Sunday, January 30, 2011

Lofthouse Grocery Store Sugar Cookies

Lofthouse Grocery Store Sugar Cookies
http://macaroniandcheesecake.blogspot.com/


1 cup unsalted butter, softened (Beth used salted butter)
2 cups granulated sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 cups sour cream
5-6 cups flour (until desired consistency for rolling)

In a medium sized bowl, whisk together baking soda, baking powder & 5 cups flour, set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together butter & sugar until light & fluffy. Add in eggs one at a time, mix until incorporated. Mix in sour cream. Place mixer on low speed and add in flour mixture a little at a time, until all is fully incorporated. If dough does not seem the right consistency to roll, add a little more flour a 1/4 cup at a time, adding no more than 1 cup additionally. Dough will still be sticky. Divide dough into two balls and wrap with plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
Liberally flour your rolling area. Roll out dough to 1/4 inch thickness, flouring generously. Dough will be very sticky. Using a round cookie cutter, cut out circles & place them on baking sheet. Bake for 8 minutes, until pale golden. Cool on wire rack. Once cool, frost & decorate. Allow frosting to set then store in an air tight container and allow cookies to sit for a few more hours before serving for the flavors to develop further.
Frosting:
4 cups confectioners sugar
1/2 cup shortening
5 tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract (use clear vanilla if you are leaving frosting white)
food coloring (optional)
In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix together the confectioner's sugar & shortening. Gradually add in the milk until incorporated. Mix in vanilla. Beat until smooth & creamy, approximately 5 minutes. Add food coloring if desired.

Saturday, January 15, 2011

Crock Pot "smoked" Beef Roast or Brisket

Ingredients:Servings:
4 44-6 Servings Size

Update

2 -4 lbs beef roast or 2 -4 lbs beef brisket
2 tablespoons liquid smoke
2 tablespoons fresh coarse ground black pepper
2 tablespoons kosher salt
2 minced fresh garlic cloves
Change Measurements: US | Metric

Directions:Prep Time: 10 mins
Total Time: 1/2 day
1 Trim beef of any large extra fat. A little is good for flavor. 2 Place the roast in the middle of a large piece of aluminum foil. 3 Rub beef all over with all of the spices. 4 Sprinkle liquid smoke over beef and rap tightly in foil. Make sure it's completely wrapped. 5 DO NOT ADD ANY LIQUID TO THE CROCKPOT! 6 Place in crock pot and cook on low setting for 8-10 hrs (10 for a larger cut of beef). 7 Unwrap beef and serve with the "smoker" juices in the crock pot or with your favorite barbecue sauce.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

BBQ Beef Shortribs




2Tbsp. oil

3 lbs. beef short ribs, trimmed of fat



1c. BBQ sauce

2 Tbsp. molasses

2 Tbsp. white vinegar

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1 Tbsp, soy sauce

1/2 C. chopped onion



Brown ribs in the oil then put into a slow cooker. Mix next 6 ingredients well in a bowl. Stir in onion then pour over short ribs Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 4-5

Sunday, January 9, 2011

Sour Cream Coffee Cake

Ingredients
1 cup butter 2 cups white sugar 2 eggs 1 cup sour cream 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/8 teaspoon salt 1/3 cup all-purpose flour 1/2 cup packed brown sugar 2 tablespoons melted butter 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13 inch baking pan.
In a large bowl, cream together 1 cup butter and white sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the sour cream and vanilla. Mix in 2 cups flour, baking powder, and salt. Spread 1/2 of batter in the prepared pan.
Prepare the filling: In a medium bowl mix 1/3 cup flour, brown sugar, 2 tablespoons melted butter, and cinnamon. Sprinkle cake batter with 1/2 the filling. Spread second half of batter over the filling, and top with remaining filling.
Bake 35 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

Thursday, January 6, 2011

Death by Chocolate Chocolate Cookies

recipe makes about 3 dozen

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cups butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 3.9 oz package instant chocolate pudding mix
2 cups of mix-ins (I used 1 cup of milk chocolate chips and 1 cup of semi-sweet chips)

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Set aside. Using a mixer, cream the butter and sugars. Add the eggs one at a time until well incorporated. Be sure to scrape the sides of the bowl often. Add the vanilla and pudding mix. Slowly add the dry ingredients just until combined. Stir in your choice of mix-ins. Bake at 350 degrees for about 10-12 minutes. Don’t over bake.

Dulce de Leche Cheesecake Bars

Dulce de Leche Cheesecake Bars
Adapted from Alice Medrich's Chewy, Gooey, Crispy, Crunchy, Melt-in-Your-Mouth Cookies

For the cheesecake layer, I found it needed more sugar to suit my taste than the original recipe called for, so I added another 2 tablespoons and have made the change in this adapted recipe.

I used dulce le leche here, but any good store-bought caramel sauce (or homemade, for that matter) will work just fine. If at all possible, make these the day before you're going to serve them--the texture of the cheesecake just keeps getting better and better as it sits in the fridge.

Makes 2-3 dozen, depending on size

For the crust:

14 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and still warm
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups all-purpose flour

For the dulce de leche swirl:

1/2 cup dulce de leche (see note)
1/8 teaspoon salt

For the cheesecake layer:

1 1/2 pounds cream cheese, at room temperature
6 tablespoons sugar
1 1 /2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs, at room temperature


Being by making the crust: Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat it to 350 degrees. Line a 9x13-inch baking pan completely with foil, folding the excess over the sides.

In a medium bowl, mix together the melted butter, sugar, vanilla and salt. Add the flour and mix just to combine--the dough will be soft, and might be somewhat oily, that's okay. Press the dough evenly across the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake for about 20-25 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown, with the edges being slightly darker than the center. Let cool on a wire rack.

While the crust is cooling, prepare the rest of the recipe. Lower the oven temperature to 325 degrees. Stir together the dulce de leche with the salt and set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth and creamy on medium speed. Beat in the sugar and vanilla. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Scrape down the bowl well and give it a final beating until the batter is completely smooth and well-blended. Stir 2 tablespoons of the cheesecake batter into the salted dulce de leche.

Pour the remaining cheesecake batter over the cooled crust. Dollop the dulce de leche mixture over the cheesecake batter, leaving plenty of cheesecake batter in between. Using a butter knife, and being careful not to scrape the crust, swirl the dulce de leche into the cheesecake batter in small loopy circles until the surface is nicely marbled. Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until the filling is puffed but still jiggles like Jell-O when the pan is nudged.

Set the pan on a cooling rack and let cool completely. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours but preferably 24 hours before cutting into squares and serving. Keep any leftovers refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 4 days.