Wilson's Own Mac n' Cheese

Ingredients

• 2 quarts water
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt, plus more for seasoning
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups evaporated milk
• 1/2 stick butter, melted
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 16 ounces shredded sharp Cheddar
• Dust with paprika

Recipe courtesy Ed Wilson, Wilson's Holy Smoked BBQ,  I seen it on Guy's Big Bite!!

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Bring water, salt, and oil to boil over high heat Add pasta, bring back to a boil and cook until al dente, 8 to 9 minutes. Drain pasta and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process.

In a large bowl, mix together eggs, evaporated milk, melted butter and salt and pepper, to taste. Stir in 3/4 of the cheese and add the pasta. Spray an 8 by 8-inch baking pan with nonstick spray and add the pasta mixture. Top with remaining cheese and dust with paprika.

Bake until the cheese is golden and bubbly, about 30 minutes. Serve hot.

This recipe was provided by professional chefs and has been scaled down from a bulk recipe provided by a restaurant. The FN chefs have not tested this recipe, in the proportions indicated, and therefore, we cannot make any representation as to the results.

Creamy Cole Slaw

I basically used the recipe below besides, I added a handful of dried cranberries and some sunflower seeds.  Oh and I didn't have celery salt but so I used celery seed. I don't think I  will ever buy coleslaw dressing again!! (hope Chaz like's it)  
**UPDATE** 
Friends The coleslaw was good but I think it needs less mustard Chaz thought I had horse radish in it! The dressing tasted much different before it was mixed with the cabbage. I will try it again but with maybe some changes less mustard and maybe toss it together just before serving.

Recipe courtesy Bobby Flay

1 head green cabbage, finely shredded

• 2 large carrots, finely shredded
• 3/4 cup best-quality mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons sour cream
• 2 tablespoons grated Spanish onion
• 2 tablespoons sugar, or to taste
• 2 tablespoons white vinegar
• 1 tablespoon dry mustard
• 2 teaspoons celery salt
• Salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions

Combine the shredded cabbage and carrots in a large bowl. Whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, onion, sugar, vinegar, mustard, celery salt, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl, and then add to the cabbage mixture. Mix well to combine and taste for seasoning; add more salt, pepper, or sugar if desired

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Freezer Jam

Recipe From my Friend Vicki, Thanks Vicki!

2 cups strawberries, washed, hulled, and coarsely chopped (about two pints)
4 c sugar
1 box Sure-Jell Fruit Pectin for Homemade Jams and Jellies
3/4 c water
washed and rinsed containers to hold 5 cups of jam

Measure exactly 2 cups of chopped berries in a bowl. Stir in sugar. (Vicki said , "It wasn't in this recipe but I smashed mine up with a potato masher and if I do this again might put them in the blender for a smaller size and more liquid consistency." I mashed mine with the potato masher and they were very juicy)

mashed berries

In small saucepan combine pectin and water. Turn burner on high to bring to boil stirring constantly. Continue stirring for 1 minute. Remove from heat. Stir pectin into fruit. Keep stirring until sugar almost completely dissolves. Pour into containers leaving 1/2 inch space at top for expansion during freezing. Cover containers and let stand at room temperature 24 hours until set. Refrigerate for 3 weeks or store in freezer for up to 1 year. Thaw in refrigerator.

berries mixed with sugar

Apple Stuffed Chicken Breast

2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1/2 c chopped apple
2 tbsp shredded Cheddar cheese
1 tbsp Italian-style dried bread crumbs
1 tbsp butter
1/2 cup chicken stock
1 tbsp chicken stock (would of used apple juice but I didn't have any)
1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 tbsp rubbed sage
1 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp apple pie spice,  divided
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 apple sauce

Combine apple, cheese, bread crumbs, cinnamon, 1 tbs apple pie spice, nutmeg and sage.  Set aside. 

Flatten chicken breasts between sheets of waxed paper to 1/4 inch thickness. Divide apple mixture between chicken breasts, and roll up each breast. Secure with toothpicks.

Melt butter or margarine in a 7 inch skillet over medium heat. Brown stuffed chicken breasts.

 Add chicken stock. Cover. Simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink
Transfer chicken to a serving platter. Combine 1 tablespoon water and cornstarch; stir into juices in pan, add 1 tsp apple pie spice and any extra apple you had from stuffing.  OK now this is were I had to figure out what to do the gravy was too corn starchy for me , so I added 1/2 cup of apple sauce. Stir until thickened, Pour gravy over chicken

This recipe developed from one I found on allrecipes.com posted by Behr. Thanks Behr for sharing your recipe!

Blackberry Muffins

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1-1/4 cups plus 1 tablespoon sugar, divided
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 2 cups fresh  blackberries (you can use Frozen)
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 

In a large bowl, cream butter and 1-1/4 cups sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt; gradually stir into creamed mixture alternately with milk. beating well after each addition. Fold in blackberries. Fill greased or paper-lined  (I recommend using paper-liner these were very sticky and hard to get out of the pan)  muffins cups two-thirds full. Sprinkle with remaining sugar. Bake at 375° for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks. 

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Fresh from our garden!!

Charlie  was so proud of himself last week because he

 picked Strawberries for all of us. Sadly they 

were not ripe. But today we did get some nice juicy ripe ones!!

Blackberry Pork Tender Loin

I haven't food blogged  in some time and last night I decided I was going to make something new today!! I found this great recipe and with a few changes. This has replace my cranberry pork as a favorite,  it was that  good!!

• 1 pork tenderloin
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp  ground black pepper
• 1 tbsp  dried rubbed sage
• 1 tbsp crushed dried rosemary, or to taste
• 1/2 jar (8 oz) seedless blackberry jam
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 tbsp red wine (I substituted  grape juice)
• fresh Blackberries 
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• Season the pork tenderloin on all sides with salt, pepper, sage, and rosemary. Place the tenderloin into a slow cooker, and spoon the blackberry jam, 1/4 cup honey, and 2 tablespoons of  grape juice over the pork. Set the cooker to Low, and cook until very tender, 4 to 5 hours
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• Sauce
  • 1/2 cup grape juice
  • 1/2 cup meat drippings
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 1 cup fresh blackberries
  • 1 tbsp corn starch
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• About 15 minutes before serving time, pour 1/2 cup dripping , grape juice mixed with corn starch, honey, and the fresh blackberries into a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-low heat, and simmer until the sauce thickens slightly and some of the berries burst, about 15 minutes. Slice the tenderloin and spoon blackberry-wine sauce over slices.

Recipe came from allreciepes.com but i made a couple of small changes.

UPDATE 1/10/12 : Made this again and this time I also sliced blackberries 

in half and place them on top of the jam before I started cooking. 

Turned out very nice!

Red Lobster's Cheddar Bay Biscuits Recipe

                                          Ingredients:

                             ¾ cup cold whole milk

         4 tablespoons cold butter (1/2 stick)

 ¼ teaspoon garlic powder

1 heaping cup grated cheddar cheese

Bush on Top:

2 tablespoons butter, melted 

¼ teaspoon dried parsley flakes

½ teaspoon garlic powder

pinch salt

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

2. Combine Bisquick with cold butter in a medium bowl using a pastry cutter or a large fork. You don't want to mix too thoroughly. There should be small chunks of butter in there that are about the size of peas. Add cheddar cheese, milk, and ¼ teaspoon garlic. Mix by hand until combined, but don't over mix.

3. Drop approximately ¼-cup portions of the dough onto an ungreased cookie sheet using an ice cream scoop.

4. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes or until the tops of the biscuits begin to turn light brown.

5. When you take the biscuits out of the oven, melt 2 tablespoons butter is a small bowl in your microwave. Stir in ½ teaspoon garlic powder and the dried parsley flakes. Use a brush to spread this garlic butter over the tops of all the biscuits. Use up all of the butter. Makes one dozen biscuits.

Recipe courtesy of Todd Wilbur,

 "Top Secret Restaurant Recipes 2," 

Oatmeal Cranberry White-Chocolate Chip Cookies

2/3 cup butter or margarine, softened
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
11/4 cup  dried Cranberries
2/3 cup white chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375

Using an electric mixer, beat butter or margarine and sugar together in a medium mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Add eggs, mixing well. Combine oats, flour, baking soda and salt in a separate mixing bowl. Add to butter mixture in several additions, mixing well after each addition. Stir in dried cranberries and white chocolate chunks.

Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on wire rack. 

Chewy Cocoa Brownies

1 2/3 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup butter, melted
2 tbsp water
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract  (oops forgot to get this in the picture)
1 1/3 cups all- purpose flour
3/4 cup baking cocoa
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup chocolate chips
Powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350. Grease 13 X 9 inch baking pan.

Combine sugar , butter and water in large bowl. Stir in eggs and vanilla.

Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt in medium bowl; stir into sugar mixture. Stir in chocolate chips. Spread into prepared pan.

Bake for 18- 25 minutes or until wooden tooth pick inserted in center comes out slightly sticky. Cool completely in pan. Sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Kolaches

Blackberry, Apricot, and Peach

Thanks to Susan Wiggs for putting this recipe in her book, The Winter Lodge!!  These were delicious but I will warn you they take a while to make which made me understand and love this line from the book, " My grandmother used to tell me not to worry about how long this whole process takes.

Baking is an act of love, and who cares how long love takes?"

I ended up using Jams instead of the caned fruit!

 KOLACHES

1 tablespoon sugar

2 packets of active dry yeast, which is kind of a pain, since yeast is sold in packages of three

1/2 cup warm water

2 cups milk

6 tablespoons pure unsalted butter

2 teaspoons salt

2 egg yolks, lightly beaten

1/2 cup sugar

6-1/4 cups flour

Put the yeast in a measuring cup and sprinkle 1 tablespoon sugar over it. Add the warm

water. How warm? Most cookbooks say 105 to 115 degrees. Experienced cooks can tell by

sprinkling a few drops on the inside of the wrist. Beginners should use a thermometer. Too hot,

and it’ll kill the active ingredients.

Warm the milk in a small saucepan; add the butter and stir until melted. Cool to

lukewarm and pour into a big mixing bowl. Add the salt and sugar, then pour in the beaten egg 

yolks in a thin stream, whisking briskly to keep the eggs from curdling. Then whisk in the yeast

mixture.

Roll up your sleeves and add flour a cup at a time. When the dough gets too heavy to stir,

mix with your hands. You want the dough to be glossy and sticky. Keep adding flour and knead 

until the dough acquires a sheen. Put the dough ball in an oiled mixing bowl, turning it to coat.

Cover with a damp tea towel and set in a warm place where the air is very still. In about an hour,

the dough should double in size. My grandmother used to push two floured fingertips into the top

of the soft mound, and if the dimples made by her fingers remained, then she would declare the

dough risen. And then, of course, you give it a punch to deflate it. A soft sighing sound, fragrant

with yeast, indicates the dough’s surrender.

Pinch off egg-sized portions and work these into balls. Place on oiled baking sheets,

several inches apart. Let them rise again for fifteen minutes and then use your thumb to make a

deep dimple in each ball for the fruit filling. The exact filling to use is a source of endless debate

among Polish bakers. My grandmother never entered into such a debate. “Do what tastes good”was her motto. A spoonful of raspberry jam, peach pie filling, fig preserves, prune filling or

sweet cheese will do.

Create a popsika by mixing ½ cup of melted butter together with a cup of sugar, ½ cup of

flour and a teaspoon of cinnamon. Sprinkle the popsika over each kolache. Now place the pans in 

a warm place–like above the fridge–and allow to double in bulk again, about 45 minutes to an

hour. Meanwhile preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Bake 20–40 minutes, until golden brown. Pay 

particular attention to the bottoms, which tend to burn if too close to the heat source.

Take the kolaches out of the oven, brush with melted butter and remove from pans to

cool. This recipe makes about three dozen.