recipe – Page 4 – a hippie with a minivan

Chocolate Chip Cookies…

Simon has been wanting me to make some chocolate chip cookies… so when he asked me again today I got right to it…

I wanted to find a new cookie since though I love the ones I used to make I also like trying new one… the last ones I tried were too cakey.. so this time I went to foodgawker and typed in chocolate chip and ended up here…

Then we choose the first one that looked like the chocolate chip cookie that we have been craving…

To my surprise it ended being the Alton Brown Recipe for “the chewy” (recipe below)

So I made them… omg they are amazing!!!

The dough is just perfect… and you can see right away that they are going to be chewy…

After chilling the dough I scooped them out and then put them back in the fridge for a few minutes… then put them in the oven…

For so many years I have had an oven that we could not see into and I had forgotten what a pleasure it is to watch things bake…

The boys are discovering that pleasure for the first time…

A great chewy perfect chocolate chip cookie!!!

Ingredients

* 1 cup unsalted butter
* 2 1/4 cups flour
* 1 teaspoon kosher salt
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/4 cup sugar
* 1 1/4 cups brown sugar
* 1 egg
* 1 egg yolk
* 2 tablespoons milk
* 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 2 cups chocolate chips

Directions

Heat oven to 375 degrees F.

Melt the butter in a heavy-bottom medium saucepan over low heat. Sift or mix together the flour, salt, and baking soda and set aside.

Pour the melted butter in a bowl. Add the sugar and brown sugar. Cream the butter and sugars. Add the egg, yolk, 2 tablespoons milk and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Slowly incorporate the flour mixture until thoroughly combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Chill the dough, then scoop onto baking sheets.(I used a 1/8 cup measuring cup)

They really get the thumbs up!

eggnog…

I love eggnog but had never made it before… or even had fresh eggnog before…

But because the ingredient list on commercial eggnog is full of chemicals and stabilizers and artificial colours and flavours that I would just rather not be part of my diet, to get my eggnog fix, I finally bit the bullet and found a recipe… and it is SO easy to make and tastes SO much better!

4 eggs yolks
1/3 cup of sugar + 1 Tbsp
2 cups of milk
1 cup of cream
3 oz of rum or bourbon or a mix of both (can be left out for an alcohol free version)
1 tsp nutmeg
4 egg whites

First, beat egg yolks until light, add 1/3 cup of sugar and beat until completely dissolved.. add milk, cream, nutmeg and rum and mix together well and put aside.

Whip egg whites until soft peaks, then start adding sugar (1 tbsp) and whip until stiff peaks…stir the egg whites into the the mixture and then chill…

This makes about 5-6 glasses worth…

Banana Bread…

My first cookbook when we moved in our first apartment was a Pillsbury cook book… it is small but filled with recipes and I used it alot for a while… especially when baking…

The banana bread that I have been making for at least a decade now is from that book and it is still the best banana bread that I have ever eaten…it always comes out perfect…. a bit dense but not too much and very moist… the favour and texture are just perfect…

I was looking online the other day and saw a few references to the Pillsbury being one of the first banana bread recipes having come out in 1933… no wonder it is the best…

3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 eggs
1 cup (2 medium) mashed ripe bananas
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup chopped nuts, if desired (I use chocolate chips)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease bottom only of loaf pan. In large bowl, combine sugar and butter; beat until light and fluffy. Add eggs; beat well. Add bananas, milk and vanilla; blend well.

2. In small bowl, combine flour, nuts (or chocolate chips), baking soda and salt; mix well. Add to banana mixture; stir just until dry ingredients are moistened. Pour into greased pan.

3. Bake at 350°F. for 50 to 60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Buttermilk Cluster

I found this recipe at The Fresh Loaf and I just had to try it… and now that I have I will make it again…

Buttermilk Cluster
Makes 12 to 18 rolls, depending on size
6 to 6 1/2 cups (750 grams) bread or all-purpose unbleached flour
1/2 tablespoon salt
1 envelope (2 1/2 teaspoons) active dry or instant yeast, or 1 15 gram cake fresh yeast
1 tablespoon warm water
1 3/4 cup buttermilk
1 tablespoon honey

Glaze:
1 egg beaten with 1 teaspoon water

Topping:
1-2 tablespoons seeds (poppy, sesame) or grains (cracked wheat, rolled oats)

Combine the flour and salt in a large bowl. Combine the warm water and yeast in a small cup and allow to proof for 10 minutes.

Pour the yeast, buttermilk, and honey into the flour mixture and mix well. If the dough is so dry that some of the flour won’t stick, add a bit more buttermilk or water. If the dough is too sticky to knead, more like a batter, add more flour by the tablespoon until the correct consistency is achieved.

Knead by machine or hand for approximately 10 minutes. Return the dough to the bowl, cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a damp cloth, and set aside to rise until the dough has doubled in size, approximately 90 minutes.

I made the dough, let it rise and then used a 9X9 cake pan and separated the dough into 12 pieces…
and then let that rise again for about 40 min and then brushed with the egg and sprinkled with sesame seeds…

Then bake at 425 for about 30 min… (mine took about 25min)

It makes an amazing bread with a great consistency… It was the perfect bread to go with the soup I made, I it is great not having to cut it because the pieces come apart easily..

This will be a great bread for when company comes also because it looks beautiful also…

Crispy Tofu on Coconut Quinoa… two ways!

This is a variation of a recipe that Annie shared with me a while back and I love it!

Usually I make another variation of her way and make curried tofu (the recipe is at the end for that) and of course that is always delicious but I was craving spicy peanut sauce tonight…

What I love about this recipe also is that it takes very little preparation, takes little time to cook, is filling, delicious and nutritious…

For the Coconut Quinoa..

Chop up an onion and sauté in a pan until translucent (I sauté it in coconut oil)
Add 1 1/2 cup of Quinoa.. I like to leave it in there a few minutes and toast it a bit…
Add one can of coconut milk and one can of water and simmer until ready (about 20 min) and then fluff with a fork

Peanut Sauce

Mix together in a saucepan on low heat … 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter, 1/2 cup hot water, 3 tsp tamari, 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar, 1 tsp brown sugar and garlic chili sauce (to taste)

Crispy Tofu

cube one block of tofu
in a container (with a lid) add a few tsps of corn starch, add a bit of salt and garlic powder and then add the tofu and shake so that it evenly coats the tofu
Add a few tsp of peanut oil to a wok or pan and toss and fry until crispy on all sides…

Serve the Tofu on the Quinoa and drizzle the peanut sauce on top.