quick tip: quick & gentle defrosting

to be able to defrost in the microwave without having edges-only-semi-cooked ground beef and rubbery-edged chicken is a glorious thing. and the solution is so simple.

put the frozen meat in a microwave-safe bowl filled almost full with water and defrost as usual. i've tried this trick with frozen chicken breasts just floating in the water and ziplock bags of frozen ground beef. it is a gentler defrost and works every time.
you'll never have rubber-edged chicken again! yea!

pumpkin pie milkshakes

if i told you i made a pumpkin pie just to make these milkshakes, would you believe me? well i did. homemade crust and all, just to toss in the blender. that's how dedicated i am to a pumpkin pie milkshake. (i actually prefer my pumpkin pie in the form of a milkshake.)
you can make a pumpkin pie, use one leftover, or buy one in the freezer case at the grocery store, but do try these, because they are dangerously delish.

if you make these milkshakes before dinner, they will be nice and thick in the freezer and ready for dessert. this is the trick to getting thick homemade milkshakes without having special mixing equipment like restaurants do.

pumpkin pie milkshakes
an original recipe by rachelle

2 cups vanilla ice cream
1 cup milk
2 Tablespoons sugar
1 large slice pumpkin pie, chopped and frozen (freezing is optional for bigger chunks. also yum just mixed room temp.)

whipped cream and nutmeg, for serving

combine ice cream, milk and sugar in blender. mix. add in pumpkin pie, pulse to blend. put blender in the freezer for a half hour. when ready to serve, stir and scoop with a big spoon into mugs. serve with a dollop of whipped cream and a sprinkle of nutmeg.

piña coladas (no rum, all the fun)

i'm not sure i should confess this story, but a few of my friends have wanted this recipe, so here goes. my sil mary started this whole mess. she made us some virgin piña coladas one night at her house and we couldn't get enough. i started making them as a late night tv treat for my husband and i. we started wanting them everyday. i've been making blenderfuls of these almost nightly, for over a month now! (this. has. got. to. stop.) mary's story is better; she served these to her teenager's friends and they went home to tell their parents that they had piña coladas and lots of fun. this version, like hers, is without the alcohol but with all the fun.

piña coladas (no rum, all the fun)
rachelle's recipe

1 1/2 cups pineapple juice
1 cup coconut cream (the thick sweetened kind, not coconut milk)(1/2 can.)
3 Tablespoons sweetened condensed milk (1/4 can.)**
4 cups ice

using the lines on your blender to measure, add juice, then the coconut cream, and finally the sweetened condensed milk into a blender. pulse to mix. add ice. the longer you process in the blender, the more smooth consistency you will have. if your blender has trouble with the ice, use a knife to stir the top into the bottom (while the blender is off of course.)

*feel free to sub the sweetened condensed milk with milk or cream and sugar, or vanilla ice cream. you can also add 1/2 cup half and half or a couple Tbsp. cream to make it more creamy. all versions are fab. i'm going to work on a diet version, i promise!
this will make one blenderful. enough for 4.

**edit 10/30: last night i tried another brand of coconut cream. it wasn't as 'sweet.' i needed a half can sweetened condensed milk. and a spoonful of sugar. so sweeten to taste. it all depends on the kind of coconut cream you have.

batter jacketed sweet potatoes with cinnamon butter

jacketed is a kinder way of saying batter dipped and deep fried sweet potatoes with cinnamon butter. these sweet potatoes shine as a semi-main dish, served with a big green salad for a lighter dinner and grilled chicken or fish for a hearty appetite. they are great for a holiday meal or a special occasion~ easy and easy and easy but oh-so-impressive. the cinnamon butter is glorious on hot white dinner rolls, (a la texas roadhouse) with quick breads, on toast and over pancakes. the simple batter for frying (pancake batter and water, doesn't get any easier) can be used for an easy quick fried onion ring too. the batter works great- it has just the right amount of sweetness.

batter jacketed sweet potatoes with cinnamon butter
an original recipe by rachelle, inspired by ruby river

batter jacketed sweet potatoes

2 sweet potatoes (plan one per guest, half for children)
2 cups pancake mix (krusteaz)
2 cups water
salt and pepper
4-6 cups oil for frying (canola or peanut oil are good choices)

wash skins of potatoes well and prick with a sharp knife or fork. bake in a preheated oven at 375 degrees for an hour, until cooked through. the potatoes may be cooked early in the day.
when ready to serve, combine pancake mix and water gently, just until combined. season to taste. heat a deep pot of oil to 350 degrees. (you are going to want deep oil. i strain and reuse the oil for frying again.) dip the cooked sweet potato in the batter, coating well. slowly lower into the hot oil. cook for a couple of minutes per side until potatoes are golden. after cooking a couple of potatoes, let the oil heat back up before adding more potatoes. cut potatoes down center and serve with a big plop of cinnamon butter.

cinnamon butter

(i like both recipes. sometimes i don't want to open a can of sweetened condensed milk just to use this much and have to worry about using the rest, so the second recipe evolved. they are both great.)

1 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 Tablespoon corn syrup
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon

or

1 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup powdered sugar
2 Tablespoons cream or milk
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon

add butter into bowl of mixer and mix until fluffy. add in other ingredients and mix well until fluffy and combined. refrigerate to harden, leave at room temperature for soft cinnamon butter.

*i make a half cinnamon butter recipe for 3 large sweet potatoes and have a little leftover.

pecan crusted chicken salad with honey mustard dressing

this salad is fan-tastic. the pecan crusted chicken has tons of flavor and stays really moist. the salad is just romaine lettuce tossed with celery, and the chicken sits atop a layer of thinly sliced fresh apple or pear and is topped with dried cranberries. the fab honey mustard dressing is a perfect complement. this pecan crusted chicken is also great over sundance salad with candied pecans and vinaigrette. we love main dish salads at our house, and this one is a fave. it's restaurant fabulous made easy at home.

pecan crusted chicken salad with honey mustard dressing
an original recipe by rachelle

1 recipe pecan crusted chicken, sliced
1 recipe honey mustard dressing
8 cups romaine lettuce, sliced
1 apple or pear, very thinly sliced
3 stalks celery, very thinly sliced
dried cranberries, for garnish

mix lettuce with celery and place in serving bowls. make a circle with apple slices and place chicken on top. sprinkle a few dried cranberries over the top and drizzle the dressing over all or serve it on the side.

pecan crusted chicken

4 chicken breasts, pounded to an even thickness (1/2")
heaping 1/2 cup pecans
12 saltine crackers
1/4 teaspoon salt
dash pepper
pinch cayenne

1/3 cup milk
2 eggs

combine pecans, crackers, salt, pepper and cayenne in a food processor or blender. process until pecans are finely ground. get out two shallow pans (i like to use pie tins) and put the pecan mixture in one pan. in other pan, combine milk and eggs and mix well with a fork. heat a skillet over medium high heat with about 1/2 inch oil for frying; or preheat oven to 350 degrees.
dip chicken in egg mixture, then coat chicken in pecan mixture, pressing pecans into chicken.
fry coated chicken in hot oil for 3-4 minutes per side; or bake in oven for 30 minutes.

honey mustard salad dressing

1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup dijon mustard
1 clove garlic
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2 Tablespoons mayonnaise or oil

chop garlic in food processor. add honey, dijon mustard, salt, pepper, vinegar and mayo. mix well and chill until ready to serve.

caramelized sweet grilled pineapple

{this is an old draft from may that never got posted, but i just made this pineapple with lunch using my countertop grill and realized i hadn't posted this easy recipe. a late season gift.}

on a recent trip to albequerque, i enjoyed the most wonderful sweet grilled pineapple. it had a chewy-carmelized grilled crust to it. i have been craving it ever since. i searched the internet for a recipe and none were quite like it. all the recipes i found basted with a honey-lime mixture. this combo did not give me the crunchy-carmelized crust i was after, and the lime and honey weren't the simple flavor i wanted. so i finally tried just sugar and butter and had it. this is just delicious. it's a great sweet finish for a barbecue meal. (try over ice cream or pineapple sorbet too! or in a teriyaki chicken sandwich leftover the next day!)

carmelized sweet grilled pineapple
rachelle's recipe

1 ripe pineapple, peeled, cored, quartered

1/4 cup butter, melted

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 dash salt

preheat your grill on high. stir together the melted butter, brown sugar and salt in a big shallow bowl. put pineapple quarters in the bowl and cover all sides with the mixture. (the better your pineapple, the yummier this is going to turn out.) turn grill to low. oil grates. cook pineapple for 20 minutes, turn over and baste with sugar/butter mixture after 10 minutes.

(or use a countertop grill and coat with butter/sugar mixture right away. cook about 8 minutes.)

*you can use less butter. i've also had success just pushing the brown sugar on the pineapple, but mmmm butter is delish.

carrot jalapeno soup

this soup is too yummy and too simple to not try. your fam will not believe you didn't bring this home from a chic little bistro. 

carrot-jalapeno soup
an original recipe by rachelle

4 slices bacon
6 carrots, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 jalepeno, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
5 cups water
1 teaspoon chicken bouillon
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
heaping 1/2 cup cheddar or pepperjack cheese
1/4 cup cream

(don't waste your time chopping your veggies perfectly. they all get blended up in the end anyway. take liberty to make big ugly dices!)
saute bacon in a stockpot until crisp. add carrots, onion and jalapeno, cook for five minutes. add water, garlic, bouillon, salt and pepper. bring to a boil then simmer for 20 minutes. process in two batches in blender until smooth. pour back into stockpot and add cheese and cream.

*using 1 jalapeno (even deseeded) makes this too spicy for my 3 year old. i can use about a quarter jalapeno.
*you can sub 1/2 cup half and half or milk for the cream, and increase cheese to 2/3 cup.

apple crisp. the one you've been searching for.

this is the apple crisp you've dreamed of all your life. i'm not kidding you, this is unreal. my hub (not a binge-r, my husband, he loves veggies,) will eat an entire pan of this. it is a five star all the way.
i've been making and loving this for years. but whatever you do, don't try this with my cinnamon ice cream. literally, my non-binger hub almost died. and so did i. such a great combination!

christian’s favorite apple crisp
rachelle's recipe

10 cups apples, peeled, cored and sliced
3/4-1 cup white sugar (use 1/2-3/4 cup for sweet apples, 1 cup for granny smiths or tart apples)
1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 cup oats
1 cup flour
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/8 teaspoon salt

preheat oven to 350 degrees. place the sliced apples in a 9x13 inch pan. (the cut apples should be almost level with the top of the pan.) sprinkle the cinnamon and sugar over the apples. combine the oats, 1 cup flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, melted butter and salt together. crumble the topping evenly over the apple mixture. bake for about 45 minutes.

*try adding some butterscotch topping into the apples.
*try adding walnuts. or pecans. or raisins.

cinnamon ice cream

spicy creamy cool yum.
this cinnamon ice cream is tops over apple crisp, apple pie, pumpkin pie, pumpkin gooey cakes, gingerbread cake, peach cobbler, or as a base for a caramel apple pie sundae. or topped with fried cinnamon sugar crispies.
it is a fab ice cream sandwich filling, lovely between oatmeal cookies or aunt lanny's ginger crinkles. it is a great base to make apple pie ice cream or imitation ben and jerry's oatmeal cookie ice cream (my all time fave.)
it's all kinds of delish, and i'm not even a big cinnamon fan.

cinnamon ice cream
an original recipe by rachelle

2 cups cream
1 cup half and half or whole milk
1 cup sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 dash salt
2 teaspoons vanilla

combine cream, half and half, sugar, cinnamon, salt and vanilla. whisk well to combine. place in the freezer to chill for an hour or two. pour cooled mixture into an ice cream maker and process for 20-25 minutes until set. working quickly, scoop the ice cream into a tupperware or glass container and freeze for a few more hours before serving.

*this ice cream has such a rich flavor i found it more successful in a simple cream base rather than a custard. the cinnamon flavor is subtle enough to make this ice cream shine heaped on your fave fall and fashionably holiday desserts.