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Chocolate Drizzled Macaroons
Makes
2 dozen macaroons
Macaroons
are the perfect cookie to make with friends since they are not labor intensive,
the jobs can easily be distributed, and they can be made in large quantities in
a short amount of time. Everyone leaves with a large batch. If baking with two
friends, make three batches of the coconut mixture.
- 8
ounces sweetened angel flake coconut
- 1 teaspoon
pure vanilla extract
- 2/3
cup sweetened condensed milk
- 1
stiffly beaten egg white
- 1/8
teaspoon salt
- 1
cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Pre-heat
the oven to 350 degrees. Mix coconut, vanilla extract, salt and condensed milk
together in a mixing bowl. Beat egg white until stiff. Fold the egg white into
the coconut. Form the coconut mixture into balls and place one inch a part onto
a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake in the oven until golden for
approximately 12- 14 minutes. Melt the chocolate chips in the oven for 1 minute
until melted. Cool cookies on a cooling rack and drizzle melted chocolate over
the macaroons using a small spoon.
Tips for
baking Macaroons with a Friend:
Divide
responsibilities: 1) One friend mixes the ingredients 2) One friend beats the
egg whites and 3) Another forms the coconut mixture into balls. Moving on to
the next batch: While one friend drizzles the chocolate, the other friend begins
to repeat the process with the next batch.
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Carrot Dill Soup
Makes 4 quarts This fresh dill-spiked soup can be whipped up in less than an hour, making it a good one to start off a cooking session. Invite a friend over to make a big batch, enjoy some over a relaxed lunch, and divide the rest to store in your freezers.
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 leeks, light green and white parts only, washed and sliced
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 2 small bunches fresh dill plus 2 tablespoons finely chopped
- 1 quart (4 cups) chicken broth
- 2 pounds carrots, peeled and chopped
- 1 potato, peeled and thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup half-and-half
- 2 tablespoons honey
Melt the butter with olive oil over medium heat in a large stockpot. Add the leeks and the salt and cook until soft, 15 to20 minutes, stirring often.
Meanwhile wrap the dill bunches in cheesecloth and tie shut, or place the dill in a large tea ball.
Add 2 quarts of water, the chicken broth, carrots, potatoes, and dill garni (or tea ball) to the leeks and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the carrots are tender and are easily mashed against the side of the pot, 20 to 30 minutes. Remove the dill garni (or tea ball) and blend the soup until smooth using an immersion blender (or blend the soup in batches in a traditional stand blender and then transfer to a clean pot).
Stir in the half-and-half, honey, and fresh dill and bring back to a simmer. Serve or cool and divide between freezer bags or plastic containers.
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Dear Friends,
Welcome
to the April issue of Cooking With Friends. With nature's rebirth,
Spring is a time to celebrate. So, get outside with your pots, pans and wooden
spoons and make some noise to welcome this marvelous season. Then, grab a
friend to cook foods together using what's fresh. In this issue, we suggest
that you team up with a friend for a Pantry Challenge and we
introduce an Organizational Tip of the month. As with everything
else in life, we find that being organized makes Cooking With Friends even more
enjoyable.
Please e-mail us at info@cookingwithfriendsclub.com and check out our web site, featuring our blogs and lots of great tips at www.cookingwithfriendsclub.com.
Alison and Shannon
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Spring Reasons to Cook With Friends
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There are so many reasons to Cook With Friends during the Spring months.
Mother's Day
If you entertain for Mother's Day (May 11th), get together with a friend to cook and freeze a dish or two in advance. We suggest using what's seasonal. This month, you'll find tender green asparagus and green peas in your local markets. We're recommending a wonderful and light Spring Quiche made with asparagus, prosciutto and an herbed crust.It can be made in advance, frozen and reheated for your Mother's Day brunch. The quiche recipe can be found at www.cookingwithfriendsclub.com as our featured recipe this month.
Or, show one of your close "Mommy" friends (or your own mother) how much she means to you by baking something as a gift. You and a friend can cook together, infusing even more meaning to the gift itself. How about some homemade biscotti or fresh blueberry muffins?
School Bake Sales and Soccer Snacks
If you have kids in school, get together with a friend to make and freeze cookie dough that can be pulled out at a moment's notice to bake homemade cookies - without much effort! Pop dough balls out of the freezer on demand for a soccer snack and you'll definitely get the first place prize for Best Soccer Mom.
Five Simple Steps to Freezing Cookie Dough
1) Make dough 2) Form dough into round balls 3) Freeze uncovered on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet until balls harden 4) Transfer to gallon-sized zip loc bags and 5) Bake in a pre-heated oven at 375 degrees.
Celebrate Spring by Hosting a Joint Dinner Party
Team up with a friend to throw a dinner party together. Plan a menu that focuses on Spring foods such as Velvety Smooth Asparagus Soup, Baby Green Salad with Fresh Herbs and Herbed Lamb Chops with mint chutney.
Cook Together for Passover
If you celebrate Passover, get together with a friend to make Chocolate Drizzled Macaroons. They are extremely easy to make and taste so much better than the store bought ones. |
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Cooking
with Friends Freezer and Pantry Challenge
Make
some room in your freezers and pantry by challenging yourself and a friend to
cooking and eating what you already have stowed away. Instead of throwing
things out, why not create a "Spring Cleaning Soup or Stew" as a final reminder
of colder months just passed. You'll be amazed at how much you can create
together by combining what's left in your joint pantries and freezers. This is
a terrific way to save money while not being wasteful.
Here
are a few tips to a Cooking With Friends Pantry Challenge:
1)
Invite
a friend to accept a Pantry and Freezer Challenge.
2)
Take
a quick inventory of your own pantry and freezer. Have your friend do the same.
3)
Discuss
on the phone (or in person) what you each have.
4)
Brainstorm
what (soups, chili or salads) you can make together.
5)
Schedule
a cooking date.
6)
Shop
for any minor fill in ingredients.
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Cooking With Friends Organizational Tip
With more space in our
pantries, we turned to our organizational expert, Kathe Roberts, from Top to
Bottom Organization for some creative solutions. Consider reserving a shelf or area in
your pantry as a Cooking With Friends zone dedicated to upcoming cooking
sessions. This gives you an easy "grab and go" strategy the night before
a cooking date.
To
learn more about getting yourself organized, you can visit Kathe at her web
site: www.toptobottomorganization.com.
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Time-Saving Tool: Pastry Blender
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 This low-tech gadget helps blend butter and flour to make flaky crusts and dough. It can be found for about $10 online and in kitchen stores.
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Alison Bermack and Shannon Henry
Visit our web site at www.cookingwithfriendsclub.com.
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