Today we are going to revisit a Halloween favorite around these parts – my Halloween Spiderweb Candy Cake with 7-Minute Espresso Frosting. Click the name of the cake to link to the very explicit directions on how to make this fun cake with many instructional photos.

I thought I would use this opportunity to remind you that there is the “Complete Recipe Index” over there on the left side of the page – near the top, under the “Pages” tab.

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Mongolian beef is one of the easiest of your typical Chinese restaurant entrées to make at home.  An added bonus – it is so delicious that you may never order Mongolian beef for take-out again! Never again!

The recipe serves six, but can easily be cut down to serve 2 or 4.

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I developed this recipe for two reasons:

1. I wanted to use up a jar of homemade lemon marmalade that was open in my refrigerator.
2. I wanted to make crispy chicken wings for Connor. Connor loves his wings.

The problem was – when I went to Costco to buy the chicken wings, I accidentally picked up a huge package of chicken legs instead. And when I say huge … I’m talking 30 chicken legs, aka drumsticks.

Solution – I made crispy drums instead and Connor loved them just as much as he loves his wings.

Problem – I only used 10 of the 30 legs for this recipe.

Solution – I threw the remaining 2o legs in the freezer so I’ll just have to come up with another leg recipe the next time Connor comes home for the weekend.

This recipe can easily be changed to accommodate chicken wings… just use wings instead of legs.

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I’ve linked my blog to a new “Top Food Blog” site.

To help get things going, I have an itsy-bitsy teeny-weeny little favor to ask of you.

It will take you all of 1 minute.

See this logo over there on the right side of this page?

Near the top…there it is.

Now, if you would so kindly just click on it.

It will take you to the “Top Food Blogs” site. If you would then type “Les Petites Gourmettes” into the search bar at the top of their page and click search.  That will take you to the recipes I have listed there. Click on any one of those recipes and it will bring you back here.

That’s it. That’s all I ask from you today. That really was itsy-bitsy teeny-weeny – wasn’t it? But it means a lot to me. You are the best!

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Today is Dave’s birthday. Connor came home from school for the weekend and HE, not I, made Dave’s birthday cake! All I did was take the action photos. Dave’s cake of choice is always his Auntie B’s Chocolate Cake. My mother-in-law sent me the recipe even before we were married so that I could make it for her boy who had moved so far from home.

Dave remembers the anticipation of The Beloved Cake when he would see a measuring cup full of milk, covered with a towel, sitting near the heater under the front picture window of his childhood home. You see, the recipe calls for sour milk. That old method of souring milk is no longer recommended since milk that is soured naturally may contain toxins. A safer, quicker, and much easier way to sour milk is to add 1 teaspoon of lemon juice or white vinegar to 1 cup of 2% or whole milk and leave it to sit on a counter for 15 minutes before using. All that being said, everyone in Dave’s family is healthy and happy after consuming many of Auntie B’s cakes that were made with naturally soured milk.

Happy Birthday, Dave! xoxo

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Yesterday was National Taco Day, so naturally, we had tacos for dinner. Shrimp tacos to be exact.

Shrimp Tacos with Cabbage Slaw and Avocado Salsa

Cabbage Slaw
1/2 head green or red cabbage, thinly sliced
1/2 cup non-fat Greek yogurt
1/4 cup roughly chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup pickled red onions
Juice of 1/2 lime
1 teaspoon cider vinegar
1/4 teaspoon chipotle chili powder

Avocado Salsa
5 small or 2 large avocados
Juice of 1 lime
1 garlic clove, peeled and minced
2 medium tomatillos, husked, rinsed and coarsely chopped
1/2 small red onion, peeled and finely diced
1/2 red bell pepper (fresh or roasted), finely diced
Kernels cut from 1 cob of corn
1/4 cup roughly chopped fresh cilantro
Salt and pepper

Shrimp
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined

6 corn tortillas

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Do you remember this image from last October?  It is a photo of about a dozen of the velvet and other fabric pumpkins I made. HERE is the post with the tutorial on how to make them yourself.

Well this year, I have tackled the burlap pumpkin. I recycled used coffee-bean sacks to create the pumpkin, the bow, and the flowers.

Then I attached a natural stem and used twine to create the pumpkin ridges.

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Every week for the last couple of months there has been a watermelon in my CSA bounty. I pray last weeks was the last one! I am watermeloned out! Isn’t it time for pumpkins instead? Anyhow, I did the only thing left to do with another huge watermelon… I made cocktails!

My new motto: When in doubt – Make a Cocktail!

I found the inspiration for a watermelon mai tai from Ted Allen on the Food Network website. After tasting his version, I changed the quantities of his original recipe so I could use more watermelon. We ended up liking the end product even more than the original.

If you’re not familiar with St. Germaine Liqueur, it is one of the “big deals” in the cocktail world at the moment. It is not new though, it has been made in Paris since 1884, it’s just the new hot thing. St. Germain is a sweet liqueur made in the artisanal French style from elderberry flowers. Personally, I would not drink it on its own, but it is delicious in this mai tai. If you want to give it a try without buying a big bottle, do as I did, and buy the “airplane” size bottle from a well-stocked liquor store. I found mine at Total Wine.

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When I have little bits of various cheeses hanging about in the fridge – this is the sort of thing I make.

Chicken Alfredo Fusilli

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
2 cups quartered small tomatoes
1/4 cup dry white wine
1 cup fat-free half-and-half
1  1/2 cups blend of grated cheeses; such as Asiago, Parmesan, and Fontina
1 pound cooked fusilli pasta

One at a time, between two sheets of plastic wrap, pound each chicken breast evenly with a flat meat pounder.

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Salmon is my “go-to” main dish when I really don’t want to make dinner. We all love it, it’s fast and easy to cook, it’s pretty to look at, and lo and behold, it’s good for you.

While in Alaska this past August, we were told over and over again an easy way to remember the five types of Alaskan salmon. Now I share it with you.

• Your thumb rhymes with chum, hence Chum Salmon
• Your pointer finger is the one you might sock someone in the eye with, so Sockeye Salmon
• Your middle is the largest finger – for King Salmon, the largest salmon
• Your ring finger is where you might wear a silver ring….for a Silver Salmon
• And your pinkie finger is easy! It’s the Pink Salmon

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