Corn and Zucchini Chowder

Now this is the perfect recipe for August, and it happened all by accident.  My sister had a ton of corn on the cob left over from my nephew’s party.  My parents had purchased zucchini from the Farmer’s Market the day before, and had thyme and tomatoes in their garden.  We put this all together with some household staples to create a delicious soup.  After a busy few days of parties and birthday cake, we all welcomed a fresh and healthy meal.

I was inspired by this recipe, which uses pureed corn and milk to create a creamy base without using cream.  I know that corn chowder typically includes potatoes, but we didn’t have any on hand and I don’t think you’ll miss them.  This soup is colorful and delicious just the way it is.

 

 

 

Corn and Zucchini Chowder

1 T olive oil
1 large Vidalia onion, peeled and chopped
2 large zucchini, chopped
7 c. corn kernels, divided
2 c. milk
4 c. vegetable broth, divided
1 T fresh thyme
1/2 t black pepper
Fresh tomatoes, chopped
Cheddar cheese, shredded

Heat the olive oil in the bottom of a large pot.  Add onion and zucchini, and saute for 10 minutes until softened and lightly brown.  In the meantime, add 4 cups of corn, milk, 2 cups broth, thyme, and black pepper to food processor and blend until smooth.  Add pureed mixture to pot, along with remaining 3 cups corn and 2 cups broth.  Simmer for 15-20 minutes until heated through.  Serve garnished with shredded cheddar and chopped tomatoes.

 

Crockpot Baked Beans with Bacon

My favorite recipe for Baked Beans is a vegetarian one, but we were at a family party a few weeks ago and had an amazing version with bacon.  My Mom tracked down the details, and it turns out to be an old family recipe.  I hate to tinker with tradition but the original recipe used a pound of real bacon and I was convinced that you could get the same smoky flavor with much less.  I also wanted to convert it to a crockpot recipe since oven space is a precious commodity when you are cooking for a crowd.

This recipe was easy to put together, and makes a lot of baked beans.  Good thing we had that much, because they turned out to be quite a hit at the party.  In fact, there was only a large spoonful left at the end of the night.  I like using a mix of beans, but you can use whatever you happen to have on hand.  I am not ready for summer to be over, but if you must have an ‘end of summer’ BBQ, you might want to give these a try.

 

 

 

Crockpot Baked Beans with Bacon

12 oz. turkey bacon, such as Oscar Mayer
2 (15 oz.) cans Great Northern beans, rinsed and drained
2 (15 oz.) cans light red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2 (15 oz.) can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 (26 oz.) jar pasta sauce
1 (15 oz.) can tomato sauce

Cook bacon in a frying pan until crispy.  Cool slightly and crumble.  Add crumbled bacon, beans, and sauce to the crockpot and stir well.  Cook on High for 3-4 hours, then turn to Low until ready to serve.

The Great Train Cake

I feel like my blog has been one big party this summer!  We’ll get back to “regular meals” by the end of the week, I promise.  But first, I have to share the story of The Great Train Cake.

The bar for first birthday cakes was set pretty high back with these Monkey Cakes of 2010.  But of course we had to do something different for my youngest nephew.  I am not sure who came up with the idea for a train cake first, but the project was planned with many Google searches, Pinterest surfing, sketches, and long lists on legal sized paper.  But all the details aside, we had a lot of fun.  Hop aboard for the full story, or scroll to the bottom just to see an adorable baby toddler eating cake.

 

 

The Baking

My Mom used Smitten Kitchen’s Best Yellow Layer Cake recipe, and multiplied it by 1.5 to yield a 13″x9″ cake and a 9″x5″ loaf pan.  She baked another 13″x9″ cake using Hershey’s Old Fashioned Chocolate Cake recipe.  She used one half of Smitten Kitchen’s Two Layer Banana Cake recipe to yield another 9″x5″ loaf pan.  You might be thinking that 1) that’s a lot of math; 2) that’s a lot of baking; and 3) why did they need 3 different types of cake?  My Dad helped a bit with the math, my Mom did the baking over the course of 2 days and stored the layers in the freezer, and yes, we’re a little crazy and wanted some variety in the flavors.

The Decorating

First, we started with a cake board.  It’s important to have a sturdy surface, especially since the cake must be stored in the refrigerator.  We placed the 13″x9″ cakes side by side to form the base layer.  The majority of the cake was frosted with Smitten Kitchen’s Vanilla Buttercream Frosting, but we used canned chocolate frosting for the engine.  We colored the vanilla frosting in small bowls as we went along.

We coated the top and sides of the base layer with the vanilla frosting, and then piped on chocolate icing for the train tracks. The loaf pan of banana cake was cut to form an engine, using this Betty Crocker video as a guide.  The loaf pan of vanilla cake was cut into thirds, to form 3 train cars.  You’ll notice that only 2 of those train cars fit on the cake; sadly, one car had to be left behind in the station.

 

 

My Mom’s kitchen looked like a scene out of Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory.  We had a lot of different ideas on what to use for wheels and other train decor.  In the end, we used generic chocolate sandwich cookies for wheels.  We used Twizzlers to outline the top of the train car.  Other candy we used includes M&M’s, Junior Mints, and peach rings.

 

It was a hot August night, and the frosting was melting, so we put it in the refrigerator at this point.  It just fit.  The next day, we did some touch-up work with frosting, and added a “1”.

 

 

The Serving

Finally, it was time to bring out the cake and serve it.  We all sang “Happy Birthday” and he got some help blowing out the candle.  Note that my sister removed the pieces of candy which could be a choking hazard before placing the engine in front of him.

 

All he wanted to do was stick his fingers in the frosting, which he decided he liked.  I am not sure he even got to any cake!

 

The cake project was a lot of fun, and we’ll remember it for a long time!

Wagon Wheel Pizza

We had a fun weekend, complete with a train themed birthday party for my littlest nephew.  I’ll have the story of his birthday cake and some cute pictures ready tomorrow, but in the meantime, let’s start with some of the food.

Consistent with the train theme, my sister served food from the Wild West including BBQ Pork, Chicken, Wagon Wheel Macaroni & Cheese, Baked Beans (recipe coming Wednesday!), and Cole Slaw.  We also made these Wagon Wheel Pizzas which turned out to be a fun option for both the little kids and big kids.

They’re really just typical mini- bagel pizzas which use strips of red pepper for ‘spokes’.  The cheese goes underneath the topping so that they’re more visible.  It’s a great way to add some veggies in too.  We also tried this with strips of meatloaf, but the visual effect wasn’t quite as good.  The pizzas are easy to make in advance, and then you can just pop them into the oven when the train of guests arrives!

 

 

Wagon Wheel Pizzas

Mini-bagels
Tomato Sauce
Mozzarella Cheese
Red Pepper Strips

Spread a spoonful of sauce on each mini-bagel.  Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.  Place red pepper strips in a spoke fashion.  Bake at 400F for 10-15 minutes.

 

 

Cinnamon Graham Cracker Ice Cream

In addition to the ravioli, my Mom had one other request for her birthday – homemade ice cream.  Specifically, she wanted to try this Cinnamon Graham Cracker Ice Cream recipe from Penzey’s.  We put together the ingredients, and poured them into our Cuisinart ice cream maker.  The ice cream maker produces a soft-serve consistency, so we placed the ice cream in the freezer after that to harden further.  After what seemed like a long wait, the ice cream was ready.  My nephews were very excited to help blow out the candle in a container of ice cream!

 

 

The recipe uses a combination of heavy cream and Greek yogurt for a thick and creamy texture.  I really liked the cinnamon flavor, but the recipe calls for both honey and maple syrup which made it too sweet.  The Heath Bars and graham crackers are fun mix-ins, and add plenty of sweetness on their own.  A dish of ice cream on a hot and humid August night made for a better celebration than any cake!  Our family has ONE more birthday left this summer, and it’s going to be quite the event.  Stay tuned…

 

Carmela’s Ravioli

My Mom had a special request for her birthday last week: Butternut Squash Ravioli.  You know what I really wanted to do was take out the flour, egg, and a rolling pin and make them from scratch.  In fact, I think that would have been a really fun family project.  (Can you hear my family groaning??)  For so many reasons, that just wasn’t realistic this year.  So we went with the second best option, ravioli made by Carmela’s Pasta Shop.

Those of you in the central CT area may be familiar with this store – they have a fantastic selection of fresh pastas and other Italian foods.  We chose two different type of ravioli: Butternut Squash, and Sausage and Spinach.  We served the Butternut Squash ravioli with a simple butter, sage, and cheese sauce, garnished with fresh parsley.  We served the Sausage and Spinach ravioli with a more traditional tomato sauce.

Both types of ravioli were excellent – it was difficult to choose a favorite, but my nod is to the Butterut Squash ravioli for being slightly more unique.  My Mom was very pleased with our ravioli dinner, and I highly recommend you take a trip to Carmela’s if you live in the area!

 

 

Cosi Signature Salad

Once again, my family did the cooking this weekend; I was spoiled!  Some of you may be familiar with the Cosi Signature Salad featuring mixed greens, pears, grapes, dried cranberries, pistachio nuts, and gorgonzola cheese.  My sister used this recipe to replicate the famous salad with a shallot vinaigrette dressing.

The salad was colorful and delicious, with a variety of flavors and textures.  The salad could easily be served on it’s own for a summertime lunch, but on this night it was the perfect complement to a special dinner!

 

 

 

Summer Orzo Salad with Spicy Buttermilk Dressing

I was inspired by this recipe from Cooking Light, but think of this as a “Choose Your Own Adventure” style salad.  Choose a pasta.  Choose a variety of fresh vegetables, and don’t forget the avocado.  Choose a fresh herb or two.  And then toss it all together with a spicy buttermilk dressing.

This combination in particular was good, but not spectacular.  The salad needed something else – maybe some queso fresco, or perhaps something crunchy like pumpkin seeds.  The buttermilk dressing has a nice kick, but be sure to make some extra so the salad isn’t dry.  This was a fun adventure, but I’ll just choose a slightly different path next time!

 

 

Summer Orzo Salad with Spicy Buttermilk Dressing

1 c. orzo, cooked and drained
1 pint grape tomatoes, rinsed and halved
1 green pepper, chopped
1 bunch scallions, white and green parts only, chopped
2 c. mixed greens
1 avocado, diced
1/4 c. chopped fresh basil
1/4 c. buttermilk
3 T lemon juice
2 T plain Greek yogurt
2 T light mayonnaise
1 t chili powder
1/4 t black pepper
1/4 t red pepper
1 t minced garlic

Mix orzo, tomatoes, pepper, scallions, mixed greens, and basil in a large bowl.  In a small bowl whisk together buttermilk, lemon juice, yogurt, mayonnaise, spices, and garlic.  Toss dressing and salad.  Chill before serving.

-Adapted from Cooking Light

 

Chunky Blue Cheese and Yogurt Dip

Along with the Zucchini Cheddar Biscuits, I also brought this Chunky Blue Cheese and Yogurt Dip to the dinner party.  You may remember I made a Stilton Walnut Dip over the winter; I thought this version would be a bit lighter for summer.  I tend to prefer dips that have a varied texture, so I didn’t put the ingredients in a food processor and just mixed them in a bowl instead.

Although the dip tasted fairly sharp at first, the flavor quickly mellowed.  I served the dip with carrots and Triscuits, both of which complemented the taste well.  However, the dip ended up having a fairly thin consistency.  Next time I would add some sour cream or perhaps more cheese to make it thicker.  But there’s something about any blue cheese dip that always makes me go back for just one more scoop.

 

 

Chunky Blue Cheese and Yogurt Dip

1/4 c. chopped shallot
1 t minced garlic
2 T lemon juice
1 c. plain Greek yogurt
1/2 c. light mayonnaise
1/2 c. crumbled gorgonzola
1/2 t black pepper

Mix all ingredients in a bowl.  Allow to chill for at least 2 hours.

-Adapted slightly from Barefoot Contessa

Zucchini Cheddar Drop Biscuits

I’ve had this recipe for Zucchini Cheddar Drop Biscuits saved on my Pinterest for months.  I was fortunate enough to be invited to a dinner party, and thought it would be a good opportunity to try the recipe.  I felt very Southern taking a dishtowel-lined basket of biscuits to a party, and I am happy to report they were a hit!

I changed a few things from the original recipe, cutting back the salt and increasing the amount of zucchini.  You might notice that these biscuits appear a little flat.  I think the extra zucchini may have weighed them down a bit, but the texture was still fairly light.  Although I love just about anything with zucchini, I think it’s the cheese that really makes these taste great.

If you have some extra zucchini around, try these biscuits for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.  If you still have extra zucchini, drop them off at my house please.  🙂

 

 

Zucchini Cheddar Drop Biscuits

1 c. shredded zucchini
2 1/2 c. flour
1 T baking powder
1 stick butter, cold and cut into cubes
1 c. nonfat milk
1 c. shredded cheddar, such as Cabot 50% reduced fat cheddar

Place shredded zucchini in a colander and sprinkle with salt.  Press with a fork, and allow to drain for 30 minutes.

Mix flour and baking powder in a bowl.  Cut in butter with two knives, or a pastry blender, until all of the butter pieces are the size of small peas.  Add milk, cheese, and drained zucchini.  Drop batter in large spoonfuls on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.  Bake at 425F for 12-15 minutes.

-Recipe slightly adapted from A Cozy Kitchen