Vacation!

I am taking a break and enjoying the holidays with my family. I hope you have a wonderful Christmas!

See you in the new year!

Eggnog French Toast

I love my husband's French Toast, it is never dry and always moist and tender in the middle. I told him I wanted to try Eggnog French Toast and he made it for me this weekend. I have one word for you, YUM! It was really tasty, in fact so much, I will be requesting it again soon!

The Eggnog taste is subtle in my recipe, but if you want to omit the Cinnamon and Vanilla, it will be a very strong Eggnog taste.

Some bacon and fresh fruit along with this French Toast and you have a breakfast fit for a Queen or a King!

2 cups Lowfat Eggnog
1 tsp vanilla
4 eggs, beaten
1/8 tsp fresh grated nutmeg
1 tsp Cinnamon
I loaf of extra wide sliced bread (I used Texas Toast)
Butter

In a large bowl, mix your Eggnog, beaten eggs, vanilla and nutmeg

Place your bread into the bowl one slice at a time and let it sit there for a few seconds on each side (this helps with the tenderness factor)

Place on a buttered griddle and cook until lightly brown on both sides

Transfer to the oven to hold at 170 degrees and continue cooking French Toast until you are out of the egg mixture. This made approximately 8 slices of French Toast.

Sausage, Cheese and Carmelized Onion Quiche

I have been wanting to make a quiche for awhile, and finally had the time this morning. I thought it would be extra yummy if I caramelized some onions and added cottage cheese.

I have to say this is the best Quiche I have ever made, the caramelized onions which were slightly sweet paired with the salty sausage and cheese was over the top delicious! I think the cottage cheese also made it creamier and lighter. You could serve this for breakfast, lunch or dinner!

6 eggs

1/4 cup milk

1/3 cup cottage cheese

Shredded Cheese (any kind would work, I used Monterey Jack)

6-8 cooked sausage links diced (or you could use bulk sausage, my links were leftover from yesterday and already cooked)

1/2 a sweet onion sliced thinly and cooked until caramelized

1 pre-made pie crust

Salt and Pepper to taste

1/4 tsp onion powder

1 tsp dried chives

Cayenne pepper (to taste)

Par bake the pie crust at 350 for about 10 minutes, remove to cool

Spread the caramelized onions in the bottom of the pie crust, add the meat and top with as much cheese as you like

In a seperate bowl, mix the beaten eggs, cottage cheese, milk and spices, until well incorported and pour over the pie crust.

Bake at 350 for approximately an hour, check and cook for additional time as needed, you dont want the quiche to wiggle at all. Remove from oven and cool for 10 minutes.

Cut and serve, with sour cream if you wish!

Rocky Road Fudge

I have been wanting to make fudge, it seems like I made it many years ago, but I had no idea what I was doing back then! This recipe is easy and fun to make, not to mention it tastes amazing!

One thing I did learn was to have your Mice in place or Mise en place if you want to get technical. When the chocolate is ready you have to have your nuts and marshmallows ready to go!

I like a 50/50 ratio of Marshmallows to Fudge, so I used the large sized Marshmallows

1 (12)ounce package Semi Sweet Chocolate Morsels (any brand will do)
1 (14) ounce can Sweetened Condensed Milk (I used the fat free one)
1 tsp Vanilla extract
3 cups mini marshmallows (I used the large ones)
1 cup chopped Walnuts

Line a 13X9 baking pan with foil and grease lightly with butter

Microwave morsels and milk in a large microwave safe bowl for 1 minute on high, stir

Microwave an additional 10 to 20 second intervals until smooth

Stir in Vanilla and fold in marshmallows and nuts

Press into the prepared baking pan and refrigerate until ready to serve

Lift from pan, remove foil and cut into squares (keep leftovers in fridge)

Pigs in a Blanket/Weiner Dogs

I love hot dogs any way I can get them! Now keep your mind out of the gutter please! I am talking about dogs, weiners, hot dogs, frankfurters, kielbasa, polish dogs, chili dogs, foot longs, coney dogs, bagel dogs, corn dogs, and cheesy dogs!

Are ya feeling me here? I have been trying to figure out how to make low fat corn dogs to no avail, so I decided to try to make some Weiner Dogs or Pigs in a Blanket using Kosher Low Fat Dogs. I actually made them twice in one week.

The first time I used my recipe for White Dinner Rolls, and the second time I used Rhodes Frozen Rolls. I have to say the Rhodes Rolls worked just as well with a lot less effort and they tasted practically the same.

1 package of the regular sized Rhodes Frozen White Rolls
1 package of Hebrew National low fat or reduced fat hot dogs
Black Sesame Seeds (optional)
1 tbl butter melted

One roll will cover 1/2 of a hot dog, so remove as many rolls as you need for the number of dogs you want to have.

Place rolls on a sheet pan and place in your oven with the light on and the door closed, let them proof for several hours until doubled in size

Cut your hot dogs in half and place on a plate

Remove your rolls, and roll each one into a rope about 8 inches long and starting at the bottom wrap around your hot dog trying to fully cover the dog. If you choose to use sesame seeds, brush with melted butter and sprinkle on before baking

Repeat until you have used up all your dogs and rolls, place back onto the sheet pan and into the over for another several hours until they rise.

Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes, remove when golden brown and brush with butter

Chicken, Mushroom, Broccoli and Rice Casserole

Wow that is a mouthful and this casserole is too! This recipe was given to me ages ago by my fabulous neighbor Pam (and it was given to her by a good friend), so it is making the rounds!, It is sooo good! It feeds an Army and is true comfort food!

I adore recipes that are shared and continue to be shared. To me that is part of the brotherhood or sisterhood of food and cooking. The sharing of recipes and food brings people together and gets them excited, to me it is almost spiritual. I am fairly shy in person but, I can talk to anyone about cooking and recipes, it brings me out of my shell!

I made a few tiny changes and believe me it was awesome! Thanks again for sharing such a special recipe Pam!

1 tbsp olive oil

1/2 onion

1 lb mushrooms quartered

1 stalk of celery diced (I used two)

1 box of Farmhouse Long Grain & Wild Rice (or your favorite brand), prepared per instructions

2 cooked chicken breasts, cubed

1 6-8 oz can of sliced water chestnuts, diced

1 cup of broccoli florets

1 10 3/4 oz can of Cream of Chicken soup

1 10 3/4 oz can of Cream of Celery soup

1/4 cup light mayonnaise (I probably used a bit more than that)

Salt and pepper to taste

Johnny's Garlic Salt - just a few shakes

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Prepare rice per instructions.

In a heated pan add 1/2 tbsp oil and cook mushrooms until golden brown - remove from pan.

Add the other 1/2 tbsp of oil to the pan and cook onions and celery until soft. **I actually cooked all three items at the same time**

Using a steamer, steam broccoli until just fork tender, then cool. **I put the broccoli in raw**

Mix your soups and mayonnaise together and add about 1/2 cup of water to thin it out, and whisk till smooth, add in your salt, pepper and seasoning salt. Then add the remaining ingredients and mix well.

Put into a baking dish and heat uncovered for 40 minutes until bubbling. Let cool for a few minutes prior to serving.

Cranberry Sauce with a KICK!

This week I thought I would share some of my Thanksgiving dishes, beginning Monday with the appetizer I made. Today, my Cranberry Sauce.

I have never made homemade Cranberry sauce in my life and was determined to try it this year. My palate has changed over the years and I cannot stand the stuff in a can.

It is soo easy and delicious, I will never use the canned stuff again! BAN THE CAN!

1 bag fresh Cranberries (rinsed well)

1 mini sized Bourbon (I used Jack Daniels, 1.7 ounces)

Zest of 1 orange

1 bottle Orange Juice (small sized)

1/4 cup pure Maple Syrup

1 tbl ground Ginger

Place your cranberries in a saute pan, add the rest of your ingredients and let cook on medium high for about 20 minutes, you will hear the cranberries pop and it will naturally thicken up as it cooks

When it is almost the consistency you want, remove from heat, let cool and place in your refrigerator, it will firm the rest of the way up overnight!