Green Salad with roasted pecans, apples, and feta

I was going to bring this to Sarah and Miguel's for Thanksgiving but dinner was cancelled :( But I made it the next day for Gerald and me. It's excellent!!!

5 ounces (about 5 cups) spring greens salad blend

1 large or 2 small Granny Smith apple(s) (I used honeycrisp)

⅓ cup dried cranberries

¼ cup pepitas (green pumpkin seeds) or chopped raw pecans (I used roasted chopped pecans)

2 ounces chilled feta cheese, crumbled (about ⅓ cup)

Apple cider vinaigrette

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 ½ tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1 ½ teaspoons honey

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard (I used stone ground mustard)

¼ teaspoon fine sea salt

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Naan with garlic butter

I MADE THIS ON JULY 29, 2020.  IT CAME OUT GREAT!  THERE WERE NO LEFTOVERS.  UNFORTUNATELY, I FORGOT TO TAKE A PICTURE :(

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup warm water
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast (about 2 1/4 teaspoons)
• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (or 2 cups white whole wheat flour + 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour) I used 3 C all-purpose flour and 1/2 C whole wheat flour
• 1/4 cup plain yogurt
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) butter
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• (optional topping: chopped fresh cilantro)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Stir together warm water and honey until the honey has dissolved.
2. Add the water mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer with the dough attachment, and sprinkle the yeast on top of the water.  Give the yeast a quick stir to mix it in with the water.  Then let it sit for 5-10 minute until the yeast is foamy.
3. Turn the mixer onto low speed, and add gradually flour, yogurt, salt, baking powder, and egg.  Increase speed to medium-low, and continue mixing the dough for 2-3 minutes, or until the dough is smooth.  (The dough will still be slightly sticky, but should form into a ball that pulls away from the sides of the mixing bowl.)
4. Remove dough from the mixing bowl, and use your hands to shape it into a ball.  Grease the mixing bowl (or a separate bowl) with olive oil or cooking spray, then place the dough ball back in the bowl and cover it with a damp towel.  Place in a warm location (I set mine by the sunny window) and let it rise for 1 hour until the dough has nearly doubled in size.
5. Meanwhile, heat the butter in a small saute pan over medium heat until melted.  Add garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes until fragrant.  Then remove butter from heat, strain out and discard the garlic, leaving the infused melted butter behind.  Set aside.
6. Once the dough is ready, transfer it to a floured work surface.  Then cut the dough into 8 separate pieces. Roll each into a ball with your hands, then place on the floured surface and use a rolling pin to roll out the dough into a large circle (or oval, or whatever shape it takes) until the dough is a little less than 1/4-inch thick.  Brush dough lightly with the garlic-infused butter on both sides.
7. Heat a large cast-iron skillet or heavy saute pan over medium-high heat.  Add a piece of the rolled-out dough to the pan and cook for 1 minute, or until the dough begins to bubble and the bottom turns lightly golden.  Flip the dough and cook on the second side for 30-60 seconds, or until the bottom is golden.  Then transfer the naan to a separate plate, and cover with a towel.  Repeat with remaining dough until all of the naan pieces are cooked.
8. Keep the naan covered with the towel until ready to serve, so that it doesn’t dry out.  Serve sprinkled with fresh cilantro, if desired.

Sandies (from Fusayo Sakasegawa Scannell)

Ingredients

• 3/4 C softened butter (1 1/2 C = THREE sticks)
• 1 tsp vanilla (2 tsp vanilla)
• 1 T water (2 T water)
• 1/3 C sugar (2/3 C sugar)
• 1/8 tsp salt (1/4 tsp salt)
• 2 C sifted flour (4 C flour)
• 1 C nut meats, chopped fine (2 C nuts) 
• 1 12-ounce chocolate chips (perhaps 1 1/2 bags?  I use mini chocolate chips)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 300 deg. F.
2. Combine butter, vanilla, water, sugar, and salt.  Blend well.
3. Stir in flour.
4. Add nuts and chocolate.  
5. Form in 1" balls.  Place on UN-GREASED cookie sheet.  These cookies don't spread, so you can place the balls very close together.
6. Bake at 300 deg. for 30 minutes.  I found it takes longer than 30 minutes to get a nice brown bottom.  
7. Roll while still warm in powdered sugar.

Mango Bread (Fusayo Sakasegawa Scannell)

Ingredients

• 2 C flour
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 C vegetable oil
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 C sugar
• 2 C mashed mangoes
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 C raisins, optional
• 1/2 C nuts, optional

Directions

1. Sift flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon.
2. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients mixture and add eggs, oil, vanilla, sugar, mangoes, raisins and nuts.
3. Pour into well-greased loaf pans.
4. Let stand 20 minutes before baking.
5. Bake one hour in a 325 to 350 degrees oven.

Almond Cookies (by Fusayo Sakasegawa Scannell)

Ingredients

• 3 C flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 egg
• 1 C sugar
• 1 1/3 C shortening
• 1/2 tsp yellow coloring (optional)
• 1 tsp almond extract
• Blanched almonds or red food coloring

Directions

1. Sift flour, baking soda, and salt together.
2. Beat egg with fork until lemon colored.  Add almond extract and yellow food coloring.
3. Cream sugar and shortening well, add egg, and mix thoroughly.
4. Add dry ingredients gradually.
5. Roll into balls about 1" in diameter, and place on greased cookie sheet.
6. Press an indentation in center.
7. Fill the center with half of a blanched almond or dot it with the end of a chopstick in red coloring.
8. Bake 12 minutes in 350 deg. oven.

Cookie Press Butter Cookies (by Fusayo Sakasegawa Scannell)

Ingredients

• 1 pound butter
• 2 C sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 5 C flour

Directions

• Cream butter, add sugar, eggs, vanilla.
• Add flour and salt which have been sifted together.
• Press through cookie press.
• Bake about 20 minutes in 350 degree oven.

   

Congo Bars (From Fusayo Sakasegawa Scannell)

Ingredients

• 2 3/4 C sifted flour
• 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2/3 C liquid shortening
• 2 1/2 C brown sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 C nuts
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 12-ounce chocolate chips

Directions

1. Melt shortening, add sugar.
2. Beat until light.
3. Add eggs one by one.  Beat after each.
4. Add dry ingredients.
5. Add vanilla, nuts, chips.
6. Bake in greased 15 1/2" x 10 1/2" pan about 20 to 30 minutes at 350 degrees F.

Chocolate Crinkles (from Fusayo Sakasegawa Scannell)

Ingredients

• 1/2 C vegetable oil
• 4 squares unsweetened chocolate
• 2 C sugar
• 2 C flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 4 eggs

Directions

1. Mix oil, chocolate, and sugar.
2. Add eggs, one by one.
3. Then add vanilla and remaining ingredients.
4. Chill to make handling easier.
5. Roll into balls, then into powdered sugar.
6. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes.

New York Cheesecake (from Julie Scharnberg)

**MAKE A DAY AHEAD for best results**

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Crust

• 1 1/4 C crumbled graham crackers
• 1/4 C butter, melted
• 1/4 C sugar

Mix together with fork.  Press in bottom of a springform pan (10" diameter).  Save a handful of crumbs for topping.  Bake for 5 minutes.  Let cool while make cake mixture.

Cake

• 3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened to room temperature
• 1 1/2 C sugar
• 16 ounce sour cream
• 1/2 pint heavy cream
• 4 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla

Directions

1. Cream softened cream cheese.
2. Add sugar and beat.
3. Add eggs one at a time, beat until mixed in.
4. Add heavy cream.  Mix.
5. Add vanilla and mix.
6. Pour into springform pan.  
7. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.
8. Turn off oven, leave cake in oven for one hour.  Remove
9. Cool 1 to 2 hours before refrigerating.
10. Refrigerate 6 to 12 hours.
11. Cover with wrap.
12. DO NOT OPEN OVEN DOOR AT ANYTIME FOR THE 2 HOURS.

Peanut Butter Clouds (Fusayo Sakasegawa Scannell) Ono!

Cream:     1 C butter
                 1 C peanut butter

Gradually add after sifting together:

• 1 C sugar
• 1 C powdered sugar

Add to above:

• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 C flour
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt

Directions

1. Chill dough.
2. Shape into balls 1-inch in diameter and place on greased cookie sheet (or parchment paper).
3. Flatten with fork dipped in flour.
4. Bake at 350 deg. for 12 to 15 minutes.
5. Makes about 4 dozen.
   

Irish Soda Bread (Marilyn O'Reilly)

Irish Soda Bread sliced.

Waiting for it to cool to eat!  

I made this on May 3, 2020.  This one's a keeper.  Super delicious and not dense as some non-yeast breads!
Great with butter.










Ingredients

• 3 C flour
• 1/4 C sugar
• 1 T baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 4 T butter (1/4 C, 1/2 stick)
• 2 T caraway seeds, optional
• 1 C raisins
• 1 C buttermilk
• 1 egg

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and soda, salt and stir well to mix.
3. Add the butter and rub in until the butter disappears in the dry ingredients.
4. Stir in the caraway seeds (if used) and the raisins.
5. In a small bowl, whisk the buttermilk and egg together and mix in to the dough mixture with a spatula.
6. Turn the dough out on a floured work surface and fold it over on itself several times, shaping it into a round loaf.  
7. Transfer the load to a cookie sheet or jelly roll pan covered with parchment paper or foil and cut a cross in the top.
8. Bake for 15 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 and cook for about 15 to 20 minutes more, until well colored and a toothpick plunged into the center emerges clean.
9. Cool the bread on a rack and serve with plenty of sweet butter and orange marmalade.

Simply Delicious Apple Cake (from Honolulu Federal Recipe Calendar 1992)

Ingredients

• 1 C oil
• 2 C sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 4 eggs
• 3 C self-rising flour
• 6 tart green apples
• 2 T sugar
• 2 T ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 deg. F
2. Grease and flour an angel food cake pan or bundt pan.
3. In a large bowl, combine oil, 2 C sugar and vanilla; blend well.
4. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
5. Stir in self-rising flour.  
6. DO NOT use an electric mixer.
7. Core and slice apples.  Sprinkle with the 2 T sugar, cinnamon and cloves; mix well.
8. Pour half of the batter into prepared pan.
9. Top with apples.  Pour on remaining batter
10. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until cake tests done.  
11. Remove from oven and let cake stand for 10 minutes; then remove from pan onto a wire rack and let cool.
12. Makes 12 servings.  

Pineapple Bars

Ingredients:

• 1/2 C butter (1 stick), softened
• 1 C sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 C flour
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 t salt
• 1 1/4 C crushed pineapple, well drained
• 1/2 nuts
• powdered sugar for garnish

Directions

1. In a large bowl, mix together butter, sugar, and eggs.
2. Beat in flour, baking soda, and salt.
3. Stir in pineapple and nuts.
4. Spread into a greased and floured 9" x 9" square pan.
5. Bake at 350 degrees F for 25 to 30 minutes. 
6. Cool; sprinkle with powdered sugar
7. Cut into squares

• I made a different recipe on April 8, 2021.  Took it to dinner at Sarah and Miguel's.  It was good, but not great. Don't think I'll make it again :(
• I deleted the original recipe and posted a different one above.  I took it to a neighborhood block party on Saturday, Oct. 30, 2021.  It was good; still not fabulous but I think I'll make it again.  I have to figure out how to keep the bars from sticking to the pan.  
• I greased the dish but didn't grease and flour.  Maybe that's the trick?

Crispy Coconut Almond Cookies (Jeannie Schryer)

Ingredients

• 1 C butter, softened
• 1 C sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 C flour
• 1 1/3 C almonds (coarsely ground)
• 1 1/3 C coconut flakes (I used unsweetened coconut.  If using sweetened, I'd cut down on the sugar.  

Directions

1. Cream butter and sugar - add vanilla and mix.
2. Add flour, almonds, coconut and mix well.  
3. Form in to walnut-sized balls and flatten with palms and fingers evenly.
4. Place on un-greased baking sheet.
5. Bake at 295 deg. (gas oven) or 300 deg. (electric oven).
6. Bake for 22 minutes - cool on aluminum foil.
7. Put cooled cookies back on cookie sheets and bake at same temperature for another 12 minutes.
8. Cool on foil.

I made these on January 29, 2021.  NEXT time, I need to flatten the balls more before cooking.  Mine tastes great but don't look as flat as the other picture :(

Focaccia Bread

• Ingredients
• 1 1/3 C warm water
• 2 tsp sugar or honey
• 1 (0.25 ounce) package active-dry yeast
• 3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
• 2 teaspoons flaked sea salt, plus extra for sprinkling
• 2 sprigs fresh rosemary

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Add warm water (about 110°F, which you can measure with a thermometer if you want to be sure it’s the right temp) and sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer with the dough attachment, and stir to combine.  Sprinkle the yeast on top of the water.  Give the yeast a quick stir to mix it in with the water.  Then let it sit for 5-10 minute until the yeast is foamy.
2. Turn the mixer onto low speed, and add gradually flour, olive oil and salt.  Increase speed to medium-low, and continue mixing the dough for 5 minutes.  (If the dough is too sticky and isn’t pulling away from the sides of the bowl, add in an extra 1/4 cup flour while it is mixing.)
3. Remove dough from the mixing bowl, and use your hands to shape it into a ball.  Grease the mixing bowl (or a separate bowl) with olive oil or cooking spray, then place the dough ball back in the bowl and cover it with a damp towel.  Place in a warm location (I set mine by the window) and let it rise for 45-60 minutes, or until the dough has nearly doubled in size.
4. Preheat oven to 400°F.  Turn the dough onto a floured surface, and roll it out into a large circle or rectangle until that the dough is about 1/2-inch thick*.  Cover the dough with a greased piece of plastic wrap, and let the dough continue to rise for another 20 minutes.  I did this second rise on a pizza pan.
5. Remove the plastic wrap, and transfer the dough to a large baking sheet.  Use your fingers to poke deep dents (seriously, poke all the way down to the baking sheet!) all over the surface of the dough.  Then drizzle a tablespoon or two of olive oil evenly all over the top of the dough, and sprinkle evenly with the fresh rosemary needles and sea salt.
6. Bake for 20 minutes, or until the dough is slightly golden and cooked through.  Remove from the oven, and drizzle with a little more olive oil if desired.
7. Slice, and serve warm.