Recipes

Skip’s Scramble

By Tara in Recipes No Comments Tags: , ,

Skip's Scramble 1

Guys, I may have made a huge mistake. I made a Skip’s Scramble.

Skip's Scramble 2

For those that aren’t savvy with Arrested Development jokes, Skip’s Scramble is a dish from a restaurant called “Skip Church’s.” Skip’s Scramble is a giant skillet that contains everything on their menu. Throughout the seasons, the scramble changes slightly–the first picture of a scramble included things like a full apple and some jelly beans on top. The later references to the scramble showed a skillet full of breakfast food, the same sorts of things you would get on the same plate at a diner, just enough to feed an army. So, to celebrate the show coming back on Sunday, I made my own version of the Skip’s Scramble with all the breakfast foods I love. What did I include?

  • Eggs scrambled with onion, tomatoes, mushrooms, spinach, and feta cheese
  • Hashbrowns
  • Sausage
  • Biscuits
  • Pancakes (Shh…the ones below the top are chocolate chip!)
  • Bacon

The scramble was delicious but filling. and the one I made could probably feed 4+ people easily. The big challenge with the scramble is not eating it, but preparing it. There’s a lot to coordinate if you want everything to be done at the same time! I recommend having multiple pans and griddles going, and to keep the large pan just for the serving dish–I had to move all of the food off of it after preparing them, wash the pan, then re-plate everything.

You’ve got one day until the premiere. Will you be celebrating with a Skip’s Scramble? If so, what are you including in yours?

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Bluth Bananas Recipe

By Tara in Recipes No Comments Tags: , , , , ,

Bluth Banana

I couldn’t wait until photos were done to try it…

When I first tried to make Bluth Bananas, I tried a fairly basic recipe: Frozen Banana + Melted Chocolate (and a tiny bit of butter) = Profit, right? Unfortunately, that recipe resulted in clumpy, unappetizing bananas and way too thick of a coating. It was too rich and difficult to eat! However, I’ve figured out a way to make a prettier and more delicious chocolate banana: Magic Shell.

You know that stuff you can buy in the ice cream section at your store? It quickly becomes solid once it hits your ice cream? You can make it at home with two ingredients: semi-sweet chocolate chips and coconut oil. It will make the best Bluth Bananas. There will always be money in the banana stand with these babies.

Bluth Bananas

Ingredients:

  • 4  Bananas
  • 3/4 cup Semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 1/4 cup Coconut oil
  • Chopped nuts, optional
  • Popsicle sticks

Directions:

Carefully put a popsicle stick in each banana. Wrap the banana (I wrapped it in plastic wrap and placed it on wax paper) and place in the freezer. Let freeze for a few hours or overnight.

Place the chocolate chips and coconut oil in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave for 1 minute. Remove and stir until ingredients are combined and smooth. (Ta-da! You’ve made Magic Shell!)

Take a frozen banana and dip into the chocolate mixture. You will most likely need to pour more chocolate over the banana using a spoon.

Roll one side of the banana over a plate of the chopped nuts. Let cool/harden on wax paper. Place back into the freezer until you’re ready to serve.

(If you have leftover “Magic Shell” you can store it in a container in your fridge. Just heat it up for a tiny bit in the microwave then spoon over the cold item of your choice!)

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Arrested Development Premiere Party

By Tara in Parties, Recipes 4 Comments Tags: , , , ,

I’ve told you how excited I am for the new season of Arrested Development, right? Cause I am. “Can’t sleep, too excited,” counting down the days-style. No one will be allowed to bother me on Sunday. So what’s a girl to do who wants to celebrate the show but not have everyone around when she actually watches the episodes for the first time? Have the party a week before! If you’re not as crazy as I am, these ideas will all make for an excellent premiere party. Well, most of them. Just keep reading. We’ll all learn some lessons along the way.

Drinks

Arrested Development Drinks

Arrested Development-themed drinks were easy. We had juice boxes for Buster, Wine boxes for Lucille, and the ingredients for make-your-own “Cloudmir” vodka martinis. Everyone had something, and I didn’t have to do much prep. Win-win!

Food

Arrested Development Food

Oh dear. I went through the food items mentioned in Arrested Development, and took out all of the ones that would potentially give my friends heart attacks or food poisoning. (Goodbye hot ham water and chicken in chicken sauce. Skip’s Scramble, we’ll see you another day.) Unfortunately, the food items left over made for an…interesting…array of party food. What did I include, you may ask?

  • Mayanneggs. They were exactly as you’d expect . Mr. Geek and I were both surprised to see that people actually ate them (although most people chose to have their egg sans mayo.)
  • Ice Cream Sandwiches. As delicious as ice cream sandwiches are, they’re way better when inside of a prison ice cream vending machine. If you plan on keeping them out at a party, get yourself a cooler (full of evidence?) or choose a specific time of the party to bring them out. They melt quickly. I was running back and forth between the freezer for most of the party.
  • Bluth Bananas. See above. The chocolate stayed mostly in tact, but the banana melted and became mushy fairly quickly. A mushy banana is not a fun banana.
  • Candy beans. Delicious. Easy party food. Win-win.
  • Cornballs. Oh, cornballs. It was only appropriate that my cornball recipe did not turn out. I used a hush puppy recipe (it’s essentially cornbread mix, an egg, and some chopped onion), but the oil must have been too hot. The outside would get brown way too quickly, and the inside wouldn’t be completely cooked. If I did wait for the inside to cook, the outside became an unappetizing black. Luckily, no one burned themselves.

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So for those keeping score at home, we have hard boiled eggs, ice cream sandwiches, chocolate covered bananas, candy beans, martinis, wine, and juice. Most bizarre mix of party food I’ve ever had. I don’t recommend it. I ended up making some popcorn later in the night just to even out the food a bit and not put my friends into a sugar shock.

As you may all have known (why didn’t anyone tell me?) the characters on Arrested Development never claimed to be great cooks or have good taste in food.  I had made a huge mistake.

Still looking to make  Bluth Bananas? I’d recommend not making them like I did (with melted chocolate and a bit of butter). Instead, try my Revised Bluth Bananas Recipe! Bring the bananas out of the freezer right before you plan on eating them.

Activities

Arrested Development Mugshots

You’re going to be watching Arrested Development. This is a no-brainer. But if you want something else to do, here are some suggestions:

  • Encourage your guests to come dressed in costume.
  • Host a photo wall. My dad printed the amazing mugshot backdrop for us that he modeled after this promo photo. Mr. Geek created the fantastic quote signs. You can see more photos in the Geeky Hostess Facebook Album.
  • Host an Arrested Development trivia contest. IMDB can get you started.
  • Hold a Chicken Dance competition. Has anyone ever seen a chicken before?

Have fun! Report back here on how your premiere party went, and what you think of the 4th season.

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Text Adventure Party

By Tara in Parties, Recipes 4 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Text Adventure Activities Last week, I gathered some of my gaming-loving friends together for a Text Adventure Party. Yes, a party based on those text adventure games from the 80′s. The activities of the night centered around playing Parsely, a live-action game based on the text adventures. We started with Action Castle, which is their recommended beginning game, and ended up graduating onto some actual text adventure games on our main computer (including one Mr. Geek whipped up that focused on the players going through the rooms in our home!). Want to throw your own Text Adventure Party? Take a look below for pics and tips!

Activities
As mentioned above, you’ll want to get your hands on at least one Parsely game (they’re available online for only $5 each!). If your friends are experienced with text adventures, you may end up going through more than one.

Want to make your own text adventure game like Mr. Geek? You can use Quest, a free online program that makes it super easy!

Decor
Print out descriptions of your rooms in the text-adventure style. If you want that old-school font, use Press Start 2P. Mr. Geek wrote ours, as you could probably tell from the description of the kitchen, above. Don’t forget to label your food items as well!

I continued with the retro gaming theme with these fun Space Invaders drink markers and integrated some bright colors to match up with the Mountain Dew Bar.

Food
Food and drink is my favorite part of any theme party, and it’s the part I give the most attention to. I wanted to take nostalgic gamer food and make it a bit more “grown up.” I did this by creating a Mountain Dew bar with a variety of mix-ins, baking my classic Mountain Dew cupcakes, and making homemade Cool Ranch Doritos and Hot Pockets. They were a hit!

Mountain Dew BarI chose mix-ins I thought would be delicious with Mountain Dew and would allow my guests to make their own versions of Mountain Dew “Code Red”. What else should I include for my next Mountain Dew bar? Let me know in the comments!

Mountain Dew CupcakesI revamped the Mountain Dew Cupcakes frosting recipe a bit by adding in some orange flavoring in addition to the lemon and lime. It tasted much more like Mountain Dew!

Doritos and Hot Pockets Cool Ranch Doritos
I had never fried my own chips before, but it was much easier than I expected. These chips were being munched on all night, and guests seemed to love them! They’ll turn out a bit thicker and greasier than your average CRD, but they’re pretty tasty. I used a recipe from Macheesmo.com and it was fantastic. Sure, eating Doritos straight out of the bag is easier, but these are cheaper, most likely somewhat healthier, and MUCH more impressive to have at or bring to a party.

Homemade Hot Pockets
Homemade Hot Pockets are pretty much just tiny calzones. Tiny, delicious, rectangular calzones. The ingredients you put inside are all interchangeable based on your tastes; I went for a classic Pepperoni Pizza Hot Pocket experience.

Ingredients:

  • Uncooked pizza dough (I made mine from hand with the instructions off of a packet of Pizza yeast, you can also buy some pre-made dough from the store.)
  • 1 cup marinara sauce
  • 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
  • Thin-sliced pepperoni, diced (I used around 30 pieces)
  • Seasonings to taste (I used a dash of oregano and dried red pepper flakes)
  • 1 egg
  • Shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Prep a cookie sheet with a quick spray of cooking oil.

Divide your pizza dough into 16 equal sections and roll them into their own individual balls.

Roll the balls out as thin as you can while still maintaining some structure (around 1/8 inch thick). Keep in mind that the dough will fluff up considerably!

Mix the sauce, mozzarella, pepperoni, and seasonings together in a small bowl to make the filling. Using a small spoon, scoop out a bit of the filling and place it in the middle of the rolled out dough.

Using a burrito-method, fold in the sides of the pizza dough and roll it up to create a small hot pocket-shape. Press the edges lightly with your fingers to make sure everything is closed tightly together.

Carefully place the “hot pocket” onto the cookie sheet. Continue with the 15 others.

Whisk one egg, and brush the egg onto the tops of the hot pockets. (This will give it that browned top). Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Bake for 20 minutes. Let cool slightly (we all know what happens when you bite into a hot pocket first thing!) and serve!

Any other suggestions for hosting a text adventure party? Leave them in the comments!

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Walking Dead Recipe: Dandelion Green and Walnut Pesto

By Tara in Recipes 2 Comments Tags: , ,

I received an email over the weekend describing a link with an infographic for an adorable recipe inspired by Walking Dead. I did an actual double-take. Walking Dead? Recipe? ADORABLE? But when I looked at the image, it was true. It was all true.

Whether you’re a Walking Dead fan or are just looking for a nice pesto recipe, you’ll be pleased with this infographic made by the same author who created the unauthorized Doctor Who cookbook:

ko_walkingdeadpesto

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Cookie Inception: Girl Scout Cookie Cookies

By Tara in Fun Food, Recipes 2 Comments Tags: , ,

GSCookie1

Prepare yourself. The time is near. Time for the streets to fill with adorable children tempting you with cookies. Will you give in? (Umm, yes. Cause they’re delicious and also because last time I said no to children selling me something outside of a store, I got a flat tire on my way home. Don’t mess with kids and karma.)

So you bought your boxes. And they’re all delicious on their own, but you’ve run into a dilemma. You want a Thin Mint and a Samoa and a Tagalong at the same time. What to do? Bake them into a single cookie, of course. Because excess is fine if it’s for the kids.  (Right?)

This recipe is for a nice, chewy, chocolate chip-style cookie, but instead of chocolate chips, you’re putting in your favorite Girl Scout cookies. Win-win. The cookie ends up having a great mix of textures between the crunch of the Thin Mints, the chewiness of the Samoas, and the melty chocolate and crispy bit of the Tagalongs. And surprisingly, the cookie isn’t overpoweringly minty–the flavors actually play really nicely with each other.

GSCookie2

Ingredients:

  •  1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 cup packed light-brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 2 large eggs
  • 6 Samoas
  • 6 Tagalongs
  • 8 Thin Mints

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Test the Girl Scout Cookies individually. Are they good? Good. Using a knife, chop up the cookies listed in the ingredients into small chunks.
  3. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour and baking soda; set aside.
  4. In an electric mixer, combine the butter with both sugars; beat on medium speed until light and fluffy.
  5. Reduce speed to low; add the salt, vanilla, and eggs. Beat until well mixed, about 1 minute.
  6. Add flour mixture; mix until just combined.
  7. Fold in the chopped cookie pieces.
  8. Drop heaping tablespoon-size balls of dough about 2 inches apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. (I used a standard cookie scoop.)
  9. Bake until cookies are light brown around the edges, but still soft in the center, about 10 minutes. Remove from oven, and let cool on the baking sheet 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack, and let cool completely. Eat with reckless abandon.
  10. Buy more Girl Scout Cookies. Repeat.

This recipe was created for the Girl Scout Cookie Recipe Contest, which is quickly becoming one of my favorite events of the year. Last year I made Shortbread Oven-Fried Chicken.

Girl Scout cookies will be here March 1-17, and you can use a cookie locator (or a mobile app when you really need a fix) to find the closest seller to you.

What’s your favorite Girl Scout cookie? And how many boxes will you be picking up this year?

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Make a Big Mac at Home

By Tara in Fun Food, Recipes No Comments Tags: , , ,

I’m in the middle of Barre3′s “28 to Great” challenge and even though I feel amazing and enjoy the food I’m making, I’ve found myself giving longing looks to McDonald’s and other fast food restaurants as I drive by.

If like me, you’re trying to eat whole foods and make most of your meals at home, here’s a nice video from McDonald’s on how to make a Big Mac. Now if I just replace the buns, sauce, cheese and one of the patties with veggies, I may actually get to eat this!

Breakfast more your thing? Here’s a video on how to make their Egg McMuffin.

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Savory Cupcakes

By Tara in Fun Food, Recipes 2 Comments Tags: , , ,

We’ve all had cupcakes for dinner before. It’s late, you’re lazy, the cupcake is just right there, with its sweet buttercream frosting calling out to you…

But did you know you could make cupcakes for dinner that are actually (relatively) healthy? Oh, my dear readers, it’s so true and so delicious.

Allow me to introduce you to Meatloaf Cupcakes and Mac and Cheese Cupcakes. (Photos by the lovely and talented David Zimmerman.)

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These meatloaf cupcakes were based on a recipe by Betty Crocker. I changed it up a bit by using instant mashed potatoes for the “frosting” (they’re quicker and easier to frost than traditional mashed potatoes) and topping them with a “cherry” tomato. The tomatoes ended up being a bit big for the cupcakes, but they were still delicious!

Meatloaf Cupcakes

Ingredients:

  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 2 lbs raw lean ground beef
  • 1 cup panko bread crumbs
  • 1 small red onion, finely chopped
  • 1 TBS coarsely chopped fresh parsley
  • 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • 2/3 cup ketchup
  • 2 tsps Worcestershire sauce
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Box of instant mashed potatoes (You’ll use about 6 servings’ worth)
  • Ingredients to make the instant mashed potatoes (I used water, margarine, milk, and salt)
  • 18 cherry tomatoes

Directions:

Heat oven to 350 degrees and prepare 18 unlined cupcake cups with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, mix all of the meat loaf ingredients (Anything listed above “Box of instant mashed potatoes”) together until well-combined. Press mixture evenly in 18 cupcake cups, pressing firmly down on each to make sure they’re packed in tight!

Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the cupcakes are cooked fully through. Let cool slightly until you can safely remove the cupcakes from the tin.

While the cupcakes are baking, make the mashed potatoes! Follow instructions on the box to make 6 servings. Let cool slightly, then place the mashed potatoes in a frosting bag (or a Ziploc bag with a corner cut off).

Pipe some mashed potato “frosting” onto each meatloaf “cupcake” and top with a cherry tomato. Serve!

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 These mac and cheese cupcakes are a carb-lover’s dream, and make a great contrast to the meatloaf cupcakes, above. This recipe was inspired by one created by an old co-worker’s friend. He topped them with mashed potatoes and a cherry tomato, but I chose to use that for the meatloaf cupcakes. If you’re just making one of these dishes, either will work with that topping!

Mac and Cheese Cupcakes

Ingredients:

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line 12 cupcake cups with paper wrappers.

Boil water for the mac and cheese. (Don’t forget to boil enough for two packages!)

Cook the mac and cheese according to directions on the box. Make sure the shells are “al dente” (firm), by not letting them cook for too long. Let the mac and cheese sit for a moment.

Pop open your tube of biscuits. Take a biscuit, remove a quarter of it, and reshape the rest into a cone/bowl shape that will fit into the cupcake wrappers. Push the biscuits along the wrappers and up above the sides.

Fill the middle of the biscuit “bowl” with mac and cheese, don’t be afraid to fill it up high!. Top with panko bread crumbs and Parmesan.

Bake for 12 minutes, or until the biscuits look flaky and golden. Serve!

 

I think the next savory cupcakes on my list to make are lasagna and pizza. Have you made savory cupcakes before? What kind’s your favorite?

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Contest (And Recipe): Roasted Pumpkin

By Tara in Holidays, Recipes 18 Comments Tags: , , , ,

Thanksgiving’s coming up, and this year, I wanted to try something a bit ambitious. I wanted to roast a pumpkin. From scratch. Like a big kid.

You see, bringing a side dish to Thanksgiving is one thing, but bringing roasted pumpkin (instead of say, sweet potatoes or mashed potatoes) allows you to have a smug “Autumn Goddess” smile about you all evening. It’s not quick, but it’s worth it. The result is a comfort food-like treat that most folks don’t get. 

Follow the recipe below, and see if you can use all parts of the pumpkin. The seeds are excellent roasted (use a low heat for a long period of time, essentially drying them out) and the stem could make a jaunty Thanksgiving-Day hat. Also make sure you enter the contest at the bottom of this post–you could win some sweet gear to get you in a pumpkin-roasting mood!

Start with a pumpkin that is meant for baking. I purchased mine from Top Foods, and it was a “Delicata” pumpkin. This list will tell you a bit about the various types out there, and can help you check if yours is right.

Pro Tip: If your husband sticks a mustache on your pumpkin, you will feel bad cutting it open.

Roasted Pumpkin

Ingredients:

  • One small pumpkin for baking
  • 1/3 cup Country Crock (plus additional for topping)
  • Sea Salt
  • Cinnamon, Nutmeg, and Cloves, or Pumpkin Pie Spice (to taste)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and prepare a baking sheet by covering it with aluminum foil.

Rinse the pumpkin.

Core the pumpkin (as you would if you were going to carve it) and de-seed and de-”gut” it. Keep the seeds if you want to roast them later!

Slice the pumpkin into quarters, finish scraping out the “guts”. A spoon works wonders here.

Cut the pumpkin into smaller slices–I cut it into three for every quarter.

Cut the slices into cubes and slice off the rind. Think of it like a cantaloupe.

Place the cubes in a large mixing bowl, and pour 1/3 cup of melted Country Crock over the top.

Season with the salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and/or pumpkin pie mix to your tastes. I did a quick shake of everything.

Using your hands, mix together until the pumpkin pieces are thoroughly coated.

Pour the pumpkin pieces out on the baking sheet, and make sure they’re all laying flat in one layer.

Pour the remaining Country Crock from the bowl onto the tops of the pumpkin, and salt once more.

Bake in the oven for 45 minutes, or until the pumpkin is golden and a bit crispy on the edges, and tender on the inside.

Serve with a bit of Country Crock and salt or nutmeg to taste.

Plan on making roasted pumpkin for Thanksgiving? Hosting Thanksgiving dinner yourself? Enter this contest to win a Thanksgiving Kit that includes the following:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Check out more great recipes at CrockCountry.com and let me know what you’ll be making for Thanksgiving!

Thank you to Country Crock for being a sponsor. I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective. All opinions expressed here are my own.

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24 Hours of Cooking: Health Potion

By Tara in Recipes No Comments Tags: , , , , , ,

It was late. We had been playing games and cooking for 18 hours, and we were exhausted. Enter: Health Potion!

Health Potion is NOT healthy. At all. But it is full of sugar and caffeine and is quite tasty. Enjoy cautiously.

Ingredients:

  • 1 packet of Tropical Punch Kool-Aid
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 can Rockstar Punched
  • water

Directions:

Fill a 2 Liter pitcher with the Kool-Aid, sugar, and can of Rockstar. Add enough water and ice to reach 2 liters. Mix. Add more sugar to taste, if you’re feeling wild. Serve. Stay awake for another 6 hours.

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