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• Jenny’s Homemade Bread

  • Posted ~ 10.07.14
  • By ~ Jenny
  • Responses ~ 6
  

  In a stand mixer bowl, add sugar and water. Sprinkle the yeast on top and let rest until it gets foamy, about 3-5 minutes. Add both kinds of flour, then salt and oil. Turn on mixer and knead for 6 minutes. Turn dough into a well greased bowl. Spray the top of the dough with cooking spray and proof until double in size, about 30-45 minutes.

  Punch down risen dough and divide into 2 pieces. Flatten each piece into a rectangle about 12 x 8 inches. Fold the sides in until they meet.  Roll up the dough keeping the top nice and rounded and place in a greased loaf pan with the dough seam side down. Let rise until the dough is 1/2 inch above the rim of the loaf pan.

  Bake in a 350 F oven for 31-35 minutes. Turn loaf out of the pan and let cool on a baking rack. Brush tops with butter while the bread is hot, if desired. Bag after the bread is cool to keep the bread moist. Freezes well.

  Makes 2 loaves

• Mexican Caprese Salad

  • Posted ~ 8.16.14
  • By ~ Jenny
  • Responses ~ 0
  

  Pesto:

  Combine all the above ingredients in a food processor or blender until smooth.

  Salad assembly:

  In a serving platter, combine the tomato halves, mango pieces and bocconcini halves. Toss with the pesto. Garnish with grated cotija cheese. Serve cold.

• Lemon Meringue Cupcakes

  • Posted ~ 7.30.14
  • By ~ Jenny
  • Responses ~ 0
  

  Cupcakes:

  In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the butter, oil, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, vanilla extract, sour cream and lemon zest. Mix until well incorporated. Add the eggs, one at a time. Add ¾ cup of the cake flour; mix well. Add 1/3 cup of the buttermilk; mix well. Add ½ cup of the cake flour; mix well. Add the other 1/3 cup of the buttermilk; mix well. Add the last ½ cup of the cake flour and mix well.

  Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line two cupcake tins with liners. Fill the liners half full.  Bake for 14-16 minutes.

  Filling:

  Place all the ingredients in a double boiler over medium heat. Mix constantly until thickened. Test thickness with the back of a wooden spoon.  Set aside until cooled. Once cooled, with a long tip, pipe the filling into the center of each cupcake.

  Meringue:

  Mix well in a large double boiler over medium heat. Mix until the sugar granules are gone and the mixture is smooth when you rub some in between your thumb and index finger.

  Transfer the mixture to a stand mixer bowl. With wire whisk attachments, whisk on low for 4 minutes. Turn the speed to medium high and beat for an additional 7 minutes. Turn to high for another 4 minutes. The mixture should be thick, smooth and have a sheen to it.

  Transfer the meringue to a pastry bag with desired tip. Pipe meringue onto each cupcake. With a cooking torch, torch the meringue until they have browned edges all along the top of the meringue.

• Butter Cake with Strawberry Sauce

  • Posted ~ 6.23.14
  • By ~ Jenny
  • Responses ~ 4
  

  Cake:

  Preheat the oven to 325 F. Prepare the ramekins by generously coating the bottom and sides with cooking spray. Put 2 teaspoons of the turbinado sugar on the bottom of each ramekin. Swirl the sugar along the lower ½ inch and bottom of each ramekin.

  In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter, cream cheese and sugar. Beat for 30-60 seconds. Add the baking soda, baking powder, salt and vanilla extract; Mix well. Add the egg and beat for 30-60 seconds. Add ½ cup of the flour. Beat for 30 seconds. Add half of the buttermilk. Beat for 30 seconds. Add another ½ cup of the flour. Beat for 30 seconds. Add the other half of the buttermilk. Beat for 30 seconds. Add the last ½ cup of the flour and beat for 30 seconds.

  Cream Cheese Layer:

  Beat all the ingredients in a small bowl until combined. Do not overbeat.

  Strawberry Sauce:

  Place all the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Store in the refrigerator.

  Assembly:

  With an ice cream scoop, place two even scoops of the cake batter in each ramekin. Top with about 2 tablespoons of the cream cheese layer.

  Bake in a 325 F oven for 30 minutes or until the top is golden and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted.

  Let the cakes cool for 10-15 minutes. Gently turn them over onto a dessert plate to release them from the ramekins. Top with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Drizzle the strawberry sauce over the ice cream, cake and plate. Garnish with sliced fresh strawberries and a mint leaf. Serve warm. (You can also serve the cake in the ramekins.)

• S’mores Bars

  • Posted ~ 4.28.14
  • By ~ Jenny
  • Responses ~ 0
  

  Preheat the oven to 375 F. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugars. Add the egg and mix until incorporated. Add the vanilla, salt and baking soda; mix well. Mix in the flour and graham cracker crumbs until the dough comes together.

   In a 9X13 pan, press the dough on the bottom of the pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Take pan out of the oven and spread enough mini marshmallows to cover the top of the dough.  Bake for an additional 3-4 minutes. Take it out of the oven, and with a kitchen torch, brown the marshmallows further. Stick the small rectangular pieces of the Hershey chocolate bars all over the top in between the marshmallows. Let sit for at least 10 minutes before attempting to cut into the bars. It is better to let it cool before cutting the bars.

   

• Mom’s Pot Stickers

  • Posted ~ 4.08.14
  • By ~ Jenny
  • Responses ~ 0
  

  Pot Stickers:

  Combine the above ingredients except the pot sticker wrappers. I find it easiest to mix together with my hands.

   Have a little cup of water ready. Lay out the pot sticker wrappers, dip your finger in the water and apply water to one half of the circular wrapper. Scoop about 1 ½ tsp. of the meat mixture and place in the middle of the wrapper. Fold over one half of the wrapper and press shut.

   Bring a pot of water to a boil. Place about 6-8 dumplings in the water (Do not overcrowd them in the water.). Let them cook for about 4 minutes. Remove from the water with a slotted spoon. Place on a parchment paper lined platter or baking sheet. Keep warm until ready to serve. 

  Dipping Sauce:

  Mix ingredients together. Serve with the pot stickers.

  Makes about 96 pot stickers

• The Best Roasted Chicken- Peruvian Style

  • Posted ~ 3.18.14
  • By ~ Jenny
  • Responses ~ 4
  

  Wash chicken and remove all the fat. Cut chicken in half. Combine  cumin,  garlic powder , dried oregano, salt and paprika. Mix well. Take half of the spices  and rub on outside and inside of chicken. In a large bowl, combine beer, vinegar, lime juice. Mix well. Put chicken in a large bag (remove as much air as possible from the bag)and pour liquid in the bag and marinate overnight (24 hours or so). Reserve the other half of the spices for use right before roasting the chicken (Be sure not to touch any raw chicken and have contact with the spice rub you will be using the next day.)

  The next day, remove chicken from bag. Place both halves on a rimmed jelly roll pans, skin side up. Take the extra cumin, garlic powder, oregano, salt and paprika and rub on chicken again. Bake at 425 degrees for about 1 hour, tenting the top of each chicken with a piece of foil. After 50 minutes, remove the foil and let the skin brown and crisp. To test for doneness, insert a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the chicken; the thermometer should read about 165 F. The chicken needs to reach an internal temperature of 165 F.  Let the chicken rest for 5 minutes before carving. * If you roast the chicken whole, add more time to your roasting time. 

   

• Bulgar Wheat Salad

  • Posted ~ 3.11.14
  • By ~ Jenny
  • Responses ~ 2
  

  Salad:

  In a large sauté pan. Heat the olive oil. Saute the onion and jalapeno until the onion is soft and translucent. Add the mushrooms and kale and cook until they are tender. Season with ½ tsp. salt and some ground pepper. 

  Dressing:

  Mix above ingredients thoroughly.

  Assembly:

   In a large mixing bowl, combine the bulgar wheat, sautéed vegetables and roasted nuts. Toss with the dressing. Serve warm or at room temperature or cold. 

• Tomato Soup

  • Posted ~ 3.03.14
  • By ~ Jenny
  • Responses ~ 4
  

  Herbed olive oil:

  Put all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.

   Soup starter:

  Preheat oven to 400 F. Place the soup starter vegetables in a medium bowl, pour enough of the herbed olive oil on them to coat. Toss well. Spread in a baking sheet and roast for 35 minutes. 

  Place the roasted vegetables and one of the canned tomatoes in a blender and puree. Place in a large pot. Put the remaining can of tomatoes in the blender and puree. Add to the pot. 

  Add the the soup base ingredients to the pot. Let simmer for about 15-20 minutes. Add 3 more cups of chicken broth and season with more salt and pepper. 

   

• Evans “Good Start to Our Day” Smoothie

  • Posted ~ 2.21.14
  • By ~ Jenny
  • Responses ~ 0
  

  In a blender, dump in the protein powder, flaxseed meal and chia seeds, Add the almond milk and banana. Add the kale, and frozen berries. Do this in this particular order. We have found that the blender has an easier time blending the ingredients when placed in this order. In a Vitamix blender (what we have and use), start on low on number one. Very slowly increase to a higher number until you have reached the highest number. Let it run for a minute on this setting. Once it is fairly smooth, switch it to the high setting and continue to blend for another 30 seconds to a minute. Pour into a very large tumbler and chow down!