Crockpot Creamed Corn

One of the Bass Thanksgiving traditional foods is Jeanine's creamed corn. It's rich, creamy with bright bursts of sweetness when you bite into the corn.  This year my in-laws weren't able to join us for Thanksgiving and they requested this recipe to make and bring to their potluck Thanksgivings with their friends.  It's great for fall or winter potlucks as you can make it in a crock pot and keep it warm all night long.

Gulliver's Creamed Corn

INGREDIENTS

2 boxes (8 oz) frozen corn

1 c milk

1 c whipping cream

2 T butter

2 T flour

2 T sugar

INSTRUCTIONS

On the stove pot:
In a large pot, melt butter.
Stir in flour till well mixed with butter.
Add rest of ingredients.  Cook until thickened.

In a crock pot:
"I use the crock pot to give me more room on the stove and you don’t have to watch it as closely so it doesn’t burn. I put mine in in the morning on high and then once it’s thickened, I turn it to low until it’s time to serve." - Jeanine

At meal time, creamed corn is served in vintage colored, textured glass dishes my mother inherited from her Aunt Mary.  They are green, orange, brown and red... perfect for our Thanksgiving table.

Mom loves her cream corn unseasoned. She says its so everyone can season it to their taste but really I just think she prefers the sweet cream taste.  I usually season it with sea salt, ground pepper and would serve it with some chopped parsley to brighten the flavor.

Tart Cherry Pie

Cherries are one of my favorite fruits and cherry pie is one of my favorite Thanksgiving pies.  Growing up when mom would make extra pies to feed everyone it always seemed there was never enough cherry pie!

INGREDIENTS
2 cans red tart cherries in water
1 1/2 c sugar
5 tbsp corn starch
pie shell and top crust

Drain cherries, saving the juice.  Mix sugar and cornstarch together so there are no lumps.  Pour mixture into juice in a saucepan and cook, stirring constantly until the sauce is thick and clear.  Cool for about 5 minutes then add the cherries and stir.  Pour into a pie shell and top with the crust.  Put a whole in the center of the top crust to let the steam escape.  Bake at 425 for 40 minutes or until the crust is done.

Traditional Granny Smith Apple Pie

It's not Thanksgiving with out mom's traditional apple pie! Mom prides her self on stuffing her pies with more fruit than the usual bakery restaurant bought pies so you can always tell her apple pies based on the big domed top crust.

INGREDIENTS
8 to 10 granny smith apples, peeled, cored, and sliced
sugar
cinnamon
pie shell and top crust

INSTRUCTIONS
Put a little water in the bowl with the apples and sprinkle a little sugar and some cinnamon over the top.  Mix well.  Put into the pie shell and put the top crust on.  Crinch the sides closed using your thumb and first two fingers or a fork. Put a small hole in the middle of the top to let the steam escape.  Bake at 350 about 50 minutes or until the pie crust looks done -- slightly golden and flaky dry.

Thanksgiving Pecan Pie

I absolutely love Pecan Pie for Thanksgiving!  My husband is allergic to walnuts and pecans so I don't ever cook with them any more. So Thanksgiving is one of the few times a year I can indulge in my love of these nuts as my mom, Jeanine, the 'traditional' partner of Creative Tradition, usually bakes them. She uses the recipe on the back of the Karon corn syrup and uses Grammy's Pie Crust though it would still taste yummy if you used a store-bought graham cracker crust.

We usually half slices of pecan pie as it is very rich. And well, it's Thanksgiving!  If you take half slices of pie you can taste every pie and not feel guilty for eating 4 full pieces!

Karo Pecan Pie

INGREDIENTS
1 c Karo corn syrup
3 eggs, slightly beaten
1 c sugar
2 tbsp margarine or butter, melted
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 c pecans
1 unbaked pie shell

INSTRUCTIONS
Stir together the first 5 ingredients, then add the pecans.
Pour all into the pie shell and bake at 350 for 50 – 55 minutes.
Serve with whipped cream.

Real Pumpkin Pie

A family favorite at Thanksgiving is mom's famous pumpkin pie. We never were allowed to carve pumpkins for Halloween.  We could pick out our own pumpkins and put them on display at the front door. But after Halloween, before they rotted, mom would cut up the pumpkins, roast seeds, and boil the pumpkin flesh in preparation for Thanksgiving pumpkin pies.

I've had bakery restaurant pumpkin pie before and it was good, but the pie filling was so mushy.  Using real pumpkins and not canned gives a better texture and very fresh taste.  It is more work but definitely worth it!

INGREDIENTS
2 c pumpkin
3/4 c sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
3/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves
3 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 c whipping cream
1/2 c milk
1 unbaked pie shell

Combine pumpkin, sugar, and spices.  Blend in eggs, cream, and milk.  Stir until well blended.  Pour into pie shell and bake at 400 for 40 to 45 minutes or until a knife in the center comes out clean.

Best Roasted Chicken I've Ever Tasted

On a recent trip to Pier1 I found a roasting pan on clearance for just $25. I had only cooked a full bird once before. When I was 16 my mom had me cook our family's Thanksgiving dinner. It was a lot of fun but whole poultry just seemed a bit too daunting with out my mom in the kitchen to answer my questions.   I thought it was time to give it a try on my own, get some good use out of my new  roasting pan, and hopefully find another healthy meal to enjoy on a regular basis.

I did a quick search online and discovered Eating Well's Simple Roast Chicken Recipe. It didn't have too many ingredients, simple cooking instructions, and even had calorie information. I followed the recipe exactly instead of my usual glance and do whatever I want type of cooking. I'm glad I did. Even though  I was hesitant about using tarragon in the stuffing (I don't like the smell of it) everything turned out delicious! 

Nothing is so satisfying as a perfectly golden brown meat.

I served the roasted chicken, minus the onion herb stuffing, with roasted vegetables and a box of Stove Top Chicken Stuffing. I cooked on the rack above the chicken for the last 30 minutes. Just drizzle with olive oil and throw some extra tarragon and thyme with some carrots, pearl onions and mushroom caps.

Perfect side dish: oven roasted vegetables with thyme.

Want to try it for yourself? Visit Eating Well's Simple Roast Chicken Recipe.

A Valentine's Day Salad full of Heart

This Valentine's day my husband and I had our traditional home cooked meal of Chicken Parmesan.  It's his favorite meal but I don't make it too often. I still haven't found a recipe that I like enough to keep in our standard rotation of meals.

I did a bit of research to see what new recipe I could try this year and I found the Hungry Happenings blog.  Beth has some great recipes but I especially like how she creates themed meals. She won me over with her heart shaped Chicken Parmesan recipe but her Salad with Tomato Hearts completely made the meal!  You can see how our Valentine's Salad inspired by Hungry Happenings turned out this year.  The instructions how to create the hearts are so simple I might be adding grape tomato hearts to all of our salads through out the year.

The best part was the look on my husband's face when he saw the tomato hearts.  It was the icing on the cake... or the tomato heart on the salad ;)

Garlic Mushroom Couscous Recipe

Continuing on with our healthier traditions in 2012 I'm experimenting with new recipes and products.  This is the second time I cooked couscous, the first being a winter salad for our annual Christmas party.  The salad didn't make much of an impression on my guests but I had left over dry couscous and wanted something healthier then mashed potatoes (my personal weakness) so I tried a savory couscous last night. It turned out very nice with sauteed chicken breast, white wine gravy and roasted fancy carrots.

Garlic Mushroom Couscous
Makes about 2 cups.

INGREDIENTS
1 Tbl. butter or olive oil
1 Tbl. minced garlic
2 medium shallots
1/4 cup chives
1/2 to 1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 cup chicken broth, reduced sodium
1 cup couscous

Healthier Traditions in 2012

New Year's has never been a big deal to me so it didn't seem that important of a date to change my life over by making shallow resolutions. My birthday, especially big ones, are great days to make goals for myself. However, now that I'm married and we have combined goals it makes more sense to set goals at the beginning of the year. This is the first year we've decided to set goals. Last year, our first year of marriage, was spent celebrating, redecorating, and generally getting used to each other's schedules.  Now its time to get our married life organized.

Our first goal is to live a healthier lifestyle with more activity and more home cooked meals.  We're starting breakfast with some great products I've discovered recently.  Both my husband and I don't really eat breakfast during the week, something I've learned isn't that healthy as you should be eating more than 200 calories for breakfast.  My husband's solution was LeanPockets but I've convinced him to have fruit smoothie and english muffin. 

We discovered Orrowheat's Double Fiber English Muffins  while visiting my in-laws.  They are filling, give us the extra fiber, and taste a bit sweet because of the wheat just at 120 calories per muffin. A spray or two of I Can't Believe It's Not Butter! Spray give it a perfect hint of butter with just 1 calorie per spray.

Cuisinart Compact Blender

A post-Christmas shopping trip to Bed Bath & Beyond led me to the Cuisinart SmartPower Compact Blender with 4 16oz travel cups and lids, chopper, and blender bowl.  At $70, it's more expensive then other compact blenders on the market (like $20 ones at Target) but it has larger travel cups, more of them, and a trusted brand name.  If you get it at Bed Bath & Beyond you can use a 20% off coupon and there is a $20 mail-in rebate making it about $40!

The blender is perfectly matched with Jamba Juice Smoothie Kits I found at Ralphs.  For a 16oz smoothie at 120 calories, add 1 smoothie kit bag of frozen fruit and a cup of juice or milk in a travel cup and blend.  It's that simple!   If I can't finish the smoothie that morning, I save the travel cup in the fridge then add more frozen fruit to thicken it up the next morning.  I also got a few Yoplait Smoothie mixes but I haven't tried them yet.  Next thing I'm going to look for are smoothie boosts like Jamba Juice has in their shops to add protein to the morning smoothie mix.

All together that makes about 245 calories for a healthy breakfast of fruit and fiber!

2011 Christmas Celebrations

Our Christmas Celebrations are always jam packed with activities, family and food!  This year was no different.

Christmas Eve Afternoon
We spent the afternoon at my grandparent's for lunch and games.  Grammy has the most beautiful china and always gets to set a lovely table.  She also researches great games, puzzles, and trivia for us to play to bring back great childhood memories, learn more about the history of Christmas or just have fun. She served her famous Swedish Meatballs that take forever to cook and she hates them for months after serving them but they always are a huge hit with everyone!

Grammy's beautifully set table

Christmas Eve Night
We spent the evening after church at my parent's house.  We enjoyed playing BuzzWord and snacking on a wonderful Bass spread of Christmas jello, clam dip, chips and dip, cheese and crackers.  After the game we opened our yearly Christmas Pajamas and Ornaments.

Jeanine's famous Christmas Jello

Christmas Day
The morning each family spent at their individual homes unwrapping presents.  The afternoon and evening were spent at my house for games and dinner.

Every Christmas Dinner I like to try a different recipe but always with lamb.  This year was Herb Crusted Rack of Lamb with a Cabernet sauce served with Roasted Carrots, Mushrooms and Brussel Sprouts and Mashed Potatoes.  My sister and I artistically plated each serving and provided extras family style for people to have seconds.  After two years of rack of lamb its been decided we will try a different cut of lamb next year to spend less time getting to the meat ;)  I still think two chops look the best and so elegant on a plate.

Table set for Christmas Dinner

For our wedding we received a large trifle bowl as a present but it cracked in shipment. I returned it and decided to get 12 individual trifle bowls from Pier 1 instead.  I love them for entertaining.  I wanted to make a family favorite, Raspberry Trifle, but my husband doesn't like fruit deserts. He wanted chocolate.  So I ended up making half Raspberry and half Chocolate.  Not only do the deserts look delicious, they are much easier to make then they look and with Sugar Free or Fat Free options can be a nice lighter desert.

Raspberry Trifle and alternative Chocolate Trifle

The best part of hosting a party is seeing all the empty plates and licked clean bowls of desert.  We all enjoyed a round of Disney Apples to Apples, a Christmas present opened that morning, while moaning at how wonderful the meal and the entire day was.

Clean bowls and fun games!

In-Law's Thanksgiving Left Overs Spinach Salad

I'm really particular about left overs.  There are only a few things I like left over, some of them are Thanksgiving goodies like mashed potatoes, stuffing and pearled onions. But once they are gone I'm usually left with lots of turkey and you can only have sandwiches so many times.

Thankfully my mother-in-law shared a new salad that is perfect for Thanksgiving left overs. It looks and tastes vibrant and fresh, completely opposite of usual beige left overs! 

INGREDIENTS

Spinach
Turkey or Chicken meat, cubed or flaked
Cranberry sauce (Trader Joe's Cranberry Orange Relish is delicious!)
White Stilton cheese with Cranberries
Pepitas (Pumpkin Seeds) or Candied Pecans
Balsamic Vinaigrette

What's your favorite way to have Thanksgiving left overs?

Mom's Blue Ribbon French Glaze Strawberry Pie

This strawberry pie is special. It's not your average grocery store or bakery pie.  It's refreshing, vibrant, and delicious.  It's my favorite desert, which says a lot growing up with a baker who makes 8 pies for Thanksgiving, never mind her cakes or cherry cream cheesecake.

For years my mother, Jeanine Bass, submitted her strawberry pie into the Orange County Fair.  Every year she won a blue ribbon and usually the best in category.   At the fair, most pies would be on display missing a small sliver that was tasted for judging.  That wasn't true of my mom's strawberry pie. They were half eaten, the judges just couldn't stop with a little taste! One year, our lives got more complicated with kids and activities so she wasn't able to submit a pie to the fair. That year no blue ribbons were awarded to the fruit pies... everyone missed her amazing strawberry pie.

One of my childhood favorite memories of my mother baking her pies was hoping that she didn't use all of the glaze. If we were good and helped her in the kitchen making the crust or stacking the berries she would give us a bowl of fresh strawberries and the left over glaze to dip them into.

Grammy's Pie Crust
Makes 1 covered pie or two single pies.

INGREDIENTS
3 cup flour
1 tsp. salt
1 cup shortening
3/4 cup warm water

BBQ Kabobs: Chicken, Beef and Veggies

Our family loves hosting weekend barbecues with friends and family but after awhile everyone gets sick of the same old burgers, hot dogs or chicken.  A couple of years ago my mother and I decided to try something different and make shish kabobs. We found some marinade recipes online and gave them a try.  Like always, after trying the recipe for the first time I started making all kinds of changes to heighten the flavor.  Now we're going to share the perfected marinade recipe with you to enjoy at your summer BBQs!

Meat and Marinade
2 pounds cubed chicken, beef or both!
2 cups vegetable oil
1 cup soy sauce
2/3 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup teriyaki sauce

Spinachless Spinach Dip

Ever tried Knorr's Spinach Dip? It's delicious!  But I'm not a big fan of spinach, I used to spend 20 minutes defrosting the spinach and chopping it finer and finer, and then I'd only put in half of the spinach.  Then a couple times later I only used a quarter of the spinach. Then I realized, why even add spinach?  Since then I've never gone back!  And the amazing part is I get much more compliments with my adaptation.

My spinachless spinach dip is made from a double batch of Knorr's basic recipe with extra scallions (green onions) and water chestnuts. I also use less mayo mainly because I don't like mayonnaise.  If you like it you can double it following the ratios of Knorr's original recipe.

Makes about 6-7 cups.

INGREDIENTS

2 packages Knorr Vegetable recipe mix
2 16oz sour cream
1 cup mayo
3 8oz cans water chestnuts, drained and chopped
3 bunches of scallions (green onions), chopped
1 large bread bowl, hollowed out
1 french bread loaf, cubed

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Mix all ingredients together.
2. Place dip into bread bowl.
3. Chill at least 2 hours.
4. Serve with cubed bread or sour cream and onion chips (Lays with ridges taste great and are thick enough to handle this chunky dip).

Baba's Clam Dip

For all of our family BBQs we'd always ask my Baba (grandmother) if she was bringing her clam dip.  My mom never made it much, it was something special Baba did.  The problem was, she would only bring a batch or maybe 2.  With a family of 5 and parties of at least 10 people 2 batches were never enough. Finally my mom and I were able to get the recipe. While its one of our favorites, we don't always make this dip for our family gatherings, it still is a special item for special days, usually for Mother's Day, Father's Day or the Superbowl.

Makes about 1 cups. For parties, I recommend making 4 to 6 times the recipe.

INGREDIENTS

1 8oz box of cream cheese at room temperature
1 can minced clams
2 T mayonnaise
1 T lemon juice
1/2 t sugar
1/2 t Tabasco sauce

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Mix all ingredients together.
2. Chill at least 2 hours.
3. Serve with vegetables or sour cream and onion chips (Lays with ridges taste the best with the dip!).

Potluck Four Bean Salad

This recipe is a family favorite and is perfect for BBQs and potlucks. The vibrant colors of the different beans looks great and the dressing really brings out all the flavors.

I call it Grandma Freda's Bean Salad but I've been told its derived from a Betty Crocker recipe but I haven't found it on their web site. My Great Grandma Freda died 6 years ago and I always get nostalgic when I eat this salad. It reminds me of summer vacations I spent at her house as a child.

Makes about 10 cups.

INGREDIENTS

2 cans cut green beans
2 cans wax beans
1 can garbanzo beans
1 can red kidney beans
1 red onion
1 bell pepper (yellow or orange looks best)
1/2 cup sugar
2/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup salad oil
1/2 t salt
1/2 t pepper

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Open all cans of beans, drain, and place beans in a large bowl.
2. Slice bell peppers about the same size as the green or wax beans. Add to bowl.
3. Cut onion into medium squares, about 5/8". Add to bowl.
4. In a 2 cup glass measure, combine all remaining ingredients for the dressing. Whisk and pour over beans in the bowl. (I love the dressing so much, I usually double the dressing compared to the beans)
5. Cover bowl and refrigerate for at least 2 hours prior to serving.

OPTIONS

Mix the ratios of beans based on your preferences. I like to add an extra can of wax beans. I don't like bell peppers so I don't usually include them unless its for a potluck while my grandmother leaves out the onions.

Homemade Onion Rings

I love surprising my husband with yummy food. When I asked if he wanted onion rings he looked at me a little hesitantly and said he'd never had homemade onion rings before.  I had to remind him that I had made them for him when we were dating. I guess it wasn't all that remarkable the first time so I wanted to include him in making them so he would remember them this time.

The ingredients are simple but the process takes a a lot of space and time to cook everything... but its all worth it! They go great with burgers. We made turkey burgers with Everything Thin Bagels and even put some onion rings in the burgers. Super yummy!

INGREDIENTS

Onions
2-3 cups flour
4 eggs or 2 Egg Beaters cartons
3-4 cups Breadcrumbs
3 Tbsp Italian Seasonings
Salt & Pepper
4-6 cups of oil

March 2011 Craft Day: Parfaits

Every month or so we host a Craft Day for our friends to get together to talk and craft. At the last Craft Day I served simple yet delicious parfaits. They are great for parties because they are simple to prepare, don't make much of a mess, and look great when you're trying to show off to guests.

Parfaits look best in multiple layers of fruit, yogurt, fruit and sprinkled with granola served in glass bowls, like Pier1's mini trifle bowls.

Parfaits

INGREDIENTS

Plain or Vanilla low-fat Yogurt
Low-fat Granola
Basket of Strawberries
Basket of Blueberries
Basket of Blackberries

INSTRUCTIONS

Wash all berries.
Cut off strawberry tops.
Cut strawberries into smaller than bite size pieces.
I turn them upside down, with their stem side down, cut in half long ways, then cut 3-5 slices on each side.
Mix all berries together.
Serve berries, granola, and yogurt in individual bows.
Provide bowls for guests to construct their own parfaits.

Pasta Meal: Bachelor vs Newlywed

While we were dating, my husband would make his 'famous' meat sauce pasta. After a few times having it I helped make it even more delicious and healthy. Both versions of this recipe are quick, delicious and can impress your girlfriend, family, and friends.

This is also a great recipe to get started experimenting in the kitchen. The ingredients aren't too daunting and the instructions aren't complicated.

The Original Bachelor Recipe 

Serves 4.

INGREDIENTS

1 pound ground beef
1 box of angel hair pasta
4 cups Prego marinara sauce

INSTRUCTIONS

Follow the same instructions as the Newlywed Recipe, just skip all the vegetables!

The Newlywed Recipe
Serves 6. Pasta serving size 2 cups (513g): 574 kCal, 15g fat, 73g carbs, 37g protein, 80mg cholesterol, 1419mg sodium. Slice of Garlic Bread using french bread: 194 kCal, 15g Fat, 2g carbs, 13g protein, 29mg cholesterol, 611mg sodium. Calculated at MyNetDiary.com based on ingredients. Information will differ based on your brand choices.

INGREDIENTS

1 pound ground turkey
1 box of whole wheat pasta
4 cups Prego marinara sauce
1 onion, diced
3 gloves of garlic, sliced or chopped
1 can diced tomatoes (Hunt's No Salt Added)
1/2 bunch fresh parsley, coarsely chopped (or substitute with 3 Tbl dried parsley)
3 Tbl Italian seasonings

Simple Yet Sophisticated Fillet Mignon

My mother and I love to cook...
But, like in everything, we approach it with our own unique style. Jeanine strictly follows recipe, enjoying the pleasure of nurturing her family and friends.  Jenn, on the other hand, loosely follows recipes, loving to mix up the flavors and enjoying the calm that comes from stirring a slowly simmering sauce.  Most of the recipes I'll share here will have a Jeanine 'Traditional' version and a Jenn 'Creative' version.  (Isn't our company name just perfect for us?)  That way you can choose the recipe that works best for you. They will both be yummy, though in my biased opinion most of the Jenn recipes are yummier. ;)

However, for the first Creative Tradition recipe it's a Jenn Original recipe!  It's what I made for my husband and I for Valentine's Day this year.  I took a picture of it to share with my friends on Facebook then suddenly I was sharing the recipe in the comments. So really this recipe is what led to me finally getting around to starting our blog. So let's get to the good stuff...

Simple Yet Sophisticated Fillet Mignon
Doesn't this meal look so sophisticated and yummy?  Can you believe it only takes about 30 minutes?

INGREDIENTS

2 fillet mignons
1 bag of baby carrots with caps
1 bag of frozen Ore-Ida Steam-N-Mash Russet Potatoes