Breakfast Trifle with Grits Base

A few years back i was watching Food Network with my dad. He is from South Carolina. The show Down Home with the Neelys came on. They were making a Sunday breakfast. It looked soooo good. The main dish was a breakfast trifle with grits as the base. I don't know if you have ever tried grits, most people not from the south haven't, but they are delicious. Grits are made from coarsely ground corn. Grits come in two varieties, white and yellow. We usually use white grits for breakfast. I have some friends that assumed grits should be sweetened when eaten for breakfast like oatmeal or cream of wheat, which isn't accurate. Grits are usually eaten salty. A well loved breakfast at my house is eggs, bacon, sausage, and grits. We even cook the eggs in the bacon fat. It is super delicious, but fattening (all the bacon fat), so we don't make it very often.
The recipe for breakfast trifle the Neely's used can be found here:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/neelys/breakfast-trifle-grits-recipe/index.html

After watching the show i decided to make breakfast trifle too. I loosely based it on their recipe. Some variations i made were to use scrambled eggs (i was cooking for a lot more people then two), add bacon and sausage, and no tomato. I think we used other vegetables like bell peppers. It was really delicious. Obviously this recipe has a lot of room for personal taste. It makes a filling breakfast that includes protein, dairy, vegetables, and grains. I am getting really hungry just thinking about the trifle. I think i will make some.

Fruit Dip

This is my favorite fruit dip. I have tried others, but this is by far the best.

8 oz. Cream Cheese
1 c. Brown Sugar
1 tsp Vanilla

Soften Cream Cheese. Beat ingredients together. Refrigerate. Serve with fruit cut into bite size pieces.  

Reusable Grocery Bags

So lately i have been making reusable grocery bags from plastic grocery bags. Basically i cut off the handles and the bottom that is holding it together, and then cut it into strips that i then tie together and crochet. it is pretty awesome. I also have been finding what other plastics i can use for this. I have used clothing store bags, cereal bags, ziploc bags, and just pretty much whatever flexible plastic i find. the more rigid of the plastics i will often use as the base for the bag so that it is reenforced. 

Here is a thicker base:

 Here is a top view of a partially finished bag that has a normal base:

And a side view:

 

Once the bag was completed:

The bag standing up:

Top View:

*Note the bag could have fit a lot more, i just put enough to fill it out for the picture...

So anyways... I make the bag by crocheting back and forth, like making a scarf, until the base reaches the dimensions desired, and then i start crocheting around the edges of the base. When initially crocheting the sides of the base i do about 1.5 stitches per every row. I also do a couple of increasing stitches around the corners for the first few rows. You just keep circling until the bag is the desired height, and then it is time of the handles. I determine where i would like them to attach, and then when i reach the inside point of attachment for one i ch 1 and turn. I crochet back the desired width of the handle, and then ch and turn again. I keep going across that strip until the handle is the desired length, and then i slip stitch the handle onto the bag, ending on the outside of the handle, and continue around the bag until i get to the next handle and make it the same way as the first. With the second one i will still continue around until i reach the first handle before i tie it off so that section of the bag does not appear shorter.

These bags are a pretty cool way to upcycle, and to get reusable grocery bags without buying them. You can feel good about yourself stopping the bags from sitting in a dump somewhere. What size hook you use depends on the rigidity of the plasitic and how thick you make the strips,

Cheese Ball

So a couple of years ago I decided to try my hand a making a cheese ball, so i looked up a bunch of different recipes looking for inspiration for ingredients, and then wrote my own recipe using the ingredients that i liked form the various other recipes. It turned out really well. I recently looked it up again so that i can make one for my sister's bridal shower. Anyways here is the recipe.

2 8oz. packages of cream cheese, softened
1.5 tsp minced garlic
2 tsp grated onion
2.5 c shredded cheddar cheese
.25 c chopped parsley
1 lb bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 Tbsp minced thyme

In a bowl combine all ingredients. Mix well. Cover and refrigerate until serving. Shape into a ball and serve with crackers.

It was a huge hit when i made it, and it was the best cheese ball i had ever had, which makes sense since i wrote the recipe based on what i liked from other cheese balls.

Homemade Pancakes and Syrup

These are the best syrup and pancake recipes out there. My mom always made them while i was growing up. She was famous amongst friends and family for them. I literally had friends who told their mom's to start using this recipe when i was a kid. I was taught young how to make them, as were my siblings. This was pretty much the only meal my dad would ever make. My roommate was a stalwart Bisquick pancake maker saying that they were the best, but then she tried these pancakes, and has since reformed. The syrup is thinner then store bought because it uses sugar to sweeten it instead of corn syrup. This means that it is sweeter and tastes better though. Oh and another tip: my mom always butters the pancakes after she flips them on the griddle. this way the butter melts into the whole pancake evenly because it isn't cooling as you spread the butter. So without further ado, the recipes:

Pancakes
1 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup Vegetable oil
1 large egg
milk

Mix all ingredients, starting with a little milk and adding until you reach the desired texture for batter. My mom usually does the batter a little thinner then the other pancake recipes, so that the pancakes aren't as thick and floury feeling, but you can experiment and find a thickness that you like.

Syrup:
1 cup water
2 cups sugar
1 tsp maple flavoring

Add sugar to water in a pan and mix as it warms. You want to heat to just under boiling, because if it boils the lost water will cause it to crystallize if you have leftover syrup. Stir in maple flavoring once warm and all sugar has dissolved. Syrup is then ready to serve. We usually store left over syrup in a lidded jar in the fridge.

Another thing my family does is fries eggs to eat with the pancakes to add some protein. We usually put the egg on top of the stack of pancakes and then the yolk will run over the pancakes with the syrup which is delicious. Oh and we never do a single multiple of either recipe, because these pancakes are always in high demand.

Banana Bread Bake off

So my roommates and i decided to have a banana bread bake off a week ago. We all went and bough bananas together. They were all completely green. I put mine on top of the fridge in a bag for the first day to quicken the ripening process. Once i took the bananas out of the bag i kept them on top of the fridge (with all of our spices and cereal boxes) and rotated which side was facing out. When the day came mine were the most ripe (biggest brown spots) but they weren't ripe enough so we put them on a cookie sheet for about 15 min on 300 degrees F. We pulled them out and let them sit for about another 10 minutes during which they continued to darken, and then the bake off began. It was a lot of fun. The critique mine got was that it wasn't just strong banana flavoring (it had cinnamon and nutmeg), but was voted best density or texture. I really like having the other flavors to complement the banana. Here is the recipe i used for my banana bread. It can also be used for zucchini or squash bread.

Banana, Squash, or Zucchini Bread

1 1/2  tsp. baking soda                            1/2 tsp. nutmeg

1 c. brown sugar                                      3 c. flour

3  eggs                                                     1 tsp. baking powder

1 c. oil                                                      1 tsp. salt

1 c. white sugar                                         2 1/2  c. bananas, squash, or zucchini,  shredded or mashed

2 tsp.  cinnamon

       Mix baking soda and brown sugar together.  Add rest of ingredients and mix.  Bake in 2 greased and lightly floured loaf pans. 

Bake at 350* for 60 to 70 minutes (bake muffins for 20 minutes).

I made one loaf and then 12 muffins. They were really good. Unfortunately i ran out of milk the morning of the competition, and the banana bread made me really crave milk. The muffins were amazing. I think i may have to just make muffins in the future.

Crock Pot bread Yum!

So..... my new favorite thing is crock pot cooking. When i moved into my first apartment my mom got me a cheap crock pot from Walmart for 15 bucks, and I figured it would be great to use when i didn't have a lot of time for cooking. Here is the link to the one i got:

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Rival-2-Quart-Slow-Cooker-Stainless-Steel/15166927#Item+Description

Then came a really busy school/work schedule so i was gone for way to long to leave it cooking while i was away, and got home to late to use it once i was home. That pretty much left Sundays as a day when i could use it, but i didn't that much cuz it meant setting it up before church. I mean I've made a roast in it before, and like maybe one other thing since getting it a year ago. Anyways now over summer i have a lot more time (only work, no school) and i saw on Pinterest about baking bread in your crock pot, and it got me intrigued.
Here is the first one i came across:

http://www.inspired-housewife.com/2012/02/28/who-knew-gluten-free-bread-in-a-crock-pot/

I thought it sounded cool, but it said you needed to put your bread pan in the crock pot, and mine is definitely not big enough for that, so i put the idea on hold.
A few days later i came across a post about this site:

http://www.artisanbreadinfive.com/2012/05/29/crock-pot-bread-baking-fast-bread-in-a-slow-cooker

In it she uses a 4 qt (almost as small as mine) and places the dough directly in the crock pot. Well not directly, she uses parchment paper to stop it from sticking. I just used non stick spray... Worked great and i didn't have to go out and buy parchment paper, which would not have happened...

Anyways I tried making the bread, and it took a couple loaves to work out the kinks. My crock pot is smaller then the ones in either of the above mentioned methods (its only two quarts). So anyways I think i have finally gotten the hang of this. The trick is to not put too much dough in that it can't cook the top before the bottom is burnt. One of the sites recommends putting the bread in the oven on broil to get a golden top, but to me that defeats the purpose of being easy. I have used a few different recipes (with or without yeast, etc.) and it has worked great with them all. I currently have dough for herb bread that i made and am pulling out of the fridge to make one loaf at a time which i then devour.

So after looking at both of the sites, and trial and error, I make the dough according to whatever recipe i am using. I let it rise the first time, and then punch it down. I take a small piece of the punched down dough (be careful it isn't to big, it will expand more) and put it in a greased crock pot and turn it on high. I put what looked to be a good amount of dough in for my first attempt and then it rose to the top of the crock pot, and the bottom burnt and the top was still very doughy. In my experience if it rises to be just under the halfway point of the crock pot it will be able to cook through well, without any overcooked or undercooked parts. I find that 1-1.5 hours will generally cook the dough through depending on the size. I feel the top of the bread to see if they are done/smell for smoke (the first one i pulled out because of a burnt smell, the top was definitely not done). If there is not to much dough though you will be able to feel the top of the dough is cooked, and when you pull it out the bottom will be golden. I just dump the bread out onto a hand towel or plate when it is done. If it is cooked all the way it shouldn't disfigure the loaf by doing this.Then once the bread cools (haha like i wait) it is ready for you to dig in :) One thing i like about cooking a smaller loaf on high is that it is done sooner (i'm kind of impatient when i can smell the bread baking...).

I love digging into a delicious piece of home made bread. I had major nostalgia when i was eating my first loaf of crock pot bread. I mean flashing back to making bread with my mom, my brother making honey butter, my mom's instructions on how to best cut a warm loaf of bread, deciding on every slice whether i wanted honey butter or homemade jam on that slice.... I could see it all in my head.
That is one of the things that i love about food. It can really bring you back. I mean it's like books in that way. It fills you with nostalgia and gives you a happy feeling. Food does have the advantage of helping you to connect to other people. You usually have nostalgia to moments spent eating the food with others, whereas books are more solitary.
Anyways back to crock pots... I am definitely loving mine. It is so easy and stress free. Definitely recommend getting one.  I don't want to buy bread anymore because homemade bread is so much better, and i know have a way to easily make some whenever i want. I am now looking for crock pot recipes for pretty much everything that i want to make (brownies, tilapia, etc.), becasue i have realized that someone has figured out a way to make pretty much anything i want to in a crock pot, and it is so much easier. My little crock pot is easier to clean then big baking pans (our sinks are kinda small). It also helps me to cook in moderation, only enough for me, cuz i will eat a whole tray of brownies if i make them... Yet another bonus is not having to bake at night/heat up the house in the hot summer months. My biggest consternation is that sometimes i want to make more at a time in then i can in the crock pot, yet i don't want to get out the pans and preheat the oven (don't have to do that with the crock pot...) and all that jazz. Its the lazy persons dilemma, which will finally cost more energy over all... Like in chemistry, where i could calculate the approximate equivalence point, and then deliver quickly until nearing that volume when i start delivering slowly, or deliver at a medium rate until i see it is almost at the equivalence point and then go slowly, but possible miss the equivalence point and not have a neat region, which would mean i would have to do it over again...  
Another side note: my kneading skills significantly improved after starting cooking bread more often. I used to think i was good at kneading when i helped my mom when i was younger, but either skill fades with time, or i lacked patience or judgment when the first couple times i made bread after moving out...