Vermont Maple Blueberry Salad

This salad is so delicious at Cafe Zupas. Could I recreate it? I think I can.
1 head Romaine Lettuce, cleaned and chopped

Fresh Blueberries

1-2 Granny Smith Apples

Crumbled Blue Cheese

Cinnamon sugared Almonds (below)

Maple Vinaigrette (below)

Toss and serve. Yum!

Maple Vinaigrette

(all amounts are approximate. I just poured what I thought might work)

3T White Wine Vinegar

1/4 c sugar, dissolved in the vinegar

1/2 c vegetable oil

1/4 c maple syrup

1/2 tsp dry mustard

dash onion powder

Cinnamon Sugared Almonds

1 c raw almonds (I actually like to chop them a bit before sugaring them, make them bite size)

1/2 c sugar

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/8 c water

Combine sugar with cinnamon then add water. Boil in a saucepan and add almonds, stirring often if not constantly. Cook until moisture has evaporated. Spread on cookie sheet to cool.

Sushi

Getting a little daring? Maybe.

I don't do the raw fish thing. No thank you I learned enough about the risks of that in college Microbiology. But this, hmmm. Actually kind of tasty, though I'm probably the only one who liked it, which is why I only rated it a 3

California Rolls

Crab legs (I just used imitation)

Avocado, cut into strips

Cucumber, cut into strips

Sushi Rice, prepared according to package directions

Hoshi Nori Sushi Wraps

Sauce for dipping ie Wasabi, Teriyaki

For instructions, I went to youtube where there are several instructional videos on how to. Although most California Rolls have the rice on the outside, I opted to put it on the inside.

Lettuce Wraps

Thanks to Melanie for this one!
Lettuce

Shredded Carrots

Swiss Cheese

Crab Legs

Corn & Chile Salsa (Sure wish Trader Joes would come to Utah)

Place a half (or full) slice of swiss cheese atop a clean leaf of lettuce (romaine or green leaf are great). Then make a bed of shredded carrots. Place a crab leg (I used imitation) on top of that and garnish with spicy corn salsa.

Delicious! Depending on how much cheese you add, they only come in at about 100 calories each.

Can't find a recipe you thought was posted here? Try the old Nicholai-cooks blog, which kind of acts as my online cookbook. (I use it to find stuff when I'm cooking away from home)

Scones

We opened the magic box on Friday (you know, the one that sits on our porch and magically makes milk every Tues & Fri) and found yummy honeybutter.

Honeybutter = Scones!

After a couple rounds with a mix, the thought finally occurred to me to mix my own. Duh!

A google search and some help from the breadmaker to mix and knead and... Voilà!
German Scones (deep fried)

2 packages dry yeast (roughly 2 tablespoons)
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup margarine or butter
2 teaspoons salt
3 eggs, beaten
4 1/2 cups flour

1. Dissolve yeast in warm water.
2. Add the 1 tablespoon sugar, and set aside.
3. Pour boiling water over the remaining 1/2 cup sugar, the margarine, and salt.
4. Add eggs, and stir well.
5. Then add in the yeast mixture, and 2 cups of the flour.
6. Beat with mixer until smooth.
7. Add the rest of the flour (2 1/2 cups).
8. Let rise for one hour, then refrigerate until cold.
9. (Note: can be refigerated overnight) Roll out very thin (about 1/4-inch) on floured surface, and cut into 3-inch squares.
10. Fry in hot oil until golden brown and puffy.
11. Serve with butter and honey, or coated with granulated sugar.

Not quite as fluffy as the scones from the mix but tastes almost identical. I give it at least a 4 star rating.

Cinnamon Rolls

Basic Roll Recipe:

1 egg + enough warm water to equal 1 1/2 cups

2 1/4 tsp yeast

4 c bread flour

1/4 c sugar

1/4 c vegetable oil

2 Tbsp dough enhancer

2 tsp salt

Cinnamon mixture:

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp cardamom

1/4 c sugar

Brown sugar

Icing:

1/4 c butter

1/4 c cream cheese

Powdered Sugar

vanilla

milk

For the rolls, dissolve yeast in water for 5-10 minutes then let the bread maker do the work! My bread maker kneads for about 30 minutes then raises for an hour. When dough is ready, roll out into big circle on clean counter. Cover dough completely with super thin layer of melted butter then layer of brown sugar. Sprinkle with cinnamon/ cardamom combination. Roll up and cut into rolls. Let rise and bake at 325 for 15-20 minutes.

Carrot Cookies

A healthier treat for the New Year!

Probably still lots of calories but at least there's a little veggie in it!

Carrot Cookies with Orange Icing

1 c sugar

1 c butter

2 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

3 c flour

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1 c cooked mashed carrots

Cream butter and sugar. Add remaining ingredients. Spoon (or pipe through ziploc baggie with corner snipped) onto greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes. Cool then frost.

Orange icing/ glaze:

1/3 c butter

3 c powdered sugar

3-4 Tbsp orange juice

1 tsp grated orange rind

Cooks notes: The first few times I made these cookies I was under the assumption that they would be better with less vegetable. Not So! In fact without at least 1 cup carrots, they are just a sugar cookie. It seems the more carrot in them, the better they are. Last night I made them with 2 1/2 c carrots!(That's a whole 2 lb bag!) Still good though I think I'll stay between 1 1/2 and 2 cups.

Also, the way you mash your carrots will determine the color/ texture of your cookie. If you blend them with a wire whisk/hand mixer, they will be less orange but have more chunks. If you puree the carrots in the blender, the cookies will be more orange in color and have a smoother consistency. The cookies pictured above were mashed with a hand mixer.

My rating? 5 - I think I could probably eat the whole batch. Favorite cookie, hands down. My kids love them too. K1 prefers them without icing. Go figure.