Fluffy Cranberry Salad

This salad looks so pretty on the side of any Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner not to mention it tastes so good. It is the perfect combination of sweet and tart. Don't limit yourself to just holidays though...it's so good anytime! The leftovers make a great breakfast or lunch or in-between-meals-snack or all of the above...did I just type that? I love this salad.
This recipe is from my friend Sue

Ingredients:

• 2 cups ground raw cranberries
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 pint cream whipped
• 1/2 bag (3 cups) mini marshmallows
• 1 20 oz can crushed pineapple -drained

Directions:

1. Process cranberries in a food processor. In a small bowl, combine sugar and ground cranberries. set aside for at least 3 hours.
2. Then whip the cream. Fold in the whipped cream, marshmallows and pineapple.
3. Chill 8 hours to overnight before serving.

Holiday Sugar Cookies

I love any excuse to make these.
For me, it is a three day project. I make the dough one day, roll and cut and bake the second day, and then frost and decorate them the night before I'm going to serve them. I for sure make these every Christmas and Easter.
This is my mom's recipe for "Pie Crust Cookies". I remember helping her decorate these into the wee hours. I always have my eye out for new cute cookie cutters and fun decorator sugars and candies. The way I decorate these is just simple because sometimes I think "less is more". My favorites are angels with coconut wings(not pictured) at Christmas and snowflakes with edible glitter or Rudolph with a red hot for a nose but they are all cute in their own way.  Since Christmas 2001, I've been decorating my Christmas star cookies to look like American flags as a way to commemorate 9/11. I've made the American flag stars for 4th of July or Memorial Day too and hearts of course for Valentines Day. I do several different pastel colors of icing for butterflies, crosses, flowers and bunnies and coconut for the lambs with raw (brown) sugar for the face and legs for Easter.They are just so fun and taste as good as they look...which sadly isn't always the case for sugar cookies.

Cookies:
Ingredients and Directions:

• 3 cups flour
• 1 cup butter flavored crisco
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda

Mix above ingredients together with a pastry blender

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 3 eggs beaten
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

With an electric mixer, mix the sugar, eggs, vanilla and salt into the above mixture until ball of dough forms. Refrigerate several hours to overnight before rolling.
For best results, roll out on a lightly floured pastry cloth or silicone mat. Cut out with your favorite cookie cutters and bake similar sized cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet for 4-5 minutes* in a preheated 350 degree oven. Cool on pan for 1 minute before removing to cool on wire racks.

*the time will vary based on the size of the cookies and how thin you roll the dough. remove when the edges are set but not brown.

Frost with powdered sugar icing (recipe follows) and decorate immediately with sugars and candies 

Powdered sugar icing:

• powdered sugar
• scalded milk (heated to just before boiling)
• vanilla extract

I never measure these ingredients. I just add a teaspoon at a time of the milk with the vanilla to 1 - 2 cups of powdered sugar until it's the right consistency. It should be pretty thin. I use a small spoon to frost the cookies. Sprinkle with decorator sugar etc. immediately.
Unfrosted cookies can be frozen. These are best if you frost them the night before you plan to serve them to give the frosting time to set but not too long for them to get stale.  Store frosted cookies in an airtight container with wax paper between single layers of cookies.

• all the appropriate decorator sugars and candies to decorate the cookies

Nut Goodie Bars

These taste so much more wonderful and sophisticated than their name. When I was young, my Grandma made these and we called them Bun Bars. In my opinion, niether name is sufficient. I'm tempted to call them fudge because they're that good but then that would maybe be an insult to fudge because they're not as complicated to make. The fact is the recipe is based on a candy bar made by a Minneapolis-based company called Pearson's. They've been callin' 'em Nut Goodie (and Bun Bars)since 1909 so I guess I can't really argue with that. All I know for sure is that they are amazing and I love to make them around Christmas time when nobody's counting calories anyways because it's really hard to not consume 3 days worth in one sitting with these around.

Ingredients:

• 1 (12-oz.) pkg. (2 cups) semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 (11-oz.) pkg. (about 2 cups)butterscotch chips
• 2 cups butter
• 1 cup peanut butter
• 1 (12-oz.) can (2 1/2 cups) cocktail peanuts
• 1/2 cup evaporated milk
• 1 (3-oz.) pkg. vanilla pudding and pie filling mix (not instant)
• 1 (2-lb.) pkg. (7 1/2 cups) powdered sugar
• 2 teaspoons maple flavor

Directions:

1. Line 15x10x1-inch baking pan with foil. Butter or spray foil with nonstick cooking spray. In large saucepan, melt chocolate chips and 1 cup of the margarine over low heat, stirring frequently. Remove saucepan from heat. Add peanut butter; mix well. Spread half of mixture in buttered foil-lined pan. Freeze 10 minutes or until set. Place pan in refrigerator.                   

2. Meanwhile, stir peanuts into remaining chocolate mixture. Set aside.                   

3. Melt remaining 1 cup margarine in large saucepan over low heat. Gradually stir in evaporated milk. Stir in pudding mix. Cook until mixture is slightly thickened, stirring constantly. DO NOT BOIL. Remove saucepan from heat. Add powdered sugar and maple flavor; mix well. Cool about 10 minutes or until slightly cooled.                   

4. Carefully spread pudding mixture over chilled chocolate layer. Refrigerate 30 minutes.
5. Stir reserved chocolate-peanut mixture. Drop by spoonfuls onto chilled pudding layer; spread to cover. Refrigerate at least 3 hours or until firm. Cut into bars. Store in refrigerator.

Angel Hair Cole Slaw

When we were living in Ukraine...and then Poland...it didn't take long to recognize the fact that cabbage is abundant and cheap in that part of the world. That reminds me of the day I got off the subway in Ukraine and there was a little vegetable stand at our stop that we frequented. This particular day I needed cabbage so I bought a head. By the way, in Russian it's called 'kapoosta'. That right there is reason enough to buy cabbage... Just so I can say "mozhna kapoosta pazhalusta" [cabbage please, may I?]. So anyway, as I was walking home with a head of cabbage [no bag] under my arm, it hit me that the only person who thought it the least bit strange that I was walking down the sidewalk, carrying a head of cabbage, under my arm...was me. And then I couldn't stop thinking about how strange it was that no one else thought it was strange, but by then I was already home making cole slaw. Pardon my massive digression! It was actually in Poland that I was inspired to perfect my cole slaw. I feel kinda bad for cole slaw. It's so much better than it's reputation. It's so often the forgotten tiny portion in a plastic cup on the side of the plate and rarely better than mediocre. Let's be honest. It's usually either not sweet enough or too sweet but not tangy enough or just a creamy pile of blandness. I suppose by now you are thinking "I've never put this much thought into cole slaw". Well, I'm here to tell you that I have. and I do. What is it with me and cole slaw? Cole slaw and me? Really. Long. Story. Short. Here's what I came up with. The perfect balance of sweet, tangy, and creamy with the just-right touch of celery salt...not to be confused with celery seed which in my opinion is too overpowering.

Ingredients:

• 1 medium head of cabbage sliced very thin to make angel hair cole slaw (or 2 bags of fine shred cabbage such as Fresh Express Angel Hair Cole Slaw)
• 1-2 carrots peeled and finely shredded (optional)
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon celery salt
• lots of fresh ground black pepper (optional) 

Directions:

Put cabbage into a large bowl. In a small bowl mix the carrots (if using), mayo, sugar, vinegar and celery salt. whisk until smooth. Pour over cabbage and toss to coat well. Add about 20 cranks of fresh pepper or to taste...or not at all...it's up to you. Refrigerate several hours and toss occasionally. Toss to coat well and move salad to another bowl before serving. The cabbage shrinks quite a bit as it sits and as a result there's a lot of excess dressing. You can discard the excess  or add more cabbage.

Cole slaw is such a great easy salad/side because it's good all year round. I always make this when I make sloppy joes or barbequed pulled pork sliders and in the summer when we grill out so much.

Christmas Cranberry Salsa

I have a cleaning business called 'B Clean'. I know you are wondering what that has to do with Christmas Salsa. Well, I found this recipe while I was cleaning for one of my clients. Can't you just picture me with a can of Pledge in one hand and a cookbook in the other? Well, I was actually dusting the shelf in the kitchen and a printout of this recipe was just laying there and it caught my eye, so I quickly jotted it down. It sounded so good and so fun for this time of year. It's not the first time I've found a recipe whilst cleaning and I'm sure it won't be the last. Thank you, Julie! Oh, and in case you're questioning my work ethic, I charge by the job [not hourly] so I could sit and read cookbooks all day...er, half the day at least and then clean the other half...and I would still make the same amount. Whew! now that we got that straight. Here's a really great recipe that I found in a really beautiful, superclean kitchen.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 of a 12 oz. bag of whole fresh cranberries, washed
• 1/3 cup green onions chopped
• 1 jalapeno seeded and finely chopped, optional (skip this if you can't take the heat)
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 tablespoons grated, peeled fresh ginger root
• 1 tablespoon fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 8 oz. block of cream cheese

Directions:
Process cranberries in a food processor to coarsely chop. Stir in remaining ingredients. Refrigerate at least 4 hours before serving.

To serve, pour over a block of cream cheese and serve with crackers on a pretty Christmas platter with a pretty Christmas spreader...you know, just make sure it's pretty. I tried this with cracked pepper and olive oil Triscuits and it was really good, but I especially liked it with the Keebler Club Crackers.

Cranberry Cake with Warm Caramel Sauce

My mom makes cranberry cake for dessert every Christmas, and it has been one of my all time favorites since I was old enough to eat solid food. It is the consummate winter dessert. My birthday is in February, and many years I requested cranberry cake for my birthday cake. I love to serve this to guests or bring it along to holiday parties. I have yet to meet someone who doesn't love it. The best part: It is so much easier than it tastes.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons butter very soft
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 egg beaten
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 cup whole cranberries (fresh or frozen), cut in half

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. With a wooden spoon, cream together butter and sugar. add the milk, egg and vanilla and mix well. then add the dry ingredients and mix well.
3. Cut the cranberries in half leaving the smallest ones whole (because it looks prettier to have some left whole). fold the cranberries into the cake batter last.
4. Put into an 8 inch round cake pan and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

6 servings.
Serve with warm carmel sauce. Recipe follows:
Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 cup heavy cream (do not substitute with half and half)

Directions:
Mix together in a medium saucepan over medium/high heat and cook until thickened and bubbly cook for 1 minute more. Ladle over individual pieces of cranberry cake and serve immediately.

You will want to swim in this stuff but you should probably just let the cake do that... I'd be lying if I said I've never eaten this with a spoon.
Warning: High Calories

White Chocolate Frosting

The color scheme was black, white and red at the bridal shower I made these for. We had the idea to do 2-layer red velvet cupcakes with white frosting and a kiss on top...because well, it's a kiss. Now that I think about it, we should've gotten the dark chocolate kisses. So I just needed to decide which frosting to make...buttercream? no, too uninteresting. Cream cheese? nah, too cliche. Then it hit me. White chocolate! My go-to no-fail so good chocolate sour cream frosting recipe would be perfect except I would substitute white chocolate for the semisweet. Let me tell you...It. Was. Brilliant. I will definitely make this one again and again!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups white chocolate pieces 
• 1/2 cup butter 
• 1 cup sour cream (not reduced fat or fat free) 
• 5 cups sifted powdered sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon almond extract*

In a saucepan melt white chocolate and butter over low heat, stirring frequently. Cool about 5 minutes. Stir in sour cream. Gradually add sifted powdered sugar, salt and almond (or vanilla), beating till smooth and of spreading consistency.   

* I used almond extract in this frosting only because I didn't have any colorless vanilla and I wanted the frosting to stay the purest white otherwise I would've put in a teaspoon of vanilla extract.  I wanted just a hint of almond flavor so I only put in 1/8 teaspoon and it was amazing. If you want the almond flavor a little stronger you can add more.

Parmesan Corn Chowder

It's that time of year...when I want to make soup every night. It's so comforting. I love to cook it. It is as relaxing to me to cook it as it is to eat it. The ease of one big pot of soup, some bread and a simple salad and the meal is complete. That always makes me happy on a busy weeknight. I started making this one 15 years ago when Q and I were first married and it's been a regular favorite every year since. I remember when we were living in Ukraine, in '03 and '04, Eden was 4 years old and she loved this soup and she even started calling herself "soup girl". I can't make this soup now without remembering that and smiling. Then again, she's 12 now, and when I realize how fast the time has gone I can't help but cry. So, tonight I was smiling and crying and making this favorite soup. If you try it, maybe it will become a favorite of yours too.


adapted from Better Homes and Gardens Best Loved Community Recipes

Ingredients:

• 3-4 cups cubed peeled potato
• 3/4 cup thinly sliced carrot
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced celery
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon salt 
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1 cup milk
• 2 cups freshly grated parmesan cheese
• 1 can Green Giant cream-style corn
• 1 can Green Giant (not reduced sodium) whole kernel corn drained

Directions:

1. In a large Dutch oven, stir together 2 cups water, the potato, carrot, celery, onion and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, melt butter. Stir in the flour. Add the milk and cream all at once. Cook and stir over medium heat until the mixture is thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir for 1 minute more.

3. Add the cheese, stirring unto vegetable mixture. Stir in the til it is melted. Carefully add the cheese mixture corn. Heat the soup through, stirring occasionally. Do not boil.

B's Velvet Sweet Potatoes

The name was lovingly given by my friend Sue. I've won metaphorical awards at Marty family gatherings, and dinners with friends for these sweet potatoes. They are ever-present at Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner on my side of the family made by my cousin's wife who is an amazing cook and baker. She started making them years ago with this wonderful praline topping. But over the years, I began to miss the marshmallow top I remembered enjoying so much as a young girl when my grandma used to make them. So my cousin started making a small casserole dish of marshmallow topped sweet potatoes just for me. It didn't take long though, and other family members joined in my nostalgia and helped themselves to my toasted marshmallow dream-come-true... and now Jean just makes two big casseroles...one of each kind.

...so, praline or marshmallow topped; you decide...or be like us and choose both...but topping or not, your mouth will think it died and went to sweet potato heaven when you taste this velvety goodness.

adapted from Jean's recipe

Ingredients and Directions:

• 6 cups baked* mashed sweet potatoes

clean the sweet potatoes and make an X in the top with a knife. place them on a baking sheet and bake at 350 for 1 hour or until they are done. the baking time depends entirely on the size of your potatoes so check them frequently once they start to feel soft when squeezed. if you have varying sizes you can remove them from the oven as they finish baking. they will ooze and become almost carmelized. *Baking them versus boiling is the key to the amazingness of the finished product so give yourself plenty of time to make them or *BONUS* you can even make them the night before once they have cooled slightly you can easily remove the skins with a knife. To mash them a potato ricer works the best to get them extra smooth but if you don't have a ricer just use an electric mixer to mash them.

• 4 eggs beaten
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup melted butter
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 2/3 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

mix the remaining ingredients into the mashed potatoes and put into a pretty casserole dish 9x13 or any one with the appropriate capacity. you can make them ahead up to this point and refrigerate them. 
note: you may have to adjust the baking time slightly if they are cold when you put them in the oven.

praline topping:

• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup flour
• 5 tablespoons melted butter
• 1 cup chopped pecans

mix together and cover the top of the sweet potatoes and bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes

for the nostalgic marshmallow topping:

cover the top with large marshmallows for the last 15 minutes of baking time and cook until golden watching them closely.

Sugared Cranberries

I "heart" cranberries! so I love cranberries anyway but these are highly addictive. Don't say I didn't warn you.

Don't they just scream Christmas? How pretty would these look in a bowl right next to the nuts? or on the dessert table? or I don't know, just put a bowl of them in every room of my house because I want to eat them all the time. I think the antioxidants in the cranberries justifies all the sugar. Are you with me on this?

Ingredients:

• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 2 cups water
• 2 cups fresh cranberries
• 3/4 superfine sugar

Directions:

1. combine granulated sugar and water in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring mixture until sugar dissolves.
2. bring to a simmer; remove from heat. (Do not boil or the cranberries may pop when added.)
3. stir in cranberries
4. pour mixture into a bowl. Cover and refrigerate 8 hours or overnight.
5. drain cranberries in a colander
6. place superfine sugar* in a shallow dish. Add the cranberries in small batches of 20 -30 at a time, rolling to coat with sugar.
7. carefully place sugared cranberries in a single layer on a baking sheet; let stand at room temperature 1 hour or until dry.

Store in an airtight container in a cool place for up to a week.

*to make your own superfine sugar, process a cup of granulated sugar in the food processor for 30 seconds to one minute

I used them as a garnish on these cupcakes I made for a bridal shower. The wedding colors are black white and red so we wanted to incorporate the same theme into the shower.

Snappy Gingersnaps

I love gingersnaps! It's like fall disguised as a cookie. This is a great recipe that's morphed into the perfect gingersnap over my years of baking these. I always make these cookies when I make my pumpkin cheesecake dip.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 2 cups flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger (or 2- 3 tablespoons fresh grated*)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• pinch cayenne pepper (optional) I like to add this to give them a little extra 'snap'
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:

1. preheat oven to 350
2. cream butter and sugars
3. add egg and vanilla and beat well
4. stir in molasses and mix well *if using fresh ginger add it here
5. sift together flour and spices twice
6. add to molasses mixture and beat until dough forms
7. chill dough about 30 minutes
8. roll into small uniform balls (I use my kitchen scale to measure 15 grams per cookie)
9. roll in white sugar and place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet
10. flatten slightly with the bottom of a glass
11. bake in the preheated oven for exactly 9 minutes (longer if you like your ginger snaps more crispy)
12. remove to wire racks to cool completely

Pumpkin Cheesecake Dip

I got the idea for this recipe from Southern Living. This is so much fun to serve at a party in the fall and it's always a huge hit.

Ingredients:

• 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup  powdered sugar, sifted
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup canned pumpkin puree
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• dash allspice
• dash nutmeg
• dash ground cloves
• chopped pecans and brown sugar (optional)

Directions:

1. beat cream cheese till creamy 
2. gradually add sugars, beating well.

3. stir in pumpkin, and spices.
4. cover and chill.
5. garnish with a little brown sugar and chopped pecans just before serving

I love to serve this with my homemade gingersnaps and gingerbread cookies cut out in fun pumpkin and leaf shapes and little hearts. I also have a turkey shaped cookie cutter that's really cute. Apple and pear slices are a nice complement and they look pretty on the plate. This dip is good with a salty companion too like pretzel crisps.

Salmon Salad

This is a Marty family recipe. Quenton and I used to have this salad all the time before we had kids. It's perfect for a light dinner or lunch.

Ingredients and Directions:

• 2 hearts of romaine lettuce chopped
• 3-4 hard boiled eggs chopped
• 1/2 - 1lb. bacon cooked crispy and crumbled
• 1 large tomato diced (or grape tomatoes cut in half)
• 1 avacado diced
• 1 7.1 oz. package salmon (Chicken of the Sea pink salmon skinless boneless in the pouch)

Dressing:

• juice of 1-2 lemons
• 1/4 c. oil
• salt and pepper to taste

wisk together, toss with salad and serve immediately

Serve with a warm loaf of hearty multi-grain bread and butter. This is also the perfect complement to any vegetarian soup. 

this recipe serves 2-4

Scalloped Corn

This is definitely a family favorite recipe on my side of the family. This corn always reminds me of my grandpa, my mom's dad, because he loved it so much. He passed away in 2004 when we were living in Ukraine...I miss him.

Ingredients:

• 1 can cream style corn
• 1 can whole kernel corn drained (Green Giant is the best)
• 1 cup milk
• 1 well beaten egg
• 1 cup soda cracker crumbs
• 1/2 medium onion minced (1/4 cup)
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• dash pepper
• 1/2 cup townhouse or club cracker crumbs

Directions:

1. heat corn and milk in a saucepan over medium to medium high heat.
2. gradually stir in egg.
3. add next 4 ingredients. Mix well.
4. put into greased 8 inch round baking dish.
5. coat top with townhouse or club cracker crumbs.
6. bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until center is set.

SHORTCUT: if you have a blender...put milk, 1/2 onion, egg, salt and pepper into blender and blend it up. add to the corn in a saucepan and heat. stir in the soda cracker crumbs put into the baking dish top with crumbs and bake

Cream Cheese Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients:

• 5 lbs. potatoes, peeled, cooked and mashed
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 8 oz. block of cream cheese, softened
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon onion salt
• fresh ground black pepper to taste (I like a lot)
• 1/2 - 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter divided

Directions:

1. peel and clean 5 lbs potatoes. cut into small even-sized pieces. add to large pot of boiling water. return to boiling, reduce heat and cover. cook potatoes until fork-tender (about 15 - 20 minutes).
2. mash the cooked potatoes with an electric mixer.
3. add the cream cheese and mix well.
4. add the 1/2 cup (or a little less)butter and sour cream ***and mix well.
5. add salt, onion salt and fresh ground pepper mix well.
6. put into a 9 x 13 inch baking dish.
7. dot the top of potatoes with 1/4 cup butter.
8. cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes at 350 degrees.

***Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes option:  to make these wonderful mashed potatoes even more wonderful, sometimes I add roasted garlic.  Separate the cloves of one to two whole bulbs of garlic but don't peel them. toss them with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, place on a baking sheet and roast in a preheated 375 degree oven for 10 minutes or until very tender. cool slightly then squeeze the pulp from the garlic cloves into the pot of mashed potatoes and mix in with the butter and sour cream. continue with the directions above.

Baked Oatmeal

I wasted too much of my life not making this and not eating this. I hadn't even heard of it until we moved to Pennsylvania in 2004. Q had it at a breakfast meeting and came home and raved about it to me. It sounded amazing...so how do you make it? We noticed it was often on the menu at restaurants so we figured it must be a Pennsylvania thing. So I got the recipe from my friend Dawn. I love to make this for our overnight guests or take a pan of it unbaked along with a dinner for a family in need [so they can put it in the oven for breakfast the next morning]. We also sold this at our coffee shop in Krakow, Poland and it was a huge hit. This is another one of those recipes that you can be  creative with and try different variations.

Ingredients:

• 3 cups [quick 1 minute] oats
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 2 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 - 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup milk
• 2 eggs beaten
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup melted butter

Directions:

1. preheat oven to 350 degrees

2. combine first four ingredients in a medium mixing bowl

3. in a seperate bowl whisk together brown sugar, milk, eggs and vanilla

4. add to dry ingredients and mix well

5. Stir in the melted butter last.

6. Pour into a shallow 9x9 baking dish

7. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes

Serve with milk or cream and fresh fruit or berries. It's also fun to experiment with different nuts and I've tried it with about 3/4 cup cranberries cut in half (stir in with the melted butter) adds a wonderful tartness.

Swedish Pancakes

These are a childhood favorite of Q's and now we make them for our kids. They LOVE these... even better than the American pancakes. They are similar to crepes. I love to experiment with different fruits and toppings but we for sure always serve them with lemon and powdered sugar. I like to mix it together in a little bowl and drizzle it over the pancakes. Sometimes I make a strawberry puree to serve with them or a cherry syrup. The best part is that you can just be creative with whatever you have on hand. YUM.

Ingredients and Directions:

• 3 eggs
• 1 1/4 cups milk

beat well with an electric mixer

• 1 1/4 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

combine and beat into above until smooth

• 3 tablespoons melted butter
• 1 1/4 cups milk

stir into above. batter should be thin and smooth.

heat large skillet with a small amount of vegetable oil over medium to medium high heat. pour about 1/3 cup batter into the hot skillet and swirl it around so it spreads out to cover the bottom of the pan. cook for 1-2 minutes and flip. cook for an additional 30 seconds or so. They should be very thin.

Serve with berries and sweetened fresh lemon juice. Dust with powdered sugar.

Tart-Sweet Apple Crisp

When the air gets crisp, so does dessert. This has always been my favorite apple crisp recipe. It's my mom's...maybe that's why? It's the one I grew up on. The best part for me though...other than the fact that it doesn't involve oats, not that I have anything against oats, I just don't like them on my crisps and cobblers...is that the topping is sweet and the filling is just tart and cinnamon-y. There is no sugar in the filling so it's just the perfect complement to the topping...and the most perfect experience for your tastebuds.



Ingredients:

• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter slightly softened
• 1 3/4 cups flour
• 2  cups sugar
• 5 lbs (before peeling and coring) baking apples. I like to use a couple different varieties to enhance the flavor and texture.
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 1/2 cup water

Directions:

1. preheat oven to 350°     
2. generously butter bottom and sides of 9x13 pan.
3. In a medium bowl, cut together flour, butter, and sugar using a pastry blender or fork until crumbly. Set aside.
4. core peel and slice apples 
5. put the apples evenly into the buttered pan
6. sprinkle with salt and cinnamon toss with hands to coat evenly
7. pour the water over the apples in the pan
8. spread butter-flour-sugar mixture evenly over the apples.
9. Bake for 45 minutes or until top is golden and apples are fully cooked and bubbling.

Cool slightly but serve warm on pretty plates with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Fresh Orange Cake with Walnut Buttercream Frosting

I'm not afraid to admit that I'm obsessed with cake. It is my weakness er...[one of] my weakness[es]. That said, this is my most favorite cake of all.  I found the recipe in my favorite cookbook, Better Homes and Gardens Best Loved Community Recipes. The cookbook was a gift to me from Quenton when we were dating "just because" he knew I loved to cook. It is one of those well used and well loved cookbooks that is now completely falling apart and has food splattered on all of my favorite pages. 

Happy 35th Birthday to me!

I made my favorite cake for myself when we were living in Krakow, Poland in 2009.

Ingredients:

Cake:

• 2 1/4 cups sifted cake flour
• 1 1/2 cups sugar 
• 2 teaspoons baking powder 
• 1/2 teaspoon salt 
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda 
• 1/2 cup shortening 
• 1 tablespoon or more of grated rind of 1 orange 
• 3/4 cup milk 
• 1/4 cup juice of the orange 
• 2 eggs

Ingredients: 

Filling and Frosting:

• 1 cup milk 
• 5 tablespoons sifted cake flour 
• 1/2 cup shortening 
• 1/2 cup butter softened 
• 1 cup granulated sugar 
• 1/4 teaspoon salt 
• 1 teaspoon vanilla 
• 1 cup finely chopped walnuts 
• 1/2 to 1 cup sifted powdered sugar 

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour two 8-inch round baking pans. Set aside.
2. To make the cake: Sift the dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl. Add the shortening and the grated orange rind.
3. Add the milk and the orange juice to the dry ingredients and beat with an electric mixer on low speed until moistened. Beat for 2 minutes at medium speed. Add the eggs; beat for an additional 2 minutes.
4. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pans. Bake in the 350 oven about 25 minutes or until the cake tests done with a wooden toothpick.
5. Cool 10 minutes, then carefully remove the cake from the pans (may stick on bottom). Cool the layers on racks.
6. To make the filling and frosting: Blend the milk and cake flour in a saucepan. Cook over meduum-low heat to a very thick paste, stirring constantly. Cool to lukewarm about 40 minutes (tip: if I'm in a hurry I scrape it out onto a plate and spread it out a bit so it cools faster).
7. Meanwhile, in a small mixing bowl, cream the shortening and butter with the 1 cup granulated sugar and salt.
8. Add the lukewarm paste to the shortening mixture and beat with electric mixer on high speed until fluffy.
9. Stir in vanilla. *Remove 3/4 cup of the mixture. Fold the nuts into the remaining mixture. **Spread 1 1/2 cups of the mixture between the cake layers.
10. Add the powdered sugar to the remaining mixture and beat vigorously with a spoon to desired consistency. Frost top and sides of cake.

* Use the reserved 3/4 cup of frosting to seal in the crumbs. First, brush off as many crumbs as you can by hand. Then, spread the sides of the cake with a thin smooth coat of frosting. This layer will help seal in any stray crumbs. Finally, spread a thicker layer of frosting over the thin layer, swirling the frosting decoratively.

** If the filling and frosting is a little soft, add some sifted powdered sugar until it is just the right spreading consistency.

Dawnie's Cornbread (ahem...cake)

A much fluffier, tastier version of the dry, dense, crumbly stuff that comes to mind. Trust me, it's the best!

Ingredients:

• 3 c. bisquik
• 1 c. sugar
• 1/2 c. cornmeal
• 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 3/4 c milk
• 3 eggs slightly beaten
• 1 c. butter melted

mix dry ingredients. add milk eggs and butter and mix together. pour into 9x13 bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes

Beer Bread

Ingredients:

• 3 cups flour (sifted before measured)
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 4 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 - 1 tsp salt
• 12 oz. beer (Miller Highlife is my fave for this recipe)
• ¼ cup butter melted
• rosemary and garlic salt to taste 

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2. Be sure to sift the flour before you measure the three cups.
3. Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl

4. Make a well in the center and pour the beer in. Mix, but DON’T OVER-MIX! 

5. Put dough into a greased loaf pan. 

6. Pour the melted butter over and sprinkle with the rosemary and garlic salt

7. Bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour.

8. *Remove from pan immediately.

9. Cool for 15 minutes minimum before slicing

The bread will be crunchy and crusty on the outside and soft and yummy on the inside!

*if you leave it in the pan to cool it will get all soggy and chewy!

B's Chili (Traditional)

This is my own chili recipe. After years and years of makin' chili and lovin' it and quite frankly, wingin' it... I was going to teach it at my cooking class in Poland.  I realized I didn't have anything really written down so I needed to gather my thoughts and decide once and for all "if I were going to make [and teach] the perfect pot of chili... what would I want in it? and what would the measurements be? What am I gonna tell these people?!!" ...and this is what I came up with...and they loved it! ...and now I don't have to 'wing it' anymore.


Ingredients and Directions:

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 lbs. ground beef
• 1 ½ cups chopped onion
• 6-8 cloves garlic

1. heat vegetable oil in a large soup pot over medium high heat.

2. add garlic and onions. cook until tender.

3. add ground beef and cook until meat is no longer pink 

• 2 large(28 oz each) cans diced/or crushed tomatoes (do not drain)
• 2-3 cans spicy chili beans in chili sauce
• 2 cans kidney beans drained
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 4 tablespoons chili powder
• 2 teaspoons pepper
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 2 jalapenos seeded and chopped (or more to taste)
• 2 + cups tomato juice(like V8 or Campbell's)if you like your chili nice and spicy this is another ingredient you can use to heat it up by getting the hot and spicy tomato juice 

4. Reduce heat. Stir in tomatoes, chili beans, and kidney beans.
5. Season with salt, sugar, chili powder, pepper, cumin and cayenne pepper. Stir and simmer.

6. Add chili peppers and tomato juice(more or less depending on how thick or thin you like your chili). Simmer for 1 ½ hours stirring often. Be sure it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pot.

Serve with:

• shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• sour cream
• chopped green onions
• beer bread or Dawnie's cornbread, and
• tortilla chips or Fritos scoops for dipping

Fireside Garlic with Rosemary

This is one of my most favorite Hor D'oeuvres. My father-in-law first made this for a special family dinner when we were all living in Ukraine and it instantly became a family favorite. Quenton and I love to make this for date-night-in and eat it while we watch a movie. I guess when you've been married as long as we have, garlic and romance CAN go together.

Ingredients:

• 6 large whole heads garlic
• 3 tablespoons butter, cut into 6 slices
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 1½ cups chicken broth, divided
• ½ cup dry white wine
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
• 2 fresh rosemary sprigs
• 8 oz Roquefort cheese, crumbled
• French baguette slices

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Cut ½ inch off top end (opposite root end) of each garlic head, exposing cloves. Remove any loose papery outer skin.
3. Place garlic, cut side up, in non-metal baking pan.
4. Top with butter and olive oil.
5. Add 1 cup of the chicken broth and wine to pan.
6. Sprinkle chopped rosemary over garlic and place rosemary sprigs in broth mixture. (May be prepared 8 hours in advance, cover and chill.)
7. Bake uncovered, about 1 hour, basting every 15 minutes with pan juices.
8. Add remaining chicken broth, if necessary. Garlic cloves should be very tender when pierced with fork. Sprinkle with Roquefort cheese, if desired, and continue baking until cheese is almost melted, about 10 minutes. Discard cooked rosemary sprigs and garnish with fresh rosemary sprigs
9. Serve with bread for dipping into cooking juices and spreading with garlic and melted cheese.

just before it goes in the oven