Pancakes? For Breakfast????

I'm a waffle girl. With waffles, both sides cook at the same time and the little light on the machine turns a happy green when the waffles are nice and brown. My waffle iron even makes a little clicking noise when it changes from red to green. It's brainless, which is my kind of cooking.

On the other hand, pancakes you gotta pay attention to. I in the almost 8 years Mrblocko and I have been married, I've only ever made pancakes once, and it was for dinner, not breakfast. They were less than scrumptious. OK, they were gross and I refused to eat them. I'm pretty sure they went into the garbage and we went out to dinner instead. We did that a lot back then, before I could cook.

I've had the baking/cooking bug lately, but I've been fighting this cold and just haven't had the energy for much of anything past breakfast. So I had an idea last night to make something for breakfast other than the usual cold cereal. Mrblocko said he didn't have to be into work until late and offered to take Blockette to Bible school in the morning. How perfect was that! We wouldn't be rushed to eat and I would have more time since I wouldn't have to get myself ready along with Blockette.

I didn't want to make waffles since I still had leftovers in the freezer from when Mrsthunder was over last week. Reheating leftovers wasn't going to do anything to sate my cooking bug. I decided that more than enough time had passed since I had made pancakes and my kitchen skills had greatly improved since then.

Last time I made pancakes, I used a box mix. I don't know if that was part of the problem. 9 times out of 10 when I make waffles I use a mix and they turn out fine. Just in case the mix was the culprit, I decided to make the pancakes from scratch. I thought the Chai Spiced Buttermilk Pancakes from Amelie Eats sounded particularly delicious. I even had the Fireside Chai from Zhena's Gypsy Tea the blogger suggests. (This is the best caffeine free chai I've ever had, plus it comes in a way cool tin.)
I was extremely proud that the pancakes were neither raw nor burnt! Mrblocko and Blockette loved them. Blockette even had seconds. She NEVER asks for seconds. Ever. Mrblocko made a comment that she could have a peanut butter and jelly pancake sandwich for lunch and Blockette's eyes got so huge I thought they were gonna pop right out of her head. She's a pretty dramatic girl and I don't think I've ever seen her that jubilant about anything, let alone food.

It took me some getting used to the chai spices, but once my palate became acclimated to the unexpected, I thought they were pretty good. If I had been thinking, I would have topped them with honey instead of the traditional maple syrup. The honey would have been more complimentary to the chai flavors.

I still like waffles better. There is something about the slight crunch of a waffle's exterior that I miss while eating a pancake. While I was eating breakfast, I couldn't help thinking how this batter would fare in the waffle iron. The next time I get the breakfast baking bug up my butt I just might give it a whirl.

Chai Spiced Pancakes from Amelie Eats
2 eggs
2 cups flour
3 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
healthy pinch of ground cloves
scant 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon crushed black peppercorns (or a dash of freshly ground black pepper)
1 1/2 cups buttermilk (or 1.5 tbsp white vinegar and remaining amount milk)
1/2 cup brewed chai tea
4 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
½ teaspoons vanilla extract

In a large bowl beat eggs. Add buttermilk, chai tea, butter and vanilla and mix well. Add flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, spices and salt. Mix well until mostly smooth. Let batter set for a few minutes.

Heat non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Pour one ladle of batter onto the pan, make sure it's not too thick as I've had issues with the pancakes not cooking properly in the middle. Cook on the first side until bubbles that form start to pop. Flip the pancake over with a spatula and cook until golden brown. Repeat as required.

BBQ Ranch Chicken Pizza Roll 'Em Ups

I had high hopes for the BBQ Ranch Chicken Pizza Roll 'Em Ups from Picky Palate. I thought for sure Blockette was going to go completely gaga for them. Her words were, "These are good Mommy, but don't make them again." She was right on the money. They were good, but nothing to write home about.

The dough did not puff up and brown the way I thought they were supposed to. I think they should have baked at a higher heat. The recipe called for baking them at 350, but the pizza dough in a tube said to bake at 475. With the peanut butter bar fiasco this weekend, I wonder if the temp in my oven isn't off as well. It might be worth getting an oven thermometer to be sure.

I had to omit the fresh cilantro this recipe asked for. The cold weather we've been having turned the cilantro leaves a pale lemony yellow, and they smelled a bit off too. I thought about substituting fresh basil until I remembered the basil plants aren't faring any better. I don't think adding fresh herbs would have tipped the scales and made this dish a keeper in the meal rotation. It was a nice break from all the pasta we ate last week though.


BBQ Ranch Chicken and Cheddar Pizza Roll em’ Ups from Picky Palate
1 Roll Pillsbury Pizza dough in can (or use other pizza dough of choice)
1/4 Cup prepared ranch dressing
2 Cups prepared shredded BBQ Chicken
1/4 Cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1 1/2 Cups shredded smoked cheddar cheese
Ranch Dressing for dipping

Preheat oven to 350F. Open can of dough and press into rectangle. Spread or drizzle ranch dressing evenly over dough then top with evenly with chicken, cilantro and cheddar cheese. Starting at long end roll dough into a log shape. Using a sharp knife, cut 1" pieces and place onto a greased baking sheet. Bake 20-22 min til golden brown. Serve with a side of ranch dressing for dipping.

A Hot Mess

This weekend our church had a potluck picnic to kick off the start of Vacation Bible School. I had told Blockette we would make rainbow jello. I got the idea from here. Of course the photo on the Do Better website looks better than mine by leaps and bounds. She probably didn't cut the jello up like a drunken mummy either. I was ready to blame it on Blockette if anyone asked.
Wonky slices aside, this turned out really cool. I love it when something winds up looking like it took some skill to produce when that is secretly not the case. Blockette loved how as the different layers were added, the jello changed from blue to green to black, and then when you cut into it...magically, the rainbow appeared.

I felt guilty just bringing jello to the potluck, so at the last minute I decided to make some peanut butter bars. Oh my goodness. They looked so horrible I nearly cried. (OK, so I did. I hate being a weepy girl!)

If that doesn't scream "HOT MESS" I don't know what does. I got the recipe from Katie Blair Designs. Go to that link. Does that look anything like what I posted? These were one disaster after another.
First, they would not set up. I had to cook them for 25 min before they looked done. At 12 minutes, the suggested baking time, they were still gooey and raw looking. Maybe this was because I used a glass pan? Or maybe the type of pb I used? Maybe that was how they were supposed to be. I just didn't think the bars would hold together in that doughy state once they were cut.

Anyhow, after 25 min in the oven they had poofed up and the edges began to brown. So I took them out of the oven and put the chocolate chips on so they could melt...just like the recipe says. The weight of the chocolate chips caused the middle to sink.

Then the chocolate would not harden. It was a cool day so I don't see why this was a problem. It should have set up after 2 hours. So I put the peanut butter glaze on while the chocolate was still gooey. Remember that the middle sank when I put the chocolate chips on? That indentation created a nice little swimming pool for the peanut butter glaze to settle in.

I was starting to run out of time so I popped the whole thing into the fridge. After about an hour the chocolate had set but the glaze was still tacky. Tacky was better than liquid goo though.
Mrblocko tried to reassure me that things wouldn't look so bad if we cut and plated the bars. I was sceptical though. Remember how I said I put the bars in the fridge to get the chocolate to set? Yeah, that made the chocolate hard as a rock. I had to have Mrblocko cut them with our biggest sharpest knife. The chocolate topping cracked completely away from the base on a few of the edge pieces. The swimming pool pieces held together much better.

Mrblocko and I tested the broken ones. I was so sure that with all the problems and ugliness they would be chucked right into the rubbage bin. OH HO! They were good! Really good. I plated them up and hoped for the best. Mrblocko was right, they didn't look quite as disgusting as they did in the pan.
In the end it didn't matter how they looked. There was a whole table full of desserts and these bars were one of the first things to go. Mrblocko said he overheard a few people complaining they were gone. He walked over to them and said, "My wife made those, weren't they delicious?" Wasn't that sweet? I think I'll keep him.

Peanut Butter Fingers from Katie Blair Designs
3/4 c. butter
3/4 c. sugar
3/4 c. brown sugar, packed
1 egg
2/3 c. peanut butter
3/4 tsp. soda
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 c. flour
1 1/2 c. oatmeal
1 1/2 c. chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 F. Mix butter, sugar, brown sugar, egg, peanut butter, soda, salt, vanilla, flour and oatmeal in mixing bowl. Spread in a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Sprinkle chocolate chips on top of hot crust. Wait 10 minutes and spread the melted chocolate evenly over the top. Let cool; then drizzle or spread with topping.

Topping:
1/2 c. powdered sugar
1/4 c. peanut butter
2-4 T. milk

Blend these together and spread over bars. Cool and cut into squares.

Corn dog dressing bake

You want four words to describe The Homesteading Housewife's Corn dog dressing bake? How about " Om nom nom nummy!!!!" This was so good that after one bite Blockette exclaimed with a full mouth, "Mommy, you gotta make this again!" The kid was right. It's darn good. The sage makes it savory, but there is a scant amount of sugar that gives it just the right amount of sweet for balance. The hot dogs are chopped and browned in a skillet before adding them to the casserole. Never ever skip this step. It doesn't add that much time to the meal prep, but adds all kinds of caramelized crispy goodness.

The only thing I changed about this recipe was halving it and baking it in a 8x8 pan. I learned from my previous mistake with the baked ziti. A 9x13 pan of anything is just too much for us to eat without getting sick of it. The halved recipe was a great amount for us. There was enough for one meal and leftovers. Next time I think I will add a bit of corn. Mrblocko suggested adding a bit of mustard, powdered or prepared. I think he was on to something. I'll be experimenting with that next time around.

Corn Dog Dressing Bake from the Homesteading Housewife
1 cup celery, chopped finely
1 large onion, chopped finely OR 1 heaping cup of sliced green onion
2 Tablespoons butter or margarine
2 pounds (2 packages) Hot Dogs.
two 8.5 oz. packages Corn Bread Mix (I love Jiffy Brand!)
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons rubbed sage
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Preheat oven to 400F. In a skillet, combine celery, onions & butter. Saute for 5 min. Pour into a large bowl. Cut hot dogs into fourths lengthwise. Then cut each hot dog strip into 4 pieces. Pour hot dog pieces into the same skillet you used for the celery/onion mixture, saute hot dog pieces for 5 min or until lightly browned. Add browned hot dog pieces into the celery/onion mixture bowl. In another large bowl, combine; eggs, milk, sugar, sage, & pepper. Add 1/2 hot dog/celery mix ans 1 1/2 c shredded cheddar cheese, into the milk mix. Stir in the corn bread mix.Spread mixture in 13x9 baking dish. Top with remaining half of hot dog/celery mix. Sprinkle remaining 1/2 c cheese over top. Bake, uncovered,35 min, til knife inserted in center comes out clean.

Gingerbread waffles

Today MrsThunder and her daughter came over for a play date. I made them Gingerbread waffles for lunch. Blockette often refers to them as "Black waffles" because the molasses makes them so dark. (Brown waffles are regular homemade waffles, while white waffles are Eggo. She won't eat the white waffles anymore. I guess I've ruined her with homemade ones. )

MrsThunder asked for the recipe, but as she doesn't have a waffle iron yet, I figured I'd link the recipe here. That way, when she gets around to getting a waffle iron, she doesn't have to search for a random email.

This recipe does make a metric ton of waffles, so, unless you have a crowd to feed, be prepared for leftovers. Luckily, the leftovers can be frozen and taste great reheated in the toaster, oven, or on a skillet. I prefer to reheat them on the skillet. It makes them just a bit crunchy, which I think makes them taste even better than the first time around.


Gingerbread Waffles from Rachael Ray
3 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg, eyeball it
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs
2/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
1 1/4 cups milk
1/2 cup molasses
1/2 cup (1 stick) melted butter, plus some to butter the iron
Syrup, whipped cream or fresh fruits for topping, to pass at table

Preheat waffle iron. In a large bowl combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt. In a medium bowl, beat eggs and brown sugar until fluffy, then beat in pumpkin, milk, molasses and melted butter. Stir the wet into dry until just moist. Do not overstir the waffle batter. Brush the iron with a little melted butter and cook 4 waffles, 4 sections each. Serve with toppings of choice.

Pucker up

I had chicken thighs that had been in the freezer forever so I decided to make Moroccan chicken with lemon and olives last night. I doubled the recipe because I had quite a few thighs. I should have paid closer attention to what I was doing. The original recipe called for 1 lemon. So if you double the recipe you should use 2 lemons right?

NO!!!! Wrong!!! Danger! Danger!!

I did this and wow, was it mega sour. Well, duh. Two whole lemons would make something excessively sour. The chicken itself was tender and tasty, but when I served it up I poured the sauce over rice. Bleck. I think the garbage can even thought the sauce was too sour.

Blockette asked me not to make this again. I think I will honor her request. There are plenty of other recipes that call for chicken thighs I'd rather try. In fact, just this morning I came across this recipe for Five spice grilled chicken thighs with blackberry glaze. It sounds delicious. Hopefully, when I get around to testing it, I will have better luck than with the Moroccan Chicken.

Moroccan Chicken with Lemon & Olives from A Good Appetite
1 lemon
1/2 T olive oil
1 medium onion, cut in half & then sliced thin
salt &pepper
1 garlic clove, pressed
1/2 T paprika
1 t cumin
1/2 t cinnamon
1/2 t ground ginger
1 c chicken broth
4 chicken thighs, on the bone with skin removed
10 green olives

Slice the lemon in half. Cut one half into 4 wedges. Squeeze the juice from the other half. Set juice & wedges aside. In a skillet heat oil over med-high heat. Add onions & season with salt & pepper. Sauté til golden brown. Stir in garlic paprika, cumin, cinnamon and ginger & cook while stirring for 1 min. Add chicken broth & bring to a boil. Add chicken thighs & lemon wedges. Cover & reduce heat to medium-low. Let simmer for 30 min, turning chicken from time to time. Remove chicken to a plate. Add lemon juice &olives to the skillet. Turn heat to high & let boil for about 5 min til slightly thickened. Serve sauce over the chicken.

Garden update

This is my experimentation with a photo montage. I'm not sure it worked out very well. I wrote on each pic what it was but on the blog it looks so tiny. I think if you click on the picture it will take you to a bigger photo. Anyhow the photos are top left: front garden, top right: violas and lobelias, bottom left: side garden, bottom right: the only zinnia that has survived long enough to bloom. I think it's looking pretty feeble.
These pictures are of the evil stump in the side garden. We got an axe on Sunday and the top photo is after Mrblocko hacked at it with an axe for 30 min or so. The bottom pic is what it looked like before, but he had been hacking away at it with the maddoc for about a month. The top pic gives you a better idea of the scale of the pic. Yes, Blockette is wearing my shoes. The stump is currently roughly 12x12". Mrblocko took out 3 stumps in the backyard that were a fraction of the size of the one in the front. He had some time to kill when he thought he ruined the mower by accidentally mowing over one of the stumps. Why the previous owners planted all these shrubs I haven't the foggiest. And why they never bothered to take out the stumps after they chopped down the shrubs will remain a mystery of the ages. We've been tripping over them, they must have too. It's not like we have a huge backyard.