salt | Mommie Cooks!

Family Friendly Fridays: Raspberry Cheesecake Bars

March 25, 2011 By Julie 39 Comments

I was supposed to be making a tart with my brand new tart pan. At least that was the original intention. In the end it turned out more like a bar made in a tart pan. This is the second time that my attempts at “tart creation” have been thwarted. The first time involved rhubarb and wouldn’t you guess, cream cheese. It was a sloppy finish and in the end I had to mix the whole concoction together, throw it in a pie crust and freeze it. The pie was delicious, but it definitely didn’t qualify for tart status. I swear, one of these days I’m going to set out to make a tart and succeed. Until that day comes though, this bar definitely suffices and serves to calm my ever nagging sweet tooth.

Think cookie crust with just a hint of lemon zest meets smooth as silk almondy cream cheese middle and hug it all together with a slightly tart red raspberry sauce that serves to balance the overall sweetness of the confection. Combine this melody of flavors and what do you have? One harmoniously empty plate, that’s what.

I’m assuming you can’t get to the kitchen fast enough to whip a plate up for yourself, so let me end the suspense and show you how it’s done.

…

17 Bean White Chicken Chili

March 21, 2011 By Julie 24 Comments

Have you ever bought one of those packs of beans from the grocery store? You know the ones, they have 17 different flavors of legume in the assortment and a recipe for the same old soup on the back every time you pick it up.

Well, I just so happened to have one such bag gracing the inside of my pantry a few weeks back that was bellowing at me to eat it. Being the adventuresome food blogger that I am, I decided to veer away from the bean sack’s dinner plans and instead attempt to create a dish of my own. It would be a chili dish. And while I was at it, I resolved to make it a chicken based chili. And if I was going to use chicken, why not take it one step further and make the base be something other than tomatoes. I was on fire; the inspirational juices were flowing like a glass of cool water on a hot summer day.

I threw in a little of this, and a bit of that. The steam was rising and the water was bubbling. All I needed was my witches hat, a wart and a good cackle, and I would have been concocting one seriously wicked witches brew. When the smoke cleared and the spoon was laid to rest, what remained was one seriously delicious white chicken chili.

…

Family Friendly Friday’s: Banana’s Foster French Toast

March 18, 2011 By Julie 47 Comments

When I say the words “Bananas Foster French Toast”, what thought comes to your mind? For me it’s one all encompassing word. Scrumptious. The idea for this recipe was first inspired by a morning meal we partook in at one of our favorite Charlotte breakfast hangouts; The Flying Biscuit. Oh man, if you ever go, make sure to get the creamy dreamy grits. I think I literally break out into song right there at the table every time I take a bite. Never have I had a better grit. Ever. But I digress. This particular morning we were there, they just happened to have a list of breakfast specials and the one that caught my five year old’s eye was the banana’s foster french toast. Alright, I’ll admit, it caught my eye too. What’s not to love? Thick slabs of french toast, covered with caramel coated bananas and topped with fresh whipped cream. Uh, yea. Twist my arm.

I’ll be honest when I say that we ate breakfast and that was the end of it. The thought never even crossed my mind to create a batch of my own. And then last week, I was stopping by Lyndsey’s blog, Pinch of Yum, and she had the most delectable looking Caramalized Banana and Fig Oatmeal. Who knew oatmeal could be that exciting? I left a comment on her blog and mentioned the bananas foster french toast. Next thing I know I’m getting this comment on my Greek inspired slow cooker chicken in return:

“I love the addition of dill. Mmmmm… dill!! Also, I’m a tad disappointed that your post wasn’t about the bananas foster french toast! Will we get to see that anytime soon, I hope?!”

Hmmm. First the restaurant, then the oatmeal and now the comment. Yep, this recipe pretty much hit me upside the head and said make me. NOW. So that’s exactly what I did. Prepare to get your breakfast tooth, your sweet tooth, and your “I can now die a happy (and full) woman (or man) tooth on, cuz this recipe is about to take you to a whole new level of breakfast and give new meaning to the word scrumptious.

In this dish, bread choice can make make or break you, so for heaven’s sake, don’t grab the wonder bread sandwich loaf. Get yourself a beautiful hunk of challah or hawaiian bread that you can cut thick slices from and do just that.

…

Simply Bean Soup

March 16, 2011 By Julie 25 Comments

When I was a child I hated beans. No wait, let me rephrase that. Not just hated, despised. On nights when beans were served, my mom would make my brother and me sit at the table until we finished every last bean on our plates and sometimes we’d sit there for hours. We didn’t have a dog to help in our demise and the cat was as turned off by the whole ordeal as we were so she was no assistance in the bean disposal department. My brother eventually developed this ingenious idea to declare an “emergency bathroom break” immediately after taking a huge bite of said round nuggets and would magically come back with a cleansed palate. I still owe my brother one for his shrewd method of bean extraction.

I’m not sure what happened between childhood and today, but at some point in time, unbeknownst to me, my palate adapted, ate a bean, and declared it good. Now I suddenly find myself cooking with beans on a weekly basis and dare I say, enjoying it. Fortunately two of my three kiddos enjoy the beans with me. One, Nicholas, does not. Life experience has taught me that forcing a bean ~~despiser~~ hater to eat beans does absolutely nothing for expanding the palate and only causes said child to have a sore bum from spending too much time seated at the table with no dog for assistance. So, for now, I allow Nicholas to bypass the beans in the hopes that one day, he too will declare beans good.

And so, this soup is in honor of beans. Plain and simple. There aren’t many bells and whistles in the recipe. Just what it takes to highlight my gratitude for a sometimes under acknowledged, non-meat, healthy as all get out, protein source that with time and appreciation, I have truly come to enjoy.

Grab your bowl and let’s cook up some Simply Bean Soup.

…

Irish Soda Bread

March 14, 2011 By Julie 37 Comments

Would you believe me if I told you that I had never partook in a slice of Irish Soda Bread until I cooked up this recipe? I tell ya, this is what I love about food blogging. It forces you to get out of your rut, off your behind, and into your kitchen. It causes you to read Food and Wine, watch The Food Network and browse through your Citipass coupon book for recipe ideas while waiting for your child to finish up a class (Oh yes, guilty as charged. I can tell you with complete confidence that at least a handful of recipes I’ve shared on this blog have been inspired by my child’s annual school fundraiser). And you thought it was all about the coupons.

But back to the topic at hand. Irish soda bread. Why I haven’t cooked up a loaf of this bread sooner is beyond me. It’s quick to make; think no waiting for the yeast to rise. It”s easy enough for even an amateur bread maker to put together; it’s about as simple as mixing together the ingredients, forming it into a ball, and baking it. And the final result is a moist, flavorful bread that tastes like you spent the entire afternoon pouring your heart and soul into it. What’s not to love?

Traditional Irish soda bread consists of four main ingredients; Flour, baking soda, salt, and buttermilk. That’s all there is to it. Most recipes these days fancy it up a bit with fruit, sugar, and the like. This version is no different. I added a little honey for sweetness and some caraway seeds just because. Do we really have to save this recipe for St. Patrick’s day? Because I could easily see this bread becoming a staple in our house.

Let’s get baking.

…

Family Friendly Fridays: Boston “Black Forest” Cream Pie

March 11, 2011 By Julie 25 Comments

Who wants some Boston Cream Pie? How about some Black Forest Cake? How about both? Pie meet cake. Cake meet pie. Don’t they look happy together? I like to think of their relationship as a little slice of heaven.

It’s been awhile since I cranked out a killer dessert so I figured it was high time. That, and I really needed a serious hit of chocolate. Who doesn’t every now and then? Enter into the pie picture my friend black forest cake. Super duper chocolaty goodness with a cherry or two thrown in for good measure. Booyah.

Let’s review. A Boston cream pie is typically a sponge cake with pastry cream in the middle and ganache poured over the top. A black forest cake is a decadently chocolate cake with layers of whipped cream and cherries sandwiched between. Cake. Pie. Cake. Pie. Pake? Cie? Hey, call it whatever you want, I call it good and gone. I’ve dressed this little lady up in a chocolate sponge, added cherries and cream to her middle and ganached her from head to toe. If you thought plain ol’ Boston cream pie was good, prepare to be one up’ed.

Have I got you ready for your own little slice of pie heaven?

…