Food

BEST EVER CRANBERRY SAUCE

By |2017-11-16T16:41:20-05:00November 16, 2017|Cooking, Food|

In lieu of Friday Flowers this week, I thought you all might like this recipe for Cranberry Sauce.. I’ve blogged about it before, but it is just THAT GOOD that you must see it again! And to all my new subscribers, or those passing through here, this is the BEST I have ever made. So take a look:
I  L- O- V- E  cranberry sauce.
But it must have the whole cranberries in it… none of the jellied stuff for me.
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 I found this recipe on Epicurious.com several years ago. This cranberry sauce is crunchy, tart, freezes well, and is always a huge hit at the table. It’s easy to make….once you find some cherry or black cherry cider. I did try the cranberry juice cocktail once but found it was too sweet and just didn’t have enough taste. The cherry cider, or juice, is perfect. Dried cherries are available in most specialty stores; they cost more than dried cranberries, but go for it as they make a huge difference.
First, to find the cranberries.
Fresh Market has them floating in a “bog”! What a great idea. So, I scooped up about a pound and took […]

SPICED COCKTAIL NUTS

By |2014-12-07T13:49:43-05:00December 7, 2014|Cooking, Food|

Want a great, simple, very tasty recipe for spiced cocktail nuts? Look no further. These are fabulous and so easy to make! This time of year we all need something new to try and to serve, right?

It’s from Giada DeLaurentiis: “Spiced Cocktail Nuts Recipe” 

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Oh I love my mortar and pestle! I must have bought it, what 25 years ago? It doesn’t see the light of day very often, but it’s always there when I need it. Marble is the only way to go!
This time is was for Cardamom seeds which needed grinding.

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I saw this recipe over at Classic Casual Home (take a look: you will love Mary Ann) and it now resides in my recipe notebook.

IMG_3068_wm Waiting to go in the oven

 

IMG_3096_wm The finished product!

 

I’m also trying something new here, so let me know what you think. I have installed a plugin (that’s […]

CORN BREAD SALAD

By |2014-05-14T22:13:24-04:00May 22, 2013|Cooking, Food|

Surprise post today!
I wasn’t going to do anything until the end of the week, but had to show you all this one..
Corn Bread Salad
It’s from the June 2013 issue of “Our State” Magazine.
Corn Bread Salad: is that Southern or what?
Here you go:
 
1 corn bread cake, crumbled
2 eggs, boiled and chopped
1/2 c. red onion, chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
Mayonnaise to taste
1 small can Mexican corn
1 small can white corn
2 chopped Roma tomatoes
4-6 slices bacon, crisp and crumbled
1/2 c. Cheddar cheese, shredded
 
Combine corn bread, eggs, onion, celery, mayonnaise, Mexican corn, white corn, and tomatoes. Top the salad with crumbled bacon and Cheddar cheese. Refrigerate salad overnight.
Notes: I used the chunks of cornbread you find at Whole Foods.  I probably added about 1/2 c. of mayonnaise, not sure.. And, you could easily increase this for a larger crowd. They say this serves 12, but I doubt it (and it tastes SO good, it won’t last long on the table, I am sure).
I just made it an hour ago for a […]

PANTONE PASTRIES BY EMILIE GRIOTTES

By |2012-03-27T21:42:00-04:00March 27, 2012|Food|

These are fabulous! 
 They are stunning!
French food blogger, Emilie Griottes, developed these edible color chips for the French food magazine Fricote.
Colorful tartelettes a la Pantone. Who would have thought?

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You can follow and like her on Facebook.
And, of course, you can go to Emilie’s site, Griottes, to see more (and read more if you read French).
Pretty amazing, no?

EASY, EDIBLE GIFTS

By |2012-01-25T03:42:00-05:00January 25, 2012|Food|

Long ago and far away… well, that’s how it seems right now!
I was in Provence. Last October. 
And we went to several ‘marches’ or outdoor markets.
Among many other purchases (!) I bought some Herbes de Provence.
Even the label and ribbon make this an easy sell, no? 
Herbes de Provence contain dried thyme, basil, lavender, fennel and savory. These can vary and others can be added. But it’s a wonderful combination for so many different dishes. This one bag is MUCH too much for me: it would probably lose all taste by the time I finish it. So why not give some away?
But of course, packaging is all…. so off I went to find some jars.
And then to make some labels.
First, I designed the labels in Photoshop. Made an oval, then dropped in the two color border, selected the font, and saved.
Next I printed the ovals on sticky labels: 
Then I hand cut each oval:
And put them on the front of each jar:

Love them all lined up with their colorful caps!

Next up was adding my name/label to the back:

I tried […]

HOLIDAY TIME AT OUR HOUSE

By |2011-12-19T02:00:00-05:00December 19, 2011|8 McDowell, Food|

Busy weekend!
Let’s start with the flowers. We were having people over for a Sunday lunch (that’s l- u- n- c- h  not
b- r- u- n -c- h). I’m not a brunch fan…sorry.
So I bought these flowers at Whole Foods. They were nothing extraordinary, but I love the green sort of waxy looking petite mums. The colors were Christmasy without screaming Christmas, no?
I had bought this great glass and metal vase at Ace Hardware a few months ago. Actually, I think it’s meant for a candle which is what we normally have here. But it works very well for flowers!

Moving right along to the food. I made a minestrone soup from Marcella Hazan. Aside from the usual beans, zucchini, celery and carrots it also has shredded Savoy cabbage which adds a great texture!

you DO see that orange knife block in the background, don’t you???

love love love my soup tureen, thanks to my sister many years ago!

remember the wire basket? 

And […]

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