Author: bhills61

Peanut Butter Heath Bar Crunch Cookies

(recipe makes 32 medium-sized cookies)

2 1/2 C flour
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt

2 sticks butter, softened
1 C brown sugar
1 C sugar

2 eggs
2 t vanilla

1 C crunchy peanut butter

1 1/2 C Heath Bar Toffee Bits

In a mixing bowl, combine flour, soda, powder and salt. Whisk to combine.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, add butter, brown sugar and sugar. Mix well using the paddle attachment.

Combine eggs and vanilla in a pourable container.

Pour eggs, one at a time, into sugar/butter mixture and blend well.

Add peanut butter to butter mix and blend until well mixed.

With mixer on low, spoon flour mix into butter mix. Blend until well combined. Add toffee bits and blend in slowly. Finish incorporating with a spoonula.

Using a 1/4 C ice cream scoop, portion dough onto a cookie sheet that has been sprayed with non-stick baking spray. Place dough portions into the refrigerator for chilling.

Once dough has firmed up, place the portions onto another prepared cookie sheet for baking. Place into a preheated 325 degree oven. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove cookie sheet and “thwack” it on the counter. Nice cracks will form. Place the cookies back into the oven and bake for an additional 15 minutes. For a chewier cookie, reduce final cooking time by 5 minutes.

Remove cookies and place on a cooling rack. Once cookies have firmed up, place them directly on the rack for further cooling.

Unused dough portions can be frozen for baking later.

HIGH’S ALBACORE TUNA SALAD

(serves 6)

2 – 12 ounce cans of albacore tuna, drained
2 long stalks of celery, diced small
4 green onions, thinly sliced
2 T parsley, finely chopped
Zest of one lemon
1 t salt
Fresh cracked pepper to taste

Mayonnaise, amount is your call…dryer/wetter

Using a paper towel, press tuna into a sieve squeezing out any remaining liquid. DRY, DRY. Place into bowl and add remaining ingredients. My grandmother liked sweet pickle relish, Miracle Whip, hard boiled egg, and I think some apple….definitely a sweet version. We prefer this simpler approach. Lean and clean as we say.

Enjoy scooped onto greens or portioned on some good crusty bread with sliced tomato, red onion and leaf lettuce.

SWEET POTATO SALAD

Boil some diced sweet potato in salted water. Cook until just tender. Drain and cool. Add green onion, parsley, toasted pine nuts, chopped Kalamata olive, baby kale, orange zest, orange blossom vinegar, EVOO, salt and cracked pepper. Serving this with our tuna sandwiches.

!FIESTA! SALAD

Serves 6-8

1 head green leaf lettuce, cut into strips

1 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained

1 C red cabbage, thinly sliced

1 C cherub tomatoes, cut in half

1/3 C sliced black olives

1/2 C red onion, thinly sliced and rinsed

1/2 C grated sharp cheddar cheese

1/2 C corn kernels

1 large avocado, cut into chunks

1 C Frito corn chips

Zesty French Dressing

Exact measurements of ingredients are your call. Prep salad ahead. Dress prior to service to avoid sogginess.

Talk about your church social!

It’s taco salad without the seasoned ground beef. BTW, if you want a good taco salad, use the meat recipe for the Highlupa and combine it with this salad.

Zesty French Dressing

makes 1 1/2 C of dressing

1/2 C mayo
1/2 C red wine vinegar
1/4 C sugar
1 T Dijon
1/2 t salt
1 t paprika
1/2 t cayenne
1/2 bunch of cilantro, leaves only

1 C vegetable oil

In the bowl of a food processor, combine all ingredients except vegetable oil. Process until smooth. Slowly drizzle in vegetable oil through the feed tube while machine is running. Process until well combined. The recipe can be cut in half. Stores well for several days.

Naan with Greek Yogurt and Veggies

I purchased Naan at Costco. Freshly made in their bakery, these are delicious. Naan is also available at most grocery stores in the deli area.

Greek yogurt

English cucumber, peeled and diced small

Radishes, thinly sliced

Serrano peppers, thinly sliced

EVOO

Green Zataar for sprinkling

Green Zataar. Dried herbs and seeds.

Himalayan Pink Salt

Spread a generous schmear of yogurt on Naan. Sprinkle with cucumber, radishes and peppers. Drizzle EVOO on top. Sprinkle with Zataar and pink salt. Slice and serve. Delicious.

Curried Zucchini and Red Pepper Soup

serves 8-10

1/4 C olive oil

6-8 garlic cloves, sliced thinly
2 small yellow onions, diced
2 red bell peppers, seeds and membranes removed, diced

1/4 C tomato paste

6 C chicken or vegetable stock
2 t ground coriander
2 t cumin
1 T turmeric
2 t curry
1 t red pepper flakes

6 medium-sized zucchini, cut into chunks

juice from one small lemon
1 small bunch parsley, finely chopped
1 small bunch cilantro, finely chopped

In a preheated soup pot, add olive oil. It should shimmer and ripple from the heat. Add garlic slices and sauté to flavor the oil. Add onions and red peppers. Add a pinch of salt and pepper. Allow vegetables to sauté for a minute or so before stirring. We are looking for a little bit of “pan sticking” from the vegetables. The salting will pull out moisture in the vegetables. Allow vegetable liquid to mostly cook out before adding tomato paste. Mix paste in well. Watch your heat. You don’t want to burn the paste, but you do want some “pan sticking” and depth of color. You can smell the sweetness and caramelization from cooking the paste. See photo. Add 2 C of stock, coriander, cumin, turmeric, curry and red pepper flakes to the pot. Mix well. Add zucchini. Add remaining 4 C of stock, lemon juice, parsley and cilantro. Mix well. Bring to a boil and lower heat. Cover and simmer until zucchini is tender. At this point, remove the soup from the burner and allow 30 minutes of cooling. Place soup in the refrigerator and allow to cool overnight. The next day, puree the soup in batches until smooth. For service, heat pureed soup over medium to low heat. Adjust seasoning. Garnish with yogurt sauce, toasted almonds and chopped cilantro. A winner.

Yogurt sauce:

1 C Greek yogurt, thoroughly strained
3 T heavy cream
zest of half a lemon
pinch of salt

Whisk ingredients well and top your soup.

Bibb Salad with Avocado, Papaya and Blood Oranges

serves 4

half a head Bibb lettuce, rinsed and dried

half a papaya, peeled, seeds scraped out and diced

one small avocado, diced

two blood oranges, peeled and segmented

half of a small red onion, thinly sliced and rinsed

1/4 C roasted and salted pumpkin seeds

1/4 C of grated Queso Fresco

On a serving platter, arrange lettuce leaves. Top lettuce with papaya, avocado, blood orange segments and sliced red onion. Spoon orange blossom vinaigrette over salad. Garnish with pumpkin seeds, Queso Fresco and fresh cracked black pepper.

Orange Blossom Vinaigrette

gourmet neighbor strikes again….

2 T orange blossom champagne vinegar

2 t Dijon

1 t honey

pinch of salt

fresh cracked black pepper

zest from half an orange

1 T chopped fresh dill

6 T olive oil

In a small bowl, add vinegar, Dijon, honey, salt, pepper, orange zest and fresh dill. Whisk well. Slowly drizzle in olive oil while vigorously whisking. Whisk until smooth and emulsified.

TAPAS GATHERING

So here is a menu we shared several years ago at one of our cooking classes. Inspiration comes from a Spanish cookbook. Some tweaks have made this menu friendly and delicious. I realized the other evening while dining with neighbors how much more interesting it is to share many small bites instead of larger portions of two or three items. Many of these recipes can be made days ahead. In fact, they improve with age. A lesson for us all.

Bornos Verdejo and Lechuza Granacha accompanied the tapas. Don’t forget the crusty bread. A Spanish Cava opened the evening with Manchego, quince, and Marcona almonds.

Give this a try.

SALUD !

Shrimp in Spicy Tomato Sauce

Olives & Thyme

Potato Salad with Capers and Dill

Roasted Peppers in Vinaigrette

Pickled Cucumbers

Meatballs in Saffron Sauce