Recipes

Chocolate Chip Scones

Filed Under: Baked Goods, Cooking, Recipes

This is one of my favorite recipes. I love scones but adding chocolate makes it all the better. You can use a food processor rather than the pastry tool; it makes it go a little quicker. These are light, not too sweet – and the chocolate melts in your mouth.

Chocolate Chip Scones

  • 2 c. all-purpose flour
  • 1/3 c. packed brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 c. cold (unsalted butter, cut into 1/2" pieces)
  • 3/4 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 1/2 c. buttermilk (Use buttermilk only (do not substitute.))
  • 1 large egg (lightly beaten)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 T. milk
  1. Preheat oven to 425°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a bowl, stir together flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. With a pastry blender or two knives, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in chocolate chips. Make a well in the center and add buttermilk, egg, and vanilla. Stir just until combined, taking care to not overmix.
  2. Transfer dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead 5 or 6 times. Pat into an 8” circle and cut into 8 wedges. Transfer to prepared baking sheet, about 1-1/2” apart. Brush each wedge of dough lightly with milk. Then bake until scones are golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool on pan for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Garden Fresh Pesto

Filed Under: Cooking, Pasta & Rice, Recipes

Basil from 2018 Garden
a packet of basil seeds can provide enough basil for a winter’s worth of pesto.

This year I did get around to planting basil in one of my new replacement raised bed stock tanks. The new containers have worked out well. I use this recipe and a freeze the ready-made pesto in old Tupperware containers used for making and freezing hamburgers. Once frozen I remove them and seal them into food saver packets.

Pesto Recipe

  • 2 cups fresh basil leaves (packed)
  • 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1/2 cup Olive oil
  • 3 Tbs pine nuts or walnuts
  • 3 garlic cloves (finely minced)
  1. Place basil leaves in small batches in food processor and whip until well chopped (do about 3/4 cup at a time). Add about 1/3 the nuts and garlic, blend again.
  2. Add about 1/3 of the Parmesan cheese; blend while slowly adding about 1/3 of the olive oil, stopping to scrape down sides of container.
  3. Process basil pesto it forms a thick smooth paste. Repeat until all ingredients are used, mix all batches together well. Serve over pasta. Basil pesto keeps in refrigerator one week, or freeze for a few months.
  4. Remove 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid before draining the pasta. Toss pasta immediately with the pesto sauce and the reserved cooking liquid. Serve at once with additional cheese, if desired.

Chicken Strips with Blue Cheese Dressing

Filed Under: Chicken, Cooking, Recipes, Sauces & Dressings

For dinner Jaunary 4th, 2018

Don’t make this very often it is a little different from the usual fare. I have buttermilk on hand so this will be a good opportunity to use it up. Will slice a chicken breast into to tenders and serve with romaine lettuce. Rather than make the blue cheese dressing I will use Lighthouse “lite” dressing.

Chicken Strips with Blue Cheese Dressing

  • Chicken:
  • 1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk
  • 1/2 tsp hot sauce
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp paprika
  • 1/2 tsp ground red pepper
  • 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 lb chicken breast tenders
  • 1 Tbs canola oil
  • Dressing:
  • 1/2 cup fat-free mayonnaise
  • 1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese ((1 ounce))
  • 1 Tbs red wine vinegar
  • 1 tsp bottled minced garlic
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
  1. To prepare chicken, combine buttermilk and hot sauce in a shallow dish. Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour and next 4 ingredients (through salt) in a shallow dish. Dip chicken in buttermilk mixture, and dredge chicken in flour mixture.
  2. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook 4 minutes on each side or until done. Remove from pan. Set aside, and keep warm.
  3. While chicken cooks, prepare the dressing. Combine fat-free mayonnaise and next 5 ingredients (through black pepper) in a small bowl. Serve with chicken strips.