Peppermint Bark

Oh I how I love peppermint!  And this is one of my favorite Christmas candies.  Every year I wait and look for it in the stores. I can't wait for it to come out.  So I found a recipe and made my own!  It was so easy!

This was beyond easy and was requested over and over again. I brought it to school with me, and my student aides requested more every day.

Here's what I needed:

• 1 bag chocolate chunks
• 1 bag white chocolate chunks
• 1 tsp oil (x2)
• 1/4 tsp peppermint extract (x2)
• candy canes  

Here's what I did:

1. Cover a cookie sheet in wax paper.
2. Put about 5-7 candy canes through food processor until broken into a dust.
   
3. Melt chocolate with 1 tsp. oil in a double boiler. 
4. Add 1/4 tsp. peppermint extract.  
5. Spread on cookie sheet and sprinkle with candy cane dust.  
6. Refrigerate.
7. Repeat with white chocolate. 

UPDATE: *** It is easier to break bark at room temperature. 

Butternut Squash Risotto

Another dinner brought to us with love from the pressure cooker.  I have a secret addiction.  Which if I share it with you here, won't be a secret anymore.  Although lots of people already know this about me.  On Sundays before football, I watch QVC.  They have a show that only shows kitchen stuff.  And I love kitchen stuff.  So I bought a pressure cooker a few weeks ago from them and I have used it a few times.  But I didn't grow up with a pressure cooker (Mom never used one).  So I went back and bought Bob Warden's Great Food Fast, which you can only buy on QVC.  And I love it!  So here is one of Bob's recipes that I tweaked a little bit.

Here's what I needed:

• 2 cups cubed butternut squash
• 1 cup water
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 Tbsp butter 
• 1 small onion, diced (I used 2)
• 2 cups Arborio rice
• 5 cups chicken stock
• 1 Tbsp cider vinegar
• 1 Tbsp sage
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/3 cup half & half (I used soy milk)
• 1 1/2 Tbsp light brown sugar
• salt to taste
• a few handfuls of spinach

Here's what I did

1. Put the squash and water into the pressure cooker and set on HIGH for 6 minutes.
2. Use this time to get everything else ready.
3. Release pressure (DUH).  Drain squash.
4. With the lid off, change setting to brown.  Melt butter & oil.
5. Add the onion and saute until soft.  About 5 minutes.
6. Stir in rice for about 1 minute.
7. Add squash, stock, vinegar, spices, & sugar.  Lock the lid.  Set on HIGH for 6 minutes.
8. Release pressure (really, I did write that twice).  Add soy milk.  Add salt (if needed - depends on your stock)
9. Stir in spinach.  I wanted more veggies.  

Oh goodness this was delicious!

Mac N Cheese

I made macaroni and cheese for dinner tonight.  In the pressure cooker!  It took 8 minutes to cook the pasta and melt the cheese.  But then I baked it for crunchies.

Here's what I needed:

• 2 1/2 cups dry elbow macaroni
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 Tbsp butter
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 1/2 cheddar cheese shredded
• 1 1/2 mozzarella cheese shredded

Here's what I did:

1. Put the pasta, stock, cream, and spices in the pressure cooker.  Set it to rice and cook for 8 minutes.  Mine didn't have that setting.  So I put it on low pressure and cooked for 10.  
2. When it's done, add everything else and stir. 
3. Then I put it in the oven with crushed pretzels on top for crunch.  

Matt loved it!   I added cumin, but not enough.