Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Make Your Own Reeses Cups


Ingredients:

½ cup organic graham cracker crumbs
3/4 cup organic palm sugar
3/4 cup crunchy peanut butter
1 pound organic fair trade milk chocolate

Methods:

  1. Use a large mixer to combine graham crackers, sugar, and peanut butter.

  2. Mix on medium speed until filling is well combined.

  3. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler.

  4. Spoon with 1 to 2 inches of chocolate in the muffin tins (use muffin tin wrappers).

  5. Spoon 1 tbsp peanut butter combination in the center and flatten the top.

  6. Cover with chocolate and smooth the top so that it's shaped like a true Reeses cup.

  7. Once cooled down, freeze the Resses cups for a few hours. Enjoy!
A delicious recipe from Planet Discovery Online.

Sunday, June 21, 2009

Grilled Corn on the Cob with Citrus Butter




Ingredients:

1/4 lb. (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

1 Tbsp. grated orange zest

1 Tbsp. grated lime zest

2 Tbsp. lemon juice

16 ears fresh corn

2 Tbsp. olive oil

Salt and pepper

1. In a large bowl, combine butter, orange zest, lime zest and lemon juice. Beat with a hand held mixer or a wooden spoon until blended. (Butter can be made up to 2 days in advance. Cover and refrigerate; remove from fridge 15 minutes before serving to soften.)

2. Prepare a charcoal grill and let burn until coals are glowing, or set a gas grill to medium-high.

3. Shuck corn, discarding husks and silk. Brush with a small amount of olive oil and place on hot grill. Cook, turning often, until slightly charred in spots and soft, 5 to 10 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place corn on a large platter and top with a small scoop of butter. Serve remaining butter on the side.

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Chocolate Cupcakes


Ingredients:

6 oz. unsweetened chocolate, chopped

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

8 Tbsp. (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

2 cups sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract

4 large eggs

1 cup milk

1. Melt chocolate in top of double boiler set over simmering water. Stir until smooth, remove from heat and cool until lukewarm. Preheat oven to 350°F. Place cupcake liners in two 12-cup muffin tins and one 6-cup muffin tin.

2. Stir flour, baking powder and salt in a large bowl until well mixed. Using an electric mixer, beat butter, sugar and vanilla until creamy and smooth. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each. Stir in chocolate. On low speed, beat in 1/3 of dry ingredients, then half of milk. Repeat, ending with last third of dry ingredients. Do not overmix.

3. Fill each muffin cup about 2/3 full and bake until a toothpick inserted in center of a cupcake comes out clean, 15 to 20 minutes. Cool in pan on wire racks for 5 minutes, then remove and cool completely on racks.

Slow-Cooker Sweet-and-Sour Brisket


Ingredients:

1 (28 oz.) can crushed tomatoes

1 onion, thinly sliced

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1/2 cup raisins (optional)

1/4 cup packed light brown sugar

2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice

1 (21/2 lb.) piece flat-cut brisket, trimmed

Salt and pepper

1. Place tomatoes, onion, garlic, raisins (if using), brown sugar and lemon juice in a slow cooker and stir to combine. Sprinkle brisket with 11/2 tsp. salt and season with pepper. Place brisket on tomato mixture and then spoon half of tomato mixture on meat. Cover and cook on high until meat is fork tender, 5 to 6 hours.

2. Transfer brisket to a cutting board, tent with foil to keep warm, and let stand for 10 minutes. Skim fat from sauce and discard; season sauce with salt and pepper. Slice brisket across grain, transfer to a serving platter and spoon some sauce over meat.

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Shrimp Stir Fry


Ingredients:

3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 3/4 cups Swanson Chicken Stock
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil (optional)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 pound fresh or thawed frozen medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
4 cups cut-up fresh vegetables *
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder OR 1 clove garlic, minced
4 cups hot cooked regular long-grain white rice


Directions:

1.Stir the cornstarch, stock, soy sauce and sesame oil in a small bowl until the mixture is smooth.

2. Heat 1 tablespoon vegetable oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp and stir-fry until they're cooked through. Remove the shrimp from the skillet.

3. Heat the remaining vegetable oil in the skillet. Add the vegetables, ginger and garlic powder and stir-fry until the vegetables are tender-crisp.

4. Stir the cornstarch mixture in the skillet. Cook and stir until the mixture boils and thickens. Return the shrimp to the skillet and cook until the mixture is hot and bubbling. Serve over the rice.

"Use a combination of very thinly sliced carrots, green pepper cut into 2-inch-long strips and green onion cut into 1-inch pieces".

Monday, June 8, 2009

Berry Dessert Pizza


1 recipe Basic Pizza Dough
2 tablespoons yellow cornmeal
2 cups mascarpone cheese
2 tablespoons honey
1 cup each blueberries, strawberries and blackberries
1/2 cup sugar
Powdered sugar, for garnish

Place a pizza stone in the oven and preheat to 500 degrees F. Sprinkle the yellow cornmeal on a baker's peel or baking sheet. Place the rolled out pizza dough circle on the prepared baker's peel or baking sheet. In a medium sized bowl, mix the mascarpone and honey. Spread the mixture on the pizza and place into the oven for 6 minutes. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with the berries and garnish with powdered sugar. Place back into the oven for 2 minutes. Remove and serve immediately.

A recipe I got from Planet Discovery Channel.

Strawberry Ice Cream



Ingredients:

2 pints strawberries
½ cup sugar
juice of ½ lemon
2 cups Greek yogurt
2 cups heavy cream

  1. Puree the strawberries, sugar, lemon, and yogurt together until smooth

  2. Whip the cream to medium peaks

  3. Gently fold the strawberry-yogurt mixture into the cream and put into a container in the freezer for 5-6 hours