Brown Sugar Ham

Slacker, slacker, slacker. For some reason I didn't take a picture of tonight's dinner. I know that is disappointing since my photography skills are so stellar. Not! I am blaming it on my camera.

So, on that note, what camera do you use? I have decided to purchase a new one -- not only because of this blog but because I currently lose all of son's smiles by the time the camera goes click. Remember, he is two and he moves fast. Anyway, any help would be appreciated.

On to tonight....this is a really easy recipe and dummy proof. Yes, I said dummy proof -- that's why I love it. Hope you enjoy it.

Brown Sugar Glazed Ham
Prepackaged, fully cooked ham slice with the bone
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon orange juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place ham on rimmed baking sheet. Cover with brown sugar (use as much or as little as you want). Pour orange juice on sugar. Cook for 10-15 minutes. Serve with mashed potatoes.

Menu Plan Monday

I am chalking up last week to being incredibly busy. I didn't have a chance to cook a lot and was absolutely exhausted when I walked in the door. I hope to have a better week, so here's what I have planned.

For more great menu ideas, make sure you click over to I'm an Organized Junkie.

Monday: Brown Sugar Ham and Mashed Potatoes

Tuesday: Baked Ziti
Wednesday: Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic
Thursday: Pork Tenderloin
Friday: Eating Out
Saturday: Chicken Piccata Pasta Toss

Super Cute Ladybugs

Have I ever mentioned how much I love Etsy? No? Well, I do. I was introduced to Etsy when I ran across a picture of a cupcake on a ladder drinking a diet coke. Too cute. The image represents my love for sweet and the calories that I hate. Needless to say, I bought the photo and it is my office and I get a ton of comments.

A few weeks ago, I found some cute ladybug magnets on Etsy. Again, I couldn't resist them. I bought three and gave them to my son's teachers as a thank you gift. Why ladybugs? Well, besides the fact that ladybugs are very cute, his class would line up at the ladybug painted on the wall before going to the playground. It's one of the many fond memories that I will have of his first year at preschool.

It doesn't look like there are any ladybugs in Jaime's shop, but if you like 'em, I'm sure she will make them for you.

Apple Dumplings

Yum, yum, yum. I love these. They are delicious, easy to make and are gone in seconds. I can't tell you awesome these are. I found the recipe in a Rachel Ray Magazine and since butter and sugar are my two most favorite ingredients -- especially combined -- I decided this was just the recipe for me. You won't regret the calories, well maybe, but I still recommend them. Go buy some granny smith apples now!

Apple Dumplings

Flour, for dusting

One 8-ounce can crescent rolls

1 granny smith apple -- peeled, cored and cut into 8 wedges

1 stick (4 ounces) butter

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

3/4 cup Mountain Dew

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On a surface dusted with flour, unfold the rolls. Place an apple wedge on the wide edge of each piece of dough and roll up. Place the dumplings in an 8-inch square baking dish.

In a saucepan, melt the butter with the sugar and cinnamon over medium heat, stir in the Mountain Dew. Pour the mixture on the dumplings. Cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes; remove the foil and bake 15 minutes longer.

TWD: Better Late...

So, I am a little slow out of the gate with the Tuesdays With Dorie baking group. I did bake it last night, but I was just too exhausted to post the pictures. I was really looking forward to my first recipe thanks to Ashlee over at A Year in the Kitchen. I like bananas, but I don't like cooked bananas. Yeah, I know, a weird quirk. I thought it was pretty good, just wasn't a favorite. On a high note, I did learn how to marble and I was able to dust off my KitchenAid. Who doesn't love playing with that toy... it makes me feel like I am really a good baker besides just playing one. If you like "baked" bananas, this one is gonna be right up your alley.

Black-and-White Banana Loaf

1 1/3 c. all purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. freshly grated nutmeg

1 ½ ripe bananas, peeled

Squirt of fresh lemon juice

Grated zest of ½ lemon

1 tbsp. dark rum

2 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

1 stick plus 2 tbsp. room temperature butter

2/3 c. packed light brown sugar

1/3 c. sugar

4 large eggs

1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

½ c. whole milk

Center a rack in the oven and preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter an 8 ½ x4 ½ x 2 ½ inch loaf pan on an insulated baking sheet.Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg.In another small bowl, mash the bananas with lemon juice, zest, then stir in the rum.Melt the chocolate and 2 tbsp. butter together in a microwave or saucepan over simmering water.

Working with a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter at medium speed until creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the sugars and beat for 2-3 more minutes, until light and smooth. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition, then beat in vanilla. The batter will look curdled, and it will continue to look curdled as you add ingredients.

Reduce the mixer speed to low and add half the flour mixture, mixing only until it is just incorporated. With the mixer running, pour in the milk and when it is blended add the remaining dry ingredients.Scrape down the bowl and mix in the mashed bananas. The batter will look even lumpier.

Pour a little less than half the batter into the bowl with melted chocolate and stir to blend. Drop alternating spoonfuls of both batters into prepared pan (or follow any of the marbling techniques on page. 229). Then, using a knife, swirl the batters taking care not to overdo it.

Bake for 1 hour and 20 – 30 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean. Check after 30 minutes, if the cake browns too much, cover loosely with a foil tent. Transfer the cake to a cooling rack and let it cool for 15 minutes before removing it from the pan. Continue to cool on the rack.

Tuesdays With Dorie

I have to be honest...one of main reasons I started this blog was because every blog I visited kept talking about Tuesdays with Dorie. It sounded kinda fun and heck, if I really want to improve my baking skills, I might as well jump right on in. So, I have no idea if I am going to be able to hang with this talented group of bakers, but I am sure gonna try. My first official recipe is Black and White Banana Loaf.

It is currently in the oven as we speak -- with an hour left to go. Yep, that's right it's 10 p.m. my time and it still isn't done. I walked in after 9 p.m. and started baking. I'm not gonna post the pictures tonight -- I'm gonna pull it out of the oven and go to sleep. So, be patient with me...it will be up soon.

Baking For A Good Cause

Yesterday, I sent off my care package to the soldiers in Iraq. For those of you who have no idea what I am talking about, I'll rewind a week. I was blog-surfing and ran across a posting called Operation Baking Gals. It was a call to action asking bloggers to put their baking skills to good use and send some yummy desserts to our soldiers overseas. I immediately signed up and made some cookies last night. I have no idea if they will make it to Iraq, or heck, if they will be good by the time they arrive. Regardless, at least our soldiers know that we are supporting them.

I kept a few for the family and I finished the last one tonight. I decided to test out a new recipe from A Peek in Priscilla's Kitchen, the blog of an amazing 16-year old who loves to cook. She is quite talented and my skills pale in comparison. The cookies were delish and very easy to make. I'll definitely break these out again.

Best Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. hot water
1/2 tsp. salt
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream together the butter, white sugar, and brown sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Dissolve baking soda in hot water. Add to batter along with salt. Stir in flour, chocolate chips, and nuts. Drop by large spoonfuls onto ungreased pans. Bake for about 8-10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until edges are nicely browned.

Slow Cooker Sour Cream Pork Chops

I had some pork chops in the freezer and decided to add them in to my menu this week. I took some truth serum and I have to tell you that every time I have had pork chops, I ruin them. They are absolutely horrible. My husband has forbidden me to make them -- yes, they are that bad. I don't know what I do wrong -- they are just dry and gross.

I wasn't ready to give up on pork chops for life. I know that I can conquer them -- I just have to figure out what I am doing wrong. I still haven't unlock the secret, but I decided that my slow cooker hasn't let me down yet. I found a recipe on allrecipes. I had a volunteer committee meeting tonight so I didn't try them, but my husband said they were good. Yipee, redemption.

Sour Cream Pork Chops

6 pork chops
salt and pepper to taste
garlic powder to taste
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 large onion, sliced 1/4 inch thick
2 cubes chicken bouillon
2 cups boiling water
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 (8 ounce) container sour cream

Season pork chops with salt, pepper, and garlic powder, and then dredge in 1/2 cup flour. In a skillet over medium heat, lightly brown chops in a small amount of oil.

Place chops in slow cooker, and top with onion slices. Dissolve bouillon cubes in boiling water and pour over chops. Cover, and cook on Low 7 to 8 hours.

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F (95 degrees C). After the chops have cooked, transfer chops to the oven to keep warm. Be careful, the chops are so tender they will fall apart. In a small bowl, blend 2 tablespoons flour with the sour cream; mix into meat juices. Turn slow cooker to High for 15 to 30 minutes, or until sauce is slightly thickened. Serve sauce over pork chops over egg noddles.

Menu Plan Monday

I'm ready for another week of good food and good recipes. I have done really good with keeping to my menu which ultimately saves us money 'cause we like to eat out. I've got some new recipes in the rotation so hopefully they will be a big hit. For more great menus, stop by I'm An Organizing Junkie.

Monday: Sour Cream Pork Chops
Tuesday: Baked Ziti
Wednesday: Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic
Thursday: Pork Tenderloin
Friday: Eating Out
Saturday: Chicken Piccata Pasta Toss

On the Look Out for Good Cookbooks

Not only am I a lurker on a ton of blogs -- minus the SITS girls -- but I also lurk in bookstores. I have been spending a lot of time at my local Books-A-Million (right around the corner) trying to find a good cookbook. I obviously don't have to tell anyone that there is a ton of them out there. Can ya'll save me some money and tell me what are ya'll favorites -- baking or cooking? I am game for either. I just bought the latest book from Dorie Greenspan and will be cracking it open tomorrow. So, come on everyone -- don't stay in the shadows, I need ya'll.