Pound Cake

I am a cookbook junkie!  I have way too many cookbooks, but I love them all.  Some of my favorite cookbooks are collections of recipes put together by groups of people (churches, schools, family, etc.).  I have a family cookbook that my Great Aunt Helen gave me when I got married.  It is full of recipes from my Mom's side of the family.  Another cookbook I love is from the church I attended when I lived in Winter Park.  It is full of recipes that I ate at church suppers and brunches during my childhood...Things like hashbrown casserole, ambrosia (one of my favorite guilty pleasures), and quite a few desserts.  This pound cake recipe is from that cookbook.  I can picture the woman who submitted this recipe and smile when I think about her service to the church during the years I was there.  My mom always makes this when strawberries are in season and I remember having it as my birthday cake a few times when I was growing up (my birthday is during strawberry season).  This is an easy cake and I recommend making it while strawberries are in season!

Pound Cake

2 sticks butter, softened
2 cups sugar
5 eggs
2 cups flour
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1) Cream butter and sugar.

2) Add eggs, one at a time, beating as you go.

3) Add flour, about 1/2 cup at a time.

4) When thoroughly mixed, add extract.

5) Pour into a greased loaf, bundt, or tube pan.

6) Place in a cold oven.  Bake at 325 for 40-45 minutes.  Check after 40 minutes, not before.

Black Bean Frittata with Taco Potatoes

This frittata recipe came from my friend Shelley.  She likes to make it when she is going to a brunch and wants to bring a high-protein dish that is vegetarian-friendly (Shelley is not a vegetarian, but she thinks that everyone deserves a high-protein dish at a brunch).  This was my first time making a frittata on the stove-top.  I ended up putting it under the broiler for a few minutes, just to set the top.  I had some potatoes that needed to be used, so I made some roasted potatoes with taco seasoning.  They turned out great!  I was worried about how my 4 year old would feel about eating a frittata, so I told him we were having "cheesy scrambled egg casserole with black beans."  He tried it and loved it.  I prefer this frittata with rotel or salsa inside, but since I wanted my son to eat it, I put it on the side. 

Black Bean Frittata

2 tablespoons butter
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
8 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup shredded cheddar or jack cheese
1 small can of rotel
optional: green onions and sour cream added to the top before serving

1) Heat a large, ovenproof skillet over medium heat for 5 minutes.  Add butter and brush bottom and sides of the skillet with the butter.
2) Mix the eggs and milk until well-blended.  Stir in the black beans, cheese, and rotel.
3) Add the egg mixture to the skillet.  Reduce heat to medium-low and allow to cook covered for 8 minutes.
4) Place under the broiler for about 2 minutes, or until the center is set.


Taco Potatoes

3 gold potatoes, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 tablespoons olive or peanut oil
2 tablespoons taco seasoning, or more, to taste
salt and pepper

1) Preheat oven to 425.
2) Toss potatoes in oil, taco seasoning, salt, and pepper. Place on a well-greased baking sheet or a baking sheet lined with a silicone baking mat.
3) Bake for 20 minutes, stir, and bake an additional 20 minutes.
 

Marble Rye

I will be honest and say that this recipe is a lot of work...but it is worth it if you like good marble rye bread.  In my opinion, marble rye bread means rye bread and pumpernickel bread swirled together.  Two very different flavors coming together to make one yummy loaf of bread.  Lately I've noticed that most marble rye is rye dough with caramel color added to half of it.  It just tastes like rye bread.  There is no strong pumpernickel taste.  I decided to try and make my own marble rye read by combining my favorite rye bread recipe with my favorite pumpernickel recipe.  I used medium rye flour in the rye bread and pumpernickel flour in the pumpernickel bread.  If you can't find pumpernickel flour (I had to order mine), you can use dark or medium rye flour.  I am excited about the pumpernickel flour.  It is whole grain rye flour, so it is much more coarse than other rye flours. It also has a nice, strong, rye smell to it.  The recipe will make 2 loaves.  I froze the second loaf so that we can have corned beef and cabbage sandwiches on St. Patrick's Day. 

Marble Rye Bread
makes 2 loaves

1) Make rye dough and pumpernickel dough.  Make  rye bread dough first since it has a longer rising time than the pumpernickel.  After you mix up the rye, place it in a lightly greased bowl and cover it.  Once the pumpernickel is mixed up, allow both doughs to rise covered 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

2) Divide each ball of dough in half.  You can use a food scale if you want to make sure your measurements are exact.

3) Roll out each ball of dough into an 8 x 11 inch rectangle.  It is OK if your rectangles aren't perfect. Place one pumpernickel rectangle on top of one rye rectangle. 

4) Roll into an 8-inch log and place the seem side down in a greased 8-inch loaf pan.

5) Repeat with the other pieces of pumpernickel and rye dough.  Let both loaves rise, covered for one hour, or until the top of the bread is about one inch higher than the top of the pan.

6) Bake at 350 for 20 minutes, tent each loaf with foil and bake for 20 minutes longer. Remove from pans and let the loaves cool on a wire rack.

Nachos

I made these one night when I didn't really feel like cooking.  We had some leftover refried beans in the fridge, so I browned 1/2 pound of ground beef and added some taco seasoning to it.  I put a bunch of tortilla chips on the bottom of a platter and topped them with the beans, meat, and cheese.  The nachos baked at 350 for about 10 minutes.  When they came out of the oven, I topped them with olives, lettuce, tomato, salsa, sour cream, and guacamole.  It was an easy and fun dinner.  Sometimes I forget how good oven-baked nachos are!

Spinach and Strawberry Salad

This is one of my favorite salads.  There was a time where I really didn't enjoy spinach salads.  There was just something about the taste that I didn't like.  Then I bought a salad dressing book that said to pair a light vinaigrette with spinach.  I had been putting ranch and bleu cheese on my spinach salads and the flavors were competing with each other.  I came up with this salad when my daughter was a few months old and I needed a quick lunch.  My favorite dressing for this is honey djion vinaigrette, which is honey mustard dressing without the mayonnaise.  I also like blueberry vinaigrette on this salad. I hope to post the blueberry vinaigrette recipe when Florida blueberries are in season.  It is really easy to make a large amount of this salad.  I like to make it for baby showers and lunch with my friends.  If you want something a little more hearty, you could add some grilled chicken to the salad.

Strawberry and Spinach Salad
(makes one serving)

2 cups baby spinach
5 strawberries, sliced
1 small apple, sliced
2 tablespoons pecans (I like to use the glazed ones)
2 tablespoons raisins (I like to use a mix of raisins, golden raisins, and craisins)
1 ounce gouda or manchego cheese, diced
2 tablespoons of your favorite sweet vinaigrette
optional: a few blueberries if they are in season

Granola

My husband loves granola.  He eats it as a cereal and loves it on yogurt.  The only problem is that granola can be really expensive.  I found a recipe for granola bread in Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day that called for homemade granola, so I decided to make my own granola.  It was easy, inexpensive, and my husband loves it.  It makes about 6 cups, so make sure you have a big jar to store it in.  You can experiment with the nuts, seeds, and dried fruit in this recipe.  The proportions are perfect in this recipe, so I usually don't change the amount of nuts, seeds, or dried fruit I use.  I have made it with both almonds and pecans, but I think the pecans are the best.  I love how they taste coated in honey and maple syrup! I would love to make one with pecans and only use dried cherries for the fruit, but dried cherries are pretty expensive.  This recipe uses a dried berry mix that has cherries, blueberries, and cranberries in it.

Granola
Adapted from Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day

1/3 cup honey
1/4 cup maple syrup (the real stuff)
1/3 cup coconut oil, softened (if you do not have coconut oil, use canola oil instead)
2 tablespoons water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 cups rolled oats
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
2 tablespoons sunflower seeds
3/4 cup chopped pecans
3/4 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup dried berry mix, chopped (I use cherries, blueberries, and cranberries)

1) Preheat oven to 350.  Prepare a high-sided cookie sheet or a lasagna pan with parchment paper.
2) Mix honey, maple syrup, oil, water, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and salt in a large measuring cup.
3) In a large bowl, combine the liquid mixture with the dry ingredients, except for the dried fruit, and mix until everything is coated with the honey mixture.  Spread the mixture evenly over the prepared baking sheet.  Bake for about 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes, until the granola is golden brown. 
4) After baking is complete, add the dried fruit.
5) Allow to cool, store in jars.

Mac and Cheese

I love macaroni and cheese and I think that my Mom's recipe is the best in the world.  When I went to college, my roommate had to teach me how to make macaroni and cheese from a box.  I only knew how to make the homemade stuff.   I am going to post 2 macaroni and cheese recipes today.  The first one is my Mom's recipe.  The second one is from the Pioneer Woman.  My Mom's recipe uses velveeta (my favorite guilty pleasure) and the Pioneer Woman's recipe uses cheddar.  Other than that, they are very similar recipes. The one made with velveeta is much creamier than the one made with cheddar.  I know that velveeta isn't really cheese, and it has an odd ingredient list, so I wanted to try a recipe that used cheddar.  I ended up adding some provolone and smoked gouda to the cheddar recipe.  It was really good...but I still like my mom's recipe better.  Both of these recipes can be baked, but I didn't bake mine.  I really like the creaminess of the sauce right out of the pan.  Since I wasn't baking it, I left out the egg in the Pioneer Woman's recipe.  I also cut the amount of pasta in half because I knew that a full amount would be way too big for my family.  If you want to make a full recipe or bake the maccaroni and cheese, this is the link to the Pioneer Woman's macaroni and cheese.

Mom's Macaroni and Cheese
2 cups elbow macaroni
2 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons butter
2 cups milk
1 teaspoon ground mustard
1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt
8 ounces velveeta, sliced
salt and pepper, to taste

1) Cook macaroni according to package directions.  Drain, but do not rinse.  Set aside.
2) While macaroni is cooking, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat (I use my cast-iron for this).  When the butter is melted, add the flour and stir constantly until you have a nice, smooth mixture. 
3) Add the ground mustard and milk.  Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until the sauce bubbles and begins to thicken (about 5 minutes).
4) Add the velveeta and stir over low heat until the cheese is melted.
5) Add the macaroni, salt, and pepper to the sauce.  Stir to mix.
6) The best side dish for this recipe is a slice of white bread topped with peanut butter and honey, folded in half.


The Pioneer Woman's Macaroni and Cheese
Adapted from The Pioneer Woman Cooks

2 cups dried macaroni
¼ cups (1/2 Stick Or 4 Tablespoons) Butter
¼ cups all-purpose Flour
2-½ cups whole milk
2 teaspoons (heaping) Dry Mustard, More If Desired
1 pound cheese, grated  (I used cheddar, smoked gouda, and provolone)
½ teaspoons Salt, More To Taste
½ teaspoons Seasoned Salt, More To Taste
½ teaspoons Ground Black Pepper

1) Cook macaroni until very firm. Macaroni should be too firm to eat right out of the pot. Drain.
2) In a large pot, melt butter and sprinkle in flour. Whisk together over medium-low heat. Cook mixture for five minutes, whisking constantly. Don’t let it burn.
3) Pour in milk, add mustard, and whisk until smooth. Cook for five minutes until very thick. Reduce heat to low.
4) Add in cheese and stir to melt.
Add salt and pepper. Taste sauce and add more salt and seasoned salt as needed!
5) Pour in drained, cooked macaroni and stir to combine.