Steak & Tator Soup

1lb steak, roast (cut into small cubes) or you can use ground beef

1 large onion chopped

1 -15 ounce can of peas or fresh or frozen ( you can add any type of veggie -green beans, carrots)

6 med red potatoes -chopped into cubes

2 cups of whipping cream ( the good stuff 1T=45 calories- you can use milk to lower calories)

olive oil

Directions:

Cook onion in large pot coated with olive oil until onion is tender.

Cook steak in skillet coated with olive oil until done to your taste.

Add potatoes to the onions and cover with water until just above the potatoes.

Cook until potatoes are tender (around 15-20 minutes)

Add in the peas, steak. Slowly pout in the whipping cram and stir. remove form heat.

Salt and pepper to taste.

Healthier Eggnog

Healthier Eggnog
makes about 4 1/2 cups

4 large egg yolks
1 tablespoon agave nectar
3 1/2 cups low-fat milk*
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon liquid stevia plus 15 – 20 drops to taste
3 whole cloves
1/2 cup half & half

Whisk together egg yolks and agave in a heavy bottom medium sized sauce pan. Slowly whisk in milk, then add in cinnamon, nutmeg, stevia, and cloves. Heat over medium low for 10 – 15 minutes, whisking constantly, until mixture thickens and will coat the back of a spoon. If using an instant read thermometer, it should reach 165°F. Remove from heat, transfer to a bowl or pitcher and whisk in heavy cream. Refrigerate for 4 hours or, preferably, overnight. Remove cloves before serving and sprinkle with cinnamon if desired. Will keep for 5 – 6 days in a sealed container in the refrigerator.

*Note: I used 1% milk. If you want an even lighter version, use skim. If you want richer egg nog, use whole milk.

Gluten Free Ginger Bread Men

560 grams All-Purpose Flour Mix
40 grams almond flour
3 grams xanthan gum
2 grams guar gum
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
230 grams (2 US sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup dark brown sugar
2/3 cup molasses
1 large egg, at room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
¾ teaspoon freshly grated orange zest
1 teaspoon finely grated fresh gingerroot


Combining the dry ingredients. Combine the flour, almond flour, xanthan gum, guar gum, ground ginger, ground cinnamon, baking soda, kosher salt, nutmeg, cloves, and black pepper in a large bowl. Whisk them all together to combine and aerate.

Combining the wet ingredients. In the bowl of a stand mixer (if you have one), mix the butter and sugar together until they are well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then add the brown sugar, molasses, egg, vanilla, orange zest, and fresh ginger. Run the mixer on low speed until everything is combined thoroughly, about 2 minutes.

Finishing the dough. With the stand mixer running on low, add the dry ingredients, about ¼ of it at a time, mixing in between until the flour has disappeared entirely into the dough. Continue this until all the dry ingredients have been added. The dough will be a little sticky to the touch. Don’t worry.

Refrigerating the dough. Divide the dough into four pieces. Wrap each in plastic wrap and put them in the refrigerator. Chill the discs in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour or up to 3 days.

Baking the cookies. When you are ready to bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat. Put one of the discs of dough between 2 pieces of parchment paper. Roll out the dough, through the parchment paper, to about 1/4-inch thick. (I like the cookies a bit thicker, so I made them about ½-inch thick. It’s your preference that matters.) Cut out the cookies using your favorite gingerbread man cookie cutter. Gather up all the scraps into a ball and roll the dough out one more time. (After that, toss the scraps. Or, if you’re like me, throw the random shapes onto the baking sheet and eat them later.)

Bake the cookies until the centers are firm to the touch, about 15 minutes.

Cool on a wire rack.

We found that the cookies taste even better the next day, so save at least some of them for frosting the day after you bake them. A couple of them, however, you’re going to want to eat right away.

I have not tried the chocolate drink mix recipes yet - I thought they looked interesting and wanted to get them on here before I lost them. You have to say they are defiantly interesting looking.

Gingerbread Hot Cocoa

4 cups whole milk (you can use 2% as well)
1 inch of ginger root, cut into coins
6 whole cloves
1 cinnamon stick
4 whole allspice berries
Dash white pepper
1 tablespoon molasses
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4-1/2 cup chocolate chunks, whatever kind you prefer

Pour milk into heavy bottomed sauce pan and add ginger root, cloves, cinnamon stick and allspice. Heat slowly over low heat until it comes to a gentle simmer. Remove from heat, cover, and let steep for 10 minutes. Remove aromatics from milk.

Heat milk again to a simmer over low heat and add chocolate chunks and white pepper, stirring until melted and thoroughly incorporated. Amount of chocolate can vary based on your taste.

Remove from heat and serve with cookies, marshmallows or that oversized tin of popcorn you got at the office gift exchange

Salted Caramel Hot Cocoa

makes 2 servings

• 2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tsp Maldon sea salt
• 1/4 cup cream

In a medium saucepan, whisk the cocoa powder into the milk and set aside.

Pour the sugar into a heavy-bottomed saucepan that will comfortably fit the sugar with some headroom. Place over medium-low heat and stir gently with a wooden spoon to keep the sugar heating evenly.

As the sugar heats, it will turn from fine grains to white shardy pieces to golden shards to a melted amber puddle.

When the sugar is fully dissolved and a deep golden caramel, stir in the Maldon sea salt and take the pan off the heat. Pour the cream into the caramel in a thin, steady stream while stirring; the caramel will hiss, bubble and harden, so this is where it’s crucial to have a pan with enough room to prevent boil-over.

Return the pan to the heat and continue to stir to re-melt the caramel.

As you stir the caramel, heat the milk/cocoa powder mixture over medium-low heat until it begins to steam. Keep the milk under a simmer or you’ll get a milk “skin” on top, one of my least favorite surprises in my cocoa mug. Whisk the hot caramel into the milk and serve immediately, with or without marshmallows.

Thai Spice Peanut Butter Curry Hot Cocoa Recipe

Yield: six 6-ounce cups of cocoa

Ingredients:

• 2 cups milk, 2% milkfat
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
• 2/3 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1 teaspoon yellow curry powder
• 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger

Recipe method:

1. In a small saucepan, heat milk and heavy cream over medium-low heat. Bring the milk to just 165°, or until you see bubbles begin to appear around the edge of the pan. Remove from heat. Do NOT bring to a full boil, or the milk will taste burnt.

2. Pour in salt and chopped chocolate, stirring constantly until chocolate is completely melted into the milk.

3. In a small bowl, mix peanut butter, yellow curry powder, and ground ginger until you’ve got a smooth paste with no lumps. Add peanut butter to chocolate milk and return the saucepan to a low heat. Stir constantly until the peanut butter is incorporated into the milk. If you have some lumps of peanut butter that simply won’t melt, run the cocoa through a blender and reheat before serving.

4. Serve hot, adding more salt to taste.