Stuffed Mushrooms

Here is another recipe that I promised you!  I found it on Annie's Eats. Like I said before, I have yet to try a recipe of hers I don't like!

Stuffed Mushrooms
(From Annie's Eats)




24 whole fresh button mushrooms
3-4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
2 tsp. vegetable oil
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
¼ tsp. pepper
¼ tsp. onion powder
¼ tsp. cayenne pepper
Bread crumbs and minced fresh herbs, for garnish (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350° F.  Lightly grease a baking sheet with cooking spray.  Clean mushrooms with a damp paper towel. Carefully remove the stems from the mushroom caps, setting the caps aside for later.  Add the stems to the bowl of a food processor.  Add the garlic to the food processor as well, and pulse in brief bursts until them mushroom stems and garlic are finely chopped. (I did not use the food processor. Just finely chopped and mixed everything)
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the chopped mushroom stems and garlic and cook until all the moisture has disappeared, about 5-7 minutes.  Lower the heat to medium-low.  Stir in the cream cheese, Parmesan cheese and spices.  Stir together until the mixture is smooth and creamy; remove from the heat.  Using a small spoon, fill each mushroom cap with a generous amount of filling.  Arrange the mushroom caps on the prepared baking sheet.  Top with bread crumbs, if desired.  Bake for 20 minutes or until the mushrooms are hot and liquid starts to form under the caps.  Transfer to a serving platter, garnish with fresh herbs if using and serve immediately.

Enjoy!

The dog ate the bat's balls

Eyeballs, that is.

Night two of carving didn't go so well. Poor Fatty Batty never had a chance. My heart just wasn't in it. And in the end, neither were his eyeballs.

I made my last cut, popped the eye chunks out and the eye balls broke off. So I stuck them back in thinking I would just glue them in. I then bumped the table causing the eyeballs to fall out onto the floor and Jake just happened to be laying under the table.

*gulp* Buh-bye eyeballs!

Last night's owl is by far the superior pumpkin!

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

I love pumpkin seeds. Love them. And since I just ate an entire pumpkin worth of roasted seeds, I felt I should share the love. The following is a picture tutorial. Enjoy!

Olive was not too happy about her pumpkin going under the knife.

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Clean, raw seeds from 1 Pumpkin

Olive oil or cooking spray

salt

pepper

garlic powder

chili powder

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

2. Give your pumpkin some pre-op love.

3. Cut open pumpkin and assess the guts. (Someone WILL have to touch them)

4. Using a large spoon or scoop, scrape seeds/guts out. Give them to your assistant to sort seeds from guts.

5. Rinse seeds in cold water to clean off remaining slime.

6. Spread seeds in a single layer on a baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray

7. Spray seeds with olive oil (or spray of choice) and season with spices*

8. Roast in oven for 45-60 minutes. Stirring every 15 minutes or so.

9. Carve pumpkin while seeds are roasting.

10. Enjoy seeds while marveling at your pumpkin carving skills!**

*Feel free to use whatever spices and seasonings you are in the mood for. I think tomorrow night we will try cinnamon and sugar.

*Yes, I used a pattern. But I am still pretty darn proud of my skills. Even if Owli's (get it? "Owli"? Like Oli, but with a "w" because it's...an...owl.) nose is a bit more bulbous than the pattern called for. It's ok I like it. It reminds me of Hoots from Sesame Street. Remember Hoots? He plays the saxophone? Sings classics like "Put Down The Duckie"?

Uh, Hoots is a little creepy looking. But man, can he sing.

Enjoy!

Oh sh!t

So......Olive said a new word today.


"Mama.Mama.Mama.MAMA!"

"Yes bebe?"

"Shit?Shit?SHIT?!"

"Uh-huh. Mama's making dinner, just a minute peanut."

"Mama?Mama?Shit?Shit?SHIT!SHIT!"

"Wait, what?! What did you say?"

"SHIT! SHIT! SHIT!"

And she then grabbed a towel and ran to the laundry CHUTE.

"Yep, that's the laundry CHUTE. CHUTE. Can you say CHUTE?"

"SHIT!"




Never a dull moment.

Peel and Eat Shrimp

As promised, here is one of the recipes we made this weekend.

This is one of my all time favorite recipes. It tastes great and is insanely easy to throw together. The first time I made this, I was amazed at how flavorful the shrimp were with so few ingredients in the marinade. It has become a family favorite and my go-to dish as either an appetizer or main dish. The shrimp are also great the next day, cold, on a salad.

Grilled Marinated Shrimp (aka Peel and Eat Shrimp)

(adapted from John Ash's Cooking One on One)

For the shrimp
1 pound large shrimp (16-20 size or larger)
1/2 teaspoon salt

For the marinade
1/4 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons finely minced or pressed garlic
1 tablespoon finely minced green onions
1/2 teaspoon finely chopped fresh oregano (or 1/4 teaspoon dried)
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (I use 1/2-1 tsp.)
2 tablespoons white wine, preferably a dry or off-dry aromatic
Salt and Pepper to taste
Splash of lime juice

1. Peel and devein the shrimp. (I leave the peel on. I think the shrimp are more flavorful that way) 2.Whisk the marinade ingredients together, toss with the shrimp, and marinate for up to 45 minutes in the refrigerator. 
3. Prepare a charcoal fire or preheat a gas grill or broiler. Grill or broil the shrimp quickly, 1 to 2 minutes per side, until they just begin to turn pink. Be careful not to overcook; the shrimp should remain slightly transparent in the middle.
4. Enjoy!

A Love Story

I know a girl.

Her name is Olive.
 

And she is loved.

The end.

Not Me! Monday

 
Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I did NOT use Olive's bib as a tissue when my nose decided to spring a leak during lunch. Nope, not me! And then, when Olive tried to do the same (with a clean bib of course, I am not THAT gross people), I did NOT tell her "No, no Olive. Only Mommies can do that!".

I also did NOT wear my pants inside out out of the house even though I knew they were inside out and I was too tired to fix them. Not me!

I most certainly did NOT just put Olive in her crib for "nap time" just so I could have a few minutes to lay on the couch and feel sorry for my sick self.

And I definitely did NOT just sneeze and wet my pants a little. *sigh* Nope, not me!

What have you NOT been doing this week?