Backyard BBQ Baked Beans

INGREDIENTS

½ cup Bull's-Eye Original barbecue sauce

½ cup ketchup

½ cup water

2 tablespoons spicy brown mustard

2 tablespoons cider vinegar

1 teaspoon liquid smoke

1 teaspoon granulated garlic

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 ¼ pounds bratwurst, casings removed

2 onions, chopped

2 (28-ounce) cans Bush's Original baked beans

2 (15-ounce) cans pinto beans, drained

2 (15-ounce) cans cannellini beans, drained

1 (10-ounce) can Ro-tel Original Diced Tomatoes & Green Chilies, drained

6 slices center-cut bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces

INSTRUCTIONS

Be sure to use a 13 by 9-inch metal baking pan; the volume of the beans is too great for a 13 by 9-inch ceramic baking dish, and it will overflow. 

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk barbecue sauce, ketchup, water, mustard, vinegar, liquid smoke, granulated garlic, and cayenne together in large bowl; set aside.

OUTSIDE IF POSSIBLE: Cook bratwurst in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, breaking up into small pieces with spoon, until fat begins to render, about 5 minutes. Stir in onions and cook until sausage and onions are well browned, about 15 minutes.

Transfer bratwurst mixture to bowl with sauce. Stir in baked beans, pinto beans, cannellini beans, and tomatoes. Transfer bean mixture to 13 by 9-inch baking pan and place pan on rimmed baking sheet. Arrange bacon pieces in single layer over top of beans.

Bake until beans are bubbling and bacon is rendered, about 1½ hours or longer if needed. Let cool for 15 minutes. Serve.

TO MAKE AHEAD: At end of step 3, beans can be wrapped in plastic and refrigerated for up to 24 hours. Proceed with recipe from step 4, increasing baking time to 1¾-2 hours.

NOTES: Recipe creator calls for Bush’s Original Recipe Baked Beans and Bull’s-Eye Original Barbecue Sauce. I've used also used Stubb's BBQ sauce with 6 tablespoons water and the addition of 2-3 teaspoons blackstrap molasses.

Tex-Mex Black Bean Dip

 One 15-ounce can black beans, drained

1 teaspoon vegetable oil

1/2 cup chopped onion

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 cup diced tomato

1/3 cup milk picante sauce

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1/4-1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

Place beans in a bowl; partially mash until chunky. Set aside.

Heat oil in a medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, and saute four minutes or until tender. Add beans, tomato, picante sauce, cumin, and chili powder; cook 5 minutes or until thick, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; add cheese, cilantro, and lime juice, stirring well. Serve warm or at room temperature with chips.

Classic Candied Yams

six servings

2 pounds sweet potatoes (about 6 medium)

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

3 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons water

1/4 teaspoon salt

Prepare and cook sweet potatoes by coating lightly with vegetable oil and roasting on a baking sheet lined with parchment at 375 for 45-60 minutes. Check for doneness. They should be tender yet not falling apart. They should show a little resistance in the middle. Allow to cool then remove skins and cut crosswise into ½- to ¾-inch slices. (Picture shows 1/4-inch slices.) At this point you may store the cooked slices covered in the fridge if making ahead.

Stovetop directions: Mix brown sugar, butter, water, and salt in skillet. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until smooth and bubbly. Add sweet potato slices; stir gently until glazed and heated through. Spoon hot brown sugar mixture over the top and flip halfway through. About 15 minutes makes them yummy and thoroughly caramelized.

Oven directions (for less hands-on method and for larger amounts): Prepare sheet pans with sliced sweet potatoes and syrup ingredients multiplied accordingly. Try roasting uncovered at 350-375 degrees (higher?) for several minutes before flipping.

Mom's Mandarin Jello Salad

Two 6-ounce packages orange flavored Jello (or four 3-ounce packages)
Four 15-ounce cans mandarin orange segments

1. Drain mandarin oranges, reserving juices. Juices should equal four cups; if amount falls short, add cold water to equal four cups. Set aside orange segments.

2. Pour contents of Jello packages into a large mixing bowl. Add 4 cups boiling water and stir until Jello is completely dissolved. Add reserved mandarin juices/cold water. Stir to combine. Pour into a 9x13 glass pan. Chill in refrigerator for about 45 minutes, until partly set.

3. When Jello is slightly thickened, add orange segments, stirring gently to distribute evenly. Return pan to refrigerator until Jello is completely set, several hours or overnight.

Optional Topping
Two envelopes Dream Whip
2 3/4 cup cold milk, divided
Two 4-ounce packages lemon flavored instant pudding mix
Shredded Cheddar cheese*

1. Using an electric mixer and a large bowl, blend contents of Dream Whip envelopes and 1 cup milk on high speed 6 minutes or until topping thickens and forms peaks.

2. Add remaining 1 3/4 cups milk and pudding mixes; beat on low speed until combined. Beat on high speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Spread onto set Jello salad. Chill until ready to serve.

*Top with shredded Cheddar cheese, if desired. (Mom sometimes did this in the early 80s!)

You may substitute __ Cool Whip for Dream Whip and 1 cup milk.

Baked Apple French Toast

Katie's specialty! Perfect for any morning celebration.
serve with Cinnamon Syrup (recipe below)

1 (16 oz) loaf French bread, cut into 1 1/2"-thick slices
8 eggs
3 cups milk
3/4 cup sugar, divided
1 tablespoon vanilla
5 Granny Smith apples, peeled & sliced
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 tablespoons butter, melted

Preheat oven to 400˚.

Cut bread into 1 1/2"-thick slices. Arrange these slices in a tightly packed single layer in a lightly greased 9x13 pan. Whisk eggs in a large bowl until blended. Whisk in milk, 1/4 cup of the sugar, and vanilla.

Pour half the egg mixture over the bread slices. Arrange apple slices over the bread. (Pan will be quite full.) Pour the remaining egg mixture over the apples.

Mix the remaining 1/2 cup sugar, cinnamon, and melted butter in a small bowl. Sprinkle mixture over the top. Bake for 35 minutes or until apples are tender. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Cinnamon Syrup
Boil for two minutes: 1 cup sugar, 1/2 cup corn syrup, 1/4 cup water, 3/4 teaspoons cinnamon. Remove from heat and stir in 1/2 cup evaporated milk.

Soft Caramel Popcorn with Hot Tamales

Soft Caramel Popcorn with Hot Tamales

2 1/4 cups brown sugar
1 cup Karo syrup (light corn syrup w/vanilla)

1 cube salted butter

one can sweetened condensed milk

3-4 packages hot tamales or to taste, opened and ready to go 

5 2.9-ounce bags microwave popcorn, popped and placed in a giant bowl (7 to 7 1/2 quarts popped popcorn)

Use a medium (not large) heavy saucepan deep enough for an accurate candy thermometer reading.

In a medium heavy saucepan, bring brown sugar and corn syrup to a boil over medium heat. Boil for 3 minutes. Add butter and sweetened condensed milk and return to a boil, stirring. Check texture after just a minute or two then remove from heat. Check drop of caramel in cold water, if desired. Not too gooey but still stretchy. Caramel will firm up significantly as it cools. Caramel should be soft and pliable. (Maybe add a nice big pinch of salt here.) Remove from heat and pour over prepared bowl of popcorn. Stir until caramel is evenly distributed. Add hot tamales. Stir in evenly. 

Natalie's Fresh Salsa

This recipe comes from Natalie who got it from Dorothy. Originally developed as a canning salsa, Natalie went the way of all Walter girls and ignored the directive to preserve and prepare for the Long Winter ahead. She made this recipe her own, adding in the black beans. For anyone brave enough to can this salsa, Nat says please give it a try. Then share with the rest of us lazy grasshoppers.

Natalie's Fresh Salsa
10 garden-fresh ripe tomatoes, diced

1 red onion, finely diced
1-2 jalapenos, seeded and finely diced (keep seeds for heat, if desired)
1 4-ounce can fire roasted diced green chilis (add additional can, if desired)
1 15-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 handful cilantro, chopped (add more to taste, if desired)
2 cloves garlic (to start with)
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon sugar
juice of one lime (optional)
salt and pepper

Mix all ingredients together. Season to taste. Recipe is adaptable: Dad likes it without cilantro. Eric likes extra jalapenos. Natalie loves the green chilis and sometimes adds more.

Perfect Boiled Eggs

Perfect Boiled Eggs
Place up to 18 large eggs into a big, wide (not tall) pot. Fill pot with water until level is about 1 1/2 inches above the eggs. Over medium heat, bring water to a nice, rolling boil. Turn off heat. Remove pot from the burner and let sit 11 (Eleven!) minutes. 

Cool boiled eggs immediately. Transfer with a slotted spoon to an ice bath. If your icemaker is broken (like ours!), transfer to a bowl of cool water placed in the sink. Run additional cool water over boiled eggs for one minute. 

Crack with a table knife along circumference of egg. Peel under running water. Dry with a paper towel. Store in fridge. Yolks should be moist, bright yellow, and creamy. (Not chalky & green. Yuck!)

Chocolate Malt Milkshake (Two Versions)

 Classic Chocolate Malt 
source: Mom
1/2 cup of whatever milk is in the fridge

4 tablespoons Chocolate Malt flavored Ovaltine (or to taste)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3-4 Oreo cookies (if you're feeling really crazy)
2 cups good vanilla ice cream (even the cheap stuff is good though)

Blend all ingredients. 

Deluxe Chocolate Malt
1/2 cup whole milk (or mostly 1% with a splash of cream)
4 tablespoons chocolate sauce (Robynn's recipe here is delish!)
1 1/2 - 2 tablespoon malted milk powder
2 cups good vanilla ice cream

Blend all ingredients. Enjoy! Don't even think about symptoms of lactose intolerance.

Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookies

I am cookie challenged. I don't know if it's high-altitude issues or what, but I never seemed to have a problem with cookie textures before moving to Utah. I had basically given up on ever getting a moist, chewy cookie that held its structure instead of falling flat until one day in fall 2004.  I was at a soccer game (Ya was a budding superstar!), and it was another mom's day for team treats. She brought milk and these oversized cookies. I was immediately struck by the size and structure, then the cookie's tender chewiness. I begged for the recipe, and she was sweet enough to share. Success at last! 

Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookies
(source: Christy Nemelka)

This recipe is exactly as she gave it to me. I've had to make it my own with a little experimentation. Pull these out of the oven before you think they're done--just barely starting to brown. Test with one or two cookies first. Size-wise I make these a little bigger than normal (using 2- to 2.5-ounce scoops) but not as big as the originals, which were huge. I think the best cookies are made with room temperature dough. These are great the next day!

2 cups butter (4 cubes), at room temperature
2 cups brown sugar
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs
3 teaspoons vanilla
6 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 to 1 1/2 12-ounce bags chocolate chips (I use closer to 1 bag)

Preheat oven to 375˚.* Cream butter and sugars. Add eggs and vanilla. Combine flour, salt, and baking soda. Add flour mixture slowly to creamed mixture. It will be a very thick dough. If necessary, add a little milk to adjust dough consistency. (I've never had to do this.) Cookie dough should be somewhat dry to the touch. Add chocolate chips. 

Using an ice cream scoop to form these fun, oversized cookies. Drop onto cookie sheet. Bake 2-ounce scoops about 8 minutes; bake 2.5-ounce scoops about 10 minues. Pull cookie sheet out of the oven when barely starting to brown. Place sheet on cooking rack. Leave cookies on the hot sheet for a minute or two to set, then transfer to cooling rack. If they spread too much, add up to 1/4 cup additional flour. 

*I once read that baking cookies at a higher temperature (375˚ vs 350˚) speeds up the cooking process so that water doesn't evaporate and concentrate the sugars, which results in leaving the cookies hard. 

Ya's Ramen Noodles

Follow Directions on Ramen Noodle package and enjoy!

Romaine Mandarin Salad

Mom made this before the super salads of today. It was fresh, crisp, and sweet, and set off a flank steak dinner perfectly. I often watched her make the sugared almonds and was mesmerized by the process of sugar magically liquefying in the pan. I recently made this again and found I wasn't crazy about the dressing after all these years. (Could have been because I poured it on each serving and didn't mix it in entirely as the recipe instructs. I'll have to try it again.) I substituted a poppy seed vinaigrette to pour on individual portions, and it worked perfectly. (We have a family member who is sensitive to soggy salads so I'm overly cautious about dressings.) I've included both dressing recipes. 

Safe to double salad for a crowd. If doubling the salad and using the Sweet & Sour Dressing, double it. No need to double Rice Vinegar Poppy Seed Dressing. 

Romaine Mandarin Salad
adapted from Betty Crocker's Cookbook, 1981

1/4 cup sliced almonds
2 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 head iceberg lettuce, torn into bite-size pieces
1/4 bunch Romaine lettuce, torn into bite-size pieces
2 medium stalks celery, medium chopped (about 1 cup)
2 green onions with tops, thinly sliced (about 2 tablespoons)
Sweet & Sour Dressing
1 can (11 ounce) mandarin orange segments, drained

Heat skillet to medium high. Add almonds and sugar and stir constantly over medium to high heat, until sugar is melted and almonds are coated. Cool and break apart. Store at room temperature.

Assemble salad just before serving if using S&S dressing. Place lettuces in plastic bag; add celery and onions. Pour Sweet & Sour Dressing into bag; add orange segments. Close bag tightly and shake until salad greens and orange segments are well coated. Add almonds and shake again. 

Sweet & Sour Dressing
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon vinegar
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1/2 teaspoon salt
dash pepper
dash red pepper sauce

Shake all ingredients in a tightly covered jar; refrigerate.

Rice Vinegar Poppy Seed Dressing
also great with Spinach Bacon salads

2/3 cup white rice vinegar (plain, not seasoned)
1 cup canola oil
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons salt (1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt)
2 teaspoons dry mustard
1-2 green onions, chopped
2 teaspoons poppy seeds

Blend all ingredients except poppy seeds (did that once--big mistake). Stir in poppy seeds. Serve or chill until ready to serve.

Roasted Asparagus with Balsamic Browned Butter

So easy, so delicious.

Roasted Asparagus with Balsamic Browned Butter
source: Cooking Light, September 2001

40 asparagus spears, trimmed (about 2 pounds)
Cooking spray
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons soy sauce (low-sodium)
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

Preheat oven to 400˚.

Prep tip: Pick up one asparagus spear and snap it. Line up this spear with the rest and cut to that length.

Arrange the asparagus in a single layer on a baking sheet. Coat with cooking spray. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for 12 minutes or until tender.

In a small skillet over medium heat, cook for 3 minutes or until lightly browned, shaking pan occasionally. Watch carefully; do not burn butter. Remove from heat. Stir in soy sauce and balsamic vinegar. (Careful! The sauce bubbles up ferociously. I always quickly place a splatter screen over the skillet. Learned this the hard way.)

Drizzle sauce over the asparagus, tossing well to coat. Serve immediately.

Grilled Thai Beef & Greens Salad

Meili craves this ... always.

Grilled Thai Beef Green Salad
1 pound flank steak or top-round London Broil (I've used a pack of petite sirloin steaks), about 1 to 1 1/2 inches thick
3 tablespoons lime juice, divided into 1 and 2 tablespoons
3 tablespoons soy sauce (low-sodium)
3 tablespoons canola oil
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 1/2 teaspoons minced ginger
1 1/4 teaspoons red curry paste or chili-garlic sauce
1/2 head Romaine lettuce, torn (about 6 cups)
2-3 green onions, thinly sliced (about 1/3 cup) + more for garnish
1/2 cup cilantro leaves, rinsed and dried
1 cup basil leaves, sliced into ribbons

Rinse and pat meat dry. Place in a plastic bag or glass dish. 

In a medium bowl, combine 1 tablespoon of the lime juice, all the soy sauce, canola oil, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, and red curry paste. Pour half the mixture into the bag with the meat. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons lime juice to the bag. Seal tightly, and marinate meat 4-24 hours, turning occasionally. Reserve the rest of the mixture in the fridge to dress the salad.

Spray grill or grill pan with cooking spray and preheat. Grill steak until medium-rare, 135-140˚, about 5 minutes per side. Let rest until room temperature then slice thinly against the grain.

Combine lettuce, green onions, cilantro, basil and beef in a salad bowl. Add the reserved dressing and toss to coat. Garnish servings with extra green onions.

Easy, Juicy Pork Chops

Being a child of the 80s, I am naturally terrified of meat. Every food expert back then instructed home cooks to kill the nasty, deadly pathogens by cooking all meats (especially chicken & pork) to a specific germ-blasting temperature. Having no thermometer at the time, I took that advice to mean "just cook the heck out of it." Results were consistently bad--my meat dishes were dry, tough, and flavorless. They still tend that way, to be honest. But I'm slowly improving.

Rules have relaxed a little in the past couple decades, and a few recommended temperatures have been lowered. But most important, I got myself an instant-read thermometer that I use religiously. Here's one of the first meat recipes I conquered. I've shared it with Natalie a few times, and I'm including it here so we can both refer to it.

Warning! Some of the meat will remain pink. I have to repress the urge to keep cooking. Trust your thermometer (assuming it's trustworthy.... mwahh ha ha ha!).

Easy, Juicy Pork Chops
recipe source: Cook's Illustrated magazine, premiere issue

4 bone-in pork rib or center-cut chops, about 7 ounces each and 1/2 to 3/4" thick
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
salt and ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon sugar

Prepare chops: Cut two slits about 2 inches apart through fat and tissue on side of each chop (prevents curling). Pat them dry with paper towels. Rub both sides with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Sprinkle one side of each chop evenly with 1/8 teaspoon sugar, avoiding the bone.

Place chops, sugared-side down, in a cold 12-inch nonstick skillet. Using hands, press meat of each chop into pan. Set skillet over medium heat. (Chops should start sizzling after 2 minutes.) Cook until lightly browned, 4 to 9 minutes. 

Flip chops. Cover skillet, reduce heat to low and cook until center of each chop registers 140˚F, 2 to 6 minutes. Chops will barely brown on the second side. (Insert thermometer horizontally through the side, not up and down.)

Remove to a platter and tent with foil. Let rest for 5 minutes. Do not discard liquid in skillet.

After 5 minutes of rest, add any accumulated juices on platter to the skillet. Set skillet over high heat and simmer vigorously until reduced to 3 tablespoons, just about a minute. Adjust taste with salt and pepper. Take skillet off heat and return pork chops, turning them to coat with the reduced sauce. Serve, browned side up, pouring juices over top.

serves 4.

Roasted Sweet Potato Rounds

Link

I discovered this recipe a few years ago. In a word, Yum! Best as an after-school snack on a chilly autumn day but great any time.

Roasted Sweet Potato Rounds
adapted from Cooks Illustrated Magazine Nov Dec 2008

3 pounds sweet potatoes (about six evenly sized, 2-3" diameter), peeled
1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt
pepper to taste (1/8 teaspoon)
up to 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, if desired

Slice peeled sweet potatoes into 3/4-inch rounds. Place into a bowl, drizzle with oil and season with salt and pepper. Toss to completely coat.

Cover a large, rimmed baking sheet with a layer of aluminum foil. (I use a 12x18 sheet cake pan.) Coat with nonstick cooking spray. Arrange potatoes in an even layer. Using a second sheet of foil, cover the potatoes tightly.

Place pan in a cold oven and turn oven to 425˚F. Bake 30 minutes. Remove top layer of foil. 

Return to the oven and bake an additional 20-25 minutes, until bottom of potatoes are golden brown. (Lift with a spatula to check underneath.) Remove from oven and flip over each potato slice. Return to the oven, baking 12-15 minutes more until other side browns. Remove from oven and allow to cool 5-10 minutes before eating.

Note: I place the cooked rounds on a rack to cool to help maintain crisp exteriors. Interiors should be creamy. They do improve in flavor if you can hold off eating them until they cool to room temperature. 

Katie's Marshmallow Brownies

Originally called Connie's Marshmallow Brownies (after mom's friend Connie Simmons), these brownies have earned a new name in our family. Katie makes these at least twice a month, and they're always delicious--especially the next day. Cousin Cindy Glad told me just the other day that Grandma LaPriel Walter made these too! I was sooo happy to learn that, but three names are just too many. I'm calling these Katie's.

Katie's Marshmallow Brownies

1 1/2 cup margarine or butter

1/3 cup + 2 Tbsp of cocoa

3 cups sugar

6 eggs

2 1/4 cups flour

1 Tbsp vanilla

1 cup nuts, optional

1 bag of mini marshmallows

Cream butter, cocoa and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time. Then gradually add flour, vanilla and nuts. Pour into greased sheet cake pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-23 minutes. Remove from oven and add marshmallows over top of baked crust. Return to oven and bake an additional 4-5 minutes until marshmallows are puffy and barely turning gold. They should not turn brown. Cool and frost.

Frosting:

1/3 cup margarine or butter

2 cups powdered sugar

1/3 cup cocoa

1/3 cup evaporated milk

1 tsp vanilla

Mix well and spread evenly over cooled brownies.

Shasta BBQ Sauce

A simple family favorite since an extended family trip to Lake Shasta in the 80s. Someone made this sauce (mom? Mamoo? Dorothy?) to serve over BBQ chicken, and it became an instant classic. Whenever we make it (which is often--there's always a container in the fridge), my mind is flooded with memories of that trip so long ago: lots of water skiing, trying unsuccessfully to slalom, and at least one riding adventure with a horse named "Bucketmouth." Anyone else have a particular memory?

Shasta BBQ Sauce

1 cup ketchup

1/2 cup water (optional)

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup granulated sugar

2 tablespoon molasses

2-3 tablespoon woody's BBQ concentrate


Whisk all ingredients together in a medium-sized bowl until sauce becomes smooth. Taste to adjust ingredients. Always safe to double.

Crispy Coconut Chicken with Piña Colada Sauce

My family makes this every Christmas Eve. Try it. You'll love it!

Crispy Coconut Chicken 

1 cup flaked coconut

1/2 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1 1/2 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut into large chunks if desired.

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/3 cup butter or margarine, melted

Preheat oven to 400˚F. In a shallow dish, combine first five ingredients. In a separate shallow dish, lightly beat the egg. Pour melted butter into a baking sheet pan and spread evenly. Dip chicken pieces into egg then dredge through the dry ingredients, pressing and tapping firmly so that seasonings adhere. Place on prepared pan. Bake for 25 minutes or until done, turning once halfway through cooking. 

Piña Colada Sauce 

1/2 cup Coco Lopez

1/2 cup pineapple juice

1/4 cup water

2 Tbsp. crushed pineapple, drained

1 Tbsp. sweetened coconut flakes

3 Tbsp. + 1 tsp. powdered sugar

1 + 1/2 tsp. corn starch

3 tsp. cold water

Mix Coco Lopez, pineapple juice, water, crushed pineapple, coconut, and powdered sugar in a saucepan. Heat on medium low temp. until sauce begins to simmer, stirring frequently. Let mixture simmer slowly 10 to 12 min. Mix corn starch and water together; add to sauce and blend well. Let mixture simmer for 3 to 5 min. longer while stirring during and after adding cornstarch. Remove from heat and bring to room temperature.

Bonus! Here's another sauce option:

Apricot Sauce
1 cup apricot preserves
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

Combine and mix until smooth consistency.