What to do on a rainy day....

This doesn't count as a family favorite, but this is what you do when work is super stressful and you need to focus your mind away from work. This is a project you can concentrate on so you can stop stressing for a few hours. Whip up a batch of cupcakes, take some white frosting and add blue food coloring to replicate water. Save some of the white frosting and take a toothpick and swirl through the blue to make it look like there is foam from waves. Take Teddy Grahams and make bikini's and bathing suits with colored melting chocolate, and a black food marker to make eyes, mouth and nose. The beach blankets are made out of fruit roll ups, and gummy life savers are the life preservers. Crush up the broken Teddy Grahams at the bottom of the box (if you have the heart to that is!) to make sand, sprinkle on some daisy and wildflower shaped sprinkles, because I think they look like starfish and seashells. Finish off some of the cupcakes with cocktail drink umbrellas.

Uh oh! By the looks of the umbrella the wind has really picked up and the waves are getting fierce. Look at poor Teddy! He has a frown on his face and he appears to be drowning! Don't just sit there someone help him! Throw him one of the life preservers!!

Everyone is having too much fun to realize that Teddy is in distress. I hope he makes it!

Oh good! Teddy made it to shore and is now floating on one of the rafts. That was a close one!

Palmiers

Some people call them Elephant ears, some people call them Palmiers. Whatever you call them they are crisp, buttery, flaky and sweet! Especially good with a warm cup of hot chocolate, or a cup of hot tea..these are so easy, but you can go from perfect to burnt to a crisp in a matter of seconds. Believe me I speak from experience!

• granulated sugar
• puff pastry sheets, thawed according to box instructions
• parchment paper

Preheat oven to 400. Sprinkle about 1/4 cup sugar where you will be working with the puff pastry. Roll out the puff pastry with a rolling pin to about 10x12 inches. Sprinkle the puff pastry with another 1/4 cup of sugar. Lightly press sugar into pastry sheet with a rolling pin. Arrange the pastry sheet vertically , with the 10 inch side closest to you. Beginning at the bottom edge , fold over 2 inches of pastry once, then again. Repeat with the top edge so that both edges, doubly folded (folding is the hardest part for me!) meet in the middle with a small gap in between. Gently push down on the pastry with a rolling pin. Then fold the other side over, the folded edges on top of each other like a book. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 20 minutes. Remove from refrigerator and cut into 1/4 inch wide pieces. Place on parchment paper on baking sheet allowing enough room in between for cookies to expand while baking. When the bottoms of the cookies begin to brown, about 10 minutes, flip cookies over then cook for about 8 more minutes but watch carefully because they can go from perfect to burnt in a matter of a minute.

Harvey Wallbanger Cake

Here is mom's recipe for Harvey Wallbanger Cake. Super moist!

• 1 Duncan Hines yellow cake mix
• 1 pkg instant vanilla pudding
• 1/2 cup crisco cooking oil
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1/4 cup Galliano liquor
• 1/4 cup vodka (and a little nip for the cook would be nice!)
• 3/4 cup orange juice

Put all ingredients in a bowl and beat for 4 minutes. Pour into a bundt pan sprayed with Pam cooking spray and bake at 350 for 40-50 minutes. When cool make glaze.

Glaze:

• 1 cup confectioners sugar
• 1 tbl melted butter
• 1 tsp or 2 of orange juice

Mix ingredients together and pour over cake. Enjoy!

Marinara Sauce

I like to have marinara on hand to make quick work of weeknight dinners...

angel hair pasta on hand? Dinner ready in no time....

You have some eggplant on hand? 

slice eggplant into 1/4 inch thick slices,  put it in a colander in the sink, sprinkle on some kosher salt  - let sit 30 minutes (removes any bitter taste) rinse and pat dry, brush on some olive oil, grill eggplant 4 minutes per side, put eggplant slices in a casserole dish, layer the eggplant and marinara, sprinkle with cheese. Heat until bubbly and browned at 350 degrees, about 20-30 minutes. ( if you had some ricotta on hand layer some of that in there too, or some panko bread crumbs mixed with some melted butter for some crunch!)

Marinara Sauce:

4 tsp olive oil
2- 28 oz cans whole italian tomatoes, drained, but RESERVE LIQUID
1 sweet yellow onion, chopped
1 teaspoon dried oregano, divided
2 teaspoons dried basil, divided
6 cloves garlic
kosher salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste
1 teaspoon sugar
4-6 leaves fresh basil leaves, chopped
1 Tablespoon fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped

Preheat oven to 375. Line a baking sheet with foil and coat it with olive oil cooking spray. Place the onions and the whole tomatoes on the center of the sheet, reserving the juice for later. Slide the garlic cloves inside the tomatoes - this protects the garlic from burning and infuses the tomato with roasted garlic flavor. Sprinkle 1/2 tsp oregano and 1 tsp dried basil all over the tomatoes along with kosher salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle with olive oil and place in the oven for 30-40 minutes, or until tomatoes, onions and garlic are tender, sweet and juicy. Be careful not to over cook them because the tomatoes will dry up.

Once they are roasted , remove from the oven and place in a dutch oven. Over medium low heat combine roasted tomatoes, and onions, reserved liquid from the tomatoes that you drained and reserved from earlier, sugar, and remaining dried oregano and dried basil. Puree the mixture with an immersion blender. Simmer, covered, for at least two hours. Add the fresh basil and parsley. 

Mom's Cheesecake

Crust:
2 cups corn flake crumbs, OR graham cracker crumbs
1 stick butter, melted
2 Tablespoons sugar
Mix together crust ingredients and spread in a 9x13 inch pan. Pat down with the back of a wooden spoon, or your hands

Filling:
1 can evaporated milk
1 large OR 2 small packages lemon flavor jello
1 cup boiling water
8 oz pkg cream cheese, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup sugar

Put the can of evaporated milk in a freezer tray and let crystallize.

Dissolve jello in boiling water and put in the refrigerator, until set to egg white consistency.

Mix together until creamy; cream cheese, vanilla and sugar. Add jello mixture.

Whip evaporated milk until stiff, then fold in remaining ingredients. Pour over corn flake crumb crust and refrigerate at least a couple of hours. Enjoy.

Grandma Sanchez' Homemade Flour Tortillas

One of my fondest childhood memories is sitting in the kitchen watching Grandma Sanchez make her scrumptious flour tortillas. She was an expert at making them -rolling out the dough with the small wooden rolling pin grandpa made for her-  she would pass the dough back and forth in the air between her right and left hand shaping and stretching the dough into slightly thick pillowy tortillas. Hot off the comal (cast iron skillet) we would wait in line for our turn to eat one of the tortillas. We would slather ours with butter, and pop them into our mouths faster than she could make them. 

To get the tender tortillas like grandma used to make you have to use the lard.. 

I like to sprinkle some flour on top of the sections waiting to be rolled. In my mind it helps prevent them from drying out.. not sure if it's true or not, but there's something that makes me happy about seeing them sitting there with flour sprinkled on top waiting their turn to be rolled out.

they don't have to be perfectly round - rustic shapes just add to the charm of homemade tortillas. As you can see you don't really need much flour at all to roll them out. 

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour - plus some for rolling

1 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoons baking powder

3 Tablespoons lard ( or use butter, at room temperature - grandma used lard)

2/3 cup warm water ( you might not use it all - please don't dump it all in -add it slowly)

Combine the flour, salt and baking powder in a large bowl. Lightly rub in the lard ( or butter if using). Make a well in the center of the flour mixture, then add enough water to form a soft dough. (you might not use all the water) Knead the dough lightly for 1-2 minutes, then cover and let rest for 10 minutes.

Divide the dough into 12 equal portions. Roll out each portion on a floured surface to form a very thin round tortilla. Brush off the excess flour from the tortillas. Roll out one at a time, cook one, and then roll out another so they don't dry out. (Have someone roll, and someone else cook them if you want. )

Heat a large non-stick skillet (or cast iron skillet like grandma used) until very hot, then add a tortilla to the pan and cook for 1 and a 1/2 to 2 minutes, or until the surface starts to bubble, and the underside is speckled brown. Turn the tortilla over and brown the other side for about 30 seconds to 1 minute. While the tortilla is cooking , roll out another round tortilla and repeat. You might need to brush away some of the burned flour from the pan in between cooking the tortillas.

To reheat , wrap tortillas in foil and place in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for about 5 minutes.

Prime Rib

• 1 ( 3 rib) standing rib roast ( 7 - 8 pounds)
• 1 tbl kosher salt
• 1 1/2 tsp freshly cracked pepper

Two hours before roasting, remove the meat from the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature.

Preheat the oven to 500. (make sure oven is clean so you don't have to smell the char of burning spilled food) . Place the oven rack on the second lowest position. Place the roast in a pan large enough to hold the roast comfortably, bone-side down, and spread the top thickly with the salt and pepper. Roast the meat for 45 minutes. Without removing the meat from the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 325, and roast for another 30 minutes. Finally increase the temperature of the oven to 450 degrees and roast for another 15 -20 minutes, until the internal temperature of the meat reaches 125 degrees. (watch the thermometer that you stuck in the meat carefully at this time the roast can go up several degrees really fast and go from melt in your mouth tender, to over cooked and tough - make sure the thermometer is exactly in the center of the roast. The total cooking time should be between 1 1/2 and 1 3/4 hours. Remove the roast from the oven and transfer to a cutting board. Cover it tightly with aluminum foil and allow the meat to rest for 20 minutes to redistribute the juices (otherwise if you cut now all the juices will escape when you cut). Carve and serve with horseradish.

Grandma Fisher's Homemade Egg Noodles

The last time I was in Illinois I asked my cousin Suzy to teach me how to make Grandma Fisher's homemade egg noodles. She happened to be cooking a roast for dinner, so it was perfect timing. She made a batch, and I watched, and then I made a batch. She tossed them all together and she said no no one knew the difference between the batches when they ate them. yay! 

As with most noodles the broth gives the noodles their flavor, so use rich broth. You can use either chicken, or beef broth to cook the noodles. They are 'dumpling' type noodles, so they have a chewier texture than the dried egg noodles you find in your local grocery store. Cut the noodles as wide as you would like, just make sure to cut them as uniform as possible, so the cooking time will be the same. 

Use my chicken noodle soup recipe (as shown in the picture above - recipe found on the side bar) and you will not be disappointed! So yummy!

If you want to use the noodles in beef broth - something I do is...after you have simmered a roast until tender in a dutch oven on top of the stove ( to simmer the roast; I mix 2 cups of water with a 1/2 package (whole package is too salty for me) of Lipton dry onion soup mix, and a can of cream of mushroom soup - simmer the roast for 2 1/2 to 3 hours until tender - (no extra salt please there is plenty in the soups) remove the roast to a plate to rest, bring the beef broth to a boil, (depending on how long you simmered the roast you might have to add some beef broth, or water to the pot) add the egg noodles, bring broth down to a simmer, and simmer, stirring occasionally, to make sure the noodles aren't sticking, about 25-30 minutes, or until tender. 

                                                            

        roll the dough as thin as you can. I find it easier to divide the dough in half and roll two batches

cut the noodles any length you want - 2 inches long seem a good length

                                                  

*recipe courtesy of Suzy Fisher

1 egg
2 egg yolks
1 Tablespoon water
1 teaspoon salt
all-purpose flour

In a bowl mix with fork the egg, egg yolks, water and salt. Add enough flour to form a dough that is not sticky. About 1 1/2 cups flour. (I knead for a few minutes (until it's not sticky) to get the gluten going and then let rest, covered, for about 30 minutes, so it will be easier to roll out after the gluten has had time to calm down, so it doesn't keep springing back on you when you roll it)

After the dough naps for 30 minutes - roll out dough on wax paper that has been sprinkled with flour. Wait about a half an hour, (because Suzy said so!) and then cut into 2 inch long strips with a knife, noodle cutter, or a pizza cutter. ( I use a pizza cutter!) Lift up noodles and toss the strips with some flour and let sit for a couple of hours to dry. Cook right away, or put the thoroughly dried noodles in a ziplock bag in the cupboard for up to a month.

To cook:
Bring rich beef, or chicken broth to a boil in a dutch oven. Put dried noodles into boiling broth, ( or soup) reduce to a simmer and cook noodles for 25-30 minutes, or until tender. The broth is what gives the noodles their flavor so the richer the better.

Homemade Spaghetti & Fettuccine Noodles

Put 5 cups of flour on a work surface. Push the flour to the sides to make a well. Add 7 large eggs, or 5 jumbo eggs, 3/4 tsp extra virgin olive oil. Mix oil and eggs with a fork. Gradually beat in the flour from inner side of well wall with hand, keeping wall in tact while mixture is still runny, until it comes together in a cohesive, kneadable mass. Knead dough with floured hands, incorporating more flour from well wall until dough no longer sticks to hands. (you will have left over flour) Set dough aside and scrape up and discard flour from work surface. Lightly reflour work surface, continue to knead dough, reflouring hands often until smooth and elastic, about 6 minutes. ( dough should still be slightly tacky.)
Form dough into a ball, then dust well with flour and wrap with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at room temperature for an hour. Unwrap the dough after an hour, cut dough in half and rewrap half of the dough to roll out when done with first half. Reflour hands and slowly and evenly roll out the dough. You will have to roll, roll, roll, pushing down rather hard to get it as thin as possible. You might have to lift up the dough and put some more flour down so it doesn't stick to work surface. You should try to get the pasta as thin as possible. You should be able to sort of read a newspaper if you held it behind the rolled dough.

Now you get to cutting it. I used a pizza cutter. You can cut it in big strips for lasagna noodles, or pictured here these noodles turned out to be the size of fettuccine noodles. Let pasta dry (you don't have to have this embarrassing concoction to dry your pasta.) If you have long kabob skewers you can put the skewers under a few plates and put something heavy on the plates to keep the skewers in place under the plates and let the skewers stick out away from the cabinet and place the pasta noodles on the skewers to dry. Let dry at least 24 hours before storing in zip lock bags. If you cook right away it only takes about 3-4 minutes in boiling salted water. Drain in colander, but do not rinse pasta.

For this spaghetti size noodles I cut it really really thin.