Sushi

I am not sure how to explain this but what I basically did was get all of the ingredients that I wanted to put in the roll and then I googled "how to make sushi" to find a how-to video.

Ingredients I used:

Short Grain rice-cooked in rice cooker

Seaweed sheets

Immitation Crab

Cucumber

Avacado

Sesame seeds (I forgot this)

Rice Seasoning: Rice Vinegar, sugar, and salt

Cook vinegar over heat to dissolve the sugar and salt. Depending on how much rice you cook the amount of seasoning will vary. My first time I cooked three (maybe four, can't remember, oops!) cups of rice and so my seasoning mix was:

1/2 cup rice vinegar

1/4 or 1/2 cup sugar

1 teaspoon salt

I was not exact with my measurements. I eyeballed most of it. Anyway, the seasoning is mixed in with the COOKED rice. Or to make things easy you could buy a bottle of actual rice seasoning for sushi at the store.

One avacado and one average size cucumber cut in half gave me at least four rolls. So you don't have to buy a lot of the veggies unless you're making a lot. One cup of rice will make about two small rolls. I made two cups of rice and got two large sushi rolls with that.

You can put almost anything you would like in your sushi rolls. These ingredients are of the basic California Roll. I have yet to try other ones like the spicy tuna roll...Mmmm!

Melanie's "2 Can" Chili

1 lb. lean ground beef 1 large sweet onion, diced
3 stalks celery, diced
3 Tbsp minced garlic
Plenty of fresh ground black pepper

Brown beef together with onion, celery and garlic. Drain any grease.
Heat to med-high and add:

2 cans fire roasted tomatoes (don't drain)
2 cans tomato sauce (I rinse the cans and end up adding about 1/2-3/4 can water)
2 cans dark red kidney beans (drain the tops because bean goo is disturbing)
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar (don't sub another kind)
2 Tbsp really good/dark raw honey
2 Tbsp chili powder

Simmer for at least one hour. Try to share.

Cheese Chowder

Start to finish: 30 Minutes
Makes: 6-8 side dish servings (about 5 cups)

1 cup water
1/2 cup chopped carrot (1 medium)
1/2 cup celerey (1 stalk)
1/2 cup chopped red sweet pepper
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions (2)
3 cups milk
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp instant chicken bouillon granules
1/4 tsp white pepper
1 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese (6 oz)
1 1/2 cups shredded American cheese (6 oz)

1. In large saucepan bring water to boiling; add carrot, celery, sweet pepper, and green onions. Cook, covered, about 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Do not drain.
2. In a small bowl gradually stir about 1 cup of the milk into the flour; stir into cooked vegetables in saucepan. Add the ramaining milk, the bouillon granules, and white pepper.
3. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir for 1 minute more. Add cheddar cheese and American cheese, stirring until melted.

Quick Cheese Chowder: Prepare as above, except omit celery, sweet pepper and green onion. In a large saucepan combine the water, carrot, and one 10-oz package frozen cauliflower or frozen cut broccoli. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, about 4 minutes or just until vegetables are crisp-tender. Do not drain. Cut up any large peices of cauliflower or broccoli. Continue as directed in step 2. Makes 6 to 8 side-dish servings.

*If feeding this as a dinner for 4 or more people, triple the recipe. Can of evaporated milk can be substitued as the milk, it makes it very creamy. I just used mild cheddar because that is all I had, but it tasted great. I want to try it mixing the different cheeses.

Sugar Cookies

Out of all the different sugar cookie recipes I have tried this one is THE BEST so far.

Courtesy Emeril Lagasse, courtesy Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc.

Ingredients:
· 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
· ¼ teaspoon salt
· 12 tablespoons butter, softened
· 1 cup granulated sugar
· 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
· 1 teaspoon lemon zest
· 1 egg
Directions:
Place a fine mesh sieve or a sifter over a medium mixing bowl and add the flour and salt. Sift the dry ingredients into the bowl and set aside.
In a mixing bowl, combine the butter and sugar; using a hand held mixer on medium-high speed cream the butter and sugar together until the mixture is light in color and has a fluffy texture. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula and then add the vanilla extract, lemon zest and egg. Beat until blended, 1 or 2 minutes longer. On low speed, gradually add the sifted flour and salt, mixing until just blended.
Remove the dough from the bowl and divide into 2 balls. Place each half between 2 pieces of waxed or parchment paper and roll into 5-inch diameter disks. Place the dough on baking sheets and refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours or as long as 24 hours.
When you are ready to roll and bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with silicone liners or parchment paper. Place 1 disk of the cookie dough on the work surface and remove the top sheet of paper. Lightly dust the surface of the dough with flour. Roll the dough out starting from the center to an even thickness of 1/8-inch. Using decorative cookie cutters cut the dough directly on the parchment paper. Use a spatula to transfer the dough to the lined baking sheet. Place the cookies at least 1/2-inch apart.
Gather the dough scraps and reroll them to make additional cookies. Only reroll the dough once.
Bake the cookies 1 sheet at a time for 10 to 12 minutes or until cookies are golden around the edges and firm to the touch. Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool.
The cookies can be stored in resealable plastic containers or cookie tins for 1 week. To frost the cookies prepare a recipe of royal icing as follows and decorate as desired.
Royal Icing:
2 egg whites
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 tablespoon milk
1 pound confectioners' sugar
Place all of the ingredients in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat slowly until well blended. Then beat at medium-high speed until the icing forms stiff peaks, 6 minutes. If icing is not stiff enough add more sugar if it is too stiff add more milk. Use immediately or place in a plastic container with a lid until ready to use. Allow icing to dry for at least 24 hours before packaging.
Yield: About 2 1/2 cups

Greek Couscous Salad

1 cup whole wheat couscous
1 cup cherry tomatoes - halved
1 medium cucumber - chopped
1 medium sweet green pepper - chopped
1/2 cup snipped chives
1/4 cup snipped parsley
1/4 cup oregano
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
1/3 cup grapeseed oil (or light olive oil)
2 tsp agave nectar
1/2 cup crumbled Feta cheese
1/2 cup toasted chopped walnuts

Bring 2 cups of vegetable broth to a boil and add 1 cup of couscous. Stir until incorporated, reduce heat to low and cover for 20 minutes. Chop cucumber, tomato and green pepper and set aside. Combine oil, vinegar, agave and spices and whisk until blended. Remove couscous to a large bowl and add cucumber mixture and balsamic mixture. Add feta and walnuts and stir until completely combined. Chill for one hour for best taste results. TRY to share! YUM!

Source: from my friend Melanie.

I don't have a picture but I will be making it soon and I'll take a picture then.

The Best Breakfast!

This is seriously the best breakfast casserole I have ever tasted and it's super easy to boot! My sister has been making it for a while and I've been hooked from the first time I tried it. I don't have the cookbook in front of me but these are the correct measurements, just the directions aren't straight from the book.

1 Medium Onion coarsely chopped
4 Cups frozen hash browns, thawed
6 Eggs
1/4 Cup Milk
2 Tbsp. Dried Parsley
1/2 Tsp. Salt

1/4 Tsp. Pepper
1 Cup Grated Cheese

Source: Pampered Chef Busy Moms Cookbook

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Saute onion and brown thawed hash brown together until brown. In the meantime, combine eggs, milk, parsley, salt and pepper in a bowl and mix. In a casserole dish, mix cheese and hash browns together. Poor egg mixture over hash browns. Cook for 15-20 minutes or until eggs are set. Let cool for 5 minutes.

Variations: Keilana loves sausage in it; so, I cook about 1/2 a roll of sausage and mix with the hash browns and cheese. My sister has found that 8 eggs and 1/2 cup of milk works better than the what the recipe calls for. I also save about 1/4-1/3 of the cheese to cover the top of the casserole.

As Rachel Ray would say, "YUMMO!"

From Crackers to Toffee

After making these for dessert one night when the Quan family was over for dinner, Vanessa requested that I put this on here. It was a college favorite when I was attending Ricks. We made it for FHE and other functions all the time, and I don't think there was ever one person that didn't like it! AND, it's the quickest and easiest dessert to make EVER!

1 cup brown sugar
1 cup butter
40 soda crackers (approx. 2 packs)
Chocolate chips
Chopped nuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line cookie sheet with foil, dull side up. Spray with cooking spray. Line soda crackers on cookie sheet. Mix brown sugar and butter in a pot. Bring to a full boil and let boil for 3 minutes. (I find it's a good idea to stir while it's boiling so that it doesn't burn on bottom.) Pour over crackers and spread evenly. Bake for 5 minutes.
I allow them to cool a few minutes before putting on the chocolate chips, because I don't want them to melt. If you prefer, you can put them on right away and spread the chocolate evenly over the top. You can also sprinkle chopped nuts on top if desired.

Note: Depending on how many people you are making them for, the recipie can easily be cut in half.