I think that this one was in the latest Rachel Ray Mag. My sister-in-law, Gwen has tried it and swears it is great. I purchased the stuff today and will likely try it before the day is out. I made us a good size meat loaf and Escalloped Potatoes for lunch. I tried the meat loaf with some added cheddar cheese mixed in and it makes it really good. Moister and more flavor.
Oatmeal Cranberry w/White Chocolate Cookies
Rachel Ray Fall 2009
2/3 C. softened butter
2/3 C. Brown Sugar
2 Lrg. eggs
1 1/2 C. old fashioned oatmeal
1 1/2 C. flour
6 oz. Craisins
2/3 C. white chocolate morsels
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
Not sure if Rachel or I missed the vanilla, salt, baking powder here but I have it on there now and it makes a difference.
375 F for 10-12 minutes.
Try it and see if it something you like. Don't be afraid of Cranberries. Dried they are really tasty out of hand, in a salad or baked in scones and cookies as well as breads.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Beef and Cremini Mushroom French Onion Soup
How is everyone?
It sure is getting cold these days and the weekend brought a real frost. My sweet basil is done for so I should dig my rosemary before it is done for as well. We spent the weekend with Mom and it was great to see her feeling a bit better. At 83 she is slowing down but they had her on some med's that seemed to be dragging her to her knees. The doctor put her on a halter monitor and things were fine with her heart, that you, Lord. So Dr. Wagner took her off of part of the propraninal that she was taking. She is feeling better and her stamina is improving. Her voice is even stronger today.
As always going to see Mom is a cooking time and trying new things. I made Cheddar Potato Soup while we were there and I made a pot of soup that I found the recipe for in Hy-Vee's Seasons Mag. It was quite good and thought that you might like to try it. I really like French Onion Soup and I love beef so this one was a winner all the way around for me.
Beef and Cremini Mushroom French Onion Soup
from Hy-Vee's Seasons Mag. Fall 2009
1 Tbsp. olive oil
12 oz. trimmed stew beef (I would use a nice piece of sirloin, if were you, cut in bite sized pieces, as it was Mom had a Hormel prepackaged sirloin tips in au' gue that she wanted me to try and it was really good using pre packaged meat and gravy)
2 Tbsp. butter
2 lrg. yellow onions, peels and thinly sliced
1 C. sliced fresh cremini or baby bella mushroon (Hy-Vee didn't have the cremini so I went with the sliced baby bellas)
5 C. beef broth (if you like I think that if you used 3 cups of beef Stock and 2 of broth it would be a bit richer)
1/2 C. dry red wine (Mom doesn't do wine at all so I used the liquid from the prepackaged entry for this liquid and didn't really miss the wine at all)
1 1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce (I used the Lea and Perkin's thick , this time)
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp. thyme (choose fresh and it was wonderful)
1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper
6 3/4 inch slices of French baguette bread (I chose to used Italian bread)
1/2 C. finely shredded gruyere or Swiss cheese
Heat the oil in a 4 quart Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the beef cubes and cook about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the beef is browned. Remove beef from the Dutch oven: reserve dripping in the pan and set aside beef. Add butter to the drippings and heat over medium-low heat. Add onions and cook, covered, for 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook, covered 5 minutes more or until onions are golden, stirring occasionally. Stir in the beef, broth, wine, Worcestershire, bay leaf, thyme and pepper: reduce heat and simmer, covered for 30 minutes. Discard the bay leaf. Meanwhile, place the slices of bread on a baking sheet. Divide the cheese evenly and top each slice. Heat for a few moments under the broiler (be careful, this step doesn't take long at all and the crusty bread burns easily) Ladle the soup in to bowls and top with a slice of the cheese toasted bread.
6 servings
This one is a keeper.
Enjoy and talk to you again soon.
God Bless and Hugs To All,
Linda
It sure is getting cold these days and the weekend brought a real frost. My sweet basil is done for so I should dig my rosemary before it is done for as well. We spent the weekend with Mom and it was great to see her feeling a bit better. At 83 she is slowing down but they had her on some med's that seemed to be dragging her to her knees. The doctor put her on a halter monitor and things were fine with her heart, that you, Lord. So Dr. Wagner took her off of part of the propraninal that she was taking. She is feeling better and her stamina is improving. Her voice is even stronger today.
As always going to see Mom is a cooking time and trying new things. I made Cheddar Potato Soup while we were there and I made a pot of soup that I found the recipe for in Hy-Vee's Seasons Mag. It was quite good and thought that you might like to try it. I really like French Onion Soup and I love beef so this one was a winner all the way around for me.
Beef and Cremini Mushroom French Onion Soup
from Hy-Vee's Seasons Mag. Fall 2009
1 Tbsp. olive oil
12 oz. trimmed stew beef (I would use a nice piece of sirloin, if were you, cut in bite sized pieces, as it was Mom had a Hormel prepackaged sirloin tips in au' gue that she wanted me to try and it was really good using pre packaged meat and gravy)
2 Tbsp. butter
2 lrg. yellow onions, peels and thinly sliced
1 C. sliced fresh cremini or baby bella mushroon (Hy-Vee didn't have the cremini so I went with the sliced baby bellas)
5 C. beef broth (if you like I think that if you used 3 cups of beef Stock and 2 of broth it would be a bit richer)
1/2 C. dry red wine (Mom doesn't do wine at all so I used the liquid from the prepackaged entry for this liquid and didn't really miss the wine at all)
1 1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce (I used the Lea and Perkin's thick , this time)
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp. thyme (choose fresh and it was wonderful)
1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper
6 3/4 inch slices of French baguette bread (I chose to used Italian bread)
1/2 C. finely shredded gruyere or Swiss cheese
Heat the oil in a 4 quart Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the beef cubes and cook about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the beef is browned. Remove beef from the Dutch oven: reserve dripping in the pan and set aside beef. Add butter to the drippings and heat over medium-low heat. Add onions and cook, covered, for 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook, covered 5 minutes more or until onions are golden, stirring occasionally. Stir in the beef, broth, wine, Worcestershire, bay leaf, thyme and pepper: reduce heat and simmer, covered for 30 minutes. Discard the bay leaf. Meanwhile, place the slices of bread on a baking sheet. Divide the cheese evenly and top each slice. Heat for a few moments under the broiler (be careful, this step doesn't take long at all and the crusty bread burns easily) Ladle the soup in to bowls and top with a slice of the cheese toasted bread.
6 servings
This one is a keeper.
Enjoy and talk to you again soon.
God Bless and Hugs To All,
Linda
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Golden Squash Soup
I don't think that I have shared this one with you to this point. The original recipe called for leeks but onions will work. I have made a few other changes that I will tell you as you progress through this. The recipe came from Taste of Home Mag. in October of 2007. Making it the way the recipe is written is very labor intensive and I think that it has better flavor doing it my way because anytime that you roast a veggie the flavor is far better than if you boil it even if you boil it in chicken broth. Here we go:
5 med. leeks, white portion only, cleaned and thinly sliced (you can use a medium onion if you can't find leeks, they are kind of seasonal in some areas)
2 tbsp. butter
1 1/2 pound butternut squash, peal, seeded and cubed (here I prefer to cut the squash in half, seed it and them bake cut side down on baking sheet for about and hour at 350F or until it is fork tender when pierced. When it have it baked, I then scrape the flesh from the skin and proceed the rest of the way as described)
4 C. chicken broth
1/4 tsp. thyme
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 3/4 C. shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 C. sour cream
2 tbsp. chives, chopped
In a large sauce pan, saute leeks in butter until tender. Stir in the cubed squash, broth, thyme, and pepper. ( I would just put the roasted squash in the broth and seasoning and bring to a boil.)
Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the squash is tender (10-15 minute). Cool slightly.
In a blender, cover and process the squash mixture in batches until smooth: (BE CAREFUL HERE HOT THINGS IN BLENDER SOMETIMES BLOW THE TOP OF THE BLENDER AND BURN YOU) Return the now pureed mixture back to the pot and bring to a simmer. Add the cheese; stir until soup is heated through and cheese is melted. Garnish with the sour cream and chives. (I like to add about 1/2 C. of sour cream to the pot when I add the cheese, as well.)
When Den was recovering from his ulcers in the esophagus this was one of his favorite soft foods.
God Bless,
Linda
5 med. leeks, white portion only, cleaned and thinly sliced (you can use a medium onion if you can't find leeks, they are kind of seasonal in some areas)
2 tbsp. butter
1 1/2 pound butternut squash, peal, seeded and cubed (here I prefer to cut the squash in half, seed it and them bake cut side down on baking sheet for about and hour at 350F or until it is fork tender when pierced. When it have it baked, I then scrape the flesh from the skin and proceed the rest of the way as described)
4 C. chicken broth
1/4 tsp. thyme
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 3/4 C. shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 C. sour cream
2 tbsp. chives, chopped
In a large sauce pan, saute leeks in butter until tender. Stir in the cubed squash, broth, thyme, and pepper. ( I would just put the roasted squash in the broth and seasoning and bring to a boil.)
Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the squash is tender (10-15 minute). Cool slightly.
In a blender, cover and process the squash mixture in batches until smooth: (BE CAREFUL HERE HOT THINGS IN BLENDER SOMETIMES BLOW THE TOP OF THE BLENDER AND BURN YOU) Return the now pureed mixture back to the pot and bring to a simmer. Add the cheese; stir until soup is heated through and cheese is melted. Garnish with the sour cream and chives. (I like to add about 1/2 C. of sour cream to the pot when I add the cheese, as well.)
When Den was recovering from his ulcers in the esophagus this was one of his favorite soft foods.
God Bless,
Linda
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Meg's Scalloped Potatoes
This next one is from a recipe book that I picked up in Petosky, Mich. many years ago and called Mrs. Chard's Almanac Cookbook, Hollyhocks and Radishes, page 119
Meg's Scalloped Potatoes
Serves 8
8 med potatoes unpeeled
1 small to medium onion, thinly sliced
3 tbsp. butter
12 oz. grated sharp cheddar
3/4 C. milk
1/2 C. Chicken Broth
2 tbsp. soy sauce (this I left out as Den is allergic) (I use a tsp. of Penzey's Murel of Flavor)
2 tbsp. chopped parsley (right out the herb bed next to the back door)
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. thyme
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
Spray you 3 qt. baking dish with PAM. Scrub, then thinly slice the potatoes into the baking dish. Layer with the onion and dot with 3 tbsp. butter. Cover with the cheese.
Combine the rest of the ingredients, pour over the top of the potatoes
Cover with foil and bake at 350F for 1.5 hours.
IN the MEAN TIME:
Combine
1/2 C. bread crumbs
2 tbsp. butter, melted
Remove the foil and sprinkle the bread crumb mixture over the top and back into the oven for 10 more minutes.
Meg's Scalloped Potatoes
Serves 8
8 med potatoes unpeeled
1 small to medium onion, thinly sliced
3 tbsp. butter
12 oz. grated sharp cheddar
3/4 C. milk
1/2 C. Chicken Broth
2 tbsp. soy sauce (this I left out as Den is allergic) (I use a tsp. of Penzey's Murel of Flavor)
2 tbsp. chopped parsley (right out the herb bed next to the back door)
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. thyme
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
Spray you 3 qt. baking dish with PAM. Scrub, then thinly slice the potatoes into the baking dish. Layer with the onion and dot with 3 tbsp. butter. Cover with the cheese.
Combine the rest of the ingredients, pour over the top of the potatoes
Cover with foil and bake at 350F for 1.5 hours.
IN the MEAN TIME:
Combine
1/2 C. bread crumbs
2 tbsp. butter, melted
Remove the foil and sprinkle the bread crumb mixture over the top and back into the oven for 10 more minutes.
Betty's Apple Raspberry Pie
Crust:
3 C. flour (remember that this is not bread and what you want is something that will give you a light flaky crust, so don't reach for the Robin Hood, OK. Gold Metal All Purpose if just fine for this)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. Baking Powder (using Baking Powder in your pie crust serves a couple of purposes, the bottom crust will not be soggy and it adds flakiness to entire crust)
1 tsp. sugar
1 C. Lard, chilled
1/2 C. Ice Water
I use my food processor for making my pie crust, lazy, maybe but it sure does cut the time in half. Combine the first 4 ingredients in the bowl of the food processor and whiz it just a bit to blend. Add in the chilled lard, cut into cubes and process to a course meal stage. Add in the ice water and process until it forms a ball of dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface or a lightly floured pastry cloth. Work to form 3 equal balls of dough (good for 3 single crusted pies) or I usually divide the dough in half and make a double crusted pie. The three will make a very thin crust and we kind of like the wee bit thicker for handling purposes.
Filling:
6 C. Apples, pared and sliced
1 1/4 C. sugar
1/3 C. flour
3/4 C. raspberries
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. vanilla extract
pinch of salt
Mix gentlely but well and put in a prepare pie shell. Dot the top of the filling with a couple dabs of butter (this makes the favors move around you mouth easier)
From here you can do a crumb topping or roll out one more of the pie crust dough balls and fashion your top crust. If you are making a two layer crusted pie, don't forget to seal your edges before you flute. Bake as you would any apple pie, for me that is 425F for 45 minutes.
French Crumb Topping;
1/2 C. butter, softened
1 C. flour
3/4 C. sugar
3 C. flour (remember that this is not bread and what you want is something that will give you a light flaky crust, so don't reach for the Robin Hood, OK. Gold Metal All Purpose if just fine for this)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. Baking Powder (using Baking Powder in your pie crust serves a couple of purposes, the bottom crust will not be soggy and it adds flakiness to entire crust)
1 tsp. sugar
1 C. Lard, chilled
1/2 C. Ice Water
I use my food processor for making my pie crust, lazy, maybe but it sure does cut the time in half. Combine the first 4 ingredients in the bowl of the food processor and whiz it just a bit to blend. Add in the chilled lard, cut into cubes and process to a course meal stage. Add in the ice water and process until it forms a ball of dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface or a lightly floured pastry cloth. Work to form 3 equal balls of dough (good for 3 single crusted pies) or I usually divide the dough in half and make a double crusted pie. The three will make a very thin crust and we kind of like the wee bit thicker for handling purposes.
Filling:
6 C. Apples, pared and sliced
1 1/4 C. sugar
1/3 C. flour
3/4 C. raspberries
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. vanilla extract
pinch of salt
Mix gentlely but well and put in a prepare pie shell. Dot the top of the filling with a couple dabs of butter (this makes the favors move around you mouth easier)
From here you can do a crumb topping or roll out one more of the pie crust dough balls and fashion your top crust. If you are making a two layer crusted pie, don't forget to seal your edges before you flute. Bake as you would any apple pie, for me that is 425F for 45 minutes.
French Crumb Topping;
1/2 C. butter, softened
1 C. flour
3/4 C. sugar
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