Beef Stew

3 pounds beef - chuck, round or rump
6 tablespoons shortening or butter
1 large onion coarsely chopped
3 cups beef broth
1 clove garlic halved
2 tablespoons parsley finely chopped
1 bay leaf
1 pinch dried thyme
1 tablespoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
6 medium potatoes peeled and halved
6 medium carrots peeled and cut in 3" lengths
3 medium onions cut in quarters
2 stalks celery cut in 2" lengths
8 ounces tomato paste
10 ounces frozen peas

1. Cut beef into 1 1/2" cubes and dredge in flour
2. In a large kettle melt shortening
3. Brown beef in hot shortening and brown on all sides
4. Add onions and continue cooking until tender
5. Add beef broth, garlic, parsley, bay leaf, thyme, salt & pepper
6. Cover and simmer 1 1/2 hours or until meat is tender
7. Add potatoes, carrots, onion & celery; cook another hour or until vegetables are tender
8. Fifteen minutes before end of cooking, stir in tomatoes and peas
   

Gingerbread-Pumpkin Ice Cream Sandwiches

I saw this recipe in Martha Stewart magazine last year and thought it sounded perfect for my family's typical Sunday dinner. It is grown up enough for the adults to enjoy but fun enough for the kids. I finally made it last Sunday and everyone loved it.

For the ice cream:

Makes 15

• 1 cup whole milk
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup canned solid-packed pumpkin
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 6 large egg yolks
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup canned solid-packed pumpkin
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• Chewy Gingerbread Cookies

Directions

1. Bring milk, cream, milk caramel, and cinnamon stick to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring often. Remove from heat. Cover, and let stand 30 minutes. Return to a simmer over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; discard cinnamon stick. Set aside.
2. Prepare an ice-water bath; set aside. Put yolks and sugar into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on medium-high speed until pale and thick, about 4 minutes.
3. With machine running, add hot milk mixture in a slow, steady stream. Add pumpkin and vanilla, and beat until combined. Pour mixture through a fine sieve into a bowl set in the ice-water bath. Freeze in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions. Sandwich ice cream between gingerbread cookies just before serving.

For the cookies:

• 3 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
• 2 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup packed dark-brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons finely grated, peeled fresh ginger
• 1/2 cup unsulfured molasses
• 2 tablespoons baking soda, dissolved in 1 tablespoon boiling water
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar

Directions

1. Sift together flour, cocoa powder, and spices into a medium bowl. Put butter, brown sugar, and grated ginger into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on medium speed until fluffy. Beat in molasses.
   
2. Beat in flour mixture in 2 batches, alternating with the baking soda mixture. Shape dough into a disk, and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours (up to overnight).
3. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Shape dough into 1/2-inch balls, and space 2 inches apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Refrigerate 20 minutes.
4. Roll balls in granulated sugar. Bake until surfaces crack slightly, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool on sheets, 5 minutes. Transfer cookies to wire racks, and let cool completely. Cookies can be stored in an airtight container up to 3 days.

Taken from AmbersKitchen

Bourbon Chicken

(Source: RecipeZaar.com)

Ingredients:
2 lbs boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
1-2 tablespoon olive oil
1 garlic clove, crushed
1/4 teaspoon ginger
3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 cup apple juice
1/3 cup light brown sugar
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup soy sauce

Directions:
Heat oil in a large skillet.
Add chicken pieces and cook until lightly browned.
Remove Chicken.
Add remaining ingredients, heating over medium heat until well mixed and dissolved.
Add chicken and bring to a hard boil.
Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
Serve over hot rice and ENJOY.

My modifications:

-I only used 2 chicken breasts because that is all I had thawed. But I kept all the sauce ingredients the same as the original recipe so I would have plenty of sauce for my rice.

- I ended up using a slurry (cornstarch and water) to help thicken the sauce because I preferred it to be a thicker consistency.

Peanut Butter Bon Bons

This recipe makes a ton of bon bons and is pretty messy. But it is sooo yummy.

2 cups peanut butter
1/2 cup butter
1 lb sifted confectioners sugar
2 cups Rice Krispies
12 oz butterscotch pieces
12 oz semisweet chocolate chips

Melt butter and peanut butter in microwave. Combine confectioners sugar and cereal . Pour peanut butter over cereal. Blend together with hands. Form into 1/2 inch balls. Chill until firm. Melt butterscotch and semi sweets in microwave. Dip Rice Krispie balls into sauce. Place on wax paper. Chill until firm.

Spaghetti Sauce

1 cup chopped onion
3 cloves chopped garlic
3 Tbsp olive oil
3 1/2 cups Italian plum tomatoes
2 small cans tomato paste
2 cups water
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp oregano

Saute onion and garlic in oil. Add tomatoes, paste, water, bay leaf, salt and pepper. Simmer uncovered 2 hours. Add oregano and continue cooking for 15 minutes. Remove bay leaf.

Cranberry Bread

My mom made this bread for every Thanksgiving and Christmas since I can remember. When I am not home for the holidays I try to continue the tradition.

1 stick butter
1 1/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cup cranberries

Directions

1. Beat butter and sugar together
2. Add eggs to butter and sugar one at a time
3. Add vanilla
4. Mix flour and baking powder together in separate bowl
   
5. Alternate adding flour mixture and milk to the batter
6. Pour batter into loaf pan and top with sugar
7. Cook at 400 for 1 hour
   

The Best Chili Ever

This is total comfort food to me during the winter. This recipe makes about 40 servings so I always freeze it in batches for later.

1/4 cup olive oil
1 lb chopped onion
1 lb sweet Italian sausage, casing removed
4 lbs ground beef
3/4 Tbsp ground black pepper
12 oz tomato paste
1 1/2 Tbsp minced garlic
1 1/2 oz ground cumin seed
2 oz chili powder
1/4 cup prepared Dijon mustard
2 Tbsp salt
2 Tbsp dried basil
2 Tbsp dried oregano
3 lbs canned tomatoes drained
1/4 cup burgundy
1/8 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup chopped fresh dill
1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley
24 oz dark red kidney beans drained
10 oz pitted black olives drained

Directions

1. Heat olive oil in large kettle. Add onions and cook until tender.
2. Crumble sausage and ground beef into kettle and cook until well browned. Drain grease.
3. Over low heat stir in black pepper, tomato paste, garlic, cumin seed, chili powder, mustard, salt, basil, and oregano.
4. Add drained tomatoes, burgundy, lemon juice, dill, parsley, and drained kidney beans. Stir well and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes.
5. Add olives and simmer for another 5 minutes.

Dilly Dip

This dip is a must have at all holidays in my family. The occasion just isn't the same without it. Yum!

2 cups sour cream
2 cups mayonnaise
4 Tbsp minced parsley
4 Tbsp minced onion
4 tsp dill weed
4 tsp seasoned salt

Mix everything together and let sit for several hours before serving.

Chicken Marsala

Taken from Annie's Eats

Chicken Marsala
Ingredients:
2-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
kosher salt
ground black pepper
2 tbsp. olive oil
4 slices of bacon or pancetta, chopped
2 cups white or cremini mushrooms
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp. minced shallot
1 tbsp. tomato paste
1 ½ cups Marsala wine (sweet)
1 ½ tbsp. fresh lemon juice (1 small lemon)
4 tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces, at room temperature
2 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley leaves

Directions:
Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position. Place a large heatproof dinner plate on the oven rack, and heat oven to 200° F. Heat a 12” heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat until very hot, about 3 minutes. Pat chicken breasts dry. Meanwhile, place flour in a shallow bowl or pie plate. Season both sides of chicken cutlets with salt and pepper; working one piece at a time, coat both sides with flour. Lift breast from tapered end and shake to remove excess flour; set aside.

Add oil to hot skillet and heat until shimmering. Place floured cutlets in a single layer in the skillet and cook until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Using tongs, flip cutlets and cook on second side until golden brown and meat feels firm when pressed with finger, about 3 minutes longer. Transfer chicken to heated plate and return to oven.

Return skillet to low heat and pancetta; sauté, stirring occasionally and scraping pan bottom to loosen browned bits until pancetta is brown and crisp, about 4 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer the pancetta to a paper-towel lined plate. Add mushrooms and increase heat to medium-high; sauté, stirring occasionally and scraping pan bottom, until liquid released by mushrooms evaporates and mushrooms begin to brown, about 8 minutes. Add garlic and shallot; sauté for 1 minute.

Add cooked pancetta and tomato paste. Stir while sautéing, until tomato paste begins to brown, about 1 minute. Off heat, add Marsala; return pan to high heat and simmer vigorously, scraping browned bits from pan bottom until sauce is slightly syrupy and reduced to about 1 ¼ cups, about 5 minutes. Off heat, add lemon juice and any accumulated juices from the chicken. Whisk in butter 1 tablespoon at a time. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and stir in parsley. Pour sauce over chicken and serve immediately.

Tag I'm it

I've been tagged by Doril so here it goes.... 7 random facts about me.

1. I lived in MA for the first 23 years of my life but I do not have a Boston accent.
2. My high school mascot was the Rebel (complete with Confederate flag, even though it was New England). Our football coaches were Lee and Grant. Only the field hockey team mascot was the Porkers.... still embarrassed to say I graduated from that school.
3. I broke my arm in the 5th grade. I kicked my own arm going over the vault in gymnastics
4. My dog Riley was on the June/July 2007 cover of Animal Wellness Magazine. He's my little celebrity :)
5. I hate olives. I try them often and just can not get myself to like them.
6. I got very sick on my honeymoon in Italy. We spent 4 days in a hotel watching Italian television. We need a honeymoon do-over
7. I can pretty much recite The Sound of Music and Annie. I watched them both WAY too much when I was little.