Hot Cross Buns

I originally posted this recipe last year around Easter, but since it is that time of year again and I'm currently making my second batch of Hot Cross Buns, I thought I would re-post in case anyone is interested in a Hot Cross Bun recipe ... and this time with more pictures.

Hot Cross Buns - from America's Best Bread Machine Baking Recipes
1 cup water
1/4 cup skim milk powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup butter
4 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1 1/4 tsp yeast
1 cup raisins

1. Measure all ingredients except raisins into bread pan. Select dough cycle. Add raisins at add ingredient signal.

2. When done, turn out onto lightly floured surface. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes. Divide into 12 portions. Roll each into a ball and place on prepared baking stone. Gently flatten each ball with the palm of your hand. Cover and let rise for 35-45 minutes.

3. Preheat oven to 375. Mix together 1 egg white and 1 tbsp of water and brush over buns. Using a knife, cut slits in the top of the bun, to make the shape of a cross.

4. Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes until tops are brown and they sound hallow when tapped.

Makes one dozen buns.

Kung WOW Chicken

This recipe came from Ashley @ The Happy Little Home. She has some pretty awesome recipes on her blog. You have got to check out her homemade Caesar dressing recipe. It is killer!

I usually follow Ashley's recipes to a tee but today I didn't have all the ingredients she listed and I also had some extra ingredients that I wanted to use up so I ended up adapting her recipe quite a bit.

Before I share my version of this recipe, allow me to share with you the most fundamental, memorable, life changing lesson that I have learned from my husband in our many years of marriage. Are you ready for this? It will shake you to the core....

SPICY FOOD IS GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD-A!

Yes, our marriage thrives on depth, intellect and philosophical thought. (P.S. I actually just spelled intellect "intelluct" and almost left it to see if anyone else would catch the humor in that mistake).

Before I married my sweet Fabulous dude I would not touch spicy food with a 10 foot pole. I didn't even really like pepper, or BBQ sauce and you better believe I would have a melt down if anyone ordered mild wings instead of honey garlic because they were just too spicy. Now, I find myself craving the burn of spicy food. I'm still a pretty big wuss in comparison to most people in the world (i.e. The fabulous dude), but I have come miles and miles from where I used to be in terms of my spicy-food toleration.

As soon as I saw this recipe on Ashley's blog, I knew I had to try it. I just knew that when I cooked this meal, my husband would fall in love with me all over again. And, I was right. He walked in the house this evening and the first, and I mean FIRST, words out of his mouth were "Wow. That smells good". Mission accomplished. Who cares what it tastes like, I already made a good impression.

So, without further ado, blog world meet Kung WOW Chicken - not your average stir fry.

Kung WOW Chicken
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
5 tsp cornstarch
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tsp vinegar
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tbsp ground ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, chopped
8 oz mushrooms, sliced
1/2 bag frozen stir fry vegetables (I used Europe's Best Nature Balance mix)
1/4 cup sesame seeds
2 cups rice, cooked

1. In a small bowl, mix chicken, red wine vinegar and 1 tsp cornstarch.

2. In a separate bowl, whisk together water, soy sauce, vinegar, red pepper flakes, and ginger

3. Pour oil into a wok and heat for a minute. Add garlic, stir fry for 15 seconds. Add chicken and stir fry until cooked. Add onion and mushrooms. Stir fry until mushrooms begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add frozen vegetables. Stir fry about 3-4 minutes more, until vegetables begin to cook.

4. Stir in sauce until thick and bubbly. Add sesame seeds. Serve with rice.

Serves 4.

New Recipe FAIL

I know it's Thursday and so I should be posting for Thrifty Thursday. However, I have been SO far from thrifty this week that to write a post on how to be thrifty would be incredibly dishonest. So, instead, I'll share a funny story...

The only problem with being a crazy kitchen person wanna-be Chef and constantly trying new ideas and new recipes is that every once in a while our dinner is prefaced like this:

FD: "What's for dinner?"
Me: "Oh just something new I tried".
FD: Picks up his fork and is about to take a bite.
Me: "WAIT! Just wait. Before you try it, let me warn you, this might not taste good."

Last night was one of those nights. I've been really trying to use up some of the meat and other food in our freezer lately. I've been doing my best to work with what we've got. I also recently picked up a copy of Better Homes and Gardens 9x13 The Pan That Can cookbook. It has some great (and apparently NOT so great) recipes that I'm eager to try.

Last night, I had fish on the menu. We had a package of sole (I think) that had been in there since ... well, probably forever. I'd like to say that we gain the health benefits of eating fish once or twice a week, but .... well, I'd by lying. Let's just say that unless it is deep fried and served with a side of fresh cut fries, I'm not that pumped about fish. We both love love love seafood so maybe I just haven't found the right way to cook it or I'm buying crappy fish or something, but I just can't make a fish recipe that we like.

I thought I had overcome that challenge last night when I found a recipe for "Mushroom Dill Baked Fish". The recipe sounded so good and usually I can spot a good recipe.

I should have heeded the warning when hubby walked in the door as I was preparing the sauce and said "What is that nasty smell?" ... "Umm, that's our dinner sweetie".

Once it was all put together and cooked, it looked and smelled quite nicely, I thought.

I served it with leftover scalloped potatoes (thanks, Mumma) and steamed cauliflower. We loaded up our plates, sat down on the couch in front of the TV (oops - I swear we don't do this all the time) and dug in.

It.Tasted.Absolutely.Awful. Seriously, I couldn't even finish what was on my plate. And what's worse, Evan said he wouldn't take it to work for lunch the next day. And this dude will eat anything. I thought that I convinced him it wasn't that bad ...surely he could force it down? I mean I did work really hard to make it.

Could he actually be so rude as to refuse my cooking?

Apparently so.

Seriously, you know this is bad. We (and especially he) NEVER throw out food. This definitely qualifies as the worst thing I've ever made.