The Morning Masterpiece

Let me know if you want this recipe. I haven't tasted this yet. It's for a party tonight, but I'll let you know. Yum! Ganache!

Chicken Dinner

Dinner Tonight: (from ole martha again)

Chicken, Lemon and dill with Orzo

4 c chicken broth
1 T butter
1 1/4 t corse salt
1/4 t pepper
1 pound chicken tenderloins, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 pound orzo
2 c crumbled feta( 4 oz)
1/4 c chopped fresh dill
2 t finely grated lemon zest, plus 1 T fesh lemon juice
1 c parmesan

Preheat oven to 400. In a sauce pan bring broth, 3/4 c water, butter, salt and pepper to a boil. in a 3 quart baking dish, combine chicken, orzo, feta, dill, lemon zest, and juice. Pour broth mixture over orzo and stir once to incorporate. bake until orazo is tender and cooking liquid is creamy, 40 minutes. sprinkle parmesan on top and let stand 5 minutes before serving.

In other news....

We also made gingerbread men (eric's favorite christmas cookie, other than this super complicated one that uses anise oil and requires drying overnight and then baking. called springerle. they are german, maybe darin knows about them? anyway, i refuse to make them b/c they are roll-out, cut-out, dry-out and bake cookies. way too many steps for me) so we compromised on gingerbread men, eric iced every single one.
then i bit the bullet and made candy-canes b/c they are my favorite high-maintenance christmas cookie. i have pictures somewhere...

we made more peppermint fudge and last night wrapped them up and delivered a plate of fudge, cookies, and a 'merry christmas' to our friend's houses. it was fun. i think that's it for my holiday baking though. we are going to have christmas eve dinner with a couple friends who are in town since i work all that day and christmas day. i am making a dessert. i'm thinking the pecan pumpkin pie of aunt jan's you sent me a while ago. did you ever try that?

Balsamic Baked Potatoes

from everyday food:

1 1/2 pounds new potatoes, halved or quartered if large
3/4 c chicken broth
1/4 c balsamic vinegar
8 garlic cloves, smashed
5 sprigs thyme
coarse salt/pepper

Preheat oven to 425. in an 8 inch square baking dish, combine potatoes, broth, vinegar, garlic and thyme; season with salt and pepper. bake until potatoes are tender and liquid is reduced to a glaze, about 1 1/4 hours, tossing twice.



mmmm soooo yummmmm. we had this last night with steak and a salad. it would be good with chicken too.

Double Chocolate Cranberry cookies

from Everyday Food

16 oz bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 c flour
3 T unsweetened cocoa powder
1 t baking powder
1/2 t coarse salt
1/2 c butter
3/4 c granulated sugar
1/2 c packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 t vanilla
1/2 c dried cranberries

1. preheat oven to 350. place 10 oz chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over (not in) a sauce pan of simmering water. stir until melted, set aside. in a medium bowl whisk together flour, cocoa, baking powder, salt.

2. in a large bowl using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy (or until you don't want to beat it anymore, whichever happens first :) ) add eggs and vanilla and beat until combined. beat in melted chocolate. with mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture. beat just until combined. fold in 6 oz chocolate and cranberries.

3. drop dough onto parchment lined baking sheets. in batches, bake cookies until edges are dry and tops are cracked, 15-17 minutes. cool on wire racks.


P.S. Have you found the joy of parchment paper yet? Oh man, how have i baked this long without it? TOTALLY changes my baking life :)

Peppermint Fudge

Peppermint Fudge
2 1/4 c chocolate chips
1 c round peppermint candies, plus 18 for garnish
3/4 c heavy cream
3 1/2 c mini marshmallows
5 T unsalted butter
1 1/4 c sugar
1 t coarse salt




1. lightly coat a 9 inch square baking pan with nonstick spray. line pan with 2 pieces parchment paper in both directions, leaving 2 inches of overhang on all sides; spray parchment. Place chocolate in a medium bowl. in a food processor, pulse candies until finely chopped. in a medium saucepan, combine candies, cream, marshmallows, butter, sugar and salt over medium-high heat. whisk until smooth, about 5 minutes

2. pour mixture through a strainer into bowl with chocolate. let stand 1 minute, then stir until smooth. pour into baking pan and refrigerate until set, 3 hours, cut fudge into squares. with a sharp knife, cut 18 candies in half; press a candy half into each square before serving.

Frosted Pumpkin Cake

I just made this and haven't yet frosted it. Also, I didn't take pictures. I should have though, it's beautiful! and the house smells deeeee-licious!

from cooking light:

2 1/4 c flour
2 1/2 t baking powder
2 t cinnamon (i also added nutmeg, cloves, and allspice)
1/4 t salt
1 c packed brown sugar
1/4 c butter, softened
1 t vanilla
2 eggs
1 can pumpkin puree (15 oz)


Frosting:
2 T butter
1/2 t vanilla
1 package cream cheese
2 c sifted powdered sugar

1. preheat oven to 350

2. combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl, stir with whisk.

3. combine brown sugar, butter, and 1 t vanilla in alrge bowl. beat with mixer until combined. add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. add pumpkin, mix well. fold in flour mixture. spread batter into 13x9 inch baking pan coated with cooking spray (i used 2 9inch round cake pans b/c i want to stack them)
4. bake at 350 for 25 minutes until wooden pick comes out clean.

5. to prepare frosting: combine 2 T butter, 1/2 t vanilla, and cream cheese in bowl, beat with mixer at medium speed until combined. gradually add powdered sugar, beating well until combined. spread over cake.

Maple and Dried Cranberry Granola

this is the recipe from Thanksgiving and one of my favorites i've tried so far:

3 C old fashioned oats
1 C roasted sunflower seeds, hulled and salted
3 T flax seeds
3/4 c maple syrup
1/2 c olive oil
1/2 c packed brown sugar
1 t salt
1/2 t cinamon
1/2 t cardamom
3/4 c dried cranberries

Preheat oven to 300.

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl, except the cranberries. pour mixture onto baking sheet in an even layer and bake for 45 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes. when well toasted and fragrant remove from oven. toss well. allow to cool. mix in cranberries and store in air tight container.

you could also add white chocolate chips.or any other thing y ou like in your granola.

Raspberry Crumble Coffee Cake

RASPBERRY CRUMBLE COFFEE CAKE

Printed from COOKS.COM

---

FILLING:

2/3 c. sugar
1/4 c. cornstarch
3/4 c. water or raspberry juice
2 c. frozen or fresh raspberries
1 tbsp. lemon juice

For filling, combine sugar, cornstarch, water or juice. Cook over medium heat until thickened and clear. Add lemon juice and cool.

COFFEE CAKE:

3 c. flour
1 c. sugar
1 tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 c. butter, softened
1 c. milk
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 tsp. vanilla

In a bowl combine dry ingredients. Cut in butter to form fine crumbs. Add milk, eggs, and vanilla. Spread half of batter in a 9x13 pan. Drop filling by spoonfuls over batter and spread over batter. Drop remainder of batter over filling and spread.

Topping:

1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup sliced almonds

Combine ingredients and drizzle over coffee cake.

Bake 35-45 minutes at 350°F.

Starbucks Pumpkin Scones

Ingredients

SCONES

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 7 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 6 tablespoons cold butter
• 1/2 cup canned pumpkin
• 3 tablespoons half-and-half
• 1 large egg

POWDERERED SUGAR GLAZZE

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons whole milk

SPICED GLAZE

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 3 tablespoons powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons whole milk
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 pinch ginger
• 1 pinch ground cloves

Directions

1. 1

   TO MAKE THE SCONES:.

2. 2

   Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly oil a baking sheet or line with parchment paper.

3. 3

   Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and spices in a large bowl. Using a pastry knife, fork, or food processor, cut butter into the dry ingredients until mixture is crumbly and no chunks of butter are obvious. Set aside.

4. 4

   In a separate bowl, whisk together pumpkin, half and half, and egg. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Form the dough into a ball.

5. 5

   Pat out dough onto a lightly floured surface and form it into a 1-inch thick rectangle (about 9 inches long and 3 inches wide). Use a large knife or a pizza cutter to slice the dough twice through the width, making three equal portions. Cut those three slices diagonally so that you have 6 triangular slices of dough. Place on prepared baking sheet.

6. 6

   Bake for 14–16 minutes. Scones should begin to turn light brown. Place on wire rack to cool.

7. 7

   TO MAKE THE PLAIN GLAZE:.

8. 8

   Mix the powdered sugar and 2 tbsp milk together until smooth.

9. 9

   When scones are cool, use a brush to paint plain glaze over the top of each scone.

10. 10

    AS THAT WHITE GLAZE FIRMS UP, MAKE THE SPICED ICING:.

11. 11

    Combine the ingredient for the spiced icing together. Drizzle this thicker icing over each scone and allow the icing to dry before serving (at least 1 hour). A squirt bottle works great for this, or you can drizzle with a whisk.

The Acclaimed, Sought-After, and Famous Tortilla Chicken Soup

in the crock pot combine:
1 15oz can diced tomatoes and juice
1 chopped onion
1 4 oz can green chilis
2 minced garlic cloves
3 14.5oz cans chicken broth
1 t cumin
1 T chili powder
1 t salt
1/2 t pepper
1 t oregano
1 bay leaf
1/2 c chopped cilantro
3 chicken breasts
1 can black beans, drained
3 chopped carrots ( i only added these b/c they were in the fridge and i wanted to boost the veggie content. you can add whatever you like)
1 can drained corn or 1 package frozen corn- if you use a can add it with everything else in the beginning. if you use frozen corn add it at the end before shredding the chicken. that way it will retain a little bite and not be so soggy.

*cook on low for 7 hours. then take out the chicken and shred it with two forks. replace the chicken into the soup.

*serve with garnishes such as:
limes
cilantro
sour cream
avocado or guacamole
shredded tortilla chips
green onions

The-Feel-Good-Anytime Smoothie

This is the smoothie I turn to during night shifts and this week while i've been sick. I think it's your days worth of fresh fruit in one glass. it's delicious and way cheaper than going to a smoothie store- plus it's healthier too.

Ingredients: pretty much any fruit you have on hand, but i strongly recommend:

4-5 frozen strawberries (or fresh but the frozen kind make it thicker and better texture)
1/2 c frozen blueberries (or fresh, see above)
1 peeled kiwi
1 banana
1/2 c orange juice
3/4 c whole milk plain yogurt

Put it all in a blender and puree. mmmmm yum!
i've also been considering peeling a pear and adding it into the mix.

Just a Picture

Okay, so this soup wasn't so great, but the picture is so i decided to post just the picture. It was a broccoli soup with Lemon-chive cream. the lemon chive cream was great and would work well as a dip for veggies or chips, but the fact is, the left over soup is still sitting in the fridge from a week ago, and even though soup sounds good when you are sick, this soup doesn't sound appealing enough for me to warm up a bowl for lunch. also, the picture verifies the fact that i have, indeed, still been cooking. I just haven't posted the recipes. I also made a great tortilla soup in the crock pot last week, which i am going to make for everyone over thanksgiving. so you'll get to try it for yourself.

White Chocolate Chip Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies

My friend posted these on her blog from Recipezaar a couple days ago. They are so good!

White Chocolate Chip Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies

¾ cup sugar

¼ cup packed brown sugar

½ cup butter, softened

1 large egg

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 ½ cups quick-cooking oats (not instant)

¾ cup dried cranberries

6 ounces white chocolate chips or swirled (semi-sweet/white) chips

Preheat oven to 375°F.

In a large bowl using an electric mixer combine the sugar, brown sugar and butter; mix well to cream together.

Add in egg and vanilla extract and mix until combined.

Add the cinnamon, baking soda, salt and flour and mix well.

Fold in the oatmeal, dried cranberries and white chocolate chips- making sure that all ingredients are uniformly distributed.

Roll dough into 1-inch balls and place 3 inches apart onto a greased cookie sheet and bake at 375° for 10-12 minutes, just until the edges are lightly golden.

Remove from oven and let cool for 2-3 minutes on the cookie sheet, then transfer cookies to cooling rack.

PUmpkin Muffins

Eek! October is almost over and I haven't even been publishing a smorgasborg of pumpkin recipes. I better get started!


Pumpkin Muffins
from somewhere on the Food Network

2 C flour ( i substitued 1/2 c whole wheat flour)
2 t cinnamon (i also added nutmeg and cloves- however much you want)
1 t b soda
1/4 t b powder
1/2 t salt
1.5 c sugar
3/4 c v oil
3 lg eggs
1 t vanilla
2 c pumpkin

Preheat oven to 325.

Line muffin tin.

Combine dry ingredients (flour, spices, b soda, b powder, salt) in a bowl.

Combine sugar, v oil, vanilla. stir with a whisk. add eggs one at a time whisking until combined. stir in pumpkin.


Add dry ingredients to wet.


Scoop into prepared muffin tins. I also placed a single pecan nut half on top of each one.




Bake for 30 minutes.

You can also do a loaf, but i think you need to bake it for 50-60 minutes.
I also still had left over ganache from the winning hearts and minds cake (i know i know, it's beena while since that cake) but i used up the last of it on top of the muffins and it was delicious!
Adding choco chips would be good too. or dried cranberries.

Happy Halloween!

I used a screw driver to make the swirly design. cool huh?

italian sausage soup

Gonna try this one tonight. It has good reviews, so we'll see how it goes. PS. It was fabulous! Darin had 2 bowls! I added some bowtie pasta to it too and it just added the right touch. Gotta make it! Italian Sausage Soup

Rated: Submitted By: SALLYJUN Photo By: Emily Prep Time: 10 Minutes Cook Time: 40 Minutes Ready In: 50 Minutes Servings: 6

"This soup is easy to put together, and the flavor of the spicy sausage is balanced nicely by Great Northern beans, zucchini, fresh spinach, and carrots. Makes a delicious winter supper."

INGREDIENTS:

1 pound Italian sausage 1 clove garlic, minced 2 (14 ounce) cans beef broth 1 (14.5 ounce) can Italian-style stewed tomatoes 1 cup sliced carrots

1 (14.5 ounce) can great Northern beans, undrained 2 small zucchini, cubed 2 cups spinach - packed, rinsed and torn 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 1/4 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS:

1.	In a stockpot or Dutch oven, brown sausage with garlic. Stir in broth, tomatoes and carrots, and season with salt and pepper. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer 15 minutes.
2.	Stir in beans with liquid and zucchini. Cover, and simmer another 15 minutes, or until zucchini is tender.
3.	Remove from heat, and add spinach. Replace lid allowing the heat from the soup to cook the spinach leaves. Soup is ready to serve after 5 minutes.

cashew chicken

This comes from a cookbook put together by the church we went to in Lima. It was contributed by Dana Hays. I never have followed it completely with the vegetable ingredients, but just add whatever I have on hand or in the freezer. Tonight I made it with zucchini (which I substitute a lot for mushrooms since we don't like them), carrots, broccoli, onions, and green beans. It was a little salty, maybe because of the bouillon I used, but so far, it is my favorite recipe for the "brown sauce" on stir fry. Maybe since Eric is a stir fry connoisseur he has a better recipe?? Anyway, here it is:

3 chicken breasts sliced 1/8 inch thick

1/2 lb pea pods or 2 pkg of frozen peas partially thawed

1/2 lb mushrooms

4 stalks of green onions

1 can bamboo shoots, drained

1 Tbsp chicken bouillon granules, dissolved

1/4 cup soy sauce

2 Tbsp cornstarch

1 Tbsp oil

1/4 cup cashews ( I added 1 cup because I LOVE toasted cashews)

Dissolve 1 Tbsp bouillon in 1 cup of water or broth. Stir 2 Tbsp cornstarch into 1/4 cup soy sauch. Heat 1 Tbsp oil over medium high heat, and add nuts all at once, saute until toasted. Remove the nuts from the pan. Add chicken to pan, cook until it turns white. Add peas and mushrooms. Pour in broth, cover, and simmer 2 minutes or until veggies are tender. Add bamboo shoots, stir in the soy sauce mixture into the pan juices. Cook until the sauce is thickened, stirring frequently. Add nuts and green onions cut into fan shaped pieces. Serve over rice.

The Macaroon

This recipe also comes from the HomeMade Life book i just read. I'd been thinking about them ever since i read the recipe, and had preemptively bought the coconut. We awoke this morning to temps in the 30s with sleet/snow/rain coming down. I think that weather recipe calls for a day full of baking warm deliciousness. After eating one macaroon, and only one- that was pretty hard-, I can't stop thinking about the delightful texture. They are like a shout-out to the Almond Joy but with homemade goodness baked right in. I'd call this a cross between candy and cookie. It's something I'd love to pass out at Halloween, except that there are too many parents out there like Dad who suspect a straight pin in every treat. ha. remember that?
Have a glass of water ready to drink after eating one of these. Yes, even Darin will need a full glass of water, not even milk, after this!


Cococut Macaroons with Chocolate Ganache

3 cups lightly packed sweetened shredded coconut
3/4 c sugar
3/4 c egg whites (from about 5 large eggs)
1 1/2 t vanilla
4 oz bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped (it's important to use a fine quality chocolate for ganache. i use ghiradelli. 4 oz = a generous 1/2 c)
1/2 c heavy cream


Place coconut, sugar, and egg whites in heavy 2-3 quart sauce pan and stir well. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring frequently 10-15 minutes. the mixture will look very creamy as it heats and then it will slowly get a bit drier, with indvidual flakes of coconut becoming discernable. stop cooking with it no longer looks creamy but is still quite sticky and moist, not dry. remove from the heat, and stir in the vanilla.

scrape the mixture into a pie plate of small baking sheet, spread it out a bit to allow it to cool quickly and refrigerate until cold, about 30 minutes.

preheat oven to 300. line baking sheet with parchment paper. i don't do this b/c i use stoneware.

using your hands or a small ice cream scoop (i use the scoop b/c it's my new found cookie-baking joy), scoop and firmly pack the coconut mixture into small domes. space them evenly on the baking sheet.

bake the macaroons until evenly golden, about 30 minutes. cool completely on the pan on a wire rack. then remove the macaroons from the baking sheet and set them on the rack. set the rack over the baking sheet.

Put the chopped chocolate in a medium bowl. Heat the cream in a small saucepan over medium heat, swirling the pan occasionally until it is hot and steaming. do not allow it to boil. remove the pan from the heat and pour the cream over the chocolate. let it sit for 1 minute then stir until smooth. spoon the warm ganache generously over the macaroons, shaking them gently if needed to coax the ganache down their sides.


refrigerate the macaroons on the rack until the ganache sets at least 2 hours. this is the hardest part b/c you just made these wonderful looking and smelling cookies and you don't get immediate gratification. letting them harden is worth it though! transfer them to airtight container, refrigerate or freeze.



Hmm, what to do with leftover ganache? Oh! I'll use it as a frosting for the "winning hearts and minds cake" i made last week. That was desert tonight! yum! Eric calls this kind of dessert "Death by Chocolate".

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

You know it wouldn't be summer if there wasn't a new zucchini bread recipe posted. this comes from closet cooking, another blog my friend jenn recommended.


1 c zucchini grated
3/4 c brown sugar
1/4 c oil
1/2 c vanilla yogurt
1 egg
1 c flour
1/2 c whole wheat flour
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
1/4 c cocoa powder
1/2 t cinnamon
1/2 c walnuts (optional)
1/2 c chocolate chips

1. mix zucchini, sugar, oil, yogurt and egg in bowl
2. mix the flours, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cocoa powder, and cinnamon togethe
3. mix the wet and dry ingredients
4. mix in nuts and chocolate chips
5. pour batter into greasted 5x9 loaf pan
6. bake in oven at 350 until tester comes out clean, 50-70 minutes (kinda broad range there! i think mine took about 60 minutes to be done)