Rosemary Focaccia Bread

I love this bread! I have made it so many times now, I can't get enough of it. It makes for the best sandwiches.

Ingredients:

1 cup warm water
1 pkg. instant dry yeast
1 tbsp. sugar
6 tbsp. melted butter
4-5 cups flour
2 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. chopped rosemary
1 cup milk
1 tsp. kosher salt

Directions:

In a bowl mix water, yeast, and sugar. Let bubble about 5 minutes. Then add the butter and milk. Continue with the rosemary and  2 cups of the flour. Add the salt last so it doesnt kill the yeast. Mix well and add remaining flour to make a soft dough. Knead well on a floured surface for 5 minutes. Butter a pan and spread out the dough but, not to the edges. It needs to be thick. Dimple the dough with fingers and spread melted butter on top, and then the kosher salt. Let rise for 20 minutes. Bake at 450 degrees for 20 min. Let cool and then cut to make sandwiches.

Homemade Mayo

Super easy and you could easily make this a flavored mayo.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup liquid egg yolk (safer to use)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. dry mustard
2 pinches of sugar
2 tsp. lemon juice
1 tbsp. white wine vinegar
1 cup corn oil

Directions:

In a food processor whisk together egg and all the dry ingredients. Combine vinegar and lemon juice in a small bowl. Add half of it to the food processor, and then half the corn oil. Add remaining vinegar/lemon juice and pulse, and then remaining oil. It will be thick just like mayo.

Easy Marinara Sauce

I have always wanted to make my own marinara and this one was so easy and tasty you could put it on any pasta. I may even try it as pizza sauce next.

Ingredients:

2 tbsp. oil

1 small onion, chopped

1 tsp. minced garlic

1 can tomatoes

2 tbsp. tomato paste

2 tbsp. fresh basil

1 tsp. dried oregano

1/2 tsp. italian seasoning

1/8 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. pepper

Directions:

Cook onion in the oil and then add the garlic, cook about 5 minutes over med heat. Stir in the rest of the ingredients. Simmer over med heat for 20 minutes. Serve over pasta.

Gnocchi

I had never made gnocchi ever and it way better than I thought it would be considering it's mostly just potato but, topped with marinara it is some good stuff.

Ingredients:

3 Russet potatoes peeled
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup flour
1/2 cup ricotta cheese

Directions:

Peel potatoes and cut into small pieces. Boil potatoes in salted water until tender. Drain water and mash the potatoes. Add salt, flour and ricotta. On a floured surface knead dough until it comes together. Divide dough into 6 equal pieces and roll into long ropes. Use the back of a fork to imprint the design all the way down the rope then cut into 3/4 inch thick pieces. Shake off excess flour and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

In a pot bring water to boil. Add 1/3 of the gnocchi to the boiling water and when they float to the surface they are done. About 30 seconds.  Remove with slotted spoon and serve with homemade marinara sauce and Parmesan.

Homemade Peanut Butter

It was so fun to make my own peanut butter. I had some of this on a piece of bread with homemade jam and it was delicious!

Ingredients:

8 oz. raw or roasted spanish peanuts, without the husk ( if you get the salted peanuts do not add any extra salt)
1/2 tsp. salt- if needed add at the end
2 tsp. honey
2 tsp. peanut oil

Directions:

Toast peanuts if raw for 5-6 minutes at 350 degrees and let cool. In a food processor add peanuts and mix until ground. Add the honey and oil while processing until creamy. Taste to see if salt is needed.

*If you want chunky peanut butter don't puree all the way in the processor.

Quick Rising Whole Wheat Bread

This bread recipe was so much faster than others I have tried and it was just as fluffy and delicious. I will definitely be using this recipe over and over again.

Ingredients:

2 cups warm water
3 tbsp. oil
3 tbsp. honey
1 tbsp. yeast
1 cup flour
3 cups whole wheat flour/ can substitute 1 cup white flour for lighter bread
1/2 tbsp. salt

In a small bowl mix water, honey and yeast. Let bubble and sit for 5 minutes. In a stand up mixer or large bowl add the flour, salt and oil. Add in the yeast water and knead the dough for 5 minutes. Remove dough and knead on a floured surface for 5 more minutes. Shape the dough into loaves and put in bread tins. Let rise for 30min-1hr. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

Buffalo Wings

These wings are kinda sweet with a little kick. I am not a big fan of wing sauce but this recipe tasted yummy.


12-16 chicken wings

Tempura Batter Ingredients:

1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1 egg
1/3 cup cold water or, club soda for a lighter batter

Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl. Add the egg and enough water or soda to make it a thick batter. Let sit for 5 minutes. Heat a skillet with an inch of oil on med heat. Drench each wing in the tempura batter and cook each side until brown on each side. Remove from oil and place on a sheet pan covered with aluminum foil.

Buffalo Wing Sauce Ingredients:

1 1/4 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 tbsp. light corn syrup
3 tbsp. Louisiana hot sauce
1/2 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup water

Bring all ingredients to a simmer in a saucepan for 10 minutes. Stirring until sugar is dissolved. Pour over tempura fried wings and finish cooking in the oven at 350 degrees for 17-20 minutes. Serve with Ranch or blue cheese dressing.

Minestrone Soup

Pic by Koko

This soup is soooo good. I had never had homemade minestrone and now I make it all the time.

Ingredients:

3 slices of bacon

2 tbsp. oil

1/2 yellow onion, chopped

1 1/2 tsp. garlic

1 cup canned diced tomatoes

2 stalks celery, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

1/2 cup green beans

1 tbsp. dry basil

1/2 can bean and bacon soup

1/2 can beef broth

1 cup water

1 cup small noodles

Directions:

Cut bacon into small pieces and fry in a pan until slighlty crispy. Add oil, onion and garlic. Stir constantly for about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, celery, carrot, green beans, and basil. Simmer for 20 minutes. Add the bean and bacon soup, broth, and water. Mix thouroughly. Then add the noodles and let simmer 8 more minutes. Serve with parmesan cheese sprinkled on top, and soda crackers.

Homemade Soda Crackers

pic by kathryn

These were really easy and super delicious. These pair perfectly with the Homemade Minestrone soup.

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. sugar
1 egg
2 tbsp. butter, melted
1/3 cup of water needed

Directions:

Mix the flour, salt and sugar in a bowl or food processor (food processor is best). In a small bowl mix together the egg and melted butter then add it to the flour until it comes together in the food processor. Add water if needed. It should be sticky but not too wet. Remove dough onto a floured surface and knead for 5 minutes. Let the dough rest for 30 minutes in a covered bowl. Turn a sheet pan over and lighly butter the bottom of the pan. Roll and stretch out the dough over the pan. Score the the dough into little squares and brush with melted butter over the entire dough. Sprinkle with salt and bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes. Let cool slightly and break into little squares.

Best Buttermilk Biscuits

Ingredients:

2 cups flour
1 tbsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. salt
2 tbsp. sugar
12 tbsp. butter, cut into small pieces
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 egg
1/4 cup grated cheese of choice

Directions:

Combine all dry ingredients into a bowl and cut in the butter cubes. It should have small pieces of butter in the dough, don't over mix. After that is combined add the buttermilk and cheese. Pat out dough onto a well floured surface so that the dough is 1 1/2 inches thick. Cut out dough with a round cutter. Bake at 450 degrees for 15-17min.

Zuppa Toscana Soup

I already have a recipe for this but, I like this one better. It's really flavorful!

Ingredients:

1/2 lb. Italian Sausage

1-2 Russet potatoes

1/2 yellow onion, chopped

1 tsp. minced garlic

1 can chicken broth

2 cups water

1/8 tsp. crushed red pepper

2 slices of bacon, diced

1/2 cup whipping cream

1 cup fresh Kale

Directions:

In a pan sautee sausage and add crushed red pepper together until browned. Take out of pan and set aside. In the same pan cook bacon, onion, and garlic for about 10min. Add the chicken broth, water and chopped potatos. Let simmer until potato is tender. Add the cream, Kale, and sausage at the very end to heat through.