Creamy Corn Chowder

Hey guys, here's a recipe for corn chowder soup. I know some of you already have this one, but I was talking to Joe, and he asked me for it, so I'm just going to post it here. If you haven't tried it, it's delicious... not only that, but it's a crockpot recipe, so you can fix it and forget it until you're ready to eat!

3/4 c. onion, chopped
2 TBS. butter
1 c. frozen hash brown potatoes (cubed), OR fresh cubed potatoes
1 c. ham, cooked and diced
1 pkg. frozen corn
1 can cream-style corn
1 can cream of mushroom soup
2 1/2 c. milk
salt
pepper
parsley flakes

Combine onion, butter, potatoes, ham, corn, mushroom soup, and milk in crockpot. Cover and cook on high for 4-5 hors. Salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with parsley flakes. Enjoy!!!

Tomato-Cream Sauce for Pasta

Hey everyone,

We made a tomato-cream sauce to go over our ravioli. I actually used fresh tomato from Angela and Andrea's garden and added a 1/4 teaspoon of Italian Seasoning since it calls for Italian-style tomatoes.

We liked it a lot... Here's where I found it:
http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/tomato-cream-sauce-for-pasta/Detail.aspx


Ingredients

* 2 tablespoons olive oil
* 1 onion, diced
* 1 clove garlic, minced
* 1 (14.5 ounce) can Italian-style diced tomatoes, undrained
* 1 tablespoon dried basil leaves
* 3/4 teaspoon white sugar
* 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
* 1/2 cup heavy cream
* 1 tablespoon butter

Directions

1. In a saucepan, saute onion and garlic in olive oil over medium heat. Make sure it doesn't burn. Add tomatoes, basil, sugar, oregano, salt and pepper. Bring to boil and continue to boil 5 minutes or until most of the liquid evaporates. Remove from heat; stir in whipping cream and butter. Reduce heat and simmer 5 more minutes.

Nutritional Information:
Amount Per Serving Calories: 182 | Total Fat: 16.6g | Cholesterol: 39mg

-Kim

Herb Dip

, 2004, Ina Garten, All Rights Reserved

Show: Barefoot ContessaEpisode: Grilling/Hasta La Pizza Baby

Ingredients

nocoupons

• 8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 4 scallions, white and green parts, minced
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley leaves, minced
• 1 tablespoon fresh dill, minced
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Place the cream cheese, sour cream, mayonnaise, scallions, parsley, dill, salt, and pepper in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and blend. Serve at room temperature.

Great dip!

-Kim

Tunafish Pasta

1 lb Campanelle Pasta (if you can't find, fusilli or shell pasta works well)
1 large onion, finely minced
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 can tuna in olive oil (6 or 8 oz, whatever it comes in)
3 Tbs butter
1/2 cup olive oil
salt to taste
pepper to taste

Basically this is the garlic and olive oil pasta kicked up for lent. This is our favorite Friday meal. Put 3 Tbs butter and 3 Tbs olive oil in frying pan along with onion. Brown onion till its medium/dark in color (this takes a while, maybe 20 minutes). If it gets dry in the pan add a bit more butter or oil. Once brown add garlic and cook for a few minutes. Add tuna (drain some of the oil from the can) and break up so there are no large pieces. Add a few shakes of salt and pepper.

Boil pasta in salted water (1 Tbs salt for each quart of water). In a serving bowl put the rest of the olive oil (about 1/4 cup) and a scoop of the water that the pasta is boiling in. Add the tuna mixture. Add cooked pasta to this and toss with as much parmesan as you like (about 1/4 cup).

Campanelle("Bells" in Italian) Pasta looks like this:

Sweet & Sour Chicken

This is the basic chicken recipe for Sweet & Sour Chicken. The sauce recipe is the one that Anna posted for Sweet & Sour meatballs.

2 Chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
3/4 Cup Flour
2 Tbs Corn Starch
1/2 tsp Salt
Peanut or Vegetable Oil

Cut the chicken pieces small/thin enough that they will cook through on a frying pan in just a few minutes per side. I usually cut 1 breast into about 6 pieces depending on how big it is. Mix flour, corn starch, and salt is a large bowl. Add chicken pieces and stir until they are well coated. Cover bottom of frying pan with oil (just enough to coat). Simmer chicken pieces for about 3 minutes per side, until they are cooked through. Add these to the sweet & sour sauce recipe that Anna posted below. Awesome.

Chicken Pot Pies

This recipe is complicated and very fattening...and very worth it :) Got it from barefoot contessa.

Ingredients

* 3 whole (6 split) chicken breasts, bone-in, skin-on (I just cooked 3 boneless skinless in tinfoil in over for 40 min)

* 3 tablespoons olive oil

* Kosher salt

* Freshly ground black pepper

* 5 cups chicken stock, preferably homemade

* 2 chicken bouillon cubes

* 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter

* 2 cups yellow onions, chopped (1-2 onions)

* 3/4 cup all-purpose flour

* 1/4 cup heavy cream

* 2 10oz packages of frozen peas, carrots, and corn

* 1/2 cup minced fresh parsley leaves

For the pastry:

* 4 ½ cups all-purpose flour

* 2 ¼ teaspoons kosher salt

* 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder

* ¾ cup vegetable shortening

* 1 ½ sticks cold unsalted butter, diced

* ¾ to 1 cup ice water

* 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water, for egg wash

* Flaked sea salt and cracked black pepper

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Place the chicken breasts on a baking sheet and rub them with olive oil. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Roast for 35 to 40 minutes, or until cooked through. Set aside until cool enough to handle, then remove the meat from the bones and discard the skin. Cut the chicken into large dice. You will have 4 to 6 cups of cubed chicken.

In a small saucepan, heat the chicken stock and dissolve the bouillon cubes in the stock. In a large pot or Dutch oven, melt the butter and saute the onions over medium-low heat for 10 to 15 minutes, until translucent. Add the flour and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Add the hot chicken stock to the sauce. Simmer over low heat for 1 more minute, stirring, until thick. Add 2 teaspoons salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and heavy cream. Add the cubed chicken, carrots, peas, corn and parsley. Mix well.

For the pastry, mix the flour, salt, and baking powder in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade (or do by hand in a bowl). Add the shortening and butter and mix quickly with your fingers until each piece is coated with flour. Pulse 10 times, or until the fat is the size of peas. With the motor running, add the ice water; process only enough to moisten the dough and have it just come together. Dump the dough out onto a floured board and knead quickly into a ball. Wrap the dough in plastic and allow it to rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Divide the filling equally among 6 ovenproof bowls. Divide the dough into six pieces and roll each piece into an 8-inch circle. Brush the outside edges of each bowl with the egg wash, then place the dough on top. Trim the circle to 1/2-inch larger than the top of the bowl. Crimp the dough to fold over the side, pressing it to make it stick. Brush the dough with egg wash and make 3 slits in the top. Sprinkle with sea salt and cracked pepper. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 1 hour, or until the top is golden brown and the filling is bubbling hot.

Chicken & Broccoli stuffed Crescent Rolls

Ingredients
2 chicken breasts
1 cup chopped broccoli (cooked)
1 cup shredded mild cheddar/monterey jack cheese (or your desired amount/type of cheese)
1/2 cup mayonnaise (or your desired amount)
1 package of crescent rolls

Directions
Boil chicken until done - approximately 45min to 1 hour (just make sure it's done). Shred chicken in medium sized bowl and add all remaining ingredients except the crescent rolls. See picture of how to stuff the crescent rolls. Use 2 rolls for each one; making 4 total chicken & broccoli stuffed rolls. Follow directions on crescent roll package for cooking time (Usually 375 for 11-13 minutes).

Enjoy, Kim

Chicken Tortilla Soup

This is one of our favorite soups, everytime we make it we are VERY happy we did :)


Ingredients

1 tsp minced garlic
½ onion, chopped
¼ tsp cumin
6 cups (1½ cartons) chicken stock
1 can black beans
1 can or 1 cup frozen corn
½ tsp chili powder
¼ tsp red pepper, if you like it spicy
1 Tbsp lime juice
½ jar salsa
1 chicken breast, raw, diced
For topping each bowl:
Shredded mexican cheese
Sour Cream
Tortilla chips

Directions
Saute garlic and onion in olive oil in large dutch oven for a couple minutes.
Add chicken broth, beans, corn, spices, lime juice and salsa and bring to a boil on high.

When boiling, add raw chicken pieces. Reduce heat and simmer for 6-8 minutes until chicken is cooked. Let stand 5 minutes.

For each bowl, add a handful of shredded cheese, sour cream (big scoop, this is key!), and handful of broken up tortilla chips.

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

This recipe is AWESOME. We had it last night, and it's one I will definitely use over and over again. It's delicious!

Meatballs
1 pound ground beef
1 egg
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1/4 finely diced onion
1 pinch ground black pepper

Sauce
1 (20-ounce) can pineapple chunks, drained with juice reserved
1/3 cup water, plus more, divided
3 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon seasoning salt
1 small carrot, sliced thinly
1 large green bell pepper, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 small onion, cut into wedges and separated

Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray a baking sheet with nonstick spray. Place ground beef, egg, cornstarch, salt, Worcestershire sauce, diced onion and pepper in a medium mixing bowl. Mix with clean hands or wooden spoon until well incorporated. Form into about 20 1-inch meatballs. Place meatballs in a single layer on prepared baking sheet. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes until done. Set aside.

To make the sauce, mix enough water with the reserved pineapple juice to make 1 cup. In a large saucepan over medium heat, combine the juice mixture, an additional 1/3 cup water, vinegar, soy sauce and brown sugar. Stir in cornstarch, ginger and seasoning salt and whisk until smooth. Cover and cook until thickened. Stir pineapple chunks, carrot, green pepper, onion and meatballs into the sauce. Gently stir to coat the meatballs with the sauce. Simmer, uncovered, for about 10 minutes, or until meatballs are thoroughly cooked. Serve over white rice. Serves: 6.

Lasagna

Hey everyone! I've never posted to a blog so here goes... Here is a recipe that I tried from a cookbook we received at our wedding called "Calumet County Kitchens". Walter and I really enjoyed it!

(Preheat oven to 350. 6 servings, about 1 1/4 cups each)
1 lb ground beef
2 tsp liquid garlic (I used fresh garlic)
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper
1 tsp oregano
1 tbsp parsley flakes
6 ounce can tomato paste
8 ounce can tomato sauce
3/4 cup hot water
6 lasagna noodles, cooked
1 egg
12 ounces cream-style cottage cheese (not sure what "cream-style" is as I think all are "cream-style", aren't they?)
1/4 lb (about 1 cup) process cheese, shredded

Crumble beef into large fry pan. Cook over moderate heat, stirring as needed, until lightly browned. Add garlic and onion; cook until onion is tender. Add seasonings, tomato paste, tomato sauce and water. Simmer, stirring, occasionally, for 5 minutes. Blend egg with cottage cheese.

In a 7 by 12 by 2 inch baking dish, spread layers of one-fourth of tomato-meat sauce, then three noodles, and one-fourth more tomato-meat sauce. Add half the cottage cheese mixture and half the process cheese. Add another one-fourth tomato-meat sauce, then the remaining cottage and process cheese. Spread with remaining noodles, then sauce. Bake uncovered 30 minutes. Cool 10 minutes before serving.

Enjoy! Love, Kim

Baked Spaghetti

Hey guys! Here's a really easy recipe, and you hardly need any ingredients. It makes a lot, so you might want to cut it in half... but it's really good, even leftover.

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef
1 (26-ounce) jar spaghetti sauce
1 pound angel hair pasta
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese, divided

Preheat oven to 350 F. In large skillet, cook ground beef until brown. Mix spaghetti sauce into skillet. Reduce heat and simmer. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Mix in pasta and cook until al dente, about 4 or 5 minutes for angel hair. Drain. Mix together spaghetti and meat mixture. Stir in 1 cup of cheese. Pour into 9 x 13-inch pan. Top with the remaining cheese and bake for 30 minutes, or until heated through and cheese is bubbly. Serves: 6 to 8.

Marinara with Butter & Onion

Ingredients

1 28oz can whole, peeled plum tomatoes
1 onion, peeled, cut in half
4 Tablespoons butter
salt, to taste

Note: shake can of different brands - the more viscous sounding, the better the flavor will be. the watery sounding cans are more acidic

Directions:
Cut up tomatoes and put in pot with juices. Add onion halves. Add butter. shake a bit of salt into the mix. Simmer on lowest simmer, uncovered, 45 minutes. Stir every 5-10 minutes, breaking up tomatoes with back of wooden spoon. taste for salt near the end and add as needed. After 45 minutes discard onion, toss with pasta. This does not produce a lot of sauce - 1-2 servings. Enjoy!

Mrs. Erickson's Chicken Pot Pies

This recipe is Tom's favorite recipe of all time! His mother makes these for their family and they are delicious. It's a bit of a peculiar recipe but give it a whirl. They're SO good!

1 bag frozen chicken tenderloins

1 8oz pkg. cream cheese

1 8oz. container of strawberry cream cheese

1/2 stick of butter

1 12oz. bag of frozen, microwavable peas ( I use Bird's Eye Steamfresh)

1 8oz. bag of pepperidge farms croutons (Herb Seasoned, crushed bread crumb type)

3-4 packages pillsbury crescent rolls

milk (optional)

large jar of chicken gravy

Put the cream cheeses and butter in a bowl to sit out and soften. Boil the chicken until it is cooked through. When finished, remove and cube (smaller cubes). Pour hot chicken into cream cheese. Stir well. Cook peas according to microwave directions. (They usually take 4-6 minutes.) Add croutons and hot peas to chicken mixture. Stir well. You want it to be moist, so if needed add some milk. I usually add 1/4 - 1/2 cup. Each pot pie is made from 2 crescent triangles. Tear off two together, press seams together tightly and spread them out to make a nice big rectangle. Put a nice, big scoop of chicken mixture inside. (1-2 cups) Pull up sides of crescent and seal together at top. You can make 4 pot pies per package of crescents. There will be enough chicken mixture to make about 12 pot pies. Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes until crescents are a nice, golden brown! Plate the pot pies and cover with chicken gravy. I like to take a knife and open them up, then put the gravy in and around. Yummy! :)