Chicken Pot Pies

* 3 whole (6 split) chicken breasts, bone-in, skin-on
* 3 tablespoons olive oil
* Kosher salt
* Freshly ground black pepper
* 5 cups chicken stock, preferably homemade
* 2 chicken bouillon cubes
* 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
* 2 cups yellow onions, chopped (2 onions)
* 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
* 1/4 cup heavy cream
* 2 cups medium-diced carrots, blanched for 2 minutes
* 1 (10-ounce) package frozen peas (2 cups)
* 1 1/2 cups frozen small whole onions
* 1/2 cup minced fresh parsley leaves

For the pastry:

nocoupons

* 3 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/2 cup vegetable shortening
* 1/4 pound cold unsalted butter, diced
* 1/2 to 2/3 cup ice water
* 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water, for egg wash
* Flaked sea salt and cracked black pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Place the chicken breasts on a baking sheet and rub them with olive oil. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Roast for 35 to 40 minutes, or until cooked through. Set aside until cool enough to handle, then remove the meat from the bones and discard the skin. Cut the chicken into large dice. You will have 4 to 6 cups of cubed chicken.

In a small saucepan, heat the chicken stock and dissolve the bouillon cubes in the stock. In a large pot or Dutch oven, melt the butter and saute the onions over medium-low heat for 10 to 15 minutes, until translucent. Add the flour and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Add the hot chicken stock to the sauce. Simmer over low heat for 1 more minute, stirring, until thick. Add 2 teaspoons salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and heavy cream. Add the cubed chicken, carrots, peas, onions and parsley. Mix well.

For the pastry, mix the flour, salt, and baking powder in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Add the shortening and butter and mix quickly with your fingers until each piece is coated with flour. Pulse 10 times, or until the fat is the size of peas. With the motor running, add the ice water; process only enough to moisten the dough and have it just come together. Dump the dough out onto a floured board and knead quickly into a ball. Wrap the dough in plastic and allow it to rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Divide the filling equally among 4 ovenproof bowls. Divide the dough into quarters and roll each piece into an 8-inch circle. Brush the outside edges of each bowl with the egg wash, then place the dough on top. Trim the circle to 1/2-inch larger than the top of the bowl. Crimp the dough to fold over the side, pressing it to make it stick. Brush the dough with egg wash and make 3 slits in the top. Sprinkle with sea salt and cracked pepper. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 1 hour, or until the top is golden brown and the filling is bubbling hot.

Thick and Chewy, Yummy Chocolate Chip Cookies

* 2 cups plus 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
* ½ tsp. baking soda
* ½ tsp. salt
* 12 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted and cooled until warm
* 1 cup brown sugar, packed
* ½ cup granulated sugar
* 1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk
* 2 tsp. vanilla extract
* 1 ½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Adjust oven racks to upper and lower-middle positions. Preheat oven 325°. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
2. Whisk dry ingredients together in a medium bowl; set aside. With electric mixer, or by hand, mix butter and sugars until thoroughly combined. Beat in egg, yolk, and vanilla until combined. Add dry ingredients and beat at low-speed just until combined. Stir in chocolate chips.
3. Roll a scant half-cup of dough into a ball. Holding dough ball in fingertips of both hands, pull apart into two equal halves. Rotate halves 90 degrees and, with jagged surfaces facing up, place formed dough onto cookie sheet, leaving ample room between each ball. Bake, reversing position of cookie sheets halfway through baking, until cookies are light golden brown and outer edges start to harden yet centers are still soft and puffy (approximately 11-14 minutes). Do not overbake.

Apple Hand Pies

Sort of like apple turnovers, without all the extra fuss!

For the dough – yields 1 double-crust, 2 single-crust 9- to 10-inch pies, or about 12 hand pies

* 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1 tbsp sugar
* 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
* 1/4 to 1/2 cup ice water

1. In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour, salt, and sugar. Add butter, and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal, 8 to 10 seconds.
2. With machine running, add ice water in a slow, steady stream through feed tube. Pulse until dough holds together without being wet or sticky; be careful not to process more than 30 seconds. To test, squeeze a small amount together: If it is crumbly, add more ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time.
3. Divide dough into two equal balls. Flatten each ball into a disc and wrap in plastic. Transfer to the refrigerator and chill at least 1 hour. Dough may be stored, frozen, up to 1 month.

For the apple filling and hand pies

* 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
* 1 1/2 pounds tart apples, such as Empire or Granny Smith (3-4 apples)
* 1/4 cup sugar, plus extra to sprinkle on top
* 2 tbsp all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling
* 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
* 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
* Pinch kosher salt
* 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water, for egg wash
* 1 1/2 to 2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
* 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
* 2 tbsp heavy cream

1. Peel, core, and dice the apples (1/4″ cubed) then immediately toss them with lemon juice in a medium bowl. Add in sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt and stir to combine. Set aside for 10 minutes to allow the apple to release some juice.
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
3. On a well-floured board, roll out dough to 1/4″ thick. Cut out 5″ circles and transfer circles to baking sheets, re-rolling scraps and cutting out more circles as you go. If the dough gets too warm, refrigerate the circles on the baking sheets for 5-10 minutes before moving to the next step.
4. Place about 2 tablespoons of apple filling on half of a circle. Fold the empty half over the filling and press edges tightly together to seal. Repeat with remaining circles. Using a sharp knife, slice three holes in the top of each pie. Brush tops with egg wash and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 22 minutes. Cool completely on a rack.
5. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the powdered sugar, vanilla and heavy cream. Stir until the mixture forms a smooth glaze. When pies have cooled, drizzle glaze over the tops.

Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars

Great with a glass of cold milk and a table full of small, smiling faces!

1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
2 cups (18 ounces) creamy peanut butter (recommended: Skippy)
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 1/2 cups (18 ounces) raspberry jam or other jam
2/3 cups salted peanuts, coarsely chopped

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Grease a 9 by 13 by 2-inch cake pan. Line it with parchment paper, then grease and flour the pan.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium speed until light yellow, about 2 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, add the vanilla, eggs, and peanut butter and mix until all ingredients are combined.
4. In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the flour mixture to the peanut butter mixture. Mix just until combined.
5. Spread 2/3 of the dough into the prepared cake pan and spread over the bottom with a knife or offset spatula. Spread the jam evenly over the dough. Drop small globs of the remaining dough evenly over the jam. Don’t worry if all the jam isn’t covered; it will spread in the oven. Sprinkle with chopped peanuts and bake for 45 minutes, until golden brown. Cool and cut into squares.

Chocolate Lava Cakes

Chocolate lava filling:
3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped or semisweet chocolate
6 tablespoons whipping cream
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla

Cakes:
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1/4 cup hot coffee or water
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter; softened
1/2 cup sugar
3 large eggs; separated

Topping:
Cocoa powder for the tops
Ice cream or custard sauce for serving

These individual chocolate cakes have a soft center of chocolate fudge that erupts in a rich, dark puddle from the warm cakes. They're best served just out of the oven. For the filling, line a plastic ice cube tray with a large piece of plastic wrap. With your fingers, gently poke the plastic down into eight of the cubes so they are fully lined with plastic. Melt the chocolate with the cream and corn syrup; whisk until smooth. Add the vanilla, set aside to cool until tepid. Fill the eight lined ice cube cups with the chocolate; freeze at least 4 hours, or cover and freeze up to a month. For the cakes, place rack in center of oven and heat to 425 degrees.

Crab Meat Au Gratin

I actually used this as a hot dip to serve with other appetizers. Good stuff!


2 tablespoons butter
1 cup half and half
1 2 pound crab meat
1/4 cup grated cheese
1/8 cup buttered bread crumbs
2 tablespoons flour
Salt and pepper to taste

Over low heat, blend butter and flour in saucepan. Slowly add one-cup half-and-half; cook over medium heat; stir until smooth and thickened. Season with salt and pepper; add crabmeat. Using shallow baking dish, add crab mixture. Mix crumbs with grated cheese; sprinkle on top. Bake at 350 degrees until golden brown.

Caramel Apple cheesecake Pie

The best of each of the main features, caramel, apples and cheesecake!


Ingredients:
For the crust:
1½ cups graham cracker crumbs
3 tbsp. sugar
½ tsp. cinnamon
5 1/3 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
½-¾ cup caramel
1 cup chopped pecans

For the apple filling:
5 tbsp. unsalted butter
½ cup light brown sugar, tightly packed
¼ tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
5-6 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced

For the cheesecake:
8 oz. cream cheese
¼ cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 large egg
1 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice

For the topping:
¾ cup heavy cream
3-4 tbsp. confectioners' sugar
¼-½ cup caramel
Chopped pecans

Directions:
To make the crust, preheat the oven to 375° F. Line the bottom of a 9-inch round springform pan with parchment paper. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, cinnamon and melted butter. Toss with a fork until all the crumbs are moistened and the ingredients are evenly mixed. Transfer the mixture to the prepared springform pan and press the crumbs in an even layer over the pan bottom and about half to two-thirds of the way up the sides of the pan. Bake for 6-8 minutes, until golden in color. Let cool for about 10 minutes. Pour a layer of caramel into the bottom of the crust and sprinkle evenly with the chopped pecans. Refrigerate the crust while you prepare the filling.

To make the apple filling, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Mix in the brown sugar, salt and cinnamon and cook for 1 minute, until bubbling. Mix in the apple slices and toss well to coat. Cook over medium to medium-high heat until tender and most of the liquid has been reduced, about 15-20 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes and pour into the prepared pie shell. Set aside.

Reduce the heat of the oven to 350° F. To make the cheesecake layer, combine the cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat on medium speed until smooth, about 1 minute. Mix in the vanilla, egg and lemon juice until fully incorporated and smooth, 1-2 minutes. Spread the cheesecake filling into an even layer over the top of the cooked apples in the crust. Bake until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven, transfer to a wire rack and let cool to room temperature. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

To serve, carefully remove the sides of the springform pan. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the heavy cream and confectioners' sugar on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form (being careful not to overbeat.) Spread gently over the top of the chilled cheesecake layer. Top with dollops of caramel sauce and swirl with a knife to create a marbled effect. Sprinkle with a handful of chopped pecans if desired. Slice with a long, thin knife to serve.