Mexican Cornbread

 

Right out of the Oven

INGREDIENTS:

• 1     1/4 C. All PURPOSE FLOUR
•   1 1/4 C. YELLOW CORNMEAL
•   1 1/2 Tbsp GRANULATED SUGAR
  
•   1 tsp BAKING SODA
•   3/4 tsp SALT
•   3/4 C. SOUR CREAM  + 3/4 C. WHOLE MILK  (or 1 ¼ CUP
        BUTTERMILK)
•   2 LARGE EGGS
•   8 TBSP MELTED BUTTER OR MARGARINE (cooled)
•   1 1/4 C. FRESHLY GRATED SHARP CHEDDAR CHEESE
•   1 C. FRESH CORN OFF COB, FROZEN OR CANNED
•   1 FINELY MINCED JALAPEÑO (seeds and veins removed)
•   BUTTER FOR SKILLET OR MARGARINE/COOKING
      SPRAY

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 400°
2. Mix dry ingredients
3. Add eggs, melted butter/margarine, sour cream & milk (or buttermilk)
4. Mix until dry ingredients are wet. Don’t overmix
5. Gently fold in cheese, corn and jalapeno
6. Pour into buttered iron skillet
7. Cook until a knife, inserted in the center comes out clean.

Serving Suggestion:

I’d serve it right out of the skillet if you’re serving buffet style or taking it to potluck. The skillet will keep it hot longer. Turn it out on a plate if you’re going to put it on the table. A little butter or margarine completes any cornbread, but especially this one.

CROCK POT RAVIOLI

 CROCK POT RAVIOLI

Crock Pot Ravioli recipe uses frozen cheese ravioli with homemade sauce and mozzarella cheese. 

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 5 hours

Total Time: 5 hours 10 minutes

Servings: 6   Calories: 650

Ingredients

• 2 25 oz bags frozen cheese ravioli
• 1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
• 1 6 oz can tomato paste
• 1 cup water
• 1 small onion diced
• 3 tsp minced garlic
• 3 tsp Italian seasoning
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 cups mozzarella cheese shredded

Instructions

• Pour the frozen ravioli into a 6-quart slow cooker.
• In a medium bowl, stir together the crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, water, onion, minced garlic, Italian seasoning and salt & pepper.
• Pour sauce over the frozen ravioli and stir to coat all the ravioli with sauce.
• Cover and cook on low for about 5 hours (or high for 3 hours).
• There is no need to stir this while it cooks.
• About 10 minutes before serving, sprinkle the ravioli with the shredded mozzarella cheese.
• Place the cover back on the slow cooker and let the cheese melt.

Notes

If you have a smaller family or just don't want leftovers, one bag of ravioli will work. Keep the sauce recipe the same. I used frozen cheese ravioli you can buy at Wal-mart. Also, you can substitute sauce ingredients for one large jar of store-bought pasta sauce to speed things up.

Serve with salad and garlic bread and this Olive Garden copy salad dressing.

Olive Garden Style Salad Dressing

Olive Garden Salad Dressing

Ingredients:

I'm not a real big fan of vinaigrette salad dressings, but I do like the dressing that comes with an Olive Garden Salad. It turns out to be very simple to make, with just 5 ingredients. It takes no time to make this to go with Ravioli de Portabello or Chicken Murphy.  up whenever you have an intense craving in no time flat. This Olive Garden's not-so-secret dressing has a slight zing too it with a subtle creaminess that goes with simple salads. The amounts are to your taste. Expect to do a lot of licking of your fingertips while preparing this.

Ingredients: 

• Italian dressing mix: Make your own for the best results. Just toss together 2 tablespoons dried oregano, 2 tablespoons salt, 1 tablespoon dried parsley, 1 tablespoon garlic salt, 1 tablespoon onion powder, 1 tablespoon white sugar, 1 teaspoon ground black pepper, 1 teaspoon dried basil, ¼ teaspoon dried thyme, 1/4 teaspoon celery seed. Store in sealed container to maintain freshness
• Olive Oil: Any kind. You don't need extra virgin oil. Use however much you want to make up or enough to the mostly fill up the cruet or container you're using for storing it.
  
• White vinegar: This doesn't add color to the dressing, just that tangy sour flavor of a good dressing. If you'd like to vary the recipe and the color, try red wine vinegar instead. I like it that way too. Add enough to give it that zing you like without making it being too vinegary. The light touch with the vinegar is part of what makes OG's dressing light and tasty.
  
• Water: Use water to thin out the dressing to your desired consistency. Don't overdo it.
  
• Mayonnaise: Creates a bit of creaminess and mellows the vinegar. Add last to bring it to the flavor you like.
  

Directions:

With just a few ingredients (if you prepare your dry seasoning mix ahead of time), it’s simple to mix up this delicious dressing! In a medium sized bowl whisk together the dry dressing mix, olive oil, red or white vinegar, water and mayonnaise. It is the perfect combination! 

• Mix: You can use a simple whisk to mix this or a blender to really emulsify it.
• Let it rest: Let the flavors marinate in the fridge for at least an hour before serving.
• Store it: Store dressing, preferably in a jar with a tight-fitting lid. Peak flavor lasts for up to three weeks. Shake well before each use.

 

 

Mom's and Tom's Vegetarian Cream Cheese Enchiladas

 

The other day, my Mom finally revealed the secret to her delicious enchiladas. They’re beef enchiladas, but there was something different about them that I really like and they translate perfectly to vege-burger enchiladas. More than that, my Sweet Baboo liked them which is saying a lot for any dish.  Anyway, it turns out that instead of enchilada sauce, mom uses a can of tomato soup. She wasn’t specific about proportions, so I used griller crumbles instead of beef and guessed at some of this. It turned out pretty good. Sheila liked it, so I feel good about posting the recipe. Happy Cinco de’ Mayo. Celebrate with a Tex-Mex Potluck (Haystacks are also appropriate)! We celebrate on May the 5^th when our Mexican friends finally ran the French government out of Norte’ America. That was a good thing. Can you imagine if I’d had to make vegetarian snails?

Filling cooked, ready to stuff the tortillas.

Ingredients:

•      Taco size flour tortillas (Mom makes ‘em with corn tortillas so either way)
  
•   Can of tomato soup
•   Cream cheese
•   Picante sauce
•   Grated cheddar
•   1/3 onion (chopped)
•   Morningstar Griller Crumbles (or any  good vegeburger)
  
•   Sour cream

Directions:

1.     In a large skillet, brown the Griller Crumbles (about 1/3 to half a bag) and set aside
2. Saute’ the chopped onions
3. Add Griller Crumbles to onions
4. Add 4 oz cream cheese (1/2 a block) and can of tomato soup
5. Stir together till the cream cheese melts
6. Add ½ cup picante sauce (I like mine mild, but whatever suits you - hot as you want)
7. Stir together till the mixture starts to bubble then turn off the heat
8. Lay out a flour tortilla, spoon the mixture into it, then sprinkle grated cheddar over it.
9. Roll the flour tortilla up and lay it in a 9x12 casserole dish
10. Repeat laying the enchiladas side by side till the dish is full.
11. Spread the remainder of the filling on top of the enchiladas
12. Drizzle picante sauce onto the enchiladas
13. Cover the top of the enchiladas with grated cheese
14. Bake at 350° until the cheese melts and begins to brown
15. Remove from oven and serve with a dollop of sour cream
    

Here's what it looks like ready to go in the oven.

Awesome Broccoli-Cheese Casserole

 

 

Awesome Broccoli-Cheese Casserole

Good stuff especially if you have a lot of broccoli you need to use up (which I do).
Recipe by Stacy M Polcyn

Prep Time: 15 mins  Cook Time: 45 mins
Total Time: 1 hour

Ingredients

• 1 (10.5 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1 egg, beaten
• ¼ cup chopped onion
• 3 (10 ounce) packages frozen chopped broccoli
• 8 ounces shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 dash paprika

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter a 9x13-inch baking dish.
2. Whisk condensed soup, mayonnaise, egg, and onions together in a medium mixing bowl until combined.
3. Place frozen broccoli into a very large mixing bowl and break it up if necessary; add soup mixture and mix well to coat. Sprinkle with cheese and mix well; spread mixture into the prepared baking dish. Season with salt, pepper, and paprika.
4. Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour.

 

Homemade Ketchup (without vinegar)

 

Before the 19th-century, "ketchup" was what people called sauces with a thick consistency. An American scientist named James Mease is believed to have invented tomato-based ketchup sometime in 1812. His formula was tweaked over the years and in 1876, Heinz, introduced bottled ketchup. Heinz is still the leading ketchup maker to this day. They sell over 650 million bottles every year. Ketchup is a staple of American cuisine, from hamburgers, and hot dogs to French fries, This version eschews vinegar for soy sauce, pineapple juice and lemon juice. 

Ingredients:

• 2 cups tomato sauce

• 2 ½ tsp salt

• 2 ¼ tsp onion powder

• ¼ tsp cumin

• ¼ tsp oregano

• ½ tsp paprika

• ¼ tsp garlic powder

• ½ tsp soy sauce (to make it healthier use 1 tsp Braggs Liquid Aminos)

• 3 tbsp pineapple juice

• 4 tbsp lemon juice

• 8 tbsp honey

Directions:

1. Mix 1 cup of water with each can of tomato sauce in a bowl.

2. Mix up all the liquids. Add the spices and seasonings, then stir to combine.

3. Pour mixture into a crock pot and bring it to 160 degrees in a slow cooker Cook on high until the mixture is reduced and thick (10 to 12 hours), stirring frequently. Smooth the finished ketchup in a blender. Not only does the Crock-Pot take out a lot of the legwork, it also ensures the perfect thick consistency every time.

4. Pour into containers (preferably glass). Refrigerate or freeze.

Corn Chowder

 

It looked better in the crockpot. I sprinkled some chives on it for the picture.
This was what was left. As usual we ate some before we got a picture.

 Modified this from the Brotherhood of Locomative Engineers & Trainmen Cookbook.  It called for a pound of bacon so I subbed vege-bacon and it worked fine. You could probably use TVB based Bacon-Bits (check the label).  I reduced the recipe a little but not much.  Here's how it goes. I really liked this recipe. It'll go in the family cookbook. Lovely stuff on a cold night. Sheila had me make grilled cheese sandwiches to go with it.

Ingredients:

 1. Stripples or Morningstar Farms Breakfast Strips (to taste - I used 4 crisp strips)
 2. 1/2 cup diced onion
 3. 2-4 large Russet Potatoes peeled and cubed
 4. 1 can cream of celery soup or substitute 1 can mushroom soup + TBSP celery seed
 5. 1 15 oz can whole kernel corn (I didn't drain it - figured it needed the moisture
 6. 1 can of evaporated milk
 7  1 1/2 cup water
 8. 1-2 TBSP McKay's chicken seasoning (or Wyler's)
 9. Mashed potato flakes
10. Crockpot or Stock pot depending on how much of a hurry you're in.

Directions:

1.  Crisp your vege-bacon in a skillet or in the microwave. If you like it baconish, use more. You can always add more by popping them in the microwave and piecing them up. Don't add them to the soup just yet. If you use a skillet add the onions and saute them a bit. Otherwise just dump them into the soup from the get-go.

2. Peel and dice the potatoes. add to the pot with the onions. Hold off on the bacon till the last.

3. Add soup, celery seed if needed, corn, McKay's or Wyler's Powdered Chicken seasoning. Turn on the crockpot or put the soup pot on medium heat.

4. Add evaporated milk and water

5. Bring the mixture to a boil stirring periodically. Heat until potatoes soften.

6. Add potato flakes 1/4 cup at a time until the soup reaches the desired thickness. 

Serving Suggestions:

Is great with grilled cheese sandwiches, club crackers, saltines, Ritz crackers, or cornbread. I like it in my big giant cup with the grizzly bear on it. Perfect for a cold winter's night by the fire. I keep the leftover soup in the bog bowl with the plastic lid. It's not safe for the microwave so from there on I just fill up my soup bowl and 3 minutes in the microwave gets it hot enough to suit me.  It's very filling and you'll have a nice warm tummy all evening. One of life's decadent pleasures on a peasant's budget.

Bon Appetit'
Tom