Yakisoba from Mark Bittman

I love Mark Bittman. He is my favorite chef. He cooks with simple ingredients, and a variety of cultures represented in his cooking. This is one of the recipes from his new show The Minalmist on the Cooking Channel. I also liked this recipe because it is a basic recipe that can use different meats and veggies. I did not like the smell of the sauce, but once it was cooked it was great.

Ingredients
Salt
6 ounces dried or 10 to 12 ounces fresh Chinese egg noodles
1 tablespoon sesame oil
3 tablespoons peanut oil
2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
2 pork chops, thinly sliced
1 small head Napa or savoy cabbage, shredded (about 4 cups)
2 carrots, shredded
2 tablespoons ketchup
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons mirin or a bit of sugar
Few drops hot sauce (recommended: Tabasco)
1 bunch scallions, chopped, white parts only

Recipe

Bring a pot of water to a boil, salt it, and add noodles. Cook until just done, about 3 minutes. Drain in a colander and run under cold water. Toss noodles with sesame oil to keep them from sticking together, and set aside.

Put peanut oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When it's hot, add ginger and cook, stirring, until just fragrant, about 1 minute. Add pork and cook for about 5 minutes or until the pork is no longer pink and is starting to brown around the edges.

Add cabbage and carrots to skillet and stir; sprinkle with salt. Continue to cook until vegetables soften, adding a bit of water, as needed to keep them from sticking.

Meanwhile, stir together in a small bowl ketchup, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, mirin, and hot sauce. When vegetables are soft and any liquid has evaporated, add noodles and sauce to skillet. Toss to coat everything well and cook until noodles are warmed through. Serve, topped with chopped scallions

Exploding Chicken Taquitos

Quick, easy, and very tasty. This was a great end of the week recipe when I was tired and not wanting to cook. The girls also enjoyed. Courtesy of Hungry Girl on Cooking Channel Ingredients:

• One 9.75-oz. (or 10-oz.) can 98% fat-free chunk white chicken breast in water, drained and flaked


• 1/2 cup salsa


• 8 small (6-inch) yellow corn tortillas


• 1/3 cup shredded fat-free cheddar cheese


• 1/4 tsp. dry taco seasoning mix


• Optional dips: additional salsa, fat-free sour cream

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. In a medium bowl, combine the chicken and salsa, and mix thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate for 15 minutes. Dampen two paper towels, and place tortillas between them. Microwave for about 1 minute, until tortillas are warm and pliable. Set aside. Remove chicken mixture from the fridge, and drain any excess liquid. Add cheese and taco seasoning, and mix to combine. This is your filling. Set aside. Prepare a baking sheet by spraying it with nonstick spray. Set aside. Place one tortilla flat on a clean dry surface (keep the rest between the paper towels), and spoon about 2 heaping tablespoons of filling onto the tortilla. Spread it evenly across the entire surface, and roll tortilla up tightly, so that you have a cigar-shaped tube. Secure with toothpicks, if needed, and place seam side down on the baking sheet. Repeat with remaining tortillas and filling. Bake in the oven until crispy, 14 - 16 minutes. (Don't worry if they crack and "explode" a little!) Allow to cool for 5 minutes. Remove toothpicks, if using. If you like, serve with additional salsa and sour cream for dipping. Enjoy! MAKES 4 SERVINGS

Camp-Out Chicken

We are on spring break this week. I have enjoyed cooking meals in a more laid back manner; there have been no dance classes or choirs or meetings to run to. I have still had to plan the meals, but not based on what is going on in the evenings. Needless to say- it has been quite refreshing. One of the things that I wanted to do with the girls this week is teach them how to cook a dinner in aluminum foil. This is the kind of meal we grew up making when we went camping. However, tonight we cheated and used the grill. They are very simple to make, and they are very quick to cook on the grill. The girls did all parts of it except for lay the chicken in! For some reason- if they pick it out and help make it; they eat better! It also makes for easy clean-up!

Ingredients (per packet)
5 baby carrots, diced
1/2 potato, sliced thin
1/4 onion, sliced thin
1 chicken breast
Cavenders seasoning
salt
pepper
olive oil

Directions

1. Tear off a big enough piece of aluminum foil for all of the ingredients to be folded into and covered. Pour a bit of olive oil onto the bottom of a sheet of aluminum foil.


2. Place a thin layer of potato on the bottom.


3. Place a thin layer of onions next.


4. Place a chicken breast on top.


5. Top with carrots and another thin layer of potatoes.


6. Season generously with salt, pepper, and Cavender's seasoning.


7. Top with a smidge of olive oil (that means very little :))


8. Fold the middle together, folding over at least once.


9. Fold the ends on top of the packet, to prevent the oil from leaking out.


10. Grill or cook over an open fire until the chicken juice is clear. (Took about 20 minutes on the grill.)

Chicken Noodle and Lentil Soup Mix-Gift Idea

This was gift that we received for Christmas from Clay's cousin this year. The jar of soup mix was perfect this week as we returned home and had energy to cook. The girls and I really enjoyed the soup, but Clay LOVED it. I will be making this again for sure.


¼ cup of red lentils
2 tbsp. dried onion flakes
1 ½ tablespoons chicken bouillon granules
½ tsp. dried dill weed or dill seed
1/8 tsp each celery seed and garlic powder
approximately 1 cup medium egg noodles
1 bay leaf.

Directions:In a two-cup jar, layer from bottom in the order listed above, then seal the jar.

Write these instructions on your gift tag:Bring 8 cups of water to boil in large saucepan. Stir in jar of soup mix. Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 25 minutes. Discard bay leaf and stir in 1½ cups of frozen corn or mixed vegetables and 2 cups of cooked, diced chicken or turkey. Simmer for five minutes until vegetables are tender and chicken is heated through.

Lazy Lasagna

This recipe is one we tried at the last cooking class. The girls loved it! It was super easy, and meatless. It will be put into the rotation at the Gordon house. It would also be a great freezer meal.

INGREDIENTS:
1 package of frozen spinach
1 small onion, chopped
1 (28 ounce) jar spaghetti sauce
3 lbs of cheese ravioli
4 cups of mozzarella


Ready In: 1 Hour 20 Minutes Servings: 8
DIRECTIONS: 1.Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

2.Brown the onion in a skillet. Pour in spaghetti sauce and simmer 5 minutes.

3.In a 9x13 inch baking dish, spread enough sauce to cover bottom and put a layer of ravioli down end to end.

4.Spread a layer of sauce, spinach, and cheese just like you would with regular lasagna. Keep layering and finish with sauce on top.

5.Bake uncovered in a preheated oven for 1 hour. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.

Mexican Pizzas

Ingredients
8 (6 inch) Flour Tortillas, cooked into crispy tortillas
1 cup refried beans, prepared
1 pound ground beef, chuck, raw
1 package of Taco Seasoning
salt to taste
pepper to taste
4 tablespoons salsa
1 cup Mexican Cheese Blend, grated, prepared
1/2 cup Roma tomato, fresh, small chop
4 teaspoons cilantro, fresh, rough chopped

Directions
1.To make Crispy Tortillas: Place all 8 tortillas directly on the oven rack of a 350 degrees F oven and bake for 4-5 minutes. Remove from the oven and reserve on your work surface.
2.Heat the 1 cup of refried beans for 1 minute in the microwave to get hot and reserve for the recipe build.
3.Season the ground beef with salt and pepper and saute for 8 minutes in a non-stick pan, drain, mix in taco seasoning, and reserve hot for the recipe build.
4.To build 1 Mexican Pizza: Place 1 crisp tortilla on work surface.
5.Evenly spread tortilla with 1/4 cup hot refried beans.
6.Evenly top refried beans with 1/4 of the cooked ground beef.
7.Top ground beef with second crisp tortilla and evenly spread 1 heaping tablespoon of salsa over the tortilla.
8.Evenly top the pizza sauce with 1/4 cup grated Mexican cheese blend and 2 tablespoons chopped tomatoes.
9.Repeat steps 1 through 5 for remaining 3 servings.
10.Place all 4 pizzas, at one time, in 350 degrees F oven on a cookie pan/flat pan, and bake for 2 minutes to melt the cheese. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon chopped cilantro evenly over the top of each pizza. Serve each pizza whole.

Home Made Soup Mix

I love soups in the winter time. I find comfort and ease in cooking and eating them. This recipe I found this summer. I really like it. I really like the idea of the homemade soup mixes because I know what is going in to the mix. If you look at store bought soup mixes, they are filled with sodium and preservatives. This- you mix, you store, you serve. The other reason I like it is because it is ready to go at a moment's notice.

For this recipe you can purchase 1 bag of split peas, 1 bag of barley, 1 bag of lentils, and 1 bag of rice. One bag of ech can be purchased for less than $1.50 each. One bag can make four mixes. You make the mix listed below, and then you have four to pull out as needed.


1/2 cup split green peas
1/2 cup barley
1/2 cup lentils
1/2 cup raw rice
2 tbsp. parsley
2 tbsp. onion flakes
2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. lemon pepper
2 tbsp. beef bouillon
1/4 cup noodles

Mix all of the ingredients into a quart size bag. Keep dry until ready to use.

Day of cooking:

Empty contents of bag into a large pot, then add:
3 quarts water
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 carrots, sliced
1 cup shredded cabbage
2 cups of tomatoes

Simmer until vegetables are tender, 30 to 45 minutes.

Vegetarian Korma

We love Indian food, and I love trying new vegetarian meals. This one fit the bill for both. The whole family really enjoyed it. Using the curry powder is cheating a bit, but it made it a quick meal. I left out the cashews for our house, but I would recommend adding them for the crunch. This will be added to our Indian and vegetarian recipes.

Ingredients
1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 small onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 potatoes, cubed
4 carrots, cubed
1 fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded and sliced
3 tablespoons ground unsalted cashews
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 tablespoons curry powder
1 cup frozen green peas
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
1 can of Lite Coconut Milk
1 bunch fresh cilantro for garnish

Directions
1. Boil potatoes and carrots in water until tender.
2. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the onion, and cook until tender. Mix in ginger and garlic, and continue cooking 1 minute. Mix potatoes, carrots, jalapeno, cashews, and tomato sauce. Season with salt and curry powder. Cook and stir 10 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.
3. Stir peas, green bell pepper, red bell pepper, and cream into the skillet. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 10 minutes. Garnish with cilantro to serve.
Serve over rice and a side of bread.

Turkey Noodle Casserole

1 pkg broad egg noodles
1 lb ground turkey
1 14-oz can corn
1 can cream of mushroom condensed soup

Cook egg noodles according to instructions, drain. Meanwhile, brown turkey in a skillet until brown and fully cooked. Drain any grease. In a bowl, combine all ingredients, then turn into a freezer container. Freeze (may want to allow it to come down to room temperature before placing in freezer.

On cooking day, thaw completely in fridge (take it out the night before or morning of). In a preheated 350F oven, cook for 30-45 minutes, or until bubbly and completely hot throughout. Serve!

*add a chicken stock if dry when reheating

LO MEIN NOODLES

1/2 lb. flat noodles
2 tbsp. butter
1 c. scallion, chopped
1 tbsp. oil (sesame preferred)
Soy sauce
Pepper
Garlic powder
Cook and drain noodles. Saute scallion for a few minutes. Add noodles and seasonings to skillet. Toss. Add soy sauce. Sprinkle with sesame seeds.


Add vegetables: carrots, cabbage, water chestnuts, bean sprouts or a can of Asian vegetables from the store in a pinch

Add tofu, chicken, pork, or beef

Easy Frittata

I have had some eggs in the fridge for a while. We haven't been using them for breakfast, so I wanted to have a breakfast for dinner meal. I found this recipe on http://www.kraft.com/. It isn't a site I use often, but this one is a basic recipe with tons of taste. Clay and the girls really liked it, too. Clay told me he likes it better than quiche, and he likes quiche. I went to the grocery store today and forgot to buy the bacon. Luckily, I had some smoked turkey sausage in the fridge so I added that as an option for cooking. It gave it a great taste, but the biggest taste factor was the basil. It added great smell and taste!

Ingredients
5 whole Eggs
4 Egg whites
2 Tbsp. Water
1 cup Shredded Mozzarella Cheese, divided
1/2 cup chopped seeded tomatoes
4 slices cooked, crumbled bacon or smoked turkey sausage
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

Directions
HEAT oven to 350°F.

Beat whole eggs, egg whites and water with whisk in medium bowl until blended.

STIR in 1/2 cup cheese, tomatoes, bacon and basil. Pour into greased 9-inch pie plate.

BAKE 25 min. or until puffed and golden brown. Sprinkle with remaining cheese; bake 5 min. or until melted. (Took longer than the 30 minutes)


Kraft Kitchens Tips
How to Make Mini-Frittatas
Prepare egg mixture as directed; pour into 12 (2-1/2-inch) muffin cups sprayed with cooking spray. Bake 20 min.; sprinkle with remaining cheese; bake 3 to 5 min. or until melted. Makes 6 servings, 2 frittatas each.

Crispy Baked Fish

Ingredients
4 fish planks (usually Tilapia or Orange Roughy)
1/2 Cup Milk
2 TBS Parmesan Cheese
4 TBS Bread Crumbs
1/4 tsp Paprika



Directions
Preheat Oven 450 degrees

On plate mix cheese, breadcrumbs and paprika.
Dip fish in milk, then dredge in breadcrumb mixture.
Arrange fish on baking sheet that has been lined with foil and sprayed with Pam.

Bake 10 minutes at 450 degrees

Stromboli

Stromboli is basically a pizza pocket. This easy recipe can serve 4 to 6. It can also be modified very easily. You can do cheese only, or add vegetables, or sausage, or pepperoni. The possibilities are endless. Next time I am going to try and use bread dough instead of pizza crust. I let you know how it goes.


Ingredients
1 can prepared pizza crust
1/3 cup pizza sauce
1/2 lb thinly sliced cooked ham
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup chopped bell pepper
1/4 teaspoon oregano

Directions
1Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2Unroll the dough and place on an ungreased cookie sheet.
3Press with your fingertips into a 12x8-inch rectangle.
4Spread the sauce on the dough, leaving a 2-inch margin lengthwise, and a 1/2-inch margin on the sides.
5Place toppings in center third, fold sides over to meet in the middle and pinch to form a seal.
6Bake in the preheated 400F oven for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.
7Slice and serve with a side of warmed marinara.

Summer Stir-fry

This morning, as I was leaving for school, I stopped by the freezer to grab some meat for dinner tonight. I grabbed an Elk Fillet that I had purchased from the local market. I wasn't sure what to do with it and it was only a half a pound of meat. Well, I cut it, marinaded it, and stir-fried it, and it was a great light summer meal. Here is an easy stir-fry recipe that can use whatever is in the fridge.

1/2 to 1 lb of meat cubed (chicken, beef, elk, etc.)
3 T of soy sauce
1 T of sugar

3 to 4 veggies chopped into bite-size pieces (I used all locally grown food)
* 1 onion
* 2 carrots
* 1 head of broccoli
* 1 squash
* 1 head of Chinese Cabbage chopped

1 package of Udon Noodles cooked (or 1/2 bag of linguine)

Marinate meat in soy sauce and sugar mixture for 15 minutes to an hour. Pour a dollop of oil in to the stir-fry pan. Once heated, add meat and chopped onion. Cook over medium heat. Then, add the carrots and squash to mixture. About 5 minutes before serving add cabbage and broccoli. Add in cooked noodles. Serve and enjoy!

Bean and Cheese Burritos- Meatless Monday Meal

A quick meal that can be a life saver on those busy nights. Ingredients are simple and easy to keep on hand. Kids love these burritos.


Ingredients
◦7 flour tortillas, 10-inch (25cm) diameter
◦Filling:
3 1/2 cups fat-free refried beans, (two 16-ounce cans)
◦1/2 cup green chiles, canned, chopped (one 4-ounce can)
◦1/2 tsp cumin
◦1/2 tsp garlic powder
◦8 oz reduced fat cheddar cheese*, shredded

Directions
◦Preheat over to 400°F (205°C).
◦Prepare filling by mixing refried beans, chilies, cumin and garlic together in a bowl.
◦Grate cheese.
◦Assemble burrito by spooning approximately 1/2 cup (130g) bean filling into the center of each tortilla and top with about one Tbsp of cheddar cheese. Fold in ends and then sides. Place burritos seam side down on baking sheets that have been sprayed with vegetable oil spray.
◦Bake for 20–25 minutes until golden brown.
◦Serve with a dab of light sour cream and salsa.

Southwest Chicken Casserole- Recipe #2

This is a fun recipe that the family really enjoyed. It is easy to put together and tasty one dish meal.


2 cups of black beans (canned or cooked bagged beans)
2 cups of cooked corn (I use frozen)
3 cups of cooked rice
2 T of butter, melted
1 can of Rotel (drained)
1 lb of chicken, cooked and cubed
1 cup of shredded cheese

Preparation:
Mix beans, corn, rice, salsa, and butter in a bowl until blended. Place in a casserole dish aluminum casserole pan. Cool and freeze.

On Cooking Day:
Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then bake in a preheated 350F oven for 30 minutes covered, 15 minutes uncovered. Sprinkle with cheese the last few minutes.

Roasted Chicken- One bag of Chicken- 4 recipes

I enjoy cooking on the weekends. I can try new things, and take my time with it. This weekend, I roasted a three pound bag of chicken tenders. I have found that my family eats about ¾ of a pound of chicken, or 3 chicken breast, not the typical 1 pound per recipe. I am writing the recipe for 1 pound of chicken, but I divided the bag of chicken into four each servings. You can do what is comfortable for your family. Normally, I would make two servings of two recipes, one for the week, one for the freezer. This week I had some new things to try, so I tried four different recipes. Not ideal as far as the mess in the kitchen, but again, I enjoyed it. So, first- the roasted chicken:

1 - 3 lb bag of chicken tenders, thawed
Butter or olive oil to drizzle on chicken
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat the oven to 350. Spray the bottom of a cookie sheet with cooking spray. Lay the chicken on the pan. Do not let the pieces touch. Drizzle with olive oil, or melted butter. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Bake 20 to 30 minutes, or until pieces are no longer pink in the middle. (Keep a close eye on chicken, because it can become tough if left too long)

The four recipes I made with the bag of chicken are as follows:

• Chicken and Barley with Lemon Marinade
• Southwest Chicken Casserole
• Chicken Divan Casserole
• Teriyaki Chicken Casserole

I will be working on the recipes this week to post.

Goldenrod Eggs with White Sauce

Okay, it is another boiled egg recipe. I remember my mom making this as a kid- but we called it "Stuff." I remember not knowing what to call it- so it was "Stuff." I made it last night, but could work on my white sauce. I know that is a practiced skill. So, if you have any hard boiled eggs left- enjoy this tasty, easy recipe.

Goldenrod Eggs

• 6 hard-boiled eggs
• 4 pieces of toast
• 1 1/2 cups of white sauce

Chop egg whites into the white sauce. Serve over toast. Sprinkle yolks on top.

White Sauce

• 2 tablespoons of butter
• 2 tablespoons of flour
• 1 cup of milk
• dash of pepper
• salt to taste

Melt butter in to pan. Add pepper and flour; blend together. Slowly add in milk, whisking in as you add. Cook until thick and smooth. Salt to taste.

Quesadillas

We have done Meatless Mondays pretty smoothly. This week I made a quick quesadilla and served it with beans and rice. The girls got plain cheese quesadillas, but I made the adult ones with veggies, too. It was exactly what the girls order when we eat Mexican food, so they lapped it up. Clay would have rather had chicken, but was okay with the veggies only option. This is a recipe that can be different every time you make it, and you can have it on the table in a short amount of time.

Basic Ingredients:

• 2 cups of quesadilla cheese (it will make about 5)
• 1 package of 10 inch tortillas (1 for each person)

Optional Ingredients:

• Sauteed onion
• Sauteed green pepper
• Sauteed mushrooms
• Black beans
• Diced tomatoes
• Pico di Gallo

Dipping Sauces

• Guacamole
• Sour Cream
• Salsa
• Pico di Gallo

Heat 12-inch non-stick skillet or flat griddle over medium heat. Coat with vegetable oil spray. Cook quesadillas, 1 at a time, 3 minutes or until golden, turning halfway during cooking. Cut into wedges to serve.

**I have found I have to watch the temperature- if they start getting too brown, turn down the heat.

Cincinnati Chili

It doesn't seem like almost a month since I posted, but it has been. I seem to go in spurts. I am halfway through spring break, and it is finally starting to feel like spring here. :) I also feel like we are making the switch from warm and hearty winter foods to springy, lighter foods. We have been eating at home this week, but more out of the freezer than anything else. I haven't felt like big productions during the dinner hour. Last night we tried a new recipe from Hannah's cookbook, the Kit Kittridge Cookbook, she got for Christmas from Aunt and Uncle Chris. Throughout the book are recipe used frequently during the great depression. Hannah has enjoyed the different recipes- some old favorites, like mac and cheese, and some new- like Cincinnati Chili. So, if you want to try something a little different with you chili- give this recipe a try.

Ingredients
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 pounds ground beef
2 to 3 Tablespoons of chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 (1 ounce) square unsweetened chocolate
1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
2 tablespoons cider vinegar

1 cup of water
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

Directions

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring frequently, until tender, about 6 minutes.

Add beef, in batches if necessary, and cook, breaking up with a wooden spoon, until browned.

Add chili powder, cinnamon, cumin, chocolate, water, tomato sauce, cider vinegar, and red pepper. Stir to mix well. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.

It is the best if you now refrigerate overnight. Reheat gently over medium heat. Serve over hot, drained spaghetti. Top with shredded cheddar cheese.