Little Chef A’s 2012 Favorites
We have been reflecting on our culinary journey this year. I asked each of the Little Chef's to tell me their top 8 favorites of the year. We all sat down and looked through each post. While it took quite some time they LOVED seeing what they made earlier and told stories for almost each recipe. Remember when .... happened. Remember this one didn't work. Remember when I spilled my lemonade on the chicken. It was so much fun. Each of their lists started out with about 50 items. I kept telling ...
Mini Frittatas
During the week we do not cook hot breakfast, unless you count microwave oatmeal. On the weekends we get a little fancy with pancakes, waffles and eggs. When we found Mini Frittatas by Giada we were excited. It seemed like a perfect recipe for us. Mix the eggs and additional ingredients all in one bowl and then pour them into mini muffin tins and cook it for 10 minutes. Seemed quick and easy.
The first step was to cut the ham. For some reason this day the Little Chefs were not that interested ...
Fake Betty Crocker Brownie Mix
I probably mentioned this before, but we love brownies! We are always trying different brownie recipes. We first tried a Fake Betty Crocker Brownie Mix and did not like it very much. It was very cakey and not what we liked. We decided to try this again with a little modification.
I love the idea of this recipe because it is basic ingredients we always have on hand. Little Chef D measured out the flour and sugar.
She then added the cocoa.
She cracked two eggs into a separate bowl just ...
Zucchini Parmesan Crisps
Zucchini Parmesan Crisps seemed like a great recipe to try. We often see something similar to this at a restaurant and we enjoy them. I loved the idea of baking rather then frying because it is more healthy. I also liked this recipe because my Little Chefs can do everything on their own, except handling the oven.
Little Chef A cut the zucchini into as uniform sizes as she possibly could.
In a bowl she combined bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, salt and black pepper. Each zucchini round was ...
Caramel Frosting
This Caramel Frosting is a legend in my Grandma's family. When she would make it her kids would fight over the frosting and even take it off of each others plates with amusing and painful results. I was expecting this frosting to be exceptional...and it was!
This was simple to make and I always have these 4 ingredients on hand; butter, brown sugar, milk, and powdered sugar. The butter was first melted in a saucepan. Then the brown sugar was added and brought to a boil. This is when ...
Waffle Brownies
A while ago my fun Grandma gave me a Waffle Brownie recipe she thought my Little Chefs would love to try. I loved that she knew what we were doing and wanted to help give us an idea. She doesn't live close by but was making a trip here and brought the recipe the entire way just for us! What a perfect time to share this recipe, being that we are sharing recipes from her cookbook.
Little Chef D helped make this recipe to surprise her sisters when they came home from school. She was super ...
Rice Pudding
We have been having a great time going through Great Grandma's cookbook and trying her recipes. Today we decided to try her Rice Pudding. A note in the cookbook says this recipe came from her mother and is one of her favorites.
We found this recipe easy to put together with a long wait. All the ingredients are combined and then put in the oven to cook for 3-3 1/2 hours. I was amazed at the ratio of rice to milk and the time it took to cook. After the first hour and for each half hour ...
Aloha Banana Bread
We are loving trying my Grandmother's recipes; Caramel Rolls and Dutch Butter Cookies. Sometimes, very occasionally we have bananas that are becoming over ripe. Grandma's Aloha Bread is a twist on the regular banana bread because it incorporates coconut and orange rind.
The first step is to zest an orange. Little Chef A is very proficient using the microplane.
Next she mashed up 3 bananas. This was her first time so I had to assure her it was just fine to completely smash them.
First ...
Dutch Butter Cookies
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The first recipe we tried from my Grandma's cookbook was Caramel Rolls. It was a hit! The next recipe from her cookbook is Dutch Butter cookies. My Little Chefs are always excited about a new cookie recipe. I was intrigued because this recipe only has 3 ingredients; flour, sugar and butter. The best part was we had all those ingredients in our house and could make them right away!
Little Chef D first ...
Family Favorite Monkey Bread Recipe
When I was younger I remember my mom making this monkey bread recipe on Christmas morning and as an occasional treat for other mornings. This is one of those easy recipes because all you do is dump the ingredients in a bundt pan. Let it rise over night and then bake it in the morning. I love making this recipe for my house guests. It has a big impact with minimal effort.
Monkey Bread Recipe
Ingredients:
20 frozen Rhodes rolls
1 cup brown sugar
1 small box cook and serve b...
Butter and Sage Sauce
One of our new favorite flavors is sage. We love it on pork chops and we love the sage in Crostini Alla Romana. This Butter and Sage pasta sauce recipe sounded promising so we were excited to try it. Quick sauces are wonderful! The butter was melted in a saucepan.
After the butter changes color to a light brown color the sage leaves were added and the heat was turned off. Next the lemon juice was added and the sauce was set aside until the pasta was ready. Super quick and easy!
After ...
Neely’s Pigs in a Blanket
Pigs in a Blanket is not a new recipe but we have never made them. This recipe perfect for my Little Chefs. Store bought crescent rolls were cut into thirds. Little Chef A cut them in all different shapes and sizes trying her hardest to make thirds.
Each third were brushed with dijon mustard then rolled in a cocktail frank. Some were rolled tighter then others but none of them unrolled so we were good. We decided it would be easier to brush the dough right after rolling out ...
