Rosemary, Basil and Citrus Salt

Rosemary, Basil and Citrus Salt

Hi everybody :)

I seen many herbal mixes on Pinterest that sound really interested, so I was inspired to give it a try. I went out to my little herb garden and picked basil and rosemary. I used 1 tablespoon of the lemon zest I talked about here.  I wanted to do a seasoning that would go well with chicken. Here is what I came up with...

Rosemary, Basil and Citrus Salt inspired by  this, this ,and  this

Ingredients
1/2 box sea salt 
1 cup rosemary
1 cup basil
1 tablespoon

I divided the sea salt evenly among the remaining ingredients.

For the Rosemary
Rub your hand down the stem of the rosemary to remove the leaves. 
In a saucepan over medium high heat the rosemary and salt stir occasionally for 10 minutes
Remove from heat and allow to cool. Sift rosemary to remove as much of the leave as possible. Pulse in a mini food processor for a few seconds. Set aside.

Rosemary and Salt Cooking

Rosemary and Salt after Cooking

For the Basil:
Wash and dry basil, (make sure it's dry). Add the salt to the basil and pulse in mini food processor for a few seconds. Remove and spread out on parchment paper. (I didn't, it stuck to the foil, I had to wrack it a little to get it unstuck) Place basil mixture in oven at 275 for 30 minutes.  Cool and pulse in mini food processor for a few seconds. Set aside.

Pulsing Basil Salt

Basil Salt after Pulsing in Processor

For the Citrus:
Mix lemon and salt together. Place mixture in a 225 degrees oven for 70 minutes. Remove, cool, and pulse the mixture in mini food processor for a few seconds.

Lemon Salt and Basil Salt

For the Rosemary, Basil, and Citrus Salt:
 Combine all 3 mixtures pour into a container along with fresh rosemary. Use mixture to season chicken.

ENJOY! Come again.....

UPDATE Picture!!!  9/8   My son cooked some wings using the salt mixture and they were DELICIOUS!!!!

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Macaroni Coleslaw: Great Idea!

Macaroni Coleslaw: Great Idea!

Hi everybody :)

While browsing the net I came across this recipe. It took two great salads and combined them together, into one. Great Idea! I love macaroni salads and  I love coleslaw. Why didn't I think of that? Oh well...

I shared this idea with my daughter over the phone...

"That don't always work, mom."  my doubtful daughter said as she reminded me of the time when she was about 5 years old and make a Peanut Butter, Jelly and Bologna Sandwich.

Because she love Peanut Butter & Jelly Sandwich and Bologna Sandwich, she decided to put them both  together and made a Peanut Butter, Jelly and Bologna Sandwich. Well, to say she hated it; was an understatement.

I told her, "I don't think I will have that problem."

So here we go....

Macaroni Coleslaw adapted Taste of Home

Ingredients

For the noodles:

1 package (7 ounces) ring macaroni (I used elbow macaroni)
1 package (14 ounces) coleslaw mix
2 medium onions, finely chopped (I used about 1/4 cup)
2 celery ribs, finely chopped 
1 medium cucumber, finely chopped (I used 1/2 English Cucumber)
1 medium green pepper, finely chopped
1 can (8 ounces) whole water chestnuts, drained and chopped ( I omitted this)

For the Dressing:
1 1/2 cups Miracle Whip Light
1/3 cup sugar
1/4  cup cider vinegar
1/2  teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
I added 1/2 teaspoon Mrs Dash Onion and Herb Seasoning
I added 1/2 teaspoon Salad Supreme Seasoning

Cook macaroni according to package directions; drain and rinse in cold water. Transfer to a large bowl; add the coleslaw mix, onions, celery, cucumber, green pepper and water chestnuts.

The Noodle Mixture

In a small bowl, whisk the dressing ingredients. 

The Dressing Mixture

Pour over salad; toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Yield: 16 servings.

Adding the Dressing

 TIP: If you want the cucumbers in your salad to be cool and crunchy, just chill them overnight in ice water.

What I Did and/or Think:
Like all pasta salads and coleslaw, they are best if made the night before or had a chance to sit in the refrigerator for a few hours, so plan ahead. I made a few changes to the original recipe by adding Mrs Dash Seasoning and Salad Supreme to the dressing mixture and omitting the water chestnuts, (I just don't like them) and only using 1/4 cup onion for the noodle mixture. 

Now for the taste, this was THE BEST!!! I love the flavors. A very tasty combination, the best way to describe it is, if macaroni salad married coleslaw and had a baby this would be the result. This will now be my new go-to salad. You all know what that mean.... IT'S A REPEAT!

If you want to change it up:  I think for a Seafood Macaroni Slaw,  about 1/2 cup cooked chopped shrimps would be a nice addition. 

And for all you bacon lovers (ME.. ME.. ME...) about 1/2 cup bacon bacon bits can be added to create a Bacon Macaroni Slaw.  Real bacon, not the fake stuff :) 

So this was a great idea after all... I'm going to tell Miss Doubtful that the next time she calls. 

*******UPDATE Picture******* Seafood Macaroni Slaw

ENJOY ! Come again.... 

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Banana Pudding Poke Cake with Vanilla Wafer Crumble

Banana Pudding Poke Cake with Vanilla Wafer Crumble

Hi everybody :)

I'm going to get right to the point. Since the pudding recipe here, I been thinking of ways I can used the crumble mixture and the banana liqueur again; then it came to me... BINGO! Banana. Pudding. Poke. Cake. Sounds delicious, doesn't it? Yeah. I know :) Well here we go...

Banana Pudding Poke Cake  partly adapted from Tablespoon and here

For the Cake:
1 box yellow cake mix ( I used Duncan Hines Butter Golden)
1 cup mashed very ripe bananas (about 2)
1/3 cup oi1
1/3 cup water
3 eggs
1 tablespoon banana liqueur, banana flavoring, or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Heat oven to 350°F for shiny metal or glass pan (or 325°F for dark or nonstick pan). Spray bottom and sides of 13x9-inch pan with baking spray, dust with flour.

In large bowl, beat cake mix, bananas, water, oil, eggs and banana liqueur with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds. Beat on medium speed 2 minutes. Pour into pan.

Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until cake springs back when touched lightly in center. Let cool for a few minutes.

Then, with a wooden spoon handle, large fork or skewer poke holes in the warm cake at 1/2-inch intervals. Be sure to poke right down to the bottom of the cake.  You want holes big enough so that the pudding filling has plenty of room to get to the bottom.

Cake with Holes

The Pudding Filling:

 1 (5.1 ounces) box  or  2 (3.4 ounces) boxes instant pudding mix
3 cups or 4 cups milk (according to the box)
2 tablespoons banana liqueur or banana flavoring (optional)

Mix together puddings according to box directions. Whisking until all the lumps are gone add banana liqueur. Pour pudding over cake. Making sure to get right into the holes as much pudding as possible. Cover and put in the refrigerator to set for about 2 hours.

Cake with Filling

The Topping:

4 ounce  (1/2 of 8-ounces package) cream cheese
2 - 3 banana liqueur
1 (8 ounces container) cool whip  or  3/4 cup heavy whipping cream, whipped   
2 - 4  tablespoons  powdered sugar

Vanilla Wafer Crumble see Banana Pudding with Vanilla Wafer Crumble found here  (garnish)
1 Banana, sliced (garnish)

Vanilla Wafers Crumble

In small bowl beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, banana liqueur,until creamy and fold into whipped whip cream or cool whip. Spread onto cake. 

Cake, Filling & Topping

Sprinkle with Vanilla Wafer Crumble and banana slices before serving. Garnish with banana slices that were dipped in pineapple or lemon juice. Refrigerate leftovers; if you have any :)

Finished Cake

IT WAS DELICIOUS! and the taste gets BETTER  the next day!!... again if it last that long.

 ENJOY! Come again....

Linking to :
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