Have you heard of Raspberry Ketones?

So have you heard of Raspberry Ketones?  I never had till Dr. Oz mentioned it on one of his shows.  According to Dr. Oz, raspberry ketones is the aroma compound of red raspberries.  This compound regulates a protein called adiponectin which the body uses for metabolism.  Apparently one 100 mg pill is the equivalent of eating 90 lbs of raspberries.  Adding this supplement is supposed to help your body to burn fat which will help make your diet and exercising more effective.

I'm going to be trying these out.  I'll let you know what kind of results I get.  I already eat fairly healthy and this will encourage me to use the bike and the treadmill daily as opposed to every other day.  :)

Another thing Dr. Oz has recommended is Green Coffee Extract.  Green coffee extract uses chlorogenic acids to help your body block sugar absorption and burn fat at the same time.  Studies conducted have shown that just taking one pill a day and changing nothing else can allow you to lose 10% of your body weight in about 12 weeks.  While I'm not going to be giving this a try, I'd definitely be interested in checking it out in the future.

I'll keep y'all updated on my trial of raspberry ketones.  :)

Honey Mint Fruit Salad Recipe

Y'all know by now how I love to share recipes that I've found, tried and love.  :)  This is another of those.  I recently came across Savory Sweet Life.  Yet another cookbook.  You'd seriously be shocked at how many I peruse for inspiration.

Remember the gorgeous fruit salad I posted photos of from my Sears Photography Class?  Well this is the recipe I used.  It's incredibly easy to throw together and tastes yummy!  Even if you go a little overboard on the mint like I did.  It was a lot of fruit, the entire fruit salad was gone the very next day!!  A definite recipe endorsement!!

Honey Mint Fruit Salad

juice of 1 lime
3 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons finely chopped mint
6-8 cups freshly chopped fruit

In a large bowl, whisk lime juice, honey and mint until well combined.  Add fresh fruit and toss.

I refrigerated mine for a couple of hours before serving as I wanted to make sure the flavors had a chance to meld.

Wholesome Wednesday: Coconut Oatmeal Cookie Recipe

We love cookies at my house.  But we love them more when they're unusual.  I can easily see these becoming a favorite.  Not that they beat whole wheat peanut butter oatmeal chocolate chip, but they're just such a different taste.  They're kinda like a macaroon without the chocolate on the bottom.

They're crisp, golden brown and still chewy.  I'm pretty sure that's all the coconut making them moist.  If you really need a chocolate fix, you could add half a cup of chocolate chips.  While working on these, I almost threw in some chopped up caramels.  However, I thought they'd end up too sweet.  I love the oatmeal in them too.  Let's face it I love just about everything with oatmeal in it.  :)

Coconut Oatmeal Cookies

1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 cup butter or shortening
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup oats
1 cup sweetened shredded coconut

Mix flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda in a medium bowl and set aside.  Cream butter/shortening with sugars until light and fluffy.  Add egg and vanilla and beat well.  Add flour, oats, coconut and mix thoroughly.  Scoop with a tablespoon sized cookie scoop onto ungreased cookie sheets.  Bake at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes.

This recipe makes about 30 cookies if you use tablespoon sized cookie scoop.

Susie Savors: Crisp and tangy these are a great treat.  They're healthy as far as regular cookies go, they do have oats with fiber and they help to control blood sugar.  With the added benefits from coconut, these are a guilt free pick me up.  The sweet is paired with the nutty coconut and complemented by the texture of the oats.  A mouthful of intrigue that will keep you sneaking just one more.  You won't be the only one.

Jucy Lucy Burger Recipe

Months ago we saw America's Test Kitchen do a segment on these burgers which had lots of gooey cheese inside them.  :)  I did make them for one of my meals in the SoFabU Sears Grilling Photography class.

For the class, we weren't posting recipes.  I think my brain would have imploded if I'd had to worry about recipes along with all the meals I was planning and photographing at the time.  I'm very glad I took the class because my photos have majorly improved but it was a lot of work.

The Jucy Lucy burgers were really good.  I haven't made them since the class, but we'll definitely keep them in rotation.  The trick is making sure the cheese is entirely encased and sealed in the ground beef.  I had a couple of burgers which I thought were sealed, but leaked a bit.

Biting into one and getting that gooey cheese is truly amazing.  So much better than a cheeseburger.  The meat also stayed moist and tender even after handling it so much.  If you're looking for a stand-out burger, this is it!!

Jucy Lucy Burgers from Cook's Country 9/07

2 slices hearty white sandwich bread, torn into rough pieces
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon garlic powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 pounds 85% lean ground beef
1 slice deli American Cheese (1/2 inch thick), cut into quarters

Using a potato masher, mash bread, milk, garlic powder, salt and pepper in a large bowl until smooth.  Add beef and gently knead to combine.

Divide meat evenly into 4 equal portions.  Using half of each portion, encase cheese to form a mini burger patty.  Mold remaining half portion of meat around patty to seal edges and form a ball.  Flatten ball to form a 3/4-inch thick patty.  Transfer to plate and refrigerate 30 minutes-24 hours.

Grill over medium heat till well browned and cooked through, 6-8 minutes per side.  Transfer to plate and tent with foil, let rest 5 minutes.

This last photo is a cooled Jucy Lucy burger.  But it definitely shows how much cheese is actually in these burgers!!  Just imagine fresh from the grill...definitely juicy!!

Late Wholesome Wednesday

Hate to say it, but this week's Wholesome Wednesday post is gonna be late.  As in not posted before 5 am on Wednesday morning.  If I'm lucky, it will be up by late wed. evening.  :(

There's really not much of an excuse besides the fact that the weather has been extremely humid here in Chicago the past 4-5 days.  When its that humid out I just don't feel like baking or cooking much at all.  We've grilled a few basic things, but nothing special to share.

Remember during my Sears class that I posted about Jucy Lucy burgers and that gorgeous fruit salad?  I'll  try to share those with y'all very soon.

I'm also excited to share that soon....I'll have some reduced calorie adult beverage recipes to share.  :)  That should make up for me being late.

Ballottine of Chicken with Spinach Mushroom Filling Recipe

About a month ago, I walked into the room while my sister was watching Jacques Pepin on PBS.  He was doing an episode with chicken dishes.  I was a bit distracted at the time because I was busy doing my grilling for my Sears class.  What did catch my attention is when I saw him start to completely debone a chicken.  I'd never seen anyone do that before and thought, hey I could do that.  I stopped what I was doing to sit down and watch.  He made a simple filling tied up the stuffed chicken and roasted it in the oven.  Simple, right?

I went online and pinned the recipe thinking I'd have a chance to try it out this fall.  Wednesday I was at the Jewel and they had five pound chickens marked down to about $3.  What a steal!!  Decision made on what to make with it.

Let me tell you that I've never bought or worked with a whole chicken before.  NEVER!  I've cooked turkeys but never a chicken.  I'm telling you this to show you that you can do this too.  Make sure to check out the video here as it shows Pepin deboning the entire chicken.  I referenced it several times while working on mine.

Pepin stated that it only takes him about 45 seconds to debone an entire chicken.  I'm not that fast at it, but I definitely think after doing it once I'll be able to do it much quicker next time.  I definitely can see making this in the future with all kinds of stuffing.  I'd also consider doing a small turkey.

I've changed the filling and the sauce because we love mushrooms and get migraines from red wine.  I also used a larger chicken.

Ballottine of Chicken with Spinach and Mushroom Filling

1 chicken (5 lb), boned
Spinach & Mushroom Stuffing

Spinach, Mushroom, Cheese and Bread Stuffing

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 garlic clove, thinly sliced
5 ounces spinach leaves
8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 1/2 cups cubed (1/2 inch) bread

Heat the oil in a large saucepan or skillet.  Add the garlic and mushrooms and cook till mushrooms release their liquid.  Add spinach and cook for 1 minute to wilt the spinach.  Set aside to cool.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Lay the deboned chicken skin side down on the work surface and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Spread the spinach mixture evenly over chicken, making sure to stuff legs and wings.  Spread with bread and cheese, also stuffing into legs and wings.  Roll the chicken up, tie it with kitchen string, and place it in a roasting pan.  Tent with tinfoil.  (Don't forget the tinfoil, the chicken spits a lot and you'll just end up with a greasy oven)

Roast for 1 hour.  Lift it from the pan and place it on a platter.

Sauce

1/3 cup water
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 celery stalk, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice (1/2 cup)
1/4 cup onion, chopped
1 carrot, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice (1/3 cup)
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch, dissolved in 1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

Skim off and discard most of the fat from the drippings in the pan.  Add the water and wine to the drippings to deglaze the pan, and heat over medium heat, stirring to loosen and melt the solidified juices.

Strain the juices into a saucepan.  Add the celery, onion and carrot and bring to a boil over high heat.  Cover, reduce the heat to low, and boil gently for 5 minutes.  Stir in the dissolved cornstarch and soy sauce and bring the mixture back to a boil, stirring, to thicken it.  Remove from the heat.

Transfer the ballottine to a cutting board and remove the string.  Cut half of it into 4 or 5 slices, each about 1 inch thick.  Return the uncut half of the ballottine to the serving platter and arrange the cut slices in front of it. Pour the sauce over and around the ballottine, garnish with parsley, and serve.

Susie Savors: While this dish looks a bit different, almost like a loaf of bread when sliced, it is anything but strange.  Classic flavors from any roasted chicken dish.  This version was enjoyed warm and cold.  I wished there were more of the sauce to pour over noodles.  The savory mix of carrots and onions and celery pair well with any stuffing.  Not to mention this dish is quite healthy.  Especially if you're like me and take the skin off, but when cooking that skin packs in the moisture and flavors.

*This recipe is adapted from Jacques Pepin*

Wholesome Wednesday: Maple Coconut Rolls

A couple of weeks ago, I went to an estate sale in Barrington that we waited forever (and I do mean FOREVER) to get into.  After waiting over an hour we went in the basement there were tons of books.  All kinds of books, children's, literature, crafts and lots of really old cooking pamphlets.  Like turn of the century old.  Right up my alley.

One of the ones I picked up was for Baker's Coconut published in 1919.  The entire book has coconut recipes in it.  For all kinds of things.  I thought these maple coconut rolls sounded so much better than cinnamon rolls.  Only problem was the original recipe called for a pie crust like dough that you rolled up and sliced like cinnamon rolls.  Taste wise it was fine, but definitely off putting.

I figured you could use a classic cinnamon roll recipe and just change out the filling.  I did that earlier today and I have to say that Maple Coconut Rolls definitely rock!!  The brown sugar caramelizes into a maple flavor and the coconut is just so unexpected.

While I made a traditional cream cheese frosting for my rolls, I think they'd be even better if you substituted the buttermilk for coconut milk and the vanilla extract for coconut or maple extract.  It would definitely kick up the flavor.

For the rolls, I used America's Test Kitchen's recipe.  I figured their recipe wouldn't need any tweaking.  I did put it in the bread machine though to mix the dough and put it through the first rise.  I've found any yeast dough is easiest to make if you put it in the bread machine for the dough cycle.

America's Test Kitchen Basic Sweet Dough Recipe

3/4 cup buttermilk, 110 degrees
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
3 large eggs
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
4 1/4 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 envelope (2 1/4 teaspoons) instant or rapid rise yeast

I layered everything in the bread machine in this order and put it to work.  An hour and a half later I had gorgeous elastic, perfectly risen sweet dough.  This recipe makes enough to make a dozen buns or rolls.  If you want to make the dough by hand, leave me a comment and I'll include the entire recipe.

Maple Coconut Rolls

2 tablespoons melted butter
1 cup brown sugar
2 cups bakers coconut, sweetened and shredded

Assembly:  Take your freshly risen dough and on a floured surface; stretch, pat and pull it till you reach a 12 x 16 inch rectangle.  With the 16 inch side being horizontal to you.  Brush entire surface with melted butter.  Spread brown sugar all over surface of dough, leaving a 3/4 inch area all along the top topping free.  You'll need this edge to be able to seal your rolls when you roll them up.  Then top with coconut, spreading evenly.

Tightly roll dough up.  When finished pinch all along long side to form a seam and seal rolls.  When sealed, gently stretch dough to 18 inches in length.  Place seam side down and cut into 1 1/2 inch slices with a serrated knife.  Place these in a greased 9x13 inch baking pan, cut side down.  (I sprinkled any escaping coconut on to the top of the rolls).  Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place till doubled in size.  (Mine took about 40 minutes to double, but it was warm out)

When doubled in size, preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Bake till puffy and golden brown 20-35 minutes.  Mine took 20 minutes on the dot.  Remove from oven and allow to cool.

Cream Cheese Frosting

3 tablespoons cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
3 tablespoons buttermilk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Mix all in a bowl.  Spread over warm Maple Coconut Rolls.  If you want to kick up the coconut and maple flavors, replace buttermilk with coconut milk and vanilla with coconut or maple extract.

Susie Savors: These rolls were perfect for a light but slightly sinful breakfast.  This version is light and fluffy and without the dense feeling of a cinnamon roll.  The maple coconut is sweet but the cream cheese frosting cuts back on the sweet just enough.  The filling melts in your mouth, not overpowering like some breakfast confections.  They did turn out a tad large but the pastry was so airy and plump that two felt like a perfect serving if that's all you planned on eating for breakfast.

Wholesome Wednesday: Grape Pie

A couple of weeks ago I'd never heard of a grape pie.  I mean I've had all kinds of berry pies (strawberry, strawberry-rhubarb, raspberry, blackberry and loganberry) but never grape.  I'd never even thought to try one.  

Remember that Martha Meade cookbook I said I'd found at an estate sale recently?  Well it had a recipe for grape pie.  My mom used it to make a pie while we were away at the fair.  While the pie itself tasted good, it had about half an inch of filling in it and this washed out pale pinky gray color.  Not at all visually appealing.  So I figured grape pie really wasn't meant to be.  

But I've run across a lot of references to grape pie lately saying to get a good grape pie you have to peel the grapes, cook the insides and let the cooked stuff cool with the skins in it.  I wouldn't have thought of that.  Cause let me tell you peeling five cups of grapes is a lot of work.  I spent 3+ hours peeling said grapes last night.  I thought it would never, ever end.  

As you can see, that's the secret to making an amazing grape pie.  You need to peel the grapes and pre-cook the filling.  I also changed the flour to slightly less cornstarch because I figured cornstarch would work better.  

Grape Pie

2 1/2 cups grape pulp (recipe below)

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch

juice of half a lemon

dash of salt

full recipe of 9-inch pie dough (recipe here, just double all ingredients)

Grape Pulp:  Take 5 cups destemmed grapes (I used mostly black seedless with a little red) and peel them.  Save peels.  This will take quite a while to do, make sure to get comfortable before you start.  :)  Place peeled grapes in medium pot.  When all are peeled, cook on high until boiling, turn down heat and let simmer rigorously for 5 minutes.  Remove from heat, press grapes through a sieve or use a food mill to liquify grapes (discard solids) and then add to reserved grape skins.  Let cool to room temperature before either using or refrigerating for future use.  Letting them cool with the grape skins is what gives your pie such amazing color.

Pie Assembly:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Combine all ingredients.  Pour into prepared pastry lined pie plate.  It will be quite juicy.  Cut remaining pie crust into strips.  Weave a lattice top onto pie.  Flute edges.

Bake for 40-45 minutes until golden brown.  

SFU: Sears Grilling Photography Final Portfolio

I can't believe this is the last week of my SFU Sears Grilling Photography Class.  The past seven weeks have just flown past.  It was more challenging than I thought it would be to plan ahead and grill so many meals that needed to be photographed in a week.  Probably more so because I tend to look in the fridge mid-afternoon and that decides what I'm making for dinner.  Planning is a lot harder.

My last week's assignment was to pick my favorite ten photos from all the photos I took during the class.  Easy peasy, right?  WRONG!  If you've been following along the past month or so you've noticed that most of my posts for each week have had close to ten photos each if not more.

It's hard picking favorites.  All the photos in my previous posts were favorites.  That's how they ended up in the post and not just saved on the computer.  So I'll try really hard to narrow it down to ten favorites.

This shot was from before we got any instruction on how to take photos.  It's from the Jellies exhibit at the Shedd (I know, totally doesn't have anything to do with grilling!?!?) but I used it in my first post as an example of what the settings on a camera could do to change a photo.

I really like the photo of this pork chop on the grill because it just looks so juicy and yummy.  This photo focused on using indirect light and proper white balance to get a good photo.

These next photos are examples of staging.  Staging is when you put a product in a realistic setting to make the photo look more natural.  This first one is a close up of a Jucy Lucy burger (these are stuffed with ooey gooey cheese in the middle).  I love this pic because of all the colors in it.  

I love these mushrooms too (even though onions aren't my fave) because they look succulent.

This is such a dorky pic but I love it because its a "grilled" grilled cheese.  I'd never thought to put these on the grill but they took no time at all and tasted amazing.  Just make sure to use real butter as the fake stuff turns black pretty quickly.

Are you seeing a theme yet in the photos I've been picking?  Most of them are close up shots focusing on something in particular.  This kind of photo shows the most detail and highlights what I think are important in my dishes.

The last set of photos is from my grilling party that got rained out.  Our assignment this week was to utilize all we'd learned to show off our skills.  This first photo is a close up of pork tenderloins cooking on the grill.  Don't they look juicy?

I like this photo because the fruit salad has so many colors in it.  The photo makes it look bright and inviting.

This cheesy garlic bread not only looked amazing it tasted pretty darn good too.

This photo is an example of focusing on the fruit salad in the foreground while the rest of the plate blurs.  This draws your eye to the salad and makes it the focus of the photo.

The last photo I picked is a good example of staging.  The cupcake liner has been peeled back to show the viewer how awesome the cupcake looks inside.

All in all I feel like I've learned a lot taking the #SoFabU Sears Grilling Photography class.  My blog food photos have definitely improved.  I'm so thankful to Sears for sponsoring this class.  Without it I wouldn't have had a chance to grow as quickly as a photographer.

*I am a member of the Collective Bias Social Fabric Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias and Sears #CBias #GrillingIsHappiness.  All photos and opinions are my own.*

Our Trip to the Seattle's Best #RedCupShowdown at the Illinois State Fair

Alison:Remember last week when I told you we were going to the State Fair?  Well we did go Friday for the Seattle's Best Coffee #RedCupShowdown.

Susie:Duh, remember who drove the whole way?  I think I know that we went.

Alison:Yes, but they don't know!

Susie: You just told them that we went.

Alison: *rolls eyes*It started quite early at 8:30 am and was two intense hours (for the competitors).  There were thirteen people competing at the fair for a $500 first prize which also included a trip for two to New York to compete in the final Red Cup Showdown.

Susie:Hey! Don't think I didn't notice that eye roll just because you typed it instead of doing it!

Alison: So, you do proof read the posts?  At least you're paying attention.  While the audience didn't get to sample the entries, I do have a special treat for you.  The three finalists all offered to share their recipes with me to share with my readers.  So now when you make these amazing drinks it will be almost like you were there with us at the competition.

Anthony won first place with his Cafe Mocha en Fuego pictured above:

Ingredients:

3 oz chocolate chips, chopped finely

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon chile powder

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1 dash of cayenne pepper

5 tablespoons Seattle's Best Dark Roast, ground

15 oz. water

15 oz. 2% milk, cold

Whipped Cream

Chocolate Sauce

Directions:

1.  Heat first seven ingredients in a saucepan on medium-low heat stirring until combined, then take off heat.

2.  Add ground coffee to filter and add water to coffee maker and brew.

3.  Fill bottom 1/3 of coffee mug with milk

4.  Microwave until steam starts to come off milk, around a minute

5.  Take mug out of microwave and insert a wire whisk.

6.  With the whisk in between your hands, roll the whisk back and forth until the desired froth is obtained.

7.  Mix the chocolate mixture, coffee and frothed milk in equal parts.

8.  Add whipped cream and chocolate sauce on top.

9.  Dust with spices (chile powder and cinnamon).

Second place went to Seattle's Best Almond Joy pictured above:

Ingredients:

1/2 lb Seattle's Best Level 4 Coffee
4 quarts cold water
coffee ice cubes
2 tablespoons Cream of Coconut
1/2 cup Chocolate Almond Milk
1/2 cup Soy Milk

Directions:

In a large container combine coffee and cold water. Stir well and cover container and let steep overnight (but no longer than 12 hours).  Strain using a strainer and cheesecloth to get the coffee filtered.  Refrigerate. This gives you cold brewed coffee.  You can use this to make coffee ice cubes, just pour into molds and freeze.

In a shaker add; ice cubes (coffee ones preferrably), cream of coconut and both milks.  Shake vigorously and pour into a glass.  Fill the rest with coffee.

Optional Whipped Topping:

1 can (about 1/4 cup) Unsweetened Coconut Milk (Native Forest Organic) mixed with powdered sugar.

Optional Garnish:

Mix 14 ounces of shredded coconut with 15 ounces of corn syrup.  Chill.  When firm, roll into balls and press into melted Baker's Chocolate (three ounces).  Dip balls into slivered almonds and put in freezer.  Throw ball on the end of a swizzle stick, such as a sugar cane.

Unfortunately, I didn't get a great shot of the third place winner's drink.  But Patricia did supply me with the recipe to share!!  It's called Christmas in July:

Brew 4 cups water with one coffee scoop of Seattle's Best Coffee #3.  After coffee is brewed, freeze into ice cubes.

Combine:

1 1/4 cup egg nog
1/4 cup whipping cream
4 tablespoons malt
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Blend in a blender.

In bottom of Melitta pot place two scoops of chocolate covered toffee pieces.  In the filter place one scoop of Seattle's Best Coffee #3.  Pour boiling water over the coffee grounds and let drain into the carafe until 1 1/2 cups of coffee is reached.  Add this to the mixture in the blender with 6 coffee ice cubes and blend again.

After blending, set aside.

Place:

1/4 cup egg nog into a small deep bowl
1/4 cup whipping cream
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon of clear vanilla

Whip into soft peaks.

Pour mixture from blender into three glasses, place a layer of the whipped cream on the top and add sprinkles of chocolate toffee pieces on top of the whipped cream.

Alison: Jeff Mauro, who has a show on the Food Network and another starting this fall, was the host and one of the judges.  He's originally from the Chicago area and it showed that he loved being at the Illinois State Fair.

Susie: Let's be honest, who wouldn't enjoy the fair?  An excuse to eat strange foods and make weird sound effects.  Check and check.

Alison: Sound effects?  Are you certain we're related?

Susie: Hey, you're the older one, I'm pretty sure you know I'm not adopted, but you can always ask Mom.

Alison: I'll pass. And we're focusing...he was pretty entertaining too.  He kept the crowd laughing and the competitors from getting too nervous.

Susie:Anyone that can keep me laughing before I've had my coffee is in good in my book.

Alison: I also got to take a picture with him.  :)

Alison:Besides being at the fair to see the Red Cup Showdown we also wanted to see some livestock and sample some amazing fair food.

Susie: It was more like how far can we walk; you are just lucky I know how to read a map.

Alison:We saw a gorgeous sheep being sheared and groomed for showing.  Love that it had a dark black face and such a snowy white coat.

Susie: I keep telling you that it's a Suffolk sheep.  That breed naturally looks that way!

Alison:Then we found this perfect spotted pig.  We actually watched it for a while and it actually moved closer and stuck its head under the feeding trough so we could get a better picture.  :)

Susie: I swear she wanted to take this pig home with us.  Truly, if she could have gotten it into the car she would have smuggled it out.  That's how much love she has for this pig.

Alison:Then off to see the cows.  I'm always amazed at how huge they are.

Susie: That's normal! It's like you've never seen animals before!

Alison: This one was poised perfectly to get a photo.  Love the brown and white markings.

Susie: *sigh* I'm telling you it's the breed! Hereford cows are brown and white!

Alison: After all that it was time to sample some fair delicacies.  This is a red velvet funnel cake.

Susie: Which I practically got dragged to, you say red velvet and she'll do anything to get there.

Alison: OMG it was soo good.  Almost like a red velvet donut.

Susie: See she doesn't even know I'm talking about her, she's imagining it all over again.

Alison: There's only one booth that sells these at the fair and it's definitely worth seeking it out.  I was told that the first day they actually sold entirely out of red velvet funnel cakes.

Alison:Next we stopped at the Dean's Dairy building where they were carving this cow entirely out of butter.  It's not quite finished here in this picture, but the details are amazing.

Susie: Shortcuts always lead to the best finds.  We were all set to go around it, but we found a statue made of butter.

Alison:We did stop to sample a cream puff there and it was huge.  The biggest I've ever seen.

Susie: I think they can figure that out since you can tell it's almost as big as my entire face.

Alison:Also the tastiest.  I've never tasted a better cream filling.  It was so good I've already emailed Dean's about maybe sharing their recipe.  We'll see if I get a reply.

Susie: We can only hope.  My cream puffs are good, but that was like rainbows dipped in clouds good.

Alison: I'm going to just pretend I know what you're talking about so we can move on.

Susie: You weren't exactly selling the awesomeness of the cream puff.  I think now they'll know how good it was.

Alison:On the way out there was this really, really big statue of Lincoln which actually looked like it was made of papier mache.  Quite imposing.

Susie: You think I could get away with building one of those in the backyard?

Alison: No. On so many levels no.

Susie: You just don't understand my need for artistic creativity.  Plus that would take care of our crow problem.

Alison: The Seattle's Best Red Cup Showdown is now off to the Iowa State fair.  That's the last stop on its tour with the final showdown taking place later this August in New York City!!  You can find all the details on their facebook page and follow along on twitter.

*I am a member of the Collective Bias Social Fabric Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias and Seattle's Best Coffee #CBias #SocialFabric.  All opinions are my own.*

Wholesome Wednesday: Old-Fashioned Strawberry Shortcake

I've been really wanting to make a dessert in mason jars for a while now.  They're just so incredibly cute!!  And its in a jar so you can see everything that's in it and its portable.  Ummm...now I really need to calm down before I end up scaring someone.  It's probably due to all the whipped cream I just had on the strawberry shortcakes.  :)

I'm loving just about everything I'm having the urge to make out of that old Martha Meade cookbook.  The recipe actually called for bigger shortcakes, but I cut mine to fit into the jars and used two instead of one.  This allowed me to layer the shortcakes and make them seem bigger.  The rest of the recipe was easy to mix and bake.

Old-Fashioned Strawberry Shortcakes

2 cups flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup shortening
3/4 cup whole milk
Strawberries
Whipped Cream

Mix flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in a medium bowl.  Cut in shortening with a pastry cutter, add whole milk and mix lightly.  Turn out onto lightly floured surface, roll 1 inch thick.  Cut with biscuit cutter (I used 1 1/2 inch).  Re-roll scraps to cut 12 rounds.  Place on greased pan and bake in a hot oven, 450 degrees for 10-12 minutes.

For the strawberries I cleaned and sliced 1 1/2 pounds into a medium bowl.  Added a couple of spoonfuls of sugar.  Stir and let sit at least an hour.

For the whipped cream, I made two separate batches.  The first batch, I used 1/2 cup heavy cream, 1 tablespoon sugar and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla.  Whipped till peaks form.  Second batch, 1/2 cup heavy cream and 1/2 ounce raspberry syrup.  Whipped till peaks form.

Assembly:

Place a shortbread in bottom of mason jar.  Spoon on strawberries and juice to cover.  Plop on some plain whipped cream.  Add another shortbread pushing down slightly to flatten whipped cream.  Then spoon on some strawberries and syrup.  Finally, plop on some raspberry whipped cream.

This recipe made extra shortbread, but the strawberries and whipped cream make enough for 4 servings.