Ultimate Chocolate Mousse

It might break your arm off doing all the folding, but it's so very worth the delicious results! 10/10. Awesome topped with a few raspberries.

Link to original recipe: https://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/ultimate-chocolate-mousse

Recipe below contains my modifications.

Ingredients:

8 oz. semisweet dark chocolate, broken in pieces (I used 2.5 oz of 70% dark Lindt & 5.5 oz. Ghirardelli bittersweet (60% cacao) chips)

6 large eggs, separated

3 T. water

1/4 c. amaretto, until sauce t

2 c. heavy cream

6 T. sugar, divided

Directions:

1. Prepare a double boiler. In the top pan, melt the chocolate, then remove from heat and set aside.

2. Place the egg yolks and water in a heavy saucepan over very low heat. Cook, whisking vigorously and constantly, until yolks begin to foam and thicken (about 6 min).

3. Whisk in the amaretto and continue whisking constantly, until sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon (about 6-8 additional min). 

4. Remove from heat and pour through a fine wire-mesh strainer into a bowl. Discard any solids left in strainer.

5. Fold melted chocolate into the sauce and transfer sauce to a large bowl. Set aside.

6. In a separate bowl, use an electric mixer on high speed to beat cream until just before stiff peaks form (around 2 min). Add 2 T. of the sugar, then beat a little more to obtain stiff peaks.

7. Fold chocolate mixture into the beaten cream.

8. Using a whisk attachment on an electric mixer, whisk/beat the egg whites on high speed until soft peaks start to form (around 1 min.)

9. Beat in the remaining 4 T. of sugar, continuing until still peaks form (2-3 min). Fold whisked whites into chocolate-cream mixture.

10. Spoon mousse into a bowl and chill at least 4 hours (up to 24 hours) before serving and enjoying!

Grilled Russet Potatoes

These are very tasty and easy, albeit you do have to tend them closely on the grill at the end.  Glad I read the comments section on the original post, as it was quite helpful; my version below is how I adapted it based on what I read.

Link to original recipe: https://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/a20164811/best-grilled-potatoes-recipe/

Ingredients:

4 Russet potatoes (long/oval shaped are best)

1/2 T. kosher salt

1/2 T. coarse ground black pepper

1/2 T. garlic powder

~2-3 T. olive oil

~1 tsp. each chopped fresh rosemary and thyme

Directions:

1. Prepare your grill (if you have a gas one, use medium-high heat; I have charcoal, so no 'setting').

2. Meanwhile, bring a large pot (about half full) of salted water to boil.  Peel potatoes and cut into 6 long wedges each, then add to the boiling water.  Boil for 5 minutes, then drain.

3. In a large bowl, combine salt, pepper, and garlic powder.  Stir in the olive oil, then toss potatoes in the mixture. 

4. Arrange potatoes on the grill around the edge (not directly over the coals); reserve the olive oil mixture/set aside.  Cover grill and let cook for a few minutes, then turn and cook a couple more minutes.

5. Move potatoes directly over coals and watch carefully, checking for doneness after a minute or two.  They will be turning golden and have nice grill marks when ready.  Transfer to a plate as they finish.

6. Stir the fresh rosemary and thyme into the reserved olive oil mixture.  Brush potatoes to coat lightly with mixture and enjoy!

Ginger Lemongrass Teriyaki Grilled Chicken

This is superb, particularly the sauce, will make again for sure. 10/10. Worked well on indoor grill pan, and of course is excellent on the outdoor/charcoal grill. You can make it with chicken breast as the original recipe was written; personally, I prefer it with boneless/skinless chicken thighs :)

Link to my YouTube video of preparation: https://youtu.be/1oHDa-nzCd4

Original recipe credit: https://www.thechunkychef.com/ginger-lemongrass-teriyaki-grilled-chicken/

Recipe below contains my modifications.

Ingredients:

1.5 to 2 lbs. boneless/skinless chicken thighs

for the chicken coating/marinade:

1/4 c. sliced green onions (both white and green parts)

1/4 c. sliced lemongrass (tender inner part)

2 T. fresh lime juice

2 T. canola oil

splash of soy sauce

1 T. grated fresh ginger

5 cloves fresh garlic, chopped

for the teriyaki sauce--

1/2 c. soy sauce

1/2 c. brown sugar (packed)

1/4 c. cider vinegar

1 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. ground ginger

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. coarse ground black pepper

1 tsp. sriracha

2 tsp. cornstarch, prepared with a little water to make a slurry

Directions:

1. In a mini food processor (or regular size), add all the chicken coating/marinade ingredients. Blend until a chunky paste forms.

2. Place the chicken thighs in a bowl and pour the paste over them, then using your hands, work to coat the chicken all over with the paste. Set aside.

3. Heat/prepare your grill.

4. While your grill is heating, make the teriyaki sauce: in a small saucepan, add all the teriyaki sauce ingredients. Heat over medium to medium high heat and whisk to combine.

5. Once the sauce begins to boil, lower the heat to keep it at a simmer until it has thickened to desired consistency (I usually go about 3 minutes). Remove from heat. Pour off around half of sauce into a small bowl and reserve the rest.

6. Once the grill is ready, cook thighs 7-10 minutes. Just before turning, brush with about half of the teriyaki sauce in the bowl. After turning, brush the other side with remaining half of the bowl of sauce.

7. Once chicken has cooked all the way through, serve with the reserved teriyaki sauce. Enjoy!

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Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies with Sea Salt

These are outstanding cookies, will be making these again and again for sure! 10+/10! The additional sea salt on top is optional.

Link to my YouTube video of preparation: https://youtu.be/kVJvI23Q-i4

Original recipe credit: https://cookiesandcups.com/salted-brown-butter-chocolate-chip-cookies/

Recipe below contains my modifications.

Ingredients:

1 c. salted butter

1 c. light brown sugar

1/2 c. sugar

2 large eggs

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. coarse sea salt

300g (2 1/2 c.) all-purpose flour

2 c. (12 oz.) semi-sweet chocolate chips / chunks

Directions:

1. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter (do NOT go past medium heat!). Let the butter continue heating until it is boiling. Once it reaches boil, stir constantly until the butter passes the foamy phase and becomes a deeper color (not burned! you should see the browned bits once the foam calms down).

2. Remove the pan from heat and allow to cool for 20 min.

3. Meanwhile, heat the oven to 350°F and line baking sheets with parchment paper.

4. Once the butter has cooled, stir in the brown sugar, regular sugar, eggs, vanilla, baking soda, and sea salt, using a wooden spoon, until all is well combined.

5. Stir in the flour until no more traces/flour streaks remain (this is a bit of arm exercise, you've been warned lol!)

6. Mix in the chocolate chips / chunks.

7. Use a large cookie scoop (3 T. size; or modify like I did in the video) to scoop dough onto the prepared baking sheet, spacing 2" apart. Add a few chocolate chips atop each dough ball if desired.

8. Bake cookies for 10-12 min (I went full 12 min), until edges are starting to turn golden and centers are just set.

9. If desired, right after cookies are out of oven, sprinkle each with a bit of coarse or flaky sea salt. Let cookies cool on baking sheet for 6 min. before transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling. Enjoy!

Balsamic Chicken Drumsticks with Roasted Parmesan Potatoes

So tasty and easy, great for a weeknight meal--10/10! Be sure for the potatoes to line the baking sheet with foil. Also note: the potatoes came off a bit easier once they had cooled a minute or two.

Link to my YouTube video of preparation: https://youtu.be/g4cRB-c8E-I

Original recipe credit: https://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/recipes/a50891/balsamic-drumsticks-with-parmesan-potatoes-recipe/

work in progress, hang tight!

• 1/2 c. balsamic vinegar
• 1 c. low-sodium chicken stock
• 1 tbsp. sugar
• kosher salt
• 1 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
• 1/2 c. freshly grated Parmesan
• 1 tbsp. minced parsley, plus more for garnish
• 3 russet potatoes, peeled and cut into wedges lengthwise
• 12 chicken drumsticks
• Freshly ground black pepper

1. In a small saucepan combine balsamic vinegar, chicken stock, sugar and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil and simmer on low until reduced by half, 15 to 20 minutes.
2. Step 2Meanwhile, position 2 racks evenly spaced in the oven and preheat oven to 425°.
3. Step 3In a large bowl combine 1 tablespoon oil, Parmesan and parsley; toss together with potatoes. Spread on rimmed sheet pan, then place on bottom rack and bake for 30 minutes.
4. Step 4Dry drumsticks well with paper-towels to ensure crispiness. Place chicken on rimmed sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper on all sides. Spread chicken in an even layer, then place on top rack and bake for 30 minutes. Change oven to broiler setting. Broil until chicken is golden, about 5 minutes.
5. Step 5Remove chicken from oven and let rest. Move sheet pan with potatoes to top rack and broil until crispy and golden, about 5 minutes. Serve chicken and potatoes with warmed sticky balsamic sauce and garnish with parsley.

Brown Sugar Oatmeal Cookies

These are pretty good...will give them 9/10, as I want to make them again with a couple of tweaks that I think will get them to be a 10 :) First, I realized I was supposed to use salted butter instead of unsalted (which is why I voiced-over in the video for this). Second, I think these needed to bake slightly less time than what I went. They didn't stay quite as soft as I expected after cooled (microwaving for a few seconds fixed this, though).

Link to my YouTube video of preparation: https://youtu.be/lODeVHgxH70

Original recipe credit: https://www.goldmedalflour.com/recipes/brown-sugar-oatmeal-cookies/43bf1d41-fe8a-496d-aff7-43469eca07f4

Recipe below contains my modifications.

hang on, entry in progress!

• 1 3/4 cups packed brown sugar
• 1 cup butter or margarine, softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup Gold Medal™ all-purpose flour
• 1 cup Gold Medal™ whole wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 3 cups old-fashioned oats
• 
  

1. Heat oven to 350°F. In large bowl, beat brown sugar and butter with electric mixer on medium speed, scraping bowl occasionally, until light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla and eggs until well blended.
2. On low speed, beat in all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour and baking powder, scraping bowl occasionally, until well combined. Stir in oats.
3. On ungreased cookie sheets, drop dough by heaping tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart. Flatten cookies to about 1/2-inch thickness.
4. Bake 12 to 14 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool 1 minute; remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks.

Pecan Sheet Pie with Chocolate & Molasses

This is a bit involved, yet very worth it, 10/10. I did not want to make the full recipe due to it making such a huge amount, so I halved it...and even so, still had to modify a bit, as the pan I was using was amount 40% of the area of the one requested in the recipe (8.5"x11.25" vs. 18"x13"). I'm listing the amounts below for the FULL recipe and added notes for parts I had to modify for halving the recipe.

Original recipe credit (you may hit paywall if you are not subscribed, apologies in advance): https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/chocolate-pecan-sheet-pie-with-molasses

Recipe below contains my modifications.

Ingredients:

crust--

3/4 c. pecans (about 2 oz.)

1 1/2 T. sugar

2 1/2 tsp. kosher salt

4 1/2 c. all-purpose flour

3 sticks (1 1/2 c.) chilled unsalted butter, cut into small bits (I cut pats, then cut them in fourths)

3/4 c. ice water (amount is for water after ice is removed)

first filling--

2 sticks (1 c.) unsalted butter

2 c. sugar

1 2/3 c. light corn syrup

1/3 c. molasses (NOT blackstrap)

2 T. fresh lemon juice

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 tsp. kosher salt

8 large eggs, lightly beaten

candied pecans--

1 large egg white (if halving, still use this amount)

1/4 c. brown sugar (packed)

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

2 c. pecans (about 8 oz.)

1 T. sugar

second filling--

8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped (note: original recipe indicates you can use semi-sweet chips instead; I did this, and while it did work, I do not recommend it)

1/2 c. heavy cream

Directions:

1. for the crust: Add the pecans, sugar, and salt to the receptacle of a large food processor. Pulse until finely ground. Then add the flour and pulse again until combined. (NOTE: if you are doing the full recipe, you may want to do this part in halves, as I think there would be too much to process all at once in the full quantity).

2. Add the butter and pulse until pea-sized crumbs texture is reached. Then, with motor running, slowly pour in the ice water and let run until dough comes together.

3. Knead dough a couple of times, forming a ball. Then press flat into a rectangular slab, cover in plastic wrap, and chill in fridge for an hour.

4. Line countertop with a long piece of parchment (at least 20" if doing full size, 13" for half). Lightly dust with flour and transfer dough to the center. Flatten as much as you can with palm of hand, then lightly flour and cover with a second piece of parchment on top. Roll the dough (you will either need someone to hold the parchment or you can tape it down) until it is 1/4" thick and is just slightly larger than the baking sheet size in dimensions.

5. Remove the top sheet of parchment and transfer the dough (with bottom parchment) to baking sheet. Crimp edges for "pie crust" edge look and press dough as need to fit into pan. Prick dough all over bottom with a fork. Freeze for 20 min. 

6. While dough freezes, heat oven to 375°F. When dough is finished freezing, transfer to oven and bake for 20 min. Cool completely on wire rack before continuing to next step.

7. If you turned your oven off while crust cooled, you need to reheat it to 375°F now.  For the first filling: Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Continue heating and stirring until brown solids start to show (around 5 min). Remove from heat immediately and stir in the sugar.

8. Add the corn syrup, molasses, lemon juice, and salt. Stir to combine, then whisk in the eggs. Pour mixture into the baked crust shell but DO NOT OVERFILL! In my case (when I halved the recipe), I ended up tossing out about half of the halved filling mixture because it would not have fit. Basically, use your own judgment here. If you are doing the full recipe, you may want to pull out the oven rack, place your sheet, then pour in mixture (rather than try to not slosh as you put it in oven; this was not necessary with a smaller pan, but was suggested in original recipe).

9. Bake for 10 min, then REDUCE oven temperature to 325°F. Bake for additional 25 min. Transfer to wire rack and cool completely.

10. Meanwhile, INCREASE oven temperature to 350°F. For the candied pecans: Whisk the egg white in a bowl until frothy. Whisk in the brown sugar and salt. Stir in the pecans to coat in mixture.

11. Line a baking sheet with foil. Spread coated pecans out in single layer on the foil and transfer to oven. Bake for 4 min, stir/toss the pecans around on the sheet, then bake for 4 more min.

12. Remove from oven and transfer pecans to a heatproof bowl. Sprinkle the sugar over them and toss to coat. Once pecans have cooled, chop coarsely.

13. For the second filling: Place the chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl. In a small saucepan, heat the cream, stirring frequently, until simmering. Pour over the chocolate and let sit for 3 minutes. Whisk the mixture until smooth, then spread atop the first filling in the pie.

14. Sprinkle the pecans over the melted chocolate mixture (this must be done immediately while still warm!) and let cool for at least 2 hours before serving. Enjoy!