WTF Cookbook

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Josephine’s Gingersnap Cookies from ChickGrand

What I liked about this recipe is that they are that perfect in between. Nice and crunchy on the very outer shell, but chewy just underneath, if you don't overbake them. I lean toward the shorter cooking time to ensure that.

Steve Miller’s Comment
Using butter in recipes that call for shortening makes the cookies spread out more. The reason is that butter melts at a lower temp than shortening.

You can offset this somewhat by chilling the dough before you bake the cookies.

(Hat tip: Shirley Corriher)

Plays88keys’ Comment
I'm going to bake the gingersnaps tonight. I even made a point of getting a bag of that "sugar in the raw" to roll the dough in for extra crunch.

When baking with butter instead of shortening (which I do exclusively) it's best to use a hand mixer and break up COLD butter, not softened, then blend into the flour and other stuff.

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Plays88keys’ Chocolate Peppermint Bark

2 bags of semi sweet chocolate chips
a bunch of candy canes, crushed

Melt the chips over very low heat until smooth. Line a jelly roll pan with parchment or waxed paper. Spread crushed candy canes around, then pour the melted chocolate over it all. When it hardens, break into pieces.

Just TRY to stay away from it.

Jodi’s Comment

You know, I shorten this process a LOT. I break up those little candy canes into a few pieces and throw them into a dish along with a bunch of chocolate chips and eat them at the same time. (I'm serious!) It's completely addicting.

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Bernard’s Lemon Bark
Here's the Lemon Bark recipe, ultra-easy and yummy yum yum...

1 12-oz. bag white chocolate chips or equal amount of bar white chocolate
1/2 cup lemon drop candies, broken into smallish pieces

If you melt the chocolate chips in the microwave, the recipe can be whipped up in 5 minutes. Line a pan with parchment paper. Melt the chocolate chips, add the crushed lemon drops, pour into prepared pan. Use pan size to achieve about 1/4" deep bark. Put in fridge until hardened. Break into pieces. Addictive.

To crush the lemon drops, I put a bunch of them in a plastic bag and whack them with a hammer. Actual recipe calls for 1/4 to 1/2 cup. I used 1/2 cup plus.

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Lilylady’s Walnut or Pecan Dreams
A bag or two of whole walnuts, depending on how much you want to make

A half box or bag of light brown sugar

one stick of butter (or two, depending)

cinnamon to taste

Melt butter and add sugar and cinnamon in a large bowl - it should be crunchy stage not wet. Add walnuts or pecans. Toss.

Put on a cookie sheet and into low oven for 10-15 min. When you take out, keep tossing making sure that all the butter/sugar is coated onto the nuts. Let harden while you are still tossing. When harden they should kinda be in a clumped up candy stage. Gift in a tin or glass jar. Always a hit. Good for the Postman or Aunt or Cindysphinx's MIL!

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Cathys’s Candy

Here's my contribution and the only one I made after getting home. I always get comments when I send out a mixed box on these in particular. Very simple and melt in your mouth. My kids say when you put them in the fridge they turn into ice cream.

3 8oz Hershey Bars (no nuts)
1 13 oz cool whip frozen
Chopped nuts (if you like)
Crushed vanilla wafers (1/2-2/3 box)

Melt chocolate over water. While that's melting beat the air out of the cool whip, then pour in the melted chocolate and mix together with the nuts (if you like nuts). Scoop into balls and roll in vanilla wafer crumbs.

Refrigerate

Makes about 60+ balls.

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MaryRose’s "FROSTYPAWS"

32 oz plain lowfat yogurt
3-4 tablespoons peanut butter
1 banana

Whirl in a food processor. Pour into 3 oz paper cups. Freeze.

Makes about 12 servings.

Squeeze out of the cup and into a bowl to serve. Be imaginative with other flavorings.

They are a big hit with both dogs and humans, especially on hot summer days.

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Beverages

BeeLady presents Leaner Egg Nog, Sunset Magazine circa 1990

Whisk 4 egg yolks in a sauce pan, add 1/2 cup sugar, mix, then add one quart low fat milk, a 3 inch cinnamon stick, tbsp vanilla and a dash of nutmeg.

Cook over a double boiler, stirring frequently, till the mixture coats a spoon, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat, remove cinnamon stick, put pot in the fridge for 24 hours or up to two days.

To serve, whip 7 egg whites (I use powdered) to a meringue with an additional 1/4 cup sugar, set aside.

In a punch bowl add 1 quart of milk to the chilled custard, fold in egg whites, reserve some dollops for the top, sprinkle with nutmeg.

This has become a signature in our house, I have made it a hundred times. It is light, but still has the egg nog taste.

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QuirtEvans’ Girlfriend’s Friend’s Eggnog

My girlfriend finally got her friend to cough up the eggnog recipe. It has @DougG written all over it.

1 quart eggnog
6 shots cheap brandy (Christian Brothers will do)
1 shot cheap rum

Chill in the refrigerator overnight.

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Matt's stolen from a famous restaurant's Perfect Margarita

Per glass:
Juice of two limes (or 3 Key limes)
½ tsp superfine sugar
2 oz Patron Reposado Tequila
½ oz Triple Sec
Shake vigorously then pour over broken ice cubes in a salted-rim saucer.
Pure, unadulterated pleasure.

"Frozen" margaritas are for people who don't like tequila. Margarita mix is usually nothing but corn syrup and artificial flavoring. Blecch!

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Phylkell’s Smoothies

Smoothies for me - loads of frozen fruit whizzed up fruit juice and fresh bananas and sometimes some sweetened soya milk. Also like iced coffees too - so easy to make as well.

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Pianojuggler’s Smoothies

Throw some ice (somewhat crushed is helpful, some fruit of your choice (strawberry, kiwi, and banana is a good combination) in a blender and whiz it until smooth. You can add some milk, but if you use a high-acid fruit, drink it right away or it will curdle.

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Nina’s Sun Tea

Sun tea! I don't know if it's just a southwestern thing or not... but you get a big glass jug, fill it with water and about 5-6 teabags, put it outside for the afternoon and voila! Tea is brewed!

We go through a jug every 2 days or so. Unsweetened, of course.

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Bernard’s Sun Tea

One of my favorite sun teas: 4 cups of water, add 4 Red Zinger tea bags and let sit for 4 hours. Add .25 cup of sugar syrup* and mix. Slice half a lemon, half a lime and a whole orange. Add all slices to the tea. Squeeze the remaining half lime and lemon's juices into the tea. Put ice cubes made of orange juice** in a tall glass and fill with tea.

• boil 1 and 1/3 cups sugar in 1 and 1/4 cups of water until the sugar is completely dissolved. Store in covered jar in fridge.

** Simply pour OJ in ice cube trays and freeze.

Rich Galassini’s Comment
I think it would be better with a little bit of wine (sangria) or a little rum.

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Rich Galassini’s "Lemon Sissy"

Fill a pitcher full of ice. Fill it 3/4 of the way with lemonade. Top with vodka. Enjoy!

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Mary Anna’s Coolers

I sometimes make smoothies with frozen strawberries, soy milk, a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of sugar.

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Bernard’s Granita di Cafe

Ooooh I love it. I first had it at a cafe on MacDougal St. in the Village and have loved it ever since--with whipped cream on top! Yummy yum yum.

It's very easy to make if you have an espresso machine. Make 4 cups of espresso, add .5 cup sugar while it's still hot along with .5 tsp. of lemon juice (both to taste). Pour into a 13x9 pan and let cool to room temperature. Put in the freezer and take it out about an hour later and stir the ice crystals which have formed into the liquid. Put it back in the freezer and repeat every hour, or half hour, depending on your freezer, until it's all crystals.
Topped with whipped cream, man oh man.

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Mrs. Pianojuggler’s Boss’s Tamarind Margaritas

You need some tamarind juice... I understand that you can make your own by boiling the beans for a long time, then squeezing the meat out of them. One of the Mexicans there said you can get the juice or concentrate at a Mexican grocery store. It's very sweet, and needs no added sugar or anything. The recipe then seemed to be:

• fill a tumbler about half full of ice
• add "some" tequila of your choosing
• fill the tumbler most of the rest of the way with tamarind juice
• add a splash of Cointreau

Sit with your feet in the river and slurp decadently.

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A recipe for a different season:

Passover Chicken Soup

from Claire Rolbein, Boston Globe 3/20/2002

This soup takes two days. Chicken and root vegetables are cooked on the first day, then they're removed from the soup. The second day, the soup is cooked again with just fresh vegetables. After straining, the pot is seasoned. Serves 6 to 8

8 cups cold water
6-lb chicken (preferably fowl), quartered
3 carrots, peeled and halved lengthwise
3 stalks celery (with leaves), halved crosswise
2 medium onions, peeled and quartered
1 large leek, trimmed and halved lengthwise
1 large parsnip, peeled and halved, lengthwise
1 medium purple-topped turnip, halved
1 medium celery root, peeled and halved

1. In large soup pot, bring the water to a boil. Add the chicken, cover, and simmer steadily for 45 minutes. (Hint: cook the broth at a steady and even simmer, with only small bubbles on the surface, rather than at a full boil. After the liquid boils initially it should not boil again.)

2. Lightly skim the liquid. Add the carrots, celery, onions, leek, parsnip, turnip, and celery root. The chicken and vegetables should be covered with water; add more, if necessary. Cover the pot and continue simmering for 45 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat. Uncover it and let the soup sit for 10 minutes.

3. Use two large spoons to lift the chicken from the liquid; set it aside for other use. Remove the carrots from the pot and set them aside for tomorrow.

4. Set a fine strainer over a large bowl. Strain the remaining soup into the bowl. Gently shake the strainer to release the liquid, but DO NOT PRESS DOWN on the solids. (HINT: Pressing down makes the broth cloudy, and it alters the taste, so don't do it.) Discard the vegetables in the strainer (they have given their all.) Let the soup cool, then cover and refrigerate overnight.

For the second day:
2 carrots
2 stalks celery (with leaves), halved crosswise
1 medium onion, peeled and quartered
1 large leek, trimmed and halved lenghtwise
1 large parsnip, peeled and halved lengthwise
Small bunch each of parsley and dill, tied together
1 tablespoon coarse or kosher salt (2 teaspoons if using table salt)
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
Pinch of sugar
1/2 cube Knorr's beef boullion
2 drops lime juice (Grandmother would say "oy vey")
1 Tablespoon reserved fat (from top of soup)
Few extra sprigs parsley (for garnish)

1. Lift off the congealed fat from the top of the soup; reserve it in a small bowl. Return the soup to the pot.

2. Bring it just to a simmer, add the carrots, celery, onion, leek, parship, parsley, and dill, Cover the pot and let the soup simmer steadilty for 30 to 35 minutes or until the carrots are tender. Do not let it boil. Remove the pot from the heat. Uncover it and let the soup sit for 10 minutes.

3. Set a fine sieve over a large bowl. Pour the contents of the pot through the sieve. Do not press down on the vegetables. Discard the vegetables in the sieve.

4. Return the soup to the pot. Slice the reserved carrots and add them to the soup. Reheat until the first bubbles appear on the surface. Add the salt, pepper, sugar, boullion cube, lime juice, and reserved fat. Adjust the seasonings to suit your taste. Add cooked matzo balls (use your favorite recipe or the one on the box of matzo meal) and serve at once, garnished with parsley.

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@Steve-Miller

VEGETABLE MEAT LOAF

Very firm, not many ingredients, good for grilling. You can see the bits of vegetables in it so if your kids are particular about such things they probably won't eat it.

1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
1 package Knorr vegetable soup and recipe mix
1 egg
1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs (like Devonsheer or Old London)
1/2 cup milk

Mush everything together in a big bowl. The easiest way to do this is with your hands. Press in to an 8" x 5" loaf pan.

Squirt ketchup on top if you like (I like). Bake 1 hour at 350 degrees. Let stand 10 minutes before slicing.

Serve with more ketchup (I'm from Minnesota - we consider ketchup a vegetable.)

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@AdagioM

Here’s the cobbler recipe I've been using with blueberries from my yard. It works well with any berries. (shout out to my friend Vickie, who sent me this recipe in 1987 or so, when we still wrote letters via snailmail):

1 1/4 cups flour

1 1/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

4 TBSP butter (I admit that I misread her 4 as a 9, and have been using 8 TBSP, or 1/2 cup, of butter. Yum. But 6 T is sufficient; I tried it and it's a nice compromise)

3/4 cup sugar (I reduce to 2/3 cup)

1 tsp vanilla

1 large egg

1/2 cup milk

3 cups berries

Stir together flour, baking powder, salt. Cream butter, sugar, vanilla; beat in egg until blended. Add flour mixure and milk–beat only until smooth. Spread in buttered 8 inch square baking dish; scatter berries on top. Drop teaspoonsful of topping (follows) over berries. Bake @ 350 degrees for one hour–toothpick should come out without batter, and top is golden. Serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream, or both. 6-8 servings. TOPPING: Beat 1/4 cup soft butter, 1/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cup flour until smooth.

Enjoy!