Valentine Treats for the Dogs

This morning I woke up to this lovely Valentines Day card sent to the Pankakes from the McDonalds. It's just too cute! Thank you, Bec!

This greeting fits perfectly with my post theme today - Valentine cookies for the dogs!

On Sunday, Auntie Arielle made heart shaped doggie treats for Baxter, Trapper and Chester. And the canines LOVE them! They gobble them down so fast.

Here's the recipe she used created by a woman named Ann (it came with a bone shaped cookie cutter my mom bought years ago):

2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup powdered milk
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 Tablespoon wheat germ
1 teaspoon beef bouillon granules
6 Tablespoons bacon grease or meat drippings
1 egg
1/2 cup ice water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine all dry ingredients. Cut in drippings. Mix in egg. Add enough ice water for mixture to form a ball. Using a floured work surface and rolling pin, roll to 1/2 inch thick. Cut with a cookie cutter - Arielle used a heart shaped cutter for Valentines Day. Bake on a parchment paper cover cookie sheet for 25 minutes. Let cool on a cooling rack.




Baxter and Trapper enjoyed their cookies this morning!

Happy Valentines Day!

Chocolate Cheese and a Pickle

Last week we were pleasantly surprised with a package from my brother who is living in Michigan. Earlier, he texted us to say he was in a Bavarian town in Michigan called Frankenmuth and told us about the great beer halls and the cheese haus there. And you all know Germany is special to us!

Bro was such a sweetheart and mailed us some cheese from Frankenmuth!

A delicious sharp cheddar and chocolate cheese!

The chocolate cheese tasted like a mixture of fudge and cheddar. It's still a toss up about how I feel about it... but it was fun to try it!

In Frankenmuth there is a huge Christmas store and my brother bought us a pickle for our Christmas tree! A pickle ornament is a German tradition. It is hidden on the tree and on Christmas morning the children of the house are to look for the ornament and whoever finds it first gets an extra gift! It's meant to be a way for children to admire and appreciate the tree and its decor instead of immediately opening presents on Christmas morning. Can't wait to put it on our tree!

Thank you, brother, for our special treats!

And in December, friends of ours sent us a pancake ornament from this exact same store too!

We hope to someday make it to Frankenmuth... maybe for the Oktoberfest??!!

Holiday Greetings!

Merry Christmas to all!

Decorating our tree.

Adam-the-heavy-handed-sugarer and I made sand tarts

Our decorated buffet

Front door wreath

Peanut Butter Fudge

Adam brought fudge home from work a few days ago and it was so good that it inspired me to make my own. For some reason, I like peanut butter fudge better than chocolate (but of course I'll glady enjoy both!). I am usually nervous about making candy because it needs to be so precise but this turned out well. It's rather firm but that might be because it cooked too long so really don't let it boil over 3 minutes as it says in the directions - if you like your fudge a little soft, boil just under 3 minutes.

cut up and boxed for gift giving!

This recipe was inspired by Less Than Perfect Life of Bliss.

3 cups sugar
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 Tablespoon butter
7 oz. jar of marshmallow cream
12 oz. creamy peanut butter

Butter a 9 inch x 13 inch dish, line it with parchment paper and butter the parchment. You can really use any size pan - just depends on how thick you want your fudge.

Mix sugar, cream, vanilla and butter in a medium saucepen. Bring to a boil and boil for 3 minutes. Remove from heat and add marshmallow and peanut butter. Stir well and immediately pour into prepared pan. Let cool completely, cut into small pieces and store in the refrigerator.
;

Boilo

Boilo! The coal region's hot toddy! Our friend Nick came over one evening and taught us how to make this delicious beverage. We enjoyed it while decorating our Christmas tree.
The great thing about this recipe is that you can add whatever quantity and variety of ingredients that you want. There are many variations but this is what we did:

1 2-liter bottle ginger ale
2 oranges, quartered
1 lemon, quartered
2 cinnamon sticks
1 Tablespoon caraway seeds
1 Tablespoon whole cloves
2 Tablespoons candied ginger, chopped
2 Tablespoons mulling spices (optional)
10 oz honey
2 1/2 cups Four Queens whiskey (or any cheap whiskey)
1/4 cup moonshine (optional, if you know someone who makes it)

In a large pot over medium/high heat, add the ginger ale, oranges, lemon, spices and honey. Bring to a boil and let simmer for about 20 minutes. Reduce heat to warm/low. Add the whiskey and moonshine. Enjoy warm!

Sweet Valentines

Rebecca and Jesse came over on Saturday night to watch the Olympics with Adam and I. They came bearing Valentines cookies and a sweet Valentine to Baxter from her kitty, Izzie (Bax and Izz have a love-hate relationship - it stems from the first time they met...).

Bec made lovely, huge heart shaped cookies from my recipe.

They were a perfect treat! Thank you!

Easter Dinner

In an effort to mix things up, we did not have a traditional ham dinner yesterday, but instead grilled steak and veggies! It was a nice summer meal and now I'm so excited for the weather to warm up!

I marinaded some NY Strip steaks in Lawry's Signature Steakhouse marinade for about 5 hours. I skewered up whole button mushrooms, halved brussel sprouts, cubed orange pepper and sliced yellow squash. I added plenty of olive oil, salt and pepper before grilling.

In addition, I made scalloped potato gratin by Tyler Florence. This was so yummy and everyone enjoyed it:

1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 sprig fresh thyme (used 3 or 4 sprigs)
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Butter (used Pam)
2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/8-inch thick slices
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan, plus more for broiling (I think I used more like 1 cup - I love cheese!)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
In a saucepan, heat up the cream with a sprig of thyme, chopped garlic and nutmeg.
While cream is heating up, butter a casserole dish. Place a layer of potato in an overlapping pattern and season with salt and pepper. Remove cream from heat, then pour a little over the potatoes. Top with some grated Parmesan. Make 2 more layers. Bake, uncovered, for 45 minutes (baked it for about 55 minutes because my potato slices were on the thick side). Sprinkle some more Parmesan and broil until cheese browns, about 3 minutes.

I didn't get a solo shot of the gratin but here it is in the center of the photo (that's Greg's plate with a gigantic steak!). To the right of the potatoes is the tabbouleh.

For a salad, I made tabbouleh. I have had this a few times at restaurants but never ventured to make it myself. I also made it as a test because it's on Arielle's graduation party food list. It passed the test with flying colors so I'll be making it again (a huge batch) in June for the party. The recipe is from Barefoot Contessa Parties! :

1 cup bulgur wheat (I found some organic bulgar at my local health food store)

1 1/2 cups boiling water
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
1/4 cup good olive oil
3 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 cup minced scallions, white and green parts (1 bunch)
1 cup chopped fresh mint leaves (1 bunch)
1 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley (1 bunch)
1 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled, seeded, and medium-diced
2 cups cherry tomatoes, cut in half
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Place the bulgur in a large bowl, pour in the boiling water, and add the lemon juice, olive oil, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt. Stir, then allow to stand at room temperature for about 1 hour.
Add the scallions, mint, parsley, cucumber, tomatoes, 2 teaspoons salt, and the pepper; mix well. Season, to taste, and serve or cover and refrigerate. The flavor will improve if the tabbouleh sits for a few hours.

I didn't use a cup of each parsley and mint - it seemed excessive.
Finally, I made white wine sangria. A bottle of cheap chardonnay, a frozen melange of tropical fruit and a liter of ginger ale made a refreshing treat to go with dinner. I put the wine in a pitcher, added the fruit and refrigerated it for about 4 hours. Then I added the ginger ale and refrigerated it for another hour. Sparkling refreshment!
Additional Easter Day pictures:

Arielle, Adam, Greg & Hope after we found our Easter baskets.

My dad surprised my grandparents and my mom with this light post in town that is dedicated to Parents Bob & Pat Swenson and Merle & Ruth Adams.

In the photo from left: my dad, grandpa, grandma, me, Adam, Arielle, my mom and Chester in the front. And Greg behind the camera.

Greg and I in downtown New Bloomfield looking like we just rolled out of bed!

NOTE: I am going to be investing in a new camera soon so my pictures will get better...

Deviled Eggs

Knowing Greg loves deviled eggs, I decided to make a batch for Easter. I, however, do not like them, so this was my first time attempting the popular snack. While cooking, I do not pay much attention to detail (which I learned how much I really don't after working with Tim the Chef who enjoys perfectly uniform meatballs and precisely square mango chunks) so it was difficult to neatly get the yolk out of the egg while keeping the whites intact. I think I pulled it off ok though. Below is a recipe from Alton Brown, which is doubled from his original recipe.

12 hard boiled eggs, cooled and peeled
2 teaspoons whole pink peppercorns, divided
1 teaspoon whole white peppercorns
1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
1 teaspoon whole green peppercorns
1 teaspoon caper liquid
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
pinch sugar

Slice eggs from top to bottom. Scoop out yolks unto a medium mixing bowl and lay whites aside. Place all of the peppercorns except 1 teaspoon of the pink pepeprcorns, into a spice grounder and process until ground well. **NOTE: I use a mixture of these four peppercorns in my pepper mill so I just used the pepper from my mill. However I only used 3 teaspoons instead of the 4 it calls for because I felt like it was a lof of pepper.**
Add the ground peppers, caper liquid, mayo, mustard, salt and sugar to the egg yolks and using a fork (I used a wire whisk to get it extra smooth), stir to thoroughly combine. Place the mixture into a zip-lock plastic bag and cut a small hole at one of the corner. Pipe mixture into each of the white halves (I did not use a plastic bag, but a teaspoon. However I can see how this method would be less messy!). Coarsely grind the remaining 1 teaspoon of pink peppercorns and use to garnish top of each egg (I did not do this. I sprinkled them with paprika - the traditional garnish).
Chill for at least one hour before serving.

Greg was carrying around the plate of devil eggs while looking for his Easter basket.

My Easy Easter Eggs

Well I didn't go all out on Easter egg dying this year. I simply used the Marble Swirl Kit I found on sale at AC Moore Crafts (but I saw the same kit at Rite Aid last night so you can still get a kit before Sunday). I did these eggs all by myself. I don't know why I really feel the urge to still dye eggs at Easter... maybe to hang on to my childhood tradition when it was a huge event for the entire family.

I bought some free range brown eggs and my mom but them in the egg cooker first, never thinking they wouldn't take color. The color didn't really show up but made them shimmery - just like a golden egg from Charlie & the Chocolate Factory, only smaller!

The white eggs held the color really well - the technique here is to put on a plastic glove, put a few drops of color on the egg and then roll them around in your hand until the color is distributed through the egg to your liking, adding more drops or another color for a more intense result.

For the next few days, I will have my fill of hard boiled eggs!

These 6 are my favorites because I mixed the colors together.

Here you will see I tried to make a polka dot egg by putting round stickers on the egg, dying it and then removing the stickers. It worked ok but I had trouble removing the stickers. Above the polka dotted egg is a brown egg with blue dye on it and to the right a brown egg with purple dye.

Happy Fastnacht Day!

In celebration of Mardi Gras, I splurged on a lovely box of fastnachts (not to eat all alone but to share with the office)! Yesterday I read an article in the Patriot News about fastnachts, which inspired me to call the PA Bakery and reserve a dozen to pick up in the morning. I am so glad I called ahead because the bakery was packed this morning! There were some disgruntled patrons and the ladies behind the counter were a bit unorganized but the fastnachts were rolling out the door at a good pace. I ordered 6 with granulated sugar and 6 with powdered sugar. Pillowy and fresh, these are a delight!