Briques (Brik in Tunisia)

This is a copy cat of sorts from the Gourmet Guys father from his time working in Tunisia.  It is his version of Briques that are served in Tunisia.  It is a family favorite that we only make occasionally because they are deep fried!

Briques

12 inch thin flour tortillas
leftover ham, pork roast,  turkey or chicken, cut into cubes (We prefer Ham)
eggs
green onions, diced finely (optional)

Take a tortilla, place ham in a circle in the center with the green onion, place egg in the center.  With egg white seal the tortilla in half and deep fry until golden brown, drain and cool.( The Gourmet Guy and his father liked them so that the eggs were barely cooked but the rest of us like it done a little more!) Eat it like an upside down Taco.

 

The Gourmet Guys dad was the original Gourmet Guy!  He was the real cook in his family while my Gourmet Guy was growing up.  He traveled a great deal and had a knack for tasting something that he liked and being able to replicate it when he got home.

 

(In Tunisia is made with a sticky lump dough and filled with tuna, or ground meat, and topped with anchovies, capers and cheese.)

Cinco De Mayo-Nachos

Nacho - Copy Cat (Serendipity)

I don't go to Vegas very often, only for certain sporting events, visiting friends, or stopping through on our way to CA.  I am not a gambler but there are certain things that I love in Vegas like the fountains and gardens at the Bilago, and particular restaurants.  My daughter loves the frozen hot chocolate drinks at "Serendipity" but I love the Nachos! In celebration of Cinco De Mayo I once again attempted to make my version of Serendipity's Nachos.  My first try was the best, this time they were not as goopy!  But still a fun treat once in awhile.

Nachos

tortilla chips, I love the Juanita's brand
ground beef
1/2 yellow onion, chopped fine
black beans, rinsed and drained
Tostido's Salsa Con Queso, med or mild
tomato, chopped
green Chiles, optional
guacamole. as desired (previously posted)
sour cream
cheddar cheese, grated (to top)
green onions, chopped

Layer tortilla chips with beans, ground beef, green Chiles, the salsa con queso (generously, after warming), tomato, and guacamole. Repeat layers one or two more times, top with sour cream, cheddar cheese and green onion. 

These chips are fabulous, more like I have had in a good Mexican restaurant than any other store bought chip.  Served warm they are even better and they are also gluten free.

It's a Graduation Celebration (Natalie's cookie fun)

Time to Celebrate Rachel's accomplishment!  She has been working hard to earn her Master's Degree.  She is a wife, mother of two little ones, as well as a full time teacher, and teacher on special assignment at her school.  To say she has been busy the last couple of years is an understatement.  A good portion of our extended family were able to go and cheer her on as she received her diploma.  Natalie made her some of her fabulous cookies to celebrate with afterwards.  Time to play!

Pool Gogi (Korean Fire Meat)

 Pool Gogi

1 1/2 T sesame seeds
1/4 c green onions, finely chopped
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 t salt
1/4 t black pepper
1 T sesame oil
1/4 c soy sauce (to make gluten free use La Choy)
3 T sugar
1 lb. tender beef, sliced thin

Combine all of the ingredients and marinate for at least an hour.  Remove the meat and grill.  Cut the meat in bite size pieces (kitchen sheers work wonderfully).  Serve over hot rice or in romaine or iceberg lettuce with rice and roll. 

Coconut Fruit Dip

Coconut Dip

8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 15 oz. Cream of Coconut (not coconut oil or water!)
8 oz. Cool whip

Mix cream cheese and cream of coconut until WELL blended.  Fold in cool whip and chill.  Serve with fresh fruit. (Makes a very large batch.)

(This is my adaptation from a recipe I found on line.  It was a huge success with my family.  I made the mistake of doubling the recipe for a family event, it wasn't necessary to double it.  The benefit was having it in the fridge for snacks!)

Corn Dogs

When I was a teenager in Arvada Colorado I remember the city having it's annual "Town Party" Our church always had a booth there as a fund raising event. They made corn dogs each year as a tradition and I loved them. Part of the biggest memory for me was that my dad loved to be a part of this tradition. He was such a character and everyone just loved to be around him so he was a popular person at the booth. I love corn dogs and they bring back lots of fun memories.

Natalie surprised us one Saturday and brought all of the fixings for making corn dogs. After a little paint project we set about making the corn dogs together.

Rebecca went about getting the "dogs" on a stick.

Blend the dry and wet ingredients together, without over mixing.
We decided mixing in a tall container would keep the batter on the hot dog better and easier.It did!

Putting the hot dog into the hot oil and gently dropping it in the oil helped keep the batter on better.

These turned out so yummy.

Carnival Corn Dogs

1 cup yellow cornmeal
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup white sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 egg
1 cup milk
1 quart vegetable oil for frying
2 (16 ounce) packages beef frankfurters
16 wooden skewers

In a medium bowl, combine cornmeal, flour, salt, sugar and baking powder.
Stir in eggs and milk.
Preheat oil in a deep saucepan over medium heat. Insert wooden skewers into frankfurters. Roll frankfurters in batter until well coated.
Fry 2 or 3 corn dogs at a time until lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Drain on paper towels.

Broccoli Salad

This recipe has been around for a long time but I still have requests for it and so here it is. Usually we serve it in the summer but every now and then it tastes great no matter what season.

Broccoli Salad

Approx 1½ pounds Broccoli Florets
1 lb. bacon- cooked crisp and crumbled
½ lb. Swiss or Monterrey Jack cheese (grated)
1 red onion
raisins, optional

Dressing
1 c. mayonnaise
¼ c. sugar
2 t. vinegar

"Bunnies and Bears"

One of the things that we have done as a family tradition for the holidays over the years is to make "Bunnies and Bears." My sister brought some cute molds and this recipe to us when our girls were little. Over the years we have always made them at Christmas time. Now that our girls are all grown up it is one of the things that we don't do much anymore. I was missing this tradition this year and decided to expand it to the grandchildren, it was a lot of fun carrying on the tradition to another generation. We have since added some more Christmas type molds but we still call it the Bunny and Bear recipe.

Melt the butter.

Add the brown sugar,

stir in the Karo Syrup,

and finally add the sweetened condensed milk. Bring to a boil.

Add the puffed rice and or puffed wheat cereal and start the fun.

The Gourmet Guy with our four year old grandson making the Christmas Tree shapes.

All of us around the table working with the molds and the kids decorating with lots of different sprinkles. Even the one year old was having fun at the table with us.

She was too young to use the molds but not to entertain us while we made them.

Our six year old grandson really got into making these, it was a lot of fun

A family tradition lives on.

“Bears and Bunnies”

6 oz. bag puffed rice or wheat
2 c. brown sugar
2 sticks butter
1 c. corn syrup
1 can sweetened condensed milk

Boil butter, sugar, syrup and milk for about 6 minutes. Place cereal in a large bowl and pour the mixture over the tip, mix well. Spray mold with a vegetable spray and fill with the mixture. Remove from mold immediately.

Vegetable Pizza

This is one of our families favorite things to fix for things like showers and parties. This is a recipe that I almost always have the ingredients on hand to make this.

The crust is so simple and quick to make. Simply pinch the crescent roll dough together and bake to a golden brown. Cool.

Mix the dressing mix, cream cheese, and mayonnaise together and top the crust. Add the vegetables of your choice and chill. The more color from the vegetables the better.

Vegetable Pizza

2 pkg. Crescent Roll dough
Ranch dressing mix
1 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
½ c. mayonnaise
vegetables of choice, diced into small pieces
(red onion, radishes, carrots, cauliflower, cherry tomatoes…the more color the better)

Roll the dough out on a jelly roll pan, cover the bottom, pinch the seams together to make a flat crust. Bake at 400 until golden brown, approximately 10 minutes. Let cool. Mix the dressing mix with the cream cheese and mayonnaise, blend until smooth, spread on top of the baked and cooled crust. Top with the vegetables of your choice. It is best if it has a couple of hours to chill before serving.

Artichoke Dip

One of my favorite dishes to serve at gatherings. Frozen spinach, thawed drained, can be added to this as well. (Not in the picture below is the can of green chilies.)

I always cut the artichoke quarters a little bit more for the dip.

Mix all ingredients well in a bowl.
Spread into a baking dish and smooth out. Bake until golden brown and serve with crackers or rustic bread.

Artichoke Dip

1 14 oz. can artichokes, quartered (I cut them smaller)
1 c. mayonnaise
1 c. sour cream
1 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1 4 oz. can diced green chilies

Mix all ingredients in a 9x9 casserole dish. Bake at 400 for 30 minutes. Serve with crusted bread or crackers.

"Spooked"

Our family likes to do these type of activities, kind of a "Pay it Forward" type things. Each year we take several plates of goodies to various parts of our neighborhood and leave the Spook on the porches. It is fun to see it spread and go from neighbor to neighbor. This year has been a little disappointing because the ghosts have only moved a couple of places. I think the economy has had a part in that.. Never the less it is fun to sneak around and get it started.

You've Been Spooked

These treats are for you and Halloween too.

This game is real fun, so here's what to do!

Just think of a neighbor, or think of a friend

We'll do the whole town before Halloween's end.

Make them a surprise or a really cute treat

Keep it a secret and they'll think you are sweet!

Put it on their porch (include this poem)

Smile to yourself and get quickly home!

The faster you do, then there's more of the fun

There's a lot of people to cover before Halloween's done.

Hang this ghost in your window when you are through

So everyone can see it and join in the game too!

There is not time to waste, Halloween is near.

Find someone quick and spread TRICK-OR-TREAT cheer!

After Halloween is over we look forward to our plans for Secret Santa's (My neighbors don't even know I blog so this doesn't make me worry about getting caught. ) It helps make the Holiday's so even more meaningful.

Mummie's Halloween Party

Halloween is such a fun time!

Natalie made the cute invitations for our get together.

The Gourmet Guy and I were able to have most of our family at our home for a little Halloween party. Because I am going to be gone when Harry Potter comes out next month I combined some of the ideas that I had for a party I wanted to do with Halloween.

I thought for a snake this guy turned out pretty cute. The Gourmet Guy and I had a lot of fun making this. We simply took two bundt cakes and cut them to fit into the shape that we wanted. Frosting him took more time and frosting than I planned or wanted but I was very pleased with the end result.

These wands were super easy I just dipped some pretzel sticks into melted chocolate and then sprinkled the top with Halloween colored sprinkles. I put them in the freezer for about a half an hour, just long enough for the chocolate to become solid again.

We had chocolate frogs, cinnamon devils, candy corn and pumpkins, M & M's, chocolate covered bat droppings (raisins), and an assortment of mini candies.

Natalie and Rebecca made these cute cute cookies as well.

This a spider bread raising for dinner.

These are also spiders, just melted chocolates with chow mein noodles topped with M&M's for the eyes. I also placed these in the freezer for a short time.
I had planned on doing calzones or "pizza benders" for dinner with everyone making exactly what they wanted in them. But in the interest of time we bought Pumpkin Pizzas from Papa Murphy's, we'll do "pizza benders another time!

After dinner we started the fun this is Rebecca's masterpiece.

From Natalie's family, the cannibal pumpkin.

And from Jessica's family.
The invitation stated that no one would be admitted to the party without a costume.

Count Gourmet Guy taking a bite out of the "mummy," too bad my costume kept slipping on me.

Muse even stopped by to join in the fun! Cameron was Chris, Rebecca was Dom and Rachel was Matt. They seriously like this band, some more than others.

Natalie's family aren't they cute!

Jessica's family. I felt so much safer with a police man and a strong cowboy there to protect us.

Just had to do a close up on this little kitten, she is such a doll.

This little Tigger kept us laughing the entire evening!

I can't believe he's turning one this week.

It was such a fun evening I wish the whole family could have been there.