Archives for April 2010

Lasagna Florentine

April 30, 2010 · by Carrie Trax ·

Fresh greens are bountiful at the farmers markets and my favorite is baby spinach this time of the year. This is a great dish to add other fresh vegetables when they come into season like some sauteed zucchini and grated fresh carrots. Let your imagination and the farmers market decide what goes into your lasagna when you make it. This is a recipe that can change throughout the year depending on the fresh harvest. I also used fresh mushrooms in this recipe. This is also great to freeze and have for a quick dinner later.

1 (28 oz) can Italian whole tomatoes or 2 pound fresh ripe tomatoes
1/2 cup fresh mushrooms, cooked
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tsp basil, dried
2 tsp. tarragon, dried
1 tsp red pepper flakes
2 cloves garlic, chopped
salt & pepper to taste
1 1/2 cup V-8 Juice
6 tbsp. butter
2 cups Cheddar cheese
4 cups Mozzarella cheese
8 oz Parmesan cheese, coarse grated
16 oz cottage cheese
2 eggs
12 oz fresh spinach, cooked
12 wide lasagna noodles, cooked

You need to prepare the sauce first, add tomatoes, mushrooms, onion, basil, tarragon, red pepper flakes, garlic, salt, pepper and V-8 juice in large pot and cook for 20 minutes. Add butter and cook an additional 5 minutes and take off the heat. In medium bowl combine the cottage cheese, eggs, Parmesan cheese and cooked spinach.

Now it is time to assemble in a sprayed 13×9 pan put a 1/4 of the tomato sauce across the bottom and lay 4 noodles over lapping slightly. Spoon on a 1/4 of the tomato sauce, 1/3 cheddar and mozzarella cheese, 1/2 of the cottage cheese mixture. Lay 4 lasagna noodle down, 1/4 sauce, 1/3 cheddar and mozzarella cheese, remaining cottage cheese mixture. Lay down the remaining lasagna noodle, sauce, cheddar and mozzarella cheese.

Bake uncovered in a 375 degree oven for 1 hour. Cool for 20 minutes before cutting. I like cheese so once I cut the lasagna in squares I place a piece of mozzarella cheese over it and melt in microwave for 30 seconds. You could also add some mozzarella cheese on top the last 5 minutes of baking.

How Sweet the Smell …. The Lilac Lady

April 21, 2010 · by Carrie Trax ·

This past Saturday me and my husband enjoyed a beautiful day at the Hulda Klager Lilac Gardens in Woodland, Washington. If you live in the Pacific Northwest this is a must to see. When we arrived there were at least 100 cars filling the parking lot and along the street, yes we went the first day the gardens opened. Even though there were over 200 people there the 3 1/2 acres of gardens had plenty of room. The gardens are open now until May 9th. It is only a short 30 minute drive north from Portland, Oregon. The gardens are maintained and run by the Hulda Klager Lilac Society, a nonprofit organization with approximately 95% of its work force derived from volunteers. After a small admission fee of $2 you can enjoy going through the original Victorian House that Hulda lived in and then explore the many varieties of lilacs she breed in the gardens behind the house. There is great history on her and you can go to www.lilacgardens.com for more information and direction on how to get there. With the early spring I would go sooner than later the lilac are at the peak of their blooms. Yes you can buy many of the lilacs from a 3″ pot up to a 4 feet tree with all money going back to taking care of the gardens. Here are some great pictures my husband took with his new camera…
As an extra bonus there is a Tulip Bulb Farm 1/2 mile down the road and WOW the tulip make you feel like you are in Holland.

Amazing Baked Oatmeal

April 16, 2010 · by Carrie Trax ·

Baked Oatmeal is like eating a oatmeal cookie for breakfast. I have made this for the past 15 years for family reunions, Mother’s Day Brunch and just anytime I was feeling like it. I love to make a full batch and put the extra in freezer containers for a quick morning meal. All you need to do is the night before pull from the freezer and place in the refrigerator to thaw overnight. Put some of the oatmeal in a bowl with a little milk and microwave for 90 seconds and you have a quick breakfast. I love when the Hood strawberries come into season and then the marionberries, blueberries and the other many berries that make Oregon one of the best places to grow berries. You can also add fresh slices of banana and my husband favorite raisins. So enjoy this wonderful treat and make it for your next brunch or family gathering.

In large bowl mix well 1 1/2 cups canola oil, 2 cups sugar, 3 cups milk and 6 eggs. You can sub some of the oil with applesauce and I use skim milk. You could also you egg substitute.Add 9 cups of quick cooking oats (Do NOT use long cooking oats), My favorite is Bob’s Red Mill and if you are from Oregon you know it is Oregon made and they have a great retail location that I visit at least once a month and stock up on things. They sell in retail store all across the country.

Add 3 tbsp baking powder and 1/2 tbsp salt and mix well.

Pour into a 13×9 sprayed baking dish and top with 1/2 cup brown sugar and 1/2 tbsp ground cinnamon. Cover with foil and refrigerate over night (This is a MUST) the oats need to absorb in the liquid. Leave foil on and place in a 350 preheated oven for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake another 10-15 minutes until the outer edges are brown and the center is just set. Remove from oven and let set for 10 minutes. It is ready to serve… I like add just strawberries to mine and like it on the dry side but my husband adds strawberries and some cold milk to his morning bowl. I have been know to have a late night oatmeal treat too, Enjoy….

Pancake Challenge … Buttermilk or Regular Milk

April 12, 2010 · by Carrie Trax ·

Sunday is pancake day in my house. I just have not got the right recipe my husband likes. I have been trying a new recipe the last 6 weeks and was ready to throw in the towel. With Sunday coming up I was not looking forward to another bad pancake day and in the mail on Saturday comes my Food TV magazine. They had a recipe pull out on 50 Pancake & Waffle recipes and I hoped that the recipe I have been searching for is in it. My husband likes thin pancakes and I like fluffy pancakes so I thought I would make the basic recipe using regular (skim) milk and the recipe for buttermilk which makes a fluffy pancake. I am happy to say that both pancakes came out great the one with the regular milk were thinner than the ones made with the buttermilk. I did a side by side test and they both tasted good the only difference was the thickness of the pancake and I thought the buttermilk had a little better flavor. So it was a tie and the search for the best pancake recipe is over and I am looking forward for next week and think I will add some of the Oregon blueberries I have in my freezer.

Pancake on the left is with regular milk and the one on the right is made with buttermilk

Basic Pancake (regular milk)
1 1/2 cup flour
3 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
Combine the above. In small bowl combine 1 1/4 cup milk, 4 tbsp butter, melted and 2 eggs. Whisk until combined and add to flour mixture. Cook on 350 degrees (hot griddle). Cook on first side about 3 minutes until bubbles appear on the pancake. Flip and cook for 2 minutes and golden brown.

Buttermilk Pancakes
1 1/2 cups flour
3 tbsp sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
Combine the above. In small bowl combine 1 1/4 cup buttermilk, 4 tbsp butter, melted and 2 eggs. Whisk until combined and add to flour mixture. Cook on 350 degrees (hot griddle). Cook on first side about 3 minutes until bubbles appear on the pancake. Flip and cook for 2 minutes and golden brown.

It’s Chili on the Mountain still … That’s Turkey Chili

April 10, 2010 · by Carrie Trax ·

Yes it is still a chilly spring on the mountain. In the last 10 days we have had 7 feet of snow in the cascade mountains. Living in the foothills of Mt Hood at 1500 feet we have been lucky and only got a dusty of snow each morning. But the cold days have made me get out my soup pot and make a pot of Turkey Chili. One of my family’s favorite this is a great chili to make a large pot of and put some in the freezer. I have been making this recipe for about 10 years and had been buying cans of great northern beans for the chili. After watching an episode on the History channel on dried beans I though why was I not using dried beans like my grandmother did. I would save 1/4 the cost using dried beans and all I had to do was to be patience and soak them overnight. So from a little bag of beans I have a big pot of chili.

Turkey Chili

The night before you make the chili soak 2-3 cups dried white beans in about 8 cups of water. In the morning drain off the water.

In large soup pot cook 2 medium chopped onions with 2 tbsp olive oil, cook until onions are soft. Add 2 pounds of ground turkey and cook until done, making sure to break turkey into small pieces.

Add 1 1/2 tsp oregano, 2 tsp cumin, 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper, 2 cloves minced garlic and 1 tsp. salt to the cooked turkey. Cook for 2 minutes to release the spices.

Add 6 cups of turkey or chicken stock, drained white beans, 1 cup salsa and 2 jalapeno peppers diced. Simmer for one hour. Garnish with sour cream and cheddar cheese.

Pacific Northwest Easter Dinner

April 5, 2010 · by Carrie Trax ·

Moving to the Pacific Northwest almost 5 years ago I discovered how wonderful the different types of fresh fish are to cook with. There are many different types of fish runs throughout the year with Salmon and Steelhead (Trout). I decided this year that I wanted to make a meal the night before Easter that represented some of the fresh things that Oregon has right now so I got a beautiful piece of Steelhead, fresh leeks and asparagus and created a Pacific Northwest meal for my husband. To make something special I decided to bake the steelhead in phyllo dough and instead of using a dill sauce I bought some herb cream cheese to gave it a different flavor. It looks hard but from start to finish with making and baking I had a meal in 30 minutes. The phyllo dough kept the Steelhead so moist and cooked it prefect.

Cut Steelhead or Salmon into 3″ x 6″ strips and season with salt and coarse pepper.

Take two pieces of phyllo dough and lay on top of each other. Brush the whole top with melted butter.

Place Steelhead on dough about 1/4 of the way up and spread about 2 tbsp of herb cream cheese over the top. Fold dough over steelhead and tuck in sides and roll up to make a little pouch.

Brush all sides with melted butter. This is important because the phyllo dough dries out really fast so keep covered when making the pouches. Repeat with the remaining steelhead you want to make.

Place on baking sheet and bake in a 375 degree oven for 20-25 minutes or until a golden brown.

Roasted Leeks & Asparagus

Wash and trim the root end and green top off the leeks and cut them into quarters. Wash and break off the ends of the asparagus. Toss both with olive oil and season with coarse salt and pepper. Roast in a 375 degree oven for 20 minutes.

Choco………..late Covered Yummy Eggs!

April 2, 2010 · by Carrie Trax ·

I was busy this weekend making chocolate covered chocolate eggs for all my family back on the east coast. I had 25# of chocolate wafers and run out. I did get 137 eggs done with all my families favorite fillings: Coconut, Peanut Butter, Caramel, Chocolate Truffle and Marshmallow. It was my first time making homemade marshmallow filling because I thought it would be hard to make but WOW really easy to make. When I went to mail out my six boxes of candy I made sure my favorite post office workers got some of the egg too. Here are some of the filling I did…

Soft Carmel Cream Filling:
5 oz heavy cream
4 oz sugar
4 oz corn syrup
pinch salt
1 oz butter
2 oz heavy cream

Place all ingredients, except the 2 oz of heavy cream, in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook mixture, stirring frequently, to a rich caramel color. Remove from heat and stir in the 2 oz heavy cream. Pour into small bowl to cool. I put into a plastic disposable bag to pipe into my chocolate shells.

Peanut Butter Filling:
1/2 pound butter, softened
2 1/2 cups peanut butter
5 cups confectioners sugar

Cream butter and peanut butter together with a mixer. Gradually add the confectioners sugar. Add a little more until the mixture is not too stick and you can shape. I mix some confectioners sugar and cornstarch together to keep on my hands when shaping. I found one of my measuring spoons shaped in an egg-shape and kept dipping that in the powdered mixer and made a perfect egg shape. I place in refrigerator for about 1 hour before dipping in chocolate.

Coconut Filling:
1/2 # butter, softened
1 # confectioners sugar
1 # sweetened flaked coconut
1/2 can (7 oz) sweetened condensed milk
1 cup almonds, finely chopped
1 tsp vanilla extract

In mixing bowl, cream butter and confectioners sugar. Add coconut, milk, almonds and vanilla. Stir until blended on low speed about 2 minutes. Chill slightly until firm. Using the same measuring cup above shape into egg-shape. This is as sticky as the peanut butter one above just keep dipped the measure spoon into confectioner/cornstarch mixture. If you do not have that spoon you can shape by hand.

I dip all my eggs in Ghirardelli chocolate that I buy in disk shapes that I find at my local candy supply store.