Author: ajeanneinthekitchen

Many of you might already know about the problems I have been having with my internet/blogging connections. I have been unable to receive any of your blogs or notifications, and many of you have not been able to receive mine either. This has gone on for about 2 months. I have sent many nastygrams to CenturyLink, to no avail, and have been in contact with WordPress the whole time too. I found WordPress to be very helpful. CenturyLink, on the other hand, not so much. I even switched my email provider for my blogs to my other account. They now come in through my gmail account. But I was still not able to receive your blogs and notifications. Well, it turns our that somehow, my email notification button had been turned off. I did not do this, and I don’t know why this was never brought to my attention sooner. But … long story short, all has now been fixed (I hope), and everything should be running smoothly once again. Thank you all for your patience and understanding while I was going through a rough spot of nothing but technical difficulties. I was not ignoring you. I wasn’t getting your notifications.

I have told you many times I could easily make a meal out of nothing but bread and be a very happy camper. I LOVE breads of all kinds. I love making breads too. I find it very relaxing to work with and knead the dough. My most recent bread making experience was this “crusty cob” bread. It is actually like a very crusty sourdough, made with only five ingredients.

A crusty cob bread is a very old bread with its roots coming from England during the medieval times. It was known as bottom bread because it was cooked at the bottom of the stone ovens. A cob bread is known as a round loaf of bread in England and in all the British colonies. Today, these cob breads are made with both white and wheat flours, but traditionally, they were made with wheat flour.

Crusty Cob Bread

4 cups of flour + extra for dusting

1 TBSP salt

1 oz or 2 TBSP dry active yeast

1/2 stick of butter, softened

1 1/4 cups warm water

Mix the flour, salt, yeast and butter together. Then add most of the water and mix it in to the mixture. Mix until the dough starts to form.

Add the rest of the water and combine thoroughly to make your dough. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about 5 minutes or until the dough forms into a ball.

Place the dough back into the bowl, cover it and let it rise for 2 hours. I like to oil my bowl so the dough does not stick to it.

After the dough has risen for the first rise, reshape it back into a ball and place it on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Cover it once again. and let it rise again for another hour.

Preheat the oven to 425* F or 220* C.

With a sharp, serrated knife, score the top of the bread. This helps release the gasses from the bread while baking. Sprinkle a little flour on top of the bread. The flour on top prevents the dough from sticking to any surfaces while rising.

Bake for 30 minutes or until the bread is golden and hollow when tapping on it from the bottom.

This bread is best served when hot with soft, creamy butter smeared on top. YUM! I could easily live on bread and butter. Marie Antoinette may have said “let them eat cake”, but I say let them eat bread.

Stay safe and stay well Everyone. ‘Til next time.

I know I said I would post this recipe a few days ago, and I am late in posting it, but you know, life happens, and it’s all good. When we had our fried chicken, I decided to make some good old downhome sides to go with it. A Downhome Kind of Meal – Part 1 – The Vegetables Now, I am finally getting around to the sweet potatoes. Anticipation. It’s good for us. 🙂

I used the same Cajun/Creole spice mix for the sweet potatoes that I did for my Creole zucchini and tomatoes, and also for my jambalaya, and also added a red onion and some bacon. That’s it. That’s all that was needed to turn these sweet potatoes from plain to exciting. Video #11 – Making Jambalaya Creole Style These sweet potatoes are so easy and simple to make, but they taste great.

Sweet Potatoes with Bacon and Onions

The Cajun/Creole Spice Mix

4 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed

1 red onion, sliced very thin or diced fine

6 pieces of bacon, cubed

2 TBSP Cajun/Creole mix

olive oil and/or butter for cooking

Cook the bacon until crisp. Then remove the bacon and set aside. Add the oil and/or butter and the sweet potatoes. Stir often so they don’t burn. Cook until the sweet potatoes are browned and crispy. Then add the spices and the onions and re-add the bacon.

Cover and cook for about 5-10 minutes, then serve next to your favorite entre. You’re going to love it. I garr-un-tee it!

I love sweet potatoes anyway, and they are very healthy for you, but they are even better when cooked with bacon, though I have to admit, not nearly as healthy. We all know EVRYTHING is better with bacon. 🙂

Stay safe and stay well Everyone. ‘Til next time.

We love doing our little monthly drives, exploring all the beauty Colorado has to offer. And Colorado is most definitely a beautiful state too. This time, we took our big boy, Vinnie, with us as well. Usually we go on our own, but this time we thought Vinnie needed a break. Vinnie was all too excited about his big bye-bye trip.

We drove up through the Squaw Pass, and came home down through Evergreen. Squaw Pass is up there, with the elevation at 9,790 feet. There were times when we were literally driving through the clouds to reach the top. It was so cool and surreal, and even a bit mystical.

Once we got through the clouds, it was bright blue skies. It was a bit deceiving though, because it looks like it would be nice and warm, but at the highest point, the temperature was 32* F or 0*C. It got warmer as we got further down, but it was still a nice cool and chilly fall day.

It is also the perfect time of year to go leafing, or seeing the colors of the aspens change. The colors were in bright golds and orange, with hints of red, and were just breathtaking.

Whenever we take these drives, I am always on the lookout for critters. Today, the only critter we saw other than our own big boy, was a small black-tailed ground squirrel. He was just so darn cute.

Vinnie thoroughly enjoyed his big day out. We haven’t been able to take the dogs much lately, because Lucie couldn’t do it, and we didn’t think it was fair to take Vinnie and leave Lucie at home. So this was a special treat for Vinnie. He was king of the rock.

Then he became the leader of our wildlife expedition and trek through the mountains. He was totally loving it, leaving his mark at every tree and sniffing out all the new smells and scents.

Vinnie lead us on a trail that was about 1-1 1/2 miles in each direction. He was a good lead and scout too; until there was another dog. Then he felt like he had to prove he was the lead dog.

Stay safe and stay well Everyone. ‘Til next time.

It was out 17th wedding anniversary yesterday. We celebrated the day with a beautiful drive up through the mountains with our big boy Vinnie. After dropping him off at home, we freshened up a bit and went to Carrabba’s Italian Grill for a delicious Italian dinner. Larry wanted me to cook, and when I refused, he said he would cook, and serve up some leftovers. UMMMMM, NO!!!!!!!! I cook everyday, I was NOT going to cook on our anniversary, nor did I want leftovers either. So we chose to go to Carrabba’s instead. That was indeed a very good choice. We don’t go out to eat all that often, unless we are traveling, but every now and then we do. We always love our dinners at Carrabba’s Italian Grill. The food is always fresh and delicious and there is always so much of it too.

Carrabba’s is a chain restaurant, and usually I try to write about the smaller, independent restaurants instead of the chain restaurants, but good food deserves a shout out regardless of where it comes from, and this was most definitely very good food. Carrabba’s Italian Grill is owned by Bloomin’ Brands, Inc., the same company that owns a lot of other national restaurant chains, like Outback Steakhouse, Bonefish Grill, and Flemings Prime Steakhouse and Wine Bar. Carrabba’s is an Italian-American restaurant best known for its wood-burning grill, that is the inspiration for so many great Italian dishes and recipes.

When we first sat down, we were greeted with some delicious warm bread and a pesto dipping sauce. I could very easily make a meal just on the bread alone, and all too often I fill up on bread and then don’t have room for my dinner when it comes. Although I was good this time, and did not fill up on bread, I was still too full to finish my dinner.

For our main meals, Larry ordered lasagna. Lasagna is one dish I don’t cook all that often at home because I am not a big cheese fan, and particularly not ricotta cheese. Both of our meals came with the choice of soup or salad. Larry ordered a salad to go with his meal. I was cold and soup just seemed to hit the spot, so I ordered the sausage and lentil soup as my starter. Both were very good.

Larry’s lasagna was just what he was hoping it would be and he ate every bite. It was loaded with with both pomodoro sauce and meat sauce, and ricotta, Pargmigiano, romano and mozzarella cheese.

Being the seafood lover that I am, particularly when it comes to shrimp and/or scallops, I ordered the Spiedino di Mare, or breaded shrimp and scallops topped with lemon butter, with fettuccine Alfredo as my side dish. I only ate half of my dinner, so I get to enjoy it once again for lunch. Both the shrimp and the scallops were grilled to perfection and the pasta was very light and filled with flavor.

Once again, we left very full and very satisfied. We went to the Carrabba’s Italian Grill in Westminster, CO, located at 7401 W. 92nd Avenue. Look for the Carrabba’s near you for a delicious Italian-American meal. !Mangia!

Stay safe and stay well Everyone. ‘Til next time

I am still in a Cajun/Creole state of mind. It’s funny how I go through phases and I do a lot of cooking in a specific type or cultural style and then, move on to the next one. I guess Larry has been hungry for jambalaya for awhile, though he never mentioned it until just now. He is actually the one that suggested this dish for my latest video. So jambalaya it is. You know when I bring out the big pot that there is going to be a lot of it, no matter what “it” is. And true to form, we do have a lot of jambalaya. Any takers?

Southern cooking, especially when cooking the “poor man’s food” is about cooking with whatever ingredients you have on hand at the time. This also allows for a lot of variations and subtle differences from each time you prepare a dish. That makes it fun and a bit more exciting too. Here are the ingredients I used this time. Who knows, next time I make jambalaya, it may be different again, but the basics are the same, and the techniques and cooking methods are the same.

And here it is … Video #11. Can you believe I’ve done 11 already? Time sure does fly by when you’re having fun. As always, if you like it, please subscribe to my YouTube page, and if you really like it, please share it with your friends and families too. 🙂

Laissez le bontemps roulez! Let the good times roll.

Stay safe and stay well Everyone. ‘Til next time.

It was a good fried chicken kind of night. Fried chicken is good Southern comfort food, at least it is for me. I did not make the fried chicken. I certainly can, but why when Safeway already does such a good job of it and they make it very affordable too. I needed some good Southern side dishes to go along with our fried chicken. So I made some Creole zucchini and tomatoes and some Creole sweet potatoes with bacon and onions.

Creole and Cajon foods are native foods from Louisiana, and were born in the Spanish colonial period. They are cooking styles that are influenced from many different cultures from around the world, such as African, Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, Caribbean and Native American, just to name a few. These started out as the poor man’s food, and were a combination of whatever was around at the time of cooking, meaning every time you cooked a dish, it might be a little different than it was before. That’s perfectly OK. That’s just called Southern cooking. Creole cooking uses tomatoes and tomato bases in their recipes, whereas Cajun cooking does not. Cajun seasoning relies on the use of many peppers, such as white and black pepper, bell peppers and cayenne peppers. This cuisine also incorporates paprika and garlic.  Creole seasoning primarily relies on herbs like oregano, bay leaf, basil, thyme, rosemary, parsley and paprika. But today, the two styles are intertwined and it is hard to tell the difference between the two. Some say the difference between Cajun food and Creole food is that Cajun is more rural and less, “upbrow” whereas Creole is more city food, and is a little fancier.

Fried chicken is about as simple and downhome as you can get. Both my Creole zucchini and tomatoes and sweet potatoes with bacon and onions were very simple too. But don’t downplay simple. Simple is still delicious!

The common seasoning used for both my Creole zucchini and my sweet potatoes was the Cajun/Creole seasoning blend. This can be used to spice anything up and give it a little Southern flavoring. I very rarely add garlic powder or dried onions though, because I prefer fresh garlic and onions and use them both for almost everything I cook.

Cajun/Creole Seasoning Blend

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried basil

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp salt

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp dried onions

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp white pepper

Mix everything together and use for whatever you want to kick things up a bit.

Creole Zucchini and Tomatoes

1 shallot, sliced thin

1 TBSP garlic

1 zucchini, sliced

1 yellow squash or a couple of sunburst squash, sliced

2 tomatoes, diced

1 TBSP Cajun/Creole seasoning

1 TBSP Worcestershire sauce

olive oil and/or butter

Sautee the shallot, garlic, squash and seasonings together in the olive oil and/or butter for about 5 minutes. I like to use both, especially when cooking vegetables.

Add the Worcestershire sauce and combine thoroughly. Then add the tomatoes. Cover and steam for about 20 minutes or until the squash is tender.

I grew up cooking vegetables this way. This is just how I always made them. Little did I know there was actually a name for this style of vegetables. It just goes to show, there is always something new to learn. 🙂

Today, I give you the vegetables. Tomorrow I will present the sweet potatoes. Hang tight. Don’t go away. I’ll be be back. I promise. 🙂

Stay safe and stay well Everyone. ‘Til next time.

Have I mentioned how much I just love Fall? It is truly my favorite season. I love all the unpredictability. I love all the warm rich colors, and seeing them change. I love the warmer days and cooler nights. And I certainly love all the Fall flavors.

Today’s walk was a quiet walk around the lakes, but the Fall colors were in all their glory.

I think this is a crab apple tree, but I am not sure. Whatever it is, I like it, and it was full of fruit.

The tall grasses were dancing in the breeze.

The trees were proudly displaying their Fall colors.

The last of the willows.

Ducks and birds out enjoying their day.

And there was a friendly squirrel who was posing for the camera. I was willing to take as many pictures of him as he would allow. He was having so much fun, and so was I.

Here’s looking at you, Kid.

Have a beautiful day.

We are fair weather salad eaters. In the spring and summer, we eat a lot of salads as our main meal. But during the cooler months, we tend to eat them only as a side dish, although there are some very good fall salads that could easily transition to being a complete meal in and of themselves too. For our recent Fall Feast, I made a salad with roasted butternut squash and a pomegranate dressing that could easily be a meal. All I would need to do to make this warm comforting salad into a meal would be to add chicken or turkey to it, and voila, a meal is made.

I guess I was distracted when I made this salad though, because I forgot to take pictures as I was making it. Silly, silly me. This picture will have to do. It is the picture from the cookbook that I got the recipe from. Doesn’t it look delicious? Believe me, it really was as good as it looks too.

Salad with Roasted Butternut Squash and Pomegranate Dressing

3-4 cups mixed salad greens or mustard greens

1 large acorn squash, sliced with the skin kept on

salt & pepper to taste

3/4 cup olive oil, divided

1/2-3/4 cup pitted dates, cut in 1/2

1/2 cup pomegranate seeds

1/4 cup pomemgranate juice

2 TBSP honey

1 tsp garam masala

Preheat the oven to 425* F.

Coat the squash in salt, pepper and olive oil and roast for about 20 minutes or until it is soft.

Mix the remainder of the olive oil, honey, pomegranate juice and garam masala together to make the dressing. Add more black pepper if needed.

Combine the salad greens, dates, butternut squash and pomegranate seeds and toss with just enough dressing to coat the salad, right before serving. Top with more pomegranate seeds.

This salad is filled with warm, sweet goodness that will most definitely satisfy your taste buds.

I am also attaching the link for Julia’s sourdough crackers. Those were oh so good, and went very well with this salad as well. Thank you Julia for introducing us to these fabulous crackers. YUM! Not only is Julia my friend, but she is a blogger as well. You can check out her recipes what is going on in her world at Retirement RV Dream. Here is the link to her sourdough discard crackers.

Stay safe and stay well Everyone. ‘Til next time

We have all heard the phrase “beauty is in the eye of the beholder”. I think this is so true. Beauty is all around us, everywhere we go. We just have to open our eyes and maybe our minds to truly see it.

Today, I decided to walk yet another new path, that is also just a hop, skip and a jump away from my house. I have to admit, it was not my favorite walk, but there were still beautiful things to see. As always, I had my camera at the ready, not knowing what we were going to capture or if we going to capture anything at all today. But lo and behold, there was still lots of beautiful things to see. There were lots of things that caught my eye.

There was a colorful piece of art representing our mountains running along the creek.

There were blooming cacti.

Moths resting on the flowers.

And lots of delicate little yellow and white flowers dotting the pathways.

Hope you all have a beautiful day.