Gyros at home!

I am so happy! with the help of Alton Brown from Good Eats on Food network, I have figured out how to make Gyros at home! here is my modified recipe

Gyros
1 medium 0nion
2 lbs ground beef or lamb
4 tbs Cavender's All Purpose Greek Seasoning
food processor (you want everything ground ad fine as possible)
loaf pan
pan larger than loaf pan (you will 0place the loaf pan into a bath of water to help it cook evenly and to keep the edges from getting too hard)
1 brick that fits in loaf pan wrapped in foil (this really helps believe me)

place in onion in food processer and chop then remove onion and place in a tea towel and squeeze to get as much liquid as possible from the onion. place meat, Greek seasoning and onion in food processor and mix until it is all mixed together and ground fine. pat into loaf pan pressing into pan and cover with foil. place larger pan into oven and then place loaf pan inside then fill larger pan with about 1 inch of water. bake at 375 for 90 minutes then remove from oven and drain any grease. place brick directly on top of loaf and let sit for 30 minutes this helps compress the loaf more like it was made on a rotisserie. remove loaf from pan and slice very thin. pan fry strips till brown. serve with your favorite gyro toppings on a pita or make a gyro salad I have not modified Alton Brown's tzatziki sauce so this is directly from the link above.
Tzatziki Sauce:
16 ounces plain yogurt
1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded, and finely chopped
Pinch kosher salt
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
5 to 6 mint leaves, finely minced
Place the yogurt in a tea towel, gather up the edges, suspend over a bowl, and drain for 2 hours in the refrigerator.
Place the chopped cucumber in a tea towel and squeeze to remove the liquid; discard liquid. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the drained yogurt, cucumber, salt, garlic, olive oil, vinegar, and mint. Serve as a sauce for gyros. Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to a week.
Yield: 1 1/2 cups

Grandmas homemade banana pudding

Sundays were the day that we went to eat at grandma and grandpaw's house (AKA Mammy and Dad's). This recipe is straight from Grandma's tattered and torn recipe book and is very fating but oh so good! The tip to a good meringue is to make sure there that the bowl and utensils are completely dry and there is nothing in the bowl to contaminate the mixture. Bake it in a pie crust and this also makes a great pie!

1/3 cup all-purpose flour 2/3 cup sugar
Dash of salt
2 1/2 cups 1 percent low-fat milk
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
4 egg yolks, lightly beaten
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups sliced ripe bananas (about 5 to 6)
45 reduced-fat vanilla wafers
4 egg whites
1/4 cup granulated sugar 1 tsp cream of tarter

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Combine flour, sugar and salt in medium saucepan. Gradually stir in milks and yolks, and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, about 8 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla. Arrange 1 cup banana slices in a 2-quart baking dish. Spoon 1/3 pudding mixture over bananas; top with 15 vanilla wafers. Repeat layers once; top with remaining bananas and pudding. Arrange remaining 15 wafers around inside edge of dish. Gently push wafers into pudding.

Beat egg whites at high speed with an electric mixer until foamy. Add sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until stiff peaks form and sugar is dissolved. Spread meringue over pudding, sealing to edge of dish. Bake for 25 minutes or until golden. Let cool at least 30 minutes this tastes great warm!

Japanese tonite!

I have recently discovered Kobe Steakhouse, and I have become obsessed with figuring out their "white sauce" and fried rice. Woot! Woot! I think I have it down! and here is the recipe for the white sauce

copycat Kobe Steakhouse White sauce.  And you can have a treat without spending a fortune.  now I will have to figure the rice out.  I think peanutbuter may be the secret ingredient but not quite sure yet

3 table spoons agave nectar (I purchased it in the Mexican section of Walmart you can substitute sugar but I would decrease to 2 tablespoons)
2 tablespoons melted butter

3 tablespoons rice vinegar

3/4 teaspoon ground paprika

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1 cup real mayo (I used great value brand)

mix melted butter, rice vinegar, agave nectar, paprika, garlic powder, and ginger till blended. add mayo and mix till creamy, chill till ready to serve!

Easy food processor gelato

I need to take pictures of this later this week. I have made it 2 times now with strawberries and it does not last long enough to get a picture everyone is standing in my way waiting for a bowl of it. Simple ingredients and a food processor is all that is needed! This is not as thick as ice cream but oh so good you can freeze it for about 45 minutes if you want a thicker consisity but I warn you it is hard to wait!

2-3 cups fresh frozen fruit (no sugar added)
1/2 cup sugar or to taste
2/3 cup heavy cream
process sugar and berries add cream blend till thick and enjoy about 5 minutes!

the next time I make this I think I am going to try half and half and splenda (1/4 cup to start) to try and reduce the calories

use up all of those potatoes!

Walmart had Idaho potatoes on sale 10 pounds for 3 bucks so I had to stock up. Tonite we had steamed shrimp almost Cheddar bay biscuits and tater skins. I decided not to waste all of those yummy potatoes so instead of just peeling the potatoes I sliced the sides off and baked them up and topped them with cheese and bacon pieces and voila tater skins! I took the rest of the potatoes and boiled them to make mashed potatoes for tomorrow and to keep it all thrifty I may even make some potato bread! I wanted to take a pic for you but the masses swooped down on them before I could get the camara out!

Cleaning Green with Vinegar

I have discovered what my grandmother knew all along. Vinegar is one of the most useful things in the pantry. For the longest I have spent so much money on cleaning products thinking my life would be better, easier, faster. I didn't realize the secret ingredient was in my pantry all along.

Vinegar is a natural degreaser. put 1/4 cup vinegar in your microwave and cook it for 2-3 minutes and then let it set for about 5-10 minutes then just wipe your microwave down with a damp cloth and you will be amazed at how easy all that hard cooked on stuff will come off. I have also tried this recently in my oven. It took a little more work and there was such a mess in the bottom I had to pour the vinegar directly on the floor and let it bake in for about 30 minutes but it cleaned up nicely after that. I did have to use a paint scrapper in some places (yes it was bad) but it was much better than using that expensive caustic oven cleaner that I dreaded using which is why it had gotten so bad. So now once a week I let vinegar steam the inside of my oven and just wipe It down to keep it from getting that bad again.

Hardwood and laminate floors can be ruined easily by some products but vinegar is actually recommenced for laminates. I will mix 1/2 cup vinegar to 1 gallon of water to clean all of your hard floors it is also great in the kitchen because of the degreasing properties. I have used it on hardwood, laminate, vinyl and ceramic tiles and it cleans beautifully.

We have very hard water here and vinegar in the rinse cycle of the wash with every load has cleaned up my washing machine. I also use it in the dishwasher and it has also helped clean it out and my clothes and dishes look much better. and no your house will not smell like vinegar.

for the laundry and dishes
1/2 cup vinegar in the rinse cycle

for the microwave and oven 1/2 cup in a dish let it heat up and sit in there and steam for 10 minutes

for the floors
1/2 cup to 1 gallon of water you can add a few drops of essential oil if you like

Measuring flour

I use to have a problem with my yeast bread getting too tough and having to add more and more water. I thought it was the climate here in Arkansas but it was just me.
When measuring flour DO NOT just scoop out of the flour jar with your measuring cup. This causes the flour to pack into the cup and then you get too much. Instead try using a scoop and then pour it into your measuring cup and level off with a knife this way you will get the right amount of flour called for in your recipe.