Pumpkin Pie for fall

*Libby's Pumpkin Pie recipe with the easiest crust ever!
(Makes one 9-inch deep-dish pie crust)

Crust:
1 c all-purpose flour
1/2 t salt
1/3 c vegetable shortening
2-3 T cold water

COMBINE flour and salt in medium bowl; cut in vegetable shortening until crumbly. Sprinkle with water; blend until mixture holds together.

SHAPE dough into ball; place on lightly floured surface. Roll out dough to 1/8 inch thickness. Line pie plate with pastry. Turn edge under; crimp edge as desired.

(I rolled between two sheets of wax paper and then took off the top sheet and using the bottom sheet flipped the crust into the pan)

Note: to make two crusts, double all ingredients, follow procedure above and divide dough in half.

No need  to pre-bake crust. Simply dump in pumpkin pie filling.



LIBBY'S FAMOUS PUMPKIN PIE

3/4 c sugar
1/2 t salt
1 t cinnamon
1/2 t ginger
1/4 t cloves
2 eggs
1 can (15 oz) 100% pure pumpkin
1 c evaporated milk (can make your own using powdered milk--see previous entry)
1 unbaked 9-inch deep dish pie shell


MIX sugar, salt, cinnamon, ginger and cloves in small bowl. Beat eggs in large bowl. Stir in pumpkin and sugar spice mixture. Gradually stir in evaporated milk.

POUR into pie shell

BAKE in preheated 425 degree F oven for 15 min. Reduce temperature to 350 degree F; bake 40-50 min or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack for 2 hours. Serve immediately or refrigerate.

(2) Sweet and Condensed Milk substitutes

I haven't tried this one yet.

Sweet and Condensed Milk

If you don't have sweetened condensed milk on hand, this simple recipe will make the equivalent of a 14-ounce can.

Ingredients

1/2 cup boiling water

1 cup nonfat dry milk

2/3 cup sugar

3 tbsp melted butter

1. Pour 1/2 cup of boiling water into a blender.

2. Add 1 cup of nonfat dry milk.

3. Add 2/3 cup sugar.

4. Add 3 tablespoons of melted butter.

5. Add a few drops of vanilla.

6. Cover and blend on high speed for 30 seconds or until smooth.

7. Remove from the blender.

8. Use in a recipe immediately or store in a covered container in the refrigerator.

[southern food @about.com]

Sweet and Condensed Milk

Original Recipe Yield 1 1/3 cup

Ingredients

3/4 cup white sugar

1/2 cup water

1 1/8 cups powdered milk

Directions

1. In a saucepan, combine all the ingredients. Heat to boiling. Reduce heat and cook until thick about 15 to 20 minutes.

[All recipes.com]

Evaporated Milk Substutute

I used this in a pumpkin pie recipe because we had no evaporated milk and Simon reallllly wanted pumpkin pie. The pumpkin can was staring at him.

Evaporated Milk Substitute

http://frugalliving.about.com/od/makeyourowningredients/r/Evaporated_Milk.htm

No need to pay a premium for those little cans of evaporated milk. You can make your own in two minutes or less.

Prep Time: 2 minutes

Total Time: 2 minutes

Ingredients:

* 2/3 cup non-fat dry milk

* 3/4 cup water

Preparation:

Mix the water and dry milk powder together. Then, use in place of the evaporated milk in any recipe.

Yield: 1 cup (8 ounces)

San Antonio Rice

I found this recipe online or my mom gave it to me a couple years ago. It's really easy and pretty tasty.

San Antonio Rice

Add a Southwest kick to your rice.

Prep: 5 Minutes Total: 30 Minutes

1 cup uncooked long-grain rice
1 12-ounce jar fresh salsa, mild or hot
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 cup fresh or canned corn kernels
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
- Fresh ground black pepper to taste
1 1/4 cups water
- Minced fresh cilantro, for garnish (optional)

Add all ingredients, except cilantro, to the inner pot, stir, close the lid and press the White Rice button. When rice cooker switches to Keep-Warm mode, open the cooker, quickly stir and re-cover. Allow to stand for 8-10 minutes before serving. Spoon onto a serving dish, garnish with fresh cilantro and serve.

Makes a flavorful supper or side dish for grilled chicken or fish.

Zucchini Soup

Zucchini Soup

1 cup chopped onions

2 T butter

3 cups sliced zucchini

2 cups chicken broth

1/4 tsp salt

1/8tsp pepper

1/2 cup half and half cream (skim milk works as well)

1 cup grate cheddar cheese

1/2 cup sour cream

4 slices bacon, cooked until crisp, then crumbled (or crumbled sausage)

In a large saucepan cook onions in melted buter until tender. Add sliced zucchini and chicken broth and bring to a boil. Simmer until tender (about 15 minutes). Add salt and pepper. Cool slightly. Pour mixture into blender and puree it. Stir in half and half cream. Return to saucepan and reheat, but do not boil. Garnish with grated cheese, sour cream, and bacon bits. Makes 6 servings.

Meatballs

I looked at three recipes online and combined the aspects that made it seem easiest.

Mix seasoning together in a bowl.

Combine beef with wet ingredients.

Mix seasoning with meat (I used my fingers to mix it all together)

1lb ground beef

1/4 c milk

1 egg

1/2 c olive oil

1/2 t salt

1t oregano

1T parsley

1/2 t garlic powder

1/2t ground pepper

1/4 cup parmesan (I didn't have an didn't use)

1 c breadcrumbs

1 clove garlic

1t to 1 T italian seasoning

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease baking sheet.

Mix all ingredients thoroughly in large bowl. If mixture seems a little loose add more bread crumbs.

Roll meatballs loosely about the size of a golf ball (or smaller if you prefer) and place on baking sheet.

Place into preheated oven for approximately 35 to 40 minutes. Enjoy!

Sauces: http://rmcrayne.hubpages.com/hub/Cocktail-Meatballs-Cocktails-Weenies-Cocktail-Sausage

Favorite Marinade Sauce

This is my favorite chicken marinade, modified for a simmer sauce for meatballs.

½ c balsamic vinegar

½ c soy sauce

½ c water

½ Tbsp garlic powder with parsley

1 tsp basil

Pasta and Pizza Sauce

Want to make easy pizza with bagels and realize you have no sauce? Look online and still don't have the correct ingredients and so you look up substitutes to the ingredients you don't have?

1 can Tomato Sauce
1 clove diced Garlic
a little Garlic Salt and Garlic Powder
a dash of Cumin
a dash of Chili Powder
a bit of Basil
a bit of Oregano
a bit of Italian seasoning

Add these together to taste and add a bit more of one or the other if it doesn't tastes quite right.

And after eating pizza bagels that have been sauced and topped with mozzarella, the leftovers make a delicious pasta sauce.

Salsa ingredients

I prefer to finely dice the ingredients for my salsa. 
Add ingredients to taste.

•  Tomatoes
•  onion (red called for, and I use yellow)
• 1 jalapeño 
• (recipe also suggests serano chili pepper)**remove stems, ribs and seed from peppers or risk being very hot...also use rubber gloves or something so you don't burn your skin from working with the hot peppers)
• Lime juice
• chopped cilantro
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Optional: oregano and or cumin to taste

Perfect Pesto

Although I didn't have all of the listed ingredients, it turned out quite delicious. Simon liked it because it was fairly mild (which may be because our basil has blossomed a little and lost some of its flavor). The below is my slightly modified recipe from allrecipes.com.

1 c fresh basil packed
1 large garlic clove
1/4 c grated parm (I freshly grated this from a block)
3 T olive oil
1 t lemon juice (addition to recipe)
pinch of salt (addition to recipe)
1 T pine nuts (didn't use)
3 T chopped fresh parsley (didn't use)

Combine basil, garlic, Parmesan cheese, olive oil, and nuts in the bowl of a food processor or blender. Blend to a smooth paste. Add parsley if desired.

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/pesto/detail.aspx

Bread Making info

I found this interesting website and I'm going to try using some of their suggestions. I thought I'd put it here for anyone else to try and so I can find it again!

http://www.reluctantgourmet.com/bread_making_ingredients.htm

Bread Making Ingredients

How Ingredients change bread characteristics

As I described in How to Make Bread and then again in Basic Bread Recipe, most bread recipes include 4 ingredients (not counting the sugar that the yeast ate) and a very straightforward mixing method. There are infinite types of yeast breads out in the world, everything from bagels to pizza, focaccia to cinnamon rolls, cheese bread to the laminated yeast dough croissants.

If you study the recipes carefully, though, you will find that they are all based on these four ingredients. Yes, substitutions and additions can and should be made, but the basic four ingredients stand.

Now, let’s take a look at some of those substitutions and additions, as well as some tweaks to our baking procedure to give us exactly the taste and texture that we want.

---

Flour

Our standard recipe contains white bread flour. Many other types of flours can be substituted for part or all of the bread flour. Keep in mind that white bread flour will contain the most gluten, so breads made with a mixture of other flours will be more dense and will not rise as high.

Some types of flour, such as rice and corn flour, do not contain any gluten, so to get a decent rise, you must use at least part white bread flour. Other flours you can use include whole wheat, rye, buckwheat, chickpea, bean flours, sprouted wheat, spelt, oat and soy. I am certain that there are others out there, as well.

---

Fats

Fat that is incorporated in bread dough will inhibit gluten formation. The resulting loaf will not rise quite as high as a loaf made without fat. On the positive side, fats, especially butter and olive oil, add a lot of flavor to the finished product. Fats keep the crumb tender and can help improve the shelf life of your bread by a day or so. Almost any fat can be added to a bread dough.

---

Eggs

Eggs added to dough help with rising. A bread dough rich with egg will rise very high, because eggs are a leavening agent (think genoise or angel food cake). As well, the fats from the yolk help to tenderize the crumb and lighten the texture a bit. Eggs also contain the emulsifier lecithin. Lecithin can add to the overall consistency of the loaf.

---

Sugar

Adding more sugar to a recipe than the yeast can eat will, no surprise, add sweetness to the finished product. Sugar aids in browning, can help tenderize the bread and also holds onto moisture to help inhibit staling. Be careful, though—too much sugar will severely inhibit gluten production. So, unless you plan on adding additional gluten to the dough (in the form of vital wheat gluten or gluten flour), keep the sugar in the recipe to no more than 2 tablespoons/cup of flour.

---

Milk

We’ve already established that liquid is necessary to make bread, but that doesn’t mean we are limited to water. Replacing all or part of the water with milk will lend itself to a more tender, sweeter product. The sugar in milk, lactose, is not eaten by the yeast, so it is left to add a subtle sweetness to the finished bread. Milk also increases the nutritional value of the bread by adding additional proteins. A dough made with milk will brown more readily than one made with water.

---

Add-ins

This is where you, the baker, can get creative. If you are making a savory bread, you can add in anything from shredded cheese to roasted garlic to nuts to olives to, well, almost anything. If you are making a sweet bread, all sorts of toasted nuts and dried fruits can be added. And don’t forget about herbs and spices, either.

---

The Crust of the Matter

Even using the same recipe, it is possible to get a different crust just by doing one of the following:

Crackly, shiny crust: This is brought about by steam. If you don’t have a steam injector in your oven, you are not alone. I’ve heard of lots of different ways to get a really good steamy, humid atmosphere in your oven: boiling water in a cast iron skillet in the bottom of the oven, throwing ice chips into a cast iron skillet in the bottom of your oven, spraying the dough with water before putting it in the oven—I’m sure you can think of more ways.

For optimum crackliness, spray the dough and use one of the other methods. The water gelatinizes the starches on the outside of the dough, and this helps result in a crackly crust. You can also use a wash of water with a little cornstarch mixed in during the last five minutes of baking.

Soft crust: This is as easy as not introducing extra steam or water. Don’t spray the dough, and don’t make steam. Another way of getting a soft crust and also imparting some flavor is to brush the crust with butter when you remove it from the oven.

Golden, shiny crust: Apply an egg wash (egg and a little water beaten together) before baking, being careful not to let the egg wash get on the rim of the baking pan as this could, in essence, glue the bread down and inhibit a full rise.

Soft, sweet crust: brush with milk with a little sugar dissolved in it before baking.

Sweet, sticky crust: brush the crust with simple syrup or honey right when it comes out of the oven

Shiny, soft crust: brush the bread with olive oil before and after baking

---

Changes in Process Equal Changes in Product

The single most important thing in making flavorful bread is time. It takes time for yeast to completely run its life cycle and develop a complex flavor in the final product. While it is possible to get reasonably good bread with just a single rise, the more ways you can find to give the yeast time to do their thing, the better your bread will be.

Ways to increase the time it takes to make a loaf from start to finish include slower, cooler rises, refrigerating the dough overnight and using some leftover dough from a day or two before as part of your mix. You can also make a sponge and let it rest for several hours before continuing. A sponge is just a loose mixture that you make by combining your yeast, liquid and half of your flour. After the sponge has “worked” for 2-3 hours, you can add the rest of the flour and continue with the recipe.

I hope that you now feel armed to approach bread baking with less trepidation. Now that you know the function of all the ingredients in bread, the process of making it and have a good very basic recipe with which to practice, it is time to practice and “get a feel for” dough that is ready to be kneaded and dough that has been kneaded enough. Once you can leap those two confidence hurdles, there will be no stopping you.

How to make bread at home in detail:

http://www.reluctantgourmet.com/blog/baking-recipes/basic-bread-recipe/

And for beginning bakers:

http://www.thefreshloaf.com/lessons/yourfirstloaf

Lentil Soup

Recipe from AllRecipies.com

• 6 cups chicken stock
• 1 pound red lentils
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
• 3/4 cup fresh lemon juice

Directions

1. Bring chicken stock and lentils to a boil in a large saucepan over high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in garlic and onion, and cook until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 3 minutes.
3. Stir onions into the lentils and season with cumin and cayenne. Continue simmering until the lentils are tender, about 10 minutes.
4. Carefully puree the soup in a standing blender, or with a stick blender until smooth. Stir in cilantro and lemon juice before serving.

My modification:
I cooked garlic and carrots and cabbage (because that's what I had) and blended it together. It made it super thick, so if you want a more soup-like soup, add more broth or fewer lentils. The recipe says that it serves 8, but really it could easily serve 2 or 3. It's a good basic soup recipe, and you can put whatever spices in to get whatever flavor you want (I didn't have any cumin so I just went with the flavor of garlic). :)

Hummus

Here is something you can eat with your pita bread!

1 can garbanzo beans drained and rinsed.
2 tbsp creamy peanut butter
2-3 tbsp lemon juice (or 1-1.5 tbsp lime)
2 tsp cumin
3 cloves garlic minced finely
Olive oil (variable)

Puree beans (ie with a food processor)
Mix in all other ingredients.
Blend more if needed.
Add olive oil until right consistency.
Garnish with parsley.

Serves 4-5
Consume in large quantities. :-)

Pita Bread

Ingredients

• 1 1/8 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons white sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast

[With a bread machine simply combine everything and have it mix it as well as a rise in the machine]

For us normal folk....

Mix water with yeast and sugar.
Add oil to water/yeast/sugar.
Combine salt with flour.
Begin mixing flour/salt into the liquid mixture.

Kneed until smooth and elastic. [Kitchen Aid can speed this up a bit]

Place in a greased bowl and allow to rise for 1-3 hours OR until doubled [OR until you've lost patience ;-) ]

On a floured surface:
Roll into a snake/rope and cut into same size pieces. I'd suggest 8...cut it in half and then each half in half and in half again.

Roll into 6-8 inch circles [and if you're Simon as thin as you can make it :-) ]

Allow to rest for 20 minutes on a floured surface while the oven is heating.

Preheat to 500 degrees F. (260 C)

Either bake on a (preheated) tray or on the rack directly. (rack toward the bottom of the oven)

Bake three or so at a time.

Bake 4 minutes, flip and bake 2 min.

Gently push down puff when pulled out of the oven.

Cover with a damp paper towel, or place in a bag (this allows them to soften slightly).

Store in the fridge or freezer to increase longevity (a few days-- a couple months in the freezer)
[I've never tested long-term storage...we ate them too quickly.]

Fresh Tomato Salsa

Tomatoes, finely chopped (6-8 roma tomatoes or equivalent of tasty tomatoes)

Onion, finely diced (1/2 or a whole onion--depending on how strong a flavor the onion has--if too strong, rinse onion lightly with water)

Jalapeño, (one is sufficient if it's spicy and be careful of the HOT seeds )

Cilantro, fresh and finely chopped, to taste (1/2 cup-ish)

Lime juice, to taste (1 tbsp or two-ish)

Salt and pepper to taste

Rolls

The New Era, Nov. 2004

Grandma’s Rolls

In a saucepan, combine:
2 cups milk
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup sugar
Bring to a boil, then cool.

In a small bowl, combine:
1 cup lukewarm water
2 heaping Tbsp. yeast
2 tsp. sugar
Set aside and let dissolve.

2 1/2 tsp. salt
3 beaten eggs
7–9 cups flour

When the milk mixture has cooled to lukewarm, pour into mixer. Add a cup of flour, all of the yeast mixture, salt and three beaten eggs. Beat until smooth. Add flour a little at a time while mixing until dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl but is not stiff.

Place dough in a greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap that has been sprayed with cooking spray, and let rise in a warm place until dough has doubled in size. Punch down, cover, and let rise again until doubled in size.

After dough has risen a second time, divide in half. Place on a floured board or counter. Roll out until 1/2 inch thick, and cut into circles. Place on a greased cookie sheet so rolls are almost touching. Let rise about 30 minutes.

Bake at 375° F for 12 to 15 minutes until golden brown.

Janet Thomas, "The Family Secret," The New Era, November 2004.

http://lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=024644f8f206c010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD&locale=0&sourceId=ad7f85f10e6fb010VgnVCM1000004d82620a____

Bagels

Bagels are actually pretty easy, a little time-consuming to make. Although they take a while, here is a great recipe we found online. The web address is at the bottom of this post. I annotated it with my thoughts placed in brackets. We've enjoyed a few Sundays together making bagels. We hope you enjoy a similar experience! For the history of bagels, see wikipedia or google history--very interesting.

And now, Bagels!!!

4 cups bread flour [Regular flour works too]

1 Tbls sugar

1 1/2 tsps salt

1 Tbls vegetable oil

2 tsps instant yeast

1-1/4- 1-1/2 cups of warm water.

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl. You don't have to worry about soaking the yeast when you use instant yeast (most yeast sold these days is instant yeast). The dough should feel stiff, but add the extra water if it's really stiff, or you can't get all the dry flour incorporated.

Plop the dough down onto the counter, and knead for about ten minutes, or until the dough is uniform and smooth. [You can kneed for about half the time using a Kitchen Aid.]

Cut the dough into 8 equal sized balls, and let rest for 10-20 minutes. [Or cut into more balls if you want smaller bagels.]

Preheat your oven to 425.

Now, take each of the dough balls and using two hands, roll it into a little snake on the counter. When the snake is longer than the width of your two hands, wrap it around your dominant roiling hand. The dough rope should be wrapped so the overlapping ends are together at your palm, near the start of your fingers. Now take the two overlapping ends, and use your palm to squish/roll these two ends together. Once the dough is fused, you should have a perfectly circular bagel-to-be! This is the only part of the process that can take a little practice before your bagels will look really professional. Don't get discouraged if they don't look perfect, it just takes practice!

Let your bagels rest on the counter for about 20 minutes, and meanwhile, bring a pot of water to boil, and grease a large baking tray lightly. You can just rub a splash of vegetable oil and rub it around.

After the 20 minute wait, your bagels will start to look puffy, and it's time to get them boiling! Add them as many at a time as you can to your boiling water without crowding them. Boil for about a minute, turn them over, and boil for another minute. Take them out a let dry for a minute and then place them on your oiled baking tray. Repeat until all the bagels are boiled.

Add the tray to the oven, and after 10 minutes, flip the bagels over, bake for another ten minutes; and they're done!

Let them cool for at least 20 minutes, get the cream cheese ready, and feast on what's got to be one of the best weekend brunch treats possible!

You can add any toppings you like to these. To make sesame, onions, poppy seed, caraway etc. etc. bagels just have a dry plate ready with the seed or spice topping spread out on it. After the bagels have come out of the boiling water, place them face down onto the seeds, and then place the seed side up onto the baking tray. Bake and flip as for plain bagels.

[My favorite toppings include cheese, crushed garlic, and sundried tomato. For cheese and the sundried tomato bagels, incorporate into the dough before letting sit as a ball (or right afterward).]



Credit:
http://hubpages.com/hub/Homemade_bagel_recipe_Make_great_nadrolled_water_bagels__its_as_easy_as_baking_a_loaf_of_bread

French Peasant Bread

1 package dry yeast (or 2 1/4 tsp.)

2 Cups warm water

1 Tbsp. sugar

2 tsp. salt

4 Cups flour

Oil

Corn meal

Melted butter

Oregano (and thyme? Or basil?…I probably added thyme. Yum)

Place yeast, water, sugar and salt in warm bowl and stir until dissolved. Add flour and stir until blended. Do not knead. Cover and let rise one hour or until doubled in size. Remove dough from the bowl and place in 2 rounds on an oiled cookie sheet sprinkled with corn meal. Let rise an additional hour. Brush the top with melted butter and bake at 425 degrees for 10 minutes. Reduce oven temp. to 375 degrees and cook an additional 15 minutes. Remove from oven and brush again with butter. Serve hot out of the oven.

This bread has also been dubbed as the "Macaroni Grill Bread"- if you've been to the restaurant you know what that means....this bread is delish!

(Or just brush with butter before and put on seasoning on and then bake)

San Antonio Rice

San Antonio Rice
Add a Southwest kick to your rice.

Prep: 5 Minutes Total: 30 Minutes
1 cup uncooked long-grain rice
1 12-ounce jar fresh salsa, mild or hot
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 cup fresh or canned corn kernels
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
- Fresh ground black pepper to taste
1 1/4 cups water
- Minced fresh cilantro, for garnish (optional)

Add all ingredients, except cilantro, to the inner pot, stir, close the lid and press the White Rice button. When rice cooker switches to Keep-Warm mode, open the cooker, quickly stir and re-cover. Allow to stand for 8-10 minutes before serving. Spoon onto a serving dish, garnish with fresh cilantro and serve.

Makes a flavorful supper or side dish for grilled chicken or fish.

Apple Pie

Apple Pie
-Make crust
-Add Filling
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg OR less than a pinch of cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of salt
8 medium sized apples (a medium apple = about 1 cup) [I like Gala—sweeter apple]
2 tablespoons margarine

* Heat oven to 425 degrees.
* Peel, core and slice the apples. Try to keep the size of the slices even.
* Mix sugar, flour, nutmeg/cloves, cinnamon, and salt in large bowl.
* Stir in apples.
* Pour into pastry-lined pie plate.
* Dot with margarine.
* Cover with top crust and seal the edges. Cut slits in the top.
* OPTIONAL: Cover edge with 3-inch strip of aluminum foil to prevent too much browning.
-Remove foil during last 15 minutes of baking.
* Bake 40 to 50 minutes or until crust is brown and juice begins to bubble through slits in crust.


PIE CRUST

3/4 cup shortening

1/4 cup boiling water

1 tablespoon milk

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt


Pour boiling water and milk over shortening.

Whip until like whipped cream.

Sift flour and salt over mixture.

Stir with fork around the bowl until it is clean.

Press into ball.

Roll between waxed paper.

Makes a 2-crust pie or 2-3 pie shells.

Bake at 450° F. for 8 minutes.




(My favorite apple pie recipe).

Enjoy!

Yummy, easy Fried Rice

This took me longer than time alloted...like an hour to make total.
And I threw in frozen mixed veggies instead of everything it called for because that's what we had.
Yum Yum

Original Recipe Yield 6 to 8 servings

Ingredients

* 1/2 tablespoon sesame oil
* 1 onion
* 1 1/2 pounds cooked, cubed chicken meat
* 2 tablespoons soy sauce
* 2 large carrots, diced
* 2 stalks celery, chopped
* 1 large red bell pepper, diced
* 3/4 cup fresh pea pods, halved
* 1/2 large green bell pepper, diced
* 6 cups cooked white rice
* 2 eggs
* 1/3 cup soy sauce

Directions

1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and saute until soft, then add chicken and 2 tablespoons soy sauce and stir-fry for 5 to 6 minutes.
2. Stir in carrots, celery, red bell pepper, pea pods and green bell pepper and stir-fry another 5 minutes. Then add rice and stir thoroughly.
3. Finally, stir in scrambled eggs and 1/3 cup soy sauce, heat through and serve hot.

Recipe from:
http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/chinese-chicken-fried-rice-i/Detail.aspx

Pickling Cucumbers

Simon's mom's recipe. She says:

This is the recipe we used from my 40 year old cookbook.

Wash small, firm cucumbers, pack closely but not "squished" into wide mouth quart jars. (You can slice them but I prefer them whole.)
Place a clove of peeled garlic and a head of dill into the jar. (We used to grow our own dill and use that. I don't know if you can get heads of dill out there. You could probably use a teaspoon of dill seed in place of a head of dill, or seed mixed with dill leaves?)
Mix 3 quarts of water, 1 quart of cider vinegar and 1 cup of salt together and bring to a boil.
Pour boiling mixture over quart jars, enough to cover cukes and come within 1/4 inch of top of jar.
Seal with lids tightly.
Store in a cool, dark place (you can cover with a paper bag or under a counter etc. I actually usually just put them in my hallway and they seemed fine.)
Takes about 4 weeks to cure, will last unopened 6-8 months. Once you open a jar, refrigerate.

CHICKEN POT PIE

Crust
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves – cubed (1 chicken breast)
1 cup sliced carrots (or a bag of mixed frozen veggies)
1 cup frozen green peas
*olive oil
1/3 cup chopped onion
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 3/4 cups chicken broth (made with bullion is good)
2/3 cup milk
*cubed potatoes

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
2. In a saucepan, combine chicken, carrots, peas, and celery. Add water to cover and boil for 15 minutes. Remove from heat, drain and set aside.
3. sauté onions in olive oil until soft and translucent. Stir in flour, salt, pepper. Slowly stir in chicken broth and milk. Simmer over medium-low heat until thick. Remove from heat and set aside.
4. Place the chicken mixture in bottom pie crust. Pour hot liquid mixture over. Cover with top crust, seal edges, and cut away excess dough. Make several small slits in the top to allow steam to escape.
5. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.


Crust Recipe:
PIE CRUST



3/4 cup shortening

1/4 cup boiling water

1 tablespoon milk

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt


Pour boiling water and milk over shortening. Whip until like whipped cream. Sift flour and salt over mixture. Stir with fork around the bowl until it is clean. Press into ball. Roll between waxed paper. Makes a 2-crust pie or 2-3 pie shells. Bake at 450° F. for 8 minutes.

Paella valenciana

Large chicken breast--cubed
3-6 cloves garlic--chopped
4-6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (or best available)
1 large onion
1 red pepper--chopped
3-4 large tomatoes--chopped
2 cups Uncle Ben's converted rice
4 cups water
4 teaspoons chicken bouillon (or 4 cubes)
large pinch of spanish saffron (for yellow color and flavor)
1 lb bag of frozen green peas

(I use a chinese wok to cook this)
Cook chicken, garlic, and olive oil until browning
Add rice, water, and all other ingredients except green peas
Stir occasionally to prevent sticking and scorching on bottom of pan
Cook until water is almost completely absorbed
Add frozen peas and stir until they are thawed and remaining water is absorbed by the rice

Serve with lemon wedges, french bread, olive oil for dipping bread, tomato salad.
Typical dessert would be fresh fruit such as apples, oranges, or pears.

Enjoy! (Dad's)

Easy Chicken Soup

Really easy and fairly quick delicious meal.


-Chicken bullion accented with beef bullion

-Boil cubed chicken in bullion mixture

-Season with:
a bay leaf,
oregano,
pepper,
garlic powder
etc to taste

-Add vegetables, (carrot slivers, celery, peas, onions etc)

Later, you can add cooked noodles or cooked rice to it (or dish soup onto either and eat it with both for different meals)
(adding noodles and rice afterwards enables non-mushy leftovers.

Chicken Veggie Cabbage Stir Fry

olive oil 1-2 tbs (add more oil as needed)

add garlic 3 cloves and saute 30 sec or so.

Add:
*diced onion (or onion flakes) (if real onions saute for a minute alone)
diced red peppers
diced celery,
slivered carrots,
peas
diced tomato
*chopped up chicken chunks (I already had chicken) (if using uncooked chicken, saute with garlic until cooked before adding the rest)

Add a little chicken bullion in water (1/2 c?)

Add in 1 tsp ginger or so (I based this on smell...I probably didn't add an entire tsp)

Add 1/4 cabbage head (chopped/diced) and cook to desired tenderness, stirring occasionally.

Add soy sauce (2 tbs or as desired for flavor)

Add a tiny drizzle of sesame oil as desired for flavor

**Serve with Rice








Below was the easiest recipe...which then I tweeked and threw in extra stuff and such.

* 2 teaspoons canola oil
* 1 small onion, sliced
* 1 clove garlic, minced
* 1 teaspoon minced ginger
* 1 head napa cabbage, cleaned and sliced
* 2 tablespoons soy sauce
* 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
* 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil

Directions

In a large saute pan over medium-high heat, add the canola oil and heat. Add the onion, garlic and ginger and saute, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the cabbage and cook until just starting to wilt, about 2 minutes. Add the soy sauce and rice vinegar and stir well and cook just until cabbage is wilted, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and drizzle with the sesame oil.