Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Parmesan Panko Chicken

This one was Aaron's idea. It's basically a chicken parmesan minus the tomato-based sauce.

4 chicken breasts
1 c panko or breadcrumbs
1/2 c parmesan cheese
1-2 tsp Italian seasoning
1 egg
1 tbsp milk
shredded mozzerella cheese

Combine panko, parmesan, and Italian seasoning on a plate. Beat eggs with milk on another plate or in a shallow bowl wide enough to hold a piece of chicken. Dip each piece of chicken in the egg mixture then into panko mixture, pressing panko into chicken. Place in a 9x13 pan sprayed with cooking spray and bake at 400 °F for 20 minutes. Top with mozzerella and bake about 5 minutes more or until cheese is melted.

Saturday, February 14, 2009

Sour Cream Sugar Cookies

Aaron's grandma's classic recipe. Brings back so many good memories for all of the grandkids.

1 c sugar
1 c butter
2 eggs
1/2 c sour cream*
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
3 c flour

Cream butter and sugar in a large bowl. Add eggs, sour cream, and vanilla. Stir thoroughly. Add soda and baking powder and mix well. Add flour about 2/3 cup at a time, stirring constantly. Add more flour if dough is still sticky. Roll out dough on a floured surface and cut out cookies. If dough is hard to work with, put in in the refrigerator for a while. Place cookies on a greased cookie sheet and bake at 375 °F for 10-12 minutes until puffed, set, and just starting to brown around the edges.

Makes 2-3 dozen.

*Or substitute 1/2 c whipping cream for the sour cream and add about 1 additional cup flour

** If you want colored cookies, add food coloring to the batter after mixing the liquid ingredients.

Monday, February 9, 2009

Crazy Cake

This recipe came from both sides of the family - the only difference is Grandma Loertscher used cloves in hers.

3 c flour
2 c sugar
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/3 c cocoa
1/2 tsp cloves
3/4 c oil
2 tbsp vinegar
2 tsp vanilla
2 c cold water

In a large bowl, whisk together dry ingredients until well mixed. Make a round impression in the middle and add liquid ingredients. Whisk together until batter is smooth and has small bubbles. Pour into a greased 9x13 pan. Bake at 375 °F for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with very small crumbs attached.

Note: use a hand whisk for this recipe (not an electric mixer). The bubbles make this light and airy, and mixing it by hand makes the best bubbles.