Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Buttery pecan crisps


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a mixing bowl, cream together:

1/2 cup soft butter
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup flour
1 cup chopped, toasted pecans (before making cookies, bake pecan halves for 8-10 min. @350... cool & chop up)

Form cookies in 3/4" balls, place on ungreased sheets, leaving a little bit of space (but these cookies don't spread out). Flatten them slightly. Bake for 12-14 minutes, until the edges are golden. While still warm, put a cup of powdered sugar in a bowl & gently toss warm cookies in the powdered sugar. Cool.

Chocolate crinkles


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a mixing bowl, cream together:

1 stick soft butter
1/2 c. unsweetened cocoa
1-1/4 sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla

Combine: 1-1/2 tsp. baking powder & 1-2/3 C. flour and add to creamed mixture.

Put 1 cup powdered sugar into a bowl.

Roll dough into 3/4" balls & roll the balls into powdered sugar. Place them on parchment lined baking sheets (or lightly greased sheets).

Bake for 10-12 minutes @350 degrees.

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Pumpkin Cheesecake


Line a cupcake pan with papers (12-16). Heat oven to 325°.

For crust:
In a small mixing bowl, combine
3 cups crushed gingersnap cookies
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. melted butter
Mix well and pat 1 Tblsp. crumbs onto the bottom of each muffin paper.

Filling:
In a mixing bowl, combine:
3 8oz. packs of softened cream cheese
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 lg. eggs
1-1/2 cups pumpkin, cooked & pureed
1 teasp. vanilla
1-1/2 teasp. cinnamon
1-1/2 teasp. ground ginger
1/4 teasp. ground cloves
1/4 cup heavy (whipping) cream
2 tblsp. flour

Mix on low speed until thoroughly mixed; do not over beat!

Spoon a few tblsp. of batter over each crust. Bake for 20-25 minutes - test (shake pan- make sure the filling doesn't jiggle). Remove from oven and cool completely.

For topping:
Mix 1 cup of sour cream with a few tblsp. white sugar & 1/2 teasp. vanilla extract. Spoon a teasp. of sour cream mixture on top of each cheesecake. Sprinkle a shake of cinnamon-sugar over each. Chill.


You can also make this into a 8-10" cheesecake by using a springform pan. Follow the above recipe, putting the crumbs onto the bottom of the pan, using all the batter - and then baking it longer (test after 55-60 minutes).

Potato Leek Soup


This is a 'just threw it together' recipe - I didn't measure accurately, so I'll share as-is:

Peel & dice (small cubes) 8-10 med. brown/russett potatoes. Boil approx. 15 minutes until cooked (without becoming too soft). Drain & set aside.

In a 1 gallon stock pot, melt 1/2 stick (4 T) butter and over medium low heat, saute until wilted but not browned:
2 chopped leeks (rinsed & cleaned well)
1 small chopped onion
3 lg. stalks chopped celery

Add 2 quarts of chicken stock (or same amt. of water plus an ample amt. of chicken 'base'- that paste in a jar... I buy it at GFS) to the onions and stir. Let it cook for 10-15 minutes (low simmer) and then add the potatoes. Season with salt & pepper. If you like a thicker soup, make a paste using cornstarch or flour added to cold water (3 tblsp. dry to a few tblsp. water), add to the soup, stirring until thicker. Otherwise, leave the soup in its more pure form.

To the potato soup, add 1 to 1-1/2 cups heavy (whipping) cream. Stir to incorporate and heat on low for another 10 minutes making sure it's not cooking on a high heat or it'll scorch.

Top with ground black pepper, cooked, crumbled bacon or shredded cheese, if desired.