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It’s been at least a week since I posted a recipe with Nutella! What am I thinking? I can stop anytime I want. Ahem.
ANYWAY!
This will shock you, but this is a ridiculously easy recipe; a riff on the also ridiculously easy shortbread two ways.
You will need:
- 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
- 2 Tbsp. Nutella
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar (unsifted)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 1 cup flour (unsifted)
To make:
- Preheat oven to 325F
- Cream the butter until the color lightens, then cream in powdered sugar, then Nutella, then vanilla, then flour
- Knead briefly without adding any flour until dough is smooth (look for it to be a uniform color)
- Scoop dough by the teaspoon onto a parchment-paper lined cookie sheet — they’re fine just left as little rounds, no need to flatten them out
- Bake for 20-30 minutes until very lightly browned, then transfer to a wire rack to cool
- Eat as is, or dust with powdered sugar as below:
These are AWESOME with coffee. Or for breakfast. Or after supper. Or as a snack. Or, um, well you get the idea.
My sweet friend Sarah has a love for Starbucks VIA. When Kiddo and I were getting a college care package together for her last week I was already planning some basic brownies…. and then I saw the VIA in the cabinet. Score! The result? Fudgy, caffeinated, rich chocolaty brownies. I, ahem, may have eaten one before I sent the rest off. Just so I could report back to y’all, obviously.
You will need:
- 1 stick butter
- 1-2 tbsp chocolate chips
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 tbsp cocoa powder
- 3/4 cup flour
- 1/8 tsp baking powder
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1 pack VIA coffee or a Tbsp. or so of espresso powder
To launch yourself into chocolate heaven:
- Preheat oven to 350F
- Spray a 9 inch square pan with nonstick spray, then lay in a piece of parchment paper just wide enough to cover the bottom of the pan, and long enough so the paper hangs off both sides of the pan by a good few inches (you’re making a sling for your brownies). Spray the parchment paper with nonstick spray
- Melt the butter with the chocolate chips (I did this in the microwave), then add in sugar and cocoa, mixing well. Add dry ingredients and eggs and mix again
- Spread into your prepared pan and bake at 350F for 20-25 minutes until a toothpick inserted halfway between the middle and the edge of the pan comes out clean
- Remove the pan from the oven and wait 5 minutes, then use the sling to pull the brownies out of the pan and transfer to a cutting board; cut the brownies with a plastic knife (I don’t know why this works, but it keeps the brownies from getting torn up), then use the sling again to transfer to a wire rack to cool completely
As promised, another recipe from The Cousin! May I say that this pairs beautifully with margaritas? 
We made two sheet pans of this to feed the assorted family we had collected at the house that night; The Cousin wrote down the recipe for one sheet pan for a more reasonable size.
You will need:
- 2.5 cups dry polenta
- 9 cups milk
- 2-3 cups Parmesan cheese
- Salt
Four ingredients, people! You know I love that.
To make:
- Brink milk to a boil (it is so, so likely to boil over so don’t walk away), and slowly add polenta, stirring constantly with a whisk then a wooden spoon as it gets thicker
- When mixture is starting to thicken stir in Parmesan cheese and salt; continue cooking, stirring fairly often until it is “uber thick” (so sayeth The Cousin)
- Spread onto greased sheet pan and cool uncovered in fridge until firm
- Top at will (see below) and bake at 400F until cheese is melted
Topping ideas:
- The Cousin recommends fresh mozzarella, fresh basil and fresh tomatoes. I totally concur
- Classic toppings like pepperoni, sausage, etc? Also good
- Sun dried tomatoes on pizza rock my world. I highly recommend
- Other than that? Go crazy! Let me know what you come up with
Y’all, I have somehow done it again. AGAIN I have a lovely camera lens that is now in two pieces. I don’t even know how, but I do know that iPhone photos of food aren’t quite the same. Better than nothing, though, right?
This is based on the Honey Roast Orange Chicken recipe from The Minimalist Cooks at Home by Mark Bittman. The Yankee and I both loved it!
You will need:
- 1/2 cup soy sauce (lower sodium kind is great)
- 1/2 cup honey
- salt and pepper
- 1 tsp. minced garlic
- 1/2 tsp. ginger
- 3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
To make:
- Preheat oven to 375F
- Combine everything but chicken in a bowl and whisk to combine
- Lay chicken breasts in a single layer in a cast iron skillet or baking dish and spoon over about half the sauce
- Bake at 375F for about 40 minutes or until chicken is cooked all the way through, turning over halfway through cooking to keep it evenly coated in the sauce
- When chicken is done move it to a plate to rest, then pour remaining sauce into the skillet; cook uncovered on medium high until sauce reduces and thickens
- Slice chicken into strips (against the grain) and serve over rice and vegetables, using thickened sauce to finish it all off. So tasty!
This was so fast and easy. Let me know what you think!
I got a new shortbread pan from King Arthur Flour last week and it included a recipe booklet. I had NO idea shortbread was so easy to make! The Yankee has taken several batches to work already, with more requested. Check this out!
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
- 1/3 cup powdered sugar (unsifted)
- 1/4 tsp vanilla or maple syrup
- 1 cup flour (unsifted)
Cooking Directions
- Preheat oven to 325F
- Cream the butter until the color lightens, then cream in powdered sugar, then vanilla, then flour
- Knead briefly without adding any flour until dough is smooth
- Press dough into nonstick sprayed pan and prick surface with a fork
- Bake for about 30 minutes until lightly browned, and cool in the pan for 10 minutes; turn onto a wooden cutting board and cut immediately (if you wait till it cools it will fall apart when you cut it)
For even more easy fun, try out some chocolate shortbread!
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
- 1 1/2 Tbsp. cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar (unsifted)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 1 cup flour (unsifted)
Cooking Directions
- Preheat oven to 325F
- Cream the butter until the color lightens, then cream in powdered sugar, then cocoa powder, then vanilla, then flour
- Knead briefly without adding any flour until dough is smooth
- Press dough into nonstick sprayed pan and prick surface with a fork
- Bake for about 30 minutes until lightly browned (make sure the edges do not brown too much), and cool in the pan for 10 minutes; turn onto a wooden cutting board and cut immediately (if you wait till it cools it will fall apart when you cut it)
Enjoy, and happy St. Patrick’s Day!
We had one glorious almost-70-degree day here in Nashville and it made me SO READY for spring rightnowthisinstant. This, of course, made me want a good salad! I found this dressing recipe in Rick & Lanie’s Excellent Kitchen Adventures, which I love. The recipe is insanely quick, easy and good, which I also love.
One Particular Kitchen: Bayless Family Caesar Salad
Prep time: 5 minutes
Ingredients
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 3 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
• 1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• Pinch salt
• 1 Tbsp. water
Cooking Directions
1. Crush peeled garlic (putting it in the microwave for about 5 seconds first will make this easier) into a 2 cup glass jar with a lid
2. Add all remaining ingredients into the jar, cover tightly and shake
3. Store in jar in the refrigerator for up to two weeks
Enjoy, y’all. Spring is coming!
I’ve been making yogurt for about three years now, and no matter how I do it one thing never changes: each and every time I am amazed that it actually turns into yogurt. Amazed.
My method has evolved a bit over the years, and my friend Vanessa pointed out recently that my super lazy method never made it to the blog; I’m here to remedy that. My sweet friend Ginger from Mars Hill (it’s huge; I’m sure you’ve heard of it) taught me this one, and it’s brilliant.
You will need:
- 4 cups milk
- 1/2 cup dry milk powder
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla or maple syrup
- 1 Tbsp. starter yogurt (1 Tbsp. of a previous batch, or of any yogurt that says live and active cultures; ideally one that does not have pectin)
Three steps!
- Turn your oven on to 350F for one minute and turn it off, and turn the light on in the oven
- In a heavy saucepan (I use an enameled cast iron one) heat milk to 180F and whisk in remaining ingredients; let it cool to 120F and plop in the tablespoon of starter yogurt
- Put a lid on the saucepan and stick it in the slightly warm oven for 5-8 hours or overnight
THE. END. Do you see what I’m saying? Lazy and easy. Please to enjoy.
Apples. Oats. Chocolate chips. How can this possibly go wrong?
It CAN’T.
My friend Vanessa came over while I was in the middle of winging these today, and they turned out to be the perfect dessert after our lunch of chicken and dumplings. They’re based on Rick Bayless’ recipe for Grandma’s Moist Apple Cake from Rick and Lanie’s Excellent Kitchen Adventures. I tweaked and added and subtracted and adjusted and came up with these. And I’m not sorry.
You will need:
- 5 ounces whole wheat flour
- 5 ounces AP flour
- 5 ounces old fashioned oats
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
- 2 eggs, well beaten
- 1/4 cup yogurt or sour cream
- 8 ounces butter
- 3 apples
- 1 cup chocolate chips
To make:
- Preheat oven to 325F and line/grease 18 muffin cups or one Bundt pan or two 9-inch cake pans
- Peel and chop apples and dump into a glass bowl; add stick of butter on top and microwave for two minutes till apples are partially cooked and butter is melted; set aside to cool for a bit (to avoid melting your chocolate chips too soon)
- Mix all dry ingredients, then make a well in the center and add in vanilla, oil, eggs, yogurt and buttery apples (hello? How good does that sound?) and chocolate chips, then stir everything together until just incorporated
- Pour into prepared pan(s) and bake at 325F: about 35 minutes for muffins or layers, about an hour for a Bundt cake; either way watch for it to feel springy in the middle
You can add a chocolate glaze or a dusting of powdered sugar over the top of this, but I think they’re pretty great just as is. Let me know what you think!
These were so much fun! Now, they’re complicated so take a minute to prepare yourself for the giant shopping list. I kid! Obviously. My awesome sister rocks a lower carb diet, but we felt the need to have a chips and salsa night so I made these as a chip alternative. As with most things I make, they’re ridiculously easy.
You will need:
- 8 ounces shredded Parmesan cheese
To make:
- Preheat oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat
- Put 1 Tbsp. cheese on the mat and tap a little with the back of the spoon to flatten it out a bit; repeat, leaving a couple inches between your little piles of cheese
- Bake at 350F for 4 to 5 minutes, watching for the edges to start browning; this will happen quickly so don’t go anywhere. Either pull them when the edges are brown, or let them go a little bit longer for even crispier, um, crisps
- At this point you can either leave them to cool on the tray or you can drape them over an overturned glass or a rolling pin (as above) to give them a little shape (the better to hold your salsa with, obviously). If you go the draping route, let them cool on the tray for a minute or two till they start to harden up a bit; when you can get a spatula cleanly under them then you can move them without turning them into a ball of cheese
Enjoy!
They’re not biscuits. I promise.
They’re bagels, but without holes. Get it? Unholey? I’ll be here till Thursday!
No, seriously. No holes = more surface area for cream cheese. That’s a total win in my book.
I had a couple bags of clementine puree in the freezerleft over from the Cutie Cakes so I decided to see if I could work them into bagels. Batch #2 was a success! Batch #1 involved dead yeast. D’oh. Anyhoo, work these up like super simple bagels:
Make an overnight starter of:
- 2 1/8 oz bread flour (I actually used AP flour for the starter and it was fine)
- 2 oz. cool water
- a pinch of yeast
and let it sit, covered, overnight at room temperature.
The next day add to the mixture:
- 12 oz clementine puree* (or 10 ounces clementine and 2 ounces water)
- 18 oz flour (bread flour would be great)
- 1 1/2 tsp yeast
- 1 3/4 tsp salt
And now:
- Knead, knead, knead, especially if you’re using bread flour. When it’s lovely and smooth and elastic (about 8 minutes in a stand mixer) then let it rise for about an hour; punch it down and let it rise again for another 30 minutes
- Transfer to a work surface (I use a silicone mat) and either divide into equal pieces, or roll out and cut out with a biscuit cutter if you’re doing the unholey version; cover with plastic wrap and let them sit for about 30 minutes while you preheat the oven to 425F and get a large pot of water boiling
- At the end of 30 minutes drop the bagels four at a time into boiling water, cooking for 1 minute on the first side, then flipping and boiling for three more minutes, then bake for about 20 minutes or until they’re nicely browned
*Need a refresher on clementine puree? Put five clementines in a pot and pour in enough cold water to cover; bring to a boil then cook at somewhere between a simmer and a boil for two hours; drain and cool, then halve the clementines and run them through a food processor (the whole fruit) until you have a smooth puree. Easy!
Enjoy!
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