Kids Favorite.

Kids of all ages love Sloppy Joe's. Manwich is good, but I prefer to make mine from scratch. You just brown 1 lb. of ground beef in a skillet, drain fat. Add about 2-3 TBS. each of finely chopped onion and bell pepper and cook until soft. Season with salt, pepper, and chili powder. Add one 8 oz. can of tomato sauce and about 1/4 cup of ketchup, to taste (you can also use BBQ sauce). Cook over low heat about 20 mins. Serve on buns. This is good with so many different sides, even just chips.

Gone Fishing.

Tonight I'm fixing Salmon Patties. You just take a can of Salmon, drain the liquid into a bowl and remove the skin, fat and bones (don't worry about the little ones). Add Salmon, an egg, and chopped onion, to the liquid and season, I use garlic, red pepper, and dill. Mix in about a half a pack of crushed saltines. Form into patties and fry in oil, turning once, cook to golden brown. They're good with tartar or red sauce and even make a good salmon burger. We're having Mac 'N Cheese and Hominy.

Bennigan's Monte Cristo Sandwich.

This is a great way to use leftover Turkey and Ham from Thanksgiving.
Use your own judgement on the amount of meat, it really depends on how thick you slice it.
You can assemble these sandwiches ahead of time and wrap them in plastic wrap in the fridge. That makes them hold together better and you won't need toothpicks. Then just batter and fry. The batter will be like pancake batter, you may need to vary the amount of water.

Monte Cristo Sandwich Recipe #26049
by Mysterygirl
10 min, 5 min prep
SERVES 3 , 3 sandwiches
9 slices whole wheat bread
3 slices cooked ham
3 slices cooked turkey
3 slices swiss cheese
3 slices american cheese
Batter:
1 egg
1-1 1/4 cup water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
vegetable oil (for deep frying)
Place turkey and Swiss cheese on one slice of bread and ham and American cheese on another slice of bread. Place third slice in-between and secure the triple-decker sandwich in the corners with tooth picks.
Place egg in mixing bowl, add water and beat together.
Add salt, sugar, flour, and baking powder.
Beat batter until smooth.
Dip sandwich in batter and carefully cover all the sides and surface.
Carefully place in hot oil and fry until golden.
When sandwich has turned a warm gold color remove from hot oil and place on paper towel.
Let cool for a few minutes before removing the tooth picks.
Before serving slice into fourths and sprinkle with powder sugar.
Serve with Raspberry jam.

© 2008 Recipezaar. All Rights Reserved. http://www.recipezaar.com

HAPPY THANKGIVING!

Dinner turned out really good. It's just the two of us, so I opted for Turkey Breast instead of the whole bird. I ignored the instructions on the package and used my instincts. It called for an hour and a half cook time, but I cooked for almost two and a half and it was perfect. The curry dressing turned out great, I don't know why I only fix it on Thanksgiving. It would be great with chicken or pork as an alternative to rice or potatoes. We also had mashed potatoes, candied yams, gravy, rolls, and cranberry sauce. It was a real Carbfest! I baked a sweet potato pie for the first time, but was to full to eat any. I'm told it was good.

Fast Food.

I made another quick, easy, and satisfying 'go to' tonight, tacos. One skillet, a pound of ground beef, and a packet of Lawry's Taco Seasoning. Throw in flour and corn tortillas, shredded cheese, shredded lettuce, and chopped tomatoes and you've got dinner. I like soft tacos, but if you prefer you can add a box of taco shells to the rest of the ingredients. I usually have salsa and sour cream on hand, but you don't really need it. I also whipped up some guacamole. I keep avocados on hand ever since I found out they keep up to two weeks in the fridge. You just put them in the fridge when you buy them and it stops them from ripening. I usually buy them ready to use, pop them in the fridge and take them out at least a couple of hours before I need them to let them soften up.
I spent today prepping for tomorrow. I boiled the eggs for deviled eggs, toasted the bread for my Moms curry bread dressing, boiled the sweet potatoes for the pie, and chopped my celery and onions for the dressing. I also cleaned and seasoned the turkey. It doesn't sound like much, but it'll show tomorrow.
Hope you have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Easy Does It.

I went shopping for Thanksgiving dinner today. It was very busy and by the end of my shopping I didn't feel like cooking. I made a stop by the deli counter on my way to the checkout and picked up some macaroni salad and the fixin's for Reuben sandwiches.
I love Reuben's! I make mine with hot mustard instead of the traditional Russian dressing. You can use your favorite rye or pumpernickel bread. Just spread one side of the bread with mustard or dressing, layer thin slices of Corned Beef with Swiss Cheese, and put a layer of well drained sauerkraut in the middle. I like the Bavarian style sauerkraut best, it's a little sweeter. Once you have assembled your sandwiches, spread the outsides with butter or margarine and toast in a skillet until heated through. These are also great on a Panini press. Quick and easy to fix and even easier to clean up, what a deal!

One pot meal.

I love one pot recipes! Tonight I made Chicken with Broccoli and rice. You just brown 4 boneless skinless breasts in a skillet with oil. Remove from pan add 1 cup minute rice, 1 can of Broccoli Cheese soup, 1 can of milk, and season with salt, pepper, and basil. Add a 10 oz. package of frozen broccoli (thawed) and the chicken breasts. Cover and bake for 20 minutes at 325. Top with shredded cheddar and return to the oven. Cook an other 5-10 minutes until cheese melts.
Everybody likes this one! Do you have a favorite one pot recipe?

The Big Easy.

For something a little different tonight I borrowed an idea from The Big Easy, New Orleans. We had Shrimp Po'Boys. Easy is the word, just warm or toast sub buns, spread with tartar sauce, and top with fried shrimp, shredded lettuce, and pickle slices. I did my own shrimp, but you can substitute frozen popcorn shrimp. I make my own tartar sauce which is more like a remoulade, because I add capers and tobassco. The shrimp I dip in a batter of corn flour, spices, and ice water, kind of a take on Tempura. I served the sandwiches with onion rings that I made from the leftover batter. Red beans and rice would be good with this.
What are you fixin'?

Juicy Chops.

Tonight I'm fixing pork chops. I have the thick cut loin chops. I like to season them then dip them in egg and seasoned bread crumbs. Then I brown them in oil and finish baking them in the oven @ 325 for about 20 minutes. We're having them with Au gratin potatoes and honey glazed baby carrots. I just started doing the pork chops this way a couple of months ago, and they're always tender and juicy. Give it a try! What's in your oven?

Going south to beat the cold.

My kitchen is taking a little trip south of the border tonight. It only got up to 50 today and is supposed to be in the low 30's tonight. I thought it'd be a good night for a hearty Mexican dinner. I'm making Chili Cheese Enchiladas, Spanish rice, Refried beans, Guacamole, chips and tortillas.
In answer to Mary's question about Leberknodelsuppe (Bavarian Liver Dumpling Soup), I found the following recipe online through YaHoo:

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker
Leberknödel Suppe ~Bavarian Liver Dumpling Soup
Using a blender mix 1 cup of ox liver, 1/2 onion, 1 egg, 1 teaspoon of baking powder and 1 tablespoon of parsley.Place mixture into a bowl and knead with 1 cup of bread crumbs, season with marjoram, salt and pepper.Form small dumplings (1 to 1 1/2" in diameter) and boil for ten to fifteen minutes in water. Serve in a strong beef broth.
1 year ago
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Asker's Comment:
Certainly looks a lot easier than many others offered. In fact, easy enough I will try it. This was one meal I had in Germany that I can't seem to get anywhere here. (And I don't care much for liver, per se, but this was a hit with me.)
Let me know if you like it.
Where's your kitchen going tonight?

Chili weather & Chili dogs.

We've had a cold front hit us here today. We've had a fire going since 5pm. Tonight we're just having Chili dogs and Nachos. Thanks, Mary for the idea of Chicken Caesar Salad with the leftover chicken and croutons. I'll use that with the rest of the onion soup. Speaking of croutons, have you ever made them out of pumpernickel? They go great on spinach salads. The other way I like to use chicken strips is in snack wraps like they have at McDonald's. It was one of the few things I would eat in the 5 years I worked there. There better at home, I like the ranch; Ranch dressing, shredded lettuce, shredded cheddar, crispy chicken strip, wrapped in a flour tortilla.
It' about time to start preparing for Thanksgiving, I'd love to read about every bodies Thanksgiving fare.

Talk about killing two birds with one stone.

Tonight we had fried chicken, cream gravy, garlic mashed potatoes, and Italian green beans. I don't usually make cream gravy for fried chicken, but I accidentally bought breast tenders, so I needed something to dunk them in. I also fixed thighs and legs, so we'll have leftovers for lunch tomorrow or the next day. Two meals, one mess to clean, I like it!

What a crock.

It stayed pretty cool here today, in the low 60's. It was a perfect day for soup. French Onion Soup is one of the easiest to make. You just caramelize a bunch of sliced onions in a large soup pot or dutch oven, add beef broth and season to taste with salt, pepper, and herbs (I like Thyme). I took some old french bread cut it in cubes, tossed it in a bowl with melted butter, garlic, and whatever herb you like. Lay the bread cubes out in a single layer on a cookie sheet and bake at 275 for about 35-45 minutes until they're good and crisp. Once you start making your own croutons, you'll never buy them in a package again. The cheese is up to you, traditionally it's Gruyere or another type of Swiss, but I like Muenster. Ladle soup into individual crocks, top with croutons, and shredded cheese and put under the broiler for a few minutes until bubbly. I want to warn you that you'll be ready for a long winters nap after this, which is exactly what happened, that's why this post is late.

Where's the beef?

It's been cold at night, but today it got up into the 70's. We decided to grill out. Bacon cheese burgers & homemade french fries. I tried using the apple wedgier to cut the fries, but it didn't work very well.
I started looking at the last weeks posts and realized we've been having a lot of beef lately. Oh well, this is Texas. Maybe tomorrow I'll make something meatless. I've been wanting to try my hand at French Onion Soup with homemade croutons and cheese melted on it! Yum!
What's on your plate?

White Weenies?

That's a little joke around our house. That's what we call the smoked bratwurst that you get at the deli. In Germany I think it's called Weisswurst or Bockwurst. There's a place in Dallas called Kuby's that has the best, but when I can't get to Dallas, the next best thing is Boarshead brand. I can usually find it at my local Kroger.
I like to dredge the weenies in a mix of flour and Curry Powder and saute' them in oil or margarine until they're lightly browned. Do this over a fairly low fire so that the casings don't split open.
I serve this with German potato salad, red cabbage (cooked with apples & onions), and my Camembert Cheese spread (Camembert Cheese, butter, & minced onions) on pumpernickel. Add a glass of Moselle or a German Weissbier and you've got a trip to Germany.

Another cold night.

It's the coldest night of the season, so far. We've got a fire going in the fireplace, and a pot of stew on the stove, yum! Stew is so easy, I fix it in my cast iron dutch oven. I just trim some stew meat, coat it with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and flour. Brown it in oil, add rough cut onions and some minced garlic. I add chunks of celery, potatoes, baby carrots, and halved mushrooms. Cover with beef broth, add bay leaves and season to taste with salt and pepper. Cook over low heat until tender. If desired, thicken with corn starch mixed with water. Serve with hot rolls or corn bread. Perfect for a cold night!

Comfort food.

Tonight I've just finished making dinner. Well, actually it's finishing itself. I'm making two family favorites, Curry and Paprikash. I always fixed them at the same time, my way of killing two birds with one stone. The ingredients and preparations are very similar and they are both great as leftovers. I took Chuck Steak and cubed it, and divided it in half. One half is dredged in Curry Powder, the other in Paprika. I saute each half in oil in separate pans. When it's browned I add chopped onions to each. The Curry is simmered in chicken broth, the paprikash in beef broth (I use water and bouillon cubes). When the meat is almost tender I add diced potatoes to the Curry. The Curry is served over steamed rice. The Paprikash is finished with sour cream and served over potato pancakes (it's also good with spatzle, wide egg noodles, or German Potato Dumplings ).

It's supposed to get down into the 40's tonight, so this will be a nice way to warm up from the inside out.
What are you fixing tonight?

What's for dinner?

I love food! I enjoy cooking, but hate the daily question. It would be easy if I didn't have the passion for food that I have. I could just open a can or box of something and be done with it. Unfortunately, I can't do that. I try to make every meal special. I've tried to set a scheduled menu, you know, if it's Tuesday it must be meatloaf, but that doesn't work for me. It's too boring and doesn't allow for cravings or finding something spectacular while shopping. It's too limiting for my vast experience with food.
I know I'm not the only one with this problem, so I thought I could start a support group. I'd like to invite everyone to tell me what they're cooking. If you have no idea, maybe you can just express your frustrations. Let's share ideas, tips, and recipes.
I'll go first, I live in Texas and the weather is beautiful today, so I'm going to fix Catfish. I like to fry mine in seasoned corn flour. I'm thinking homemade french fries, cloeslaw, and tartar sauce. Your turn, what are you cooking?