A recipe that I have been making for more than 40 years faithfully for my children and now my grandchildren has gotten better because of technology.
A little more than a year ago I purchased two 16 1/2 x 11 1/2 Silpat Nonstick Baking Mats and place them on two 17 x 12 rimmed commercial baking sheets from the local cooking store called The Wooden Spoon. No more insulated cookie sheets or greased cookie sheets for these cookies and this is how they turn out every time. PERFECT!
My granddaughter Madison says I have a secret ingredient to their goodness, I tell her it's just this new technique plus the best and most natural ingredients.
Ingredients:
1 cup unsalted butter, softened (good quality butter is always best)
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 eggs (organic, I use Phil's eggs)
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract (Nielsen-Massey, Trader Joe's, McCormick's)
1 1/2 cups flour (Gold Medal All Purpose)
3 cups Quick Oats (Quaker Quick Oats)
2 cups semi sweet chocolate chips (Ghirardelli's or Nestle's but I like Trader Joe's Chunks too)
Directions:
Using a stand mixer, cream together butter and sugars. Add eggs and vanilla and blend. Mix in flour, baking soda and salt.
Add oats and chocolate chips.
Preheat over to 350 degrees. Using a small cookie scoop (1 1/4 inch) place on baking mats. I usually do 12 to a sheet.
Bake for 13 minutes exactly. If your oven runs slightly hotter, bake for 12 minutes exactly but no longer or they will not be chewy in center.
Immediately let cookies cool on the sheet on a wire rack for several minutes before removing them to cool. Store in a cookie jar or in freezer bags.
Makes approximately 4 - 5 dozen.
I made this to accompany the Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken but I will have it again for several other dinners during the week.
Ingredients:
1 package (14 ounce) coleslaw mix
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup kosher salt
Directions:
Pour the coleslaw mix into a strainer and place it in the sink. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of the sugar and 1/4 cup of the kosher salt and lightly toss. Let this site for 5 minutes. It will draw out the moisture from the cabbage. Rinse well with cold water. Spin the coleslaw mix in a salad spinner (shown here) and place in a large bowl.
For the Dressing:
2/3 cup Hellman's Mayonnaise
2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
2 Tbsp. cider vinegar
1 teaspoon celery salt
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon dry parsley flakes.
Directions:
In a bowl, mix the mayonnaise, 2 tablespoons sugar, cider vinegar, celery salt, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper and dry parsley flakes. Whisky well. Pour over the cabbage mixture and fold carefully to combine.
Refrigerate and serve. Sprinkle with freshly ground pepper when serving.
I came home from Mass and fixed this so that this afternoon I could take in two of our grandsons basketball games without having to think about what to make for dinner. I also made a side of homemade coleslaw (recipe follows).
Ingredients:
2 lbs. boneless, skinless, chicken breasts, trimmed of all fat.
1 cup Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ Sauce, or your favorite.
1/4 cup Kraft Zesty Italian Dressing
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
Salt to Taste
Directions:
Season chicken breasts with sea salt and place in your slow cooker.
In a small mixing bowl combine BBQ sauce, zesty Italian dressing, brown sugar and Worcestershire sauce. Stir until well combined.
Pour over chicken, cover and cook on HIGH for 3-4 hours. (I cooked it for 4 hours)
Shred the chicken in the slow cooker bowl with two forks. Recover and let cook in the sauce for 15 more minutes. This will make the shredded chicken more flavorful.
Serve on Telera Rolls (if you can get them in your local grocery store). If not, your favorite roll.
*I served this with coleslaw, you can serve it on the side or on the top of the shredded chicken on the roll.
Another delicious entry for the 2016 Bakeoff made by Kerry especially for Dad's birthday. His favorite fruit dessert is anything made with apples.
Ingredients:
2 whole Granny Smith apples
2 cans (8 ounce cans) Crescent Rolls
2 sticks butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
Cinnamon, to tate
1 can (12 ounce) Mountain Dew soda
Instructions:
Peel and core apples.
Cut each apple into 8 slices each.
Roll each apple slice in a crescent roll. Place in a 9 x 13 buttered pan.
Melt butter, then add sugar and barely stir. Add vanilla, stir and pour entire mixture over apples.
Pour Mountain Dew around edges the pan. Sprinkle with cinnamon and bake at 350 degrees for 4 minutes. Serve with ice cream and spoon some of the sweet sauces from the pan over the top.
Kerry served these delicious mini biscuits to accompany the chili's at her Chili Cook Off.
Ingredients:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
- 1 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
For the topping
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, garlic powder, salt and cayenne pepper, if using.
- In a large glass measuring cup or another bowl, whisk together buttermilk and butter. Pour mixture over dry ingredients and stir using a rubber spatula just until moist. Gently fold in cheese.
- Using a small cookie ice cream scoop, scoop the batter evenly onto the prepared baking sheet. Place into oven and bake for 10-12 minutes, or until golden brown.
- For the topping, whisk together butter, parsley and garlic powder in a small bowl. Working one at a time, brush the tops of the biscuits with the butter mixture.
- Serve immediately.
I had lobster meat left over from our Christmas Eve lobster tail dinner and it turned into this delicious entree.
Ingredients:
1 lb. bag of pasta tubes
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
2 cups milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 cup shredded Gruyere/Swiss cheese (I found at Trader Joe's in a bag)
2 cups sharp cheddar cheese
Salt and pepper, to taste
The meat of 2 cooked lobster tails, chopped (leave bigger chunks, I cut mine too small the first time).
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook according to package directions. Drain in colander and return to stockpot.
Melt butter over medium heat in large saucepan. Add flour and stir for 1 minute until combined. Whisk in milk. Bring to a slight boil, whisking constantly.
Add cream, Dijon, cheeses, salt and pepper. Remove pan from heat. Stir together until all cheese is melted. Add a small amount of additional milk if necessary to think it a bit.
Mix in pasta and lobster. Bake until golden, this will take about 20-25 minutes.
Thanks to Christine for sharing this recipe. The chicken is really tender, moist and delicious. I served it with a twice baked potato.
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup crushed Ritz Crackers
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
Ground fresh pepper, to taste
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts halves
1/2 cup butter, cut into pieces
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 375 F.
- Place eggs and cracker crumbs in two separate shallow bowls.
- Mix cracker crumbs with garlic salt and pepper.
- Dip chicken in the eggs, then dredge in the crumb mixture to coat.
- Arrange coated chicken in a 9X13 inch baking dish.
- Place pieces of butter around the chicken.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes or until the chicken is no longer pink and the juices run clear.
This is delicious on a cold winter night!
1 pkg. Reams frozen egg noodles
1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 1/2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 1/2 cups chopped yellow onion (1 medium)
1 1/3 cups chopped carrots (3 carrots)
1 1/3 cups chopped celery (3 stalks)
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth
1 tsp. herbes de provence
2 bay leaves
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup + 1 Tbsp. flour
2 1/2 cups milk (I used 1%)
1/3 cup heavy cream
Directions:
Cook egg noodles using directions on package. Set aside.
In a large pot, heat 1 1/2 Tbsp. olive oil over medium heat. Add onion, carrot and celery and sauce until tender about 3-4 minutes, then add garlic and sauce 1 minute longer. Add chicken broth, herbs de provence, bay leaves and season with salt and pepper to taste. Add chicken and breasts and bring soup to a boil over medium high heat. Reduce heat to medium, cover with lid and allow soup to cook until chicken has cooked through, about 10-15 minutes longer (cook time will depend on thickness of chicken breasts). Remove chicken and allow to rest for 5 minutes, then shred into small bite size pieces.
Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat, add flour and cook, stirring constantly, 1 1/2 minutes. While whisking slowly add in milk and whisky vigorously smooth lumps. Whisk in cream and bring mixture to a boil, stirring constantly. Pour milk mixture into soup mixture and return chicken to soup along with soup pot along with cooked noodles and stir. Serve warm with fresh bread or crackers.
Paul was the winner at Kerry and Isaac's 11th annual Chili Cookoff and Bakeoff. His recipe was called "Welcome Home Chili" He wrote: Pineapple, a symbol of welcome, is the focal ingredient here. Made with spicy turkey sausage, a bowl of this Hawaiian-inspired chili has both sweet and spicy elements. Welcome home!
Congrats Paul!
Pineapple Chili
20 ounces hot Italian turkey sausage, (links with casings removed)
1 medium onion, chopped (equal to 2 cups)
1 jalapeno pepper, chopped, using seeds also
1 20 ounce can pineapple tidbits in juice (divided)
2 - 28 ounce cans seasoned diced tomatoes (Dei Fratelli brand)
1 15 ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 6 ounce can tomato paste
1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
4 teaspoons cumin
2 cloves garlic, minced
shredded cheddar cheese, sour cream
Preparation:
In a non-stick skillet over medium heat, cook sausage and onions, stirring to crumble sausage. Once sausage is cooked through, drain off any fat and transfer the sausage and onions to your slow cooker.
Drain the pineapple, reserving both the juice and the fruit separately. Add the juice to the slow cooker. Cover and store the fruit in the refrigerator. It will be added toward the end of cooking.
Add tomatoes, jalapeños (with seeds), black beans, tomato paste, chili powder, cumin and garlic to the slow cooker.
Stir everything to combine.
Cook on low (6-8 hours), adding reserved pineapple during the last hour or two of cooking, or on high (4-5 hours), adding pineapple during last 1/2 hour - 1 hour of cooking.
Serve topped with cheese, sour cream.
Note:
The texture of the pineapple is completely controlled by when you add it. Add it toward the end of cooking time so that it's still fairly firm.
