Easy, delicious recipes shamelessly collected, swiped, begged & borrowed from friends & family, TV chefs, cookbooks & magazines ~~ and some original creations too.
Oct 14, 2019
Dill Pickle Dip
A simple dip has been making the rounds the last couple years- salty, sour dill pickles in a creamy dip. Some variations add some dried beef, or minced ham, and I will scarf it down for sure, but I think I prefer the simple, meatless basic version from David Venable.
It does need to languish in the fridge for some time to let the flavors meld, but don't get too far ahead of yourself... it begins to break down a bit ( the pickles begin to mush) about 24 hours after creation.
Use a mixer... in a mixer bowl beat an 8 oz tub of softened cream cheese with1/4 c. sour cream until smooth.
Next, chop up 2 cups of whole dill pickles... not slices or spears...the centers are flimsy. I like the smaller ones. Use a rubber spatula to fold it together. Stick to whole pickles with lots of outside skin on them. Fold in 1/4 c. finely diced red onion, 1 clove shredded garlic, 2 TB minced fresh dill leaves, and then 1/4 cup pickle juice, or more to get the consistency you like. Add some black pepper and a couple small splashes of Sriracha. Not really adding 'hot', just flavor. Chill in its serving dish, at least 6 hours, but see my earlier warning about using it up! Top with fresh dill and a bit of chopped pickles to clue in your friends about the ingredients.
Best served with crisp salty bases, like sturdy ridged potato chips, crackers, or pretzel thins.
Oct 12, 2019
Black and White Cookies- updated!
A280422
Black and Whites are a New York City tradition, well known and loved on the east coast but they never really migrated fully coast to coast. Full disclosure -- I never saw the magic of the popularity. I have tried several over many years, from bakeries and homemade, and always thought the chocolate and vanilla icing made them visually interesting but generic tasting. That's history now!
Two new variations on the recipe : adding trendy-again browned butter, and fresh orange zest and flavoring - make a world of flavor difference. They're fast and simple, and the missing flavor emerged.
Preheat oven to 350 and line flat cookie pans with parchment.
Brown the butter: melt 5 TB salted butter on med-high heat, then simmer 3-4 minutes, not stirring, just wait til the bottom looks golden brown. Don't overcook! If you do, start over. Pour it into a small bowl to cool. In another smallish bowl, whisk 1/4c heavy cream, 1 egg and 1 egg white, the grated zest of 1 orange,and tsp vanilla. In the bowl of a standing mixer with a paddle, combine 1 3/4 c cake flour* with 1 c sugar, 1 tsp baking powder,1/2 tsp kosher salt.. With the mixer on low, pour in the cooled butter and mix 10 seconds. Still on low, pour in the cream mixture.
Drop mounds of dough onto parchment paper on a baking sheet. For about 36 2" mini cookies, use 1 TB. Double that for about 18 bigger cookies. Leave 3" between cookies. Mini cookies will bake in 8-10 minutes, bigger ones in 10-13 minutes. Don't let them brown at all, bake only til the very edges just begin to look a bit brown. Leave them on the pan for one minute to let them set up just a tad, then remove to cool. They'll stick to the pan if left on too long. Cool on a wire rack.
When its time to do the easy icing, whisk 3 TB heavy cream with 2 TB white corn syrup, 1/2 tsp orange extract, and 2 to 2- 1/2 c powdered sugar. When smooth, put half in another bowl and add 2 TB cocoa powder and 1 TB white corn syrup to that bowl. Whisk til smooth.
IMPORTANT: flip the cookies over before icing. Then spread half of each cookie's flat side with the two colors of icing. The icing will harden after 20-30 minutes.
* to make cake flour, just mix 1/4c cornstarch well with 1 3/4 c flour.