Recipe Timeout: Sweet Potato Muffins

If you have leftover sweet potatoes from Thanksgiving, or just love the flavors of fall, then this recipe is for you.  I highly recommend making mini muffins with this recipe--they are perfect for toddler hands, and they take out all of the guilt from your mid-morning or mid-afternoon snack.

I got this recipe from DisneyFamily.com, which has lots of family-friendly recipes, as well as craft ideas and the like (visit www.family.com).


Ingredients:


1 stick butter, softened
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups mashed baked sweet potato (from 2 medium potatoes or 1.5 large ones)

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

7 tablespoons cinnamon sugar (one Tbsp. cinnamon mixed with 6 Tbsp. granulated sugar)


Instructions:


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, beat the butter with a wooden spoon until creamy.  Beat in sugars (I use an electric hand mixer) until mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time, then beat in milk, vanilla and sweet potatoes (it won't be completely smooth and creamy).

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves.  Beat together the wet and dry mixtures until just combined.

Grease your muffin tin and fill the cups half full with batter.  If desired, sprinkle tops with the cinnamon sugar.

Bake until inserted toothpick comes out clean:  approximately 18 minutes for full-size muffins and 14 minutes for mini muffins.


Yield: 

12-18 full-size muffins
3-4 dozen mini muffins

Recipe Time Out: The Quarterback Sack

Today’s post is a lucky accident.  While researching for yesterday’s post on quarterback sacks, I discovered that there is a shot called… the Quarterback Sack!  Since I already broke the seal on cocktail recipes with the Sidecar, I figured there wasn’t a better way to follow up my QB sacks post with this one—and on a Friday, no less!

 

So, here it is, the Quarterback Sack (photo from mixnsip.com):

Ingredients:

2 oz gin

2 oz vodka

1 oz triple sec

4 oz bloody mary mix

Tonic water

 

Instructions:

Put all ingredients—except the tonic water—in a mixing glass half-filled (or, if you prefer, half-empty) with ice and stir. 

 

Strain into four shot glasses.

Add a splash of tonic to each glass.

 

If you have people over to watch a game, might I suggest taking a shot each time a quarterback gets sacked?  I hope you weren't already playing this game last night, though--Kevin Kolb (above) was sacked nine times!

Recipe Time Out: Meat Pie, Modified

Way back, I posted a recipe that was a favorite of my dad’s:  Meat Pie.  I offered two different ways to make it and suggested two different cheeses.  I’m reposting the recipe today because I have made some adjustments to the original ingredients:  I’ve settled on a favorite way to make it; decided on a preferred cheese; and added an ingredient—caramelized onions—with an extra step in the preparation to go along with it.  Although I don’t think there was anything wrong with the original, I think you’ll agree that this version is a step forward.

Ingredients

½ yellow onion

½ Tbsp. butter

½ Tbsp. olive oil

Salt

Sugar

1 lb. ground beef

8 oz. blue cheese

One package (8 count) Pillsbury® Crescent Rolls

Instructions 

Preheat oven to 375°.

Slice the half of an onion into thin slices.  Melt butter and olive oil in a nice wide skillet and add the onions.  Sauté for 6 minutes.  Sprinkle with salt and sauté another 4 minutes.  Sprinkle with a small amount of sugar (maybe ¼ teaspoon) and continue to sauté until onions are browned.  Remove onions from skillet and set aside.

While the onions are cooking, lightly grease a 9-inch pie pan.  Unroll the Crescent Rolls and divide them in half.  Do not form them into the Crescents.  Spread half of the dough to cover the bottom of the pan, and halfway up the sides.   

Brown the ground beef until no longer pink and drain.  Add the onions and blue cheese and mix.  Pour the mixture into the pie pan.

Spread the remainder of the Crescent dough on top, making sure it meets the bottom layer of dough at the sides of the pan.

Bake at 375° for 20 minutes or until dough is cooked (inserted toothpick comes out clean and top is golden brown).

Slice and serve.  Enjoy!

Recipe Time Out: The Sidecar

Today, Naptime Huddle ventures into a new category of recipes:  the cocktail.  One of my very favorites is the Sidecar.  In my last year or so as a practicing lawyer, I went through a phase of asking for this drink at every happy hour or other such gathering.  Many times, however, I was actually denied the opportunity to partake in this sweet cocktail.  Why?  Because many bars don’t stock brandy, the main component of the Sidecar, behind the bar.  Who knew?  Also, many bartenders (usually the younger ones) never heard of it.

Many of you must be thinking, “So, feeling lazy, huh?  This will take you what, all of three minutes to list the ingredients and the directions?  Which are what, ‘mix and pour’?”

Oh, that’s where you’re wrong, my friends!  Not only are there different formulations of the Sidecar, but the origins and history of the drink itself are unclear.

Though the ingredients and preparation of the Sidecar are always the same, mixology connoisseurs disagree about the proportion of the ingredients, which are:  brandy (or, traditionally, Cognac), Cointreau (or other orange liqueur) and lemon juice.  These should be shaken with ice and strained into a frosted cocktail or martini glass, garnished with either a wedge of lemon or a lemon rind twist.  You also have the option of lacing the rim with lemon juice and dipping it into sugar—um, before pouring.

So, how much of each ingredient do you use?  There are, believe it or not, three formulas:  The French School, The English School and the 3:2:1 blend.

The French School

One story about the Sidecar’s origin, as told by David Embury in his 1948 book The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks, is that the cocktail was invented in Paris during World War I.  As the story goes, an American Army captain entered a Paris bistro nursing a cold and asked for something to ease his symptoms.  The bartender reached for the brandy, with its obvious medicinal benefits, and, seeking to add something for Vitamin C, added Cointreau and lemon juice.  This concoction became the captain’s favorite drink and he returned for it on a regular basis—shuttled back and forth in the sidecar of a chauffeured motorcycle (like the one pictured above).  Harry’s Bar* in Paris is credited for being that bistro, but the Ritz Hotel in Paris also claims to be the location of the drink’s invention.

As for formulation, The French School recipe is the easiest variation, calling for equal parts of the three ingredients—e.g., 1 ounce brandy, 1 ounce Cointreau and 1 ounce lemon juice. 

The English School

A less romantic, and probably more credible, story is that the Sidecar was invented by a bartender named Pat MacGarry at Buck’s Club in London (left), also during or soon after the First World War.  This story was put forth by Harry MacElhone in his 1922 book Harry’s ABC of Mixing Cocktails (in later editions, MacElhone claims to be the creator himself), and by Robert Vermeire’s Cocktails and How to Mix Them from that same year. 

The English School calls for a 2:1:1 ratio of ingredients:  2 ounces of brandy and 1 ounce each of Cointreau and lemon juice.

 

3:2:1 Blend:   This formula, as you may have guessed, requires 2 ounces of brandy, 1 ounce of Cointreau and ½ ounce of lemon juice.

You will also find a long list of variations on the traditional Sidecar, with one or more ingredients replaced with other libations.  For example, gin replaces the brandy in the White Lady (right); substitute applejack for the brandy and grenadine syrup for the Cointreau and you get a Jack Rose; and replace the brandy for golden or dark rum to get, more simply, a Rum Sidecar.

So, which recipe should you use?  My advice is to play around and try each version.  If you prefer not to take this route, however, consider what you want from your drink.  If you want something nice and strong, go harder on the brandy; to avoid a drink that is too sweet, don’t skimp on the lemon juice; to limit the pucker factor, use less lemon juice and more Cointreau. 



Despite its romantic history and its delectable flavor, the Sidecar mysteriously dropped out of the mainstream after World War II.  Though not yet as fashionable as the martini, it's starting to made a comeback.  Hopefully the day will come when bartenders don't look at me like I sprouted a second head when I ask for one.

 

Thirsty yet? 

*Harry’s Bar is actually “Harry’s New York Bar”; the original owner, Tod Sloane, wanted to recreate the look and feel of an American bar, so he had the interior of a bar in Manhattan taken apart and shipped, piece by piece, to Paris.  It has always been a favorite of American expats and was a favorite haunt of American writers living in Paris, such as F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway.  The establishment celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2011.

Recipe Time Out: Stuffed Pork a la Popeye

For loyal readers of Naptime Huddle, today’s recipe may seem quite familiar.  Back in September, I posted a recipe for Grecian Stuffed Chicken, from the vault of a cousin of mine.  Recently I discovered that the stuffing from that recipe also works in pork.  I made some adjustments in the base recipe to prepare the pork, so I wanted to share the new dish with you.

Ingredients:

6 pork chops (bone-in or boneless variety)

salt and pepper to taste

2 tablespoons canola oil (unless you'd rather use Olive Oyl)

10 oz. frozen chopped spinach, thawed (hence the "a la Popeye")

8 oz. feta cheese, crumbled

½ cup mayonnaise

1 clove garlic, minced

¼ cup all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon paprika

6 strips of bacon

 Instructions:

 

Preheat oven to 350°.

Cut a pocket into each pork chop (if bone-in, cut pocket toward the bone).  Salt and pepper to taste.

 

Drain spinach and squeeze out any additional liquid.  Combine with feta cheese, mayonnaise and garlic.  Stuff mixture into pork chops.

Combine flour and paprika and lightly coat stuffed chops.  Wrap one piece of bacon around each.

Heat canola oil in skillet over medium heat.  Cook pork in oil about 5-8 minutes, turning once, until each is light brown on both sides.

Place the pork chops into an ungreased baking dish measuring 13” x 9” x 2”.  Cover and bake at 350° for 30 minute; uncover and bake an additional 30 minutes or until the pork is slightly pink in the center. 

Serves 6

A gah gah gah gah gah!

Sorry, that's my best rendering of Popeye's trademark laugh:

Recipe Time Out: My Old Kentucky Mini Pecan Pies

I derived this recipe from two sources: Betty Crocker's New Cookbook (Macmillan, 1996) for the filling,and www.thekitchn.com for the pastry shells. The result is a chocolaty, bourbony delight in a palm-sized portion. Just the right size to keep that pesky conscience quiet!

[Editor’s Note: Though I say that the recipe serves twelve, the filling is actually enough to make 18 pies. If you don’t want to waste the extra filling, then, double the pastry shell recipe. You’ll have dough left over, but you’ll find the sacrifice is worth it.]

*WARNING: The pastry shells need to be started more than three hours before baking…

PASTRY SHELLS

Ingredients:

5 Tbsp. butter, softened

4 oz. light cream cheese

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 Tbsp. confectioner’s sugar

1/8 tsp. salt

Instructions:

Three hours before baking…

Mix softened butter and cream cheese in a large bowl until smooth. Blend in flour, a little bit at a time, confectioner’s sugar and salt. Form dough into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for three hours. (You can also put it in the freezer for 30 minutes, then in the fridge for another 30 minutes.)

When you’re ready to bake the pies…

Preheat oven to 425°. Divide dough into 12 balls (this works out to 27 grams each). Roll flat with a rolling pin and press each into the lightly greased cups of a muffin pan. Allow dough to push up over the edges.

PIE FILLING

Ingredients:

2/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup stick butter or margarine, melted

1 cup dark corn syrup

Bourbon vats in Kentucky

½ tsp. salt

2 Tbsp. bourbon

3 large eggs

1 cup pecan halves or chopped pecans

6 oz. (1 cup) milk chocolate or semisweet chocolate chips,melted

Instructions:

Beat sugar, margarine, corn syrup, salt, bourbon and eggs in a medium bowl with a wire whisk or hand beater until well blended. Stir in pecans and melted chocolate chips.

Pour filling into pastry shells, making sure not to reach the edges. Bake for 20 minutes, or until dough is golden brown. Allow to sit for five minutes. Run a knife along the edges of cups to loosen and remove each from pan. Set on wire rack to cool.

Here’s the end result:

Mmmm…finger lickin' good!

Recipe Time Out: Chicken and Green Chile Enchiladas

Today’s recipe is one I got from the August 2009 issue of Southern Living Magazine.  It’s relatively quick and easy, and, if you don't want to make all eight enchiladas, you can freeze the filling and make them later (though you will need to get a little bit more enchilada sauce--one small can--at that time).

This recipe has two stages: first, the Onion and Garlic Mixture; second, the enchiladas.

GARLIC AND ONION MIXTURE

Ingredients:

2 cups chopped yellow onion (1 large onion)

1 Tbsp. vegetable oil

3 garlic cloves, chopped
 

Instructions:

Saute onion in hot oil in saucepan over medium heat 8 minutes or until tender.  Add garlic and sauté for another two minutes.  Unused mixture can be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to five days.

CHICKEN ENCHILADAS

Ingredients:

3 ½ cups chopped cooked chicken

2/3 cup Onion and Garlic Mixture

2 (4-oz) cans chopped green chiles

1 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro

30 oz. canned enchilada sauce, divided (I have tried this with both green and red enchilada sauce, and I prefer the red sauce.)

2 cups shredded Mexican four-cheese blend, divided

8 (9-in/burrito size) flour tortillas

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 425°.

Stir together first four ingredients, 1 ½ cups enchilada sauce and one cup cheese.

Spoon about ½ cup of the mixture down the center of the tortilla.  Roll tortillas up and place them, seam side down, in a lightly greased 9” x 13” casserole dish. 

Pour remaining enchilada sauce over tortillas.  Sprinkle with remaining cheese.

Bake covered for 20 minutes; uncover and bake for an additional 10 minutes, or until cheese is melted and golden brown. 

Buen provecho!

Recipe Time Out: Cajun Fried Tilapia

Today I offer you a new menu choice for your Lent Fridays:  Cajun-Seasoned Fried Tilapia.  I got this from the September 2009 issue of Southern Living Magazine.  It’s super easy and tasty.  Although it has Cajun seasoning, I don’t think it would be too spicy for little ones—but you should temper your sprinkling of the filets to adjust to your child’s tastes.

Serves 4.

 

Ingredients:

4 (4-6 oz.) tilapia filets

1.5 tsp. Cajun or Creole seasoning, divided

3 Tbsp. self-rising flour

½ cup plain yellow cornmeal

1 Tbsp. butter

2 Tbsp. olive oil

Lemon (optional)

Instructions:

 

Sprinkle filets with 1 teaspoon of seasoning.  Combine remaining seasoning, flour and cornmeal.

Dredge fillets in cornmeal mixture, shaking off excess.

Melt butter with oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add filets and cook 3-4 minutes on each side, or until the fish flakes with a fork.

Squeeze lemon over filets, if desired, and serve immediately.

Note:  Instead of fish, you can use 8-oz skinless, boneless chicken breasts, or 8-oz bone-in, center-cut pork chops.  I have never done this, however, so I can’t speak to the results.  Let me know if you try it!

Recipe Time Out: Gary's Gazpacho

As promised in his guest post, "Rapping Up:  Football and Hip-Hop," I present Gary's recipe!  It's for a healthy and tasty dish called "Gazpacho a la 2 or 3 Lines" (a reference, you'll recall, to his wildly popular and pithy blog that can be found at www.2or3lines.blogspot.com):

Ingredients:

One cucumber

One green pepper

One yellow onion

28-oz. can diced or crushed tomatoes

46-oz. can V8 or tomato juice

16-oz. jar Pace Picante salsa (mild, medium, or hot)

Lemon or orange juice

Chopped, crushed or minced garlic

Salt and pepper

One avocado (optional)

Instructions:

Peel cucumber, cut in half lengthwise, remove seeds, and slice. Peel and cut onion into large pieces. Cut green pepper into quarters and remove seeds and pith.

Put the cucumber, onion, green pepper, and the diced or crushed tomatoes into a blender or food processor. Add as much salsa as you want -- the more you add, the spicier the gazpacho will be. (Doh!) Add a few squirts of lemon juice or a splash of orange juice, a spoonful or two of garlic, and salt and pepper to taste. Add about half of the V8 or tomato juice and blend to the desired degree of smoothness. Add more juice if the gazpacho is too thick.

Refrigerate for a few hours before serving. You want the gazpacho to be cool enough to be refreshing, but not too cold. Topping the gazpacho with a slice or two of avocado is a nice finishing touch.

This is a summertime favorite of mine -- a delicious and healthy way to add a couple of servings of vegetables to your diet. (It is 100% fat-free. If sodium is an issue for you, use low-sodium V8 or tomato juice and don't add any salt.)

Recipe Replay: Super Bowl Sampling

In addition to the bone-rattling hits, edge-of-your-seat tension and spectacular plays, the Super Bowl offers one more treat:  the first excuse since the holidays to pig out without guilt.  To prepare you for this culinary cornucopia, I’ve selected some of the recipes I have posted on Naptime Huddle that I think would be perfect for Sunday, whether you are the one hosting a viewing party or attending a potluck get-together.  Just click on each link for the full recipe.

Scrumptious Chutney Cheese Ball:  http://naptimehuddle.blogspot.com/2011/10/recipe-timeout-scrumptious-chutney.html

Perfect for noshing, but make sure you have a crowd (and plenty of crackers) if you’re making the full recipe!  By the way, you may find it difficult to form the cheese mixture into a ball.  If you find this frustrating, you can do what a friend of mine did.  For her family gathering at Christmas, she spread it into tree-shaped mold and sprinkled the chopped pecans on top!  Instead of a tree, you could try to find a football-shaped mold.

Nicky’s Naughty Hot Wing Dip:  http://naptimehuddle.blogspot.com/2011/08/recipe-time-out-nickys-naughty-hot-wing.html

Can you really have a sporting event without hot wings?!?

Wally’s Wonderful Chili:  http://naptimehuddle.blogspot.com/2011/08/recipe-timeout-wallys-wonderful-chili.html

This meat-lover’s classic can be made in advance and will stand the test of a 4-hour party.

Great Greek Salad:  http://naptimehuddle.blogspot.com/2011/08/recipe-timeout-great-greek-salad.html

A refreshing compliment to the chili, this salad is also hearty enough to be the main dish for the herbivores at your shindig.

Cinnamon Snails:  http://naptimehuddle.blogspot.com/2011/10/recipe-timeout-cinnamon-snails.html

Sinfully delicious and easy to eat with your fingers, your guests will beg you for the recipe.  (Be sure to give them the Naptime Huddle address, will ya?)

Enjoy the feast--and the game!

Recipe Time Out: Buddy's Best Eggplant Parmesan

OK, I’ve been keeping this one up my sleeve for a while.  I’ve hesitated to share it for two reasons:  (1) it’s not a recipe of my own creation or from family or friends; and (2) I’m afraid that once people will know about it I won’t look like such a great cook to people I’ve made it for. 

But, for the sake of the blog, and to thank my loyal readers for their patronage, I give you…  Eggplant Parmesan, from the TLC show “Kitchen Boss,” hosted by Buddy Valastro, a.k.a. the Cake Boss.

Some people might be afraid of eggplant because it can sometimes taste bitter.  I know I was, but I’ve never had an issue with bitterness using this recipe.  Also, even though it’s vegetarian, I’ve been assured by meat lovers that it is very filling in a stick-to-your-ribs kind of way.  It is a little labor-intensive, though, so be sure you’ve allowed yourself plenty of time to make it, or enlist an assistant (even a willing child can help, since there’s no cutting involved after slicing the eggplant).

Ingredients

2 medium-to-large eggplants, peeled

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup grated parmesan, divided, plus another 6 Tablespoons

6 large eggs

2 cups breadcrumbs (you can make your own, but I just buy them)

12 oz. sliced mozzarella

3 cups of any marinara sauce (again, homemade or store-bought)

Olive oil, as needed, for frying

Instructions

 

Cut peeled eggplants into ¼-inch rounds.  Set in a colander, salt them liberally and let them “weep set”* for one hour.  Dry by patting them with paper towels.

Preheat oven to 375°.  Lightly oil a 9” x 13” baking dish and cover the bottom of the dish with a layer of marinara sauce.

Set up your dredging station for the slices.  I use pie plates, but a regular plate or wax paper is fine, too.  Flour is your first station.  Next to the flour, set your eggs, which are beaten with ½ cup of the grated parmesan.  Finally, the breadcrumbs, mixed with the other half cup of the parm.

Heat a large skillet medium-high and add enough olive oil to come up a bit on the sides.  Dip the slices in flour (tap off excess), then eggs, then breadcrumbs.**  Fry the slices in the oil until they are golden brown on each side (maybe 3-4 minutes total).  As you remove them from the oil, place them on a baking rack with paper towels underneath to drain.  Salt the fried slices.

Now you’re ready to start building your dish!  I don’t wait until all the slices have been fried.  Since I have a small kitchen, the counters get crowded fast.

Place an overlapping layer of eggplant in the baking dish.  Sprinkle with two tablespoons of the grated parmesan (remember, you should still have 6 Tbsp. left).  Ladle over a layer of sauce.  Cover with a layer of mozzarella slices.  Repeat:  eggplant, parm, sauce, mozzarella.  Finish off with the last two tablespoons of parmesan.

Bake approximately 20-30 minutes, until it’s hot and the cheese is bubbling.  Let stand about 10 minutes before serving.  I like to serve it over spaghetti or angel hair, but you may need a little more sauce with it.

Serves 6, but is great left over!

For more recipes from “Kitchen Boss,” click here.

*I leave the colander with the eggplant in the fridge.  If you take a peek during the hour, the slices may look like they’re actually weeping—water beads up on the surface.

**Your fingers will soon be caked with egg and breadcrumbs, so for the sake of efficiency, I use my left hand for dipping in the flour, then my right for the eggs and breadcrumbs.  That way, only one set of fingers becomes a sticky glove of gunk.

Recipe Time Out: Kerri's Easy-Peasy Pasta Salad

Today’s recipe is a very simple one from my own brain (also very simple).  Not only is it easy and delicious but, for me, it provides a taste of summer any time of year.

 

Ingredients:

6-8 oz. of your favorite short pasta (I like to use tri-color rotini)

One small-medium tomato (like a vine-ripe tomato)

½ of one green bell pepper

Approx. ½ cup sliced carrots

2-oz. can sliced olives, drained

½ packet of Ranch dressing/dip powder (it usually comes in a 1-oz package)

2 Tbsp mayonnaise

2-3 Tbsp olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

 

Instructions:

 

Prepare pasta according to directions on package.  When cooked, rinse with cold water and set aside.

Chop tomato and green pepper into chunks and place in large bowl with carrots and olives. 

Add pasta, Ranch powder, mayonnaise, olive oil and salt and pepper.  Toss well.

Can be served at room temperature or chilled.

Serves 4-6.

Recipe Time Out: People-Pleasing Peanut Butter Fudge

I couldn't let the holidays go by without posting a recipe guaranteed to satisfy even the most insatiable sweet tooth.  So, here's an early Christmas/Kwanzaa present (or on-time Hanukkah present) from Naptime Huddle:  Mom’s fabulous Peanut Butter Fudge recipe!

Ingredients:

1 cup sugar

1 cup firmly-packed brown sugar

½ cup Half & Half

2 Tbsp. light corn syrup

¼ cup butter or margarine

½ cup peanut butter (crunch or plain, pick your poison)

½ cup marshmallow cream

2 tsp. vanilla extract

Instructions

Combine sugars, Half & Half and corn syrup in a pot.  Cook over low heat, stirring gently until sugar dissolves.

Cover and cook over medium heat 2-3 minutes to wash down the sugar.

Uncover and cook to soft ball stage* (approx. 235°), stirring occasionally.

Remove from heat.

Add butter, peanut butter, marshmallow cream and vanilla extract.  Stir until smooth.

Pour into buttered 8-inch square baking pan, spreading evenly.

Allow to cool at least two hours; cut into squares to serve.

Enjoy!

*For an explanation of the term “soft ball stage,” refere to Nicky’s post on the family’s Gooey Chocolate Cake recipe, found by clicking here.