More Fun Pictures!

Just some more fun cooking and food pictures - there have been a lot of birthdays lately!

More Mellow Yellow Cupcakes via Hungry Girl. They were tasty. :o)

Angela's Better than Sex Birthday Cake. It was gone super fast - the CLCE must have liked it too!

Megan's Rick's Birthday Cake! Their chocolate butter cream icing is her favorite, and it looks really pretty with brightly colored flowers. :o)

My ASG Exec Birthday Cake from Rick's. Yummy as always! Thanks Mattie! :o)

Featured Chef: Mattie Bookhout

One of my besties Mattie got her hands on our very favorite chicken salad recipe - and it's the best EVER. Enjoy. :o)

Chicken Salad

Ingredients:

3 cans of shredded chicken (2 ½ cups)

¼ cup celery

½ cup mayo

4 tbsp of sour cream

2 tbsp of lemon juice

1 tsp of onion powder

¼ tsp of pepper

¾ tsp of salt

¼ cup of bacon bits

¼ cup candied walnuts

¼ cup diced craisins

Directions:

To candy walnuts, melt butter in skillet pan. Add diced walnuts. Coat in brown sugar until candied. Mix all ingredients. Mattie adds an extra bit of brown sugar. Serve on croissant with provolone. #winning :o)

Featured Chef: David Brophey

For our Super Bowl gathering last night, Brophey made these AMAZING red velvet chocolate chip cookies. See the recipe below:

Red Velvet Cookies! OMG, heaven in a cookie...

Ingredients:

1 Box cake mix (your choice of what kind...I used Red Velvet)

1 Stick of Butter (1/2 cup)

2 eggs

However much of whatever you'd like in the cookies (I used just about a bag of mini chocolate chips)

Directions:

1. Cook in a 350* oven for sometime between 12-17 minutes.

Note: The time depends on how soft or firm you'd like them. I usually tend towards 17.

Thanks Brophey for sending me the recipe to share!

ALSO...

Ooh, Brophey and Matt made this legit cocktail last night - 1 part gin, 2 parts sparkling white grape juice, and a splash of lime. I love me some Tanqueray, so this just might be my new favorite alcoholic beverage!

Featured Chef: Jaime Nelson

Hello everybody! Meet Jaime Nelson! One of my favorite people in the world. On Friday, we were all getting together to have game night, and while at work during the day - I got a craving to cook! AND, I found this wonderful recipe via Twitter and Southern Living's "What's for dinner" special post. So I texted Jaime, and she was game for cooking in before our gathering. Here is the documentation of our cooking adventures, and the delectable results!

The recipe that I found was for a crayfish etouffee, but we substituted shrimp for a lack of crayfish at Harps. We also opted to bake some cheese biscuits to complement the meal. We just bought the mix from the muffin and cornbread section at the store - all you have to do is add water, bake, and voila! We also paired the meal with a Malbec, which went quite well with the meal. See our pictures and the link to the recipe below:

Recipe:

http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1646467

This was a really yummy meal, and Jaime makes a really cute chef too. She's super fun to cook with. :o)

Daisy Cupcakes A-Comin'! :o)

For my birthday, my bff Megan McClellan bought me this adorable Daisy cupcake pan and supplies. I'm so excited about it that I couldn't wait until I actually get to bake them to post about it. SO! Just wanted to let y'all know that they are "a-comin!" Get stoked - because I am. :o)

These sound so delicious and look SO pretty! See the recipe included on the back of the pan packaging below:

My Birthday Dinner by Featured Chef: Megan Francis

For my birthday, my best friend Megan hosted a very special dinner party with some of my closest friends to help me celebrate the big 24. Below find her menu and recipes. It was such a good meal, and it really meant a lot to me that everyone came together (especially with the poor weather conditions) to spend my birthday with me. Thanks to everyone who helped make it special.

Rendezvous Platter & Seasoned Cashews

Rendezvous Platter

Ingredients:

2 pkgs of sausage links

1 block cheddar cheese

1 block colby jack cheese

Rendezvous (or cajun) seasoning

Directions:

1. Heat sausage in the oven

2. Cut cheese into cubes

3. Cut sausage

4. Arrange cheese and sausage on plate

5. Sprinkle with seasoning (to taste)

Seasoned Cashews

Ingredients:

1.25 lbs cashews

2 tbsp chopped rosemary

2 tsp cayenne pepper

2 tsp kosher salt

1 tbsp melted butter

Directions:

1. Bake nuts on ungreased cookie sheet for 10 min

2. Combine seasoning in bowl large enough for all nuts

3. Add nuts, mix and serve

T-Lip Tip & Sip

Tip (Alcoholic)

Ingredients:

2 cups rum

2 liters of ginger ale

1 quart Juicy Juice pineapple orange juice cocktail

Directions:

1. Mix

2. Enjoy

Sip (Non-Alcoholic)

Ingredients:

One part Tazo passion iced tea

One part Crystal Light lemonade

Directions:

1. Mix

2. Enjoy

Note: Freeze pineapple orange juice in ice trays to keep cocktails cold without watering them down.

Pork Tenderloin

Ingredients:

2 packages plain pork tenderloin

Salt and pepper to taste

Olive oil to taste

garlic powder to taste

Directions:

1. Season meat

2. Add small amount of water to pan and set meat in pan

3. Cook in oven according to package

4. Let meat rest and slice before serving

Broccoli Corn Bread

Ingredients:

3 eggs

1 package corn muffin mix (8.5 oz)

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

2 cups thawed frozen chopped broccoli

1 medium onion (chopped)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350

2. Grease 9x9 Pyrex baking dish

3. Beat eggs and stir in all ingredients

4. Bake 25-30 minutes

Fresh Green Beans

Ingredients:

5 handfuls fresh green beans

1 small package sliced almonds

1/2 stick of butter

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Bring salted water to boil

2. Cook green beans in boiling water for 10-15 minutes

3. Melt butter in skillet and add almonds

4. Add green beans to butter and blanche

5. Plate and serve warm

Cheese Grits

Ingredients:

3 cups chicken broth

1 tbsp salt

1 cup quick cooking grits

1 stick butter

6 oz Owl's Nest garlic cheddar cheese spread

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:

1. In a saucepan, bring the chicken broth to a boil. Add salt.

2. Slowly add the grits and return to boil. Stir for 1 full minute.

3. Reduce heat, cover and cook for 5 minutes.

4. Stir the grits and add the stick of butter, stirring until until it has melted.

5. Cover and cook for 3-5 minutes until grits are thick and creamy.

6. Remove from heat. Add the garlic cheese and stir until melted.

7. Pour in beaten eggs.

8. Pour grits into greased 8x11x2 casserole dish. Bake for 40 minutes at 350 degrees.

9. Sprinkle shredded cheese over the casserole for the last 5 minutes of cooking time.

The finished plate! So pretty! And SO yummy! :o)

And my beautiful birthday cake from Rick's! Yummy! :o)

The group (minus Blake whose behind the camera and Megan who had to leave a little early). Thanks again everyone. Y'all made my birthday really special. I love each of you.

Monster Cookies

So, Monster Cookies are the best cookies ever made - and who else would create the recipe for the best cookies ever other than the one and only Paula Deen. That's right, these even contain a whole 'stick a butter'. But no really, these really are great cookies. AND I baked them for a good cause too! Yup, tomorrow and Wednesday, Phi Alpha Delta and the Black Law Student Association are hosting a bake sale to raise money for the Haiti Relief Efforts. We are also selling sack lunches with a sandwich, chips, and a dessert for just $5. So if any of this sounds appealing to you (and it should!), feel free to stop by the kitchen area of the law school (right by the east doors of the law school building off of Maple street) between 12 and 1 either tomorrow or Wednesday. And... if nothing else, you should come by to support the cause because it is my birthday. It's the big 2-4. :o)

Anyhow, so here's the recipe link:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/monster-cookies-recipe/index.html

And the pitcha! Hehe.