We have been blessed with many Fab Frugal Friends who love to cook with us – and we are happy to feature them on our blog!

My son’s friend Amber Simmons is a Domestic Goddess-in-training and has dreams of going to culinary school. She is a fabulous cook and once in awhile our family is lucky enough to be blessed by the bounty of her recipe creations.

Recently Amber came over and shared her wonderful latest recipe creation: S’more Puffs. These are little meringues that are baked and then their bottoms are slathered with a chocolate ganache and dredged in graham cracker crumbs. They are a one-bite  s’more sensation! So delish and – you don’t even need a campfire! Another 5-ingredient recipe that is FABULOUS!

Amber Simmons piping out her meringues

Amber Simmons shares her chocolate ganache magic with me

S’MORE PUFFS

2 large egg whites
1/2 cup sugar
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup graham cracker crumbs

Preheat oven to 200 degrees.

Whip egg whites to soft peak stage and then gradually add in sugar while whipping until stiff peaks form. Pipe the meringue onto a lightly oiled baking sheet (or silicone mat on a baking sheet). Form the meringues into “kiss” shapes about the size of a ping pong ball. Bake in center of oven for 50 to 60 minutes, until lightly browned. Remove from oven and let cool. Poke a hole in the bottom of each meringue and remove a little of the meringue to form a small pocket.

Break chocolate into small pieces  in a bowl. Heat cream to boiling point and pour over chocolate. Allow chocolate to melt, stirring occasionally. Pipe the melted chocolate mixture into the pocket of each meringue and smooth with a knife so that chocolate coats the entire bottom of meringues. Dip the chocolate covered bottoms into graham crumbs and set on a plate to cool.

Makes 24 bite-sized S’more Puffs.

Other fab s’mores creations by fellow food bloggers:
S’mores Cookies – Two Peas and Their Pod
S’mores Brownies – Joy the Baker
Grown-up S’mores – Phoo-d
S’mores Cake – Baking Bites

– posted by Donna

I LOVE using frozen puff pastry. It is an amazing substance. It will instantly transform an amateur pastry maker like myself into a top-notch pastry chef. But it is spendy and doesn’t keep well, and a little on the oily side.

For about a year now I have been tinkering with a homemade dough that doesn’t take an entire day to make and still has that rich, buttery flaky layered texture that is the puff pastry hallmark.  I won’t bore you with all the variations, but I made about 30 versions, trying to get the balance of ingredients just right to maximize flavor and texture.

I FINALLY FINISHED IT THIS WEEKEND!

My sister Sandy is a culinary student who has a pastry certificate. She was here this weekend and gave it her stamp of approval! She was impressed with  the texture given how little time was invested in making it. It only takes 5 minutes of prep time. No, seriously, 5 MINUTES! I am NOT making that up!

These little small discs are great for making individual tarts by spreading with a little pudding or flavored cream cheese and topping with fresh fruit.

***Stayed tuned for my next post in a few days for “Red, White and Blueberry Tarts,” made with this pastry just in time for the Fourth of July***

So, here it is in all its flaky buttery glory!

5 MINUTE HOMEMADE PUFF PASTRY

1 1/2 cup unbleached all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 ounces cream cheese, cold
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold
1 tablespoon cold water
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Cut butter into very small cubes and place in freezer for at least 1o minutes. Place flour and salt in a food processor. Cut cream cheese into small cubes and add to food processor. Add frozen butter cubes to food processor. Pulse in 1-second pulses for about 8 to 10 pulses, until small crumb stage.

Turn processor on and stream in the water and lemon juice, just for a few seconds until the dough begins to come together in a ball.  Flatten dough into a small disc, wrap in plastic wrap and then refrigerate for 4 to 24 hours.

Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and let stand about 20 minutes, until soft and cool to the touch. Roll out to 1/4 inch thickness. Fold dough over itself in thirds. Roll out to 1/4 inch thickness again.

Cut into shapes as desired and bake on a baking sheet with parchment paper. Bake near top of of oven for 15 to 18 minutes, depending on size of shapes, until light golden brown, watching closely the last few minutes so as not to burn.

– posted by Donna

c – Copyright 2009 by Donna Kelly -
Commercial use with permission only

Most cuisines in the world have a dish similar to this one – Americans call them “hash browns,” and Jewish cooks call them “latkes,” but the Swiss really take the prize with their “rösti” by adding their delicious salty, flavorful Gryuere cheese and a little green onion. Gruyere is a spendy cheese, so I cut the amount to 2 ounces and froze the rest of the 8 ounce block I had. This turned out to be serendipitous – the small amount of cheese still added tons of flavor, but wasn’t so oily as if I had added the whole block!

This superb potato dish is a bit tricky to get just right. There are two secrets to cooking a good Rösti: be sure to squeeze as much water as humanly possible from the grated potatoes to ensure a crispy outside and fluffy inside, and be patient and attentive to create just the right crunchiness on both sides of the Rösti.

SPRING VEGGIE RÖSTI

1 pound russet potatoes, peeled
1 tablespoon salt
2 ounces grated Gruyere cheese
1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced, tops included
A handful of frozen peas
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Grate the potatoes on the large holes of a box grater. Rinse grated potatoes well in cold water and place in a bowl and toss with salt. Let stand 5 minutes. Rinse again and spread on a kitchen towel. Place another towel on top and then press with hands, removing as much water as possible. Toss potatoes with cheese, all vegetables and flour.

Heat a large heavy bottomed skillet (such as cast iron) to medium high heat. Add butter and let melt, coating bottom of pan. Add potato mixture evenly on bottom of pan, spreading to form about 1/2 inch layer. Immediately reduce heat to low.

Cook for 8 to 10 minutes, until bottom is becoming golden brown and crispy on bottom and top is looking opaque. Slide entire contents of pan out onto a cutting board, keeping entire disc intact. Carefully flip disc over with a large spatula, facing down in pan. Cook other side for another 5 to 8 minutes, until golden brown and crispy on bottom.

Serve immediately in wedges with a dollop of sour cream if desired.

– posted by Donna

One of my restaurants of choice these days is a little avant garde place in downtown Provo, Utah – one of those places you just know is going to be different the minute you walk in the door.  The food is new, fresh, different and delicious – the kind of place that you can get excited about going to because you know you are going to have an adventure there. In case you are anywhere near driving distance to the middle of Utah, the restaurant is “Spark“. You won’t be disappointed!

I was lucky enough to go there recently and taste their soup du jour: a carrot soup that is refreshing and delicious. They were kind enough to share their recipe and I made it last night for my family. I did make a few changes and added a few dashes of cayenne pepper sauce for just a hint of heat in the background.

CARROT GINGER SOUP

1 medium yellow onion, diced
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 pounds carrots, peeled and grated
1/4 cup grated fresh ginger
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 can (14 ounces) coconut milk, shaken
32 ounces chicken or vegetable stock*
1 cup cream
1 teaspoon kosher salt, or more to taste
A few dashes cayenne pepper sauce, to taste

In a large stock pot, saute the onion in butter over medium high heat for 2 to 3 minutes, until softened. Add in carrots,  ginger and garlic and cook 15 minutes, until softened and starting to brown.

Add the coconut milk, stock and cream. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to low and let simmer for 30 minutes uncovered.

Blend mixture with an immersion blender or in a regular blender in batches. Add salt and cayenne pepper sauce to taste. Let simmer another 20 minutes.

Strain through a fine mesh strainer and serve warm.

* I used Pacific Foods’ Vegetable Broth – it is earthy and mellow and has carrots as the first listed ingredient, so it was perfect for this soup!

– posted by Donna

Julia Child was right: the best recipes are often the simplest.

Case in point: crepes.

For years I shied away from crepes, thinking they were a too-fussy, too-demanding French food. All that changed a few days ago. I went to my friend Michelle’s house. Michelle was born and raised in France and still lives her life with a wonderful European flair. When we arrived at her house, she had set up a “crepe bar.” There was a pile of about 3 dozen thin-as-paper crepes, and then sliced fruits, whipped cream and a few sauces.  We took the crepes and folded them, made a pile of them on our plates and then added toppings. I was marveling at the elegant simplicity of this, and then she shared with me the secrets of crepes.

It turns out they are frugal, easy to make and store, and incredibly flexible.  Once every week or two, Michelle makes 5 dozen crepes and stacks them and stashes them covered in her fridge. Her family feasts on them for breakfast, lunch, dinner and all snacks in between! They sit patiently awaiting for up to two weeks in the fridge for some lucky hungry person to happen by. Wow! They DO NOT stick together, as I had thought they would, but just peel off one at a time from the pile. They can be folded with a little ricotta inside and then topped with a million different things- perfect for leftover bits of meat and cheeses and a drizzle of a pan sauce, or with sliced fruits for a quick delicious dessert. I especially like the folded presentation – rolling is more time intensive and fussy.

So, crepes will become a new standby at the Kellys’ – they are equally fabulous and frugal!!!

Crepes take only about a minute per crepe to cook – this recipe makes about 24. It is well worth the time to make a huge batch and then stash them in the fridge for almost instant meals!

I made a wonderful ricotta filling — it can be either sweet (I added a little powdered sugar) or savory (you could add a bit of garlic powder or other savory seasonings). It is fluffy and delicious!

RICOTTA-STUFFED FOLDED CREPES

2 cups 2 percent milk
4 large eggs
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups all purpose flour
2 tablespoons melted butter
2 tablespoons cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups ricotta cheese
2 tablespoons powdered sugar*
2 tablespoons corn starch
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
6 large strawberries

Blend in blender the milk, eggs, salt, flour and butter. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours, up to 24 hours.

Heat a small skillet to medium heat. Spray with a little non-stick cooking spray. Pour 1/4 cup of batter into center of pan and then roll pan until bottom is evenly coated with batter. Cook about 1 minute, until top of crepe looks dry. Turn over and cook another minute or so until cooked through and lightly browned. Repeat for 24 total crepes.

Process in food processor all remaining ingredients except strawberries until light and fluffy, about 1 minute. Hull the strawberries and then slice strawberries lengthwise into four slices.

To assemble, spread 2 tablespoons of ricotta mixture on one half of each crepe. Fold each crepe in half and then in half again. Place on a serving platter and then top the folded crepe with strawberry slices. Dust with powdered sugar or drizzle with chocolate sauce as a garnish if desired.

*Omit the powdered sugar for a savory filling

–posted by Donna