Monday, January 30, 2012

Awesome Brownie Recipe

1 stick butter
1/3 cup cocoa
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup flour

Pre-heat oven to 350. Melt butter. Stir in cocoa. Then stir in sugar. Add eggs one at a time and mix but not too much. Add vanilla, salt, and flour and then mix. pour into a 9x9 pan and cook for 25-30 minutes. I usually double the recipie which requires the 9x13

Friday, January 6, 2012

Thai Coconut Curry Soup


This Recipe is part of the One Pot Wonders Recipes from Michael Smith Menu (via Pinterest)
Ingredients

Two 14 oz (398 mL) cans of premium coconut milk

1 heaping tablespoon (15 mL) of Thai curry paste

Roots of 1 bunch of cilantro, rinsed well

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, thinly sliced 

2 cups (500 mL) of chicken broth 

1 carrot, shredded

4 or 5 lime leaves

2 stalks of lemon grass, halved lengthwise, woody leaves removed

2 tablespoons (30 mL) of fish sauce

Zest and juice of 2 limes

A small knob of frozen ginger

A handful of bean sprouts

Half a 8 oz (225 g) package of rice noodles

Leaves of 1 bunch of cilantro, rinsed well

2 or 3 green onions, thinly sliced

A sprinkle or two of salt or soy sauce and hot sauce to garnish
Directions
1. Scoop the thick coconut cream from the top of just one of the cans into a large stockpot set over a medium-high heat. Melt the cream, add the curry paste and stir for a few minutes until they begin to sizzle.
2. Add the cilantro roots and chicken and sauté until the chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the coconut juice from the first can and all the contents of the second can along with the chicken broth, carrot, lime leaves, lemon grass, fish sauce and lime zest and juice. Grate the frozen ginger into the broth with a Microplane grater or standard box grater. Simmer for 20 minutes or so.
4. Stir in the bean sprouts. Add the rice noodles, gently pushing them beneath the surface of the broth. Turn off the heat and let stand until the noodles soften, about 5 minutes. Rice noodles don’t need to simmer like pasta to cook; they simply need to rehydrate in the hot liquid.
5. Stir in most of the cilantro leaves. Remove the lemon grass stalks. Taste and season with a touch more salt (or soy sauce) as needed. Ladle into large bowls and garnish with the green onions and remaining cilantro leaves.

Thursday, January 5, 2012

S'more Chewy Granola Bars

adapted from Rachel Ray via backtothecuttingboard.com

Ingredients
4 tbsp. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar (see tips above)
1/4 cup honey
2 cups plain granola
1 cup rice cereal (Rice Krispies, etc.)
2 tbsp. graham cracker crumbs (optional - but we didn't use it due to the gluten)
1 cup mini marshmallows
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Process
Line two 9×5 loaf pans or one 11×7 inch baking pan with parchment. Set aside.
Combine honey and butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir in brown sugar after butter starts to melt.
Bring the mixture to a boil, then lower the heat to medium-low and simmer until the sugar dissolves, about 2 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat.
Add the granola, rice cereal and graham cracker crumbs into the saucepan and fold them into the sauce until evenly coated. Very gently fold in the marshmallows.
Spread the mixture into the prepared pans and press firmly with a spatula to evenly fill. Sprinkle the chocolate chips onto the top of the granola and gently press them down.
Let sit at room temperature for 15-20 minutes or until mostly cooled and set; lift out of the pan and cut into bars.

Applesauce Granola - no nuts, seeds, or raisins when preparing for granola bars!

Preheat oven to 300F

2 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
1 cup nuts (pecans, walnuts, almonds)
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup ground flax
1/4 cup sesame seeds
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/3 cup raisins

In a large bowl, mix together oats, nuts, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.
In a small saucepan, warm the applesauce with the honey and oil over low heat.
Mix the applesauce mixture into the oat mixture and stir to coat everything. Spread the mixture onto a 9 x 13 baking pan. Bake for 50 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes, until the granola is a deep brown. Remove from oven and stir in raisins. Cool completely before enjoying.