Calla's Creations

Sunday Dinner

2011-07-10T14:13:00.001-04:00

As I sat this morning trying to think of an appropriate dish to post for today it dawned on me that today was Sunday so why not post something that could be used as a typical dinner for a Sunday. Considering how tight budgets are right now I also wanted to give you guys something that was cost efficient as well.

Ciao'

Fried Pork Chops

Ingredients:

Pork Chops (Cut of your choice)
Garlic Powder
Black Pepper
Seasoned Meat Tenderizer
Cooking Oil
Flour for breading

Directions:

For the Pork Chops I prefer to use a boneless thin cut center chop. I put a little seasoned meat tenderizer on them followed by black pepper and garlic powder. I cover them in flour and I pan fry them in canola oil. It should only take about 3-5 min per side considering thickness. You don't want to cook them too long or it will cause your grease to burn and your chops to stick to your pan. Once they are done you need to allow the oil to drain from them so just simply lay them on a plate lined with paper towels.

Garlic Mashed Potatoes (Courtesy of Paula Deen)

Ingredients:

3 medium baking potatoes peeled and coarsely chopped
1 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup sour cream, at room temperature
1 teaspoon finely minced garlic
1 tablespoon (or more) whole milk, at room temperature or warmed
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

In a medium saucepan, cook the potatoes in salted water until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain the potatoes and return them to the saucepan.

Add the butter, sour cream and garlic. Mash the potatoes with a potato masher or the back of a fork until the ingredients are blended. Add the milk, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the potatoes are the desired consistency. Taste and add salt and pepper, if needed

I'm Baaaack

2011-07-07T23:10:00.001-04:00

Whew, after a hectic 1st year teaching I am back for a summer debut. I'm gonna try and do better posting guys even if it's only once a month! If there's anything you guys would like me to post just shoot me an email at pocaria@1081creations.com and I will do my best to respond ASAP!!

Since I've been out for the summer I've tried 2 new things in the kitchen and I cans say the 1st was a success although it wasn't what we expected. The 2nd was AMAZING!! I shall share both with you now...

Ciao'

Island Stew Chicken

4 lbs chicken – cut into serving size pieces
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon ketchup
2 cloves of garlic – thinly sliced or crushed
1 teaspoon fresh ginger – crushed/sliced
2 tablespoon vegetable oil (one that can withstand high heat)
1 medium onion – chopped
1 medium tomato – chopped
1 tablespoon brown sugar
3/4cup water
dash of black pepper
1/4 hot pepper (I used Habanero)
1 green onion or chive (scallion) – chopped
2 sprigs of fresh thyme (1 teaspoon dried)
1 lime or lemon or 3 tablespoons of vinegar
1/2 teaspoon green seasoning (I LEFT THIS OUT)
1 can chickpeas (Channa) 540 ml/194 fl oz (I LFET THIS OUT)

* I used chicken legs & boneless/skinless thighs since I love the flavor you get from dark meat.

In a large bowl place the cut pieces of chicken and pour the vinegar/lime or lemon juice and work between all the pieces of chicken. Rinse with cool water and drain. Then add all the ingredients, except the oil, sugar, chick peas and water. Allow this to marinate in the fridge for at least 30 minutes or 2 hours to get best results.

In a large heavy pot – I used an enameled cast iron pot, Heat the oil on high heat, then add the brown sugar and stir. This is a bit of a tricky process and it’s important you get it right. No worries, I have faith in you. You want the sugar to completely dissolve, then start going frothy and finally it will go to a rich dark brown colour. DON”T let it go black or really dark brown or it will give the dish a bitter taste.

As soon as you get the rich dark brown colour, add the pieces of seasoned chicken and stir so every piece gets colored with the caramel we just made. Use a spoon with a long handle when putting the seasoned chicken into the pot, as the hot oil/sugar combo can cause some splattering. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium/low, cover the pot and allow that to cook for 15 minutes (stir occasionally).

Old Fashioned Chocolate Cake

Ingredients

3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened
1-2/3 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
1-1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1-1/3 cups water
1/2 cup finely crushed hard peppermint candy(optional)
Additional crushed hard peppermint candy(optional)

Directions

1 Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans or one 13x9x2-inch baking pan.
2 Combine butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla in large bowl; beat on high speed of mixer 3 minutes. Stir together flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt and baking powder; add alternately with water to butter mixture, beating until blended. Add candy, if desired. Pour batter into prepared pans.
3Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely.

I covered with cream cheese frosting and it was absolutely delicious! It was also super moist... When we cut the first piece it split on the top like an earthquake had struck! It might have been ugly but the taste was great. Next time I will try to add some coconut to the icing. ;)

Deception...

2011-04-18T21:19:00.000-04:00

So I've been thinking that I wouldn't mind working at a bakery over the summer (since teachers don't get paid for 2 months). It would be fun and a great learning experience for me to see the ins and outs of daily bakery life...

I went down the street to a Bakery (that shall remain nameless) to try out their goods and to possibly try and see about being taken under their wing...

When I walked in I as immediately taken aback because the place was tiny, they sold old fashioned dip ice cream, and not to mention they only had 1 type of cupcake in the display case. We weren't greeted as we walked in the establishment either. Trying to be a good patron I waited patiently as I looked over the few cupcakes they had then I saw the price... a whopping 2.00/cupcake!!! (they were regular cupcakes might I add)

I finally was greeted and I decided I would give them a try and I would purchase 1 cupcake...Eyes backed out on me (smile) I bought a strawberry cheesecake cupcake and I was actually very eager to try it. Oddly enough it was 2.00 even (no tax)...

Once I got back to the car I looked over the cupcake and noticed it looked a bit familiar...the pink specks in the cake looked similar to those of the Duncan Hines/Betty Crocker Strawberry Supreme... I took the first bite and I was HEATED!!! I was right it was cake mix and the icing was too!!!

I felt so cheated, I had just paid 2.00 for a box cupcake with can icing...

Needless to say I will be trying my best to learn the bakery business on my own to avoid deception again..

Ciao'

Red Velvet Swirl Brownies

2010-12-19T22:41:00.000-05:00

So a good friend of mine asked me via twitter what I knew about these red velvet swirl brownies... I replied nothing but I will find out soon enough.

Here goes...They are amazing!

Enjoy!

Ingredients

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, for pan

Red Velvet Brownie Layer
1 stick unsalted butter
1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup cocoa powder

Pinch salt

1 tablespoon red food coloring

1 teaspoon vinegar
2 eggs
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup chopped toasted walnuts

Cream Cheese Layer
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract

Special equipment: 8 by 8-inch baking pan

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Butter an 8 by 8-inch baking pan, and set aside.

Brownie layer: In a saucepan on medium heat melt the butter. Remove the butter to a large bowl and add the sugar, vanilla, cocoa powder, salt, food coloring, and vinegar, in that order, mixing between additions. Whisk the eggs in a small bowl and stir it into the cocoa mix. Fold in the flour until lightly combined. Stir in the walnuts and pour the batter into the prepared baking pan, saving 1/4 cup of the batter for the top.

Cream cheese layer: Blend together the cream cheese, sugar, egg, and vanilla in a medium bowl. Gently spread the cream cheese layer on top of the brownie batter in the pan. Dollop the remaining brownie batter over the cream cheese layer. Using a skewer or the tip of a knife, drag the tip through the cream cheese mixture to create a swirl pattern. Bake the brownies for 30 minutes. Remove to a cooling rack and allow them to cool completely before cutting.

Sweet Potato Cake

2010-12-19T10:40:00.000-05:00

I made this cake before Thanksgiving as an experiment because we hosted Thanksgiving at our house this year so I didnt want to do the regular pound cake & chocolate cake. This cake was a success and it was so good it was the first thing that I wrote on the Thanksgiving menu! My family and friends all loved it and hope you all do too!!! Our God-Daughter who's 2 saw the cake when I was icing it and said "Ria let me taste that cake!" She tasted it and said, "Ummmmm."

Enjoy!

Sweet Potato Cake
1/2 c shortening
1 c sugar
1 c packed brown sugar
2 eggs beaten
1 c cooked, peeled & mashed sweet potatoes ( about 2 med. sized potatoes boiled should do)
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp cinnamon
3 c All Purpose Flour
4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 c milk
1 c chopped nuts (This is optional but I used pecans to add to the batter and also some extras for garnish)
1 tsp vanilla

Cream shortening, sugar eggs and sweet potatoes. Sift flour, baking powder, soda, and spices. Alternate dry ingredents and milk to sweet potato mixture. Divide in 3 9in. round pans and bake at 350 for 30 min. (may need less time so keep an eye on the layers to avoid them from baking too long and drying out.)

Cream Cheese Icing was a perfect match for this cake.

Cream Cheese Icing (double this recipe for this cake)

1/2 cup of melted butter

One 8 ounce package of cream cheese, softened

1 teaspoon of vanilla
One 1 pound box of confectioners' sugar

Combine the butter, cream cheese and vanilla, mixing well. Gradually add confectioners' sugar, beating well until smooth. Spread on cooled cake.

Molasses Cookies

2010-12-19T01:10:00.000-05:00

Hello all! I know it's been a while since I've last posted but my life has been extrememly hectic! Teaching is rather time consuming and I have very little free time for myself. I honestly don't even get to cook anymore like I used too.

I made these cookies last night for my school holdiay party and they were a success. Even the leftover dough was a hit with eyesofphases of http://www.1081creations.com/.

Enjoy & Ciao'

Molasses Cookies

3/4 cup Butter
1 cup Granulated sugar
1 Egg
4 Tablespoons Molasses
1 Teaspoon Cinnamon
1 Teaspoon Ginger
2 Cups All-purpose Flour
2 Teaspoons baking soda

Extra Sugar to coat

In a large bowl, cream butter with sugar. Add egg and blend. Add molasses and spices; mix well. Add flour and baking soda and blend. Chill dough at least 2 hours or overnight, covered tightly.

Dough will keep for at least a week, refrigerated.

Preheat oven to 325˚. Shape dough into small balls, roll in sugar and place 2-inches apart on cookie sheet.

Bake for 10-12 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on wire racks.

Lumpia

2010-07-11T19:32:00.001-04:00

My Mother worked with a Filipino lady when I was a little girl and she would make these for my Mom. I quickly learned how to fry them myself and they were always soooo good! When my Mom left the job I never had them again until I ran across this recipe one day! I was so happy and excited that I went to the international market and bought all the ingredients and EOP and I had them for lunch!

Ingredients:

1 pound ground beef
3/4 cup shredded carrots
1/2 cup chopped onions
1 teaspoon or 2 cloves minced garlic
3/4 teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoons season salt
1 package of 50 Lumpia Wrappers or 2 packages of 25 individually separated Lumpia Wrappers
1-1 1/2 cup(s) vegetable or olive oil
Small bowl of water

First, you'll want to brown your ground beef with your chopped onions, shredded carrots, garlic, pepper, and season salt, over medium high heat in a skillet or frying pan. (I recommend using a frying pan that is at-least 1 1/2" to 2" deep. I use the same pan to fry the lumpia in once it is rolled and finished.) When the meat is nice and brown drain the excess grease and set aside.

Now, here comes the fun part. Separate the Lumpia wrappers. In all my years of making Lumpia I have not found any easy way to separate this darn things but I will tell you how I do it; maybe you can come up with an easy way. The wrappers need to be defrosted if they are frozen. You'll also want to have a plate to set them on as well as a damp kitchen towel to cover them, we don't want our wrappers to dry out! Open the package and take out the stack of Lumpia wrappers, start at the edges and gently start peeling the edges upward, continue around and round until you eventually get to the center and loosen the individual sheet off of the stack. Now, place the loose sheet on your plate under the damp towel or cloth. And basically repeat until the stack or package is done. Sounds easy right? It's not! It will take you a few times of separating before you get the hang of it, probably midway between the stack.

We are now ready to assemble our Lumpia Rolls.

Take 1 of the Lumpia wrappers and spoon 1-2 tablespoons of your ground beef mixture into a line near the edge on the Lumpia wrapper.
Fold Lumpia wrapper over the line of meat you just spooned.
Now, you will begin to roll the meat into a tube. Stop rolling when you are to the middle of the wrapper.
Fold the right and left sides of the lumpia wrapper to the center
Continue to roll to the end of the wrapper
Dip your fingers in the small bowl of water and lightly moisten the exposed edge of the lumpia wrapper
Fold wrapper edge onto itself pressing it down gently. So it seems to glue itself down.
Place to the side for now and repeat, repeat, repeat! Until there isn't anymore wrappers or meat left.

All that's left to do now is heat your oil in your frying pan on medium high heat. You only need about 1/2" of oil across the bottom of the pan. Once the oil is hot place about 4-5 Lumpia across the pan and lightly brown each side of the lumpia. About 3-5 minutes each side. It will also vary with your stove. So if it seems like they are burning quickly turn your burner down. They should be a nice golden brown color. Now you want to let them cool and drain some of the excess grease off of them. My mother and I have always used a colander, feel free just to set them on paper towels or napkins. Repeat until you've made desired amount or they are all done. You can store extras(before they are fried in oil!) in the freezer to fry later on. That's another great benefit to this recipe, you can make 50 at a time and only fry 10 one day and saved the others for when you feel like it.

Serve with Ketchup!

Courtesy of: http://hubpages.com/hub/Lumpia-Filipino-Egg-Rolls

UMMMM COOKIES!!!

2010-07-10T00:10:00.000-04:00

I don't eat very many sweets but when I get a sweet tooth it HAS to be satisfied!! I recently tried another cookie recipe and the cookies were very good but they weren't as soft & chewy as I would have liked. So I tried again and thought I would use the recipe from the back of the Nestle Toll House Milk Chocolate Morsels package. SUCCESS!!! I hope you all like these cookies as much as me and my boo enjoyed them!

Smooches!

Ingredients

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Milk Chocolate Morsels
1 cup chopped nuts (I used pecans they are my fav!)

Directions

PREHEAT oven to 375° F.
COMBINE flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in morsels and nuts. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.
BAKE for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

*This recipe makes about 5 dozen if you spoon them small enough!

Simple Pleasures...

2010-07-05T19:12:00.000-04:00

Happy 4th Everyone!

I grilled this year as I have every year since Ive been on my own and my menu went a lil' sumthin like this...

Brightleaf Hot Dogs & Red Hots (yum-o, my fav hotdog in the whole wide world!!!)
Grilled Jerk Chicken Wings (my babe's specialty..)
Hamburgers
Grilled Turkey Legs (xtra yum-o)

Butter Beans w/ smoked turkey
Mac & Cheese

Sounds Yummy huh? Wish I had smell-o/taste-o vision so you all could experience the yumminess!!!!

But for now what you've all been waiting for...

Grilled Turkey Legs

Take the raw turkey legs and place em over a charcoal grill.
Turn while cooking to insure they brown on all sides.
Cook until done (varies depending on size)
Remove & Enjoy...

*Speckled Butter Beans w/ Smoked Turkey

Smoked Turkey Wing boiled until tender and water looks cloudy (its seasoned) add 1 bag frozen *speckled butter beans add salt & pepper to taste. Cook until done. (about an hour or so)

Really easy huh? It is and it's really healthy!

*I like the speckled butter beans because it makes the "gravy" dark and they have a better flavor than the reg green ones to me but you can cook either one this way.

Ciao, Infinity

images from: http://whatdidyoueat.typepad.com & http://mangoandlime.net

Jerk Tilapia & Red Beans and Rice

2010-06-07T00:17:00.000-04:00

Hello lovelies! Here is a wonderful dish I've made a few times and it seems that it's a hit...So give it a go and I can assure you there will not be any left overs!

Enjoy!

Jerk Tilapia

Tilapia Fillets
Walkerswood Jerk Paste
Jerk Seasoning (powder)
Black Pepper
Garlic Powder

Rub Tilapia Fillets in the above seasonings. Go light on the Walkerswood paste as it is ground peppers and the more you add the spicier it will be. Once you have allowed this to marinate in the fridge for about 2-3 hours wrap each fillet in an aluminum foil pouch and bake on 350 until done. (about 30-45 min)

For the Red Beans and Rice I use the Goya brand it seems to be the best that you can buy without making it from scratch.

Graduation!

2010-05-17T00:06:00.000-04:00

Almost forgot to share the news with everyone I graduated on Friday!!!! I am now a certified K-6 teacher!!!!
I would like to thank EoP for always supporting me, Acosta for being there when I needed a pep talk, my Mom for her prayers & last but def not least GOD because without him I would not have been able to make it!

See pics below..

Fresh Strawberry Cake with Strawberry Glaze

2010-05-16T23:57:00.001-04:00

Hello all,

So I was really in the baking mood today and I tried my hand at lemon cookies (my first attempt @ using cookie cutters...) Well it didn't go so well. The cookies were delish but the cutting part was a thumbs down. I purchased the book Cookie Craft and believe me it is a wonderful book and you will get inspired. I think I need a bigger rolling pin and some parchment paper...(any donations :o) just kidding! ) So I didn't let this get me down and I searched the web for fresh strawberry cakes. Unfortunately I didn't like any of them so I had an epiphany (yep just like Chrisette) I had originally planned on making a batch of lemon blossoms but I think I've had my share of lemon deserts today. (besides eyes doesn't really care for lemon) Then it hit me I had some very ripe strawberries that I had been munching on all day and I realized what I needed to do. See the recipe below!

Enjoy...

Fresh Strawberry Cake with Strawberry Glaze

1 box Butter Flavor Cake Mix (Betty Crocker Super Moist)
*follow directions on the box
1/2-3/4 cup of crushed fresh strawberries

Follow all directions for the cake mix and add the crushed strawberries to the batter.
Bake in a tube pan as directed.

For the Glaze

1 stick of butter melted
3 cups of powdered sugar
1/2 cup crushed fresh strawberries
1 tsp vanilla

mix and add milk until thin enough to pour like a glaze

When cake is done remove it from pan and turn on to a plate. While hot spoon glaze over strawberries should lie around the top. Glaze will seem sort of white but the heat from the cake will make it turn clear.

Serve warm: Enjoy!

Lemon Blossoms

2010-05-02T20:49:00.000-04:00

This recipe is a no fail! I've made it a few times and I swear there are NEVER any left overs!

Enjoy!

Lemon Blossoms
*courtesy of Paula Deen

Ingredients

18 1/2-ounce package yellow cake mix
3 1/2-ounce package instant lemon pudding mix
4 large eggs
3/4 cup vegetable oil

Glaze:

4 cups confectioners' sugar
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1 lemon, zested
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 tablespoons water

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spray miniature muffin tins with vegetable oil cooking spray. Combine the cake mix, pudding mix, eggs and oil and blend well with an electric mixer until smooth, about 2 minutes. Pour a small amount of batter, filling each muffin tin half way. Bake for 12 minutes. Turn out onto a tea towel

To make the glaze, sift the sugar into a mixing bowl. Add the lemon juice, zest, oil, and 3 tablespoons water. Mix with a spoon until smooth.

With fingers, dip the cupcakes into the glaze while they're still warm, covering as much of the cake as possible, or spoon the glaze over the warm cupcakes, turning them to completely coat. Place on wire racks with waxed paper underneath to catch any drips. Let the glaze set thoroughly, about 1 hour, before storing in containers with tight-fitting lids.

Buffalo Chicken Mac & Cheese

2010-04-25T22:02:00.000-04:00

Hello everyone! So I stumbled upon a recipe last weekend and I wanted to try it but the amount of ingredients it called for was outrageous. I live on a budget and I always try to think of ways to cook for less. So I hit the fridge and the cabinets and I was able to tweak the recipe and it was a SUCCESS!!!

Some of you have heard about the recipe already so here it goes...

BUFFALO CHICKEN MAC & CHEESE

2-3 Boneless Chicken Breasts
2 tbsp Curry Powder
2 tbsp Garlic Powder
1 tbsp Black Pepper
1 tbsp Salt
flour
cooking oil
frying pan

1/2 box of spiral noodles (rotini)
1/2 block of Velveeta Cheese (large block)
1/4 cup of milk
2 tbsp butter
1/4 cup Texas Pete hot sauce

Season chicken breasts with above seasonings. Coat them with flour and fry whole in frying pan with cooking oil (about 1 inch deep). While chicken is cooking boil noodles in salted water. When chicken is done allow to cool to retain juices. Once chicken is cool cut in small pieces set aside. Remove noodles from water and drain. Place butter in pot that noodles were cooking in. Cut cheese in blocks and add to pot with butter. On low heat add milk and keep stirring unitl cheese has melted into a sauce. Add hot sauce.

Place noodles in 8x8 baking pan add chicken. Once well mixed pour cheese mix over and bake for 30 min.

Enjoy!

Fried Chicken- Rachael Ray Mag

2010-04-18T12:22:00.001-04:00

Everyone that knows me knows that I adore Rachael Ray! So in the latest issue (May 2010) there is an article about Southern Fried Chicken. Now the article isn't massive so it doesn't have a full page spread but it stuck out like a sore thumb to me. I went to the website to see this recipe because it only had a web address in the mag and here it is! The pic looks so "delish" (per Rach) So I thought I'd share with you guys!

I haven't tried it yet but it's def on the agenda...If you try it first PLEASE let me know!

Smooches, Infinity

Southern Fried Chicken by Gerry Mims courtesy of Rachael Ray Mag

Lifelong Mississippian Gerry Mims and his family have eaten a lot of fried chicken. But surprisingly, he didn’t have a recipe his family could call its own. At least until recently, when his son Ben created this Worcestershire-spiked version that has a great kick to it. Rach's take? "Chicken cutlets were a staple of my young life, but I don’t think I made a deep-fried chicken until this past year, when I wrote a spicy curry fried chicken recipe. My husband has since become such a huge fan that I have written six different fried chicken recipes in the last six months, including my latest: fried chicken sliders."

4 Servings Prep 15 min plus Marinating Cook 35 min

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups buttermilk
1/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup hot pepper sauce
One 3- to 4-pound chicken, cut into 8 pieces
2 cups flour
2 tablespoons seasoned salt, such as Lawry’s
1 tablespoon pepper

3 cups vegetable shortening

DIRECTIONS:

In a large bowl, combine the buttermilk, Worcestershire sauce and hot sauce. Add the chicken and turn to coat; cover and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight.
Bring the marinated chicken to room temperature. In a 1-gallon resealable plastic bag or large paper bag, combine the flour, seasoned salt and pepper. Remove the chicken from the marinade, shaking off any excess. Working in 2 batches, place in the seasoned flour; shake until well coated. Place on a baking sheet and let sit for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a dutch oven, heat the vegetable shortening over medium-high heat until it registers 315° on a deep-fry thermometer. Add the chicken thighs and legs and cook, turning once, until golden and the internal temperature registers 160° on an instant-read thermometer, about 15 minutes; transfer to a rack to drain. Repeat with the breasts and wings.

Salmon Croquettes

2010-04-17T21:39:00.000-04:00

Happy Saturday Lovelies,

I thought this post would be something simple and inexpensive. I grew up eating this as a child and back then I would only eat it with ketchup and pork n beans now Ive grown to appreciate what I thought was poor people's food. These salmon croquettes or salmon patties as friends call them are wonderful and they are very quick to prepare!

I hope you all enjoy them!

Infinity

Ingredients

1 can of Pink Salmon (very inexpensive like 1.49/can)
1 small onion diced (add as much as you like)
1 large egg
1 tablespoon of flour (for binding)
Cooking Oil (I prefer Canola)

Directions

When you open the Pink Salmon there is a bone in it so its best to pour it in a bowl and remove the bones gently because they are softened so you actually don't have to remove them. ( I remove them because I despise the texture) Once removed crumble salmon with hands and add diced onion, egg, and flour.(you also may want to add some salt & pepper here) Egg is going to make salmon mixture wet but flour is added to bind together so it isn't too wet. It should be good enough to make a "pattie" about the size of a hamburger or smaller.
Heat oil in a shallow frying pan about 1/2 inch or less of oil in the pan. (not too much because you are pan frying them not deep frying) Oil should be relatively hot but not too hot when frying because you don't want them to burn. Cook until brown and then flip. (about 2-3 min)

Serve Hot or Room Temp with White/Yellow rice and Baked Beans.

*for Supa & Angie with luv....

Lost Time

2010-04-11T13:55:00.000-04:00

So yeah I'm making up for lost time...

School is almost over and graduation is slowly approaching...I'd be lying if I said I wasn't excited about graduation because I am.

As this time approaches I will be with my family so I wanted to give you guys something that I grew up eating and that I still love to this very day: Garlic Rice.

My Granny made it for me and I do not know where she got the recipe from b/c she's the only one who makes it in the family (besides me of course)

I hope you guys enjoy it as much as I do...

Bon Apetite'

Garlic Rice

2 cups Uncle Ben's Rice
1-2 cans of Campbell's Consomme Beef
4 garlic cloves sliced
a few pats of butter

*Pour the rice in the bottom of a 8x8 baking dish.
*Add the sliced garlic cloves
*Pour in 1 can of Campbell's add a second if it barely covers
*Put in butter last
*Cover and bake @ 350 for about 30-45 min (or until done)

This rice can be served with chicken or pork.

Caramel Cake

2010-04-11T13:43:00.000-04:00

So a few weeks ago I got a hankering for something different...I wanted something sweet but didn't know where to begin. So I visited trusty ol' food network and I holla'd @ my girl Paula Deen! (I just lover her!!!!) So I made Bobby's Caramel Cake.

This cake was very good and the flavor was phenomenal! The down side is it is extremely rich and I'm not very big on sweets after about a day or so, so ultimately it got thrown out. (wish you guys were here to indulge)

So here it is, if you try it be warned the icing is hella heavy!

Bobby's Caramel Cake

Recipe courtesy Paula Deen, 2007

Prep Time:: 25 min
Inactive Prep Time:: --
Cook Time:: 35 min

Level:: Easy

Serves:: 16 to 20 servings

Ingredients

For the cake:

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, at room temperature
2 cups granulated sugar
4 eggs
3 cups sifted self-rising flour
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

For the filling:

1 cup (2 sticks) butter
2 cups packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

For the frosting:

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/3 cup heavy cream, or more if needed
1 (16-ounce) box confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup chopped nuts, optional

Directions

For the cake:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour 3 (9-inch) cake pans.

Using an electric mixer, cream butter until fluffy. Add granulated sugar and continue to cream well for 6 to 8 minutes. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add flour and milk alternately to creamed mixture, beginning and ending with flour. Add vanilla and continue to beat until just mixed. Divide batter equally among prepared pans. Level batter in each pan by holding pan 3 or 4-inches above counter dropping it flat onto counter. Do this several times to release air bubbles and assure you of a more level cake. Bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown.

For the filling:

While cake is baking, in a saucepan, combine butter, brown sugar, and milk. Cook and stir over medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.

Remove cake layers from oven and allow cake to remain in pans as you prepare to stack and fill. Remove first layer and invert onto cake plate. Pierce cake layer with a toothpick over entire surface. Spread 1/3 of filling mixture on cake layer. Top with second layer, repeat process. Top with last layer and repeat process again.

*Cook's Note: As I stack layers together, I stick them with toothpicks to prevent cake from shifting.

For the frosting:

Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat and stir in brown sugar and cream. Bring to a boil, and transfer to a mixing bowl. Add confectioners' sugar and vanilla. Beat with a handheld electric mixer until it reaches a spreading consistency. At this time it may be necessary to add a tablespoon of heavy cream, or more, if frosting gets too thick. Just be sure to add cream is small amounts because you can always "add to", but you can't take away. Frost cake and sprinkle top with chopped nuts, if desired.

Chicken & Dumplings

2010-01-30T22:41:00.000-05:00

I've been gone for a min now Im back with the jump off...

LOL I have def been gone for a min... school has resumed and I am teaching everyday as well as working full time!! Somebody say a prayer for me bc 4 hours of sleep each night is ROUGH!!!

Anywho... I come bearing a new post something that will keep you warm and stick to your ribs on a cold winter's day!

Chicken & Dumplings or as I was raised Chicken Pastry

you will begin this dish by choosing the chicken pieces of your choice. (although i love breast meat the thigh meat has more flavor)

4-6 chicken thighs
2 -3 cans chicken broth
water
salt
pepper
frozen pastry strips, egg noodles, or dumplings

boil the chicken thighs in the chicken broth and water until the meat falls off the bone. remove all bones & skin. (the water will evaporate so you may want to have an extra can of chicken broth to add back to the pot once the chicken is done to flavor your pastry)
add pastry or noodles to meat & stock cook until
season to taste

enjoy with some hot cornbread!

Enjoy!!!!!

Happy New Year!

2010-01-03T00:35:00.001-05:00

Happy New Year all! I know it's been a few weeks since I've posted anything but just like the rest of America I've been trying to get through the holidays.

It's finally over and I can say I had a wonderful holiday with loved ones as I hope you did as well.

First post of the New Year...

I'm going to repost my Fod for the Soul posts from the http://www.1081creations.com/ blog.
There are also going to be some newbies as well!

Enjoy!

Rice Broccoli & Cheese Casserole

1 Onion Diced
3 Tablespoons Butter
1 Can Cream of Chicken Soup
½ Cup of Milk
1 10oz. package of Frozen Broccoli
½ lb. Velveeta Cheese (cut in cubes)
1 ½ Cup of Cooked Rice

Sauté onion in butter, then combine with other ingredients. In a greased 1 ½ quart casserole dish bake @ 350 for 30 minutes

Christine’s Beef & Vegetable Soup

1 pound of Stew Beef Meat (beef tips)
1 can of whole kernel corn
2 cans of mixed vegetables
1 can of baby lima beans
2 cans of stewed tomatoes (garlic, basil, & oregano by DelMonte or Dole)
¼ of a small cabbage cut up

*(feel free to add any canned or frozen veggies you like but remember frozen veggies may take longer to cook than canned)

Boil beef for about 1 hour on med/high heat until tender. Season beef during this time with salt, pepper, and garlic. Turn down heat and add canned veggies, tomatoes, and cabbage and allow to cook until cabbage is done. Once cabbage is done turn off heat and allow to simmer over remaining heat. Serve while hot!

Browni Bites

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup self rising flour

*if you like you can add 1/2 to 1 cup of pecans, walnuts, or cashews.

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spray an 8 inch square pan or mini muffin pan with Bakers Joy or Crisco with flour.

2. In a large saucepan, melt 1/2 cup butter. Remove from heat, and stir in sugar, eggs, and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Beat in 1/3 cup cocoa, 1/2 cup flour, salt, and baking powder. Spread batter into prepared pan.

3. Bake in preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes. Do not overcook.

Chew Bread

1 stick butter
1 box brown sugar
2 eggs
2 c. self-rising flour
1 tsp. vanilla
1 c. chopped nuts (optional but pecans work best)

Melt butter and add sugar. Remove from heat. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Add flour, one cup at a time. Add vanilla and nuts. Bake in 13x9x2 * inch greased pan at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes.

Use a toothpick to test, when it comes out clean its done.

*if you want thicker bars you can use an 8x8 baking dish

Blueberry Pound Cake

1 box butter flavored yellow cake mix
1 8oz package cream cheese
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3 eggs
2 cups blueberries (add 2 Tblsp. flour)

Preheat oven to 325. Lightly grease and flour a 10" tube pan. Combine cake mix, cream cheese, oil and eggs. Beat until smooth. Gently fold lin blueberries. Spoon into cake pan and bake for about 1 hour.

Cream Cheese Icing

One 8 ounce package of cream cheese, softened
1/4 c. butter, softened
2 tsp. vanilla
1 lb. pkg. powdered sugar

Beat together cream cheese and butter until smooth. Blend in vanilla. Gradually beat together powdered sugar and mixture.

*if icing is too stiff to drizzle on the cake then add a little milk while mixing.

Infinity’s Lemon Half-Pound Cake

1-1/2 c self rising flour
3 eggs
1 c granulated sugar
2 T butter, softened
1 t vanilla extract
½ box Jell-O lemon pudding
1/3 c lemon juice*
1/2 c vegetable oil

Lemon Icing

1 c plus 1 T powdered sugar
2 T whole milk
1/2 t lemon juice*

(also add a little lemon zest by taking a steak knife and scraping the peel of the lemon)

t : teaspoon
T: tablespoon
*Use the juice from 1 fresh lemon if you have it.

Preheat oven to 350°.

Use an electric mixer to blend together eggs, sugar, butter, vanilla, lemon jell-o & lemon juice in a large bowl. Add flour ½ cup at a time & blend until smooth. Add oil & mix well.

Pour ingredients into a well-greased 9x5-inch loaf pan. (or a tube bundt pan) Bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick stuck into the center of the cake comes out clean.

Make the lemon icing by combining ingredients in a small bowl with electric
mixer on low speed. When the lemon loaf is cool, remove it from the pan &
frost the top with the lemon icing. When the icing has set up, slice the loaf into eight 1-inch-thick slices.

Makes 8 slices.

*************************************************************************

Lumpia (filipino egg rolls)

Ingredients:

•1 pound ground beef
•3/4 cup shredded carrots
•1/2 cup chopped onions
•1 teaspoon or 2 cloves minced garlic
•3/4 teaspoon pepper
•2 teaspoons season salt
•1 package of 50 Lumpia Wrappers or 2 packages of 25 individually separated Lumpia Wrappers
•1-1 1/2 cup(s) vegetable or olive oil
•Small bowl of water

First, you'll want to brown your ground beef with your chopped onions, shredded carrots, garlic, pepper, and season salt, over medium high heat in a skillet or frying pan. (I recommend using a frying pan that is at-least 1 1/2" to 2" deep. I use the same pan to fry the lumpia in once it is rolled and finished.) When the meat is nice and brown drain the excess grease and set aside.

Now, here comes the fun part. Separate the Lumpia wrappers. In all my years of making Lumpia I have not found any easy way to separate this darn things but I will tell you how I do it; maybe you can come up with an easy way. The wrappers need to be defrosted if they are frozen. You'll also want to have a plate to set them on as well as a damp kitchen towel to cover them, we don't want our wrappers to dry out! Open the package and take out the stack of Lumpia wrappers, start at the edges and gently start peeling the edges upward, continue around and round until you eventually get to the center and loosen the individual sheet off of the stack. Now, place the loose sheet on your plate under the damp towel or cloth. And basically repeat until the stack or package is done. Sounds easy right? It's not! It will take you a few times of separating before you get the hang of it, probably midway between the stack.

We are now ready to assemble our Lumpia Rolls.

•Take 1 of the Lumpia wrappers and spoon 1-2 tablespoons of your ground beef mixture into a line near the edge on the Lumpia wrapper.
•Fold Lumpia wrapper over the line of meat you just spooned.
•Now, you will begin to roll the meat into a tube. Stop rolling when you are to the middle of the wrapper.
•Fold the right and left sides of the lumpia wrapper to the center
•Continue to roll to the end of the wrapper
•Dip your fingers in the small bowl of water and lightly moisten the exposed edge of the lumpia wrapper
•Fold wrapper edge onto itself pressing it down gently. So it seems to glue itself down.
•Place to the side for now and repeat, repeat, repeat! Until there isn't anymore wrappers or meat left.

All that's left to do now is heat your oil in your frying pan on medium high heat. You only need about 1/2" of oil across the bottom of the pan. Once the oil is hot place about 4-5 Lumpia across the pan and lightly brown each side of the lumpia. About 3-5 minutes each side. It will also vary with your stove. So if it seems like they are burning quickly turn your burner down. They should be a nice golden brown color. Now you want to let them cool and drain some of the excess grease off of them. My mother and I have always used a colander, feel free just to set them on paper towels or napkins. Repeat until you've made desired amount or they are all done. You can store extras(before they are fried in oil!) in the freezer to fry later on. That's another great benefit to this recipe, you can make 50 at a time and only fry 10 one day and saved the others for when you feel like it.

Voila! You've just made Lumpia! It's okay if they're not all perfect or the same size. Over time you will learn how to make them all uniform. Trust me it took me years to master the art of Lumpia rolling.

You can use any type of dipping sauce you prefer. My choice is pain old ketchup. I know some people who like to use the store bought sweet and sour sauce and duck sauce. Some people like them plain. They are great either way. But I strongly recommend trying them with ketchup. They're a perfect pair!

*taken from http://hubpages.com/hub/Lumpia-Filipino-Egg-Rolls

Honey Bun Cake

2009-12-19T02:31:00.001-05:00

Hello everyone,

Welcome to the first official post of Calla's Creations! This post is for a very special someone...

He loves Honey Bun Cake and I thought you guys might like it too!

Enjoy

Ingredients

1 box Betty Crocker® SuperMoist® yellow cake mix

2/3 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs
1 container (8 oz) sour cream (1 cup)
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup chopped pecans
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease with shortening and lightly flour 13x9-inch pan, or spray with baking spray with flour. (I use Baker's Joy)
2. In large bowl, beat dry cake mix, oil, eggs and sour cream with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, then on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Spread half of the batter in pan.
3. In small bowl, stir together brown sugar, pecans and cinnamon; sprinkle over batter in pan. Carefully spread remaining batter evenly over pecan mixture.
4. Bake 44 to 48 minutes or until deep golden brown. In another small bowl, stir powdered sugar, milk and vanilla until thin enough to spread. Prick surface of warm cake several times with fork. Spread powdered sugar mixture over cake. Cool completely, about 1 hour. Store covered at room temperature.

Welcome

2009-12-19T01:43:00.003-05:00

Hello all! Welcome to Calla's Creations. You all may know me from 1081creations.com from the food for the soul posts. I am very pleased to have you all visit my blog to be introduced to various goodies. This is my first blog so this is all new to me! I hope you all enjoy what I have to share and what has been shared with me!

Blessings ~Infinity~