Crisp Lemon Shortbread

I saw this in the April/May issue of  Taste of Home.  I bet I could add some fresh herbs to it for a flavor twist.

3/4 C. butter, softened
1/2 C. confectioner's sugar
1 tsp. grated lemon peel
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1 1/2 C. all purpose flour
2 tsp. coarse sugar

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  In a bowl, beat butter, confectioner's sugar and lemon peel until blended.  Beat in lemon juice.  Gradually beat in flour.

Divide into 4 portions.  On a lightly floured surface, roll each portion of dough into a 5x3 1/2 inch rectangle.  Transfer to ungreased baking sheets.  Cut each rectangle into 6 squares, but do not separate.  Prick tops with a fork.  Sprinkle with coarse sugar.

Bake 20-25 minutes or until light brown.  Cool on pans 10 minutes.  Transfer shortbread to a cutting board; recut into squares.  Cool on a wire rack.

Note:  This would also be good with lime juice and peel or a mixture of lemon and lime.

Raspberry Ricotta Cake

The raspberries have been phenomenal lately.  I think this will be delicious.  I mean let's be honest...everything is better with cheese. :-)

Non stick cooking spray
1 1/2 C. all purpose flour
1 C. sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. kosher salt
3 large eggs
1 1/2 C. ricotta cheese
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 C. unsalted butter, melted
1 C. frozen raspberries or blackberries, divided (maybe a little bit of both??)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9 inch round cake pan with parchment paper and lightly coat with non stick spray.  Whisk flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.

Whisk eggs, ricotta, and vanilla in a medium bowl until smooth; fold into dry ingredients just until blended.  Then fold in butter, followed by 3/4 C. raspberries, making sure not to crush the berries.  Scrape batter into prepared pan and scatter remaining berries over top.

Bake cake until golden brown and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean; 50-60 minutes.  Let cool at least 20 minutes before removing from pan.

Smoked Turkey Salad with Raspberries

I have been eating a lot of raspberries these days...by the handful and in protein shakes.  They are so good.  Here is a twist I haven't tried.  I don't know if I will be able to sell the dressing with jalapeno jelly but we'll see.

2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 tbsp. jalapeno jelly
2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1/3 C. olive oil
6 C. fresh baby spinach
8oz. thinly sliced deli smoked turkey, cut into strips
1 C. crumbled goat or feta cheese
1 C. fresh raspberries
1/4 C. loosely packed basil leaves, thinly sliced

In a small bowl, whisk red wine vinegar, pepper jelly and Dijon mustard until blended.  Gradually whisk in oil until blended.

Divide spinach among 4 plates; top with remaining ingredients.  Serve with dressing.

Pork Chops with Balsamic Roasted Vegetables and Gorgonzola

This might be the longest title on the blog!  I found this in the March 2015 issue of Cooking Light.  We're going to try it in the upcoming weeks.

4 4oz. boneless center cut pork loin chops
1/2 tsp kosher salt, divided
3/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/4 C. extra virgin olive oil, divided
12oz. small red potatoes, halved
3 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1 tsp. tomato paste
1 tbsp. chopped fresh thyme
1 medium red onion, peeled and cut into 8 wedges
1 8oz. package cremini mushrooms, halved
2 tbsp. chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
1oz. Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled (about 1/4 C.)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Heat a large heavy roasting pan over high heat.  Sprinkle pork evenly with 1/4 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper.  Add 2 tbsp. oil to the pan; swirl to coat.  Add pork to pan; cook 3 minutes on each side or until browned.  Place pork on a plate (pork will not be cooked through).  Reduce heat to medium high.  Add potatoes to pan, cut sides down; cook 2 minutes.  Remove pan from heat.

Combine remaining 1/2 tsp. pepper. remaining oil, vinegar and tomato paste in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk.  Combine 2 tbsp. balsamic mixture, thyme, onion, and mushrooms in a bowl, tossing to coat.  Add mushroom mixture to pan.  Bake at 425 for 25 minutes, stirring after 10 minutes.  Arrange pork chops over vegetables; bake 10 minutes or until a thermometer inserted in a chop registers 145 degrees.

  Remove pork from pan.  Sprinkle vegetable mixture with remaining 1/4 tsp. salt.  Place 1 C.  vegetable mixture on each of 4 plates.  Top each serving with 1 pork chop, 2 tsp. balsamic mixture, 1 1/2 tsp. parlsey, and 1 tbsp. Gorgonzola cheese.

Calories per serving: 385, fat 21.7 grams, protein 27 grams, Carbs 21 grams, Fiber 3 grams, cholesterol 73mg., iron 2mg., sodium 415mg., calcium 82mg.

Oatmeal Cinnamon Chip Cookies

I made these at Christmas.  The recipe is on the back of a Hershey's Cinnamon Chip bag.  I kept the bag I used to get the recipe posted here.  The beagle has been trying to steal and eat the bag.  A word of advice...beagles are not the best sous chefs!

1 C.  butter or margarine, softened
1 C. packed brown sugar
1/3 C. granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 C. all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
2 1/2 C. quick cooking oats
1 2/3 C. cinnamon chips
3/4 C. raisins  (not everyone in my family likes raisins so at Christmas, I omitted them)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Beat butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar in a bowl until creamy.  Add eggs and vanilla; beat well.  Combine flour and baking soda; add to butter mixture, beating well.  Stir in oats, cinnamon chips and raisins (batter will be stiff).

Drop by heaping teaspoons onto an ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned.  Cool 1 minute, remove from cookie sheet to wire rack.

How Did I Get Here??

Hi.  It's been a while.  I'd love to say that I have spent this winter cooking up a storm but the fact of the matter is...that's not what's going on.  In mid January, I was diagnosed with Non Hodgkins Lymphoma and have been undergoing treatment since.

I had been suffering from some unexplained nausea and had been steadily losing weight at the same time.  Well, now I have an explanation and a battle on my hands.

I am doing some cooking and meal planning.  Honestly, Chris has been doing the lion's share of the cooking.  I have weird tastes for food that come and go.  I also have a few food aversions...at the moment it's bacon and garlic which are normally two of my favorites.

I am trying to put the 25+lbs (or at least some of them) that I lost while trying to figure out what I had, back on.  Needless to say my normal eating habits are being reprogrammed for the time being.  Its been a long time since I have been able to eat what I want when I want.  I am also not really worried about eating WW friendly meals.   When I am healed, I will go back to eating more carefully.

 

Butter Pecan Bread

I was looking for a recipe to use the metric ton of pecans we got from Costco.  OK, I don't really have a metric ton of pecans but I do have close to 3lbs and I don't want them to go to waste.  When I googled "Pecan Bread"  this recipe came up.  It transitions nicely from a regular loaf pan to mini loaves (it makes 8 minis) and recipe doubles nicely.  The house smells fantastic when this is baking!

2 1/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1 cup light brown sugar, packed

1 egg, beaten

1 cup buttermilk

2 tablespoons melted butter

1 cup chopped pecans

Sift together the flour, baking powder, soda, salt, and spices; blend in brown sugar.

Combine egg, buttermilk, and butter; add to flour mixture, stirring to blend well. Stir in chopped nuts. Turn batter into a greased and floured 9x5x3-inch loaf pan. Bake at 350° for 45 to 50 minutes, or until a wooden pick or cake tester inserted in center comes out clean.  If you are making mini loaves, check them at the 35 minute mark.  They don't need more than about 38-40 minutes to bake and the mini loaves get hard fast when they cook too long.