Chocolate Chip Cookies

I wanted to make soft chocolate chip cookies the other day and I found this recipe on allrecipes.com. They are cake-like but oh so good. I didn't have nuts and then I added a little more flour because the dough is super soft. I like them cooked a little longer so they are crispy around the edges and then make them bigger so they are big and soft in the middle and crispy around the edges. I also didn't flatten the dough, I just piled it on top and let the oven do the flattening.

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup white sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts

1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2.In a medium bowl, cream together the butter, white sugar and brown sugar until smooth. Beat in the egg, then stir in the vanilla. Combine the flour and baking soda, stir into the creamed mixture. Fold in the chocolate chips and walnuts. Drop by rounded ice cream scoops onto a cookie sheet, and press down slightly to flatten. Cookies should be about 2 inches apart.
3.Bake for 11 to 14 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

If you make them into big cookies then I would rate it an 8 but with small cookies I would rate them a 5.

Lemon Blueberry Scones

I found this recipe on bakingbites.com. I didn't have real lemons, so I used lemon juice and omitted the zest. They turned out so good. I would rate them an 8.


Lemon Blueberry Scones
2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
6 tbsp butter, chilled
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp lemon zest
1 cup frozen blueberries

Preheat oven to 400F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut butter into 6-8 chunks and add to flour mixture, tossing to coat. Using your fingertips, rub the butter into the flour until mixture is sandy and butter is well distributed, with no pieces larger than a big pea.
Add in milk, lemon juice and lemon zest and stir until dough comes together. If dough is too wet, add an additional tablespoon of flour to the dough.
Either keeping the dough in your mixing bowl, or turning it out onto a lightly floured surface, knead dough for about 1 minute. Flatten dough and add blueberries. Knead gently for 30-60 seconds to distribute them. Divide dough into two balls and press each into a disc about 3/4-inch thick. Use a knife to divide each disc into quarters and place scones on prepared baking sheet.
Bake for 17-22 minutes, until scones are golden brown.

Lemon Glaze (optional)
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar

Whisk glaze ingredients together until smooth, then drizzle over still-warm scones before serving

Beet Bread

I was going to make beet pancakes with the beet puree from the day before but realized that I had bought bread flour and not all purpose flour at the store the other day, so I wanted to try beet bread. I found this recipe while searching on line on mysisterskitchen.wordpress.com.

I boiled my beets for a while until soft and then I let them cool, pulled the skin off (it will come off really easy if soft) and then puree them together.

This recipe calls for 1 2/3 cup beet puree. Combine it with 1/2 cup warm milk.

In a kitchenaid, or bowl ( I had a bowl), combine together:

puree,
1/3 cup warm water
an egg
1/4 cup melted butter
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1 cup flour
1 tablespoon yeast
1 teaspoon pepper

let bubble together for about 20 minutes.

Add about 4 cups more flour until it turns into a big ball. I do it by feel.
Let rise for about an hour, until it doubles.
Shape into 2 round loaves and cover and let rise again, about an hour.
Bake at 350 for about 25 minutes or so.
Let cool, or slice right away if you like your bread right out of the oven.

Even though the bread is pink, you cannot taste the beets. It was really tasty. I would rate this an 8.

Haunting Hot Chocolate

When planning meals for my family I was looking through my halloween cookbooks and found this hot chocolate. It sounded so good.

In a saucepan put 1/4 cup whole milk, dash of nutmeg, 3/4 cup white chocolate pieces ( I used white chocolate chips) and orange peel from a whole orange. On low heat, whisk until the chocolate is melted ( I kept it on a little longer to let the orange flavor set in a little more. Remove the orange peel and add 2 3/4 cup more milk. Heat through. Once warmed through, remove from heat, add 1 tablespoon vanilla. Pour in cups. Top with whipped cream and sprinkle with more nutmeg.

This recipe made enough for only the two of us. It was so good we had it two nights in a row. It is a new family favorite.

I would rate this a 10.

Ranch Chicken Pizza

I found this recipe on "Our Family Treat" blog (on the side of our family blog). It looked so good and easy.

Take your favorite pizza dough recipe, or buy one at the store. If you have a pizza stone heat it in the oven for a few minutes and then place your dough on the heated stone. Spread ranch dressing (I used bacon ranch because that is what I had in the fridge). Top with cooked chicken (seasoned with salt, pepper and garlic salt), crumbled up bacon, arugula and mozzarella cheese ( I used colby and jack mix). Bake at 400 for about 15 minutes.

This was so good and I would do it again. Don't be so hesitant about the arugula. I had never used it before and really liked it. I would rate this a 9.

Rachael's (Ray) Chimichurri Chicken Bites with Sauteed Carrots

I found this recipe on foodnetwork.com. It is one of Rachael Ray's recipes. I ended up marinating the chicken for a couple of hours and not using the rest as dipping sauce. I also didn't grill the chicken, I just cooked them in a little butter in a pan.

1 rounded tablespoon sweet paprika
3/4 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves, a couple of handfuls
3 tablespoons fresh oregano leaves
3 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
2 bay leaves, crumbled
1/2 small white onion, coarsely chopped
3 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon cayenne
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil, eyeball it
1/4 cup red wine vinegar, 3 splashes
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 1/2 to 1 3/4 pounds chicken tenders

Preheat a grill pan over high heat.

In a food processor combine paprika, parsley, oregano, thyme, bay leaves, onion, garlic and cayenne. Finely chop the mixture by pulsing.

Heat oil in a small pan over medium low heat. When oil is warm, stir herb and garlic mixture into oil and heat 3 to 5 minutes, then remove from heat. The oil will become infused with the flavor of the herbs and garlic. Transfer to a bowl and stir in vinegar and salt. Taste to adjust seasonings.

Cut chicken tenders into thirds and place in a shallow dish. Wash hands.

Spoon half of your chimichurri over the chicken and coat completely and evenly. Using tongs, transfer the bites to the hot grill and cook 2 or 3 minutes on each side. Transfer bites to a serving plate. Serve with party picks and reserved chimichurri sauce for dipping.


Sauteed Carrots

I got this one also from Ina Gartin on foodnetwork.com. I added a little flour to thicken up the sauce.

2 pounds carrots
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill or flat-leaf parsley

Peel the carrots and cut them diagonally in 1/4-inch slices. You should have about 6 cups of carrots. Place the carrots, 1/3 cup water, the salt, and pepper in a large (10 to 12-inch) saute pan and bring to a boil. Cover the pan and cook over medium-low heat for 7 to 8 minutes, until the carrots are just cooked through. Add the butter and saute for another minute, until the water evaporates and the carrots are coated with butter. Off the heat, toss with the dill or parsley. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and serve.

I thought they were both excellent. I would rate them both an 8 or 9.

Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas

Sorry about the blurry picture. It was so good so I wanted to share it with you. I found this recipe on Our Family Treat Blog (on our family blog side bar). It sounded so good so I had to make them. The only problem was was that I got the wrong green sauce at the store. The recipe calls for green enchilada sauce in a can and I accidently got the taco sauce in a bottle. The sauce in the bottle is thicker so I had to thin it out and add more flavor. I added chicken broth, olive oil, onion, salt, oregano, garlic salt and about a quarter cup of canned tomato pieces (with sauce). The recipe rolls the chicken up inside the tortilla but I grew up with enchiladas sort of casserole style (layered with tortillas, chicken, sauce and cheese). We had company over when I served it and everyone loved it. We ate almost all of it. I also served it with sour cream on the side.

4 chicken breasts-shredded
4 tablespoons lime juice-or juice from a lime
5 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
6-8 flour tortillas
mexican cheese or cheddar-we only had cheddar on hand
1 can green enchilada sauce


Mix together the chicken, lime juice, honey, chili powder, and garlic powder. Layer a small amount of your enchilada sauce on the bottom of your 9x13 pan. On your tortillas put about 1/4 a cup of your chicken mixture, then sprinkle with cheese and roll up. Place seam side down. Once all rolled up, pour the enchilada sauce on your enchiladas. Then sprinkle with cheese. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes.

I would rate this a 9 out of 10. I forgot to rate the last two posts so I will now. The pie would have been definately a 10 and the calas would have been a 6 or 7.