So this, you make in the crockpot. I already have a sweet recipe for goulash, comfort food from my childhood, that involves macaroni and tomato soup, but I thought I would give this one a try, since it goes in the crockpot. It's from the BH&G 5 IF (my new abbreviation for this cookbook with a long name--to see what it is if you don't know, just read an earlier post).
Easy Goulash
1 pound lean ground beef
1/2 of a 28 oz pkg (3 1/2 cups) frozen diced hash brown potatoes with green pepper and onion (they do not have this at the Wal-mart, plus Sam hates peppers. So I got plain hash brown potatoes and cut up an onion to go with them)
1 15 oz can tomato sauce
1 14 1/2 oz can diced tomatoes with basil, garlic, and oregano, undrained
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese (I used shredded Mexican blend because that's what I had in the fridge)
In a lg skillet, cook ground beef over medium high heat until brown. Drain off fat. In the crockpot, combine all ingredients except cheese. Cover and cook on low heat for 6-8 hours or high heat for 3-4 hours. Turn off crockpot and sprinkle with cheese. Let stand about 5 minutes or until cheese melts.
So this was actually quite good. It ended up looking kind of like chili but without beans. The kids weren't crazy about it, I think because of the tomatoes, but I only had a couple of big chunks in mine, and I picked theirs out for them because that's the kind of mom I am. So I think we will keep this one. It was easy and made the kitchen smell good all day and was yummy too.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Asian Chicken and Vegetables
Well I must say that this week has been a confidence-shaker, as far as my cooking abilities go. First the snafu with the dip on Friday, and then last night at Bible Study nobody ate my peanut butter bars. I brought a whole plate of them, and maybe like 2 were gone. I brought the rest home and told Steve I'm going to hang up my apron, because things are going down hill. I don't even wear an apron, but I think you see what I'm saying. I do have a couple aprons in a drawer but I never wear them. Anyway...
Last night we had this recipe, from the BH&G 5 Ingredient Faves cookbook. It was pretty good. Steve liked it, the kids all ate it (they are getting better about eating real chicken--well Sam was always good about it, but Emma and Nathan are getting better about it).
Asian Chicken and Vegetables
8 chicken drumsticks and/or thighs
1 tbsp cooking oil
1 1/2 tsp five-spice powder (this cost $6.85 at Hannaford--yikes! But it seems like a lot of the recipes in this book use it so I decided to go for it--if you want to borrow 1 1/2 tsp of it from me, you can--for $1.00--hee hee)
1/3 cup bottled plum sauce or sweet and sour sauce
1 14-16 oz bag frozen stir fry vegetables
Skin chicken. Arrange chicken in a 13x9 baking dish. Brush with oil; sprinkle with 1 tsp of the five-spice powder. Bake, uncovered, @ 400 for 25 minutes. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine the remaining 1/2 tsp five-spice powder and the sweet and sour sauce. Add frozen vegetables; toss to coat. Push chicken to one side of the baking pan. Add vegetable mixture to the other side of the pan. Bake, uncovered, for 15-20 minutes longer or until chicken is tender and no longer pink (180 degrees), stirring vegetables once during baking. Using a slotted spoon, transfer chicken and vegetables to serving platter.
So one thing I like about all the recipes in this cookbook so far is that they are pretty simple to make. This took basically no effort at all to make. I don't think it tasted particularly Asian, really, in spite of the expensive spice, but maybe this is what real Asian food tastes like, as opposed to the Chinese buffet stuff that I am used to. So this was okay, but I don't think good enough to save. Because I have lots and lots of chicken recipes that are so so good. So this was a good change I guess but doesn't make the cut for a keeper. But if you want to try it, you can, and borrow some spice, at the previously mentioned terms. =o)
Last night we had this recipe, from the BH&G 5 Ingredient Faves cookbook. It was pretty good. Steve liked it, the kids all ate it (they are getting better about eating real chicken--well Sam was always good about it, but Emma and Nathan are getting better about it).
Asian Chicken and Vegetables
8 chicken drumsticks and/or thighs
1 tbsp cooking oil
1 1/2 tsp five-spice powder (this cost $6.85 at Hannaford--yikes! But it seems like a lot of the recipes in this book use it so I decided to go for it--if you want to borrow 1 1/2 tsp of it from me, you can--for $1.00--hee hee)
1/3 cup bottled plum sauce or sweet and sour sauce
1 14-16 oz bag frozen stir fry vegetables
Skin chicken. Arrange chicken in a 13x9 baking dish. Brush with oil; sprinkle with 1 tsp of the five-spice powder. Bake, uncovered, @ 400 for 25 minutes. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine the remaining 1/2 tsp five-spice powder and the sweet and sour sauce. Add frozen vegetables; toss to coat. Push chicken to one side of the baking pan. Add vegetable mixture to the other side of the pan. Bake, uncovered, for 15-20 minutes longer or until chicken is tender and no longer pink (180 degrees), stirring vegetables once during baking. Using a slotted spoon, transfer chicken and vegetables to serving platter.
So one thing I like about all the recipes in this cookbook so far is that they are pretty simple to make. This took basically no effort at all to make. I don't think it tasted particularly Asian, really, in spite of the expensive spice, but maybe this is what real Asian food tastes like, as opposed to the Chinese buffet stuff that I am used to. So this was okay, but I don't think good enough to save. Because I have lots and lots of chicken recipes that are so so good. So this was a good change I guess but doesn't make the cut for a keeper. But if you want to try it, you can, and borrow some spice, at the previously mentioned terms. =o)
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Peanut Butter Cake Bars
I just made this today to bring to Bible Study tonight. But I already ate one. To inform you, the readership, of course. It's from Simple & Delicious March/April 2009. It might seem mean to make something that Steve would probably love and then take it to Bible Study. Don't worry, I left him a couple on a plate. Plus, we have other desserts that need to be eaten up. Plus if it's good I'll make it again anyway. I'm not too sure about this one...they were good but not quite what I was expecting.
Peanut Butter Cake Bars
2/3 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup peanut butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 pkg (11.5 oz) milk chocolate chips (I used semi-sweet because I have a lot of them and I didn't want to buy the other ones when I have so many of this kind)
In a large bowl, cream the butter, peanut butter, and sugars. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture. Stir in chocolate chips. Spread into a greased 9x13 pan. Bake @ 350 for 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack. Cut into bars.
Like I said, these were good, but I thought they would be more peanut-butter-y. Also the consistency seemed a bit thick. You know how on the box of brownies it gives you directions for fudgy brownies or cake-y brownies? Well I always make fudgy brownies. And these here were more cake-y. I guess the name should have clued me in to that. I think I was expecting these to be like brownies except peanut-buttery. That's what they look like in the picture in the magazine. But they were still good. I will wait for Steve to get home and eat his before I decide if I'm keeping the recipe or not.
Peanut Butter Cake Bars
2/3 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup peanut butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 pkg (11.5 oz) milk chocolate chips (I used semi-sweet because I have a lot of them and I didn't want to buy the other ones when I have so many of this kind)
In a large bowl, cream the butter, peanut butter, and sugars. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture. Stir in chocolate chips. Spread into a greased 9x13 pan. Bake @ 350 for 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack. Cut into bars.
Like I said, these were good, but I thought they would be more peanut-butter-y. Also the consistency seemed a bit thick. You know how on the box of brownies it gives you directions for fudgy brownies or cake-y brownies? Well I always make fudgy brownies. And these here were more cake-y. I guess the name should have clued me in to that. I think I was expecting these to be like brownies except peanut-buttery. That's what they look like in the picture in the magazine. But they were still good. I will wait for Steve to get home and eat his before I decide if I'm keeping the recipe or not.
Cranberry Chicken
This is what we had for supper last night. It was considerably better than the last thing I made from this cookbook. This one is also from BH&G 5 Ingredient Favorites. It was a crockpot recipe, which I enjoy because then there is no mad rush like at 4:30 or 5 to finish supper, you just dish it out of the crockpot. So anyway here it is.
Cranberry Chicken
2 1/2 to 3 pounds chicken thighs and/or drumsticks
1 16 oz can whole berry cranberry sauce
2 tbsp onion soup mix (like 1/2 of an envelope)
2 tbsp quick-cooking tapioca
3 cups hot cooked rice
Skin chicken. Place chicken in a 3 1/2 to 4 quart slow cooker (spray it with cooking spray first). In a small bowl, combine cranberry sauce, dry soup mix, and tapioca. Pour over chicken. Cover and cook on low heat setting for 5 to 6 hours or high heat setting for 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Serve chicken and sauce over hot cooked rice.
Everybody ate this, even Nathan. Emma was very concerned that it had actually come from a "chicken bird," and asked several questions about other types of food and the animals they come from (i.e. "what about pot roast? What animal is that from?" said in a very whiny voice). She would have fit in well in the days before the flood when we were all vegetarians. Well, also she will fit well into the millenial kingdom when we will all be again. I will encourage her with this if she is ever tempted to be a prodigal. Hee hee. Anyway Steve really liked this. I thought it was good too. Whenever we have "chicken with bones" as the kids say, Steve doesn't really enjoy picking the meat off the bones. I always do it for the kids, but not for our plates. Anyway this chicken basically fell off the bones, so it was easy to eat and very good. So we will keep this recipe.
I told Emma that I ate goat in Haiti and she was quite shocked. Then I told her some people eat ducks and sheep, but we don't. She was like "what do they make with those?" in a voice close to tears. I think she wanted to know the names of the dishes, in case I try to sneak one past her one of these days. She does not want to be taken in unawares.
Cranberry Chicken
2 1/2 to 3 pounds chicken thighs and/or drumsticks
1 16 oz can whole berry cranberry sauce
2 tbsp onion soup mix (like 1/2 of an envelope)
2 tbsp quick-cooking tapioca
3 cups hot cooked rice
Skin chicken. Place chicken in a 3 1/2 to 4 quart slow cooker (spray it with cooking spray first). In a small bowl, combine cranberry sauce, dry soup mix, and tapioca. Pour over chicken. Cover and cook on low heat setting for 5 to 6 hours or high heat setting for 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Serve chicken and sauce over hot cooked rice.
Everybody ate this, even Nathan. Emma was very concerned that it had actually come from a "chicken bird," and asked several questions about other types of food and the animals they come from (i.e. "what about pot roast? What animal is that from?" said in a very whiny voice). She would have fit in well in the days before the flood when we were all vegetarians. Well, also she will fit well into the millenial kingdom when we will all be again. I will encourage her with this if she is ever tempted to be a prodigal. Hee hee. Anyway Steve really liked this. I thought it was good too. Whenever we have "chicken with bones" as the kids say, Steve doesn't really enjoy picking the meat off the bones. I always do it for the kids, but not for our plates. Anyway this chicken basically fell off the bones, so it was easy to eat and very good. So we will keep this recipe.
I told Emma that I ate goat in Haiti and she was quite shocked. Then I told her some people eat ducks and sheep, but we don't. She was like "what do they make with those?" in a voice close to tears. I think she wanted to know the names of the dishes, in case I try to sneak one past her one of these days. She does not want to be taken in unawares.
Sweet Onion Spread
Well, the recipe that follows is, I think, the worst one in "New Recipe Night" history. Seriously, it was so bad. The recipe sounded good. We were going to a potluck to celebrate friends' birthdays that we know. It seemed like the perfect place to bring it, since it was obviously something you would make for a crowd, not for a family supper at home. It came from BH&G 5 Ingredient Favorites that I got for Christmas this past year. Well, it was a tanker, in a big way. I'll give you the recipe, then the reactions from some of the people that tried it...
Sweet Onion Spread
2 tsp olive oil
2 tsp honey
2 medium sweet onions (such as Vidalia, Maui, Walla Walla, or Oso sweet), quartered
4 large cloves garlic, peeled
Toasted bread slices or crackers
In a large bowl, stir together oil and honey. Add onions and garlic; toss well to coat. Transfer mixture to a lightly greased 2 quart baking dish. Bake, uncovered, at 350 for 30-40 minutes or until onions are golden brown, stirring occasionally. Remove from oven; cool slightly. Transfer mixture to food processor or blender. Cover and process or blend until smooth. Serve with toasted bread slices or crackers.
Okay so when I put this in the bowl to bring to the potluck, it was like a creamy white color, like you would expect. By the time we got to the potluck, I wanted Steve to try a little bite of it and see if he liked it because if it was bad I was going to put it back in the van and pretend like we just brought crackers to the thing. Becky's dad was there so he tried some too. They both said it was good. But they have probably both been trained well. At least I know Steve has. Dan has a wife and two daughters so he's probably well trained, too. So I covered the dish back up and the kids played for close to an hour. By the time we were ready to eat, I uncovered the dish to discover...that it had turned GREEN. Isn't that weird? There are no green ingredients in the recipe, I do not know why that happened. We sat at a long table with the Schmelings, ourselves, and the Mullins. Brad ate some of my lovely dip and teared up. Autumn said something like "too much onion." Jean ate some and said "Hmmmm." So you can see this did not get rave reviews. And apparently my friends can be honest about it, whereas my husband does not have the liberty to say what he really thinks about my flops. In case I stop cooking for him. I can't really blame him, I guess. I'm sure I received it better from my friends that I would've from him. So do not make this one. I wonder if the Better Homes & Gardens people even made this one before they published it. I doubt it.
Sweet Onion Spread
2 tsp olive oil
2 tsp honey
2 medium sweet onions (such as Vidalia, Maui, Walla Walla, or Oso sweet), quartered
4 large cloves garlic, peeled
Toasted bread slices or crackers
In a large bowl, stir together oil and honey. Add onions and garlic; toss well to coat. Transfer mixture to a lightly greased 2 quart baking dish. Bake, uncovered, at 350 for 30-40 minutes or until onions are golden brown, stirring occasionally. Remove from oven; cool slightly. Transfer mixture to food processor or blender. Cover and process or blend until smooth. Serve with toasted bread slices or crackers.
Okay so when I put this in the bowl to bring to the potluck, it was like a creamy white color, like you would expect. By the time we got to the potluck, I wanted Steve to try a little bite of it and see if he liked it because if it was bad I was going to put it back in the van and pretend like we just brought crackers to the thing. Becky's dad was there so he tried some too. They both said it was good. But they have probably both been trained well. At least I know Steve has. Dan has a wife and two daughters so he's probably well trained, too. So I covered the dish back up and the kids played for close to an hour. By the time we were ready to eat, I uncovered the dish to discover...that it had turned GREEN. Isn't that weird? There are no green ingredients in the recipe, I do not know why that happened. We sat at a long table with the Schmelings, ourselves, and the Mullins. Brad ate some of my lovely dip and teared up. Autumn said something like "too much onion." Jean ate some and said "Hmmmm." So you can see this did not get rave reviews. And apparently my friends can be honest about it, whereas my husband does not have the liberty to say what he really thinks about my flops. In case I stop cooking for him. I can't really blame him, I guess. I'm sure I received it better from my friends that I would've from him. So do not make this one. I wonder if the Better Homes & Gardens people even made this one before they published it. I doubt it.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Honey Oatmeal Bread
We have reached a landmark, my friends. This was the last recipe marked in the big TOH cookbook I have been working through since last Christmas!! So it took like 15 months to get through. Not too bad, I guess, considering I have thrown in recipes from other sources too. This bread came out quite good. It is a good toasting bread. That's what we did last night, just made toast out of it and ate cereal. It made 2 loaves and I froze the other one, mostly to see how well it un-freezes, to see if in the future these are suitable for giving away to people, like when they have babies and stuff. Anyway it's on page 458 of the cookbook.
Honey Oatmeal Bread
2 cups water, divided
1 cup rolled oats
1/3 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup honey
1 tbsp salt
2 pkg active dry yeast
1 egg
4 to 5 cups all purpose flour, divided
melted butter, optional
In a small saucepan, heat 1 cup water to boiling. Stir in the oats, butter, honey, and salt. Let stand until mixture cools to 110-115 degrees, stirring occasionally (took about 25 minutes or so). Heat remaining water to 110-115 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add the egg, oat mixture and 2 cups flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a stiff dough. Spread batter evenly into two greased 8x4 inch loaf pans. Smooth tops of loaves. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 35-40 minutes. Bake @ 375 for 40-45 minutes. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool. Brush with melted butter if desired.
So Nathan didn't have any toast, but the rest of us did. I thought it was the perfect toasting bread. It would have been too dense for like a sandwich, but was perfect for toast. So I will keep this recipe. And as far as bread making goes, this one was pretty easy because you don't even have to knead it or anything. Just mix, rise, and bake. So that was good. Anyway definitely a keeper. Next time I may try using some whole wheat flour in it, too, to see how it goes.
Honey Oatmeal Bread
2 cups water, divided
1 cup rolled oats
1/3 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup honey
1 tbsp salt
2 pkg active dry yeast
1 egg
4 to 5 cups all purpose flour, divided
melted butter, optional
In a small saucepan, heat 1 cup water to boiling. Stir in the oats, butter, honey, and salt. Let stand until mixture cools to 110-115 degrees, stirring occasionally (took about 25 minutes or so). Heat remaining water to 110-115 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add the egg, oat mixture and 2 cups flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a stiff dough. Spread batter evenly into two greased 8x4 inch loaf pans. Smooth tops of loaves. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 35-40 minutes. Bake @ 375 for 40-45 minutes. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool. Brush with melted butter if desired.
So Nathan didn't have any toast, but the rest of us did. I thought it was the perfect toasting bread. It would have been too dense for like a sandwich, but was perfect for toast. So I will keep this recipe. And as far as bread making goes, this one was pretty easy because you don't even have to knead it or anything. Just mix, rise, and bake. So that was good. Anyway definitely a keeper. Next time I may try using some whole wheat flour in it, too, to see how it goes.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Crispy Herb-Coated Pork Chops
This is what we had for supper last night. What is a great unhealthy way to make pork chops? Dip them in butter and then fry them in oil! Sounds good, huh? I had these pork chops in the freezer. I forgot how long they had been there, I just knew I had some. Well I pulled them out yesterday and they were from April of '08. A bit freezer burnt, but I thought I would try them, since I didn't want to waste the meat. They turned out fine, you couldn't even tell. It's not like I live with a bunch of restaurant critics. Anyway this recipe is from Simple & Delicious March/April 2009.
Crispy Herb-Coated Pork Chops
1/3 cup butter, cubed
2/3 cup butter and herb flavored mashed potato flakes
2/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
3/4 tsp garlic powder
4 bone-in pork chops
2 tbsp canola oil
In a shallow bowl, melt butter. In a large ziploc bag, combine the potato flakes, cheese, and garlic powder. Dip chops, one at a time, in butter, then place in bag; shake to coat. In a large skillet, cook chops in oil over medium heat for 7-8 minutes on each side or until meat juices run clear. 4 servings.
So the Taste of Home people, and their spin-off mags like Simple & Delicious, always publish reader recipes. This one here was sent in by some chick named Ann from Chicago. She offers this helpful tip, which the magazine put under the heading "Ann's Tip:" "If you're looking for a heartier meal, consider making some mashed potatoes. You'll already have the box open to make the pork chops." Ummmmmmmmm...thanks Ann. Great tip. Almost as good as "Here's a tip: Don't talk to strangers." Honestly sometimes the corny-ness of these people is quite amusing. Anyway the pork chops came out great. Even Nathan ate them. So I will keep this recipe. Incidentally, I did make the other package of potatoes (since they come in a 2 pack) to have with this. But not because Ann told me to. I wanted to dye them green with food coloring since yesterday was St Patrick's Day. But when I suggested this to the kids, Emma started crying. I guess the thought of green food was really upsetting. So instead we had green beans with it and just left the potatoes the way they were.
Crispy Herb-Coated Pork Chops
1/3 cup butter, cubed
2/3 cup butter and herb flavored mashed potato flakes
2/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
3/4 tsp garlic powder
4 bone-in pork chops
2 tbsp canola oil
In a shallow bowl, melt butter. In a large ziploc bag, combine the potato flakes, cheese, and garlic powder. Dip chops, one at a time, in butter, then place in bag; shake to coat. In a large skillet, cook chops in oil over medium heat for 7-8 minutes on each side or until meat juices run clear. 4 servings.
So the Taste of Home people, and their spin-off mags like Simple & Delicious, always publish reader recipes. This one here was sent in by some chick named Ann from Chicago. She offers this helpful tip, which the magazine put under the heading "Ann's Tip:" "If you're looking for a heartier meal, consider making some mashed potatoes. You'll already have the box open to make the pork chops." Ummmmmmmmm...thanks Ann. Great tip. Almost as good as "Here's a tip: Don't talk to strangers." Honestly sometimes the corny-ness of these people is quite amusing. Anyway the pork chops came out great. Even Nathan ate them. So I will keep this recipe. Incidentally, I did make the other package of potatoes (since they come in a 2 pack) to have with this. But not because Ann told me to. I wanted to dye them green with food coloring since yesterday was St Patrick's Day. But when I suggested this to the kids, Emma started crying. I guess the thought of green food was really upsetting. So instead we had green beans with it and just left the potatoes the way they were.
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