Day 24, Mission:Cornbread, 339 Recipes to Go

One of my guilty pleasures is cornbread. I could eat corn bread with any meal at any time of the day. The best part? Its one of the easiest things to make.

Yields: 12 Slices
Total Time: 1 hour
# of Pans: 1
Ingredients:
*2 Large Eggs
*2 Cups Milk
*4 Tbsp Canola Oil
*4 Tbsp Honey
*2 Cups Cornmeal
*2 tsp Baking Powder
*2 tsp Salt
*2 Cups Flour
Directions:
*Pre-heat oven to 350'
*Grease a 9x9 or8x8 baking pan
*In a small bowl combine cornmeal, baking powder, salt & flour
*In a larger bowl, mix together eggs, milk, oil & honey
*Slowly mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients

*Stir until well combined
*Pour batter into your baking dish and bake for about 45 minutes or until a toothpick stuck in the middle comes out clean

Serve warm with some butter and honey...yum!

Day 23, Mission: Tres Leches, 342 Recipes to Go

What Better to go with Chicken Tortilla Soup than tres leches. Tres Leches is a traditional mexican dessert composed of, well, three milks. This dessert is easy and very delicious!
Yields: 12 Servings
Total Time: 1 hour
# of Pans: 1
Ingredients:
* 1 1/2 Cups White Flour
*1 tsp baking powder
*1/3 Cup vegetable oil
*1 Cup sugar
*1 tsp Vanilla
*5 Eggs
*1/2 cup milk
*12oz Evaporated Milk
*14oz sweetened condensed milk
*1/2 cup heavy cream
*1 Tbsp rum or brandy
Directions:
*Pre-heat oven to 350'
*Grease a 9x13'' baking pan
*In a large bowl mix the egg whites on medium-high speed until light peaks form

*Slowly add in your sugar, then egg yolks and oil and vanilla and then milk

*Next, slowly add in your flour and baking soda. Mix until thoroughly combined
*Pour batter into your baking dish and bake on the center rack for about 30-40 minutes

*Once your cake has cooled, poke holes throughout the cake with a fork

*In a small bowl, combine evaporated milk, condensed milk, rum and cream

*Pour your milk mixture evenly over the cake.
*Place cake in fridge and allow to cool for about 15 minutes
Serve with whip cream or ice cream...que bueno!

Day 22, Mission: ChickenTortilla Soup, 343 Recipes to Go

As temperatures start getting colder, theres nothing i love more than soup.One of my all time favorites is Chicken Tortilla.

Yields: 10 Servings
Total Time: 45 minutes
# of Pans: 2
Ingredients:
*4 Chicken Breasts
*1 Onion (diced)
*4 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
*1 Can diced green chilies
*2 Tbsp garlic
*1 Tbsp paprika
*6 Cups Chicken Broth
*1 Can diced tomatoes (fire roasted tastes best)
*1 Can black beans
*1 1/2 Cups frozen corn
*2 Limes
*Fresh Cilantro
*3 Tortillas or tortilla chips
*Sour Cream
*1 cup shredded cheddar or cheddar jack cheese
Directions:
*In a large frying pan, heat up 2 Tbsp of your oil. Add your chicken breasts. Reduce heat to medium and cover
*Rotate chicken after about 8 minutes, and continue cooking until chicken is white in the middle

*Meanwhile, in a large sauce pan warm up the remaining 2 Tbsp Oil and sautee your onions over medium heat

*Once your chicken is thoroughly cooked, shred it using two forks
*Add in your green chillies and garlic and saute for 3 minutes

*Add in your corn, black beans, paprika, tomatoes, juice of one lime and chicken broth

*Bring to a boil
*Once boiling, add in your shredded chicken
*Cook for another 20 minutes
*While soup is cooking, you can either place sautee your tortillas, or crush up some tortilla chips (if you use tortillas, slice each tortilla into 1/2" by 4" before sauteing with 1 Tbsp of oil)

*Serve your soup with fresh cilantro, lime juice, cheddar cheese and tortilla chips (or tortillas)

Day 21, Mission: Pineapple Salsa, 344 Recipes to Go

Okay, so now you have the home-made tortilla chips....what to eat with them? How about some simple, home-made pineapple salsa? Si!
Yields: 6-8 Servings
Total Time: 13 Minutes
# of Pans: 1
Ingredients:
* 1 Onion (diced)
*1 Jalapeno (or Anaheim pepper for mild salsa)
*1 Cup canned chopped pineapple
*1 Can black beans (drained)
*1/2 cup chopped cilantro
*1 can frozen corn (thawed)
*1 Green pepper (diced)
*3 tomatoes (diced)
*1 tsp paprika
*1 tsp chili powder
*1 tsp garlic powder
Directions:
*Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Chill before serving.

Serve along side your home-made tortilla chips, on top of eggs or any which way.

Day 20, Mission: Home-made Tortilla Chips, 345 Recipes to Go

Today starts 4 days of Mexican food in a row. We'll start with home made tortilla chips!

Yields: About 8 Dozen Chips
Total Time: 15 minutes
# of Pans: 1
Ingredients:* 1 package Corn or flour tortilla chips
*4 Tbsp oil
*2 Tbsp lime juice
*Salt to taste
Directions:
*Pre-heat oven to 350'
*Cut your tortillas into 8 triangles
*Lightly coat each side of your triangles with oil
*Sprinkle with salt and squeeze a little lime juice over each triangle

deliciousmagazine.co.uk

*Bake for about 8-10 minutes, or until crispy

Serve with your favorite salsa or home-made guacamole

Day 19, Mission: Mini Pigs in a Blanket, 346 days to go

I know i know, what a cop out: mini pigs in a blanket. But suprisingly, not everyone knows how to make them.

Yields: About 48 Mini Pigs
Total Time:30 minutes
# of Pans: 1
Ingredients:
*1 Package lil smokies, or another brand of mini sausages
*2 packages of crescent rolls
*4 Tbsp Parmesan Cheese


Directions:
*Preheat oven to 375'
*Open the packages of crescent rolls.
*Separate each triangle, and cut into thirds so you have 3 skinny triangles
*Wrap a lil smokey in a mini triangle of crescent roll starting with the fatter end of the dough
*Place each wrapped little smokey on a baking sheet about 1 inch apart
*Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese
*Place in the center rack of the oven and bake for12-15 minutes or until golden brown

These snacks are extremly easy to make and are a great crowd pleaser!

Day 18, Mission: May Wah Vietnamese Egg Rolls, 347 recipes to go

One of my absolute favorite Vietnamese restaurants in Boulder is May Wah. They have a wide variety of both Thai, Chinese, and Vietnamese dishes available in lunch size portions and dinner portions.Everything is delicious and very authentic. The meal that Jason and I go crazy for is the Vietnamese Noodle Bowl with Vietnamese Egg rolls and Pork. Since making this all would stress you out, and the ingredients are tough to get a hold of... I decided to figure out how to make my favorite part of it all: the egg rolls. These egg rolls are very different from traditional egg rolls, but are far more delicious. Here is how you can make this yummy snack at home thanks to simplyvietnamese.wordpress.com
Yields: 4-6 Servings
Total Time: 1 hour
# of Pans: 1
Ingredients:
For egg roll:

1/2 Pound ground pork
1 Garlic clove (chopped)
1 carrot, peeled and shredded
1/8 cabbage, shredded
1 ounce dried vermicelli noodles
2 Mushrooms (any kind will do)
1-2 large eggs
Ground black pepper
1-2 tbsp of fish sauce (depending on taste)
1/2 tbsp oyster sauce (optional)
12oz package of egg roll wrappers
Oil for frying
For Sweet Fish Sauce/Dipping Sauce:
1 garlic clove chopped
1/8 teaspoon of hot chili peppers flakes
2 Tablespoons  fish sauce
1/3 cup water
1 tbsp fresh lime/lemon juice
1 Tablespoons cup sugar
1-2 tbsp shredded carrots
Directions:
*Soak vermicelli noodles in a bowl of warm water for 20 minutes
*While soaking, add your ground pork to a frying pan and cook until no longer pink
* In a food processor add vermicelli noodles and mushrooms, pulse briefly until all ingredients are integrated.
* In a large mixing bowl, transfer ingredients from food processor and combine with ground pork, shredded vegetables.
* Add black pepper, fish sauce, oyster sauce, and 1 egg, mix ingredients together.
*If the mixture seems dry, add the other egg.

thanks to ihatemymessageboard.comi

*Fill a shallow dish with 1 inch of warm water.
*Quickly dip rice paper in the water bath, making sure all parts of the paper is wet.
*Place wet rice paper on a plate and let it soften.
*Lay 1 ½ tbsp of filling on the lower edge of the rice paper, near you, leaving 1 inch edge. Begin to fold egg roll like an envelop: first, fold over the lower 1 inch edge over the filing, then the left edge, then the right edge. Now roll the roll up to the top edge.

thanks to ladyprogress.com

*Place the wrapped egg roll on a platter and keep on rolling until all your filling is used up
*Pout your oil into a deep frying pan or deep fryer and warm over medium heat
*Place egg roll one at a time into hot oil, with the seam down (this will keep it from unraveling) and then quickly turn the egg roll to ensure the skin crisp up and does not stick to other egg rolls in the pan. Adjust heat so that the oil is bubbling gently and not too vigorously around the egg rolls.

thanks to foodmayham.com

*Each egg roll will cook for about 5 minutes
*Place your cooked egg rolls on a cooling rack or paper towel
* Next, make the sweet fish sauce for dipping.
*Mix your chopped garlic and red pepper flakes
*Place the chopped or smashed garlic and pepper into a small bowl then add the rest of the ingredients for the dressing.
*Stir well until sugar dissolves.( If the sauce is not quite sweet enough add a bit more sugar. If the sauce is too sweet and not tangy enough for your taste, squeeze in some lime/lemon juice to cut the sweetness)

And there you have it. Now you can make this yummy treat at home for a party or for a snack. And if you are in Boulder, I highly recommend you try out May Wah and order the Vietnamese Noodle Bowl...or at least order the Vietnamese Egg Rolls :)

Thanks to cookingdunkinstyle.blogspot.com

Vietnamese noodle bowl...yummy!

Thoughts

I was thinking today as I was cooking about how much I love to cook. I always go into it with a set recipe in mind. Whether it's one I got offline, one I created myself, or one passed on from my mom. I always tell myself "okay Kathleen, follow the recipe and everything will be fine." Yet, I never do follow my recipe. Even as I am posting blog pages I find myself constantly making changes to previous posts as I constantly change my recipe. But this is  why I love cooking. You have so much freedom. Yeah you have some basic guidelines on how to make something without screwing it up, but there are so many ways to vary from that standard to make something unique to you. Add an extra dash of cumin powder, like something sweet? add a few more tablespoons of sugar, don't like onions? Skip 'em. I know this is going to sound cheesy, but cooking in a way is like having a color by numbers. You have your borders, yet what you do inside of them is entirely up to you. I love creating something new. I figure, if it's got my favorite ingredients in it...no matter what I make I know at least I will like it and I hope someone else will. So for those of you who are just starting to cook, or for those who have been cooking for years; I dare you to take your usual recipe and change at least 3 things in it...and I mean be brave. Don't just add one more drop of milk...switch up the sugar type, add an extra spice, make it sweet instead of spicy. Try something new, it's bound to be rewarding...and if its not...well then you can take it up with me!

Day 17, Mission: Divine Donuts Mini Donuts, 348 recipes to go

For the past 25 years Denver has been hosting a wonderful event called the Taste of Colorado. I got a chance to go in September of last year. First off, if you ever plan to attend...be prepared that there are thousands of people and lines get out of hand...this was maybe because Brett Michaels performed haha.I think Jason and I spent all our tickets on dessert...one of our favorites was Divine Donuts...a.k.a. mini donuts. Here is how you can make them at home :)
Yields: about 14 mini donuts
Total Time: 30 minutes
# of Pans: 1
Ingredients:
3 Cups flour
1 and 1/2 Cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 Eggs
1 Tablespoon melted butter
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1 and 1/4 Cup milk
1 Table spoon vanilla
Oil for frying
Directions:
*In a large bowl, mix together your flour, 1 cup sugar, salt, baking powder, nutmeg and cinnamon.

*In a separate bowl, beat your eggs. Add in your melted butter, 1/4 cup milk and vanilla and stir until fully mixed

*Slowly combine your wet ingredients into your flour mixture and mix well
*Once your dough is fully mixed, plop it out onto a lightly floured surface and roll out to about 1/2 inch thick 
*Use a biscuit cutter or a standard size glass to cut out about 14 circles (or as much as you can fit). Use your finger or a marker to cut smaller holes inside your now cut our donuts

*Pour your oil into a deep heavy pot (or deep fryer if you have one). Warm the oil to just below a boil.
*Gently place 2 or 3 donuts into your oil on one side and cook until one side is slightly turning brown. Flip your donut over and cook until the second side is slightly brown

*Carefully remove your donuts from the oil and cool on a paper towel.
*For the glaze: Mix together your 1 cup milk and 1/2 cup sugar into a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat until the mixture becomes thick and sauce-like
*Turn off the heat and either pour the glaze on the donuts, or pick up each donut and dip one side into your sauce pan.
It's a simple little snack or breakfast item everyone will love!
If you want chocolate glaze, follow the above steps, only add in 2 Tablespoons cocoa powder :)
If you don't like a glaze, you can simply sprinkle sugar and cinnamon over the donuts, or coat them in powdered sugar

Day 16, Mission:Pear Tart, 349 recipes to go

Another absolutely delicious fruit Colorado brings to it's residents each summer are Pears. You can't beat a fresh, Colorado grown Juicy Pear!  We also just happened to be invited to a friends house for Prime Rib (lucky me), I thought it would be nice to bring over a dessert...and I knew just the thing to bake...pear tart! I doubled the recipe because there was a lot of us, if you want just one tart, simply cut the recipe in half! I got the recipe from foodnetwork.com but modified it a little :) (the original: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/healthy-appetite-with-ellie-krieger-/rustic-pear-tart-recipe/index.html)
Yields:12 servings
Total Time: 1 hour
# of Pans:2
Ingredients:
1 Cup whole wheat flour (if you don't have whole wheat flour, just use white flour)
1 Cup flour
1/4 Cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 Tablespoons butter, cold and cut into small pieces
4 Tablespoons buttermilk **I will show you what to do if you don't have buttermilk**
6 Tablespoons ice water
6 Ripe Pears
6 Tablespoons lemon juice
3 Tablespoons cornstarch
6 Tablespoons brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
3 tablespoons honey
Directions:
*In a medium sized bowl, whisk your flours, sugar and salt

*Add your butter, and using two forks or your hands, break apart the butter to form a crumble mixture

*To make buttermilk mix together 1/2 Tablespoon vinegar with just less than 1/2 cup milk (simple huh?)

Vinegar+

Milk= Buttermilk

*Stir your "buttermilk" and ice water into your flour mixture
*Mix well until you form a dough, roll your dough up into a ball and place in a plastic bag and refrigerate for about 30 minutes

*Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 425'
*Peel your pears, then core them and cut them into 1/2 inch pieces

*Throw your pears into a large bowl and mix with the cinnamon, nutmeg, lemon juice, brown sugar and cornstarch until pears are evenly coated

*After your dough has chilled, divide it into two pieces and roll out each piece to form a large circle ( about 8 or 9")

*Drape your dough onto a baking sheet or a tart pan

*Place half of your filling onto each piece of rolled out dough
*Smooth filling out to evenly spread around the dough, leave about 2" of dough on the perimeter
*Roll over the edges of the dough on top of the pears to create a crust, repeat on other tart

*Squeeze your honey over the crust of both of your tarts
*Place on the center rack of your oven and cook for 40 minutes or until the crust is golden brown

*Serve with some whip cream or ice cream!
YUUMMMMMY

Day 15, Mission: Scallops, Shrimp, Brown rice & Asparagus, 350 recipes to go

Being stuck in Colorado, it's hard to find good seafood and sometimes we have no idea how to cook it. I have cooked a delicious meal of garlic shrimp and scallops with baked asparagus and brown rice. This delicious, healthy meal is easy to make and is one easy way to prepare seafood, even when you are land locked like myself.
Yields: 6 Servings
Total Time: 1 hour

# of Pans: 3
Ingredients:
1 large bundle of Asparagus
1/4 Cup Parmesan Cheese
1 Tablespoon Olive oil
1 and 1/2 cup brown rice
3 Cups water
20 frozen Scallops
36 (approx) Large, Frozen Peeled, Pre-cooked Shrimp (thawed)
1/2 stick butter (melted)
1/2 Cup lemon juice
1 Tablespoon garlic, minced
4 Tablespoons white wine
Directions:
*Pre-heat your oven to 350'
*Wash your asparagus and cut about an inch off the bottom or each asparagus spear. (For a longer, more efficient method, hold each asparagus spear in your hand and bend until it snaps. Keep the top part ) *Lay your asparagus on a cookie sheet and sprinkle the Parmesan cheese over the spears and set aside

*In a sauce pan add in your rice and water and olive oil
*Bring your rice to a boil, then turn down the heat to low and cover with a lid. Allow to simmer for 45-50 minutes

*After the rice has been cooking for about a half an hour, mix together your melted butter, white wine, garlic and lemon juice

*Add to a large frying pan and bring to a low simmer
*Place your scallops on the frying pan and cook until just brown on one side, flip your scallops and cook until the other side is brown.

nicolepeyrafitte.com

 *Once both sides have browned, add in your thawed shrimp and allow to cook for about 3-5 minutes. *Transfer your scallop shrimp mixture to a large serving dish and top with a dash of lemon juice.

*Remove your asparagus from the oven and your rice from your stove and there you have it, a delicious seafood meal you can enjoy while being landlocked looking at your gorgeous Rocky Mountains.

Day 14, Mission: Lemon Pound Cake, 351 recipes to go

Yet another bread for my grandmas party..those ladies are going to be in heaven!
Yields: 2 loafs
Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
# of Pans: 2
Ingredients:
3 Cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp salt
2/3 cup butter, softened
4 eggs
1 cup milk
3 lemons
For Glaze:
3 Tablespoons lemon juice (only if you run our of fresh lemon juice)
2 Cups powdered sugar
Directions:
*Preheat oven to 350'
*Grease two loaf pans with oil or butter

Thanks to Laura's Bread Blog

*Wash your lemons, then use a cheese grater to grate off the peel of all 3 lemons, and set aside

 *Cut your lemons in half and squeeze the juice out into a measuring cup
*In a medium sized bowl, mix together your flour, baking powder and salt
*In a large mixing bowl, combine the butter, sugar and eggs and use a mixer to cream until light yellow

*Slowly mix your flour mixture into your creamed butter mixture.

*Alternate some flour, with the addition of the milk until all the flour and all the milk is added to your butter mixture
*Stir in your lemon peel and 6 Tablespoons (1/4 cup and 2 Tablespoons) of your freshly squeezed lemon juice

*Stir the mixture until the peel and juice are completely mixed in.
*Pour the batter into your two loaf pans and allow to cook in the center rack for approximately one hour, or until a tooth pick entered into the center comes out clean

*Move your loaf to a metal rack and allow to cool for ten minutes.
*While cooling, mix in an 3 Tablespoons of lemon juice (use your fresh squeezed if you have some left) abd and your powdered sugar until you have a smooth glaze.
*Pour the glaze over your loafs, cover and allow to sit for 24 hours until you slice it
Pure lemon bliss! If you like nuts, try adding 1 cup of your favorite nuts when you mix in your peel and juice :)

Thanks to Marzipan's Blog :)