Chicken Vegetable Bake

Hello girls. We had this last night. It was quite good, and it smelled so yummy while it was cooking. It's from the Better Homes & Gardens book.

Chicken Vegetable Bake
2 1/2 lbs meaty chicken pieces (breasts, thighs, & drumsticks)
1/2 cup flour
1 tbsp paprika
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 tbsp cooking oil
1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms (I left these out. Hate those slimy things)
1 tbsp brown sugar
1/4 tsp ground ginger
dash salt
3/4 cup water
1/3 cup frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped carrot
1 cup frozen small whole onions (I forgot to buy these, even though they were on my list...I just cut up a regular onion into little chunks)

Skin the chicken (so gross); rinse chicken and pat dry w/ paper towels. Place the flour, paprika, salt, and pepper in a ziploc bag. Add chicken, a few pieces at a time, and shake to coat. Set aside 2 tbsp of flour mixture. In a 12" skillet heat oil over medium heat. Add chicken and cook, uncovered, for 10 minutes, turning to brown evenly. Remove chicken from skillet to 3 quart baking dish. Set aside. In same skillet, add mushrooms to drippings (if you are using them). Cook and stir, scraping up browned bits, until shrooms are tender. Stir in reserved flour mixture, brown sugar, ginger, and dash of salt. Add water and orange juice concentrate all at once. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Stir in carrot and onions. Pour sauce over chicken in baking dish. Cover and bake @ 350 for one hour, or until chicken is no longer pink and vegetables are tender. Makes 6 servings.

So everyone ate this except poor little Nathan. The kids didn't make much comment, but Steve said it was really good and definitely a make again. So maybe try it if you want. Talk to you soon!!

Jiffy Orange Pancakes

As you may or may not be able to tell, I am in the breakfast section of this cookbook. This is the third and final recipe from this section. These were good, and if you are in need of a pancake recipe I would recommend it. However, I already have a great from-scratch pancake recipe that costs way less than this one, so I am not going to replace it. But it was good.

Jiffy Orange Pancakes
1 beaten egg
1 cup half and half or light cream (they said don't try to substitute milk because they did and they came out tough)(the pancakes, not the kitchen testers)
6 oz frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed (about 3/4 cup)
1 cup packaged regular pancake mix (not complete mix)
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup margarine or butter, cut up (I put mine in whole and nothing bad happened)

Combine egg, half and half, and 1/4 cup of the orange juice concentrate. Add pancake mix. Stir until just combined but still slightly lumpy. Cook pancakes like you know you're supposed to (they have a long explanation but I'm assuming everyone knows how to do this. If not, see me after class). For sauce, in small saucepan combine sugar, butter, and other 1/2 cup of orange juice concentrate. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Serve the warm sauce over the pancakes (on each person's plate, not over the whole stack that you just made). Makes about 16 pancakes.

I doubled the recipe for the pancake part because I always burn a few and even if I hadn't, I knew 16 wouldn't be enough. But I only 1 1/2'd the sauce because I only had so much orange juice concentrate, but I had a lot of sauce left, so I think even if you double the pancakes you shouldn't double the sauce. Everyone loved the pancakes (except hapless Nathan. I didn't dare give him one). Emma wouldn't try the sauce though. Sam tried it but for his second helping had maple syrup. Steve had maple syrup on his 3rd serving =) So like I said, good but not good enough to replace my old standard. Talk to you guys soon!!

Sugar-Crusted French Toast

And that was the only crusted part. This was soggy soggy soggy. I almost doubled it, because the original recipe was only for 6 slices of bread, and that would only feed like me and Steve, not all of us (plus we had my sister's little girl that night, too). But I couldn't fit 12 pieces of bread in the 9x13 pan, so I did 10, but still doubled the eggs and milk....so that may have contributed to the sog factor. Well, here it is anyway, in it's not-doubled format

Sugar-Crusted French Toast
6 1-inch slices french bread
2 eggs
2/3 cup milk
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp butter, melted
2 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon (I just used the cinnamon/sugar I already had instead of mixing this new)

In small bowl, beat together eggs, milk, sugar, and vanilla. Place bread in 2 quart baking dish. Pour egg mixture over bread, turn to coat. Refrigerate 20 to 30 minutes or until egg mixture is absorbed. In a large skillet or on a griddle melt the 2 tbsp butter over medium heat. Cook bread on both sides for 2-3 minutes per side or until golden brown. Transfer to a baking sheet. Brush tops of bread with melted butter and sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon. Broil 4 inches from heat for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes or just until sugar is carmelized.

So there you have it. I am most likely not making this again, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't. Maybe if you just try it like it is and don't double it or something.

Farmer's Breakfast

Hi girls! Wednesday night we had this. But we almost never have breakfast for breakfast. At least not this involved. We usually have it for supper. This is the first one from the Better Homes & Gardens 75 Years of All-Time Favorites. You may or may not have noticed that I am not really a Better Homes & Gardens kind of girl. This cookbook was a gift. From the O'Prays, whom some of you may remember from New York. Anyway it was pretty good.

Farmer's Breakfast
2 tbsp cooking oil (as opposed to...motor oil?)
2 cups frozen diced hash brown potatoes with onions and peppers (I couldn't find these, so I just got the diced potatoes and added onion separately)
1 cup diced cooked ham
6 eggs, beaten
1/3 cup water
1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese (I didn't think this was enough and used about 1/2 cup)

Coat large skillet with the oil. Add potatoes in a single layer. Cook, covered, over medium heat for 5 to 7 minutes or until the potatoes are tender, stirring once. Stir in ham. Combine eggs and water and pour over ham-potato mixture. Cook, uncovered, over medium heat until eggs are just set, turning mixture occasionally with a wide spatula. Sprinkle with cheese and serve immediately.

This stuck to the pan really bad. I bet a whole egg was burnt onto the bottom of the pan. So maybe medium is too high on my stove, I don't know. I didn't "Pam" the pan, but I did use oil, so I'm not sure why this happened. Anyway Emma didn't like how the eggs and ham were touching. Sam liked it. So did Steve & I. I wasn't so crazy about it just because it was frustrating how bad it stuck. And, is it supposed to be like a huge omelet when it's done, or is it supposed to be like a big scramble? Ours ended up like a big scramble because if I had left it until it was like a big omelet it would've burned even worse. So I wasn't going to keep this one, but Steve wanted to. So now it's in the permanent file. Maybe some of you will have better luck. Anyway have a good day and I'll talk to you soon!!

Sesame-Ginger Chicken with Pineapple Salsa

Hi girls! Here was a good one, but requires lots of ingredients...it's from the Gooseberry Patch, in a section called "Quick as a Wink." I think they were exaggerating. This one took me awhile, but it may have had more to do with the child hanging from my leg than the details of the recipe.

Sesame-Ginger Chicken with Pineapple Salsa
1/2 cup toasted sesame seed
2 tbsp fresh ginger, peeled and minced (I just used dried ground ginger)
1 tbsp oil
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 tsp garlic salt

Season chicken breasts lightly with garlic salt. Combine sesame seed, ginger, and oil together; coat chicken breasts with mixture. Place on lightly greased broiler pan; bake @ 400 for 20-25 minutes, turning once. Spread w/ pineapple salsa (hold on, I didn't write that part yet) and serve immediately.

The salsa....
15 oz can pineapple tidbits, drained
1/2 cup red pepper, chopped
1 tsp fresh ginger, peeled and chopped (again, I didn't buy fresh)
1 tbsp lime juice
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/4 cup fresh cilantro (one time I found this at Wal-mart, but not this time, so I omitted it)
1/4 tsp hot pepper sauce

Stir ingredients together in bowl, cover and refrigerate 15 to 30 minutes before serving. Makes 1 1/2 cups.

So this was pretty good, if a bit too spicy for my taste. Emma ate the chicken but didn't even try the salsa. Sam started eating the salsa plain, without chicken, and said "I don't really like this." Then when we told him to eat it with the chicken, he was like, oh, and then he did better. Steve of course liked it, and I did, too, but I think we won't have it again just because it does have a lot of ingredients to buy, and it wasn't fabulous. But I do really like sesame seeds. That's the last recipe from this cookbook, except for an appetizer, and Mom keeps saying we'll have an appetizer night but we haven't yet. But when we do I will make that one. My next cookbook is Better Homes and Gardens 75 Years of All-Time Favorites. Talk to you soon!!

7-Minute Supper

Well, this was a lie. It took way longer than seven minutes to make this. Sam suggested maybe if you weren't a picky eater (like me) it would only take 7 minutes to eat. Maybe. This recipe is from Gooseberry Patch (again. Only one more to go from this cookbook). It wasn't that great. And I almost passed it over, but I can't resist anything with those french fried onions. So here it is...



7-Minute Supper

1 lb ground beef, browned (this by itself took 7 minutes to do. If I was being literal I would have stopped right here)
1/3 cup long-cooking rice, uncooked (I guess as opposed to minute rice)
1-oz pkg onion gravy mix
1/4 tsp garlic salt
1 1/2 cups water
10-oz pkg frozen peas, thawed (I know, 2 recipes in a row with peas! This is why it took me longer than 7 minutes to eat, because I had to pick around the peas)
5-oz can water chestnuts (I doesn't say to drain, but I did)
2.8 oz can French-fried onions (that's the little size. I always buy the bigger size, then eat the extra. Can't help it they are soooo good)
soy sauce to taste

Add beef, rice, gravy mix, garlic salt and water to a 12" skillet; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer for 15 minutes (see, they're not even pretending this will only take 7 minutes). Stir in peas and water chestnuts; simmer until rice is tender. Remove from heat; toss in onions. Season with soy sauce before serving.

So this was okay, but not great. I've definitely made worse. And everyone ate it, so that counts for something. Maybe my appetite was gone due to all the FF onions I ate while preparing it. Who knows.

Turkey Tetrazzini

Hello! I have been saving this recipe for when I had turkey leftovers. It is from Gooseberry Patch. It might sound like a lot of work for leftovers, and it kind of was, but it was so yummy! Everybody liked this. Highly recommend...anyway here it is.

Turkey Tetrazzini
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup milk
3 cups turkey gravy or broth (I had to buy canned gravy since there was no gravy leftovers from Thanksgiving)
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese, divided
poultry seasoning, salt, and pepper to taste
2 1/2 cups turkey, cooked and diced (I didn't dice it. Just cut it up into bite sized pieces)
5 cups prepared rotini (which after some trial and error, I discovered is a one-pound box, cooked)
10-oz pkg frozen peas, thawed (yes, I put these in. No, I didn't eat them. Made the kids, though. Hee hee)
1 cup sliced mushrooms (these I left out. Nobody likes them. Not even you. No you don't.)
1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs

Saute onion and celery in butter in a 12" skillet until tender; reduce heat and whisk in flour and milk. Stir in gravy or broth, whisking constantly (which is basically impossible when you have 3 cans to open and your rotini cooking, too). Heat over low heat until thickened; add 3/4 cup cheese and stir until melted. Season as desired (since I used canned gravy I didn't add any extra salt). Combine sauce w/ turkey, pasta, peas, and mushrooms; spread in a 3-quart baking dish (which I do not have. I used my PC 9x13 baker and it came out perfect. I actually put the turkey and pasta in the baker, then poured the sauce over it, and stirred it right in the dish. It worked better than putting it all in the skillet and then having it overflow and me getting really mad. So this was good). Sprinkle w/ remaining cheese and bread crumbs. Bake @ 350 until hot and bubbly, about 20-30 minutes (mine took 22). Makes 6-8 servings.

Yeah so it makes a lot, and now we have leftovers from our leftovers. But that's okay because it tasted really good. So you guys should so try this. I think it would be yummy with chicken too if you don't want to wait to have turkey leftovers from next Thanksgiving =)

Our Recipe

Just in time for the holidays, today's recipe comes from someone we all know and love. It was something we used to make when Mom worked until suppertime and we had the house (and kitchen) to ourselves after school, in Limestone, ME. I estimate we were between 3rd-4th grade at the time. This was never the same recipe twice, due to our great culinary improv skills, but here is the gist of it...

Our Recipe

Tupperware cup about 2/3 full of water

squirt of ketchup and/or mustard

spoonful of sweet relish

1 heaping tablespoon each of dry strawberry and chocolate milk powder

dollop of pickle juice

sprinkle of each of the following: cinnamon, pepper, salt, sugar, etc...to taste

Variation: Instead of water, start with some of Mom's caffiene-free diet Coke, or Tab, if there's enough in the fridge. But don't finish it or she'll be mad.

Mix well and sip (cautiously)(if you have a straw it helps). The first time we did this, it was really good (??). Subsequent recipes did not go so well. We could never duplicate the magic of the first time, but it wasn't for lack of trying.

This tasty beverage goes great with the following after school snack:

Cheese Sandwich without Using the Stove Since We Can't When Mom's Not Home

1 slice white bread

1 slice plastic-wrapped cheese

imitation bacon bits to taste (optional)

Place bread in microwave. Unwrap cheese and place on bread slice (throw away wrapper lest your mother see it and yell at you for not picking up your mess). Sprinkle with bacon bits, if using. Microwave on high (PowerTime 1 PowerTime) until really stinkin hot and melty (approx 1 minute). This was more a favorite of a cute certain someone than it was of mine. I thought the bread was soggy and gross. My mom still has that same microwave.

For those parties interested in removal of this picture from my blog, it is being held in reverse ransom. Once we have secured from you a promise to not move to Portland, it will be removed from the website. Which I don't know how to do that. But I think Steve does. Since this whole idea was his in the first place. The recipes will remain.

Pork Schnitzel

Snow bells and sleigh bells and schnitzel with noodles....Whoever knew what schnitzel was in that song? Come to find out it's basically fried pork chops, but so good. This one is also from Gooseberry Patch. I used 8 pork chops and gave half to the Hinchliffe's since I was making them dinner last night in honor of baby David. I don't know if they liked it or not, but we all loved it. The pork was so moist and yummy. The last few times I have made pork chops they have been so dry. So anyway enough jibber jabber, here's the recipe....

Pork Schnitzel
6 1/2 inch thick boneless pork chops
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup flour
1/3 cup bread crumbs (plain)
3 tbsp oil

Pound chops between 2 pieces of waxed paper til 1/8 inch thick (I didn't do this, I just left them as they were, and I had bought "thin sliced," and they came out fine). Season both sides of chops with salt (I forgot to do this step but they were still fabulous). In a shallow bowl whisk egg and milk together. In a second bowl combine bread crumbs and flour (I so could have used those Pampered Chef trays for this, Jess). Dip pork chops in egg mixture, then coat w/ crumb mixture. Heat oil in 12 inch skillet. Fry chops for 3 minutes on each side. Then I put them on paper towels to soak up some oil, but it didn't say to do that. Serve while hot.

So those Swiss/German people really know what they're talking about. No wonder it was one of Frauline Maria's favorite things. This is definitely a make again, and I love that besides the pork chops, you don't have to buy anything. All this stuff I always have. So you guys should try this one for sure.

Autumn Pork Chops

I made this one last Friday, just haven't had time to post it yet. I made it in honor of my good friend Autumn...ha ha. Really it's just a seasonal recipe. From the Gooseberry Patch.

Autumn Pork Chops
4 bone-in pork chops
4 tbsp butter
2 red apples, cored and halved
2 tsp cinnamon
3 tbsp brown sugar
nail & hair trimmings from Autumn (she might feel weird about this. Go to her hairdresser to she if she has any extra from Autumn's last haircut)(ewwww, just kidding about that part)

Place chops in a 9x13 pan sprayed with cooking spray. Spread 1 tbsp of butter on each chop (this was actually hard to do. It didn't want to spread. So I melted it a little in the microwave and it worked much better). Place one apple half on each chop, cut side down. Sprinkle with cinnamon and brown sugar (and hair, if using)(so gross, but funny. I am giggling right now). Bake @ 350 for 30-45 minutes or until no longer pink.

This was okay, but the meat turned out a little dry. The apples looked weird but tasted good, like warm applesauce sort of. Anyway I probably won't make this again. And Autumn breathes a hugh sigh of relief.

Ravioli Casserole (not Chef Boyardee)

Hi girls. I made this yesterday for the potluck we had at church for the Adoption and Orphan Care Ministry (since we want to adopt and care for an orphan =). It turned out well. There was a little bit leftover but most of it was gone. Steve, Sam, and I each had some on our plates and it was good and tasty. I think next time I will use meat ravioli though...I like it better. Oh yeah, and this one is from Gooseberry Patch.

Ravioli Casserole
28 oz jar spaghetti sauce
25 oz pkg frozen ravioli, cooked
2 cups cottage cheese
4 cups shredded mozarella cheese
1/4 cup parmesan cheese

Spread 1/2 cup spaghetti sauce in bottom of 9x13 pan. Top w/ half of the cooked ravioli. Spread w/ half of the sauce you have left, then with 1 cup cottage cheese and 2 cups mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers, then sprinkle w/ parmesan cheese. Bake @ 350 for 30-40 minutes, uncovered.

So easy, and tasty too. But I like anything (almost) like this anyway. But you should totally try it. Except not Jessica since Jon doesn't like cottage cheese. But everyone else should. Mom.

Slow Cooker Orange Chicken

Hi guys! This is what we had for supper last night. It was kind of nice to be home on a Tuesday...this one is from Kraft Food & Family Fall 2007.

Slow Cooker Orange Chicken
8 small chicken thighs (about 1 lb)(I only had 4 thighs but they were still over 1 lb and it was fine)
3 tbsp flour (I only used 2 because it looked like a lot. Again, fine)
1/3 cup orange marmalade
1/3 cup barbeque sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp minced fresh ginger (that was too expensive. You only could buy like a huge piece of root for like almost 3 dollars, and I knew I would never use it all, so I was like, no way. I just used dried ginger in my cupboard)

Place chicken thighs in slow cooker and toss w/ flour. Combine remaining ingredients and pour over chicken. Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours or high 3-4 hours.

How easy is that? It was quite good, as well. It's a keeper. Emma ate it, not sure if she liked it or not, but wanted peanut butter pie. Sam ate all his, and Steve and I thought it was really good. We had it w/ rice (with some of the sauce poured over) and carrots. A yummy easy recipe.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie

Hi girls. On Sunday I made this. I've had the recipe for a while, Terri gave it to me a long time ago, I've just never made it because of all the ingredients you had to buy. But since someone else bought my groceries, it made the cut this week. I'm not sure where Terri got this from, but it was very tasty. Still is, really. We still have some in the fridge...anyway here it is.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie
20 oreos
2 tbsp butter, melted
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar, divided
16 oz cool whip
15 mini reese's peanut butter cups, chopped
4svg size chocolate fudge instant pudding
1 cup milk

Crush 16 of the oreos and toss w/ melted butter. Press into bottom of 9x9 inch pan (I used a deep dish pie plate). In separate bowl, combine cream cheese, peanut butter, 1 cup of confectioner's sugar until well blended. Fold in 1/2 of the cool whip (this took a while but it does eventually all incorporate). Spread over oreos. Sprinkle w/ chopped peanut butter cups. In a different bowl, combine pudding mix, milk, and other 1/2 cup of confectioner's sugar. Stir for 2 minutes. Pour over peanut butter cups. Crush last 4 oreos and sprinkle over chocolate layer. Chill for 4-6 hours.

I think I may have copied this recipe down wrong from Terri, because it never says what to do with the other half of the Cool Whip. Maybe you save it to serve with it, I don't know. Anyway, I never used the other half of it, and it still tasted great. I highly recommend this one. Talk to you guys soon!!

Chicken Club Pasta

Hello! Finally, a good one from this cookbook! I have been rather disappointed thus far, but this recipe has renewed my faith in the Gooseberry Patch cookbook...

Chicken Club Pasta
1 1b pkg bacon, diced
1 1/2 cups half-and-half
2 to 3 tbsp dried parsley
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cooked and cubed
optional: sliced mushrooms (I opted to not)
garlic salt and pepper to taste (I used a lot of garlic salt and just a little pepper)
12 to 16 oz pkg pasta, cooked (it says use any pasta you have on hand...I used penne)

Fry bacon til almost crisp; drain (I actually drained it twice...there was so much fat after like 5 minutes that I drained it, then cooked it longer, then so much fat I drained it again. Kind of gross...but bacon is so yummy so I try to block that out). Return bacon to skillet; add half-and-half (why is that hyphenated?), parsley, cheese, chicken, and mushrooms. Season to taste (with the garlic salt and pepper). Reduce heat; stir and heat for 4 minutes. Spoon over pasta, toss to coat. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

So we all really liked this. Emma didn't eat the bacon (I helped with that). Sam & Steve lapped it up. My mom liked it, too...she came over right after lunch and was picking at it. This was good for a meal, and I also think it would be good if you had to bring a dish somewhere, like a potluck or something. The only thing is it did take a little longer than some other recipes I have tried. But it was still really good and I'm quite sure I'll make it again. Going in the save file. =) Talk to you all soon!!

Speedy Chicken Stir-Fry

Hola! This was what we had this past Wednesday before church, with minor variations, which I will, of course, expound upon. It's out of the Fall '07 Kraft Food & Family...

Speedy Chicken Stir-Fry
8 oz angel hair pasta, uncooked (we were just about pasta-ed out this week, so I made ours with rice instead. It was still good.)
2 cups broccoli florets (I hate broccoli. I made it with cut up carrots)
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips
1/2 cup Kraft Asian Toasted Sesame dressing
2 tbsp soy sauce
1/4 tsp each ground ginger, garlic powder, crushed red pepper (I only used 1/8 of the c.r.pepper because we don't like spicy.)
1/3 cup chopped dry roasted peanuts

Cook pasta as directed on pkg, adding broccoli to the boiling water for last 3 minutes of pasta cooking time (if you're me, cook the carrots and rice separately). Meanwhile, spray lg nonstick skillet with cooking spray, heat on med-high heat. Add chicken, cook 6 to 8 minutes or until cooked through, stirring occasionally. Stir in remaining ingredients except peanuts, cook for 1 minute. Drain pasta mixture, place in large bowl. Add chicken mixture, mix lightly. (If you make it w/ rice, put the rice on the plates and spoon the chicken mixture over it.) Sprinkle with the peanuts.

So this was good, even though I had to buy salad dressing that I normally wouldn't. Emma only ate 2 bites of the chicken. Sam ate all of his & the carrots, too, but didn't like the peanuts. Steve and I both really liked it. So it goes into the permanent file. Next week is another one from the Gooseberry Patch. I have not been having good luck with them...I'm a little nervous but it should be okay...................see you all soon!!

Cheesy Volcano Meatballs

This one went much better. We had this for lunch today, since Steve has been coming home for lunches on Tuesdays. Everyone liked this one, including the dog. Wait, we don't have a dog. Well, I bet if we did, he would've liked it. It's from Kraft Food & Family Fall 2007

Cheesy Volcano Meatballs
1 lb lean ground beef
6 ritz crackers, finely crushed
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
3/4 cup spaghetti sauce, divided
12 kraft cheddar cheese cubes (or if the Wal-mart doesn't have these, which ours doesn't, just buy a block of cheese (such as Heluva Good) and cut some into like 1/2 inch square chunks. That's what I did)
4 hot dog buns, split

Preheat oven to 400. Combine first 4 ingredients, using 1/4 cup of spaghetti sauce. Shape into 12 meatballs (mine actually made 15, and I could've gone smaller and probably will next time) and place 2 inches apart in shallow baking pan sprayed w/ cooking spray. Press 1 cheese cube deep into center of each meatball. Bake 14 minutes or until cooked through. Then microwave remaining 1/2 cup of sauce. Fill each bun w/ 3 meatballs and top w/ sauce. So yummy. This is the first recipe for homemade meatballs that I have actually liked, so we may have something here. I'll definitely make this one again. Talk to you all soon!!

Overnight Oriental Salad

Who can make a salad unhealthy? Monika can, Monika can! I made this one last Thursday, thinking I would take it to work on Thursday and Friday to have for my supper there. But it didn't really work that way. This one is from the Gooseberry Patch again...

Overnight Oriental Salad
3/4 cup oil (I used olive oil)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup white vinegar
2 pkg Oriental ramen noodles w/ seasoning packets
1 head cabbage, shredded
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1 cup sliced almonds, toasted
1 cup roasted sunflower seeds

Mix oil, sugar, vinegar, and seasoning packets from Ramen noodles together; refrigerate overnight. Crush noodles in a serving bowl; add cabbage (I actually don't like cabbage, so I used iceberg lettuce, my personal fave and the only lettuce I like), onions, almonds, and sunflower seeds. Pour oil mixture over the top, toss gently. Makes 10-12 servings.

Okay. The actual salad part was pretty good. Like having the almonds & sunflower seeds mixed with the lettuce. That part I liked. But the dressing was so oily. It separated immediately (of course) and never really did completely mix. Even after multiple attempts at different times, as soon as I would stop shaking, it would separate. So when I ate it, I tried to like shake it really fast and then really quick dump it on so that wouldn't happen, but I don't think it worked. Whenever I took a bite it just seemed really oily. So I only brought it on Thursday, not Friday. Oh well, a little money down the drain...

Chocolate-Cherry Fudge Bars

Today whilst the baby was napping I made these with Emma. It is from Kraft Food & Family Fall 2007.

Chocolate-Cherry Fudge Bars
4 squares unsweetened baking chocolate
3/4 cup butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup flour
1 pkg (4 svg size) instant chocolate pudding
3/4 cup chopped maraschino cherries (save 7 tbsp of the juice they come in)
2 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup powdered sugar

Microwave chocolate and butter on high for 2 minutes in large microwaveable bowl, or until butter is melted. Stir until chocolate is completely melted. Add sugar, mix well. Blend in eggs & vanilla. Add flour & dry pudding mix; mix well. Stir in 1/2 cup of cherries and 1/3 cup of the reserved cherry juice; spread into prepared pan. Bake 30-35 minutes or until wooden toothpick comes out with fudgy crumbs (do not overbake)(like anyone would on purpose). Cool completely. Mix cream cheese, powdered sugar, and remaining cherry juice until well blended, drizzle over cooled brownies; top w/ remaining cherries.

I couldn't get the glaze to come out right. I mixed and mixed and it just seemed like the cream cheese wouldn't mix with the other two things. Maybe it wasn't "softened" enough, but I left it out for like an hour before I did it. So I never used the frosting, I just threw away the sad effort. But the actual brownies were good. But I'm not keeping this recipe because I didn't like the frosting. So there.

Superbad

Hi guys. I had a total flop on Wednesday, such that I am not even going to type out the whole recipe. But I will describe it for you, so you will know to stay away if you see/read it. These were both from the Gooseberry Patch cookbook...the dessert I made from this cookbook was good, but they didn't impress me with these two things. I made "Easy Potato Casserole" and "Mini-Meatloaves." Okay so the potato casserole even Steve didn't like (which may be a first). It was frozen shredded potatoes, sour cream, cream of celery soup, salt, pepper, & cheese, with ritz crackers crumbled on top. That sounds so bad even as I type it out, I don't know why it looked good on the page. Nobody liked it. We had it with mini-meatloaves. You get pillsbury refrigerated biscuit dough and flatten one biscuit into each of 10 muffin cups. Then you make meatloaf by their recipe (ketchup, oatmeal, onion, etc w/ the hamburger), divide it into 10 balls and put them in the muffin cups, then bake. Well, we buy lean hamburger and there was still a LOT of fat and this brown gummy stuff that spilled out of the muffin cups onto the tops of the pan, and looked so so so gross. Once out of the pan and on a plate away from the grossness, it looked slightly better, and the taste wasn't so awful, but the presentation definitely left something to be desired. So that's the bad news from last week...as the song says, Who knows what tomorrow brings?

Oatmeal Raspberry Bars

Now, these were good. And so easy...I think everyone would like them. And easy to alter to suit your tastes. It's from the Gooseberry Patch Meals in Minutes cookbook. They have a whole dessert section called "Treats in a Twinkle" but this is the only one out of that chapter that sounded good to me. So anyway....

Oatmeal Raspberry Bars
18.5 oz pkg yellow cake mix
3/4 cup butter, melted
2 1/2 cups quick-cooking oats, uncooked
12 oz jar raspberry jam (here's where you could use whatever you wanted. I used seedless, and it was a 16 oz jar, but I just used all of it)
1 tbsp water (I didn't use this, see below)
For glaze: 1 cup powdered sugar & warm water....Combine powdered sugar with enough water to form desired consistency (I found this not at all helpful. I will tell you about how much water I used, which was 1/4 cup. I hate when they say anything "desired" or "to taste." If I knew all that stuff I wouldn't need their cookbook.)

Combine cake mix, butter, and oats in a large mixing bowl; press half firmly into the bottom of a greased (or Pam-sprayed) 9x13 baking dish. Set aside. Stir jam and water together (I presumed this was to make the jam easier to spread, and since I had seedless it was already pretty spread-able, so I didn't use the water); spread evenly over crust layer. Cover with remaining crumb mixture; pat firmly over the top (I didn't pat too firmly. I didn't want it to sink too much into the jam). Bake at 375 for 20 minutes; drizzle with glaze while warm. Cool; slice into bars to serve.

So, this was so easy to make and it tasted so good. Even Emma liked it, which is definitely a novelty for her to like anything knew. Not sure where this pickiness of hers comes from...anyhoo, I definitely recommend this one. Talk to you soon!!

Easy Veggie Soup with Easy Cheddar Biscuits

Notice a theme? Well, they're from 2 different cookbooks. The soup is from the cookbook Jessica gave me that I mentioned last week, the Gooseberry Patch one. The biscuits are from Kraft Food & Family. I had been saving the biscuit recipe until I was making something that would go good with biscuits. So last night I did both...

Easy Veggie Soup
1 lb ground beef, browned & drained
4 potatoes, chopped
1 onion, chopped
4 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 cup pearled barley, uncooked
6 cups water
6 beef bouillon cubes
28 oz can tomato puree
1 tsp dried thyme

Combine all ingredients in lg stockpot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes, adding more water as needed during cooking time for desired consistency (I didn't add any more), until vegetables are tender. Makes 6-8 servings (translation=a whole heck of a lot of soup).

This was pretty good. I wouldn't say fabulous. I had A LOT left over, so last night when I met Mom I gave her a bunch of it, and we will have the leftovers today for lunch. All the kids ate it, even baby Nathan had some of the potatoes. So we'll count it as a hit, although it was nothing spectacular so I haven't decided if I'm adding it to my recipe file yet. Plus I hate peeling and cutting vegetables. And I didn't chop mine. Well, the onion I did. But the potatoes and carrots I sliced. Oh, and the barley. When I first got to Hannaford I looked in the organic aisle first because I wasn't sure they would have it anywhere else. And they had a one pound package for $2.99. So I put it in my cart in case I didn't find not-organic. Well, a few aisles over they had not-organic barley, from Maine, for 69 cents for 1 pound!! Can you even believe the price difference?? So I think you can guess which one I got. Pesticides rule. Anyway hopefully my mom will post what she thought of the soup after she eats it. And hopefully she'll be honest. After all, it's not about my feelings, it's about providing a service to inquiring minds. =)

Easy Cheddar Biscuits
1 cup flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) cold butter
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/3 cup milk

Combine dry ingredients in medium bowl. Cut in cold butter with two knives or pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add cheese. Add milk and stir until soft dough forms (I had to add just a teensy bit more milk to mine). On a lightly floured surface, knead dough 8-10 times. Shape into a 6 inch square. Cut into 9 pieces and place on greased baking sheet (I used my stoneware, so I didn't grease it. But it didn't stick). Bake @ 450 for 10-12 minutes until golden brown.

These biscuits were pretty easy, although not as easy as asking my mom to make them and eating them at her house. They didn't really taste from scratch, even though they clearly were. I'm on the fence about these, too. Well, that's where we're at for now. Talk to you guys soon!!!

Bacon Cheeseburger Roll Up

This is what we had on Friday...it's the last one I was planning to make from the Kraft Food & Family Spring 2007 mag. I really liked the sound of this one, unfortunately it was a let down. At least for me........

Bacon Cheeseburger Roll-Up
1 lb lean ground beef
4 slices bacon, chopped
1/2 cup chopped onions (about 1 small)
8 oz velveeta, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 pkg (13.8 oz) refrigerated pizza crust

Preheat oven to 400. Cook ground beef, bacon, and onion in lg skillet on medium-high heat until ground beef is evenly browned. Drain; return meat mixture to skillet. Add Velveeta, cook until completely melted, stirring frequently (this took a very very long time. Probably because my cubes were more like 2 inch cubes). Remove from heat; set aside. Unroll pizza dough onto baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray. Press into 15x8 inch rectangle (like I measured it. I totally eye-balled it). Top evenly with meat mixture. Roll up dough, starting at one of the long sides. Rearrange if necessary so that seam side is down on the baking sheet. Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown (mine only took like 17). Cut diagonally into 6 slices to serve.

I'm not sure what I didn't like about this. I am a huge fan of bacon, so it can't be that. Unless it was the dough I didn't like. There have been other Pillsbury dough products that I'm not crazy about, such as their rolls & biscuits. Actually the only things I do like of theirs are the cinnamon rolls & pie crusts. So maybe that was it. Anyway just something about it. Emma ate 3 bites, not bad. Sam ate all of his, and I gave him a lot without meaning to, not realizing how big the servings would be once they were cut up. Predictably, Steve lapped his up. He doesn't even like bacon. But he does like me.

Next week I am starting a cookbook Jessica gave me a while ago, at her baby shower. It has lots in it and I am looking forward to starting. I will be there a while, I think. I may mix in some of the Fall mag recipes that I just got from Food & Fam, since the Jessica cookbook doesn't have any desserts that I want to try. Anyway that's my story for now. Talk to you guys soon!!

Sweet Citrus Chicken

Hello! This is what we had for dinner last night. It's from Kraft Food & Family Spring 2007 magazine. It was good. One more recipe in this one, then it's on to my next conquest...

Sweet Citrus Chicken
1 2/3 cups hot water
1 pkg (6 oz) Stove Top Stuffing Mix for chicken (I used the store brand, but I shouldn't have. I could definitely tell the difference)
6 small boneless skinless chicken breast halves
2/3 cup orange juice
1/3 cup brown sugar
3 tbsp butter or margarine, melted

Preheat oven to 400. Add hot water to stuffing mix; stir just until moistened, set aside. Place chicken in 13x9 baking dish. Mix juice, sugar, and butter until well blended, pour over chicken. Top w/ prepared stuffing. Bake 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through (mine just took the 30 minutes). Makes 6 servings.

This was good. I think the OJ & brown sugar actually flavored the stuffing more than it did the chicken, but it was still good. Some of the stuffing on the bottom near the chicken was a bit soggy, so that wasn't too good there. But Sam said the stuffing was his favorite part. Emma was having an off day and didn't even want to eat her chicken, which she usually eats without complaint. But we made her. And Steve loved it and took the rest to work today for leftovers. I thought it was good, too. I have been using "good" a lot in this description, I am just realizing. Well that is because it was good, but not great. But I am going to keep this one because it just uses basic ingredients and will be good like near the end of the 2 weeks right before payday. Hope you have a great day and talk to you soon!!

One-Pan Pork Roast with Parmesan Fries

Hi girls! Last night this is what we had. I doubled the recipe and gave half to the family we were making a meal for. It came out very tasty. I hope they liked it...I told her I was going to call and apologize if it was awful, but it was actually good. It's from the Kraft Food & Family Spring 2007 magazine.

One-Pan Pork Roast with Parmesan Fries
1 egg white, lightly beaten (I ran out of eggs this weekend so I used melted butter...probably way worse for you but very tasty)
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1 tsp garlic salt, divided
3 medium potatoes, cut into wedges
1 lb pork tenderloin
2 tbsp balsamic vinaigrette dressing
1 tbsp honey

Preheat oven to 425. Combine egg white (or melted butter), cheese, and 3/4 tsp of garlic salt. Add to potatoes, toss to coat. Spread onto large greased baking sheet (I didn't grease it since I used butter. I thought that was enough. It was.) Bake 15 minutes. Place meat on same baking sheet, next to potatoes, sprinkle with remaining 1/4 tsp garlic salt. Bake an additional 20 minutes. Meanwhile, combine dressing and honey. Brush meat w/ dressing mixture. Continue baking 10-15 minutes or until meat is cooked through (mine took like 25 minutes) and potatoes are tender, brushing meat occasionally w/ any remaining dressing mixture. Makes 4 servings (we had none left over, even with two little people).

Steve loved this. I asked him if it was "make again", and he said it was "make often." I told him pork tenderloin is too expensive to "make often." He said, well what about the potatoes. I said those were doable. The kids liked it, too (even Emma). So this one's a keeper. Talk to you guys soon!!

Meatloaf in an Onion with Roasted Potatoes

Hi guys! So last night I finished the last two recipes I was planning from the Best of the Best from America cookbook. The meatloaf is from Utah and the potatoes from North Dakota (not home of Mt Rushmore. That's South Dakota. Silly). We also had fresh green beans from "the farm." Emma ate them for the second time--hooray!

Roasted Potatoes
4 pounds potatoes
8 cloves garlic
4 tbsp chopped fresh parsley (I used dried, and eyeballed it)
2 tsp dried basil
2 tsp dried oregano
ground black pepper to taste (I just sprinkled some in)
8-12 tbsp light olive oil
salt to taste

Preheat oven to 350. Peel potatoes (or leave skins on--that's what I did), and cut each potato into 2 inch chunks. Mince garlic (or use garlic in a jar). In lg bowl, combine all ingredients except salt and toss so potatoes are covered in oil (I added some oil, then tossed, then a little more, etc, until it looked right). Spread potatoes in a single layer in 9x13 (or larger) pan (I used a cookie sheet--it would be hard to get all those potatoes in a single layer in a 9x13. More like impossible). Bake uncovered for one hour, or until golden brown and cooked through (mine took 45 minutes). Season with salt before serving.

Meatloaf in an Onion
4 large onions, peeled
1 pound lean ground beef
1 egg
1/4 cup cracker crumbs (I used bread crumbs because I didn't want to crush crackers)
1/4 cup tomato sauce
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp dry mustard

Cut off the root at the bottom end of the onion. Cut onions in half horizontally and remove center part of onion, leaving a 3/4 inch thick shell (reserve centers for another use). In a 1 gallon plastic zipper bag, combine all other ingredients and mix by squeezing. Divide meat mixture into 4 balls and place in the center of the 4 onion halves. Put onions back together. Wrap each onion in foil. Cook on the grill 15-20 mins per side or in a 350 oven for 45-50 minutes, or until ground beef and onions are cooked.

So there are the recipes...now my comments. The potatoes were sooooo good. Definitely a make again. They tasted like from a restaurant or something. The meatloaf is another story. The onions came out very soggy, and the meat flavorless. It tasted like I had added nothing to the meat at all, just a hamburger ball inside a soggy onion. But Steve still ate it! Such a trooper. Now it is on to my next cookbook...I will be doing a few recipes from the Spring 2007 Kraft Foods magazine. I am always excited to end one cookbook and start another. Stay tuned! =)

Blueberry Streusel Muffins

Hi guys! I know it seems like I'm having a very prolific week, but last night was a spontaneous new recipe. Usually I know like 2 weeks in advance what my recipes are going to be for the next two weeks, because I need to buy ingredients. And because I'm neurotic. Well, we have a high bush blueberry bush out back that Steve picked a bunch of berries from a few days ago, and he asked me yesterday morning before he left for work to make blueberry muffins for lunch. Because he was coming home for lunch. And I said no, but I will make them for supper. So I looked in my cookbooks and found a good one. Now, I could have just called my mom and got her blue-ribbon winning recipe for blueberry muffins, but I had already called her yesterday to see how to cook fresh green beans (our cup runneth way way over fresh produce-wise, and I have like a thimble-ful of knowledge about it). So I found this one in Betty Crocker's New Cookbook. But it's not new. I've had it for a while.

Blueberry Streusel Muffins
Streusel Topping (recipe follows)
2 tbsp firm stick margarine or butter
1/4 cup flour
2 tbsp packed brown sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
Cut margarine into other 3 ingredients using pastry blender or two knives, til crumbly
1 cup milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 large egg
2 cups flour
1/3 cup sugar
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt 1 cup fresh or canned (drained) blueberries, or 3/4 cup frozen (thawed and drained)

Heat oven to 400. Grease bottoms only of muffin cups or use paper baking cups (I always do). Prepare Streusel (does this really need to be capitalized) Topping and set aside. Beat milk, oil, vanilla, and egg in large bowl. Stir in flour, sugar, baking powder and salt all at once (?) just until flour is moistened (batter will be lumpy). Fold in blueberries. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups. Sprinkle each with about 2 tsp Streusel topping. Bake 20-25 mins (mine took 21) or until golden brown. Immediately remove from pan to wire rack.

First off, how are you supposed to add 4 different dry ingredients all at once? Probably the best thing would have been to mix it separately in a bowl, but my other mixing bowl was full of
S(capital)treusel Topping. So I just got it all measured then dumped them all in real quick and stirred. It worked okay. The batter was not too sweet like box mixes are, and the blueberries a little tangy, like high bush blueberries are, so guess who didn't like them? Sam ate his and hers. Steve and I had two each. 6 left over. Definitely a make-again. We had them w/ sausage & cheese omelets. I'm so happy for a good recipe after the recent tankers.............

Thai Chicken Fettucine

This is what we had last night. It's nearing the end of that state by state cookbook I've been working through. This one is from Oregon.

Thai Chicken Fettucine
1 cup picante sauce (I used Pace mild)
1/4 cup peanut butter
2 tbsp honey
1/4 cup orange juice
1 tsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp ground ginger
12 oz dry fettucine, cooked & well drained (I used spaghetti b/c I had a lot of it on hand)
2 cups cooked chicken breast, cut in chunks (about 3 breasts)(according to them)
Iceberg lettuce or savory cabbage leaves for garnish
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1/4 cup chopped unsalted peanuts
1/4 cup thinly sliced red bell pepper

Combine first six ingredients in small saucepan, cook & stir over low heat until blended and smooth. Reserve 1/4 cup mixture, toss remaining mixture w/ hot cooked fettucine. Mix reserved picante sauce w/ cooked chicken pieces. Line large platter with lettuce leaves, if desired (I didn't). Arrange fettucine mixture over lettuce; top w/ chicken mixture. Sprinkle w/ cilantro, peanuts, and red bell pepper. Cool to room temperature before serving, or serve chilled. Serves 6.

Okay so nobody liked this. Well, Steve said he did, but he always says that and always eats anything. Sometimes I will look back at the recipe for something and think, "Why on earth did I think this sounded good?" This was one of those times. I skipped the lettuce, and put the noodles on each person's plate (except not Emma's), then chicken, then cilantro. I skipped the peanuts & red pepper because I didn't want to spend the money on ingredients that needed such small amounts, plus Steve hates plain peanuts. Emma said of the cilantro: "It looks like leafs on your plate." Sam was very good about eating it but said he didn't really like it. That was the camp I was in, too. I ate it but didn't think it was very good. I think it was because of the sauce. Just not very tasty, or at least not what I was expecting. Or something. And anyway, what are people in Oregon doing making Thai food and claiming it as their state recipe? Unless they have a large Thai population there that I am not aware of. So now I've had two bombs in a row (and 3 if you count the dessert). I'm hoping next week will be better....it has to be!

Creamy Lemon Squares

So for dessert this week this is what I made. It's from the kraftfoods.com cooking magazine (spring 2007) that I get (for free) in the mail every couple of months. You should get it too. Just go to the above mentioned website and sign up. It's a lot of easy yummy recipes that use some pre-packaged items for the recipes, so they are faster to make. All that being said, I didn't like this one. I love lemon bars in the box, like really love them, so I thought this way I could make them from scratch. Nope. The filling was way too thick & creamy for my liking, and the lemon more tart than it is in the box mixes. So I guess it's back to the box for me. BTW, I almost never like cream-cheese based desserts, so I shouldn't have been surprised. Steve really liked them, Sam liked them but said they were "a bit too sweet for my kind." But maybe you'll like them....

Creamy Lemon Squares
20 reduced fat nilla wafers (I used regular fat), finely crushed
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 cup cold margarine
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
2 tbsp flour
3 tbsp grated lemon peel (I used McCormick in a jar)
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (I used lemon juice from a bottle. But it says its the same on the bottle as fresh lemons. It's probably not, but I already had it in the fridge)
1/4 tsp baking powder
2 tsp powdered sugar

Combine wafer crumbs, 1/2 cup flour, and the brown sugar in medium bowl. Cut in margarine with pastry blender or two knives until mixture resembles coarse crumbs; press firmly onto bottom of 8x8 inch pan. Bake 15 minutes @ 350. Meanwhile, beat cream cheese and sugar w/ electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add eggs and 2 tbsp flour; mix well. Blend in 1 tbsp of the lemon peel, lemon juice, and baking powder; pour over crust. Bake 25-28 minutes or until center is set. Cool completely. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours or overnight. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and garnish with remaining lemon peel if desired (I didn't desire). Store leftover squares in refrigerator.

Chicken and Stuffing Casserole

So this is what we had last night...from North Dakota in that cookbook from Mom...

Chicken and Stuffing Casserole
4 cups stuffing mix (I used Hannaford chicken flavor from the canister)
1 cup butter, melted
4 cups chopped cooked chicken (I cooked 3 breasts & chopped and didn't measure them. I think it was about right, though)
2 cans (10 3/4 oz each) cream of chicken soup
1 13 oz can evaporated milk (at the Walmart they only had 12 oz cans, name brand or otherwise. so that's what I used)
1 10 oz pkg frozen peas, thawed (yes, I did use these. Did I actually eat them?)
1/4 cup minced onion
1 2 oz jar chopped pimento, drained (I did not use this)

Combine stuffing mix with butter in bowl, mix well. Press half the mixture into 9x13 pan. Combine all other ingredients in separate bowl, mix well and spread over prepared dish, top w/ remaining stuffing mix. Bake @ 350 for one hour.

Okay this definitely did not take and hour. I checked it after like 34 minutes and the stuffing on top was almost black. So obviously I took it out. But the recipe didn't say to cover it. Anyway, it was still done even after only 34 minutes. It did turn out pretty good. Emma of course did not want the peas or stuffing and only ate the chicken. Sam ate all of it and had seconds. And of course, trusty Steve did, too. As for me...I picked out the peas and ate the rest!!

Black Forest Cake

Historically, this is one of my dad's favorite desserts. He always raves about how good it was when he was in Germany. So when we decided to have our somewhat monthly family dinner, I thought I would make this, even though I'm sure it's not the same as the original, but hopefully a reasonable facsimile. From that same cookbook with the states, from Wyoming, of all places...

Black Forest Cake
chocolate cake mix (I used Betty Crocker chocolate fudge)
1 21 oz can cherry pie filling
3 cups whipping cream
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 tbsp instant vanilla pudding mix
1 4 oz choc bar or chocolate chips

Bake cake mix according to pkg directions in 3 8x8 inch cake rounds (which I just happen to have) or in a springform pan and cut into 3 layers (that seems harder). Have cake layers ready and cooled. Transfer one layer to cake platter and spread with pie filling. Beat whipping cream until thick (turns out, this is like impossible to do by hand. Good thing my mom has her trusty Oster mixer); sift powdered sugar and dry pudding mix over whipping cream (I did not sift. I sprinkled) and continue beating until cream makes stiff peaks (I think I waited too long to do this step, because instantly when I added the sugar & pudding it was thick. Like buddah)(Not Buddha, the false god in India). Put second layer of cake on top of cherries and spread w/ 1/3 of the whipped cream. Add third layer and frost whole cake w/ remaining whipped cream. Use potato peeler to grate chocolate on top, or use chocolate chips (I used mini choc chips).

So, this was quite tasty. The cake was very moist and light and the frosting, while not very sweet, was light and tasty. Problem was, Jon & Jess were so stuffed from mom's chicken, they didn't try it. So I said, next time I don't want dessert, because 1/3 of the people there didn't try it. I want either main course or side dish so that at least everyone tries it. Sheesh. I left the rest of the cake there for my dad because I didn't think it would travel home very well. But this was a good one.

Potato Pepperoni Hot Dish

I made this last week. It was in my plan to make this anyway, and then when I was asked to make a meal for Helping Hands, I decided to make it in two 8x8 pans rather than one 9x13. Read on to see how THAT turned out. Anyway this is from North Dakota...

Potato Pepperoni Hot Dish
1 1/2 to 2 lbs hamburger (oddly enough, I used 1.75 that I had in the freezer)
1 small onion, diced
1 10 3/4 oz can cheddar cheese soup
1 10 3/4 oz can tomato soup
1 cup milk
1/2 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tsp sugar
6-8 potatoes, peeled and sliced
1 pkg pepperoni slices
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1 cup mozzarella cheese

Brown hamburger and onion. Mix the soups, milk, and seasonings (apparently they are counting sugar as a seasoning here). Mix together the hamburger, potatoes, and soup mixture (in like a huge bowl). Place in a 9x13 inch pan and bake @ 350 for one hour, or until potatoes are tender. Top w/ pepperoni slices & bake for 5 more minutes. Top w/ cheeses and bake until cheese melts.

Okay. So I thought (wrongly, apparently) that having it in two dishes would cook the potatoes faster (increased surface area, ya know?), so I thought 45 minutes would probably be enough. But I was wrong. It took over an hour even in a divided dish. And I don't like how they don't say to cook covered or uncovered. I was afraid it would dry out too much if I left it uncovered, because it wasn't very saucy to begin with. So I covered the casserole dish with it's glass cover and the foil 8x8 pan with...foil. After it seemed to be taking forever to cook, I did uncover them. Finally I had to take them out of the oven or be very late for church and risk the other family not getting their meal before they had to leave for church. If they were even going. Which they didn't, but I didn't know that at the time. So the potatoes still weren't done. They had that still-slightly-raw crunch to them. So that's the cooking fiasco. And then, it wasn't even that good. I don't know why I didn't notice this when I was looking at the recipe, but it's like this dish can't decide what it wants to be. Do you want to be pizza-y? Hamburger Helper-y? I don't know, but the combination of all these things was a little much. Maybe in North Dakota they do this often, and that's why it's called a "hot dish" instead of "something casserole." (Steve often calls me a hot dish, too.) So don't make this one, unless you like underdone potatoes and mixed up taste buds.

French Toast Casserole

Hi guys! This is what we had on Wednesday night. Very tasty. I had extra ingredients, so I made one for Jessica, and they liked it too. This is yet again from the Best of the Best cookbook (almost done this one) from New Jersey....

Cape May (?) French Toast Casserole
1 cup brown sugar
1 stick butter
2 tbsp corn syrup
2 apples, peeled and sliced
1 loaf french bread, cut into 3/4 inch slices
5 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups milk
1 tsp vanilla

Cook sugar, butter, and corn syrup until syrupy. Pour into 9x13 dish. Spread apple slices on syrup. Place bread on apples. Whisk together eggs, milk, and vanilla. Pour over bread. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Heat oven to 350. Bake, uncovered, for 30-40 minutes. Serve w/ maple syrup. 8 servings.

So what I did instead was make it Wednesday morning and left it in the refrigerator all day, then cooked it for supper. But I'm sure the other way would work, too, esp if you had company. But, although it says 8 servings, I was hard pressed to fit that much french bread in the casserole dish. So you might have to make 2 pans if you had a lot of people to feed. The caramel sauce, although very thick when you pour it into pan, after it cooks it is all mixed in, and it has such a yummy caramel flavor when you eat it. Even my b-i-l liked it, and he is hard to please. Food wise. And hey--did you know they have wheat french bread? I saw it at the Wal-mart but didn't use it this time because I wasn't too sure about it. But maybe next time I'll try it. So that's this week girls. Talk to you soon!

P.S. I feel at this juncture it would be prudent to mention an inadvertent omission. My dear friend Terri has also been following New Recipe Night since the beginning, and has actually made many of the recipes that I said were good (unlike the other 66% of my readership)(ha ha), as well as given me some of her own recipes, which have now become staples in our house, such as "chicken pot pie the way her mom makes it" and "shepherd's pie the way Terri makes it." =)

Ginger Crinkle Cookies

Hi guys! I made these cookies yesterday and they came out so good! They look and taste just like pepperidge farm or something. And Steve said that, too, not just me, so I'm not being prideful. This is from that same cookbook I've been working through, the Best of the Best one, and this one is from North Carolina, too.

Ginger Crinkle Cookies
2/3 cup oil
1 1/4 cups sugar, divided
1 egg
4 tbsp molasses
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger

Mix oil and 1 cup of sugar thoroughly. Add egg and mix well. Add molasses. In separate bowl, combine dry ingredients together, then add to creamed mixture (it was very thick, hard to stir). Drop by teaspoonfuls into remaining 1/4 cup sugar (I didn't think this would be enough but it was) and roll into balls coated with sugar. Place 3 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes. Cookies will flatten and crinkle as they cool. Remove to wire rack. Makes 5 dozen (well that is a lie because mine only made 2 1/2 dozen. If you wanted to get 5 dozen cookies out of this they would have to be like quarter sized cookies or something. So next time I make these I probably will do a double batch to make it worth my time).

Sam, Steve, and I all liked these. And since they are non-dairy, even little Nathan had two bites. But, and this may shock you, Emma didn't like them. Said they were too spicy. Which they do have a little bite to them, but they are supposed to. There is a character on Strawberry Shortcake named Ginger Snap, and I told her that's what kind of cookies these were. That made her try them, but it didn't make her like them. Oh well.

Even though I made these cookies like twice as big as they were supposed to be, still they were done in the same amount of time (15 minutes). And they were quite easy to make. And yummy. So we'll count this as a keeper

North Carolina Chicken

Hi guys! Don't know why this one is called "North Carolina" chicken. Except it is from that state in the "Best of the Best" cookbook. Anyway this I really liked because I made it in the morning, then an hour before Steve was supposed to come home I just put it in the oven and it was ready. And it smelled so good while it was baking. So here it is....

North Carolina Chicken
8 oz (2 sticks) butter or margarine
2 envelopes dry Italian salad dressing mix
1/2 cup lime juice
1 tsp salt
5 lbs chicken pieces

Melt butter in saucepan. Stir in salad dressing mix, lime juice, and salt. Marinate chicken 3-4 hours or overnight. Bake @ 350 for one hour or until done (how helpful). (Mine took just the hour) Or cook on outdoor grill for one hour, turning and basting every 10-15 minutes. Sounds easy enough. And Jessi was here while I was making it, so even with distractions and much conversation it still turned out great. Steve liked it and took the leftovers to work today for lunch. Sam & Emma did eat it but I'm not sure they liked it. No fits, though. And I thought it was yummy, too. But why is this so North Carolinan?? Do they grow limes there or something? Or make dry Italian salad dressing mixes?

Cheater Chicken Pot Pie

Hello all (okay it's just you two. but it sounds nice). Back by popular demand is the New Recipe Night Newsletter. Mostly because I had a minute and last night was pretty good. So without further adooo

Cheater Chicken Pot Pie

2 9-inch pie crusts (of course I used store bought)

1 10 oz can of chunk chicken, drained

1 15 oz can of vegetables, drained (I used corn)

1 2.8 oz can of french fried onions (or, buy the big can and eat the rest while pie is baking)

2 10 3/4 oz cans of cream of chicken soup

1/4 tsp salt (I know you're thinking, why add more salt? Not sure, but I did)

Layer one pie crust in bottom of 9 inch pie plate (not deep dish). Mix all other ingredients in separate bowl and fill pie crust. Layer 2nd crust on top (by this point I know you are thinking "Duh"). Cut some slits in the top. Bake @ 375 for 40 minutes.

This was pretty darn good, but sodium city. I guess it would be good if you had a hankerin for pot pie but no left-overs. Or if Marden's had a flippin' sweet sale on canned chicken and you needed a way to use it besides chicken salad. Anyway, next time I make it I'm going to try using chicken gravy instead of the soup and see how it is. All in all, pretty good.

Do you think I should have my own blog site called new recipe night? I feel I have a lot to contribute to the doleful housewife who is tired of the same old same old. At least that's why I started doing New Recipe Night at home anyway. Maybe it would take off into things like Today show appearances and such. Or Rachael Ray. At least I know I would get 2 hits per week =). Have a great day you two and talk to you soon!!

Sweet Aromatic Chicken

Okay so last night we had the above mentioned recipe. I made it in the crock pot. Lisa gave me a crock pot cookbook for my birthday last year and I have been working through it, two recipes a month (since I do one a week, or two per paycheck, one recipe in each "pay period" has been a crock pot recipe. Now you know way more than you needed to about my seeeestem). Only one more to go in there after this one. Anyway we were gone all day between swimming and play date w/ the Coffins, plus it was stinkin hot, so I only made tater tots in the toaster oven to go with this, but I think it would have been better with one of those commercial Chinese rice thingies, like Rice a roni oriental or something. Because the chicken tasted very chinese buffet. And it smelled awesome once I got home. So here's the recipe:

Sweet Aromatic Chicken

1/2 cup coconut milk (not as expensive as I expected...$1.12 for a can the same size as a can of green beans)

1/2 cup water

8 chicken thighs, skinned (I only had 5. But that's okay)

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 tbsp soy sauce

1/8 tsp ground cloves

2 garlic cloves, minced (I always use the minced garlic in a jar that they have over by the fresh produce)

Combine coconut milk and water, pour into greased slow cooker (or use a crock-pot liner. I always do). Add remaining ingredients in order listed. Cover, cook on low 5-6 hours. And if either of you want to try this, I still have a whole can of coconut milk (minus 1/2 cup) in my fridge that I'll probably keep for a few more days. Probably neither of you will want to, but the offer's out there.

As a side note, Steve was reading the emails from last week's new recipe (snooper) and saw the idea for a blogspot (which I was half kidding about) and it totally all over it. So pretty soon I will have one and that will be fun. Stay tuned for the full story at 11.

Talk to you guys later!!

Apple Pancake

But it's just one big pancake, not a bunch of little ones. It's from a cookbook Mom got me for Christmas a couple years back called "Best of the Best from America Cookbook." This one's from Massachusetts. It's supposed to be baked in the oven in a 10 inch cast iron skillet, but I don't have one of those, so I used a 10 inch deep dish stoneware pie plate. This thing rises to nearly double while it's baking, I mean like 2-3 inches above the top of the pie plate. Surprising, the first time I looked in the oven to check on it. Not sure if it would do the same thing in cast iron, or if the sides are just taller in that so it wouldn't seem to rise so high but really it does. Anyway...

Berkshire Apple Pancake

3 apples

3 eggs, beaten

3 cups flour

1 1/2 tbsp baking powder

3/4 tsp salt

5 tbsp sugar

2 cups milk

3/4 tsp vanilla

3/4 tsp cinnamon

5 tbsp butter, melted

1/4 cup brown sugar

Preheat oven to 450. Peel and core apples. Coarsely chop 2 1/2 apples. Slice remaining 1/2 apple into thin spirals for garnish on top (I did not do this. I ate the last 1/2 apple while I was doing the other stuff). Brush spirals with lemon juice to prevent darkening (if you do that, I guess) and set them aside. Mix the eggs, flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, milk, vanilla, cinnamon, and chopped apples together in a bowl. Mix until combined, although the batter will remain lumpy. Melt butter in 10 inch cast iron frying pan. Pour batter into pan, and arrange reserved apple spirals on top. Bake @ 450 for 15 minutes. Then turn oven down to 350 and bake for 40 minutes, or unitl toothpick inserted in center comes out clean (took like 34 minutes for me). Remove pan from oven & allow to rest x 5 minutes. Sprinkle w/ brown sugar, cut into wedges, and serve with maple syrup.

As I said, I used a pie pan, and the butter overflowed a bit from the edges when I poured the batter in. So that was kind of messy. I had to put a cookie sheet on the rack below the pie plate to catch the dripping butter. But by the time I turned the heat down, the pancake had risen up and the butter stopped dripping so I took the cookie sheet out. If I made it again (and Steve thinks I should) I would use less butter in a pie pan, but I think in cast iron that would still be the right amount.

Steve loved this, said it was good enough for company. Emma didn't like it, even though before it was set before her she claimed to love both pancakes and apples. She ate 3 bites, 2 of them under duress. Sam ate all of his and the rest of Emma's and said it was delicious. Oh yeah, I liked it too. But I think I won't make it for company, because unless it's family it's weird to have people over and serve breakfast for supper. I think. And even if we had houseguests sleeping over, it still takes like a total of an hour and a half between prep & baking times, so there's no way that's even practical for breakfast. Especially me and my not-morning-ness.

On a sad note, I used the last of my Watkins vanilla in this recipe last night. =( Now I'm on to the Pampered Chef vanilla I got as a freebie at some point. We'll see how that goes. Anyway talk to you both soon and have a great day!!

Berry Delicious Bread

Sounds like it's right out of Strawberry Shortcake, doesn't it? Well, Emma still won't eat it. Anyway this was my dessert for these two weeks, not really dessert-y, more like a breakfast thing, but I wanted to fit it in somehow. It's from the state of Iowa from the Best of the Best from America cookbook from Mom.

Berry Delicious Bread

1 10 oz pkg frozen strawberries, thawed

3/4 cup sugar

2/3 cup oil

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

3/4 cup chopped nuts (optional)(I opted for not)

Grease & flour (who ever does that? I did use crisco though) 9 x 5 inch loaf pan. Combine strawberries, sugar, oil & eggs. Beat on medium speed x 2 minutes (or just hand mix like I did). Add remaining dry ingredients, stir until moistened. Pour into pan and bake @ 350 for 50-60 mins (mine took 54 minutes). Cool in pan x 15 minutes, then remove.

So I thought this was really good. It smelled very yummy while baking. The kids won't try it, who both claim to hate strawberries. But my trusty Steve did try it, even though I know he doesn't like strawberries, and he still said it was good. I don't know if he'll have more than the one slice he had with lunch yesterday. I might have to eat the rest myself. So probably I won't make it unless we have spend the night company or if I am making a meal for someone at church, because it is silly to make a whole loaf of bread just for myself. So that's the scoop here.

Chicken with Chocolate

This is what we had last night. It's from that cookbook mom got me, the Best of the Best from America, and this is from Nevada. It was more like chili sauce than I expected. No major complaints from the kids though (does that count as success?).

Chicken with Chocolate
1 (2 1/2 to 3 lb) fryer chicken, cut up (I used chicken breasts, cut in half, because they were out of whole chickens at Wal-mart when I went)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 green pepper, chopped
2 8-oz cans tomato sauce
1-2 tsp crushed dried red pepper (I used 1)
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp tabasco (I used like 4 drops)
2 cloves garlic, chopped (I didn't add more, because I just use that garlic in a jar and it's all
one shape, anyway)
1/2 oz unsweetened baking chocolate, finely grated

Heat oil in frying pan or skillet to a moderate heat. Brown chicken pieces in oil. When nicely browned, remove chicken to a Dutch oven or casserole with cover. In the skillet in which you browned the chicken, saute onion, garlic, and green pepper for 10-15 minutes on low heat. Add remaining 6 ingredients, mixing well. Simmer about 5 minutes. Spoon sauce over chicken pieces and bake at 350 for one hour (since I used boneless breasts this only took like 35 minutes). Yields 5-6 servings.

This wasn't bad, but also not spectacular. I'm not sure what I was expecting but it was kind of like chili sauce, but no beans, hamburg, etc. I probably won't make this again, only because there are lots of ways to make chicken that I love, and this I didn't love. But Steve liked it (of course). So anyway there you have it.