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Thursday, August 24, 2017

Hungry for Hungarian!

Hungry for Hungarian!



I was in the mood for Hungarian Cabbage Rolls recently but I didn't want all of the fuss of making them.  So here is my summertime solution for them:    Cabbage Roll Casserole!  All of the great ingredients without without all of the fuss.   

Cabbage Roll Casserole

1lb.  Ground beef, browned and drained.
1/3 cup of each:  Green pepper, onion, rice and milk
1 can tomato soup
1 soup can of water
1 16 oz  can of sauerkraut, undrained
One small
Salt, pepper and paprika to taste.

Mix all together in a large skillet.  Saute till all vegetables are soft.  Cover and simmer until rice is done.  Voila!  Hungarian Cabbage Roll skillet.  Don't forget the mashed potatoes!

Thursday, July 20, 2017

I Want Pasta Now!

Well, it's another sweltering day in good old Ohio but I want pasta now!  And I don't want to slave over the stove cooking my Mama's awesome spaghetti sauce.  So I have created a dish of local ingredients that I am sure you will love...Thank you Cincinnati!

Cheesy Ravioli Casserole

2 cans of LaRosa's Pasta Sauce
1 bag frozen Kroger Cheese Ravioili
1/2 package of Kroger Turkey Pepperoni
1 8 oz bag of Kroger Shredded Cheese
Kroger Parmesan Cheese
2 Tablespoons fresh basil, chopped

Spread 1/2 can of sauce in a 9 x 9 casserole dish.  
Cook ravioli according to directions and drain.
Layer pepperoni slices on top of sauce. 
Sprinkle with fresh basil.
Ladle ravioli on top.
Add remaining 1 1/2 cans of pasta sauce.
Top with mozzarella cheese and then the Parmesan cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees 30 minutes.

Yummy Italian Heaven! 

Enjoy

Friday, July 14, 2017

It's the Cheesiest!

Here I am, sweating like an ice filled glass on a hot summer day!  And what to cook?  Oh my I hate to spend hours in a hot kitchen.  But give me a cold day, and I don't budge from there.  I am a hopeless cook-aholic so I thought I would share some of those easy summertime recipes that don't take too long to make and are oh, so good and I still get my cooking fix in for the day.  Not to mention heat up the kitchen.

Tomato pie sounded sinful when I first heard about it...and after the first bite I knew those who talked about them were right and why so many people wanted that recipe.  But you have to use fresh picked tomatoes and fresh basil or your calorie filled pie just won't taste like summer! 



Glorious and Fattening Tomato Pie

1 baked pie shell

4 thick sliced red or yellow tomatoes or a combination of both
Salt

4 green onions sliced
1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped

1 cup Hellman's mayonnaise (other brands are too sweet)
1 cup cheddar cheese or a mixture of your favorite baking cheeses, shredded

Place tomatoes in a layer in a colander and sprinkle with salt.  Let drain for 30 minutes.
Put drained tomatoes in a layer in the pie crust.  Top with green onions and basil.

Mix together the cheese and mayo.  Spread on top of the pie. 

Bake 350 degrees for 30 minutes.  Great served hot or cold.  Hide the rest.


Zucchini Casserole

3-4 zucchini, sliced
1 medium onion, sliced
8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
Olive oil
 
1 8 ounce can tomato sauce
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano or to taste
1/2 teaspoon dried sage, crumbled or to taste
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme or to taste
Salt and pepper

8 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
Grated Parmesan cheese

In a large skillet heat several tablespoons of olive oil.   Add vegetables and mushrooms and saute till soft but not mushy.  

Add tomato sauce and spices.  Simmer until nice and bubbly hot.  Put in to a large casserole dish.  The size will depend on the size of your zucchini. Top with mozzarella and then Parmesan cheeses.

Bake 30 minutes at 350 degrees.  Serve hot.


Here's another meatless and easy recipe.  Sorry cheese lovers, none in this recipe.

Mushroom Stroganoff

1 lb mushrooms, sliced
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic
Olive oil

1 tablespoon Soy sauce or to taste
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 cup sour cream

Noodles, cooked and drained

Saute mushrooms, onions and garlic in a small amount of oil until the mushrooms are cooked through.  Stir in soy, Worcestershire and sour cream.  Heat through and serve over noodles.




Sunday, July 9, 2017

Eggs-actly!

In the good ole summer time, when it's hot and humid here in Ohio, it seems senseless to slave over a hot stove or oven!  Gone are the days of Grandma's summer kitchen which was well shaded and always had a breeze.  Oh, those Pennsylvania Dutch Grannies sure knew how to make delicious meals out of what ever they had on hand and cold summer suppers were worth the wait!  My great Grandma was Pennsylvania Dutch, from Westmoreland, Pennsylvania.  I have fond memories of her and her cast iron wood stove (except for in the summer) and all of the wonderful treats she created for me.  As eggs were always abundant, cheap and took little time to cook, many meals comprised of egg dishes.  So, without further ado I give you a plate full of easy egg-based dishes for those sweltering summer dinners.  Where's my fork?



Pennsylvania Chicken Bott Boi - also known as Chicken Pot Pie but in my house my Dad called it Chicken with Tire Patches.  This can be prepared the night before, early in the morning or in a crock pot.

1 whole stewing chicken
1 Onion
1 Carrot
Salt and Pepper
Water

Place in a large soup pot with enough water to cover.  Bring to a boil, skimming off the foam as it rises.  Turn the heat on medium low, cover and simmer until the chicken falls off the bone.  Cool.  Remove skin and bones and roughly chop the chicken and vegetables.  Drain the fat off the broth if you like but I keep it as it adds more flavor.  Return the chicken to the broth.  At this point it can be refrigerated.

Bott Boi Noodles

Eggs

Salt
Flour

For each cup of flour add 1 teaspoon of salt and 3-4 eggs.  Mix with floured hands and roll out on a well floured board, table top or pillowcase adding more flour if too sticky.  It will depend on how large your eggs are.  Roll out in to a rectangle about 1/8" thick.  Sprinkle with a little extra flour then cut in to 2-3" squares and cover with a dish towel to dry.  You want them to be firm and dry enough to pick up easily.

About 30 minutes before you are ready to serve, heat the chicken and broth to a boil.  Drop the noodles one by one in to the broth and give them a stir occasionally so they won't stick together.  They will be chewy but cooked through when they are done.

Serve on top of a mound of buttery mashed potatoes (make ahead refrigerator mashed potatoes recipe follows) and serve with cottage cheese and sliced tomatoes.



Refrigerator Mashed Potatoes (keeps up to 1 week)

5 pounds potatoes, peeled
1 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon butter
6 ounces cream cheese
2 teaspoons onion salt
1 teaspoon salt
4 teaspoons pepper.

Peel and boil potatoes.  Drain.  Whip till smooth then add remainder of the ingredients.  Place in refrigerator covered until ready to use.  They also freeze well.

More eggs........

Many of my Saturday afternoons are spent listening to Cooking With Marilyn on WKRC 550am radio, broadcast from Cincinnati.  She always treats the listeners to so many great recipes and cooking ideas.  One episode mentioned her cookbooks so I immediately got on Amazon and found several available and purchased one.  Below is one of her egg recipes that is so good!

 Image result for deviled egg clipart

Dilly Deviled Eggs

1 dozen hard boiled eggs, cooled and peeled and sliced in half lengthwise.  Remove yolks and set aside.
1/2 cup finely chopped sweet salad onion
1/3 cup chopped fresh dill
1/2 cup mayonnaise (it has to be Hellman's in my house!)
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
Salt and pepper to taste

Mash egg yolks.  A potato masher works great!  Add remaining ingredients and put in to halved egg whites.  Sprinkle with dill or paprika if you like.
Variation:  Make egg salad chopping whites and yolks together.

And another delicious egg recipe from Marilyn.



Chef Cornelius' Very Veggie Frittata

2 potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 tablespoon butter or a mist of vegetable oil cooking spray
1 large onion, thinly sliced
1 large red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 medium zucchini, coarsely shredded (about 2 cups)
2 tablespoons shredded fresh basil or 1 tsp. dried
Salt and freshly ground pepper
6-8 ounces garlic and herb Neufachtel cheese to taste.  I used plain Neufachtel and added garlic salt and dried basil
8 large eggs (or 4 whole eggs and 6 egg whites)
5-6 drops hot pepper sauce
2 Tablespoons freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
Cook the potatoes in boiling water until just fort tender  Drain and set aside.
Heat a 10" nonstick skillet creased with butter or cooking spray
Add the onion and saute 5 minutes or until soft.
Add half the red pepper.  Add the zucchini, basil, salt and pepper.  Saute about 5 more minutes or until zucchini is just soft.
Add the potatoes and then drop the cheese onto the vegetable mixture by the tablespoon.
Whisk together the eggs and hot pepper sauce.  Pour over the vegetables and stir with a fork to cover the vegetables evenly.  Make a decorative spoke like pattern on top with the reserved red pepper strips.  Sprinkle with the grated cheese.  Place the skillet in a preheated 350-degree3 oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until a knife inserted near the middle comes out clean.  Serve immediately.  Serves 6-8.

So, that's it for now.  And you know eggs-actly what time it is now.....cooking time!

Monday, June 26, 2017

I Speak Mexican!

Yes, friends, there is no such thing as speaking Mexican. But we sure try when the chiles come out and the house fills with the fragrance of cilantro, garlic, onions and cumin. So, now that the holidays are over and I have some more time to spend at the computer (and in the kitchen) I thought I would share a few great recipes to get you and your loved ones speaking Mexican.

A former co-worker shared the one for Mexican Lasagna and others are from one of my favorite Mexican cookbooks called Chili Madness Jane Butel.

Ladies, start your cooking engines!

Mexican Lasagna

1 lb ground beef
1 16 oz. can refried beans
2 tsp. ground cumin
3/4 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. Mexican oregano
12 uncooked lasagna noodles
2 1/2 cups water
2 12 cups favorite salsa

2 cups sour cream
3/4 cup sliced green onions
1 cup sliced black olives
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Mix first 4 ingredients in large skillet and cook until the beef is fully cooked.

Place 4 uncooked lasagne noodles in a 13 x 9 x 2 pan.  Spread 1/2 of the ground beef mixture on top.  Top with 4 more noodles and then the remaining beef mixture.  Cover with remaining noodles.  

Mix water and salsa and pour over the top of the noodles.  Cover tightly with foil and bake at 350 degrees 1 1/2 hours.  Remove from oven.

Mix sour cream, onions and olives and spread on top of the lasagna.  Top with cheese and bake 5 more minutes or until the cheese melts.


Image result for chiles clipart

Tortillas

2 1/2 cups cornmeal
1 1/4 cup milk
2 cups flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
3/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 Tbsp shortening or lard

Mix dry ingredients and cut in shortening.  Stir in milk.  Flour a board.  Pat and roll out egg-sized pieced of dough until edges are very thin.  Put a little fat in cast iron skillet and cook tortillas till very lightly browned.  







Image result for tortillas clipart 
Santa Clara Chili - a la Chili Madness

3 Tbsp lard
2 lbs lean beef, cubed (I use round steak)
3 Tbsp flour

1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced

5 Tbsp hot dried chile
3 Tbsp mild dried chile
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp Mexican oregano
Dried cumin to taste
4 cups beef stock

6 cups stewed Pinto beans, drained

Mix beef and flour and cook in hot lard till browned.  Add onion and garlic and cook till onions are soft.  Put in crock pot.

Add remaining ingredients except beans.  Cook on low for 8 hours or until beef is fork tender.  Stir in pinto beans and heat thoroughly.

Dinner's ready!

Chili Madness

Yes, there is such a thing as Chili Madness! Actually there are two types: Chili and Chilies. I went to madness #2 last night and had such a wonderful time that I made a mental note to post it today. I love chilies, every type imaginable. Last year's garden and the mark down produce at the local grocery provided a wonderful excuse to dig out the food dryer. Here's the run down on what is needed:

New Mexico Chilies
Poblano Chilies
Serrano Chilies

Wash and dry the fresh peppers. Slit them in 1/2 lengthwise and put on the racks of the dryer, insides facing up. If you don't like the heat, remove the seeds beforehand otherwise leave them in place. Start up the dryer. Check the peppers after about 8 hours. Some peppers will dry quicker than others. The Poblanos will take the longest. As peppers become dry and wrinkled, remove them and let them sit in the open air to continue air drying. At this point you can stuff them in Ball jars and put on lids loosely. They will keep forever.

Now for my favorite part - making chili powder. Once you taste the homemade variety, I doubt you will ever want store bought chili powder.

5 dried Poblano chilies
5 dried New Mexico chilies
2 dried Serrano chilies
2 tablespoons whole cumin seeds
1 tablespoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons Mexican Oregano
1 tablespoon Paprika

Break up the peppers in to small pieces and grind in a food processor. Place in a shallow layer on a baking sheet. Place in a 350 degree oven