CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

The Only Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe you will ever need comes from Better Homes and Gardens...Compare it to Toll House Recipe.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 12 ounce package (2 cups)semisweet chocolate pieces
• 1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts, pecans, or hazelnuts (filberts) (optional)

 

 

1. In a large mixing bowl beat the shortening and butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add the brown sugar, granulated sugar, and baking soda. Beat mixture until combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in the eggs and vanilla until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. Stir in remaining flour. Stir in chocolate pieces and, if desired, nuts.

 

2. Drop dough by rounded teaspoons 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake in a 375 degree F oven 8 to 10 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Transfer cookies to a wire rack and let cool. Makes about 60 cookies.

 

 

TOLL HOUSE COOKIE RECIPE

 

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels
• 1 cup chopped nuts

 

POTATO LATKES

These are easy to fix if you buy Hash Brown Frozen but you can also use Fresh Idaho Potato shredded fresh in your processor.

 1 package Shredded Hash Browns
2 eggs
1/3 cup all purpose flour...
1/4 cup finely chopped green onion
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder

In large bowl stir together Potatoes, eggs, flour, green onion, pepper, salt, and baking powder. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat.

Cook 4 latkes at a time: spread 1/4 cup potato mixture for each latke into 3 1/2-inch circles in skillet. Cook 4 to 5 minutes, turning once. Repeat with remaining potato mixture and add oil to skillet as needed. Season with salt and pepper if desired.

Recipe adapted from
http://www.simplypotatoes.com/recipes/potato-latkes-recipe/0117aSee More

CAMP FIRE BISCUITS

CAMP FIRE BISCUITS

Google "Campfire Biscuits" and you will find 101 ways to ruin biscuits. Making Perfect Biscuits while camping is a challenge and an art but some folks just like improvising and have fun doing that. It is sort of like the S'mores phenomena, I guess. I offer you the directions here for the biscuit recipe only if you are trying to make the perfect champion winning biscuit in a Dutch Oven.

2 1/2  cups Self-Rising Flour or substitute All Purpose Flour + 5 tsp bk pwdr

1/2 c shortening

1/4 c butter

1 Tablespoon Sugar

1 tsp Salt

1  tsp Baking Soda

1 1/2 cup Buttermilk 

Directions:

Sift flour with your hands adding the sugar, salt and baking soda. Add cold butter and cut into the flour.


Make a well in the center of the flour and add the buttermilk, mixing with your hand until dough forms into a big lump in the center. Working in the center, inside the bowl, gently fold the dough over on itself about 4 times, lightly coating the ball with flour. You will not need to incorporate all the flour. If the dough comes together before you have used all the flour, that's OK; you want to keep the dough moist as possible for tender biscuits when done. If the dough is too dry, stir in 1-3 Tbls additional buttermilk.

 Pinch off pieces of dough for each biscuit, shaping in your hands with a light coat of flour left inside the bowl. This is very easy since the dough is no longer too sticky.

If you want to cut dough with a round cutter, roll the dough ball out on a cutting board coated with flour.  Cut out as many rounds as possible with a 2-1/2 to 3 inch round cookie/biscuit cutter dipped in flour.  (do not twist cutter or use an overturned glass which will seal the edges so they cannot rise.)


Grease bottom of 10" Cast Iron Skillet and pre-heat it in the hot oven. Remove hot skillet from oven and place biscuits in the skillet.

Brush tops of the biscuits with melted butter. Pop them into the hot oven.

Bake at 450 degrees for 20 minutes, until golden brown.

YIELD = 8-10


Serving Suggestions: Butter, Jam, Honey, Fruit Sauce, Whip cream or Sausage Gravy.



*Camp Fire Dutch Oven Baking: Grease the inside of the Dutch Oven. Pre-Heat 30 hot charcoal bricketts (place 1/3 of the hot charcoal under the Dutch Oven, on the ground inside your fire pit, place 2/3 hot bricketts on the top of the lid..  More heat should be on top of the lid so you don't burn the bottoms.  Don't peak for 20 minutes. Every time you open the lid it will take 5 more minutes to recapture the heat.


* If you do not have Self-Rising Flour you can use All Purpose Flour and add 1 1/2 Tbsp baking powder.

*Cinnamon-Sugar Biscuits: Increase sugar to 1/2 cup; add cinnamon to flour mixture.  Add raisins or blueberries to dough mix. After baking, brush with melted butter and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar or a glaze.

* Cheese-Garlic Biscuits: Use 1 cup buttermilk; add 3/4 cup shredded cheese. After baking, brush with mixture of 2 Tbs melted butter and 1/8 tsp garlic powder.

*Raspberry, Blackberry or Peach Sauce: 4 cups berries, 1/2 cup water, 2 Tbls cornstarch. Bring to a boil and stir. Reduce heat and simmer for 2 minutes.

WHITE LILLY LIGHT & FLUFFY BISCUITS

White Lilly Fluffy Biscuits

Ingredients:

Crisco® Original No-Stick Cooking Spray
2 cups White Lily® Enriched Bleached Self-Rising Flour
OR 2 cups White Lily® Enriched Unbleached Self-Rising Flour
1/4 cup Crisco® All-Vegetable Shortening
OR 1/4 stick Crisco® Baking Sticks All-Vegetable Shortening
2/3 to 3/4 cups buttermilk or milk

Instructions:

1.	HEAT oven to 500°F. Coat baking sheet with no-stick cooking spray.
2.	MEASURE flour into large bowl. Cut in shortening with pastry blender or 2 knives until crumbs are the size of peas. Blend in just enough milk with fork until dough leaves sides of bowl.
3.	TURN dough onto lightly floured surface. Knead gently 2 to 3 times. Roll dough to 1/2-inch thickness. Cut using floured 2-inch biscuit cutter. Place on prepared baking sheet 1 inch apart for crisp sides or almost touching for soft sides.
4.	BAKE 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown.
	VARIATION
1.	GARLIC CHEESE BISCUITS: Stir in 1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese before adding milk. Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto prepared baking sheet. Bake as directed above. Combine 1/4 cup melted butter and 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder. Brush on warm biscuits.
2.	ALL-PURPOSE FLOUR: Combine 2 cups flour, 1 tablespoon baking powder and 1 teaspoon salt before cutting in shortening. Follow directions above.

GRILLED ASPARAGUS

Cast Iron Skillet "Grilled" Asparagus



from the skillet to the plate

2-3 tbsp butter or margarine ( I use Smart Margarine )
salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper
1-1.5 lb asparagus, trimmed
other seasoning are optional

Heat cast iron skillet over medium heat; add butter, salt, pepper ( black and cayenne ) and any other flavoring you desire...

Once butter is melted, add flavorings and asparagus, toss with your hands to coat... raise temperature to above 350 (high) cooking and rotating till asparagus beings to brown a bit.

Cover skillet and allow asparagus to steam until fork tender, about two more minutes, then reduce temperature to low. It is now tender and ready to eat but you can leave it set in the skillet if your dinner is not ready, just remove from the hot burner..

SHRIMP JAMBALAYA

Shrimp and Sausage Jambalaya

Ingredients

·         1 tablespoon olive oil

·         1 pound sausage, such as kielbasa or andouille, sliced 

·         1 pound smoked ham, cubed

·         1 tablespoon butter

·         1 medium onion, diced

·         1 cup diced celery

·         1 green bell pepper, cored and diced

·         1 red bell pepper, cored and diced

·         1 cup seeded and diced tomato

·         3 garlic cloves, minced

·         1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced OR 1/2 teaspoon cayenne

  2 teaspoons diced fresh oregano

 1 teaspoon diced fresh thyme

  2 tablespoons tomato paste

 6 cups chicken stock, preferably homemade

 3 cups long-grain rice, rinsed

 3 bay leaves

 2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

 6 to 8 dashes hot sauce, optional (recommended: Tabasco)

1/2 cup chopped scallions, divided

 3/4 cup chopped fresh parsley, divided

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 pound medium shrimp, divined (20 to 24 count)

Directions

Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven or black iron pot over medium heat, add the kielbasa and saute for 8 to 10 minutes, until browned. Remove the kielbasa to a bowl, and set aside. Add the ham to the same pot and cook 8 to 10 minutes, until lightly browned. Remove to the bowl with the kielbasa, and set aside. Add the butter, onion, celery and peppers to the same pot and saute for 8 to 10 minutes, until the onion is translucent. Add the tomato, garlic, jalapeno or cayenne, oregano, thyme, and tomato paste and cook until all the vegetables and herbs are blended well. Add the stock and bring to a rolling boil. Stir in the rice, and add the sausage, ham, bay leaves, salt, pepper and hot sauce. Return to a boil, reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes. Add 1/4 cup of the scallions, 1/4 cup of the parsley, the lemon juice and the shrimp, and stir well. Cover the pot, remove it from the heat and allow the jambalaya steam, for 15 minutes, before serving.

Garnish with the remaining 1/4 cup scallions and 1/2 cup parsley, and a dash of hot sauce, if desired

MAGIC DUST/RUB for BRBQ or Smoking and Mopping Sauce

Ingredients for My Magic Dust Dry Rub:   

·         1/2 cup Paprika

·         1/4 cup Kosher Salt

·         1/4 cup Sugar Brown

·         2 Tbls Mustard Powder

·         1/4 cup Chile powder

·         1/4 cup Ground Cumin

·         1 Tbls  Black Pepper

·         1/4 cup Granulated Garlic

·         1 Tbls Cayenne

·         2 Tbls Onion Powder

·         2 tsp All Spice Powder 

Combine ingredients in a container and mix thoroughly. Keep on the shelf for BRBQ, Smoking or a General House Seasoning.

Rub Paste

1/4 Cup Brown Mustard

2 Tbls Molasses

To begin, mix up the Rub Paste,  and rub it onto the meat with your hands. Sprinkle generously with magic dust and spread it around into the Paste Rub pretty liberally all over the meat. Cover the meat loosely and refrigerate  for a few hours at least, overnight would be super.  The Rub Paste will help your Dry Rub stick to the meat and develop a great flavor.

This is generally a first step in flavoring the meat.  You may also be adding other methods of flavor and moisturizing like using a Mop Recipe (recipe follows) during the cooking or a Glaze for finishing off.

Brisket Mopping Sauce

This recipe starts out with one 12 ounce bottle of beer. You can substitute 3/4 cup of wine, apple juice or apple cider for the beer, but it needs to be combined with an equal amount of water.

12 oz beer

 2 tablespoons  up to ½ cup as desired , Malt vinegar or Red Vinegar

 2 tsp  Magic Dust (any paprika, chili powder style rub of your choice )

2 crushed cloves of garlic

1/2 medium onion processed to fine

2 Serrano or Jalapeno Peppers or only  1 Habanero (processed with no seeds )

 1/4 – 1/3 cup of light vegetable oil  -  this gets added later, right before this basting liquid is used.

Mix this up at least a couple of hours ahead of time so the flavors have a chance to blend. An overnight rest in the refrigerator is even better. It takes time for the onion and garlic to flavor the liquid. 

ush the brisket mopping sauce< onto the meat every hour or so after the first four hours of smoking. For a big brisket, make up two recipes of the sauce.

Did you know that brisket mopping sauce is not a type of barbecue sauce? It's a basting liquid, made thin, flavorful, and without a lot of sugar or tomato that could burn, ruining your brisket. You can adjust the ingredients a little to get the flavor just the way you like. I've substituted chopped Jalapeno/Serrano peppers for half of the chopped onion...and it was good!

The following recipe is a little on the spicy side, so you might want to cut back on the cayenne pepper if you're feeding a gaggle of young'uns. The alcohol in the beer or wine will evaporate off quickly, but if you're concerned, you can substitute apple juice or cider.

Theory Behind Brisket Mopping Sauce

The acidic vinegar in the mopping sauce has a tenderizing effect, and it also pushes the other flavors deeper into the meat. The beer and wine add flavor and moisture, while the oil coats the surface of the brisket, helping to seal in the moisture. That's brisket mopping sauce for ya!