Gimme S'more Grahams!

Homemade grahams and fixin's for next level s'mores

I've been reading about homemade graham crackers for quite some time. The thing is I haven't made a habit of eating graham crackers just to eat them - I usually only eat them with s'mores and unfortunately I only eat s'mores when I'm camping. Sadly, no camping trips have been planned for this summer - you can see the dilemma. However, as fate would have it, the lovely Martha Stewart featured s'mores on the cover of her July 2012 magazine reminding me that July 4th was right around the corner. Just like that, a s'more festivus was created! Even better, the s'mores recipe featured homemade grahams with patriotic star cutouts. Oh how I love Martha - and Independence Day - and grahams - and s'mores. I altered her recipe a tad (this is an actual measurement) as my dough was too crumbly to roll out.  A little half & half did the trick. After several rounds of chilling in the fridge, cutting squares & stars and baking tray after tray - I can report these grahams were VERY tasty and not at all healthy in case you were wondering. I may start making them just to make them and not wait around for s'more season!

Graham Crackers
Adapted from Martha Stewart Living 2012

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for surface
• 1 cup whole-wheat flour
• 1/2 cup toasted wheat germ
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
• 3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons honey
•  As Needed - 1 1/2 teaspoon half & half (adjust as needed to make a workable dough)

Directions

1. Whisk together flours, wheat germ, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon.
2. Beat together butter, sugar, and honey with a mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture; beat until combined.
3. Turn out dough onto a floured surface, and divide in half. Roll out each dough half to 1/8-inch thickness, and refrigerate until firm, about 10 minutes. (If you find you can't roll out the dough, work in the half & half as needed). Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut out squares with a 3-inch fluted square cutter if you have it - or just eyeball it. Cut a star out of the center of half the cookies using a 1 1/2-inch star cutter or get creative with any shape. Reroll scraps once, and repeat. 





My stars weren't perfect - but I didn't hear any complaints!



4. Place squares 1 inch apart on parchment-lined baking sheets, keeping cookies with cutouts together. Refrigerate until very firm, about 15 minutes.
5. Bake cookies until dark brown, 14 to 16 minutes, rotating halfway through (star cookies take about 1 minute less). Let cool on sheets 10 minutes. Cookies can be stored in an airtight container up to 2 days.

Graham crackers, sparklers and my little brother devouring a s'more - I think he fell in love.

What the Kale!?!

It seems as though there is a kale craze running rampant. I'm happy to report I have been on the bandwagon for months now! Not only is kale delicious it is also nutritious - a perfect item for a blog devoted to tasty healthy things. I have two favorite recipes for kale: Kale Chips and Kale with Cannellini Beans and Bacon. The first is simple - the second is not. Today, we are going with simple. Let me start by setting your expectations at a reasonable level. Kale chips are in no way like a potato chip. Please don't be fooled by the many kale enthusiasts desperate for you to try kale chips with attempts at luring you in with false claims comparing kale to a potato. Yes, they are light crunchy seasoned bits of goodness but they do not have the taste or texture of a potato chip. I repeat: not a potato chip.

Now that expectations are set - on to the easiest recipe you will ever find! I make kale chips at least once a week...sometimes twice a week. Every time both cookie sheets of kale chips are gone within an hour (I have an abundance of snackers in my house). It is important to note the type of kale used - the curly kale  found in most grocery stores works much better than Lacinato "Dinosaur" kale often found at local farmers markets - I have a sweet cousin that can attest to this.

Kale Chips
Adapted from several sites

1 bunch kale
1 tablespoon olive oil
Sea salt, to taste
**If you want a little kick add a dash of Cayenne Pepper, Garlic Salt or Paprika depending on your preference

Preheat oven to 300°F. Rinse and dry kale. Remove center ribs and stems. Cut or tear into pieces. Toss with olive oil in a bowl then sprinkle with salt. Arrange leaves in a single layer on two baking sheets. Bake for 20 minutes, or until crisp. Voila! Serve immediately...or not. They are great either way!

Some photos for reference:

Before (top) and After (bottom)
Mmmmm crispy goodness!

The final product

Beef Stew with Beer & Faux Cheesecake

Let me start with saying - it was 75 degrees this weekend in Arizona and there was absolutely no reason for me to make such a hearty meal. However, I was given the most lovely Le Creuset gift for Christmas and I couldn't wait to use it! I had stew on the mind and scoured my cookbooks for a beef stew with broth that didn't take 8 hours to make. Nothing jumped out at me, so I turned to The Pioneer Woman for inspiration, her recipes are usually right-on target.  I quickly found Beef Stew with Beer and Paprika - woot! It was really easy to throw together and the result: AMAZING! Hands down the best stew I have ever made. If you prefer step-by-step instruction she does a great job of breaking it down here.

Beef Stew with Beer and Paprika

(as adapted from The Pioneer Woman)

Ingredients

• 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 1 Tablespoon Butter
• 2 pounds Stew Meat
• 1 whole Medium Onion, Diced
• 3 cloves Garlic, Minced
• 1 12oz can Beer, nothing fancy, I used Bud Light
• 4 cups Beef Stock (or 4 Cups Water + 4 Beef Bouillon Cubes)
• 2 cups Water (additional, If Needed)
• 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
• 2 Tablespoons Tomato Paste
• ½ teaspoons Paprika
• ½ teaspoon Salt
• Black Pepper (to taste)
• 1-½ teaspoon Sugar
• 4 whole Carrots, Washed, Unpeeled, And Roughly Sliced
• 4 whole Potatoes, Quartered

Prep Instructions

Heat oil and butter in a large pot over medium-high heat. Brown meat in two batches, setting aside on a plate when brown, allow to cool slightly, then cut pieces in half.

Add diced onions to the pot. Stir and cook about three minutes until softened, then add garlic for another minute. Pour in beer and beef stock, then add Worcestershire, tomato paste, paprika, salt, pepper, and sugar. Add beef back into the pot. Stir to combine. Cover and simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

Add carrots and potatoes, then cover and cook for an additional 30 minutes. (If stew gets dry, just add a cup of hot water at a time to replenish the liquid.)

Serve with rolls or french bread and enjoy!

 

 

Next Up: Faux Cheesecake a.k.a. Janky Stawberry Cream Cheese Pretzel Mess

 

This is what it looks like:

 

Don't let the looks deceive you, it is actually really good. It's also REALLY easy to make. Some people call it a Stawberry Pretzel Salad...but I don't agree. Salads should be served in a bowl. This is served in a baking dish...which means you bake it (well, you bake part of it) - so...definately not a salad. Who came up with that?

Ingredients

• 2 cups pretzels, crushed
• 3/4 cup butter, melted
• 3 tablespoons white sugar                    
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 (8 ounce) CoolWhip, thawed
• 1 (6 ounce) package strawberry Jell-o
• 2 cups boiling water
• 1 (10 ounce) package frozen strawberries

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Stir together crushed pretzels, melted butter and 3 tablespoons sugar; mix well and press mixture into the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish.
3. Bake 8 to 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.
4. In a large mixing bowl cream together cream cheese and 1 cup sugar. Fold in CoolWhip. Spread mixture onto cooled crust. Make sure it is touching all sides of the dish so the Jell-o on top does not drip down to the pretzel crust.               
5. Dissolve Jell-o in boiling water. Stir in frozen strawberries and allow to set briefly. When mixture is about the consistency of egg whites, pour and spread over cream cheese layer. Refrigerate until set.