Great Cooks

Truly Great Cooks Are Those Who Share Their Secrets

The author learned to cook from reading and listening to and closely watching and learning from family, friends, books, magazines, newspapers, websites, TV, and the Internet; and then practicing what she learned, adapting ingredients and perfecting techniques to prepare nutritious and delicious food for herself and others.
A very special recognition goes to my in-laws, whose love of delicious food is surpassed only by incredible generosity in spending countless hours in preparing a terrific abundance of great food, with and for others, in great love. There is no greater enthusiasm nor larger hearts in this world.
We all enjoy food today because of the tireless efforts of countless cooks, who have perfected deliciousness, and then generously shared what they have learned. A great big thank you to all who continue to make the necessaries of eating to stay alive a joy. Being able to share this human experience with others is part of that which truly helps to make life worth living!

Keep Foods Fresh

Saving Foods for Later

Preserving the Goodness in Leftovers

·       Bread   Before covering for extended freshness, allow the bread to cool completely. If wrapping in an air-tight container, include a paper or cloth towel inside the container, to absorb any moisture. If storing in a plastic bag, cut a little hole in the plastic, here and there, to allow moisture to continue to escape. Don't leave bread in a place where it will come into contact with heat or direct sunlight.

·       Chocolate   Most breads, cookies, and muffins can be eaten soon out of the oven, but those with chocolate chips should be allowed to cool longer before eating, enough so that you don't burn your mouth on the molten chocolate, which can remain quite hot even after the cookie itself has cooled to the touch somewhat.

·       Icing  Though an iced treat is served with the icing intact, the icing itself is to be eaten, or not, as to one's individual tastes. For each forkful of treat, use your fork or knife to apply as much or as little of the icing as you prefer to each forkful, and feel free to leave the rest of the icing on the plate. Consider "icing" as a condiment similar to the ketchup in which one dips one's French fries. After eating the French fries, there is no need to eat the rest of the leftover ketchup. So it is, with icing. You may either leave some or all of the icing on the plate for Miss Manners, but she also will not be offended if you do choose to eat it all.

·       Pies  If not eaten right away, allow a pie to cool completely after baking, before refrigerating. Cover with plastic wrap to keep flavors and odors from other foods in the refrigerator from affecting your saved treats. To keep the plastic from sticking to the top of the pie, try sticking a few toothpicks here and there in the pie first, to hold the plastic up away from the surface.

Recipe Directions

How to Read and Follow the Steps in a Recipe

The art of cooking involves more than just following a recipe. It is important to get a feel for how the ingredients should look, feel, taste, and smell as they come together, using various tools and techniques. This guide is meant to be a set of helpful hints, for those who are just learning to cook. The following instructions I found to be useful when I learned them from my mother and other relatives and friends, from chefs on TV or YouTube, from books and magazines, or just through experience in the kitchen. For consistent results, be consistent in your treatment of your ingredients and in the timing of your actions. Leave the rest of your life outside the kitchen door; keep a relaxed and happy attitude toward every task each time you create something delicious. Your cake won't forgive you if you beat the eggs extra hard when you are mad!

• Add   To "add" ingredients, add the ingredients to the bowl in the order suggested. If no directions are given for mixing speed or how to mix the ingredients together, they may be gently mixed together with a spoon by hand.

• Butter   To "butter" the baking pan before adding the muffin or cake batter, completely coat the entire interior surface of the muffin tin or cake pan with a thin layer of butter. This prevents the batter from sticking to the pan when cooking, even as the cake rises to the top edge of the pan. To aid in spreading the butter evenly, I like to wrap around my fingers a clean bit of plastic wrap or use a piece of food-quality paper, such as that in which sticks of butter are packaged, and use it as sort of a brush, to "paint" the pan with butter.

• Butter and flour   When the recipe instructs to "butter and flour" the pan, the idea is to make very sure that the bottom of the treat does not stick to the pan after baking, so that when you use a spatula or turn the pan upside down to remove the treat, the treat comes out in one piece. First, butter the pan, as described above. Next, add a tablespoon of flour to the pan, adding more flour as needed, and shake the pan side to side, tapping the edges, so that the butter becomes completely covered with a thin layer of flour. After the pan is buttered and floured, turn the pan upside-down and tap the pan to shake out the excess flour. If the treat is chocolate, cocoa powder can be used instead of flour.

• Coating  Mix together the "coating" ingredients and set aside.

• Cool   A recipe will call for allowing treats to "cool" before being removed from the pan, to give them a chance to set, so they can be safely removed without falling apart. However, if left to cool too long, they may stick to the pan, in some cases becoming stuck fast as the caramelized sugar hardens, so the treat breaks when you take it out. It is important to learn how to recognize how a treat's consistency feels to the touch, to know when it is just the right time to take it out of the pan.

• Cupcakes  The batter for "cupcakes" is usually spooned into cupcake liners in a cupcake pan, because most cupcakes might stick to a pan, even if it is first buttered and floured. If cupcake liners are not available, just butter and flour the pan, but loosen the cupcakes and remove from the pan very shortly after baking.

• Mix   To "mix" ingredients, put them all in a large bowl at once and gently stir them together gently, just enough to combine thoroughly, but not vigorously enough to add air bubbles to the mixture, as happens in beating eggs or whipping cream. When combining "dry ingredients" and "wet ingredients," I find it easier to first combine the dry ingredients, then combine the wet ingredients, and finally add the dry ingredients to the bowl containing the wet ingredients.

• Muffins  "Muffins" can be made in a muffin tin or a mini-muffin tin, which requires less baking time. Grease the tin with butter, do not use cupcake liners. The dry ingredients are added to the wet ingredients and stirred until just combined.

• Remove  After baking, allow the treat to cool shortly, to set. Loosen from the pan. Then "remove" cakes, cupcakes, loaves, and breads from the pan by turning the pan upside down, shaking gently, if necessary. If a cake is not holding together, it may come out in separate pieces. Pieces that are still stuck to the bottom of the can pan may be loosened with a butter knife or spatula and picked up. The cake may then be pieced back together on the cake plate, "glued" back together with icing, if necessary. Cookies may be removed shortly after baking. Give cookies a minute or so to set first, so they hold together, and then gently pry them off the pan with a spatula. Place cookies on flattened brown paper bags, brown paper, parchment paper, absorbent paper plates, paper towels, or cotton dish towels, to absorb fats and moisture as they cool. If sticky, move them around occasionally until fully cooled, to prevent sticking to the paper.

• Spices  All the "spices" should be mixed together before being added.

• Toothpick test   The "toothpick test" for doneness involves taking a single toothpick and sticking it all the way down into the thickest part of the center of the treat, and then pulling it out again immediately. If the treat is not done, some of the batter or pie filling may cling to the toothpick.

• Topping   Mix together the "topping" ingredients and set aside. Spread evenly over top of treat just before baking.

• Wet Ingredients  The "wet ingredients" should be combined in order, before adding the dry ingredients. Cream the butter until fluffy. Add sugar, and cream again until light and fluffy. Add the rest of the wet ingredients and mix until well combined.

• Mix   To "mix" ingredients, put them all in a large bowl at once and gently stir them together gently, just enough to combine thoroughly, but not vigorously enough to add air bubbles to the mixture, as happens in beating eggs or whipping cream. When combining "dry ingredients" and "wet ingredients," I find it easier to first combine the dry ingredients, then combine the wet ingredients, and finally add the dry ingredients to the bowl containing the wet ingredients.

• Muffins  "Muffins" can be made in a muffin tin or a mini-muffin tin, which requires less baking time. Grease the tin with butter, do not use cupcake liners. The dry ingredients are added to the wet ingredients and stirred until just combined.

• Remove  After baking, allow the treat to cool shortly, to set. Loosen from the pan. Then "remove" cakes, cupcakes, loaves, and breads from the pan by turning the pan upside down, shaking gently, if necessary. If a cake is not holding together, it may come out in separate pieces. Pieces that are still stuck to the bottom of the can pan may be loosened with a butter knife or spatula and picked up. The cake may then be pieced back together on the cake plate, "glued" back together with icing, if necessary. Cookies may be removed shortly after baking. Give cookies a minute or so to set first, so they hold together, and then gently pry them off the pan with a spatula. Place cookies on flattened brown paper bags, brown paper, parchment paper, absorbent paper plates, paper towels, or cotton dish towels, to absorb fats and moisture as they cool. If sticky, move them around occasionally until fully cooled, to prevent sticking to the paper.

• Spices  All the "spices" should be mixed together before being added.

• Toothpick test   The "toothpick test" for doneness involves taking a single toothpick and sticking it all the way down into the thickest part of the center of the treat, and then pulling it out again immediately. If the treat is not done, some of the batter or pie filling may cling to the toothpick.

• Topping   Mix together the "topping" ingredients and set aside. Spread evenly over top of treat just before baking.

• Wet Ingredients  The "wet ingredients" should be combined in order, before adding the dry ingredients. Cream the butter until fluffy. Add sugar, and cream again until light and fluffy. Add the rest of the wet ingredients and mix until well combined.

Eating Sensations

                                           Cheese and Fruit


Preparing Great Foods For the Pure Pleasure of Eating

Love Your Food!

Too often, the success of a meal is judged by the fleeting entertainment value of a flavorgasm.

If any one element of a dining experience is not the epitome of deliciousness, the search continues, to find The Ultimate Recipe, the one which, when added to the menu, will make diners swoon.

When planning meals, think, rather, in wholistic terms. The epitome of perfection in food is to nourish the body and promote health and happiness.

The greatest foods are designed to leave one fulfilled without creating a yearning for more and yet more.

Great menus offer foods that, in combination, create complementary eating sensations. They naturally lead one to eat in quantities that are satisfying. They do not demand an overindulgence.

Food must be more than palatable: it must be pleasing and delightful. Food must put a song in your heart, leave one refreshed and content.

Ingredients

                Peppers from the Garden

How to Select the Best Ingredients for Each Recipe

Use the Freshest Ingredients!

Unless noted otherwise in the recipe, ingredients named in the recipes on this website are described in more detail here in this section, and sometimes by brand name - selected for nutritional value, consistency in flavor and texture, and/or economic value. An experienced cook may know whether a different ingredient or brand may be used if what's called for in the recipe is unavailable, so this guide is really for those who are just learning to cook and unfamiliar with these ingredients or those who are on a budget but still want tasty results from their time spent in the kitchen.

• American Cheese  "Kraft". Yellow singles.
• Asparagus  Fresh. Hold a spear, one end in each hand, and fold the spear in half. This will snap off the tough end at its natural breaking point. Keep the end with the flowerets and discard the thicker hard stem.
• Avocado  Fresh. Allow it to ripen. Peel and pit, then slice or gently mash with fork.
• Baked beans  Canned. Flavored with brown sugar and bacon, or any other flavor, for variety. Do not drain.
• Baking mix  "Bisquick".
• Baking powder  "Davis".
• Baking soda  "Arm&Hammer".
• Banana  "Chiquita". Select large bananas or the equivalent measure in smaller or larger bananas. Choose bananas which are overripe, to the point where you probably don't want to eat them anymore, but not yet mushy. Freshly bruised areas are ok, but avoid older bruised areas where the flavor may have turned. Peel, then gently mash with a fork on a plate. Maintain one-third of the banana as 1/4-inch chunks, and fully press the rest into slabs of mashed banana with the tines of the fork, separating each flattened bit from the next, so they stir easily into the recipe without vigorous mixing.
• Barley  Any brand is fine. Dried.
• Beans  Any brand is fine. Dried, any combination of any varieties of bean. Rinse, carefully pick over and remove any extraneous material. If using canned, drain the beans: pour off and discard the liquid, pour out the beans for use in the recipe, discard the sediment at the bottom of the can.
• Bell pepper  Fresh; any combination of green, red, orange, and yellow bell peppers. Slice open lengthwise, cut out stem and discard, discard seeds, cut out tough white membranes and discard. For frozen: Any brand is fine, plain, no added ingredients, cut in any style.
• Black beans  "Goya". Canned. Drain.
• Blueberries  Any brand is fine. Frozen. Thaw, rinse, drain. Use fresh blueberries, if available and reasonably priced.
• Broccoli  Fresh, crowns. Cut into 1-inch bits. For recipes that are stewed or cooked a long time, the broccoli stems may be used, pared to remove the 1/16-inch tough outer shell, and sliced into 1/8-inch slices.
• Brown sugar  "Domino". Dark brown sugar.
• Butter  "Land O'Lakes". Salted. Room temperature.
• Cabbage  Fresh. Cut out tough core at base end and discard.
• Cantaloupe  Fresh. Allow to ripen, pare, remove seeds and seed membranes, cut into 1-in chunks. For fancy presentation: cut into 1/2-inch arcs.
• Carrot  Fresh. Pare.
• Cashews  "Planter's". Shelled, salted.
• Cheddar Cheese  In my local store, I buy "NY Cheddar". Sharp.
• Chick peas  "Goya". Canned. Drain.
• Chilis  Any brand is fine. Green, canned, diced. Drain, if lots of liquid; otherwise, use with liquid.
• Chocolate chips  "Nestle's". Semi-sweet morsels.
• Chocolate packets  "Nestle's". Pre-melted chocolate in a packet. If not available, use 1 oz "Bakers" semi-sweet chocolate, melted and cooled.
• Chocolate pudding  "Royal". Chocolate pudding packets, prepared according to package directions.
• Chocolate syrup  "Hershey's". Dark chocolate syrup.
• Cocoa powder  "Hershey's".
• Confectioner's sugar  "Domino".
• Corn starch  "Argo".
• Cranberry sauce  "Ocean Spray". Whole berry cranberry sauce. For use as a condiment: "Ocean Spray" cranberry-orange sauce.
• Cream cheese  "Philadelphia". Original.
• Cucumber  Fresh. Do not pare.
• Dairy  Unless recipe specifies differently, all dairy products are those made with whole milk.
• Eggs  "Eggland's Best". Extra-large.
• Flour  "Hecker's" or "King Arthur". Unbleached, white, bread flour.
• French fried onions  "French's". In paper box.
• Garlic  Fresh. Remove papery outer peel, cut off hard stem end, slice cloves lengthwise into 1/16" strips.
• Gelatin  "Jell-O". With sugar. Prepare according to package directions.
• Green beans  Any brand is fine. Frozen, plain, no added ingredients, French-cut. For canned: "Del Monte", drained, not French-cut. For fresh: cut off tough ends and discard, cut into 2-inch bits.
• Green olives  Any brand is fine. Green olives stuffed with pimiento. Drain.
• Heavy cream  Any brand is fine.
• Honey  "Golden Blossom" or fresh local honey. Clover honey.
• Ice cream  "Breyer's": chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, peach, black cherry chocolate, vanilla fudge swirl, black raspberry swirl. "Turkey Hill": green chocolate chip mint. "Starbucks": Java Chip. "Dove Bars": chocolate ice cream dipped in dark chocolate. "Luigi's Ice": lemon ice. "ShopRite": ice cream sandwiches, orange or rainbow sherbet. "Friendly's": butter pecan, rocky road.
• Iceberg lettuce  Fresh. Cut out tough core at base end and discard.

• Jalapeño  Any brand is fine. Canned, sliced in rounds. Drain. A recipe may also call for minced jalapeño.
• Jam  "Welch's": grape jam. "Smucker's": strawberry, apricot, peach, raspberry, seedless raspberry, and black raspberry jams.
• Jelly  "Welch's": grape jelly. Any brand is fine for currant jelly.
• Kidney beans  Any brand is fine. Canned, dark red. Drain.
• Lemon juice  "ReaLemon". Bottled lemon juice. If available, use fresh-squeezed lemon juice.
• Lentils  Any brand is fine. Dried. Rinse. Carefully pick over and remove any extraneous material.
• Lettuce  Fresh. Romaine. Remove tough white center from greens and discard. Tear into 2-inch bits.
• Lima beans  Any brand is fine. Frozen. Plain, no added ingredients.
• Lime juice  "ReaLime". Bottled lime juice or fresh-squeezed lime juice. Use "Key Lime" lime juice for "Key Lime" pie.
• Mandarin oranges  Any brand is fine. Canned. Drain.
• Marmalade  "Smucker's": orange marmalade.
• Milk  Fresh, whole milk. If fresh milk is not available, "Parmalat" boxed milk may be used, but only in some recipes.
• Mini chocolate chips  "Nestle's". Mini semi-sweet morsels.
• Molasses  "Grandma's". Dark molasses, also known as black-strap molasses.
• Mustard  "Gulden's". Spicy brown.
• Nori  Any brand is fine. Dark green, flat, paper-thin, squares of seaweed; approximately 10"x10", or any size.
• Oatmeal  "Quaker". Plain, dry oatmeal. Not steel-cut nor instant nor flavored oatmeal.
• Oil  Any brand is fine. Vegetable oil made from corn, canola, soybean, or peanut.
• Olive oil  Any good brand is fine. Extra-virgin olive oil.
• Olives  Any brand is fine. Black olives, canned, small, pitted, sliced. Drain. If the recipe calls for whole olives, use the largest size.
• Onion  Fresh. Pare, cut out tough core at top and discard; slice into 1/8" x 2" strips, unless recipe describes a different cut. May use frozen onions in soups, stews, and cooked recipes.
• Orange juice  "Tropicana".
• Peanut butter  "Skippy": Super Chunk. "Jiff": Creamy.
• Peanuts  "Planter's". Shelled, salted.
• Peas  Any brand is fine. Frozen, no added ingredients, any size. Use fresh peas if available: remove from outer pod shell, boil in water until tender, drain.
• Pepper  Any brand is fine. Black pepper, ground.
• Pickle relish  "Heinz". India Relish.
• Pickles  "Vlasic". Dill, sweet gherkins, hamburger slices.
• Pineapple  "Dole". Canned, in heavy syrup. Drain. For fresh: "Dole", pare, core, cut into 1-inch chunks.
• Pink beans  "Goya". Canned. Drain.
• Pizza sauce  "Pizza Quick".
• Raisins  "Sun-Maid".
• Rice vinegar  Any brand is fine.
• Rice wine vinegar  Any brand is fine.
• Salt  "Diamond Crystal". Iodized salt.
• Sardines  "Season". Packed in oil.
• Shortening  "Crisco".
• Sour cream  "Breakstone". Original.
• Soy sauce  Mushroom soy sauce, which comes in a large square plastic jug from the Chinese grocery store on Route 27 in Edison, NJ. This is thicker, and not the same as grocery store brand soy sauce or the packets from Chinese take-out restaurants.
• Spaghetti  "Ronzoni". No. 10 spaghetti, or any premium brand spaghetti of the same diameter. I prefer whole wheat or spinach pasta and my husband and kids prefer the plain spaghetti made by Ronzoni. I prefer No. 10-sized spaghetti, my husband prefers No. 11, my youngest daughter prefers bow-tie pasta - and we are all spoiled rotten. Ronzoni No. 10 spaghetti is our compromise, although occasionally we do take the trouble to be short-order cooks and give every member of the family the type of pasta they prefer. Life is too short to not eat what you prefer, at least some of the time.
• Spaghetti sauce  "Prego". Chunky Garden Combo, Three-Cheese, Fresh Mushroom, and Tomato and Garlic are my favorites. My eldest son prefers Prego Traditional, which he heats in a little bowl in the microwave and dips French bread into.
• Spices  "McCormick". Dried. Organic, if available.
• Split peas  Any brand is fine. Dried. Rinse, carefully pick over and remove any extraneous material.
• Strawberries  Fresh. In season, pick the same day, rinse well. Remove stem. Unless recipe calls for whole strawberries, remove most of the white core, slice. If frozen: any brand is fine, thaw.
• Sugar  Any brand is fine. Granulated white sugar.
• Taco mix  "Ortega". Original.
• Taco sauce  "Ortega". Medium.
• Taco shells  "Ortega". Yellow.
• Tomato  For canned: "Redpack", plum tomatoes or crushed with puree, do not drain. For fresh: "Ugly Ripe". For fresh plum tomato: any brand is fine.
• Tomato paste  "Hunt's". Canned. Italian Seasonings.
• Tomato puree  "Redpack". Canned.
• Tortilla  Any brand is fine. Flour tortillas, unless recipe calls for corn tortillas.
• Tortilla chip  "Tostitos". Restaurant style.
• Tuna  "Starkist". Packed in water. Drain. Flake with fork. Larger cans seem to have better quality fish.
• Vanilla  "McCormick". Pure vanilla extract.
• Vegetable juice  "V-8". Original or Extra Spicy.
• Vinegar  Any brand is fine. White vinegar.
• Walnuts  "Diamond Walnut". Shelled. In pieces, not whole.
• Water  Tap water (where there is no water softener).
• Watermelon  Fresh. Chill immediately after purchase. Pare, cut into 1-inch chunks, discard seeds.
• Wheat cereal  "Cream of Wheat". Original 10-Minute Cream of Wheat, not flavored, nor instant, nor 5-minute.
• Wheat germ  "Kretchner's". Toasted, plain. (Keep refrigerated, use within three months of opening.)
• White sauce  Freshly-made, see recipe "White Sauce".

Delicious Dining

Calories and Fats v. Truly Delicious Dining

In general, whole milk and real sugar make food taste better, and give a more satisfying mouth feel to the finished foods, than low-fat dairy products or artificial kinds of sweeteners. The better the food, the easier it will be to say, "That was delicious! I guess I should stop eating now, because I'm happy with what I've had, and I want to eat a wide variety of nutritious, delicious foods, and not too much of any one thing."

The point is, if the food is great, you shouldn't feel the need to keep eating more and more, in trying to trigger your feel-good hormones. The eating experience should be sensibly limited, but joyful and gratifying, and not laden with guilt or burdened with self-denial.

That said, it is true that some foods are just so yummy and feel so wonderful in the mouth that it is very hard to say to yourself "Stop! I've had enough!" when you need to limit calories or want to leave room for more nutritious foods.

If you are watching your weight, or the weight of your loved ones, some of these recipes may be just too dangerous! A recipe for a fabulous but fattening food should be prepared no more than once a year; some, once in a lifetime. And, unfortunately, for some of us, it is already too late to safely enjoy some of these recipes at all.

However, rather than altering any of these recipes to make smaller amounts, which may affect the consistency or quality of the finished product, try finding another way to eat well while staying healthy. Select recipes carefully, considering your overall nutritional goals.

Portions can be best controlled by sharing good foods with others. Baking cakes or cookies? Have a cookie-baking party, with a designated recipient to take home each of the calorie-rich treats, so no one has to be home alone with 3,000 calories of scrumptious irresistibility calling to them from the kitchen counter.

Everyone should have the right to feel safe in their own home, safe even from the temptation to overeat. Plan ahead to have enough to eat to nourish and satisfy yourself, and find someone who will appreciate and take home that which you admit you need to give away, for your own good.

Yes, it is true, you do only live once, so eat what you can of these great recipes while you are still young enough to enjoy dangerously delicious foods relatively safely. In later years, you may not be able to continue to savor the same foods, but you can savor the memories of having once indulged in the very best.

Toasted Almond Biscotti

PREP and PRESENTATION NOTES

• These twice-baked cookies sound complicated, but once you get a handle on what the consistency of the cookie log is supposed to be after each round of baking, they turn out perfect every time.
• The raw dough is very soft and sticky. The first time it is baked, the dough solidifies just enough to make the log hang together, so it may be sliced nicely, at an angle.
• The second baking is to crisp up the cookie into the lovely biscotti crunchiness you dream of. Stand the cookies up on their edge, and line them all up in a row, like little Marines standing at attention.
• This special treat is perfect for gift-giving. Fill a large, lidded ceramic jar with biscotti, add a red bow, and listen to the squeals of delight when the recipient of your grab bag present realizes they've hit the jackpot!

INGREDIENTS

Toasted Almonds

• 1 C almonds, whole, blanched

Dry Ingredients

• 2 3/4 C flour
• pinch salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 tsp baking powder

Dough

• 4 eggs
• 1 C sugar
• 1 tsp almond extract

DIRECTIONS

Toasted Almonds

• Toast almonds on baking sheet 15 minutes at 350 degrees F, stirring twice.

Dough

• Lightly beat eggs, reserving 2 T.
• Beat sugar and almond extract into remaining eggs.
• Add dry ingredients.
• Stir to form a very soft dough.

Form 2 Loaves

• Divide the dough in half and place one piece on a well-floured work surface.
• With floured hands, pat into a 6-inch square.
• Scatter half of the almonds on the dough and press them into the surface.
• Roll the dough into a 2-inch cylinder, 12 to 15 inches long.
• Place on baking sheet.
• Repeat with remaining dough.
• Brush the tops with reserved egg.

Bake Loaves

• Bake about 15 minutes at 350 degrees F.

Doneness Test

• Bake until golden and firm to the touch.

Form Biscotti

• Transfer to a cutting board and cut on an angle into slices one-half-inch thick.
• Stand up slices on baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Bake Biscotti

• Bake about 20 minutes at 350 degrees F.

Doneness Test

• Continue to bake until biscotti are crisp and dry.

Cranberry Sour Cream Coffee Cake

PREP and PRESENTATION NOTES

• One of my favorite recipes ever, this dessert makes the perfect hostess gift.

INGREDIENTS

Prepare

• oil, for tube pan
• butter, for tube pan
• 1/4 C almonds, chopped

Dry Ingredients

• 2 C flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/4 tsp baking powder

Batter

• 1/2 C butter
• 1 C sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 1 C sour cream

Topping

• 1/2 C flour
• 1/3 C sugar
• 1/4 C almonds, chopped
• 1/3 C butter, melted
• 1/4 tsp vanilla

Cake

• 1 C cranberry sauce

DIRECTIONS

Prepare

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Oil completely a 10-inch tube pan.
• Spread butter on the bottom of the pan.
• Add almonds.

Batter

• Cream butter, sugar, and vanilla, beating 2 minutes until well mixed.
• Beat in eggs, beating 1 to 2 minutes, until well mixed.
• Alternately beat in dry ingredients and sour cream, beating 1 to 2 more minutes, until well mixed.

Cake

• Layer 1/2 batter, cranberry sauce, 1/2 batter.
• Add topping.

Bake

• Bake about 70 to 85 minutes at 350 degrees F.

Doneness Test

• Toothpick test.

Cool

• Cool 10 minutes on wire rack.
• Continue to cool in the tube pan.