Chocolate Cookies

These are my favorite soft and chewy chocolate cookies. The kind you need a tall glass of milk with.

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups sugar
2 dollops sour cream
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Directions:

Beat butter and sugar until fluffy. Add vanilla and sour cream mix until combined.

Add dry ingredients and mix until fully combined.

Refrigerate for 1 hour.

Roll into 1 1/4" balls.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 10 to 12 minutes.

Let cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Sour Cream & Yeast Noodles

This has been one of my favorite dishes since I was very young. Friends are always requesting I make this when they come over for dinner, and it's often made for family functions. It's rich and creamy with a nice almost cheesy flavor. Eating only one bowl is always a challenge. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 lb elbow macaroni
• 2 1/2 cups (10 1/2 oz) sugar snap peas, cut into bite-size pieces
• 3 cups cauliflower florets, cut into bite-size pieces
• 1 1/4 cups sour cream
• 1/2 cup nutritional yeast flakes
• 1 1/2 tsps salt or to taste
• 1/2 tsp black pepper or to taste

Directions:

1. Bring 6 cups of water to boil in a large pot.
2. Add cauliflower and boil for 5 minutes.
3. Add macaroni and sugar snap peas and cook according to macaroni instructions or until al dente.
4. Drain quickly retaining some of the moisture in the macaroni and put the macaroni back in the pot. This helps make a creamier sauce.
5. Add the sour cream and mix until all the macaroni is covered. Your pasta should look creamy as shown in the picture.
6. Add the nutritional yeast and mix well.
7. Salt and pepper to taste.
8. Serve warm.

Wonderful Waffles

I made waffles this week and froze them so that we can toast them for breakfast. They turned out great and toast up quickly.

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 egg replacer equivalent

I use Bob's Red Mill's egg replacer: http://www.bobsredmill.com/vegetarian-egg-replacer.html

You could also probably use sour cream to replace the egg.

Italian Whey Bread

Ingredients:
2.5 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tbls. sugar
2 1/4 tsp. yeast

1/4 & 1/8 cups hot whey
1/2 cup warm water
2 1/2 tbls. butter, melted

Extras: cornmeal

Directions:
1. Add dry ingredients to the bowl and stir.
2. If the whey has cooled, heat whey and water. Slice butter and stir into the hot liquid to melt.
3. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients. Stir well until combined. Or! Use your mixer and the dough hook to mix and knead. Either way, stir and knead for an additional five minutes, until the dough is smooth and warm.
4. Pat the dough into a rectangle and then roll up into a cylinder. Pinch seams and edges and shape a little bit more.
5. Place onto a sheet pan that’s been sprinkled with cornmeal. Cover and rise in a warm place for 1 hour.
7. Bake at 425F for 25 minutes.

Wild Alaskan Blueberry Buckle

My cousin-in-law is a native Alaskan and her mother shipped a BIG bag of wild Alaskan blueberries to her. We just had to make something delicious with them. We are about to go back for seconds it's so good!

I also make this recipe with regular frozen blueberries and it is always a big hit.

Topping:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Combine in a small bowl with a fork until crumbly.

Cake:
1 1/2 cups flour
2 1/2 tsps baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 dollop sour cream
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup melted butter
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup blueberries fresh or frozen

Mix dry ingredients.
Beat together sour cream, sugar and butter. Add milk and vanilla.
Mix dry ingredients into sugar mixture.
Pour into a greased and floured 9" square pan.
Sprinkle top of batter with blueberries, and then with topping.
Bake at 375 degrees F for 30 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.