Sewing 101: Dog Jacket

So, as a birthday gift from my parents, I was the proud recipient of a new sewing machine.  It's a Singer Simple, and simple it is not, but I'm doing the best I can.  I've dabbled in some small sewing projects growing up, but I figure now is as good a time as any to learn a fun new craft...yes, third year is definitely the best time to pick up a new hobby.

My mom got some simple pillow-like cut outs that I worked with to figure out the machine (the bobbin will be the death of me...), but after that, it was on to a pattern.  Now, you sewing experts out there probably find this hilarious, but seriously patterns are complicated!  We first tried a "bolero":  a seemingly novice vest-like clothing item.  Needless to say, it had 60 parts with complicated maneuvers probably too much for a beginner.  This project ended with a half-done bolero and two women laughing hysterically at our "shoot for the moon" sewing project.  Scratch that.

We went to Walmart and found patterns for a dog jacket and an apron (much more appropriate) and started the dog jacket right away.  Elbie was thrilled to be our model.  Once I got going, it wasn't too bad!  (Plus, I had my mom on stand-by, who is a great teacher :)  What do you think?

White Chocolate Creme Brulee

Merry Christmas everyone!  I feel like I've been ignoring the blog, but the past 4 days have been a whirlwind of family events, food and celebrating.  I hope you had a wonderful time with the ones you love :)

I thought I'd share a recipe for creme brulee that I made for dessert on Christmas Day.  I usually make "plain" creme brulee, with just vanilla extract and vanilla beans and flavoring, but this year I thought I'd add in white chocolate.  It was definitely an improvement!!

This is a rich dish, there's no doubt about it.  I don't want to hear it.  Enjoy it occasionally as part of a special dinner.  It's really delicious!!

I didn't take any pictures of the "brulee" process, but you'll need a kitchen torch and some sugar.  Basically burn the sugar until it's melted and forms a glassy surface.  If you absolutely don't want to get a torch, you can put the dishes under the broiler, but be very careful that the sugar doesn't burn!!

White Chocolate Creme Brulee
Adapted from allrecipes.com, Serves 4

4 egg yolks
1/3 cup granulated sugar, plus more for torching
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
4 oz white chocolate, chopped
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 vanilla beans, seeded

In a mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, whisk egg yolks and 1/3 cup sugar until pale yellow and thick, about 5-7 minutes.  Meanwhile, heat milk, cream, vanilla extract and vanilla beans over medium heat until just simmering (you should also throw in the vanilla beans and remove them when done heating).  Take the cream off the heat and stir in the white chocolate until it's melted.

With the whisk on, add one ladleful of the warm cream mixture into the egg mixture.  (This is called tempering).  Then, add the rest of the cream to the eggs, mixing well.  Pour into custard dishes.

Put filled custard dishes into a 9x13 pan and place in the oven.  Using a large measuring cup, pour warm water into the 9x13 pan to make a water bath.  Bake for 40-45 minutes or until slightly jiggly but somewhat set.  Allow to cool, then refrigerate for at least 6 hours or until ready to serve.

To serve, sprinkle enough granulated sugar on top to coat.  Using a kitchen torch, melt and slightly burn the sugar to create a smooth, glassy top.

Chocolate Ritz Mints

Here's another quick holiday treat idea that I saw on kraftfoods.com and had to try.  Melt a bag of chocolate chips and stir in 1/4 tsp peppermint extract.  Dip Ritz crackers in melted chocolate, shake off excess, and let dry on parchment paper.  Before the chocolate dries, sprinkle on some crushed candy cane.  They taste kinda like Thin Mints from Girl Scouts.  You could roll a stack of these up in parchment paper, tie the ends with ribbon and have a cute gift to take along on your holiday adventures.

PS: how cute are Lady's boots?  She was mad she had to wear them so she wouldn't look at the camera, but they protect her paws from the nasty salt they slather on the side walks at the first hint of precipitation.  Fancy, huh?

Beer Reindeer

Well that's the worst blog post title I've ever come up with...it's actually a too-cute crafty idea to jazz up a 6 pack of beer bottles.  Who doesn't need a solution to the "boring beer bottle" problem?

My mom found this idea here, and I thought that would be a fun way to give a 6 pack of beer to hard-to-buy-for recipients this Christmas.  Of course, you could do this with root beer or even bottled flavored sodas, super cute for kids.

Happy crafting!!!

PS:  look who spent the morning at the groomers!  All spruced up for the holidays.  Can you spot the bow?

Holiday Bark

I just got back from a lady's night out to the Joffrey Ballet Nutcracker.  After my family medicine final this morning, dinner and a ballet seemed like the perfect prescription shake off 24 long (but great) weeks of non-stop medicine and start my two week holiday vacation.  Oh arabesques, how I miss being able to move like that.

Alright everyone, it's time to get serious.  The holidays are about catching up with family and friends, indulging in great food, and treating the ones we love to special gifts, like this homemade bark.  Bark, incase you didn't know, is usually melted chocolate with stuff sprinkled on top, then broken apart when hard.  Simple, but everyone thinks it's so sophisticated and classy.  We'll fool them.

I decided to make my bark this year with graham crackers as a base.  I like crispy things, and this turned out to be a great idea.  There is no real recipe for this; literally, open your pantry and see what you have.  Chocolate chips? We're on the right track.  Pretzels, sprinkles, cookies, marshmallows, white chocolate, almond bark (you can find colored almond bark in the craft/baking department at Walmart), you name it.

I lined a big rimmed cookie sheet with graham crackers, breaking them to fit.  Then I melted green almond bark (it just tastes sweet, kinda like white chocolate), semi-sweet chocolate, and white chocolate and spread it on as I saw fit.  Then I sprinkled on Andes candies on the green, and marshmallows/M&Ms on the dark chocolate.  For the white chocolate, I thought I'd class it up a bit and add walnuts and cranberries. I couldn't resist some green sprinkles.

Be sure to gently press your toppings into the melted chocolate so they stick when you break it apart when it's hard.  Voila!  An impressive hostess gift, appetizer, treat plate filler, teacher gift, or midnight snack.  It keeps great in the freezer so you can make it ahead of time.  Go get creative people, it's Christmas after all.

Chicken Gyros

We went to a Greek restaurant a few weeks ago with some friends, and it was just delicious.  I wasn't super familiar with Greek food before, but it's amazing.  Peter had lamb gyros, which were so tasty, but I wanted to try something similar with chicken (because I know what I'm doing with chicken).

Tzaziki is a yogurt/cucumber/garlic sauce, which seems weird, but it's wonderful!!  It's cool and creamy, but zesty too.  I've been tossing it as a salad dressing...Delish!  Also good as a veggie dip.  You'll like it, trust me.

As a side note, today was my last day of family medicine, and it was a little bittersweet!  I learned lots about myself and what I like; it was my first real time working with adult patients (who weren't in active labor or psychotic...or both for that matter), and although they are fun an complicated, I much prefer little people.  After the shelf tomorrow, I'm free to do some much needed holiday-festing so hold on to your hats...I have more sweets coming your way than your pancreas cares to deal with.

Chicken Gyros
For the chicken
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1/4 cup non-fat plain yogurt (you can use Greek yogurt too)
1 tsp garlic powder
Salt and pepper, to taste

For the tzaziki sauce
6 oz container non-fat plain Greek yogurt
1 cucumber, peeled and grated, then squeezed out in paper towels
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp lemon juice
Salt and pepper

To serve:
Pita bread
Lettuce
Red onion
Tomato

Combine marinade and chicken in a large ziplock bag.  Mix well to combine, seal, and refrigerate for 1 hour.  While chicken is marinading, combine ingredients for tzaziki sauce and refrigerate.

To make chicken, preheat a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat and add a drizzle of olive oil.  Wipe off excess marinade as you remove chicken from bag, and sautee until just cooked through and slightly browned.  Remove from pan and allow to cool slightly then slice.

To serve, top a pita with tzaziki sauce, chicken, lettuce, tomato and onion.

Chicken Marsala

Chicken Marsala is one of Peter's favorite things to order at restaurants.  When I saw this McCormick spice packet at the grocery store (you know how much I like those), I thought it would be fun to try.  I had to buy a whole bottle of marsala wine for the 3/4 cup called for in the recipe, but I've been reading that it's great in gravies, other sauces, and some desserts.  I'll find a use for it.  This was super yummy.

I served it over spaghetti squash I had left over from another meal, but it would be great with pasta, mashed potatoes (like they serve it in restaurants), or just plain.

Chicken Marsala
1 McCormick Spice Packet, or:
    1 tsp minced garlic
    1 tsp marjoram leaves
    1 tsp minced onion
    1/2 tsp black pepper
    1 tsp basil leaves
    3/4 tsp parsley flakes
1/3 cup flour
1 tsp salt
6 thinly sliced boneless skinless chicken breasts
3 Tbsp butter, divided
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 8oz package sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup chicken broth
3/4 cup Marsala wine

Mix flour, garlic, marjoram, minced onions, salt and pepper in a bowl.  Reserve 1 Tbsp flour mixture.  Coat chicken with remaining flour mixture.  Heat 2 Tbsp butter and oil in large skillet.  Cook chicken 3 minutes per side or until golden brown (can do it in batches).  Remove from skillet and keep warm.  Add mushrooms to skillet, and cook until tender.

Mix broth and reserved flour mixture.  Add to skillet along with wine.  Bring to boil, stirring to release browned bits from bottom of skillet.  Stir in remaining 1 Tbsp butter and basil; cook 2 minutes or until sauce is slightly thickened.  Spoon sauce over chicken to serve; Sprinkle with parsley.

Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread

For the holidays, I end up baking and cooking A LOT for family get-togethers.  No complaints of course, I'm glad to help, but I usually over-extend myself a teeny bit.  Like this recipe, for example.  I volunteered to bring it to a Christmas Day brunch.  Now, as you might know, yeast breads take a bit of time, skill, and patience, all of which I'm lacking.  Not to fear, we can make this ahead of time.

I made this recipe this weekend as a way to "rehearse" my plan.  The original recipe is for making the whole sha-bang in one day (dough to delicious cinnamon pull-apart bread in a matter of hours).  But there is NO way I'm doing the whole thing the day of.  I would need to get up at about 4am to make this happen, and that's not happening.

So, I did the whole thing the day before and stopped right before baking, storing the loaf tightly wrapped in the refrigerator.  Then, the next morning, I allowed the loaf to come to room temp for about an hour before baking.  It turned out just fine.  In my humble opinion, the original recipe I got from Annie's Eats needs at least 1/4 cup more flour and 15 more minutes of baking time than called for on the site (I've reflected the changes below).

My wonderful grandma tried this recipe when I emailed her for advice regarding a yeast bread for a morning gathering.  She thought the inside was too doughy, so I adjusted by baking for longer (covered the top with foil), and it turned out just fine.  So bake away, people.  We can do this for Christmas morning.

Cinnamon Sugar Pull Apart Bread
Adapted from Annie's Eats

For the dough:
3 cups AP flour, plus more as needed
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 1/4 tsp instant yeast
1/2 tsp salt
4 Tbsp unsalted butter
1/3 cup whole milk
1/4 cup water
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs

For the filling:
4 Tbsp butter
1 cup sugar
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg

To make the dough, combine flour, sugar, yeast, and salt in the bowl of a mixer with the dough hook attached.  Combine butter and milk in a saucepan and heat until butter is melted.  Let cool until it reaches 115-125 F on a thermometer.  Add milk mixture, water, vanilla and eggs to the mixer bowl.  Mix on low speed until a dough forms.  Continue to knead in mixer until smooth and elastic, adding more flour as needed until the dough clears the sides of the bowl.  Knead about 3-5 minutes.  Transfer dough to a lighly oiled bowl, turning to coat, and cover.  Let rise in warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.

While dough rises, add butter to a small saucepan and melt until browned.  Set aside.  Combine the sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a small bowl and mix well.

Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and deflate.  Roll into ball, cover with a clean towel and let rest for 5 minutes.  Roll dough out to a 12x20 inch rectangle.  Brush dough with browned butter.  Sprinkle cinnamon sugar mixture over the dough evenly.

Grease a 9x5" loaf pan.  Slice dough vertically into 6 strips.  Stack the strips on top of each other and cut again into 6 equal pieces.  Stack all the squares on top of each other and set into loaf pan.  Cover loosely with a kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place for 30-45 minutes.

*I covered the loaf after rising for the last time with seran wrap and tin foil and stored in the refrigerator over night.  I let the loaf come to room temp for at least an hour, then baked the next morning.

Preheat oven to 350.  Transfer the loaf to the oven and bake 40-45 minutes until the top is golden brown (you can cover the top with foil if it is browning too quickly).  Remove from oven and let rest in the pan 10-20 minutes.  Run knife around edges to loosen and carefully turn loaf out, transferring to a serving plate.  Serve warm.

Glazed Pork with Brussels Sprouts and Sweet Potatoes

Last Sunday, I hosted a little cookie baking party.  Two of my good friends came over and we tore up my kitchen.  We made about 5 dozen cut out cookies!  (we decided that it is WAY more fun to do sugar cookies with a team).  I don't know if you find this, but whenever I make and then decorate sugar cookies in the same day, I get burnt out and resentful.  The last 2 dozen cookies end up looking like a 4 year old was given creative licence with colored frosting.  So, we decided to stretch out the fun and decorate the baked cookies in a week (tomorrow!).

After said kitchen disaster, I decided it would be a great time to try a new roast recipe.  Looking back, it probably was a bit more than I was bargaining for after several hours of cookie baking, but whatever, the roast was defrosted.  I found this in a Rachael Ray magazine, and it is delicious!  I adapted it to have more glaze because, well, the 3 Tbsp I ended up with after finishing the recipe was just not enough.  Enjoy!

Glazed Pork with Brussels Sprouts and Sweet Potatoes
Adapted from Rachael Ray
1 1/2 lbs pork roast, fat trimmed
4 Tbsp grainy mustard
2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
2 Tbsp brown sugar
1 lb brussels sprouts, halved
1 lb sweet potatoes, cut into wedges
4 springs thyme
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 granny smith apple, peeled and chopped

Preheat oven to 425.  Season pork with salt and pepper, and place in a 9x13 pan.  Scatter sweet potatoes around, and drizzle 1 Tbsp oil; toss.  In a small bowl, stir together mustard, vinegar and brown sugar.  Brush over pork and drizzle over sweet potatoes, reserving about half.  Roast for 25 minutes.  Add brussels sprouts to pan, stir veggies, and return to oven for 20 more minutes.  Now add apple and remaining glaze, stir veggies, and return to oven for 15 minutes or until apples are tender and pork reads 150.  Allow pork to rest before slicing.

For an easy dipping sauce, combine more grainy mustard with light mayonnaise or sour cream.

Lisa's Applesauce Jello

When Peter and I started dating like 79 years ago, his mom made applesauce jello for a family dinner I attended.  I was a little weirded out...applesauce and jello?  That sounds like it belongs on a nursing home luncheon menu.  Of course I gave it a shot, and low and behold, it's lovely!!  It's smooth, but with some texture, giving ambiguous jello a little character.  It would be perfect with your Christmas meal as a "filler", and to add some color to the buffet.

This is also awesome "sick person" food.  As a medical professional, I bet tiny tummies (or adult-sized ones) would appreciate this recipe while recouping from some vague viral illness.  It should stay down :)

Lisa's Applesauce Jello
2 cups plain applesauce
2 small packages jello (any flavor: I used cranberry)
12 oz diet sprite/7-Up
4 oz water

In a medium sauce pan, heat applesauce and jello powder over medium heat until jello is dissolved.  Off the heat, stir in soda and water.  Pour mixture into 8x8 or 9x9 pan and refrigerate until set.

Eggnog Oatmeal

I have a million ways to make oatmeal because it's my favorite breakfast food.  Warm, lovely texture, sweet with fun mix-ins, it's sure to keep me buzzing around the clinic until lunchtime (because lets be honest...there's no time for a mid-morning snack most days).

A fun way to prepare oatmeal this time of year is to use a splash of eggnog in place of milk.  I usually make my oatmeal with water and add a few splashes of milk when it's done cooking, but you could make it with all milk and add some eggnog as well.  I think using ONLY eggnog would be a bit ridiculous, but be my guest.

I like Silk soy eggnog...I know what you're thinking; "I'm not drinking soybeans...I'm just not."  Well fine, use the regular kind, but the Silk kind is the lightest on calories that I've been able to find in the grocery store and tastes remarkably like the real thing!!

Eggnog Oatmeal
1/2 cup old fashioned oats
1 cup water
1 tsp brown sugar (+ 1 packet Splenda, if desired)
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp cinnamon
Dash of salt
Eggnog to taste

Cook oatmeal according to package directions.  After cooking, add sugars, nutmeg, cinnamon, and salt; mix well.  Add eggnog and stir until creamy.  Enjoy a fiber-filled taste of Christmas!

Chicken and Sweet Pepper Skillet

I like one pot meals.  They're easy, clean up isn't a disaster, and they usually make a big quantity.  I'm also a fan of a meal where I can get veggies, whole grain and protein in one shot.  We're busy people, after all.  These types of meals are especially useful during this busy holiday season where days are short, feasts are in excess, and everyone could use a well balanced, healthy meal (with leftovers for lunch the next day).

The barbeque sauce in this skillet gives a sweet, smoky note.  You could use leftover grilled chicken, rotisserie chicken, or just raw chicken that you saute up before you cook.  Your choice.

Chicken and Sweet Pepper Skillet
4 small chicken breasts, chopped
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 red and 1 yellow pepper, chopped
1 white onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup white wine
1 1/4 cup uncooked instant brown rice
1 1/4 cup water
1/2 cup barbeque sauce
Green onions and shredded cheese, for garnish
Salt and pepper to taste

In a large skillet, brown chicken in olive oil until cooked through.  Remove from pan.  Sautee the peppers, onion and garlic with a little more olive oil until tender, about 5 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper (liberally).  Add wine to the pan and scrape up the bottom bits.  Add rice, water and BBQ sauce.  Stir, bring to a simmer, cover and cook about 15-20 minutes or until the rice is tender (stir occasionally).  Stir in chicken and heat through.  Top with green onions and cheese and serve.