Stuffed Poblano Peppers with Panko Bread Crumbs

Penzey's Spices is one of my favorite companies and I recently ordered a package of their dried (red) ancho peppers. They are dried poblano peppers. The anchos were rehydrated in a bowl of boiling water, rinsed, seeded, and dried off to prep them for this recipe. The peppers are slightly spicy and have a hint of cumin. After baking, the peppers turn sweeter and have crispy edges. The texture is similar to a sun-dried tomato. Of course, the cheese is delicious and the Panko bread crumbs are the best--nice and brown and crunchy.

4 rehydrated, dried ancho chili peppers

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Cumin, chili powder, & garlic powder to taste

Panko bread crumbs for topping

Preheat oven to 400.

Add cumin, chili powder, and garlic powder to the shredded cheese and mix. 

Carefully slice the peppers on one side to make an opening for the stuffing. 

Stuff each pepper with cheese mixture and put a toothpick through the peppers to hold them together. Sprinkle the tops of the stuffed peppers with Panko bread crumbs to cover. 

Bake at 400 for 20 minutes. Remove toothpicks and serve. 

Before and after photos:

                   

Pimento Mac and Cheese with a Minor Kick

This is the second time in my life I've made mac and cheese. I tried this recipe out for the first time today after someone shared it with me. I made a few changes and came up with this one using lower fat dairy. Next time I make this I'll add more pimentos and jalapenos. Classic comfort food that serves about 8 peeps depending on hunger meter.

16 oz elbow macaroni

2 tablespoons butter

3/4 cup panko bread crumbs

6 tablespoons butter
1 small yellow onion, chopped
3 large cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons pickled jalapeno, chopped

1 teaspoon paprika

1/2 cup flour

Frank's Hot Sauce--how many shakes can ya take?

*s/p to taste

4 cups 2% milk

4 oz jar chopped pimentos, drained

8 oz low-fat cream cheese

2 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

*s/p to taste

Cook the macaroni per package instructions then drain under cold water, and drain again. 

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in small pan over medium heat. Add bread crumbs. Stir and brown for 4-5 minutes. Remove from heat and set over there and don't burn anything.

In a large dutch oven or large pot melt 6 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Add onions, garlic, and jalapeno. Cook for about 5 minutes. Add flour, paprika, and hot sauce. *s/p to taste

Reduce heat to low and slowly whisk in the milk. This mixture will thicken quite a bit. Simmer for about 7 minutes while whisking. Add pimentos, cream cheese, and cheddar cheese. Stir together well. *s/p to taste

Add pasta to cheese mixture and stir until well blended. Add to greased 13x9 glass pan. Sprinkle panko bread crumbs over the dish and bake at 350 for 25 minutes. The mac and cheese should be brown and bubbly on top when it's finished. Remove from oven and let sit for a few minutes before serving. 

*s/p to taste: I always use kosher salt and Penzey's tellicherry ground black pepper in my cooking.

Thick Homemade Whipped Cream (Where Have You Been All My Life?)

It's great to finally have time to cook. Most days now, I want to create something in the kitchen. I made fresh whipped cream for the first time yesterday and will never go back to store bought. I don't use whipped cream often but when I do it'll be this recipe from now on. Whipped up another batch today just to see the magic happen again. Amazing how the heavy cream transforms into a slightly sweet, luscious, thick, cloud pillow. This whipped cream belongs on everything! I'm going to try some in my coffee tomorrow morning. I don't even want to look at the nutrition label. You can freeze it too, while it's still in the carton or after it's been whipped.

1 cup cold, heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon Penzey's Mexican vanilla

With an electric hand mixer, blend the ingredients for 5-6 minutes on medium-high. The whipping cream transform from a creamy texture to a thicker, clotted texture. That's when it's time to stop mixing or you'll end up with butter. 

The small photo is this thick whipped cream atop chocolate pudding. An excellent combo.

Creamy Cocoa Cheesecake

For a time, this cheesecake was my go to "fancy" dessert. I haven't made it in years until today, and was inspired by a photo I saw of a peanut butter and chocolate cheesecake. I will have to make it another time because today is all about cream cheese, sour cream, and cocoa. I'd forgotten about the sweet sour cream topping on this creamy cocoa cheesecake. Adds a nice touch. The original recipe is from my 1981 Philadelphia Cream Cheese Cookbook. I changed up the original and used the following ingredients.

Preheat the oven to 375.

Crust:

1 1/4 cup crushed graham cracker crumbs

3 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons sugar

Mix the graham cracker crumbs, butter, and sugar in a small bowl. Press firmly onto the bottom of a springform pan.

Filling:

1 8 oz package low-fat cream cheese 

1 8 oz package regular cream cheese

3/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup cocoa powder (I use Hershey's)

1 teaspoon Penzey's Mexican vanilla

2 eggs

In a large bowl, blend all ingredients well with electric mixer. Pour into crust.

Bake for 30 minutes and remove from oven.

Topping:

1 cup low-fat sour cream

2 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon Penzey's Mexican vanilla

Increase the oven temp to 425. Stir together the sour cream, sugar, and vanilla in a small bowl. Carefully spread the sour cream mixture evenly over the top of the cheesecake. Bake for 10 more minutes and remove from oven. Let cool for 20 minutes and remove the rim from cheesecake, and slide the cheesecake off of the baking pan onto a plate, and chill. Cut and serve. Sprinkle with cocoa powder.

Simple Sea Scallops

Large sea scallops fresh from the Pacific Ocean. Pat them dry with a paper towel before cooking. Cook over medium heat in a non-stick skillet with salted butter and serve. Don't overcook them, just a few minutes on each side. Add lemon, capers, or white wine to the sauce if you'd like. Tonight was just a simple cook. The scallops taste sweet and the house smells great. Serve it up with a salad and homemade bread.
 

Garlic Parmesan Rolls

This recipe is part of my experimentation with baking different types of bread, aside from the rosemary bread I love to bake on a regular basis. I need to broaden my bread baking horizons so I found a few recipes online for breadsticks and changed them up a bit to come up with these rolls. They are garlicky and soft and hard to stop eating. They freeze well and thaw quickly.

1 cup + 2 tablespoons warm water    

2 tablespoons sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast

4 tablespoons salted butter, melted 

3 cups all-purpose flour

Topping:

4 tablespoons salted butter, melted

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon dried parsley

1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated

In your stand mixer, add the dough hook and mix the first five ingredients on low. Slowly add in the flour. Once things are mixed well increase the speed to medium and let the dough knead for seven minutes. 

Put dough in a bowl lightly sprayed with oil and cover for 90 minutes. I set mine on top of my stove and heat the oven to 200 degrees while rising. 

Divide the dough into 16 pieces and roll into the shape of a ball. Place on a baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Cover and let rise another hour.

Preheat oven to 400. Uncover the rolls and bake at 400 for about 17 minutes. They should be dark golden brown on the bottom. Melt butter together with garlic powder and parsley and brush on the rolls as soon as you take them out of the oven. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese while the rolls are still hot. 

Cold Sesame Noodles with Veggies & Peanut Sauce

Have you ever tried cold sesame noodles at an Asian restaurant? Good, huh? This recipe takes it farther and results in something even better. A cold sesame noodle dish packed with flavor, crunchy veggies, and peanut sauce--and the ginger is so good--it almost makes the dish. This salad is filling, pretty good for you dang it, and includes a crowd favorite--peanut butter. It makes about 10 cups so enough for a crowd. You can easily cut the recipe in half. It makes a lot of peanut sauce and I didn't put it all in the with the noodles. Saved some for grilled chicken breasts later in the week. Here's what you'll need:

 
1 16 oz package whole grain thin spaghetti noodles

Peanut Sauce:
1 cup creamy peanut butter

1 cup water
1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup rice vinegar
2 tablespoons chili oil
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, peeled and minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Veggies:
2 green onions, thinly sliced
1/2 cucumber, unpeeled, cut lengthwise in half & thinly sliced crosswise
1 medium carrot, cut into thin strips

Get the noodles cooking according to package directions, rinse with cold water, and drain. 

In a medium bowl, whisk together peanut sauce ingredients.

Add the sauce to the noodles in a large bowl and mix together well. Chill, serve, and top with veggies. Or, throw the veggies in with the peanut sauce and mix it all together.

Simple Fruit Salad

I'm blogging this just for the pretty photo. The salad keeps well covered tightly with foil. Fresh pineapple, strawberries, and giant green grapes all sliced up in a big bowl. Delicious! Eat more fruit.

Pastor Ryan's Bolognese Sauce

From:

https://www.thepioneerwoman.com/food-cooking/recipes/a8877/ryans-bolognese-sauce/

Baked Ziti with Hot Italian Sausage

This is one of my Dad's recipes from his foodie files...so delicious and perfect comfort food. Here's everything you'll need:

12 oz hot Italian sausage, casing removed

1 TBSP olive oil
1 medium onion, diced

1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes
2 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp dried basil
½ tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
1/2 tsp crushed fennel seed (optional)
1 tsp salt

8 oz ricotta cheese
½ c Parmesan cheese, grated
¼ c fresh parsley, chopped

8 oz ziti (or similar tube pasta)

8 oz shredded mozzarella cheese (or fresh mozzarella)

Heat the oven to 425 degrees. In a large sauté pan, cook the sausage for 5 minutes, breaking the sausage up as it cooks. Drain and set aside.

Heat the oil in the pan and sauté the onions until softened. Return the sausage to the pan. Add the next 6 ingredients. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes.

Mix the ricotta, Parmesan and parsley in a bowl. Cook the pasta according to package directions.

Drain the pasta and stir in the ricotta mixture. Add the sauce to the pot. Mix well and pour into a greased 4-5 qt baking dish. Sprinkle the mozzarella on top. Bake for 20-25 minutes.