What's Cooking? - F'oat Cheese or Faux Goat Cheese

I love Goat cheese, but sometimes it can be so expensive or not readily available. I made this easy spread when I wanted some goat cheese for my homemade Tapenade, but couldn't afford it. It came in handy when my DD was pregnant and not allowed to eat goat cheese too.

F'oat Cheese


1 package creamed cheese
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

Soften the Creamed cheese and mix with Parmesan. You can add herbs or garlic if you like.

This is so great on French bread or crackers with a bit of tapenade on top.

What's Cooking - Corn Souffle

Sunrise on the lake this morning was beautiful. Variegated bands of Rose and Aqua, through the bare trees, reflected on the lake. The bare trees reminded me that somehow I missed the fall colors this year. I think it didn't last long, and I was a very busy girl woman.

I've missed a bit here, so I want to make it up to you. Some of my family Thanksgiving recipes. Here's one that we wouldn't love without, or would the kids. We call it Corn Souffle, but it's also called Corn Scallop and our version is not so fluffy, so Scallop might be a better name. Maybe Corn Casserole is best. Call it whatever you want. It's out of this world.

CORN SOUFFLE                                                  

1 can whole kernel corn undrained

1 can cream style corn

2 eggs slightly beaten

1 cup sour cream

1 small package of corn muffin mix (like Jiffy)

dash of salt 

Mix all ingredients by hand until dry mix is moistened and ingredients are distributed well.

Pour into a greased casserole or souffle dish. Bake at 350 deg F for 35 to 40 minutes. It should be moist and firm, but not wet in the middle. Top should be lightly brown. It will puff up in the oven, but flatten back when cooled.

Serve warm. I like to add a pat of butter on top to make mine even more decadent.

What's Cooking? - Shrimp Brains

Aaah Halloween. We love it here in this household. We always have a feast after Trick or Treat. For the next few weeks I'm going to share some of our favorite Halloween recipes.

This is an old recipe, you might remember it from the 80s. But the twist is to put it in a brain shaped mold.  Add some Red Pepper "Bloody Fingers" and Green Olive "Monster Eyes" to pretty it up.

SHRIMP MOLD

2 cans shrimp, drained and chopped, or 2 cups cooked chopped shrimp
8 oz package cream cheese
1 can tomato soup
2 envelopes unflavored gelatin
1/2 cup cold water
1 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup chopped celery
1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
dash of Tabasco

Melt cream cheese and soup in a saucepan over low heat. Remove from heat. Add gelatin to cold water and dissolve. Add gelatin mixture to soup mixture. Add shrimp, vegetables and mayonnaise and mix well. Pour into oiled mold. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

To unmold, place mold in warm water for a minute. Put your plate on open side of mold and quickly invert. Your "brains" should fall out easily. Serve as a spread with your favorite crackers. For super gross, bloody brains, drizzle a bit of ketchup around the "brain" it won't really affect the taste much, because the mold already contains tomato.

What's Cooking - 20 minute Chili

Ever have a craving for Chili, but just didn't plan enough in advance to make it? When my kids were young, I was working and going to college. Talk about having no time.

I came up with this recipe one crisp Autumn day, when I really wanted a pot of chili, but just didn't have the time to make a pot to simmer all day. I called it Dump Chili, because all you do is dump ingredients, but because the term might be taken the wrong way, I'll call it 20 minute Chili.

20 Minute Chili Ingredients

1 lb ground beef (or turkey)
2 - 15 oz cans of beans (dark and light kidney or kidney and red)
1 - 26 oz can of seasoned spaghetti sauce
1 - 28 oz can of whole tomatoes drained and crushed
1 - 15 oz jar chunky salsa (mild to hot depending on taste)
garlic powder to taste
chili powder to taste
Optional - sugar - cinnamon

Directions:

Brown ground meat in pot. Dump in all the other ingredients. Season to taste and simmer for 20 minutes.  Serve with some shredded cheddar on top.

There, wasn't that easy? The really great thing about this is that it uses ingredients most of us have in our cupboards anyway. I never made this vegan style, but I'll bet if you omit the meat and add one more can of beans, you'll have a great vegan chili too.

The reason it works - Most of your ingredients are already simmered to perfection. Spaghetti sauce has seasoning that is used in real Chili, like oregano, and salsa has the right mix of peppers and onions (At least that's the kind I look for).

Optional ingredients: We love Cincinnati style Chili and always add a bit of sugar and cinnamon to ours.

Now of course this won't taste exactly the same as the Chili you've simmered all day, it's a bit fresher tasting, but a darn good quick substitute. Also the sodium content is sky high, so if you are watching your sodium, beware. I can't really eat this anymore. I have to make mine with low sodium tomatoes and reconstituted dried beans.