...for recipes! My friend, Tara, tagged me to provide 4 of my favorite everyday recipes... So here goes w/ my top 3 all-family favorites (important since I don't cook multiple meals to cater to different tastes) and one that Rich and I love, but the boys have yet to acquire the taste for...
Chicken Veronique(This has to be the all-time favorite for my boys. Rich would eat it every week if I felt like preparing it that often. It is a great standby because I know that each of them will chow down and give me happy looks afterwards!)
· 4 Tbs butter
· 4 boneless chicken breasts, pounded thin.
· 1/3 c dry white wine or dry sherry
· 1tsp basil
· ½ tsp thyme
· ½ tsp salt
· 1 c heavy whipping cream
· 1 c seedless green grapes
Heat butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Rinse chicken breasts and dry on paper towels. Quickly sauté until golden on both sides. Add wine, herbs and salt. Cover and simmer slowly about 5 minutes. To test doneness, press finger in thickest part of chk breast; meat should spring back. Do not overcook. Place chicken breasts on a plate and cover loosely with skillet lid to keep warm. Quickly boil pan juices until syrupy (approx 2-3 min). Add whipping cream. Boil until slightly thickened. Stir grapes into cream. Cook briefly to heat grapes through. Stir in any juices that have drained from the chicken breasts. Arrange chicken breasts on plates w/ pasta (we prefer egg noodles) and spoon sauce over. 4 servings. We like to serve with sautéed spinach and steamed carrots!
Chicken Tetrazini
(This is my family's standard potluck meal. It freezes great, so I often double the recipe and freeze half (after assembled, but before the final bake) for a later date when I know I won't have time to pull dinner together. Again, all of my boys LOVE this dish. It is a kid favorite that I tend to make if we are having friends over who have small children.)
Serves 4
2 chicken breasts, cooked/diced
Approx 5 c cooked pasta (shell or other small pasta shape)
(I usually shoot for 6 servings according to the pasta packaging)
¼ c butter melted
1 c cut mushrooms (optional), cook in butter that you melt.
1 ¼ c sour cream
1 can cream of celery
¼ heaping tsp poultry seasoning
½ tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
Parmesan
Paprika
1) Cook pasta as directed on package, drain and place in 13x9 pan.
2) Mix cooked chicken (I add any juices generated) with all remaining ingredients except parmesan and paprika. Pour over the top of the noodles.
3) Top with sprinkled parmesan and paprika
4) Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.
This is an easy recipe to freeze and cook. Once everything is ready to pop in the oven, you just put it in the freezer instead. Often times I’ll line a pan with foil and pour the freezer portion in. That way once it is frozen I can pop it out of the pyrex dish to store in my freezer, but then it’s the right shape when I go to pull it out. Thaw and cook as directed. It might need 1-2 tbs of milk added since the freezing process tends to dry it out just a bit.
Pizza Dough recipe (makes 4 pizzas)
(Again, I'm a big fan of freezing for later use. I've taken lately to making two batches one right after the other, so I can make two pizza's and freeze the other 6 dough balls. This whole grain pizza dough is good for you and what kid - or man, can resist pizza. We mix it up with different toppings, but I always keep sauce in my pantry and pepperoni and mozzarella in my freezer!)
This recipe is designed to be made in a kitchen aid. It will need adjusting if you don't have a mixer with a dough hook since it will need to be kneaded.
· 1 c cooked quinoa, millet mixture - or just quinoa (to prepare, boil 3/4 c water and add 1/2 c grains. Cook for 18m) (This is optional. If you don’t want to use the cooked grains, just add 1 c flour instead)
· 2 c hot water or beer (100-120degrees)
· 1 c sourdough starter (can be found at any food specialty shops I can imagine. If you're local, I can provide you with some since it is easy to replenish and keep it going.)
· ¼ c sugar
· ¼ c olive oil
· ¼ c yeast
· 1 tbs salt
· 2.5 c wheat flour
· White flour
Cook grains. Add grains, flour, hot water/beer, sourdough starter, olive oil, wheat flour and sugar. Top w/ yeast. Mix. Add white flour until dough pulls away from sides of the bowl. Knead for 6 min w/ dough hook. Remove to bowl w/ olive oil. Let rise until doubled (45-60m)
Divide into four sections. Wrap unneeded portions in plastic wrap and place in freezer. Roll out to desired thickness. Top w/ favorite ingredients and take on a 500 degree pre-heated pizza stone for 5-8 minutes. If using a non pre-heated stone, cook at 450 for 10-12 minutes (but may need a bit longer).
To use frozen dough – pull out of freezer and allow to thaw. Roll out as normal.
And finally...
Machaca
(Rich and I adore this recipe. We usually just do quesadillas for the kids when we make this. Keegan will eat it sometimes chopped up in his quesadilla, but Xander won't touch it...)
· 2 lb beef roast
· 1 large onion, sliced
· 2 (4 oz) cans chopped green chilies
· 2 beef bouillon cubes
· 1 ½ tsp dry mustard
· ½-1 tsp garlic powder
· 1 tsp seasoning salt
· ½ tsp pepper
· 1 c salsa
Combine all ingredients except salsa in slow cooker. Add just enough water to cover half way.
Cover, cook on low 10-12 hours. Drain and reserve liquid.
Shred beef using 2 forks to pull it apart.
Combine beef, salsa and enough of the reserved liquid to desired consistency. Let set on warm setting for at least 20 more minutes to let juices settle into the meat. (NOTE: I have never added the salsa as the recipe calls for. I usually forget, so I’m not sure if it would improve the taste or not…)
Use this filling for burritos, chalupas, quesadillas or tacos. Leftovers for this also freeze well, so we will usually freeze enough to keep on hand for a last minute lunch idea!
LASTLY, I tag Evie, Bethy, Mom and Rachel to provide 4 of their favorite recipes! Come on, I know you are all fabulous cooks, so let's see some more! I'm ready to mix-up my menu some more. Ok, off to browse and copy down some previous recipes to try!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment