Slow Cooker Coq Au Vin

This is a recipe I got on bhg.com (Better Homes and Gardens website).  I'm always looking for new recipes using my slow cooker, and this one sounded good to me, so I tried it.  It turned out scrumptious and made 4 generous servings.  If you're like me and don't drink and therefore have no experience with liquor stores, don't panic when you get to the "dry red wine" ingredient.  I recently discovered that you can buy red and white and Marsala wine for cooking in the grocery store, on the same shelf as the vinegars!  I like the flavor that wine imparts to food, and since all the alcohol cooks out, that's all you're left with!  Perfect!

Slow Cooker Coq Au Vin (that's French for Chicken with Wine :)

3 pounds chicken thighs, skinned
1 envelope beefy onion soup mix
2 Cups quartered fresh mushrooms
1-1/2 Cups frozen small whole onions (I didn't have any, so I just quartered a small onion and threw it in)
3 medium carrots, cut into 3-1/2 inch sticks
1/2 Cup dry red wine
Hot cooked mashed potatoes (optional)

Brown chicken thighs in a hot skillet with a small amount of oil.  Remove to paper towels and let drain.  Place chicken thighs in bottom of slow cooker.  Sprinkle with the dry soup mix.  Add mushrooms, onions, and carrots.  Pour wine over all.  Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours or on high for 2-1/2 to 3 hours.  If desired, serve with mashed potatoes and sprinkle with parsley.

We're trying to eat more vegetables, so I added some steamed broccoli too.

Penne Rustica

I do not know what happened to December.  No way did I intend to not do one post!  But there you have it.  I hope your holiday was wonderful.  We got what we wanted -- a new grandbaby on December 5th!  I spent a couple weeks helping out, and then one frenzied week trying to get ready for Christmas, and then one collapsed week recovering from the frenzied week, and now, somehow, it's January 5th.  By the way, I read in the January issue of Better Homes and Gardens (page 119 if you don't believe me) that "January 5 is the most stressful day of the year, according to a British survey of 2,000 people."  Makes you wonder about British surveys, doesn't it?  Somehow, I don't think I'd necessarily pick January 5th as an overwhelmingly stressful day -- I mean, why not the 3rd or the 10th?  I'm just sayin'.  Sooo, back to Penne Rustica.  I may not have been blogging in December, but I'll tell you what, I was eating!  And I ate some great stuff, including this recipe, which I had at a party and immediately asked for the recipe.  The party was on December 19th and I've already made it twice since then, that's how yummy it is.  It is not, however, low calorie, so if you've made a New Year's resolution to lose weight, I'd suggest skipping this recipe until Valentine's Day or you give up on the resolution, whichever comes first :).  I picked Valentine's Day because it would make a very romantic dinner entree.  Frankly, I don't think I can wait that long!

Penne Rustica

Gratinata Sauce:
1 tsp butter
1 tsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1/2 Cup Marsala cooking wine (you can find this in most grocery stores by the vinegars)
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
4 Cups heavy cream (I told you it wasn't low calorie)

Saute butter, garlic and rosemary together until garlic begins to brown.  Add Marsala wine, bring to simmer and reduce by 1/3.  Add remaining ingredients, bring back to simmer and reduce by 1/2, stirring often.  Be careful not to scorch.  Set aside.

1 pkg (16 oz) Tinkyada Brown Rice Penne, cooked, rinsed, and drained
2 - 4 strips bacon, cooked until crisp, cooled and chopped
3/4 stick (6 Tbsp) butter
3 chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
1/2 - 1 lb large shrimp, peeled, deveined, tails off, cut into bite-size pieces
Salt and pepper to taste
Gratinata Sauce
1/2 Cup fresh grated parmesan cheese, divided
4 sun-dried tomato halves (the dehydrated kind, not in oil -- you don't really need more oil ;), diced
Paprika

Cook the bacon.  Remove from pan and clean grease from pan.  Saute chicken pieces in butter until cooked through.  Add shrimp and cook just until pink.  Add salt, pepper, Gratinata Sauce and 1/4 Cup of the grated parmesan cheese and simmer until thickened.  In large bowl, combine shrimp and chicken mixture with cooked pasta, chopped bacon and diced sun-dried tomatoes.  Place in 9 x 13 casserole dish.  Top with remaining 1/4 Cup parmesan cheese and sprinkle lightly with paprika.  Bake at 475 for 10-15 minutes.  Serve immediately.  

A 9x13 casserole feeds 8-12 people, since it's so rich.  I have found that trying to reheat leftovers, either in the oven or in the microwave, causes the cream to separate.  I just mop up the resulting oil with a paper towel and figure I'm now eating a lower fat version that still tastes great.  If you discover a way to reheat it without the separation, please let me know and I'll add it to this post!   

Chicken Pot Pie

This is a bonus recipe that combines the last two posts into one!  If you've made the Chicken and Dumplings, you're set to go.  I made this in individual sized ramekins, although it would work fine in a regular pie plate if you're feeding a family or don't have ramekins.  I decided I wanted to change up the chicken stew a little, so I just sauteed some sliced fresh mushrooms in a little butter and added some frozen peas to the mushrooms right at the end to thaw them, then stirred them into the chicken stew.  (I didn't use the dumplings at all.)  I've always thought that a bottom and top crust on chicken pot pie was too much, so I just ladled the jazzed up stew into the bowls...

and then topped them with the crust (using yesterday's recipe, which makes 4 tops).  If you like lots of crust, feel free to line the bottom and top -- I'll never tell!

Then I baked them in a 375 oven until the tops got browned.

They were yummy!  Here's a picture of one that's been cut into so you can see the flakiness of the crust.



These is also a great way to use up leftover turkey, vegetables and gravy from Thanksgiving dinner.  Just combine what you've got, add what you like, and top it with crust!  A hit every time!

Chicken and Dumplings

OK, you're finally getting my all-time favorite, ultimate comfort food recipe.  Be warned, however, that it is also labor-intensive, but totally worth it.  For the ultimate experience, you'll want to pay attention to the following, in order of importance:
1.  A cold day, preferably snowing or storming (this is definitely not a warm-weather dish).
2.  A day when you have a block of time with no deadlines and no stress, so you can just enjoy being in the kitchen (it turns out better with the love flowing).
3.  Make sure you have the ingredients you need on hand so you don't have to run to the store in the midst of making it (see #1).
4.  An evening coming up (not necessarily the day you make it) with family or close friends invited who love honest, simple, delicious homemade food and will appreciate your efforts (optional if you hate entertaining).

I have made this recipe for years and given it out numerous times.  I adapted it the first time (pre-GF) from a recipe I found in a magazine. That version was more casserole-y, with the chicken still on the bone in pieces, which I thought was weird because it was so hard and messy to eat.  So I changed that and a few other things that I'll explain later.  It became an immediate family favorite, and is usually what we have for Christmas Eve dinner (made a day or two in advance, when I can manage it--thank goodness it keeps well).  When we found out about Ron's allergy to wheat, I was determined to adapt it again so that we could continue to enjoy it -- it was impossible to imagine our lives without ever having chicken and dumplings again!  It took a few tries, at least for the dumplings, before it was back to its previous status as #1 fav.  I hope it becomes one of your family favorites as well. 

Chicken and Dumplings (makes enough for 12 generous servings)

5 lbs chicken breasts and thighs, skinned, or 2 whole chickens cut into pieces
6 Cups thickly sliced carrots
6 Cups thickly chopped onions
3 Cups thickly sliced celery
13 Cups water
6 cans Swanson's chicken broth
Bouquet garni:  3 Tbsp dried parsley, 1 large bay leaf, 1 tsp thyme, 1 tsp rosemary, 1-1/2 tsp crushed peppercorns or coarse ground pepper.  The traditional way to make a bouquet garni is to put the ingredients in a couple layers of cheesecloth, and tie it with string.  I rarely have cheesecloth on hand, so I use a large spice ball.  The picture below shows 2 spice balls with a teaspoon in the foreground so you can get an idea of the size.  I most often use the one on the right, as you can tell from its beat-up appearance :).  Incidentally, large spice balls like these also work great for the spices used in spiced cider (I'll be sharing my favorite recipe for that soon!)

Cook chicken in 10 cups of the water.  Boil, skimming often, until chicken is cooked through.  Remove chicken from water and keep broth.  If you use whole chickens, you will, of course, have to remove the meat from the bones, which is more work.  Using skinned boneless chicken breasts and thighs speeds things along a little.  After it cools, cut into bite-sized chunks.

Cook the veggies in 3 Cups water, canned chicken broth and bouquet garni.  When veggies are done, remove bouquet garni and vegetables from broth.  Keep broth. 

While the meat and vegetables are cooking, mix up the dumplings:

6 Tbsp shortening
2 eggs
2/3 Cup buttermilk or sour milk
1 Cup rice flour
2/3 Cup potato starch flour
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2-3 Tbsp dried parsley

Beat the shortening and egg together.  Whisk the dry ingredients together.  Stir in the buttermilk alternately with the dry ingredients.  Do not overbeat.  This will be a fairly stiff dough.  Set aside.

3 cubes (1-1/2 Cups) butter
2 Cups brown or white rice flour
1 Tbsp salt
2 tsp ground pepper

In very large stock pot, melt butter.  Add flour, salt and pepper and cook for 2 minutes.  Pour in 16 cups of the reserved veggie and chicken broth.  If you need additional, add water to make the 16 cups.  Stir until thickened.  Bring to a boil; lower heat until gravy is at a good simmer that is producing steam.  Drop dumplings by heaping tablespoonfuls into hot gravy.  Only put in as many as can fit comfortably, not touching each other.  Cover with tight lid and steam for 10 minutes.  Do not lift the lid while cooking dumplings.  It is the steam that cooks the dumplings.  You can test for doneness in the normal way - with a wooden toothpick.  They will be coated in gravy, but should be done in the center like biscuits.  Remove dumplings from broth and put in your next batch.  Keep cooked dumplings warm on an oven-proof plate in the oven.

Here's what they look like when done.  They aren't real attractive, but it won't matter.  Keep reading!

When all the dumplings are cooked, add the veggies and cut-up chicken back into the gravy, stirring well.  Lower heat. 

To serve, put a dumpling in the bottom of a bowl and ladle the chicken stew on top. 

Note:  Don't be tempted to put the veggies and chicken into the gravy before cooking the dumplings.  The veggies and meat will sink to the bottom and burn while the dumplings are cooking. Getting the gravy hot enough to produce the steam necessary to cook the dumplings without burning on the bottom is the trickiest part.  If you discover that the gravy has stuck and burned some on the bottom, don't panic.  Just transfer the gravy into another large pot, without scraping the burnt part with it, then add your vegetables and meat into the gravy and reheat at a low temperature.  The veggies and meat are usually still pretty warm and the gravy is hot, so it doesn't take long at all to get it to eating temperature.

There it is -- total comfort in a bowl.  And as an added bonus, your house will smell divine! 

For my gluten-eating followers, just use regular flour instead of the rice flour in the soup part, and here's the original recipe for the dumplings:

3 Cups flour
1-1/2 Tbsp baking powder
1-1/2 tsp salt
3 eggs, lightly beaten
15 Tbsp milk
2-3 Tbsp dried parsley

Mix dry ingredients and parsley in a bowl.  Mix milk and eggs together.  Add to dry ingredients and mix until just blended.  Dough will be sticky.  Proceed as directed above.

Quick Dinner -- Turkey or Chicken over Rice

I have been sooo neglecting this blog lately -- we've been traveling almost non-stop -- 3 times to Utah in a month (too much!) and lots of time in the mountains before winter gets here.  Anyway, I had nothing planned for dinner one night, so I quickly put this together with what I had on hand, and it turned out so good I thought I'd better share it!  I know the name is lame --- but I couldn't think of what to call it!  If you have a better name, let me know and I'll change it.

Quick Dinner -- Turkey or Chicken over Rice

Put your rice on to cook while you do the following:

6 Tbsp butter, melted
4 Tbsp rice flour

Stir together and cook 1-2 minutes.

3 cloves garlic, minced
2 green onions, sliced, or 1/4 Cup chopped onion
1 Cup sliced fresh mushrooms
2 Cups shredded or chopped cooked turkey or chicken (you can used canned, if you want)

Add to butter/flour mixture and cook until veggies soften.

1 can chicken broth
1 tsp coarse ground pepper

Add to above and stir constantly until it's gravy.  Serve over cooked rice.  Quick and easy!

Shrimp and Sausage Red Rice

I found this recipe in Better Homes and Gardens Magazine and tried it this weekend -- fantastic!  So thought I'd share it with all of you (along with my notes).  It's not fast (takes about an hour to an hour and 15) but worth it!

Shrimp and Sausage Red Rice

3 Tbsp bacon drippings (I didn't have any, so just used olive oil.  Bet it would be even better with the smoky bacon flavor from the drippings, though)
1/2 Cup chopped onion
1/2 Cup chopped green sweet pepper
1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped*
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp dried thyme, crushed
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper (optional) (I put it in -- like the spiciness!)
1/2 to 1 tsp salt
freshly ground pepper
1 14.5-oz can petite diced or crushed tomatoes**
1 rounded Tbsp tomato paste
2 Cups chicken stock or water
1 Tbsp butter
1 Cup long grain rice
8 oz. andouille or cooked, smoked chorizo sausage, sliced in 1/2-inch rounds
1 Cup sliced fresh okra -- use small whole okra pods with the stem end trimmed (we were up in the mountains and the little grocery store up there didn't have okra, so I left it out -- it was great anyway) 
1 lb peeled and deveined shrimp

1.  In a large skillet heat bacon drippings.  Add onion; cook over medium-low heat without stirring for 5 minutes.  Add the sweet pepper, jalapeno, garlic, thyme, and crushed red pepper.  Sprinkle with 1/2 tsp salt and a few grinds of black pepper.  Cook over low heat for 8 to 10 minutes or until onion and pepper are soft but not browned.
2.  Add tomatoes and tomato paste.  Stir in stock; bring to a simmer.  Cover and simmer gently for 15 to 20 minutes.  Taste carefully for seasoning (broth should be highly seasoned to flavor the rice).
3.  In a heavy, wide-bottom nonreactive pot or heavy 12-inch skillet heat butter over medium heat until melted.  Add rice; cook, stirring constantly, for 1 to 2 minutes until rice becomes translucent.  Carefully stir in the hot tomato mixture.  Cover quickly and cook over low heat for 20 minutes.  Add the sausage and okra, mixing in gently with two forks.  Return cover and cook 10 minutes longer over very low heat, just until most of the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender.  (When I went to add the sausage, I discovered that the rice had absorbed all the liquid and was done, so I just dumped in the sausage and shrimp all at once and cooked it until the shrimp was done)
4.  Sprinkle shrimp lightly with salt and pepper.  Stir the shrimp into the rice mixture.  Cover and cook 3 to 5 minutes longer, just until shrimp is opaque.  Remove from heat and let rest for 3 to 5 minutes before serving.  Makes 6 servings.

*Hot chile peppers contain oils that may burn skin and eyes.  Wear plastic or rubber gloves when handling.
(didn't have any gloves at the cabin where I cooked this, so just washed my hands several times after chopping the jalapeno pepper, and then did the dishes after dinner, and that got rid of all the oil!)
**If you don't have petite diced or crushed tomatoes, you can use whole ones.  Working over a bowl, squeeze tomatoes with your hands to break into pieces.  You can also use fresh tomatoes in season -- dice up about 1-1/4 Cups.

Pizza

It's been blissfully cool and lightly raining here all day, a blessed relief from the weeks of hot weather we've had, so I got reacquainted with my oven and made pizza!  In case you missed my post on pizza and how to make a good gluten free pizza crust, look here.  In that post I gave suggestions for toppings at the end, but since then have tried some new ones that taste great that you might like too.  Here's the latest:

Pizza

1 GF pizza crust, about 14"
3-4 oz of pesto
Grated mozzarella cheese -- whatever amount you like
Sliced Canadian bacon or chunked chicken
2-4 chopped green onions
sliced fresh mushrooms
quartered artichoke hearts (you can buy these canned -- I like them better than marinated ones)
Grated sharp cheddar cheese -- whatever amount you like

Prepare the pizza crust per instructions.  Use the pesto as the sauce and layer all the other ingredients in the order given.  Bake at 400 until edge of crust is browned and cheeses are melted and bubbling.  Enjoy!

Recently I found ready made GF pizza crusts at my local health food store.  We tried them and liked them!  They really speed the process along if you're in a hurry.  In my other post I suggested using a white sauce,  and pesto here, but of course you can always go back to your favorite red sauce.  That's the great thing about pizza -- it's design your own!  Have fun with it -- you can even throw a party, use previously made small individual pizza crusts or ready made ones, set out all the toppings and let guests make their favorites!

Yummy!

Pasta Chicken Fruit Salad

This is another fantastic salad recipe from my friend Janice, who also supplied the wonderful Strawberry Spinach Salad.  If you like fruit in your pasta salads, you'll love this one.  It makes a bunch -- enough to feed 12-15 people -- so it's a great party salad.  If you don't have gluten intolerance, just use regular pasta.

Pasta Chicken Fruit Salad

2 Cups brown rice shell pasta, uncooked
1/2 tsp grated green onion
4 Cups cooked chicken, chopped
2-20 oz. cans pineapple chunks
2 Cups grapes (I like to cut them in half so you don't have to chase them around your plate :)
2 apples, peeled and diced
1/2 Cup slivered almonds
2 Cups celery, diced
1 Cup mayonnaise
1 Cup coleslaw dressing (you can buy this at the supermarket - I like Hidden Valley brand)

Cook pasta and drain.  Mix all ingredients together.  Refrigerate.  Salt to taste before serving.

I took this to a party tonight and came home with maybe 1-1/2 cups worth -- everybody loved it!

Georgia's Meatloaf

My mom is a great cook, but as a kid I never liked her meatloaf.  Up until I got married and tasted my mother-in-law's meatloaf, I thought all meatloafs were pretty much the same (read: like my mom's).  To my surprise, I liked my mother-in-law's meatloaf, and it's the only one I've made since then. 

Meatloaf is problematic for those who are gluten intolerant, since nearly all recipes call for cracker crumbs or bread crumbs to be mixed into the meat, as does this one.  I've been experimenting and have discovered that rice crackers crushed up, or gluten free bread crumbs (remember those failed loaves of bread you made into crumbs?) both work, but I prefer the texture of the one made with cracker crumbs.  I also discovered when taking a picture for this post that making meatloaf look appetizing in a picture is nearly impossible.  So my apologies to you photo buffs out there, and please don't judge the flavor by the picture :).

 Georgia's Meatloaf

1-1/2 lbs lean ground beef
2/3 Cup evaporated milk
1 egg
1/2 Cup crushed rice crackers (or 1/2 Cup GF bread crumbs)
1-1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tsp dry mustard
1/4 Cup finely chopped onion
1/4 Cup finely diced green pepper

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl until well blended.  Put into loaf pan and bake for 1 hour at 350.  Serve immediately.  Top with catsup if desired.

Remove from the pan and refrigerate any leftovers -- they make great sandwiches the next day!

Lemon-Garlic Shrimp Scampi

If you love garlic and shrimp, you'll love this recipe!  Scampi has always been my favorite way to have shrimp -- but it's so expensive to buy!  Now that I have this recipe, which is so easy, I can have scampi whenever I want -- yahoo! 

Lemon-Garlic Shrimp Scampi

 1 lb large raw shrimp, peeled, deveined, tails on or off, you choose
1/2 Cup (1 stick) butter
1/2 tsp salt
4-6 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped or 2 tsp dried parsley
1 tsp grated lemon or lime peel
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice or lime juice
Lemon or lime wedges for garnish (opt)

If you buy frozen shrimp, thaw.  Prepare shrimp, wash under cold running water, drain well, and dry on paper towels.  Melt butter and combine with remaining ingredients (except garnish).  Arrange shrimp in single layer in a baking dish (a 9 x 13 casserole works well).  Pour garlic butter sauce over top.  Bake in preheated 350 oven 5 minutes.  Remove and turn shrimp.  Bake 8-10 minutes longer or just until shrimp turn pink.  Arrange shrimp on heated platter.  Pour garlic butter drippings over all and garnish with lemon or lime wedges.  Makes 4 servings.  Also good served over rice.

Dive in!

Pasta Salad

Happy Independence Day!  Today's recipe is a natural at Independence Day picnics -- healthy, easy to fix and transport, pretty to look at, and always popular.  I don't think I've ever had leftovers to take home after a picnic.  OK, I know most everyone has their own version of pasta salad and that you can buy them at delis everywhere, but you have to agree that it's one of the most versatile dishes on the planet and therefore worth talking about a bit.  The good news for those who have to eat wheat free is that there are now great wheat free pastas available.  (Look here if you're searching for one.)  And, there's no better way to use up leftover vegetables or clean out your refrigerator than a pasta salad -- virtually anything works in it!  The trick is putting together good combinations.  So here's some suggestions of how to get started, and then some variations.

Pasta Salad

1 12-16 oz pkg brown rice pasta, your choice of shape, cooked, drained, rinsed with cold water, drained again
Chopped vegetables -- the following are basic to all recipes:
celery, sliced
radishes, sliced
green pepper, diced
carrots, cut small
zucchini, diced
cucumber, diced

For an all-vegetable pasta salad, you can add any or all of the following:
green onion, sliced, or red onion, diced
broccoli, cut small
cauliflower, cut small
mushrooms, sliced
peas
avocados, ripe but firm, diced
canned beans of your choice, drained and rinsed well
olives

To make it super easy, just use your favorite gluten-free Italian salad dressing as the sauce for it.  Add some, stir, taste, add more and keep going until it's to your liking.  If you make it a day ahead, be sure you stir and taste before serving -- you may have to add more dressing as the pasta absorbs some while it sits.  If you'd like to make your own dressing, here's a good one:

1/2 Cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 Cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp salt
ground black pepper to taste

Whisk together in a bowl.  Pour over pasta salad and stir.  Add additional salt to taste, if desired.

For a vegetable/fruit pasta salad, you can add any or all to the basic recipe:

pineapple chunks
mandarin oranges
fresh oranges, chopped
grapefruit sections
apple chunks
kiwi fruit, chopped
fresh berries or strawberries if serving immediately (they turn everything pink if left overnight)
raisins, craisins, dried cherries, or other dried fruits

Here's a light citrus dressing I love for a fruited pasta salad:

1/2 Cup orange juice
1/4 Cup lemon juice
1/4 Cup vegetable oil
1/2 tsp seasoned salt
1/8 tsp paprika
1/8 tsp pepper

Combine all ingredients in a blender, cover and process until blended.  Pour over salad, stir and taste, adding salt as desired, until it tastes right to you.  Refrigerate any leftover dressing.

Mayonnaise thinned with a little fruit juice also works well as a dressing.

Nuts or seeds can be added for additional crunch and good taste. If you want to make either salad into a main dish salad, just add cooked, chopped meat:  chicken, turkey, ham, shrimp, beef, or pork.

The variations are endless!  Get creative and have fun.  Here's a picture of a pasta salad I made today -- it's just the basic recipe with chopped fresh orange added and the citrus dressing.  Yummy!

Lasagne

This recipe is in honor of our daughter Afton, whose birthday is this week.  This was her favorite dinner growing up, and now she makes it for her kids.  It's a little more work than some of the shortcut methods of doing lasagne or buying it ready-made, but according to Afton (who's done both of those) this tastes much better and is worth it :).  So here it is -- happy birthday sweetie!

Lasagne

1-1/2 lbs lean ground beef
1 medium-sized onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced or mashed
2 8-oz cans tomato sauce
1 6-oz can tomato paste
1 Cup water
1 tsp salt
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp pepper
Rice lasagne noodles (for a good brand look at this post--they make lasagne noodles too), enough for a couple layers in your casserole (you can figure this out by laying the dry ones in your casserole dish)
1 lb ricotta cheese or small-curd cottage cheese, or substitution (see note below)
1/2 lb mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced
1/2 Cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Fill a large pot with water, add salt, and bring to a boil.  Cook noodles in boiling water according to directions on package. 

Meanwhile, in a large frying pan that has a cover, cook ground beef, onion, and garlic together, stirring, until meat is brown and crumbly and onions are soft.  Stir in tomato sauce, tomato paste, and water.  Add salt, oregano and pepper, stirring until mixed.  Cover pan and simmer slowly until lasagne noodles are done.
When noodles are done, drain, rinse with cold water, and lay on clean kitchen towel to drain, dabbing top with paper towel to remove excess moisture. 

Arrange a layer of noodles on bottom of casserole dish (I use a 9x13).  Spread 1/2 of the meat mixture over the noodles; top with 1/2 of the ricotta and 1/2 of the mozzarella.  Arrange another layer of noodles on top of cheese; use remaining meat mixture on top of noodles, then remaining ricotta and remaining mozzarella.  Top with Parmesan.  Bake uncovered in a 350 oven for 30 minutes.  If casserole is very full, place it on a cookie sheet before putting in oven as it may bubble over the sides of the casserole.  Remove from oven and serve immediately.  Makes 6-8 servings.

A note about the cheese:  as I mentioned in an earlier post, my husband is allergic to milk, but we have discovered that it is only the whey he's allergic to, since he tolerates cheese just fine.  However, I have recently found out that ricotta cheese is made from whey (and cottage cheese, of course, has milk in it), so I substitute shredded sharp cheddar cheese for the ricotta.  With allergies, substitution is the name of the game!  The lasagne still tastes great.

I don't know how they get those perfect looking squares of lasagne in magazine pictures -- they must be frozen!  This is how real, just-out-of-the-pan, hot lasagne looks moments before being devoured by my husband.  Enjoy!

Orange and Avocado Chicken Salad

Has everybody noticed how super sweet and delicious oranges are right now?  Time to take advantage of them!  This recipe is a great flavor combo -- oranges, avocados, and chicken.  (I'll bet it would taste good with shrimp too, but you know me and shrimp :).  I clipped this recipe from a Sunset Magazine about 10 years ago -- it's quick and easy and won't heat up your kitchen at all if you grill the chicken or buy one at Costco.  I hope you'll like it as much as we do.

Orange and Avocado Chicken Salad

4 oranges (about 1/2 lb each)
3 firm-ripe avocados (about 1/2 lb each)
1/2 Cup orange juice
6 Tbsp lime juice
1 Tbsp chopped fresh dill or 1 tsp dried dill weed
1/2 tsp sugar
Salt to taste
2 Cups diced or sliced skinned cooked chicken or turkey breast (smoked is good too)
About 1/2 Cup very thinly sliced red onion

With a very sharp knife, cut peel and white membrane from oranges.  Thinly slice oranges crosswise.  Peel and pit 2 avocados.  Dice avocado and mix with 3 Tbsp orange juice, 2 Tbsp lime juice, dill, sugar, and salt to taste.  Mound chunked avocado equally on plates.  Top equally with chicken.  Peel and pit remaining avocado and thinly slice lengthwise.  Separate onion slices into rings.  Mix remaining orange juice and lime juice.  Arrange orange slices, avocado slices, and onion rings equally on plates, then moisten with orange-lime juice mixture.  Add salt to taste.  Makes 4 servings.

If you like, you can garnish this with dill sprigs and minced fresh jalapeno chili peppers.

Loaded Tacos

Our family loves tacos!  They're one of our favorite foods and this particular recipe makes them a complete meal in and of themselves.  If you love tacos and make them frequently, you may have used packaged spice mixes to jazz up the meat.  If you've had to go wheat free or have other allergies, you may not be able to use them anymore, so here's one you can use.  However, with these tacos, you can go as simple as just salt and pepper in the meat -- the rest of the ingredients add so much flavor that you don't really need spicy meat.  You choose.  Just an option.  I got the meat spice recipe when I was first married from the mother of my best friend, Lois Ann, which is kind of ironic, because when my family moved from California to Salt Lake the summer I was 9, I'm not sure Lois Ann's family had ever had tacos before.  I remember my mom throwing a huge neighborhood party shortly after we moved in which featured our favorite Mexican dishes.  It was so funny watching people who had never had tacos before trying to figure out how to eat them without losing all the filling!  I recall my dad giving a demonstration of the proper way to eat tacos, to lower the frustration level and reduce clean-up :).  This was back in the late 1950's, and at that time Salt Lake had very few, if any, Mexican food places, which was a hardship for our family.  In California, there were more Mexican food places than hamburger places.  In fact, I was amazed to discover in Salt Lake that there was such a thing as a hamburger fast food restaurant -- I didn't recall ever having been to one in California -- it was always a taco fast food restaurant.  So there was learning going on on both sides of the fence.

Spicy Taco Meat

1 lb ground beef
1/2 tsp celery salt
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp garlic salt
3/4 tsp onion salt
Cook together until meat is browned, stirring often.  Add:
2 tsp rice flour
Stir in well.  Then add:
2/3 Cup tomato juice
Cook 10 minutes more.  Serve.

Loaded Tacos

Corn tortillas -- we like the Grande or Burrito size tortillas -- they're bigger and hold more :)
Canola Oil -- just enough to cover the bottom of a skillet large enough to hold the tacos.  You can always add more if you're cooking a lot of tortillas and it gets too thin.
Fry the tortillas in the oil (try to keep it below the smoke point, but make sure it's hot enough to do the job), turning frequently until they're crisp, but not brittle.  If they go too far, don't worry about it -- just salt them when you take them out of the pan, break them into pieces and tell your kids you've got some "crunchies" for them.  I actually make a few of these on purpose -- they're yummy.  Homemade tortilla chips.  You can use store bought formed taco shells, but these are so much better!  Try it, you'll like it.  Fry all your tortillas at once.  Just layer them in between paper towels to absorb the excess oil and keep them warm.  When you're done and have taken your oil off the burner, grab your first tortilla with a paper towel folded in half underneath it in your hand and gently fold it in half, using your tongs to help create the crease.  If it cracks in half, you've got a crunchie -- move on to the next one.  Layer the following ingredients in the taco shell:

Meat -- spicy or plain (see above)
Cholula hot sauce (very flavorful but not too hot)
Grated cheddar cheese
Green onions, sliced into rounds
Lettuce, chopped
Tomato, diced small
Avocado, diced small
Sour cream
Black olives, sliced

If you'd like to combine the onions, tomato and avocado into guacamole to put on the tacos or to serve separately with the crunchies, here's a great recipe for it.

If serving guests and you're not sure what they like, you can put all the ingredients into separate bowls and let them load their own.  Makes for a fun party!

There you have it -- Loaded Tacos.  Let the fiesta begin!

Pulled Pork (sugar free)

I wanted to do pulled pork in my crockpot today, but I'm still on my sugar free diet, so I went hunting online for some sugar free barbeque sauce.  I did find some that were sweetened with artificial sweeteners (including diet soda), but not one that was truly sugar free -- real and artificial.  Sooo.....I made up my own.  Which was kind of gutsy, really, because my brother and his family are in town and were coming for dinner tonight.  Luckily it turned out really good!  If you like very sweet barbeque sauce, then this isn't your recipe, but if you like spicy, tangy, kick-you-in-the-pants flavor, you'll love it.  Enjoy!

Pulled Pork (sugar free)

4 lb pork sirloin tip roast
2 8-oz cans tomato sauce
1 Tbsp liquid smoke
1/4 large onion, chopped
1 tsp minced garlic
1 jalapeno pepper, seeds and membrance removed, finely minced
1/2 tsp coarse ground pepper
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 Cup fresh squeezed orange juice

Combine all ingredients in crockpot.  Put in roast.  Cook on high 6-8 hours.  Turn off, remove lid, and shred pork with two forks, stirring in sauce as you go.  Serve on hamburger buns to your gluten eating friends, on a slice of toasted gluten free bread for the gluten free friends.  A lettuce leaf and a few slices of avocado are good additions too.  I served it with a salad for a complete meal.

Ron's Special Skillet Dinner

Remember when I talked about my husband's creativity in the kitchen in this post?  This recipe is his most famous.  I don't even try to make it -- it's his baby.  The most interesting part is that it tastes different every time he makes it, so it's always a surprise.  Our grandkids love it -- in fact our oldest granddaughter wants him to make it for her birthday dinner every year!  Don't be intimidated by the lack of specific amounts.  Trust me, it'll turn out good and you'll have lots more fun if you just don't worry about it.  The ingredients are very flexible -- you can pretty much throw in whatever you have in your fridge.  Just get out a pan that will feed your family when it's full, and go for it! 

Ron's Special Skillet Dinner

Meat:  your choice:  pork, steak, chicken, sliced thin
Vegetables:  your choice, chopped:  garlic (minced) onion, cabbage, cauliflower, celery, carrots, green pepper, zucchini, tomato, mushrooms (sliced), jalapeno pepper (no membranes or seeds unless you like it hot!  1/2 for small batch, 1 whole for large batch), olives.
Other ingredients needed:  Swanson chicken broth or Swanson aseptic box of beef broth, or a combination of the two, or just plain water; cornstarch, if you want to thicken the broth; chorizo sausage (1/2 sliced for small batch, 1 whole sliced for large batch) if you want to kick up the flavor a notch; LaChoy Soy Sauce (it's gluten free); cooked brown or white rice.

Directions:

Put some oil in your skillet and start browning your meat in it.  Then add the broth or water.  You'll need 1-2 cans or 1 box broth or 1-2 cups water depending on the size of the batch.  If you want a thicker consistency, stir 1-3 Tbsp cornstarch into a small amount of cold water, and add it to the broth or water -- it will thicken as it heats up.  Start adding your vegetables.  If you're chopping as you add, put them in in the approximate order given above -- harder vegetables first, softer ones toward the end, so they don't get too soft while cooking.  Stir and turn often.  Season with salt and pepper and soy sauce.  Serve over cooked brown or white rice.

Here's what it looks like when everything is in the skillet and starting to cook:

And this is how it looks when it's done:

So good and so good for you!

 

Shrimp in Spiced Tomato Sauce

I know -- another shrimp recipe.  But remember what I said about substituting chicken in this post?  So, you choose.  This is really simple to make and yummy if you like spicy food, but not overly spicy.  This is just right.  And you can freeze it for later, if you want.  It's delicious with quinoa or brown or white rice.

Remember the zester I showed you a picture of in this post?  You get to use it again here!

Shrimp in Spiced Tomato Sauce

1 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, cut into medium dice
1 Tbsp plus 2 tsp minced peeled fresh ginger (from a 1-inch piece)
1-1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp lemon zest
1 can (28-oz) diced tomatoes
coarse salt and ground pepper
1 lb large frozen raw shrimp (peeled and deveined)
chopped or dried cilantro to sprinkle on top when serving

In a medium skillet, heat oil on medium.  Add onion and ginger; cook until onion is softened, about 3 minutes.  Add coriander, cayenne, and lemon zest; cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 2 minutes.
Add tomatoes and bring mixture to boil; reduce to a simmer and cook 10 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper.  If you want to freeze this, take it off the heat, and let cool to room temperature.  Place frozen shrimp in a 1-gallon freezer bag and pour cooled tomato sauce on top.  Press out air, seal bag, and freeze flat.  Store in the freezer for up to 2-1/2 months.  When you want to use it, thaw overnight in refrigerator.  Transfer to a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat.  Cook until the sauce is hot and the shrimp are opaque throughout, about 3 minutes.  Serve. 

If you want to eat it right away, thaw the shrimp and add to simmering sauce .  Cook until the shrimp are opaque throughout, about 3 minutes.  Serve immediately and sprinkle with cilantro.  4 servings.

Stuffed Green Peppers and Creole Sauce

Actually, you can use green, orange, yellow, or red peppers (there isn't really that much taste difference) and it looks prettier and is more fun if you do, so the title is a tad misleading :).  This is a colorful, different way to eat your vegetables.  Maybe you can even get your kids to try it!  If you decide to make the Creole Sauce, you can do it up to several days in advance and keep it in your refrigerator.  If you use just regular tomato sauce, you'll need to spice up the meat mixture a little more.  You can also do the rice in advance to speed things along (or use up leftover rice from another meal).

Stuffed Green Peppers

3 large peppers, you choose the color
1 lb ground beef
1 Tbsp grated onion or 1 green onion, minced
1/3 Cup celery, finely chopped
1-1/2 Cups cooked brown or white rice
Salt and pepper to taste
2 8-oz cans tomato sauce or homemade Creole Sauce (recipe below)
(if using plain tomato sauce, add 1/2 tsp each garlic powder, onion powder, and chili powder to the meat mixture)

Wash peppers; cut in half lengthwise; remove seeds and cut away seed parts, leaving a clean shell.  Place in boiling salted water and boil 5 to 8 minutes until tender.  Remove from water and drain thoroughly.

While peppers are cooking, brown meat, onion, and celery together.  Add rice and seasonings.  Stir in 1 can tomato sauce, or 1 Cup Creole Sauce to moisten meat. 

Fill pepper shells with meat mixture.  Top with tomato sauce or Creole Sauce.  Can be eaten immediately or reheated in a 375 oven until hot through.

Creole Sauce

2 Tbsp olive oil

1/2 Cup green pepper, finely chopped

1/2 Cup onion, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

2-1/2 Cups canned tomatoes

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp sugar

1 small bay leaf

1/8 tsp ground cloves

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

Saute green pepper, onion and garlic in olive oil over medium low heat until vegetables are soft, but not browned.  Add remaining ingredients and continue cooking over low heat 40 to 50 minutes or until thick.  Makes about 2 cups.  Refrigerate until ready to use.

Golden Green Paella

I don't remember where I got this recipe, but it's one of my favorites.  You'll notice that it has shrimp in it -- what can I say?  I love shrimp.  However, you should know that if you don't like shrimp or are allergic to shellfish, you can swap out chicken in any of my recipes that call for shrimp.  When we have guests to dinner we always ask if they have any food allergies or dislikes.  If they can't have/don't like shrimp and I'm planning a shrimp dish, I just prepare a chicken breast for them separately, hold out some of the dish before the shrimp gets added, and then mix the chicken in it for their portion.  So far, it's worked like a charm and they have loved the food!  So don't give up on the shrimp recipes just because of the shrimp -- try chicken instead.  I think you'll like it.

Goldlen Green Paella

2 Tbsp olive oil
8 oz shrimp, coarsely chopped
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 Cups brown rice, cooked
1/2 tsp oregano, crushed
1/4 tsp ground turmeric
1 14-oz can Swanson's chicken broth
8 oz sugar snap pea pods
1 large green pepper, cut in 1/2" pices
2 green onions, sliced
2 tsp parsley

If you don't have leftover brown rice, start the rice before you start anything else (brown rice takes longer to cook than white rice).  This is another dish where things move along pretty quickly, so it works best if everything is chopped up in advance.

Heat 1 Tbsp of the oil in a large pan over medium high heat.  Add shrimp.  Season with half of the salt and pepper.  Cook about 2 minutes or until shrimp are opaque, stirring occasionally.  Remove from skillet; set aside.  Add rest of oil to skillet.  Cook onion until almost tender.  Add garlic; cook 1 minute.  Stir in cooked rice, oregano and turmeric;  cook and stir 1 minute.  Add broth and rest of salt and pepper.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat.  Simmer 5 minutes.  Stir in peas and green pepper; cook 3 minutes or until they reach the doneness you prefer.  Stir in shrimp and green onions to reheat shrimp.  Remove from heat, taste to adjust salt and pepper, and sprinkle with parsley.  Serve.  Makes 4 servings.

I left the shrimp whole -- I think it looks prettier and you get a really big bite of shrimp :).

Shrimp and Avocados with Chiles and Lime

This is a recipe I got in an email over a year ago and didn't try until recently.  All my favorite foods were in the title, so I figured it had to taste good, and I was right!  It's delicious.  Don't let the long list of ingredients put you off -- it's really pretty simple to put together, looks great, and tastes even better.

Shrimp and Avocados with Chiles and Lime

1 lb medium shrimp, thawed if frozen, peeled and deveined
1/2 tsp grated lime peel
3 Tbsp fresh lime juice, divided
1/2 tsp salt, divided
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/8 tsp ground red pepper
1 lb ripe tomatoes, cut into 1/2" chunks
1/2 Cup coarsely chopped sweet white onion
1/4 Cup + 2 Tbsp coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
2 Tbsp chopped pimiento-stuffed green olives (black work too)
1-2 Tbsp finely chopped fresh jalapeno chile pepper, with the seeds (or no seeds if you don't like the hot.  Wear plastic gloves when handling, or if you don't have any, wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water after you're done chopping.)
2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 ripe avocado, pitted, peeled, and cut into chunks
4 Cups mixed greens

Place the shrimp in a medium bowl and add the lime peel, 1 Tbsp of the lime juice, 1/2 tsp of the ground cumin, 1/4 tsp of the salt, the pepper, and the red pepper.  Mix well, cover, and set aside while preparing the salad.

In another medium bowl, combine the tomatoes, onion, 1/4 Cup of the cilantro, the olives, jalapeno, oil, the remaining 2 Tbsp lime juice, 1/2 tsp of the cumin and 1/4 tsp salt.  Mix well.  Let stand for 10 to 15 minutes to blend the flavors.  Add the avocado and mix gently.

Spray a medium nonstick skillet with cooking spray.  Warm over medium high heat.  Add the shrimp and cook, turning often until just opaque in the thickest part.  Remove from heat.

To serve, place 1 cup greens on 4 plates, mound 1/4 of the tomato/avocado mixture in the center of each, and top with 1/4 of the the shrimp on each plate, drizzling the pan juices over each salad.  Sprinkle with the remaining 2 Tbsp cilantro.  Serve immediately.