Cindy's Rocky Road Fudge

                              Rocky Road Fudge
                                                          by Cindy Moss


2 bags chocolate chips ( i use 1 semi-sweet and 1 milk chocolate)

3/4 cup peanut butter

3/4 bag miniature marshmallows


Melt chocolate chips in large bowl in microwave, 30 seconds at a time until completely melted. Add peanut butter to chocolate and stir together.  Add mini marshmallows, coating with chocolate-peanut butter mixture. Pour into a buttered 9x13 pan.  Set in freezer if you want it to set quickly or you may set in fridge. 

*Tip:  for easier cutting of the fudge, line the pan with foil. When the fudge is set you can just take it out of the pan with the foil edges, lay it out and cut into bite-size squares.

Easy, easy, easy!  Enjoy!

Chicken Bundles
6 oz. softened, spreadable cream cheese
2 c. chicken, cooked and cubed
salt and pepper to taste
3 T milk
2 T sliced green onions
2 T chopped pimento
1 (8 oz.) can crescent roll dough (Pillsbury)
2 T melted butter
1/2 c. crushed croutons

Blend cream cheese chicken, salt, pepper, milk, green onions and pimento. Mix well. Separate crescent dough into 8 triangles. Divide and place chicken mixture on the each wide edge of each triangle. Pull corners of dough to meet the center and roll up into a big fat puffy crescent pinch edges to seal. Brush top with melted butter and dip in bread crumbs. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.

Barb's Raspberry Whip  (recipe requested after served at Bookclub)

Filling:
1 1/2 - 2 quarts frozen raspberries
2 C sugar
5 egg whites
1 T fresh lemon juice
1 pint whipped cream, set aside

Crust:
Whole graham crackers crushed
3 T sugar
melted butter
cinnamon and fresh nutmeg to taste
(set some aside to sprinkle on top if desired)

Put ingredients except for cream in large bowl and beat on high speed until it forms stiff light peaks.  Barb says to taste at this point to see if sugar's okay. Fold in whipped cream and pour over graham cracker crust in a 9 X 11 or larger dish.  Freeze. (Barb says she tries to use really fresh eggs since they're raw....)

Butternut Squash Risotto

Once and for all: risotto IS rice. It is not a pasta. And if anyone ever says that they've never made risotto, I say that they probably have. "Risotto" is the rice in Rice-a-Roni. (The roni part is vermicelli.) So if you've ever made Rice-a-Roni, you've made risotto.

Ingredients

• 2 cups butternut squash puree
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons butter
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4-6 cups chicken broth
• 1/2 cup minced onions, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 cups Aborino rice
• 1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Directions

Melt the butter, add olive oil and saute the onions and garlic on medium-low heat for 10 minutes, until the shallots are translucent but not browned. Add the rice and stir to coat the grains with butter, sautee until mostly brown and toasty. Add 1 cup of chicken broth and cook for a few minutes, until absorbed. Add 2 more cups of broth to the rice plus the salt, & pepper. Stir, and simmer until the stock is absorbed, 5 to 10 minutes. Continue to add the stock, a litttle at a time, stirring every few minutes. Each time, cook until the mixture seems a little dry, then add more stock. Continue until the rice is cooked through, but still al dente, about 30 minutes total. Off the heat, add the roasted squash cubes and Parmesan cheese. Mix well, garnish with chopped green onions (and a sprig of sage), and serve.

Tracy Kelly's Hot Fudge

1/2 C cocoa
1/3 C light Karo syrup
3/4 C sugar
2/3 C evaporated milk (half a can)
1/3 C butter
1 t. vanilla

Combine cocoa, syrup, sugar and milk in a saucepan. Bring to a boil whisking constantly.  Boil 1 + minute.  Remove from heat.  Add butter and vanilla.  (Seems to work out okay to cut back on the butter a little.  I've been adding a pinch of salt.)

Glazed Pecans

1 egg white
1 T water
1 lb. pecans
3/4 C sugar
1 1/2 t. table (not kosher) salt

For cinnamon pecans: 1 t. cinnamon

Experimented with otherly-spiced pecans for Feb. Added 3/4 t. chili powder, 1/4 t. cayenne, 1/4 t. smoked paprika and about 1/8 t. each of cinnamon, cloves, ginger, coriander, cumin, pepper and garlic powder.  IMO still too sweet to go on a salad, but that's a starting point....

Whip egg white until very firm.  Pour in nuts.  Sprinkle with water.  Fold all together so that pecans are coated.  Pour sugar/salt/spice mixture over.  Fold just until sugar is distributed.  Spread in single layer on a rimmed baking sheet.  Bake 300 for about 30 minutes.  Stir and rearrange every ten minutes or so.  Sometimes hard to tell when they're getting too dark.  Take them out what looks like a little "early."  Cool, break apart.  Let cool completely before storing.

Swedish Cream  (Mount Hood - Timberline Lodge)

2 C heavy cream
3/4 C sugar
1 T vanilla
3/4 - 1 T unflavored gelatin
3 C sour cream

Heat first 4 ingredients until hot but not boiling.  Stir in sour cream. Refrigerate 3 hours. Top with raspberry puree:

Thaw unsweetened frozen raspberries in large fine-meshed strainer suspended over a large bowl. (This may take a few hours.) Once the berries have completely thawed, force the juice from the berries by gently pressing with the back of a large spoon.  All that should remain is the raspberry seeds.  Throw away the seeds and, to the strained juice, stir lemon juice (if using) and 1/2 C sugar - add more if needed.

Chocolate Cherry Cake

Chocolate Cherry Cake:

1 pkg. Chocolate fudge cake mix

1 21 oz can cherry pie filling

2 eggs, beaten

1 tsp vanilla or almond (I used almond)

Combine all ingredients.  Stir carefully to not break up cherries too much, until mixed.

 Bake in greased/floured 13x9pan. Bake350 degrees for 30-35 minutes.

Pour-able Chocolate Frosting

1 cup sugar

1/3cup milk

5Tbs. Butter

6 oz. semi sweet chocolate chips (I use about 1/3 cup milk chocolate and the rest semi-sweet)

Cook sugar,butter, milk

Boil 1 minute. Stir constantly.

Remove from heat. Stir in chocolate chips until melted.

Pour over cake.

Shrimp Orzo Pasta Salad

1 lb. orzo pasta, cooked al dente
2 large cucumbers, seeded, quartered lengthwise, and sliced
3 green onions, thinly sliced
1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
3/4 lb. feta cheese, crumbled
1 lb. medium shrimp, grilled or sauteed in garlic

Dressing
1/4 cup fresh dill
1/3 cup white wine vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
Combine all ingredients in the blender and blend until smooth.


Combine cooked orzo pasta, cucumbers, onions, tomatoes, feta, and shrimp. Pour dressing over the top and stir.

Steak Salad

Steak Salad

Cooked New York strip, flank or skirt steak, warm or room temperature, sliced thinly

Goat cheese or blue cheese

Cherry tomatoes

Salad greens - romaine, etc.

Balsamic Onions

1 tablespoon peanut oil
4 onions, peeled and thinly sliced (about 8 cups)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup sugar
2/3 cup balsamic vinegar

1. Heat the oil in large skillet over medium heat until it slides easily across the pan.  Add the onions, salt, and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are soft, about 20 minutes.

2. Add the sugar and reduce the heat to medium low.  Cook, stirring frequently, until the onions appear dry, about ten minutes.  Add the vinegar.  Reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are soft and dry, about 1 hour.  Serve warm or at room temperature.  Store in the refrigerator.  It will keep for several weeks.

Dressing for Greens

1/2 C red wine vinegar
3 T lemon juice
2 t. honey
1 t. salt
1 C (or less) olive oil