Saturday with nothing to do …

So I baked my first cherry pie ever!

And what it lacked in photographic flair … it made up in fantastic taste!

Even the leftover pastry was perfectly flakey rolled up with a sprinkle of sugar and cinnamon.

 

The Only Way To Live With A Craving … Is To Feed It!

Well, Mlle. Renee heard it raining in the middle of the night and she came into my bedroom and woke me up to ask if she could sleep with me. Since it was the middle of the night, I would have prefered her just jumping into bed. But she’s just too polite. And besides, I had to roll over to make room for her. So I said, “Come on, get in here.”  Which she did, and she was back to sleep before I was. Thankfully, she doesn’t snore. I don’t know about me, but she’s never complained. Actually, I was glad she wanted to sleep in the bed, because my feet were starting to get cold and she warms them so well. Since it was very overcast, the house stayed rather gloomy and dark inside and we slept until    9:30. And then I woke up with a CRAVING for an old-fashioned warm apple crumb cake.

Realizing that could take a bit of time and effort, I seached my larder looking for short cuts.  And I found this …It was the basics that I needed! I opened the can of Grands Flaky Layers and pressed the five biscuits flatcovering the bottom and sides of a Pyrex pie plate. Then I spread the can of apple pie filling on top. Finally, I placed whole wheat flour, brown sugar, chopped pecans and cinnamon in a small bowl, mixed well and added a tablespoon of butter to make a crumb topping which I spread over the apples. I popped it into a 350 degree oven and baked for 30-minutes.

 

I let it cool a bit and cut a slice while it was still warm. It was flakey and fantastic! Crave fed and satisfied!

 

PICK PIC OF THE WEEK – ART THAT YOU CAN EAT

FULL MOON PANCAKE

“Golly gracious, sometimes it’s as much fun to play with your food as it is to eat it.”

Milton Bradley, Jr.

Rob’s Recipes for quick and easy GOOD EATS! Egg Salad

 This morning I realized that Easter was a week and a half ago and I had not made any egg salad from the decorated eggs. This was probably because I only had a single decorated egg this year. It’s the green one up in the corner on which my nephew had drawn his artistic impression of Mlle. Renee. When Renee saw it, she commented with a one-sided upturned, “How cute, I hope he washed his hands.”  Yes, she can be sarcastically droll at times. Besides, she didn’t think twice about sampling a spoonful of the pan-fried spinach* I topped with the sliced egg on Easter Monday.

So, I threw three eggs in a pot of cold water which I brought to a rolling boil before turn off the heat. I left them sit in the hot water for three or so minutes before pouring of the hot water and replacing it with very cold water. Then I cracked and peeled the eggs. The shells came off perfectly. I removed the yolks from the whites and mixed them with a teaspoon of sweet pickle relish, a half spoon each of creamed horseradish and stone-ground sweet/hot mustard, a sprinkle of salt, pepper and celery seed, and a tablespoon or so of Duke’s Real Mayonnaise. Then I chopped and added the egg whites along with a table spoonful of Shredded Italian 5-Cheese Blend. Combined everything and spread on sliced Oat-Nut Whole Grained bread. It could have been topped with a slice or two of iceberg lettuce, but I didn’t have any in the house.

Notice that I still had half the box of dark chocolate covered marshmallow eggs I treated myself to for Easter. So I had one of them for my lunch desert. I covered the remaining egg salad with plastic wrap and placed in the fridge for tomorrow’s lunch.

*Pan-fried Spinach 

None of my ancestors qualify as being Southern – even though my mother’s Polish/French grandparents arrived in the US via New Orleans in the mid-19th century. They got off of one boat and immediately got on another heading up the Mississippi to Saint Louis. There was a large community of Polish immigrants in Saint Louis and the surround  farm lands.The family recipe called for frying a couple of slices of bacon in a skillet until crisp. Removing the bacon and adding olive oil  and a chopped onion to the pan to saute. The a bowl of washed drained spinach leaves is added along with salt, pepper, grated nutmeg and a spoonful of sugar. Fry until the spinach is wilted and tender. Top with the crumbled bacon and the sliced egg. That was a family Easter tradition long before I showed up.

Rob’s Recipes

For quick and easy GOOD EATS!

MAKING LEFTOVER LEFTOVERS

 If you’ll remember last week I made a fantastic beef round pot roast that served me well for a number of dinners and sandwiches during the week. Yesterday, feeling my leftover pot roast had served me well, I turned the leftovers into more leftovers.

LEFTOVER POT ROAST CHILI

This is what I know as Polish-style White Bean Chili. Shredded leftover pot roast + a can of petite diced tomatoes + onions + diced green and red peppers + thinly sliced celery + garlic + chili powder (for flavor not burn) + a can of white beans + a splash of bourbon. Simmer for a while to allow all the flavors to blend and serve in a bowl with a sprinkle of shredded cheese and no more than 12 oyster crackers.

Now I have leftovers of the Leftover Pot Roast Chili!

Rob’s Recipes for quick and easy

GOOD EATS!