Spaghettini

Hey Marthas - It's been forever, I know. Here's a good one for either a main meal (I added grilled chicken, for Kev 'cuz he likes/needs protein in his meal) or a side dish (recently I used it for company and it was a great nontraditional side). I know it's more of a "spring" dish than a "fall" dish but since we enjoyed it - and it was easy - I thought I'd share it. Happy cooking!

Spaghettini with Lemon Zest and Chives

1 pound spaghettini or thin spaghetti
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 stick butter, cut into small pieces
1 cup ricotta salata cheese or Parmesan, coarsely grated
2 tablespoons fresh chives or scallion greens, thinly chopped
Salt and pepper

1. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook 1 pound of spaghettini, or thin spaghetti, until al dente according to package instructions.

2. Grate the zest of 1 lemon into a large pasta bowl. Juice the lemon, and add juice to the bowl. Stir in 1 stick butter, cut into small pieces, and 1 cup coarsely grated ricotta salata cheese or Parmesan.

3. Add drained pasta to lemon sauce, and sprinkle in 2 tablespoons thinly chopped fresh chives or scallion greens. Season with salt and pepper. Toss well, and serve.

Supper in a hurry

This is a wonderful recipe I just discovered in Mrs. Garvis' excellent little booklet on saving time and money. It takes literally ten minutes from start to finish - prep time included - if you have the meat thawed out, is so easy to fix, tastes delicious, and is very cheap if you get the ramen and cans on sale. I've made it twice in the last week and a half, and it has now replaced spaghetti at the top of my list for emergency I-can't-think-what-to-make-for-dinner days.

Skillet Dinner
1 lb. ground beef (or ground chicken or turkey) [Note: you don't actually need a full lb. I use whatever quantity I have on hand]
1 can corn, undrained
1 can stewed tomatoes, undrained
1 ramen package

Brown ground beef on stovetop. Drain grease; add vegetables, undrained (the liquid will cook the ramen noodles), and add the packet of seasoning from the ramen package. Stir in ramen noodles and stir until cooked, 2-4 minutes. Makes 3-4 servings.

When the cooking is over

And you have that big, nasty pan to scrub--especially if you've been frying or roasting meat--try this tip I just learned from my new stepmother. Soak the whole nasty thing overnight in dishwasher detergent (the powder that goes in the dishwasher) and water and it all will wipe right off in the morning. I tried it once on a hamburger frying pan and once on a roasting chicken pan, and it worked like a dream both times.

Funny, I didn't expect a retired career Army officer to be a great source for household tips, but I guess they get meat stuck on the pan even in the Army. :-)

Nice and Easy

Last night I fixed a tasty little dinner of grilled cheese, soup and freshly sliced strawberries. (I'm proud of myself, can you tell?) At Nathan's request the grilled cheese had a twist to it: thinly sliced apples inside with the cheese. I was skeptical at first, but this variation is actually quite tasty.

Another easy meal I fix often is Pita Pizzas. I use whole wheat pitas for my crusts. Top with sauce, mozzarella and your choice of toppings, then bake at 425 until the cheese is melted and golden. Very quick, healthy meal with a salad and great cold for lunch the next day.

Any other suggestions out there for easy meals? Oh, and cheap ones, too. ;-)

Roasted Green Beans

In my continual quest to find vegetables that we'll eat, I came across this recipe:

Toss fresh green beans with olive oil and some salt and roast in a 400-degree oven for 20-30-ish minutes until they're tender and slightly brown in places.

Make up a dressing along the lines of:

Vinegar
Oil
Sugar
Dill
Black pepper

Remove the beans from the oven, coat with dressing, and yummy! This is a "simple" one, Rachelle -- not a lot of ingredients. You may could try it with Ben. Our kids at least don't despise them.

-- SJ

Summer Quesadillas

I recently did this to make a dinner out of peaches and they were a hit.

Slice peaches and add some chives and a TINY bit of brown of sugar. Add this and feta or goat cheese to tortillas and let them heat in a pan or the oven for a few minutes. They are great with a sauce of honey, lime juice, and a little lime rind peel (lemon or orange works fine too).

What chicken can do for you

There were lots of adjectives that would have done for the title (cheap, cheery, etc.) but I dismissed them all as too cheesy (ha ha!); however, chicken is a wonderful dish and forms the building block for many a meal. So here's the overview for all the mileage I can get out of your average fryer chicken, bought in bulk on sale at $0.49/lb. and frozen for future use:

Roast Chicken
By far the simplest, cheapest, and one of Michael's favourite meals:

1 whole fryer chicken
Several cups water
Salt
Pepper

Pour water over chicken in roasting pan; sprinkle with salt and pepper and cover; cook at 350 for 2-3 hours, at which point meat should be juicy and tender. I drain the broth (of which I have a lot because of all that added water) and make a quick and simple Stovetop Gravy:

Chicken broth
1-2 Tbl. cold water
1 Tbl. white flour
Milk (optional)

Stir broth in saucepan on medium heat. Shake up flour and water in airtight Tupperware; stir in gradually to broth; add milk if desired. If there are lumps, whisk vigourously. This makes a lot of gravy so I always save the leftovers for future recipes.

I always serve at least two sides with roast chicken: mashed potatoes (I assume you all have a recipe for this) and either open a can of creamed corn or make Candied Carrots:

Several carrots, sliced
Butter (like 1 Tbl., depending on how many carrots)
Brown sugar (ditto)

Boil carrots in a saucepan until tender. Drain. Add butter and brown sugar; stir and serve.

There are always lots of leftovers with just the two of us. Cooking up two chickens works great for company (and, I assume, a small but growing family). The best method of dealing with a leftover chicken carcass is to have your husband de-bone it while you read a book aloud to him. Let's assume you have all the leftover chicken meat tidily stored away in Tupperware. At this point I have several option for yummy follow-up meals:

Chicken Casserole
Cornbread crumbs (8x8 pan's worth - I usually bake a cornbread with the chicken just because I like to be efficient with my oven)
1 medium onion, chopped
Sage
Poultry seasoning (optional)
Salt
Pepper
Chopped chicken
1-3 cups chicken broth (leftover gravy)

Crumble cornbread into bottom of casserole dish; stir in chopped onions, sage, salt, and pepper. Sprinkle chicken over this; pour chicken gravy over the top. You can water it down with milk to stretch it, because it will usually thicken in the oven. Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes or until hot and bubbly. (Not less, as the onions will be crunchy otherwise.)

Hearty Chicken and Rice Stew
Chicken broth (leftover gravy)
1 medium onion, chopped
1-3 carrots, chopped
Parsley
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. thyme
1 bay leaf
Chopped chicken
2 cups cooked barley
1 Tbl. lime juice

Stir gravy in saucepan over medium heat until warmed up. Add onion and carrots and spices, and simmer until tender. Add chicken and barley; simmer for a few minutes to allow the flavours to absorb but not too long or the barley will get soggy. Add lime juice right before serving. The quantities are approximate, but this always does for at least two meals.

California Chicken Enchiladas
10 flour tortillas
Chopped chicken
1 can cream of chicken soup (cream of mushroom works, too)
1 can chopped green chilis
8 oz. sour cream
1 cup shredded cheese

Mix soup, chilis, sour cream, and most of the cheese. Save 1/2 cup; dice chicken and stir in to main mixture. Scoop mixture into tortillas, fold up, and place in 9x13 pan. Spoon leftover mixture over the top with the rest of the cheese. Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes or until hot and bubbly. (Not quite so cheap, I'm afraid, unless you get the cans on sale; but SO good!)

Moroccan Chicken and Lentils

If any of you have any simple recipes, please post. I am looking for things I can cook for Ben and the less ingredients, the greater chance that he isn't allergic to something in it. Here is a good one that is so easy and was a big hit with Ben and his dad:

1 Cup baby carrots (or chopped carrots)
1 & 1/2 C lentils, uncooked
1 & 1/2 lb frozen chicken
2 T minced garlic
3/4 t salt
3/4 t tumeric
1/2 t red pepper flakes or ground red pepper
1/2 t ground cinnamon
2 cans (14 oz) broth (chicken is recommended)

Place all ingredients in a slow cooker. Cover and cook on high setting for 5 hours. Or cover and cook on high for an hour and then switch to low setting for 7 hours. Makes 4-6 servings.

The Big Dipper

Lately I've begun serving a plate of raw vegetables and dip along with meals, in yet another attempt to get us to eat our veggies. I've come up with two or three different dips, but would love more suggestions -- especially ones lower in fat. I know, I know, we should be eating the vegetables without dip, or at most a light drizzle of low-fat vinagrette, blah blah blah. Any progress is good, in my opinion.

-- SJ

Vegetarian Cashew Chili

This can be used on a campout fairly easily. I have made it at home but made it on our recent church campout.

3 C chopped onion
2 & 1/2 C chopped red bell pepper
1 & 1/2 C chopped celery
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 C red wine vinegar
1 T molasses
1 & 1/2 t dried basil
1 & 1/2 t dried oregano
1 t ground cumin
1/2 t salt
1/2 t chili powder
1/2 t black pepper
1/8 t bay leaves (or 1 whole bay leaf)
2 T olive oil
2-15.5 oz cans red kidney beans, undrained
1-28 oz can diced or stewed tomatoes, undrained
1-15 oz can pinto beans, undrained
2/3 C cashews, coarsely chopped

Place first four ingredients together (in a heavy-duty zip-top plastic bag if camping). Combine the next 9 ingredients (vinegar through bay leaves) separately. (Also in a zip bag if camping.)
(At campsite): Heat oil in a large Dutch oven or stockpot over medium-high heat. Add onion, bell pepper, celery, and garlic; saute 8 minutes or until tender. Add vinegar mixture, beans and tomatoes; cook 20 minutes, stirring often. Stir in cashews. Serve. Yield: 7 large servings.

Two Random Tips

Fresh Pineapple: I did not realize, until someone told me, that everybody else hurts their mouth eating fresh pineapple, too. I thought it was some peculiar biochemical reaction of my own, but worth the payoff in fresh pineapple. But, according to my informer, if you put salt on the pineapple, it won't burn. I haven't tested this yet, as there haven't been any sales on fresh pineapple around here lately. But I pass it on for what it's worth.

Whole wheat baked goods: I actually prefer whole wheat for flavor as well as nutrition, but I admit the frequently crumbly-sawdust texture of quick breads made with whole wheat doesn't do much for me. Then I heard that if you mix up the flour and the sour milk part of the recipe several hours in advance (the blender was recommended), the product will turn out much more tender and fluffy. I've tried it so far on waffles and banana bread (banana bread batter was too thick for a blender, I may have to use my Kitchenaid instead), and the results were outstanding. Except for the extra-hearty flavor, you could hardly tell it was whole wheat.

Next I'm going to try it on biscuits. I don't have much hope, since whole wheat biscuits are so very, very far from their white flour equivalents, but the results so far have been so good it's worth a shot.

Apparently it has to be a sour milk type of product (buttermilk, yogurt, milk with vinegar), so if your recipe calls for regular milk and baking powder you'll have to adapt it.

My Company Dinner

Nathan randomly picked this recipe out of one of my cookbooks while helping me create a menu. Ever since it has been our "company meal" and always been a hit. Now that we have a gas grill again (Nathan's $30 garage sale bargain.....almost in new condition), I'm planning on serving it more often.

Hawaiian Chicken Kabobs

1 can (20 oz.) unsweetened pineapple chunks
2 large green peppers, cut into 1" pieces
1 large onion, quartered (optional)
12-16 mushrooms (I don't like cooked mushrooms, so I skip these)
16-18 cherry tomatoes
1 c. soy sauce
1/2 c. olive oil
2 T. brown sugar
4 t. ground ginger
2 t. garlic powder
2 t. dry mustard
1/2 t. pepper
2-3 lbs. boneless, chicken breast fillets, cut in small pieces

Drain pineapple, reserving the juice. Place pineapple pieces and vegetables in large bowl and set aside. In a saucepan combine reserved pineapple juice with soy sauce, olive oil, brown sugar, and seasonings; bring to a boil. (WARNING: this will boil over VERY quickly, use a large pot with plenty of room) Reduce heat and simmer for 5 min. Pour half of mixture over vegetables and half over chicken pieces in another bowl. Marinate at least an hour, but the longer the better, stirring occasionally. May be put on skewers or grilled in a grill basket, basting with left over marinade. Grill until thoroughly cooked. Serve over rice if desired

Savory Beef

This is an excellent crock pot recipe. You can, and its even recommended that you do, use a very tough (i.e. cheap) cut of meat. I've never had it turn out less than fall apart tender. Serve over rice, noodles, or I've served it the next day as a sandwich with bbq sauce.

Savory Beef

Serves 8

Heat in heavy skillet or Duch oven:
2 T. oil

Add and quick-fry until brown:
2 lbs. lean beef, cut into 1-1/2" squares (may use very tough meat)

Add and quick-fry in a few minutes:
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed

Add:
1/2 c. soy sauce
2 T. brown sugar
1/8 t. pepper
3 c. water

Bring to a boil. Transfer to crock pot and simmer for an afternoon or whole day. (The longer, the better.) Optional: prepare the night before and transfer to crockpot. Store overnight in the fridge. Then simmer in crock pot all the next day.

Pumpkin Cheesecake Muffins

Years ago we used to get these muffins as a treat at the local health food store's bakery. My mom begged and pleaded for several years before they relented and gave her the recipe. We've enjoyed them ever since. :-) Don't ask me why they are considered "healthfood" because I think they have more sugar than any other muffins I've ever made. But, every once in a while you just have to overlook the sugar content and enjoy a treat.

Pumpkin Cheesecake Muffins

Makes 12

Wet:
2 beaten eggs
2 c. sugar
1 c. pumpkin
1/2 c. oil

Dry:
3-1/2 c. unbleached white flour
1-1/2 t. cinnamon
1 t. soda
1/2 t. coriander

Filling:
2 softened cream cheese blocks
2 eggs
1/4 c. sugar

Mix filling in food processor until smooth. Filling works best when refrigerated overnight or until completely chilled.

1) Combine wet ingredients first so sugar can dissolve for a while.
2) Combine dry ingredients.
3) When wet ingredients beat smooth, fold dry ingredients into wet ones.
4) In oiled or paper lined muffin tins, put about a T. of batter into each cup.
5) Make a "well" in each cup by swirling the batter around with the back of the spoon.
6) Fill each "well" with about a T. sized dollop of cream cheese filling.
7) Place another spoonful of batter on top of the filling. Smooth the top and "seal" it so the filling won't seep out.
8) Top with a little finger smear of filling.
9) Bake at 350 for 25 min, rotating between racks after 13 min. (I don't remember for sure, but I highly doubt I ever did the rotating thing.) Filling smear on top will be lightly browned when the insides of the muffins are done.

Black and White Bean Soup

I haven't tried this recipe yet, although it is on the menu for later this week so stay tuned....However, I mentioned it to Sarah because of the creative way it is served. It looked like a great company conversation starter. Not to mention that beans are cheap and healthy, too! So since she really wanted me to post this recipe, here it is. :-) Enjoy!

Black and White Bean Soup

Makes 4 Servings

3/4 c. dried black beans
3/4 c. dried great Northern beans
2 T. extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 small poblano chile pepper, seeded and finely chopped (my cookbook recommends wearing gloves for this....)
1 small rib celery, chopped
4 cloves garlic, sliced
1-1/2 t. chopped fresh thyme leaves
8 c. chicken broth
1 t. chili powder
1 t. groun cumin
1 t. chopped fresh sage
Roasted-Pepper Cream (recipe listed below)
Fresh cilantro leaves, for garnish

Place black beans and great Northern beans in two separate large bowls, cover with cold water, and soak overnight in the fridge.

Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, chile pepper, celery, garlic, and thyme and cook for 8 min, or until the vegetables are tender. Remove half of the vegetables to another large pot.

Drain the beans. To the first pot, add the black beans, 4 c. of broth, the chili powder and the cumin. To the second pot, add the great Northern beans, the remaining 4 c. broth, and the sage. Heat both pots to boiling and cover. Reduce the heat to low. Simmer the black bean pot for 1.5 hours and the white bean pot for 1 hr. Keep both warm over low heat.

To serve, ladle 1 c. black bean soup into each of 4 serving bowls. Tilt the bowls and ladle 1 c. white bean soup into the other side of each bowl. Drizzle with the Roasted-Pepper Cream and garnish with the cilantro leaves.

Roasted-Pepper Cream

Makes about 1 cup

1 jar (7 oz.) roasted red peppers, drained
2 T. fat-free sour cream
1 t. apple cider vinegar
salt
groun black pepper

In a blender or food processor, combine the peppers, sour cream, vinegar, and salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Chicken-Black Bean Salad

This is one of the few salads I've ever had in a restaurant that was tasty enough and cheap enough to make a regular staple at home. It's my favorite summer dinner and is easy enough to make even during the first trimester!

2 c. chopped cooked chicken. (If it was cooked with taco seasonings to begin with, all the better. If not, you might want to mix up extra dressing and marinate it for a few hours.)
1 head shredded leaf or Romaine lettuce
1 can black beans, drained
1-2 cups frozen corn, rinsed (you could used canned, but I like the frozen texture better.)
8 medium (Roma) tomatoes, chopped
1/4 c. fresh cilantro leaves
Any other veggies that sound good; cucumber and cauliflower would be tasty.

Dressing:
2 T apple cider vinegar
2 T olive oil
1 t. granulated garlic
1/4 t. cayenne pepper
1/2 t. cumin
1/2 t. thyme
1 t. chili powder

I like to have an equal mix of salsa and plain yogurt to serve with it, either to go on the salad or for chips. It feeds the two of us with a little bit left over, so it would probably feed four people of normal appetite.

Vegetarian Wrap

This is for my own benefit more than anything else. I stumbled upon this while picking out the menus for some upcoming workshops I'm planning and it sounded tasty (and healthy). I'm posting it here so I'll be able to find it again. :-P

If anyone gives it a try let me know how it turns out.

Vegetarian Wrap
Hummus, shredded carrots, red onion, cucumber, lettuce and pine nuts wrapped in a flour tortilla.

WDIDWT? Cooked Egg Whites

D1 has started on egg yolks this week, according to proper introduction-of-food procedures, whereby one delays introducing the egg whites for some time yet. And she loves egg yolks. So this leaves me with a hard-boiled egg white a day to consume. Plain with salt is rather uninspiring. Any ideas on what else one can do with hardboiled egg whites?

DOB suggests I could separate the eggs and then poach the yolks, but I am not positive this would work, and even if it did I don't think I'm quite inspired enough to fix enough meringues or macaroons to use up the raw whites. I guess I could throw them into scrambled eggs, but that seems too uninspired.

Orange White-Chocolate Cheesecake

Can you tell I was suffering from Lent-imposed baking deprivation? Here's the other Easter treat I made. I probably won't make desserts this fiddly until next Easter.

Formatting note: Notice all the italics in the last post? How nice it looks? Since my browser doesn't let me do that automatically, so I have to type in all the <'s and /'s. So formatted posts are almost as rare a treat as orange white-chocolate cheesecake. And less enjoyable to make.

1 1/2 cups chocolate graham cracker crumbs
1/3 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup orange juice
1 envelope (7 grams) unflavored gelatin
2 cups (12-oz pkg) white-chocolate morsels
2 pkgs (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons finely grated orange peel

PREHEAT oven to 350 degrees.

COMBINE crumbs and butter in medium bowl. Press crumb mixture onton bottome of ungreased 9-inch springform pan. Bake for 10 min., cool in pan on wire rack.

COMBINE orange juice and gelatin in small saucepan. Heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally, till gelatin dissolves.

MELT morsels in medium, uncovered, microwave-safe bowl on MEDIUM-HIGH (70%) power for 1 minute; STIR.

BEAT cream cheese and sugar in large mixing bowl until combined. Gradually stir in gelatin mixture and morsels.

BEAT whipping cream in small bowl until soft peaks form. Gently fold whipped cream and orange peel into cheese mixture. Pour filling over crust. Cover; refrigerate for 6 to 24 hours or until firm.

Allow to stand at room temperature for a few minutes before removing side of pan.

Yummy!

-- SJ

Gumdrop Cake

This is a recipe of Darren's grandmother's, and one of Darren's favorites. Always a risky undertaking for a wife, to attempt to reproduce a matriarchal specialty; but I tried it anyway. Success!

Gumdrop Cake

1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine
2 eggs
1 cup milk
2 3/4 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp lemon extract
1/2 tsp almond extract

1 lb. gumdrops (cut in half or third -- do not use purple or black, as they discolor the cake)

1 cup golden raisins (which I forgot to put in)

1/2 cup red & green cherries (which we couldn't find, as they're seasonal, so we used dried cherries instead)

2 dried pineapple rings or fruit of your choice (we couldn't find rings, so used a package of dried chunks. It was a small package; can't remember the exact size.)


Cream butter and sugar well. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat after each addition. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Add to creamed mixture, alternating with milk (flour first, then milk, in small amounts, mixing after each addition. End with flour.) Add extracts. Flour fruit (in small amounts, so it doesn't fall to bottom of cake) and add to batter. Add gumdrops.

Bake in a greased square or tube pan at 325 degrees for 1 1/4 hours, till done.

Note from Darren's grandmother: She -- and so I did, too -- bakes it at 300 for about an hour to see how it's coming along, then raises the temperature if it's not getting done. I baked it longer than I expected, but it came out nicely done. Take it out of the pan once it's cool enough, or it'll stick horribly.

-- SJ