From Denny:New Orleans' Rebirth Jazz Band helps at risk kids discover and develop a new life.
Having worked with Special Needs kids myself I know how important it is to nurture young minds and hearts. When left unattended human nature turns resentful and eventually violent.
What they learn beyond music is the concept of the positive version of teamwork and emotional discipline that will carry them for a life time. This is a wonderful program producing heart-warming results!
From Denny: The wonderful site of BellaOnline.com of which their food and wine section is one of many areas they cover for womens' issues! This is an easy recipe to make for weekend company or if you and yours are going to a relative's house to celebrate this Mother's Day.
"Orange Chocolate Bundt Cake combines the flavors of fresh oranges and dark chocolate to make a decadent cake that stays moist; it’s also pretty enough to serve company.
Since this delicious cake starts with a mix, it goes together quickly; once a few other simple ingredients are added, the cake takes on the texture and flavor of a made-from-scratch cake. Don't be surprized when this cake becomes an oft requested favorite."
Spray a 10" bundt pan with Baker's Joy (alternatively, spray the pan liberally with non-stick spray and sprinkle a tablespoon or two of flour into the pan. Rotate the pan so that flour covers the inside of the pan and dump the excess flour out; set the pan aside).
Preheat the oven to 350°.
Mix the cake mix and gelatin in a large mixing bowl.
Using a Microplane or fine grater, remove the zest from the oranges; add all but 1 teaspoon of the zest to the cake mixture (save the other half for the frosting).
Juice the oranges; you should have about 1 cup juice; if you don't have a full cup, add water to make 1 cup.
Add the juice, vegetable oil, eggs, and orange extract to the cake and gelatin mixture.
Mix on low speed until combined, scraping the bowl a couple of times.
Turn the mixer to medium and beat until the batter is smooth, 2-3 minutes.
Pour the batter evenly into the prepared bundt pan.
Bake 45-60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted.
Remove from the oven and cool 10 minutes; invert cake onto a cooling rack and cool thoroughly.
Frosting: Pour the chocolate chips into a microwaveable container; add the butter and whipping cream.
Microwave 1 1/2 minutes or until the butter is melted and the cream is warm; let sit 5 minutes.
Add the orange extract and the reserved orange zest; whisk until thick and smooth.
Pour the mixture over the top of the bundt cake, allowing it to drip down the sides.
Garnish with additional orange peel if desired.
Amount Per Serving
Calories 391 Calories from Fat 198 Percent Total Calories From: Fat 50% Protein 5% Carb. 45%
Nutrient Amount per Serving:
Total Fat 22 g Saturated Fat 8 g Cholesterol 63 mg Sodium 251 mg Total Carbohydrate 44 g Dietary Fiber 0 g Sugars 14 g Protein 5 g
From Denny: While researching for an article concerning women's issues I ran across this site called BellaOnline and they also had a wonderful food section.
From: Sandie Jarrett, Cajun and Creole Editor @ BellaOnline.com
I'm not much of a meatloaf fan but most of the males I know sure are. I adapted this recipe from one I came upon in an old Cajun cookbook. Although somewhat different, (less hot pepper, more garlic, olive oil instead of butter, stock instead of canned milk, no ketchup), the flavors are all there – fresh meat, a little heat, and of course a classic Trinity.
Remember to season to taste. If you enjoy a hot and spicy dish, then you will probably want to double up on the cayenne pepper or even add your favorite Cajun seasoning blend.
Serve with garlic mashed potatoes or my Cajun Roasted Potatoes for a new twist on a Classic American Dish. Serve with gravy or a thin, tangy BBQ sauce.
Makes 6 – 8 servings
Ingredients
3 tablespoons olive oil
3/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
1/2 cup finely chopped bell pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped green onions
3 tablespoons finely chopped Italian Parsley
3 cloves minced garlic (about 4 teaspoons) or to taste
Preheat the oven to 350º. Position the oven rack in the middle of the oven.
Combine the seasoning mix in a bowl and set aside.
Heat the oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the celery, onion, and bell pepper and cook until they begin to soften. Add the green onions, parsley, garlic, Worcestershire sauce and the seasonings. Sauté 5 - 6 minutes, stirring and scraping the bottom of the saucepan frequently. Don't let the vegetables and seasonings burn!
Stir in the stock and tomato paste. Continue cooking for about 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and allow mixture to return to room temperature.
Place the ground beef in a large bowl and add the eggs, the cooked vegetable mixture (don't forget to remove the bay leaves) and the bread crumbs. Mix by hand until thoroughly combined. If the mixture is too moist, add a few additional tablespoons of bread crumbs (too many bread crumbs and the meatloaf will be too dry).
Turn out the meatloaf mixture into the center of a 13X9X2 baking pan and shape into a loaf that is about 2" high, 6" wide and 10 -12" long.
Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 35 minutes, then raise the heat to 400 degrees and continue cooking until done, about 20 - 25 minutes longer or until the internal temperature of the meatloaf is 180 degrees F. Check internal temperature with an instant read meat thermometer at 40 minutes and again at 50 minutes, etc. until it reaches the desired internal temperature.
Remove the cooked meatloaf from the oven and allow to rest for about 5 minutes before slicing into 1/2 inch slices.
Tangy Meatloaf Sauce
Although not Cajun, I make a tangy sauce:
1 cup balsamic vinegar 1 tablespoon Creole mustard a little tomato paste a drizzle of honey a squeeze of lemon juice 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder and a pinch of cayenne pepper
I whisk it all together in a saucepan and simmer over medium heat until the sauce has been reduced by 1/3. Everything is added to taste – so adjust as necessary.
Cook's Notes
*** Sandy likes the meat finely ground – so she uses her food processor to blend in the ingredients. Work in batches because if the processor bowl is too full, the meat won't grind evenly.
Add about 1/4 of the meat, breadcrumbs, cooked vegetables, and eggs to the bowl of a standard size food processor that has been fitted with the chopping blade. Pulse a few times to distribute ingredients evenly and to grind the meat a bit more. Avoid over processing (mixture will turn to paste!).
Transfer processed mixture to a bowl and continue processing the remaining 3 batches. When all of the mixture has been processed, combine the batches together (hands work great for this), turn out into a 13X9X3 baking pan and continue as directed above.
*** Sandy uses tomato paste but ketchup can be used.
From Denny: Here are a couple of other good recipes! The following meatloaf is made with ground turkey, basil and mozzarella cheese.
From Denny: Home cooked meals are the increasing trend with today's economy. A recent university study looked at 800 home cooks who are considered the nutritional gatekeepers of the family. If the cook has problems with proper portion control and types of foods served then 75% of the family tends to follow their lead.
Types of Cooks identified:
Giving cook - very generous person other people love to be around, often so concerned about recreating that perfect dish they don't always think about health.
Healthy cook - think too much about health they often make dishes no one can stand to eat.
Innovative cook - creative thinker who loves food and loves the taste, experiments a lot with spicy foods and new cuisines, fresh foods and tries new things, the person you want to hang out with regularly.
From Denny: Oprah's former chef, Art Smith, works with children from Chicago to Los Angeles to help them explore the cultural worlds through food as well as future opportunities. Early in the video they were making mole sauce and mole sauce has chocolate in it! Heart-warming video about developing relationships for life.
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