Purple Cow

When JiMele came to my place to make cupcakes she brought supplies to make drinks! But these were not just any drinks, these were supplies to make a concoction called a Purple Cow!

This is JiMele, hi!  I should say that I have never had a purple cow, and only found out what it actually was around Thanksgiving.  I thought it sounded as intriguing as it did gross.  I bet you really want one now!  Don't judge until you have finished reading...better yet, until you have made one of these for yourself!  
It's fun!

I give the floor back to Ash:
We started with a splash of a sweet, grapey red wine from an Indiana winery (concord grape Juice would make a perfect non-alcoholic substitute). Next, a dollop of vanilla ice cream went in the glass and it all got topped off with bubbly. It came out much like an alcoholic ice cream soda with the flavor of a dreamsicle, if dreamcicles were flavored with grape rather than orange.

An old-fashioned-soda-shop Purple Cow is made by putting a few tablespoons concord grape syrup in a tall glass, filling with vanilla ice cream and topping with soda water.  The thing I had to get past was the soda water and ice cream combo...


but the concord grape syrup gave me an idea!  There is a winery near by (you may have heard of Oliver Winery) that has a wine called Sweet Red.  This is a very sweet concord grape wine.  Basically grape juice with a kick!  


I thought we better skip the club soda and use dry bubbles.  An inexpensive bottle of brut bubbly, like cava will do the trick nicely.  I do not suggest a sweeter alternative like prosecco or moscato because it's sweet enough with ice cream and the sweet red wine.

It looks kinda like a science experiment, but it tastes SOOO much better!

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Pink Cow 
(for those lucky enough to have at least 21 years of life experience)
Fill about 1/3 of your glass with Concord grape wine, like Oliver Soft Red
Put as much ice cream as you can fit (or stand) in the glass
Carefully top with brut bubbles, cava


Enjoy with a spoon or straw, and don't give this one to the kids-o's!

(ok, go make one, then you can judge.  Let us know what you think!)


Linked up with 33 Shades of Green

Spaghetti Gets Better With Age!

 I am really excited to share this with you! There is something really rewarding about turning cold, sad left overs into something even better than they were the night before!

It started with cold, left over spaghetti, already sauced.

I baked it in an uncovered dish, at 450 degrees, turning it a few times and letting the spaghetti heat and dry out a bit. The drying out part is important if you are working with already sauced pasta and want to avoid making a soggy meal that screams  "hey this is last nights left overs, worse for the wear!"

Meanwhile, I sauteed zucchini in a just enough olive oil to coat the pan.

Adding a thinly sliced love of garlic, right at the end.

When the pasta was hot and getting a bit crisp in places I sprinkled it with grated Parmesan then spread the zucchini and garlic over it and topped it off with more cheese before sticking it back in the oven to brown on top.

 

Che Buono! 
~ Ash

What is your favorite Pancake Batter?

When I make pancakes, be they they topped with banana slices, bourbon vanilla (a home made gift from JiMele) and toasted walnuts, filled with chopped up chocolate bits, slathered in maple syrup or simply served with a dusting of cinnamon and powdered sugar, I start by whisking up my favorite pancake batter.

The recipe comes from

Betty Crocker's Cook Book. As opposed to the extra 1-2 tablespoons Betty Suggests, I add an extra quarter up of milk, which thins the batter just the right amount. Otherwise, I have found it best not to deviate from Betty's instructions.

I would, perhaps, some day like to add other, more adventurous pancake recipes to my repertoire. I would love to know a great recipe for Wholewheat pancakes one for Pumpkin Pancakes and one for Crapes. Any suggestions?

 What is your favorite pancake recipe?

But, so far, Betty's is the recipe I have found I can count on for classic, fluffy pancakes that cook just right and dress up any which way I like.

Cupcakes!

Baked goods are a good excuse to get together with friends.

Making baked goods with friends is, better.  

Cupcakes taste better when the details are under your control...

Since Ash does not bake as often as I do (I think) I left the menu up to her.  And the drum-role please!

It is true, I do not bake all that often, but I was excited to sketch out this plan for Silver White Cake with Lemon Filling from Betty Crocker (I just call her Betty, but that is a story for another time), and almond flavored Creamy White Pink Frosting from my Better Homes and Gardens cook book.

 We had a great time mixing and filling and frosting and and tasting!

 I thought since Ash was kind enough to provide the location, ingredients and the lovely diagrammed plan, that I would provide libation.  The teaser: a Purple Cow that you don't want to give to a kid.  Check out the details here.

Savory Potato Pancakes

The other day I thought making some cheddar biscuits (you know, the fluffy ones at Red Lobster) would be pretty fun with some leftover chili.  Upon looking at the list of ingredients I quickly realized that was not going to happen...seeing as I was missing half of them.

Time for a new plan.  It had to also be yummy and kinda fun.

Oh yeah! I had some potatoes I needed to use!  Savory potato pancakes fit the bill.

I haven't made these babies in years.  I have a very simple recipe for Potato Latkes from a cookbook I had to use as part of 4th or 5th grade.

Simple is a great way to start.  The only thing I did differently was add 2 cloves of crushed garlic.

Fry 'em up for a few minutes on each side to make a nice crispy exterior, top with a little bit of spinach and some seasoned yogurt.  Voila, you have a fun side!

For a little info about potato pancakes go to Wikipidia.  They were a pretty common food around parts of Europe in days past.  I also found a PBS feature from a lady blogger who wrote a guest post about the history of Latkes for them.  Apparently Latkes come from Italy and were made with Ricotta, not potatoes.

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Potato Latkas
3 medium potatoes (4 if they are little)
3 eggs
2 Tbs flour
1 small onion
2 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp salt

Grate potatoes (squeeze out excess liquid) and onions, and crush garlic.  Beat eggs and mix all ingredients together.  Pour a thin layer of oil into the skillet, just a small puddle.  Plop small dollops of mixture into the skillet on medium-high heat.  Cook a few minutes on each side, until golden brown and crisp.  Carefully add oil as needed.  When potato cakes are done toss a few hand fulls of fresh spinach into the skillet stirring almost constantly until almost all the leaves are wilted.  Top with seasoned yogurt  or sour cream.

Seasoned Yogurt
Some plain yogurt
a sprinkle of paprika and oregano
bigger spinkles of garlic powder and dill
salt and pepper to taste
Stir.
Simple.
Yum.