Arugula Salad with Olive Oil, Lemon and Parmesan Cheese

• Kerry made this recently, raved about it and took this photo.  She said it was delicious and so easy to make.
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• Ingredients:
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• 2 bunches of Arugula, washed, dried and torn
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• A chunk of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Instructions:

In a serving bowl, drizzle the arugula with the oil, squeeze in the lemon juice, and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Toss until well mixed and taste for seasoning.


Using a vegetable peeler to shave thin pieces of Parmigiano over the top. 

Salted Caramel Butterscotch Blondies

Christine made these recently. They look delicious.

                                                             Ingredients:

2 1/8 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 egg holk
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup butterscotch chips
1/2 cup salted caramel sauce
Sea salt, for sprinkling over bars



Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Spray a 9 x 13 inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray that contains flour.  Set aside.

Whisk together flour, baking soda and sea salt.  Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix the melted butter and sugars together until combined.  Add the egg, egg yolk and vanilla extract and mix until smooth.  Slowly add the dry ingredients and mix on low, just until combined.  Stir in the butterscotch chips.

Press half of the dough evenly into the prepared pan, smoothing the top with the spatula.  Drizzle salted caramel sauce over the dough.  Top with remaining dough and evenly spread out using a spatula.  The caramel sauce will peek through.  Sprinkle blondies with sea salt.

Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the top of the bars are light golden brown and the edges start to pull away from the pan.  Cool bars on a wire rack to room temperature.  

Cut blondies into squares and serve.

Foley Grands Favorite Homemade Belgian Waffles

For grandchildren, these should be served warm with ice cream and whipped cream.  Sienna enjoying her waffles and a banana.

1 3/4 cup flour

2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 3/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup cooking oil
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat a Belgian waffle iron.

Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.  Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla.  Stir until moistened, mixture will be slightly lumpy.

Pour the batter onto the prepared waffle iron.  I used 1/3 cup of batter for each of the grids.  Lift waffles from iron with a fork.  Repeat with remaining batter.

Serve warm.

Blueberry Oatmeal Crumble Bars

Kerry made these recently for a dessert at a baby shower and they were a huge hit.

Crust and Crumble Topping:

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1 cup flour
3/4 cup old fashioned whole rolled oats (NOT QUICK)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
pinch salt, optional and to taste

Blueberry Layer:

12 ounces (2 cups) blueberries (fresh or frozen) 
         Kerry used frozen and didn't thaw.
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons cornstarch

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350.  Line an 8 inch square pan with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray; set aside. 

Topping:  In a large bowl melt the butter in the microwave.  Add the flour, oats, sugars, optional salt and stir to combine.  Set 1 heaping cup of crumbly mixture aside to be sprinkled on later.

Place rest of mixture into prepared pan and press to create an even, smooth, flat crust; set aside.

Blueberries:  In a large bowl add all ingredients and toss to combine.
Evenly distribute blueberry mixture over the crust.  Evenly sprinkle with reserved 1 cup crumble topping mixture. 

Bake for 55 minutes or until edges are set and center has just set. 

Cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving. 

Store in refrigerator. 

Sweet Lemon Shrimp

Kerry made this recently and shared the recipe for an easy, delicious dinner.

Ingredients:

1/3 cup hoisin sauce
1/4 cup honey

1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
Zest of 1 lemon
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
1 1/2 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

Whisk together the hoisin sauce, honey, lemon juice, lemon zest, salt and pepper, to taste.  In a gallon size Ziploc bag combine shrimp and hoisin sauce mixture.  Marinate for at least 30 minutes to overnight, turning bag occasionally.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.

Place shrimp on the prepared baking sheet; discard marinade.  Place into oven and roast until pink, firm and cooked through, about 6-8 minutes.

Serve immediately, garnished with cilantro, if desired. 

Slow Cooker Turkey Breast

Slow cooker turkey breast is tender and moist.  So easy. My slow cooker is  a
4 quart so the turkey was a squeeze but we made it fit. 

1 large onion, quartered
1 (5-7 pound) bone-in whole turkey breast with skin
3/4 cup low sodium chicken broth
2 bay leaves
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more for the gravy
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons onion powder
1 tablespoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon dried rosemary
1 tablespoon dried sage
1 tablespoon cornstarch
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Place the onion, turkey breast (breast side down), broth and bay leaves in a 6 quart slow cooker. 

Sprinkle with the salt, garlic powder, onion powder, thyme, rosemary and sage.

Cover and cook on low for 6 hours or until the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees.

Carefully transfer the turkey to a carving board and loosely tent with foil while preparing the gravy.

Strain the liquid in the slow cooker into a saucepan.  Bring the gravy to a boil and lower to simmer and let cook for 8 minutes, stirring often, until slightly thickened.

In a small bowl, combine the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons cold water and stir into the gravy.  Simmer for another 2 minutes until thickened completely.  Taste and season with salt and pepper, if necessary.

Remove the skin and discard.  Carve the turkey into slices and serve with gravy. 

Fresh Strawberry Breakfast Bread

Breakfast breads are great when entertaining out of town guests.  Bake ahead and slice.  

Bread:

2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 large egg
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup fresh strawberries, chopped (toss in 1 Tablespoon flour)

Glaze:

1 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons heavy cream (more to thin)
1/2 teaspoon CLEAR vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350.  Spray a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan with nonstick spray that contains flour. 

Whisk the egg, granulated sugar and brown sugar together until combined.  Whisk in the buttermilk, oil and vanilla.  Add the flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.  Mix until combined, do not over mix.  Fold in the strawberries.

Bake the bread for approximately 55 minutes or until cake tester inserted in center comes out clean.  (Mine took exactly 57 minutes) 

For the glaze:  Whisk the powdered sugar, CLEAR vanilla and heavy cream until combined and creamy.  Add more heavy cream if not thin enough to drizzle over bread. 

Simple Grilled Salmon

My husband could eat seafood ever night but particularly likes salmon and especially any type of grilled fish.  He found this recipe and made it during the week.  We served it with fresh asparagus which we roasted in our toaster oven.

1 1/2 cup salmon fillets
lemon pepper, to taste
garlic powder, to taste
salt to taste
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup water
1/4 vegetable oil

Season salmon fillets with lemon pepper, garlic powder and salt.

In a small bowl, stir together soy sauce, brown sugar, water and vegetable oil until sugar is dissolved.  Place fish in a large plastic bag with the soy sauce mixture, seal and turn to coat.  Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

Preheat grill for medium heat.

Lightly oil grill grate.  Place salmon on the preheated grill and discard marinade.

Grill salmon for 6 to 8 minutes per side or until fish flakes easy with a fork. 

Slow Cooker Baby Back Ribs

For Slow Cooker Sunday, this was so easy and delicious served with creamed corn and potato wedges.  I bought the baby back ribs at Trader Joe's and cut off the underneath membrane before placing in the slow cooker. 


To make ribs:

1 1/2 tablespoons coarse kosher salt
1/2 tablespoon dried oregano
1/2 tablespoon garlic powder
1/2 tablespoon black pepper
1/2 tablespoon chili powder
1 rack pork baby back ribs, trimmed
1 large sweet onion, sliced
1 bottle of your favorite root beer (I used Chicago Root Beer, see photo)
                              

                              BBQ Sauce:

1 tablespoon olive oil                                  
1 1/2 cups finely chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, mined
1 cup root beer
1 1/2 cups BBQ sauce (I used Sweet Baby Ray's Original BBQ Sauce)
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparing the ribs:  In a small bowl stir together the salt, oregano, garlic powder, black pepper and chili powder.  Make sure to remove the membrane from the back of the ribs.  Spread the spice mixture over the meaty side of the ribs and rub gently until coated.

Add the sliced onion and the bottle of root beer to the slow cooker and place the ribs on top.  I cut the rack into thirds.  Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 6-7 hours.  (I cooked the ribs on low).

Preparing the sauce:  Place the oil in a saucepan.  Add the onions and garlic and cook until the onions are soft and translucent.  Add the root beer and bring the mixture to a boil.  Let it cook for 5-7 minutes until reduced by half.

Stir in the BBQ sauce, vinegar, brown sugar and Worcestershire sauce.  Season with salt and pepper.  Simmer the sauce for 15 minutes.  Let cool slightly and then process in blender or handheld immersion blender until smooth.  (I used immersion blender) 

Final preparation:  After ribs have finished cooking, preheat the oven broiler and have rack about 4-6 inches away from heating element.  Line a large, rimmed baking sheet with foil.  Carefully lift the ribs from the slow cooker using a large spatula and tongs.  Place on baking sheet. 

Brush liberally with the prepared BBQ sauce and broil until the sauce bubbles and caramelizes, about 3 minutes.  Watch carefully!!!