Call for Holiday Recipes!

So, I guess this is a little bit late, with Thanksgiving here in about 2 days, but I would still like to request that you share some of your favorite holiday recipes! Thanks!

Breakfast Strata with Spinach and Gruyere Cheese

I had this quiche-like dish at an Enrichment meeting. It was the perfect texture (not gooey or watery) and so flavorful. The sample dish disappeared in a flash.


Ingredients:
10 (1/2-inch thick) slices supermarket French or Italian bread
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
4 medium shallots, minced
1 package (10-ounce size) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
Salt and ground black pepper
1/2 cup medium-dry white wine, such as Sauvignon Blanc
1 1/2 cup grated Gruyère cheese
6 large eggs
1 3/4 cup half-and-half

Directions:

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 225 degrees F. Arrange bread in single layer on large baking sheet and bake until dry and crisp, about 40 minutes, turning slices over halfway through drying time. (Alternatively, leave slices out overnight to dry.) When cooled, butter slices on one side with 2 tablespoons butter; set aside.

Heat 2 tablespoons butter in medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Saute shallots until fragrant and translucent, about 3 minutes; add spinach and salt and pepper to taste and cook, stirring occasionally, until combined, about 2 minutes. Transfer to medium bowl; set aside. Add wine to skillet, increase heat to medium-high, and simmer until reduced to 1/4 cup, 2 to 3 minutes; set aside.

Butter 8-inch square baking dish with remaining 1 tablespoon butter; arrange half of buttered bread slices, buttered-side up, in single layer in dish. Sprinkle half of spinach mixture, then 1/2 cup grated cheese evenly over bread slices. Arrange remaining bread slices in single layer over cheese; sprinkle remaining spinach mixture and another 1/2 cup cheese evenly over bread. Whisk eggs in medium bowl until combined; whisk in reduced wine, half-and-half, 1 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste. Pour egg mixture evenly over bread layers; cover surface flush with plastic wrap, weigh down (see note), and refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to overnight.

Remove dish from refrigerator and let stand at room temperature 20 minutes. Meanwhile, adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees F. Uncover strata and sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup cheese evenly over surface; bake until both edges and center are puffed and edges have pulled away slightly from sides of dish, 50 to 55 minutes (or about 60 minutes for doubled recipe). Cool on wire rack 5 minutes; serve.

Note: To weigh down the assembled strata, use two 1-pound boxes of brown or powdered sugar, laid side by side over the plastic-covered surface. To double this recipe or those that follow, use a 9 by 13-inch baking dish greased with only 1 1/2 tablespoons butter and increase baking times as suggested in each recipe.

Chicken and pasta with peanut sauce

This is another one from the ward recipe blog. We tried it and it was good. One piece of advice is don't be alrmed if your sauce looks more like paste before you mix it in; it should still mix up nicely! Oh yea, for the veggies I used broccoli and bell pepper. I would like to tr it with pea pods!

Almost every time I ask Jon what he wants for dinner (this doesn't happen very often--usually I just make whatever sounds good) he says, "That peanut butter pasta with chicken!" Invariably his eyes light up when he says this and he asks me about ten times when dinner will be ready while I'm making it. If you don't like peanut butter, don't make this, but if you do--give it a try! I got this recipe from my trusty Better Homes and Gardens Cook Book. The original recipe is quite a lot different from the way I make it, but the important part is the sauce.

6 oz. spaghetti or fettucine
1 cup cooked chicken, cut in strips
Vegetable of choice, in quantity of choice (I usually use broccoli or cauliflower or both)
1/4 cup chicken broth
2 tlbs. peanut butter
1 tlbs. soy sauce
1 tlbs. lemon or lime juice
1/4 tsp. crushed red peppers
1 clove garlic, minced

Cook pasta, adding vegetables for last 5-7 minutes. Cook chicken in pan with a bit of olive oil, salt, and pepper. Drain pasta and vegetables, and mix with chicken. For sauce, stir chicken broth into peanut butter in small saucepan. Heat and stir with a whisk until peanut butter melts. Stir in soy sauce, lemon/lime juice, red pepper, and garlic; heat through. Add sauce to the pasta mixture. Gently stir to coat pasta with sauce.

Broccoli or Zucchini soup

We had this at Enrichment a few weeks ago, and it was delicious. A warning: If you put it in the food processor, it comes out textured sort of like baby food. If you don't want it that fine, I would suggest mashing it.

Broccoli or Zucchini Soup (at enrichment, Emma made Zucchini Soup)

From: Emma Calvert

3 Cups chopped or sliced broccoli or zucchini
1 medium onion chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1/4 C butter

Saute in pot until very tender then mash or pure in blender/food processor.
Add vegetables to-

1 Can of Cream of Chicken Soup
2 cups of milk (can be canned)
1/2 C water
1-2 Tlbs chicken boullion
2-3 Tlbs Corn starch

Simmer until thickened. (Do not boil). Add 4-6 slices of American cheese or 1 1/4 Cups of shredded cheese. Stir until melted. I usually double this recipe.

Cream Puffs

I made these Sunday as a sugar free dessert. I made sugar free pudding to put in them, we could choose from butterscotch or chocolate. They were delicious! Yes, they are from a cookbook, but sometimes we don't notice what our cookbooks contain. Hope you all enjoy!

Cream Puffs
1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup butter (I used margarine, and some recipes call for shortening instead)
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 large eggs

1. In a medium saucepan combine water, butter, and salt. Bring to boiling. Add flour all at once, stirring vigorously. Cook and stir until mixture forms a ball. Remove from heat. Cool for ten minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well with a wooden spoon after each addition.

2. Drop 12 heaping tablespoons (large tablespoons, not teaspoons, and definitely heaping)onto greased baking sheet. (I used parchment paper instead of greasing my baking sheet.) Bake in a 400 degree oven for 30 to 35 minutes until golden. Transfer cream puffs to a wire rack; cool.

3. Cut tops from puffs; remove soft dough from inside. Fill with pudding (and/or whipped cream, if you are not going for sugar free). If desired, sift powdered sugar over tops.

ENJOY!

Tortellini Soup

I got this recipe off of a recipe blog from my ward and made it this week. Trent and I thought it was tasty. And I felt good about eating it, since it has all those tomatoes and spinach in it!

Tortellini Soup

2-15 oz. cans of diced tomatoes
2 cups frozen spinach

8-10 cups chicken broth

1-13 oz. bag tortellini

Combine tomatoes, spinach, and chicken broth in large pot. Bring to boil. Add tortellini, bring back to a boil, and simmer about 10 minutes, until tortellini are cooked.

Pineapple Upside-Down Muffins

Ok, so these aren't really upside-down muffins, but they sure do the trick if you ever catch yourself craving pineapple upside-down cake. You can make this with a box of yellow cake mix, and I'm sure that it works with any other yellow cake from scratch.

1 box of yellow cake mix
can of pineapple (we did crushed, I'm sure tidbits would work, too)
jar of maraschino cherries
butter
brown sugar

Mix the cake up as directed, BUT instead of using just water, mix pineapple juice from the can with water until you have the directed ammount and use that in the mix. Mix in pineapple and cherries (we sliced them in half). You can really use however much you want, but we used about half the can of crushed pineapple and a little over half the jar of cherries. Bake into cupcakes.

Melt a stick of butter and mix brown sugar in. It should not form a paste--that's too much brown sugar. Drizzle brown sugar/butter mixture on top of cupcakes (this is to make up for the fact that you did not bake the cupcakes upside down soaking in a similar brownsugar/butter mixture). Viola! Easy to make, and they go fast!

Buttercream Frosting

This is a great frosting recipe for cakes and decorating. It works great and is very yummy too. That way it can look good AND taste great too.

Buttercream Frosting

1/2 cup solid vegetable shortening

1/2 cup butter or margarine

1 teaspoon Clear Vanilla (can get anywhere Wilton products are sold)

4 cups Powdered Sugar (that is approx. 1/2 of the 2 lb. package)

2 tablespoons milk

Cream together butter and shortening with electric mixer (make sure your butter is not hard, the best is to leave it out to warm). Then add vanilla. Gradually add sugar, one cup at a time, beating well on medium speed. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often. When all sugar has been mixed in, icing will appear dry. Add milk and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy. Keep bowl covered with a damp cloth until ready to use. For best, keep in refrigerator until ready to use. In an airtight container, this icing can be stored up to 2 weeks. Re-whip before using. Makes 3 cups. (This recipe can be found in the Wilton 2008 Yearbook, pg. 114)

I have found when mixing in the coloring it is best to use a spatula and do it by hand, if you use the mixer your icing will be whipped too much and be more the consistency of hard cool whip.

those ubiquitous BYU mint brownies

I just pulled this from the BYU Alumni Newsletter. You may already have the recipe or the newsletter, but for those who don't - eat your hearts out!

MAKES ONE 9-BY-13 PAN OF BROWNIES.
PREP AND COOK: 90 min. COOL: 1 hr.
1 c. margarine
1/2 c. cocoa
2 Tbsp. honey
4 eggs
2 c. sugar
1 3/4 c. flour
1/2 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. chopped walnuts
12 oz. chocolate icing (Use your own icing recipe or purchase some chocolate frosting. You can also search the Internet for chocolate icing recipes.)

MINT ICING
5 Tbsp. margarine
dash of salt
3 Tbsp. milk
1 Tbsp. light corn syrup
2 1/3 c. powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. mint extract
1-2 drops green food coloring

1. Melt margarine and mix in cocoa. Allow to cool. Add honey, eggs, sugar, flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix well. Add nuts. Pour batter into a greased 9-by-13 baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Cool.

2. Prepare mint icing: Soften margarine. Add salt, corn syrup, and powdered sugar. Beat until smooth and fluffy. Add mint extract and food coloring. Mix. Add milk gradually until the consistency is a little thinner than cake frosting.

3. Spread mint icing over brownies. Place brownies in the freezer for a short time to stiffen the icing. Remove from the freezer and carefully add a layer of chocolate icing.

Crock Pot Chicken Cacciatore

I love chicken cacciatore, but found the other recipe I tried just a little too labor-intensive for my taste...This one is really simple, and still delicious!

2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken
1 c. chopped onion,
1 1/2 c. sliced mushrooms
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 (6 oz.) cans of tomato paste
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. basil
1/2 tsp. celery seed
1 bay leaf
1/2 c. chicken broth

Place chicken, onion, mushrooms, salt, and pepper in crock pot. Combine tomato paste, garlic, oregano, basil, celery seed, bay leaf and chicken broth. Pour over chicken. Cook on low for 7-9 hours or on high for 3-4 hours. Remove bay leaf.

Notes: I used garlic powder instead of minced garlic, and it worked with the same measurement. I didn't have celery seed, so I omitted it, and that worked too. Also, the original recipe called for 1/4 c. chicken broth. I just happened to have 1/2 c. left over from a different recipe so I used it all, and it still was too thick to "pour" over the chicken, and turned out pastier than I expected. I might try using a whole can of chicken broth next time to make it more saucy, though it was tasty the way it turned out this time too. Also, we ate this with thin spaghetti, but I like chicken cacciatore with rice too.

Saltine Homemade Heath Bars!

So, I was eating tuna and crackers for lunch today, when I saw this recipe on the side of the box of saltines and decided to try it out. And it's great! I'm planning on making a bunch of goodies at Christmas time, and this is definitely going to be one of them!

1 sleeve (35-40) saltine crackers
3/4 -1 c. brown sugar
1 c. butter
12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 c. chopped nuts

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a 10x15 in. cookie sheet with foil; spray very lightly with cooking spray. Cover cookie sheet with saltines. Boil sugar and butter for 3 minutes. Pour mixture over saltines and spread evenly. Bake at 400 degrees for 5 minutes. Remove from oven.

Sprinkle with chocolate chips. Let sit 1 minute, then spread melted chips with spatula. Sprinkle nuts over this and press down lightly. Cut on diagonal immediately or cool until firm, then break up. Pieces can be frozen.

Mango with Sticky Rice

I promise this is really not hard to make. The directions are just very clear. I also learned that you really have to use the sweet rice. I made it with regular Jasmine rice and it was fine, but not the same as the sweet rice. Usually to find the sweet rice, at least down here, you have to go to a Thai store. FYI

1 1/2 cups glutinous (sweet) rice 1 1/3 cups well-stirred canned unsweetened coconut milk
1/3 cup plus 3 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large ripe mangoes (chilled whole in refrigerator)*
1 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted lightly
Edible flowers or mint leaves for garnish

*Try to get yellow-skinned "Manila" mangos, if you can, as the flavor is stronger and more acidic than the green and red-skinned South American varieties. Fresh ripe peaches may be substituted for the mangoes.

To prepare the sticky rice: Working in the sink, put the rice into a large bowl with plenty of water; stir well by hand. When the rice has settled to the bottom, pour off most of the cloudy water, refill and repeat until the water runs fairly clear. Soak the rice in plenty of water (so the water is approximately 2 to 3 inches above the rice) for 6 to 8 hours, preferably overnight (the grains will absorb water and grow in size). When ready to cook, drain rice well in a sieve (I use a cheese cloth). Set sieve over a large deep pot of simmering water (sieve should not touch water) and steam rice, covered with a kitchen towel and a lid, approximately 30 to 40 minutes, or until tender (check water level in pan occasionally, adding more hot water if necessary). When rice is translucent and somewhat tender, it's done. NOTE: Can also use a shallow heat-proof dish on the steamer rack. You can also purchase the special sticky rice steam baskets (steaming baskets and pots are available from Asian markets).

While rice is steaming, in a small saucepan bring coconut milk to a slow simmer, stirring constantly (hard boiled coconut milk will curdle). Add sugar and salt; stirring until sugar is dissolved; remove from heat. Keep mixture warm. Reserve approximately 1/3 to 1/2 cup coconut-milk sauce; refrigerate until cool and thicken slightly.

Transfer hot cooked rice to a bowl and stir in coconut-milk mixture. Stir well with a spoon to make sure all the grains are well coated. Let rice stand, covered, approximately 20 to 30 minutes, or until coconut-milk mixture is absorbed (the rice should be a little mushy). NOTE: Rice may be prepared up to this point 2 hours ahead and kept covered at room temperature.

Just before serving, peel mangoes and then thinly slice by cutting lengthwise through flesh to the stone; discard the stone. NOTE: Peel the mangoes carefully so as not to bruise the fruit. Slice in half as close to the seed as possible, then slice each half into 1/2-in (1-cm) slices.

Serve at room temperature. To serve, mold 1/4 cup servings of sticky rice in the center of individual dessert plates (an ice cream scoop works wonderfully). Drizzle reserved coconut-milk sauce over the rice mounds and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Arrange mango slices around the rice. Garnish with edible flowers or mint if desired.

NOTE: The finished dish can be kept, covered at room temperature for 6 to 8 hours. Do not refrigerate or the rice will harden!

Makes 4 to 6 servings.

I got this from a friend who got the recipe at http://whatscookingamerica.net/Fruit/MangoStickyRice.htm

Jumpin' Chicken Tai

Picture soon to come

Ingredients:
1 lb. meat - Chicken/shrimp/pork
1 bag Guilin Rice Sticks

Fish Sauce

Limes
1 bag garden salad
4 cloves garlic
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
butter
1 bushel cilantro

Sweet onion
1 onion
1/4 tsp paprika
1/4 c brown sugar
1/8 tsp salt

Hot onion
1 onion
1 tsp chili garlic sauce
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/4 c sweet coconut

Directions:

Marinate Chicken/shrimp/pork in garlic, butter and soy sauce for a few hours. Make fried onion of your choice, sweet or hot. Cook chicken in a pan, meanwhile, cook rice sticks - they don't take long just 5 minutes or so.

Assemble:
On each plate layer in this order - Rice sticks, salad, meat, onion, cilantro, squirt of fish sauce, juice of 1/2 lime.

Vorkink Chicken - Chicken balls

This is kinda like Elizabeth's recipe below, but my version of it. Actually this one was stolen from an old roommate too.

Ingredients:
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 package cream cheese
1 Tbsp onion flakes
2 cans crescent rolls
1 can cream of chicken soup
salt to taste

Directions:
Boil and drain chicken. Shred chicken; I actually just put it in the food processor for a second or two. I know, lazy me. Anyway, then add the cream cheese, onion flakes, and salt. Blend it all together and divide into little balls, about 16. Wrap the balls in the crescent rolls and bake in the oven at 350°F for about 11-15 minutes. Make sure to not burn the rolls. Make sauce by cooking 1 can cream of chicken soup with 1 can water.

Cafe Jessie - BBQ Shredded Pork

Okay, so I stole this from my old roommate Jessie, but it is seriously amazing. We made a ton of this last Spring and ate it for pretty much every meal for a week and were still wanting more. Now that's good eats!

BBQ Shredded Pork:

3 pounds of pork loin roast
1 cup water
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1 can (8 ounces) of tomato sauce
1/2 cup barbecue sauce
1 white onion (3/4 diced, 1/4 sliced)
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. oregano

Directions: Put sliced onions in the bottom of the crock pot. Cut
pork roast into 3 or 4 pieces and put into the crock pot. Mix all
other ingredients together in a separate bowl and pour over the meat
in the crock pot. Cook on low for 6 to 7 hours then shred meat.
Cook for another hour or so. If it looks like it's getting dry add
more of whatever you want (I recommend some water and barbecue sauce).

Notes: Sometimes I soak the raw pork in CocaCola over night before
I cook it. Also, this last time I made it I put in more sugar than usual
and some honey to make it sweeter. I also added ground red pepper to
make it a little spicier, per Brad's request.

This is what homemade Cafe Rio looks like at our house. We love having this meal for dinner and it makes great left overs too!

My new favorite salad dressing..

Kraft Cesar Vinegarette...YUM! You should try it.

Chicken Pillows

I apologize in advance, because I don't have an exact recipe for this. I'll tell you the ingredients I use and approximate proportions! I made this the other night and it all got eaten (I had 2, Trent had 6!), so you may want to double it if you have hungry people to feed. I guess it also depends on how full you stuff them... I accidentally went a little skimpy on the chicken for this last batch, but they could be more filling if you use more chicken.

1 can crescent roll dough (6-8 rolls)
4-6 chicken tenderloins
cream cheese
texjoy
onion flakes
swiss cheese (1/2 slice per roll)

Boil chicken until cooked. Drain water and shred chicken with forks. Mix in a couple of spoonfuls of cream cheese (I usually put the pan back on the burner, even thought it's turned off to let the heat melt the cream cheese so it's easier to mix). Add some Texjoy and onion flakes to taste. Next, open your crescent rolls. To assemble, lay a triangle of dough flat in your pan, place 1/2 slice of swiss cheese on the fat end of the triangle, and then top that with a scoop of chicken mixture. Now wrap the skinny end of the triangle around, so the dough is covering the chicken, and press the other two corners up on top also. Bake according to the directions for the crescent rolls.

I just had an idea! These could make cute party food if you cut each roll in half before assembling them!

Black Bean Salad

Everybody but Joshua loves it!

1 can of drained and rinsed black beans
1 can of corn
1/2 diced green bell pepper
1/2 diced red pepper
1/2 cup your favorite dressing (vingarette is best)

Mix all together. Add cilantro if you like it. Chill until cold. Serve with salsa, sour cream, cheese, lettuce (we like spinach) and tortilla chips. Yum!

White Bread for a Bread Maker

2 Lb. Loaf

1 and 1/2 cups water
2 teaspoons margarine or butter softened
4 cups bread flour (or flour that says better for bread)
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons salt
2 and 1/4 teaspoons yeast

Put it all in the bread maker in the order it's listed and start it in the sweet bread cycle. I t bakes it a little shorter time and this is a sweet bread recipe a little modified so it raises up better and doesn't get too crusty. I hope it works . This is the recipe I used when Ben was a Deacon and had to bring the bread every week. I just threw it all in on Saturday night and sliced it and sent it with him on Sunday morning.

Cafe Rio Pork and Salad Dressing

This is tasty! I like to eat it as a salad like they serve it at Cafe Rio. I just layer a tortilla, rice, black beans, pork, cheese, lettuce, tomato or pico de gallo, and the dressing. Or you can make it into a burrito with black beans and rice. Also tasty made into quesadillas with cheese and dipped in the dressing. Trent also has eaten it made into a taco with some rice, cheese, and spinach. Basically you can eat it any way you want, and it's delicious all around.

Cafe Rio Pork

Ingredients
3-4 lb. pork sirloin roast
1 c. Pace picante sauce
1 1/3 c. brown sugar
1 c. 7-up

Directions
Place roast in crock pot. Mix salsa, brown sugar, and 7-up together. Pour over roast. Cook on low all day (8-10 hours). Shred with forks before serving.

Cafe Rio Salad Dressing

Ingredients
1 1/3 c. sour cream
3/4 c. mayo
1 bunch of cilantro
4 Tbs. salsa verde
1 pkg. ranch dressing mix
2 cloves garlic
1/8 tsp. Tabasco sauce
Juice of 1 lime

Directions
Mix all ingredients together in the blender. (I like to save some of the cilantro and mix it in with the lettuce for the salad).

WELCOME!

Caroline and I were just talking today and had a few recipes we wanted to exchange. She said "put this one on your blog" and I said "okay, put that one on your blog"... Then I thought, some people have blogs dedicated just to that--recipe swapping, so we should too! So here it is!

You're invited to post your yummy recipes on here too, so we can all enjoy them! This will be fun!