Food Art: Tomato "Ladybugs"

This is a little treat we had for a holiday, I think it must have been New Year's Eve. The smoked salmon with the tomato probably wasn't the best combination, but the visual presentation was great. I wonder what other fillings would work?

Tomato ladybug tea sandwiches

Ingredients:

-sliced baguette or bread of your choice cut into appetizer size

-sandwich spread of your choice

-cheese or meat as a base (maybe a softer cheese would work because it would help the ladybug stay on at the same time?)

-tomatoes 

-black olives (some chopped, some left whole or halved)

-greens for decorating

Directions:

-prepare the bread and assemble sandwiches, not yet adding the tomato

-close to serving time, cut tomatoes in half, then slice 3/4 of the way up to create ladybug wings

-use olives to add heads and spots to the ladybugs

-assemble festively on a plate, using greens for decoration

-serve promptly as tomatoes may saturate the bread, though it depends on your sandwich filling

How to Make Empress Chicken

This recipe is my go-to homemade/"take-out" Chinese recipe! Other than fried rice, of course. It is so simple I tend to bypass it, maybe because I'm usually looking for more of a challenge?

Empress Chicken on Rice

The ingredients I almost always have on hand, and you could vary it in a number of ways-even just take the sauce and make up your own stir-fry.

As I said it's a simple recipe. It does take about 45 minutes as stated, but you could stop and start if needed. Make the sauce/rice ahead of time, chop veggies or meat earlier in the day, take a break before you add the sauce, etc.

My suggested variations: add some veggies! (I have done cabbage and broccoli on separate occasions) Maybe pork would work instead of chicken? Or even shrimp (though probably without the breading)? Spiciness factor can also be tweaked. As far as the rice goes, you could make it fried rice instead, or substitute noodles.

Link to original recipe: Empress Chicken

P.S. I have to confess that I have no idea what restaurant Empress Chicken is supposed to look or taste like! I'm not sure I have ever actually seen it on a menu. But in my opinion this tastes better than most takeout. :)

How to Make Bacon-Wrapped Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Bacon Chicken stuffed w/ Spinach

This is a pretty easy recipe, and also fairly versatile, in my opinion. The original recipe I used as a guideline didn't have the bacon, but it did have breading. The filling can also be made with different combinations of spinach or fresh herbs and cheeses and seasonings.

The dish is simple in a way, though the assembly takes a bit of coordinating. But if I could handle it, anyone can!

Here's the basic recipe:

Ingredients:

4 chicken breasts
4 strips of raw bacon*
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
1 small onion
Olive oil or butter or vegetable oil for sauteeing
16 oz frozen or fresh spinach
1 cup (combined) cheeses**

*If you omit the bacon, you could coat the chicken in bread crumbs or flour and some seasoning. With the bacon, do not salt the chicken. I made this mistake and it was a bit salty for my taste.
**Cheese possibilities: Feta, cream cheese, parmesan, cheddar, etc./any combination that you think would work well

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 350, grease baking pan.
2) Saute spinach with garlic and onion and whatever other seasonings you'd like (be careful how much salt you add if you're planning on using bacon).
3) While spinach mix is sauteing, thinly slice/pound chicken. Spread pieces out in baking pan.
4) Add cheese to the spinach mixture.
5) Put a dollop of spinach in the middle of each chicken piece. Roll up and secure using toothpicks and/or bacon strip. Try to seal it so that the mixture doesn't run out during cooking and start burning.
6) Bake for approximately 30 minutes (start checking after 20 or so).

These look pretty sliced into pinwheels, too.

How to Make Apple Cake

I was shocked to peruse my archives and find that I'd never posted this recipe! I guess because I never end up taking a photo! I finally did this time...although it looks weird because I threw a peach in there to use up stale fruit for that extra something special. 

Yummy Apple Cake..in my dear glass baking dish that met its demise recently...sob!

This is my go-to apple dessert recipe. Apple Pie is yummy and all, but I can't be bothered with making crust. So I like how all the ingredients are mixed together in this dish. It also makes it sort of a finger food, just pick up a square and take with you. The cake part is all brown-sugary and even chewy, like a cookie.

I came across the apple cake recipe in my Better Homes and Gardens "New Cookbook." The cookbook includes tons of classic recipes jammed into one little volume (I have the paperback version). It includes lots of basics like how to make hardboiled eggs. Nice and unpretentious.

Recipe after the jump!