It's cookie time...

Girl Scout cookie time to be exact. My phone started ringing Friday from little Brownies, and scout sproglets belonging to friends of mine from across the country happily soliciting to my inner sugar monster. Now I don't' know about you or not, but I can say we buy our share of those tasty little treasures so that we can store enough boxes in our deep freezer to get us through until the next sale.

When the phone rang on Friday night that was the Que that it was safe to remove the last box of Samoa's from their icy cold slumber in the deep freezer. The hardest part waiting for them to reach room temperature to fully enjoy the soft caramel wrapped toasted coconut goodness they had to offer.

So, now that the last box has been tampered with, the orders have been placed, we have now entered the "wait" stage for the colorful little boxes filled with sugar intoxication to arrive. Not good enough for my teenager who is having Thin Mint withdrawl I went trolling this am for a "knock off" recipe. I found this great little blog titled BAKING BITES to whip up a small batch of my son's favorite scout treasure while we wait for the orders to come in some time around the end of February. Scroll down about halfway through and you will see additional recipes for home made Samoa's, Tagalongs, Do-si-do's and the thin mint cookies. Surely something for just about anyone in the same predicament as us!

Happy Baking!
image source

Spinach Chicken Salad with Pomegrante

Yesterday I had to run to the local "BIG BIRD" store aka Giant Eagle for those of you not in the inner circle.... while there I noticed a single lowly almost too ripe pomegranate that I just couldn't leave sit there all by itself. Here in Northeast Ohio it is really out of season for us to enjoy them. So I scooped it up a few other ingredients and like a school girl reveled of the possibility of dinner. If you have access to pomegranates this time of year this is a fantastic light full of flavor meal. The recipe can serve 2-3 for dinner comfortably adjust accordingly for more or less. Those not interested in the protein can omit and increase the red onion.

8 oz fresh baby spinach leaves
1 medium red onion sliced long
1/4 cup toasted almond slivers, or non toasted almond slices (your preference)
1 cup pomegranate juice
The seeds of one pomegranate
1 tsp dried crushed oregano
1/4 tsp Sea Salt
1/4 tsp course ground pepper
1 lb chicken tenders
extra virgin olive oil to coat skillet lightly
3 TB red wine vinegar
crusty bread

Bring pomegranate juice to a soft boil in a small saucepan and continue to boil until reduced to 1/3 cup. Meanwhile in a large skillet cook chicken tenders in hot olive oil until no longer pink, remove from pan and keep warm. Add sliced onion, oregano, salt and pepper and cook string frequently until onion is tender.


Add pomegranate reduction and red wine vinegar to skillet return to a light boil, remove from heat and add spinach a few handfuls at a time stirring until just wilted. Place in a large serving bowl and toss with chicken, almonds and pomegranate seeds. Serve warm with crusty bread.

I will tell you I got so excited that I didn't take enough photos of the process... it made the kitchen smell delicious and the outcome was definately NOT disappointing.

Enjoy.

The Menu is Set

With only 5 days to go I am glad to say the menu is FINALLY set.....The main attraction will be the MONSTER MASHED POTATO bar. I just LOVE the idea of serving them in martini glasses too, I love love love a great martini any day, but fill my martini glass with mashies and my favorite toppings... I am in pure bliss....Ingredients on the bar will be ...
Fluffy White Mashies
Butter
Sour Cream
Fresh Chives
Grilled Sliced Flank Steak
Grilled Sliced Garlic Butter Chicken Breast
Bearnaise Sauce
Bacon
Broccoli
Sweet Corn
Mushroom Gravy
Mini Shrimp with Alfredo
Shredded Cheddar Cheese
Shredded Jack Cheese
Crumbled Blu Cheese
Can you say YUMMMMMOooOooooo


The biggest decisions came with the drink menu this year... I wanted something a little creepy, mixed with really good ingredients. I am tired of buying all kinds of new concoctions and getting stuck with leftovers because what looked cook didn't taste so great.. even if it is Halloween. So each of the cocktails below have been tried and tested and enjoyed quite well and I am excited to be sharing them with our guests this year. The only one not shown below is the Brain Hemorrhage we are still going to offer it, but as a "shot" in an actual 60 ML plastic syringe, I will have the syringes filled with the peach schnapps and grenadine already and the guests will suck in the Baileys to create their hemorrhage.... wicked cool!

The Zombie

Ingredients:

1 oz. apricot brandy
1 oz. light rum
1 oz. dark or Jamaican rum
1 oz. lime juice
2 dashes grenadine
Orange juice
1 oz. Bacardi 151 rum

Preparation:

Mix light and dark rum and brandy in a cocktail shaker, add lime juice and grenadine. Shake well and strain into a higball glass filled with cracked ice.

Fill glass with orange juice but leave enough room to float the 151 on top. Garnish with a cherry and orange slice.

Witches Brew

Ingredients:

2 oz. mixed pineapple and cranberry juice
2 oz. 7-Up
1 1/4 oz. shot Malibu Coconut Rum

Preparation:

Mix juices and 7-Up in a highball glass. Pour shot down the side of the glass right before drinking.

You can even mix up a batch of this Halloween Moon Hue inspired drink in a large cauldron and let your guests ladle it out into cups.

Liquid Ghosts

Ingredients:

2 oz. vodka
1 oz. vanilla simple syrup
1 oz. cream
2 oz. soda

Preparation:

Mix vanilla simple syrup, cream, vodka and soda and serve in a martini glass.

Warm Carmel Apple recipe for a Single Serve

Ingredients:

6 oz. apple cider (heated)
Shot of Butterscotch Schnapps
Whipped cream
Pinch cinnamon and nutmeg
1 cinnamon stick

Preparation:

In a glass coffee mug or heat-resistant goblet, combine your heated cider and Schnapps. Top with whipped cream. Sprinkle with cinnamon and nutmeg. Add cinnamon stick.

Vampire Ritual

1 1/2 to 2 oz. gin
1/2 oz. triple sec
1 1/2 oz. blueberry-beet syrup (recipe below) careful this STAINS
10-15 blueberries
3/4 oz. lemon juice

Crush blueberries and syrup together, then pour mixture and all other ingredients into cocktail shaker with ice. Shake vigorously and strain into martini glass. For garnish, use a lemon slice colored with beets.

For syrup: Boil equal parts water and sugar along with several slices of raw beet and small handful of blueberries. Strain out solids and let liquid cool before use.