Peanut Butter Thumbprint Cookies
The combination of peanut butter and chocolate is a classic. This cookie brings those two flavors together perfectly. The cookie itself has a wonderful outer crunch, but is also tender and melts in your mouth. The addition of a dollop of chocolate finishes the cookie just right.
Of course, you could also use a spoonful of jam or jelly to fill in the cookies. Peanut butter and jelly are also a classic combo. No matter what filling you use, these thumbprint cookies are going to be a big hit.
Peanut Butter Thumbprints
1 c. butter, softened
2 c. packed light brown sugar
1 1/2 c. peanut butter (smooth or crunchy)
2 eggs
1 t. vanilla
2 1/2 c. flour
1 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
1 3/4 c. finely chopped unsalted, dry roasted peanuts
Melted chocolate, about 2 cups
In mixing bowl, cream together butter, sugar and peanut butter. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Combine flour with dry ingredients and mix into butter mixture. Stir in peanuts. Shape dough into 1-inch balls and place on ungreased baking sheets. Bake in a 350-degree oven for 8-10 minutes or until cookies are just set. Press thumb gently into the middle of each cookie and cool on rack. Spoon about a teaspoon of melted chocolate into each cookie. Makes about 8 dozen.
Classic Gnocchi
Gnocchi are a type of dumpling made with potatoes. They are tender, tasty and so easy to make. Sort of like a spaetzle, but made with potatoes in the dough. They have a unique texture and flavor. They have a unique appearance as well, as uncooked gnocchi are traditionally rolled across the tines of a fork to leave tiny grooves. The grooves help to hold sauce. It also makes them look pretty. There are special grooved boards made just for making gnocchi, but a fork works well, too.
Once cooked, gnocchi can be served with butter or a little olive oil, with a red sauce or browned in butter or oil. I love them with some fresh grated Parmesan cheese.
So here is the recipe I used. If you never made gnocchi before, I hope you will give them a try. so easy and so good!!!
Classic Gnocchi
4 small russet potatoes, 22-24 oz. total, peeled, diced into 1/2-inch cubes
1 egg
2 T. whipping cream or half and half
1 1/4 t. salt
1/8 t. nutmeg
1 1/2 c. (about) flour
Steam potatoes over boiling water until tender, about 12 minutes. I steam mine in the microwave. Place in bowl and mash or put potatoes through a ricer. Place in bowl and cool about 10 minutes. Add egg, cream, salt and nutmeg and mix well. Stir in flour and combine until slightly sticky dough forms. Add more flour a tablespoon at a time if the mixture is too moist. Turn dough onto lightly floured work surface and divide into 6 equal portions. Roll out 1 piece into a rope about 20-inches long by 3/4 inch. Cut dough into 3/4 -inch pieces and roll each piece over the tines of a fork or over a wire whisk to make grooves in them. Arrange finished gnocchi in a single layer on a floured baking sheet and repeat the process with the remaining dough. Boil the gnocchi in well-salted boiling water, about 1/3 at a time. Boil for 4-5 minutes. They will come to the surface and be tender. Check after 4 minutes. Serve with butter and Parmesan cheese or with a favorite pasta sauce.
Braided Herb Breads
One of the benefits about baking your own bread is the aroma. The house gets filled with the most wonderful smells. In this case, the experience is even better because the breads I baked are filled with herbs and shallots, so those fragrances are also in the mix.
I like to make these loaves in braids and place them on a baking sheet- but they could just as easily be baked in bread pans for more traditional loaves. Great for sandwiches.
I like to toast some of this bread, and use as croutons or as a base for stuffing. I served it sliced and toasted with dinner last night. Guests spread it with unsalted butter then added a pinch of some finishing salts I had gotten as a gift. So simple, but very tasty,
You can also slice the bread, brush with softened butter, then toast, for a twist on garlic bread. The garlic is already in the bread, but feel free to add more to the butter, before brushing it on the bread.
Braided Herb Bread
5 ½ -6 ½ c. flour
2 packages quick rising yeast
¼ c. sauteed shallots
2 T. each dried marjoram and parsley
1 T. each dried oregano and minced garlic
1 T. honey
2 t. dried thyme
2 t. salt
¼ c. olive oil
2 ¼ c. hot water
In a mixing bowl combine 2 c. of flour with the rest of the ingredients and mix until smooth. Beat with electric mixer 4 minutes then add 1-cup additional flour and beat 1 minute longer. Stir in flour ½ cup at a time until soft dough forms. Turn onto surface and knead, adding flour gradually until dough is smooth and elastic. Place dough in lightly greased bowl and turn to cover. Cover with a towel and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes. Turn dough onto surface and cut in half. Cut each half into thirds. Roll each piece of dough into an 18-inch rope. Loosely braid three ropes together and repeat with the remaining dough. Place on greased baking sheet and cover until doubled in size, about 20 minutes.
Bake in a preheated 375-degree oven for 25-30 minutes, or until bread sounds hollow when tapped lightly. Makes 2.
Variation: Whole wheat: Add 2 cups of whole-wheat flour to replace 2 cups of white flour. Also try adding ¼ c. of wheat germ, oat bran or 2 tablespoons of seeds (sesame, pumpkin, sunflower, poppy, etc.)
Regular yeast can be used, but rising times will be longer and water should be warm, not hot.
Pecan Crusted Salmon
If you love salmon like I do, this is a fun way to prepare it. The crunch from the nuts adds a nice contrast to the texture of the fish. The flavors work well together, too. You don’t have to use pecans. I prefer them, but finely chopped walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds or even pumpkin seeds might be fun.
A combination of Dijon mustard, butter and honey helps the nuts to stick to the fish. There are a few fresh bread crumbs in there as well.
This dish is simple enough to prepare any night of the week, but special enough to make for company.
I used salmon fillets. You could use a whole side of salmon. You just have to increase the baking time to about 20-25 minutes and reduce the oven to 425 degrees. Depending on the size of the piece of salmon, it might take a few more minutes.
You could use other fish, but you need a sturdy fish that will stand up to the topping. I have made it with Steel Head Trout and it worked out beautifully.
Pecan Crusted Salmon
2 T. Dijon Mustard
2 T. melted butter
4 t. honey
1/4 c. fresh bread crumbs
1/4 c. finely chopped pecans or walnuts
2 t. chopped parsley
4 salmon fillets
Salt and pepper
Lemon wedges
Mix together mustard, butter and honey and set aside. Mix together bread crumbs, nuts and parsley and set aside. Season each fillet with salt and pepper. Place on lightly greased baking or broiling pan. Brush each fillet with mustard mixture. Divide crumb mixture among fillets, patting to hold. Bake in 450 degree oven for 10 minutes per inch thickness of fillets. Serve with lemon wedges. Serves 4.
Hazelnut Biscotti
These biscotti are the perfect treat to have with your morning cup of coffee or tea. Crisp, but not too hard, they are studded with crunchy hazelnuts and flavored with vanilla and orange peel. I like them just the way they are, but you could dress them up with a drizzle of powdered sugar glaze. You can also dip one end of each biscotti in melted chocolate.
I was inspired to make these after buying hazelnuts recently.
I don’t know why more people don’t make their own biscotti. They are so easy to make, and you can flavor them to suit your own taste. Once baked, store them in an air tight container. They stay crisp for weeks. Assuming you don’t eat them first!
Biscotti get their distinctive, extra crunchy texture, from being baked not once, but twice. The batter is spread on a cookie sheet and baked until firm. Once cooled and little, the loaf is sliced and the slices are returned to the oven to get baked until crisp and toasted. I put the slices on a cooling rack, placed on the baking sheet, before the second bake. That way, the biscotti toast on both sides evenly. No need to turn them all over half-way through the second bake.
So here is the recipe. I hope if you haven’t made biscotti before, you give them a try.
Hazelnut Biscotti
3 c. flour
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
3 eggs
1 c sugar
1/4 c. butter, melted
1/4 c. olive oil
1 1/2 t. vanilla
1 t. grated orange peel
1 c. hazelnuts, toasted, peeled and chopped*
Combine dry ingredients and set aside. Mix together eggs, sugar, butter, oil, vanilla and peel. Beat until smooth and stir in flour mixture and nuts. Grease a large baking sheet, oil your hands, and place dough on sheet, forming into a 16×4-inch log. Bake at 325-degrees until tester inserted in center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Loaf with spread a bit. Cool 15 minutes and leave oven on. Use serrated knife to cut into 1/2 -inch thick slices. Place cooling rack on a baking sheet. Place slices, cut side down, on cooling rack and return to oven for 20-22 minutes. Cool. Makes about 24.
If you like, you can dip one end of the finished biscotti in melted chocolate.
- to toast hazelnuts, place on a baking sheet and bake in a 325 degree oven for about 10-15 minutes. You don’t want them to burn. While they are baking, place a tea towel on a rimmed baking sheet. When the nuts come out of the oven, dump them on the tea towel. They tend to roll around, so the rimmed baking sheets is to save you from cursing as nuts roll off the towel and onto the floor. Fold the nuts up in the towel and rub them to get the skins off. Most of the skins will come off, which is fine.
Fish and Vegetable Soup
When you think of homemade soup, I am guessing you don’t think of fish. Perhaps a clam chowder, but not fish. Maybe you should. This soup is really quite wonderful. It is full of great flavors and it cooks up in no time. It is both light and satisfying. It sort of reminded me of a Manhattan style chowder, but with fish instead of clams.
You can use any mild fish you happen to like. I have used salmon, catfish, cod, perch and flounder in the past, and liked the way all of them tasted in the soup. You can also use a mix of more than one fish.
The recipe calls for canned tomatoes, but fresh tomatoes would work. I have used bottled salsa a few times. It added a nice little bit of extra flavor. You would add a pound of diced fresh tomatoes, if using fresh. I used home canned tomatoes.
So here is the recipe. Hope you give it a try.
Fish and Vegetable Soup
1 medium carrot, sliced
2 ribs celery, diced
2 medium potatoes, peeled and sliced
1 large leek, white part only, cleaned and chopped
5 c. chicken, vegetable or fish stock
1 (14 oz.) can of stewed tomatoes, I used a pint of home canned tomatoes
Salt, pepper and cayenne pepper to taste to taste
1 1/2 lb. firm white fish cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1/4 c. flour
2 t. paprika
2 T. oil 1/4 c. fresh parsley
In broth cook the carrot, celery and leeks 10 minutes. Add tomatoes and potatoes and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes longer. Season to taste. Meanwhile mix the flour and paprika together and dredge the fish in it. Heat oil in a skillet over medium high heat and cook the fish until lightly browned on both sides. Drain on paper towels. Before serving add fish pieces and parsley to the soup and simmer 5 minutes. Serve with crusty bread. Serves 6.
Spring Lemon Tart
This would make a lovely dessert for any Spring dinner. It would be a nice dessert for Easter, too. Since the first day of Spring is Thursday, I thought it was a perfect time to share this recipe.
I was leaning towards making a cheesecake. Then I discovered I only had one box of cream cheese. Not enough for a cheesecake. While searching my fridge for cream cheese, I found a couple of lemons. I suppose I could have made a lemon pie, but I decided to just make something up with what I had, including the cream cheese. This lemon tart was the result.
Before I get to the actual recipe, let me talk about the lemons, and including fresh lemon juice in recipe directions. Recipes will often list the “juice of a lemon” in the ingredients. There is about the same amount of lemon juice in all lemons, so that a little difference, one way or the other, is no big deal. The amount is anywhere from 2-3 tablespoons of juice in a lemon. You might get 4 tablespoons, if the lemon is really big. I have used that phrase in recipes myself.
Sometimes, however, you have to recognize when you have lemons that aren’t “average”.
The two lemons I had on hand were big, really big. When I juiced them, I ended up with 2/3 of a cup of lemon juice. So, in this recipe I used the actual measurement of the juice, rather than saying, “the juice of 2 lemons.” Three or four average sized lemons should give you 2/3 cup of juice.
So here is the recipe for my lemon tart, the happy end result of using what I had, and making it work.
Spring Lemon Tart
Crust:
1½ c. crushed vanilla cookies
4 T. melted butter
Filling:
1 (8oz.) container cream cheese, softened
½ c. sugar
2/3 c. lemon juice
Zest of two lemons
3 eggs
¼ c. cornstarch
Combine crust ingredients in medium bowl. Press crumb mixture into a 9–inch springform or tart pan. Bake in a preheated 350-degree oven for 10 minutes. While the crust is baking, make the filling. In mixing bowl combine the cream cheese with the sugar and beat until fluffy. Add the lemon juice and zest and beat well. Add the eggs and cornstarch and beat until smooth. Pour filling over the baked crust and return to oven. Bake for 35 minutes, or until golden on top. Center will be soft, but firms as the tart cools. Cool, then refrigerate until ready to serve. You can dust with powdered sugar, if you like. Serves 6.
Joe’s Soda Bread Ice Cream
This ice cream happened because friend saw a recipe for an ice cream made with brown bread. He thought it might be fun to make it with Irish soda bread, for St. Patrick’s Day. It worked out really well. When I first added the bread to the ice cream, I tasted it and thought it was good, but needed something more. I had already made the butterscotch sauce to serve with it, so I added a little and the end result was a really fun and different ice cream. The ice cream actually tasted a lot like butter pecan. I served it to a friend the other night and she loved it.
This would be a fun dessert for St. Patrick’s day, or any day really, and it was super easy to make. Thanks, Joe, for the inspiration.
So here is the recipe. I have also included the recipes for the bread and the butterscotch sauce, although, you can buy them already made.
Joe’s Soda Bread Ice Cream
1 ½ qts. Vanilla ice cream
4 cups crumbled soda bread*
½ cup butterscotch sauce**
Soften ice cream and fold in the soda bread and butterscotch sauce. Return to freezer to firm up before serving.
* You can just buy a soda bread or use the recipe below
** I made my own butterscotch sauce, then had extra for serving. Feel free to just buy a jar if you don’t want to make your own. Serve some sauce, warmed with the ice cream to drizzle over.
Irish Soda Bread
2 c. flour
½ t. each baking powder and baking soda
¼ t. salt
2 T. butter
¾ c. raisins, currants or golden raisins, optional, I used golden raisins
2 t. caraway seeds
1 egg, beaten
1 c. buttermilk
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Dust a baking sheet with a little flour. Combine dry ingredients in bowl and cut in butter to resemble coarse crumbs. Add raisins and caraway seeds. Combine egg and milk and set 2 tablespoons of this mixture aside. Add remaining milk mixture to flour mixture and combine just until dough forms into a ball. Place on baking sheet, brush with reserved egg mixture and cut a crisscross on top of loaf. Bake about 25 minutes or until bread sounds hollow. Makes 1.
Butterscotch Sauce
6 T. butter
½ c. half and half
½ c. brown sugar
1 t. molasses*
½ -1 teaspoon salt
1 t. vanilla
Melt butter in a heavy bottomed pan. Add remaining ingredients, except vanilla, to the pan. Stir to mix well, then bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla. Sauce will thicken as it cools. Store in fridge and warm a little before using. Makes about a cup of sauce. Keeps for weeks in the fridge, but you’ll eat it long before that.
*The addition of a little molasses was because my original recipe called for dark brown sugar. I only had light brown sugar. I liked the flavor that extra molasses added to the finished sauce. Feel free to omit the extra molasses, or add a pinch more, depending on how dark you want your finished sauce
Corned Beef “Reuben” Strata
If you need a new recipe for corned beef- I would suggest making this strata. It contains all the ingredients found in a traditional Reuben sandwich, but with a twist. These “Reubens” are baked, after being soaked in an egg custard.
The dish is assembled at least a few hours before baking, so you can make it the day before, or in the morning. Just pop in the oven about an hour before you want to serve it.
Strata just means layers. Ingredients are layered before pouring over an egg/milk mixture. These layers add flavor to the final dish. In this strata, layers include rye bread, Swiss cheese, corned beef, sauerkraut and thousand island dressing. Of course, you can play around with the ingredients you use. If you don’t like sauerkraut, you can leave it out- or only put in on some of the sandwiches. Strata can be served for breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner.
I used very thinly sliced corned beef from the deli. You can also use home-cooked corned beef. Just dice it or shred it up. If you have leftover corned beef from St. Patrick’s Day, this is a great recipe for using it. I also used homemade Thousand Island dressing, but use what you like. You can also serve extra dressing on the side.
Reuben Strata
12 slices rye bread
6 slices Swiss cheese
12 oz. thinned sliced corned beef- or 2 cups chopped corned beef
1 c. sauerkraut, squeezed dry
½ c. Thousand Island dressing*
3 eggs
2 c. milk
½ t. salt
½ t. hot pepper sauce, or to taste
Lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking dish. Place six slices of bread on bottom of the dish. You might have to trim the bread to fit. Top each slice of bread with a slice of cheese. Top cheese with the corned beef and sauerkraut. You can use a little more or less sauerkraut, depending on your taste. Spoon about a tablespoon of the dressing over each “sandwich”. Top with remaining six slices of bread, trimmed to fit pan, if needed. Combine remaining ingredients and pour over sandwiches. Cover dish and let stand in the fridge, several hours or overnight. Bake, uncovered, in a 350-degree oven for 40-45 minutes, or until puffed and set. Let sit a few minutes before serving. Serves 6.
*Homemade Thousand Island Dressing is just equal parts of sweet pickle relish, ketchup and mayo. You can make your own pretty easily.
Shepherd’s Pie
If you are looking for a traditional dish for St. Patrick’s Day, you might want to make a Shepherd’s Pie. Shepherd’s pie is a mix of ground lamb and veggies, in a gravy, that are topped with mashed potatoes. Then it is baked until the mixture is heated through and potatoes brown a little.
It’s a lovely dish anytime, not just for a holiday. There are a lot of variations for shepherd’s pie, but it is made with ground lamb. You can use ground beef, but then it is called a cottage pie. It will still be tasty, just less traditional.
The potatoes are mashed, then spread over the meat mixture. You can pipe the potatoes on top, for a pretty presentation. I used a small ice cream scoop to place my potatoes on top. It looked pretty good.
I brushed the potatoes with some beaten egg, to give them a nice shine. You can sprinkle with some Parmesan cheese, if you like. For even more color on the potatoes, you can place under the broiler for a few minutes.
I used sherry in my gravy. Red wine would also be nice. I also added some parsley to my mashed potatoes.
Shepherd’s Pie
2 T. oil
2 onions, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and diced
2 lbs. ground lamb
2 c. peas
5 T. flour
1 c. chicken stock- or a bit more
½ c. sherry
2 t. thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
2-3 lbs. potatoes
1 c. sour cream
3 T. butter
Salt and pepper to taste
¼ c. chopped parsley
1 egg
Heat oil in large skillet. Sauté onions until tender. Add carrots and cook until carrots are tender. Add lamb and cook until lamb is no longer pink. Add peas and flour, then stir until flour is mixed in. Add stock, sherry and thyme. Cook until thickened and bubbly. Season to taste with salt and pepper. While cooking the meat mixture, peel, dice and boil potatoes until tender. Drain potatoes and mash until smooth. Add sour cream, butter and seasonings. Place meat mixture in a 9×13 inch baking dish. Top with the mashed potatoes. You can spread them, pipe them on or, as I did, use an ice cream scoop. Beat the egg and brush the potatoes with the egg. Bake in a 400 degree oven for about 20 minutes, or until potatoes start to brown and mixture is heated through. You can place under the broiler, if you like, for more color. Serves 6-8.
