Chocolate Peanut Butter Shell

Something for Nick straight from Everyday with Rachel Ray April 2012... but I think my sister in law would like it too!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Shell

2 Tbsp smooth peanut butter
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Microwave peanut butter and chocolate chips on medium power until just melted, stirring once, about 1 minute. Stir until smooth; pour warm over ice cream and wait 1 minute for shell to form. Serve immediately.

Brownies from Scratch

My 8th grade science teacher made the best brownies. I have kept her recipe all of these years. Now I get to pass it down to Nick who actually said "Cooking is starting to be fun!"

Mrs. Kourkoulas' Brownies                           
4 oz. unsweetened chocolate
1/2 cup butter
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup sifted flour
3 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup nuts (optional
Melt the butter and chocolate together in double boiler. (I was brought up thinking this was a special type of pan. When I moved out on my own I could not find one so I just use a bowl set of a pot of water that was brought to a boil then reduced to a simmer.)
In bowl blend sugar and eggs. Add the vanilla and salt and mix until combined. Add chocolate mixture
and finally add flour slowly. Scrape down the sides to make sure it is all combined.
Bake at 375 degrees in a greased (cooking spray) 9x9" pan for approximately 40 minutes.

Raspberry Ice Cream for Dessert

Nick is in charge of the weekly ice cream flavor. It was raspberry for this week. He said it was not as good as the chocolate but he has a scoop of raspberry with a scoop of the chocolate covered in hard shell.

Raspberry Ice Cream

1 pt fresh raspberries
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cup sugar, divided
2 cups heavy cream
1/2 lemon, juiced

1 cup milk

Toss the raspberries, 3/4 cup sugar, and the lemon juice together in a bowl. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours, stirring every 30 minutes. Whisk the eggs in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy.. Whisk in thr remaining 3/4 cup sugar, a little at a time, then continue whisking until completely blended. Pour in the heavy cream and milk. Whisk to blend. Drain the juice from the raspberries into the cream mixture and blend. Mash the raspberries until pureed. Stir them into the cream mixture. Transfer the mixture to an ice cream maker and freeze following the manufacturer's instructions. Makes 1 generous quart.

The NEW Ice Cream Maker

I finally invested in a commercial grade ice cream maker. It is one that does not require pre-freezing of the canister before use. After reading a bunch of reviews I decided on the Cuisinart Supreme. Being the somewhat frugal person that I can be I checked out all the pricing including possibilities on Ebay and found that Amazon.com was seeing a new appliance for only about $25 more than used or refurbished. Thanks Amazon!

Nick and I tried it out for the first time this week using Alton Brown's recipe for chocolate ice cream.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/chocolate-ice-cream-recipe/index.html

I only had 1 spoonful but I will tell you it was better than Ben & Jerry's. Now I just have to figure out how to make NY Super Fudge Chunk.

Warren's Friday Night Poker Party

What to feed 8 hungry guys?

I finally pulled together the menu for the poker party and kept it relatively healthy too.

Shrimp with Red and White Cocktail Sauces

Chicken Basil Meatballs and Chicken Portobello Mushroom Sausages 

with Tomato Sauce, Vidalia Onion Fig Sauce, Maple Chipotle Sauce and

Curried Mango Sauce for dipping

Santa Fe Wraps (recipe follows)

Boulder Canyon Rice & Bean Snack Chips with Adzuki Beans - Chipotle Cheese Flavor 

with Salsa and Roasted Tomatillo Salsa 

Garden Salad

Pulled Turkey Sandwiches with a choice of 

Blueberry BBQ Sauce, Hoisin BBQ Sauce or No-Cook BBQ Sauce 

(recipes follow)

Coleslaw

Corn on the Cob

Pasta Salad with Smoked Turkey

Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble (recipe follows)

Santa Fe Wraps

1 (8 oz) pkg. cream cheese, softened
1/2  cup sour cream
1/2  (4.5 oz) can chopped green chilies
1/2  cup shredded pepper jack cheese
2 green onion tops, sliced
1 tablespoon salsa
1/2  cup fresh spinach, chopped
1 pkgs. flour tortillas 

 

Salsa for dipping

In a large bowl combine first 7 ingredients, beat at medium speed, stir in spinach. Spread evenly over surface of each tortilla, roll up tightly, cut crosswise.Heat for 10 minutes in a 350 degree oven . Serve warm.

Pulled Turkey

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 large yellow onion, sliced
1 ½  cup shredded carrots
1 red bell pepper, chopped
6 cloves garlic, crushed
1tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 ½  tablespoon ground cumin
3 tablespoons paprika
1 ½  tablespoon chili powder
1 ½  tablespoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons white pepper
10 turkey drumsticks, skin removed
4 (14-ounce) cans chicken broth

Heat olive oil in large pot.. Add onions, carrots and bell peppers and sauté until soft, about 2 minutes. Add garlic and stir until well mixed. Add cayenne, cumin, paprika, chili powder, oregano, and white pepper; sauté for 1 minute. Add the turkey legs and stir at least 30 seconds so that legs are completely coated in the spices. Cover with chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low and cover. Cook for 4 hours or until meat is tender and separates easily from the bone. Shred the turkey drumsticks and toss the meat.

Blueberry Barbecue Sauce 

2 teaspoons vegetable oil 

1/4 cup minced onion 

1 tablespoon minced fresh jalapeño chile, seeded 

1/4 cup ketchup 

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar 

3 tablespoons light brown sugar 

3 tablespoons Dijon mustard 

1 teaspoon Tabasco 

2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries 

Salt and freshly ground pepper  

Heat the oil in a saucepan. Add the onion and jalapeño and cook over moderate heat, stirring, until wilted, about 3 minutes. Add the ketchup, vinegar, sugar, mustard and Tabasco and bring to a simmer. Add the blueberries and simmer over low heat, stirring until thickened, about 10 minutes.  Puree the sauce in a food processor until smooth. Pass through a strainer and season with salt and pepper. Serve at room temperature. 

Hoisin BBQ Sauce

2 teaspoons vegetable oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 cup hoisin sauce

1 tablespoon light soy sauce

3 tablespoons sake or dry sherry

1 tablespoon ketchup

1 tablespoon rice vinegar

1/2 teaspoon Asian sesame oil 

Heat the vegetable oil in a small saucepan and cook the garlic over moderately low heat until fragrant.  Add remaining ingredients except sesame oil and simmer over moderately low heat, stirring continuously, until thickened, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the sesame oil. 

No-Cook BBQ Sauce

1 cup ketchup
1/2 cup dry red wine
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon dry mustard
1 tablespoon paprika
2 teaspoons black pepper
4 garlic cloves crushed
4 teaspoons dried oregano

Blend all ingredients in processor until combined.

Rhubarb Strawberry Crisp

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup packed brown sugar

3/4 cup quick-cooking oats

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 cup butter

4 cups sliced fresh or frozen rhubarb

1 pint fresh strawberries, halved

1 cup sugar

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 cup water

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Vanilla ice cream (optional)

Combine the first four ingredients; cut in butter until crumbly. Press half into an ungreased 9-in. square baking pan. Combine rhubarb and strawberries; spoon over crust.In a saucepan, combine sugar and cornstarch. Stir in the water and vanilla; bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook and stir for 2 minutes. Pour over fruit. Sprinkle with remaining crumb mixture. Bake at 350^o for 1 hour. Serve with vanilla ice cream.