Traditional Sugar Cookies

This is my quick go-to recipe for my sweets cravings. It's a very simple recipe that involves using ingredients you probably already have on hand. I absolutely love making (and eating) cookies any day, any time. These cookies are fantastic as-is plain, but could definitely be made even more custom by adding some icing. I might try them one day when I have more time with a softer buttercream type of icing. Even royal icing would be a delicious addition to these soft and amazing cookies.

Traditional Sugar Cookies

Adapted from: Annie's Eats, originally The Pastry Queen

Yeilds: 20 cookies

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

8 Tbsp butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup granulated sugar, plus extra for sprinkling

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 large egg

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp lemon juice

In a small mixing bowl combine the flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the softened butter on medium speed until smooth. Add the vegetable oil on medium-high speed until mixed well, about 1 minute. Add in the granulated and powdered sugar until well incorporated, about 1 minute for each. Beat in the egg until well incorporated. Finally, add the vanilla and lemon juice.

Reduce mixer speed to low and add the dry mixture a little at a time. Freeze dough for 15 minutes (or at least 1 hour in the fridge). Drop dough balls onto cookie sheets lined with silicone mat or parchment paper. Flatten gently with hand and sprinkle extra sugar on top. Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for about 12-15 minutes, or until bottoms are golden-brown. Let sit on cookie sheets for 10 minutes and then transfer to a wire cooling rack. Once cooled, store in airtight container.

Green Monster Smoothie

Green food, okay. Green drinks, not okay? I have heard about and seen this Green Monster Smoothie just about everywhere in the past year or two. I've been afraid to try it for one reason: it's green. And guess what gives it that bright green color? Spinach leaves! Of all things that shouldn't be in drinks!! Or should it?

I wanted to try this drink because it had so many good ingredients that I love (minus the spinach of course). I made a slight adjustment and omitted the honey, but it was perfectly sweet with all the fruit in it. It turned out absolutely amazing! I guess I just want more go-to drink recipes because it seems like I have so few. Try this recipe and adjust it however you like, adding or omitting any ingredients you think it needs. Next time I might do half pineapple and half mango. That sounds delicious! And if you were wondering, you absolutely cannot taste the spinach!!

Green Monster Smoothie

Adapted from: Annie's Eats, originally une-deux senses

Serves: 3-4

1 banana, cut into 1-inch chunks

1 cup frozen, chopped pineapple

1 pear, peeled and coarsely chopped

1 1/2 cups orange juice

2 1/2 cups baby spinach leaves, rinsed and dried

Combine all ingredients into a blender and puree until completely smooth. Enjoy immediately or store in fridge for up to 3 days. Mixture will need a good shaking/stirring when not enjoyed immediately.

Chicken, Poblano and Corn Quesadillas

From past experience, I've learned that quesadillas are a tricky yet easy dinner (or appetizer) to make. It takes some finesse I think, but they are always worth the effort in the end. My first attempt I was over-zealous and wanted to make an entire quesadilla (unfolded, two tortillas in the skillet). That was the worst idea! They fell apart and didn't crisp all that well. So learn from my mistake; when the directions for a quesadilla say to fold it over in half, do it. I also made some minor changes to this recipe because I like flavorful quesadillas with lots of different ingredients. I added tomatoes and I think a side of sour cream or salsa would have been even better!

Chicken, Poblano, and Corn Quesadillas

Adapted from: Simply Suppers

Yields: 6-8 quesadillas

1 large poblano pepper, halved

olive oil

1 cup shredded, cooked chicken

1 cup corn kernels

1 cup Monterrey Jack cheese, shredded

1 tomato, chopped

6-8 8-inch flour tortillas

sour cream (optional)

salsa (optional)

Start by roasting the poblano pepper. Preheat the broiler on high and move the oven rack to the highest position. Remove all seeds and stems from the pepper and place on oiled cookie sheet. Place in the oven and broil for about 8 minutes on each side, enough to get them charred on the edges. Set aside to cool.

Preheat a skillet on the stove to medium heat. Meanwhile, fill tortillas with ingredients: shredded chicken, cheese, corn and tomatoes. You can add the salsa and sour cream beforehand or use as a dipping sauce. Be sure to only fill half the tortilla. Fold in half and spray the top of the tortilla with olive oil cooking spray. Place folded tortilla into preheated skillet with the oiled side down. Lightly spray the other side of the tortilla while cooking.

Leave tortilla on skillet until crunchy and darkened, about 3-4 minutes. Flip over to cook the other side gently with a spatula. Leave on skillet until crunchy and darkened, about 3-4 minutes. Serve immediately.

Simply Suppers - New Cookbook

Someone got a new cookbook c/o Confections of a Foodie Bride. A huge thank you goes out to their blog for helping to remotivate me! I have already several recipes tabbed and one I've already made! Comfort food is my favorite!

Turtle Brownies

It’s that time of year again. April is full of wonderful Easter goodies, cookies, and other sweet treats. I can’t wait to have Easter egg hunts with my children like my sister and I had. The one thing I know I will succeed in doing is baking. This brownie recipe was my first attempt at homemade brownies. I usually make the boxed stuff because I don’t like brownies (SHOCKER!). They always are either crunchy on the edges or unbaked in the middle. These were not even close to the boxed stuff (not to mention the caramel and pecans)!

I actually liked these, which I blame partly on the pregnancy as I’ve developed a higher tolerance (read: craving) for chocolate these days. The chocolate isn’t too sweet or overwhelming and the caramel and pecans make it even more perfectly crunchy and gooey. I know the blogger who posted this said she made a half batch and I did as well. They turned out fantastic! I got compliments all day from coworkers.

Turtle Brownies

 Adapted from: Annies Eats, originally The Pastry Queen

Yields: 24 brownies



For the brownies:

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
12 oz bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (I used bittersweet chips)
1½ cups sugar
4 large eggs
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
1¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ tsp salt
1 cup pecan, coarsely chopped (optional)
¾ cup semisweet chocolate chips

For the caramel filling:
14 oz. caramel candies, unwrapped
1/3 cup heavy cream

Preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Line a 9×13-inch baking pan with foil and grease the foil well with butter or cooking spray. In a heatproof bowl over a simmering pot of water, combine the bittersweet chocolate and butter. Heat, stirring occasionally, until completely melted and smooth. (Alternatively, you can microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring in between, until completely melted.) Remove the bowl from the heat and whisk in the sugar, eggs and vanilla until well incorporated. Stir in the flour and salt just until combined. Spread about half of the brownie batter in the bottom of the prepared pan in an even layer. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven, maintaining the oven temperature, and let cool for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, add the chopped pecans (if using) to a medium skillet over medium heat. Toast, stirring occasionally, until fragrant and light golden brown, about 5-6 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.

To make the caramel filling, combine the caramel candies and cream in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Heat, stirring frequently, until melted and smooth. Stir in half of the pecans and immediately spread the caramel mixture over the bottom brownie layer. Pour the remaining brownie batter over the caramel layer, taking care to pour and spread it evenly otherwise it will be difficult to spread evenly over the caramel layer. Sprinkle the chocolate chips and the remaining pecans on top of the final brownie layer. Bake for 20 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely before slicing and serving. (To speed the cooling process, chill in the freezer for at least 30 minutes.)

Lift the brownies from the pan using the edges of the foil. Remove the foil and cut the brownies into individual squares. Some of the foil might stick to the caramel sides, but it peels of easily. Store in an airtight container.

Basic Pie Dough

It's a beautiful and sunny day here in Indiana today so I thought it would be a great time to post the pie dough I use for all my pies. It's almost berry season! Also, the pictures turn out 100% better when the sun is shining. It's a great motivator because I miss the sunshine (and summer for that matter). So below is the recipe and step-by-step instructions for the dough to make a 9-inch pie crust.

First, Combine the flour, sugar and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix briefly to combine.

Add the butter pieces into the bowl a little at a time on medium-low speed.

Mix until the dough looks like coarse sand. The butter shouldn’t be larger than the size of a pea.

Mix in the cold water, adding more if necessary, on low speed just until dough comes together. Repeat if you need two 9-inch pie crusts.

Shape the dough into a ball and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

Remove dough from fridge and roll out the dough onto a lightly floured surface to desired size.

If necessary, patch uneven sides with excess pieces of dough. Pinch together.

To transfer easily, wrap dough loosely around rolling pin.

Unroll dough onto the bottom of a pie pan.

If needed, patch the sides again to be sure that the dough is as even as possible on each side.

Fill the dough and place another layer of the prepared dough on top if necessary for recipe. Bake as indicated with specific recipe.

Basic Pie Dough
Adapted from: Annie's Eats, originally Williams-Sonoma
Yields: One 9-inch pie crust

1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

1 Tbsp sugar
¼ tsp salt
8 Tbsp cold, unsalted butter, chopped into small pieces
3 Tbsp very cold water

Combine the flour, sugar and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix briefly to combine. Add the butter pieces into the bowl a little at a time on medium-low speed. Mix until the dough looks like coarse sand. The butter shouldn’t be larger than the size of a pea. Mix in the cold water, adding more if necessary, on low speed just until dough comes together.

Shape the dough into a ball and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. If you prefer, you may freeze in plastic wrap and a Ziploc bag to preserve for up to 3 months. To thaw, simply place in fridge a day or two ahead of time or set out in the sink the morning of. Remove dough from fridge and roll out the dough onto a lightly floured surface to desired size. Use as directed for your pie recipe. Repeat steps if you need two pie crusts.

Some of my favorite pies:
Chicken Pot Pie
Classic Apple Pie
Cran-Blueberry Pie

Chicken Salad

Simple and easy is what I'm currently looking for in recipes lately. Starting my third trimester soon and slowly losing patience with cooking (among other things) has just drained me; physically and mentally. This was easy to make and actually made lots of leftovers which were amazing the next few days! This is something I could see my husband making when the baby comes because it's so easy and not very time-consuming. Next time I might try it with some leftover chicken breast, shredded, to see if I can taste the difference.

We also just got back from our "babymoon" in Washington DC so I might post about the places we ate there soon as well. I made a list of the good places and the bad places to avoid. It's about even on both sides.

Chicken Salad

Adapted from: Allrecipes

Serves: 4-6

2 10-ounce-cans chicken chunks, drained & rinsed

1 cup seedless green grapes, halved
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/3 cup pecans, chopped
1/2 cup chopped celery
1 8-oz can mandarin oranges, drained
1/2 cup cucumber ranch salad dressing
1/4 cup mayonnaise

Mix all ingredients in a medium mixing bowl. Cover and allow to chill for at least 1 hour in the fridge. Serve on warm buns or large croissant rolls.