Ginger Snaps

Makes 96 2-1/2 inch cookies or 192 1-3/4 inch cookies

4 cups of all-purpose flour

4 teaspoons baking soda

4 teaspoons ground ginger

3 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground allspice

1/2 teaspoon salt

16 Tablespoons unsalted butter (two sticks), melted

1/2 cup dark molasses

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup (packed) light brown sugar, lump free

2 large egg

1 cup finely chopped crystallized ginger (2 2/3 ounces)

1/2 cup coarse raw sugar crystals for rolling the cookies

---2 cookie sheets lined with parchment paper

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Position the racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven, or in the center if you will bake only 1 sheet at a time.

2. Combine the flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, allspice, and salt in a bowl and mix together thoroughly with a whisk or a fork.

3. Combine the warm (not hot) butter, molasses, granulated sugar, brown sugar and the egg in a large bowl. Mix thoroughly. Add the flour mixture and crystallized ginger, sugars, and eggs in mixer. Add the flour mixture and crystallized ginger and stir until incorporated.

4. Form the dough into 1-1/4 inch balls (slightly more than 1 level Tablespoon of dough to make cookies 2-1/2 inch cookies or use 1/2 Tablespoon of dough to make 1-3/4 inch cookies. Roll dough balls in sugar and place them 2 inches apart on the cookie sheets. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes for large cookies 8 to 10 minutes for small cookies or until they puff up, crack on the surface, and then deflate in the oven. For chewier cookies, remove them from the oven when at least half of the cookies have begun to deflate; for crunchier edges with chewy centers, bake a minute or so longer. Rotate the sheets from back to front and top to bottom about halfway through the baking time to ensure even baking.

5. Slide the parchment liners onto racks or use a metal pancake turner to transfer the cookies from the pan. Cool completely before stacking or storing. Cookies served on the day they are baked will be chewy with crunchy edges. Ginger Snaps will become completely chewy stored in an airtight container. They are best eaten within 3 days.

From Alice Medrich's Cookies and Brownies

Chocolate Pan Cake with Chocolate Fudge Frosting

One 9 x 13-inch cake

Serve big squares of this cake with a glass of cold milk.

FOR THE CAKE

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut in rough chunks

4 tablespoons unsifted unsweetened cocoa powder

1 cup water

2 cups granulated sugar

2 cups unsifted cake flour

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon powdered Vitamin C

2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

FOR THE CHOCOLATE FUDGE FROSTING

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut in chunks

4 oz unsweetened chocolate, chopped

1/3 cup light cream, at room temperature

1 box (1-pound) (3 1/4 cups) confectioners sugar, sifted

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Pinch of salt

1. Lightly butter and flour a 9 x 13 x 2-inch cake pan; set aside. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

2. For the cake, place the butter, cocoa and water in a large saucepan, set over moderately high heat and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat. Sift together the sugar, flour and salt into the large bowl of an electric mixer. Whisk together the buttermilk, eggs and vanilla in a mixing bowl. Pour the hot butter-cocoa-water mixture over the sifted dry mixture and beat on moderate speed until thoroughly blended. Add the whisked egg mixture and continue beating on a low speed until the batter is a uniform color, about 1 1/2 minutes. Pour and scrape the batter into the prepared pan.

3. Bake the cake on the lower-third-level rack of the preheated oven for 20 to 22 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean and dry and the cake shrinks away slightly from the edges of the pan.

4. About 10 minutes before the cake is done, make the fudge frosting. Place the butter, chocolate, cream in a large saucepan, set over low heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until the chocolate has melted down completely. Remove from the heat and beat in the sugar by cupfuls with the vanilla and salt.

5. As soon as the cake is done, remove it from the oven to a wire cooling rack. Immediately spread the frosting evenly over the top with a flexible palette knife. Let the cake cool in the pan.

6. For serving, cut the cake in squares directly from the cake pan.

Cocoa Swirl Coffee Cake

One 9-inch Bundt Cake

Serve thick slices in the morning bread basket, offer thin slices with hot tea, or use slightly stale slices in French Toast.

2 1/2 cups unsifted all purpose flour

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened at room temperature

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

3 extra-large eggs, at room temperature

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup sour cream

Confectioners sugar for dusting

COCOA SWIRL MIXTURE

1/4 cup granulated sugar

3 Tablespoons unsifted unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1. Lightly butter and flour a plain 9-inch bundt pan. Do not use sprays as the crust will taste better with the butter/flour mixture. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

2. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon onto a large sheet of waxed paper; set aside.

3. Cream the butter in the large bowl of and electric mixer on moderately high speed for 2 minutes. Add the sugar in 2 addictions, beating thoroughly after each portion is added. Beat for 1 minute on high speed, blend in the eggs, one at a time. Beat in the vanilla. Scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl and beat the mixture for about 30 seconds longer. With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the sifted dry ingredients in 3 additions and the sour cream in 2 additions, beginning and ending with the dry mixture. Scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl frequently with a rubber spatula to keep the batter even-textured.

4. For the cocoa swirl, combine the sugar, cocoa and cinnamon in a small bowl.

5. Pour and scrape half the batter into the prepared baking pan. Sprinkle the cocoa swirl mixture evenly over the batter. Pour the rest of the batter on top.

6. Bake the cake on the lower-third-level rack of the preheated over for about 50 minutes to 1 hour, or until a wooden pick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean and dry and the cake pulls away slightly from the edges of the pan.

7. Let cool in the pan on a wire rack for 4-5 minutes. Invert onto a second cooling rack, then invert again to cool right side up. Dust the top of the cake with a little sifted confectioners sugar, if you like.

8. Serve the cake cut in medium thick slices.

From Country Cakes: A Home-style Treasury by Lisa Yockelson

Biscuits

Makes 8 biscuits

1 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 Tablespoon baking powder

2 Tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

5 Tablespoons unsalted butter, cold

3/4 cup half-and-half

1. Preheat the oven 450 degrees F.

2. In a large bowl, toss together the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. Cut the butter into small pieces, and cut it into the flour using two knives, a pastry blender, or your fingertips until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

3. Add the half-and-half, and stir gently until the mixture forms a mass. Gather into a ball.

4. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface. Knead it for about 30 seconds, and then pat it out to form a 3/4-inch-thick rectangle. Using a 2 3/4-inch cookie cutter, cut out 8 circles; use up all the dough.

5. Arrange the biscuits about 1 inch apart on baking sheet. Bake until puffed and golden, 14 minutes. Transfer the biscuits to a wire rack and allow them to cool.

--Sweet Biscuits: Before baking, brush the tops of the bisquits with melted butter and sprinkle with additional sugar.

From The New Basics Cookbook by Russo & Lukins

The World's Greatest Brownies

Makes 16 Large (2-inch) or 32 Small (1-inch) Brownies

Brownie

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 cups white sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 pound plus 2 Tablespoons butter

4 ounces baking chocolate (be sure to use good-quality chocolate Ghirardelli.)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 large eggs, beaten until frothy

Frosting

1/2 cup boiling water (You may not need all of it.)

2 cups powdered sugar

1/4 pound butter

4 ounces baking chocolate

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees (300 degrees if using a convection oven). In a bowl, combine all the dry ingredients, except nuts.

2. Melt the butter in a saucepan large enough to hold the chocolate. When the butter is melted, turn down the heat and immediately add the chocolate.

3. Remove the pan from the heat and stir until both the chocolate and the butter are completely incorporated. Add the vanilla and then the eggs. Whisk until mixed. Add the wet mixture to the dry and whisk until smooth and creamy. Stir in the nuts (if using). (Do not mix the nuts with the dry ingredients because the flour will get trapped in the nutmeats and make white spots in the batter.)

4. Pour the batter into a greased 6x9-inch or 8x8-inch (or line a greased pan with waxed paper) and bake for 22 minutes: check. It may take as long as 30 minutes, depending on the oven. The brownie is done when the edges are firm but the very center jiggles slightly when shaken. If you wait until the center is firm the brownie will be more cakelike and fudgy.

5. Remove from the oven and allow the brownie to cool completely, in the pan. You can frost the brownie in the pan or remove it from the pan (if you used waxed paper) to frost. I prefer to invert the brownie and frost the bottom, which is nice and flat. This necessitates using the waxed-paper method.

6. To frost the brownie, have ready 1/2 cup of water, simmering. Sift the powdered sugar into a mixing bowl. Melt the butter in a double boiler, turn off the heat, and add the chocolate. Stir until the chocolate and butter are both melted. Add the vanilla. Immediately whisk the chocolate mixture into the powdered sugar. With an electric mixer or a whisk, beat until blended. Slowly beat in boiling water until the mixture is creamy and shiny. When this occurs, do not add anymore water.

7. Spread the frosting on the cooled brownies in a thin coat, only enough to cover, and set aside to firm. After 1 hour, return and cut the brownies to the desired size; I recommend cutting them into 2-inch squares.

From Sacramental Magic in a Small-Town Cafe by Br. Peter Reinhart

Santa Fe Pork Stew

Serve with cornbread!

6 portions

3 Tablespoons olive oil

3 pounds boneless pork shoulder, cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes

2 1/2 Tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour

2 sweet potatoes

1 1/2 cups dry white wine

1 1/2 canned chicken broth

1/2 cup red wine vinegar

1 1/2 cups chopped onions

1/2 cup chopped fresh Italian (flat leaf) parsley

6 cloves garlic, finely minced

3 Tablespoons tiny capers, drained

1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 cups cooked black beans

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Heat 2 Tablespoons of the oil in a large skillet and brown the pork in small batches. (Add extra oil if necessary.) Transfer the cooked meat to a flameproof casserole.

3. Sprinkle the flour over the pork and cook over medium heat, tossing well, for 3 minutes. Remove from heat.

4. Add the potatoes, wine, stock, vinegar, onions, parsley, half the garlic, 2 Tablespoons of the capers, and 1 Tablespoon cumin to the casserole. Mix well, cover, and bake on the center rack of the oven for 1 hour.

5. Remove the casserole from the oven, and add the remaining garlic, 1 Tablespoon capers, and 1 teaspoon cumin. Add the black beans and pepper, stir, and return to the oven. Bake, uncovered, 15 minutes

6. Keep warm until ready to serve. Right before serving, adjust the seasonings, and return the casserole to the oven, uncovered, to heat through, 5 minutes. Serve immediately.

From The New Basics Cookbook by Rosso & Lukins.

Fajitas

Serves 6

3 pounds skirt steak or boneless chicken

1/4 pound mushrooms, sliced

1 large onion, sliced into half-moon strips

1 teaspoon olive oil

1. Cut steak or chicken across the grain into strips 1/2 inch wide and 2 inches long. The slices should be sliced as uniformly as possible for even cooking, and no thicker than 1/8 inch. It may be easier to do this with partially frozen meat.

2. Place the meat in a bowl and pour the marinade over it. Toss so that it covers the meat evenly. Cover and marinate for 1 hour in the refrigerator.

3. Add the mushrooms and onions. Mix well, cover and refrigerate 1 hour more.

4. Pour the meat, mushrooms, and onions through a sieve or colander into a bowl, reserving all excess marinade. Put the marinade in a saucepan and bring it to a boil. Keep it hot until serving time.

5. Over a high flame or setting, heat a fajita pan (flat, oblong skillet), or a cast-iron frying pan until very hot. Add the olive oil and spread to coat the pan (if your pan is small, divide the mixture and use 2 pans). Add the meat mixture and stir fry for about 3 minutes, or until all the meat is cooked and tender. Remove from the heat.

6. Set a hot pad or trivet on the table and place the fajitas pan on it. The meat is customarily wrapped in warm flour tortillas and served with any of the following: rice, refried beans, salsa, fresca (chopped tomato, green chiles, onion, lemon juice, salt, and pepper), green or red salsa, sour cream, grated cheddar cheese, guacamole or sliced avocado. Serve the hot marinade in a pitcher on the side.

From Sacramental Magic in a Small-Town Cafe by Br. Peter Reinhart

Fajitas Marinade

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/2 cup (Lea & Perrins) Worcestershire sauce

1/2 cup fresh lemon juice

6 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

12 large cloves garlic, minced

1 large onion

2 medium green bell peppers, seeded and diced

2 tomatoes

2 teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

Whisk all the ingredients together in a large bowl. You may marinade up to 3 pounds of meat, poultry, or assorted non-leafy vegetables in this mixture.

From Sacramental Magic in a Small Town Cafe by Br. Peter Reinhart

Poppy Seed Cake

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

1 1/2 cups butter (use best quality, like Amish butter)

1 1/2 cups buttermilk or milk

3 eggs

3 cups unbleached flour

1/4 teaspoon powdered vitamin C (if available)

1 Tablespoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup poppy seeds

1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Prepare bundt pan by buttering the surface and then lightly flouring it. Do not use Pam or any other baking spray as the butter/flour combo makes the crust taste infinitely better!!!

3. Thoroughly cream the butter and the sugar. Add the eggs, one at a time, then beat until the batter becomes light colored and fluffy.

4. Sift the flour, then measure. Add the salt and the baking powder to the flour and then sift again. Stir the poppy seeds into this dry mix..

5. Add the flour and the milk alternately to the mixture starting off with the flour and beat until smooth. Add the vanilla and blend it into the batter.

6. Pour the batter into prepared tube pan. Bake in preheated over for 1 hour. Remove from oven. After 10 minutes remove the cake from the pan and cool on wire rack.

This cake benefits from using the best ingredients. King Arthur's flour, Watkin's vanilla, Amish butter rolls...

Adapted from Get Your Buns in Here by Laurel Wicks

Apple Crisp

Serves Six

8 Granny Smith apples, peeled and sliced

1/3 cup water

1/4 cup flour

1 cup brown sugar, packed in

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 pound butter, in small pieces

1 pint heavy cream or vanilla ice cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 1 1/2 quart baking dish, spread the apples in it, and sprinkle the water on top. Combine the flour, sugar, cinnnamon, and salt in a bowl and rub in the butter with your fingers until it resembles coarse crumbs. Spread evenly over the apples. Bake for about 30 minutes or until crust is browned. Serve hot with heavy cream or ice cream.

From the Fanny Farmer Cookbook

Egg Nog

12 eggs, separated

2 cups of superfine sugar

3 pints light cream

1 pint heavy cream

nutmeg

(2 pints liquor if desired)

Beat egg yolks and sugar together until thick. Slowly stir in creams, and liquor if using. Refrigerate until chilled and pour in punch bowl. Beat egg whites until stiff and fold gently into egg nog. Serve in small cups with fresh ground nutmeg on top.

Susan Meakem's Salsa

1 can black beans

1 can niblet corn

1 can chopped green chiles

3 chopped tomatoes

1 can chopped black olives

1 bunch of scallions, chopped

3 Tablespoons olive oil

2 Tablespoons cider vinegar

1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar

Seasoned salt, garlic salt & pepper to taste

Drain black beans and niblet corn. Mix all together. Store in refrigerator. This keeps for several days. Serve with tortilla chips.

Peach Soup

Makes 6 Servings

3 pounds (12 - 15) unpeeled ripe peaches

2 Tablespoons mild flavor honey

3 Tablespoons of fresh lemon juice

2 cups plain yogurt

1 cup fresh orange juice

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

Set aside 4 of the peaches. Remove the pits from the remaining peaches and puree in a blender or food processor along with the honey and lemon juice. Transfer to a bowl and whisk in the yogurt, orange juice, vanilla, and spices. Slice the remaining peaches and add to the soup. Chill until ready to serve. The soup will keep a few days in the refrigerator.

From Mediterranean Light by Martha Rose Shulman

Chocolate Decadence

1 pound dark sweet chocolate

5 ounces sweet butter

4 large eggs

1 Tablespoon sugar

1 Tablespoon flour

2 cups whipping cream

1 Tablespoon powdered sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

chocolate curls made from one-quarter pound dark sweet chocolate

3 ounces fresh or frozen raspberries

1. Turn oven to 450 degrees F.

2. Line bottom of a cake pan with parchment paper ( or butter flour a round of waxed paper)

3. In the top of a double boiler, melt together 1 pound of good quality chocolate and the butter. When chocolate and butter are melted and smooth, remove from heat.

4. Whisking all the while, place four eggs and one Tablespoon sugar in the top of a double boiler or bain marie (putting a large mixing bowl in a pan of gently bubbling water on top of the stove) until the sugar dissolves and the mixture darkens and becomes barely warm to the touch. Acting quickly, remove the eggs from the heat and beat at the highest speed of an electric mixer until the eggs reach their potential treble volume and are the consistency of lightly whipped cream (five to ten minutes).

5. Remove the mixer. Fold in one Tablespoon of flour. do this very, very gently...now mix one third of the egg mixture into the resting chocolate.

6. Once the egg and rested chocolate are carefully combined, gently fold the chocolate mixture into the remaining whipped eggs. When no longer marbled, pour uncooked Chocolate Decadence into its prepared pan. Tap the pan lightly on the table and place it into the preheated oven.

7. Remove the pan from the oven after 15 minutes. The Decadence will be soft in the center and crusty on the top. When it has cooled, place the cake, while still in its pan, into the freezer for at least a good nights rest. It can be frozen for up to a month.

8. On the chosen day, whip two cups of heavy cream with one Tablespoon powdered sugar and one teaspoon of vanilla.

9. Make chocolate curles from 1/4 pound of the same chocolate using a potato peeler. Have the chocolate slightly above room temperature.

10. Puree and strain eight ounces of fresh or frozen raspberries. Put in bowl.

11. Remove the Chocolate Decadence from th freezer and from its pan by momentarily spinning the pan over high heat. Turn the cake out onto a flat platter. Remove the parchment paper. Cover the Decadence with 2/3's of the whipped cream. Pile the chocolate curls high in the center. Refrigerate, removing from fridge 15 minutes before serving. Serve with bowl of raspberry puree.

From Chocolate Decadence by Veronica di Rosa and Janice Feuer

Garlic Chicken with Garlic, Garlic

Serves 3-4

1 whole chicken, about 3 pounds

40 unpeeled garlic cloves

Salt and pepper to taste

3/4 cup dry white wine

Rub inside and out of the chicken with split clove of garlic. Lightly salt and pepper. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Place chicken on a roasting rack in a baking pan and reduce heat to 350 degrees F. Bake 20 minutes and then pour wine over chicken. Baste again in 10 minutes and again 10 minutes later. Roast a total of 1 hour.

Sauce:

1/2 cup canned Chicken Broth

1/2 cup whipping cream

The cooked garlic cloves

Put the chicken broth in a small saucepan and add the cream. As this is heating, squirt all the garlic cloves into the sauce, discarding the peel. Simmer for a few minutes. Blend with hand blender. Correct the seasoning with salt and pepper and enjoy the sauce on the chicken.

Recipe from The Frugal Gourmet Cooks with Wine by Jeff Smith

Greek Hamburgers

Makes 10 - 12 hamburgers

3 pounds hamburger, very lean

4 Tablespoons olive oil

6 cloves garlic, minced (1 Tablespoon)

1/4 cup red wine

1 Tablespoon oregano

1/4 cup Dijon mustard

Salt and black pepper, to taste

Fried onion for topping

Lettuce

Tomatoes, sliced

Mix ingredients together and form into hamburger patties. Fry or grill.

Recipe adapted from The Frugal Gourmet Cooks with Wine by Jeff Smith

Puree of White Bean Soup

Makes 6 Servings

4 cans of white beans (great northern, navy, or small white)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onions, chopped
1 leeks, white part only, washed and sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 small potatoes, peeled and sliced
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
salt
1/2 - 1 cup milk
freshly ground pepper
juice of 2 large lemons
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley for garnish

1. Heat oil in a large heavy-bottomed soup pot or casserole and add the onion, leek, and 1 clove of the garlic. Saute until the onion is tender.
2. Add beans, remaining garlic, the potatoes, thyme, and bay leaves. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer 30 minutes. Add salt to taste and remove the bay leaf.

3. Puree the soup with hand blender until smooth. Stir in the milk. Thin out with more milk if desired. Heat through and add pepper to taste. Stir in the lemon juice, taste and adjust seasonings, and serve, topping each bowl with a generious sprinkling of parsley and a whole-wheat crouton. The soup will keep 4-5 days in refrigerator, before adding the lemon juice and parsley. It freezes well.

From Mediterranean Light: Delicious Recipes from the World's Healthiest Cuisine by Martha Rose Shulman