5 Minute Chocolate Mug Cake

5 MINUTE CHOCOLATE MUG CAKE
4 tablespoons flour
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa
1 egg
3 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons oil
3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)
A small splash of vanilla extract
1 large coffee mug
Add dry ingredients to mug, and mix well. Add the egg and mix thoroughly.
Pour in the milk and oil and mix well.
Add the chocolate chips (if using) and vanilla extract, and mix again.
Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes at 1000 watts (high). The cake...

Turkey Left Overs?

Greetings Everyone! I know you are wondering what to do with your left over turkey, right? TURKEY POT PIE

6 tablespoons butter 6 tablespoons flour 2 cups turkey or chicken broth 1 cup milk or heavy cream salt, to taste 2 cloves garlic, pressed 1/2 teaspoon black pepper 4 cups cubed cooked turkey or chicken 1 lb. frozen peas, carrots and onion mixture 2 Pillsbury pie crusts or 9" home-made Preheat oven to 425°F.In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat with the pressed garlic cloves. Whisk in the flour and cook for several minutes, stirring occasionally. Gradually stir in the broth until absorbed. Add the milk or cream slowly, stirring constantly so that lumps don't form. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, uncovered, over low heat (low simmer) until the sauce has thickened, stirring occasionally. Allow to cool for at least 30 minutes (may be made a day ahead). Thaw the frozen peas, carrots and onions for 15 minutes. (Note: If you're unable to find peas, carrots and onion combination, use 12 oz peas and carrots with 1 whole fresh onion, chopped). Lightly butter or spray with non-stick spray a deep dish pie pan or shallow casserole. Line the bottom of the pie plate or dish with one of the pie crusts. Add cooked cubed turkey and the vegetables. Pour in the gravy mixture. Cover with the upper pie crust and flute or crimp the edges, if desired. Bake for about 40 minutes or until golden brown.

Pumpkin Pie

The BEST Pumpkin Pie Your Ever Ate
Paula Deed w/ Peg Christensen
I took this recipe and made it really pretty by enhancing the crust and cut out oak leaves of pie crust dough both large ones for the middle and small ones layered around the edge and brushed with a little water to make them stick. I took a tooth pick and traced some "veins" on the large leaves and sprinkled with large grain  white sugar to make them sparkle. Feel free to use store bought prepared dough if you are in a hurry. (Just don't tell!)
Super Pie Dough: The New Best Recipe cookbook from Cook's Illustrated (must have)


2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 c chilled vegetable shortening
12 tablespoons chilled butter
6-8 tablespoons iced water
Put dry ingredients in a food processor and blend. Add vegetable shortening and pulse until coarse. Then add butter pieces one at a time pulsing one second at a time until small bits of butter can be seen about small pea size. Then sprinkle 6 tablespoons of water over mixture, then with a spatula, fold it over and over until it sticks together. Do not over mix, it will get tough. Add up to 2 more tablespoons but not more! You just want it to stick together into a ball. Divide dough in half, pat between two sheets of plastic wrap  in a four inch disc and chill for one hour up to two days ahead of making pie filling. This dough is tricky to handle and the key is to keeping it cold working quickly. Whne you roll it our don't use too much flour. You can do it!Pie Filling Ingredients:

• 1- 8 oz. package of cream cheese softened
• 2 c. canned pumpkin
• 1/2 c. light brown sugar (you can use all or either or  a combination of brown or white sugar)
• 1/2 c. regular sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 egg plus two egg yolks, slightly beaten
• 1 c. half and half
• 1/4 c. butter melted and cooled
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. ground ginger
• 1 pie shell (see method for blind baking technique below)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Make pie dough or use pre-made dough, put into a 9 inch pie pan (TIP: put 2 tsp flour in the bottom of the pan prior to placing dough in pan to prevent sticking)
Pinch or crimp edge or cut out leaf shaped pie dough and place along edge. Use a sharp knife to create veins in the leaves. Overlap dough leaves one about half way over the other all the way around edge. Use an egg and water wash and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Put pie shell in the freezer for 1 hour.
Take out of the freezer and cut a piece of aluminum foil to the size of the bottom of the pie pan with a one inch lip to hold pennies or pie weights or beans to go half way up the sides. Put on the bottom rack of the oven bake for 10 minutes, remove pie weights and bake another 10 minutes. Make sure your filling is made and ready to put right into the shell and bake.
Filling:
Beat cream cheese, add pumpkin, beat until all combined. Add sugar, and salt, then add eggs mixed in one at a time, add half and half and melted butter. Then add vanilla, cinnamon, and ginger, beat until well incorporated. Pour into shell and continue to bake for 50 minutes.  Remove and place on a wire rack to cool to room temperature. Make  the day before and refrigerate until one hour prior to serving. Serve with a generous amount of whipped cream.  You won't believe how fabulous this is!

The Best Oatmeal Cookie

Now that the crisp cool weather has finally gotten here, pumpkin bars, oatmeal cookies, ginger snaps and other hearty fall treats are in the forefront of our minds. Not to mention stews, soups and home made muffins and breads. Here is an oatmeal cookie that has a magic ingredient that makes it chewy and you cant tell its in there!
I will be adding stews and soups and some main meal items soon.
If you are not careful the dough will be gone before the cookies get baked!
This prize winner is the ultimate in chewy, buttery, bet you cant eat just one cookie, ever!

1 c butter softened

2 c flour

2 c old fashioned oats

1 tsp salt

2 tsp soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 c sugar

1 c brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 c nuts, (pecans work the best)

1 c coconut (that is the magic ingredient)

Cream together sugars butter and eggs and vanilla well, mix dry ingredients in a bowl and gradually add to creamed mixture until blended. Bake at 325-350 for 12-14 minutes (do not over bake) Cool on a wire rack. As a gift idea get large Chinese carryout boxes, line with parchment paper stack a dozen cookies and give to a friend. The box is darling and they will want the recipe.

The Question of Cranberry Sauce

So, what's the deal with cranberry sauce? 

It's really pretty simple. Cranberries have huge flavor and antioxidants and are super intense in color. Some folks even admit they like the ocean spray canned gelatinous stuff!  But it is an inexpensive garnish and it is lovely with turkey. it's great mixed with a little cream cheese on a bagel turkey sandwich. Yum! So here is a super simple version. It thickens on it's own so no need to add any cornstarch. It's the pectin in  the fruit which make it thicken naturally. I like to add orange zest and chopped pecans as well. BUT, too much zest can make it bitter so go light on the zest! 

Ingredients

• 12 ounces cranberries
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 cup orange juice

Directions

1. In a medium sized saucepan over medium heat, dissolve the sugar in the orange juice. Stir in the cranberries and cook until the cranberries start to pop (about 10 minutes). Remove from heat and place sauce in a bowl. Cranberry sauce will thicken as it cools.

What is the difference between a Bisque and Chowder?

Follow the links to a Great Soup Spot: All About Bisque Soups
Soup History and Recipes

Want to know more about bisques came about and find some really great recipes for Bisque Soups ? Well, you've come to the right place.

A bisque is a type of soup that is rich, thick and creamy in texture. It's been pureed to give it that smooth taste and is traditionally made with cognac or wine, cream and a blend of spices to flavor seafood. Bisques, as the name suggests, was first found in France. Today, however, you can find bisques all over the world and with a huge variety of flavors - not necessarily having to do with seafood, either.

If you are making a traditional bisque, it would go something like this: saute seafood in a heavy pan and then add the broth. The broth is made by mixing wine with your soup stock and a variety of spices in the pan. The seafood (still in it's shell if crustaceans are used) then simmers in this aromatic base stock until cooked through. Once cooked, it is then puréed (shells and all) in a food processor.

After being puréed, cream is added to the mixture. As it cooks, the cream helps to thicken the soup into the desired consistency. Now it's ready to be served and you can garnish with some beautiful cracked pepper or sprig of parsley.

Bisques are not limited to just seafood these days. Now, you can find bisque soup recipes in all kinds of flavors and with all kinds of ingredients. Look at the end of this article for a fewgreat recipe ideas.

There is a big debate about the origin of the word, bisque. There are some food historians that think the word refers to the fact that this type of soup is cooked not once, but twice. Others believe that the origin of the word is related to the Bay of Biscay. The type of food from Biscay usually includes spicy ingredients similar to those used in bisque, but also in another soup called Biscay. Biscay Soup uses heavily spiced game birds in a recipe that mirrors typical recipes for bisque.

Another interesting fact about bisque is that it's considered a close relative of another kind of soup called Chowder. Chowder is also a creamy soup, most of the time a seafood soup. The difference between bisque and chowder is that chowder has thick chunks of ingredients in the rich base, while the bisque has a creamy, smooth texture. To read more about bisque's relative, go to our Chowder Soups page.
Bisque is often served at high-end events because of it's smooth, creamy texture, complex and interesting flavors, and beautiful colors. One of the most popular bisque recipes is Lobster Bisque. Because of the long cooking process involved, Lobster Bisque has a wonderful many-layered flavor. Today's way of cooking means that the lobster shell gets removed. However, old-time traditionalists believe that bisque is not truely bisque without the finely puréed shells that serve to thicken the soup.

Personally, I'd leave out the shells!  Now you know!

Soup up Your Life!

I LOVE Soup!

Yep, soup is the ultimate comfort food to me. Butternut squash, chicken chowder, black bean or chile, I love making soups. For one reason they are easy and very forgiving. When else can you toss a bunch of stuff in a pot, throw a bunch of seasoning, meat and some veggies and end up with something that warms your soul and tummy? 

So how do you make great soups? I have learned over the years that building layers for deep interesting flavors is very important.  

I once went to a soup class and discovered I needed to learn how to caramelize onions to lay a better foundations for many of my soups. The second thing I leaned in how to marry subtle flavors and textures to build the soup. Creaming soups by using an "in the pot" soup blender instead of putting cream into it. 

More recipes to follow!