Beer Bread

I have not quite yet become brave enough to whip up some badass bread like some of my fellow bloggers, but fortunately I found this perfect "training wheels" recipe. I did buy some yeast and other bread making goodies, so stay tuned for Beth Baking Bread...coming soon (most likely when I have a long weekend circa Thanksgiving)
As I am sure you've noticed I LIKE BEER, and incorporate it in anything and everything when ever possible, another reason this recipe was screamin' my name.



Beer Bread
3 C. Flour
1 T. Baking Powder
1/4 C. Sugar
1 bottle of beer (I used Pumpkin ale)
2 T. ground flax seed

Combine ingredients, pour into greased loaf pan & bake at 350 for 50 minutes.
Next time I'll make this with regular non-pumpkin beer and add some roasted garlic and some fresh herbs.

The Beverly Hills Hotel...

I have been severely neglecting my blog, and my kitchen lately!! Mostly because I was working on assisting with a big charity event/ gala at The Beverly Hills Hotel. It was tons of fun and I managed to snag a pic of the killer ice sculpture martini bar and my dinner which was a perfectly cooked fillet Mignon, which was delicious! Anyhow, more updates to come (with actual food I made).

Perfect Pear...Pumpkin Pear Strudel

I took a day off this past Friday and headed down to my moms to spend the day with my her & my sister. They teach year round school, and this was their last Friday of a 3-week break before going back for 10 weeks (until Christmas break).



I have been itching to bake with some pears since I saw some awesome pear recipes featured on WILLIAMS SONOMA RECIPES. I found this recipe on VERY BEST BAKING and modified it slightly. It was perfect because it made 2 strudels so my mom and sister got to keep one and I got to bring one home to Nate!



This was also my first experience working with puff pastry, which is super fun and I can't wait to make something else with it!. Here is my version of the Very Best Baking recipe for Libby's Pumpkin Pear Strudel...

2 Large ripe pears, peeled, cored and diced
1 can Libby's Pure Pumpkin Puree
1/2 c brown sugar
1/8 c sugar
3/4 c crushed pecans
1/4 tsp ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp cloves
Cinnamon & sugar mix
1 egg beaten
2 sheets puff pastry (17oz package) thawed according to package and divided and edges cut like this:


In a medium bowl, mix pumpkin, pears, nuts, spices & sugars until well combined. Spoon 1/2 of the mix onto the center of each prepared, thawed puff pastry. Braid/ criss-cross the fringed sides together like this:


Seal each end by pressing firmly. Brush beaten egg over the top of each strudel and sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar mix.
Bake 30 minutes at 375, until golden and puffy. Serve warm.

Eliza's Pork & Apples~ Two Ways...

Pork, apples, sweet onion, honey mustard...this is one yummy dish! A special thanks to Eliza, who hooked up this recipe. Which, to be honest is a Crock Pot recipe that I ended up making in the oven this time! Hence, "two ways" this can be made in the crock pot or in a corning ware in the oven.

Eliza's Crock Pot Pork w/ Apples & Beth's oven version

2 large apples peeled and cut into 1" pieces
1 large sweet onion
2-3 lb boneless rolled pork roast or pork tri-tip
honey mustard (Beaver Honey Mustard is highly recommended!!)
salt pepper
1 T cornstarch
2 T water

In the crockpot lay down the cut apples and chopped onions. Cover the roast in honey mustard and salt and pepper to your liking. Place the roast on top of the apples and onions and cook on low for 7-8 hours. When roast is finished, in a pot, wisk together the cornstarch and water. Remove the roast from the crockpot and keep warm. Add apples, onions, and all juices to the cornstarch and water and stir over medium flame until it boils and thickens.
Slice the pork roast and cover with the thickened sauce.

I used 3 apples (2 golden delicious and one honeycrisp and left the peels on, and used a pork tenderloin because it was what I had on hand, and of course 'round here the only honey mustard we use is the BEAVER. I placed the apples & onions in a corningwear and the tenderloin on top, covered in mustard and baked at 350 for about 45 minutes, or until meat thermometer reads 160 (med-well) to 170 (well). Then removed the tenderloin onto a plate, poured the corningwear contents into a sauce pot and followed sauce thickening directions above.




We served it with a steamed artichoke and homemade applesauce for desert. For artichoke Dippin I mixed 2 spoonfulls of mayo with 2 spoonfulls of light sour cream and 1 spoonfull of crushed roasted garlic (from a jar- don't tell Nate! :) It was delicious and I can't wait to make it again! I'll post the recipe followed propperly/ the crock pot method next time!

The Doggie Lama

Sorry to update with something WAY outside the kitchen...more like the back yard to be exact!
For those of you in Southern California who may need some training so you can better your relationship with your canine best friend, check out the spectacular training skills of my human best friend Val. A certified, bonafied badass with pooches she can help with any issues you & your pal may be having...
Check it out by clicking HERE!!!


Leela HIGHLY recommends it!

Pepperoncini Crock Pot Beef

I am keeping up with my goal of making one crock pot dinner a week to help us save money and have more time to relax or do whatever we want after work. This was a recipe given to me by a friend at work, it only requires 5 hours of cooking and my crock pot has no timer, so I made this on Sunday for Monday nights dinner. Which was great, because Monday I just came home, toasted some rolls and made spicy beef sandwiches.

1 Chuck Roast (I used a tri tip because that's what I had here)
1 packet Italian Dressing Seasoning/spices- All Seasons or 4 Seasons brand
1 can of beef consume
1 bottle of beer (I used Amstel Light)
2 jars of pepperoncini peppers with liquid (I only used one jar because we have a weeeee little crock pot)

Cook on low for 5 hours, slice and serve on toasted rolls.

Chicken Pot Pie

Ahhhh, this was excellent. I can't wait to make it again. A super easy- super delicious dinner that (when you're cooking for 2) makes multiple dinners.....unless you leave it out all night long. I foiled it up but it was still ever so hot, so I thought I'd let it sit for a bit, and then I fell asleep & we went to bed and forgot about the beautiful, wonderful chicken pot pie. I polled everyone I knew (thanks for your thoughts and stories!) and decided that we toss it rather than risk a very upset tummy or worse. So alas, this was only one dinner, but a great, easy recipe that I will definately make again!





Frozen Pie Crust (both sides) thawed
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 medium sweet onion, chopped
1 cooked roticerie chicken remove skin and bones and fat & chop up
3/4 of a bag of frozen broccoli
3/4 of a bag of frozen baby carrots
(I love peas, but nate hates them...I think you should add them!! They're delicious!!)
(spices are aproxamate, I just added & tasted)
1 tsp basil
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp pepper

Pre-heat oven to 400
Lightly grease glass pie dish and roll out bottom crust, place on foil covered cookie sheet. in a large pot over medium heat combine all ingredients and stir until all are well combined. Pour mix into pie crust and top with second crust,press & seal edges. Cut a few little vent holes in the top.
Bake at 400 about 35-45 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

Let cool at least 20-30 minutes before slicing....and DON'T forget to wrap and refridgerate your leftovers!!!