Breakfast Foods

In February, Cooking Club covered a variety of delicious Breakfast Foods!

Our group of cooking-fanatics!

Pumpkin Muffins

Mix in large bowl:

1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

Mix in small bowl:
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup pumpkin
1/4 cup melted butter or salad oil

Stir liquid mix into dry mix using 8-10 strokes. Add 1/2 cup raisins or chocolate chips (optional). Stire 6-8 additional strokes. Do not over-stir. Batter should be lumpy. Fill greased muffin tins 2/3 full. Bake at 400 F for 18-20 min.Makes 12 larger muffins. Serve warm with a little butter.



Egg McMuffins
English muffins
Canadian bacon or bacon slices (cut in half)
eggs
sliced American cheese
salt and pepper

Toast the English muffins while you are frying the eggs. Place egg on one half of the muffin and top with a slice of cheese and Canadian bacon or cooked bacon slices. Top with other half of muffin- enjoy!

Praline Pull-Apart Bread

1 cup granulated sugar
4 tsp ground cinnamon, divided
1 (2 lb) package frozen bread roll dough (Rhodes)
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 cup chopped pecans (optional)
3/4 cup whipping cream
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

Stir together granulated sugar and 3 tsp cinnamon. Coat each roll in butter; dredge rolls in sugar mixture. arrange in a lightly greased 10-inch tube pan; sprinkle with pecans. Cover and chill 8 to 18 hours.

Preheat oven to 325 F. Beat whipping cream at high speed with an electric mixer until soft peaks form (DON'T SKIP THIS STEP before stirring in the brown sugar- it's the secret to the smooth texture of the caramel-flavored sauce.) Stir in brown sugar and remaining 1 tsp cinnamon. Pour mixture over dough. Place pan on an aluminum foil-lined baking sheet.

Back at 325 F for 1 hour or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack 10 minutes. Invert onto a serving plate, and drizzle with any remaining glaze in pan.

Omelet in a Bag

Boil water. Fill a Ziploc bag with omelet ingredients:
egg
cheese
ham
green peppers
tomatoes
(anything else you want in your omelet)

Nicole chopping tomatoes

Add a dash of milk. Seal bag; shake to mix ingredients together.

Dani with her bagged omelet- ready to cookPlace bag into pot of boiling water for 3-5 minutes (keeping zipper part of bag out of pot.)

Open and enjoy!



Marion Cummingham's Yeast Raised Waffles
1/2 cup warm water
1 pkg dry yeast
2 cups milk, warmed
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1 cups all purpose flour

2 eggs, beaten
1/4 tsp baking soda

Place water in large mixing bowl, and sprinkle the yeast over it. Let stand and dissolve (about 5 min); stir to mix together.

Add milk, butter, salt, sugar, and flour to the yeast mixture and whisk together till smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature overnight.

Just before cooking, beat the eggs; then add the eggs and baking soda to the flour mixture. Mix well; the batter should be thin.

Preheat a nonstick waffle iron and spray with cooking spray. Pour 1/2-3/4 cup of batter into waffle iron. Spread batter if necessary. Cook 2-3 minutes until done. Makes 7-8 waffles.

*This batter can also be used for pancakes and will keep 2-3 days in the fridge. Can also be frozen, but needs to be thawed in the fridge (not microwave).

Waffle Toppings- butter, powdered sugar, strawberries, whipped cream

Eggs and Chorizo
Open one package of chorizo and cook in skillet. Once cooked, remove from pan and clean quickly. Crack 6 eggs and add a splash of milk to the same skillet. Cook eggs until firm and return the chorizo to the pan. Mix eggs and meat toether til eggs are cooked all the way through. Brown corn tortillas on the burner; then serve eggs in tortilla like a taco.

Chocolate Night

In DECEMBER we met at Marta Bourgeois' house for our Chocolate Night. We melted bags and bags and bags of chocolate for dipping a variety of goodies. Then we filled treat bags to take home and share with our families. Thanks for letting chocolate take over your kitchen Marta!

Tasty Soups: Broccoli Cauliflower Soup by Wendy

In November we met at Wendy Van Noy's house to learn 3 delicious soups. Wendy taught Broccoli Cauliflower Soup.

Ingredients- for the first step:
1/2 head Cauliflower
1 large bunch of Broccoli
2 cups Carrots chopped
1 cup Onion, chopped
2 cans Chicken Broth
2 Chicken Bouillon Cubes
1 tsp Basil
1/2 tsp Pepper
1 tsp Salt

Cut broccoli and cauliflower into small pieces. Cook all these ingredients over medium heat until tender; do not drain.

Large soup pot with all the veggies
Adding the seasonings

Tender, cooked veggies

Ingredients- for the second step:
1 cube Butter
3/4 cup Flour
8 oz Cream Cheese
1 quart Half and Half

In a separate saucepan, melt butter and flour. Stir until smooth. Add half and half, and cream cheese. Stir until smooth. Add the creamy mixture to the vegetables and heat through. Enjoy!

Stirring the creamy mixture

The finished soup!

Wendy made us some of her delicious, prize-winning cornbread!

Tasty Soups: Creamy Corn Chowder by Kira

Ingredients:
2 Tablespoons Flour
1/4 cup Flour
1 cup Water
1.5 cups Milk (skim or 1% work fine, and lighten the soup considerably)
2 regular-sized Chicken Bouillon Cubes (or 1 Knorr Chicken Bouillon Cube, or 2 tsp Chicken Base)
1/2 lb Bacon
1 small Onion, minced
2 Red Potatoes, diced into small cubes
2-3 cloves Garlic, minced
1 can Corn, drained (or 1.5 cups frozen kernel corn)
Salt and Pepper to taste
a few dashes Hot Sauce (like Tabasco or Cholula)

Fry bacon until crisp. In the meantime, melt butter over low heat in a soup pot. When melted, add flour to make a roux, and mix until it comes together to make a little ball.

The "ball" of butter and flour

Add water and whisk until completely combined and there are no lumps.
Add milk and bouillon (or chicken base) and bring to a simmer. Add potatoes, onion, and garlic and simmer (but don't boil), stirring frequently, for about 20 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.

The chopped onion and potatoes

Cooking the veggies

Kira stirring her soup frequently!

Add crumbled bacon and corn, and heat through.
Add a few drops of hot sauce, and then salt to taste. The soup NEEDS the salt, but an exact salt measurement is not given because bacon differs in saltiness, so it would be very easy to make the soup far too salty. Start with about 1/4 tsp salt; stir for a few minutes, then add more salt if you'd like.
Ladle into bowls. Top with extra bacon and cheese if you want.

Tasty Soups: Harvest Soup by Dani

Ingredients:
1-2 Tbs Olive Oil
2 large Carrots, chopped
2 cloves Garlic, chopped
1/2 lb Ground Turkey
1 Tbsp Dehydrated Onion (or 1 small onion chopped)
1/2 cup Butternut Squash Puree
Salt and Pepper to taste
(all of the following cans are approx 15 oz size)
1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup
1 can Diced Tomatoes
1 can Green Beans
1 can Navy/Great Norther Beans
1-2 cans Beef Broth
1 Bay Leaf
1 tsp Basil
1/2 cup Quick Barley

Saute garlic and carrots (and onion if using a fresh one) in olive oil for about 3 minutes. Add ground turkey, dehydrated onion, salt and pepper- cook until meat is no longer pink.

Raw meat

Cooked meat

Kira and Dani hard at work stirring their soups

Add the rest of the ingredients and bring to a boil.

Adding cream of mushroom, tomatoes, and green beans

Adding the beans

What quick barley looks like
(in case you didn't know- because I didn't!)

Reduce heat to medium-low and let simmer 15-20 minutes.

The steamy finished soup!

Halloween Foods

In OCTOBER we met at Michelle McKay's house to learn new Halloween Foods.

Candy Corn... mmmmm....

Fleshy Fingers

Roll any deli meat (I used black forest ham) into a finger, and smear some cream cheese along the bottom seam to close. Slice grape tomatoes and slide into the ends for fingernails.

Skeleton Hand

Break up pretzel rods into different sizes for finger bones. Melt some almond bark on low heat in a saucepan (or use any type of candy coating). Drop in your broken pretzel rods, and roll to cover. Pull out the broken pieces and let cool on wax paper (I hardened my bones in the fridge for 30 minutes). I poured a bag of dry black beans onto the plate for visual appeal, and then arranged the bones how I thought the hand should look.

Pumpkin Oranges

Slice a very thin layer from the bottom of each orange so it will rest flat. Cut another small slice from the top of the orange. Spoon out the pulp. Then using a sharp kitchen knife (I used a scalpel), cut out pumpkin faces as desired. Fill the oranges with fruit salad; I just used grapes.

Ghost Pizza

Spread a tube of pizza crust onto a cookie sheet. Layer with some pizza sauce from a jar. Then slice mozzarella cheese for the ghosts. During Cooking Club, I used packaged pre-sliced cheese, but it browned during baking. When I practiced the recipe ahead of time (pictures above), I used fresh mozzarella cheese. The fresh cheese kept the white color MUCH BETTER, but it was more difficult to slice. Perhaps stick the fresh cheese in the freezer for 10 minutes and then try slicing. Use a ghost cookie cutter to cut out the ghosts. Place ghosts close together for maximum cheese coverage on your pizza (I suggest closer than the picture above). When the pizza is cooked (according to crust package directions), add a few sprinkles for the ghosts' eyes.

Ghost Treats

10 Oreos (filling: regular, chocolate, or mint)
3 oz Cream Cheese softened
6 oz White Candy Coating
1 tsp Shortening
Chop cookies until they resemble coarse crumbs. Cut cream cheese into pieces and mix into cookies until the mixture forms a soft dough (a food processor works best). Use 2 teaspoons of dough for each, form ghost shapes. Place on a baking sheet covered with wax paper. Melt candy coating and shortening in the microwave; stir until smooth. Slowly spoon over each ghost shape to cover. Use a toothpick to create eyes. Store in the refrigerator.

Spiderweb Dip

Combine 8oz softened cream cheese with 1/2 cup salsa. Spread over serving plate. Spread guacamole over the top. Put several tablespoons of sour cream in a ziploc bag and cut off a TINY tip of the bag. Pipe concentric circles onto the cake. Use a toothpick to draw outward lines. You can leave the dip with the smeared lines for the spiderweb look, or fill the lines in with more piping. In the picture above, both techniques are shown.

Werewolf Fingers

Melt a bag of caramels in a saucepan, adding some milk to thin. Break pretzel rods in half and dip into the caramel. Then roll the rods in Heath morsels or Halloween sprinkles. We decided the rods with Heath candy slightly resembled Werewolf fingers, hence the name. This is a great EASY treat to make for family and friends.

Halloween Chips

Use Halloween cookie cutters to cut shapes out of tortillas. Brush each tortilla with olive oil, and some seasoning salt. Bake in the oven at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes, flip half-way.

Cheesy Dip

Melt a block of Velveeta cheese with some salsa and seasoned ground beef- voila!

Pumpkin Cheese Puffs2 tablespoons Cream Cheese, softened
1/2 tsp Balsamic Vinegar
In a small bowl, combine cream cheese and vinegar. Cover and refrigerate.

1/2 cup Water
1/4 cup Butter
1/4 tsp Salt
1/2 cup Flour
4 drops Yellow Paste Food Coloring
1 drop Red Paste Food Coloring
1/2 cup grated Romano Cheese
2 Eggs
leaves of Fresh Italian Parsley
In a large saucepan, bring the water, butter, and salt to a boil. Add flour all at once, and stir until smooth ball forms. Remove from heat; let stand 5 minutes.
In a small bowl, combine red and yellow food coloring. Stir cheese and food coloring into dough. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each one. Continue beating until mixture is smooth and shiny.
Drop by level tablespoonfuls onto greased cookie sheet, 3 inches apart. Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes, or until lightly browned. Remove to a wire rack to cool.
Using a star tip and reserved cream cheese mixture, pipe the stems onto the puffs. Add parsley leaves. Refrigerate leftovers.

Punch

Floating Hand
Fill a kitchen glove with water and freeze for 24 hours;
drop the frozen hand in your punch/water bowl

Ethnic Foods: Couscous

In SEPTEMBER we met at Dani's house to learn some ethnic foods.

Karli brought an ethnic dish-a Japanese soy bean called Edemame;
she added flavor with salt

Sandra taught us two dishes that are originally Arabian.The Couscous dish was a stew poured over the top of the couscous.

Ingredients:

2 packages of Couscous
2 lbs Lamb for stewing
2 drumsticks Chicken per person (about 8)
2 small 15oz cans Stewed Tomatoes
2-3 medium Turnips
4-5 Zucchinis and Yellow Squash (the more the better)
1 large or 2-3 small cans Garbanzo Beans
Harissa Sauce- add to taste (it comes in a can or tube)

Directions:

Chop lamb.

Brown lamb to golden brown in a frying pan on med-high heat.Remove the lamb meat to a plate.

Brown the chicken drumsticks in the same frying pan.When brown, take the chicken out and set aside.

In the large lamb pan, barely cover the lamb meat with water; add a little salt if desired. Let boil gently for 15 minutes. Add tomatoes and let boil a few minutes longer.

Peel and chop the turnips.And slice the squash, not too thin or it will overcook.

Then add the turnips and the zucchinis. Boil gently. When vegetables are cooked, add the garbanzo beans and the chicken. Cook for an hour on low heat. Add some harissa sauce for flavor.

Now you're ready for the couscous; follow the directions from the box.

Serve the couscous with hot stew immediately.

Note: Add more harissa sauce depending on your preference; harissa sauce can be added to 2 cups of stew juice if you want a mild taste.