gingerbread men Recipe

No holiday cookie platter would be complete without gingerbread men! 

26 ServingsPrep: 30 min. + chilling Bake: 10 min./batch + cooling

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1/3 cup molasses
• 1 Egg
• 2 tablespoons water
• 2-2/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon each ground cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice

Directions

• In a large bowl, cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy.
• Beat in the molasses, egg and water. Combine the flour, ginger,
• baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice; add to creamed
• mixture and mix well. Divide dough in half. Refrigerate for 30
• minutes or until easy to handle.
• 
  
• On a lightly floured surface, roll out each portion of dough to
• 1/8-in. thickness. Cut with a floured 4-in. cookie cutter. Place 2
• in. apart on greased baking sheets. Reroll scraps.
• 
  
• Bake at 350° for 8-10 minutes or until edges are firm. Remove to
• wire racks to cool completely. Decorate as desired. Yield: about 2
• dozen.

CREAM CHEESE CHICKEN ENCHILADAS

CREAM CHEESE CHICKEN ENCHILADAS

Ingredients:

5 oz. reduced fat cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup light sour cream

10 oz. can of enchilada sauce

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, divided

1 cup shredded monterey jack cheese, divided

2 cups cooked shredded chicken

1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed (canned corn works just fine, but drain it first)

4 oz. can diced green chiles

1/2 tsp chili powder

1/4 tsp cumin

Salt and pepper

4 scallions, thinly sliced

8 (8-inch) whole wheat tortillas

Directions:

1.Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Spray a 9X13 dish with cooking spray.
2.In the bowl of your mixer cream together the cream cheese, sour cream, and 1/2 of the enchilada sauce. Stir in 1/2 cup of each type of cheese.
3.In a second bowl toss together the chicken, corn, cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper, green chiles, and half of the scallions. Add the chicken mixture to the cheese mixture and combine well.
4.Spread about half of the remaining enchilada sauce in the bottom of the baking dish.
5.Spoon the filling into each tortilla, roll the tortilla up, and place in the baking dish with the seam down. Pour the remaining enchilada sauce over the top of the filled tortillas and sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Sprinkle with the remaining scallions and serve.

Garlic Knots

Make these little guys to serve with any Pasta dishes. I found this recipe on Facebook and tried making them, they where Wonderful. You can make some to go with Pizza night, spaghetti and meatballs or any pasta dinners.

Garlic Knots

1 3/4 cups of warm water at 115 degrees
1/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon of sea salt or other course salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons of Active Dry Yeast
5 and 1/2 cups of all purpose flour

Topping

1/8 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
4 cloves fresh garlic, minced and crushed
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped

Instructions

Combine water, olive oil, salt, sugar, and active dry yeast in a larger bowl. Mix so that yeast dissolves then add the flour and mix well.
Cover the bowl with a warm hand towel or greased plastic wrap and set in a warm spot until doubled in size (usually 1-3 hrs).

I then chill the dough for about 15 minutes to make it easier to work with, but you don't have to if your time is limited. You can oil your hands to help keep dough from sticking to them. Divide the dough in two parts. I throw the dough on an oiled surface several times to flatten it and then roll it into a rectangle about 5" x 16" and 1/2" thick. Next I use a pizza cutter to make 1/2" x 5" strips.

Sprinkle dough strips and work surface with flour. Taking the strip nearest to you, roll it back and forth to create an even rope. Tie into a knot (over, under, and through) and place on parchment lined cookie sheet. Place knots about an 1 1/2" apart. Using lots of flour to keep the dough from sticking to itself while making your knots makes it so much easier. Continue making the rest of the knots with the second half of the dough. After each sheet pan fills up, cover with a dry towel, and place in a warm, draft-free spot to rise.

Preheat oven to 400° degrees. After knots have doubled in size, take off the towel bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.

 Garlic Oil Topping

While knots are baking, make garlic topping. Warm the olive oil, butter, and garlic in a small saucepan. Add chopped parsley and set aside. While the knots are still warm and just out of the oven, brush with the garlic oil and season with salt. Serve warm with your favorite pasta dish! 

Cinnamon Roll Swirl Cake Recipe!

the batter

3 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup sugar
4 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup butter, melted

Topping

1 cup butter, soft to the point of almost melted
1 cup brown sugar
2 Tbsp flour
2 Tbsp cinnamon

In a large bowl, mix all the ingredients together except for the butter.
once mixed. slowly pour in the butter.

Pour into a greased 9x13 pan.

For the topping, mix all the ingredients together until well combined.

Drop evenly over the batter and swirl with a knife.
Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes.

Glaze

2 cup powdered sugar
5 Tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla

While the cake is warm drizzle the glaze over the cake.