Sugar cookies a la Alton Brown

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1 egg, beaten

1 tablespoon milk

Powdered sugar, for rolling out dough

1. 1.     Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside. Place butter and sugar in large bowl of electric stand mixer and beat until light in color. Add egg and milk and beat to combine. Put mixer on low speed, gradually add flour, and beat until mixture pulls away from the side of the bowl. Divide the dough in half, wrap in waxed paper, and refrigerate for 2 hours.
2. 2.     Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
3. 3.    Sprinkle surface where you will roll out dough with powdered sugar. Remove 1 wrapped pack of dough from refrigerator at a time, sprinkle rolling pin with powdered sugar, and roll out dough to 1/4-inch thick. Move the dough around and check underneath frequently to make sure it is not sticking. If dough has warmed during rolling, place cold cookie sheet on top for 10 minutes to chill. Cut into desired shape, place at least 1-inch apart on greased baking sheet, parchment, or silicone baking mat, and bake for 7 to 9 minutes or until cookies are just beginning to turn brown around the edges, rotating cookie sheet halfway through baking time. Let sit on baking sheet for 2 minutes after removal from oven and then move to complete cooling on wire rack. Serve as is or ice as desired. Store in airtight container for up to 1 week.
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Chicken and dumplings, the easy way

When you’re actually sick, you need fast, simple and soothing. 

20-30oz cooked chicken breast meat

2 cans 10oz flaky refrigerated biscuit dough

2 cans cream of chicken soup

40oz chicken broth

Lemon pepper to taste

Put soup/chicken broth in large pot; bring up to simmer on medium heat. Season. Cut biscuits into dumpling-size pieces; add to pot. Reduce heat and cook 12-15 min until dumplings are not doughy but also not dissolved. 

South Beach-friendly “chili”

Everything here is South Beach phase one except the small amount of flour in the chili mix! This isn’t chili because it has beans and tomatoes, but it’s still very good.

2.5 lb top sirloin roast (dice and brown)

1 can Swanson beef broth low sodium

1 can Muir Glen fire roasted diced tomatoes, with its liquid

1/2 packet Albert Agnor’s chili mix

(Beans; see below)

Dump in oven-safe pot, bring to a boil, cover pot and put in a 325 oven for an hour

then add 1 double-size can Bush’s pinto beans, rinsed and drained, and cut it back to 275 for 3 or 4 hours