Thursday, August 25, 2011

Re-Purposed Denim Aprons

I love to see used stuff turn into something new-DENIM-Aprons $18






Roasted Tomato Sauce

clickmarigoldRoasted Tomato Sauce
OMG! If you like to make Homemade Pasta Sauce this recipe is for you!
By roasting the vegetables in the oven is actually carmelizing them, and the result is an intense, sweet flavor that enhances almost anything.
Serve it with your favorite pasta and some fresh grated parmesan cheese.

Snack Like A Smart Cookie















Having a coffee and a cookie in the afternoon may make you sharper. The combination of caffeine and sugar improves cognitive performance, attention and memory;








a study in the journel Human Psychopharmacology.








Now you have a great reason to have a cookie and caffeine every afternoon!

Wednesday, August 3, 2011



Here's a great gift idea to thank your hosts for a weekend visit- A basket of plump, ripe tomatoes and sprigs of fresh just-picked basil from your garden or a local farmers market.
Add some pasta, fresh garlic, wedge of fresh parmesan, balsamic vinegar and a good quality olive oil. Tuck in some fun dishtowels and a bread mix

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Marigold Dip Mixes

Fiesta Party dip mix-make a quick guacamole, fiesta bean dip or fiesta party dip








Dilly Onion-makes a great dip for crackers & veggies








Creamy Bacon Onion-add to pasta salads, baked potatoes, deviled eggs, hamburgers



and omelets








Classic Onion-makes a awesome spinach dip








Creamy Vegetable-mix with 8 oz. cream cheese and 8 oz. sour cream for a quick dip or spread








Sun-dried Tomato Basil-make the delicious Brushcetta recipe on the back








All Dip Mixes $2.95

Farmer's Market Recipe

Pick up a pint of your favorite plump berry or a basket of perfectly ripened peaches at your local farmers market. Top them with Marigold's HEARTLAND HONEY GRANOLA and you have a fresh fruit crisp dessert in no time. General rule of thumb is 3 parts fruit to one part topping.

Quick Peach Crisp

4 medium fresh peaches, peeled and sliced

1 teaspoon nutmeg

2 tablespoon soft butter

4 tablespoon brown sugar

1 cup Marigold's HONEY HEARTLAND GRANOLA

Preheat oven 375 degrees

Place peaches in a 8" or 9" pie pan-Combine butter, sugar, and nutmeg and mix together then mix it with the granola. Mound the topping on top of the peaches. Bake in the oven 15-20 minutes-till the top is golden brown. Serve warm with ice cream. 4-6 servings.

Start the day off with HEARTLAND HONEY GRANOLA

Heartland Honey Granola is Marigold's secret recipe that is blended by hand in our kitchen. Eat it by the spoonful, handful, or bowlful, this is a blend of oats and nuts that is satisfying all day long.


Stir it into yogurt or oatmeal, sprinkle it on ice cream, mix it with fruit.


Granola Pie Crust


1 cup Marigold's Heartland Honey Granola


2 tablespoons brown sugar


2 tablespoons cold butter


Combine in a food processor until mixture comes together. Press the mixture into the bottom and sides of a 8" or 9" pie pan. bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes and fill with your favorite pie filling. I recommend Key Lime, Fresh Strawberry, or Peanut Butter pie fillings.

Monday, April 11, 2011

Spring Cleaning in the Kitchen

Every once in a while it's good to prep the kitchen: clear it out and clean it up. If you look around your kitchen and feel the need to de-clutter, consider these tips. You will be happy with your new "pleasant-to-cook-in" space.
Toss or Give it Away


What has become useless is a matter of personal taste. If you haven't used a certain pot or a paticular kitchen gadget in a few years, you probably won't use it again-ever.


Throw Out Old Spices


When you buy spices, try to buy small amounts in bulk. Most spices should be thrown out after six months, and certainly after a year. Use the smell test: spices should be fragrant.


Make Your Kitchen User-Friendly


Spend a little time reorganizing your kitchen (spices, utensils, pots and pans) so that what you use most often is close at hand.


Clean Your Fridge


Toss old agingfood and condiments, clean anything stuck in the back and buy a new box of baking soda to trap odors. Same goes for the freezer too.


Keep It Clean


Yes, be a neat freak. Dirty dishes in the sink and an unorganized space will definitely not inspire you to start cooking a meal.

Source: http://www.loulies.com/

Thursday, March 31, 2011

How I Got Started In The Kitchen

Growing up in a family of 7 kids we all had to learn some survival skills. One was "what is for dessert tonight?" This spice cake recipe was one of my first baking experiences. I remember the two oldest siblings making this cake quite often. So eventually it was my turn and it turned out yumtastic! Let me know how you like it. Susan

Spice Cake

2 cup flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon cloves

1/4 teaspoon allspice

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 Tablespoon molasses

1/2 cup crisco

1 egg

1 cup buttermilk

heat oven 375 degree


Topping

1 TBSP soft butter

1 TBSP flour

4 TBSP sugar

1/2 tsp cinnamon

Mix together topping ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.

Spray a 9x13 inch pan with cooking spray.

In a large mixing bowl place sugar and crisco and mix together. Add the rest of the ingredients and beat well. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle the topping mixture over the batter, sugar topping gets crusty and extra yummy when baked. Place the pan in the middle rack of the oven and bake 20-30 minutes, until the edges have pulled away from the sides of the pan and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. If you can wait at least 5 or 10 minutes to cool before you start eating it, you have SOME willpower.


BAKING TIP: when measuring molasses or crisco, spray the measuring cup with cooking spray and it should slide right out. Brilliant!


Let's take a quick minute to talk about Buttermilk

Buttermilk is an important part of baking. The acidic milk combined with baking soda in a recipe is a baker's dream. See when baking soda is combined with the lactic acids of buttermilk, the soda releases carbon dioxide that when heated, releases tiny bubbles that expand and lift and lighten whatever your baking.

I have been asked if there is a substitute for buttermilk, I have 3 solutions. Although having buttermilk on hand in your fridge it will last a long time after the expiration date.

Lemon and milk: in a 1-cup measuring cup, add 1 TBSP fresh lemon juice. Top the lemon juice with milk. Stir and let sit for 2 minutes.

Yogurt and milk: mix 3/4 cup plain yogurt with 1/4 cup milk.

Milk and cream of tartar: mix 1 cup of milk with 1 3/4 tsp of cream of tartar. To ensure that the mixture doesn't get lumpy, mix the cream of tartar with 2 TBSP of the milk first.

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Your Favorite Marigold Item

Check us out on FACEBOOK


Marigold Bakery and Cafe


Tell us your favorite Marigold Item


We'd love to hear what your favorite item is at Marigold's.


Get the details on FACEBOOK and see what you could win!

Marigold's Creamy Bacon Onion Dip Mix Ideas

What’s so special about Marigold’s Creamy Bacon Onion Dip Mix? Put a new twist on an old dish!Add Some to Deviled Eggs Pasta Salad Baked Potatoes Omelets Scrambled Eggs Hamburgers Salad Dressings Green Beans Potato Soup BLT Salad Chicken Salad Mashed Potatoes Baked Beans Potato Salad We also have some great recipes to make with our Creamy Bacon Onion Dip Mix.

Blog Spotlight

Blog Spotlight
www.ourbestbites.com
Tips, tricks and tastes from 2 real life kitchens. If you love to cook and try new recipes this is your site!

Tip for the home baker

Tip for the home baker
Turn a marble floor tile into a handy pastry slab.
Purchase a 12” marble floor tile and wash it thoroughly. Allow it to dry. Cut two gripper pads-found in the hardware department-in half, creating four squares.
Place a square at each corner on the underside of the tile.


Baking Basic
Shaping dough on a cool marble surface keeps the dough from sticking. Simply clean the slab with warm water and soap.
Avoid using products that contain bleach.

Lowescreativeideas.com

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Chocolate-Chip Meringue Kisses

Makes 30 cookies
Prep time 30 minutes total time 1 hour 30 minutes
1. Preheat oven 225 degrees. Warm 4 whole eggs in a bowl of hot water, 5 minutes. Seperate whites; reserve yolks for another use.
2. In a bowl of electric mixer, beat whites with 1/4 tsp each salt, cream of tartar, vanilla to soft peaks. Add 1 cup sugar by the Tablespoon beating until stiff, 2 minutes more. Fold in 12 oz. chocolate chips . Drop scant 1/4 cup of meringue batter onto parchment lined baking sheets. Bake until dry, about 1 hour. Let cool.
From; Everyday food

Pasta Carbonara

This recipe makes a delicious meal with only 4 ingredients and ready in under 20 minutes.
Ingredients
1/3 cup Marigold Creamy Bacon Onion Dip Mix
1 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
8 oz. prepared pasta
Directions; heat first 2 ingredients over low heat; stir in cheese. Simmer 4-5 minutes; add pasta and serve. Makes 2 servings

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Baked Curry Sweet Potato Fries

Makes 1 potatoes worth of fries. This recipe is easily multiplied. Crispy, baked fries with curry and red pepper flakes. Spicy. Salty. Yummy. I used egg white as a binder because I like the way it makes the spices stick to the potato. You can also toss the potatoes in olive oil instead of the egg white and sprinkle the spices on top.
1 plump sweet potato, peeled
1 TBSP olive oil
1 large egg white
1/2 tsp curry powder
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp salt, or to taste
Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or foil and set aside.
Peel sweet potato and slice off the top and bottom points of the potato. Use a large knife to slice potato into 1/3-inch potato sticks. Fries!
Place potato sticks onto prepared baking sheet and toss with olive oil. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk egg white until foamy and frothy. Add curry powder, cumin, turmeric, and crushed red pepper flakes and whisk to incorporate. Pour the egg mixture over the potato sticks and gentle toss to coat the potatoes.
Place in the oven and bake to desired doneness and crispiness, my fries took about 25-30 minutes. Remove fries from the oven and serve immediatly.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Recipe: Rory's Irish Scones

The secret to these scones is a light touch; you don't want to handle the dough anymore than you have to. They're great warm, and the perfect vehicle for sopping up sauce or soup, or slathering with butter and drizzling with honey. This is the fastest way to make up warm bread.

4 cups flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
2 cups buttermilk
Preheat oven to 400 degrees
Whisk the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Make a well in the center of the dry mixture and add the buttermilk. Mix together by hand, being careful not to overwork the dough. Turn out on a well-floured surface and form into a large rectangle, about 1 inch thick. Using a sharp knife( a pizza cutter works well, too), cut the dough into 9 strips, 1-inch wide, then cut each strip into 6, 1-inch squares. Place,barely touching, on a large sheet pan that has been lightly floured or lined with parchment. Bake for 10 minutes, rotate the tray, and bake 7 minutes more. Yield: 54 scones.
Youv'e never tasted Soda Bread this good. Featured the month of March.
Marigold's has a few secret ingredients to make this a soft and rich bread. Irish eyes are smiling!