For the dogs...

Happy Easter! This weekend, the hubby and I made the trip to Louisville to meet our new niece... She is furry and has 4 legs:) For those of you who don't know, I love all things canine, so to celebrate I made some special treats for all of our furry family members. They are full of healthy ingredients and lack the sugars that human treats have. Plus they are cheaper than the ones you buy at the dog bakery. These are easy and could be made in mini muffin pans, but for effect I used a special Demarle puppy lovers tray, so they are shaped like dog bones! Hope your pups enjoy these as much as mine did!

Banana Pupcakes
2 cups of water
2 mashed bananas
1 egg
2 tablespoons of honey
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
3 cups of whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon of baking powder

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Combine wet ingredients then add the dry and mix. Pour into the pan and bake for 13 to 15 minutes. Cool and serve!

Welcome to the family baby Venus!

Beautiful Women and Fast Horses

This post can only be about one thing... Keeneland!  For those of you who don't know, this is a magical place that only opens twice a year to welcome racing fans, gamblers and those of us who just enjoy a good bourbon and quality time with friends.  Plus, it gives me a reason to get dressed up and wear pearls (but who really needs a reason for pearls?).  Despite the fact that it was 45 degrees and a hurricane outside, I spent my Saturday at the track.  For most of us, the best part about the day in the tailgate.  Some race fans feel it appropriate to neglect the food at a good tailgate and spend their resources on the spirits.  I personally feel that it is equally, if not more, important to eat well at your tailgate.  Ours typically consists of fried chicken and barbecue chips, but a carb-filled dessert can't hurt either!  This recipe is for those of you who recognize the need for food and spirits at Keeneland.  WARNING:  A friend of mine ate one piece of this Saturday and was instantly intoxicated.  Enjoy at your own risk!

Bourbon Cake with Bourbon Sauce

Yellow cake mix
1- 3.4 oz vanilla pudding mix
4 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup bourbon

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.  Combine all ingredients well and pour into a coated (or Demarle which needs no coating) bundt pan.  Bake for 50-55 minutes.  Cool and invert onto a plate.  Caution: I would use something with edges so when you poor the sauce on it pools around the cake.

Now to get the cake a little saucy (no pun intended)...

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup bourbon

Combine all ingredients together in a sauce pan and bring to a boil.  Simmer until the sugar is dissolved.   Poke holes in the top of the cake with a toothpick and then slowly pour the warm sauce over the cake.  It will soak up as much as it can even if some falls to the sides.  Enjoy!

Home is where the heart is

Roadtrip!  The hubby and I traveled to Lexington today, which leads me to my next recipe.  The perfect food for a road trip:

Sweet and Sassy Snack Mix
6 cups of corn Chex
2 cups of pretzels
1 cup of Cheezits
1 cup of peanuts
1 stick of butter'
3/4 cup of packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Put the first 4 ingredients in a large mixing bowl.  Melt the butter in a saucepan and add brown sugar and pepper.  Bring to a boil for one minute.  Pour the syrup over the dry mix.  Spread on a large baking sheet and bake for 8 minutes, stir, then bake for another 8 minutes. Stir and cool then gobble it up!!

Now... a quick preview... currently, myself and my inspiration (better known as my momma) are baking chocolate chip cookies for a cookout tomorrow night and a bourbon cake for our tailgate to Keeneland tomorrow.  It's the most wonderful time of the year!  And that means, look out for a new recipe Sunday.  Have a great weekend!

Special Delivery!

I am a huge advocate for small/local businesses... especially those that involve food.  No matter where I live or visit, I try to visit local shops, boutiques and restaurants.  Often times I find out that they have some of the most exciting treasures:)  So when I heard about a service here in Indianapolis called Green Bean Delivery, I signed up immediately.  This particular service drops off a weekly/biweekly "bin" full of seasonal, local and/or organic produce as well as local baked goods, dairy products and meat.  Sounds expensive right? Nope!  It is a $35 dollar minimum and you can suspend an order any time you don't need it.  No fees, no service charges, just the cost of your food.  While I have found that some items might be a tad more pricey than at Kroger, the convenience and flavor of what we get makes it all worth it.   This exact service is available in Cincinnati, but most cities have something similar.  Coops are great for local foods too.  My mother-in-law is part of a a summer vegetable coop and my friends in Boston are even part of a seafood coop.  Look into it!

My only problem... I forget to modify my order from the standard "bin".  Here is how it works: you can go on their website and specify what exactly you want, or they will fill your bin with the best of whatever produce they have.  I almost always forget to specify, so I get a fun surprise every other Tuesday:)  This week (and week before last), I got quite a few tangelos.  Now I have nothing against the citrus family, but I HATE to peel oranges, tangerines, grapefruit and said tangelos.  SO in a desperate attempt not to waste the fruit drawer full of tangelos, I made homemade tangelo sherbet.  My grandfather (love him!) had us make homemade ice cream with an old crank machine last 4th of July.  While my sometimes cynical husband was not terribly excited to stand in the sweltering KY heat and crank it, he quickly grew to appreciate how amazing good homemade ice cream can be.  I, however, use an electronic ice cream maker.  While the nostalgia is not so great, the flavor is not lacking.  Which leads me to tonight's recipe.  This is easily interchangeable with any sweet citrus fruit (oranges in particular).  Enjoy!

Tangelo Sherbet
7 oz sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 tablespoons of rind
2 cups FRESH SQUEEZED tangelo (or whatever citrus fruit) juice
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups milk (the higher the fat content, the creamier the sherbet)

In a food processor or blender, combine everything but the milk and mix until sugar is dissolved (about a minute).  Whisk in the milk and refrigerate until its very cold (like 42 degrees, usually take an hour).  Pour it into the ice cream maker and let it go until it is the consistency of soft serve cream.  Serve right then or freeze for a few more hours if you want it to firm up.  Perfect treat for the upcoming heat!

Going "Out" to Dinner

Many of you have noticed that spring is finally here.  And if you are an Indiana resident, this has been a very recent realization:)  Spring is that brief period of time when you don't sweat walking to your car and you can enjoy your patio at just about any time of the day.  This weekend marked the first of many weekend to grill and enjoy your spirits outdoors.  My favorite meal from here until Labor Day is your typical cook-out food.  For me this consists of assorted meat (hamburgers, hot dogs, pork chops, chicken, etc.), potato salad and my all-time favorite (not the mention the reason for this recipe post) BAKED BEANS!  Lady-like or not, I could eat these by the bowl full, so I had to share my recipe for this semi-homemade fave.  You can't go wrong with a recipe that calls for bacon grease and brown sugar.  Enjoy:)

Simple Baked Beans

4 or 5 slices of bacon

1/2 large onion (chopped)

2- 28oz cans of Van Camp's Pork 'n Beans

4 tablespoons of packed brown sugar
4 tablespoons of ketchup
2 tablespoons of mustard
2 tablespoons of worchestershire sauce

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Fry your bacon in a large skillet.  Once cooked, you can toss the actual bacon or feed it to your husband because all you really want is the grease.  Add the chopped onion to the grease and saute until soft.  Remove the skillet from the heat and add in the beans (I suggest draining a little out of the can first).  Next simply add the brown sugar, ketchup, mustard and worchestershire and mix it all together.  Pour the mixture into a 9x13 baking pan and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.  This makes 8-10 servings depending on who eating, but it is easily halved for a smaller crowd.