Dill and Cheddar Beer Bread

Basic Beer Bread Mix:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon baking powder (make sure it's fresh!)
To Make Dill and Cheddar Bread:
2 Tablespoons chopped fresh dill (or 2 teaspoons dried)
1 cup finely grated sharp cheddar cheese
12 ounces beer
Optional glaze: 1 egg & 2 teaspoons water, beaten

• Heat oven to 375 degrees. Combine flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, dill, and cheddar in a large mixing bowl. Slowly stir in beer and mix just until combined. Batter will be thick.
• Spread in a greased 8-inch loaf pan, brush with egg glaze if desired, and bake until golden brown and a toothpick stuck in the center comes out clean, about 45 minutes.
• Cool in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and cool 10 more minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Flavor Variations:
Garlic & Herb: Add 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, 1 teaspoon dried thyme, and 2 minced garlic cloves (or 1 teaspoon garlic flakes) to the basic mix. For fresh herbs, use 1 chopped Tablespoon of each.
Dill & Chive: Add 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh dill (or 2 teaspoons dried dill) and 1/4 cup chopped fresh chives to the basic mix.
Rosemary & Feta: Add 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary and 3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese (about 4 ounces) to the basic mix.
Italian: Add 1 teaspoon each dried basil and oregano (or 1 Tablespoon each chopped fresh basil and oregano), 2 minced cloves of garlic, and 1/2 cup finely grated parmesan or romano cheese to the basic mix.
Other Additions: Any dried or fresh herbs; 1/2 cup freshly grated asiago (or other hard cheese); 1/2 cup finely chopped onion, 1/2 cup chopped scallions; 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley, 1/2 cup whole wheat flour or 1/2 cup oats in place of 1/2 cup of the all-purpose flour. Or practically anything else you can think of--just use your imagination.

Strawberry Frozen Yogurt


1 pound strawberries, rinsed, hulled, and sliced
2/3 cup sugar (I used half Splenda and half sugar - next time I'll probably try all Splenda)
2 teaspoons vodka or kirsch (bourbon would probably also be good)
1 cup plain, whole milk yogurt
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

• Toss in a bowl with the sugar and vodka or kirsch (if using) until the sugar begins to dissolve. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature for 2 hours, stirring every so often.
• Transfer the strawberries and their juice to a blender or food processor. Add the yogurt and fresh lemon juice. Pulse the machine until the mixture is almost smooth. If you wish, press mixture through a mesh strainer to remove any seeds.
• Chill for 1 hour, then freeze in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Shredded Beef Tacos

Ingredients:
2 lb. beef chuck roast, cut into 3 inch cubes
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
2 Tbsp oil, divided1 jar red chile sauce (15 oz. or more)

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 250 degrees.
• Season the beef with salt and pepper.
• In a Dutch oven over medium heat bring 1 Tbsp oil up to temp. Brown half of the beef on all sides, about 1 minute per side.
• Remove from pan, add 1 Tbsp of oil if needed and brown other half of beef the same way.-Return first batch of beef, with juices, to the pan and cover with red chile sauce. Cover dutch oven with heavy duty tinfoil and then lid.
• Place in the oven and cook until beef is tender and can easily be pulled apart with a fork, about 4 hours.
• Transfer the beef to a bowl, cover loosely with aluminum foil and let stand for 20 minutes.-Reserve the sauce and let cool.
• Shred the beef with two forks or a knife. Skim fat off the sauce, then stir about 1 cup or more back into the beef.
• Serve with warmed tortillas, and all the fixins.

Fresh Mint Ice Cream

3 cups of fresh mint leaves (not stems), rinsed, drained, packed
1 cup milk
2 cups heavy cream (divided, 1 cup and 1 cup)
2/3 cup sugar
A pinch of salt
6 egg yolks
6 ounces semisweet chocolate or dark chocolate, chopped fine, kept in the freezer until used

1. Put the mint leaves in a heavy saucepan with the 1 cup of milk and 1 cup of the cream. Heat until just steaming (do not let boil), remove from heat, cover, and let stand for 30 minutes. Reheat the mixture until steaming, remove from heat and let stand for 15 more minutes.
2. While the mint is infusing in step 1, prepare the remaining cream over an ice bath. Pour the remaining 1 cup of cream into a medium size metal bowl, set in ice water (with lots of ice) over a larger bowl. Set a mesh strainer on top of the bowls. Set aside. You will use this in step 6.
3. Using a different strainer (or just wash this one later), strain the milk cream mixture into a bowl, pressing against the mint leaves with a rubber spatula in the sieve to get the most liquid out of them. Return the milk cream mixture to the saucepan. Add sugar and salt to the mixture. Heat until just steaming again, stirring until sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat.
4. Whisk the egg yolks in a medium sized bowl. Slowly pour the heated milk cream mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly so that the egg yolks are tempered by the warm mixture, but not cooked by it. Scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan.
5. Return the saucepan to the stove, stirring the mixture constantly over medium heat with a wooden spoon, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spoon so that you can run your finger across the coating and have the coating not run. This can take about 10 minutes. When the custard base coats the back of the spoon and you can run your finger across the coating and have it not run, it is ready and should be removed from heat immediately.
6. Pour the custard through the strainer (from step 2) and stir into the cold cream to stop the cooking.
7. Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator (at least a couple of hours) or stir the mixture in the bowl placed over the ice bath until thoroughly chilled (20 minutes or so). Freeze the mixture in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.
8. Once the ice cream has been made in the ice cream maker it should be pretty soft. Gently fold in the finely chopped chocolate. Put in an airtight container and place in the freezer for at least an hour, preferably several hours. If it has been frozen for more than a day, you may need to let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes to soften it before serving.
   

**Note that there is no alcohol in this recipe. A few teaspoons of some spirits such as rum or bourbon will help keep the ice cream soft over several days. Even the alcohol in vanilla extract will help. If you have no added alcohol in a homemade ice cream recipe, you will need to eat it up quickly - in a day or two; beyond that point the ice cream will quickly get very very hard.
Makes 1 quart.

Beef Stew

You can use cheap cuts of beef for this recipe like shin or flank. Even though those cuts might contain sinew, the slow cooking will melt them and you'll end up with tender cubes of meat that almost fall apart.

1. Chop beef into cubes and coat it with some plain (all purpose) flour, salt, pepper and a teaspoon of paprika, all mixed together. Dry fry in a bit of oil, in small portions, until all the meat is brown. It's not cooked at this point, just brown on the outside. Put the meat aside on a plate.
2. Add one chopped onion - another way of adding flavour to food. Even if you don't like the taste of raw onion, it should be added to food because it will add a depth of flavour you won't get without it. Fry the onion until it too is a light brown colour. When it's light brown, that means you've also caramelised the sugars in the onion - and therefore developed its flavour.
3. Chop up two carrots and two sticks of celery. Again, you don't have to like the flavour of these foods as they won't taste like they taste fresh, but they'll add flavour to your dish. Cook these vegetables until the celery has turned bright green.
4. Add pinch of salt and pepper and stir. It's much better to add small amounts of salt and pepper throughout this type of cooking, instead of once large amount at the end. Adding small amounts at the various stages will add layers of flavour instead of just adding seasoning.
5. At this point you could add a variety of other flavours - such as chilli, tomato, paprika, curry etc - or you could leave them out and go on to the next step. If you so add an extra flavour, add it, stir it in and make sure it's well incorporated into the other ingredients before going on.
6. Add the meat back to the pot and pour in some stock or water, enough to just cover the meat, a small amount of salt and pepper, stir again, bring to the boil and stir again. Place the lid on the pot and put it in the oven to slowly cook (150C) for about 2 hours.
When it's cooked, taste for flavour. At this point the meat will be tender and there will be a thick sauce covering the meat. Serve with mashed potato and green beans.

Key Lime Cake


CAKE
1 box lemon cake mix
1 small box lemon instant pudding (3.4 oz)
1 c. water
1 c. vegetable oil
4 eggs, beaten
2 tbsp. key lime juice (regular lime juice is fine if you can't find key limes)

GLAZE
2 c. powdered sugar
1/3 c. key lime juice (regular lime juice is fine if you can't find key limes)

Beat cake ingredients together until well blended. Pour into greased and floured 9x13 baking dish. Bake at 325* for approximately 50-55 minutes. In the meantime, combine the glaze ingredients. While the cake is still warm, prick the top several times with a fork and pour the glaze evenly over the top.

*I used a mini bundt cake pan and baked at 325 for about 15 minutes. It made 12 cakes.

Blueberry-Buttermilk Pancakes


1 C all-purpose flour
2 tbs cornmeal
1 tbs sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt1 beaten egg
1 C buttermilk or sour milk* (I used sour milk, see directions below)
2 tbs cooking oil
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 C fresh blueberries or strawberries

• Mix together flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.Make a well in the center of the dry mixture and set aside.
• In another bowl, mix together egg, buttermilk or sour milk, oil, and vanilla. Add wet mixture to dry mixture. Stir just until dry ingredients are moistened. Gently fold in berries.
• Heat and grease gridle or skillet. Pour about 1/4 of batter onto hot surface. Cook over medium heat and flip when edges brown and bubbles form over surface. Cook for another two minutes or so. Serve warm with butter and syrup.
  

*To Make Sour Milk:For each 1 C of Milk, pour 1 tbs of white vinegar into the bottom of measuring cup. Pour in enough milk to equal 1 C of liquid. Set aside for a few minutes for milk to sour. Use in place of buttermilk.

Chocolate Fondue

1/2 cup heavy cream or evaporated milk (I used evaporated milk)
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons coffee-flavored liqueur or vanilla or hazelnut syrup (I skipped this)
2 tablespoons light or dark corn syrup
1 1/2 cups (8 ounces) bittersweet chocolate, cut into small pieces (I used dark chocolate chips)
2 teaspoons vanilla
whole strawberries, hulled and washed; or assorted sliced fruit, cake, or other berries


In a saucepan set over medium heat, bring the cream or milk, salt, and liqueur or syrup, and corn syrup to a boil. Remove the mixture from the heat and add the chocolate all at once. Stir until the chocolate is melted. If all the chocolate doesn't melt, return the pan briefly to the heat, and stir until it's melted completely. Stir in the vanilla, then pour the chocolate into the fondue pot. Serve with sliced fruit or chunks of cake. Yield: 1 1/2 cups, 4 to 8 servings.

Rosemary French Bread

1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast (2 and a half teaspoons)
2 cups bread flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon white sugar
1 teaspoon butter, softened
17 tablespoons warm water (1 cup plus 1 T)
1 tablespoon dried rosemary, crushed
2 teaspoons minced garlic

• Place ingredients in bread machine according to manufacturer’s directions, start dough cycle. You may have to add up to ½ c. more flour, depending on the humidity in your area and the makeup of the flour. The dough should be in a moist-looking ball while mixing in the machine, pulling away from the sides.
  
• When the cycle has completed, place dough in a greased bowl, turning to coat all sides. Cover, and let rise in a warm place for about 30 minutes, or until doubled in bulk. Dough is ready if indentation remains when touched.
  
• Punch down dough. On a lightly floured surface, roll into a 16x12 inch rectangle. Cut dough in half, creating two 8x12 inch rectangles.
  
• Roll up each half of dough tightly, beginning at 12 inch side, pounding out any air bubbles as you go. Roll gently back and forth to taper end.
  
• Place 3 inches apart on a greased cookie sheet. Make deep diagonal slashes across loaves every 2 inches, or make one lengthwise slash on each loaf. Cover, and let rise in a warm place for 30 to 40 minutes, or until doubled in bulk.
  
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Mix egg yolk with 1 tablespoon water; brush over tops of loaves.
  
• Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden brown.

Fish Fillets in a Maple and Dill Brine

This brine works well on fillets of tuna, salmon, orange roughy and trout. Brining fish is faster than meats. You need real maple syrup for best results.

Ingredients:
1 qt water
2 TBS kosher salt
2 TBS maple syrup
1 TBS brown sugar
1 bunch fresh dill, coarsely chopped (about 1/ 2 cup)
3 cloves garlic, smashed
¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 LBs fish fillets, center cuts if possible

Directions:

• Combine the water, salt, maple syrup and brown sugar in a large non reactive (glass) container.
• Stir to dissolve the salt.
• Add dill, garlic, and pepper.
• Submerge the fish skin side up in the brine.
• Cover the container and refrigerate for 8 to 10 hours.
• To cook, remove the fish from the brine and pat dry. Brush or spray with oil. To grill, put on a sheet of foil directly on the grill rack over medium heat (350-400 degrees) for about 10 minutes per inch of thickness.

Honey Chicken Stir-Fry

TIME: Prep/Total Time: 30 min.

Ingredients:

• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 3 teaspoons olive oil, divided
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1 package (16 ounces) frozen broccoli stir-fry vegetable blend
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon cold water
• Hot cooked rice

Directions:

In a large nonstick skillet, stir-fry chicken and garlic in 2 teaspoons oil. Add the honey, soy sauce, salt and pepper. Cook and stir until chicken is lightly browned and juices run clear. Remove and keep warm.
In the same pan, stir-fry the vegetables in remaining oil for 4-5 minutes or until tender. Return chicken to the pan; stir to coat. Combine cornstarch and cold water until smooth; gradually stir into chicken mixture. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 1 minute or until thickened. Serve with rice. Yield: 4 servings.

Apple-Oat Muffins

2 c. shredded, peeled McIntosh apples (about 3/4 lb). *
1-1/2 c. AP flour
1 c. quick-cooking oats
2/3 c. packed brown sugar
1-1/2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. ground cinnamon
1/4 c. fat free milk
2 T. vegetable oil
1 t. vanilla extract
1 (8 ounce) carton plain low-fat yogurt (I used fat free strawberry from Publix)
1 large egg

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees
• Place apple on paper towels, squeeze until barely moist. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups, level with a knife. Combine the flour and next 6 ingredients in a medium bowl, stir with a whisk. Make a well in center of the mixture. Combine milk, oil, vanilla, yogurt, and egg, stir well with a whisk. Add to flour mixture, stirring just until moist. Stir in apple.
• Spoon batter into 12 muffin cups coated with cooking spray. They will be almost full. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or until muffins spring back when touched lightly in center. remove muffins from pans immediately; place on a wire rack.

Yield: 1 dozen
Serving size: one muffin
190 calories; 3.9 g fat (.9g sat.)
1.9 g fiber; 4.5 g carbs

*I used Granny Smith Apples and pulsed them a few times in the food processor.

Old-Fashioned Whoopie Pies

1/2 cup baking cocoa

1/2 cup hot water

1/2 cup shortening

1-1/2 cups sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2-2/3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup buttermilk

FILLING:

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Dash salt

1 cup milk

3/4 cup shortening

1-1/2 cups confectioners' sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

• In a small bowl, combine cocoa and water; mix well. Cool for 5 minutes. In a mixing bowl, cream shortening and sugar. Add cocoa mixture, eggs and vanilla; mix well. Combine dry ingredients. Add to creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk; mix well.
• Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls 2 in. apart onto greased baking sheets. Flatten slightly with a spoon. Bake at 350° for 10-12 minutes or until firm to the touch. Remove to wire racks to cool.
• In a saucepan, combine flour and salt. Gradually whisk in milk until smooth; cook and stir over medium-high heat until thick, 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat. Cover and refrigerate until completely cool.
• In a mixing bowl, cream shortening, sugar and vanilla. Add chilled milk mixture; beat for 7 minutes or until fluffy. Spread filling on half of the cookies; top with remaining cookies. Store in the refrigerator. Yield: 2 dozen.

Honey Mustard Chicken

Ingredients:
• 4 LB chicken, butterflied
• 3 TBS Dijon mustard
• 1 TBS honey
• 2 tsp soy sauce
• 2 TBS olive oil
• salt & pepper


Preparation Directions:
Ÿ Flatten the chicken out, skin side up.
Ÿ Whack it with your fist to crack the breastbone (for easier carving).
Ÿ Fold the wing tips back and tuck them under the chicken.
Ÿ Salt and pepper both sides.
Ÿ Blend the mustard, honey, soy and oil. Brush generously on both sides of chicken.
Ÿ Let sit at room temperature for an hour or so, or cover and refrigerate for several hours.
Cooking Directions:
Ÿ Roast over direct heat (no drip pan), at a grill temperature of 270 (about 300 dome).
Ÿ Start skin side up; after 50-60 minutes, flip the skin side toward the coals.
Ÿ Roast another 30 minutes or so, until skin is golden brown and crispy and the meat is done to your
liking.



Good for when there's no time to brine.
Good with or without pecan or cherry wood.

Mashed Potato Casserole


4 c. mashed potatoes
1 c. sour cream
8 oz. cream cheese
1 t. dried chives
¼ t. garlic powder
¼ c. dry bread crumbs
1 T. butter, melted
½ c. shredded cheddar cheese

In a large bowl, combine potatoes, sour cream, cream cheese, chives and garlic powder. Turn into a greased 2 qt casserole dish. Combine bread crumbs with butter, sprinkle over potatoes. Bake at 350 for 1 hr. Top with cheese and serve immediately.

Can be made ahead and baked just before serving.

Black Bottom Cupcakes

Cupcakes:
3 c. flour
1/2 c. cocoa
1 t. salt
2/3 c. oil
2 t. vanilla
2 c. sugar
2 t. baking soda
2 c. warm water
2 t. vinegar

Filling:
8 oz. cream cheese
1 egg
1/3 c. sugar
chocolate chips

• Beat topping ingredients well and set aside
• Mix cupcake ingredients well. Batter will be very thin. Fill cupcake tins 2/3 full - do not overfill.
  
• Place about 2 t. topping in the center. Add 6-8 chocolate chips per cupcake.
• Bake at 350 for about 18 minutes.

These freeze well if you can keep them around that long! Makes 3 dozen standard cupcakes.
You can also make 8-9 dozen mini cupcakes (bake ~12 minutes).

Taco Tot Casserole

1 lb. lean ground beef
1 pkg. taco seasoning
1 can corn w/ pepper, drained (I just used regular 'ole corn w/ no salt added)
1 can condensed nacho cheese soup (I had never heard of this, and could not find it, so I used cream of cheddar soup by Campbell's)
4 c. frozen Tator Tots
Salsa and Sour Cream, optional

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees
• Cook meat w/ taco seasoning according to pkg. directions
• Spoon meat into an ungreased 11x17 inch baking dish or a 2 qt. casserole dish
• Spoon corn over meat; spread soup over corn
• Arrange the frozen tots in a single layer over the soup
• Bake 40-45 minutes or until potatoes are lightly browned and the mixture is bubbly
• Serve w/ salsa and sour cream if desired

Baby Back Ribs Like Applebee's

3 racks pork baby back ribs, cut in half
1 c. ketchup
1/4 c. apple cider vinegar
3 T. dark brown sugar
3 T. Worcestershire sauce
1 t. liquid smoke
1/2 t. salt

• Place ribs in a large pot and fill with enough water to cover them.
• Bring water to a boil, reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 1 hour, or until ribs are fork tender.
• While ribs are boiling, combine remaining ingredients in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil.
• Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, stirring often, for 30 minutes, or until slightly thickened.
• Place boiled ribs, meat side down, on a broiler pan.
• Brush with half the sauce mixture and broil 4-5 inches from heat for 6-7 minutes.
• Turn ribs over, brush with remaining sauce, and broil and additional 6-7 minutes, or until edges are slightly charred.
  

Parmesan Crusted Chicken


4 (small) pieces of boneless, skinless chicken
1/4 C whole wheat flour
1/4 C grated Parmesan cheese
1/8 C butter
1/4 C milk
2 tsp oregano
2 tsp basil
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp garlic

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Melt butter in oven in pan (I used an 8x8 baking pan). While butter is melting, mix all other ingredients except milk and chicken.
• When butter is melted, dip chicken first in milk, then coat generously in flour mixture, then dip in butter. Place chicken in pan to be baked. Repeat with remaining pieces of chicken.
• Bake at 400 degrees. Cooking time will vary depending on the thickness of the chicken. Check it after about 15 minutes.
  

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

FILLING:

1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened

1 egg

1 tablespoon sugar

MUFFIN:

2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour

3 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 eggs, lightly beaten

2 cups sugar

1 cup canned pumpkin

1/2 cup canola oil

24 pecan halves, optional

• For the filling, in a small mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, egg and sugar until smooth; set aside. In a large bowl, combine the flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda and salt. Beat the eggs, sugar, pumpkin and oil; stir into dry ingredients just until moistened.
• Divide half of the batter among 24 greased or paper-lined muffin cups. Drop filling by teaspoonfuls over batter. Top with remaining batter. Place a pecan on each muffin if desired.
• Bake at 350° for 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks. Yield: 2 dozen.