Garlic Butter Chicken Bites and Asparagus

Ingredients list for the Garlic Butter Chicken Bites and Asparagus

• 3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized chunks
• 2 bunch of asparagus, rinsed and trimmed
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning or Herbes de Provence
• 1 tablespoon hot sauce, optional (we used Sriracha)
• 1/2 cup (125ml) low-sodium chicken broth (or white wine)
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1 tablespoon minced parsley
• Crushed red chili pepper flakes, optional
• Slices of lemon, for garnish

For the chicken seasoning:

• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
• 2 teaspoons onion powder

Directions

1. To prepare the chicken bites recipe and asparagus in the garlic butter sauce: Start to slice chicken breasts into bite-sized chunks and season with salt, pepper, and onion powder. Let sit in a shallow plate while you prepare the asparagus.
2. Wash and trim the ends of the asparagus, then blanch them in boiling water for 2 minutes then soak in ice water to stop the cooking asparagus. This way they will cook asparagus faster and evenly in the skillet. You can skip this step if you have very thin asparagus. Drain and set aside.
3. Heat half butter and olive oil in a large cast-iron skillet over medium-low heat. Gently stir-fry the chicken bites on all sides until golden brown. Lower the heat, add 1 teaspoon minced garlic and Italian seasoning and stir and cook with chicken bites until fragrant. Remove the chicken bites from the skillet and set aside to a plate. You might have to work in batches to avoid crowding the pan and have steamed chicken bites instead of browned.
4. In the same skillet over medium-high, add minced garlic then deglaze with chicken broth (or wine). Bring to a simmer and allow to reduce to half the volume. Add remaining butter, lemon juice, hot sauce, parsley. Give a quick stir to combine.
5. Add the blanched asparagus and toss for 2 minutes to cook it up. Add the sauteed chicken bites back to the pan and stir for another minute to reheat. Garnish the chicken and asparagus with more parsley, crushed chili pepper, and lemon slices and serve your garlic butter chicken bites and asparagus immediately. Enjoy!

Notes:

• Depending on the thickness of your asparagus, you might want to skip blanching.
• You can enrich the sauce by adding white wine.

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Pumpkin Bread

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups (200g) flour
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 1 cup (200 g) sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup (240 ml) pumpkin purée*
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) olive oil
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon allspice
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) chopped walnuts

* To make pumpkin purée, cut a pumpkin in half, scoop out the seeds and stringy stuff, lie face down on a foil or Silpat lined baking sheet. Bake at 350°F until soft, about 45 min to an hour. Cool, scoop out the flesh. Freeze whatever you don't use for future use. Or, if you are working with pumpkin pieces, roast or boil them until tender, then remove and discard the skin.

Method

1 Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Sift together the flour, salt, sugar, and baking soda.
2 Mix the pumpkin, oil, eggs, 1/4 cup of water, and spices together, then combine with the dry ingredients, but do not mix too thoroughly. Stir in the nuts.
3 Pour into a well-buttered 9x5x3 inch loaf pan. Bake 50-60 minutes until a thin skewer poked in the very center of the loaf comes out clean. Turn out of the pan and let cool on a rack.
Can easily double the recipe.

Yield: Makes one loaf.

Credits go to : Simply Recipes http://www.simplyrecipes.com

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Thanksgiving Turkey

The centerpiece of contemporary Thanksgiving in the United States and Canada is a large meal, generally centered around a large roasted turkey. The majority of the dishes in the traditional American version of Thanksgiving dinner are made from foods native to the New World, as according to tradition the Pilgrims received these foods from the Native Americans. However, many of the classic traditions attributed to the first Thanksgiving are actually myths introduced later.

Being Turkey the most common main dish of a Thanksgiving dinner, we let you with this recipe:

Ingredients:

1 (18 pound) whole turkey, neck and
giblets removed
2 cups kosher salt
1/2 cup butter, melted
2 large onions, peeled and chopped
4 carrots, peeled and chopped
4 stalks celery, chopped
2 sprigs fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
1 cup dry white wine

Directions:

1. Rub the turkey inside and out with the kosher salt. Place the bird in a large stock pot, and cover with cold water. Place in the refrigerator, and allow the turkey to soak in the salt and water mixture 12 hours, or overnight.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Thoroughly rinse the turkey, and discard the brine mixture.
3. Brush the turkey with 1/2 the melted butter. Place breast side down on a roasting rack in a shallow roasting pan. Stuff the turkey cavity with 1 onion, 1/2 the carrots, 1/2 the celery, 1 sprig of thyme, and the bay leaf. Scatter the remaining vegetables and thyme around the bottom of the roasting pan, and cover with the white wine.
4. Roast uncovered 3 1/2 to 4 hours in the preheated oven, until the internal temperature of the thigh reaches 180 degrees F (85 degrees C). Carefully turn the turkey breast side up about 2/3 through the roasting time, and brush with the remaining butter. Allow the bird to stand about 30 minutes before carving.

Originally posted at: http://homemadefoodoftheworld.com/thanksgiving-turkey/

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Sugar Cookies

Ingredients

Sugar Cookie Recipe number one
Cookies:

• 3 cups flour
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup soft butter
• 1 egg, slightly beaten
• 3 tbsp cream
• 1 tsp vanilla (can substitute almond extract) Icing
  
  • 1/3 cup Crisco (transfat-free) or a 1/3 cup of softened butter
  • 1 pound of confectioners sugar
  • About 1/4 cup of milk
  • 1 teaspoon of vanilla

Method

1 Sift dry ingredients, cut in butter and add other ingredients. Blend thoroughly; chill for several hours.
2 Break off a piece of dough the size of an orange and pat it flat in your hand. Using a rolling pin, roll on dough on floured board (best to use a 2/1 ration of flour/sugar - 4 Tbsp flour mixed with 2 Tbsp sugar) or between wax paper. (It helps if you flour both sides of the dought.) Roll out to about a 1/4 inch thickness. Cut out and put on silpat-lined or ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 5-8 minutes at 400 F. Remove the cookies from the oven as soon as you see them turning color at the base of the cookie. Let cool completely.
3 Mix icing ingredients together until smooth. Separate into different bowls, add food coloring to achieve various colors. Spread on cookies with a butter knife, use cake decorating piping equipment to add decorative accents. If you want the sprinkle type decorating candies to stick, brush the cookie with clear Karo syrup and then sprinkle.
Makes 5 dozen cookies.

Undecorated cookies

The icing begins

Using sprinkles

The finished product.
Adapted from the recipe for Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies, Huntsville Heritage Cookbook, 1967, The Junior League of Huntsville, AL, Lowry Printing, Inc.

Sugar Cookie Recipe number 2

Cookie:

• 1 1/2 cups sifted confectioners sugar
• 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• 2 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar

Icing:

• 2 cups confectioners sugar, sifted
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/4 cup milk
• Food coloring

1 Beat the butter and sugar together for 1 minute. Add egg, vanilla and almond extract, beat until incorporated. Combine dry ingredients and add to batter, stirring to blend.
2 Divide dough in half, form 2 balls. Wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
3 Using a rolling pin, roll out dough (about 1/2 of one dough ball at a time) on a lightly floured surface to about 1/8" thickness. Dip cookie cutters into flour; cut out shapes. Place cookies on silpat lined or lightly greased cookie sheets. Bake at 375°F for 7-8 minutes.
4 To make icing, combine sugar, almond extract and just enough milk (about 1/4 cup) to make the frosting the consistency of thin glue. Pour icing into shallow bowls wide enough for dipping cookies. Add food coloring.
5 To decorate, dip the topside of each cookie into the icing. Remove quickly and let icing drip of excess back into the icing bowl. Let dry. Pour additional colored frosting into pastry piping, or use a plastic sandwich bag with the tip of one corner nicked off. Gently squeeze frosting on to cookies in whatever patterns you choose.
Makes 2-3 dozen.

Credits go to: Simply Recipes http://www.simplyrecipes.com

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Sesame Brittle

Adding a small amount of baking soda to the hot mixture right before pouring it out will cause the mixture to foam up a bit, as the baking soda reacts with the acid from the caramelization of the sugar. This creates bubbles of carbon dioxide which helps produce a slightly lighter, more porous texture for the brittle, making it easier to eat.

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup honey
• Pinch of salt
• 1/4 teaspoon of ground nutmeg
• 1 Tbsp water
• 1 cup raw sesame seeds
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons butter
• 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda

Method

1 Put the sugar, honey, salt, nutmeg, and water into a small (1 1/2 quart), thick-bottomed saucepan. Heat on medium heat and stir until a smooth slurry is formed. Stir in the raw sesame seeds.
2 Cook the sesame seed mixture, stirring often, until the mixture turns an amber caramel color, about 5 to 10 minutes. If you have a candy thermometer, the temp should be 300°F. At this point, remove the pan from the heat. Stir in the vanilla extract and the butter. Once the butter has completely melted into the mixture, stir in the baking soda. The mixture will foam up a bit after you stir in the baking soda, as the baking soda reacts with the acid from the caramelization of the sugar.

3 Pour the mixture out onto a Silpat-lined baking sheet. (If you don't have Silpat, no worries, pour directly onto a metal baking sheet and use a metal spatula to separate brittle from the pan once cooled.) Once completely cooled and hardened (about 15-20 minutes), break into pieces.

Yield: Makes about 10 ounces of brittle.

Credits go to: Simply Recipes http://www.simplyrecipes.com

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