Dimond Lasagna

Have you ever noticed how depending on where you go, and whose recipe you use, lasagna always tastes different. Have you also ever noticed that the lasagna that you grew up on, always, always, always manages to taste the best? Are you nodding your head yes and yes so far? Good, I was hoping so. Well I'm posting my mom's recipe (the name Dimond lasagna comes from my maiden name, Dimond) fully knowing that you may or may not think that it's the best lasagna you've ever had in your whole life and you'll never ever use anything different. I'm merely posting it because it really is divine....I mean, DE-VINE! I'll tell you the secret: no ricotta cheese, no cottage cheese, no ragu (yick, that stuff's nasty anything--sorry I've become kind of a pasta sauce snob). No, this recipe is compromised of homemade sauce, noodles, and cheese, glorious cheese. It's so yummy and when you take it out of the pan the cheese strings all the way to your plate. Is your mouth watering yet? Mine is! So let's get to it:

Dimond Lasagna

1 lb Ground Beef

1 small Onion, diced

1/4 teaspoon Garlic, minced

1 small can Tomato Paste

1 small can water (just use the tomato paste can)

1 can Tomato Puree, 29 oz

2 tablespoon Sugar

1/2 teaspoon Salt

1/4 teaspoon Basil (fresh is best, but dried will work just fine)

1/2 lb Cheddar and Mozzerella cheese, shredded

9 Lasagna Noodles, boiled al dente

Paramsan cheese for sprinkling on layers

1. Brown ground beef and onions over med high heat.

2. Once the beef is brown and the onions are transluscent, add garlic, tomato paste, water, puree, sugar, salt and basil. Simmer for up to 2 hours--the more time the better but I've let it simmer for 20 minutes and it's still yummy.

3. Shred your cheese....I put it one big hug mound (and try to not to think about the calories that mound would be ;o) )

4. Take your 9X13 pan and spread a small layer of the sauce on the bottom. Then layer 3 of your al dente lasagna noodles. Next layer with 1/3 of the cheese mound. Next layer with 1/3 of sauce. Next layer with some parmasan cheese. Repeat 2 more times. (You should end with sauce on top and Parm cheese on top of that)

5. Bake 375 for 25 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes and serve, hot and cheesy!!

Rhubarb Sweet Rolls

My sister moved into a new house a few months ago and discovered this spring that she is now the proud owner of some rhubarb plants. Lucky, huh? I love rhubarb and its lip-puckeringly tart flavor, and sometimes it can be hard to get your hands on it unless you know someone who grows some. I'm surprised they didn't tell her there was a rhubarb plant in the back yard when she was looking at the house. I definitely would have considered that an asset up there with hardwood floors and newer appliances. (I'm only kidding a little about this.)

Rhubarb is so wonderful because its tart flavor is so unique and works well in both desserts and savory dishes. Its growing season is short enough that it is almost impossible to get sick of it. Instead you seem to just whet your appetite for more of its sourness and then it is gone. 

While you are whetting your appetite for rhubarb this year, along with your rhubarb pies and cakes, give these sweet rolls a try. They're soft and gooey and have just enough rhubarb flavor. The dough itself is a little sweet, which helps balance out the sourness of the rhubarb. You have to love something that is basically a dessert but can pass as a main breakfast dish. 

To make it, you first start the dough and let it rise. The secret ingredient in this dough is sweetened condensed milk. It does amazing things to the texture and flavor of the dough. Amazing, I'm telling you. 

While the dough is rising, prepare the rhubarb by slicing it and boiling it in water with sugar until it is soft. (~2 minute once it gets up to a boil, but check on it and stop if from cooking just when it starts to get soft.) Strain mixture briefly and pulse in a food processor to break down the big chunks. You can add a couple drops of red food coloring to the strained mixture to make it pretty and red if your rhubarb was a little on the green side. Taste the rhubarb and add a pinch of salt, sugar to taste, and even a little lemon juice if it needs it.

Once the dough has risen, roll it out into a 12" by 16" rectangle. The best way to know that you are getting the right size is the measure it. (I know, it's crazy, huh? Actually measuring things seems so strict for cooking, but it really helps make things uniform.) Spread the rhubarb mixture on the dough and roll it up loosely, (starting on the long side, not the short side) making sure to pinch the end to seal it. 

Here's the tricky part, and don't even attempt it without a serrated knife. Carefully slice the roll into 12 even pieces. Yes, you can use your handy kitchen ruler again to make sure every slice is the same size. Place the slices in a 9x13 baking pan, cover, and let rise for half an hour.

Bake the rolls at 350 for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown.

Drizzle with glaze and dig in.

Rhubarb Sweet Rolls

Ingredients:

Dough:

3/4 cup warm water

1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk

1/4 cup vegetable oil

2 T sugar

1 large egg

3 1/2 cups flour

2 packages instant yeast

1 tsp salt

Filling:

1 lb rhubarb

3/4 cup sugar, plus extra to taste

Red food coloring
Salt
Lemon juice

Glaze:

1/2 tsp corn syrup

1/8 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 T half and half (or milk)

1. In a small bowl, combine water, condensed milk, oil, sugar and egg. Mix well. In the bowl of a standing mixer, add yeast, flour and salt. Combine, and with mixer on low slowly add the water/milk mixture. Mix until dough is smooth, about 4-5 minutes. Turn out onto a floured surface and knead into a ball. Place in an oiled bowl, cover, and let rise 1 hour.

2. Meanwhile, make the filling by chopping rhubarb into 1/4 inch slices and add to a medium sauce pan with 1 cup of water and 3/4 cup sugar. Bring mixture to a boil and cook until rhubarb is tender, about 2 minutes. Drain in a fine mesh strainer, add drained rhubarb to a food processor with a pinch of salt (and food coloring if using) and pulse 3-4 times. Taste the rhubarb and add additional sugar and/or lemon juice to taste.

3. Punch down risen dough and roll to a rectangle 16x12 inches. Spread cooled rhubarb mixture over the dough, and carefully roll to make a 16 inch long roll. Pinch the end to seal it.

4. With a serrated knife, slice roll into 12 even pieces and place in 9x13 baking pan. Cover and let rise 30 minutes. Heat oven to 350 degrees.

5. Bake rolls 20-25 minutes, until golden brown. Let cool in pan 10 minutes, and then turn out onto a wire rack and cool five more minutes. Turn right side up onto a baking sheet. Combine glaze ingredients in a small bowl, adding more powdered sugar or half and half to achieve a consistency you like. Spread over warm rolls and serve warm or at room temperature.

Recipe Source: HeatOvenTo350

Herbed Fruit Salad

When it comes to fruit salad, I usually only stick to 2-3 kinds of fruit. It may seem kind of boring, but I think it makes the end result taste better. When you only use a couple kinds of fruit you can find ones that are ripe and tasty and that go well together, not ones to add as "filler" or for color. Right now strawberries in our area have been delicious, so I decided to share a strawberry/grape salad I make that is yummy enough to make for yourself and fancy enough to bring to a friend's house. 

The ingredients are pretty simple. You'll need 6 cups of strawberries, quartered. (If your strawberries are gigantic like the ones I had for this picture you may need to cut them slightly smaller than quarters)

6 cups of red grapes

2T sugar

2T Sprite. Don't worry, this is not overpowering. It's just there to wake up the flavors a little.

1/2 T basil, chopped fine. 

I know, you're thinking, "What? Is this pasta?" You'll have to trust me on this. Basil plays well with strawberries and grapes. Know how it has an almost licorice-y taste sometimes? Eh? Can you imagine it on something a little sweet? If anything, it should only enhance the fruit flavors. You don't want too much here or yes, it will be gross. 

That's it! You throw all the ingredients in a bowl with a pinch of salt and stir them until combined. Serve within a few hours because the sugar is going to make the fruit start losing water and puddling at the bottom of the bowl. I know, sounds yummy. That's why you serve it before that happens. 

What a great way to get some vitamin C, huh?

Herbed Fruit Salad

Ingredients:

6 cups strawberries, rinsed, hulled and cut in quarters

6 cups red grapes

2 T sugar

2 T sprite

1/2 T fresh basil, chopped fine

A pinch of salt 

Directions:

Add all ingredients to a large bowl and mix well. Serve immediately.

Recipe source: HeatOvenTo350

Sandwich Bread

Ok so, I don't know about all of you but I love, love, love love cooking with yeast. I don't know if it's the anticipation of how beautifully it magically (oh maybe it's more chemically) rises, or the punching down, or the wooooonderful taste of the homemade bread. Does anything really beat the taste of homemade bread?? I grew up on homemade bread and I remember my mom making 5-6 loaves at a time and one of the loaves was used strictly for fresh from the oven eating. That's right, anyone that was home at the time got to have a thick slab of bread spread with rich real butter. YUUMMY! Now that I'm a mom, it's all I make and my little one year old is a total bread snob. He won't even touch the store bought stuff! Can you really blame him? The great thing about homemade bread is that you control the ingredients that go into it. Store bought bread has loads of salt...loads! My diet consists of low sodium foods so one of my bestest friends in the world (yes and the other gal writing this blog with me) taught me how to make my own bread. So this recipe is hers (taken from America's Test Kitchen) but along the way I've added a key ingredient: potato flakes. I took a cooking class where I learned that this ingredient adds a softer, chewier texture that is unmatched!! So here you are, and make sure that you cut yourself a thick slab of the bread fresh from the oven!

Here's a picture of the ingredients that you'll need

Ok so first off Whisk the milk, water, butter, and honey in a large measuring cup (or bowl).

Next, combine your flour, yeast, salt, and potato flakes in a standing mixer using the dough hook attachment.

Add the milk mixture and mix on low until the dough comes together like this picture. The sides should be pretty clean and the dough will be sticking to the bottom of the bowl. If you need to add more flour, add it only a couple tablespoons at a time.

Next you'll turn the dough out on a floured surface and knead by hand to form a smooth round ball.

Next just plop your dough ball into a greased bowl. Grease some plastic wrap and put over the top. Then just put this in a warm spot until the dough doubles in size--1-1 1/2 hrs.

This is what it will look like. (This recipe is doubled so that's why it's overflowing).

Turn the dough out again on a floured surface and roll into a 9 inch square.

Then you'll tightly roll the dough into a cylinder. Pinch the seam and put into a 9x5 inch loaf pan (greased). Now spray the top of the loaves with some vegetable spray.

Let rise in a warm spot again, until doubled in size--45-75 minutes. Here's what it'll look like.

Bake at 350 for 40 minutes or until the bread reads 200 degrees, or until the loaf is golden brown on top. (I only ever bake my bread for 30 minutes so just watch them if it's your first time making bread). Here's what they'll look like.

Yummmmmmmmmmy! Quick, get some butter (real stuff) out and spread it on fresh out of the oven. My husband and I have to "paper-rock-scissors" for the end piece of the loaf!

American Sandwich Bread

1 cup warm whole milk at 110 degrees (you can use 1% milk if you are watching your waistline)

1/3 cup warm water at 110 degrees

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

3 tablespoons honey

3 1/2 cups bread flour (you can use 1/2 wheat flour too which is what I did in these pictures)

1 envelope instant yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)

2 teaspoons salt

1/4 cup potato flakes

Bake 350 degrees for 40-50 minutes.

Sandwich Bread

Taco Choup

The weather here has been unseasonably cold here in Minnesota. Ironically, we had 70 degree weather for most of April, then we pop in to May and we can't seem to get out of the 40's and 50's? Now, I'm not telling you this so that you don't have to dig out your Farmer's Almanac. No, I'm telling you this because when the weather turns cold, my tastebuds scream out for soup! Or Choup--which is my made up name for a dish that is a cross between soup, stew, and chili. Which is what this recipe is--and trust me even in mid-summer you'll crave the explosion of flavors that this choup gives your mouth!! So here you go:

Taco Choup

1 lb Ground Beef

1 medium Onion (I use yellow)

1 can Corn (16 oz)

2 cans Stewed Tomatoes (15 oz)

2 cans Red Kidney Beans, drained

1 can Tomato Sauce (8 oz)

1 pkg Taco Se

asoning (if you a spicier choup, than get the Hot Taco Seasoning)

1. Brown ground beef in a skillet, once the meat is almost browned, added the onions and cook until onions are transluscent and meat is fully browned.

2. Dump ground beef and onions into a big pot and add corn,tomatoes, beans, tomato sauce. Allow to simmer for 2 hours and add Taco Seasoning. Let sit for 10 minutes and serve.

I like serving with cheese and sourcream, chives,

and/or cilantro.

This can also be an easy crockpot recipe. Just brown the beef and onions and dump everything (except taco seasoning) into a crockpot and cook on low for 6 hours. Add seasoning in when you are just about to eat.

Avocado Beef Tortilla Pizza

When I was a sophmore in college I had a little revelation about food - that if I didn't make any, I didn't eat. And if I didn't make anything yummy, I didn't get to eat anything yummy. It was a little bit of a surprise because growing up my mom made something delicious and homemade every night, and my previous year of college I had been in the dorms and the friendly cafeteria staff always had some food ready when I wanted to eat. Moving into an apartment sophmore year meant a kitchen and groceries and the realization that I didn't know how to make ANYTHING. Luckily, there was my roommate Emily, the Food Network and our moms on speed dial. Emily was in the same predicament, and she was just as willing as I was to try, try, try things until we succeeded. I have great memories of some really salty enchiladas, soggy pierogis or our sad attempt at a galette de roi. (Hey, Emeril made one so we thought we should try.) Through the years we got more adventerous and more skilled, and we found some great recipes that I still use and love. One of those recipes is the Avocado Beef Tortilla Pizza I'm going to share today. It was from a little "Cooking For Two" recipe book that Emily's mom had given her. I remember using that book so much the binding broke and I have no idea if Emily still has it, but I still have a couple recipes from it in my recipe binder. I've modified it over the years to make enough for six since it works great as leftovers.

What you need:

1 lb lean ground beef (if you wanted to slice some flank steak super thin, that would also work well here. Leftover grilled steak is another delicious option. Just heat it in the first step until warm)

3-4T canned green chiles, undrained (green enchilada sauce works too)

1 clove of garlic, minced

1 green pepper, diced

2 cups shredded monterey jack or mozzarella cheese

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

1 can sliced black olives, drained

sour cream

6 flour tortilla (taco size)

oil for brushing tortillas

2-3 ripe avocados

Directions:

In a large skillet over medium heat, cook the ground beef until browned. Drain fat and add the salsa (or enchilada sauce) and garlic. Heat until warmed and most of the excess liquid from the salsa has cooked down.

Brush the tortillas on both sides with oil.

Assemble the pizzas, starting with a layer of the ground beef mixture, and then adding black olives and green peppers. Top with Monterey Jack and Parmesan.

Bake at 450 about 10 minutes, depending on your oven. You want the edges of the tortilla to start browning and the cheese to fully melt. Slice the pizzas in wedges, top with avocado and sour cream and enjoy.

If you want leftovers, make only the number of pizzas that you need and save the leftover beef mixture. You can assemble the tortilla pizzas with the leftover beef mixture straight from the fridge. If you are looking to save time in the evening, you can also make the entire beef mixture ahead of time so all you have to do is assemble the pizzas and bake them.

Oatmeal Toffee Cookies

Ok so a couple of things to keep in mind as you dive into this food adventure with us.  I'll probably start most of my posts with, "Ok so...". I don't know why I do it, I just do so I hope it isn't too annoying! Second, I like to write the same way that I talk.  I get overly excited, using lots of these, "!!!" over things that most people deem ordinary.  Like these cookies for instance-YUMMY!!!!  I found this recipe on www.thepioneerwoman.com (which if you type  tasty kitchen into your google search it will bring you to the same place.) I made them thinking that they are for sure going to be overkill sweet--I mean sugar (white and brown) coconut, AND toffee bits?!? But I'm happy to say that these little guys are treasures! They are crispy and chewy and have about 3 depths of taste (yes three--trust me!) Also, for those of you on a diet, do yourself a favor and don't make them because they are ADDICTING! For this particular post I don't have the pictures for the prep work, only the ending result. Ok, Ok, I wasn't planning on putting them on here so I didn't bother taking pictures during prep..until I tasted them and knew they had to be a part of this blog! So here you are. Enjoy!

Oatmeal Toffee Cookies

1 1/2 cups Flour

1 1/4 teaspoons Baking Soda

1 teaspoon Salt

1 1/2 teaspoons Cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon Nutmeg

1 1/2 cups Brown Sugar, packed

1 cup Sugar

1 cup Butter, softened

2 Eggs

1 tablespoon Vanilla Extract

3 cups Rolled Oats

1 cup Rice Krispies

1 cup shredded Coconut

1 1/4 cups Toffee bits

1 cup Pecans, chooped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

In a separate bowl sift dry ingredients. In your mixer bowl mix butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time until they are well blended. Add Vanilla and mix well.  Gradually add dry ingredients.  With a wooden spoon mix oats, Rice Krispies, coconut, toffee, and pecans. 

Drop about 2 teaspoons on ungreased cookies sheet about 1 1/2 inches apart. Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes.  

BUT, don't say I didn't warn you!!

I grew up in Waterbury, Vermont, home of the main Ben and Jerry's ice cream factory. With the exception of my brother, all the kids in my family worked there at some point during our teenage life, either in the gift shop or giving tours. It was a fun atmosphere to work in and I enjoyed meeting tourists from all over the country, but I'd have to say the main perk was, hmmmmm, the ICE CREAM. All employees got three pints of ice cream a day for free. Just take it out of the employee freezer and go home to gorge yourself. Most of the ice cream we would get factory seconds, meaning that the chunks or swirls weren't distributed right. That meant that sometimes you were stuck with a pint that was mostly chunks. Tragedy, huh? With that much ice cream, I hate to say it but my siblings and I just started to take it for granted. Eventually we would stop even eating the ice cream part and do what we called "mining", which is digging through the pint for the chunks and leaving the rest behind. Now that I have to pay for the stuff myself I can't believe I let so much go to waste, but that's kind of how it goes when you are a teen.

Anyway, the thing is, despite all that great ice cream and great time eating the chunks from the ice cream, guess what I'd say my favorite ice cream flavor is? No, not Chubby Hubby, although that is a close second. It's vanilla. Nothing fancy, nothing special, just vanilla. You can add whatever toppings you want, or none at all. It's delicious any way you scoop it. And as far as vanilla ice cream goes, pretty much nothing tops homemade. There's just something fresh and creamy about homemade ice cream. Sadly, though, my husband and I have never owned an ice cream maker, and I don't foresee the purchase of one in the near future. I just have way too many kitchen gadgets and way too little extra cupboard space. That's why when I found this recipe a few years ago I got really excited. It claimed to make delicious chocolate ice cream without a machine and it looked super easy. Could it really be true? Could it be modified to make delicious vanilla ice cream? The answer is, oh boy yes it's true, and my mouth is so much happier for it.

Ice Cream - Without a Machine

By HeatOvenTo350 Published 05/04/2010

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons milk (optional)
• 1 cup sweetened condensed milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2 1/2 cups heavy cream - hey, I never said this was a healthy recipe

Instructions

1. In a medium bowl, mix the sweetened condensed milk with vanilla, salt and milk (if using. If you like your ice cream slightly soft when you take it out of the fridge, add the extra milk. If you like it harder then omit it.)
2. With an electric mixer, whip heavy cream until soft peaks form.
3. Take 1/3 of the whipped cream mixture and stir it into sweetened condensed milk mix. Don't skip this step. It lightens up the milk mixture so you don't deflate the whipped cream completely when you add everything together. Fold this mixture into the whipped cream and pour into a freezable container.
4. Freeze at least 6 hours or until firm, then enjoy!

Prep Time: 15 min Cook Time: 6 hours Yield: 6 servings