Cinnamon Rolls - To Die For

My friend M told me about this wonderful blog - the pioneer woman.  The first time I went to the website I saw this recipe for Amish cinnamon rolls with caramel frosting.  I love cinnamon rolls and I love caramel rolls, this recipe is like the two of them together.  Even my husband who swore that he didn't really like cinnamon rolls, well he is now sitting next to me eating two, so that is how good these are. For the recipe, check the site below.

http://thepioneerwoman.com/tasty-kitchen/recipes/breads/amish-cinnamon-rolls-with-caramel-frosting/

It is alive!!

Pizza - Who doesn't love it?

This weekend we had some friends of ours over for games and dinner R and H.  We planned to order pizza, but I woke up on Saturday morning craving a really good pizza  (believe it or not I have yet to find a good pizza place in all of Los Angeles). 

I pulled out my favorite cookbook "America's Test Kitchen"  (btw: This is the best cookbook ever).  And got the recipe for pizza dough.  Surprisingly pizza dough really isn't that hard to make.  It really only takes about 20 minutes or so of hands on time, and the yeast really does do the rest of the work. I guess what I am saying is for a Saturday night this is totally worth it (especially if your husband is an expert pizza dough tosser :). 

I would actually love to post the contents of the recipe for the dough online, however, since the cookbook is copyrighted I will respect that and not post the contents.  So if you want it I suggest you buy the cookbook, it is a great investment.

Okay after looking at a couple of recipes for pizza sauce I came up with my own which is listed below: sauce. 

1 28 oz Can Crushed Tomatoes
1 Tablespoon Sugar
3 Garlic Cloves Minced
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
S and P to taste
*5 dashes of Worchestire Sauce (about 2 teaspoons)

I combined all of the ingredients in a medium sauce pan and allowed it to simmer over medium heat for about 10-15 minutes. 

Toppings:  We made three pizzas.  Personally, I think a good pizza starts with good cheese.  In the Los Angeles area I prefer Trader Joes for gourmet cheeses as it has the best prices (if I don't have time to make it into the farmers market).  I bought a whole milk motz. and an Australian Parmesan, and then grated the cheese by hand. 

Pizza 1:  Veggie
              Cheese - Motz and Fresh Parm (both grated by hand)
              Artichokes
              Kalmata Olives
              Sliced Cherry Tomatoes
              Baby Portebello Mushrooms

Pizza 2:  Meat
              Pepperoni
              Sliced Cherry Tomatoes
              Mushrooms

Pizza 3: Sweet and Swine
             Pinnapple
             *Prosciutto (instead of regular ham - so much better)

I baked all of the pizzas at 500 degrees on parchment paper placed on a baking stone for about 12 minutes.

Although all of the pizzas turned out really yummy.  The Sweet and Swine with the prosciutto ended up being the house favorite.

          

Tower of Terror

Matt and I went with some friends of ours to California Adventure this weekend.  Neither Matt nor I had ever been, and I don't particularly like rollercoasters, but this day I decided that I needed to feel a little "out -of-control." 

So one of the first rides we went on was "California Screamer" which was  what most people would consider a moderate rollercoaster. You can check out the ride on YouTube at  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upHZ2ptl3WA.

Also, there was the "Tower of Terror" well I wouldn't really characterize this as moderate - terrifying is basically the best word for it.  You will understand what I mean after you watch this home video on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eeB2D7oCmCY&NR=1.  If you have even a little fear of being dropped several stories in a elevator - this is probably not the ride for you.
After the day was over - I felt sufficiently out-of-control.

Lake Tahoe (September 2010):

This year for Labor Day weekend we met Matt's sister, brother-in-law and our goddaughter in Lake Tahoe, California.  What a wonderful vacation.  It was just what both Matt and I needed.  It was about a seven and a half hour drive from Los Angeles to Lake Tahoe, but it went pretty fast. 

An idea for recipes: Index Card Rings

 When I was a Sophomore in high school I started writing my favorite recipes on index cards and put them in a recipe box, but a recipe box just doesn't work for me when I am cooking.  When I get out a recipe, I never seem to put it back, and a recipe type binder just takes up too much space in a small kitchen when you are trying to prepare food - enter index card rings.  I used these types of rings when I was studying in law school, but it never occurred to me until recently that I could also use them for my recipes.  I put recipes for main dishes on one ring, desserts on another, and appetizers and sides on another.

Here is what you will need: index cards,  a whole punch, and index card holder rings.

Fall Soups: Beef, Shiitake and Barley Soup (Vegetarians Shiitake and Barley Soup).

When I was getting my hair done on Saturday, I ran across this recipe for Beef, Shiitake and Barley Soup in "Modern Woman" magazine.  I also started looking into the health benefits of whole wheat barley, and this is one website that I found: http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=127#healthbenefits

Step 1:  Coarsely chop one medium yellow onion, add to a large pot over medium heat and simmer in 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil until onions shimmer.

Step 2: Mince three garlic cloves and add to pot with onions.

Step 3: Add 12 ounces of  beef  "stew" meat  (seasoned to taste) to the pot and remove when brown (*for vegetarian disregard this step).

Step 4:  Add two thinly sliced carrots and saute for two minutes.

Step 5: Add 12 ounces of shiitake mushrooms and saute for 30 more seconds (*vegetarians also add 2 cups of portobello mushrooms).

Step 6:  Add 4 cups chicken broth (if vegetarian add 4 cups vegetable broth) and 2 cups of water, and add the beef back into the pot.

Step 7: Add 1 cup of whole wheat barley (not instant), and simmer until meat is fork tender and barley is cooked through about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Step 8:  Serve  (serves 6) and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Magnets - a great purchase to save space

Our first place in Los Angeles was a one bedroom apartment in NoHo which was short on space and short on luxuries, but we made this small space a home.  Two years later we moved into a two bedroom, two bathroom apartment in the Burbank area.  When we moved in, it literally felt like a castle and it still does.  Some would still consider our place small, but I have grown to love small spaces - even our small kitchen.  I see the space issue as a challenge, not an inconvenience. 

In the kitchen our biggest appliance, is the first appliance Matt and I purchased as a couple - our refrigerator.  I remember when we moved the refrigerator into our kitchen - the kitchen instantly seemed smaller - and then the second we started putting the smaller appliances on the counters the work space seemed to be shrinking, which gave me an idea.  That night I googled kitchen appliances and magnets.  I was very pleased to find that there was a magnetic paper towel dispenser with good review, and I also noticed a lot of high school locker accessories that could double to hold kitchen items.  Of course /I was skeptical that the magnets would not be strong enough to make it worthwhile, but so far these items have held up, and worked as well as the manufacturer said they would.  Below are some of the space saving items I purchased.

Paper towel dispenser:

No need for a recipe box, I took a index card holder for a high school locker and made it my recipe holder:

 

 A high school locker pencil holder, now holds herbal tea and pens:

And a small locker magnet - holds our car keys (also nice because as a renter the fewer holes in the walls the better).

Next purchase -  magnetic spice containers: