Sunday, December 30, 2012

Molten Chocolate Cake


2 1 oz chocolate squares (semi-sweet)
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
3 T flour

Preheat oven to 425.
Spray 2 custard cups with cooking spray.
Melt chocolate squares with butter in the microwave in 15-30 second increments, stirring between each until melted.
Add powdered sugar then mix in egg and egg yolk.
Add flour.
Pour into cups.
Bake for 14 minutes.
Let sit 3-5 minutes.



Run a knife around the edge, turn upside down into another bowl and serve with whipped cream (you can also serve it with ice cream, but I  like whipped cream better! It complements the taste of the cake rather than overpowering it.).

Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Sweet Chili

I can count on one hand the foods I don't like.  I pretty much like everything.  But ever since an unfortunate upchuck incident in the cafeteria when I was in the 2nd grade, I have declared chili to be on my "really don't like it" list.  We recently attended a potluck supper where some wonderful lady brought a crockpot of chili.  I politely took a small spoonful.  When I tasted it, I was surprised and delighted.  It was a sweet chili.  So I came home and googled "sweet chili" and found several versions. I combined a couple of them, trying to duplicate the one I tasted and have come up with a really good recipe for Sweet Chili.  

Sweet Chili
1 lb lean ground beef
1 onion, diced
1 green pepper, diced
5 (15 oz.) cans kidney or small red beans, drained
2 (6oz) cans tomato paste
2 (10 3/4 oz) cans Campbell's condensed tomato soup
4 tsp. chili powder
3/4 cup brown sugar
water as needed
In a big soup pot, brown the ground beef with the onion and peppers.  Add the other ingredients and cook on low until hot and bubbly- at least an hour.  Or you can cook the meat and vegetables in a skillet and put all in the crockpot for several hours.  

One of the recipes suggested that her children loved this served over macaroni.  So we tried it with some of the leftovers.  It was good.

Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Cottage Cheese Butter Horn Rolls

I went to a bread making class by JaDene Denniston and learned this amazing recipe. You can use this recipe as is or you can put stuff in it. My personal favorite is to make them into orange rolls.

Ingredients:
1 pint cottage cheese, warmed
2 eggs
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp soda
1/4 cup sugar
2 TBSP yeast
1/2 cup warm water
4 cups flour (no more than 4)

Instructions:
1. Mix the warm water and yeast in your BOSCH and let sit to proof a few minutes.
2. In blender, combine cottage cheese, eggs, salt, soda, and sugar until smooth.
3. Pour into large mixing bowl (or BOSCH if using that).
4. Add flour and knead gently but thoroughly.
5. Let rise 45 minutes to an hour, and fold down.
6. Divide dough into two portions.
7. Roll one half of the dough 1/4" thick into a 12" circle.
8. Spread with soft butter. Cut into 12 pie shapes pieces.
9. Beginning at the rounded edge, roll up. Place on lightly greased pan, point underneath.
10. Let rise for one hour. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes until golden brown.

Now to make them into the delicious orange rolls.

Orange Sugar Mix
1 cup sugar
Orange peel from an orange (zest just the orange part, not the white stuff that's bitter tasting)
1 tsp orange extract or 1/4 tsp orange oil
1/4 cup soft butter (I actually had this w/o the butter and they were divine. Not sure I'll ever put the butter in.)
Mix this together and spread on the 12"circle after the first part of step 8, before you cut it into 12 pieces.
This sugar mix is enough for all of the divided dough, so spread half of it on the first 12" round, saving the rest for the other batch.
Orange Glaze
2 TBSP orange juice
1 tsp grated orange peel (again, no white stuff, just the true orange part)
1 cup powdered sugar
Mix together and drizzle over top of the baked rolls. Enjoy!

What's For Dinner?

We attended a funeral out of town, so I'm a little late getting my meals planned and my list of meals posted this month.  December is always a busy month, so I try to plan easy meals.  I notice there are lots of soups of sandwiches!  That's good because they are my favorite meals.  Here's what's for dinner at our house this month:
  Bahn Mi Sandwiches
Chicken Stir Fry over Rice
Christmas Eve Chicken ala King
Chicken in Lime Butter Sauce/ Mashed Potatoes
Curried Chicken Salad on Croissants ( I have to make this every couple of months.  We love it.)
Kristen's Wisconsin Cheese and Potato Soup
Dr. Booth's Baked Eggs
Chicken Quesadilla's with Ken's Guacamole
French Dip Sandwiches
Crockpot Swiss Cheese Chicken
Ham and Broccoli Roll ups
Winter Salad with Chicken
Corn Chowder in bread bowls (I know we just had this last month- but it is REALLY good!)

Recipes to Try (I'll post them if they're good):
Slow Cooker Salisbury Steak
Baked Ziti
Cauliflower Soup/ Homemade Rolls
Patty's Reuben Sandwiches

Merry Christmas!!!