A Mouth Full

"We should look for someone to eat and drink with before looking for something to eat and drink..."
~Epicurus

Carrot Cake

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It has been forever since I have posted anything on here. But this carrot cake that I made for Easter was so good I had to share the recipe with everyone! I had been searching for weeks in advance for the perfect recipe. I wanted one with pineapple and coconut in it to make it non traditional. I personally don’t like nuts in the actual cake so I chopped them and placed them only on the outside but you could definitely put them in the batter. Each time I found the perfect recipe I would read reviews that completely discouraged me from even attempting to make a carrot cake. Most of the complaints were that the cake was soggy in the center or that it was too moist and difficult to cut for a layered cake. So I found a great recipe and made just a few small changes to insure that my cake would’t fail. Even though I had been planning to bake this cake for weeks I was not prepared at all. I ran to the store the day before Easter to grab all the ingredients and didn’t make it until Easter morning. I was able to whip this cake together in about 2 hours start to finish. 

Here are a few tips-

Prep everything before you begin, grate carrots, chop nuts and have all necessary bowls, spoons and measuring cups ready to go. There is a lot of stuff that goes in this cake so the better prepared you are the less mess you will make, unlike me. (In my defense I have a very small kitchen and Luca and Mathieu are in my way the entire time, so I get to make a mess.)

When you are cooking the cake be sure to rotate it to ensure even cooking. I have an electric stove (I hate it) so I rotate the pans every 15 minutes, turning them and switching sides. This cake only took about 40 minutes so I had to do this twice. 

Also it is very important that you have fresh baking powder and baking soda. If they are old they will not work properly and your cake will not rise. It is the worst when you bake something and it sinks all because you didn’t have these ingredients fresh! 

Carrot Cake 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Sift the following ingredients in a bowl

2 cups flour

2 tsp baking powder

2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg

- In a mixing bowl combine the following ingredients using the paddle attachment 

3/4 cup canola oil

1 tsp kosher salt

1.5 cups sugar

1/2 cup buttermilk

1 tbsp vanilla extract

4 eggs 

Add your dry ingredients to your wet until just combined, then add the following and mix gently until just combined:

2 cups finely grated carrots

1 can of crushed pineapple, drained well (regular size can ~15oz I believe)

1 cup sweetened coconut flakes

*You may add in addition, if you like, 1/2 cup of raisins and 1 cup walnuts.

Once you have your batter ready grease two pans 8 or 9 inch with butter and coat with flour. 

Evenly divide the batter and bake for about 40 minutes. Be sure to check cake every 15 minutes. 

*You can bake this is a large rectangular pan, bunt pan or make cupcakes. Obviously just check often for doneness and don’t overcook. 

Butter Cream Cheese Frosting

16 oz Philadelphia cream cheese softened (2 packages)

4 oz butter softened (1 stick) 

2 tsp vanilla extract

pinch of salt

~ 2 cups confectioners sugar

Beat cream cheese, butter and vanilla until smooth. Add 1 cup of sugar at a time until just combined, taste for sweetness. 

Allow cake to cool completely before icing! I assembled my cake in only two layers. I had originally wanted to slice each cake and have a four layer cake but I was afraid I would not have enough icing. Also the cake was very moist and I didn’t want to create crumbs by slicing my cake. Regardless it turned out great! I placed some flaked coconut on top (I wished I had toasted it for color, oh well) and used the walnuts to cover the side. 

Jumbo Chocolate Chip Cookies

                                   

So I take zero credit for this recipe. My co-worker and an incredibly talented chef shared this recipe with me. I could not be happier because they are awesome. I have been tweaking my  chocolate chip cookie recipe for some time and was beginning to hate them. I could not get the right consistance or sweetness that I wanted. These cookies however are exactly what I was looking for. This recipe is super quick and easy. You can mix all of the  ingredients in one bowl - no mixer necessary. Unless of course you aren’t feeling strong enough to whisk for a minute or two!

Pre heat oven to 325 degrees.

Ingredients:

1.5 sticks of unsalted butter*

1 C brown sugar

1/2 C white sugar

1 whole egg

1 egg yolk

2 t vanilla

2 C plus 2 T flour

1/2 t baking soda

1/2 t salt (* if using salted butter reduce salt to 1/4 t)

1 C chocolate chips 

Melt the butter and allow to cool slightly.

Place butter in mixing bowl and add brown and white sugars.

Whisk until incorporated.

Add egg, egg yolk and vanilla.

Vigorously whisk until batter becomes lighter in color and feel. 

Add on top of wet ingredients the flour, baking soda and salt.

Slowly whisk to incorporate the dry ingredients then using the whisk or a spatula gently mix all ingredients together.

Add your chocolate chips beginning with less than 1 cup to determine how much chips you like.

Using a 1/4 cup measuring cup portion out your cookies. 

This requires getting your hands messy and banging the measuring cup against your palm to release the dough. 

Once you have a cylindrical piece of cookie dough in your hand break this in half down the middle and fold against each other.

Place on cookie sheet with the halves slightly smushed together and broken sides facing up.  

I know this sounds confusing but this is what creates the cracked look on top, so that your cookie doesn’t become flat and unattractive. 

Be sure to space cookies about 2 inches apart I fit 6 cookies on the baking sheet. (This recipe makes about 12 large cookies.)

Bake for 18-20 minutes rotating halfway to ensure even cooking. 

Remember that cookies firm up once they are cool. So be sure to keep an eye on your cookies the last few minutes to make sure they are not overcooking. 

Apricot Glazed Pork Chops

We obviously love pork at my house! I find that I make it often. It’s just so simple to prepare and goes with almost everything. I created this meal off of all the odds and ends I had left in my fridge from the week. I used a half a head of cauliflower to make a puree, instead of mashed potatoes. They were a much lighter alternative to heavy mashed potatoes. A friend of mine had brought this to my attention recently and I think its a great substitute during the warmer months and if your worried about calories. I also had left over sauerkraut and a small wedge of cabbage. I wanted to try to prepare something using both.  At first I wasn’t sure if I wanted to use them together, since essentially they are the same thing. Then I realized that I could create a sweet and sour type mixture, which would go great with pork. So by caramelizing the fresh cabbage I created sweet and by cooking down the sauerkraut I created sour. Combining the two actually turned out well and I was happy to get rid of all the odds and ends in my fridge. 

Apricot Glazed Pork Chops

2 thick cut boneless pork chops (or bone in if you prefer)

3 T apricot preserves

1 T dijon mustard

Pre heat your oven to 350 degrees.

Mix apricot preserves and mustard in small bowl

Heat a cast iron skillet until hot.

Season pork chops generously with salt and pepper.

Drizzle a small amount of oil in pan and sear each side of the chop for 2-3 minutes until a nice crust has formed. 

Place a large spoonful of glaze on each chop and place cast iron pan directly in oven.

Bake for 15-20 minutes or until an internal temperature of 145 degrees. 

Cauliflower Puree

1/2 a head of cauliflower 

3 garlic cloves

1 T cream cheese

Parmesan cheese, as needed

Pre heat oven to 350 degrees.


Place garlic cloves and olive oil in a well sealed tin foil pouch and roast in oven for 15 minutes.

Steam a half a head of cauliflower. 

Place steamed cauliflower in a frying pan over med heat to cook off any extra moisture. 

Place cauliflower, roasted garlic cream cheese and a few dashes of parmesan cheese in food processer. Blend until incorporated. Adjust seasoning with salt, pepper, and parmesan.  (Or mash by hand.)

Place in a small baking dish with cheese sprinkled on top and bake in oven for 15 minutes. (at the same time as your pork chops would be practical)

*The reason I used cream cheese is because I felt the cauliflower puree had a thinner consistency and I didn’t want to add any additional liquid.  Greek yogurt or sour cream would work as well. 


Sweet and Sour Cabbage and Sauerkraut 

1/2 a head of cabbage

1/2 a package of sauerkraut

1-2 T Butter

Place sauerkraut and liquids in a pan and heat over med-low heat until it becomes tender, about 20 minutes. (If there is little to no liquid you may and water to the pan) 

Chop cabbage and saute in butter until tender and caramelized. Season with salt and pepper. 

Drain or cook off any extra liquid in sauerkraut and combine with cabbage. Allow to cook together for an additional 15- 20 minutes. 






Cheesecake

I love cheesecake. It may even be one of my favorite desserts. At one of my first jobs in a restaurant I made this cheesecake and immediately fell in love with it. I had never really made cheesecake before and was nervous to make one. The idea of a water bath at the time intimidated me. The owner/chef Michael showed me how to make it and it was super easy. Since then I have made this cheesecake a million times and I have never messed it up. So trust me when I say its super easy! I have included alternate recipes to make peanut butter cheesecake and pumpkin cheesecake. I honestly believe that the mascarpone cheese is what makes this so damn good, but if you can not find mascarpone simply just use all cream cheese. I make the plain cheesecake with a graham cracker crust, peanut butter cheesecake with a chocolate crust and pumpkin cheesecake with a gingersnap and graham cracker crust. Please feel free to do whatever crust you like with which ever cake. I am not including recipes for the crusts, but you can easily look them up if you don’t know how to make them.

I bake the cheesecake in a water bath. So you will need a pan larger then your spring form pan, it also needs to be deep enough to allow for enough water to come half way up the side of your spring form pan. I wrap the base of the spring form pan with plastic wrap and then foil. I know plastic wrap in the oven…… trust me its fine. If you don’t trust me then only use foil.

This recipe seems difficult because I wrote a lot of helpful tips. Please read through the entire recipe and instructions before making.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cheesecake

2 lbs cream cheese

8 oz mascarpone cheese

1 1/4 C sugar

1 T real vanilla extract

2 eggs

Let cream cheese and mascarpone come to room temperature, they need to be soft, not sort of soft.

Place cheeses into a mixing bowl with sugar and vanilla and beat until combined and slightly fluffy.

Add one egg at a time incorporating each egg thoroughly before adding the next.

Prepare your crust in your pan and par bake if needed. Allow your crust and pan to completely cool before adding your cheesecake mixture.

*If par baking crust wrap your spring form pan after it has cooled.

When wrapping your spring form pan be sure to wrap almost to the top of your pan.

Once your crust and pan are completely cool add your cheesecake mixture.

*if you did not put crust up the sides of the pan be sure to spray sides with nonstick cooking spray after your pan is cool and before adding cheesecake mixture.

Try to pour it evenly. It will be thick so this can be difficult. You want to fuss with it as little as possible, as trying to smooth it out may pull your crust away from the edges.

I would recommend placing your water bath pan in the oven first then placing your cheesecake into the pan and then carefully adding enough water to come half way up the side of your spring form pan.

Bake for 55 minutes turning half way to ensure even cooking. Be careful not to spill water!

Cheesecake can be tricky to determine if it is finished. My rule of thumb is to be sure that the cheesecake is set 2 inches in from the edge and slight jiggle in the middle is okay.

Cool cheesecake completely, remove the foil and plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. I know its a long wait but its worth it.

Carefully run a knife around the edge of the pan and open.

To make clean cuts of cheesecake use a clean knife each time you cut! Run your knife under hot water before each slice. You want it to look as good as its going taste!

ALTERNATE RECIPES

For peanut butter cheesecake: substitute 8oz of cream cheese with creamy peanut butter.

For pumpkin cheesecake: substitute 8 oz of cream cheese with canned pumpkin. Add pumpkin pie spice to taste.

pumpkin cheesecake

Cinnamon Tea

I recently had cinnamon tea for the first time yesterday. It was so good that I had to immediately share this with everyone.  I’m not talking about cinnamon flavored tea, I’m talking about a cinnamon stick and water. I have never heard of this before and I’ll admit I thought it sounded strange, until I tried it. My boss had been suffering from a terrible cold and while at work she made this for herself. She described it as a Mexican tradition to cure or alleviate a cold. It is super easy to make and is really refreshing. 

Cinnamon Tea with Honey

2 Cinnamon sticks

2-3 cups of water

Place cinnamon sticks and water in a pot.

Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer for 30 minutes. 

Add honey to taste. 

Cinnamon: A spice that is the inner bark of the branches of a small evergreen tree native to Sir Lanka and India. It is typically sold in rolled up sticks or ground. It has a distinctive flavor and aroma and can be used in sweet or savory dishes. 

Cinnamon is believed to help with; nausea, colds, indigestion, diabetes and digestion. As well as to improve energy, circulation and vitality. 

Buttermilk

I never really understood what buttermilk was. I thought it was what is seems described as, butter and milk. Resulting in a fattening, thick and off white milky substance. Well I was wrong and I am certain that I am not the only one. Here is a simple explanation of what it is. Today’s buttermilk is a fermented product made by culturing whole, low-fat, or nonfat milk. Lactic-acid producing bacteria’s are added to the milk, the milk is then heated to 72 degrees, and the harmless bacteria converts lactose (milk sugar) to lactic acid, which gives the final product a slightly thickened, rich texture, and tangy, somewhat salty flavor. The ripening process is complete within 14 hours, at which point the milk is cooled to 45 degrees to halt fermentation. (Traditionally buttermilk was simply just the liquid remaining after the cream was churned into butter. Of course we have found a way to mass produce buttermilk.) 

I had left over buttermilk from making cornbread. It lasts quite a while and was still hanging around so I decided to make buttermilk pancakes. Mathieu and I typically go out to breakfast so it was nice to stay home and eat, minus the cleanup. 



Buttermilk Pancakes

This makes about 10 small pancakes

1 1/4 C flour

1 t baking soda

1 t baking powder

1/4 C sugar

1 pinch of salt

1 egg

1/4 C vegetable oil

1 1/4 C buttermilk

In a small bowl combine all the dry ingredients and whisk to combine.

Make a small well in the center of your dry ingredients and add the egg, oil and buttermilk. Gently whisk incorporating the dry ingredients. 

I place the ingredients back into my 2 cup glass measuring cup to make it easy to pour in to my pan. 

Heat your pan and grease lightly with butter or pam and pour pancake batter in small batches. Let air bubbles form and pop then flip. If you are making a lot of pancakes simply preheat your oven to 225 degrees and lay finished pancakes on a sheet tray to keep warm until all pancakes are ready to be served. 

There is nothing like a huge bowl of chili to warm you up on a cold winters day. Although I prefer chili the next day, I can not help but to eat it the day I make it. I like my chili to be on the spicier side and am happy that Mathieu does as well. We made this particular batch of chili together and it turned out to be better than ever. I like to have different textures in my chili so I use ground beef and beef cubes. I use a variety of peppers instead of just plain bell peppers. Long hots have a little bit of heat while jalapeno’s can range from medium to hot. I particularly like San Marzano tomatoes, they are great tasting and make the best sauces. I use a boxed chili seasoning kit. I opt for this because the different spices are individually wrapped so that you’re able to season to your own taste. I put a few dashes of cinnamon into my chili but you must do this sparingly. Cinnamon can be over powering and it is best to add a dash at a time. continue to taste until just a hint of cinnamon is detected. I love beer so why not put a bottle of it into your chili. Put whatever beans you like and call it a day. Chili 2 lbs of beef (1lb ground, 1lb cubed) 1 small onion 1 bell pepper 2 long hot peppers 2 jalapeno peppers 1 large can of tomatoes 1 box of chili seasoning mix (2 alarm chili kit is my favorite) A few dashes of ground cinnamon 1 bottle of beer (you can substitute with one can of low sodium beef broth)  1 can of red kidney beans 1 can of black beans Heat oil in a large pot and add beef cubes sprinkle with salt. Brown the beef cubes. Remove from the pan and add the ground beef and sprinkle with salt. Once that is browned add back the beef cubes. Dice your onion and all of your peppers. Add to your beef. Add all of your seasons to browned meat and vegetables. (I recommend that you do not add all of the salt if that is included in your seasoning packet, I would also only add about 2/3 of the chili powder you may add more later if needed) Add can of tomatoes (I purchase whole tomatoes and dump into a bowl and squash with my hands, you can use a blender or food processor if that’s too messy for you). Add 1 bottle of beer Stir everything well and let cook until just warm. Then check your seasoning. Add more salt if needed, or more chili powder. Add your dash’s of cinnamon, to taste. Simmer on low for one hour with the lid on. Then remove the lid, taste and season if needed, and simmer for about one more hour or until chili has reached the constancy that you like. The longer you simmer with the lid off the more liquid will evaporate making a thicker chili. (You can also use the Masa, typically included in seasoning kit, to thicken your chili) Add your beans at the very end, cooking until heated through. Serve with your favorite toppings and enjoy! Chili freezes really well. When I have leftovers I fill smaller ziplock bags with chili (1qt) to make for a quick and easy meal another night. I made home made corn bread with my chili. I found this recipe online and I think that it turned out really well with just a few of my minor adjustments. I use a cast iron pan to bake the corn bread. It gives a nice golden crust all the way around. Buttermilk Cornbread Preheat your oven to 375 degrees 1/2 cup of butter (1 stick) melted 2/3 cup of sugar 2 eggs 1 cup of buttermilk 1/2 t baking soda 1 cup of cornmeal 1 cup of flour 1/2 t salt I also put one generous squirt of honey into my batter. If you do not mind a bit of sweetness you should try that as well. Before you begin: If you are using a cast iron pan you must preheat your pan in the oven with a small amount of oil. (you must time this correctly to only be in the oven for about 10 minutes prior to pouring the batter in) You may cook this corn bread in muffin tins or a regular baking dish if you like. Be sure to spray, line or butter your pans/tins. In a bowl add baking soda, corn meal, flour and salt. Whisk dry ingredients until thoroughly blended. In a separate bowl combine your sugar and melted butter. Whisk until combined. Add your cup of buttermilk and your 2 eggs. Whisk until combined. Pour half of your dry ingredients into your wet and gently fold in. Add remaining dry ingredients using the least amount of strokes to combine. Some small dry clumps are okay, do not over mix. Immediately pour into baking vessel. Bake for 20 minutes and test with a toothpick. You do not want to over cook cornbread or that will result in a dry bread.

There is nothing like a huge bowl of chili to warm you up on a cold winters day. Although I prefer chili the next day, I can not help but to eat it the day I make it. I like my chili to be on the spicier side and am happy that Mathieu does as well. We made this particular batch of chili together and it turned out to be better than ever. I like to have different textures in my chili so I use ground beef and beef cubes. I use a variety of peppers instead of just plain bell peppers. Long hots have a little bit of heat while jalapeno’s can range from medium to hot. I particularly like San Marzano tomatoes, they are great tasting and make the best sauces. I use a boxed chili seasoning kit. I opt for this because the different spices are individually wrapped so that you’re able to season to your own taste. I put a few dashes of cinnamon into my chili but you must do this sparingly. Cinnamon can be over powering and it is best to add a dash at a time. continue to taste until just a hint of cinnamon is detected. I love beer so why not put a bottle of it into your chili. Put whatever beans you like and call it a day.

Chili

2 lbs of beef (1lb ground, 1lb cubed)

1 small onion

1 bell pepper

2 long hot peppers

2 jalapeno peppers

1 large can of tomatoes

1 box of chili seasoning mix (2 alarm chili kit is my favorite)

A few dashes of ground cinnamon

1 bottle of beer (you can substitute with one can of low sodium beef broth) 

1 can of red kidney beans

1 can of black beans

Heat oil in a large pot and add beef cubes sprinkle with salt.

Brown the beef cubes. Remove from the pan and add the ground beef and sprinkle with salt. Once that is browned add back the beef cubes.

Dice your onion and all of your peppers. Add to your beef.

Add all of your seasons to browned meat and vegetables. (I recommend that you do not add all of the salt if that is included in your seasoning packet, I would also only add about 2/3 of the chili powder you may add more later if needed)

Add can of tomatoes (I purchase whole tomatoes and dump into a bowl and squash with my hands, you can use a blender or food processor if that’s too messy for you).

Add 1 bottle of beer

Stir everything well and let cook until just warm. Then check your seasoning. Add more salt if needed, or more chili powder. Add your dash’s of cinnamon, to taste.

Simmer on low for one hour with the lid on. Then remove the lid, taste and season if needed, and simmer for about one more hour or until chili has reached the constancy that you like. The longer you simmer with the lid off the more liquid will evaporate making a thicker chili. (You can also use the Masa, typically included in seasoning kit, to thicken your chili)

Add your beans at the very end, cooking until heated through. Serve with your favorite toppings and enjoy!

Chili freezes really well. When I have leftovers I fill smaller ziplock bags with chili (1qt) to make for a quick and easy meal another night.

I made home made corn bread with my chili. I found this recipe online and I think that it turned out really well with just a few of my minor adjustments. I use a cast iron pan to bake the corn bread. It gives a nice golden crust all the way around.

Buttermilk Cornbread

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees

1/2 cup of butter (1 stick) melted

2/3 cup of sugar

2 eggs

1 cup of buttermilk

1/2 t baking soda

1 cup of cornmeal

1 cup of flour

1/2 t salt

I also put one generous squirt of honey into my batter. If you do not mind a bit of sweetness you should try that as well.

Before you begin: If you are using a cast iron pan you must preheat your pan in the oven with a small amount of oil. (you must time this correctly to only be in the oven for about 10 minutes prior to pouring the batter in)

You may cook this corn bread in muffin tins or a regular baking dish if you like. Be sure to spray, line or butter your pans/tins.

In a bowl add baking soda, corn meal, flour and salt. Whisk dry ingredients until thoroughly blended.

In a separate bowl combine your sugar and melted butter. Whisk until combined.

Add your cup of buttermilk and your 2 eggs. Whisk until combined.

Pour half of your dry ingredients into your wet and gently fold in. Add remaining dry ingredients using the least amount of strokes to combine. Some small dry clumps are okay, do not over mix.

Immediately pour into baking vessel.

Bake for 20 minutes and test with a toothpick. You do not want to over cook cornbread or that will result in a dry bread.

Meatloaf I happen to like meatloaf unlike most people. I have heard many people describe meatloaf as too plain, greasy or just flat out disgusting. Most of the time they are describing their Mom’s meatloaf, I’m fortunate enough to have a Mom who doesn’t make terrible meatloaf. But I can understand why many people have had meatloaf ruined for them forever. If you want to take a chance and give meatloaf another try please take my recipe and make it your own, adding whatever you feel will make meatloaf more appealing to you. I used to only make meatloaf with meatloaf mix (beef, pork and veal) but I recently have started making my meatloaf with ground turkey. It is a lot less “greasy” and is actually very moist. Please use whatever you prefer. Turkey Meatloaf 1 package of ground lean turkey (about 1.3 lb) 1 cup of dry packaged stuffing (my favorite is Stove Top traditional sage, but any herbed stuffing will do)  3/4 cup of milk 1/4 C ketchup 1/4  C bbq sauce A few dashes of Worcestershire  1 egg season with salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Place the cup of stuffing in a large mixing bowl Slowly heat the milk just until it is steaming, pour over stuffing and mix Allow stuffing to absorb the milk Add your ketchup, bbq sauce and worcestershire Add the egg and seasonings, mix until combined Add the ground turkey and mix until just combined Place in a loaf pan or make a free form loaf on a sheet tray  Cover the top of the meatloaf with additional ketchup and bbq sauce.  Bake for 50 minutes (an internal temperature of 160 degrees) If you do not own a thermometer, please invest in one they are inexpensive.  My Aunt made this suggestion to me: Chili sauce to replace ketchup and 1 frozen package of spinach to replace stuffing (defrosted and all excess water squeezed out) for a carb free meatloaf. 

Meatloaf

I happen to like meatloaf unlike most people. I have heard many people describe meatloaf as too plain, greasy or just flat out disgusting. Most of the time they are describing their Mom’s meatloaf, I’m fortunate enough to have a Mom who doesn’t make terrible meatloaf. But I can understand why many people have had meatloaf ruined for them forever. If you want to take a chance and give meatloaf another try please take my recipe and make it your own, adding whatever you feel will make meatloaf more appealing to you. I used to only make meatloaf with meatloaf mix (beef, pork and veal) but I recently have started making my meatloaf with ground turkey. It is a lot less “greasy” and is actually very moist. Please use whatever you prefer.

Turkey Meatloaf

1 package of ground lean turkey (about 1.3 lb)

1 cup of dry packaged stuffing (my favorite is Stove Top traditional sage, but any herbed stuffing will do) 

3/4 cup of milk

1/4 C ketchup

1/4  C bbq sauce

A few dashes of Worcestershire 

1 egg

season with salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees

Place the cup of stuffing in a large mixing bowl

Slowly heat the milk just until it is steaming, pour over stuffing and mix

Allow stuffing to absorb the milk

Add your ketchup, bbq sauce and worcestershire

Add the egg and seasonings, mix until combined

Add the ground turkey and mix until just combined

Place in a loaf pan or make a free form loaf on a sheet tray 

Cover the top of the meatloaf with additional ketchup and bbq sauce. 

Bake for 50 minutes (an internal temperature of 160 degrees)

If you do not own a thermometer, please invest in one they are inexpensive. 

My Aunt made this suggestion to me:

Chili sauce to replace ketchup and 1 frozen package of spinach to replace stuffing (defrosted and all excess water squeezed out) for a carb free meatloaf. 

Champagne, well not really.

Only wines of the Champagne region of France can use the name Champagne. But who follows those rules? Almost everyone refers to sparkling wine as Champagne, it just sounds better. Most sparkling wines in the United States that are called “champagne” are not even made with the same techniques as true Champagne.  Either way I love sparkling wine. One of my favorite inexpensive ones is Martini & Rossi Asti Spumante, at only $12 a bottle.  Asti is a fairly sweet and fruity sparkling wine made in the Piedmont region, Spumante is the Italian word for “sparkling”. 

Sparkling wine pairs well with fish, seafood, and spicy Chinese or Indian food. But best of all it goes great with eggs. So please make your self some mimosa’s (champagne with a splash of orange juice) and have a drink with breakfast. Or try putting a  few frozen berries in your glass. My Aunt served me sparkling wine this way once while I was visiting her beach house. Im not sure if it was to keep my wine chilled in the hot sun or to give my drink some fruity flavor, or both. Whatever the reason I now love to drink my sparkling wine this way. Try it you will love it, its a less trashy version of putting ice cubes in your wine. 

I make a lot of pizza at my house primarily because Mathieu loves pizza. He even bought me a pizza stone for my birthday. That was his way of getting me a great kitchen tool and ensuring himself many pizzas to come. I hardly ever use a sheet tray anymore, everything just gets thrown on the stone. I would recommend getting one if you cook a lot of items in the oven. The best part is you can just leave it in your oven and not have to worry about where to store it. Now for the pizza. Sure I can make my own dough and or sauce but truthfully I want something quick. So here is my favorite quick recipe for pizza. I prefer to use tandoori flat bread instead of pizza dough. A tandoor is an Indian barrel shaped clay oven, heated by hot coals whose temperatures reach up to 800 degrees. Naan is just describing the type of bread. I’ve seen videos of how this bread is made and essentially they slap the dough on the side of the tandoor oven and it cooks very quickly. Check it out.