Best Cookies!

My husband loves almond macaroons, not coconut. He would likely choose them over almost any other. I found out several years ago that they are remarkably easy to make if you do a couple of things. Those things are: use parchment paper, have a food processor, and buy blanched slivered almonds, can effectively separate eggs. Blanching whole almonds isn't difficult, but when you peel them, be mindful that you may end up shooting them across the kitchen. Yes, it really is that easy!

Almond Macaroons

Makes 2 dozen two inch cookies

3 cups (12 oz) blanched slivered almonds

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

egg whites from 3 large eggs (if you're measuring: 1/3 cup plus one tablespoon)

1 teaspoon almond extract

1. With racks in the upper-middle and lower-middle levels of the oven, preheat to 325. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment.

2. Put almonds in food processor, turn it on for about a minute. Add sugar, let it go for another 15 seconds. Finally, add the egg whites and extract. You may need to scrape down the sides. Let it process until it forms a wad around the blade. It will make a paste that is stiff but malleable. If it's dry, add drops of water through the feed tube while it's running. It won't take much.

3. Roll scant 2 tablespoon scoops of the paste per cookie into a ball. They will spread, so leave about 1 1/2 inches between them. Your hands will get sticky, so when you can't handle it anymore, rinse them with water and begin rolling again.

4. Bake, swapping baking sheet positions halfway, for 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown. Let them cool on the parchment. They'll keep about 4 days.

To make extraordinary cookies even better:

Once the cookies are cool, melt dark chocolate in a double boiler. I dip the cookies in so that the chocolate is only on half of the cookie and just on the top. It doesn't take much to round out the flavors.

Pizza from Scratch

Friday night at our house is usually pizza night. We don't order carry out, delivery or pop in a frozen pizza... We make it from scratch. We have go-to favorites, but we're finding new ways to use up leftovers and enjoy great pizza combinations.

Dough Recipe

I start this right after lunch to give the dough time to rise.

2 1/2 cups bread flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon yeast

2 teaspoons salt

1 scant cup water

2 tablespoons olive oil

Combine the flours, salt and yeast in the bowl of a food processor or work bowl of a stand mixer. Add the water and oil until it becomes a dough ball and allow the machine to knead it for you for a little while. If it's really sticky add a little flour, or if it doesn't come together into a dough ball add a little more water.

Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface to form a ball. Grease a bowl with olive oil, place dough ball inside, cover with a damp towel and allow it to rise in a warm place until about an hour before you're ready to eat.

Divide the dough into 3, roll into balls and let rest for about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to at least 500 degrees with a pizza stone on the lowest rack(my oven is old and unpredictable over 500, but heat your oven to as hot as it will go).

One at a time pull each of the dough balls into a circle, taking care not to tear a hole in it. If you have a pizza peel, dust it with course corn meal, then put down the pizza crust. Top with your favorites. You can use traditional Sauce, pepperoni, mozzarella, parmesan cheese. We love pesto, avocado, fresh tomato with mozzarella and parmesan. I often make a "mexican pizza" with leftover refried beans, cheddar cheese, and tomato, if I have some. Recently, I made a pizza with indian flavors using an eggplant relish as the sauce with leftover chicken, and the traditional mozzarella and parmesan. Each pizza bakes for 6ish minutes until the cheese melts and starts to brown and the dough cooks through.

You can also cook the pizzas on the grill. To make sure you don't burn the crust before you melt the cheese, make sure your cheese is room temperature when you're putting the toppings on, and leave the lid closed on the grill to create an oven-like environment for the heat to get to the cheese.

Hope pizza night becomes a regular on your menu too!

Yummus

I grew up eating homemade hummus, and learned to make my own version somewhere along the way. There are some really great store-bought versions available now, but once you compare the cost of making your own, you'll never buy it again. All you need is a food processor to make this simple dish.

Hummus

All these amounts are my best guesses...

1-2 garlic cloves

1 can chick peas, drained with liquid reserved

1-2 Tablespoons tahini (sesame paste)

Juice from 1/2 lemon

1 teaspoon soy sauce (tamari is best)

1 teaspoon olive oil

Toss garlic cloves into food processor and let it mince them for you. Add the chickpeas, tahini, soy sauce, some lemon juice and process until smooth. Scrape down the sides as necessary. I add about a teaspoon of the bean liquid and a drizzle of olive oil to aid in the blending process. The most important step is tasting the hummus. It may need more soy sauce (the salty flavor), or more lemon juice (acidity and freshness), more tahini (nutty), or olive oil (viscosity). I blend it for a really long time until it's very smooth and almost fluffy.