Homemade

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What things do you like to make homemade versus buying prepared at the store? Tonight i made my own potato chips. They were yummy and the kids really enjoyed them. I also made chocolate chip ice cream. And, i FINALLY attempted risotto.

[chiver78]

I make my own croutons. I bought a bag a few weeks back when I was out, and I ended up pitching it because they were so damn salty!

how was your risotto? what (if anything) did you put in it?

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I always see them cooking risotto on the food shows. I just sauteed some butter and onions, then the risotto, then started adding a cup of chicken broth at a time until the liquid was absorbed. It was really creamy and delicious. But, i had to set it aside to finish preparing the rest of our dinner. By the time i served it, most of the liquid continued to absorb and it lost it's creaminess and just pretty much tasted like regular rice.

[Deleted]

I used sweetened ,condensed milk in my ice cream and it was a bit too sweet. Next time, i am going to use evaporated milk and add my own sugar to control the sweetness.

[chiver78]

Jul 4, 2012 0:38:45 GMT -5 @shooby said:

I always see them cooking risotto on the food shows. I just sauteed some butter and onions, then the risotto, then started adding a cup of chicken broth at a time until the liquid was absorbed. It was really creamy and delicious. But, i had to set it aside to finish preparing the rest of our dinner. By the time i served it, most of the liquid continued to absorb and it lost it's creaminess and just pretty much tasted like regular rice.

Yup, that's the basic technique. Next time, stir in some fresh grated parmesan cheese at the end, it adds to the creaminess. Glad you liked it, its a winter staple in my house

sent from my electronic distraction

[Deleted]

Homemade whipped cream. The KA whips up whipping cream in short order. Added a little sugar and put over fresh fruit! It was really yummy!

[busymom]

Stir fry! (But the veggies in the garden aren't even close to being ready to pick yet.)


I also prefer to make my own cookies & pies. Even the bakery can't beat some of Mom's old recipes!

[cranberry49]

I make my own loose face powder using nothing but corn starch and cocoa powder! It's very simple and stays put longer than store bought. Plus, it's all natural. I also make my own yogurt, and butter, at times. Oh, and kefir water!

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What kind of pies and cookies do you bake busymom?

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How do you make yogurt and butter? And what is kefir water?

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You can make butter by taking some heavy cream and shaking it for a while. I did it with the kids a couple of months ago.

[Deleted]

If i beat heavy cream in the KA with a whisk long enough will that work?

[Deleted]

I think so. It's over-whipped whipped cream, actually.

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I think i have FINALLY hit a stage in my cooking life where what i am making and preparing actually is tasting better than most convenience foods or anything we can get as fast food, etc. We are eating in more simply because the food is tasting much better. I am dying to try another crack at risotto as that was really delicious.

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Jul 6, 2012 8:54:13 GMT -5 @beerwench said:

I think so. It's over-whipped whipped cream, actually.

Does it turn yellow when you keep whipping it?

[Deleted]

Yup. And it separates into solids (the butter) and liquid (buttermilk). We only made 1/2 of a pint when we did it. I probably added the milk to whatever I was cooking for dinner that night.

[Deleted]

Oh, cool. I will give it a try. How long do you really have to whip it to get it to that stage? I think that would be fun for the kids to make their own butter.

[Deleted]

We took turns shaking it for 10 - 15 minutes. They, of course, got bored after a couple of turns so Mommy had to finish it up.

I added a couple of pinches of salt before we started shaking and it tasted really, really good! I took what was left after dinner and added some fresh herbs and crushed garlic and made a compound butter out of it. Which is FANTASTIC on corn on the cob, BTW.

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Cooking seems to be my new passion and hobby!

[Deleted]

That's not a bad one to have.

[Deleted]

Not at all. But, i now have to exercise a lot more to compensate!

[cranberry49]

Don't know if the pic posted or not. Its suppose to be a pic of a butter churn that is similiar to mine. sometimes I do it right and others not so much! LOL!

Anyway, I have a glass jar butter churn with a metal paddle that I use to make butter. I use heavy whipping cream and let stand until it reaches room temperature. It takes exactly 7 minutes to 'whip' the butter. At least, this has been my experience.

Afterwards, You have to drain the milk from the butter solids. Then you have to rinse, squeeze, rinse and squeeze until all traces of milk are gone or the butter will spoil if not used right away. Then I add some salt and store.

My oh my, it is so good!

Here's a site that explains all about kefir grains and making kefir water....

www.crunchybetty.com/water-kefir

[cranberry49]

I meant to add that the milk left from making the butter is absolutely delicious to me! I just strain out the small bits of butter and use the milk any way I see fit!

[thyme4change]

I make my own croutons.

Me too! We buy baquettes from the bakery a couple times a month - I just take whatever is left over and make it into croutons. Sometimes I just slice it thin and use them as "crackers." It makes more sense to make crackers, because the croutons rarely last until the next salad. Someone discovers them and just opens them and chows down. And when I say "someone" - I couldn't possibly be talking about myself.

[busymom]

Hey Shooby!

I make all kinds. Bar cookies, drop cookies, you name it. I'll tell you one little baking secret. A lot of cookies taste better if instead of using all white sugar, put in 1/2 brown sugar, and the other 1/2 white sugar. Yummmm! My youngest doesn't like nuts in cookies, but my oldest & DH LOVE walnuts, etc. in cookies. I don't do the short-order cook deal when I make dinner (the kids gotta eat what I make, or make themselves a sandwich), but I do try to bake to please.


Even 'tho it's CRAZY hot outside today, I'm thinking I'll be baking tonight.

[Deleted]

busy - So what are you fave cookies that you usually bake? And, what are some not so common ones that you enjoy baking.

[busymom]

I do mostly the kid's favorites. The classics, like oatmeal chocolate chip, brownies, lemon squares, etc. I've stuck with the old family recipes for years, and they're still good, but I'm starting to try more new recipes. I'm always looking for a perfect recipe that has chocolate in it!

In the last year, I've been playing with recipes where you dip or roll a cookie in melted chocolate, white chocolate, mint chocolate, etc. It's awfully messy 'tho, and I haven't mastered the technique yet. And, you need time to play with those lengthy recipes, and I haven't had the spare time lately....

[Deleted]

Who's been cooking?

[chiver78]

me!

after leaving my tin 'o croutons at my sister's place after a big cookout, I made another batch this weekend before another one. I usually bring a big antipasto to cookouts, because I'm not too big a fan of burgers and dogs.

a couple weeks ago, I also cooked/froze a few things for a friend who's a new mom again. she's recovering from another C-section, so I wanted to give her things that her DH could easily pull from the freezer and do up for dinners. (he isn't allowed in the kitchen normally, for good reason!). one night last week, I brought over a couple bags' worth of my kale and black bean stew and a couple chicken pot pies.

coming up, I've got another friend going in for surgery at the end of the month. she wants to have a night of trashing her kitchen for freezable recipes. I think I'm going to bring some of that stew, already frozen, and maybe do up some turkey burgers with her while I'm there.

I'll totally share any recipes, if anyone's interested.

[Deleted]

chiver - You have been a busy bee! I was watching Master Chef a couple weeks ago and one of the challenges was making perfectly cooked eggs. I realized i have never made a soft boiled or poached egg. So, i am gonna poach some eggs today.