Success in small packages...

Patti's birthday pinata cupcakes.....

The container they end up in...

Coring out the center, stuffing them with Peanut M&M's...Patti's favorite yummy!

Finished product.  There were A LOT of causalities along the way, including my icing bag, the counter and a ton of cupcakes that just couldn't hang.... they all taste great and Happy Birthday to my Best Friend! 

Mongolian Beef

I love to cook this dish.  It is almost a one pot wonder, but you end up with (3) if you count the rice.  Next time I will thicken up the sauce even more, I will also add some red pepper flake which I totally forgot this last time.http://cookbook-recipes.org/mongolian-beef-3/

Today is a somber day...

As we all take time from our lives to remember those that gave and give their lives everyday, but today especially being 9/11...I never thought 12 years later I would be married to a first responder, where you have that moment--at times--in the pit of your stomach wondering, will he be ok, is this the call that he doesn't return from.

I have been blessed lately to meet 2 recent widows (both of whom were married to first responders), meeting Alisa and Keri has shed some light on what they are now living with daily.  Thank you to our first responders all over the world.  Thank you to the military!  Thank you all for being the brave, the proud, and the free!

FOOD
So my best friend has a birthday this week. And I don't have her cake made...yet, I am honoring her by creating (re-creating) a dish she turned me on to.  They are called Patti's empanada's. Patti is a wonderful cook, who can take a recipe and turn it into gold. I changed her recipe by using carne-ascada in lieu
 of hamburger meat.  So it is simple really. Brown the meat, add in onion, tomato sauce, worchester sauce, hot sauce and garlic powder. I changed it by marinating my meat for several hours in cilantro, white wine, and a mild salad dressing just to loosen the fibers of the skirt steak.  I bought the empanada wrappers, they are now selling the larger sizes so YAY! and use an egg wash on top.  Bake them at 350 for about 15 mins.  Before I did the empanadas I made YUCCA, I chopped it up and turned the oven to 350, placed them on a cookie sheet, used olive oil, garlic powder, salt and pepper and baked them for about 45 mins.  That's the meal. 

Success is PINK!

From epic failure to success...

Epic Fail

It is often that I fail so eloquently at something, but last night I did. I failed at making a pinata cake. I didn't really understand the concept, but I got it now, I think.  I will try again.

 

This is how the cake is supposed to look

That is how mine turned out....it is in pieces in there. TASTE'S great though.

SHELIA's dessert

Our friends Ruthie and Rusty's daughter and son in law are in town from PA.  So it is all about Shelia--LOL--and I made dessert for Labor Day dinner.  A tasty pie I turned into a pan cake. Much easier as a cake than a pie.
A huge hit! Like I said it is supposed to be a pie, but it transports much easier as a cake!

http://allrecipes.com.au/recipe/3875/impossible-pie.aspx

Hillbilly dinner

This is a hearty thick somewhere between a soup and a stew meal. And there is nothing to it.

1-2 lbs. Ground beef
1 onion
1 can drained corn
1 can diced tomatoes
1/2-3/4 c pasta maccroni or shells minis, use whatevere is on the shelf.
Garlic powder, s&p
Cook pasta to just al dente'
Drain
Cook ground beef and onion
Add s&p and garlic powder cook until done. Drain.
To a pot add EVERYTHING! Stire stir stir.
So I also added some beef broth, just a splash and cajun heat hot sauce. See link to that below. My friend Clem makes it.

Stir turn to low and let it simmer for about a half hour done!!!

www.cajunheat.com

http://www.allthecooks.com/hillbilly-dinner.html