Hassle Free Holiday Hosting

Given the new addition to our lives, we refused to travel this holiday season, which means we must host.  <<<GASP>>  

Ok, not really.  I like hosting. Pull out the fancy china & silver, a few nice bottles of wine, cheese and crackers and have everyone else bring the food!  I have learned with little EC around, it is impossible to do everything on own you - life has now become a team sport.  So, divide and conquer.

I didn't slack completely this holiday, I chose to make the traditional Robertson family dressing.  I swear, this is the easiest and most delish side you have ever put in your mouth.  It goes well with turkey or ham and is even better with gravy on top.  Yum. Yum.  

"Dressing" 

Makes a 9x13 dish of dressing

2 loaves of white bread

1 small sweet onion

4 stalks of celery

Stick of Butter

Chicken Stock

Poultry Seasoning 

Pepper 

Cube the bread in a large bowl and let sit 4+ hours to become nice and stale.  The drier the bread, the better it absorbs all the flavor.  

Dice celery and onion and saute in a pan with the stick of butter until nice and tender.  

Add veggies to bread and start flavoring.  Add poultry seasoning and chicken stock little by little until you get your desired consistency.  I end up using about 1 container of stock and 3 tablespoons + of seasoning.

Pour mixture in greased (use butter wrapper) 9x13 dish and bake at 350 for 30 minutes - checking halfway and 3/4 way through.  You don't want the dressing to end up drying out, so be careful not to overcook. 

I love this side because you can prepare it all the day before and then pop it in the oven to cook the day of your meal.  Another hosting trick, pull out the platters and bowls you are going to use and label each with a post-it of what will go in it.  This eliminates all questions when everyone is trying to set their food out!  Also, label your buffet of where you want things to go and place a serving spoon/fork in its spot.  This way when you are hosting you can focus on you guests, eliminate the drama and have more time to snuggle with your little one :) 

Happy Hassle Free Holiday! 

The Malcom Roll

Almost one year ago I was on a plane to LAX for work and I wrote this on my iPhone.  I cant believe I haven't posted this until now, it is wonderful food for the soul.  (By the way...Baby Emma and I are doing great, will post about our lives at a later date.)

You ever wonder how others see you?  You know how you judge a dinner entree or sushi roll by there
appearances, well that's kind of how we treat strangers.  Are they positioned well on the plate of society? Dressed with the perfect accessories of caviar or fish roe and bright bubbly presentation?  I am guilt as charged, but soul food doesn't have a typical appearance, it can show up and be very unassuming and not be what you expect once you cut into it.  

I was on a flight to LAX and noticed this quarky guy with longer curly hair, older, faded jeans and sock feet pacing the aisle of our plane.  I immediately thought...odd.  He was seated behind me and his sock feet occasionally peeked around the arm rest. I was judgey.

When I was in line for the bathroom my sock footed buddy joined the line. He said "he-llo" in the sweetest southern accent. "Hi there" was my response.  Instantly he began telling me how he was 43, from Columbia, GA and never been this far West before.  He is a mechanic and was on his way to visit his cousin in Alaska that he hasn't seen in 14 years.  They were going to go salmon fishing, whale watching, etc...He said that this is the most exciting trip he will ever take in his life.  At the end of his story, he said "hello I'm Malcom, what's your name?" I said, "Suzanne and it is a pleasure to meet you". Malcom responded with a big grin, "pleasure to meet you."

His genuine approach and excitement about life warmed me. When I sat back down, I rethought about why. Why did I judge this poor guy?  He is the basic sushi roll that people rarely order but when you do you are pleasantly
satisfied.  Upon landing, he turned to me and said, "Suzanne, have a safe trip." I smiled warmly and said enjoy Alaska.  

This tells us a little something about ourselves.

Today's Soul Food....The Malcom Roll, topped with fresh salmon.

Baking My Most Important Dish

It has been ENTIRELY too long since I have blogged but I have a good excuse.  I have been spending the past 7 months baking the most important dish I will ever bake…our first baby!  Yes friends and food lovers, we are expecting the most precious dish of life to be born June 8^th.  Not to mention, we have moved twice and bought a house since my last post.  Do the math, yes just a few months.  The Joneses have been busy. 

I’ve never been good at baking but this dish seems to be working well for me so far.  Well, minus the strong desire to fall asleep at any given second.  Face it, baking is hard work but we all know the end result will be something sweet.  We are counting the days now…I will keep you posted and I promise, more food to come soon.  In the meantime, a photo tour of my baking... 

Happy house warming to my Mom & Dad, a pumpkin...with a little note  :) 

Holiday time - around the 16 week mark

out for a little mid-pregnancy jog

She's getting bigger!  Me and our baby girl.

No more apt living - our new home.  So blessed, so very blessed.

Snapshot from our surprise shower! 

SURPRISE! 

My co-workers made us a cookbook, Meals for the MarComm Mom - best gift ever!

6 weeks to go now...

My Non-Marsala Chicken Marsala

The other night I had craving for chicken marsala.  Easy, enough, right?  Chicken, mushrooms and marsala wine...well it's not so easy when you don't have marsala, sherry, brandy or anything that could substitute for the same flavor so I improvised   I did have garlic, chicken broth and some amazing aged balsamic from the local Midtown Olive Press.  I think what made this dish so flavorful was really good quality EVOO and Balsamic.   

For lack of creativity (it's been a long few weeks) I call this, My Non-Marsala Chicken Marsala.  

Chicken Breasts (pounded thin or cut in half) or chicken cutlets
Mushrooms - entire carton sliced
Green onion
Minced Garlic
Low Sodium Chicken Broth
Aged Balsamic Vinegar
Penne or pasta of choice

Pat chicken dry, season with S&P, garlic powder and Italian seasons.  Dredge in flour, set aside.
Heat EVOO in skillet on medium-high heat - sear chicken about 4-5 minutes per side.  You want the chicken to be nicely browned on each side and cooked 90% of the way through.  Remove from skillet to plate and cover loosely with foil.
Reduce heat of pan to low-medium and de-glaze with chicken broth.  Using spatula to remove brown bits from the bottom of the pan and heat liquid for a few minutes.  Add a teaspoon or two of minced garlic to broth, adding flavor.  
Add mushrooms and a large splash or two of chicken broth and continue cooking about 5 mins or so.  At this point you maybe have used a cup to cup and a half of chicken broth.  
Once 'shrooms are tender, add a palmful of dried basil and/or oregano and drizzle in the balsamic vinegar -about 2 tablespoons.  This is where the trusty taste buds come into play.  When making this sauce taste and season often.  Always start with a little less, you can always add more.  
Cook another minute and add in chicken breasts.  Cook about 5-7 more minutes until chicken and sauce are heated through.  Top with green onions and Serve with your favorite pasta and Parmesan cheese!!   Enjoy! 

Fa La La Season

The holiday seasons bring out the warm and fuzzy in us all.  We show our thanks to family members, give love to friend and embrace each kind moment from a stranger.  For me it is the making of memories and those memories that are revisited each holiday season that make it special.  Surprisingly enough, certain smells and tastes are what trigger those memories. 

So, in honor of these flavor packed memories, this holiday season I will recount some of my favorite times and of course bring you the recipe that helps bring that memory back to life. 

To start….the smell of cooked apples just screams fall and also permeates memories of childhood, especially when put into the form of a baked good.  No, it’s actually not apple pie.  It’s a sweet little moist muffin bite that kicks with cinnamon, sugar and apples – Mom’s Applesauce Muffins.  She used to make these around the holidays and they would be the perfect after school snack or breakfast on the go but what made them so good it she always made them mini.  A challenge for someone who only has one mini muffin tin (me!), so for convenience I make an assortment of sizes but when I enjoy the applesauce muffin from the batch I have to choose the mini out of pure nostalgia.  Enjoy!

1 cup sugar

1cup applesauce

1/3 cup oil (canola or vegetable)

2 eggs

3 Tblsp milk

2 cups flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp.salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon and nutmeg plus a dash or two more for extra flavor

3/4 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Combine sugar, applesauce, oil, milk and eggs. Sift together flour, soda, baking powder, salt and spices. Add to applesauce mixture and beat till well combined. Stir in nuts. Turn batter into greased muffin tins.  Bake in 350 degree oven for 1 hour. Cap loaf loosely with foil for last 30 mins to keep them from getting too brown. Muffins will take less time, maybe 30 to 40 check with a toothpick about halfway through.

A little tasty extra..You can make a brown sugar topping if you want extra sweetness to some of the muffins:

1/4 brown sugar , 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 pecans mix together and put on top before you bake!

Pantry Chili

The title of this post says it all.  Look in your pantry and find the following ingredients.  Wait, scratch that...if you don't have the exact ingredients, find something similar to it.  It all works out! 

1 lb ground turkey

16 oz can black beans (rinsed, drained)

16 0z can white cannellini beans (rinsed, drained)

Cilantro

Chili Powder

Cumin

Paprika

¼ onion diced

Can Rotel – chunky

Minced garlic – 1-2 tsps

Diced pickled jalapenos

Small can tomato paste

Dash Worcestershire Sauce

Chicken Stock – low sodium

EVOO

S&P

Avocado – for topping

Chili is one of those “illusion meals”.  It looks and tastes like it takes an immensely long time to prepare but in all reality you dump a few canned ingredients in a pot, season well and simmer.  Easy breezy.  You can swap black beans for kidney beans; cannellini for navy, whatever you have in your pantry at the time will work just fine.  I do like using ground turkey for the health benefits but ground beef works perfectly fine as well – be careful of the grease, you may want to drain your meat before adding beans, no one likes greasy chili.  The trick to my pantry chili is to simply use what you have on hand, no drama, and season and taste every step of the way!   

Start by sautéing diced onions, pickled jalapenos and garlic until tender…a few minutes.  Add ground turkey, S&P, dash cumin, dash parprika and cook on medium until meat is cooked through. Stir every so often so the meat doesn’t stick or burn.  If you need to, add a drizzle of extra EVOO to the pot to help keep the turkey from sticking. 

Once cooked, add your Rotel and beans.  Stir and heat through for a few minutes then add Chicken Stock – eyeball it, but you want to cover the meaty, beany mixture so it has a good simmering liquid base.  Dash Worcestershire and add your tomato paste.  Mix well, taste and season.  Add more paprika, chili powder, cumin, chopped cilantro.  Add seasoning until your taste buds are pleased – I like a little kick to my chili so I am heavy handed with the chili powder and hot sauce may also make an appearance!  Now, cover and simmer.  The longer you simmer, the better the flavors merry and the more punch your chili will pack.

You know you’re ready to eat when your house smells good, you keep pacing in the kitchen waiting one more minute and you can’t wait a second longer.  Serve chili topped with diced avocado, fresh cilantro, dollop of sour cream and a few blue corn chips.

Enjoy!! 

Cookies..WTF?!

I was so productively perusing Pintrest the other night and saw a pic of a delish oatmeal cookie and I immediately clicked through.  The recipe called for all your standard ingredients for cookies EXCEPT flour and eggs – WTF??  WTF (Without The Flour!) Cookies, duh. :) 

I immediately started Googling flourless cookies and up popped a million fabulous “skinny cookie” recipes.  In the world of Google, my WTF cookies were so frequently referred too a skinny, even better!  An interesting thing about skinny cookies is they are a lot less messy then trying to bake 

and mix a cookie with tons of flour, sugar and eggs. Lazy and healthy – a double win! 

On my Sunday grocery store trip I simply picked up apple sauce and rolled outs (everything else I had on hand!) and was on my way to simple, skinny cookies.  Did I mention, they are moist, sweet and did I say simple?

WTF Cookies

¼ cup peanut butter

¾ cup applesauce (start with 1/2 cup and slowly add more)

¾ cup whole grain oatmeal

Pinch of salt

Dash of cinnamon

2 handfuls raisins (or dried cranberries)

1 handful chocolate chips (if you’re like me you went for a little extra!)

Small splash of vanilla extract

2 pinches of Splenda

Place peanut butter in mixing bowl and microwave until soft – 15 seconds or so.  Mix in applesauce and mash well until your base in blended smooth.  Then add in Splenda, salt, cinnamon and vanilla – stir gently.  Add in raisins, chocolate chips and oats and mix together. 

Use a large teaspoon and place small balls of dough on a greased cookie sheet.  Bake about 15-17 minutes at 350.  Remove and let sit about 10 minutes before diving in!  A side note, the cookie will still seem gooey when you first take them out but patiently (difficult, I know) let them sit and set.  Then pour a glass of milk and hear yourself WTF, these are good! 

Enjoy!