If you need to take a little sweet something to a Labor Day gathering this weekend, look no further than my Best -ever Brownies! They’re rich, dense, decadent and SO easy to make!

Whenever you bake a bar-type cookie, line the baking pan with foil, leaving enough of an over-lap to be able to lift the entire baked good out of the pan before cutting. For the most uniform cuts, break down the brownies by cutting the entire pan in half, then each half in half, then in half again – and keep going until you get the size brownie you want.

I make extra pans of brownies and freeze them, well wrapped in foil, uncut and unfrosted. I like to frost them still frozen. Flip the brownie over and frost the smooth bottom side with an offset spatula. Cut them semi-frozen, too. It creates a nice clean cut. (Wipe your knife blade on a damp paper towel in between cuts to keep things tidy)

I like to cut them into rectangles and then flatten mini cupcake papers and put a brownie in each one for a pretty, bakery-style look.

Best-ever Brownie
Makes one 9×13-inch pan

Cooking spray
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract [Read more →]

I’m sharing all kinds of safety tips and recipe ideas on radio stations aross the country today. Try this recipe for Glazed Beef Kabobs from Certified Angus Beef and visit UsePropane.com for lots of ideas to bring the family together for meal prep. Need a new grill? Now through December is  the time to get the best deals on gas grills!

Yum! So good! For Chef Michael Ollier’s recipe, click here.

Dinner tonight was a simple Cashew Chicken Stir Fry paired with Black Swan Chardonnay. We really liked the peach, citrus and melon flavors of the wine with the slightly spicy chicken and vegetables. It also paired well with our crab rangoon. At about $8 a bottle, Black Swan 2009 South Eastern Australia Chardonnay is our “house” chardonnay of the moment!

Serves 4-6
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes

1/2 cup chicken broth
1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
3 tablespoons oyster sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons honey [Read more →]

I had the kids assembling  crab rangoon for dinner tonight (and extra to pop in the freezer for another night).  After making a couple dozen, my son said “so this is what it feels like to work in a sweat shop”.  (I reminded him that in sweat shops no one says “good job baby, your mama is so proud”) Loved the method (we baked them) but we need to perfect our filling (too crabby- not  enough rangoon-y !)

Listen to the interview.

Deanna Davis, PhD, is a popular speaker, entertainer and workshop leader and the author of The Law of Attraction in Action and Living With Intention. Davis’s annual retreat, Womanhood Weekend, and her evening comedy events, Womanhood: The Divine Comedy, have inspired change in the lives of women all over the country. She lives in Spokane, Washington with her husband and their two young children. Visit her website at www.deannadavis.net.

Deanna latest book is “Laugh, Cry, Eat Some Pie”. It has a simple yet profound message: Happiness isn’t determined by what you have, where you are, or what happens to you. Instead, it comes from practicing happiness daily, regardless of what’s going on around you.

I keep thinking about Deanna’s message that life, just like pie, is made of of ingredients, some of which are unpalatable  unless they’re thoughtfully combined with other ingredients and a little bit of heat.  How true!  I would never eat a spoonful of raw flour,  but I would really miss it as part of the pie crust! (Try to remember that little gem the next time some “unpalatable” element of life rolls around, because we all know it will)  That’s the power of the positive psychology Deanna discusses in her book.

Deanna and I talked about living a momentous life -literally  living your life a moment at a time. She pointed out that “momentous” doesn’t always have to mean “the big times”  but instead we can focus on the extraordinary in the ordinary moments of life.   [Read more →]

Listen to Amy\’s tips.

Inexpensive, convenient and nutritious, oats are everywhere! You can find them in many forms:

Old-fashioned oats: they’ve been steamed and rolled
Quick-cooking oats: like old-fashioned oats, but finely cut before rolling
Steel-cut oats: these oats are run through steel blades that slice them
Instant oatmeal: these oats are partially cooked and then thinly rolled- be aware that sugar and salt are often added
Oat bran: the outer layer of the grain
Oat flour: used in baking
Oat groats: un-flattened kernels

What can oats do for you and your family? Eating just 3 grams of soluble oat fiber each day (the amount found in a bowl of oatmeal) will:
1. Lower cholesterol levels
2. Reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke
3. Reduce the risk of diabetes by stabilizing blood sugar
4. Reduce the risk of certain cancers

Need inspiration for your morning oatmeal? Here some simple serving ideas:
1. Add fruit, nuts and spices to a bowl of hot oatmeal [Read more →]

Wouldn’t it be nice to pull together a delicious dinner in 15 minutes or less? Guess what? You can! Easily. I swear. A great meal comes together in no time flat with a little planning and cooking with more than one meal in mind.

Tonight’s grilled steak can make dinner tomorrow that much easier if you cook a little extra. A favorite 2nd day meal at my house is Steak and Mushroom Wraps with Gorgonzola Dressing. I was inspired by a package of Dole Tender Garden Blend. Its got the bold taste and tender texture that I love. The pairs well with suggestions listed on the package helped inspire me to create a quick and easy wrap that’s become a go-to meal for my family. Just toss your favorite Dole Salad blend with blue cheese dressing and a little crumbled Gorgonzola cheese then layer the salad along with sautéed mushrooms and onions and thinly sliced leftover steak into warmed flour tortillas. Quick. Easy. Delicious. You can find this recipe, and more salad inspiration, at Dole.com.

Steak ‘n’ Mushroom Wraps

Makes: 6 to 8 servings

1 pound flank, skirt or other steak
1/2 cup Sherry Vinaigrette (recipe below)
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/3 cup blue cheese dressing
1/4 cup crumbled Gorgonzola cheese
1 pkg. (6 oz.) DOLE® Tender Garden Blend or other DOLE salad blend
6 to 8 (8-inch) flour tortillas, heated [Read more →]

Thanks for coming to class tonight! Thanks, too, to Jimmy Carpenter for the great wine chat, too! And for breaking away from wine and serving a Lambic beer with dessert!

As promised, here’s the link to the beef cuts chart at Certified Angus Beef.

Tonight I’m teaching a “Steakhouse Dinner” class at EQ at The Party Source. In addition to grilling up great Certified Angus Beef New York strip steaks, we’re making all the classic sides, like wedge salads, creamed spinach, crispy onion straws and of course, the best steak house dessert- cheesecake!

Cheesecake with Walnut Crust
Prep time: 30 minutes
Bake time: 1 1/2 hours
Chill time: Overnight

3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
3/4 cup finely chopped walnuts
3 tablespoons butter, melted
4 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese, at room temperature [Read more →]