Author: cathysmaha

I am a country girl, born and raised on a farm in Central Iowa. I am the youngest of three children by 9 and 14 years….I was the OOPS! Being younger had its advantages in that I was an Aunt at age 7 and grew up with my niece and nephews. My Father died from a farm injury when I was 12, which forever changed my life and strengthened my bond with my Mother. I tagged along with my Mother to visit older people in our community and learned about their lives in the early 1900s, enjoying the many wonderful traditional foods and family stories. I graduated from a class of 25, which gave me the advantage of being involved in sports and clubs that would not have been possible in a large High School. At that time, Home Ec was still an elective and I loved the cooking lessons (not so hot on the sewing classes). While at the University of Northern Iowa, I began to collect and read cookbooks. Perhaps it was the absence of Mom’s home cooking that drew me to dream about cooking (and eating) wonderful food. After college I moved to St. Joseph, MO and then to Scottsdale, AZ and began to experiment with traditional recipes and discovering those of my own. It was such an adventure to discover new dishes and restaurants in historic St. Joseph, Kansas City, then Scottsdale, Phoenix, San Diego…and the list goes on. In the early ‘80s, I moved to Denver, got married, started my telecommunications sales career and discovered the fabulous restaurants in Denver and Aspen. My career took me to cities never before experienced and the seafood in San Francisco, Cajun fare in New Orleans, Tex-Mex in Dallas, Italian in New Jersey, etc. are experiences I will cherish. In 1986 our first daughter, Megan, was born and then Sarah in 1988. Instead of indulging in dinners out, we were cooking more at home and seeking ways to have good meals with limited time. Dinners went from adult gourmet to more kid friendly meals. Megan’s tastes were more basic while Sarah adopted a gourmet palate at an early age. At age 6 her favorite meal was steamed artichokes and crab legs with drawn butter…still her favorite. Megan’s tastes expanded rapidly when she went to college and started cooking for her roommates and now loves to whip up gourmet dishes. I am blessed to have many gal pals that also share my passion for good food. I love to try new restaurants and look forward to the ‘pot luck’ feasts at our book club meetings and other gatherings. It isn’t just the good food that brings us to together, but the great love and admiration we all have for each other. We are addicted foodies…but we try to remember our 12-step foodie program is needed. God grant me the serenity to only eat the food that I LOVE, the courage to walk away from junk food, and the wisdom to recognize the difference. Oh YEAH!
Salads

Napa Sweet Corn Salad

cathysmahaLeave a comment

Napa Sweet Corn Salad is an end of summer treat! The tomatoes from my garden, the fresh local sweet corn, crispy red apple, avocado, basil, onions, etc. What’s not to like! I would recommend eating this within a day or two and is definitely best when made fresh!

Napa Sweet Corn Salad

INGREDIENTS:
  • 2 cups sweet corn kernels, raw (~3 ears)
  • 1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes, halved or quartered if large
  • 3 small or 2 large green onions, chopped
  • 1 small avocado, chopped
  • 1 red apple, chopped
  • 1/3 cup sliced or chopped almonds
  • For the Honey-Dijon Vinaigrette:
    • 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
    • 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
    • 1 Tablespoon honey
    • 1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
    • salt and pepper
DIRECTIONS:
  1. Combine ingredients for the Honey-Dijon Vinaigrette in a jar or bowl then shake or whisk to combine. Taste then add up to an additional 1/2 Tablespoon honey if desired – remember that the sweet corn and apple will add natural sweetness to the salad. Set dressing aside.
  2. Combine remaining ingredients in a large bowl then drizzle over desired amount of Honey-Dijon Vinaigrette and stir to combine. Serve immediately

Recipe from IowaGirlEats

Garden · Italian Dishes · Sauces · Soups and Stews · Vegetables

Freezing Basil in Olive Oil

cathysmahaLeave a comment

What is better than having fresh basil! Unfortunately, when the growing season ends and frost is in the forecast, I pick all of the remaining basil leaves and blend with olive oil. It is frozen, flat, in a freezer bag for use all winter long. I just break off a piece and add to sauces, soups, and other recipes.

Freezing Basil in Olive Oil

INGREDIENTS:
  • Fresh basil of your choice (I used two handfuls of fresh basil)
  • Olive oil (I used 3/4 cup olive oil)
DIRECTIONS:
  1. Rinse your basil well and shake off excess water. Remove all the leaves from the stems. Place leaves in the blender.
  2. With the blender on high (or the purée setting), begin to very slowly drizzle olive oil into the blender (using the removable section of the blender lid to reduce splatter).
  3. Stop the blender as needed and use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides of the blender and/or stir up the leaves.
  4. Continue running and drizzling just until the mixture begins to purée and turn into a liquid. Run the blender until the mixture is smooth.
  5. Pour into an ice cube tray being careful to not over fill. Freeze for 3-5 hours, or until the cubes will easily pop out. Transfer the cubes to a freezer bag, label, and put in the freezer.
  6. Grab 1-2 cubes and place them into your dish towards the end of cooking to melt, as desired.

Recipe from SavoryMoments

Breads

Peach Streusal Bread

cathysmahaLeave a comment

Colorado + August = Delicious Palisade Peaches

Once again, I purchased a case of peaches from the local high school and love experimenting with new recipes. Daughter, Megan and I decided to make a peach bread but swapped out the glaze for a streusal topping. Winner, winner, chicken dinner! We added a bit of peach marmalade to the batter to intensify the peach flavor and it was wonderful.

Peach Streusal Bread

INGREDIENTS:
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar 150 grams
  • 1/2 cup 2% milk 4 ounces
  • 1/2 cup canola oil (vegetable or coconut oil)
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2.33 cups all-purpose flour 260 grams
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups diced fresh peaches
  • 2 tablespoons heated peach jam or marmalade

Streusal Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup light brown sugar packed
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • ½ cup all-purpose flour
  • 4 tablespoons butter very soft
DIRECTIONS:
  1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
  2. In a medium bowl, stir together the sugar, milk, oil, egg and vanilla. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until just combined.
  3. Fold the peaches and jam gently into the batter.
  4. Mix together Streusal ingredients.
  5. Pour the bread batter into a greased 9″x5″ bread pan. Sprinkle Streusal on top.
  6. Bake at 350 degrees for 55-60 minutes. A toothpick inserted in the center of the bread should come out clean. Allow the bread to cool for 10 minutes, then remove the bread to a wire rack to cool completely.Once the bread is cool, llice and serve.
  7. Store the bread in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Bread recipe adapted from tastesoflizzyt.com.

Appetizers · Mexican Dishes · Salads

Cowboy Caviar

cathysmahaLeave a comment

Cowboy Caviar is an old recipe that was created by Helen Corbitt, famed 1950s Neiman Marcus food director, it was first served as “pickled black-eyed peas” on New Year’s Eve at the Houston Country Club. Soon after, it was dubbed “Texas caviar.” I found this tidbit of history interesting. Cowboy Caviar is great served as an appetizer with tortilla chips. My favorite is to serve it with a cheese, or chicken and cheese, quesadilla. It is also a great topper for any green salad. The recipe made quite a bit and I wondered how I would get through it…never fear…I shared it at a party and leftovers with my daughter, who is now a big fan!

Cowboy Caviar

INGREDIENTS:
  • 3 Roma tomatoes seeds removed, diced
  • 2 ripe avocados diced
  • ⅓ cup red onion diced
  • 15 oz black beans rinsed and drained
  • 15 oz black eyed peas rinsed and drained
  • 1 ½ cups frozen sweet corn thawed (I just usually toss it in the salad frozen unless I plan on eating it immediately, it thaws quite quickly) (Note: Forklore used fresh cooked sweet corn and it was amazing!)
  • 1 bell pepper diced (I used half a green and half a red, but color doesn’t matter)
  • 1 jalapeno pepper seeds removed, diced into very small pieces (or substitute for pepper flakes if you don’t have a jalapeno)
  • ⅓ cup Cilantro finely chopped
DRESSING:
  • ⅓ cup olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons lime juice fresh preferred
  • 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon pepper
  • ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
  • Tortilla chips for serving
Directions:
  • Combine tomatoes, avocado, onion, black beans, black eyed peas, corn, pepper, jalapeno pepper, and cilantro in a large bowl. Toss/stir well so that ingredients are well-combined.
  • In a separate bowl, whisk together olive oil, lime juice, red wine vinegar, sugar, salt, pepper, and garlic powder.
  • Pour dressing over other ingredients and stir/toss very well.
  • Keep refrigerated. If not serving immediately, be sure to toss/stir well before serving.

Recipe from Spendwithpennies

Breads · Breakfast

Peach Scones

cathysmahaLeave a comment

Oh, the memory of high tea in England with delicious scones, pastries, and tiny sandwiches. The Peach Scone recipe sounded delicious and I had to try it. They were as yummy as I thought they would be and I didn’t even eat with clotted cream and jam (although that would also be delicious).

Peach Scones

INGREDIENTS:
  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, frozen
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the work surface 
  • 3 tablespoons granulated sugar 
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder 
  • 1/2 teaspoon sea salt 
  • 1 cup sliced peaches, thawed if frozen (I used fresh)
  • 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream, plus more for brushing on the scones 
  • 1/2 cup sour cream 
  • 1 large egg 
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
  • 1/4 teaspoon almond extract 
  • Glaze:
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 to 2 tablespoons heavy cream 
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
  • 1/4 teaspoon almond extract 
  • Pinch sea salt 
DIRECTIONS:
  1. For the scones: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Grate the frozen butter into a bowl using a box grater. Combine the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Add the peaches and toss in the flour to coat. Add the butter and toss to combine.
  2. Stir together the heavy cream, sour cream, egg, vanilla and almond extracts in a medium bowl. Slowly add the cream mixture to the flour mixture, and mix just until a dough comes together. (Make sure not to overwork).
  3. Turn the dough out onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and shape into a 9-inch disc, about 1 inch thick. Score the dough into 8 wedges, using a knife to cut into but not all the way through the dough. Brush the tops of the scones with cream. Bake until the scones are cooked through and golden brown on top, 20 to 25 minutes. Cut into wedges, then remove to a wire rack to cool until warm. (Note: I had to bake a bit longer until they were golden brown).
  4. Meanwhile, make the glaze: Whisk together the powdered sugar, cream, vanilla, almond extract and salt in a small bowl. Spoon the glaze over the scones before serving.

Recipe from Food Network Kardea Brown.

Salads

Chile Onion Crunch Cucumbers

cathysmahaLeave a comment

Cucumbers are so delicious but I was looking for a different way to serve them other than the traditional cucumbers and onions. Now that I’ve discovered Chile Crisp, I will be experimenting with other vegetables and dishes. This recipe is simple and the chile crisp was not too hot. I’m a bit of a wimp when it comes to spice and I tolerated this very well. This would be delicious with an Asian meal.

Chile Onion Crunch Cucumbers

INGREDIENTS:
  • 12 ounces of cucumber, seeded (peeling is optional)
  • 2-4 tablespoons chilie onion crunch (I used Kroger Private Selection Chile Crisp)
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons rice vinegar
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons maple syrup
DIRECTIONS:
  1. Peel, seed and chop cucumbers in 1/2 inch sliced chunks.
  2. Add salt, rice vinegar and maple syrup to the cucumbers. Stir to combine.
  3. Stir the jar of chile onion crunch then add 2-4 tablespoons to the cucumbers.
  4. Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from starinfintefood on Instagram (unfortunately I cannot find the link to her recipe with homemade chile crunch!)

Vegetables

Dehydrated Tomatoes in Olive Oil

cathysmahaLeave a comment

Sungold cherry tomatoes are my favorite and they produce for weeks. I often oven roast the tomatoes but I had access to my dear friend’s dehydrator and took advantage of it. The process took several hours and resulted in wonderful dried tomatoes. I followed the directions below to preserve the dried tomatoes with olive oil, fresh basil, garlic, oregano, salt. The result was delicious seasoned, dried tomatoes for pizza, chicken, and other dishes.

Title

INGREDIENTS:
  • 3-4 cups of olive oil depending on the size of canning jar
  • Fresh basil (you’ll need a good amount of leaves to include in each layer, more on this below)
  • 4-5 cloves of minced garlic
  • ½ cup of dried oregano
  • Kosher salt
  • 3-5 pounds of sun dried tomatoes (try and find the imported variety; here’s a link to some organic sun dried tomatoes just in case you can’t get them from Italy) (Note: I used my Sungold tomatoes from my garden)
DIRECTIONS:
  1. Note: I used a dehyrator to first dry the Sungold tomatoes from my garden. It took several hours and did a great job.
  2. Start by finding a large, wide mouth, mason jar; pint size is fine, but if you can find larger jars they’ll store more tomatoes. Wash your mason jar very well and you can even go as far as sterilizing the jar. Moreover, it’s vital that your hands and any other tool used for the process are exceptionally clean.
  3. Next, begin layering your unseasoned sun dried tomatoes in the jar in the following order: 1. layer of tomatoes, 2. sprinkle of kosher salt, 3. garlic, 4. pinch of dried oregano, 4. layer of fresh basil leaves
  4. Repeat the above layering process until you’re nearly at the top of the jar (don’t over stuff the jar because your last step includes filling the jar with olive oil).
  5. When you’re finished with each layer push down with a flat object to compress the ingredients.
  6. Finally, fill the jar with olive oil, making sure that the tomatoes are completely submerged (note: the oil will need some time to settle so make sure all of the tomatoes are covered).
  7. Screw on the lid tightly and store the jar in a cool, dark, closet or cupboard.
  8. You’ll need to let the tomatoes sit 6-8 days before consuming them (the oil needs to soften the tomatoes and you also need to let the garlic, basil, and oregano do it’s thing).
  9. Note: I refrigerated the tomatoes to make sure they would not spoil!

Note and Disclaimer (viz a viz Clostridium Botulinum) It’s vital when you cure vegetables in olive oil that you thoroughly clean the jar itself as well as all the ingredients and utensils used in the preparation. My family has been curing and pickling vegetables (as well as tomatoes for tomato sauce) for well over 50 years and we haven’t had any health issues. Although our family has been doing this for many years without incident, there aren’t good studies establishing this practice as safe. Many food safety authorities advise against preserving tomatoes and garlic in oil due the risk of bacterial contamination and proliferation of spores, especially clostridium botulinum, which could be fatal.

Recipe adapted from Scordo.com

Cookies and Bars

Cookies n Creme Cookies

cathysmahaLeave a comment

Daughter, Megan, made the Cookies n Creme Cookies for our June garage as well as the Chocolate Chip Cookies on Steroids that I posted last week. These were also out of this world and sold well, of course who wouldn’t buy from 4 adorable grandchildren who were yelling on the street corner to buy cookies and lemonade!

Cookies n Creme Cookies

INGREDIENTS:
  • 1 cup COLD butter
  • 1/2 cup white sugar
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1 package Oreo Cookies and Cream pudding mix
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 cup white chocolate chips
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 10-15 Oreo cookies, crushed to consistency of crumbs and chunks
DIRECTIONS:
  1. Preheat oven to 350 Fahrenheit.
  2. Place cold butter and sugars in mixer and beat until smooth.
  3. Add eggs, vanilla and Oreo Cookies and Cream Pudding Mix. Beat until fluffy.
  4. In a separate bowl combine flour, white chocolate chips, baking soda, and Oreo cookies.
  5. Slow mixer and slowly add flour mixture until just combined.
  6. Bake until slightly brown on the top. Let them cool to reach their max potential.
  7. Optional: top with additional crushed Oreo cookies

Recipe from Emily

Cookies and Bars

Chocolate Chip Cookies (on Steroids)

cathysmaha1 Comment

What’s more American than Chocolate Chip Cookies! Chocolate Chip Cookies doesn’t accurately describe these cookies, so I like to add ‘on Steroids’. They are, by far, the best Chocolate Chip Cookies I have ever had. My older daughter, Megan, made these cookies as well as another cookie, for our June garage sale. My grandkids sold them along with lemonade and they were a big hit.

If you don’t use cold butter, the instructions say to refrigerate the dough prior to baking. Try them…you will not be disappointed!

Chocolate Chip Cookies (on Steroids)

INGREDIENTS:
  • 1 cup COLD butter
  • 1 1/4 cups brown sugar
  • 3/4 cup white sugar
  • 2 eggs (room temp is best)
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 3 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 1/4 tsp baking soda
  • 1 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 1/2 tsp corn starch
  • 2 cups semi sweet chocolate chips
  • Optional: a little instant coffee to enhance the choclate flavor, about 1 tsp
DIRECTIONS:
  1. Preheat oven to 380 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. Combine butter and sugars and beat until smooth. (Note: Kitchen Aid mixture works best)
  3. Add eggs and beat on high speed for 2-3 minutes. Slow mixture down and add vanilla.
  4. In a separate bowl, add flour, soda, salt and corn starch. Whisk together.
  5. Turn mixer on low and slowly add flour mixture, reserving a bit of the flour mixture to add to the chocolate chips in a separate bowl to coat.
  6. Add chocolate chips to the flour mixture and, with mixture on low, combine with the dough.
  7. Scoop onto silicone baking sheets (or greased cookie sheet) and bake for 9 minutes for a crispy edge and soft middle. If you like them crispier, bake a little longer. If you like them even do a lower temperature for a longer time.
  8. Let them cool until you can’t stand it any more!

Recipe by Emily

Cakes · Czech Heritage and Dishes · Desserts

Cherry Bublanina: Czech Sponge Cake

cathysmahaLeave a comment

Cherry Bublanina is a delightfully light sponge cake with fruit. I used cherries, my favorite but other fruit can be used. This was my first time making this Czech delicacy. It was easy and the results were delicious.

Cherry Bublanina

INGREDIENTS:
  • 1 1/4 cups milk
  • 5 eggs, separated
  • 12 tbsp. unsalted butter
  • 3 tbsp. yogurt or sour cream
  • 2 cups plain flour
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • pinch salt
  • lemon zest (I used 1/2 of 1 lemon)
  • 1 tsp. vanilla
  • 2 cups cherries (I used sour cherries)
  • Powdered sugar for dusting
DIRECTIONS:
  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a 9×11″ pan.
  2. Toss the fruit with a spoonful of flour and set aside.
  3. In a small bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: flour, sugar, baking powder, lemon zest, and salt.
  4. Melt the butter, mix in vanilla, yogurt or sour cream and egg yolks until smooth batter forms.
  5. Whip the egg whites in a clean, dry bowl until glossy, stiff peaks form.
  6. Using a spatula, fold the egg whites into the batter.
  7. Pour the batter into a baking dish and cover evenly with cherries. Be gentle so you do not deflate the cake too much.
  8. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out cleanly.
  9. Cool, cut into squares, and dust with powdered sugar.

Attribution