Cajun Roast Beef & My first Giveaway!

Apparently my mom has reached the point in her life where she just doesn't want to spend anymore time in the kitchen. She spent over 20 years cooking for a family of five and we probably weren't as appreciative as we should have been growing up. Fortunately she taught her three children well and we are all more than happy to cook family dinners for everyone. We can still count on her making dishes for special occasions.  Hmm, now that I think about it I am going to be out of commission for about two weeks in August so I better get my special orders in now!

Anyway, the point to this story (and I promise there is one) is that my my mom has better things to do these days than cook a big meal. But she can not overlook  a good deal in the grocery store.  So the other week when she saw a beautiful roast on sale she couldn't resist buying it and she called me right away to tell me all about it. Of course I volunteered to cook it for Sunday dinner.

This recipe is very similar to my slow cooker roast beef recipe.

Ingredients

1 3-4 lb Beef Roast
1 packet Onion Soup Mix
1 Bay Leaf

Seasonings to Taste
Cajun Seasonings
Garlic Powder
Salt
Pepper



Generously rub seasonings into all sides of the roast.



Melt a little butter into a pan and brown the roast on all sides.



Mix 1 cup of water with onion mix and add to bottom of roasting pan.



Add Roast to pan.  If you like it pink in the center you'll want to cook it for about 20 minutes per pound, if you like it well done, about 30 minutes per pound at 350 F.  I always use a thermometer to be sure. When the thermometer (placed in the center of the roast) reaches the following temperatures you will know that the roast is done. 120°F to 125°F, (49°C to 52°C) for rare, 130°F to 140°F (55°C to 60°C) for medium rare, 145°F to 150°F (63°C to 66°C) for medium, and 155°F to 165°F (68°C to 74°C) for well done. 


My oven thermometer was broken so I had to be creative to check the temperature of the roast.

Be sure to let the roast to rest before slicing.

I served the roast with red potatoes seasoned with Cajun Seasonings and mixed veggies.




Now for my very first contest! I feel very blessed to have over 100 "likes" on my Facebook page. To share my joy I am giving away a $25.00 Amazon gift card.  To enter you just need to comment below.  To have your name entered more than once you can do the following.

1. Be a Facebook Friend
2. Follow this Blog. (You can follow using the link on the upper right hand corner).

The contest will be open until August 6, 2011 11:59 pm EST.  Good Luck!

Adventures in Grilling: Pineapple & Pound Cake

Yesterday I cooked on the grill for the very first time. Because I love desserts I decided to try preparing a dessert on the grill while the coals were still hot.   I thought it would be handy to be able to prepare a desert over the grill in case of a power outage during  hurricane season.  You never know when you will have a dessert emergency.

This recipe prepares dessert for two!

Ingredients
4 slices of pineapple
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tbsp honey
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp lime juice
1/2 tsp cinnamon
4 slices pound cake



Prepare and preheat grill.

Combine brown sugar, honey, lemon juice, lime juice, and cinnamon.

Spread mixture over pineapple slices.



Place 2 pineapple slices in an aluminum foil packet.



Grill for five minutes, turn over and grill for an additional 5 minutes.



Remove packets from grill.

Place pound cake slices on grill. Cook for about 1 -2 minutes on each side. You want the cake to be warm throughout and to have grill marks.





Place pineapple slices on pound cake slices, drizzling sauce from the packets. Top with whipped cream if desired.

Adventures in grilling: Grilled Shrimp

Obviously I love to cook and bake but I have never tried grilling before.  In my world the men have always been in charge of grilling so I never needed to.  I always leave the the playing with fire to Michael.  But the other week I saw these cute little portable charcoal grills so I had to buy two.  Technically we're not supposed to grill on our back patio, but I figure these are too small to be too noticeable.  So I decided it was my turn to play with fire.



My husband put the grill together for me. He thinks this helps stop the aliens from reading his mind.

I decided my first time grilling shouldn't be too adventurous so I decided to try a shrimp dish I usually make in the oven, shrimp in an aluminum foil packet

Ingredients

1 lb Medium Shrimp
1/2 cup Olive Oil
2 -3 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
4 tsp Seafood Seasonings
1/4 cup Fresh Lemon Juice
2 tsp Garlic Powder
Tabasco sauce to taste
Salt & Pepper to taste



Directions

Combine all the ingredients except for the shrimp in a medium bowl.



Add shrimp and let marinate for about 30 minutes.

While the shrimp is marinating you can start the grill. If you know what you are doing feel free to skip this section.

The bag of charcoal said to assemble to charcoal into a pyramid. I couldn't really get it into a pyramid shaoe but Michael said that it would be fine.



Set a couple of the coals on fire and let it burn.





Once the coals are ready, assemble the packets with the shrimp.

Using two pieces of aluminum foil, place about half the shrimp in the center. Place two pats of butter on top.



Foil fold over and seal edges really well.



Grill over hot coals for about 6 - 8 minutes.



Turn packets over and grill an additional 6 to 8 minutes until shrimp are done.



Serve immediately.





Next time I'll be sharing a grilled dessert!

Better for your Chicken Parmesan

Most people dream in black and white or in color.  Apparently I dream in butter.  The other night I swear all of my dreams involved butter.  In one dream I was sauteing garlic in butter.  In another dream I was melting butter to pour over popcorn. The funny thing is that there was a soundtrack to my dream and it was the music they play during my Zumba classes.  I guess my good angel and bad angel were are war at with each other.  When it came time to make dinner the next night I knew it would be a good idea to come up with a compromise to keep them both happy and so that I could go back to dreams of Justin Timberlake my husband.

I came up with idea for this recipe when I saw on the box of Fiber One cereal that you could use it as a substitute for bread crumbs.

Ingredients

1 cup finely crushed original Fiber One Cereal
2 tbsp Parmesan cheese
2 tbsp garlic powder
2 tbsp Italian seasonings
Salt & Pepper to taste
2 egg whites
1 jar spaghetti sauce
1 pound chicken breast cutlets
Linguine
Mozzarella cheese





I usually buy chicken breast and pound them out.  It is a great way to relieve stress, but the cutlets were on sale that week.  You may need to tweak the seasonings to suit your family's tastes.

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 13 x 9 pan with cooking spray.

Finely crush the Fiber One cereal. I used my blender, but you can use a food processor or smash in a plastic baggie.



Add crushed cereal to a bowl and mix in seasonings



Set up an assembly line of the chicken, egg whites and cereal mixture

Dip the chicken in the egg whites.



Coat chicken with cereal mixture.



Bake for about 15 minutes and remove from oven.



Cover with pasta sauce and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.



Return to oven and bake for an additional 10 minutes or until sauce is heated and cheese has melted.



Serve over cooked linguine or any pasta you choose.



My family loved this meal, they never even suspected they were eating something relatively healthy.

Nutritional  Information (just the chicken)
Calories: 145 Total Fat: 1.9 g Cholesterol: 55 mg Total Carbohydrates: 10.4 g Dietary Fiber: 4.9 Sugars: 0.7
Protein: 25.8 g

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Wednesday Window Shopping: Betty Crocker Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Being talented in the kitchen runs in my family.  My sister (Kristen) and brother (Leroy) both cook really well.  Leroy even cooks for a living at a local restaurant.  However my sister did not get the baking gene. It skipped right over her, but it is OK because she got the dancing the gene and I have 2 left feet, so I think it evens out.  Occasionally I like to bake treats to bring to my nephew and niece.  I usually like to bring something chocolate, because Kristen and brother-in-law (Texas) both hate chocolate.  I'm pretty sure my sister was dropped off by aliens, I mean how can you not like chocolate. It is one of the basic food groups. Isn't it blasphemous to not like chocolate?  Sometimes when I want something to be nice I bring over a non-chocolate treat.

A few weekends ago I really wanted a burger cooked on a grill.  We live in an apartment with a screened in porch we can't have a grill so I have to bribe rely on the kindness of others. I volunteered to make Texas a pineapple upside down cake in exchange for some burgers and a deal was made

The Betty Crocker recipe using a boxed mix is my usual go to recipe.  It is pretty easy to make and using the boxed mix is pretty convenient.  As usual with my Wednesday window shopping I will just be sharing my experience. You can use the link to see the actual recipe.

Ingredients



I have a slight thing for maraschino cherries, just a tiny crush.

The recipe calls for melting the butter in the pan.





Mix ingredients according to box directions, substituting pineapple juice for the water.






The next step is to place the cherries and pineapples in the pan. I didn't get to take a picture, because in my house the fruit disappears from the pan if I turn my back.

Pour the batter over the fruit.



Bake according to directions.



When you pull the cake out of the oven, you should immediately flip it upside down onto another dish and let it sit.

Hopefully when you make the cake it won't have a fault line going through it.



It may not have been the prettiest cake, but it was eaten in record time. Poor Michael didn't even get a piece. I may have to make it again soon.

Product Review: Temptation by Jell-O

The other day I was at the grocery store minding my own business. Shopping for fruits and vegetables because I am all about eating healthy food. Somehow a box Temptations by Jell-O ended up in my shopping cart.  I didn't have the heart to tell it that it couldn't come home with me, it was the Boston Creme Pie flavor after all.

The box advertises that it is only 130 calories per serving when made with non fat milk.  Of course the box says it has 8 servings and I turned it into about 4.  I also used 2% milk.

The dessert is really easy to make.  You just whisk the milk and and the filling mix together.



Now what makes the dessert really special is the chocolate hard shell topping.  It starts out in liquid form and after being in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes it hardens.



I definitely would recommend buying this product.  it is super quick and easy to make.  Perfect for when you are short on time or when you want to make a special treat after a busy day. 

The Boston Creme Pie version is very delicious.  My mom was on her way out the door and said she wanted to just taste a spoonful.  She ended up sitting back down and eating her entire portion

Cheese Grits

Every girl (and guy) from the south should know how to make grits.   I think it is an actual law. Of course technically I am not from the south, I was born and raised in New Jersey, but I was raised by southern parents so I think it counts. Doesn't it? I can be an honorary southern girl, right?  My southern friends don't hold my northern roots against me.  I like to think of myself as a hybrid Jersey/Southern girl.  I've had the best of worlds.  In Jersey you can always find the perfect slice of pizza and the best Chinese food and in the south I can always find a glass of sweet tea and good down home cooking.

Grits are traditionally a breakfast meal, but you can eat it any time of day.  I personally love to eat shrimp and grits for lunch or dinner.

This is my basic recipe for cheese grits and it makes about 6 - 8 servings. You can can jazz it up however you like, but I like to keep it simple.

Ingredients
5 cups water
1 tsp salt
1 1/4 cups uncooked quick cooking grits
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup half & half
2 tbsp butter

Seasonings to Taste
Garlic Powder
Salt
Pepper



Directions

Bring 5 cups water and salt to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Gradually whisk in grits and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer, stirring occasionally for about 10 minutes or until thickened.
Stir in Cheddar cheese and remaining ingredients until cheese is melted and mixture is blended. Serve immediately






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Girl Math and White Balsamic Vinaigrette

So the other night around 9:30 when all good girls and boys should be getting ready for bed, I decided that I needed a blizzard from Dairy Queen.  It didn't take much convincing to get Michael to go with me.  Once we arrived at the drive thru I was thrilled to discover their Blizzard of the month is . . . (drum roll please) "Triple Chocoholic"!  It was like Dairy Queen knew exactly what I needed.  I was a good girl and ordered the mini version, because we all know mini equals very little calories. I also ate the entire blizzard while we were driving and everyone knows it is hard for calories to stick while you are moving.  When we got home I was able to, throw the empty cup straight into the dumpster and since there was no evidence it was like I never ate it at all.  Don't you just love girl math?


Unfortunately the next day when I stepped on the scale and squeezed into my jeans, I realized that my formula may have been a little flawed.  Maybe it wasn't enough that the car was moving.  I should have been moving, next time I will try eating the Blizzard while walking.


Anyway, I decided that I needed more salad in my life.  All of my health conscious friends love balsamic vinaigrette.  For some reason I really do not enjoy the taste of it it.  But I did get to try a version made out of the white balsamic vinegar. I couldn't find a full size bottle at the store so I decided to try and create my own at home.  If you try this at home, this is just a base recipe, you will probably need to tweak the seasonings to suit your own tastes. After I combined all the ingredients I went back and added additional honey, salt and pepper.


Ingredients


¾ cup extra virgin olive oil
½ white balsamic vinegar
3 tsp Italian seasonings
3 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp fresh ground pepper
2 tsp salt
3 squeezes of the honey bear





Honey Bear is in witness protection so he can't have his picture taken.


Directions


Combine all all ingredients in a medium size bowl or large measuring cup





Whisk until well blended.








Serve with your favorite salad.




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