Rabbit Pot Pie

Now I know what you are probably thinking.  "Why would I eat rabbit?"  Well this recipe begs the question "What wouldn't you?"  It is savory and delicious - perfect for this time of year.  Enjoy!

To start you will need ~
2 Rabbits, skinned, cleaned and cut up
2 Carrots, chopped
2 Celery Stalks, diced
1 medium Onion, chopped
8 Cups Chicken Stock, low sodium
1/8 tsp. pepper
2 springs Rosemary
3 springs Thyme

Place all ingredients in a large Dutch oven and bring to a boil.  Boil on HIGH for 15 minutes and then cover and  turn down to MEDIUM for 45 minutes to an hour.  Once meat is falling off the bone remove from heat and take rabbit out of broth.  Allow to cool for about 15 minutes and shred.  Strain broth and set aside.  Discard veggies and herbs.

For the filling you will need~
2 Carrots, peeled and diced
2 Celery Stalks, diced
1 medium Onion, diced
3 lg. Potatoes, peeled, diced and parboiled
1/2 Cup Frozen Peas
1/2 stick Butter
1/4 Cup Bisquick
1/8 tsp. Pepper
2 Tbsp. Olive Oil
1 Tbsp. Butter

Heat a large saute pan on MED HIGH heat.  Saute carrots, celery, and onion until slightly tender.  Add potatoes and peas and cook for 3 minutes.  Set aside.

Preheat oven to 400 Degrees F.

Melt 1/2 stick butter in Dutch oven and add Bisquick and pepper and whisk until smooth and bubbly.  Slowly add broth and continue to whisk until mixture begins to thicken.  Add vegetables and rabbit and stir.  Spray casserole dish (or individual bowls) with non stick cooking spray.  Pour mixture into prepared dish and cover with pie crust.  Brush with beaten egg and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown.

Bean Soup with Ham

Do you remember Bill Knapp's Restaurant?  I sure do... My husband and I always loved going there.  I have fond memories of going there as a child, working there as a waitress just out of high school, and going there for dinner while I was in labor with my first child (hey, a girl has to eat!).  Here is a recipe that my sister and I came up with that rivals Bill Knapp's bean soup.  If you remember that soup and miss it, well be sure to make this one and enjoy your trip down memory lane...

Ingredients:
1 pkg. dry Northern beans
8 C. cold water
1/2 tsp. salt
1 C. carrots, diced
1 C. celery, diced
1 medium onion, diced
1 tsp. garlic, minced
1 tsp. dry mustard powder
2 bay leaves
2 C. ham, diced
1/2 tsp. ground white pepper

Rinse beans thoroughly, removing any stones or bad beans.  Place water in a large stockpot and bring to a boil over high heat.  Add salt and beans and cover with lid.  Remove from heat and let stand for 1 hour.  Return to high heat and add remaining ingredients, except ham.  Bring to a boil and cook for 2 hours, or until beans are tender.

Stir in ham and simmer for 30 more minutes.  At this point the soup should have thickened a bit.  Add more white pepper and salt as needed.  Remove that bay leaves before serving. This recipe serves 8-10.

Blueberry Pie

My husband loves blueberry pie.  I love blueberries.  We have a beautiful blueberry farm here in Dexter http://dexterblueberry.com/default.aspx and I can spend hours there during July and August. That being said, on my last visit I managed to walk away with 34 pounds of big fat berries that were just screaming to be turned into a delicious dessert. This recipe is being made gluten free so that my husband can enjoy it, but it can easily be changed using all-purpose flour.  I hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

 

Filling Ingredients:

6 C. blueberries

1 C. granulated sugar

4 Tbsp.  Tom Sawyer GF Flour Mix

1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

1 Tbsp freshly grated lemon peel

In a large bowl stir flour, sugar, nutmeg and lemon peel together, add berries and toss to coat.  Let stand for 15 minutes.  Pour into pie crust. (see below) and place on baking sheet.  Cover edge with pie guard or aluminum foil. Bake for 50 minutes.  Remove foil; bake for 20 to 30 minutes more or till the top is golden and the fruit mixture is bubbly.  Cool on a wire rack before serving.

Double Pastry Crust:

3 C. Tom Sawyer GF Flour Mix 

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 C. cold butter, cubed

1/2 C.vegetable shortening

2 egg yolks

2 tsp. vinegar

ice water

In a large bowl, combine flour with salt.  Cut in butter and shortening, blending until crumbled.  Whisk egg yolks with vinegar; add enough ice water to make 2/3 cup.  Pour egg mixture into flour mixture and stir with a fork until it holds together, adding a bit more flour if necessary.  Press into two disk shapes; wrap in plastic wrap.  Refrigerate for one hour until well chilled.

Remove dough from fridge and flour your work surface.  Roll each disk into a large circle, approximately 1/4 inch thick.  Transfer dough to a 9 inch pie plate and press into plate (this can be a difficult task with GF dough as it breaks apart, but fear not.  If this happens you need to work quickly to press several pieces of dough into the pie plate until formed together). Prick bottom and sides with a fork. 

Gently transfer remaining dough and cover the pie filling, crimping edges to seal dough (if using the GF recipe I have found that this task requires two people in order to keep the dough from tearing). Use any remaining scrapes of dough to make shapes to decorate the top of the pie.  Brush crust with egg wash (egg whisked with a couple drops of cold water) and sprinkle with sugar.

Pepper Shrimp

Ingredients:
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. white pepper
1/2 tsp. thyme
4 Tbsp. butter
12 oz. mushrooms, sliced
2 green onions, chopped
1 1/2 pounds fresh shrimp, peeled and deveined, shells reserved
1/8 tsp. salt and pepper

Place shrimp shells in saucepan and cover with water, add salt and pepper.  Cook on high heat for 15 minutes to create stock. Remove shells and set aside.

Heat 2 Tbsp. butter in large saute pan over medium high heat, add spices and garlic.  Cook for 1 minute.  Add mushrooms and green onions, cook and stir for 5 minutes.  

Add shrimp and cook for approximately 3 minutes, until no longer pink.  

Remove shrimp from pan and set aside.  Increase heat to high and pour in shrimp stock.  Bring to a boil and cook for 2 minutes.  In a separate pan melt 5 Tbsp. butter and whisk in 2 Tbsp. flour. Add to mushroom mixture and stir until blended.  Return shrimp to the pan and cook for 1 minutes over low heat.  

Serve over rice.

Red Velvet Whoopie Pies

Ingredients:
2 C all-purpose flour
1/3 C. unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
2/3 cup buttermilk
2 Tbsp. red food coloring (1 oz. bottle)
1 can cream cheese frosting

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line baking sheet with parchment or a Silpat, set aside.  In a medium bowl combine flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

In large mixing bowl beat butter on medium to high for 30 seconds.  Beat in brown sugar until light and fluffy.  Beat in egg and vanilla.  Alternately add flour mixture and buttermilk, beating after each addition just until combined.  Gently stir in food coloring.

Spoon batter in 1 or 2 inch diameter rounds, about 1/2 inch high on prepared baking sheets, 1 inch apart.  Bake for 8 minutes and remove to a baking rack to cool.  After cooled, spread a small amount of frosting on flat side of cookie and sandwich with another cookie.  Wrap frosted pies individually in plastic wrap.  Store in container.

Mexican Pizza

While many of us sit around the TV this afternoon watching the Nascar Daytona 500 (go Gordon!) we are looking for good food to snack on.  Here is a recipe that I think is fun, it combines the great taste of tacos with the ease of pizza.

Ingredients:
1 large Boboli Pizza Crust
3/4 cup refried beans
1/2 cup red enchilada sauce
1 cup ground beef
1 pkg. taco seasoning mix
3/4 cup water
2 cups Mexican blend cheese
Cilantro, chopped
Green Onion, diced
Diced Tomato
Shredded lettuce

Cook and drain ground beef, add taco seasoning and water and cook on high until bubbling, then turn down heat to low for 3 minutes until thickened.  Preheat oven to 500 degrees.  Heat beans and spread a thin layer over crust.  Top with enchilada sauce and cheese (use more or less as desired).  Add green onion and cilantro and bake until bubbly.  Top with shredded lettuce and diced tomato.

Starting Fresh

Well, it has been awhile since I last posted a new recipe.  It's not that I haven't been cooking (my waistline can confirm that!) but rather I haven't been blogging about what I have been cooking because quite frankly, I have been in a cooking funk.  Everything seems bland and mundane.  I have gotten so tired of the same family favorites.  It is time to reclaim the kitchen and freshen up my recipe box.  I have decided that I will post regularly, I will try new recipes and post the best ones, and I want to buy a new digital camera so I can take photos of my creations (although I warn you all, I am not a photographer so this will not be a layout for a food magazine - I do not claim to be another Pioneer Woman http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/ because if you have ever been to her site you will be in awe of her beautiful postings).

So I hope you come back and try some of my recipes, post comments (even the bad ones) and even share some of your favorites with me and I can post them on here for you! 

Let's Eat!

Crumb Topped Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie

If there is one thing my husband loves, it's dessert. You may have noticed that I have entered more dessert recipes on here than anything else! That being said I am always trying to perfect a recipe or come up with a new one. In the case of this recipe I played around with the filling just a tad and then modified my pie crust to be gluten free. When my husband was told that he could no longer eat wheat gluten we thought it would be impossible, but slowly I have been coming up with some recipes that are proving to be family favorites (even for my teenagers).

Crust - see Flaky Single Crust Pastry (*note - if you are making this gluten free you will need to prebake the crust for 10 minutes to ensure a thoroughly cooked crust on the bottom)

Filling
3 cups sliced rhubard
2 cups fresh strawberries, quartered
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup flour (you can use all-purpose or a gluten free mix. I prefer Tom Sawyer brand)
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Crumb Topping
1 cup flour ((you can use all-purpose or a gluten free mix. I prefer Tom Sawyer brand)
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/3 cup cold butter, cubed
1 tablespoon butter, cut into smaller pieces for topping pie before baking

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Stir all filling ingredients together until well coated and allow to sit for 45 minutes. Pour into prepared crust. Combine crumb topping ingredients and mix together by hand until crumbly. Top pie with crumb mixture and dot the top with 1 tablespoon cold butter bits. Bake for 55 minutes, or until bubbly. Allow to cool before serving for easier slicing.

Sweet Cornbread

Ever since my husband was diagnosed with Celiac disease two years ago I have been experimenting with various recipes and trying to modify them so that they would be gluten fee and he could enjoy eating normally again. It is hard to fill a man up on only grilled meat and veggies! Men want bread, heck we all crave it! Here is a wonderful cornbread recipe that I came up with this weekend. Now, I am a southern gal, born to southerners but raised in the North, and I have had my fair share of great cornbread. This is the closest I have come to making something that even my southern Mamaw would eat, and that says a lot!




1 1/4 cups gluten free flour mix (I use Tom Sawyer's brand and it is by far the best I have tried)
3/4 cup gluten free cornmeal
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons gluten free baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup skim milk
1/4 vegetable oil
1 tablespoon, plus 1 teaspoon honey
1 egg, beaten

Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Pour oil into a cast iron skillet and place into oven to heat up. Combine dry ingredients. Stir in milk, honey, and egg, mixing until dry ingredients are moistened. Add hot oil and carefully stir until blended. Pour batter into pan and bake for 25 minutes or until light golden brown. Serve warm

Heavenly Gluten Free Blueberry Crisp

4 cups fresh blueberries
1 cup gluten free flour mix (I use Tom Sawyer's Mix)
3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/3 cup cold butter, cubed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray an 11x7 baking dish with cooking spray. Sprinkle blueberries with 1 TBSP. flour mixture and toss to coat. Pour blueberries into baking dish. In a large bowl, combine 1 cup flour mixture with brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Add in the butter by hand and rub mixture between your fingers until it resembles coarse crumbs. Layer the crumb mixture over the blueberries. Bake in the oven until bubbly, about 40 minutes. Serve with non-dairy whipped topping. Makes 4 generous servings.

*You may also use frozen blueberries but you will need to increase your cook time to approximately 50 minutes.

Gluten Free Butterscotch Blondies

These "un-brownies" are chewy and full of pecans and butterscotch chips. They are very sweet and go great with a big dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream...Yummy!

Ingredients:
3/4 cup unsalted butter
1 3/4 cup light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
2 tsp. gluten free baking powder
1 1/4 cups gluten free flour mixture (I use Tom Sawyer's)
1 tsp kosher salt
1 cup chopped pecans
3/4 cup butterscotch baking chips

Line a 13x9 pan with parchment, overlapping sides, to prevent sticking (you can also heavily spray with gluten free non-stick spray). Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium sized pan, melt butter. Stir in brown sugar, stirring until well blended and the mixture just begins to bubble (similar to making a pecan pie). Remove from heat. Whisk eggs and yolk together with vanilla. Pour in the eggs in a steady stream, while whisking constantly to prevent scrambling. In a small bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Whisk flour into the egg mixture. Fold in pecans and butterscotch chips. Spread into pan. Bake 35-40 minutes (5 minutes less for dark coated pans). Remove from oven and cool on a rack. Lift parchment out and cut when cooled.

Molten Spiced Chocolate Cakes

Ingredients:
4 oz. semi-sweet baking chocolate
1/2 cup butter
1 tsp. Cabernet Sauvignon
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup confectioners sugar
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
6 Tbsp. flour
1/4 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Butter 4 custard cups and place on a baking sheet. Microwave chocolate and butter on HIGH for 1 minute. Whisk until chocolate is melted. Stir in wine, vanilla and sugar until blended. Whisk in eggs. Stir in remaining ingredients. Spoon evenly into dishes. Bake for 12 minutes, until edges are firm but centers are soft. Let stand 1 minute. Loosen edges with a sharp knife. Invert onto serving dish. Sprinkle with extra confectioners sugar.
For an extra special touch you can make a raspberry puree and drizzle onto the plate before inverting the cake. Serve hot.

Blonde Brownies

Ingredients:
1 stick butter
4 eggs
2 cups brown sugar
2 cups flour
1 bag milk chocolate chips
1 tsp. vanilla
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Melt butter in saucepan. Place brown sugar in mixing bowl and add melted butter; mix well. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla, and dry ingredients, mixing well. Pour into a 13 x 9 greased baking dish. Top with chocolate chips. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.

Hot Artichoke Crabmeat Dip

Ingredients:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 cup mayonaise
1 garlic clove, minced
3/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1 (14 oz) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
8 oz. lump crabmeat, chopped
1/3 cup finely sliced green onion
1 tsp. lemon zest
1/3 cup red bell pepper, finely diced
1/4 tsp. black pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Combine cream cheese and mayonaise; mix well and add crushed garlic. In a separate bowl, mix artichokes and crabmeat. Add Parmesan cheese, green onion, lemon zest and black pepper. Combine mixtures together and spoon mixture into a greased casserole dish. Bake for 30 minutes until golden brown around edges. Sprinkle with red pepper and additional green onions. Serve hot with buttery crackers or toast points.

Flaky Single Crust Pastry

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 cup cold butter, cubed
1/4 cup Crisco shortening
1 egg yolk1 tsp. vinegar
ice water

In large bowl, combine flour with salt. With pastry blender cut in butter and shortening until in fine crumbs. In 1 cup measure, whisk egg yolk with vinegar; add enough ice water to make 1/3 cup.
Gradually sprinkle egg mixture over flour mixture, stirring briskly with a fork until pastry holds together. Press into disc shape; wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hours or until chilled or up to 3 days.
*To make this recipe gluten free I substituted Tom Sawyer's brand gluten free flour mix and chilled for 3 hours. When you roll this crust out it will not have the same consistency as a regular pie crust, this one will be softer and require a bit more of your flour mix for dusting. It also sticks to your rolling surface so I have had to press it into the pie plate and form by hand. It seems that with the delicate process of rolling it out followed by the hand pressing I still end up with a beautifully flaky crust.
**I use pie weights while prebaking to prevent it from falling down in the oven. Bake at 425 for 8-14 minutes, or until lightly browned.

Chicken and Figs in Puff Pastry

Ingredients:
4 pieces boneless skinless chicken breast, pounded slightly thin
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 to 3 sprigs fresh finely chopped rosemary
1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
2 sheets puff pastry (Pepperidge Farms)
8 slices Italian Fontina cheese, slices should be 2 to 3 inches square and 1/2 inch thick
1 jar fig preserves (sold at Meijer's)
1 egg mixed with 1 Tbsp. water, for egg wash

Season the chicken with salt, pepper and rosemary. Cut each piece of chicken in in half, giving you 8 equal portions. Heat the oil in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Lightly brown the chicken on both sides, 5 minutes total. Remove from heat.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut pastry sheets into 8 equal pieces. Place a piece of cheese on each pastry square and top with spoonfuls of fig preserves and the chicken pieces. Brush outer edge of pastry with egg wash, pinch and seal the dough up and over the meat and cheese, crimp to seal. Flip the pastry packets over and brush the tops with remaining egg wash. Refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve with a spring mix salad for a nice lunch or add rice pilaf for an elegant dinner.

Sunday Beef Stew

Ingredients:
2 pounds lean beef (preferably tenderloin) cubed
2 Tbsp. Olive oil
2 Tbsp. butter
4 cups beef broth
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 clove garlic, peeled
2 bay leaves
1 pkg. Lipton beefy onion soup mix
1 medium onion, diced
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. paprika
3 large carrots, sliced
3 ribs celery, chopped
1 sm. can sliced mushrooms
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
1/4 cup water

Lightly dredge beef in flour, shake off excess. Heat oil and butter in Dutch oven. Add beef, sear quickly browning on all sides. Remove from pan and set aside. Add onions and small amount of beef broth to deglaze pan. Add celery, carrot and garlic. Saute 2 minutes and add remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil and then cover and cook on medium low until veggies are crisp tender. Remove 2 cups broth, mix water and cornstarch until smooth then add to reserved broth, stirring quickly. Return broth and meat to pot. Simmer until slightly thickened. Served with crispy French bread.

Chicken 'N Dumplings

Stock Ingredients:
1 large fryer chicken, cut up or 10 chicken thighs with skin
1 celery stalk, cut into large pieces
1 carrot, cut into large pieces
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 to 1 tsp. pepper
Water

Soup Ingredients:
2 Tbsp. Olive oil
2 carrots, peeled and diced
2 celery stalks, diced
1 medium onion, diced
1 tsp. chicken bouillon granules
4 Tbsp. butter
1/4 cup flour
Reserved broth
1 32 oz. box chicken broth
salt
pepper
1 tsp. fresh thyme

Dumpling Ingredients:
2 cups Bisquick mix
2/3 cup milk

1. Combine stock ingredients in Dutch oven; add enough water to cover chicken. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, cover and simmer for 2 hours or until chicken is done.
2. Remove chicken and let stand until cool enough to handle. Remove skin from chicken and tear away meat from bones, set aside. Strain broth and return to dutch oven.
3. Add Olive oil to Dutch oven and saute carrots, celery and onion until tender. Add salt and pepper.
4. In separate pan melt butter, add flour and stir quickly. Add 1/2 reserved broth slowly, stirring constantly. Add to carrot mixture, stirring. Add remaining broth, chicken bouillon, and thyme. Cover and simmer for 1 hour.
5. Mix together dumpling ingredients and add by tablespoonful into pot. Simmer for 10 minutes uncovered, cover and simmer for 10 more minutes. Serve immediately. Yield 6 servings

Sweet Honey Cornbread

This cornbread is so sweet and moist it goes perfectly alongside a bowl of chili, or on its own. This recipe was given to me a long time ago and it still has a place right in the front of the bread section of my personal recipe book. Prepare to become addicted.  NOTE: Can be made gluten free by using Tom Sawyer flour blend.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup cornmeal
1 1/2 cups flour (use GF flour if preferred)
2/3 cup sugar
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/3 cup vegetable oil
3 Tbsp. melted butter
1 Tbsp. honey
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/4 cups milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine dry ingredients in a medium bowl; add liquid ingredients and stir until blended and moist. Pour into a greased 8 inch baking pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until lightly golden brown. Serve with honey butter.

Honey Butter:
Whip 1/2 cup softened butter with 2 Tbsp honey

Creamy Chicken and Noodle Casserole

I came across this recipe one day while trying to decide what I could do with leftover chicken and a box of Rotini pasta. I altered it a bit to suit my tastes and I love to make this dish on a cold day, it is creamy and full of flavor. Many thanks to Stephanie for this keeper.

Ingredients:
8 oz. Rotini pasta, cooked and drained
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup flour
1 can chicken broth
1 cup milk
2 cups cooked chicken, cut up
1/2 cup frozen peas
4 Tbsp. Parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat; whisk in flour and stir for 1 minute. Gradually add broth, milk, salt and pepper; stirring constantly until sauce thickens. Remove from heat and stir in chicken and peas. Combine chicken mixture with noodles in a greased 2 quart casserole dish. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Cover and bake for 25 minutes or until bubbly.