Cookbook review and a GIVEAWAY!

Hello to all! Did you have a good Christmas? It was great here...my sister and her family visited from Pennsylvania. The cousins had so much fun together. I will talk about all that on another post, but for now I want to post my Early Bird Review of Gooseberry Patch's upcoming cookbook, Homestyle in a Hurry!

Leave a comment on the end of this post to enter my giveaway! I will pick one random comment to win a new copy of this yet-to-be-released cookbook. I will choose a winner in one week...January 4, 2001. Gooseberry Patch does not compensate me for my reviews, besides the complementary cookbook I receive and the one that I give away on my blog. They want my honest opinions, so here goes!

I made three recipes from this book...the first was Sourdough Chicken Casserole. Here's what you'll need:

You will need: 4 C. sourdough bread, cubed; 1/4 C. plus 2 T. butter, melted and divided; 1/3 C. grated parmesan cheese; 2 T. fresh parsley, chopped; 2 sweet onions, sliced; 8-oz. pkg. sliced mushrooms; 1 C. white wine or buttermilk; 10-3/4 oz. can cream of mushroom soup; 1/2 C. roasted red peppers, chopped; 2-1/2 C. cooked chicken, shredded; 1/2 t. salt; and 1/4 t. pepper.

In a large bowl, toss together bread cubes, 1/4 C. butter, cheese and parsley; set aside.

In a large skillet over medium-high heat, saute onions in remaining butter for 15 minutes, or until dark golden.

Add mushrooms and saute for 5 minutes. 

 Add remaining ingredients.

 Stirring constantly, cook an additional 5 minutes, or until hot and bubbly.

 Pour into a lightly greased 9x9 baking pan (I used 11x7);

Top with bread cube mixture.

 Bake, uncovered, at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, or until golden. Makes 4 servings.

RECIPE REVIEW: The casserole was good, but not necessarily one I will make again. The baking time was short but I thought the prep time wasn't really "homestyle in a hurry." The topping was the best part; really, really good with the Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.

The second recipe I tried was Sunny Lemon Blossoms. 

For the cakes, You will need: 1 box yellow cake mix; 3.4-oz. pkg. instant lemon pudding mix; 4 eggs, beaten; and 3/4 C. oil.
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.

Spray mini muffin cups with non-stick vegetable spray; fill cups 1/2 full with batter.

Bake at 350 degrees for 12 minutes. Cool in muffin tin on wire rack 10 minutes; remove cupcakes from tin and cool completely.

For the glaze, You will need: 4 C. powdered sugar; 1/3 C. lemon juice; 3 T. lemon zest; 3 T. oil; and 3 T. water. I used two lemons for the zest and juice.

 Combine all ingredients.

 Stir until smooth.

Dip each cupcake into Lemon Glaze to coat; shake off excess. Place on a wire rack set over a baking sheet (I used waxed paper); refrigerate until set. (Not necessary for me...it was a chilly day!) Makes 4 dozen.

 

RECIPE REVIEW: FABULOUS!! My kids have declared Sunny Lemon Blossoms to be their "new favorite food." They are sweet, moist, and the lemon glaze gives them a perfectly sweet-tart finish. They're darn cute  too. My husband and guests loved them as well...definitely, DEFINITELY one of the top treats I made for Christmas this year. These will go into my permanent rotation. I love taking mixes and "doctoring" them up to be something special. This was a winner.

Plus you can put them on a snowman plate to make cute eyes!

The third recipe was Reuben Dip.

You will need: 1/2 lb. deli corned beef, diced; 8-oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened; 1 C. shredded Swiss cheese; 1 C. sauerkraut, drained; 1/2 C. sour cream; 1 T. ketchup; and 2 t. spicy brown mustard.
Stir all ingredients in a bowl; spoon into greased one-quart casserole dish.

My sister Kathleen helping out!

Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, or until hot and bubbly.

Serve warm with rye crackers or sliced party rye bread. Make 4 cups.

RECIPE REVIEW: Oh. My. Goodness. This dip is soooooo good. I made this on Christmas and when we all first tried it, right out of the oven, the flavors hadn't melded yet so we weren't quite sure. But then, as it cooled a bit, everything came together and we all just loved it. It's a very addicting dip, be warned! My brother-in-law Steve suggests adding some Parmigiano-Reggiano to the top before baking, and I think that would be great too. But as is, it's delicious.

So overall I am very pleased with this cookbook. There are several other recipes that I plan to make as well. Let me know if you make any of these recipes, I'd love to hear how you like them! And don't forget to leave a COMMENT so that you'll be eligible to win your very own advance copy! Good luck!

♥ Jen

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas from my family to yours! I hope you are enjoying the holiday season. I've been busy getting ready for the big day...baking, cleaning, shopping, etc. Next week I will show some goodies I made for Christmas presents, I'll share some recipes from Gooseberry Patch, and of course have a Giveaway for a cookbook! In the meantime, have a great Christmas!!

♥ Jen

Fun news!

I think my regular readers know that I am a big fan of Gooseberry Patch. I've been collecting their cookbooks for years, and I've even had recipes and memories published in a few (another one coming soon!). My blog was selected to be one of their "Featured Fridays" blogs earlier this year. So I am very excited about this newest development!

Gooseberry Patch has asked me to be an "Early Bird Reviewer" for some of their upcoming cookbooks. Over the next year, I will be receiving 5 yet-to-be-released cookbooks. I'm going to make several of the recipes, post pictures, recipes, etc. Plus I'll be giving my honest opinions, right here on my blog.

And the best part? I'm getting TWO of each cookbook...one for me, and one for a giveaway! So I'll be having lots o' giveaways next year. Fun fun! I am really looking forward to this, I love trying out new recipes and my friends and family will be able to enjoy them too. This will be my first cookbook to review...

I just received my copies last week, and oh boy, I can't wait to get cooking! I think while I have family here at Christmas I'll try out a few things. Maybe Reuben Dip? Or Julie's Fresh Guacomole? The Brown Sugar Cake looks good too...well, I'll pick a few soon! So stay tuned and we'll have fun!!

Speaking of cooking, I've got my poppy seed breads rising on the stove and they'll  be going in the oven soon. I make these every year at Christmastime, they're a tradition in my family for Christmas morning breakfast. They freeze really well so I'm glad to do them ahead of time. And today is a day to bake...cold, windy and snowy! Oh I never showed you pictures from last week's snowstorm...here's a few...

My poor baby crabapple tree, all burlapped up...hope he's okay in there!

That's what 4 feet of snow looks like...but deliveries keep up!

Where are my upstairs window wreaths? Peeking out...

Got an arm workout that day!

We were wondering if this week's "lake effect" snow would be similar, but so far it's not so bad. In fact no school delays or cancellations. I'm hoping that keeps up because Annabelle's winter concert is tomorrow night, the show must go on!

Well take care friends...and I hope your enjoying the holiday season!

♥ Jen

It's a marshmallow world

Hello friends! Well it sure has been an interesting week here! Since Saturday, we've gotten about 46 inches of snow. Yup! Insane, right? It finally "stopped" yesterday (although after a few snow squalls we did get an inch or so). School delays Monday and Tuesday, with a full day off Wednesday. Add two trips to get snow tires put on...well, I'm just glad we've gotten a break! Yesterday I finally got to do some shopping and errands...they really piled up there (along with the snow)! Here's a few pictures from earlier in the week...

 

 

We've gotten MUCH more since these pictures were taken...I will take some more today! Once the sun comes up, of course!

Have you seen this year's Holiday Crafts magazine? I look forward to this one every year. There are some really cute ideas, things that I can do with the kids too. Over the weekend we made the little pinecone Christmas trees.

 

Last year we made the pinecone skiers, so we created a little forest on white felt...

I also made just a few more Abby's Treasure Box bags, for teacher gifts...

The one on the bottom there was made with the charm pack I won from Sharon...thanks again Sharon!! The top one is a mixture of a little Lakehouse and a charm pack I got from Joann's, surprisingly...did you know they have charm packs??

This weekend we're getting our Christmas tree and we will hopefully start baking. I am not the best cookie baker but luckily Dave is quite talented in this area. I will keep you posted.

Oh, I just wanted to show you these cute vase fillers I found at Hobby Lobby. Festive, right?

I also have a bag of bronze ones, still haven't decided what to do with those yet. But they're too cute!

Have a wonderful day!

♥ Jen

Candlelight

Oh boy is it a rainy day! I guess it could be worse (i.e., snow), but it is pouring like crazy out there! Plus insane winds. Lucky for the kids I drove them to school today, since Annabelle had orchestra rehearsal. The kids coming in from the bus were drenched. I'm glad to be back home with warm kitties and a cup o' joe!

So how was your Thanksgiving? We drove down to Charlotte, NC to spend the holiday with my twin sister and her family. They have three kids so all five of them had a blast playing and hanging out together. It was great to spend a few days with everyone! A long drive, yes; but totally worth it!

Getting home put me immediately into full-blown Christmas mode. Since we got home Saturday night, I spent all day Sunday taking down the fall decorations and putting up the Christmas ones. I bought new stocking holders for the kids, plus a matching kitty tree, at HomeGoods...the ones they had were glued together so many times from dropping onto the hearth that I  thought it was time for replacements.

 

 

I love the designer of these...Heather Goldminc. She makes the cutest figurals and tea light holders. In fact these are all tea light holders, so I bought flameless ones at Target and they look so cute when lit.

Speaking of  candle-type things, I have recently discovered the joy that is electric tart warmers. Previously I only had a candlelit one...which is fine, but kind of annoying...open flame, burns out after 4 hours, etc. And I really only knew about Yankee Candle tarts--which are great, but there's a bunch more vendors on ebay and facebook. Good prices, great scents, like Cranberry Corn Muffins, and Spicy Pumpkin Caramel Zucchini Bread. Oh I love bakery scents! Here's my new holiday tart warmer, with a new scent that I can't wait to try from Better Homes and Gardens...

Anyway, my house smells good all the time! I love a nice candle, the dancing flame is so cozy and inviting, so I usually have one of those going as well. Good times!

One more thing about candles...tonight is the first night of Chanukah! I thought it was tomorrow but surprise! Anyway we will light the menorah after dinner, sing some songs, play dreidel and give little gifties. I love this holiday!

Have a great day...hopefully it's better weather where you are!

♥ Jen