Two recipes from Diner Desserts -- Rum Raisin Pudding and Lemon Meringue Pie!

I have been making "new" stuff or should I say actually using my cookbooks -----> well one of them.

Diner Desserts by Tish Boyle

I have made many a rice pudding in my day (I had a favorite recipe.) However, I now have a new fav. "Rum Raisin Rice Pudding" on page 108. And I found a link, so I don't even have to type it.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/saras-secrets/rum-raisin-rice-pudding-recipe/index.html

I followed the recipe, mostly to a T. I did, however, use Jasmine rice instead of long grain. It cooked faster that way and was very delicious. My only complaint is that it is more labor intensive than my previous favorite.  But, it was well worth it.

The other dessert I made was "Sky High Lemon Meringue Pie" on page 42.

http://www.chroniclebooks.com/landing-pages/Chronicle/excerpt/0811824497-e1.html

And yay for finding a recipe link for this one, too!!

I actually remembered to take a picture:

I don't remember the last time I made this. It wasn't hard, but, it was time consuming. Lots of stirring and boiling and more stirring and more boiling.  I followed this one almost to a T, except I didn't have any lemon zest. I just went a little bit heavy on the lemon juice concentrate.  I also didn't add the salt, since I didn't have any unsalted butter. It didn't taste strange, so that worked, too.

I chilled it (vs room temp) and it was great! I will be making this (and the other recipe), again.

That's it for today.

Till next time...

A Tail of Two Kitties

One day C#2 and I were visiting our friends and there were kittens.

C#2 was totally smitten.

She repeatedly asked me, "Can I have a kitten? Can I have a kitten? Can I have a kitten?"

"No way Jose!" Who is she kiddin'?!

After some thought and a discussion with her Dad, it was decided there were some kittens to be had.

When we returned to the farm to retrieve her new cats, an adventure ensued. And that is a fact.

The black and white was friendly.

The calico not so much. 

When it was time to leave, the black and white was safely stashed in the box.  The calico, however, ran like a fox.

She ran under a pile of wood. She would not come out and that was where she stood.

After some smart thinking, C#2 and friend came up with a solution on how to bring this to an end.

After putting on protective gloves. They forced her out with a shove.

Her claws were bared, and her hisses were loud.

But, once she was caught, no harm was allowed.

The kittens were boxed and sent to their new home.

And after such a traumatic fright, they just wanted to be left alone.

I am sure that they will be making friends with everyone, in the days to come...

Princess George and Princess Hissyfitz about one month later.

They have a rough life.

A new hiding spot...

I have a story to tell about the new kitties, but, it's a work in progress. However, after putting up the last blog  (today) about the fish and the newly organized books, one of the new kittens did this:

Of course, I ran to get the camera.  but, then we have to discourage her from doing this ---- since I don't want her (or her sister) on the counter.

There ya go. Two "blogs" in one day!

Till next time...

Beer Battered Fish!

I am trying to eat what is actually in my freezer and I came upon three swai fish fillets.  There was a discussion sometime in the previous week about beer battered fish.  So I figured, I would do that.

I knew I had a recipe sitting around somewhere, but, where could it be?!?! I looked through my many, MANY cookbooks -- and you know I have many. And I found one!

But, first speaking of many cookbooks, I found a way to store even more cookbooks!!! You know that you can never have too many.

What happened was, I was getting something (I don't even remember what) and everything started to avalanche onto the floor. *Sigh*  Just what I needed to do. An unintended clean up/task.  However as I worked on shoving everything back into their correct position, it occurred to me that if I stacked these delightful cookbooks horizontally, I could actually see/fit more. Whoohoo! 

Anyway, back to my original story.  I had purchased Betty Crocker: Bisquick to the Rescue book from a bargain basement type store and remembered that their was a recipe for beer battered fish.  Not only was it a quick find, but, it was quick to make, too!

I even found a link, for the recipe, on the lovely internet.  I don't even have to type it out.

http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/beer-battered-fish/8cd22903-e917-4d7e-af18-c04051be3d30

I did add paprika, pepper and granulated garlic to the batter for more flavor. It tasted fantastic!

If you want to find it in the book, it's on page 177.

I also made steak fries and squash.  The fries were a hit! The squash ----- not so much...

I liked the squash, but, for some reason the peeps in my house don't.  Their loss.

That's it for today.

Till next time....

Blackberries!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well it is that time of year, again. Blackberry time!!! The in-laws have a very bountiful crop of this fine fruit.  I have made two blackberry pies, blackberry/cherry cobbler, blackberry dacquiris, and blackberry muffins.

My first blackberry pie was a success, but, the crust was a little bit more brown than it should have been. The second pie, however, was perfecccccctttt!!!

Here is the before baking picture:

I didn't ruin the top crust!! WHOOHOO!!! That never, EVER happens, EVER!!!!!!

And here it is after baking:

And I only had one spot that boiled over!!! Double WHOOHOO!!

Of course, the hubby and kids jokingly asked me if I actually made the pie.  Well, um, yeah!  I actually had witnesses! C#1 was right there when I put it together. Sheeeeesh!!

I also made blackberry muffins. I used the Diner Desserts blueberry muffin recipe and it worked great!

That's it for today.

Till next time...