Julia Child's White Bread

So my husband wanted me to try making him some white bread. So this is the recipe I am going to try. If anyone has one they love, please share! :)


2 1/2 cups water (105-115 F)
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1 tablespoon sugar
7 cups bread flour or 7 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon salt
1/4-1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

Directions:

Pour 1/2 cup of the water into a bowl and mix with yeast and sugar til foamy. Let sit for 5 minutes until creamy. Put the yeast mixture, rest of the water and 3 1/2 cups of the flour into the mixer with the dough hook. Mix slowly until blended then add the rest of the flour. Increase speed and scrape down the sides til the dough comes together. (If it doesn't add a tbsp of flour at a time til it does.) Add salt and mix at medium speed for 10 minutes (or do half in mixer and half kneading) til dough is smooth and elastic. Back in mixer add butter 1 tbsp at a time (dough may come apart, but mixing will pull it back together). Turn dough out on lightly floured surface and shape it into a ball then place in a large buttered or oiled bowl. Turn dough so it is completely coated in the fat, then cover in plastic for 45 minutes to an hour, til it has doubled in size at room temperature. Butter 2 loaf pans. Deflate the dough, cut in half and turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll out into a 9 x 12-inch rectangle. With the short end facing you, fold the dough into thirds like a sheet of paper to go into an envelope, creating a roll. Pinch the seam closed, and pinch the ends enough so it will fit in the loaf pan. Drop in the loaf pan seam side down, and repeat. Cover the loaves with buttered plastic wrap and allow to rise again in a warm place (80°F) for 45 minutes, until they double in size. Preheat the oven to 375°F and put the rack in the center of the oven. Bake for 35-45 minutes til they are honey brown. Immediately turn out of pans onto a rack to cool. Once almost completely cool, they can be cut. Store in a brown paper bag for a day or two. Once cut, turn cut side down onto a cutting board and cover with a kitchen towel.

Southwestern Egg Rolls

These are just like the ones at Chili's. I love them too!


Prep Time: 20 Minutes
Cook Time: 12 Minutes Ready In: 4 Hours 32 Minutes
Servings: 5

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 skinless, boneless chicken breast half
2 tablespoons minced green onion
2 tablespoons minced red bell pepper
1/3 cup frozen corn kernels
1/4 cup black beans, rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons frozen chopped spinach,thawed and drained
2 tablespoons diced jalapeno peppers 1/2 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/3 teaspoon salt
1 pinch ground cayenne pepper
3/4 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
5 (6 inch) flour tortillas
1 quart oil for deep frying

Directions:

1. Rub 1 tablespoon vegetable oil over chicken breast. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, cook chicken approximately 5 minutes per side, until meat is no longer pink and juices run clear. Remove from heat and set aside.

2. Heat remaining 1 tablespoon vegetable oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in green onion and red pepper. Cook and stir 5 minutes, until tender.

3. Dice chicken and mix into the pan with onion and red pepper. Mix in corn, black beans, spinach, jalapeno peppers, parsley, cumin, chili powder, salt and cayenne pepper. Cook and stir 5 minutes, until well blended and tender. Remove from heat and stir in Monterey Jack cheese so that it melts.

4. Wrap tortillas with a clean, lightly moist cloth. Microwave on high approximately 1 minute, or until hot and pliable.

5. Spoon even amounts of the mixture into each tortilla. Fold ends of tortillas, then roll tightly around mixture. Secure with toothpicks. Arrange in a medium dish, cover with plastic, and place in the freezer. Freeze at least 4 hours.

6. In a large, deep skillet, heat oil for deep frying to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Deep fry frozen, stuffed tortillas 10 minutes each, or until dark golden brown. Drain on paper towels before serving

P. F. Chang's Chicken Lettuce Wraps

I found this on food.com. I LOVE it! It is pretty close to the real thing!

Prep Time: 10 mins Total Time: 25 mins Servings: 2-3
"This recipe is from Todd Wilbur and Top Secret Recipes"

Ingredients

3 tablespoons oil
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 cup water chestnuts
2/3 cup mushrooms
3 tablespoons chopped onions
1 teaspoon minced garlic
4 -5 leaves iceberg lettuce

Special Sauce

1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon hot mustard
2 teaspoons water
1 -2 teaspoon garlic and red chili paste

Stir Fry Sauce

2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon rice wine vinegar

Directions

Make the special sauce by dissolving the sugar in water in a small bowl. Add soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, ketchup, lemon juice and sesame oil. Mix well and refrigerate this sauce until you're ready to serve. Combine the hot water with the hot mustard and set this aside as well. Eventually add your desired measurement of mustard and garlic chili sauce to the special sauce mixture to pour over the wraps.
Bring oil to high heat in a wok or large frying pan. Saute chicken breasts for 4 to 5 minutes per side or done. Remove chicken from the pan and cool. Keep oil in the pan, keep hot. As chicken cools mince water chestnuts and mushrooms to about the size of small peas. Prepare the stir fry sauce by mixing the soy sauce, brown sugar, and rice vinegar together in a small bowl. When chicken is cool, mince it as the mushrooms and water chestnuts are. With the pan still on high heat, add another Tbsp of vegetable oil. Add chicken, garlic, onions, water chestnuts and mushrooms to the pan. Add the stir fry sauce to the pan and saute the mixture for a couple minutes then serve it in the lettuce"cups". Top with"Special Sauce".

Pierogi

2c. potatoes, chopped
1c. cottage cheese
3/4c. cheddar, grated
1T. lemon juice
1t. Dijon mustard
dash black pepper
*
1 1/2c. flour
1/2t. salt
1/8t. nutmeg
2 eggs, beaten
4T. butter
Cook and drain the potatoes. Add the rest of the filling parts (through the black pepper) and mix them up.

Combine the flour, salt, nutmeg, eggs. Cut in the butter until it's well incorporated. Wrap up and let it rest for half and hour or so in the fridge.

Now, put a good sized pot of water on to boil.

Divide the dough into 16 pieces. roll out each piece into 4 1/2 inch diameter circles. Fill half the circle, leaving an edge to seal, with the potato mixture. Then what you should really do is seal it shut by folding over the dough and crimping it shut with a wet fork.

Drop them in the pot five or six at a time. After they float to the top, let them boil around in there for five more minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon.

You can eat them now, but what you really should do is fry them up! A little oil in the pan, brown them up some.

Then slice some onion up and saute that to put on top of your pierogis.

Stuffed Tex-Mex Yellow Squash

4 yellow squashes (8 ounces each)
Coarse salt and ground pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 red bell pepper (ribs and seeds removed), cut into 1/4-inch dice
2 scallions, thinly sliced, white and green parts separated
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon mild chili powder
1/2 pound ground beef chuck
1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Heat oven to 400 degrees, with rack set in the top third. Halve each squash lengthwise; slice a sliver from the rounded part of each half so it sits flat. Leaving a 1/4-inch border, scoop out halves with a small spoon; roughly chop flesh, and reserve. Place squash halves, skin side down, in a shallow baking dish. Season with salt and pepper, and set aside.

In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high. Add reserved chopped squash, bell pepper, scallion whites, and garlic; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until bell pepper begins to soften, 3 to 4 minutes. Add tomato paste and chili powder; cook, stirring, until fragrant, 1 minute. Add beef; cook until no longer pink, breaking up meat with a spoon, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in corn and 1/4 cup Parmesan; season with salt and pepper.

Dividing evenly, spoon mixture into squash halves. Sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons Parmesan. Cover with aluminum foil, and bake until squash is tender, 30 to 35 minutes. Uncover, and bake until top is browned, 7 to 10 minutes more. Garnish with scallion greens.

Lemony Orzo

Serves 4

1 lemon
coarse salt and ground pepper
1 cup orzo
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 scallions, thinly sliced
Directions

1. Using a vegetable peeler, peel half the lemon (avoiding bitter white pith); thinly slice peel. Squeeze 2 tablespoons juice; set aside.
2. Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add orzo and lemon peel. Cook until orzo is al dente, according to package instructions. Drain and return to pot.
Add lemon juice, oil, and scallions. Season with salt and pepper; toss to combine.

Wolrd's Best Lasagna

1 lb ground beef ¼ teas basil leaves
2 Table olive oil 2 teas salt
3 ½ cups tomatoes 1 teas sugar
2 - 8 oz cans tomato sauce 3+ oz sliced mushrooms
¼ cup chopped onions 1/3 lb large lasagna noodles
2 cloves fresh garlic 1 lb ricotta cheese
1 ½ teas oregano leaves ½ lb mozzarella cheese
¼ teas rosemary leaves ½ cup grated parmesan cheese

Sauté ground beef in hot oil until meat loses its pink color. Add tomatoes, tomato sauce, seasonings and mushrooms. Mix well; cook slowly about 2 hours until sauce is thickened. Cook noodles following directions on the package; drain, rinse in cold water and separate. In a buttered 3 quart baking dish make two layers of the noodles, meat sauces, ricotta, mozzarella slices and parmesan cheese, in this order, using about half for each layer. Bake @ 350 for 30 minutes or until bubbly.

Serve 6-7

Note: pepperoni may be added to meat sauce if desired.

Black Bean salsa

Ingredients
2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (17-ounce) package frozen whole kernel corn, thawed
2 large tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 large avocado, peeled and diced
1 small onion, diced
1/8 to 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
Salt and pepper

Directions
Mix all ingredients thoroughly in a large bowl. Cover and chill overnight. Taste and add salt, pepper or more lime juice as necessary. Serve with tortilla chips as an appetizer, or with grilled chicken breast as a meal.

Banana Bread

1 stick unsalted soft butter

1 cup sugar
2 eggs

1 1/2 cups flour

1 teas baking soda

1 teas salt

1 cup mashed ripe bananas

1/2 cup sour cream

1 teas vanilla

Mix butter & sugar until fluffy. Add eggs. Sift dry ingredients & add butter mixture. Add bananas, sour cream & vanilla. Butter a 9”x5”x3” pan or several smaller pans. Pour batter into pans. Bake 1 hour @ 350, until toothpick comes out clean. Cool on rack. I also make these as muffins. I will cook them about 20-25 minutes at 350.

Parmesan Green Beans

Coarse salt and ground pepper
2 packages (10 ounces each) frozen French-cut green beans
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan cheese

Roasted Lemon and Parsley Potatoes

3 lbs. mixed small potatoes (we used a bag of new, red, and purple)
6 TBSP lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 stick butter or margarine
About 1/2 bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
Zest of one small lemon (yay for Microplane zesters!)
Sea salt & cracked pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Quarter the potatoes and put 'em in a 13 x 9" pan. Melt the butter or margarine, whisk together with oil and lemon juice. Toss with potatoes to coat, salt and pepper generously. Cook (uncovered) for 45 mins or so, then pull 'em out and mix in the lemon zest. Cook about 15 mins more or until nice and golden. Remove from oven and toss in the parsley. Eat until you explode.

Broccoli Craisin Salad

Dressing:
1 ¼ cup Mayo
1 Tbsp vinegar
2 tsp sugar
1/8 tsp pepper
¼ cup milk

Mix first 4 ingredients and gradually mix in milk.

Salad:
8 cups broccoli florets (cut small) and thinly sliced broccoli stems
¼ c. sunflower seeds (salted and roasted, or plain)
¼ cup chopped red onion (optional)
4-5 slices bacon, cooked until crisp then crumbled
½ cup craisins (adjust to your liking)

Combine salad ingredients. Add dressing before serving. Everything can be altered to taste.

Grandma L's Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

1 ¼ C. sugar
¼ C. flour
1 C. strawberries
2 C. diced rhubarb
2 T. butter

Sift flour & sugar together & combine ¾ of the mixture with the fruit. Place unbaked crust in pie plate & line w/ remaining flour mixture. Add filling. Place butter on top & cover w/ top crust. Bake at 425° for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 350° & bake 30 min. longer or till fruit is tender.
*For a deep-dish pie use a little more fruit; for a tart pie use a bit less sugar.

For crust:
2 C. flour
½ C. + 1 T. oil
¼ C. milk

Mix oil & milk together then combine with flour. Quickly mix together until flour is all wet. Pack in the bottom of the bowl & divide crust in half. Roll each half between 2 sheets of waxed paper until ¼ in. thick & the size of the pie plate.

Spinach Strawberry Salad

1 bag baby spinach leaves
1 pint fresh strawberries, sliced
1 avacado, pitted & sliced
1 pkg slivered or sliced almonds
4 Tablespoons sugar

In a skillet carmalize almonds. Combine almonds and 4 Tablespoons sugar. Cook on medium heat until sugar melts and coats almonds.

Dressing:

1/2 cup sugar
21/4 teas paprika
2 Tablespoons sesame seeds
1 Tablespoon poppy seeds
1/4 teas worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 finely chopped onion
1/2 cup sweet rice vinegar
1/2 cup oil

Combine all dressing ingredients and mix well. Add just before serving the salad, as it will wilt the spinach leaves if put on too early. Sprinkle almonds over salad.

Chewy Chocolate Raisin Cookies

Not too healthy of course, but this is an AMAZING cookie! You will love it. I have used water instead of the brandy.

Sarah's Chewy Chocolate-Raisin Cookies
Chunks of white chocolate add richness (semisweet or bittersweet may be substituted), and each cookie is rolled in sanding sugar for an even more satisfying crunch.

Ingredients

Makes about 2 dozen.
1 cup golden raisins, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup brandy
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup packed light-brown sugar
1/2 cup honey
6 ounces white chocolate, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 cup fine sanding or granulated sugar

Directions

Bring raisins and brandy to a boil in a small saucepan. Remove from heat, and let stand for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, whisk together flour, cocoa, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, the baking soda, and salt.
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Beat butter and brown sugar with a mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add honey, and beat until creamy. Reduce speed to low, add flour mixture, and beat until combined. Drain raisins; discard liquid. Add raisins and chocolate to dough. Mix to combine.
Whisk together sanding sugar and remaining 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon. Scoop 2 tablespoons dough. Roll in cinnamon-sugar mixture, and shape into a ball. Roll in cinnamon-sugar mixture again to coat completely. Repeat with remaining dough. Transfer to parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing about 2 inches apart, as you work. Bake until just set and starting to crack, 18 to 20 minutes. Let cool on sheets.
First published

Black Bean Chili and Corn bread

This is my favorite chili recipe. I have also included an easy corn bread recipe.

Black Bean Chile
Serves 8-12

3 lbs coarsely ground beef
Extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup red wine
2 cup homemade beef stock
2 onions, finely chopped
2-4 small green chilies, hot or mild, seeded & chopped
2 cans tomatoes, chopped
3 cloves, peeled and mashed
1 Table ground cumin
2 Table dried oregano
2 Table dried basil
¼ - ½ teas red chili flakes
4 cups cooked black beans

Brown meat until crumbly in a little olive oil in a heavy pot. (Olive oil may not be necessary if the beef contains a lot of fat.) Add remaining ingredients and simmer about 1 hour.

Never Fail Corn Bread

1 cup blue, yellow, or white corn meal
1 cup spelt or whole wheat flour
1 Table baking powder
2 Table - ¼ cup honey
1 cup milk
1 Table oil (optional, makes less crumbly)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Combine dry ingredients. Add milk & honey & oil. Mix until well blended. Pour into 8x8 oiled pan & bake 15-20 minutes. To make a lighter cake add one egg, beaten, when sweetener was added.

Roasted Carrots and Shallots

I love this as a side dish. They cook up so yummy and sweet!

Roasted Carrots and Shallots

Serves 4.
2 pounds carrots, cut into 3-inch lengths, thick pieces halved lengthwise (You can also make them rounds.)
12 ounces shallots (about 10), peeled and halved lengthwise
2 tablespoons olive oil (I use melted butter)
coarse salt and ground pepper
1/2 cup fresh parsley leaves
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Directions

Preheat oven to 450. On a large rimmed baking sheet, toss carrots, shallots, and oil; season with salt and pepper. Bake until tender, 30 to 35 minutes, tossing once halfway through. Add parsley and lemon juice; toss to combine

Beef Dinner in a Pumpkin

This is something I grew up with as a kid. I really liked it. It was always our Halloween dinner.

Beef Dinner in a Pumpkin

2 lb. lean hamburger1 (8-12") diameter fresh pumpkin or squash (Hubbard or turban)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 med. onion, chopped
12 Sm. mushrooms, sliced
1 med. bell pepper1
1/4 c. uncooked rice1
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
5 tbsp. butter
1 #303 can stewed tomatoes
2 c. beef broth
1/4 c. grated Cheddar or Longhorn cheese
Parsley sprigs
8 to 12 cherry tomatoes

Wash the pumpkin and cut the top stem out to create a lid. Scoop out the seeds and stringy fibers. Melt the butter but only 2 tablespoons and take a plastic sandwich bag to dip into the melted butter to oil the inside of the pumpkin. Turn the pumpkin on its side and remove to sprinkle inside with 1/2 teaspoon salt.

Saute onion, mushrooms, bell pepper, and garlic in the remaining 3 tablespoons butter. Add the 2 pounds lean hamburger, brown, and drain. Then add the rice and stir until thoroughly mixed. Add the remaining salt and pepper, the stewed tomatoes, and the beef broth and bring to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes then fill the pumpkin with this mixture. Replace the pumpkin lid and place the pumpkin in a shallow greased baking pan. Bake approximately 1 to 1/2 hours at 350 degrees.

Pumpkin is ready when tender and should remain firm enough to hold the filling without danger of collapsing. If necessary, more beef broth can be added as needed. When baked, remove from the oven, lift lid and sprinkle inside with the 1/4 cup cheese. Return pumpkin to oven, lift lid and sprinkle inside with the 1/4 cup cheese. Return pumpkin to oven without lid until cheese is melted. Remove from oven, replace lid and garnish around the bottom of the pumpkin with fresh parsley and cherry tomatoes. Serve from the pumpkin, scraping some of the pulp into each serving. Serve with green salad and French bread.

Serves 12.

Leek & potato Galette

This is so yummy. I know it sounds different and daunting, but it is good, and not that hard!

Leek & potato Galette

6 tablespoons butter, melted
3 pounds (5 to 6 medium) baking potatoes, peeled
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 leek, white and light-green parts, thinly sliced crosswise, well washed
6 ounces Gruyere cheese, coarsely grated (about 1 1/2 cups)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees, with rack set in top third. Line bottom of a 9-inch cake pan with a round of parchment paper. Place melted butter in a large bowl. Using a mandolin or cutting by hand, slice the potatoes 1/8 inch thick; add to bowl with butter. Season with salt and pepper, and toss to coat. In prepared pan, arrange some of the potatoes around edge of pan, overlapping the slices.

Fill center of pan with more overlapping slices.
Sprinkle with half the leek and half the cheese; season with salt and pepper. Repeat with another layer of potatoes and remaining leek and cheese; season with salt and pepper. Top with remaining potatoes. Using a spatula, press galette down firmly.

Bake until potatoes are tender, 70 to 80 minutes, pressing down firmly twice with a spatula during cooking. Run knife around edge of pan. Carefully invert galette onto a plate, remove parchment, and re-invert onto serving plate. Cut into wedges, and serve.

Deneen's Curry

This is my sister in law's recipe. I know she got it from somewhere else, but I will give her credit. :) It is SO yummy! I am craving some right now!

Curry

2 cans coconut milk
2 1/2 cups water
4 Table red curry paste
1 teas curry powder
3 chicken breasts
3 Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled, quartered
1 large onion, cut
1/3 fish sauce or soy
1 teas sucanat (or sugar)
1 bell pepper, cut

In a large pot combine milk& water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and add curry paste & powder. Mix well. Add chicken & potatoes. Cook 5 min. Reduce heat to low. Add onion, soy, sucanat & pepper. Simmer covered for 30 minutes or until potatoes are tender & chicken is cooked through, stirring occasionally.