Super easy Choclate Cream Pie

1/3 c. milk
4 oz. milk chocolate
2 tbsp. sugar
3 oz. cream cheese
1 prepared graham cracker pie crust
Cool Whip

Heat chocolate plus 2 tablespoons milk until melted. In a large bowl beat cream cheese, remaining milk and sugar. Add melted chocolate. Fold in Cool Whip. Pour into pie shell and refrigerate. Serves 8.

This recipe originally called for 4 oz. German Chocolate, but when I made it with that, it was too bitter. Milk chocolate is more my taste. I'm sure you could also use chocolate with toffee pieces or almond pieces as well.

CHOCOLATE MINT SNOWBALLS

One of my student's mom made these for me for a Christmas treat. They were so good I went home and looked for the recipe on google and then tried them myself. They are so GOOD!!! So I thought I would share the recipe.

1 (18-ounce) package cream-filled chocolate sandwich cookies (Take out the cream)
1 (8-ounce) package 1/3-less-fat cream cheese
1 (12.5-ounce) package chocolate-covered creamy mints
2 (12-ounce) packages semisweet chocolate morsels
1 tablespoon shortening

PULSE half of cookies in a food processor 3 or 4 times or until crumb consistency. Add remaining cookies to crumbs in food processor, and pulse until crumb consistency. Cut cream cheese into 4 pieces; add to food processor, 1 piece at a time, processing well after each addition.

ROLL cream cheese mixture into 1-inch balls. Push one chocolate-covered mint into the center of each ball; roll each ball smooth.

MICROWAVE chocolate morsels and shortening in a glass bowl at HIGH for 90 seconds or until melted, stirring every 30 seconds.

DIP balls in melted chocolate mixture; place on wax paper to harden. Store in refrigerator.

MAKES ABOUT 3 DOZEN
PREP: 20 MIN.

Perfect Party Salsa

I thought with the holidays approaching I would share a favorite recipe of mine that my Uncle Rod shared with me years ago. It is always a hit! and so easy to make!

3/4 bag frozen white sweet corn
1 can black beans ( do not drain juice)
1 bunch green onions ( chopped finely)
5-7 roma tomatoes ( chopped finely)
1 large lemon

Just chop up the ingredients, mix everything in a large bowl and then cut then squeeze the juice from the lemon over the mixture and mix thoroughly! Serve with corn chips. It is very yummy and fresh! I like the Tostitos brand that are called Scoops ( they come in regular or baked, I especially love the baked ones!)

Freezer Stuff

I am so glad to have a freezer full of ready to eat, or at least greatly simplified meals that my family will love. I think that last part is the key. The meals that you freeze shouldn't be new or some just for food storage type meal. I decided to make my food storage stuff we'd actually eat, not just stuff to survive on. So these are some of my favorite recipes. There is a list at the end of the ones I used.

I made all of my freezer meals in a three day period. That makes a lot of mess and takes a lot of work. An easier way is to just double or triple whatever meal you are making (really easy with soups, stews and sauces), and then freeze the extras in meal size portions. A few tips I discovered the hard way:

1. Don't put hot meals directly into the freezer. My freezer had so much hot food in it that the alarm on it went off (yea, I had no idea freezers had alarms!).
2. I used disposable plastic containers. But Ziplock bags also work and things freeze faster and flatter so that you can put more in your freezer.
3. Stock up on frozen veggies, and the add ins.
4. When adding pasta, rice or other grain to a sauce or soup, don't let it cook too long (maybe half the time). When you thaw it out and reheat it, the pasta will finish cooking.
5. When adding fresh tender vegetables to dishes, don't cook them at all. I used zucchini and squash and just cut them up, put them on the bottom of the container, and added the hot sauce on top. The vegetables will be blanch cooked and then you will freeze it. When you reheat the dish, the vegetables will finish cooking but not be too mushy or slimy.
6. Buy bulk meat and divide and brown or marinate it before freezing.
The meals that I froze were the following (most I have already posted on the blog and have linked them to the recipe):
7. Be careful stocking up on cookies and muffins, mine got eaten way too fast. Perhaps you will have better luck at the will power thing.
8. when freezing pancakes lay them flat so that they don't stick together. After they are frozen put them together in one big ziplock. Also applies to berries, vegetables or meat chunks that you don't want to clump. They take less time to defrost and it is easier to use small portions instead of thawing a big bag when you just need a little bit.


Thai Red Curry Chicken
Indian Curry Chicken
Chicken Makhani
World's Best Sugar Cookies
Swedish Pancakes
Green chicken Enchilladas

(These are ones I still need to add)

Masaman Curry Chicken
Beef Barley Stew
Chicken Noodle Soup
Bubble Gum Icecream
Banana Bread
Pumpkin Bread
Zucchini Bread
100% Whole Wheat Pancakes

Opulent Chicken

6-8 chicken boneless, skinless chicken breasts
sliced swiss cheese
2 cans cream of chicken soup
½ c. sour cream
½ c. water
2 c. Ritz cracker crumbs (1 wrapped stack approx. 2 c.)
½ c. melted margarine

Lay chicken in greased baking dish and put a slice of cheese on each. Mix together soup, sour cream and water. Pour over chicken. Mix cracker crumbs and margarine and sprinkle over chicken. Bake 2 ½ hours at 275.

Applesauce Cake

This is for you Tracy. It's Jeanette's recipe. Have fun with all your apples.

Applesauce Cake

1c. sugar
2 eggs
1/2 c. shortening
2 c. applesauce
2 c. flour
2 tsp. soda
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp salt

Mix and pour into a greased 9x13. Bake @ 350 for 35-40 min.

Laura's Caramel Popcorn

On Med. Heat, mix the following:

2 squares butter
2T water
2C brown sugar
1/2 C Karo

Bring to a boil, and boil only 1 minute! The longer it boils the stiffer it will be.

After boiling, add:
1t vanilla
1/2t baking soda
Mix over 2 bags of microwave popcorn.

One thing I forgot when I did this was to transfer the popcorn from bowl to bowl a few times to get the seeds out. So now when I eat mine, I have to spit the seeds into the garbage can. It's a beautiful sight.

Jakes Chicken Curry with Onion Naan (YUMMY!)

My brother-in-law made this for us when we were visiting and it is DELISH! I'm definitely going to make it, but thought I'd share his recipe with you in the meantime.

Onion Naan
(You can take the onion out and just have
naan if you prefer)

3 T. butter (room temp is best)

1 C. finely chopped or grated onions

1.2 C. warm wager

1 tsp. salt

1.5~2 C. Bread or all purpose flour

Sauté the onions until clear (add butter to skillet at

medium-high heat. Add onions and reduce to low heat.

Cook until the onions turn clear.

Meanwhile -

Melt butter in skillet and pour into a large mixing

bowl. Add warm water, onions, salt and 1.5 cups of

flour (.5 cup at a time). Work the dough into a ball

by hand. If it continues to feel sticky, add 1 or 2

tsp of flour. Work the dough with your hands until it

is slightly firm, 1-2 min.

Shaping -

Divide the dough into 8 pieces and form each into a

ball. Cluster them into a group on a floured work

surface and let them rest for 3 min. Flatten each

ball and roll out as thin as possible. If a piece

resists, move onto another and come back later. Cover

Naan with a towel as each is completed.

Baking -

Using an ungreased heavy non-stick pan, cook naan or

high heat 3-4 minutes on each side. Don't be

concerned if they brown unevenly.

The Curry is very easy.

I chop up and cook the vegetables separately usually in

butter (potatoes, onions, carrots) I usually boil

chicken, but you can grill it or cook it how you like.

While this is going on I cook the rice in our rice

cooker. After the rice, chicken and vegetables are

all cooked, I combine them into a large fry pan and on

low heat I add a chopped up block of either House or

Vermont Curry (You can find it at an Asian mart or a

lot of regular grocery stores have started to carry it

these days to). You can add a little bit of the chick

broth if you boiled the chicken (this steams and helps

the curry blend in a littler better). Mix it up until

the curry is all mixed through. (this is the dry

curry).

For wet curry -

Keep the rice separate. Check the curry box, but you

add the curry block to a pot with the vegetables

and water and heat it up until the curry has dissolved

in and you have a thick stew. Pour over the rice.

Daisy Mom's Pizza Crust and Sauce

Pete and Amy were here for Amalia's birthday and Felipe's mom made yummy personal pizza's for everyone. Pete requested the recipe as he got a baking stone and wooden paddle for his birthday! Daisy says that there are three key items in making it extra yummy, SAF yeast, high gluten flour and the baking stone. IT IS SUPER DELICIOUS!!!!

PIZZA DOUGH

1 1/2 TBSP SAF yeast (a great fast acting yeast)
3/4 TBSP sugar
1 1/2 TSP salt
6 cups high gluten flour
2 1/4 cups warm water

Preheat oven to 500 degrees and place empty baking stone in oven for at least 45 minutes prior to baking pizza

Add all ingredients but flour to mixer ( Kitchen aid or Bosch type) use the dough hook. Mix for a few seconds. Then add the first 5 cups of flour, add the last cup of flour 1/4 cup at a time until dough is slightly sticky. Let the machine knead the dough for 5 minutes. Coat a large mixing bowl with olive oil and place the dough in it to rise and cover with a towel for 30 minutes. After it is done rising, take a small ball and shape into a small pizza. Then place the pizza onto the paddle which should be cover with corn meal. Next brush some olive olive on the top of the pizza and sprinkle with kosher salt. Then add the sauce and toppings. Then transfer into the oven on top of the baking stone. Bake for exactly 5 minutes at 500 degress. Leave stone in oven, remove pizza. She usually bakes to small pizzas at a time.

PIZZA SAUCE

Sautee the following in a pan for a few minutes:

1 1/2 TBSP olive oil
1 onion chopped
1/2 red pepper chopped
1/2 green pepper chopped
4 cloves of garlic chopped

After it has sauteed for a few minutes, add the following:

1 large can chopped tomatoes
1 tsp. dried parsley
1 tsp. drieid basil
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 small can tomatoe paste
1/2 cup water
1 tsp sugar

Stir. Cover and let simmer for 30 minutes - stirring occasionally. If you like chucky sauces just put on pizza as is. For the grandkids she blends the sauce before using it on the pizza.

Sorry I'm a little unsure of the can sizes. The crushed tomato size is the same size can as a large pumpkin can and the paste is the tiny one, 4 or 6 oz I think.

Orzo Salad

I'm going to preface this by saying three things: 1) I watch way too much Food Network, 2) Everyday Italian is a great show, and 3) I can't wait to make this next week when I'll have people around who will actually eat it!



Orzo Salad
Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentiis
From the "Beach Party" episode

4 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 cups orzo
1 (15-ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 1/2 cups red and yellow teardrop tomatoes or grape tomatoes, halved
3/4 cup finely chopped red onion
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint leaves
About 3/4 cup Red Wine Vinaigrette, recipe follows
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Pour the broth into a heavy large saucepan. Cover the pan and bring the broth to a boil over high heat. Stir in the orzo. Cover partially and cook until the orzo is tender but still firm to the bite, stirring frequently, about 7 minutes. Drain the orzo through a strainer. Transfer the orzo to a large wide bowl and toss until the orzo cools slightly. Set aside to cool completely.

Toss the orzo with the beans, tomatoes, onion, basil, mint, and enough vinaigrette to coat. Season the salad, to taste, with salt and pepper, and serve at room temperature.

1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons honey
2 teaspoons salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Mix the vinegar, lemon juice, honey, salt, and pepper in a blender. With the machine running, gradually blend in the oil. Season the vinaigrette, to taste, with more salt and pepper, if desired.

Yield: 1 3/4 cups

Chicken Curry

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 Tbsp curry powder
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
2 medium zucchini, thinly sliced
1 ½ cups chicken broth
1 ½ cups heavy cream or coconut milk
1 ½ tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp black pepper
Cooked white rice
½ cup fresh basil leaves, torn
¼ cup almonds, roughly chopped

Place chicken in a bowl and sprinkle with curry powder and cinnamon. Set aside. Heat 1 Tbsp oil in a large skillet and add onions and zucchini. Cook until softened. Transfer to a plate. Heat remaining oil and brown the chicken. Add the broth, cream or milk, salt and pepper. Bring to a gentle simmer. Cook until chicken is cooked through and the sauce has been reduced a bit and is thicker. Add the onion and zucchini back to the pan and heat through. Serve over rice with basil and almonds sprinkled on top.

Annual Crawfish Boil

We started this tradtion because we were invited to a friend's annual boil. Crawfish make the best party food: you just keep eating and talking because it takes a bit to peel them and they are a bit on the small side. They are messy, but worth it. Here's the recipe:

Cajun Crawfish Dinner

2 pounds crawfish per person (we did a total of 8 pounds for our family)
1 package of Zatarain's crawfish boil seasoning (available in the spice aisle)
red potatoes
corn on the cob


First of all, crawfish come home with you alive. In order to make they empty their digestive tract and make them eatable, you put them in a big bowl/pot/cooler and cover them with a bunch of salt and a little bit of water and let them sit for awhile. The salt with make them spitup anything inside them. After awhile, rinse all the crawfish. Discard any dead fish (their tails will be straight instead of curve around).
Meanwhile, bring too boil a really, really big pot (industrial sized) of water with the seasoning in it. Add the live fish. Let them boil for about 10 minutes. Then let them soak. The longer you soak them, more of the seasoning soaks in.

You can serve red potatoes and corn on the cob with the crawfish. Just boil the potatoes and corn in the same pot. The whole meal is meant to be eaten with your fingers. You might want a bib, or at least a big napkin, they squirt when you peel them.

To eat: pinch the fish just behind the head and pull the tail section off. You don't want to eat the yellowish stuff. Then peel the tail like you would a shrimp. And Enjoy. This is such a fun and delicious meal. I wish that the season wasn't already over. Check online, I bet there is a sight that you could order through, or ask your butcher. Maybe they can special order for you.

Potluck Dinner

Our freezer is not working anymore. So today for dinner we had to eat a lot of what was in there. Following is the menu from our potluck meal:

• 2 lean cuisine dinners
• sweet potato fries
• mini spring rolls
• mini quiches
• pancakes
• turkey stuffing
• fruit smoothies (2 flavors!)
• very soft ice cream sandwiches
• assorted varieties of vegetables

The fruit smoothies were the most popular item! Tomorrow we will need to eat a lot of bread (3 different flavors), make banana bread and have sausage biscuits for breakfast. I really need to call the repair man to get him out to fix it.

Calling for Great Ice Cream Recipes

I bought my husband a ice cream maker for our anniversary. We would love some great ice cream recipes to try out. So far we have only made strawberry icecream.

No substitutions allowed!

Eliza was talking about great treats on her blog and it got me thinking about some of the things I love. And I was wondering if there is anyone like me who refuses to compromise on something food related.

One of the things that I have to have is real butter on my air popped popcorn. Because margarine has water ( and lowfat margarine has even more water) it just makes the popcorn soggy. It is a guilty pleasure, but since I don't eat butter on anything else I've justified it to myself.

Anyone else??

Beef Noodle Bowl

My kids loved this one too. I also just used the fat-free versions of the dressings on both and they tasted great!

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

I've made this twice now. Even my kids like it!

Roasted Broccoli

I found this in a Martha Stewart recipe magazine. Since it only had 3 ingredients I thought I would give it a try.

1 pound of fresh broccoli
3 tablespoons of olive oil
3/4 teaspoon coarse salt

Trim stems of broccoli, break into pieces, and put in a large bowl. Toss with oil and salt. Place on baking sheet (I used a Jelly Roll pan, it seemed to be the perfect size). Bake at 450 degrees for 15 minutes, turning once.

This is SO good. I have made it when we have people over and even the Elders ate it all up. Calvin especially loves it. Give it a try.

WHOOPS!

Phoebe brought to my attention that the rice pilaf recipe contained an ERROR! Hard to believe I know, especially from someone as exacting as I am.

Anyway, It should be 1/2 CUBE of margerine - not 1/2 cup.

Sorry if I clogged your arteries too much.

Divine Tomato Shrimp Pasta

I'm kind of lame because I've never posted a recipe before, but I invented something tonight that is worthy of a repeat. Here goes:

1 small onion, sliced in thin strips
3 cloves garlic, chopped coarsely
1 small red pepper, diced
1/4 tsp. red pepper/chili flakes (can't remember what they're called, but they're the little things that are always at pizza joints.)
several mushrooms, sliced.
jumbo shrimp
1 14 oz can diced tomatoes
salt
pepper

Saute onion, and red pepper until "slithery." Add garlic and red pepper/chili flakes. Add mushrooms and continue sauteeing. Add shrimp (mine were pre-cooked and then frozen) and tomatoes; simmer until most of the tomato juice is reduced. (I drained a bit off before I added the tomatoes.) Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add cooked pasta (I used linguine) and toss.

Au Gratin (or funeral) Potatoes

1 10 lb pound bag of potatoes (boil in water until soft to a forking (?)
After boiling, peel off skins and shred into 9x11 pan

Mix together the following into bowl:

2 sticks butter, softened
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 bag cheddar cheese (or 2 cups), or more to taste
1 medium container of sour cream

Blend in with potatoes and bake at 350 for 30 minutes until bubbly. Enjoy!

These are so yummy with bbq spare ribs, or Honeybaked ham.

Scones

2 cups flour (substitute 1 cup whole wheat flour for whole wheat scones)
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup vegetable shortening
1/2 cup milk
1 egg slightly beaten

Glaze
2 tablespoons milk
2 teaspoons sugar

Mix dry ingredients. Add shortening, work into dough til crumbly, add milk and egg. Press into a ball, knead a few times on a floured surface. Roll into a 1/2 inch circle. Cut into pie wedges, baste with milk and sprinkle on sugar. Put on an ungreased cookie sheet.
Bake at 450 for 10-12 minutes.

Eat with lots of jam.

Tomato and Penne Pasta

While I was sitting in the admitting area of the hospital yesterday waiting for Mindy's discharge papers to get signed, I was thumbing through an medical magazine and I found this recipe that sounds really good. I had my palm pilot with me, so I wrote it down while I was waiting:

3 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
12 roma (plum) tomatoes, chunked
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1 lb penne pasta - cooked drained
10 basil leaves, torn by hand
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped

Use olive oil to saute garlic. Add tomato, salt and pepper. Let it all simmer 15 min, do not overcook the tomatoes.

While making the sauce, boil and drain the pasta.

Spoon sauce over pasta. Sprinkle with parsley and basil.

Enjoy!

Swedish Pancakes

We often have breakfast for dinner, especially when I am stumped for quick dinner ideas. Also they are mine and Isaac's favorite kind of breakfast.

1 cup milk
1 egg
1/2 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar

Whisk milk and egg together until frothy. Add rest of ingredients and mix well. Heat a cast iron skillet (because you have to have such a hot pan, cast iron is the only way to go - you will get very strong forearms!) till it is very hot. Spray with PAM. Pour 1/2 to 2/3 cup batter into skillet and swirl pan until the batter covers the bottom in a thin layer. When the batter has all dried out and cooked and the edges start to curl, flip over. (I use a frosting spreader, the big ones, because they are flexible enough to get under the pancake without wrecking it.) Cook just until the other side is done, about 30 seconds. Place on plate and repeat. This makes about 6. The recipe is easily double, tripled, quadrupled and so on. You may need to add more flour if you make a really big batch.

Toppings:

syrup
applesauce
powdered sugar
egg
tomato and cheese
any fruit
ice cream
whipped cream

Mom says that the batter works best if you make it the night before and let it sit in the fridge for a few hours. I, of course, don't think that far ahead, so I don't know if that is true. But I'll take her word for it.

Scones

Tonight I felt like such a good mom. I made such a tasy dinner. Even my kids were driven to comment - and they actually cleared there plates.

SO what drove them to these heights of ecstasies?

Mashed Potatoes (the real kind with butter, milk and kosher salt - oh and potatoes)
Spinach Salad
White Corn
Roasted Yams - the kids HATE those, but Bruce and Annika love them.
and whole wheat scones - I will find the recipe and post it.

For dessert - Mango Bars.

So I have shared my love with my family - and with you.

Veggie Melts

These are really delicous, Felipe and I are addicted! We make them once a week. I'm sure we'll be sick of them soon!!!

1 cup shreaded mozerella cheese
4 to 5 tomatoes ( I like the ones on the vine you can buy at Costco)
1 zucchini thinly sliced
1 green bell pepper thinly sliced
1 medium onion thinly sliced
parmesan cheese ( dry in a shaker bottle)
1/2 small pkg. ground sausage ( optional, they are good with just veggies too)

* I like Jimmy Dean 50% reduced fat ( I freeze the other half already browned to use for calzones later!)

1 envelope dry Italian dressing mix
2 cloves of garlic ( chopped finely)
2 - 3 TBSP olive oil
2-3 TBSP red wine vinegar or white vinegar
4 whole wheat bagels cut in half or yummy rectangular sour dough rolls ( Costco) it depends on how healthy you are feeling!

In a large non-stick skillet add the vinegar, olive oil, garlic and dry Italian dressing mix. Simmer on high to med- high for a few minutes-- stirring constantly. Then reduce heat to med. or med-high. Then add the chopped onions, zuchinni, and pepper. In a separate pan brown the sausage. When the zuchinni appears cooked --add the sausage and sliced tomatoes. Cook for one or two minutes. Then remove from heat. Place the cut bagels or rolls on a cookie sheet and spinkle mozerella cheese on each half. Place them in the oven on broil until cheese is melted and then quickly take them out. Now spead the veggies mixture over the bagels with cheese and sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Place back in the oven on broil until parmasen is a light brown color ( watch carefully , they broil very quickly! . Then remove and enjoy!

My menu ideas

I was just reading Betsy's post about menu ideas. Boy, is my menu nothing like that. Let me give you a sampler of what our dinners are like.

Pork Roast Au Jus (from a box, the Hormel kind)
Mashed potatoes (from a pouch, just add water)
Green Beans (from a can, obviously)

I must get this from my mom, because she is a horrible cook, and will only use things out of a box or can. Otherwise, nothing gets eaten. I feel very inadequate right now. I might have to make a trip to the local Wild Oats and cook something exotic just to prove my womanliness.

I like all the recipes, keep them coming.

Some Chicago Memories

I am in the process of putting all of my recipes on the computer so that I will be able to find the ones I like more easily and I found a few that I got while I lived in Chicago. They are very delicious. Hope you like them. Give them a try.


Wonton Oriental Chicken Salad

Mix together and toss:
4 chicken breast, cook and cut into bite size pieces
½ package wonton skins, fried in oil
1 small head iceburg lettuce, torn into pieces
4 green onions chopped
2 Tbsp. sesame seeds
½ package slivered almonds

Mix together:
¾ cup apple cider vinegar
¾ cup ketchup
¾ cup water
3 tsp. soy sauce

Add:
2 tsp. cornstarch mixed with
6 tsp. water

Heat until mixture thickens. Serve hot over salad.



Chinese Chicken Salad

Mix the following together and cook until bubbly; then strain using a paper towel. Mix with mayo until the consistency resembles salad dressing.

½ cup soy sauce
½ cup water
1 tsp. sesame oil
3 Tbsp. sugar
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 ½ tsp fresh grated ginger

Make a salad out of the following:
Romaine lettuce
Bean sprouts
Green onions
Water chestnuts, sliced

Toast a handful of blanched almonds in 350 degree oven (2-3 min), to be tossed in just before serving. Pour the desired amount of dressing on the salad, mix gently and enjoy.



Red Beans and Rice (from Chicago)
This is actually a very southern recipe.

1 pound small red beans
3-4 Tbsp chicken bouillon to taste
cumin to taste
2 large yellow onions, chopped
6 stalks celery, chopped
2 Tbsp parsley, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
3 or 4 bay leaves
4 cloves garlic, crushed
¼ pound butter
pepper to taste
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
Tabasco to taste
6 cups cooked white rice

Soak the beans overnight in ample water. The next day drain the water from the beans, and place in a heavy kettle. Add the bouillon, onion, celery parsley, bay leaves, and garlic, and add water to barely cover contents. Bring to a boil, then turn to a simmer. Simmer, uncovered, for 2 hours, being careful that the beans do not stick or become too dry. You may have to add a little water. After the initial 2 hours of cooking, add the butter, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, and Tabasco to the pot. Continue cooking for one more hour, this time with a lid on the pot and the heat quite low. Correct the seasonings. Serve over white rice. Serves 8-12 people.

Ridgerunner's Blended Spinach Salad

This is supposed to be really good and does NOT taste like spinach at all. (Although it looks horrible.) But I am a little afraid to try it. But I bet it is good for you!!

1 cup pineapple
1 orange
1 pear
1 apple (or a couple carrots)
1/8 slice lemon with peel
1 tbsp. ground flaxseed
1 cup frozen blueberries
1 large handful raw spinach (about 8 oz.)

First blend the pineapple, orange, pear, apple, lemon and flaxsee to a nice fluid. Add the frozen blueberries and blend them in. Last, add the spinach and blend for 20 – 30 seconds until smooth. It looks bad, but tastes great!

Ice Cream in a Bag

I saw this recipe in a Family Fun magazine. I think I will try it with my Activity Days girls. It looks fun.

2 Tbsp. sugar
1 cup half and half
½ tsp. vanilla
½ cup kosher or rock salt
Ice cubes (enough to fill a 1 gallon bag about ½ full)
1 pint-size ziplock bag
1 gallon-size ziplock bag

Mix-ins such as chocolate chips, sprinkles, candies, fruit, crushed oreos, etc.
Combine the sugar, cream and vanilla in the pint-size bag and seal it tightly. Place the salt and ice in the big bag, then place the smaller bag inside as well. Seal the larger bag. Now shake the bags until the mixture hardens (about 5 minutes). seal the small bag to determine when it’s done. Take the smaller bag out of the larger one, add mix-ins, and eat the ice cream right out of the bag.

Speaking of Aunt Joan

well, we weren't really speaking of her on this blog, but Phoebe and I were. Since the discussion of her ward's cookbook has surfaced, I dug out my copy and am a bit impressed at the variety this tome holds.

I offer the following:

UCD's Potato Salad for 200 - yes, 200 - by Audrey Fowler

30 lbs cooked potatoes, diced
2/3 CUP salt
2 tsp pepper
5 lbs celery - coarsely chopped
4 doz hard cooked eggs, coarsely chopped
1 3/4 lb onion - finely chopped (1 qt)
3 qts mayo
mustard to taste
1 pint vinegar (to taste)
1 qt pitted olives
1 can pimiento - finely chopped (optional) (i'll say)

Combine all ingredients. Chill about 3 hours to allow potatoes to absorb dressing and vinegar.

And my favorite part:
Serve with No. 8 scoop (1/2 cup)

UCD's Relish Tray for 200 - by Audrey Fowler

4-5 lbs carrots
5 bunches celery
2 #10 cans pickles (1 dill, 1 sweet)

Phoebe do you know this Audrey Fowler? I am intrigued.

Well, I must get on the treadmill now, enough of this food talk.

I will continue my perusal of The Peddlin' Gourmet.

On the Menu Tonight...

Breakfast for dinner! A family fave, but this is good as breakfast for breakfast, too.

Waffled French Toast
1/2 c milk
4 eggs
2 Tbsp butter, melted
1 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
8 slices of bread
Preheat waffle iron. Mix all ingredients, except bread, in shallow bowl. Dip bread slices one at a time; let drain. Bake in an oiled waffle iron 2-3 minutes or until brown.

David found this in an Idaho Falls RS cookbook. So tasty!

New Year's Salsa

In the south it is considered good luck to eat black eyed peas on new year's eve. This is one of the best tomato-less salsa recipes I've ever tasted.

1 green bell pepper diced
1/2 red onion, diced
2 limes juiced
3 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
1 can blackeyed peas, drained and rinsed

Marinate for 20 minutes and serve with tortilla chips.

Menu ideas

Maybe we can post some menu ideas. I know that we get in a rut sometimes when it comes to menu planning. And I know that I tend to have to same side dishes with the same main courses. It would be nice to have some variety. Here's a bit of what is on our menu.

• molasses roasted pork tenderloin
  asparagus
  red potatoes
  green salad
• thai red chicken curry
  rice
  tomatoes and cucumbers
  fruit salad
• calzones with iltalian sausage
  green beans
  green salad
• chicken mahkni
  rice
  steamed carrots
  green salad
• masamum chicken curry
  rice
  spinach and mandarin salad
• steelhead trout
  red potatoes
  beets
  green salad
• shrimp with garlic and herbs
  rice
  carrots
  green salad
• halibut
  grilled piperade
  roll
  spinach salad
• steak
  baked potato
  grilled zucchini and squash
  green salad
• Fish tacos
  corn
  carrot salad
  spanish rice
• Chicken pot pie
  roll
  salad
• smoked sausage
  peppers, onions, carrots, potatoes,
  mushrooms, egg, and cheese
  salad
• turkey meatloaf
  baked potato
  green beans
  carrots
• stuffed trout
  rice pilaf
  green salad
  broccoli with mornay sauce
• pancakes
  sausage
  fruit
  milk
• stirfry
  rice
  carrot salad

Carrot Salad

You can adjust this recipe easily to fit the number of people you're serving. This feeds about 4.

1 cup grated raw carrot
1 can crushed pineapple
1 small box raisins

Mix together and let sit so that some of the juice is absorbed by the carrots and raisins.

I've also heard that people add mayonaise to this salad. I'm not a fan so I don't. This makes a light and refreshing salad though. I suppose you could also add chicken with the mayo to make a variation on chicken salad sandwich filling.

Green Enchilladas

1 can Hatch Green enchillada sauce
1 small can diced green chilis
1 can black beans
1 lb of chicken breast cooked and diced or shredded
1 bag of shredded monterey jack cheese
10 whole wheat tortillas

Pour a small amount of sauce in the bottom of a 9X13" pan, enough to coat the bottom and up the sides a bit. Fill each tortilla with some cheese, beans, chilis, and chicken. Roll it up and place seam side down in the pan. Repeat until all the ingredients are used up. Sometimes I have to use another smaller pan also. Then pour remaining sauce of over the top to cover all the tortillas and then sprinkle with more cheese. Add more chilis to the top if desired. Cover with foil. Bake at 350 until bubbling, about 20 - 30 minutes. Serve with chopped tomatoes and shredded lettuce and diced green onions.

I serve this with corn, spanish rice, and carrot salad. You could also add cornbread too if you'd like.