SAH mom, dear husband, dear daughter, dear twin sons, floppy eared fur-baby. Love to teach, garden, cook, sew and craft, occasional computer geek for children!!
I recently stumbled upon a YouTube video from Cooking At Pam’s Place that promised a loaf of bread so simple and quick, that it seemed almost too good to be true. No kneading, no yeast, no rise time, and no mixer required. Intrigued and excited, I decided to give it a try. Spoiler alert: I loved it so much that I just had to share it with you all!
This versatile bread pairs well with almost anything. It’s perfect for sandwiches, toast, or just to enjoy with a pat of butter. You can also serve it alongside soups, stews, or salads.
Ree's Food Network friend Sunny Anderson shares her favorite party food!
"This hummus tastes best after a day in the fridge so the garlic has had time to permeate everything. I often just eat it with a spoon—no dipping of stuff needed," Sunny says.
Hummus has become a mainstay on fall appetizer and tailgate spreads. Everyone loves it as a party dip because it pairs perfectly with almost any kind of veggie, cracker, pretzel, or homemade tortilla chip. Red peppers add sweetness and a festive red hue to this roasted red pepper hummus—it's perfect for snacking!
Hummus is a great make-ahead appetizer—the flavors meld as it hangs out in the fridge. Chill in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
I am positively in love with Hummus, a classic Middle Eastern puree of chickpeas and sesame paste, and for me it’s one of those foods that never tastes as good as it does when you make it yourself. I’ve tried to buy prepared Hummus in the grocery store—there are varieties containing everything from roasted garlic to red peppers—but they all have a decidedly acidic taste, the result of the citric acid added to ensure that it remains preserved. And it always, always falls short.
Making hummus at home is the only way to go, and it’s surprisingly easy as long as you can find tahini, a specialty sesame paste sold in jars. Tahini is widely available these days, so no more excuses! Bring homemade hummus into your life today.
This is a delicious, satisfying soup that’ll improve your vision, win friends and influence people, and make you love curry…if you don’t already. It’s easy to make, freezes well, and will make you a happier, more well rounded citizen of this planet.
This no-knead Rosemary Parmesan Artisan Bread is a super easy and, dare I say, highly addictive bake. We love it fresh from the oven with good quality olive oil or herby garlic butter + more freshly grated Parmesan cheese!
With a wonderful crusty exterior, it’s light and soft on the inside and deliciously flavoured with lots of nutty Parmesan and aromatic, peppery rosemary. The cubed Parmesan is added just prior to the second rise to create the most deliciously melty, cheesy pockets!
This was actually a “fail” in terms of what I was trying to do: I was trying to make a long “snake” with the dough, wanted to swirl it back upon itself, and then curl it into a ball, to create a unique form with the actual bread, but that didn’t work and it just ended up proofing together again on the final rise. That is ok though, because it turned out really delicious nevertheless. This Rosemary and Sea Salt Rustic Loaf is going to make great dipping bread into olive oil. I also foresee a Grilled Cheese Sandwich in my future.
This Tart is sometimes called the “Most Loved Cake” in Italy. Lemon Mascarpone Tart - Sweet lemon infused pastry crust is filled with mix featuring mascarpone cheese, cream cheese, fresh lemon zest, and fresh lemon juice. The lemon cheesecake tart is baked in a hot oven until the filling is firm. The tart is cooled and then chilled to set. Once cooled the dish is finished with whipped cream and candied lemon peel.
These Fig and Goat Cheese Pinwheels are the ultimate unique and delicious holiday treat! Creamy goat cheese, perfectly sweet fig preserves and thyme makes these flaky pastries ultra delicious!
This gingerbread isn’t like others as it counts among its ingredients honey, almonds and candied peels which make it so flavorful and unique. I love how dense but soft this gingerbread is and the light icing on top adds even more sweetness to it which is perfect for the sweet tooth that I am. This bredele is another must try during the holidays!
You don’t have to brown these meatballs first. Just put them in the sauce and cook on medium for 20 minutes. I found that they taste just as good without browning, and it saves calories by skipping the olive oil. If you prefer them browned, you can place them on a sheet pan and broil until the tops are golden, then add to the sauce.
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS - We were after a creamy, rich, ultra-chocolaty fudge that didn't take hours or an arm workout to put together. Cooking a brown sugar syrup to a temperature between 234 and 238 degrees (what candymakers call “softball stage”) assured fudge that was firm yet pliable after cooling. The brown sugar offered a deep, caramely flavor that enhanced the chocolate. Marshmallows guaranteed a smooth, melt-in-your-mouth texture. Bittersweet, rather than milk or unsweetened, chocolate struck the perfect balance—still sweet enough to taste like candy but also deeply and satisfyingly chocolaty.
For a rich, chocolaty babka loaf, we started with a yeasted dough that we flavored with orange zest and vanilla. Then we made a luscious chocolate filling by microwaving butter and chocolate together and stirring in confectioners’ sugar, cocoa, and salt until the filling was smooth. To combine them, we rolled the dough out to an 18 by 12-inch rectangle, spread the filling over it, and rolled it into a tight log. To ensure layers of chocolate throughout the loaf, we split the log in half lengthwise, laid the halves next to each other cut sides up, and twisted them together five times total. We baked the loaf uncovered for 30 minutes and then covered it with foil to finish baking. For an extra-special finish, we made a sugar syrup and brushed it over the warm babka.
All you need are 3 ingredients to make my favorite margarita recipe! Instructions included for how to make a single serving margarita or pitcher margaritas for a crowd.
One of these is an appetiser for 2-3 people, just a few bites each or you can make it for one person and accompany it with a salad for lunch. And while it seems like an indulgent appetiser, one serving is about 100 calories, low carb (the Filo adds very little) and a good source of calcium.
So you may have already picked up on this, but I have a serious weakness for anything Spinach and Ricotta. I have a really difficult time passing up any pastries that contain these two ingredients, and have a tendency to over indulge!!
So I'll use any excuse to make these babies! I've found these Spinach and Ricotta Rolls are great for toddler lunches and kids or adult parties as well. They are really easy to make, and they aren't full of potato or rice fillers like a lot you find at the shops.
Brushing bacon with a brown sugar/maple syrup mixture, grinding some fresh cracked black pepper over the top, then baking it results in over-the-top sticky, chewy strips of deliciousness.
these short ribs pull sweet and sourness from a sticky rhubarb jam situation and then get some additional sweetness from their bed of onions that over time get caramelized down to almost an onion jam. the amount of flavor is a lil absurd. to the point where i had to actually pump the breaks a bit with the braising liquid by watering down my chicken stock. but paired with crispy persian rice and a bright pink sour rhubarb pickle, you basically have a perfect dinner.
This Bread has bacon, chives, and a lot of black pepper. you can use any other kind of salty meat, like pancetta, prosciutto, salami... but if you're as big of a fan of alliteration as i am, you'll use bacon. and if you really want to up the decadence ante, you can reserve the bacon fat and use it in place of butter on a hot fresh bread slice. oooh yeah, baby.
it's true, this recipe does take time, but none of the steps require that much effort at all. a little mixing here, a heavy dusting of flour there. it's the perfect recipe if you're binge watching some Episode Show and you need an excuse to get up every few episodes and do one simple brainless activity at a time.
let's discuss grilled cheese! i like grilled cheeses where the inside of the bread is first toasted. it allows the cheese to get a little jump start melting, and then there is more textural excitement all up in the middle with nary a soggy bite in sight. at cheese school, we tasted various cheese pairings and the one that blew my mind the most was honey with castello's double creme blue cheese. it was like salty/sweet but on steroids because of blue's awesome funkiness and this particular blue's uber creaminess. i knew right then and there that this combo would make one luxurious grilled cheese. so i came right home and did just that. i paired it with a second blue cheese, a quick little walnut pesto too for some oomph and bulkiness, and boom! it's the grown-up grilled cheese of your/our dreamz. oh and it needs wine because that's the rule about eating a grown-up version of a kid thing, so this is getting paired with the bright and rich napa cellars' zinfandel. yum.
here is an anytime snack that is perfect for when you need something cheesy and carby but you don't have any bread in the house and yes, you could use a little break from cleaning! it's a savory scone that's laced with onions, cheddar, and tiny flecks of thyme and served with sweet tomato jam. shoutout to eggmom for stocking our freezer with garden tomatoes from the summer! they were perfect for this. these scones are crumbly yet moist and i've used kerrygold's reserve cheddar here since it's flavorful enough to cut through the scone dough that surrounds it. (also because whenever i think about scones my inner voice puts on an irish accent since i ate about 12 million of the best scones of my life when i was in ireland on kerrygold's farms.)
Since the day I could say thoy thauce -- that's "soy sauce" with a lisp -- my favorite potstickers have been my mother's. Which is unusual because she's my Jewish parent...my dad's the Chinese one. He may be why I have a deep love for Chinese food in the first place, but sometime early on, my mother took a dim sum class and came up with a recipe for unbelievable potstickers. Don't dare go near store bought wrappers. Our wrappers are thick, and they house a gingery chicken filling that holds itself together if you're just going for the dough.
With a buttery tart-like bottom, almond meringue-like filling and juicy raspberry jam, these bars are bound to be the belle of your holiday ball.
Chocolate chip cookies, potato chips, Silly Putty. All of these were invented by mistake. Another accidental invention? The Bakewell Tart. According to my friend Farmette, the tart came into existence in the 1860s when a kitchen maid in Bakewell, England accidentally poured almond sponge cake batter on top of a tart. The result? Pure pastry genius, and now, Bakewell Tarts are a staple in bakeries throughout England.
This tart always reminds me of the holidays, when nothing exits my kitchen without at least a splash of almond flavor (cue the Dance of the Marzipans...), and it just so happens that this tart in bar form is the perfect holiday-party treat. THESE BARS CAN BE MADE AHEAD OF TIME to reduce party-planning stress, they travel well so they're good for potlucks and they're not too rich, so you can eat that extra bit of Christmas goose.