Saturday, March 30, 2013

Happy Easter!

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Copyright: All recipes, content, and images (unless otherwise stated) are the sole property of Curry and Comfort. Please do not use without prior written consent. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.

Friday, March 29, 2013

Easter Peep and Bunny Cupcakes

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I was reading the Sunday Magazine of my Newspaper when I saw these adorable Easter Cupcakes.  So I knew I had to try to make a knockoff of them with the baking supplies I had on hand for Easter.  These are the cute little cupcakes that came about.  I made my own lemony buttercream frosting and that gave the cupcakes a real burst of flavor.   

Ingredients:
1 box yellow cake mix
Jelly beans
Peeps (chicks and bunnies)
My lemony buttercream frosting recipe (or store bought vanilla frosting)
Baker's coconut
Green food coloring

Directions:
Bake cupcakes as directed by the box of cake mix.  Cool cupcakes completely.  Dye baker's coconut with green food coloring to desired grass like color.

Frost cupcakes.  Dip frosted cupcake into dyed coconut.  Place a half of a toothpick into peep and poke other end of toothpick into cupcake. Finish off with jelly beans.  Enjoy.  Makes 14-16 cupcakes.

Lemony Buttercream Frosting:
2 cups confectioners sugar
1/2 cup softened butter
2 Tbs fresh lemon juice
Cream butter, add sugar and lemon juice.  Blend until creamy. 



 
Copyright: All recipes, content, and images (unless otherwise stated) are the sole property of Curry and Comfort. Please do not use without prior written consent. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.

Thursday, March 28, 2013

Egg-Cellent Meatloaf (Throwback Thursday Series)

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My Old Photo circa 2011
It's Easter time and eggs are on sale.  So I decided I would redo my Egg-Cellent Meatloaf recipe for the family to enjoy.  I also got the idea of redoing some of my older recipes after I did a big recipe organization project.  I categorized all my recipes so I had to review a lot of my older recipes.  I was cringing at my old photos from two years ago when I just started blogging. I just was not happy with how the photos reflected the recipes. That got me thinking of doing this new series for the blog called Throwback Thursdays.  I will try to redo as many of my old recipes that I took with my old camera.  I have learned a lot more about food photography since then, but I have so much more to learn.  I hope the new pictures make the food look as good as it tastes.


 Ingredients:
2lbs of lean ground meat (beef, pork, chicken, turkey or combination)
2 tsp paprika
1 Tbs of Dijon mustard
2 Tbs sriracha (or ketchup)
Seasoning salt or Grill grill seasoning (consists of salt, pepper, garlic and other spices) to taste
1 Tbs of onion powder
1 Tbs of garlic powder
2 tsp of Italian seasoning
2 eggs 
4-5 slices of bread soaked in milk 1/2 cup of milk and mashed

Glaze:
1/4 cup ketchup
2-3 Tbs sriracha 


 Directions: 



The first step is to boil 5-6 eggs until they are hard boiled then peel them.


Next mix all the seasoning ingredients with the soaked bread and eggs.  Then add the two pounds ground meat. I used 1lb ground chicken and 1lb ground pork. Mix all ingredients well.


Free form the loaf as shown.  I recommend that you cover your baking sheet with some foil and giving it a quick spray of cooking oil for easier clean-up.  Then use 2/3 of the meat loaf mixture and form the bottom of the loaf with a slight well in the middle. Then place your row of eggs along the meatloaf.

Top it off with the remaining 1/3 of the meatloaf mixture and finish forming the loaf.  Bake at 375 degrees for 40 minutes initially.
Take it out of the oven at the 40 minute mark and top glaze.
Then put it back in the oven to bake for another 15 minutes.

Note:  Every oven varies a bit so the cooking time could vary too. If you have a meat thermometer have the internal temp of the middle of the loaf reach 155 degrees.


 Serves 6-8 people Slice and enjoy with mash potatoes, vegetables etc...  Enjoy.





Copyright: All recipes, content, and images (unless otherwise stated) are the sole property of Curry and Comfort. Please do not use without prior written consent. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Easter Peep S'mores (Microwave Version)

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I learned to make these Peep S'mores last Easter when I saw it on a YouTube video. My kids were so excited after watching the video that we had to run out and buy the supplies right away.  I missed my opportunity to share it with the blog last year so I decided to do it this year when Easter peeps showed up again.  The microwave is such a fun and easy way to make s'mores.. I hope you enjoy these peep treats this Easter too. :) 

Ingredients:
Peeps
Graham Crackers
Hershey Snack Size Chocolate

 Directions:
Place peep on half a graham cracker.  Heat in microwave for 15-20 seconds.  When it expands and starts to melt, top with chocolate bar and other half of graham cracker.  Enjoy.

 Copyright: All recipes, content, and images (unless otherwise stated) are the sole property of Curry and Comfort. Please do not use without prior written consent. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.

Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Easter Rice Krispies Bird's Nest with Whopper Robin Eggs

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 I had so much fun making these little rice krispies bird's nest with my kids for Easter.  The stores are full of fantastic egg shaped candies for the Easter holiday so I had to do something fun with these adorable Whopper Robin Eggs I saw.  The rice krispies made the perfect nest and they were so easy to make with my kids.   Stay tune this week for a few more Easter treats. :)


 Ingredients:

1 (10.5oz) bag mini marshmallows
1/4 cup butter
6 cups rice krispies
a few drops yellow food coloring (optional)
baking coconut (sweetened)
a few drops of green food coloring
Jelly Beans or egg shaped candy like the Whoppers Robin eggs
Cooking spray

Equipment:
Muffins trays
ice cream scoop or cookie scoop
 

Directions:
On medium low heat, melt butter and  marshmallows (add yellow food coloring if you desire here). Once fully melted add the rice krispies and mix well.  Butter or spray cooking spray on muffin trays. Fill each muffin hole with half a scoop of rice krispies mixture.  You must work fast because you don't want the rice krispies to set up before you get a chance to mold them.  Spray the back of a spoon or a cookie scoop with cooking spray and make the nest in the right shape.  Dye the coconut with a several drops of food coloring until you reach a desired color.  Fill with dyed coconut and jelly beans or egg candies.   Allow to sit for 1 hour before serving.  Enjoy.

 


Copyright: All recipes, content, and images (unless otherwise stated) are the sole property of Curry and Comfort. Please do not use without prior written consent. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.

Monday, March 25, 2013

Pork Bolognese Spaghetti

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 Have you ever bought an ingredient for a dish you hoped to make and then you realized the other ingredients you needed for the dish were not at home? Well that's what happened with a packet of ground pork I had in the fridge. So I had to switch my game plan fast and make a new dish. I ended up making this Pork Bolognese because I always have pasta and tomato sauce in my pantry.  Sometimes dishes are destine to happen and this one was destined to be eaten by my family.  My son ate this for his afternoon snack after school (since I cook early so I can take my photos) and he reheated again for dinner.  It's a pretty nutritious dish since I used whole grain pasta, carrots, celery and lean ground pork.  If I let him, he would have made breakfast out it too. But that battle was moot because Daddy came home from work and polished it off.  

 Ingredients:
1lb box of spaghetti pasta cooked in salted water until al dente
1 pound lean ground pork
3-4 strips bacon diced
1 stalk celery finely diced
1-2 carrots (depending on size finely diced)
1 medium onion finely diced
4-5 cloves of garlic grated or minced well
1/4 tsp grated nutmeg
red chili flakes to taste
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried basil
1 (28oz) cans of crushed tomatoes
1 (15oz) can diced tomatoes
salt and black pepper to taste
sugar to taste
1 cup of cream, half and half or milk
1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese



 Directions:
In a large pan, gently cook diced bacon until it renders out some fat.  Then add the ground pork and brown the meat.  Add minced garlic and finely diced carrots, celery, and onions to pan.  Saute.  Season pan with some salt and pepper.

Add seasonings (basil, oregano, nutmeg, red chili flakes).  Then add the canned tomatoes and season again with salt and pepper to taste.  Add sugar (brown or white) to taste depending on the sourness of the tomato.  Simmer for 15 minutes.

Finish off with cream, half and half or milk and taste for seasoning again.  Add al dente pasta (cooked in salt water) and toss.  Serve hot. Enjoy.

 



Copyright: All recipes, content, and images (unless otherwise stated) are the sole property of Curry and Comfort. Please do not use without prior written consent. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.

Sunday, March 24, 2013

Curry and Comfort's Weekly Sunday Summary 3/18/13 thru 03/24/13

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 Hi Everyone,

I have to start my post today with a big complaint.  Where is my spring weather Mother Nature?  I feel like the Groundhog played a practical joke on some of us.  The calendar says we are officially in spring... but it still feels more like February.  No fair! :o(


My kids are home on spring break this week and I am excited about Easter.  I am hoping they will help me make some fun Easter treats to share with everyone this coming week. 

I also wanted to bring attention to a new feature on my blog... the dish categories.  I hope that they help you find my dishes easier.    Since it's still cold, I'm going to keep this post short and sweet so I can cozy up under my blanket and sip some hot cocoa. :)   Here's my week in review...


Copyright: All recipes, content, and images (unless otherwise stated) are the sole property of Curry and Comfort. Please do not use without prior written consent. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.