Souper Simple Mac & Cheese

I didn’t have enough corkscrew pasta, so I added penne to the mix

My husband LOVES mac & cheese.  It is one of his fave things to eat.  This is my take on his mom’s recipe.  We usually eat it with Chicken Cutlets (recipe to follow).  It would also be great to just make up quick as a side with any meal, as a pot luck item, or as a meal all itself.

This really is the best the first day, but my husband eats it as leftovers just fine.

 

Ingredients:

• 1 can Campbell’s Cheddar Cheese Soup (unless you can find off brand)
• ½ can of milk (whole is great)
• ¼ tsp pepper
• ¼ tsp garlic powder
• 2 c corkscrew pasta, cooked al dente (or whatever shape you like)
• ¼ c (approx) Italian bread crumbs
• ¼ c butter, melted

 

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400* F
2. Mix soup, milk, black pepper and pasta in 2 qt. casserole dish
3. Mix bread crumbs and butter and sprinkle over pasta mixture
4. Bake for 20 minutes

Souper Simple Mac & Cheese

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Lemony Chicken Piccata with Rice and Veggies

This is a meal I have been wanting to try for a while.  I really loved it, but my husband was iffy.  It has a very strong lemon taste and it was too strong for my husband.  If you are not a fan of lemons, do not make this, or use less lemons and juice.  This was really good with rice and mixed veggies prepared according to directions on the bottom of recipe.

 

Ingredients:

• 4 chicken tenderloins or 2 breasts
• Salt and pepper
• Flour
• Milk
• Olive oil
• 2 tbsp garlic, minced
• 1 c chicken broth
• 1/2 lemon, sliced
• 1/4 c lemon juice
• 2 tbsp capers, drained (come in a jar near pickles usually)
• 3 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp (heaping) parsley

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees F*
2. Place oven safe casserole dish or platter into the oven to warm
3. Heat a pan to brown chicken on stovetop
4. Put some flour on a dish
5. Pour some milk on another plate
6. Pour a mix of Italian bread crumbs, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper on another plate
7. Put out a tray or plate that is empty
8. Clean chicken
9. Dip chicken in milk
10. Dredge (coat) chicken in flour
11. Set on empty plate
12. Repeat for each piece
13. Take a piece of chicken and dip it in milk again
14. Dredge chicken in bread crumb mixture
15. Place back on plate
16. Repeat for each piece
17. Add oil to pan, only a couple tbsp at most
18. Quickly brown each piece of chicken
19. Place in warmed casserole dish in oven
20. Cover with tin foil or a lid and cook until meal is done and chicken is cooked through
21. In the same pan/skillet, stir in minced garlic, cook about 20 seconds
22. Pour in chicken broth
23. Add lemon slices
24. Let come to a boil, cook about 5-8 minutes
25. Add the lemon juice and capers; simmer until the sauce is reduced and slightly thickened, about 5 minutes more
26. Add butter into the skillet and swirl it into the sauce
27. Add the parsley; remove from heat and set aside
28. Arrange the chicken on serving plates and spoon sauce over each portion

Rice:

Use the white rice recipe found on my blog, but add 2 or 3 lemon slices,1 tsp capers, and 1 tbsp parsley to the sauce pan, along with the rice, water, and butter from the recipe.

Lemony Mixed Vegetables:

Cook them in a skillet.  Add 1 c water, 1 chicken bouillon cube, 2 cups veggies, 1 tsp capers, 2 lemon wedges, and 1 tbsp garlic (minced).  Let come to a boil.  Cook until veggies are done and liquid is evaporated.

 

Lemony Chicken Piccata

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Turkey O’Toole-like Sandwich

My husband and I used to love going to Bennigan’s restaurant before they closed down.  We always got a Turkey O’Toole sandwich when we went there.  After a few years of not being able to get one of our favorite sandwiches, I decided I wanted to give making one a try.  The first time I made this sandwich, the roll recipe was very complicated and took two days and an empty freezer, two things I rarely have available.  It was not very fun to make the rolls, so it took me about 3 years to give this another try.

Before trying again, I did a thorough search of the internet until I found a few different recipes for soft pretzels.  I mixed a few different recipes together and came up with this one.  This is not the simplest recipe on my blog, but the end result is well worth the work.  I may actually use the pretzel recipe to make regular soft pretzels and freeze them  to eat as snacks when we want them.

These pretzel rolls freeze well, as long as you do not add the salt to them until right before you use them.  Also, I divided the dough into 4 part this time, the rolls were huge, I placed an Altoids container next to the rolls so you can see how big they are.  I suggest breaking the dough into 6 parts, or even smaller and make appetizer sized Turkey O’Toole’s for a gathering.

Pretzel Roll Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups warm water (110 – 115 *F)
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 2 tsp kosher salt
• 1 package active dry yeast- quick rise kind works great
• 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 4 tbsp butter, melted
• Oil spray (for bowl)
• 10 c water
• 2/3 c baking soda
• 1 egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water
• Pretzel salt or Coarse Kosher Salt

Directions for making rolls:

1. Combine warm water, sugar and kosher salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle the yeast on top.
2. Allow to sit for 1-2 minutes then whisk until the mixture begins to foam.
3. Add the flour and butter
4. Using the dough hook attachment, mix on low speed until well combined
5. Change to medium speed and knead until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl
6. Remove the dough from the bowl, and place in clean bowl that is sprayed with oil
7. Spray the top of the dough with oil.
8. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and sit in a warm place for approximately 1 hour or until the dough has doubled in size
9. Preheat the oven to 450 *F.
10. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper and set aside
11. Bring 10 c of water and the baking soda to a rolling boil in an 8-quart saucepan
12. On a clean surface, spray oil
13. Separate dough into 4-6 sections (I did 4 this time and the rolls are HUGE)
14. Roll out the dough into a “snake”- or long rope
15. Spiral the long rope into the shape of a roll- or a circle (like a cinnamon roll shape)
16. Place onto the parchment-lined sheet
17. When water is boiling, place the pretzels into the boiling water, 1 by 1, for 30 seconds
18. Remove each from the water using a large flat spatula, or something else that you might have that doesn’t collect water and is as big as the roll you are putting in the water (the dough puffs and cooks a bit, but it is still soft and you don’t want the spiral to break apart)
19. Return to the cookie sheet, brush the top of each pretzel with a mixture of beaten egg yolk and water
20. If you are freezing either all or some of them for later use- DO NOT put salt on roll- just skip the salt step
21. If you are using them now, sprinkle with the pretzel salt or Coarse Salt
22. Bake until dark golden brown in color, about 12 to 14 minutes. (They do puff even more so do not place them too close together on the tray before cooking)
23. Transfer to a cooling rack for at least 5 minutes before serving or freezing
24. If frozen- thaw out roll when you want to use it- mix egg and water together again, brush with egg mixture, and put salt on top
25. lace in oven about heated to about 350*F, cook until dry- but do not burn

                     

 

Ingredients for sandwich:

• Roll already w/ salt on top
• Turkey from the deli, lunchmeat- probably more than 1 lb, it depends on how many rolls, how big they are, and how thick you want the meat
• Honey mustard
• Mayo
• Swiss cheese, either in slices or grated

Directions to make sandwich:

1. Heat up oven to 350 *F
2. Smear honey mustard and mayo on both the top and bottom of the roll (depends how much of each you really like)
3. Place cheese on bottom of roll
4. Place turkey on roll- as much as you want
5. Place cheese on top
6. Leave open and place in oven
7. Cook until heated and cheese is melted
8. Serve warm
9. Enjoy!

Turkey O’Toole-like Sandwich

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Homemade Garlic Mashed Potatoes

We love mashed potatoes in this household but for years I was afraid of making bad mashed potatoes from scratch

These are on a plate with other food in this picture.

since my family only used instant.  Once I got a stand mixer (a Professional KitchenAid actually) I decided I wanted to try to make them from scratch.  My husband was ecstatic, he really doesn’t like instant potatoes.  After some tries, this is what I came up with and they taste great, I have made them for gatherings and am always asked how I got them so fluffy.  I no longer use instant potatoes. Here is my recipe and trick to get them fluffy.

 

Ingredients:
• 4-6 large potatoes- peeled if needed
• 3-4 tbs (heaping) minced garlic
• ¼ c (or a bit more) milk (I use whole- or half and half is great if you have it)
• ¼ c (or a bit more) margarine or butter (I use whichever I have more of in the house)
• Salt and pepper to taste (about ½ tsp or more or each)

 

Directions:
1. Boil water, add potatoes (cut up so they can cook faster)
2. Cook until easily pierced with a fork
3. Drain water
4. Place back in pot (a pasta pot works great for this) and “dry” over stovetop- this means put the heat on a lower setting and keep moving the potatoes around by shaking pot or using a spoon until the potatoes are dry looking on the outside (about 5-10 minutes tops). This makes the potatoes very fluffy and makes them have a lighter whipped texture.
5. Dump potatoes in stand mixer
6. Put it on a low speed, start breaking them up
7. Add milk a little at a time until they are about the texture of mashed potatoes (not soupy and not too firm)
8. Keep mixer going, add all other ingredients
9. Turn up mixer and let it mix for a few minutes on a higher speed to get it nice and fluffy. Sample, adjust to taste if needed
10. Place in oven on low temp- covered- to keep warm until served

 

Garlic Mashed Potatoes (Homemade )

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New Orleans Style Rice (plain rice- not seasoned)

Before we moved to NOLA I was petrified of making rice.  I would only make instant rice (I know-gasp!) because that was all I knew how to make.  When we moved to NOLA I quickly learned that making good rice was essential to New Orleans cooking, so I sought to figure out how to make long grain rice.  I finally found this technique and I haven’t looked back since (or used instant rice in anything besides my slow cooker).  I will also be trying this with brown rice when I run out of white rice, I’ll let you know how it turns out.

 

Ingredients:
• 1 c long grain rice (preferably white)
• 2 c water
• 1 tsp salt
• 1-2 tbs butter
• 2 bouillon cubes- whatever flavor goes with your meal- (optional)

 

Directions:
• Place all items in pot at the same time
• Bring water to a boil
• Reduce heat and cook for approximately 20 minutes- or until rice is cooked and water absorbed
• Serve and enjoy with your favorite meal!

 

 

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Tin Foil Packet Swiss Cheese Fries

This is totally my invention.  My family loves it- meaning my parents and my husband and I.  This is usually cooked on the grill but could be cooked in the oven, I have just never made it that way.  It is a bit spicy and very flavorful.  goes great as a side with burgers, hot dogs, sausage- whatever.  and it is pretty kid friendly.

 

Ingredients:

 

4 Red Potatoes (any would work- just need to peel the others)

Swiss Cheese

Beef Bullion Powder

Garlic Pepper Salt

Paprika

Pepper

Butter

Tinfoil

Optional: Chopped Onions

 

Directions:

1. Cut Potatoes into fries or cubes
2. Parboil potatoes in water
3. Spray tinfoil with cooking spray
4. Place potatoes, seasoning to taste, and a couple handfuls of Swiss cheese on tinfoil
5. Mix together
6. Top with tabs of butter
7. Close up tinfoil and cook on grill for approximately 20 minutes or in oven at 400* F 30 minutes

 

Tin Foil Swiss Cheese Fries

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Slow Cooker Loaded Baked Potato Soup

This is SUPER good.  I have tried making about a dozen takes on Potato Soup- and this one I finally put together is the best.  I made it for a church function and got rave reviews.  This is one of my go to meals if my potatoes are starting to get eyes.    To make it easier for me- I buy the bacon salad topper made from real bacon, I am not great at cooking bacon and my husband hates it.

 

 

(Pics are from when I made it for Wednesday night Bible Study, so that’s why it is in a foam bowl.)

 

 

Ingredients:

6 large potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 large onion, diced
1 quart chicken broth (32 oz- or 4 cups)
3 heaping tsp garlic (minced)
¼  cup butter- melted
Sea Salt to taste (palm)
Pepper to taste (palm)

1 cup 1/2 and 1/2 cream
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Garnish: chives, sour cream, bacon, and cheese

Directions:

Combine first 7 ingredients in a large slow cooker and cook on high for
4-5 hours or low for 8 hours (potatoes should be tender).

Remove as much as will fit in blender and blend till smooth (or use stand mixer). Then you will need to mash whatever potatoes are left until coarsely chopped and soup is slightly thickened. Dump the mixture in the blender into slow cooker.  Warm up ½ and ½- Stir in ½ and ½ and cheese. Garnish with toppings.

Is great accompanied by Italian or French bread- buttered and dipped in the soup.

Slow Cooker Loaded Baked Potato Soup

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Walter Family Chicken Crouton Dish

 This is a classic Walter Family meal.  I make it different than my mom did, adding wine and cutting up the chicken so it cooks faster.  If you don’t like wine in your food, omit it and just do a full can of broth, that’s how my mom does it.  This makes great leftovers.

This is also one of my husbands fave meals, he requests it about once a month.  

Ingredients:

2-4 Chicken Breasts (about 1 LB)

Swiss Cheese

Cream of Chicken Soup

Seasoned Croutons

Chicken broth or bouillon cube

½ stick of Butter

White Wine

Directions:

1. Cut up chicken into large chunks
2. Place in bottom of baking dish
3. Cover with swiss cheese
4. Pour cream of chicken soup overtop
5. Top with croutons
6. In soup can, mix ½ can boiling water with bouillon cube (or broth if you have the big container)
7. Fill the rest of the can with White Wine
8. Pour mixture over the croutons
9. Place butter cubes on top
10. Bake uncovered at 400* for 1 hour

*This is really good served over either white rice made with chicken broth (what I do) or Rice-A-Roni (what my mom does).

Walter Family Chicken Crouton Dish

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Mom Inserra’s Super Awesome Stuffing

this is sooo good!

Ingredients:

Bread cube bag ( I make my own from a bit stale bread and freeze until I need it for something)

2/3 c. butter
1 1/3 c. chopped onion
1 1/3 c. chopped celery
1 1/2 tsp salt
3/4 tsp pepper
3 tsp poultry seasoning or

(1 tablespoon dried marjoram – 1 tablespoon dried rosemary -1 tablespoon dried sage -1 tablespoon dried thyme –

1/2 teaspoon black pepper )

1 Lb Pork Sausage (Italian) (like Jimmy Dean- the roll)
1 can chicken broth

To Make:

1.  Melt butter add onions and celery- cook for 5 minutes

2.  Sauté (brown) Sausage in another pan- dump on paper towels to drain grease

3.  Add the sausage to the onions and celery mixture

4.  Add all the seasonings except the pepper- cook together for 3 minutes

5.  Add Bread cubes and mix well

6.  Mix pepper in with chicken broth- pour over the mixture

7.  After it cools, place in refrigerator.

8.  Either stuff in turkey- or- place in casserole dish, pour more broth over top

9.  If you want it soft, cover, if crunchy on top, leave uncovered

10.  Cook at 325* for 35-40 minutes

Hint:   Never stuff in turkey until right before it goes in the oven so to avoid salmonella in the

stuffing.

Grease turkey with Olive oil mixed with garlic- cook 20 min. per Lb

Baste with chicken broth every ½ hr.

Mom Inserra Super Awesome Stuffing

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