“A good cook knows that it's not what's on the table that matters, it's who is in the chairs.”

Monday, December 26, 2011

WHITE CHICKEN CHILI

I adapted this recipe from one of my Scarf Sisters.  Here is the original link.


4 Chicken Breasts, cooked and chopped or
1 Rotissiere Chicken, deboned, skinned and chopped
2 Med Onions, chopped
1 TBL Oil
4 Cloves, Garlic, minced
4 oz. Chopped green Chiles
2 tsp. Ground Cumin
1 1/2 tsp. Oregano or Italian Seasoning
2 (16 oz each) Great Northern Beans, drain and rinse
2 cans Chicken Broth
2 Cups Shredded Cheddar or Monterey jack Cheese.

Saute onions in oil until transluscent, add garlic, chiles and spices, cook additional 5 minutes. In Crockpot place onion-spice mixure, chicken, broth & beans, cook on low *5 hours. 10 minutes before serving, stir in  cheese  and stir thoroughly. Ladle up servings topped with additional cheese and sprinkle with crushed tortilla chips or serve with warm bread!

Thursday, December 22, 2011

Baked Potato Salad

3 - 5 lb bag of redskin potatoes, cut up, and cooked (not too mushy)
1 bag of bacon bits (I get them at Aldi - they are called Real Bacon bits or something)
2 handfuls of cheese (you can determine how big your handfuls are)
5-6 green onions cut up
equal parts of sour cream and mayonaise
~2 T of dried parsley
salt and pepper

Cook potatoes.  drain.  while still warm... add bacon bits and onions.  doing this warm releases the oils in these foods and makes it in all the potatoes.

Once cooled...  mix in cheese.  Remember to be kind of gentle - potatoes are delicate

Mix together mayo & sour cream, parsley, and salt and pepper.

Mix into potato mixture

ENJOY!

Sorry this is kind of 'this and that' but that's how I cook!

Ham, Broccoli, Rice Casserole

Great leftover casserole.  Found it and adapted it...

1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped broccoli, thawed
1 cup cooked rice
1 cup cubed fully cooked ham
1 8oz pkg cream cheese
1/4 cup dry bread crumbs
1 tablespoon butter or margarine, melted


Directions
In a large bowl, combine the first five ingredients. Transfer to a greased 1-1/2-qt. baking dish. Toss bread crumbs and butter; sprinkle over the top. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes or until heated through.

Monday, November 7, 2011

Breakfast Casserole

I got the original recipe from here.  Try hers, I am sure it is DE-LISH however, I didn't have everything that I would have needed for her recipe, so I substituted a few things.

I make this, and then we have it for a couple days because I love eggs for breakfast! (measurements for cheese are approximate)

1 pkg. (26 ounces) frozen potatoes O'Brien (the kind with green pepper and onions)
1 pkg. sausage, fried up and crumbled
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded SHARP cheddar cheese
3 green onions, sliced
12 eggs
1/2 cups milk
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 ground black pepper

Directions

1. Spray a 6 quart slow cooker with cooking spray. Layer 1/2 of the potatoe on the bottom of slow cooker.

2. Top with half of the sausage, cheese, & green onion. Repeat layering.

3. Beat eggs, milk and pepper in large bowl with a wire whisk until well blended.

4. Pour evenly over potato-sausage mixture.

5. Cook on low setting for 6-8 hours or on high setting for 3-4 hours or until eggs are set.

Sunday, November 6, 2011

Homemade YUMMY Croutons!

I don't know why I've never attempted homemade croutons, because I don't really like the kind purchased in the store...  Today was my first attempt!  and they were good!!  These could make the pickiest of salad eaters eat salad!  I got the recipe from Family Feasts for $75 a week!  One of my favorite cookbooks!  The recipe below is doubled!  Mostly because I could eat a single recipe as a snack!  I used leftover sub buns from Milano Bakery.

8 slices bread, cubed
4 T butter
4 T olive oil (I only had veggie oil so that's what I used)
1 t dried basil
1 t dried oregano
1 t garlic powder

Preheat oven 425*

melt butter, mix all ingredients except bread together.

Get a big bowl, toss, bread and butter mixture together

bake 10-15 minutes.  Let cool.  ENJOY!  you can store in an airtight container for 1 month (I have no idea how you could get them to last that long!)

Monday, October 3, 2011

Taco Stew

Another recipe from the Crockpot girls  on Facebook!  I modified it a little (their ingredients in ()



TACO STEW

1 lb. Ground Turkey (already cooked hamburger meat)
1 15 oz can drained black beans + 1/3 can water (pinto beans)
1 15 oz can ranch style beans
1 10 oz can Rotel or diced tomatoes with green chiles
1 14.5 oz can stewed tomatoes rough chopped (diced tomatoes)
1½ cups corn -1 can
3 T homemade taco seasoning (1 packet of taco seasoning)
1 packet of ranch dressing mix

COMBINE AND COOK ON LOW 6-8 HRS

So here's the deal on this one, we hardly ever have ground beef in the house, it's Aldi's ground turkey for us.  Phyllis doesn't like pinto beans - I drained the black ones and added water because black bean juice is so dark. I had stewed tomatoes so that's what I used.  I don't buy taco seasoning, I make my own (while I realize some may find it ridiculous that I make my own - I find it kind of silly that they don't - spices at Aldi so they are cheaper and it tastes better - but to each their own).





Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Stuffed Pepper Soup

Got this recipe from here

1 pound Lean Ground Beef (I used ground turkey)
1 whole Small Onion Chopped
2 whole Large Green Peppers, Chopped
2 cans 14 Ounce Cans Beef Broth
1 28 ounce jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce
1 can (14 Ounce) Diced Tomatoes, Undrained (I used Stewed because that's what I had)
1 cup Cooked Rice (I will use brown rice)
1 1/2 tsp worcestershire sauce


Preparation Instructions

In a saucepan brown ground beef and onions over medium heat until meat is no longer pink. Then drain grease.

In crockpot combine beef broth, soup, tomatoes, and the meat mixture, and peppers. Cover and cook 3 hours on high or 6 on low, cook rice right before serving and combine

Trying it out before the Sisterhood weekend!

Sunday, September 11, 2011

WW muffins

Got this recipe from Pat!


Weight Watcher Muffins
(2 points each)
Mix together:
1 & 1/4 cup skim milk
1 & 1/4 cup wheat bran
1/2 cup regular brown sugar
(do not use substitute)
Mix first three ingredients and set aside for 15 minutes
add:
1 & 1/2 cup wheat flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 tablespoon baking powder
mix well then add:
8 oz. crushed pineapple in its own juice (do not drain)
2 egg whites
1/2 cup chopped nuts
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup dried cranberries
Mix well, fill muffin tins to the top (this does not rise much) . Bake at 350 degrees for 16-20 minutes. 12 muffins 
equal 2 points (old point conversion) each. One recipe should yield a dozen muffins if you don't use jumbo muffin pans!


*I leave out the cranberries,  raisins, and slightly increase the raisins. I also add about 1/2 cut shredded carrot, to increase the fiber, but not the calories.
Making and then freezing these makes a great quick breakfast or snack. They do not keep well for long unless frozen because of the moisture content.

Friday, September 2, 2011

Banana Bread

I got this recipe from here it's my new favorite!  My friend Sara told me about it, she says it's the bees-knees!  It is really really good! 

1 cup mashed bananas
1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup butter (I only bake with butter but the recipe called for margarine (gross!)
1 1/3 cups white sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt


Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour one 9x13 inch pan, or two 7x3 inch loaf pans.

Combine banana and sour cream. Set aside. In a large bowl, cream together the margarine and sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla and banana mixture. Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt; stir into the banana mixture. Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan or pans.

Bake for 50 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean.

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Enchilada Soup

This is from this cookbook , page 93 to be exact. 

2 T olive oil
1 medium onion (about 1 cup)
3 cloves of garlic
4 c chicken broth
1 1/2 pounds of cooked, shredded chicken
1 15 oz can black beans
1 14.5 can petite diced tomatoes
1 1/2 c corn kernels
1 7oz salsa verde or 4 oz can green chiles
1 T seeded and minced jalapeno pepper
1 T chili powder
1/4 c cornstarch
1/2 c sour cream
juice from 1/2 lime
1/4 c fresh cilantro

Heat oil in large pan, stir in onions and garlic, cook until softened, about 5 minutes.  Stir in chicken, broth, beans, tomatoes, corn, salsa, jalapeno, and chili powder.  heat to simmering.

Add cornstarch to small bowl, stir in water and mix until the mixture is smooth.  Stir into soup and simmer 10 minutes.  Whisk sour cream together with 1 c hot soup in a small bowl and then stir into soup until well blended.  Stir in lime juice and cilantro.  And serve!

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Homemade bread!

No bread machine needed (that's how I normally make my homemade bread).  I couldn't fit the last two cups in with my mixer so i had to kneed by hand, but so worth it!  I made this to go with the spaghetti I made for the Alive Leaders tonight.  Got the recipe from here.

Ingredients


1/2 cup warm water
3 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast
1/4 cup bread flour
1 tablespoon white sugar
2 cups quick cooking oats
2 cups whole wheat flour
4 1/2 cups warm water
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
2/3 cup brown sugar
2/3 cup vegetable oil
10 cups bread flour

Directions

1.In the mixing bowl of an electric mixer, stir together 1/2 cup warm water, 1 tablespoon sugar, 1/4 cup bread flour, and yeast. Let grow for about 5 minutes. It will bubble almost immediately.

2.Measure oats, 4 1/2 cups warm water, whole wheat flour, salt, 2/3 cup sugar, and 2/3 cup oil into the mixing bowl. Mix on low speed with a dough hook for 1 to 2 minutes. Increase speed slightly, and begin adding bread flour 1/2 to 1 cup at a time until dough pulls away from sides of bowl. Humidity determines how much flour you need before the bread pulls away from the edge of the bowl. It is normal for the dough to be sticky.

3.Place dough in an oiled bowl, and turn to coat the surface. Cover with a damp cloth. Let rise in a warm spot for 1 hour, or until doubled in size.

4.Divide dough into 6 pieces. Shape loaves, and place in greased 8 x 4 inch pans. Let rise until dough is 1 inch above rim of pans, usually 1 hour.

5.Bake at 350 degrees F ( 175 degrees C) for 35 minutes, or until tops are browned. Let cool in pans for 10 minutes, and then turn out onto wire racks to cool completely.

Strawberry jam

4 lbs of Strawberries
2 c sugar
1/4 c lemon juice

Throw strawberries in blender and smash to your desired consistancy.  In a heavy bottomed saucepan, mix together the strawberries, sugar, and lemon juice. Stir over low heat until the sugar is dissolved. Increase heat to high, and bring the mixture to a full rolling boil. Boil, stirring often, until the mixture reaches 220 degrees F (105 degrees C). Transfer to hot sterile jars, leaving 1/4 to 1/2 inch headspace, and seal. Process any unsealed jars in a water bath. If the jam is going to be eaten right away, don't bother with processing, and just refrigerate. (or buy Ball freezer jars like I did and dump cooled jam into them and freeze)

I adapted this recipe from Kelly.  I reduced the sugar (by using twice as many strawberries).

Please note... I'm not a whiz or amazing... I'm just annoyed that strawberry jam & strawberry preserves are filled with a lot of stuff that is not natural.  That's just me.  And Meijer happen to have 1 lb of strawberries for $1.

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Stuffed Peppers

I use green peppers, you can use any kind you like :)

4-5 peppers
1 lb ground turkey
1 small onion
2 cups brown rice, cooked (I make it in big batches and freeze it so I have it on hand)
1/2 t hot pepper flakes
2-3 T ketchup
1 c cheddar cheese (I don't always do this, but today I did)
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 14 oz cans tomato sauce

Brown ground turkey with onion (salt & pepper if you like), drain (there shouldn't be much to drain). Turn off heat.
Add rice, pepper flakes, ketchup, beans, cheese, mix well.

Cut pepper 'tops' off, you can save them to put on top or freeze them next time you need peppers.

Stuff the peppers, put in crockpot, add tomato sauce all around.  Cook on low 6-8 hours.

I toyed with adding taco seasoning - maybe next time, this is one of Phyllis's favorite things to eat and we haven't had it in awhile so I left it how she likes it.

Sunday, February 6, 2011

CrockPot Chicken Enchiladas

Adapted recipe from here.


1 onion, chopped
1 garlic clove
1 T oil
10 oz can enchilada sauce
14 oz can tomato sauce (recipe called for 8 but I don’t think it was enough)
8 corn tortillas
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 c frozen corn
2 c cheese
3 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded ( I cooked mine in the crockpot ahead of time with 1 c salsa and 1 T taco seasoning)
2 ¼ oz olives (GROSS, I didn’t do this!)

Saute onion and garlic in oil in saucepan. Add enchilada sauce and tomato sauce.

Combine chicken, beans, and corn together.

Place 2 tortillas in the bottom of crockpot

Layer 1/3 chicken/bean/corn mixture, 1/3 cheese, 1/3 sauce, repeat 2 more times.

Top with 2 tortillas.

Cover, cook on low for 6-8 hours.

Also, you can substitute ground beef or turkey for chicken.

Raisin Nut Quick Bread

I got this recipe from Sara who got it from Betty Crocker! It's very adaptable, she's done a million things with substituting the raisins, cinnamon, pecans.

3 cups flour
4 tsp baking powder
Cinnamon
1 tsp salt
1 beaten egg
1 cup sugar
1 2/3 c milk
1/4 c oil
3/4 cup raisins
1 cup pecans

Preheat oven to 350*

Combine Flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon in one bowl.

Combine Sugar, egg, milk, oil in mixer. Mix away!

Add flour mixture. Mix until well combined.

Add in raisins and pecans.

Bake 1 hour 15 minutes.

Makes 2 loaves

Monday, January 31, 2011

Greek Chicken

From Fix it and forget it

The information below is halved from the book.  There is only two of us in our house, and since  I am making BBQ chicken tomorrow, I used 1/2 the chicken for today and 1/2 tomorrow.
Makes 2-3 servings
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 5-10 hours
Ideal slow cooker size: 6 quart

Ingredients:

2-3 potatoes, quartered
1/2 chicken cut up
2 small onions, quartered
1 whole bulb garlic, minced
3 teaspoons of dried oregano (or 3 tablespoons of fresh oregano)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper


Directions:
I skinned all the chicken pieces except the wing (that's just too much work!) I wouldn't do that again, it was kind of dry!

Place potatoes in bottom of slow cooker.
Add chicken onions and garlic.
Sprinkle with seasonings and top with oil.
Cover and cook on high for 5-6 hours or on low for 9-10 hours.