This appetizer is a favorite to "choke" down..........

Warm Artichoke dip

This is my go -to recipe.  It is simple, I always make sure to have the ingredients on hand and its the best artichoke dip I've tried.  Everyone always asks me for the recipe, and so here it is for all of you to enjoy, and please,  try this one over the holidays, you will LOVE it!!

1- 14 oz. can artichoke hearts, drained and  cut up chunky

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

1 cup mayo NOT miracle whip (this really will make a difference)

2 - 4 garlic cloves, minced ( I love garlic, so 4 always)

1/2 lemon squeezed

Combine and mix all ingredients in an oven proof small casserole dish ( I use a round corningware dish).  Bake at 350' for 10 min or until bubbly and golden.

I like to serve with fresh artisan bread cut into cubes, or a baguette cut into slices.  You can also use crackers.  Heck, just put out spoons!!!!

ENJOY!

Mall Pretzels

My sweet sister in law brought these over while they were still warm......everyone loved them, and they vanished!!


It's a bread thing.  The smell of fresh bread wafting through the air while you've been shopping for too long, the mall pretzel shoppe never fails, it is always a delicious, warm tasty treat.  You can make these little guys at home very easily. Be creative with the toppings!


Adapted from allrecipies.com


Mall Pretzels:

INGREDIENTS:
4 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 teaspoon white sugar
1 1/4 cups warm water (110 degrees F
/45 degrees C)
5 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1/2 cup baking soda
4 cups hot water
1/4 cup kosher salt, for topping
other topping ideas: sesame seeds, poppy seeds, butter and parmesan cheese, cinnamon and white sugar, pizza sauce and sprinkled mozza, mixed cheese blend......go nuts!



DIRECTIONS:
1. In a small bowl, dissolve yeast and 1 teaspoon sugar in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.
2. In a large bowl, mix together flour, 1/2 cup sugar, and salt. Make a well in the center; add the oil and yeast mixture. Mix and form into a dough. If the mixture is dry, add one or two tablespoons of water. Knead the dough until smooth, about 7 to 8 minutes. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
3. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). In a large bowl, dissolve baking soda in hot water.
4. When risen, turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 12 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a rope and twist into a pretzel shape. Once all of the dough is all shaped, dip each pretzel into the baking soda solution and place on a greased baking sheet. Sprinkle with kosher salt. (you can also roll dough into sticks, or small pretzel bites....)
5. Bake in preheated oven for 8 minutes, until browned.


Enjoy!

Nothing like a comforting bowl of soup

It was a beautiful snowy day here today, and there is nothing better then a nice bowl of soup on a cold day to warm you up.  I got this recipe from a girlfriend of mine, and it is truly a treat.

I hope you enjoy it

Coconut Curry Chicken Soup



1 TBSP canola oil
1/2 cup thinly sliced shallots
1-2 tsp red curry paste (depending how spicy you like it)
1 1/2 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp. turmeric
1/2 tsp ground coriander
2 garlic cloves, minced
6 cups chicken broth
1 can coconut milk
21/2 cups cooked shredded chicken breast
2 TBSP sugar
2 TBSP fish sauce

3 cups fresh spinach

1/2 pound snow peas, cut in half, lengthwise

1 pkg. pad thai noodles, (wide rice stick noodles)

1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
4 small red chilies, seeded and chopped (optional)
1/2 lime, juiced

Preparation:

Heat oil in a large pot, add shallots and garlic, red curry paste, curry powder, turmeric and coriander.  Cook until tender, just a few minutes.  Add your broth, coconut milk and chicken.  Add in sugar, fish sauce and lime juice.  Let this cook a few minutes.  Add in spinach and snap peas just before serving.

While the soup is cooking, cook your pad thai noodles in a separate pot, as per the instructions on the package.  When the noodles are cooked, drain, and place a portion onto the bottom of every bowl.  Top with soup.  Add fresh cilantro, chiles and add a lime wedge for garnish.

Don't throw out your pumpkins!!!!

I always feel  guilty throwing away my pumpkins after Halloween night......The Italian "don't waste anything" mentality kicks into high gear when I drive down my street, November 1st and see all the beautiful jack-o-lanterns on the curbside, waiting to be picked up by the garbage truck.

This is what I do......

Place your cleaned out pumpkin, cut in half,  flesh side down on a large baking sheet.  Bake at 350' for 45 min.  Remove from oven, let cool.  Scoop out all the flesh into a bowl, mash up with a potato masher, and measure out into 1 cup servings and drop the cooked pumpkin into a ziplock bag.  Freeze.  This will last several months in the freezer, and you can use it in any recipe calling for pumpkin puree.
Or you can just buy a can of pumpkin puree......you won't offend me!!

Moist, and delicious.  Is it a cake, cookie or muffin top? These pumpkin chocolate chip cookies got over 600 four star ratings on thefoodnetwork.com, so of course, I just had to try them.  Keeper.

Here is the recipe:

Pumpkin chocolate chip cookies

• 
  
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup canned pumpkin puree (What do you think I used?????)
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 cups (12-ounce bag) milk chocolate chips (I used semi sweet)
• Nonstick cooking spray or parchment paper ( I used parchment, ....easy clean up!!)
• Directions
• Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray cookie sheets with nonstick spray or line them with parchment paper.
• 
  
• Using a mixer, beat the butter until smooth. Beat in the white and brown sugars, a little at a time, until the mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs 1 at a time, then mix in the vanilla and pumpkin puree. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. Slowly beat the flour mixture into the batter in thirds. Stir in the chips. Scoop the cookie dough by heaping tablespoons onto the prepared cookie sheets and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the cookies are browned around the edges. Remove the cookie sheets from the oven and let them rest for 2 minutes. Take the cookies off with a spatula and cool them on wire racks.
• 
  
• 
  

Bones anyone?

These adorable little things are easy to whip up.  They are a nice little gift for teachers  and classmates.  I used my mixer to whip up the egg whites, and then put them into a large ziplock bag and cut the tip off then piped them onto parchment paper on a baking sheet.
Here is the recipe:

Makes about 2 dozen cookies



1‑1/2 cups sugar
Pinch of salt
5 egg whites at room temperature ( IMPORTANT that they are at room temp)
Pinch of cream of tartar
1 teaspoon almond or vanilla extract


1. Preheat oven to 220°F. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.
2. Combine sugar and salt in small bowl. Beat egg whites and cream of tartar in small bowl with electric mixer at low speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar mixture, beating constantly. Beat until stiff peaks form and meringue is shiny and smooth. Add extract; beat just until blended.
3. Fill ziplock bag with meringue. Pipe log 3 to 4 inches long. Pipe 2 balls on both ends of each log. Smooth any peaks with wet finger. Repeat with remaining meringue.
4. Bake 30 minutes; turn off heat. Leave cookies in oven overnight; do not open oven door.

Easy! I told you! Just don't make the same mistake and ASSUME the ziplock bag is sealed shut.....Huge mess!!

ENJOY:)

You're not gonna foggetcha this focaccia!

Welcome to the official blog....Leave it to Lucia!


I couldn't think of a better way to start this blog, then with my favourite focaccia recipe.  This fluffy, moist, bread is a go - to recipe.  Served warm or cold it is sure to become a hit at your next family dinner.    This is a simple, yet delicious recipe and I know you will thank me!

Focaccia Bread

3 Cups of Flour
1 Boiled Potato, mashed
1 TBSP Salt
1/2 TBSP Sugar
5 tsp Active DryYeast
1 1/4 Cups of lukewarm water

Toppings:

1/2 Cup Olive Oil (separated)
1 Cup cherry/grape tomatoes or romas cut up into quarters
1/2 TBSP Salt

-You can also try:
-Mixed grilled veggies, peppers, zucchini , onions, mushrooms, etc.  be creative!!
-Fresh rosemary, olive oil, salt (this is a great appetizer, with olive oil and balsamic vinegar dipping sauce)
-Red grapes, (i know this sounds funny, trust me here....) salt, fresh rosemary


-Dissolve sugar in water. Add yeast. Let sit a few minutes until foamy.
-Place flour in a large bowl. Add mashed potato and salt.
-Mix batter and knead very well, the more you knead the better it will turn out! The dough should be smooth and tacky, not hard and dry.  Cover with plastic wrap and a dish towel over the plastic.  Forget about it for a while, and get to the dishes.......
-Once it has doubled in volume, pour  1/4 cup of olive oil into 9x13 pan
-Mix batter in pan, spreading gently to outer corners with your fingers (no rolling pin required!)
-Arrange cut tomatoes on top of batter. sprinkle with salt and oregano. Drizzle with remaining 1/4 cup of  olive oil on top
- Bake 30-40 min @ 400' until golden
- Serve warm or cold, you probably wont have any left to eat cold though......

Enjoy!