Spinach Strawberry Salad

Spinach and Strawberry Salad

I love fresh spinach salad, combine it with raspberry vinaigrette and toasted almonds and you have some thing to oooh and ahhh about.  This Spinach Strawberry Salad is adapted from Byerly's and Lunds but I have made a few tweaks to make it my own.  If you have any goat cheese (Chevre) on hand, throw a little of that in too.  If you want to make a meal out of it, add a piece of grilled salmon.  I think the berries go really well with Salmon.

Spinach and Strawberry Salad

Ingredients:

• 1 (10 ounce) package fresh spinach
• 2 Tablespoons minced green onion
• 3 Tablespoons toasted slivered almonds
• 1 Pint Strawberries hulled and sliced
• 4 Tablespoons Chevre (optional)
• Raspberry Vinaigrette

Directions:

• Toast almonds in a preheated 350 F oven, shaking once or twice until golden (10-12 minutes); cool. 
• In salad bowl, toss Raspberry Vinaigrette, green onions into spinach and almonds 
• Gently toss in strawberries and Chevre

Raspberry Vinaigrette:

Ingredients:

• 1/4 Cup vegetable oil
• 2 Tablespoons Raspberry vinegar
• 1 to 2 Tablespoons sugar
• 1/4 Teaspoon salt
• dash black pepper
• dash Tabasco

Directions:

• In tightly covered container, combine oil, vinegar, sugar, onion, salt, pepper and Tabasco; shake well.  

Ultimate Potato Salad

Ultimate Potato Salad

Hands down, I think my Mom makes the very best Potato Salad.  She has been making it for years and I crave it.  I am rarely home at the same time Mom makes her famous Potato Salad, so I had to make due with a version that I could make at home.  I found this recipe in Tyler Florence's Cookbook Tyler's Ultimate and when I saw that it called for Capers and Pickle juice, I was sold.  Don't ask...I am weird. 

Ultimate Potato Salad

Ultimate Potato Salad

Ingredients:

Say Hello to my Little Friend

• 2 pounds small Yukon gold potatoes, cooked, cooled, peeled and cut into chunks
• 3 large hard boiled eggs
• Kosher salt
• 1/2 bunch sliced scallions, white and green parts
• 2 tablespoons drained capers
• 1 cups mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
• 1/4 cup finely chopped dill pickles with 1/4 cup juice,
• 1/2 small red onion, chopped
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling

Directions:

Who wouldn't love this?

• In a medium bowl combine mayonnaise, mustard, pickle juice, and lemon juice and, stir until combined
• Put cooled, peeled, chopped potatoes in medium bowl, add chopped pickles, capers, onions, scallions and parsley, grate hard boiled eggs into bowl
• Toss Potato mixture with dressing and coat well, but don't over mix. Be gentle
• Season, to taste, with salt and pepper
• Drizzle with a little olive oil before serving

Chicken Wild Rice Salad

Chicken Wild Rice Salad

I crave the earthy notes of Wild Rice.  This Chicken Wild Rice Salad is adapted from Byerly's and Lunds.  It is a great dish to pass for a Potluck and is good to have on hand when you have company.  I love the texture of the wild rice, the crunch from the water chestnuts, celery, and cashews and the sweet tartness from the grapes.  This type of salad reminds me of home (Minnesota).

Chicken Wild Rice Salad

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup Mayonnaise
• 1/3 Cup Milk
• 2 Stalks Celery Chopped
• 2 Tablespoons Cream
• 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 Tablespoon Tarragon Vinegar
• 3 cups cooked, diced chicken (I used rotisserie chicken from the grocery store)
• 3 cups cooked wild rice (1 cup uncooked wild rice)
• 1/3 cup finely sliced green onion
• 1 (8 ounce) can sliced water chestnuts, drained and roughly chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 pound seedless green grape halves, (1 cup)
• 1 cup salted cashews

Directions:

• In small bowl, blend mayonnaise, cream, milk, vinegar, lemon juice; set aside.
• In large bowl, combine chicken, wild rice, green onion, water chestnuts, celery, salt and pepper. 
• Stir in mayonnaise mixture until blended. 
• Refrigerate, covered, 2-3 hours. 
• Just before serving, fold in grapes and cashews. 

Sunshine Cupcakes

Sunshine Cupcake

Watts Tea Shop has a cute little restaurant and they serve the most delightful Filled Sunshine Cake.  They were kind enough to share their recipe for Filled Sunshine Cake with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.  I have made this cake a few times for special occasions and today I chose to make cute little Sunshine Cupcakes.  These are probably my best cupcake recipe so far, probably because I am a sucker for the French Custard Filling. 

Sunshine Cupcakes

Whipped Egg Whites

Ingredients:

• 9 eggs, separated
• ¼ cup water
• 1 cup sugar (divided)
• 1 cup cake flour
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• French custard filling (see recipe)
• Boiled frosting (see recipe)
• Grated rind of 2 large oranges for garnish



Egg Yoke Mixture



Sunshine Cupcakes

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• To make cake, in large bowl, combine egg yolks, water and ½ cup of the sugar and beat until light and fluffy
• Add flour gradually, beating well after each addition
• Mix in vanilla
• In large metal bowl, whip egg whites with cream of tartar and salt until whites are stiff
• Add remaining ½ cup sugar and beat just until peaks begin to form




Combined Cake Batter


• Fold into batter
• Pour batter into cupcakes (approx 18-20)
• Bake in preheated oven 20-30 minutes or until light brown.
• When done, remove from oven and cool completely on a wire rack
• Meanwhile, prepare French custard filling and boiled frosting
• To assemble, frost with French custard, then top with boiled frosting
• Grate orange rind over top of cupcake



Warm Cupcakes

Cooled somewhat deflated

French custard:

Ingredients:

French Custard Topped Cupcakes

•  4 egg yolks, beaten
•  ¾ cup sifted powdered sugar
•  ¾ cup milk
•  1 teaspoon vanilla extract
•  1 cup (2 sticks) butter

Directions:

• In top of double boiler, combine egg yolks, powdered sugar and milk
• Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and coats back of spoon. This should take 4 to 5 minutes
• Remove from heat and cool to room temperature
• Add vanilla
• In medium bowl, cream butter thoroughly
• Slowly add cooled custard mixture to butter, beating well

Boiled Frosting

Boiled frosting:

Ingredients:

• 1 1/3 cups sugar
• ½ cup water
• Pinch of salt
• 3 egg whites (from pasteurized eggs)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

• Combine sugar and water in saucepan and boil just until syrup spins a thread (220 degrees on a candy thermometer).
• Add salt to egg whites in a bowl.
• Beat egg whites until soft peaks form. (It will take longer to whip the whites of pasteurized eggs than those of regular eggs.)
• Very slowly drizzle hot sugar syrup into beaten egg whites with electric mixer going at medium speed. Beat constantly until frosting stands in stiff peaks and is of spreading consistency.
• Add vanilla and beat well.

Orange Zest

Sunshine Cupcake Heaven

Maria's Chex Party Mix



Maria's Chex Party Mix

Everyone has their own version of the famous Chex Party Mix.  I welcome trying all sorts of variations on graduations, holidays, and party's.  In High School, my friend Sunny and I made it often.  She always made it the best, I can't remember what her secret was and I am always on a quest to get the 1986 version that she specialized in.  Hence, I always seem to switch mine up.  I like this version of the famous party mix, it isn't Sunny's version, but it is pretty good. 

Maria's Chex Party Mix

Ingredients:

• 1 -12 ounce Box Rice Chex
• 1 -14 ounce Box Corn Chex
• 1 -14 ounce Box Wheat Chex
• 2 Cups Cheerios
• 2 Cups Pretzels
• 2 9.5 ounce Cans of Planters Select Mixed Nuts (Almonds, Cashews, Pecans)
• 1 1/2 Cup Dry Roasted Peanuts
• 1 Cup Dry Roasted Sunflower Seeds
• 1 Pound Melted Butter
• 1/4 Cup Worcestershire
• 1 1/2 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
• 1 Teaspoon Onion Powder
• 1 Tablespoon Season Salt (Lawry's)

Directions:

• Mix Cereal, Nuts, and Pretzels in Roasting Pan
• Melt Butter and add Worcestershire, Garlic Powder, Onion Powder and Season Salt, Mix well
• Toss Cereal Mixture with Butter Mixture
• Roast 250 degree oven, stirring every 15 minutes, cook for 1 hour
• Store in airtight container.

Peaches and Cream French Toast

Peaches and Cream French Toast

Holy Moly, this is a good one.  My family (Mom and Sister, Renee) has been making a version of this French Toast for years.  It is by far the Best French Toast Recipe Ever.  It seems like I always say "it is the best ever," but I really do believe it, and I think you will agree.  You can easily switch up the flavors from Peach, to Apricot, to Berries, etc...  It might seem like it is a lot of work, but it comes together quickly and it melts in your mouth.  Warning....Serve it to your house guests and they will never want to leave. 

Peaches and Cream French Toast

Ingredients:

Marcona Almonds

• 6 Large Eggs
• 1/2 Cup Heavy Cream
• 3 Tablespoons Bonne Maman Apricot or Peach Preserves (you can use any brand or flavor really)
• 3 Tablespoons Butter
• 8 Pieces Texas Toast
• Peach Butter
• Fresh Peaches (or other fruit, depending on what flavor of preserves you use)
• Powdered Sugar
• Toasted Almonds (I used Marcona Almonds)

Directions:

Teaball, used as a Powdered Sugar Shaker

• Whisk Eggs, Heavy Cream and Bonne Maman Preserves until very well combined.  Just a reminder.... you don't have to use Bonne Maman, if Smuckers is your thing, have at it. 
• Cooking in batches, melt some of the butter on a griddle
• Dip Texas Toast into Egg Mixture
• Grill Texas Toast until golden

Peach Butter

Peach Butter (Fruit Butter)

Ingredients:

• 1/4 Cup Softened Butter
• 1/3 Cup Bonne Maman Preserves (Apricot or Peach)

Directions:

• Using a mixer, whip butter with Bonne Maman Preserves until light and fluffy