Chewy Gingerbread Cookies

At Christmas time, one of our neighbors would bring these cookies to our house. In less than five minutes they would be gone. After several years we finally asked for the recipe. Thankfully, Dina was happy to share. These cookies are easy and you will be the praise of your house when you make them. Did I mention that they make your house smell like Christmas?
Enjoy.

Gingerbread Cookies
3/4 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
2 egg
2 tsp. baking soda
2 Tbsp. water
1/4 cup molasses
2 cups flour
1 tsp. ginger
1 tsp. cloves
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt

Cream shortening, sugar and molasses.
Add egg.
Mix water with baking soda and add to shortening mix.
Add dry ingredients. The dough should be stiff. If it's sticky at all, add a little more flour.
Form 1-inch balls of dough and roll in white sugar. Place on greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-ish minutes, JUST until the cookies crack. If you bake them longer they won't stay soft when they cool.

Peppermint Brownies

I realize that the title of this blog is family dinners, but you can always use a dessert right? I'm not usually a fan of mint flavored things but these brownies are to die for. Don't be scared off by the length of the recipe, it really is quite easy to make. I made a couple adjustments at the bottom of the recipe, which I think make it better, but I will let you be the judge of that. Happy baking.

Brownies

1 19.5-ounce fudge brownie mix

½ cup butter, melted

¼ cup water

2 large eggs

¼ teaspoon peppermint

Peppermint Buttercream Frosting

½ cup butter, softened

1 ½ cups powdered sugar

1 tablespoon milk

¼ teaspoon peppermint

¼ teaspoon vanilla

Chocolate frosting

1/3 cup whole milk

¼ cup butter 1 12 ounce bag semi sweet chocolate chips

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup powdered sugar

Decorative Frosting

1 can white frosting with fine tip

1 can red frosting with fine tip

1- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees, then prepare a 9x9 – inch baking pan by spraying it with a light coating of non-stick spray. Cut a piece of parchment paper to the same width as the bottom of the pan, but make it longer than the pan so that the left to right ends go up and out of the pan on the left and right sides. This will create a ‘sling’ that will help you lift the brownies out of the pan after they’ve baked.

2- Make the brownie batter by first sifting the box of ingredients. This will remove the clumps. Add the melted butter, water, eggs and peppermint and mix the batter by hand until all the dry stuff is mixed in. Pour the batter into your prepared pan and bake it for 50-55 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean. Allow the brownie to cool before frosting.

3- Make the buttercream frosting by beating together 1 cup of powdered sugar and the softened butter in a medium bowl with an electric mixer. Mix in another ½ cup powdered sugar, then add 1 tablespoon of milk, and the peppermint and vanilla. Mix for about 1 minute to make the frosting smooth. Add an additional ¼ cup of powdered sugar if the frosting is too thin and light. You want a frosting that can be spread easily, yet it should be firm enough to hold up the layer of chocolate. When the brownie has cooled, use a spatula to spread the frosting evenly over the top. Put the brownie in the fridge to firm up the buttercream frosting.

4- Make the chocolate frosting by bringing milk and butter to boil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Pour the chocolate chips into a heat-safe proof bowl. When the milk and butter come to a boil, pour the mixture over the chocolate chips and let it stand for a couple of minutes. Add the vanilla extract to the mixture and whisk until smooth. Use an electric mixer to beat in 1 cup powdered sugar until frosting is smooth. Spread the chocolate over the white frosting on the brownie. This recipe makes a little more chocolate than you need, so hold back about 1/3 to ¼ cup.

5- To add decorative red and white icing. Add the white to the cake in a sweeping motion diagonally across the top of the entire cake, then add the red icing over the white in the same sweeping motion in the same direction.

6- Stick the brownies back into the fridge for about an hour before removing it from the pan and slicing it into 9 equal portions.

*Stacey's adjustments

I halved the peppermint in the brownie portion--too much mint is not a good thing--and doubled the recipe to make it in a 9" x 13" pan.

Save some of the mint buttercream to use as your decorative frosting on top. I colored it red to make it festive but you could also make it green.

Only make 1 ½ times the chocolate frosting if doubling the recipe. It makes so much! Too much! I cannot believe I am saying that!

It says that it makes 9 brownies... but cut them smaller (like 18 small squares). The brownies are RICH and you don't want to be throwing away any half eaten ones at the end of the night.

Potato Soup

Potato Soup
10 potatoes, quartered and peeled
1 yellow onion, diced
4 Tbsp. butter
2 Tbsp. dried parsley
4 cups whole milk, half & half, or cream
1 cup cheese, any kind you like
salt and pepper, to taste

Boil the potatoes and onion. Drain most of water. Leave about 1/4 of the water. Mash to the consistency you like. Add remaining ingredients. Let it cook for 5 minutes or until warm. If you need to thicken it add 1 c milk and 2 T corn starch. Garnish with cheese, bacon, green onions and croutons.

So easy and so good. You only need one pot!!

Mulligatawny Soup

My friend, Erin, makes this soup, and it is delicious. She shared the recipe, and oh, is it so good!!

Mulligatawny Soup

1/2 cup chopped onion

2 stalks celery, chopped

2 potatoes, peeled and chopped

1 carrot, diced

1/4 cup butter

1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder

4 cups chicken broth

1/2 apple, cored and chopped

*1/4 cup white rice

1 skinless, boneless chicken breast half - cut into cubes

salt to taste

maple syrup to taste

ground black pepper to taste

1 pinch dried thyme

1/2 cup heavy cream, heated

Saute onions, celery, carrot, and butter in a large soup pot. Add flour and curry, and cook 5 more minutes. Add chicken stock, mix well, and bring to a boil. Simmer about 1/2 hour. Add apple, potatoes, chicken, salt, pepper, and thyme. Simmer 15-20 minutes. About 20 minutes before serving, I add the rice and cream (so the rice doesn't absorb all the liquid).

**Optional: Add cooked rice or serve together with cooked white rice

pumpkin muffins

Pumpkin Muffins
1 small can pumpkin
1 box spice cake mix
2 cups chocolate chips (optional)

Mix ingredients together. Fill muffin tins. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 - 18 minutes, or until done.

So easy. So good. I prefer mine plain, without chocolate chips or frosting, but do whatever floats your boat. They freeze well and stay moist and delicious for several days in an air-tight container.

pumpkin waffles + buttermilk syrup

Everyone I've ever served this to has asked for the recipe. It is that good! Way better than the picture makes it look. Have I mentioned that photography isn't one of my strengths??

Pumpkin Waffles
2 1/2 cups flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. baking soda, salt, nutmeg
1/4 tsp. cloves

In a large boil whisk:
4 eggs
2 cups buttermilk
1 cup pumpkin
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 tsp. vanilla

Add dry ingredients. Cook in waffle maker. Serve with buttermilk syrup and whipped cream.

Buttermilk Syrup
1/2 cup butter
2 1/4 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups buttermilk

Stirring, bring to a boil. Allow to boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Whisk in:
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 Tbsp. vanilla
1/2 - 1 tsp. cinnamon

Store in the fridge for several weeks.

Homemade Pizza

I LOVE homemade pizza. It's so fun and easy to come up with a variety of pizzas in no time. One of my least favorite things about pizza is all the melted cheese, so I especially love being able to control the amount we use.

Pizza toppings are endless. We particularly love the following combos:
- ham, artichoke hearts, grape tomatoes, fresh basil
- ham, pineapple, mushrooms, fresh basil
- bbq chicken, mushrooms, peppers

I have tried several different dough recipes and this is by far my favorite one. It is so fast and easy and it always produces great results. It makes enough dough for two pizzas, so I usually freeze half the dough and use it later. Just let it come to room temperature before using. Also, my oven only goes to 500 degrees, so I bake it at that temp the whole time. The instructions call for baking the pizza with toppings, but I prefer to bake the crust for 6-7 minutes first (at 500 degrees), add the sauce and toppings, and then bake the whole thing again until the crust is golden and the cheese is melted.

I'm also including my favorite recipe for pizza sauce (from the same source). In a pinch I'll use a jarred sauce, but this tastes so much better.

Basic Pizza Crust
from the book 'No Need to Knead'
1 tsp. yeast
1 1/2 cups lukewarm water
4 to 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
6 Tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. salt

In a container that pours easily, sprinkle the yeast over the water and stir until dissolved. Put the flour, olive oil, and salt into the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Blend for a few seconds and then add the yeast and water, blending just until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. The dough will be slightly sticky to the touch. Dip your fingers in a little olive oil and lift the dough from the bowl, shaping it into a ball. Put the dough in an oiled bowl.

Same day method: Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 60 minutes.

Overnight method: After the first rise, transfer the dough to a plastic freezer bag and seal tightly, leaving a little air in the bag. Alternatively, ignore first rise completely and place the dough directly in bag. Refrigerate overnight or up to 1 week. The dough will rise in the bag and take on a lovely, sour taste. Let the dough come to room temperature before using.

To shape and prepare pizza: Coat two 13-by-18-inch baking sheets with olive oil. Divide the dough in half and stretch each piece on a baking sheet into a 12-by-6-inch rectangle, forming a thin 1/8-inch-thick crust. Push the dough up around the edges to make a lip to hold the sauce.

To bake the pizza: Preheat the oven to 525 degrees. Place the pizza with topping on the lowest rack of the oven and increase the temperature to 550 degrees. Bake for 7 to 10 minutes.

Simply Perfect Tomato Sauce
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1/2 cup minced sweet onion
16 ounces of crushed tomatoes
1/2 tsp. salt
pinch of sugar

In a saute pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Saute the onion until translucent. Add the tomatoes with their liquid, the salt, and sugar and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, or until thickened.