6-Minute Beef Cheeseball

You’ll have to excuse the fact I only have 1 photo for this post.  At some point in the future when I make this again, I’ll snap additional photos.  This time around I just took a quick photo before I served it as an appetizer for a dinner party we were hosting for some of my hubster’s coworkers.

This is one of my favorite cheeseball recipes. I grew up with both my mom & grandmother making this cheeseball—and I have no clue what the original source of this recipe is.  I do know that it is quick & easy, surprisingly flavorful given the limited ingredients, travels well & can be made a day or 2 ahead of when you need it. The flavor is actually better if you do make it a day ahead…  Serve with crackers, & you are done.  I like to form cheese balls in the container I will be serving them out of to make for a prettier presentation.  This recipe is easily doubled & is the perfect solution when you need to take an appetizer to 2 different parties within a short period of time.

6-minute Beef Cheeseball
Prep time: 6 minutes, Serves: Many

Ingredients

• 1 package cream cheese (8 oz), softened
• small bunch of chives, chopped finely (can substitute the green parts of 1-2 green onions, sliced finely)
• 1 T. Worcestershire sauce (+1 t. extra if desired)
• 1/2 package Buddig beef deli meat or equivalent store brand (approx 3 oz)
• Approximately 3 oz. dried beef* (found in the deli meat section, or in the canned meat section of the grocery store. This is the salty, dried beef used for chipped beef gravy, or that could survive a nuclear apocalypse. If you can’t find it, or don’t want to use it, use the rest of the package of Buddig beef)

Directions
1. Let cream cheese soften on the counter in its packaging for at least 30 minutes before assembling.  Finely chop the Buddig beef & put in a small bowl.  Finely chop the dried beef & place in a separate bowl.

2. Scrape the cream cheese into a small mixing bowl.  Add the chives, Worcestershire sauce, all of the Buddig beef & half of the dried beef on top of the cream cheese.  Fold ingredients together with a rubber spatula until well mixed.

3. Line the bowl you want to serve the cheese ball out of with a large piece of plastic wrap.  Sprinkle the inside of the plastic wrap-lined bowl with some of the remaining dried beef.  Scrape the cheeseball into the bowl & cover with the remaining dried beef.  Twist the cheeseball up tightly in the plastic wrap, shape it to the desired shape & refrigerate.

My favorite hummus recipe

I’m not a big fan of beans & peas.  I’ll eat them when I HAVE to, but the textures typically make me gaggy.  Chickpeas in homemade hummus form are now the exception (I still can’t eat chickpeas whole, creepy texture).  Hummus was one of those things I really didn’t like until a couple of years ago…basically until I started making it on my own & could control the thickness/consistency of the final product.

This is one of my favorite go-to appetizers when hosting a party or dinner.  It’s easy to make, cheap, & you can make it in advance & just garnish it before serving.  Dress it up with some cut up vegetables & homemade pita chips…and you’re done. Making your own hummus is typically cheaper than buying it premade, plus you can control the quality of your ingredients. Many store-bought hummuses (hummi?) are made with oil blends, which makes them especially icky for me since I have a canola oil intolerance. Plus, I mentioned it’s cheaper right? I buy cans of chickpeas for less than $1 at the international grocery and this uses like maybe $0.10 worth of tahini since I buy it in a big jar.  I always have lemon juice, garlic, olive oil & salt on hand…so you figure it takes $1.10 of “specialty” ingredients, and it yields over 2 cups of hummus.  Unless you are buying your containers of hummus for less than $0.55…you are being robbed.

My favorite recipe for hummus comes off of the back of a Ziyad brand can of chickpeas.  In fact, I’m glad I’m posting this recipe, because if Ziyad ever changed its label I’d be hosed.  I made a slight variation regarding garlic/lemon…but it’s fine “as is” if you want too.  Enjoy!

Basic Hummus
Prep time- 5 min, “Cook” time= 5 min, Serves- many


Ingredients

Ingredient Lineup...I always have these ingredients in my
fridge/pantry so that I can make this in a snap whenever it sounds good.

• 1 can chickpeas (15-16oz) drained
• 1/3 cup Tahini*
• 2 T lemon juice + 1 t. lemon juice
• 2 cloves garlic (or 1 if you like less-garlic)
• dash of salt
• 3 T. extra virgin olive oil + extra for garnish
• Sumac or Smoked Paprika for garnish** [optional]

Directions
1.  In a blender or food processor, add the cloves of garlic & the salt.  Pulse until finely minced.

The salt helps to mince the garlic.

2.  Add the chickpeas, tahini, 2 T lemon juice & 3 T. of olive oil & pulse to desired consistency. Add more olive oil for smoother hummus. Add more salt if needed.

Blend/puree this until it reaches your chosen consistency

3.  Move hummus to a small bowl.  If serving immediately, drizzle top of hummus with olive oil & sprinkle with sumac & smoked paprika.  If storing, cover tightly & store in the refrigerator.

Top with a drizzle of olive oil & spices if desired, & enjoy!

*Tahini is made of ground sesame seeds and it is peanut-butter’ish in consistency.  It can be found at international grocery stores, Whole Foods, or in the organic condiments or condiment aisle of your grocery store.  Tahini is also a great addition to salad dressings or marinades, & has a pretty good shelf-life.  However it is not a good substitute for peanut butter for removing dog hair from your throat (long story, ask my husband, he has a experience in this).

**Sumac is a Middle Eastern spice that has sort of an acidic & flowery flavor.  It is purplish in color & is a beautiful spice for garnishing dishes.  I buy mine from The Spice House.  I recommend a gentle sprinkling of smoked paprika for garnishing as well, due to its rich, beautiful color & subtle smoky flavor when used in small amounts.

Pistachio Cake with Chocolate Ganache- AKA "MaMa's Green Cake"

A few years ago my mom randomly surfaced a cake recipe that my grandmother used to make…except my mom decided to top said cake with chocolate ganache [naturally]..  She served it for a family holiday dinner and our entire family fell in love with this cake. My brother & I wanted to know why it had not been served for holidays for the past 20 years.  This is now the “go to” standard for birthday cakes & holiday meals in our family and it might be the first dessert that we all agree on, request and enjoy.  Normally my brother & I will race each other to the pool of ganache that collects in the middle of the cake [he frequently wins].  This cake has lovingly been relabeled “MaMa’s Signature Green Cake” for our holiday feasts. MaMa is what my niece calls my mom.

The best things about this cake is that it is EASY to make, holds over well to serve the day after you make it, is pretty, & is delicious.  It has a very vibrant green color from the pistachio pudding that is used in the cake.

Delicious

MaMa’s Green Cake (Moist Pistachio Pudding Cake with Chocolate Ganache)
Prep time- 6 min, Cook time- 50-60min, Cooling time- 1-2 hours, Serves 10+

Ingredients

Ingredient Lineup

• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup warm water
• 4 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 box yellow cake mix (Betty Crocker preferred)
• 3- 3.5 oz boxes of Jell-O brand instant Pistachio pudding
• chocolate syrup (approx 3T)
• [optional] Chocolate ganache, recipe below

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 325.

2. Grease & flour a Bundt shaped pan.

I always do this the old-fashioned way with butter & flour,
Never with those ready-made sprays.

3. In a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer, beat the oil, water & eggs until combined. Add the cake mix & pudding to the egg mixture. Beat slowly at first to gently mix ingredients & then mix for 2 minutes on medium speed (the slowly part is important—or you will get a green powder cloud that escapes the bowl & coats your counters). The batter will be thick.

I forgot to pre-beat my eggs this time...it really
didn't make a difference.

Mix the eggs, water & oil well.

Add the cake mix & 3 boxes of pudding

Mix per directed

4. Pour half of batter into the Bundt pan. Drizzle chocolate syrup on top of batter. Layer in remaining batter & add an additional drizzle of syrup.

Add batter

Layer on a swirl of syrup

Put in the rest of the batter & then add another swirl of syrup

5. Bake for 50-60 minutes. Let the cake cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes, & then invert onto a serving plate. Let the cake cool for 1-2 hours on the countertop, then top with chocolate ganache [optional]. When the cake is cool, store covered on the counter overnight.  Once the cake has been cut, or if you are planning on storing it longer, store it covered in the refrigerator.

What the cake looks like without the ganache topping

Topped with shiny, delicious ganache

Here is a picture to illustrate the "inside color"
of the cake...this was basically all that was left
after sending leftovers home with people...and
I was left without a "pretty slice" shot of the cake.
Use your imagination. :-)

Basic Chocolate Ganache

Ingredients

Ingredient Lineup

• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 5-6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped (milk chocolate or your “degree of chocolate” of choice can be substituted. I use Baker’s chocolate squares for this typically…but I have also used chocolate chips out of my pantry…)

Directions
1. In a small, non-stick saucepan or in a double boiler, slowly warm cream over low heat until the cream is warm to the touch. Stir/scrape frequently with a rubber spatula.

2. Add the chocolate pieces & continually stir/scrape frequently with a rubber spatula until chocolate melts.

I forgot to chop my chocolate :-/...but it still worked.

3. Continue stirring/scraping the mixture until sauce thickens & gets glossy appearance (do not allow the ganache to get boiling hot or let it burn to the pan- you will either get a ganache with a white coating or one with a funky taste if you let this happen).

See how this is grainy & runny-looking?...It's not ready

Slowly getting there (those aren't bubbles from boiling, those
are from stirring...do not let it boil/simmer!)

Ah, yea...that's the stuff.   Remove it from heat & continually
stir until it cools down a bit.

4. Remove pan from heat & continue stirring/scraping the mixture for 3-4 minutes to lower the temperature of the ganache.

5. While ganache is still warm to the touch, drizzle over the top of the cake until desired chocolate glaze level is reached.  Let the ganache cool on the cake, then store as directed above. Store leftover ganache in the refrigerator.

Yum.

Leftover ganache is delicious on graham crackers, in macaroons, on ice cream, or eaten directly from the bowl as a midnight snack. To soften it up after storing in the fridge, microwave in 5 second increments until desired thickness & temperature.

Warm ganache is a yummy ice cream topping

Roasted Broccoli with Bacon

Last night when making dinner, I found myself staring down a head of broccoli, saying “I think I’d rather eat the bag you are in, then eat you steamed again.”*  We’ve been doing a lot of steamed broccoli as sides lately, mainly because on a typical day it’s one of my favorite foods and it’s healthy. I had this lonely, smallish head of broccoli that I needed to use…so I had the random brainchild “why not add bacon?”

I like other roasted cruciferous veggies (Brussels sprouts, cauliflower,  kohlrabi, etc)…but since I typically love steamed broccoli, I’d never tried roasting it.

The verdict?-Yum.  Plus you can’t go wrong when adding bacon, right? (well…except maybe as far as your arteries are concerned…but I digress). This was quick, easy, & was a perfect way to perk up some broccoli that I would have rather thrown out than eaten steamed last night. The recipe below is based off of 1 head of broccoli and is meant to serve 2. Multiply to your needs. I used thin “freezer bacon” (similar to the Oscar Meyer precooked bacon)…if using thicker bacon you probably want to render/precook that mostly in a skillet so that the bacon will be crispy by the time the broccoli is done.

Roasted Broccoli with Bacon

Prep time- 5 min, cook time- 15-25 min, Serves 2

Ingredients

Bad picture of the ingredient lineup...

• 1 head of broccoli, rinsed, drained, and cut into large florets
• 2-3 strips thin bacon, cut into thin strips
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1-2 T. extra virgin olive oil
• salt and pepper
• dash of lemon juice [optional]

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees (this dish can be cooked anywhere from 350-425 degrees if you are cooking something else that needs a specific temperature, just adjust your cooking times lower if going hotter than this)

2. Add 1 T. olive oil to a baking dish, add the garlic and heat in the oven for 5 min.

3. Remove the baking dish from the oven. Layer in the broccoli & bacon & stir together. Sprinkle salt & pepper over it. Sprinkle with additional oil if desired.

4. Return baking dish to oven & bake for 10 minutes. Stirring once.

5. Remove the baking dish from the oven. [Optional] Add a few dashes of lemon juice (lightly) over the top of the broccoli.  Stir again and return to the oven.  Bake for an additional 5-10 minutes until broccoli is to desired doneness.  A fork should be able to easily pierce the stem-end of a large floret.

6. Serve and enjoy!

I served this with baked chicken breasts
that had been brined in an apple cider brine,
& classic Stovetop Stuffing (quick & easy dinner)

*Yes—I occasionally talk to food when I make it, this particularly applies to whole poultry [hides head in shame]

We ran away again...

Sorry for the week off of blogging—but I’m not off track for my resolution, I have 5, yes 5 posts lined up on the runway, waiting for picture uploads & takeoff. Totally keeping up with my proposed resolution of an average of 1 post/week so far…

Speaking of runways & plane metaphors, my husband & I ran away again…on a plane.  How about that transition?  While the Super Bowl was gearing up in our fine city, we decided to avoid the crowds & what-not and would head to the crowds & what-not of Vegas.  


[If you don’t want to read a long rehashing of our trip, stop reading now. This post is long, you have been warned. My next post will be a recipe.]

A few days after returning from our trip last October, I got an email from Southwest announcing $59 flights to/from Vegas.  I noticed that the applicable dates of travel lined up with the Super Bowl being in Indy and since we left “sights unseen” the last time we were there, I pitched my idea about “running away” to my hubster (because it’s not like I was going to be able to commute to work downtown during the festivities anyway?)…and he agreed that running away sounded like an excellent idea.

When departing the Las Vegas airport, our cabbie asked us why we were in town.  When we said we were from Indy & were escaping the Super Bowl crowds…he started laughing, a lot.  He then went on to explain that Super Bowl weekend is one of the busiest weekends in Vegas each year. I don’t know why these little facts didn’t make a connection in our brains when we were planning our trip…“one of the biggest sporting events of the year” + “copious amounts of legal gambling on sporting events” = an incredibly busy Las Vegas.  But it wasn’t unbearable. Vegas was meant for crowds.

 We did a Friday-Monday trip, and stayed at Vdara at City Center.  We had stayed at Aria on our previous trip, but thought we would give Vdara a shot this time.  Overall, I prefer the activities & amenities at Aria, but the view of the Bellagio fountains & the strip from our hotel room at Vdara couldn’t be more perfect. Plus I had gotten a pretty good deal at our hotel through mlife (the “players club” for MGM Grand properties…which yields cheaper hotel deals than hotels.com or other sites for MGM hotel rooms, even if you don’t gamble).

We did have a little issue with our first night at Vdara.  Apparently the “signature scent” diffuser for the air system of the building was malfunctioning and our room smelled like a citrus-fig perfume factory the first night…it was ridiculously strong…strong enough that my asthma (which is fairly quiescent) was flaring a bit. A complaint to the front desk & the next day the issue was resolved. [most Vegas hotels have “signature scents” to cover up the smell of booze & cigarettes that permeate the buildings from the casinos—I’m not quite sure why the gambling-free, smoke-free Vdara has a “signature scent” though, except for the novelty of it].

View from our hotel room at Vdara...with the Bellagio fountains off

View from our hotel room at Vdara...with the Bellagio fountains on.

Friday night I took my hubby to see the show Absinthe at Caesar’s Palace.  I had seen a few reviews on this show that made me REALLY want to see it.  One review said “it’s a combination of Borat & Cirque de Soliel.”  Another review said “It’s will be the most amazing, and most offending show you ever see.” We LOVED the show. Yes, the humor was a bit awkward, politically incorrect & uncomfortable at times, but I still don’t think I have laughed that hard in 1 night in a long time. The acrobats were amazing.  The best thing about this show is that instead of being a bazillion feet away from the action like you are at most Cirque-type shows in Vegas, Absinthe is a 300 seat venue that is shaped like an old sideshow tent, where in the very farthest seat you are still 5-6 rows away from the action. We were 3 rows away, and at one point there was a guy flying over our head close enough you could feel the swoosh of air as he swung by. It’s a tiny venue & the show is awesome.  The only thing that distracted from the experience were the 7feet tall European students in front of us that kept holding their cameras above their heads to take pictures. Annoying.  But overall, the show was totally worth the price I paid for discount tickets. Absinthe is General Admission (minus a few VIP seats), so you can easily get a front row spot if you show up early.  But be warned, the “hosts” of the show force crowd participation, whether you want to be involved or not.  3 rows back is advisable if you don’t want to be involved in the antics, but would rather sit back & laugh at those poor souls (watching complete strangers “motorboat” each other = awkward, yet hilarious).

Saturday night my hubby took me to Phantom at the Venetian.  We made a stop by Thomas Keller’s Bouchon Bakery for a mocha & his famous macaroons before the show.  I now know why so many chefs refer to the macaroons from Bouchon as the best.  They were the most amazing macaroons I had ever tasted. The flavoring & textures were nothing short of perfection.  I’ve been tempted to try making macaroons since I got my stand mixer last October…but now that I’ve had the ones from Bouchon Bakery, I don’t know if I can make my own.  I feel like I will forever be disappointed in the outcome.  We had 3 before the show & had the other 3 the next morning for breakfast.

Mmm...a perfect Mocha & perfect Macaroons

Phantom was stellar. Jas scored some amazing seats for us. I have seen the traveling Broadway version of Phantom before…but I was pretty impressed with this version, even though I missed a lot of the material/scenes that were cut out compared to the Broadway version. I can forgive the extra scenes/dialogue being cut out though when considering the pyrotechnics & special effects that the Vegas version of Phantom contains.  It’s amazing to think that the entire venue was specifically designed for that 1 production. It’s also sad to think that Phantom will close down for good in September.  I’m glad we had a chance to see it before it goes dark. If you’re in Vegas before September 2012, I Highly Suggest checking out Phantom.

Allegedly you can’t go to Vegas without going to a buffet.  So Sunday night while the rest of the world (& Vegas) was watching the 2nd half of the Super Bowl, we went to the buffet at the Bellagio.  We had gone there on our prior trip, & when considering the ridiculously high cost of food in Vegas in general…we decided it was worth a repeat visit.  I’m pretty sure I ate the cost of my meal in king crab legs. Seriously, minus some roasted asparagus & a piece of prime rib…all I ate for dinner was king crab legs.

After we stumbled out onto the strip in a food coma…we decided that since it was going to be our last night in Vegas for most likely the next few years, we decided to go see all of the free “Vegas Kitsch” we didn’t see on our last trip. We had already seen the “Old Strip/Downtown Fremont Street” during our last visit [never, ever again], so we could cross that off the list.  The MGM Lions are MIA while the MGM Grand is under renovation, so we’ll have to visit those at some point in the future.  So that basically left the Mirage Volcano show & the Treasure Island Siren show to cross off of the list.  First stop, the Mirage Volcano.  Overall, I enjoyed this more than I was anticipating.  It was not nearly as hokey & foolish than I thought it was…and was an interesting melding of a light show, water show & pyrotechnic show.

Jas watching the Mirage Volcano

Next stop…the TI Siren show.  This can be added to the “never, ever again” column.  I guess I went to the show being jaded due to all of the negative reviews, but those reviews were truly justified in this case.  Considering this is considered to be one of the big “family friendly” things of Vegas, I was majorly disappointed.   Overall it was the worse example of lip-synched, cheesy “entertainment” ever, that was way too over-sexed to be considered family friendly.  I think one particular special effect regarding a ship, plus the pyrotechnics at the end were my favorite part (and perhaps only because they signaled that the atrocity was ending?).  My gut feelings that I would never take a child to view this show were confirmed when we were walking down the strip, and we saw a young boy who was about 7 years old, singing one of the incredibly inappropriate, oversexed songs from the show while shaking his butt and shimmying his chest.  Granted, Absinthe was way more oversexed & “vulgar” by conventional standards than the TI Siren Show, however the difference is that Absinthe was an 18-and-over show, that we researched and paid to see…and it didn’t occur on the side of the street to the general public as a “family event.”  Ok…stepping off of my soapbox.

After catching a couple more up-close Bellagio fountain shows (my favorite)…we headed off to bed.

On both Saturday morning & Monday morning of our trip, Jas and I made the ‘pilgrimage’ to In-n-Out Burger of Las Vegas for lunch. Seriously…they need little markers to designate the pathway for the 1.5 mile each way journey off-strip.  It was so worth the 3 mile round-trip walk + playing a live-game of Frogger to get to though.  We love In-n-Out Burger & dream of the day that they replace McDonald’s nationwide.  We both order off of the not-so-secret “secret menu.”  Jas gets a 2x4 animal style (2 beef patties, 4 slices of cheese, onions grilled in mustard, lettuce, tomato & spread). I get a 2x4 no tomato, onions grilled, light spread, extra toast (2 beef patties, 4 slices of cheese, no tomato, grilled onions, smaller amount of spread, with the bun extra toasted/crunchy). We both get our fries “well done” (their same awesome fries, except cooked longer to be super crunchy).   Deliciousness. It’s the only fast food worth walking 3 miles roundtrip for…

Ah-mazing

After we ventured back to the strip from In-n-Out Burger on Monday, we hopped on the bus & went to Fashion Show Mall to browse around for an hour or so.  It was there that my husband learned just how low-maintenance of a girl I really am.  In browsing through the purses of Neiman Marcus & their house wares section (where Jas made the mistake of looking at the price tag for a mink bed throw)…I like to think that he fully gained appreciation for my budget-friendly decorating style & my hatred of clothes/accessory shopping.  I also think he was thankful I didn’t fall in love with any of the $500-$1000+ bags we saw.  In other news…Fashion Show Mall has a Bloomingdale’s Home Store…which Indianapolis REALLY needs.  It’s like the Macy’s house ware section, except it’s the size of a Macy’s, & had great sales going on...

 Finally, before picking up our luggage & departing for the airport we made a stop by Jean Philippe Patisserie at Aria for a decadent treat.  Jason had the Chocolate Cheesecake (chocolate shortbread cookie, topped with mascarpone cheese mousse, folded with 2 types of chocolate mousse, covered in a thin flexible shell of white chocolate, with a chocolate truffle on top).   I had the Triple Chocolate, which was dark chocolate, milk chocolate & white chocolate mousses swirled on top of a flaky shortbread cookie, covered in dark chocolate ganache and cocoa, and topped with a miniature pistachio & chocolate ganache macaroon. They both were delicious. We also picked up a couple of truffles (Jason a coconut rum one, me a raspberry mascarpone one) & a chunk of chocolate pistachio nougat to take home as our souvenir.

We were so excited about our treats from JP...that we didn't even take the
time to take a good picture of them.

Overall it was an excellent trip.  It will probably be our list trip to Vegas for awhile, as we have other people/places on our to-visit list for our future vacations. Plus, the slot machines were not nearly as friendly this trip, & the free drinks were virtually non-existent with how busy Vegas was for Super Bowl weekend…making the trip a little less exciting.

I’m incredibly thankful for my wonderful parents who were our airport transport (since taxis were so much more expensive due to Super Bowl) & who watched our dogs for us.  I love that our dogs were basically indifferent that we came home…because they love spending time with my parents THAT much.