Good Dinner Mrs. Mellen

Looking for some casual New Year's Eve Appetizers for an easy celebration with no fuss yet so tasty to your family and friends will just love; I have a few suggestions for you. Both my  Baked Brie with Olive Tapenade and Baked Artichoke are perfect for any celebration. I usually purchase hummus, tabbouleh and tzatziki , cut up some carrots, celery, peppers, cucumbers and serve for a array of snacks. Then we open some bubbly and ring in the New Year! Purchased puff pastry is so easy to use with wonderful professional result that anyone even a beginning cook can wow their guests. I like to make different spreads for my baked brie, sometimes sweet and sometimes savory. If you love olives this is your baked brie. You can either make your own olive tapenade, you can find the recipe below or save time by purchasing store made tapenade. Decorate with slice olives creating a delicious tasting, easy, appetizer. Baked Brie with Olive Tapenade  1/2 package of frozen puf...

If you read my blog by now you know that I am obsessed with cranberries. As soon of these red jewels  come to market I start to cook and bake everything with cranberries.  2 tablespoon butter 2 small shallots, chopped (about 1⁄4 cup) 2 teaspoons minced garlic (about 2 garlic cloves) 3 tablespoons fig balsamic vinegar 3 pounds fresh Brussels sprouts, halved (about 10 cups) or petite Brussels, whole   2 tablespoons olive oil 1 teaspoon kosher salt 1/2 teaspoons black pepper 1 cup fresh cranberries   Step 1 Melt large skillet over medium heat. Add shallots, and cook, stirring often, until shallots are softened and start to brown, about 8 minutes. Add garlic, and cook, stirring often, 1 minute. Add vinegar, and cook until thick and syrupy, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat, and pour into a small microwavable bowl. Cool to room temperature, cover, and chill until ready to use, up to 1 day ahead. Step 2 Preheat oven to 400°F. Tos...

Chocolate Cake with Peppermint Crean Cheese Frosting Peppermint reminds me of old fashioned Christmases when I would find a big candy cane in my stocking which I would savor for weeks! I love the combination of chocolate, cream cheese and peppermint in this cake. As I take a bite the cool peppermint cream cheese frosting combines with the chocolate cake for an irresistible tempting dessert that will be the star of any Holiday meal.  Ingredients . 2 cups sugar . 2 cups all-purpose flour . ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder . 1 teaspoon kosher salt . 1 teaspoon baking powder . 1 teaspoon baking soda . 1 cup buttermilk . ½ cup vegetable oil . 2 large eggs, lightly beaten . 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract . 1 cup hot water . Peppermint Frosting (recipe follows) . Garnish:  Hershey's Candy Cane Kisses and crushed candy canes Instructions 1. Preheat oven to 350°. Spray 3 (8-inch) round cake pans with baking spr...

A good bowel of hot soup on a cold winter day, what better way celebrate the Winter Solstice. Add a crisp salad, fresh bread and a glass of wine perfect for celebrating the changing rotation of the earth. I always felt there was something mystical about a solstice reminding me four times a year that the earth and life are transient, ever changing and by embracing this fact life is perfectly imperfect.  My recipe for Butternut Squash soup with a touch of apple captures the essence of the winter season with just a touch of aromatic spices that don't overpower the squash and apple. I use store purchased cut and cleaned butternut squash when I make a small batch of soup; making the work and clean up easier. INGREDIENTS 1 medium yellow onion, chopped (about 1 cup) 1 celery rib, chopped (about 3/4 cup) 1 carrot, chopped (about 3/4 cup) 2 Tbsp butter 1 package(20 oz.) butternut squash 1 tart granny smith apple, peeled, cored, chopped 3 cups vegetable bro...

Another recipe from my childhood Christmases, Poppy Seed Bread.  My mother was raised in a neighborhood inhabited with many different ethic groups. She learned from her Polish neighbors to make Eastern European style pastries which she incorporated into her holiday baking. Making her old holiday pastries transports me again to a time when I learned the magic of Christmas which still lives with me to this day!    Poppy Seed Bread 2 cups whole milk 2 packages yeast 2 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup sugar 2 eggs, slightly beaten 1/2 cup shortening (Crisco) 7 to 7 1/2 cups sifted all purposed flour 4 tablespoon butter 2 cans Poppy seed pastry filling(Solo) 1 cup chopped pecansa 1 cup golden raisins Preheat oven to 375F. Heat milk until tiring bubbles form, 2-3 minutes. Put 1/4 cup of hot milk in small bowl, let cool to lukewarm. Add yeast, let dissolve for 5 minutes. In a large bowl add remaining milk and cool. Stir in salt, sugar,...

I love Christmas!  Christmas Magic, feeling filled with love and joy, spending time with family and friends, decorating, baking and cooking; and living in New England snow! Each year I promise that I will not go overboard -  curtain my decorating frenzy - embrace a minimalistic style -  each year I break my promise! I can't help myself as I begin opening my stored Christmas decorations-  how can I not use all my beautiful treasures lovingly collected over the years. And so it begins......  My tradition the day after Thanksgiving is not to rise early for Black Friday,(nothing wrong with a day of retail therapy) I start my day watching the sun rise and decorating for Christmas.  I begin in my dinning room with unpacking my Lenox Holiday china - gifts from my children - washing each piece I remember the Christmases when they were small their eyes filled with anticipation as I opened my special gift  - then I remove all my regular china replacing wi...

Massachusetts, abundant in cranberries  bogs, produces glorious fresh cranberries which are harvested in the fall coming to market just in time for Thanksgiving. You can get frozen cranberries all year long a wonderful alternative when fresh are out of season. I just love fresh cranberries and I buy copious quantities for making naturally fresh cranberry sauce along with breads, cakes, stuffing and with roasted vegetables. You could say I go cranberry crazy this time of year. And you have to be quick since fresh cranberries are gone from market right after the new year. As you might have guessed homemade cranberry sauce is a must, a favorite accompaniment to our Thanksgiving dinner. Each year I tweak the ingriendants for a different sauce; sometimes I add pecans for a crunch texture or lemons for a tangy sauce, this year I made cranberry sauce with chopped oranges. I like my cranberry sauce spirited adding a little liqueur; to this recipe I added Grand Marnier; a fr...