A Jeanne in the Kitchen

Americans LOVE their chocolate. No doubt about it. In fact, the average American consumes about 9.5 lbs of chocolate every year. It is estimated that Americans will consume the equivalent of about 10,000 chocolate bars over the course of their life. WOW! We are second to the Swiss, who eat about 11.8 lbs per year, but we’re quickly catching up.

We also love our cookies. Nearly 93% of American households serve cookies, and most of the cookies served are chocolate chip, or some other chocolate variety. Cookies came to America through the Dutch in New Amsterdam in the late 1620s. The Dutch word “koekje” was Anglicized to “cookie” or cooky. The earliest reference to cookies in America is in 1703. So they have been around longer than America as a country has been. We love our cookies for a lot of reasons, but mainly because they are good comfort food, that often remind us of happy childhood memories and fun times, that, and … they taste good. The cookie possibilities are endless, and they come in so many shapes, sizes and varieties. Cookies have always been my favorite dessert, and most probably always will be. Mrs. Nash, my second mom while growing up, made cookies everyday, and everyday when Kathy and I were playing or after school, we always had a wide variety of delicious cookies as a snack. The house always smelled so good too. 🙂

When you combine chocolate and cookies together, well that is just a little bit of Heaven in every bite. How could you go wrong???? With it still being July, America’s birthday month, I decided to make some patriotic cookies to celebrate.

These are just chocolate cookies with red, white and blue M & M’s, but they are still fun and still taste very good. I used the same recipe for the chocolate peanut butter chip cookies, and just substituted the M & M’s instead. I also just place them on top so they would really pop rather than incorporating them into the mix.

Chocolate M & M Cookies

2 1/2 cups flour

3/4 cup cocoa powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/4 cups softened butter or 2 1/2 sticks

2 cups sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp chocolate extract

1 10-oz package of M & M’s

Preheat the oven to 350* F or 190* C.

Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Combine all the dry ingredients together and set aside.

Mix the butter and sugar together until creamy. Add the eggs 1 at a time, mixing in between. Add the vanilla and chocolate extract and mix again. You do not have to add the chocolate extract, however, it really makes the flavors pop. If you don’t use chocolate extract, use 2 tsp of vanilla instead. Add the flour 1/2 at a time, mixing in between until everything is blended together.

You can either fold in the M& M’s at this time, or leave them for the end and just place on top of the cookies.

Drop about 1 TBSP of cookie dough onto the prepared pans, roll into a ball, and lightly press to slightly flatten them if you like. Bake for about 10-12 minutes or until the cookies are set. Allow the cookies to cool for about 5-10 minutes on the pan before transferring them to a baking rack to finish cooling.

Share with friends and savor the flavors.

In my book, there is nothing better than fresh, homemade cookies. YUMMY!!!!!

Have a great day and make everyday great. Stay cool, stay safe and stay well. ‘Til next time.

I thought I was going out early enough to avoid the heat. WRONG! It was still very hot. At first I didn’t see much at all, but I just had to look more closely. There was lots to see, even somethings I didn’t want to see, like a big bull snake slithering along the sidewalk, or another snakeskin in the grass or the dead goose on the rocks. But there were lots more things I enjoyed seeing, which made it a good walk indeed.

One of my neighbors always has such a beautiful garden, and she had moths, bees and a beetle or two in her garden that captured my attention.

Up the road, and on another lake, one of my other neighbors, who also always has a gorgeous garden, had a curious dragonfly perched on a stalk that was posing for me as well.

It was a good day, despite the snake. Despite the things we like, there are always more things we do like. Focus on the good things in life and make everyday a great day.

As you know, I like to give you all a bit of variety, to spice things up. So today, I thought I would share more food thoughts with you. Here are some quotes and quips that the pros are saying about why we cook. We get into cooking for the love of creating and sharing with others. Cooking for others is an act of love and it comes from the heart.

This so very true. You can read a recipe, and cook it, but you must always add that special ingredient called love to really bring it to life. 🙂

Inspiration comes from the produce, beautiful vegetables, delicious herbs, an amazing piece of fish, incredible meats. – Chef Aaron Bludorn

Also very true. I am inspired by seeing beautiful foods. The foods themselves are my muse. What I cook and prepare is from their inspiration to me.

Yes, yes, and yes!!!!!

Cooking for someone is a form of love for them. They are sharing their best for you.

Well said. It sure is.

Have a great day and make everyday great. Stay safe and stay well, and happy cooking. ‘Til next time.

I love sunflowers. They seem to be such happy flowers, always facing the direction of the sun. They come in many different, sizes, varieties and even colors, though most are a bright gold. They are popping up all over the place right now. Here are some different flowers of the sun that just captured my attention and looked pretty basking in the sun.

Even my own sunflowers are shining brightly. Dorrie and Juneau had to check them out too.

Have a bright, bright, sunshiny day.

I remember my niece had told me about someone she knew who would invite her over for dinner and ONLY serve an entree, with NO side dishes or anything else. That just seems so wrong and so odd to me. I do not get this concept at all. When I have people over, I do the opposite, and serve a bunch of different side dishes. I NEVER want to run out of food, though in my kitchen, that will never happen. But then again, I do love to cook, and I am Jeanne, from “A Jeanne in the Kitchen”. 🙂

Side dishes help make the meal and make it memorable. Yesterday, I shared my smoky BBQ sauce and short ribs with you. Spicy, Smoky Slow-Cooked Short Ribs Today I will give you the recipe for the broccoli and grape salad I served alongside those ribs.

Broccoli Grape and Bacon Salad

Just like with any good recipe, there are many different versions out there. As always, there are too many good recipes and not nearly enough time to try them all. My motto though, is to never stop trying. 🙂 This cool and refreshing salad is loaded with healthy nutrients that will help cool you down on those hot dog days of summer, and will tickle those taste buds as well.

1 large head of broccoli cut into florets and blanched

1 cup mixed grapes, cut in 1/2

1/2 cup toasted pecans, chopped

1/3 red onion, sliced very thin

4-5 bacon slices, cooked and crumbled

1/2 cup mayonnaise

2 TBSP apple cider vinegar

1/3 cup honey

1/4 tsp dry mustard

salt & pepper to taste

dash cayenne pepper – a dash is usually about 1/8 tsp

Cut the broccoli into small florets, and blanche them for about 5 minutes in boiling water. Drain and rinse in ice cold water immediately after, to stop the cooking process.

Once the broccoli is ready, toss it together with the grapes, bacon, pecans and red onions.

Combine the mayonnaise, seasonings, honey and apple cider vinegar, then use just what you need in the vegetable mixture. You don’t want to use too much or else the vegetables will be swimming in dressing.

Toss everything together and either serve right away or cover and refrigerate until you are ready to enjoy it with the meal.

You can vary this recipe by substituting cherries for the grapes, and/or using dried cranberries too. As I always say, don’t be afraid to play with your food. Have fun, be creative and see what happens.

Have a great day and make everyday great. Stay cool, stay safe and stay well. ‘Til next time.

I have to admit, I haven’t been out walking much lately due to the heat. In the early days of summer, it was very cool and even very rainy and wet. I loved the cooler weather. Once we got back from Hays, KS to pick up Dorrie, however, the weather made a very dramatic HOT, HOT, HOT change. Ever since our return home, the temperatures have been in the very high 90’s, almost 100*F, almost everyday. It gets super hot super early. Fortunately, I have tons of pictures I can share.

Here are some pictures of more squirrels, out playing and having fun.

Have a squirrely kind of day and have fun . 🙂

Larry likes his ribs. He likes all kinds of ribs. I am not overly fond of ribs, but if I am going to eat them, I prefer the beef short ribs. They are meatier and less fatty. That being said, you can guess, it was a rib night.

Larry had smoked some ribs the other day, but they were still tough and needed to be slow cooked. I did just that too. I slow cooked them in a spicy, smoky sauce for about 4-5 hours and they came out so tender. It was yet another oppressively hot day, so something that did not require me standing over a hot stove was a perfect choice for dinner. I made a cool broccoli and grape salad to go with it as well. Again, something cool was the plan.

There are all recipes for all kinds of BBQ sauces. You can make them sweet, spicy, smoky, tangy, or a combination of any or all. There is something for everyone. I like a combination of a slightly sweet, tangy, smoky, spicy sauce. This version had it all.

Spicy, Smoky, Slow-Cooked Short Ribs

2-3 lbs beef short ribs

1-2 tsp chili powder

1-2 tsp aji amarillo garlic seasoning, optional

1 TBSP garlic

2 TBSP dried onion

1/2 tsp celery seed

salt & pepper to taste

1 tsp cayenne pepper, or to taste

1 tsp dried mustard

3/4 cup catsup

2 TBSP Tabasco sauce, any variety

2 TBSP Chaloula Sauce, optional

1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar

2 TBSP flavored balsamic vinegar – I think I used Cara-Cara orange this time

1 1/2 tsp liquid dry smoke

1/3 cup water

3 TBSP flour

Add the water to the bottom of the slow cooker, then place the ribs on top. Combine all the other ingredients together and mix well, then pour over the ribs.

Cover and cook and walk away. You can cook them really slow, for about 10 or so hours on a low temperature, or you can speed it up a bit, and cook at medium-high for about 5 hours. Either way, you are going to come out with some very tender ribs, where the meat will just fall off the bone.

You can use this same sauce for just about anything that you like with a BBQed flavor. It will work with chicken, pork, beef or sausage too.

I served it with our left over mashed potatoes and a broccoli grape salad (more on that later), with a cool, refreshing mermaid on the side. A mermaid is like a Moscow mule only Blue Curacao is added to make it blue. I made it with a little vodka, limeade, ginger beer and Blue Curacao. It hit the spot too.

Juneau made a cameo appearance here too. It looks like she is taunting her sister, Dorrie.

Have a great day and make everyday great. Stay cool, stay safe and stay well. ‘Til next time.

There are so many gorgeous flowers showing off their vibrant colors right now. We have all colors proudly on display. Today, I am giving you some of our prettiest purple flowers that have popped up recently. So many different beautiful flowers in all shades of beautiful purples.

Color your world purple today.

Shrimp, also known as prawns, langostinos, camarones, gambon, crevettes, and many other names to boot, are some of my absolute favorite seafood options around. I love them, no matter what you call them or how they are fixed. Shrimp and/or prawns are universal and are found just about everywhere. That means, there are infinite recipes and ways to prepare them too.

As you all know, I am a very adventurous eater. I love to travel and I love to experiment with new things, new ideas and new recipes, from all over the world. Because of this, as well as my restaurant/catering background, I also have a wide array of different cookbooks, from many different ethnicities from around the world. One of my African books has been on my desk ( as well as many others) for a few weeks now, so I was perusing through it to see if it had some good shrimp recipes. Of course it did. And of course, I did what I always do, and started with one recipe and by the time I was finished, I had created something completely different. I use recipes as guides, and then let my creative juices flow how they will.

I was going to make some South African shrimp strudel with a piri-piri sauce, which is Swahili for a pepper sauce. But …. as usual, it turned it something completely different, yet just as good, if not better. 🙂 I made South African inspired shrimp pockets with a piri-piri sauce instead. They were like South African shrimp empanadas.

This is an example of what all my recipes look like at the end of my creative process. 🙂

I really didn’t follow the recipe at all, but it did inspire me to make what I did. Typical. This is just how I roll. 🙂

South African Shrimp Pockets

my basic go-to dough with cayenne pepper and aji amarillo garlic seasoning

1 lb large shrimp or prawns, peeled and deveined

1 TBSP garlic

1/4 red onion, diced fine

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 tomato, diced

1 jalapeno, diced fine

salt & pepper to taste

red pepper flakes to taste

1 tsp cumin

1 TBSP paprika

2-3 TBSP olive oil

2 TBSP lemon olive oil

4 TBSP butter

lemon verbena, chiffonade

cilantro, chopped

1 cup heavy whipping cream

1 1/4 cup dry white wine

Make the dough first. I used my basic go-to dough, and added some cumin, cayenne pepper and aji amarillo garlic seasoning. The Empanada Party – Part 1 – Beef Empanadas

Let the dough set in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before using.

Preheat the oven to 375* F or 191*C.

Spray a baking dish with cooking spray.

Cut most of the shrimp into large pieces, saving some whole for the topping later. Sautee the shrimp in the olive oil and lemon olive oil until completely pink, for about 3 minutes. Remove and set aside.

Add the peppers, onions, garlic and seasonings, for about 3 minutes, or until the onions are translucent and the vegetables begin to soften. Add the tomato right at the end. Once the vegetables are cooked, remove them and add to the shrimp. Mix together well.

Deglaze the pan with the wine and cook for about about 2 minutes, or until most of the liquid has evaporated.

Add the cream. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook down for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the butter and incorporate thoroughly. Turn off the heat. Add most of the cilantro and lemon verbena, saving some for the topping later.

Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface. Roll it out thin. Cut into circles or rectangles. Add about 2-3 TBSP of the shrimp and vegetable mixture into the center, then fold the dough over and firmly pinch the sides together. Save some of the mixture to add into the sauce.

Place the pockets into the prepared baking pan and bake for about 30 minutes, carefully flipping them over after about 15 minutes, so they can cook and brown evenly. These are fragile pockets. Handle with care.

When the pockets are done, serve them over rice, top with the sauce, and the remaining whole shrimp, and a little fresh cilantro and/or lemon verbena. I used the rest of my black eyed peas with tomatoes Black-Eyed Peas With Spinach And Tomatoes and mixed that into the rice with some spicy sausage, making it more authentically African in nature.

And in no time at all, you have made a culinary trip to the African continent in the comfort of your own kitchen. Bon Appetit! Bon Hamu!

Have a great day and make everyday great. Stay safe and stay well. ‘Til next time.

Lately, I haven’t had to go very far to see all kinds of good things, which is really nice since it has been so oppressively hot. The trees right out behind our deck have been having all kinds of visitors there. We have been getting a lot of hummingbirds play in those treetops, and now we are getting quite a few dragonflies too.

I had to really zoom in for these, because it still about 75 yards away from our deck, and way up high too, so my shots aren’t great, but they are decent, especially since these are tiny critters to begin with.

My dragonflies came out much better than my hummingbirds. I have a good camera, a very good camera, but NOT a great camera. I apologize for the poor quality of these photos. It is what it is.

Speaking of decent photos, I haven’t heard anything regarding all the photos I submitted to our local photo contest. I would have thought that at least one or two would have been acknowledged. Oh well. Again, it is what it is.

Have a great day and make everyday great.