Cocktail: Adult Milk Shake

2 cups Chocolate ice cream
3/4 milk
3 oz. coffee liqueur

Using a blender, combine ice cream, milk, and coffee liqueur. Blend until smooth. Pour into prepared milkshake glasses.

Serves 2

Variations:
* 1 cup chocolate ice cream & 1 cup coffee ice cream
*  need more chocolate add some chocolate syrup
*  want a little almond flavor add some Amaretto
* Garnish with any of the following: a drizzle of chocolate syrup, whipped cream, a chocolate covered coffee bean, or sprinkle of cocoa powder to make it a little bit more fancy

RECIPE for homemade Coffee Liqueur

Organizing Household Appliance Manuals

Do you have a junk draw stuffed with instruction booklets and manuals for your household appliances?  I used to store them in a cupboard and every time I removed one - 10 came spilling out.

Recently we bought a new entertainment cabinet and has more storage than our old so I decided to use it for all those manuals.

I took a basket, a box of  gallon size ziplock bags and marker to organize them better. I labeled the bags with rooms in our house.  I took all the kitchen appliances manual and placed them into the coordinating bag.  Some manuals such as the one for our TV - had lots of little parts and booklets - so those I did in a single ziplock. They are all now in the basket. I have kitchen appliances first in the basket, because I tend to get into those manuals more often - such as when it is time to clean the oven or coffee maker.

Do you have a way you organize those manuals? I would love to hear how others organize them.

Potstickers

This recipe makes about 48 potstickers. I make them for parties or I  freeze them in more manageable meal size batches.  Or split the recipe in half for 24 potstickers. I have included freezing instructions on the bottom of this recipe.

1 lb ground pork (also good with ground chicken)
6 to 8  water chestnuts, diced
2 or 3 green onions, thinly sliced
2 tablespoon finely chopped, peeled fresh ginger (ground ginger does work in it's place)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
3 tablespoons soy sauce (plus some for dunking)
 2 packages of wonton wrappers
2 to 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil


In a medium to large bowl, mix  the ground pork, water chestnuts, green onions, ginger, garlic and soy sauce.


 Take one wrapper at a time and spoon a rounded teaspoon of filling in the center. Keep the rest of the wonton wrappers covered with a damp towel.

Wet the four edges of the wrapper with dampened fingers. Fold wrapper in half over filling to form a triangle, making sure the ends meet and filling is centered; press edges down firmly to seal.

Spray a platter or plate with cooking spray, place sealed potstickers, cover with a damp towel to keep moist. Fill plate and place in the refrigerator to keep cool while you continue to fill wrappers. Repeat filling each wrapper until all the filling is gone.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high heat  in a 12-inch nonstick skillet with a tight-fitting lid. Add about 12 potstickers to the pan and cook. Cook until lightly browned - turning once, about 1 minute per side. Add 1/2 cup water to the pan carefully as the oil may splatter and pop, cover, and steam until translucent and just cooked through, 2 to 3 minutes. Repeat with remaining tablespoon oil and wontons. Serve with soy sauce.

FREEZER Instructions:
Prepare the potstickers up to the cooking stage.

Take a baking sheet and line it parchment paper or aluminum foil.  Place the potstickers on the baking sheet so that they are not overlapping or touching. Place in the freezer.

After the potstickers are frozen, place them in a freezer bag. They can be frozen for up to 3 months.

When ready to use, cook the potstickers as usual, without thawing. The cooking time will be a bit longer than usual.