I spent most of my Valentine’s Day in the kitchen. I was busy preparing for our special dinner. This dinner was not only for Keroppi and I, it was also for my family and friends.

I’m really thankful that we got to have a nice quiet meal together. We are slowly getting our lives back. Heehee.

Anyway, here was our menu!

Spinach Soup

Baked Ravioli

Scalloped Potatoes

Baked Fish

Cheesecake Brownies

A lot of you have asked what frog food is like? Besides the candied insects that we eat, we also have the not-so exotic ones. We love to eat pizzas, pastas, hamburgers, etc…the usual food that humans like. XD

We are also suckers for snacks and sweets. I love to bake. I’ve always wanted to open my own pastry shop. Keroma has her own cafe and some of the cakes I made are served there. Heehee.

Oh my…Valentine’s Day is near! Time sure flies fast. Any suggestions on what food I will add to my Valentine’s Day menu? ^_^

~Keroleen~

Allow me to start the ball rolling! Heehee.

Hi everyone! It’s me, the pretty frog Keroleen. How is everybody doing? I hope you are all ok. It’s been awhile since the froggy gang posted here. We’ve been pretty busy fixing, building and renovating our homes.

Anyway, my kitchen is all fixed and so is Keroma’s cafe! Heehee. I’m glad that the boys prioritized those first. I guess food is always on their minds and would like to eat good dishes created by yours truly. ^_^

I’d better start cooking. I have a lot of hungry frogs to feed!

Check out the cake design for the birthday celebration! My beloved Keroleen is making it! Ribbit! She’s making 3 cakes for me and my siblings. I hope the cakes will be really big so that everyone attending will get a slice or two. XD

This is another favorite dessert recipe of Keroppi. Besides donuts, he loves flavored gelatin. Sometimes he can’t decide what flavor to eat, so here’s something that has a lot of flavors in it. Very tedious to do, but cooking for me is a labor of love. Heehee.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
• 1 (3 ounce) package lime gelatin
• 1 (3 ounce) package strawberry gelatin
• 1 (3 ounce) package orange gelatin
• 4 1/2 cups boiling water, divided
• 1 (.25 ounce) envelope unflavored gelatin
• 1/4 cup cold water
• 1 cup pineapple juice
• 1 (8 ounce) carton frozen whipped topping, thawed

Procedure:

Combine the crumbs, sugar and butter; press onto the bottom of a 13-in x 9-in. x 2-in. greased pan. Chill.

Combine lime gelatin and 1-1/2 cups boiling water; stir until gelatin is dissolved. Pour into an oiled 8-in. x 4-in. x 2-in. loaf pan; chill until very firm. Repeat for strawberry and orange gelatins.

Soften the unflavored gelatin in cold water. Boil pineapple juice; stir into unflavored gelatin. Set aside until slightly thickened.

Place whipped topping in a large bowl; gently fold in pineapple juice mixture.

When flavored gelatins are firm, cut into 1-in. cubes; gently fold into whipped topping mixture. Spoon over crust.

Chill for at least 2 hours.

Hi! Keroleen here! I’m in a cooking frenzy now. Heehee. It’s really fun to cook. ^_^ Here’s another recipe perfect for any occasion.

Ingredients:

1 (10 ounce) package fresh spinach leaves

1/2 cup sour cream

1/2 cup shredded pepperjack cheese

4 cloves garlic, minced

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - pounded to 1/2 inch thickness

1 pinch ground black pepper

8 slices bacon

Procedure:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

Place spinach in a large glass bowl, and heat in the microwave for 3 minutes, stirring every minute or so, or until wilted. Stir in sour cream, pepperjack cheese, and garlic.

Lay the chicken breasts out on a clean surface, and spoon some of the spinach mixture onto each one. Roll up chicken to enclose the spinach, then wrap each chicken breast with two slices of bacon. Secure with toothpicks, and arrange in a shallow baking dish.

Bake uncovered for 35 minutes in the preheated oven, then increase heat to 500 degrees F (260 degrees C), or use the oven’s broiler to cook for an additional 5 to 10 minutes to brown the bacon.

Time to bring out those grills. It’s the perfect time for some outdoor get-together and home-cooked food. Be sure to check the weather first if you are planning for some outdoor cooking. We don’t want the rain to ruin the perfect mood. Heehee.

Once in awhile, the residents of Donut Pond do some outdoor cooking. Grilled Burgers should always be in the menu. It’s everybody’s favorite. Here’s a nice recipe the everybody will definitely love and is very easy to make.

Ingredients:

1 pound ground beef

1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

2 tablespoons prepared horseradish

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 cup real bacon bits

4 hamburger buns

Procedure:

Preheat grill for high heat.

In a large bowl, mix together the ground beef, Cheddar cheese, horseradish, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and bacon bits using your hands. Shape the mixture into 4 hamburger patties.

Lightly oil the grill grate. Place hamburger patties on the grill, and cook for 5 minutes per side, or until well done. Serve on buns.

Oh no, oh no…So many things to do. So many goodies to make. Heehee. I’m baking a lot of stuff for the new residents, Baku and Badtz’s birthday. Such a busy, busy day and so sweet of Keroppi to help me out in the kitchen, too. ^_^

Anyway, here’s what I’m giving them. I hope no one is allergic to chocolates…Badtz had a really puffing encounter with pineapples this morning.

Will be delivering these goodies in awhile. Heehee. I hope the recipients will like my recipe.

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cups butter, softened

2 cups white sugar

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Procedure:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt; stir into the creamed mixture. Mix in the chocolate chips. Drop dough by teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake 8 to 9 minutes in the preheated oven. Cookies will be soft. Cool slightly on cookie sheet; remove from sheet onto wire rack to cool completely.

I haven’t posted recipes in awhile. Heehee. Anyway, this recipe is a thank you gift for Kuromi. I hope she’ll like it, it’s low calorie after all.

Ingredients:

7 1/4-ounces dark chocolate (65% to 70% cocoa), room temperature & chopped into pieces
1/2 cup butter, cut into small cubes
6 large eggs, room temperature and separated
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup Splenda
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Powdered sugar, for garnish

Procedure:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In a large metal bowl set over a pan of hot, not simmering, water (bottom of the bowl should not touch the water), combine the chocolate and butter and let stand, stirring occasionally, until smooth and melted. (The mixture can be melted in the microwave on high power, stirring every 15 seconds. Remove when there are still a few lumps of chocolate and stir until fully melted).

In a medium-size bowl, combine the 6 egg yolks, sugar, and Splenda. Add the melted chocolate/butter mixture and vanilla extract and stir to combine. IMPORTANT: Be sure to add the beaten eggs to the chocolate mixture and not the chocolate to the eggs. This will insure a moist airy texture.

In a large bowl, whip the 6 egg whites until firm. Add 1/3 of the whites to the chocolate mixture and stir to lighten the batter. Gently fold in the remaining egg whites until just blended and no streaks remain. Finish by using a rubber spatula to ensure that the heavier mixture at the bottom is incorporated.

Scrape the batter into a non-stick 10" springform pan and smooth top with the spatula.

Bake approximately 20 minutes or until just set (do not overcook). Remove from oven and let cool.

To Unmold:  Run a thin metal spatula around the side of the cake and release the sides of the springform pan. The chocolate cake will store up to 2 weeks refrigerated. Do not freeze because it changes the texture.

When ready to serve, bring to room temperature. Cut into narrow wedges with a thin sharp knife that has been dipped in hot water. Dust with sifted powdered sugar before serving.

Makes 12 to 16 servings.

OMG! That was a close one…I almost cooked Tabby! @_@

I know I cooked enough food for a lot of guests. Knowing Keroppi, he invited everybody for my birthday. But everytime I bring out new dishes to the serving table, they all miraculously disappear! Is my cooking really that good or the guests have not eaten in the past few days?

I went back to the kitchen to replenish just to find out that I ran out of meat! I panicked and ran out into the living room crying, “Meat! Meat! I need more meat!” and bumped into Zashiki. He was holding something cold and gray which I thought was meat. My eyes gleamed with joy and touched what he was carrying, “Is that meat? Oh, thank you for bringing some.”

Zashiki’s small beady eyes suddenly widened and quickly hugged what he was holding and turned around.  I suddenly realized that it wasn’t meat and quickly apologized to him then I heard a soft, squeaky voice coming from Zashiki’s arms, “Noooo…I’m Tabby…”

Surprised and about to cry, Zashiki looked at what he’s holding, “Tabby has finally spoken…” and gently hugged his friend.

Everybody was touched by that scene and offered a toast (with glasses containing milk and apple juice for the lactose intolerant guests like Mimmy). Unexpectedly though, Kuromi, who has been drinking milk since she arrived, poured some on Tabby and was muttering about “milk marinade”! O_O