Post Thanksgiving

I hope that everyone made it through the Thanksgiving holiday safely and that you were able to enjoy some good cooking and fellowship with those you love. Now that Thanksgiving is over, it's time to face those leftovers! I told you in the last post that all I had left over was Cornish hens, so I DID end up making a dish out of them that contained the following...rice, cream of mushroom, bacon, carrots (shoestring), one half package of season blend (onions, bell peppers, red peppers), and of course...THE HENS! I used the think sliced hickory smoked bacon and baked it in the oven. I know that you're probably like, that woman adds rice to EVERYTHING...WELL THAT'S ALMOST TRUE (big smile)! I am just not a potato person and you have to remember, I like hearty and coarse textures, so I have to get it from somewhere people (wink)! This dish turned out really good, but definitely not a dish for the kids due to the small bones from the hens. It was also more like a soup than anything. I broke the hens up with my hands and pulled as many bones from them as a could, but you never can get all of the small ones. I still have some left over and ate a bowl for dinner this evening. I am saving my one little can of biscuits for the weekend to eat with it, that way I can sit at my little kitchen table and allow my fat soul to have its way...(remember spandex is REQUIRED in my kitchen)!!!! LOL!!! Now tell me what you did with your leftovers?

Okay, so you won't believe what I did on yesterday!...I went to the ABC Package Store and bought enough alcohol to make enough rum cakes for the entire city of Birmingham!...NOT! I did buy liqueur that gives cakes great aromas and flavors for the holidays. I am not a sophisticated drinker, so I have to do my research online to find out what brands of rums, brandy's and cognac's are the best for baking. I wish you could have seen how one of the cashier's was eyeballing me!!!! I know I don't look like I am an alcoholic, and the fact that I had a list and was asking for help identifying what I needed didn't help their suspicion. I plan to bake something new this weekend...maybe that Mississippi Mud with some of my new cocktails...mmmmmmm....yup!

I'd asked my younger brother to post a picture of his "rack of lamb" that he prepared for Thanksgiving on here for you all to see. Yeaaahhh...me and both of my brothers can throw down in the kitchen!!! Nah (licking my tongue out)! Anyway, I don't what I am going to cook this weekend...I'm thinking a pasta of some sort...what say you?

Just had to have it...

...so Thanksgiving is over and my refrigerator is bare, along with my cake and cookie dishes...WHAT HAPPENED???? (LOL)! This is the first Thanksgiving in the history of my life that I did not have anything really left over. The only survivor are 2 of the 4 cornish hens that I prepared and my plan is to make a dish out of them tomorrow with rice, celery, carrots, cream of mushroom...and whatever else come to mind. This is probably the third time this year that I have actually prepared poultry at my house. I remember when I was young, my great-aunt would make this boiled chicken and rice dish that was to die for! My brothers and I would also have biscuits and syrup with it during the winter months. I plan to make something similar only with my cornish hens.

You would not believe that I don't have one thing sweet to eat in my kitchen. I just couldn't end the weekend without something chocolate, so I made chocolate brownies and smeared leftover chocolate icing all over them! YUUUUUUMMY! When my great-aunt would make cakes, we could not touch them until they were completely cool. Man, I will tell you that I ate two of them straight out of the oven and drank a large cup of milk. You would have thought that someone had given me an extra strength anti-depressant! IT WAS WONDERFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It just made everything perfect!

I plan to have another brownie with my coffee in the morning and begin the week in great spirits. Make sure that you don't forget that Thanksgiving is everyday and that you have much to be grateful for. Do a good deed for someone else this week and do it YOUR WAY!

Oh, and if some of the brownies are left after tomorrow I will post some pictures!

TTYL,
Shammara (muah)

Oven off for the night!

Man my feet are KILLING ME!!!!! I've cooked most of my Thanksgiving dinner and completed my cake orders. I did my usual and took colorful cupcakes to one of the group homes in my community. I think colorful goodies always makes kids happy! It's just a very small gesture to let them know that people do care. I am grateful to all who did any type of charitable giving this holiday and any other holiday. This includes giving of your time as well as tangible items. Let the Thanksgiving in your heart pour out to others and remember that it is not about you but about loving your neighbor. Be a cheerful giver!

Now that I'm off of my soapbox, I have to tell you the my German Chocolate cake blooper almost caused me to have a nervous breakdown (lol). I was making macaroni & cheese and prepping my German chocolate cake. Why did I short my recipe two eggs?????? YES! Girl genius had to remake the dogg'on thing and my feet were ON FIRE!!! (I wanted to do one of those Grace Jones screams)! I made it through though (whew...smiling).

All I have left to make are my Cornish hens and then I can glut and please my fat soul for the remainder of the day.

Enjoy your thanksgiving friends...I will!

Brought in the morning baking!

Well Good Morning!!!!

Yeah, I haven't been to sleep yet. I just got out of the shower trying to scrub all of the dried up chocolate and powdered sugar off of me (lol)! I must say that I am soooooooooooo happy to just be home and have the ability to wake up when I want and bake anytime that I want.  This is typically the only time that I get to bake in the early hours of the morning without worrying about being exhausted the next day. One of my friends that bakes with me has a tendency to ONLY want to bake before daybreak in the morning. She used to make me so SICK when we were roommates. I would wake up to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night and she would be in the kitchen looking crazy talking about "I just felt like baking" (sounding like damn Forest Gump)!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I would be like, WHAT THE HELL??? AM I BEING PUNKED!!!!!!!!!...Where are the cameras??? (LMBO)! I love her though because she and I are really great friends and share the love of baking. I won't even talking about our other friend that is bakes with us from Japan...she is HILARIOUS! Lord, WE NEED YOU! (Giggle)

We really didn't get many orders this year, but it's something how things work out because I've become aware of a few families that could really use a little something extra this holiday season. My plan is to begin baking again in the morning just to give to these families. Kids love sweet treats and the more colors they see, the more excited they tend to become. I'm thinking that I am going to do a combination of double chocolate cupcakes with chocolate and peanut butter icings and plain with rainbow icing. I think they'll really enjoy that...hopefully as much as I will making them (smile)! I'll start out on this mission in the morning and then work my way into my regular orders.

One of my friends from the Corps will be here spending Thanksgiving with me, so maybe she'll throw out some new ideas to add to Hasty Pastry's portfolio. She's from the West Indies, so I'll make sure that whatever it is, it is not too far fetched. I told her on the phone today that I don't know where to buy goat so we may have to pass on the curry goat this time around (LMBO)! Can you imagine curry cupcakes??? (looking buck-eyed)!

I had to make quite a few cupcakes tonight but only one cake, so for those that know me, they know that I LOVE flowers! Needless to say, my red velvet cake ended up with roses on top (shrugs)...hey, what can I say? It was the last think I had to work on, so I had a little extra time.

Well, I'm going to get a couple of hours of sleep before beginning again, so continue doing things YOUR WAY...and ENJOY EVERY MOMENT OF IT!

What to do, what to do???

I'm torn between prepping for my thanksgiving dinner for one or making a dish just for the house. I'm thinking about all of this while I am eating my "breakfast for a queen." It's kind of hard to think about the next meal while eating my homemade French toast, turkey smoked sausage and eggs. (Spandex is a REQUIREMENT in my kitchen!!!) Oh, and I used wheat bread and I LOVE Log Cabin's Sugarfree Syrup!!! ...sssshhh...gotta save some of those calories for later!

Anyway, while my fat soul is singing opera during breakfast, I need to figure out what to cook! I really wasn't going to do any type of meat for Thanksgiving, but I remembered how great my Cornish hens turned out last year! (mmmmm....yummy, yummy...) so I know I am going to do those, the typical collard greens, mac&cheese, dressing...oooooh and some cabbage! I'll figure out the rest later. So I know you're like who is going to eat all of this food!!! YOURS TRULY!!!! I won't make large portions like I usually do...at least I will TRY not to (wink).

I don't know what my new dessert will be this year. Last year it was Italian Cream cake.

Oh well, I'll let you know what I come up with when I figure it out. What would you suggest?

New request...

I had a lady ask me if I made a Mississippi Mud cake today! Well you know me, being the chocolate lover that I am, had to automatically start trying to keep my fat soul in check. I ALMOST WENT INTO STROKE MODE! (She was an older lady that looked like she could make a mean dessert if she wanted to.) I wanted to ask her, "do you make one because if so, I would like to buy one from you"! She said she didn't bake anymore and had tons if grandkids that liked crazy cakes.

My mind began racing soon after she mentioned Mississippi mud because I remember when me and one of my best buddies were kids, we would wait for the popsicle truck to come by just to buy Mississippi Mud ice cream sandwiches. I've never been one to really eat many sweets, but my fat soul just becomes overwhelmed with chocolate...YES, I have to have it!!!! I thank God for Hershey's Miniature Dark Chocolate bars...(just slap me near my lips with a pastry brush saturated in dark chocolate)!!!

Needless to say friends, I'm going to have to do some research to see what everyone is doing on this Mississippi Mud cake. This is one I am going to have to ask the older ladies in the community about for sure!

Well I really should be sleep right now since I have to work tomorrow, so I'm going to try again...

Try doing something YOUR way tomorrow...I sure plan to!

Another night of baking...

Well I said yesterday that I was going to talk about Neiman Marcus Brownies today, so here goes. These brownies topped with a cream cheese mixture makes me speechless and seemingly others too. They were taste tested today by many and they gave me their "hmmmmm" of approval. (smile) Out of the 5 people that tasted them in my presence, none of them managed to say any words...they just made a humming sound, nodded their heads up and down, and gave me a thumbs up ...(I shrug my shoulders). I'm one of those people who wants details about what they are tasting and how they like the texture, if they like it....these people said absolutely nothing! You would think that I would be pleased with that, but I wanted to act like Steve Erkel and tap them on the shoulder when they began walking away to ask...hhheeeyyy, what did you think???? I'm please, but sometimes I wish people would give vivid descriptions when they like something like they do when they hate something.

Anyway, today was a great day in the kitchen and I always enjoy watching the reactions of people after they taste my pastries. What sealed the deal was when this lady bit into a 3" inch piece of my pound cake like she was biting a double whopper with cheese (LMBO)!!!!!!  (...still laughing) I am really glad she like it though (wink)!

I'm really not sure what I am going to create next to discuss with you, but whatever you create...
DO IT YOUR WAY!!!!!!!

Wow…so it’s time to begin another week!

I’ve enjoyed my Veteran’s Day weekend…can you tell? I have not posted anything in a couple of days (lol). I can tell you I enjoyed it not because I was doing anything spectacular, but because I was able to watch a couple of war hero documentaries (and people who know me know that I do not watch much television) and come up with the best tasting peanut butter frosting ever…OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I DIDN’T KNOW IT WAS GOING TO TURN OUT SOOOOO GOOODDD!!! While I was making it, all sorts of thoughts were running through my head because I was thinking…what if it comes out all gooey??? YUCK! The color was another thing that had me nervous. You know how peanut butter has this caramel like color? Well, my frosting turned out the color of a vanilla latte! I actually looked at my mixing bowl and rolled my eyes at it, like it could see me do it (crazy, I know!), but when I tasted it I ALMOST FELL TO THE FLOOR!  And yes, my fat soul just shouted! Why didn’t I think about peanut butter before now (…fingering the letter “L” on my forehead)! I read about other bakers using the Reese’s cups in recipes and decorating with them, but not too much using the plain peanut butter as an ingredient. I ended up using it to top some chocolate mini cupcakes for tomorrow. I made sure that I saved some of the extra frosting for future experiments! (SSShhhh…this may be my new secret weapon!).

Ooohhhh…and I almost forgot, I made seafood corn chowder today…yyyyeeeaaaa! You know me and my “off the hip cooking”, I ended up using a rice soup mix (because I am not much of a potato fan), a bag of mix seafood and a large bag of whole kernel frozen corn…can you say this was thrown together in 5 minutes? (Hey, I had to bake all day so give me a break!!!) Yummy, yummy, yummy…my fat soul was REALLY happy with the way this one turned out and it didn’t take any time or real effort to prepare. This dish could be spiced up with your favorite seasoning, but you really don’t have to add anything because the combination of ingredients creates a nice taste. With buying the packaged soup mix, I did not add any additional salt, just a little black pepper because that is what I like. It’s hearty, has texture, but doesn’t make you feel heavy after you have eaten it.  This dish made enough to serve a family of 4 twice! I’m going to have to find someone to share this with!

Well, I’m a little tired since I’ve been at it since I got home from church this morning, so I’m going to crash and persist that you continue to do things YOUR WAY!!!!!!!

I'll talk about my Neiman Marcus Brownies on tomorrow...

Marine Corps Memories...

Today is the Marine Corp’s 236^th birthday. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARINES!!! Happy Veteran’s Day (on tomorrow) my fellow servicemen!

So, I know you’re like…what does this have to do with baking and cooking? I can tell you that my desire to bake and cook was only suspended during boot camp, NOT STALLED! Yup, you guess it…I managed to stash away a double hot plate, microwave, toaster, pots and skillets into a wall locker in my room …I’ll tell you that I was the self-proclaimed “Barracks Betty Crocker”! Believe it or not, I had never owned a microwave before that time because I did not grow up with one…(yeah, we used the oven as our microwave…WE COULD USE FOIL! NAH!). Anyway, being as though I had never purchased a microwave before, I wasn’t aware of the different wattages and went to the store with the mindset of “I want the big one” (pointing like a little kid)!!!! Little did I know that the BIG ONE would cause the electricity to go out in the entire BARRACKS!!!! YES, and can you believe I was in my room saying…I can’t finish making my Hamburger Helper now! SHOOT! (LMBO). When the only roommate I had was moving in and trying to use the wall locker on “her” side of the room, I had so many pots and pans in it that we had to figure out where to hide them (because she wanted to eat too)!!

Can you imagine trying to field day (…that means clean-up to you civilians) your room only to find grease spots in the carpet from where you had fried chicken the night before????  Or, trying to explain why the smoke detector has gone off to the Officer on Duty who’s come to your room asking what’s that smell? I tell you what, it was hell when PFT (…that’s physical fitness test to you civilians) time came around or those company runs came around. Can you say RUN DROP?? LMBO!!

At every stage in my life, I’ve found a way to provide people with my cooking or baking. It’s just who I am. I’ve always done it my way…even in the Corps!

So continue to DO IT YOUR WAY until we chat again!!!

Okay, so I promised to talk casseroles again today...

Week 2's casserole was a vegetable and shrimp combination...(Don't ask me what I was thinking. I told you yesterday that I opened up the freezer and there was all types of stuff staring me in the face!) It also included wild rice, sharp cheese, cream of mushroom and cream of celery. I tell you one thing, the way that everything is in its cooked form before you put in it the casserole dish makes me just want to eat it out of the BOWL! WHY WAIT???? ...because it needs to form and the cheese needs to melt crazy woman (sigh and pout). Yes, that is my FAT SOUL trying to control my mind again. Anyway, I used the same Paula Dean dish that I told you about on yesterday that is 9x9 and 3" - 4" inches in depth.

Well I ate on that dang casserole ALL WEEK...YES...it was good! (smile) I took some to work and one of my co-workers walked by and said, "oh, you brought broccoli casserole for lunch" and I said "yes, I made it this weekend." To say the least, she walked back by after about 8 minutes only to find that I had scarfed down the large side of the 3-compartment Rubbermaid container where it once lived. (...can you say MAN DOWN???!!!!!). LMBO! She was like..."well you HAD some broccoli casserole." I tell you one thing, I wasn't embarrassed but I was definitely trying to remember everything that I put in it (since I shoot from the hip on most things), so that I can DO IT ALL OVER AGAIN!!! YYYEESSS BABY!

Anyway, my fat soul told me to make yet another casserole this past Sunday. This one included ground Italian sausage, a little ground chuck, a bag of season blend sauteed, long grain rice, a little ranch dressing (don't frown!) and black beans. I forgot to mention that I have a tendency to layer cheese throughout the casserole while putting it in my dish. I really hate seeing grease or fat (yeah the white slimy stuff) in my food, which is another reason why I really don't buy meat often. So I drained EVERYTHING really well and did my usual of placing it in my dish. I have to be honest and tell you that the taste was way better than I had anticipated to not follow any recipe, but what I was disappointed about that it did not have the texture that I like my food to have. I ended up buying some wheat tortillas when I was shopping for the ingredients (because you never know how these experiments are going to turn out) just in case I had one of my BLOOPER moments where I throw everything away...INCLUDING THE DISH...because I'm mad! After I realized that texture just really didn't satisfy me and I wasn't going to be able to eat it alone, I brought out the tortillas and filled it with my casserole...PERFECT!!! I took some to work with me on this past Monday and I was and a thought crossed my mind while I was eating it...idiot, you should have just make a damn TACO SALAD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (mumbling under my breath...you did all that to make a casserole burrito...you're a true genius!)  lol!

Until tomorrow...
DO IT YOUR WAY!!!!!

Okay, so it's casserole fever at the Hasty residence...

Let me give you a little background about my eating preferences. I love foods with texture!!!...did I say love??? Oh yes! So with that, there are a couple of foods that I eat on a very regular basis such rice and veggies. Beans and peas are my absolute favorite. I'll tell ya, it's probably because during those summers in New York as a kid, Granma would make those two things and never worry about the third dish. Being accustomed to my Alabama relatives having 10 dishes for one meal, it was like dang where's the rest of the meal (lol)!

Anyway, since what I eat rarely contains meat and cheeses, I try to come up with creative ways of eating it. (Did I mention that I love soups and chowders also?). For all of you out there that like hearty meals, SO DO I! Don't get it twisted because I don't eat much meat. I love me some good food...not expensive, not popular, but GOOD TASTING food 😉. I had never made a casserole before my first one three weeks ago. I remember thinking when I came up the the idea, I have this Paula Dean casserole dish that I found on sale at Wally World (that's Walmart for those who don't know) that would be peerrrrrfect for it! So I searched the web to try and find out what most people put in theirs and then began searching my pantry. GOODNESS, it was ALL types of stuff in there, but I wanted broccoli, rice, mushroom, and cheese.

Now I think I am a pretty good "off the hip" baker, but when it comes to my food dishes I tend to be quite traditional. I was just in a casserole mood though so I had to do this!!!! YOU CAN DO IT (in my silly voice)!!!!! SMILE!!!

Okay, so I made the broccoli casserole and I was SSOOOOOOO pleased! Why didn't somebody tell to make a casserole 20 years ago!!!

I'll tell you about week 2's vegetable and shrimp casserole tomorrow!!! Until then...DO IT YOUR WAY!!!

What a day...what an [exciting] day...

I received my first cookbook from my second mom as a gift from LONDON today!!!! Can you say EXCITED???? Yes...I could barely concentrate for the remainder of the day at work. I have always said that if the opportunity presented itself, I would go to Europe and take some pastry classes. Just looking at photos on the web of the classes offered just excites me and to have my OWN cookbook from London is just amazing. You food and pastry lovers can relate to this...(it's like reading a hot and steamy novel...you can't just open it without making time to read and analyze each chapter [recipe] without interruption) LOL!!! (SMILE)!

Anyway,  I'm trying to decide if I want to try a marketing promotion for the Christmas holidays that I was informed about on LinkedIn. Don't you LOVE LinkedIn??? I do! There are soooo many people out there willing to share valuable information about baking. Who knew there were so many WONDERFUL home bakers out there??? #raisingmyhand...I DID!!!

I think homebakers are just great because all days in the kitchen are not marvelous...some of them are just completely frustrating and you find yourself throwing away your self-proclaimed masterpiece (giggle)...I've done it. I was telling my co-workers about how many cupcakes I threw away attempting to write a margarita cupcake recipe two weekends ago. Nope...don't have any pictures, but next time I promise to take some. After four adjustments, the creation with pleasing, but the journey to get there was CRAZY! I was like Jordan dunkin' them in the trash!!!! I tell ya'...bakking with alcoholic beverages can be tricky.

I know you're like...why write your own recipe when there are tons out there that you can use??? Well, there's just something about having your own and doing things YOUR way. I am even okay with "adaptations" of recipes that have been authored by others, but sometimes I just want to make a mess and see how it turns out!

Signing off...
DO IT YOUR WAY!!!
..we'll talk about why I've made casseroles for the past 3 weeks next time...

Yeeaaa...I'm here everybody!!! (smile)

Well, I have to say that I am SO HAPPY to have this blog!!!! There are so many experiences that I have at home in my kitchen that I think others who enjoy baking and cooking may get a kick out of. I really like coming up with my own recipes, so that goes without saying that the BLOOPERS are hilarious when trying to create something new. I really think that this is going to be a great outlet for me because sometimes you just want to talk about what you love to no one in particular...but you just gotta tell somebody!