French Macarons

1 cup + 3 Tbsp. (4.6 oz.) almond meal or almond flour

1½ cups (7.8 oz.) powdered sugar

4 egg whites (3.9 oz.)

3 Tbsp. (1.4 oz.) white sugar

1 Tbsp. (.35 oz.) egg white powder/meringue powder

Food coloring gel, as desired

Sift almond meal and powdered sugar together.

Whip eggs whites on medium speed until foamy and then add egg white powder and sugar until there is a stiff peak (straight out with no droop and beginning to be glossy.)  Continue beating.  You can turn it down but keep it going.  Color just before stopping the mixer.  (You should be able to turn the bowl over and the whites don’t move!)

Fold ⅓ – ½ the almond/sugar mixture into the meringue and repeat until folded in.

Pipe onto parchment paper lined sheet with template underneath.  Use tip #1a in pastry bag.  Tap the baking sheets once piped to remove air bubbles.

Let skin form for 30 minutes +.  The cookies should be dry to the touch.

Bake at 310° for about 15 minutes, rotating halfway through.  They should have a smooth top with a solid color.  No jiggling.  They should not brown at all.  Let cool.

Chocolate Ganache

2 oz. finely chopped milk chocolate

1 Tbsp. unsalted butter

1 Tbsp. heavy cream

½ tsp. vanilla extract

Pinch kosher salt

Combine the chopped chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowel set over a pot with 1 inch of simmering water, making sure the bowl does not touch the water.

Cook stirring occasionally, until melted and smooth.  Stir in the cream, vanilla and salt and then remove from the heat. 

Set aside until cooled and thickened, stirring occasionally, 30 – 45 minutes.

To assemble the cookies, spread a thin layer of ganache on the bottoms of half the cookies, about ¼ tsp per cookie.  Top with a second cookie, gently pressing to squeeze ganache to the rims.

Refrigerate wrapped tightly in plastic.  They last about a week.

Red Beans and Rice Tortilla Casserole

• 1 package ZATARAIN'S® Red Beans and Rice
  1 can (8 3/4 ounces) whole kernel corn, drained
  1 can (4 1/2 ounces) chopped green chiles, undrained
  6 (8-inch) flour tortillas
  2 cups shredded cooked chicken
  2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
  
  
  Prepare Rice Mix as directed on package. Add corn and green chiles; mix well
  Preheat oven to 350°F. Spread ½ cup of the rice mixture on bottom of 13x9-inch baking dish sprayed with no stick cooking spray. Top with 3 of the tortillas, overlapping as needed. Layer with ½ each of the remaining rice mixture, chicken and cheese. Repeat layering with remaining tortillas, rice mixture, chicken and cheese
  Bake 15 minutes or until heated through. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.
  Serve with assorted toppings, such as sour cream, salsa and chopped green onions, if desired.

This recipe can be found here.

Cake Balls

1 box of cake mix, any flavor

1 can of frosting (any flavor you think would go with the cake mix flavor  two big spoonfuls)

Almond bark (or dipping chocolate)

Instructions

Bake cake following instructions in 13 x 9 pan.  Let cool completely.

Crumble until it resembles fine crumbs in a large bowl.

Using your hands, add in frosting a little bit at a time until cake is moist and can hold a ball shape, yet still slightly crumbly.  Incorporate the frosting into the cake crumbs.

Use a small ice cream scoop to scoop out balls of cake mixture.  Roll each ball into a tight ball and place on a cookie sheet.  Repeat until all the cake mixture has been rolled into balls.

Place the cake balls into the fridge for a couple of hours OR into the freezer for a little while. You want them to be nice and firm. Not frozen solid, but not mushy.

Just before you pull them, melt the almond bark for 30 seconds at a time, stirring after each 30-second increment in a Microwave safe container.   Make sure you have enough chocolate to completely submerge the cake ball.  (tall, deep bowls are better then wide, shallow bowls.)

Remove cake balls from freezer.

Dip cake balls carefully into the chocolate until covered.

Tap spoon on the side of the bowl gently to remove excess chocolate.

Place into the freezer to speed up setting time.

Cover with a clear treat bag & ribbon for gift giving, if desired.

Store in a single layer, in an airtight container.

This recipe can be found here.

Roasted Cornish Game Hen

1 Tbsp. salt
2 Tbsp. lemon-pepper
1 Tbsp. dried basil
1 Tbsp. poultry seasoning
2 Tbsp. olive oil
6 Cornish game hens, about 1 1/2 pounds each, rinsed and dried thoroughly
1 green bell pepper, large dice
2 stalks celery, large dice
1 onion, large dice

Preheat oven to 375°.

In a small mixing bowl, stir together salt, lemon pepper, dried basil and poultry seasoning. Rub olive oil all over the hens and season each with the salt mixture. Place the hens on a baking sheet pan with plenty of space between them. You may need to use 2 pans. Loosely stuff the cavities of each hen with some green bell pepper, celery and onion.

Roast the hens in the preheated oven for about 1 hour or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers 165° and the juices run clear.

Remove the hens from the oven, loosely tent with foil and let rest 10 minutes before carving or serving.

Nut Bread

For best results, mix with a wooden spoon, not with an electric mixer. It will overmix and become tough.

2 cups white sugar

2 eggs

2 Tbsp. cooking oil

1 tsp. vanilla extract

4 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

2 cups buttermilk

1-2 cups chopped walnuts

Preheat the oven to 350°. Grease two 9x5 inch loaf pans or 16 mini loaf pans.

In a large bowl, stir together the sugar, eggs, vegetable oil and vanilla until smooth using a wooden spoon.

Combine the flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon; stir into the sugar mixture alternately with the buttermilk just until mixed. Stir in the walnuts.

Divide the batter evenly between pans.  Bake for 55 minutes (for 2 loaves) or 25 minutes (for the mini loaves) in the preheated oven, until a toothpick inserted into the crown comes out clean.

Allow the bread to cool for about 10 minutes before removing from the pans, and wrap in aluminum foil.

This recipe can be found here.

Honey Butter

1 cup heavy whipping cream

1 cup honey

1 cup sugar

1 pound (4 sticks) salted sweet cream butter

1 tsp vanilla

Bring whipping cream, honey and sugar to a boil to dissolve the sugar. Put cold butter in a blender. Pour boiling mixture and vanilla over butter and blend until smooth. Pour into containers and refrigerate overnight before eating. Store in the fridge.

This recipe can be found here.

Mormon Muffins

1 c. boiling water

2½ tsp. baking soda

½ c. shortening

1 c. sugar

2 eggs

2 c. buttermilk

2½ c. flour

½ tsp. salt

2 c. All Bran cereal

1 c. 40% bran flakes

½ c. chopped walnuts

Directions

Add soda to boiling water and set aside.

Whip shortening and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add the eggs and mix well. Add the buttermilk, flour, salt; mix again.

Add the soda water very slowly. Gently fold the cereals and the walnuts into the mix.

Muffin mix must sit in the refrigerator overnight before baking.

Preheat oven to 350 °

Grease the tops and inside of muffin pans (these will go over the tops of the tins). Spoon batter into muffin tins to the top.

Bake for 30 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes.

Notes

Muffin batter will last one week, covered and refrigerated.
Makes about 2 dozen regular sized muffins.

The recipe can be found here. 

Best Lasagna. Ever

1½ lb. ground beef

1 lb. sausage

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 cans (14.5 oz.) whole tomatoes

2 cans (6 oz.) tomato paste

2 Tbsp. dried parsley

2 Tbsp. dried basil

1 tsp. salt

3 cups low fat cottage cheese

2 whole eggs, beaten

½ cup grated parmesan

2 Tbsp. dried parsley

1 tsp. salt

1 lb. sliced mozzarella cheese

1 package (10 oz.) lasagna noodles

(add ½ tsp. salt And 1 Tbsp. olive oil to pasta water)

Bring a large pot of water to a boil.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet or saucepan, combine ground beef, sausage, and garlic. Cook over medium-high heat until browned. Drain half the fat; less if you’re feeling naughty. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, 2 tablespoons parsley, basil and salt. After adding the tomatoes, the sauce mixture should simmer for 45 minutes while you are working on the other steps.

In a medium bowl, mix cottage cheese, beaten eggs, grated Parmesan, 2 more tablespoons parsley, and 1 more teaspoon salt. Stir together well. Set aside. Cook lasagna until “al dente” (not overly cooked).

To assemble:

Arrange 4 cooked lasagna noodles in the bottom of a baking pan, overlapping if necessary. Spoon half the cottage cheese mixture over the noodles. Spread evenly. Cover cottage cheese with a layer of mozzarella cheese. Spoon a little less than half the meat/sauce mixture over the top.

Repeat, ending with meat/sauce mixture. Sprinkle top generously with extra parmesan.

Either freeze, refrigerate for up to two days, or bake immediately: 350-degree oven for 20 to 30 minutes, or until top is hot and bubbly.

This recipe can be found here.

Butterscotch Chip Cookies

2½ cups flour

¾ tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. salt

1 cup butter, softened

½ cup sugar

½ cup light brown sugar, firmly packed

1 large egg

½ tsp. vanilla

2 cup (12 oz.) butterscotch chips

Preheat oven to 375° Line cookie sheet. 

In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars until light.  Beat in egg and vanilla until smooth.  Gradually add flour mixture until combined.  Stir in chips.

Drop rounded teaspoonfuls onto cookies sheets.  Bake about 10 minutes or until golden brown around the edges.

Cool several minutes before transferring to rack to cool completely.  Store in airtight container.

Makes 4 dozen 3 inch cookies.

Recipe found on Guittard butterscotch chip package  

Malted Milk Cookies

2½ cups flour

¾ cup plain malted milk powder

½ tsp. baking soda

¼ tsp. salt

1 cup sugar

½ cup light brown sugar; firmly packed

1 cup salted butter; softened

2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 Tbsp. sweetened condensed milk

2 lg. eggs

2 cups milk chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 300°.

In medium bowl combine flour, malted milk powder, soda and salt. Mix well with a wire whisk. Set aside.

Blend sugars in a large bowl at medium speed. Add butter and mix, occasionally scraping down the sides of the bowl. Add the eggs, vanilla and condensed milk, and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy.

Add the flour mixture and chocolate chips, and blend at low speed until just combined. Do not over-mix.

Drop by rounded tablespoons onto ungreased cookie sheets, 2 inches apart.

Bake 24-25 minutes until cookies are slightly brown along the edges. Transfer cookies immediately to a cool surface with a spatula.

This recipe can be found here.