Lefse

---

Ingredients

• 10 pounds of potatoes
• 2 cups of half and half
• 3 sticks of butter
• sugar
• salt
• flour

Directions

1. Peel the potatoes, boil, and drain. While hot, rice the potatoes. Add the half and half and butter. Mix and chill.
2. Mix 2 cups of potatoes, 1 ½ tablespoons of sugar, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 1 cup of flour. Mix well with hands. Form into baseball-sized balls and chill. Continue mixing batches until you run out of potatoes.
3. Roll out balls into paper-thin sheets. Cook atop a 525 degree lefse griddle. When it is bubbly and starting to brown, flip using a lefse stick. Cook on second side until brown. Place between a folded kitchen towel until cool. Keep refrigerated after cool.

Fried Almonds

---

Ingredients

• 10 pounds (at least) raw, unshelled almonds
• 2-5 pounds butter
• Salt
• 2-4 almond-shelling helpers

Directions

1. Spend between 2-10 hours shelling the almonds (depending on how many helpers are available).
2. Blanch the almonds: Bring a big pot of water to boil and pour small amounts of almonds into it. When the almonds start floating (about one minute) fish them out, then give them to the first available almond helper. The almond helper(s) will squeeze the milky-white nut out of its brown skin. The nuts will be hot and fingers will be burned. Disregard the cries of pain; the skins must be removed when hot – or at least warm – or the helpers will spend hours peeling the skins off the almonds. Hot is good. Also, remember that no almond is to be wasted ... or eaten. Note: The boiling should be done by an Almond Master because if the almonds stay in the water too long, they’ll loose their crisp.
3. Discard the skins. (This always killed grandmother: Surely there was some way those skins can be used? Perhaps a soup? Or fried in eggs?)
4. Cooking the almonds: When the almonds are all blanched and skinned, find the biggest, heaviest cast-iron fry-pan ever made. Turn the stove on medium-high and plop great blobs of butter into it. When the butter heats up, add almonds and fry until golden brown. Fish them out of the butter, put them on paper-towel-lined plates, salt liberally and repeat until all the almonds are cooked. The pan will have to be cleaned regularly and the butter replaced as the butter starts to burn.

Homemade Chicken and Noodles

---

Ingredients

• Whole chicken
• Chicken broth
• Water (as needed)
• 1½ teaspoon salt (divided)
• 2 cups flour
• 2 large eggs, beaten slightly
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 teaspoon baking soda

Directions

1. Cook chicken until done and de-bone. Put meat in large pot and cover with chicken broth. Add water if necessary to cover. Add 1 teaspoon salt. Bring to a simmer.
2. While heating meat and broth, combine flour, eggs, milk, ½ teaspoon salt, and baking soda. Stir just until mixed. Do not over-mix or noodles will be tough. Dough should look like biscuit dough. Add more milk if necessary.
3. Turn out dough on floured pastry board and roll out like a pie crust. Turn up one edge and roll into a log shape. Cut into long, ¼-inch wide noodles, unrolling them as you cut them. Let them dry somewhat, then drop them into the simmering broth, stirring them gently. Cook for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Enjoy!

Caramelized Onion and Pepper Jack Cream of Potato Soup

---

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
• 8 strips bacon, cut into large pieces
• 5 cups chicken stock
• 6-7 large russet potatoes, peeled and chopped into large chunks
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 2-3 cups whole milk (approximately)
• 1/4 pound Pepper Jack slices

Directions

1. Melt butter in a large pan over medium-low heat and add sliced onions. Let this sit for a while – up to 30 minutes – stirring occasionally. You want the onions to be very melted, but not browned/burned.
2. As the onions cook, place potatoes, stock, and water (enough to ensure the potatoes are covered) in a large stock pot. Boil this until potatoes are fork-tender. Turn off heat and drain.
3. Return the potatoes to the pot and let sit. Add the cooked onions to this. In the same pan the onions were cooked in, add the bacon and cook until crispy. Add three spoonfuls of bacon grease to the potatoes and onions, and drain the rest of the fat off. Place bacon bits on a paper towel to drain any remaining grease.
4. Over medium-low heat, add the cream to the potatoes. Blend (if you have a hand-held blender) or use a hand mixer to cream the potatoes. Slowly add milk until it reaches a consistency you like. Some people like it thicker, some people like it thinner; that’s totally up to you. Add the slices of cheese to the soup, and stir occasionally until the cheese has completely melted. Serve with crumbled bacon on top and enjoy!

Nutella Cinnamon Rolls

---

Ingredients

• 1 package pre-made crescent rolls
• Nutella
• Cinnamon

For icing:

• 4 ounces butter (softened to room temperature)
• 4 ounces cream cheese (softened to room temperature)
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350 and grease a muffin tin.
2. Unroll the crescent roll sheet
3. Knead the seams together.
4. Spread a thin layer of Nutella all over the sheet, leaving 1/4 inch borders, then sprinkle with cinnamon,
5. Carefully roll into a log-like shape.
6. Using string, slice into 8 even sized pieces and arrange on a muffin tin.
7. Bake 12-15 minutes.
8. While the rolls are baking: beat together icing ingredients until smooth.
9. Once rolls are done baking, spread icing on hot rolls and serve.

Blanded Butternut Squash Soup

---

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 carrot, diced
• 1 celery stalk, diced
• 1 onion, diced
• 4 cups cubed butternut squash, fresh or frozen
• ½ teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
• 4 cups chicken broth
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions

1. Heat oil in a large soup pot.
2. Add carrot, celery, and onion. Cook until vegetables have begun to soften and onion turns translucent, 3 to 4 minutes.
3. Stir in butternut squash, thyme, chicken broth, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until squash is fork-tender, about 30 minutes.
4. Use an immersion blender to purée soup, or, let the soup cool slightly and carefully purée in small batches in an upright blender.

NOTES: Blending hot soup in large quantities can be dangerous, so proceed with caution. Also, this soup freezes well. Serves six.

Horseradish Beef Crostini

---

Ingredients

• 1 loaf French bread
• 2 ounces extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic (or more if desired)
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/4 cup fresh ground or prepared Silver Spring horseradish (or more, depending on your taste buds)
• 1 pound roast beef, thinly sliced (the deli can do this for you)
• 1 bunch green onions (white and green parts) or chives
• nonstick spray

Directions

1. Set the oven to broil.
2. Wrap a baking sheet with tinfoil for easy clean-up.
3. Cut the bread into 1/2-inch slices and place on a greased baking sheet.
4. Peel the garlic cloves and cut them in half.
5. Brush each slice with a little olive oil and rub some of the garlic onto each slice.
6. Place the baking sheet under the broiler and carefully toast the bread.
7. Remove from the oven and set aside. Let cool if you’re not serving right away.
8. Mix the sour cream and horseradish together in a bowl.
9. Cut the roast beef slices in half lengthwise.
10. Trim the root off the green onions as close to the root as possible. Remove any excess white skin. Cut off the top inch or so of the top of the onion and slice into small, round pieces.
11. Spread the horseradish mixture onto the bread and top with one or two slices of roast beef and garnish with green onion pieces.

©2015 Silver Spring Foods, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Homemade Peanut Butter Cups

---

Ingredients

Quantities vary based on the desired number of peanut butter cups. Two large containers of peanut butter and four sheets of almond bark will make approximately 175 cups.

• powdered sugar
• almond bark
• vanilla extract
• peanut butter

Directions

1. Lay desired number of baking cup wrappers out on cookie sheet(s).
2. Mix peanut butter and powered sugar together in a bowl until you can roll the peanut butter into a ball without having it sticking to your hand.
3. Place peanut butter ball into baking cup wrapper.
4. Repeat until all wrappers are filled with peanut butter balls.
5. Place almond bark, peanut butter, and teaspoon of vanilla extract into bowl.
6. Place bowl into microwave and heat until all ingredients can be stirred together into a delicious chocolate mix.
7. Pour chocolate mix into cups. Repeat until all cups are filled with chocolate.
8. Allow cups to cool and harden in a refrigerator or cool environment. Enjoy and share!

General Tso’s Chicken

---

Ingredients

• Vegetable oil spray
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 3 large egg whites
• 5 cups (5 ounces) Kellogg’s Corn Flakes cereal, finely crushed
• 1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed of all visible fat, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 2/3 cups water
• 1/3 cup low-sodium soy sauce
• 1/4 cup apricot jam
• 3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 2 teaspoons canola oil
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Directions

1. Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 475 degrees. Line rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil, top with wire rack, and spray rack with oil spray. Spread flour into shallow dish. Whisk egg whites until foamy in second shallow dish. Spread Corn Flakes crumbs into third shallow dish. Pat chicken dry with paper towels. Working in batches, dredge chicken in flour, dip in egg whites, then coat with Corn Flakes, pressing gently to adhere; lay on prepared wire rack.
2. Spray chicken with oil spray. Bake until chicken registers 160 degrees and coating is brown and crisp, 12 to 15 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, whisk water, soy sauce, apricot jam, hoisin, cornstarch, and vinegar together in bowl. Heat oil in 12-inch skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add garlic, ginger, and pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Whisk in soy sauce mixture, bring to simmer, and cook until thickened, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat, cover, and keep warm.
4. When chicken is cooked, return sauce to simmer over medium-low heat. Add cooked chicken and toss to coat. Serve.

Khao Piak - Laotian Rice Noodle Soup

---

Ingredients

For the broth:

• 1 whole chicken (raw or rotisserie)
• 12 cups of water or enough to cover
• 1 stalk lemongrass
• fish sauce to taste

For the noodles:

• 1 package (16 ounces) rice flour
• 1 1/2 packages (21 ounces) tapioca flour
• 2-3 cups of boiling hot water, enough to form dough

Garnishes:

• sliced green onions
• chopped cilantro
• bean sprouts
• fried garlic
• soy sauce
• ground white pepper
• lime wedges
• chili oil

Note: My mom rarely measures anything so this is my best estimate. Good luck!

Directions

1. If using a raw chicken, cut the chicken into quarters and place in large stock pot. Add 12 cups of water or enough to cover chicken. Add rest of broth ingredients and simmer for several hours until chicken is cooked. (This is a good time to make the noodles.) Remove chicken and allow it to cool before shredding. Add shredded chicken back into pot, and keep broth on low simmer.
2. If you use a rotisserie chicken, you do not have to boil the chicken for several hours since it is already cooked. Shred the chicken and add to water with rest of broth ingredients. Bring to a boil and let simmer while you make the noodles.
3. In a large bowl, mix the rice flour and tapioca flour together (set aside about a cup). Slowly add boiling water to the mixture and stir so it forms a lumpy dough. Dough will be very hot! Carefully form dough into a ball.
4. Dust a flat surface with the flour that was set aside, and knead the dough for several minutes. If the dough is sticky, add a little flour. Divide the dough into smaller balls. Use a rolling pin to roll them out to about 1/8 inch thickness. Cut into 1/4 inch strips of noodles. Place noodles in a bowl and dust with flour to keep from sticking. Continue rolling and cutting the strips, adding to the bowl.
5. Bring the chicken broth to a boil.
6. Add a small handful of noodles to the boiling broth. Stir as you continue adding the noodles a handful at a time to prevent them from sticking together. Boil for a few more minutes.
7. Ladle Khao Piak into bowls. Garnish to your liking!

Buttermilk Pumpkin Pancakes

---

Ingredients

• 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cup whole wheat flour
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2/3 cup milk
• 2/3 cup canned pumpkin
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• Vegetable oil for coating the griddle
• Maple syrup for topping

Directions

Mix dry ingredients together in a large bowl. Mix together wet ingredients in a separate bowl. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients, stirring just until moistened. Coat a cooking griddle lightly with vegetable oil and heat. Ladle batter onto hot griddle to make individual pancakes. Cook until bubbles on top begin to pop and bottoms are browning. Turn onto second side and cook until golden brown. Serve with maple syrup.

Diced Rutabaga

---

Ingredients

• 1-2 rutabagas (depending on size of rutabaga and the number if servings needed)
• Flour
• Butter
• Salt and pepper

Directions

1. Dice rutabagas and boil until tender.
2. Add a stick of butter (more or less depending on size of the baga).
3. Sprinkle with flour (enough to absorb the butter which coats each cubed rutabaga).
4. Add salt and pepper to taste.