Jello Cookies

It's been a while since I posted anything here!  I'm still looking for more of Nanny's recipes, but in the meantime, I'll post this one.

Some of my most vivid memories of my childhood involve baking cookies.  So I always think of Nanny when I see a new cookie recipe that I like.  We never made these, but we made plenty of others and somehow I think that Nanny would find this recipe as much fun as I do!  I can't wait to try these!

Jello cookies

• Yield: 2 dozen
• Prep: 20 mins
• Cook: 10 mins
• Ready In: 30 mins

Ingredients

• 3.5 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1.5 cups salted butter softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 4 (3 oz) pkg jello You can use any flavors you want

Instructions

1. Beat butter in large bowl with mixer until creamy. Add sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Blend in egg and vanilla. Mix flour and baking powder in a separate bowl. Gradually beat in flour mixture.
2. Divide dough into 4 sections. Sprinkle 2 Tb of jello onto each section. Knead together with dough. You may want to add a few drops of food coloring to make the dough more vibrant.
3. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Roll in the extra jello from the packets. Place, 2 inches apart, on baking sheets. Flatten with bottom of bowl.
4. Bake 8 to 10 min at 350 on lined baking sheets. Cool on baking sheets 2 min. Remove to wire racks and cool completely.

GRILLED PINEAPPLE CHICKEN KABOB PACKETS

This is a recipe that I got from Pillsbury.  Nanny loved to get recipes in her email and she had me sign up for some as well, so I get a recipe every day from Pillsbury.  This one looked really good and really easy, so I think I'm going to try it.

 

GRILLED PINEAPPLE CHICKEN KABOB PACKETS

 

1/3 cup pineapple preserves

2 tablespoons packed brown sugar

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 2-inch cubes (1 lb)

1 medium red bell pepper, cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes

1 medium green bell pepper, cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes

1 cup pineapple chunks

1/4 teaspoon salt

• 1.  Heat gas or charcoal grill. In small bowl, stir together pineapple preserves, brown sugar, soy sauce and crushed red pepper.
• 2.   Cut 4 (24x12-inch) sheets of heavy-duty foil. Divide chicken, bell peppers, pineapple chunks and pineapple preserves mixture among foil sheets. Sprinkle with salt. Bring up 2 sides of foil so edges meet. Seal edges, making tight 1/2-inch fold; fold again, allowing space for heat circulation and expansion. Fold other sides to seal.
• 3.   Place packets on grill over medium heat. Cover grill; cook 6 minutes. Using tongs, carefully turn packets over, taking care not to puncture foil. Cook 10 to 12 minutes longer or until chicken is no longer pink in center and vegetables are crisp-tender.

Pinchos Morunas

For a while, I was doing a special themed dinner every Saturday night and we invited Nanny and Grandaddy and James' parents and I would cook a dinner from a particular country or culture.

Nanny really enjoyed these dinners.  Of course, I got my love of cooking fun food from her, so that makes sense.  I thought I would share some of the recipes she really enjoyed at those dinners.

This recipe is from our Spanish dinner night.  This is a really good recipe that I found on the internet somewhere.  It tastes closer to the pinchos I had in Spain than any other recipe I've tried before.  I like to serve these in the summer with some Gazpacho made of as many fresh vegetables as possible.

1 lb. boneless pork loin chops, cut into cubes
2 TBSP olive oil
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper
2 TBSP lemon juice
1/4 tsp. black pepper
8 cloves garlic, minced (I can't stomach garlic after being pregnant, so I leave this out and it still tastes good.)
1/2 tsp. oregano
2 TBSP. parsley
1 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp paprika

Mix all the ingredients together except the pork.  Add the pork cubes and stir well to coat them.  Refrigerate and allow to marinate at least a few hours, but overnight is better.

Thread the meat onto wooden skewers.  Grill until cooked through.  Enjoy!

Mary's Famous Tex-Mex Enchiladas

Nanny actually got this recipe from her good friend Mary, who is from Texas!  I don't have any measurements for this, because she just taught me to make it in the kitchen!  But I'll list all the ingredients and how you put it together and then you can figure out how much you need, ok?

You need:
Ground beef
Onions
Chili powder or red pepper
Shredded cheddar cheese
Corn tortillas
oil or cooking spray
Old El Paso enchilada sauce ( I like medium)
Texas Pete chili sauce

Ok, so first chop up some onion and saute it, then add ground beef and brown everything.  Season to taste with chili powder or red pepper, depending on how spicy you want it.  Drain the ground beef and set it to the side.

Mix together the chili sauce and the enchilada sauce.  Cover the bottom of your baking dish with this mixture, but save some to pour on top of the enchiladas.

To assemble the enchiladas, get the shredded cheese and the ground beef ready to the side.  You will soften the tortillas by placing them in a small skillet on top of the stove.  You can either use oil or cooking spray.  Obviously, oil works better but cooking spray has fewer calories.  ::shrugs::  Put the tortilla in the skillet just long enough to soften it.  Don't fry it!!  Put it in, flip it over and remove it once it's soft.  I use a big bunch of paper towels in my hand to hold it so that it doesn't burn my palm off.  Put in ground beef, then cheese and close the tortilla on top.  Place it into the sauce in the baking dish and close it with a toothpick.  Continue until you have made all the enchiladas you want. 

Once you have finished making the enchiladas, spoon the sauce mixture over the top and sprinkle with cheese.  I like a lot of sauce so that they don't dry out in the oven.

Bake at 350 degrees until the sauce is bubbling.  I think it's at least 30 minutes, but I'm not sure, so check it frequently the first time you cook them.

Nanny used to make them the night before and put them in the fridge to "let the flavors mix", but then it takes longer to bake.  I make them and then put them in the oven right away, mostly because I'm not really a good planner.

If anyone gets good quantities on this recipe, let me know!

Halloween Cut-out cookies

It just wasn't Halloween at the Hunt house without these awesome orange-flavored sugar cookies!  Nanny would always color them orange and she had pumpkin, ghost and acorn cookie cutouts.  There is also a chocolate recipe.  This is the best recipe for cutting out sugar cookies.  I also use it at Christmas now.  You can substitute vanilla for the orange flavoring, but I like the orange flavor.

Another thing that Nanny did was layer them so that there was a layer of chocolate and a layer of orange.  A double cookie!  Yum!

4 sticks of butter, softened
4 cups sugar
4 eggs, room temperature
4 tsp. orange extract
4 tsp orange coloring (if desired)
8 1/2 cups plain flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt

Cream butter, then add sugar and cream mixture together. Next add eggs, extract and coloring.  Add baking powder and salt and mix well.  Add flour about 1/2 cup at a time until the dough is the correct consistency.  You may need more or less flour than called for.

Divide the dough into 8ths, wrap and refrigerate.

To roll dough, let the dough soften slightly.  Roll out to about 1/4 inch thickness.  Cut the cookies.  Bake at 350 degrees for 8-12 minutes or until the edges are just browned.  If they are double layer cookies, bake around 20 minutes.

Chocolate dough recipe

4 sticks butter, softened
1 cup cocoa
4 cups sugar
8 cups flour
4 eggs
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
4 tsp orange or vanilla extract

Follow instructions for regular cookie dough.

Mini Shepherd's Pies

I made these a lot for Mom when she was sick.  She could eat them because they were soft and the radiation made her mouth hurt.  Also, they were just the right size to make her eat something.  They are from ""What to Eat During Cancer Treatment"" put out by the American Cancer Society.  I still make this recipe, but I bake it in a larger dish.  I think about Mom every time I make it.  (from Terri)

1 lb. potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
2 Tbs. butter
2 to 4 Tbs. low fat milk
Salt
1 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 lb. lean ground beef (I use ground turkey)
1 small (or 1/2 large) onion, finely chopped
1/3 c. ketchup
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 c. frozen peas and carrots mixture

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Fill a larce saucepan with enough water to cover the potatoes by an inch or more and bring to a boil.  Reduce to a simmer and cook until potatoes are tender.  Drain and return to the pan.  Add the butter and 2 tablespoons or the milk and mash until soft and creamy, adding more milk if necessary.  Season with salt.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the oil.  Saute the ground beef and onion for 6 to 8 minutes or until meat is cooked through, stirring frequently to break up the meat.  Drain if needed.  Add the ketchup and Worcestershire sauce and stir well to combine.  Add the peas and carrots and stir well to combine.

Divide meat mixture evenly between four (1 cup) ramekins or oven-safe teacups.  Top with about 1/2 cup mashed potatoe, spreading to cover the meat.  Place the ramekins on a baking sheet.

Bake for 10 minutes, or until the tops are golden.  Let cool for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

You can also bake it in a larger dish for family-style eating.  An 8 by 8 inch pan or a round casserole dish works.  Bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes, until the potatoes are golden.

Coated Pecans

These are a Christmas staple at Terri's house.  Her friend from Texas gave her the recipe, but Nanny loved them and they quickly became a Christmas tradition.  Be careful when you make them, though.  They are addictive!

Mix together:
1 egg white (slightly beaten)
1 Tbs. water.

Then, mix:
1c. sugar
3/4 tsp. cinnamon
3/4 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. salt

Mix egg mixture and spice mixture together and gently fold in 4 cups of pecans. 

Bake in a shallow pan at 295 degrees for 1 hour, stirring every 15 mins.