Nutella No-Bake Cookies

I love no-bake cookies. They are SO easy to make and use such basic ingredients that I never have to buy anything special to have them made. Plus when you have a sugar craving, they really hit the spot. The problem is, to make them one needs peanut butter and the only place I have found American peanut butter here is clear across town. So in desperation yesterday I used Nutella instead (which is found virtually everywhere here) and it was wonderful! Ben even loved them and he usually hates no-bake cookies.

makes about 2 dozen cookies

2 cups white sugar

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup butter

1 tsp vanilla

1 pinch salt

1/2 cup Nutella

3 1/2 cups oats

Combine sugar, cocoa, butter and milk in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a rolling boil, stirring occasionally, for about 2 minutes. During this time measure out your oats and Nutella, then when the time is up, quickly mix them in to the hot mixture. Drop spoonfuls onto wax paper and let cool completely so they can harden before eating.

If your cookies turn out gooey and sticky, they didn't boil long enough. If they are crumbly, they boiled for too long. 2 minutes turned out perfectly for my stove, but experiment with your own stove to get the timing right.

Sweet and Sour Baked Chicken

adapted slightly from Heat Oven to 350

It's so easy to get in a cooking rut. I looked at our menu last week and realized we had been eating meatballs and sandwiches for almost every meal and so I decided to try something new. This was a great meal; a healthy and delicious twist on the asian classic. I loved the tangy sauce and it was even better the next day! Feel free to experiment with different vegetables.

Serves 4-6

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips

8 1/2 ounce pineapple chunks in their own juice

1/2 cup jellied cranberry sauce (I used lingonberry jam)

2 Tbsp brown sugar

2 Tbsp rice vinegar or cider vinegar

2 Tbsp frozen orange juice concentrate (I used regular orange juice + 1/2 tsp orange concentrate)

1 tsp soy sauce

1/4 tsp ground ginger

2 Tbsp cornstarch

2 Tbsp water

1 medium green bell pepper, cut into thin strips

1 medium zucchini, cut into thin slices

Heat the oven to 350 degrees (176 C). Pat chicken pieces dry with a paper towel, place them in a medium sized baking pan and set aside.

Drain juice from pinapple into a small saucepan and set pineapple asie. Put pan over medium heat and whisk in cranberry sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, orange juice concentrate soy sauce and ginger. Cook, stirring often until the cranberry sauce has melted and the sauce is warm. Put cornstarch in a cup or small bowl. Add water, whisking to dissolve. Whisk into juice mixture. Increase heat to medium-high and cook for about 3 minutes or until thickened, stirring occasionally. Add pineapple chunks and pour over chicken.

Bake, covered for 35 minutes. Add bell pepper and zucchini and baste the chicken with sauce. Bake uncovered for an additional 5 minutes. Serve over rice.

Chocolate Cheesecake Kisses

From the genius Bakerella

I have been meaning to post this recipe for months now and am just now getting around to it. I made these for Valentines Day and they were a hit. I got the idea from one of my favorite food websites: Bakerella. If you have never been to her site, you should really go over and take a look, but I'm warning you it is not good for your diet! She is incredibly creative and always has fun dessert ideas to try out. Just don't say I didn't warn you about the diet thing.

Anyway, I was looking for a special Valentines Day recipe and decided tried this one out and loved it. It is very rich, with a cookie/cheesecake flavor and were really fun to make and eat!

1 package of oreos (18 ounces or 500 grams) of cream filled chocolate cookies

8 ounces (226 grams) cream cheese

1 1/2 cups chocolate bark (I used regular baking chocolate, you could use chips or whatever)

Directions:

First, finely crush all but about 7 cookies in a ziplock bag, cream filled center and all. Try to get rid of all the big chunks. Stir in the cream cheese, using the back of a spoon to mash the two together. Roll the mixture into 1 inch (2.5 centimeter) balls and place the on a wax paper covered cookie sheet. Then, form the balls into the shape of a kiss (cone shaped) coming to a point at the top. Put the balls in the freezer for 20 minutes or so to harden them a little bit so they dont fall apart when you cover them with chocolate.

*mine turned out a little different from Bakerella because they don't have oreos often in Austria, so I used a vanilla/chocolate cookie. Hence the multicolored inside instead of the dark oreo brown.

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler (or very carefully in the microwave, stirring frequently) until you get about 1 1/2 cups of melted chocolate in a bowl. One at a time, dip the kisses one at a time into the chocolate, tap off the extra chocolate and slide them off onto the wax papered cookie sheet to dry. Once dry, refrigerate and enjoy!

To Decorate:

Write or type messages onto thin strips of paper. Cut out foil into 5 inch squares (about 13 centimeters), place a dry kiss in the center. Insert the message near the top and secure it as you wrap the kiss in the foil, covering it completely.

There you have it, homemade kisses for the one you love.

Mom's Chicken Noodle Soup

from Mom

I remember my mom making this growing up, always from scratch and always telling us how simple it was to put together and haw much better homemade was compared to the canned stuff. How right she was! This soup is so delicious and comforting.

Serves 6-8

8-10 cups chicken broth

2 cups carrots, chopped

1 cup celery, chopped

1 onion, diced

2 cups cooked chicken, cut into chunks

1 package of egg noodles

1 Tbsp butter

1 Tbsp flour

1 cup milk

1 Tbsp lemon juice

salt and pepper to taste

Cook chicken pieces through and set aside. In a large soup pot, boil vegetables in broth until they are just beginning to soften.

Meanwhile, in a separate pan create a light roux by melting the butter over low heat, and then gradually adding flour, mixing constantly until incorporated. Then slowly add milk, stirring to get rid of lumps. Once the mixture is smooth, pour into the soup. Add chicken to heat through, and just before serving add the noodles and let simmer until they are just soft. Don't let the noodles sit for too long or they will get mushy. Serve immediately with fresh bread.

Ben's Favorite Salad

I'm blessed. I married a man who likes salad. Loves it really. Which makes eating healthy in our house much easier. Lately Ben has been on this tuna+avocado+balsamic vinegar kick and made this creation last week for me and I was in heaven.

2-4 servings

1 bowl of leafy greens, torn into pieces

1 ripe avocado, cut into chunks

2-3 tomatoes, seeded and diced

1 can high quality tuna (packed in water)

1 red onion, thinly sliced

1/2 cup toasted almonds

Balsamic Vinegar

Olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Prepare the greens and top with avocado, tomatoes, tuna, red onion. Drizzle with equal amounts of oil and vinegar and sprinkle on some salt and pepper to taste. Lets be honest here, you just toss it all together and eat. Perfect!

Angel Food Cake

adapted slightly from allrecipes

In Ben's family, the traditional birthday cake is a light fluffy cake with whipped cream and strawberries. Where my first instinct is to choose the darkest, densest chocolate cake possible, I have become fully converted to this lovely, chocolate-free treat. It is so light, and you feel so good after eating it! Anyway, this recipe was excellent and it turned out beautifully.

serves 20

12 eggs (1 1/2 cup egg whites)
1 cup confectioners' sugar

1 cup all purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp cream of tartar*

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp almond extract

1/4 tsp salt

3/4 cup sugar

Preheat oven to 350 F (176 C). Separate eggs; discard yolks. Place 1 1/2 cup egg whites in a mixing bowl; let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. (room temperature eggs whip better)

Meanwhile, sift confectioners' sugar and flour together and set aside. Add cream of tartar, extracts and salt to egg whites; beat on high speed. Gradually add sugar, beating until sugar is dissolved and stiff peaks form. Fold in flour mixture, 1/4 cup at a time. Gently spoon batter into an ungreased 10 inche tube pan. Cut through batter with a knife to remove air pockets. Bake at 350 F (176 C) for 40-45 minutes or until the cake springs back when lightly touched. Immediately invert pan, cool completely before removing cake.

nutritional analysis: each serving (1/20 of the cake) is about 100 calories (before toppings)

*I can not for the life of me find cream of tartar here in Europe. I'm sure they have it somewhere, but it's under a different name or something and I'm sick of trying to describe it in broken German to the salesperson. Anyway, if you don't have cream of tartar, you can substitute it with 1 1/2 tsp of lemon juice or white vinegar.

Simple White Cake

adapted slightly from Allrecipes

It was late Sunday night, and not a drop of candy in the house. After dinner Ben turned to me and asked... should we make a cake?

We rushed to the kitchen and this delectable baby was born. A simple white cake, drizzled with chocolate sauce. Satisfies the sweet tooth every time.

serves 6-8

2 3/4 cup flour

4 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp salt

4 egg whites

1 1/2 cups white sugar

3/4 cup butter (about 170 grams)

1 1/2 cup milk

1 tsp vanilla flavoring

1 tsp almond flavoring

Cream butter until soft and gradually add sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt until will integrated. Add sifted ingredients alternately with milk into the butter/sugar mixture a small amount at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in flavorings.

In a mixing bowl, beat egg whites (not the yolks!) together until foamy. Add 1/2 cup sugar gradually and continue beating until the mixture begins to form soft peaks. Fold the meringue (whipped egg whites) into the batter until thoroughly combined.

Spread batter in a 15x10x1 inch pan (or two 9 inch rounds, or three 8 inch rounds) that has been lined with parchment paper. Bake at 350 F (175 C) for 30-35 minutes. Cool cake in the pan for 10 minutes before removing it and transferring it to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Creamed Cabbage Soup

from Allrecipes

It's been cold! I know spring is just around the corner, but it still feels very far away. And the best way to warm up on a cold night is a nice bowl of soup. This recipe employs the hardy cabbage (a very underrated vegetable in my opinion) and a dash of creaminess to make it feel decadent.

Serves 6

2 cups chicken broth

1 medium onion, diced

1 cup celery, diced

1 medium head of cabbage, shredded

3 carrots, diced

1/4 cup butter

3 Tbsp flour

1 1/2 cup whole milk

2 cups fully cooked ham, diced

1/2 tsp thyme

1 tsp parsley

salt and pepper to taste

In a large kettle, combine broth and vegetables, bring to a boil and then turn down the heat and let simmer until the vegetables are just starting to soften, about 15 minutes. While the vegetables are cooking, get a saucepan on medium heat and melt the butter. Then mix in the flour, until completely blended and gradually add milk creating a light roux. Cook and stir until thickened, and stir into soup. Add spices and ham and heat through. Garnish with parsley (fresh if you have it!) and serve warm.

Prosciutto Tart

Last week I bought a puff pastry to make an apple strudel, but then Ben ate all of the apples and I was left wondering what to do with the dough. So for dinner I made this savory tart with what I had in the fridge and it was delicious. A gone-within-the-hour kind of delicious. (And it was so easy to make, it's hard to resist!)

enough puff pastry sheets to line the bottom of a baking sheet

2 Tbsp pesto

prosciutto

1 zucchini, cut into thin slices

2 tomatoes, cut into thin slices

1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated

olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Roll out the puff pastry onto a baking sheet lined with baking paper. Spread pesto in a thin layer on the pastry. Then add a layer of prosciutto, a layer of zucchini and a layer of tomato. Then top with cheese, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for about 20 minutes (or as directed for the puff pastry) or until the pastry is golden brown. Serve warm.

Carrot Soufflé

adapted from Simply Recipes

This is a very tasty side dish, easy to make and very interesting way to use carrots. I didn't read very carefully and accidentally made enough for a small army, but it was no bother. The leftovers were just as good.

serves 8

2 lbs carrots

1 cup whole milk

2 cups cracker crumbs

3/4 cup cheddar cheese

1/3 cup minced onion

1 Tbsp (13 grams) butter

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1/4 tsp black pepper

salt to taste

3 eggs

Turn on the oven to 350 F (175 C). Butter a 2 quart baking dish and set aside.

In a large pot, bring water to a boil and let the carrots boil 10 min, or until soft. Then puree carrots until smooth with a blender.

In a bowl, slowly mix the carrots with the milk, stirring slowly between pours until smooth and even. Then stir in one cup of crackers, cheese, onion, butter and spices.

In a separate bowl, whip eggs to a froth, then whisk them into the carrot mixture. Spoon entire bowl into prepared baking dish, sprinkle one cup of cracker crumbs on top

Bake 40-45 minutes when the soufflé is puffed up and golden.

Tomato Artichoke Soup

adapted from A Couple Cooks

I once had a roommate that would bring home huge batches of her mom's homemade tomato soup. We were often threatened that if we swiped the soup from the freezer that we would have hell to pay.

Since then I have wondered: what in the world was in that soup? I have eaten many tomato soups with varying measures of enjoyment, but nothing to ever get possessive over. In my search to replicate this amazing tomato soup recipe, I have tried lots of recipes, and this one comes pretty close in my book. The artichokes provide a nice flavor and it is perfect for a cold night with some fresh bread. Enjoy!

1 Tbsp butter

1 large onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 bay leaves

1/2 tsp oregano

1 tsp basil

1 tsp parsley

2 cups fire roasted diced tomatoes

1 cup canned artichokes

1 cup water

1 cup milk

1/2 cup cream

Croutons

Parmesan

Chop the onion and garlic and saute with butter and bay leaves in a large pot until the onions are translucent. Chop the artichokes into smallish pieces. Add the artichokes, tomatoes, 1 cup water and spices. Bring to a boil and turn down the heat, allowing the soup to simmer for about 10 minutes.

Using an immersion blender, carefully blend the soup to a smooth consistency. (You may have to do it in batches so you don't get splashed with hot liquid!) Add one cup of milk and 1/2 cup of cream and mix in until blended.

Top with croutons and parmesan and serve immediately.

Salmon Cream Cheese Crackers

I made these at Christmastime as an appetizer and they were great! I really came to love gravlax in Finland and I try to use it as often as I can. Be sure to use gourmet mustard, the plain old yellow kind will not suffice.

crackers

cream cheese

fresh dill (I had to use dried... boo.)

cured salmon gravlax

Mustard (must be artisan!)

Spread the crackers with a layer of cream cheese, add a dollop of mustard and put a slice of gravlax on top. Garnish with dill (fresh if you have it) and refrigerate until serving.