Start like all basic cookies. Cream the butter and sugars.

Once the mix is creamed, add the egg and vanilla.

 

Finally add the dry ingredients until fully mixed.

Last is the best part, mix in the oats and chocolate chips. You could also mix in other fruity/nutty foods here, but I just like chocolate.

 
Preheat the oven to 325, and put teaspoon sized chunks of dough onto the cookie sheet.

 
Bake for about 10 minutes, just until they start to get golden along the bottoms.

Let them cool slightly before eating.

Start with whole boneless, skinless, chicken breasts. In this recipe I did 3, but you could do as many or as few as you want. Place the chicken between two pieces of plastic wrap and get out your favorite beating utensil.

 
Flatten the chicken breast so it is about 1/4” – 1/3” thick. Once its flattened season it with salt and pepper.

Next its time to roll the meat and cheese into the chicken breast. For the cheese you can use Gruyere, Swiss, mozzarella … really any cheese that you like and melts well. This time I used Swiss. For the meat you can use ham, prosciutto, turkey … no limits here either. I used the fresh baked ham from Genova. Put the first piece of chicken on a piece of plastic wrap. Place the meat on the flattened chicken breast, and then a layer of cheese.

Start at the short end, and tightly roll the chicken. Use the plastic wrap to compress it all together. Don’t panic if it’s not perfect and you can see some of the cheese or meat. The most important thing is that it is tightly rolled.

Repeat the rolling technique for all the chicken breasts.

 
Now that the meat is all ready to go, we can bath it in its crunchy goodness. You need 3 stations; flour, egg, and Panko bread crumbs. All stations should be seasoned, of course. The measurements of how much of each are approximate, add more as needed.

One at a time roll each chicken breast into the flour, then the egg wash, and then the Panko bread crumbs. Place them into a pre-heated casserole pan with some olive oil to avoid sticking. The hot pan makes the cooking process faster.

Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes. Check on them because as usual, cooking time varies. The golden brownness and oozy cheese are good signs they’re done.

First we make the cookie. In the mixer beat together the butter and powdered sugar.

Once the butter and sugar are well mixed, add the vanilla and salt. It will become smooth.

Next add the flour. Mix just until it starts to separate from the bowl. Remember it’s a shortbread cookie.

Form the dough into balls (about 2 teaspoons each). Try to not overwork the dough.

 
Once the balls are formed, make the “thumbprints” in each cookie. I like to use the back of a measuring spoon instead of my thumb. If you start to get sticking dip your thumb/spoon in some cold water in between cookies.

Bake the cookies for about 10 minutes at 350. Don’t wait for them to brown, because then they are already over done. If unsure, check the bottom of a cookie to verify they are done.

While the cookies are cooling, make the chocolate mixture. Setup a double boiler with chocolate and butter. Continually stir.

Once the mixture is smooth, remove from heat. Let it cool so it gets thicker.

Fill each cooled cookie with the thickened chocolate mixture. Let the cookies set before serving.

First get the spaghetti sauce cooking. I do this first and let it simmer until the rest of the ingredients are ready. Click here for the spaghetti sauce recipe.

Next boil a big pot of water and cook the lasagna noodles for 10 minutes (or per the package directions). Al dente. I really don’t like the non-pre-cook noodles, the texture turns out funny.

In the meantime, grate the cheeses. I use the Cuisinart and it’s a real lifesaver. I use equal parts of medium cheddar and mozzarella.

Now preheat the oven to 400. While the oven is preheating the lasagna can be assembled. The layers go like this…

1. Sauce

   

2. Noodles (overlapping each other)

    

3. Cheese

   

4. Repeat as many times as needed to get to the top of the lasagna pan.

   

Now that it’s all assembled, put it in the oven until it starts bubbling. Usually about 30 minutes. Let it cool for 5 – 10 minutes before serving.

And that’s it. FYI the corner pieces are the best, fight for them.

The stuffing: The stuffing is the star of the show. Start by using a big roasting pan on the stove top and sautéing the meat and onion. No oil is needed since we’re using Italian sausage. Let it continue to cook on medium while you prepare the other ingredients.

Finely chop the carrot and apples and add them to the same pan.

Notice I haven’t seasoned anything yet. Since this recipe condenses down I wait to the end so I can control the saltiness, etc. Continue to cook the meat, onion, carrot, and apple until they have browned nicely. The smell at this point is good enough to get the husband to do chores.

Now we’re ready to put everything together. This part goes quick, so I like to get everything ready so I can focus on stirring and, oh yum smelling.

First add the herbs (thyme, sage, Italian seasoning) and the white wine to the pan. Let it bubble and reduce down to cook off the alcohol and condense the flavor.

Now add the syrup and chicken stock. Let reduce down some (a minute or two), and then taste and adjust with salt, pepper, or more herbs. If it tastes right to you, it is right!

Now turn the heat to medium/low and add the bread.

If it seems too soggy, add more bread. If it seems too dry, add more bread. Again, this is all about YOUR preference so make it how you like it. Just remember it will dry out some once it’s baked.

The chops: The recipe for the stuffing is enough to fill 12+ pork chops, but we usually go with 6 and then bake the rest of the stuffing to eat on the side. We get 1+” chops with a slot for stuffing at Lunardi’s, but you could definitely do that step yourself if you feel like doing extra work. Season both side of the pork chops before stuffing.

Stuff each pork chop so it is full but not bulging out. There’s extra stuffing so don’t worry about putting too much inside.

Sear the chops on both sides on the stove top and then put directly in a 325 oven for 20 – 30 minutes. Depending on the size of the pork chops, the time varies so check with a meat thermometer to make sure they’re done.

Pie Crust: Start with the basic single pie crust. Cut together the flour and butter.

Once the butter is in small bits, it’s time to slowly add the water. Just add it slowly and avoid adding too much.

Once it is mixed, push it together in the shape of a disk, and refrigerate for 30 minutes to let the butter re-chill.

Once chilled, flour the countertop and rolling pin. Roll the dough out as consistently as you can. I use the pie dish as a guide to how big to roll the dough out to.

Fold it in half to transport it over the the pie dish. Crimp the edges (if you’re in the mood), and generously stab the dough to reduce air pockets when it bakes.

Bake for 8 – 10 minutes at 425.

Filling: The filling is whole strawberries covered in raspberry sauce. It’s a great combination. Start by washing the raspberries.

Put them in the blender and blend until smooth. Sometimes they need a head start by mashing them down with a fork.

Once they’re smooth, strain out (most) of the seeds. Some always slip through, but that’s ok. This just makes it so you’re not crunching on seeds instead of enjoying the yummy flavors of the pie.

Now we’re ready to mix all the ingredients of the filling. Over medium heat combine (stirring CONSTANTLY):

Once it comes to a boil, turn the heat off and keep stirring until smooth. Let the mixture cool.

Putting it all together: Once the raspberry filling and the pie crust are cool, it’s time to put it all together. To help keep the crust from getting soggy we add a layer of glaze (this can also be substituted with cream cheese). Mix apricot preserve with water and coat the pie crust.

Add the strawberries to the pie crust. Wash, trim, and put them flat side down in the pie.

Finally poor the raspberry filling mixture over the tops of the strawberries! Let chill for a few hours and enjoy with some fresh whipped cream. 

Start with putting ALL the cake ingredients in the mixer.

Really, put it all in at the same time. Jake’s a kid, it’s really that easy.

Mix on low speed at first and then turn it up to medium once it starts to mix. Once smooth, you’re ready to go.

Preheat the oven to 350, and get out your favorite 13”x9” pan. Grease with butter.

Then dust the pan with flour.

Pour in the batter and bake in the 350 for about 40 minutes. Of course check it at 35 minutes in case it finishes early.

Once it finishes baking let it cool. It has to be completely cool before it can be frosted!

While the cake is cooling, there’s time to whip up the buttercream frosting.Using the whisk attachment start with the powdered sugar and flour, slowly add the liquid ingredients until perfection is reached.

Now you can frost the cake! Cover with foil whatever you don’t eat and enjoy it for a couple nights desserts.

1. Too salty (used as a preservative)
2. Noodles get soggy
3. Noodles don’t fit on a spoon – inefficient
4. Chicken is cubed and doesn’t even look like chicken

So my solution is to make chicken noodle soup from scratch. It is well worth it.

First thing is first, get the stock started. Buy a whole cut-up chicken (or a whole chicken and cut it up yourself). I usually omit the neck, since I can be squeamish. Don’t forget to season the chicken with salt and pepper.

In your stock pot begin to brown the chicken pieces. Start with the breasts and then after 3 minutes add the rest of the pieces. It takes about 5 minutes. The goal is to brown the chicken, not cook it all the way through. Depending on the size of your pan you may need to do it in two batches.

 

Next add the cold water, peppercorns, bay leaves, herbs, and chicken. Set to medium heat and bring to a boil.

 

Add equal parts of broth mixture to pasta in each bowl.

Start by creaming the butter and sugars, just like a regular cookie.

Scrape the sides of the bowl (or let your little brother do it). Add the wet ingredients.

Once it’s all mixed up, add the dry ingredients.

It should have the consistency of regular cookie dough.

Put teaspoons full of the dough on the baking sheet. Press Mini or regular M&Ms (or a mix of the 2 types) into the cookies. If you’re OCD like me, you only do one color of each on each cookie.

Bake for about 10 minutes.

  These are fun to make, and even better to eat.

Start by mixing the dry ingredients in their own bowl. Nothing fancy just whisk together so the ingredients are well mixed.

In a separate bowl, it’s time to starting creaming the eggs and sugar. Start by creaming the butter with the sugars, then add the eggs and vanilla.

Now it’s time to stir in the stars of the show. Of course chocolate chips are necessary, anything else is optional.

I like to roll them into balls so they cook evenly. Lay them out on the cookie sheet. They go in a 325 degree oven.

I always check on them at 8 minutes, but they could take as long as 10-12 minutes, depending on the day / oven.

Ok, now go make friends with your enemies, everyone is a sucker for a warm & chewy chocolate chip cookie!