Soup #1 - Easy Potato-Corn Chowder

 The Year of Soup

Soup #1 - Easy Potato Corn Chowder

    So, this was a fun recipe. The recipe "Speedy Potato Chowder" is in the Favorite Recipes, Campbell's Creative Cooking With Soup (Over 8,000 Delicious Mix and Match Recipes. The recipe gives you four ingredients and then you select a liquid, canned vegetable and a meat from a chart. For the liquid, I chose milk. For the vegetable, I chose corn. And, for the meat, I chose to use diced potato in lieu of meat. I did also add salt, pepper and paprika to mine. 

   By the way, liquid options were beer & water, milk, milk & light cream and evaporated milk & water. Vegetable options were mixed vegetables, corn, Lima beans and diced carrots. The meat options were hotdogs, chicken, ham and tuna. 

      I'll write out the recipe how I made it. I really enjoyed this chowder. I hope you try it!

Ingredients:

4 slices bacon, diced (feel free to use more)

1/2 cup chopped onion (I used about 1/2 of a medium onion)

2 1/2 cups milk (I used more liquid than the recipe suggests)

1 10 3/4 oz can condensed cream of potato soup

1 15oz can whole kernel corn (The original recipe suggests using an 8oz can; I used low salt)

1 medium russet potato, diced

2 tbsps chopped fresh parsley, plus more for decoration if you wish

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp paprika

1/8 tsp black pepper

Directions:

In a 3qt saucepan over medium heat, heat a tiny bit of oil and add bacon. Cook until crisp. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. You can drain the bacon drippings, reserving 1 tbsp. I did not, because I only had a little more than a tbsp. Add the chopped onion and diced potato to the drippings and cook until the potato is somewhat tender; you don't want it super tender, because you're going to keep cooking and that will make it tender. Add milk, corn with it's liquid, the bacon, parsley, salt, pepper and paprika. Cook on low-medium heat until heated through, stirring occasionally. Makes 4 to 6 servings. 

Easy Potato-Corn Chowder

Easy Potato-Corn Chowder

Casserole #18 - Barley Casserole

 The Year of Casseroles

Casserole #18 - Barley Casserole

    This recipe is in my 1990 edition of The Fannie Farmer Cookbook. The Fannie Farmer Cookbook was first published in 1896, titled The Boston Cooking School Cook Book, by Fannie Merritt Farmer. I wanted to try something different and this fit the bill. I liked this casserole; it felt pretty healthy with the use of barley. Serve it as a side dish, or add chunks of chicken to make it a main dish. I did make some modifications, which I will show in italics. Try it and let me know what you think. 

Ingredients:

3 tbs butter

1 cup barley

1 small onion, chopped

1/4 cup finely chopped green pepper (I used a whole, small green pepper)

1/2 cup cashews, chopped (I used cashews, but leave them out if you like)

3 cups chicken broth, boiling

salt (to taste)

pepper (to taste)

paprika seasoning to taste

3 slices thick cut bacon, diced (optional)

1/2 cup Kerrygold blarney cheese, shredded (this is a creamy Gouda style cheese) (optional)

toasted breadcrumbs (optional)

cornstarch to thicken the sauce, because my dish was very, soup-y when I placed it in a casserole (if desired)

 

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F. Melt butter in a large skillet. Stir in barley and onion. Cook, stirring often, until the onion is slightly cooked. Add the green pepper and cook for two minutes more. Add cashews, followed by the broth and seasonings. Cover and simmer for 25 minutes. Thicken sauce with cornstarch by mixing together a little water with cornstarch and pouring, while stirring, into the sauce. At this point, you can simply serve from the skillet. Pour into a lightly greased 2-qt casserole dish. Sprinkle with cheese, followed by toasted breadcrumbs. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven, cool slightly and serve. 

Barley Casserole

Barley Casserole

Casserole #15 - Lemonchick's Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole

 The Year of Casseroles

Casserole #15 - Lemonchick's Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole

    So, I've had a lot going on, and I finally just this morning, made casserole number 15. Overall, it has just not been a good year and not a good year for the blog either. Part of the reason is that I feel as if I am writing this only for myself. If you see this and try this or any of my other recipes, please let me know. It would make me happy and feel like someone out there is paying attention. 

    This is a recipe of my own creation, and I hope you like it. Substitute diced potatoes for the tater tots if you like.  You can also use turkey sausage, hot/mild/maple sausage (I used hot sausage). It's okay if you don't do the layers exactly as I wrote below; mix it up! I'm very, happy with how this turned out, and I hope you love it. 

Ingredients:

1/2 lb sausage, browned and crumbled

1/3 cup finely chopped onion

1/3 cup diced tomato (canned or fresh)

1/4 cup diced pickled jalapeno (or fresh)

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp chili powder (or your favorite spicy seasoning)

1 1/4 cups shredded cheddar or Monterrey Jack cheese (divided use)

7 or 8 eggs

1/8 cup to 1/4 cups milk

16 tater tots

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees F. Bake tater tots until crispy. In a large skillet, begin browning sausage. Chop onion and dice the jalapeno. Add onion and jalapeno to sausage. Sprinkle salt, pepper and chili powder (if desired) to mixture in skillet. In a medium sized bowl, beat eggs with milk and add paprika. Spray a 1 1/2 quart casserole dish with cooking spray. Layer half of the tater tots in casserole and spoon sausage mixture on top. Sprinkle 1 cup of cheese over top of this layer, and add the rest of the tater tots. Pour egg mixture over all. Sprinkle the 1/4 cup cheese on the top. Bake for about 30 minutes and cover the casserole with foil to help prevent further browning. Cook for about 15 more minutes, until egg mixture is completly cooked. Remove from oven, cool slightly and serve. 

Tater Tot Casserole

Tater Tot Casserole

Charley The Muffin Man watching me take pics of this Tater Tot Casserole. 

Uh-oh, Charley The Muffin Man is getting closer to the Tater Tot Casserole

Casserole #9 - Wild Rice Casserole

 The Year of Casseroles

Casserole #9 - Wild Rice Casserole

    Casseroles can be main dishes, but can also be great side dishes. This side dish casserole is from Noted Cookery - Favorite Recipes From Friends Of The Dallas Symphony Orchestra published in 1969. My copy of this cookbook is from the third printing in 1972. This recipe was submitted by Mrs. William R. Newsom III. I quite enjoyed this casserole. I enjoyed it as a side dish, but you could make this a main dish, by adding chicken to it. Seasoning can be adjusted to your taste; add more or less! One change I would make is to use a medium sized onion (I used most of a pretty large onion); I like onion, but a little less in this recipe would be fine. If you really like onion though, by all means, use a large onion. I would also drain any excess liquid you may have from cooking the rice and I would use about 1/4 cup less milk. I would guesstimate that you could get at least eight servings if used as a side dish (the original recipe says 6). Serve alongside chicken or other meat of your choice. My modifications are in italics. 

Ingredients:

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup cooking oil (canola)

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 cup parsley, finely chopped (I used stems and all, but go ahead and use just the leaves if you prefer

1 3/4 cup grated Cheddar cheese (I used my favorite shredded Monterrey Jack)

1 box (4.3 oz) wild rice mix (I used Rice-A-Roni) or 1 1/2 cups wild rice, cooked

1 cup milk (Feel free to use just under a full cup)

salt to taste

chipotle pepper or your favorite seasoning, to taste

1 tbsp paprika

Directions:

Cook wild rice and allow to cool. Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees. Chop onion and parsley. Combine onion and parsley in a bowl. Beat eggs in a large bowl and gradually add oil while mixing. Mix in onion and parsley. Stir in cheese, cooled rice, milk, salt and whatever seasonings you desire. Thoroughly combine ingredients and pour into a greased 3-quart casserole dish. Bake for 45 minutes. Remove from oven, allowing to cool slightly and serve alongside chicken or other meat. 

Wild Rice Casserole 

Wild Rice Casserole

Charley the Muffin Man supervising picture taking of the Wild Rice Casserole. 

Appetizer #5 - Cheese Puff Surprises (Olive Stuffed Cheese Puffs)

 The Year of Appetizers

Appetizer #5 - Cheese Puff Surprises (Olive Stuffed Cheese Puffs)

    This is the very first recipe in Hearts and Flours, published in 1988 by the Junior League of Waco. The Junior organization aims to improve communities, as well as the social, cultural and political fabric of society. They are a non-profit organization that places women in volunteer positions in a variety of charities.  I have known several Junior League members through my own volunteer work and my first match with Big Brothers Big Sisters benefited from their generosity when we attended several events that were sponsored and/or lead by Junior League members. 

    I am not a fan of olives, but I wanted to step outside of my comfort zone and make these for my church ladies group gathering; I tasted though and I like them! Yummy. You can substitute ham, jalapeno, bacon or you could just make plain un-stuffed puffs. You could also try replacing the paprika with spicy seasoning or garlic powder. There are so many options! 

Try these out, because I think you'll like them. I'm definitely going to make these again, using at least one of the possible substitutions. 

Ingredients:

2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese (or try using your favorite, like Monterrey Jack)

1 stick softened margarine

1 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon paprika

48 green olives, well drained (I used a 10oz jar of pimento stuffed queen olives and had several leftover)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Blend flour, salt and paprika. Blend cheese and softened margarine in a mixing bowl. Mix in the flour mixture. Flatten a teaspoon or a little more (You'll figure out the amount that works best for you)  into a tiny patty in your hand. Pick up an olive and wrap the cheese "patty" around the olive, ensuring that it completely covers the olive. Place on cookie sheets and bake for 15 minutes. 

*I ended up with 46 puffs. I could have had 48, but I used to much cheese mixture on a lot of them early on.

Cheese Puff Surprises
(Olive Stuffed Cheese Puffs

Week 45 - Lime French Dressing

 Lime French Dressing

Week 45 of 52

Salad #7

I decided to make another salad dressing for my last salad recipe.  Week 16 was also a dressing. That was the Vinaigrette/French dressing which I've made a few times since.  This dressing is similar, only this one uses lime, not lemon. I made this dressing to go with a garden salad of mixed greens, radish, carrot, cucumber and a sprinkle of cheese. I served it with an onion tart I made. This Lime French Dressing is from Pillsbury's The Green Giant Vegetable Cookbook published in 1980.  This dressing has a nice tang to it, and I liked it, but I do still like the Week 16 dressing better.

Ingredients:

1/3 cup oil

1/4 cup lime juice (the recipe says you can use lemon in place of lime)

1 garlic clove, minced

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon sugar

1/8 teaspoon paprika

1/8 teaspoon pepper

3 garlic cloves, quartered (I didn't use the quartered cloves, because in the original recipe, you remove the quartered garlic cloves after 1 to 2 hours)

Directions:

Combine all ingredients, except the quartered garlic cloves (If you are using them) in a container with a tight fitting lid. Shake well after ensuring the lid is secured. If you use the quartered garlic cloves, remove them after 1 to 2 hours and your dressing is ready. This recipe makes about 1/2 cup. 

Garden Salad w/Lime French Dressing

Week 37 - Bierocks

 Bierocks

Week 37 of 52

Appetizer #5

    Bierocks are yummy, savory stuffed rolls. They're stuffed with ground meat (ground beef in this recipe), onion, sauerkraut and seasoning. Wikipedia tells us that Bierocks originated in Russia and were brought to America in the 1870s by German/Russian Mennonites.  They are popular among those of Russian and German ancestry. I have some German ancestry, and I'm studying the German language on Duolingo. So, when I saw this recipe, I was intrigued. This version is in the Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital of Plano "From our Family to Yours" cookbook, published in 2016.  I never thought I'd buy sauerkraut (which I'd never tried before last night).  I liked the tangy-ness of the sauerkraut and it makes me so happy to successfully tried something I've never had. I made a couple of modifications to the recipe, which I'll highlight in italics and I was really pleased with how this came out. The original recipe says you can make three dozen. I ended up with two dozen and I liked the finished size.  I am curious about trying to make a smaller version, so I'll probably make these again. D

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef (Don't worry too much about the leanness of it, because you're going to drain of the grease)

1 16oz can sauerkraut, rinsed and drained (I used a 14 1/2 oz can)

1 package onion soup mix

1 medium onion, cut in half and sliced thinly

cayenne, to taste (I used 1 teaspoon)

1 teaspoon paprika

2 to 3 cans refrigerated crescent rolls (I used 3 cans of 8 rolls which gave me 24 Bierocki)

1 egg yolk, beaten with 1 tablespoon water

Directions:

Pre-heat your oven to 400 degrees. In a large skillet, completely brown your ground beef, adding the onion about half-way through. When the onion is soft, drain the grease from the pan, return to the stove and stir in your soup mix and seasoning(s) followed by the sauerkraut. Make sure all ingredients are thoroughly combined. Lightly grease baking sheets (as many as you need for 24 Bierocki). The original recipe says to carefully unroll the dough, pinch together the dough and then cut into small squares. What worked for me was unrolling the dough, separating the pieces and bringing the small pointed bit up to the wide end.  So, it's more square than triangular.  Pat the dough out a bit and then spoon filling into the middle. Wrap the dough around the filling and pinch together. Place the seam side down on your baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes until golden brown. For my oven, a little bit less than 30 minutes would work. ou can freeze these, by wrapping completely cooled Bierocki in foil or other freezer wrap and store in your freezer. To reheat, thaw in the refrigerator, and bake in vented foil at 300 degrees for 15 to 25 minutes. 

Bierocki

My first Bierocki!

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)

Roast Chicken

 Roast Chicken 

    This recipe comes to us from Rufus Estes' Good Things To Eat. Rufus Estes was born into slavery in 1857. In about 1867, he attended "one term" of school and then left to go to work and help his mother.  At sixteen, he was employed by a restaurant keeper in Nashville. In 1881, at the age of twenty-one, Mr. Estes got a position at "77 Clark Street" in Chicago. In 1883, he entered the Pullman (railway) service.  Until 1897, he traveled, met and worked (in the railway service,) with many VIPs of the day. In 1894 he traveled to the Cherry Blossom Festival in Tokyo, Japan. The couple he traveled with on the Empress of China ship, I assume must have been some of those VIPs he'd met in the Pullman service. In 1897, he became employed by the president (at the time) of the Kansas City, Pittsburg, & Gould Railroad, and was  placed in charge of the company president's private rail car. He'd been hired by the company president and was well liked by the president.  In 1907, when new management took over, Mr. Estes left and was employed as a chef in subsidiary companies of the US Steel Corporation in Chicago.  This version of Mr. Estes' cookbook was printed in 2009.

    I've adapted the recipe a bit, but followed Mr. Estes' directions as closely as possible.  

Ingredients:

1 Chicken (Mine was about 4 lbs; I meant to write that down, but neglected to)

Bacon (I used about 1/2 pound)

Optional:

Garlic Salt 

Pepper

Paprika

    Back in Mr. Estes' time, fresh chickens were easy to come by and you didn't go to a store for your poultry and other  meats, so it should come as no surprise, that my chicken was store bought.  After removing the chicken from it's packaging, I rinsed it off and placed it on my large cutting board. I spread a mixture of Jane's Krazy Garlic Salt, Pepper and Paprika all over the top and bottom of my chicken and used a bit of white string to tie (truss) the legs. I placed the chicken in a deep casserole dish, which was miraculously large enough.  I laid strips of bacon all over the top of the chicken and placed a piece of buttered parchment paper on top, tucking it into the dish. Mr. Estes' directions say to cover the chicken and bacon with buttered paper and I wanted to do that part, because it was in his directions. The part I was confused about, was the bacon. Did he mean bacon like we would have as part of bacon & eggs or in a BLT or did he mean a meatier kind, like Canadian bacon? Personally I figured he used the latter, so that's what I used.  I placed the dish into my pre-heated oven. I started checking what it looked like at 50 minutes, which I knew wouldn't be enough time, but I wanted to see. Ten minutes later I took the paper off and basted with the chicken's own juices. Mr. Estes says to take the paper off five minutes before cooking time is finished. Your bacon is supposed to brown up after you take the paper off. I actually ended up cooking the chicken for one and a half hours, taking it out and basting every ten minutes. 

    So, I set the pan on top of a pot holder on my counter to let it cool. I think I waited about fifteen minutes and had removed as much of the juices I could suck up with the baster, and placed the chicken on my cutting board (which I had washed immediately after having the raw chicken on it). I let it cool a tiny bit longer and then served myself a leg and a small slice of breast. I'm not including a picture of my plate like I normally do, because it just was not a cute photo. 

    The verdict? Would I make a roast chicken this way again? Yes. I would do a couple things differently though. I would cook the chicken either longer or at a higher temp, because it could have gone another 15 minutes at least and I would use more seasoning. It did come out juicy (awesome!), but I like the skin to be crisper.  I would also want the bacon to be way crisper, although it wasn't bad. 

The cookbook

The finished chicken. 

Potatoes, Peasant Style

Potatoes, Peasant Style

    First things first.  I cannot for the life of me figure how this recipe got to be named "Potatoes, Peasant Style".  What I can tell you, is that this recipe is in the 1929 cookbook New Delineator Recipes. I googled "New Delineator Cookbook" and found an article by Linda Albert in The Daily Times from 05/14/2014. Ms. Albert is also interested in old books. She had been handed a copy which a colleague of hers had found in a free bin of books at a used book store in Knoxville.  I wanted to try and add a link to her article in case anyone would be interested in reading it, but I am not sure if that would be allowed.  So, just Google "New Delineator Cookbook" as I did, you will find it.  I actually did attempt emailing Ms. Albert at the email address listed in the article, but it was no longer valid.  I had figured it was a long shot, so I wasn't surprised.  (A little bit about The Delineator.  This was an American magazine for women which was around in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.  The magazine was produced by the Butterick Publishing Company. You can find more detail in Ms. Albert's article. Anyhow, I enjoyed the article and wanted you to know about it as well.)  

    So, it seems that I like picking recipes with "unusual", "funky", or "different" names and that trend continues with the "Potatoes, Peasant Style". The directions are to dice your potatoes, after washing and peeling them, fry them in the bacon grease until brown and remove from the pan. After removing the potatoes from the pan, you add the chopped garlic and parsley.  Cook the garlic and parsley in the fat , then add the flour, seasonings and milk and cook until thickened (the directions say that will be about 5 minutes). Add the potatoes to the sauce, stir to coat the potatoes while they re-heat and ta-da, you're done! 

    I prepped everything so it was ready when I came back from an outing with my Little Brother (I mentor with Big Brothers Big Sisters). I measured the flour, paprika, salt and pepper and set that aside in a mini prep-cup. The recipe calls for parsley. I used dried parsley flakes (another mini prep-cup) and that worked out just fine. I cooked up bacon, so I'd have fresh bacon grease to fry the potatoes in. The recipe calls for 6 tbsp of bacon grease to fry the potatoes in. I didn't come up with 6 tbsp of grease, so I used 2 tbsp of vegetable shortening. Don't have bacon grease or you're a vegetarian? Use all vegetable shortening. 

    When I returned from my outing with my Little Brother, I diced up the potato and garlic, while melting the bacon grease and shortening. The recipe calls for three cups diced potato and that ended up being about 1 1/2 medium potatoes. I heated the grease while dicing the potatoes and then followed the directions as above. One thing I like to do when thickening a sauce, is to heat the milk before adding to my pan. It helps the sauce thicken quicker. When the dish was ready, I served myself a side of the potatoes with a chicken thigh and a bit of mashed sweet potato. 

    I really, liked this recipe. Would I make this again? 100%, yes!!!! Like garlic?  Use more than 2 cloves. Like Paprika? Do the same; add extra paprika. Options could be adding diced ham or crumbled bacon. Make this recipe and tell me how you like it.