Seafood Pot Pie

This is the promised pot pie recipe that I tried out and must admit, gave MUCH praise to the results, despite the skepticism by many hither and yon that a seafood pot pie could not possibly taste good.

Oh yes. Yes it does.

(I do believe it is a Paula Deen recipe but I clipped it out of the magazine and can't remember for sure, but I do believe that it is Paula - 92.7% sure)

Also, it should be noted, it was VERY good as leftovers too, I ate for lunch the next day and it was darn tasty warmed up.

SEAFOOD POT PIE

1/4 C. butter
1 C. chopped onion
1 C. minced celery
**recipe calls for 1 C. mushrooms but we don't eat those so I left 'em out**
2 T. all-purpose flour
2 C. half-and-half
1 1/2 tsp. Creole seasoning
2 T. dry sherry
1/2 C. grated Parmesan cheese
1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 pound bay scallops
1 (8-oz) container lump crabmeat
10 sheets frozen phyllo dough, thawed
3 T. butter, melted (I used a LOT more)

Preheat oven to 350° F. Lightly grease a 2 1/2 quart baking dish. Place baking dish on a jelly roll pan.

In a large skillet, melt 1/4 C. butter over medium heat. Add onion, celery, and mushrooms (if you're using them), and cook 6 to 8 minutes, or until vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in flour, and cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Stir in half-and-half, and cook 5 minutes, or until thickened. Stir in Creole seasoning, sherry, and cheese. Remove from heat, and add shrimp, scallops, and crab. Spoon into prepared dish.

**I changed the phyllo section somewhat because they are so delicate those suckers fall apart easily. Also, pay attention to how long your phyllo dough package says you need to have it thawing and use it right away - my package was 2 hours thawing on the counter. MAKE SURE YOU PLAN AHEAD!**

Layer one sheet of phyllo over the dish. Brush carefully with melted butter. It will droop over the sides of the baking dish. Layer another sheet of phyllo crosswise over the first, brush with melted butter. Repeat layers, using the remaining sheets of phyllo. Make 3 slits in center of top sheet of phyllo to allow steam to escape. Bake 25 minutes, or until golden brown.

Pasta Guide

I know, I have actually been doing some cooking and a little bit of knitting, but the time to post on it has been microscopic!

This is pretty slick though and I thought I'd share it.
A guide to figuring out which kinds of pasta should be used when and with what type of sauce.

As a pasta lover, it's pretty nifty.

Thought you might like the info too!

Asian Beef Lettuce Wraps

I love me some Asian food but sometimes I'm a little intimidated wondering if it's going to turn out as well as it tasted that last time I had it out to eat.
Well, I realized that it's not intimidating once you just accept that you can keep it simple and it can be really super good and worth doing.
This little recipe is VERY quick and was super good. I mean, it was awesome. Got the recipe from Relish, my favorite go-to site for getting recipe and menu planning ideas.

Asian Beef Lettuce Wraps

1 1/2 pounds sirloin steak
1 C. sesame ginger marinade (there is Lawry's or something that this comes in a bottle, ready to go)
1 T. canola oil
1/2 yellow onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 tsp. garlic, minced
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
3 T. soy sauce
1/2 C. dry roasted peanuts, chopped
1 tsp. rice vinegar
1 head Boston (butter) lettuce
salt and pepper, to taste

1- Place the meat in the freezer for about 20 minutes (for easier slicing) if you have time. Slice the steak into thin strips against the grain. Season the meat with salt and pepper and place in a large ziploc bag. Add the marinade and turn to coat. Place in the refrigerator and marinade all day.
2 - Add the oil to a large skillet over medium heat. Saute the onion, garlic, and red pepper flakes until the onion is translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the soy sauce and cook another 2 minutes. Remove to a bowl.
3 - Remove steak and discard the marinade.
4 - Add a little more oil to the skillet over medium-high heat and let it get hot. Add the steak to the skillet. Sear for 2 minutes, turn and cook another 2 minutes or until cooked through. Return the onion mixture to the skillet and stir in the peanuts and vinegar.
5 - Place the meat mixture in a serving bowl. To serve, form little cups with the lettuce leaves, scoop the filling into them, wrap and serve.

Prep time: 15 minutes
Marinade time: all day
Cook time: 25 minutes

Crockpot Jambalaya

Got this recipe from Taste of Home but made a few changes to get it how I liked it. Seriously tasty and hubby thought it was even better the second day when all the flavors sort of melded together.

1 can tomato puree
20 oz. chicken broth (recipe called for 1 can but the consistency just needed more in my opinion)
1 can tomato paste
1 green pepper, chopped
1 onion, chopped
3 celery ribs, chopped
5 garlic cloves, minced
3 tsp. dried parsley flakes
2 tsp. dried basil
1 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1 1/4 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. hot pepper sauce
1 pound chicken breasts cut into cubes
1 pound smoked sausage, halved and cut into 1/4-inch slices
1/2 pound uncooked medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
Hot cooked rice

In a 5-qt. slow cooker, combine the tomato puree, broth and tomato paste. Stir in the green peppers, onion, celery, garlic and seasonings. Stir in chicken and sausage.
Cover and cook on low for 4 hours or until chicken is tender. Stir in shrimp. Cover and cook 15-30 minutes longer or until shrimp turn pink. Serve with rice.

Ultimate Party Meatballs

Appetizers: my favorite food group.
What? Not a food group, you say?
Shut it.

If there was a way to do it without seeming a total freak, I'd eat appetizers for every dinner. Little bits of 20 different things...heaven.

Got this recipe from Mom Central to try out a new way to make party meatballs. Yeah, those ones you stab with the fancy toothpicks that everyone has had before.

My MIL makes them with chili sauce and grape jelly. So when I told her I was bringing some for Christmas Eve that were slightly different, she seemed a bit skeptical.

You see, at my inlaws, Christmas Eve is a ton of appetizers and soups. We just graze and open gifts, and then go fill up the plates again, open more gifts, eat more. It's a vicious cycle of gluttony and greed.

I made the Ultimate Party Meatballs hoping they would live up to MIL's incredibly high standards.

The recipe:
1 16-oz. can Ocean Spray jellied Cranberry Sauce
1 12-oz. bottle Heinz Chili Sauce
1 2-pound bag frozen, pre-cooked, cocktail size meatballs

Dude.
They were really good.
And, the review from MIL was that she liked them much better than her own version because, with the cranberry flavor there was a little more kick and less sweet (which she is not a person who likes things sweet) than using the grape jelly. (And ignore the fact that in the photo it's not all cookbook pretty looking...stuff in a crockpot in my world is messy)

So, we all know that New Years and bowl games are all about parties and appetizers.
This is the cheapest and easiest appetizer you could possibly make.

Yum and tasty.

And the Ultimate Party Meatballs website has a bunch of party ideas, so you could be hungover and still plan a party.

My Christmas Cookies

I make a few varieties of cookies for Christmas each year, a couple standbys and then I try something different to keep it interesting.

This year, a few pictures and recipes for you to check out!


Dipped Gingersnaps
(got this out of Taste of Home years ago)
2 C. sugar
1 1/2 C. vegetable oil
2 eggs
1/2 C. molasses
4 C. flour
4 tsp. baking soda
1 T. ground ginger
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
Additional sugar
2 packages vanilla baking chips
1/4 C. shortening

In a mixing bowl, combine sugar and oil; mix well. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in molasses. Combine dry ingredients; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Shape into 3/4 inch balls and roll in sugar. (I use a cookie scoop for this so that the cookie will be uniform in size). Place 2 inches apart on cookie sheet. Bake at 350° for 10-12 minutes or until cookie springs back when touched lightly. Remove to wire racks to cool. Melt chips with shortening in a small sauce pan over low heat. (I use the double boiler method or have found sometimes this can scorch. I don't have a double boiler, I just use a bowl that is slightly bigger than the sauce pan and get that going with a rolling boil of water and that melts everything nicely for dipping). Dip the cookies halfway; shake off excess. Place on waxed paper to harden.


Cream Cheese Finger Cookies - (this is the exact recipe, I always double it)
(another winner from Taste of Home)
1/2 C. butter, softened
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 tsp. vanilla
1 3/4 C. flour
1 T. sugar
dash salt
1 C. finely chopped pecans
Powdered sugar

In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and cream cheese. Beat in vanilla. Combine the flour, sugar and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture. Stir in pecans (dough will be crumbly). **I have found if the dough is just a bit to dry/crumbly to shape, I will keep the mixer going on low and add a bit of water until the consistency seems right.**
Shape tablespoonfuls into 2-inch logs. Place 2 inches apart on baking sheets. Bake at 375° for 12-14 minutes or until lightly browned. Roll warm cookies in powdered sugar; cool on wire racks.


Best-Ever Turtles
(from Gooseberry Patch Christmas book 6)
2 1/2 C. pecan halves, toasted
1 C. sugar
3/4 C. corn syrup
1 C. whipping cream, divided
4 T. butter
1 1/2 C. chocolate chips, melted

On a baking sheet, arrange pecans in sets of 3; set aside. Combine sugar, corn syrup and 1/2 cup whipping cream in a heavy saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring constantly until mixture reaches full boil. Slowly add remaining cream and butter; heat, stirring, until mixture reaches soft-ball stage or 236° on a candy thermometer. Remove from heat; still until caramel is creamy (about 5 minutes). Spoon about 1 tablespoon caramel over each set of pecans; cool. Spoon 1 teaspoon chocolate over each; let stand to harden.

Also did some sugar cookie cutouts the kids decorated - I think they do great work!!


Hope your Christmas is also this sweet!

MS Slippers

My pal Andy has MS. And instead of getting that bit of news and running out and feeling super sorry for herself, she did something else instead.
She started knitting. And the money she makes from her endeavors online goes to support other artists living with the disease.

She has slippers and baby legwarmers. And she just fired up an Etsy store as well to multi-promote herself.

Check out her main site at MS Slippers and also her new Etsy store.