Like Strawberry Wine...

Bet that got your attention.  Get your minds out of the gutter, people!  I’m talking about spiced pecans, and they really are from Joe Biden.  Well, more likely Dr./Mrs./Jill, but nevertheless, this recipe was submitted by the VP and his wife to Food Network Magazine a few years ago.  I’ve tried a couple different variations of these in the past, but was in search of something new this year.  And if you know me at all, you know I love Joe B., so I was happy to give these a Go.

This recipe comes together very easily.  The baking takes a while, but after having tried stove-top versions, I think the flavor is better when you bake them.  The flavor of the nuts deepens as they roast, and that’s definitely a good thing.

I did tweak the spices a little.  I cut back on the cumin a tiny bit, increased the cinnamon slightly, added a little brown sugar with the white, and threw in a few shakes of nutmeg as well.  There is plenty of cayenne in here, so even with my sweet additions, these still have a kick!  They are a great holiday party snack or addition to your cheese platter.  I’ll warn you that if you can handle the heat, they are quite addictive, so go ahead and double that batch.  Way to go, Joe (and Jill)!

You can find the recipe here: 

Sweet and Spicy Pecans

Note - you can substitute any kind of nut you want here.  I've tried similar recipes with walnuts and those are also delicious. 

I have been flagging and saving beer cheese bread recipes for years now, but have shockingly never made any.  Well when I saw this one (in a King Arthur Flour catalog, where else?), and noticed that there were only 4 ingredients, I ripped it out and made it three days later….about time!

As I usually do the first time, I followed the recipe exactly.  As such, the bread is good.  But I can definitely make this better.  First of all, I think ½” chunks of cheese are way too big.  I’m going with ¼” next time for more even distribution.  Also, this could use a little kick – I’m thinking some chopped pickled jalapeno.  I ate this at room temperature the first time and it was good, but I highly recommend toasting it.  The edges get a little crispy and the cheese gets nice and soft – mmm, mmm.  Bread and cheese?  That always hits the spot.

Ingredients

4 cups Self-Rising Flour (I always add an extra pinch of baking powder)

¾ cup Vermont Cheese Powder

8 oz sharp cheddar cheese (I used extra sharp, but it was a little harsh – I’ll use medium next time.  Asiago or Gruyere could be good too.)

2 cups beer – nothing too intense, perhaps a lager

½ cup additional cheddar cheese, shredded, for the topping.

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375º.  Lightly grease a 9” to 10” round deep, lidded Dutch oven or bread crock.

In a large bowl, stir together the flour, cheese powder, and cubed cheese.  Add the beer, stirring until no dry spots of flour remain.

Pour the batter into the Dutch oven or crock and smooth the surface.  Sprinkle with the shredded cheese, cover and bake for about 40 minutes, or until golden brown on top and a digital thermometer inserted in the middle reads at least 190º.

Remove from oven and let rest for 10 minutes.  Turn out onto rack.  Serve warm or at room temperature (or sliced and toasted in the oven!).

How is it possible?  In 4 years of writing this blog I have never posted a recipe for a plain old chocolate chip cookie - ever.  They’ve always had peanut butter or pretzels or oatmeal or something else taking away from that tried and true pure Chocolate. Chip. Cookie.

Obviously that had to change, and stat.  And I decided to go big…Baking GALS Round 33 gets these Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies.  And lucky them.  Forget those old school Nestle Tollhouse, or god forbid…Chips Ahoy (yikes!).   This should forever be your go-to recipe.  These particular cookies are huge,  I mean seriously honkin’ but you can always make them whatever size you like.  From the brown sugar to the extra yolk and the melted butter, these are some of the richest, most flavorful I’ve ever had.  The recipe calls for semi-sweet chips.  I felt like a big cookie called for a bigger piece of chocolate, so I went with chunks and I think it worked well.  Let’s get down to business so you can go hit the kitchen…like now.

Don't worry - I ate this one.

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups, plus 2 tablespoons All-Purpose flour
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
12 Tbsp. (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled until warm
1 cup packed light or dark brown sugar (I used ½ of each)
½ cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, plus 1 egg yolk
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1-1 ½ cups semisweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS:

1. Adjust the oven racks to the upper- and lower-middle positions and heat the oven to 325º.  Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or spray them with nonstick cooking spray.

2. Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl; set aside.

3. Either by hand or with an electric mixer, mix the butter and sugars until thoroughly blended.  Beat in the egg, yolk, and vanilla until combined.  Add the dry ingredients and beat at low speed just until combined.  Stir in the chips to taste.

4. Roll a scant ¼ cup of the dough into a ball.  Hold the dough ball with the fingertips of both hands and pull into 2 equal halves.  Rotate the halves 90 degrees and, with jagged surfaces facing up, join the halves together at their base, again forming a single ball, being careful not to smooth the dough's uneven surface. (I skipped that part and used a ¼ cup cookie scoop)  Place the formed dough balls on the prepared baking sheets, jagged surface up, spacing them 2 ½ inches apart.

5. Bake until the cookies are light golden brown and the outer edges start to harden yet the centers are still soft and puffy, 15 to 18 minutes, rotating the baking sheets front to back and top to bottom halfway through the baking time.  Cool the cookies on the sheets for about 10 min.  Remove the cooled cookies from the baking sheets with a wide metal spatula.

Recipe adapted from Baking Illustrated

Bebopareebop Rhubarb Pie.  Ever heard of it?  How about “Mama’s little baby loves rhubarb, rhubarb…”  Still no?  Ha – well, it’s not surprising.  This little ditty is from Garrison Keillor’s A Prairie Home Companion – a show on NPR my parents would religiously listen to on Saturday evenings.  I don’t remember when I heard it, but it was definitely more than a decade ago (yikes!)…and I think it was only the second time I had ever heard of rhubarb.  The first was on a family vacation in Nova Scotia when my dad’s aunt made a rhubarb pie.  Since I was probably about 10 years old, I’m pretty sure I turned my nose up and didn’t try a bite.  Funny how both of these things have stuck with me though, huh?

Well, now with my much more sophisticated and refined palate (ha!), I have baked with it a few times and so far, liked everything I’ve made.  Rhubarb is such an interesting vegetable.  It looks like and has the consistency of pretty celery, but almost tastes like a really tart apple, and despite its tartness, is almost always used in sweet recipes rather than savory.  This recipe is obviously no exception.  I am on a strawberry rampage this summer, so I was excited to try this – it gave me a chance to take what I know and love and add something less familiar.  By the way, did you know that rhubarb leaves are toxic??  True story.  Remove and discard please!

Anyway, on to the bars.  I have a coworker who likes to try my new recipes so I brought her one for an opinion….to quote her exactly, “Oh my god, I think this is the best thing you’ve ever made.”  WOW – now that’s a bold claim, especially since she’s had my sour cream coffee cake which I swear by.  Not a minute later, she shouted down the hall, “I want these for my birthday!”  Ha, yes maam, done and done.  I’m convinced it was the addition of my go-to secret ingredient (a spice used often in Scandinavian and Indian cuisine).  I add a little to my apple pies too and it totally brings it up a notch.  Perhaps you can figure out what I’m talking about, but if not – well, some things just need to stay a secret. J    

Here are the details and step-by-step pics:

Ingredients: