These cookies are so easy, they could be in a “your mama” joke. They are the first cookies I usually teach the children to make. They only have four ingredients, three if you leave out the chocolate chips. My youngest daughter, Sammy, loves them… and so do I.
You will only need
1 egg
1 cup of peanut butter (We use crunchy, but you can use creamy. Sammy says that extra crunchy doesn’t work as well… and I would believe her. She is the expert at these.)
1 cup of sugar
1/2 cup of chocolate chips
Set oven at 350.
Mix all ingredients well.
We use a cookie scoop to dish them out. If you don’t have a cookie scoop, place 1 tablespoon balls onto the cookie sheet. It makes 12-14 cookies. Cook at 350 for 15-20 minutes.
Let the cookies set for about five minutes.
Enjoy with a glass of milk.
Even clean up is easy with these.
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| Most of the players. I left out the meat. I just couldn’t find his good side. |
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| Everything added and simmering. |
Layer the sausage on the bottom of the pot and put the lid on it. I have ten in here because my daughter is having her boyfriend over for dinner. I always thought my girls were good eaters, but now that two of them have boyfriends, I see that boys can really put it away. You can just layer the pot with the 5-6 sausages. Unless, of corse, you have boys.
After about 5-10 minutes you flip the sausage. Put the lid back on the pot.
While the sausage is cooking I get my liquids ready. Mix the three cups of vegetable broth and two cans of tomatoes- with the juice.
Now we will start layering the rest of the ingredients. Don’t worry if the sausage isn’t cooked through. It will be cooking for another hour or so. Add the can of kidney beans. Do not drain them, just pour them in, juices and all.
Now add the rice.
And now your broth and tomatoes.
Put a lid on the pot and cook until everything is simmering. Once it starts to simmer, reduce the temperature your lowest temperature. Cook for at least 40 minutes. This dish is very flexible. You can let it simmer for up to 2 hours, but much longer turns the rice to mush.
I serve this on its own, and I sometimes offer a nice slice of bread with it. You can make this dish with chicken as well. I use boneless, skinless chicken thighs. You cook them up the same way as the sausage. My girls prefer the sausage, and it is usually cheaper.
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I love soup. Soup is forgiving and easy to leave or add an ingredient, depending on what you have in the fridge. In fact, I am a little afraid of this blog becoming a soup blog. Don’t worry, I will try hard not to let that happen. That isn’t true, I am just going to cook and see what happens. This is a butternut squash soup that my kids love. Because butternut squash is the main ingredient, it is a little on the sweet side. You can serve this as a starter or as a tasty lunch.
You need to gather:
1 butternut squash
5 tablespoons of butter
dash a salt
a pinch of thyme
1 large red onion
1 tablespoon garlic
4 medium carrots
1cup white wine
2 cups of vegetable broth
1-2 cups of water
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| butter is good |
Start by slicing the squash in half. You can see here, I didn’t quite get it in half. Do your best with out loosing any fingers. Sprinkle with salt and thyme. Slice 4 tablespoons of the butter and place on top of the squash. Put in the oven at 350 for one hour.
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| chunky onions and carrots |
Meanwhile, you can work on the drunk part of the recipe. Roughly cut up the onion and carrots. You can see here, they can be chunky pieces. You are blending this later, so don’t bother peeling the carrots. Unless you have a child near by that gets into trouble or you need to hear their secrets. Peeling carrots is perfect for both of those. Add the last tablespoon of butter, garlic, onions and carrots to a hot skillet. Mix well and simmer until the onions just begin to wilt.
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| drunk onions and carrots |
While the pan is still hot, add one cup of white wine. Let the wine come to a simmer then turn the heat to low. Let the wine reduce. Really, this just means to cook until most of the wine evaporates. At this point, your drunk carrots and onions should look like this. Turn the stove low and put a lid on your pot. Now you can wait until your squash is done. For me, this means do some dishes or change the laundry. For you, it might be more exciting like inventing a jet pack or fighting a lion.
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| roasted goodness |
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When your squash is soft enough to put a fork in, take out of the oven and let cool. You just want it cool enough that it doesn’t burn your fingers. Gently scoop out all the yummy middle from the skin. Sometimes it is easier to peel the skin from the squash. Do what is easiest for you. If there are any large pieces of squash, cut them into smaller chunks. Add all that yummy goodness into your drunk carrots and onions.
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| everything mixed together |
Add the two cups of vegetable broth to the pot and give every thing a good stir. Put a lid on it and let simmer for a half hour. Turn off the heat and let cool. You want to be able to blend or put the mixture into the food processor. I don’t have a large food processor so I need to do mine in small batches.
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| pureed |
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When it is all blended, it looks like this. It is a little think, almost like mashed potatoes. This is when I add the water. Don’t worry about loosing taste, you won’t. I add a half a cup at a time and whisk it. Depending on how big your squash and carrots are, you will need more or less water. Add water until it is creamy… you know, like butternut squash soup. You can serve now, or if you aren’t quite ready for dinner, put in the oven on a low heat until you are ready for dinner.
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| thinned and ready to eat |
I serve this with croutons. I did not get to photograph this until the next day, so all my croutons were gone. You could also serve with a dab of plain yogurt or sour cream. This heats up nicely the next day for lunch.
