Easy 5-Ingredient Brownies

These yummy brownies taste and smell super chocolatey. They are very moist, and this recipe and 5 ingredients is all you need. For a tangy taste, substitute 1/2 cup buttermilk for 2 of the eggs or 1/4 cup buttermilk for 1 egg.

2 cups sugar

1 cup flour 

2/3 cup Hershey's cocoa powder 

1 cup butter, melted & cooled a bit

4 eggs

Dash Kosher salt (optional)

Heat oven to 350. Lightly grease a 13 x 9" baking pan with cooking spray or butter. 

Grab a wooden spoon and stir together the sugar, flour, and cocoa powder in a large mixing bowl until well combined. Add a dash of Kosher salt if you like. Add the cooled butter and mix thoroughly. Add eggs, again mixing thoroughly. 

Spread the brownies evenly in the prepared pan. The batter will be thick. Bake for 40-45 minutes. Let the brownies cool completely before you cut them so they can set. You can freeze these babies, too.

-revised 4/22

Crunchy Avocado Chicken Salad

Do you ever get on a food kick where you crave the same thing for a few weeks? In college it was often tuna cheesies. You know, English muffin halves topped with tuna salad and melted cheese. Lately...my food kick is this salad. I saw recipes for avocado chicken salad and another for avocado & grilled corn salad. I looked at all of the recipes, chose a few ingredients from each one, and added a few of my own. The result was this crunchy avocado chicken salad.

2 cups cooked chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces

1/2 cup red onion, diced small (1/4") 

1/2 cup celery, diced medium (1/2")

1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled

1/4 cup cilantro, chopped fine

Juice of 2 limes

4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2 tbsp rice wine vinegar

Kosher salt

Garlic powder

Onion powder

2 avocados (not too ripe-not too firm), cut into 1" cubes

Stir all ingredients together in a medium bowl, except the avocados. Gently stir in the avocados and cover. Put the salad in the fridge for at least 1 hour so the flavors can blend. 

Cheese-y Mac 'n Cheese

This was my first attempt at homemade mac 'n cheese and I'm happy to report it was absolutely delicious, if I don't say so myself. As you can see from the ingredients this is some very cheesy mac 'n cheese. I never ate the orange stuff in a box when I was a poor college student and only recently discovered how delicious mac 'n cheese can actually be. Whoa. This recipe makes a huge batch-about 10-12 servings.

I used sharp cheddar and parmesan cheese in this recipe, and added some applewood smoked ham. A variety cheeses, meats, and other ingredients, such as jalepenos, can also be used for a great mac 'n cheese aside from the ingredients in this recipe. Side note: don't use pre-grated cheese in this dish. Freshly grated is the only way to go here.

Ingredients:

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp flour

3 cups water

3 cups 2% milk

1 cup heavy whipping cream

5 cups sea shell pasta, uncooked

1 1/2 tsp Kosher salt

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp ground dry mustard

4 1/2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, grated

1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated

1 1/2 cups applewood smoked ham, cut into bite-sized pieces

Salt & pepper to taste

Melt butter over medium heat in a 4 quart saucepan or large pot. Stir in the flour until combined and cook for about a minute. Add the first cup of water and stir until completely smooth and it starts to thicken. Slowly add the remaining water, milk, and cream. Stir in until everything is thoroughly combined. Add pasta, salt, garlic powder, and mustard. Stir until mixture reaches a low simmer, then turn heat to medium-low and cook for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the cheeses and ham. 

Serve right away. Season with salt and pepper to taste. This dish is creamy, hearty, and filling. It goes well fresh fruit on the side. Enjoy!

One Pan Lemon Chicken with Veggies

One pan chicken and veggie bake!

All of the ingredients in this recipe are baked in one pan, making life much easier. You can change up these veggies to suit your own preferences. Wash all of your veggies before slicing. Try to cut the veggies into roughly the same size, so they're done at the same time. 

Ingredients:

2 carrots, sliced in 1/2" rounds

2 red potatoes, cut into 1" cubes

10 Brussels sprouts, ends cut off & sliced in half

2 large, boneless, skinless, chicken breasts

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon Kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 

1 lemon, thinly sliced

Heat oven to 400°. Line a 13"x 9" glass baking dish (bottom & sides) with aluminum foil and spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray. Place the carrots, potatoes, and sprouts around the edge of the baking dish. Add the chicken breasts to the middle of the baking dish. Drizzle olive oil over the entire dish, and then sprinkle with salt, pepper, & garlic powder. Cover chicken breasts with lemon slices.

Bake in oven at 400° for 35-40 minutes.

Pickled Radishes

This recipe has 6 simple ingredients and makes about 2 cups, also known as a pint, for those who might be new to cooking measurements. It's amazing how easily and quickly vegetables can be pickled with a little vinegar. 

Try it out with all of your favorite veggies!

1 bunch radishes, thinly sliced

3 cloves garlic, smashed

1/2 cup rice vinegar 

1/2 cup water

2 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons Kosher salt

Add all ingredients to a small jar with a lid, cover, and shake gently until sugar and salt are dissolved. Put radishes in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. Store leftovers in fridge.

These pickled radishes go great on sandwiches, tacos, or burgers, and you can eat them all by themselves--they have an awesome taste and crunch factor.

Fresh Cherry Galettes

The origin of the galette is French and pronounced "ga-LET". A galette is a flat, round, cake or pastry usually topped with fruit, similar to a fruit tart. I'm using fresh cherries today but other berries will work. The fruit mixture inside isn't overly sweet and the chunky cherries hold up well. I don't make pie crusts from scratch yet so I used pre-made, and there are whole wheat pie crusts out too. Makes 2 galettes.

2-9" pie crusts, pre-made or scratch & thawed if frozen

2 cups bing cherries, pitted and rough chopped 
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp almond extract

1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp Kosher salt

2 tbsp butter, cut into small pieces

2 tbsp sugar

Preheat oven to 375. Roll out the pie crust dough on a piece of parchment paper and transfer to a baking or cookie sheet with sides. In a bowl, gently mix the cherries with the sugar, extracts, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt.

          

Spoon the cherry mixture over the dough, leaving a 3" border. Drop the pieces of butter over each galette. Fold in sides of dough, pressing gently, leaving a 2" opening in the middle of the galette. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of sugar over each galette. 

Bake 35-40 minutes, until golden brown. Galettes are delicious hot or cold, and you can put some in your freezer for later. Enjoy your food!

Burnt Pan Fix

       

I recently discovered an easy, effective, and sort of fun way to clean my burnt Revere Ware stainless steel pan. (The casualty was a batch of rice.) I did some research to come up with the best way to clean it, and learned this method will also clean my Le Creuset cookware. 

                                

You'll need:  a wooden spoon, bottle of hydrogen peroxide, & 1/4 cup of baking soda.

Pour 1/2" of hydrogen peroxide into the burnt pan and add the baking soda. Heat the pan to high heat. You'll start to see burnt bits floating to the top. Stir the mixture occasionally with a wooden spoon. Boil for about 5 mintues or until the mixture looks foamy. Gently scrape the bottom of the pan to get any extra tough spots.

Turn off the stove, remove pan from heat, and let sit for 15-30 minutes, depending on how burnt the pan is. Scrape the bottom of pan again with the wooden spoon. Rinse the pan and run through dishwasher or clean well before using again.

Voila! Below are my Revere Ware & Le Creuset cookware "after" photos:

           

Creamy Cucumber Radish Salad

Creamy, crunchy, and fresh. This is an easy salad to make and you only need five ingredients.

2 medium-ish cucumbers, thinly sliced
2 bunches of radishes, thinly sliced
1/2 cup green onion, chopped
3/4-1 cup light sour cream (or yogurt)
Kosher salt

In a large bowl, mix the cucumber, radish, and green onion. Before serving, add the sour cream, and salt to taste. Stir in the sour cream and your salad is ready to serve.  

Stick those leftovers in the fridge.