sudden saturday sugar cookies

I wished I had halloween sprinkles and black piping icing when I randomly decided to make these on a saturday afternoon.

I made these partially because I thought it would be fun to decorate halloween cookies, but mostly because I had three egg yolks in the fridge, crying out not to be wasted. And this recipe fit the bill!

{"melt in your mouth" sugar cookies}
via Better Homes and Gardens' The New Cookbook
{ingredients}
1/2 c. butter, softened
1/2 c. shortening
2 c. sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon  cream of tartar
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 3/4 c. all-purpose flour
{directions}
In a large mixing bowl beat butter and shortening with an electric mixer on medium high for about 30 seconds. Add sugar, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt. Beat until combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in egg yolks and vanilla until combined. Beat in as much flour as you can. Stir in remaining flour.

Shape dough into 1 inch balls. Place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake in a 300 degree oven about 15 minutes or until sides are set but not brown. Cool on cookie sheet for 1 minute. Transfer to wire rack and let cool.

love that sangria wine

I was introduced to Sangria when I studied in Spain. I'm supplying you with the way my Spanish "madre" there made it for us. And this is of course, in my opinion, the best way to make it. Sangria is a refreshing summer drink made with red wine, carbonation and citrus. It was my experience in Spain that it was drunk like a cold beer, glass of lemonade or tea would be on a hot summer day. Many recipes I found make it with brandy or rum or another alcohol. Feel free to add that if you want, but I think then it becomes more like a mixed drink and less of a light drink you can drink in the middle of the day and just pour from the pitcher multiple times....
Rosa's Authentic Sangria
INGREDIENTS
1 bottle medium or light-bodied red wine such as Syrah, Red Zinfandel or a fruity Merlot
1 small can of limeade concentrate
24- 32 oz (3 - 4 cups) carbonated orange soda
the juice of 2 lemons, or 1/2 c. bottled lemon juice
1 orange
1 lemon
1 lime
{optional}
2/3 c. triple sec (an orange flavored liquor) or other citrusy liquor.*
DIRECTIONS
Into a large pitcher, pour lime juice concentrate and wine. Squeeze the juice of 2 lemons, careful not to get seeds in it! A mesh strainer works well here. Add half the orange soda and any alcohol. Mix well with long spoon. Slice orange, lime and remaining lemon lengthwise, to form circular slices about 1/4 of an inch thick. Remove any seeds. Add to liquid mixture. Cover pitcher with lid or plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours. It just gets better the longer it's had to sit and chill. I usually make it the night before serving it, or at least earlier in the day. Add the rest of the orange soda to taste and stir before serving to give the carbonation a boost.

Allow fruit slices to fall into individual glasses when serving or reserve a few to place in glasses individually. Fruit may dye red so fresh slices in the glasses may make for a better presentation.

This is a very flexible drink to adapt to your taste and preferences. I know it's a little different each time i make it, but the essentials are: red wine, lime, lemon, orange flavors and carbonation. I think the best thing Rosa did was to accomplish both the orange flavor and the carbonation simultaneously. The orange soda is a fun, easy and unexpected secret ingredient.

*I think light rum or triple sec would be the best addition to this if you're looking to amp up the alcohol. More or less than 2/3 cup is a taste preference too, depending on how much you want it to be a mixed drink versus a lighter, daytime summer sip.

(image belongs to thesunblog}

chex mix

This is another family tradition, straight from the side of a cereal box. The original recipe can be found at Chex.com. Never satisfied with the amount of seasoning, I've upped the seasoning mixture a bit, in proportion to the cereal. I suggest being generous with the seasonings, especially the Worcestershire sauce, but that's your prerogative. In my pictures you can see I omitted the bagel chips and nuts, the former was purposeful, the latter was accidental. I think it's good with nuts but found I didnt have the stash I thought I had when I bought the ingredients. I don't like the bagel chips so much and think it's a hassle to make them bite size or find some that are.


Chex Mix, also known as "Trash"
INGREDIENTS
3 cups Corn Chex® cereal
3 cups Rice Chex® cereal
3 cups Wheat Chex® cereal
1 cup mixed nuts
1 cup bite-size pretzels
1/2 cup garlic-flavor bite-size bagel chips or regular-size bagel chips, broken into 1-inch pieces
8 tablespoons butter or margarine
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons seasoned salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
DIRECTIONS
Heat oven to 250°F In large bowl, mix cereals, nuts, pretzels and bagel chips; set aside. In small microwavable bowl, microwave butter uncovered on High about 40 seconds or until melted. Stir in seasonings. Pour over cereal mixture; stir until evenly coated. Pour mixture into roasting pan or large casserole dish. Bake 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Spread on paper towels to cool, about 15 minutes. Store in airtight container.

I've almost always made the doubled version of this recipe, and you almost have to triple it in order to use up all the cereal you've purchased for the purpose. Or you can make Muddy Buddies!

onion and garlic mashed potatoes

I picked up some crab-stuffed salmon at Central Market yesterday and thought it was SO good. Turns out Taylor doesn't like crab. So I get to enjoy the rest of it myself! I made mashed potatoes, and I got to use two of my red kitchen gadgets! Mashed potatoes are one of the things I have the earliest recollection of helping make. I think I may have been delegated the job as a teenager when I kept telling my mom to add more butter and milk.
Onion and Garlic Mashed Potatoes
INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup butter
2-3 potatoes, scrubbed
1/3 cup 2% or whole milk
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese, get fresh cheese and grate it if possible
salt
pepper
DIRECTIONS
Put potatoes in large pot and bring to a boil, reduce heat and cook covered 20 minutes or until tender. Meanwhile in small sauce pan, melt butter over medium and add onions. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer 5 minutes. Add garlic and simmer about 8-10 minutes more until butter appears to be reduced and onions are translucent and tender. (some wine in there might be fun to try next time!) Allow onion butter mixture to cool a bit and then pour into food processor and puree. Once potatoes are cooked, peel them if desired, cube them and add to blender. Mix on low until potatoes are slightly mashed. Add butter mixture. Mix. Add milk until desired consistency. Add salt and pepper to taste, perhaps about 1/2 T. each.

Oniony and garlicy and good! Maybe I'll try truffle oil next!

{image belongs to vegcooking.com}

chex muddy buddies

Family traditions! We made this at home growing up and usually gave (give) containers of it away to friends. Logan and I ate it non-stop once we'd made it. In college I made it with my roommates who called it "Puppy Chow." That name weirds Taylor out and he refuses to try it. ...that and the involvement of peanut butter. Typical.

Chex Muddy Buddies
INGREDIENTS
9 cups Corn Chex
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups powdered sugar
DIRECTIONS
Into large bowl, measure cereal; set aside.
In microwavable bowl, microwave chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter uncovered on High 1 minute; stir. Microwave about 30 seconds longer or until mixture can be stirred smooth. Do not overheat. Stir in vanilla. Pour mixture over cereal, stirring until evenly coated. Pour into 2-gallon resealable food-storage plastic bag.
Add powdered sugar. Seal bag; shake until well coated. Add more powdered sugar until well coated and white. Store in airtight container.
Hello, heaven.

sweet potatoes with streusel topping

This was my very first Thanksgiving contribution. Besides helping assemble my obsession: Green Bean Casserole. I think it turned out well!

INGREDIENTS
4 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1/2 cup whole milk
1/3 c. brown sugar
1 egg
4 T. butter, melted
1/2 T. cinnamon
1/2 T. nutmeg
STRUESEL TOPPING
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/3 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted
DIRECTIONS
Cooking Potatoes
Place sweet potato in a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and cook for 10 minutes or until tender. Drain.

Heat oven to 400 and butter a 9x13 baking dish.

Streusel
Mix first 4 ingredients in small bowl. Add melted butter and rub in with fingertips until moist clumps form.

Potato Assembly
Add cooked and cubed potatoes to a stand mixer and turn to 2. Add milk, sugar, spices and butter and mix well. Add egg and mix for a minute. Add more butter, sugar, and milk to taste. Spread mixture into 9x13 pan and sprinkle streusel over potatoes. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake for another 10 minutes in order for streusel to brown yummily.

(Yams and streusel can be made in advance. Cover separately and refrigerate. Let yams stand at room temperature 1 hour before baking.)

I don't think it matters how you cook the potatoes before doing this dish. I peeled, cubed and then boiled them because I didnt want to spend all day cooking 8 potatoes. (yes, I made two 9x13 pans of this stuff, bleh) Some sites said roasting them helps them keep the best flavor. If I made this again, I think I'd use a whole stick of butter. Also, some recipes called for a little bit of maple syrup. The streusel topping was really good since I decided to rebel against marshmallows.

Now that Thanksgiving has past, it's appropriate to decorate for Christmas! Check out my pics for our first Christmas decor :)