Blueberry crumb cake

I so need to post every day I cook or bake, instead of 3 in a day!! But.. so be it! Last week, I had to bake something, even if only once a week, I need to!! And this was it! Of course, that same Martha Stewart Food mag was the recipe! and there is at least one more recipe in it that I must make!!! Since I had the blueberries in the freezer this got made. It was sooo good, light and fluffy, tender crumb topping. Kudos Ms. Martha!!!


Blueberry Crumb Cake:

 4 Tsp unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 c all purpose flour, and 1 tsp for blueberries
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground allspice
3/4 c sugar
1 lg egg
2/3c buttermilk
1 1/2 c blueberries

Streusel topping:
In a medium bowl, mix 1 c all purpose flour, 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar, and 1/4 tsp salt. Using your fingers, work in 1/2 c ( 1 stick) cold unsalted butter (cut into tablespoons) until large, moist crumbs form. Chill until ready to use.

Preheat oven to 350. Butter a 9 inch square baking pan; dust with flour, tapping out excess. Make streusel topping, chill.

 In a medium bowl, whisk together 1 1/2 c flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and allspice. In another bowl, cream butter and sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add egg, beat until combined.
Add flour mixture and buttermilk in alternating batches, beginning and ending with the flour, beat until just combined (batter will be very stiff)
In a small bowl, toss blueberries with remaining tsp flour. Fold berries into batter, pour into prepared pan. Sprinkle evenly with streusel topping. Bake until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 45-50 minutes. Let cool completely and enjoy!

Was so tasty, and I can't see why other fruits couldn't be used, definitely other berries, and possibly apples or even pears!!

Carribbean Shrimp Packets

Another item from the Hungry Girl cookbook for Saturday nights meal, We were on a seafood kick! We served this over rice. And I will tell you there was a kick to it in the way of heat!! both were very good, and will be made again the soup in the previous post was my favorite of the two!

Caribbean Shrimp Packets:

1 tsp cornstarch
2 Tbsp lime juice
1 lb large raw shrimp, peeled, tails removed, deveined ( hmm I didn't realize this when mom put it together haha we used the cooked shrimp!)
one 20 oz can pineapple chunks in juice, drained
1 lg red bell pepper, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped
1/2 c chopped onion
1 Tbsp chopped garlic
1/4 tsp salt or more to taste
2 dashes black pepper, or more to taste
1 Tbsp light whipped butter, melted
2 Tbsp brown sugar (not packed)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees
In a small bowl, dissolve cornstarch in lime juice. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine all other ingredients except for butter and brown sugar. Add lime mixture, stir well, and set aside.
Add melted butter to the large bowl, and toss to coat. set aside.
Lay a large piece of heavy-duty foil on a baking sheet and spray with nonstick spray. Place shrimp-veggie mixture in the center and spread it out a bit. Sprinkle brown sugar evenly over everything. Place another large piece of foil on top. Fold together and seal all four edges of the two foil pieces, forming a well sealed packet.
Place baking sheet in the oven and bake for about 15min, until shrimp are opaque and cooked through. Allow packet to cool for a few minutes and the but to release steam before opening it entirely.
If yo ulike season to tate with additional salt and pepper.

Was very tasty, the whole night the food was great!! we served it over saffron rice ( yea it was just a simple packet haha) but we definitely will make this again, I can see adding some frozen veggies to it even! or other fish!

Seafood Chowder!

 We made this for dinner, well part of dinner on Saturday night. From one of mom's healthy books Hungry Girl. We like Seafood, and are all about some chowder. Well it's very simple, and to me a bit too thin to be called chowder so after this note, its soup in my head. It was sooo tasty, I had some left overs the next day and added some extra veggies. I can't see why you couldn't add more fish/seafood, or veggies to make it thicker. I would definitely increase the mashed potato flakes to at least 1 c. I didn't do much here, as I wanted to keep the points the same for mom, but if I make it with out points mattering, I would make it thicker and add more fish stuffs!! the flavor was awesome imo :)

2 14.5 oz can's fat free chicken broth
1 14.75 oz can cream style corn
2 6oz can lump crab meat, thoroughly drained
1 6 oz frozen fillet mild white fish ( such as tilapia or cod)
2 c (about 7 oz) frozen cooked ready to eat shrimp)
1 c frozen sweet corn kernels
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 c finely chopped onion
1/2 c plain light soy milk ( we actually just used fat free milk, which made it thin as well but still good)
1/2 tsp chopped garlic
1/2 c instant mashed potato flakes
1/4 c fat free sour cream
salt and pepper to taste

Place all ingredients except potato flakes and sour cream in the crock pot, and mix well. (yup, that fish fillet goes in whole!!)
Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hrs or on low for 7-8 hrs.
Stir to break up the fish fillet. Add potato flakes and sour cream, and stir very well. If you like, season to taste with salt and pepper, enjoy!!

Seriously, I so dug the flavor of this soup!!!

Hazelnut Amaretti

My Best Friends Baby shower was Sat.. of course I just got to doing this cause I have been damn busy! last week was the others Grad Party, this week was the Baby shower, as well as my first week in class!! Anywho.. I made some cookies for the large gift basket they gave away, well my jam and zucchini bread went in it as well :) but.. I had acquired about 6 bags of hazel nuts! So I had been wanting to make these, and it was the perfect chance to do so! They are more like  hazelnut meringue to me than amaretti, but the almond extract is the amaretti I guess haha. Very easy to make, very light, airy and crispy.

Hazelnut Amaretti cookies:

1 1/4 c hazelnuts
3/4 plus 3 Tbsp confectioners sugar
1 tsp all purpose flour
2 egg whites
1/3 c granulated sugar
34 c granulated sugar
3/4 tsp almond extract
pearl sugar for topping


Preheat an oven to 300. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or waxed paper.
In a food processor fitted with the metal blade, finely grind the hazelnuts (do not grind to a paste). Add 1/4 c  of the confectioners sugar and grind to a powder. Mix in the remaining 1/2 c plus 3 Tbsp confectioners sugar and the flour. Set aside.


In a bowl, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually add the granulated sugar and beat until stiff, shiny peaks form. Fold in the almond extract and the nut mixture.

Spoon the batter into a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2 in plain tip. Pipe the batter onto prepared baking sheet in mounds 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Using a wet finger, smooth the top of each cookie. Sprinkle with pearl sugar, if desired. (I couldn't find any.. but am still looking!!)
Bake until just beginning to brown, about 45min. Turn off the oven, leave the oven door closed and let the cookies dry for 30 min.

Transfer the cookies to wire racks to cool completely. Store in a n airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 month.


I liked them! again, very airy and meringue like! I think pecan would taste good as well!
I also made her a little 6 inch baby shower cake that I filled with my jam :) Vanilla layers with strawberry lemon marmalade filling.. and pretty little girl decorations!! I couldn't make a big one, but she got her own little one!!

I also dabbled in a bit of sewing. I attempted to make her some burp rags with a couple of matching Changing pads!! She is not typical girlie, so I wanted something that was her! I looked for pink skulls haha but they all had glitter and well to me babies and glitter do not mix!!! But I think I did ok, the camo may be my favorites!!
and because of that she got the Changing pad and matching burp cloth in Camo!! hahaha..the other matching set is the cute frogs and turtles in brown and greens.. its was just cute enough for a girl, but if some fluke baby girl is a boy well at least there is something she can use!!
I had fun and frustrations making them, but in the end I know she will love them, and some day I will figure out how to sew right!! At least I have my baking haha!!

Country Nectarine Pie

And this is why I love Cooking Magazines!! Cause eventually I will use recipes from them! This one comes from Cooking Club magazine, and its the newest issue. Stater's had nectarines on sale, and Mom was like hey I saw a pie recipe and brought them home hehe. So I went through it, and sure enough there it was. The awesome thing about this recipe, very little sugar!! its pastry and fruit! The perfect combo and just a great pie. Now.. for me the pastry was a little bland.. so I may try tweaking, a little lemon zest? or something to add a bit of punch to it, but over all it was great!

Country Nectarine Pie:

Dough:
1 1/2 c all purpose flour
10 Tbsp unsalted butter, chilled, cut up
1 Tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4-1/3 c ice water

Filling:
2 Tbsp all purpose flour
4 Tbsp sugar, divided
2 Tbsp ground almonds
1 1/2 lbs ripe but firm nectarines sliced (1/2 inch)


Pulse all dough ingredients except water in food processor until butter is size of peas. Add 1/4 cup ice water, pulse 3-4 times or until just  combined, adding additional water 1 tsp at a time as needed.
Shape into 6-inch flat round. On lightly floured surface, roll dough into 12-inch round 1/8 inch thick. ( I chilled the dough for about 10 min before rolling out, it was very hot in my kitchen!) Place on parchment paper-lined baking sheet, refrigerate or freeze 20 minutes or until chilled. Heat oven to 400. Slide dough onto large rimmed baking sheet ( edges will hang over.) Combine 2 Tbsp flour, 2 Tbsp of the sugar and ground almonds in a small bowl; Sprinkle over dough, leaving 2 inch border around edge.

Arrange nectarine slices, rounded-side out, in overlapping concentric circles over almond mixture, starting from outside and working toward center. Fold edge of dough over fruit, pressing dough to fill any cracks if necessary. Sprinkle fruit and edge of dough with remaining 2 Tbsp sugar.
Bake 50-60 minutes or until crust is golden brown on top and underside and fruit is tender. Cover crust during last 5-10 minutes if browning too quickly. Cool 30-45 minutes or until warm, not hot.

I baked mine a bit longer, and ended up brushing cream around the edge's as I felt it was not browning enough. I may have added about 20 min even on to it, so just watch and gauge your own time :)
We really liked it and the sweetness of the fruit just shined through, the only thing missing was a scoop of vanilla ice cream melting through it! I would also like to use coarser sugar for the top, to get that sparkle when It comes out. I had a friend worried about how runny it would be, She said every time she tried nectarine pies the juices were crazy. So I was worried when it came out, I thought it looked like it was going to be that way and would need some tweaking, but after it set and we finally cut into it, NO JUICES!! it was perfectly firm! I really enjoyed my first ever Nectarine pie!! it actually reminded me more of a tart than a pie :) which was even better hehe.. I may even add some nutmeg and cinnamon on top next time. I think it would taste great with the sweetness of the fruit!

Either way it was a damn good pie and we will make it again :)

Crispy Parmesan Zucchini Sticks

We can definitely grow zucchini that is no joke. Last week I took 2 more of our zucchini and grated it up. I ended up with 9 bags of 2 c amounts in the freezer. that is 9 batches of bread haha.. we pulled off 2 more today, and still have another monster on the counter. So I just got a new magazine in the mail, and in it were a few uses for Zucchini! It was my Cooking Club magazine.. (see a fetish I keep telling people!!) My brother has been wanting fried zucchini, so when I saw this recipe I thought sure why not!! And began slicing. Thought they would taste good with our burgers!!
Crispy Parmesan Zucchini Sticks:

1/2 c all purpose flour
3/4 tsp salt, divided
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 eggs beaten
1/2 c panko
1/2 c grated Parmesan cheese
1/8-1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
12 oz zucchini (1 med-large or 2 med-small) halved crossed-wise, each half cut into 1/2 inch sticks

Heat oven to 450. Spray large rimmed baking sheet with olive oil cooking spray. Combine flour, 1/4 tsp of the salt, garlic powder, and black pepper in shallow dish.
Place eggs in shallow bowl. Combine panko, cheese, remaining 1/2 tsp salt and cayenne pepper in shallow dish. Dip zucchini in flour mixture, shaking off excess. Dip in egg, letting excess drip off. Roll in panko mixture, turning to coat all sides.
Arrange in a single layer on baking sheet, spray with olive oil cooking spray. Bake 15-20 minutes, until golden brown and tender. Serve immediately.

 I felt they were browning a little too quickly, so I turned the oven down to 410.. and we cooked them for about 35-45  min. Holy smokes they were tasty! Next time we will peel them. The coating to stick as well to the skin, but they were very good!! much healthier than the deep fried kind!! a little ranch and we are sooo good to go!!
I would definitely recommend them!

A proper Mixed Berry Crumble!

So.. a couple weeks ago, we made a mixed berry crumble from weight watchers. We were not happy that it called for a stick of butter. It was far too much butter and definitely left the crumb topping something to desire. So, since I did have some berries left from that wonderful Graduation Cake, I decided a new crumble was necessary! A few tweaks I did, and a fantastic crumble was created!!
And man does it ever smell good!! I will post the recipe as I made it, so this is my crumble cause it is very different this time!!

Mixed Berry Crumble

4 cups mixed fresh berries ( we had strawberries, blackberries, blueberries and raspberries. Use the mix you like!)
3/4 c all purpose flour
1/2 c quick cooking oats
1-2 Tbsp sliced almonds
1/2tsp ground cinnamon
5 Tbsp + 1 tsp Splenda Brown sugar blend
1/2 stick butter or margarine, melted

Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 8/9inch square baking dish with pan spray and set aside. In a medium bowl mix berries, set aside.
In another medium bowl, mix together the Flour, Splenda brown sugar and cinnamon. Take 3 Tbsp of the flour mixture and sprinkle over the fruit. To the rest of the flour mixture add oats and almonds. Mix together. Add slowly the melted butter/margarine, stirring with a fork until the mixture becomes crumbly. will have clumps of mixture, but it will all be crumbs and moist. Like a true Crumb topping. Place in heated oven for 30-40 minutes until the top is golden and berries are bubbling. It's perfect!!! definitely doing to be our normal crumble recipe!!

The party!

Short and sweet!! Sweet because there was Cake!! For the cakes for the Grad party. She wanted simple, Half sheet of vanilla cake topped with berries!! I did a basket weave design around the sides of the cake, with a nice swirly board. And covered the top with an abundance of strawberries, blackberries, blueberries and raspberries. Buttercream icing of course!! I did go lazy and totally bought a bucket of Wilton Smooth White Buttercream for the occasion hehe.. And it was a great icing!!! We all were very pleased. I pulled off a wonderful light cake! and it went so well with the berries. Perfect for a warm summer day!! When we un-boxed the cake, the berries smelled fantastic!! Those berries at room temperature for a few hours brought out their sweetness.  The colors popped with freshness. Everyone couldn't wait to eat it!! I will not deny that it had been quite a while since I had baked and decorated any kind of cake, so with all that I had done this week, and pulling that cake out for her made me very proud. There were even a few phones pulled out for pic's of the simple Berry cake of awesomeness!!

I also made her a 6in cake. Her birthday was in June, and we were both very busy. Didn't get to see her until the graduation party in fact! So I took the chance to make her a little cake to take home. I took the 6inch layers and torted them, and filled each with my home made strawberry jam. It gave the cake a wonderful height!! Anytime you have the chance to Torte and fill a cake, so do it. The presentation is wonderful!! Now I like to bake my cakes, torte them, then freeze them. A freezer is every bakers best friend!! Icing a frozen cake yields a perfect outcome! Wrapped properly, a cake can be frozen for up to 3 months. When thawed, it is perfectly fresh and wonderful!! I did my crumb layer and then iced it with just a few flower on top. Wanting it simple, I stuck with all white. Well, I kept looking at it and felt it was far too wedding cake like. So, I added some swirls and dots and poof! Party cake of simplicity!!

She was very happy to have one to take home. The half sheet was a huge hit, and in fact was barely enough. We planned for 50 people, and I think there maybe have been only 30. We had about 4 pieces left, so it was a very good thing that I had one for her to take home! Over all, I think her party was a hit!! I am very proud of her, and so blessed to have her as my awesome friend!! Her family as well!!

A Graduation Preparation!

 So one of my Best Friends Graduated this week with her Masters!! I am sooo proud of her!! She asked me to make the cake and some Appetizers. Well I wasn't sure I could, so committed to the cake, and then about a week before, I said I could pull off the Apps too. Setting out to figure out what I make, I had idea's kind of in my head. I knew I wanted salsa, 2 was my plan, and a simple layer dip, since both go so well with Chips!! oh did I mention she hired Taco Guys, so I went fully on the Mexican Food theme haha. That left 2 other things I wanted to make. I remembered in my fetish collection of cooking magazines that somewhere was one with all Mexican food in it. I tore through them to find it! and Find it I did as well as the other 2 things I decided to make! It was the 2007 Better Homes and Gardens Special issue on Mexican Dishes. Many great things in this Mag, including those I used: Salsa Fresca, Mini Tortilla  Quiches, and Green Chili and Cheese Tamales. That is right, this very white girl is making Tamales!!! I was sooo excited. I have always wanted to make tamales!! so I did!
So.. this very long blog will be that which I made, the next will be the cake lol. I simply do not want to put ALL of that in one. The other Salsa I found in the 2004 Martha Stewart Everyday Food that I have, Roasted tomato Chipotle salsa. The same Everyday Food that I found the Cashew Chicken recipe as well as about 5 other recipes I plan to make from it!! So.. I guess its time for a slew of recipes and the longest post I have yet to have!!! I doubled all of these recipes, but am posting them as singles!

Roasted Tomato Chipotle Salsa

1 1/2 pounds cored and quartered plum tomatoes
1 thinly sliced medium onion
2 Tbsp canola oil
1 1/2 tsp coarse salt
1/4tsp ground pepper
1-2 Tbsp chopped Chipotles in adobo sauce
1/2 c chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup fresh lime juice

Heat broiler. On a broiler pan, or sheet pan, toss tomatoes and onion with oil. Season with salt and pepper and toss well.  Broil until tomatoes are charred in spots, 15-20min; let cool. Transfer tomato mixture to a food processor; add chipotles, cilantro, and lime juice. Pulse until combined but still slightly chunky. Cover and chill. Can be made up to 3 days ahead, store covered in the refrigerator.

Salsa Fresca

1 1/2 c finely chopped tomatoes (2 medium)
1 fresh Anaheim pepper, seeded and finely chopped, or one 4 oz can diced green chile peppers, drained
1/4 cup chopped green sweet pepper
1/4 c sliced green onions
3-4 Tbsp snipped fresh cilantro
2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
1-2 fresh jalapeno, Serrano, Fresno or banana peppers, seeded and finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced

In a medium bowl, stir together tomatoes, Anaheim pepper, sweet pepper, green onions, cilantro, lime juice, jalapeno peppers, garlic, 1/8 tsp salt, and 1/8 tsp ground pepper.
Cover and chill at least 1 hr before serving. Can be made and stored in the Fridge for up to 3 days in advance.
** I went with a very smooth salsa. I put all ingredients in the food processor and hit pulse several times. You can make it as you like. Both salsa's were well liked, but are completely different! Increase the heat by leaving in seeds, and adding more hot peppers to the salsa's!

Mini tortilla Quiches:
(quick note. I had to heat the tortilla rounds for about 20 sec in the microwave to make them pliable for the mini muffin tins. The first 2 tries, the cracked and broke on me. Heating them about 6 at a time worked perfectly.)
Nonstick cooking spray
5 10in plain, spinach or tomato flour tortilla's (I just used plain)
1 c chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 c half and half, or light cream
1/2c sliced green onions
2 eggs
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
sour cream to top them

Preheat oven to 375 ( I ended up turning mine down to 350, the tortilla's browned to quickly so watch them and adjust as necessary.). Lightly coat 32 1 3/4 in muffin cups with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside. Using a 3 inch round cutter, cut 32 circles from the tortilla's. gently press one round into each muffin cup, pleating rounds as necessary to fit. Set cups aside. (now.. for me this did not work either, they needed weight to keep them in place. So I made the filling and filled each one as I did the tortilla round. Working with 6 heated rounds at a time. It really didn't take much time, I put the filling in a measuring cup and used my Tbsp measure, make sure you mix it before each use slightly, as the Cilantro likes to settle at the top.)
In a blender or food processor, combine cilantro, half and half, green onions, eggs, salt and cayenne pepper. Cover and blend until the mixture is smooth. Spoon scant Tbsp filling into each tortilla lined muffin cup.
Bake about 15 minutes or until filling is completely set when poked near center with a wooden toothpick. Carefully remove quiches from muffin cups.
Before serving, spoon 1/4 tsp sour cream a top each warm quiche.
These can be made one day ahead. Bake as directed and let cool on cooling racks. Once fully cooled, put in airtight container, and cover. To reheat, place quiches in on a baking sheet. Bake at 350 for 10-15min or until heated through. Then top with sour cream and serve.
 * very tasty!! even the kids enjoyed eating them! once I made them I thought of all the different idea's I could do with the filling for next time hehe

 Layered Bean Dip!

3 can (16oz) refried beans
1 package taco seasoning mix
1 16oz container Sour Cream
1 16oz jar salsa
2 cups shredded Mexican blend Cheese
1 4oz can sliced black olives
diced red and yellow pepper, about 1/4 c total
1/8c chopped green onion

 In a medium bowl. Mix beans and taco seasoning. Layer beans in the bottom of a large glass bowl/pan. Top with the container of sour cream, carefully smoothing out to cover the beans. On top of the cream, layer the salsa, smoothing out carefully. (I wanted a layer of guacamole at this point, but forgot to buy it!) Sprinkle the cheese ( or as much cheese as you would like) on top of the salsa evenly. Sprinkle the top with chopped green onions and diced peppers. Sprinkle the olives around the edge and put a little bunch in the middle. Chill several hours before serving.

Saving the best for last, I biggest feat!!

Green Chile and Cheese Tamales

48-72 corn husks (it requests fresh, I used dried and softened them in warm water)
1 1/2 c masa harina (corn tortilla flour)
1 c water

1 1/2 c shredded cooked chicken
1 1/2 c shredded Mexican cheese blend
1 c fresh cut corn kernels, or frozen whole kernel corn, thawed
1/2 c canned cream-style corn
1 4 oz can diced green chiles
1/4 c bottled green salsa
1 tbsp cooking oil
1/4 tsp salt

Place the fresh corn husks, about 12 at a time, and 2 tbsp water in a 9 in glass pie plate. Microwave, covered, on 100 % power for 2 min.
For filling, in a large bowl, stir together masa harina, and the 1 c water until well combined. Stir in chicken, cheese, whole kernel corn, cream style corn, chiles, green salsa, oil and salt.
Drain corn husks well, pat dry with paper towels. To assemble each tamale, lay out two or three fresh corn husks (for a width of at least 6 inches) on a flat surface. Starting about 1 1/2 inches from the narrow end, place 2 tbsp of the filling in the center of the corn husk. Fold in sides to enclose filling. Bring ends together. Tie of tamale securely with strips of corn husk or 100% cotton kitchen string. ( I used 1 husk per tamale. Some were very large. I put the very small ones aside, it was easier for me. I just kept the dried husks in a large rectangle pan of water and worked with them. It was not very difficult, unless they were not pliable enough!)

To prepare steamer, place a cone shaped ball of foil in the center of a steamer basket. Stand tamales upright in basket. (dont pack tamales too tightly, but fill the basket. Place about 1 1/2 inces of water in bottom of steamer or dutch oven. Place basket over water. Bring water to boiling; reduce heat to medium. Cover and steam for 30 minutes. Carefully remove tamales from steamer. Let stand 5-10 min before serving. tamales get firmer as they cool. Once cooled, you can cover tightly and freeze your tamales. To reheat, place frozen tamales in prepared steamer basket, and steam for about 20 min or until heated through.

 ( I have a large canning pot, I used the largest vegetable steamer I could find and placed it on top of my canning rack, so that it was a bit higher for the water. I put water to just below the steamer and layered the tamales. I fit about 20-22 per batch. my double recipe took 3 batches to steam, but they came out great. I froze them all on Tuesday, re-steamed on Sat morning.
I had to deliver them about an hour away. I took a large aluminum foil roasting pan, lined it with hot damp cloths and placed the tamales as they finished re-steaming into it and covered with more warm cloths and foil. I kept them in the oven until ready to leave. I kept them in a warmed oven with those damn cloths the entirety of the party, and they stayed great! warm and very moist. I have been told we will be make large versions of them for next weekend!!)