Echoing Green Recipes

Check out the Echoing Green Staff Recipes Below

Carolyn Bess: Childhood Snickerdoodle Cookies

Dough:

• ½ cup each butter and shortening (or marg), at room temperature
• 1 ½ cups sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 ½ teaspoons cream of tartar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour

Beat butter, shortening, sugar and eggs together until creamy. Add cream of tartar, baking soda and salt, then blend. Add flour and mix well. Chilling overnight is preferred; otherwise at least two hours

Topping:

• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Combine topping ingredients in small, shallow bowl. After chilling, shape dough into balls about 1 ½ inches in diameter. Drop dough balls into topping mixture and coat entire surface well. Place on ungreased baking sheets about 2 inches apart.

Bake in a 375°F degree oven for 10 minutes or until golden brown. Let stand one minute and remove to cooling racks.

Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

Shalena Broadnax: Mac and Cheddar Cheese with Chicken and Broccoli

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan
• 1 pound chicken breast tenders, chopped
• Salt and pepper
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 pound macaroni elbows or cavatapi corkscrew shaped pasta twists
• 2 1/2 cups raw broccoli florets, available packaged in produce department
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 3 cups whole milk
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 3 cups yellow sharp Cheddar
• 1 tablespoon prepared Dijon mustard

Directions:

Place a pot of water on to boil for macaroni.

Heat a medium pan over medium to medium high heat. Add extra-virgin olive oil and chicken and season with salt and pepper. Saute a couple of minutes then add onion and cook another 5 to 7 minutes until onions are tender and chicken is cooked through. Turn off heat and reserve.

To boiling pasta water, add pasta and salt to season the cooking water. Cook 5 minutes, then add broccoli and cook 3 minutes more or until pasta is cooked to al dente and florets are just tender.

While pasta cooks, heat a medium sauce pot over medium heat. Add butter and melt, then add flour, cayenne and paprika and whisk together over heat until roux bubbles then cook a minute more. Whisk in milk and stock and raise heat a little to bring sauce to a quick boil. Simmer sauce to thicken about 5 minutes.

Drain macaroni or pasta and broccoli florets. Add back to pot and add chicken to the pasta and broccoli.

Add cheese to milk sauce and stir to melt it in, about a minute or so. Stir in mustard and season sauce with salt and pepper. Pour sauce over chicken and broccoli and cooked pasta and stir to combine. Adjust seasonings, transfer to a large serving platter and serve.

Recipe courtesy Rachael Ray

Leighton Britton: Mom’s Cheese Grits

Ingredients:

• 1 quart milk
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 cup grits
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 4 oz. Gruyere cheese
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Combine the grits and milk with half of the butter in a saucepan. Cook until thickens, 5-10 minutes. Add salt, pepper, and remaining butter. Take off the burner and stir in Gruyere. Pour into a greased 2 quart casserole. Sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake at 350* for 1 hour. Enjoy!

Lara Galinsky: Norman Galinsky's Truffled Asparagus and Mushrooms with Balsamic Glaze

Ingredients:   

• 1-1/4 lb. asparagus
• 3/4 lb. mixed mushrooms (portabella, shitaki, cremini or others)
• 1 to two tsp. white truffle flavored olive oil (I prefer white truffle)
• 1 tbl. Extra virgin olive oil
• 1-1/2 tbl. Balsamic vinegar (aged at least 10 years)
• Fleur Sel (sea salt) to taste
• Freshly ground white pepper to taste

Directions:

Break off the woody ends of the asparagus and discard.  Use a vegetable peeler to peel about 1-1/2 in. of the ends of the asparagus.  Steam the asparagus a few minutes until just crunchy and still bright green.  Cut the asparagus into 2 to 3 in. lengths. (They also could be kept whole, depending on how they will be presented.)  In a medium saucepan, toss the asparagus with the truffle oil and sauté for a few moments.  Season with salt and freshly ground pepper, and remove to a separate bowl.

Remove the mushroom stems. Clean and dry the mushrooms and cut them into uniform pieces about 1  to 1-1/2 in.  Add the extra virgin olive oil to the pan and heat.  Saute the mushrooms until tender and brown, and they give up their liquid.  Reduce the liquid in the pan.  Move the mushrooms to one side of the pan.    Add the balsamic vinegar to the open side of the same sauce pan. (It must be a decent quality aged balsamic vinegar with good body, not the watery caramel colored variety often found in the supermarket)  Heat the vinegar until it is hot and starts to caramelize (forms large bubbles in a small pool).  Take care not to boil it away or burn it.  When the large bubbles have formed, turn off the fire and quickly scoop the mushrooms into the small pool of hot vinegar, and toss with a slotted spoon to glaze them.

Add the truffled asparagus back into the pan and mix with the  glazed mushrooms. Warm the mixture and correct for salt and ground pepper.

This recipe works well also with broccoli, brussel sprouts, chopped kale, haricot vert, or sugar snaps.  Shopping tip: Fairway market in New York City (Broadway and 74th or 125th and West Side Highway) has an excellent selection of extra virgin olive oils, truffle oil, and balsamic vinegar.  Their house brand of balsamic is of excellent quality and is a bargin.

Regina Gennari: Ramen Omelet

Ingredients:

• 2 eggs
• 1 pack ramen noodles
• 1 green onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup of your favorite cheese

Directions:

Cook ramen as normal, drain and add the seasoning packet. Beat eggs together as if you were making an omelet, and add onion. Mix eggs into ramen. Get a no-stick pan and put it on medium heat. Place the egg/ramen mix into pan. After 2-3 minutes, sprinkle cheese on top of omelet and fold it over. Cook for another 3-4 minutes, and you’re done!

Blake Giffin: Sunday morning banana blueberry pancakes!

Sometimes in the summer I substitute the banana for a little lemon curd!

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs, well beaten
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 2/3 cup mashed banana
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups fresh blueberries

Directions:

Mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
Add eggs, milk, butter, bananas and vanilla.
Stir until well blended and smooth. Fold in blueberries.
Spoon about 1/3 cup of batter onto greased, preheated griddle or skillet.
Once bubbles begin to appear in the batter, flip only once.
Cook until the pancakes until light brown color.

Deva Jones: Sunny Day Rainbow Cake

Ingredients:

• 2 boxes white cake mix
• 24 oz of clear diet soda (2 cans, ginger ale and sprite work well)
• gel food colouring
• 16 oz whipped topping
• 2 oz instant fat-free sugar-free pudding mix (2 smallish boxes)

Directions:

Mix the cake mix with the soda according to regular instructions on box. It will be lumpy afterward. Again, you can use any white cake recipe you want, this is just how I do it.

Measure the total volume (by my estimate, 64 oz), then divide by 6 and measure into separate bowls. There are 8 oz in a cup, so 64/6 = 10 to 11 oz, or 1 cup + 2 tbsp.

Stir colour into each bowl with its own spoon. For the first colour into the pan, measure out 2/3 to 3/4 of your mix (in this case about 1 c) as close to the middle as you can. Drop in your first three colours, then work on the other pan with the last three colours. So if you’re doing rainbow order, the first pan should have red, then orange, then yellow, and now the purple, blue and green go into the second pan. As a recap, this is so both layers are roughly the same size.

Bake the cake for however long the box tells you to bake it. Check it when the box says to, but usually it’ll need an extra 5 or 10 minutes or maybe more because of the density of the soda method. Just keep baking, checking back every 5 minutes or so until a toothpick to the center comes out clean. Let cool completely before moving to a wire rack.

Meanwhile, make your frosting. Just mix the pudding mix in with the whipped topping for a few minutes. Dye if you’re into that.

Frost your fat-free cake with your fat-free whipped frosting. Eat.

Maritza Martinez: Rachel Ray’s Bourbon Street Balls with Pecans

Ingredients

• 4 cups whole pecans or pecan halves
• 2 cups crushed or processed vanilla cookies (recommended: Nilla wafers)
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 4 jiggers bourbon
• 3 tablespoons white syrup, (recommended: Karo)
• Butter, for fingertips

Directions

Roughly chop the pecans in a food processor. Remove 2 cups and reserve. Finely grind the remaining pecans in the food processor.

Combine ground pecans, Nilla wafers, confectioners' sugar, bourbon, and syrup. Coat finger tips with softened butter to help you roll. Shape mixture into balls 1 1/2 inches in diameter using an ice cream scoop. Roll in chopped pecans. Arrange balls on a dessert platter and serve. Ask for help rolling. Four hands make very quick work of this dessert!

(Via The Food Network)

Mailande Moran: Pumpkin Cheesecake

Crust

• 1 1/2 cups ground gingersnap cookies
• 1 1/2 cups toasted pecans (about 6 ounces)
• 1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted

Filling

• 4 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 2/3 cups sugar
• 1 1/2 cups canned solid pack pumpkin
• 9 tablespoons whipping cream
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground allspice
• 4 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon (about) purchased caramel sauce
• 1 cup sour cream

For Crust: Preheat oven to 350°F. Finely grind ground cookies, pecans and sugar in processor. Add melted butter and blend until combined. Press crust mixture onto bottom and up sides of 9-inch-diameter springform pan with 2 3/4-inch-high sides.

For Filling: Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar in large bowl until light. Transfer 3/4 cup mixture to small bowl; cover tightly and refrigerate to use for topping. Add pumpkin, 4 tablespoons whipping cream, ground cinnamon and ground allspice to mixture in large bowl and beat until well combined. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating just until combined. Pour filling into crust (filling will almost fill pan). Bake until cheesecake puffs, top browns and center moves only slightly when pan is shaken, about 1 hour 15 minutes. Transfer cheesecake to rack and cool 10 minutes. Run small sharp knife around cake pan sides to loosen cheesecake. Cool. Cover tightly and refrigerate overnight.

Bring remaining 3/4 cup cream cheese mixture to room temperature. Add remaining 5 tablespoons whipping cream to cream cheese mixture and stir to combine. Press down firmly on edges of cheesecake to even thickness. Pour cream cheese mixture over cheesecake,spreading evenly. Spoon caramel sauce in lines over cream cheese mixture. Using tip of knife, swirl caramel sauce into cream cheese mixture. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)

Release pan sides from cheesecake. Spoon sour cream into pastry bag fitted with small star tip (do not stir before using). Pipe decorative border around cheesecake and serve.

Corie Pope: Aunt Cindy’s Tortilla Soup

Ingredients:

• 1 medium-sized onion
• 3 garlic cloves, mashed
• 1 large jalapeno, seeded/chopped
• 1 T corn oil
• Saute the above
• Add and stir:
• 16 oz can stewed tomatoes, chopped
• 1 can tomato soup
• 6 cups chicken broth
• chicken, as desired
• 1 t. cumin
• 1/2 t. black pepper
• 1 t. chili powder
• 2 t. Worchestire sauce

Directions:

Simmer: 1-1 1/2 hours uncovered, over low heat.

Other Ingredients: Tortilla chips, lime juice, grated cheese, avocado

To serve: Crush tortilla chips in bottom of bowl. Squeeze lime juice over chips. Sprinkle grated cheese in bowl and add diced avocados. Ladle hot soup over all. Optional - sprinkle cilantro.

Anthony Showalter: Cakeman Raven's Red Velvet Cake

From Cakemanraven.com

Yields: Three, 9-inch layer cakes Baking Time: 15-20 minutes, 325 degrees pre-heated oven Level of Difficulty: Moderate.

Dry Ingredients: 2-1/2 cups of cake flour, 1 1/2 cups of granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon of baking soda, 1 teaspoon of fine salt and 1 teaspoon of cocoa powder.

Wet Ingredients: 1 cup of buttermilk, 2 eggs, 1 teaspoon of vinegar (white distilled), 1-1/2 cups of vegetable oil, 1 oz. of red food coloring and 1 tsp. of vanilla extract. Frosting: 4 cups of Confectioners Sugar, 1 lb. of cream cheese (room temperature), 1 lb. of butter (softened) and 2 tsp. of vanilla. extract.

Technique

Sift together all dry ingredients. Add liquid in an electric mixing bowl and beat on medium speed until well incorporated. Slowly add dry ingredients to bowl, until all ingredients are combined.

Bake @ 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes.

Frosting: Mix together the cream cheese and the softened butter. Gradually add confectioners sugar until it reaches desired sweetness and smoothness. Add 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract and frost the cake.

Serves 10-12

Enjoy a traditional Southern treat.

John Walker: Lemon Meringue Pie

From epicurious.com

For shell

* 1 recipe Pastry Dough for a single-crust 9- to 10-inch pie
* raw rice or pie weights for weighting shell

For filling

* 1 cup sugar
* 5 tablespoons cornstarch
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1 cup water
* 1/2 cup milk
* 4 large egg yolks
* 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
* 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
* 2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest

For meringue

* 4 large egg whites
* 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
* 1/2 cup sugar

Make shell:
On a lightly floured surface with a floured rolling pin roll out dough into a 13-inch round, (about 1/8 inch thick) and fit into a 9-inch (1-quart) pie plate. Trim edge of dough, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang, and crimp edge decoratively. Prick shell in several places with a fork and chill, covered, 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Line shell with wax paper and fill with rice or pie weights. Bake shell in middle of oven 10 minutes. Remove paper and rice carefully and bake shell until golden, about 12 minutes more. Cool shell in pie plate on a rack.

Lower oven temperature to 350°F.

Make filling:
In a heavy saucepan whisk together sugar, cornstarch, and salt and gradually whisk in water and milk, whisking until cornstarch is dissolved. In a bowl whisk together egg yolks. Cook milk mixture over moderate heat, whisking, until it comes to a boil. Gradually whisk about 1 cup milk mixture into yolks and whisk yolk mixture into milk mixture. Simmer mixture, whisking, 3 minutes. Remove pan from heat and whisk in butter, lemon juice, and zest until butter is melted. Cover surface of filling with plastic wrap.

Make meringue:
In another bowl with an electric mixer beat egg whites with cream of tartar and a pinch of salt until they hold soft peaks. Beat in sugar in a slow stream, beating until meringue just holds stiff peaks.

Pour filling into shell and spread meringue on top, covering filling completely, sealing it to pastry. Draw meringue up into peaks and bake pie in middle of oven until meringue is golden, about 15 minutes.