Grandma Ebert’s Brownies

 INGREDIENTS 

4 Eggs

2 Cups Sugar

2 tsp vanilla

1 cup melted shortening 

6 Tbsp cocoa

1 1/2 cups flour

Beat eggs then add all ingredients. Mix until combined. Bake at 350 for 25- 35 minutes 

Roasted Tomatillo Salsa Verde Canning Recipe

 

Roasted Tomatillo Salsa Verde Canning Recipe

Canning roasted tomatillo salsa is a great way to preserve the abundance of tomatillos from the garden. Enjoy with your favorite Mexican recipes.

Prep Time30 mins

Cook Time1 hr

Total Time1 hr 30 mins

Course: Canning

Cuisine: Mexican

Keyword: roasted tomatillo salsa verde

 

Servings: 6 pints

 

Calories: 8kcal

 

Author: Grow a Good Life

Ingredients

• 8 pounds tomatillos husks removed
• 4 medium white onions cut into wedges
• 4 jalapeño chiles or serrano peppers
• 6 cloves garlic peeled
• 1 cup fresh lime juice or bottled lime juice
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt (optional for flavor)
• 1 teaspoon black pepper (optional for flavor)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin (optional for flavor)

Instructions

Prepare your canning jars and lids:

• Wash your jars and lids in warm, soapy water and rinse well.
• Place the jar rack into the water bath canner, set the clean jars in the canner, add water, and boil jars for 10 minutes to sterilize. Keep jars warm until they are ready to use.
• Warm your lids in a small pot of water over low heat.

Prepare and roast your vegetables:

• Preheat oven to 425˚F.
• Peel the husks off the tomatillos and rinse them well. Cut the tomatillos in half and add to a roasting pans. 
• Peel and cut your onion into chunks. Add to the roasting pans.
• Wash the jalapeño peppers and add them whole to a roasting pans.
• Peel your garlic, and scatter into the roasting pans.
• Roast the vegetables in a preheated oven roast until everything is slightly softened and charred, about 15-20 minutes. Flip half way through so the vegetables roast evenly. Remove the pan from the oven and let it cool for 5-10 minutes.

Make your tomatillo salsa verde:

• While wearing gloves, remove stems and seeds from the jalapeño peppers. You can keep the seeds if you like more heat.
• Working in batches, add the roasted vegetables and their liquid to a food processor. Process until smooth, and then pour into a large sauce pot. Continue processing the vegetables in batches until done. 
• Add the lime juice, cilantro leaves, salt, pepper, cumin, and stir to combine. Bring the pot to a simmer, and then turn the heat to low and keep warm.

Can your roasted tomatillo salsa verde:

• Spread a kitchen towel on the counter. Use your jar lifter to remove warm jars from canner, drain, and line up on the towel.
• Use the canning funnel and ladle to fill the jars with tomatillo salsa. Leave 1/2-inch headspace. Run your bubble popper through the jars to release bubbles. Wipe the rims. Use your magnetic lid lifter to lift lids out of the warm water, center lid on the jar, and screw on band until it is fingertip tight.
• Place the filled jars back into the canner. Adjust the water level to at least one inch above the jar tops.
• Cover and bring to boil over high heat. Once the water boils vigorously, continue boiling for 20 minutes at altitudes of less than 1,000 ft. (adjust processing time for your altitude if necessary).
• When the processing time is complete, turn off the heat and let the canner cool and settle for about 5 minutes.
• Spread a kitchen towel on the counter. Remove the cover by tilting the lid away from you so that steam does not burn your face. Use a jar lifter to lift the jars from canner and place on the towel. 
• After 12 to 24-hours, check to be sure jar lids have sealed by pushing on the center of the lid. The lid should not pop up. If the lid flexes up and down, it did not seal. Refrigerate jar and use up within a week. 
• Remove the screw on bands and wash the jars. Label and date the jars. Store your jars in a cool, dark place and use within 12-18 months. Once the jar is open, refrigerate and use up within a week. Yields 6 pints.

Notes

• This is a tested safe canning recipe from The All New Ball Book of Canning and Preserving. Altering the recipe may make it unsafe for canning. If you make changes, freeze the salsa instead.
• All times are at altitudes of less than 1,000 ft. Adjustments must be made for altitudes greater than 1,000 ft.

Creamy Tuscan Chicken

 

• 2 large chicken breasts, sliced horizontally to make cutlets
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 5 cloves garlic, finely diced
• 1 small yellow onion, diced
• 1/3 cup (80ml) chicken broth
• 5 ounces (150g) jarred sun-dried tomato in oil, drained of oil
• 1 3/4 cups heavy cream
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 3 cups baby spinach leaves
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
• 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
• 3 cups steamed cauliflower, riced

DIRECTIONS

1. To make the creamy garlic Tuscan chicken: Steam cauliflower rice in the microwave in a large bowl, covered, with 1/2 cup of water. Set aside.

2. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Season the chicken cutlets on both sides with salt and pepper, and sear in the hot pan, for 5 minutes on each side, or until cooked through. Once chicken breasts are cooked, remove from the pan and set aside.

3. In the same pan, melt the butter in the remaining cooking juices. Add in the garlic and fry until fragrant (about one minute). Add onion and stir fry until translucent. Add the sun-dried tomatoes and fry for 1-2 minutes so they release their flavors. Finally, pour in the chicken broth, and allow the sauce to reduce down slightly. 

4. Reduce heat to low, add the heavy cream, and bring to a gentle simmer, while stirring occasionally. Season the cream sauce with salt and pepper to your taste.

5. Add in the baby spinach and allow to wilt in the sauce, and add in the parmesan cheese. Allow cream sauce to simmer for a further minute until cheese melts through.

6. Add the pan-seared chicken breasts back into the pan; sprinkle with the parsley, and spoon the sauce over each chicken cutlet. Divide cauliflower rice into meal prep containers and top with the creamy garlic Tuscan chicken. Reheat in the microwave when ready to eat. Enjoy!

Tater Tot Casserole

 Tater Tot Casserole

1 lb ground beef

2 lb Tater Tots, frozen

2 Carrots, chopped

1 onion, chopped

2 celery stalks, chopped

1 bell pepper, any color, chopped

additional veggies, chopped

2 tsp Oregano

1 tsp salt

1/8 tsp pepper

1 tsp garlic powder

2T Worcestershire

1/4 C Ketchup

1/2 C Sour cream

1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup

2 Cans green beans

2 cups grated cheese (cheddar, marble, Monterrey jack)

Directions:

Chop veggies, and sauté over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add ground beef and cook until meat no longer has any pink. Add seasonings and stir. Add Worcestershire, ketchup, sour cream and cream of mushroom and combine. 

In 9x13 baking pan, lightly spray with cooking oil and dump 2 cans green beans. Top beans with hamburger/veggie mixture. Arrange tater tots on top and cook at 375 for 25-30 minutes, until mixture is bubbly. Top with cheese and continue baking until cheese is melted and slightly browned (about 10 minutes).

Smoked Meatloaf

 Smoked Meatloaf 

2lbs ground beef
1 cup crushed buttery round crackers, plain bread crumbs or rolled oats.
1/2 cup milk
1 small onion chopped

1 red bell pepper chopped

1 egg
1 1/2 tsp. salt
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp pepper

1T Smoked paprika 

2 T worchesteshire

1/4 cup brown sugar

Combine all ingredients until well mixed. Separate into 2 loaf pans lined with plastic wrap. Cover loafs with excess plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Heat smoker to 275 take loaves out, unwrap and place on wire rack. Place wire rack on foil lined cookie sheet and smoke until internal temp reaches 145. Glaze loaves and increase heat to 320. Smoke until internal temp reaches 160

Glaze:

1 cup ketchup

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup worchestishire

1T smoked paprika 

1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp onion powder

The Ultimate Sticky Buns

 Recipe from: America’s Test Kitchen

SERVESMakes 12 buns

TIME2¼ hours, plus 1 hour 20 minutes to 2 hours resting

GATHER YOUR INGREDIENTS

Flour Paste

⅔ cup water 

¼ cup (1 1/3 ounces) bread flour 

Dough

⅔ cup milk 

1 large egg plus 1 large yolk

2 ¾ cups (15 1/8 ounces) bread flour 

2 teaspoons instant or rapid-rise yeast 

3 tablespoons granulated sugar 

1 ½ teaspoons salt 

6 tablespoons 

unsalted butter,

softened

Topping

6 tablespoons 

unsalted butter,

 melted

½ cup packed (3 1/2 ounces) 

dark brown sugar

¼ cup (1 3/4 ounces) granulated sugar 

¼ cup dark corn syrup 

¼ teaspoon salt 

2 tablespoons water 

1 cup pecans, toasted and chopped (optional)

Filling

¾ cup packed (5 1/4 ounces) 

dark brown sugar

1 teaspoon 

ground cinnamon

These buns take about 4 hours to make from start to finish. For dough that is easy to work with and produces light, fluffy buns, we strongly recommend that you measure the flour for the dough by weight. The slight tackiness of the dough aids in flattening and stretching it in step 6, so resist the urge to use a lot of dusting flour. Rolling the dough cylinder tightly in step 7 will result in misshapen rolls; keep the cylinder a bit slack. Bake these buns in a metal, not glass or ceramic, baking pan. We like dark corn syrup and pecans here, but light corn syrup may be used, and the nuts may be omitted, if desired.

1

INSTRUCTIONS

FOR THE FLOUR PASTE: Whisk water and flour together in small bowl until no lumps remain. Microwave, whisking every 25 seconds, until mixture thickens to stiff, smooth, pudding-like consistency that forms mound when dropped from end of whisk into bowl, 50 to 75 seconds.

2

FOR THE DOUGH: In bowl of stand mixer, whisk flour paste and milk together until smooth. Add egg and yolk and whisk until incorporated. Add flour and yeast. Fit stand mixer with dough hook and mix on low speed until all flour is moistened, 1 to 2 minutes. Let stand for 15 minutes. Add sugar and salt and mix on medium-low speed for 5 minutes. Stop mixer and add butter. Continue to mix on medium-low speed for 5 minutes longer, scraping down dough hook and sides of bowl halfway through (dough will stick to bottom of bowl).

3

Transfer dough to lightly floured counter. Knead briefly to form ball and transfer seam side down to lightly greased bowl; lightly coat surface of dough with vegetable oil spray and cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rise until just doubled in volume, 40 minutes to 1 hour.

4

FOR THE TOPPING: While dough rises, grease 13 by 9-inch metal baking pan. Whisk melted butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, corn syrup, and salt together in medium bowl until smooth. Add water and whisk until incorporated. Pour mixture into prepared pan and tilt pan to cover bottom. Sprinkle evenly with pecans, if using.

5

FOR THE FILLING: Combine sugar and cinnamon in small bowl and mix until thoroughly combined; set aside.

6

Turn out dough onto lightly floured counter. Press dough gently but firmly to expel air. Working from center toward edge, pat and stretch dough to form 18 by 15-inch rectangle with long edge nearest you. Sprinkle filling over dough, leaving 1-inch border along top edge; smooth filling into even layer with your hand, then gently press mixture into dough to adhere.

7

Beginning with long edge nearest you, roll dough into cylinder, taking care not to roll too tightly. Pinch seam to seal and roll cylinder seam side down. Mark gently with knife to create 12 equal portions. To slice, hold strand of dental floss taut and slide underneath cylinder, stopping at first mark. Cross ends of floss over each other and pull. Slice cylinder into 12 portions and transfer, cut sides down, to prepared baking pan. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and let rise until buns are puffy and touching one another, 40 minutes to 1 hour. (Buns may be refrigerated immediately after shaping for up to 14 hours. To bake, remove baking pan from refrigerator and let sit until buns are puffy and touching one another, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.) Meanwhile, adjust oven racks to lowest and lower-middle positions. Place rimmed baking sheet on lower rack to catch any drips and heat oven to 375 degrees.

8

Bake buns on upper rack until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Tent with aluminum foil and bake until center of dough registers at least 200 degrees, 10 to 15 minutes longer. Let buns cool in pan on wire rack for 5 minutes. Place rimmed baking sheet over buns and carefully invert. Remove pan and let buns cool for 5 minutes. Using spoon, scoop any glaze on baking sheet onto buns. Let cool for at least 10 minutes longer before serving.

Swig Copycat Sugar Cookies

Swig Copycat Sugar Cookies

From everydayjenny.com

1 cup butter softened
3/4 cup vegetable oil
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1/4 cup light sour cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
5 1/2 cups flour

Preheat oven to 350. Cream together the softened butter, oil, and sugar. Add the eggs, sour cream, extracts and mix until well combined. Add the dry ingredients last and mix until a nice soft dough forms.  (I like to knead the dough by hand to incorporate the last bit of flour.) Roll dough into golfball size balls and placed on a parchment lined cookie sheet.  Using the back of a drinking glass sprayed with cooking spray, smash the balls into round circles about 1/2 inch thick. Bake for 8-10 minutes- cookies should not brown at all.  Allow to cool on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes and transfer to a cooling rack if desired. Allowing them to cool on the cookie sheet is very important because they continue to cook. Don’t take them off too soon! I rotate two pans when I cook these so my first pan of cookies has the time to cool.

Frosting
1/2 cup butter softened
3/4 cup reduced fat sour cream*
2 pounds powder sugar
red food coloring (if desired)

Whip the butter in the bowl of the stand mixer on medium speed for a few minutes until light and fluffy.  Add the sour cream and a few drops of red food coloring and mix for another minute, then gradually add the powdered sugar a cup at at time.  You want the frosting to be nice and stiff, not runny. I usually add a few cups of sugar, check the consistency and taste and then add more if needed. You might not use the whole 2 pounds of powdered sugar. Frost the cooled cookies. I like using the Wilton 1M tip for rosettes.