Barefoot Bloggers - Herbed Baked Eggs

This is the first official post from the Barefoot Bloggers. Our first assignment was to take on Herbed Baked Eggs from her Barefoot in Paris cookbook. I want to be barefoot in Paris...and if I could eat these eggs everyday I would! They were delicious. Some of the other Barefoot Bloggers had issues with the cooking time. They needed more time, but I found that 4 minutes cooked the eggs perfectly. Maybe I have some sort of super broiler.

Herbed-Baked Eggs Copyright, 2004, Barefoot in Paris, All Rights Reserved
Show: Barefoot Contessa
Episode: Bringing the Magic Home

1/4 teaspoon minced fresh garlic (I didn;t have any on hand so I left it out)
1/4 teaspoon minced fresh thyme leaves
1/4 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary leaves (I only had dried)
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley (didn't have any on hand)
1 tablespoon freshly grated Parmesan
6 extra-large eggs
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Toasted French bread or brioche, for serving

Preheat the broiler for 5 minutes and place the oven rack 6 inches below the heat.
Combine the garlic, thyme, rosemary, parsley, and Parmesan and set aside. Carefully crack 3 eggs into each of 2 small bowls or teacups (you won't be baking them in these) without breaking the yolks. (It's very important to have all the eggs ready to go before you start cooking.)

Place 2 individual gratin dishes on a baking sheet. Place 1 tablespoon of cream and 1/2 tablespoon of butter in each dish and place under the broiler for about 3 minutes, until hot and bubbly. Quickly, but carefully, pour 3 eggs into each gratin dish and sprinkle evenly with the herb mixture, then sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Place back under the broiler for 5 to 6 minutes, until the whites of the eggs are almost cooked. (Rotate the baking sheet once if they aren't cooking evenly.) The eggs will continue to cook after you take them out of the oven. Allow to set for 60 seconds and serve hot with toasted bread.

French Dips and CAULIFOWER

I have been craving a french dip for a while, ever since I had one in Vegas last time we were there. So, I went searching through the freezer to find that roast I had in the way back. I got the recipe from http://www.recipezaar.com/23232. Great place to find a TON of recipes.

Here is the original recipe:

Ingredients
1 (5 lb) rump roast - I only had about 2.5 pound roast
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 teaspoon seasoning salt
1 teaspoon oregano - I didn't have any so I threw in some dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon rosemary
2 instant Oxo-->instant Oxo--> or bouillon cube - I didn't have any of these
2 (14 ounce) cans beef broth - I had a 16 ounce box of beef stock
1 large onion, diced - Didn't have any in the house
Directions
Place all ingredients in a crock pot.
Cook on High for 5-6 hours or Low for 8-10.
Remove the meat from the crockpot and place on a deep plate-to collect juices.
Strain the broth well so that it is clear and no spices or onions remain.
Place in a saucepan and keep warm.
Most people prefer to keep the broth as is but you can stir in a small amount of cornstarch mixed with cold water to thicken it up just a touch.
(remember to add the juices that drain off the meat) Heat Hoaggie buns to warm and slice the meat thin.
Place a good amount of sliced meat in each of the buns and offer the Aus Jus in individual ramekins.

Herbalicious

If I am going to be making Barefoot Contessa recipes I am pretty sure that I need the same house or at least the same herb garden. Well, this was as good as I could get.

And to prove to my mother that I was the one that planted these herbs...dirt under my nails!

I planted Cilantro, Thyme and Sage from already started plants. I also planted Rosemary, Chives, and Parsley from packets. Now, I have tried to plant things from packets before...but right on the label it stated that the plants were guaranteed to grow! We shall see.

Lasanga

Yesterday was the first day that I actually did work for PDS! It was fun and relatively easy. And as I was letting a job run for about an hour I had time to whip up a homemade lasagna. It was delish, if I do say so myself. Here is what I did:

• 1/2 package of lasagna noodles


• 1 pound of hamburger meat


• 1 jar of spaghetti sauce


• 1/2 tsp of red pepper flakes


• 2 cloves of garlic


• 1 tsp of italian seasoning


• 16 oz container of cottage cheese with chives


• 1/2 cup of grated parmasan cheese


• 1 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese

• Boil the pasta noodles until very al dente

• Brown hamburger, drain excess fat


• Add 1/2 tsp of red pepper flakes


• Grate 2 cloves of garlic into the pan


• Add 1 tsp of italian seasoning


• Add most of the spaghetti sauce to the hamburger mixture

• In a seperate bowl, mix cottage cheese and parmasan cheese

• In a 9x13 pan, put the last of the sauce in the bottom


• Layer noodles so that they cover the bottom


• Layer in 1/2 of the meat mixture


• Layer in 1/2 of the cheese mixture


• Layer the last of the noodles to cover


• Layer in the rest of the meat mixture


• Layer in the rest of the cheese mixture


• Top with mozzarella cheese and a little extra parmasan cheese

• Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 45 minutes, until everything is melted and the cheese is bubbling.


• Let sit for about 5 minutes


• Cut and enjoy.

First post

So, I think I am the last person in my family to start a blog. I have thought about doing one for a while but never knew what I would write about. When I was a CSI I could never write about what was going due to privacy issues.

I was poking around a message board that I get a lot of recipes from and came across a lady who is starting up a new group blogging event called the Barefoot Bloggers. Since I love most things Ina Garten I wanted to join. But the catch was that participants must have a blog. So here I am.

Hopefully I can make some great food and take some great pictures of the food.