GARLIC AU GRATIN POTATOES

GARLIC AU GRATIN POTATOES
1 teaspoon garlic powder
4 tablespoons butter
2 cloves garlic mincecd
2 pounds potatoes, washed, and sliced thin
1 1/2 cup shredded Gruyere cheese
1/2 cup extra sharp cheddar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 1/4 cup VERY warm 1% milk
1 heaping teaspoon Better than Bouillon Beef Base

  • Preheat oven 400 degrees.
  • Grease baking dish and then dust it with the garlic powder.
  • Dry the potatoes on paper towels.
  • Layer the potatoes and cheese alternately finishing with a layer of cheese.
  • Whisk together the milk, garlic, beef base, salt and pepper.
  • Gently pour the beef mixture over the potatoes, coating them evenly.
  • Bake 45 minutes or until potatoes are tender.


Mexican Cookies – Cooking With Chaya

I had no idea what I wanted to share with you but after making these simple cookies, my path was obvious.  This chocolate cookie fills your mouth with the sense of chocolate melting.  The chocolate is not melting but that cookie could have fooled me.

The secret of this cookie is the cayenne and I would put in, more than I did.  It needed a real kick.  On the other hand, if it is only a chocolate cookie, you want, don’t worry about the amount of cayenne.  I would make this, at any time, without the heat.
Mexican Chocolate Cookies (adapted from Cooking Light)

  • 5 ounces bittersweet (60 to 70 percent) chocolate, coarsely chopped
  • 3/4 cup all-purpose flour 
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder 
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt 
  • Dash of black pepper
  • Dash of ground red pepper
  • 1 1/4 cups sugar 
  • 1/4 cup butter, softened 
  • 1 large egg 
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
  • Cooking spray 

Preparation

    • Preheat oven to 350°.
    • Place chocolate in a small glass bowl; microwave at HIGH 1 minute or until almost melted, stirring until smooth. ( I melt for 25 seconds and check it.  I would be afraid to go with a minute on High.) Cool to room temperature. (What a pleasure not to use a saucepan and to clean it.)
    • Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour and next 5 ingredients (through red pepper); stir with a whisk.
    • Combine sugar and butter in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended (about 5 minutes). Add egg; beat well. Add cooled chocolate and vanilla; beat just until blended. 
    • Add flour mixture; beat just until blended. 
    • Drop dough by level tablespoons (I made teaspoon sized cookies and baked for 8 minutes.) 2 inches apart on baking sheets coated with cooking spray. 
    • Bake at 350° for 10 minutes or until almost set. Remove from oven. Cool on pans 2 minutes or until set. 
    • Remove from pans; cool completely on a wire rack.
        Cooking Light – DECEMBER 2007




        Pie a la Apple–Save Room for Dessert

        Pie a la Apple Serves 4
        5-6 Granny Smith apples that can stand on their own
        1 teaspoon of cinnamon
        1/4 cup sugar
        1 tablespoon brown sugar
        Pie Crust (homemade or pre-made)
        • Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees F.
        • Cut the top of 4 apples off and discard. Remove the inside of each apple with a spoon or melon baller very carefully.

        I used all of the inside of the apple that I could.

        • Remove skin from remaining apple(s) and slice very thinly. These apple pieces will give you the additional filling needed to fill the four apples you are baking.
        • Mix sliced apples with sugars and cinnamon in a bowl. If you prefer more or less cinnamon make adjustments as desired. Same goes for the sugar. 
        • Scoop sliced apples into hollow apples.
        • Roll out pie crust and slice into 1/4 inch strips.
        • I added a strip inside the top of the apple, which can be seen in the photo above.
        • Cover the top of the apple in a lattice pattern with pie crust strips.
        • Place apples in an 8×8 pan. If your apples are big you may need a bigger pan. Add just enough water to the cover the bottom of the pan.
        • Cover with foil and bake for 20-25 minutes.
        • Remove foil and bake for an additional 20 minutes or until crust is golden brown and sliced apples are soft.

        How yummy does that look? The entire thing is edible too!


        Come see me at Paper Plates and China

        Chicken and Bean Chili

        I’m sorry that this is late.  It has been a CRAZY week.  Here’s what my family is enjoying today on a cold, rainy (getting ready to snow) Sunday.
        Chicken and Bean Chili adapted from Meatless Monday
        1 pound ground chicken
        1 large onion, chopped
        3-4 cloves garlic, chopped
        2 tablespoon olive oil
        1 can black beans, drained
        1 can navy beans, drained
        1 can pinto beans, drained
        1 can red kidney beans, drained
        1 can garbanzo beans, drained
        1 16-oz can diced tomatoes
        2 8-oz can tomato sauce or 1 16oz can
        1-2 cups water
        1 small can (4 oz) green chiles
        1-2 tablespoon chili powder
        1-2 teaspoon cumin
        1 teaspoon basil
        Salt & pepper to taste
        1/4 cup dry red wine (optional)

        Directions:  Saute onion, garlic, and bell pepper in olive oil until soft. Add remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil, lower heat, and simmer for 20-30 minutes.
        Serve with shredded cheddar cheese and sour cream if desired.
        Here’s what you’ll need:
        And these.  (forgot them in the 1st picture)
        • Chop up the onion and garlic.
        • Put the ground chicken in a Dutch oven to brown.  Throw the onions and garlic in with the chicken.
        • Drain and rinse the beans.
        • Add the beans to the pot. 
        • Add the can of diced chilies. 
        • Add the diced tomatoes and tomato sauce. 
        • Add the seasonings.  
        • Simmer and serve.
        I originally found this recipe as part of Meatless Monday.  I had some ground chicken that needed to be used so I decided to add it.
        The addition of the can of green chilies definitely added an extra texture and flavor.  For even more peppers you could always add a diced jalapeno or green pepper.

        Season to taste.  I just kind of kept adding until I got the flavor that I liked.
        Hope you enjoy!
        April

        TIME TO TAILGATE!

        IT’S OFFICIAL – FOOTBALL SEASON IS HERE!
        We have decided to make a change this year in the way Tailgating Time will work. Instead of a new linky for each week we will be using the same linky to keep all the great recipes in one place. This will provide easy access to the recipes and create one big awesome recipe index collection. There is no limit to how many you add – of course we hope you will add a new recipe each and every week! Tailgating Time will generally be posted each week on Sundays at noon.

        It doesn’t matter if you are a football fan or not, great party food is always a good thing. Bring over your grilled goods, chips and dips, appetizers, chili and chowders, cocktails, or any recipes that would be great for the football party buffet!

        If any of you would like to host along with us you can click –> get the InLinkz code to add the linky to your blog too. You can post it once in awhile or every week during football season, that’s up to you. The only thing we ask is that you leave a comment here to let us know you are co-hosting, and that you visit and comment on as many of the participants as you can. 
         We can’t wait to see what you will bring to the party. Let the games begin. Whoo-hoo!