Showing posts with label Duke. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Duke. Show all posts

Sunday, January 8, 2012

A knock off of Emeril Lagasse Pasta

Mom's best friend, Melissa Beatty, is the best cook. And the best acupuncturist.  If you've never tried acupuncture and you have headaches, terrible migraines or just endless pain, you should really look into it.  It does NOT hurt. In other news....Melissa made this great pasta one night for a dinner party. IT IS NOM NOM. We had a little dinner get together on Saturday with the Katie's. Or as Mom likes to call them...Katie 1 and Katie 2.  This is labeled an "easy" recipe...which it isn't difficult, it's just not easy. Here it goes...

This is the printable version :) Pasta Recipe!

The recipe is pretty much like Emeril Lagasse's Crawfish and Cream over pasta dish. But with some changes- like chicken instead of crawfish. Don't get me wrong, shrimp or crawfish would be excellent with this.  The biggest ingredient in this whole thing is Emeril's essence which you can probably buy pre-made, but I made it with the below spices.  The seasoning mix is also referred to as bayou blast.  

Emeril's essence recipe:
  • 2.5 T paprika
  •  2 T salt
  • 2 T garlic powder
  • 1 T black pepper
  • 1 T onion powder
  •  1 T cayenne pepper
  • 1 T dried oregano 
  • 1 T dried thyme 
For the dish, you will need: 
  • 1 lb chicken
  • 1 lb fettuccine
  • 2 T olive oil
  • 6 T butter
  • 1 cup chopped yellow onion- I highly recommend getting the already chopped onions- saves time and tears. :) 
  • 2 T minced garline
  • 2 t emeril essence- recipe above
  • 1/2 t salt
  • 1/4 t cayenne 
  • 1/4 cup dry white wine
  • 2 cups heavy whipping cream 
  • 1 T lemon juice
First, put about two T butter 2 T oil in a pan and put stove on medium.   Put about 1/4 cup or more (just a heaping amount) into a bowl and layer the chicken with the emeril's essence seasoning.  Then put the chicken breasts into the pan, cook until done.  It's a personal decision for how you want the chicken to look- I like mine a medium brown. Put the chicken aside.  Cook pasta in large pot of boiling water until al dente for about 8 minutes. Drain and reserve 1/4 cup of the cooking liquid. Return pasta to the pot and toss the olive oil and the cooking liquid into the pot.  Cover to keep warm and set aside.  In a large pan- I used my cast iron skillet and it worked perfectly.  Melt the butter over medium high heat.  Add onions, and cook for about 6 minutes.  Add the 2 t of emeril essence, garlic, salt and cayenne, cook and stir for 1 minute. Add the wine and cook until the wine is evaporated.  Add the cream and lemon juice and cook for about 3 minutes. Reduce heat to low and let sit for another 5 mintes, stirring occasionally.  Add the sauce to the pasta. Stir so sauce is covering noodles.  Now, add chicken.  I just cut my cooked chicken into thin strips.  Toss it and you're good to go! 

The spices to make Emeri's Essence 
The goods. 
Once you make the seasoning, you lightly coat the chicken with the seasoning then put it in a skillet.  
Seeing as how you only need 1/4 cup of white wine, this bota box of chardonnay works well. 
NOM! WINNER! 
Schuett gave it a thumbs up! Find her funny blog here!

Saturday, December 10, 2011

Santa House Fudge

This is a super easy and great recipe for fudge for the Christmas season! If you expect a gift from me on sweet baby Jesus' birthday...expect this along with a recipe card. You think I'm joking. Santa House was a Christmas market in Tulsa that I grew up going to as a little naked child. As we have discussed before, Mom did put clothes on me, I just didn't like them. I felt claustrophobic. Or something along those lines. Backkkkk to the original topic- Santa House was wonderful...any trinket, any ornament or food dealing with Christmas was there. It was this old house that Junior Philharmonic put up every year. Mom was part of Junior Phil and still has great friends from the group. One of which, Brooxie, gave us this picture of Madalyn, Mom and me from Santa House back in the day. Mom still has those Santa star earrings...they are great. And by great, I mean I wear them with my tacky Christmas sweater.
It's not the best picture,
because I was taking a picture of the picture....
I'll scan later.
Katie and I made this fudge along with an AWESOME red velvet brownie recipe that you can find HERE. Obviously this was post wedding....or wait. We both have weddings coming up in the spring so...I guess we start up the wedding diet once again. I feel like this will be a constant in my life for the next five years...oh, to be in your early twenties and living in the South. Santa House Fudge recipe can be found at the bottom. Much easier to print that way.
We did so much Christmas this day...which she LOVES.
Red Velvet Mix. Scrumptious.
Cream cheese icing....only thing I would change about the recipe.
Put the cream cheese in layers...
like put half the red velvet mix,
then add cream cheese,
then layer more red velvet,
then put on more cream cheese.
If you didn't notice from above...I kind of love cream cheese.
This swirling effect was super easy--and gosh darnit, I am proud of the final product.
Super easy with the tip of a knife.
Meag's little friend, Dax who she was sitting that day, helped up out in the kitchen.
Dax is precious. Quite the gentleman, too. His manners are phenomenal.
This is the sugar, butter and evaporated milk. Definitely use a big pot- a sauce pan won't do.
Something we figured out...
Not necessary to zap and melt chocolate before you add in the sugar mix.
The boiling mixture will probably melt the chocolate...
Put on a pan and freeze! It makes a TON!
I'm really proud of this wreath that I made....SO EASY. I went into Hobby Lobby with the intention of making a burlap wreath. Welp, that didn't happen. So, I just got a branch wreath, added gold wrapping, then some pinecones, and those red berries from the fake flower department. All you need is a glue gun.
Who knew that the real simple magazine would be part of my decoration? These gold stars are old old old hand me downs from my dad and stepmoms Christmas decorations.
So...we had a ton of leftover pinecones from the wedding. Thus, pinecone vases galore!

Here is the recipe for the fudge!
Mix together:
1 16 oz chocolate bar- broken into small pieces
1 pint marshmallow cream
3 cups semi sweet chocolate chips
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup chopped nuts (it's your preference)
We melted the chocolate all together in the microwave. It really doesn't matter if you do that, but it is much easier to mix if all the chocolate is melted before you mix. The mix you put on the stove will probably melt all the chocolate...either way is good.

In a big pot over medium heat, bring the following ingredients to a boil for 6 minutes.
4.5 cups of sugar (wowza)
1/3 stick of butter
1 12 oz can of evaporated milk.

Mix in with the chocolate..then put on pan. Freeze and enjoy!

Saturday, December 3, 2011

The Most Beautiful Day.


I do realize I haven't blogged in a while. Life, family and school has kept me super busy. 
Madalyn's wedding was beautiful. Literally have never seen my sister so very happy! 


The happy couple. 

The rehearsal dinner had some great food...and some sweet babies! 

Remember the post about my brother, Tom?
We had the best time together.  He works for Bacardi.
Needless to say, he introduced me to so many new drinks.  
Barker family.  Shouldn't have worn a white bra with a black dress.
Thanks to my good friend, Allison for letting me borrow the LBD.  
Our good family friend, Diane Ornelas, decorated for the rehearsal dinner.
LOVE HER.
Ain't he adorable in this chocolate brown suit? 
The crew, tying the bows.  Katie, Kat, Nat and Heather came to Tulsa.  So glad they were there there to help celebrate the big day! 
The girls put all the bows on the chairs.  It took some time, but the chairs looked fabulous.
Watch out for the wedding planning company, SWAG, to come to a bridal event near you.  
Is she not so cute? 

It got hot during the rehearsal dinner, so Liv took off her clothes.   
Chloe was a great flower girl!  
Livvi. 
I love this picture.   
Seessstersss. 

Family time on the trolley. 

Rhett, Madalyn and Clem. 
My favorite picture of the night.
I love the new addition to our family. Clem is a welcome joy to our lives! 


Thursday, November 10, 2011

The Girls are Back in Town

Signs of a good weekend:  Best friends come in town....check! Hogs play another top ten team? check! Hogs WIN? Yes! Interview Arkansas' athletic director, go out on dickson, gain another hour for daylight savings time....check, check, check! It was a great weekend here in Fayetteville. Natalie and Kathryn came in town for the South Carolina game.  We went to the Fayetteville Farmer's Market and then got ready for the game.  I had the opportunity to interview the UA athletic director, Jeff Long on Saturday before the game.  Some might say it was too cold this weekend but personally, I thought it beautiful.  Okay maybe it was a little chilly at the game.  I got to sit with Katie and Heather for the game! We had so much fun...this weekend was a top notch time!
A-R-K-A-N-S-A-S for Arkansas. Fight, fight, fight!!  
Found my old (not old, he just moved to Creighton)  campus minister, Jay Carney.
Sat with these two hooligans during the game...
They figured out how to make a screeching sound from the pom pom's thrown out for the game.  
Katie and her daddy have the exact same baby blue eyes! 
Kayln Williams...homecoming attendant! 
love this. 
A great interview!