Kolaches

One thing I miss from Texas is good kolaches! We used this recipe:
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/kolaches-from-the-bread-machine/detail.aspx
But we filled them with a cream cheese filling in half and cocktail sausages and cheese in the others. I would like a sweeter dough, so I think we'll alter the recipe a little next time but they were definitely tasty!

Dewberry Cobbler

Why do Northerners call dewberries blackberries? Adeline made us Better Homes and Garden recipe.

Ouefs a la Fondue de Fromage

Today I cooked Ouefs a la Fondue de Fromage. Now I know you're thinking she can't even say that, let alone cook it; I've eaten her meals! Well, have you a surprise in store! Maybe I should preface with the fact that even the smell of that slightly cooked but mostly raw, oozy egg yolk gives me instant gag reflex. I have never entertained the idea of eating poached eggs. Eeeww!! BUT....cover those poached eggs in a lovely, creamy vermouth and swiss cheese sauce and set it atop a piece of buttered toast (aka cranape) and heaven has descended to my dining room! Find this recipe in Julia Child's book Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Your world will be changed! [And as an aside, no I have NO idea how you say that. I've checked out some French CDs from the library in hopes that I won't be so clueless.]

Julie & Julia

Yesterday I watched Julie & Julia. This was very timely as Thom has been commenting lately that we eat out too often. So... we shall eat homemade food! Today: breakfast was cookies, coffee and Dr Pepper; lunch - Ramen noodle, cheese stick and cheesecake. Hmm.... this isn't going well. The point was to have healthy, delicious meals to make and eat as a family. I have yet to sit at the table today. In fact I am consuming my Ramen noodles standing at the bar as I write this.

But I have plans for improvement! For dinner tonight we will be having brisket and potato salad. Tomorrow night I work late, so I'll prepare a lasagna for Thom to bake. We'll also be making coconut flan for dessert, Paula Deen's recipe.

Not enough excitement, you say? Well, I'm going this afternoon to check out some books from the library.

-A mom should be a gastronomical genius!

The Roast with the Most!

This is hands down the best roast I have ever had!

Salsa smothered Roast
1 1/2 lb roast (that's how big mine was anyway)
Steak seasoning of your choice (I used 'montreal seasoning' because I had a sample and it was great!)
1 cup beef broth
1 cup salsa

Rub roast with steak seasoning. Brown in olive oil. Place in baking dish. Combine broth and salsa. Pour over roast. Cover with foil. Bake at 325 degrees for 3 hours or so.

South Beachin' It!

I went on a diet and started eating (and cooking) deliciously! That is thanks mostly to Kalyn's Kitchen.
Here is what we ate this evening:

Mexican Beef Stew
1 lb stew meat (I cut it into bite size pieces.)
4 cups chicken broth
1 onion, diced
2 garlic cloves diced
4 cups pinto beans (I made these homemade yesterday.)
1 can Rotel
1 T or so tomato sauce (I used V8 because one was open in the fridge.)
1 T cumin
1/2 cup snipped cilantro
1/4 cup sliced green onion
Juice from one lime
1 alvocado, diced

Saute meat in a bit of olive oil. Throw some ground black pepper on the meat while browning. Remove meat to stew pot. Add a bit more olive oil and saute onion. Add garlic to pan when onion is almost done and saute a little longer. Add garlic and onion to stewpot. Also add broth, beans, rotel, tomato sauce and cumin. Simmer an hour or so. Add cilantro, green onion, and lime juice. Simmer a few more minutes. Place in serving bowls. Add a little alvocado. Enjoy!

Coconut Flan

From Paula Deen at Food Network:
* 1/3 cup sugar
* 3 eggs
* 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
* 1 1/2 cups coconut milk
* 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 1/4 cup shredded coconut flakes
* Fresh whipped cream, for garnish
* 1/4 cup shredded coconut flakes, toasted, for garnish

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, melt the sugar until it caramelizes. Pour it into a flan dish, pie plate or round souffle baking dish with shallow sides, swirling it around to coat the bottom.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs until foamy with a wire whisk. Beat in the condensed milk, coconut milk, vanilla extract and 1/4 cup coconut. Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish. It will need to bake in a water-bath in the oven. Set the dish into a large baking pan with sides and carefully pour water around the flan to come 2/3 the way up the sides. Carefully transfer to the preheated oven. Bake for about 1 hour, until the flan is set and the center only jiggles a little bit, like a cheesecake would. Remove from the oven and water-bath and allow to cool completely. Turn the flan out onto a flat serving platter. Cut into slices for serving. Garnish with whipped cream and toasted coconut.