Sunday, September 15, 2013

Tastefully Simple Bacon Garlic Vegetable Dip

I love Tastefully Simple's Spices (especially Garlic Garlic, Onion Onion and Bacon Bacon).  I like to make Beer Bread and serve it with dip for almost every dinner party I have.  It is ALWAYS a big hit.  I highly recommend you attend a Tastefully Simple party if you haven't before.  They are so fun!  It's basically a Tupperware Party for food.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup low fat mayonnaise
1/2 cup low fat sour cream
1 Tbsp. Tastefully Simple* Garden Vegetable Dip Mix
1/2 Tbsp. Tastefully Simple* Bacon Bacon
1/2 Tbsp. Tastefully Simple Garlic Garlic

Directions:
Mix all ingredients in a medium sized container.  Refrigerate covered for at least a half hour or over night.  Serve with crackers, vegetables, baguette, beer bread, etc.  Enjoy!

Sunday, September 8, 2013

Hearty Beef Tomato Sauce

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp. oil
1 small sweet onion chopped
2 Tbsp. garlic minced
1-2 Bell Pepper diced, orange, red or yellow (***optional)
1 lb. 97% lean ground beef
4 slices of Prosciutto sliced into small pieces
3 diced tomatoes (or 1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes with garlic and green pepper)
1 small jar tomato sauce of your choosing (or marina sauce)
1/3 cup grated Parmesan

Directions:
Place the oil in a large skillet.  Heat the oil on medium to medium-high heat.  Add the onion, garlic and the bell pepper (optional) and cook until tender for 5 minutes, stirring often.  Add the ground beef and Prosciutto and cook over medium heat until the ground beef is browned and cooked through.  Add remaining ingredients and simmer for at least 20 minutes.  Serve over Cheesy Bread or pasta of your choosing.  If you love cheese, top with some shredded mozzarella.  Serves 8.

***My all-time favorite Tomato Sauce is Ragu Robusto Parmesan & Romano...it's amazing!

Hearty Sausage Tomato Sauce



Ingredients:
1 package Low Fat Pork Jimmy Dean Breakfast Sausage
1 small sweet onion chopped
2 Tbsp. garlic minced
3 diced tomatoes (or 1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes with garlic and green pepper)
1 small jar tomato sauce of your choosing (or marina sauce)
1-2 Bell Peppers diced, red orange or yellow (***optional)
1/3 cup grated Parmesan

Directions:
Break the sausage apart and cook the sausage over medium to medium-high heat in large skillet until almost cooked through.  Add the onion, garlic and the bell pepper (optional) and cook until tender for 5 minutes, stirring often.  Add remaining ingredients and simmer over medium-low for at least 20 minutes.  Serve over Cheesy Bread or pasta of your choosing.  If you love cheese, top with some shredded mozzarella.  Serves 8.

***My all-time favorite Tomato Sauce is Ragu Robusto Parmesan & Romano...it's amazing!

Thursday, September 5, 2013

Sloppy Joes

From my youth.  What can I say, like mac'n'cheese this is a delicious childhood favorite.  Recipe courtesy of my Mom.

Ingredients:
Grandma's Best Barbecue Sauce
1 1/2 lbs. 90% Lean Ground Beef
6-8 Hamburger Sized Buns of your choosing (I love Seasame Buns)

Directions:
In a large skillet cook beef over medium heat until cooked through.  Add Grandma's Barbecue Sauce.  Turn to low and simmer covered for 30 minutes.  Serve hot on your favorite buns.  Serves 6-8.




Grandma's Best Barbecue Sauce Ever

My Grandma makes the most amazing Barbecue sauce ever.  This is her recipe for the barbecue sauce I grew up with.  It is a little sweet, a little spicy and has just the right zip.  It is good on almost anything.  Fair warning, you may need to double the recipe as it is delicious and does not make a ton.

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp. butter
1 medium Vidalia onion finely minced
1/2 cup celery finely minced
2 Tbsp. vinegar
3 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 cup ketchup
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire Sauce
1 tsp. dry mustard
1/2 cup hot water
1 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. red pepper (red pepper flakes also work)
1/8 tsp. black pepper

Directions:
Melt butter in a medium sauce pan over medium heat.  Add onions and celery and saute until tender, about 5 minutes.  Add all remaining ingredients, excepting salt and peppers.  Simmer on low heat for about 30 minutes.  Add salt and peppers for the last 5 minutes of cooking.  If the sauce is too thick, add water until desired consistency is achieved.  Can add more red or black pepper to taste if like sauce spicier.

Serving Suggestions:

Cover "Tastes Like Fried" Baked Chicken Breasts with sauce after baking and prior to serving for an extra special Dinner.

Sloppy Joes

Use sauce to baste chicken thighs, breasts or wings before baking or grilling.

Barbecue Mini Hot Dogs Appetizer

Sauce for Burgers

Sauce for Ribs - baste ribs in sauce and then cook ribs until done on grill or in oven.


Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Cranberry Double Chocolate Shortbread Cookies

One of many little twists on my classic Chocolate Chip Shortbread Cookies.



Ingredients:
1 stick melted butter
1/4 sugar
1/5 cup powder sugar; if you don't have a 1/5 cup, just use slightly less than a 1/4 cup ;)
1 Tbsp. Vanilla
1 cup + 2 Tbsp. flour
1/3 cup each of semi-sweet chocolate chips, white chocolate chips and dried cranberries
1/3 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Directions:  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Mix melted butter, sugars and vanilla until combined.  Add flour and mix until mixture sticks together and is the consistency of play dough.  Add chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, cranberries and nuts (if desired) and mix until just incorporated.  Mixture will be crumbly, press together to form cookies into 1 inch balls.  Place on cookie sheet spread about 1 inch apart.  Bake for about ten minutes or until done.  Cookies will not get light brown.  Let cool on wire rack.  Store in airtight container once cool.  Makes about 30 small cookies.  Enjoy!



"Tastes Like Fried" Baked Chicken Breasts

Ingredients:
4 Chicken breast butterflied and then cut in half (i.e. cut in half to make 8 thinner pieces)
Salt and pepper
Flour for dredging (about 1 cup)
1 egg beaten
1/2 cup skim milk
1/2 cup melted butter
About 4 cups Rice Krispies

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Put butter in a 13 by 9 inch baking dish and put in oven until just melted, remove from oven and set aside.

Salt and Pepper each chicken piece.  Dredge each piece of chicken in flour.  Mix together, milk, egg and melted butter from pan in a medium sized bowl.  Reserve baking dish with butter remnants.

Place Rice Krispies in a second medium sized bowl.  Dip chicken pieces in milk mixture to coat, then dip directly into Rice Krispies until well coated.  Return to 13 by 9 inch baking dish.  Repeat for each piece of chicken.  Place chicken in baking dish  is one layer, do not overlap chicken.

Bake uncovered for 35 minutes or until chicken is done.  Serve hot, enjoy!  Great with Honey Mustard Sauce or Homemade BBQ sauce.

Phenomenal Summertime Squash Casserole for a Homestyle Labor Day Feast

I had a group of girlfriends over for Labor Day and I felt like making some classic homestyle dishes.  I served "Tastes Like Fried" Baked Chicken with Homemade Barbecue Sauce, Green Bean Casserole, Squash Casserole, Beer Bread, Cornbread, and Cinnamon Melt-Away Muffins.  After a busy weekend this hearty meal definitely helped me to slow down a little.

This Squash Casserole is one I have perfected over time and I think I finally have it just right.   It is great as a side dish for dinner or perfect as a breakfast or brunch casserole too. I hope you enjoy it!


Ingredients:
3 medium or 2 large zucchini diced
3 medium yellow or 2 large yellow squash diced
1/2 cup water
1/2 tsp. salt
4 Tbsp. butter
1 medium Vidalia (or Candy) Onion diced finely
1 stalk of celery diced finely
5-8 crackers crumbled (Flip Sides Pretzel Crackers, Ritz, etc.)
4 slices American Cheese
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 eggs beaten
1 1/2 cup skim milk
1/2 tsp. pepper
12-16 crackers crumbled (Flip Sides Pretzel Crackers, Ritz, etc.)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.



Add zucchini, yellow squash, water and salt to medium sauce pan and cook over medium high heat.  Cook covered until squash is tender and most of the water is gone (about 8-10 minutes).  Check moisture level and stir every minute or so to ensure squash doesn't burn.  Transfer squash to mesh colander (with pin sized wholes only; cannot use a colander with large wholes or will lose your squash!) and drain off excess liquid.  Pour zucchini back into sauce pan and set aside.


Melt 2 Tbsp. butter in a medium saute pan.  Add onion and celery.  Cook over medium heat until tender; about 5-8 minutes.  Add to drained zucchini in sauce pan making sure to add butter from pan as well.    Reserve saute pan for later.



Add 4 slices of american cheese and 1/2 cup shredded cheddar to zucchini mixture and stir until cheese is melted and incorporated.  Add 5-8 crumbled crackers, depending on size of crackers.  Add 1 1/2 cups milk, 2 eggs, and pepper.  Stir until well blended.

Grease 1.5 quart baking dish.  Pour zucchini mixture into baking dish.  Bake in prepared pan for 35 minutes or until almost set (toothpick inserted in center comes out clean).

While casserole is baking, melt 2 Tbsp. of butter in reserved saute pan.  Add 12-16 crumbled crackers.  Saute over medium heat for 2-3 minutes.  After casserole has cooked 35 minutes, spread cracker topping evenly over casserole.  Then evenly cover with 1/2 cup of shredded cheddar.  Bake for 5 more minutes.  Serve hot!