Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Pulled Pork/Chicken


We just recently had a family reunion and I was looking for something delicious and easy to make. My friend Natalie made this for me when I had the boys and it was AMAZING. Natalie's sister also blogged about it here. My sister, Angela does not like pork so I made it with chicken so you can choose whatever meat you like best.

Put pork in crockpot then add some water. Cook on low all day. Shred then add sauce:

1 cup brown sugar
1 cup melted butter
2 Tb. ketchup
2 Tb. mustard
2 Tb. worchestershire sauce

Pour over pork and mix well. Let sit for a few minutes to let flavors blend together. Serve on rolls. Makes a lot!

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies


This is not an old family recipe, I just received the recipe about two months ago but I have been making them a lot. Whenever Doug has a school function and we are suppose to bring dessert, this is what he asked me to make. Super yummy...enjoy!!

Ingredients:

1 cup of butter
1 cup of sugar
1 cup of brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups of white flour
4 cups of rolled oats (blend 2 cups until powder)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 bag of chocolate chips

Cream: butter, sugar, brown sugar
Add: eggs and vanilla
Mix together: flour, oats, salt, baking powder, and baking soda
Mix all ingredients together and then add chocolate chips

Bake at 375 degrees for 8 minutes


Oriental Chicken Salad


If I ever have to make a salad to bring somewhere, this is the salad that I make...I just love it, I crave it. I first tasted this when living in South Carolina about thirteen years ago. A women named Julie Day made it and I will forever be grateful to her for sharing the recipe with me. Here you go:

Dressing:

4 TB sugar
4 TB white or apple vinegar
1/2 cup salad oil
2/4 t. salt
black pepper

Chicken cut up
4 slices of fresh gingeroot
1 head of lettuce (shredded)
1 pk rice sticks or noodles
1/2 cup of almonds
1/2 cup sesame seeds

For dressing combine all ingredients in small saucepan, bring to a boil stirring. Boil one minute then chill. Pour over salad

Boil Chicken with peeled and sliced gingeroot until done. Cut chicken into cubes. Mix chicken, lettuce, noodles, almonds, and seeds

Raspberry Lemon Coconut Cake


It was Doug's Birthday this month and his three favorite ingredients in cake are raspberry, lemon, and coconut so I was on a search and found this cake here which looks and taste amazing. She made it with three layers but I have two nine month old boys who need a lot of attention so I did two layers. Her pictures are much more professional then mine so have a look but here is what mine looked like and here is the recipe.

2 1/4 cups (244g) cake flour
1 tablespoon (12g) baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cup (295ml) whole milk or buttermilk, room temperature
4 large egg whites, room temperature
1 1/2 cup (302g) granulated sugar
2 teaspoons fine lemon zest
1 stick (8 tablespoons 113g) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 teaspoon pure lemon extract

Lemon Buttercream
1 cup (201g) sugar
4 large egg whites
3 sticks (339g) unsalted butter at room temperature
1/4 cup (59ml) fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract


2/3 cup raspberry preserves (strained for seeds, if desired)
1 1/2 cups sweetened shredded or desiccated coconut (I'm using desiccated for this cake)

Pre-heat your oven to 350°F and place a rack in the lower third of your oven. Coat two 8" or 9" pans with butter or nonstick spray and line the bottoms with a circle of parchment. Place the pans on a baking sheet and set aside.

In a medium bowl, sift together the cake flour, baking powder and salt and set aside.

In a second small bowl, combine the milk and egg whites and set aside.

In the bowl of your stand mixer, combine the sugar and lemon zest and mix for a minute on medium speed until fragrant. Add the butter and cream together on medium speed for 4-5 minutes until the mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in the lemon extract and then grab your bowl of flour and milk.

Reduce the mixer's speed to slow and add 1/3rd of the flour. Once moistened, increase the speed to medium and mix until incorporated. Then add 1/2 the milk mixture and beat until the mixture is uniform. Repeat with the remaining flour and milk, alternating until you've finished with the last 1/3rd of the flour. Mix the batter for a further 2 minutes to ensure it is lump free and well aerated.

Divide the batter between your baking pans (I think it was a bit over 500g for each pan) and bake for 30 to 35 minutes until the centers of the cake springs back when touched lightly.

Place the cakes on wire racks to cool. After a few minutes, run a knife around the outside of the pan to release the cake and remove from the pans. Allow to cool right side up until room temperature.

To make the buttercream:

Combine the sugar and egg whites in a bowl over simmering water. Whisking constantly, beat until the mixture is warm to the touch and the sugar is no longer gritty. Remove from heat and continue to beat until you have a thick, glossy meringue.

Transfer the meringue to the bowl of your stand mixer with the paddle attachment and beat for several minutes on medium speed. Once the bowl of the mixer feels cool to the touch you can add your butter, one stick at a time beating on medium high. Once the butter is all in, continue to beat for 6-10 minutes.

The mixture may seem to curdle at some point but don't worry, continue to beat and it will come together into a velvety buttercream.

Once well beaten, you can add the lemon juice a little at a time, beat until absorbed and then adding more. Then add the vanilla and you're ready to frost.

To assemble the cake:

For a four layer cake, level and divide the layers with a serrated knife. Place the bottom layer onto a cake round (or onto a cake plate with tuck strips of wax paper under the cake to protect the plate while frosting).

Spread a third of the raspberry preserves onto the bottom layer of the cake and then a layer of buttercream. The trick to layering buttercream on top of a slippery layer of preserves is to put your buttercream into a disposable piping bag (or ziplock bag) and cut off a 1/3" diameter opening. Starting in the center of the layer, pipe a coil of buttercream. Continue to coil tightly, round and round until you have an even layer of icing on top. No need to spread the frosting with a spatula using this method. Top with a second layer of cake and repeat two more times. Place the last layer on top and then crumb coat the cake with a thin layer of icing. Chill the cake until the icing is firm and then frost the cake with the remaining butter cream. Smooth the remaining buttercream over the cake with an offset spatula until it is level and smooth.

Sprinkle the coconut over the top of the cake and coat the sides by gently pouring the coconut between your hand and the cake.

The cake is best eaten the day it is made. If you need to store it, refrigerate it covered for up to two days, allowing plenty of time to bring it back to room temperature before serving.

Classic Peanut Butter Cookies


Doug is a huge fan of peanut butter so I often make these for him. I make these also when I am trying to stay away from eating to many desserts and these aren't chocolate so I tell myself that I am safe. But I end up kidding myself and eating a lot anyway.

Ingredients:
1 cup unsalted butter
1 cup crunchy peanut butter
1 cup white sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

Directions:

1. Cream together butter, peanut butter, and sugars. Beat in eggs.
2. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir into batter. Put batter in refrigerator for 1 hour.
3. Roll into 1 - inch balls and put on baking sheets. Flatten each ball with a fork, making a criss-cross pattern. Bake in a pre-heated 375 degrees F oven about 10 minutes or until cookies begin to brown. Do not over-bake.