The Minute To Win It Birthday Party Treats

So sorry I haven't been able to post for the past couple of weeks, but things have been a little crazy here at the little yellow cottage.  First, we switched cable/internet service and I had some issues getting everything straightened out - technically challenged you know.  Then, we traveled to Big D to help out our daughter while she made a trip to NYC to film a segment of 60 minutes.  We watched our grand children while her husband worked and she was away.  Needless to say, Grandma and Pawpaw had a great time.   There were root beer floats (our grandsons say Grandma has the best recipe - lol) and lots of games and shopping trips and so many memories made.  

We stayed for the second week to help with our grandson's "Minute To Win It" birthday party which we wouldn't have missed for anything!  He chose the theme because it is his favorite television show and it's a perfect choice for kids to play challenging games using household items with only one minute to complete each challenge!  The kids played the games over and over and it was an absolute hit.  I will post later about how to do a party with this theme.  It is inexpensive because you can use items you have around the house and we didn't have to purchase very many things at all.   It's so much fun that even a lot of the parents participated!  Then, we ended the party with a huge water balloon fight.  Oh yes, it was a rousing success!

H's favorite color is blue and he wanted chocolate cupcakes instead of a cake.  So, I used regular chocolate cake mix and made blue butter cream icing.  The dilemma was what to decorate the cupcakes with.  Well, daughter and I were driving to the store and it popped into my head what I could do.  I LOVE when that happens.

H's favorite game is one where you hold a popsicle stick in your mouth and try to stack 5 dice and then  keep them there for 3 seconds before the minute it up.  (It's not as easy as you think it would be)  Here was my idea:  sugar cubes decorated like dice using black icing!  They were adorable!  Here is what I used and how they looked up close.

I made 4 dozen cupcakes so I needed 96 dice to have a pair for each cupcake.  We bought one box of sugar cubes which was more than enough for this project.

We purchased one tube of Wilton's black sparkle gel icing for making the dots on the dice.  This was purchased at Wal-Mart.

I lined the sugar cubes up in rows on a baking sheet to keep from getting icing on the table.  I started by making one dot in the middle of all the cubes with the black gel icing.  Then, I held each cube by the corners and made two, three, four and five dots on each cube.  I had a pair of dice on the table to look at so I did not make a mistake on the way they should look.  They sat for a couple of hours to let the icing dry.  There was no need to make a six on the dice because the bottom of the cube sat on top of the cupcake.  This was a really easy process and didn't take a lot of time.   Also, the decorations were edible!

This is a simple idea that could be used to decorate lots of things.  It is quick, easy and inexpensive -- all of my favorite words!  

We had a wonderful two weeks with lots of awesome experiences and memories made that I will be writing about.  I am glad to be back because the projects are stacking up, especially with fall on the way.  Hope there will be things to inspire you along the way!  

Everyday Donna

Things to Remember:

Make memories because no one can take them away!

If You Can't Go To Capri Make Caprese Salad

The tomatoes are here! The tomatoes are here!  Yes, it's early August and tomatoes are more than plentiful.  There are so many of them right now it's hard to think of things to make with all of them.  Okay, you have put them on sandwiches and in salads, and stuffed them and baked them and made tomato pie and enjoyed them sliced with a little salt and pepper.  My grandmother ate hers with a little sugar on them.  Then, there is canning and freezing them and there are still mountains of tomatoes.  What to do, what to do?  You surely don't want to waste any of that heavenly summertime goodness.

One of my favorite salads to make is a Caprese salad. (Insalata Caprese (salad in the style of Capri) is a simple salad from the Italian region of Campania - Wikipedia) What is a Caprese (cuhPRAYzay) salad you ask?  It is one of the easiest and tastiest salads you can make, especially with heirloom tomatoes which are plentiful and inexpensive right now.  You can also use your favorite red tomatoes like beefsteak or better boy if you prefer.

"Heirloom Tomatoes have flavors, colors and textures that are quite different than regular store bought tomatoes. These are the varieties that our grandparents and great grandparents grew many years ago that are full of anti-oxidants, vitamins and cancer preventing agents. The colors normally determine the amount of acidity, darker colors are more acidic and lighter colors are less acidic."  www.tastefulgarden.com

For the salad in the picture, I used a Cherokee Purple heirloom tomato, a Pineapple heirloom and a Green Zebra heirloom.  They are not the red tomatoes we have all become accustomed to, but are what tomatoes originally were before hybrid varieties became popular.  The Cherokee Purple is probably my favorite tomato.  It is a heavy, meaty tomato that is sweet and juicy - absolutely delicious and is so dark that it is almost purple.    The Green Zebra is a smaller tomato that is a little bit tart, but so amazing that I cannot say enough good things about it.  The Pineapple is also delicious - big, yellow,  meaty,  and super sweet like the Cherokee Purple.  We have these tomatoes growing in our garden, but they can also be purchased at local farmer's markets.

To make the Caprese salad, you will need whole fresh tomatoes, a package of fresh mozzarella cheese (I get mine at Aldi's because it's inexpensive and good), fresh basil leaves, extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper.   Slice your tomatoes and mozzarella, putting a piece of fresh mozzarella cheese between each tomato slice.  I used 3 tomatoes and 1 package of fresh mozzarella to make the salad in the picture.  You can stack the tomatoes and mozzarella like a sandwich using 2 tomato slices with a slice of mozzarella wedged between them and a piece on top, or layer them around a serving platter like the picture above.   Take a handful of fresh basil leaves and tear them into pieces.  Sprinkle the basil over all the tomatoes then salt and pepper.  (You can leave the basil leaves whole if you prefer, just make sure each tomato slice has a basil leaf.)   Drizzle some good extra virgin olive oil over the tomatoes and you have one of the best and easiest salads you will ever make or consume!  I also like a little balsamic vinegar drizzled over mine, but I do that on my plate since Dan is not a fan.

This is a salad you can eat for your main course or you can serve it as a side dish.  My understanding is Caprese salad is traditionally eaten before a meal like an anti-pasti.  It is beautiful to look at and even better to eat!  The sweet, heavenly smell of the basil and olive oil combined with the juicy tomatoes and soft, mild mozzarella is one of the finest summertime treats I can think of.  Nature blesses us with amazing things to enjoy and this is certainly among the best.  Oh summer, how you delight us with your wondrous bounty.    Give yourself and your family a real summertime treat.  Make them a wonderful Caprese salad.  Simple, easy, made with love.  There is nothing better.

Everyday Donna

Things to Remember:

"It's difficult to think anything but pleasant thoughts while eating a homegrown tomato." - Lewis Grizzard

Life's Short, Eat Dessert First!

We had company for dinner last night and it has been so hot, I wanted to serve a lovely, cool dessert.  First thing that came to mind was profiteroles filled with delectable Jeni's Splendid ice cream and home made chocolate syrup.  Yep, that was what it was going to be.

Don't know what a profiterole is?  It's a small cream puff.  Is it delicious?  Oh yes it is.  Easy to make?  Absolutely!  Here is what you need and all you have to do:

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter
1 cup water
1 cup flour
4 eggs

In a medium saucepan, heat the butter and water to a rolling boil.  Add the flour and stir vigorously over low heat until the mixture forms a ball, about 1 minute. (it will pull away from the sides of the pan suddenly)  Remove from heat.    It will look like this:

Add eggs one at a time beating thoroughly after each addition.  Now, it will look like this:

To make small profiteroles, use a tablespoon and drop the batter onto an ungreased baking sheet several inches apart because they will get bigger as they bake.

Bake in a 400 degree oven for 30 minutes for small puffs.  If you want to make regular sized cream puffs, drop several tablespoons of dough to make each mound and bake for 45-50 minutes.  Bake until puffed, lightly browned and dry.  They will sound "hollow" when you tap on them with a knife.  Allow to cool.  Cut off the top 1/3 and remove soft dough from the interior and fill with desired filling.  

You can make savory puffs by filling with ham salad, crab salad, chicken salad, pimento cheese, the choices are endless.  These make beautiful and tasty hors d'oeuvres.  If you are wanting a dessert, fill them will cream fillings, lemon curd, or ice cream.  Cream puffs have been one of my all time favorites since childhood and I have been making this recipe for years.  

Profiteroles make a lovely presentation and you can choose any flavors of ice cream.  Sometimes they are done in a neapolitan style with vanilla, chocolate and strawberry or you can be creative and chose flavors that you love.  All 3 can have the same flavor of ice cream, it is just a little more interesting to serve different flavors.   For this dessert, I chose these flavors of Jeni's Splendid ice creams - Pistachio and Honey, Coriander Raspberry and Brown Butter Almond Brittle.  Jeni's was named one of the top ten ice creams in the country recently and we happen to have a store right in our neighborhood.  It's the first store outside of Ohio where they are based and boy, are we lucky.

To fill each profiterole, I used about 1 tablespoon of ice cream in the "cavity".  It doesn't take much to fill the small puffs.  Place the top back on the puff.  To top the profiteroles, I made a home made chocolate sauce and this is the recipe:

1/2 cup cocoa
1 cup water
2 cups sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp vanilla

Blend all the ingredients except vanilla in a saucepan and bring to a rolling boil on the stove at a medium high temperature.  Stir continuously to keep from burning.  When sauce comes to a boil, stir continuously for 1 minute.  Remove from heat.  Add 1/4 tsp vanilla.  Stir.  Let cool and pour into a pitcher or jar and store in refrigerator.  This sauce will keep for several weeks.

If you are looking for a truly decadent dessert - impressive, but easy - this is it.  I hope you will give it a try.  I know you're going to like it!!

Everyday Donna


Things to Remember:

Ice cream is happiness condensed.  ~Jessi Lane Adams

Preserving Summer Bounty The Easy Way

Tomatoes are one of summer's most joyous food gifts.   They are nothing like the awful, mealy, mushy, tasteless things we buy in the winter.   Summertime tomatoes are red, juicy, meaty and a wonderful addition to any dish, sandwich or salad.  Summer tomatoes are fabulous eaten sliced with just a pinch of salt sprinkled on them, or maybe with a drizzle of olive oil and a little fresh basil.  Oh, add some fresh mozzarella and you have a wonderful Caprese salad.  The options are endless.

But, it's time to think ahead.  It's time to think of the cold winter days that will be upon us and how we will miss these wonderful summer delights.  There is a really simple way to preserve them for those cold days when you can only dream about the juicy, red, ripe, meaty, full of flavor tomatoes you enjoyed in the summer.

Tomatoes are so plentiful right now that you can purchase them at farmer's markets for such a reasonable price you can't pass them up.  I purchased a bushel of beef steak tomatoes for $10.00 this weekend at the Nashville Farmer's market.  They are not the big huge tomatoes that you often see, but are a great size to freeze.  Yes, I said freeze.  It is so much easier than canning, cheaper because all you have to buy is freezer bags, and  safer too if you don't know what you are doing.

All you need are ripe tomatoes and a box of quart sized freezer bags.  Simple.  No sterilizing of jars, no water bath canner or pressure canner needed.  Here is what you do.

A bushel of tomatoes is a lot of tomatoes, so first sort through them, remove any that may have bad places on them or may be getting really soft and discard them.  I had a few in that category.  Next, wash them in the sink to remove any stems or dirt.  Fill a stock pot or deep pan with water and put it on the stove to boil.  I used two large bowls to hold tomatoes,one for before boiling and one for after boiling, a smaller bowl to hold the cores and skins and a large bowl filled with ice water.  I also used my canning funnel to fill the bags and a large long handled spoon to put the tomatoes into the boiling water and remove them from the boiling water.

Be aware when filling your pot with water that the tomatoes will displace the water, so you don't want to fill it to the top so that it overflows when you put tomatoes into the water.  You want the water to be at a rolling boil when you add tomatoes.  Don't do too many at a time, because you boil them for only 1 minute and then quickly remove them to a bowl filled with water and ice cubes to quickly stop the cooking.  Boiling the tomatoes loosens the skin so you can easily peel them with your hands.

The hot tomatoes will quickly melt the ice cubes, so I kept a pitcher filled with replacement ice to add to the bowl.  Because the ice melts and adds to the water level in the bowl, pour some of it out at intervals so the bowl doesn't overflow.  (Pour the water out with NO tomatoes in the bowl.)  Leave the tomatoes in the ice bath for a minute or two,  remove the tomatoes from the ice water and begin to core them and peel the skins.  The skins will slip right off.  Place the cored and peeled tomatoes into another big bowl until you are ready to quarter them and place them in bags.

I did this whole process sort of "assembly line" style.  I kept the clean tomatoes in a large bowl in the sink.  I filled a bowl with tomatoes then transferred them to the counter near the stove.  I placed some tomatoes in to boil for 1 minute.  I quickly removed them with my big long handled spoon and dunked them in the ice water bath.  I then put them on a cutting board to core and peel.  After coring and peeling, they were placed in another large bowl waiting to be quartered and bagged.    So, I had some tomatoes boiling, some in the ice bath while I peeled and cored tomatoes and then into the holding bowl.  It only took me about an hour to do the bushel of tomatoes.

Once all of the tomatoes were done, I used a tupperware bowl that holds 3 cups of liquid and quartered tomatoes until the bowl was full.  Each time the bowl was filled,  I took a one quart zip lock freezer bag, placed my canning funnel (which has a very wide mouth) inside the bag.  I held the bag and funnel in one hand while I poured the quartered tomatoes into the funnel with the other hand.  You may have to shake the funnel a bit to get all of the tomatoes into the bag.  Leave about 1 inch of headroom in the bag, pull the "zipper" almost closed, squeeze the bag to remove all of the air and finish closing the zipper.  I quickly filled the bags this way and there was no spillage or mess everywhere.

Just look at the beautiful red color on those tomatoes.  I had 8 quart bags when I was finished.  Place these into the freezer and you will have delicious, juicy, flavor filled tomatoes to use for soups, stews and sauces all winter long.  Yes, I am heading back to the farmer's market for more tomatoes now that I know how easy this process is!  Perhaps you have a bounty of tomatoes coming in from plants you are growing and don't know what to do with them all.  This is a really easy method to save that summer goodness.

Tomorrow, there will be more dipping, dunking, peeling and bagging going on in the kitchen at the little yellow cottage.  Who knew freezing tomatoes could be so easy?  Give it a try.  You will thank me in December.  I know I will thank me all winter long.

Everyday Donna


Things To Remember:

"A world without tomatoes is like a string quartet without violins." - Laurie Colwin