Red Velvet Beet Puree Cupcakes

Just adding the link from another recipe blog that I enjoy -- the excellent and original "Coconut and Lime". This makes a wonderful moist cupcake -- light chocolate flavor, not too sweet. I was not crazy about the frosting -- would go with a cream cheese frosting next time.

http://coconutlime.blogspot.com/2009/05/cant-beet-red-velvet-cupcakes.html

Donna's Macaroons

3 tblsp melted butter
1 egg slightly beaten
1/4 c sugar
7 oz shredded cocoanut

Preheat oven to 325 and grease a cookie sheet. Mix all ingredients, shape into balls about 1 1/2" across, bake for 15-20 minutes. Loosen bottom of macaroons immediately.

Lynn Wiley's Mulligatawney Soup (Curried Chicken Soup)

A very satisfying soup -- can be made in a hurry if you use leftover cooked chicken and chicken stock.

Ingredients:
1 chicken
1 onion, stuck with 6 whole cloves
4 ribs celery
1 large carrot, quartered
6 cups water or chicken stock

1 can chickpeas
1 cup cream (or 1/2 c yogurt mixed with 1/2 cup milk)
1 cup cocoanut milk

1/4 cup butter or ghee
1 tbsp turmeric
1 tbsp ground coriander
1 tsp fresh grated ginger
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp cayenne, or to taste

Chopped fresh coriander

Make chicken soup:
Put chicken, celery, onion, carrot, and stock in a pot and simmer until chicken is cooked. Strain and reserve the liquid. Remove chicken meat and carrot, chop into pieces, and reserve.

Make bean-milk-cocoanut mixture:
Put peas, milk, and cocoanut milk in a blender and puree.

Seasonings:
In the orginal stock pot, melt the butter. Add the spices and saute, stirring, until fragrant (about a minute) Add stock and bring to a simmer. Add bean-milk-cocoanut mixture and bring to a simmer. Add chicken pieces and carrot pieces and simmer again. Ladle into bowls and garnish with fresh coriander. Reheats well. Good with naan.

Hot Asparagus Hors D'Oeuvres

8 oz. cream cheese
3 oz. blue cheese
1 egg
1 pkg frozen asparagus spears
Thin white bread slices (rolled and crusts removed)
½ c. butter, melted

Cream cheeses and egg. Spread cheese mixture on the rolled bread and wrap around one asparagus spear. Roll in melted butter; freeze; when frozen, cut into thirds; bake @ 350 degrees as many as needed until light brown on bottom, about 10 minutes. These keep nicely, unbaked, in the freezer.

Source of this recipe -- Carol's MHC cookbook?

Carol's/Lillian's Fruit Squares

1 c. sugar
½ c. butter or oleo
2 eggs

½ c milk

1 1/2 c. flour
1 t. baking powder
½ t. cinnamon
½ t cloves

1 c. currants
½ c nuts (optional)

Cream butter and sugar, add eggs. Combine flour, bp and spices in a separate bowl. Alternate milk and flour mixture—add to creamed mix. Add currants and nuts. Spread in a greased jelly roll pan or cookie sheet with a raised edge about 1/4 inch thick.

350 degrees/25 minutes

Frost while warm with confectioners’ sugar/milk/butter frosting, cut into squares.

Note: the last time I made them, they didn’t rise well; would suggest adding a little more baking powder.

Cranberry Drops

My mom used to make these as one of her Christmas cookie repertoire -- it has a nice bright color and a very fresh taste because of the fresh cranberries and orange juice. It is also very quick to make, which is nice if you're making a lot of fancier Christmas cookies to give away. The recipe doubles very well -- handy, since cranberries usually come in 12-oz. bags. Can't say for sure, but I think the base recipe makes about 3-4 dozen.

1/2 c butter
1 c sugar
3/4 c brown sugar
1/4 c milk
zest of one orange
2 tblsp orange juice
1 egg
3 c flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 c pecans, chopped
6 oz cranberries, chopped (I use my blender -- try it in two batches)

Preheat oven to 375. Cream sugars and butter. Add milk, juice, zest, and egg. in a separate bowl, combine the flour, soda, baking powder, and salt. Add to the other mixture. Stir in the pecans and cranberries. Drop by the spoonful onto a greased cookie sheet and bake for about 14-15 minutes or until lightly browned on the bottom. cool on a cookie rack. These keep quite well if tightly sealed in a tin or tupperware.

Lefty's Meatballs

Made this one up myself. Tested in our Rattlesnake Gutter test kitchens. Got a 4 Rattlesnake rating from our very picky judges.

1 lb. ground beef
1/2 lb sweet italian sausage (removed from casings)
3/4 c panko or matzo meal or bread crumbs in that order of preference
1/2 c parmesan, grated
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 large onion (about 1 cup) onion, minced
1 tsp dried basil
1 tblsp fresh italian parsley, minced
1 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
1 egg
1/2 tsp ground pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1 tblsp olive oil


Mix all ingredients except olive oil in a bowl with your hands. Form into balls about 1"-1 1/2" in diameter. Heat olive oil in a skillet. Brown the meatballs in batches, gently rolling them to brown different sides. (At this point you can freeze some if you want to -- they freeze very well) Immerse in bubbling tomato sauce (1-2 quarts, one of our judges recommends a straight tomato-only sauce). Cook in sauce at least another 10 minutes. Makes about 28 1 1/2" meatballs, enough for 6 hungry people ,with pasta or as meatball subs. Makes very good leftovers, or extras can be frozen after being browned, as noted.