One of the things I miss most when I’m away at school is baking! So, the first thing I did when I got home…well after I got over my jet lag…was bake this gingerbread with apple rosemary butter. I found the recipe about a month ago and bookmarked it on my computer to make once I got home. It smelled so festive with all the different spices as I was baking it (Did you know that there were a gagillion spices in gingerbread??? I didn’t). Anyway, it was really pretty easy and really pretty delicious. There isn’t a crumb left of it in this house.  And it makes a pretty cute gift too for your sweet neighbors or a hostess.

Spiced Ginger Cakes (makes 2 mini loafs or 1 regular loaf)

• 2 1/2 cups almond flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1 1/2 tsp ground allspice
• 4 tsp ground ginger
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/2 cup ghee, melted (or butter or oil of choice)

Preheat oven to 350F. Combine dry ingredients in a bowl. Combine wet ingredients in a separate bowl. Using a whisk or spatula mix wet and dry ingredients until combined. Pour into greased pan(s). If baking in mini loaf pans bake for 40 minutes. If baking in a regular loaf pan you may need to bake for about 1 hour. If tops begin to get too brown lay a sheet of foil on top to prevent burning (I had to do this after 30 minutes).

Remove from oven and insert a toothpick in center, if it comes out dry they are done baking. Allow to cool for one hour before removing from pan. Enjoy!

 

Rosemary Apple Butter (makes about 2 1/2 cups)

• 10 red apples of choice, peeled, cored and coarsly chopped
• 3 cinnamon sticks
• 1/2 cup apple cider
• juice from one lemon
• 1/4 cup honey
• 3 sprigs of rosemary (or more depending on how big they are)

 

Place all ingredients in an oven safe pot on high heat. Bring liquid on the bottom of pot to a boil and the simmer for 45 minutes stirring occasionally. Remove rosemary stems (you want some, not all, of the pieces of rosemary to fall off and remain in the sauce….this will happen naturally as your stir) and discard cinnamon sticks.

Remove from heat and pour sauce into a blender and blend until it has an applesauce consistency.

Pour mixture back into pot and place in a 275F degree oven (without the lid!) and cook for 2 hours or until desired thickness. Make sure you stir occasionally to prevent scorching.

When done remove from oven and store in jars for 1 week or longer if you go through the canning process.

The other day, I slept in (until 1:00pm, people…I don’t even remember the last time I slept that late!) so needless to say I got a pretty late start to the day. I had some “breakfast,” bundled up for the 20-something degree weather, and headed into town for some shopping and a warm cup of coffee with my mom! Then, it was time for dinner. Because when you sleep in until 1:00pm…dinnertime just sneaks right up on you! So, my mom and I headed to the grocery store to pick up some ingredients, went home, got in our pajamas, and whipped up a Quick and Easy Super Delicious Perfect for Winter Tarragon Chicken Noodle Soup! How’s that for a name?

Ingredients

6 ½ cups of chicken stock

3 carrots, peeled and sliced thinly

2 celery stalks, sliced thinly

1 leek, halved lengthwise and sliced thinly

1 smaller white onion, diced

1 cup of peas

1 rotisserie chicken, cut up into small pieces

2 tsp. chopped tarragon

Salt and Pepper

Pasta – any kind you like…we picked a curly kind cause it’s fun

Directions:

1. Put the chicken stock into a large pot and add the carrots, celery, onion, and leek. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer, partially covered, for 10 minutes.
2. Stir in the peas, chicken meat, and pasta and continue cooking for an additional 10-15 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. TIP: Check the packaging on the pasta for the amount of time it takes to cook. Ours took 7 minutes so we waited and let the peas and chicken cook for about 4 minutes before putting the pasta in.
3. Add the tarragon, salt, and pepper. Stir and let cook for about 1 more minute.
4. Ladle the soup and serve.

Enjoy and Happy Cooking!