I’m Taking a Little Time Off

I’ve come to a “fork” in the road and need some time off. 

Bill had a heart attack last week.  He had an angiogram, a stent was inserted immediately, and he was home from the hospital in 3 days.  He’s doing well and is planning on being on the golf course next month.  

I will be taking time off from blogging for several months, and plan on returning before fall.  In the meantime, here’s wishing you all a wonderful summer. 
  
Thanks so much for visiting my blog ~ for being a loyal reader and my blogger friend! I’ll still be around and enjoy reading your posts!

The best to all of you…  

Until later ~ take care...

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog, @My Kind of Cooking for great tips and delicious easy recipes!

And the winner of the Tate's Mother's Day Basket is...

Thanks to all of you who entered the contest.  I really enjoyed reading your comments about how you will honor your mother.  They all sound wonderful!

Out of the eligible entries, the random number generator picked #11:

Ocean Breezes and Country Sneezes

Congratulations to Ocean Breezes and Sneezes, please contact me at mzpst@att.net with your mailing address.

Thanks again to all of you and have a good day!

Mother’s Day Brunch Basket Giveaway from Tate’s Bake Shop

It’s that time of year again to remember Mom and reward her for all she has done for us.  And Tate’s Bake Shop has the perfect solution!

Kathleen King is the owner/operator of Tate’s Bake Shop.  Her career began when she was just 11 years old ~ by baking and selling her crisp, buttery chocolate chip cookies out of her father’s farm stand on their Long Island farmstead.   She was hoping for enough money to buy her school clothes, and then it turned into a success story with her owning her own business years later, when she was just 21 years of age!

Here on my blog, I’ve raved about Tate’s Bake Shop before. It’s best known for its mouthwatering chocolate chip cookies.  Plus, the bakers there have many other delicious goodies, such as:  brownies, pies and breakfast treats ~ all baked from scratch.  Kathleen love of baking is evident in every sweet bite!

Tate’s Bake Shop can serve up brunch for Mom!

Now, let's get on with the giveaway!

Tate’s Bake Shop has been nice enough to provide their Mother’s Day Brunch Basket to one lucky winner here at Pam’s Midwest Kitchen Korner! 

The spring-green basket is chock full of delectable treats:

• Sour cream coffee cake rich with cinnamon sugar and pecans.
• Two buttery crumb cakes
• Two of their delectable raspberry bars with almond crumb topping
• A dense, moist lemon pound cake

Here are the giveaway rules:

Leave me a comment telling me how you intend to honor you Mom, or anyone who is like a Mom to you.  (Required to win).

For extra entries:     

*  Follow me through Google Friend Connect and leave a comment that you did this.

*  Become a fan of Pam’s Midwest Kitchen Korner on Facebook and leave a comment saying you did this.

*  Follow this blog on Facebook Networked blogs and leave a comment telling me you did this.

The giveaway ends on Thursday, May 2, 2013 at midnight, Central Standard Time.  The winner will be announced on Friday, May 3, 2013.  The gift basket will be shipped directly from Tate’s Bake Shop.

This giveaway is open to U. S. residents only.

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Tate’s Bake Shop is happy to celebrate Mother’s Day this year by honoring Mom’s, Grandmothers and everyone who is like a Mom, with their Tate’s Bake Shop Mother’s Day Honor Wall on Facebook! 

To win a Mom’s Baking for Friends Basket, click HERE and follow the instructions.  Then, just post an image of your honoree and say a few words about why that person is special to you.  That’s it!

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And, there’s yet another way to get some mouthwatering goodies:  Tate’s Bake Shop is offering shoppers on the Tate’s Bake Shop website 20% off any purchase until May 12, 2013.  Just use the discount code mom13 at checkout.

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Good luck to all of you!

Pam

Catfish Simply Pan-fried

I seldom fry foods any more, but last night, we were hungry for some fried catfish.

To me, the perfect fried catfish has one essential ingredient ~ cornmeal.  It adds great texture and crunch.  However, Bill disagrees and tends to prefer catfish dusted with flour.  This time, we met in the middle and I used a coating of half cornmeal, half flour.  The catfish was delicious and made us both happy!

I like the distinct taste of catfish, and if only I had some hush puppies…

Pan-fried Catfish

Ingredients:

4 catfish fillets

1 cup buttermilk

½ cup flour

½ cup cornmeal

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon seasoned pepper

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

½ teaspoon garlic powder

Vegetable oil

Method:

In a large bowl, soak catfish in enough buttermilk to cover, for one hour and drain well.

Mix dry ingredients in a bowl.

Pour oil in a cast-iron skillet heat until oil is hot.

Dredge fish in flour mixture.

Gently place fillets in hot oil.

Pan-fry for 3-4 minutes on each side, or until golden brown and fish is flaky.

Fry the fish in batches, adding more oil if necessary, until done.

Remove from oil and drain on paper towel-lined plate.

Serve hot with tartar sauce.

Simply delicious!!!

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog, @My Kind of Cooking for great tips and delicious easy recipes! 

Roasted Paprika Potatoes

I’m a potato-holic and not afraid to say it!  Just about any variety, any way they’re prepared.  But I draw the line at potato soup and run from it as fast as I can.  Of course, Bill loves the soup…

The color of paprika is a nice addition to many dishes, and Hungarian sweet paprika is used in this dish.  It adds a warm, sweet, peppery, pleasant taste to the potatoes as they roast.  There is just enough olive oil to crisp them up into a great side dish. 

This is a simple roasted potato recipe with great results.  If you’ve never eaten roasted potatoes, you’re in for a treat!

Roasted Paprika Potatoes

Ingredients:

2 pounds red potatoes

3 cloves garlic, minced

¼ cup olive oil

2 teaspoons Hungarian paprika

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon seasoned pepper

Method:

Preheat oven 425 degrees.

Cut potatoes into 1-inch chunks, leaving the skin on.

Coat baking sheet with cooking spray.

Place potatoes and garlic on baking sheet and toss to coat with oil.

Combine remaining 3 ingredients, sprinkle over potatoes, and toss.

Bake for 50 minutes to an hour or until fork tender and a crisp golden brown.

Serves 4.

Do you like potato soup???

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog, @My Kind of Cooking for great tips and delicious easy recipes! 

Spanish Paella Frittata

Mmmm!  Nothing quite beats a simple rustic frittata!

Paella is of Spanish cuisine, originating in Valencia.  It’s traditionally made with rice, meats and vegetables; it’s cooked in a large pan called paella:  a broad shallow dish with sloping sides, 13-inches in diameter, or larger.   

Frittata is of Italian cuisine and similar to an omelet, usually prepared in an iron skillet.  It generally starts on the stovetop and ends in the oven, being baked or broiled.  Eggs are combined with meats, vegetables and cheeses; the possibilities are endless.

This recipe combines both, containing rice, sausage, shrimp and vegetables.  I imagine cooks in Italy, flip their frittatas ~ I’ve done that, but find it’s much easier to finish by covering it with a lid and cooking on low heat on the stovetop until cooked through, or broiling it on a low setting, or just baking it in the oven for a short time. 

It’s a simple rustic dish that is easy to prepare with deliciously toasted bottom!

Spanish Paella Frittata

Ingredients:

2 cups rice

1 pound sweet Italian sausage

1 small onion, chopped

1 small red bell pepper, chopped

1 pound medium raw shrimp, shelled and deveined

8 eggs

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon seasoned pepper

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

Method:

Prepare rice according to package directions; let cool for 5 minutes.

In a 12-inch non-stick skillet, sauté sausage, breaking into small chunks while it cooks.

Add onion and bell pepper and cook until softened and meat is fully cooked.

Add shrimp and rice to skillet and mix well.

Remove from heat.

Beat eggs in a bowl and add salt, pepper and paprika.

Place under broiler and cook until center is set or bake in the oven at 400 degrees for 10-15 minutes until knife inserted in center comes out clean.

Let set for 5 minutes, cut into wedges and serve.

Serves 4

ENJOY!

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog, @My Kind of Cooking for great tips and delicious easy recipes! 

All-purpose Buttery Yellow Cake

I’m happy to say Bill and I celebrated our 46^th wedding anniversary yesterday!  All this time with the best husband:  thank you for all the wonderful years and wonderful memories, my dear, with many more to follow!

We celebrated with an excellent dinner at Biaggi’s Italian Restaurant and I “desserted” him later with his favorite cake ~~~

In Bill’s opinion ~ there is no cake better than a yellow cake with dark chocolate frosting.  This recipe is from The America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook. This is the lightest, fluffiest cake with the finest crumb you can imagine!  In my opinion ~ it beats any bakery cake!

I made a sheet cake in a 9-inch x 13-inch pan; however, if you prefer a layer cake, this recipe makes a 2-layer cake.  Along with the cake flour, it has its share of butter and eggs to provide a tender and springy texture with a stand-out buttery flavor. 

Then finish the cake with sinful chocolate frosting, and you’re treated with a scrumptious cake that would make about anyone happy! 

 

All-purpose Buttery Yellow Cake

Ingredients:

2¼ cups cake flour
2½ teaspoons baking powder
¾ teaspoon salt
16 tablespoons (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1¾ cups sugar
4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1½ cups whole milk, at room temperature

Method:

Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350F. Lightly coat a 9 x 13-inch cake pan with shortening and dust with flour.  Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together in a large bowl and set aside.

Beat the butter and sugar together in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3-6 minutes. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until incorporated, scraping down the bowl and beaters as needed. Beat in the vanilla.

Reduce speed to low and beat in 1/3 of the flour mixture. Beat in half the milk. Repeat with half of the remaining flour mixture, then the remaining milk, and finally the remaining flour mixture.

Give the batter a final stir using a rubber spatula to make sure it's thoroughly combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and smooth the top. Bake until a wooden skewer inserted into the center of the cakes comes out with a few crumbs attached, 25-30 minutes.

Let cool completely before frosting, 1-2 hours.

Dark Chocolate Frosting

Ingredients:

8 ounces semisweet chocolate, melted

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

1 teaspoon vanilla

Pinch salt

2½ sticks butter, softened

2 cups confectioners’ sugar

Method:

Stir the melted chocolate, vanilla and salt together in a small bowl until the salt dissolves.

Beat butter with an electric mixer on medium-high until smooth, 30-60 seconds.

Reduce speed to medium-low, slowly add confectioners’ sugar, and beat until smooth, 2 to 5 minutes.

Beat in the melted chocolate until combined.

Add cocoa and continue beating to blend.

Increase speed to medium-high and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy, 4 to 8 minutes.

Makes 3 cups frosting

It’s a classic all-American cake!

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog, @My Kind of Cooking for great tips and delicious easy recipes!