Flecks of… Gray?

Base
½ cup butter
1½ cup flour
1½ tsp baking powder
½ cup milk or cream
¼ tsp salt

Fruit Middle
4 cups Rhubarb (or other fruits like Strawberry, Mango, Cherry, Peach, etc)
1½ cup sugar

Crumble Topping
½ cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup flour

Press the base into a 9×13 pan, pour the fruit middle on then add the crumble topping; bake at 350°F for 30+ minutes.

I haven’t put up a favorite recipe in awhile but this is one of my very favorite desserts; it’s ridiculously good (for all the sugar, it aught to be!) and you can try so many different kinds of fruits in it. Here are some of my other favorite recipes.

I have a real fondness for EggNog and I’ve gotta say that it’s almost my very favorite thing about Christmas (ok, there’s probably other more favorite things, but eggnog is pretty awesome). This year, I decided to take the plunge and make some myself instead of being at the mercy of the overpriced grocery store stuff; it was pretty great.

Here’s the recipe that I used from allrecipes with my modifications to cook the egg yolks…

Egg Nog

* 4 egg yolks
* 1 (5 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
* 1 tablespoon white sugar
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 4 1/2 cups milk
* 4 egg whites
* 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
* 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions:

Wisk the yolks and the condensed milk over a very low heat stirring constantly till it reaches 140-160 degrees; remove from heat and stir occasionally till cooled. Gradually stir in sugar, vanilla and milk. Beat the egg whites until stiff, then add them to the milk mixture. Garnish with nutmeg & cinnamon.

This has probably taken over the sweet and sour ribs as my very favorite recipe that Heidi makes. The original comes courtesy of Rick and has been tweaked a bit to perfection; the keys to success for this one is the homemade salsa and the corn tortillas. After that, you should be good…

Chilaquiles

Serves 4

• Oil for frying
  
• 6 tortillas, cut or torn into strips (for a group of 4 people I would use about 8 tortillas)
  
• 2-3 BBQ’ed half chicken breasts
  
• 10oz can / 275 g tomatoes – (recipe calls for Mexican green tomatoes, but I don’t think we’ve used these)
  
• 1 onion finely chopped
  
• 2-3 drained canned jalapeno chilies chopped
  
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander (Mexican parsley)
  
• 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
  
• ¾ cup chicken stock (or vegetable stock if vegetarian)
  
• salt and pepper
  
• Garnish: chopped fresh coriander, chopped onion, stuffed green olives (optional)

Directions:

1. Heat oil in frying pan and fry tortilla strips a few at a time, on both sides, without browning (to save time you can also put them on a large baking sheet and broil in the oven)
   
2. Puree together tomatoes w/ juice, onion, chilies, and coriander.
   
3. Heat tomato mixture in fry pan for 2-3 minutes, adding salt and pepper to taste. Stir frequently.
   
4. Pour a layer of the sauce into casserole/baking dish, then a layer of chicken and top with layer of tortilla strips and a layer of grated cheese. Continue until all ingredients have been used, reserving some cheese for sprinkling on top.
   
5. Pour chicken stock over the dish and sprinkle with cheese.
   
6. Bake the chilaquiles, uncovered, in a preheated over at 350F for 30 minutes or until heated through.
   
7. Serve directly from dish garnish with olives, onion, and coriander.

Ginger Snaps

2 cups flour
1 Tbsp ginger
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup margarine
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup molasses

Soften margarine, add all ingredients except flour and mix. Add flour 1/2 cup at a time and mix each time. Roll into balls about an inch in diameter. Roll in a bowl of sugar to coat and place on pan. Cook at about 350F for 7 to 10 minutes.

Rice Pudding

1 cup long grain rice
1 1/2 cups cold water
a pinch of salt
1 tablespoon margarine
1 1/2 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs, well beaten
1/2 cup raisins (optional)

Combine rice, water, salt and butter in saucepan. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer until water is absorbed. Combine cooked rice, milk, vanilla, sugar, eggs and raisins. Pour into lightly greased casserole.

Bake at 325 for 45 minutes, until set.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.

New Years Cookies
Mrs. Suderman via Mom H

1 tsp sugar
1 package (1 Tbsp) dry yeast

Dissolve 1 tsp sugar in 1/2 cup warm water. Sprinkle 1 package (1 Tbsp) dry yeast on water and let stand 10 mins. Add:

3 cups water
3 cups milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp butter
4 eggs, beaten
2 or 3 cups raisins, as desired
12 to 14 cups flour

Stir in flour to make a faily thick batter. Let rise until double in bulk. Drop by spoonfuls in hot, deep fat and fry till golden brown (~ 2min on each side). Make sure the fat is hot before you start. Makes ~186 cookies so 1/2 batch should be plenty.

Heidi’s laying on the hits lately with back to back stellar suppers. Today it’s…

Vermicelli with Chicken in Peanut Sauce

30-45 mL (2-3 Tbsp) Vegetable Oil
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, sliced
250 mL (1 cup) home made or prepared chicken stock
30 mL (2 Tbsp) liquid honey
30 mL (2 Tbsp) soy sauce
30 mL (2 Tbsp) cornstarch
50 mL (1/4 cup) peanut butter
2-3 green onions, chopped
1 red pepper, cut into strips
500g Vermecilli

Heat oil; saute chicken until golden. Remove and set aside. Combine stock, honey and soy sauce; whisk in cornstarch and peanut butter. Cook and stir until just thickened. Stir in onions, pepper and reserved chicken; heat through. Cook vermecilli according to package directions. Spoon chicken mixture over vermecilli, cover with peanuts.

This is my very favorite supper that Heidi makes…

Sweet and Sour SpareRibs
Esther Balzer

1 lb lean pork spareribs
1 egg
1 to 2 Tbsp cornstarch
1 tsp salt and pepper

Sauce:
1 cup ketchup or 1 can tomato soup
1 cup white sugar
1/4 cup vinegar
3/4 cup water (1 soup can)

Cut ribs into serving pieces; coat ribs with egg, cornstarch and seasonings. Pan fry coated ribs until golden brown. Place ribs in casserole dish; cover with sauce. Bake in 350F over for 1 1/2 hours.

Heidi Loves this one from Oprah:

http://www.oprah.com/foodhome/food/recipes/food_20051123_wreath.jhtml

Heidi’s Healthy Energy Bars

3/4 cup corn syrup
1/2 cup lightly packed brown sugar
1 1/2 cups peanut butter (I use 100% peanuts type of peanut butter)
1 cup low fat granola
1 cup skim milk powder (or soy protien powder)
1 cup flax seeds ground (or wheat bran)
1 cup raisins (or dried cranberries)
1 cup mini chocolate chips

In a large saucepan over high heat, combine corn syrup and sugar, bring to a boil. Remove from heat, stir in peanut butter, add milk powder, granola, bran, raisins and chocolate chips – stir until combined. Press into 9 X 13 pan, chill 45 minutes or until firm. Cut into bars, refrigerate, Enjoy!