Crispy Herb-Coated Pork Chops

I usually have a hard time finding pork chop recipes that my family will eat. Most of the time the flavor was lacking. Russell tried this and really liked the crispy coating and the flavor. This makes it a keeper in my book! morgainegeiser from Ypsi, Michigan was my teammate for this recipe. This was part of the September 2010 Aussie/NZ recipe swap.

Crispy Herb-Coated Pork Chops
1/3 cup butter or margarine, cubed
2/3 cup instant mashed potatoes with butter and herbs
2/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
3/4 tsp garlic powder
4 pork loin chops (boneless would probably work best)
2 TBSP vegetable oil

In a shallow bowl, melt butter. In a large ziploc bag combine potato flakes, cheese and garlic powder. Dip chops one at a time in butter, then place in bag. Seal and shake to coat. In a large skillet, cook chops in oil over medium heat for 7-8 minutes on each side or until chops are no longer pink.

Chicken Chow Mein

I am always on the prowl for a good chinese recipe. I really like chow mein and this one is full of yummy veggies! We also doubled the amount of shrimp because we are shrimp fans! This recipe also called for homemade fried noodles which I opted to leave out. They seemed like more work than what I had time for. We ended up eating this over brown rice and with egg rolls. Super easy to put together and everyone liked it! This is part of the September 2010 Aussie/NZ recipe swap. My teammate is mersaydees from Southern Maine.

Chicken Chow Mein
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch pieces
8 oz boneless lean pork, cut into 1 inch pieces
3 tsp cornstarch, divided
2 1/2 TBSP apple juice, divided
2 TBSP soy sauce, divided
1/2 cup water
2 tsp instant chicken bouillon
2 TBSP vegetable oil
1 tsp powdered ginger
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 lb shrimp, deveined and shelled
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 red or green bell pepper, thinly sliced
2 stalks celery, cut into 1 inch pieces
8 green onions, chopped - with tops
4 oz cabbage, shredded (I bought a small napa cabbage and used 1/2 of that)

In a large bowl combine 1 tsp cornstarch, 1 1/2 tsp apple juice and 1 1/2 tsp soy sauce. Add chicken and pork. Coat well. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour.
Combine remaining 2 tsp cornstarch, 2 TBSP apple juice, 1 1/2 TBSP soy sauce, water and bouillon in small bowl, set aside.
Heat oil in wok or large skillet over high heat. Toss in powdered ginger and garlic. Stir fry 1 minute. Add chicken and pork. Stir fry until cooked through and no longer pink. Add shrimp. Stir fry until shrimp turns pink. Toss veggies into wok. Stir fry until crisp tender. Add sauce mixture. Cook and stir until sauce boils and thickens.
Serve chow mein over fried noodles (either homemade or store-bought) or white or brown rice.

Savory Bread Cases

I doubled the recipe on this one. I am so glad I did! It was a huge hit with the family! The leftover filling also makes a very tasty sauce for macaroni and cheese! This recipe comes from my teammate mummamills from Maryborough, Queensland, Australia. I made this for the July 2010 Aussie/NZ recipe swap.

Savory Bread Cases

24 slices bread - store bought works best

margarine

8 oz bacon (this equals 1/2 lb), diced

1 lg onion, diced

2 cups shredded cheese - I used cheddar and mozzarella

3 tsp minced garlic

8 TBSP flour - you may not need it all

5 cups milk

1 pinch dry mustard

salt and pepper to taste

Cut crusts from bread slices. Spread very lightly with butter or margarine. Press, butter side down into muffin tins. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes - until bread cases are dry. (These can also be frozen for use at a later time.)

Spray frying pan with vegetable oil. Add diced bacon and onion. Saute over a high heat until bacon is cooked. Add garlic and saute a minute longer.

In same skillet- add in flour - 1 TBSP at a time, stirring with a wooden spoon until it is completely absorbed. Keep stirring and gradually whisk in milk. Stir until thickened and there are no lumps. Allow to cook for about 2 minutes, stirring constantly.

Remove from heat and add cheese and mustard. Stir until cheese is melted.

Refrigerate mixture until serving time.

Put bread cases on a large cookie sheet. Fill with cheese mixture. You may want to sprinkle additional cheese on top. I sprinkled parsley for color. Bake ato 350 degrees for 15 minutes.

Corn Chowder

This chowder is one of my go-to comfort foods. Especially when it's cold like it's been. This recipe I got from my sister-in-law Carrie. She got it from my mother-in-law. Russell doesn't particularly care for it - but I LOVE it! So it gets to come to my recipe blog. As a side note...I like to do my bacon in the oven. It's less messy that way. I keep a canning jar in the fridge for bacon drippings. Actually there are about 5 or so in my freezer as well. Who knows....they just might come in handy. When I need a bit of bacon drippings here or there - I just scoop it out and return the jar to the fridge.

Corn Chowder
1/2 lb bacon, cooked and crumbled, save 3 TBSP of drippings
1 small onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 TBSP flour
3 1/2 cups milk
1/4 tsp pepper
4 cups corn, cream style or not - it's up to you (canned or fresh or frozen is also your option)
3 cups diced potatoes, cooked and drained
parsley - to make it look pretty (you decide)
paprika - to make it look pretty (again - you decide)

Cook onion and celery in bacon fat about 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in flour. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture is bubbly. This step doesn't take very long at all. Stir in milk. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. This step takes awhile. You want to end up with a nice thick creamy base for your chowder. Boil and stir 1 minute. Stir in pepper, corn, potatoes, parsley and paprika. Stir in bacon.
Serves: 6

Cannelone Crepes

This yummy recipe comes from Mom Zaugg. She made it for her family while they were growing up. The first time I had it was before Russell and I got married. I instantly fell in love with it.

Cannelone Crepes

Crepes:

2 cups flour

2 cups milk

1/4 cup oil

1/4 tsp salt

3 eggs

Beat together until well blended. Cook in crepe pan or if you are me and don't own a crepe pan...I do mine on the pancake griddle and use a spatula to spread them out so they are thin. As the crepes are done cooking I like to lay them on a clean kitchen towel, overlapping slightly. Set aside when done making crepes.

Filling:

1 8 oz cream cheese, softened

2 eggs

2 cups cottage cheese

4 green onions, thinly sliced

1 cube butter or margarine

1 28 oz jar spaghetti sauce

Parmesan cheese

Beat filling ingredients together until fluffy. Fill crepes. I like to fill them peanut butter style. Spread the filling over the crepes like you would peanut butter on bread. Roll crepes and place in a greased 9x13 baking pan. You may need a smaller pan for any extra crepes that don't fit in the big pan. If this is the case - then divide 1 jar of spaghetti sauce over both pans. Otherwise use the entire jar of sauce on the big pan. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 3o minutes uncovered. We like this with homemade breadsticks.

Cat Head Biscuits with Sawmill Gravy

When I first saw this recipe I did a double take. Cat Head biscuits! No actual cats were used in the making of this recipe. :) This is actually one I chose as part of the May 2010 Aussie/NZ recipe swap. My teammate is Crafty Lady 13 from Dalton, Ohio. She found the recipe in Deen Brother's Y'all Come Eat cookbook. The biscuits have this name because they are the size of a cat's head. I can tell you it was an attention getter at the dinner table though!

Cat Head Biscuits

3 cups self-rising flour**

1 1/2 cups buttermilk

2 TBSP butter or margarine, cut into pieces and softened

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray baking sheet with cooking spray and set aside. In a medium bowl combine flour, buttermilk and butter just until the dough comes together. On a floured surface pat the dough into a 1 1/2 inch thick round. Cut the dough into 6 4-inch circles. (I only had a 3 inch cookie cutter - so mine were a bit smaller.) Transfer biscuits to baking sheet. Bake about 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.

**If you are like me and don't buy self-rising flour - it can be made at home. You will need:

1 cup all purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

Mix well and use for every 1 cup of self rising flour.

Sawmill Gravy

1 lb bulk sausage

4 1/2 TBSP flour

2 1/2 cups milk

salt and pepper to taste

In a large skillet brown sausage. Sprinkle flour over sausage and coat well. Gradually add milk and stir. Bring to a boil and stir until gravy is thickened. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Break open biscuits and spoon gravy generously over the top. Enjoy!

Breaded Fish with Rice Pilaf

We don't eat a lot of fish at our house - but when we do - this is one of the ways we like it. I like to use cod but when it is too expensive - any white fish should work. As for the Rice Pilaf - this recipe comes from Mom and Dad Dysart. Not sure where they got it from - but Russell really likes it. That's all that matters at my house.

Breaded Fish
desired amount of fish to feed your family
1-2 eggs, beaten
salt and pepper
1 1/2 cups fine bread crumbs - either homemade or storebought
parmesan cheese
Italian seasoning

Cut fish into serving pieces. Coat in beaten egg. If you have a lot of people in your family - 2 eggs are the better option.
Combine bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, salt and pepper and Italian seasoning in a food processor and mix well. I just eyeball the cheese and seasonings.
Coat the fish pieces in breadcrumb mixture and place on a baking sheet that has been sprayed with vegetable spray. Bake at 500 degrees for about 15 minutes or until fish is flaky when you go to separate it with a fork.
Serve with tartar sauce if desired.

Rice Pilaf
2 cups long grain white rice
2 1/2 TBSP oil
4 cups boiling water
4 tsp boullion
3/4 cup thin pasta (such as angel hair or spaghetti)

Combine rice, oil and pasta in a skillet. Over high heat brown the rice. Pour into a 2 qt casserole dish. Add boullion and boiling water. Mix. Cover casserole and bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes.

Salisbury Steak with Onion Gravy

I don't have a picture for this tasty meal! It was a huge hit with the family though. I got this recipe years ago from a Taste of Home magazine.

Salisbury Steak with Onion Gravy

1 egg
1 can (1o 1/2 oz) condensed French onion soup, undiluted, divided
1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
1/4 tsp salt
pinch of pepper
1 1/2 lb ground beef
1 TBSP flour
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup ketchup
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp prepared mustard
hot cooked noodles or rice

In a large bowl beat egg. Stir in 1/3 cup soup, bread crumbs, salt and pepper. Add beef. Mix gently. Shape into 6 oval patties. Brown in a skillet over medium heat for 4-5 minutes on each side. Remove and set aside. Discard drippings.

In small bowl combine flour and water until smooth. Add ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, mustard and remaining soup.

Add patties back to skillet. Add sauce mixture. Cook and stir gently for a couple minutes. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Serve patties and gravy over noodles or rice.

Sunday Roast Chicken

Sorry - no pictures on this one! It went too fast!
I found the recipe in a cookbook called Fix-It and Forget-It Recipes for Entertaining. There was just enough chicken picked off the carcass to make a gravy for another meal. It went over really, really well. We had this with mashed potatoes and veggies.

Sunday Roast Chicken
Seasoning Mix:
1 TBSP salt
2 tsp paprika
1 1/2 tsp onion powder
1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 1/2 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dry mustard
1 tsp cumin
2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp savory (I have no idea what savory is so I used Beau Monde instead)

Combine seasoning mix in small bowl.

2 TBSP butter or margarine
2 cups chopped onions
1 cup chopped celery
1 roasting chicken (mine was almost 5 lbs)
1/4 cup flour
1-2 cups chicken stock

Saute onions and celery in butter over high heat until onions are golden brown. Add in 3 TBSP seasoning mix. Mix well and let veggies cool.
Stuff bird with cooled vegetables.
Sprinkle outside of chicken with remaining seasoning mix. Rub in well.
Place chicken in large slow cooker. Cover. Cook on low for 6 hours.
Empty juices into saucepan. Whisk in flour and 1 cup chicken stock. Cook over high heat until thickened. Add more stock if you prefer a thinner gravy.

Tortilla Stack

I found this recipe while we lived in Arizona. Money was super tight for groceries. I think at this time we had roughly $20/week for groceries. Thank goodness for food storage I tell you! I found this recipe in a book from the library called The Crockery Cook.

Tortilla Stack
1 1/2 lb uncooked lean ground beef
1 pint pinto or black beans
8 corn tortillas, each cut into 6 wedges
1 (10 3/4 oz) can cheddar cheese soup, undiluted
1 pkg taco seasoning
3 medium tomatoes, chopped
sour cream
shredded lettuce
chopped green onion
chopped red bell pepper
sliced olives
peeled and chopped avocado
grated cheddar cheese

Combine soup and taco mix. Set aside.

Spray crockpot with veggie spray. Crumble 1/4 of ground beef into bottom of crockpot Top with 1/4 of beans. Top with 1/4 of tortilla wedges. Spread 1/4 soup mixture over tortillas. Sprinkle with 1/4 tomatoes. Repeat layers until all beef, beans, tortilla wedges, soup mixture and tomatoes are in crockpot. Cover and cook on low 4-5 hours. Spoon onto individual plates. Top with sour cream, lettuce, green onion, bell pepper, olives or avocado if desired. Additional cheddar cheese may also be used.

Chicken with Parmesan Cream Sauce

This chicken was so easy to put together and so moist! The sauce was perfect for mixing with pasta to create an "Alfredo" kind of side dish. I chose this recipe from my teammate LifeIsGood from Michigan. This was part of the March 2010 Aussie/NZ recipe swap on recipezaar.com.

Chicken with Parmesan Cream Sauce
4-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts (I used thigh/leg quarters - bone in since that's what I had)
1/2 cup flour
6 TBSP butter or margarine, divided
16 mushrooms, sliced (I used baby bellas - my favorite)
2 cups heavy cream
salt and pepper
2/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
paprika

Melt 3 TBSP butter. Coat chicken with flour then dip in butter. Arrange in 9x13 baking pan. Melt remaining butter. Saute mushrooms until softened. Spread mushrooms over chicken. Pour in cream. Season with salt and pepper. Top with parmesan cheese. Cover and refrigerate overnight and all the next day until ready to make dinner.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Sprinkle paprika over chicken. Bake uncovered 20-30 minutes if doing just boneless chicken breasts.
If you did bone-in like I did - I baked my chicken at 375 for 1 hour 15 minutes. I probably would have been fine doing less time but I like to make sure my chicken is cooked all the way.
When chicken was done....
I removed the chicken to a plate and had angel hair pasta already cooked and ready to add to the cream sauce in the pan. I added in some garlic salt, pepper and additional parmesan cheese to make an "Alfredo" pasta side dish.

Macaroni and Cheese

Classic Macaroni and Cheese is the correct name of this so yummy, creamy mac-n-cheese. There was an actual macaroni and cheese cookoff in Portland either this week or last week with chefs from everywhere making their own creations. The requirement - using Tillamook cheese products! You can go to www.tillamookcheese.com then click on the recipes link. From there are many choices to choose from. If you click on the recipe link for Macaroni and Cheese there will be many choices to peruse at your leisure. After having done this myself....I opted to make the below recipe for my family. It was a winner!

Classic Macaroni and Cheese
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. I will tell you what I did to the recipe to make it work for my family. If you want the original - go to the website.

16 oz small elbow macaroni - cook per package directions and drain

3/4 cup breadcrumbs - either homemade or panko
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 TBSP softened butter
Combine these ingredients in a medium size bowl and set aside.

4 cups Colby Jack cheese shredded and set aside

In a large dutch oven melt 3 TBSP butter.
Add:
4 TBSP flour and whisk well. Gradually add 3 cups **whole milk. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and stir in:
2 pinches of nutmeg
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper (If your family doesn't like spicy - leave out. It adds a nice "kick.")
1 1/2 tsp dry mustard
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
Cook, stirring continuously until sauce begins to thicken. About 7 minutes. Remove from heat and add 4 cups shredded cheese. Stir until smooth. Stir in pasta. Pour into 9x13 baking pan that has been sprayed with vegetable spray. Top with breadcrumb mixture. Bake uncovered until cheese is bubbling and the top is golden. Approximately 25-30 minutes.


**On the whole milk...
I don't buy whole milk. I like the powdered milk from the LDS cannery and found out I can make my own - which I did for this recipe. 1 cup powdered milk and 3 cups water in a blender makes the amount of milk needed for this recipe. Just thought you should know that. :) Maybe this helps lessen the fat content - not that you should be worrying about that if you are eating macaroni and cheese in the first place. Enjoy! This makes excellent leftovers as well. Hence the 9x13 pan. This recipe can always be halved.

Shrimp in Lemon Cream Sauce

This recipe was probably hands down the most favorite out of all the recipes I chose this month for the Aussie/NZ recipe swap on recipezaar. My teammate was I'mPat from Perth West Coast of Australia. Her original recipe she posted calls this Seafood in Lemon Cream Sauce. We don't like scallops so left those out and probably tripled the shrimp as we love those. She found the recipe from The Australian Women's Weekly After Work Fast. It is fast going to together. The kids all thought it was definite restaurant quality. Which is a HUGE compliment coming from them.

Shrimp in Lemon Cream Sauce
2 1/2 lbs large shrimp or prawns (I buy mine already cooked and if the tails are still on - just pull the shells off)
2 tsp vegetable oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
4 tsp lemon juice
4 TBSP apple juice
1 1/2 cups cream
Parsley for garnish if desired
hot pasta
In a bowl - combine shrimp, oil and garlic. Let marinate for a couple hours.
Simmer lemon juice and apple juice in a pan, uncovered until reduced by half. Add cream and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered for a couple of minutes. Since my shrimp was already cooked - I added the whole bowl at this point and simmered until hot.

Cook up some asparagus and or sugar snap peas. Set aside.

When the shrimp is heated through - you will probably have to eat a couple just to make sure - Drain the sauce into the hot pasta. Mix well. It makes a fettuccine kind of dish. Serve shrimp over pasta and add vegetables.

Olive Garden's Zuppa Tuscana

Olive Garden's Zuppa Tuscana
1 lb sausage
6 medium red potatoes, cut in half lengthwise and cut into 1/4 inch slices
3/4 cup diced onions
6 slices bacon
1 1/2 tsp minced garlic
2 cups fresh baby spinach, sliced thinly
3 TBSP chicken boullion
2 quarts water
1 cup heavy cream

Cook ground sausage until done. Cook bacon and onion over medium heat, when bacon is crisp - remove. Leave the onion. Add garlic to the onion and cook 1 minute. Add boullion, water, and potatoes. Simmer 15 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Crumble bacon. Add to soup. Add heavy cream and heat thoroughly. Serve with croutons or crackers or french bread or breadsticks.

Chicken Wild Rice Soup

I was at WinCo yesterday stocking up on essentials in their bulk section. I love the bulk section! I came across a wild rice mixture so bought just enough to try. I knew I had saved this recipe and today was the time to make it! This recipe comes from recipezaar and the chef is Juenessa. This is a thick hearty soup and one we will be making often!
Chicken Wild Rice Soup
2 quarts chicken broth
1/2 lb fresh mushrooms, chopped (this was the only item left out)
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup sliced carrots
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 tsp chicken bouillon granules (I ended up with 4 tsp. Personal preference)
1 tsp dried parsley flakes
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1/4 cup flour
1 (10 3/4 oz) can cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
3 cups cooked wild rice
2 cups cubed cooked chicken

In a dutch oven melt butter. Stir in flour until smooth. Gradually whisk in chicken broth. Add vegetables, bouillon and spices. Reduce heat and simmer until veggies are done. Add cream soup, rice and chicken. Heat through and serve with your favorite bread. We enjoyed this with homemade biscuits. It will be awesome in school lunches on Monday!

Easy Hash Brown Pancakes

I made these little tasty morsels today for the September 2008 Aussie/NZ recipe swap. The poster is morgainegeiser from Michigan. She in turn got it from an old "Taste of Home" magazine. Michael liked them so much he gave me a HUGE thumbs up!

Easy Hash Brown Pancakes

3 cups frozen hash brown potatoes**
2 TBSP flour
2 eggs, beaten
3 TBSP butter, melted
1 1/2 tsp water
1/2 tsp salt (OR) salt and pepper to taste - that's what I did
1 TBSP vegetable oil
Place the hashbrowns in a strainer, rinse with cold water until thawed. Drain thoroughly; transfer to a large bowl.
Add the flour, eggs, butter, water and salt; mix well. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Drop batter by 1/3 cupfuls into oil; fry until golden brown on both sides. Drain on paper towels.
**I didn't have frozen hashbrowns. I did have dehydrated ones though. So - I rehydrated them and proceeded making the recipe. They worked out really, really well. We had these for dinner along with french toast. It was perfect.

Biscuits and Sausage Gravy

One of my most favorite comfort foods is biscuits and gravy. It has to be homemade though. I am rather picky that way. I like it served with this yummy fruit salad.

Biscuits and Gravy
Biscuits:
2 cups flour
2 tsp sugar
1 TBSP baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup shortening
2/3 cup milk*
*If you want to use buttermilk - use 3/4 cup buttermilk and add 1/4 tsp baking soda to dry ingredients.
Gravy:
1/3 cup butter or margarine
1/3 cup flour
3 cups milk
1/2 lb ground sausage, precooked
Melt butter. Add flour. Mix well until no lumps are left. Gradually add milk to make a thick gravy. Add sausage, salt and pepper to taste. For biscuits - combine dry ingredients. Cut in shortening and add milk. Roll out and cut into desired size. Bake at 450 degree oven for 10-12 minutes. Serve gravy over biscuits.

Fruit Salad

1 8 oz Pina Colada yogurt

2 medium bananas, sliced

1 cup fresh strawberries, sliced

1 cup green grapes

1 cup red grapes

1 11 oz can mandarin oranges, drained

Combine all ingredients well in bowl. Serve right away.

** Of course other fruits can be added. This is what I had available. Any yogurt can used as well. This one happens to be my favorite. Enjoy!

Homemade Tortillas

I am a sucker for homemade tortillas. I can't even tell you when the last time was that I actually bought them from the store. It's been a long time. These are so easy to make. If you can mix, roll and put on a griddle - then you can make these.
Homemade Tortillas
3 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 cup hot water
1/4 cup vegetable oil

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Stir in water and oil. Turn dough onto lightly floured surface and knead for 2-3 minutes until it is smooth and has no lumps. Cover dough with a towel and let it rest for 15 minutes.

Divide dough into 10 pieces. (You can do 12 if you really want to. I like my tortillas thicker.) Roll into balls.
Roll each tortilla into a circle about 8 inches round. You are allowed to roll these babies as thick/thin as you like. I like them thick.
Place on hot griddle. Turn over when these brown spots begin to appear.
Tacos anyone? How about enchiladas? Quesadillas? What was that you said? You wanted a cheese quesadilla with taco soup? Okay. :)