ROASTED BRUSSEL SPROUTS with BACON

As a child, most of the vegetables my mother prepared were from a can or frozen pouch. "Fancy" at our house was canned cream corn. Being British, she did serve us brussel sprouts, cauliflower and cabbage, but they were always boiled for a long time.

In all fairness, I have to admit that I copied moms method of overcooking vegetables for many years. Recently, I discover roasting fresh vegetables in the oven. The texture difference is excellent and the vegetable flavor is intense. It is such an easy method of cooking, I can't believe it took me so long to try it!!


The measurements in this recipe are totally flexible; it is more of a roasting description than a recipe. If you are preparing more than 2 pounds of brussel sprouts, just increase the amount of bacon and onion a little; the roasting time will remain the same.

2 pounds of fresh brussel sprouts
½ cup chopped onion
6 slices of bacon fried and crumbled
salt and pepper

Wash brussel sprouts and drain well. Cut off the hard stem and peel off the outside layer of leaves. Cut them in half and set aside.

Fry bacon until crisp and remove from pan and drain well. Remove all but 2 tablespoons of bacon grease from the frying pan. Saute the chopped onion in the reserved bacon grease and use the moisture from the onion to deglaze the bacon bits from the bottom of the pan. Cook the onion until it just starts to turn transparent.

Put prepared brussel sprouts and crumbled bacon back into the pan (with the onion) and toss to coat the sprouts evenly with bacon grease, add salt and pepper.

Place everything in a 9x13 baking dish and roast uncovered, at 400F for 25-30 minutes.

WHIPPING CREAM BISCUITS

I am fairly successful when it comes to baking with yeast, however, biscuits have been one of my big failures for many years. Every so often, I try various biscuit recipes in hopes of finding a good one. After each attempt, Hubby tells me "I like whomp biscuits" better (it is humiliating!!)

Are you familiar with "whomp biscuits"? They go "whomp" when you hit them on the edge of the counter to pop the tube open. Personally, they aren't my favorite, but Hubby likes them (Pillsbury Grands).

Last week, I made Paula Deen's cream biscuits for breakfast. Because the recipe has only THREE ingredients (self rising flour, sugar and whipping cream), I didn't have very high expectations, but they turned out GREAT!! The biscuits were light, moist, tasty and oh so quick. I used them to make some ham and egg sandwiches and Hubby actually liked them!!

2 cups self rising flour (see note)
1 tablespoon sugar
1½ cups heavy whipping cream


Mix all 3 ingredients together until dough forms a ball. Turn out onto lightly floured counter and knead 5 to 7 times. Pat dough out to ½ inch thickness and cut biscuits with a 3 inch cutter. Place on greased baking sheet (with 1" between biscuits) and bake at 500F for 10 minutes

NOTE: I never have self rising flour, so for EACH CUP of self rising flour, I substitute 1 cup of all purpose flour + 1¼ teaspoon baking powder + 1/8 teaspoon salt.

NOTE: I brushed my biscuits with butter when them came out of the oven.

PEANUT BUTTER CHOCOLATE DESSERT - WITH AWARD WINNING WHIPPED CREAM (and a question)

I found the recipe for this luscious peanut butter-chocolate dessert over at A Blog About Food. Teresa warned that the pie was "pure evil" because it kept beckoning to her and she couldn't leave it alone and she was right!! Evil aside, it would make a fantastic addition to ANY holiday table. It has an Oreo cookie crust, a peanut butter-cream cheese layer and then a chocolate pudding layer. It is definitely "over the top" scrumptious. Thanks for sharing the recipe Teresa.

The whipped cream on this dessert is my own tweak. It is a cream cheese-whipped cream that is completely stable (it does NOT deflate). If you look at the second photo, you can see how well it pipes and, amazingly enough, it stays that way for days (in the fridge)!!

PEANUT BUTTER CHOCOLATE DESSERT
20 Oreos, divided
2 tablespoons butter, softened
(1) 8 ounce package cream cheese, room temperature
½ cup peanut butter
1½ cups powdered sugar, divided
(1) 16 ounce carton whipped topping, divided
15 mini peanut butter cups, chopped
1 cup cold milk
(1) 3.9 ounce instant chocolate fudge pudding mix

Crush 16 of the cookies in food processor, add melted butter and press into the bottom of an Ungreased 9” square dish (I used a 9” round spring form pan).

In large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, peanut butter and one cup of the powdered sugar until smooth. Fold in HALF of the whipped topping and spread over the Oreo crust. Sprinkle with peanut butter cups (chop them pretty small).In another mixing bowl, beat the milk, pudding mix and remaining powdered sugar on low for two minutes then fold in the remaining whipped topping. Spread over the peanut butter layer. Crush the remaining 4 Oreo cookies and sprinkle over the top. Cover and chill for at least three hours.

NOTE: I removed the frosting layer from the Oreos and then processed them into very fine crumbs.

STABLE WHIPPED CREAM
(1) 8 ounce package cream cheese, room temperature
½ cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon almond extract (optional)
2 cups heavy whipping cream

Combine the cream cheese, sugar and extracts in a large mixing bowl until very smooth (scrape the sides of the bowl often). While the mixer is still running, slowly pour in the heavy cream. Continue beating on high speed until very stiff peaks form.

NOTE: I left out the almond extract for this chocolate dessert, however, if you are using this whipped cream for anything but chocolate, the almond extract is a nice addition.

NOTE: Make sure you stop and scrape the bowl sides down while you are whipping the cream.  

 

This is what the dessert

looks like inside

CLASSIC PECAN TASSIE

Almost everyone has their own favorite version of a pecan tassie, the classic Christmas treat. However, for those who don't, this is a great one. Pecan tassies are a bite size pecan pie in a cream cheese pastry crust. I used to make them only at Christmas, but they have become one of Hubby's favorites, so I make them throughout the year. This recipe makes 4 dozen and freezes well.

PASTRY CRUST
1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
6 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
2 cups all purpose flour

Cream the butter and cream cheese (with electric mixer) until it is light and fluffy. Add the flour and beat until the dough comes cleanly away from the inside walls of your mixing bowl. Flatten dough into a disk, wrap in plastic and chill for one hour (I NEVER chill this dough, it is a dream to work with).

FILLING
3 large eggs
3 tablespoons melted unsalted butter
1¾ cups light brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup coarsely chopped pecans

Beat the eggs until very well mixed and lemon colored. Stir in everything else.

ASSEMBLY
Roll pastry into 1 inch balls and place them into an ungreased mini-muffin pan. Using your fingers, press the balls of dough into the bottom of each cup and up the sides. (I use the floured end of my rolling pin to press the dough into place). Put a few chopped pecans in the bottom of each pastry shell and top with about a tablespoon of filling. (see note)

 Bake in pre-heated 375F oven for 15-20 minutes or until the pastry is golden and the filling is set, yet still a little soft in the center. Remove from oven and sit the pan on a wire rack for about 10 minutes before you try to lift them out. Lift tassies out of pan and cool on a wire rack.

NOTE: Keep in mind that the filling puffs as it bakes, so don't overfill the unbaked shells. If you overfill them, they will be hard to get out of the pans. For those stubborn tassies, use the tip of a knife to help you lift them out of the pan.

 

CHEDDAR & BACON HASH BROWN SIDE DISH

I needed an easy side dish to go along with some fried chicken yesterday and decided to throw together some "cheater" Au gratin potatoes. I had a bag of fresh hash browns (called Simply Potatoes) so I decided to use those (they are sold, in our market, next to the eggs). I made a quick white sauce, stirred in the hash browns, some cheddar, a little sour cream and some bacon. What more can you ask for?? They were very cream & cheesy-delicious.

1 package Simply Potatoes
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
2¼ cups milk
¼ cup chopped onions sauteed
2 cups cheddar cheese shredded
¼ cup sour cream
4 slices bacon fried crisp and crumbled

This is what the potatoes look like:

In a small, heavy bottomed sauce pan, melt 3 tablespoons butter and add 3 tablespoons flour and simmer for about a minute; stir in the sauteed onions and crumbled bacon. Whisk in the milk (whisk quickly, at first, so you don't get lumps) and cook until the mixture thickens. When it comes to a boil, remove from heat and stir in the cheese, potatoes and sour cream. Pour into a greased 2 quart baking dish and bake at 350 for 35-45 minutes or until bubbly and potatoes are tender.

I don't see why you couldn't use frozen hash browns (as long as you thaw them first).

SWEET POTATO PECAN PIE TARTS

I'm posting this at midnight and it is FIFTEEN BELOW ZERO HERE!!
This last weekend was our 39th wedding anniversary; we were high school sweethearts. To celebrate, I made a big roast beef dinner and these heavenly little tarts that I found on Shelby's The Life and Loves of Grumpy's Honybunch. They are absolutely delicious tiny bites (about the size of a tassie) of cinnamon spiced sweet potato and pecans all baked in a pre-prepared mini-phyllo cup. They are impressive looking, great tasting, ultra-easy and (believe it or not) the recipe says they are only about 45 calories each!! It doesn't get much better than that!!!

1 cup cooked and mashed sweet potato
3 tablespoons white sugar
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup chopped toasted pecans
¼ cup brown sugar, packed
1 tablespoon dark corn syrup (I used light)
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg white

2 (2.1 ounce) packages mini-phyllo shells

Poke sweet potatoes a few times with a knife and place them in a pie plate with 2 tablespoons of water; cover loosely with waxed paper and microwave on high for five minutes (mine took 7 minutes) or until tender.

Mash and measure out 1 cup of sweet potato. Add sugar, cinnamon and salt and stir well (I used my electric mixer to really mash the potatoes). Set aside.

In a small bowl, combine toasted pecans, brown sugar, syrup, vanilla and egg white. Stir well and set aside.

Set mini phyllo shells on a baking sheet and put about 1 teaspoon of the sweet potato mixture into the bottom of each shell (gently push down-in a little). Spoon ½ teaspoon of pecan mixture over the sweet potato mixture. Bake at 350F for 20 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack.

NOTE: Our super-store sells these little pre-made phyllo shells in the ATHENS brand.

CHOCOLATE-PEANUT BUTTER FILLED COOKIES

There should be a warning attached to this recipe...do not eat these while they are still warm, because you won't be able to stop!! These chocolate spritz dough cookies with a mini-Reese's center, are heavenly right out of the oven. I "accidentally" knocked a few of them over, while they were still hot, and the melted chocolate sort of got drippy like in this photo (so I was FORCED to eat those imperfect ones...snicker).

The chocolate shell is a spritz cookie recipe

1¼ cup butter (room temperature)
1 cup white sugar
2/3 cup brown sugar packed
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2½ cups all purpose flour
2/3 cup bakers cocoa
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
Frozen miniature Reese's cups

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugars at medium high speed until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each egg. Add vanilla extract. Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Add this gradually and beat well. Let dough sit for about 15 minutes.

Roll dough into 1½ inch balls and place in an ungreased mini-muffin pan. Bake at 375 for about 12 minutes, leave the cookies in the pan.

Immediately press a frozen miniature Reece's cup candy into the center of each baked cookie, pressing down as far as you can. Let cookies sit in pan for about 10 minutes, then carefully lift them out and place them on a cooling rack. The chocolate will be very liquid, so be careful not to spill it.

 Cookies will cool and set in an hour so. After the chocolate "sets" the cookies are no longer messy. Makes about 4 dozen.

NOTE: Christmas sprinkles or candy would make these a wonderful addition to your Christmas cookie trays.

BACON MACARONI & CHEESE

This recipe has evolved over the years, to what it is today; one of our (my) favorite side dishes. It's just your basic mac and cheese with a few small tweaks. I've tried it with almost every kind of cheese you can think of and I still like good old American cheese the best.

2 cups mini-penne pasta
4 cups chicken broth
¼ cup finely minced onions, sauteed
2 cups frozen mixed vegetables (corn, peas, carrots)
5 strips of bacon fried and crumbled
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
½ teaspoon black pepper
½ teaspoon ground dry mustard
2 teaspoons dry parsley flakes (opt.)
2¼ cups milk
1 cup diced American cheese
bread crumbs and butter

Saute the finely minced onions until they are tender and sweet, set aside. Boil the pasta and vegetables (together) in the chicken broth until tender, then drain and stir a little butter into the pasta-veggies and set aside.

In a sauce pan, melt 3 tablespoons of butter then stir in 3 tablespoons of flour, parsley, pepper and dry mustard. Stir and cook very slowly (let it just bubble) for about a minute, then add the milk, sauteed onions and bacon (whisk like crazy when you first start to add the milk to avoid any lumps). Stir and cook this sauce until it thickens. Remove from heat and add the cheese. After it sits for a few minutes, stir and the cheese should be mostly melted. Pour over the pasta and veggies and mix well.

 Pour into a greased 9 x 13 baking dish and top with bread crumbs (see note). Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes or until bubbly.

NOTE: Place 2 cups of plain dry bread crumbs in a frying pan and add 2 tablespoons of butter. Toast over medium high heat (stirring) until bread crumbs have absorbed all of the butter and the crumbs are golden. Spread evenly over the macaroni and cheese before putting in oven.

EASY PLAY DOUGH - A GREAT WEEKEND PROJECT FOR THE KIDS or GRANDKIDS

I've tried many play dough recipes over the years and this one is, by far, the best yet. It is made with common pantry items and is ready to play with, literally, in a few minutes!! It's soft, pliable and super easy to work with. When the kids are done with it, recipe says to keep it in an airtight container in the fridge, but with all that salt, I doubt that is necessary.
EASY PLAY DOUGH
2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup table salt
2 cups water
4 teaspoons cream of tartar
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
food coloring (see note)

Put everything in a large, heavy bottomed, sauce pan and cook (stirring) on medium high until this comes away from the sides of the pan and thickens to the consistency of Play Doh (it just takes a couple minutes). Make sure you have a very sturdy wooden spoon to stir this with and it takes a little elbow power at the very end.

Remove the cooked dough from the sauce pan and knead it for a minute or so until it becomes smooth. I did this kneading stage with my stand mixer which cooled the dough down almost immediately (a good thing).

If you want the play dough to be all the same color, add the food coloring with the water before cooking. I wanted to try two colors, so I divided the cooked dough in half and put half in my stand mixer (for the kneading step) and I added food color paste to the dough while the machine was kneading the dough (this step can be done by hand, but I would suggest you use rubber gloves so you don't get green fingernails).

My one concern with using the concentrated food color paste was that it would come off on my hands when I "played" with the final product...it did not!! This is a great weekend project for the kids!!

NOTE: The colors in this photo were obtained by using Wilton frosting color paste, which is very concentrated color. You can use ANY food coloring (or NO food coloring) that you like.

CREAM CHEESE WAFFLES

More often than not, we have sourdough waffles or sourdough pancakes on the weekends. However, recently I've been searching for a quick-fix waffle recipe and I have found a great one in our electric co-op newsletter, submitted by a lady named Sarah Wolcoff. Her deliciously moist and fluffy cream cheese waffles are oh so good!!!

1¾ cup all purpose flour
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
(1) 3 ounce cream cheese (room temperature)
2 eggs (separated)
1½ cups milk
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (my tweak)

Mix the cream cheese and 2 egg yolks together until smooth; stir in milk, vanillaextract and vegetable oil. Add dry ingredients and stir just until combined, it will be a little lumpy. Beat 2 egg whites until stiff peaks form and then fold them gently into the batter, leaving lots of fluffs of egg white (don't over mix). Cook in waffle iron. Recipe makes about 6 good size waffles

CHOCOLATE FUDGE & DULCE de LECHE TASSIES

Chocolate Fudge and Dulce de Leche Tassies
All Rolled Into One Gem of a Cookie

 

PASTRY CRUST½ cup butter softened
(1) 3 ounce package cream cheese
1 cup all purpose flour
Beat the cream cheese and softened butter with electric mixer until well mixed. Add 1 cup of flour while mixer is on low speed, just until well combined. Cover and chill dough for 30 minutes or until it is easy to handle (I never chill this dough). Divide this dough into 24 balls. Press the balls into the bottom and up the sides of an (UNgreased) mini (1¾ inch) muffin pan (see note).

FILLING1/2 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup dulce de leche
In a small saucepan, combine the chocolate and butter; heat and stir over low heat until melted. Remove from heat and whisk in sugar, egg and vanilla.
ASSEMBLYIn the bottom of each pastry-lined cup, place a teaspoon of dulce de leche (you can find a super-easy method for making this caramel HERE. Put the chocolate mixture on top of the dulce de leche (filling pastry cups  3/4  full).

BAKEBake in preheated 325F oven for 25 minutes (mine baked for almost 30 minutes) or until filling is puffed. Cool in pan for five minutes then gently lift them out. If they do not come out easily, use the tip of a butter knife to help you lift them out. Cool on wire rack.
NOTE: I imagine you could use any caramel in this recipe, although the dulce de leche is super thick and does not get runny when baked.

NOTE: I never chill this dough. Instead, I place the ball of dough in the mini-muffin cup and use the rounded end of my wooden meat grinder plunger (fits perfectly). I just push down gently and evenly on the dough and the pastry cup almost forms itself. If you don’t have anything to try this method with, just use your fingers.

CROCK POT BBQ PORK SANDWICHES

This is a great weekend crockpot recipe because you can turn the "extras" into many different things over the weekend. The crockpot method makes the best pork sandwich ever (and there is lots of sauce in the crockpot to make them extra juicy)...plus you can turn the extra pork into tacos, or burritos, or pork and rice just to name a few. I like to make this recipe with pork tenderloin but any pork roast will work.

2½ pound pork tenderloin
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon salt ½ teaspoon black pepper
1 cup favorite barbecue sauce
2 tablespoons honey
¼ teaspoon dried red chili flakes
Our market sells pork tenderloin in 2½ pound packages and there are two tenderloins in each package. Cut each tenderloin in three pieces. If you are using a pork roast, trim obvious fat and cut it into pieces about the size of your fist. Mix the dry ingredients (except for the chili flakes) and rub all surfaces of the meat; place, covered, in refrigerator for an hour or so.

Brown the meat in a couple tablespoons of canola oil then put it in the crockpot. Mix the honey & dried red chili flakes into the barbecue sauce and pour over the meat. Cook on low for six or seven hours - every crockpot is different. To check for readiness, use two forks to see if the pork will pull apart easily.

Remove meat from crockpot and pull apart with two forks. Stir sauce and put the meat back in the sauce to keep it hot.

The above sandwich was made with my bun recipe which you can find HERE

NOTE: It isn't absolutely necessary to put the meat in the fridge after you put the dry rub on it, but it strengthens the flavor.
NOTE: Turn the meat over a couple of times during the cooking cycle...not absolutely necessary.

PEANUT BUTTER-OATMEAL-CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

HAPPY HALLOWEEN FROM OUR NEIGHBORHOOD TO YOURS!! This cookie recipe has something in it for everyone...peanut butter, oatmeal & mini-chocolate chips. It makes a flat, tender, crispy cookie that is delicious all by itself, or you can use them to make ice cream sandwiches, or you can put chocolate frosting in between two of the cookies. It is a very versatile cookie. I hope you all have a spooktacular (and safe) Halloween!!

¾ cup all purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon baking powder
½ cup butter (room temperature)
½ cup peanut butter
½ cup white sugar
½ cup brown sugar (I like to use dark brown)
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup quick-cooking oats
½ cup mini-chocolate chips

In a large bowl, with an electric mixer, cream the butter, peanut butter, sugars, vanilla and egg together until smooth. Add all of the dry ingredients and mix until everything is well incorporated. Roll into balls about the size of a walnut, then roll the balls in granulated sugar.
Place on ungreased cookie sheet and flatten with the end of a cup or glass dipped in sugar.
Bake in preheated 350F oven for 10-12 minutes (mine took 12 minutes). Let these cookies cool on your cookie sheet for a minute or so before you remove them.

This recipe makes about 2½ dozen or so cookies, depending on how large you make them. The cookies are a little fragile when you take them out of the oven, but if you let them cool on the pan for just a minute or so, you won't have that problem.

These cookies make excellent ice cream sandwiches!!!

BASIC FOCACCIA BREAD

Today, when hubby asked what we were having for lunch, I told him turkey panini's. He got one of those proud grins on his face, that told me he was getting ready to make a wisecrack; then he told me he didn't know turkeys HAD panini's. He can be delightfully goofy.

Todays sandwiches were made with a no-frills basic focaccia bread. For those of you who are still getting familiar with yeast doughs, this would be an excellent recipe to try; it is a very easy one and the results are fantastic.

Turkey and Smoked Gouda Panini

 2¾ cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon white sugar
1 tablespoon dry active yeast
1 clove garlic minced
½ teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil (divided)
1 cup warm milk

Mix the first six ingredients together in the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix in warm milk and one tablespoon of olive oil. Mix well and knead until the dough is smooth and elastic (it only takes a few minutes). Cover with plastic and let it sit in a warm place for an hour. Push all of the air out of the dough and place it on a greased baking sheet. Pat the dough into a ½" thick rectangle and brush with the remaining one tablespoon of olive oil. Cover the rectangle very loosely with plastic wrap and let it sit for 30 minutes (it will raise a little, but not a lot). After 30 minutes, make dents in the dough (with your fingertips) every few inches over the entire surface of the focaccia. Bake at 450 for 15 minutes or until lightly golden. Cool the focaccia completely before slicing it horizontally to make sandwiches.

NOTE: This focaccia is basically a blank slate; you can add anything you like to the dough. If you want an herb focaccia, add 1 teaspoon each of dried oregano, dried thyme and dried basil to the first stage of the dough. If you want a cheesy focaccia, top the dough with a cup of shredded mozzarella and 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan just before baking.

NOTE: I've been using my GF Grilling Machine to make panini's by setting a large heavy can of something on the closed grill top (to weight the sandwich down). It works very well.

TOFFEE CHIP CHEESECAKE BARS

I've been trying out potential sweets for my Christmas cookie boxes and I found a real winner last week. It's from a cookbook called "Brand Name Recipes". The bars have a cocoa based cookie bottom (I used the new Hershey's dark chocolate cocoa which is very tasty) and on top of that is a creamy cheesecake-toffee bit layer and it is all topped with more toffee bits. Need I say more?

 1¼ cups all purpose flour
1 cup powdered sugar
½ cup unsweetened cocoa (I used dark chocolate cocoa)
¼ teaspoon baking soda
¾ cup butter (cold)
(1) 8 ounce package cream cheese (room temperature)
(1) 14 ounce can Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1½ cups English toffee bits (divided)

Combine the flour, powdered sugar, cocoa and baking soda in a medium bowl; cut in butter until it is crumbly (I did this step in my food processor). Press firmly on the bottom of an un-greased 9" x 13" baking pan. Bake for 15 minutes.

Beat the cream cheese until it is fluffy then add the sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated milk), eggs and vanilla and beat until it is smooth. Stir in one cup of the English toffee bits. Pour this mixture over the hot crust. Bake at 350F for 25 minutes or until set and the very edges just start to turn golden. Cool 10 minutes and then sprinkle on the remaining one half cup of toffee bits. Cool completely, then refrigerate until the bars are cold. Store leftovers (covered) in the fridge.

NOTE: These bars are to be kept in the fridge, but we think they taste best after they had been out of the fridge for 10-15 minutes.

NOTE: Make sure you use sweetened condensed milk, not evaporated milk

SUPER SOFT PUMPKIN COOKIES & A BABY MOOSE STORY

These little unassuming cookies are wonderful. They've been sitting on my counter all day and they are still so soft (almost cake like). The recipe makes five dozen velvety cookies that taste like pumpkin pie and have a rich brown sugar glaze on them. They would be an excellent holiday cookie and the recipe says they freeze well (unfrosted). They will never win a beauty contest, but man-o-man are they tasty. I think next time I make them (and hubby says there will be a next time) I'll put a couple drops of orange food coloring in the dough.

2 cups butter, room temperature
2 cups white sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
(1) 15 ounce can of pumpkin
4 cups flour

In a large bowl, beat 2 cups of butter with electric mixer on medium speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices. Beat until well combined, scraping the bowl occasionally. Add the eggs and vanilla, beat well, then beat in the pumpkin. Add as much flour as you can with the mixer, and if necessary, use a wooden spoon to add the rest of the flour (my stand mixer mixed it all just fine...but it IS a lot of dough).

Drop by heaping teaspoons on un-greased cookie sheet (2" apart). They don't spread much at all. Bake in preheated 350 oven for 10-12 minutes (I baked mine 11 minutes they don't change color much - just bake them until the tops are set). Cool on wire racks and frost. Brown Sugar Frosting: ½ cup of butter + ½ cup of brown sugar + ¼ cup of milk + 1 teaspoon vanilla. Heat those ingredients in a saucepan until the sugar is melted and smooth. Transfer to a bowl and add 2¾ cups of powdered sugar. Whisk smooth and frost cookies.

After the frosting has "set", you can store the cookies in a single layer in an airtight container at room temperature for three days or freeze the unfrosted cookies for up to 3 months.

NOTE: These cookies are VERY soft, almost like a little mini-cake.

MY BABY MOOSE STORY
The leaves have been off of our trees for quite a while now and this morning we woke up to an inch of snow which melted quickly. However, in this color-less time of year, there is a hardy little plant that can withstand hard frosts and just keeps blooming and blooming for me. I have several of them right outside my front door just so I can enjoy them this time of year, they are called Cinquefoils.

Last night, about midnight, our dog, Chloe, started growling under her breath. The kind of growl that tells us she's too afraid to really bark. We went to the front window and low and behold there were THREE very small/young moose (probably triplets) standing on our sidewalk and munching away on my beloved cinquefoils!! Even here in Alaska, being less than a foot away from any moose is not an every day occurance...but triplet "moose-lets"? It was a real treat and I happily donated my Cinquefoils to these little babies. I got my camera and walked up to the window as quietly as possible, knowing that ANY noise would spook them away. It was very dark out and for some reason my porch light didn't come on when the moose walked up, so I knew I would have to use a flash. I placed the camera lense right on the glass hoping to reduce the flash reflection. I had only one chance for a photo (because they would be gone instantly when they saw the flash) but it was worth a shot. The photo is a terrible one, but I still wanted to share it with you. The little triplet moose were so cute. I'm sure their mother was near by, but I wasn't going to check. Getting between a mother moose and her babies is something that is extremely dangerous. As soon as the camera flashed, all three little guys were g-o-n-e! They acutally missed one Cinquefoil plant (the above photo), so I am hoping they will come back again tonight. They are also welcome to our pumpkin (moose love pumpkins).

Sorry for the poor photo

You can see this brave little moose, and the leg of her sibling on the left. The third moose is to her right; when we first saw them, all three were shoulder to shoulder on our front steps, if only it were daylight, I could have gotten a good shot. They were about the size of a Great Dane (as adults they will be over a thousand pounds).

MINI-BRIOCHE ROLLS

I make these rolls about twice a month and freeze them (fully baked) in a high quality freezer container. A frozen baked roll takes about 4-5 minutes (at 350) to reheat. They are also very handy for the holidays because they are more festive than standard dinner rolls and since they are already fully baked, you can just pop them all in the oven five minutes before dinner.

3½ cups all purpose flour
2 tablespoons dry active yeast
½ cup warm milk
1/3 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon lemon zest
4 eggs at room temperature
½ teaspoon salt
2/3 cup unsalted butter at room temperature

In a large mixing bowl, combine 1½ cups of flour, sugar, yeast, zest and salt. In a saucepan (or microwave) heat the butter and milk to 120 to 130 degrees. Add the warmed liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients (stirring quickly with wooden spoon). Add the room temperature eggs and mix well; add one more cup of flour and beat until smooth. Stir in the rest of the flour, but do no knead the dough. Put the dough in a greased bowl and cover and let it raise in a warm place for about an hour. After an hour, push all of the air out of the dough and cover and refrigerate it overnight. (see note about rising times)

The next day, push any air out of the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured counter; let it rest for 30 minutes (with inverted bowl over it).

If you want the traditional brioche shape, divide the dough so that you have 1/6th (for the little top knots) and divide the rest of the dough into 12 pieces. Roll the larger pieces into a ball and place in individual brioche pans (or cupcake pans) and make a dent in each one. Roll smaller balls (from the 1/6th portion) and set them on the indentation. Lightly spray the rolls with cooking spray (very lightly) and cover with plastic wrap. Let these raise in a warm place for one to two hours or until they are double in size. Gently brush the rolls with egg wash and bake at 375 for 15-18 minutes or until golden. Place a pan of water on the bottom rack of the oven while the brioche bake.

NOTE: I don't make the traditional brioche shape. I roll 12" "snakes" and then tie them in knots, tucking in the loose ends.
NOTE: I don't use an egg wash on mine because they get too crusty when I reheat them. I bake them without the egg wash and just brush them with a little butter when they come out of the oven the first time.
NOTE: Keep in mind that if you have granite counter tops, it is going to take longer for your dough to raise because they are so cool.

DULCE de LECHE (Made in the crockpot!!)

Yes, you heard me right, dulce de leche made in the crockpot!! The first time I tried it, I was very skeptical, but it works like a charm and couldn't be easier.

Fill crockpot with COLD water. Put an UNOPENED can (with paper label removed) of sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated milk) into the cold water, making sure that the water is 2" taller than the can. If you are doing more than one can, make sure there is at least 2" of space BETWEEN each can as well. 

Put the lid on the crockpot and let it "cook" on LOW for EIGHT HOURS. Take the cans out of the crockpot and dry them off and label them. If you are going to use them right away, let them cool down a couple hours before you try to open the can. Cooled and unopened cans can be kept in the pantry like you would any other canned item.

DISCLAIMER: people that make Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk never anticipated people heating their product in an unopened can. As a matter of fact, I'm sure they would disapprove, so please, if you try this method, use (common sense) caution....but it has worked VERY WELL for me and for many other people I know. 

 Crockpot Dulce de Leche

Right after opening the can; it is unbelievably delicious!!

 

NOTE: One friend that had a white crockpot, said that the can left a permanent "ring" on the bottom of her crockpot; I didn't have that problem (my crockpot is black). If you are concerned, put a layer of paper towels under the can/cans before you add the cold water.

GUILTLESS BANANA MILK SHAKE

This banana milk shake is my latest addiction, and for once, it is guiltless!! Toss some frozen bananas, fat free banana yogurt and some 2% milk in the food processor (or blender) and in 10 seconds you will have the thickest, creamiest milk shake ever!! It is absolutely delicous and totally satisfies that "whats to snack on?" moment in the middle of the day. I hope you try it.

In advance, slice some bananas into ½" slices and freeze them, in a single layer, on some waxed paper. When they are frozen, put them all in a Zip Loc freezer bag and keep frozen. When it comes time to make your milk shake, place 16 slices of frozen banana into the food processor (I don't have a blender). Sixteen slices equals the same amount as a medium size (8") banana.

Add a 6 ounce container of fat free banana yogurt and one cup of 2% milk. Run the food processor about 10 seconds. You will end up with about 2½ cups of thick milk shake. This next photo is not a very good one, but I wanted to show you that the final product is thick enough to support a spoon!!

NOTE: I keep a bag of frozen banana slices just so I can make this treat in a hurry. It is also a great use for those bananas that have a few too many brown spots on them.

CRANBERRY SHORTBREAD BARS

This week, I have been trying out some new "goodie" recipes with the holidays in mind; I like to add a few new items to my standard cookie boxes every year. Today I made some cranberry shortbread bars that I found in a holiday issue of Fine Cooking and they are definitely going to make the "big list". The bars have an ultra-buttery shortbread crust topped with cooked cranberries and then a shortbread-type streusel topping. They are baked in a 9 x 13 pan that is lined with foil for easy removal. The bars are very sweet, buttery, tender and cut nicely...perfect for gift giving.

Wash and sort a 12 ounce bag of fresh cranberries. Put them in a heavy saucepan with ¼ cup of water and one cup of white sugar. Bring to a boil over high heat. After it comes to a boil, reduce the heat to medium high and boil until the sauce is like a thick syrup - 5 to 8 minutes (mine took 6 minutes). Set aside to cool (it will thicken even more as it cools).

SHORTBREAD CRUST

21 tablespoons of butter, melted and cooled to room temp.

This seems like a lot of butter, but it makes an upper and lower crust

¾ cup of white sugar

2 large egg yolks

3 cups + 3 tablespoons all purpose flour

No need to use an electric mixer, I did it all with a wooden spoon. Mix the sugar into the melted butter and whisk in the egg yolks. Stir in the flour to make a very stiff dough. Remove two cups of this dough and pat evenly into a foil lined 9 x 13 pan. Prick the dough all over with a fork and refrigerate for 30 minutes (or put in freezer for 7 minutes). Set the rest of the dough aside.
With the remaining dough, run a fork back and forth in the dough to loosen it up into crumbles Add ¼ cup of white sugar to these crumbles and work the fork back and for a little more to break up any large clumps. Do not chill these crumbles.

Bake the 9 x 13 chilled pan of dough, on the middle rack of your oven, for 20 minutes at 325. After 20 minutes, the dough will still be very pale in color and will not have any golden color on the edges. Remove it from the oven and spread the cooled cranberry filling evenly over it.

Spread the loose crumbles over the cranberry filling

Bake on the TOP rack of a 350 oven for 25 minutes (mine took 32 minutes). Watch the crumbles towards the end of the baking time. You want to see a little golden color on the top of the crumbles, like this:

Cool baked bars on a wire rack for at least an hour or until completely firm. You can speed set them in the fridge. When the bottom of the pan is completely cool, lift the bars out of the pan by pulling on the flap ends of the foil. Cut into 2" bars. These will keep at room temperature for a week.

NOTE: The butter measurement of 21 tablespoons is not a typing error

NOTE: Bake the bars in a metal 9 x 13 pan so they don't over bake. Line it with foil and leave the ends of the foil a little long, so you can use them as handles to lift the cooled bars out of the pan.
NOTE: Pay attention to baking temperatures. The first crust pre-bake is on the middle rack at 325. The final bake is on the TOP rack at 350. The recipe says it is baked on the top rack so that the bottom of the crust doesn't get too dark.

CROCKPOT MAPLE PORK TENDERLOIN

This recipe gets five stars for two reasons...it is totally delicious AND super simple. As a matter of fact, it is one of the best crockpot recipes that I've tried in a long time. You can not get much simpler than this: brown the pork loin, cover it with sauce and 8 hours later (my crockpot only took 6 hours) and you have fork-tender, delicious pork loin and a gravy that is amazing.

 2½ pound boneless pork loin
1 cup real maple syrup (DON'T USE PANCAKE SYRUP)
4 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2½ tablespoons cider vinegar
2½ tablespoons soy sauce
salt and pepper

I bought my pork loin, vacuum packed from Walmart (2½ pounds seems to be a standard size). When you open the package, there will be two long loin pieces. I cut each one into three pieces, then salted and peppered them and browned them in a little olive oil. Place the browned pieces in a wide crockpot for even cooking (as opposed to the tall ones).

In a small bowl, whisk the maple syrup (do not use pancake syrup, it is way too sweet and will ruin your pork, trust me), Dijon mustard, cider vinegar and soy sauce together. Pour over browned pork loin pieces. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours (my crockpot took only six hours). If you use a different cut of pork, you may have to use the full 8 hours. It isn't absolutely necessary, but try and turn the meat over a couple of times during the cooking process. When it is time to eat, thicken the gravy. I served this with rice and coleslaw. It also made delicious sandwiches the next day.

NOTE: If you are concerned about the maple flavor being overpowering...don't be. As a matter of fact, it is almost a background flavor, but it IS there and the meat was extremely tender and slightly sweet. This is a fantastic recipe for any special occasion.