Blue Sky Cookbook

Welcome to the Blue Sky Cookbook. Here’s what’s cooking today:

Quick Pizza

	Oven 400 F
White or whole wheat flatbread or pita bread	Place the flatbread directly on the middle oven rack for 3-5 minutes or until the bottom is slightly stiff. Bring out of the oven and turn over onto a plate, crispy side up to form your crust.
Pizza sauce	Spoon the sauce generously on the crust.
Any pizza toppings: Fresh basil Black olives Sautéed mushrooms Green or red bell peppers Canned artichokes Capers Sautéed garlic Fresh tomato slices Pepperoni Thin ham Pineapple Mozzarella cheese, grated Colby Jack cheese, grated Parmesan cheese Dried oregano Salt	Add your favorite toppings. Sprinkle with dried oregano and a dash of salt.
Spicy Turkey Topping 1 lb of lean ground turkey 3 Tbsp olive oil ½ tsp garlic powder ½ tsp cayenne pepper ½ tsp sage ¼ tsp oregano ¼ tsp salt A grating of black pepper	This is a healthier alternative to sausage. Pour the oil in the skillet and heat. Add turkey, brown and crumble the turkey with a spatula over medium heat. Add the spices.

Place back in the oven directly on the middle rack. Bake 5-8 minutes or until the cheese is bubbling. Remove with a large spatula and slide on a cutting board. Cut and slide onto the plate. Voila!

The amazing thing about these pizzas is that they are so quick and easy, yet incredibly tasty! Perfect for a large family gathering or party- let each person build their own.

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Salsa!

2 (16 oz) cans diced tomatoes

½ large sweet yellow onion

Drain the tomatoes in a sieve and press out most of the juice. Finely chop the onions and tomatoes.

If you are using a salsa chopper, spin half of the tomatoes and coarsely chopped onion together until the onion is finely chopped. Add the rest of the tomatoes.

2 (4 oz) cans chopped green chilies

2 cloves garlic, chopped (or ½ tsp garlic powder)

3 Tbsp tomato paste

1 tsp salt

½ tsp chili powder

1 tsp Frank’s RedHot Sauce

1 tsp lime juice

¼ tsp dried cilantro

Add and mix.

If desired:

1 -2 jalapeno peppers (canned)

If you like it hotter, add more Frank’s Sauce or 1-2 jalapeno peppers. If you open a new can, wrap the leftover jalapeno peppers individually in plastic and freeze for your next salsa.

Serve the salsa with warm tortilla chips. Place the chips on a cookie sheet and heat for 5 minutes in the oven at 350 F.

Posted in Appetizers, Mexican Style | No Comments »

Granny’s Vanilla Kranze

Cut Out Cookies

	Oven: 375 F
1 ¾ cups Crisco 1 cup sugar	Beat well until fluffy.
2 egg yolks 1 whole egg 2 tsp vanilla 1 shot brandy	Separate the eggs and save the whites for later. Add and beat well.
4 cups flour, sifted	Mix in gently by hand. Wrap in wax paper and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
½ cup walnuts, ground fine ¼ cup sugar	To grind the walnuts, place them in a plastic bag and crush them with a rolling pin. Remove the larger pieces if any remain. Mix with the sugar and pour onto a plate.
2 egg whites Flour Cooking oil spray	Generously sprinkle the countertop with flour and roll out the dough with a rolling pin to about ¼” thickness. If the dough is too soft to roll and cut, roll out the dough between the two sheets of wax paper as follows: Sprinkle a 2’ sheet of wax paper with flour; divide the dough in half and place it on the wax paper, pat it down to 1-2 inches thick. Sprinkle with more flour and cover with another sheet of wax paper. Gently roll on the top sheet with the rolling pin. Cut with a circle or wreath shape. Brush the cut-outs with egg white and turn them over into the plate of walnuts and sugar. Lightly spray or grease the cookie sheets. Place the cut-outs sugar side up on the pans. Bake 8-10 minutes until golden. Cool.
Apricot or raspberry jam	Fill the cookies with jam. Store the cookies in a tin.

Granny and Pop Hehn were bakers in a German bakery in Philadelphia. Granny taught me how to bake these cookies one Christmas in her kitchen.

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Chocolate Chip Cookies

	Oven: 375 F
1 ¼ cups butter ¾ cup sugar ¾ cup brown sugar	Beat well until fluffy.
2 eggs 2 tsp vanilla	Add and beat well.
2 ½ cups flour, sifted 1 tsp salt 1 tsp baking soda 1 pkg Nestle chocolate chips	Mix in gently by hand. Lightly spray or grease the cookie sheets. Drop the batter by teaspoons. Don’t handle the dough too much, it makes the cookies tough. Bake 8-10 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

This is Granny Hehn’s recipe. She made them bite size for a light and delicate version of the chocolate chip cookie. Jenny prefers to make them big, and they come out soft and cakey.

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Sugar Bombs

Sugar Bomb
You will need 4 lbs of Domino’s powdered sugar in total. Buy the 2 lb bags, or if you are measuring by the cup, use 4 cups of powdered sugar per pound.

Yields 10-12 dozen candies

(Seems like too many… until you taste them!)

2 cups butter (4 sticks)

2 pounds Domino’s powdered sugar

Warm the butter to room temperature. (You may microwave on lowest power setting for 10-20 seconds, but take care not to melt.) Mix the butter on high speed until soft. Add half of the powdered sugar and mix on slow speed. Add the second half of powdered sugar and continue to mix for 5-10 minutes until it forms a fluffy ball.

2 tsp vanilla

½ cup heavy cream

1½ pounds powdered sugar

Add the vanilla and mix on medium speed. Alternate small amounts of powdered sugar and cream, continuing to mix until all of the cream is added. The dough should be on the dry side. Keep adding powdered sugar until the dough comes clean from the side of the bowl.

1 – 2 cups of powdered sugar

Sprinkle the countertop with a 1 cup of powdered sugar, turn out the candy and knead in additional sugar with the heel of your hand until no longer sticky. Roll into balls, using additional sugar to keep the candy from sticking to your hands. Place on wax paper covered baking sheets and refrigerate several hours. At this point, you may place in an airtight container and refrigerate until ready to dip in chocolate.

5 packages Nestle semi-sweet chocolate chips

Dip the chocolates in 3 or 4 small batches. For each batch, place 2” of chocolate chips in the top of a top of a double boiler with 3” of water in the lower pan. Melt the chocolate by boiling the water on high heat. If you don’t have a double boiler, place a smaller sauce pan inside a larger one. Place 2 “of water in the bottom pan.

Once the chocolate is melted, turn the temperature to low, and work quickly or the chocolate may crystallize. Place one sugar ball in the chocolate and use a spoon to cover it with chocolate. Use two toothpicks to quickly remove the sugar bomb and place on wax paper.

After each batch, wash the pan and begin melting a fresh batch of chocolate chips.

Cool the tray of candy in the refrigerator until the chocolate sets up. Package in air-tight containers and refrigerate until you are ready to enjoy them.

My first experiment with this candy was shortly after Fred and I were married. I noticed that he would pick through a box of chocolates, looking for the vanilla creams. Little Freddie called my home made version “the bombs”, and we have been making them every Christmas since.

Posted in Candy, Christmas | No Comments »