A Precious Little Bean of a Review!

By Charlotte Hodge

I will be honest with you I am not a hardcore coffee drinker. When I do want to have a drink of what some might call nectar of the gods I want a good smooth tasting cup. I was asked if I would like to try some from PLB “Precious Little Bean” coffee with a cause. They provide custom-labeled coffee for charity fundraising, corporate branding and more. Helping others is their passion. They donate profits from every purchase to charity. How awesome is that? I hadn’t heard of them until I was asked to try some of their coffee and then review. I thought what a great thing they are doing and it is an honor to be asked. Be sure you check out their website plbcoffee.com.

The coffee was delivered and when I opened the box the delicious smell that hit me was a delight to my olfactory system! Seriously some of the best smelling coffee I have ever smelled. It was sent to me from Nanea Hoffman. Check out her blog Sweatpants & Coffee at sweatpantsandcoffee.com.

 

I mentioned that PLB donates part of the profits to charity. The charity that is close to Nanea’s heart is Met Up – changing the landscape of metastatic cancer through direct action. You can find out more about Nanea’s charity at metup.org.

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Off The Cuff-Connor in the Kitchen – Grilled Cheese Dippin’ Sticks

By Dee Kruzic

Hey, hey everyone! I’ve missed you! Sorry Connor and I have been away for so long. As all of you can imagine this crazy thang we call life can get a little out of hand. I’ve recently been diagnosed with migraines (HOORAY! God, not so loud…), my new novel is coming out on May 30, and the kid is training for his first triathlon of the summer. Yeah, that’s right. I’ve got myself a cute little athlete! Now that things have calmed down, I’m back on track (track…triathlon…get it…I’ll stop now).

For this edition of Connor in the kitchen, we decided to try something new with an old favourite – grilled cheese! My momma taught me how to make greasy, buttery, gooey grilled cheese when I was younger. It was always a messy delight to munch on, accompanied by the standard bowl of t’mater soup. YUM.

As an adult, I’ve tried sprucing up my grilled cheese in a variety of ways – adding in sautéed mushrooms and onions and peppers, or using Swiss cheese and ham, or even some mozza and pepperoni (I call those grilled cheezzas – you’re welcome). Connor isn’t into all the fluff and fanciness that those options offer. He’s a bread ‘n cheese kinda guy. So what could we do to change up the standard grilled cheese for him and make it a bit more fun?

And so Grilled Cheese Dippin’ Sticks were born. *light shines from above*

These are a neat, and healthy, variation of the traditional grilled cheese sammich, as they’re not tossed in a frying pan but instead baked in the oven! And the bonus is they are JUST as delicious! They may take a few extra minutes to prepare, but it’s time well spent, and Connor absolutely loved them. You can still spice these babies up by julienning some veg and rolling those up in the centre, too. Variations are endless. As are dippin’ choices! My son is a ketchup monster, but you can mix it up and dip yours in Ranch, sriracha ketchup, or concoct your own….er…concoction!

Have you tried something like this before? What would be in your ultimate Grilled Cheese Dippin’ Stick?

Until then, from the monkey and I … Bon Appetit!

 

Dee

Grilled Cheese Dipping Sticks

Here’s what you need to make 6 cheesy sticks:

• 6 slices of bread – white, whole wheat, whatever you like!
• Cheese – I prefer shredded cheese! Any type ya like! I find it melts better
• Butter, softened to room temp for easy spreading
• A knife
• A rolling pin
• A cookie sheet
• Patience and an endless supply of paper towel, if your little one is assisting

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450°F.

Carefully cut the crusts off each slice of bread.

Take a rolling pin to those suckers! Roll each slice out thin. Do NOT roll it too thin or you’ll be cussing, believe me.

Add some cheese to each slice – sprinkle that yumminess on!

Roll up into little cigar shapes.

Coat each dippin’ stick with butter. You can also add a little butter on the inside of the seam to help it stick better.

Please each dippin’ stick seam side down on the baking sheet.

Bake in 450°F oven for 6-7 minutes; flip ‘em over, and bake for an additional 6 minutes, or until the entire stick is brown and crispy.

Serve, dip, and enjoy!

Dee’s Bio!

Dee is a single mom livin’ the life with her son, Connor, and two furry babies, Cassie and Max. Always having loved the written word, Dee is an author of erotic romance under the pen name Madison Night, and has decided to venture out into the world of blogging – mainly because she can’t keep her typing fingers quiet. They always have something to say! Lover of music and food, aspiring traveler, animal lover and more! Have a topic you want Dee to cover in her Off The Cuff column? Send The Scoop a message, and let her know!

 

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Cooking With Shell… The Quiche With No Name!

There is nothing that says elegance than Quiche.  They are beautiful, savory, versatile and actually quite easy to make.

Lately,  due to work a lot of overtime at my day job,  I didn’t have a lot of time to prepare  a full out Easter dinner like I have in the past.

So, on my one day off I put together a small brunch for myself along with my family who came by and I decided to make this Quiche …with no name.

I’m already apologizing in advance for the mess.  I decided to take photos at the last minute and to be honest,  by the time the quiche had cooled.  It was devoured. Safe to say this was successful.

(all photos were taken by me)

This is what I used:

Ingredients

A prepared, refrigerated pie crust

A cup of cream or half and half (whichever you prefer)

3 eggs, slightly beaten

A dash of Salt

A dash of Pepper

A dash of Garlic Powder

A dash Emeril’s Essence

1/2 of a cup of cubed ham

A cup of sliced baby Bell Mushrooms

1 Small Onion, diced

Clove of minced garlic

A cup of Shredded Colby Jack Cheese

*Note* you can use whatever kind of Shredded Cheese or veggies you have on hand.

Directions

Place pie crust in pan and pre-heat your oven at 350 degrees.

Chop your Onion (I used my food processor! Quickest way and no tears for this chick!)

Then, saute,  onions, mushrooms and garlic until  soft. Drain off any oil or extra liquid.

Put in pie crust.

Then  combine eggs,  cream along with salt, pepper,  garlic powder and essence together in a bowl and add that to your veggie mixture along with the cubed ham.

 

Top with cheese.

Bake for 40-50 minutes at 350 degrees  until knife inserted comes out clean.

Let stand for about 10-15 minutes.   Slice into pieces.

So tell me what you had for Easter and what do you put in your Quiche?  Let’s share!

 

 

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What do you like to put on your salad?

By Michele Villery

I love a good salad.  In fact, you can call me a salad junkie.  Especially, this time of year with fresh and locally grown veggies.

I love to put them in jars and store them in a pinch as well.  I love adding  some turkey, chicken and cheese  mixed with various greens and veggies and a good dressing.

But, I want to change it up and need your help. So, tell me.  What kinds of things to you put in your salad?  Comment away!  And i’ll try it and post it for a future blog!

 

Hollywood’s Best Kept Secret: Go Bistro, The Best Ramen in Town

Hollywood’s Best Kept Secret: Go Bistro, The Best Ramen in Town
By Arlene Allen

I am not the world’s largest ramen fan but my daughter is, and I do enjoy good Japanese food in general. However this little tiny hole in the wall, Go Bistro, was beyond delicious. You might walk by the small storefront on “the Strip” of downtown Hollywood, at 2035 Hollywood Blvd. Their website touts their sushi and yakitori as well as ramen, which we will have to go back and sample.

My daughter is the one who dragged me inside, as she loves ramen and was in the mood to try something new. The menu is extensive and interesting, and it was tough to choose between the chicken yakitori or a sushi platter – or hot buns, which I adore – but Sara convinced me to give the pork ramen a shot. I am so glad I did, because, WOW! It engaged every single one of my tastebuds. The pork was so tender, it simply melted in my mouth, no chewing required. The broth was perfectly savory.

The portion size is huge, and we ended up taking home a decent sized portion, enough to enjoy for lunch the next day. While at Go Bistro, we also had an appetizer of pork gyoza, which was also delicious. Instead of soda, we treated ourselves to Ramune, traditional Japanese soda pop. It’s almost pure sugar, but it tastes great, is thirst quenching – and the bottle itself is just so much fun to play with.

We fully intend to go back, and check out their Gangnam wings, a house specialty that we’ve heard raves about. We do know not to fill up on anything substantial before going, as the tempting menu entices one to order way more than once can eat in one sitting (which is fine because even the leftovers were fantastic the next day).

Their full menu can be viewed online at eatgobistro.com. It is, as I have said, a very small restaurant so you may want to call ahead and find out how busy they are at any given time. They are open until 2 am Monday through Saturday, so I’m sure there will be a time convenient for all of the ramen cravers out there. Pricing rates in the $$$.

After you are done at Go Bistro, hang out on the strip for dessert, at either Kilwin’s Chocolates (one of Florida’s own chocolatiers), or have some gelato at Tasta Gelato which is right next door.

The strip in downtown Hollywood is always a fun destination, with many unique restaurants like Go Bistro, live music venues, and quirky little shops. If you ever travel to the Miami/Fort Lauderdale area, make it a point to scope it out!

OFF THE CUFF – Connor in the Kitchen

Connor in the Kitchen – Confetti Cookies

In this crazy, hectic thing we call life, there seems to be an ever-present challenge to find more time in our schedules, to do things faster, easier. As a single mom to Connor, the cutest kid ever (obvious bias here, folks…just go with it), Lord knows I’ve been known to look for shortcuts whenever I could.

Over the holidays I had the grand idea to bake cookies and give them away to loved ones and friends. It was wonderful – all the ingredients were lined up, and the decorative little tins were ready to go. The only thing I didn’t have was, you named it, time. After scouring Pinterest for a quicker solution to my cookie conundrum, I stumbled upon Confetti Cake Batter Cookies.

Oh. My. Goodness.

Not only are these babies absolutely delicious, but they took next to no time to prepare, and were easy enough to get Connor in the kitchen with me to act as my little sous chef… or sous baker, rather. The recipe (below) is fantastic, and the only thing I altered was the amount of sprinkles used. I have a sweet tooth, believe you me, but a solid cup of sprinkles made these cookies much too sweet for my liking. I dropped it to 3/4cup, and truly even that is a bit on the sweet side. But as you can see…clearly the kiddo had NO issues with it whatsoever!

Vanilla cake and sprinkles are just the beginning though! The best thing about cake batter cookies is that the sky is the limit! Not big on sprinkles? Vanilla cake too…vanilla for you? Why not whip up a box of spice cake mix with some pecans added in? Or cherry chip cake with chocolate chips? How about chocolate cake with almonds and coconut tossed into the mix? (Okay, I drooled a little for that last one.)Hey man, go nuts! Instead of sprinkles why not substitute chocolate chips or mini M&Ms?

Each and every time I have made cake batter cookies, they’ve gone like that *snaps*, and have been a massive hit!

Have you tried these before? What other combinations can you think of that are worth a try?

Until then, from Connor and I … Bon Appetit!

~ Dee K.

 

 

Confetti Cake Batter Cookies (courtesy of Sallys Baking Addiction, with thanks!)

Ingredients:

• 1 box (18.25 oz) vanilla/white cake mix
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 large eggs
• 1/3 cup vegetable/canola oil or melted coconut oil
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup sprinkles

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line large baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the cake mix and baking powder. Set aside. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil, and vanilla by hand. Add the egg mixture to the cake mixture and stir to form a dough- stir vigorously until all of the pockets of dry cake mix are gone. Gently mix in the sprinkles – you do not want to dye the cookie dough by overstirring the sprinkles.
3. Drop rounded 1-inch balls of dough onto prepared baking sheet. Bake for 9 minutes – do not let the cookies get brown. Allow to cool on baking sheet for 3 minutes; they will be very soft at first. As they cool, the tops will settle down so you will not have to press the cookies down yourself. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container, for up to one week. Cookies freeze well, up to 2-3 months.

 

Dee is a single mom livin’ the life with her son, Connor, and two furry babies, Cassie and Max. Always having loved the written word, Dee is an author of erotic romance under the pen name Madison Night, and has decided to venture out into the world of blogging – mainly because she can’t keep her typing fingers quiet. They always have something to say! Lover of music and food, aspiring traveler, animal lover and more! Have a topic you want Dee to cover in her Off The Cuff column? Send The Scoop a message, and let her know!

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