The Popcorn Patio

Since we have been having so much time off of work, we have been spending a lot of time on our "patio" or should I say the concrete slab beside our RV in the RV park. Rex sit beside that big gASS grill being inspired.



For some reason the grill made him think of popcorn and not just any popcorn-it had to be white popcorn. So we made a trip to the store and found popcorn that didn't come in a microwavable bag. Who knew Jolly Time popcorn comes from Sioux City, Iowa?? For some reason I found that really interesting.



This heavy, very old pressure cooker works wonderfully on the big gASS grill for popping popcorn. So does the "Ove Glove", that grill throws off a lot of heat!!



Look, there was hardly any old maids and do you see even one burned kernal??? Nope, it was perfect...



Doesn't that look like a delicious BIG bowl of popcorn?? In the white cup is melted butter and in the clear container is grated Parmesan cheese. Being the adventurous people we are, we also had some with sugar and some with just butter and salt. The batch with sugar, while tasting like caramel corn on the kernels that the sugar landed on, it tended to just burn the bottom of the plan---we are not trying that flavor again!! The dishwasher (me) hated it.

Anyway it was really fun to make popcorn the old fashioned way. It is not as hard or as time consuming as you might think. Try it, it was fun!!

Oh just a note about tomorrow....my usual Farmer's Market blog will be missing. I have to work. I have to work 6 AM to 2 PM, so I won't be able to go to the Farmer's Market, but I am pretty sure I will be able to go next Tuesday!

the Next Food Network Star - week 9

This season is now history and quite frankly, I was surprised. Aaron was not the contestant I felt would end up with his own show. While I have always been impressed with his food, I never felt he had a camera persona.

The three "pilots" were all very, very good. I admit, Lisa was my choice, but Adam's pilot was really good as evidenced from the laughs he got and the compliments on the beer can chicken. I actually loved his idea of having an Internet chat with someone on his show and tweeking their recipes or giving them a recipe they would like to make. This was a very innovative idea, I felt. So my hat's off to Adam for that wonderful idea.

Lisa's show was also good, but she is, in all honesty, working on a level far above most of us day to day cooks. While I don't think that is a bad thing, I think she is more suited for a program on the "Fine Living Network". Are they listening??? Her personality really shown through in this pilot and it is very satisfying-playful, approachable, and likable. Everything the judges said they wanted from her.....she is champagne!! (That is a reference to Rachael Ray-she always says she is beer!!)

So now we are on to Aaron--the winner. He was still stilted in front of the camera, but much better than we have ever seen him before. I can see why he was selected, his food as usual was really appetizing and I will be trying out some of his recipes and I was shocked that his show will debut next Sunday night. I will be watching!!

Congratulations Aaron.....

Humble Pie

Humble pie, does that sound familiar??? I have spent the last hour looking over a lot of the blogs found on "The Foodie Blogroll". They all are so sophisticated and professional. I am just someone that likes to cook and eat. I am not a fancy cook like most of these other bloggers. Makes me wonder if there is a place for my simple blog. Guess I'll just keep plugging away and hope it lasts...

Debbie Meyers Green Bags

The reason I was at Bed, Bath, and Beyond last week was to buy Debbie Meyer Green Bags. I am sure you have all seen the infomercials. After reading a fellow food blogger that highly recommended Debbie Meyer Green Bags, I decided to buy them. These bags are made with natural mineral that absorbs and removes ethylene gas. It is actually the release of this gas that causes produce to spoil.



Since purchasing the bags, I have stored tomatoes, bananas, pepper, broccoli, peaches, and spring mix. I am happy to report that all of these items have stayed fresh beyond the time they normal keep for me.

I did not realize it until I read it on the box, but Debbie Meyer also has CheeseBags, ColdCuts Bags, and BreadBags. I think I will be trying them also!!

V & A Honey

At the Farmer's Market today, I found a honey booth. The proprietor of this booth is Dave Cole.



This sign sort of says it all doesn't it? I have some of the lip balm and like it very much. You have to apply it less frequently than Chap Stick.





These beeswax candles have many different scents and burn cleaner than most candles.



Beeswax and honey have become mainstream ingredients in the cosmetic industry.



These honey straws come in many different flavors. I particularly liked the licorice flavored honey straws. I will be buying more next Tuesday!!



Honey, in many different flavors. Honey is the only food products that doesn't spoil, they even found some that was still edible in the tomb of King Tut!! Now isn't that impressive??

I talked to Dave about his honey and honey products. He has 140 hives near Gardnerville, NV which is about 25 miles from Lake Tahoe. He figures there are about 50,000 bees per hive, now that is a lot of bees!! Dave said he harvests the honey about two times a year. I am impressed by the diversity of this product. This sounds like a really interesting industry!! Not to mention a sweet one!

Rachel Ray Moppine Towel

Like most Food Network stars, Rachael Ray has her own line of products. Cookware, cook books, knives, and now a "moppine towel". I was in Bed, Bath, and Beyond in Carson City Friday and they had moppine towels on special for $7.99 so of course I had to buy one.



They had this towel in orange strip, orange, bright green, and black. I had to have the orange strip. That was my favorite.



This "moppine towel" is touted as a all in one oven mitt and kitchen towel. From this picture you can tell that the opposite corners are thick oven mitts.



This picture demonstrates how you can use the hot pad portion of the towel holding a pan. You can also use this towel to dry dishes or wipe counters. I found this moppine towel to be handy and I liked having the towel barrier between me and a hot pan. It makes a lot more sense after using it than it did watching Rachael use it on her show. Actually I think I may buy another one, always like to have a "back-up".

Tomorrow is the Farmer's Market--have to select another vendor to feature, it will be fun!!

The Next Food Network Star - week 8

Week eight of this competition is now history......

The first challenge was to do a promo-no food in sight. All of them had problems with this, but in watching them perform the promo, I felt Aaron did the best job. Toward the end of the show when they showed the finished promos, I was surprised to see that all of the contestants actually did very well with this. Lisa's was especially surprising, considering how badly she messed up the practice ones.

The cooking. Preparing a buffet for performers plus Wynn chef's had to be totally nerve racking. Arron's mostly pasta buffet was totally uninspired. Lisa's buffet, while visually impressive, was overcooked and a little skimpy. I can totally understand being unfamiliar with the oven and it was too bad one of her packages of fish fell off her cart. That was unfortunate. One of the things I like best about her, is she goes with the punches. She laments the mistake but goes on and doesn't let it psych her out. Adam, for once, had the most impressive food. The fact that Bobby Flay liked it also must have been very gratifing to Adam. I was also impressed with his "wok" smoker. Now that is innovative and thinking on your feet!!

The judges decision not to send anyone home this week was a surprise and could be seen as a cop out......but it works for me and I am sure Aaron, Adam, and Lisa are breathing a sigh of relief! Another chance to shine, what could be better than that!!

Corn Fritters

Week eight of this competition is now history......

The first challenge was to do a promo-no food in sight. All of them had problems with this, but in watching them perform the promo, I felt Aaron did the best job. Toward the end of the show when they showed the finished promos, I was surprised to see that all of the contestants actually did very well with this. Lisa's was especially surprising, considering how badly she messed up the practice ones.

The cooking. Preparing a buffet for performers plus Wynn chef's had to be totally nerve racking. Arron's mostly pasta buffet was totally uninspired. Lisa's buffet, while visually impressive, was overcooked and a little skimpy. I can totally understand being unfamiliar with the oven and it was too bad one of her packages of fish fell off her cart. That was unfortunate. One of the things I like best about her, is she goes with the punches. She laments the mistake but goes on and doesn't let it psych her out. Adam, for once, had the most impressive food. The fact that Bobby Flay liked it also must have been very gratifing to Adam. I was also impressed with his "wok" smoker. Now that is innovative and thinking on your feet!!

The judges decision not to send anyone home this week was a surprise and could be seen as a cop out......but it works for me and I am sure Aaron, Adam, and Lisa are breathing a sigh of relief! Another chance to shine, what could be better than that!!

Citrus Almond Olive OIl Cake

Last week at the Farmer's Market I featured Winterhill Farms Olive Oil. In the brochure I got from them there was a recipe for "Citrus Almond Olive Oil Cake". I made that cake today....



The recipe for this cake is in the recipe list on www.recipestoeat.com and also at www.winterhillfarms.com. It is a very, very flavorful cake and really moist. The recipe calls for either lemon or orange infused olive oil. I used orange infused olive oil and think that is the flavor I would use again.

The recipe says to take care not to over mix the batter for this cake. I will be making this cake again and I give it a high rating!!

Dedrick's Cheese

At today's Farmer's Market, I selected Dedrick's Cheese as my featured vendor.

As with most of the vendors at the Lake Tahoe Farmer's Market Dedrick's Cheese is located in Placerville CA. I have been to their shop and will be again in August when my son comes to visit, but am lucky to have these wonderful cheeses available weekly at the Farmer's Market.

There are so many varieties of cheeses that I could not possibly put pictures of them all up, as it was I am putting two different pictures of cheese on this blog.



Dedrick's Cheese also carries gourmet salamis, these are positively wonderful!! I find them very hard and my idea of "European", a total gourmet treat!!



Flatbreads and many, many flavors of crackers are also found at Dedrick's Cheese.



I just had to take a picture of this lemon tart.....what I really wanted to do was just grab it and take a big bite!!! But I used restraint and contented myself with this picture...so I could torture all of you with it too!!



I know this post has a lot of pictures, but believe it or not I had more and really struggled with which ones to include, it was a tough decision!!

In addition to all of this wonderful stuff, Dedrick' Cheese offers pates, baked goods, olives, vinegars, nuts, chocolates, breads, and cookies....I just love this store!!

Do yourself a favor and visit www.dedrickscheese.com and check out their web site. You will also find some fasinating information regarding cheeses in their "FAQ" section. You will enjoy the site and learn something to boot!!

Featuring a different vendor at the Lake Tahoe Farmer's Market every week is really fun. I love all the information I am learning about these hardworking people and the products they offer. Can't wait until next Tuesday!!

Spatulas

I love going to the kitchen gadget store. A couple of years ago I found a silicone "mini" spatula and spoon set. At the store I like to shop this duo cost $2.95 so I decided to buy them. This has turned out to be my absolute favorite kitchen tool, especially the spoon. I use it to stir anything and everything while I am cooking on the stove top. They are such a handy size and heat proof.



I realized how much I loved these spatulas when every time I wanted one, it was in the dirty dish pile...boy that sounds like I never do dishes. Anyway I decided to buy another set, and while I was at it I bought a silicone turner also. It's small shape makes it perfect to flip eggs or whatever else needs turning.

I have supplied both of my daughters with a set of these and also other friends. I like to share a good thing---so if you run into any of these items, remember they are well worth the money, and do yourself a favor - buy two!!

Tomorrow is Farmer's Market day so I will be featuring another vendor....wonder who it will be this week????

The Next Food Star part 7

"What is a chipotle pepper, Aaron?" "I'll let you tell me Bobby". Boy that didn't sound right...

Adam knew......it is a smoked jalapeno pepper. That is when I found out what it was also.

This weeks challange had "Bobby Flay" written all over it. A Throwdown!! Just that word must strike terror in the hearts of cooks and chef's everywhere!! The concept is great and I do enjoy the show, but let's be honest here. When Bobby Flay challenges someone, he has his "team" help him develope the selected dish and does several trials....there isn't any 75 minute time limit. And this was actually making two dishes in the 75 minutes, yours and your opponents. WOW!!

By far, the better throwdown was the Lisa/Adam pairing. They each "won" their signature dish although I felt Lisa did the Dayna interview better. I don't know why, but everything Lisa makes has a name that I haven't ever heard of before. A bean dish sounds so much more my speed. Mac and cheese with lobster sounds just like a waste of lobster to me, but the judges loved it so I am sure it was really wonderful.

The Kelsey/Arron throwdown was really entertaining because they both seemed to be totally uneasy and they both messed up. Oh maybe entertaining isn't the right word.... . Kelsey was right when she said she was overthinking her food. And the judges were right when they complimented Arron on the appearance of both his dishes, quite remarkable considering he would have forgotten to make the chicken parmasean if it hadn't been for Lisa. The fact that he made it better than Kelsey in 18 minutes is a testament to his cooking ability. Kelsey felt really bad and I felt bad for her, she is such a bubbly personality and a great cook. Even though this is not her year to become a Food Network Star, she will be heard from again I am sure.

So now we are left with Lisa, Adam, and Arron.......the next two weeks will be really interesting. I can hardly wait!!

Gnocchi at Trader Joe's

The last time we were at Trader Joe's, Rex noticed gnocchi. So he had to buy some.




Gnocchi is made from mashed potatoes and is shapped like pasta. It is of Italian origin and true to it's roots, this package bought at Trader Joe's was imported from Italy. I don't know what they do to it but is doesn't require refridgeration, it was on the shelf by the rice products and polenta.


As long as we have it and we are spending a lazy day at home, we decided to make a chicken gravy to eat with it. We made a roux using "Better Than Bouillion" chicken base. This is another wonderful product, full of great chicken flavor.



Here I am chopping the chicken after grilling it on the grill.



This is what it looked like when we were done....and it really tasted good!!! A nice lazy day dinner.

Tomorrow is Sunday and time for another episode of "The Next Food Network Star". Looking forward to that!! Learned my lesson and will not make any preditions but will be watching tomorrow night.....commentary to follow.

Gourmet Italian Chicken Soup

When I made this Italian Chicken Soup for Rex, he called it $50 soup so I decided to add the word "gourmet" to the title. I just added it to the recipes so if you decide to make this wonderful soup you can find the recipe in the recipe list.

I got this recipe from a co-worker about 7 or 8 years ago. It is really full of flavor!! The fennel seeds give just a hint of licorice flavor. The cheese tortilini ingredient it calls for can be found in the refridgerated section of the grocery store.

I want to thank everyone for the visits to my blog yesterday and today.....it is very much appreciated!!

Welcome !!!

Welcome to all of the cross over readers from "The Happy Campers" blog!!

Rex put a post up inviting everyone to visit my "Recipes to Eat" website and blog. He also sent many of you e-mails with the same invitation. It has been up and running for about 6 weeks now so while some of the bugs have been worked out it is still very much a "work in progress".

Please take the time to sign up, leave a comment or two, and add a receipe. That is what makes a site like this work!!

I would like to take a little time to explain how a recipe site like this comes together. First of all I purchased what is called a "recipe script". This is actually the vehicle that is used to organize and catagorize the receipes. A framework so to speak. The recipe script comes with 200 recipes so you have something to start out with. I have been working on adding recipes to more reflect what I like to cook and do with food (beside eat it that is). That is one of the reasons I would really appreciate recipes added from friends and family.

I am also working on a newsletter to send out that will include coupons. This is quite an ambitious project so bear with me.....it all takes time.

I want to thank you for coming and hope you visit often!! Please take the time now to bookmark the site!!

Chocolate Beer Cake

Chocolate cake with beer....that sounds interesting!! I recently became acqainted with "The Ultimate Beer Lover's Cookbook". As the title implies, all the recipes include beer as an ingredient so I decided to try chocolate cake with beer.

The cake is really moist and the frosting is more like a hot fudge sauce. I would recommend eating this cake and frosting with vanilla ice cream. That is really yummy!! The recipe for both the cake and frosting can be found on www.recipestoeat.com and also of course, in "The Ultimate Beer Lover's Cookbook". The frosting does not have beer as an ingredient but is still very good. Oh and there is the problem of no picture, there is a reason for that. The recipe calls for a tube pan, but I don't have one and quite frankly, my finished cake wasn't exactly pretty.......but it still tasted wonderful!!

John Schlimm, the author of "The Ultimate Beer Lover's Cookbook" gave me permission to use and promote his recipes on my blog so I am happy to do so. He also has several quotes about beer in his book.....here is one I like:

"Mother's in the kitchen wasing out the jugs,

Sister's in the pantry bottling the suds,

Father's in the cellar mixin' up the hops,

Johnny's on the front porch watchin' for the cops."

Prohibition song

Winterhill Farms Olive Oil

It is tuesday so that means a trip to the Lake Tahoe Farmer's Market. I decided last week that I am going to be featuring a different vendor each week. This week I am featuring the olives oils of Winterhill Farms.




Winterhill Farms olives oils are certified extra virgin by the California Olive Oil Council. This is important and assures the consumer that they are purchasing 100% extra virgin oil. They also have flavored oils:

These flavored oils are very tasty and wonderful for dipping and for dressings.

They also have these oils available for sampling at the Farmer's Market. You can use these flavored oils in baking also. Check out the recipe section for a recipe for "Citrus Almond Olive Oil Cake". I got this receipe in the information I picked up today at the Winterhill Farm booth at the Tuesday Lake Tahoe Farmer's Market.

I love this picture showing all of these beautiful oils....really cool!! I am going to include the baking conversion table that I also found in the literature from Winterhill Farms:

Butter/Margarine to Olive Oil

1 tsp 3/4 tsp

1 Tbsp 2 1/4 tsp

2 Tbsp 1 1/2 Tbsp

1/4 Cup 3 Tbsp

1/3 Cup 1/4 Cup

1/2 Cup 1/4 Cup plus 2 Tbsp

2/3 Cup 1/2 Cup

3/4 Cup 1/2 Cup plus 1 Tbsp

1 Cup 3/4 Cup

Olive oil is better for you and has many health benefits so you might want to try using it in your baking. And for anyone wanting to learn more about Winterhill Farms you can find them at www.winterhillfarms.com. My son is coming to visit in about three weeks and we will be going to Placerville, CA to visit the wineries, but now a visit to Winterhill Farms store and tasing room will definately be added to the agenda. Looking forward to it!!

Next Food Network - Part 6

Well, seems I have egg on my face....last week I said Aaron and Adam should leave with Jennifer. I also said it was a three way horse race between Shane, Kelsey, and Lisa. This week it was totally opposite....and .....I am floored!!

Amazingly, Adam did the best job on the Rachel Ray show....and his food was even good!! That was a big surprise to me based on past weeks.

Arron also had great food but we all knew he could cook. He started out a little rocky but ended up saving the day and it was priceless that his Girl Scout helper scooped up the rest of the pizza and took off out the door!!! That was funny.

So the two guys I felt were the next to be eliminated, came in first this week. Just goes to show it isn't over until it's over.

So now we go to Lisa, I was shocked. She just totally "shut down". It seemed she was just intensly intimadated being on the Rachel Ray show. Not something I expected.

Kelsey and Shane both had the same problem with this challenge. They are both VERY young and it really showed this week. They both had great food, but not a lot of interaction with their Girl Scout partner and Shane couldn't even remember his helper's name....not good form there!!

So I guess I feel the judges made the right decision and Shane's major fault is his age and lack of life experience. So good bye Shane, I am sure cooking with great success is in your future!!

P.S. I am NOT making a predicition on next week's eliminated contestant!!

The Food Saver

Last winter, Rex was visiting our neighbor Steve. Steve was "Food Saver-ing" some meat. Rex came home thoroughly impressed----and promptly ordered one online.

Since buying the Food Saver, I have no idea how much money we have saved on food but am pretty sure it is way more than the cost of the Food Saver. It is very cost effective to buy meat in bulk and freeze in two portion packages. For example, I cut bacon in half and freeze two slices per portion. So out of a pound of bacon I get at least 6 portions. This also avoids over eating, because you only cook one portion at a time. Actually it is very time friendly too, since it only takes 5 minutes to thaw in a container of hot water.

Meat isn't the only food I portion out with the Food Saver. I like a rice blend that I get at Trader Joe's. Since it is a blend with brown rice, it take 50 minutes to cook, so I cook the whole bag at once. That way I can "Food Saver" the cooked rice blend in one cup servings which only take about 5 to minutes to thaw and have rice very quickly. What a time saver that is!! I also like to clean the whole bunch of celery and "Food Saver" it is individual portions so I can take it in my lunch to work. It stays fresher longer that way and I get celery to munch on during my breaks at work.

You can use the Food Saver for anything you want to seal in a vacummned bag, it is very convienent. It can also help you save!!

Crepes at the Farmer's Market

It's Tuesday so the Farmer's Market is the place to be!!

I have decided to start "featuring" a different vendor every week. This week's vendor is the girls that make and sell crepes.



As you can see, they have several crepes for you to choose from, let see....I guess I will try the egg, ham, cheese, mushroom, and tomato crepe. But I could have had one of those sweet crepes but I am going to have one with vegetables.....as usual I am on a diet!!



The first step is to put the crepe batter on the hot plate and roll it out to a thin consistency.



Looks like everything but the tomatoes are on my crepe...it is really lookin" good!!



Breakfast is ready and heading to the plate!!



Not only did it look good, it tastes good!! This is my first crepe at the Farmer's Market...what I have to do for research!! LOL!!

Next Food Network Star - Part 5

Once again I was able to watch the show.....that is such a treat!! Although sometimes it is downright painful to watch. Jennifer in the first challenge is one time, as was watching Aaron. Don't get me wrong, I would be much worse, but at this stage of the game I am disappointed these guys don't seem to improve. Didn't they do a "talk to the camera" audition to be a participant on this program???

Now on to the second challenge----WOW!! Beef wellington, coq au vin, and turducken.

Beef wellington is a dish that makes sense to me and I see that Shane and Kelsey really came up with an approach to this dish that I would try. I liked this duo, they seemed to work well together and it resulted in them winning the challenge. I also agreed with Bob's blog...they looked adorable together. They also can both cook!!

Coq au vin doesn't look or sound good to me, but it is apparently a wonderful and popular dish. The pairing of Adam and Arron was unfortunate. I felt, rather than lifting each other up, they dragged each other down. I still don't know if I think Adam can cook anything, but I know Aaron can.

Now turducken....who in the hell thought this one up?? Someone with one too many vino's?? I can't imagine why anyone would even want to eat this dish let alone make it!!! I have always hear duck is very, very greasy so it has absolutely no appreal to me. Lisa and Jennifer was another unfortunate collaboration. Lisa is apparently, a classic chef, while Jennifer is more of an "everyday" chef. Don't get me wrong, I am not putting Jennifer down for that, I just didn't think they made an effective duo. I am sure Jennifer is a wonderful chef.

This was the week that Jennifer was eliminated and rightfully so. I think Adam should have gone with her but that is for next week's show.

At this point I see a three person horse race. I think Shane and Kelsey are neck and neck, with Lisa breathing down their necks!! Can't wait to see the Rachel Ray show challenge next week......