Buttermilk Sugar Cookies

I know this won't help anybody make dinner, but these are the BEST sugar cookies ever. I made them today and had to share it. This recipe comes from the mom of my best friend growing up.



Mix:

2 c sugar
1 c shortening
1 c buttermilk (I just make buttermilk by adding 1 Tbsp of vinegar to regular milk)
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla



Then add:
5 1/2 c flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt



Bake them at 375 for 8-10 minutes.Roll the dough out about 1/4 an inch thick. This recipe makes around 4 dozen cookies.



PS I think the best way to top these cookies is with cream cheese frosting. I buy a can of it and can frost the whole batch.

Potato Corn Chowder

POTATO CORN CHOWDER

3 cups frozen whole kernal corn, thawed
1/2 - 3/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 - 3/4 cup chopped green or red sweet pepper
1 tbls flaxseed oil (can use canola or olive)
1 14.5 ounce can chicken broth
1 cup cubed, peeled potato
1 cup milk
1 tbls all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
shredded cheese and/or parsley for garnish

In large saucepan cook onion and sweet pepper in hot oil till onion is tender but not brown. Stir in chicken broth and potato. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 10 min. Stir in corn. Cook, uncovered, about 10 min. more or till potato and corn and tender, stirring the mixture occasionally.

In small bowl combine milk, flour, salt, and pepper; stir into corn mixture. Cook and stir till thickened and bubbly. Top with desired garnish. I served with green salad and cheese bread.


I was proud of myself. This is the first meal I've cooked in a LONG time!

Navajo Tacos

2 c flour (I use half white and half wheat flour)
1 c milk or water (I use 1/2 c milk, 1/2 water)
1/2 tsp salt
4 tsp. baking powder

Mix the above together. I divide the dough in half and then half again to make 4 fry breads. Roll the dough out about 1/4 inch thick. I use this pan because it's the smallest one I have and it's just the right size to to fry one at a time.

I put about 1/4 cup olive oil in and heat it up on medium heat. Put one rolled out dough in and flip it when one side is done. Once it is cooked I put it on paper towels to soak up any extra oil and then fry the next one.

Then all that's left to do is top it with whatever you want. Here's what we usually have:

1/2 lb of ground beef cooked with a little bit of taco seasoning

shredded cheddar cheese

lettuce

diced tomatoes

sliced olives

Ranch dressing (I think this is a must)

Chicken Marsala

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:
4 boneless chicken breast halves without skin (I just use frozen chicken strips)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon basil, dried
3 tablespoons butter or margarine
3 tablespoons olive oil
4 to 8 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced (1/2 to 1 cup sliced)
1/2 cup Marsala wine (Most expensive ingredient $7 to $12 a bottle but you can save and make a few more batches. I prefer the sweet marsala wine don't let them talk you into a drier cooking wine, it does not go as well.)

Preparation: Pound chicken to 1/4" thickness between 2 sheets of plastic wrap. Combine flour, salt, pepper, and basil; mix well. Heat oil and butter in a heavy non-stick skillet over medium high heat. Dredge chicken in seasoned flour mixture. Cook chicken until lightly browned on first side (about 2 to 3 minutes). Turn chicken and add mushrooms around the chicken pieces. Cook about 2 minutes longer, until lightly browned; stir the mushrooms. Add Marsala wine to pan. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and simmer 10 minutes. Serve with hot cooked pasta, mashed potatoes, or rice.

Broccoli, Ham, & Cheese Pocket

I love this recipe because it's so EASY. I got it from my sister Melissa. She just made it up one day. I think it's pretty tasty so I'm passing it on.

Here's what you use to make the bread part:

8 1/2 oz. warm water

1 Tbsp honey

1 1/2 c white flour

1 1/2 c wheat flour

3/4 tsp. salt

1 1/2 Tbsp brown sugar

1 1/2 Tbsp powdered milk

(I never have powdered milk so I leave this out)

2 Tbsp butter

2 tsp yeast (or 1 1/2 tsp fast acting yeast)

I just throw all that in my bread machine and use the dough cycle. Another option is to use one of those Rhodes frozen dough loaves.

But whatever dough you use, just roll it out into a big rectangle and fill it with:

1 pkg (around 9 oz) ham or other pre-cooked meat (cut up into small pieces)

1 bunch of broccoli crowns chopped up quite small (put them in raw)

about 8 oz of shredded cheese

I usually do a layer of cheese, then the ham, broccoli and then another layer of cheese on top.

You put those ingredients right down the middle Then you just fold over the sides and pinch the top and the sides closed. Bake it at 350 for about 20 - 25 min. When it's done it should look something like this.

There are lots of options for the meat part of this, but here's what I like to use:

One time I used one of those variety packs with turkey, ham, and chicken and it was good too. Anything works.

Stuffed Burrito

I made this for dinner tonight (using leftover chicken that my husband didn't really care for) and he just raved about how good it was. He absolutely loved it! If you can use leftovers your husband didn't like to create something he absolutely loves, you know the recipe is a winner. I got this recipe from The Pendulum Court, a restaurant in the Eyring Science Center at BYU. I hope you enjoy it.

Ingredients:

1/3 cup chopped onions (I omit)

1 1/2 tsp ch opped garlic, in water (I omit)

1 1/2 tsp oil (I omit)

1/2 cup rice, parboiled

1/2 cup water

1 can diced tomatoes, with juice

1/4 cup canned green chili peppers

1/2 tsp sugar

3/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp chili powder

pinch of black pepper

1 lb cooked roast beef (I usually use whatever leftover meat I have in the fridge)

1 cup salsa

1/4 cup sliced green onions (I omit)

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/4 tsp dried oregano

1 can (3/4 cup) black beans, drained

1 cup frozen corn

1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

6 four tortillas, 10 in

1/4 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

Directions:

1. In a medium pan, saute onion and garlic in oil over medium heat, until onions are tender. (I have never done this step because I don't care for onions or garlic)


2. Add remaining 8 ingredients (from rice to black pepper). Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low and allow to cook for 20-25 minutes stirring occasionally (rice will burn if not stirred). (I tried brown rice and it took forever to cook, I ended up adding extra water to get it cooked all the way.)


3. While rice is cooking, shred the roast beef with a fork and place in a skillet. Add salsa, green onions, cumin and oregano to meat. Bring meat mixture to a simmer and allow to simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring constantly.


4. In separate bowl, combine the drained black beans, frozen corn and cheese. Stir mixture (do not mash the beans).


5. When rice is done add it to the bean mixture and carefully stir together.


6. Spray one side of a tortilla with nonstick pan spray and place that side down on a plate. Spread 1/4 cup meat on each tortilla. Place 2/3 cup of rice/corn/bean mix on top of meat. Fold the ends of the burrito towards the center and then roll the burrito over the folded ends. Repeat for each burrito and place in a 9 x 13 pan.


7. Cover pan with foil and bake at 475 degrees for 15 minutes. Remove foil and bake uncovered for an additional 10 minutes. (It will get a bit crispy on the outside, which makes it super yummy)


8. Sprinkle cheese on burrito and let melt.


9. Serve with chopped tomato, shredded lettuce, sour cream, salsa or other toppings of choice. (Since we live in New Mexico we top it with roasted green chili from our garden...so tasty!)

Pizza Pizza

Homemade Pizza

(I have officially decided that our camera was not made to take pictures of food)

Welcome to another installment of Emily in the kitchen. The menu for tonight was homemade pizza. Now this IS definitely one of our regular meals. We ate homemade pizza a lot growing up, so the recipe for the dough comes from my mom. Now this dough recipe will make enough for two pizzas. You could half it if that seems like too much or you could make breadsticks out of half. I usually make two pizzas and then cut one up to freeze. Here goes:

Pizza Dough

2 c warm water
1/4 c oil (I use olive oil)
up to 6 c all-purpose flour

(I use 2 1/2 c white flour and 2 1/2 c wheat flour. Wheat flour soaks up a lot more water than white flour so I end up using only 5 cups)
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp yeast

I like to take the easy way out and I put my bread maker in charge of the dough. I just throw the wet ingredients in first, then the dry and put it on the dough cycle. About 1 1/2 hours later it's ready. If you do it by hand you're going to want to dissolve the yeast in the water, add the oil and salt, and then the flour.

For the sauce, I make mine, but you could use a bottled or canned pizza or spaghetti sauce. Here's what I do:

Sauce

In an 8 oz can of unsalted tomato sauce I add
1/2 tsp. Oregano
1/2 tsp. Garlic powder
1/4 tsp. Onion powder
1/4 tsp. Basil

I do this with two 8 oz cans of tomato sauce, one for each pizza. Then you get to go crazy with whatever toppings you like. This time around I only used pepperoni and olives, but sometimes I'll use Canadian bacon or pineapple for Jason. Today I used some shredded parmesan cheese that I had leftover from another night as well as some mozzarella and "pizza blend" pre-shredded cheese. I'm a pretty boring pizza topping person, but the possibilities are endless. You'll have to let me know what you use.
And if anyone out there has another yummy pizza dough recipe speak up.

Bake your pizza at 375 degrees for about 15 min!

Oh, and one more tid bit. I like to use this:

It's Turkey pepperoni with 70% less fat and we can't tell the difference in the taste.