Tiramisu

I absolutely love tiramisu.

I. Mean. Love.  As in adore.

But.  My husband does not like it.  Because he does not like coffee.  And, of course, tiramisu contains coffee.

So I rarely make this yummy dessert!

BUT.  I invited my Bible study to my house for dessert...and I made tiramisu.

It was a fun excuse to make this dessert that I love!  And, since I had friends to share, I didn't have to eat the entire recipe by myself.

That was a relief.

This is easy.  Use your mixer to whisk together egg yolks and sugar until they transform into this light, thick and fluffy mixture.

Eggs are so weird.  In such a good way.  They do so many different things!  They are a truly amazing food.

Now whisk in the mascarpone cheese, vanilla and 1/4 cup coffee.  So here's the thing about mascarpone.  It's normally very expensive.  But I found it at Trader Joe's...for like 1/2 the price.

I really love Trader Joe's.

And so now you just have to dip the ladyfingers (I found these at Meijer on the Italian food aisle) quickly in the coffee and place a layer in an 8x8 dish.

Cover with a layer of custard.

Now repeat.

And don't forget to dust cocoa powder on each layer!

So good.  So creamy.  Sweet, delicious dessert.

Tiramisu means "pick me up."  I think I learned that on 30-Minute Meals.

Aren't you glad you know that now too.

Tiramisu
Adapted from Barefoot Contessa

6 egg yolks, at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
16 oz. mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups strong coffee (or expresso), at room temperature
7 oz. savoiardi (Italian ladyfingers)
1/4 cup cocoa powder

In a the bowl of a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat together the sugar and egg yolks on high speed for about 5 minutes.  The mixture should be pale yellow, very thick, considerably increased in size (double to triple the size), and fall back on itself in a ribbon when you lift the beater up.

Add the mascarpone cheese, vanilla and 1/4 cup coffee.  Whisk until incorporated.

Pour the remaining cup of coffee into a shallow dish.  Dunk the ladyfingers into the coffee and cover the bottom of an 8x8 dish.  Pour 1/3 of the mascarpone mixture on top.  Sprinkle with cocoa powder.  Repeat twice more, ending with the mascarpone mixture.  Top with another sprinkle of cocoa.

Refrigerate for at least 8 hours or overnight.  Cut into squares and serve.

Beef Stroganoff (Quick and Easy!)

I'm starting to sound like a broken record.

But...

This is another Pinterest recipe.

I know.

So I changed it up a bit...I added mushrooms and messed with the ratio of noodles to beef and sauce.

We like things saucy, but this wasn't too saucy.   It was just right.

This is one of those meals that many foodies will turn their noses up at...but it's so quick and easy and inexpensive and just plain good.

We all loved it!  And it's a change from a chicken breast, which I cook a little too often.

Saute the mushrooms in some olive oil first.  Take them from the pan and set them aside.

Now saute the onion and beef together until cooked and crumbled.

Here's the reason you saute the beef and mushrooms separately: mushrooms are a sponge.  They will soak up every bit of grease from the ground beef and there will be no grease left to drain.  So, cook them separately and you'll be able to drain the beef grease!  Easy.

Once you drain the beef, you can toss the mushrooms back into the pot and also add the seasonings and cream of mushroom soup.

Toss it all around and let it cook for a few minutes.

Now stir in the sour cream and noodles and serve it up.

1950 called.  It wants dinner back.

I love old-fashioned food!

Beef Stroganoff

Adapted from Everything in Moderation

1 T olive oil
8-10 oz. sliced mushrooms (I used baby portabellas - also called cremini)
1 lb ground beef
1 onion, diced
1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
10 oz. can cream of mushroom soup
3/4 cup sour cream
8 oz. wide egg noodles, cooked and drained

Saute the olive oil and mushrooms in a large pot for about 8-10 minutes until browned and softened.  Place the mushrooms in a dish and set aside.

In the same pot, brown the beef and onion together, stirring and crumbling until cooked through.  Drain the grease from the beef.  Return the mushrooms to the pot.  Add the garlic powder, salt, pepper and cream of mushroom.  Simmer over medium heat for about 10 minutes.

Stir in the sour cream and noodles and combine well.  Serve immediately.  Goes great with green beans or steamed peas.

Cheddar Zucchini Rice

Another Pinterest recipe, people!

I pin.  I make.  We liked.  I will make again!

There's a lot of flavor packed into this side dish.  You can really taste the parmesan, zucchini and the creamy texture of the rice is just really good.

So you want to start with an onion and garlic in some olive oil and butter.  Olive oil because it has a higher burning temp than butter and butter because it adds yummy flavor.

Stir in the zucchini (I love the texture and look you get when you shred zucchini!) and cook it for a few minutes.  Zucchini is chalky if you don't cook it well, so you want it to get started early.

Then add the rice and stir it around to coat it in the fat and toast it a little bit.

Stir in the stock and seasonings and cover.  Let it simmer for about 20 minutes or so, just until the rice is done.

When it's done, stir in the cheeses and milk and put the lid back on.  Let it sit for a few minutes before serving.

Yum!  I'm going to have to make this again soon!

Cheddar Zucchini Rice
Adapted from Buns in My Oven

1 T olive oil
1 T butter

1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped

1 medium zucchini, grated
1 cup basmati rice (or white long-grain rice)
2 1/4 cups chicken stock
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup milk

In a medium saucepan (you'll need it to have a fitted lid too), heat the oil and butter over medium heat.  Saute the onion and garlic for about 5 minutes, until they begin to soften.  Add the zucchini and saute for another five minutes.  Add the rice and stir to coat.  Stir in the stock, salt and pepper.  Bring to a simmer, cover and reduce the heat to low.  Simmer for about 15-20 minutes until the water is absorbed and the rice is cooked.

Turn off the heat and stir in the cheeses and milk.  Cover and let sit for five minutes before serving.

Oatmeal Scotchies

My great-grandmother made the very best oatmeal cookies.  Ev-ah.  My dad won't touch another type of oatmeal cookie.  They're my husband's faves too.  Only one of the many things they have in common.

They're just so moist and oatmeal-y and brown-sugary...the dough is maybe the best part?

Yes, we eat raw cookie dough at our house.  And raw brownie dough.  And raw cake batter.  Eggs don't scare me!

What a sad life to not eat unbaked dough and batter.  That's just a life I wouldn't want to life.

Anyway, I digress.  So this recipe is a variation of my Grandmama's Oatmeal Cookies.  If you've not made the original recipe, then get to it.  You can add raisins or chocolate chips to it.  But the originals just might be my fave.

So, because I love butterscotch, I turned her original recipe into these Oatmeal Scotchies.

And!  These are so easy to make - you don't even have to use a mixer.  You can, but it's not required.  They're very easy to stir together.

Too easy, in fact.

They were awesome.  So warm and gooey and butterscotch-y...

You've got to make these.

And that's all I have to say.

Oatmeal Scotchies

1 cup canola oil
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 cups flour
3 cups quick-cooking oats
12 oz. package butterscotch chips

Lemon Chicken

I love lemon.

Lemon bars, lemonade, lemon chicken, lemon pasta, lemon curd...

The list goes on.

So of course I had to try Barefoot's Lemon Chicken breasts.

And I had to add a little more lemon juice to make them even more lemony.

Because that's just how I roll.

The marinade creates a sauce for the chicken...it's just beyond delicious.  I cut the chicken off the bone, spooned more sauce on top, and then I even spooned the sauce over the steamed broccoli on the side!

This sauce is just as garlicky as it is lemony, which works for me.  The heat of the oven cooks the garlic, making it sweet and not too overpowering.

Next time I will serve it with couscous to catch even more of the delicious lemony sauce.

Go forth and make lemon chicken. And this summer we'll have to make lemon bars.  I can't wait.

Lemon Chicken
Adapted from Barefoot Contessa

4 chicken breasts, bone-in, skin on
1 T olive oil
Juice of 3 lemons (about 1/3 cup)
Zest from 2 lemons
1/3 cup white wine
1/4 cup minced garlic (about 10 cloves or so)
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried oregano

Whisk together all ingredients except the chicken breasts in a 9x13 baking dish.  Lay the chicken breasts on top, skin side down, and spoon the marinade over the chicken.  Refrigerate for at least 4 hours (6-8 hours if possible).

About 30 minutes before you want to start cooking the chicken, remove it from the refrigerator.  Use tongs to turn the chicken over (you want to bake it skin side up).  Once again spoon the marinade over the top of the chicken.  Bake in a 400 degree oven for about 30-40 minutes until the chicken is cooked through (cooking time depends on thickness/size of chicken breasts).

To serve, I pulled the skin off and cut the chicken breast off the bone with steamed broccoli on the side.  Extra sauce spooned over chicken and broccoli!  Delicious!

Chile Cheese Squares

I made Pioneer Woman's chiles rellenos the other day for supper.

They were so good!

So I didn't know what chiles rellenos were...until now...it's just a layered dish of cheese, green chiles (good flavor; not spicy), with a custard poured over the top and baked.

Pioneer Woman bakes them in a water bath, which I didn't do simply because I didn't want to wash two dishes.  Feel free to go the water bath route if you're a purist.

I'm a purist on some things, but this ain't one of 'em.

You can eat them plain (boring).

But we ate them wrapped in warm corn tortillas with sour cream and salsa!

Delicious.

Sort of like a breakfast burrito kind of thing.

My husband requested these again!

My kids even liked them!

Chile Cheese Squares
Adapted from Pioneer Woman

10 oz. can whole green chiles
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup shredded monterey jack cheese
3 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder

Grease a 1 1/2 quart casserole dish or an 8x8 dish.  Place one layer of green chiles in the bottom (you may need to cut them so they lay flat).  Sprinkle the cheddar cheese on top.  Place the remaining chiles on top in a single layer.  Sprinkle with the jack cheese.

In a bowl, whisk together the remaining ingredients.  Pour over the chiles and cheese.  Bake in a 325 degree oven for about 30-35 minutes, just until set.  Let cool for about 10 minutes before cutting into squares to serve.

We served these in corn tortillas with sour cream and salsa.  They were wonderful!!!