Welcome to My Kitchen

January is a good time to try new recipes. In theory, life has slowed, the holiday rush is past and winter weather keeps us indoors. Since our last column I have tried a number of new recipes, most successful.

Recipes for one or two is a frequent recipe request. Recipes are most often designed for 4 to 6 servings or in the case of muffins, 8 to 12, leaving a single person eating the same thing for a week. Blueberry Muffin for One, a bakery style muffin from One Dish Kitchen, was a great success.

Blueberry Muffin for One

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/8 tsp salt

2 Tbsp butter, melted

3 Tbsp granulated sugar

1 large egg yolk

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

4 Tbsp milk

1/2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Generously grease a 10-ounce ramekin and set aside.

In a small bowl, mix together flour, baking powder and salt.

In a separate bowl stir together melted butter and sugar. Add egg yolk, vanilla and milk and whisk until completely blended. Gently stir mixture into dry ingredients, don't overmix. Gently fold in blueberries.

Spoon batter into prepared ramekin. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until top is golden and center is cooked. A toothpick inserted near the center should come out clean.

Remove from oven and cool slightly. Carefully remove from ramekin and serve warm with butter. Yield: 1 large muffin.

Note: I beat a whole egg until well combined and measured a tablespoon of egg into the recipe. Add a pinch of salt or sugar and you can freeze the remaining egg for the next muffin you bake. Additionally, the recipe notes you may use almond milk in place of cow's milk.

Pancakes are a favorite of many for any meal of the day. With syrup for breakfast, or spread thin to cook, they make an alternative wrap for sandwiches or a soft taco dinner. Sourdough Pancakes are a great way to use up excess starter. For this recipe from Taste of Lizzy T, starter may be used fed or unfed.

Sourdough Pancakes

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

2 Tbsp granulated sugar

1 tsp salt

1 cup sourdough starter

1 1/2 cups milk

1 large egg, well beaten

2 Tbsp vegetable oil

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and soda, sugar and salt. Add the sourdough starter, milk, egg and oil. Mix until just combined.

Spray a pancake griddle with cooking spray or grease well. Heat to 300-350 degrees. Pour 1/4 cup batter onto hot griddle. Cook the pancakes until bubbling on top. Flip pancake and cook an additional 1-2 minutes, or until cooked through. Yield: 12 six-inch pancakes.

Keeping track of friends living outside Odessa via Facebook occasionally leads me to a new great recipe. Longtime friends, Karen and Roy Wenzel of Marysville, Wash. recently posted a photo of Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies Roy had made. Karen shared the recipe.

Best Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 1/2 cups Namaste bread flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 cup butter or shortening, at room temperature

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 tsp vanilla

2 eggs

2 cups gluten free chocolate chips

1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Combine flour and baking soda and set aside. In a large mixer bowl, cream together butter and sugars. Beat in vanilla, then eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in flour mixture. Fold in chocolate chips, and nuts if using.

Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto cookie sheets and bake 9 to 11 minutes until golden and set. Cool 2 minutes in the pan, then remove to wire racks to cool completely. Yield: about 3 dozen cookies.

Note: I lined the baking sheets with parchment paper, because I like the ease of removing from the pan.

January and baking cookies reminded me of my dad's favorite Banana Oatmeal Cookies. During income tax season we were to keep him supplied with oatmeal type cookies, which he kept in the bottom drawer of his desk for snacks to keep him fueled for the long hours and late nights. In retirement, Dad liked to have a plate of these on hand for Super Bowl watching.

Making a batch of these helped me use up a couple of bananas stored in the freezer for use in recipes. Tip: frozen bananas mash easier than fresh ones.

Banana Oatmeal Cookies

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup granulated sugar

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

3/4 tsp ground cinnamon

3/4 cup butter or margarine, at room temperature

1 egg, well beaten

1 cup mashed banana (about 2 medium)

1 3/4 cups quick cooking oatmeal

3/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a large bowl combine flour, sugar and spices. Cut in butter until small crumbs form. Stir in egg and banana until well combined. Stir in oatmeal and nuts.

Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 15 minutes or until well browned. Remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Note: I almost always use parchment paper to line baking sheets when making cookies, even when the recipe calls for ungreased baking sheets. It is so much easier to remove cookies from the pans and cleanup is quick.

– Share your favorite recipes or recipe requests with your fellow readers. I'm still on the search for just the right strudels with meatballs recipe for a reader. The strudels he remembers are much lighter than the 2-inch lengths most recipes produce. Send recipes to: Welcome to My Kitchen, c/o The Odessa Record, P.O. Box 458, Odessa, WA 99159, email therecord@odessaoffice.com or drop them in the Welcome to My Kitchen mail tin in The Odessa Record Office. Now is a good time to brush the dirt from any flowerpots you plan to reuse, then scrub in a pan of hot water, sudsy with Dawn detergent. Discard dirty water outside, not down your sink drain.