Berry-infused Waffles!!

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Berry Sour Cream Waffles adapted from A Feast For The Eyes
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon sugar
1 Tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1 cup milk
½ cup sour cream
3 large eggs
1 ½ cups of fresh or frozen berries, optional (I used raspberries and blueberries)
Maple syrup or jam, for serving ( We used blueberry syrup and it was SOOO good! We also added sliced bananas over the top, which was the perfect topping!
Heat a waffle iron according to manufacturer’s directions. Lightly oil the grids.
Meanwhile whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl to combine and make a well in the center.
If adding berries, add about ¼ cup of the flour to the blueberries and gently mix—this will help prevent the blueberries from sinking to the bottom of the batter.
Whisk the melted butter, milk, sour cream, and eggs in a medium bowl until well combined and pour into the well. Whisk just until smooth; do not over mix. Gently fold the berries into the batter.
Spoon about ¼ cup of the batter into the center of each quadrant of the waffle iron and close the iron. Cook until the waffle is golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes.
Serve the waffles hot, with butter and syrup.

Grilled Pork Chops!! Summer is Here!

When the weather warms up, so does our grill, almost nightly in fact! This is a new go to recipe that I have already made three or four times! It is easy to throw together and doesn't require a long marinating time, which is a plus in my book!

Grilled Pork Chops

(adapted from melskitchencafe)

8 boneless pork loin chops

1/2 c. olive oil

5 T soy sauce

2 t Montreal steak seasoning

sliced button mushrooms, sauteed in butter and seasoned with salt, pepper, and garlic salt

Mix olive oil, soy sauce, and steak seasoning ingreadients in a small bowl and pour into a 1 gallon resealable ziplock bag. Add the pork chops and set the bag in a baking dish. Marinate in the fridge for 3-8 hours (but no longer than 8. I have done just one hour and the flavor was still WONDERFUL!) Heat the grill to medium and grill the chops 6-8 minutes per side, until they are no longer pink in the center. Remove the chops and let them rest under some tented aluminium foil for about 5 minutes. Serve smothered with the cooked mushrooms and any summertime bbq sides that you please ( like corn on the cob, sliced watermelon and a green salad!! )

Marinated, Grilled, Steak Skewers

These are SOOOOOO good! SOOOOO easy to make and one of the best marinades that I have ever tried. SOOOOO give them a try!

Korean BBQ beef skewers
(from ourbestbites)

1 1/2 lb sirloin steak, cut thinly against the grain. (I like to stick the steaks in the freezer for about 15 minutes right before I slice them to make it easier to slice).
1/2 c. rice wine vinegar
1/2 c low sodium soy sauce (regular soy sauce makes it too salty and tough)
2 T brown sugar
2 T minced garlic
1 t Sriacha chili sauce (found in the asian section of your local supermarket)
1 1/2 t sesame oil
Combine rice wine, soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, chili sauce, and sesame oil in a large bowl. Add meat and marinate at room temperature for 1 hour. Preheat the grill. While the grill is preheating thread the steak pieces onto bamboo skewers. Cook over medium high heat for about 3-4 minutes per side. They cook fast and you don't want to overcook them, so watch them vigilantly! Serve immediately. This is another recipe that I always double because my family gobbles them up immediately! And we can't have hungry little Lamb's running around!!! :)

Apricot Glazed Chicken Thighs

This is one of my new go-to recipes! So easy to make and soooooo yummy! I am really liking how tender the chicken thighs are and have been trying lots of new recipes with them...(which I will post eventually!) I'm sure if you have an aversion to the darker meat you could do this with boneless, skinless chicken, but I don't think it would be as moist and tender....I will have to give it a try and let you know!



Apricot Glazed Chicken Thighs

(adapted slightly from For the Love of Cooking)

*I double this recipe for my family of 6 *

3 T apricot preserves

2 T red wine vinegar

2 T olive oil

1 clove garlic, minced

5 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed of fat

Sea salt and pepper to taste

garlic salt to taste



Combine the apricot preserves, red wine vinegar, 1 1/2 T of the olive oil, and the minced garlic. Mix with a wisk until combined and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Season both sides of the chicken with salt, pepper, and garlic salt to taste. Heat the remaining 1/2 T of olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Add the seasoned chicken thighs when the pan is hot and cook until golden brown on both sides. Place chicken in a 8x8 baking dish (or 9x13 if you are doubling the recipe) and pour the apricot sauce over the top of the chicken. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.

So yummy with roasted red potatoes and asparagus!!!

Asian Beef Noodle Soup

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I have a sister in law who makes the best Pho you have ever tasted. (Pho is a vietnemese noodle bowl with steak and broth and lots of other yumminess). It quickly became a favorite of ours and we would request it every time we would visit. The problem is the original recipe takes all day to make and try as I might I could never duplicate her deliciousness. So when I found this recipe, I was hopeful that it would be a quick and close substitute that I could make on a weeknight. We weren't disappointed! While of course it isn't too authentic the flavors are there and the kids and hubby devoured it!

Asian Beef andaa Noodle Soup

(adapted slightly from Cook's Country)

8 c. chicken broth

1 T. greated fresh ginger

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 T fish sauce (found by the asian foods in the supermarket)

1/4 t. chinese 5 spice powder

4 (3 oz) packages of ramen noodles, seasoning packets discarded)

1 small flank steak, cut lengthwise into thirds and then crosswise into 1/4 inch slices

1/2 medium hadaa napa cabbage sliced thin (about 4 cups - I just bought the preshredded package at the grocery store)

Toppings:

1/4 c finely chopped cilantro

sliced green onions

a couple limes cut into quarters
soy sauce

Siracha chili sauce

Bring broth, ginger, garlic, fish sauce, and 5 spice powder to boil in a large pot. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer until flavors blend, about 10 minutes. Add noodles to simmering broth anda cook until nearly tender, about 2 minutes. Stir in beef and cabbage and simmer until cabbage is wiltedaa anda beef is cooked through. Top with your choice of any of the above toppings and serve immediately!

Chicken Gnocchi Soup

Chicken and Gnocchi Soup
1 cup chicken breasts, cooked and diced (you can use a rotisserie chicken)
4 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons flour
1 quart half and half
1 14 ounce can chicken broth
1/2 cup celery, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup carrots, finely shredded
1 cup onion, finely diced
1 cup fresh spinach, coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon extra virgin oil
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon parsley
Freshly grated parmesan cheese – optional
1 pound potato gnocchi – can buy this in the gourmet section of many supermarkets
Sauté the onion, celery, and garlic in the butter and olive oil, over medium heat when the onion becomes translucent, add the flour, and make a roux, let the butter and flour mixture cook for about a minute before adding 1 quart of half and half.
Cook gnocchi according to package directions.
Into the roux add in the carrots and chicken. Once the mixture becomes thick add the chicken broth. Once the mixture thickens again, add the cooked gnocchi, spinach, and seasonings, simmer until soup is heated through.
Comments about this recipe: You can add more chicken if you like. While you could use left over cooked chicken breasts, I really think using the rotisserie chicken that are found in many grocery stores is the best way to get the optimal flavor of this soup. If you want to make the soup lower calorie you can use milk instead of half and half. Half and Half, does taste better, and it also reheats better than milk does.
Serve with some homemad breadsticks on a cool fall evening!!!

Double Decker Cake with Berries and Whipped Cream

cakes:

2 cups all purpose flour

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

8 tablespoons melted butter

2 large eggs

1 cup whole milk

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

zest of 1 lemon

berry whip cream frosting:

1 10 oz bag frozen stawberries - thawed

1 10 oz bag frozen raspberries - thawed

1 tablespoon sugar

2 cups heavy cream

2 tablespoons confectioners sugar (powdered sugar)

1 teaspoon vanilla extr

topping:

fresh strawberries - pint

fresh raspberries - pint

1 tablespoon sugar
topping:

slice the strawberries and combine in a bowl with the raspberries. sprinkle the sugar on top of the berries and gently stir. let macerated (sit at room temp) while you prepare the cake.

frozen berries:

chop the strawberries if they are large (which they probably will be). you want them in small pieces because they will be folded into the whip cream.

cakes: preheat oven to 375 degrees. prepare two 9 inch cake pans by buttering the pans, lining the bottom of the pans with parchment paper. then butter again and dust with flour. tap out the excess flour.whisk flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. combine the raspberries and strawberries in a bowl. sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of sugar. mix to combine. set aside.in a large glass measuring cup or bowl whisk butter, eggs, milk, vanilla and lemon zest until smooth. combine the wet ingredients into the dry. mix until just combined. do not overmix.divide the batter equally between the two pans. bake for 20 minutes (make take up to 25 minutes). check at 15 minutes by inserting a toothpick into the center of the cakes. it should come out clean. cool on drying rack for 10 minutes. turn out of pan, remove parchment paper and flip upright. cool completely.whip cream frostingin a stand mixer whip the heavy cream. when it starts to have bubbles add the confectioners sugar and vanilla. beat until stiff.
gently fold half of the frozen berries into the whipped cream. set aside the remaining half.assemblyplace one layer of the cake on a cake plate or stand. with a skewer poke holes in the cake. this will allow the juices from the frozen berries to penetrate the cake. put the remaining frozen berries on top of the cake and spread them out with the back of a spoon or spatula to cover the cake. put about 1/3 of the whip cream mixture on top of the berries and gently spread it out to cover.place the other cake layer on top. scoop another third of the whip cream on top of the cake and gently spread it out over the cake. gradually add more of the whip cream to the top gently coaxing it over the edges. with an off-set spatula bring the whip cream down over the edges. smooth the whip cream over the whole cake.take the fresh berries and their juices and mount them on top of the cake. the juices will run over the sides