Pot & Cover

Works Fish Marinade 1 TBS honey Fresh Ginger 1.5 inches, peeled diced 1 large garlic glove crushed 1.5 TBS soy 1 TBS fish sauce Pinch salt & pepper Red pepper flakes ¾ tsp Zest from 1 small lemon 2 Tablespoon fresh basil 1 Tblspoon fresh mint ½ TBS fresh lemon thyme Olive oil till it’s a pasty liquid in food processor (1/4 cup) We use this marinade all the time...we came up with it one day last summer...throwing in herbs and asian flavors and just loved it...Scott made it this summer with a side of mashed butternut squash with a little brown sugar and butter and a wedge of lemon. Not sure what kind of fish we had that night...probably Tilapia...so delicious.

This was the best soup I've ever made...it was good cold or hot. The picture doesn't do justice. Scott had dental issues that required soft foods and so we had soup in the beginning of summer...very good soup. He is a carnivore for sure...so I added 3 cheese tortellini..store bought to add a little meaty texture to the dish...oh sooooo good. I will keep tortellini in the freezer from now on. Check out http://www.cookstr.com/ for original recipe...this is based on that receipe...but tweeked a little. Roasted Acorn Squash/Pumpkin Soup For this soup use Sugar pumpkins or Perfection squash–both are sweet and full-flavored without being stringy and watery. Delicata and butternut or acorn squash, though milder, are also delicious. The stock is a simple one, using the seeds and scrapings of the pumpkin or squash, a few vegetables, and herbs. (I didn't do the stock, I used boxed chix stock) Yield: Serves four to six Ingredients THE STOCK Seeds and scrapings from the pumpkin or squ...

A tooth cracked all the way through! Poor Scott had to have his tooth pulled and needed to have soft foods for a few days...thank goodness it was a molar in the very back..not a front tooth! Anyway...i found a great website that has some gems on it, http://www.cookstr.com/ . I've made pumpkin whoopie pies, acorn squash (pumpkin) soup, cream of broccoli soup and an asian basil chicken. All required a little 'jiggling' but were yummy and most of them excellent! Pumpkin Whoopie Pies I had left over cream cheese frosting from my brothers birthday cake...I'll post that one too. We'd been invited to a friends for the Memorial Day holiday and they needed dessert...I figured this would be a good excuse to try to make these. They didn't disapoint...I'm thinking of a way to substitute a little cocoa powder to make them chocolate...maybe add mini chocolate chips in the filling, and a version with toffee bits suggested by my friend Lynde. Yield: 12 WHOOPIE PIES Ingredie...

Been making bottles lately...for little Logan, our 5 mo old nephew...thank goodness for Scott making dinner...spaghetti w/ sauteed chicken and then our favorite Red Baron Pizza...and left overs:) Logans' back home w/ his momma and daddy and I'm ready for a long, hot bath. Works' family Spaghetti our favorite jarred marinara (Bertolli tomato basil 1 sauteed onion in olive oil bay leaf parmesan rind chunk of pesto from freezer (homemade from left over summer basil or fresh basil in the summer/spring) optional: diced carrot simmer all the above on low to meld flavors add either chix (seasoned w/s&p, browned in skillet or grilled and cut into small chunks and added to sauce, ground beef (brown and season w/s&p and favorite italian herbs, then add to sauce, or go all out and make pan fried thin chix breasts breaded in a little flour and breadcrumbs...think chix parm. Capellini, preferably DeCecco..but low carb pasta that Chef John introduced us to was a good choice too...

Scott made these beef tips a few weeks ago...and if I remember right we ate them over Scott's garlic mashed potatos. Scott's Beef Tips 1.25 lbs sirloin cubed (about 20 oz) Marinade: 1/4 C soy sauce,1/8 C Yoshida's teriyaki,1 tsp red pepper flakes,1 Tbs salt,1 tsp black pepper,2 TBS evoo,1/2 lemon, juiced, 3 TBS fresh chopped rosemary, 2 tsp roasted garlic chips (market street) (marinate beef in this at least 1 hr...or longer:) flour Gravy: 2 tbs bacon fat, 2 C beef stock, 2 tbs flour, 12 oz mushrooms (sauteed), 1 onion sauteed Scott marinated the beef, then tossed in flour and browned in evoo, and removed from pan. I deglazed the pan, and strained the juices to get the "bits" out from the marinade, and added those juices to the 2 C of beef stock. Gravy: heat bacon fat in pan and sautee onion and mushroom if not done already...add flour and then whisk in stock...reducing till thickened, then add shroom, onions and beef...cover and bake in the oven on low (250) till...

Beef Enchiladas 2 lbs ground beef 1 sauteed onion 1 can green chilis 6 oz shredded monterey jack 8 oz shredded mexican blend cheese 15 oz can red enchilada sauce 12-18 corn tortillas (we like white corn) freshly made pinto beans (about 1 cup) Preheat oven to 350-375 (look on back of enchilada sauce can...which always has a recipe) Prepare a 9X13 baking pan by drizzling about 1/4 C of enchilada sauce in bottom, spreading around. Brown beef and season with s&p, and favorite spices...or use a taco seasoning packet...we used bay leaf, cinnamon, cumin, red chile powder, cayenne, crunchy roasted garlic...after I brown it, I add water to cover and simmer for about 15-20 minutes, which makes the meat very tender...an old trick I learned from one of dad's h.s. buddies who owns my favorite mexican restaurant on the planet...La Esperanza in CA. I also over season the water with beef buillion or salt to make sure the meat is well seasoned...then drain, cool slightly...adding all other ingr...

Scott is really getting the fish perfect! He cooked cod...breading it with crushed ritz and it was perfect! We also had artichokes, which made me too full but they are sooooo good. Just steam or boil them till tender 20-40 min depending on size, and serve with a mustardy mayo...perfection...a meal in itself. To prepare them for cooking just cut off top of artichoke and trim the pointy parts of the rest of the leaves with scissors..also trim a little off the stem and rub all cut parts with a cut lemon to prevent browning. We probably had salad too...but I went blank after the fish and artichoke...after seeing the pictures I see we had shrimp too! No wonder I was full! I think we cooked the shrimp in butter, olive oil, s&p.

We hosted breakfast for our Primerica team a few Saturday's ago and boy was it good! I made cinnamon rolls from Ina Garten and a Sausage Breakfast Casserole that were both so yummy! They are both rich...so we had little "cuties"/mandarin oranges too... and o.j./coffee. I will definately make sure we have something lite to go with these when I make them in the future. Puffed Cinnamon Rolls, based on a recipe from Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics, Ina Garten makes 12 cinnamon rolls Ingredients 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature 1/3 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed 1/2 cup pecans, chopped in very large pieces 1 package (17.3-ounces/ 2-sheets) frozen puff pastry, defrosted For the filling: 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled 2/3 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon (Ina adds 1 cup raisins...which I don't like in my baked goods...optional:) Directions Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Place a 1...