chocolate mint brownies

I've been on the hunt for a good mint brownie recipe since my college days, where you could pick one up at the cafeteria most days of the week. So when my friend Jen made these delicious brownies for a baby shower, I hunted her down for the recipe the very next day. They've been a favorite ever since and are the perfect dessert to follow our traditional Corned Beef and Cabbage dinner. Have you tried Mark Bittman's recipe, by the way? You boil everything per usual, (he skewers his cabbage wedges so they stay together) and at the very end you pull everything out of the pot and bake it in a 300 degree oven for about 15 minutes so it's not all soggy. It's a game changer. I love it with a little horseradish mixed with sour cream. But back to the brownies..

Jen's Mint Brownies

The brownie base on these is more of a Texas sheet cake, which I love, but purists may prefer a more traditional brownie base, then duplicating the two layers on top. 

2 1/4 sticks butter, melted
3/4 cup cocoa
2 1/4 cups sugar
6 eggs, slightly beaten
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 7/8 cups flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350. Mix together butter and cocoa. Add sugar. Stir in eggs and vanilla. Add flour and salt; mix well. Pour into a greased jelly roll pan (aka large cookie sheet with edges). Bake 15 minutes. Do not overcook; if you see any air bubbles, pop with a toothpick and smooth down. Cool completely, then frost with Mint Frosting.

Mint Frosting

4 cups powdered sugar
8 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon peppermint extract
3 drops of green food coloring
4 tablespoons milk (or as much needed to get to a spreadable consistency)

Mix all ingredients, then spread in a thin layer on top of cooled brownies. Work fast as it dries quickly. Let the mint frosting layer set for about a half hour, then top with chocolate frosting.

Chocolate Frosting

3 cups of semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 1/2 square of butter (10 tablespoons)

Melt together carefully in the microwave (cook for 30 seconds at a time, stirring between each round until fully melted and combined). Pour evenly over mint brownies and carefully spread until you reach all the edges of the pan. Put brownies in the fridge for 20-30 minutes or until chocolate layer is fully set, then cut into squares. Keep extras in the fridge.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

amazing granola

Katie's Amazing Granola

This granola makes a TON, two full sheet pans to be exact. I don't have a bowl big enough to fit everything at once, so I make mine in two big bowls and divide all the ingredients in half.

In a large bowl (or two!) mix the following ingredients:

 10 cups of old fashioned rolled oats (buy from the bin at your local health food store..)
2 cups of whole wheat flour
2 cups of wheat germ (store in your fridge between batches)
2 cups of shredded coconut
2 cups chopped pecans and/or almonds
1 tablespoon salt

In a separate bowl, mix the following: 

4 tablespoons vanilla
1/2 cup water
3/4 cup of oil (I use Canola)
2 cups honey (if you use the same cup you used for the oil, the honey should slide right out)

Divide the wet mixture between your two bowls of granola and mix well.

Spread your granola in two large, shallow pans. Bake at 250 until deep golden and almost dry, about 2 hours. Every 30 minutes rotate your pans and stir and crumble the granola with a big wooden spoon (the outside edges will brown first, so you want to mix everything around so it all cooks evenly). 

When it's all nice and golden and you've broken up most of your big chunks, remove from the oven and let cool (I leave mine on the counter overnight). Store tightly covered or in the refrigerator if you have room.

Corn bean salsa from Sue

Depending on how many people you are serving I use 1 or 2 cans of each of the following: corn, kidney beans, black beans, garbanzo beans, 1 red onion diced, 1 of each color pepper (green, orange, red) diced, celery diced. Marinade (24 hours) 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar, 1/3 cup sugar, 1/4 cup olive oil, 1 1/2 teaspoons sale, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, fresh herbs like basil if you have them, fresh parley. whatever you want or have on hand.

Get the large scoop fritoes and you're good to go.

Balsamic Djion Vinaigrette

Balsamic-Dijon Vinaigrette

From RealAge

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Nutritional Information
(per serving)

Calories	42
Total Fat	4g
Saturated Fat	--
Cholesterol	--
Sodium	--
Total Carbohydrate	--
Dietary Fiber	--
Sugars	--
Protein	--
Calcium	--

Serves: 8 Edit

Yields: 8 servings

Ingredients

U.S.

Metric

Conversion chart

• 1/2 cup(s) balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup(s) apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup(s) extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup(s) water
• 2 tablespoon(s) Dijon mustard
• 2 tablespoon(s) garlic. minced
• 2 tablespoon(s) lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon(s) apple juice concentrate
• 1 teaspoon(s) fresh basil
• 1 teaspoon(s) ground pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon(s) chili pepper flakes

Easy Pancakes

4

1 cup all-purpose flour
1½ teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup 1% milk
1 egg, beaten
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon melted butter

Easy Chicken Fajitas

Recipe: Easy Chicken Fajitas

• FAST

INGREDIENTS

1. 1 teaspoon pure chile powder
2. 1 teaspoon kosher salt
3. 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
4. 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
5. 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
6. 1 tablespoon cornstarch
7. 1/4 cup water
8. 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
9. 1 whole skinless, boneless chicken breast (about 1 pound), cut into 1/2-inch strips
10. 1 green bell pepper—cored, seeded and cut into thin strips
11. 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
12. 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice, plus lime wedges for serving
13. 8 flour tortillas, warmed in the microwave
14. Shredded lettuce, shredded cheddar cheese, salsa and sour cream, for serving

1. In a resealable plastic bag, combine the chile powder with the salt, cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, cornstarch, water and 2 tablespoons of the oil. Add the chicken, bell pepper and onion, seal and knead gently to coat. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.
2. Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil in a large nonstick skillet until shimmering. Empty the contents of the bag into the skillet and cook over high heat, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are crisp-tender and the chicken is cooked through, about 6 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the lime juice.
3. Transfer the chicken and vegetables to a large bowl and serve with the warmed tortillas, lettuce, cheese, salsa, sour cream and lime wedges.

Chunky Tomato Cream Soup

Chunky Tomato Cream Soup

Yield: 4-6 entree servings
Preparation Time: 5 minutes
Cooking Time: 25 minutes
Inactive time: 10 minutes

Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup Vidalia or sweet onion, chopped
8-10 sprigs fresh thyme
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
1 serrano pepper, seeded and chopped
2 cloves garlic, smashed
1 tablespoon, plus 1 teaspoon tomato paste (4 teaspoons)
8 Roma tomatoes, cut into big chunks
4 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup heavy cream, at room temperature
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Special equipment: immersion blender (preferred) or blender*

Directions

In a stock pot on medium heat add olive oil, onions, thyme, paprika and serrano pepper. Season with a pinch of salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Stir with a wooden spoon and cook until onions are tender and translucent, but not browned, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and tomato paste, stirring to coat everything in the pot. Cook while stirring on medium until paste appears a deep red color, about 5 more minutes. Add tomato chunks and raise the heat until they begin to bubble. Cook while stirring the tomatoes to insure a bit of moisture evaporates from them, but they don't burn. Cook this way until the tomatoes are tender and the skins are peeling off, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken stock and raise to a boil then lower to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes.

Remove pot from the heat and using an immersion blender, blitz soup in the pot leaving a few chunks of tomatoes for texture. Slowly stir in cream. Serve warm.

*If using a blender, remove a few chunks of tomato from the pot with a slotted spoon and set aside. Blitz remaining soup in batches, only filling the blender 1/3 of the way with the hot soup. Any more than that and the blender could burst with pressure upon blending. Be safe! It's hot! Return blended soup and reserved tomato chunks back to the pot. Serve warm.