Helpful Hints

 So we have all had the dream of neat squares of brownies only to have them stick to the knife as we are cutting them resulting in a crumbly mess . Well no more! A plastic knife will not stick to the brownies as you are making those cuts.  The knife that works best for me is one that started out as a play-dough knife toy. Viola!!!

Chocolate Buttery Nipple Brownies

1lb butter

1lb plus 12 oz dark chocolate chips

6 oz unsweetened chocolate

6 eggs room temperature

2 ¼ c sugar

2 Tablespoon vanilla extract

1/8 C butterscotch liqueur

1/8 C Irish cream

2 Tablespoon instant espresso coffee granules

2 Tablespoon salt

1 ¼ C flour, divided

2 teaspoon baking powder

preheat over to 350

Raw brownie batter in jelly roll pan

Melt butter and chocolate together over a double boiler. Set aside to cool.

Beat eggs and sugar until mixture has lightened to a pale yellow.

Add vanilla, butterscotch, irish cream, coffee, and salt. With mixer on medium speed add the melted chocolate to the egg mixture.

Mix 1 cup of flour with the baking powder. Stir into chocolate mixture. In a ziplock bag place the chocolate chips and ¼ c flour. Shake together and dump the mixture into the batter. Stir with a spoon just until the chips are mixed throughout the batter.

Butter and flour a jelly roll pan ( basically a cookie sheet with sides :). Pour the brownie mixture into pan. You might have to spread the batter with a knife as it will be quite thick.

Bake for 10 minutes. Take pan out of oven and bang it on counter a couple of times. Return to oven and bake for another 10 to 20 min. depending on how well done you like your brownies. I like mine quite raw so once the top has firmed up I take them out and let them cool.

See helpful hints for a easy way to get the brownies cut :)

Dill Lemon Butter

2 sticks of butter, room temperature

¼ -1/2 c of finely chopped dill

1 clove of garlic, minced

zest of ½ lemon

juice of ½ lemon

Salt to taste

Place all the ingredients in a food mixer and whip til butter is creamy. I like to freeze the butter in silicone muffin liners. That way I can make up big batches while the dill is in season. This is delicious on bread, pasta or place a small dab on grilled salmon.

Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

1 stick room temperature butter

11/2 c sugar

11/2 c brown sugar

4 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

1 18 -ounce chunky peanut butter or almond butter

6 c uncooked oatmeal

1 bag of chocolate chips

2 ½ baking soda

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream butter and sugars together until creamy. Add the eggs and vanilla and peanut butter. Slowly add the oatmeal and baking soda. Mix in the chocolate chips with a wooden spoon,

Drop by large spoonfuls on a cookie sheet and flatten with fork. Bake for 8-10 min.

Couscous Avocado Salad

2 cups cooked couscous

10 grape tomatoes, cut in half

½ cucumber peeled, seeded and diced

1 avocado, diced

¼ c chopped almonds

Place all the ingredients in a bowl. Drizzle dressing over it and enjoy.

Dressing:

the juice of 2 lemons

¼ c olive oil

2 Tablespoons whole grain mustard

pinch of salt

Whisk it all together. This dressing also makes a great marinade for chicken.

Ginger Lemon Crock-pot Chicken

2 Tbsp olive oil

2 Tbsp minced garlic

½ c soy sauce

¼ c. fresh lemon juice

¼ c. grated ginger

½ c. sliced green onions

1lb. Button mushrooms

4 boneless chicken breasts

3 boneless chicken thighs

Trader Joes Harvest Grains

Place the ingredients in the order listed above into the crock pot. Cook on low for 5 hours stirring once or twice if you can. Cut chicken into chunks. I like to serve this over Trader Joes Harvest Grains.

Roasted Lemon Dill Shrimp

1 lb shrimp ( I like to peel the shrimp myself but unpeeled is just as good )

2 whole lemons thinly sliced

whole bulb of garlic top cut off

olive oil

kosher salt

Fresh dill

Place shrimp single layer on a heavy bottom baking sheet. Place lemon slices on shrimp and top with dill. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle of salt and pepper. Bake at 375 for about 7-10 min depending on size of shrimp. 

So I cooked some fettuccine and while the pasta was still warm I  rubbed the pasta with the roasted garlic bulb from the shrimp tray.

 I mixed the Spring in Pan veggies with the shrimp and lemon slices and tossed it all with the pasta. Delicious!!