Bountiful Fall Breakfast

This past weekend, JiT and I drove out to Rockford to visit my parents. Well, actually, we were out that direction because I was attending a wedding in Madison on Saturday night. Since Madison is only an hour north of Rockford and I didn't want to stay by myself in Madison after the wedding, it made sense to make a weekend out of it. Instead of attending the wedding, JiT stayed in Rockford for the evening with my parents, since a planned business trip had been cancelled at the last minute.

The wedding was for one of my knitting group friends, Cassie. She is super-crafy and her wedding was absolutely beautiful, personal and full of amazing little details that made you smile (hand-sewn customized table runners, tissue paper flowers resting on each persons napkin, butterfly placecard holders). All in all, it made for a very sweet event.


In between the ceremony and the reception, I was able to spend some quality girl time with the ladies from my knitting group. We ended up at a nifty little dive bar in downtown Madison. The bar has a tree in the middle of it! Here I am with Jessica from Everyday Adventures (right in blue), Anne who doesn't have a blog, and Amanda from Simplified Mom (sitting right of me). We had fun.

On Sunday, back in Rockford, we enjoyed a wonderful, lazy morning. My mother declared that she was making breakfast -- pecan waffles and pancakes (she and JiT prefer pancakes, my father and I prefer waffles). Before I knew it, nearly the entire family was in the kitchen making a contribution. JiT decided to make country-fried breakfast potatoes, fresh baby potatoes diced and tossed with onions and green peppers, seasoned and cooked in a skillet until they're brown and crispy. Then G-ma helped JiT whip up cheesy scrambled eggs.

Since we'd been to the apple orchard the previous morning, I decided that pecan waffles would be even better topped with warm apple compote. This is such a simple and versatile recipe -- wonderful as a topping for pancakes and waffles, or eaten alone as a chucky apple sauce. For dessert, its delicous served warm over vanilla ice cream (like a crustless pie).

We ate our breakfast out on my parents screened porch, enjoying hot coffee and a cool breeze. A perfect way to kick off the fall.

Easy Warm Apple Compote
Serves 4 as a pancake or waffle topping

2 large apples, peeled cored and diced (I used Jonagolds)
1/4 sugar (more to taste)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup water
1 tablespoon butter

Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan and place over medium heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally until apples are soft and mixture has a texture like chunky applesauce. If mixture becomes too try, add a bit of additional water.

Apples will begin to soften and break down. Use a fork to smash cooked apples until the texture reaches a consistency you prefer. Taste and adjust sugar and cinnamon to your liking. Serve warm over pancakes, waffles, ice cream or with a spoon. Can also be refridgerated and served cold as an applesauce.

Featherweight Vanilla Cupcakes and Another Party Pic

As promised, I wanted to share the recipe for the vanilla cupcakes we served at the bridal shower last weekend. This was my first attempt at trying to really "make" something out of frosting, other than a big dollp of frosting. They are supposed to be fish. You can tell, right? Sort of? I wish I would have grabbed blue gel frosting instead of the black, which I thought looked sort of harsh, but not horrible for a first attempt. And besides...they tasted great!

I also found this pic, which has a nice glimpse of the fish-shaped canteloupe fruit kabobs. I was so proud of myself for coming up with that idea...and they actually weren't that difficult to cut into fish shapes once I found a sharp pairing knife.

But back to the cupcakes. All of the guests declared that these were some of the best cupcakes they'd ever tasted. I stuck with simple vanilla, but adapted the recipe from the one I used for snickerdoodle cupcakes. The cake comes out perfectly moist and absolutely as light and delicate as a feather, with just the right amount of sweetness. I'm convinced that the key is cake flour.

This basic recipe is delicious with vanilla buttercream, but would likely also be nice with something a bit fancier, as long as you keep the flavors delicate (this basil-inflused marscapone would be delightful).

Wishing everyone a happy weekend!

Featherweight Vanilla Cupcakes

Makes 24 regular size cupcakes

1 cupsall-purpose flour

2 cups cake flour (not self- rising)

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 3/4 cups sugar

4 large eggs, room temperature

2 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 1/4 cups milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line muffin cups with paper liners. In a small bowl, mix together the flours, baking powder, and salt with a wire whisk. Set aside.

In the bowl of your mixer, cream together butter and 1 3/4 cups of sugar until pale yellow and fluffy. Add in eggs one at a time and continue beating until well incorporated. Add vanilla. Put mixer on low speed and begin incorporating flour mixture in three small batches, alternating each addition with milk until all are incorporated.

Divide batter evenly among muffin cups, filling each cup to about 3/4 full. I use an ice-cream scoop since this usually gives about the right amount. Bake cupcakes for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove cupcakes from the oven and cool on a baking rack to room temperature.

These cakes are so light and fluffy, I actually enjoy them best unfrosted, while still slightly warm, but if you want to go the traditional route, I recommend this Vanilla Buttercream.

"She's Getting Hooked!" Bridal Shower

My trip to Charleston this past weekend was so much fun. In addition to a relaxing (if a bit rainy) afternoon walk on the beach with JiT, lots of Wii golf, silly laughing and junk food with my sis and BIL, consuming more seafood in two days that I thought possible, we was had the bridal shower for my sister's best friend Jen.

I had SO much fun putting this shower together and I think my sister did too. And, from what I could tell, Jen and all of the guests sure enjoyed it.

As I mentioned in my preview post, the theme was "Jen's Getting Hooked," which we chose because it was a pool party on the ocean and the bride loves orange. This theme was a great way to use orange (goldfish) and blue (water)!

Decor included plates and napkins in various shades of orange and blue, table runners cut from orange and yellow wrapping paper (so easy and affordable!) and the favors....my favorite part: I found tiny, plastic fish bowls on a pet store website for $2.25 each. We filled each with various colors of blue tissue paper, then a layer of gummie fish and red hot hearts, which matched the party invitations. With an orange ribbon around the top these were perfect. The guests oohed and ahhed.

We also made a cute welcome sign that recalled the heart-on-a-fishing pole theme from the invitation. We cut a large heart out of red poster board, then poked the wire hook from a coat hanger through and added a piece of black string. On the front we wrote "Reely Glad You're Here," to welcome our guests, and on the back it said "Jen + Charles" (the bride and groom).

Finally, the food. Keeping in theme, we served a menu of easy-to make seafood favorites, including:

• Store-bought (incredibly good) lobster dip, served with veggies and crackers
• My tropical mango salad and store-bought crabcakes (since this is Charleston, the seafood counter at their local supermarket makes to-die-for crabcakes to order)
• English muffin crab bites...this is one of my mom's recipes. Total junk food but also totally addictive
• Canteloupe cut into the shape of goldfish, strug with strawberry "hearts" on bamboo skewers
• Goldfish crackers in every possible flavor
• Drinks included glass bottles of orange crush (perfect color!) and bottled water, along with Jen's famous "Lemonade Surprise" (the surprise is the vodka)
• Feather-light vanilla cupcakes with vanilla buttercream, decorated to look like goldfish.

I can't believe I forgot to get an up-close shot of the cupcakes! I was really nervous, since I've never done decorating that intricate. I'm no pastry chef, but they came out pretty well for a first decorating attempt. And...they tasted great. Based off of my snickerdoodle cupcake, the cake comes out light as air and still moist and delicious. I'll share the recipe later this week.

All-in-all, this was a super fun event to plan and even more fun to attend. I really enjoyed meeting all of the girls and spending time with my sister and Jen. For the record, the pic I've included shows my sister on the right, Jen in the middle (knock-out!!) and little old me on the left.

How was everyone else's weekend? I "reely" hope it was as fun as mine (couldn't resist)!

A Party Planning Preview

This coming weekend, JiT and I are heading down to South Carolina to visit my sister and brother-in-law for some fun in the late-summer sun. But its more than a social visit....I'm helping to plan a party (my favorite!!!). My sister's dear friend and partner-in-crime, Jen, will be getting married in October.

Jen is a super-crafty Southern Belle, known for her party planning skills, killer vodka punch and amazing talent with invitations. In fact, she helped my sister plan my golf-themed bachelorette party that was completey amazing. So, when my sister mentioned that she wanted to host a bridal shower for Jen, I was excited to help out!

The party will be taking place at Jen's family's beachfront home, incorporating plenty of pool time. Since Jen's favorite color is orange and she loves seafood, we brainstormed this fun "Jen's Getting Hooked!" theme, inspired by the party ideas I found on Hostess with the Mostess (amazing party-planning site).

I'm planning to bring JiT's camera to document all the fun and look forward to sharing recipes and decorating details when I get back. Hopefully along with some fun stories....JiT and my B-i-L are total lunatics when they get together. Aways good for some laughs.

Wishing everyone a fantastic rest of the week and a beautiful weekend in the meantime!

Roasted Spaghetti Squash & Fire-Roasted Tomato Sauce

I'm sitting here trying to write this post about the delicous dinner we had on Monday and all I can think about is the week I've had since then.

Its been a long, long short week filled with lots of stress at work, a very messy house and just generally feeling grumpy and moody. Which is too bad because all of that stuff has completely ruined the chilled out vibes I'd had coming off of the long holiday weekend.

JiT and I made the trip to Ohio to visit my inlaws over the weekend. They live in a small down surrounded by beautiful rolling hills in their full Indian-summer splendor. We made a trip to the county fair where we ate corndogs and kettle corn and got half-sick on the tilt-o-whirl. We golfed, we grilled and we even had an impromptu camp-out with our 5-year old nephew; setting up a campfire for s'mores and stories. The night culminated with JiT and I spending the night with the little guy, crammed in a 4x6' tent in the backyard. I am a brave wife.

Before heading home we even made a trip to my favorite town in Ohio: Hudson. They were haveing a festival and I felt like I'd just walked into a Norman Rockwell painting. I love that town. We even visited a few open houses for these big, 100 year-old colonials. Someday maybe we'll get to move there and buy one....a girl can dream, right?

Anyway, when it was time to leave, my mother-in-law was sweet enough to pack us a giant care-package of garden fresh veggies, including a couple of gorgeous spaghetti squashes. This is one of mine and JiT's favorite late-summer meals. Its easy, flavorful and very healthy.

When cooked, the flesh of spaghetti squash, through one of Mother Nature's little miracles, has a texture remarkably similar to actual spagetti. Plus the flavor is quite mild, with a slight nutty taste and just enough crunch in texture to resemble el dente pasta. If you have kids, this might be a great way to sneak in some extra vegetables. As for the sauce, I use canned fire-roasted tomatoes, which are an amazingn time-saver and flavor booster. Unlike other red sauces that require several hours of simmering, this sauce can be pulled together in about 30 minutes.
If you have enough remaining after dinner, this makes a great casserole if you bake the leftovers in a casserole under a layer of mozzarella cheese for about an hour at 350. Yum!


Baked Spaghetti Squash
Serves 4

1 large (3 or 4 lb) spaghetti squash

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Pierce the outer skin of your squash with a sharp knife all over the outside. This will help it cook more evenly. Place the whole squash in a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 1 hour, turning occasionally in the oven.

At the end of the hour, pull the squash from the oven and slice lengthwise (use a towel or potholder to protect your hands). The flesh should be tender and starting to pull away from the skin and look like its separating into strands. If note, place back on the cookie sheet in the oven for another 10 to 15 minutes and try again.

Once cooked, let the squash set for about 10 minutes until cool enough to handle (still use a potholder). Once cool enough to handle, use a large spoon to scoop the seeds and "guts" out and discard. Then, using a large fork, scrape the remaining flesh back and forth to separate into spaghetti-like strands, dumping into a serving bowl as you go. Continue scraping the strands into a serving bowl until all that remains is the hollowed out shell. Discard the shell and repeat with the other half of the squash. Serve hot with fire-roasted tomato or your favorite sauce.

Fire-Roasted Tomato Sauce
Serves 4

1 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 small yellow onion, diced
3 cans diced fire-roasted tomatoes
1 small can tomato paste
1 cup low-sodium beef broth or stock
1/4 cup red wine (I used Merlot because thats what I was drinking)
2 Tbs. sugar
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
1/4 cup half & half (optional)
Salt & pepper to taste

Place a large pot on the stovetop over medium heat. Add olive oil, garlic and onion and cook for about 2 minutes until fragrant and translucent. Do not brown. Add all remaining ingredients, stirring until thoroughly incorporated. Bring to a low boil, then turn heat down to simmer and cover with a lid. Continue simmering for at least 15 minutes, longer if possible.

Just before serving, purree sauce using an immersion (stick) blender or, ladle small batches into a regular blender and blend for about 10 seconds, until the sauce reaches your desired texture. I like mine to be mostly smooth but still have a few chunks. Pour back into pot (if using a regular blender) and add cream (if using). Stir until well combined. Adjust seasonings to taste.

Serve hot over spaghetti squash or your favorite pasta.

Random Photo Update

Between a lack of time and an even bigger lack of motivation, lately I've been a really terrible blogger. There. I said it. But, since acknowlegement is supposedly the first step to recovery, I figure this post, along with a photo montage of what I've been up to, might get me back on track.

To kick things off, I wanted to share a few pics of the strange and lovely things I got to try during my trip to Tru as part of a Community Table dinner sponsored by Foodbuzz and Visa Signature. During the dinner featured a bevvy of incredibly beautiful, though I'll admit rather complicated tasting food, as well as an opportunity to network with some amazing bloggers.

My pictures certainly don't do things justice, so for a much prettier account of things, I recommend you visit the blog of my tablemates, Alice and Jarad of Eat A Duck, I Must. Aren't they talented?

And of course, last weekend was my first Las Vegas adventure...and what an adventure it was! We sampled incredible food at...well, just about everywhere! I was shocked at how incredibly good the food in this town was! We enjoyed the ridculously well-priced for way too much amazing food Tasting Menu at Craftsteak (highly recommend taking advantage of that deal). And then on Saturday, JiT and I decided to treat ourselves to lobster tails at a seafood place at the Mirage. We tought a two-pound tail spit between us sounded about right. Um...no. They didn't even HAVE a big enough lobster in the joint and instead brought us two "smaller" ones...that took up our entire plates. Needless to say, a takehome bag was needed. I'm still full just thinking about it.

When we weren't eating we roamed the Strip in the wretched heat (like sticking a blowdryer down your throat), laid by the pool, lost more money than I want to think about playing roulette (very fun game but what torture!), and took in an amazing show. See O if you haven't! It was amazing! Below, you'll see a few pics we snapped along the way. My parents being total tourists (and yes, my dad is pretending to grab my mom's boob. He's such a comedian), JT attacking his lobster, waiting for O to begin, and hanging at a very dark and loud lounge/club place one night. I'm too old for that kind of thing!

Thanks for hanging with me during yet another cooking dry-spell. Hope to be back behind the stove (with JiT behind the camera) soon!