Wrapped Brie with Caramelized Onions and Pepper J.

 

Wrapped Brie with Caramelized Onions and Pepper J.
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Ingredients
  1. 1 Tbsp. butter
  2. 1/2 sweet onion, thinly sliced
  3. salt and pepper to taste
  4. 1/4 cup sherry
  5. 2 Tbsp. chopped pecans
  6. 2 sheets phyllo pastry
  7. 2 Tbsp. butter, melted
  8. 7 oz. round of Brie cheese
  9. 3 Tbsp. red or green pepper jelly
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Melt butter in frying pan over medium heat. Add onions, salt and pepper; cook until onions are golden. Add sherry, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until liquid is evaporated. Cool. Stir in pecans. Brush each phyllo sheet with melted butter, fold in half and place one on top of the other. Place on baking sheet, set Brie in center and top with pepper jelly. Gather phyllo up around sides of Brie to create a raised, ruffled edge. Spoon onions into middle, and brush sides of phyllo with remaining melted butter. Bake for 15 minutes. Serve warm with water biscuits. Serves 8.
Notes
  1. A nice box of chocolates provides your total daily intake of calories in one place. Isn’t that handy?
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A nice box of chocolates provides your total daily intake of calories in one place. Isn’t that handy?

Disappears immediately!

Fresh Apple Cookies

Teacher’s choice.

Fresh Apple Cookies
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Ingredients
  1. 2 cups flour
  2. 1 tsp. baking soda
  3. 1/2 cup butter, softened
  4. 1 1/3 cups packed brown sugar
  5. 1/2 tsp. salt
  6. 1 tsp. cinnamon
  7. 1 tsp. ground cloves
  8. 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
  9. 1 egg, beaten
  10. 1/4 cup apple juice or milk
  11. 1 cup chopped apples
  12. 1/2 – 1 cup chopped nuts
  13. 1 cup raisins
Vanilla Glaze
  1. 1 cup icing sugar
  2. 1 Tbsp. butter, softened
  3. 1/4 tsp. vanilla
  4. 1/4 tsp. salt
  5. 1 1/2 Tbsp. milk
nstructions
  1. To make cookies: Preheat oven to 375 F. Combine flour and baking soda in medium bowl. In a large bowl, cream together butter, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, cloves nutmeg and egg. Add half the flour to the butter mixture and blend well. Mix in juice or milk. Add the apples, nuts and raisins to the remaining flour. Add this apple mixture to the butter mixture. Drop by spoonfuls on greased cookie sheets and bake for 10 minutes or until cookies are firm.
  2. To make glaze: Blend all ingredients together until smooth. While cookies are hot, spread with vanilla glaze. Makes 3 dozen.
Notes
  1. Book Reference – The Best of the Best – Vol. 1 (Page: 244), Aces (Page: 158)
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Just when you get to the point where menu prices don’t matter – calories do!

Whipped Potato with Celery Root

Perfect company for the Thanksgiving or Christmas turkey.
You can make this dish a day or two ahead and store it in the refrigerator.
Celery root (celeraic) does wonders for the humble potato and it’s easy to find in your supermarket. It’s round and looks a bit like a small turnip. Peel it as you would a potato.

Whipped Potato with Celery Root
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Ingredients
  1. 1 celery root , peeled and chopped
  2. 4-5 baker potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
  3. 2 Tbsp. butter
  4. 3 Tbsp. sour cream
  5. grated zest of 1 orange
  6. salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Instructions
  1. Cook celery root in simmering salted water until tender. Drain and puree in food processor. Cook potatoes in salted water until tender. Drain and mash mixing in butter and sour cream. Add orange zest to mashed celery root, then add to mashed potatoes. Season with salt and pepper. Serves 6.
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Classy Chicken

This is really easy – definitely a family favourite! We called it Classy because it contains asparagus. The kids aren’t always into “classy” – they like broccoli. Don’t argue!!

Classy Chicken
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Ingredients
  1. Classy Chicken
Ingredients
  1. 3 chicken breasts, skinned & boned
  2. 1/4 tsp. pepper
  3. 3 Tbsp. oil
  4. 1 – 10 oz. (280 g) pkg. frozen asparagus or broccoli
  5. Fresh is even better
  6. 1 – 10 oz. (284 ml) can cream of chicken soup
  7. 1/2 cup light mayonnaise
  8. 1 tsp. curry powder
  9. 1 tsp. lemon juice
  10. 1/2 – 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
Instructions
  1. Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces and sprinkle with pepper. Saute quickly in oil over medium heat just until opaque (don’t overcook – the chicken will get tough! Drain. Cook asparagus or broccoli until crunchy. Drain and arrange in bottom of buttered casserole. Place chicken on top. Mix together soup, mayonnaise, curry and lemon juice and pour over chicken. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese and bake, uncovered, at 350F (180C) for 30-35 minutes. Serves 6
Instructions
  1. Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces and sprinkle with pepper. Saute quickly in oil over medium heat just until opaque (don’t overcook – the chicken will get tough! Drain. Cook asparagus or broccoli until crunchy. Drain and arrange in bottom of buttered casserole. Place chicken on top. Mix together soup, mayonnaise, curry and lemon juice and pour over chicken. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese and bake, uncovered, at 350F (180C) for 30-35 minutes. Serves 6
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It makes no sense to walk to the carwash!

Blueberry Bonanza

The perfect dessert for your next “family bun fight”!!

Blueberry Bonanza
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Ingredients
Crust
  1. 1 sleeve of digestive biscuits, finely crushed. (about 27) (graham wafers would be a good substitute)
  2. 1 tsp. sugar
  3. 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
  4. 1/2 cup butter, melted
Cheese Layer
  1. 8 oz. cream cheese
  2. 1/2 cup sugar
  3. 2 eggs
  4. 1 tsp. vanilla
Blueberry Layer
  1. 3 cups frozen blueberries
  2. 1/2 cup sugar
  3. 1/2 cup water
  4. 1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
  5. 4 tsp. cornstarch
  6. 1/2 cup cold water
Topping
  1. 2 cups whipping cream
  2. 2 Tbsp. sugar
  3. 3 digestive biscuits, crushed
Instructions
  1. To make crust: Mix ingredients together and pat lightly into a 9″x13″ pan and bake at 350F for 10 minutes.
  2. To make cheese layer: Mix ingredients together and spread over crust. Bake at 325F for 20 minutes.
  3. To make blueberry layer: Combine blueberries, sugar, water and lemon juice in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Dissolve cornstarch in the cold water and add to the blueberry mixture. Stir until thickened and pour over baked cheese layer. Cool completely.
  4. To make topping: Whip cream with sugar and spread on top of blueberry layer. Sprinkle with digestive biscuit crumbs and refrigerate until serving time. If you make this the night before – don’t whip the cream until just before serving. Serves 10-12
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If the number 2 pencil is the most popular, why is it still number 2?

Grand Cake

The perfect “grand occasion” cake – always a hit. If you are not a baker at heart, but you volunteered to produce the dessert, use a good cake mix and carry on!!
Make the day ahead, cover and refrigerate.

Grand Cake
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Ingredients
  1. The perfect “grand occasion” cake – always a hit. If you are not a baker at heart, but you volunteered to produce the dessert, use a good cake mix and carry on!!
  2. Make the day ahead, cover and refrigerate.
Ingredients
  1. 1 3/4 cups flour
  2. 1 tsp. baking soda
  3. 1/2 tsp. baking powder
  4. 1 tsp. salt
  5. 1/2 cup cocoa powder
  6. 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
  7. 1 2/3 cups sugar
  8. 3 eggs
  9. 1 tsp. vanilla
  10. 1 1/3 cups water
  11. 1/4 cup Grand Marnier liqueur
Filling
  1. 3/4 cup frozen orange juice concentrate
  2. 3/4 cup sugar
  3. 1 Tbsp. gelatin (1 envelope)
  4. zest of 2 oranges
  5. 1/4 cup Grand Marnier liqueur
  6. 2 cups whipping cream
  7. 3/4 cup icing sugar
Instructions
  1. To make cake: Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease 2, 8″ round cake pans. Line with waxed paper and grease again. Measure flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cocoa into a bowl and sift together. Cream butter using electric beater. Gradually add sugar, beating until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs 1 at a time. Add vanilla. At low speed, beat in 1/3 of flour mixture, then 1/2 of the water, beating only until mixed after each addition. Beat in another 1/3 flour, remaining water and rest of flour. Pour into pans and bake for 30 – 35 minutes, or until center of cake springs back when lightly touched. Let cakes cool 5 minutes, then turn out. Remove waxed paper and cool thoroughly on racks.
  2. 1-2 hours before assembling, slice each cake in half horizintally to make 4 layers. Place layers cut side up and sprinkle each with 1 Tbsp. Grand Marnier.
  3. To make filling: Combine juice, sugar and gelatin in a saucepan; cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until sugar and gelatin are dissolved, abour 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in orange zest and Grand Marnier. Press a sheet of waxed paper on surface and refrigerate until cool, about 20 minutes. Whip cream until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in icing sugar, then fold in Grand Marnier mixture.
  4. To assemble: Place 1 layer of cake, cut side up, on serving plate. Spoon on 1/4 of filling and spread. Top with another layer and continue until all are used, ending with filling. Refrigerate immediately, let set at least 4 hours to “let the flavours get to know each other”.
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A day without sunshine is like…..night!
 

Patrick’s Salad

Goes with everything. OR – add strips of cooked chicken breast and you’ve got dinner!

Patrick’s Salad
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Ingredients
Dressing
  1. 1/2 cup olive oil
  2. 1/4 cup wine vinegar (red or white)
  3. juice of half a lime
  4. 2 tsp. soy sauce
  5. pinch of cayenne pepper
  6. 1 large garlic clove, minced
  7. salt and pepper to taste
  8. 3 Tbsp. chopped parsley
  9. 2 Tbsp. minced red onion
  10. 3-4 Tbsp. sugar
Salad
  1. romaine lettuce
  2. 1 large red pepper
  3. snow peas
  4. slivered almonds, toasted
Instructions
  1. To make dressing: Combine ingredients in a blender and blend well. Pour into a jar and refrigerate.
  2. Wash and tear romaine into bite-sized pieces. Cut red pepper and pea pods into long strips. Add toasted almonds. Toss with dressing just before serving.
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The best way to forget all your troubles is to wear tight shoes.

Stilton Pate

A fave!! Serve with crusty bread or crackers

Stilton Pate
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Ingredients
  1. Stilton Pate
  2. A fave!! Serve with crusty bread or crackers
Ingredients
  1. 8 oz. (250 g) Stilton cheese
  2. 1/4 cup butter
  3. 4 oz. 9125 g) cream cheese
  4. 2 Tbsp. brandy
  5. freshly ground pepper to taste
Instructions
  1. Bring Stilton, butter and cream cheese to room temperature. Add all ingredients to food processor and mix. Place in small bowl and refrigerate until serving time.
  2. Book Reference – That’s Trump (Page: 37)
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Debate: What’s in de mousetrap