Oven Roasted Cauliflower

Recipe from Skinnytaste

Ingredients:

• 6 cups uncooked cauliflower florets (about 1 large) cut small
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• kosher salt and fresh pepper
• juice of 1/4 lemon
• 1/4 cup Parmigiano Reggiano, freshly grated

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450°F.

Combine cauliflower, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper well so all the florets are coated and seasoned. Place in a large shallow roasting pan and place in the center of the oven.

Roast for about 25-35 minutes, turning florets occasionally so they are evenly cooked.Remove from oven and top with Parmigiano Reggiano and additional salt and pepper if needed.

*We also like doing this with broccoli or even mixing the two. And our kids all love it!!

Black Bean Chicken

2 cans black beans (I usually just use 1)
16 oz jar salsa
1/2 cup brown rice (uncooked)
1 lb chicken breast

- Place frozen chicken breast in sprayed crock pot. Pour beans, rice and salsa over chicken. Cook low 8-10 hours (my crockpot cooks hotter and faster) and serve.
- If you thaw the chicken just a bit, you can cut the cooking time in half.
-This is a low fat, low carb meal. 

Homemade Soft Pretzels

Recipe by Alton Brown, variations by Our Best Bites

1 1/2 cups warm water (110-115 degrees F)
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 package active dry yeast (I used rapid rise yeast)
22 oz all-purpose flour, about 4 1/2 cups
2 ounces unsalted butter, melted
Vegetable oil for pan
10 cups water
2/3 cup baking soda
1 large egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water
optional: additional melted butter and cinnamon-sugar
optional: powdered sugar, milk, melted butter for dipping

Combine the water, sugar and kosher salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle the yeast on top. Allow to sit for 5 minutes or until the mixture begins to foam. Add the flour (tip: don’t add all the flour at once, just in case you don’t need it all.  Reserve a small amount and add as needed for a soft dough) and butter and, using the dough hook attachment, mix on low speed until well combined. Change to medium speed and knead until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl, approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Remove the dough from the bowl, scrape the bowl clean and then oil it well with vegetable oil. Return the dough to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and sit in a warm place for approximately 50 to 55 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line 2 half-sheet pans with parchment paper and lightly brush with the vegetable oil. Set aside.

Bring the 10 cups of water and the baking soda to a rolling boil in an 8-quart saucepan or roasting pan.

In the meantime, turn the dough out onto a slightly oiled work surface and divide into 8 equal pieces. Roll out each piece of dough into a 24-inch rope. Make a U-shape with the rope, holding the ends of the rope, cross them over each other and press onto the bottom of the U in order to form the shape of a pretzel. Place onto the parchment-lined half sheet pan.

Place the pretzels into the boiling water, 1 by 1, for 30 seconds. If you’re making pretzel “bites” put in as many as will fit without crowding.  Remove them from the water using a large flat spatula (a metal spider works great). Return to the half sheet pan, brush the top of each pretzel with the beaten egg yolk and water mixture and sprinkle with pretzel salt or kosher salt. Bake until dark golden brown in color, approximately 12 to 14 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack for at least 5 minutes before serving.

Cinnamon Sugar Version: Prepare as directed but don’t sprinkle with salt before baking.  Immediately after removing pretzels from oven, brush with melted butter and toss in a bowl of cinnamon-sugar.

Cinnamon Sugar Dippers:  Instead of shaping pretzels into the traditional shape, roll dough into ropes and cut into 1-2 inch pieces.  Continue preparing as recipe instructs, brushing with butter immediately after removing from oven and tossing in cinnamon sugar.  Create a dipping glaze by mixing about a cup of powdered sugar with 2-3 tablespoons melted butter and then add milk as needed, whisking until smooth.  Serve warm.

**If you like the pretzels you get at the mall, then you will love these! I made pretzel bites instead of actual pretzels. They were super easy and my kids helped me. I made mine with kosher salt and then some with garlic and parmesan cheese that we ate with spaghetti. Next time we will definitely be trying the sweet ones! SOOOO good!!

Cinnamon Bun Popcorn

This is so easy & so yummy! 

The recipe is from Our Best Bites

12 C popped popcorn (about 1/2 C kernels)

1 C pecan halves, roughly chopped

1 C brown sugar

3/4 t cinnamon*

1/4 C karo syrup (or honey makes a good substitution)

1 stick real butter (1/2 C)

1t vanilla

1/2 t baking soda

3 squares almond bark (about 4 oz) (I used melted white chocolate chips)

Preheat oven to 250 degrees

Place popcorn and chopped pecans in a large bowl and set aside.

Combine brown sugar and cinnamon* (I didn't use quite this much cinnamon. Again, I think it's the pregnancy, so adjust it to your taste and liking) in a 2 liter capacity microwave safe bowl. Mix well. Chop butter into chunks and place on top of sugar mixture. Pour corn syrup over the top of everything. Microwave on high for 30 seconds and then stir to combine. Return to microwave and heat for 2 minutes. Remove and stir and then microwave for 2 minutes more.

Remove from microwave and add in vanilla and baking soda. Stir to combine. Mixture will foam and rise. Pour caramel mixture over popcorn and pecans and stir very well so everything is well coated.

Spread popcorn mixture onto a foil-lined jelly roll pan. Place in oven and bake for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes.

Remove from oven and spread out on a large piece of parchment, waxed paper, or foil.

Melt almond bark according to package instructions. Drizzle over popcorn mixture. When almond bark is hardened and popcorn is cool, break into chunks and enjoy!

Old English Toffee

In a large frying pan* place the following:

1/2 lb. butter (please use real butter, not margarine)

5 T. hot water

1 c. sugar

Cook* stirring constantly until light brown color and candy leaves the side of the pan. One of the most important parts of making this toffee is that you don't actually "stir" it. You need to use a paddle or a flat spatula.*  Don't scrape the sides of the pan or it will make the toffee sugary and grainy. You do want to use the paddle to "stir" the toffee from the outside towards the center of the pan. I hope that makes sense.

Once it is the light brown color (it will take a good 10 minutes or so), remove from heat and immediately add 1 t. vanilla.

Pour candy onto parchment paper in a cookie sheet. Break chocolate (I use a king size hershey's chocolate bar)* into pieces and allow to melt on the hot candy, spreading evenly. Sprinkle chopped walnuts on top.

*I got this recipe from a friend. Here are some changes/suggestions: We use a big saucepan, not a frying pan (I think that's what she really meant). We cook it on medium once it starts boiling. It will still boil after you turn the heat down. We use a silicone spatula. She uses a candy bar on top, but we just use chocolate chips. And we also have used almonds on top. This may take a few tries before perfecting, but will be so worth it once you do. If you don't cook it long enough it will be soft. Gary is actually the one who makes it in our house, so if you have questions be sure to ask him :) 

Ginger Squishes

2 1/4 cups flour (divided)

1 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup butter

1/4 cup molasses

1 egg

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground cloves*

Combine all ingredients except 1 cup flour. Mix well. Add remaining 1 cup flour. Shape into 1 inch balls. Roll in granulated sugar and place 2 inches apart on baking sheet. Bake at 375 for 8 minutes. You want the cookies to still be soft, not crunchy.

*I didn't use quite this much cloves when I made them for the Christmas party. I have in the past, though, and the cookies were still very delicious, but I think it's this pregnancy and even the smell of the cloves was a bit much for me to handle, so that's why I cut back.

Lemon Brownies

2 cubes margarine, softened

2 c. sugar

Cream together.

Add:

4 eggs, beating well after each

2 t. lemon extract

1 t. lemon zest

dash of salt

1 1/2 c. flour

Bake in greased 9x13 pan for 25-30 minutes.

Glaze:

1 c. powdered sugar

2 T. fresh lemon juice

1 t. lemon zest.

Glaze while brownies are warm.

These are SO yummy!! I didn't have lemon extract, so I used twice as much lemon juice instead and they turned out  delicious!

This recipe is from my friend and she doesn't say what temperature she cooks it at. So, I usually bake mine at 350, but they sometimes take more that 30 minutes. You could probably also bake them at 375