Cranberry Pistachio Cookies

This is a really pretty and delicious cookie. The best part is they are a slice and bake cookie, so you can make them ahead of time and keep it in the fridge or freezer until you are ready to bake them. I made a triple batch the other day and had cookies for a cookie exchange, an office party, and still have some ready to bake if anyone wants to come over for some tea!

Cranberry Pistachio Cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) unsalted butter, softened

• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1/4 tsp. nutmeg (optional)

• 1/2 teaspoon finely grated
  fresh orange zest

• 1/2 cup shelled pistachios (2 1/4 oz; not dyed red)

• 1/3 cup dried cranberries (1 1/4 oz)

• 1 large egg, lightly beaten

• 1/4 cup course sugar (for decoration, can be colored)

Directions:

Make dough:

• Stir together flour, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl.
• Beat together butter, granulated sugar, and zest in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. 
• Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture in 3 batches, mixing until dough just comes together.
• Mix in pistachios and cranberries. 
• Press dough together, then divide into 2 equal pieces. 
• Using a sheet of plastic wrap or wax paper as an aid, form each piece of dough into a log about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Square off long sides of each log to form a long bar.
• Chill, wrapped in plastic wrap, until firm, about 2 hours.

Slice and bake:

• Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 350°F. 
• Brush egg over all 4 long sides of bars. 
• Sprinkle sugar on a separate sheet of parchment or wax paper and press bars into sugar, coating well.
• Cut each bar into 1/4-inch-thick slices, If dough is soft you can freeze until firm enough cut. You can also rotate the bar as you cut to keep the square shape. Arrange cookies about 1/2 inch apart on lined baking sheets.
• Bake cookies until edges are pale golden, 15 to 18 minutes total. Transfer cookies to cooling racks and cool completely.

Note: Dough bars can be chilled up to 3 days or frozen, wrapped in plastic wrap and then foil or frozen up to 1 month (thaw frozen dough in refrigerator just until dough can be sliced). Cookies keep in an airtight container at room temperature 5 days.

Chicken Paprikash

Here is some definite comfort food that will warm you right up. The spiciness of the paprika and the sweetness of the onions make for a lovely balance.

Chicken Paprikash

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds boneless chicken thighs (or 2 1/2 pound bone-in thighs and legs, if you prefer)
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 2 large sweet onions (sliced lengthwise)
• black pepper to taste
• 2 Tbsp. sweet paprika (also called Hungarian or Spanish)
• 1/2 Tbsp cayenne pepper (or to taste)
• 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
• 1 cup chicken broth

• 1/2 cup sour cream
• salt (to taste)

Instructions:

• Melt the butter in a large frying pan and brown the chicken in the butter. About 4 minutes each side. Remove from pan
• Add the onions, stirring occasionally, be sure to scrap up any bits from the bottom of pan, about 8 minutes until brown.
• Add pepper and paprika to the onions and stir. Add chicken broth and stir, again getting an bits from the bottom. Place the chicken on top of the onions and simmer another 20-30 minutes, until chicken is cooked through (165 degrees).
• Remove the chicken again and remove pan from the heat. Stir in sour cream to make a creamy sauce. Salt to taste. Return the chicken to the pan and coat with sauce.
• Serve with dumplings, spaetzle, noodles, or potatoes.

I usually make spaetzle to go with this, or egg noodles. Here is my Spaetzle recipe, very simple!

Spaetzle

My Swiss-German grandmother made these and I love them as a side, or just plain with a little butter and salt. Posting this to go with my Chicken Paprikash recipe, that is not my grandmother's but I'm pretty sure she would have liked it!

Spaetzle

Ingredients:

• 2 eggs
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 3/4 cup water (or milk)
• 2 cups flour
• dash of nutmeg

Instructions:

• Combine all ingredients, add the flour last, a little at a time.
• Let rest for about 10 minutes
• Boil a large pot of water
• Drop small amounts of dough into the boiling water. I don't have the technique of my grandmother using a cutting board and knife, so I use the back of a spoon, or you can use a spaetzle maker or cheese grater to make a consistent size.
• When the noodle are done, they will float to the top. Remove with slotted spoon.
• Rinse in a colander in cold water.

Serve with Chicken Paprikash, or add to soup or stews, or fry in a pan with butter.

Whipped Cauliflower

Ahh, whipped cauliflower--some refer to it ask Faux Mashed Potatoes. But there are no such things as a fake potatoes. Potatoes are sacred to me, so don't even try to mess with them. Thanks.

While cauliflower can be prepared similar to mashed potatoes, and can be served in lieu of mashed potatoes, as a low carb option, this is a tasty dish all on it's own.  This is very simple recipe, but it gives a nice consistency and you can dress it up or down as you wish.

Whipped Cauliflower

Ingredients:

• 1 medium head of cauliflower
• 3-4 Tbsp. butter
• 2-3 Tbsp. half and half or heavy cream
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• Salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste

Instructions

• Clean and cut up the cauliflower, steam for about 10 minutes, until soft and tender--easily pierced with a fork.
• In a bowl with and immersion blender, add remaining ingredients and whip until smooth.
• Stir in any cheese, herbs, or other additions you wish.
• Serve while hot.

Nutella Ice Cream

I’m not sure how I got the idea for this one, but for some reason, I did, and I’m sooooo glad. The best part is, it is super simple with only two ingredients. Warning: this stuff is RICH! To illustrate this point: My brother, an ice cream fiend who basically doesn't eat ice cream for fear that he’ll eat the whole pint, heaped up a big bowl of this stuff like he was settling down for some Ben & Jerry’s or Häagen Dazs or something. About five minutes later he came back into the kitchen with a half-eaten bowl of this stuff, signed, “that is oohhh” as he patted his stomach. He then proceeded to put plastic wrap over the bowl  and put it in the freezer for later. Yes! I win. I defeated an ice cream junkie, sibling rivalry at it's best.

Nutella Ice Cream 

Ingredients:

• 1 14oz. can evaporated milk
• 1 ½ c. Nutella-I have used Justine’s Organic Chocolate Hazelnut spread and it was fantastic.

Instructions

• The night before, place freezer bowl of 1.5 quart ice cream maker in the freezer, or as instructed by the appliance instructions.
• For the mixture, whisk or blend the ingredients together until well mixed. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.
• When everything is cold assemble, ice cream maker motor and paddle and get ice cream mix ready to pour, before removing ice bowl from freezer.
• Remove ice bowl from freezer and quickly add mix to ice bowl, attach paddle and bowl and start the ice cream maker.  Depending on ice cream maker it should take about 20-40 minutes to freezer the ice cream—the finished product will be soft. For harder ice cream, put in an airtight container and put in freezer for at least 30 minutes.
• Store in air tight container.

This is Nutella ice cream with a triple-chocolate brownie and whipped cream, if you can handle it.