Crites Family Stuff

Ingredients for 20 servings

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1.5 cups sugar
• 2 cups sour cream
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 4 large eggs
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 2.5 cups flour
• 5 medium apples, peeled and sliced thinly

Streusel:

• 1 cup pecans, chopped
• .25 cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• .66 cup flour
• 4 tbsp butter

Glaze:

• Powdered sugar
• Milk
• 1 tsp almond extract

Steps

1. Combine all streusel ingredients. Cut mixture until it forms large crumbles. Set aside.
2. Grease two 8 x 8 inch pans. In a large bowl beat the butter with sugar until light and fluffy. Add remaining ingredients except apples. Beat mixture at low speed until blended. Mix for 1 more minute on a medium speed. Spread batter into the prepared pans and arrange apple slices evenly on top of the batter. Crumble the streusel topping over the apple layer and bake at 350F for 45-50 minutes, the cake should pull away from the sides of the pans. Let cool for 10 minutes. Top with glaze and serve.

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Ingredients for 24 servings

• .5 cup butter, softened
• .66 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 2 squares unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1.75 cups flour
• .5 tsp salt

Orange Glaze:

• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 tsp shortening
• 1 tsp light corn syrup
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tbsp orange juice
• Melted white chocolate

Steps

1. In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, chocolate, and vanilla. Mix well. Combine flour and salt. Gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour or until firm.
2. Divide dough into fourths. Form each portion into a 6 inch roll. Cut each roll into 1/2 inch slices. Roll each into a 9 inch rope. Form ropes into pretzels and place on greased baking sheet. Bake at 400F for 5-7 minutes. Cool 1 minute before removing to wire wracks.
3. For glaze, melt the chocolate chips and shortening with corn syrup in a heavy saucepan or microwave. Stir until smooth. Stir in powdered sugar and enough orange juice to make a smooth glaze. Dip pretzels and place on wax paper to set. Melt white chocolate and drizzle over cookies. Let stand until chocolate is completely set. Store in an airtight container.

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Description

These are a melt-in-your-mouth all time favorite!

Ingredients for 48 servings

• 1.33 cup butter, softened
• .33 cup flour
• 2 tbsp yeast
• .33 cup warm water
• .75 cup warm milk
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 3.5 cups flour
• .25 cup sugar

Topping:

• .5 cup butter, softened
• .5 cup sugar
• .5 cup chopped pecans

Glaze:

• 2 cups powdered sugar
• .5 tsp vanilla
• Milk

Steps

1. Knead together the 1 1/3 cup softened butter and 1/3 cup flour. Place between two sheets of waxed paper and roll out into an exact 6"x12" rectangle. (Use exact measurements in this recipe.) Place in freezer.
2. Dissolve yeast in 1/3 cup water. Add the milk, salt, 1/4 cup sugar, eggs, and 3 1/2 cup flour. Stir together and knead until dough is very soft and pliable, but not sticky. Roll out into a 14"x14" square.
3. Remove butter from freezer and place on half of the rolled out 14"x14" square. Fold dough over in half and seal edges.
4. Roll this into a 12"x20" rectangle on a floured surface. Using a bit of flour on "butter blowouts" will help in rolling out the dough. You may need to kind of break up the dough slightly with a soft pounding of the rolling pin because of the frozen butter inside to get it to the 12"x20" size. Fold into thirds so that the 20" length becomes about 6 1/2" in length.
5. Roll out again into a 12"x20" rectangle. Fold into thirds, like before.
6. Roll out, one last time to 12"x20". Cut into thirds instead of folding. Place each third on a sheet of wax paper and put 2 pieces back in freezer while working on the third.
7. Orient this piece to lay long side horizontally to you and cut in half with a knife or pizza cutter. Continue cutting these pieces into halves until you have cut 16 equal strips. Twist each strip of dough several times and wrap it into a circle to make a roll and place it on a sided cookie sheet. Do the same thing with the two remaining pieces of dough in the freezer. (Keeping the butter in the dough hardened makes dough handling so much easier.)
8. Mix together the topping: butter, sugar, and nuts. Top each roll with an equal amount of the mixture. Let rolls rise until double. Bake at 450F for 8 minutes, or until lightly golden brown.
9. Mix together the glaze while rolls are baking. Add enough milk to get the consistency of Elmer's glue. Drizzle the glaze over the rolls immediately after removing them from the oven. Serve hot and thoroughly enjoy!

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Description

Not a Weight Watcher type dish!! I got this recipe from a cooking class at Carraba's Restaurant.

Ingredients for 15 servings

• 1 standard bottle sweet dry Marsala wine
• 1.5 lbs butter sliced in small pieces
• .5 large sweet chopped onion
• 1.5 tbsp olive oil
• 2 oz proschiutto chopped in small pieces
• 1 lb sliced or chopped mushrooms
• 1 handful chopped Italian parsley
• Salt to taste
• Pepper to taste
• 15 bonesless skinless chicken breasts
• Balsamic vinagerette
• Seasoned dry rub

Steps

1. Dip chicken breasts in a balsamic vinagerette (any brand will do) and sprinkle liberally with a seasoned dry rub. Use the recipe in this cookbook. Grill the chicken breasts either inside or outside house until they are done and then keep them warm until the sauce is done. In a large sauce pan that is low and open so that evaporation can take place easier, pour the bottle of Marsala wine and reduce to about 1/4-1/2 cup of syrup in the bottom of pan. Then add one small piece of butter at a time, whisking constantly. Keep adding the butter until all is melted and incorporated. Keep this warm and incorporated by whisking often. It will separate very easily. In a skillet add olive oil, mushrooms, proschiutto, onion and parsley and saute until wilted and done. You can use white button mushrooms, but baby portbellos are really good. Arrange chicken on a platter and combine mushroom mixture to wine mixture and pour over the top and serve!

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Description

This is a Chilean recipe.

Ingredients for 18 servings

• 1.5 lbs hamburger
• Onions
• 2.5 tsp cumin
• .5 tsp cracked pepper
• 1.5 tsp oregano
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp chili powder
• 8 hard-boiled eggs
• .75 cup golden raisins
• 40 pitted green olives
• 5 cups flour
• .5 cup shortening
• 3 eggs
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp baking powder
• .25 cup apple cider vinegar

Steps

1. In a frying pan combine hamburger and an equal amount of finely chopped onions. Add cumin, pepper, oregano, and salt. Fry until onion is translucent and hamburger is done. Add chili powder and stir. Peel hard boiled eggs and slice in large pieces. Soak raisins in hot water for a few minutes. Slice each olive in 2 - 3 pieces. (Black olives can be used.)
2. For the dough, combine in a large bowl the flour, shortening, eggs, salt, baking powder and vinegar and start working in 1-1/2 cups milk. Knead into a soft dough, adding more flour as needed. Form into a tube shape and cut the tube into 3 equal portions. Working with one portion at a time, form into 6 equal balls, 18 total balls. With a rolling pin shape each ball into an 8-9 inch circle of dough, stacking them as they are finished and sprinkling with flour in between each one. Work with only 6 at a time. Take a circle and put 1/18 of the meat filling in and 1/18th of the olives, eggs, and drained raisins. Fold it over and slightly wet the edge and pinch shut like you would a pie. Repeat 17 more times. Bake on greased cookie sheets at 350F for 35-40 minutes.

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Ingredients for 4 servings

• 6 egg yolks
• 2 cups whipping cream
• .33 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 8 tsp granulated sugar

Steps

1. Heat oven to 350F. In a 9x13 pan, place 4 (6 oz) ramekins. In a small bowl, slightly beat egg yolks with wire whisk. In large bowl, stir whipping cream, 1/3 cup sugar and vanilla until well mixed. Add egg yolks. Beat well with wire whisk until evenly colored and well blended. Pour cream mixture evenly into ramekins.
2. Carefully place pan with ramekins in oven. Pour enough boiling water into pan, being careful not to splash water into ramekins, until water covers two-thirds of the height of ramekins.
3. Bake 30-40 minutes or until top is light golden brown and sides are set (centers will be jiggly).
4. Using tongs or grasping tops of ramekins with pot holder, carefully transfer ramekins to cooling rack. Cool to room temperature, about 2 hours. Cover tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 4 hours but not longer than 48 hours.
5. Uncover ramekins. Gently blot any liquid from tops of custards with paper towel. Sprinkle 2 tbsp of sugar over each chilled custard. Holding kitchen torch 3-4 inches from custard, caramelize sugar on each cup by heating with torch about 2 minutes, moving flame continuously in a circular motion until sugar is melted and light brown. Serve immediately or refrigerate up to 8 hours before serving.
6. Note: If kitchen torch is unavailable, set oven control to broil. Sprinkle tops of custard with 2 tsp brown sugar. Place ramekins in 15x10x1 inch pan or on a cookie sheet with sides. Broil tops 4-6 inches from heat for 5-6 minutes or until brown sugar is melted and forms a glaze.
7. Note: Do not use glass custard cups or glass pie plates. They cannot withstand the heat from the torch or broiler and may break.

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