Lunch Lady Brownies

Lunch Lady Brownies

1 cup of Butter 

1/2 cup of Cocoa
2 cups of All Purpose Flour
2 cups of Sugar
4 Eggs

4 teaspoons of Vanilla

1 cup of Chopped Nuts (optional)

Melt the Butter in the microwave and put into my mixing bowl, then I add cocoa and mix together until smooth. Add flour, and sugar. Beat together and then add eggs, vanilla, and nuts. Mix until combined. Do not over stir. Pour into greased, floured  9x13 baking pan. Bake 20-25 minutes @350 F or until done. I would check at it at 20 minutes. Wait only about 10 minutes to frost brownies. Frost them while they are warm (not hot).

 * This batter will not be runny like a cake mix. You might have to spread it out over your pan with a rubber spatula.

The Chocolate Icing Recipe:

1/4 cup of softened Butter

1/4 cup of Milk

1/4 cup of Cocoa

3 cups of Powdered Sugar

Dash of Salt

Mix all together and frost as desired.

Pasta Primavera

Pasta Primavera

 

3 Tbs butter

1 lb asparagus (tough ends removed and cut into 1 inch pieces)

1 zucchini (halved lengthwise and cut into 1/2 inch chunks)

8 oz mushrooms (trimmed and sliced thin)

1 cup frozen peas

2 cloves garlic (minced)

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 (14.5) oz can petite diced tomatoes

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 lb angel hair pasta

1/4 c minced fresh basil ....I just use the basil from my spice rack, and I put like 2 tbs in

1 1/2 Tbs fresh lemon juice

Grated Parmesean cheese (for serving)

 

Cook the fettuccine.  Meanwhile, melt 1 tbs butter in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add asparagus and cook until just tender, about 10 minutes.  Transfer to a medium bowl.  Repeat with zucchini and mushrooms.  After the mushrooms are lightly browned add the peas and garlic and cook about 30 seconds.  Transfer to the bowl with the asparagus and zucchini.  Season the vegetables with salt and pepper.  Add the tomatoes with their juice and the red pepper flakes to the skillet.  Simmer until the tomatoes have thickened slightly, about 5 minutes.  Stir in the cream and simmer about 5 minutes.  Drain the fettuccine after cooking and transfer to a serving dish.  Stir in the vegetables, tomato sauce, basil and lemon juice and toss to coat.

Lemon Pasta & Salmon

Lemon Pasta

1 lb of penne pasta

2 Tbs olive oil

2 cups spinach

2 cups of cherry/grape tomatoes cut in half

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 - 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice

Salt and Pepper

Parmesean cheese to garnish

Cook Pasta. In large skillet heat olive oil and add all cut tomatoes and minced garlic.

Cook for a few minutes, do not burn. Add cooked pasta and spinach. Stir and cook

until spinach starts to wilt. Add lemon juice (add until you reach desired taste, may need

less, may need more than 1/4 c) Add salt and pepper and parmesean cheese. Great with

chicken or salmon.

Oven baked Salmon

Start with a tinfoil cross. Place salmon in center. Put 4 slices of butter at each corner

of the salmon. Squeeze juice of two lemons on top. Then add salt, pepper, dill seeds,

Italian Seasoning, Lawrey’s garlic salt, and parsley. Then put lemon slices and a few

more slices of butter on top of the fish before sealing shut. Roll tinfoil so it seals all the

juices inside. Bake at 375 for 15 minutes or until cooked through.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Chicken Tortilla Soup

1 small Onion, chopped

2-3 cloves of Garlic, minced

2 cups Chicken Stock

1 jar Salsa, whatever kind you like, I use my homemade

2-3 Chicken Breast, shredded, I boil it in water with some Knorr chicken bouillon and

Knorr

Tomato bouillon

1 can Sweet Corn

1 can Black Beans

Cumin and Chile Powder, you can also use a packet of Taco Seasoning instead

Lime

Salt

Pepper

Garnish with:

fresh diced Tomatoes

diced Avocado

Cilantro

Sour Cream

Kraft Fiesta Cheese Blend

Tortilla Chips, Yellow, White, or Blue Corn

Saute' onion and garlic in a few tablespoons of oil over medium heat. Add chicken stock and salsa. Add shredded chicken, corn and beans. Season to taste with salt, pepper, cumin, chile powder, and lime juice. Pour into bowls to serve and let your family or guests garnish how they like!

Chocolate Chip Toffee Blondies

2 cups plus 2 tbsp all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp table salt

12 tbsp unsalted butter, melted and cooled until warm

1 cup light brown sugar, packed

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk

2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups milk or semi-sweet chocolate chips

3/4 cup Heath toffee bits

1. Adjust the top rack of the oven to the center of the oven. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line an 8×8-inch baking pan with aluminum foil so that the edges of the foil overhang two sides of the pan; grease the foil with butter or cooking spray.
2. Whisk the first three ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large bowl, mix the butter and sugars together until thoroughly combined. Beat in the egg, yolk, and vanilla until just combined. Add in the dry ingredients and beat at low speed until the mixture is just combined – do not overbeat. Stir in the chocolate chips.
3. Bake for 30-35 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean from the bars when tested for doneness. I used a dark pan which took 34 minutes – remember that baking times will differ with different pans. Allow the pan to cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes before carefully removing the bars in the foil from the pan. Allow the bars to cool completely before slicing.

Clayton's Famous Omelets

4 eggs for a big one, or 3 eggs for a little one

Topping options:
tomatoes
mushrooms
green peppers
green onions
cilantro
red onions
bacon
ham
garlic salt
salt/pepper
italian seasonings
oregano

Cheese options:
Cheddar
Colby jack/cheddar blend
motzerella
pepper jack


Heat oil in a skillet on medium high heat.  In a bowl whisk eggs together until consistent.  Combine desired toppings together in seperate bowl.  Once skillet is hot, pour eggs into pan.  Sprinkle spices and small amount of cheese over immidiately.  Let cook for 3 minutes.  When eggs are half way cooked and theres a sall skiff of uncooked eggs on top, sprinkle bowl of topping and cheese all over.  (someties Clayton will fry all the toppings together before he cooks the egg, but not necessary.)  Fold omelet in half.  Let it cook on each side for just a few minutes.  Voila!  Serve with ketchup, salsa, guacamole.  Yum Yum

Easy Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls

Easy Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 (0.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
• 1 cup warm (105 to 115°F) milk
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 1 cup all-purpose flour

Directions:

To get started, make sure that all ingredients are at room temperature. Put whole wheat flour, sugar, salt and yeast into a large bowl and stir well. Add milk, butter and egg and beat with a spoon until smooth. Add all-purpose flour and mix until fully incorporated and batter is smooth. Cover bowl and set aside in a warm spot to let rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

Meanwhile, lightly grease a 12-muffin tin with olive oil and set aside. 

Stir the batter gently to deflate it. Spoon even amounts of the dough into each cup of the prepared muffin tin and set aside in a warm spot until the dough has risen just over the top of the muffin tins, about 1 hour more.

Preheat oven to 400°F. Bake rolls until golden brown and cooked through, 15 to 20 minutes.

Notes:

I don't have a mixer (yet!) so I love recipes that don't require a lot of kneading. These are simple to prep and I didn't even let them rise for as long as stated (my kitchen is very warm) and they turned out great. My kids loved them. We had them with tomato basil soup for dinner last night. These may become my go-to when I need a crusty bread to pair with soup! I was worried when I first took them out of the muffins tins, as they seemed to hard. However, the inside was perfect and soft while the outside was nice and crusty - perfect combo. I LOVE that they have whole wheat flour as well. 

Recipe and pic from: http://wholefoodsmarket.com/recipe/easy-whole-wheat-dinner-rolls?sf8075328=1