Pro Brownies

Ingredients

  • ⅔ cup butter at room temperature
  • 1½ cups sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • ½ cup cocoa powder, plus 4 tsp for the pan
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1⅓ cups chocolate chips

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter the bottom, sides, and edges of an 8-inch square cake pan. Pour in some cocoa powder and shake it around until the pan is evenly coated, then tap out any excess cocoa powder. (Cocoa powder instead of flour prevents any white spots on the edges.)
  2. Make the sugar mixture: Combine the butter and ½ cup of the sugar in a medium saucepan. Heat over medium heat, stirring slowly, until the sugar has dissolved and the butter has melted completely, 1 to 2 minutes.
  3. Make the egg mixture: Whisk together the eggs and 1 cup sugar until smooth.
  4. Make the batter: Pour the sugar mixture into the egg mixture and whisk to combine. Add the cocoa powder, salt, baking powder, and flour and whisk to combine. Add the chocolate chips and fold them in with a spatula until evenly incorporated. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
  5. Bake the brownie: Bake for 35 to 40 minutes. Look for the top of the brownies to set, with a few cracks in the surface.
  6. Unmold the brownie: Let brownies cool for 15 to 20 minutes until they are warm and set.

Dry beans – pressure cooker

For each cup of beans add three cups of water and one tbsp of oil. Cook on high pressure 3 to 10 minutes and allow pressure to release naturally (takes about half an hour).

This applies for any kind of dry beans including split peas.

Larger beans like kidney beans should be left on the longer end (7-10 minutes) while smaller legumes only need 3-5 minutes.

Ham & (dry) Bean soup

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil or butter
  • 1 onion diced
  • 1 large carrot peeled and diced
  • ½ cup finely chopped celery
  • 4 cloves garlic minced
  • 2 cups shredded cooked ham
  • 1½ quarts beef stock or broth (you can use chicken)
  • 2½ cups dry beans — any combination of c white, lima, kidney, black or pinto beans can also be used
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • pinch of salt, if needed

Directions

  1. Cook dry beans
  2. Sauté onions, carrots, and celery in butter or oil for 5 minutes.
  3. Add garlic and ham and sauté for 2 more minutes.
  4. Add broth, beans (including most of the water they were cooked in), and pepper then boil for 15 minutes.
  5. Salt if necessary and serve warm.

Ham & (canned) Bean soup

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil or butter
  • 1 onion diced
  • 1 large carrot peeled and diced
  • 1/2 cup finely chopped celery
  • 4 cloves garlic minced
  • 2 cups shredded cooked ham
  • 1 1/2 quarts beef stock or broth (you can use chicken)
  • 4 (15 ounce) cans white beans (cannellini beans) — (any combination of canned kidney beans and black beans can also be used)
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • pinch of salt, if needed

Instructions

  1. Sauté onions, carrots, and celery in butter or oil for 5 minutes.
  2. Add garlic and ham and sauté for 2 more minutes.
  3. Add broth, beans, and pepper then boil for 15 minutes.
  4. Salt if necessary and serve warm.

Chinese rice

The name seems like a racist stereotype when I think about it as an adult. There’s nothing Chinese about it except that it is served with chow mein noodles.

Ingredients

  • 1½ lbs ground beef
  • ¼ cup chopped onion
  • 1 can cream of mushroom soup
  • 1 can cream of chicken soup
  • 2 cups rice
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1½ cups frozen peas
  • Chow mein noodles

Directions

  1. Cook rice
  2. Brown hamburger with onions
  3. Mix soups, ground beef, rice and soy sauce then bake 15 minutes @ 350°
  4. Stir frozen peas into hot mixture and serve with chow mein noodles.

Broccoli Chicken & Cheesy Rice

Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp oil
  • 1 lb chicken breasts cubed
  • 1 yellow onion diced
  • 1⅓ cups uncooked rice
  • 2½ cups chicken broth
  • ¾ tsp salt
  • ¼ tsp pepper
  • ¼ tsp garlic powder
  • 1½ tbsp flour
  • ½ cup milk
  • 1½ cups shredded cheese
  • 2 cups broccoli florets

Directions

  1. Heat oil on high in pressure cooker with lid off; add chicken and onions; saute until chicken is lightly browned and onions are translucent.
  2. Add rice, broth, salt, pepper and garlic; lock lid and cook on high pressure for 5 minutes.
  3. Quick release pressure.
  4. With lid off, set pursue cooker on high, whisk milk and flour together, add them to the cooker and simmer for 2 minutes.
  5. Stir in cheese and broccoli, simmer until cheese is melted and broccoli is warmed through.

Chicken Seasoning

This is a homemade seasoning that works as well as Zesty Lemon Seasoning. It’s not the same, just equally well received and as easy to use.

Ingredients

  • 1 tsp Salt
  • ¼ tsp garlic powder
  • ¼ tsp paprika
  • ⅛ tsp dill
  • ⅛ tsp ground cloves
  • ⅛ tsp ground ginger

Directions

Mix everything together well and then use the same way you would use Seasoned Salt.