nigella's brownies 2 ways part 1

there are lots and lots of ways to make brownies...i like them chocolaty, not too gooey always with pecans never walnuts...... sometimes with cream cheese in the middle... both of my favorite brownie recipes are from nigella lawson's how to be a domestic goddess cook book. ....both are wonderful and fairly easy to make.   big tip...get some parchment paper...it is the secret to great brownies.

first up the plain brownies...though there is nothing plain about these...there is so much butter and chocolate in here the pan is heavy...trust me they taste great....make them for someone you love or want to impress or thank...or even say you are sorry.....i promise they will do the trick.

just cut still a bit warm...goooey ooooooh 

recipe after the jump

vegas, virginia,......travels

my nephew's first hockey game....... the monster bag of cotton candy 

for various reasons i've had to do a lot of traveling lately....while traveling can be fun or miserable ...depending on where you are going and why......going somewhere is an opportunity to try new restaurants or indulge in some celebrated favorites.
let's start with vegas. this was my first visit....really the food is pretty much the only thing i liked in vegas....not being a gambler or smoker and even though i love to shop...it is not the best place to find a bargain.  we sampled payard pastries...YUM...bobby flay's mesa grill at ceasar's palace  specifically the yucatan chicken taco and iced tea with some kind of honey syrup, best iced tea ever.... highly recommended.

deconstructed taco's with a peanut bbq sauce so good

more after the jump

ina's sticky buns

sticky bun heaven

i have tried lots of ways to make the classic cinnamon raisin sticky buns.....the "popping fresh kind"  (not so good),  an american test kitchen recipe  that is also pretty good but takes a little bit more time and... you have to make the dough ....best i have tried by far is this easy sticky bun recipe.....from my favorite ina garten cookbook back to basics (buy it!) easy sticky buns......there are a lot of steps but all are easy and i think it would be super fun to get kids involved in making these...a great family activity or for the grown up cook a rewarding sunday morning treat......they are best warm but they usually don't hang around long enough to get cold anyway.
recipe after the jump

easy peasy pasta with ham and peas

christmas is over...the kids have gone back to jobs and school...the house is pretty much trashed with christmas clutter and bailey is depressed.  i needed a quick dinner to use up some of the mad surplus in the fridge and soothe the soul.  i made this with left over ham. it is warm, creamy and satisfying.  it takes about 15-20 minutes....it was the perfect recipe for the day!

yummy creamy and screaming hot

recipe after the jump

Christmas cookies; lemon brown sugar christmas doggies and such

the cookie recipe is already posted with the easter shapes on the blog....kelsey works her magic with the royal icing.......they are too beautiful to eat.....but trust me they taste really good.

bailey, butch and sport

martha's lemon brown sugar christmas doggies, ponies, hamsters (talbot) fa, la, la, la, la.............

 

Christmas cookies ginger cocoa crisps

ginger cocoa crisps

20 years ago brit got off the school bus with a baggie of cookies and an illustrated recipe.  she was really excited to tell me how they had made cookies in class and colored a picture of the finished cookie on the recipe.  she wanted to show me how to make them...so we made them together that year...and every year at Christmas......sappy and sentimental...yes but these are some awesome cookies!!!! *and perfect for little hands to help with...... chocolaty with just the right kick of ginger.
recipe after the jump

Christmas cookies lillian's almond cookies

this is one of the christmas cookies i remember watching my norwegian mother in law lillian bake....the recipe is hers.   it is simple but wonderfully delicious.  it took a little trial and error on my part since my copy of the recipe was kind of cryptic....i have made some mistakes.....any way this version works.   when i bring mixed platters of cookies to work or to friends inevitably these are the cookies that people ask about.  i have done some research and this combination of ingredients is rare among the various norwegian traditional cookies you can find.  they are crisp...buttery...nutty....goodness and fairly easy!

recipe after the jump

lillian's almond cookies