Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Recipes from an accidental country girl...

I have this totally awesome friend. I would never say that I value my friends based on the gifts they give me. No, no, friendship is about sharing and caring. Not about gifts at all.



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Laura stood in line for 2 and a half hours to get me the Pioneer Woman's cookbook autographed in Nashville. That's some sharing and caring!




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PW actually scrawled my name across the page. I wonder if the crazy spelling of my name haunted her, "One 'l', a 'y' not an 'i', and a 'u' not an 'o.'

To Alysun
Enjoy!
(heart)
Ree/PW

Sigh. I am utterly content. Thanks Laura for this awesome gift! I was drooling over this cookbook ever since I heard PW was working on it last year. My sister and I agreed we had to have it. Of course we both set about getting it for each other's Christmas gift this year (great minds think alike). Then Laura stepped in and stole the show. Sorry sis! But it is autographed to me. I was so excited about receiving the cookbook from Laura that I told my sister about it. She said, "Great," really un-enthusiastically. Turns out she had already bought me a copy.... un-autographed. It wasn't her fault PW hasn't visited the northwest. Now we were in a quandry. My sister had a copy of the cookbook already and I had a copy that I had ordered for her, plus my super cool autographed copy. We scrambled about and exchanged different gifts on Christmas, leaving me with 2 copies of Pioneer Woman Cooks, Recipes From An Accidental Country Girl.

It's a great cookbook and has some fabulous photography and lots of good recipes. I'm keeping my autographed copy and hugging it each night as I fall asleep. I'll get around to cooking from it sometime soon too. And I am giving away the other book to one of you! Leave me a comment to win the random drawing (I'll ship the cookbook anywhere). I will announce the winner on Friday, January 1st, before noon my time. In your comment, tell me what your favorite recipe is to make during the holidays. Don't forget, your comment should include a way to contact you.


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30 comments:

Applejacks32 said...

Pick me, pick me!! I have lots of favorite recipes during the holidays-shrimp stuffed mushrooms are a specialty of mine. This year we made homemade gingerbread houses which was lots of fun. I love to make shortbread with lots of real butter-so yummy!
You know how to contact me!
Jacqui

Andee said...

I just can't help it. I love to make peppermint bark. It's super yummy, pretty, and most important: EASY!

Tawny said...

I think I should win that cookbook. I am pretty sure that that book is the key to me getting a husband. Nothing else has worked. Send it c/o "Your very cool, but very single second cousin."

I keep making these appetizers and people love them!

Mediterranean Crescent Pinwheels

* Prep Time: 25 min.
* Cook Time: -
* Serves: 20

Pillsbury Bake-Off®

Recipe Provided By: Pillsbury Bake-Off®

Write a Review
All 52 Reviews
Ingredients

1. 1 (8 ounce) can Pillsbury(R) Refrigerated Crescent Dinner Rolls
2. 1/2 pound prosciutto or cooked ham, thinly sliced
3. 4 ounces crumbled feta cheese
4. 1/2 teaspoon pepper
5. 1 tablespoon olive or vegetable oil
6. 6 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

Instructions
1. Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Spray cookie sheets with nonstick cooking spray. Separate dough into 4 rectangles; place on lightly floured surface. Firmly press perforations to seal. Press or roll each to form 8x5-inch rectangle.
2. Arrange 1/4 of prosciutto slices evenly over each rectangle. In small bowl, combine cheese, pepper and oil; mix well. Sprinkle mixture evenly over prosciutto on each rectangle. Sprinkle with basil.
3. Starting at short side of each rectangle, roll up; seal long edges. With serrated knife, cut each roll into 5 slices. Place, cut side up, on sprayed cookie sheets.
4. Bake at 375 degrees F. for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from cookie sheets. Serve warm.

Yield: 20 servings

joyq said...

I will do a tuck and roll dance move if you pick me. ( I know its random but I figured what the hey)


And by the way the photo of you holding the book makes me feel like a winner already.


really.

Ariel Wilson said...

A cookbook giveaway??? How awesome!!! I'm really excited :D

I would have to say I love baking cookies and bread. I have a special recipe I make that is triple chocolate chip cookies :D Oh and I make a mean peanut butter chocolate chip pie! The owner of Althea's Tea room here in Dallas actually asked me for the recipe.... Wow.

Hope you enjoy cooking from your spiffy cookbook! :)

rae ann said...

oooh! add me! my new favorite thing to make is soups. the soups are really just an excuse to make the PW's bacon-onion-cheddar biscuits though.

growinemgreen at gmail dot com

Annie said...

my favorite thing to make is old fashioned sugar cookies with frosting. crossing my fingers. between the two of us Paul and I got three cookbooks for Christmas. I can't wait to try all of the new recipes.

Anonymous said...

Wow a PW cookbook, very exciting. My very favorite thing to make during the Christmas season is Russian Tea Cakes yummy. It's hard not to eat them all myself during the mornings with my coffee.

1 cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 tablespoons confectioners' sugar 2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup chopped walnuts
1/3 cup confectioners' sugar for decoration
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
In a medium bowl, cream butter and vanilla until smooth. Combine the 6tablespoons confectioners' sugar and flour; stir into the butter mixture until just blended. Mix in the chopped walnuts. Roll dough into 1 inch balls, and place them 2inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake for 12 minutes in the preheated oven. When cool, roll in remaining confectioners' sugar. I also like to put mine in a gal ziploc bag and add the powdered sugar and then gently roll the bag around until evenly coated. Lisa Preston

The Meikles said...

Ooooh...I Love this!!! Get a pregnant woman started on some of her favorite holiday foods...or am I just supposed to pick one...lol. Shortbread and Buttertarts :) and I Always must include some of my Mennonite Favorites like sour cabbage rolls and Pluma Mousse (fruit soup) Mmmmm!!!
Sheila
smeikle@telus.net :)

Lesley Miller said...

Oh, girl...you know I want that book, right? :)

Anonymous said...

Candy cane coffee cakes from Betty Crocker page 81
2 c. sour cream
2 pkg yeast
1/2 c. warm water
1/4 c. butter
1/3 c. sugar
2 t. salt
2 eggs
about 6 c. flour
make egg bread and fill 3 retangles with one third of
1 1/2 c chopped dried apricots
and 1 1/2 c. chopped maraschino
cherries. cut edges and braid over dried fruit. Form in shape of candy cane. bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes. glaze with a thin icing

Jenni Birch

Kelleigh Ratzlaff Designs said...

Oh, you lucky girl!! I'd love to have her cookbook! How totally cool!!

I love to make appetizers, and spinach dip is a necessity this time of year.

Thanks for the chance to win!!

Amanda said...

I love a good green bean casserole! It's one of my favorites so I always make it. I'd love to win the cookbook!

Nicole Stahler said...

Alysun - I seriously considered getting that cookbook for the family gift exchange, knowing you would probably want it, but I also feared you would have gotten it already, and then the excitement would have been lost. Glad to hear you got a copy, and autographed too!

-Nicole

Anonymous said...

I'n in!!!!! I made Jeff the Almond Roca Candy!!!!!

Judi

Shawna said...

Well as you know I am not a good cook. I guess the "get out of the small kitchen" talk from Mom didn't help growing up. I do however like to eat, and am eager to learn more creative things to feed Madison.

This holiday the one thing that I made multiple times was a cream cheese chocolate chip apple dip. I had it at a party and asked a friend for the recipe. I made it for Madison's birthday party and then subsequently took it to four potluck/parties as requested.

I did something I don't normally do, I changed it up and added some Heath chips and it was SOOO good.

I also horrified several people by bringing BAGGED apples already sliced. Whatever. When Rick took it he bought an apple slicer and did it the right way. :-0

I made a double batch each time (relfected below, but easily halved).
16 oz cream cheese
1.5 cups powdered sugar
4 Tbsp brown sugar
1/2 cup butter (softened)
2 Tsp Vanilla
Mix well with electric mixer
Spoon in 1 cup mini chocolate chips and 1 cup Heath toffee chips. (or one or the other but both was my preference).

Serve with sliced apples.

I know, it is basically frosting, but yummy none the less.

When are you giving away an AP Cookbook? :-) (I would buy one)

Katie Davis said...

This is Great Al! I hope I win!!!! LOL.
Chocolate Snow Caps
1/2 cup vegetable oil
4 oz unsweetened baking chocolate, melted, cooled
2 cups granulated sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 eggs
2 cups Gold Medal® all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1. In large bowl, mix oil, chocolate, granulated sugar and vanilla. Stir in eggs, one at a time. Stir in flour, baking powder and salt. Cover; refrigerate at least 3 hours.
2. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease cookie sheet with shortening or cooking spray.
3. Drop dough by teaspoonfuls into powdered sugar; roll around to coat and shape into balls. Place about 2 inches apart on cookie sheets.
4. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until almost no imprint remains when touched lightly in center. Immediately remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks.

Patty Nosack said...

Boy, just reading the comments are so fun, that I want to give the book away, especially to
Tawny, but seriously, I need to become a better cook. That is the only reason to pick me. I sure have fun looking at your blog.

Ashlee said...

So fun! I love giveaways:) My favorite recipe for this time of year:

1 16oz bag frozen chopped spinach
1 14oz can artichoke hearts
about 1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 t cayenne pepper
dash of black pepper

Thaw and sqeeze excess water from spinach. Mix together all ingredients. Put into a 9x9 inch dish. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes (or until heated through). Serve with toasted bread, veggies, and/or crackers.

Yum:)

Kelly said...

Well, what a lovely Betty Crocker, er, Oregon Pioneer Woman you are! What a great idea for sharing what I assume is an awesome cookbook.

I love to make a yummy egg dish every Christmas morning with ham, eggs, basil, etc. So good and easy! I also love to make cinnamon rolls and fruit salad to go alongside. The kids made graham cracker houses and had so much fun eating/decorating.

Thanks for the opportunity to win! Happy New Year!!!

Sherri said...

Wow now you know you have a lot of readers because they had to read almost the whole thing b4efore they found out it was a give- a- way. My new favorite recipe is candied peacans from Allrecipes.com- just egg white, brown sugar and cinnamon. Its so easy Emma and Benton could make it- if they can separate an egg. Okay- I probably don't qualify for your giveaway but I thought I'd give it a shot :)

Peggy said...

I have been cooking up a storm this year. Since it is only the four of us, I have been having so much fun in the kitchen. We also watched Julie and Julia a few evenings ago and I really got inspired. I need more great recipes......so please put me in the drawing.
I would have to say that the favorite is the Individual Beef Wellingtons. (Remember last year at the coast?) My family also love Nutmeg Logs, a yummy buttery cookie.

Leah said...

Hmm my favorite holiday treat is nanaimo bars (sp?) from Nanaimo WA. Yum! Sorry I don't have the recipe in front of me. If I win, get the book to Sara Marks-it's what I wanted to get her for Christmas!

Joelle said...

Peppernuts. A Christmas family tradition for at least the last 100 years, I am the third generation to make them in Canada. A spicy gingerbread with hints of anise and pepper, these crunchy, bite-sized cookies always leave you wanting more.
You can reach me at joelle.thiessen@gmail.com. Thanks for sharing your new-found wealth!

Anonymous said...

So excited for you! Can we still be friends if I didn't know about that cookbook? Will you cook something for it for MOPS? Kelsey

Grace said...

Ooooh! Sounds like fun!!! My favorite holiday treat is homemade caramels. Although this year I didn't cook mine long enugh so they just puddled. Tasted great, made a HUGE mess!

Sara said...

Ooo, I finished my class and got back into blogging and facebooking just a the right time! What a fun giveaway! My two favorite dessert recipes of the Christmas season are candy cane cookies and chocolate-dipped mint patties. Unfortunately, they both take a fair amount of work to make, so if I don't have time I settle for something really simple like Chex Muddie Buddies or marshmellow cornflake wreaths (similar to this recipe here: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Christmas-Cornflake-Wreath-Cookies/Detail.aspx).

Sarah D. said...

What fun!

This year was a challenge because Grandma D. was unable to cook our holiday favorites due to age. (She has lived 88 wonderfully full years and deserves a break.) So this year we broke up the holiday baking among the family. I got the Pecan Bars. The problem was I didn't have Grandmas' recipe. :{
Here is the one I used from Betty Crocker but variations were on nearly every website. The family liked them.

Pecan Fingers

1/2 cup shortening (half butter or margarine, softened)
3/4 cup confectioners' Sugar
1 1/2 cup Flour
2 eggs
1 cup brown sugar (packed)
2 tbsp flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup chopped pecans (I was generous with this amount, it was heaping)

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Cream shortening and confectioners' sugar. Blend in 1 1/2 cup flour. Press evenly in the bottom of ungreased baking pan, 13x9x2 inches. Bake 12-15 minutes.

Mix remaining ingredients; spread over hot baked lay and bake 20 minutes longer. cool; cut in to bars about 3x1 inch.

I put it into a 8x8x2 inch pan with a little shortening along the edges because it was glass. This made for a thicker bar and gooier topping.

Have fun with your cookbook. Use plastic wrap over the pages to protect it from flying food in the midst of your fabulous cooking. :)

Jeannette said...

Every year I make the fudge recipe that is on the back of the marshmallow creme jar. It always turns out great - smooth, creamy and delicious!

Elaine said...

How fun for you to have an autographed copy!
My favorite thing to bake during the Christmas holiday is Poppyseed bread. It is a recipe that I grew up with...so it is a little sentimental and it is super easy!
~Elaine
bejkuy@yahoo.com :)