Tuesday, July 1, 2014

Stroganoff

Source: The original Kim Blanchard

Ingredients:
1 1/2 lb stew meat, slow cooked until tender (I always just use ~1 lb ground beef, seasoned with salt and pepper and browned)
1 large onion, halved and sliced thin
1/2 lb fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 can cream of mushroom or chicken soup (I always use cream o' mush)
2 Tablespoons ketchup
1 cup beef broth or water (I always use 1 soup can of water)
1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup sour cream (I always just use a big spoonful - I never measure, but I don't think it's quite a cup)
1 16 oz package egg noodles

Directions:
Saute onion and mushrooms.  Add meat.  Add soup, ketchup, water (or broth), Worchestershire sauce and salt and pepper.  Stir well to mix and simmer for a half hour.  While the stroganoff is simmering, boil your egg noodles according to package directions.  Drain.  Just before serving, stir in sour cream to the stroganoff mixture.  Serve over hot egg noodles (I always just mix all the noodles and all the sauce together in one big pot and serve it that way).

Notes:
I know there are a million stroganoff recipes out there, but here's another one to throw into the mix.  I found it in Gregg's missionary cook book, compiled by his mom before he left.  It's not fancy, but it is quick and really tasty.  We have this quite regularly around here and it's a hit with the whole fam.

Teriyaki Burgers

Source: Kay Lynn Larsen (who I don't know, but it's her name that appears next to this recipe in my mom's old ward recipe book that this came from)

Ingredients:
1 egg, partially beaten
2 slices bread, torn up (I usually like to use the heels of a loaf - they're always left behind and work perfectly in this recipe!)
1/2 medium onion, chopped
1 lb. hamburger
1/4 cup water
3 Tablespoons soy sauce
2 Tablespoons sugar
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Directions:
Combine first four ingredients in a small bowl (don't be afraid to use your hands and just mix it all together!).  In a small bowl or liquid measuring cup, mix the remaining ingredients.  Then pour liquid over meat mixture and mix till everything is incorporated.  Mold into patties (I usually make mine heart shaped - I'm a nerd - and can get 5 to 6 decent-sized patties from a batch) and place on a foil lined cookie sheet.  Broil just until they hold together, and then turn over.  (Do not overcook.)  (I don't always broil them - sometimes, if I'm making sweet potato fries to go with them, which is pretty much every time I make them, I just cook them alongside my pan of sweet potatoes at whatever temperature I decide to cook them that day - anything from 375 to 415 usually works great, depending on when I started dinner and how soon we need/want to eat it!)  Serve with ketchup and/or horse radish for dipping.  (We don't eat these with buns like normal burgers; instead we eat them more like meatloaf or something - just by themselves with sweet potato "fries" on the side.)

Notes:
This is a recipe I remember having a handful of times growing up and for some reason just always loved.  It makes quite a regular appearance in our dinner rotation these days.  Callie LOVES them and can eat a whole patty herself!  If you have a cookie sheet that you don't care too much about, these can also been cooked out on the grill (on the cookie sheet - they're really moist and don't hold up well on a grate) when it's too hot to heat up the oven inside.

Dad's Potato Salad

Source: My dad, Richard Elwood


Ingredients:
red potatoes, boiled and cubed
onion, diced fine
eggs, hard boiled and diced
miracle whip
mayonnaise
milk
salt and pepper, to taste
paprika, for sprinkling on top

Directions:
Wash and boil your potatoes till they are tender.  (Dad always leaves the skins on and peels them after they were cooked using a paring knife to gently peel away the skin from the potato.)  Cut them into bite-sized cubes and place them in a large bowl.  Dice an onion (or half an onion . . . or less - totally depends on your taste here and I tend to go for less) and add it to the potatoes in the bowl.  Peel and chop a few hard boiled eggs and add them to the potatoes and onions in the bowl.

For the dressing, mix equal parts mayo and miracle whip in a small bowl.  Add a sqirt of yellow mustard.  Slowly add a little milk to thin it out.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Pour dressing over potatoes, onions and egg and stir to coat.  Sprinkle paprika over the top and chill for several hours before serving.

Notes:
My dad always makes the potato salad for big family gatherings like Memorial Day or Fourth of July picnics, Hardware Ranch trips, and even Callie's baby blessing.  His is really the only potato salad that I really like.  So many times I've seen one served somewhere and thought, "Yeah, potato salad!"  And then I take a big scoop and am utterly disappointed.  Every time.  I'm finally learning to avoid the potato salad at food functions or restaurants and save myself the heartache.  ;)  This year, on Memorial Day, I attempted to make Dad's "recipe" myself to eat with our Shake and Bake Chicken since he wasn't here to do so for me.  I don't think my salad was quite as good as his, but with a couple of decades of practice maybe I can catch up.

Shake and Bake Chicken

Source: My momma, Peggy Elwood

Ingredients:
2 cups dry bread crumbs
½ cup flour
3 teaspoons paprika
4 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons onion powder
2 teaspoons oregano
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ cup shortening
chicken pieces (I like to use the boneless skinless thighs or regular drumsticks)

Directions:
Mix all the ingredients (minus the chicken) together. Skin the chicken (if it has skin) and roll in the breadcrumb mixture.  Bake at ~350 degrees F until chicken is cooked (times will vary depending on the pieces of chicken you're using - a good starting point is usually about a half hour and check from there).  This makes a lot (I coated two big packages of chicken legs and I still have some left over!), but the extra crumb mixture will keep for a long time in a ziploc bag in the fridge.  Note: put a small amount of crumb mix in a bowl for dipping/rolling your chicken in and add to it as needed.  That way your extra crumbs stay chicken juice-free and you can have more deliciousness on another day.

Notes:
According to family legend, this was something my mom made for my dad on one of their first dates . . . and the rest is history!  My memories of it usually involve a President's Day outing to Hardware Ranch to see the elk and go sledding, picnicing on cold Shake and Bake and Dad's potato salad in the car afterwards.  We recently made and devoured it for a Memorial Day picnic in the mountains of Colorado.  Whatever the memories or tales around this chicken may be, it's definitely delicious and worth making.  As Gregg loves to quote every time we make or eat this, "It's shake and bake, and I helped!"

Individual Fruit Pizzas

Source: I've seen the idea a few places on Pinterest, including here and here, but I used my mom's tried and true sugar cookie recipe and the cream cheese frosting recipe from this cake



Ingredients:
for the cookies:
2 eggs
1 cup sour cream
6 cups flour
2 cups shortening
1 level tsp. soda
½ tsp. salt
2 tsp. baking powder
2 1/4 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon lemon extract

for the icing:
8 ounces full-fat cream cheese, softened to room temperature
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
3.5 cups confectioners' sugar
1 - 2 Tablespoons heavy cream (I used 1% milk instead, and while the recipe author said it would be less creamy than cream, I thought it was divinely creamy)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
pinch salt (I skipped this because I had salted butter)

for the fruit toppings:
(*I was making these for a Young Women activity, so I picked fruit that went along with the value colors, but you can use whatever you like/is in season)
bananas, sliced
blueberries
strawberries, sliced
kiwi, sliced
mandarin oranges, drained
fresh pineapple, cut into small, thin slices
purple grapes, halved
fresh peaches, sliced

Directions:
First, make the cookies: Sift baking powder with flour.  Work shortening into flour as you would for pie crust.  Add sugar, beaten eggs, sour cream, salt and soda.  Mix well (I usually have to get my hands dirty and really knead everything together in the bowl).  Add flavoring (more kneading by hand at this point to get it all mixed in and stuck together in a big ball).  (I usually like to let the dough chill in the fridge for a few hours before rolling it out, but it's not completely necessary.)  Roll out, cut into desired shapes (~4-inch circles in this case), and bake at 400° for about 7 minutes or until lightly browned.

While the cookies are baking, mix together the frosting: Using a handheld or stand mixer with a paddle attachment, beat cream cheese and butter together on medium speed until no lumps remain, about 3 full minutes. Add confectioners' sugar, 1 Tablespoon cream (or milk), vanilla extract, and salt with the mixer running on low. Increase to high speed and beat for 3 minutes. Add 1 more Tablespoon of cream (or milk) to thin out, if desired.  (I ended up with about 1 1/2 Tablespoons milk and it was silky smooth and easy to spread.)

When the cookies are cooled, frost with cream cheese frosting and top with fruit as desired.

Makes about 3 dozen 4-inch diameter cookies (and frosting to cover each one of them).

Notes:
As I mentioned above, I prepared these little treats for our New Beginnings refreshments.  Instead of icing and decorating cookies for everyone, I decided to make it a do-it-yourself dessert bar.  I put all the fruit into individual bowls (with cute labels - I don't know what came over me), had a tray of cookies and a few bowls of frosting and let the young women, parents and leaders go to town decorating their own.  It was a huge hit with everyone who attended (and with Gregg and me who got to eat the leftovers for the rest of the week!).

My cute fellow leaders showing off the spread.
(We also had someone bring some mini cupcakes, pictured
in the top left corner there - just so you know that's not part
of the fruit pizza dealio.)

Smiles all around.

Cheesy Spinach Stuffed Pasta Shells

Source: Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Ingredients:
for the sauce:
28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon sugar

for the pasta shells:
24 large pasta shells (about 3/4 of a 12 ounce box)
(*If you want to use the entire box of shells (there are usually about 32 shells total in a 12 ounce box), prepare an 8X8-inch pan in addition to the 9X13-inch pan and consider increasing the filling and sauce by half.)

for the filling:
16 ounces (2 cups) cottage cheese
15 ounces (about 2 cups) part skim ricotta cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
10 ounces frozen, chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry of excess liquid
(*Make sure to squeeze as much liquid out of that spinach as possible so the shells don't have excess liquid (letting the sit for a few minutes after baking will help that, too).)
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
6 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded (about 1 1/2 cups)
(* If you'd like to reserve some of the cheese (or shred extra) for sprinkling on top of the shells and sauce before baking, feel free!)

Directions:
For the sauce, combine all the ingredients in a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer. Continue simmering for 10-15 minutes. Remove from the heat.

While the sauce simmers, in a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the pasta shells al dente according to package directions. Drain and immediately place them in an even layer on paper towels or parchment.

For the filling, in a medium bowl, stir together the cottage cheese, ricotta cheese, salt, pepper, parsley, oregano and basil. Add the spinach and mix until combined. Stir in the cheeses.

Lightly grease a 9X13-inch pan with cooking spray and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spoon about half of the sauce on the bottom of the prepared pan and spread evenly. Fill each pasta shell with an even amount of the filling (about 1/4 cup per shell, more or less) and place the shells on top of the sauce in the pan - making three rows of eight shells.

Pour the remaining sauce evenly over the top of the shells. Cover the dish with aluminum foil and bake for 35-40 minutes. Uncover and bake five or so more minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and let the shells sit for 5-10 minutes before serving.

(*This makes a great freezer meal. Before baking the shells, after they have been fully assembled and covered in sauce, cover the dish with a double layer of aluminum foil and freeze. I usually bake from frozen, adding an hour onto the baking time and uncovering for 15-30 minutes instead of just a couple of minutes (so it would be about an hour and a half covered and then 15-30 minutes uncovered).)

Notes:
So this was pretty much amazing!  But really, how could it not be?  Pasta filled with ooey-gooey cheese topped with a lovely marinara?  Pretty much heaven, if you ask me.  It's kind of similar to a manicotti recipe that I grew up with, but instead of having to stuff the cheese mixture into a tube-shaped shell (or a trick we learned was to cut the cooked tube open, place the filling at one edge and roll up the noodle around the cheese), you just scoop it directly into an open shell.  Super easy.  Don't be afraid of the long list of ingredients.  This really came together quite quickly (not super fast, but not as scary and long as it seems) on a recent Saturday evening.  I didn't bake it at the end but instead kept it in the fridge for Sunday dinner.  I think it took about an hour to cook cold from the fridge, but it was worth it to not have to do any prep.  Just pop, bake and devour.  Delish!

Old Fashioned Iced Oatmeal Cookies

Source: here, via Pinterest and my sister Megan

Ingredients:
for the cookies:
1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats (later you'll see that it says to process the oats in a food processor, since I don't have one, I decided to just use quick oats instead; my sister Megan also didn't blend her oats and she has used both old fashioned rolled and quick oats with success)
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1 cup butter, softened (I used salted)
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup light-brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract

for the icing:
2 cups powdered sugar
3 Tbsp milk
(*I halved the icing recipe because I thought it seemed like it would be way too much - turns out it iced exactly half of my batch, so the amounts are right.  But the un-iced cookies were tasty, too, so you can do what you like.)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pour oats into a food processor and pulse until partially ground, about 15 seconds (as noted above in the ingredients list, both Megan and I did NOT do this step and the cookies were totally great). In a mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and ground oats, for 30 seconds.

In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, whip butter, granulated sugar and light-brown sugar on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 - 4 minutes. Add in eggs one at a time, mixing until combined after each addition. Stir in vanilla. With mixer set on low speed, slowly add in dry ingredients and mix just until combined (scrape bottom and sides of bowl as needed). Allow cookie dough to rest 10 minutes at room temperature.

Scoop dough out about 2 Tbsp at a time and drop onto a silpat or parchment paper lined baking sheet.

Bake in preheated oven 11 - 15 minutes. Allow cookies to rest on baking sheet several minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

In a mixing bowl whisk together powdered sugar and milk and dip tops of cooled cookies in icing and allow excess to run off or alternately spread icing over cookies. Return to wire rack and allow icing to set. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

Notes:
When my family came to visit at the beginning of June they brought a batch of these cookies along for the trip.  They were nice enough to share with us after dinner one evening, and oh boy!  What a treat!  I didn't hesitate long after they had left to whip up my own batch of these marvelous goodies.  They're so good.  Just like the ones from the store.  But better.  I love the spiciness from the cinnamon and nutmeg and the sweetness from the perfectly hardening glaze.  Triple yum!