NUTCRACKER!!!!!

Hey everyone!!!

Wow!! We cant believe it has been more than three months since we last posted!! How embarrassing!! We know there really is no excuse, however let us tell you why we havent been posting... The answer is simple....DANCE!!! Nutcracker season is our biggest and busiest season so we have been up to our heads in rehearsals, classes, costume fittings, mini rehearsals, and pictures!! As some of you might now and others who probably dont...this weekend is the BIG weekend!!! Yes, thats right you guessed it...this weekend is Nutcracker 2010!! We are so excited!! Shows are all sold out and everything is finally ready!! We have been preparing since July so we are all super pumped!! If you dont already know we are both extra excited this year since we both are lead roles: Andrea is Dew Drop and Brooke is Clara. Wish us Luck!! Hopefully after this weekend we can pick up blogging again especially with all the fun holiday baking right around the corner!!

We hope you are having a wonderful almost Christmas break and are baking lots of yummy good stuff to eat!!

We love you all!!

Happy Birthday to Brooke!!!!

Hello faithful foodies!! :o)

Just wanted to let you know that our beautiful, wonderful chef Brooke is going to be turning 14 years old on Friday!!! YAY!! So please take the time to comment and wish her a BIG happy birthday! :o) Because we all L-O-V-E her to Reese's pieces!!

Busy, busy, busy

Hey everyone!! Hope you all are having a great summer! We sure are! If you haven't already heard Andrea is going to be Dew Drop and Brooke is going to be Clara in the Nutcracker of Parker this year!! We are so excited!! We apologize for not posting anything recently, mostly its because we have been so busy with Nutcracker rehearsals and classes, but hopefully we will get a couple new recipes and some pictures up pretty soon.

~Bon appetite

Homemade Soft Pretzels

Here is an totally awesome recipe for soft pretzals. Just like at the mall! Great for sleepovers or parties!

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups warm (110 to 115 degrees F) water
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 package active dry yeast
22 ounces all-purpose flour, approximately 4 1/2 cups
2 ounces unsalted butter, melted
Vegetable oil, for pan
10 cups water
2/3 cup baking soda
1 large egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water
Pretzel salt

Directions:
Combine the water, sugar and kosher salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle the yeast on top. Allow to sit for 5 minutes or until the mixture begins to foam. Add the flour and butter and, using the dough hook attachment, mix on low speed until well combined. Change to medium speed and knead until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl, approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Remove the dough from the bowl, clean the bowl and then oil it well with vegetable oil. Return the dough to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and sit in a warm place for approximately 50 to 55 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line 2 half-sheet pans with parchment paper and lightly brush with the vegetable oil. Set aside.

Bring the 10 cups of water and the baking soda to a rolling boil in an 8-quart saucepan or roasting pan.

In the meantime, turn the dough out onto a slightly oiled work surface and divide into 8 equal pieces. Roll out each piece of dough into a 24-inch rope. Make a U-shape with the rope, holding the ends of the rope, cross them over each other and press onto the bottom of the U in order to form the shape of a pretzel. Place onto the parchment-lined half sheet pan.

Place the pretzels into the boiling water, 1 by 1, for 30 seconds. Remove them from the water using a large flat spatula. Return to the half sheet pan, brush the top of each pretzel with the beaten egg yolk and water mixture and sprinkle with the pretzel salt. Bake until dark golden brown in color, approximately 12 to 14 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack for at least 5 minutes before serving.

S'more Brownies

Hey everyone! We have an awesome new recipe for you today!! Here it is!

Ingredients

Crust:

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1 1/2 cups crushed graham cracker crumbs

2 tablespoons sugar

Pinch fine salt

Brownie:

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped

1 cup packed light brown sugar

3/4 cup white sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon fine salt

4 large cold eggs

1 cup all-purpose flour

Topping:

1 bag of Marshmallows

Crush the Graham Crackers

Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and heat oven to 325 degrees F. Line an 8 by-8-inch square baking pan with foil so it hangs over the edges by about 1 inch.

For the crust: Lightly butter the foil with some of the melted butter. Stir the rest of the butter together with the crumbs, sugar, and salt in a medium bowl.


Press the crumb mixture evenly over the bottom of the pan. Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the brownie. Put the butter and chocolate in a medium microwave safe bowl. Melt in the microwave on 75 percent power for 2 minutes. Stir, and microwave again until completely melted, about 2 minutes more. Alternatively, put the butter and chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Bring a saucepan filled with 1 inch or so of water to a very slow simmer; set the bowl on the pan without touching the water. Stir occasionally until melted. Stir the light brown and white sugars, vanilla and salt into the melted chocolate. Add the eggs and beat vigorously to make a thick and glossy batter. Add the flour and stir until just incorporated.

Pour batter into the prepared pan. Bake until the top is crispy and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out mostly clean, with a few crumbs, about 40 to 45 minutes

Remove from the oven and carefully position a rack about 6 inches from the broiler and preheat on low. Layer marshmallows across the top and toast under the broiler until golden

keep an eye on it, it can go quick, about 2 minutes

Cool on a rack, gently removing the brownies from the pan using the aluminum flaps. Carefully separate any marshmallow from the foil and fold away. Cut into 12 (2-inch) squares.

yum, yum!

WARNING: THIS DOES GET MESSY! AND IS VERY SWEET! NOT FOR THE WEAK OF HEART!

~Bon Appetite!

Baked Sandwiches

Hello! Today we just stumbled across a really good recipe that Andrea's family knows and loves! It's perfect for taking to a get together or for having a quick and easy lunch! (We didn't take the picture below but this is how it should look.)

Ingredients

• 2 Tbl. melted butter
• 1/4 tsp. garlic salt
• 1/4 tsp Basil
• 1/4 tsp. Oregano
• 1/4 tsp. pizza seasoning
• frozen bread loaves
• Ham, Roast Beef & Provolone or Ham, Turkey, & Cheddar (1/4 pound of each lunchmeat, depending on which one you are doing)

Instructions

Roll out dough half as wide as the jelly roll pan. Let rest for 5-10 min. Then finish rolling out. In a small bowl add butter and seasonings. Brush the loaves with half of the butter and seasonings mixture. Put meat over half of the dough leaving room at edges. Pinch edges together and brush with the remaining butter mixture. Bake at 400*F for 10-12 min.

~Bon Appetite!

Oreo Dirt Dessert!

Hello food lovers!
We have a new AWESOME recipe for Oreo dirt dessert! Delicious and a cool name! Thanks to Andrea's Aunt Chris for showing it to Andrea! :o)

1 package vanilla instant pudding
2 cups milk
2 tubs of whipped cream
1 package of oreos

Mix vanilla pudding powder with 2 cups milk and place in fridge to thicken. When that is thickened put the 2 tubs of whipped cream in with the pudding and mix together. (It will look like a lot of whipped cream but DO NOT PANIC! It is supposed to be like that!) Okay, next, grab a couple oreos in your hands and crush them into the pudding/whipped cream! Continue until you have crushed up all the oreos. (THIS WILL GET MESSY! you have been warned!) Mix gently until combined. Put in fridge until serving!

~Bon Appetite!

Please Pray!

Hey everyone!
Please pray for Brooke this week as she is going to NY on a missions trip! Pray that her and her youth group will win many hearts for God, have a fun time, and meanwhile still be safe!! Thank you all SOO much!
~Bon appetite!
Andrea

Homemade Mozzarella Goat Cheese

This morning we made fresh homeade Mozzarella cheese. We used goat milk, because Brooke's family recently purchased goats. This is pretty easy to make, but you have definitely have to pay attention!! It took about 30 minutes from start to finish.

We used one gallon of fresh goat milk.

We heated the milk in a stainless steel pan. You will need a cooking thermometer to monitor how hot the milk is getting. Heat the milk and citric acid to 90 degrees F and add rennet. Citric acid

We sliced the curds both horizontally and vertically into pretty small squares.

Next we scooped the curds out of the pan with a stainless steel slotted spoon and put them in a microwave safe bowl. After removing all the curds from the pan into the bowl we microwaved the bowl with the curds in it for 1 min. Then we got rid of the excess whey and heated the bowl for another 35 seconds. We again got rid of the whey and heated again for 35 seconds.

Next we keaded the cheese as if it was bread dough until it was smooth. After we kneaded for about 2 minutes we added about 3/4 of a teaspoon of salt, that we sprinkled over the dough.

Adding the salt.

Next we kneaded the cheese into a ball and let cool. Then we put it in a baggy and stored it in the refrigerator.

If you want more detailed instructions please let us know and we can email you the recipe that we used.

-Bon appetite!!

Crepes

Hey everyone! This morning Brooke's mom and brother made us crepes for breakfast. They were delicious! We thought we would share this wonderful recipe with you.
P.S. We didn't do anything but eat them!!

Ingredients:
3 eggs
1/4 cup sugar
1 3/4 cup flour
pinch of salt
2 teaspoons melted butter or oil
1 pint milk (2 cups)

Directions:
Beat the eggs and add the sugar, flour, salt, and butter or oil. Slowly add the milk and beat the mixture until smooth. Heat a small skillet. Pour in a small amount of the mixture about 1/4 cup. Turn or toss during cooking until golden on each side. Eat with a filling of your choice! (We like lemon, strawberry jam, raspberries, whipped cream and Nutella but you could basically do anything you like!)

-Bon appetite!!

Carmel Apple Cupcakes w/ carmel topping

Bonjour everyone!! Today we had the fun experience of cooking Carmel Apple Cupcakes with Carmel topping! By the way we didn't have any heavy cream so we used milk instead and it still turned out fine! :) A tip from our kitchen, never be afraid to substitute.

Ingredients for Carmel Apple Cupcakes

• 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 medium sized tart apples

Ingredients for Carmel Topping

• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 stick of unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

Ready with all the ingredients!!

In a large bowl combine the brown sugar, oil, cinnamon, and vanilla with an electric mixer.

Add eggs one at a time, beat for one minute after each addition.

In a separate bowl mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt.


Slowly add dry ingredients to the wet mixture. Beat until blended.

Peel, core, and chop apples into small pieces.

Combine apples with batter.

Put cupcake liners into a cupcake pan.

Fill the liners 1/2 to 3/4 full of batter.

Bake in oven at 350* for 20-25 minutes.

Ingredients for the Carmel topping.

In a saucepan over medium heat, bring the brown sugar, butter, and cream to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, and continue stirring for 5 minutes. Remove from heat.

Stir in vanilla.

To test cupcakes place a toothpick into the center of a cupcake and pull it out. If there is batter on the toothpick cook it longer, if not it is done.

Remove from oven. Don't they smell GOOD!!

Drizzle Carmel topping over cupcakes after they have cooled. And don't forget to unwrap them from the liners.

Aren't they gorgeous!! And yummy too!!!

Two very satisfied cooks....

And best of all we know that they are delicious because we got the official Rebekah seal of approval!!!



-Bon appetite!

Not enough time... (We're sure you've been there too)

Hey everyone!! Sorry we haven't really posted anything lately, the truth is we just don't have time right now. There has been zero time for sleepovers let alone cooking. This of course is due to our ballet schedules. As some of you may know, (and others may not) we are in the Sleeping Beauty for our dance school, and right now the rehearsals are hectic and taking all our time. Hopefully after it is all over we can continue, but please be patient with us.... All for now!

-Bon appetite

Bonjour!

Hello everyone! I am sorry we haven't blogged in FOREVER! But now that it is Summer we will be blogging much more often!
Since it is Summer I thought that I'd give you some advice on what fruits are in season now and how to pick the perfect one!!!

~Strawberries: Purchase strawberries that are shiny, firm and very fragrant. A strawberry should be almost completely red, though some whiteness near the leafy cap is acceptable.

~Tomatoes: Choose nicely ripe, rich-colored, well-shaped tomatoes that are slightly soft. Tomatoes should be free of blemishes.

~Summer Squash: Varieties of summer squash include pattypan, sunburst, yellow crookneck and zucchini. Buy squash that have glossy, smooth and firm but tender skins. Small squash are more tender and flavorful.

~Watermelon: Good watermelons will not have soft spots. Dark green melons tend to be sweeter than those that are lighter in color. The most juicy melons are going to be the ones that seem very heavy for their size.

~Cherries: Ripe cherries will be a dark, even red color. If the cherries still have a "blush" of pink anywhere on the fruit, then they are not ready to be used for anything. Lightly pinch the fruit. Ripe cherries will be firm under your fingers, but not hard. If the berry feels squishy, then it is probably overripe and should not be eaten.

~Bon appetite!

Andrea

Egg roll recipe

Hey everyone! You might have noticed that we put a picture of our egg roll creation on the blog but not the recipe. Well, problem fixed here is the egg roll recipe. I hope you enjoy making egg rolls as much as we did.

Ingredients:
1 tsp. cornstarch
1/2 pound hamburger or pork
4 Tbsp. canola oil
1/2 cup shredded carrot
1 cup celery
4 cups cabbage
1 package of egg roll wraps (you may also use wanton wrappers)

Directions:
In a large skillet brown the meat and add oil and cornstarch. Add veggies and soy sauce. Cook until veggies are tender. Taste and add soy sauce as needed. Then using a slotted spoon add about 3-4 tablespoons of mixture to each egg roll, then wrap. When all the egg rolls are wrapped, heat oil in an electric skillet. Test 1 egg roll to make sure that the oil is hot enough. Cook the egg rolls in the oil, turning to make sure all sides are browned. Remove from oil and let cool on a plate lined with paper towels. Enjoy!!

-Bon appetite!!!

Fixed problems...

Hey everyone!
First of all I just wanted to tell you thanks to everyone who joined our blog! We REALLY appreciate it! And secondly, some of you have told Brooke about problems with commenting. Well, I have fixed our technical glitch and now you can comment! Sorry for the wait!:o)

~Bon appetite!
Andrea

Recipe for friendship

Recipe for Friendship
1 well-rounded tbs. of understanding
1 heaping tsp. of support
3 generous tsp. of honesty
1 overflowing cup of kindness

Combine all ingredients over a period of time, being sure to add a generous sprinkling of laughter. Serve generous portions and savor well!

~Bon appetite!

Eggrolls!!

This is a picture of us when we made egg rolls.   They actually turned out really good!!!

-Bon appetite!!!

First Post Ever! YAY!

Welcome to our blog! We are so excited to share our favorite recipes and memories with you!! Please follow us and tell EVERYONE to take a peek!  Unfortunantly, you can only comment if you are our follower, (that sounds so funny!) so if you follow us you can give us some feedback on the recipies! Tell what you did differently, what you would change or how awesome the recipe was!! And if you aren't a follower yet rate the recipes bellow the posts to let us know how you thought they rated!
~Bon Appetite!

No Bake Cookies Recipe!!

Hey everyone!! This is one of our all time favorite recipes!! It is really easy and the results are delicious!

No Bake Cookies:

Ingredients-
2 cups sugar
1/4 cup cocoa
1 stick butter/margarene
1/2 cup milk

Boil all these ingredients for 1 - 2 1/2

Then add-
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups oatmeal

After mixing, drop cookies on wax paper. Let them cool and harden before eating, and then enjoy!!

Just a side note, we think these cookies taste better after they have been refrigerated.

-Bon appetite!!