Gingersnaps

 

Recipe from Gourmet magazine

Ingredients:

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) unsalted butter

1/4 cup unsulfured molasses

1 large egg

parchment paper

1/4 cup granulated sugar

Directions:

Into a large bowl sift together 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons flour, baking soda, and spices and whisk in brown sugar. In a small saucepan melt butter and whisk into flour mixture with molasses and egg until combined well. With a wooden spoon stir in remaining 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons flour until combined well. Chill dough, covered, until firm, at least 1 hour, and up to 2 days.

Preheat oven to 350°F. and line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Roll level tablespoons of dough into balls and in a small bowl roll balls in granulated sugar to coat. Arrange balls about 2 inches apart on baking sheets and bake in batches in middle of oven until flattened and a shade darker, 10 to 12 minutes. (Cookies will puff slightly and then collapse slightly, and tops will be covered with little cracks.) Cool cookies on baking sheets 2 minutes and transfer with a spatula to racks to cool completely. Cookies keep in an airtight container at room temperature 5 days.

dear time,

Most of our walls are filled with art; things we have collected over the years or made ourselves, things gifted us by talented loved ones, and diplomas we once earned. There is, however, a big blank space over our television. A blank wall that I once meant to fill. It really used to bother me when I was nesting (oh dear summer following marriage, I should have appreciated you more). Now I do not have so much time to worry about that stark white space; in fact, I only notice it when I am bored. I used to really concern myself over all I could put there: the perfect painting, shelves with cool old hardbacks, a marlin, or even a giant mural (that I even so ambitiously thought I might paint). The truth is I suspect that wall will stay blank until we move out of this beloved little space. On that day I will sigh with acknowledgement, having always known I would never find that perfect finishing piece—time just passes too quickly.

Can you even believe next week is Thanksgiving?

served on my grandmother Nell's famous rolls,
with pecans from her orchard that we shelled together this weekend

Cranberry Pecan Chicken Salad

2 chicken breasts (boneless, skinless)


½ cup pecans, toasted and roughly chopped


1/3 cup granny apple, diced into tiny chunks

½ cup dried cranberries, roughly chopped


1 shallot, minced


1/3 cup Greek yogurt


2 tablespoons light mayo 


2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar (add more if you like)

1 teaspoon orange juice

1 tablespoon oregano, minced

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Rub chicken breasts with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 35 minutes until chicken is cooked through. Shred in your kitchen aid (or dice up into little tiny pieces). Set aside to cool.

Mix together greek yogurt, mayo, apple cider vinegar, orange juice and oregano.

In a large bowl, combine shredded chicken (about 2 cups), pecans, shallots, green apple, and cranberries. Toss with dressing until well combined. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Chill for 1 hour then enjoy!

cornbread baked in roasted red bell pepper with shredded spice rubbed chicken and guacamole

How's that for a recipe title? Really I just started getting creative in the kitchen after I asked Ben what he wanted for dinner and all he said was "guacamole?" Here is a dish built around that request. 

Cut 2 red bell peppers in half. Fill with corn bread batter (recipe below). Top with guacamole and shredded chicken (recipe below) and garnish with cilantro. Serve hot.

Fatten-Ben-Up Cornbread:

1 cup yellow corn meal

1/3 cup flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ heaping teaspoon salt

2/3 cup whole milk

1 egg

3 tablespoons shortening (I did 2 tablespoons shortening + 1 tablespoon bacon grease)

1 teaspoon sugar

Preheat oven to 450. Combine above dry ingredients. Combine wet ingredients in a separate bowl then beat into dry ingredients. Pour into red bell pepper “cups” and bake for about 20 minutes.

Shredded Chicken

I learned this great trick for perfectly restaurant style shredded chicken! Roast two boneless skinless chicken breasts (I rubbed mine with a Southwest Chipotle Rub first) on 375 F for about 20-30 minutes (for more moist chicken, pour about ½ an inch of chicken broth in the pan with your chicken). When chicken is cooked through, pour chicken and juice in your kitchenaid with the normal paddle attachment; turn it on low speed and watch it shred right up!

Southwest Chipotle Rub

1/3 cup brown sugar, packed

2 ½ tablespoons finely ground coffee grounds

2 tablespoons salt

1 ½ tablespoons granulated dry garlic

1 tablespoon paprika

1 ½ teaspoons dried oregano leaves

1/3 cup Tabasco brand chipotle pepper sauce

dada

You know that stage of life when you realize your parents are wiser than you, that they are not trying to ruin your life and in fact trying to salvage it from your small-minded intentions? Well I remember it too—I hit it in high school.

I am now hitting a second stage of life where I realize my parents might be cooler than me—or at least they are having more fun than me right now.

We spent this past weekend in Lamar/Rockport with my parents for my dad’s 53^rd birthday*. We ate too much good food, drank great wine, and in general just enjoyed some quality family time. I find it necessary to catch up on my parents’ lives in their actual presence, as they are nearly unreachable via the telephone. They are always on the run: at this board meeting or social function, busy at the clinic, at bible study or on random weekend getaways, tucked inside an art gallery or home store, or out working on one of their various projects. Their creativity and energy flow almost synergistically in a way that keeps them young I think. I am always thankful for those moments we can slow down a little (and they can slow down a lot) in order to just sit around the kitchen table and talk. So Happy Birthday Dada, and thanks for such an opportunity.

*November 12 also happens to be Ryan Gosling’s birthday! We tried not to celebrate this too openly...

football and beer (sort of)

After playing three straight games of flag football last night, Ben and I are fairly sore. Our team of 2^nd year medical school students + Ben made it to the playoffs… which meant we had to continue playing until we lost. Thankfully, we finally got to go home when a fresh young group of Baylor College of Medicine first years out-ran and out-threw us (for two reasons: 1) they are only first years so their brains are lighter, and 2) because we were all delusional from lack of sugar or water for 4 hours…I mean really, we were pretty punch drunk at this point). On a positive note, I am taking Ben’s ability to play such an aggressive sport as flag football (real intense) as yet another sign of his health. In fact, next time he brings up a random illness he might have (tumor, diabetes, lymphoma), I will make sure to remind him of the three or so touchdowns he made last night after sprinting down a field in 50 degree weather.

Still on my mission to fatten him up though…

LAURA'S AMAZING JALAPENO BEER BREAD

cheers

yes, that much butter...and yes, it will most likely overflow

winner

3 cups all-purpose flour

3 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

1/4 cups sugar

1/4 cups pickled jalapenos, chopped

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

12 oz., fluid beer (one can)*

1/2 cup melted butter

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Measure and then sift the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt into a mixing bowl. The sifting will improve the texture of the bread (so do it!). Add the chopped jalapenos and cheddar cheese. Pour one can of beer into the mixing bowl and mix until blended (I used Shiner because Mrs. Laura is from Shiner, TX where the brewery stands). Pour mixture into a greased loaf pan. Pour melted butter over mixture. This will seem like too much butter, but do not remove any of it! Bake one hour or until golden brown. You might want to put a pan under the loaf in case it over bakes the pan (and mine did…thank goodness for that pan). Cool for 5-10 minutes. Remove from pan and cool an additional 5-10 minutes. Slice and enjoy.

crock-potted ribs

I still remember when we bought my mom her first crock-pot. I do not know how she thrived for so long in her wifey career without one. AND she is from Louisiana. AND she grew up Southern Baptist. AND she has sons (who think Velveeta is real cheese). Each of the previously mentioned is a risk factor for owning a crock-pot, and yet my mother still did not have one (proudly I am sure).

Anyway, she sent us to HEB to buy her one and we definitely took advantage of this christening situation; we came back with the biggest one we could find, all white and fancy like, decorated with cartoon cows and strawberry patches on it. Needless to say, she sent us right back for a stainless steel one. C’mon mom, embrace the crock-pot.

Below is a recipe for ribs in the crock-pot. Yes, ribs. A man dish, womanized. 

the rub

finger licking good!

falling off the bone

           

¼ cup paprika

¼ cup packed brown sugar

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 teaspoon cracked pepper

1 ½ teaspoon garlic powder

2 ½ pounds ribs (or however big 1 rack is)

1 cup of your favorite barbecue sauce

In a small bowl, combine paprika, brown sugar, cayenne pepper, salt, pepper, and garlic powder to make dry rub. Liberally rub spice mixture on all sides of ribs.

Prop ribs into slow cooker (crock-pot) against the sides and leaning in like a tent. Pour the barbecue sauce over the ribs. Cook in slow cooker on high for 7-8 hours or until ribs are cooked through and falling off the bone.

Preheat broiler. Line a cookie sheet with foil (easier clean-up later!) and transfer ribs to it, meaty side up. Ladle some of the sauce and drippings from the crock-pot over your ribs.

Place ribs under broiler for about 5 or so minutes or until caramelized. You can pull the cookie sheet out once during the broiling process to ladle on more syrupy sauce from the crock-pot if you like.

Serve hot, with some bread to soak up the sauce!

home girl

fresh camo- notice the sticker still on the shirt 

Ben went hunting this weekend at our family ranch in Terryville, a place I appreciate for its fields of yellow flowers in the spring and piercingly bright stars at night…. and he appreciates for its deer and duck. He went with our good friend Mitchell—who actually knows how to hunt/is an Eagle Scout—so worry did not exacerbate my feeling of missing him.  I realized it is just not as much fun to stay home in your sweat pants on a Saturday night with a good bottle of wine and a movie when you are the only one doing it. Sure, Quimby was by my side, but I was still just a girl in her sweat pants with her loyal and loving dog.

Have you ever seen Fantastic Mr. Fox? It is definitely my favorite Wes Anderson film, with its existentialistic undertones and little philosophies on life. Below are my two most loved scenes (that I will spare you my rambling review of and let you digest at will):

Fantastic Mr. Fox and Kylie the opossum

FMF: [deep sigh]. Who am I Kylie?

K: Who, how, what now?

FMF: Why a fox? Why not a horse, or a beetle or a bald eagle? I am saying this more as, like, existentialism, you know? Who am I? And how can a fox ever be happy without, you’ll forgive the expression, a chicken in its teeth?

K: I don’t know what you’re talking about but it sounds illegal.

FMF: And so it begins.

Last toast:

FMF: When I look down this table with the exquisite feast set before us, I see two terrific lawyers, a skilled pediatrician, a wonderful chef, a savvy real estate agent, an excellent tailor, a crack accountant, a gifted musician, pretty good minnow fisherman, and quite possibly the best landscape painter working on the scene today. Maybe a few of you might even read my column from time to time, but who knows; I tend to doubt it.

I also see a room full of wild animals. Wild animals with true natures and pure talents. Wild animals with scientific sounding Latin names that mean something about our DNA. Wild animals each with his own strengths and weaknesses due to his or her species. Anyway, I think it may very well be all the beautiful differences among us that might just give us the tiniest glimmer of chance of saving my nephew and letting me make it up to you for getting us into this crazy whatever-it-is. I don’t know; it’s just a thought. Thank you for listening. Cheers everyone.