Rosemary Focaccia Bread

My brother sent me this recipe, he said he LOVES it and said it is just as good as the bread at Macaroni Grill. I tried it tonight and loved it too...I LOVE breads way too much! It's also a pretty easy one to make.

1 tbsp. yeast
1 tbsp. sugar
1 c. warm water
1 tsp. salt
2 c. flour
1 tbsp. dried rosemary
2 tbsp. butter

Combine yeast, sugar, water, and salt in bowl. Let stand until bubbles form. Stir in flour. Knead for 10 minutes, adding flour as needed. Add rosemary to dough and knead until disbursed well. Spray bowl with olive oil. Place dough in bowl. Cover with towel. Let raise in warm area for 1 hour. Punch dough. Separate into two balls. Place balls on cookie sheet, partially flattened. Melt butter and brush onto dough. Lightly salt dough. Let raise for another 45 minutes, or until doubled in size. Bake at 450F for about 18 minutes. Should be lightly browned.

Eat with olive oil, fresh ground pepper, and balsamic vinegar. Makes two loaves, 6” in diameter, 3” high.

Taco Salad

I actually don't have a "recipe" for this, but I watched it being made and got the gist of it! It's so yummy! Back home we used to do our taco salads different, with warm chili instead of meat, and no dressing, sour cream instead, so this is different and new to me! I had a picture up, but it didn't make the salad look very good! You'll just have to trust me!

1 large head of romaine lettuce, shredded
1-2 tomatoes, diced
1 large purple onion, diced
1-2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 can red kidney beans, rinsed drained
1 lb. extra lean ground beef, seasoned and browned, then drained
1 bottle Thousand Island dressing
tortilla chips, crushed

Season ground beef to liking and fry in frying pan, drain any excess fat or water. Rinse and drain kidney beans. Put salad together right before serving. Add all ingredients except chips in large bowl and drizzle Thousand Island dressing over. Toss to completely cover. Crush chips and toss into salad. Serve immediately so chips don't get soggy.

Panoramic Sugar Eggs

When I was really little I found one of these at an Easter Egg Hunt and thought I'd won the lottery! It is one of my earliest memories but I remember thinking how beautiful these eggs are. So I found a "how to" on them and made one for my kids. This is the site I used but modified the instructions slightly. Mine didn't turn out the way I imagined it would...it actually was a lot harder than I thought it would be. They are super delicate. Also, I have never worked with Royal Icing except to use as snow on Gingerbread houses (how hard is that?). I decided that I really don't like Royal Icing. I had wanted to do this beautiful design with stripes and zig zags but decided for my first time that polk-a-dots were good enough.

You will need for egg:

1 large egg mold (mine is a two piece I got at Michaels, not really a mold, just a fillable egg.
sugar (enough depending on how large your egg is, I had to use about 3 cups for mine)
cookie sheet
figurines (I got mine on clearance at Michaels)

You will need for icing:

powdered sugar
food coloring
egg whites OR meringue powder
decorating bags and tips

Use your mold halves to measure sugar to figure out how much you will need for each egg. You need to mix just enough water to make it like sand for sand castles . . . about 1 tbsp. water for each cup of sugar. Add water and mix with a fork. Do not add too much water.

Pack both halves of the egg firmly with damp sugar. Level off. Place your cardboard on top and invert the egg onto it. Place carefully on the cookie sheet, and slide the egg off the cardboard. Carefully life the plastic mold off the sugar. If you want the finished product to lay flat, make a cut down through the pointed end of the egg about 1/2 an inch from the end with a thin knife. Or if you would like a larger opening, make this 3/4 inch. Leave this piece in place for the time being, as it will keep the end from drying so you can scoop out the opening. If you want your finished product to stand upright (that is how I did mine) use a very small spoon (I used a baby spoon) and VERY CAREFULLY scoop an oval hole on side of egg. (Side, meaning the top of one of the halves) I also carefully shaved off a little on the bottom to make it flat so as to be able to stand up. At this point you can leave the eggs to dry. I cheated, I placed the cookie sheet in my oven on "warm" for about an hour. Wait until you can pick one up in your hand without it collapsing. I broke one of my halves by trying to pick it up too soon and had to start over with that half.

When it is ready to handle, very carefully scoop out the sugar from inside leaving at least 1/4 inch of shell or a little more. You can use the sugar that you scoop out of your first egg to make another egg. Let the hollow shells sit overnight to let them get completely dry or put back in the oven for another 30 minutes or so. Rub the inside with your fingers, to smooth the inside surface a little.

I used this Wilton's recipe for Royal Icing. Or make icing using a couple of egg whites and enough powdered sugar in mixing bowl to form peaks. Separate into small amounts and make several colors, leaving some white to "glue" the two halves of the egg together. Do not make too stiff or it is very hard to work with.

Spread a little icing in the bottom half of the egg, using green icing to use as grass. I then added a little green Easter basket grass (optional) and then set your little figurine inside, pressing it into the icing to secure it. Or you can pipe "grass" inside. This icing will dry very hard, and hold your bunny or whatever in place.

After you secure the bunny (or figurine), spread white icing on top of the bottom half of the egg sparingly. I used a butter knife to spread it on. Match the edges, set the top half onto the bottom half. If the hole looks ragged, don't worry, your icing trim will cover this.

Using a star tip, cover the seam around the egg seams and hole. You can make flowers, bows, zig-zags, polk-a-dots...etc...I wrote the year underneath my peek hole. Do what ever you would like to decorate.

Store in a zip lock bag, in freezer or in a box. They keep for several years.

Easter Story Cookies

I got this in an e-mail from a lady in our ward. I thought it was something that might be fun to do with my kids this year!

To be made the evening before Easter.

You will need the following:

1 cup whole pecans
1 teaspoon vinegar
3 egg whites
a pinch of salt
1 cup sugar
a zipper baggie
a wooden spoon
tape
bible
your children

Preheat oven to 300 F.

Place pecans in zipper baggie and let children beat them with the wooden spoon to break into small pieces. Explain that after Jesus was arrested, He was beaten by the Roman soldiers. Read John 19:1-3.

Let each child smell the vinegar. Put 1 teaspoon of vinegar into mixing bowl. Explain that when Jesus was thirsty on the cross, He was given vinegar to drink. Read John 19:28-30.

Add egg whites to vinegar. Eggs represent life. Explain that Jesus gave His live to give us life. Read John 10:10-11.

Sprinkle a little salt into each child's hand. Let them taste it and brush the rest into the bowl. Explain that this represents the salty tears shed by Jesus' followers, and the bitterness of our own sin. Read Luke 23:27.

So far the ingredients are not very appetizing. Add 1 cup sugar.

Explain that the sweetest part of the story is that Jesus died because He loves us. He wants us to know and belong to Him. Psalms 34:8 and John 3:16.

Beat with a mixer on high speed for 12 to 15 minutes until stiff peaks are formed. Explain that the color white represents the purity in God's eyes of those whose sins have been cleansed by Jesus. Read Isaiah 1:18 and John 3:1-3.

Fold in broken nuts. Drop by teaspoons onto wax paper covered cookie sheet. Explain that each mound represents the rocky tomb where Jesus' body was laid. Read Matthew 27:57-60.

Put the cookie sheet in the oven, close the door and turn the oven OFF.

Give each child a piece of tape and seal the oven door. Explain that Jesus' tomb was sealed. Read Matthew 27:65-66.

GO TO BED!

Explain that they may feel sad to leave the cookies in the oven overnight. Jesus' followers were in despair when the tomb was sealed. Read John 16:20 and 22.

On Easter morning, open the oven and give everyone a cookie. Notice the cracked surface and take a bite. The cookies are hollow! On the first Easter Jesus' followers were amazed to find the tomb open and empty. Read Matthew 28:1-9.

HE HAS RISEN!!

Perfect Lemon Cake

Lemon cake with berries was delicious as a festive 4th of July dessert!

I tried this one from My Kitchen Cafe. It was super moist and really good!

Cake:
1 package lemon cake mix
1 c. sour cream
3/4 c. water
3/4 c. oil
4 eggs
1 small package lemon instant pudding

Mix dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients. Mix with electric mixer on medium speed for about two minutes. Pour into a greased 9 x 13 pan or two round pans. Bake at 350F for 25-30 minutes. Don't over bake or the cake will be too dry!

You can also make cupcakes and bake them at 350F for 20 minutes. The cupcakes will fall after they come out of the oven, but this is normal. Just fill up the indentation with more frosting.

Frosting:
1 c. (2 sticks) butter, very soft
6-8 c. powdered sugar
1/2 c. fresh lemon juice
1 tsp. grated lemon zest

Place the butter in a large mixing bowl. Add 4 c. sugar, then the juice and the zest. Beat until smooth and creamy. Gradually add the remaining sugar, 1 c. at a time, until icing is thick enough to be of good spreading consistency (I added about 6 c. total). Use and store at room temperature. (Don't refrigerate and it will last in a covered container for about three days.)

Garnish with berries, if desired.

Peanut Butter Playdough

This is one my mom used to make for us when we were little. Wash child's hand before playing, then if they eat it, it's no big deal! Taste's pretty good!

I made this the other day and my daughter LOVED it! She played with it for 2 1/2 hours straight!

1 c. peanut butter
1 c. corn syrup
1 3/4 c. powdered sugar
1 1/4 c. powdered milk

Mix all ingredients and knead well, if too sticky add more powdered milk.