Zucchini Bread

Zucchini Bread  -  one of my favorites

ready to go in the oven

Preparation time about 30 minutes.  That includes gathering the ingredients, weighing, measuring, cutting, chopping or shredding as required.

Cooking time:  about 55 minutes

* Freezes really well.

Ingredients:

2 eggs, beaten
1 cup  brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
3 cups grated fresh zucchini
2⁄3 (two thirds) cup melted olive oil spread  (substitute butter if desired)
2 teaspoons baking soda
a pinch salt
3 cups all-purpose flour
1⁄2 (half)  teaspoon nutmeg
3 teaspoons cinnamon
1 cup chopped pecans 
1 cup dried cranberries 

Method

Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).  
Prepare pans by wiping with paper towel and a spray of olive oil.
I use loaf pans, or a muffin pan depending on my mood. 

In a large bowl, mix together the sugar, eggs, and vanilla and melted olive oil spread. 
Stir in the grated zucchini..

Sift the flour, baking soda and salt and add a small amount at a time stirring.
Sprinkle in the cinnamon and nutmeg over the batter and mix. 
Crush the nuts and chop the cranberries
Fold into the mixture.

Put the batter into your baking pan of choice. 
If using a muffin pan, check after 30 minutes, otherwise check at 50 minutes.
Insert a sharp knife, or a wooden pick if it comes out clean, your bread is done

Cool on a wire tray and freeze what you won't consume within 3 or 4 days.

good enough to eat!

Blue Corn Harvest - Cedar Park

I give them 7 out of 10, we will definitely return.

They would have scored higher but for the number of flies due to the open door, the uninformative and inadequate wine list and the unnecessarily large portions. I wish restaurants offered half portions for their older, or more weight conscious patrons. I would gladly pay more than half price for a half portion. I really hate to see so much waste.

As I mentioned before, when a new restaurant opens in our area we are always keen to try it. Our first visit to Blue Corn Harvest was very positive, the only reservations we had were the fact that they left the doors open. This was to facilitate wait staff going back and forth to the patio area outside, but it also facilitated flies and mosquitos coming in and, no doubt, once it got dark, many other flying creatures. The other disadvantage was that for those among us who suffer from seasonal allergies, there was no relief inside the restaurant. The menu was very interesting and the food and service was flawless.

Our second visit was terrible, being creatures of habit we ordered the same items we had enjoyed on our first visit and when the food eventually arrived at the table it was not hot and nothing was up to the standard of our previous visit. What upset us most is that when we brought this to the attention of the manager, he was not only less than interested, he was actually quite rude. We vowed never to return.

I am happy to say we returned. I was curious to see if they had improved and wanted to add them to my restaurant comments here, luckily my mother in law and my husband both agreed to try it again.

We were seated and our drinks order taken immediately. This wasn't too surprising as we do eat early so it was almost empty. We not only like to get ahead of the crowds, but we are early risers and so everything else in our day is early. One of the two complaints I have about the Blue Corn Harvest is the wine menu. It is very sparse. The house wines are listed as 'red' or 'white', no further information was available. My drink of choice is Cabernet and there was only one listed at $9 a glass. As I didn't know the wine, I was not prepared to pay $9 and settled for the mystery 'red' at $5. Larry ordered a frozen marguerita.

Our drinks were served promptly, and I was slightly disappointed that my wine was definitly not a cabernet, it was too sweet to be, however after tasting one of the complementary corn bread muffins, their sweetness took the sweet edge off the wine and it was passable though I think I will try the $9 glass next time. Larry's marguerita was good, but very small and so, not really good value, he said it would be perfect at $3.99 but was overpriced at $5.99 in his opinion. Mildred always settles for water, and so had no complaints.

The food once again was great. I do want to try other items on the menu, but I can't seem to get past the blue crab stuffed chicken and it was amazing. The temperature was perfect and it was delicious and perfectly cooked and the sauce was wonderful. I am not a fan of mashed potatoes but these potato cakes are great (that is the bright orange thing on my plate), I particularly like the seared cheddar crust. Finally, the vegetables were to die for. If you have looked at any of my recipes, you will know that I am a great fan of vegetables, these were the best I have ever tasted. They were crisp and full of flavor. As always, I was only able to eat half my meal and as always, when the food is good, I got a take out box and lunch next day was taken care of.

Blue Crab Stuffed Chicken

Blue Crab Stuffed Chicken 13.99
Grilled chicken breast, stuffed with crab meat
jack cheese and sweet roasted peppers
with Cajun cream sauce, cheddar seared
potato cake and farm fresh vegetables



Larry had his old favorite and was not disappointed. He substituted extra mashed potatoes for the vegetables, he does like mashed potato, and asked for extra gravy on the side. His dish was exactly as he requested and the rib-eye was most definitely tender. In this part of America, a knife is only used if a fork will not do the job, he never used his knife once and he finished off the entire piece of meat. Not the potato, that was too much even for him despite asking for and receiving even more gravy. He might have been better off having the vegetables, did I mention they were amazng?

Chicken Fried Rib-Eye

Chicken Fried Rib-eye 12.99
Choice Rib-eye with peppered gravy
mashed potatoes
and farm fresh vegetables



The Chicken Fried Rib-eye was also one of Mildred's favorites, but after the disappointing meal the last time when the meat was like leather, she decided to try something different and went for the Grilled Chicken Breast. Her only complaint was that there was way too much on her plate, in fact there was enough for all three of us. The fact that she didn't request a take out box left me question how much she really enjoyed her meal. Perhaps she just regretted not having the chicken fried rib-eye, but also some meals do not lend themselves to reheating next day.

Grilled Chicken Breast

Grilled Chicken Breast 13.99
with fire roasted pineapple relish
veggie rice and farm fresh vegetables

Fuzzy's Taco Shop - Cedar Park.

No.  2 out of 10, and one of those points is just a sympathy point.

Won't even be giving this place a second chance.  Ok, there is always something good you can say, the Austin Amber beer was really good.

Unfortunately the glass it was served in was way too heavy and too big for anyone other than a large man to lift with only one hand.  I found myself drinking beer as though it were the wine at a Mass or a vampire gathering, two handed with great care.

beer glass

So, why did it not get more than a 2 out of 10?  Starters, our seating of choice is a booth, these were uncomfortable wooden benches and were sticky with the food and drink spills of the last year - absolutely a bad way to start dinner.  I have no reason to believe the wooden chairs were any cleaner.

Next, the queso really looked, tasted and behaved like it was made from a mixture of milk and mozzarella cheese, it was white, tasteless thin and stringy. The flour tortillas were very obviously shop bought and no effort was made to warm them.

Two in our party had the Baja shredded chicken taco and while I enjoyed the salad - which was part of the taco filling and not a side, there was very little chicken, shredded or otherwise, it really didn't deserve the title of taco.  It was a small California salad sitting on an elderly, rubbery torilla, and we all agreed on that.  The tiny serving of garlic sauce was actually very nice - hence one of the points.

The third member of our party had a Taco plate, which basically was twice what we had, plus some really unpleasant looking beans floating in a discolored liquid.  I have it on good authority that they had absolutely no flavor or seasoning, personally, I didn't need to taste them to believe it, his second side was called Latin Fried Potatoes.  I am not sure why Latin? they were fried potatoes served with most of the fat they had been fried in and there was not much Latin about them.

As I said, NO.  We will not be going back to Fuzzy's.

Panko Chicken

(or fish - when I do fish I use striped pengasius)

Both my husband and my mother in law love fried chicken and fried fish.  I do not, and more than that, I don't consider it healthy, so I came up with a way to compromise.   I can eat this, and they say it tastes just as good as fried.

Serve with any vegetable of your choice, I use sweet potato 'fries' - also cooked in the oven
The following quantites are more than enough for the three of us, but we do not eat huge servings, you will have to figure out what suits your family size and appetite.

ready to eat

2 breasts of chicken
half cup of corn starch
half teaspoon of cayenne pepper
half teaspoon of chili powder
half teaspoon of ground cumin
half teaspoon of garlic powder
1 teaspoon of paprika
salt
2 eggs (or you can use egg beaters)
4 oz panko bread crumbs - I have tried many brands and find Kikkomon to be the best

two gallon plastic ziploc bags

mix the seasonings and corn starch together in a plastic ziploc - shake well, this will barely flavor your chicken so don't worry that it will be spicey.  If you want spicey you will need to add a lot more.

beat the eggs well and pour into the other plastic ziploc
cut your chicken / fish into 'tenders'
2 medium sized chicken breasts (or two medium sized filets of fish)  = about 8 tenders

cut into tenders

line an oven proof pan / cookie tray with foil, I use non stick foil, but ordinary foil will do - just wipe it with a piece of paper towel and a spray of olive oil

preheat your oven to 425 F

put your chicken into the bag containing the corn starch and seasonings seal and shake  until all the meat is evenly coated
remove chicken and shake off excess

egg bath next

put chicken into the bag containing the egg and seal and shake
ensure that all the meat has been coated in the egg
pour panko onto a plate and roll the meat in the panko, patting in breadcrumbs so they are well coated.
Place on the foil covered pan and let sit for 30 minutes

ready for the oven

Place in center of oven and cook for 10 minutes on each side.  Do check to make sure your chicken is fully cooked, if your tenders are too thick they may need more time.

Carrot Cake

Ingredients for the cake:

two and one third cups of all purpose flour
2 teaspoons of baking powder
One and half teaspoons ground cinnamon
half teaspoon of ground nutmet
pinch of salt
3 large carrots grated - approximately 2 cups
1 cup granulated sugar
half cup brown sugar
4 ounces of softened butter - I used olive oil spread
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon of vinalla extract
half a cup of low fat buttermilk
one third a cup of crushed walnuts (optional)

Ingredients for the frosting:

6 ounces of whipped cream cheese
1 ounce of marscapone
2 table spoons of olive oil spread (or butter)
half teaspoon vanilla extract
pinch of salt
3 cups of powdered sugar
toasted pecans to decorate

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Sift flour into large bowl
add baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt
stir with a whisk.

In another bowl, beat the sugar and butter till blended
add eggs one at a time and beat well.
add teaspoon of vanilla and stir well.
add grated carrots and nuts (if using)
Add half the flour and mix
add the buttermilk and mix
add the rest of the flour and mix till blended

use olive oil spray to oil cake pan. I use a muffin pan
place mixture in pan
cook for 30 minutes

Cool on a wire tray

Prepare the frosting :

Soften cream cheese and butter
mix all the ingredients with the exception of the powdered sugar
beat  with a mixer until fluffy
Add the powdered sugar and beat until combined.

Spread on cake and decorate with halved pecan nuts.

Bolognese Sauce

..  a la Aideen.

For this sauce I use fresh tomatoes, a jar of ready made pasta sauce such as Neuman's own or any you fancy yourself, and McCormick's sauce mix, plus assorted seasonings.  I like the mixture of flavors it produces.  See what you think.

Ready to eat

Ingredients:

quarter cup of olive oil
6 cloves of garlic
2 cups of chopped onion
half a green bell pepper chopped
half a red bell pepper chopped
12 roma tomatoes, peeled and chopped
1 pound of ground bison
1 pound of ground beef
1 large carrot grated
8 ounces of shallots chopped
2 cups of mushrooms chopped
3 x 14 ounce cans of peeled and chopped tomatoes
1 x 12 ounce can of tomato paste
1 jar of ready made pasta sauce
half a bottle of red wine
2 packets of McCormicks thick and zesty spagetti sauce mix
1 tablespoon of ground paprika
1 tablespoon of italian seasoning
1 teaspoon of salt
fresh ground pepper
1 cup of chopped fresh parsley
half a can of black olives halved (approximately 1 cup)
2 sachets / cubs of beef stock

Method:

heat the oil in a large skillet
add the crushed garlic
add the finely chopped onions and mushrooms
when cooked, but not browned remove from skillet
add the meat and brown
add paprika
add the cooked onions and mushrooms
add italian seasoning
stir
add the chopped vegetables and stir
add the canned tomatoes, pasta sauce and tomato paste
stir well
add wine and bring to a boil
reduce heat and add salt, pepper and McCormicks sauce mix
bring back to a boil
add oilves and chopped parsley
stir well
simmer for 1 hour.

ready to cook

This makes approximately 15 servings and freezes well, in fact I think it tastes better after it has been frozen.

Shea's Place - Leander

Shea's Place in Leander recently reopened. We had eaten there a few times before they closed and were not very impressed. The food was only OK and overpriced. The premises are really impressive, they took an historic old building, originally the post office in Leander, and maintained the outside appearance while totally remodelling the interior. They also have an outside patio.


Clearly business was not good, so they reinvented themselves as Tex Mex and we stopped going altogether as the food was awful, and still over priced. Situated directly across the road from a genuine Mexican restaurant with incredible prices and good food, they were fighting a losing battle. We were not surprised when they closed down.

We were surprised when they reopened and decided to give them another try. We went along on a Friday evening. As we parked the doors were opened and not one, but two staff members greeted us, it seemed somewhat desperate rather than friendly or courteous.

The new menu was extremely limited, but good, however once again somewhat pricey though there are a few items that are reasonably priced. I believe they do extras on Wednesday and Thursday ( I couldn't find a web site for them, but see their facebook page here).



We started with the Portobello Mushroom Fries with Wasabi Cream - good but not at all spicy. There was only one left on the plate when I remembered to take a photo. As you can see, they were served on a large bed of shredded lettuce, definitely a bit of a waste.

I went with the Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad with Parmesan Grit Croutons, it was very good however I question that the dressing was fresh made, I suspect it came from a jar, definitely didn't have much in the way of anchovy flavor. I couldn't fault the chicken though, it was definitely cooked to order and perfectly so. I had a glass of red wine - well, it was actually half a glass, but at $3.50 I felt it was reasonable.

Seriously, this is what I was served, I had not taken a drink when I took the photo, and it was not a large glass either, in fact it was more like a white wine glass.

Larry was very disappointed that chicken fried steak was not on the menu so both he and Mildred had the sliders, Larry had beef and Mildred had pulled pork. They were both happy with their choice, the fries were very good and the rolls were also good.


The service was excellent, however we do eat early and so they were not at all busy.

We will probably return. I would like to try their mid week specials, but with our work schedule we very rarely eat out during the week.

The reopened Shea's Place is worth a try.