Caramel Apple Cider

1/2 cup cream
1/2 cup brown sugar
6 cups apple juice
bring cream and brown sugar to boil over med hear, stirring constantly. Add 6 cups apple juice, stir until warm.

Whipped topping:
beat 1 cup cream and 1 TBS brown sugar until thick.  Top cider with cream and (optional) toffee bits (or a crunched up Skor bar)

Shrimb and bacon pasta

I made this last night and loved it, but I didn't use a recipe, so I'm putting down what I did so I won't forget. 

Ingredients
1/2-1 lb shrimp
1/2 large onion
2-4 pieces cooked bacon
2-4 cloves of garlic, minced
some shredded parmesan
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil
butter (I used 1.5 TBSP altogether, but could use more :))
cooked pasta (about 8 oz)


Chop onion and saute in olive oil until clear.  Add some butter and the minced garlic.  Add shrimp, bacon and a handful of shredded Parmesan cheese and season with salt/pepper (may want to add a bit more olive oil and/or butter) and cook until the shrimp is done (just a few minutes).  Toss in with the pasta and add olive oil as needed so the pasta isn't dry. 

Vanilla Bean Ice Cream

Ingredients

• 1 whole Vanilla Bean, Split And Scraped
• 3 cups Half-and-half
• 2 cups Sugar
• 8 whole (up To 9) Large Egg Yolks
• 3 cups Heavy Cream

Preparation Instructions

Heat half-and-half and 2 cups sugar in a saucepan over low heat, adding vanilla "caviar" to the mixture. (You can also drop in the scraped vanilla bean, just to extract all the flavor. Make sure to discard the bean before moving to the next step.) Turn off heat when mixture is totally heated.
Beat egg yolks by hand or with an electric mixer until yolks are pale yellow and slightly thick. Temper the egg yolks by slowly drizzling into the 1 1/2 cups of hot half-and-half mixture, whisking constantly. After that, pour the egg yolk/half-and-half mixture into the pan containing the rest of the half-and-half mixture. Cook over low to medium-low heat (depending on how hot your stove gets) until quite thick, stirring constantly. Drain custard using a fine mesh strainer (not necessary, I didn't do this, though I could see it being a good idea if you're giving it to kids as the specks are quite noticeable), then pour into a bowl with the heavy cream. Stir to combine.
Chill mixture completely, then freeze in an ice cream maker until thick. Place container in freezer to harden for at least eight hours.
 

Found here.

I halved the recipe because my ice cream maker is too small for the whole thing, but I still used a whole vanilla bean.  It's so amazing!  It tastes like custard and doesn't get too hard in the freezer (which I love, all my other ice creams have gotten very hard in the freezer). 

Green Enchiladas

Ingredients:
*10 tomatillos (remove stems and boil until they are a transparent green, about 5 minutes)
*bunch of cilantro
*3 to 6 serrano peppers (6 will make it pretty hot, a bit too hot for me. Apparently, even 4 is too hot for Cory)
*chicken bouillon (powder form) (she didn't say how much...maybe 2 tsp or less)
*4 green onions
*1 jalapeño (optional) (I did not use this)
*1 normal sized cream of mushroom

I toast all the peppers and onions on the grill or on a pan to get them nice and dark. Take off the stems and throw in the blender with everything else listed above. Add the chicken bouillon and some salt to taste.

For this part you need:
*corn tortillas
*shredded cheese (I prefer munster, but also tastes good with colby jack)
*cooked chicken, shredded (probably 3-4 chicken breasts)

I then use a casserole dish and begin the first layer with tortillas, then on top of that shredded chicken and cheese and some of the salsa. Repeat until you have the desired amount of layers. Pour remaining salsa on top of the last layer of tortillas (remaining salsa should be about 60% of the original amount). Sprinkle another layer of cheese on top and stick in the oven at 350 for 15 minutes.

I'm sure you could also put chicken, cheese, and sauce inside individual tortillas and roll them up and then pour the remaining sauce and cheese and top.  We used flour tortillas and it was amazing!

Soft Pretzels

1 1/2 cup warm water

1 TBSP yeast

1 Tb sugar

1 tsp salt

4 cups flour

Add sugar to warm water then sprinkle yeast on top. Cover with a towel and let sit for 6-10 minutes as yeast activates and starts to foam and then stir to dissolve. In a large mixing bowl combine flour and salt. Stir in yeast mixture and knead 5-10 minutes. Add more flour as needed to reduce stickiness.

Divide dough in to 12 pieces and roll each piece into a long rope or "snake". Twist into pretzel shape and place on nonstick baking sheet. Make an egg wash with one egg white and a TBSP of water, lightly beaten together. For salty pretzels, brush pretzels with egg wash then sprinkle liberally with Kosher salt. For sweet pretzels, brush with egg wash and don't do anything else until they're done baking.

Bake at 425 degrees for 13 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from oven and liberally brush with melted butter. Take the sweet pretzels and brush top with melted butter and then dip/sprinkle in cinnamon/sugar mix. These are best when served fresh from the oven and soooo good.

Pink Cloud

1 c. flour
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. softened butter
1/2 c. chopped nuts (I like pecans)

Combine well (I mixed it with my hands) and pat into a 9x13 baking pan.  Bake at 350 for 20 min. Stir after 10 minutes.  When cool, take a hand full and set aside to sprinkle on top later.

2 egg whites
1 pint Cool Whip or 1 pint real whipped cream
1 10-oz. pkg. strawberries, chopped
2/3 c. sugar
2 T. lemon juice

Beat egg whites till stiff, add strawberries, sugar, and lemon juice; beat. Fold in Cool Whip.

Make sure the baking dish and crust is cool before pouring in the strawberry mixture.  Freeze.

I also tried it with blueberries (one pint).  I had to mash them down a lot (an electric mixer just threw them around the bowl) and I added the same amount of sugar as with the strawberries, but I think it was too much.  However, I didn't add as much lemon juice, and I think it would have been better if I'd added the whole amount of lemon juice.  It was still good, just too sweet for me!  If anyone else tries it feel free to edit this.  Also, it didn't really come out blue, it was a little brownish after it was all mixed together.

Chicken (or Pork Chops) In A Mushroom Cream Sauce

8 skinless chicken tenders (two per serving) or 4 pork chops or 4 chicken breasts
Flour
Pepper
Salt
Garlic Powder
2 cans evaporated milk
1 cup mushrooms (I don't do the mushrooms)

Preheat oven to 375º. Dredge chicken (or pork chops) in flour and sprinkle both sides with pepper and garlic powder. Brown with 1 TBSP oil in a large skillet, about 2-3 minutes (chicken) 4-5 minutes (pork chops) on each side. You do not want to cook through. Set aside pan as is, do not wash yet. Place chicken in a 9x13 pan. Top with mushrooms if you are using them. Pour over both cans of evaporated milk. Bake 30 minutes until meat is cooked through. Heat your previously used skillet for about 1 minute on medium heat. Place chicken onto plate and pour milk and mushrooms into your skillet. Add more pepper and salt to taste and whisk up bits from bottom of pan. Keep whisking until sauce thickens about 5-7 minutes. Place chicken back in pan to reheat and serve.

I like serving it with mashed potatoes and green beans. 

Calzones

1 teaspoon white sugar
1 1/2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
1 tablespoon active dry yeast

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (I only use white whole wheat flour for all of it)

In a large bowl, dissolve sugar in warm water. Sprinkle yeast over the top, and let stand for about 10 minutes, until foamy.

Stir the olive oil and salt into the yeast mixture, then mix in the whole wheat flour and 1 cup of the all-purpose flour until dough starts to come together. Tip dough out onto a surface floured with the remaining all-purpose flour, and knead until all of the flour has been absorbed, and the ball of dough becomes smooth, about 10 minutes. Place dough in an oiled bowl, and turn to coat the surface. Cover loosely with a towel, and let stand in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Punch the dough down and divide it into four (or more) balls. Put the balls on a greased cookie sheet and let them rise for 40 minutes. Then, on a lightly floured surface, roll the balls out into circles with a rolling pin. Put two circles on an oiled cookie sheet and fill it with whatever you want. Leave a little dough bare around the edges like you would for a pizza. I recommend putting all your fillings on one side of the dough circle, then folding the other side on top. After folding it over, seal the edges with a fork.  We had mozzarella cheese, cheddar cheese, sausage, pepperoni, ham, green peppers, onions, spinach, etc.  One of those is big enough for an adult so you can make smaller ones for kids.

Put them in a pre-heated, 375 oven for 15 minutes or golden brown.

We took one of the leftover balls of dough and made a dessert pizza by putting cream cheese frosting and cinnamon on it.  We baked it with the frosting on it because we also tried blueberries and candied pecans (we ended up picking the blueberries off though), but next time I would brush it with butter and bake it for maybe 10 minutes or so and then add just the cream cheese icing and cinnamon.

Whipped Cream

I made strawberry shortcake yesterday (which was SO good) and I need to write this down so I will be able to easily find it next time.

2 cups heavy whipping cream
4 tablespoons powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

In a large bowl, whip cream until stiff peaks are just about to form. Beat in vanilla and sugar until peaks form. Make sure not to over-beat, cream will then become lumpy and butter-like.

Baked Ziti with Spinach and Tomatoes

* 3/4 pound hot Italian sausages, casings removed
* 1 medium onion, chopped
* 3 large garlic cloves, chopped
* 1 28-ounce can diced peeled tomatoes
* 1/4 cup purchased pesto sauce


* 10 ounces ziti or penne pasta (about 3 cups), freshly cooked
* 8 cups ready-to-use spinach leaves (about 2/3 of 10-ounce package)
* 6 ounces mozzarella cheese, cubed
* 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (about 3 ounces)

Heat heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add sausage, onion and garlic and sauté until sausage is cooked through, breaking up meat with back of spoon, about 10 minutes. Add tomatoes with juices to pan. Simmer until sauce thickens slightly, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Stir in pesto. Season sauce with salt and pepper. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Bring to simmer before continuing.)

Preheat oven to 375° F. Lightly oil 13 x 9-inch glass baking dish. Combine pasta, spinach, mozzarella and 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese in large bowl. Stir in hot tomato sauce. Transfer mixture to prepared baking dish. Sprinkle remaining 2/3 cup Parmesan cheese over. Bake until sauce bubbles and cheeses melt, about 30 minutes.

Found here - http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/BAKED-ZITI-WITH-SPINACH-AND-TOMATOES-2609

Best Two-Egg Cake

Mom's yellow cake recipe

1/2 c butter

1 1/2 c sugar

2 1/4 c sifted cake flour

2 1/2 t baking powder

1 t salt

1 t vanilla

2 eggs

1 c plus 2T milk

sift dry ingredients into bowl. Add butter and 2/3 c milk and vanilla. Beat on low for 1 minute. Add remaining milk and eggs. Beat on low for 30 seconds. Scrape bowl and Beat at high for 1 minute. Bake in 2 8" rounds at 350 for 23- 25 minutes.

NOTE: I usually did this recipe at 1 1/2 times the amounts, because I found it wasn't enough. Doubled, I think it make 9" rounds plus some cupcakes. or a 9x13 and some cupcakes.

Here are the amounts I used for 1 1/2 times the recipe:

3/4 c butter

2 1/4 c sugar

3 3/8 c sifted cake flour

3 3/4 t baking powder

1 1/2 t salt

1 1/2 t vanilla

3 eggs

1 1/2 c plus 3T milk

I made some changes to this cake that I'm very happy with so I'm leaving it here-

3/4 c butter

2 1/4 c sugar

3 3/8 c sifted flour

3 3/4 t baking powder

1 1/2 t salt

1T vanilla

1 egg, plus 2 egg whites

1 1/2 c plus 3T milk

1/2 cup sour cream

Cream together butter and sugar, about 4 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, mixing until incorporated. Beat in vanilla.
In a separate bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, and salt. Add flour mixture, sour cream, and milk alternately to the sugar/butter mixture, beginning and ending with flour. Scrape the sides and make sure it is mixed thoroughly.

Bake in 2 8" rounds (plus one pan of mini cupcakes)at 350 for 23- 25 minutes.

Caramel Corn

Mom and I made this last time she was visiting. SO GOOD!!

Ingredients:

• 10 to 12 quarts of freshly popped popcorn (1 lb. uncooked kernels) (Mom and I preferred 10-11 quarts)
• 1 1/2 cups butter
• 3 cups brown sugar (I prefer dark)
• 3/4 cup corn syrup or simple syrup (mom liked light corn syrup, I like dark corn syrup, it seemed to add more flavor)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 250°F (120° C) . Place the popped popcorn in two very large baking or roasting pans with high sides.
2. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the brown sugar, corn syrup and salt. Increase the heat and stir constantly until the mixture begins to boil. Allow the syrup to boil undisturbed for four minutes.
3. Stir in the vanilla and baking soda, and immediately pour the hot syrup over the popcorn. Stir to coat the popcorn evenly with the syrup.
4. Bake the popcorn for one hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Each time the popcorn is stirred, rotate the pans from top to bottom and front to back. (I made it in a smaller oven once with one on top, and one on bottom, and they both burned within the first 10 minutes. Also, it really needs the whole hour)
5. Allow the popcorn to cool completely before storing in airtight containers. (Continue to stir while it cools so that it doesn't stick together)

http://party-food-recipes.suite101.com/article.cfm/how_to_make_caramel_popcorn

Taco Seasoning

Original recipe times 6

6 Tablespoons chili powder (3/8 cup)
3 Tbsp cumin
2 Tbsp black pepper (1/8 cup)
2 Tbsp salt (1/8 cup)
1 Tbsp paprika
1 Tbsp oregano
1/2 Tbsp garlic powder
1/2 Tbsp onion powder
6 pinches cayenne

 

If you want just enough for one time, weirdo

• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cumin
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• pinch of cayenne, to taste)

Combine all ingredients and store in an airtight container. I use an empty glass spice jar that has been washed out.

http://www.recipezaar.com/Basic-TacoFajita-Seasoning-81428

Scones

• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 5 tablespoons salted butter**
• 1/2 cup dried craisins
• 1/2 cup milk**
• 1/4 cup sour cream**
• cinnamon sugar
  

1. Sift the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt into a large bowl. Cut in butter using a pastry blender or rubbing between your fingers until it is in pea sized lumps. Stir in the craisins. Mix together milk and sour cream in a measuring cup. Pour all at once into the dry ingredients, and stir gently until well blended. Overworking the dough results in terrible scones!
2. With floured hands, pat scone dough into balls 2 to 3 inches across, depending on what size you want. Place onto a greased baking sheet, and flatten lightly. Let the scones barely touch each other. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Let them rest for about 10 minutes, and preheat the oven to 400 degrees during this time.
3. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven, until the tops don't cave in easily when you press on them
   

Adapted from here
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Worlds-Best-Scones-From-Scotland-to-the-Savoy-to-the-US/Detail.aspx

**I used vanilla rice milk, earth balance, and either canola oil mayonnaise or apple sauce

Chocolate Torte

Warning: This is a high maintenance cake.......BUT it is also quite possibly the best chocolate dessert I've ever had. I wouldn't really call it a cake, it's not "cakey" since there's no flour. It's just so so good. It's a whole lotta chocolate though so you have to be into that kinda thing. This is my new "special occasion" dessert. Yum.

Flourless Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Glaze
For cake
12 ounces bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, chopped
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into pieces

6 large eggs, separated
12 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For glaze
1/2 cup whipping cream
1/2 cup dark corn syrup
9 ounces bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped

Chocolate shavings or Gold-brushed Chocolate Leaves

Make cake:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter 9-inch-diameter springform pan. Line bottom of pan with parchment paper or waxed paper; butter paper. Wrap outside of pan with foil. Stir chocolate and butter in heavy medium saucepan over low heat until melted and smooth. Remove from heat. Cool to lukewarm, stirring often.

Using electric mixer, beat egg yolks and 6 tablespoons sugar in large bowl until mixture is very thick and pale, about 3 minutes. Fold lukewarm chocolate mixture into yolk mixture, then fold in vanilla extract. Using clean dry beaters, beat egg whites in another large bowl until soft peaks form. Gradually add remaining 6 tablespoons sugar, beating until medium-firm peaks form. Fold whites into chocolate mixture in 3 additions. Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake cake until top is puffed and cracked and tester inserted into center comes out with some moist crumbs attached, about 50 minutes. Cool cake in pan on rack (cake will fall).

Gently press down crusty top to make evenly thick cake. Using small knife, cut around pan sides to loosen cake. Remove pan sides. Place 9-inch-diameter tart pan bottom or cardboard round atop cake. Invert cake onto tart pan bottom. Peel off parchment paper.

Make glaze:
Bring cream and corn syrup to simmer in medium saucepan. Remove from heat. Add chocolate and whisk until melted and smooth.

Place cake on rack set over baking sheet. Spread 1/2 cup glaze smoothly over top and sides of cake. Freeze until almost set, about 3 minutes. Pour remaining glaze over cake; smooth sides and top. Place cake on platter. Chill until glaze is firm, about 1 hour. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover with cake dome; store at room temperature.) Garnish with chocolate shavings or leaves. Serve at room temperature.

You can view the complete recipe online at: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/5872

Garlicky Baked Fries

8-10 garlic cloves, minced
6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 russet potatoes (about 8oz each), each cut into 12-16 wedges
3 tbsp cornstarch/cornflour
1 1/2 tsp coarse sea salt
1 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
½ tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1. Preheat oven to 225°C/440° F.
2. Combine the garlic and oil in a large bowl, warming it until the garlic is fragrant, about 1 minute.
3. Transfer 5 tablespoons of the oil (leaving the garlic in the bowl) to the baking dish, coating it well.
4. Boil the cut potatoes for a few minutes and dry with paper towels.
5. Add the potatoes to the bowl with the garlic mixture and toss to coat.
5. Combine the cornstarch, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and cayenne in a small bowl. Sprinkle over the hot potatoes and toss well to coat.
6. Arrange the potatoes in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet and bake, turning once, until deep golden brown and crisp, 30 to 40 minutes.

“Buttercream” Frosting

*½ c. palm shortening (I use Spectrum brand, called All vegetable shortening)

¼ c. vanilla rice milk

3 c. powdered sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/4 cup cocoa (optional, for chocolate icing)

Cream shortening, milk, and vanilla. It takes a really, really long time. Add sugar, sifted if you don't want lumps. Add cocoa (again, sifted). Beat until smooth.

Doubled, this makes enough to frost and decorate a 2 layer round cake, with some left over. I also made 1 1/2 times for a 2 layer cake that wasn't going to be decorated, and it made just barely enough. Unless you like a ton of frosting, in which case you might want to make more.

http://www.kathysrecipebox.com/?p=64

*I substitute 1/4-1/3 of the shortening with earth balance. Makes for a more buttery taste.

Allergen free Chocolate Cake

1 c. sugar

1 ½ c. flour

½ tsp. salt

¼ c. cocoa

1 tsp. baking soda

1 Tbs. vinegar

1/3 c. canola oil or coconut oil melted

1 tsp. vanilla

1 c. cold water

1/4 cup heaping of apple sauce (optional)

Mix in order given. Pour into ungreased 8″ square pan. Bake at 350°F for 35 minutes (21 minutes for regular cupcakes, 15 minutes for mini cupcakes).

http://www.kathysrecipebox.com/?p=49

Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup (2 sticks) softened butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
2 eggs
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 twelve-ounce bags semisweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter, sugars, eggs, and vanilla.
3. In another bowl, mix together the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda.
4. Combine the wet and dry ingredients.
5. Stir in the chocolate chips.
6. With your fingers, place golf ball-sized dough portions 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet (they shape better while baking if refrigerated before baking).
7. Bake for 9-10 minutes or just until edges are light brown.

Waffles

1 ¾ cups flour

2 tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

1 tbs sugar

3 eggs, separated

7 tbs vegetable oil

1 ½ cups milk

Preheat the waffle iron.  Sift the dry ingredients into a medium sized bowl.  Separate the eggs, putting the egg whites in a small bowl.  Beat the egg white until they are stiff.  Add egg yolks, oil, and milk all at one time to the dry ingredients.  Beat until there are no lumps in the batter.  Fold the egg whites into the other batter using a spatula or other flat utensil.  Put a full ½ cup of batter in your waffle iron to make a 9 inch round waffle.  This recipe makes about 9 9-inch round waffles.  They freeze really well. 

Easy Lasagna

This lasagna only has 5 ingredients but is surprisingly good (Kelli agrees). Nice and easy to make when you have 3 wild children running around. Plus Tessa declared it the best dinner I ever made.


1 lb. ground beef
1 (16 oz) carton cottage cheese
1 (30 oz) bottle spaghetti sauce
lasagna noodles
mozzarella cheese (grated)

Brown ground beef and mix in cottage cheese and spaghetti sauce. Layer uncooked noodles, meat mixture and mozzerella cheese.
Usually makes 3 layers. End with mozzarella cheese on top. Cover with foil and bake 350 for 1 hour.

Allergy Recipes

Since our family seems to have a problem with this, I've created a label for recipes that have some common allergens eliminated, or easily altered. I will go through the old ones and add a * next to ingredients that can be changed. I know I'm the only one right now eating like this, but I thought it might be helpful for anyone in the future!

Lemon Squares

1 cup flour
1 cup sugar, divided
1/3 cup butter, softened**
2 beaten eggs
1/4-1/2 cup lemon juice (I prefer a little more than 1/3)
2 tsp grated lemon peel
powdered sugar

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Stir 1 cup flour and 1/2 cup sugar together. Cut in 1/3 cup butter with a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Press mixture into greased 9in pan (or if you are like me and don't have one, a pie pan works fine). Bake 15 min or until light brown. Remove from oven. Stir together eggs, lemon juice, 1/2 cup sugar, and lemon peels in a bowl. Pour over crust. Bake 15 min or until set. Cool in the pan. Sprinkle with powdered sugar (really, wait until it's cool, otherwise the sugar just soaks in looking like mine in the picture). Cut into squares.


**Make it dairy free with earth balance

Kung Pao Chicken

Ingredients:

1lb boneless-skinless chicken breasts (cut into 1” pieces)
2 tablespoon cornstarch
2 teaspoons sesame oil (you can use any kind of oil, sesame has a strong flavor so you may want to use something else, I used mostly coconut oil with a little sesame)
1 green onion (chopped, plus another for topping to make it pretty)
3 garlic cloves (minced or pressed)
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon fresh ginger (minced)
2 tablespoons rice wine (or alcohol-free wine or white grape juice maybe or leave it out)
2 tablespoons soy sauce (I might try a tad more of this next time)
2 teaspoons sugar
1/3 cup dry roasted peanuts (unsalted, but I used lightly-salted since I couldn't find unsalted)
(optional) 5 dried red chili peppers (I pull these out before we eat)

Direction:

combine the chicken and cornstarch in a small bowl (or zip-lock bag) and toss to coat. Heat sesame oil (or vegetable oil) in a wok (or a large pan) over medium heat, add chicken and stir fry 5-7 minutes or until it is cooked thoroughly. Remove chicken from wok.

Add green onions, garlic, red pepper flakes, ginger, and dried red chili peppers to the wok (or pan) and stir fry for 15 seconds.

Combine wine, soy sauce and sugar in a small bowl. Mix well and add the sauce to the wok (or pan).

Return chicken to the wok and coat with sauce. Stir in roasted peanuts. Heat thoroughly. Top with additional green onions if desired and serve over rice.

 

Serves about 2-3 people.  I've made this twice and LOVE it.