Homemade Marshmallow Peeps

This blog was originally supposed to be mainly dinner recipes, but I am finding that I do so many things in the kitchen besides cooking. I sew, I cook, I bake, I use the computer, I play with my daughter, I have even raised baby chicks and guinea keats there. I may be heading in a different blogging direction all together.

So today, in honor of baby chicks, I bring you a recipe for homemade marshmallow "peeps". They take a bit of work, but they are so worth it!  Plus, your guests/kids/fans will be so impressed with your talent! I impressed so many people AND they are so tasty! 

The photo below was taken when I made my last batch in 2011. Please excuse the fact that some of the critters look more like elephants than chicks.  Just as I began using the pastry bag, I got a phone call that my mom had fallen down the basement stairs and had broken both ankles, so I had to pipe them quickly and come to her aide.

Homemade Marshmallow Chicks/Peeps

The kitchen tools you will need are:  a large pastry bag, a whisk, an electric mixer, a candy thermometer, and waxed paper

Ingredients

• 1 cup confectioners' sugar for dusting
• 2 cups white sugar
• 1 tablespoon light corn syrup
• 1 1/4 cups water, divided
• 4 tablespoons unflavored gelatin
• 2 egg whites
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, stir together sugar, corn syrup, and 3/4-cup water. Bring the mixture to a boil. While boiling, attach a candy thermometer to the pot so the tip is immersed in the liquid, but not touching the bottom of the pot. Watch the temperature carefully until it reaches the hard-ball stage--when the thermometer reads 250 to 260 degrees F (121 to 129 degrees C).

 2. While the sugar mixture is heating, place the remaining water in a metal bowl and sprinkle the gelatin over it. Place the bowl over simmering water and stir until the gelatin is dissolved and the mixture becomes liquid. Keep this gelatin mixture warm until the sugar comes to the proper temperature. As soon as the sugar mixture reaches the hard-ball stage and you remove it from heat, carefully whisk in the gelatin mixture. Meanwhile, use an electric mixer to whip the egg whites into soft peaks. (You can tell eggs have reached the soft-peak stage when you take a spoon, dip it in and out of the egg mixture, and a peak is formed that is soft enough to quickly bend over.)

3. Once the peaks have formed, set the electric mixer to medium speed and slowly pour the sugar mixture into the bowl of whipped egg whites. When pouring the sugar mixture into the mixing bowl, never let the stream of liquid grow larger than a pencil's width. Once all of the sugar has been incorporated into the egg whites, add the vanilla extract and continue mixing at a medium speed until the mixture cannot become any fluffier. Add any additional colorings or flavorings at this time.

4. Line a flat surface with waxed paper and sprinkle it with a generous coating of sugar. Use a large pastry bag with at least a 1/2-inch opening or tip. Carefully spoon the sticky marshmallow fluff into the bag and twist the top closed. Pipe the body of the chick shape first by making a thick line on the paper. Hold the bag at a 45-degree angle to the surface so that the piping will stand tall.

5. When the body is long enough, pipe backwards on top of the body, and then make a little head.

6. Place little candies onto the marshmallow chick's head to make eyes (I used a small amount of black icing coloring on the end of a small paintbrush) and sprinkle colored sugar over the chick's body. To coat the marshmallow chicks completely, let them set for 30 minutes before buttering your hands (for easier handling) and rolling them in bowls full of colored sugar.

8. Let the marshmallow chicks rest for approximately 4 hours to allow them time to fully set.

*Recipe and directions were found on Allrecipies.com



The Murph's House Italian Salad Dressing

One of my "pet peeves" is when you open the refrigerator and

there are several bottles of opened (and most often beyond their shelf life)

salad dressings taking up space. This is why I almost never purchase bottled dressings.

This one is our family favorite. Murph would rarely eat salad until I came upon

this recipe and modified a bit to suit our taste. It's quick and easy to whip up and

I always have the ingredients on hand.  I make it so often, I have the recipe memorized.

Ingredients:

1/3 Cup White Vinegar

1/3 Cup Mayo (I normally use Light)

1 Tbs Corn Syrup (can also substitute liquid sweetener)

1 Tbs Lemon Juice

1 tsp Onion Powder

1 tsp Garlic Powder

1 tsp Basil

1 tsp Oregano

3 Tbs Grated Parmesan/Romano Cheese

Combine all ingredients and mix well. Chill for at least 30 minuts so flavors can blend.

Serve on a nice mixed green salad! Yummy!

I normally mix it in my magic bullet or a shaker type container. The dressing will be thin, but a little goes along way. You can also adjust the vinegar, sweetner and or change up the seasonings to suite your own taste. 

Baked Stuffed Pork Chops

                                                                    

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Best Ever Stuffed Pork Chops

Sometimes the meals that I just throw together in a hurry end up being some of the tastiest.

Tonights dinner was one of those times.

I often take meat out of the freezer in the morning with no idea what kind of main dish they are going to end up as for dinner. This afternoon I decided that stuffed pork chops would be a nice change.

Tonight's quandary - how do I make stuffing when I don't have a slice of bread in the house?

I was just too lazy to stop at the grocery store, so I figured, something else would inspire me

when I got home and checked out what I had on hand in the pantry.

I opened the door and what to my wondering eyes should appear, but an open bag of

seasoned salad croutons. I could make that work for sure! So I threw some celery and onions in a saucepan with some butter to saute them, and then added some beef broth and threw in the croutons.
In my search for the "bread" item, I came across a bag of dried cranberries too. I tossed them in as well  thinking that the tartness would be a nice flavor addition to the stuffing.

I had great forethought when I froze the chops, and they were already prepped with the pocket cut in them. I seasoned them with a "house" seasoning blend of kosher salt, fresh ground black pepper and garlic powder and browned them  on both sides in an oven safe frying pan lightly coated with olive oil.

I then removed the chops from the pan and drained the excess liquid, stuffed the chops with my newly created stuffing and returned them to the pan. The pan was then placed in a 350 degree oven for roughly 30 minutes.

Served with a side of  PW's Cream Mashed Potatoes (They were leftover from Christmas and frozen. For the record they are just as tasty reheated) and some green beans.

The end result was simply amazing.. quite possibly "The Best Ever Stuffed Pork Chops".

Ingredients:

4 Thick sliced Pork Chops (approx 1") with pocket cut in center

1/4 cup diced onion

1/4 cup diced celery

2Tbs butter

1 to 1 1/4 cup beef broth (can sub 1 beef bullion cube with 1 cup water)

2 + cups Seasoned Salad Croutons or bread cubes

1 small handful dried cranberries

2 tsp poultry seasoning

2 tsp salt

2 tsp ground pepper

1 tsp garlic powder

I Tbs olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

In small saucepan, melt butter and saute onion and celery until soft. Add beef  broth and bring to boil. Remove from heat and add croutons or bread cubes. Mix well. Mixture should be moist, but not mushy. If too dry add more broth, if too wet, add more bread.

In medium oven safe frying pan* add olive oil and preheat on med high. Season chops with salt,pepper & garlic powder. Brown in pan approx 3 minutes per side until golden. Remove from pan and carefully stuff with bread mixture. Be careful, chops will be hot on outside. Return to pan and place in oven for approx 30 minutes until pork is cooked through.

Enjoy!