I love Manicotti but to stuff the shells get a little hard. So what I found was people use lasagna sheets. So here we go.

16 oz. mozzarella cheese, shredded
15 oz ricotta cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
12 oz of frozen spinach
1 lb of Italian sausage
1 can of diced tomato
8 lasagna sheets
1 clove of chopped garlic
3/4 jar of spaghetti sauce

Oven at 375 degrees. Then brown the meat in large skillet with a little Olive oil and 1 clove of chopped garlic. When cooked drain. Thaw spinach and put some in your hand to ring out liquid. Take large mixing bowl, put the ricotta cheese in and the the drained spinach. Then drain the can of tomato's, get all the liquid out the put in bowl. Put half the mozzarella cheese in bowl. Dap the oil off the sausage with a paper towel and put into the bowl after it has cooled off. Then mix all together. Take 9 x 13 pan a spay with Pam.

Boil water for the pasta and get a large bowl out and fill with cold water. Put 3 to 4 lasagna sheets in the boiling water. Boil for 5 min. and then move to cold water for 3 min and then take out of water and dry them off with a paper towel.

Take the sheets of lasagna at the narrow side of the sheet and fill with about 3 spoonful of the mixture and the roll it up and put seam side down in the pan. I try to put space between the Manicotti so it is easier to get out of pan. Put rest of mixture in the voids in the pan. put rest of cheese on top of shells and pour spaghetti sauce on top. Cover with foil and cook for 40 min then take foil off and cook for 10 min. take out let stand for 5-10 min and enjoy

1st Immersion Blender recipes Orange Julius

So yesterday I posted a blog about Immersion Blenders and told you I work with Miallegro which has one of the best Immersion Blenders on the market. Here is a link that talks about them Immersion Blender market http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYABToF9EG0

Today I will be telling you how to make a Orange Julius with you Immersion Blender (The link shows you that the Miallegro is one of the best at chopping ice.)

The recipe goes back to when my sister and I were very young. We could never get enough. You can also change the flavor just change the Frozen Juice that you buy.

Orange Julius

1 6 once container frozen orange juice

1 cup of milk

1 cup of water

1 1/2 cup of sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

10-12 ice cubes

*(this is optional and you need to use pasteurized eggs)*

*1 pasteurized egg*

To start combine all ingredients in to the bowl that came with your immersion blender. Change the blade of the blender to the blender blade.Start of slowly and increase speed up to the middle speed. Continue to use the immersion blender until it is completely mixed and foamy.

Next drink up then repeat and share with your family.

                                                    You can buy the Miallegro 9090 at                                                    

     http://www.hayneedle.com/sale/miallegro9090mituttoprofessionalhandblender.cfm

Immersion Blenders

I have to be upfront with my readers I work with Miallegro which makes one of the best Immersion Blenders on the Market. It was tested by Consumer Reports and here is a video so you can see how the Miallegro MiTutto 9090 Immersion Blender did. http://abclocal.go.com/kfsn/story?section=news/consumer&id=8519477     The video tells you everything you need to know and why to buy the Miallegro Immersion Blender!

The Immersion Blender market is growing at a very fast rate.Finding the right unit for you will allow you to make your cooking life a little more fun.

Miallegro is also a sponsor for a cooking show on Lifetime Network. New episodes start 11/9/2012. Please tune in. We will also have many big announcements in the near future.  

I am also going to be showing you how a Immersion Blender will make you life easier and more tasty. I know Tasty sound kind of lame but I excel at being a little lame.

Please let me know if you have any questions on Immersion Blenders.

Also check it out at Hayneedle here is the link: http://www.hayneedle.com/sale/miallegro9090mituttoprofessionalhandblender.cfm

 

Jacob Bromwell products

Jacob Bromwell is a company that has made kitchen and camping products in the United States since 1819. The products the sell are like a window into our American past and they work as well today as when they were first made. For Christmas I gave a number of their Original Popcorn Poppers to family members. Everyone loved them. I like all the items and I love buying products that are Made in America. Heartland America is a company that sells most of the Jacob Bromwell line so please check out the link below and buy yourself and someone else a window into our past and support the workers in the United States of America!

http://www.heartlandamerica.com/browse/search.asp?search=jacob+bromwell

Easy Manicotti

I love Manicotti but to stuff the shells get a little hard. So what I found was people use lasagna sheets. So here we go.

16 oz. mozzarella cheese, shredded
15 oz ricotta cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
12 oz of frozen spinach
1 lb of Italian sausage
1 can of diced tomato
8 lasagna sheets
1 clove of chopped garlic
3/4 jar of spaghetti sauce

Oven at 375 degrees. Then brown the meat in large skillet with a little Olive oil and 1 clove of chopped garlic. When cooked drain. Thaw spinach and put some in your hand to ring out liquid. Take large mixing bowl, put the ricotta cheese in and the the drained spinach. Then drain the can of tomato's, get all the liquid out the put in bowl. Put half the mozzarella cheese in bowl. Dap the oil off the sausage with a paper towel and put into the bowl after it has cooled off. Then mix all together. Take 9 x 13 pan a spay with Pam.

Boil water for the pasta and get a large bowl out and fill with cold water. Put 3 to 4 lasagna sheets in the boiling water. Boil for 5 min. and then move to cold water for 3 min and then take out of water and dry them off with a paper towel.

Take the sheets of lasagna at the narrow side of the sheet and fill with about 3 spoonful of the mixture and the roll it up and put seam side down in the pan. I try to put space between the Manicotti so it is easier to get out of pan. Put rest of mixture in the voids in the pan. put rest of cheese on top of shells and pour spaghetti sauce on top. Cover with foil and cook for 40 min then take foil off and cook for 10 min. take out let stand for 5-10 min and enjoy

Pork Shoulder Rub

This is my version of rub for any kind of pork. I use it for pork shoulder or pork butt(which are the same just has 2 names).

3/4 cup of brown sugar
2 teaspoon of dried or garlic powder
3 tablespoons of salt
4 tablespoons paprika

If you want to add some spice to the rub you can use 1 tablespoon of you favorite dried peppers

Hello it has been a long time!

My wife and I have been working on our kitchen this year! We started the process in February of this year 2009. Now it looks like it is almost done, just a few minor things to do. I will start posting now that our kitchen is reopened. I also got a new stove, which I am excited about! On Saturday we are going to be preparing a meal for a small group of friends. I will give updates and recipes that day. With a new kitchen Heidi and I are going to have more small get togethers. Look forward to posting again and sharing recipes with you. If you have a request or you need some help with something let me know and we can share the outcome on my blog

Michael Wherland

How to make Tempura Batter

I like to use cake flour for my batter. You can always use regular flour or whole grain flour. Whole grain flour would give a nice different taste. I found cake flour makes it a lighter batter. This is perfect fondue.

Ingredients:
2 egg
2 cup water
2 cup Cake flour

Beat an egg in a bowl. Add water in the bowl. Be sure to use very cold water. Add sifted flour in the bowl and mix lightly. Do not to over mix the batter.
Makes 8 servings

This is my top posting

It is so easy to make but we all have learned to use and can our a tub of Whipping Cream. This is better and does not take long at all. You call also add just about everything to it. Fruit is fun to add to you whipping cream.

Take your mixing bowl and beaters and chill them in the refrigerator (stainless steal work bowls the best).You need to use Heavy Whipping Cream for this not half and half.1 cup of heavy whipping cream1/2 teaspoon of teaspoon pure vanilla extract (this is where you could use some of the homemade stuff that I am sure you already made).2 tablespoon of powder sugar. You can add more to taste1. pour the whipping cream in the bowl, then the vanilla and the sugar2. Start beating on medium speed until to starts to froth3. Then move it up to high speed4. Stop and take the beaters out and see if it has soft peaks. Now you know how to make home made whipping cream. What I love to do is to add flavors to the whipping cream. Like Chocolate add 2 table spoons of cocoa, or add 1 tablespoon of you favorite liqueur. I have even taken blue cheese wrapped it in cheese cloth added it tho the heavy whipping cream into a pan and put the burner on low for 20 min. The I take a strainer just to make sure that it is only the cream, then put in in the refrigerator to chill it must be very cold to then make whipping cream. You just add a 1/4 teaspoon of salt to the heavy whipping cream and start whipping. That's how you make blue cheese whipping cream. As you can see I have a hard time deciding where to make paragraph breaks and you can make just about any flavor whipping cream and it tastes so much better than store bought (Redi-whip is nice just cause you can squirt it in you mouth.)

What is Gluten?

I have some friends who can not have Gluten in their diet. So I thought I would give a limited definition of Gluten. The Gluten protein is found mostly in Rye, Wheat, Barley and other foods. So of the grains that do not have Gluten in them are grains like wild rice, corn, buckwheat, millet, soybeans, oats, soybeans and sunflower seeds.

I like to think of Gluten like gum. If you are going to make bread it makes the dough elastic and the end product chewy. It also gives structure, strength, and texture.

The poll

Hey everyone I reopened my Food Network Gone Down Hill pool again. I would love to get your vote on this. Last year I did a posting on the subject you still can read it on my blog. I am putting together another post on the subject. It will be up next week. I am having a hard time typing because I has my 5Th shoulder surgery 10 days ago. So I will be able to type out some more dribble about Food Network. If you have any comments on Food Network let me know.

Wine and Food show

My wife and I went to the Food and Wine show at the Minneapolis Convention Center on March 1st. We had a couple of friends that went with us. It was a good time. We did the special Wine Tasting Room. I love wine but I think after the 25th wine I tasted the 26th stopped tasting good. But the food was the highlight for me. I didn't have to taste all the food but just looking around at all the different was to cook was the real fun. We didn't bring the camera but I wished we did.

We met Shirley O. Corriher who I first saw on Good Eats. We bought her book Bake Wise. She is fun to talk to and has a handle on food. Take a look at her books especially BakeWise and CookWise. Here is her Simon and Schuster web site http://authors.simonandschuster.com/Shirley-O-Corriher/45489466

Talk to you soon

Michael

My night with Ming Tsai

I hope you didn't take that the wrong way. If so well I don't know what to say. I saw him at Macy's in Edina, MN. Macy's put on a great show, they had lots of samples of many different foods and drinks. What a great selection of cheese and they where all local.

Back to Ming he is very funny, if you have the chance go see him. If not watch his show on PBS. He made pork apple dumplings and shrimp crusted halibut. They were both great. I have seen Alton Brown in person and he is great too. If you want to see chefs in you town, and you have a Macys go to web site http://www1.macys.com/store/event/index.ognc , and enter you zip code to see what is in your town.

Home Made Sweet and Sour Sauce

2 tablespoons catsup

2 tablespoons cornstarch

2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons vinegar

1 cup of cold water



Combine and cook on stove top at med. heat. or cover and cook it in the microwave. Great with egg rolls and won tons

Home made easy garlic bread

pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

1 loaf or rustic bread.
1 clove of garlic minced (2 cloves if you like lots of garlic or want to fend off vampires)
2 stick of butter room temp.
1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon of shredded basil



Cut the bread in half lengthwise. Mix all other ingredients and spread on to bread and put into the oven for as long as it takes to brown the bread

Savory Cheese Puff

1 package of stuffing mix (stove top)
8 ounces of cojack cheese
3 tablespoons flour
3 tablespoons melted butter
4 eggs
3/4 cups of milk
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon of Finley chopped basil (fresh)

Put the stuffing mix in a 2 quart casserole dish, add flour, cheese,basil, garlic, and melted butter. Combine the eggs and milk in a large bowl and beat until well blended. Pour over the top of stuffing and cheese. Bake 350 degrees for about an hour

Won Tons

1 pound ground pork
1 can shrimp (drained)
1 Green onion (chopped finely or you can leave this out if you don't like onions like me)
12 water chestnuts (chopped finely)
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
2 eggs
4 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon finely chopped cilantro
1 package of won ton wrappers

mix everything except the wrappers together. spoon tablespoon size drops onto each wrapper. Fold into won ton shape and squeeze all the air out!! Deep fry in hot oil

Baked Brie

7 ounces whole rind (rind intact)
1/2 cup of thinly sliced mushrooms (any kind works)
1 tablespoon of olive oil ( I won't say evoo cause I hate that..oh I said it errrr)
1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar
1/2 a clove of garlic

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. put oil in pan set to medium heat. add garlic and vinegar and mushrooms. leave in pan for 8 minutes. then put in strainer. Cut the brie almost in half side ways don't cut all the way through. Then put the mushrooms into the brie. bake for 10-12 minutes until cheese begins to melt

Refriderator Pickles

This is from my Grandma Isabel

7 cups of peeled and thinly sliced cucumbers
1 cup cut onion
1 cup cut green pepper

In a blender, mix together:
1 tablespoon salt
2 cups sugar
2 cups white vinegar
1 tablespoon celery salt
fresh dill and fresh garlic to taste (I like a lot of both)

Combine onions, cucumbers and peppers. Let stand 1 hour. Drain well. Pour blended mixture over. Place in jars and refrigerate. Can be kept up to several weeks.

My Grandma Isabel Died when I was 6 and I don't remember much about her, but I do have her recipes to remind me of her.

Easy Chocolate Blackberry Cobbler

3 cups of blackberries
1 cup of water
1/2 cup of brown sugar
1/2 cup of sugar
1 stick of butter
1/2 cup of simi-sweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons vanilla extract

Crust
3/4 cup of self rising flour
1 cup of sugar
3/4 cups of milk

pre heat oven to 350 degrees
melt butter in microwave
simmer blackberries, water, vanilla extract, brown and white sugar(1 cup total) for 8 min. mix the crust while simmering blackberries. pour melted butter in to 9 inch square pan, then pour blackberries into the pan. let cool for 5 min. pour crust into the pan. Then put chocolate chips into the pan. cook for one hour. serve with whip cream and ice cream.