Cherry Chicken

4 T extra-virgin olive oil, divided
4 (6 oz) chicken breasts
1 tsp thyme
Salt and pepper
1/4 cup pignoli (pine nuts)
2 c. chicken stock
4 T cold butter
1 medium red onion, finely chopped
3 ribs celery, finely chopped
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 c dry white wine
1 c dried cherries

Preheat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat with 3 T oil. Season chicken with thyme, salt and pepper and add to the hot skillet. Cook for until done on the outside, then move to one side of the skillet.

Add pignoli to the skillet and toast over moderate heat. Add 1T oil, onion, celery, red pepper flakes, and nutmeg. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes or until the celery and onions are tender. Add the stock, and cook until the pan is almost dry. Add the white wine, and cherries continue to cook until there is only about 1/2 cup of liquid left in the pan. Turn the heat off the under the pan. Add butter in small pieces and whisk until it has completely melted.

Serve over rice.

Giffords' Really Good Chocolate Chip Cookies

3/4 cup butter-flavored crisco (buy it in sticks and you won't have the measuring mess)
1-1/4 cups firmly packed brwn sugar
2 tbsp milk
1 tbsp vanilla
1 egg
1-3/4 cups flour
1 tsp salt
3/4 tsp baking soda
1- 1/2 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

Heat 375
Combine crisco,brwn sugar,milk,and vanilla in bowl.Beat in egg. Combine flour, salt and baking soda. Mix into creamed mixture. Stir in chips.

Drop onto ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 8-10 minutes

NOTES: They brought these to this year's 4th of July picnic and they were pretty fantastic. Don't overbake and they'll be the nicest cookie texture you've ever had.

Old-Fashioned Caramel Buttermilk Cake

• 2 c brown sugar
• 2 c buttermilk
• 2 eggs
• 1 tablespoon cocoa
• 2 1/2 Cups Flour
• 1 teaspoon Soda
• 5 Tablespoons Hot water
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla

Cream sugar and eggs. Sift together flour and cocoa, dissolve baking soda into water, and combine all ingredients.
Grease and flour pan. Bake at 350 until done (55-60 minutes for a bundt pan).

Glaze:

• 1 lb powdered sugar (3-4 c.)
• 1 8oz package of cream cheese
• 1 stick butter
• 1 tsp vanilla

Combine all ingredients and pour over cake while still warm, but not hot.

Note: I made a half batch of glaze, and it was plenty. I also had to microwave it for 30-40 secs to get it to a pourable consistency.

Look at how well this came out of the pan. I just let it cool for half an hour and it came right out!

Source: Someone on Ravelry's grandmother

Key Lime Gelato

Base:

• 2 cups whole milk
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 4 large egg yolks
• 2/3 cup sugar

Flavoring:

• 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice, preferably Key lime
• 2 teaspoons grated lime zest
• 3/4 cup (about 5) crushed graham crackers (optional)

In a heavy-bottom saucepan, combine the milk and cream. Place over medium-low heat and cook, stirring occasionally so a skin doesn't form, until tiny bubbles start to form around the edges and the mixture reaches a temperature of 170°F.

Meanwhile, in a medium heat-proof bowl, whisk the egg yolks until smooth. Gradually whisk in the sugar until it is well incorporated and the mixture is thick and pale yellow. Temper the egg yolks by very slowly pouring in the hot milk mixture while whisking continuously. Return the custard to the saucepan and place over low heat. Cook, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon, until the custard is thick enough to coat the back of the spoon and it reaches a temperature of 185°F. Do not bring to a boil.

Pour the mixture through a fine-mesh strainer into a clean bowl and let cool to room temperature, stirring every 5 minutes or so. Once completely cooled, cover and refrigerate until very cold, at least 4 hours or overnight.

Gently whisk the lime juice and zest into the base. Pour the mixture into the container of an ice cream machine and churn. (Optional: Just after churning quickly stir in the graham cracker crumbs.) Transfer to an airtight container and freeze for at least 2 hours before serving.

Cannoli shells

This is the original recipe, found here:

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 tablespoons shortening

1 teaspoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup Marsala

1 egg white

Vegetable oil, for deep frying

Directions

Combine the flour, cinnamon, shortening, sugar and salt, and wetting gradually with the wine, knead together with fingers until rather hard dough or paste is formed. Form into a ball, cover with a cloth and let stand for about 1 hour. Cut dough in half and roll half of the dough into a thin sheet about 1/4-inch thick or less and cut into 4-inch ovals.

Place a metal tube diagonally across each oval lengthwise. Wrap dough around tube by overlapping the 2 sides, sealing the overlapping sides with a little egg white. Meanwhile heat vegetable oil in a large deep pan for deep frying. Drop 1 or 2 of the tubes at a time into the hot oil, fry gently on all sides until dough turns a golden brown color. Remove from pan, let cool a little, gently remove shell from the metal tube. Set shells aside to become cold. Repeat procedure until shells are all made.

NOTES:

1. The flavor was really good and the marsala added a nice, distinct flavor.
2. We made the first ones about 1/4" thick as indicated, and they were BAD! (Didn't get crispy and too tough.) It worked much better to roll it as thin as possible (we could practically see through the dough).
3. Instead of ovals, we'd roll them more into circles to give a nicer finished look. (More filling exposed to dip into pistachios or chocolate shavings.)
4. The egg white is essential to make it all stick together while frying, but try to keep the it off the cannoli tubes so it doesn't make them stick.
5. The oil was heated to about 380 F. There was nothing indicated in the recipe and we just guessed.
6. The filling made about 16 cannoli, and there were more shells than that. I've put some in the freezer to see if that works well.
7. DO NOT FILL THEM TOO FAR AHEAD OF TIME. They were pretty soggy by the next day.

Queso Blanco

1 gallon whole milk

1/4 cup vinegar

1. In a large pot, heat milk to 190 degrees, stirring to keep the bottom from scorching.
2. Once the milk reaches 190, slowly add all the vinegar. Stir until white curds separate and are floating in the yellow-ish whey.
3. Pour curds and when into a colander lined with 3-4 layers of cheesecloth. Let drain for several hours. Store cheese in an air-tight container. It will keep for up to two weeks.

NOTES:

• This is a good, spreadable cheese and can be flavored with herbs, garlic, etc.
• I used about 3/4-1 cup of powdered sugar, 1/4 cup milk or cream (maybe less, depending on the texture), and the outer peel of one lemon (grated on a micro-plane) to make canolli filling. I whipped it with the whisk attachment of my Kitchen-aid. Very good!
• I've also salted it a little (herbs and garlic are also good here) and used it for lasagna or manicotti - basically, wherever you'd use ricotta.
• Sometimes it's necessary to add a little more vinegar to make the curds separate. If it doesn't happen within a minute, add the extra.

YIELD: About 2 1/2 cups of cheese.

Spinach Salad

1 bunch spinach

1 8 ounce can water chestnuts (slivered)

6 slices bacon, fried crisp and crumbled

4-6 thinly sliced green onions

Dressing:

1/4 c sugar

1/2 c oil

2 1/2 tsp ketchup

2 1/2 tbls vinegar

1 tbls Worchestershire sauce

Mix dressing ingredients and set aside. Mix remaining ingredients in a bowl; toss with dressing.

Source: Anoka County 4-H cookbook, p. 296

Notes: When we made this tonight, we made a couple substitutions: no green onion and water chestnuts, instead some chives and 2 sliced, hard-cooked eggs.

Also, I think there's too much dressing for the amount of salad, so I begin by pouring 1/2-2/3 of it on. That's typically enough unless you make a huge batch.