Cook's Corner

Welcome to the Cook's Corner!

It's almost holiday time. So this week I would like to share some more holiday recipes. This week we are featuring some variations to the traditional oatmeal cookie and a butterscotch freezer cookie which can be prepared ahead and later baked in a snap for an inpromptu coffee or dinner party. I am also including recipes for a quick and easy meal which can be served for the family or perhaps for a special date around the holidays. Impress your girlfriend or boyfriend with a delicious home cooked meal.

Happy shopping and baking to everyone.

Previews - Look forward to more holiday recipes next week. We'll start to focus on recipes specially designed for your New Year's party. Keep an eye out in January for a cooking contest. Prizes will include a free web page on the Herndon/Reston web, free cooking class for you and a couple friends, or free advertising. Your recipe will also be featured in an upcoming Cook's Corner.

Cook's Corner can also be accessed through the columns section of the Herndon/Reston web.

Please continue sending me your comments, inquiries and suggestions.

On to the recipes:

Sue Lampe Chicken

chicken legs, breasts or thighs

Lay out the chicken pieces in a shallow baking pan. You can remove the skin to make a lower fat recipe. When cooked the skin becomes golden brown and crispy. Drizzle lemon juice over the chicken. Sprinkle lightly with salt, pepper and garlic powder. I prefer to use freshly grated parmesan cheese. Sprinkle this on lightly last. Bake the chicken in a 350F oven for 30-45 minutes, the times varying depending upon the size of the pieces of chicken. You can check the chicken by cutting near a bone and making sure it is white and no longer pink. If the chicken meat is pink it needs to be cooked longer. Serve with the two following recipes green beans with sliced almonds and egg noodles with parmesan cheese for an elegant meal.

French Cut Green Beans with Almonds

16 oz french cut green beans

2 teaspoons butter

1/4 cup almond slivers

Cook the french cut beans. Toss with butter and almond slivers. Adjust the amount of vegetable being cooked as per the number of people you are serving. This recipe will serve 6-8 people.

Parmesan Egg Noodles

1 package egg noodles

1-2 teaspoons butter

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

1 Tablespoon parsley (fresh should be chopped) *optional

Cook the egg noodles until they are tender. Drain and mix in a little butter. Sprinkle the grated cheese over the noodles (I prefer to use freshly grated parmesan cheese) and stir to blend in the cheese. You can also sprinkle the noodles with a little dried or fresh (chopped) parsley. for both sight and taste appeal. This recipe serves 6-8, adjust as necessary for the size of your party.

Butterscotch Freezer Cookies

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Cream the sugars and margarine. Add the eggs and mix until well blended. Stir in the rest of the ingredients. Place half of dough on a sheet of wax paper. Roll into log form and freeze at least 2-3 hours until chilled. Repeat with second half of dough. Cut dough into 1/4 inch slices. Bake at 350F for 8-12 minutes until golden brown. Put logs in plastic bags if you would like to freeze the dough for a longer period of time.

This cookie dough is great to keep on hand in the freezer. To quickly make freshly baked cookies just heat the oven, take out a log of dough and slice, place on cookie sheet and bake. Voila! Freshly baked cookies in about 15-20 minutes.

Almond Oatmeal Cookies

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 cup sliced almonds

Cream margarine and sugars. Mix in the egg and vanilla. Whisk together the dry ingredients. Mix the dry ingredients into the creamed ingredients thoroughly. Stir in the almond slices. Drop by heaping tablespoons onto the cookie tray. Bake at 375F for 10 minutes until golden brown.

Coconut Oatmeal Cookies

1/2 teaspoon coconut extract

2 cups flour

3 cups oatmeal

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup raisins

1/2 - 1 cup coconut flakes

Cream together the butter, shortening and sugars. Mix in the eggs, vanilla and coconut extract. (Coconut extract can be found in the baking aisle in the same place as vanilla. If you can not find coconut extract substitute vanilla extract.) Whisk together the dry ingredients. Mix the dry ingredients, including the raisins and coconut, with the creamed mixture. Drop by heaping tablepoons onto the cookie sheet. Bake in a 375F oven for 12-14 minutes.

Thank you for stopping by the Cook's Corner. There will be new recipes and suggestions next week. Please send your favorite recipes, suggestions, comments and questions to cookscorner@townweb.com. I look forward to hearing from you.

Brief Biography: Lisa Carlson has been a cooking instructor for over three years with the Fairfax County Adult Education program. She also teaches cooking and art classes for children and adults at the Herndon Community Center. She studied cooking during her junior year of college in Scotland, while she traveled throughout Europe, and during her year long tenure in Japan. She has appeared in 9 television programs on cooking, puppetry, and gift basket design on the Fairfax County public access channel.

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