9/8/10

Tofu with Orange and Pineapple

1 pkg firm tofu
2 in piece of ginger, grated
2 t grated orange rind
3 T Oil
2 large onions, cut into thin wedges
3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
2 t brown sugar
2 t white or cider vinegar
8 oz frozen pineapple, defrosted
1 T orange juice
Cooked Brown rice or Quinoa

Cut the tofu block into 6 slices & place side by side between paper towels on a cooling rack w/ a
cutting board on top, and a large weight on the cutting board. Let the tofu press & drain for at
least 10 minutes. The longer it is pressed, the better the texture of the tofu will be after frying.

Combine tofu, ginger, and orange rind in a bowl. Mix well, cover & refrigerate.

Heat wok, add 1 ½ T of oil & coat pan. Stir-fry onion, garlic, and brown sugar until onion is soft
and golden. Stir in vinegar. Cook 2 minutes. Add pineapple and orange juice. Let pineapple
cook until slightly golden. Remove mixture from wok. Cover.

Heat wok, add 1 ½ T of oil & coat pan. Stir-fry tofu in 2 batches, until well browned on all sides.
Drain on paper towels.

Return the tofu & pineapple/onion mix to the pan. Heat through. Serve over brown rice.

Forgotten Chicken Stew

 There is an ongoing debate in my family whether or not my mother ever actually made this recipe. I remember it, and Denise will back me up, but mom, Katie, and Kristin firmly believe mom never made this...

Stew
2 lb chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
4 medium carrots, cut into 1/4-inch slices (2 cups)
2 medium stalks celery, sliced (1 cup)
2 medium onions, sliced
1 ¾ C chicken broth
1 ½ t salt
1 t dried rubbed sage
1 t dried thyme
¼ t ground pepper
¼ C water
3 T white flour

Dumplings
1 ½ C Bisquick mix
½ t dried thyme
¼ t dried rubbed sage
½ C milk

In a crockpot, mix all stew ingredients except water and flour. Cover.
Cook on Low heat setting 8 to 10 hours (or High heat setting 4 to 5 hours).

½ an hour before serving:
In small bowl, mix water and flour; gradually stir into stew. (This will help thicken the stew.)
In small bowl, mix Bisquick mix, thyme and sage. Stir in milk until Bisquick mix is
moistened. Drop dough by spoonfuls onto hot stew.
Increase heat setting to High. Cover.
Cook 25 to 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center of dumplings comes out clean.
Serve immediately.

Apple Cider

2 C Water
½ C Brown Sugar
2 T Cinnamon
1 T Mace
½ T Nutmeg

Microwave 15 minutes in a 4 C Pyrex Measuring Cup, or glass bowl.
Mixture will be thick, bubbling, and very hot. Add to 1 gallon of cider. Keep
warm in a crockpot or on the stove.

~ Mom's Recipe

Red Lentil Soup

2 C Dried Red Lentils, rinsed
7 C Water
1 large onion, chopped
1T Flour
¼ C Olive Oil
½ t ground cumin
Juice of 1 lemon
Pinch of salt & pepper

Brown onion in 2 T of oil. Add lentils and water. Simmer 1 hour.
Mix remaining ingredients in a bowl, minus the lemon. Stir well, add to soup. Bring to a simmer.
Add lemon juice 5 minutes before serving.

7 Layer Salad

1 head of lettuce, chopped
1 green pepper, diced
½ onion, diced
10 oz frozen peas, defrosted
2 lb bacon, cooked crispy
2 C mayo
2 T sugar
9 hard boiled eggs, diced
3 C shredded cheddar cheese

Steps:
1 Mix mayo & sugar. Set aside.
2 Vary layers of the following until gone: lettuce, pepper, onion, peas, eggs.
3 Spread mayo mixture as next layer.
4 Spread all of the cheese.
5 Top with all of the bacon.
6 Refrigerate until served.

Note: Stir only part of the salad, because it gets juicy & lettuce gets mushy quickly after it has been stirred up.

~ Mom Babs Recipe

Ramen Asian Chicken Salad

This dish seems to show up at every family picnic and baby shower.

Salad
2 pkg Ramen Noodles (not cooked)
3 Chicken Breasts, boiled, diced
1 head Green Cabbage, shredded
10-12 Green Onions, chopped
½ C Slivered Almonds

Dressing
3 T Sesame Oil
2 T Canola Oil
6 T Rice Vinegar
2 T Sugar
1 t Salt

Toss salad ingredients together in a bowl. Mix dressing ingredients together.
Pour over salad just before serving.

~ Mom's Recipe

Microwave Carmel Corn

Adapted from my mom’s microwave recipe book back when a microwave wasn’t in everyone’s home!

Make 2 Batches of Popcorn on the stove
(You can use microwave, but the popcorn doesn’t hold up as well)
Pour into clean brown paper bag

Microwave the following for 2 ½ minutes:
1 C Brown sugar
1 stick Butter, not margarine
½ t salt
¼ C light corn syrup
Wisk in ½ t baking soda

Pour mixture over popcorn in paper bag. Shake.
Roll up bag. Microwave 1 ½ minutes. Shake.
Microwave ½ minutes. Shake.
Microwave ½ minutes. Shake.
Break up large chunks. Let it cool.

Its best to make this on a snowy day and let it cool outside. Enjoy!

Lemon Snap Cookies

I got this recipe from my foods class in high school my senior year. This was the only recipe that was worth keeping. These are also great if you substitute orange for the lemon in the
recipe!

### UPDATE: needs more lemon, and possibly leave out the ginger. Used yellow sugar to make it more yellow in color. Really needs more lemon. Thinking of adding lemon juice in the batter

2 C Flour
2 t Baking Powder
¼ t Baking Soda
1 C Sugar
3 T Sugar
3 t Lemon rind
½ t Ground ginger
6 ½ T margarine
2 t light corn syrup
2 t vanilla extract
1 Egg

Preheat oven to 375. Combine flour, baking powder, and soda. Set aside.
In a mixer: Mix 1 C Sugar, 2 t lemon rind, and ginger for 1 min.
Add margarine. Beat until light and fluffy.
Add vanilla, corn syrup and egg. Stir in flour mixture.
Combine 1t lemon rind & 3 T sugar.
Coat hands with cooking spray. Roll dough into 1 inch balls.
Roll balls in lemon sugar. Place on ungreased cookie sheet.
Spray the bottom of a glass with cooking spray. Flatten the balls with the glass.
Bake 375 for 7 minutes. Cool 5 minutes.
Remove from pan and cool on rack.
Makes 3 dozen

Tofu and Peanut Noodles

1 pkg Firm tofu, drained
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
1 T fresh ginger, grated
1/3 C soy sauce
1 T light brown sugar
1/3 C peanut butter – I used natural creamy (still has a little grit to it)
½ C water
2 T canola oil
2 pkgs Neoguri noodles or other thicker Asian noodles
2 C Peppers & Onions
1 C Frozen Broccoli, large stems removed, defrosted

Cut the tofu block into 6 slices and place side by side between paper towels on a cooling rack w/ a cutting board on top, and a large weight on the cutting board. Let the tofu press & drain for at least 10 minutes. The longer it is pressed, the better the texture of the tofu will be after frying.
Mix the soy sauce and light brown sugar together until dissolved in a liquid measuring cup. Pour
half of the mixture in to a bowl.
In the bowl, add the garlic, ginger, and pressed tofu. Toss.
In the liquid measuring cup, add the peanut butter and ½ a cup of water to the soy sauce
mixture. Stir well.
Follow the directions to cook the noodles. (I break the noodles so they are easier to toss in the
stir-fry later.) If using Neoguri, boil water, add noodles, and cook about 5 minutes. If using
Hokkien, place noodles in a bowl, cover in boiling water for two minutes. Drain.
Heat oil in a large wok or sauté pan. (Recipe calls to drain the tofu and reserve the marinade,
but there wasn’t anything to drain) Cook the tofu in two batches until the tofu is well browned on
all sides. Remove from the wok.
When the noodles are almost ready, add the vegetables to the wok (Using whatever oil is left
from browning the tofu) and stir-fry until just tender. Add the tofu, any reserved marinade, and
noodles. Toss. Give the peanut butter mixture a good last stir and add to the stir-fry. Toss until
heated through.
Adapted from: The Complete Stir-Fry Cookbook

9/5/10

Basil Pesto

From Giada De Laurentiis's Everyday Italian Cookbook

2 C packed fresh basil leaves
1/4 C toasted pine nuts
1 garlic clove
1/2 t salt
1/4 t black pepper
2/3 C olive oil
1/2 grated Parmesan cheese

In a blender, pulse the basil, pine nuts, garlic, salt and pepper. With the blender still running, gradually add enough oil to form a smooth and thick consistently. Transfer the pesto to a bowl and stir in the cheese.

When tossing over pasta, add a little pasta water to help the pesto bind to the pasta.

When I last made this, I diced 3 tomatoes, shredded 2 carrots, and finely diced some red onion. I might have thrown in some olives as well? I can't remember.

Kick Ass Green Bean Casserole!


1 lb green beans, cleaned, end snapped off, bite-size pieces
1 T salt
4 C water

1 T butter
1 T olive oil
1 T garlic, minced
Salt and Pepper
8 oz Portobello Mushrooms, cleaned and dry
2 T flour
3/4 C Chicken Stock
1 T sherry
3/4 C half-and-half
1 slice whole wheat bread
3 oz French fried onions
Salt and Pepper

Microwave beans in salted water for 6 minutes. Drain and rinse in ice water. Let beans sit to dry.

Remove the stems from the mushrooms and dice finely. Break mushroom tops into pieces ( for better texture).
Melt butter & oil. Add garlic and let it lightly brown.
Toss in mushroom pieces, salt, and pepper to the pan.
Stir frequently until mushrooms start to release their juice, about 6 min.
Add flour. Stir frequently and let it brown.
Add chicken stock and sherry. Stir and bring to a simmer.
Slowly add the half-and-half, stirring frequently until sauce thickens, about 10 minutes.
Add cooked green beans. Pour into greased 8" square baking dish.

In a food processor, process the bread to crumbs, add french fried onions salt and pepper. Pulse to combine. Spread mixture evenly over beans. Cook at 425 for 10 minutes.

Adapted from a Cook's Illustrated & Kitchen Parade recipe. See link if doubling recipe or cooking later!