Are You Ready For Some Football!

All my rowdy friends are gathering on Super Bowl night! Are you ready for some football?

Super Bowl is coming and I am planning a menu, chiling the beer and getting my friends together. "Cold beer and a big of chips, what more do you need!" asked Bob Cashman. Well, first off, I need the Green Bay Packers to be in the Super Bowl and not the Cardinals. And, I most definitely would serve more than beer and a bag of chips! I love to make appetizers and create a buffet of snacks, desserts and drinks. Here are a few of my favorite, easy-to-make appetizers.

• 

Cashew Dip - Ingredients and Directions:
Combine together in a crock pot; 2 8-ounce packages of cream cheese, 1 cup chopped cashews, 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter, 2 tablespoons chili paste,
3/4 cup coconut milk,
1 tablespoon lime juice.

Cook covered on low setting for 2 hours, stirring occasionally. Serve warm or cold with cut up cucumber, celery or crackers.

• Sweet and Sour Meatballs - Ingredients and Directions:

In large bowl combine 2 pounds ground beef (you could also go lighter and use ground chicken) , 1 8-oz can of crushed pineapple, 2 tablespoons soy sauce,
1 cup fine chopped green pepper, 2 fine chopped scallions, 1/4 cup bread crumbs.
Combine together and shape into 1 inch balls. Place on a foil lined baking sheet and broil 6" from the heat for 4-5 minutes, roll over each meatball and than heat for 4-5 minutes.

Remove from rack and put into a crock pot.
In a large bowl whisk together 1 packet of sweet & sour sauce mix, 1/4 cup rice vinegar,
12 oz. pineapple juice, 1/4 cup tomato paste and 1/2 cup apricot preserves. Pour over meatballs and cook on low for 4-6 hours. Stir to coat the meatballs with sauce.

You can prep both of the appetizers the day before and than heat in your crock pot. Don't forget the bags of chip and cold beer. Go Pack Go!! - oh yah, i forgot.... maybe next year?

ANYONE can be a Martha!

While checking out at the grocery store I always peruse the magazines, especially the food mags. (o.k., occasionally I pickup and read the "inquirer"). I am totally impressed by the shots of beautifully decorated cakes and think "I wish I could be like Martha and do that". Well, let me tell you, I can, and if I can, you can!

I am not a fantastic cook. In fact, I seldom cook. But when I have an occasion or friends and family over, I really want to make them feel special. So, I took a class on cake decorating and learned how to use fondant and make gum paste flowers. Here is what I learned.

Working with fondant and gum paste is like playing with play-doh. Remember those colorful but smelly containers and all the shapes you could make by pushing down on the lever of the play-doh machine? I'd make and decorate pretend cakes which I could never eat. Fondant and gum paste doesn't taste much better than play-doh. But the beautiful shapes and flowers you can make will impress everyone.

1) Purchase either powdered mix or ready mixed gum paste (hobby lobby or michael's and don't forget to go online and print out a coupon).
2) Mix desired amount per instructions. Knead gum paste until it's soft and pliable. If it becomes sticky knead in a bit more mix. If it sticks to your hands rub vegetable shortening onto your hands.
3) Rub a bit of vegetable shortening onto your work surface. Keep the surface and your hands clean of fuzz and stuff because the gum paste will pick up everything. Roll out gum paste using a rolling pin just like you would a pie crust. Add veg. shortening to rolling pin if it sticks. Roll out to about 1/6 thickness. Cover tightly in plastic wrap the gum paste you are not using. Cut out shapes. I used a petal leaf shape to create my flowers.
4) Create a ring of foil and set a side. Start with one petal leaf shape and pinch between your fingers to give it shape. Lay petal leaf inside foil ring, hanging over the side. Continue pinching and shaping petals and place in a circular shape within the foil ring. You may want to alternate and make layers to create a flower look. (it will help to look at photos of flowers before you start).
5) You can add food coloring to the gum paste to create different colors. Add a few drops and knead paste until the color is well mixed. Remember to keep unused gum paste covered in plastic.
6) You can use a toothpick to create lines and details.
7) Continue forming and shaping gum paste - just like play-doh! 8) Leave your creations sit until dry. If something breaks; mix a small bit of gum paste with water until it forms a runny paste like glue. Glue pieces together using a fine brush.
9) When flowers or shapes are dried use to decorate your cake or cupcakess. Keep unused in airtight container.
See, you can be a Martha also! (don't worry if your gum paste flowers look like aliens, you can always sell the photos to the inquirer!)

Monkey Bread

One of my favorite foods to make is Monkey Bread. Monkey Bread is a classic and one I am sure most of you have made, ate, or at least heard of. It is a favorite of mine because my family requests it for Christmas morning and served gewy and hot while we open presents. Monkey Bread is now a family tradition. This year the tradition had a bit of a "bug". Flu bug that is! Yes, I was unfortunate and caught the bug Christmas Eve. I'll spare you the details. I was fortunate enough to have pre made the monkey bread before I got sick. Christmas morning my daughter, Emily, put the monkey bread in the oven and set the timer. They all gathered in the livingroom where my husband had built a warm-cozy fire in the fireplace and put holiday music on the CD player. My family laid a sheet on the sofa, brought my pillows, blanket, and just-in-case-i-don't-make-it-to-the-bathroom bucket, and settled me on the sofa. We began to open Christmas stockings as the wonderful smell of Monkey Bread filled the room.

The timer went off and Emily pulled the bread from the oven, put a plate on top, flipped it over, and let the gewy-melted brown sugar run down

 the sides. Yum, Yum!

My family grabbed plates and forks and pulled apart the "just baked right" Monkey Bread. If my mouth could have watered it would have. If my stomach could have tolerated it I would have more than eaten my share. But no. As I watching the faces of my happy, content family devouring the Monkey Bread, I made a quick dash for the bathroom!

RECIPE: It's So Easy Monkey Bread

3 containers/tubes of buttermilk bisquits.

Divide each bisquit into three pieces.

 Toss pieces, a few at a time, into a bowl of 1 cup sugar and 2 tbls. cinnamon. Place all sugar coated pieces (3 tubes) into a sprayed bundt pan or angle food pan (place a jelly roll pan under the angle food pan in case of drips). Melt one stick of butter in microwave. Add one cup of brown sugar to butter. Pour over top of pieces.

 Bake in 350 degree preheated oven for no more than 30 minutes.

Remove from oven. Place a plate on top of pan and flip over. Left off pan. Serve, eat and enjoy!!!