Chocolate Scotcheroos

-Kim Smith

1 cup light corn syrup
1 cup sugar
1 cup peanut butter
6 cups Rice Krispies® or 6 cups Cocoa Rice Krispies®
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate morsels
1 cup butterscotch chips

1. Place corn syrup and sugar into 3-quart saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until sugar dissolves and mixture begins to boil. Remove from heat. Stir in peanut butter. Mix well. Add KELLOGG'S RICE KRISPIES cereal. Stir until well coated. Press mixture into 13 x 9 x 2-inch pan coated with cooking spray. Set aside.

2. Melt chocolate and butterscotch chips together in 1-quart saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly. Spread evenly over cereal mixture. Let stand until firm. Cut into 2 x 1-inch bars when cool.

Servings: 24

Note: Before measuring the corn syrup, coat your measuring cup with cooking spray--the syrup will pour easily out of the cup.

Lime-Cilantro Rice with Pineapple

-Heather Jordan


1 cup dry white rice, cooked in 2 C water
2 T real butter
Juice from 1 large lime, or two smaller ones (I add a lot!)
1 medium sized can crushed pineapple, drained.
½ – ¾ C chopped fresh cilantro
Salt and pepper to taste

Cook rice. As soon as it’s done, toss in the butter and stir to melt. Add lime juice, pineapple, and cilantro. Stir to combine, and then add salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.

* You’ll want to serve this right away, if you don’t, the flavors tend to mellow a bit and you’ll probably need to add more lime juice because the rice kind of sucks it up. If you’re not quite ready to eat when your rice finishes cooking, just toss in the butter and keep a lid on it so it stays warm. Then right before you serve it, toss it all together.

Flour Tortillas

-Heather Jordan

2 1/2 c. flour
1 c. very hot water
1 tsp. Kosher salt
1/4 c. shortening

In a heavy-duty mixer, combine flour and salt. Add in shortening and mix until well combined (it will resemble coarse bread crumbs). Add hot water. The water hotness is the key to these being easy to make–it needs to be hot enough to melt the shortening, but not SO hot that the dough turns into an ooey-gooey mess. Or a hot mess (literally), as Mia Michaels might say. I usually get relatively warm water from my tap and then heat it for 45-60 seconds in the microwave.

Anyway, after you add the water, the dough will start to come together. When it is fully combined, remove from mixer and divide into portions. Now…the recipe yield really depends on how many tortillas you want. If you want small tortillas (like for fajitas), then you’ll probably get around 10-12. If you want medium tortillas (burritos), then you’ll probably get 8 or so. For large tortillas (like for salad wraps), you’ll get around 6. Shape portions into round balls.

Preheat a non-stick or cast-iron skillet to medium-low heat. If necessary, spray your work surface with non-stick cooking spray; you may not need to because the dough isn’t particularly sticky, but it may be and you also don’t want to add any more flour to your dough. Press your palm against the surface of the dough ball, trying to maintain as much of a round shape as possible. Place rolling pin in middle of flattened dough ball and roll to desired thickness, shaping in a circle as you go.

Place raw tortilla on preheated skillet. Now…be forewarned–the first one may not work out great; it’s like the first pancake or the oldest child (TOTALLY kidding, oldest sister and oldest child!) You’re going to be watching for bubbles. If you get little blistery bubbles, your skillet is too hot and you need to reduce the heat. You’re looking for big, fat, slow-bubbling bubbles.

When you start to see them, flip the tortilla over and cook for another 30-45 seconds or so.

This is where some personal taste comes in, but in my experience, dark marks on your tortillas (like you see on store-bought ones) usually lead to brittle tortillas when they cool down. Personally, I’m keeping my eye out for a kind of “greasy” look inside; I know that sounds gross, but that’s the best way I can think of to describe it. These ones are cooked enough to not taste raw, but they’re also very soft when they cool and they hold up to being wrapped, folded, twisted, and turned.

If you’re cooking these quickly, you can just stack them on top of each other and they’ll stay warm. You can also wrap them in damp paper towels and then wrap them in foil and keep them in a warm oven (170) until you’re ready to use them. But be sure and save one just for you–you have to eat it while it’s still hot and you can spread some butter on it or butter with cinnamon sugar or just eat it plain and BLESS the wonder that is real Mexican food!

Chicken Fajitas

-Heather Jordan

Measurements of meat and vegetables are approximate. Adjust depending on your preference and the number of people you’re serving. This will serve about 4-6.

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, chicken thighs, or steak

2-3 bell peppers, stem and membranes removed and peppers quartered

1 large onion (any color/variety) sliced into 1/2″ slices

Marinade:

1/4 C fresh lime juice

1/3 C water

2 T vegetable oil

2 cloves garlic, pressed or finely minced

3 t vinegar

2 t soy sauce

1-2 t liquid smoke

1 t salt

1/2 t chili powder, or chipotle chili powder

1/2 t cayenne pepper

1/4 t ground black pepper

1/4 t onion powder

Place meat in a zip-top bag or shallow dish. Place vegetables in another. In a medium bowl, combine all marinade ingredients and whisk well. Reserve 3-4 Tablespoons of marinade for later use. With remaining marinade, add a splash to the vegetables (enough for a light coating) and the remaining to the meat. Marinate for 4-6 hours and up to overnight.

Preheat bbq grill (my preference), indoor grill pan, or large skillet. If you’re using a grill, place everything on at the same time. If using a skillet, slice peppers and onions first. Cook chicken for a few minutes on each side until cooked through and remove from pan. Cover with foil to keep warm. Add vegetables and cook until crisp tender.

Remove vegetables from cooking surface and slice. Slice meat. Toss with reserved marinade and serve.

Cream Cheese Frosting

-Heather Jordan

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 8 ounces cream cheese
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 5 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1 vanilla bean, scraped

Directions

1. Place butter and cream cheese in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; beat until creamy.
2. With mixer on low speed, slowly add vanilla extract, seeds from vanilla bean, and confectioners' sugar. Continue beating until smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes.

Makes enough for one cake.

Gingerbread Waffles

-Barbara Kodra

3 cups flour
4 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
4 eggs
2/3 cup dark brown sugar
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 1/4 cups milk
1/2 cup molasses
1/2 cup melted butter

Preheat waffle iron. In a large bowl combine 1st 5 ingredients.
In a separate bowl beat eggs and brown sugar together until fluffy.
Beat in remaining wet ingredients.
Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients just until moist.
Cook in the waffle iron.

Cranberry Roast

-Heather Jordan

2-3 pounds beef or pork roast or stew chunks
1 tablespoon dried onion flakes, or 1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 (16-ounce) whole berry cranberry sauce

The Directions.

Use a 4-quart slow cooker. Plop in the meat (frozen is fine), and add the onion and soy sauce. Pour in the entire can of cranberry sauce over the top. Do not add water. Cover and cook on low for 7-9 hours, or on high for 5-6. If you are cooking on high, you may need to "help" the meat break apart by taking it out an hour or so before serving by cutting it into chunks, then returning to the sauce. I like it when the meat is tender and the juice has fully soaked in.

Serve over mashed potatoes, and with a green salad.