Waffles!

Waffles

2 C. Milk
2 Eggs
1/4 C. Oil
2 Tb. Sugar
1/2 Tsp. Salt
4 Tsp. Baking Powder
2 C. Flour

Plug in waffle iron. Seperate eggs and put yolks in with milk and oil. In a seperate bowl beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form, set aside for later use. Add all dry ingredients and mix well. Then with a spatula add egg whites and gently fold in. Cook in waffle iron for 2-3 minutes. Top and enjoy!

Here it is before egg whites.

After they are gently folded in.

With some of our favorite toppings whipped cream and strawberries.
Yummy!!

Beef Stew

2-3 pounds stew meat

1 cup peeled, coarsely chopped onion

3 large cloves garlic, minced

3 Tbsp. flour

salt & pepper to taste

1 cup water

2 cups beef stock (I use 2 cups water and add 2 tsp. bouillion)

1 1/2-2 Tbsp. tomato paste

1 bay leaf

2 sprigs fresh thyme (or 1/2 tsp. dried thyme)

2 sprigs fresh parsley

1 Tbsp. minced fresh rosemary (or 1/2 tsp. dried rosemary)

2-4 potatoes (add more water if you use a lot of potatoes)

2-4 carrots peeled and sliced 1/4-inch thick

2 ribs celery sliced 1/4-inch thick

2 Tbsp.-1/4 cup Homemade Gourmet Grandma's Sunday Roast (optional, can be ordered through link at right--it's awesome in this stew)

Brown stew meat, onion, and garlic in olive oil in stock pot over medium-high heat. After meat is browned, stir in flour, salt, and pepper. Add water and beef stock. Cook and stir until the liquid is bubbly and thickened. Then, add remaining ingredients and stir. At this point, you can continue to simmer the stew on the stove or transfer it to a crock pot. Cook until the veggies and meat are tender (an hour or two on the stove, 6-8 hours on low in crock pot or 3-5 hours on high). If using dried seasonings, add them at the end for most intense flavor.

Favorite Cornbread

We love this recipe, which is pictured with the stew above.

2 cups Bisquick baking mix
6 Tablespoons cornmeal (1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp.)
½ tsp. baking soda
¾ cup sugar (I only use about ½ cup—depends how sweet you like it)
½ cup butter or margarine, melted (I use only 1/4 cup butter, and it turns out great)
1 cup milk (buttermilk is also great)
2 eggs, beaten

Combine Bisquick, cornmeal, baking soda, and sugar in mixing bowl—mix dry ingredients thoroughly. Combine melted butter or margarine, milk, and eggs in another mixing bowl, and stir well. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix until moistened. Bake in two greased 9-inch round pans at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or in one 9X13 pan at 350 for 30 minutes or until golden brown.

Maple & Soy Salmon

1/2 C. Maple syrup

1/4 C. Soy sauce

4 Salmon fillets

2 tsp. sesame seeds toasted

Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 500 degrees.

Bring the maple syrup and soy sauce to a simmer in a small sauce pan over medium heat. cook until the mixture is syrupy and measures roughly 1/2 cup, about 4-6 minutes.

Rinse salmon and pat dry with paper towels. Season with salt and pepper, and lay (skin side down) in a lightly oiled 9x13 pan about 1 inch apart. Bake for 5 minutes.

Using pastry brush, spread a thick layer of the glaze over the tops and sides of the fish. Continue to bake until all but the center of the fish has turned from translucent to opaque, about 5 minutes longer. (I would cook it an additional 3 mins. myself.)

Brush the fillets with another layer of glaze and sprinkle with sesame seeds before serving. (We love sesame seeds so we toasted 4 tsp. To toast just warm in a small frying pan until lightly browned.)

Steve made this meal for us last night. He said it was easy, and it tasted fabulous. Kind of like a homemade soy sauce. I would consider using the sauce on teriyaki bowls or other dishes.

Whole Wheat Bread

7 C. whole wheat flour

1 C. white flour

2 1/2 Tb. yeast

Mix together in bowl. (Best if wheat flour can be ground right before you need it.)

Add:

5 C. hot water

Mix for one minute.

Cover and let rest for 10 minutes.

Add:

1 heaping Tb. salt

2/3 C. honey or 1 C. sugar

2/3 C. oil

2 1/2 Tb. lemon juice (bottled works fine, it is a dough conditioner)

Mix for one minute

Add:

5 C. flour, one cup at a time

Mix in between cups. Add flour until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. (I have never needed all 5 cups. I will post a picture of what this looks like the next time I make bread. I believe this step is the key to awesome bread.)

This is getting close, so at this point I add flour 2/1 C. at a time until the dough looks like this:

The dough is cleaning the sides of the bowl, but is still sticky.

Beat for 8 minutes. Grease pans. Makes 4 big loaves or 6 smaller loaves. Form into loaves on the counter with oil.

Put into a cold oven and wait for the loaves to raise about one inch (10-15 minutes). Then turn the oven on to 350 and set the timer for 30-40 minutes. Cook until golden brown.

This is the best whole wheat bread recipe ever. I gave up on making homemade bread for awhile because I wasn't very successful in Denver (could have something to do with altitude), but this recipe is really easy. And really yummy! I would be curious to know if someone at high altitude makes this bread, comment and let me know how it turns out!

*For those of you using a Bosch white bowl: the dough does climb the center of the bowl during the eight minute beating. I just clean my bowl immediately to get out the little bit of dough that often gets stuck in the middle.

This recipe is too big for just my family, so I will be posting size variations soon! (That helps with the bowl problem too!)

Grilled Artichokes

We started grilling artichokes after my Mom ate them at Cheesecake Factory. Here are the directions. If you like artichokes you must try this. They are amazing.

Grilled Artichokes

Begin by trimming and cutting the artichokes in half. Then boil or steam for 25-30 minutes. When leaves easily pull out they are done.

Mix: 2 Tablespoons Olive oil

1 Tablespoon lemon juice

Garlic to taste

(2-3 cloves)

Baste open side of artichoke. Place on medium high grill 4-6 minutes. They will have brown grill marks. Enjoy with butter or Brianna's Real French Vinaigrette. This salad dressing also makes a wonderful marinade as well.