Upscale Rice Krispie bars

This is more about the equipment than anything. The silicone mold is super cheap at Hobby Lobby (almost always on sale). You’ll need a circle cutter the same size - 2”. I had to go to Lynn’s for this one because mine is awol. Anyway, I pressed the Aldi ingredients into an oversized cake pan I happen to have and ended up with 48 bars.

You can remold scraps. Use whatever chocolate you have on hand - just spoon a tablespoon (or a little less) in each mold and pop it in the refrigerator for a couple minutes before unmolding. 

If you want them to be even better, try Smitten Kitchen’s brown butter krispie bar recipe. 

The jimmies are from Gygi and are pretty amazing! They taste like actual chocolate rather than nasty wax. If you order jimmies, get their small silicone bowl too. It’s a game-changer for melting chocolate.

Malted Waffles

These always turn out pretty much perfect. A double batch is a little more than we'll eat in a sitting, but you can always freeze and toast the leftovers.

Ingredients

  

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 3 tbsp malt powder (like Carnation)
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 3 large eggs, separated
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1 1/2 cups whole milk, warmed slightly

Instructions

 

• If you are waffling for a crowd, preheat your oven to 150° to keep waffles warm while they wait to be served. Preheat waffle iron.
• Sift the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, malt, and salt) into a large bowl. Set aside.
• Add the melted butter and milk to the egg yolks and whisk to combine.
• Pour the wet ingredients into the flour mixture and whisk to combine.
• Whip the egg whites until soft peaks form.
• Gently fold the egg whites into the egg yolk and flour mixture.
• Cook as directed for your waffle maker and serve immediately.

Iced Coffee Concentrate

 1.5 cups of ground coffee (Pike’s Place works well)

~18 cups of water 

Put coffee grounds into Instant Pot and cover with water to the max fill line. Cook on High for 5 minutes, then let sit to steep for 2 hours. Strain out grounds and refrigerate.

Beef and Cheese Crunch Wraps

 

Ingredients

• 1 lb of ground beef
• 1 onion chopped
• 1/2 tsp salt and pepper
• 2 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp each of cumin and dried cilantro
• 1/4 tsp cayenne
• 1 tbsp minced garlic

• Extra Grande burrito size tortillas Mission brand
• Subway Baja Chipotle Sauce
• Shredded cheddar cheese
• Tostadas
• Sour cream
• Shredded lettuce
• Tomatoes diced
• Taco sauce

Instructions

• Heat a griddle over medium heat. Cook ground beef with a chopped onion and season with taco seasoning. Once beef is fully cooked drain any extra grease and add 1 tbsp minced garlic.
• Lay out a large burrito size tortilla. Add some chipotle sauce and shredded cheddar cheese. Add a scoop of the ground beef and put a tostada on top.
• Add sour cream, shredded lettuce, and diced tomatoes. Fold the sides up and put on the griddle seam side down.
• Cook on low heat until both sides are golden brown. Serve with taco sauce and enjoy!

Notes

This recipe made 4 large crunch wraps. If you don't have a griddle you can make this recipe inside on a stove using a couple of skillets instead. 

Takeout Chicken with Green Beans

 Chicken and marinade:

• 12 oz. boneless skinless chicken breast or thighs, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• ½ teaspoon sesame oil
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon vegetable oil

The rest:

• 1/2 cup chicken stock or water
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons dark soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon white pepper 
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 2 - 4 tablespoons vegetable oil 
• 1 pound green beans (trimmed and cut in half)
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine

Mix together marinade ingredients and toss with chicken, set aside.

Mix together stock, sugar, soy sauce, sesame oil, pepper, and cornstarch to make the sauce.

Preheat wok or large frying pan to nearly smoking hot and add 2 tablespoons of oil followed by the chicken and marinade. Cook stirring until chicken is cooked through, remove chicken.  Add additional 2 tablespoons oil if needed followed by the green beans. Sauté the beans for 2 minutes and add 1/3 cup of water and cover the pan for a minute and a half so they steam. Remove lid and stir in garlic, wine, and the sauce mixture. Add the chicken back in and stir, cooking until the sauce has thickened to your liking.

Notes:

I used all regular soy sauce instead of two kinds

I used mirin instead of Shaoxing

I added a tablespoon of MSG to the sauce mix

Picture Perfect Cobb Salad

 

Ingredients 

For the Vinaigrette: (makes 1 1/2 cups)

• 1/2 cup (120 ml) red wine vinegar

• 1 small shallot (1 ounce; 28 g), roughly chopped (about 1/4 cup)

• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) Dijon mustard

• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) honey

• 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt; for table salt use half as much by volume

• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• 2/3 cup (165 ml) extra-virgin olive oil

For the Salad:

• 4 small heads romaine lettuce (6 ounce; 170 g each), chopped (about 10 cups)

• 3 cups (1/2-inch cubed) poached chicken breasts, (about two 12 ounce; 340 g each)

• 6 ounces cherry tomatoes (1 cup; 170 g), halved

• 8 slices cooked bacon, roughly chopped (about 1 cup chopped)

• 1 large avocado (7 1/2 ounces; 213 g), chopped

• 3 hard-boiled eggs, quartered lengthwise into wedges

• 4 ounces (113 g) blue cheese, crumbled (1 cup crumbled)
  
  Directions

1. In a blender, process red wine vinegar, shallot, Dijon, honey, salt, and pepper on high until smooth, about 20 seconds. With machine running, slowly add oil in a steady stream until emulsified, about 1 minute. Pour vinaigrette into a bowl; set aside.

2. In a large bowl, toss lettuce with 1/2 cup of prepared vinaigrette, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer to a serving bowl or platter.

3. In now-empty large bowl, toss chicken with 2 tablespoons vinaigrette until evenly coated.

4. Arrange dressed chicken over dressed lettuce. In now-empty bowl, toss cherry tomatoes and 2 tablespoons vinaigrette, and decoratively arrange over lettuce. Top salad with bacon, avocado, eggs, and blue cheese. Serve with remaining 1/2 cup vinaigrette for drizzling over top.

Special Equipment 

Blender

Make-Ahead and Storage 

The dressing can be made ahead and refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Briefly whisk or shake in a tightly sealed jar to recombine before using.

The lettuce, poached chicken, tomatoes, bacon, hard-boiled eggs, and blue cheese can all be prepared ahead and refrigerated in separate airtight containers for up to 2 days before assembling the salad.

NOTES: Laurie and I made this for a Core Team meeting. Easy. Fancy. Everyone can choose what they like.

The dressing emulsifies well and lasts a long time in the fridge.

Crunchwrap Supreme

Copying the Taco Bell classic.

• 1 lb hamburger
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• salt
• pepper
• 
  
• 4 large tortillas (10 inch)
• 4 small tortillas (street taco size)
• 4 tostada shells
• nacho cheese sauce (I used 2 gravy scoops of this recipe.)
• 1 cup sour cream
• shredded lettuce
• chopped tomatoes
• 1 cup shredded cheddar
• 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack
• 
  
• 1 tbls vegetable oil

• Brown the hamburger, drain and rinse if necessary.
• Mix in the spices.

Layer:

1. large tortilla
2. 2 scoops of meat
3. nacho cheese sauce (I used a couple of my gravy scoops of this recipe
4. tostada with sour cream spread on top
5. lettuce
6. tomato (opt)
7. small tortilla

Tightly fold edges of the larger tortilla toward the center, creating pleats. Slide it into the hot pan and cook both sides until golden brown.

NOTES:
Worked well. Cook over medium heat and keep an eye on it. They cook faster than expected.

A breakfast version with sausage and scrambled eggs would be good.