Lemon Butter Slice n Bake cookies with Lemon and Vanilla bean Glaze

This recipe came from an old Taste of Home Recipe jazzed up a little!
This was my first slice and bake cookie and to my surprise I was shocked at the melt in your mouth airy consistency these cookies had. They are buttery and light with just a touch of lemon and perfect for Santa, dessert after a big meal or even with a cup of coffee the next morning!!! I hope you enjoy them!

You will need:
3/4 cup of soft butter
1/2 confectioners sugar
1 T of grated lemon peel
1 C. flour
1/2 C cornstarch
Christmas nonpareils

Icing:
1 C confectioners sugar
2 T of fresh lemon juice
1/4 tsp real Vanilla
a pinch of ground Vanilla beans (optional)

Cream butter and sugar till fluffy with a mixer. Add in grated lemon peel. mix flour and corn starch together and slowly mix them into the mixer.  cover this and refrigerate for about an hour. Remove from fridge,  and roll into about a 2 in  diameter log. and then roll in the nonpareils till completly coated and press them down firmly. Wrap in plastic and refridgerate overnight.  Heat oven to 375..... Remove cookies from fridge and  begin to slice in 1/4 in slices with a sharp knife. (i use a thin sharp tomato knife). Place them on a cookie sheet about 1/2 in. apart....they will not spread so they can be close together but not touching! Bake for about 10 min. they will put and just slightly begin to brown on the edge then remove from oven and let cool on sheet about a min. Then move to racks to cool completly.
Now to put on the icing!! The best part in my opinion!
 in a small bowl, place the confectioners sugar and squeeze in the lemon juice and stir. Add the vanilla and the beans and stir again. you want this to be a thick glaze so it wont run. Place a thin layer of glaze on each cooled cookie!
ENJOY!

Spicy Shrimp Pasta

1 lb of shrimp....peel them

Put all of this on top of shrimp and stir:

2 cloves of garlic minced

5-8 dashes of green Tabasco sauce

5 dashes of lousiana hot sauce

salt and pepper and a few flakes of red pepper

melt a tablespoon of butter in pan till it starts to bubble and add shrimp. Cook till pink and then pick the shrimp out of the pan and set aside leaving behind as much garlic as you can.

In the pan add 1/2 of a diced onion and let cook till soft.

Add 1 can of petite diced tomatoes and 1 small can of tomato paste as well as about 1/2 cup of red wine (maybe a little more)  as well as 1/4 cup of water and a pinch of sugar then let it simmer for about 20 minutes. Right at the end I add just a pinch of baking soda and stir. ( it will bubble but it will also reduce a lot of the acidity and make for a smoother sauce)  While that is simmering I boil (in salted water) about 3/4 of a box of whole wheat pasta and just before done I drain them and save just about 2/3 of a cup of pasta water and set aside. Mix the pasta and sauce together and stir and add as much of the pasta water as you think you need to get the consistency you want for the sauce. Taste to see if you need to add a little more salt or pepper. I added a few more flakes of red pepper because I liked it really spicy! Let this sit for about 10 min. Then plate the pasta, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and top with shrimps and serve! I served with a green salad and garlic bread! It was fantastic!

Little Breakfast cups

These are truly genius by design and really quite simple. It is now one of my kids favorite breakfast ideas. In fact that was what Grant decided he wanted tonight. We did them with Prosciutto and smoked Gouda tonight and that may be my new favorite. I was doing the Black Forrest ham with Swiss before that! I set the recipe up for six but you can easily add or subtract to make how many you want! The best part is that they are so versatile that the possibilities are endless!!!

Here is the basic idea:

You will need:

6 eggs

6 slices of bread with crust trimmed

6 slices of Black Forrest ham or prosciutto ( or other fine deli meat)

6 slices of Swiss or Provolone or smoked Gouda (what ever you like)

salt and pepper

little bit of butter

heat oven to 350.

trim the bread of crust and then flatten completely. butter lightly both sides of the bread and gently place into muffin cups. do the best to to make the bread fit the cup without tearing it. Bake the bread cups for about 5 min. or until just toasted. place whatever deli meat you have chosen into the cup then the cheese and then ever so gently you crack the egg right on top of the cup and sprinkle it with just a little salt and pepper. Repeat this process for the other cups and then place in the oven to bake. They usually take about 15 min but you are looking to see that the egg whites have turned white and that the yolk isn't too jiggly. You can bake them till the yolk is completely set if you like your eggs well done. remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes. Serve and Enjoy!!!

Stationery card

This is our Christmas card this year...Sorry I have been such a slacker on the blog here lately but i'm going to try to get up some great holiday recipes for you and your family in the next few days!

White Chicken Chili

This recipe makes a feast! Its makes my soup pot completely full so we are only able to eat about 1/2 then I freeze the rest for another night!! It freezes really well! I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
1 rotisserie chicken deboned (or 4 chicken breast oven roasted and diced)
1 can of Chicken Broth
4 Cans of cannellini beans or Great white Northern beans ( I like bushes cannellini beans)
1 can Cream of chicken Soup
16 oz of Dairy fresh Sour cream
1 can of Rotel
1 small can of chopped green chilles
1 Pound  of Velveta cheese cubed
1 small bag of frozen white corn
1 package of Mc Cormick White chicken Chilli mix
1/2 stick of butter
1 onion cubed
2 celery ribs chopped
2 garlic cloves minced
1/2 a bell pepper chopped
2 chicken bullion cubes
put chicken bullion cube in 1/4 C of really hot water and set aside. Saute onion, celery, and bell pepper, and garlic in butter. when veggies are semi-soft add the seasoning mix. cook till soft and then pour in the chicken bullion and water and then stir. Add chicken broth and chicken and stir again. Then begin adding all the rest of your ingredients. Do not drain anything....just pour it all in! Keep your pot on med -low and stir often till everything is melted and well incorporated. Then let keep on very low for about 30- 40 min to let all the flavors melt together. Stir it from to time so nothing sticks to the bottom. ENJOY!

Pumpkin Spiced Pecan Pancakes

When Chris (my husband) works late, we often have breakfast for supper. It is one of my favorite things and one of his least favorite things for supper. Tonight we had pancakes and on my last trip  visiting my sister in Baltimore she introduced me to this pancake mix put out by Williams Sonama that is a pumpkin spice mix and also a seasonal item. Well it was the most fantastic pancake mix I had ever used/tasted. I thought I definitely need more of this stuff but I hesitated to stock pile cans of it like I was expecting a nuclear war because at $15 a pop I just wasn't sure I needed it that bad. So with a little thought to it I said I bet I can do something like this and gave it a try!! It turned out pretty dang close if I say so myself!! So here is the recipe for all my friends to enjoy! ( This recipe was made for 1 adult and 2 children...about 6 nice size pancakes. double it if you want to feed more)

1 1/4 cups of Krustez pancake mix

1/2 can of Libby's pure pumpkin

1 egg

3/4 cup of milk ( maybe a little more...depends on the consistency you like)

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1/2 tsp cinnamon

a little less than a 1/4 tsp of nutmeg

Mix milk, pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, brown sugar, and egg together with a whisk. then add your pancake mix and gently whisk in the pecans. once its all mixed together, have your pan hot and ready to go. ( mine is usually set to just below medium ) Put a small pat of butter in the pan and just as it gets melted  pour in a pancake. ( I used a cookie scooper...it keeps them all about the same size and i jiggle the pan to get a good even spread) when the pancake starts to bubble at the edges then you very gently flip it over. it will rise in the center and it should be done....slap on some butter and maple syrup and you have just a little bite of heaven!!!

 

Chicken, Artichoke and Spinach with Pasta in a Sundried tomato cream sauce

This recipe is simple to through together if you have all the ingredients on hand! The best part is that it taste like you spent hours making it!

Ingredients: 

3 boneless skinless chicken breast (cut into bite size strips/cubes then lightly salted and peppered)

1 jar sun dried tomato cream sauce (sun dried tomato Alfredo sauce)

2 Tbsp of white wine

1 can artichokes quatered

1 1/2 cups cooked orzo ( or another small pasta that you prefer)

1 bag of fresh spinach

1/4 C of parmesean cheese

1 bag of Sargento Italian cheese mix

place raw chicken in bottom of 9x13 pan and then mix cream sauce with wine and pour over the top of the chicken. place artichokes on top and put 1/2 of your Parmesan and half the bag of Italian cheese on top and bake for 30 min at 375 degrees. remove from oven and stir in the orzo and spinach. put the rest of the cheese on top and but back into the oven till cheese is melted. (about 8 min) Remove from oven and serve.