Casserole #7 - Hurry-Up Broccoli Casserole

The Year of Casseroles

Casserole #7 - Hurry-Up Broccoli Casserole

 I'll start off by saying that for a little twist, I used a combination of cauliflower and broccoli. You could also make this with a different vegetable mixture, with chunks of chicken added in, or with a bread crumb topping. This recipe is in from The County Fair Cookbook, published in 1994. My modifications are in Italics. 

Ingredients:

20 oz (2 10oz packages) frozen cup-up broccoli, thawed (I used a cauliflower/broccoli mix)

8 oz cottage cheese

6 oz (1 1/2 cups) Cheddar (or Monterrey Jack), grated

3 eggs, lightly beaten

3 tbsp flour

1 tsp salt

1 tsp dry mustard

1/4 tsp pepper

1 tsp spicy seasoning (optional)

1 chicken breast, cut into chunks and cooked (optional)

Optional - Bread Crumb Topping:

  3 tbsp melted butter or olive oil

  1 cup bread crumbs (Seasoned or add your favorite seasoning to crumbs)

Bread Crumb Topping Directions: Stir together oil/melted butter and bread crumbs until thoroughly combined. Sprinkle over top of casserole before baking.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 8x8 square baking dish or equivalent casserole. Mix all ingredients, until combined. Do not over mix. Spoon mixture into greased dish/casserole. Top with bread crumb mixture if using. Bake for 30 minutes or until bubbling and browned on top. Sprinkle with spicy or other seasoning if desired. Serves six. 

Hurry-Up Broccoli Casserole

Appetizer #18 - Sweet Zucchini Pickles

 The Year of Appetizers

Appetizer #18 - Sweet Zucchini Pickles

    The Olive and The Caper is a cookbook of Greek recipes, published in 2004.  It is a beautiful cookbook and I look forward to trying more of its recipes. The opening section teaches us about the many regions of Greece, and this book contains recipes from all over this beautiful country. I really enjoyed this appetizer and have now made it twice, before even writing about it. A friend of mine who is Greek, said she liked them and that's all I needed to hear. Note that you can also serve this appetizer as a salad or side dish. Also, it would be best to keep it in a glass bowl, not plastic dishes, as the turmeric in the recipe stains plastic. And if you do keep it in a plastic container, it's worth having a stained container, because it's so good. It's not difficult to make, so try this recipe!! Also, I made a smaller batch than what the recipe calls for, so look for my modifications in italics. 

    The quote by Hesiod, circa 700 B.C.E., below is included towards the front of the book. It is a wish that you have plenty of food and do not know hunger. In Roman mythology, Demeter is the goddess of agriculture, fertility, the Earth and its harvest. 

"....That hunger may hate you, and venerable Demeter, richly crowned, may love you and fill your barn with food.."

Ingredients:

4 small to medium zucchini,  with the ends trimmed and sliced into 1/4-inch rounds

1 to 1 1/2 medium onions, quartered and thinly sliced, about 1/8-inch thick

1 tsp kosher or fine sea salt (I used pink Himalayan)

1 1/2 tsp dry mustard

1 1/2 tsp mustard seeds

3/4 tsp ground turmeric

1/4 tsp whole cloves

3/4 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup white wine vinegar 

*If you want to make the full recipe as given in the cookbook, use 3 lbs of zucchini, 2 onions and double the rest of the ingredients*

Directions:

Place the sliced zucchini in a large colander and sprinkle the salt over it. Toss the zucchini and salt and set aside for 10 to 15 minutes. Mix the seasonings and add to a large pot with the white wine vinegar. Bring to a rolling boil and remove from heat. Pour the salted zucchini into the large pot, once you've removed the pot from heat. Stir to cover the zucchini mixture with the vinegar mix and let cool. When cool, transfer the mix to a large container, cover and refrigerate overnight. You can keep covered pickles refrigerated, for up to two months (but they did not last that long for me). 

Zucchini Pickles

Appetizer #1 - Potpourri Cheese

 The Year of Appetizers

Number One: Potpourri Cheese

    This recipe is in my second printing copy of The Good Housekeeping Cookbook, published in 1963. All I can say is this definitely is a 1960's era dip.  The consistency I ended up with was like a Pimento Cheese. I didn't know what to expect over all, but I think it tasted fine and I was good with the consistency (I just kept mixing until I liked it).  I am hoping that it tastes good after sitting covered in the refrigerator. You know that some things just taste better after the flavors have had a chance to "settle"? I am curious to see how it tastes on Tuesday.  I made this for my church ladies group potluck on Tuesday, so I will report back on how they like it (or not) and if I like it better after the flavors have "settled".  The original recipe says you can keep this in covered jars and that it keeps for weeks.  I tried it out on some crackers. I'm not sure that I would make this again, but I am glad I tried it (that is the goal of this blog; to try out recipes from my collection of cookbooks). You may like it a bit more than I did.  My notes in italics. 

Ingredients:

12 oz beer

1 1/2 lb cheddar cheese, grated

1/4 lb crumbled blue cheese

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp dry mustard

2 tbsp butter or margarine, softened

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1/8 tsp Tabasco (I didn't have Tabasco, so I used the hot sauce I had on hand)

crackers for serving

Directions:

Open beer and let stand. Mix cheeses, salt and mustard. Blend in butter, Worcestershire sauce and Tabasco. Add beer slowly, with an electric hand mixer, until creamy. Store in a covered jar or dish. Makes about 5 cups. Serve as a dip with crackers or you could possibly use this as a sandwich spread. I am intrigued by the thought of making a grilled cheese sandwich using this in the middle.

The mixing did not go easily. After mixing the butter, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco, cheeses, salt and mustard, I used my mixer, but I was making a mess, so I ended up using my potato masher to blend the ingredients a little better and then I used my hand mixer on medium to high until I was "happy" with the consistency. It is creamy, but with little chunky bits.  I think the consistency is a lot like that of Pimento Cheese. I tested this with butter crackers and it was fine. Even though this has not been my favorite recipe, you might like it! So, if you try it, let me know what you think.  

Potpourri Cheese 

Potpourri Cheese 

Week 33 - Baked Beans

 Baked Beans

Week 33 of 52

Side Dish #5

    When I thought about finding a recipe for Week 33 (before I looked up which category it was), I had decided I wanted to try a recipe in my late mother's recipe box (photo below). The very, first recipe I pulled out, was this one. It was a folded piece of lined paper, with no author name or date or anything, besides the recipe. I shared the picture below with my sister, my cousin (maternal) and two of my aunts (one maternal and one paternal) and nobody recognizes the handwriting. I thought it reminded me of my maternal grandmother (whose recipe for Crazy Cake {it wasn't crazy}, was the second recipe I made for this blog). I guess it the name of the author will have to remain a mystery. Neither my sister nor my cousin ever remembered having beans this way and although I thought I'd maybe heard of beans like this, I don't think I'd ever had them. I really liked this recipe. It made a good sized amount. Perfect for toting to a picnic or pot-luck.  Note: I'm going to write it out exactly how it is written, because it is kind of charming, with it's spelling mistakes; I'll use italics to write the correct word/spelling and to add direction.

Ingredients:

1/2 lb hamburg (ground hamburger)

1/2 lb bacon (chopped before cooking)

1/2 of a large onion (diced)

1/2 cup catsup (ketchup)

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon prepared mustard

1 teaspoon vinigar (vinegar)

1 large can or 3 small cans pork & beans (Drain two of the cans if using small or half if using the large can)

1 small can kidney beans

1 small can butter beans (I substituted Great Northern Beans)

Directions:

Combine bacon and hamburger in a large pot (I used a cast iron dutch oven), and begin browning. Add onion after just a few minutes and continue cooking until hamburger and bacon are thoroughly cooked/browned. You do not want any pink showing. Drain grease and return meat & onion mixture to pan. Add the rest of the ingredients and cook on low-medium heat, until hot. 

Tip: I drained one of the cans of pork & beans, the kidney beans and the great northern beans, because I didn't want the finished product to be "soupy", so do the same thing if you don't want "soupy" baked beans. 

Baked Beans

My Late Mother's Recipe Box (One of my treasures)

The Original Hand-Written Recipe

Week 27 - Malabar Fish Curry

Malabar Fish Curry

Week 27 of 52

Entree Meat/Fish #4

    I'm back! And, we're a week more than half-way through Fifty Two In Twenty Two!!! Life has gotten in the way and I just now finally made this entree. Also, because of life, I made the Week 27 recipe (a dessert) last week. Located in southwestern India, the Malabar Coast, the region has been a major spice exporter since 3000 BCE. The Malabar Coast is also known as the "Garden of Spices" or the "Spice Garden of India".  This week's recipe, Malabar Curry, is from the 1995  "Quick After-Work Curries" cookbook. I like curry and thought I'd give it a shot. 

    This recipe required that I make a visit to the local Indian grocery nearby. I needed several seasonings, sesame oil, coconut milk, fish, lime pickle and onion. I only had one seasoning, mustard and the onion. The original recipe calls for lemon sole fillets. I used tilapia and thought that worked well. You could use the lemon sole, tilapia or another white fish. I thought maybe you could use salmon. I think the salmon flavor might not work well, but give it a shot. I'm sure you could also make this sauce and instead of fish, use chicken or for vegetarian options, tofu, paneer cheese or cubed potato. 

    This dish was quick to prepare and cook, taking maybe 30 minutes? Not sure. I didn't time myself. I am so glad I tried something different. It's my first totally homemade curry.  I will definitely make this again and because I had to buy most of the seasonings, I can try other curries from this cookbook. 

Ingredients: 

2 tablespoons sesame oil

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds

3/4 finely sliced onion (I used a whole, medium sized onion)

1 tablespoon minced lime pickle (I used 2 tablespoons)

1 teaspoon dry mustard 

1 3/4 cups coconut milk

10-12 curry leave, fresh or dried (optional)

2 lemon sole fillets (I used tilapia, cut into chunks)

salt to taste

optional garnishes: 4-6 lime wedges, freshly ground black pepper

Directions: 

Heat oil in wok/large skillet. Stir-fry turmeric for 10 seconds. Add the mustard, coriander and cumin seeds and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Add sliced onion and cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Add lime pickle, mustard, coconut milk and curry leaves. Bring to a simmer and add fish. Simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, ensuring the fish is thoroughly cooked. Add salt if desired. Serve over rice with lime wedges and black pepper. Makes 2 to 3 servings. 

Malabar Fish Curry over Rice

Sliced onions cooking with turmeric, mustard seeds, coriander seeds, cumin seeds and mustard.

Malabar Fish Curry

Week - 26 Cheesy Potato Casserole

 Cheesy Potato Casserole

Week 26 of 52

Side Dish #4

This week's recipe comes to us from Betty Crocker's Hostess Cookbook published in 1967. I wanted something simple to enjoy with some pork loin. I enjoyed this. It was easy to make and tasty. 

Ingredients:

8 servings mashed potatoes (use the directions on any brand of instant potatoes to make 8 servings) 

1/2 teaspoon garlic salt

1 tablespoon snipped parsley (I used dried parsley flakes and it was fine)

 1 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese (I used Colby Jack)

1 1/2 cups Corn Flakes cereal, crushed

2 tablespoons softened butter or margarine

1/2 teaspoon dry mustard

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Prepare your mashed potatoes according to directions on package, except decrease salt to 1/2 teaspoon and add 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt. Stir cheese and parsley into potatoes. Spray a 1 1/2 quart casserole dish with cooking spray and spoon the mashed potato mixture into the casserole dish. In a small bowl, mix the softened butter/margarine, crushed Corn Flakes, dry mustard and paprika until well combined and sprinkle over the potato mixture in the casserole dish. Bake for 20 minutes at 325 degrees. Serves 6. 

Cheesy Potato Casserole

Side View of the Cheesy Potato Cassrole

Cheesy Potato Casserole and Mexican Street Corn 
(It was a side dish kind of dinner)

Week 16 - Salad

  French Dressing/Sauce Vinaigrette

Recipe 16 - 52 in 2022

Salad #3

    I don't know that I've ever made a truly home-made salad dressing and thought there are so many recipes in my books for dressings, that for Week 16 (I'm late doing this entry), I decided to make a salad dressing and serve it with a simple garden salad. I chose this French Dressing/Sauce Vinaigrette from a 1973 edition of The Joy of Cooking. This dressing is used as a base ingredient in other dressing recipes in the book and I may some of those eventually.  I enjoyed this dressing so much, that I've already made it a second time. It is easy to make, takes just a few minutes to mix up and was great on my salad, but would be good to just marinate vegetables in and I think it would even be good in a rice/macaroni salad. 

Ingredients:

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

6 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp vinegar or lemon juice (I used lemon juice and it was amazing!!!)

1 clove garlic (I used a rounded tsp minced garlic)

1/4 tsp dry mustard (optional) (I used Trader Joe's Spicy Mustard) 

Directions:

Combine 1/4 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp vinegar or lemon juice. Whisk together until smooth. Add 2 tbsp of olive oil and whisk again, thoroughly. Add the last tbsp vinegar or lemon juice and the last 3 tbsp olive oil. Whisk together and add 1 tsp minced garlic, whisking again before pouring into a jar. Cover well and refrigerate until ready for use. Shake well before using. I discovered the dressing will congeal a bit when it is refrigerated. Just let it warm up a bit before using and remember to shake well each time you use it. 

Enjoy!!!

French Dressing/Sauce Vinaigrette

Garden Salad with French Dressing/Sauce Vinaigrette

Grandma Marlin's Norwegian Best Bean Hotdish

 Grandma Marlin's Norwegian Best Bean Hotdish

    This recipe is adapted from The Centennial Harvest - A Collection of Recipes from The First Unitarian Church of Dallas. My church. We are Unitarian Universalists.  It was founded in 1899; the 100 year anniversary was celebrated in 1999 and the cookbook was published in 2000.  I joined the church in about 2009/2010. The original recipe was submitted by a member and due to this cookbook only being 10 years old, I'm not going to name her, for privacy reasons.  A friend in the Twitterverse, said she has a cookbook with a very, similar recipe. It goes by the name "4 Bean Bake" in her book and that recipe is popular with her family. 

    Yeah, so this recipe wasn't complicated, but I felt like I used a lot of bowls in making it. I did the washing up, while it was in the oven. When it was finished, there was more liquid than I'd thought there would be, but I liked it. I served my Best Bean Hotdish over some brown rice and had two little pieces of buttered and toasted sourdough bread (to sop up the juices).

Ingredients:

1 Big Can of Baked Beans (I used a large can of Bush's Original Baked Beans)

2 Cans Kidney Beans

2 Cans Great Northern Beans (The original recipe calls for butter beans)

1 lb Bacon, cut into 1 inch strips

3 Large Yellow Onions; Sliced and then sliced in half (The original recipe calls for 4 large Bermuda onions, sliced)

1 Cup Brown Sugar

1 Tsp Garlic Powder

1/2 Tsp Dry Mustard

1/2 Cup Vinegar

    Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees.  Drain the beans, saving the liquid and mixing the beans together in a large bowl.  The original recipe also says to cut your bacon into 1 inch strips, but you can certainly cut into smaller pieces if you like. Whatever size you choose, you'll fry it gently, not letting it get crispy, and remove from your pan. Put your onion in the skillet and fry for several minutes (about five minutes at least), stirring to coat with the bacon grease.  Whisk together the last four ingredients and stir into the onions. Simmer for 20 minutes. If the liquid evaporates, add in a little of the reserved bean juice, so it doesn't stick, because you don't want the onions to get dry. Mix the onion mixture into the beans, add the pieces of bacon which you had set aside and combine all ingredients. Pour the mixture into a large casserole dish.  The original recipe says a covered casserole dish. I had to use the largest casserole dish that I own, which does not have a lid. Since my dish did not have a lid, I used foil and it worked fine. Bake for 50 minutes at 350 degrees. I really don't know how this could ever fit in a regular sized casserole dish, because it made a huge amount. 

    Serve as a side dish or over rice.  The side of sourdough bread went really well with this dish, because again, "hello!!" there was juices to soak up. I have no idea how many servings to say this made, so let's just say "a lot", because it was a lot. 

    The verdict? I really, liked this recipe and would definitely make this again. 

Great Norther, Kidney and Baked Beans

Onions

The bean, onion and bacon mixture.

Yass!!! It looks yummy, just out of the oven.

I wasn't going to include two pictures of the finished dish, but you can see my UU (Unitarian Universalist) Flaming Chalice (our church symbol) tattoo, so I'm including this photo, because my church means a lot to me. 

A close-up of yumminess.