Category Archives: kitchen stories

>Brownie Mixes in a Jar

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>There are two simple brownie mixes on my list; the ingredients for these two are almost always plentiful in my cupboards.

Angel Brownies
Ingredients for 1 Quart Jar
1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar, divided
1 1/2 cups sifted flour, divided
4 oz. chocolate morsels
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup broken walnuts
Instructions for Jar:
1. In bottom of jar, pack 3/4 cup brown sugar.
2. Pour in 3/4 cup flour on top of brown sugar.
3. Add a layer of all chocolate morsels.
4. Put remaining 1/4 cup brown sugar in jar and pack down.
5. Add remaining flour, salt, and baking powder.
6. Pour walnuts on top and screw on lid.
Instructions for baking (include with gift tag):
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter
2 extra large eggs
1 1/2 vanilla
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. While preheating, put butter in over-safe bowl and pplace in oven to melt.
3. Watch butter closely; remove from oven when butter melts and set aside to cool.
4. Pour all dry ingredients in jar into large mixing bowl.
5. Add eggs one at a time, stirring after each addition, and add vanilla.
6. Pour melted butter into mixture and mix well.
7. Prepare 8 x 8 inch baking pan with non-stick cooking spray.
8. Pour batter into pan and bake for about 30 minutes.
If you’re serving these at my house, you’ll make coffee, of course.
Blond Brownies
Ingredients for 1 Quart Jar:
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar, divided
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped nuts
Instructions for Jar:
1. Pack 3/4 cup brown sugar in bottom of 1 quart wide-mouth jar.
2. Pour layer of chocolate chips and layer of flour, baking powder, and salt in that order.
3. Top with chopped nuts and screw lid on jar.
Hmmm…. misprint, perhaps? It doesn’t tell me where to put the rest of the brown sugar. I think I’ll pack it on top of the flour layer and top with the nuts.
Instructions for Baking: include with gift tag
1 1/2 cups butter
2 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
1. Preheat oven to 350. Pour ingredients from jar into large mixing bowl.
2. In small saucepan over low heat, melt butter, stirring constantly. Set aside to cool.
3. Beat eggs and add vanilla.
4. Pour butter into egg mixture and mix well.
5. Pour egg mixture into dry ingredients and mix well.
6. Prepare 9 x 9 inch baking pan with non-stick cooking spray.
7. Pour batter evenly into baking pan and bake at 350 for 25- 30 minutes.
Serve with milk for the kids and coffee for the grown-ups.
These two came from a book called Brownies in a Jar. It’s published by Cookbook Resources, LLC. I don’t know if it’s still available; this was a gift a few years ago. I use it every December and sometimes in between! Nope, this isn’t a sponsored post, either.

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>Cookie Mix in a Jar

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>Every year I like to give my coworkers Gift in a Jar mixes. I have three recipe books for this kind of gift, so the biggest decision is – which mix? Most of the time I choose based on the ingredients already in my kitchen. This year it’s a toss-up between two: oatmeal cookies or brownies. Out of four gifts, I decided to give the cookie mix to those with children at home and the brownie mix to those without. The recipes have two parts: the mixes themselves and the instructions to bake them, which go on the gift tags.

Oatmeal, Raisin, & Spice Cookie Mix
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup old-fashioned oats
Layer the ingredients in the order given into a wide-mouth 1-quart canning jar. Pack each layer in place before adding the next ingredient.
Attach a gift tag with the following mixing and baking directions.
1 jar Oatmeal, Raisin, & Spice Cookie Mix
1/2 Cup butter or margarine, softened
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. In a large bowl, cream the butter, eggs, and vanilla. Add the Oatmeal, Raisin, & Spice cookie Mix and stir until the mixture is well blended. Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto greased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Transfer to wire racks to cool.
from Gifts in a Jar: Cookies published by CQ Products in Waverly, IA
Disclaimer: no, this is not a sponsored post. I’ve had these books for years and I use them every holiday season. Ho-ho-ho; enjoy!

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>jammin’ with cranberries

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>

I tried. It didn’t quite work. I know what went wrong, though, so I’m going to work on a solution today.
A package of cranberries + a few jars of orange marmalade (not jelled, remember?) should have made a delicious jam.

Well, it jelled well and the flavor was good, but I added too much sugar. It was grainy. I think I measured the amount of sugar based on raw fruit and forgot that the marmalade was already sweetened.
Now what? I have one more option, and one more package of pectin. If I incorporate more raw fruit from the freezer, raspberries or strawberries, it might work. Step one: clean the kitchen so I actually have room to work. Step two: give it a try. What do you think, readers, will it work? I’ll let you know!

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>Pizza! Pizza Crust at home!

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>I was craving homemade pizza. Tombstone wouldn’t do. Wasting money on a delivery wasn’t right, either. But (there’s always a “but”) – we didn’t have any crust.

Homemade pizza crust is something I haven’t mastered yet. I’ve used mixes with limited success, and I’ve never made my own. I took a deep breath, reached for Organizing Dinner; 70 Meals, 1 trip to the store. I tried her pizza crust recipe; lo and behold, it worked!
Pizza Crust
1 1/4 cups flour
1/2 packet (1 1/2 tsp) dry yeast
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup very warm water (120-130 degrees)
1 Tablespoon vegetable oil

Generously grease a baking sheet, and place on middle rack of oven. In a medium bowl, stir together 1/2 cup of the flour, yeast, and salt until well blended. Add water and oil. Mix until almost smooth. Gradually stir in remaining flour to make a firm dough. Cover; let sit for 15 minutes. Generously prick dough with fork. Roll out and prebake at 400 degrees F for 10-12 minutes or just until edges of crust begin to turn a light golden brown. Remove from oven.

At this point you get to add the toppings. I use a basic marinara or spaghetti sauce, spread thin, with onions and peppers sliced thin and fresh oregano sprinkled generously on top. After that we choose a meat or other special toppings. Basil and spinach make a nice veggie pizza with a little feta cheese. One of my favorite pizzas was the one I topped with fresh pepperoni from the neighborhood meat market. Oh, that was good! The butcher sliced it thin for me, too. Lastly, of course, the cheese. I cover the entire pizza with grated mozzarella (I keep a ball of mozzarella in the freezer; it thaws quickly and grates well while partially frozen) and then supplement it with whatever cheeses we have in the refrigerator. Why, yes, we do always have cheese available. Doesn’t everybody?
The Organizing Dinner blog posted the same recipe recently. I can vouch for its simplicity; try it! The fun part is choosing toppings. Yes, I live in Wisconsin; our pizzas always have plenty of locally made cheese. In my house, it also has home-grown oregano, brought in from the deck to live on a bookshelf for the winter. In the summertime – well, I think I’ll wait until summer to post this again. I’ll share my ideas of fun with farm market produce on a pizza crust.
No, this is not a sponsored post. Nope. Just a hungry day and a solution to my dinner dilemma. Enjoy!

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>Chuck’s Black Bean Soup

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>He heard it first on Wisconsin Public Radio courtesy of Zorba Paster on Your Health. Then he went online and found another variation that wasn’t quite as spicy. Finally, he made the recipe his own. Yes, like me, Chuck likes to play in the kitchen and modify recipes to fit our own family tastes. He served this as part of Thanksgiving dinner, but it’s a great soup for any cold or dreary winter day.

Chuck’s Black Bean Soup
Ingredients:
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
3/4 cup white pearl onions, peeled
1/2 cup diced celery
1/2 cup diced carrots
3/4 cup green bell peppers
2 Tablespoons minced garlic
3 (15 oz.) cans black beans (He used Bush’s regular, plain style)
1 (15 oz.) can garbanzo beans
4 cups chicken stock
2 Tablespoons taragon vinegar (can substitute another vinegar if desired)
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon hickory liquid smoke
Garnish: chopped green onions, sour cream
Directions:
1. Hear 2 Tablespoons of oil in a large saucepan over medium/low heat.
2. Add onion, celery, carrot, bell pepper, and garlic to the oil and simmer slowly for 15 minutes. Keep heat low wnough that the veggies don’t brown; be careful not to burn the garlic or it will be bitter.
3. While you cook the veggies, pour the garbanzo beans into a strainer and rinse them under cold water. Set aside.
4. Pour 3 cans of black beans into strainer and rinse under cold water.
5. Measure 3 cups of the drained and strained black beans into a food processor or blender with 1 cup of chicken stock. Puree on high speed until smooth.
6. When the veggies are ready, pour the pureed black beans, the whole beans (black & garbanzo), the rest of the chicken stock, and every other ingredient in the list (down to the liquid smoke) to the pot.
7. Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 50-60 minutes or until soup has thickened and all the ingredients are tender.
8. Pour mixture into crockpot and warm for 4 hours.
Chuck notes: Steps 1-7 can be done the day before and refrigerated overnight. He and Amigo did that Wednesday evening and warmed the soup in the crock pot while the turkey was cooking.
My opinion: delicious. This one’s a keeper. So is Chuck, for that matter.
And in other news, the winner of the Lulu photo book was Kim Moldofsky! Kim, I’ll send you more information soon. Congratulations!

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>Daisy’s Turkey Impossible Pot Pie

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>Perhaps you’ve heard of the faux- pot pie trick, using biscuit mix instead of a pie crust. I’d heard it, but never used it. With a refrigerator full of turkey and other random turkey-related ingredients, I decided to try this. Here’s the resulting formula, Daisy style.

Filling (a.k.a. “crust”)
1 1/3 cup milk
4 eggs
1 cup Bisquick or other biscuit mix
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 tsp herbs (I used fresh thyme & rosemary, growing in pots on top of the piano)
Main Ingredients
1 cups turkey, cooked & chopped (I used dark meat)
1 1/2 cup vegetables (I used corn with a little broccoli & cauliflower)
1 cup mushroom pieces (optional; I left this out)
1/2 cup onions, diced (we had pearl onions leftover from soup; they were delicious in this)
1/2 cup diced bell peppers, red & green
1 cup shredded cheese (I used a mix of Swiss and mild cheddar)
Preheat oven to 400. Spray two pie pans or 8 inch round cake pans with nonstick spray. Thaw and drain vegetables. Mix meat, vegetables, and cheese in pie plates. Beat filling (crust) ingredients until smooth. Pour into pie pans over meat mixture. Bake 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes; serve warm.
According to the original, one pie pan serves two people. We found that one was almost enough to serve our family of four. 2/3 of the second pan was left over. Leftover leftovers! Delicious. Next time I make this, I’ll add gravy because the end result was a little dry. Chuck poured a little gravy over his second helping and pronounced it good, so I’ll take that under advisement.
For the original recipe, look to Healthy Home Recipes’ web site. They have more options and ideas for this one, and the link might just lead you to something else that you like.

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>Thanksgiving Preparations at Chez O.K.: Reprise

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>Thanksgiving Dinner? No problem! I’ll call in the fairies. They’ll do everything.

The laundry fairy washes, dries, and presses the table linens, including the cloth napkins. If she’s feeling generous, the sheets and towels might get folded, too.
The turkey fairy will practice her specialty and make sure the bird is cooked and carved just in time for dinner. White meat and dark, it’ll all be moist and savory and leave just enough leftovers for sandwiches and a turkey noodle soup.
The baker fairy will take care of pies, pumpkin and otherwise. He’s an expert on flaky crust, selected spices, and the perfect portion of whipped cream. Don’t let that Simple Simon guy get in the way; the kitchen’s too small for anyone who begs to taste the wares.
The brownie — the cunning little house elf — will clean the home thoroughly, put the leaf in the big table, and get the extra chairs out of the basement.
I wouldn’t dream of neglecting the wine fairy: the sommelier so tiny she only recommends, never lifts, a bottle. Her taste is impeccable. Now if we could stop her before she over-imbibes and falls asleep on top of the piano…
Did I mention the decorator fairy? She’ll fix the fireplace mantel with something tasteful and seasonal before she makes sure the couch and rocker are properly arranged for the annual holiday gladiator contests known as NFL football.
The ambiance fairy keeps the wood fire crackling in the fireplace, the aromas wafting deliciously through the home, and the family discussions neutral.
The kitchen fairies: really, there must be a whole crew of these talented sprites. One to do the shopping early and avoid the crowds, another to make sure the cranberries are perfect (and local, of course), and a magical maestro with the potato masher. Then we’ll need a feisty fairy, one with attitude — yes, you, Tinkerbell, you can make the coffees.

Mom, you can send the fairies over to my house now that we’re hosting the annual family Thanksgiving dinner. Let them know that I’ll have their room ready and their favorite cookies baked. If they arrive on Sunday there should be enough time to get everything done.

Wait. What do you mean…they’re…not….real?

Originally posted in November of 2008. I’m still hoping these little helpers will make a stop at my house – they haven’t yet. Sniff. Sigh.

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>Cranberry Sauce with Lime and Ginger

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>Our traditional cranberry sauce recipe reads like this:

1 cup water
2 cups sugar
3 cups cranberries
Bring to a boil. Simmer 20 minutes or until all berries have popped. Add cinnamon to taste.
I found a new one this year.
Cranberry Sauce with Lime and Ginger
Ingredients:
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup pure maple syrup or maple flavored syrup (we’ll go for the real thing)
1/2 cup water
1 1/2 teaspoons finely shredded lime peel
2 Tablespoons lime juice
1 12 oz. bag fresh or frozen cranberries
1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
In a medium heavy saucepan, stir together sugar, maple syrup, water, lime peel, and lime juice. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, about 3 minutes or until sugar is dissolved.
Stir in cranberries. Simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in ginger. Simmer, uncovered, about 6 minutes more or until berries have popped and mixture starts to thicken, stirring occasionally. Cool.
Recipe found on Better Homes and Gardens Recipes web site – there may be more! Search them yourself.

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>Sorry, no food in the house.

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>I’ve been sick lately. It’s not influenza, but it’s a nasty upper respiratory thing that’s just knocked me out cold. I haven’t been eating, so I haven’t been thinking about posting a recipe, either. My only “meals” have been chicken soup, crackers, and scrambled eggs. I haven’t even been drinking coffee.

Yes, it’s that serious.
So instead of leaving you with nothing, I’ll leave you with an old favorite comfort food: Chicken soup.
Chicken Soup with Rice
It’s the ultimate comfort food; keep chicken stock and chicken scraps in the freezer for soups or stews, and it’ll be easy to put together a soup when you’re not feeling well. Here are the ingredients that went into mine.

6 cups chicken stock
2 cups chicken scraps (from freezer, labelled “chicken for soup”)
1/4 cup onion, diced
1/4 cup red pepper and yellow pepper, also from the freezer: last summer’s garden yield
1/4 cup frozen corn
1 potato, diced
1 carrot, diced (bunnies enjoyed the leftover peelings)
1 stalk of celery, diced (see above: bunnies handled the ends)

The entire mix simmers in the crockpot most of the day while I rest and heal. About 4:00, I add 1/2 cup wild rice and 1/2 cup barley.

By the way – “eating the opponent” takes Green Bay to Minnesota. We’re considering, in honor of Brett Favre, serving turnovers for breakfast.

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>And another salsa!

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>Every day a few more tomatoes ripen in the kitchen. I didn’t have enough to make the canned salsa from last summer (don’t even suggest I buy those wimpy grocery store tomatoes to fill in), but I did have enough for a basic refrigerated salsa. When Chuck and Amigo woke up Sunday morning, they smelled chili in the slow cooker and salsa cooling on the stove. They almost (not quite) wanted some for breakfast.

Tomato Salsa Dip

1 small to medium onion, diced
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced
4 ripe tomatoes, cored, peeled, and diced (mine were small, so I used 7)
1 cup tomato juice
2 teaspoons dried hot red pepper flakes
5 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons cornstarch
4 Tablespoons water
Directions:
1. Warm the onion, peppers, tomatoes, tomato juice, hot pepper flakes, red wine vinegar, and brown sugar in a saucepan.
2. Mix the cornstarch and the water and add to the simmering salsa.
3. Stir until thickened. Then remove from heat and allow to cool.
At first glance, this salsa looked watery and overly chunky. I considered taking one third or even one half of the batch and putting it through the food processor for a little thicker, more blended texture. Chuck, however, objected. He thought it looked just right the way it was. So… since he and La Petite are the major consumers of salsa in our home, I decided to let it be. I can always blend it up a bit later if they change their minds.
Based on a recipe found on http://www.food.com/ by following terarecipes on Twitter. When it comes to cooking, the Internet is a great resource.

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