Easy Side Dishes: Party Potatoes

This simple recipe will impress every guest you'll ever have. It can be used as a side dish, but you can also serve it as an appetizer. You can set it out and people can pull one potato at a time as an appetizer, or you can use a serving spoon and have your guests scoop out a portion. It's really up to you.


This recipe lends itself well to customization. Try using taco seasoning instead of paprika and garlic. Or add sour cream to the sauce for a little kick. Maybe even use cayenne on the potatoes and red pepper flakes in the sauce if you like things spicy. My kids love a pizza version, where I use more tomato sauce than the recipe calls for and we sprinkle pepperoni on the top. It's really up to you.


Ingredients


6 large russet potatoes
3 tbsp oil
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp sea salt
½ cup butter
⅓ cup all purpose flour
1½ cup milk
2 tbsp tomato sauce
2 cups cheddar cheese, grated
parsley (optional)


Preparation


Heat oven to 425°F. Peel potatoes and cut them into wedges. Cut each wedge in half so you have a flat end to stand it up. This will help in arranging the wedges later. Toss wedges with oil, paprika, garlic, and salt. Spray a large, shallow casserole dish with cooking spray to prevent sticking. Place the wedges in the dish and bake for 30 minutes.


Remove the wedges from the casserole dish and drain on paper towels. Do not discard the casserole dish or the remaining oil mixture that will be in the bottom of the dish. Lower the temperature of the oven to 375°F.


In a small saucepan melt butter over medium heat. Add flour and mix well, then add milk. Keep stirring the prevent the milk from burning. Add tomato sauce and blend. When the milk is heated, add 1 cup of cheddar cheese. Keep stirring as the cheese melted. Cook sauce until thickened slightly, about 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove sauce from heat.


While the sauce is cooling slightly, Sprinkle ½ cup of cheddar cheese on the bottom of the casserole dish. Take the wedges and arrange them in the casserole dish, standing them upright on their flat bottoms. You want the points sticking upwards. They will be crowded, which is the point. You don't want too much space between the potatoes, so really pack them in there.


Pour the sauce over the potatoes. Fill the casserole dish almost to the top. Sprinkle the potatoes with remaining cheese, then top with parsley, if desired. Bake for 15 minutes, until the cheese sauce is bubbling. Switch the oven to broil for 5 minutes to brown the sauce and the tips of the potatoes. Cool just slightly before serving.


This will serve up to 6 people as a side dish, or quick a few more as an appetizer. Keep leftovers for up to 2 days in the fridge.

Specialty Cakes: Chocolate Meringue Cake

This cake is fun and actually quite easy to make. There are only a few ingredients, but you do have to separate eggs. The easiest way to do this is to gently crack the needed eggs into a small bowl, then use you hand to carefully life the yolks out of the whites. Place the yolks in a separate bowl, and you have successfully separated eggs. There are other methods, of course, so separate the eggs in whatever way you like.


You can change the flavor and presentation of this cake, customizing it in any way you choose. Simply change what you do to the meringue. You might add a teaspoon of mint extract, then swirl red and green food coloring into the meringue. Top the meringue with bits of candy cane and you have a Candy Cane Meringue Cake. You can do anything else with the meringue as well. You're limited only by your imagination.


Use a small spring form pan to bake this cake. It makes removing it from the pan that much easier.


Ingredients


For the Cake
1 cup chocolate chips
⅔ cup butter
3 egg yolks
1 cup sugar
1 cup of flour
2 tbsp cocoa powder
½ cup chocolate chips


For the Meringue
3 egg whites
¾ cup sugar
½ cup melted chocolate


Preparation


Start by making the cake. Melt the butter and the 1 cup of chocolate chips in a small saucepan or chocolate melted. While you're waiting for the chocolate to melt, place egg yolk, sugar, flour, and cocoa powder in a large bowl. Blend until you have a mixture that resembles crumbs.


Heat oven to 320°F. Take a small spring form pan and spray with cooking spray to prevent sticking. Turn your attention back to the batter. Pour the chocolate mixture into the egg yolk mixture and blend well until smooth. Fold in the ½ cup of chocolate chips.


Pour batter into spring form pan and smooth the top. You may have to press the batter into pan to get it to spread. The batter is thick and may not spread on its own. Bake for 35 minutes, then remove from oven, but leave it in the pan.


Now you'll work on the meringue. Drop the temperature in the oven to 300°F. Place the 3 egg white in a nonmetal bowl and use an electric mixer to beat them. Do this for 3 minutes, then start slowly adding the sugar. Do not just dump the sugar in or you'll break the egg whites. Continue beating the eggs while you do this. After you've added the sugar, keep beating the egg whites until you have stiff peaks form. The meringue should be very white and should not collapse.


Take the melted chocolate and gently drizzle it over the meringue. Don't pour it all in one spot. Gently, ever so gently, fold the chocolate into the egg whites, but don't fully incorporate it. A swirl of chocolate will give you a nicer presentation than a completely chocolate meringue.


Gently spoon the meringue onto the cake. Spread it just enough to fully cover the cake. Bake for 30 minutes, until the meringue begins to crack. Let the cake cool in the spring form pan. It must be completely cool before you attempt to remove the spring form pan.


This cake is delicious and probably won't last long before being eaten. But you can store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 2 days.

Sliced Cookies: Licorice Snaps

There's no actual licorice in these licorice snaps. Instead, a combination of anise seed, cinnamon, and cloves is used to approximate a licorice flavor. These cookies spread a lot when baking, so make sure you leave at least 2 inches between cookies.. If you don't, you'll end up with a giant cookie that you'll actually have to cut apart to eat.


Ingredients


½ cup firmly packed brown sugar
¼ cup sugar
½ cup butter or margarine, softened
1 egg
1 cup all purpose flour
2 tsp anise seed
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp cloves
¼ tsp cinnamon
¼ cup pecans, chopped


Preparation


Place sugars, butter, and egg in a large bowl and beat until light and fluffy. Add all other ingredients and blend until you have a soft dough. It will be sticky. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours for easier handling.


Remove dough from fridge and shape into a 12-inch long roll. Wrap this roll in plastic wrap or wax paper. Place in the freezer for at least 4 hours. Overnight would be better. You want the roll to be completely frozen before you try to slice it.


When it is frozen, heat the oven to 375°F. Slice the dough into ½-inch rounds. Place these rounds onto a prepared cookie sheet, keeping them at least 2 inches apart. Bake for 9 minutes, until the edges are golden brown. Remove from cookie sheets immediately and cool on wire racks.


This recipe will make 2 dozen cookies. They will keep for up to 5 days when stored in an airtight container.

Yeast Breads: Dilly Cottage Bread

This easy batter bread is sure to impress. Use a quality cottage cheese and you'll have a bread that can be eaten plain, used for sandwiches, or toasted. Your family and friends will be amazed at this tasty and moist bread.


I've baked this loaf in a casserole dish. You can, of course, use a standard bread pan.


Ingredients


1 cup cottage cheese
2 cups all purpose flour
2 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp dried dill
1 tsp salt
¼ tsp baking soda
1¼ tsp quick rise or bread machine yeast
¼ cup water
1 tbsp butter, melted
1 egg


Preparation


Place the cottage cheese in a large, nonmetal bowl and use an electric mixer to cream it. Blend the cottage cheese until it is smooth and soft. Add all other ingredients to the bowl and mix together until you have a stiff batter. Cover and place in a warm location to rise. It will take about an hour for the dough to double in size. Be patient with it.


Spray a round casserole dish with baking spray to prevent sticking. Stir the dough to remove all air bubbles, then turn dough into the casserole dish. Smooth the top and cover the dough. Set it aside to rise once more, this time for about 45 minutes. It needs to double in size, so it may take a little longer depending on the temperature and humidity.


Heat oven to 350°F. Uncover dough and bake for 40 minutes, until loaf is golden brown and sounds hollow when tapped. Remove from casserole dish immediately and cool on a wire rack.


This loaf will keep up to 4 days if stored in an airtight container.

Sandwiches & Burgers: Arepas

Arepas are a Venezuelan dish that is delicious and very sandwich-like. The arepas themselves are made with corn flour. They're simple with few ingredients, so they're incredibly easy to make. You can use either white corn flour or yellow. Whichever you prefer. But it does need to be corn flour. Corn meal or corn starch won't work.


If you make a lot of bread products, you'll notice the ratio of water to flour seems off. This is because corn flour absorbs liquid differently than wheat flour. You can substitute all purpose flour if you like, but you'll need more of it than indicated in this recipe. The resulting product will also no longer be true arepas, but if you're just serving them to yourself and your family, it doesn't matter. You can also use all purpose flour and corn meal, if that appeals to you. Again, you'll have to adjust your ratios.


You can use anything you like for the filling. I've chosen potatoes, cheese, and turkey because that's what my kids wanted when I was making these. You can do any fillings you like.


Ingredients


For the Arepas
2½ cups warm water
1 tbsp salt
2 cups corn flour
1 tbsp oil


For the Filling
1 large potato
12 slices of cheddar cheese
12 slices of ham, turkey, or chicken


Preparation


Combine all arepas ingredients in a large bowl and mix until you have a soft dough. There's no kneading involved here, so just mix with your hands until you have a dough you can handle. Don't be afraid to add a little more corn flour or water to achieve a dough you're comfortable working with.


Divide the dough into 12 portions. Flatten each portion into a disc that is ¼- to ½-inch thick. They need not be too large or too thick. Remember that they will not rise due to the lack or baking powder or yeast, so the size you make is the size you will get.


Heat oven to 350°F. Take a little excess oil and rub it over both sides of the discs. Heat a skillet over medium heat, then fry the discs for 2-3 minutes per side. Remove from heat and place on prepared baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes.


Meanwhile, peel the potato and cut into thin rounds. The thinner the better. Fry these in a bit of oil in a skillet (usually the same one you cooked the arepas in) until they are golden brown, turning once. Remove from pan and drain on paper towels.


Split the arepas open and remove the tops. Add several slices of potato, a single slice of cheese, and a single slice of turkey (or other protein) onto the bottoms of the arepas. Replace the tops. Return areaps to the oven for 5 minutes to melt the cheese.


Sprinkle with parsley and parmesan cheese, if desired, before serving.

Yeast Breads: German Rye Bread

Caraway, onion, and celery seed come together to give this hearty rye bread a distinctive flavor that's sure to please the whole table.


Ingredients


2 tbsp dried onion flakes
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp caraway seed
½ tsp celery seed
1 cup bran flakes
1¼ tsp bread machine or quick rise yeast
1½ cup warm water
¼ cup dark corn syrup
¼ cup oil
1 egg
2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup rye flour


Preparation


This is a batter bread, so it's easy enough to make. Place all ingredients in a large, nonmetal bowl and blend until a stiff batter forms. Cover the bowl and let rise in a warm location until doubled in size, about 1 hour. Rye flour can cause the rising to slow down a bit, so you might need a little longer.


Spray a bread pan with cooking spray to prevent sticking. Stir down the dough to remove all air bubbles. Stir briskly. The rye flour may hide some of the air bubbles otherwise. Turn the dough into the bread pan and smooth the top of the dough. Cover and let rise until doubled in size, again about 1 hour.


Heat oven to 350°F. Bake loaf for 35 minutes, until loaf has deepened in color and sounds hollow when tapped. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then cool completely on a wire rack.


Allow loaf to cool for at least 20 minutes before slicing.

Sliced Cookies: Butter Almond Cookies

These cookies are great for anyone who like almonds or cinnamon sugar. They are soft and delicious, but make sure you use butter. Margarine doesn't give the same taste in this delicate icebox cookie.


Ingredients


½ cup sugar
½ cup butter, softened
2 tsp almond extract
1 egg
1¼ cup all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 pkg sliced almonds
1 egg, slightly beaten
¼ cup sugar
1 tbsp cinnamon


Preparation


Place butter and ½ cup sugar in a large bowl and cream together. Add egg and almond extract and blend until fluffy. Stir in flour and baking powder. Mix until you have a soft dough. Turn out the dough onto a piece of wax paper and shape into a 12-inch log. Wrap log in wax paper and place in the freezer until set, about 1 hour.


Heat oven to 375°F. Remove log from freezer and slice into ½-inch rounds and place round on prepared cookie sheet. Press three slices of almond on the top of each cookie. Brush the top of each cookie with beaten egg. Combine ¼ cup sugar with cinnamon until you have cinnamon sugar. Sprinkle a little cinnamon sugar on top of each cookie.


Bake for 12 minutes, until the edges of cookies are golden brown. Let cool on cookie sheet for 1 minute, then cool completely on wire racks.


This recipe makes 2 dozen cookies. They will keep for up to a week if stored in an airtight container.