Spicy Meatball Gnocchi Soup

1 carton of beef stock
1 small can of diced tomatoes
1 package of meatballs (you can make your own.  I had part of the Costco bag left)
1 onion
1 package of gnocchi
3 medium red potatoes
1 can of tomato paste
3 cloves of garlic
1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper

Heat a couple of tablespoons of oil in a sauce pan over medium heat.  Add diced onion and zested garlic.  Cook until tender and translucent.

Add frozen meatballs and cook over medium heat for about 4-5 min until half way cooked.

Add can of tomatoes and cook until most of the liquid is gone.

Bring to a simmer and add in spiced and tomato paste and simmer for 10 min.

Add in diced potatoes and simmer for about 10 min until tender and then add in gnocchi

Serve with shaves of Parmesan and slices of pita bread.

Soft Sugar Cookies

These were simple and so yummy
2 cups of cake flour
1/2 cup of all purpose flour
1 stick of softened butter
1 egg and 1 white
1/4 cup of shorting
1 cup of sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
1/4 teaspoon of cream of tartar
1/4 teaspoon of salt
3 teaspoons of vanilla
1 teaspoon of almond extract

Cream together butter, shorting, and sugar until light and fluffy

Whisk in whole egg, vanilla, almond and fluffy

Whisk in egg white

Whisk together dry ingredients.  Slowly mix in flour mixture and then refrigerate for at least 3 hours.

Roll out and cut with a medium sized biscuit or cookie cutter.  You want them to be thick. 

Bake at 375 for 9ish min.  They should look slightly underdone.  They won't change color.  Remove from oven and let completely cool.

Now on to the frosting. 
1/2 stick of butter
1 brick of cream cheese
2 teaspoons of vanilla
2ish cups of powdered sugar

Cream together butter and cream cheese

Whisk in vanilla and then slowly add in powdered sugar until it reaches desired consistency

Spread cooled cookies with a generous amount of frosting and cover in sprinkles.  I didn't have any food coloring but colored frosting would be good too.

Let rest for at least 30 min so the frosting can firm up.

Cheesy Sausage Monkey Bread

This is great with marinara sauce or pesto would be awesome too.

Here is what you need:
3 1/2ish cups of flour
8oz mozzerella
8oz of sausage (I cooked a pound and froze the rest)
1/4 cup of sugar
1 egg
1 stick of butter
2 1/4 teaspoons of yeast
2 tablespoons of Italian seasoning 
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 cup of milk

Dice up 1/2 onion and cook with sausage in a skillet on medium heat until all pink is gone.  Drain and set aside.

Mix together 1 1/2 cups of flour, Italian seasoning, yeast.

Heat salt, sugar, butter, and milk in a small sauce pan on low heat until 120-130 degrees.  The butter will be only partly melted.  You don't want it any warmer or it will kill the yeast.

Add butter/milk mixture and egg to flour mixture.  Beat quickly ofr 30 seconds on a medium speed of a mixer

Slowly add in flour and place in a greased bowl and let rise at room temperature until doubled.

Punch down dough and roll flat.  Cut into 1/2 inch cubes.

Layer pieces of dough with sausage and cheese.  Repeat several times until fill.  This makes enough for two you can freeze and serve later.

Bake at 350 for about 30-40 min until golden on top. 

Green Chile Chicken with Pitas

I served it with cilantro limes rice.  It was great.  You can use store bought pitas but these are easy and can be made ahead of time and freeze well.

Lets start with the pitas.  They don't take alot of active time.
1 1/2 tablespoons of yeast
1/3 cup of olive oil
2 teaspoons of salt
2 tablespoons of sugar
6 1/2 cups of all purpose flour

Mix 2 3/4 cups of warm water, yeast, and sugar.  Let rest for five min and it will be bubbly

Mix salt, and oil and slowly mix in flour

Knead until smooth and stretchy.  It will be sticky.

Place dough in a greased bowl and cover and let rise for about 2 hours at room temperature until doubled. Place in fridge for an hour so it will be easier to handle.

 Bunch down the dough and take about golf ball size of the dough and roll out to on a floured surface about an 8 inch circle.  Its meant to be a rustic so its okay if its not a perfect circle. 

Preheat a cast iron skillet on medium high with a little oil.  Place dough in hot skillet and cook for about a min and then flip for another 45ish seconds.  You want a few dark places.  Continuing to cook remaining pitas in the same manner adding oil as needed.

Now on to the chicken.  Its a simply food processing the ingredients and then simmering.  It would work good in a crock pot too.

1ish pounds of chicken tenders or breasts
1 teaspoon of chicken base
1/2 of an onion
2 jalopenos
3 Anaheim peppers
12ish tomatillos
3ish limes
1/2 bunch of cilantro

I have a mini food processor on my immersion blender and I love it.  Its a lot less mess and hassle.  Peel and quarter the tomatillos and process and then place in a sauce pan.

Quarter and seed the jalapenos and process and then add to tomatillos

Repeat the process with the Anaheim peppers

Process 1/2 the onion and garlic.

Stir the ingredients together and zest the limes into the mixture and add chicken base and bring to a simmer.

Add in chicken and simmer at a low heat for at least 30 min.  I simmered mine for several hours.  You want a good part of the liquid to be gone.

Put sauce and chicken in the bowl of a mixer with paddle blade and mix to shred chicken.

Stir in roughly chopped cilantro and limes juice.  It reheats very well so its great to make ahead of time and then reheat

Serve with warm pits, rice and queso fresco or sour cream.