Italian Breadsticks ~ page 282

Last summer I posted this recipe, but I had made it into pizza rolls with cheese and pepperoni. Here are the breadsticks as they are written. They rise very quickly, so it doesn't take all afternoon to make them. They are much better than Olive Garden's breadsticks I think. The recipe says to knead in as much of the flour as you can, but don't add it all in. You still want a soft ball of dough. The reason the recipe doesn't just give an exact amount is just because there are so many little variables...from the kind of flour you use to your weather. Just add what you need to to make a soft non sticky ball and you will be fine. Of the 2 cups I think I added 1 3/4 cup of flour.
Above it the dough rising in the warm but OFF oven...then I added a dish of boiling water beside it to keep it warm in there...I needed it to rise even faster. I was in a hurry had hungry kids and husband waiting!
Below is the finished product...so YUMMY! I had leftover black Bean Soup from the other night so dolled it up by adding rotisserie chicken and came out with a great meal that was very healthy!

Black Bean Soup ~ page 41

This is a very complex tasting soup even though it is so simple. Be careful with the cayenne pepper, maybe go light if you have kids eating it. I had to water my kid's bowls down a little. The apple cider vinegar adds a great tang to the soup so don't skip it. I garnished mine with sour cream. Green onions would have been nice too. This freezes really well, so you can make it even if you aren't cooking for 6 people. --Carissa

Perfect Chocolate Layer Cake ~ page 243

My daughter-in-law, Cathy, just told me she does not usually care for chocolate cake because it is dry--well, believe me, this is not a dry cake at all! But the interesting thing is, neither is it loaded up with butter and oil to keep it moist. There is just a modest amount of oil in the recipe. What is different, is that boiling water is added to the batter, and somehow this makes for a moist cake.

I made this cake for my son Matthew's 36th birthday--here he is with his cousin, Nathan, (on the right) and Nathan's girlfriend, Marianna, at Matthew's family birthday party. You know, years ago I remember my mother-in-law always commenting on my husband's birthdays that she couldn't believe she had a son that old. Well, finally I know what she means...all my kids birthdays seems to remind me that they must have a very old mother if they are that old! Ha!

Here is the beginnings of this easy and delicious layer cake...I used a mixture of (expensive) dark cocoa that I love, and a cheaper store brand cocoa--just to get the best of both worlds. I put parchment paper in the bottom of the cake pans, then grease and flour them to make removing the cake a breeze.

The cake batter is very thin after you add the boiling water--but don't worry, it all comes out perfect in the end.

Look at this face...don't you know what she is asking for!

Finally, the cake is iced--dig in girl!

Fulfillment.

Chicken and Sausage Gumbo ~ page 43

This gumbo tasted so cozy on a cold night this week. I bought a package of fresh chicken quarters...it had 4 quarters in there, I think it only cost $2.80, so cheaper than a whole chicken. I simmered the chicken in water with some onion, bay leave, and peppercorns. Then shredded the meat, that way I had some good broth for the gumbo.
Below is the roux...you are suppose to cook it till it is chocolate brown, I got a little lazy and stopped a little early mainly cuz I had a screaming baby that needed to be fed, so I chose the baby over the roux. The roux was a little dry, I'm not sure if I mis-measured or if it needed a touch more oil, but I added a little more and it was better. So feel free to add a little more oil if it needs it.
I doubled the recipe so here is my 4 cups of chicken...
Below is my big yummy pot of gumbo. We had my cousin Nathan and his girlfriend Marianna over for dinner. The recipe called for spicy sausage, but I used mild sausage because of the kids, but I kinda wish I had used something hotter, I thought it needed a little kick. Don't be afraid to salt this, the recipe just says to "salt to taste". For a doubled batch I used 1 teaspoon, and thought it needed more still. I stuck a container of the leftovers in the freezer for another cold day...YUM! --Carissa

Silicone Baking Cups...do they work???

Have you ever wondered if the silicone bakeware was worth the money? I thought I'd do a little product review for you! I bought these cute little silicone muffin cups the other day; the manager at Sur La Table said I could bring them back if I didn't like how they worked, she claimed them wonderful. So I gave them a try. I whipped up my favorite banana pineapple muffin recipe on page 306!
As you can see they baked up nice and round, the true test was what happened once

I took them out..... They slipped right out, I just had to wipe them down and they were ready for another go round. I was pretty impressed at the cleanup! They even browned the bottom of the muffins which I had my doubts about. So, I would recommended them next time you see some on sale! I have never been a big fan of the paper cups, they take the bottom of the muffin off sometimes, and kids can't peel them very well themselves...and you have to keep buying them. This is a nice way to take the mess of muffin tin greasing and cleaning up out of muffin baking, so you can spend more time eating the muffins! --Carissa

Corned Beef Hash with Eggs ~ page 312

Let me tell you--this is a hearty, delicious breakfast any man will love! It also makes a wonderful Sunday night supper.  You do have to do one thing first though--you need to have a meal of corned beef in order to have leftover meat for Corned Beef Hash.  So I made a pot of corned beef and cabbage for dinner one night, then a few days later I made this recipe.

This is my leftover piece of corned beef that I cube along with a few potatoes. I prefer using red potatoes with their skins in this recipe, but I only had russet potatoes on hand, and really, they worked just fine.

Make your cubes pretty small--about 1/2- inch or less.

Mix it up, and it is already looking really good! Now it just needs to simmer with some spices...

You can poach your eggs right in the hash while it is cooking, but I prefer to use poaching cups I have in order to have better control of how my egg cooks. You can also just add a fried egg on top your hash. Any way you make it, this is a tasty and delicious dish that just makes you feel cozy.

Nutty Chicken and Broccoli Stir-Fry ~ page 146

If you are really tired (from being sick, in my case), and don't want to spend much time cooking, yet you want a warm, comforting, delicious meal--this dish will take care of you. After a week of not cooking much, this was my first real meal to make. I think I had the first bite in my mouth in 20 minutes flat!

Get everything ready before you start cooking, because the cooking part goes fast. The peanut sauce is easy to mix up and set aside. Cut up your veggies, and get the water to boiling for the noodles. This recipe calls for Ramen noodles, which you know cook super fast--but you can also use other kinds of noodles. I live near an Asian market which has a complete isle of strange noodles you never saw before--so I love to try different kinds of them. I used a quick-cooking noodle I found there instead of the Ramen noodles, just to try something different. Don't worry about leftovers--they will be just as yummy as the first go round.

Oh, here is one more picture for you (it has nothing to do with this recipe!)--Lillian brought this tray to my house the other day--this is the after school snack she made completely by herself and wanted to share. She informed me she even used a sharp knife to cut up the tomatoes all on her own. She was very proud of herself! ~ Janice

Cheesy Olive Spread ~ page 28

I made this Olive Cheese Spread to travel to my sister-in-laws house for Christmas. I just now remembered I had not posted about it though! This is such a good make-ahead party spread/dip. I love it with our Flax Seed  Crackers. But it can work with so many other things too--like a veggie dip, or sandwich spread.

This spread blends up fast in the food processor, and keeps for several weeks in the fridge.

I am sorry our blogging has been lagging since Christmas. I am afraid Carissa has been doing most of the cooking the past week or so...would you believe I have pneumonia again! So I have not been doing much meal preparation since the holidays...but I will surly recover again, and be back to my kitchen soon. (I am embarrassed to say how many meals Carissa, often with a baby attached to her hip, has cooked for me this past week--bless her heart.) ~Janice

Amazing Apple Crisp ~ page 246

Happy New Year to everyone out there! Here is a dessert to start your year off right.

This was so yummy! I didn't even use tart apples like you are suppose to, and it was still great.
My 3 year old loved the peeling scraps for a snack.
I baked this ahead of time and just let it sit in the turned off oven for a couple hours till I needed it. Then I reheated it for 10 minutes and it was perfect! --Carissa