Buffalo Mac-N-Cheese

I adore buffalo wing sauce, buffalo wings not so much. I also love mac-n-cheese, especially homemade. The combination should be award winning.
4c very al dente macaroni
1 small head of cauliflower (I chop smallish and cook with the macaroni)
1/2c wing sauce
1 small tub creme fraiche
1/4c cream
2c your favorite cheese (I like it chunky not shredded, they add something to shredded to keep it from sticking together and it adds a grainy texture) If you like blue cheese you could use it here along with swiss or gruyere. I hate it, so I use fontina.
1/4c Panko or bread crumbs

Preheat the oven to 375, and butter a medium baking dish.
Simmer the wing sauce, creme fraiche, and cream over med. heat until it thickens about 5 minutes. It won't be as thick as a bechamel. Turn off the heat and dump in the cheese. Wait about 2 minutes and then stir, this gives the cheese time to melt without you cooling everything off by stirring it to death. Dump the macaroni and cauliflower into the baking dish, Pour over the spicy cheesiness. Top with panko and a swirl of olive oil to help the topping crunch up. This is in no way healthy, but it is addictive. I like to make it for friends that are to skinny or bummed about something.

Twice-Baked Shrimp Stuffed Potatoes

These are perfect side dish to crab legs.

Ingredients

• 6 large Idaho potatoes
• Vegetable oil, for coating
• 1 stick (1/2 cup)herb butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup sour cream or plain greek yogurt
• Salt and ground black pepper
• 1 pound roasted shrimp, peeled 
• 8 ounces grated Cheddar, plus more for sprinkling
• Paprika, for sprinkling

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Cover a baking sheet or pan with aluminum foil.

Begin by washing the potatoes, drying them and gently pricking them with a fork on the sides. Coat each potato with vegetable oil, place on the prepared baking sheet and bake for about 1 hour. You can add the shrimp to the oven for the last 8 minutes to roast them.

Remove the potatoes from the oven and slice the top third off of each potato. Gently scoop out the inside of the potato into a large bowl. Mash the potatoes with the butter to your desired consistency, and then add the sour cream and salt and pepper to taste.

Chop the shrimp into large pieces. Fold in the shrimp and cheese into the mixture. Gently stuff the mixture back into the potato shells, making sure not to break them. Pile the mixture as high as you can on top of the potato shells. Sprinkle each potato with more cheese and some paprika for color. Bake in the oven until browned on top, 20 to 25 minutes.

Great Cook Books

Some of my very Favorites.

I am cooking my way thru this one; every recipe is phenomenol.

Not to mention the glorious pictures.

When I am staring at ingredients wondering what to do with them, I refer to Mark.

International dishes for two with only 1 pan to wash.

Random Life Tips

I have an innate ability to recall every random health, beauty, cooking, shopping, life tip I hear. I thought I would share some.

• No goo gone, use peanut butter
• Dish tabs work great in the back of your toilet, they dissolve then clean when you flush
• The heated dry function on your dishwasher ruins everything don't use it
• Chia seeds are flavorless and an easy way to hydrate and add protein to every snack (I add them to chocolate coconut milk)
• Breville makes a $200 blender that is 95% as great as a $500 Vitamix
• Oster makes a $80 toaster oven that is better than the $250 Breville one
• Coffee filters in the bottom of planters keep the dirt from washing away
• Vinegar can clean and disinfect almost anything, if that doesn't work use peroxide
• Peroxide is the best mouthwash/teeth whitener I can find
• Vagasil anti chaffing cream has the same ingredients as most foundation primers only much cheaper (I actually haven't tried this, but iv'e heard great things)
• Garnier BB cream and Suave dry shampoo are dirt cheap and worth their weight in gold
• When travelling buying a treat for the gate agent gets you first class, treats for the flight crew get you free drinks.
• Shaving cream and listerine give a great pedicure
• A few drops of essential oil on your air filter make the whole house smell good
• Yelp in other countries is a godsend, locals rarely share the good places with tourists.
• You can usually print all of the same coupons from the paper online, they are also worth more if you use an expensive zip code like 90210.
• I don't understand why people buy microwave popcorn (I always burn it), Air poppers (flavorless), or special whirlypops. A 3-4 Qt stainless pan with a lid and some coconut oil will change your movie nights forever. You can also buy organic seeds in the bulk bins at whole foods for $1.50/lb.
• Homemade dog treats are ridiculously cheap and easy to make
• If you have a black thumb buy succulents they love to be ignored
• Tequila is one of my favorite ingredients to cook with, it adds a sweet acidity to Latin dishes

Don't worry I could go on all day adding to this list but most of you stopped reading it by the sixth line. No hard feelings. More to come.

Fried Mozzarella

Fresh mozzarella is good, Fried mozzarella is better. I am a huge fan of the olive bar at The Fresh Market. Salty calamata olives, feta stuffed, pitted and whole, roasted garlic and sweet peppers all delicious. It's the marinated mozzarella balls that top off my container every time. I devour them in the car on the drive home.

 I recently made homemade wonton soup and ended up with most of a package of wonton wrappers leftover. What to do? Fry them of course. I stuffed them with all manner of fillings, but something amazing happened when I popped a mozzarella ball inside.  I sealed it up and fried it to golden, gooey, cheesy perfection. You can even get fancy and top it with a sprinkle of parmesan, basil, and marinara. Now if I can just get home without eating all of the mozzarella.

Heat 1 inch of a neutral oil until small bubbles form.  Gently drop in the mozzarella pouches. Fry at a moderate heat until golden. Share with others so you don't get fat.

Easy Addictive Salsa

• 1- 14 oz can fire roasted diced tomatoes
• 1- 10 oz can Rotel
• 1/2 small onion (I prefer red for this)
• 1 clove garlic, peeled and smashed
• 1/2-1 jalapeno, seeded or not (depends on how spicy you like it)
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• small to medium size handful of cilantro, washed
• juice of 1 lime

Chop the onion and jalapeno, smash the garlic.  Throw everything in your food processor and pulse for 20 seconds.  Try not the eat the whole bag of chips.  This is a good basic recipe you could dress up with roasted peppers, or corn and black beans. You could get crazy with strawberries or watermelon.  To make my favorite dip throw a package of cream cheese in when you are pulsing...addictive. BTW, the best chips I can find are called Xochitl Totopos.

Coconut Whipped Cream

The cheap, somewhat healthier, easy way to make dairy free whipped cream.  Put a can of full fat coconut milk in the fridge overnight.  The water will have settled in the bottom, the cream on top.  Scoop the cream out and whisk with 1T of vanilla sugar.  Serve with strawberries.  You can save the water for a smoothie or use it to add flavor to your rice dishes. A note of warning, you have to buy the nicer Asian brands of coconut milk. Iv'e tried others and they are a strange grey color, also a bit grainy. Ick.

Cinnamon Roll Waffles

Amazingly delicious and easy.  Don't forget the nonstick spray.  My favorite brand is Immaculate Baking Company.  You can also use your waffle iron to make paninis; I know it blew my mind too.
Update: Iv'e been making hashbrowns with my waffler, definitely the superior method.

Breakfast of Champions

I have been meaning to post this for a while, but I hesitated because it doesn't photograph well.  I tend to only try recipes that look amazing.  This does not, but if you want a healthy and yummy go-to breakfast you will love me for this.
1/3c raw oats
1/3c yogurt (plain, vanilla, soy, or greek)
1/3c milk (almond, soy, coconut, or plain)
1/2 banana
1t chia seeds
Honey, cinnamon, almonds, coconut, berries, nutella, PB2, maple syrup....

I use freezer canning jars for convenience, but any pint bowl with a lid will do.  Since you only need half of a banana make two at a time.  The combination of flavor choices is endless, but I am stuck on cinnamon toast.
Measure into each jar oats, yogurt, milk, banana, and chia seeds.  This is the base for every combo.  I then add a good shake of cinnamon and a squeeze of local honey.  Stir or shake it up and put it in the fridge overnight, it will stay good for two to three days.  The oats are fiber, yogurt and milk protein, the cinnamon is good for metabolism and inflammation, local honey suppresses allergies, the chia seeds are full of omegas, fiber, and protein.  Chia seeds soften in the liquid, soak it all up, are flavorless, and keep me full until far past noon.  The texture of the oats is similar to granola only without all the fat.  PB2 is powdered peanut butter, low in fat and extra nutty it is really good with bananas.  This is perfect for summer as it is cold, and easy to grab and go. I would love to hear all of the flavor combinations everyone creates.

Corn on the Cobb

I've been doing it wrong all these years.  Spring means fresh cheap corn on the cobb, one of my all time favories.  Any food meant to be dipped in butter and sprinkled with salt goes to the top of my list.  Get out the pan, boil the water, husk the corn, strip away all of those silks, clean up the mess hopefully before your corn isn't overcooked... Never again!  Microwave it.  Two ears of corn, husks silks and all, pop it in the microwave for three minutes.  Don your oven mitts and chop off the stalk end. A perfectly steamed ear of corn will slide out of the husk all silks detached.  Don't forget the butter.  You're welcome.

Smorgastarta (Sandwich Cake)

This Easter I decided to be very ambitious and make a smorgastarta.  In Sweden these are served at weddings, showers, and special events.  In my opinion they should be served at every event.  I apologise for a very inexact recipe, but its a sandwich do whatever you wish and have fun.

I started with a beautiful acacia board and some organic greens with herbs.  This made for a great presentation and ease of serving and slicing.

1 round loaf bread
3 baby cucumbers
1/2lb smoked fish spread
1/2lb salad shrimp
3 boiled eggs
Small bunch dill
1lb gravlax
1/4lb swedish fontina
2 green onions sliced fine

Frosting
2T mayo
small tub creme fraiche
whipped crm chz to taste

I used a round Hawaiian bread and sliced it into three layers.  The bottom layer was frosted with a thin layer of creme fraiche, to keep the bread from going soggy, then smoked fish spread. Any seafood salad you like would work here.  I also sliced some baby cucumbers with my mandoline and added them to this layer for crunch.

Layer two is egg and shrimp salad. Two chilled boiled eggs and half of the cold cooked shrimp is mixed with mayo, creme fraiche, dill, and 1/2 green onions. Season to taste.

The top layer is where you can get creative and have some fun.  Mix the frosting ingredients with some dill and green onions, this isn't traditional but its extra delicious. I only used 2T cream cheese to thicken it up, but you could use more if you want it tangy. Frost your sandwich working from the top down.  Roll the slices of gravlax so there will be one per slice.  Between the pieces of salmon add the remaining shrimp and top with a ring of slice eggs.  Press the remaining cucumber slices into the side of the cake and add rolls of cheese slices.  If you really love cheese you can put more inside the layers as well ( my husband ate half of it the day before so I didn't have this option.)  I wanted to add red pepper slices but ran out of room so I just piled them on the board with some grapes for contrast.

Enjoy with mimosas and nutella cheesecake pots with strawberries.  Don't forget to invite some friends over so you don't have to eat the same sandwich for a week.  Feel free to make this your own, and let me know if you have any questions.  I know its probably not very Swedish, but my Swedish husband gave it a 9.5 on his food scale.

Hangry

Don't get Hangry always keep a snack nearby.

Caramel apple dip

Fall is finally here, which means apple season. I get overly excited when I see those bags of cute little honey crisp apples at the market. This is a painfully simple and addictive recipe.

1/2 bag caramels unwrapped
1/4 c water
1 package full fat cream cheese softened
1/2 c brown sugar
1 t vanilla

Nuke the caramels and water in the microwave for two minutes.
Whisk the cream cheese and brown sugar until smooth, fold in the melted caramel and vanilla. If you want to spice it up try adding a pinch of pie spice. Serve with apples and Graham crackers. This stores great in the fridge and can be served at any temp.  Whatever you do, do not attempt to make this with low fat cream cheese.

Cheddar Beer Fondue

I found this recipe in a fondue cookbook and it sounded yummy.  I had test it out before I made it for friends, just in case.  I realized a little to late that it makes enough cheese for about 6 hungry people.  I have a fondue pot but its tiny.  I just made this in a pan and poured it into heavy sangria glasses so the fiance and I would each have our own, and they would stay warm.  The hardest part is slicing all of the yummy things you would like to dip in your cheese.

11/2 c dark beer (a bottle is perfect)
2 cloves minced garlic
16 oz cheddar a mix of sharp and regular
2 T cornstarch
1t dijon mustard

Dipping things: soft pretzels, apples, mushrooms, potatoes, kielbasa, etc..

Slice all of the yummy dippers and put on a cute platter or in individual bowls.  Boil small potatoes and saute whole mushrooms in butter until caramelized.  If using kielbasa or veggie chorizo, mmm, saute until warm and colorful and use the flavor in the bottom of your pan to start the fondue.

If you cooked sausage or soysage take out of the pan and mince two cloves of garlic into a T of oil.  Only cook for a second then add 1 bottle of beer.  In a large ziplock toss shredded cheese with cornstarch.  When the beer comes to a simmer add cheese a large handful at a time, whisk until gooey.  Stir in mustard.  Serve, it will be super gooey and run down your chin at first as it cools it becomes easier to eat.

This recipe could easily be changed for different occasions, mexican beer and cheese with chilies and hot sauce would be yummy for cinco de mayo.  White wine, fontina, and pesto would be great for girls night.  Any excuse to eat a huge bowl of  cheese is a good one.

Ina's Toffee

I was cleaning this morning and found an old journal under nightstand stuffed with little pieces of paper.  Many of them were names of restaurants and bars I was supposed to try and never did.  On of them contained this recipe.  I needed a sweet fix and had most of the ingredients on hand, unusually the only thing I was missing is butter and sugar.  My weekly couponing trip fixed that.  These are incredibly easy and delicious but messy.

1c slice almonds
1c toasted pecans
1c unsalted butter sliced
1c sugar
5oz dark choc
4oz milk choc

Butter a 9 by 13 by 2 baking dish
In a food processor, I used my mini prep, pulse almonds to a powder and set aside.  Pulse pecans just to coarsely chop.  Add butter to a Large sauce pan over low heat.  When 1/2 melted add sugar and 1T water stir very gently until combined.  Raise heat to med/hi and insert candy thermometer.  Heat to 300 degrees about 15 min, this will smell amazing but do not taste.  It will start to brown swirl the pan carefully but do not stir.  While waiting chop the chocolates and mix together.  Remove the pan from heat, stir in pecans, pour into a baking dish.  Wait 1 minute and then top with chocolates.  Wait 3 minutes and spread now melted chocolate.  Top with almond powder and freeze for 30 minutes.  If you are like me and things fall out of the freezer when you open the door, stick it in the fridge for a few hours.  Break apart with a knife and store at room temp for up to 5 days. Share with others, don't be greedy.