Monday, March 20, 2017

GARLIC-ROSEMARY MONKEY BREAD

12 oz fontina cheese, shredded (about 3 cups)
7 cloves garlic, chopped
3 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted, plus more for Bundt pan
2 10-oz cans refrigerated buttermilk biscuits or crescent rolls
Olive oil and flaky salt, for serving

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Stir together cheese, garlic rosemary and parsley in a medium bowl.  Place melted butter in a separate bowl.  Cut each biscuit in half and roll each half into a ball.  Dip balls in butter, then transfer to cheese mixture, rolling to coat.  Transfer biscuits to a lightly greased Bundt pan, overlapping slightly.  Bake until golden brown, 23 to 25 minutes.  Let bread cool for 5 minutes before removing from pan.  Just before serving, drizzle with olive oil and top with flaky salt.

Monday, March 13, 2017

CREAMY CHICKEN & DUMPLINGS

1 1/4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs

1 teaspoon coarse sea salt

1 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 sweet onion, diced
1/2 cup sliced carrots
1/3 cup sliced celery
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
6 cups low-sodium chicken stock
1/3 cup heavy cream
dumpling:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup buttermilk

directions:

Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat a large pot over medium-high heat and add olive oil and 2 tablespoons of butter. Once sizzling, add the chicken to the skillet and cook it on both sides until deeply golden brown and cooked through, about 5 to 6 minutes per side. Remove the chicken and set aside to a bowl, shredding once cool. I actually throw it in the bowl of my mixer and shred it with the paddle attachment!
Reduce the heat to medium and add the other 2 tablespoons of butter. Add the onions, carrots, celery garlic, rosemary and thyme. Toss in another pinch of salt and pepper, stirring well. Cook until softened, about 5 minutes. 
While the vegetables cook, mix up the dumplings. Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Combine the milk and the eggs, then stir into the flour until just mixed. Set aside for a few minutes.

Wednesday, March 1, 2017

LUNCH LADY BROWNIES

1 cup of Butter (I use unsalted)
1/2 cup of Cocoa (I used unsweetened)
2 cups of All Purpose Flour
2 cups of Sugar
4 Eggs
4 teaspoons of Vanilla
1 cup of Chopped Nuts (optional)

Melt the butter in the microwave and put into mixing bowl, then add cocoa and mix together until smooth.

Add flour, and sugar. Beat together and then add eggs, vanilla, and nuts. Mix until combined. Do not over stir!

Pour into greased, floured 9x13 baking pan*.

* An additional part of this recipe said that if you want to double the recipe, use a large baking sheet.

Additional Note * This batter will not be runny like a cake mix. You might have to spread it out over your pan with a rubber spatula.

Bake 20-25 minutes @350 F or until done. Check at it at 20 minutes. As per comments, some have had to cook as long as 35 minutes depending on oven and altitude.

Wait only about 10 minutes to frost brownies.
Frost them while they are warm (not hot).
This frosting it what makes these brownies so great in my opinion because these brownies are not very sweet on their own. The warm frosting sinks into brownies a little bit which is why you frost them while warm.


The Chocolate Icing Recipe:

To make while the brownies bake
1/4 cup of softened Butter
1/4 cup of Evaporated canned Milk (regular milk is fine)
1/4 cup of unsweetened Cocoa
3 cups of Powdered Sugar
Dash of Salt

Mix all together and frost as desired.

AMBER'S APPLESAUCE COOKIES

1 can applesauce
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 cup shortening
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 cups flour
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cloves
2 teaspoons cinnamon

2 cups chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350.  Mix baking soda and applesauce and set aside.  Cream shortening, sugar, eggs and vanilla.  Add applesauce mixture and dry ingredients.  Finally add chocolate chips.  Drop by spoonfuls onto baking sheet and bake.