8 Weeks of Cookies - Pecan and Cherry Shortbread

Last week Lori over at Fake Food Free made Pecan Shortbread & it sounded so good I knew I wanted to make some right away. I had an idea to add dried cherries to them which Lori thought would work great.

Now, these are not the fanciest cookies on the holiday cookies tray. Actually, they really look like plain janes up against the cookies covered in icing or filled with dark chocolate but these are the cookies I will reach for every time I walk by. They are buttery & flaky with little bits of extra sweetness from the cherries. I also added a little clove, allspice & cinnamon to them to give them a bit of holiday spice.

Lori's shortbread was much healthier than mine as she uses demerara sugar and whole wheat pastry flour. I don't have either of those items in my pantry & the snow storm kept me from going to the store so I adapted the Scottish shortbread recipe from Joy of Cooking for these.

Pecan & Cherry Shortbread

10 oz (2 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 c powdered sugar
3 T sugar
1/2 t salt
1/4 t ground clove
1/4 t ground allspice
1/4 t ground cinnamon
3 c all-purpose flour
1/4 c chopped pecans
1/4 c chopped tart dry cherries

Preheat oven to 350 F.

In a large bowl, beat the butter powdered sugar, sugar, salt, clove , allspice and cinnamon on medium speed until light an fluffy. Stir in the flour. Knead in the pecans & cherries until the dough comes together & they are mixed through.

Line baking sheets with silicon pads or parchment paper. Roll the dough into 1 tablespoon (about 1/2 oz) balls. Place on the baking sheet about 1 inch apart. Press done with your hand to flatten. Bake for 18 minutes or until the bottoms are golden brown. Cool on a rack.

Makes about 48 cookies

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

8 Weeks of Cookies 2009

Chocolate Chunk & Hazelnut Biscotti

Salted Chocolate Covered Caramel Cookies

Chocolate & Peppermint Covered Shortbread

Hazelnut Cinnamon Crescents

Browned Butter Sugar Cookies

8 Weeks of Cookies 2008 (somehow I ended up with 9 weeks)

Anise Mandelbrot

Candy Cane Cookies

Apricot Foldover Cookies
Swedish Peppernut Cookies

Chocolate Covered Cherry Cookies
Chocolate Truffle Cookies

Pfeffernusse & Chocolate Covered Pfeffernusse
Dulce de Leche Sandwich Cookies

Sacher Bites

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted.
© 2007-2009 Kathy Lewinski

Curried Root Vegetable Soup

This time of year our fridge is full of the root crops. Most vegetables have been harvested already here in the great white north but we are still getting carrots, turnips, potatoes, parsnips & onions from the farm. Luckily these are just the hearty type of thing we crave in the winter for stews & soups.

This soup started out as curried carrot soup but I figured why not just throw in everything I had in the crisper. The end result is thick & hearty. The sourness of the yogurt is a good combination with the sweetness of the vegetables. Plus talk about healthy, this soup doesn't even have any oil or butter in it!

Curried Root Vegetable Soup

1 1/2 lbs carrots, sliced
1 lb yellow onion, chopped
1 lb parsnip, peeled & chopped
10 oz turnip, peeled & chopped
8 oz potato, peeled & chopped
4 c water
3 c chicken or vegetable stock
2 t salt
1 t dried thyme
2 T curry powder
1/2 t sweet paprika
1/2 t pepper
plain yogurt

Put the carrots, onions, parsnip, turnip, potato & water in a large soup pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover & simmer until the vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes.

Process the vegetables until smooth with an immersion blender, blender or food processor. Add the stock, salt, thyme. curry, paprika & pepper. Simmer uncovered about 10 more minutes stirring occasionally.

Serve with a scoop of yogurt on top.

Makes 6 servings

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted.
© 2007-2009 Kathy Lewinski

Chicken and Lentil Stew

I made this dish up as a way to use up some leftover roast chicken. It was so good though I'd cook chicken just to make it again.

This is a simple, rustic dish but the flavors are just wonderful together & its pretty darn healthy. (Who doesn't need a quick healthy meal during the busy holiday season?) When Matt & I went to La Belle Vie for our anniversary, one of the dishes had lentil served over a carrot puree which I absolutely loved. The carrots & lentils together in this stew gave me that same flavor combination. I think its the sweetness of the carrots that really makes it special.

A note on the kale. We get a lot of kale when it first comes into season. We chop it, blanch it for a minute & freeze it to use in soups & stews throughout the winter. If you are using fresh kale add it with the lentils so it has some time to soften or blanch it then add it at the end like we did. If you use spinach instead of kale just add it at the end until it wilts.

Chicken and Lentil Stew

1/2 T olive oil
1 leek, white & light green parts sliced
1 large clove garlic, minced
1 - 1 1/2 c carrots, cut into 1/2-inch slices
1 c cooked chicken
1/2 c dry brown lentils

1/2 t dried thyme
1/4 t dried marjoram
1/4 t dried rosemary
2 c chicken stock, hot
1/2 c kale, chopped & blanched (spinach would be good too)

salt & pepper

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the leek & onion & cook until tender. Stir in the carrots, chicken, lentils, thyme, marjoram & rosemary. Add the hot stock. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover & simmer for about 30 minutes, until the lentils are tender. Stir in the kale & heat through. Season to taste with salt & pepper.

2 servings

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted.

© 2007-2009 Kathy Lewinski

Corn and Smoked Sausage Chowder

While we were at my parents over Thanksgiving my dad whipped up with corn & sausage chowder for lunch one day. It seemed to come together in no time & was a big hit with everyone especially served with his homemade breadsticks.

Matt really liked it so wanted to make it at home right away. We forgot to get my dad's recipe but Matt figured he could wing it. I think my dad's was slightly thicker but other than that its pretty close. This soup makes for a nice hearty lunch. The sweetness of the corn pairs beautifully with the smoky sausage. My dad uses frozen potatoes o'brien instead of chopping his own potatoes, peppers & onions so feel free to substitute that if you want even a quicker meal.

Corn & Smoked Sausage Chowder

2 T unsalted butter
1/2 medium onion, sliced thin
1 red bell pepper, seed & chopped

4 T all-purpose flour

3 c chicken stock
12 oz smoked sausage, cut in half lengthwise then sliced sliced
2 c sweet corn, frozen or fresh off the cob
2 c potato, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 1 large russet)
1/2 - 1 t crushed red pepper flakes
1 t sweet paprika
salt & pepper to taste
2 c milk
hot sauce (optional)

In a large soup pot melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the onion & red pepper. Cook until the onion is translucent. Sprinkle in the flour & cook while stirring for 1 minute, do not let brown. Add the stock slowly & continue stirring until bubbly. Add the sausage, corn and potatoes. Stir in the red pepper, paprika plus salt & pepper. Cover & let simmer for about 20 minutes or until the potato is tender. Stir in the milk & heat, do not boil. Check seasoning & add salt, pepper & hot sauce to taste.

4 - 6 servings

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted.
© 2007-2009 Kathy Lewinski

Maid Rite & Weekly Menu 12/7 - 12/12/09

So, I said I'd tell you more about some special places we ate on our trip to Memphis & one of them is Maid-Rite. This was top on Matt's list of places we should visit on our trip.

Maid-Rite is one of the first fast food franchises in the United States starting in Muscatine, IA in 1926. By the end of the 20's there were four restaurants, all of which are still open. They were one of the first chains to have a drive-up window. The location we went to was in Qunicy, IL & has been open since 1928.

Though they have many items on their menu Maid-Rite is known for their Loose Meat Sandwich, a special grind & blend of Midwestern beef with spices. We ordered the Cheese Rite with a slice of American cheese.

This place was totally old-school right down the the bows in the waitresses' hair. The locals seems to like it too as this place was full of groups of people of all ages.

Now, I'm not going to tell you this was a great dining experience, really the food was just ok (though the chocolate malt was great) but it was a chance to experience a bit of American road food history. I know Maid Rite has been opening new locations around the country but these old ones in the midwest are really the draw to us. It ends up Alton Brown went to the same Maid Rite location as us on Feasting on Asphalt, you can watch his segment about it here.

On to Menu Planning Monday...

Monday, we are going to the Dakota to see Holly Cole & will have dinner there.

Chicken Saagwala

Lamb & Root Vegetable Stew

Ropa Veija: Cuban Braised Beef

Pumpkin and Mushroom Pasta with Gorgonzola

Cuban Black Bean Soup

This week's cookie will be an Almond & Cherry Shortbread.

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted.

© 2007-2009 Kathy Lewinski