Snickerdoodles

I'm not sure where my Snickerdoodle recipe came from but it is a handwritten card in my recipe binder. It is a quick and pretty little recipe!

I use my smallest cookie scoop and these are about the same size as a Nilla wafer.

Snickerdoodles
1 cup butter
1 1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 2/3 cup flour
1 tsp cream of tarter
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
Sugar coating: 2 tbsp sugar + 2 tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 400F
In a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar and then mix in eggs and vanilla
Add in dry ingredients and comibne until a sticky ball forms.
Shape into balls (I use my cookie scoops) and roll in the cinnamon sugar mix.
Bake 8-10 minutes. Cookies won't turn brown but the bottom edges will start to turn a light golden.

Soft Cut-Out Sugar Cookies

WOW this is my 200th post!! I'm glad its a festive recipe!

I made these fun decorated sugar cookies for a bachelorette party!

The dough was easy to work with, the recipe is easy to double, and they were quite tasty!

The Sugar Cookie recipe was adapted from Sallys Baking Addiction. The icing recipe is adapted from All Recipes.

I doubled the cookie recipe and it made 60 cookies. The cookies were about 3 inches big. I used the Wilton 4 Piece Wedding Cookie Cutters. Unfortunately the bells did not frost easily and didn't look like bells so the evidence was consumed.

This is a recipe for softer sugar cookies but if you prefer a crispier cookie roll the dough thinner and cook for an extra minute.

You'll want the eggs and butter to be room temperature but you want the dough to be cold when you are ready to work with it.

While my dough was cooling in the fridge I made these cinnamon/sugar Snickerdoodle cookies!

I let the cookies cool for about 6 hours before adding the icing. After icing them I let them harden for 4 hours before stacking and bagging them.

It was about 2 hours of effort (making dough, cutting, putting in the oven) but a lot of other hours of waiting while chilling the dough and cooling the cookies and drying the icing.

Note: I also use this icing for my Gingerbread Cookies!

I made these for a fundraiser! How cute!!

Soft Cut-Out Sugar Cookies
Adapted from Sallys Baking Addiction
Yields: 18 medium size cookies or 30 smaller cookies

COOKIES
3/4 cup unsalted butter, slightly softened to room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
2 and 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

In your stand mixer beat the butter until creamed and smooth.
Add the sugar and beat on high speed until light and fluffy.
Add the egg, vanilla, and almond extract and beat on high until fully combined.

In a different bowl mix the flour and baking powder.
With the mixer on low slowly add in the flour until just combined.

Chill dough in fridge for about an hour or up to a day. If more than an hour, cover the dough so it doesn't dry out.

Remove dough from fridge and divide the dough in half. Put on piece on floured surface and put other half in the fridge. Roll to about 1/4″ thickness and cut into desired shapes. Put on cookie sheet (with parchment paper or Silpat mat) and place back in the fridge for 10-20 minutes. This allows the dough to firm back up and prevents spreading.

Re-roll the remaining dough and continue cutting until all is used. I alternated pieces in the fridge and pieces to work with so that the dough was a little cooler.

Bake for 8-11 minutes, until very lightly colored on top and around the edges. My cookies took 10 minutes. Allow to cool on baking sheet and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before icing.

Make the icing and decorate the cooled cookies!

ICING
Adapted from All Recipes
Makes enough for 1 dozen cookies

1 cup confectioners' sugar
2 teaspoons milk
2 teaspoons light corn syrup
1/4 teaspoon almond extract (optional, I would omit next time)
Food coloring (Wilton Gel Food Colors)
Sprinkles

In a small bowl, stir together confectioners' sugar and milk until smooth. Beat in corn syrup and almond extract until icing is smooth and glossy. If icing is too thick, add more corn syrup or milk by the 1/4 tsp.

Divide into separate bowls, and add desired food coloring to each. The food colors I used were very strong and ONE drop was plenty.

Put frosting into bag and snip the corner to easily frost the cookies. An easy way to add the frosting into the bag is to use a drinking glass and that holds it open while you put the frosting in.

Balsamic Glazed Steak and Veggie Rolls

Was this fancy looking? Was it labor intensive? Was it yummy? Will I make this again? Yes for all!

I updated the instructions below to be a bit more efficient. It took me about an hour and I had some downtime while I was waiting for things to cook.

To make this faster you can prepare the veggies the night before or purchase the pre-cut veggies. It also could be made with leftover veggies or the random veggies wilting in your drawer.

Remember that the smaller you cut the veggies the quicker they will cook. My veggies were a bit bigger and I crowded the pan and it took about 10-15 minutes until tender.

veggies all sliced

Rolled meat and kept closed with a toothpick

Topped with the balsamic sauce

Balsamic Glazed Steak Rolls
Adapted from Picture the Recipe
Yields 8 rolls and fed 2 hungry grownups

For the Steak
1 lb sliced skirt steak or top round cutlets
Salt & Pepper
3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce or soy sauce
1 tbsp olive oil

For the Veggie filling
1 carrot
1 bell pepper, any color
1/2 a zucchini or summer squash
5-6 green onions
2 cloves of garlic or 1 heaping tsp of garlic powder
1 tsp Italian herb seasoning

For the Balsamic glaze sauce
2 tsp butter
2 tbsp finely chopped shallots
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp brown sugar
1/4 cup beef broth or red wine or water

Steak
Cut the steak into 3 inch wide strips or separate the steak cutlets.
Season the steak pieces with salt, pepper and Worcestershire sauce.
Marinate for 1/2+ hours.

Sauce
While the steak is marinading... Melt butter in a large saucepan on medium heat.
Add the shallot and saute it for a minute or 2 until they turn soft and translucent.
Add the balsamic vinegar, brown sugar and beef stock and stir.
Bring sauce to a boil and then simmer until reduced by half, stirring occasionally. It will become thicker and syrupy. Turn the heat off and transfer the sauce to a bowl.

Veggies
While the steak is marinating and sauce is reducing...Cut carrot, bell pepper and zucchini into matchstick size pieces, little longer than the width of the steak strips.

After the sauce is put into a different bowl, add a little olive oil and the garlic to the same pan.

When hot add add veggies, Italian herbs, and salt. Stir fry until tender. The smaller the slices the faster it will cook. (aka true matchstick size will cook quickly, mine took about 10 minutes...oops!).
Transfer the veggies to a bowl.

To assemble the steak rolls...
Lay out the strips of steak and place the veggies on one end and roll! Secure it with toothpick. Repeat the same with the other rolls.
Add some oil to the pan and heat for a couple minutes
Put the beef rolls in the pan, seam side down and pan fry for a couple minutes. Then turn roll and cook it on all sides in the same way. Cook until you’re desired done-ness.

Remove the toothpick and serve with the balsamic glaze sauce spooned over the top of each roll.

Vanilla Cheesecake with Graham Cracker Crust

After you go camping and you have leftover graham crackers...what to do?? So far I've made Martha Stewart's Key Lime Pies and now these yummy mini cheesecakes!

I've adapted this recipe from Tyler Florence's Ultimate Cheesecake recipe. Overall I halved the recipe. Instead of 1.5 eggs I used 2 eggs. Instead of 1 cup sour cream I used 1 cup of vanilla Greek yogurt. I omitted the lemon zest and vanilla extract. I reduced the sugar from 1/2 cup to 1/4 cup after reading a bunch of other recipes.

I didn't have any blueberries or fresh fruit to turn into a sauce to drizzle over the top so I put a little Strawberry Jam on mine.

These came out very soft unlike traditional cheesecakes. They freeze well. They are also delish out of the freezer and defrosted for about 10 minutes!

Vanilla Cheesecake with Graham Cracker Crust
makes 8 mini (6 oz ramekin) servings

Crust:

2 cups finely ground graham crackers

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 stick unsalted butter, melted

Filling:

1 (8oz) block, softened cream cheese

2 eggs

1/4 cup sugar

1 cup vanilla Greek yogurt

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

In a food processor pulse the graham crackers, cinnamon, and melted butter.

Spoon into the glass bowls and use another bowl to press the crackers in. Put it to the side.

Using an electric mixer or stand mixer, beat the cream cheese on low speed for 1 minute until smooth and free of any lumps. 

Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and continue to beat slowly until combined.

Gradually add sugar and beat until creamy, for 1 to 2 minutes.

Add vanilla yogurt, scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. 

Pour the filling into the crust-lined pan. 

Put the ramekins on the cookie sheet and then place in the oven. 

Place a large pan of water in the bottom rack of the oven. 

Bake for 30 minutes. The cheesecake should still jiggle (it will firm up after chilling). 

Crack the oven door and let the cheesecake sit for another 30 minutes. 

Chill in the refrigerator, loosely covered, for at least 4 hours. 

Irish Soda Bread Recipes x3

I had some leftover buttermilk from the Broccoli Slaw and I was thinking of what else I could make... Irish Soda Bread! It is a little late past St. Patrick's Day but it is a recipe I've been waiting to try!

Since I don't do this in parts and I couldn't decide which recipe to make, I decided to make all 3!

I adjusted each recipe for 2 cups of flour and updated all the ingredient measurements. I did not use caraway seeds or the chocolate chips for a more even comparison.

I baked Recipe 1 and Recipe 2 as suggested. I baked Recipe 3 at 350 for 40 minutes. Recipe 1 follows an authentic Irish Soda Bread recipe. Recipe 2 was sweeter and moister. Recipe 3 was similar to a biscuit texture.

For a different variation use chocolate chips for the raisins.

If you give them a try let me know what you think!

Below are the original recipes:

Recipe 1

2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup raisins
1 cup buttermilk
1 tsp Caraway seeds (Optional) or 1/2 cup chocolate chips (Optional)

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Put the dough on a well floured surface and knead until no longer super sticky. Place on a cookie sheet and slice the top lightly with an "X"

Bake 10 minutes at 375 and then 40 minutes at 350.

Recipe 2 followed Recipe 1 without the salt but the addition of sugar, eggs, and melted butter. I didn't use the caraway seeds. However, the recipe called for "T" and "t" which I didn't realize until after that "T" means Tablespoon and "t" means teaspoon. So the recipe wasn't followed as closely as planned, at least I can't remember. At any rate...

Recipe 2

3 cups flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cups raisins
2 cups buttermilk
1/3 cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
2 tsp melted butter
1 tbsp Caraway Seeds (Optional) or 1/2 cup chocolate chips (Optional)

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Grease and flour the cake pan. Pour batter into the pan.

Bake 45 minutes at 350.

Recipe 3 follows closely to Recipe 2 but calls for the butter to be cold instead of melted and for 1 egg instead of 2 eggs and no baking powder. There is also a difference in the flour to buttermilk ratio. I didn't use the orange zest.

Recipe 3

4 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 cup raisins
1 3/4 cups cold buttermilk
4 tbsp sugar
1 egg, beaten
4 tbsp cold butter, cut into pieces
1 tsp grated orange zest (optional)

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Put the dough on a well floured surface and knead until no longer super sticky. Place on a cookie sheet and slice the top lightly with an "X"

Bake 45 minutes at 375.

Chicken Fajitas

I was looking for ways to change up our regular grilled chicken and this is one of the new recipes that I tried!  This recipe is adapted from Simply Recipes.

It was nice that this whole meal could be prepared on the grill since it has been so hot outside! 

I made a couple substitutes based on what was available in the house. I used lemon juice instead of lime juice, garlic powder instead of garlic cloves, and red pepper flakes instead of jalapeno.

Yum!

Chicken Fajitas

Serves 4

1 pound of chicken breast

3 peppers, sliced into stripes

2 small onions, sliced into stripes

Marinade
2 tbsp lime juice or lemon juice
3 tbsp olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced or 1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder or 1/4 tsp of cayenne powder and 1/4 tsp paprika
1/2 jalapeno, seeded and minced or 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 cup chopped cilantro

Butterfly the chicken breast. Put into a pie plate.

Combine all marinade ingredients in a small bowl. Pour over chicken.

Marinade for 1 hour at room temperature or in the fridge for 4-6 hours.

While grill is preheating, put the veggies on a large piece of tinfoil, fold the foil in half. Fold the edges in to form an envelope/packet. Put on the grill for 10 minutes while grill continues to heat.

Grill the chicken for 3-6 minutes per side. Once cooked remove from heat and onto a plate to rest. 

Continue to cook peppers and onions until charred.

Slice chicken and serve on a tortilla.

Mild Taco Seasoning

This mild taco seasoning was adapted from The Daily Meal and was kid approved (at least this time!). It was determined to be not too spicy and not too bland. I did a heaping scoop for the cilantro and oregano but then to make it less green and more red I added a few more sprinkles of paprika until it looked like the packet stuff. 

Mild Taco Seasoning

for 1 pound of meat

1 tbsp chili powder (or 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper + 1/2 tsp paprika)
1 pinch of ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried cilantro
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon oregano
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Combine all ingredients and store in an airtight container.

When our container is out here is our refill:
2 tsp cayenne
4 tsp paprika
8 pinches ground pepper
6 tsp oregano
2 tsp salt
4 tsp cumin
4 tsp garlic

Lemonade Yogurt Popsicles

Another stolen recipe from Angela! She made these the other night and I had to make them at home! These are very refreshing and tangy!

If you use an ice cube tray: Pour mix into the wells. Cover the top with tin foil and put popsicle stick into each cube hole.

Variations: try using substituting limes or oranges for the lemons!

Lemonade Yogurt Popsicles 
makes about 5 pops

2 lemons, about 1/2 cup lemon juice
1 1/2 vanilla yogurt  (regular or Greek style)
Honey (optional)
Popsicle mold or ice cube tray

Zest the lemons, use only the color part and not the white part underneath.
Juice the lemons.
Mix juice and zest into the yogurt.
Taste, if it is too tart add 1 tbsp of honey until it tastes how you want.
Carefully pour into the molds and freeze 6+ hours

To remove from the popsicle mold: place pop under warm running water for 15-20 seconds and then try to remove. If it doesn't come out put under water and repeat.

Key Lime Pie

Boy it is hot out already!! This is Martha Stewart's Key Lime Pie recipe. My cousin made this pie for us last summer and it was so tart and refreshing!! I have been looking forward to making this for quite some time.

One of the perks of this pie is that you can make it ahead of time. I also took a peek at the Pioneer Woman's Key Lime Pie Sorta Recipe and hers is pretty similar except that instead of room temperature she makes hers as a refrigerator pie  and chills it for 1 hour or more prior to serving. She also uses 2 eggs instead of 4. Maybe next time I'll use 3 eggs?

I used regular limes instead of key limes since there weren't any at the store. I made these in small bowls so that each was a serving and could be stored for a little longer. I used about 2 heaping tbsp of graham cracker crumbs in each and then pressed them in using the bottom of one of the other bowls. The filling was about the same thickness as the graham crackers, so if you'd prefer less crust use less of the crumbs. As these are a lot smaller I baked the crusts for 10 minutes and baked the pie with the filling for 9 minutes. 

Key Lime Pie
Makes 1 pie or 10 ramekins

Crust:

1 1/4 cups graham-cracker crumbs (1 - 1 1/2 packs of graham crackers)
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
Pinch of salt

Filling (makes about 2 cups worth of filling):

1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
4 large egg yolks
1/2 cup fresh Key-lime juice
1 tablespoon grated Key-lime rind

Topping:
3/4 cup heavy cream, chilled

Heat oven to 375°. Put graham crackers in the food processor and pulse until combined. Add butter, sugar, and salt and continue to pulse until combined. Press into a buttered 8-inch pie plate (or whatever container you are using), and bake 15 minutes, until lightly browned. Let cool completely.

In a mixing bowl, combine condensed milk, egg yolks, lime juice, and rind. Pour into the prepared, cooled crust.

Lower oven to 325°. Return pie to oven, and bake approximately 15 to 17 minutes, until the center is set but still quivers when the pan is nudged.

Remove from oven, and let stand until cool. Prior to serving, whip cream until stiffened. Decorate pie with whipped cream, and serve at room temperature.

Maple Walnut Vinaigrette Salad Dressing

My neighbor makes this dressing all the time so I had to steal it from her :) Thanks Angela! This Maple Walnut Vinaigrette Dressing is adapted from The Yummy Life.

It took about 5 minutes to take all the ingredients out and put it through the food processor. This made about 9 oz of dressing which is almost a regular size bottle of dressing.

Enjoy!

Maple Walnut Vinaigrette Salad Dressing

approx 9 servings

1/2 cup pure maple syrup
1/2 cup walnuts
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper or 1/4 tsp black pepper
1 teaspoon ground dry mustard
1/8 - 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 c olive oil

Combine all ingredients except the oils in a food processor. 

Blend until well combined and walnuts are pureed. 

With food processor running, pour olive in a slow steady stream through the feed tube. 

Transfer to jar or other airtight container and chill in fridge.

Note: If the dressing is thicker than you like, add water 1 tablespoon at a time until it's the desired consistency.