Cheese on the Go

I can't rave enough about this little cooler for cheese sticks that Sargento Cheese has come out with! I received mine free with a package from Influenster.com

Now anyone who knows us here at our house knows that we just love Cheese!!! Althea, my granddaughter loves cheese and is as close to a vegetarian as anyone in our family has ever been. While she may eat a small bit of turkey or chicken we depend upon cheese and nuts to provide her with her protein.

I love Sargento cheese sticks as they come in various flavors and keeping her interested in her food is important. We also buy the sliced cheese as well and Althea's favorite is Muenster although she calls it Monster.

Cheese is so versatile, not only in how you use it but in the flavors and textures it comes in. I love a crisp apple and a few cubes of cheese for a snack, and so does Althea. Grilled Cheese, yes please! And don't get me started on Macaroni and Cheese, I could write a book on the various recipes I have tried. My mother loved for me to make my homemade cheese sauce and I believe I will sit down this weekend and dedicate an entire blog to it and some of my mother uses for cheese.

So to Influenster.com and Sargento I must say thank you for the little snack cooler, I only have one question... where might I purchase a few more?

Punting, Passing and Pickled Shrimp!

I can't remember the last time my husband of 33 years asked me to make a special meal. He has always been content to eat what was before him regardless of how it looked or tasted; even the 10 alarm Chili I made decades ago.

But recently he decided to stay home one more night (yep he travels) and then told me he was going to watch The Super Bowl and maybe we could have junk for supper. Now junk suppers around here can be anything but they normally consist of finger foods or nibbles such as wings, sliders, etc.

Here I was thinking he was really missing me when what he was really missing or was afraid of missing was a dang football game and some good grub...

Taste of Summer - Berry Good Memories

I love berries; although I am allergic to Strawberries I have embraced the humble Blackberry as a replacement and use them often to make shortcakes, cobblers, etc. I also love Blueberries and would almost drive to Maine for a case of the small local berries I enjoyed eating there so many years ago.

I first fell in love with Blueberries picking them in Aunt Hazel's orchard when I was a child and we cousins would sneak warm berries right off the vine. That and taking a bite of the first apples from her trees are treasured memories.

My mother actually introduced me to picking berries and we spent many a day traveling to Allendale County to a small orchard to pick blueberries for a number of years. We took my daughters and while they sometimes picked they most often sat in the car and watched... last year that changed when we girls went on our first berry picking trip in years... Beth, Dorie, Becki, Althea and I drove back country roads to a small farm in Aiken County, SC and picked blueberries for the first time in years... this morning as I began the prepartion of Sunday Dinner, I thought about those berries in the freezer just waiting to be cooked and as I grabbed a container from the feezer I saw a container of blackberries as well hidden in the back (as they are the last).

Pulling a cookbook down I turned to my favorite muffin recipe and began the blending of basic ingreidents, adding my own touches here and there (fresh lemon peel and a dash of Nutmeg) then added both thawed Blueberries and Blackberries to the mix. Lastly I added a squeeze of fresh Lemon juice, stirred the dough, filled the pans and waited for them to bake... the wait was worth it, as was the hot summer day last year picking the berries.

Heirloom Tomato Salad

 

 

 

Fresh Heirloom Tomatoes

Fresh herbs such as Basil and Oregano

Sea Salt

Coarse Ground Pepper

Olive Oil

Balsamic Vinegar

 

 

 

Cut up tomatoes into bite size pieces.

 Chop or tear herbs and mix with tomatoes.

Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Drizzle with oil and vinegar.

 



GRANNY'S ZUCCHINI BREAD

2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 cup oil
2 tsp vanilla

1 8oz can of crushed Pineapple
2 cups shredded Zucchini
3 cups All Purpose Flour
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp Baking soda
1 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1 cup chopped Dates, Raisins or Cranberries * (optional)

Beat eggs, oil, sugar and vanilla until thickened; stir in remaining ingredients mixing well. Beat eggs, oil, sugar and vanilla until thick.

Pour into 2 greased 9x5 loaf pans and bake 1 hour at 350 degrees. Bread is done with a toothpick poked into center comes out clean.

Zucchini Bread - Lost and Found

Today while enjoying a lunch with the girls (daughters Beth and Becki and grands, Dorie and Althea) for Mother's Day Beth asked about my mom's Zucchini Bread Recipe and the search began...

I found a recipe for Zucchini Bars (really good) and various other concoctions including a CHOCOLATE Chewy Cake recipe - note to self - MUST try this... but no Zucchini Bread recipe. I knew I had, I had just looked at it but the more I searched through my file and the wood box that hold various recipes and small cook books and even the shelf of the some 50 or so cookbooks I have on display, Nada, Zip, Zero.

Tonight as I settle down to jump on the laptop and get ready for bed, I looked one more time and found it within 5 minutes! So Beth, all is not lost and neither is the recipe which is written on a once beautiful recipe card printed in 1979.

It holds not only stains from countless uses, but the wonderful handwriting of my mother - I remember when she and dad got this recipe though not its origins. Daddy had retired and was battling boredom and then cancer but he had planted a row of Zucchini never imaging the yield and they did not want to waste it... so they picked it and what they did not freeze they made into bread and gave it away and froze it as well.

During my search I also found a Zucchini - Cheese Bread that I tried years ago and had good results from. Both recipes are being added to blog and with Summer upon us I suggest that you take time to make at least one batch of this bread... it's worth it, I promise.

I also want to share with you a Facebook and Etsy Store that deals  with vintage cookbooks (a passion of mine). If you love to cook, or collect this is a wonderful resource:

Vintage Cookbooks
http://www.facebook.com/#!/VintageCookbooks
http://www.etsy.com/shop/CookbookMaven?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=App_Seller&utm_content=shops&utm_campaign=fb_seller_shop2

Drop by and tell them Camella sent you!

Orange Marmalade and Irish Whiskey Glazed Corned Beef

I found this recipe using Epicurious on my cell phone and I am so glad that I did. I have not been a huge fan of corned beef in the past although I do like my homemade corned beef hash, but this recipe was wonderful. I even ate leftovers the next day on a sandwich. The recipe originally appeared in a 2006 Bon Appéti Magazine.



Nonstick vegetable oil spray
1 cup sweet orange marmalade
1/2 cup Irish whiskey
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard plus more for serving
1 2- to 2 1/4-pound piece lean fully cooked corned beef
12 carrots, peeled, halved lengthwise

I bought and cooked my corned beef the day before using the seasoning package that came with it. I also used Jameson Irish Whiskey.

Preheat oven to 425°F. Coat large rimmed baking sheet with nonstick spray. Boil next 3 ingredients in saucepan until reduced to generous 3/4 cup, stirring often, about 7 minutes. Mix in 1 tablespoon mustard.

Generously brush corned beef all over with glaze; place in center of prepared sheet. Toss carrots and 1/4 cup glaze in large bowl to coat; place around beef. Sprinkle carrots with salt and pepper. Roast until carrots are tender and beef is golden, brushing occasionally with more glaze, about 35 minutes. Transfer to platter, garnish with parsley, and serve with Dijon mustard.

I served this with Champ (mashed potatoes with chives) and Buttered Steamed Cabbage.