What is wrong with my spacing?

So, two posts ago, there are spaces I didn't want and in the last post, there aren't spaces I did want. Grr.

Peanut Butter Brownie Cookies

1 (19.5) oz box brownie mix

1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted

4 oz. cream cheese, softened

1 egg

1 cup powdered sugar

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1 can chocolate frosting

Preheat oven to 350F. In a medium bowl, beat brownie mix, melted butter, cream cheese, and egg until well blended. The dough will be thick and sticky.

In a small bowl, mix powdered sugar and peanut butter until well mixed.

Drop 1 tablespoon balls of dough 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. (The recipe says it should make 24 cookies, but I usually get more than that.) Press 1 teaspoon of the peanut butter mixture into the center of the chocolate dough.

Bake at 350F for 10 - 14 minutes or until edges are set. Cool for 1 minute on cookie sheet. Cool at least 30 minutes on cooling rack.

Spread a thin layer of frosting over peanut butter portion of each cooled cookie.

Alert the Media... I cooked TWO NIGHTS IN A ROW!

A never ending, let's call it a challenge, in my marriage is scheduling. Neither Brad nor I work what anyone would consider a "9-5" job. Mine is closer than his though. I am required to be at school from 7:00 - 2:30, so I can run errands or make appointments in the afternoon, but in reality, I work, conservatively, about 80 hours per week when school is in session. Brad doesn't have to bring any work home, but he works from 3 am - 1 pm, Saturday - Tuesday, and frankly, that's not normal. Now, I'm hungry all of the time, but I like to eat dinner around 5:30. Unfortunately, though, I don't usually get home from work until roughly 5. And then, I have been going to water aerobics at 5, so I don't get home and changed until nearly 6:30. (If any students are reading this, I began the last sentence with "and" for rhetorical effect.) Brad goes to bed at 7, and rightfully so, does not want to eat dinner after he goes to bed, because that would be strange, and under the previously mentioned schedule, dinner won't be ready until 7:30 or 8. As a result, we eat a lot of grilled cheese. And frozen pizza. I try really hard to cook on nights that Brad doesn't have to go to bed before sunset, and yesterday and today, I actually succeeded in that effort. Yesterday for supper, we had pasta with an asiago cream sauce, salad, and bread sticks from Aldi (which are actually pretty good). Here is a photo of the salad, which contained romaine lettuce, cucumbers, provel cheese, (a local mixture of American, Swiss and Provolone cheeses... not really sure who thought that was a good idea. Brad hates it, but that's because he's from out of town) and homemade croutons. We are out of my favorite store bought dressing, Zia's, so I had Ranch, and Brad had Raspberry Vinaigrette. I know you are interested in our salad dressing choices, and that is why I share this information with you. Here is a picture of the Asiago Pasta and the Aldi breadsticks. They have the same consistency and basic flavor of crescent rolls in a tube, but overall, I would say worth the $1.84 investment.

Here is a photo of the ingredients that comprise tonight's fajitas.

... and here is a photo of the beef... right out of the skillet... see the steam!

And the final product - a tortilla sprinkled (loaded) with colby jack cheese, beef, sauteed onions, and a dollop (or two) of sour cream.

Beef Fajita Marinade

1 pound beef, thinly sliced 1/4 cup lime juice 1/3 cup water 2 tablespoons olive oil 4 cloves garlic, crushed 2 teaspoons soy sauce 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke flavoring 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper In a large resealable plastic bag, or sealable container, mix together the lime juice, water, olive oil, garlic, soy sauce, salt, and liquid smoke flavoring. Stir in cayenne and black pepper. Place meat in the marinade, and refrigerate at least 2 hours, or overnight.

I use cheap flat beef. I am not sure what the cut is, but it is at Costco between the brisket and the chunks of eye of round. It looks like a giant lean steak. After marinating it overnight, I saute it in a very hot skillet with a little olive oil until it is cooked throughout. I also saute some onions and green peppers (separately, because I'm allergic to green peppers, but you could do them together). Then, I wrap them up and eat them. You can add whatever other fajita like ingredients you so desire, but really, if I have melted cheese and sour cream, I am a happy girl.

We Found the Cord! (Actually, I bought a new one...)

Sopapilla Pie

2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

1 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 (8 ounce) cans refrigerated crescent rolls

3/4 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 cup butter, room temperature

1/4 cup honey

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare a 9x13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.

Beat the cream cheese with 1 cup of sugar and the vanilla extract in a bowl until smooth.

Unroll the cans of crescent roll dough, and use a rolling pin to shape each piece into 9x13 inch rectangles. (I have found that it works better to just flatten two triangles together in my hands, and then piece the four smaller rectangles together in the pan/ on top of the cream cheese.)

Press one piece into the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Evenly spread the cream cheese mixture into the baking dish, then cover with the remaining piece of crescent dough. Stir together 3/4 cup of sugar, cinnamon, and butter. Dot the mixture over the top of the cheesecake.

Bake in the preheated oven until the crescent dough has puffed and turned golden brown and the center doesn't jiggle when you shake the pan a bit, between 30 and 40 minutes, depending on your oven.

Remove from the oven and drizzle with honey. Cool completely in the pan before cutting into 12 squares.

There is absolutely NOTHING HEALTHY about this. It is sugar on top of fat on top of fat on top of sugar on top of fat on top of sugar. For this reason, I wouldn't recommend it every week, but it is SOOOO good. Take it to a church pot luck. Nobody cares about calories on a buffet.

Stir Fry!

We lost the cord that lets us upload pictures from our digital camera to the computer, which is very sad for us. I have been remiss in updating my new recipes because I was looking for the cord and wanted to add pictures, but then I discovered I have a much wider viewership than I thought, and if I am not the only one using my blog for recipes, I would like to share my delicious new recipes, with or without pictures.

Because I am such a good wife, (laugh here!) I made my husband some stir fry so he wouldn't have to eat chili for the fifth meal in a row.

I did not try it, but it looked good, and Brad said it was yummy.

Chicken and Broccoli Stir Fry
3 cups broccoli florets
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into 1 inch strips
1/4 cup sliced green onions
8 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
2 tablespoon hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon chile paste
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup chicken broth

Trim the broccoli, and cut into bite sized pieces. I only like the tree part, so I trim broccoli really high. Then, steam it. There are several ways to do this. My favorite way to steam veggies is using the new-ish Ziploc steamer bags. You can also put the broccoli in a steamer over 1 inch of boiling water, cover, and cook for about 5 five minutes. If you don't own a steamer, I highly recommend the steamer bags. I DO OWN a steamer, and I still use the Ziploc steamer bags.

Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat, and saute the chicken, green onions, and garlic until the chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear.

Stir the hoisin sauce, chile paste, and soy sauce into the skillet. Season with ginger, red pepper, salt, and black pepper. Stir in the chicken stock and simmer about 2 minutes. Mix in the steamed broccoli until coated with the sauce mixture.

Serve over rice.

New Year's Day

The tradition of having my family over for soup on New Year's Day is still going strong, but thankfully, my mother has not continued her tradition of getting a speeding ticket in Moscow Mills, as she did the first New Year's she came out here for soup. This year, I made 5 soups, which we all decided was OVERKILL! However, 4 of them were delicious, and while I liked the other one pretty well, my grandma kept telling me how it was not her favorite, so I think I stopped liking it because of her influence. I also made 3 breads and two desserts. No pictures, because I am lazy, but delicious recipes...

Crab and Havarti Bisque with Dill
3 tablespoons butter
3 whole cloves garlic, peeled
1 large Spanish onion, peeled and diced
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 ribs of celery, diced
3 yukon gold potatoes, peeled and chopped into 1 inch cubes
4 tablespoons tomato paste
8 cups of lobster stock (if, like me, you cannot find this... I think vegetable broth is the best alternative)
1 cup sherry
1 pound crab meat
8 slices, or 1/2 pound, Havarti cheese
3 teaspoons dry mustard
2 cups heavy cream
6 dashes Worcestershire sauce
6 dashes Tabasco sauce
3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
Salt and Pepper to taste

Melt the butter in a stockpot over medium-high heat. Add the garlic, onion, carrots, celery, and potatoes. Saute, stirring frequently for 10 minutes.

Add the tomato paste, stock, and sherry. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium, cover the pot, and simmer for 35-40 more minutes.

Remove from heat. Add the cheese and mustard. Let the cheese melt into the soup. Puree soup in the pot using a hand blender or working in batches with a regular blender until smooth. Return soup to stove. Add the crab, cream, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco sauce, dill, salt and pepper, and stir thoroughly.

Makes 10-12 servings.


Country Split Pea Soup with Bacon
3 tablespoons butter
1 large Spanish onion, peeled and diced
2 ribs celery, sliced
8 large carrots, peeled and sliced
3 whole cloves garlic, peeled
1 pound dried green split peas
10 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons dry sherry
5 dashes Tabasco sauce
12 slices bacon, cooked until crisp
Salt and Pepper to taste

Melt the butter in a 6-8 quart pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion, celery, carrots, and garlic. Saute for 7-10 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add the split peas and chicken stock. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium. Simmer for 1 hour, or until the split peas are soft and tender.

Remove from the stove. Add the sherry and Tabasco sauce. Puree the soup in the pot using a hand blender or working in batches with a regular blender until smooth. Add the bacon. Stir to combine thoroughly.


Both of these were DE-licious. I also made Beef Stew, (the recipe is already catalogued on this cite) Mushroom Soup, which I am not going to type out because it isn't as good as the others, and Potato Soup, which I can only explain how to make, but have never written down a recipe.


As far as bread, I made Parmesan garlic bread out of an Italian loaf, Corn Bread (the recipe is also already catalogued on this cite) and Beer bread.


Beer Bread
1 (12 fluid ounce can or bottle) beer
3 cups self-rising flour
3 tablespoons sugar

In a large bowl, mix together the sugar and flour. Add beer and continue to mix. Batter will be sticky. Pour into a 9 x 5 inch greased loaf pan.

Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees ) for 50 for 60 minutes. The top will be crunchy, but the insides will be soft. Cool 10 minutes before removing from pan.


For dessert, I made carrot cake and apple pie. The apple pie is already catalogued on this cite, but here's the carrot cake recipe. (It is divine!)


Carrot Cake

4 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup apple sauce
1 (8 ounce) can crushed pineapple
3/4 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
3 cups grated carrots

1 cup pecans and 1 cup raisins (optional)

1/2 cup butter, softened
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
3-4 cups confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan or 3 eight inch round pans.

In a large bowl, beat together eggs, oil, apple sauce, pineapple, white and brown sugar and 3 teaspoons vanilla. Mix in flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Stir in carrots. Fold in pecans and raisins, if you are adding them. Pour into prepared pan.

Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 50 minutes for 9 x 13 inch pan or 25 minutes for 8 inch round pans, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.

In a medium bowl, combine butter, cream cheese and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Gradually add sugar, and beat until the mixture is smooth and creamy and of the desired sweetness and consistency.
Frost the cooled cake. For a 9x13 inch cake, spread frosting on top. For 8 inch round cakes, place one layer of the cake on a cake platter or plate. Spread 1/3 of the icing on top of the layer. Place a second layer on top of the first iced layer. Spread 1/3 of the icing on top of this layer. Place the final layer on top. Spread the remaining 1/3 of the icing on top of the final layer. Refrigerate any leftovers.

Indian Night at The Cataldo's

Chicken Tikki Masala
1 cup yogurt
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon garam masala (or if unavailable, ground cinnamon)
2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces

2 tablespoons butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
4 teaspoons ground cumin
4 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoons salt, or to taste
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
2 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

In a large bowl, combine yogurt, lemon juice, 2 teaspoons cumin, garam masala, cayenne, black pepper, ginger, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Stir in chicken, cover, and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 375. Place chicken a cookie sheet, and discard marinade. Bake 10 minutes, or until juices run clear.

Melt butter in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Saute garlic and jalapeno for 1 minute. Season with 2 teaspoons cumin, paprika, and salt. Stir in tomato paste and cream. Simmer on low heat until sauce thickens, about 20 minutes. Add chicken, and simmer for 10 minutes. Transfer to a serving platter, and garnish with fresh cilantro.

Some More Recipes With No Pictures

Zucchini Bread
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2 1/4 cups white sugar
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups grated zucchini

Grease and flour two 8 x 4 inch pans. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Sift flour, salt, baking powder, soda, and cinnamon together in a bowl.

Beat eggs, oil, vanilla, and sugar together in a large bowl. Add sifted ingredients to the creamed mixture, and beat well. Stir in zucchini and nuts until well combined. Pour batter into prepared pans.

Bake for 40 to 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pan on rack for 20 minutes. Remove bread from pan, and completely cool.



Zucchini Brownies
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups shredded zucchini
1/2 cup chopped walnuts, if desired (which I don't!)

6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup margarine
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 9x13 inch baking pan.
In a large bowl, mix together the oil, sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla until well blended. Combine the flour, 1/2 cup cocoa, baking soda and salt; stir into the sugar mixture. Fold in the zucchini and walnuts. Spread evenly into the prepared pan.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until brownies spring back when gently touched.

To make the frosting, melt together the 6 tablespoons of cocoa and margarine; set aside to cool. In a medium bowl, blend together the confectioners' sugar, milk and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Stir in the cocoa mixture. Spread over cooled brownies before cutting into squares.


Banana Pudding Cake
1 (18.25 ounce) package yellow cake mix
1 (3.5 ounce) package instant banana or vanilla pudding mix
4 eggs
1 cup water
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup mashed bananas

2 cups confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1 dash vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 10 inch Bundt pan.

In a large bowl, stir together cake mix and pudding mix. Make a well in the center and pour in eggs, water, oil and mashed banana. Beat on low speed until blended. Scrape bowl, and beat 4 minutes on medium speed. Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake in a preheated oven for 50 to 55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.

To make glaze: In a small bowl, combine confectioners' sugar, milk and vanilla. Whisk until smooth and of a drizzling consistency. When cake is cooled, drizzle icing over cake with a zigzag motion. Sprinkle chopped nuts over wet icing if desired.



Overnight French Toast Bake
1 loaf Italian or French
1 1/2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 cup fresh blueberries
6 eggs, beaten
1 cup milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract, divided
3 tablespoons maple syrup

3/4 cup white sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 cup water
1 cup fresh blueberries
1 tablespoon butter

Lightly grease a 9x9 inch baking dish. Arrange 2/3 the bread cubes in the dish. Beat together cream cheese, powdered sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla with a mixer until smooth. Spread evenly over bread cubes. Sprinkle 1 cup blueberries over the cream cheese, and top with remaining bread cubes.

In a large bowl, mix the eggs, milk, remaining vanilla extract, and syrup. Pour over the bread cubes. Cover, and refrigerate overnight.

Remove the bread cube mixture from the refrigerator about 30 minutes before baking. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Cover, and bake 30 minutes. Uncover, and continue baking 25 to 30 minutes, until center is firm and surface is lightly browned.

In a medium saucepan, mix the sugar, cornstarch, and water. Bring to a boil. Stirring constantly, cook 3 to 4 minutes. Mix in the remaining 1 cup blueberries. Reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes, until the blueberries burst. Stir in the butter, and pour over the baked French toast.