Eggnog Pancakes

Breaking culinary news: It's the last day of the kids' winter break, and I decided to whip up pancakes — using up leftover eggnog — for daughter Penny. I've put cinnamon in pancakes and French toast but never nutmeg. Why? Such wasted opportunity. It's soooo good. Thumbs up endorsement by Penny, too.

Don't waste your eggnog! Make pancakes instead!

XOXO,
Amy

Eggnog Pancakes
1 cup flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2 eggs
1 cup eggnog

Mix together dry ingredients. Add egg and eggnog and blend thoroughly. Cook on lightly greased griddle, flipping pancakes just once.

Grandma's Corn Flake Cookies

These cookies are not gorgeous but oh, are they sinful.

And so full of memories for me. My Grandma used to make corn flake cookies. They never lasted long. After Grandma was gone, we'd often make them at Christmas, but no one in the family ever seemed to know the exact measurements or have notes on the best liner for the baking sheets (parchment!). Figuring it out was always part of the fun.

Talking with my siblings and cousins about the right way to make these cookies always reminds me of our childhood, when our biggest worry was what was for dinner.

A recent visit from my brother made me think about cornflake cookies and I wanted to make them for my boys. We ran out of time to whip up a batch while their uncle was here, but since we had bought all the supplies, I made some this week.

With just 3 ingredients, these treats are super simple to make.  The result? A delicious cookie that is hard to resist.

Mangia! Mangia!
Andrea

Grandma's Corn Flake Cookies 
Inspired by Andrea's Grandma Lucy Tortora

1 18 ounce box of corn flakes cereal
2 1/2 cans condensed milk
2 12 ounce bags chocolate chips (we used a holiday variety with red and green chips)
Note: Use your favorite chip. Butterscotch, mint, etc.

Line 2 or 3 cookie sheets with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Pour half the box of cereal into a large bowl. Add 1 can of condensed milk. Pour in the rest of the cereal and the second can of milk. Stir to combine, mixing until all of the cereal is coated in milk.

Let rest for 5 minutes. This helps make the mixture sticky enough so that the chocolate chips don't fall to the bottom of the bowl.

Add chocolate chips and 1/2 can of condensed milk. Stir to combine.

Using two spoons, scoop up some cookie mixture and gently press together. Drop onto cookie sheet and press together again with spoons if needed.

Bake for 8 minutes or until cookies start to brown along the edges. Remove from oven and let cool completely.

Use a spatula to lift cookies from pans. Store in airtight containers.

Cheesecake Squares

Ah, cheesecake. I love to eat the creamy dessert but I've never made one myself – until now.

My brother wears the cheesecake crown in my family. He makes a traditional Italian ricotta cheesecake every year for Christmas that used to be the only version of this delicacy I would eat. (Note to self: Ask Greg to do a guest blog in December!)

Now enter my husband, who also loves cheesecake. When we were planning our reception, he was pretty psyched when he discovered that cheesecake was a filling choice for the wedding cake.

My DH celebrated a milestone birthday in June. At his office, the birthday person brings treats for everyone. My guy usually brings dozens of bagels, but when he asked if I would make something, I decided it was time to try my hand at cheesecake.

I opted for cheesecake squares because they are portable and easy to eat. This recipe whips up quickly and will definitely satisfy your cheesecake cravings.

Mangia! Mangia!
Andrea

Cheesecake Squares

Crust:
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
4 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) melted butter

Filling:
4 bars cream cheese, softened or at room temperature
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup sugar
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Note: If you want less cheesecake, cut the recipe in half and use an 8 x 8 baking dish.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line a 9 x 13-inch baking dish with aluminum foil. Coat lightly with non-stick cooking spray.

To make the crust, combine graham cracker crumbs, sugar and melted butter. Mixture should resemble a crumbly paste. Pour into baking dish and spread out so that it covers the entire dish. Press the mixture down, using your fingers, the back of a spoon or a flat spatula. Set aside.

To make the filling, place all of the cream cheese in a bowl. Beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Add sour cream and sugar and beat until everything is well combined.

Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla and beat again to incorporate flavoring.

Spoon cream cheese mixture on top of crust. Spread out evenly and smooth the top with a flat spatula.

Bake for 40 minutes to 1 hour or until edges start the brown and the middle is no longer jiggly. Turn off oven and prop open the oven door. Let cheesecake cool in oven for 30 minutes to 1 hour.

Remove from oven and place pan on a wire rack. Let cool completely.

Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

To cut into bars, grab edges of foil and lift cheesecake from pan. Place on a cutting board. Use a sharp knife to cut into squares. Wipe knife dry after each slice.

Top with fresh berries, if desired.

Amy's Mom's Egg Strata

Growing up, instead of a traditional Christmas dinner we had a standard breakfast -- my mom's egg strata, which she assembled overnight and put in the oven while we unwrapped our gifts. Now I make strata for my family on Christmas and on other special occasions when we have company.

I tweak my mom's version ever so slightly by cooking the onions with the sausage, because my family doesn't like raw onion and Mom layers uncooked onion into her strata. Also, I think Mom uses butter spread, whereas I use softened butter.

Whether the strata is made by Mom or me, it's a crowd pleaser.

XOXO,
Amy

Amy's  Mom's Egg Strata

1 (16 ounce) tube of breakfast sausage
1 medium onion, diced finely
10-12 slices white bread, lightly buttered on each side
1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese (or Colby Jack or Mexican blend)
5 eggs, beaten
1 2/3 cups milk

Fry sausage -- with diced onion if you don't want to add in raw onion. Cook sausage until no longer pink. Drain sausage and set aside.

Mix together milk and beaten eggs and set aside.

Make a layer of bread in the bottom of a 9"x 13" baking pan. If your pan is curved, you will likely have to cut the last two slices a bit so they fit in the pan.

Sprinkle sausage, onions and cheese over the bread slices. Top with another layer of bread slices. Pour egg and milk mixture over the bread. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

In the morning, bake the strata uncovered at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes. Place foil on top when the bread starts to get brown.

Serve immediately. Leftovers, should you have any, are tasty, too.

Baby Greens, Apple & Onion Salad

I'm a big fan of salads. My typical lunch is usually chicken and baby greens topped with dried cranberries, goat or feta cheese and balsamic vinaigrette. But things have changed.

Two weeks before Christmas, when I was stretched thin and looking for fast and easy foods to put on the dinner table, I found this salad. It quickly became my new favorite (I had it for lunch again yesterday) and I know I'll be eating this often as I try to detox after the holidays. I’ve already memorized the recipe.

The dressing whips up in 5 minutes. The taste is such a great combo of sweet and tart that I don't even miss the cranberries and cheese. 

This simple salad goes nicely with a festive meal, too. I made this for Christmas at my mother-in-law's house. To keep things stress-free and simple, she ordered a catered holiday turkey dinner from Kroger. Despite the pre-cooked bird needing more time in the oven than we anticipated, the food was delicious and we were able to spend more time with each other rather than in the kitchen.

When we got to dessert (my sister-in-law whipped up a lemon meringue pie and I baked a Brownie Pudding Cake) I was pretty glad we had added the salad! 

If you need something green to go along with a New Year’s meal or you are craving a healthy and light main dish, give this salad a try. Add some cooked chicken or turkey and dinner is served.

Happy New Year and Mangia! Mangia!

--Andrea

Baby Greens, Apple & Onion Salad

Inspired by Rachel Ray

¼ cup olive oil

2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon grain or brown mustard

1 tablespoon honey

16 ounces salad greens (baby spinach, spring greens or a mixture)

1 large apple, peeled, cored and thinly sliced (Golden Delicious or Fuji works well)

¼ red onion, thinly sliced

Ground pepper to taste

Place oil, vinegar, mustard and honey in a small jar or plastic container. Cover tightly with a lid and shake until well blended. 

Place greens, apple and onion in a large bowl. Pour dressing over greens and toss to coat. Serve immediately.

Here's the salad brightening up our Christmas dinner.

Merry Christmas!

There's a forest worth of wrapping paper littering the living room. Half-eaten candy canes are stuck to the upholstery. We're kicking ourselves for forgetting to buy another pack of AAA batteries. It's Christmas.

As we gather around the table with our families and friends today, we want to express our gratitude to you, our dear readers. You give us the best gift...the gift of your time. Thank you for taking time out of your busy days to read Hot Dinner Happy Home, for following along on our culinary adventures and sharing your kitchen creations with us. We are so thankful for you!

Wishing you the happiest of holidays!
Amy, Andrea and Erin

P.S. Enjoy a peek into our celebration...Erin's kids enjoying the tree in their holiday finery. (Insert all the heart-eye emojis.)

Erin's 2015 Christmas Menu

We do beef on Christmas. In Christmases past, we've made Beef Tenderloin with Roasted Shallots, Bacon, and Port. It's good stuff.

This year we're celebrating the holidays with the husband's family in Seattle. Now that we also live here in the Northwest, it's the first year that we get to sleep in our own beds and wake up to our own Christmas tree and still see family. We're pretty excited about it!

As I've mentioned a plethora of times, my mother in law is pretty much the best cook ever. I've learned so much from her! On Christmas, the husband will help her make a prime rib seasoned with a blizzard of salt and pepper, seared over high heat to form a crisp crust, and roasted in a low oven to buttery perfection. It's divine.

I'm in charge of some sides this year. On Christmas Eve I'm bringing my mom's Cheesy Potatoes to the extended family gathering. For Christmas dinner I'm contributing Potato Gratin with Smoked Cheddar Cheese. My MIL has made this one several times, and it's good. She said it's pretty easy if you use your food processor to slice the spuds. And it transports easily. I'll just bake it at home and we can re-heat it at her house.

Because there's never enough cookies on Christmas, I'm also bringing Cardamom Cookies. They have all the flavors of the holidays.

Andrea's Christmas Antipasto

We're spending Christmas in Cincinnati with my husband's family, whose holiday meal tradition is that dinner is different each time! This year, our big meal will be a turkey dinner on Christmas Eve, as some of our group will depart Christmas Day to visit other family members.

On the Tortora side, Christmas Day means raviolis with homemade tomato sauce and meatballs, and hot and mild Italian sausage. The meal always begins with an antipasto. This is a huge platter of salami, ham, prosciutto and other cured meats like capicola, plus provolone and mozzarella cheeses, assorted olives, pickled mushrooms and eggplant and stuffed hot peppers. Roasted garlic cloves, Italian bread and focacia round out the spread.

The appetizer is much like a charcuterie board. It's a great dish to serve at parties, especially during the holiday season. And you might be surprised at how much the kids enjoy it, too.

Last Christmas during our antipasto course, we discovered how much Sam enjoyed proscuitto, which he calls "thin meat." For weeks afterward he requested prosciutto sandwiches in his lunch box. Sam's love of this cured ham was re-ignited when he met this gorgeous platter at a gathering hosted by his Aunt Karen (who also took this photo.)

Karen's neighbor Kim crafted this masterpiece, and I'm planning to re-create it this week. Kim was thrilled that Sam and Karen's nephew Harrison were willing to try out the different combinations of meat and cheese. Here's Kim, sharing her foodie knowledge with newbies Sam (in orange) and Harrison:

The big surprise came when Sam consumed all of the proscuitto, all by himself. Luckily, Kim was a good sport, noting that at least the meats were domestic and not imported!

If you want to go all out, do get some Proscuitto di Parma for your table. It's definitely worth spending a little extra to try the real thing. Need tips on crafting the perfect charcuterie board? Click here. And if you enjoy beautiful charcuterie photos, check out In Parma by Food Roots on the web or follow the London restaurant: @inparma.

Merry Christmas and Mangia! Mangia!
--Andrea

P.S. Here's a shot of my family from last night as we enjoyed some Christmas decorations.

2015 Holiday Gift Guide: Kitchen Equipment

Today's memo to Santa includes our favorite kitchen equipment. (BTW, in case you missed our previous installments, we have you covered on cookbooks and kitchen gadgets, too.)

Let's get cooking...er, shopping!
Erin, Amy, and Andrea

Disclaimer: These ideas are solely the opinions of your favorite bringers of hot dinner. No companies or manufacturers asked us to provide reviews or compensated us for writing about their products.

Erin's Favorites:

Immersion Blender: This handy tool makes pureed soups a whiz. Before I had an immersion blender, I had a bit of an incident pureeing hot soup in a regular blender. Let's just say I was cleaning soup from under the cupboards for years. Now my soup prep is mess-free. Use it to make Curried Butternut Squash Soup, a Berry Smoothie, or even baby food. --Erin

Le Creuset Dutch Oven: The husband bought me a 5 1/2 quart Le Creuset dutch oven several years ago, and it's one of my all-time favorite pots. Perfect for making Beef Stew, Pot Roast, or Andrea's Cincinnati Chili. If I had to choose one pot or pan to use for the rest of my life, this would be it. --Erin

Amy's Favorites:



Cuisinart PerfecTemp Stainless Steel Steel Cordless Electric Kettle: Last year, I had to give up coffee for health reasons. I switched to tea and this electric kettle helped me through those dark java-free mornings. It heats up water super fast, doesn't take up space on your stove top and has an automatic shut-off. Plus, there are settings for different kinds of tea -- black, white, green, oolong and delicate. There's even a French press setting for you coffee drinkers. --Amy





Instant Pot 7-in-1 Programmable Pressure Cooker, 6 QT: I buy myself a lot of cooking gifts and last year this was one of them. Totally worth it. In fact, for a while I  was saying I was cheating on my slow cooker with my pressure cooker. Truth is, I couldn't feed my family on the regular without both handy appliances. This model is easy to use and cleans up like a dream. See our 2015 Holiday Gift Guide post on cookbooks for a pressure cooker cookbook recommendation. As for what to make in yours, check out my Pressure Cooker Chicken Noodle  Soup, Midwestern Vegetable-Beef Soup and Shrimp Curry Under Pressure. --Amy



Vitamix Professional Series 500: I'm not sure what I could write to convince you go pay upwards of $500 on a blender. It makes no sense except it does. It beats paying $200 on a blender that you will never use. The Vitamix -- the one with programmable settings for smoothies, hot soups and frozen desserts -- is a fine machine. I'm sure we will have it years; it comes with a seven-year warranty. For the first year and a half or so, I used my Vitamix daily for smoothies for me and my husband and then we tired of smoothies every single day. I still use it a lot for smoothies. I also use it when I need to emulsify ingredients -- i.e. recently for a mole chicken chili. I have also used it to make banana ice cream. (Note to self: post smoothie and banana ice cream recipes to this blog.) Next year, I want to make more nut-based vegan creams and for that the powerful Vitamix is super handy because you don't have to soak the nuts in advance. --Amy

Andrea's Favorites: 

Cuisinart Pro Custom 11-Cup Food Processor: The more I cook, the more uses I find for my food processor. The tool makes so many preparations so much easier. I love using it to slice apples for Apple Crisp or Apple Pie. The list is endless. For those who love to cook, a food processor does it all, from chopping, slicing and grating to mixing and blending. I use mine to make everything from Triple Almond Chocolate Banana Pudding to Green Rice. --Andrea

Crock-Pot Programmable Touchscreen 6.5 Quart Slow Cooker: Thanks to the Slow Cooker Revolution cookbooks from America's Test Kitchen, I'm using my Crock Pot more than ever before. This model works beautifully and I like the digital count down for tracking the cooking time. The most recent meal I made in my slow cooker was Erin's Beer Braised Pot Roast. It's also great for Pork Tomatillo-Verde Tacos and Thai Peanut Pork. --Andrea

Ninja Professional Blender: This model offers 3-way speed control and a single serve blade. It comes with two single serve cups which are perfect for whipping up smoothies. The Ninja does a great job chopping fruit and veggies. It's perfect for emulsifying Berry Vinaigrette and Thai Dressing. And it's the next best thing to an immersion blender when you need to finish off Butternut Squash Soup. --Andrea

Merry Christmas!

Tomorrow is Christmas! I'm so excited, I can't even stand it. I'm pretty sure I like Christmas Eve even more than Christmas day. All the anticipation...Oh, geez!

What are you doing for Christmas? Are you having people over for roast goose and carols? Please tell me you are. In case you were wondering, we'll be a small but fabulous crowd at my house this year: the husband, my sister, Danny (baby's first Christmas!), and me, of course. At the husband's request, I'll be making prime rib, which I've never done before. Wish me luck.

My Christmas excitement is obviously causing a bit of blathering here. Sorry about that. What I meant to share is a super easy centerpiece in case you're like me and forgot about that kind of thing. I always have good intentions about setting the table, but then I get caught up in the food and forget about decor. Miraculously, I thought of this lovely idea for a recent holiday fete at our place:

Purdy, ain't it? So easy:

1. Get out a white platter or plate.
2. Put some candles on the platter.
3. Sprinkle cranberries around the candles.
4. Light candles.
5. Boom goes the dynamite.

Step five was actually my Christmas excitement getting the best of me. Anyway, I used tea lights because that's what I had on hand, but this looks lovely with pillar candles as well. Just use what you've got. Make it work people. 

Go forth and be merry!

Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies

I'm not the best cookie baker in town. I think I lack the patience required. The instant gratification of dessert bars is more up my alley. My Recipe section confirms this preference: There is only one single cookie listed. In my dessert-obsessed world, that's pretty pathetic.

It being the season of cookie platters, I dragged myself into the kitchen to make an official cookie. Not truffles. Not bars. Not Minty Mindies. A real Christmas cookie. But I'm still my impatient self, so I made a total cheat cookie using a cake mix. (At least I keep it real, people.)

If you want to bring a festive treat to your next holiday party or are looking for a suuuuper easy baking project to make with the kids, Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies are right up your alley. Enjoy!

Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies
From The Novice Chef
Makes about 2 dozen cookies

1/2 cup powdered sugar
18.25-ounce box red velvet cake mix
6 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
2 eggs


Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper for easy clean-up. (If you don't have parchment paper on hand, spray cookie sheets with non-stick cooking spray.) Place powdered sugar in a shallow bowl and set aside for later.

In a separate bowl, stir together cake mix, butter, and eggs until there are no more large lumps. (This will require some elbow grease...just think of it as your exercise for the day.) Roll dough into 1" balls and then roll in powdered sugar so they're coated generously. Place dough balls about 2" apart on your prepared cookie sheet.

Bake for 8-10 minutes, until the bottoms are set and the tops looked crinkled. (The centers of the cookies will still look a bit gooey, but they set up as they cool. So be careful not to over-bake them.) Let the cookies rest for five minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Final Christmas Warning

This is what happens when you force your husband to decorate Christmas cookies with you:

Consider yourself warned. 

Hey Santa! by Lady of the House

A few years ago, my family and I took a detour to Christmas fun, and opted for a good old-fashioned-name-out-of-the-hat gift exchange. I'm happy to report that we landed at the same cheerful destination, but perhaps with a bit more distinction, a bit more flair. Whatever you call it--Secret Santa, Pollyannna, Kris Kringle--I think there's a lot to be said for focusing on a recipient and spending your hard-earned money in one place rather than frittering it on every last relative at the dollar store. If you take it seriously (which you absolutely should) it prompts a careful study of the recipient, and you may find yourself really calculating things, allowing yourself the time to be thoughtful.

This year, I took to the interweb (Erin's hilarious word--not mine) and decided to see what was out there. Could we elevate things? Could we transcend the spit-balled, handwritten, horribly torn post-it note with "MOM" scrawled in ball point? I mean, as much as I like getting mail that looks like a fraction of a ransom letter, I thought, there must be someTHING some nerd developed that makes this funny situation digital and perhaps anonymous. And enter, with pride I'll add, Boogspace.com. Don't laugh. It's the most ridiculous name, but quite the clever gifting tool, and from personal experience, I think you and your family will love it. You can make sure couples don't get paired up, and you can even make a wish list so your uncle doesn't buy you Spanx. um...

Happy family gifting!

xoxo

Lady of the House