All posts by Amy Jajliardo

Edible Greeting Cards

I’ve tried other gingerbread cookie recipes but LOVE this one! And the frosting is great too. This made quite a few cookies (we didn’t make them into “cards” but cut with cookie cutters and decorated

2 cups molasses

1 cup oil

6 1/2 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp ginger

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 1/2 tsp clove

Optional extras:

candies, currants, raisins, sprinkles

Decorator Frosting:

3 egg whites

1 pound powdered sugar

pinch of cream of tartar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

To make dough, stir molasses and oil together. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Lightly flour work area and roll out the dough. Cut into squares (for cards) or use large cookie cutters. Make a hole near the top using a straw, for stringing ribbon through to hang from the tree and decorate tree with candies, currants and raisins if desired. Place cookies on greased cookie sheet and bake for 10 min.

To make frosting, beat egg whites until stiff, then stir in the powdered sugar and cream of tartar. If you don’t have a cake decorating bag, place frosting in a small plastic bag with a tiny bit cut from a corner and gently squeeze out frosting. When frosting has hardened, string with ribbon and hang. If mailing a “card”, sandwich between cardboard before putting it into an envelope. This gingerbread will hold up well during the holiday season!

WHO Bread

WHO stands for wheat, honey and oat. I got this recipe from Soulemama’s blog. It’s delicious! You make it in your bread machine and it can be done on delayed bake so that you have fresh hot bread for breakfast in the morning. Yesterday I substituted unsweetened granola for the rolled oats, put it on ‘dough’ in my bread machine and finished baking it in the oven. OH so yummy!!

1 1/4 c water
2 Tbs honey
2 Tbs butter
1 tsp salt
3 c flour (2 white, 1 wheat)
1/2 c rolled oats (I’m tellin’ ya, you gotta try unsweetened granola with raisins, almonds, and sunflower seeds)
1 Tbs brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 pkg (2 1/4 tsp) yeast

If you want to bake this in the oven, bake it at 350 degrees for 20-30 min or until it makes a nice thumping sound when you tap it.

Sausage Jambalaya

1/2 pound smoked sausage*
1/2 pound hot sausage*
1 chopped onion
1 chopped green pepper
3 ribs chopped celery
1/3 cup parsley flakes
8oz can tomato sauce
2 cups water
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup uncooked rice

*you could put any kind of meat that you like in here, I’m sure.

Slice and fry sausages for 15 min. Add onion, bell pepper, celery and parsley to sausage and cook 15 minutes more. Add tomato sauce and water, bring to a boil and cook 15 min. Add rice and seasonings. Simmer 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Serves 6

Amy’s Veggie and Fettuccine Alfredo

So, I’m on the hunt for tasty low protein food…. food my family will actually eat too. I was desperate for something tasty from what I had on hand (as I had not shopped low protein….this is something we’re trying again for hubby) This was a HUGE hit so I thought I’d share

2 Tbs olive oil

2 onions, chopped (left in fairly good sized pieces)

1 1/2 tsp sugar (to carmelize onions)

1 bell pepper, chopped

3 carrots, julienned (or just slice them thin)

1 small can of mushrooms WITH their juice

1/4 cup water

1/2 tsp chicken bouillon (opt)

1/4 c butter

1/4 – 1/2 c flour

2 c half and half

1/3 c cooking sherry

salt and pepper to taste

pinch of nutmeg

1/2 c Parmesan cheese

fettuccine noodles, cooked

Heat oil in skillet. Add onions and after 3 min. add sugar. Cook until they begin to soften. Add peppers and cook about 5-7 min until softened and browned. Add carrots, mushrooms with their liquid, water and bouillon. Cover and cook 8 min until carrots are softened. Remove cover and continue cooking to evaporate liquid.

While noodles are cooking, melt butter in small saucepan. Add flour and mix with whisk, cooking for 2-3 min. Add half and half, sherry, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Cook, stirring continuously, until sauce thickens. Add Parmesan and mix in well.

Combine noodles, vegetables and sauce and serve. Yum! We had this with a side of salad. So good

Chocolate Harvest Bread

It’s that time of year again!! 🙂 I’ve pulled 4 zukes off of just one of my plants in the last couple of days and that got me remembering this yummy recipe I found in Sesame Street Parents magazine in the summer of 2000 (so you know it’s good, I’ve had it a while!)

Yield: 16 muffins, 1 large loaf or 2-3 small loaves

1 med. Zucchini, washed and stems trimmed

2 cups flour

1 cup sugar

1/3 cup cocoa powder

1 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp ground cloves

½ tsp salt

½ tsp baking soda

¾ cup milk

½ cup (1 stick) butter, melted

2 eggs

1 tsp almond extract

1 cup walnut pieces (optional)

********************

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Generously grease and flour the loaf pans or line the muffin pans with cupcake liners. Peel and grate zucchini until you have about 1 cup. Combine flour, sugar, cocoa, cinnamon, cloves, salt, and baking soda. Using a fork, toss the ingredients until they are well blended. In a separate, smaller mixing bowl, combine the milk, butter, eggs and almond extract. Add them to the dry ingredients and stir until blended. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for about 25 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes.

Should Be Illegal Oven BBQ ribs

Found this recipe at food.com and LOVE it.  Served it often, even for catering, and it gets rave reviews.  I’ve posted a link to this recipe before, but didn’t see it on my page, so figured I’d have it written out here.  This is for 3lbs of ribs which would serve 4-6 people.

Ingredients 

    • 3 lbs pork back ribs
    • 1 (8 ounce) jars honey
    • 1 teaspoon paprika
    • 1 teaspoon chili powder
    • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
    • 2 tablespoons Old Bay Seasoning
    • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
    • 1/4 teaspoon celery salt
    • 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
    • 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
    • 1 medium onions, grated or finely chopped
    • 12 ounces barbecue sauce
    • 1/4 cup white sugar

 

Directions

  1. Place all ingredients together in large roasting pan (i use bottom of turkey roaster).
  2. Cut ribs apart for easier serving.
  3. Mix together making sure to coat all ribs with this semi-dry paste.
  4. Spread ribs out evenly on bottom of pan.
  5. cover lightly with foil.
  6. Bake at 375 degrees for approximately 1 hour.
  7. Turning or stirring occasionally.
  8. You can use broiler for these ribs, just watch more closely, and adjust cooking time.

Aussie Bites

One of my sisters introduced me to a store bought version of Aussie Bites and they were WONDERFUL!!  I found a recipe online and have finally gotten around to making them (seriously, it’s been years since I had them) and they are SO good!!  Seriously worth the effort of gathering together all the good stuff!

2 cups oats

2 cups whole wheat flour (yes, seriously, no white flour)

2/3 c brown sugar

1 (3 1/2 oz ) can unsweetened coconut (I only had a bag of sweetened, so I just threw in a huge handful of that)

1/2 cup sunflower seeds

1 cup dried fruit (raisins, dates, figs, cranberries, etc) (I used chopped dates)

1/4 cup honey

1 cup unsalted butter (I used salted, it’s not that important to me)

1 tsp baking soda

2 Tbs hot water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine first 6 ingredients in a large bowl.

Melt honey and butter together in microwave; set aside.

Mix baking soda with hot water and add to butter mixture.

Pour butter mixture into dry ingredients and mix well (will be kind of dry and crumbly).

Place tablespoons of mixture into non-stick mini-muffin cups (no need to grease) and flatten mixture slightly.  Bake 10 min. or until golden.  Cool on wire racks.

Okay, and here’s the Amy-tweaks….I couldn’t find my mini-muffin pan (which I hate anyway, so no real loss there) so I decided to make “mookies”….what’s mookies, you ask?  Mookies are muffins that you make like cookies!  So I scooped up some dough, shaped it into a ball and flattened it slightly and put it on a large cookie sheet.  Worked GREAT and so much nicer than a mini-muffin pan (unless you’ve got mini elves who don’t mind cleaning all those mini holes!)  I also added a handful of mini-chocolate chips, to entice the children, but really they didn’t need them at all…these things are GOOD!!  Be careful you don’t eat to many at a time though, they are very filling!!

Sleeping In Breakfast Casserole

Just because it says “sleeping in”, doesn’t mean you should not double check your alarm clock!!  I made this for the weekend catering for the AEF retreat staff….I was supposed to get up at 5:30 to get it going in the oven….I woke up at 7!!!!!  Yowza!!!  But people ate it later for lunches and snacks, so it was still enjoyed by all!!

Prep Time: 20 minutes + it soaks overnight while you sleep!

Cook Time: 1 hour

Servings: 8

Ingredients:

6 whole Onion Rolls

1 cup Grated Cheddar Cheese

1 8 ounces Cream Cheese

1 stick Butter

10 whole Eggs

2 cups Milk

1 teaspoon Chopped Chives

1 teaspoons Dry Mustard

1/2 teaspoons Salt

1/2 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper

Get Cooking:

Generously butter an 9×13 baking dish.

Tear onion rolls into chunks and place them in the bottom of the baking dish. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese, then tear cream cheese into small pieces and place over the top. Cut 1 stick butter into pats and place over the top.

Mix remaining ingredients and pour over the top of the dish. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

The next morning, bake at 325 degrees, covered, for 45 minutes. The remove foil and continue baking at 350 for 10-15 minutes.

http://www.homewithmandy.com/2008/10/sleepin-in-breakfast-casserole.html

 

Mexican Brownies

Something that bugs me is when people ask what is in something I’ve made.  If you have an allergy, that’s fine, by all means, ask…..but if you don’t, just be brave and give it a try and THEN you can ask what’s in it.  Why do I say that now…..these brownies have cayenne in them.  There!  I told you before you tried them.  But everyone who has tried these LOVE them, so be brave and bake some up.

2 sticks unsalted butter, plus more for greasing

2 cups sugar

4 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2/3 cup good quality unsweetened cocoa powder

1 cup all purpose flour

1 teaspoon ground Mexican cinnamon (canela)

1/4  teaspoon pequín chili powder or cayenne pepper

1/2  teaspoon kosher salt

1/2  teaspoon baking powder

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Line 2 9×13 inch baking dishes with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on two sides.  Press the paper into the corners of the pan and lightly grease the paper with butter.

2. Melt the 2 sticks of butter in a nonstick saucepan over medium-low heat; do not boil. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly. Add the sugar, eggs, and vanilla to the saucepan and stir with a wooden spoon until combined.

3. Add the cocoa, flour, cinnamon, chili powder, salt and baking powder and mix until smooth. Spread the batter in the prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out fudgy, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool in the pan on a rack, then use the parchment paper to lift out the brownies before slicing.

http://sweetlifebake.com/2011/06/14/mexican-brownies

Pumpkin Cheesecake with Bourbon Butter Sauce

I haven’t really mastered cheesecakes, but Marion, OH my sister, Marion!…she has!!!  And with the cheese cake AND the pumpkin….this recipe is “la crème de la crème”!

CRUST:

1 1/4 cup gingersnap cookie crumbs (about 22 cookies)

2 Tbs minced crystalized ginger

3 Tbs sugar

1/2 ground cinnamon

1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted

FILLING:

3 (8 oz) pkg. cream cheese, softened

1 cup sugar

3 eggs

1/2 cup sour cream

1 1/2 cup pureed cooked pumpkin

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ginger

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

SAUCE:

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1 cup packed dark brown sugar

1/2 cup whipping cream

2 Tbs bourbon whiskey or 1 TBS vanilla extract (go with the bourbon-the alcohol cooks off and it tastes AWESOME!)

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Combine first four crust ingredients in food processor until mixed well.  Add butter and pulse until incorporated.  Press into bottom and up sides of springform pan.  Wrap outside of pan with heavy-duty aluminum foil.  Bake 5-7 minutes or until fragrant, slightly darker and slightly firm to the touch.

2. In large bowl, beat cream cheese at medium-low speed until smooth.  Add remaining ingredients one at a time, mixing just until blended.  Do not over mix.  Pour into springform pan with gingersnap crust.

3. Place springform pan in large shallow roasting pan (or broiler pan).  Fill pan with enough hot water to come 1/2 inch up sides of springform pan.

4. Bake 65 minutes or until edges are puffed and top looks dull and is dry to the touch.  Center should be less set than edges and will move when pan is tapped.  It should not ripple as if liquid.

5. Remove from oven:  remove from water bath.  Cool completely on wire rack.  Refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.

6. To make sauce, melt butter in saucepan over medium heat.  Whisk in brown sugar until mixture is smooth.  Whisk in cream and bourbon, bring to a boil.  Pour into medium bowl, cool completely.  Serve with cheesecake.  Refrigerate leftovers