Sloppy Joes (not from a can)

I am not here to knock Manwich in a can. It was that stuff that first turned me on to the greatness that is Sloppy Joes. Sloppy Joes are one of two things from my childhood visits to the neighbors' that I seriously thought (and still think) were (and are) some of the best things ever created to ingest, those being Sloppy Joes and Dr. Pepper. Every time I eat a Manwich or drink a Dr. P I am instantly transported to the neighbors' living room, where I frequently sat on their nice leather couch watching Price is Right. Man, that was the life. (Hi Rebecca!)

But anyway. I wanted to learn how to make Sloppy Joes, and I didn't want to have to go hunt for a can of Manwich at the very rare grocery stores that carry labels around here every time I want them. So I found a few recipes, and streamlined them all. And I finally perfected "my recipe," so I want to share it with you. It includes ingredients I always keep in my pantry, so it's pretty perfect for that cold night that you want something easy to make that will keep you warm. Kind of like tonight actually. Too bad I already had Sloppy Joes three days ago. Sigh.

Un-Canned Sloppy Joes

1-1 and a 1/2 lbs ground turkey (or beef if you can tell the difference)
A little olive oil
1 small diced onion
2 cloves of minced garlic
1/2 c ketchup
2 c tomato sauce (1 can)
1 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
1 Tbsp Red Wine Vinegar
2 Tbsp Brown Sugar
1/2 tsp of dried thyme
A pinch of cayenne pepper or chili powder
Salt and black pepper
plus
6 hamburger buns, toasted

You'll want a deep skillet for this, because it will need to hold all of the delicious Sloppy Joe Sauce as well as the turkey. First, brown the turkey in olive oil. You should use a wooden spoon or something hard to break it up as it cooks. Once it is cooked through, and all the liquid is cooked off (if there is still liquid and it's cooked through, you can drain the meat; this step will be necessary if you use beef) add the onions and garlic and cook for a minute or two. Turn heat down to low and add all the rest of ingredients, minus the salt and pepper. Stir everything all together and leave heat on low, so that the liquid comes to a simmer. Let simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to make sure the heat is spread evenly. It should look like this:

Turn your oven to 350, put buns on a cookie sheet, and toast them up (about 5-7 minutes should do the trick). After the 20 minutes of simmering, taste the Sloppy Joes. If the mixture tastes vinegary still, leave to simmer another five minutes. Once the vinegar taste is gone, add salt and pepper to your liking. I usually put a few shakes of pepper, and 1/2 tsp of salt to counter the sweetness. Scoop onto buns and serve (don't forget napkins)!

Just as easy as using a can I think. The only trick is making sure the vinegar cooks off, so taste it! It's always a good rule with slow cooking things like this. Oh, and also, don't leave your buns to burn in the oven. Believe me, burnt buns do not work well with Sloppy Joes. I've tried it. Enjoy!

Good Stuffed Chicken

Well, after that last blog, I am opting for something a little bit healthier (and more simple) for this next post. Today, stuffed chicken! I know I know, you are thinking of the bland wedding/banquet staple that no one really likes but everyone tolerates. Not so! Stuffed chicken might not seem exciting because of its bad rep, but it is! You can design it to your liking, and make it healthy and delicious. There is so much you can do with stuffed chicken, and it requires relatively little attention. All the work is in the preparation, so it is a great thing to have when guests come over. The prep work will take about 45 minutes, and the cooking about 20-30 more.

My classic stuffed chicken is filled with a mushroom stuffing. Because the base is vegetables cooked in olive oil, and there is no cheese involved, it is tasty but good for you. Here's the recipe:

Stuffed Chicken, Mushroom style

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (cut off any fatty or gross parts around edges)

Stuffing
1/2 a carton of button mushrooms, sliced
1 small onion (or half a big one), sliced thick
1/3 c of flavored breadcrumbs (approximate, see directions: if you only have plain breadcrumbs, feel free to add your own flavorings like garlic, thyme, parsley, etc)
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Chicken bath
1/2 of chicken broth
1 clove of thinly sliced garlic
1/2 tsp dried rosemary (or thyme)

Special Tools: food processor, toothpicks, casserole dish

Preheat oven to 375 (you will use this later, so get it ready now.) Start by sauteing your sliced mushrooms and onions in a skillet over medium heat in some olive oil (1-2 Tbsps). You can add them at the same time. Just be sure to turn them every so often so they don't burn. Once they are cooked through (onions should be more translucent and both onion and mushroom should be soft) season with salt and pepper, and put into your food processor. While they are cooling in there, start on your chicken.

My trick for stuffed chicken is not to do that rolling up thing that some people do. I can't seem to get that right. The stuffing always comes out, and I can't properly sear the chicken because there are a hundred toothpicks sticking out in all directions. And not only that, but if you can't remember where you put the toothpicks before cooking someone is bound to get poked in the mouth, and no one likes that. So instead of that mess, I slice the side, as if I was going to cut the breast into two cutlets, but I don't cut all the way through, which creates an open pocket in there. This is much easier not only to stuff, but to keep the stuffing in (which is the part everyone wants to eat anyway). Once the pockets are ready, sprinkle salt and pepper on the breasts, and let sit while you are making the stuffing.

Back to the food processor. Now that the mushrooms and onions have cooled, pulse them until they are chopped small--each piece of mushroom or onion should be about the size of a pea. Once this happens, add in half of your breadcrumbs along with 1/2 tsp salt and a little pepper into the food processor, and pulse until incorporated. The next part is the "use your judgment part". You want this stuffing to hold together, but you also want to be moist. You achieve this by adding a little more breadcrumbs until it holds together, and then just a tad of olive oil. You are going to want to feel the texture and make sure it sticks together. Then taste it for seasoning. It should be a little on the salty side because as the stuffing cooks, some of the flavor will leach out due to the steaming in the oven.

Now for the assembly. Stuff each pocket with as much stuffing as it can hold and still be closed. Then take a toothpick or two, pull the open sides of the pockets together, and sort of "sew" the toothpick through each open flap of the chicken, so that it stays shut. Now you know that the toothpicks will be along the opening, and you hopefully won't get poked by a stray one you forgot the location of before eating. Once you have done this with each piece of chicken, heat some olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat (you can use the same one as you used for the mushrooms if you want). Once the oil is hot, add the chicken. The goal here is to sear each side. You want nice browning on each surface, but you do not need to cook the chicken through. That's what the next step is for.

While the chicken is searing, make the bath. Take a casserole dish that will fit all the chicken in it, and pour in chicken broth. Add rosemary and sliced garlic to the broth. Also grab a piece of tin foil. When the chicken is done searing on each side, place into the broth. Cover the dish with tin foil, and put in the oven for 20-25 minutes. This will not only cook the chicken through, but infuse it with some nice flavor and moisture from the broth bath.

When you are ready to eat, just uncover and serve. You can use the "bath" for sauce if you like. This goes really nicely with white rice and some green veggies. The key tricks here are the side pocket slicing, and remembering where your toothpicks are at. Other than that, you just want to make sure that you test your mushroom stuffing for consistency and flavor, and you'll have a perfect dish every time. Feel free to put your own stuffing in there if mushrooms aren't your thing: sundried tomatoes and goat cheese, spinach feta and pine nuts-- the possibilities are endless!

How to "Take Out" at Home; the story of Udon Noodles

Udon noodles. Up until about a year and a half ago, I didn't even know what they were. I was at my in-laws', and my father in law had picked up the recipe and put it in his weekly rotation; as it was one of his favorites, he made it for us. He already knew how to stir-fry from growing up in Hawaii, and he created his own version using udon noodles. He shared the recipe with us, and I'm going to share my version of that version with you. Udon noodles are almost like lo mein noodles, but they are thicker, and absorb more liquid when cooked. You can get them dried, just like spaghetti, or you may be lucky enough to find fresh ones at your grocery store. Either kind work fine for this recipe.

Now that I know what udon noodles are, and how to stir fry them, they have become one of my favorite meals. I have expressed my dislike for stirfry and other things "over rice" but substituting noodles for rice instantly makes a stirfry a million times better. And if you are like me, and crave take out Chinese sometime, this is a much more delicious and healthy way to satisfy that.

The only special equipment you will need for this is a large deep frying pan. If you have a wok, that is great. I don't. I just have a big frying pan. And it works fine. I am sure some purists of Asian cooking will scoff, but, seriously, no wok, no problem.

Udon Noodle Stir Fry

1 breast of boneless skinless chicken, cut into bite-size pieces
1 clove of garlic, minced or pressed through a garlic press
1 small onion, cut into eighths
3/4 pound of udon noodles
1/4 cup, plus 1 TBSP of soy sauce
3 TBSP of oil (canola is good, but olive oil works too)
1 cup of chopped fresh broccoli
1 cup of snow peas
2 eggs scrambled
* feel free to add any other vegetables you like: asparagus, red peppers, etc.

Start by marinating your chicken pieces in 1 TBSP of soy sauce and the garlic. You'll want this to sit for about 15 minutes. While this is marinating, heat up a pot of water for the udon noodles. You can cook these just like spaghetti; wait til the water is boiling, and then throw them in. But note! These cook faster than spaghetti. Check them after 3 minutes (for dried, earlier for fresh; fresh pasta always cooks faster).
While the marinating and heating of the water is going on, chop your veggies, and scramble your eggs in a separate pan. (I just take the two eggs, mix them together with a fork, pour into a small frying pan, and move them around with a rubber spatula until they are cooked through.)

Now, get out your large wok/frying pan. Heat 2 TBSP of oil in the pan, keeping the heat on med-high. Once it is nice and hot, add the chicken and all the marinade to the pan. Cook for 2 minutes, and then add the raw onion. Cook these two together until the chicken is cooked through.

The one big challenge with this dish is adding the ingredients in such an order that they all get the proper cooking time for their thickness and desired crunch. You want the chicken to cook the longest, then the onions, then the broccoli, because it will take a few minutes to cook through, and at the last minute, thinner vegetables, like snow peas. Asparagus would go in with broccoli; thinly sliced peppers with the peas. You don't want soggy broccoli or floppy snow peas. Part of the deliciousness of this dish is the contrast in texture, and it won't be half as enjoyable if it's all just squooshy. And this has happened to me quite a few times, so learn from my mistakes.

So here's the assembly. You have your chicken and onions. Then toss in the broccoli and cook for one minute. Then add your cooked udon noodles on top, with the remaining oil and half of the remaining soy sauce (3 TBSP). Stir this around, so that all of the protein and vegetables are incorporated in the noodles, and the soy sauce is evenly distributed.

You want to use your muscles here; you need to mean it when you stir these ingredients, or you'll have a big sticky mess of noodles. To avoid this, I use two techniques. The first is to drain the noodles quickly and then add them right to the wok. If you leave the cooked noodles to the side while you are preparing other things, the starch in them will cause them to become really sticky, and hard to undo, though not impossible. The other technique is to make myself taller. If you are short like me, you might want to use a step stool so you can stand over that big pan and toss everything together thoroughly. You will be surprised how much easier this is. It is also very easy to recruit your 6 foot husband for the job.

After this step, add your snow peas, your scrambled egg, and the remaining soy sauce. Stir around and incorporate 1-2 more minutes until the peas turn a bright green. And that green, my friends, means you're ready to eat!

You can change up the protein and the veggies to suit your liking. Just remember to toss in your ingredients in the order of needed cooking time, and you'll be master of the udon noodle!

Mustard Chicken

If there is one recipe I am famous for, at least around my house, it is mustard chicken. I have made this recipe at least fifty times, which has helped me perfect it, and which has also made it my husband's first guess at what's for dinner. This is the ideal weeknight main dish. It is quick, easy, and actually healthy. I developed this recipe when I had a health problem that caused me to have to remove "fatty foods" from my diet for six months. This was a challenge, but out of it came the famous mustard chicken, and it stayed on the menu even after I could eat fat; meaning it's worth taking a shot at even if you scoff at "health foods."

Mustard chicken is essentially chicken cutlets (I mean, who doesn't love cutlets, right?) with mustard acting as the sealing agent rather than your typical flour/eggs routine. This not only makes the dish healthier, but gives it a lighter more flavorful taste that can go well with a variety of side dishes. Depending on how much you like mustard, or which type you like, you can mix it up. I like to use a pretty strong dijion or grainy mustard, because I like the mustard taste to be prominent. If you are a little afraid of mustard, try a honey mustard, and you'll get a pleasantly sweet tasting cutlet, and the mustard will be your secret.

Here is what you will need (serves 3-4):

Mustard Chicken

3-4 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts, sliced in half through the middle of the breast, and pounded thin (you can use a saucepan if you don't have a mallet)*
1 cup of breadcrumbs (both regular and panko work fine, but panko gives a good crunch)
3-4 Tbsps of dijon or grain mustard
Olive oil
Salt and Pepper
Toasted Sesame seeds (optional)
*you can also brine the chicken breasts in salt water beforehand, to bring out more flavor

Steps:

The first step is to have all your materials ready. I use a kitchen brush and a fork, and this way, I never have to touch the chicken, and I don't get my hands all covered in breadcrumby mess. See sample "station" here.


Now, the first thing you'll want to do is spread your mustard onto the chicken with the brush. You want a nice coating, but you don't want globs of it on one part and barely anything on another part. If you don't have a brush and are using a knife to spread it, that is fine, but just be sure not to put too much. It's a coating; the mustard should not be dripping off at any point. See photo.

Now, take one cutlet and set it mustard side down in a plate of breadcrumbs (put your toasted sesame seeds in the breadcrumbs if you are using them). Press it into the crumbs with the back of the fork. While it is still in the breadcrumbs, use your brush to coat the other side with mustard. Try your best not to touch the breadcrumbs. You will want to keep your ingredients as separate as possible to avoid mess. Once finished, use the fork to pick it up, and put the side you just coated down into the bread crumbs. You may have to use the fork to push the breadcrumbs onto the sides of the chicken if your cutlet is large.

Repeat this for all cutlets, and put aside on a plate. Once they are all finished being coated, get a frying pan ready with some olive oil (enough to coat the bottom of your pan, but not too much (the chicken shouldn't sink into it). Wait, can you leave the coated cutlets while you are busy tending to your side dishes? Why yes you can. These cutlets cook in about 5-7 minutes, so if you have other things you want to prepare, go for it. These cutlets can stay breaded for a while and not lose their texture because there is no flour. With a flour coating, you want to cook your cutlets right away or the flour will congeal, yielding a weirdly textured product. Here, there is no worry about that. Just don't leave it out for too long (more than 20 minutes or so); if it's going to be longer, put them in the fridge.

Ok, so you've got your pan with olive oil. Set this on medium high, and when the oil starts to shimmer, it means it is good and hot (if it starts to smoke, it's too hot!) Then take your cutlets and put them right down in the pan with enough space between them so they are not touching.

The goal here is to only flip these once, kind of like fish. The reason for that is that there are no eggs holding these breadcrumbs. They will stay on, but you don't want to be constantly turning them because then they will fall off. Keep that one side down for a few minutes--the oil will be very hot, so be careful of spatters! I wear long sleeves for this because I really hate getting hot oil on me. Then, when you think it's ready, just peek at the underside. It should be golden brown. You should also start to see the edges of your chicken turn white from the raw side. Then, flip them. Using a flat spatula works, but I like to just use a fork, that way I don't scrape any of the crumbs off accidentally.

After this side is cooked, you are done! You should serve them right away to ensure crispiness.

Here are the tips to remember:
1. Pound chicken so it's thin; you only want to flip the chicken once and thin cuts will ensure that the chicken is cooked through after one flip.
2. When spreading the mustard on the chicken make the layer thin; you want the flavor but if you put too much, it will overwhelm the breadcrumbs.
3. Don't let the oil get too hot; if you see smoke or if all the oil gets soaked up, replace it fast, and turn down the heat. You want crispy cutlets, but not burned ones!

Now mustard chicken can become famous in your house, too. Enjoy!

The Great Pasta Dish

When I was young, if someone asked, "what's for dinner?" and the answer was "pasta" that meant that either Mom was going to be home late, or *gasp*! Dad was in charge of dinner. My mom would freeze her own sauce for convenience, but sometimes, in a pinch, we'd have Prego--something that Dad would have stored down in the basement for just such an occasion as this. At that age, I thought pasta could only have a red sauce, or on very rare occasions, a white sauce, like the once-a-year alfredo we'd have. But pasta dishes can be oh-so-much-more.

Do you ever fancy a pasta dish that isn't loaded with sauce, but instead is loaded with vegetables, meats and other seasonal ingredients that you like? A dish that is light, but great tasting? Well here's a cooking technique to add to your arsenal.

Save the pasta water.

The starch from the pasta water actually helps the other ingredients you want in your pasta to stick and spread evenly throughout your dish, creating a sauceless pasta which is flavored by your choice of ingredients, not a thick sauce.

When creating your dish, pick ingredients that go well with pasta, and that go well with each other. An easy combination is pork sausage, mushrooms, peas, and sliced onions. Or chicken sausage, sundried tomatoes, spinach and mushrooms. Or my all time favorite, especially for fall and winter, chicken, mushrooms, onions, pine nuts and roasted butternut squash (and greens for color). Also have shredded parmesan cheese (grated yourself is the best) on hand.

Heat up water (salt it well!) for your pasta. I find that shorter pasta works better for this: penne and farfalle (the little bows) are the best, but fusilli and even spaghetti will work if you don't have anything else on hand.

While this is heating, cook each of your ingredients, and flavor them separately. While your pasta itself is cooking, mix all of your ingredients together in a large pan, so that their flavors can meld for a bit.

When you drain the pasta, save some of the water it was cooked in (1-2 cups). Put the pasta back in the pot, add the pan of your ingredients, and a half a cup of the pasta water. Put the heat on high and mix all the ingredients quickly. Add another 1/2 cup of the water, and mix until the ingredients are spread evenly throughout the pasta. Remove it from the heat, and stir in the parmesean cheese until melted. And your dinner is served!

I'll take you step by step through my favorite.

Chicken and Butternut Squash Pasta

1 box farfalle (or other short pasta)
1-2 breasts of skinless boneless chicken
1/2 package of fresh button mushrooms, sliced
1 small onion (or half a large one), thinly sliced
1 handfull of pine nuts
1 TBSP of dijon mustard
1/4 real maple syrup (do not try this with Ms. Butterworth's)
1/8 tsp of Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup of shredded parmesean cheese
2 cups of chopped fresh butternut squash
Salt and Pepper
Olive oil

Chop the chicken breasts into bite size pieces. Whisk together the maple syrup, mustard, and worcestershire sauce. Marinate the chicken in this mixture. Heat a pot of water to boiling, and salt it well. This means about 1/8 cup of salt. While it's heating, put some oil inthe bottom of a large skillet, and put in butternut squash; after about two minutes, pour in a little water so that the bottom of the skillet is covered with liquid, and then put the cover on the pan for 15 minutes, and stir it occasionally. After 15 minutes, take the top off, and turn up the heat to brown the squash. Stir frequently and watch carefully. While this is cooking, chop the onion. For this dish, I like it in small slices; diced just doesn't seem right.

Here is how to chop thin slices easily from an onion. This root technique will help you with any cut of onion actually. First chop off the head (the pointy end, not the end with the root), and cut it in half the long way, right through the root. Peel off the skin, and then take your knife and cut longitudinally almost to the root in small pieces, but not all the way to the root. When you've finished cutting, then cut across the root to separate the pieces, and you'll have perfect slices (see picture for visual).

Saute the onions, and the mushrooms in olive oil. Defrost the frozen spinach, and squeeze the water out. You'll also want to dry toast the pine nuts to get more flavor. Take a small skillet and heat it, with nothing in it put the pine nuts. Keep it on medium heat. You will have to turn the nuts frequently, and watch them carefully. As soon as they brown, take them out of the pan. Reserve these to add at the end with the cheese.

Put pasta in the pot to cook. Meanwhile, cook chicken pieces (drain marinade) in skillet with olive oil. Once they are cooked through, take two forks and shred the pieces. Then turn the heat up and brown them. Add the spinach, mushrooms, onions, and squash. Let these flavors meld, test the pasta. When the pasta is just cooked through, drain it, reserving 1-2 cups of the past water. Return the pasta to its original pan, add the ingredients in the skillet, and a half cup of the pasta water. Turn on the heat, and mix to distribute all ingredients. Add a little more pasta water and continue to heat and mix quickly until everything is evenly distributed throughout. Remove the pan from heat, and add in parmesean cheese and pine nuts in two batches, mixing until cheese is melted.

The best part about this dish is that you can tailor it to your tastes, and to the season at hand.

Here are some tips for making this dish come out just right every time:

1. Flavor each component separately. With a meat like chicken, which doesn't have much fat, a marinade will work; sausages can usually stand up themselves. Definitely flavor all vegetable components.

2. When you put your colander into the sink to drain the pasta, put a pyrex measuring cup into the colander; that way you won't forget to save the water! (believe me, this has happened to me more than once, and the dish is definitely not the same).

3. Don't be afraid of the pasta water. It may look liquidy when you add it back in, but the heat and the mixing will get rid of it. That being said, don't overdo it; it's not soup.

Once you get this down pat, you'll love to make them, and whoever you're cooking for will love to eat them!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chocolate chip cookies. They are just so delicious. They are my standby dessert, and they are really my favorite cookie. You might like a little variety, say maybe a peanut butter cookie, or an oatmeal raisin, but the one I always come back to is dear old chocolate chip.

I always keep the ingredients for chocolate chip cookies in my pantry, so that I can whip them up at a moments notice. No dessert in the house? Make chocolate chip cookies. Cousins coming to visit tonight? Make chocolate chip cookies. Everyone's grumpy at work? Make chocolate chip cookies. They can say a lot of hellos, thank yous, welcomes, and even sorrys for you.

There are some tricks to making chocolate chip cookies, though. I am sure you've noticed that even though most people use the classic Tollhouse recipe (keep reading), they always come out differently, depending on who makes them, right? Sometimes they don't spread out, and practically remain in the balls they were put onto the cookie sheet as. Sometimes they spread out way too much. Sometimes they are too chewy, sometimes very crunchy, sometimes even taste more like cake than cookie.

Well let's start with the recipe.

* 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
* 3/4 cup granulated sugar
* 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 2 large eggs
* 2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels

PREHEAT oven to 375° F.

COMBINE flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in morsels and nuts. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto baking sheets.

BAKE for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Seems pretty easy right?

Well here's some things you might want to know about how to make your chocolate chip cookies so good that people will ask you to make them even when you've already made a different dessert.

The first thing is creaming the butter, sugars, and vanilla before the eggs. This step is crucial. Why? If you don't incorporate the butter into the sugar before it gets in with the eggs, the consistency will never be right, and your cookies will spread. (see photo).

This picture is an example of what will occur if you cream the butter, and then throw all the sugars and the eggs in there, and then mix. Or even if you just mix the sugars with the butter for 10 seconds, and then do the eggs.

I think that this is the most important thing that they don't really accentuate in the recipe. So you get past that spot. What else can make your cookies taste a little better?

My trick? Add just a bit more salt than you think. Maybe a quarter tsp more than it says, but I just eyeball it. Salt is very important in chocolate chip cookies, because it really brings out the contrasting flavors. Some people like to half it in the recipe, and then sprinkle some on top, but I feel it is a little unpredictable when you bite into the cookie; you never know how much salt you're going to get.

How about the chocolate chips? I would suggest that you don't use milk chocolate chips. Not only does this make the cookies taste bad (in my opinion they don't give enough contrast of flavor) but more often than not, they won't melt before the cookies are ready to take out of the oven, and thus, it is not a very appetizing cookie. Everyone likes those melty chips in there.

Now, let me get back to the "taking them out of the oven." I feel like this is the part where a lot of people make their mistakes. One thing to know is that the cookies continue to bake on the sheet after they are taken out of the oven. Therefore, you must take them out of the oven at the slightest browning on the top of the cookie. It might not look cooked through, but I promise you that by the time they are ready to be taken off of the cookie sheet, they will be perfect.

This is a picture of the cookies right when they get out of the oven, so you can get an idea of what to look for.


And here is a picture of a cookie that is cooled. Looks much better, right?


They really don't take long to cook; I would certainly check your cookies at 8 minutes and see how they look, especially if you have a convection oven.

So, to wrap up
1. Make sure to cream the butter, then add the sugar, brown sugar and vanilla and beat well before adding any eggs to ensure a good texture.
2. Add a little extra salt into the recipe.
3. Use semi-sweet chips.
4. Watch your cookies closely, and take them out at the first sign of browning at the tops (the edges will brown first, so don't concentrate on them).

Now you can make the perfect cookie, and enjoy them with just 20 minutes notice.

Pizza at home, from home

I love pizza. I could eat it several times a week and I'd be a very happy woman. But it's bad for you, right? And it can get pretty expensive to order delivery, especially if you want more than one topping--around here it can go for $15 for a large!

I hardly ever order pizza anymore. Now I make quick, delicious, and relatively healthy pizza in my kitchen, for cheap!

I stock up on pre-made refrigerated pizza dough (Trader Joe's has it for $0.99) and keep the bags in the freezer for whenever I want a quick, non-involved meal. A small jar of pizza sauce kept in the fridge will last you for 4-5 pizzas, and just keep a bag of shredded mozzarella in there too (if kept dry this also lasts for months).

Home-made pizza is more flavorful, less greasy than take out, and has a fresher taste, because you can control what you put on it. At one time in my life I had to be on a very strict low-fat diet, and I actually made pizza all the time. A half a cup of mozzarella is 12 grams of fat--if you do light cheese, even better-- and if you choose veggies for toppings, that is virtually all of the fat in the whole pie, less than 2 grams a slice. How can you beat that?

I have made a few mistakes making these pizzas, but I think I've now perfected the art. Here's all you do (including the tidbits I've learned from my mistakes).

1. Take the pizza dough out of the fridge about 20 minutes before you want to start making it. [If you had it in the freezer, put it in the fridge in the morning, and it will be ready by dinner time]. It will soften the dough enough to stretch it into a full sized pizza, but it won't get too gooey, as it would if you left it until it reached room temperature.

2. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. You want to cook pizza at a high temperature and fast. If you keep it at 350 or 375, it will be chewy, cook unevenly, and probably take 45 minutes to make.

3. Slice your toppings and prepare them for the pizza. If using mushrooms (my favorite) don't be afraid to layer them a little bit. They will shrink when cooking. If you are using peppers (or another high-water-content veggie) be sure to space them out and put fewer in the center so when the water leeches out it will not collect and create a pool on your pizza (if you see this happening, just sop it with a paper towel quickly).

4. Stretch dough. I found the keys to doing this are first, to put some flour on your hands so you don't stick to the dough, and second, to keep rotating it so that its own weight pulls it into a round shape. Don't worry if it's not perfectly round. It will taste great all the same. If holes keep getting poked in, use your knuckles, not your fingers, to stretch it.

5. Add sauce, then cheese, then toppings. Or no sauce if you roll that way.

6. Cook about 20 minutes, till crust is brown and cheese has become golden and bubbly.



I like to use a non-stick pizza pan with these neat little venting holes (see photo). They make the crust really nice and crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. It is also super easy to clean.

If you don't have a pizza pan of any kind, don't worry. You can use a cookie sheet. I used one for a whole year when I had an oven that couldn't even fit a pizza pan into it. (I recommend a cookie sheet with sides, just in case anything decides to roll off the side of the pie). Make sure you grease it first, or that beautiful pizza will never make it into your mouth!

Enjoy!