining

Since it is almost December, and Christmas is just around the corner, I thought I would focus some more on cooking for the holidays.

This will be our first Christmas together as a married couple, so I am very excited about it. I want to cook plenty of treats for him, and I am sure I will be trying out quite a few new recipes.

We are planning on having a Christmas party in a few weeks, so I have been researching what I will be cooking.
When it comes to planning the menu for a party, my Betty Crocker Cookbook is a big help. I found the following tips which will be great to follow as I research my menu options:

1. Choose your recipes. There are hundreds of great recipes in the Betty Crocker Cookbook to fit any occasion. The internet is also full of great menu ideas.
2. Make a list. Grocery lists make shopping faster and more economical by cutting down on those last-minute dashes to pick up missing items. Before going shopping, make a quick check of what you already have on hand.
3. Plan the main course first and then fill in with other foods that go well with your main course.
4. Make sure flavors go together instead of competing with each other. Balance out a strongly flavored main dish with a milder flavored side dish; serve a subtle main dish with a boldly flavored side dish. If the meal has been on the heavier side, choose a lighter dessert; if the meal was a bit lighter, plan an indulgent and rich dessert.
5. Involve your senses- sight, taste, smell and touch. Keep flavors, textures, colors, shapes and temperatures in mind. For example, serve spicy with mild; creamy with crisp; white or brown with red, yellow or green; tiny pieces with big chunks; and hot dishes with cold.
6. Use seasonings, sauces, condiments, salsas, relishes, and marinades to jazz up plain foods like grilled chicken or fish, cooked pasta or steamed vegetables.

German Chocolate Cake

Hope that you all had a great holiday...
My day was spent going to my parents' house and eating a wonderful Thanksgiving lunch, and then going to my husband's parents' house to eat yet another wonderful Thanksgiving dinner.

I will definately be using one of the leftover turkey recipes, because we have quite a lot of turkey left.

My cake turned out really good, but I ate another cake that I thought was delicious. My husband's cousin cooked a German Chocolate Cake that is actually Trisha Yearwood's recipe. I found it online so that I could share the recipe with you as well. It is on Rachel Ray's website (http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/food/recipes/trisha-yearwoods-german-chocolate-cake-coconut-frosting/)

I would recommend trying it with the coconut frosting the recipe calls for, because it is really good.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today is the big day. We will all be eating a lot of yummy treats, and I cannot wait. Just in case you need some advice for what to do with all of that leftover turkey, I found some great ideas. Have a great day with your family and friends!
TURKEY TORTILLA WRAPS:


Ingredients:
10 whole wheat flour tortillas
10 slices turkey, cut into thin strips
1 avocado - peeled, pitted and sliced
1/2 cup sour cream, for topping
1/2 cup Cheddar cheese
Directions:
Heat flour tortillas in a large skillet over medium heat until slightly browned. Divide turkey strips, avocado, sour cream, and cheese among the warmed tortillas. Fold in half and serve.

EASY TURKEY POT PIE:
Ingredients:
1 2/3 cup frozen mixed Vegetables, thawed
1 cup cubed cooked Turkey
1 (10-oz.) can condensed Cream of Chicken Soup
1 cup Bisquick
1/2 cup Milk
1 Egg
Directions:
Preheat Oven to 400 degrees Stir vegetables, turkey and soup together. Spoon into ungreased 9" pie plate. Stir remaining ingredients until blended.

Pour over mixture in pie plate. Bake about 30 minutes or until golden brown.

You can even use cooked pork loin, ham or roast beef in this dish if that's what you have on hand. Use other cream soups with different meat, like cream of celery, cream of mushroom or cream of asparagus for different taste (CDKitchen.com).

GOBBLER'S DELIGHT:
Ingredients:
1 package French green beans
1 can cream of celery soup
1 1/2 cup cut up cooked turkey
5 ounces water chestnuts
1/4 cup water
cooked rice
toasted almond slivers

Directions:
Drain and slice water chestnuts. Combine all ingredients except almonds. Bring to boil. Pour over rice, sprinkle on almonds (CDKitchen.com).

Creative Thanksgiving Desserts

Today I decided to see if I could find a decorative way to serve my cake for Thanksgiving. I searched the Internet for ideas on making a dessert look cute for the holidays, and I find some really great ideas.
Here are a few of the things I came across:
TURKEY GOBBLER CAKE:


This recipe is a very festive dessert, which everyone will love. I found it on my favorite, the Betty Crocker Website.
Ingredients:
1 box Betty Crocker® SuperMoist® devil's food cake mix
Water, vegetable oil and eggs called for on cake mix box
1 container Betty Crocker® Whipped milk chocolate frosting
1 marshmallow
Red colored sugar
35 pieces candy corn
Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pans). Make and cool cake mix as directed on box for two 9-inch round pans.
2. Cut 1 layer as shown in diagram*. Freeze cut pieces uncovered 1 hour for easier frosting.
3. Place uncut layer on cake plate; frost top and side. Place cutout circle on larger layer; frost. Arrange head and feet on circle; frost.
4. Cut marshmallow in half. Moisten 1 half and dip in red sugar; join to head with frosting for turkey's wattle. Use other half of marshmallow for turkey's eye. Use candy corn for beak, claws and feathers. Store loosely covered.
High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): Follow High Altitude directions on cake mix box.
*Click on this link to view the diagram:
http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/recipe.aspx?recipeID=34935&Source=SearchResultPage&terms=turkey%20gobler%20cake
TURKEY COOKIES

These are really cute cookies for the kids which I found on Pilsbury.com.
Ingredients:
1 roll (16.5 oz) Pillsbury® refrigerated sugar cookies
1 container (16 oz) chocolate creamy frosting
Candy corn
Orange decorating icing
Black decorating gel
Miniature candy-coated chocolate baking bits
Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350°F. Bake cookies as directed on roll. Cool completely, about 20 minutes.
2. Spoon chocolate frosting into resealable food-storage plastic bag; seal bag. Cut small hole in bottom corner of bag. On each cookie, pipe frosting on outer edge of half of cookie. Arrange candy corn over frosting for feathers.
3. Pipe orange icing onto each cookie to resemble turkey face and feet. Use orange icing to attach baking bits to turkey face for eyes. Pipe black gel on baking bits for centers of eyes.

Oh, and here is a cute idea for all the football fans. I know Hungry Hubby loves football and cupcakes, so I think he would really like these treats:



TOUCHDOWN TREATS:
Ingredients:
A cooled cupcake (baked from your favorite recipe)
Green and white frosting
Fruit leather
Pretzel stick
Chocolate-covered almond
Directions:
1. Frost a cooled cupcake (baked from your favorite recipe) with green frosting, then mark the yard lines with white decorators' gel.

2. For a pennant, wrap a fruit leather triangle around a pretzel stick and plant it in the field as shown.

3. Set a chocolate-covered almond or brown almond M&M football topped with white decorators' gel laces on the field, and you're sure to score points with your favorite sports fans(http://jas.familyfun.go.com/recipefinder/display?id=40992).
I think this is a really cute idea which can be modified and made in your own creative way.

Cake Recipe

Well, we are officially into the holiday season. And with Thanksgiving just a few days away, I have definitely got cooking on my mind.

This is my first Thanksgiving being married, which means I get to spend the day with two families instead of just one. My mom will be doing most of the cooking for our family, and my husbands mom will be doing most of the cooking for his family. So I do not have to worry about doing too much cooking this year. I do however want to contribute,so I offered to bring dessert.

A friend told me about a great recipe for a cake which I plan to use. Here is the recipe:

Ingredients for Cake= 1 box of Duncan Hines butter recipe cake mix, 1 small box Jell-O instant vanilla pudding, 1/2 cup Crisco, 1/2 cup dry white wine, 4 eggs
Ingredients for Glaze= 1 stick of butter, 1 cup sugar, and 1/4 cup white wine

Directions= Mix the cake mix, Jell-O pudding mix, Crisco, 1/2 cup white wine, and eggs. Bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes in a greased Bundt Pan...then, to make the glaze, mix the butter, sugar, and 1/4 cup white wine. Pour over the cake while still hot, and immediately turn over onto a plate or it will stick.

Hopefully it will turn out okay. I will keep you updated.

Halloween Treats

My sincerest apologies for not posting recently. As usual, life has been crazy. However, I am back, and will begin posting more regularly again...

Well, the holiday season is coming quickly, which means a lot of eating, and a lot of cooking.

My first experience with holiday cooking came this past week when I helped my husband's family prepare for a Halloween/birthday party for his nine-year-old cousin. The party consisted of a bonfire, a haunted trail, games, and of course all sorts of treats. I wanted to contribute, so I volunteered to make the cake. I found a recipe for a "graveyard cake" on a website called "Keepkidshealthy.com". I had a lot of fun making his cake, and it was very easy. I was also proud of the end result, and the kids (as well as hungry hubby) loved it. Here is a link to the recipe if you want to try it yourself:

http://www.keepkidshealthy.com/halloween/graveyard_cake.html

My husband's mother and aunt made some other treats that were also adorable. They made little "mummies" and little "Frankensteins" out of Twinkies. Here is the recipe that they gave me for them:

MUMMY TREATS

Ingredients:

Twinkies, 3/4 cup white frosting, 16 yellow M&M Minis, Red writing icing, 1 (6.4 oz) can white decorating icing w/ ribbon tip.

Directions:

Cover Twinkies with the frosting. Add M&M's for the Mummy Treats' eyes and make dots with the red writing icing for pupils on the eyes.With the rigid side of the ribbon tip facing downwards, pipe decorating icing on to the Twinkies to make "bandages" for the Mummy Treats. Cover until it's time to serve them.

I'm discovering that there are all sorts of other creative recipe websites out there for making holiday treats. I am excited about the upcoming holidays, and cannot wait to learn how to make treats for my husband, family, and friends.

Favorite Recipes...

Here are the complete recipes...

Barbecue Sandwiches:

(I found this recipe on cdkitchen.com)

Ingredients: 3 pounds fresh pork shoulder (well trimmed), 3 tablespoons McCormick® Grill Mates® Barbecue Seasoning, 1/2 cup ketchup, 1/2 cup cider vinegar, 1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar, 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce, and 1 teaspoon McCormick® Ground Mustard.

Directions:
Place pork in slow cooker. Mix Barbecue Seasoning, ketchup, vinegar, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce and ground mustard until blended. Pour over pork. Cover. Cook 8 hours on LOW or 4 hours on HIGH. Remove pork from slow cooker. Shred pork, using 2 forks. Return pork to slow cooker, mix and heat with sauce before serving. Serve on sandwich rolls, if desired. IMPORTANT: For best results, do not remove cover during cooking.

Deviled Eggs:

(from the Betty Crocker Cookbook)

Ingredients: 6 Hard-boiled eggs, 3 tablespoons mayonnaise, salad dressing, or half-and-half, 1/2 teaspoon ground mustard, 1/8 teaspoon salt, 1/8 teaspoon pepper, and paprika is optional.

Directions:

Peel your eggs once cooled, and cut lengthwise in half. Slip out yolks into small bowl; mash with fork. Stir mayonnaise, mustard, salt, and pepper into yolks. Fill whites with egg yolk mixture, heaping it lightly. Top with paprika if desired. Cover and refrigerate up to 24 hours.

Old Fashioned Baked Beans:

(from the Betty Crocker Cookbook)

Ingredients: 2 cups dried navy beans (1 lb.), sorted and rinsed, 10 cups of water, 1/2 cup packed brown sugar, 1/4 cup molasses, 1 teaspoon of salt, 6 slices of bacon, crisply cooked and crumbled to make about 1/3 cup, 1 medium onion, chopped to make a 1/2 cup, and 3 cups of water.

Directions:

Heat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In an ovenproof 4-quart Dutch oven, heat beans and 10 cups water to boiling. Boil uncovered for 2 minutes. Stir in remaining ingredients except 3 cups water. Cover and bake 4 hours, stirring occasionally. Stir in 3 cups water. Bake uncovered 2 hours to 2 hours 15 minutes longer, stirring occasionally, until beans are tender and desired consistency.

Creamy Potato Salad:

(from Betty Crocker Cookbook)

Ingredients: 6 medium round red or white potatoes (2lb), peeled, 1 1/2 cups mayonnaise or salad dressing, 1 tablespoon white or cider vinegar, 1 tablespoon yellow mustard, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, 1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup), 4 hard-boiled eggs, chopped, and paprika if desired.

Directions:

Place potatoes in a 3-quart saucepan; add enough water just to cover potatoes. Cover and heat to boiling; reduce heat to low. Cook covered 30 to 35 minutes or until potatoes are tender; drain. Let stand until cool enough to handle. Cut potatoes into cubes.

In a large plastic or glass bowl, mix mayonnaise, vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper. Add potatoes and onion and toss. Stir in eggs and sprinkle with paprika.

Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours to blend flavors and to chill. Store covered in refrigerator

Apple Cobbler:

(I got this recipe from a friend)

Ingredients: 1/4 cup butter, 2/3 cup milk, 1 1/2 cups of Bisquick, 1 cup of sugar, and 2 cups of apple pie filling

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Melt butter and mix all the ingredients except for the pie filling. Pour into a 9x13 inch pan. Drop pie filling over mixture and cook for 30-40 minutes.

The Slow Cooker

Well, I have been married to hungry hubby for almost two months now, and it is going great. I have somehow managed to have plenty of fun and cuddle time with him as well as go to school, work, clean, and yes, cook. Life has certainly been busy, but I have never been happier.

As far as the meal with the family, it turned out great, other than a minor mishap with the eggs...

I did not really know where to start when I planned what to cook, but I knew my new best friend Betty Crocker would help me out. I wanted to make a good Southern meal, so I decided on barbecue pork sandwiches, baked beans, potato salad, deviled eggs, and apple cobbler. I found the recipes for potato salad, baked beans, and deviled eggs in the Betty Crocker Cookbook, and the other two recipes I found elsewhere.

As far as making the pork sandwiches, the slow cooker may have replaced Betty Crocker as my new best friend...It cooked all day, and I didn't have to touch it. It was ready just in time for my husband's family to get to our house. It was easy, and turned out to be delicious. I have now discovered that when things cook slowly on a lower temperature, they turn out much better than when you cook things quickly on a high temperature. Thus the reason for a slow cooker I suppose. This is probably general knowledge for most, but humor me as I make my discoveries in my cooking journey.

Back to the minor mishap with the eggs...

I made another discovery with the eggs that once again was news to me but may be general knowledge for most: make sure you leave time for your eggs to cool before you try to peel them. I discovered this in a very unfortunate way...

I grew impatient waiting for my eggs to cool, so I thought I'd speed up the process by putting them in the freezer. In the meantime I hopped in the shower, starting putting on makeup, drying my hair, and getting ready for the company to come, when I realized I'd forgotten about the eggs. When I went to check on them, they were already frozen solid!

I had to send poor "hungry hubby" out to get new eggs, but thankfully they were done in time and turned out to be very good. That was a lesson learned...

The potato salad was very good as well, and so was the cobbler. His mom even asked for the recipe, which made me very proud.

My first experience cooking for the family was a success, and my meals since then have been as well. Since cooking that meal for them, I have made other things in my slow cooker friend for hubby that have been very good as well. I am so glad I discovered the slow cooker, but I could not have done it without my Betty Crocker Cookbook.

So Betty, you are still my best friend (besides hungry hubby of course)!

So my life begins as a wife and chef...

So here we are...Mr. and Mrs....The happy couple...

We have been married for almost a month now. It is crazy how fast things happened with us. Two years ago we met working in a restaurant. We started dating, and quickly fell in love...

He is in the Marines, and was deployed to Iraq eight months into our relationship. If that isn't the ultimate test of a relationship's strength, I don't know what is.
We spent seven months apart, with letters, emails, and the occasional phone call holding us together. Being apart from each other made us so much stronger, and he proposed to me when he returned...

We were married August 2, 2008, and so our lives began as a married couple...

I should probably mention that my husband is extremely close to his mother, and more than anything, adores his mother's cooking. So while I am elated to be his wife, and know that he adores me, I don't know that he will adore my cooking. Like most men, he loves to eat. So the pressure is on. How will I ever live up to his mother and provide great meals for him the way that she did?

I guess everyone has to start somewhere. So for me, it will start with my new Better Crocker Cookbook that my mother gave me for Christmas a few years back.

This book is extremely detailed and helpful. I am having his family over for dinner this week, so I guess no better time to try a new recipe than the present...I am scared of how this may turn out...

Like my marriage and cooking, blogging is also new to me...I figured that I could share my journey with all you other new wives or cooks out there and maybe we can learn together...

Here I go on my new wife and cooking adventure...

I'll keep you posted on how the first meal goes...