EASY NO KNEAD ENGLISH MUFFINS

This recipe is SO easy that it would make a great weekend cooking project for that kid in the family that is a "wanna-be" chef. There are several steps, but they are all EASY.

You will need:
2 cups all purpose flour (divided)
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 1/3 cup milk 
2 teaspoons KOSHER salt(kosher measures different than table salt)
1 envelope of yeast
yellow corn meal
6  large mason jar rings

In a large bowl, mix:

1 cup all purpose flour (you'll use other cup later)
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt (not regular salt)
1 envelope yeast (I buy it in bulk, so I use 1 tablespoon)

In a smaller, microwave safe bowl, mix:

1 1/3 cups milk
1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Microwave the milk-oil for 1 minute. Take it out of the microwave and stir it, then test it with your finger. It should feel nice and warm, but  NOT hot (I call it baby bottle warm).

Stir the milk-oil into the dry  mixture, until everything is very well mixed, then add ONE MORE cup of flour and stir until WELL mixed. Cover the bowl and set it in a warm part of your kitchen for 45 minutes.  After 45 minutes, it will look puffy like this:

Stir the air out of the dough (it will be very sticky). 

Preheat your dry (no grease) electric fry pan to 250�. Now here is a hint: everyone's fry pans cook at different rates, so cook ONE "test muffin" to see if you need to turn your heat up a little or down  a little. You want the muffin to look nice and golden when you flip it over after 5 minutes, like this:

 My electric fry pan is perfect at 250�.

Now you are ready to make the rest of the muffins. Spray the inside of the jar rings with vegetable spray (these are going to be your English muffin molds). Set them on your PRE-HEATED dry electric fry pan and sprinkle a little corn meal in the circle before you put the dough in.

Spoon batter into ring molds (it's pretty thick and sticky at this stage). I used about 1 1/4 large ice cream scoops of dough for each muffin.

When all 6 rings have dough in in them, put a lid on the fry pan, but cock it sideways so that it doesn't cover the whole pan. If your fry pan doesn't have a lid, you can cover it with a cookie sheet, but make sure the cookie sheet doesn't touch the muffins.

Cook at 250� for five minutes, then (before you flip it over) sprinkle a little corn meal onto the top of the muffin and then GENTLY flip it over (ring and all).

NOTE: It isn't absolutely necessary, but a Teflon pan works great for these muffins.

Put the lid back on the pan (leaving it open a little) and cook for another five minutes.  Remove from rings (they slide right out) and put the muffin on a baking rack to cool.

Cool completely, then split them open with a fork. To do this, insert the fork into the side of the muffin, half way between top and bottom. Twist the fork JUST A LITTLE, then remove it. Repeat this all the way around the muffin. When you get back to the place where you started, the muffin should just come apart.  Just make sure you do this AFTER the muffin is completely cooled.

To serve, toast in toaster or under broiler until light golden.

If you don't have mason jar lids, you can use anything (that can withstand heat) that is about the same size.

ENJOY !!!

CHILI and CORNBREAD WAFFLES

This idea came to me years ago when I was trying to think up something "new" for dinner. It is one of those recipes that you can customize any way you like. Lots of fresh avocado? sour cream? fresh tomatoes? lettuce? Whatever "go withs" your heart desires.

Picky-picky husband hates spicy food, so this recipe (using 1/8 teaspoon of cayenne pepper) is quite mild. If you like more "heat" you can add your "heat of choice" during the simmering stage.

CHILI
1 pound lean ground beef
3/4 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic minced
14 ounce can crushed tomatoes
2 tomato cans of water
6 ounce can tomato paste
3 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (1/8 tsp. good for younger kids)
1 tablespoon sugar
4 ounce can mild green chiles (I use Ortega brand)
2 15 ounce cans red kidney beans
Brown the ground beef and drain off all but a tablespoon or so of fat. Sautee the onions (in the fat) for a few minutes or until they smell sweet. Add the garlic and sautee another minute or so.

Add everything else and stir well. Simmer slowly (without a cover)for about an hour. You can also put it in the Crockpot at this stage and cook on low all afternoon if that suits your schedule better.

NOTE: If you simmer it all afternoon in the Crockpot, make sure you crack the lid open just a little by inserting a spoon just under the edge of the lid. This helps the chili thicken as it simmers.

CORNBREAD WAFFLES
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 egg

Whisk the dry ingredients together in one bowl and the wet ingredients in another bowl. Combine the bowels and stir till well blended.

Preheat your waffle iron and spray it with vegetable spray. Put between 1/2 cup and 3/4 cup of batter in waffle iron and cook it for 4 to 5 minutes on medium heat.

If you like crispy waffles under your chili, you can pop the baked waffles in the oven for a few minutes at about 250� and they will crisp up nicely.

To serve, top the warm waffle with hot chili and then go to town with whatever toppings you like. We like it simple with shredded cheddar and sour cream.

ENJOY !!!?

POTLUCK RIGATONI

This rich, delicious, full flavored Rigatoni will be the first entr�e that people will head for at ANY potluck or gathering. It will feed 5 or 6 people depending on their appetite, so if you are feeding a crowd, double (or triple) the recipe.

1 pound lean ground beef
1 cup onion chopped
1 clove garlic minced
14 ounce can crushed tomatoes
1 14 ounce can water
6 ounce can tomato paste
8 ounce can tomato sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (don't leave out)
2 teaspoons dry basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds (don't leave out)
1 teaspoon dry oregano leaves
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (not the powdered kind)
1 pound of mozzarella cheese grated
rigatoni noodles (eyeball this amount - about 8 ounces)

Cook the chopped onion in a tablespoon of vegetable oil for about 5 minutes or until it starts to smell a little sweet. Add the garlic and cook/stir for another minute or so.

Stir the ground beef into the onion-garlic and cook until  the meat is no longer pink. After it is cooked, if there is a lot of oil in the pan, make sure you drain the meat well before you add the following.

Add the crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce, water, sugar and spices. Stir well and simmer SLOWLY for an hour and a half (stirring once in a while). After an hour and a half, most of the liquid should have cooked away and it will look like this (not too dry). If it looks overly dry, add a cup of water.

Stir in the Parmesan and Mozzarella (but save a little of the mozzarella to sprinkle over the top before you bake it).

 

Now a word about the noodles: You can use ANY noodle you want, but we really like the hardy (thick walled) rigatoni noodles. Boil them in salted water for 15 minutes. I use half a package of rigatoni noodles in this recipe. If you are using another kind of noodle, just eyeball the amount (and boil according to package directions).

Drain the noodles well and Stir them into the meat and cheese mixture. Top with a little extra mozzarella and bake at 350� for 30-35 minutes or till bubbly.

ENJOY !!!

ITALIAN SEASONING BLEND

I seldom buy spice blends because I don't use them very much AND you never really know what is in them; some are heavy on garlic, some are heavy on onion and even more of them are heavy on ..."what the heck is that?". When that happens, the $5 jar goes right in the trash, what a waste.  Nowadays, when the occasional recipe calls for Italian seasoning, I just mix up this one, it is excellent.

2  1/4  teaspoons dry basil
2  1/4  teaspoons dry oregano
2  1/4  teaspoons dry parsley
1/4     teaspoon garlic powder (not garlic salt)
1/4     teaspoon onion  powder (not onion salt)
1/4     teaspoon fennel seed
1/4     teaspoon dry thyme
1/4     teaspoon dry rosemary
1/4     teaspoon black pepper
pinch   dry red chili flakes

Basically you just mix all of these ingredients together, however I do an extra step: I measure out the bulky spices, like the fennel seed, rosemary and chili flakes, THEN I work them over a little in my mortar and pestle so it breaks them up which helps distribute their flavor more evenly to the finished spice blend.  This step isn't absolutely necessary, but  it works well.

ENJOY !!!

EASY CROCKPOT CHICKEN and NOODLES

Crockpot chicken and noodles is pure comfort food in our home. Easy and inexpensive, it pleases everyone.........even picky-picky husband !!

This is one of those super yummy recipes that just doesn't photograph well......... but trust me, it's GOOOOOOD !!!

1 pound of boneless-skinless chicken breast
2  10.75 ounce cans of cream of chicken soup
4 cups of chicken broth or stock
1 small onion diced
1 cup chopped celery
1 large carrot grated
1 cup peas
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Flat wide egg noodles

Spray your Crockpot with a little cooking spray to make cleanup easier. This recipe (as written) requires a nice big Crockpot. If you only have a smaller one, just make half of the recipe.

Dice the onion and celery and grate the carrot. Sautee in a little butter until the onions and celery soften a little.

Put the saut�ed veggies, soup, broth and pepper into the Crockpot and stir or whisk it around until it is smooth. Add whole (boneless-skinless) chicken breasts and cook on low for three hours.

After 3 hours, the broth will look a little thin, but that's ok because the noodles with thicken it as they cook. Remove the chicken and cut it into pieces, then return it to the Crockpot.

After 3 hours (on low), add about 3-4 cups UNCOOKED egg noodles and the peas. The noodles will expand (and drink up some of the gravy) so be careful how many noodles you add. It also depends on what KIND of noodles you use, so use your best judgment as to how many dry noodles you put in.    

Depending on what style noodles you are using, it can take as little as 20 minutes for the noodles to cook. If you use a thicker noodle like a Penne, it can take as much as 45 minutes.

If you use the flat egg style noodles, be careful how vigorously you stir them, because they break easily once they start to get soft.

ENJOY !!?

FRENCH FRY SAUCE

This French fry dipping sauce is a delicious condiment that is quick, easy to make and very versatile. It goes together in minutes and everyone loves it.

There are a MILLION fry sauce recipes out there; some have a TON of ingredients, some have just a handful. This is our recipe.

1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons finely minced dill pickles (see note below)
1 teaspoon regular old yellow mustard
dash of salt
scant 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar

When I make this, I put the pickle into the food processor first and pulse it until it is finely minced (2 tablespoons minced pickle is about 1 large pickle). NOTE: You can also just use 2 tablespoons of your favorite pickle relish.

Then add the rest of the ingredients and pulse them all together until the sauce is well mixed and smooth.  You can do this in a full size food processor, although a small food processor (or an hand held immersion blender) works even better.

This recipe makes one cup of French fry sauce. Keep chilled. It is excellent to dip just about anything in, but it is also good on hamburgers.

ENJOY !!!

SHORTBREAD MELT AWAYS

This cookie has a very traditional shortbread cookie texture, yet it is light as a feather, sweet and literally melts in your mouth!!! These cookies are one of my families favorites and they are gone in a snap!!

 

1 1/2 cups butter (room temperature)
1 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon coconut extract
1/4 teaspoon salt

Beat the room temperature butter for about a minute, or until it is smooth. Add the powdered sugar, salt and extracts and beat on medium high for another minute.

Add the cornstarch and beat until well mixed. Add the flour, one cup at a time, beating well in between each cup.  Beat everything for one more minute, then cover and chill for about 30 minutes (I seldom chill the dough and it does ok).

Roll the dough into 1" balls and then roll the balls in granulated sugar. Use a fork to gently press down on the cookie ball (see photo).

Bake on ungreased baking sheet for 10-12 minutes at 350�. You will know when they are done because they get lightly golden around the edges. Cool on the cookie sheet for about 30 seconds before removing them.

These are excellent frosted AND unfrosted.  Makes 36 cookies.

NOTE: If you don't have coconut extract, you can just use 1 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla, however, the coconut extract truly adds a wonderful taste. The finished cookie does NOT taste like coconut, but it adds a wonderful yummy-ness to it, so I hope you will try it.

PUMPKIN DOG TREATS

Our 12 year old dog, Chloe, has a very sensitive stomach, Almost everything gives her  nuclear gas, so I have been experimenting with dog treats for her that are dog tummy friendly.

 

This recipe (which she adores)  is quick and easy and doesn't seem to cause her trouble.  Roll the dough into appropriate size treats (small for little dogs or larger for big dogs). They are hard and crunch like a good milk bone.

1/2  cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
2 eggs
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons instant milk powder
2  1/2  cups flour

Beat eggs, pumpkin, salt and dry milk until well mixed. Add flour and (using your stand mixer because dough is very stiff) and beat until smooth dough forms.  If the dough seems a little sticky, add an extra tablespoon of flour.

Roll into ropes and cut into pieces like this:

Roll each section into a ball and place on Ungreased cookie sheet. These don't expand much as they bake, so you can place them fairly close together, like this:

Bake in pre-heated 350� oven for 40 minutes. If you've made BIG treats, turn the oven off after 40 minutes, but leave the goodies in the oven for an extra 20 minutes to insure they are dry. They will be hard and crunchy and store well.

I hope your dog enjoys them

as much as Chloe does !!

 

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SIX MINI CHEESECAKES

As empty nesters, we are easily overloaded by a full size cheesecake, so I have been experimenting. I finally got it down to six cupcake size cheesecakes which suits us perfectly.

These little guys ALWAYS turn out perfect.....no cracks, no sink hole in the center and they are smooth, rich and addicting!!

Place six foil (or paper) cupcake liners in a cupcake pan. Preheat your oven to 325�.

CRUST
1/3  cup graham cracker crumbs
2    teaspoons sugar
2    teaspoons melted butter

Mix together and split evenly between the six cupcake liners, and press the crumbs into a flat layer.

FILLING
8 ounces of full fat cream cheese (room temperature)
6 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 teaspoons flour
2 large egg whites

Beat the room temperature cream cheese with electric mixer for three minutes. Add the sugar and beat for another two minutes.

Add the vanilla, flour and egg whites and mix until well incorporated, but don't over mix.

Pour the batter over the crumb crust, filling almost to the top (I use an ice cream scoop).

Bake at 325� for 25 minutes (the cheesecake should be just "set" and barely giggle when you tap lightly on the side of the cupcake pan.

Remove from the oven and let sit at room temperature about 20 minutes, then put in the fridge and chill for at least a couple of hours.

Before serving, I like to add a swirl of raspberry jam on the surface of the COLD cheesecake (any jam will work, see note below).

ENJOY !!!

Note:  I like to use the foil cupcake liners because they release the cheesecake so easily, but paper ones work great as well.

Note: Any jam or spreadable fruit works well in this recipe. I just put a couple of heaping tablespoons into a small bowl and stir in vigorously until it is smooth and soft.

Note: I never seem to remember to bring the cream cheese up to room temperature, so I just put it in the microwave for 10-15 seconds (to take the chill off) and it works fine.?

FIVE STAR SWEET CORNBREAD MUFFINS

I've always liked cornbread muffins. I like the taste and texture(especially the slightly crispy edges) and I like how easy they are to make. Over the years, I've tried a ba-jillion cornbread recipes, but this one is, by far, the best recipe yet. We give it a FULL FIVE STARS !!

If you like your cornbread muffins on the sweet side, you HAVE to give this recipe a try (it makes about 18 small muffins).

FIVE STAR SWEET CORNBREAD MUFFINS

 

1 cup all purpose flour

1 cup yellow corn meal

1/2  cup sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 1/2  teaspoons baking powder

1 egg

1 cup milk

1/2 cup melted butter

 

Lightly spray (or grease) cupcake pan.  Preheat your oven to 400�

Using a hand whisk, mix everything together until batter is smooth (just takes a minute).

 

Fill cupcake "cups" about 2/3 full of batter.  Bake at 400� for 18-20 minutes or until very lightly golden (don't over bake).  Tip out of pan immediately and serve warm with butter.?