Corn Chowder

Sweet corn season is over and the weather is getting chilly. Now you have a freezer full of frozen corn. Here's a simple corn chowder recipe that is sure to please.


Corn Chowder
1/2 lb bacon, diced
4 c corn, cut off the cob
1 c onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 c potatoes, peeled & diced
1 c carrots, peeled & diced
3 c chicken broth (I use water & bouillon. Easier and tastes better)
3 c milk (2% works fine. Whole would probably be even creamier)
3 tbsp butter

1. Fry bacon until crisp. Drain, cool, crumble. Reserve 2 tbsp drippings in pan.

2. To drippings, add onion and garlic. Cook 3 min.

3. Transfer onion/garlic to large pot, add potatoes, carrots, broth, corn. Cook 10 min over medium-high heat, or until potatoes are tender.

4. Add milk, butter, bacon, salt & pepper to taste. Heat.
(I added a smidge of flour to thicken it, but that's a faux pas if you want a 'real' chowder, or so I've heard)

5. Serve topped with a little bacon and/or some leftover corn.

Sausage Gravy w/ The Best Biscuits Ever

These biscuits are to die for. I had one saved aside to put in the picture, but I kind of ate it before I got to my camera. Sorry!

Biscuits
2 cups flour
2 tbsp sugar
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup cold butter, cut into tiny chunks
1 egg
2/3 cup milk

1. Preheat oven to 450F.
2. Combine dry ingredients in medium bowl.
3. Cut in butter until crumbly. (It doesn't matter if there are still butter chunks. That just makes it all the better.)
4. Beat egg and milk together, then add to mix. Stir until just moist.
5. Roll out on floured surface and cut into biscuits. They taste just as good if you mold them by hand, though. You should get about 10 biscuits.
6. Bake at 450F for 10 minutes, or until the underside is brown around the edge.

Sausage Gravy
1 lb sausage
2 cups milk
3 tbsp flour
Salt, pepper, poultry seasoning to taste

1. Brown sausage in skillet.
2. Beat flour into milk. Pour into skillet. Stir thoroughly. Season to taste.
3. Cook on medium until sauce is desired thickness. Spoon over the best biscuits ever and enjoy.

Potato Casserole

1 bag frozen hash browns
2 cups fat free sour cream
1 can cream of mushroom soup
8 oz shredded Cheddar
1 cup 2% milk
1/2 cup chopped green onions
3/4 cup crushed corn flakes or crackers
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Preheat oven to 425F. Stir together hash browns, mushroom soup, sour cream, milk, cheese, onions, salt, and pepper.

2. Pour mixture into 9x13 greased pan. Top with crushed corn flakes or crackers.

3. Bake 30-35 minutes.

Straw and Hay Penne

1/2 lb dry penne
1/2 lb dry spinach penne
1 pkg frozen peas, thawed
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
6 oz Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup grated Romano
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

1. Cook pasta according to directions, about 13 minutes. Add peas during last 2 minutes.

2. In saucepan, heat cream over medium-high heat. When cream simmers, stir in cheese, salt, nutmeg, and cayenne. Heat until cheese is melted and sauce is smooth.

3. Drain pasta. Return to pot and toss with sauce. Serve immediately with more grated Romano, if desired.

Cali-Schetta

1/2 baguette, cut into 1/2-in slices on the diagonal
3 tbsp olive oil
1 large garlic close, peeled, plus 1 clove peeled and finely chopped
2 medium ripe tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1 avocado, pitted, peeled, and chopped
1/2 onion, finely chopped
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
2 tbsp lime juice
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

1. Heat oven to 350F. Lightly brush both sides of baguette slices with 2 tbsp of olive oil. Toast in oven for 4 minutes per side. Remove from oven and rub with 1 side of whole garlic. Cool.

2. Mix chopped garlic, tomatoes, onion, avocado, cheese, cilantro, lime juice, salt, pepper, and 1 tbsp olive oil. Cover and refrigerate 30 minutes.

3. Top each baguette slice with 1/4 cup tomato mix and serve.

Ice Cream Cake Roll

3/4 cup flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
Salt
4 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp confectioner's sugar
3 cups mint chip ice cream, softened
Chocolate syrup

1. Heat oven to 350F. Grease 15x10 jelly roll pan. Line with waxed paper. Grease paper.

2. Mix flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and a pinch of salt. In separate bowl, beat eggs until very light yellow. Add sugar, continue beating. Add vanilla.

3. Fold flour mixture into egg mixture. Pour into pan. Bake for 12 minutes or until cake springs back.

4. Dust a clean kitchen towel with confectioner's sugar. Turn cake out onto towel. Roll up towel and cake. Cool completely.

5. Unroll. Spread with softened ice cream to within 1 inch from edges. Reroll cake without towel. Wrap in plastic wrap. Freeze at least 4 hours. If frozen overnight, let stand at room temperature for 20 minutes before serving. Drizzle with chocolate syrup before serving.

Chili-Lime Chicken

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup oil
1/4 cup lime juice
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp garlic puree (or 3 minced garlic cloves)
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp onion powder
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1. Mix all ingredients (minus chicken) in a bowl. Trim chicken and make several small slits crosswise along the top. Place chicken in a ziploc bag and pour in marinade. Let sit in fridge for 4-8 hours.

2. When ready go BBQ, spray the grate with Pam, then turn on the grill and preheat to medium-high. Place chicken on grill top-side down. Cook for 5 minutes and rotate 45 degrees to get a nice cross-hatch pattern. Cook for 5 more minutes, then flip the chicken. Cook for another 5-10 until chicken is done.

Berry Shortcake

16 oz strawberries, halved

12 oz blueberries

6 oz raspberries

1 tsp grated orange zest

1 tbsp Grand Marnier or other orange liqueur

1/2 cup + 2 tbsp sugar

2 cups flour

1 tbsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 1/2 cups heavy cream

1. Heat oven to 425F. Toss berries, zest, orange liqueur, and 1/4 cup sugar. Let sit for 30 min, tossing occassionally.

2. Whisk flour, baking powder, salt, and 1/4 cup sugar. Stir in 1 1/2 cup heavy cream using a fork.

3. Drop 8 large mounds of dough onto greased baking sheet. Sprinkle with 1 tbsp sugar. Bake 15-18 min. Cool.

4. Beat 1 cup cream and remaining sugar until peaks form.

5. Slice biscuits in half. Layer bottom half with berry mixture and whipped cream. Top with second half of biscuit.

Potato-Egg Mash-up

This is one of my favorite breakfast foods if we have leftover potatoes. It's easy, yummy, and quick. Almost all ingredients are to a "that looks about right" amount.

Potato-Egg Mess
2 eggs (or one egg per person)
Leftover potatoes to suit
Summer sausage, diced, to suit (I do about 1 slice per egg)
Salt and Pepper to taste
A smidge of oil

1. Heat skillet over medium. Add eggs and scramble.
2. Add potato, sausage, and oil. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Cook until potatoes and sausage are heated through and potatoes are just slightly brown.
4. Enjoy!

Shortbread Cookies

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
3 cups flour

1. Mix butter and sugar together until creamy.
2. Add 2 1/2 cups flour. Mix thoroughly.
3. Sprinkle remaining flour onto clean surface, turn out dough, knead until dough cracks. Move dough to foil-lined baking sheet. Pat out and cut into squares. Alternately, you can roll out the dough and use cookie cutters. Sprinkle with granulated sugar.
4. Bake at 275F for 45 minutes or until lightly browned.

Custard Pie

1 pie crust
4 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 cups scalded milk
Nutmeg

1. Preheat oven to 400F. Put pie crust in pie pan. Make sure there are no holes or the filling will run through.
2. Mix eggs, sugar, and vanilla in bowl. Add scalded milk slowly while stirring (too fast and you'll cook your eggs).
3. Pour mixture into pie crust. You may want to reserve a cup of the mix and pour it in after you place the pie in the oven so it doesn't spill. Sprinkle top with nutmeg.
4. Bake at 400F for 30 minutes, or until a knife comes out clean. Let cool completely before serving.

Spicy Hot Chocolate

Haven't tried this yet, but it looks so good, I had to post the recipe.
 
4 ounces unsweetened dark chocolate (Ghiradelli's 100% Cacao), grated super fine
1/2 cup Splenda sugar substitute  
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom 
1/3 teaspoon cayenne pepper 
1 1/3 cups nonfat dry milk powder

1. Mix all ingredients.

2. To serve, use 3 tbsp with 1 cup hot water.

 

 

Orginal Recipe

Lasagna

1 box lasagna noodles
1 jar pasta sauce
1 lb ground beef
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, chopped
3 cups Ricotta cheese
16 oz shredded cheddar
2 eggs, beaten

1. Cook noodles according to directions, about 10 minutes.
2. In saucepan, saute onions, garlic, and beef until beef is brown. Salt and pepper to taste. Add sauce once meat is browned. Bring to boil, then simmer 15 minutes.
3. Mix eggs and cheeses in bowl. Save 1 cup of cheddar for topping lasagna.
4. Layer noodles, meat sauce, and cheese mix in a greased 8x13 pan, starting and ending with a layer of noodles. You should have a couple noodles left over. Top with cheddar.
5. Cover with foil and bake for 25 minutes at 350F. Remove foil and bake for another 25 minutes. Let sit for 10 minutes before serving.

Cheater's Peach Cobbler

1 cup Bisquick
1 cup milk
1/3 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cans sliced peaches
Nutmeg
Cinnamon

1. Melt butter in saucepan, then pour into 8x8 baking dish. Mix in vanilla.
2. Mix milk, Bisquick, sugar, a dash of cinnamon and a dash of nutmeg. Add to butter and mix rapidly. Butter may clump.
3. Layer peaches on top of mixture. They may not all fit.
4. Bake at 350F for 40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
5. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

Leftover Rice Mess

I had a bunch of leftovers in the fridge from red beans & rice (I'll post this recipe later this week) and some other stuff, so I decided to throw this concoction together. I used the rice, the beans, some eggs that needed to be used, and some leftover vegetables from lunch yesterday. It's similar to fried rice, but I didn't use any oil or butter.



Leftover Rice Mess
2 eggs
1 cup cooked rice
1/3 cup red beans from Red Beans & Rice recipe
1/3 cup cooked vegetables (I used peas & mushrooms)
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1. Scramble the eggs in a non-stick pan.
2. Push the eggs to the side and cook the beans in the open space. When beans are warm and less soupy, mix with eggs.
3. Add vegetables and mix thoroughly.
4. Add rice and Worcestershire sauce and mix. Heat until all ingredients are warm. Enjoy!

Greek Chicken Pita

Greek Chicken Pita
Sauce:
2 c fat free plain Greek yogurt
1 c peeled, seeded, and diced cucumber
2 tbsp chopped fresh dill
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp white vinegar
2 tsp minced garlic


Wrap:
6 oz boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 tbsp Italian dressing
4 whole wheat pitas
2 c chopped lettuce
1 medium tomato, chopped and seeded
1/2 c sliced red onion
1/4 c crumbled Feta

1. In a medium bowl, combine all the sauce ingredients. Cover and let sit in fridge to allow flavors to meld.
2. Place chicken in plastic bag and add dressing. Marinate for 15 minutes.
3. Pound chicken using meat mallet to about 1/2 inch thickness.
4. Cook chicken over medium heat about 5 minutes per side until browned and cooked through.
5. Slice chicken thinly against the grain.
6. Warm pitas in the microwave for about 30 seconds.
7. Place pita on plate, layer with chicken, lettuce, tomato, feta, and sauce. Roll and wrap with parchment paper or aluminum foil to serve. Alternately, cut pita's in half and open to form a pocket.

Redneck Mocha

Redneck Mocha
1 tsp instant coffee
1 pkg instant hot cocoa
1 tbsp half and half or light cream
Water to fill your cup

1. Put coffee, cocoa, and cream into a cup.
2. Fill with hot water.
3. Stir.
4. Enjoy a tasty treat without spending $4 at Starbucks. 

Giant Stuffed Meatballs

On top of spaghetti
All covered with cheese
I lost my poor meatball
When somebody sneezed.

On Rachael Ray awhile ago, I saw these giant stuffed meatballs. I decided to make my own, fudging it a bit from her recipe. Instead making all large meatballs, I made some smaller ones stuffed with cherry tomatoes. Yum!

Giant Stuffed Meatballs
2 lbs ground beef
2 eggs
1/2 c milk
1 c bread pieces
2 handfuls grated Parmesan cheese
2 cloves garlic, minced
A sprinkle of all spice
Salt and pepper
2 tbsp olive oil
8 oz mozzarella cheese, cut into chunks

1. Preheat oven to 400F and grease a cake pan or baking sheet with sides.
2. Put bread in a bowl and cover with milk. Let it sit.
3. Mix the meat, garlic, eggs, cheese, allspice, salt, and pepper together. Squeeze the bread to remove the milk, then mix the bread into the meat.
4. Take a small handful of meat and pat it flat. Place two or three chunks of cheese in the center, then cover it with more meat and pat it into a ball. Place on baking sheet. Repeat until all meat/cheese is gone.
5. Drizzle olive oil over the meatballs and make sure each is coated nicely.
6. Put baking sheet in the oven and bake for about 20 minutes, until golden brown and cooked through.
7. Serve over spaghetti with sauce.

Tomates Farcies (Stuffed Tomatoes)

Another beautiful recipe from On Rue Tatin, Tomates Farcies uses the biggest, freshest tomatoes you can find. They turn a lovely golden brown in the oven and the flavors explode in your mouth.

Tomates Farcies

2 slices fresh bread

½ cup milk

4 lbs large, juicy tomatoes (you'll need at least 4 tomatoes)

Salt and pepper

2 tbsp olive oil

1 medium onion, minced

2 garlic cloves, minced

8 oz button mushrooms, diced

1 ¾ lbs lean ground pork

¼ c fresh tarragon, or 1 tsp dried

1 c flat-leaf parsley

2 large eggs

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

2. Tear bread into pieces and place in bowl. Cover with milk, let sit 30 minutes.

3. Slice tops off tomatoes, reserve tops. Scoop seeds and most of pith from tomatoes and discard (don't poke holes in the tomatoes!) Lightly season the cavities with salt and pepper.

4. Heat oil over medium, add onions and garlic. Cook about 8 minutes, until translucent. Season with salt and pepper and transfer to medium bowl.

5. Add mushrooms to onion pan and cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Mix into onion bowl.

6. Add bread and milk to onion mixture, along with pork. Mince tarragon and parsley, then add to pork. 

7. Whisk eggs, then add them to pork. Blend thoroughly with your hands. Season with salt and pepper.

8. Evenly divide the mixture among the tomatoes, mounding if necessary. Place the tops back on the tomatoes and bake until they turn a deep gold and are baked completely through, about an hour. Remove and drizzle with pan juices.

Le Poisson de Tous les Jours (Fish of the day)

This is a simple fish dish that I discovered while reading On Rue Tatin, by Susan Hermann Loomis. I didn't have fresh tarragon, but if you can find it, this recipe is even lovelier.

Le Poisson de Tous les Jours

1 lb white fish (I like tilapia)

1 tbsp butter

1 lb tomatoes, cored and cut into wedges

2 tbsp lemon juice

salt/pepper

¼ cup fresh tarragon or 1 tsp dried tarragon

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Rinse fillets and pat dry.

2. Butter a baking dish and arrange the fish inside, skin down. Arrange the tomato wedges around the fish. 

3. Drizzle with lemon juice, season with salt, pepper, and half of tarragon.

4. Bake for 15 minutes, or until fish is opaque.

5. Remove from oven. Sprinkle with remaining tarragon and season with a fine sprinkling of pepper. Serve immediately.