Balsamic Roasted Cauliflower and Mushroom

Another good winter activity is playing with food.  With the icky weather over Thanksgiving break, I decided to try something new.  I went with Balsamic Roasted Cauliflower and Mushroom.

Because the cauliflower requires a longer roasting time, I did prepare it and the mushrooms separately.  I used a one pound container of mushrooms and then used the container to get about the same amount of cauliflower.

Mix the sauce in a measuring cup.

2 Tbsp. olive oil
6Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1/4 Cup soy sauce
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. thyme
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. onion powder

Mix it and pour half (or just over) onto the cauliflower.  I had mine already in the glass roasting dish.  Throw it in a 400*F (204.4 *C) oven for 15 minutes.

While it’s baking, you can pour the rest of the sauce on the mushrooms and toss.

After the cauliflower has roasted 15 minutes, stir it and add the mushrooms. Put it bake in the oven to bake for 10 minutes.

Then take it out to stir again and then generously sprinkle it with parmesan cheese.  Throw it back in to bake for an additional 10 minutes.

Take it out and serve.  Yummy!

It does make a big pan full.  I tried freezing a small amount to see how it worked, and I must say it was still delicious.

Seriously, I cannot get enough of this stuff!

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Another Macaroon Cake

It’s fall!  I had to try something new with pumpkin.  This year it’s Pumpkin Spice Macaroon Cake with Caramel Glaze.

Cake:

• 1/2 Cup margarine
• 1 3/4 Cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 Tbsp. vanilla
• 2 Cups pumpkin
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. salt
• 3 Cups flour
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. ginger
• 1/2 tsp. nutmeg

Start by creaming the margarine, sugar and egg.  Add the vanilla and pumpking.  Mix in the dry ingredients thoroughly.  Set aside and make the macaroon filling.

Macaroon Filling:

• 8 oz. chevre (or cream cheese)
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 Cup sugar
• 1 Tbsp. flour
• 2 Cups coconut

Mix everything thoroughly.

Grease and flour a bundt cake pan.  Add a small layer of the pumpkin cake batter.  Spoon the macaroon filling around the pan and cover with the rest of the batter.  Bake for about 50 – 60 minutes at 350*F.  Make sure the cake is completely cooled before removing it from the pan.

Drizzle with the caramel glaze.

Caramel Glaze:

• 1/4 Cup Margarine
• 1/2 Cup light brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 2 Tbsp milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 3/4 – 1 Cup of powdered sugar

Do not start the glaze until the cake is out of the pan.  Then mix the margarine, brown sugar, salt, vanilla, and milk in a sauce pan.  Cook until it boils for one minute.  Remove from the heat and add the powdered sugar.  Start with 3/4 Cup, and you can add more if it is too thin.  If it gets too thick, just add a tiny bit more milk.  You might have to reheat it or it will cool quickly and not make a pretty glaze (especially if you are taking pictures), but it will still taste good!

Perfect for fall get togethers!

Mozzarella Sticks

As my milking season winds down, I had a dear Facebook friend tag me in a video of how to make Mozzarella sticks.  It wasn’t detailed though, so I did a bit of research and came up with my version of Mozzarella sticks.

I decided to use Ritz crackers for my breading.  I used roasted vegetable for a bit more zing.

I smashed one foil to start with.  I figured if I made my recipe by the foil I could do as many or as few as I wanted.  I also thought it would help keep my crumbs fresh if I only made it one foil at a time.

After smashing the crackers, I added 1/4 teaspoon each of basil, garlic salt, and onion powder.  I also added 1 Tablespoon of parmesan cheese.

In another bowl, I mixed egg and milk.  Again, the ratio is 1 large egg to 1 Tablespoon of milk.  By the time I finished, I had used four eggs and four Tablespoons of milk.  Part way through, I emptied the bowl and started fresh.

Cut your Mozzarella into sticks.  You can also buy string cheese and cut them in half.  I am using a big block of my homemade cheese.

You start by rolling it in the egg and milk.

Then you roll it in the cracker mixture.

Then you repeat those those two steps.

The important thing is to make sure you don’t have any cheese showing or it will all glop out when it’s cooking.  After you have them covered, put them in the freezer for at least an hour.  You have to do this, or you’ll end up with a gloppy mess.

Then you simply deep fry them.  I did also see some recipes that said you could bake them at 400*F for 8 – 10 minutes, but some reviews said they were soggy.  I’m thinking deep frying is the way to go to make them nice and crispy.

I did decide to cook them all at once.  I have to say, they are amazing!  I used ranch for dipping, but they would be great with a marinara sauce as well.

Then I refrigerated them until I was ready to take them to a dining event that evening.  We threw them in the oven at 450* for about 10 minutes.  They even maintained their crispness!  In fact, it worked so well that I think I’m going to deep fry and freeze them ahead.

It even worked to microwave them to reheat and get them all melty.  That’s all there is to it!

Because it takes so much to get that big chunk of cheese to be really melted, I think the next time, I’ll make them more bite-sized poppers instead of real sticks.