<p>On the subject of chile sauce (yes, in the ketchup area of the store) my favorite recipe to bring to a party:</p>
<p>Frozen meatballs…not italian style if you can help it- I use homestyle.
1 bottle chile sauce
1 small jar grape jelly</p>
<p>put in slowcooker and cook 2-3 hours until heated. They always get a wow from wherever I bring them, and they fit my three ingredient or fewer rule.</p>
<p>NorthMinnesota, tried the chicken with sundried tomatoes and artichokes and it was delicious! Added some chili pepper flakes and a splash of red wine, simmered a little longer, but it was gulped up here.</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>Here’s the savory bread pudding recipe I mentioned in the other food thread. I made it for a big crowd as a side/main dish (main for the vegetarians) and it was a big hit. It also freezes well.
(from Deborah Madison’s “Local Flavors”, a wonderful cookbook)</p>
<p>Asparagus and Wild mushroom Bread Pudding:
1 head green garlic (I just use a couple of cloves regular garlic, don’t even know what green garlic is)
3 cups milk
1 lb. loaf good firm white bread, cut into thick slices (I use ciabatta). Make sure it’s stale and dried out. can’t use fresh bread for bread pudding!
1-2 lbs. asparagus
salt & pepper
1 1/2T. butter
1 large shallot
1/2 - 1 lb. mushrooms (I use a combination of portobella and shiitaki. The actual recipe calls for chanterelles or morels, both of which were over $20/lb. last time I looked)
4 large eggs
1/3 cup parsley
3T chopped tarragon
2 cups grated fontina or gruyere cheese</p>
<p>Preheat oven 350. Lightly butter or oil 8x12 dish. Mince garlic and add it to milk, bring to boil and turn off heat. Break bread into chunks and pour milk over it. let it soak up as much of the milk as possible. Slice the aspargus on the diagonal, steam or boil it til bright green, then drain. Melt butter in a skillet, add shallot, cook for 1 min. then add mushrooms. Cook until brown and tender, season with salt and pepper, and set aside. Break eggs into a large bowl, beat until smooth. Add herbs, 1 t. salt and pepper, the bread/milk and the aspargus and mushrooms. Add 2/3 of the cheese, and toss well. Pour into the prepared dish and scatter remaining cheese over the top. Bake about 45 minutes.</p>
<p>Here’s an easy dinner salad that is a big hit in our family. Vary the quantities depending on whether it’s dinner or a side or whatever. It’s a variation on a Mario Batalo recipe.</p>
<p>Apple Prosciutto Salad:</p>
<p>1) Make dressing in large bowl or pot: 6 TBS olive oil, 1.5 TBS vinegar (red wine, white wine, sherry, or balsamic). A dash of dijon mustard to thicken. Salt. Pepper. Whisk.</p>
<p>2) Add a bag of “spring mix” salad greens.</p>
<p>3) Peel and core two Granny Smiths green apples. Dice and add to salad.</p>
<p>4) Add a handful or two of lightly chopped walnut or pecan halves (or just buy the pieces).</p>
<p>5) Add a little thinly sliced onion, if you like. Or don’t.</p>
<p>6) Use a veggie peeler to shave curls of fresh Parmeggiano Reggiano cheese on salad.</p>
<p>7) Toss to distribute dressing, cheese, nuts, and apples.</p>
<p>Arrange slices of Proscuittto rolled up in tubes around outside of dinner plate. Mound salad in center of plate. Serve and enjoy.</p>
<p>The quantities aren’t fixed or critical. Like more nuts, add more nuts. Wanna use poppy seeds instead of nuts? Fine. Run out of nuts, but have a bag of croutons? OK, use croutons. Substitue honey dew melon or pears for the apple? No sweat.</p>
<hr>
<p>I whipped up a loose variation on this tonight. Made the dressing with balsamic. Used fresh baby spinach instead of spring mix. Used diced pears instead of apple. Used crumbled roquefort cheese instead of the parma. Used croutons instead of nuts. (Because that’s the stuff we had). It was outstanding. the pears, blue cheese, and balsamic really work with the baby spinach.</p>
<p>And on the subject of salads:</p>
<p>Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad</p>
<p>I’m really lazy, so when I sautee or grill chicken breasts, I do enough for two meals. Have them one night with some kind of salsa on top and throw a couple of cooked breasts in the fridge for my chicken caesar.</p>
<p>Sautee the chicken breasts over high heat in olive oil and some garlic so they get nice and crispy brown. You want some little blackened bits for this. Or grill outside. Your choice.</p>
<p>I’m lazy and not wild about raw egg, so I make a faux Caesar dressing. For two large dinner salads:</p>
<p>1) 4 TBS olive oil, 1TBS red wine vinegar, a dash of dijon, salt, pepper, a couple of dashes of Worcester Sauce, and (if nobody is looking) a finely diced anchovy. Whisk in the bottom of a large pot or bowl.</p>
<p>2) Add one of the three hearts of romaine that comes in a package (washed and chopped or torn). Add some thinly sliced onion (I like vidalia, red onion is nice).</p>
<p>3) Grate a copious quantity of fresh Parmeggianno Regianno cheese over the salad.</p>
<p>4) Add some nice Caesar or Butter/Garlic croutons.</p>
<p>5) Dice or slice 1.5 to 2 of the cooked and cooled chicken breasts.</p>
<p>6) Toss it all really well in the pot to distribute the goodies.</p>
<p>Mound (or mountain!) on a dinner plate. This is a fantastic dinner salad.</p>
<p>Bela, green garlic is garlic sprouts. It’s like the garlic version of scallions (green onions). It’s delicious. We get it from the farm that supplies us with a box of veggies every week; I’ve never seen it in stores.</p>
<p>mom60, funny you should mention the Sweet and Sour Brisket from the Joy of Cooking. I make that (much more labor-intensive) recipe for Passover also – in fact, last year I made four of them for my 18 guests!! – but during the year, I make this quick recipe instead.</p>
<p>As an empty-nester (who also happens to be unemployed, so I’ve got lots of time to think about these things), I’m actually enjoying cooking for DH and myself. I’ve got the usuals:</p>
<p>Hamburgers
Steak (what could be easier?) or London broil
Pounded and breaded boneless chicken breasts
Above breasts under tomato sauce, parmesan cheese, and mozarrella cheese
Spaghetti with meat sauce (browned ground beef and a bottle of sauce)
Pork chops
Roast chicken – I cut up the leftovers for chicken salad, with grapes cut in half and chopped walnuts and celery – lots of crunch!)</p>
<p>One of the best items I’ve found in the grocery is a big package of Purdue boneless chicken breasts – I think there are 12 in the package – with every two of them vacuum-sealed in plastic. I toss them all in the freezer when I get home, then defrost one package of two whenever I need them.</p>
<p>I also have a more labor intensive brisket, but it isn’t too much work. I use soup greens, tomato paste, lots of carrots, couple of bay leaves, and red wine. If someone is really interested I could always post the exact recipe. My tip is to make a lot of it, slice it once it cools down and freeze it. When you pull it out the meat is very tender (unless you bought something that was real shoe leather to begin with).</p>
<p>One of my favorite recipes is as follows: in a bowl mix the juice of two lemons, tablespoon of lemon zest, 2 minced garlic cloves, 2 tbsp dried oregano, 2 tbsp. olive oil and salt and pepper. In baking pan, place 4 split chicken breasts, (bone in), sliced zucchini, diced red potatoes, mushrooms and onions (your choice for the amount - I like a lot of vegetables and a little chicken. Pour marinade over everything and bake at 350 until chicken is done and potatoes are browned.</p>
<p>Glad it worked for you cpeltz!!! :)</p>
<p>Years ago, when the children were little, I was working full-time, and commuting a great distance, I took a week off just to hang around town. Several of the other moms and I went to the beach with the children and started chatting about recipes. </p>
<p>I was bemoaning the fact that I didn’t have enough “walk in the house and 20 minutes later sit down to eat” recipes. One stay-at-home-mom started telling me about a quick recipe she had: "Take a bowl, pour in some Rice Krispies, . . . . "</p>
<p>I interrupted: “I know that recipe! You pour on milk, sprinkle some sugar, and call it dinner!!”</p>
<p>She was horrified. Her plan was to make the Rice Krispies into crumbs and use it to coat chicken on something . . .</p>
<p>VeryHappy~ tried your chicken breasts last night & unfortunately I’m the only one who liked them! They were very tender. So one out of three stars!
(Chicken breast, apricot preserves, thousand island & lipton soup recipe.)</p>
<p>WhirledPeas2U; thanks so much for that laff. It woke me out of my stupor.</p>
<p>I found the chili sauce! I went to a different grocery store and found it exactly where Very Happy said—in the ketchup aisle next to the cocktail sauce. Next time I’ll use it. </p>
<p>I have a couple of boneless skinless chicken breasts in the fridge. I think I’ll cut them into strips, season, and brown them in a frying pan. Remove them from the pan. Then, saute some onion, garlic, and green pepper. Put the browned chicken back into the pan with the sauteed onion, garlic, and pepper and then add either tomato sauce or a can of diced or crushed tomatoes. Season the mix with oregano, basil, salt, pepper, and a splash of white wine. Cover and simmer on a low flame until I think it’s all cooked and blended well. Then, I’m going to pour it all over some cooked penne and mix it all up. Sprinkle with a little mozzerella on top and pop it in the oven about 40 min. or so before hubby comes home from work.</p>
<p>Brilliant, nysmile. Again – what time?? I’ll bring dessert.</p>
<p>Found this in a “Award Winning” home style cookbook years ago. There are never leftovers when I prepare it.</p>
<p>Soy Ginger Chicken</p>
<p>*Mix about 1/2 cup vinegar, two tablespoons of honey, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce and about a teaspoon of powdered ginger
*Brown chicken drumsticks and thighs in a skillet, the remove chicken to another plate
*discard most, but not all, of the rendered chicken fat
*add the vinegar mixture to the skillet, stir and bring to a boil
*return chicken to skillet, add fresh garlic to taste and chili flakes, lower heat and cover
*chicken should be done in about 10 minutes</p>
<p>for a thicker sauce, when meat is cooked through, remove the cover and the chicken and cook the sauce uncovered until thickened</p>
<p>An Easy Lenten Fish Meal for 4</p>
<p>Oven at 400 F
Into 4 12 x 13 rectangles of aluminum foil divide and layer:</p>
<p>1 lb. white fish fillet
4 t lemon juice
1 medium tomato, seeded and chopped
16 medium asparagus spears, trimmed to 6 inches
2 scallions sliced
2 T chopped fresh dill, cilantro or tarragon (or 2 t dried dill or tarragon)
salt and paper</p>
<p>Fold the foil and made a double 1/2 inch seal on all cut edges. Bake for 10 minutes, let stand for 5 minutes. If you use parchment paper you can micro full power for 9 or 10 minutes.</p>
<p>Update on Very Happy’s brisket. I made it today after reading the rave reviews! My family loved it! Fortunately I made enough to get at least a second dinner out of it. I asked my family if they liked this recipe or my recipe better. They told me that they liked both. My son said that to decide he would have to taste test them side by side. My old recipe is much more time consuming, so this one is a keeper! It is so easy to mix 3 ingredients together and just pop it in the oven! Thank you!</p>
<p>I think I will try the brisket tomorrow. Sounds good. Does cranberry jelly mean the jellied sauce that comes in a can?</p>