Culinary Goods

Ok, you big dumbos. Enough of the sweet posts. Let us move on to something more savory. I tried this dip at a friend's house and she must have really messed with the amounts because hers was much sweeter and tastier than mine turned out to be (probably needed more honey mustard and less horseradish). I don't like pretzels and I don't like watching football but I could do anything with this dip, so I ate the dip while eating pretzels and watching the dumb TV at a social football event at someone's house. Tasty stuff, this is. Stef, Jared will like this because it smells of horseradish. Rating is 6.5 right now but the original stuff I tasted was about an 8-9. 1 Tb. honey (add more) 1/4 cup sour cream 4 tsp. French's yellow mustard 1/2 tsp. apple-cider vinegar 3 tsp. prepared horseradish (add less) 4 tsp. Country Style Grey Poupon Dijon mustard (I had honey mustard in my fridge so that's what I used)

This was good and gets a 7. I left the chicken out, but it was still good. The recipe came from melskitchencafe.com. 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained 16-ounce can tomato sauce 1 3/4 cups low-sodium chicken broth 1 cup medium pearled barley (not quick cooking) 4 cups water or additional low-sodium chicken broth 1 tablespoon chili powder 2 teaspoons cumin 1 teaspoon dried oregano dash cayenne pepper (more or less to taste) 2-3 boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds), cut into bite-size pieces (leave whole if using an Instant Pot/pressure cooker or slow cooker) 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained 1 1/2 cups frozen corn kernels Shredded cheddar cheese, sour cream, sliced green onions, tortilla chips or other toppings Here's the link to the instructions:  http://www.melskitchencafe.com/southwestern-chicken-barley-chili/

While these were slightly overdone, they were good and get a 7. The recipe called for taking the 36 small cookies it normally makes and making 8 large cookies, which I was not a fan of. Thus, I had to guess on the cooking time, and they were probably overdone by about a minute. I cooked them at 410 for 7 minutes, so 6 minutes may be the best option. The recipe came from kirbiecravings.com. INGREDIENTS: 1 cup unsalted cold butter, cut into small cubes I used 1/2 C. butter and 1/2 C. oil 1 cup packed light brown sugar I used 1/2 C.  ½ cup graulated white sugar 2 large eggs ½ cup dark unsweetened cocoa powder (try to use a premium brand for richer flavor) 1 cup cake flour I used 1 cup regular flour and substituted 2 TBS of it for corn starch  1½ cup all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon cornstarch ¾ teaspoon baking soda ½ teaspoon salt 1 1/3 cups semisweet chocolate chips or chocolate chunks Here's the link to the instructions:  http://kirbiecravings.com/...

These weren't awesome, but it's my fault because I cut down the sugar too much. I'm sure they would be just lovely with the amount of sugar the recipe calls for. They get a 5 and the recipe came from chezcateylou.com. Ingredients  1 1/2 cups all purpose flour 1/2 cup whole wheat flour I used all purpose flour instead  2 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature 2/3 cup creamy peanut butter (I used Jif) 2/3 cup packed light brown sugar I used 1/3 C. + 2 tsp. 2 large eggs 1 cup milk (I used 2%) 3/4 cup chocolate chips Here's the link to the instructions:  http://chezcateylou.com/peanut-butter-chocolate-chip-muffins/

I unfortunately didn't like these as much as I thought I would. I love lemon curd and I love fresh pineapple, so I thought pineapple curd would be lovely, but it just wasn't all that great. These get a 6 and the recipe came from alaskafromscratch.com. Pineapple curd 1c fresh pineapple puree, strained* 1/3c sugar 3 egg yolks 2T cornstarch small pinch of salt 2T butter For the Shortbread Crust: 1-1/2c flour 1c sweetened shredded coconut 1/4t salt 1/2c powdered sugar 1/2c + 3T butter, softened Here's the link to the instructions:  http://www.alaskafromscratch.com/2012/07/25/pineapple-curd-bars-with-coconut-shortbread-crust/

This desperately needed flavor, so once I added a few things, it was much better. After the additions, it got a 7 and the recipe came from cooking classy.com. 10 oz smoked bacon (about 9 - 10 slices), diced in small pieces 1 1/2 cups chopped yellow onions (1 medium) 1 1/2 cups chopped carrots (about 3 large) 1 1/2 cups chopped celery (about 3 stalks) 3 cloves garlic, minced (1 Tbsp) 5 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth 2 1/2 Tbsp tomato paste 1 1/2 tsp sugar I left this out 2 tsp chopped fresh thyme (optional) I used dried 3 (15 oz) cans navy beans, drained and rinsed Salt and freshly ground black pepper 1 1/4 cups (5 oz) shredded mozzarella or string cheese Chopped fresh parsley, for serving (optional) 1/2 tsp. dry mustard 1 tsp. dried rosemary Here's the link to the instructions:  http://www.cookingclassy.com/bean-bacon-soup /

These were pretty good and get a 7. They were really dense because they had a lot of fat in them, so I don't know that I would make them again, but they were still pretty good. The recipe came from bakeorbreak.com. FOR THE BROWNIES: 1 cup unsalted butter (plus more for preparing pan) 3 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped 1 cup granulated sugar I used 3/4 C. 1/2 cup cocoa powder 1/2 cup mascarpone cheese, softened 3 large eggs, at room temperature 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 1/4 teaspoon salt FOR THE GANACHE: 6 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped 6 tablespoons heavy cream 3 tablespoons unsalted butter Here's the link to the instructions:  http://www.bakeorbreak.com/2008/01/chocolate-mascarpone-brownies/