salted chocolate chip cookies

these delicious chocolate chip cookies amplify an unheralded hero: salt. if you've ever had a cookie, piece of cake, or other baked good and judged it "good, but not worth the sit-ups", there's a high probability that the baker was too conservative with the salt. though this recipe calls for three (!) types of sugar, i will let you in on my cheat: 3 of those packets of turbinado sugar (sugar in the raw) from your local coffee shop equals 1 T. do with this what you will.

salted chocolate chip cookies adapted from smitten kitchen
3/4 c. butter, room temperature
3 T. sugar
3 T. turbinado sugar (or sub. brown sugar)
1 heaped c. packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 t. vanilla
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
2 1/2 c. flour
1 1/2 c. chocolate chips
flaky salt (sea or kosher)

preheat oven to 350°. cream butter and sugars together with a mixer until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. add eggs and vanilla, beating until incorporated. beat in salt and baking soda until combined, then the flour on a low speed until just mixed. the dough will look crumbly or dry at this point. fold in the chocolate chips.

scoop cookies onto pan(about 1 1/2 T. mounds). sprinkle each with a few flakes of salt. bake for 10 minutes.

extra dough can be formed into balls and frozen on a plastic wrap-lined pan until solid, then transferred to a freezer bag. baked from the freezer they need, at most, 1 minute more baking time.

grilled honey vinegar chicken

well, it's been a while since i posted, but i've been cooking between then and now, please calm down. and let's get back to the food. there are two cooking skills that i refuse to learn because my husband does them so well: making fried rice and grilling. but sometimes you gotta prep that meat for the grill, ya know? this is a great marinade that my sister jen introduced me to. the combo of spices, sweetness, and tang from vinegar - so yum.

grilled honey vinegar chicken
2 t. cumin
1 t. chili powder
1 1/2 t. paprika
2 t. garlic salt
1/4 t. cayenne pepper (optional)
1/4 c. honey
4 T. apple cider vinegar
about 2 lbs. chicken thighs or drumsticks

mix honey and vinegar in a bowl and set aside. measure all spices into a gallon-size zip top bag. toss chicken with spices in bag. grill until internal temperature is 160 degrees. a few minutes before removing from the grill, brush with the honey/vinegar mixture.

fruit dip

this is a great dip to bring to a party or serve as an appetizer. and it's so fast - it makes slicing and serving apples seem exciting. if you want to, you could add chopped almonds, walnuts or pecans, too. enjoy!

fruit dip (from allrecipes.com)
1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 t. vanilla extract

mix ingredients and refrigerate for an hour before serving.

magical butter sauce

simple! i found this on tasty kitchen (via pioneer woman... oh, ree!), and it couldn't be easier. i've put this over salmon and sole, but it'd be great on veggies (ooh - especially on asparagus), too.

magical butter sauce
1/3 c. butter, melted
2 T. fruit preserves (any fruit)
1 T. balsamic vinegar
s&p to taste

mix 'er up!

jalapeño ranch dip

my sister katie made this winner for a family get-together and it went over big time. it's really easy, delicious, and can be served on a variety of dip-vehicles (i prefer tortilla chips). if you're afraid of spice, be sure to remove all seeds and any white parts from the inside of the jalapeño; and if you want spice, keep some white (but toss the seeds). enjoy!

jalapeño ranch dip
16 oz. light sour cream
1 package (1 Oz.) ranch dip mix
2 large jalapeños, de-seeded and roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 c. fresh cilantro
1 whole lime, juiced
2-4 T. milk (if desired)

combine roughly chopped jalapeños, cilantro and garlic in a food processor. pulse until finely chopped. add lime juice, sour cream and ranch mix. pulse until thoroughly combined. add milk, a tablespoon at a time, to thin if desired.

pumpkin muffins

this is a recipe shared with me by my friend joceline. her husband is convinced that he doesn't like pumpkin, but joceline decided he didn't know what he was talking about and took to making things with pumpkin in them and calling them "harvest spice". ha! so these are "harvest spice" muffins that are delicious and so... harvest spicy. by the way, her husband loves these (as does mine). (from smitten kitchen - if you don't read her already, don't miss out any longer - she's great!)

pumpkin muffins
1 1/2 c. flour
1 t. baking powder
1 c. canned pumpkin (from a 15 oz. can)
1/3 c. vegetable oil
2 eggs
2 t. cinnamon, divided
1/2 t. nutmeg
1/8 t. ground ginger
1 c. plus 1 T. sugar
1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt

preheat oven to 350°. put liners in muffin cups. whisk together pumpkin, oil, eggs, 1 t. cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, 1 cup sugar, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl until smooth, then whisk in flour mixture until just combined.

stir together 1 t. cinnamon and remaining 1 T. sugar in another bowl.

divide batter among muffin cups (each should be about three-fourths full), then sprinkle tops with cinnamon-sugar mixture. bake until puffed and golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes.


(the muffins are delicious, but not so photogenic... so i added a cow)

curried red snapper

well, hello! though the posts have slowed down, the cooking has not. since i don't eat red meat, we have the potential of going stir-crazy on chicken in our house. so i try to bring fish into our menu as often as possible. this is a really simple recipe i found on allrecipes.com that's very tasty. it calls for red snapper, but you could use cod, flounder or tilapia fillets, too. and if you need to make it gluten-free, try subbing cornstarch in for the flour to thicken. enjoy!

curried red snapper
1 lb. red snapper fillets
1/2 c. onion, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
1 T. butter
1 T. curry powder
1/2 t. salt
4 T. milk
2 t. flour or 1 t. cornstarch (or more, to thicken)

place fish in greased 9x13" cooking pan. in skillet, sauté onions, celery and butter until tender; add salt and curry, mix. stir in milk and flour. spread curry mix over fish and bake uncovered at 350 for 20 minutes or until fish flakes easily with fork.

turkey meatloaf

stereotypically, meatloaf isn't something people look forward to at dinner. i don't quite understand where it got such a bad rap. my husband james had a very different opinion of meatloaf; as chinese food was the everyday, having meatloaf was a big treat. so when i tried this recipe the first time, he was pretty excited. this is a good one from ina garten, but i've made a few tweaks (starting with cutting the original recipe in half... 5 pounds of turkey? ina!). tonight i added about 1/2 cup of chopped bell pepper & 1/4 cup sliced mushrooms when i sautéed the onions - delish!

turkey meatloaf
1 1/2 c. chopped onion (1 large onion)
1 T. olive oil
1 t. salt
1 t. black pepper
1/4 t. thyme
1/4 c. worcestershire sauce
1/3 c. chicken broth
1 T. tomato paste
2 1/2 lbs. ground turkey
3/4 c. plain bread crumbs
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 c. ketchup

preheat oven to 325. in pan over med-low heat, cook onions, olive oil, salt, pepper & thyme until translucent, but not browned - about 10 minutes. add worcestershire sauces, broth and paste and mix well. allow to cool. combine turkey, bread crumbs, eggs & onions and mix in large bowl. mix well & shape into a rectangular loaf on an ungreased sheet pan. spread ketchup evenly on top. bake for 45 minutes, or until internal temperature is 160 & cooked through. (a pan of hot water on the lower rack of the oven will keep the top of the loaf from cracking)

slow-roasted garlic chicken

cooking a whole chicken freaked me out for years... it just looked so daunting. but when i got married i had this weird desire to be able to cook one for my husband and me. maybe i have some hidden desire to be a housewife in the 1950's. but then i got this recipe (from where or whom i don't know - please identify yourself!) and it looked do-able. and i can say wholeheartedly: it is do-able and delicious, to boot! this is one of james's top 5 recipes that i make. i've included a couple pictures to show what i mean by seasoning under the skin and how i tie penny's (henny penny reference) thigh's together after stuffing her. the cool part of this is the first hour she cooks under foil, getting all juicy throughout, but then you take the foil off and crank the temp up to give her a nice tan - extra yummies! join me in 1950 and cook penny up tonight. (sorry - i forgot to take a picture of penny all cooked and golden... guess we just got too excited about carving her up.)

slow-roasted garlic chicken
2 T. kosher salt (or regular)
1 t. black pepper
1 ~5 lb. chicken
4 garlic heads, top 1" cut off
1 medium lemon, halved
2 T. olive oil
1 medium onion, quartered
1 c. low-sodium chicken broth

heat oven to 375. mix salt & pepper and set aside. remove giblets & pat chicken dry. rub chicken all over with one garlic head, rub all over (under skin, too - see picture) with oil & season with salt and pepper (in cavity, also). place 1 garlic head, top pieces of garlic and half the lemon in cavity & tie thighs together (see picture). arrange remaining garlic, lemon & onion on bottom of baking dish and place chicken in middle. add broth to pan and cover tightly with foil. roast until chicken reaches 135-140 degrees, about 1 hour. remove foil, brush chicken with juices and increase oven temp to 450. basting occasionally until temp of chicken in inner thigh is 165 degrees, skin is golden brown and juices run clear - about 30-40 minutes more. let rest 10 minutes before carving. (optional: pour pan juices into small saucepan and simmer over med. heat until thickened; about 7-10 minutes)

banana muffins

we had a large amount of bananas in our kitchen this morning and that needed to stop. you see, i'm not a huge fan of bananas - i don't eat them and feel pleasure. the exception: when they're baked into something. then i feel pleasure in eating them.

i found a recipe using allrecipes.com and experimented by adding some extra flavor and cutting down on the fat. i also substituted in some whole wheat flour. it worked really well! they taste wonderful and our house smells fantastic. i added chocolate chips and walnuts, but you don't have to & they'd still be good. hope you enjoy!

banana muffins
1 3/4 c. flour
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. sugar
1 t. baking powder
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. nutmeg
1 egg
1/4 c. vegetable oil
3/4 c. plain yogurt (i used fat free & it was great)
1 t. vanilla
1 c. mashed ripe bananas (about 2 bananas)
1/2 c. semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 c. chopped walnuts

in a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, soda, salt, cinnamon & nutmeg. in another bowl, combine the egg, oil, yogurt and vanilla. stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. fold in bananas, chocolate chips and walnuts. fill greased muffin cups two-thirds full. Bake at 350 degrees for 22-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

creamy potato dish

two things you can count on at easter dinner at my family's house: creamy potato dish and quotes from "what about bob?". the quotes are not limited to easter - the well of lines from that movie is bottomless. i watched it again a few years ago and was surprised at how annoying it was, but man... those quotes still have life in them! but i'm pretty sure talking about dr. leo marvin et al wasn't the point of this post.

this is an easy side dish that pairs well with many meats, but particularly ham. when it bakes, the top and edges get all crunchy and extra delicious. it'll leave you saying, "oh, fay!"

creamy potato dish
1 can cream of potato soup
1 can cream of celery soup
1 c. sour cream
1 (2 lb.) package frozen hash browns
2 T. grated onion
1/2 c. grated cheese (cheddar or mozzarella both work well)
2 t. paprika

preheat oven to 350. grease a 9x13" baking dish. mix all ingredients except paprika in bowl and then spread into baking dish. top with paprika and bake for about 1 hour, until top begins to turn golden brown.

clam dip

at Christmas, my family celebrates Jesus's birth with a smörgåsbord of naughty foods. (sidenote: my computer really doesn't like the word "smörgåsbord" and is giving me very odd suggestions for a substitute.) we make dozens of dips, finger foods, and dishes smothered in cheese. maybe we're preparing for more wintery months, maybe we just like dip. this clam dip is one of my favorites & the other day i was thinking about it, wondering why i only keep it in the Christmastime section of my brain - this is good any time of year! i've changed up the original recipe to make it a bit less fatty and more clammy. serve with crackers.

clam dip
1 (8 oz.) package neufchatel cheese, room temp.
3 T. grated onion
2 (6.5 oz) cans minced clams
1 t. worcestershire sauce
1 t. pepper
3 T. light mayo

mix ingredients and refrigerate until serving.

blueberry coffee cake

i'm trying to do more baking on the weekends and was feeling like coffee cake this morning. which means no time for anything with dough that needs to rise. so after a little snooping on allrecipes.com, i combined a couple recipes to come up with this one. this recipe pretty forgiving and you could switch out a lot. for example, i used frozen blueberries, but i think you could swap in just about any other berry or even sliced peaches. and i used a combo of sour cream and milk to give the dough moisture, but you could just use 3/4 cup milk, or sour cream, or buttermilk (oooh, doesn't that sound fun?)... have at it! also, the original recipe called for this to be baked in a bundt pan, which i do not own, but a 9x13 works just fine. yay, improvising!
p.s. you will be excited when this comes out of the oven looking and smelling so yummy, but please let it cool a bit before chowing down - those blueberries are little heat bombs!

blueberry coffee cake
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/3 c. flour
1/2 t. cinnamon
1/4 c. butter

2 c. flour
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
1/2 c. butter
1 c. sugar
1 egg
1 t. vanilla
1/2 c. sour cream
1/4 c. milk
1 1/2 c. blueberries *(see below)

heat oven to 350. coat a 9x13" baking dish with cooking spray. make the streusel topping: mix brown sugar, 1/3 c. flour, and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Cut in 1/4 c. butter; topping mixture will be crumbly. set aside.
for the cake: beat 1/2 c. butter or margarine in large bowl until creamy; add 1 c. sugar, and beat until fluffy. beat in egg and vanilla. whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; add alternately with the milk to the creamed mixture, beating well after each addition. gently fold in berries. spread the batter in the prepared pan. crumble streusel on top. bake for 40 minutes, until top is golden brown.

*(seasonal substitute: roughly chopped fresh cranberries & the zest of half an orange)

the ultimate chocolate chip cookie

there are so many recipes for chocolate chip cookies - how can you know which one to bake? well, let me choose for you: this one. christopher kindall, the guy who started "america's test kitchen" (and who also apparently hunts) came up with this recipe. and man is it amazing! i think the big difference is that you brown the butter. and anything with browned butter is my friend. it takes just a little longer than the regular nestle recipe, but you don't need to use a mixer with this one - score! just... trust me, they're amazing!

the ultimate chocolate chip cookie adapted from america's test kitchen
1 3/4 c. flour
1/2 t. baking soda
1 3/4 sticks butter
1/2 c. sugar
3/4 c. brown sugar
1 t. salt
2 t. vanilla
1 egg, plus 1 egg yolk
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts, toasted (optional)

preheat oven to 375 degrees. combine flour and baking soda in a bowl. mix and set aside.

melt 1 1/4 sticks butter in a pan over medium-high heat. keep stirring until butter has a dark golden brown color and a nutty aroma, about 3 minutes. remove from heat & mix in the remaining butter until melted. add the sugars, salt, and vanilla to the butter and mix well. add the egg and yolk; whisk until smooth, about 30 seconds. let it rest for 3 minutes, then whisk again for about 30 seconds, before letting it rest again. repeat the whisk/rest routine about 4 times, until you have a thick, glossy, and smooth mixture. gently stir in the flour and baking soda just until combined. stir in the chocolate and nuts.

bake for about 10 minutes, then put the baking sheet on a cooling rack and let the cookies cool on the sheets.

thai-ish honey peanut chicken

can something be "thai-ish"? because i believe this is. probably not the most authentic thai recipe, but it calls for ingredients that you most likely have around the kitchen... so who can complain about that? also, it's delicious and super easy: win-win! this recipe is adapted (barely) from thepioneerwoman.com. when i make this, i throw in whatever veggies i have lying around, and if you want to go vegetarian, i think this would be great with firm tofu. something else i love about this recipe: you can marinade the chicken anywhere between half an hour to 6 hours ahead of time. don't you love when a recipe is flexible? and thai-ish?

thai-ish honey peanut chicken
1 lb. chicken, in 1" chunks
1/4 c. soy sauce
3 T. honey
1 T. lime juice
1 minced garlic clove
2 T. peanut butter (smooth? chunky? natural? yes to all!)
1/2 t. curry powder
1 t. sriracha sauce (spicy chinese sauce - in most grocers in the asian section)
1/2 t. flour to thicken sauce (optional)
any chopped veggies you'd like

mix all ingredients except flour and veggies and marinade from 1/2 to 6 hours. cook chicken in sauce over medium heat for 7-8 minutes or until done. reduce heat and add veggies and flour (if desired). serve with rice.

chocolate peppermint crinkle cookies

oh. my. land. bake these cookies and then cancel your afternoon appointments in order to pig out in peace. found this recipe at bakersroyale.com (via pioneer woman - thank you, ree!) and the picture drew me in so i included it below - why would i ever try to top that picture? these work best if you chill the dough in the refrigerator for a few hours (or up to four days - just as good!), although the cookies themselves don't keep very well after 4 days or so - not that they'll probably be around that long. these would have been great at Christmastime... but i had a newborn and can say that these are also fantastic in january. or june. or right now - go bake!

chocolate peppermint crinkle cookies adapted from bakersroyale.com
1 3/4 c. flour
1 1/2 t. baking powder
½ t. salt
8 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 1/2 c. sugar
1/4 c. canola oil
3 T. butter, melted
2 T. corn syrup
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
2 t. vanilla
1 ½ t. peppermint extract
1 c. powdered sugar

In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside. Melt the chocolate in the microwave on 50 percent power for 1 minute, stir, microwave for 15 seconds more and stir, repeat until melted; set aside.
In a mixer with the paddle attachment, beat together sugar, oil, butter and corn syrup. Beat in the eggs, egg yolk, vanilla and peppermint extract. Then on low, beat in the melted chocolate. Add the flour mixture and beat on low speed. Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.
Heat oven to 325 degrees. Roll the dough into 1-1.5 inch balls. Pour powdered sugar into a bowl. Roll each cookie dough ball in sugar. Arrange cookies on baking sheet and bake 12 to 14 minutes for crisp cookies, or 10-12 minutes for a chewier cookie.

simple fish marinade

well, it's been a while! i guess that happens when you have a baby. also, it means that you keep your eyes peeled for simple and quick recipes like this one! james requested fish for dinner since we've been o.d.ing on chicken as of late. here's a very easy marinade to throw your fish into up to two hours ahead of cooking - not much longer than that as the soy sauce can start to break down the fish after a while. last night we had this on sole, i believe we've done this same marinade on halibut and salmon before... it's pretty versatile. i baked our sole at 400 for about 4 minutes (it was thin), but you can pan fry this if you'd like... just cook it till your fish is flaky.

fish marinade
1/2 c. orange juice
1/4 c. soy sauce
1 t. ground ginger (or 1 T. grated fresh ginger)
1/2 t. pepper

chocolate pumpkin muffins

these might be the easiest muffins you'll ever make. well... let's be honest - they're a little more like a cupcake than just a muffin. so we will call them a "cupin" and just enjoy, ok? my sister jen shared this crazy recipe with me and i could hardly believe it'd work. but it does! the other magical thing about these is that you really cannot taste the pumpkin - they just taste like moist chocolate... cupins.

chocolate pumpkin muffins/cupcakes/cupins (you decide)
1 box devil's food cake mix (any brand)
1 (15 oz.) can pumpkin
3/4 c. water
1/2 c. chocolate chips and/or nuts (optional)
1/4 t. salt

combine cake mix, pumpkin, salt & water until moist (batter will be thick). mix well and stir in chips/nuts. put into muffin pan sprayed with oil - fill cups 2/3 full. bake at 350 for 25 minutes. makes 20

apple crisp

mmm... it's starting to get cooler out there. somewhere the leaves will start to slowly change colors (not here... bummer, southern california!). and apples are starting to get real cheap - heyo! time for an apple crisp recipe! i found this on the website joyofbaking.com, and only made a couple minor adjustments. so yummy and warm - and very easy. this is especially great with tart apples, like granny smiths. i love throwing in a few frozen raspberries (for color and deliciousness), but you can skip it if you don't have any. enjoy with a little vanilla ice cream... or not, you'll be happy either way!

update: this can be made gluten-free! i just put some oatmeal in the food processor and ground it up into a flour and substituted it in for the regular flour. worked like a charm!

apple crisp
topping:
1/2 c. flour
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. brown sugar
1/2 t. cinnamon
1/4 t. nutmeg (if you've got it)
1/8 t. salt
6 T. butter, cubed
1/3 c. old-fashioned oats
1/3 c. chopped walnuts

filling:
6 c. (about 4) granny smiths, peeled, cored, & cubed
< 1/4 c. frozen raspberries
1 1/2 T. lemon juice
1 t. lemon zest (if you have it)
3 T. sugar

preheat to 375. spray an 8x8 baking dish with cooking spray. mix topping ingredients with fingers & set aside. toss filling ingredients in another bowl & put into baking dish. sprinkle topping evenly on top and bake 30-40 minutes, or until bubbly.

cream cheese frosting

sorry for the delay in posts; i think our cross-country road trip (and my energy being sucked up by a little tater tot - third trimester, baby!) put me back a few paces. but i'll make it up to you... right now. with this simple frosting. from heaven, via my buddy kristin. we had friends over for lunch the other day, so i defrosted a frozen zucchini bread, but wanted to make it... more desserty? dessertier? anywho, tried out this recipe and wham-o! we had a winner :) you can cut this recipe in half, but even more exciting: it freezes really well. dangerously handy, eh?

cream cheese frosting
1 c. butter
1 lb. powdered sugar
1 t. vanilla
1 (8 oz.) cream cheese
~ 1 T. milk, as desired

blend first four ingredients well. slowly add splashes of milk to reach desired thickness (or don't add any - your call!).