Bourbon Brownies

I was in search of a moist fudge-like brownie recipe and found this last week from Cooking Light. Jim loves Bourbon ( we always have the big boy bottle of Maker's Mark Bourbon around) so I knew I wouldn't have to go out and buy some expensive liquor to make these.

These brownies are GREAT ! You really don't taste (although you smell) the bourbon as much as it brings out the flavor of the chocolate. They are very fudgy and rich, so much so that I did cut them into bite sizes ( 1 inch squares) vs traditional bigger brownies.

Make sure you use Large, not extra large eggs so the brownies don't get too dry. And DON'T over bake !

1/4 cup of Bourbon

1/4 cup of Ghiradelli semisweet chocolate chips

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup baking cocoa

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/3 cups sugar

6 Tablespoons butter, softened

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 large eggs

Pam baking spray

Preheat oven to 350

1-Bring Bourbon to boil in small saucepan. Remove from heat. Add chocolate chips and stir until melted and smooth.

2-Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl. Mix well ( I used an electric mixer, which I always use vs sifting, but I did make a mess with the cocoa. I would recommend using a whisk. )

3- In mixer, blend sugar and butter for about two minutes until well combined and fluffy. Add vanilla and eggs, beat well. Add flour mixture and Bourbon mixture. Mix on low speed until combined. DO NOT OVER BEAT or brownies will get tough.

4- spray 9 inch square baking pan with Pam, and spread batter and smooth with spatula.

5- bake in middle of oven for 25 minutes, checking early to make sure they don't over bake. Wooden toothpick should come out clean.

6-Cool on wire rack, cut into 1 inch squares.

7- store in airtight tin for up to 3 days. The best part by the way is opening the tin- it smells great !

Chicken, Rice and Vegetables A la Morroco

I had some vegetables to use up so I put together this dish last night. The secret ingredient of Carmadon really brings out a bright flavor in the apricots and tomatoes. Once again, a one pot meal that makes for easy clean up. I used my trusty Caphalon 8.5 qt dutch oven-braising the concoction so all of the flavors really come out. I love the Caphalon dutch oven because it is big enough to hold a good size meal for four, it goes from stove top to oven easily, and it cleans up very easily. It's also wide enough that you don't layer your food as much so everything cooks more evenly. Definitely a pot worth investing in ( or ask for on your gift list).

I used chicken thighs, but if you are white meat person you could definitely replace- just watch the chicken that it doesn't over cook and get too dry. Also, when I made this, I put all the vegetables in at once- however, my butternut squash and broccoli was a little mushy, so I would suggest putting them in a little later in the cooking process.

Ingredients

-6-8 chicken thighs, bones in, skin removed

-1 Tablespoon Olive Oil

-1 small onion chopped

-1/2 of a butternut squash, cubed to about 3/4 inch pieces ( not too small)

-1 red pepper, sliced

-1 package of pre-cut mushrooms

-1/2 bag of baby carrots

-1/2 head of broccoli florets, most of stem removed.

( you can add any vegetables you want to use up )

-1 28 can of plum tomatoes, cut up, or diced tomatoes, no salt added, with juice

-1 1/2 teaspoons of Cumin

-1 heaping teaspoon of chopped bottle garlic

-4 whole cloves

-heaping 1/2 teaspoon of Carmadon

-I Can of low sodium chicken broth

-1 Cup of uncooked rice

-1 Cup of cut up apricots

Pre heat oven to 350

1- on stove top, fry chicken in olive oil for a minute or so on each side to sear in juices.

2- turn off heat. Pour uncooked rice into bottom of pan.

3- add carrots, onions, mushrooms, red pepper and apricots

4- in a bowl, mix tomatoes with juice, garlic, Cumin, Carmadon, Cloves, chicken broth. Pour over chicken and hard vegetables.

5- Cover and place in oven. Cook for about 20 minutes. Remove, add remaining softer vegetables ( broccoli, squash, pea pods, etc) . Stir and recover-

6- cook for about 40 -50 more minutes, until chicken is done, vegetables are soft, and rice is cooked. You might need a little water the last few minutes if the rice has absorbed too much liquid.

Greek Potatoes

Even though I'm Italian, I do love the Greek influence of flavor of garlic, oregano and lemon combined in dishes, which are the secret ingredients to this dish. This is one of my favorite ways to prepare potatoes - they are excellent side to any grilled meat meal. I use baby red or golden potatoes so I don't have to peel them because the skin is thin. and I get to use my one of my favorite kitchen gadget, my old fashioned lemon squeezer. I used to buy the bottled lemon juice, but it had a funny aftertaste. I got my citrus squeezer from the Pampered Chef, and I love it because it's one unit (squeezer, bowl, and strainer) all in one. Makes juicing a breeze.

Ingredients

-6-8 medium sized thin skin potatoes, washed, and cut into pieces ( depending upon the size of the potato, you would cut them into 4 or 6 pieces)

-fresh juice of two large lemons ( about 1/2 cup)

-1 heaping Tablespoon of chopped fresh oregano

-salt and pepper to taste

-1/3 C of olive oil

-1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder

-1 1/2 cups of water, divided

-1 can of low sodium chicken broth

pre-heat oven to 475

1-Toss together first five ingredients ( through garlic powder) in a flat 9x12 metal baking pan.

2- Add the chicken broth and half of the water .

3-Bake uncovered for about 45-60 minutes. check every fifteen- twenty minutes and stir. Add more water for first half hour if pan gets dry. For last 15-20 minutes, let broth/water dry out so potatoes get a little crispier. You may need to cook them a little longer than 60 minutes to get the liquid to dry out- just don't let the potatoes burn !

Mediterranean Flank Steak

I make this for Jim when we want beef but can't really cook out on the grill. This is a manly meal because Jim gets to pound the beef with his rubber mallet (one of the many construction tools we consider handy in the kitchen....) Jim's secret is that he uses a LARGE Ziploc bag instead of waxed paper. The plastic bag holds up much better than the wax paper, and the meat or chicken juices don't fly around and make a mess.

1 Flank Steak
1/4 cup Feta cheese crumbled
2 Tbsp of roasted red peppers
1/4 of medium size sweet onion
1/4 C Tbsp of Kalamata olives
1- 1/2 Cups of Fresh Spinach
1/2 Teaspoon Cumin
1/4 Teaspoon garlic powder
1 Tbsp of grated lemon rind
salt and pepper
pre-heat oven to 350
1-Place flank steak in large Ziploc bag and pound to 1/4 inch thickness.
2- In mini chop food processor ( or by hand) lightly PULSE chop onion, olives, spinach, and red peppers. DO NOT OVER CHOP to pesto,or else the filling will be runny. Mix in Feta cheese, Cumin, garlic powder, and lemon rind.
3- generously season flank steak with salt and pepper. Lay flat on cutting board.
4- Spread filling on steak, leaving about a 1 inch border on the sides. Pat down. Roll up like a jelly roll, and tie with kitchen string. (we also use toothpicks to help keep it tight).
5-Set on rack in broiler pan, lined with tin foil.
6- Bake in oven for about an hour- meat will looked cooked on outside, but still medium rare on inside.
7- let sit about 10 minutes before slicing.

Pork Chops with Feta, Olives, and Peppers Recipe

We love these pork chops because they are SOOOOO moist. The secret ingredient is the old stand by-Shake and Bake. Don't knock it. The stuff really works.

1 package Shake and Bake for pork
3 boneless center cut pork chops

1 Tbsp grated lemon rind
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 Tbsp fresh parsley or 1 1/2 tsp of dry parsley
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp fresh or 1/2 tsp dry oregano

1/2 cup of feta cheese, broken up
1/2 cup of olives, chopped fine (kalamata,black or your favorite)

Preheat oven to 400.
prepare pork with Shake and Bake, as per directions.
Place in 8x8 pan and bake uncovered for 25 minutes.

In the meantime, mix oil, rind, juice, and spices in a small prep bowl.

Spoon mixture over the pork chops. Back in the oven for 5 minutes

Combine feta cheese and olives. Spoon over pork chops, bake 5 to 10 more minutes (depending upon the thickness of the chops).

I like to serve this with rice pilaf.

Meatballs and Sausages with Peas Recipe

It's Jim's birthday tomorrow and I'm making him his favorite- Meatballs and Sausages. He doesn't really care for the pasta as much as the meat- I make up for it since I'd rather just eat the pasta- that's why we get along so well :).

One secret ingredient is wine- which you sear the sausages in. It makes them very juicy and flavorful. I also use the meatloaf meat mix at Stop & Shop of ground beef, veal, and pork, although you can make it yourself. The mix of meats makes a much tastier meatball then just plain old ground beef. Finally, make sure you add a package of dry beef bouillon to your meatball mix, it makes them taste a bit heartier.

I use my trusty Caphalon 8.5 quart dutch oven to cook this on the stove because it is flat and wide so the sauce and meat cooks more evenly. NOTHING EVER BURNS IN THIS POT. It is the best

The sauce can get a little runny, so don't over do the water you add and best to serve this over rice (vs pasta) so that the rice sops up all the sauce.

This is a big recipe because Jim will eat them all week- feel free to cut in half.
2 packages of Perri Sweet Italian Sausages ( 10 )
Meatballs
3 to 4 slices of white bread, preferably Italian, crust removed
milk
2 lbs of ground beef/pork/veal meatloaf mix -
2 Large eggs
1 package of beef bouillon dry - low sodium
1 TBSP of dried parsley
2 tsp of dried basil
1 tsp of garlic powder.
Soak break in milk until absorb. With hands, break up into small pieces. Combine meat, eggs, and all the spices with the bread and milk. mix with hands until well mixed.
Form into 2 inch meatballs ( about 8 per pound). they may be a bit bigger than you expect, however, some of the meat will fall off in the sauce ( making your sauce meatier and richer).
Put in fridge until needed.

Sauce
2 large cans of Pastene Kitchen Ready ground tomatoes ( no salt added)
1 can of Hunts Tomato Paste ( no salt added)
1 cup of your favorite red wine ( so you can drink the rest of the bottle)
1 medium sweet onion chopped
1 Tablespoon dried parsley
2 tsp dried basil
1 tsp garlic powder
2 small or one large bay leaf
4 whole cloves ( not garlic ! the kind you put on hams at Easter)
salt and pepper to taste

1 Bag of frozen peas, thawed.

To start sauce-
In large pan or dutch oven, place sausages on bottom in single layer. Peirce with fork 3 to 4 times. turn over , Peirce again.
Pour wine on sausages. Turn stove low to medium heat and brown sausages, all sides.
Add onion and cook for 2 minutes.
Add ground tomatoes and paste.
Fill one ground tomatoes can halfway full with water and add to sauce.
Add spices. Stir.
Cover and cook for about 1/2 hour on low heat, so sauce simmers, but does not burn.
After 1/2 hour, carefully add meatballs and push down to make sure they are covered with sauce. Cook for 1/2 hour
Add frozen peas and cook for another 15 to 30 minutes, until sauce is done and meatballs are cooked through.

Serve over rice or pasta

Oven Fried Lemonade Chicken Recipe

Ok, this is definitely not "light" "lo-cal". But it's better for you than real deep fried chicken ( I hope :)).I found this recipe in First Magazine a couple of years ago. The secret ingredient is LEMONADE ! I love lemons- so I really like the flavor the lemonade gives to the dish. This is a pretty easy recipe, you can of course double it if you want more for a crowd.

1 12 oz cans of frozen lemonade
1 Tbs salt ( divided)
1 1/2 cups Italian -seasoned bread crumbs
1/4 Cup of olive oil
1 tsp of minced bottled garlic
1 Tbs of chopped fresh rosemary ( 1 tsp if you are using dry herbs)
1 Tbs of grated lemon zest
1 tsp of cracked pepper
8-10 peices of cut up chicken, bones in.

1- In large sealable bag, combine undiluted lemondae concentrate and 1 Teaspoon of salt. Add chicken, seal, turn to coat, and refrigerate for 1 hour.

2- Preheat oven to 400. In flat bowl, combine remaining ingredients. Remove chicken from bag. Discard marinade.

3- Coat chicken in bread crumb mixture.
4- Line deep roasting pan with foil, and put rack or cookie cooler rack inside. Place chicken on rack, bake until no longer pink at bone- about 45 minutes. If you use more than one pan, make sure to switch the pans/racks about halfway through.

This can be served warm, or cooled and refrigerated until ready to serve.

Cocoa Wedding Cookies Recipe

This is a recipe from Good Housekeeping. I LOVE Mexican wedding cookies, and I have to say, these are by far the best ones I have tried so far. The secret ingredient is the Cocoa and mini chocolate chips. It turns them into delicious melt in your mouth chocolate confections that you won't be able to stop eating. Far superior to the vanilla traditional cookies.

1 Cup Pecans ( or almonds if desired)
1 3/4 Cups confectioner's sugar
1 Cup (2 sticks) cold butter, cut up ( no substitutions)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 3/4 Cups flour
1/3 Cup unsweetened cocoa
1/3 Cup chocolate semi-sweet mini chips

Preheat oven to 325.

1- In a food processor, pulse grind pecans with half cup of the confectioners sugar until finely ground. Add butter and vanilla and process until smooth, occasionally stopping processor to scrape side with rubber spatula. Add flour and cocoa and pulse until evenly mixed. Add chocolate chips and pulse until just combined.

2- With floured hands, shape dough into 1 inch balls. Place balls 1 inch apart on large ungreased cookie sheet.

3- Bake 16-18 minutes until bottoms are lightly browned. If using two cookie sheets, switch racks halfway through.

Transfer cookies to wire rack and cool a couple of minutes.

Roll in remaining confectioners sugar to coat.

Return to rack and cool completely.

Once cool, roll in sugar one more time ( you can never have enough sugar)

Store in airtight tin. These last about a week, if they're not immediately gobbled up.

Peppermint Layer Cookies Recipe

This is a recipe from Sunset magazine that I have adapted. These are very "showy" cookies - they look good and they taste good ! I make them for my holiday gift tins. The secret to this recipe is not an ingredient- but more a process that makes them easier to make and actually prettier in presentation.

The cookies are made by fusing three different colored doughs together and then cutting them so that they are tri-colored. The problem I had the first year I made them was that they fell apart in the oven. So this year, once I assembled them, I froze them unbaked on a cookie sheet overnight. When I baked them the next day, they stayed together and looked beautiful. I also used insulated cookie sheets, so I did not need to bake them on parchment paper.

1 Cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/3 Cups sugar
3 Cups flour, plus more for rolling
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg plus 2 egg yolks
2 tsps vanilla extract
1/2 tsp of peppermint extract, divided
20-25 drops red food coloring
1/8 Cup of cocoa
12 ounces of Ghiradelli semisweet chocolate morsels
1 Cup of almonds or hazelnuts chopped in a flat bowl.

1- Using stand mixer with paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar until fluffy, about four minutes. Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, using an electric hand mixer, mix flour, baking powder, and salt for about 30 seconds. (this works better than sifting to incorporate the baking powder into the flour).

2- With stand mixer running at low, add egg and yolks one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla. Slowly add flour mixture and beat on low just until combined- do not over mix.

3- Divide dough into thirds. Shape one third into a disk, set aside. Return another third to the mixing bowl. Add red coloring and 1/4 tsp of peppermint extract and mix, shape into a disk and set aside. Put last third of dough in mixing bowl and add 1/4 tsp peppermint extract and cocoa- shape into disk and set aside.

4- Draw a 6x8 inch rectangle on a piece of waxed paper. Lightly flour the paper. working with one disk at a time, put dough in center of rectangle. Using a lightly floured rolling pin, your fingers, and a pastry scraper, roll and shape each disk to fit the rectangle. Layer chocolate, white, and red layers on top of each other. Press gently with flour dusted rolling pin to seal layers together, and trim edges to be straight with a knife. Chill for at least 30 minutes, or up to overnight.

5- Remove from refrigerator and let dough stand for five minutes before cutting-Cut dough stack lengthwise into three 2-inch wide columns. Cut each column crosswise into 1/3 in thick pieces. Do NOT make them too big (they spread a little while cooking).

6-Line a large cookie sheet with edges with wax paper. Carefully lay all the cookies side by side (as close as you can)and fill the sheet. Cover with a second layer of waxed paper, and place flat in the freezer for at least 2 hours- but can be up to 2 days.You can carefully stack cookie sheets on top of each other if you make alot.

7- To bake, preheat oven to 350. DO NOT take cookies out of freezer until you are ready. Place cookies about 2 inches apart on your regular cookie sheets you bake with. Make sure the sheets are not hot. You can use parchment paper, but since I use insulated cookie sheets, I do not need to. Bake cookies 8-10 minutes until edges are golden- watch them carefully so they don't burn. If you use two cookie sheets, make sure you change racks halfway through. Cool cookies on wire racks.

8- Melt chocolate in double boiler (or heatproof bowl over boiling pot of water- bottom of bowl should not touch water). Make sure not to get any water in the chocolate or it will seize. Stir chocolate until melted and smooth. Dip cookie about 1/2 inch into chocolate, then into nuts. Set on racks to harden.

Baked Apricot Chicken and Vegtables Recipe

I like making this dish in my big Caphalon 8.5 Qt Dutch Oven, one of my favorite pans I own. This is a great make it all in one pot meal- such easy clean up. The secret ingredient to this recipe is the French Dressing- it gives a creamy flavor to the dish and a pretty color too ! This is also a recipe that I love to throw Cranberries into. I live on Cape Cod, and everything tastes better with Cranberries. I usually have five or six bags in the freezer which I buy during the holidays, ready to use all year long. I also use dried cranberries in a pinch.

8 Chicken Thighs, bone in, but no skin
1 Cup of uncooked rice

1 Cup of Sugar Free Apricot Preserves
1 Cup of Light French dressing
1 Can of Chicken Broth, low sodium
1/2 Package of dry onion soup mix
1/2 tsp of Cummin
1/2 tsp of Cinnamon
1/4 tsp of ground ginger

baby carrots
broccoli crowns, cut up into small easy to eat size
handful of dried apricots - cut into small pieces
whole fresh, frozen or dried cranberries

preheat oven to 350

wash chicken and place in bottom of dutch oven, or other heavy oven ready pan.
Add uncooked rice and spread over chicken and pan.
Mix next seven ingredients in a medium bowl. Pour over chicken and rice.

Add carrots, broccoli crowns, dried apricots and cranberries. Stir slightly so veggies are in sauce.

Cover and bake for 30 minutes. Remove cover and cook for another 30-45 minutes until chicken is cooked and vegetables can easily be pierced with fork.