From My Little Kitchen

Hey good lookin', whatcha' got cooking?
What's for dinner tonight?
Salmon fillets and fresh corn avocado salad. Yum!
See recipe for the salad below.



Fresh Corn & Avocado Salad
2- Ripe Avocados, diced
2-Ripe Tomatoes, diced
1-Onion, diced, small
1 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. smoky paprika
1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/4 cup Champagne Vinegar
2 Tbsp. curly leaf parsley, or fresh cilantro would be nice
Salt and pepper to taste
*Fold all together and serve.

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How about some yummy Baked Ziti with creamy Bechemel Sauce!


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Recipes~
In honor of Mother's Day

A Love Cake For Mother

Ingredients
1 can "obedience" several pounds of "affection"
1 pt. "neatness" some holiday birthday and everyday "surprises"
1 can of running errands"
1 box powered "get up when I should"
1bottle of "keep sunny all day long"
1can of pure "thoughtfulness"

Mix well and bake in a hearty warm oven.
Serve to "Mother" everyday.

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Wishing you all a Happy Easter.
From my kitchen to yours....
No Easter eggs today but I did prepare some delish deviled eggs.



Yesterday for brunch we had pancakes and I made this yummy Frittata with asparagus, bacon and smoky provolone.



I just made some yummy banana muffins yesterday. I've added wheat germ, cran-raisins and crumb topping to my regular recipe. Seriously considering opening another shop called "Melody's Muffins" Hey, I think that has a nice ring to it. Laughing : )





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NEW RECIPE!
Date Pinwheel Cookies
Copied from the Trinity Lutheran Church, Ladies Aid Cookbook 1949.

Dough
1 cup shortening
2 cups brown sugar, (my version 1 cup brown + 1 cup white for crispier cookie)
3 eggs, well beaten
4 cups sifted flour
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. soda

Filling
2 1/4 cups cut up dates
1 cup white sugar
1 cup water
1 cup chopped nut meats

To make filling: Combine dates, sugar and water and boil 3 minutes. Add nuts and cool thoroughly. MEANWHILE~~~ Cream shortening and sugar well, add well beaten eggs and beat well. Add remaining ingredients sifted together and mix well. Chill thoroughly. Then divide in two parts and roll separately a little less than 1/2 inch thick, spread with date filling and roll like jelly roll.Chill overnight, then slice and bake in moderate oven, 375 degrees.
Recipe Mrs. Carl W. Schwarz

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NEW RECIPE!
Swedish Nut Cake or Pineapple Cake
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 t. soda
2 eggs
1 t. vanilla
1 can (20 oz.) crushed pineapple, undrained
1/2 cup nuts

Icing
1 package cream cheese (8 oz.)
1 stick butter or margarine melted
1 t. vanilla
1 3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup nuts

Cake may be iced while hot.
Grease and flour cake pan 13"x9" or two 8 or 9" pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 mins. approx. Check sooner for doneness. Do not over bake.

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NEW RECIPE!
Best Ever Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe!
These are about as good as cookies get, so make several batches and watch them disappear fast.15 minutes prep. plus chilling, 10-12 minutes baking per batch. Yields 4 dozen cookies.















And...they truely are the best I've ever eaten. And I've eaten a lot of chocolate chip cookies in my day. These are really good! You can add whatever you would like to the recipe. Walnuts, orange zest, cran-rasins, pecans. Whatever your heart desires. And the oatmeal is good for you too. I've been cutting the sugar down to 1/2 cup and they are still great. If you'd like to use honey instead of sugar you can do that too, keep in mind you'll have softer cookies.

1 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Mix together flour, baking soda, and cinnamon. Beat together butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy.Beat in egg and vanilla. At low speed, beat in flour mixture until blended. Fold in oats and chocolate chips.Cover with plastic wrap; chill for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Grease 2 baking sheets, (or if you have Silacon sheets use those to line your baking sheets.)
Shape dough into 1-inch balls. (I use a smaller ice cream scoop.)
Place cookies, 2 inches apart, on prepared baking sheets. Flatten each cookie slightly.
Bake cookies until lightly browned around edges, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer baking sheets to wire racks to cool slightly. Transfer cookies to racks to cool completely.

*Options~
I might add walnuts, raisins, freshly minced ginger, cran-raisins. You can add what you'd like to this basic recipe.
These truely are the best chocolate chip cookies and I've tried a lot of recipes.You can even make this one with honey and decrease the amount of sugar used and they turn out just fine.

Baking Tips~
Make dough ahead of time and freeze it. Later, use defrosted dough to make homemade cookies in minutes.

Hey, I've located a new recipe that I'm going to try tonight. I have my crock pot on and we're having beef stew tonight. I want to try these cheesy biscuits. You know the ones they serve at the Red Lobster!
Yummy!

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RED LOBSTER CHEESY BISCUITS
Preheat oven to 400.

Ingredients:
2 1/2 Cups Bisquick Mix
3/4 Cup Whole Milk
4 Tablespoons Cold Butter (1/2 stick)
1/4 teaspoon Garlic Powder
1 Heaping Cup Grated Cheddar Cheese

Brush on Top:
2 Tablespoons Butter, melted
1/4 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder



Eggs Florentine











I have been cooking for many years now. My father was a Chef and my mother was a pretty good cook, as well. As were most of the women in my family. Many young women today have their hands pretty full with juggling family, working full time and the daily grind, which seems to leave them little or no time to cook.

If you need a recipe and can't find one, drop me a line and I'll help you search for one or send one of my own.
You don't have to study at the top Le Cordon Bleu Institute to become a good cook. But it wouldn't hurt to attend a cooking course either, if that's what you have an interest in doing.

Cooking just takes some time to master. As one of my favorite chef's Emeril Lagasse would say, "It's not rocket science here!" Time before shopping, your prep time once you've returned home from shopping and really good fresh ingredients to become a good cook!

If you don't cook, find a friend or relative who does who can show you some hands-on cooking skills and tips to use. Again, the net is a great research source of information. Great tutorials can be found.
Buy some cookbooks on "How To", or better yet grab some books from the library.

Try different cultural recipes. Have any friends from a different country? Go have dinner with them.
But not just dinner and eating, arrive early to help your host cook your meal.
If your going to be traveling to another country stay with a host family instead of a fancy hotel or resort.
Learn the culture and their cooking first hand.

Q: What does it take to be a really good cook?
A: A really good recipe for starters!

Cooking to me is a bit like knitting too.
To produce a great knitted piece it takes a really great pattern.

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* For a quick and EASY sweet snack treat try this recipe I located online
These are so good! You'll want to make more than one batch. Great for gift giving.

CANDIED PECANS
1 large egg white
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon fresh nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups pecan halves

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
Brush large rimmed baking sheet with butter. (Instead of doing this I used my new silcon pads. LOVE, love, love them!) Whisk egg white in bowl until foamy. Add sugar, spices and salt. Whisk until mixture is thick and opaque.
Add pecans; stir until coated. Bake about 35 minutes or until deep golden brown. I also added some almonds to this mix. You could use any nut of your choice I would think.
These are so yummy. Not much sugar either. Good treat!
Store them after cooled in an airtight container.
They won't last long I promise you! lol...
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Damn-Yankee BBQ Sauce
Note: This is my own original recipe that I use for chicken or country-style cut pork.
After eating this BBQ you'll say, "That was Damn good BBQ"…











Digital Photography by Melody Tuli.

Ingredients
1 or 2 medium sized onion, finely chopped
½ cup favorite tomato paste
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup soy, or worchestershire sauce; optional
½ cup balsamic vinegar
½ cup white vinegar
1 teaspoon to 1 Tablespoon hot pepper flakes
3 Tablespoons hot sauce, your brand, (depending upon your preference of heat)
Kosher salt & fresh cracked black pepper to taste
2 Tablespoons garlic powder

I use double-dutch cooking pan.
After washing meat, place the meat in a wire colander.
Pre-cook your meat first by steaming, on medium high heat 10 to 15 minutes.
Whisk together all the above ingredients.

Note: The amount of sauce increases depending on the amount of meat you are preparing.


Below are random photographs I've taken.

Lemon Poppyseed Cake










Italian Meatballs












Tilapia Fish Fillets