Recipe: Honey Garlic Chicken Wings

We had these last night, mmmmm so good. The trick is to bake the wings before you add the sauce, so they're nice and crispy.

Preheat oven to 425. On a baking sheet, drop two tbsp of margarine or butter. Put the sheet in the hot oven to melt the butter; remove before butter burns.

Then you take the wings (I always buy the pre-cut kind so I don't have to deal with removing the tips, etc), after you've rinsed them of course, and throw them in a resealable plastic bag filled with a flour-seasoning salt-onion salt-garlic powder mixture. Shake the bag around, remove wings and place on baking sheet.

Bake in oven for 15 minutes, then remove and flip the wings; put back in oven for another 10-15 minutes. Wings should be golden and crispy. While all that baking is happening, prepare the sauce. Oh, and at this point you need to reduce the oven heat to 350.

Honey Garlic Sauce

3/4 cup brown sugar

5 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp ginger

2 1/2 cups water

5 tbsp honey

1/4 cup soya sauce

Mix these ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium.

Stir until mixed 3 tbsp cornstarch and 3/4 cup water in a separate bowl or container, then add to honey-garlic mixture. I usually do this in a tupperware container with a lid -- shake the crap out of it until the cornstarch is dissolved, then just dump it in. Continue to boil over medium heat until sauce is thick and bubbly; remove from heat and pour over chicken wings, turning to coat if needed. This makes a ton of sauce and you'll probably think its way too much for the amount of chicken, but trust me, you do need that much sauce. Half of it gets absorbed into the chicken and the other half turns very thick and sticky.

Bake wings for an addition 30-45 minutes (at the lower temp), then remove and enjoy!

Optional: sprinkle a handful of toasted sesame seeds on wings.

Recipe: Cheesecake Brownie Bars

Quite possibly the only thing more delicious than these guys.

Cheesecake Brownie Bars

Makes 16

4 oz unsweetened chocolate, cut up

1/2 cup butter or margarine

1 1/3 cups sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla

3 eggs

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 8-oz pkg cream cheese, softened

1/3 cup sugar

1 egg

4 tsps all-purpose flour

1/4 tsp vanilla

non-stick spray coating

1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1. For chocolate batter, melt unsweetened chocolate and butter or margarine in a medium saucepan over low heat. Remove from heat. Stir in the 1 1/3 cups sugar and 1/2 tsp vanilla. Cool 15 minutes. Beat in the 3 eggs and 3/4 cup flour.
2. For cheesecake filling, combine cream cheese, the 1/3 cup sugar, 1 egg, 4 tsps flour, and 1/4 tsp vanilla in a medium bowl. Beat until creamy and well blended.
3. Spray an 8x8x2-inch baking pan with nonstick coating. Spread two-thirds of chocolate batter in the pan. Spoon cheesecake filling over batter. Dollop with remaining chocolate batter.
4. Bake in 350 oven for 20 minutes. Sprinkle with chocolate chips, and bake for 12 minutes more. Cool in pan on wire rack. Cut into squares. Cover and store in the refrigerator. Let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes before serving.

These layered bars are dense and very rich (you'll want a tall glass of cold milk at hand!). Because of the cheesecake filling, they need to be stored in the fridge. I lined the pan with tinfoil before adding batter, I would suggest doing this.*

The last time I made these I used a rectangular baking pan, rather than a square one. So this time I followed the recipe, used the 8x8x2 square pan, BUT I discovered, to my horror, that the cooking time was not near long enough. The batter at the centre of the pan was still raw! So my suggestion would be to leave it in the oven for an extra 10-20 minutes or so, or else use the rectangular pan and follow the original baking time.

*FOUR REASONS TO LINE BAKING PANS FOR BAR COOKIES WITH FOIL*

• It makes it easy to remove the baked cookie from the pan -- just lift it out along with the foil.
• The cookie is easier to cut when removed from the pan.
• To freeze the cookie, simply overwrap it with another piece of foil.
• Cleanup couldn't be easier -- just throw away the foil.

To line the pan, tear off a piece of foil large enough to extend over the edges of the pan. Invert the pan (put it upside down) and shape the foil to fit. Then turn the pan rightside up and place the foil inside, smoothing to fit. If the recipe calls for a greased pan, grease the foil instead, then continue with the recipe.

Enjoy!

Recipe: Raspberry Almond Shortbread Thumbprint Cookies

Cookies
2/3 cup sugar
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 tsp almond extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup raspberry jam

Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 tsp almond extract
2-3 tsp water

1. Heat oven to 350. In large bowl combine sugar, butter and almond extract. Beat at medium speed until creamy (2-3 minutes). Reduce speed to low; add flour. Beat until well mixed (2-3 minutes). Cover and chill dough at least one hour.
2. Shape dough into 1-inch balls (or use scooper). Place 2 inches apart on cookie sheets. With thumb, make indentation in center of each cookie (edges may crack slightly). Fill each indentation with about 1/4 tsp jam.
3. Bake for 14-18 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Let stand 1 minute; remove from cookie sheet. Cool completely.
4. Meanwhile, in small bowl with wire whisk, stir together all glaze ingredients until smooth. Drizzle over cookies.

Makes 3 1/2 dozen cookies.

TIP: Fill a ziploc sandwich bag with the jam, then snip a small-ish size hole in the bottom corner of the bag. Do the same for the glaze. Makes clean-up a breeze, and you're able to control the amount of jam/glaze you're using much better than with just a spoon.

Recipe: Oatmeal, PB & Choc Chip Cookies

Christmas is upon us, time for holiday baking! Here is the first of about six cookie recipes I'll be posting. Its three drop cookie recipes blended into one and it is fantastic, we make these all the time, but especially at Christmas. One batch yields 6-8 dozen cookies, great for giving out as gifts to teachers, bus drivers, neighbors, etc.

Oatmeal, Peanut Butter, and Chocolate Chip Cookies
Makes 60-72 cookies

3/4 cup butter or margarine
3/4 cup peanut butter
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1 1/4 cups packed brown sugar
1 1/2 tsps baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
3 eggs
1 1/2 tsps vanilla
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 2/3 cups rolled oats
1 cup chocolate chips

1. Beat butter or margarine and peanut butter in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add granulated sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, and baking soda; beat till combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in eggs and vanilla till combined. Beat in flour. Stir in rolled oats with a wooden spoon. Stir in chocolate chips.
2. Drop dough from a tablespoon, or #50 or #60 scoop, 3 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Slightly flatten dough with your hand, if desired. Bake in a 375 oven about 8-10 minutes or till edges are lightly browned. Transfer to wire racks and cool. Store in an airtight container or plastic bag at room temperature up to 3 days.

I like to use parchment paper on the cookie sheets, makes clean-up a breeze. And I have one of those little scoops, it looks like a tiny icecream scoop, that is the only thing I use for shaping drop cookies. Whether you use a scoop or a spoon, cookies that are rounded and of the same size bake more evenly and yield cookies that are uniform in size and shape.

Recipe: Fajitas

Its hard to come up with new and exciting meal ideas for a big family. I tend to stick to the basics like spaghetti, chili, stew, stir-fry. So whenever I do haul out a cookbook and come up with something new, its a surefire hit (the sheer novelty of "NEW food!" haha). Which is how Fajitas came to be on our menu.

Basically I just use cheap steak meat from the store (could use chicken), and the vegetables I prefer are green and red bell peppers, onions and mushrooms (but you could use whatever you want, really). Then I make a pot of rice on the side. And, of course, the tortillas (corn for Tyler, flour ones for the kids). The whole thing about the fajitas is the SAUCE. That's the secret.

Oh, and marinating the meat for at least 4 hours.

(When I make this, I do a double batch so I have lots of sauce left over.)

FAJITA MARINADE

Prep: 5 minutes

Marinate: 4 hours

Makes about 1/2 cup marinade

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp dried oregano leaves

1 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1. In shallow glass or plastic dish or resealable plastic food-storage bag, mix all ingredients.
2. Add about 1 pound boneless or 2-3 pounds bone-in beef, pork or chicken, turning to coat with marinade. Cover dish or seal bag and refrigerate, turning meat occasionally, at least 4 hours but no longer than 24 hours.
3. Remove meat from marinade; reserve marinade. Cook meat as desired, brushing occasionally with marinade.
4. Remaining marinade MUST be boiled to be served as a sauce (if not boiled, discard marinade). In 1-quart saucepan, heat marinade to boiling, stirring constantly; boil and stir 1 minute.

I usually saute the vegetables in another pan while the meat is cooking, with the rice already cooked, and the tortillas warming in the oven. Tyler and the kids like to sprinkle shredded cheese over the hot beef and vegetables, drizzle some marinade on, then a dollop of sour cream, then roll it up in the tortilla. So good!

Recipe: Apple Crisp

Walmart had a sale on apples the other day, a bag of Spartans for $1, so I picked up 3 bags. The kids asked for apple pie and/or tarts, to which I replied, "Are you crazy? Make pastry?" So apple crisp it was. This recipe was taken from my most favorite recipe book ever (it has everything in it), Betty Crocker Cookbook: New Edition.

APPLE CRISP

Prep: 20 min

Bake: 30 min

6 servings

• 4 medium tart cooking apples (Greening, Rome, Granny Smith), sliced (4 cups)
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour (self-rising flour can be used)
• 1/2 cup quick-cooking or old-fashioned oats
• 1/3 cup butter or margarine, softened
• 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• Cream or ice cream, if desired

1. Heat oven to 375F. Grease bottom and sides of 8-inch square pan with shortening. (I used cooking spray)
2. Spread apples in pan. In medium bowl, stir remaining ingredients except cream until well mixed; sprinkle over apples. (I used a spatula to pack it down)
3. Bake about 30 minutes or until topping is golden brown and apples are tender when pierced with a fork. Serve warm with cream or ice cream.

BLUEBERRY CRISP: Substitute 4 cups fresh or frozen (thawed, drained) blueberries for the apples.

CHERRY CRISP: Substitute 1 can (21 oz) cherry pie filling for the apples.

RHUBARB CRISP: Substitute 4 cups cut-up rhubarb for the apples. Sprinkle 1/3 cup granulated sugar over rhubarb; stir to combine. Continue as directed in step 2. If rhubarb is frozen, thaw and drain.

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So I made this recipe for the first time using the 8-inch square baking dish, but I made a couple variations -- obviously I used Spartan apples instead of those listed, and I used 6 because they were small, not medium. The kids gobbled it all up in seconds and wanted more. So the second time I made it I used a 9x13-inch baking dish (made a double batch, those little piglets), so I adjusted the recipe to (this is per batch): 10 small Spartan apples, 1 cup brown sugar, 3/4 cup flour, 3/4 cup oats, 1/2 cup butter, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp nutmeg. Also, I added a secret ingredient!! You know the caramel sauce you buy to top ice cream? Well, I liberally drizzled it all over the apples before I sprinkled the dry mixture on top.

Turned out pretty darn spectacular, if I do say so myself.

ALL NEW: Recipes!

Cooking and baking have never been a major passion of mine, but I've found that over the years I've certainly gotten much better at it. To the point that Lena declares every meal "gourmet!" I don't know about that but even I'll admit that the meals I make nowadays are wayyy better than when I was a rookie mom.

I was in the mood for Chicken Kung Pao tonight and I thought, "Why don't I google some recipes and see if I have all the ingredients?" and sure enough, I did! (Well, not really, I'll explain below.) So with a dash of courage, a sprinkling of hope, and a cup of gumption (like the cooking analogies? lol), I went for it. And the result -- AMAZING! "Better than chinese food!" Ardan exclaimed. I'm so proud of myself.

Here is a picture of what it looks like, from the website where I got the recipe (http://www.blogchef.net/):

And you know what -- it looks exactly like that when you make it! Well, actually, to be totally honest with you, I was missing two of the ingredients so I had to improvise. I didn't have green onions, so I used white sweet onions; I didn't have peanuts so I used sliced blanched almonds. It turned out just as tasty, if not more. The kids are just in awe of me, they think I should have a cooking show on TV. Hah! So here's the recipe, enjoy! (It takes like maybe 20 minutes from start to finish; also I had 2 lbs of chicken so I just doubled everything.)

Ingredients: 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1” pieces; 1 tablespoon cornstarch; 2 teaspoons sesame oil; 3 tablespoons green onions, chopped; 3 garlic cloves, minced; 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes; 1/2 teaspoon powdered ginger; 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar or dry cooking sherry; 2 tablespoons soy sauce; 2 teaspoons sugar; 1/3 cup dry roasted peanuts

Cooking Instructions: Step 1: Combine chicken and cornstarch in a small bowl and toss to coat. Heat sesame oil in wok or frying pan over medium heat; add chicken and stir-fry 5-7 minutes or until no longer pink inside. Remove chicken from wok. Step 2: Add green onions, garlic, red pepper flakes and powdered ginger to the wok and stir-fry for 15 seconds. Step 3: Combine vinegar or sherry, soy sauce and sugar in a small bowl. Mix well and add the sauce to the wok. Step 4: Return chicken to the wok and coat with sauce. Stir in roasted peanuts. Heat thoroughly. Top with additional green onions if desired and serve over white rice.

Yummmmy

To switch things up a bit this morning I decided to try something different, something new, something exciting (yes, this passes as exciting in my little world)....

Instead of putting french vanilla in my coffee, as usual, I put in some candy-cane eggnog! You can pick up little 1 litres of it from No Frills; it was on sale a while back so I picked up like six. But get this -- the expiry date on it is for April 2009! And it doesn't require refrigeration (until you open it), isn't that weird? Its not like regular eggnog in that way. Makes you wonder what the heck its made of, certainly not milk.

Its sooooo good, the kids are obsessed. Its very thick and sweet though, like regular eggnog, so I make my kids mix it half-and-half with skim milk.

But yeah, so I'm having it in my coffee and for some strange reason, it makes my coffee taste like I spiked it with booze! Seriously! I've been trying to figure out what booze it tastes like, the closest I can come up with is Kahlua. So if you're the type who always adds booze to your coffee (mom), you should try this as an alcohol-free alternative. Yum!