Parker House Rolls

Parker House Rolls
Recipe courtesy Omni Parker House Hotel, Boston, Massachusetts

I can't remember any other kind of roll growing up. They are the best.

Yield: about 3 1/2 dozen

6 cups all-purpose flour (about)
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons salt
2 packages active dry yeast
1 cup margarine or butter (2 sticks), softened
1 large egg
In a large bowl, combine 2 1/4 cups flour, sugar, salt, and yeast; add 1/2 cup margarine or butter (1 stick). With mixer at low speed, gradually pour 2 cups hot tap water (120 degrees F to 130 degrees F.) into dry ingredients. Add egg; increase speed to medium; beat 2 minutes, scraping bowl with rubber spatula. Beat in 3/4 cup flour or enough to make a thick batter; continue beating 2 minutes, occasionally scraping bowl. With spoon, stir in enough additional flour (about 2 1/2 cups) to make a soft dough.
Turn dough onto lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes, working in more flour (about 1/2 cup) while kneading. Shape dough into a ball and place in greased large bowl, turning over so that top of dough is greased. Cover with towel; let rise in warm place (80 to 85 degrees F.) until doubled, about 1 1/2 hours. (Dough is doubled when 2 fingers pressed into dough leave a dent.)
Punch down dough by pushing down the center or dough with fist, then pushing edges of dough into center. Turn dough onto lightly floured surface; knead lightly to make smooth ball, cover with bowl for 15 minutes, and let dough rest.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
In 17 1/4-inch by 11 1/2-inch roasting pan, over low heat, melt remaining 1/2 cup margarine or butter; tilt pan to grease bottom.
On lightly floured surface with floured rolling pin, roll dough 1/2 inch thick. With floured 2 3/4-inch round cutter, cut dough into circles. Holding dough circle by the edge, dip both sides into melted margarine or butter pan; fold in half. Arrange folded dough in rows in pans, each nearly touching the other. Cover pan with towel; let dough rise in warm place until doubled, about 40 minutes.
Bake rolls for 15 to 18 minutes until browned.

Nan's Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies

Nan's Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies
(Barbra Karcher's Mum from England)

3 cups sifted flower
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
2 tbs milk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Frosting:
Powdered sugar
milk
1 drop vanilla

Sift flour with baking powder and salt. Cream butter and
sugar, gradually add egg, milk and vanilla. Add dry
ingredients and mix well. Chill if necessary. Roll out about 1/8 inch thick and
cut into holiday shapes (use 1/3 of the dough at a time)
Bake at 400º for 5-8 minutes on ungreased sheet. Cool.

Make frosting while cookies cool. Start with 1/2 cup powdered sugar. Add milk 1
tsp at a time until spreadable. add 1 drop vanilla and 1-3 drops food coloring.

The Original Whoopie Pies

Whoopie Pies
(From Kim Levesque's Mom)

1/2 C. shortening
1 C. sugar
1 egg
2 C. flour
1/2 C. cocoa
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 C. milk
1 tsp. vanilla

Filling:
3/4 C. shortening
3/4 C. confectioners sugar
1/2 C. marshmallow fluff

Cream sugar and shortening; add egg. Sift dry
ingredients and add alternately with milk and vanilla. Drop
batter onto greased cookie sheet in equal spoonfuls. Bake
at 425º for 7 minutes. When cool spread with blended
filling and put together.

Kim's Notes: I found this old old newspaper clipping in
my mothers recipe box with a note written in her writing
that said "This is the ORIGINAL receipt".

Raisin Filled Cookies

Raisin Filled Cookies

1 cup shortening
2 cups sugar (1 brown, one white)
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
Sift together 6 cups flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 3 teaspoonsbaking
powder.
1 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon baking soda in 1 tablespoon boiling water

Raisin Filling:
1 cup raisins
2 cups water
1 cup sugar
pinch of salt
thicken with 1 or 1 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch
teaspoon vanilla

Cook Raisin mixture (without vanilla) 5 to 10 minutes then
add vanilla.

Mix cookie ingredients: Cream sugars,
shortening, and eggs. Add vanilla and dry ingredients,
sour milk, and soda mixture. Roll out and cut with a
drinking glass Add a dollop of filling and cover with
another cookie, pinch together.
Bake 350º for 8-10 minutes until lightly
browned.
Aunt Yvonne's Notes: My sisters & I will always remember the
day that it snowed and when we got off the bus our
parents met us with raisin cookies and snowmen.

Christy's Brisket

Christy's Brisket

1 brisket - 5-6 pounds
1 to 2 teaspoons unbleached all-purpose flour
Coarsely ground black pepper, to taste
1/4 corn oil
8 onions, thickly sliced and separated into rings
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1-1/2 teaspoons coarse (kosher) salt
2 cloves garlic, quartered
1 carrot, peeled

Preheat oven to 325 to 350 F
Trim the brisket of most of its fat, and dust it very lightly
with the flour. Sprinkle with pepper.
Heat the oil in a large heavy flameproof casserole.
Add the brisket, and brown on both sides over medium-high heat
until some crisp spots appear on the surface.
Transfer the brisket to a dish. Keeping the heat medium high, add
the onions to the casserole and stir, scraping up the brown particles
left from the meat. Cook until the onions have softened and developed
a handsome brown color, 10 to 15 minutes.
Remove the casserole from the heat, and place the brisket, along with
any juices that have accumulated, on top of the onions. Spread the
tomato paste over the brisket as if you were icing a cake. Sprinkle
with pepper and the coarse salt. Add the garlic and carrot, and cover
tightly. Place the casserole on the middle rack in the oven, cover and bake
for 3 ½ to 4 ½ hours (add a little water if needed)
Slice brisket, transfer it and onions and carrot to a heated platter. Serve at once.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
From Elaine Boucher (my cousin in Maine)

2 cups flour
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking power
1 cup butter (2 sticks) (softened)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 brown sugar
1 cup pumpkin (canned is fine)
1 egg
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups chocolate chips (sometimes I use milk chocolate chips)

In small bowl mix dry ingredients and set aside. In large bowl Cream butter and sugars together, add pumkin, vanilla, egg. Mix in dry ingredients. Fold in chocolate chips.
Bake at 350 degrees for 10-14 minutes.

French Baguettes

French Baguettes
From Martha Stewart Living Magazine By Bread Alone

12 - 15 hours before you want the bread:

Starter
5 1/4 ounces King Arthur unbleached all-purpose flour (1 cup plus 2 tablespoons)
Pinch of active dry yeast
5 1/2 ounces cool water ( 2/3 cup; 75 degrees to 78 degrees)
Mix flour, a pinch of yeast, and water to form a starter. Cover, and let rest at cool room temperature until bubbling.

Dough
11 ounces King Arthur unbleached all-purpose flour (2 1/4 cups plus 1 tablespoon)
1 3/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
6 ounces cool water (3/4 cup;75 to 78 degrees)
1 3/4 teaspoons fine sea salt
Vegetable-oil cooking spray

Combine remaining flour, yeast, and water with starter, mixing until a slightly sticky dough forms. Be patient, don't add extra water.

Combine remaining flour, yeast, and water with starter, mixing until a slightly sticky dough forms.
Turn dough onto an unfloured surface. Sprinkle with fine sea salt.
Gather dough, lifting it above the surface. Hold one end of dough and cast the other end in front of you, onto the surface. Pull the end in your hands toward you, stretching it gently. Then fold the dough on top of itself. Continue to knead until smooth, supple, and elastic, 8 to 10 minutes. Form into a ball.
Place dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover (with plastic wrap sprayed with cooking spray), and let rise at cool room temperature for 45 minutes.
Gently turn dough onto lightly floured surface. Do not punch dough. Fold the dough into thirds, as you would a business letter, then fold in half crosswise. Return to bowl, cover (with plastic wrap sprayed with cooking spray), and let rise at cool room temperature until it has almost doubled, at least 75 minutes.

Divide dough into two portions. Let rest, covered (with plastic wrap sprayed with cooking spray), for 20 minutes.

Gently spread each portion of dough into a rectangle that's about 10 by 6 inches. Fold dough into thirds again, pressing the seams with your fingers.

Baguettes
1. Working with 1 portion of dough at a time, keeping remaining dough covered, fold dough in half lengthwise to form a tight, narrow log. Gently press edges with lightly floured fingertips to seal.
2. Using your palms, roll the dough on a lightly floured work surface until it's about 16 inches long, rolling more firmly at the ends to create a tapered effect.
3. Place loaves, seam side down, on a generously floured linen towel or a parchment-lined baking sheet. Fold towel between the loaves to prevent sticking. Cover loosely with oiled plastic wrap, and let rise at cool room temperature until loaves have almost doubled and a floured finger pressed into side leaves a slight indentation, 40 to 50 minutes.
4. Place a skillet on oven rack adjusted to lowest position and a baking stone on middle oven rack. Preheat oven to 500 degrees. If using a linen towel, gently turn baguettes onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Before baking, use a razor blade to make 3 slashes on top of each baguette. Pour 1/2 cup hot water into skillet in oven. Slide bread and parchment onto baking stone.
5. Immediately reduce oven to 450 degrees. Bake until baguettes are deep golden brown, sound hollow when bottoms are thumped, and interiors register 205 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool on wire racks.

Baguettes are best the day you make them, but they can be wrapped in parchment and then foil, and stored at room temperature overnight (or frozen for up to 1 month; thaw at room temperature before serving.)

Petit Pain (small rolls)

Separate dough into 3 parts.
1. Working with 1 portion of dough at a time, keeping remaining dough covered, fold dough in half lengthwise to form a tight, narrow log. Gently press edges with lightly floured fingertips to seal. Using a dough scraper or a knife, cut into 8 pieces.
2. Gather edges, and gently pull and tuck them underneath the dough to create a round shape, pinching to seal.
3. Place dough on the work surface. Cup one hand around dough, and rotate it in circles until a smooth, taut ball forms.
4. Place rolls on a generously floured linen towel or a parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover loosely with oiled plastic wrap, and let rise at cool room temperature until rolls have almost doubled and a floured finger pressed into side leaves a slight indentation, 30 to 40 minutes.
5. Place a skillet on oven rack adjusted to lowest position and a baking stone on middle oven rack. Preheat oven to 500 degrees. If using a linen towel, gently transfer rolls to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Just before baking, use a lame or a razor blade to slash the surface of each roll, forming an X. Pour 1/2 cup hot water into skillet in oven. Slide rolls and parchment onto baking stone.
6. Immediately reduce oven to 450 degrees. Bake until rolls are deep golden brown, sound hollow when bottoms are thumped, and interiors register 205 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, 35 to 40 minutes. Let cool on racks.
Rolls are best the day you make them, but they can be wrapped in parchment and then foil, and stored at room temperature overnight (or frozen for up to 1 month; thaw at room temperature before serving).

Aunt Bette's Rosemary Chicken

Aunt Bette's Rosemary Chicken

1 cup onion, chopped
1 package skinless chicken thighs
3 cloves of garlic
1 can tomatoes, drained (I like fire-roasted, chopped)
1 cup white wine
3-4 sprigs fresh Rosemary
sage
salt pepper
olive oil
new potatoes (optional)
zucchini, sliced lengthwise and sliced (optional)


Saute onion in oil in oven safe pot, add chicken and brown, add garlic, tomato, wine, pinch sage, salt, pepper, new potatoes, and zucchini, place rosemary on top. Cover and simmer or bake (at 350) for 45 minutes. Take lid off after 25 minutes.
Add new potatoes at beginning or serve over pasta.