Jam Thumbprints

These are my Christmas staple. I'd like to become known for my jam thumbprints as they are my favorite cookie of all time.  I only have one request so far but I swear these are worth a try... and maybe will become your Christmas cookie.

Jam Thumbprints
3 sticks unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
1-2 tbsp vanilla (or beans from 1 vanilla bean)
3 1/2 cups of flour
2 tbsp salt
Smuckers Raspberry jam (with seeds)

Allow butter to come to room temperature.  Cream sugar and butter together.  Add vanilla.  Sift flour and salt together. Slowly add flour mixture in a stand mixer on the lowest setting** Mix until combined. Work into discs and rest in refridgerator for 30 minutes.  Roll out dough until 1/2 inch thickness. Cut into thumb-lengh squares, soften the edges and indent the middle of the cookie with your thumb.  Add a very small amount of jam to center.  Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes.

Note: the cookies will not spread much in the oven.

**It's extremely important not to overmix the dough.  If you do not have a stand mixer and instead use a hand mixer, use your hands to

Put on your yamaka....

Latkes!

Scott is a good half-jew, so to celebrate Hannukah this year I wanted to brush up on my latke recipe.  Bon Appetit has a great recipe this year and some tips on how to make killer latkes.  Major high points - drain your potatoes with the dish towel. It makes a huge difference. Also, the spoonful doesn't have to be compact to get the right soft potato-ey consistency middle/crispy potato-ey outside.  I substituted crushed ritz crackers for bread crumbs and it turned out great.

3 Russet Potatoes
1-2 Vidalias
2 Eggs
1/4 cup plain dried bread crumbs
3 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
2 tbsp schmaltz (chicken fat) or butter
2-4 tbsp vegetable oil



Scott approved but be sure to serve with sour cream and applesauce!

One day...

Today I am writing a brief homage to Thanksgiving and the beautiful woman that makes it happen... Mimi.  Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday because it focuses on the two things I value the most, family and food.  My grandparents do a spread that is a mix of the dishes that I have grown up with and love.  I have neither tips nor tools to make your Thanksgiving as wonderful as ours.  I just share with you a snap-shot of one piece of my Thanksgiving and wish you the very best this holiday season.

Mimi and Papa's menu:
Cornbread stuffing
Pickled Beets
Sweet Potato Casserole
Creamed Onions
Greens
Smoked Turkey
Coca-cola Ham
Pickle plate
Yeast Rolls

Butternut Squash Mac 'n Cheese

While watching The Chew today, they featured an awesome mac and cheese that I had to try. I love mac and cheese. My grandmother makes the best mac and cheese out there and it was actually the first recipe that I knew by heart.  I was interested in how the butternut squash and kale would play in this version of a recipe that uses the same basics of my grandmother's mac and cheese.


Ingredients:
1 pound Bacon (diced)
1 Onion (diced)
1 Butternut Squash (peeled, diced, roasted and pureed)
2 cups Kale (deribbed and chopped)
2 cloves garlic (minced)
1/3 cup Half and Half
1 tsp Nutmeg
1 pound Rigatoni
1 1/2 cup Gruyere
1/2 cup Greek Yogurt
2 cups bread crumbs
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour
3 cups milk
Kosher Salt and Freshly Ground black pepper (to taste)

Recipe at The Chew. Mimi's Lesson: Roux = 1 tbsp fat (bacon grease and butter) + 1 tbsp flour + 1 cup milk + 1 cup cheese.  They play with the proportions a little with the butternut squash, cheese and mascarpone cheese. I substituted greek yogurt for the mascarpone and am sure you really wouldn't be able to tell a difference. Overall great dish and I will make it again.  It needs a few tweeks.

Things I learned from the recipe:
1. Butternut squash adds a lot of sweetness to the dish - salt from the bacon is completely necessary to balance.  I didn't use the full pound and wish I had.
2. The butternut squash puree adds a wonderful creaminess to the dish that makes cheese less necessary. Great substitute!
3. I always think I'll end up with more kale than I do after it cooks down.  Even when I try to correct for this, I still end up short.  Always add more kale.

Hot Wings (in the oven)

I have always LOVED chicken wings.  There is this hole in the wall around the corner from my house in Atlanta, Clays, that makes the best but I haven't been able to find a place in Nashville that compares. In fact, I think wings in Nashville are generally sub-par. The best I have found is Sportman's Grille in Hillsboro village.  Since I've got some time to kill I thought I'd try to tackle wings at home.  

I did some research on how to make wings at home, here are the tips I discovered: 

- Low (300 or below) and slow will dry out your wings. 

- High temp (>400) without pre-cooking will smoke your house down.

- Steaming will decrease the fat of the wing and allow you to cook at the higher temps to make a juicy and crispy wing 

- Don't need a deep frier to make crispy wings 

I followed Alton Brown's recipe which includes video instructions. Major idea is steam the wings THEN cook them on a rack over a cookie sheet in the oven.  Overall, I was really happy with the product, the wings are crispy but the meat is not dry.  Major downside is that it's labor intensive. 

Sauce:

• 4-5 tbsp Crystal Louisana Hot Sauce 
•  4-5 tbsp butter 
•  Green Onion, sliced 
•  Garlic 
•  Red Pepper flakes 
•  Sriracha (to your tolerance)

Melt butter with minced garlic.  Toss with other ingredients in a large bowl.  Combine with wings (they need to be hot from the oven).  Serve with blue cheese or ranch and celery sticks. 

Scott's Thoughts: 

1. Best wings in Nashville (I'm serious, he really said this). 

2. Could be spicier!!!!! (Oh my Lord, I might be able to continue dating him) 

3. Garlic was awesome in the sauce (actually a Rob thought) 

Brined Pork Chops

One of my favorite, easy summer grilling dish. The pork chops do have sit in the brine for a few hours but can be done the day before. I normally buy the thinner cut pork chops, I would estimate about 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. They cook up pretty past and are always delicious.

Brine:
- 1/4 to 1/2 cup salt
- 1/3 cup honey
- 3 cloves
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tbsp red pepper flakes
- 1 tbsp oregano
- 4 cups water

Combine. Bring ingredients to a boil. Fill 2nd large bowl half way with ice. Pour brine mixture over ice. Let brine cool. Place pork chops in brine. Let sit in the refrigerator for at least 2 hrs.

Grill 3 minutes per side.

Grilled corn: Trim husks tops and any extra husk leaves. Place on grill, rotating every once in awhile for 15 minutes until husk is charred.

 Scott's Thoughts:
1. Scott is better at grilling corn than me.
2.  Brined porkchops always turns out perfect
3. You can eat pork medium, right? If not we both have a date with trichanella.

Grilled Pizza with Peaches and Sausage

Ingredients

- Publix Pizza Dough (publix is the best, in my opinion)
- Mozzarella cheese
- Caramelized Onion
- Peaches, sliced
- Hot Italian Sausage
- Minced Garlic
- Red pepper flakes
- Olive Oil

Grill sausage. Slice. Pull or roll out pizza dough (don't pull it too thin). Place on grill. Drizzle with olive oil. Place desired toppings on dough. Close grill and let cook for 3-5 minutes or until cheese melts.

After  making this pizza, Bobby Flay showed up on my tv and was none other than grilling pizza! His tips, which I will follow next time included grilling the dough briefly on both sides without any toppings. Then he used a stone or something the pizza can rest on (I will use a cookie sheet), placed cheese and toppings, put the pizza back on the grill, closed the lid and let the cheese melt.

Scott's Thoughts: 
- It's not any better than pizza from the oven (which we've semi-perfected)
- Avoid flames