Not quite ready, still simmering and reducing

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• pinch of crushed red pepper
• 1 stalk celery, chopped
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 portobello mushroom, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• sea salt and fresh black pepper to taste
• 1 lb ground sirloin beef  
• 1/2 cup (maybe a bit more) dry white or red wine (I used white)
• 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes 
• 1 Tbsp fresh basil, chopped

Source: Slightly adapted from I Was Born to Cook

Do you ever buy something, try it and think, "meh." Then a few days later you catch yourself grabbing for it thinking, "it wasn't that bad." That is until you are eating it and thinking, "I paid $3 for this, there is no way I am throwing this away." Who's with me?

I hate waste, and I've mentioned before that I'm really trying to cut down on it. One thing I'm learning is that if I stick to cooking staples, I'm better off. However, I've mentioned before I have an obsession with jelly and jams. Whenever I see a unique flavor I have to pick it up. More ofthen than not I like it, however, once in awhile something comes along that just isn't pleasing to my palate.

Enter mango passion fruit fruit spread. It sounds good, but it's not. I've tried it several times thinking, "it wasn't that bad" and after tasting it I remember, "meh." Thanks to Branny Boils Over, I found a way to use up those "meh" jelly and jams that really isn't that bad!

These chicken skewers were super simple and have a lot of palate-pleasing flavor. I was a little apprehensive about rosemary with these flavors, but it worked so I'm thinking you could substitute with just about any flavor jelly/jam/fruit spread. If you're apprehensive about the rosemary, go ahead and use another herb in it's place.

Here is what you'll need:

• 2 springs fresh rosemary, divided
• 1 tsp brown sugar
• salt and pepper 
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed of excess fat and cut into 1-inch cubes
• 1/2 cup mango passion fruit fruit spread
• 2 tsp soy sauce
• 2 tsp white wine vinegar 
• oil for the grill

Combine 1 sprig of rosemary, brown sugar, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes in a mixing bowl. Add the chicken cubes and mix well to coat all the pieces.

Place chicken on skewers and allow to marinate 30 minutes.

Preheat grill to medium-high heat.

Just before grilling, combine remaining rosemary, fruit spread, soy sauce and vinegar in a small saucepan. Heat over medium-low heat until well combined and thinned out. Set aside. (You could even heat this on the grill while the chicken is cooking).

Brush a little oil on the grill grate to help prevent the chicken from sticking. Place the chicken skewers on the grill and cook for about 3-5 minutes per side until browned. Turn skewers every 3-5 minutes until 3 sides are browned. When the last side is browning, use a pastry brush to coat the kabobs with the fruit glaze.

Total cooking time is about 12-14 minutes. Serves 2.

Source: Adapted from Fine Cooking via Branny Boils Over

I can't believe it's been just 3 short weeks since I last posted about my garden! Big things are happening here, and I'm so excited. First, take a look at this beautiful bowl of greens (arugula, romaine and spinach), scallions and chives that I picked for dinner tonight. Paired with those apple sized radishes and sweet red onions from the farmer's market, we had a crunchy, slightly spicy and fresh salad to accompany dinner tonight.

Okay, now on to the big things. We went from this:


to this! In 3 weeks!

Thank you sun, rain and amazing soil! As you can see, all the squash are healthy! We're seeing signs of baby zucchini...

and white turnip heads....

Sugarsnap peas are flowering as well, the scallions may make it, however, the dill was a bust and has bolted.

The tomatoes are strong, with a few plants already flowering.


And the black raspberries, well, we got them fenced and netted. However, as you can see, they've bolted right through the netting and continue to be out of control. They are producing a lot of fruit which I'm pleased about. I need to read up on the possibilities of transplanting these bushes. We're talking about moving them to the back of the yard, away from the house, since they are a bit unsightly. Not to mention, they are growing up under the siding now.

JR's birthday was this week and I had a lot of making up to do. Last year I spoiled his birthday weekend, big time. Yep, I graced his birthday with an unplanned 2-night hospital stay (no worries, I'm fine!) which resulted in him backing out of his guy's racing trip. Fortunately, my family is awesome and brought dinner, including a few slices of cheesecake, over for him to enjoy on his birthday, the day I came home.

This cheesecake was a year late, but JR said it was worth it! The combination of creamy filling, a slightly crunchy crust and the unique cinnamon layer in between makes for one unexpectedly light and unique dessert.

In terms of cheesecake, this was fairly easy to make. Although, it did end up with a huge crack in it after cooling, but after drizzling it I didn't think it looked too bad. I bumped up the ingredients for the crust since I have a 10 inch cheesecake pan. If your pan is smaller, check the original recipe.

Here is what you'll need:

For the Crust:

• 2 cups graham cracker crumbs
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 6 1/2 Tbsp butter, melted

Preheat oven to 325F degrees.

In a mixing bowl, combine crust ingredients until combined. Pour into cheesecake pan and press into bottom and up sides of pan.


Place pan in oven and bake for 8 minutes. Remove and set aside.

For the Filling:

• 16 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 24 oz sour cream
• 3 eggs, slightly beaten
• 1 2/3 cup (10 oz) HERSHEY'S Cinnamon Chips, divided
• 1 tsp shortening (do not use butter, margarine, spread or oil)

Increase oven temperature to 350F degrees.

Place cream cheese, sugar and vanilla in a mixing bowl. Beat on medium speed until well combined.

Add sour cream and beat on low until combined. Add eggs and beat on low until combined.

Pour 1/2 of filling mixture over baked crust and spread with a rubber spatula to level. Sprinkle 1 1/3 of cinnamon chips over filling. Pour remaining filling over cinnamon chips and spread with a rubber spatula to level.

Place cheesecake on baking sheet and place in oven. Bake for 1 hour until center is set, it jiggles slightly when the pan is tapped.

Remove from oven and cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack. Run a sharp knife around the inner edge of the pan to separate the cheesecake from the pan. Cool for another 30 minutes on a wire rack. Remove side of cheesecake pan and cool for another 1 hour on wire rack. (At this point, I covered the cheesecake and refrigerated it overnight.)

Combine cinnamon chips and shortening in a small bowl and microwave 30 seconds. Stir. Continue to microwave for 30 seconds and stir until chips are melted. Drizzle melted chips over the cheesecake, cover and refrigerate for 4 hours. (I did this step in the morning and served it the same evening). Serves 12 to 14.

Source: Hershey's

Here is what you'll need:

• 8 lbs Italian sausage (I used 6 lbs sweet and 2 lbs hot), cut into large chunks
• 3 green bell peppers, cut into large chunks
• 3 red bell peppers, cut into large chunks
• 3 Vidalia onions, cut into large chunks
• 8 cloves of garlic
• 2 Tbsp Italian seasoning
• sea salt 
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Evenly split all of the ingredients into 2 large baking pans (I used a large disposable sterno rack pan and a large roasting pan). Mix everything to be sure the sausage, peppers and onions are evenly coasted with seasonings and oil.

Bake for 75-90 minutes, or longer if required, stirring occasionally until sausage is browned and cooked through. If you are cooking both pans at the same time, you may find the top pan browns and cooks through sooner than the bottom pan. If this happens, rotate the pans to the opposite rack at around 45 minutes.

When the sausage is done I dump it all into the sterno rack pan and cover it with aluminum foil so it can be kept warm during the gathering.

Servings: 32 based on 1/4 lb of meat per person and taking into account there is variety of food, including other meats, to choose from. For a normal dinner to serve 2-4, I would cut this down to 1 lb of meat and divide the other ingredients by 6.

Source: Adventures in My Kitchen original