Recipes, Love, Etc!
So yeah, remember how I mentioned yesterday that I have the best boyfriend in the world?
*raises roof for elsrik*
Well, here's a pictoral story:
Well, check it, yo, when Heath, aka elsrik,
was here, I made him a cheesecake.
Unfortunately, while making said cheesecake, my electric mixer, which couldn't handle the pressure, decided to die an untimely death, leaving me with a lumpy cheesecake batter. An attempt to fix this batter with the blender was futile, as my blender is a weakling, untrained with Red Bull and hand weights. Thus, I had to attempt to mix the cheesecake by hand, leaving it somewhat lumpy. This made me very unhappy --
-- to the point that I bitched and moaned and turned into a moose...or something.
Even Mayoke was displeased.
I cursed the mixer, wishing for a nice, pretty stand mixer to rain down from the skies. "But those are expensive," I proclaimed, and I went on about my cheesecake whipping.
But my most wonderful boyfriend, who loves me as much as Altoids,
felt bad about my frustration, and decided that mixers should not rain from the skies, but they should be delivered by big brown trucks.
And that's just what happened.
That sweet-ass mixer up there on the shelf was delivered by a big, brown truck.
A new, shiny super-blender, too shy to be pictured at this time, was then later delivered by a big white truck.
And everyone was happy, especially captaincab and vestarriol, who got to eat the fruits of the mixer's first excursion. :D
So for your pleasure, recipes that don't necessarily require said mixer, but for which I used it because, well, um, I CAN! :P
Shepherd's Pie
Ingredients:
1 lb lean ground beef or soy
1 red onion, chopped
2 green onions, chopped
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 can kidney beans
1 can crushed tomatoes
1 bottle/can Guinness
1 cup fresh parsley, chopped
2 cups instant potato flakes or six large potatoes, cut into chunks
2 tbsp heavy whipping cream
2 tbsp sour cream
2 cups cheddar cheese
Method:
Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. In large stock pot on medium heat, brown ground beef with red and green onions. Season to taste with garlic salt and black pepper. Add mushrooms, kidney beans, tomatoes, and bottle of Guinness. Heat to boiling, then reduce heat and simmer for ten minutes. Add 3/4 cup of parsley and simmer ten more minutes, stirring occasionally. Strain and reserve Guinness/beef broth and place beef mixture in the bottom of a 16x9 oven-proof pan.
In large saucepan, mash potatoes or prepare instant potatoes according to package directions, using Guinness/beef broth in lieu of hot water. Add whipping cream and sour cream, then add milk until at desired consistency (should be easy to spread, but still should hold their shape well). Spread potatoes over beef mixture. Top with cheddar cheese and remaining parsley. Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes, or until cheese has melted and slightly browned.
And...
Chocolate Turtle Cream Cheese Pie
Ingredients
1 chocolate cookie pie shell
1 (7 oz) package caramels
1/4 cup evaporated milk
1/2 cup pecans
1 (6 oz) package cream cheese (just get an 8 oz package and use 3/4 of it)
1 1/4 cup chocolate milk
1 packet instant pudding mix, any chocolate flavor
1/2 cup sour cream
2 tbsp chocolate fudge topping
1 candy bar of your choice, crushed
whipped cream (double the recipe below or use Cool Whip).
Method
In a heavy saucepan, combine evaporated milk and caramels. Heat on medium heat for five minutes until melted and smooth, stirring constantly. When mixture is completely melted and smooth, add pecans and blend well. Pour into bottom of pie shell.
In large bowl or stand mixer, blend cream cheese and sour cream until softened. Slowly add chocolate milk and mix until very smooth. Add chocolate pudding mix and mix for 30 to 45 seconds more, until mixture thickens. Pour over caramel layer in pie shell and refrigerate until set, about 15 minutes.
Heat fudge topping in microwave for 30 seconds, then pour into ZipLoc bag. Cut the corner off the bag and use this to drizzle the fudge topping over the top of the pie. Top with crushed candybar bits and chill until serving time. Serve with whipped cream.
And...
Whipped Cream
Ingredients
1 cup whipping cream, very cold
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract or other flavoring
In a chilled metal bowl or stand mixer bowl, combine all ingredients and mix, starting at low speed, and gradually working up to high speed. It will take about three minutes with a stand mixer or an eternity with a hand mixer (hee) for stiff peaks to form.
*raises roof for elsrik*
Well, here's a pictoral story:
Well, check it, yo, when Heath, aka elsrik,
was here, I made him a cheesecake.
Unfortunately, while making said cheesecake, my electric mixer, which couldn't handle the pressure, decided to die an untimely death, leaving me with a lumpy cheesecake batter. An attempt to fix this batter with the blender was futile, as my blender is a weakling, untrained with Red Bull and hand weights. Thus, I had to attempt to mix the cheesecake by hand, leaving it somewhat lumpy. This made me very unhappy --
-- to the point that I bitched and moaned and turned into a moose...or something.
Even Mayoke was displeased.
I cursed the mixer, wishing for a nice, pretty stand mixer to rain down from the skies. "But those are expensive," I proclaimed, and I went on about my cheesecake whipping.
But my most wonderful boyfriend, who loves me as much as Altoids,
felt bad about my frustration, and decided that mixers should not rain from the skies, but they should be delivered by big brown trucks.
And that's just what happened.
That sweet-ass mixer up there on the shelf was delivered by a big, brown truck.
A new, shiny super-blender, too shy to be pictured at this time, was then later delivered by a big white truck.
And everyone was happy, especially captaincab and vestarriol, who got to eat the fruits of the mixer's first excursion. :D
So for your pleasure, recipes that don't necessarily require said mixer, but for which I used it because, well, um, I CAN! :P
Shepherd's Pie
Ingredients:
1 lb lean ground beef or soy
1 red onion, chopped
2 green onions, chopped
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 can kidney beans
1 can crushed tomatoes
1 bottle/can Guinness
1 cup fresh parsley, chopped
2 cups instant potato flakes or six large potatoes, cut into chunks
2 tbsp heavy whipping cream
2 tbsp sour cream
2 cups cheddar cheese
Method:
Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. In large stock pot on medium heat, brown ground beef with red and green onions. Season to taste with garlic salt and black pepper. Add mushrooms, kidney beans, tomatoes, and bottle of Guinness. Heat to boiling, then reduce heat and simmer for ten minutes. Add 3/4 cup of parsley and simmer ten more minutes, stirring occasionally. Strain and reserve Guinness/beef broth and place beef mixture in the bottom of a 16x9 oven-proof pan.
In large saucepan, mash potatoes or prepare instant potatoes according to package directions, using Guinness/beef broth in lieu of hot water. Add whipping cream and sour cream, then add milk until at desired consistency (should be easy to spread, but still should hold their shape well). Spread potatoes over beef mixture. Top with cheddar cheese and remaining parsley. Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes, or until cheese has melted and slightly browned.
And...
Chocolate Turtle Cream Cheese Pie
Ingredients
1 chocolate cookie pie shell
1 (7 oz) package caramels
1/4 cup evaporated milk
1/2 cup pecans
1 (6 oz) package cream cheese (just get an 8 oz package and use 3/4 of it)
1 1/4 cup chocolate milk
1 packet instant pudding mix, any chocolate flavor
1/2 cup sour cream
2 tbsp chocolate fudge topping
1 candy bar of your choice, crushed
whipped cream (double the recipe below or use Cool Whip).
Method
In a heavy saucepan, combine evaporated milk and caramels. Heat on medium heat for five minutes until melted and smooth, stirring constantly. When mixture is completely melted and smooth, add pecans and blend well. Pour into bottom of pie shell.
In large bowl or stand mixer, blend cream cheese and sour cream until softened. Slowly add chocolate milk and mix until very smooth. Add chocolate pudding mix and mix for 30 to 45 seconds more, until mixture thickens. Pour over caramel layer in pie shell and refrigerate until set, about 15 minutes.
Heat fudge topping in microwave for 30 seconds, then pour into ZipLoc bag. Cut the corner off the bag and use this to drizzle the fudge topping over the top of the pie. Top with crushed candybar bits and chill until serving time. Serve with whipped cream.
And...
Whipped Cream
Ingredients
1 cup whipping cream, very cold
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract or other flavoring
In a chilled metal bowl or stand mixer bowl, combine all ingredients and mix, starting at low speed, and gradually working up to high speed. It will take about three minutes with a stand mixer or an eternity with a hand mixer (hee) for stiff peaks to form.