Seattle Cooking Club

Today was my first attempt at cooking veal.  I purchased the veal shanks from QFS and suffered from sticker shock.  I actually removed the price tag  from the package so Jerry wouldn’t see it and have a stroke.

I prepared the vegetables in the morning-  After browning the veal I added the vegetables followed by garlic and lemon zest.  This is an easy recipe to prepare for company because everything can be prepared in advance and popped in the oven.

I have to admit that this was good quality meat.

This fed four people and there were no leftovers.  It was easy to prepare and there were no  strange ingredients.  Although it was good, I didn’t think it was any better than Ina’s recipe for lamb shanks with orzo.  In that recipe I substituted beef short ribs for the lamb and would definitely make that again.

Step one was to gather ingredients and actually read the entire recipe before grocery shopping.  This worked for us and we only had to make one trip to the store.

Bev was in charge of chopping the vegetables.

Sausage and chicken are browned and then the vegetables are added.

I

I love recipes that call for a cup of wine.  This means that someone has to finish the bottle. I always throw away the cork and the there is no way it can be recorked.

This is the almost finished product.  We have not added the rice or shrimp.  We were so excited about the final product that we forgot to take pictures.  This recipe was fairly easy  and we all agreed it was delicious.  I would  definitely make this for a crowd.

These cookies looked too good to pass up. I’ve never made cookies like these but they are certainly delicious enough to make again! If you are a novice baker such as myself you may want an extra pair of hands to help you with this recipe the first time you attempt it. The directions talk about how the batter firms up quickly as it sits and they were correct. My husband and I felt like we were racing against the clock to get these into the oven before the dough got any firmer and stickier.  (Please excuse the horrible photos taken with the first ever made iPhone.)

First, mix your dry ingredients. . .flour, cocoa, and baking powder.

Then, combine your butter, sugar, and eggs.

Add in  your melted bittersweet chocolate and vanilla extract.

Fold in your dry ingredients and even more bittersweet chocolate chips.

Quick!  Get your batter on your baking sheets.  Use a damp hand to flatten the mounds.

Bake until cracks appear on top and the cookies are softly set.

Not as pretty as Tom’s but amazing with a nice glass of red wine, or even crumbled over a scoop of vanilla ice cream!