Revised Toll House Cookies Recipe

Charlotte’s Toll House Cookies Recipe

This is one of those classic, all-time favorite cookie recipes, originally found on the back of the bag of chocolate chips. I even still have - but just barely - the original copy in my recipe box.

By the way, as you leaf through your family recipe books and recipe boxes, skip those clean, pristine-looking recipes and go straight for the fingerprinted, flour-marred pages. That’s where you will find your family’s favorite and often-made dishes.

My Toll House Cookies Recipe

As I was saying, this is an all-time favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe. I’ve made a couple of alterations that make these a more chewy cookie so that’s why I call it my recipe.

You will need:

2 1/4 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoon salt.

Set this aside.

Combine 1 cup softened butter or shortening. I prefer shortening but if you want a more rich cookie, use butter. And you can combine 1/2 cup butter with 1/2 cup shortening.

3/4 cup granulated sugar;

3/4 cup firmly packed (I use light) brown sugar;

1 teaspoon vanilla;

1/2 teaspoon water.

Beat until creamy.

Beat in 2 eggs.

Add flour mixture; mix well.

Stir in 1 cup or half of a 12-ounce package of chocolate morsels. The original recipe calls for the whole bag but I found that was just too much.

*Now I place the dough in the refrigerator for an hour or so. Combined with cooking at the lower temperature this makes the cookies less crumbly and more chewy.

Preheat oven 325F*. The original recipe calls for 375F but that’s too hot in my oven so I cook it at the lower temperature.

Drop by well-rounded half teaspoon fulls onto greased cookie sheets.

Bake 10-12 minutes.

Allow to cool on a cookie rack. Store in airtight bags. I also freeze them individually on a cookie rack and then store in a freezer bag.

If you over bake, as I may at times, just let them cool and then use them as ice cream crumble.

For more cooking, gardening, beekeeping and easy home decor tips, subscribe to Garden Notes.

Charlotte

Jack O Lantern Pumpkin Pie Recipe

Jack O Lantern Pumpkin Pie filing served as a desert with a drizzle of honey. (Charlotte Ekker Wiggins photo)

Jack O Lantern Pumpkin Pie Recipe

Actually this is a basic pumpkin pie recipe you can use with a variety of pumpkins, I have tried it with all of the following:

Canned pumpkin, which is a mix of pumpkin and squash. The traditional pumpkin pie.

Cushaw pumpkin, the original native North American pumpkin most likely served at the first Thanksgivings between the Native American Indians and European settlers. More of a light custard-kind of filing.

Baking pumpkins, which have a more dense consistency compared to

Jack O Lantern pumpkins, which is lighter than baking pumpkins and also can be baked and turned into a pumpkin pie or desert.

Baking the Pumpkins

Regardless of what kind of pumpkin you use, wash it; cut open; remove seeds; fill with water and bake at 325F until you can prick it with a fork.

Allow to cool. Remove the inside pulp. I saved mine in 13 ounce servings in a jar in the refrigerator. Or you can freeze in similar quantities for easy use later.

Basic Pumpkin Pie Recipe

2 eggs, slightly beaten

16 oz. pumpkin

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ginger

1/4 teaspoon gloves

1 2/3 cups (13 fluid ounces) evaporated milk or light cream

To make: Mix the ingredients in the order listed. I use my beater on low speed.

This is baked and blended Jack O Lantern pumpkin getting mixed in the traditional pie recipe. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

You can pour into a 9” unbaked pie shell with a high fluted edge - the filing will rise a little. I bake mine in bread pans.

If in a pie shell, bake in preheated 425F oven for 15 minutes, then reduce temperature to 350F and bake for another 45 minutes or until a knife inserted in center of pie filing comes out clean. Cool. Garnish with whipped cream and serve.

If you are baking just the pie filing, bake at 325F for 45 minutes or until a toothpick in the center comes out clean.

I bake the pumpkin filling in bread pans without a pie crust. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

I fill my bread pans half full. You can fill it fuller but it may take longer to cook all of the way through.

This is the baked Jack O Lantern Pumpkin pie filing cooling off. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

So the question most people ask, what does it taste like?

Jack O Lantern Pumpkin pie tastes like - well, pumpkin pie. A lighter, more custardy version than the canned version that is in even better cold the second day.

The baking pumpkin has a little more body to the baked pumpkin filing but not much difference otherwise.

The Cushaw pumpkin pie is lighter than both so I tend to add a few more seasonings.

All are delicious and make both a great desert and, my brothers favorite, next day breakfast. If there is any left!

For more tips on gardening, beekeeping, cooking and easy home decor, subscribe to my weekly Garden Notes.

Charlotte

Christmas Sugar Cookies

Some of the finished decorated Christmas cookies, some are works of art! (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Christmas Sugar Cookies

I was trying to remember how many years I have been making Christmas sugar cookies; it definitely goes back to when I had single digits for my age.

When we were growing up in South America, we made sugar cookies to leave for Santa and the reindeer. Dad got some as well. As I recall, sugar cookies were one of his favorites.

As a big sister to three siblings, we also made sugar cookies over the holidays as gifts for friends as well as to enjoy. They came in especially handy as we were setting up the huge model railroad train layout under and around the Christmas tree. They were also a favorite breakfast Christmas morning.

During my married years, sugar cookies were made for gift baskets we gave away to coaches, teachers, friends - whoever made our year special. We also made gingerbread cookies over the years, making good use of the cookie cutter collection I still use. I hear my step kids continue this tradition with their kids.

Now Mary, my sister-in-law in Minnesota, made my cookie making pale compared to hers. She baked cookies every month for her church, and when it came to Christmas. Well, let’s just say it was an impressive assembly line.

I was able to snag her recipe the year before I gave everyone in the family a handmade recipe book. Not a small feat because this is not any sugar cookie recipe, this is “Grandma Green’s Sugar Cookies recipe. What makes it special, besides coming from Grandma? Unlike most other sugar cookie recipes, this one is not too sweet, making it a nice back drop for adding icing.

It is also a generous recipe so you may want to cut it in half if you just want a couple dozen.

Mary’s Grandma Green’s Sugar Cookies Recipe

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups sugar

1 cup shortening

1 teaspoon soda

1 cup sour cream or milk

2 teaspoons lemon extract

2 teaspoons baking powder

3 well-beaten eggs

6 cups flour

To Make:

Cream shortening and sugar. Sift dry ingredients together and set aside. Add milk, flavorings and eggs to shortening/sugar. Add flour. Mix well. Drop or roll out and cut with cookie cutters. Decorate with decorative sugar, raisins or other bake-able additions. Bake at 350F for 8-10 minutes.

After cooled, these sugar cookies are ready for decorating. And sampling. I truly believe any baked goods need to be carefully and deliberately sampled. Quality control. Reindeer can be very picky!

This is the sugar cookie assembly line I walked into the last time I was in Minnesota for Christmas:

The dining room table is full of sugar cookie icings and decorations. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

There were four people at work when I walked in. My brother Steve joined us at some point, which means the cookie decorating took on a whole new meaning. Besides the decidedly orange “Ilini” theme, some of the cookies turned into spaceships and amoeba. That’s what you get when you have a geneticist being creative with sugar cookies.

Mine had a cat theme, as I recall. The tails kept disappearing on my brother’s side of the table so mine were deemed only for family consumption.

There was a lot of talking and laughing, and even Michael and Rachel stopped arguing long enough to agree on cookie icing colors.

Nephew Michael and Niece Rachel were very particular about cookie icing colors. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Michael is now engaged living in a warmer climate; Rachel has just graduated from college and plans to see Michael over the holidays.

You can take this recipe, add a few favorite cookie cutters and edible decorations, and make a nice Christmas gift for that baker on your gift list. We have one for gingerbread cookies.

I hope Michael and Rachel have time to make at least one batch of Christmas sugar cookies when they are together. It’s a delicious way to bake new memories!

For more tips on gardening, beekeeping, cooking and easy home decor, subscribe to my weekly Garden Notes.

Charlotte

Summer Squash Lemon Bread Muffins

Lemon summer squash bread muffins with a dab of honey lemon glaze and spearmint sprigs from my garden. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Summer Squash Lemon Bread Muffins

If you like lemon-flavored breads you will love Summer Squash Lemon Bread courtesy of This Delicious House. I was looking for something to use summer squash besides the usual and this was a nice alternative. A friend had suggested I try using summer squash in baking but misplaced the recipe she gave me so this one counts as hers.

I baked these in muffin tins so I have single servings to enjoy with tea and share with friends. These will be individually frozen so they can easily be popped out and enjoyed.

You Will Need:

• 1 cup summer squash, grated and squeezed dry

• 1/2 cup butter, softened

• 1 cup sugar

• 2 large eggs

• 1/2 cup greek yogurt (nonfat works)

• 1/2 cup milk

• 1 lemon, zested and juiced (about 1/4 lemon juice)

• 2 cups flour

• 2 teaspoons baking powder

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 1/4 cup candied lemon peel (optional)

  Honey Lemon Glaze Recipe

• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

• 1 tablespoon honey

• 1/2 cup powdered sugar

To Make:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9 x 5 loaf pan with cooking spray and set aside or prepare muffin tins. I used two 12-muffins plan but you can use just one and fill each to the top - this recipe does not rise.

I used a sieve to squeeze the summer squash dry. Also remove seeds before grating. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

• Grate the squash using the large holes of a grater. I didn’t first remove seeds and thought twice after it was grated. Picking seeds out can be an exercise in patience so if you don’t like the seeds, remove them first. I didn’t notice the leftover ones in the baked muffin.

• Squeeze out any moisture. I used a large sieve and pressed the squash with a spoon. There won’t be a lot.

• In a bowl, cream together the butter and sugar.

• Beat in the eggs, yogurt, milk, lemon zest and juice until well combined. I didn’t have candied lemon peel so I skipped it.

• Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt.

This is a whole grated summer squash, I was sidetracked and forgot to measure, should be close. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Fold in the grated squash. I was listening to a podcast and forgot to measure the grated squash. One medium squash should make about one cup.

You can fill the muffin tins to the top for this recipe. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Pour into loaf pan and bake for 60 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in bread comes out clean. I used muffin tins and filled it only half full. You can fill them up to the top, this batter won’t rise.

Cool on a wire rack. Make sure bread is completely cooled before adding glaze.

• To make the glaze, whisk together the honey and lemon juice. Whisk in the powdered sugar. Pour overtop of cooled bread.

My glaze came out thick, more like an icing. I made it for a few muffins and will skip it for the remaining muffins. When serving, will just add a dollop of fresh honey!

This is a great recipe to add to your very own cookbook either for yourself or as a gift.

I will make these again, truly hard to believe there was something healthy in these!

Charlotte

Spiced Honey Pears

ready to serve as is or waiting for whipped cream or ice cream. (charlotte ekker wiggins photo)

Spiced Honey Pears

It's been interesting sharing my homegrown Bartlett pears with friends.  Every single one so far had a story: they remembered eating fresh pears as kids; their grandparents had a pear tree or they've thought about planting a pear tree but haven't yet. Pears have been a personal favorite ever since we moved back  to the US so my story is that I enjoy them.

My Stark Brothers semi-dwarf pear tree has its own story. Planted in 1985, I honestly forgot I even had the tree until 2011, when bees and wasps pollinated the pear tree flowers giving me my first homegrown pears. Planting on a hillside means it can take roots many, many years to get a tree established.

If you have pears, or someone sharing pears with you, here's the recipe my friend Jackie Davis made with some of my pears. And her first honey. 

this recipe uses green pears and honey from your favorite local beekeeper. (charlotte ekker wiggins photo)

Spiced Honey Pears Recipe

You Need:
6-8 green pears peeled, cored and cut in half.
1/3 cup honey
6 teaspoons unsalted butter
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

baked pears still in the juice in the cooking dish. (charlotte ekker wiggins photo)

To Make:

• Mix ingredients except pears; microwave for 30 seconds.

• Save half the sauce.

• Place pear halves bottom up in a baking dish. Pour half the mixture over pears.

• Bake at 400F for 30-45 minutes. Remove from oven; let sit for 5-10 minutes.

• Drizzle rest of sauce over pears. Bake another 10 minutes or so. Remove from oven to cool. Serve.

• When ready to serve and storing, pour the remaining sauce over pears.

• Baked pears are not too sweet so you can indulge by adding whipped topping and/or ice cream.

• Just as good the next day in case you want to make this recipe ahead for dinner.

here’s a quick way to enjoy bartlett pears. (charlotte ekker wiggins photo)

Easy Pear Desert 

No time to make spiced honey pears? Try this instead.

Cut up 2-4 pears in a microwaveable dish.
Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon to  taste. 
Add splash of vanilla.
Add a splash of lemon juice.
Microwave on high for 3-4 minutes.
Stir. Let sit for a minute or so.
Garnish with a drizzle of honey, whipped cream or ice cream. Or enjoy just as is!

Charlotte

Two Ingredient Bread Recipe

Homemade soft pretzel, so easy and delicious with soup or by itself. (Charlotte Ekker Wiggins photo)

Two Ingredient Bread (and More) Recipe

I confess, I tend to simple recipes and this one spoke to me. Two basic ingredients from which I can make a number of things: rolls, pretzels, pizza, cinnamon rolls….yep, versatile, too.

Two Ingredient Bread Recipe

How easy is this even making my own self rising flower. (Charlotte Ekker Wiggins photo)

You will need:

1 3/4 cups self rising flour

1 cup plain Greek yogurt

Optional: coarse salt

You may also need as a substitute:

No self rising flour? Make your own:

4 cups regular flour

2 tablespoons baking powder

2 teaspoons salt

Soft pretzels with olive oil and Himalayan sea salt. (Charlotte Ekker Wiggins photo)

To make:

Mix into a ball. Flour a surface.

I made 4 soft pretzels and 4 rolls with my first batch.

Brush with water, melted butter or extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with coarse salt. I didn’t have coarse salt so I dabbed with extra virgin olive oil and Himalayan sea salt.

Cook at 350F for 20 minutes or until brown around edges.

Conclusion: it’s a winner. Will be making more!

Charlotte

Chocolate Mug Cake

One minute in a microwave and you will have a nice little chocolate cake serving. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Chocolate Mug Cake

The forecast is calling for another winter storm with ice, possibly snow and wind chills in the single digits. That’s winter for us in USDA Hardiness Zone 5, a great excuse to mix up individual packets to make Chocolate Mug Cakes as a warm treat.

You can make these with either regular milk, chocolate milk or powdered milk. I note the options for using regular milk and powdered milk.

Why powdered milk?

I keep powdered milk handy for those times when I run out of regular milk and still need to cook with milk but don’t want to go to the store to get milk because of say, an incoming winter storm.

You can also substitute honey for granulated sugar.

I mix directly into the mug ensuring it was well mixed. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Chocolate Mug Cake Recipe

You will need per serving:

• ¼ cup all-purpose flour

• 2 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder

• ¼ teaspoon baking powder

• 2 tablespoon granulated sugar, (you can add 1 tbsp. more if you like it a bit sweeter) or use 2 tablespoons honey

• ⅛ teaspoon kosher salt

• ¼ cup + 1 tbsp. milk or 1/4 cup powdered milk and 1/4 cup water

• 2 tablespoon vegetable oil

• Optional: 1 tablespoon hazelnut chocolate spread or mini chocolate chips

To make:

• In a medium bowl, whisk together dry ingredients. I actually mix them in the coffee cup but make sure to thoroughly mix; scrape the bottom of the cup to get everything mixed.

• Whisk in the milk and vegetable oil, or powdered milk and water, or the liquids and honey until all ingredients are combined and batter has no clumps.

• I mixed the ingredients (in a lovely) 8 ounce gift mug which had enough head space for the cake to rise without pouring over.

• Optional: Add hazelnut chocolate spread in the middle of the batter or mini chocolate chips. Just drop it in the middle, no need to push it down and sink it in the batter, that will happen as it cooks.

• Microwave mug cake for 1 minute on high; monitor your microwave for the length of time since microwaves do vary.

• Carefully remove from microwave; allow to cool.

Possible toppings:

Drizzle your chocolate mug cake with chocolate syrup, honey or whipped topping.

Other tips:

Using the Hershey’s Special Dark unsweetened cocoa makes the cake less sweet, which I like. If you prefer a more sweet cake, use regular unsweetened cocoa and add chocolate chips.

When making, use 5x5 inch snack bags and make several dry ingredient servings at once, Note the wet ingredients to add on the outside of the bag so you don’t forget.

Store the bags to make a quick treat later or to give as gifts. Hopefully you have better handwriting than I do or you print your direction labels. Pack several in a pretty basket or, better yet, include in a microwave safe coffee mug.

Charlotte

Toll House Cookies Recipe

Charlotte’s Toll House Cookies Recipe

This is one of those classic, all-time favorite cookie recipes, originally found on the back of the bag of chocolate chips. I even still have - but just barely - the original copy in my recipe box.

By the way, as you leaf through your family recipe books and recipe boxes, skip those clean, pristine-looking recipes and go straight for the fingerprinted, flour-marred pages. That’s where you will find your family’s favorite and often-made dishes.

My Toll House Cookies Recipe

As I was saying, this is an all-time favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe. I’ve made a couple of alterations that make these a more chewy cookie so that’s why I call it my recipe.

You will need:

2 1/4 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoon salt.

Set this aside.

Combine 1 cup softened butter or shortening. I prefer shortening but if you want a more rich cookie, use butter. And you can combine 1/2 cup butter with 1/2 cup shortening.

3/4 cup granulated sugar;

3/4 cup firmly packed (I use light) brown sugar;

1 teaspoon vanilla;

1/2 teaspoon water.

Beat until creamy.

Beat in 2 eggs.

Add flour mixture; mix well.

Stir in 1 cup or half of a 12-ounce package of chocolate morsels. The original recipe calls for the whole bag but I found that was just too much.

*Now I place the dough in the refrigerator for an hour or so. Combined with cooking at the lower temperature this makes the cookies less crumbly and more chewy.

Preheat oven 325F*. The original recipe calls for 375F but that’s too hot in my oven so I cook it at the lower temperature.

Drop by well-rounded half teaspoon fulls onto greased cookie sheets.

Bake 10-12 minutes.

Allow to cool on a cookie rack. Store in airtight bags. I also freeze them individually on a cookie rack and then store in a freezer bag.

If you over bake, as I may at times, just let them cool and then use them as ice cream crumble.

Charlotte

Baking Blue Pumpkin

Queensland Blue Pumpkins are favorite fall decor. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Baking Blue Pumpkin

I’ve seen these blue pumpkins around for a number of years, usually offered as fall decor along with Jack O Lantern and baking pumpkins. These blue pumpkins are Queensland Blue pumpkins, an old Australian heirloom blue-skinned pumpkin ideal for growing in the subtropics.  The year that Queensland Blue pumpkins were first grown in Australia is unknown but they predate when they were first grown overseas in 1932.

A friend who is a great cook said I will be surprised when I try this baked pumpkin and I was. Queensland Blue is a versatile pumpkin variety that is great roasted, chopped in curries or blended into soups.

I kept my first try of this lovely pumpkin simple, I baked it in a water covered dish in 350F oven until the center was soft enough to be pricked with a fork, about half an hour.

For comparison, I also baked a small yellow baking pumpkin, visible in the back.

Queensland Blue Pumpkin baked and out of the oven against baking pumpkin in back. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

First, the Queensland blue pumpkin had a much thicker inside flesh.

The seeds were easy to remove, without the thick fibers that hold baking pumpkin seeds.

Once I removed the blue peel, I cut the sections into small pieces, sprinkled with extra virgin olive oil and a dash of salt.

Delicious sprinkled with extra virgin olive oil and a dash of salt. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Oh, my was this good, I even appreciated the flavor without oiive oil.

My new favorite side dish, baked Queensland pumpkin! (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

The squared Queensland pumpkin pieces have been individually frozen so I can enjoy a serving later.

My research shows the Queensland pumpkin can also be incorporated into soups, which I enjoy making during winter.

The Illustrated Encyclopedia of American Cooking has several delicious options from professional university Extension experts as well as cooks. Finding recipes online can be unreliable so if you don’t have at least one basic printed cookbook in your kitchen, this one is a good start!

So pretty in the garden and delicious on the table, I may just have to grow some Queensland pumpkin next year. And yes, I saved some seeds!

Charlotte

Lemon Summer Squash Bread Muffins

Lemon summer squash bread muffins with a dab of honey lemon glaze and spearmint sprigs from my garden. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Lemon Summer Squash Bread Muffins

If you like lemon-flavored breads you will love Lemon Summer Squash Bread courtesy of This Delicious House. I was looking for something to use summer squash besides the usual and this was a nice alternative. A friend had suggested I try using summer squash in baking but misplaced the recipe she gave me so this one counts as hers.

I baked these in muffin tins so I have single servings to enjoy with tea and share with friends. These will be individually frozen so they can easily be popped out and enjoyed.

You Will Need:

• 1 cup summer squash, grated and squeezed dry

• 1/2 cup butter, softened

• 1 cup sugar

• 2 large eggs

• 1/2 cup greek yogurt (nonfat works)

• 1/2 cup milk

• 1 lemon, zested and juiced (about 1/4 lemon juice)

• 2 cups flour

• 2 teaspoons baking powder

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 1/4 cup candied lemon peel (optional)

  Honey Lemon Glaze Recipe

• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

• 1 tablespoon honey

• 1/2 cup powdered sugar

To Make:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9 x 5 loaf pan with cooking spray and set aside or prepare muffin tins. I used two 12-muffins plan but you can use just one and fill each to the top - this recipe does not rise.

I used a sieve to squeeze the summer squash dry. Also remove seeds before grating. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

• Grate the squash using the large holes of a grater. I didn’t first remove seeds and thought twice after it was grated. Picking seeds out can be an exercise in patience so if you don’t like the seeds, remove them first. I didn’t notice the leftover ones in the baked muffin.

• Squeeze out any moisture. I used a large sieve and pressed the squash with a spoon. There won’t be a lot.

• In a bowl, cream together the butter and sugar.

• Beat in the eggs, yogurt, milk, lemon zest and juice until well combined. I didn’t have candied lemon peel so I skipped it.

• Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt.

This is a whole grated summer squash, I was sidetracked and forgot to measure, should be close. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Fold in the grated squash. I was listening to a podcast and forgot to measure the grated squash. One medium squash should make about one cup.

You can fill the muffin tins to the top for this recipe. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Pour into loaf pan and bake for 60 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in bread comes out clean. I used muffin tins and filled it only half full. You can fill them up to the top, this batter won’t rise.

Cool on a wire rack. Make sure bread is completely cooled before adding glaze.

• To make the glaze, whisk together the honey and lemon juice. Whisk in the powdered sugar. Pour overtop of cooled bread.

My glaze came out thick, more like an icing. I made it for a few muffins and will skip it for the remaining muffins. When serving, will just add a dollop of fresh honey!

This is a great recipe to add to your very own cookbook either for yourself or as a gift.

I will make these again, truly hard to believe there was something healthy in these!

Charlotte

Sourdough Starter Rolls

Maybe a year after getting this sourdough bread starter I finally made these rolls. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Sourdough Starter Rolls

One of the favorite COVID 19 2020 lock down past times in the US was making bread. In particular, sourdough bread from a starter. Although I was lucky enough to have a friend share a starter with me, it wasn’t until the end of June 2021 that I found a recipe I wanted to try.

The good news is the starter, kept in the refrigerator and fed once a week, will live on. The starter, also called levain, is a fermented dough filled with natural, wild yeast and a bacteria called lactobacilli. The starter is what makes sourdough bread rise. I had to pour off some of the starter when it got too big for the jar but I was proud to keep it going for so long.

In addition, I read that the older the bread starter the more sour the dough.

So here’s the easy recipe. The hardest part is the waiting.

Sourdough Starter Bread Rolls

You Will Need:

• ▢3 ½ cups bread flour

• ▢1 ¼ cups warm, filtered or distilled water

• ▢½ tsp salt

• ▢¾ cup sourdough starter

To Make:

Without cling wrap I used a plate to cover the dough overnight. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

• Place all the ingredients in a large bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix until a consistent dough forms.

• Cover with cling wrap or a tight lid and let it stand overnight on the countertop, if warm, or in a cold oven with the light on.

• In the morning, punch down the dough and shape the dough into 12 equal-sized balls. Use flour on your palms to roll, if the dough feels sticky. Place the rolls 2 inches apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet.

• Sprinkle some flour on top of the rolls, cover with a kitchen towel, and set aside to rise for 2 hours.

• Preheat the oven to 425° F.

• When the rolls have risen, score the top of each roll using a sharp knife. Make the cut fast, to prevent the roll from deflating. Scoring gives the gases that form in the bread escape while baking and helps the rolls rise.

• Place the rolls in the hot oven and bake 25-28 minutes or until the rolls are a light golden-brown. Remove from the oven and continue cooling on a rack.

Calories: 152kcal | Carbohydrates: 31.8g | Protein: 4.3g | Fat: 0.4g | Potassium: 45mg | Fiber: 1.1g | Sugar: 0.1g | Iron: 2mg

You will find other excellent recipes in the American Cooking Encyclopedia.

Easy to make and even easier to enjoy. I took half of my rolls to the person who gave me the sourdough starter in the first place. She said this must be some new record waiting over a year to use it!

Charlotte

Baked Chicken Paprika Garlic

Don’t toss the cooked celery and onions, they make a delicious side dish. (Photo by Charlotte ekker wiggins)

Baked Chicken Paprika Garlic Recipe

Several things before I share this recipe:

1. I am in no way a fancy or accomplished cook. I share my recipes and culinary adventures to encourage the rest of you to get back in the kitchen and make your own food. Not only is it healthier because you know where it came from, but you can make simple delicious recipes and freeze extra for later consumption. And it will give you a nice feeling of accomplishment!

2. If you start looking at cost, you will see that cooking your own meals is less expensive than buying prepared food. Kids will enjoy “playing” with food by helping you cook and you can have fun experimenting together. And

3. My Hungarian father believed any dish was better with paprika, lots and lots of paprika.

4. This dish is even better the second or third day after the paprika and garlic have had a chance to marinate.

5. Don’t toss the cooked celery, onions and garlic, they make a delicious side dish!

6. Start with this basic recipe, then add the seasoning you want to try.

Trying out Penzey’s Baked Spanish-Style Paprika on this baked chicken, (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Bake the chicken and vegetables covered in a 325F oven for 45 minutes to 1 hr.

Paprika Garlic Baked Chicken coming out of the oven. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Baked Chicken Paprika Garlic Recipe

This is for 6 chicken thighs. You can use any other favorite chicken and turkey parts. I like thighs because they are built in portion control, about 3 ounces per thigh without the bone.

You Will Need:

6 chicken thighs

1 large minced onion

6 cut up celery stalks (minimum)

4 teaspoons chicken bouillon

2 teaspoons garlic powder (or one fresh minced garlic)

Paprika sprinkled on both front and back of chicken thighs.

Salt to taste.

To Make:

Remove chicken skin and any attached fat.

Place paprika-dusted thighs in dish. Add onions, garlic powder or fresh garlic, cut up celery and chicken bouillon.

Fill half way with water. Gently mix. Cover with aluminum foil or lid.

Bake at 325F for an hour or until the chicken falls off the bone.

Allow to rest for 10-15 minutes before serving.

Deboned thigh in 1-inch of juice ready for freezing. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

I debone before freezing. I also include about an inch of the juice in the bottom of the container for when it is reheated. The juice helps keep the baked chicken moist.

If you are just starting to cook, pick up a good basic cookbook like the 2007 American Encyclopedia of American Cooking. Learn the basics, then have fun in your kitchen!

Charlotte

Yeast Cinnamon Rolls

Finished and ready for tasting, homemade yeast cinnamon rolls! (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Yeast Cinnamon Rolls

I suspect the first yeast cinnamon rolls were made in the middle of cold, harsh winter. If not, they should have been. Is there a better way to warm up than yeast cinnamon rolls right out of the oven?

This is a recipe I have wanted to try for several years. I would buy the active yeast, then lose it somewhere in my kitchen cabinets. By the time I found it, it was ready for the compost pile.

Not this year.

I bought the active yeast and pinned it to my refrigerator with a magnet. But then mid-mixing, I couldn’t find my white flower so I made this recipe was made with 2 cups white flour and 5 cups wheat flour. Makes it sound healthier, doesn’t it? The new bag of white flour was in the freezer.

No, I’m not losing it, I deliberately stored it there.

I also didn’t brush the inside with melted butter. Cutting calories wherever I can without changing the overall flavor.

Yeast Cinnamon Rolls Recipe

2 packages Active yeast

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 cup butter

1 tablespoon salt

7 cups flour

1 cup warm water

1 cup scalded milk'

1/2 cup sugar

4 eggs well beaten

To make:

Feed me sugar, said the yeast packet in warm water. It should be bubbling. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Dissolve yeast in water and 1 tablespoon sugar. If you don’t see bubbles within 5 minutes or so, the yeast is no longer active. Try another pack.

Scald milk. Add 1/2 cup sugar, salt and butter. Cool to lukewarm.

Add 2 cups flour and mix well.

Add yeast mixture and eggs, stir well.

Add enough flour as needed to make stiff dough. Knead on floured surface until no longer sticky.

Place in well greased blow. Turn to grease top. Cover and let ruse until double in size.

Surprisingly satisfactory to punch the dough. Cheap therapy. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Punch down and divide in 2 parts. Roll each out in oblong shape. Brush with melted butter. Sprinkle with cinnamon and brown sugar. I made one part with brown sugar, the other with white sugar and cinnamon.

Roll up as for jelly roll.

This takes a little skill so as not to tear the dough. The key is to go slow. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Cut into one inch slices.

Yeast cinnamon roll slices ready to once again rise before baking. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Place on well greased plan or cookie sheet. LET RISE UNTIL DOUBLE.

All ready for the pre heated oven! (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Bake at 375F for 15-20 minutes.

When cool, top with powdered sugar icing.Makes about 3 dozen rolls.

Aren’t these pretty just as they are? (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

And because I made so many, I froze most of them individually. They freeze well and can easily be warmed in the microwave, possibly because of the wheat flour. They also easily fill you up as opposed to all white flour ones.

Nice recipe to add to a Write Your Own Cookbook gift set!

Charlotte

Baked Chicken with Onions

Baked chicken with onions and celery cooling off. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Baked Chicken with Onions

Here’s my disclaimer. i periodically make the same recipe twice; I tend more to adjust it every time I make it so be prepared for a number of possible variations. Which means this is a good basic baked chicken recipe you can make your own. And from personal experience, I suggest you write down the ingredient combinations as you try them or you may never be able to duplicate the recipe. Trust me.

On a positive note, I have been making this chicken recipe for several decades. As I vaguely recall, there was a Thanksgiving without a turkey so we baked a chicken instead. We started by adding yellow onions, celery and in this case, fresh rosemary, and a new favorite family dish was born.

Now you can make this a number of ways. I usually use yellow onions instead of red ones but I only currently had red onions. Both different kinds of onions work quite nicely, yellow onions are more savory than red. Celery is a staple but you can add other vegetables including potatoes, carrots and green beans. Sometimes I skip the fresh garlic, or double it, and I inevitably forget to add the salt. It still comes out delicious and quite versatile for the rest of the week.

And how nice the house smells when this is baking!

This can easily feed two people for lunch and dinner for a week. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Baked Chicken with Onions

Basic Ingredients:

4 thigh and drumsticks (or 4 chicken breasts)

Cut up celery to taste (1-2 cups per dish)

1 medium onion, either yellow or red, per dish

1-2 garlic cloves to taste

1 tsp salt

2 cups water

Optional sprig of fresh rosemary

Optional white wine

Remove skin. On right, chicken separated but not necessary, it will fall off the bones once cooked. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

To make:

Wash chicken and pat dry. Remove skin and all fat.

Place in baking dish.

You can add chicken stock and wine instead of water. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Add chopped celery, onion and salt per dish. Pour in 2 cups water per dish.

Sprinkle with salt (and pepper) to taste.

Bake at 350F for about an hour or until cooked through.

Allow to cool.

Serve as is or debone and store chicken with vegetables for later meals. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Serve as is; if you need a quick chicken soup, pour the liquid into soup bowls and add some celery and cut up chicken.

I allow to cool and debone. You can serve chicken with celery and onions as a side dish.

If you want to use later, separate the chicken into single servings with onions and celery.

This cooked chicken will also work nicely mixed up with cooked rice.

Charlotte

Baked Apple Roses

Charming baked apple roses are a great way to welcome the new year. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Baked Apple Roses

These are so easy to make, they make any occasion special. I am making these to welcome the new year but you can make them any time of the year when you can find good apples.

I have made these with a variety of apples; my current favorites are honey bears, not honey crisps, but pick any apple that’s your favorite. Something “crispier” and tart will hold up better under heat.

Honey Bear Apples are onlu available at Aldis where I live, (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Baked Apple Roses Recipe

You Will Need:

6 apples

Apricot jam

Pie dough, either pre-made or make your own

Cinnamon

Cupcake tin

To Make:

I soak the cut up apple slices in lemon to keep them from browning. If you use the brand new Crimson Crisp apples that don’t brown for a year, you can skip this step.

I do this because I often get sidetracked.

Once apple slices are blotted to dry, cut the pie crust into long 3-inch strips.

Cover with apricot jam. This year I have an appricot and raspberry jam to try.

Line up the apple slices in the middle of the pie dough; sprinkle with cinnamon to taste.

Cover apple slices with the other pie dough half.

Once rolled up, place the apple slices in pie dough in a cupcake tin lined with butter.

Bake for 10 minutes in 350F oven until pie dough is baked.

Serve as is or you can add a dolop of whipped cream or better yet, drizzle with honey.

If you want to give this recipe, pick out our Bless This House Lap Quilt featuring apples and a clear window where you can tuck in the recipe.

Happy New Year!

Charlotte

Christmas Sugar Cookies

Some of the finished decorated Christmas cookies, some are works of art! (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Christmas Sugar Cookies

I was trying to remember how many years I have been making Christmas sugar cookies; it definitely goes back to when I had single digits for my age.

When we were growing up in South America, we made sugar cookies to leave for Santa and the reindeer. Dad got some as well. As I recall, sugar cookies were one of his favorites.

As a big sister to three siblings, we also made sugar cookies over the holidays as gifts for friends as well as to enjoy. They came in especially handy as we were setting up the huge model railroad train layout under and around the Christmas tree. They were also a favorite breakfast Christmas morning.

During my married years, sugar cookies were made for gift baskets we gave away to coaches, teachers, friends - whoever made our year special. We also made gingerbread cookies over the years, making good use of the cookie cutter collection I still use. I hear my step kids continue this tradition with their kids.

Now Mary, my sister-in-law in Minnesota, made my cookie making pale compared to hers. She baked cookies every month for her church, and when it came to Christmas. Well, let’s just say it was an impressive assembly line.

I was able to snag her recipe the year before I gave everyone in the family a handmade recipe book. Not a small feat because this is not any sugar cookie recipe, this is “Grandma Green’s Sugar Cookies recipe. What makes it special, besides coming from Grandma? Unlike most other sugar cookie recipes, this one is not too sweet, making it a nice back drop for adding icing.

It is also a generous recipe so you may want to cut it in half if you just want a couple dozen.

Mary’s Grandma Green’s Sugar Cookies Recipe

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups sugar

1 cup shortening

1 teaspoon soda

1 cup sour cream or milk

2 teaspoons lemon extract

2 teaspoons baking powder

3 well-beaten eggs

6 cups flour

To Make:

Cream shortening and sugar. Sift dry ingredients together and set aside. Add milk, flavorings and eggs to shortening/sugar. Add flour. Mix well. Drop or roll out and cut with cookie cutters. Decorate with decorative sugar, raisins or other bake-able additions. Bake at 350F for 8-10 minutes.

After cooled, these sugar cookies are ready for decorating. And sampling. I truly believe any baked goods need to be carefully and deliberately sampled. Quality control. Reindeer can be very picky!

This is the sugar cookie assembly line I walked into the last time I was in Minnesota for Christmas:

The dining room table is full of sugar cookie icings and decorations. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

There were four people at work when I walked in. My brother Steve joined us at some point, which means the cookie decorating took on a whole new meaning. Besides the decidedly orange “Ilini” theme, some of the cookies turned into spaceships and amoeba. That’s what you get when you have a geneticist being creative with sugar cookies.

Mine had a cat theme, as I recall. The tails kept disappearing on my brother’s side of the table so mine were deemed only for family consumption.

There was a lot of talking and laughing, and even Michael and Rachel stopped arguing long enough to agree on cookie icing colors.

Nephew Michael and Niece Rachel were very particular about cookie icing colors. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Michael is now engaged living in a warmer climate; Rachel has just graduated from college and plans to see Michael over the holidays.

You can take this recipe, add a few favorite cookie cutters and edible decorations, and make a nice Christmas gift for that baker on your gift list. We have one for gingerbread cookies.

I hope Michael and Rachel have time to make at least one batch of Christmas sugar cookies when they are together. It’s a delicious way to bake new memories!

Charlotte

Jack O Lantern Pumpkin Pie

Jack O Lantern Pumpkin Pie filing served as a desert with a drizzle of honey. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Jack O Lantern Pumpkin Pie Recipe

Actually this is a basic pumpkin pie recipe you can use with a variety of pumpkins, I have tried it with all of the following:

Canned pumpkin, which is a mix of pumpkin and squash. The traditional pumpkin pie.

Cushaw pumpkin, the original native North American pumpkin most likely served at the first Thanksgivings between the Native American Indians and European settlers. More of a light custard-kind of filing.

Baking pumpkins, which have a more dense consistency compared to

Jack O Lantern pumpkins, which is lighter than baking pumpkins and also can be baked and turned into a pumpkin pie or desert. I’m pretty sure these are Jack O Lantern pumpkins in this Four Seasons Lap Quilt and Wall Hanging, don’t you think?

Baking the Pumpkins

Regardless of what kind of pumpkin you use, wash it; cut open; remove seeds; fill with water and bake at 325F until you can prick it with a fork.

Allow to cool. Remove the inside pulp. I saved mine in 13 ounce servings in a jar in the refrigerator. Or you can freeze in similar quantities for easy use later.

Basic Pumpkin Pie Recipe

2 eggs, slightly beaten

16 oz. pumpkin

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ginger

1/4 teaspoon gloves

1 2/3 cups (13 fluid ounces) evaporated milk or light cream

To make: Mix the ingredients in the order listed. I use my beater on low speed.

This is baked and blended Jack O Lantern pumpkin getting mixed in the traditional pie recipe. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

You can pour into a 9” unbaked pie shell with a high fluted edge - the filing will rise a little. I bake mine in bread pans.

If in a pie shell, bake in preheated 425F oven for 15 minutes, then reduce temperature to 350F and bake for another 45 minutes or until a knife inserted in center of pie filing comes out clean. Cool. Garnish with whipped cream and serve.

If you are baking just the pie filing, bake at 325F for 45 minutes or until a toothpick in the center comes out clean.

I bake the pumpkin filling in bread pans without a pie crust. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

I fill my bread pans half full. You can fill it fuller but it may take longer to cook all of the way through.

This is the baked Jack O Lantern Pumpkin pie filing cooling off. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

So the question most people ask, what does it taste like?

Jack O Lantern Pumpkin pie tastes like - well, pumpkin pie. A lighter, more custardy version than the canned version that is in even better cold the second day.

The baking pumpkin has a little more body to the baked pumpkin filing but not much difference otherwise.

The Cushaw pumpkin pie is lighter than both so I tend to add a few more seasonings.

All are delicious and make both a great desert and, my brothers favorite, next day breakfast. If there is any left!

Charlotte

Rabbit Rolls

The picture of the “easy to make” rabbit rolls was too cute to quickly be thrown together. The idea, however, stuck with me long enough that I had to try.

As a bunny lover going back to my first stuffed toy, a little music box rabbit, the idea that I could nestle a yeast roll that looks like a rabbit in a pile of salad made me smile. I also know that a number of do-it-yourself online projects and recipes are made by professionals with years of experience and a good half dozen or more assistants. Few things are as easy as they are made out to be.

Sure enough, this bunny roll recipe making the rounds started to collect disclaimers. These are made by an experienced professional chef, the first one said, suggesting we really should not be attempting to do this at home. I looked at the picture again. This may mean it will take a few dozen tries to even come close to having rolls have a shape, let alone look like a rabbit.

The second disclaimer was that it takes more than cutting the dough with kitchen scissors to make the rabbit ears. I noticed that the first time I saw the recipe, cutting the ears only made the rolls look more like cats than rabbits. The key was in the length of the cut and adding a center indentation so that they look more like rabbit ears.

The last disclaimer was that even though the picture of the rolls was with a particular recipe, the recipe was not the one the professional chef with years of experience had used to make the sample bunny rolls. The rabbit rolls in the original picture had been made out of an, as of yet, unidentified pastry dough recipe.

I will share my Rabbit Dinner Rolls recipe, replete with instructions on how to make the rolls look more like rabbits than cats although cat rolls will come in handy around Halloween.

Charlotte

So Easy Moist Baked Chicken

Here's where you can make a nice dent in your shopping bill and have something ever so delicious without even glancing at a recipe book:

• I added cut up yellow onions and celery; sprinkled with my BBQ rub, and covered with an olive oil. You can use any seasonings of your choice.

• Cover with aluminum wrap with shiny side up, away from chicken, or cook in a pot with a lid. About 1 hr at 350F. The onions caramelize with the celery and become a delicious topping or side dish; I never make enough. Keeping the chicken covered helps keep chicken moist.

• After pulling out of the oven and letting it rest for 10 minutes, I had to check my cabinet for what olive oil I had used. It was a basil-flavored Olive Oil, which added a scrumptious taste!

• Once cool, you can remove from bone and either cut up to freeze, add to soups or serve just as it is.

• Store in juices to keep chicken moist when you heat it back up before serving.

Note to self; cut up more onions and celery next time!

Charlotte

The Secret to Soft Chewy Cookies

The back of Nestle's Tollhouse Cookie Chips bag doesn't tell you this but, like even meals cooked at the White House, there is a secret to making soft, chewy cookies.

After mixing the cookie batter, place in the refrigerator overnight. The resting gives ingredients a chance to blend together.

When baked, your cookies will come out soft and chewy.

They really should add this to the recipe; it makes all the difference in the cooked cookie!

Charlotte