Cassie’s Ruminations

Mini Hom Bao

I’ve been craving my hom bao for over a week now. I stir fried up the filling a couple nights ago, but didn’t get around to making the dough, and ended up just eating some of the filling on its own. Today, I just picked up a can of the little buttermilk biscuits from the refrigerated section, stretched them out, filled them, and made a little batch of mini hom bao. These are about half the size of my usual buns, and the dough flavor is just a bit different, but still very tasty!

Posted in Asian, Food, Pork, Vegetables | No Comments »

Rice Krispy Treats

I made a batch of my Rice Krispy Treats to take into work for Valentine’s Day tomorrow. 🙂

Posted in Desserts, Food, Holiday Cooking | No Comments »

Product Review: Costco Deep Dish Pizza

We’re sorely lacking in deep dish Chicago-style pizza here in Washington. (Do you hear me, Old Chicago?) A friend recently mentioned that her Costco near Woodinville just started carrying deep dish pizzas in addition to the regular ones they’ve had for a long time. I had to check out my local one here in Everett, and they had them too. Hurrah! I picked one up and gave it a try. Rather heavy on the cheese for my tastes, but good crust, good sauce, good toppings. Overall, I was decently impressed, and this is a decent substitute when I’m not feeling like making my own.

Posted in Food, Pizza, Product Review | 1 Comment »

Hot and Sour Soup

I made my hot and sour soup for dinner tonight in an effort to fight off this cold that seems intent on settling back in for another round. I used 8 cups of chicken broth, 2 eggs, firm tofu (rather than extra firm), and a little more of the vinegars and pepper in this round, and I’ve got plenty for a couple delicious lunches at work this week too. 🙂

Posted in Asian, Food, Soup, Vegetables | 1 Comment »

Meatloaf

We were craving some comfort food tonight, so I made my meatloaf with some roasted zucchini and baby potatoes. Delicious!

Meatloaf
Serves 4

1 lb ground beef (I use 20% lean for this)
1 large egg
5 saltines, crushed
½ tsp black pepper
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp onion powder
¼ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp oregano
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
Non-stick spray
¼ cup ketchup

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly beat the egg in a large bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix them together using your hands until they just come together. Form into a flat loaf shape, about 1 inch thick and place on a baking pan with sides (to catch any grease) that has been sprayed with non-stick spray. Spread the ketchup over the top and sides of the meatloaf. Bake for about 45 minutes to 1 hour or until cooked all the way through (internal temperature of 165 degrees F).

Posted in Beef, Easy, Food | No Comments »

White Cheddar and Canadian Bacon Egg White Rounds

A new year, a new batch of egg white rounds to go to work with me! This time I did white cheddar and Canadian bacon.

White Cheddar and Canadian Bacon Egg White Rounds
Makes 12 Rounds

1 pint (16 oz) egg whites (I use Egg Beaters)
3 oz white cheddar, crumbled
4 oz Canadian bacon, diced

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Spray a silicon muffin pan lightly with non-stick spray.

Divide the cheese, Canadian bacon, and egg whites evenly among the 12 muffin cups. The cups should end up being about 3/4 full.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the egg white is cooked all the way through and the edges are just started to get a little bit golden brown.

Remove from oven and let cool. Package in individual zip top bags and freeze.

To reheat, place the egg round on a plate and microwave for 30 seconds (if refrigerated), or up to 1 minute 30 seconds from frozen. Serve warm.

Posted in Breakfast, Eggs, Food | No Comments »

Happy New Year!

We wish you all the best in the new year!

We made our usual sweet and sour little sausages and some baked corn tortilla chips (just cut up tortillas, sprayed lightly with oil, sprinkled with kosher salt, and baked at 450 degrees F for about 10 minutes) for snacks. 🙂

Posted in Corgi, Food | No Comments »

Cornflake Chicken

We made cornflake chicken, with my usual addition of season salt in the cornflake crumbs, for dinner last night, and the reflection on the knife was just kinda neat in the picture, so I’m sharing. Don’t mind me. 😛

Posted in Food | No Comments »

Product Review: Oscar Mayer Selects Turkey Hot Dogs

We picked up some Oscar Mayer Selects Turkey Dogs at the store yesterday, looking for a healthier but still tasty option to satisfy a hot dog craving. We enjoyed some of the other products in the Selects line, and were hopeful for these.

We heated some up for lunch and were very pleasantly surprised and pleased. These taste like good, high quality, spiced and smokey links, with practically no grease. Give these a try, even if you aren’t trying to eat healthier. We’ve found our new go-to hot dog!

Posted in Food, Poultry, Product Review | 1 Comment »

Cranberry Cake

This recipe comes to me via my friends Jessica and Kristen. It came highly recommended, and it definitely deserved it! The balance of flavors works very nicely, and I’m having this for breakfast, even though I made it for a treat last night. I’m sharing the recipe here, while we can still find fresh cranberries in the stores. 🙂

Cranberry Cake
Serves 20

3 eggs
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup butter (softened)
1 tsp almond extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
2.5 cups fresh cranberries
2/3 cups chopped pecans (optional, but very good)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spray a 13 inch by 9 inch by 2 inch baking pan with non stick spray and set aside.

Beat the eggs and sugar in a large mixing bowl until they are light in color and well blended, about 5 minutes. Add the butter and almond extract and beat until smooth, about another 2 minutes. Add the flour and stir until a thick batter forms. Fold in the cranberries and pecans.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread it evenly with a spatula. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool completely, then cut and serve.

Posted in Cakes, Desserts, Food, Fruit | No Comments »