Cinnamon Stars

I was very disappointed with this recipe. I followed it exactly and it was a mess so I had to add more flour. Even after chilling the dough it was way to sticky to roll out. I ended up at least doubling the flour. After baking, the cookies were rock hard and tasted like card board. The icing made them a little better but I will not make these again.



Cinnamon Stars
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Cinnamon-Cookies-I/Detail.aspx

1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
3 egg yolks
2 tablespoons milk
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

1. In a medium bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Beat in the egg yolks, then stir in the milk. Combine the flour, cinnamon, baking powder and salt, stir into the wet ingredients until well blended. Wrap dough and chill for at least 2 hours.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
3. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut out cookies using a 2 1/4 inch cookie cutter. Place cookies 1 inch apart onto a cookie sheet.
4. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven, until lightly browned. Remove cookies to wire racks and cool.

Icing
1 cup powder sugar
1 Tbs milk

Stir until well combined and drizzle over cooled cookies.

Snow Caps

This is one of my favorite cookies. I've made these every year around Christmas for at least the last 5 years. The white meringues make me think of winter. I love how they melt in your mouth.


Snow Caps

3 egg whites
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Heat oven to 200 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. In a large bowl combine egg whites and cream of tartar. Beat on high speed. Add sugar, 1 Tablespoon at a time. Beat until peaks form. Add vanilla. Beat 1 minute. Fold in chocolate chips. Drop by teaspoonfuls. Bake 2 hours or until meringues are dry. Rotate baking sheets half-way through. Turn off heat and leave in oven 2-4 hours until dry.

One Batter, Three Kinds of Cookies

This is a great cookie batter if you want to make several kinds of cookies to please a crowd. Some mix-in ideas are chocolate chips, M&Ms, raisins, oatmeal, chopped nuts, chopped candy bar pieces, or whatever you like.

Basic Batter

2 1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs

Mix-ins
1. 1/2 cup dried cranberries and 3/4 cup white chocolate chips


2. 12 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips


3. 2 cups mini M&Ms



1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside.
3. In a large bowl, beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla extract until creamy.
4. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
5. Gradually beat in flour mixture to the butter mixture.
6. Stir in mix-ins.
7. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased cookie sheet.
8. Bake for 9-11 minutes, or until golden brown.
9. Allow to cool on the baking sheet for 2 minutes, then transfer the cookies to wire racks to cool completely.

Makes 36 cookies

Chicken Cacciatore

This was the first time I've ever made or eaten chicken cacciatore. It was very easy to make and it was tasty. This might become a regular week night dinner for us. I got the idea for this from allrecipes.com but I made some modifications and omitted the mushrooms of course!


Chicken Cacciatore
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Moms-Chicken-Cacciatore/Detail.aspx (modified)

• 1 cup all-purpose flour for coating
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 3 chicken breasts, trimmed and cut into pieces
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 cup chopped cooked spinach
  
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 bay leaves
  
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1 cup chicken broth
  
• salt and pepper to taste

1. Combine the flour, salt and pepper in a plastic bag. Shake the chicken pieces in flour until coated. Heat the oil in a large skillet (one that has a cover/lid). Fry the chicken pieces until they are browned on both sides. Remove from skillet.
2. Add the onion, garlic and bell pepper to the skillet and saute until the onion is slightly browned. Return the chicken to the skillet and add the tomatoes, tomato sauce, bay leaves, oregano, chicken broth and wine. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes over medium low heat.
3. Add the spinach and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for 10 more minutes.
4. Serve over angel hair pasta or white rice.
   

Caramel-Apple Pudding Cake

I saw this recipe on Melissa's Magic in the Kitchen Blog. It looked delicious so I decided to give it a try. It was wonderful but it came out very watery so I would recommend omitting the 1/2 cup of water.



Caramel-Apple Pudding Cake
Better Homes and Gardens


2 medium tart cooking apples, such as Granny Smith or Jonathan, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced (2 cups) - I used Granny Smith
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 cup raisins (I omitted these)
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup milk
2 tablespoons butter (no substitutes), melted
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (I omitted these)
3/4 cup caramel ice cream topping
1/2 cup water (I recommend omitting this)
1 tablespoon butter (no substitutes)
Vanilla Ice Cream - optional

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Grease a 2-quart square baking dish; arrange apple slices in bottom of dish. Sprinkle with lemon juice, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Top evenly with raisins; set aside.
3. Combine flour, brown sugar, baking powder, and baking soda in a large bowl. Add milk, the 2 tablespoons melted butter, and vanilla; mix well. Stir in nuts. Spread batter evenly over apple mixture.
4. Combine caramel topping, water, and the 1 tablespoon butter in a small saucepan; bring to boiling. Pour caramel mixture over the batter in the baking dish.
5. Bake in the preheated oven for 35 minutes or until set in center. Spoon warm individual servings into dessert dishes, inverting each portion. Spoon caramel-apple mixture from the pan over each portion. Makes 12 servings.

Pepper Steak

I was feeling creative and decided to try something new in my crockpot. This turned out great and it was the perfect combination of sweet and tangy. I will definitely make this again.


Pepper Steak

2 lbs lean sirloin steak cut into 1 inch pieces
1 cup flour
1 green bell pepper cut into 1 inch pieces
1/4 cup soy sauce
1-14 oz can crushed pineapple
1/2 tsp black pepper

Heat a frying pan over medium heat. Coat meat with flour. Add meat to frying pan in batches and brown on both sides. Add meat, bell pepper, soy sauce, pineapple, and pepper to crockpot. Cook on high for 3 hours. Serve over white rice.

Beef and Barley Soup

Beef and Barley soup is probably my all time favorite soup. This is a recipe from my grandmother. Whenever I would go visit her I would always ask her to make it. You can use whatever veggies you have on hand. Some that work really well are carrots, celery, okra, squash, zucchini, tomatoes, potatoes, and cauliflower. Always use fresh veggies and never frozen or canned because it makes a huge difference in this soup.



Beef and Barley Soup

1 lb ground beef
1 cup pearl barley
8 cups chicken broth
3 cups fresh vegetables, chopped into bite size pieces
1-8oz can tomato sauce
salt and pepper to taste
5 slices Kraft singles

Brown meat and drain fat. Rinse barley and add to a large pot with water. Boil barley for 10 minutes. Drain water. Add the meat, broth, and veggies to the barley pot. Bring back to a boil for about 30 minutes or until the vegetables are tender. Reduce heat and add the tomato sauce, salt, and pepper. Add the cheese slices one at a time to the soup, stirring between each addition. Continue stirring until cheese is completely dissolved in the soup.