No set menu this week

Well, this week is going to be another one without a whole lot of planning as far as meals go. Mom and Truman will be here tomorrow and ya never know where we may go or what we might be doing, so I'll just go to the commissary tomorrow and load up on all sorts of goodies and we'll play the rest by ear.

Last night I grilled a few steaks and we finished up the rest of the leftovers from Christmas. They were yummy, but I sure am glad they are gone! LOL I have my fridge back again! LOL I do know that at some point we'll have a nice turkey dinner while mom and Trumy are here and on New Years Day, we'll have our traditional dinner of sauerkraut and pork (and hot dogs, too) with mashed potatoes. YUMMMMM!!!!

I will have to sit down and really do some thinking and planning for after the 3rd. Since it will just be Kate and I for a few months, we're going to eat healthier. We'll try out new things to see if they are keepers or not...then once Gene is home, we'll try the new things out on him and see what he thinks. Wish me luck...feel free to pass along some of your favorite "healthy" recipes! I've lost everything that I had saved when my hard drive died. :(

A few recipes from our Christmas dinner

Well, we did it! We pulled off another fine Christmas dinner! We certainly had a house full, but I think everyone enjoyed themselves and left with full tummys! I thought I'd share a few of the recipes with everyone. The recipe for Scalloped Corn is Meme Bair's recipe. I remember her making this often, but it was a must on all holidays! The green bean casserole is our twist of the French's Onion recipe for Green Bean Casserole and the Frozen Cranberry Salad is one that I started making when we lived in Virginia. I've always liked this...it's a great refreshing treat! Hope you all enjoy!

Meme's Scalloped Corn

2 cups corn, drained
2 eggs, beaten
2 TBS flour
1 1/4 cup milk
Salt & pepper to taste

Mix up milk, eggs and flour. Stir in corn and salt and pepper. Pour into greased baking dish and bake at 350 degrees for about an hour. Test with a knife; if it comes out clean, corn is done. Double recipe if company coming.

Green Bean Casserole

1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 cup whole milk
2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp pepper
6 - 8 cups cut green beans
1 can french fried onions (2 2/3 cups)

Stir soup, milk Worcestershire sauce, black pepper, beans and 1 1/3 cu. onions. pour into buttered 3 qt. casserole dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until hot. Stir. Top with remaining french fried onions. Bake for another 5 - 8 minutes.

Frozen Cranberry Salad

6 oz cream cheese
2 TBS sugar
2TBS mayonnaise
1 - 16 oz can whole berry cranberry sauce
8 oz crushed pineapple, drained
1/2 cup toasted chopped pecans
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup sifted powdered sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
Optional garnishes...whole cranberries and/or fresh mint leaves

Combine the first 3 ingredients. Stir until smooth. Stir in cranberry sauce, pineapple and pecans. Set aside.

Beat whipping cream until foamy. Slowly add powdered sugar, beating until soft peaks form. Stir in vanilla.

Fold whipped cream into cranberry mixture. Spoon into an 8 inch square dish, sprayer with non-stick spray. Cover and freeze.

*Instead of using the baking pan, you can spoon mixture into foil muffin papers sprayed with non-stick spray. Cover and freeze.

December 20th - December 27th

Well, I really do not have much of a plan for this week. Last night and tonight we kept it simple, last night was chicken stir fry with white rice and tonight we had tacos. Tomorrow is Gene's birthday, so (weather permitting) we'll go out to eat..he's mentioned a few places he'd like to go, so we'll see. All of my attention has been on planning our menu for Christmas dinner (which I just did EARLY this morning). So, I'm sorry that I can't give you all ideas this week...but, I'll let ya know what we'll be eating for our Christmas dinner, which will be here. We are planning on 12 for dinner, but there could be as many as 18!

Christmas Menu

APPETIZERS (around 4:30ish)

Shrimp & cocktail sauce
Meatballs
Jalapeno poppers (thanks Erin!)
Deviled eggs (thanks Rochelle!)
Chips & salsa OR cheese & crackers..haven't decided yet

DINNER (eating around 6:00)

Ham w/ pineapple Dijon sauce
Turkey (thanks Rochelle!)
Mashed potatoes & gravy (thanks Erin!)
Sweet potatoes casserole (thanks Erin...we all LOVED this at Thanksgiving!)
Baked corn
Green bean casserole
Stuffing (not going with the home made this year....folks seem to love the StoveTop)
Brown N Serve rolls
Cranberry sauce

DESSERT

Frozen cranberry cups
Pumpkin pie
Double layer pumpkin pie
Fudge (my mom's peanut butter fudge is a MUST)
Cookies


Hope you all have a very happy and blessed Christmas!
~Amy, Gene and Kate

A few more recipes...

Well, I do not have a clue what's for dinner tonight, or for the rest of the week, for that matter. LOL I do know that on Christmas, I am making ham..haven't yet decided on the rest of the menu. LOL After we get the paper & coupons tomorrow, we'll make a list and hit the commissary.

Anyway, I have a few recipes to post. I've been meaning to all week, but am just getting the time to sit down and do it.

Enjoy!

Rouladen (German dish~ one of our favorites from when we lived over there)

2 lb steak, cut into thin slices (not strips)
1/4 lb bacon
2 onions
2 - 3 small pickles
4 TBS butter
2 tsp chopped parsley
2 TBS mustard
2 TBS flour
4 TBS sour cream
salt
pepper
paprika

Pound the meat, rub with salt and pepper. Set aside. Mince the bacon, onions and pickles. Add to bowl with the chopped parsley and mustard. Stir well. Spread mixture on slices of beef; roll up (like a jelly roll) and tie with butcher string. Roll the rouladen in flour then brown slowly in heated pan with melted butter. Add water and simmer in covered pan for 30 minutes or until all water is gone. Brown once more before putting on hot serving platter. Remove string before serving.

**We always add extra water towards the end of the cooking time and make a brown gravy. This really gives the beef good flavor and is wonderful served of cooked spatzel, rice or egg noodles! We also serve red cabbage w/ apples when we have this.

How about another cookie recipe?

I wish I could remember where this cookie recipe originated from, but I have been making it now for about 10 years. It's one of Gene's favorites, if not his FAVORITE. When he was in Iraq, he requested these frequently. he said he loved having them with his coffee in the mornings before starting his day. They are easy to make and yummy! Hope you enjoy these as much as my sweetie does!

Chewy Snowball Cookies

1 chocolate cake mix (not Supreme or Deluxe)
1 1/4 cup thawed Cool Whip 9I always put an extra dollop or two)
1 egg
Powdered sugar

Mix all ingredients until a ball of dough has formed. This will be very thick. Roll into 1 inch balls and coat with powdered sugar. Place on greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 - 15 minutes. Co0kies should be a bit crisp on the outside and chewy in the middle.

Sorry I'm late...Sun Dec. 14th - Fri. Dec. 19th

Hi folks. Sorry I'm late getting this posted. Glad to know that some of you really look forward to the weekly postings though..thanks for the e mails. :) I love my family and friends!

I'll have to get some more recipes posted soon. I can't do that right now as I'm at the shop. Oh, Gene made the rouladen for dinner Sat. night and it was very yummy!!! Good job, honey! I will for sure have to post that recipe!

Sun. 12/14 We ate dinner at Erin and Russ's house....yummy home made manicotti

Mon. 12/15 Yo - yo night

Tues. 12/16 (happy birthday to my daddy) Salisbury steaks, shoe string potatoes and buttered carrots

Wed. 12/17 Cheese filled ravioli, garlic bread and steamed veggie trio

Thurs. 12/18 Roasted whole chicken, mashed potatoes & gravy, veggies

Fri. 12/19 Steak, buttered noodles and scalloped or creamed corn

Did someone say...COOKIES?

Well, we had our cookie swap last night at the shop and let me tell ya...I think I've gained 5 pounds! LOL There were 3 of us there, 3 kinds of cookies and chocolate truffles to munch on! YUMMY! I thought I'd share a few of the recipes before I have to head out.

Erin's Chocolate Mint Cookies
3/4 c margarine
1 1/2 c brown sugar
2 TBS water
1 (12 oz) pk chocolate chips
3 boxes Andes mints
2 eggs
2 1/2 c flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Melt margarine, brown sugar and water in a saucepan. Add chocolate chips and stir until partially melted. Remove from heat and stir until chocolate is completely melted. Let stand 10 minutes to cool. Add eggs, one at a time. Mix in dry ingredients. Beat well. Chill dough for 45 - 60 minutes. Roll dough into small balls. Bake at 350 degrees for 8 - 10 minutes. Unwrap mints while cookies are baking. When done, immediately press a mint into the top of each cookie. Remove from cookie sheet. Allow mint to soften then swirl with a knife.


Nikki's Meringue Surprise Cookies

2 egg whites
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 tsp vanilla
2/3 c sugar
24 pastel mint drop candies
colored snowflake of Christmas sprinkles

Heat oven to 250 degrees. Line large cookie sheet with parchment paper. In small bowl, combine egg whites, salt and vanilla. Beat until foamy. Gradually add sugar, beating 3 - 5 minutes or until stiff peaks form.

Pipe or spoon mixture into 3/4 inch wide mounds i1 inch apart on cookie sheet. Top each with mint candy. Pipe or spoon additional drop of mixture over candy to cover the mint. Sprinkle with Christmas sprinkles.

Bake at 250 for 50 - 60 minutes or until crisp. Cookie will not be brown. Immediately remove from cookie sheets. Cool completely.

Well, I have run out of time. I must finish getting ready for work, so I will have to post the rest within the next couple of days. For now, enjoy these! They are both extremely tasty treats!

Sun. 12/7 - Sat. 12/13

Well, we did pretty good this past week with sticking to our menu. However, yesterday, we ate at our favorite burger joint, The Last Call Bar and Grill. We switched our chili to Friday night...so we missed out on the pork chops. They've been added to this week's menu, though. This is going to be a busy week for me, ut we choose things that are pretty easy..as long as I can make it to the commissaryby Tuesday, we should be good. I hope to go today, actually, but it is yucky out..lots of snow falling down out there.

Sun. ~ Herb rubbed grilled chicken breasts (I love my George Foreman grill!), roasted potatoes and a tossed salad

Mon. ~ Quiche

Tues. ~ Double Chicken Dumpling "Stoup" Also, I'll be baking cookies and making truffles for our cookie swap

Wed. ~ Hot dogs, shoe string french fries and baked beans (or some other viggie) ** Gene is in charge of dinner b/c I have to be at the shop for our cookie & recipe swap

Thurs. ~ Yo- yo night (I am teaching a class at the shop, so Kate and Gene our on their own)

Fri. ~ Shake & Bake pork chops and some sort of sides (it is crop night at the shop, but I should be home long enough to cook and eat dinner)

Sat. ~ Rouladen, spatzel and red cabbage ** This is one of Gene's specialties, so as long as we're not at his office Christmas party too long, he'll be making dinner for us. It's a German dish that we all just love!

Sometime between Wed. and Friday I have to bake between 5 - 10 batches of cookies for Gene's office Christmas party. If it were any other week, I would be fine with that..but this week is going to be NUTS....oh well..I've been volunteered and will complete my mission without whining (ok, I may whine a little..but I'll try real hard not to do it a lot. LOL)


Double Chicken Dumpling Stoup (I coppied this from Erin's blog...thanks friend!)
This is a Rachael Ray recipe. She calls it stoup because it is thicker than soup, but not as thick as a stew!

2 tbsp olive oil,4 ribs celery, chopped 2 onions, chopped 4 carrots, shredded 1 bay leaf salt & pepper 6 c. chicken broth 1 lb ground chicken 1 egg 1/2 c. Italian bread crumbs 1/2 c. Parmesan cheese 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped dash nutmeg one 1lb package gnocchi 1 c. frozen peas flat leaf parsley, finely chopped (a couple handfuls) crusty bread, for dunking

1. In a soup pot, heat the olive oil over med-high heat. Add the celery, onions, carrots and bay leaf. Season with salt & pepper & cook for 5 minutes. Stir in broth, cover the pot and bring to a boil.
2. Meanwhile, in a bowl, season the chicken with salt & pepper. Stir in the egg, bread crumbs, cheese, garlic & nutmeg. Roll the mixture into walnut sized meatballs (about 40) and add to the stoup. Simmer for about 10 minutes while you wash up. Add the gnocchi to the stoup and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the peas and parsley and cook for 2 more minutes., Remove the stoup from the heat, discard the bay leaf and let cool for 5 minutes. Serve with the bread.

Cheesy Chicken & Salsa Skillet (from Kraft Foods magazine)

Dinner tonight was super easy and very yummy! I thought it was worth sharing. Gene, Kate and I all had at least two helpings.


Cheesy Chicken & Salsa Skillet

2 cups multi grain penne pasta, cooked and drained
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bite sized pieces
1 1/4 cup. Thick N Chunky salsa (I used medium. The recipe does not specify mild, med. or hot)
1 cup frozen corn
1 large green pepper, cut into short strips
1 cup reduced fat Four Cheese Mexican Style cheese (Kraft)

Heat large skillet sprayed with cooking spray on med. - high heat. Add chicken. Cook and stir for 2 minutes. Stir in salsa, corn and peppers. Bring to a boil. Simmer on med. - low heat for 10 minutes or until chicken is cooked through, stirring occasionally. Add pasta to chicken mixture and mix lightly. Sprinkle with cheese. Remove from heat. Cover and let stand until cheese has melted

Just Another Manic Monday.....

I must say, I left Gene some pretty sketchy instructions for tonight's dinner, Turkey Shepherd's Pie, because I was in a hurry and had to leave the house earlier than I thought, but he did an excellent job, nonetheless. The original recipe is a Rachael Ray one, but I did not have all of the ingredients that she used so I quickly wrote up my own version for Gene to make tonight since I was not home in time to cook dinner.

After I ate my dinner, I whipped up a few batches of different types of cookie dough to freeze. I love to bake Christmas cookies but just do not have the time like I used to, so I decided to make the dough a head of time and bake the cookies as needed. I've never done this before..so I do hope it works out. Wish me luck!

Turkey Shepherd's Pie

2 TBS olive oil
2 pounds ground turkey
2 tsp poultry seasoning (we did not have that so Gene used Season All)
salt & pepper
instant mashed potatoes (make according to package directions for 6 servings)
1 large onion, chopped
2 large carrots, peeled and chopped (I only had frozen carrots..about 2 cups)
4 TBS butter
2 TBS flour
2 cups turkey or chicken stock/broth
a few dashes Worcestershire sauce
1 box frozen peas
a few dashes of hot sauce
2 cups sharp yellow cheddar cheese, shredded

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 425. In an oven safe, dutch oven, heat the olive oil over med. high heat. Add the ground turkey, breaking up with a wooden spoon. Season w/ salt, pepper and poultry seasoning (or season all).

Add onions and carrots to turkey. Cook for 5 - 7 minutes.

While veggies are cooking, heat 2 TBS butter in small pan over med. heat. Add flour to melted butter and whisk for 1 minute. Whisk in stock/broth and season w/ salt, pepper, hot sauce and Worcestershire sauce. Turn heat to low and let thicken for a few minutes; whisking to avoid lumps.

Stir peas into meat and veggie mixture. Cook 1 minute then turn heat off.

Top meat mixture with the potatoes. Cover the potatoes with the cheese and set in the oven. Bake for about 5 minutes, just until the cheese is melted.


Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies (This is one of the recipes I made this evening. It is a Paula Dean recipe. I've never made the cookies before and am hoping that once I do bake the dough...they will be yummy!)

1 pk cream cheese, room temperature
1 stick butter, room temperature
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 (18 oz) box moist chocolate cake mix
Confectioner's sugar

Pre heat oven to 350. In a large bowl beat cream cheese and butter until smooth. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Then beat in the cake mix. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours. Once chilled and firm, roll into tablespoon sized balls and then roll in confectioner's sugar. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet, 2 inches apart. Bake for 12 minutes. The cookies will remain soft and "gooey." Cool completely and sprinkle with more confectioner's sugar if desired.

Menu for Sun. 11/30/08 - Sat. 12/6/08

Sun. - BBQ spare ribs, spaghetti squash w. Italian seasoned tomatoes and green beans

Mon. - Turkey Shepherd's Pie (which Gene made tonight and it was very yummy. Perfect for a damp, cold night!)

Tues. - Easy Chicken and Salsa Skillet (a new recipe found in my Kraft Foods magazine)

Wed. - Spaghetti and garlic bread

Thurs. - Yo-yo night (a term taken from Erin...YO YO means....you're on your own)

Fri. - Baked pork chops

Sat. - Chili and corm bread