MommaCooks

posted by Nina on Aug 16

Recipes don’t come much easier than this and the result is fantastic.

Ingredients:
4 ears fresh corn

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Place corn husks directly on the oven rack and roast for 30 minutes or until corn is soft.

Peel down the husks and use as a handle when eating.

What did the family think? Everyone loved it! I think the boys’ favorite part was using the husks as a handle.

Where did this recipe come from? Food Network

Photo from cookstr.com

posted by Nina on Aug 10

These biscuits come out buttery and a little crispy. They are so good and so easy and are a good addition to breakfast (think biscuits with butter and honey/jelly) or dinner.

Ingredients:
2 cups whole wheat flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
¼ cup cold unsalted butter
1 cup milk (any kind)

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

In a medium sized bowl combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix well with whisk or fork.

Cut the 1/2 stick butter into little pea sized pieces and then mix the pieces into the flour mixture. Using a fork, try to mash the butter pieces as you mix it together with the flour until it resembles coarse crumbs. It is okay if the outcome just looks like the same pea sized pieces of butter covered with flour.

Then pour in the milk and mix it all together. Knead the dough with your hands 8 to 10 times and then turn out onto a floured counter or cutting board. Pat it out flat with your hands until the dough is a somewhat even 3/4-inch thickness.

Turn a drinking glass upside down and cut out biscuit rounds. Put them on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 450 degrees for 10 – 12 minutes or until lightly browned.

We had this with roasted chicken, salad and watermelon.

What did the family think? What’s not to like about warm, buttery, crispy biscuits fresh out of the oven?

Where did this recipe come from? 100 Days of Real Food

photo from 100 Days of Real Food

posted by Nina on Jul 27

I made these in the morning and let them marinate all day on the counter. They were SO good and went really well with the herbed chicken kabobs we had with them.

Ingredients:
1-1/2 lb. green beans, washed and trimmed
3 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
1 large garlic clove, minced
6 tbsp. vegetable oil
2 tbsp. each minced fresh basil and flat-leaf parsley
Salt to taste
1 lb. plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1/4 cup minced red onion

Instructions:
Boil the beans for 5 minutes, then rinse quickly in cold water to stop the cooking. Drain well.

In a large bowl, whisk the vinegar, mustard and garlic. Gradually whisk in the oil. Add the herbs and salt, whisking thoroughly. Add the vegetables and toss everything together.

Let the beans marinate, unchilled, for at least 2 hours. Serve at room temperature. (If you prepare them earlier in the day, go ahead and chill them. Just make sure to take them out of the refrigerator at least 2 hours before dinner. They are not very tasty cold.)

Did I change anything? I left out the red onion. I didn’t use as many tomatoes because I didn’t have enough. I didn’t use parsley because I don’t like fresh parsley.

What did the family think? Hubby and I LOVED these. They were so good. Our oldest tried them, but was not impressed. I am not sure if our youngest tried them, but I am guessing he didn’t.

Where did this recipe come from? Family Fun

photo from Epicurious

posted by Nina on Jul 25

This salad is so bright and summery. It’s beautiful on the plate and it tastes great, too.

Instructions:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 1/2 cups fresh corn kernels (from about 5 ears)
1 1/2 cups diced avocado (1/2-inch pieces)
1 pint cherry tomatoes, quartered
1/2 cup finely diced red onion

Instructions:
In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lime juice, cilantro, salt, and pepper.

Add the corn, avocado, tomatoes, and onion and toss to mix. Serve at room temperature.

Did I change anything? I didn’t use fresh corn. I used canned corn. I know, I know. I should have used fresh, but I knew it would be way faster if I just used canned. I also used way, way, way less red onion than this recipe calls for.

What did the family think? Note to self: Hubby does not like canned corn in any dish ever. I thought the salad was awesome. It was so summery and it went perfectly with the salmon we had with it.

Where did this recipe come from? Family Fun

photo from Family Fun

posted by Nina on Jul 21

We are always willing to try a new mac and cheese recipe and this one did not disappoint. The best part was that my 9-year old made it almost entirely by himself.

Ingredients:
1/2 pound elbow macaroni
4 tablespoons butter
2 eggs
6 ounces evaporated milk
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Fresh black pepper
3/4 teaspoon dry mustard
8 to 10 ounces sharp cheddar, shredded

Instructions:
In a large pot cook the pasta to al dente and drain. Melt the butter in the pot and return pasta to the pot. Toss to coat.

In the meantime whisk together the eggs, milk, hot sauce, salt, pepper, and mustard. Mix into the pasta. Add the cheese and stir over low heat until melted and creamy.

We had this with rotisserie chicken and some cantaloupe.

What did the family think? We’ve never met a mac and cheese we didn’t like.

Where did this recipe come from? I got it from LeeAnn. She got it from Alton.

photo from LeeAnn

posted by Nina on Jul 13

I loved, loved, loved this cole slaw. It is still definitely cole slaw, with just a little more kick to it.

Ingredients:
1 bag of shredded slaw mix
2 carrots, shredded
1 red bell pepper, sliced very thin and cut in smaller pieces
2 green onions, sliced
2-3 ears grilled corn (kernels sliced off) or 1/2 cup frozen corn (defrosted) or canned
handful of chopped cilantro
1 cup chipotle or spicy ranch (I used Brianna’s Chipotle Cheddar dressing)
2 tablespoons mayo
a few splashes apple cider vinegar
fresh ground pepper

Instructions:
In large bowl combine ranch dressing, mayo, vinegar and black pepper.

Add vegetables (minus cilantro) and toss until fully dressed.

Refrigerate for 2 hours or until chilled. Toss in cilantro right before serving.

Did I change anything? I left out the carrots since there were carrots in the slaw mix I used. I also changed the original dressing. The creator of the recipe used Marie’s Chipotle Ranch, but I couldn’t find that.

What did the family think? I LOVED it! Hubby liked it, but wished I hadn’t put corn in it. The boys aren’t huge cole slaw fans…they have no idea what they’re missing.

Where did this recipe come from? Aggie’s Kitchen

posted by Nina on Jul 12

I am not a huge radish fan. Okay, I don’t really like them at all, but I LOVE them in this salad. This salad is cool and crunchy and perfect for a hot summer day.

Ingredients:
6 radishes, chopped
1 large tomato, chopped
1 medium cucumber, chopped
3 green onions, chopped
1/2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste

We had this with marinated pork chops and some sliced strawberries.

Instructions:
Chop the radishes, tomatoes, cucumbers and green onions into small pieces.

Whisk together oil and vinegar. Put all chopped vegetables in a bowl and drizzle with oil and vinegar dressing. Add salt and pepper to taste. Mix until everything is combined.

What did the family think? Sadly, it wasn’t a huge hit. I was the only one who liked it and I didn’t just like it, I loved it. I will happily be eating all of the leftovers.

Where did this recipe come from? Melanie Cooks

Photo from Melanie Cooks

posted by Nina on Jul 11

This was my first time ever cooking with fennel and it was a great way to teach the boys about a new food. I was starting to put the fennel bulbs in the grocery cart and their natural curiosity took over and it sounded something like this…”What is THAT?”

Ingredients:
2 small fennel bulbs
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons good olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 pounds russet potatoes (4 large potatoes)
2 cups plus 2 tablespoons heavy cream
2 1/2 cups grated Gruyère cheese (1/2 pound)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Butter the inside of a 10-by-15-by-2-inch (10-cup) baking dish.

Remove the stalks from the fennel and cut the bulbs in half lengthwise. Remove the cores and thinly slice the bulbs crosswise, making approximately 4 cups of sliced fennel.

Saute the fennel and onions in the olive oil and butter on medium-low heat for 15 minutes, until tender.

Peel the potatoes, then thinly slice them by hand or with a mandoline.

Mix the sliced potatoes in a large bowl with 2 cups of cream, 2 cups of Gruyère, salt, and pepper. Add the sauteed fennel and onion and mix well.

Pour the potatoes into the baking dish. Press down to smooth the potatoes. Combine the remaining 2 tablespoons of cream and 1/2 cup of Gruyère and sprinkle on the top.

Bake for 1 1/2 hours, until the potatoes are very tender and the top is browned and bubbly.

Allow to set for 10 minutes and serve.

We had this with rosemary and garlic steak kabobs and watermelon.

Did I change anything? I only cooked it for an hour and it was fine.

What did the family think? 75% of us loved this dish. (I bet you can guess who the other 25% was.) Our oldest even had seconds and wanted me to make the leftovers for him in a sandwich. (Which sounds gross to me.) What was good was putting some of the cheesy sauce from the potatoes on the steak we were eating with it.

Where did this recipe come from? Aggie’s Kitchen and she got it from Ina Garten

photo from Aggie’s Kitchen

posted by Nina on Jul 10

If you don’t like raw red onions, then you can stop reading right now. If you do, then read on. You will love this easy little summer salad.

Ingredients:
3-4 handfuls sugar snap peas, chopped large*
1 red onion, chopped large*
1 lemon, juiced
few splashes white wine vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

*When chopped, onions pieces and snap pea pieces should be about the same size.

Instructions:
Combine chopped vegetables in a bowl.

Pour lemon juice, vinegar and olive oil over vegetables and gently toss together.

Season well with salt and pepper.

Enjoy chilled.

Did I change anything? I only used 1/2 an onion.

What did the family think? I loved how crunchy it was. Hubby thought it was good, but wasn’t too sure about the red onions. I gave our boys just plain snap peas. Our oldest said he thought they tasted like the garden, which I thought was spot on. Our youngest took all the peas out of their pods and ate a few of the peas.

Where did this recipe come from? Aggie’s Kitchen

photo from Aggie’s Kitchen

posted by Nina on Jun 6

I have mentioned before that I am not a big fan of using yeast…all the waiting and kneading. I know, I know, it’s not really all that bad, but if I can find a recipe that gives me the same result without the yeast, then I am all over it. So when I was looking for recipes to make homemade breadsticks I chose this one as opposed to the gazillion others that are out there that require yeast. I am also not a big fan of breaking out the rolling pin either, but there wasn’t really any way to get around that.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter or margarine
1 tablespoon oil
3 cups flour (I use part whole wheat, part unbleached)
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
1-1 1/2 cups milk

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Place butter and oil in 9×13 pan and put in oven so butter melts as the oven heats up. Be careful not to let it burn!

Stir dry ingredients together, and gradually add milk, stirring until dough forms and leaves sides of bowl.

Knead 5-6 times in bowl; place on floured countertop and roll out into 9×13-inch rectangle.

Lay dough in pre-heated 9×13-inch pan, atop the melted butter/oil. Cut into 1/2″ strips.

Bake at 425 degrees for 20 minutes.

Did I change anything? I didn’t use quite as much butter as this recipe calls for. It just seemed like a lot.
I changed the amount of milk in this recipe. I used a little bit more than the original recipe called for. Just add it a little at a time until the dough comes together.

What did the family think? We don’t usually say no to carbs, especially ones that taste really good slathered in butter and honey.

Where did this recipe come from? Tammy’s Recipes

Photo from Tammy’s Recipes