Website Wednesday: Sausage and Pepper Hoagies

So I actually had planned to do a theme week this week of all Cajun recipes to get you all amped and ready to go for Mardi Gars next week. But even though I have all the recipes made and photographed, I have not had time to sit down and type up the recipes or go through the 386 pictures I have of them (really that’s an exact number of photos I have taken for one week of blog posts).

So I will get all that ready this week and we can celebrate Mardi Gras next week together! In the meantime, here is today’s Website Wednesday recipe, Sausage and Pepper Hoagies.

It’s no wonder that I was attracted to today’s recipe, I love the sweet yet crunchy taste of caramelized onions and peppers. In fact, this Sausage and Pepper Arrabbiata is one of our most beloved recipes to date and a meal that I turn to often when I need a quick meal and only have a few bucks! These hoagies are a much more causal version of my go to pasta dish. This would be perfect for a spring or summer BBQ as you could totally just grill the veggies and sausage. But don’t wait until the warmer temps are here, cook these up on the stove top tonight (unless you live anywhere, oh say south of Oklahoma, where it has been “Spring” since October)!

One Year Ago: Creamy Fettuccine Alfredo with Chicken and Kitchen Tips to get Dinner on the Table Quick
Two Years Ago: Yellow Corn-Crusted Tilapia with Cilantro-Lime Sour Cream

Sausage and Pepper Hoagies
Printable Version
Prep Time: 10 minutes Cook time: 20 minutes Serves: 6

6 whole Italian chicken/turkey sausage links
1 whole green bell pepper, seeded and sliced into 3/4 inch strips
1 whole red bell pepper, seeded and sliced into 3/4 inch strips
1 large onions, sliced
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried parsley
½ teaspoon salt and pepper, to taste
3 tablespoons cooking oil
6 hoagie rolls
6 tablespoons spicy mustard
2-3 ounces feta cheese, crumbled

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in sauté pan over medium high heat. When hot, add sausage and cook for 8-10 minutes, turning occasionally, or until cooked through. Remove sausage and set aside.
Add remaining oil to pan. And peppers and onions into a saucepan, sprinkle in the oregano, parsley, salt and black pepper. Stir the mixture every few minutes and continue cooking until the peppers and onions start to soften and caramelize slightly– about 10 minutes.

Spread mustard on each side of the hoagie roll. Place one sausage link in the hoagie roll, then top with the peppers, onions and feta cheese.

adapted from Tasty Kitchen

Week of: Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is Tuesday and do you know how you are celebrating with your loved ones? A romantic night in with the honey? Or braving the restaurant madness? A cute and cheezy heart shaped dinner with the kids?

As for me, since Eric has to work late that night we will be having 'date night' this week on Wednesday with dinner at home (or maybe out? Always nice to have a break from cooking) and a movie out (any you recommend?).

Anyways if you are still looking for a few last minute Valentine's Day ideas check out all the posts this past week as part of Valentine's week:

 Chocolate Truffles

How To: Valentine's Day Candy Cards

Red Velvet Hot Chocolate with Cream Cheese Whipped Cream

Love Shack: Valentine's Gingerbread House

How Tow: Celebrate Valentine's Day with a Romantic Dinner at Home

Chocolate and Valentine's Day go Hand n' Hand

We can’t have a Valentine’s week without chocolate! Chocolate truffles are so easy to make, although (and don’t say I didn’t warn you) a bit messy. Not only are they fun, you can easily customize the flavors you want based on your desired coatings and flavor extracts.

These truffles also make a great activity to do with kids, since they literally require hands on work! Remember, it IS ok for kids to get a little messy every once in a while (wink. wink), and they will treasure any moment they are allowed to!

So skip the expensive, overpriced (and honestly sometimes unpleasant) boxed chocolates and make up a batch of homemade chocolate truffles for your loved one this year!

One Year Ago: Light Strawberry Trifle for Two
Two Years Ago: Lentil Bean Soup

Chocolate Truffles
Printable Version
Prep Time: 20 minutes Cook Time: 5 minutes Wait Time: 3-4 hours Makes: 20-25 truffles

1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
1 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Desired coatings (sprinkles, chopped nuts, cocoa, powdered sugar, coconut, etc.)

In a small saucepan, heat cream to a simmer. Remove from heat and add chocolate chips and
vanilla. Let sit for 5 minutes and then stir chocolate mixture until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and chill until firm, approximately 3-4 hours.

Using a small spoon, scoop out heaping spoonfuls of the firm chocolate mixture. Working quickly, to keep from chocolate from melting, roll it between the palms of your hands to form balls.

Place desired coatings in separate bowls. Roll truffle in coating of your choice and refrigerate until ready to serve.

adapted from Cook, Learn, Grow

How To: Valentine's Day Candy Cards

It never fails, whenever I have plans to to a theme week something comes up and I can't blog on one of the days of the week. The blog post I am sharing today I had planned to share yesterday but due to technical difficulties it didn't go up. Since I am such a busy gal I usually type up my blog posts on my phone when I am waiting for appointments, etc., which I did yesterday. But I recently got a new phone and easily typed up my post but couldn't figure out how to upload it or copy and paste it or even email it to myself. After my loooong day yesterday I was way too tired to continue to deal with it. So the whole point to my story is that I am a day behind in sharing my Valentine's recipes so be sure and check in tomorrow for the last love fest recipe!

One of my favorite blog post that I have done in the past is my post about a candy card Valentine heart that, if you remember, I shared for last Valentine's Day. I shared with you my candy card heart poster and also shared how this candy heart has become quite the tradition. Every year that Eric and I have been together I have made him a candy heart poster for his Valentine's Day gift, not fancy and expensive but a fun tradition that we both look forward to every year (me because it gets my creative juices going and him because he gets to eat all that candy! Wining!) But I have come to find out not only is this our favorite tradition it is a top favorite blog post (and post that gets the most views according to Google) of you, the Kitchen Concoctions readers!

So I thought for this special Valentine's themed week, I would take that tradition and change it up a bit. Instead of making one big heart shaped poster with candy sayings I created individual candy Valentine cards (perfect for classmates, neighbors, co-workers, etc). I used some of my favorite sayings from the past but also created a few new ones. I even created some printable versions to make it easy for you!

You can either print the cards on cardstock and cut around the heart and then use double sided tape to adhere it directly to the chosen candy.

Or cut out the hearts, with or without the red border and using the double sided tape or use a glue stick and adhere the cards to heart shaped doilies (you can find a pack of 25-30 dollies for about a buck at craft stores and even the dollar store). Then depending on the size of your dollies adhere the candy to the front or back of the dollie card.

And you can even cut out the heart cards and adhere them to colorful cardstock, scrapbook paper, or construction paper and cut them out allowing some of the colored paper to show.

Here is the link to the printable versions. I even created one for all the Valentine haters out there and have a candy card that says "Valentine's Day Sucks!" to use with a lollipop or sucker as the candy of choice.

Here are the candy sayings I have included in the printables (and for more sayings check out last years candy card post):

You "Rock" my world! (Rock Candy, Pop Rocks)
Best Buds "Now and Later"! (Now and Later)
We were "Mint" to be together! (Peppermints, Gum with "Mint" in the name, Mintos, Junior Mints, Breath Mints, Peppermint Patties)
Valentine's Day "Sucks"! (Lollipops or Suckers)
You're "Extra" special! (Extra Gum)
You're one "Hot Tamale"! (Hot Tamales)
You stole a "Piece" of my heart! (Reese's Pieces)
Thanks for being such a "Sweet Heart"! (Sweet Tarts, Conversation Hearts, Heart Shaped Chocolates)

Website Wednesday: Red Velvet Hot Chocolate with Cream Cheese Whipped Cream

Nothing screams Valentine’s Day like red velvet, so I couldn’t have a week of Valentine’s fun without at least one red velvet recipe!

Last year I had visions of sugar plum fairies and all sorts of red velvet goodness slathered with tangy cream cheese madness. I thought red velvet was the perfect food mascot for Valentine’s Day and had dreamt of doing a theme week of all red velvet recipes to celebrate Valentine’s Day. But Deborah beat me to it and I decided that despite my obsession with red velvet if I did a whole week of red velvet recipes I might actually turn a slight shade of red!

But of all the red velvet treats I have bookmarked, pinned, and hastily written down on a scrap piece of paper, I decided on this hot chocolate recipe to share this week. One, because of all the red velvet recipes I have seen around the web the past few weeks I have yet to see a hot chocolate recipe and B, after making a White Hot Chocolate in December, I wanted to try another fun spin of this cozy winter treat!

And boy this red velvet hot chocolate is rich and comforting, just like red velvet should be! Making it perfect for a cold romantic day!

One Year Ago: Light Strawberry Trifle for Two

Two Years Ago: Stir-Fried Chicken with Aromatic Jasmine Rice

Red Velvet Hot Chocolate with Cream Cheese Whipped Cream
Printable Version
Prep Time: 10 minutes Cook Time: 5 minutes Serves 2

2 cups milk
2/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
4-5 drops red food coloring
2/3 cup heavy whipping cream
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1-2 tablespoon cream cheese

In a medium mixing bowl or a stand-up mixer, pour in heavy whipping cream, sugar, and ½ teaspoon vanilla. Whip on medium with the whisk attachment for 2-3 minutes. Just before it peaks, add the cream cheese and whisk for another 2 minutes being careful not to over-whip. Taste the whipped cream and add more cream cheese to taste.

In a medium saucepan, heat the milk over medium heat. Add the chocolate chips, constantly stirring gently. When almost melted, add the red food coloring to desired deep red color and stir some more. When the chocolate chips are all melted, pour the hot chocolate in two mugs and top with the whipped cream.

adapted from A Cozy Kitchen as seen on Tasty Kitchen

Love Shack

It's Valentine's week here on the KC and like I said yesterday some of the things I will be sharing this week won't necessarily be recipes but some fun and cute love themed ideas. Today is one of those no recipe days but a fun and uber cute Valentine's craft that actually involves food! => A Love Shack, or Valentine's gingerbread house.

Eric and I started a tradition of doing gingerbread houses together at Christmas the first year we were together. We have used preassembled kits, kits with the house walls made but we have to assemble, and we have even made our own gingerbread houses from scratch (those were hilarious!). But the last two years in a row we have been so darn busy during the holidays we could barley breathe let alone see straight enough to make a gingerbread house.

And since I am a girl who thrives on traditions this was quite upsetting to me! Then last year I saw Peabody post a gingerbread house decorated for Valentine's Day and I knew that my poor little lost Christmas gingerbread house tradition could be saved!

A 'Love Shack' was the answer! So AFTER Christmas I snatched up a clearance gingerbread house kit for about a buck and carefully saved it for Valentine's Day.

Last week Eric and I peacefully sat down and decorated our Love Shack with lots of red, pink, and white candy. And we had fun. And our house turned out pretty darn cheezy and cute. I LOVE IT!
This activity was pretty cheap because the gingerbread house kit was on clearance and came with a few bags of candy in green, red, and white colors, so we used the red and white pieces. We then used specific Valentine's candy like conversation hearts and pink M&Ms. Besides specific Valentine's candy there are a few other candies that already come in Valentine's colors. Here are a few of my candy/decoration suggestions for a Gingerbread Love Shack:

Roof:

Vanilla Wafers
Frosted Mini Wheats
Pink and White Frosted Animal Crackers
Square Cereal (ie: Life, Chex, etc.)
White Chocolate Covered Pretzels

Other Valentine's Decorations:

Conversation Hearts
Valentine's M&Ms
Pink and Purple Nerds
Strawberry/Cherry Twizzlers or Twizzler Pieces
Big Red Gum
Red Gum Drops
Good and Plenty
Hot Tamales
Cherry/Strawberry Jolly Ranchers
Valentine's Candy Corn
Heart Shaped Gummy Candies
Red Hots (cinnamon candies)
Peppermints/Peppermint sticks
Cherry Lifesavers

Have I forgotten anything? What are your favorite red or pink colored candies?

Celebrate Valentine’s Day with a Romantic Dinner at Home

Valentine's Day is next Tuesday and because I love the cheesiness factor of this holiday and all the fun and cuteness, I thought it would be to have a Valentine's themed week this week. So all week long keep checking back for some festive Valentine's treats, ideas, and tips (I'm forewarning you that there will be quite a few non-recipe posts this week but hopefully you will enjoy the festivities)!

First up is an article I wrote for meal planning/recipe site Food on the Table with tips on how to have a romantic dinner at home for two on Valentine's Day or any other day of the year you need some special time just for the two of you.

(photo credit)

Planning a romantic Valentine’s dinner for two? Well, with Valentine’s Day just around the corner, you may find it hard to get a reservation at that fancy and expensive steak house. Instead, plan for a special night at home, full of good food and good company.

Having a steak house dinner at home is easy, more personal, and a lot less expensive. Here are four tips to help ensure you have a successful night with your loved one, no matter the occasion.

Plan ahead: Dinner at home should be relaxed and stress free. Coordinate your schedule with your loved one so that you both will be home at the same time with no interruptions. Plan a dinner menu and select foods that the both of you like. Shop for your dinner ingredients in advance and prepare as much as you can beforehand.

Eliminate distractions: Take this time to focus on each other and enjoy good company. Arrange for babysitting at a family member’s house for the kids or plan to enjoy your dinner after they have gone to bed. Turn off the television, computer and cell phones. Clean your home and keep your kitchen clean as you work and prepare your dinner.

Set the mood: Dim the lights and light candles throughout your entire home. Set the dining room table with a clean, crisp tablecloth, your finest dishes, and a vase of vibrant, fresh flowers. Play sentimental songs softly in the background and get dressed for the occasion.

The food: Keep dinner simple but plan to serve an appetizer, main course, and dessert to make your special night together last for hours. Consider foods that require interaction and connection with each other, such as fondue; or serve up a menu full of “love” foods. Aphrodisiacs are foods that have been enjoyed for centuries for their love inducing powers. Recent scientific studies have proven that these foods really do have the ability to lower inhibitions and heighten moods. Honey, oysters, chocolate, strawberries, vanilla, and asparagus are just a few of these love foods that you might want to include in your romantic dinner.

With these tips, a little planning, and some creative resourcefulness, a special evening at home can be a night to remember! Serve up this classic steak house dinner at home with the recipes below!

Appetizer: Parmesan-Crusted Goat Cheese with Basil Oil (Annie's Eats)
Salad Starter: Strawberry Spinach Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette (Kitchen Concoctions)
Soup Starter: Crockpot French Onion Soup (How Sweet It Is)
Side Dish: Asparagus with Garlic Vinaigrette (Kitchen Concoctions)
Side Dish: Salt-Crusted Potatoes (The Hungry Housewife)
Main Dish: Garlic and Herb London Broil (Real Mom Kitchen)
Dessert: No-Bake Cheesecake (Kitchen Concoctions)