How to Make Crispy Pickles

The easiest way to make a sandwich exponentially better is to add toppings. And the best toppings are fresh with some tangy zip, like pickles. Potbelly Sandwich Works has fabulous pickles. Whenever I get toppings on my sandwich from there, I always ask for lots of pickles. They are very thin with just a bit of sour taste and slightly crispy.




Wanting to duplicate the taste and texture, I did some research on how to make pickles. Did you know that there are two basic ways of making pickles, only one of which involves using vinegar? I thought the pickling process of cucumbers always used vinegar but I was wrong. Another way to make crispy pickles is to ferment them. Yes, fermenting, which is simply placing spices and cucumbers in a brine, then letting them sit and ferment.

After reading about fermented pickles I realized that this was probably the taste I was looking for. But, I am a coward and really did not want to eat fermented food {unless it was in the form of a drink}. Also the instructions for these indicated that one may need to scrape mold off of the top of the brine. I am not into eating moldy food. So I combined the methods and came up with delicious, crispy, tangy pickles in 2 days! Want to know how? Read on.





Tasty Quick Sandwich Pickles
4 medium thin skinned or young cucumbers
6 cups water
1 cup white distilled vinegar
1/3 cup coarse salt
2 tablespoon dried dill weed
2 teaspoon peppercorns
1 teaspoon dried minced garlic
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
4 bay leaves
2 16 ounce canning jars, sterilized

1. Rinse cucumbers and place in ice water for 2-6 hours. Replace ice as needed to keep cold. I read that this really helps to make crisp pickles. These were crisp, believe me.

2. Place water, vinegar and salt in pan. Bring to a boil. While water is heating, slice cucumbers. I love thin sliced and just pile them on sandwiches, but choose your thickness. Place half of the cucumber slices in each jar. To sanitize the jars, simply wash them in the dishwasher or in very hot water.

3. Pour the boiling brine over the sliced cucumbers. Evenly divide the dill, peppercorns, garlic, mustard seeds and bay leaves between the two jars of sliced cucumbers and brine. Secure the lids. Keep jars in refrigerator for at least two days before enjoying. Actually, my husband starting eating these the same day and loved them. I waited two days and they were fantastic!




These would probably be even better with fresh spices and herbs, but I had to use what I could find. I had a pickle craving and used what there was.

If you used whole cucumbers, you would want them to pickle a few days longer to soak up the flavor.

There are many different recipes for pickling spices, this is just what I came up with and thought it tasted great.

Dips for Breadsticks

Bread sticks and dip, it may not sound like a substantial lunch but don't give up so easily. These easily replace the same old sandwich while renewing interest in a brown bag lunch. Bread sticks can be accompanied by any dip as an inside-out sandwich. Try mixing peanut butter and jelly to serve on the side or pepperoni dip. For a few more ideas, keep reading.

To make this a fun and filling lunch, simply add some fruit or vegetables sticks or slices. Following are some savory and sweet dips that go well with bread sticks. Just remember to not sprinkle the bread sticks with garlic or Parmesan cheese when serving with dips that would clash. Look here for a great bread stick recipe.



Most of the cheese dips/spreads may easily be mixed in a food processor making them easy to put together. These are also great in place of plain butter for anytime you enjoy bread.

Blue Cheese Spread
1 8 oz block cream cheese, softened
1/2 c blue cheese crumbles
2 green onions, chopped

Blend all ingredients well. Refrigerate. This could be changed a bit too by adding crumbled bacon or chives in place of the onions with a bit of shredded cheddar. Try it heated up, too!



Herbed Butter Dip
1/2 c butter (1 stick), softened
1/2 c canola oil
1/4 c chopped parsley
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tbsp Italian seasoning

Mix all ingredients until well blended. Using the paddle attachment with your mixing bowl makes this quick work. Serve at room temperature and store remainder in refrigerator.

This recipe could be adapted for many types of butter spreads for bread sticks or some fresh baked bread. Simply combine equal parts of softened butter and canola oil then add desired flavorings: vanilla and cinnamon, honey, cilantro and cumin, the list could go on and on.



Cheese Butter
1/2 c butter, softened
3 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
2 tbsp dried oregano
1 tbsp dried parsley
1 tbsp minced garlic

Mix all ingredients. Serve at room temperature and store remainder in refrigerator.

Peanut Butter Dip
1/2 c Greek-style honey yogurt
3/4 c peanut butter
1/4 c whipping cream
2 tbsp vanilla

Place all ingredients in a mixing bowl. Mix with paddle attachment for about 4 minutes. Store in refrigerator or keep cold.



Marshmallow Dip
1 8 oz block cream cheese, softened
1 7 oz jar marshmallow creme
1 tbsp vanilla
1 tbsp brown sugar

Combine all ingredients and blend well. Store remainder in refrigerator.

Another speedy options is to pack a bit of olive oil with herbs for dipping.

Happy packing!

Back to School Lunches

Summer is almost over, school supplies are bought, uniforms are in the works and the house is gearing up for the first week of school. I found some new tasty choices for breakfast to make on school days, so now I am planning to have great lunches packed for my children.

In the past I have been rushed to make pb and j with hot dog buns or pack leftovers that no one wanted when they were first served! But this year is going to be different, so I intend.

I started planning lunches by making a list of ideas based on what my family likes (what I made that they raved about, and what they order when out to eat) and some ideas I gathered from the blogosphere. I came up with two pages of sandwiches, finger foods, and fun fruit and veggie ideas.

From there I cut and pasted, starting with a four week scheme. I picked one sandwich a week and then moved on to a finger food then went back through with duplicates to fill in where necessary. The following is what I came up with (notice the first week has a menu for only Tuesday through Friday for Labor Day off). Links are provided for those recipes I found on other sites or have already posted. Look for the others to be posted soon.

Week One
Tuesday~ BLT Salad Sandwich with Apple Rings, Honey and Craisins
Wednesday~ Pepperoni Bites with Salad Cups
Thursday~ Triple Decker Egg Salad Sandwich with Veggie Sticks and Dip
Friday~ Barbecue Beef Biscuit Cups with Frozen Corn


Week Two
Monday~ PB&J with Bananas and Cream Sandwich with Fruit Cubes and Yogurt Dip
Tuesday~ Chicken Nuggets and Dip with Orange Slices
Wednesday~ Chicken Pie Pastie with Steamed Broccoli and Cheese Dip
Thursday~ Turkey Buffalo Cups* with Salad Cup
Friday~ Sausage Pizza Bites* with Veggie Sticks and Dip


Week Three
Monday~ Tuna Salad Sandwich with Frozen Corn
Tuesday~ Bean Burritos with Apple Slices and Caramel Dip
Wednesday~ Philly Cheese Steak Roll with Veggie Sticks
Thursday~ Bread Sticks with Cheese Dip and Fruit Cubes with Nutella
Friday~ Pepperoni and Sausage Pizza Cup* with Salad Cup


Week Four
Monday~ Bagel Sandwiches with Veggie Sticks and Cheese Dip
Tuesday~ Egg Salad Sandwich with Steamed Green Beans and Ranch
Wednesday~ Pepperoni Bites with Orange Slices
Thursday~ Barbecue Chicken Biscuit Cup* with Salad Cup
Friday~ Salmon Salad on Croissant with Cantaloupe Wedges



Helpful Tips for Packing Lunches
Pack frozen drinks; they will thaw by lunch and be ice cold.
Freeze veggies or fruits when possible before packing in the morning.
Pack salad in plastic cups covered with plastic wrap: dressing on bottom, lettuce next then other on top, keep croutons in separate bag.
*When you find one recipe your family enjoys, alter it to be used more than once but as a new lunch. I did this with the barbecue cups and pizza bites, just change the ingredients but keep the same technique of filling a biscuit or pizza dough and baking!

Remember to check back this week and next for recipes and more tips on how to pack school lunches!

Cinnamon Roll Bread

I have never made cinnamon rolls from scratch. It just seems like far too much work when you can buy a roll of them to bake from the grocery. My family would love to have cinnamon rolls every day of the week, and I strive to make the start of the school mornings delightful for them. Unfortunately the Pilsbury or Cinnabon rolls are a bit expensive. How could I make cinnamon rolls quick and easily and from scratch?

Someone else already found the solution: Quick and Easy Cinnamon Bun Bread. When I found this recipe for "quick" cinnamon roll bread, I was a bit uncertain but wanted to give it a try. The results exceeded my expectations. A sweet gooey mess of cinnamon ecstasy! Really, it was.


Why this is a terrific recipe:
It truly is quick and easy.
The taste and texture is true to cinnamon buns.
The dough is not messy, rather like a batter that thickens as it rests.
My only regret was we had no milk to accompany the bread!

Quick Cinnamon Roll Bread
adapted from Baking Bites recipe

Dough
3 cups flour
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 teaspoons yeast
1 2/3 cups milk
1/3 cup canola oil
1 tablespoon vanilla
2 eggs

Cinnamon Topper
1 stick butter {8 tablespoons}, brought to room temperature
1 1/2 cup brown sugar
3 teaspoons cinnamon

Icing
1 3/4 cups powdered
5 tablespoons cream
1 teaspoon vanilla

All cinnamon roads lead to happiness!

Directions
1. Grease a 9x13 dish. Heat milk until warm {I used a glass pyrex measuring cup and heated the milk for 1 minutes}. Add yeast to milk and lightly stir.

2. Combine flour, salt and sugar in mixing bowl. Add oil, eggs, vanilla and yeast mixture. Stir to combine well, scraping the sides of the bowl. {This doesn't make a true dough, rather a batter that will thicken.} Pour batter into prepared dish and let rest for 15 minutes. {Watch it slowly bubble like pancakes do on a griddle.}

3. Place butter, sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. With a fork, mix all together. Place small bits of cinnamon topping onto batter, trying to scatter evenly.

4. Place cake pan in oven and set to 350 F. Cook for 28-32 minutes until golden and spongy. Cool for 20 minutes.

5. Mix powdered sugar, cream and vanilla til smooth. Spread over slightly cooled bread. Cut and serve. Serves 12-16.


This recipe was very forgiving. I had to improvise for lack of ingredients such using canned milk in place of regular. A bit of raw sugar was used to supplement the brown needed. The last blunder was the yeast. In most cases I doubled the ingredients but forgot to with the yeast. It worked out beautifully. But isn't that what most school morning are like, a bit hectic?

Old Fasioned Banana Pudding with Candied Graham Crakcers

*Updated Recipe*

Once a young man asked me to go to dinner with him; he took me to one of my favorite places to eat~ Artie's. It is owned and operated by a group that also runs Sweet Water restaurants but Artie's is the only one. Even though their dishes are not particularly fancy, they do offer two of my favorites, roasted chicken salad and old fashioned banana pudding.

I know, what sounds so wonderful about those? Well it is the way they make them and serve them. The chicken salad has the crispest and freshest lettuce, corn off the cob and creamy goat cheese aside juicy roasted chicken all tossed in a delightful champagne vinaigrette. That one I can almost duplicate at home.

The pudding is another beast entirely. It doesn't have an overwhelming banana flavor and is more like mousse than pudding. Instead of vanilla wafers or a pie crust, the pudding is served over a bed of candied graham cracker crumbs. It is a taste of heaven. And I have been trying to make it for a couple of years now. Last night, I did it!


I stumbled across a banana pudding recipe from Paula Dean with cream cheese and sweetened condensed milk. I was a little skeptical but once I made it, with some alterations, I realized THIS WAS THE PUDDING I have been enjoying at Artie's! So I would like to share with you this wonderful dessert.

*I updated this recipe after finding this one at Blue Eyed Baker. The only thing that made me skeptical about Paula Dean's recipe was the cream cheese.  I really did not taste it in my favorite banana pudding from Artie's but the texture was it.

I made omitted the cream cheese and altered the quantities of the ingredients and have now updated the recipe.  My original recipe is still at the bottom of this post for those who may have made it before and want it as it was.

Old Fashioned Banana Pudding with Candied Graham Crackers

Ingredients
3 3.4 oz boxes instant vanilla pudding mix
2 1/2 cups milk
1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
2 cups whipping cream

1 stick butter
1/4 c sugar
2 cups graham cracker crumbs

bananas {3-6, depending on personal taste}
chocolate syrup {for drizzling}

Directions
1. Combine the pudding mix, cold milk, and sweetened condensed milk; whisk til smooth but thickened. Set aside. Whip cream beginning on low speed gradually moving to medium high; whip till fluffy and holds shape.


2. Fold whipped cream into pudding. Chill in refrigerator for at least two hours.


3. In saucepan over low heat, melt butter. Add sugar and graham cracker crumbs. Continue to heat while stirring constantly for about five minutes until crumbs begin to lump together and harden. Allow to cool thoroughly. The crumbs will become crunchy as they cool.


4. Place some graham cracker crumbs on a dessert plate or in a bowl. Add desired amount of banana slices. Top with two scoops of pudding {using an ice cream scoop makes this easy}. Drizzle with chocolate syrup {caramel syrup would be wonderful, too}.


Serves between 12-16; or if you are me, about 6 servings!

By the way, the man became my husband. Wasn't he smart?

This is the original adaption of this recipe I cam up with.
  Ingredients
1 5 oz box instant vanilla pudding mix
2 cups milk
2 cups whipping cream
1 8 oz block cream cheese, softened
1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 stick butter
1/4 c sugar
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
bananas {3-6, depending on personal taste}
chocolate syrup {for drizzling}

Whisk pudding mix and milk together.  Set aside.  Whip cream til fluffy and holds shape.  Blend whipped cream til smooth; stir into pudding.  Fold whipped cream into pudding.  Refrigerate at least two hours.  Continue with recipe as above.