Ham Leftovers

What are you planning to do with your Easter Ham leftovers? I have sandwiches (grilled ham, cheese and tomato) planned, and Pasta Carbonara with ham and peas. I usually throwthe bone in the crockpot with some white beans, onion and garlic; but my hubby is on a limited diet these days, and beans are not included:( I welcome your suggestions and recipes!

My cousin Caitlin is looking for a carrot cake recipe for Easter, and this is my favorite! I've made it in layers for a wedding-cake-look for my husband's grandparents' anniversary (they're going on 89, married 67 years, and going, going, going), I've made it as cupcakes, and I've made it just because. It's from I Knew You Were Coming So I Baked A Cake, by Carol G. Durst (a fabulous cookbook my godmother gave me years ago) and this cake is just great! Note that it only makes one layer, but it doubles really well to make a multi-layered cake.



Smooth as a baby's ... carrot cake Makes one 8- or 9-inch layer, or 8-inch square, or 12 cupcakes

1 3/4 c flour
1 c dark brown sugar
1 t baking soda
1 t baking powder
1½ t cinnamon
½ t salt
¼ c vegetable oil
1 c baby food carrot purée (or buy frozen carrots and stick them, still frozen, in the food processor, use 1½ c packed chopped carrots, but reduce the flour to 1½ c)
1 t vanilla
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 recipe Cream cheese icing (below)
1 c coconut, ½ c walnuts, ½ c raisins (optional)

Preheat oven to 350°. Grease the pan with cooking spray. Measure flour, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt into mixing bowl, and stir to distribute evenly. Measure oil, carrots, vanilla, and egg directly into dry ingredients, and stir to incorporate, leaving no lumps. Add any optional ingredients to the batter or save them to top the cake with. Bake 25-30 minutes for a cake or 20-25 minutes for cupcakes. Cake is done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool in the pan 10 minutes, then remove and allow to cool completely before icing.

Cream cheese icing
Makes about 3 cups, enough to fill and cover two 9-inch layers, 24 cupcakes, or the top and sides of a 9x15 sheet cake

½ pound cream cheese
¼ pound butter
2 c powdered sugar
1 t vanilla

Using an electric mixer, cream cream cheese and butter together in a large bowl until they are smooth and completely blended. Add sugar gradually, beating slowly at first, then increasing the speed until blended to a smooth consistency. Increase beating speed to lighten the icing for easier spreading for 1 or 2 minutes. Add vanilla. If you have reserved optional ingredients, either mix them into your icing or garnish the outer edges of the iced cake. Chill at least 1 hour before serving.

Happy Easter!

As a life~long ham hater, I usually try to come up with an alternative main course at Easter. This year I am going to buy a couple turkey breasts, have the butcher de~bone them, and stuff, roll and roast them. I've never done it before, but recentlyhad it at a friend's house. The skin stays on, so the rolled roasts are very moist. I think we will do a traditional stuffing in one, and maybe a spinach/feta blend in the other. Maybe a first course of a simple pasta alfredo with peas to begin......roasted asparagus and always ricotta pie on Easater!

Thin Mint Dessert

I have book club here on Monday night.  I was looking for a quick easy desert. I also have access to extra Girl Scout Cookies so I thought I might try using some. Here is one I found that looks good and easy.  Anyone else have any suggestions?
Mint Delight or List of many dessert with Girl Scout cookies.

“Mom! I'm going to MIT!

“And I'm majoring in chocolate!!”

Why can I picture my son, Evan, saying these words to me? Not quite every mother's dream. And I exaggerate, I don't think you can actually major in chocolate, just spend a lot of time thinking about it (don't all college students anyway?).

Check out At MIT, a hunger for chocolate knowledge from today's Boston Globe.

For ease of getting the family to the dinner table, nothing beats a recipe that you can remember all the ingredients, unless, of course, it’s a recipe that you always have the ingredients on hand. My sister, Bridget, passed along this recipe for Fejoida (Brazilian Black Beans) years ago, and it is a family favorite.

When I buy ham hocks, they come packaged in 2 in my supermarket, I simply put the extra one in a baggie in the freezer. If that's all the meat I have, that is fine. This is versatile, it really can be made with whatever leftover sausage or pork you have on hand, I've even used pork chops. Yesterday, I used dried beans (wanted to test the pressure cooker precooking method) and the leftover ham and it's bone from our Palm Sunday brunch, yum! (My second son still prefers the chorizo.)

Keep canned black beans and rice in your pantry, then the only fresh ingredients you need to worry about are 2 onions, 2 cloves of garlic, 1 tomato, and cilantro. Nine out of 10 days I have onions and tomatoes on hand. Five out of 10 days I have cilantro, because we like the flavor and use it alot. You could substitute a little jarred pico de gallo or even salsa, or just serve the beans and rice alongside a salad. But even if you need to run to the market for a little produce, it’s about the easiest meal you can make.

I put mine in the crockpot yesterday, because it was a rainy, raw day, and I craved the comfort of having dinner ready at the end of the day, besides, my days get a little crazy after 2 pm when the boys get home from school (I may have mentioned that a time or two before, it’s a tired old refrain), but this can as easily be made in 30 minutes on the stovetop.

Fejoida (Brazilian Black Beans)

1 med onion
2-3 15oz cans black beans, drained*
1-2 T olive oil
1 lb cut up chorizo, liguica, smoked sauage, keilbasa, or ham
2 cloves garlic, chopped
8 oz can crushed tomatoes
1 c rice
1 med tomato
1 med onion
fresh cilantro chopped
Olive oil and vinegar to taste

In a large sauce pot, sauté onion and garlic in olive oil. Add meat to brown. Add crushed tomatoes and black beans. Simmer 20-30 minutes, if time permits flavor is enhanced with additional cooking time.

Meanwhile, prepare white rice. Dice the tomato, onion, and chop the cilantro. Mix together, season with salt and pepper, dress with olive oil and balsamic vinegar to hold together, but do not overdress.

Serve beans over rice. Garnish with cilantro-tomato mixture. Tastes even better the next day (but make the cilantro-tomato mixture fresh).

*To substitute dried beans, which are very affordable, soak them overnight according to the package directions, or place them in a pressure cooker, covered by an inch or more of water. Bring to full pressure and cook for 7 minutes. Turn burner off and let pressure release naturally. Use these beans in any recipe where canned beans is called for. Beans will keep in the refrigerator for a week.

April fools' meals

Any fun April fools meals to fool your family? Here is what I tried.
fake chicken pot pie

It looked great. I made a big one not individual ones.  It did take time especially because I burnt the pudding the first time, and hadn't planned ahead and had to make a pie crust from scratch. But they were fooled until it was cut. The problem was after all that work, I had to make a real dinner and hide it until needed. It was fun.