Shrimp Scampi

I have joined up with the Barefoot Bloggers! Twice a month this group cooks from Ina Garten's (The Barefoot Contessa) cookbooks. I really love Ina's recipes. I have all of her cookbooks and love that her recipes are easy and always turn out delicious. I don't hesitate to use her recipes on company even if I haven't tried them first!

The Shrimp Scampi was an easy recipe to cut in half, so I decided this would be a perfect Valentine's Day Dinner! We had a simple Green Salad and French Bread with our meal!

Simple Green Salad with "heart" red bell pepper!

Heart French Bread -- I can't take credit for making these, but aren't they cute! We are lucky to have a wonderful French Bakery right down the street from me!

You can find this great recipe at http://www.foodnetwork.com/! One other great thing about this recipe is that you can make in advance!

Thank you Jill of http://insanelygoodfood.wordpress.com/ for selecting this recipe, it will definitely be a repeat at my house!

I am also posting this to Foodie Friday hosted by Michael of http://designsbygollum.blogspot.com/. Make sure to visit her for great recipes and inspiration!

Toasted Orzo Chicken Soup

This recipe comes from the magazine EVERYDAY with Rachael Ray. I don't subscribe to this magazine but the mailman that delivers mail to my gift shop knows that I LOVE to cook. So when magazines loose their name or can't be forwarded he brings them to me if they have something to do about cooking. How great is that:)

The picture of the soup in the magazine really looked soo good I just had to try it. It tasted just as good as it looked!

Toasted Orzo Chicken Soup
Serves 4

One 32-ounce container chicken stock
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast pieces
2 tablespoons butter
3/4 cup orzo pasta
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small zucchini, finely chopped
1 carrot, finely chopped
1/2 small red bell pepper, finely chopped
2 shallots, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Salt & Pepper
1 cup frozen peas
1/4 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 teaspoons grated lemon peel

• In a medium pot, bring the chicken stock and chicken to a simmer. Lower the heat and poach the chicken for 12 minutes.
• Heat a dutch oven over medium heat. Add the butter to melt. Add the orzo and cook, stirring, until deeply toasted, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
• Add the olive oil. Next add the zucchini, carrot, bell pepper, shallots and garlic; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are softened, 7 to 8 minutes. Return the orzo to the pot.
• Remove the chicken from the stock. Skim and discard the fat from the stock; transfer the stock to the dutch oven. Chop, dice or shred the chicken and add to the soup with 2 cups of water. Bring the soup to a boil and cook until the orzo is just tender, 5 minutes. Add the peas during the last minute of cooking. Turn off the heat; stir in the parsley and lemon peel.

Happy 1st Anniversary Foodie Friday! Thank you Michael Lee -- I love all the great recipes and inspiration I get each week on Foodie Friday!!

Make Sure to join http://www.designsbygollum.blogspot.com/ for more great recipes!

Valentine Palmiers

These are incredibly simple to make and delectable to eat! The heart shaped pastries are perfect for a simple Valentine's Dessert!

Ingredients

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 sheet puff pastry, defrosted (recommended: Pepperidge Farm)

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

Combine the sugar and cinnamon. Pour 1/2 cup of sugar/cinnamon mixture on a flat surface. Unfold puff pastry sheet onto the sugar and pour the other 1/2 cup sugar on top of the puff pastry, completely covering the top. With a rolling pin, roll the dough until it's 13 by 13 inches square and the sugar is pressed into the puff pastry on top and bottom. Starting from one end, roll up the pastry until you reach the middle, then repeat from the other end. Trim the ends neatly, then cut into slices 3/8 inch thick. Arrange the slices on parchment covered cookie sheet, patting them into shape if necessary. Bake the cookies for 6 minutes until caramelized and brown on the bottom, then turn with a spatula and bake another 5 minutes, until caramelized on the other side. Ready to go into the oven!

Out of the oven and cooling.

These are perfect with a cup of tea! Happy Valentine's Day!!

I am joining everyone at http://www.designsbygollum.blogspot.com for Foodie Friday. Make sure to stop by for more great recipes and ideas.

Red Beet Buns

The next HBinFive baking assignment was to make Red Beet Buns! Sounds a little weird I must admit -- but these buns are amazing! They have a mixture of ingredients - white whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, spelt flour, vital wheat gluten, finely shredded peeled raw beets, and white onion finely chopped. Shredding the beats is slightly messy, using rubber gloves is a must! The dough turned a beautiful dark pink.

The color is beautiful, perfect for Valentine's Day! The taste is wonderful, you taste the beets but not overly much. They are not solid red, but flecked inside.

These made great dinner rolls tonight and will be sandwich buns tomorrow!

Baking with this group is a lot of fun, if you want more information go to http://www.BigBlackdogs.net.

Peanut Butter Bacon Cookies

Yes, you read correctly....Peanut Butter and Bacon Cookies! These are so tasty...first you taste the peanut butter, then in a few seconds you get a taste of BACON! These would be great for Super Bowl Dessert! Don't know a guy that doesn't like peanut butter or bacon :)

They mix up quick...

• 1 cup chunky or smooth peanut butter
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 6 slices thick bacon, cooked, cooled and diced

Grease a baking sheet (or use silpat) and set aside. In a mixer combine peanut butter and sugars until well combined, about 2 minutes. Add egg and baking soda and mix for another 2 minutes. Fold in cooked bacon. Roll into large walnut sized balls and roll in granulated sugar, then make a Cris-cross pattern with a fork.

Bake for 10 minutes, until lightly browned.

Cool on a baking sheet or five minutes.

ENJOY!

Enjoy Foodie Friday, hosted by Michael at http://designsbygollum.blogspot.com/!

Sloppy Joes

These Sloppy Joes would be perfect for Super Bowl Day! We had them last week when I made my homemade buns! I love the smoked paprika in this recipe, what a great taste it gives to the sloppy joes!

Brown 1 pound ground beef in a large skillet with olive oil.
Add 1 chopped onion
3 chopped garlic cloves
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Cook 1 minute.
Stir in 1 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/2 cup water
Simmer until thick, about 15 minutes.

Sometimes the simple menus are the best :)

HBinFive - February 1st Bread Braid

Our assignment for the next "Bread Braid" in the HBinFive was

1 full recipe of Soft Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread

This loaf tasted great, I loved it toasted. I was pleased with the results!

Hamburger or Hotdog Buns

I made the hamburger buns and loved them. I never thought I would make my own hamburger buns, but I will be making these again! I made Sloppy Joes (I will post the recipe later because they were very good)!

1 Loaf of Apple Strudel Bread

My Apple Strudel looks o.k., but I had the same problem many others had...air pockets and maybe too much filling. It did taste good, but I don't think I would make this loaf again.

Thank you Michelle of Big Black Dog for hosting this baking group. If you want to see other members progress in this baking group make sure to stop by http://bigblackdogs.net/