Pistachio Macarons

One of my very favorite treats to get when I go to France is macarons.  There is nothing quite like them here in the US, apart from the bakeries that do make and sell them here (and at that, they are often not nearly as good).  They are a bit tricky to make and time-consuming, but so very, very worth the effort.  This version comes from a book called "Macaroons: 30 Recipes for Perfect Bite-Sized Treats" by LOVE FOOD.  I made these for one of my French exchange students once and she was so impressed with it that she bought the same book to take back with her to France, if that tells you anything :)  My favorite flavor is pistachio--have also made several others.  Will post those varieties eventually.  For now, enjoy these!

Ingredients:

--cookie--
1/2 c. ground almonds/almond meal
1/4 c. finely ground pistachios
1 c. powdered sugar
2 large egg whites
1/4 c. superfine sugar
green food coloring (I use Wilton)

--filling--
6 T. unsalted butter, softened
green food coloring
1 1/2 c. powdered sugar, sifted
2 T. finely ground pistachios

Instructions:

1. Place ground almonds, pistachios, and powdered sugar in a food processor.  Process for 15 seconds.  Sift the mixture into a bowl.

2. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper, set aside.

3. Place the egg whites in a large bowl and beat at high speed until soft peaks stage.

4. Gradually beat in the superfine sugar until a glossy meringue forms.

5. Beat in enough food coloring to give a light green tint to the meringue.

6. Using a spatula, gently fold in the almond mixture one-third at a time.

7. Assemble a pastry bag fitted with a round tip that is about the diameter of a pencil (sorry, don't know the exact measure of mine).  Get someone to hold the bag open for you (if available).  You will need to also either hold a finger over the tip to block it or point it upward while you spoon/scrape/pour the batter into the bag.  Yes, this part is do-able solo, but it takes work, you've been warned...

8. Pipe circles onto the parchment lined sheets, about the size of half-dollars or slightly larger.  (I pipe starting at middle and making a spiral outward.  This pattern is sometimes visible on the final product.)

9. Let the piped circles rest of the sheet undisturbed for 30 minutes at room temperature.  Meanwhile, heat oven to 325°F just before this time period is over (depending on how long your oven takes).

10.  Bake the cookies for 10-15 minutes.  Be very careful not to overbake!  They will have a very, very slight browned tint near the bottom edges.

11. After removing from oven, slide parchment sheet with cookies onto cooling racks to let cool for 10 minutes.  At the 10 minute mark, gently and slowly peel the parchment back from the cookies to remove them (this can also be tricky--if your cookies did not get quite done enough, the middles will tend to stick to the parchment).

12. Make the filling:  beat butter and a little food coloring in a bowl until butter looks slightly whipped/fluffy.  Gradually beat in the powdered sugar (this is very important; I once accidentally added it all at once instead and it did not turn out correct!) until smooth and creamy.

13. Stir in the pistachios.  Take one cookie, 'frost' the flat side, then press another cookie flat side to the filling to form a sandwich.

14. Enjoy a lot!!

Peanut Clusters

Peanuts covered in chocolate, oh, yes!  I always make these around Christmas time, as well as other times of the year--so good and easy :)  I've made these with varying amounts of ingredients; these are the amounts I think work best (can be scaled down).  This recipe is one that my wonderful mother always made, gave to me :)

Ingredients:

18 oz./3 c. semi-sweet chocolate morsels
10 oz./6 'blocks' almond bark
16 oz. salted cocktail peanuts

Instructions:

1. Place large pieces of wax paper or parchment on countertop (these need to be ready for the clusters to 'set' on).

2. In a large pan, melt almond bark over medium-low heat, stirring often.

3. When almond bark is nearly all melted, add chocolate and continue stirring often until all melted and smooth.

4. Remove from heat, then stir in peanuts.

5. Spoon clusters onto wax paper sheets on counter; size will determine how long it takes for them to 'set' (I typically wait at least an hour).

6. Remove by peeling back wax paper from underneath.  Enjoy!

Walnut Streusel Bread

Hard as it is to believe, this is actually a 'Cooking Light' recipe--yes, a bread!  Mind you, I didn't use fat-free buttermilk (have never seen such, so I went with lowfat) and had to flour my pan after spraying it because I didn't have baking spray with flour in it, so I might have taken it out of the 'light' range, but it's tasty, so that's what really counts, right??
This one is not done in the bread machine, just the regular oven, and since it's a quick bread, no kneading (yay!)  Very tasty, easy to make.  My only complaint is that it is very difficult to get the bread out of the pan without losing the streusel topping! (yes, I put as much back on as I could...)

Link to original recipe:
http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/walnut-streusel-bread

Ingredients:

--streusel--
1/3 c. brown sugar (packed)
1/3 c. old-fashioned rolled oats
1 T. all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
dash of salt
2 T. butter, melted
2 T. walnuts, chopped

--bread--
9 oz. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
5 T. butter, softened
2/3 c. sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 c. buttermilk

Instructions:

1. Heat oven to 350°F.  Spray 9" x 5" pan with cooking spray and flour lightly (or use fancy spray with four already in it :)).

2. Prepare streusel: combine all the streusel ingredients in a medium bowl.  Stir until well mixed and set aside.

3. Prepare bread: whisk first 4 bread ingredients (flour through salt) together in a small bowl.

4. In a large bowl (or stand mixer bowl), combine butter and sugar.  Beat until well combined.

5. Add eggs one at a time and beat well after each addition.  Beat in vanilla with final addition.

6. Gradually add flour mixture and buttermilk alternately, beginning and ending with flour mixture.  Beat until just combined.

7. Pour/scrape half of batter into prepared pan.  Top with half of streusel mixture.

8. Pour/scrape in remaining batter and top with remaining streusel.

10. Bake for 50 minutes, then cool 10 minutes in pan on wire rack before attempting to remove from pan (you've been warned about the streusel, just reminding you!).

11. Slice up and enjoy!

Short Ribs in Red Wine and Port

This is a recipe that I hadn't made in quite a long time, mainly because I don't keep port wine on hand.  I was craving short ribs (again!) and even made a special trip to the store just to make this the other day after coming across it in one of my cookbooks (I have ones that I have made from clipping recipes from magazines).  I was so hungry for it that I forgot to take a plated pic, so that will have to wait for the next time...  Meanwhile, you will just have to settle for the final pic prior to plating:

Despite the less than sexy appearance in my Dutch oven above, I assure you it's quite delicious!
Link to original recipe:
http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/short-ribs-in-red-wine-and-port-with-tangerine-gremolata
(I did not make, nor have I ever made, the tangerine gremolata garnish part.  It's quite wonderful on its own!)

Ingredients:

2 fresh Italian parsley sprigs
2 fresh thyme sprigs
2 bay leaves
1 fresh rosemary sprig
1 whole star anise
leaves from 2 celery stalks
3-4 lbs. short ribs (not flanken cut)
2 T. canola oil
2 c. chopped onion (I used 3 small yellow)
2 carrots, peeled, sliced into thin rounds
2 celery stalks, chopped
5 large garlic cloves, chopped
1 T. fresh ginger, peeled and chopped (**I used food processor and just chopped all items together except the carrots)
2 T. tomato paste
2 c. fruity red wine, such as Syrah (which is what I used)
1 c. ruby Port
3 c. low-salt beef broth

Instructions:

1. Heat broiler to HI.  Spray broiler pan with cooking spray and place ribs on pan.  Season ribs with salt and pepper.  Broil ribs for 10-15 minutes, turning once.  (**I let mine go a bit too long by accident, but it was not a problem**).  Once you have finished broiling the ribs, change oven to 350°F.

2. Dampen a piece of cheesecloth (around 6"x8") and place first 6 ingredients in middle.  Roll up and tie closed with kitchen string.  (The celery leaves are not in the pic because I forgot to put them in prior to clicking the pic.  Yeah, I was having an off day, can you tell lol?)

3. Heat oil over medium heat in Dutch oven.  Cook next 5 ingredients (onion through ginger) until they begin to soften, around 5 minutes.

4. Add tomato paste and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.

5. Add wines and herb bundle.  Increase heat to high and bring to boil.  Boil for 5 minutes.

6.  Add ribs and broth to pot.  Return to boil, then remove from heat.

7. Cover pot with foil, then with lid (yes, both) and place in oven.  Bake for 2 1/2 hours.

8. Remove ribs from pot and place in separate bowl.  Discard bones.

9. Skim fat from top of sauce as much as possible.  Strain remaining sauce with fine mesh strainer over medium bowl; press on vegetables to release as much liquid as you can.  (I ended up returning the sauce to the Dutch oven for serving, as I did not wish to dirty any more dishes just to serve.)

10. Combine meat and sauce and serve with desired side.  I always serve my short rib dishes with medium egg noodles (pic next time I prepare!)

Fudge Crinkles

Another easy cookie recipe and such a very delicious one.  Make that dangerously delicious--this only yields around 3 dozen cookies and they are gone quite quickly around my house!
Link to original recipe:
http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/cake-mix-fudge-crinkle-cookies/9b11c0b4-37d5-45ed-b417-a218792ebc35?p=1

Ingredients:

1 box chocolate cake mix (I used a dark chocolate fudge one this time, but have used other varieties as well)
1/3 c. vegetable oil (I used canola)
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
powdered sugar (to coat the dough balls)

Instructions:

1. In a large bowl, combine cake mix, oil, eggs, and vanilla.

2. Refrigerate for 15-30 minutes.  Heat oven to 350°F (the original recipe says 325 for dark or non-stick sheets, but I used 350 with my non-stick and the results were fine, so use your own judgment).

3. Roll dough into 1-inch balls.  Toss in powdered sugar and roll to coat.

4. Place on cookie sheet and bake for 9-11 minutes (I went 11 minutes).  Cookies will be puffy and 'crackled' when they are done.

5. Allow cookies to cool on sheet until they are no longer puffed up (recipe says 1 minute, I went more like 2-3 minutes).  Transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

6. Enjoy with a nice glass of cold milk!

Velveeta Mac 'n Cheese -- updated 28 Jan 2018

Last month was just too crazy to get much posting done here, my apologies.  Even though December is also quite busy, I'm determined to find at least a little time to write some posts--I have done some cooking and need to catch up!
This recipe is much like what my mom used to make, just with a different method that my husband introduced to me.  It's comfort food, perfect for a chilly winter night :)

Update: I have found that the amount of milk needed to be modified, as well as the cooking directions.  I also want to note that Lucerne brand of processed cheese is nearly as good as Velveeta and melts just as well.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 c. dry macaroni (or in this case, fiori shaped pasta)
8 oz. Velveeta 2% milk cheese (or regular, if you prefer more calories lol), cubed (use a cheese slicer)
1/2 T. margarine or butter
3/4 c. milk (I used skim)
salt, to taste

Instructions:

1. Prepare macaroni/pasta according to package directions.

2. Place cubed Velveeta, margarine, milk, and salt in a microwave-safe bowl.

3. Cover bowl and microwave on high for 2 minutes, then remove and stir.  Repeat this process one more time. After the final time, stir until mixture combines and becomes a smooth sauce.

4. Add cooked macaroni/pasta to bowl and stir to combine until all noodles are covered with sauce.

5. Dip up a bowl and enjoy!