AmericanFamily.com Free Slow cooker recipe eBook

 

On the go all the time…get this FREE Slow Cooker Recipe book!

It’s the simple things in life…. One-Touch Can Opener Deal!

One-Touch Can Opener Today’s Save:$10 for a deluxe one-touch can opener + jar-opening Gripmate It’s hard enough to find the energy to make a hearty, home-cooked meal. So when a hard-to-crack can of stewed tomatoes is all that stands between you and that shrimp gumbo, dinner can go from Cajun to ragin’ pretty quickly. Channel a can-do attitude instead with the help of today’s Save. Here’s the deal: $10 for a one-touch, hands-free can opener + a free Gripmate jar opener How handy: With the simple push of a button, this cordless, battery-operated can-opener travels around the rim of any can, leaving behind a smooth edge.

Ham, Apple & Brie Crostini – a Great Fall Appetizer

I love this Ham, Apple & Brie Crostini for an easy fall appetizer. You can’t beat the flavors – warm, melty brie cheese with apples and ham on crunchy crostini – yum! The addition of the apple definitely gives the appetizer a great fall flair. Best of all you can assemble them ahead of time on a baking sheet, store them in the fridge and throw them in the oven just before your guests arrive.

RECIPE: Ham, Apple and Brie Crostini

Ingredients:

• 1 Baguette
• 1/2 lb Brie – softened at room temperature
• 1/8 cup Dijon Mustard
• 1 Scallion – chopped
• 1 tbs. Unsalted Butter – softened at room temperature
• dash of Sriracha Hot Sauce
• 1/2 lb. Tavern Ham
• 2 Granny Smith Apples – sliced into 16ths

Instructions:

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Slice Baguette into 1/4-1/2″ thick rounds.
3. In the bowl of a food processor combine brie, mustard, scallion, butter and hot sauce. Pulse until it is a smooth paste.
4. Spread brie mixture on top of each bread round.
5. Top with a ham and apple slice.
6. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes.

For more recipes and entertaining tips from Zareen visit her blog Cooking with Z.

Football Finger Foods

It’s beginning to feel like fall. There air is cooler and Football Sundays are here. Having people over to watch the game on Sunday is a great way to entertain. It’s low key, casual and fun. And I love the food. I am a big fan of finger foods for this kind of entertaining: hot dips, cold dips, cut-up sandwiches, sliders, chicken legs or wings, flatbreads, chili in cups, meatballs with toothpicks… the list goes on. Everyone can sit around the coffee table and pick at the food, chat and watch the game. I am sharing a recipe for Sausage & Pepper cups. It’s great for this. Hearty, yummy and easy to eat. You can use mini-muffin pans for bite-sized cups.
RECIPE: Sausage & Pepper Cups

• Prepared Biscuit Dough
• 1 TBS Olive Oil
• 1 lb.Hot Italian Sausage
• 1 Green Pepper, sliced
• 1 Red Pepper, sliced
• 1 large Yellow Onion, sliced
• Prepared Marinara Sauce
• Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Place sausage in a frying pan and fill with about an inch of water. Bring to a boil over hight heat. Cover pan and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove sausage and drain pan. Slice sausage into 1/2 inch rounds.
3. Heat olive oil in skillet over medium-high heat and saute onions and peppers for 3-5 minutes. Add in sausage rounds and brown.
4. Press each biscuit round into a non-stick muffin pan. Place 1-2 teaspoons of marinara sauce into each cup and spread on the bottom. Fill 1/2 way with sausage and pepper mixture. Top with grated cheese.
5. Bake for 10-12 minutes until cheese is melted and biscuits are golden brown.

For more recipes and entertaining tips from Zareen, visit her blog Cooking With Z.

Memorial Day Grilling – Kebabs

I am so happy to have grilling weather back. To me, it is one of the easiest ways to entertain. Put together a few salads (which can be made ahead of time) and throw your meat and maybe your veggies on the grill when guests arrive and you are all set to go. I’ve been making a lot of kebabs lately for their variety and ease. I marinate my meat, seafood and/or vegetables a day ahead and skewer them and place them back in the fridge before guests arrive. I recently served these shrimp and andouille sausage skewers and they were a huge hit. You can even make cute little grilled hot dog and tator tot skewers for the kids.

RECIPE: Shrimp and Sausage Kebabs with a Smoky Paprika Glaze

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 Tbs thyme, chopped
• 5 tsp smoked paprika
• 4 tsp Sherry wine vinegar
• 3/4 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 lb. uncooked large shrimp, peeled & deveined
• 1 lb. andouille sausage, cut into 1″ long chunks
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes
• 1 red onion, cut into 2 layer wedges

Instructions:

1. In a medium sized bowl whisk together the first 8 ingredients and set aside.
2. Alternately thread shrimp, sausage chunks, tomatoes, and onion wedges on to the skewers.
3. Place the skewers on a rimmed baking sheet.
4. Cover and chill skewers and bowl of glaze.
5. Heat grill on medium-high heat. Brush skewers on both sides with the glaze. Grill until shrimp are cooked through, turning and brushing occasionally with more glaze. Cook for about 6 to 8 minutes.

* Kebabs can be assembled and stored in the refrigerator up to 6 hours ahead of time.

For more recipes and entertaining tips from Zareen visit her blog Cooking with Z.

Potluck – Black Bean Salad

With Memorial Day barbecues fast approaching I thought I’d share one of my favorite salads to make and share at a potluck BBQ table. Black Bean Salad. It can pull double duty, I have served it both as a side salad and as an appetizer with tortilla chips. It’s easy and quick to pull together and just plain tasty.

RECIPE: Black Bean Salad

Ingredients:

• 1 (15 oz) can Black Beans , rinsed and drained
• 1 (15 oz) can of Corn
• 1/2 cup chopped Red Onions
• 1 cup Cherry Tomatoes, quartered
• 1 Avocado, peeled, seeded & chopped
• 2 Jalapeno Peppers, seeded and minced
• 1/2 cup Cilantro, chopped
• 1 Lime, juiced
• 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
• 1/4 – 1/2 tsp Cumin, to taste
• 1/2 tsp Sugar
• Kosher Salt & freshly ground Black Pepper, to taste

Instructions:

1. In a large bowl combine black beans, corn, red onions, tomatoes, avocado, jalapeno, cilantro, lime juice and olive oil.
2. Add salt, pepper, cumin and sugar to taste and mix gently but well.
3. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

For more recipes and entertaining tips from Zareen, visit her blog Cooking With Z.

Spring Brunch

I love brunch! There is just something so yummy about brunch. You get the best of both worlds – the savory and the sweet, the lunch and the breakfast. It may be the perfect meal. The springtime is a wonderful time to host a brunch as everyone is coming out of winter hibernation ready to socialize again. A great start to a beautiful Sunday. The food can be as simple or as elaborate as you like. Juice, Mimosas, Coffee, some breakfast pastries, fresh fruit and an egg dish or a quiche is really all you need. I personally have a small obsession with baked french toast. It is so easy to make and always delicious. Here is a great recipe to try one out.

RECIPE: Lemon Raspberry French Toast Strata
Adapted from Epicurious

• 1/2 cup Maple Syrup
• A loaf of unsliced country style bread, a day old and cut in 1″ cubes
• 1 pint Raspberries
• 6 Eggs
• 4 cups Whole Milk
• 1 tsp grated Orange Zest
• 1 tbs Grand Marnier or 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 1/4 tsp Cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp Kosher Salt

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Lightly grease a 9 x 13″ glass baking dish. Pour in maple syrup. Evenly distribute bread cubes and raspberries on top.
3. Whisk together eggs, milk, orange zest, Grand Marnier or vanilla extract, cinnamon and salt. Pour over bread and raspberries.
4. Bake in the oven about 45 minutes, until it is puffed and golden.
5. Cool for 5 minutes. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve with maple syrup or raspberry syrup.

This dish is equally good with blueberries instead of raspberries.

To read more recipes and entertaining tips from Zareen, visit her blog Cooking with Z.

A Perfect All-Purpose Spring Cake

It may be cold and snowing out but I checked the calendar and it says April. Really, it does. At some point soon Spring will actually be here and Easter too! I had to share this recipe for a Lemon-Rosemary Olive Oil Cake. It is great for so many entertaining needs. It works equally well as part of a brunch as it does an after-dinner dessert. It has an amazing flavor combination that just works. This cake is refreshing, light and delicious.

RECIPE: Lemon-Rosemary Olive Oil Cake
Adapted from Cooking Light Magazine

• 2 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour, plus an additional 2 tbs
• 1 1/2 tbs fresh Rosemary, finely chopped
• 2 tsp Baking Powder
• 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1 3/4 cups Granulated Sugar
• 1/2 cup Olive Oil
• 1/2 cup Milk
• 2 tsp freshly grated Lemon Zest
• 1/2 cup Fresh Lemon Juice
• 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 1/4 tsp Lemon Extract
• 3 Eggs, large
• 1 cup Powdered Sugar
• 1 tbs Fresh Lemon Juice
• Fresh Rosemary Sprig for garnish

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Grease a 10-inch tube pan or 8″ cake pan with cooking spray and lightly dust with 2 tablespoons flour.
3. Combine 2 1/2 cups flour, minced rosemary, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl.
4. In a medium bowl combine 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar, olive oil, milk, lemon zest, extracts and eggs. Beat with an electric mixer on low-speed until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add to flour mixture and beat until just combined.
5. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Cool in pan for 15 minutes on a wire rack, and remove from pan.
6. While cake is cooling, in a small saucepan combine 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice and a 1/4 cup granulated sugar over low heat until the sugar dissolves. Once the cake has cooled for 10-15 minutes, pour syrup over cake so it absorbs.
7. Cool completely on wire rack. Combine powdered sugar and 1 tablespoon lemon juice, stirring until smooth (adding more lemon juice if needed). Drizzle sugar mixture over cake. Garnish with rosemary sprig.

For more recipes and entertaining tips from Zareen, visit her blog Cooking With Z.

Dressing Up Simple Appetizers

When you are assembling your appetizers, you can create a really fun spread by getting creative. Simple appetizers can be dressed up so easily to create an elegant twist on a old favorite. Shrimp cocktail is a classic appetizer. To elevate this a notch, try shrimp cocktail in a puff pastry cup. The same can be done with traditional caprese appetizer by assembling it in mini tart shells. Another standard appetizer is crudite. Instead try slicing your cucumber into rounds and decoratively piping on a cream cheese based dip using a frosting tip. You can even dress up a glass of white wine and create a simple Kir cocktail. Kir is a french cocktail made with white wine and creme de cassis (blackcurrant liquor).

RECIPE: Shrimp Cocktail in a Cup

• Large Shrimp, cooked, peeled & de-veined
• Cocktail Sauce
• Bite-sized Puff Pastry Shells, baked

1. Slice the shrimp in half lengthwise.
2. Curl into a half moon and place in the puff pastry shell.
3. Top with a dollop of cocktail sauce.

Note: You can usually buy pre-made frozen puff pastry shells. If you cannot find them, you buy the puff pastry sheets. Roll it into a 15×12-inch rectangle. Cut into 3″ squares and press them into mini-muffin pans and bake them to make your own cups.

RECIPE: Caprese Cups

• Mini Tart Shells, pre-packaged (usually in the freezer section of the supermarket)
• Mini Mozzarella Balls, sliced in half
• Grape Tomatoes, sliced in half
• Basil Leaves
• Olive Oil
• Kosher Salt & Freshly Ground Pepper

1. Place 1 half mozzarella ball and a half a grape tomato into a mini tart shell.
2. Tuck in a basil leaf so the point is sticking out.
3. Drizzle with a little olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

RECIPE: Kir Cocktail

• 1/2 oz. Creme de Cassis
• 6 oz. dry White Wine, chilled
• Lemon twist

1. Pour the creme de cassis into a the bottom of a wine glass and top with the chilled white wine.
2. Gently stir and garnish with a lemon twist.

For more recipes and entertaining tips from Zareen, visit her blog Cooking with Z.

Daily Deals for Today!

LivingSocial Daily Deals for 2/7/2011:

Philadelphia and Philadelphia & Western Suburbs: A gourmet chef from I Don’t Want to Cook will cook side by side at your house with you and one other person to make a fabulous meal. You pay $80 valued at $300! You could also have a chef prepare a romantic, three-course dinner for two for $139 valued at $400. But wait there is more, for $200 you can get five days of prepared meals for two worth $450. Rules do apply, click here for more information.

Philadelphia Family Edition: Want to take your child(ren) to workout with you? Stroller Strides is offering 5 Boot Camp classes for $25 valued at $75.

Wilmington-Newark: Get away from it all for 60 minutes with Mu-Xing Massage from A Magical Escape for $37 or a 60 minute European deep cleansing facial. Or get both for just $65 valued at $150.

If these deals don’t work for you, they can make a great gift for a loved one!