Monday, October 19, 2009

Homemade Rice a Roni

I was looking for a side dish to go along with the last chicken recipe I posted. I added garlic, salt and pepper, and some parsley.

Ingredients

1/2 cup raw spaghetti, broken into 1 inch pieces
3/4 cup raw white rice
14 1/2 ounces broth (any flavor)
2 tablespoons butter or margarine

Directions
1 In medium skillet saute' broken spaghetti pieces in butter, stirring constantly, until the spaghetti begins to brown.

2 Add rice, stirring until the rice is well coated with the butter and the spaghetti browns a little more Carefully pour in broth.

3 Simmer until liquid is absorbed.

Simply Great Chicken

I found this on a blog last week and thought it looked like an easy recipe. It is cooking in the oven right now! Looks and smells deliscious!

About 3 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken
1 ( .7 ounce) packet of dried Italian dressing mix (such as Good Seasonings)
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a 12 inch x 9 inch pan and set aside, and/or it may be preferable to line your dish with aluminum foil as the sugar tends to caramelize while baking.

Combine and the dried Italian seasoning mix and the brown sugar, mixing together well.

Dip and press the chicken pieces into the mixture, coating front and back and place into your prepared pan, topside of the chicken facing up. Any extra coating that remains can just be sprinkled over the chicken.

cook for 50-60 minutes or until chicken is done. Turn the chicken over a couple of times and spoon the resultant saucy melted brown sugar mix over the baking chicken allowing, with the final turn leaving the topside facing up for the last bit of baking.

Saturday, October 17, 2009

English Muffin Bread

I enjoy english muffins as well as english toasting bread that I can get at the grocery store bakery. I felt like baking bread today and it was rather easy to do with my kitchen aid mixer.

* I only used about 5 1/2 c. flour.

INGREDIENTS
2 cups milk
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons cornmeal
6 cups bread flour
2 packages active dry yeast
1 tablespoon white sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda

DIRECTIONS
1.Warm the milk and water in a small saucepan until very warm (125 degrees F/50 degrees C). Lightly grease two 8x4 inch loaf pans; sprinkle cornmeal inside pans.

2.In a large bowl, mix together 3 cups flour, yeast, sugar, salt and soda. Stir milk into the flour mixture; beat well. Stir in the remaining flour, 1 cup at a time, until a stiff batter is formed. Spoon batter into prepared pans. Cover and let rise in a warm place for until nearly doubled in size, about 45 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).

3.Bake in preheated oven until golden brown, about 25 minutes. Remove from pans immediately and cool.

Monday, October 12, 2009

HOT CHOCOLATE MIX

My mom used to make this up in the winter time. I loved it as a kid and have made it several times.....Much creamier than store bought Swiss Miss Hot Chocolate...

8 quarts powdered milk
1 pound Nestle's Quick
1 pound confectioner's sugar
8 ounces coffee creamer, powdered

Mix together and store in covered container. Use 1/4 cup and add hot water for each mug.

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Baked Potato Soup

I have not wanted to cook the last few weeks. I realized I needed to have something for my lunch the next few days and it has turned cold in WI. I decided to make potato soup.......I don't really follow a recipe but this one is the closest.

Ingredients

4 large baking potatoes
2/3 cup butter or margarine
2/3 cup flour
6 cups milk
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
12 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 1/4 cups cheddar cheese, shredded and divided
8 ounces sour cream

Wash, dry and prick potatoes with fork. Bake in 400 degree oven for 1 hour or until done. Let cool. Cut into half length wise and scoop out pulp; set aside. You can throw away the skins or use them for something else.
Melt butter in heavy sauce pan over low heat, add flour, stirring until smooth. Cook 1 minute, stirring constantly.Gradually add milk, cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture is thickened and bubbly.
Add potato pulp, salt, pepper, half the bacon and 1 cup cheese.
Cook until thoroughly heated. Stir in sour cream. Add extra milk if needed for desired consistency. Serve with remaining green onions, bacon and cheese.


**I baked my potatoes in the microwave.
***I have fried the bacon and used that fat to make the rue with the flour....

Sunday, October 4, 2009

Cinnamon Coffee Cake

I made this and took to church today. The little bite I had tasted good....Found this recipe on christyskitchencreations.blogspot.com

1 cup butter, softened
2 - 3/4 cups sugar, divided
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups (16 ounces) sour cream
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon


1. In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and 2 cups sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt; add to the creamed mixture alternately with sour cream, beating just enough after each addition to keep butter smooth.

2. Spoon a third of the batter into a greased 10-inch tube pan. Combine the cinnamon and remaining sugar; sprinkle a third over batter. Repeat layers twice. Bake at 350 degrees for 60-65 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 15 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely.

Source: The Taste of Home Baking Book

Saturday, October 3, 2009

Mini Meatball Soup

It is cold in WI and I felt the need to make soup.I adapted Rachel Ray's soup recipe...leaving out what I don't like.

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil,
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
2 bay leaves, fresh or dried
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 pound ground beef,
1 egg, beaten
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano
1/2 cup plain bread crumbs
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated or ground nutmeg
6 cups chicken stock or broth
2 cups water
1 1/2 cups dried pasta



In a deep pot over medium heat add oil, chopped carrots and onions and bay leaves. Season with salt and pepper. Cover pot and cook veggies 5 or 6 minutes, stirring occasionally.

While the veggies cook, combine meat, egg, garlic, grated cheese, bread crumbs, salt, pepper, nutmeg.

*****I made half into meatballs and baked them in the oven for later use.

Uncover your soup pot and add broth and water to the pot. Increase heat to high and bring soup to a boil. When soup boils, reduce heat a bit and start to roll meat mixture into small balls, dropping them straight into the pot. You are making meat dumplings that will cook in the broth. When you are done rolling the meat, add pasta to the soup and stir. Cover and simmer soup 10 minutes. Adjust your seasonings.