Easy Peasy Key Lime Pie

I have been waiting for key limes to come to our local stores, so I could make a true 'key lime' pie. I searched for a recipe to use, and came across this one. Turns out it was a great recipe and easy! I topped it with homemade whip cream and a lime slice. Turned out perfect! It's a perfect summer treat.




Gather ingredients before beginning:
*1 prepared graham cracker crust (9in)
*3C Sweetened condensed milk (this was two cans)
*1/2C sour cream
*3/4C key lime juice
1 tblsp lime zest


Preheat oven to 350*. In the mixing bowl for your stand mixer combine condensed milk, sour cream, lime juice, and lime rind. Mix well and pour into graham cracker crust. Bake in preheated oven for about 10 minutes until tiny pinhole bubbles burst on the surface of pie, but do not brown. Chill pie thoroughly before serving. Garnish with lime slices and whipped cream.

Fresh Pasta & Alfredo Sauce

I must admit, I was always scared to try making my own pasta. I just thought it would be too time consuming and difficult. This exact recipe are the ones given to me in my culinary class a few weeks ago. I couldn't believe how easy it was to make my own pasta, and the difference in taste. I can definitely say there is a taste difference in store bought pasta vs. making your own. You can also control the taste and colors of the pasta by the things you add to the dough when you make it. You can make a bright pasta by adding beet puree, a bold green color can be made by adding pureed basil or parsley, you can even make a dessert pasta by mixing cocoa powder with the flour to make chocolate pasts! The possibilities are endless. We steeped about a teaspoon of saffron in water to create a golden tint to the pasta we made in class. Below is the recipe for a basic pasta dough. For this recipe we used a basic pasta maker, but you can roll the dough and cut it yourself if you do not have the pasta maker.

Before beginning gather your ingredients.
Serves: 1 lb pasta = 4 servings

*3 1/2 cups of unbleached all purpose flour
*4 extra large eggs

Mound the flour in the center of a large wooden cutting board. Make a well in the middle of the flour, add the eggs. Using a fork beat the eggs and begin to incorporate the flour starting with the inner rim of the well. Push the flour up to maintain shape as you incorporate the eggs. The dough will come together and look messy, that is okay. Knead the dough with both hands using the palms of your hands. Add more flour in 1/2c measurements if the dough is too sticky. Once the dough is one mass remove the dough from the cutting board & scrape up any dry bits. Lightly flour the board and continue to knead for three minutes. The dough should be a little sticky. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and set aside for 20 minutes at room temperature. Roll and form as desired.

Fettuccine Alfredo

*1lb dried fettuccine
*6 tblsp unsalted butter
*1 shallot, minced
*1c heavy cream
*1c finely grated Parmesan
*1/2 tesp salt
*1/4 teasp fresh ground pepper
*chopped fresh parsley for garnish

Cook the fettuccine in a pot of boiling salted water until al dente, or desired consistency.

While the pasta is cooking, melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium high heat. Add shallots and saute until tender. Add heavy cream and bring to a boil. Cook until sauce has reduced slightly, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. Add the cheese and mix until combined well. Season with salt and pepper. Toss the pasta with the sauce and sprinkle with parsley. Serve immediately.

Sugar Seared Scallops & Parm Risotto

My final from school was coming up when I found this recipe, the timing was perfect because I knew our final was going to be preparing risotto milanese. I wanted to prepare something similar to get a feel for making it how the consistency should be etc. and I came across this recipe on pinterest. It was fantastic!! I will be making this one a lot more I'm sure. I love scallops as you can tell I have a few other posts that include recipes with scallops. I ventured a little away from the exact recipe I had found, and I put the tops and bottoms of the scallops in sugar then into the skillet and cooked them that way. Scallops naturally have a sweetness to them, so this just enhances that and it is so good. If you do not want to do that you can just sear them using butter. Either way they will be fantastic.


Gather ingredients before beginning:

Parmesan Risotto
Servings: 3 • Size: 3/4 cup • Time: 30 minutes
*1 cup arborio rice
*2 tsp butter
*1 shallot, minced
*1/2 cup white wine
*4 cups fat free chicken stock
*salt and pepper TT
*1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
*2 tbsp chopped parsley

Heat chicken stock in a small pot.

In a medium size heavy sauce pan, add butter on medium-low heat. Add shallots, sauté about 1 minute. Add rice mixing well until well coated and transluscent, about 2 minutes. Add wine, salt and pepper and mix well until it is absorbed into the rice. Ladle 1 cup stock into rice and mix until all stock is absorbed, add another ladle, and continue adding and stirring until all broth is absorbed, about 20-25 minutes. Add parmesan cheese and parsley, mix well and serve.

Seared Scallops
Servings: 3 • Size: 5 oz • Time: 10 minutes
*16 oz (about 12-14) sea scallops
*salt and fresh pepper
*2 tsp butter
*Enough sugar to coat bottom and tops of scallops

Wash scallops and pat dry with a paper towel. Season with salt and pepper. Cover ends in sugar. Heat a medium size pan on a high flame. When pan is hot, melt 1 tsp butter and place half of the scallops in the pan. Sear without touching them for a few minutes until the bottom forms a nice caramel colored crust. Turn over and cook about another minute or 2, until the center is slightly translucent (you can check this by viewing them from the side) and the bottom is seared. Be careful not to overcook. Remove from the pan and set aside on a warm plate. Add additional tsp butter and cook remaining scallops.

Roasted Asparagus W Prosciutto

I can eat this by myself for dinner, lunch, or even a snack. It is so good, and good for you! At the moment we are visiting family in Tennessee for the weekend we had a big cook out last night and I decided to make this as a side for everyone. Honestly, it went so fast I should have doubled it! I promise everyone, even those picky eaters, will LOVE this!!!

Gather ingredients before beginning
*Fresh Asparagus (As much as you want or need)
*Packaged Prosciutto
*Salt & Pepper (TT)
*Sun dried tomatoes, Julienne cut then diced
*Olive Oil
*1-2 garlic cloves, minced


I do not have exact measurements for this recipe, I use enough olive oil to drizzle the wrapped asparagus, if I had to guess it's about 2 tblsp. First you want to preheat your oven to 400*. Next you will trim the asparagus ends, just enough to get clean cut ends. Next you will take the prosciutto cut the piece in half, 1 piece of prosciutto will wrap two pieces of asparagus. After you have done this you can set it aside. Now take the sun dried tomatoes and dice them. In a small bowl mix the olive oil, tomatoes, and garlic. You will drizzle this on the asparagus. Then sprinkle with salt and pepper. Once you have done all of that you will bake it for 20 minutes. Let them cool a little and serve them! It will be an instant hit at any get together!

THE Best Banana Bread EVER

Cream Cheese Banana Nut Bread

Banana Bread is a southern treat. I may be a little biased by saying that, but growing up in the south I’ve had so many different recipes over the years, and I’ve tried many of my own. This one, however, is THE best banana bread I have ever had. My family can vouch for this! It never lasts over a day. My husband will literally eat chunks of it at a time. Personally I bake it in a Bundt pan, but I have also made it into loaves. I do offer this through my CMC baking and it has been a huge hit there as well. I play around with the recipe, I also use different nuts in place of pecans and I’ll also add a good heaping of chocolate chips occasionally! I can guarantee your family will fall in love with this sweet bread. And everyone will want the recipe! From my recipe box to yours, I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as my family and I have!

Makes 2 loaves or ONE Bundt pan

*3/4 c. butter, softened
*1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened
*2 c. sugar
*2 large eggs
*3 c. all-purpose flour
*1/2 tsp. baking powder
*1/2 tsp. baking soda
*1/2 tsp. salt
*1 1/2 cups mashed bananas (about 4 medium bananas)
*1 cup roughly chopped pecans, toasted (optional)
*1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating until light and fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition.

Combine flour and next 3 ingredients; gradually add to butter mixture, beating at low speed just until blended. Stir in bananas, pecans, and vanilla. Spoon batter into 2 greased and floured 8x4 inch loaf pans.

Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until a long wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean and sides pull away from pan, shielding with aluminum foil last 15 minutes to prevent browning, if necessary. Bread in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes. Remove from pans, and cool 30 minutes on wire racks before slicing.

Baked Butternut Squash

I was recently asked if I would be interested in guest blogging for LearnToCook.com, I couldn't pass up that opportunity and I am so excited to be apart of it! I was also awarded their monthly gift card give away. That was great! I just submitted this recipe to them for their blog, and wanted to be sure I shared it with my followers as well!
This recipe is simple, and so good. Not to mention the smell it will send through your home smells amazing. Me being a mom to three young children, I’m always on the search for healthy side dishes, and entrée’s that will pass their judgment. This particular dish is slightly sweet, and pairs very well with most entrée’s. At my home we even make it to have as a snack. The ingredients, minus the actual squash itself, are things I’m sure you already have in your kitchen.
Mis En Place:
Yield: 4 servings, 4oz. Method: Baking

*Butternut Squash, medium dice – 1lb (This is one medium sized squash)
*Salt & Pepper- TT
*Cinnamon- ¼ tsp
*Cardamom, ground (or nutmeg can be used as substitute- 1/8 tsp.
*Brown Sugar- 2 tbsp
*Lemon Juice- 2 tbsp
*Whole Butter, melted- 2oz.

Preheat oven to 350.
Before you start always gather your mis en place. First, you are going to cut the squash right at the base and neck. This will give you two pieces to work with making it more manageable. Next wash then peel the squash, clean the seeds out of the middle (use a spoon to do this) and cut into medium size dice. You can use a vegetable peeler to peel the squash, or your chef knife. Personally, I recommend the peeler. I have done this both ways, and the peeler is easier. Then, you will need to take a small sauce pan and melt 2oz. of butter on your stove top. Set this aside once melted.
Once you have diced the squash place the pieces in a buttered dish. Season with salt, pepper, cinnamon, cardamom, and brown sugar. To do this just sprinkle the ingredients evenly over the dish. Next you will drizzle the lemon juice and melted butter over top of the squash. Once finished with all the ingredients you are going to bake uncovered in a 350* oven until tender, this will take approximately 50 minutes. For garnish you can use finely chopped parsley, or finely chopped rosemary.

Lots Of Updates!

I apologize that it's been a while since I've posted anything on here. After my surgery my schedule picked up with school, work, and everything in between!! Thankfully I've healed well from the surgery and can say I feel I'm about 90% back to myself. I had an interview a couple of weeks ago for an extern position with Williamsburg Inn. I'm not sure if I had mentioned it on my blog or not, but I know I did on my Country Mom Chef facebook, the interview went well and I was asked back to help with banquets and pantry in their kitchen before they would make a final decision on the position I was out for. Unfortunately I had found out after the interview and all that I would not receive credit for the extern position if I was to have it right now apparently I am not to that point in school. That's a long story I could go on and on about but I will just save that ramble and say I gave it all to God and he was sure on time! I called the executive Chef of the Inn back the next day and told him the situation I had found out from school and that I could not accept the position if it was offered because I could not give them 100% of my time and attention because I am a full time student still and the school would not give me credit. He was very nice about it and told me to come back and apply again next year when I am eligible for the credit. The day after I made that phone call the executive chef for Williamsburg Lodge called me and asked me to come interview for their extern position, I explained to him the situation and asked if there were any other positions I could go out for as an employment opportunity and he said yes he would work with me and we set up an interview. I had that interview last Thursday the 6th and have been hired on!!! I will be starting in their kitchen on the 24th! I couldn't be more excited. I'm very thankful they believe in me and my passion and will work with me to teach me what I need to know so I can grow in the culinary world and better my skills. I will be starting out as a cook 1 position with growth to cook 2 position after hard work. He also told me next year I will go to the Inn for my extern position!!! I've said it plenty of times on my facebook page so you've heard this if you follow me there, if you give it to God all of a situation pray about it and really leave the decision and steering wheel to him he WILL lead you to where you need to be. I can honestly say I did that and this is where he is leading me. I am thankful for that! Today I go to submit my drug test, paper work, and receive my uniforms from the lodge. So welcome to this part of my journey to all of those who follow along!!!

LearnToCook.com
June 6th was a very busy, but amazing day for me. Not only did I get hired by the Lodge but after I got home and checked my emails I had an email from LearnToCook.com telling me I won their monthly give away of a gift card for following along with them! Talk about luck! I was then put in touch with their Associate Director of Marketing who reviewed my blog and facebook for Country Mom Chef and asked if I would be interested in guest blogging on their website for them!!!! This is a huge opportunity and of course I said yes!!! Over the weekend I came up with a few different ideas that I could blog about, mostly recipes where I will also walk people through how to hold a knife correctly, how to dice, cut, etc. so not only will my posts contain yummy recipes and pictures, but also will teach people the basics to the culinary world that I have learned myself. You would be surprised the difference in holding a knife. I emailed her those ideas today and am looking forward to hearing back from her and working with them!

School
Classes for our new term started a couple of weeks ago. I love my culinary techniques class it's so interesting. We've learned mostly about vegetables so far basics on cooking them, cutting, dicing, salads different types, dressings. It's been a good class. A small class. There are only 4 students and that includes me. We cook a lot from the time we get to class until the later part of the evening. I also have college composition. I only go to that class once a week, and I'm thankful! Obviously I write, I have a blog, but I have not formally written in a long time. Last night I reviewed the syllabus and I am going to be writing ALOT. I want to say there were about 10 different papers on different topics and subjects. It will be an interesting class. I will be in this class until early August.

Well!!! I am going to close out on this post, but I will have a couple of more posts to put up this week! Thank you all for following along with me on this journey. Thank you for the messages I receive from my sweet followers telling me how much they look forward to my posts and growing, and how proud they are! I love you all!!!

Ya'll have a good day!!!!

Bump In The Road.

I think I have said this on previous posts I've put up, and some of you will probably think I'm falling apart by the time this post is finished but WHAT AN EVENTFUL WEEK. Goodness gracious. Monday was like any ordinary Monday did some house work, received a few orders for Country Mom chef, and ordered a great new advertisement from a work at home mother for my car. Then Tuesday happened. Ugh Tuesday. I worked all day Tuesday like any other work day I was busy, but I was fine. Got off work about 4pm and went home to get the kids and go meet a lady I met from a resale group on facebook to get a pair of sandals for my Mason bug, after we did that we decided to eat at The Greene Turtle in Hampton because we had a coupon. Dinner came and my stomach started to bother me. Yes more stomach issues. This year alone I have had enough stomach issues to last me an entire life time. I figured the food I had ate upset my stomach and it would pass so we went home and I laid down. About two hours after I laid down it didn't stop hurting it actually traveled from my mid stomach to my right side. I still didn't think about and we went to bed. Thought out the night it got intensely worse so bad I couldn't lay on my side, I couldn't lay on my back, I couldn't sit up, walk or anything at all. 5:30am rolled around and my sleepless night became unbearable so I woke Jaymie up and we decided it was time to go to the emergency room. Anyone with little ones knows that isn't a easy decision to make, but even more so not having family around to be with the kids while we go so at 6:30am we get the kids up and ready pack a diaper bag and hit the road to the hospital. I couldn't even walk to the desk to sign in they got me a wheel chair and checked me in and immediately took me to a room to be evaluated. Pretty fast they took blood, urine test, ordered a ct scan, and then the doctor came in. Waiting in that room for her to come back in there and tell me what was going on was the longest hour I have ever had to sit through. Thankfully they had given me medicine to help with the pain but every shadow I could see walking past my room made me grow more anxious for her to come in. When she came in my kids and Jaymie were in the room with me, I was thankful because I didn't want to be by myself. She told me the ct scan showed I had appendicitis. I know that isn't a big huge deal and it's a surgery that is done many times a day every where in the world but for anyone who knows me knows 1. I have never had surgery before, 2. my anxiety is terrible, and 3. I'm a baby! So from the time we arrived at the hospital at 7am to this point at 11am I was being told I'm going to be taken to surgery and in 30 minutes. That was scary I had no time to mentally prepare myself for surgery, plus we had the kids with us at the hospital and knew they wouldn't understand or be allowed in a majority of the rooms I was going to be in. We had to work very fast to get them settled and home all my belongings together, my prayers in and prepared for the OR. Thankfully we have been very blessed with a fantastic babysitter. She has been a huge blessing to us and the children just adore her! She was very nice and came to the hospital to pick the kids up and bring them home. That was one less thing I had to worry about which made that day so much easier.

It's all very foggy to me, I remember going into the OR and wiggling over to the actual table where they would want me. I remember them strapping down my left arm and the way the one nurse looked at me she must have been able to tell I was very nervous and scared bless that nurse because she talked to me while everyone else around me was so busy talking to each other and doing their job. I remember she asked me about my culinary school and what I did I doubt I even said much and I was out for the count. The surgery was short, it was about an hour. I woke up in the recovery room. This room held about 10-11 beds separated by a curtain between each bed. I believe there were three or four nurses in this area for all of us. And it was completely packed. Obviously groggy and tired sore and over it I was in and out of sleep from 1:30 until about 7pm. My nurse in this area was Jessica and she was fantastic she checked on me and made sure I was comfortable treated me like a patient. She left around 8pm. I should have only been in recovery for about an hour maybe two at most, I know this because the surgeon told me while I was still in the ER and he was explaining everything to me. This other nurse was just not as great. They slowly started moving people to rooms late in the evening by 9:30 it was just myself and a little old lady next to me and my nurse and another nurse. Those two nurses sat there gossiping from that point on until I finally got to go to a room at 12:30am. Boy I have heard enough gossip for a life time!!! I had to literally raise my hand and wave it around to get her attention bc she was so caught up in it. I was thankful to get in a room even if it wasn't on the surgery floor and I had to share with someone. By this point I was starving because I hadn't had anything to eat since Tuesday night at 6 but they couldn't give me food. Thankfully my nurse I had on that floor brought me a sack lunch at 2am and boy for two pieces of dry wheat bread with one slice of thin sandwich meat it tasted like a gourmet meal. She was a sweet nurse and made sure I was comfortable all night. My day nurse I had though topped them all she was just fantastic she would come in the room and talk to me, helped me out when I started passing out, helped me breathe, helped with my chest pain just over all was a rock star nurse. She turned around my opinion of the hospital I had gotten from such a horrible time I had after I came out of surgery that's for sure. My plan is to make my nurses I had, there were three great ones, and my surgeon and the lady who worked with him all cupcakes and take them to my post op appointment. I really want to thank them for helping me feel better about my experience. Although it started just really bad they turned it around for me and made me feel like an actual person. More happened through out the stay that just put a sour taste in my mouth, but I think I've babbled enough! But there you have it, my "bump in the road". I came across a post on facebook and I put it up on my instagram this is it below.



I can say I prayed yesterday a lot, before on my way and after surgery I prayed and prayed and had this sense of someone there with me even when I was totally alone. I will admit I was a mess yesterday but without that feeling and prayer I would have been a lot worse. My friend commented on the picture and said this: "I <3 you! It's just a bump in the road and with your strength and faith... This too shall pass!". And though I definitely did not see it like that yesterday going into the ER and being told I was going into surgery, the only thing I saw was "another health issue" or "let down" best put, another thing getting in my way especially with all the orders I had going for Country Mom Chef this week. BUT now that I can look back on it and really see it from the other side, Bump in the road. That was one heck of a bump I hit yesterday. But my friend was right when they said "this too shall pass". I was upset when it first happened, the timing just felt really bad because I had so many orders and things going on I didn't want to lose them BUT I have to remind myself that everything happens for a reason, for some reason I needed to slow down and concentrate on my body and health.. I'm taking this time to do that. Thank you to everyone who prayed and kept me in your thoughts I truly appreciate it!! And I cant wait to get totally better so I can get back in the kitchen and make more yummy goodness!!!! I'll be back at it soon, and better than ever!

With this bump I have put more thought into my health. I am going to start paying more attention to what I eat. While I try not to eat fried or greasy foods I am also going to start limiting my intake on sweets (this will be tough for me I have the WORST sweet tooth), limit pork eliminate chicken (they upset my stomach for whatever reason), eat more fresh greens, veggies, and fruits while getting back into the gym. I cannot lift or do actual gym workouts for the next 4-6 weeks while my muscles heal but I will be walking and working my way back into the gym and making myself go twice a week. I will also drink more water, take vitamins, and rest more. I need to get myself healthy so I can limit these bumps. I know the appendicitis was something I couldn't help getting but my health has always been funny and up and down. I'm ready to feel "normal", or come to a happy medium with my body!

Another thing I missed this week with my bump was my culinary final I was supposed to take tonight. I did take the written portion last week, which I'm still not sure what my grade is I need to ask Chef! But I did talk to Chef yesterday before surgery to let him know I would not be in class this week and to arrange a time for me to make it up he said I didn't need to I did volunteer work for him and he knows I've practiced (hey ask anyone I've made our final dish at least 6 times since we made it in class LOL), chopped and sauteed a 10lbs bag of potatoes, and went over everything I have taken notes on. I wish I could have been in class tonight because I will miss my class mates and Chef we were a small class so we were close! But next week I go on to my next class Introduction to Cooking Techniques! This class will be twice a week evening classes and I will be learning the basic aspects of fruit and vegetable preparation including salads, cold sauces, and dressing. The fundamental aspects of breakfast cookery and sandwich presentation are also included. I've read through the syllabus and we will be learning a lot I'm very excited! I will have a new teacher though, Chef Chris. I have not met him yet I have only had Chef McGhee. My other class I will be taking is College Composition. That class will also be twice a week so all together I will have class Monday-Thursday. More school than I've had but I'm looking forward to it. I have spoken to my scheduling manager at work and let him know I will only be available to work Friday-Sunday's now so my concentration will be school and Country Mom Chef. I look forward to learning about everything and sharing with everyone who reads along with my blog! Which has now been viewed almost 4000 times! Thank you all for reading, cooking, and believing along with me!! You all are my favorite people! I guess I've probably "talked your ears off" tonight but I felt like I needed to let you all in. :) Thanks for listening. I better try to get some sleep its been two days now. I will update everyone soon! Good night yall!!!

White Wine Tomato Sauce and Scallops

This dish was simple and very tasty! I made it for a friends farewell lunch. The recipe calls for both shrimp and scallops, I only made it with scallops. You can serve with warm cream if you would like. Great with a salad and bread! Enjoy!
Gather ingredients before beginning.



Sauce:
1 pound linguine
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup dry white wine
Three 14.5-ounce cans diced (or whole) tomatoes
Salt and fresh ground pepper
Red pepper flakes

Seafood:
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound jumbo or large shrimp, peeled and deveined, rinsed and dried
1 pound scallops, rinsed and dried



Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

For the sauce: Cook the pasta for half the recommended cooking time; the pasta should still be very firm.

In a skillet, cook the garlic in the butter and olive oil for a few minutes, and then pour in the wine. Allow this to reduce for a couple of minutes, and then pour in the tomatoes. Stir the mixture together, season with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes, and allow to cook for 10 minutes.

For the seafood: In a separate skillet, heat the butter and olive oil over medium heat. Sear the scallops, then the shrimp, until they're nice and black/brown.

Meanwhile, grab 2 large sheets of heavy duty aluminum foil and overlap them in a platter with a little depth. It should be large enough to hold the entire pasta dish.

Mix the drained pasta with the sauce and tip it onto the foil. Then arrange the sauteed seafood on top. Tightly wrap the foil into a package.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and keep warm until serving.

To serve: Open the foil package right before serving. Drizzle warm cream over the top and sprinkle with torn basil and parsley.

Oatmeal Cream Pies

If the title alone isn't enough to get your mouth watering then just take a look at the picture below! I've been a fan of oatmeal cream pies since I was a little girl, it's a staple for school lunches or a backpack of snacks for a day out with the kiddos. You know I'm right! I've made homemade oatmeal raisin cookies before but they didn't turn out crispy with a soft middle and just the deliciousness that the cookie is. But this recipe THIS recipe is a true goodness cookie. YUM. The cream I was originally going to make was a marshmallow base but I am out so I improvised by making a homemade whip cream! Still so very good. My cookies turned out to be monsters big ol' cookies which I'm not complaining at all so it made 19 large cookies. The cookie recipe came from my grandmother she emailed it to me last week! You know you want to so just write these ingredients down with the directions and get in the kitchen! You wont regret it :)



1C BROWN SUGAR
1/2 C GRANULATED SUGAR
1 C SHORTENING
1 EGG
1/4 C WATER
3 C QUICK OATS
1 C FLOUR
1TSP SALT
1/2 TSP B SODA
1TSP VANILLA
1/2 TSP CINNAMON
1/2 C NUTS (OPTIONAL, could also use chocolate chips)
1/2 - 1 C RAISINS (CAN USE 1/2 RAISINS, 1/2 DRIED CRANBERRIES)

CREAM TOGETHER SHORTENING AND SUGARS. ADD EGG AND WATER, AND VANILLA, MIX WELL. IN A SEPARATE BOWL, COMBINE DRY INGREDIENTS AND MIX THOROUGHLY. GRADUALLY ADD DRY INGREDIENTS TO SHORTENING MIXTURE. ADD RAISINS AND NUTS AND MIX THOUROUGHLY. DROP BY TEAPOONFULL ONTO A GREASED COOKIE SHEET. BAKE 12-15 MIN AT 350 DEGREES. I baked these on wax paper covered cookie sheets, and let them cool on a wire rack!

Let's Catch Up!

I haven't posted in a little while. Last week was a terrible week for me. My family was ill with a terrible stomach bug on the 26th & 27th of April I tried everything to avoid getting it myself but last Tuesday I woke up sick with the stomach bug. It is hard being a mother of three little ones but even more so when they get sick with something like a stomach bug. You just know you are going to get it. It's the laws of being a mother. Once the kids get it you will get it no matter how much you avoid it, disinfect, and work to not get it!! This stomach bug was no normal 24 hour and over it stomach bug this was the toughest meanest stomach bug I have ever encountered. I will spare you the details but this thing hit early on the 30th and hasn't until the 3rd. I actually had a seizure from it. Not sure what brought it on the doctors at the hospital said being dehydrated and a fever spike could have caused it. Thankfully I was in bed laying down when I had it, and Jaymie was in the room with me when it happened. But I didn't realized it had even happened until the EMT's had me on a chair transferring me to the ambulance. After a ton of tests the doctor released me from the hospital and let me go home. Thankfully I am much better and completely myself again. It was a scary thing though.

Color Me Rad!
I'm not sure if I had mentioned it on my blog or not, but back in February my friend Ashlea and I registered for our first 5k the Color Me Rad run. That just so happened to be yesterday May 5th. After being so sick and having the seizure I was a little nervous to run this but I had been looking forward to this for so long I decided to walk it and my wonderful friend was there to help me and encourage me along the way. I ended up running and walking it. I am super proud of myself to say, for it being my first 5k and me never have being a runner we finished in 30 minutes!! I know she would have finished long before that but she stuck with me through out the entire run. Thank you for that Ashlea you are a wonderful friend!! It was so much fun though we had a blast. I must say I am hooked now and am looking forward to many more runs. Sadly my friend is moving though. I will miss her dearly.



Teacher Appreciation
Last week a local business contacted me to ask if I would be apart of a local school's Teacher Appreciation day by donating goodies. Of course I said yes!! Country Mom Chef will be supplying the teacher's with an assortment of truffles, and two different flavors of mini cupcakes! We will be doing this for about 75 teachers and staff. I will also be raffling off a yummy gift basket to the teachers. I will post plenty of pictures and another blog entry about how that went after the event later this week! :)

School
School is going fantastic for me. We are coming to a close on our 2nd quarter. I have a final this Thursday in my Culinary class for this final I will be sauteing pork medallions, mushroom, onion, and Rosemary with a white wine cream sauce. I am actually making this for dinner this evening so I have the chance to prepare it one more time before the final. Here is a picture of the dish, we made it last week in class to do a run over before the final.

I also just registered for my next quarter classes. I will be taking Advanced Culinary Techniques and Composition. On the track I am on now I will graduate in one year! I am so excited!!!

I hope everyone is doing well and staying healthy. I will be sure to get back to posting recipes shortly! Have a blessed day!!!

Baked Ziti with Eggplant & Ricotta

This recipe is delish! I am not a huge fan of eggplant myself, but my family really enjoys the dish so I've been trying to find new ways to make it more enjoyable for me. This dish was sooo good. And pretty easy. For all your health conscious followers this is a great dish to make for your family, maybe pair this with the baked parm tomatoes. Yum! If you want to prepare this dish ahead, roast the eggplant, make the sauce and refrigerated separately. When you're ready to bake cook the pasta and mix everything together as directed. Add about 10 minutes to the baking time to compensate for the chilled ingredients. And wallah! When have dinner guests over I always try to make dishes I can start ahead of time, so I'm not in the kitchen a lot while they are here. That wouldn't be much of a problem if my kitchen was larger and I had a breakfast bar but I am not that lucky, YET! ;)

Below is the picture of the dish, and the ingredients and directions! I hope you all have a chance to make this and enjoy it just as much as we did here at my home! Sending much love to everything! I will be posting a update on my school in the next few days so be on the look out! :)

Good night ya'll



Total time for this dish is about 1 hour.

Gather ingredients before beginning:

*1 medium eggplant cut into 1in pieces
*3 tblsp olive oil
*3/4 teasp salt
*1 small onion, diced
*2 garlic cloves, minced
*1 caan plum tomatoes, 28 oz.
*2 tblsp tomato paste
*1/4 teasp ground black pepper
*3 tblsp chopped fresh basil
*1 package ziti or penne, 16 oz.
*1/4c parm cheese
*1c ricotta cheese (honestly I used more than this because I made a huge casserole dish)

Preheat oven to 450. In a large bowl toss eggplant, 2 tblsp olive oil, and 1/4 teasp salt until evenly coated. Arrange eggplant in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake in the oven to roast the eggplant for about 30 minutes, or until golden and tender. When finished set the pan aside to cool. Turn oven to 400.
In a saucepan heat remaining tblsp olive oil over medium heat until hot. Add onion and cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute longer, stirring frequently. Str in tomatoes with their juice, tomato paste, pepper, and remaining 1/2 teasp salt. Break up tomatoes with the side of a spoon. Heat to boiling over high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer until sauce thickens slightly this takes about 10 minutes. Stir in 2 tblsp of basil.
In large saucepan prepare pasta as directed on the pasta box. Drain, return pasta to sauce pot. To the pasta in saucepot add roasted eggplant, tomato sauce, and parm cheese toss and mix everything evenly. Spoon mixture into casserole dish, top with dollops of ricotta. Cover casserole with foil and bake until hot and bubbly, about 20 minutes. Sprinkle the top with remaining basil!
ENJOY!

Broccoli Alfredo & Baked Parm Tomatoes

Yum yum yum! Last night we had guests over for dinner and to watch a movie. I made broccoli alfredo, had intentions to make garlic bread but instead made baked parm tomatoes on toasted french bread (I think this choice was better!), they brought a yummy salad, and I made my white chocolate creme brulee for dessert! Goodness that is probably my favorite dessert it is sooo smooth and rich. As any busy momma I cut corners to save time on dinner, so last night I had bought Emerils alfredo sauce to use with this recipe unfortunately when I baked it in the oven it just turned the pasta dry you couldn't really taste the sauce on it. I have made a very good alfredo sauce recipe, it is on here under the tab "Dinners" listed as shrimp alfredo. I will use that next time. I have learned as much as I like easy and time saving recipes, when it comes to sauces I enjoy mine a whole lot more than I do the store bought. This entire dinner over all is super easy to make, literally anyone can do it and people will be impressed!

For the broccoli alfredo I bought a box of rotini pasta. With this you boil the pasta as any pasta you would and time it for 8 minutes. Drain and put in a 9x13in baking dish. They can sit while you work on the broccoli. I bought two small broccoli heads rinsed them and cut them into small florets. The larger florets I cut down the middle. I boiled these for about 12 minutes until fork tender. Once they finished boiling I drained them and put them on top of the pasta in the baking dish. Mix well. Take alfredo sauce you would like to use and mix well in baking dish. I seasoned to my taste with garlic salt, a little onion powder, salt and pepper and sprinkled with Parmesan cheese. I then baked the dish with foil on it for 20 minutes, removed foil after 20 minutes and baked 5 more minutes to allow cheese to melt. Bake in a 350 oven.

Baked parm tomatoes. For this dish you want to pick out good ripe firm tomatoes (I sliced two, slice these into 1/3in slices. Place them on a baking sheet and top with parm cheese, fresh oregano, salt, fresh ground pepper, and drizzle with a little olive oil. Bake until the cheese is melted and the tomatoes are firm, about 10-15 minutes. Bake in a 450 oven. After the tomatoes have finished take a loaf of french bread and slice as many pieces as it takes to pair with the tomatoes, I had 9 slices of tomatoes and 9 slices of bread. I then put the oven on broil placed the bread on a baking sheet and popped them in the oven. I did not time these I just kept my eye on them to make sure they did not burn. Top with the baked tomato and it is so good!

I have posted the creme brulee recipe before, but I will post it again! You have to make this! This recipe yields 4 remkins.
*4 large egg yolks, at room temp
*1 bar (4oz) Ghirardelli White Chocolate Baking Bar, chopped into small pieces
*1/3C plus 4 teasp sugar
*2c heavy whipping cream
*1/2 teasp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 300. Whisk egg yolks and 1/3c sugar together until smooth. Bring whipping cream to a simmer over medium-high heat. Add chocolate to simmering whipping cream, turn heat off and then whisk and then whisk until melted. Slowly add chocolate mixture to egg mixture, whisking constantly until smooth. Whisk in vanilla. Pour into four ramekins. Place cups in 9x13 baking pan or boiler pan. Add enough water so the ramekins sit in 1-1 1/2 inch of water. Bake until set, about 45 minutes. Sprinkle each cup with 1 teaspoon of sugar and broil until caramelized. I top my brulees with fresh strawberry slices. In my opinion fresh berries are a great garnish for this dessert!

Sautee & Grill Night

I had class last night and was very excited because I knew we were going to actually cook. We have practiced dicing, and they cooked in class last week but I was out of town so I missed it. I was a little nervous because I grill and saute things at home for my family but I hadn't ever done that in front of people besides family. But once I got in the kitchen figured out how I was going to do everything I made I was just fine! We cut chops out of a huge pork loin, sprinkled them with a good dry rub and put them on the grill! Then I chopped up a red and yellow pepper and onion seasoned them and sauteed them in a skillet. He taught us the flipping technique for sauteing. I got the hang of it, but I did make a mess haha. We have midterms coming up next week in place of a written test we have the chance to participate in helping chef out at his school help serve a senior event. I am totally excited for that and hoping it works out so we can go! Here are a few pictures from class last night!

Homemade Bread & Chicken Lasagna

Hello Hello! It's been a little bit since I have posted on here. This week was hectic settling back into the house from our Tennessee trip. I also had to work and go to school, but had to catch up on a lot of notes and homework too. I can say I am caught up now! And I tried a couple of new recipes this week!
Wednesday night I made a semi homemade chicken lasagna. When I started I didn't have intentions to add veggies to it but I looked in my fridge when I started putting the ingredients together and noticed Jaymie had bought a squash, egg plant, and onion. I didn't want them to just spoil so I diced them up and sauteed them for the lasagna. I used a store bought pasta sauce for this one, but next time I will use my own it is so much more flavorful. Below is the recipe for it!:

Chicken Veggie Lasagna


Gather ingredients before beginning.

*1lb ground chicken
*2.5c mozzarella cheese
*1 15oz container ricotta cheese
*1/2c parm cheese
*1 egg beaten
*1 jar pasta sauce of choice, or follow my recipe for a delicious homemade recipe
*1c water
*12 lasagna noodles, uncooked
*half eggplant peeled and diced
*1 yellow squash diced
*1c diced onion
*1 tblsp minced garlic
*1 tblsp olive oil

Heat oven to 350
Dice the onion, squash, and egg plant. Heat olive oil in a sautee pan once pan is heated saute the veggies until onion is transparent. Be sure to add garlic last it can burn if heated too long. Place to the side when finished.Brown chicken in large skillet on medium-high heat. Meanwhile, mix 1-1/4 cups mozzarella, ricotta, 1/4 cup Parmesan, parsley and egg until blended. Drain meat then return to skillet. Stir in spaghetti sauce and add 1 cup water to empty sauce jar cover with lid and shake well. Add to meat mixture stir well. Spread 1 cup meat sauce onto bottom of 13x9-inch baking dish; top with layers of 3 lasagna noodles, 1/3 of the ricotta cheese mixture and 1 cup meat sauce. Repeat layers twice. Top with remaining noodles, meat sauce and cheeses. Cover with foil sprayed with cooking spray. Bake for 1 hour or until heated through, removing foil after 45 min.


I was going to make bread and homemade chocolate chip cookies the same night I made the lasagna, but our air conditioner went out and it registered 86 in our house so I couldn't stand it! We went out for ice cream haha. But I did make the bread today while I had country ribs going in the crock pot! I knew I wanted to make bread but wasn't sure what recipe to use. I remembered a bread my friend Krystal had made when she would have my family over for dinner, it was soooo good! So I asked her for the recipe, and made that one today! It is such a easy recipe anyone can do it and the bread comes out perfectly moist and delicious.

Homemade Bread


I put 1/2 cup warm water, 1 1/2 tbs Active Dry yeast and a little sugar (I used a little less than 1/4c) in the mixer for about 5 minutes. Then add 3 cups all purpose flour, 1 tbs salt, 1 tbs olive oil, 3 cups warm water. Let that mix then slowly add 3 more cups of flour (until its tacky). Then knead and put in pans to rise. Cook at 375 til golden on top. For me it took 30 minutes to fully cook. Enjoy!

Hawaiian Crock Pot Chicken

Easy peasy! This dish was good, and soo easy. I had come across this recipe on Incredible Recipes and decided to give it a shot. I love pineapple so I was interested in this. The only thing I want to try differently next time I make this is using fresh pineapple vs canned. This is for you busy moms on the go :)

Gather all ingredients before starting:
4 -6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 (16 1/2 ounce) can crushed pineapple
1 (16 1/2 ounce) bottle archer farms hawaiian style barbecue sauce (found at Target). this was noted to be a little spicy if you do not like spice you can use regular bbq sauce of your choice, I used sweet baby rays honey bbq sauce.

Place breasts in crock pot, pour pineapple on top of chicken and then pour sauce over all. Cook on low for 6 hours.
Serve over rice!

Rating this recipe:
It was good, easy to throw together, and easy clean up. It was fairly tasty, but like I said I am going to try fresh pineapple for a better taste next time. I give it a 6.5 out of 10.

Tennessee

Hello my favorites! I hope you are all having a great start to your week. My kids and I left yesterday to come back to my roots, East Tennessee, to visit family and take a little vacation. I love coming to visit it's nice to be a tourist even if you grew up in the area. Today I got a mommy day and got to see a friend of mine, Kimberly. She and I have been friends since high school. We took a girls day and went to Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge. Spent the day window shopping and going in all the neat little shops scattered throughout Gatlinburg, and grabbed dinner in Pigeon Forge! It was a nice relaxed day. A well needed mommy day! Of course when I am away from my little ones, even if only for a few hours they are still constantly on my mind. In one of the little shops we went into today I ended up getting the my older two a little box each that old a "dinosaur bone". By the time I got home they were all already tucked tightly in bed, but I'm sure they will be very excited to get them. Then I got all three new little activity pads by Melissa and Doug. I love that company, they always make the cutest, neatest little toys puzzles and coloring things. I'm saving those for our journey back home this weekend when we leave. Thankfully they did really well on the drive down here, but it did take 10.5 hours with the stops and all that had to be made. I'm sure it will take just as long to get back. Thank goodness for dvd players, red box, and patience. Tomorrow I am taking my older two back to pigeon forge to go to Dollywood. Mason, my youngest, is still too little to ride any of the rides or really enjoy it I think he would just be upset to be in a stroller and missing his nap time. He will have plenty of chances to go as he gets older though! :) I can't wait to go we have been to a Disney park, Sea World, carnivals, and last year was the first year we went to the fair so this will be fun! I love making memories with them like this.

I would like to reach out to my fellow foodies for new recipes! I am going to have a pretty good sized cook out this Thursday and I would like to get new recipe ideas for side dishes! If you have anything you would like to share, please feel free to share on Country Mom Chef's facebook page, or email them to CountryMomChefHeather@hotmail.com. :)

Have a fabulous week!! Sending much love from Tennessee!

He is Risen!!

Happy Easter to all!! I hope everyone is enjoying this day with their family and friends, be sure to keep in mind the real reason for today! On facebook I saw a wonderful post a friend put up, a great way to help explain the holiday to younger children. I am going to use it myself to help explain to my children. Here it is:


A good way to view it, isn't it!?


Well I better get to finishing all the Easter dinner goodies. Have a wonderful day :)

And Happy Easter from my family to yours!

Pictures & Ramblings :)

Shew man oh man I am one tired momma tonight. As I've mentioned in other posts I had ten Easter orders to fill for Country Mom Chef, that actually turned into 12! I started on orders Wednesday night I started most truffle orders, Thursday I had class but after class I baked the cupcakes and did more truffles so I was up pretty late, this morning before delivering everything I iced the cupcakes and put the garnishes on them! So I have been nonstop all week pretty much. But I am glad :) it feels amazing to be making something of Country Mom Chef. I played with the carrot cupcake frosting today and it actually turned out better than the original maple cream cheese frosting I used. I added cinnamon used less cream cheese and of course used maple. Very good! I will post pictures of them shortly and all orders completed. This evening my kids and I dyed Easter eggs! I used a new kind of dye, the box said "Candy Apple" so they were supposed to be shiny I thought that looked kinda cool so I bought them without really paying attention to anything else. In the kit there were 4 little pouches that had the dye in them so you just empty them into the dye "bucket" and the kids painted them. Needless to say we ruined a pair of pants, shirt, and my fingers will be pink and blue for the next few days! But they loved it and I adore these rituals with them.

Yesterday was my second day of my Kitchen Fundamentals class, we had lecture a little bit of the first half then we went to the kitchen and went over different dices and cuts for vegetables. That was pretty cool! We used potatoes so that was a little difficult with the white cutting board behind the potato, but our teacher taught us a neat little trick. To help with that problem and better visualize the item we are cutting you can take a spice and rub it over it just enough to have a tint to the potato. That did help a lot. The brunoise cut is super tiny, so getting the dimensions on that just right was hard. I had issues with most of my cuts getting them to the right size and more of a cube than a rectangle. I blame it on the potato being bumpy ;)

I hope everyone has had a chance to view my Easter Dinner Menu and maybe get a couple of new recipes to try out for their family! This year seems to be going by fast doesn't it. Already Easter, that's crazy to me! Oh before I forget, I had submitted a recipe to Incredible Recipes on facebook, it is another foodie "like" page, and they published it since that happened Country Mom Chef facebook has reached 109 likes!!!! That is huge to me! I am so excited to have everyone follow me along on my journey! I hope everyone is able to find something in my recipes and please if you ever any any requests or questions feel free to email me at CountryMomChefHeather@hotmail.com. I will answer any questions to the best of my knowledge, or try to find out from another Chef! And I am always taking requests for new recipes, I love making new things. This past week was supposed to be a lot of new recipes being made here at my house but we had a lot come up and things just got crazy. They will be posted soon though! Well I am going to get settled for the evening and relax a little while my babies sleep snuggled up in bed! Everyone have a wonderful weekend and enjoy Easter with your loved ones! :)

Here are the finished Country Mom Chef Easter orders:

Our Easter Dinner (with recipes)

I am finishing up on my Easter Country Mom Chef orders today, and wanted to be sure to post my personal Easter dinner menu along with recipes in case anyone was looking for a new side or something to make for their family! I adore holidays, I love being in the kitchen baking and cooking for my family making special rituals just over all memories with them. Easter is probably my favorite holiday besides Christmas. Easter represents a beautiful thing the resurrection of our savior Jesus Christ! That alone makes the holiday a very special thing, but when you add in spring with beautiful weather (hopefully!), dying eggs with your children, leaving bunny tracks out for them to find their baskets and goodies from the Easter Bunny himself it is just a very special family day. In my house our traditional dinner includes a crunchy glazed sweet ham, anywhere from 3-4 sides, rolls, and a dessert or two. This year our menu is as follows: crunchy glazed ham, honey roasted carrots, bacon sauteed brussel sprouts, green bean casserole, rolls, and for dessert a delicious fruit tart! Oh and let's not forget the deviled eggs! :)

If we were not going out of town the next morning I would be adding my nana's 7 layer salad to this spread and shoe peg sweet corn but we will be leaving to visit family the next day so I'm keeping it smaller. My favorite side out of the ones listed would definitely be the bacon sauteed brussel sprouts. I could eat those alone for a snack they are so tasty full of so much flavor! Brussel sprouts and bacon go hand in hand with each other and pair together wonderfully. Below is the recipes for each side and the tart. I will be sure to post pictures of everything on Sunday :) I hope everyone has a wonderful Easter with their family.

Honey Roasted Carrots
Gather ingredients before beginning
Makes 4 servings (to make larger just add a cup for each guest)

*4 cups of baby carrots or carrots cut into french fry like spears
*1 tbsp honey
*Sea Salt
*Fresh Ground pepper
*Olive oil

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Place carrots into a shallow bowl and generously coat with cooking spray, sea salt, and fresh ground pepper. Arrange carrots on a baking sheet and roast for 20-25 minutes. Shake carrots around about half way through so they roast and get crispy on all sides. Return carrots to bowl and add the honey. Stir to coat well. Taste to see if they need any additional salt and pepper.


Bacon Sauteed Brussel Sprouts
Gather ingredients before beginning

*3 slices bacon, chopped
*1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, 1 turn of the pan
*1 shallot, chopped
*1 1/2 pounds Brussels sprouts, trimmed, small spouts left whole, larger spouts halved
*Salt and pepper, to your taste
*1 cup chicken broth

Brown bacon in a medium skillet over medium high heat. Remove bacon to a paper towel lined plate. Add extra-virgin olive oil to the pan, 1 turn. Add shallots to the pan and saute 1 to 2 minutes. Add Brussels spouts and coat in oil. Season with salt and pepper. Cook Brussels sprouts 2 to 3 minutes to begin to soften, then add broth. Bring broth to a bubble, cover and reduce heat to medium low. Cook 10 minutes, until tender. Transfer sprouts to a serving dish with a slotted spoon and top with cooked bacon bits.


Green Bean Casserole
Gather ingredients before beginning

*1/3 stick butter
*1/2 cup diced onions
*1/2 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
*2 cups sliced green beans
*3 cups chicken broth
*1 (10 3/4-ounce) can cream of mushroom soup
*1 (2.8-ounce) can French-fried onion rings
*1 cup grated Cheddar
*pinch garlic powder

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Melt the butter in a large skillet. Saute the onions and mushrooms in the butter. Boil green beans in chicken broth for 10 minutes and drain. Add the green beans, mushroom soup, onion rings, and House Seasoning, to taste, to the onion mixture. Stir well. Pour into a greased 1 1/2-quart baking dish. Bake for 20 minutes, then top the casserole with the Cheddar and bake for 10 minutes longer, or until the casserole is hot and cheese is melted.

Deviled Eggs

*6 hard-boiled eggs
*3 slices crisp cooked bacon, crumbled
*1 tablespoon butter, softened
*3 tablespoons onions, chopped finely
*3 tablespoons sweet pickle relish, drained well
*1 teaspoon yellow mustard
*salt and pepper
*1/4-1/3 cup mayonnaise (half this if you want to use ranch, so do half ranch half mayo)
*Half olive for topping

Cut eggs in halves lengthwise. Remove yolks. Mash yolks in medium bowl. Add relish, onion and bacon. Add butter, salt, pepper, and mustard. Mix thoroughly.Add mayonnaise to bind. Refill egg whites. Sprinkle with Paprika.Refrigerate to meld flavors.Top with halved olives to add more flavor!

Fruit Tart
Gather ingredients before beginning

*1 package (18 ounces) refrigerated sugar cookie dough
*1 package (8 ounces) fat-free cream cheese, softened
*1/4 cup orange marmalade
*1 teaspoon vanilla
*2 4 teaspoons sugar, divided
*1 can (11 ounces) mandarin oranges, drained
*16 strawberries, halved
*1 kiwi, peeled, sliced and halved


Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat 12-inch pizza pan with nonstick cooking spray; set aside. Slice dough into 16 slices. Arrange cookie slices 1/2 inch apart on prepared pan. Press cookie dough to cover bottom and sides of pizza pan evenly. Spray fingertips with nonstick cooking spray to prevent sticking if needed. Bake 20 to 22 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Beat cream cheese, marmalade, vanilla and 1 teaspoon sugar in medium bowl with electric mixer at high speed until well blended; refrigerate. To assemble, spread cream cheese mixture on top of cooled cookie crust. Mix fruit with remaining sugar. Arrange fruit on top of cream cheese mixture. Serve immediately or cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Cut into 12 slices before serving.

Easter Orders Rollin in!

I am so excited I posted my Easter menu on the 20th and have had orders start coming in! So far I am up to 8 Easter orders! I am pretty excited about that :) I took time yesterday to come up with my Mother's Day Menu. I am going to be making it on PSP and posting it mid April! I tried to think along the lines of a mom, our favorite things what we enjoy etc. I do think I have come up with something pretty good! I am also offering things that are not on my menu, if people ask I am always willing to accommodate. I am also going to start working on small catering packages I know I want to do a birthday package, office party package, baby shower, and holidays. I will also offer a summer package once it warms up for parties held outside such as picnics. I am so very proud of Country Mom chef and how we are growing! I can't wait to start on Easter orders this Wednesday. All the orders I have so far are due Friday so I will be busy in the kitchen Wednesday-Friday morning! I will post lots of pictures of products as they are made and before delivery :)

Have a wonderful day everyone and stay warm! I cant believe we had snow last night and it's spring! Bring on the warm weather!!

Updates Updates Updates!

Hello all! Where to begin with updates, I have been on busy lady! I worked a couple of days this week and also had my first kitchen class this evening! I was so excited to have my first class get my uniform and knife kit. The kit has so much in it, a lot more than I had expected to receive. In class tonight we chopped 60 lbs of tomatoes, cucumbers, and onion for a salad to be served at a school event this Saturday. It was a lot of fun to go into our first night of class and get straight to hands on work. My class this quarter is very small, only 5 people and I love it. I learn so much more in small classes. I feel our instructor can give us more attention and make sure we are doing things the correct way. I think I caught on to the chopping techniques pretty fast. The only thing I will have to practice is curving my fingers inward when chopping to keep my knuckles being closest to the knife, and not my finger tips. I'm going in this class with all 10 fingers I want to come out the same way!! :)

Here is my uniform!


I am missing my apron & hat in this picture, but you get an idea for the uniform! It's comfortable so I don't mind it. And I love how they have our names embroidered on them. Very cool

I have mentioned on a previous post how CMC has a lot of things coming up, we have even more now. I am working out a schedule for all things now and will hopefully have everything posted next week with all announcements. I am very excited, and of course proud of how well things are going (and growing!!) for country mom chef. I am actually going to have to reach out for more hands here before long. I can do a lot by myself, but I cant do everything and will be needing help! I know with my faith everything will turn out just as it should.

I finally figured out Photoshop Pro with the help of a friend, and came up with a simple but cute flyer for our Easter menu! Orders are rolling in so I am very excited to get everything going with that! Of course I will be posting pictures as orders are filled. Here is the flyer:


If anyone (locally) would like to place an order for Easter, please be sure to inbox me via Country Mom chef facebook! Or you can email me at Hregan9698@hotmail.com with subject line "EASTER ORDER". :)

We took our kiddos to see the Easter Bunny yesterday! I was a little nervous about this because Mason (the youngest), refused Santa. So I knew this was going to be a challenge! We got there waited in line for a few minutes and then it was our turn. Daddy was holding Mason and he was fine I placed the older two next to the bunny and they were a little skeptical, daddy tried to place Mason on his lap and he freaked out. So we tried to just have him stand in front of the bunny hoping he would be okay with that. No. Lol the picture we got was very much our family. It's cute and will be a great picture to show off to girlfriends and kids one day. I knew I wanted Mason in it though so this is what we ended up with.


I will admit the bunny does look a little creepy, haha I guess that's why they are all like "ehh no thanks mom". It's a good family memory though! Well I am one tired momma and need to get to sleep. Good night to all :)

Easter Menu Flyer!

I have been playing around on PSP and came up with this menu! :) Hopefully over time I will get better at this and have better flyers, but for now this is what I have and I think it's pretty darn good for my first flyer I have made myself! Let's get those orders in :) I am always willing to work with pricing on larger orders. If you would like to place an order above one dozen, please message me on facebook or email and we will discuss pricing!

Grades & More Deliveries

How is everyone? Good I hope! I haven't posted anything in a few days. I got a job at a local fine dining restaurant in Williamsburg, Opus9, it's a very nice place. I enjoy it! I sent my resume in about a week and a half two weeks ago for a hostess position. When I emailed it I did not realize I had sent in my culinary resume which had my blog address on it! The manager's actually looked at my blog and interviewed me and mentioned they wanted to double me for both hostessing and pastry chef! I trained over the last week for hostessing and work three days this week for that position. The kitchen position has been talked about a little bit we will see where it goes! I am excited to be working no matter what though. A lot of people say I have a full plate and think I'm taking on too much, but I feel awesome working, doing CMC, my blog, and school. Not to mention my three nuggets! I feel good when I'm busy. Speaking of school I received my grades Saturday for my first quarter! I am very happy with them, my GPA overall is 3.0 and I got a B+ in culinary sanitation and theory, and computer applications I got a B-! Cant complain about that! I start my new classes this week. I am not taking a basic math class, and my kitchen fundamentals. I am excited to attend my fundamentals class this week I get my chef uniforms and knife kit. I was suppose to get that last Monday at our induction ceremony but it was canceled last minute. I have the same instructor for kitchen fundamentals that I just had for theory! He's a really laid back nice guy so I'm happy with that too. Ready to be in the kitchen and working on my skills and learning new techniques and ways to do things. I will keep everyone updated as class goes!!!

We just had St. Patrick's Day! I made the usual corned beef, forgot to get cabbage so had carrots and red potatoes. It was good! It did turn out tough to eat though. Cant remember if it normally turns out like that or if it was just because I cooked it in the crock pot. I had my sister put it all in there for me and she put the veggies on bottom and meat on top cooking those kind of things in a crock pot you want to be sure to submerge the meat in the water and place the veggies, or most of them, on top of the meat. So it soaks in the juices. But it did turn out good! We didn't do anything special to celebrate the occasion, the kiddos just hung out around the house and after dinner we rented Wreck it Ralph to watch as a family. Very cute movie I recommend that for everyone with little ones!! Next to rent is Rise of the Guardians! I am in the midst of planning a mini trip to Tennessee to visit my family for a few days, and let them visit with the kiddos. I am looking forward to seeing everyone and also spending a day in Cades Cove. It is such a beautiful place tons of places to hike, old cabins with stories, wild life. It's just beautiful. I am going to be cooking a lot while I am visiting there. My dad called me the other day and asked if I would come over one night and cook dinner for everyone there. I'm sure that will be one of the first nights there! And of course I will cook for my gramma and grampa! It will be a nice visit I am looking forward to it.

I had more orders to fill over the weekend for CMC for the Building Bridges Benefit. That went nice, and much smoother than the first orders I placed. I think because I had already made everything at least once so I had a feel for how to do things better! That order total I filled was $156.00, so a total CMC has raised for the benefit is $281.00! I am very proud of that and glad I could take place and participate in the benefit to help the Bridges family! I will still be taking orders for that benefit, locally, for the rest of March. Hopefully I can get a couple more orders and round off the total raised to be $300.00 even.

I posted Country Mom chef's Easter menu! I haven't received any orders on it yet though. I need to figure out how to make a flyer so I can post it and people can share it. I have the menu posted but it's better to have a flyer with everything listed and can be shared as a photo. I am going to work on that tomorrow but here is the menu I have come up with!!:
Country Mom Chef’s Easter Menu

All Easter orders must be placed by Wednesday March 27th
*Fresh Orange Cupcakes with an Orange Cream Cheese Frosting: $1.50 per cupcake / $16.oo dozen
*Decorated Daisy Brownies: $1.00 each / $11.00 dozen
(Will be decorated with colored bright frosting to mimic spring color daisies)
*Strawberry Cupcakes with Strawberry Cream cheese Frosting: $1.50 per cupcake / $16.oo dozen
*Carrot Cupcakes with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting: $ 1.50 per cupcake / $16.00 dozen
*Sweet Hummingbird Cupcakes with Pecan Cream Cheese Frosting: $ 1.50 per cupcake / $16.00 dozen
(Garnished with dried pineapple flower)
*Sweet Coconut Nest Cupcakes: $ 1.50 per cupcake / $16.00 dozen
(Garnished with chocolate coconut nest and chocolate eggs to mimic a bird’s nest)

I am also going to offer truffles like the oreo and mint ones I made for the benefit, I will offer those flavors as well as sandies & chocolate chocolate chip. Those will be dipped in white chocolate and decorated with spring theme sprinkles. They will be pretty! Hopefully I will have a pretty flyer up by tomorrow night and orders will start coming in! I am also working on a small catering menu for locals. I have ideas for a few packages but need to come up with a menu for each package. I have a lot to work on! But it's worth it! I received a personal invite to The Southern C (The Summit) conference that will be held this May in GA. Right down the road from where my house is that I own! I sure do miss the area. I'm hoping I can make it, just need to get my ducks in a row so I can! In the invite it was mentioned that I would be meeting the editors for Southern Living. That is such a huge a opportunity. I would be able to learn and absorb so much in that weekend at the conference. Fingers crossed all will work out!! :)

Well it is late and I work in the morning, I will be posting a recipe for Eclair cake tomorrow evening along with a flyer for Easter if I can figure out how to design that! Have a wonderful night everyone!

Our Goodie Baskets!

I had baked, arranged, and delivered two of the goodie baskets we've had orders on for the Building Bridges Benefit! I am very happy with the way they turned out, but during baking and shipping I decided to no longer offer baskets long distance and that is only because shipping is $30.00 I sell the baskets for $30.00 so I will still offer individual sweets to people who do not live in town but I am only offering the baskets to locals. I have one more basket order to bake and arrange along with an office order of goodies to include a loaf of chocolate raspberry bread, 1 dozen oreo truffles, 1 dozen mint truffles, and 1 dozen brownies. Also 5 other individual orders! So far Country Mom Chef has raised just under $300.00 for this benefit! I am very excited! I love giving forward to helping others out! Here are the two baskets that were delivered this week.




Here is a peek at the oreo and mint truffles that were made for the baskets:


I will be sure to take more pictures as I complete these orders tomorrow so everyone can see individual items! I did have to change the contents of the baskets a little. I tried three different batches of white chocolate brownies and they just were not turning out the way I would like them to and I only give my customers the best so I had to change them to a milk chocolate with white chocolate chunks! Cant go wrong with those combinations and I know they were liked. I was disappointed that the original brownies did not turn out as planned but we always run into little issues sometimes we just need to step back collect ourselves and change the plan a little bit. I hope everyone is doing well and enjoying the warm weather we have been having, even if it did rain here a little bit I will take the 60's with a little rain any day over 30's & 40's and snowy weather. Thank goodness it's almost spring! I mentioned in my last post that I will be putting up a menu for my locals to order from for Easter I will be doing that tonight I want orders to be in in time for people to have the chance to get something!

Big Dreams

How are my favorite foodies today!? Great I hope! Today I am in the kitchen baking and cooking away, arranging two goodie baskets. So far I have made two dozen truffles, one being thin mint and the other being oreo! Next I will be making dark chocolate raspberry banana loaf, two dozen smores cookies, & two dozen white chocolate brownies! A lot of goodies. As I am making these (and we all know I love to bake and cook), I am realizing that I need to cut the baskets to locally only. I have been lucky enough to have one basket auctioned off out of town, but that has been the only out of state order I have gotten so I am going to cut the baskets out and also limit any out of town orders to Dark Chocolate Raspberry Banana loaf, White Chocolate Brownies, and a cookie but not the smores cookie. I am going to revise the menu for out of town and post it later today. Locally will still be able to order baskets and any of the sweet treats already posted on the flyer. All proceeds will still go to the Building Bridges Benefit, just making a little more simple menu for out of town to make shipping easier. I will continue to take orders for this benefit until the end of the month. I am working on a new project for mid April, I am very excited to be apart of it and will post all information about it as it gets closer to April! I am also going to compose a great Easter menu for my local foodies to order from Country Mom Chef!

As I'm baking and cooking today I find myself wishing my kitchen was much much bigger. I cannot wait for the day I can design and build the kitchen of my dreams. It will be HUGE, I would like it to be an eat in kitchen. Granite counter tops, copper fixtures, distressed finished blue color cabinets. I want a big farm house style sink, a big kitchen island and big windows. I can picture it in my head. It will be beautiful with TONS of storage and counter space. A lot of people say I dream big I guess you can say I do, but I do everything in my power to reach my dreams. When I was younger my dream was to be a model. At age 12 I went to an open call audition and received a call back from there I partnered with a local modeling school to learn basic posing, runway, make-up, clothing, style, and hair tips. From there I did photo shoots in different areas of Tennessee, traveled to Atlanta GA. for a huge modeling open call. I also tried pageants. I had a blast with it. Occasionally I still do modeling I'm actually planning on having a photo shoot this summer for Country Mom Chef brand. My dreams just get bigger as I "grow up", but I am excited. It's amazing to be doing something you love, to be able to help people by doing what I love, and growing a brand and foundation for a business that will hopefully one day be my daughters. Alright I am going to stop babbling on for now and finish these baskets! I will post pictures of them tonight for all to see! :) I hope everyone has a blessed day! Sending lots of love from my kitchen <3

St. Patrick's Day Menu

Irish runs in my blood so I love this holiday! Just recently while visiting DC they were celebrating the holiday early in Alexandria, VA. They had their biggest parade of the year just for this holiday. I thought that was pretty cool. Little Irish pubs lined Kings Street where the parade and celebration took place. I was very excited to see so many Irish restaurants. One night while we were there we ate at Daniel O'Connel's, I ordered the Shepard's pie it was okay just a little dry. I was hoping for more of an authentic Irish menu. This will be my St. Patrick's day menu I wanted to share early so people would have the chance to make it themselves if they wanted to.

Corned Beef and Cabbage
Gather all ingredients before starting:

This is for a serving of 6 people.
*3 1/2 lbs corned beef brisket with spice packet
*12 small red potatoes
*6 carrots, washed and peeled also cut
*1 LARGE head of cabbage, cut into wedges

Place corned beef in large pot or Dutch oven and cover with water. Add the spice packet that came with the corned beef. Cover pot and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Simmer approximately 50 minutes per pound or until tender. Add whole potatoes and carrots, and cook until the vegetables are almost tender. Add cabbage and cook for 15 more minutes. Remove meat and let rest 15 minutes. Place vegetables in a bowl and cover. Add as much broth (cooking liquid reserved in the Dutch oven or large pot) as you want. Slice meat across the grain. Serve with horseradish sauce, or mustard.



Now we cant leave out dessert! This recipe is for an Irish Cream Cheesecake!! YUM! This recipe is out of my Irish Pub cook book.
Gather all ingredients before starting:

Crust
*Vegetable oil, for oiling the pan
*4 tblsp unsalted butter
*1 1/2c crushed chocolate chip cookies
*Creme Fraiche OR whipped cream and fresh strawberries, to serve

Filling
*8 oz. semisweet dark chocolate, broken into pieces
*8 oz. milk chocolate, broken into pieces
*1/4c sugar
*1 1/2c cream cheese
*2c heavy cream, lightly whipped
*3 tblsp Irish Cream Liquer

1. Line the bottom of an 8-inch round spring-form cake pan with parchment paper and brush sides with oil. Put the butter in saucepan and heat gently until melted. Stir in the crushed cookies. Press into the bottom of the prepared cake pan and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
2. To make the filling, put the dark and milk chocolates into a heatproof bowl and set over a saucepan of gently simmering water until melted. Let cool. Put the sugar and cream cheese in a bowl and beat together until smooth, then fold in the cream. Fold the melted chocolate into the cream cheese mixture, then stir in the liquer.
3. Spoon into the cake pan and smooth the surface. Let chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours, or until firm. Transfer to a serving plate and cut into slices. Serve with creme fraiche and strawberries.