Food Memories

Here's some great ideas to serve Mom on her special day. All of these recipes will round out to make an exceptional day for her. When you make homemade food, it's more special and meaningful and creates lasting memories. I hope you all have a wonderful and delicious day.


Baked Frittata
1 pound hardwood smoked bacon, cut into 3/4-inch pieces
1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
2 teaspoons sugar
1 - 16 ounce jar of roasted red bell peppers, cut into small bite size chunks
1/2 pound of sliced button mushrooms
1 - 14 ounce container or bag of baby spinach
1/2 cup of grated Parmesan
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 - 15 ounce container of ricotta cheese
12 large eggs
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Lightly oil a 9x13-inch baking pan with deep sides or a 2-quart baking dish with high sides.
In a large pan, cook the bacon pieces over medium heat until the fat reduces and the bacon is just crisp. Remove the bacon from the pan and drain all but about 1 tablespoon of the bacon drippings from the pan. Add 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil to the pan and add the sliced onions and 2 teaspoons sugar to the pan.  
Stir well and cook about 20 to 25 minutes, until golden stirring occasionally. Remove from pan and set aside. Add the spinach to the hot pan and stir down to cook and wilt the spinach, about 5 minutes. Remove from pan and set aside. Add the 1 tablespoon butter to the pan and saute the mushrooms until tender and cooked through, about 5 minutes over medium heat. Remove from pan and set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, salt and pepper - beat the mixture well.  Stir in 1 cup of the mozzarella, 1/4 cup of the Parmesan, and all of the ricotta cheese.  Stir in about 2/3 of each of the filling ingredients except for the remaining cheeses.  Pour the egg and filling mixture into a lightly oiled 9x13-inch baking pan. Distribute the remaining filling mixture evenly over the egg mixture.  Top the entire mixture with remaining cheese.
Bake the frittata at 450 degrees for 10 minutes till the edges have set and are starting to brown. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees and bake the frittata another 25 to 30 minutes until set in the middle and golden brown and puffed.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool to just warm or room temperature.

Recipe from Holly Hanks at the Salt Lake City Baking Examiner 



My Mother in law purchased me some really delicious pepper jelly at a boutique a while back and every since then, it's been my very favorite thing. This is a really great salad with a great pepper jelly salad dressing. It sounds strange, but it's really great, try it! 
 
Spinach Salad with Gorgonzola, Pistachios and Pepper Jelly Vinaigrette

1/4 cup pepper jelly

2 tablespoons cider vinegar

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

8 cups fresh baby spinach

1/3 cup crumbled gorgonzola cheese

1/4 cup roasted pistachios

1/4 cup pepper jelly

 

Place jelly in a 1 cup glass measure.  Microwave on high for 30 seconds.  Add cider vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper and whisk until blended.  You can do this in advance, refrigerate, but bring to room temp before using.

Combine spinach, cheese and pistachios in large salad bowl.  Drizzle vinegar mixture over salad and toss well.  Serve immediately.

 

 

This was one of the very first gluten free breads I made myself. It's been a great sweet bread and easy to make. glutenfreeonashoestring was a huge help to me when first starting out. They have amazing recipes so check them out. 

 

Chocolate Chip Yogurt Bread gluten free

1 3/4 cups gluten free flour ( I used Pillsbury blend)
6 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon xanthan gum (omit if your blend already contains it)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 cup granulated sugar
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup plain yogurt, at room temperature
2 eggs at room temperature, beaten
3 ounces miniature chocolate chips, tossed with 1 teaspoon cornstarch

Preheat your oven to 350°F. Grease well a standard 9-inch by 5-inch loaf pan and set it aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large bowl with a hand mixer), place the flour blend, cornstarch, xanthan gum, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar, and whisk to combine well with a separate, handheld whisk. Create a well in the center of the dry ingredients, and add the butter, yogurt and eggs. Mix on medium speed to combine with the paddle attachment (or your handheld mixer) after each addition. The batter will be thick. Add the chocolate chips tossed with cornstarch, and mix with a spatula or spoon until the chips are evenly distributed throughout the batter. Scrape into the prepared baking pan and, with wet hands, smooth the top. To create a dome shape, run a wet spatula along the edges of the pan and pull the batter toward the center. For a uniform split down the center as the bread rises in the oven (instead of a more haphazard split), slash down the center of the loaf with a sharp knife, about 1/4-inch deep.
Place the pan in the center of the preheated oven and bake for 30 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 325°F, and continue to bake for another 20 minutes, or until the top of the loaf springs back when pressed lightly and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with, at most, a few moist crumbs attached. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the loaf pan for 15 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Slice once cool and serve.