Valentine's Throwdown: Prosecco

Alcohol hardly ever gets any love in our house. We live in a dry county, where no alcohol or beer is sold. The next county over sells alcohol, but only in liquor stores, not in the grocery stores or convenience stores. Since I have two small children with me at all times, I usually never get the chance to visit the liquor store. So, when I made a trip to Trader Joe's over the holidays I stocked up on a few things, namely white wine, but also Prosecco.

I had never tried Prosecco before and was excited to try it out. I have an entire list of drinks I wanted to make using Prosecco, so I decided a Prosecco Throwdown was in order for Valentine's Day.

I mixed up three different Prosecco drinks this week. There were so many recipes that I wanted to try, but I settled on a Pomegranate Bellini, a Fruit Fizz with Meyer Lemon Sorbet, and an Amaretto Sour with Prosecco. While I did have a favorite, all of them would be a great drink for your Valentine's Day table.

First up, and probably the prettiest, is Nigella's Pomegranate Bellini. This recipe is the simplest of all three drinks. It only consists of two ingredients (pomegranate puree/juice and Prosecco). The color of the drink is gorgeous, but the drink was a little too tart for me. I think this drink would be best served in smaller amounts, perhaps a champagne glass.
Pomegranate Bellini
1 part chilled pomegranate puree or concentrated juice (I used concentrated juice)
3/4 part chilled Prosecco or other fizzy dry white wine
Pour the pomegranate puree/juice into a glass. Top with Prosecco. One 750ml bottle of Prosecco should yield about 6 Bellini


Next up, was Giada's Amaretto Sour with Prosecco. Back in the day, an Amaretto was one of my favorite drinks, so I was really excited to get started on this one. This was a really tasty drink made with Amaretto, simple syrup, and Prosecco. The glass is dipped into a lemon/lime sugar to coat the rim and the drink is supposed to be served on the rocks. I got a little too excited and forgot to serve mine on ice. This is definitely a sweetly flavored drink that is served with even more sugar on the rim, but I really enjoyed the flavor of the Amaretto mixed with the bubbly Prosecco. I will definitely make this drink again, especially if I had a party or people over. You can find the recipe HERE online at Food Network.
The last drink I mixed was Nigella's Fruit Fizz, which is almost like a dessert because it starts with a scoop (or two) of sorbet. You simply scoop some sorbet into a glass and top with Prosecco. I used a Meyer Lemon Sorbet that I made earlier this week, but almost any flavored sorbet will do. For Valentine's Day, a strawberry or raspberry sorbet would be gorgeous! This drink was cold, crisp, bubbly, fruity goodness and I really enjoyed it. You can find the recipe for the Fruit Fizz HERE on the Food Network.

AND THE WINNER IS..................................................................................................

NIGELLA'S FRUIT FIZZ WITH MEYER LEMON SORBET!!!

Why?

Well, Nigella's Fruit Fizz was really cold, crisp, refreshing and fun! The Meyer Lemon Sorbet seemed to compliment the Prosecco much more than the Pomegranate juice or the Amaretto. I loved that sour tang from the lemon sorbet and would definitely make this drink again using other sorbets.

Giada's Amaretto Sour with Prosecco still deserves a shout out because it was a really tasty drink. I would be happy to serve it anytime.

Do you have a favorite drink that is mixed with Prosecco?

Granola Muffins

I got these sweet little heart shaped ramekins at Target a few weeks back and just couldn't wait to use them. Valentine's Day is still one of my favorite days of the year. I love the cutesy decorations, the parties for the kids, the romance in the air, and of course, the emphasis on the food. Food is a big part of Valentine's Day, isn't it?
I was searching through Nigella's recipes, looking for something romantic, but I kept focusing on her Granola Muffins. I absolutely love granola and have never had it in a muffin before. I couldn't get the idea out of my head, so I settled on Granola Muffins in sweet little heart shaped ramekins. Since my husband is out of town working, these muffins were a perfectly sweet treat just for me!
Granola Muffins - adapted from Feast by Nigella Lawson
*Makes 12 muffins * I halved the recipe and it filled three ramekins*
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk
1 egg
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 cups granola (I used a storebrand oats and honey granola)

Preheat the oven to 400F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper muffin cups. (I halved the recipe, and just buttered and floured the ramekins). Combine the flour, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. In a wide-necked pitcher, whisk together the buttermilk, egg, sugar and oil. Pour this into the dry ingredients and mix lightly to combine. Fold in the granola and then divide the muffin mixture between the 12 paper cups (or greased ramekins). Bake for 25 minutes, by which time they should have risen and become golden brown. (Mine baked about 28 minutes). Remove from oven, let cool, on a wire rack.

Results/Notes: I sprinkled some extra granola on top of the muffins before baking, which made them a little prettier and added that extra crunch on top. I really enjoyed these muffins with a little honey drizzled over the top. I halved the recipe, which was somewhat tricky trying to add in one half of an egg, but the muffins turned out perfectly with a very tender crumb. Muffins aren't usually my favorite type of food, but I passionately love this muffin recipe! I will be making these muffins again and can't wait to try out some different flavors of granola. I can see maple flavored granola muffins in my near future!

I am submitting this recipe to I Heart Cooking Clubs. This week we are celebrating a little romance. Stop on by to see all the romantic recipes this week!
Happy Valentine's Day!!

Kielbasa Skillet Dinner, Jalapeno Popper Dip, and Sloppy Joes

I'm a little behind on posting lately, so I'm going to throw three things at you today! The first recipe is a new favorite of mine and is called Cheesy Kielbasa Skillet Dinner. If you like kielbasa, then you will love this quick, easy and economical meal. I have made it twice in two weeks and have plans to make it again. I adapted this recipe from RecipeZaar, making a couple of changes along the way.

The recipe calls for four main ingredients, that's it. The first ingredient is one pound of kielbasa, sliced. The second ingredient is potatoes (recipe calls for 5, I use two large russets). The third and fourth ingredients are one minced onion and a cup of green pepper. My husband doesn't really care for green pepper, so I sub in some diced jalapeno peppers which really spices things up a bit.
The next step is to saute all four ingredients in a large skillet. I use olive oil, but you could use any kind of oil here. Here is where I made another change. It is really hard to saute all four ingredients at the same time and develop any kind of color. If you decide to saute everything at once, then you will basically be steaming the food instead of sauteing. End result is okay, but not the best it could be. I had better results sauteing the food in batches and then adding it all back into the pan.
After you get the desired color on your potatoes and kielbasa, add in 1-1/2 cups water (could probably use chicken stock), sprinkle in some seasonings (I used Italian seasoning to taste) and simmer with the lid on for about 20 minutes or until the potatoes are cooked through. Once the potatoes are cooked through, sprinkle on about 1-1/2 cups cheddar cheese (recipe calls for American) and place the lid back on to melt the cheese.
It may sound kind of strange and not look that great, but it is extremely comforting, delicious and crave inducing! I didn't have high expectations for this one, but it really blew me out of the water. It is one of my favorite meals (for the time being, of course). You can make this whole meal for around $5-6 dollars, which I also love.

The second recipe I am sharing today is Jalapeno Popper Dip, which has been extremely popular with the Superbowl this past weekend. (Congrats to the Saints! I'm so happy they won.) This dip is so good that it disappeared within one day! It is a creamy delicious dip made with cream cheese, mayo, diced green chiles, diced jalapeno peppers, parmesan cheese, shredded Mexican cheese and some panko breadcrumbs. You can find the recipe here at Noble Pig's site. Be prepared to wear elastic pants if you make this dip, because you will want to eat all of it on your own!
Creamy, spicy, sinfully delicious. Serve with tortilla chips, crackers, bread, veggies....it's all good!

And finally, the Sloppy Joe.

Chances are, if you grew up in the 80's and were invited to a birthday party, or any other social gathering, a Sloppy Joe was on the menu! Does anyone else remember the days of eating Sloppy Joes served out of a crockpot? It was a retro favorite and I can definitely see why now. Sloppy Joes are easy, economical and serve a crowd.

With a special fondness for the Sloppy Joe, I made them last night for the Superbowl. The recipe I chose had received some awesome ratings, a 5 star rating with 500 reviewers, so I went with it. Let me just say that it was not my favorite. I wanted to share this information with you in case you ever thought about trying it. You can find the recipe HERE.

The basis of the Sloppy Joe recipe was 1 pound of ground beef, 8 oz. tomato sauce, ketchup, bbq sauce, brown sugar, mustard powder, Worcestershire sauce, and vinegar. Something was just not right about that mixture. I tried adding some more mustard powder, I also tried some more red pepper flakes, a little more sugar. It just never came around to being very good. I wouldn't recommend it at all and it definitely wasn't the Sloppy Joe from my childhood.

Oh well, two out of three ain't bad!

Happy Cooking:D

Egg and Chips

"Fish and chips, steak and chips, chicken and chips, all are desirable, but none comes close to the simple, harmonious perfection of egg and chips." _Nigella Lawson

Have you ever had egg and chips for breakfast? I haven't.

Egg and chips seemed like a great idea for this week's theme over at I Heart Cooking Clubs, Budgets and Bargains. A couple of eggs and potatoes and you have an entire meal. You can't get much more economical than that.

Egg and Chips - adapted from Feast, by Nigella Lawson
*Serves 2
Eggs (fried overeasy, overhard, scrambled, etc)
One decent sized potato (about 7 oz) One per person is about right

Heat the oil to 325F. And when I say oil, I mean a lot of oil. These babies swallow gallons at a time.

Peel the potatoes then slice them thickly, then cut these thick slices into thick chips (or the size you want them). Put a dishtowel out, plonk the chips in the middle and then wrap over the two ends, like a package, and give a gentle rub. Now your chips are ready for frying.

Put the chips into the basket and lower this into the hot fat and wait for it to rise, yellow and bubbling, up above the pale strips of potato. Unless the basket is really packed, 5 minutes is all you should need for this stage. Lift up the basket, give it a second or two to settle and for oil to drip off and then turn the chips out onto the paper towels.

Turn the gauge up to 375F and when it's reached that temperature, re-fry the chips. About 2-3 minutes should be plenty, but just do this by eye and ear; the chips should look golden and golden-brown in places (good to have some vairety) and they should rustle when shaken in the basket and clatter when turned out on to a plate.

Notes/Results: Easy, fun and extremely economical. The whole family loved the chips for breakfast. I think Nigella intended for the eggs to be fried or served over-easy, but I served my eggs scrambled. I started cooking the eggs when the chips went back into the oil for the second fry. The timing worked out great. Nigella's recipe is written to serve two. I think you definitely need at least one potato per person. The chips are really good (especially with hot sauce). I made two batches. This is definitely something that we will enjoy again!!

Head on over to I Heart Cooking Clubs today to see what other budgets and bargains everyone cooked up!

SUPERBOWL THROWDOWN: CHICKEN WINGS

It's time for another Throwdown here at Stirring the Pot. About a week ago, I put up a poll where readers could vote on the next Throwdown and........... chicken wings won out! Never having made chicken wings before, I had a fun time choosing the two competing recipes. I wanted to compare cooking techniques for the wings, so I kept the wing flavor the same. I didn't want to be confused by which flavor I liked best, I wanted to pick the wing that was simply "cooked the best".

THE CONTENDERS
I chose Alton Brown's Buffalo Wings, which are steamed in order to melt away some of the fat in the chicken skin, baked until crisp, and then rolled around in a garlicky buffalo sauce. I compared Alton's recipe with Paula Deen's Uncle Bubba's Wings, which are marinated for 24 hours, deep fried, and served with two dipping sauces (buffalo and sweet asian chili).

Results/Notes on Alton Brown's Wings: Somewhat of a hassle. I don't have a steamer, so I had to use my metal strainer over a pot of boiling/simmering water. After steaming the wings, they are placed in the refrigerator for an hour to "dry out". After the wings have had a chance to dry out, they are baked, being rotated halfway through and coated in sauce. I felt like this was a lot of work for 12 chicken wings. (Pictured below are Alton's wings)Results/Notes on Uncle Bubba's Wings: Marinate 24 hours in a combination of hot sauce, cajun seasoning, cayenne pepper, and garlic powder. When ready to eat, simply fry them for 10 minutes and you are all set. Simple and easy, the way I like things. (Pictured below are Uncle Bubba's wings)
Sounds like I'm already biased, doesn't it? Which wing do you think you would prefer? I thought I had it all figured out before I even tasted one.........
But I was pleasantly surprised! Alton Brown's steamed and baked wings were actually our favorite. It was a unanimous decision between me and my husband.

Why?

Well, Uncle Bubba's wings were easy and quickly deep fried, but they were a little too crunchy. Maybe this was because they were "dry" and not tossed with any sauce. I thought that I would like dunking the wings in sauce, but it turns out that it isn't very easy to do. Both my husband and I agreed that we like our wings to be messy and coated in sauce. Nonetheless, this was still a good wing recipe and had great flavor and color from the marinade.

Alton Brown's wings were a little more labor intensive, but they were dripping with sauce and messy like you would expect a good wing to be. The skin had a nice crispness about it, but wasn't too crunchy. Alton's wings were more reminiscent of the wings we are used to eating.

All in all, this was a fun challenge! Doing research on wings was fun. There are so many ways to prepare and serve them. I'd love to try wings with Sriracha sauce and I've even seen some tossed with peanut butter and jelly. This challenge has just opened up the door to many more possibilities.

Pot Roast and Mashed Potatoes, Pioneer Style

Tender, flavorful, fragrant and comforting are all words I would use to describe pot roast. Serve it up with creamy mashed potatoes and you are instantly transported back to Mom's Kitchen.

Everyone has their own recipe for pot roast. I like to start with a shoulder cut, just because I think it is the most tender. I also prefer to cook my pot roast in a crock pot rather than the oven. There are a lot of ways I cook my pot roast. Sometimes I throw in a jar of pepperocini peppers and let the roast cook in the peppers and their juice. I love to shred the roast and reserve the peppers and serve on a sandwich bun. Sometimes I do the traditional dried french onion soup mix and beef broth. Other times I throw in a packet of taco seasoning in case I want to make tacos, burritos, enchiladas or taquitos. The crock pot never lets me down.

Open to new possibilities, I decided to try the Pioneer Woman's Pot Roast. Ree's recipe is different than mine in several ways. First, she likes to use a chuck roast. Secondly, she cooks her roast in the oven. Lastly, she sears her onions, carrots, and roast before roasting in the oven. I have to admit, I was intrigued by the idea of searing the onions and carrots and was excited to give it a try.

I served the pot roast with PW's Creamy Mashed Potatoes. Loaded with cream cheese, butter, and half and half, the potatoes are insanely good. Definitely not your every day mashed potatoes, but so worth it. For the best results, make them a day ahead, refrigerator overnight, and bake the next day. You can find the recipe for the Creamy Mashed Potatoes HERE.
You can find the recipe for Ree's Pot Roast HERE.

Results/Notes: This pot roast was definitely a winner! My husband (meat lover that he is) said that this was probably the best pot roast I have ever cooked. In fact, he and I battled over the leftovers! I like the idea of searing the carrots and onions before roasting. Ree simply cuts her onion in half and sears each half. Although I like this concept, the onion fell apart while roasting and some of the pieces didn't have much color. Next time, I will slice the onion and give it some color before adding to oven. Other than that, this was simply delicious. A wonderful dinner, with leftovers and all for around $10 total.

I am submitting this to Foodie Friends of the Pioneer Woman, hosted by Debby of A Feast for the Eyes and Muneeba of An Edible Symphony. Foodie Friends has bimonthly roundups, which gives you plenty of time to cook along with us. Each and every Pioneer Woman recipe I have tried has been excellent! Head on over there by clicking on the link above to check out this fun new group!

Before the Microwave: Pasta Edition

Do you remember cooking before the microwave? If you do, good for you! If you don't, then this might cause you to do some thinking. Either way, cooking before the microwave was a little different, especially when it came to handling leftovers. My mom and I had a fun conversation the other night about all the things she did in the kitchen before she got her microwave oven. The conversation was a real hoot and prompted me to do a new weekly series to share stories and recipes that my family made prior to the microwave oven.

Although I was born in 1975, we didn't get our first microwave oven until about 1985. By this time, I was at least ten years old. I remember at first that my Mom didn't want one, but my Grandpa insisted that she would love it. He convinced her that she had to have it. I remember when he went up to Sears and bought it for her. In the 80's, microwave ovens were expensive , and not something my Mom would've bought for herself. I'll never forget the day they installed that strange looking beast. It was huge and loomed over the stove on a shelf. It was like a science experiment or something.

These days, Mom and I love our microwave ovens mostly for reheating leftovers or making popcorn, but back then it took some getting used to. Mom was used to being creative with her leftovers and had very different methods for reheating things. If you think about it, some things just don't reheat well in the oven. How would you reheat leftover pasta, leftover mashed potatoes, leftover vegetables, or leftover rolls? No wonder we had so many casseroles back then! The microwave really was a new concept in the kitchen. In many ways, it reinvented how people cooked.

One of my all-time favorite things to eat back then was pasta. When we had leftover pasta, my Mom would reheat it gently on the stove. I'm not sure if this was her own special way, but to me it is. I'd be very curious to know if some of you have also reheated pasta using this method. If not, you might find it interesting. Either way it is delicious and when I have time, I still use this method. It produces more dirty dishes, (which is another thing the microwave changed), but it is much better than reheating leftover pasta in the microwave.

Mom's Leftover Pasta, Reheated
*leftover plain or buttered pasta, any shape
*pat of butter
*about 3-4 tablespoons of milk

Put a pat of butter in a skillet over low-medium heat. Let butter melt.

Add about 3 - 4 tablespoons of milk (skim, lowfat, whole) to the skillet. The milk should probably be enough to just cover the bottom of the skillet.
Add in the desired amount of leftover pasta. Usually there is only enough room to make 1 or 2 servings.
Gently loosen up the pasta and let reheat in the milk and butter mixture. This takes about 2-3 minutes, or until the milk evaporates. This is a good time to throw in any other leftovers: chopped bacon, parmesan cheese, any leftover veggies, etc. It is a good way to use up any other leftovers hanging out in the fridge. Can you see the potential here.......much better than anything reheated in the microwave!!
The pasta is ready when it is warm all the way through and all the milk is evaporated.
Pile on a plate and enjoy. The pasta should have a sheen to it. The butter and milk almost make a delicate sauce that keeps the pasta hydrated. Although your pasta will not techically be "al dente", it will be much better than if it was reheated in the microwave.

Have you ever reheated your pasta this way? If not, do you have another method?

What do you remember that was different about cooking before the microwave? What did you cook on the stovetop or oven that you now cook solely in the microwave? Did you have any special method for reheating leftovers? Any special recipes you created to use up leftovers? If so, please share. It's kinda funny to go back and think about cooking without the microwave. I'm looking forward to some funny and creative stories and ideas.

Next week's edition is all about leftover mashed potatoes (before the microwave, of course)!!