Cooking for Seven

I have always loved Jimmy Dean breakfast sausage. However, when I became more aware of the detrimental effects of MSG, I promptly shunned Jimmy Dean.

Then, I found this recipe to make your own breakfast sausage from scratch! Perhaps it is not a perfect substitute for store-bought breakfast sausage, but I much prefer to know exactly what goes into my sausage.

I have found it handy to double or triple the spice recipe and store the leftovers in a spice jar. Just add 1 tablespoon + 3/4 teaspoon to every pound of pork. Also, if you do not wish to use ground pork, you could substitute ground beef. Just remember that the taste and texture will not be the same!

Breakfast Sausage Spice Blend

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Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon rubbed sage
• 1/2 teaspoon rubbed summer savory
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 3/4 teaspoon marjoram
• 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper

Directions:

Stir all ingredients together thoroughly. Store in an airtight container.

To make sausage: Mix the spice blend thoroughly with 1 lb of ground pork.

Makes about 1 tablespoon + 3/4 teaspoon, or enough for 1 lb of sausage.

Using random.org, I have selected the winner:

Hannah and Esther: We like COFFEE! But we also like tea. I love the Rooibos tea with a little milk. Yummy!

Congratulations, Hannah and Esther!

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Just for fun, I tallied up how many people like to drink what. Here are the results:

#1 Tea (52%)

#2 Coffee or Undecided (both 16%)

#3 Cocoa (10%)

#4 Cider (6%)

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Thank you to all who entered my giveaway! Merry Christmas!

On Monday, my siblings and I went to Grandma’s house to help her make lefse (a traditional Norweigian flatbread). Stop by my personal blog to read more about it.

In case you have never heard of it, Rooibos (pronounced “roy-boss”) is a tisane (herbal tea) made from the needle-like leaves of a bush which is native to Africa. It contains antioxidants, and is caffeine free. It became popular in the West during World War II when black tea from Asia was difficult to get.

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The little Tea & Gift Shoppe in town sells many varieties of this delicious tea. Yesterday, I braved the below-zero temperature to obtain two varieties of Rooibos - Caramel Creme and Vanilla. Today, I would like to share some Vanilla Rooibos with you!

Here’s How to Enter:

Leave a comment on this post telling me which hot drink you like best: tea, hot chocolate, coffee, hot cider, etc. Make sure to correctly fill out your email address in the comment form.

For another chance to win, blog about my giveaway. Come back and leave another comment on this post with a link to your post.

For another chance, twitter about my giveaway. Come back and leave another comment on this post.

For another chance to win, post about my giveaway on Facebook. Come back and leave another comment on this post.

No entries after 10 p.m. CST next Wednesday will be considered.

Next Thursday, using random.org, I will select one winner.

Good luck!

This contest has now ended.

I have been making this recipe for approximately 6 1/2 years. We printed the recipe (simply entitled Peanut Butter Cookies IX) from allrecipes on a thin sheet of paper. The page has been torn and has grease marks and purple scrawls. Penciled in next to the ingredient list are the measurements for doubling and TRIPLING the recipe. Yes, we like these cookies.

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Of course, I have made some (healthy) changes to the original. If you would like to make the cookies as they were intended to be, simply use 3/4 cup brown sugar and 3/4 cup white sugar in place of the raw sugar, regular peanut butter, and 3/4 cup white flour and 1/4 cup whole wheat.

Enjoy!

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Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

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Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup demerara sugar or sucanat or rapadura
• 3/4 cup natural peanut butter
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup (4 ounces) whole wheat pastry flour (aka soft white wheat)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup regular rolled oats
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

1) Preheat the oven to 375 ° F.

2) In a large bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer), cream together the butter, sugar, and peanut butter until smooth. Beat in the egg and vanilla.

3) In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Stir into the butter and sugar mixture. Add the oats and chocolate chips.

4) Form the dough into balls the size of golf balls and place on an ungreased or parchment lined baking sheet. Flatten the balls slightly.

5) Bake in the preheated oven for 8-12 minutes, or until the edges begin to brown. Remove from oven and let the cookies to cool on the pan for 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before storing.

Makes approximately 2 dozen cookies.

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