Christmas Cookie Week

Lucy Jane’s Best is so excited to announce our Christmas Cookie Week! Starting tomorrow, Thursday December 1, we will be posting a great cookie that you can take to a party, bake for your family, take to a cookie exchange or just bake for a neighbor holiday gift! So for 7 days straight you will get a new cookie recipe! You don’t want to miss this! We have some tried and true cookie recipes that will not disappoint! And be sure to join us Monday for an exciting announcement as well!

Red Velvet Cupcakes

This has to be one of my all time favorite cupcakes. And I will say Sprinkles makes a mean Red Velvet Cupcake. I mean it is their signature cupcake, right? So it had better be good! I dare say this recipe rivals Sprinkles! That is a bold and brave statement I realize, but these are moist, tasty and the frosting is perfect! The only drawback for me about making these cupcakes is that there are some tedious steps and it takes a little  longer to make than your average cupcake. And the food coloring can get so expensive! Shannon let me in on a little secret though: If you have a Smart & Final nearby, they sell Food Coloring in huge bottles for about half the cost of the grocery store! Awesome!

Red Velvet Cupcakes

• 3 c. flour
• 1 1/2 sticks butter, softened
• 2 1/4 cup sugar
• 3 large eggs, room temp
• 6 Tablespoons red food coloring
• 3 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
• 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1 1/2 teaspoon cider vinegar
• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a small bowl sift the flour and set aside. (TIP: Do you know the “modern” way to sift? Simply use a wire whisk and whisk the flour until lumps are out. It works great and you don’t need a sifter!) In a mixer cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

In a small bowl, whisk together the red food coloring, cocoa, and vanilla. Add to the batter and mix well.

In a large measuring cup, stir the salt into the buttermilk. Add to the batter in three parts, alternating with the flour. With each addition, beat until the ingredients are incorporated, but do not overmix.

In a small bowl, stir together the cider vinegar and baking soda. Add to the batter and mix well. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, making sure the ingredients are all blended and batter is smooth.

Line a cupcake pan with cupcake liners. Fill the liners 2/3 full. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cupcake comes out clean. Remove from cupcake tray and cool completely before frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting

• 2 (8 ounce) packages of cream cheese, slightly softened, cut into small pieces
• 6 Tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 5 cups powdered sugar

In a mixer combine cream cheese and butter until smooth, about 3 minutes. Add the vanilla and mix.

Gradually add the powdered sugar, one cup at a time until smooth and creamy.  (TIP: In order for the icing to set, use only slightly softened cream cheese. It will keep the icing firm. After frosting, if you are not going to eat the cupckaes right away, put them in the fridge for up to 3 hours to allow frosting to set completely)

Linking up at: Coastal Charm, Skip to My Lou, Crazy for Crust, Tip Junkie, Chef in Training, Joy of Desserts, Somewhat Simple, Everyday Tastes, The Shabby Creek Cottage, Miz Helen’s Country Cottage, The How To Mommy, Funky Polkadot Giraffe, Blue Cricket Design, Ginger Snap Crafts, Mandy’s Recipe Box

Tortilla Soup

It is suddenly feeling a little more chilly here in Arizona. It makes me crave soup! I am in love with Mexican food. I love all the spices and cheeses and fried goodness. (remember, we never claimed to be a healthy cooking blog!) So this delicious Tortilla Soup was no exception of my love for all Mexican food. My good friend and neighbor, Stephanie, brought this over to us for dinner when I was on bedrest with Miss Lucy Jane. She brought us a huge pot of it so I had it for dinner and lunch for several days! I quickly asked her for the recipe and she wouldn’t give it up. I understood, but made her promise that whenever she made some to bring me a bowl. Well, several years later, she is sharing the recipe with us on LJB!! YAY! Thanks Stephanie! You are the coolest!

Tortilla Soup

• 2 seven-inch corn tortillas cut into 1-inch squares
• 1 white onion, minced
• 1 green jalapeno pepper, minced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 Tbls olive oil
• 2 lbs chopped chicken
• 1 14oz can diced tomatoes
• 1 5oz can ROTEL tomato and green chile
• 1 10.5oz can beef broth
• 1 10.5oz can chicken broth
• 1 10.5 oz can tomato soup
• 1 10.5oz can water
• 1 can corn
• 2 zucchini chopped in 1-inch pieces
• 1 tspTabasco
• Avocados (garnish)
• tortilla chips (garnish)
• Grated Mexican four-cheese (garnish)
• Sour cream (optional garnish)
• Cilantro (optional garnish)

In a skillet, cook the chicken in 1 Tbls. of olive oil on med high heat, about 5 min. per side or until done.  Cut or shred chicken into fairly small pieces. In a large pot, over medium-high heat, fry tortilla squares in 2 Tbls. olive oil, until they begin to crisp and turn a golden yellow. Add garlic, onions, jalapeno and cook 1-2 minutes or until onion becomes translucent.  Add all ingredients (except corn, chicken, zucchini, water); bring the soup to a low even boil. Boil for 5 minutes.  Remove soup from heat.  Use a hand held propeller blade to process in batches to the consistency of a course puree.  You can also process in batches in a blender.  Return the soup to the burner and add the corn, zucchini, chicken and water.  Bring the soup to a boil then back off heat until the zucchini is less firm.  Be extremely careful to avoid burning or scorching the soup.  Serve, garnished with blue tortilla chips, cilantro, Mexican four-cheese, and avocados and even sour cream.

Red Quinoa and Black Bean Salad

Quinoa os all the rage right now, right?  It’s popping up in recipes all over the place.  So, what’s the big deal?  Well, from what I’ve learned it’s an amazing grain because it is the only grain that is also a protein.  It’s a “super food” that we should all be eating.  I tried it plain once, and didn’t care much for it that way, but incorporated into a lovely salad like this it is delicious!

Red Quinoa, Black Bean, Corn & Avocado Salad

• 1 cup red quinoa, cooked with broth
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1, 15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 cups sweet white corn kernels, frozen or canned
• 1 avocado, cut into ½ inch pieces
• 1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
• 1 cup red bell pepper, diced
• ½ cup red onion, finely diced
• ¾ cup Trader Joe’s Cilantro Salad dressing
• ½ bunch cilantro, chopped
• ¼ cup olive oil
• zest of 1 lime
• sea salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste

Cook quinoa with broth according to package directions.  In a bowl, combine beans, corn, avocado, tomatoes, red bell pepper and onion.  Add salad dressing and toss to coat.  Add salt, pepper and lime zest.  Add ½ the cilantro and toss again.  Set aside.

When quinoa is cooked, toss with olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste.  Set aside to cool.  Once cooled, add to other ingredients and toss to combine.  Garnish salad with remaining cilantro.

*** I like to add 1 cup of the lemon pepper chicken to this salad to make it a meal for lunch!

Pecan Pie

This is a classic pecan pie

Pecan Pie

• 1 ½ cups pecans
• 1/3 cup butter, melted
• 1 cup white Karo syrup
• 3 eggs
• ¾ cup sugar
• ½ teaspoon vanilla
• pinch of salt

Toast pecans in oven at 325 degrees for 7 minutes.  Set aside.

Put melted butter in mixing bowl.  Add Karo syrup, eggs, sugar, vanilla and salt.  Mix with hand mixer until well combined.

Put pecans in an unbaked pie shell.  Pour mixture over all and bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes.

Toffee Apple Dip

I love apples! My favorite are Gala apples. They are crunchy, sweet and oh so juicy! A cold, fresh Gala apple has to be one of the best things in the world! So when my friend introduced me to this sinfully delicious dip that goes with apples, I was ecstatic! About a year ago I was in Utah running a half marathon with my friend, and she also had been introduced to this dip. The day after we ran the race, we sat around and ate this dip and talked about how we just ran 13.1 miles, calories were non-existent as far as we were concerned. It was heaven. This dip is super easy to make and everyone loves it. So dig in! Go find your favorite apple and start dipping! 

Toffee Apple Dip

• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup toffee bits (I use the Heath Toffee bits with milk chocolate)

Mix Cream cheese and brown sugar until well combined. (I use an electric handmixer to do this, but you can certainly do it by hand.) Add vanilla and toffe bits. (store in an air tight container for up to 5 days)

Green Enchilada Soup

This recipe was introduced to me by my sister-in-law, Tia. She served this soup along with three others after her second son’s baby blessing. This was the soup I kept coming back to. It is a thicker soup with a kick of enchilada spice! I love the chunkiness of it. I love that you can leave it in the crockpot all day. I also think this would be a fabulous soup to make with all that leftover turkey we are going to have!

Green Enchilada Soup

• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1 large can green enchilada sauce
• 1 pint half and half
• 1 can corn (drained)
• 1 1/4 c. instant rice
• 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked and shredded (OR use your leftover turkey here!!)
• grated cheese (to garnish)
• tortilla or Frito chips (to garnish)

In a medium saucepan mix together cream cheese and 2 cups of chicken broth. Stir with whisk over medium heat until cream cheese is melted and blended. Poor enchilada sauce, half and half, corn and chicken in crockpot. Add the soup/cream cheese mixture. Cook on low for 2-3 hours. Add additional 2 cups chicken broth to reach desired consistency. (this is a thick soup!) Add the rice approximately 30 min – 1 hour before serving.

I let my soup stay in the crockpot, on warm, while we were out running errands one day. I served with warm rolls and it was the perfect winter time meal! Enjoy!

Linking up at Coastal Charm, Skip to My Lou, Sew Chatty, C.R.A.F.T., Craft-o-Maniac, Singing Three Little Birds, Sumo’s Sweet Stuff

Cream Pie (Banana Cream, Coconut Cream, Chocolate Cream)

 

Cream Pie Filling

 

• 3 eggs
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup flour
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 2 cups milk, scalded
• 2 Tablespoons butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

 

Separate the eggs, reserving yolks.  Mix the sugar, flour and salt in a heavy saucepan.  Slowly stir in the milk, then cook and stir over medium heat until mixture bubbles.  Cook an additional 2 minutes.  Slowly add enough hot mixture to the egg yolks until the yolks are hot (about ¼ cup).  Then slowly add the yolks to the hot mixture and return to a boil.  Boil for 2  minutes.  Remove from heat.  Add butter and vanilla.  Cool completely and use with any fruit you choose.

Bananas (for banana cream pie), peaches (for peach cream pie), coconut (for coconut cream pie) placed in the bottom of a BAKED pie shell and topped with this filling.

 

 

Top with real sweetened whipped cream and garnish with whatever fruit you have chosen.

 

For Chocolate Cream:

Increase sugar to 1 cup and add 2 oz unsweetened chocolate, melted.

 

Never Fail Pie Crust

Thanksgiving is just around the corner, and Thanksgiving is all about the food, right?  And the capper to the meal is always the pie!  I learned to bake amazing pies when I was 12 years old.  My Gram took it upon herself to teach me to make the perfect crust and all the different kinds of fillings.  I spent the next 2 years experimenting with every kind of pie imaginable.  I’ve made them all, and I’ve made every kind of crust.  Butter crust, shortenening crust, chocolate crust, shortbread crust… everything.  This recipe is the all time best, and fool proof classic pie crust recipe.  Use this for your Thanksgiving pie… it will not disappoint!

Never Fail Pie Crust

• 2 cups flour
• ¾ cup shortening
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 Tablespoon sugar
• 1 egg yolk
• ¼ cup cold milk
• 1 Tablespoon lemon juice

Combine dry ingredients together.  Cut in shortening and cut to pea size chunks.  Mix yolk, milk and lemon juice together.  Add to dry ingredients and gently mix together.

Makes 2, 9 inch crusts or 1 top and 1 bottom.

Bake at 450 degrees for 12 minutes.

Linking up at: Feeding Four, Somewhat Simple, Joy of Desserts, Someday Crafts, The Shabby Creek Cottage, The How to Mommy, Stuff and Nonsense, Happy Hour Projects, Simply Sweet Home, Jane Deere, Serenity You, Six Sisters Stuff, I Heart Naptime, The Tablescaper, A Well-Seasoned Life, Everyday Mom’s Meals

Oh Boy! Oatmeal Cake

This Oatmeal Cake recipe comes from my fabulous mother-in-law. How many of you can say that about your MIL? Fabulous! Seriously, she has a heart of gold, loves her kids and grandkids more than anything in the world, AND she is a wonderful cook and baker. She also sews, crafts, gardens, and has done lots of DIY projects around her home. (she should start a blog, huh?) I know she will be sharing lots of her recipes here at LJB. What I love about Mom and her cooking is that she is not afraid to try new things. The Raspberry Coffee Cake posted in August was thanks to my mother-in-law trying a new recipe. (go try it if you haven’t yet, it is so good!) So without further adieu, here is one of my mom’s classics……

                                                                                                                                                                         PENNY, mother-in-law

I think fall is finally here inArizona!  I love it when I can open the windows and enjoy the cool breeze and have the aroma of something yummy baking in the oven. 

This recipe and I have been together for a long time.  You might even consider it vintage.  I know it’s been around for years before I even starting making it.   This dessert makes for a great fall favorite. 

I love the slight smell of cinnamon as it is baking.  The secret to this cake is you put the icing on as soon as you take it out of the oven.  It gives the cake a sweet, gooey goodness that makes you want for more.   I was thinking this recipe probably got its name because when you bite into it you think O-Boy this is delish!

Add a little vanilla bean ice cream on the side and you have a great dessert.

Enjoy!

Oh Boy! Oatmeal Cake

• 1 cup quick oats                            
• 1 ½ cups boiling water                  
• 1 stick butter                                  
• 1 ½ cups flour                                
• 1 ½ tsp cinnamon                           
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Soak oatmeal in boiling water for 20 minutes.  While the oatmeal is soaking cream the butter, sugar and eggs.  In a separate bowl combine the dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon).   Combine the oatmeal, flour mixture and creamed ingredients and mix well by hand, not mixer. Pour batter in a 9×13 pan and bake for 35 minutes.

 Icing:

• 1 stick butter
• ¾ cup brown sugar
• ¼ cup canned (evaporated) milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• ½ chopped walnuts
• 1 cup coconut

*Start making this icing about 10 minutes before the cake is done.

Put butter, brown sugar and canned milk in pan.  Bring to a boil.  Remove and add vanilla, nuts and coconut.  Put icing on hot cake.

Linking up at: Joy of Desserts, Alli N Son