Snickerdoodle Cookies

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 4 Tbsp sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Beat the butter, add 1 cup of sugar, baking soda, and cream of tartar. Blend in the egg and vanilla.

Add one teaspoon of cinnamon and the flour, mixing it well.  (the cinnamon in the dough is the what makes these cookies the best)

Form into a ball, cover with plastic and chill for about 1 hour.  (we don't always have the time - or patience - for this part)

Preheat the oven to 375°.

Mix the 4 tablespoons of sugar and 1 1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon in a bowl. Form the dough into balls and roll in cinnamon sugar to coat. 

Place the balls about 2" apart on ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake for 10 or 11 minutes (till the edges start to take a golden color)

Remove from pan to cool.

Enjoy!

Aji de Gallina - Peppered chicken?

We visited Lima and Machu Picchu this year and had an amazing time. We also gained a few pounds cause the food there was DELICIOUS. Carmen was our host and cook most of the time and her food was even better than at restaurants. She was kind enough to share some of the recipes with us. The Aji de Gallina was Jason's favorite.

Ok, so some of the ingredients(for this one, mainly the peppers) were difficult to find so we replaced them, still it came out pretty good.

• 1 chicken breast
• 4 aji amarillo - yellow Peruvian pepper or yellow/orange chili peppers
• 1 small onion
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 can of evaporated milk
• bread (about 6 slices of a loaf of white bread - remove the crust)
• turmeric or  Spanish saffron
• chicken broth
• Parmesan cheese

Cook the chicken in broth, save the broth. Shred the chicken

Soak the bread in the evaporated milk

Fry the onion with the aji amarillo, garlic and salt. Once cold, put in blender with turmeric,  the bread and evaporated milk, and about 1 cup of broth.

 Put in a pan over low heat, add the chicken, and Parmesan cheese.  We ate it served over rice or potatoes but I'm sure it will be good over pasta as well.

Baklava

This is a delicious and easy recipe but time consuming so I don't make it too often. But we normally have it for Thanksgiving and Christmas.

• 1 package phyllo dough (16 oz)
• 1 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans (or walnuts)
• 1 cup coconut
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1 cup butter (or margarine) melted
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup water
• 2 Tbp honey
• 2 tsp lemon juice

Thaw the phyllo dough and cut the sheets in half (crosswise - to have rectangles about 13x9"). It is important to cover the sheets with a damp dishtowel or the phyllo sheets will dry out and crack.
In a bowl mix the chopped nuts, coconut, brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg.
 Butter the bottom of a a 13x9 pyrex and put one sheet of phyllo in the pan, immediately brush with the melted butter - use a soft brush or i use 2 or 3 cotton balls (if using cotton balls they have to be replaced more than once).
Keep adding phyllo sheets one at a time, buttering the sheets immediately after.

After about 15 sheets (I never really count them but we need 3 layers of dough) spread half of the nut mixture over the phyllo in the pan.
Repeat the process with another 15 sheets - the first one after spreading the nut is kind of tricky so be careful not to tear the phyllo too much.
Spread the rest of the nut mixture and repeat the process with the rest of the phyllo dough so it ends with phyllo.
Cut the phyllo into diamonds - yes, before cooking. It doesn't need to go all the way to the bottom, just to about the top layer of the nut mixture.
Bake at 350º for about 40 to 45 minutes ot till gold-soft brown
While doing the dough layering, put the white sugar, water and honey to boil, simmer for about 10 minutes (it thickens a bit). Remove from the heat and add the lemon juice.
While still hot (or warm) pour the syrup over  the pastry.
Finish cutting along the diamond line to allow the syrup to reach every piece.
Cool and enjoy


This recipe freezes well - if you have any leftovers.