Julia's Shortbread Squares

Shortbread Squares by Julia McCutchen

These shortbread squares are a special homemade treat! I recommend making 3x this recipe for a good quantity. The shortbread is, of course, delicious to eat, but also fun shopping for ingredients (how often do you buy that much butter?!) 

Ingredients:

4 sticks regular salted butter

1 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

4 cups flour

Optional ingredients:

Chopped ginger, currents, pecans, etc.

Directions:

    Set out butter to reach room Temp (I leave it out overnight)

    Preheat Oven to 325 degrees

    Grease two 8x9 baking pans

    Beat ....  4 sticks of regular salted butter until fluffy

    Add....1 cup sugar. Beat until fluffy

                 scant 1/4 t of salt

                 1 tsp. vanilla

       Keep scraping batter from sides of the bowl.

      

      Add....4 cups of flour...all at once

      Use mixer to reach all of the flour ....especially the flour on the bottom of the bowl. Beat just until large crumbs appear. If beaten too long the batter turns into a big rubber ball.

        You can add chopped ginger...currents...pecans...etc.

      Dump into two 8x9 greased pans (or large rimmed cookie sheets for bigger batch of dough).

      Dry hands

       Place a dry paper towel on top and pat crumbs down until firm.

      Bake at 325   25-35 minutes until very light brown.

       WHILE STILL HOT....cut into squares and prick each square two times  ::

       Cool in pan...store in a tin or wrap well and freeze.
   

      Enjoy and make enough to share!

It Takes Moo To Mango Burgers

This is based on a recipe from my late cousin Vee, via her daughter Jane.

Ingredients 1 cup - Ripe mango, diced 1/2 cup - Onion, diced/minced 1 Tbs - Teriyaki sauce 1/2 tsp - Black pepper 1.5 lbs - Ground beef, prefer 85/15 ground round Directions Dice ripe mango into peanut-sized pieces. If your mango is ripe, this gets a little juicy/messy. Dice/mince sweet Vidalia onion into pieces smaller than the diced mango. I prefer minced, otherwise the onion is still too crunchy for my liking. Also can pre-nuke larger onion pieces. Add teriyaki sauce to onions, mix to coat. Add teriyaki+onions, mango, and pepper to ground beef. Avoid over-mixing beef, makes results chewier. When possible, let rest/marinate in the fridge for juices to be absorbed. (over-ripe mango might need some bread crumbs to be firm enough for patties, or sometimes I drain off mango juice if there's an excess). Form hamburger patties, this recipe makes 7-8 quarter-pounders pre-cooked weight. Place patties on wax paper for easy transfer to grill, or back to fridge if desired. Ripe mango can make this step a bit messy too lol. Grilling is preferred, else pan-fry, bake, or even steam.

Muy Rápido Black Beans

Ingredients

1 can black beans

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup diced sweet onion (nuke separately, add last)

1 Tbs Goya Recaito

1 Tbs Garden Gourmet Cilantro, or fresh chopped

1 tsp Haberno Iguana Gold sauce or similar

1 tsp apple cider vinegar, else red wine vinegar

1 bay leaf

1/8 tsp cumin

1/8 tsp garlic powder

1/8 tsp thyme

1/8 tsp sage

dash or more cayenne pepper

dash oregano

dash salt to taste

Blend everything but onions in microwave-safe glass / ceramic

- microwave high 5 minutes

- stir

- continue microwave 2 minutes more

- stir

- continue microwave 1 minutes more

For perfect doneness, cook onion separately and add/stir at the end

- Spray oil on 1/4 cup diced onion

- microwave 1 min

- stir into beans

Enjoy.

El Toro Cheese Dip

El Toro cheese dip was a favorite in Florence, Alabama. It's great with a big basket of tortilla chips or french fries.

Ingredients
1/4 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp dried minced onion
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp red/cayenne pepper
3/4 tsp cumin
1 lb White American cheese
1 cup milk
1 pitcher sangria or margaritas ;)

Microwave Directions
Melt cheese in a large microwave-safe bowl
Mix dry spices into melted cheese
Heat milk, slowly stir into melted cheese, reheating cheese as needed

Crockpot is slower, but can just dump and stir occasionally.

Serve promptly!

Capo's Split: Chicken Diablo with Fettucine Alfredo

Capo's Chicken Diablo

A recipe from a great little restaurant that used to be in the Virginia-Highlands of Atlanta. These recipes are popping up online more & more, here's another good page with more photos of each step: http://blog.katescarlata.com/2012/01/24/capos-chicken-with-sweet-pecan-mustard-glaze/

Ingredients:

2 teaspoons vegetable oil

1/4 cup dry sherry or white wine

1 cup sliced mushrooms

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg or to taste

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 teaspoon garlic salt

1 teaspoon dried oregano

8 ounces cream cheese, softened

4 chicken breasts, boneless & skinless

1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley

1/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup Dijon mustard

Directions: 

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a small skillet, add the oil. Saute mushrooms with wine and nutmeg until the wine has evaporated and the mushrooms are softened. Set aside to cool. 
3. In a bowl, combine softened cream cheese, thyme, garlic salt, and oregano. Add cooled mushrooms and stir to combine. 
4. Pound out each chicken breast until flat. Spread/fill with equal parts of the filling. Roll/ball the chicken around the filling and place seam-side down in a baking pan. Use toothpicks if needed to hold together.
5. Bake stuffed chicken for 15 minutes. 
6. Meanwhile, mix topping of sugar, nuts, mustard, and parsley. Spread topping on chicken halfway through the cook time.
7. Bake for another 10 to 15 minutes, or until cooked through.
8. Serve alongside Capo's fettuccine Alfredo and sangria for the full experience!

Capo's Fettuccine Alfredo

Traditionally served with the Capo's Chicken Diablo which was called the Capo's Split

Ingredients:

12 ounces fettuccine

4 tablespoons butter

2 eggs, lightly beaten

3/4 cup heavy cream

3/4 cup Parmesan cheese

salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions:

1. Prepare fettuccine according to package instructions. 
2. Make Alfredo sauce in a large skillet: On low heat, melt butter, add half the eggs, whisking constantly to blend. Add the remaining egg, whisking constantly to blend. Gradually, add cream, stirring constantly. When well-blended and warm, gradually add Parmesan. Turn heat up just a little. Stir until well-blended. 
3. Add the fettuccine a little at a time and toss until well-coated. 
4. Season with salt and pepper to taste. 
5. Serve immediately.