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"From Scratch"

Reality TVClubHouse Discussions: General Discussions ARCHIVES: Jan ~ Apr 2009: Cooking Corner: "From Scratch" users admin

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Costacat
Member

07-15-2000

Tuesday, October 21, 2008 - 7:43 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Costacat a private message Print Post    
Roxi, the jamming thing? We really have turned it into a girls' day. So we make it fun, we chat and catch up, all while we are prepping fruit, cooking fruit, and bottling the jams. We know that we'll spend a large part of Sunday doing this (especially if you think that I'm at the farmer's market before 9am, she's getting all the utensils out and pre-measuring sugar and other items, and I don't leave her house till after 3pm!). But we make it fun, and then we have something tangible.

I love to cook, but I have for a long time. I grew up hanging around a stove. And because I'm a vegetarian and I eat healthy anyways, I've always had to take a creative aspect to cooking.

Just take baby steps. Spend a day on the weekend playing around in the kitchen, fixing or prepping dinners for that night and the week. Then you can reap the rewards during the week.

And a little tip. When I try a new recipe, something I'm not familiar with, I'll follow the recipe exactly. After that? I'll play around, changing ingredients, spices, whatever, to make it my own. If you know what's supposed to happen, then it's easy to imagine what WILL happen if you change it up.

Also, don't forget. Some "cooks" (like, gag, Rachel Ray) can't bake. So you're halfway home if you're a baker! :-)

Landileigh
Member

07-29-2002

Tuesday, October 21, 2008 - 9:08 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Landileigh a private message Print Post    
i'm so tired of cooking tomatoes down i could scream!

Costacat
Member

07-15-2000

Tuesday, October 21, 2008 - 9:12 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Costacat a private message Print Post    
LOL Landi! I got really REALLY ambitious one year and decided to make catsup. Never again! It took over 12 hours to cook down to the proper consistency (maybe if I'd started with romas it wouldn't have taken so long). And I swear my house smelled like tomato for weeks on end! Yuck.

That period of time, I'd do a lot of canning at the ex-f's place. And then I'd pack everything up that wasn't in a jar or freezer bag and take it home and finish it up at my place. Mostly a lot of tomato-based stuff, so I always felt as if I smelled like a spaghetti dinner! :-)

Roxip
Member

01-29-2004

Tuesday, October 21, 2008 - 10:05 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Roxip a private message Print Post    
I think if a friend would do it with me it wouldn't be so bad. I spent a day with a friend once making Christmas treats and it was one of the best days ever!

Shelby (my DD) likes to "help" in the kitchen but unfortunately her attention span is short...I think she might have inherited it from me!

Serate
Member

08-21-2001

Monday, January 19, 2009 - 7:20 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Serate a private message Print Post    
Anybody have a good recipe for pancakes?

Goddessatlaw
Member

07-19-2002

Monday, January 19, 2009 - 7:30 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Goddessatlaw a private message Print Post    
Make Bisquick pancakes (recipe on the box) but substitute beer for milk. Fluffiest pancakes you will ever eat.

Karen
Member

09-06-2004

Monday, January 19, 2009 - 12:58 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Karen a private message Print Post    
I have a good recipe for pancakes, Serate, if you can wait until I get home. My dad used to love pancakes and perfected his recipe. We even had a pancake breakfast in his honour immediately following his funeral. I can't eat pancakes from a mix.

Serate
Member

08-21-2001

Tuesday, January 20, 2009 - 6:46 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Serate a private message Print Post    
Um, thanks GAL but Bisquick isn't allowed in my house.

Serate
Member

08-21-2001

Tuesday, January 20, 2009 - 6:47 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Serate a private message Print Post    
Karen sorry I didn't get back here until today but sure I'd love the recipe whenever you have a chance. No rush.

Goddessatlaw
Member

07-19-2002

Tuesday, January 20, 2009 - 7:28 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Goddessatlaw a private message Print Post    
? Why no Bisquick? Is someone allergic to the ingredients or something?

Serate
Member

08-21-2001

Tuesday, January 20, 2009 - 7:57 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Serate a private message Print Post    
Just don't like the taste of it GAL, that's all. And that everything you make with it has that same, underlying taste, no matter how many different seasoning combinations you use.

Goddessatlaw
Member

07-19-2002

Tuesday, January 20, 2009 - 10:26 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Goddessatlaw a private message Print Post    
Ah, I love it. My grandparents always made breakfast for us with it (beer pancakes or cinnamon bread) , and my great-grandmother always used it for dumplings on her English recipes. I couldn't live without it, our family favorites wouldn't taste the same.

Karen
Member

09-06-2004

Wednesday, January 28, 2009 - 7:18 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Karen a private message Print Post    
Serate, you can put me in the "no bisquick allowed" camp, too. I remember going away to camp, or over to a friend's for a sleepover, and being served pancakes from a mix. I'd always be conflicted between my own personal, "These taste like crap!" thought and the "Eat what your host puts on your plate to be polite" voice of my mother. Yuk.

Here's my pancake recipe. Sorry it took so long to dig up:

1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups milk
1 egg
1 tbsp oil
dash of salt
pinch of cinnamon

I know most folks are all about the syrup on pancakes/waffles, but has anyone tried brown sugar and lemon juice? It makes a sweet and sour type syrup. I grew up with it and can't eat pancakes any other way.

I've got a great waffle recipe too if you have an iron.

Roxip
Member

01-29-2004

Thursday, January 29, 2009 - 8:37 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Roxip a private message Print Post    
Personally I put low fat peanut butter on my waffles. I love it!

Costacat
Member

07-15-2000

Thursday, January 29, 2009 - 9:45 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Costacat a private message Print Post    
Waffles with peanut butter and syrup! :-)

Roxip
Member

01-29-2004

Thursday, January 29, 2009 - 11:55 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Roxip a private message Print Post    
Well, I try to leave out the syrup because of the calorie content...but sometimes I have snuck some on them.

Serate
Member

08-21-2001

Thursday, January 29, 2009 - 5:34 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Serate a private message Print Post    
Karen, THANKS BUNCHES! I'll be trying it out this weekend!

Yep I have a waffle iron too.

I know what you mean about going to somebody else's house and "eating what is put in front of you". My friend Roxanne's mom would make us peanut butter and syrup sandwiches. I abhor peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and these weren't any better. I ate them but YUCK.

Thanks again!!!!!!!!!!!!

And compared to the last pancakes I made, I'm sure hubby will be thanking you too.

Serate
Member

08-21-2001

Sunday, February 01, 2009 - 7:10 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Serate a private message Print Post    
Karen LOVED your pancakes!

Karen
Member

09-06-2004

Sunday, February 01, 2009 - 7:41 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Karen a private message Print Post    
Awesome, Serate, glad they were enjoyed. My sister actually called last night to say that she might have messed up the amounts when she gave me the recipe (pulled it from memory for me) and that while she knew the milk and flour were the same amount, she was unsure of if it was 1.5 cups each or just 1 c.

Now as soon as I can find my waffle recipe, I'll post that too. (I'm a great cook, but most things I cook don't need recipes. When I do need a recipe, it's impossible to find.)

Loyolamom
Member

05-10-2005

Monday, February 02, 2009 - 11:23 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Loyolamom a private message Print Post    
I don't know if this has been posted so please forgive me if it's a repeat! I got this in an email today and tried it tonight. It was pretty good and I'll definitely try it again.

5 MINUTE CHOCOLATE MUG CAKE
4 tablespoons flour
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa
1 egg
3 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons oil
3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)
A small splash of vanilla extract
1 large coffee mug

Add dry ingredients to mug, and mix well. Add the egg and mix thoroughly.
Pour in the milk and oil and mix well.
Add the chocolate chips (if using) and vanilla extract, and mix again.
Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes at 1000 watts.
The cak e will rise over the top of the mug, but don't be alarmed!
Allow to cool a little, and tip out onto a plate if desired.
EAT! (this can serve 2 if you want to feel slightly more virtuous).
And why is this the most dangerous cake recipe in the world ?
Because now we are all only 5 minutes away from chocolate cake at any time of the day or night!

I thought it tasted like those Betty Crocker Warm Delights. The only problem I found was that the chocolate chips sank to the bottom, which was good for my husband because he got the bottom half but not so good for me. I think next time I'll try dusting the chocolate chips with flour and maybe they won't all fall. Either that or I'll warm up some hot fudge!

Cheri4angels
Member

11-15-2006

Thursday, February 05, 2009 - 10:54 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Cheri4angels a private message Print Post    
My knock-'em-dead and up til now top secret pancake recipie:

2 cups self rising flour
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
2 eggs (3 if you're poo-pooing your cholesterol)
3 Tablespoons oil
1/2 to 3/4 cups water

Mix all ingredients except water. It will be very thick. Add as much of the water that you think it needs to thin it enough to make it pourable but don't thin it down to regular panckake batter thickness, it needs to be pretty thick.

Use a pastry brush or paper towel to brush a light coat of oil on your pan or griddle, scoop on the batter to desired size, and spread it out a little. Then cook as usual for pancakes.

This makes mile high, fluffy pancakes with an (in my opinion) unbeatable flavor. My BIL has been trying to get this recipie for 30 years. He ain't getting it, unless he's a Clubhouse fan too!

Sugar
Member

08-15-2000

Friday, February 06, 2009 - 10:20 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Sugar a private message Print Post    
IHOP

Teachmichigan
Member

07-22-2001

Sunday, February 08, 2009 - 10:19 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Teachmichigan a private message Print Post    
Cheri -- we made your pancakes today, and everyone loved how light they were! I had to add a bit more flour (I used White Lily self-rising- is it different than yours?) and much less water to keep it a thicker consistency, but they were delicious. :-) Thanks for sharing! (I think DH is going to have a hard time using up that pancake mix bag we have sitting in the pantry now - DS will only want these! LOL)

Cheri4angels
Member

11-15-2006

Thursday, February 12, 2009 - 5:23 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Cheri4angels a private message Print Post    
Hi Teach, sorry it took so long to get back to you. I'm so glad your family enjoyed the pancakes!

On the measurements... I am very much a look-touch-smell cook, you know... looks right or smells right or feels right, so I wasn't copying a recipe, just trying to remember how much of what I add.

The buttermilk is the only thing I measure in that recipe and when you said you had to use 2 1/2 cups flour I had a lightbulb moment. I always set my 2 cup wet measure cup in my bowl and overfill it... and given that the 2 cup mark is a good 1/2 inch below the rim I should edit the recipe to 2 1/2 cups! I've used every type of flour on the market with equal results.

Ditto with the water, I never measure, just add it til I get the consistancy I want.

BTW... these are delish as the are but if you add a bit more oil in your pan and 'fry' them they are sinfully good.

Teachmichigan
Member

07-22-2001

Thursday, February 12, 2009 - 7:26 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Teachmichigan a private message Print Post    
Then our measurements were almost exactly right. :-) And we always add a bit more oil - I don't like pancakes sitting in oil, but we add about a teaspoon every time we take out a set of pancakes and add in more - equal crisp browning that way.