Blueberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake Recipe; Pictures Show How

  Soft, moist, and delicate, this cake goes great with a cup of black coffee. Hence the name Coffee Cake. My dear friend Kelly shared this recipe with me, and I’m always excited when I serve it. With a subtle crunch from the streusel topping, it has a clean taste of the fine ingredients added. There is no vanilla; “Whaaat??? No vanilla?” you may ask. Vanilla is heavenly tasting. I’m one of the biggest fans of it, and usually more is better in my opinion. However, if vanilla is added to just about every single dessert you make, it sort of loses its charm a little bit, don’t you think? Or maybe not, but it’s a thought worth considering, at least. I’ll continue on that trail just a little bit: What I have found is that certain recipes are better without vanilla, because it allows you to focus more on the other flavorful ingredients, such as butter and cream cheese. If you have to have your vanilla kick, then by all means add some! But I will make this cake without. So the recipe calls for blueberries; does that mean it has to be blueberries only? Not as far as I have found. I tried raspberries, and it was great! I can only imagine that other berries or fruits will work wonderfully as well. If you do try this recipe, I would really appreciate a quick comment with a star […] Read more »

Planning a New Vegetable Garden

  Winter of 2010 I started seriously thinking about the possibility of putting in a vegetable garden. It had been on my mind for several years to try my hands at gardening, but with three young children I didn’t feel I had the time or energy for it. So it remained a future dream. Now, in 2010, I finally felt that the time had come. But where to start? How to plan and go about it? The task seemed overwhelming, so much to learn and do, and there was so much information out there that I didn’t know where to begin! January became February, and I still didn’t have a clue what to do and where to start; it was easier to put things off and not really do anything until the soil was workable anyway. February gave way to March, and by then I had seen packets of seeds at the store, and excitingly picked up a few different ones. It all looked so fun to try! Soon thereafter I met a neighbor who had years of gardening experience. I told her about my plans, and that I thought it would be neat to plant tomatoes from seed. “Well, you’ve got to get started then, tomatoes take a long time!” she said. So that was a little kick to get me started. She gave me some advice on what to do, and before I knew it, I had little […] Read more »

My Favorite Turkey Noodle Soup Recipe

  Chicken Noodle Soup is good; of course it is! But Turkey Noodle Soup made from nutritious, homemade stock, on the other hand, is scrumptious! As I started making homemade turkey stock, or bone broth, a few years back, I went on a search for stock based soup recipes. I found a couple of recipes that I adapted into a soup recipe that is quick, easy, but delicious non-the-less, once you have stock and meat leftovers ready made in the freezer.  When cooking up a turkey, I usually cook a much larger bird than we need for our dinner, in order to have lots of leftovers in the freezer for meals like my much-loved soup. This recipe is adapted mostly from Paula Deen’s Chicken Noodle Soup, with a couple of changes. For one thing, I use a bag of frozen soup veggies from the store, to save time. You really can use any vegetables you want, though some vegetables tend to fall apart more easily than others, such as broccoli, so I try to avoid those. Root vegetables often work well. If using potatoes, use white, red-skin or Yukon potatoes as they keep their shape better than baking potatoes. Two important ingredients added toward the very end that I kept in this recipe, as per Paula Deen, are heavy cream and Parmesan cheese. These ingredients make the soup extra luscious. But still, it all starts with rich, homemade turkey stock […] Read more »

Turkey or Chicken Stock; Tasty, Healthy, & Money Saving Recipe

  We cook turkeys for Thanksgiving, Christmas, sometimes Easter, or whenever there are no more turkey leftovers in the freezer. We also eat bone-in chicken throughout the year and other meats with bones. I always used to throw away all those precious bones and carcasses, thinking they were worthless now that the meat was eaten. NOT SO!!! I have since learned that not only can you save money by utilizing chicken or turkey bones to make delicious stock or bone broth for soup, and it is also a really nutritious food that will help keep you healthy. Great news for super cheap, tasty food, don’t you think? Just a generation or two ago, people did this all the time, while today it’s almost a lost art. In this post I will show you how I make turkey stock, or bone broth, from a turkey carcass. You can use the same principles to make broth from chicken or other meat bones as well, even fish! If you do try this recipe, I would really appreciate a quick comment with a star rating (option found immediately under each recipe). It helps me out tremendously! Thanks in advance! Did you know there is a lot of nutrition left in the bones of poultry and other meat-bones? For one thing, there is a lot of calcium, which is said to become much more available if you add a little vinegar or lemon juice to […] Read more »

Brining and Slow Roasting for a Wonderfully Juicy Turkey Recipe

I have cooked turkeys for years now; for Thanksgiving, for Christmas, and anytime we run out of leftovers in the freezer. I always used to roast our turkeys on 325 degrees F, until fairly recently. After hearing about slow cooking at 200 degrees, I decided to try it and was very happy with the results. So this past Christmas my husband and I decided ahead of time that we should continue to roast at low temperatures. If you do try this recipe, I would really appreciate a quick comment with a star rating (option found immediately under each recipe). It helps me out tremendously! Thanks in advance! A couple of important things to be aware of is never to add stuffing or anything else to the cavity of a slow cooking turkey. With temperatures as low as 200 degrees, the stuffing simply won’t cook all the way through to reach the necessary, safe temperatures. Additionally, USDA states that cooking a turkey at temperatures less than 325 is unsafe, so if you do want to try this method, do it at your own risk. Personally I have read enough about it to feel comfortable doing this for my own family, but please do your own research before attempting this method. Slow roasting is baking at temperatures between 200-325°F  (93-160°C). Meat baked at low temperatures does not shrink nearly as much, a lot more of the juice is retained in the meat, […] Read more »

Aldi Chocolates, Best Hidden Secret!

Do you have an Aldi store in your area? If so, you may be surprised to find that they carry a variety of wonderfully delicious, high quality European chocolate! Growing up in Norway, I was spoiled on great chocolate, and for me, the regular ol’ Hershey’s bar will never measure up. It doesn’t melt well, and I find the flavor to be harsh. And before I go on: No, I do not work for Aldi’s and I do not get paid for advertisement. I simply want to share my find with others. Aldi is a discount supermarket based in Germany and their stores have a bit of that European feel to them. When an Aldi store opened up close to where we live, I was excited because many of their groceries are sold at lower prices, and for the most part we’ve been happy with the quality of their products. I recently wrote a post on what I like to buy at Aldi, 20 Favorite Aldi Products List, and of course chocolate did make the list! When I first discovered Aldi, I didn’t even realize their chocolates were anything special until I took a closer look and noticed that they are made in Europe, which instantly intrigued me. I decided to purchase a bar to try, and found the quality to be excellent! I really couldn’t believe it; outstanding quality chocolate at lower prices than other comparable brands. It is […] Read more »

Making Almond Paste Candies – Easy Recipe

Marzipan is a delicious, sweet, sticky substance made from almonds. It is often called almond paste and looks like a thick, white dough. It resembles fondant but is much more flavorful. In Norway it is often rolled into large disks to drape over cream filled cakes, making them beautifully decorated and also very tasty. Or you can mold it and make beautiful and fun creations. In Norway marzipan it is also sold as candy, in chocolate covered shapes during Easter and Christmas. Almond paste is made mainly from almond meal mixed with powdered sugar and egg whites. It is not easy to make good, smooth marzipan from scratch, so it is recommended to purchase it ready made for various recipes.   During holidays it is fun to roll it out into simple shapes to dip in melted chocolate for a beautiful and tasty treat. I’ve been able to find almond paste at our local grocery store, and Amazon sells it as well. The brand in this link seems to be very high quality and suitable for rolling, while Odense is a cheaper brand that will probably work well for making shapes. With Christmas quickly approaching,  I decided to purchase a piece from our local supermarket along with some delicious European chocolate from Aldi, a discount grocery store chain based in Germany. They have stores all over the U.S. as well, and I happen to live close to one of them and was thrilled to find […] Read more »

Dulce de Leche: Easy, Delicious Caramel Cake Filling Recipe

  And now, presenting a delicious, creamy food that I discovered a while back; you could say a year ago or so, or you could say several decades ago, depending on how you see it. I found this recipe for cake filling not too long ago. People were talking about how easy it was to make, and how different and delightful it tasted. I decided to give it a try. When it was done, I tasted it and discovered that I had made a product I remember from my childhood, a caramel flavored sandwich spread: HAPÅ! It was quite a revelation, the least I expected, and there was no doubt about it! It was exactly like Hapå both with regard to flavor, texture, and color. It never would have occurred to me to use this product as cake filling, however, but why not? It is smooth, sweet, looks and tastes a bit like caramel, glossy and pretty and very easy to prepare. Since then I have discovered the same product at supermarkets, in the Mexican area of the international section labeled “Dulce de Leche”. So obviously it is not really a Norwegian food, but can be found in various countries of the world under different names. But for me it will always be Hapå! It will take 2 hours of your time to prepare although you mostly leave it alone during that time. So if you are going to be at […] Read more »

Malted Milk Cookies, Family Favorite Recipe

      One of the cookie recipes my family has come to treasure the most, Malted Milk Cookies,  is a recipe I originally found in Taste of Home Magazine years ago. These unique cookies quickly became my husband’s all-time favorite. And with good reason: Rich flavor and chewy-crunchy texture, in addition to looking very inviting and simply beautiful! It is an excellent recipe that I have shared with a multitude of people over the years. People go Ga-Ga over these scrumptious cookies, and if brought to a pot-luck or party, they go hunting to figure out who made them in order to ask for the recipe! These cookies contain ingredients that aren’t commonly found in ordinary cookie recipes, but still are amazingly fitting flavor wise, which make them different in a truly special way. If you do try this recipe, I would really appreciate a quick comment with a star rating (option found immediately under each recipe). It helps me out tremendously! Thanks in advance! To give unique, but really special flavor to these cookies, malted milk balls are crushed and added to the batter; and even though I’m normally not a fan of these candies, they are an absolutely fantastic addition to this recipe! But it doesn’t stop there: just a small amount of chocolate drink mix is also added, which boosts the flavor without giving away that it’s chocolate… Sneaky, huh? And 2 teaspoons vanilla, not just […] Read more »

How to Easily Bake Perfect, Professional Looking Cookies

  When serving cookies of different kinds, I am often asked the question “Did YOU make these cookies?” Um… yeah… “How do you get them so round???” Well, that part is easy enough. Here’s what I do to ensure even, just about perfectly round cookies, making them look like they were baked by a professional, and certainly not by me: I use an ice cream scoop, similar to this one (click to buy on Amazon). (Mine is slightly larger; 45mm) I have three different sizes that I use for different recipes: I prefer the middle one (45mm) for most of my cookies. The cookies end up nice and large, but not overly so. They end up anywhere from 2 1/2 – 4 in. in diameter, depending on the type of dough used, and how much the cookies spread out. The larger scoop (55mm) would make jumbo sized cookies. The smaller scoop (35mm), gives cookies approximately the size of an Oreo. I think that’s generally much too small!! (Although there’s a time and a place for that size, too.) I love cookies, and I want a big one, not a little one! And it looks much more generous when you serve others. When being served, I would feel greedy if I helped myself to more than two cookies, and I would imagine others feeling the same way. Taking one cookie is expected. Taking a second shows you really love them! Compliments […] Read more »