The Ball & Daisy Chain

This recipe was inspired by this recipe.  My new found love of Brussels sprouts made me want to try it, but I tweaked the recipe a bit and thought the flavors mixed well.  

Ingredients

• 1 lb brussels sprouts, fresh or frozen.  If using fresh, remove any yellow outside leaves and slice in half
• 3 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
• 1/2 tsp. Kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp. freshly-ground black pepper
• 1 lb pasta, I used the medium cups
• 14 oz. Hillshire Farm Kielbasa
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
• 3 frozen herb ice cubes (see this post here).  I used 2 basil, and 1 parsley cube

First thing is to roast the brussels sprouts in a 400 degree oven for 20-25 minutes with the olive oil, salt and pepper.  While the sprouts are roasting, start the pasta boiling, and cook according to the package directions.

Slice the kielbasa into the 1/4” medallions, and pan fry for approximately 5 minutes.  Add the garlic to the pan, and continue cooking until the kielbasa is browned.

After the pasta has been drained, throw the fresh herb ice cubes into the pasta, and stir until they melt.  These cubes are herbs, frozen in olive oil; this is the main difference between my recipe and the inspiration recipe which used pesto (which I’m not a big fan of!)

Finally, mix all the ingredients together, and dinner is done!  J really loved this, and it allowed me to use my frozen herbs in another recipe.

I made this punch for a summer party this year, and it was a hit.  The recipe was very easy, and I was surprised by how well it turned out.  I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

I grew up going to Knoebels in central PA, and I even worked there for a few summers while I was in school.  I never was a big fan of fudge, but there is one from Knoebels’ Stony Gables Fudge Shop that I can never pass up- Peanut Butter Cup.  I have looked at every boardwalk and chocolate shop I have come across and have never found it anywhere else, so I decided to make my own.

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Last weekend I threw a family party, and tried out several ideas I saw on Pinterest.  This post will be a review of how well they translated from pin boards into real life!

Large ice cubes with lemons frozen inside; Do!

(source)

These were functional and pretty, and I used them in a server with lemonade.

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Compound butter anyone?  This is a cooking ingredient that I have just discovered, and I really excited about it.  It’s really easy to make, and has almost unlimited options.

• 1 stick softened butter
• Your favorite herbs!

For my compound butter I used the following:

• 2 tbls. cinnamon
• 2 tbls. lemon juice
• 4 sprigs of fresh mint

I started by mashing the butter up in a bowl, then added each of my ingredients.  Then, I rolled it into a log shape and wrapped it in wax paper.  Throw it in the freezer, and let it harden.

When you are ready to use it, unwrap the butter and cut it into pieces about 1 inch thick. 

I grilled the pork chops, and in the last minute, placed a piece of the compound butter on each.  The sweetness really complemented the pork, and it was a fast way to add a lot of flavor to a dinner.

Try this recipe, or get daring and try your own.  I am planning to make some different types of compound butter in the future, so be on the lookout!

Now that I have grown my fresh herbs, I was kind of at a loss as to what to do with them.  I LOVE the idea of having them… but knowing when to use them was a little harder.  So I was inspired by pinterest to freeze them with olive oil.

I started with parsley for this project. 

On parsley, only the leaves are eaten.  I course chopped the leaves to prepare them for freezing.

I put the herbs into an ice cube tray.

Then filled each cube with olive oil, and throw it into the freezer.

This made dinner very easy.  Just throw a cube or two into some pasta, and enjoy!

J and I have been on vacation in Savannah, Ga for the past week, enjoying sun, friends and shopping.  One of the coolest stores we found was The Savannah Bee Company.

The store is downtown, and sells several different types on honey (which they let you taste while you’re there)!  The winter white honey is a whipped honey, which tastes a little bit like frosting.  This whipped honey inspired the idea for the honey glaze on this cake.

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 2 cups white sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract
• 1 2/3 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup ground almonds
• 1 cup milk

• 1 cup honey
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

First, preheat your oven to 375 deg. F and grease a loaf pan.  Mix the flour, baking powder, salt and ground almonds and set aside.  I used my food processor to grind the almonds.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and 2 cups sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the almond extract and 1 2/3 teaspoon vanilla extract. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the 1 cup milk.

Pour batter into the loaf pan.

Bake for 45 minutes, and cool on a wire rack.

To make the glaze, whip the honey and vanilla extract.  For the glaze I used store bought local honey.

Serve the cake with the honey glaze, and enjoy!

This recipe found and modified from allrecipes.com.

I recently made this for a summer party, and everyone loved it!  But besides being a party favorite, it is easy to make.

A trifle is a layered dessert, and this one is made of angel food cake, berries and cool whip.

I started with a pre-made angel food cake to save time.  I cut it into cubes to start.

Cover the bottom of the trifle bowl with half of the angel food cake.  The next step is to add the berries.  I used an egg slicer to cut my strawberries into even slices.

I also used frozen blueberries and raspberries.  Frozen berries are whole, and just need to be rinsed and thawed before using them.  They are usually in the grocery freezer section in the desserts section, as they are often used to make pies. 

The fruit is layered over the angel food cake in the trifle bowl.  This dessert will work with a number of fruits, so pick your favorites!

Cover the fruit with a layer of cool whip.  Repeat the layers in the bowl, cake, fruit, and cool whip, and it’s all done!  It’s as easy as that!