Diva Entertains Blog

Mar

Breakfast Croissant Casserole

By Debra | Filed in Breakfast

Diva Entertains Casserole Slice

I ran across this recipe quite some time ago, but unfortunately I did not note where it came from (I always try to give credit to the source for my recipes). Without making it I posted it on an online recipe-swap I belong to and said that I thought it looked good. Fellow swappers started making it and raved about it. Over and over again. And still I did not try it (nor admit that I hadn’t on the swap). But just a week ago another post was made about how fabulous it was. So…..I gave it a try. And it was, in a word, “Fabulous”. Other words that could also be used to describe it: Delicious, Decadent, Easy, Scrumptious, Really Easy.

You prepare it the night before and keep it overnight in the refrigerator. If you decide, instead, to make it right before you serve it just make sure that when it is all assembled you press down on the tops of the croissant so that they are submerged in the liquid. Do it a few times (as soon as you take the pressure off the tops they will rise again). The goal is to have them saturated with the liquid ingredients of the recipe.

One other note. I can’t really tell you the exact measurements of which baking pan to use. What I can say is use one that lets you snugly fit in four croissants. Don’t worry if they are beautifully laid out. Even if you have to cut them up a bit – the point is to fit four croissants snuggly in a baking dish.

Diva Entertains Croissant Casserole

Breakfast Croissant Casserole

4 croissants
1 T. butter
2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms
1/4 cup sliced green onions
4 egs
1 cup milk
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup shredded swiss cheese
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Split croissants in half, horizontally. Spray baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Place bottoms cut side up in one layer in a baking dish.

In a medium sized skillet, melt butter. Saute mushrooms and green onions until tender and liquid has evaporated. (I like them to brown just a tad. It gives really rich flavor.) Set aside.

Beat together eggs and milk.

Pour half of egg and milk mixture over croissant bottoms. Then layer mushroom mixture and cheeses on top. Top with croissant tops and then pour remaining egg/milk mixture over the entire dish. Lightly press down on croissants to briefly submerge in liquid. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Let stand overnight.

Preheat oven to 350F. Remove casserole from refrigerator and bring to room temperature while oven is preheating. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until tops are lightly brown and liquid has set. Remove from oven and serve immediately.

Mar

0 Orange Beef Stir Fry – A Treat For Your Eyes & Mouth!

By Debra | Filed in Entrees

Diva Entertains Orange Beef

This dish is truly a feast for your senses. Don’t be put off by the long list of ingredients. As long as you prep your ingredients prior to starting to cook you can pull off this scrumptious meal, from start to finish, in 30 minutes. (although if you want to serve it with rice, as I did in the picture above – you need to include cook time for the type of rice you use).

Orange Beef Stir Fry (adapted from CuisineAtHome.com), 4 Servings

1/4 cup orange juice
1/4 cup low-salt beef broth
2 T. orange marmalade
2 T. low-sodium soy sauce
1 T. molasses
1 T. rice vinegar
1 tsp. sesame oil
1 T. cornstarch
12 oz. flank steak, sliced very thinly

For the Stir Fry

2 T. canola oil, divided
2 T. minced fresh gingerroot
1 T. minced garlic
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
8 oz. broccolini, trimmed*
1 cup sliced red onion
2 cups sliced shiitake and button mushrooms**
2 cups sliced red bell pepper
1 cup fresh or canned mandarin orange segments
2 cups packed fresh spinach leaves

In a large bowl whisk all marinade ingredients, up to the flank steak, together. Cut the flank steak across the grain as thinly as possible, as shown below:

Diva Entertains Thin Sliced Beef

(Cutting it so thinly requires only a very quick sear on both sides of the meat and you’ll be amazed how incredibly tender and flavorful the pieces are). Add the beef to the marinade and toss to coat completely with marinade.

Coat wok or large skillet with non-stick spray. Heat 1 T. oil in pan over medium-high heat. When oil shimmers, add half the beef to the wok; stir fry until brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer to a plate and repeat with remaining beef, reserving marinade. Transfer the beef to the plate.

Add remaining 1 T. oil to wok. Add ginger, garlic and red pepper flakes to skillet; stir fry 30 seconds. Add broccolini and onion; stir fry 3 minutes. Add mushrooms and peppers; stir fry 2 minutes.

Return beef to wok with marinade; heat until marinade thickens and boil. Add oranges; stir fry 1 minutes. Divide spinach among four plates; top with stir fry.

*If you can’t find broccolini you can substitute sugar snap peas or snow pea pods.

**The original recipe called for 3 cups shiitake mushrooms but that could be incredibly expensive.

Mar

1 Mocha Buttercream Cupcakes with a Bit of Attitude

By Debra | Filed in Cupcakes

Diva Entertains Mocha Cupcake

Like so many others, I am taken with cupcakes. I just love the thought of having my very own miniature cake all to myself. Not a slice of something…but the thing itself! And lately I’ve been having fun ‘dressing’ up my cupcakes by using fun liners such as leopard print liner in this pic. It goes perfect with a mocha buttercream frosting. And set upon a leopard print coaster and now you’ve really made a splash! (I came up with this when I was recently asked to help plan a leopard themed bridal shower)

And of course…nothing wrong with adding a bit of chocolate to top of this decadent treat!

Diva Entertains Mocha with Chocolate Drizzle

Mocha Buttercream Cupcakes:

24 Chocolate or Vanilla Cupcakes from your favorite recipe or your favorite mix.

1 T. instant espresso powder
1 T. cocoa
1 T. cold water
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
3 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 to 2 tsp. of milk or cream (if necessary to thin out buttercream)

In small bowl, mix espresso powder, cocoa and cold water until blended.

Using either a stand mixer or electric beaters, mix the butter, powdered sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy. Add all of the espresso mixture and beat until incorporated. If the buttercream is too thick, thin it with a tsp. of milk or cream. Add more if necessary.

Of course you can simply, with a knife or spatula, frost each cupcake. To achieve the look above I used a disposable pastry bag (purchased at Michaels) and snipped off a 3/4″ opening off the tip. I filled the bag with the buttercream and simply piped it on the cake in circles.

Chocolate Glaze (from Womans Day magazine, March 2010)

8 oz. semisweet chocolate, chopped*
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup water
3 T. unslated butter, softened.

Place chocolate, sugar and water in a small saucepan over low heat. Cook, stirring, until melted and smooth, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in butter until it melts and mixture is smooth. Let cool before drizzling on each cupcake (otherwise you might ‘melt’ the buttercream).

*I used chocolate chips.

Mar

0 Little Touches: Prosciutto Lollipops

By Debra | Filed in Appetizers

Diva_Entertains_Proscuitto_Lollipops 1

Don’t you just love an appetizer that is: a snap to make (doesn’t need cooking), look beautiful and tastes great? These Prosciutto Lollipops are all that. Finger food at its best.

Prosciutto Lollipops (Adapted from La Cucina Italiana, Jan-Feb 2005)

6 T. unsalted butter
2 T. olive oil*
salt and coarsely ground pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
12 grissini (thin bread sticks)
12 thin slices prosciutto

In a small bowl, combine the butter and oil. Season with salt and pepper, mix well.

Scatter the Parmigiano on a plate. Coat 1/2 to 3/4 of each grissini with oil/butter mixture (in all honesty, I find the easiest way to do this is to put a bit of the mixture between my fingers and use my fingers to coat the grissini). Then roll the grissini in the Parmigiano. Finally, wrap a slice of the prosciutto around the grissini**

*Original recipe calls for white truffle oil. Not only can’t I get that in my area, aside from this recipe I don’t have a use for it. So feel confident using olive oil if truffle oil isn’t readily available or you don’t want to put out the big bucks for it.

**I find it easiest to cut the prosciutto lengthwise and then use one strip, then the other, to wrap around the grissini.

Feb

1 Garlic Cream – Absolutely Divine!

By Debra | Filed in Sauces

Diva Entertains Garlic Cream
It may not look like much. But don’t be fooled. Not even for a second. Because one taste of this rich, decadent sauce will have you coming back for more. And its versatile! Serve it as a simple but heavenly side of pasta with some freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Or have it be the basis of a delicious entree like the garlic cream pasta below that features hot Italian sausage and sun-dried tomatoes over spinach linguine. You can even make it ahead and freeze until you are ready to serve it.

Diva Entertains Pasta with Garlic Cream
The ingredients are few. Garlic Cloves. Chardonnay. Chicken Stock. Heavy Cream. But what a combination!

Garlic Cream (my apologies – I don’t know where I first came upon this recipe)

2 heads of garlic, peeled*
1 bottle Chardonnay
1 quart chicken broth or stock
6 cups heavy cream (don’t faint. This makes a lot and can be frozen**)

Put cloves and wine in a heavy, medium sized sauce pan. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to medium and simmer until you have about 2 T. of wine left***. Add the chicken stock and once again bring to a boil and then simmer and reduce until you are left with about 1/4 cup of the reduced liquid. Remove from heat.

Add the garlic cloves, remainig stock/wine reduction and heavy cream to a blender and puree until smooth. The sauce will be somewhat thick. However, once returned to the sauce pan to reheat for use it will quickly deflate. No worries – it doesn’t change the taste!

*Let’s tackle the garlic cloves issue. Although I prefer the smash and peel technique when working with a limited amount cloves. But for a dish like this I bring in the little rubber garlic peel tool:

Diva Entertains Garlic

I’m pretty sure that there are many versions of these on the market, however I think the most well-known is the Zak Designs E-Z-Rol Garlic Peeler. Simply put the cloves inside (break them up first and put a few in at a time) the rubber tool, rub back and forth on the counter, and then tip the cloves out. The peels should slide right off.

**I’m partial to freezing left-over sauces and soups in plastic ice cube trays. Once frozen I put in freezer bags until needed. Makes it very easy to take out small or large serving sizes as needed.

***The original recipe called for completely reducing all the liquids before pureeing with the heavy cream. But in my humble opinion that’s crazy! You want to save a little of the incredibly flavorful reduced liquid to puree with the cream to add depth to the sauce.

Feb

0 Little Touches: Wasabi Cocktail Sauce

By Debra | Filed in Appetizers

Diva Entertains Wasibi Cocktail Sauce

Hubby and I like food with a little kick. And this take on regular Cocktail Sauce has it. As well as a bit of Asian flair. And it couldn’t be easier to make. Further, anything with wasabi sauce is all right by us.

wasabi salmon - wasabi

Wasabi Cocktail Sauce (from Food Network Magazine, January/February 2010)

1 cup ketchup
2 T. horseradish
1 T. soy sauce
1 T. rice wine vinegar
2 tsp. wasabi paste

Whisk all ingredients together. Serve with cooked shrimp.

Feb

0 Cauliflower Popcorn (Seriously…that’s what it tastes like)

By Debra | Filed in Vegetables

Diva Entertains Cauliflower Popcorn

The name of the recipe is absolutely perfect because once baked and salted that’s what it tastes like. I’m not kidding! See for yourself if it’s not addictive:)

It’s super easy to make and quite healthy, utilizing a little olive oil and high heat to brown the florets and bring out wonderful flavor. I like to make 2 heads of cauliflower when serving it to company – you won’t believe how quickly it will be eaten.

Cauliflower Popcorn (recipe adapted from Eat.at recipe forum)

1 head cauliflower, cut into florets
2 T. olive oil
Kosher salt

Preheat oven to 425F.

Spray a rimmed baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray.

Put the cauliflower florets in a plastic bag*. Add the olive oil and shake the bag so that the olive oil is evenly distributed. Spread the florets on the baking sheet and put in the oven. Bake for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes turn the florets over (the side that touched the oven should be browned like in the photo above) and bake another 10 minutes. Remove from oven, sprinkle with kosher salt. Serve.

Easier Way: Don’t turn the florets over, simply cook another 10 minutes. (The purpose of turning them over is to brown both sides – it’s the browning that contributes to this recipe’s fantastic flavor.)

*I reuse the plastic bags that I put my fruits and vegetables in at the grocery store.

Feb

1 Crispy Potato Galette (So Darn Easy)

By Debra | Filed in Sides

When I first discovered this recipe I couldn’t believe how easy it was to make. And how delicious it is! On top of that, it always comes out perfect. And it looks *GORGEOUS*. Add this to your repertoire and start amazing family and friends soon!

Diva Entertains Galette Slice

The secrets to this recipe: 1) a hot oven, 2) brushed melted butter on the bottom of the pan and 3) the potatoes are first cooked by steaming them (the pan is covered in foil) but the last 20 minutes they are cooked uncovered so the top (which ends up being the bottom) crisps too!

Diva Entertains Galette with Sour Cream

Crispy Potato Galette

3 large Russet (Idaho) potatoes
2 T. unsalted butter
Boursin Cheese (optional)
Salt

Preheat oven to 425F.

Melt the butter.

Using a mandolin*, cut the ends off the potatoes and then slice thin (no slicing device? Just take care to slice the potatoes very thin).

Diva Entertains Slicing Potatoes

Using a pastry or basting brush, brush the bottom and 1/2” up the sides of a oven-proof skillet 9” or 10” skillet*. Starting in the center of the pan, place one potato slice. Then start laying potatoes slices around it, slightly overlapping. Diva Entertains Layering Potatoes Repeat until the bottom of the pan is covered. Sprinkle with salt. Add another lay of potatoes. Space little dots of the Boursin over the layer. Diva Entertains Boursin Cover with another layer of potatoes, brush lightly with melted butter**. Continue layering with remaining potato slices, lightly salting one more time.

Cover the pan tightly with foil and put in the over for 25 minutes. At that point remove the foil and cook another 20 minutes or so until the top is brown.

Remove the potatoes from the over. Place a plate larger than pan over the top and very carefully turn over the pan so that the potato galette releases onto the place. Cut*** and serve (with a dollop of sour cream ifyou’d like).

Feel free to substitute other cheeses (goat, cheddar). I often add chives or rosemary to the layers too.

*Slicing ‘machine’. Plastic ones with steel blades can be purchased for under $30 (Target). Considerably less on Ebay and Amazon. You’ll LOVE it!

** Only butter the bottom of the pan, one of the layers lightly, and the top of the layers. Otherwise your galette will be soggy when you serve it.

*** A pizza cutter works beautifully for this.

Feb

0 Little Touches: Homemade Croutons

By Debra | Filed in Salad

Diva Entertains Croutons

Because I always watch what I eat (calorie-wise) I tend not to add croutons to the salads I make. Further, the store bought croutons that I’ve added in the past were always a disappointment at best. Dry, flavorless and small. If I’m going to splurge than I want to eat a big, crisp, flavor-drenched crouton that has been softened ever-so-slightly be the salad’s dressing. I have, on occasion, experienced these at restaurants that make their own.

Diva Entertains Homemade Croutons

A few weeks ago I finally decided “enough is enough”. I may not eat them every night in my home but occasionally I want those delicious, croutons-on-steriods with my meal. As I started serving them on our salads when we had company and I was surprised by how many times I received compliments on them. The salad seemed just ‘a little more special’ because of it. I guess, at times, it is the ‘Little Touches’ that make the biggest impact.

Homemade Croutons Diva Entertains 2 Cups

4 cups of 1″ bread cubes*
4 T. melted butter**
1 1/2 T. dried oregano
2 T. freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 375F.

Put the bread cubes in a large bowl. Drizzle with the melted butter and add the oregano and Parmesan cheese. Mix well. Then mix some more. Then lightly press some of the cubes against the sides/bottom of the dish to ensure that they absorb all possible flavor.

Bake for 5 -7 minutes and take out of the oven to check. If nicely browned flip them over and continue to bake another 5 – 7 minutes. Otherwise, bake another 2 minutes and then flip and and continue to bake as above. Serve same day and store left-over in an airtight container***.

* Use whatever bread you like: Italian, French, White, etc. If you are going to use pre-sliced bread look for ‘thick-sliced’ varieties.

** I made multiple batches of croutons with butter and croutons with olive oil to see which I prefered. Hands down the butter had more flavor and browned faster/better. But of course it is up to personal taste and/or diet preferences. If you’d prefer to use olive oil just substitute 4 T. olive oil (you can go as low as 3 T. if you’d like).

***Depending on the humidity level in your home, how dried out your bread was before you bake the croutons, how long you baked the croutons, etc. the croutons in the airtight container might become a bit soft within a matter of days. No problem whatsoever. Simply toast them for 3-5 minutes in a 375F oven, before serving, to crisp them up again. (You can also put them in a 250F oven but it will take a bit longer – just watch them until you determine how long they need to be in there to crisp (start at about 12 minutes).

Feb

1 Little Touches: Homemade Dark Chocolate Pudding (So easy!)

By Debra | Filed in Desserts

Diva Entertains Dark Chocolate Pudding

When I first began dating my husband I quickly learned that he loved everything chocolate. Especially dark chocolate. So basically anything I made I either added chocolate chips to it or I dipped it in chocolate. And he was happy. But then I came across a recipe for homemade dark chocolate pudding and, having never made pudding, decided to give it a try. It was easy. Very easy. And sinfully delicious. And J was very happy. So much so that here it is, nearly 15 years later, and it is still his all-time favorite dessert.

A girlfriend of mine mentioned that she often made ‘miniature’ desserts and they were always always a big hit so I thought I’d give it a try. I used shot glasses that I picked up at T.J. Maxx (6 for under $5) and I just loved the look of how the pudding looks in them. Although ‘portion-controlled’, they felt indulgent. And way more special than putting it in a bowl!

Diva Entertains Trio of Chocolate Pudding

Dark Chocolate Pudding (I don’t know the source of the recipe other than from a cooking magazine in 1996)

1/3 cup sugar
2 T. unsweeteneed cocoa powder*
1 T. plus 1 tsp. cornstarch
1 cup milk (you can even use skim milk with great results)
1/2 oz. bittersweet (not unsweetened) chocolate
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Add sugar, cocoa, and cornstarch to medium-sized heavy saucepan. Gradually add the milk, whisking until incorporated. Turn heat to medium and continue whisking until pudding thickens and comes to a boil, about 5 minutes. Continue to boil 1 minute longer, whisking constantly.

Remove pudding from heat. Add chocolate and vanilla; whisk until chocolate melts and pudding is smooth. Divide between serving glasses (typically 2 dessert bowls; 4 shot glasses in this case). Refrigerate to chill. Serve.

This recipe can easily be doubled!

*I used Hershey’s Cocoa Special Dark. If you can’t find it (or dark cocoa), no worries. Regular cocoa is just great. If you want a bit deeper flavor – use 2 1/2 T. of the cocoa.

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