Pickled Eggs experimental batch

I saw a post on facebook re pickled eggs yesterday.  My son used to like them at the bars up in northern Minnesota, so I thought I'd do a test batch to take to our 4th of July little celebration coming up.  I found a few recipes, decided I definitely wanted the beet juice style for the colored eggs, and sort of adjusted another one that I thought he might like because it was similar to garlic jalapeno pickles.  Will find out after they sit a week if it's worth making a bigger batch next time.  I only made 8 eggs.

Make 8 hard boiled eggs, peel and wash and place in a glass jar or container.

Meanwhile make the brine of:

3/4 cup cider vinegar
3/4 cup beet juice (or water if you don't care about the color) I just bought a generic brand of sliced beers and drained the juice and it was perfect-we'll eat the beets for supper)
1/4 of an onion thinly sliced.  I used a yellow onion, but red would be pretty in the jar too
1/2 cup sugar
6 whole cloves
2 jalapeno peppers, deseeded and sliced lengthwise
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp dry oregano
1 garlic clove peeled

put brine ingredients in a saucepan, bring to a boil to dissolve the sugar and simmer about 5 minutes.

set aside until just warm, not really hot because the eggs with get tough.

when cooled down, pour over eggs and refrigerate..will keep for up to a month in the refrigerator.  it says you can eat them the next day, but a lot of recipes said to wait a week. 

Easy Stromboli

I keep looking for easy suppers to make now that the weather is so nice and we like easy lighter in the heat anyway, so tried this tonight.  I can see how it could be adjusted with different ingredients to make different variations really easily.  It makes a big log so could easily fill a family of 4-5 with a bowl of soup or salad.  (I am just heating up a can of Campbell's Tomato soup and having some fresh sweet cherries for a side) 

Stromboli with Ham/Salami/Provolone and Mozzarella Cheese

1 pound prepared pizza dough (homemade or store bought).  I used Pillsbury thin crust in the refrigerated section. 

a little all purpose flour for sprinkling on parchment paper

16 thin cut slices of salami (1/3 lb)

thin sliced honey ham

16 slices of provolone cheese (1/4 lb)

1-1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1 cup roasted red peppers drained and chopped-I actually used some pimentos because I had them.

1 Tablespoon Capers

1 large egg beaten

2 Tablespoons grated parmesan for sprinkling


DIRECTIONS:

Heat oven to 400 degrees, set rack on lower 1/3 of oven.

Lay a 16 inch sheet of parchment paper on the counter and lightly flour it.  Spread out dough on paper to a  14 x11 size. Mine was close, just had to squish it out a little bit.  Brush beaten egg all the way around the edge of the dough.  Layer in order..Salami, provolone, Ham, Mozarella, Peppers, and capers, leaving 1/2 inch allowance all the way around.  Start rolling it up on the longer side carefully.  Seal all the ends by pinching together and tucking under the sides.  slide the parchment onto a cookie sheet and put smooth side upward.  Brush with egg and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.  cut shallow cuts into top.  Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, then reduce heat to 375 and bake another 20 min.  Remove from heat and let cool 10 minutes, slice and eat. 



 

Gaile's Eggroll Recipe

I had an eggroll class with the two grandgirls today and passing the recipe on to them because they both were interested and love the eggrolls.  Sam wrote everything down as I put the filling together and wrote up the below recipe to share.  If you have any questions feel free to comment below.   You can look up a tutorial online on how to roll eggrolls if you need that also..hard to explain in writing.  Enjoy!

New Fun Project -Making Dog Collars

I will soon be getting a new Golden Retrievers puppy and so developed a new interest in making dog collars.  My granddaughter, Sam, used to make and sell them, along with leashes that matched, but I like the retractable ones so won't be doing those.  My first one I tried, today, was for the pups mom..I plan on giving it to Dave, the breeder, when I go up later this week to pick out which female of the 6 available I want.  There were 11 puppies born, all healthy and adorable, so it will probably be a hard choice to make, but will be fun.  The mother dog's name is Peaches, so here is the collar I made! 

I made a second one today for a friend as a gift for referring me to Dave to begin with..she is getting a pup from him also..she picked out the pink leopard fabric for it..

One Pot Chicken Alfredo

I saw this recipe on Facebook, so decided to try it for dinner tonight.  I kind of tweaked it a little because I tried to cut down on a little fat and I still think it turned out good.  It would be great with a salad, but I was out of lettuce (need to make a store run) so I added some frozen baby peas to it for some vegetable and threw some pickles and fruit on the counter for sides.  I would definitely make it again though-like the idea of less dishes any time for a meal!

ONE POT CHICKEN ALFREDO:

In a large deep skillet or wok:  Add 1 Tbsp oil-I used vegetable oil

Add 2 chicken breasts that are cubed in smaller bite size pieces.  Add salt and pepper lightly.   Brown slightly.

Add 1 Tbsp minced garlic.

Add 6 Tbsp butter-next time I will add 4-I think that would be enough for my taste.

Add 1-1/2 cups heavy cream  (I actually used fat free half and half because that's what I had and it worked fine)

Add 2/3 cup water and 1 tsp chicken bouillon, or any substitute (I used 1 tsp of Better than Bouillon chicken flavor)

Add 1 tsp Italian seasoning

Add 1/2 lb of pasta-I used Penne, but you could use whatever you have or homemade fettucini etc.

simmer until your pasta is cooked, mine took about 30 minutes -covered.

once pasta is tender and liquid is reduced, add 1 cup shredded parmesan cheese and mix in well until melted.  OPTIONAL:  May sprinkle with  more parmesan and chopped parsley when serving.  May also add broccoli or frozen peas to the mix while it's cooking or serve a side salad, garlic bread, fruit etc.

Stuffed Peppers

It seems everywhere I look lately I am seeing TV shows and people making stuffed peppers, so decided I would try to make up a batch.  I have only made them a couple times in my life, decades ago, so asked around on how other people make the, researched online for recipes and ratings and came up with my version below.  Joe, my son, really liked them and I did too.  (I only eat the filling, not a pepper fan to be honest) and opened up a can of peaches to even out the taste on the plate.  Joe took the rest home for his lunch tomorrow even.  Here's what I came up with.

1)  Take 3 large bell peppers, orange, yellow and red.  slice in half the height wise..seeds and membranes removed and stem.  wash.  In a large kettle heat about 6 inches of water, bring to a boil, add prepared peppers and parboil for 5 minutes or so until almost tender.  Remove, drain on paper towels and lightly salt the cavity.  set aside.

2) Meanwhile: Prepare a box of white and wild rice mix with the seasoning packet that is included as directed on the box.  (I used a box from Aldi, but Uncle Ben's would work) Set aside.

In a large frypan: Brown 1 lb. of lean hamburger, add salt and pepper and 1/2 of a smaller sized onion that is finely chopped.  Add 1 Tablespoon Worchester sauce and 1/2 of a 10 ounce can of petite diced tomatoes that has been drained.  Add 1 cup of the white and wild rice mix, a little more black pepper, and 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese.  (if you are a big bell pepper fan you can add some to this mix, finely chopped also-I did not).

Put your parboiled peppers in a cake pan and fill with the meat mixture, dividing it evenly among the 6 "cups".

In a bowl, dump in 1 can of tomato soup (Campbell's), a few splashes or Worchester sauce and enough water to make it "soup".  pour over stuffed peppers and into the bottom of the pan.

Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes.  uncover and sprinkle with a little more cheese and bake about 15 minutes more until cheese is melted (optional).

Strawberry Lemon Blondies

I had printed off this recipe from a Facebook post and it was laying on my counter for a few weeks.  I finally picked up the ingredients and went for it today!  It is kind of putzy to put together and you need fresh ingredients like the strawberries and lemons so didn't have all the things I needed at home, thus the on-hold status.  They are worth the effort, buttery, lemony (but not too much so) and taste like spring.  If you have a celebration/holiday or pot luck they would be a great item to have there.  you may have to copy and paste the link..

https://theviewfromgreatisland.com/strawberry-lemon-blondies-recipe/