Friday Favorite Finds #115

Hope you’ve all had a great week!  I’ve been enjoying the nightly airings of the US Swimming Olympic Trials with a nice bowl of vanilla ice cream and berries.  Seems like the perfect thing to do now that it’s summer.  Being a swimmer myself, I enjoy watching the races… but synchronized swimming is my favorite. 

My finds from this week are all over the board… but they all look good! 

{All images are from the original recipe source, and linked through Pinterest}

Lemon Pudding Cakes
{My friend Megan shared this amazing recipe – look at that delicious lemon pudding!!}

Source: whatmegansmaking.com via Finding Joy In My Kitchen on Pinterest

 

Summer Squash Pasta
{I mentioned on Facebook that our garden is doing quite well – this seems like the perfect use of our produce in a couple of weeks}

Source: dontwastethecrumbs.com via Finding Joy In My Kitchen on Pinterest

 

Blueberry Quinoa Pancakes
{Although I haven’t actually cooked with quinoa yet, I keep finding recipes that entice me – these pancakes look amazing}

Source: aprettylifeinthesuburbs.com via Finding Joy In My Kitchen on Pinterest

 

Cheesy White Bean Stuffed Peppers
{These look like a new take on stuffed peppers – I like the excuse to use beans too!}

Source: splashofwhine.blogspot.com via Finding Joy In My Kitchen on Pinterest

 

Pineapple Upsidedown Pancakes
{Pineapple is a summer fruit & these pancakes look like a really fun treat!}

Source: preventionrd.com via Finding Joy In My Kitchen on Pinterest

 

What did you find this week?

Please link up to a post containing your list of recipes to try -- do not link up individual recipes please, your links will be deleted.  Links that do not follow the guidelines will be deleted.  Be sure to leave a link back here to Finding Joy in My Kitchen.

 

As a reminder, if you like these recipes, either re-pin my original pin, or pin the source of the recipe NOT my blog!  The talented chefs that came up with these recipes deserve the credit and traffic, so, please, please pin the source!

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Sweet Citrus Punch

It’s always a treat to provide overnight or brunch guests with a nice morning beverage, besides coffee.  I find that whenever we serve eggs, I crave an orange-juice based beverage; does anyone else experience that? 

For a brunch a few weeks ago, we made this sweet citrus punch, which was a recipe that caught my attention from Liz and her husband over at Pocket Change Gourmet.

This punch combines orange and pineapple juice along with sparkling lemon water for a delightful breakfast beverage. 

Sweet Citrus Punch – Adapted from Pocket Change Gourmet

Ingredients

• 1 can frozen orange pineapple juice concentrate, thawed
• 1 can frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
• 3 C cold water
• 1 bottle, sparkling lemon flavored water

Directions

In a juice container, mix together the orange juice concentrate along with the orange pineapple concentrate. 

Add 3 cups of cold water.  Stir until the concentrates are dissolved. 

Chill the beverage until ready to serve. 

To serve, fill half the glass with the orange pineapple mix, then, top with the lemon sparkling water.  Give a quick stir and serve, either on ice, or without. 

We served this morning beverage in wine glasses for an extra special treat. 

Enjoy!

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Roasted Cauliflower Poppers

A while back one of my swimming friends from high school pinned a recipe that looked like something we’d enjoy: cauliflower poppers.  The author claimed they tasted like French fries. 

Now, I didn’t think these tasted like fries, and dipping them in ketchup was less than ideal.  But, they were a great side dish and super tasty!

Roasted Cauliflower Poppers – Adapted from Delighted Momma

Ingredients

• 1 head cauliflower
• Olive Oil
• Sea Salt
• Optional: pepper, garlic powder

Directions

Begin by washing the head of cauliflower and trimming any spots that look smashed or slightly browned. 

Chop up the head of cauliflower into bite-sized pieces.  The smaller the pieces, the faster they will cook!

Take a large cookie sheet – preferably one with edges like a jelly roll pan, or a half-sheet cake pan.  Either use a baking mat or parchment paper on the bottom of the tray. 

Arrange the pieces of cauliflower on a large cookie sheet. 

Then, spray the tray with a light mist of olive oil.  Alternatively, you can toss the cauliflower in olive oil in a bowl before arranging it on the cookie sheet. 

Season with sea salt, and if desired, pepper and garlic powder. 

Roast the tray of cauliflower for about 1 hour at a temperature between 425 and 450.

Every 15-20 minutes, carefully remove the tray from the oven and give the cauliflower pieces a stir.  You may find you need to spray the cauliflower with olive oil once again and season it with salt and pepper when you stir it.  Do so as necessary. 

Continue cooking until the cauliflower is lightly browned and crunchy.  The browner they are – the more crunch and better texture they will have to enjoy! Just be sure not to burn them!

Enjoy!  They are great as a side dish, or an afternoon snack. 

Recipe notes: These are best the day you make them.  They reheat well, keeping good flavor, but they loose their crunch.  

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Kitchen Tip: Silk-Free Corn

With summer in full swing, sweet corn is starting to appear on the menu.  We LOVE sweet corn – and my family does too.  My dad grew up on a farm, and tells stories of entire meals of sweet corn and garden fresh tomatoes.  Yum, yum. 

One thing that makes sweet corn a challenge to eat is the silk.  You know – all those little fine “corn hairs” that coat your cob.  You know what I’m talking about, right? 

Botanically, these are the stigma – or the part of the corn plant that is responsible for receiving pollen in order for the plant to be pollinated. 

Regardless. They are a pain.  They get all over the floor when you try to husk the corn.  They get stuck in your teeth if you don’t get all of them off the cob. 

Well, here’s a tip from my dad for how to get all that silk off your corn cob: 

1. Microwave the corn (husk and all) for 4 minutes per ear. 
2. Remove the corn from the microwave using a hot pad or oven mit. 
3. Slice the end off the corn.

It should look something like this. 

4. Pick up the corn by the top of the husk and give it a few shakes.

The cob will slide right out & will be silk free!

Two tips for success:

(1) It’s important for you to slice and remove the husks right away after you take the corn out of the microwave.  If you wait too long, it will be harder for you to get the husks off.  Still possible – just harder. 

(2) Be sure to shake the corn over a plate & not the floor… otherwise you’ll be picking corn up off the floor!

Now, I haven’t figured out how to do this if you plan to boil the corn or grill it… but I’ll be playing around with it this summer. 

Thanks, Dad!

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Menu Plan–June 24

Last week was a nice week of R&R following our vacation.  Yes, you read that correctly – we needed some R&R after our trip!  Has that ever happened to you?  We had a lovely trip, but it did take some time to decompress when we returned.  Our easy, post-travel menu included:

This week, we’re going to enjoy:

Sunday
Whole Wheat Buttermilk Blueberry Pancakes, fresh blueberries
Pasta Tricolore (new), grilled chicken
{To do: Thaw ham}

Monday
Bacon & Egg Muffins {new}
Garden Veggie Shells

Tuesday {dinner with Frog Prince’s colleagues}
Blueberry Oatmeal
Wild Rice Brats, Macaroni Salad, Buns, Pickles
Raspberry Lemon Cake {new}

Wednesday
Berry Baked Oatmeal
Wild Rice Pepper Salad with Diced Chicken
{To do: Bake Bread}

Thursday {baking day!}
Honey Toast
Crockpot Chicken Cheesesteaks on Herb Rolls

Friday
Honey Whole Wheat Bagels with cream cheese & fresh fruit
Leftovers

Saturday
TBD
Bun-Stuffed Burgers {new}

Find more great menus at OrgJunkie’s Menu Plan Monday!

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Friday Favorite Finds #114

Hope you all had fun over at Rachel’s place last week! Your finds all looked scrumptious and I am grateful for your pins and links last week since I didn’t have much time to read blogs while we were gone on our trip. 

After I cleaned out all 458792 posts in Google Reader (yes, I did click “mark all as read” on some blogs – not food blogs, of course!) – these were the recipes that I pinned:

{All images are from the original recipe source, and linked through Pinterest}

Homemade Goulash
{My friend Liz just recently had a baby & is doing a meals for new moms series – this recipe was a part of that series & it looks amazing!}

Source: carpeseason.com via Finding Joy In My Kitchen on Pinterest

 

Quinoa Cookies
{Quinoa is a whole grain – so what’s not to love about using it in cookies?!}

Source: twopeasandtheirpod.com via Finding Joy In My Kitchen on Pinterest

 

Creamy Pasta with Parmesan Italian Chicken Sausage
{I recently reviewed these chicken sausages –
this recipe looks like an amazing way to enjoy them!}

Source: mrsschwartzkitchen.blogspot.com via Finding Joy In My Kitchen on Pinterest

 

Cheesy Cauliflower Garlic Breadsticks
{Cheesy. Garlic. Veggies. = Love it.}

Source: whatsfordinner-momwhatsfordinner.blogspot.com via Finding Joy In My Kitchen on Pinterest

 

Grilled Pork Chops with Cherry Salsa
{Seeing as we just came back from the Cherry Capitol of the World with more than 10 pounds of cherries, this recipe couldn’t be more timely}

Source: simplyrecipes.com via Finding Joy In My Kitchen on Pinterest

 

What did you find this week?

Please link up to a post containing your list of recipes to try -- do not link up individual recipes please, your links will be deleted.  Links that do not follow the guidelines will be deleted.  Be sure to leave a link back here to Finding Joy in My Kitchen.

 

 

 

As a reminder, if you like these recipes, either re-pin my original pin, or pin the source of the recipe NOT my blog!  The talented chefs that came up with these recipes deserve the credit and traffic, so, please, please pin the source!

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Grandma’s Meatloaf

Growing up, the only true meatloaf I enjoyed was made by my grandmother.  My mom made a delicious BBQ turkey meatloaf – filled with cheese & veggies, but my grandmother’s was all meat, and therefore qualified as a true meatloaf. 

And, it’s quite good – and this is coming from someone who doesn’t eat a whole lot of red meat.  Smiles all around when this one is served. 

My grandmother even marked on the original recipe to remind herself of it’s goodness:

Do you do this too? 

Grandma’s Meatloaf – Grandma

Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• 3/4 C milk
• 2/3 C crushed saltine crackers
• 1/2 C chopped onion
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. sage
• pinch of pepper
• 1 1/2 lb. lean ground beef
• 1 C ketchup
• 1/2 C brown sugar
• 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

Directions

Beat the eggs together in a large bowl.  Then, add the 3/4 C milk, 2/3 C crushed up saltine crackers, 1/2 C chopped onion, 1 tsp. salt, 1/2 tsp. rubbed sage and pepper. 

Add the 1 1/2 lb. ground beef and mix well.  Ideally, the mixing works best with your hands, but if you can’t stand the feeling of raw meat between your fingers you can use a spatula here. 

Shape the meat mixture into an 8.5 x 4.5 inch loaf and place into an ungreased bread pan of a similar size, or a meatloaf pan. 

In a second bowl, combine 1 C ketchup, 1/2 C brown sugar and 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce together.  Mix well until blended. 

Pour 3/4 C of the sauce over the top of the meatloaf and then bake at 350 for 60-65 minutes.  Check at this point to determine that the center is done (beef should be cooked to 170 degrees) and is no longer pink. Then, remove from the oven & drain any excess grease from the pan. 

Allow the meatloaf to sit for 10 minutes before slicing to serve. 

Enjoy served with the remaining sauce. 

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