Blue Coconut Macarons with French Buttercream

Ingredients:
3 egg whites, aged*
5 tbsp granulated sugar
2/3 cup almond flour
1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
1/2 tsp coconut extract
1/2 tsp rum extract
8 drops of neon blue food coloring


Method:


In a food processor, process almond flour and confectioners sugar until well mixed. Sift the mixture through sieve, and divide in half.

In a medium sized mixing bowl, whip egg whites until foamy.

While beating on high, slowly add sugar. When soft peaks form, add extracts and food coloring if desired.

Beat until stiff peaks,has a glossy texture, and mixture doesn't drip from the beaters.

Into the whipped merengue, fold in the first half of the almond mixture. When just blended, add additional dry mixture, folding until mixture is blended.

Be careful not to over-mix!

Place mixture in a piping bag fitted with round tip.

On to a parchment lined baking sheet, pipe in small circles, about the size of a quarter; leaving room for the batter to spread.

Rap sheet firmly against the counter, or flat surface. This helps the macaron to get it's pied shape.

Before baking, let batter dry, uncovered for 30 minutes.

Heat oven to 300. Bake for 15-17 minutes. Cool completely.

Pipe a small amount of french buttercream on flat side of macaron, top with other half making a sandwich. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Makes about 2 1/2 dozen filled macarons.

* Aged egg whites: Covered and set at room temperature overnight.

Coconut French Buttercream Filling

Ingredients:
•3 eggs
•2/3 cup granulated sugar
•2/3 cup water
•1 tsp coconut extract
•1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature, and stirred.


Method:


In a medium sized mixing bowl, beat eggs for about 5 minutes.

Eggs should be light and fluffy.

In a small sauce pan, heat water and sugar over medium high heat.

Cook until mixture comes to a soft ball stage. To test, spoon a small amount of mixture into a glass of cold water, if the syrup forms into a ball that can be picked up, it is ready.

While mixer is running, pour a fine, thread like stream into the egg mixture. Beat mixture until the bottom of the mixing bowl is cool to touch .

Add softened butter in 2-3 separate increments. The frosting will dramatically change texture. Do not be alarmed!!

Keep beating and it will lighten and become smooth again, about 5-7 minutes.

When adding flavoring, the butter cream will separate again.

Repeat beating process until smooth again.

Fill macarons with a small amount of buttercream. Leftovers may be refrigerated or frozen for next use; mixing well after becoming room temperature.

Makes about 2 1/2-3 cups

Alcohol free grapefruit jello shot
1 1/3 C. grapefruit soda
1 T. lime juice
2 envelopes Knox gelatin
2/3 C. grapefruit juice
1 T. sugar
Pour soda and lime juice into a small saucepan and sprinkle with the gelatin.  Allow the gelatin to soak for a minute or two.  Heat over medium heat and add sugar until gelatin is dissolved, stirring constantly, about 5 minutes.  Remove from heat.  Stir in the grapefruit juice.  Pour into a loaf pan or mold.  Put in the refrigerator to set for a few hours or over night.

Tammy's squash casserole

Tammy gave me this recipe over the phone so I hope it's correct:) I can edit it if it's not.

6 c. assorted squash, cubed
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 c. sour cream
1 c. carrots, sliced
1/4 c. onion, chopped

1/2 c. melted butter
1 c. stove top stuffing

Method:
1. Stir fry the squash, carrots and onion, then mix with cream of chicken and sour cream and place in a baking dish.
2. Mix the stuffing with the butter and sprinkle on top. Bake until hot.

Steak for stir fry

Note: When dealing with flank steak or round steak, I like to cut it thin and stir fry it. The easiest way I found to cut it thin is to freeze it slightly and then use the slicer attatchment on the food processor. In this recipe, I used the food processor to blend the marinade and then I switched to the slicer attatchment for the steak.

Blend together:

1/4 cup soy sauce
3 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger (I used fresh)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder (I used one clove)
1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 1/2 pounds flank steak or round steak, thinly sliced

Directions

Combine the soy sauce, honey, vinegar, ginger, garlic powder, and vegetable oil.

Lay steak in a shallow glass or ceramic dish. Pour marinade over steak, then turn and coat the other side. Cover, and refrigerate 8 hours, or overnight.

Chocolate Zucchini Cake with homemade frosting

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups white sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
3 cups grated zucchini

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch baking pan.
2. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Add the eggs and oil, mix well. Fold in the nuts and zucchini until they are evenly distributed. Pour into the prepared pan.
3. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes in the preheated oven, until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool cake completely before frosting with your favorite frosting.

Frosting

1/2 c. shortening
1/2 c. butter
1 tsp vanilla
4 c. powdered sugar
1/4 to 1/2 c. milk to consistency to spread
3/4 c. plus 2 TBLS baking cocoa

Puffed Brie

1 Brie Round, edges removed

1 pkg. Puff Pastry

1/4 c. Brown Sugar

1/4 c. Honey

Sliced Almonds

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place puff pastry in a pie dish and place the brie in the middle, Sprinkle the brown sugar and almonds on brie. Drizzle honey on top. Pull corners of puff pastry up to the center to cover the brie. Bake until the top is browned. Serve with apple and pear slices, also good with crackers.

Cheesy Zucchini Flatbread

1 10-ounce tube refrigerated pizza dough
3/4 cup garlic-and-herb cheese spread (such as Alouette), divided
3/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, divided
3 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley, divided
1 small red onion
1 7- to 8-inch-long zucchini (yellow or green), cut crosswise into 1/8-inch-thick rounds, divided
Olive oil

Preheat oven to 400°F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper; spray with nonstick spray. Unroll dough onto parchment. Spread half of herb cheese over 1 long half of dough, leaving 1/2-inch plain border. Sprinkle with half of Parmesan and 2 tablespoons parsley. Using parchment as aid, fold plain half of dough over filled half (do not seal edges). Spread remaining herb cheese over top; sprinkle with remaining Parmesan. Remove enough outer layers of onion to yield 2-inch-diameter core; cut into 1/8-inch-thick rounds. Arrange 1 row of zucchini down 1 long side of dough. Arrange onion rounds in row alongside zucchini. Arrange 1 more row of zucchini alongside onion. Brush vegetables with oil; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake bread until puffed and deep brown at edges, about 24 minutes. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon parsley.

Asian Flank Steak

1/2 unpeeled Asian pear, halved, cored, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup water
6 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon unseasoned rice vinegar
2 large garlic cloves, peeled
2 teaspoons Asian sesame oil
2 pounds Flank Steak
3 tablespoons sesame seeds
1 teaspoon fine sea salt

Puree first 7 ingredients in blender until smooth. Pour into large bowl. Add beef; toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour.

Heat heavy small skillet over medium heat. Add sesame seeds and salt and cook until seeds are deep golden brown, stirring frequently, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat. Let cool in skillet. Divide sesame mixture among 6 very small bowls and place 1 bowl on each of 6 plates.
Prepare barbecue (high heat). Using tongs, remove beef, 1 slice at a time, from marinade, allowing excess to drip back into bowl; place on grill. Cook to desired doneness, about 2 minutes per side for medium-rare. Divide beef among plates alongside sesame salt.

Winter Squash Rolls

1 1/2 cups cubed winter squash
1 cup scalded milk
2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
6 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup shortening

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a small saucepan, cover squash cubes with water. Bring to a boil and cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain, cool and mash.

In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. In a large bowl, combine 5 cups flour, sugar and salt. Stir in the yeast mixture, shortening, squash and milk. Mix well. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, beating well after each addition. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and supple, about 8 minutes. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.

Divide the dough into twelve equal pieces and form into rounds. Place the rounds in a lightly greased 13x9 inch baking pan. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise until doubled in volume, about 30 minutes.

Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Pear Upside-Down Cake

This is a variation of a Mark Bittman recipe. I changed the amount of flour because I think there is a misprint and I added the cranberries for decoration and the ginger and chocolate because they are my favorite flavors. If you use the cranberries, you may want to use a more substantial cake batter (add more flour) because they float. I have a different cake recipe that is thicker if you don't like to experiment. If you want the cranberry/pear flavor to be more prominent, leave off the chocolate. I couldn't figure out how to do it the other night, but definitely served warm with ice cream would be excellent. I also have variations for plums, apples, blackberries, pitted cherries, cranberries, pineapple, and green tomatoes.

8 TBL unsalted butter, melted and divided in 1/2
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup chopped almonds
3-4 small ripe pears, peeled, cored, and halved (if using large you can cut them into 4 or 8 pieces)
a handful of cranberries
1 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1 TBL finely grated fresh ginger
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup ground almonds
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
4 oz. dark chocolate
2 TBL cream

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Liberally grease a 9" round cake pan or cast-iron skillet with half of the butter. Sprinkle the brown sugar and almonds evenly over the bottom of the pan and spread the pears in the pan in a single layer. If using cranberries, place a cranberry in the core of each of the pear halves or slices.

Whisk the remaining melted butter, buttermilk, eggs, ginger, and sugar together until foamy. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, ground almonds, baking soda, and salt. Gradually add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and stir until well incorporated.

Carefully spread the batter over the pears, using a spatula to make sure it's evenly distributed. Bake until the top of the cake is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 50 to 60 minutes. Let the cake cool in the pan for just 5 minutes.

Run a knife around the edge of the pan. Put the serving plate on the top of the cake pan and flip the pan so that the serving plate is now on the bottom and the cake pan upside down and on top. The cake should fall out onto the serving plate. If the cake sticks, turn it right side up and run the knife along the edge again, then use a spatula to lift gently around the edge. Invert the cake again and tap on the bottom of the pan. If any of the fruit sticks to the pan, don't worry; simply use a knife to remove the pieces and fill in any gaps on the top of the cake. Serve warm with ice cream.