My Newest Addition to the Cookbook Collection

I just got my copy of How to Cook Like Your Grandmother by Drew Kime. I'm a big fan of Drew's blog because it has clear, no-nonsense instructions, a little humor, a little nostalgia, and great step-by-step photos for each recipe! And the book is just the same, minus the photos. If you're looking for a good cookbook for yourself or to give as a gift, and you don't want the celebrity glitz but instead good home cooking made with real ingredients, this book is an excellent choice. It's even got space for notes after each recipe, so you can jot down your review or any modifications you make. Highly recommended!

Catching Up on the Menu Plan!

Here's what we've BEEN eating:

Mon 15: Balsamic Chicken with Onions

Tues 16: Cheese ravioli with sauce and meatballs

Wed 17: Pot roast, oven-roasted potatoes, vegetables and Amanda's pull-apart rolls

Thurs 18: Hawaiian chicken, rice, green beans

Fri 19: Homemade pizza

Sat 20: Ranch chicken tenders, corn, chicken-flavored noodles

Sun 21: dinner with friends

Mon 22: Spaghetti

Tues 23: Turkey Chili Blanco

Wed 24: Christmas Eve Pierogi Dinner

Thurs 25: Roast filet mignon, baked potatoes/yams, roasted carrots

Fri 26: Dinner with family

Sat 27: Olive Garden

Sun 28: Pork Chops German Style, Mixed vegetables, mac & cheese

Tried and True

Some recipes we've tasted that are definitely "keepers!"

Amanda's Homemade Pull-apart dinner rolls. EASY--there is no "rise after shaping" and the salt on top is yummy. Great with soup.

Barbara's Sweet Tea: yummy!

Barbara's Melt-in-Your-Mouth Braised and Barbecued Chicken. Long title. Great chicken.

Menu Plan December 8-14

It's been a wacky week with doctor appointments and minor surgery. Amazingly we've managed not to resort to takeout through all this, and I haven't been to Shop Rite in more than 10 days. Think they miss me?

MONDAY: Chicken Piccata, Alfredo noodles, green beans

TUESDAY: Pork and Hominy Stew from the December 2008 issue of All You. NOT recommended.

WEDNESDAY: Tandoori Chicken

THURSDAY: Homemade chicken noodle soup from my friend

FRIDAY: Linguine with shrimp and scallop marinara

SATURDAY: Turkey Crescent Casserole

SUNDAY: Mexican Shepherd's Pie

Menu Plan December 1 - 7

Here's what we had over the weekend. NOT what was planned.

SATURDAY...Pizza

SUNDAY...meatball sandwiches and sausage & pepper sandwiches

MENU PLAN FOR THE WEEK:

MONDAY: Turkey Encore Paprikas with noodles

TUESDAY: Sweet & Sour Pork with rice

WEDNESDAY: Chicken Fajita Soup

THURSDAY: Spaghetti and meatballs

FRIDAY: Baked whiting.

SATURDAY: Pepperoni Bread

SUNDAY: Dinner at a friend's house!

Ways to Serve the Leftover Turkey

Yes, I'm late to the Leftover Turkey Party. I'm cooking leftovers tonight and the rest is in the freezer for future dinners. I don't like to O.D. on turkey all at once; then we never want it again! Right now there are 3 more dinners' worth of cooked turkey in the freezer and 1 dinner's worth of stuffing--plus a large container of turkey stock.

Here are some recipes I use with leftover turkey. Any recipe calling for cubed cooked chicken works equally well with cubed cooked turkey.

Turkey Encore Paprikas
Cousin Sharon's Chicken & Biscuit Stew
Chicken & Dumplings
Chicken Fajita Soup
Grandpa's Dark Meat Chicken
Pot Pie
Chicken Chili Blanco
Chicken & Noodle Casserole
Chicken Divan
Scarborough Fair Chicken Soup (I made stock with the turkey carcass, so this would be a great way to use it!)
Crescent Casserole

I also make Chicken Enchiladas using canned enchilada sauce (the red kind), onions, cheese and flour tortillas.

And finally, you can't go wrong (any time of year) with
Thanksgiving-in-a-Bowl
Warm up all your leftovers of the following items, layer in an oven-safe or microwave-safe bowl, and heat it up until the cheese melts.
Turkey (bite size pieces)
Corn
Mashed potatoes
Stuffing
Gravy
Cheddar cheese for topping

The KFC near my house closed, so this is how I satisfy my craving for their famous mashed potato bowl.

Turkey Encore Paprikas

This is a great way to use that leftover turkey without having it seem like you are eating leftover turkey.

2 cups cubed cooked turkey (or chicken)
1 can (14 oz) diced tomatoes with juice
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 tbl minced garlic
1 onion, chopped
1/2 of a 12-oz jar of roasted red peppers, chopped
1 1/2 cups whole baby bella mushrooms (white mushrooms work too but these have great flavor!)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 1/2 tsp paprika

I mix all this up in my 6-qt Nesco roaster, turn it on to 250 and let it go for an hour.
If you don't have a roaster, use a nice big skillet with a lid, and simmer it for an hour.
Serve over your favorite pasta (we like bow ties with this dish!)

Thanksgiving on Wheels: the aftermath

I hope everyone had a very happy Thanksgiving!

Ours was pretty quiet, with just my in-laws at their house, but it was a nice day. I cooked the turkey, stuffing, bread, apple pie and turnips here. Everything was packed in coolers to take to my in-laws' house. I had the potatoes all peeled and in a tupperware full of ice water. Then there were cans of gravy, cranberry sauce and corn, and a bag of frozen green beans. A pretty basic meal. When we got there I put the foil pans of cooked food in the oven on warm (with some chicken broth added to the turkey and stuffing to keep them moist.) I cooked all the other food as usual. The only thing that didn't work well was the turnips. I don't know if it was the foil pan or the extra steaming/baking time, but they didn't come out well. However, I'm the only one who really eats them so no one else missed it.

All in all it was not too terrible to bring the dinner with us.

Thanksgiving-on-the-go

It appears that I will be cooking Thanksgiving dinner after all. AND transporting it 75 miles.

I'll be posting a menu and timetable for Thanksgiving-on-the-go as I work it out.

Menu Plan November 23-29, 2008

SUNDAY: Beef Paysanne, Spanish Country Bread

MONDAY: Tacos, homemade mac & cheese

TUESDAY: Chicken & dumplings with peas and carrots

WEDNESDAY: meatball sandwiches on homemade Italian rolls

THURSDAY: Thanksgiving dinner! I'm bringing bread, as requested by the hostess

FRIDAY: Salmon burgers, Lidia's Italian Potatoes

SATURDAY: Chicken Fajita Soup, tortilla chips

Salmon Burgers

Makes 4 burgers.

1 can (15 oz) red or pink water-packed salmon, rinsed & drained (about 2 cups flaked salmon)
8 saltines, crushed
1/4 cup seeded, diced red bell pepper
3 TBL miracle whip*
1 tsp lemon juice
4 drops tabasco

Remove skin from salmon and flake with a fork. Mash or remove bones. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Shape into 4 patties.
Cover a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and brush with olive oil. Place patties on oiled pan.
Bake 25 to 30 minutes at 350 until golden brown.

*To sub for miracle whip, add the same amount of mayo and 1/8 tsp EACH garlic powder, mustard powder, & paprika.

This is based on a recipe in Lickety-Split Meals by Zonya Foco. However, I sub for the miracle whip and bake these rather than frying.

Frugal Grocery Shopping

I had to laugh when I read this article just now: Does Your Frugality Drive Everyone Nuts?

An hour ago, I finished up my grocery shopping at my favorite local supermarket. I had a pretty full cart, and wound up with 10 canvas grocery bags full of food. I got 50 cents back for using 10 reusable bags, by the way! Those bags I bought last January have more than paid for themselves.

Anyway, I had a big stack of coupons with my order, plus my "free" turkey (you get a free turkey each November if you spend over $300 during a certain time period. They calculate this BEFORE coupons--works for me!)

The two men behind me in line rolled their eyes when they saw the coupons sitting there waiting to be redeemed. And because I had a new-to-the-job checker, it took a little longer than usual.

But hey, guys behind me in line--I saved $71.98 in coupons and store savings--I only had to pay $131.46 for $202 worth of food. Not bad for a few minutes of coupon clipping and careful list-making.

Sorry if my frugal ways cost you an extra few minutes this morning. Next time, pick another line.

My husband thinks that ShopRite is going to stop letting me in if I continue to shop like this. But we're enjoying it while it lasts.

Menu Plan November 16-22, 2008

Last Friday I used one of the homemade pizza crusts that I had prepared and frozen. Great option for a fast pizza, along with homemade sauce and some shredded Italian-blend cheese.

SUNDAY: We went to Chinese Buffet.

MONDAY: Spicy Orange Chicken, rice, vegetable

TUESDAY: Ham, eggs and home fries

WEDNESDAY: Tacos, corn, homemade mac & cheese

THURSDAY: Ravioli with meatballs

FRIDAY: Salmon burgers (sides to be determined)

SATURDAY: Beef paysanne, noodles, vegetable

Kitchen Tip of the Day

Microplane zesters are great for getting super-tiny bits of citrus zest that you can use in cooking or baking. But don't use your microplane zester over a tiny bowl (like the one shown in this picture) unless you WANT a big mess and a pile of wasted citrus zest.

Instead, lay the zester on a dinner plate. All the zest will land in the plate, not on your countertop.

Lidia's Italian Potatoes

I got the idea for these from the Lidia's Chicken and Potatoes posted at Barbara's blog. The potato idea looked so good, it seemed a shame to limit it to serving with chicken.

These were definitely a hit. The only problem was that I didn't make enough! I had no idea they'd be this good. Next time, I'll make a bigger batch. They require a little "babysitting" but they're worth it!

2 or 3 small potatoes per person
2 tbl olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp rosemary

Rinse and dry potatoes. Leave skins on. Cut potatoes in quarters.
Toss potatoes in a bowl with olive oil and salt.
Heat a heavy skillet over medium heat until it is hot. Pour in potatoes and scrape all the extra oil out of the bowl. Don't turn potatoes for the first 5 minutes.
Stir potatoes and cook another 5 minutes.
Add rosemary and turn potatoes.
Cover and cook 7 minutes.
Stir, cover and cook another 7 minutes.
Stir, cover and cook 10 more minutes.
Stir and cook 10 minutes UNCOVERED.

Menu Plan November 9-15, 2008

SUNDAY: Hawaiian chicken, rice, green beans

MONDAY: Pork roast, either with caramelized onions or Hoisin-Molasses sauce; Lidia's Italian Potatoes (from Barbara's recipe, but without the chicken), vegetable

TUESDAY: Pot roast, noodles, gravy, corn

WEDNESDAY: Chicken piccata, rice, vegetable

THURSDAY: Spaghetti

FRIDAY: Undecided--possibly the baked whiting that we didn't have this past week

SATURDAY: we'll be celebrating my dad's birthday. Mom's planning to serve Ham and Cabbage (boiled smoked ham, butt half)

Menu Plan November 3, 2008

SUNDAY: Mexican Steak on the grill, Alfredo noodles, skillet corn

MONDAY: Roast chicken, baked potatoes, mixed vegetables

TUESDAY: Tacos (choice of hard or soft shell), macaroni and cheese

WEDNESDAY: Swiss Chicken Melt, rice, green beans with almonds

THURSDAY: Spaghetti, of course!

FRIDAY: Baked whiting, sides "to be announced"

SATURDAY: We hope to have friends over for dinner; not sure yet what we will serve.

Cooking with Alicia & Annie: Asiago Cheese Bread

Today I made the Asiago Cheese Bread from Alicia's Recipes. I am addicted to the Asiago Cheese Bagels at Panera, so I was hoping that I could learn to make some Asiago bread at home. Even with the pricey cheese, it's easier on the budget to make my own.

Find my version of the recipe along with photo and nutrition information at Cook and Count.

Joy's Sugar Cookies

I got this recipe about 15 years ago from a cyber-buddy named Joy, and these have been a staple in my home ever since. These cookies are super-easy and really delicious!

You'll find this recipe at my new website, Cook and Count!

Cracker Barrel Hash Brown Casserole

Get this recipe with nutrition facts and photo at Cook and Count!