Just got a crazy yummy and easy tip from my sis.
If you grow rosemary you know that that stuff is insane. It grows like a weed and you could never use it up if you put it in everything! I make bouquets out of it and it makes my house smell sooo good!
So here is Ash’s tip:
simmer a sliced lemon, rosemary and 1 tsp of vanilla extract and your house will smell divine! I am doing it right now and aaahhh delish. Better than any scented candle… and when you are finished with it use it in your garbage disposal for a refresher.
I do the same with apples and spices in fall.
Just made a loaf of fresh bread and a chicken dish I make with carmelized onions, dijon mustard and beer in the slow cooker. (I’d add the recipe but I kinda just throw whatever I have in the pot when I cook!!) Now I don’t drink (I’m already loud and obnoxious) but I LOOOOVVEE cooking with beer. My fav is beer bread. But pour some of that into any pot and it makes it amazing in my opinion. Anyone have any yummy beer recipes?
I love cooking with beer too! My husband is a huge Guinness man, so that's mainly what I use. I love making Beer bread muffins and making my own honey butter. Sooo yummy! It's what I make to welcome new people to our neighborhood. They always ask me for the recipes.
Here is the recipe for Irish Guinness Bread:
1 cup regular rolled oats, plus additional
2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup melted butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk
1 (12 fluid ounce) can or bottle Guinness® beer
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Grease an 8×8 inch baking pan.
2. Mix together the oats, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. In a separate large bowl, stir together the butter, vanilla, buttermilk, and Guinness® beer. Pour the flour mixture into the beer mixture, and gently stir until well blended. Pour batter into the prepared baking pan, and sprinkle with additional oats if desired.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, then turn the temperature down to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C), and bake for an additional 30 minutes. Turn the oven off, open the door, and allow to cool for 30 minutes in the oven before turning out onto a wire rack.
And for the Honey Butter:
3/4 cup butter, room temperature
1/4 cup honey
Mix together in a small bowl and store in fridge. Yummo!
I also love http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com. She has a beer bread recipe on there that is super simple and you can do pretty much anything to it and it's still good.
It's true! I did this yesterday and I basically wanted to eat my house. I put it in a pan with about 2/3 water, and kept adding water throughout the day. I've used the same mixture today, but I hear it gets stanky on the third day. So I'll put it in the garbage disposal tonight! Good tip B!
Hi Haylie!
Kinda hearing Twilight Zone music since I just happen to have all the ingredients to make both recipes!
Do I ever have buttermilk on hand? Never. But I just made a red velvet cake…
Do I ever have rosemary on hand? Always. I love the look, the smell, the flavor, sentimental reasons, just love it…
Haylie–Do you just deal with the whole bone thing with chicken or do you use boneless in the slow cooker?
Cici–Is the flavor of Guinness key here, or will Sierra Nevada do?
I'm making it all tonight! Thanks ladies, I'll let you know how it goes!
In the meantime, I'll be scenting the apartment with Sis's concoction before our friends all get here!
Woohoo! So glad I checked in!
THANK YOU!
Connie
Connie-
I've personally never made the guinness recipe with anything but that; however the bread recipe on the hillbilly housewife (I'll post recipe below for you) can use any type of beer I've found. I personally LOVE this recipe with Buffalo Bills Pumpkin Ale and make it into muffins that I serve with the honey butter. I've used Sierra Nevada too and it was just as great. : )
Beer Bread
3 cups of flour
3 tsp. of baking powder
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp of salt
12 oz of beer, any kind/brand
In a bowl sift the dry ingredients or use a whisk to make the dry fluffy.
Pour into bowl beer (it will bubble up quickly) and stir gently until all dry ingredients are incorporiated. Pour into greased loaf pan or muffin tins. Pour over 1/2 cube melted butter. Bake loaf for 1 hour or muffin tins 30 minutes at 400 degrees.
To kick it up a notch…add grated jack cheese and a pinch of cayenne. Grated cheese of your choice and herbs of your choice. Like rosemary, thyme, grated onion/garlic. Or goat cheese and basil, dried tomatoes. Or grated apples and cinnamon. Let your imagination go wild. Just don’t let hubby know you raided his beer stash.
Enjoy!
Cici
So who was Top Chef of the Hood today? That would be me, thanks to you guys!
Ok, ok, so I was an idiot yesterday forgetting I can't quickly slow cook!
AND I wanted to respect Cici's Irish Guinness Bread recipe and use GUINNESS beer!
But it was SOOO worth the wait! What a winning combo! I love anything carmelized and that bread? Fagetaboutit! The whole honey-mustard-beer theme makes me want to open a Pub with this as the signature dish! CHEERS!!!
And meanwhile my rosemary aroma therapy was brewing in the background, calming the surrounding chaos…
As a thank you, I want to give you guys (and anyone else who wants it) another top secret recipe!
This one will make total strangers kiss your feet and love you for life! And it's so easy!
TOFFEE CRUNCH
1 C butter
1 C sugar
1 C milk or dark chocolate
1 C chopped toasted almonds (taking the time to lightly toast on the top of the stove is a worth while step)
Sea Salt (or any salt really, Sea Salt just sounds more exotic than Morton iodized in a cardboard container!)
1. Cook butter and sugar in saucepan over med heat stirring often until 310 degrees
(don't worry if you don't have a candy thermometer, I just do it by color–a medium caramel color, not light!)
You really need to 'babysit'– it cooks quickly, but c'mon it's kinda the only step! (approx 10min?)
2. Pour out onto a silpat or other nonstick surface, spreading thinly, quickly as if hardens fast.
3. Melt chocolate and spread over the toffee.
4. Sprinkle with toasted almonds and lightly with the Sea Salt.
So addictive, YOU WILL LOVE THIS STUFF! Makes great gifts at Christmas when you have 500 teachers to give to!
Thanks for such a delicious dinner ladies, my family loves you!
Connie
Making bread used to terrify me (still does), but I found this one that didn't require live yeast or kneading or letting anything rise. So I knew I had to try it! This looks a lot like the recipe that Cici posted, and I can attest to its deliciousness!
HONEY BEER BREAD
3 cups flour
2 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp honey or agave nectar
1 bottle (12 ounces) beer
4 tbsp (1/2 stick) butter, melted
– Preheat oven to 350F.
– Grease a loaf pan.
– Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder & salt.
– With a wooden spoon, add the beer & honey until just mixed.
– Pour half the melted butter into the loaf pan.
– Spoon batter into pan and pour the rest of the butter on top.
– Bake for 50-60 minutes.
The only thing I've heard is that if you use darker beer, the bread will come out darker. Obviously. Hubby likes smooth, light beer – and it comes out looking all beautiful and golden. I haven't added any extra ingredients like cheese, but I'm sure it would be delicious!
Aha! Pinterest is where Ashley got the idea, I believe. Why aren't you on it?! I've been wondering.
Hi Cici! I will definitely be trying this one too, and all its combinations since your Irish Guinness Bread was BEYOND AMAZING! No wonder your neighbors ask you for that recipe, everyone went CRAZY over it! THANK YOU for sharing that one, I'll be making it again real soon! And that honey butter? Oh my…I'm actually eating the last piece as I write this to you, YUM! Thanks again! –Connie
Yum!!! I will try it soon!!!!
If I don't have all day to slow cook I go boneless.
yum yum wish I could make it all now
Sounds delicious!!
I signed up! I did one night and forgot about it! I'll go find my name…. I'm obsessed with too many things and figured I'd save myself the added brain suck hours… haha. Ash has been on me though so I did it!
Didn't realize I could reply up here, so I replied in a post down below Connie!
I'm doing the lemons, rosemary and vanilla on my stove right now and my house smells SOOOO GOOD! Thanks for the tip Haylie and Ashley!
Connie- I'm so glad you enjoyed the recipe! I'm come from a large Family (Irish on one side, and Scottish on the other) so I have loads of recipes that we go nuts over.
My husband is 6'6'', and also have a teenage step son and 2 littles I have to feed, so you can imagine how much food I wind up making on a daily basis! : )
I too don't drink alcohol, but LOVE cooking with it. Cakes and ice cream especially! People are constanlty telling me I need to open up a bakery/creamery. Maybe one day!
Oh ya, and Pinterest is CRAZY addicting!
Going to have to give this one a try!
My too many things obsession is why Pinterest rocks for me. It helps me organize everything I love. But it's totally addicting. I understand your hesitance, but I selfishly want you to become a pinning fool!