Butter Pecan Picnic Cake

This was as rich and simple as a cake can get. I had two people find me after the oneg/potluck to tell me how much they liked it, enough to turn a girl's head! If someone is impressed enough to come find you to give a compliment then it must be pretty good. So, all that in order to urge you to go try it!
There is no pretty "finished/ plated" photo because it went to be served at the congregation, but the cake was moist and light, the frosting super rich and those salted pecans were a temptation all by themselves.

 Batter:
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup water
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup + 2 tablespoons flour (all purpose, or white spelt work well)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup sour cream, rounded (that means "just a tad over")
Frosting:
1/2 cup butter
3 tablespoons cream or 1/2 & 1/2
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 - 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
dash salt
Pecans:
1/2 cup pecan pieces
1 teaspoon butter
pinch salt
Lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking pan, set aside. Preheat oven to 375F.
Prepare pecans by tossing with butter and salt on a small pan. When you bake the cake just put them into the oven for 10 minutes of the baking time. They should become very fragrant but not darken.

Put melted butter and water into a large mixing bowl.

Add sugar, flour, salt, and baking soda. Stir with a whisk until smooth. Add eggs and vanilla, stir, again, until smooth. Stir in sour cream until blended well.

Pour into the prepared pan.

 Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Set aside to cool slightly while making the frosting.

Melt butter in a small heavy bottom sauce pan.

Remove from heat and stir in the cream (or 1/2 & 1/2), powdered sugar, vanilla, and dash salt. Stir vigorously until smooth.

Allow to cool for 10 minutes. Pour onto cake while still warm, spread evenly.

Sprinkle the toasted pecans onto frosting before it cools.

There you have it! Simple and tasty for dessert or with coffee and friends.

A Remoulade Sauce for All Occasions

Spicy and creamy, goes with almost everything...almost. I served this with Faux Crab Cakes, but we like it on fish, chicken, cheap steak (you don't need anything on a good one), and french fries...or a baked potato...onion rings...a sandwich,see, almost anything.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup mayo
1 tablespoon coarse/stone ground mustard
2 teaspoons cream, milk or 1/2 & 1/2
1 1/2 teaspoons prepared horseradish
1/4 of a small onion
1/2 teaspoon parsley
1/2 teaspoon white vinegar
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground cayenne
1 pinch salt

Just put all the ingredients in a food processor, blender or a stick blender cup, whirl until smooth. If you don't have any of these handy appliances, simply mince the onion and parsley finely and stir all the ingredients in a bowl or shake in a jar.

Serve chilled. Store in refrigerator for a week.
Faux Crab Cakes http://hearthandhospitality.blogspot.com/2012/05/faux-crab-cakes-made-with-white-tuna.html so good with remoulade sauce.

Faux Crab Cakes, Made With White Tuna

These were so good, my daughter and I split the last one, not even a crumb left. 4 cakes, 3 people...gone.
So easy to put together, any level of cook can handle this.

Here you go my kosher friends, you can have your crab cake and eat it too. Since it uses white tuna it has a very mild flavor mingled with red pepper, tasty bread crumbs and just a hint of spice. If you need yours gluten free then just use your favorite gluten free bread to make crumbs, I had some left over challah crumbs in the freezer which added a bonus richness to the cakes but any bread crumb would be good. For Pesach you can make use of the matzoh sitting on the counter you don't know what else to with, just crush to make crumbs. Or use Joseph's Pita or Lavish bread, toasted, and crumbled for the Trim Healthy Mamas (love this bread) -they would be and S.

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons oil, I used grapeseed but use what you like
1 medium onion, minced
1/2 red bell pepper, minced
2 large cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce
1  6oz. can white albacore tuna, drained
1 tablespoon mayo
1/2 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning
1/2 cup bread crumbs, more or less depending on how large the egg is
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
2 (more) tablespoons oil for frying
Saute onion and red pepper in the first 2 tablespoons of oil in a medium sized skillet over medium heat. When tender, about 6 or 7 minutes, add the garlic, stir, set aside to cool.

In a large bowl, mix all the ingredients except the last oil.

Form into 4 patties. If too dry to hold together then add a little more mayo. If too moist then add more bread crumbs, they just need to hold their shape.
Heat the other 2 tablespoons oil in the same skillet and saute the patties about 2 minutes on each side or until golden.

  Drain on a paper towel.

 Serve with remoulade sauce, tartar sauce, plain or in a bun like in Maryland.

You can make these much smaller for appetizers, or this size made a good main dish or would fit a nice bun. 

How to make your own bread crumbs  http://hearthandhospitality.blogspot.com/2012/01/fresh-bread-crumbs-anytime.html .

How to make your own remoulade sauce http://hearthandhospitality.blogspot.com/2012/05/remoulade-sauce-for-all-occasions.html

Look for this recipe also seen on Stacy Makes Cents and Gwen's Nest .

And thank you to Serene and Pearl for their hard work at Trim Healthy Mama.

Saucy Red Pepper Chicken with Rice

Spicy, creamy, and loaded with both chicken and veggies, makes a great "uni-meal" (a one dish meal) or serve with a crisp green salad for more nutrition.
For Low Carb or Trim Healthy Mamas use Dreamfield's Pasta instead of rice.

For 4 servings:
1 red pepper, sliced
1 yellow pepper, sliced
2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, grilled
3 tablespoons parsley
1 onion, diced
1 tablespoon flour, all purpose, spelt, rice flour, or a pinch of xanthan gum
2 tablespoons butter
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2-1 teaspoon ancho chile powder
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup cream
salt and pepper to taste
white or brown rice, cooked according to package directions
Caution: blurry photos ahead because this meal goes together so quickly it was hard to photograph and cook!

In a medium heavy bottomed skillet, saute the onion and peppers in the butter until they begin to "sweat" (throw off some juice), add the garlic, saute for a few seconds more.

 Reduce heat to medium. Add the flour, salt and pepper, stirring constantly for a minute until the flour cooks and starts to thicken.

 Add the milk and cream.

 Stir and cook on medium until thick and all is well coated.

 Reduce heat to low. Cut the grilled chicken into slices.

 Either in a large serving bowl or individual bowls, place a bed of rice with the chicken.

 Spoon sauce on top.

 Sprinkle with parsley.

Serve, enjoy!

Caramel Glazed Pear Cake

Yeah, I know, yum. It was even better than it looks! The cake itself is so moist that it stays fresh for several days, if it lasts that long.
My daughter found the original recipe a few years ago in a Southern Living magazine, we've been making it ever since, with very few changes.
Ingredients:
4 ripe bartlett pears, peeled and chopped (3 cups)
1 tablespoon sugar
3 eggs
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 1/4 cups oil (I used 1/2 coconut and 1/2 canola)
3 cups flour (all purpose or spelt)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon soda
1 cup pecans, chopped
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
 Combine flour, salt, and soda. Set aside.

Pretty pears, before chopping.

Toss pears in 1 tablespoon sugar, set aside to "sweat" (get juicy). 

Mix the oil and sugar. Add the eggs and vanilla.

Mix in the dry ingredients.

Add the pecans and pears, folding gently to combine.

Scrape into a well greased and floured 10" bundt pan.

Bake at 350F. for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Allow to rest in the pan for 10 minutes before turning onto a serving plate. Make sure the plate is larger than the diameter of the cake so the glaze doesn't run off.

Before the cake is cool, make the glaze.
Glaze:
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup heavy cream
Combine all these in a heavy bottom sauce pan over medium heat.Bring to boil stirring constantly for 2 1/2 minutes until the sugar is no longer grainy. Pour over cake while still warm.
Let cool if desired before digging in.

Glaze has a lovely texture when cool and has seeped into the cake lending an almost crusty exterior to the moist inner cake. Wow.