Cornish Game Hen

I like to try new things.  So when I was grocery shopping today and saw these cute little game hens for sale, I couldn't pass them up.  I put two in my cart.

Surprisingly, they aren't that hard to prepare.  If you get them already cleaned up.  I just followed the instructions on the packaging, of course, adding my own twist.

You put them breast down in a baking pan lined with aluminum foil.  Then, you brush the tops generously with melted butter.  I like to put some water in the bottom of the pan as well, to keep things moist.  One hen I coated with a mix of garlic, onion, sage and smoked paprika.  The other, I used onion, thyme and rosemary.  This was to give the skin a spicy, crispy texture.  The cooking time was 1 1/2 to 2 hours, I leaned towards 2.  Every half hour, I pulled the hens out and basted them with their own juices.  Half way through, I put half a stick of butter in the pan, let that melt, and then basted again.

Then end result was super amazing smelling, crispy hens.

For a side dish, I made a sweet potato and parsnip puree.  This one is really easy too.  I cubed and boiled two sweet potatoes, and one very large parsnip.  When they were fork tender, I strained them most of the way, reserving a little of the water.  Then I pureed them with the water and about 4-6 tbsp of butter.  They turned out nice and creamy.  They should be served with a little black pepper and brown sugar.

And I have got to tell you, that was probably one of the best dinners I have had in a while.  Even Tristan loved it, we couldn't feed him fast enough, he just inhaled one piece after the other!

Best Cookies to Date

I'm pretty proud of myself for this one.  Nick told me hands down,  they are the best cookies I have ever made.  I'm going to call them, White Chocolate Chip Spice Cookies.

I saw a recipe the other day and thought it looked fun.  But a little bland.  I decided to tweak it.  The idea was to have a ginger snap with cinnamon chips.  And while that sounded great, I don't much care for the taste of cinnamon chips.  I know, what?  Weird right?  Me, who adds cinnamon to everything!

Anyhoo, I decided to make it more like a molasses spice cookie with white chips.  That sounded more creative.

So, here it is.

1/2 cup melted shortening
1/4 cup softened butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup molasses
2 tsp baking soda
cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves
2 1/2ish cups flour
1 half package white chocolate chips
extra sugar

Cream the butter, shortening and sugar.  Add the egg, mix well.  Mix in molasses, vanilla, soda and spices (I never measure spices, I just use however much smells good).  Beat in the chips and flour at the same time.  The dough is going to be a little sticky still, that's ok.  What you are going to want to do is take spoonfuls, and drop it into a bowl of sugar.  Roll it around until it's coated, then put it on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Bake your cookies at 350 degrees for about 8-10 minutes, the tops should look cracked and the centers still a little gooey.  When you take them out, they will collapse, don't panic!  That's how it's supposed to be.

As soon as they are cool enough, eat up!  And make sure to store them right away as well so they stay nice and gooey and moist.  And trust me, they are simply amazing, I have been snacking on them all day!

Havarti Macaroni

About a week ago, we had my little brother and my dad over.  It was my brother's birthday, and we had a nice bacon cheese burger dinner with homemade potato chips and pumpkin cheese cake.  But, my dad brought me a gift.  When I was in college, he would always send me care packages from home, and one of his favorite things to include?  Havarti cheese.  He knew it was one of my favorites.  So that was my gift, a big package of cheese!

A few days later, my husband was rummaging around the cupboards trying to find something to eat.  I offered to make him baked mac'n'cheese, to which he agreed.  And I decided to make it with my havarti cheese, well, some of it.

I made a quick roue base with milk, butter and flour, browned some chopped onion, then added ripped up havarti cheese, mozerella, a little bit of Mexican blend, and then some cream cheese.  I always add onion powder, garlic powder and pepper as well.

I poured that over the cooked macaroni noodles before putting it in a greased pan.  For the topping, I used crushed up oyster crackers, because they aren't as sweet or salty as ritz.  And!  The best part, bacon.  I put bits of fresh cooked bacon all over the top.  Baked that for about 20 minutes, and let me tell you, it smelled great!

Nick said it was the best mac'n'cheese I have made yet.  I'm telling you, its the Havarti!

Plating

I just had to share this picture.  My husband did an excellent job plating this dinner.  It was grilled deboned chicken thighs, golden mashed potatoes and arugala salad.  Isn't it just pretty?  By the way, skin on deboned chicken thighs that have been grilled are probably the yummiest chicken ever!

Spices

We were watching a Chopped the other day.  You know, that show on the food network?  I know, I'm hooked.  But I had a thought.  There was a woman from India competing, and the judges kept praising her for her use of spice for flavor.

Another show I used to watch was Extreme Makeover Weight Loss Edition.  One thing the people always learned when they were learning how to cook better meals for themselves was how to flavor food without the aid of fat.  How to use spice instead.

Ah, yes.  Here in America we are so dependent on fat agents to flavor our food.  Burgers cooked in bacon grease, deep fried potatoes and chicken, crisco in just about everything.  But here's a little secret, that fat can't compare at all to a good spice.  Not in the least!

So I indulged myself today.  I have been wanting to do this for so long, and I finally did.  I raided the spice isle at my local grocery store.  I mean, I already have the standard oregano, garlic and dill.  But I wanted something more fun and exciting.  Coriander, fennel seed, rosemary, cardamom, sage, etc……..it was so wonderful!

The minute I got home, I opened every single one and just sniffed.  And they smelled amazing!  I started concocting different dinner ideas, having to restrain myself from pulling the veal out of the fridge and cooking right away.  My husband is out of town till tomorrow, so I wouldn't really have anyone to feed (Tristan has gotten picky again).  But I'm definitely going to be cooking something fabulous tomorrow night!

And there is my advice to you!  Instead of deep frying yourself a chicken wing for dinner, pick up some spices and get creative.  Just the smell is enough to inspire!

Black Bean Soup

I know, I know, I like to make soups.  But, can you blame me?  They blend the best.  not to mention it's fall, well, I say it's winter now that there is snow all over the place, and the best thing to eat in the winter is a bowl of hot soup.

It all started with a trip to Winco.  I decided it was time to pick out things that I could use to make meals, rather than just getting whatever sounded good.  So I grabbed a bunch of cans of different kinds of beans.  Then, pursuing allrecipes, I saw a recipe for black bean soup.  It looked yummy, but I decided it needed a little tweaking.  Beans in chicken broth isn't enough in my mind.

To start, fry 1/4 a package of hickory smoked bacon that has been chopped up into small pieces in a large sauce pan.  Don't crisp the bacon, just heat it through enough that it starts to shrink.  Then add 1/2 a chopped up sweet onion and i clove minced garlic, cooking the onion until it turns clear.  The moisture from the onions will prevent the bacon from crisping, so don't worry.

Next, add 2 cups chicken stock and 1 cup water. Add the following spices:  black pepper, salt, oregano, parsley, FRESH cilantro leaves, cumin, chili powder, and onion powder.  Then, a dash of lemon juice.  As it just barely begins to boil, add two cans of black beans and 1 cup frozen corn.  As it simmers and the liquid reduces down, smash up some of the beans, that will help to thicken the actual soup as well.  Cook on medium heat until the beans are tender and the corn is well done.

Then, serve it up with a dollop of sour cream and fresh cilantro on top.  It's a very rich and hearty soup guaranteed to clean you right out, hehehe, sorry.  But it tastes fabulous!