Sour Cream Chocolate Cake with Frosting

Ingredients
4 oz semisweet chocolate
1 2/3 cups cake flour
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon each baking soda and salt
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/3 cup softened butter
1 cup sour cream
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup strong coffee
Frosting
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup heavy cream
3 cups confectioners’ sugar

Cake
1. Preheat oven to 350 F.

2. Butter two 9″ cake pans, line the bottoms with waxed paper, and dust the sides with flour.

3. Melt chocolate in heavy saucepan over low heat.

4. Sift together flour, sugars, baking soda, salt, and cocoa in a large bowl.  Add butter and sour cream and beat with a hand mixer for 3 minutes, scraping sides with a spatula.  Add melted chocolate, eggs, vanilla, and coffee.  Beat 3 more minutes.

5. Pour batter into pans.  Bake 30 minutes, or until cakes spring back when touched.  Cool cakes 10 minutes, then remove from pans and finish cooling on racks.

Frosting
1. Melt butter and chocolate in a heavy saucepan.  Whisk in cream and sugar until smooth.

2. Spread 1/4 of icing onto surface of one cake layer.  Set second layer on top.  Pour on remianing icing, spreading over top and sides with a spatula.  Serve with vanilla ice cream.

Glazed carrots

Ingredients
3 medium carrots cut into sticks
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon brown sugar
Pinch salt
3 grinds fresh pepper
2 tablespoons orange juice
3/4 cups water, as needed

1. Arrange carrots in a 12″ skillet, dot with butter and sugar, season with salt and pepper.  Add orange juice and enough water to nearly cover them.  Cook over medium heat about 4o minutes.

2. When liquid has nearly evaporated, shake pan, coating carrots.  Turn heat to high and continue shaking until liquid is gone and carrots caramelize.  Serve warm.

Twice-Baked Potatoes

Ingredients
2 large baking potatoes, washed and dried
Olive oil
3 tablespoons milk
2 tablespoons sour cream
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon horseradish
1 tablespoon chopped chives; extra for garnish
2 tablespoons shredded Cheddar cheese

1. Preheat oven to 400 F.

2. Prick potatoes with fork and rub with a little olive oil, then place directly on top rack of oven and bake 1 hour, or until fork-tender.  Remove and cool slightly.

3. Slice an X into the top side of each potato and squeeze gently (don’t tear skin) to loosen pulp.  Spoon pulp into a bowl.  Set skins aside.  Mash pulp with fork, adding milk, sour cream, butter, horseradish, and chives.  Stuff skins with mixture and top wtih cheese.  (Potatoes can be refrigerated at this point if you wish.)

4. Bake at 400 F 10 minutes, and top with extra chives.

Rib Eye Steak & Mushroom Sauce

Ingredients
2 rib eye steaks, sliced 1 1/2″ thick
8 mushroom caps, sliced
Marinade
1 stick butter
5 tablespoons lemon juice
3 teaspoons dry mustard
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
4 cloves garlic, minced

1. Place meat in a large, deep dish.  Melt butter with seasonings.  Pour half of marinade over steaks and marinate several hours, turning once.

2. Preheat broiler.  Transfer steaks to broiler pan and drin marinade into small saucepan.  Broil steaks medium-rare (8 minutes per side).  Remove to a warm dish and cover with foil, while you warm sauce.

3. Heat mushrooms in marinade until tender (do not boil).  Just before serving, pour over steaks.

Home-Style Coleslaw

Ingredients
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1/4 teaspooon each dry mustard, celery seed, and salt
Freshly ground pepper to taste
2 cups each shredded red and white cabbage
1/2 cup chopped unpeeled red apple

1. In a large bowl, mix mayonnaise, vinegar, adn seasonings.

2. Using the shredder on your food processor or a sharp chef’s knife, thinly slice cabbage.  Toss in bowl with dressing and apple.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Parmesan Toast

Ingredients
1 long loaf semolina or Italian bread, sliced thin
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.

2. Arrange bread slices on cookie sheet.  Drizzle with olive oil, then sprinkle each with 1 teaspoon Paremsan.  Bake until golden.  Serve warm.

Creamy tomato soup

Ingredients
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup diced onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 2lb can whole Italian plum tomatoes, with juice
Pinch sugar
1 cup chicken stock
2 sprigs fresh (or 1/4 teaspoon dried) thyme
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper
1/3 cup light cream
9 fresh basil leave, in strips

1. Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat.  Add onion and garlic cook until onion is soft but not brown.  Crush tomatoes and add with juice to the pan, along with sugar, stock, and seasonings.  Simmer 15 minutes.

2. If using fresh thyme, remove sprigs.  Pour soup into blender; blend just until smooth.  Right before serving, gently heat cream and stir into hot soup.  Garnish with basil.