Martha A. Cheves's Blog, page 105

Easy Buttermilk Cake

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs, room temperature
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 cup buttermilk, room temperature
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray cake pans with non-stick spray and line the bottoms with parchment paper or wax paper. Spray the paper with non-stick spray. If you are making cupcakes, use liners and spray the inside of the liners. Beat butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer for 5 minutes at medium speed. They will be light and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time. Sift flour, baking powder and baking soda together. Add 1/4 of the flour mix to the butter-egg mix, add vanilla and 1/3 of the buttermilk. Continue adding 1/4 of the flour and 1/3 of the butter milk until all has been added, ending with the last of the flour. Mix well after each addition. Pour into pans. Bake 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pans on a rack for 5 minutes. Remove from the pans and remove paper. Cool completely before frosting.

Changes - Add a different flavoring such as lemon, almond, coconut, etc. This cake comes out with a very strong butter taste and is great for any icing. I've made this in a tube pan by reducing the oven temperature to 325 degrees and cooking 55-60 minutes. If the top starts to brown too quickly before the inside of the cake is done lay a sheet of foil over the top of the cake.

Cucumber Spread

2 med. cucumbers
2 pkg. (8 oz. each) cream cheese, softened
1 pkg dry ranch dressing mix
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans (optional)
hot sauce (to taste)

Peel cucumbers, cut in half lengthwise and scoop out seeds. Chop very finely or run through a food processor. Combine cream cheese, hot sauce, dressing mix and garlic powder and beat until creamy. Mix in cucumbers.

Serve as a spread for party breads or serve as a dip for firm chips. This also works good with toasted pita wedges and crackers. Flavor it up even more by adding a 6 1/2 oz. can of very well drained crabmeat.

Another Hormel Recipe

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Hormel, I hope you try this one!  Oh My Goodness did this one turn out great.  I was flipping through magazines looking for an idea for Hormel's Turkey Pepperoni and ran across a recipe for sausage balls, which I simply love.  Well, why not have Pepperoni Balls?  So here is what I did:

Pepperoni Balls

1 pkg (5 oz.) Hormel Turkey Pepperoni Minis
1 cup biscuit mix
1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 egg

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Mix all ingredients (using your hands is best).  If they mix up a little dry, add about 2 Tbsp. of water to moisten.  Shape into 1" balls.  Place on a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper.  Bake 18 minutes or until lightly browned.  Makes about 24.

You could serve this as is or with a pizza sauce for dipping.  Either way, this turned out simply delicious.

Hormel Recipes

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Remember the party I'll be hosting using Hormel products?  Well, I've worked up 2 recipes so far.  Both are simple and from what my testers tell me, both are delicious.

Both of these recipes are made by using Hormel's Cure 81' Ham.  When I bought this ham it had a price of just under $10.00.  Foodbuzz and Hormel had sent me coupons for $10.00 off so I ended up with my ham costing me $ -0-.  Thank you Foodbuzz and Hormel.  But, I have to tell you that the $10.00 price would have been worth every penny.  I'm actually coming up with 4 dishes using this one ham.  I've made 2 of my party recipes which will serve 10 people, I decided to make a pot of dried soup beans and still had 2 really thick slices left to serve with my beans.  That makes the cost of meat in each dish only $2.50 each.  In my book, that's a pretty good deal.

[image error] 1st Recipe - BBQ Ham

This one was so simple and is really delicious.  I have a favorite BBQ sauce that is actually advertised as a Honey BBQ Wing sauce.  Its sweet with just enough heat to really make it great.  So, for my BBQ Ham I simply cut the ham into toothpick serving size cubes, placed them in a covered container, coated them slightly with BBQ sauce and refrigerated for a couple of hours.  Simple and wonderful! 

[image error] 2nd Recipe - Ham & Mushroom Finger Sandwiches

2 Tbsp. butter
1 1/2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 can (5 oz.) evaporated milk
1 can (4 oz.) Shiitake mushrooms, sliced & drained
1 cup Hormel Cure 81' Ham, diced
1 cup shredded cheese
1 sheet Puff Pastry, thawed
2 Tbsp. butter, melted
1/4 cup shredded cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Cut the puff pastry in half.  Place it on a sheet of waxed paper lightly sprinkled with flour.  Using a rolling pin, roll each piece of puff pastry until it's about twice it's size.  Set aside.  In a medium sized fry pan, melt butter.  Turning the heat to medium, add flour, stirring until smooth and bubbly.  Gradually whisk in cream.  Cook until creamy and starting to thicken (1-2 min.).  Add mushrooms, ham and cheese.  Spoon evenly down the center of both sheets of puff pastry.  Carefully fold one side of pastry over filling.  Bring the other side over the 1st side.  Carefully place on a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper, seam side down.  Bake 20 minutes or until pastry starts to brown slightly.  Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with cheese.  Continue baking until cheese melts.  Slice into servings. Makes about 20.

Halloween Party

Yesterday I received a package from Foodbuzz and Hormel.  Inside I found a package of turkey pepperoni, 50% fat reduced bacon bits and coupons for a Hormel ham and some of their other products.  Why am I telling you this?  Because I want you to watch for my Halloween Party Appetizers that I'll be creating using the Hormel products.  I have some really good ideas and believe they will all come out simple to make and delicious.

Asiago Broccoli

1 bag (14 oz.) frozen broccoli florets
2 Tbl. extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup diced red onion
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
1/4 oz. Asiago cheese, grated

Fill med. saucepan half full with water. Cover and bring to a boil on high. Add broccoli into boiling water. Boil 3-4 minutes or until desired tenderness, stirring occasionally. Drain broccoli thoroughly. Return saucepan to stove and reduce heat to medium high. Place olive oil in pan swirl to coat. Add onions and garlic. Cook 2-3 minutes to brown. Stir in broccoli until coated with oil. Cook 3-4 more minutes, stirring occasionally until flavors are well blended. Season with salt and pepper. Place in a serving dish and sprinkle with cheese.

Steak Marinate

I've just posted this easy 5 ingredient steak marinate to Martha's Recipe Cabinet.  Go there to view the full recipe.

Strawberry Nut Crunch with Special K Crust

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Another package came last week via UPS.  It was from Foodbuzz and Kellogs.  Inside I found 2 boxes of Special K Red Berries.  Now, what recipe can I make using Special K Red Berries?  Most people already know that cereal can be made into some really great tasting muffins but I wanted to do something different.  So... I made a crust using Special K Red Berries for my Strawberry Nut Crunch.  Here is the recipe:

2 1/2 cups Special K Red Berries
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 can sweetened condensed milk
6 Tbsp. lemon juice
1/4 cup finely chopped nuts (save about 1 Tbsp. for garnish)
1 pkg frozen strawberry slices, thawed (save 8-10 for garnish)
1 carton (8 oz.) whipped topping

Put the Special K Red Berries into a gallon plastic bag.  Close bag.  Roll a rolling pin over the cereal to crush.  Pour into a bowl and add melted butter.  Mix and press into pie pan.  In a large bowl mix milk and lemon juice.  Fold in whipped topping.  Add strawberries and nuts.  Pour into crust.  Garnish with strawberries and nuts.  Refrigerate. 

The pie itself is delicious and I normally make it with crushed vanilla wafers but using the Special K Red Berries turned out to be a great change.  Not too sweet and just a little crunch.

Sauted Mushrooms

2 Tbsp. butter
1/4 cup red onions, chopped
4 fresh garlic cloves
8 oz. whole baby portabella mushrooms
1/4 cup white wine
1/2 tsp. seasoned salt

Preheat a large fry pan on medium-high for 2-3 minutes. Add butter and onions to the pan. Crush garlic and add to the pan. Cook 1-2 minutes or until browned. Stir in remaining ingredients. Reduce heat to med. Cover and cook 5 minutes stirring occasionally.

This is good served with rice, as a side dish or over steak.

Thin Cut Boneless Pork Chops

[image error] This recipe was sent to me from Chef Tom.  It looked so good that I had to give it a try.  It turned out to be just as good as it looks.  The blends of the garlic, soy and herbs are perfect.  There were two changes that I made.  One was to change the lime juice to lemon, but that change was made due my being out of lime juice.  The lemon worked perfectly.   The second change was the marinade time.  I ended up cooking it the next day so it actually marinaded for about 24 hours.  All-in-all, this was one of the best pork chops I've had in a long time.  So, below is the email sent to me by Chef Tom.


(Chef Tom) "The supermarket had an amazing sale on these thin boneless pork chops. I like pork, but usually make thick cut chops or pork loin, etc. I tried a variation of a chicken recipe I make and it actually came out pretty good."


2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 Tablespoons spicy brown mustard
1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
2 Tablespoons lime juice
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
6 thin cut pork loin chops (with or without bone)
non-stick cooking spray

In a small bowl, combine the first 8 ingredients. Then, using a whisk, slowly drizzle in the oil to emulsify.
Brush each pork chop on both sides with the marinade. Place them on a plate in the refrigerator and let it marinate for at least 1 hour.
Heat a grill pan or a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Spray with non-stick cooking spray, then add the pork chops. Cook for 2-3 minutes on each side. Be careful not to let it burn.
Serves 4-6

Chef Tom Cooks - Recipe Blog