Saturday, September 22, 2012

UCLA v Oregon State at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena

Breakfast this time, since the game is at 12:30 p.m.

GAME DAY MAIN DISH


SAUSAGE HASH BROWN BREAKFAST BAKE

3 and 1/2 cups shredded hash browns
1 lb. sausage, browned and drained
1 cup grated cheese
6 eggs, beaten
3/4 cup milk
1 tsp. dry mustard
1/2 tsp. salt
1 and 1/2 tsp black pepper

Spread the hash browns into the bottom of a greased 9x13 inch pan. Sprinkle cooked sausage and cheese over top (I added some diced cooked ham and more cheese)
In a bowl combine the eggs, milk, dry mustard, salt and pepper. Pour egg mixture evenly over sausage and hash browns. Cover and refrigerate 2 hours or overnight. Remove from the refrigerator 20 minutes before baking.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake for 5-8 minutes more, or until center is set.
CHERRY BREAD 

1 and 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 and 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 6 oz jar maraschino cherries, drained with juice reserved, halved
2/3 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
Stir together the flour, salt, and baking powder in a bowl. In a separate bowl beat together the sugar and eggs using an electric mixer until light and frothy. Alternately add the flour mixture and reserved cherry juice to the egg mixture, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Dust the cherries and pecans with flour and stir into the batter. Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan.
Bake for 50 to 60 minutes until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer to a wire rack and allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Turn the loaf pan out of the pan and allow to cool completely. Serve at room temperature.
(The recipe said that you can substitute dried sour cherries and I did in this recipe)

EASY STICKY BUNS

• 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/3 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
• 1/2 cup pecans, chopped in very large pieces
• 1 package (17.3-ounces/ 2-sheets) frozen puff pastry, defrosted

For the filling:

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 2/3 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
• 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 cup raisins

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Place a 12-cup standard muffin tin on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the 12 tablespoons butter and 1/3 cup brown sugar. Place 1 rounded tablespoon of the mixture in each of the 12 muffin cups. Distribute the pecans evenly among the 12 muffin cups on top of the butter and sugar mixture.

Lightly flour a wooden board or stone surface. Unfold 1 sheet of puff pastry with the folds going left to right. Brush the whole sheet with the melted butter. Leaving a 1-inch border on the puff pastry, sprinkle each sheet with 1/3 cup of the brown sugar, 1 1/2 teaspoons of the cinnamon, and 1/2 cup of the raisins. Starting with the end nearest you, roll the pastry up snugly like a jelly roll around the filling, finishing the roll with the seam side down. Trim the ends of the roll about 1/2-inch and discard. Slice the roll in 6 equal pieces, each about 1 1/2 inches wide. Place each piece, spiral side up, in 6 of the muffin cups. Repeat with the second sheet of puff pastry to make 12 sticky buns.

Bake for 30 minutes, until the sticky buns are golden to dark brown on top and firm to the touch. Be careful - they're hot! Allow to cool for 5 minutes only, invert the buns onto the parchment paper (ease the filling and pecans out onto the buns with a spoon) and cool completely.

Bloody Mary's and Mimosas

Penny and Eric

Tim and Penny

Corey & Lindsey and their friends joined for a time.

Honoring several UCLA Olympians

And a cheer "Go Bruins" from Ella in Seatac, Washington

From the Daily Bruin

No. 19 UCLA's win streak snapped by Oregon State in 27-20 loss

UCLA football was served a fresh slice of humble pie by Oregon State Saturday afternoon.

The Bruins suffered a 27-20 loss at the Rose Bowl in their Pac-12 Conference season opener.

After missing a field goal earlier in the fourth quarter, freshman kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn made a 35-yard field goal with 1:47 to play. But a Bruin onside kick attempt was recovered by the Beavers to close out the win.

There wasn’t one specific area No. 19 UCLA (3-1, 0-1 Pac-12) struggled in above others. Instead, the team looked anemic on both sides of the ball.

Offensively, the Bruins – who had averaged 622 total yards per game entering Saturday – were only able to pick up 444 yards against a staunch Beaver defense.

The UCLA offensive line, which was without redshirt senior Jeff Baca, had little to no success moving the ball on the ground against the Oregon State defense. Redshirt senior running back Johnathan Franklin was touted as a Heisman trophy candidate earlier in the week, but only rushed for 45 yards on 12 carries Saturday.

Additionally, redshirt freshman quarterback Brett Hundley was inconsistent throughout, throwing good, accurate passes for big plays at times and putting passes behind receivers for near-interceptions at others.

Hundley’s inconsistencies were magnified by the mistakes of the UCLA receiving corps, which had plenty of drops at inopportune times.

On the defensive end, UCLA’s play was reminiscent of previous years. The Bruins often left open pockets, where Beaver receivers had plenty of room to catch passes.

Oregon State (2-0, 1-0 Pac-12) took advantage of the coverage breakdowns, which offered little resistance in the second half as the Beavers’ offense sealed the win with multiple scoring drives.

One of the most significant factors in the loss was UCLA’s inability to capitalize on turnovers. Twice in the second half the Bruin defense made plays to force turnovers near midfield and both times the offense failed to come away with any points.

Shaquelle Evans’ performance was one of the bright spots for the Bruins. The redshirt junior receiver had a big game, finishing with 6 receptions for 148 yards, including one touchdown and multiple big plays that kept UCLA afloat.

The Bruins will look to bounce back from the loss when they travel to Boulder, Colo. to take on Colorado next week.

Saturday, September 15, 2012
UCLA v Houston at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena

Appetizers

Olive Crisps

Prep Time: 25 minutes 

Inactive Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Yield: 40 crisps

Flour, for dusting
2 sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed
6 tablespoons tomato paste
6 tablespoons prepared olive tapenade
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
1 egg
2 tablespoons water

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out puff pastry to a 10 by 10-inch square. Spread 3 tablespoons of tomato paste evenly on top, followed by 3 tablespoons of olive tapenade. Sprinkle half of mozzarella and Parmesan over top. Roll up the puff pastry like a jelly roll, just to the middle of the dough. Repeat with the other side in the same fashion, making 2 rolls that meet in the center. Duplicate the process with the second puff pastry sheet.
Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Slice the rolls into 1/2-inch slices. Arrange on cookie sheet and refrigerate for 20 minutes. (Because they will puff up to twice their size after baking, place them far enough apart.) Just before baking, beat the egg with 2 tablespoons water in a small bowl, and brush onto the olive crisp slices. Bake for 20 minutes, or until puffed and golden. Serve warm or room temperature.

Rosemary Roasted Cashews Ina Garten the Barefoot Contessa

This recipe is almost directly from the Bar Nuts at Union Square Cafe in New York City and their wonderful cookbook of the same name. 1 1/4 pounds cashew nuts 2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh rosemary leaves 1/2 teaspoon cayenne 2 teaspoons dark brown sugar 2 teaspoons kosher salt 1 tablespoon melted butter Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Place the nuts on an ungreased baking sheet and bake for about 10 minutes until they are warmed through. Meanwhile, combine the rosemary, pepper, sugar, salt and butter in a large bowl. Toss the warm nuts with the rosemary mixture until the nuts are completely coated. Serve warm.  Main Dish Chicken Piccata and salad From the Kitchen of: Paul Oglesby Slice boneless/skinless chicken breasts into thin filets Dip chicken into a thin mixture of milk and one egg Cover the chicken breasts w/ flour and bread crumbs Heat a large skillet with butter and olive oil.  Brown the chicken breasts Remove chicken breast and de-glaze the pan with ½ cup white wine Add ½ jar of capers, juice of one lemon and one can of Campbell’s French Onion Soup Thicken with a mixture of cornstarch and water Put the chicken back in the sauce Serve with pasta or potatoes Desert Frosted Banana Bars 1/2 cup butter 2 cups sugar 3 eggs 1 and 1/2 cups mashed ripe bananas (3 to 4 medium bananas) 1 tsp vanilla extract 2 cups all purpose flour 1 tsp baking soda pinch of salt Frosting: 1/2 cup butter 1 8 oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened 4 cups confectioners sugar 2 tsp. vanilla Cream butter and sugar. Beat in eggs, bananas, and vanilla. Combine the dry ingredients; add to creamed mixture and mix well. Pour into a greased 15 x 10 inch pan. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. Cool. Bruins tame the Cougars in a 37-6 rout Daily Bruin PASADENA — On the second offensive play of the game, Houston sophomore quarterback David Piland threw the ball to his right on what he, and his receiver, believed to be an incomplete pass. Eric Kendricks knew better. The redshirt sophomore linebacker picked up the ball and ran it 23 yards into the endzone, just as the coaches tell him to do every day. “In practice, when we see a ball on the ground we scoop it up because you never know what might happen,” Kendricks said. “That was my reaction so I picked it up, didn’t hear a whistle and ran it back to the endzone.” The pass was called a fumble on the field, and after 12 seconds of gameplay, UCLA (3-0) took a 7-0 lead and never looked back en route to a 37-6 victory over Houston (0-3). UCLA’s offense put up 567 yards, but credit for the win primarily went to the defense. The Bruins held a Cougar offense – one that had scored 49 points the week before – scoreless until almost five minutes from the end of the game. “Coach emphasized all week putting together complete games,” said redshirt sophomore safety Tevin McDonald. “In our (first) two games, we had two great second halves, but we had to put together a complete game. That was our plan, and I’m proud we executed it as a team.” UCLA’s defense forced six turnovers on the game, including five interceptions. Three of those picks came from senior cornerback Sheldon Price, tying the UCLA record for most interceptions in a single game. While the defense had its best performance of the season, the offense had its worst outing as it had five turnovers on the night. Redshirt freshman quarterback Brett Hundley threw two interceptions and was sacked three times by a Houston defense that had only one turnover in its first two games. “There is going to be some inconsistency in his game, sometimes, because he’s a young player,” Mora said of his quarterback. “There’s a lot of learning for him once he looks at that tape tomorrow.” Despite a shaky performance, Hundley still had two touchdowns on the day and 320 yards passing. On the ground, UCLA ran for 247 yards behind redshirt senior running back Johnathan Franklin, who had 110 yards rushing as he vaulted himself to No. 2 on UCLA’s all-time rushing list. Outside of Franklin’s accomplishment, the highlight on the offensive side of the ball came, ironically, from a defensive player. Redshirt senior defensive end Datone Jones came in on a goal-line package as a tight end and caught a seven-yard pass for a touchdown in the first quarter. “We’ve been practicing that play every day since camp,” Jones said with a smile. “We used it last week against Nebraska and I was open in the back of the endzone but they didn’t get me a ball.” The fanfare from Jones’ touchdown along with the final score and statistics left a bright spot on the game, but the Bruins know that they need to execute better as the season goes on to reach their goals. “It’s really scary when you think about it,” Hundley said. “The stats we put up is all good to look at but, to us, this game wasn’t what we wanted. … There were mistakes made and we have to respond and play a full game.”

Saturday, September 8, 2012  UCLA v. Nebraska

GAME DAY APPETIZERS

TOMATO ZUCCHINI TART1/2 15 oz package refrigerator piecrust1 medium zucchini, thinly sliced2 tsp olive oil3 medium plum tomatoes1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped1/3 cup grated parmesan1/3 cup mayonnaise1/2 teaspoon pepper
Fit piecrust into 9" tart pan. Trim excess. Prick bottom and sides with fork. Bake crust at 450 9-11 minutes until brown.
Sauté zucchini in oil over medium high heat until tender. Arrange on piecrust, tomatoes on top.
Stir basil, cheese, and mayonnaise. Drop spoonful on each tomato, spread evenly. Sprinkle with pepper. Bake at 425 10-15 minutes or until done.
CURRIED SHRIMP TARTS1 cup shrimp, chopped1/2 package cream cheese3 tbl green onions, chopped1 tbl fresh lime juice3/4 tsp curry1/4 tsp ground red pepper15 phyllo pastry cups31/2 tbl mango chutneyFlaked coconut, toasted

Main Course

Steve’s Marinated Flank Steak

1 flank steak, about 11/2 pounds
1/3 cup soy sauce
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 cloves garlic, crushed
2 T brown sugar
Freshly ground pepper

½ cup red wine

In a non-reactive bowl or large re-sealable plastic bag, combine the soy sauce, Worcestershire, vinegar, oil, garlic, sugar, and pepper, to taste. Add the steak, and turn to coat. Cover or reseal the bag and marinate at room temperature for 1 hour or refrigerate for up to 6 hours or overnight.

Remove the steak from the marinade.
Cook the steaks, for 5 to 8 minutes on each side for rare to medium-rare. Set aside on a cutting board for 5 minutes.
Cut the steak against the grain, on an angle, into very thin slices. Arrange the slices on a warmed platter or plates. Serve. 

Desert

Marie Callendar's Razzleberry Pie

Ella Falvo is all ready for the game.

Saturday, September 8, 2012 UCLA v. Nebraska

The founding members of the group (minus Gail) Paul O, Eric F, Tim K, Penny K and Barb O in 2006

Today's Menu
Marinated Flank Steak