Ginger Lemon Cremes

This is one of my favorite cookies.  They are the perfect combination of spicy, sweet, and tart.  They can be made without the ammonium bicarbonate, which can be bought from specialty cooking stores, or the internet, but they will not be as snappy and you need to roll them quite thin.  You can also substitute baking powder if you handle it well.

A note about ammonium bicarbonate:  It smells awful… terrible! Like ammonia, because it is… but it dissipates once it is baked and makes a wonderful crispy cookie.  This means you should not taste your dough before it is cooked, even though it is totally food safe, it just doesn’t taste very good.  Also, you have to make sure it is tightly covered when stored or it will literally just evaporate into the air.

Chicken Française

This is another of my favorites dishes growing up.  It originally had white wine added, however, since wine is made with yeast, this recipe forgoes the wine for sparkling cider. It is still just as tasty! I made this one with a cranberry apple cider and it had a great wine-like flavor.
Wonderful served with pasta of any sort and a fresh salad.

S.O.S.

S.O.S is not the prettiest dish (which is how it got its name) but it  can be made fast, is fairly easy, and quite delicious. Usually you can use a can of cream of mushroom soup, which really cuts down the prep time, but in case you cannot find any, the recipe below is easy enough.

This can also be made with ground turkey or chicken.

Always great served on a baked potato or egg noodles!

Carrot and Feta Salad

This is great for summer picnics.  Light and crisp and tangy!


3 large carrots, peeled
¼ cup crumbled feta cheese
1 tablespoon maple syrup
2 teaspoons canola oil
1 tablespoon fresh dill
Salt and pepper to taste

Place a medium pot, half filled with water, over medium heat to bring  to a simmer.
Slice carrots into wafer thin medallions and place in simmering water with a generous pinch of salt.
Simmer carrots for 5 minutes or until slightly tender but not mushy.
Shock carrots by placing cooked carrot slices in ice water for a few moments, until cooled.
In a medium bowl, whisk together maple syrup, canola oil, dill, salt and pepper.
Add cooled carrots and feta to maple dill dressing and toss to coat.
Store refrigerated in a covered container and serve chilled or room temperature.

Pepperoni Bread

Pillsbury makes a pizza dough that is leavened with baking soda and Glucono delta-lactone that I have found to be tolerable and quite useful.  Tonight, I made pepperoni bread out of it, that I served with a side of tomato sauce for dipping.  It's easy and delicious.

Salted Hot Chocolate for One

If you wanted to make it for more than one,just multiply the recipe as needed.

You'll need:
Milk (and cream if you wish)
Chocolate Chips
Kosher or Sea Salt
Vanilla (optional)
Whipped cream (optional)
A whisk

Fill the mug you plan on using up, most of the way, with milk (or a mixture of 75% milk and 25% cream if you want it really rich).
Pour measured milk into a small sauce pan, over medium heat.
Measure out a handful of chocolate chips (about 1/4 cup).
Place chocolate chips into heating milk.
Add a large pinch of kosher salt and whisk.
If you have vanilla powder handy, add a pinch and continue to whisk until the milk just begins to boil, turn off the heat.
Pour into cup, garnish with whipped cream, and an additional sprinkle of salt.
Enjoy, but don't burn your mouth (Sorry, I always need this advice because I always do!).

Chocolate Covered Salted Toffee Almond Matzo

I was looking for matzo cookie recipes and came across this recipe from about.com and adapted it to create a super delicious treat.  I'm even posting it early to give you a chance to make it before Passover is over, because it is really amazing.  It tastes very much like a Skor bar, which is one of my favorite candies ever. It is relatively easy to make and I hope you will!