Neiman Marcus Cookies

Our church is having an event tomorrow, and I have to bring 3 dozen cookies.  My husband immediately suggested Neiman Marcus cookes - with no hopes of getting extras for himself, I'm sure.  When having lunch at Neimans last year I ordered the cookies for my dessert, and it came with the recipe.  I made them tonight and WOW.  They really are good.  If you need a chocolate chip cookie recipe, try this one!

Neiman Marcus Cookies

Ingredients
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1 cup light brown sugar
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1-3/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 teaspoons instant espresso coffee powder
1-1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Cream the butter with the sugars using an electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy (approximately 30 seconds).
Beat in the egg and the vanilla extract for another 30 seconds.
In a mixing bowl, sift together the dry ingredients and beat into the butter mixture at low speed for about 15 seconds. Stir in the espresso coffee powder and chocolate chips.
Using a 1-ounce scoop or a 2-tablespoon measure, drop cookie dough onto a greased cookie sheet about 3 inches apart. Gently press down on the dough with the back of a spoon to spread out into a 2 inch circle. Bake for about 20 minutes or until nicely browned around the edges. Bake a little longer for a crispier cookie.

Yield: 2 dozen cookies

Recipe courtesy Neiman Marcus.

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Best Pickles for Tuna Salad

This one is going to be short and sweet and most people will be like, "What? Who cares." But, these pickles really make the best tuna salad. What makes it great is chopping up some of the other veggies in the jar with the pickles (except the cloves of garlic. That's a little too intense for us)

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Unsolicited Product Endorsement: Buttermilk Powder

Buttermilk powder. Have you tried the stuff? It changed my baking life. How many times have you skipped a recipe or used a questionable milk/vinegar concoction because you didn't have buttermilk or didn't want to buy a half gallon for two tablespoons?

Buttermilk powder is available on almost any baking aisle and goes in the fridge after you open it, so you use what you need and keep the rest for your next recipe. The can tells you how much powder to mix with water. This stuff is pretty cheap and, I won't lie to you, I keep it in my fridge for months with good results (Disclaimer: the FDA probably doesn't condone my cavalier attitude towards shelf-life...). So, next time you come across a recipe that calls for buttermilk, don't be afraid to go for the powder. You'll be glad you did when future buttermilk-requiring recipes come along.

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Valentine's Dinner with The Pioneer Woman

Last weekend Anthony and I were watching the Pioneer Woman's show on FoodNetwork when we saw her recipe for Fancy Mac and Cheese. We looked at each other and immediately decided we were having THAT for our Valentine's dinner. Anthony found that it and a recipe for bananas foster were in her latest cookbook. So, with a salad on the side, we had our menu complete.

 

The mac and cheese requires some special cheeses, so it is definitely a special occasion dish. I knew the cost would add up, so I compared prices at Kroger, Trader Joe's and Central Market. Trader Joe's won by a landslide. PW uses 3 separate skillets/pots for the onions, bacon, and cheese sauce, but I just made them all in my trusty large cast iron Dutch oven, draining the fat after the bacon. It worked perfectly! This recipe is to die for and not as heavy as one might think.

For dessert, we made PW's Bananas Foster. It was easy and tasty, although I would have liked the sauce to be a little thicker. I think that was my fault for not cooking the butter and brown sugar long enough, for fear of burning it.

All-in-all, a success! I never cease to be amazed by the Pioneer Woman. I have not found any other source for recipes that i can count on 100% of the time to not only work, but taste fantastic. If you haven't checked her out, you must!

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Valentine Pretzel Buttons

I found this idea for Valentine Pretzel Buttons on Pinterest and thought they would make a great treat for my niece and nephew. It couldn't have been easier. You could really do these for any holiday. My grocery store was out of regular M&Ms, so I used the cherry ones they had for Valentine's. They were perfect! I'll be keeping this idea for when Eleanor is older because kids could definitely help with it.

Original post: http://griffithsrated.blogspot.com/2012/02/valentine-prezel-buttons.html?m=1

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Chicken Pot Pie

WAIT!! Before you tune me out, this is not your mama's pot pie (which I'm sure was lovely). It has a couple if twists that might sound strange, but trust me. You won't want any other chicken pot pie again.

I have to admit, I did not make this up. I got it from Judy Byrd (https://www.judiebyrd.com/) at my sister's bridal luncheon (I can't remember if we had it at mine too). The great thing about this recipe is that it is impossible to mess up and you can change it to suit your tastes.

Ingredients
1 deli Rotisserie chicken
1 jar alfredo sauce (I have tried the different variations and have come to the conclusion that the plain alfredo tastes best in this recipe, but you can try others like garlic or four cheese if you want)
vegetables - (we use 3/4 cup frozen peas and carrots, 1 tbsp pimentos, and 1 can of fire-roasted tomatoes, drained, but you can use any combinations of vegetables you want. mushrooms and artichokes are good too)
1 tsp thyme
salt and pepper to taste
1 box of 2 refrigerated pie crusts (we use Pillsbury)
1 egg

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Combine chicken, sauce, vegetables, thyme, salt and pepper in a bowl. Put 1 pie crust in the bottom of a pie pan, pour in chicken mixture, and top with the other crust. Beat the egg in a small bowl with a little water or milk. Brush on top of the pie. Bake for 45 min. or until the crust is browned and the filling is warmed through. If the crust starts browning too early, cover it with foil.

Easy, right? Keep in mind - everything but the crust in this pie is already cooked, so you are just baking the crust and warming everything else up. Have fun and experiment with different vegetables!

P.S. Don't throw away the remains of your rotisserie chickens - put them in a bag in the freezer until you have a couple and make chicken stock with them.  YUM

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Trader Joe's Speculoos Crunchy Cookie Butter Cookies

On my most recent trip to Trader Joe's, I purchased one of their new products - Speculoos Crunchy Cookie Butter. I tried it several ways including straight out of the jar with a spoon, on some Trader Joe's cinnamon graham crackers, and on a piece of toast with bananas.  My favorite version was on the toast.  The crunchy cookie butter is very tasty with little cookie crunches throughout, but it has a little bit of a chalky texture when eaten by itself. So, when I found a recipe for Crispy Cookie Butter Cookies that used a whole cup of the stuff, I jumped on it!  This recipe is SO easy and, once you have the cookie butter, you probably have the other 5 ingredients in your pantry and fridge.  These cookies are flourless and so have a crispy texture that melts in your mouth.  Make them!!

 

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