Granola

Thought I'd get a post up quickly while I eat my breakfast this morning, then it is time to go play with the girls!  My niece spent the night last night and gets to hang out with Grace and I for the day.  Right now, they are making a giant tent to play house in:-)  We have plans of making some blue playdough and maybe heading to the library later!  Fun!

I just love this granola recipe.  It was given to me by my good friend, Jen, (who is a great cook) and I have already made it several times.  I like to eat it as cereal (it is very filling though, it doesn't take much!), plain, or a favorite of both my kids and I is to mix yogurt and berries together and top it with this granola (think McD's fruit and yogurt parfait).

Granola

4 c. regular oats

1/2 c. shredded coconut 

3/4 c. wheat germ

3/4 c. chopped nuts (almonds, pecans, walnuts)

1/3  c. packed brown sugar

1/2 c. dry milk

2/3 c. honey

1/4 c. Canola oil

Raisins, Craisins, or other dried fruit (optional- I leave them out to keep the hubby and kids happy)

Spray or lightly grease a jelly roll pan and preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Mix all dry ingredients together in a large bowl.  Combine honey and oil in small saucepan, heat to dissolve honey (I just heated it over medium-low while I mixed the dry ingredients).  Pour over the granola mixture, stir well.  

Spread in the pan and bake for 15-20 minutes, stirring every 5.  It won't crisp up until it cools, so don't be tempted to over-bake it.  

Remove from oven, stir it periodically while it cools to separate the grains.  Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.  You can also freeze this.

Famous Chocolate Chip Cookies

Hello.  It is a new day, I think, but I am still at it, shampooing my carpets.  I finished my entire upstairs yesterday (spending nearly 3 hours getting paint out of my daughters carpet before finally giving up) and today I am working on my downstairs.  Oh, then I will go BACK upstairs to shampoo where my dog got sick last night on my freshly shampooed carpets.  Some days, I feel like I am fighting a losing battle.  Oh well, there are worse problems in the world than a house that your family/dog will not let you really get clean.  I am thankful I have 3 healthy children that have the energy and curiosity necessary to turn my home upside down most days.  Now say that 10 times.  


Here are some fabulous chocolate chip cookies that my kids (and husband...and me) absolutely adore.  Yes, they are "just" plain chocolate chip cookies, but they really are anything but plain.  

Famous Chocolate Chip Cookies

1/2 c. butter, softened (DO NOT MELT!!!)

1/2 c. shortening (You can also just use more butter instead.  The cookies won't go flat (like mine are) if you chill the dough 1 hour before baking.)

3/4 c. granulated sugar

3/4 c. brown sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

2 eggs

2 1/2 c. flour

3/4 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

1 package milk chocolate chips (2 cups)

Mix butter, shortening, and sugars--do not overmix (the key to this recipe is minimal mixing - try it with a wooden spoon instead of a mixer).  Add vanilla and eggs.  Sift together the dry ingredients and add them next.  Mix until everything is combined.  Add chocolate chips.  Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes.  Remove them from the oven when they are barely brown.  Serve warm out of the oven with a tall glass of cold milk:-)  

Sweet Restaurant Slaw

Because I am utterly sick of carpet shampooing and want an excuse for a break while I drink my diet coke, I am going to post a second recipe today.  Why am I carpet shampooing, you ask?  Well, that would be because my daughter got her hands on some tempera paints and COVERED her bedroom carpet in it.  I have a home shampooer, but after about 1/2 hour of shampooing I ran and rented a more powerful one.  2 1/2 hours later, I can say that it looks much better, but I still have a long way to go on getting it out.  I am thinking I won't be totally getting it out, not with her white carpet:(  In the grand scheme of things, it IS just carpet.  I guess we will just live with our imperfect, spotted carpet (this isn't the first mishap) and replace it when the kids are a bit older and less...accident prone/destructive.

I love a good coleslaw, especially in the summer.  I haven't found one the rest of my family really enjoys.  That is until this one.  Everyone loved it and even wanted seconds.  I didn't even get any leftovers the next day!

Sweet Restaurant Slaw

16 oz. bag coleslaw mix

1/4 thinly sliced red onion

2/3 c. Light Miracle Whip

3 Tbsp. Canola Oil

1/2 c. white sugar

1 Tbsp. white vinegar

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. poppy seeds

Combine the coleslaw mix and onion in a large bowl.

Whisk together the Miracle Whip, oil, sugar, vinegar, salt, and poppy seeds in a medium bowl; blend throughly.  

Pour dressing mixture over coleslaw and toss to coat.  Chill at least 2 hours before serving.

Rhubarb Streusel Bars

I am feeling a little bit down today, I should really bake myself some of these bars for comfort.  I received this recipe (along with a few other fantastic rhubarb recipes) and some fresh rhubarb from my neighbors garden my first summer in my house.  Now, several years later, we have our own rhubarb plants but this is still a favorite recipe of everyone.  Try this, even if you think you don't like rhubarb, it is to die for!

Rhubarb Streusel Bars

Bottom Crust:

1 c. flour

1/3 c. powdered sugar

1/3 c. butter

Mix (I like to throw it in my food processor to easily get the butter evenly distributed throughout) and press into 9 x 9 greased baking dish.  Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.  

Filling:

1 1/4 c. sugar

2 eggs, beaten

1/4 c. flour

3 c. rhubarb, chopped

1/2 tsp. salt

Mix all together and pour over hot crust.

Topping:

3/4 c. flour

1/3 c. butter

1/2 c. sugar

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

Mix (again, I use my food processor), and sprinkle topping over filling.

Bake at 350 for 45-50 minutes.

Self-Filled Cupcakes with Creamy Chocolate Frosting

Some days, you just have to love ND.  We woke up today, May 7th, to snow.  So far, it isn't melting either.  I wouldn't mind so much, but my oldest is headed for a field trip today out of town.  His class is going to be touring Fort Mandan.  I hope they are still able to enjoy themselves and learn a lot while they are trudging through the snow.  

A day like today is a perfect time to hole up in your kitchen and bake some delicious treats.  How about these cupcakes?  They were absolutely delicious.  I got the cupcake recipe out of my husband's grandma's church cookbook that she gave me.  She is the sweetest woman.  She knows how I love to cook and she is always giving me little kitchen related things.  She most recently gave me her china.  It is beautiful!  I have always wanted china, but I didn't have any.  Her pieces were in perfect condition too, some were still unopened in the box!  The funny thing is, if I would have been able to select my own china, there is a good chance that I would have picked exactly what she gave me.  It is simple, and elegant.  I also just adore that it is from her and it comes with a history.  I will always think of her when I use it.  

Self-Filled Cupcakes

18 1/2 oz. box chocolate cake mix

8 oz. package cream cheese (I used reduced-fat)

1 egg

1/3 c. sugar

pinch of salt

6 oz. chocolate chips (mini would work the best although I made them with regular)

Prepare cake mix, using milk instead of water, per package directions.  Place cupcake papers in cupcake tins.

Divide batter evenly between 24 cupcake papers.  

Cream sugar and softened cream cheese; beat in egg and salt.  Stir in chips.

Equally distribute the cream cheese mixture between all 24 cupcake tins, dropping it on each one, near the center.  

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.  Cool and frost.

Creamy Chocolate Frosting

3 1/2 c. confectioners sugar

8 Tbsp cocoa powder

8 Tbsp butter

7 Tbsp. heavy cream (if you are in a pinch, milk would work OK too)

2 tsp. vanilla extract

In a medium sized bowl, combine the confectioners sugar and cocoa power.  Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter until smooth, then gradually beat in sugar mixture and cream.  Blend in vanilla.  Beat until light and fluffy.  In necessary, adjust consistency with more cream or sugar.

Cheese Buttons (AKA: Kase Knepfla)

One of my warmest childhood memories is having Cheese Buttons at my grandmothers house.  They were, hands down, my favorite food growing up and I still think of them as the ultimate in comfort food today.  When I first married my husband, he wasn't impressed by them...I am pretty sure they are growing on him too.  That could have something to do with that I have become much better at making them.  These may seem odd to all of you non-Germans out there, but give them a try!  I always serve these with canned peaches, because that is what grandma always did:0)

Cheese Buttons (Kase Knepfla)

Dough:

2 1/2 c. flour

1 egg

1 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

1 c. water

Filling:

2 c. dry curd cottage cheese 

1 egg

salt and pepper, to taste

Finishing Ingredients:

Butter, 1/4-1/2 c.

Stale bread pieces (I use at least 5-6 pieces), torn

1 medium onion, sliced

Serve With:
Heavy Cream

Salt, to taste

Combine all ingredients together.  It will be a very stiff dough.  I find that it is very easy to use my Kitchen Aid bread hook to mix this.

Combine filling ingredients together.

Roll dough about 1/4 inch thick on a lightly floured surface and cut into 4 inch squares.  Place a spoon-full of filling on half on each square.  Fold dough over and pinch sides together securely to make the button (my grandma always made triangles instead, so that is what I usually do).

Put buttons into a kettle of slowly boiling salted water and cook for no more than 10 minutes (they are done when they float).  Boil and handle gently, or you may lose filling.

Fry Cheese Buttons in a large skillet with the other finished ingredients until lightly browned.

Drizzle with heavy cream and salt to taste.

May Menu Plan

Breakfast: 
German Apple Pancakes
Homemade Granola
Buttermilk Pancakes
Cinnamon Swirl Bread
Blueberry Muffins

Snacks/Desserts: 
Strawberry Shortcake
Cheesecake Thumbprints
Fudgy Brownies
Yellow Butter-Cake with Chocolate Frosting
Sugar Cookie Bars
Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookies
Chocolate Mint Bars
Rhubarb-Strawberry Crisp

Dinners:
May 1st: Laredo Supper & Frito's
May 2nd Sirloin Steaks with Mushroom Sauce & Chive Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Corn
May 3rd: Italian Chicken Wraps with Homemade Flour Tortillas & Classic Macaroni Salad
May 4th: Hoisin-Glazed Beef Kebabs, Rice Stick Noodles, & Salad
May 5th: Tacos (Cinco de Mayo!)
May 6th: Shrimp Etouffee
May 7th: Island Pork Tenderloin, Parker House Rolls, Veggie
May 8th: Sliders with Shallot Dijon Relish on Parker House Rolls
May 9th: Penne a la Vodka, Tomato & Basil Topped Garlic Brushetta
May 10th: Spicy Peanut Chicken Over Rice
May 11th: Spaghetti & Garlic Bread, Side Salad
May 12th: Warm German Potato Salad, Brats with Buns, Sauerkraut
May 13th: Maple Grilled Salmon, New Potatoes with Roasted Garlic Vinaigrette
May 14th: Homemade Pizza
May 15th: Chicken & Gnocchi Soup, Salad
May 16th: Steak au Poivre, Gratin Dauphinos
May 17th: Classic Cobb Salad
May 18th: Meatloaf (from freezer) & Sides
May 19th: Spicy Pork with Bean Thread Noodles
May 20th: Emeril's BBQ Shrimp with Mini Biscuits
May 21st: Walking Tacos
May 22nd: BWW Night
May 23rd: Spinach & Cheese Cannelloni
May 24th: Chicken Crescent Rolls, Side Salad
May 25th: Pepper Beef
May 26th: Shredded Pork (from freezer), Buns, Coleslaw
May 27th: Open-Faced Crab Salad Sandwiches
May 28th: Homemade Pizza
May 29th: Guacamole Sirloin Burger, Homemade Hamburger Buns
May 30th: BLT Quesadilla Wrap
May 31st: Oriental Fried Rice