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Showing posts from March, 2020

Chonky Boys: The Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches that Scream Summer!

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Featuring my thick and nuggy Chonky Boy Chocolate Chip Cookies, these ice cream sandwiches are the stuff that summer dreams are made of.  If you've ever had the Cookie Ice Cream Sandwich at Disneyland , you are going to LOVE these!  These big and bold chocolate chip cookies are based on a recipe from my culinary school studies at Auguste Escoffier, but with a few modifications to give them that Jennuine touch.  They make the perfectas book for a fat slice of real vanilla bean ice cream.  And those mini chips?  You just gotta have that extra cronch! Thank goodness this recipe only makes 8 sandwiches, otherwise I would be eating them for breakfast lunch and dinner.  This way, my big family can help save me from my inner child diet-saboteur.   Print With Image Without Image Chonky Boy Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches Yield: 8 Author: Jenn Erickson Loaded with chocolate chips and buttery, brown-sugary vanilla flavor, these mall-sized cookies form a perfect partnership with a

Recipe: Tempura Fried Wild Mustard Blossoms

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In a time of many shortages, there's one thing that is not in short supply -- Wild Mustard.  If you drive pretty much anywhere in California at this time of year, this prolific weed is seemingly everywhere.  Did you know that it's delicious?  It's great raw in salads -- it tastes a bit like broccolini -- and adds a lot of color and fun.  It's free and it's nutritious.   Wild mustard grows all over our property, so at this time of year, I send my kids out back with a basket and scissors to snip the tiny clusters of blossoms.  They're delicate, so to wash, we put them in a bowl filled with cold water and gently dunk them.  Dirt and other unwanted debris sinks to the bottom and the blossoms float.  My families absolutely favorite way to eat them is what we call "Popcorn Mustard Flowers".  They're essentially foraged, washed and towel-dried mustard blossoms dipped in a simple tempura batter and fried.  They taste like broccoli tempura and

Recipe: Monterey Fishermans Wharf Clam Chowder

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Inspired by the rich and legendary clam chowders of Old Fishermans Wharf in Monterey, California, this clam chowder is a culinary tour of our historic seaside town -- It's the salt air on your skin, the sound of the sea lions and gulls, the slow fog drifting across the bay, and the flavors of John Steinbeck's Cannery Row. I grew up on the Monterey Peninsula.  What I looked forward to the most, when visiting the Wharf was getting a sample of clam chowder, getting a box of freshly made caramel corn from Carousel Candies, and then feeding the sea lions -- in that order. I was delighted to pass on the tradition of Monterey-style clam chowder to my students this past year, with this perfected version of a local recipe that was handed down to me and adapted for small-batch home cooking.  It was such a hit with my students that it was requested, made and served all football season long at our school's concession stand.  Now, I'm happy to share the recipe with everyone.

Recipe: Apple Pie Tacos

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Nothing says The Ides of March are nearly upon us like an Apple Pie Taco toting Triceratops.  Am I right?  Well, maybe Shakespeare and Julius Caesar, but I digress. Pi day snuck up on us this year. And, by March 14 things in the world were already pretty sketchy. There was no time to make prep pie crusts with my students for honest to goodness pi-shaped pies. Not knowing if we'd be returning to school the following week, I figured we'd lighten up the mood with something fun and easy -- Apple Pie Tacos. If you have some apples and flour tortillas sitting around, you're more than half-way there! Start by making an easy apple pie filling. This filling can be frozen or canned for future use. Apple Pie Filling 4-6 large Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and sliced into bite-sized chunks (or however you like your pie apples) 2 teaspoons lemon juice 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt (use less if you only have table salt 1/8 teaspoon gr

Tastes Like Childhood ~ Classic Caramel Corn Recipe

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When I went back to teaching full-time as a Culinary Arts instructor, blogging moved to the back burner.  But the world sure has shaken up the status quo these past few weeks.  I'm thankful that I am still able to teach from home, and like everyone, am adjusting to this strange new world, sequestered away with my husband and six not-so-little monkeys. For my own sanity, and hopefully as a way of providing some home-cookery-catharsis to others, it seems like a good time to start sharing some of the recipes I've developed and fine-tuned over the years for my students.   Like one of my all-time favorite sources for recipes, America's Test Kitchen , my high school classroom is a bit of an America's Teenage Test Kitchen -- my recipes go through rigorous testing and refinement, ultimately passing the can-do test for 100 or more teenagers at all different academic levels, culinary experience levels, and abilities. With most people stuck at home and resource

The ORIGINAL-- Macaroon Kiss Cookie Recipe {Best Flippin' Cookie EVER!}

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I originally posted this recipe way back on 12/22/11.  It was my first recipe to go viral, and has been pinched and reposted ever since.  This cookie remains my favorite cookie of all time.  It's been in my family since the mid 1980s, so, like, Rad! The original source has long been forgotten, but this cookie is absolutely unforgettable!   It starts with a rich cream cheese and vanilla dough with just the slightest hint of fresh squeezed orange.  The dough is coconut laden, and gets an extra roll in coconut before baking.  As the cookie bakes, the coconut on the outside gets toasty, while the cookie remains soft and chewy.  Pure bliss...plus a KISS! Please pin and share! Print With Image Without Image The ORIGINAL-- Macaroon Kiss Cookie Recipe Yield: 48 cookies Author: Jenn Erickson Prep time: Cook time: Total time: It starts with a rich cream cheese and vanilla dough with just the slightest hint of fresh squeezed orange. The dough is coconut laden, and gets an ex