Buckeye Pretzels

I live in Ohio, home of The  Ohio State University, whose  sports teams and followers are called Buckeyes.  If you  live nearby you already know about our  'buckeye' candies:  peanut butter/sugar balls dipped partway in chocolate to resemble a buckeye.

  We are  inundated with 'buckeye'd   items everywhere  -- clothing, cheesecakes,  car lots,   and a myriad of other references. I'm setting up the scenario  to explain why  I did feel like a   fool  in Paris, when the first thing I saw in Luxembourg Gardens was a huge  horse chestnut tree, surrounded by fallen nuts. Buckeyes!  Actually, horse chestnuts.    I  was so surprised  that a "buckeye" tree had made its' way across the ocean to France.      OK, that's all the brain fog I will  admit to today.  

These  tasty snacks are yet another  nod to the buckeye.  They're also easy to convert to a low sodium diet by using unsalted butter, pretzels and  peanut butter.

For  25,  you'll need 50 tiny pretzels, unbroken. I only say this obvious statement    because I have purchased smaller bags and found way too many slightly broken pretzels to get 25 matched 'sets'.

 Line a baking sheet with parchment or foil.   Use a mixer to combine 1 c.  creamy peanut butter with 2 TB softened butter. Scrape the bowl and  add 1/2 c powdered sugar and 3/4 c. brown sugar and beat well.   You should be able to roll  tiny balls without creating a sticky mess in your hands.  Add   more powdered sugar if needed.

Roll it all into  balls using no more than a teaspoon for each.  Make a couple test balls with the pretzels to  be sure they don't squish wildly out of the pretzel 'sandwich',   making a  mess  to serve and eat.

Place the pretzel sandwiches on parchment and chill at least 30 minutes  or  until you get back to them in a day or so.    Then melt the chocolate and dip them  about halfway. Place on the parchment-lined trays and pop in the fridge again long enough for the chocolate to harden.  After that  they don't need to be refrigerated.  I store them in the freezer.      And that's a Buckeye Pretzel.       O-H-I-O.     Some of you will 'get' that reference!

Sticky Ginger Soy Chicken

Clipped from one of the Sunday-papers ( Parade, I believe)  this blogger's  contributed recipe   is a new favorite quick meal  at our house that is incredibly fast  & incredibly tasty.  It's just a bonus that it was so simple to convert to a lower-sodium recipe by using  the only  real low sodium soy sauce I've  ever found, China Town, which has about 75% less sodium than any of the 'reduced sodium' brands, making this wonderful, aromatic dish a   quick dinner,  free of sodium-guilt.   You are welcome to stick to any soy sauce you choose

This is Parade's photo! We are always in a rush to devour this and I never remember to take a picture  to use here.

This recipe uses whole thighs, but  people with little kids will probably cut them up into small strips first  --- which of course would make the cooking period just about instantaneous.

Make the simple  marinade:   1/4 c brown sugar ( I use brown splenda), 3 TB soy sauce, 2 cloves minced garlic, and 1/2 tsp ground  ginger, a pinch of black pepper.    Mix well and place in a zipper bag with 4 boneless skinless chicken thighs. Marinate at least 30 minutes and as long as  a day, refrigerated.

Heat a  large heavy skillet and barely cover the bottom of the pan with  less than 1 TB olive oil. Tilt the pan so it dribbles around and mostly- covers the bottom.  Lift each thigh out of the  bag, letting the marinade  drip off  into the bag  and place the chicken  in the  hot oil.  Cook over medium heat and  cut into the middle to be sure they're done -- this won't take long, not more than 10 minutes max.   Flip the meat now and then, it will darken as it cooks. And smell just delightful!

Then pour the remaining marinade into the pan, with the chicken, and boil & whisk as it reduces into a thick glaze that smells just like your favorite Chinese restaurant.  Spoon the glaze over the chicken.  To plate just place it on the rice, sprinkle chopped green onion and sesame seeds over the top.

Deliciousness  beyond all expectation, and ready  in a flash.    I should note that the original recipe  is  enough marinade/sauce for 8 thighs . I  hate  not having a lot of sauce so  I choose to use these amounts for just 4 thighs and have lots of thick gooey sauce to roll around in. 

Citrus Salad

  The origin of most recipes that I've clipped somewhere  is lost,  but I do remember that this salad recipe is from a Better Homes & Gardens magazine just a few years ago.

  I've  served it several times  at Easter   since it seems spring-y and light.  I admit to using refrigerated, purchased citrus cups sometimes, to avoid peeling the fruit, but there is no doubt that fresh fruit is better. Today I'm serving it with  cream cheese spinach soup, and a tomato tart.    You can search  both  recipes  on this blog. 

• 3 oranges peeled and white membranes removed (canned mandarins only in desperate times!)                
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon snipped tarragon
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 heads Bibb* lettuce , torn
• 1 pink grapefruit, peeled and thinly sliced
• 2 clementines, peeled and separated into segments
• 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut, flaked, and toasted - the important touch!              

For the dressing, squeeze juice from 1 orange and transfer to a small bowl. Whisk in mustard, tarragon and the oil. Peel and slice remaining oranges.

1. Toss lettuce with dressing; gently toss in citrus slices and segments. Arrange on platter. Top with toasted coconut. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

* Bibb,  Boston and Butter lettuce are interchangeable.

Pumpkin Cookies with Brown Sugar Icing

    Our   favorite   fall cookie was   clipped from a  small  Reader's Digest-sized newsprint  magazine that published only  readers recipes -- a pretty radical idea then, long before  Taste Of Home began publishing home  recipes.    Thank you Mrs. Eleanor Harmon of Tulsa, Oklahoma, wherever you may be now,  for  submitting your  recipe to Home Cooking in 1973.  I've never found a  soft  pumpkin cookie I like  more.   

Cream 1 c. solid Crisco with 1c. sugar and 1 egg.  Add 1 c. canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling,  but you already know that).   Sift all the dry ingredients together :  1 tsp each baking soda, cinnamon, and baking  powder  and   2 c. flour,  1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 c. chopped  pecans or walnuts, 1/2 c. raisins.  Add it all to the wet ingredients and add 1 tsp vanilla.   Drop by  generous tablespoons onto  greased cookie pans. 

Bake in a preheated 350 oven for about 10-12 minutes. They should just be just barely firm on top, don't let them brown.  Cool before frosting.

To make the icing,  cook 3 TB butter with 1/2 c brown sugar and 3-4 tsp  milk  just to the boiling point, then cool and add 3/4 tsp vanilla and 1 c. powdered sugar.    This frosts about 2 1/2  to 3 dozen smallish cookies, but  we  like them bigger, so I always increase the baking time by a couple of minutes.  If you make the icing before the cookies are ready, you may need to  thin it out by warming a bit and/or stirring in a couple more tablespoons of milk.

Brownie Pie

I always have called this slightly chewy, slightly gooey chocolate delight   Brownie  Pie, but if you live in the south you may call it Tar Heel Pie.  North Carolina's  pine forests  produce a lot of tar, earning it the nickname "Tar Heel State". There's your trivia for today.

 I should probably rename it  "Bake Sale Miracle Pie" in  recognition of the frequency  of times I sent  these pies  to my kids  school bake sales.   It takes no more than 5 minutes to toss  in one bowl and the ingredients are always on hand,  so  midnight  baking wasn't unusual.     The bake sale days are long over   and now  we are watching sodium.  I realized that it just happens to be   naturally low in sodium at 45mg per each of 6 slices if you leave out the salt, or 145mg  if you include it.   I always do, because salt does something wonderful to chocolate. Coffee makes chocolate 'pop' too, so this rich pie is doubly delicious.

 
Here goes:   Melt 1 stick unsalted butter and pour the hot butter over 1 c. semisweet chocolate chips and stir til melted and well mixed. Then add 2 beaten eggs, 1/3 c flour, 1/2 c. brown sugar, 1/2c white sugar, 1 tsp dry instant coffee granules, 1 tsp vanilla, 1/4 tsp kosher salt ( optional), and 1 c chopped walnuts or pecans. Pour into an unbaked  pie crust and bake in a preheated 350 oven for about 30- 35 minutes. The top will be shiny and set. Cool for at least an hour before cutting &  serving.  If you'd like to serve it warm, let it cool completely first   and later nuke individual slices  for 15 seconds before serving. Whipped cream or vanilla ice cream are   traditional, but I will understand  completely if   Graeter's strawberry chocolate chip ice cream shows up instead. 

Vietnamese Beef and Potatoes

Yes,  this is a  simple stir fry made with beef, onion, and....potato chips!   Kettle chips, specifically.  Not just a super-quick, tasty dish, but a great conversation piece. I'll bet you'll make it again! 

In a small bowl, combine 2/3 c.  beef broth, 3 TB oyster sauce, 1 TB garlic-ginger stir-fry sauce, and 2 tsp. cornstarch.  Blend well and set aside.

Heat 1 TB peanut oil in a large skillet or a wok over medium-high until hot.  Add 1 small onion cut in thin wedges; cook and stir 2 minutes.  Add 1 lb. boneless beef sirloin, cut lengthwise into 2" wide strips thinly sliced.  Cook and stir 3-4 minutes until browned.

Stir broth mixture until smooth and add to skillet. Cook and stir 1 minutes or until thick and bubbly.  Add 4 oz.  kettle chips ( 4 cups) and toss gently to coat with sauce.  

Makes  four  1 1/2 c.  servings. 

Frozen ( or not ) Grasshopper Pie

Back in the olden days -- the 70's --- Grasshoppers were a popular  frozen minty  cocktail  made with green crème de menthe and vanilla ice cream.   Soon a recipe circulated among our card club for  frozen  grasshopper pie one of the hostesses served.   I haven't made this for....um.... let's say 40 years,  until it popped up in  a magazine recently... Food Network,  maybe.  They don't mention freezing it, but that's the way we enjoyed  it.    Just let it set out for 10 or 15 minutes to thaw a bit  before cutting.   Here goes:

Melt 24  regular-size marshmallows in 2/3 cup half -and-half cream in a double boiler  or very slowly & carefully over low heat.  Remove the pan and let it cool before folding in 2 TB white crème de cacao and 2 TB green crème de  menthe.  Fold in 1/2 pint whipping cream, whipped, and pour the filling into a  9" chocolate crumb crust.  Freeze for at least 3 hours or chill  for at least 1 hour.    Serve topped  with more whipped cream,  a few crushed chocolate cookies, and   fresh mint leaves.  I think  we sometimes dribbled a  few  tablespoons  of crème de menthe over the  whipped cream when we served it.  

Snowberry Saltine Pie

My  task today was to gather some of my favorite  low-sodium recipes to share  with a caterer for an American Heart Association lunch event  called "Go Red For Women".    We need to keep fat and sodium at a minimum, while delighting guests with great food, so this dessert came to mind.   I give full credit to Midwest Living magazine where I found  it  in 1994 and have been making it ever since. The  soft, crunchy salty-sweet meringue is so good.    For this recipe, I  simply  substitute low-sodium saltines ("unsalted tops").  I can't tell the difference.   If you like,  use whipped topping with a  tiny splash of almond  or vanilla extract instead of whipped cream.  Whipped cream is definitely better, but if you're concerned with the fat content, go with the topping. Don't make the filling  more than 4 hours ahead, so the fruit doesn't weep and  stain the whipped cream.

  While I tend to use mixed  berries of all kinds,  I've also used peaches, plums, kiwi and nectarines cut in berry-size pieces.   I think a mixture looks prettiest, especially with kiwi or blackberries  for a touch of purple or green.

4 egg whites, 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 1 cup sugar
16 saltine crackers, crushed,1/2 cup  finely   chopped pecans,1 cup whipping cream or   2  1/4 c  whipped topping,1/3 cup sugar,1 teaspoon vanilla
2 -3 cups fresh or frozen raspberries, blueberries, sliced strawberries, cherries, or blackberries, all  pieces about the same size

Grease and flour a 9-inch pie plate. Set aside.          

1. In a large bowl, beat egg whites and cream of tartar until foamy. Beat in 1 teaspoon vanilla. Gradually beat in the 1 cup sugar until stiff peaks form (tips stand straight). Fold in crackers and pecans.
2. Transfer egg mixture to prepared pie plate, spreading over bottom and side. Bake in a 325 degree F oven for 35 to 40 minutes or until  very pale golden. Cool.
3. For filling, in a large bowl, beat cream, the 1/3 cup sugar, and 1 teaspoon vanilla until soft peaks form (tips curl).  Fold in berries. Spoon into crust. Store in the refrigerator. Makes 8 servings.

         

Chicken Stroganoff

Don't  you love it when   a few ordinary ingredients somehow combine to  create  a superb flavor far beyond the ( expected)  sum of its  parts ?   The recipe was published decades ago in Bon Appetit .  I've made it  a few zillion times for family and for catering clients. It's inexpensive, very fast, and addictively good. 

Two caveats:  if not served immediately,  your noodles (even more than rice) will absorb all  the rich sauce if left to languish very long, so don't mix them until the last minute.  If you anticipate that they'll end up sitting a few minutes before eating,  double the sauce ingredients to have extra.   And the second caution is not to think you can skip  or substitute something else for the Dijon.  Now and then there is a sole ingredient responsible for a flavor meld, and this is the role of the Dijon.  You won't identify the flavor profile as being mustard-y, just delicious!

Cut 5 skinless chicken breasts in 1"  pieces and  brown lightly in batches  in  2 TB butter for about 5 minutes, removing to another dish and keep warm if you're serving soon.  Don't crowd the pan, or you'll steam the chicken.    To the pan, add 8 oz. sliced fresh mushrooms and 1 medium onion, sliced.  Cook until light brown, 6-8 minutes and then add to the dish with  the chicken. These steps can be done ahead.  Bring the chicken, onion and mushrooms to room temperature again, and then warm briefly before proceeding.

Melt  1 TB butter in the pan, add 1 TB  flour, and stir for 3 minutes.  Whisk in 1 cup warm chicken broth and whisk well, scraping up any browned bits at the bottom of the pan. and adding salt and pepper to taste.   Stir vigorously  until thickened and smooth, about 5 minutes.  Stir in 1 TB Dijon mustard and 1/2 cup sour cream and cook until warmed through.  Don't let it boil.   Add the chicken, onion, and mushrooms back to the pan.

Serve   to 4-6 people  over rice or  buttered noodles, and sprinkle with  chopped parsley for a pretty touch of color. 

 

Orangekuchen - Danish Pastry at Home

"Orange cake" in Danish!  For decades the Danes have rightfully declared themselves masters of light, flaky pastries.  We love this departure from the usual breakfast treats.  Also perfect for a tea, cut in much  smaller pieces.  The fresh citrus flavor is delightful.  The  thin orange-cheese layer needs to 'ripen' overnight, so a little planning is necessary. Otherwise it's a cinch to make.

First, make the pastry. It needs to chill a bit before being rolled out.   Combine 1 c. flour and  1/3 c. sugar in a food processor or Ninja.  PULSE to  mix it and then, pulsing, add 6 TB. cold butter.  Process just until it's the consistency of coarse crumbs.   Mix 1 egg yolk with 1 TB + 2 tsp icy-cold water with a fork , add to the mixture and blend just  til a dough forms.  Don't over-process.   Chill, wrapped in plastic or foil, for 30 minutes -- or longer  if that's more convenient.  Preheat the oven for at least 15 minutes, to 375.

Roll out the pastry to  fit an 11"  round tart pan or a quarter- sheet pan, rolling  between parchment or wax paper. The crust will be very thin.  My 1970's recipe specified a 13x9 pan but  neither my pastry or my filling ever seemed to be  quite enough.  The pastry needs to be cold, so it doesn't always roll well.  Let it be known that more than once I've taken the rolled pastry -- which on those occasions resembled a wildly  and hopelessly irregular amoeba --  laid it in the  pan, and pieced together a crust by pressing  bits and pieces  to get to  the edges.  You will lose some of that layered  flakiness, but you may  maintain your sanity.  Fair exchange, I feel.    Now place the pan in the freezer for 10 minutes to chill again.   That cold dough hitting a hot oven helps create the magic layers  of the pastry.   Bake for 15 minutes or until the edges just begin to start turning a bit brown.

Make the filling:  using a mixer or food processor ( no need to really clean the one you used for the dough) mix 8 oz. softened cream cheese, 3TB   fresh orange zest,  1/2 c. preferably-fresh orange juice, 3 eggs, 3 TB sugar, 1 tsp vanilla,  1/2 c. finely chopped candied orange peel.    Pour onto the partially-baked crust.   Sprinkle with 1/2 c sliced, blanched almonds. I used slivered almonds once and decided not to do that again.

Bake  for another  15-20 minutes or until the tart is set and any visible crust is golden.  Actual  time will depend on the size  and shape of the pan you decide to  use, so keep an eye on it.  Cool completely on a rack, then cover and refrigerate overnight.  Cut in squares or bars, although it's not really a finger-food.     Store in the fridge.  And don't  fret  when it doesn't "rise" -  it's not supposed to!