Holiday recipes

Kendra reminded me of an entry on our family's blog that I did last Christmas with lots of holiday recipes.  You can go here for some of our family's favorite holiday recipes.  It's got some extra fluff in it since it's on our family blog but still great food like pumpkin dip, groundnut stew (an African peanut based soup with toppings), derby pie, coconut raspberry cake- all pure yumminess!

Teriaki Meatballs

This was the gift that kept on giving - we ate it 3 times in as many days. The first time I put it on sandwiches (hoagies) with some melted swiss. Then we ate it over rice. Then we did sandwiches again. I'm sure it would be yummy over cous cous too.

Meatballs:
2 pounds ground beef (at least 90% lean)
2 eggs
2/3 cup bread crumbs
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
3 tablespoons milk

Sauce:
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 3/4 cups water
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 cup cold water

For the sauce, in a medium bowl mix the soy sauce, 1 3/4 cups water, ginger, garlic powder, brown sugar and honey together. In a separate small bowl, dissolve the cornstarch into the 1/2 cup cold water. Set both bowls aside.

For the meatballs, in a large bowl, combine all the meatball ingredients except for the ground beef and mix well. Add the ground beef and mix until combined. Form ground beef mixture into 1 to 1 1/2-inch meatballs. In a 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat two tablespoons oil over medium heat until the oil is rippling and hot. Add the meatballs to the hot skillet and brown on all sides, turning with a pair of tongs. The meatballs don't need to be completely cooked through, just equally browned on all sides.

When the meatballs have browned, pour the sauce ingredients over the meatballs and gently turn the meatballs to coat them in the sauce. Heat the sauce until just simmering and add the cornstarch/water mixture, carefully mixing so as not to break apart the meatballs as you combine the cornstarch mixture with the teriyaki sauce. Simmer the meatballs and sauce over medium heat, maintaining a constant simmer but not cooking at too high of a boil, until the meatballs are cooked through and the sauce is thick and smooth (if the sauce becomes overly thick, add a tablespoon of water at a time to thin), about 10-15 minutes, turning the meatballs every two or three minutes to ensure even cooking. Serve over rice or couscous.

Tomato-Basil Soup

This is a yummy alternative to a can of Campbell's Tomato Soup. Thank you Betty Crocker! I didn't have enough tomatoes this time around...plus, I put extra carrots in this batch - I didn't dice them fine enough but I just threw it in the blender at the end and it was fine.

2 T olive or vegetable oil
2 medium carrots, finely chopped (1/2 cup)
1 small onion, finely chopped (1/2 cup)
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
6 large tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped (6 cups)*
1 can (8 oz.) tomato sauce
1/4 c. thinly sliced fresh basil leaves or
2 t. dried basil leaves
1/2 t. sugar
1/3 t. salt
dash of pepper

In a 3 quart saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Cook carrots, onion and garlic in oil about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender but not browned. Stir in tomatoes. Cook uncovered about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until heated through. Stir in remaining ingredients. Cook uncovered about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until hot.

Fully ripe, juicy tomatoes provide the best flavor for this soup. If your tomatoes aren't completely rip, you may need to increase the salt and sugar just a bit. *3 cans (14.5 oz each) diced tomatoes, undrained, can be subsituted for the fresh tomatoes. Omit salt; increase sugar to 1 teaspoon.

Creamy Tomato Mac and Cheese

This is my go-to Mac and Cheese recipe, compliments of Martha Stewart. Good ole' mac and cheese is just one of those classic comfort foods that I look forward to every fall. I've been using this recipe for the last 4 years and I like it a lot but I recently found another that I'm anxious to try. For now, enjoy this dish!

6 T butter
1 lb elbow or corkscrew pasta
1/2 c. all purpose flour
5 c. milk
4 garlic cloves, minced
12 oz cheddar, shredded (3 c.)**
12 oz Monterrey jack cheese, shredded (3 c.)**
2 t. thyme
2 1/2 c. diced fresh tomatoes
3/4 c. bread crumbs (optional)

Preheat oven to 350. Butter 9x13 dish. Cook pasta until al dente. Drain and run under cold water when done. Meanwhile, in a wide pot melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in flour. Cook for 1 minute. Whisk in milk and garlic. Cook 10 minutes, whisking occasionally until mixture thickens. Add some salt and pepper. Add cheese, tomatoes and thyme. Stir until cheese melts. Stir in pasta. Transfer to casserole dish. Top with breadcrumbs (if using). Bake until golden (if using breadcrumbs) or until hot and bubbly, 20-30 minutes.

**I usually use about 16oz of cheese and not 24oz because cheddar is expensive in this place - I also don't use Monterrey jack b/c we can't get it here... Finally, I'm very liberal with how much Thyme I use - probably closer to 2 tablespoons than 2 teaspoons.

Pumpkin Waffles

These hit the spot on a cold fall morning. The batter keeps for a couple of days in the fridge so you can make them for Sunday brunch and then have them again Monday morning. The recipe is from my beloved Harry's Roadhouse Cookbook...

3 c. flour (I used 1 c. whole wheat)
5 t. baking powder
2 t. cinnamon
1 t. allspice
1 t. ginger
1 t. salt
1/3 c. brown sugar
3 T maple syrup
1 1/3 c. pumpkin puree
2 1/4 c. milk
5 eggs
1/3 c. butter, melted.

Mix wet and dry ingredients separately, then fold in the wet ingredients with the dry ingredients. Mix until combined but do not over-mix. Follow your waffle iron manufacturer's directions on how to cook them. On my waffle iron this recipe yields about 10-12 waffles. I make them all and then freeze the leftovers to pop in the toaster on any given morning.

At the restaurant they serve these with orange butter and toasted pecans...

Orange Butter:
1/2 c. butter, softened
1/4 c. powdered sugar
1/2 t. orange extract
Zest of 1/2 orange

Beat the butter with the sugar until smooth. Add the extract and zest. Save any extra butter for another day.

**Another variation is to use sweet potato puree. If you use sweet potato puree in lieu of pumpkin, eliminate the allspice and use only 1/2 the cinnamon. Substitute 1/2 c. orange juice for 1/2 c. of the milk and add the zest of 1 orange. Enjoy!

For Her Daddy

Maya's Daddy is in Mississippi and we are in Kansas. She is missing him. He is missing her. Her newest trick was discovered today--tongue clucking. We were driving along and from the back seat I heard her little cluck cluck cluck. We thought Daddy might want to see her new trick (and hear her chatter).

Kendra's Chicken Enchiladas

I didn't know what else to call these to differentiate them from the ones in the previous post because although these too are chicken enchiladas, they are altogether different from the previous ones. Not only that - this started out as burrito filling and turned into enchiladas. I combined several recipes and added my own touch to get the finished product so my husband gave me the okay to call them mine. And I have to admit I'm proud of myself because I rarely ever venture out and create something in the kitchen - I'm more of a 'stick strictly to the recipe' kind of gal.

I began with the recipe from allrecipes for Salsa Chicken Burrito Filling:

2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (I used large ones)
1 (4 oz) can tomato sauce (I used at least twice that amount, if not a little more)
1/4 c. salsa (I used 1/2 cup)
1 pkg taco seasoning mix (the kind I had on hand happened to be Cheese flavored)
1 t. ground cumin
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 t. chili powder
hot sauce to taste (I didn't add hot sauce)
To turn this into enchilada filling I also used:
1 can black beans (drained, not rinsed)
1 green bell pepper, chopped

Place chicken breasts and tomato sauce in a medium saucepan over medium high heat. Bring to a boil, then add the salsa, seasoning, cumin, garlic and chili powder. Let simmer for 15 minutes. I added 1/2 c to 1 c of water during this step to keep enough liquid in the skillet - oh, and I used a skillet instead of a saucepan...

With a fork, start pulling the chicken meat apart into thin strings. Keep cooking pulled chicken meat and sauce, covered, for another 5 to 10 minutes. Add hot sauce to taste and stir together. Before this step I added a can of black beans and 1 chopped bell pepper to the skillet - I then covered it and let it simmer for about 5 minutes to heat the beans and pepper through.

Homemade Enchilada Sauce
While the chicken was simmering in the first step I made enchilada sauce - I didn't have any cans of it in the cupboard so I found a recipe and made it from scratch.

1 T flour
1 1/2 T olive oil
1/2 t thyme
1/2 t oregano
1/2 t cayenne
1 t cumin
1 clove garlic, minced
1 1/2 c. chicken broth (all I had was beef broth so I used that...)
1/2 to 1 c. tomato puree (I used closer to 1 c.)
1 T lime juice (I didn't have any so I omitted this)

In a large heavy skilled saute the flour and oil over medium heat for 1 minute. Add herbs and spices and garlic. Cook 1 more minute and then add broth, tomato puree and lime juice. Raise heat to high and boil stirring constantly until thickened.

To make the enchiladas I used 9 small flour tortillas. I spooned some of the filling along with a pinch of cheese into each tortilla. Then I placed them next to one another in a greased 9x13 casserole dish seam sides down. Then I dumped the homemade enchilada sauce on top and sprinkled with more cheddar cheese.

Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes or until hot, bubbly and cheese is melted.

These go great served alongside some Mexican Rice.

Mexican Rice

3 T vegetable oil
1 c uncooked long grain rice
1 t. garlic salt
1/2 t ground cumin
1/4 c. chopped onion
1/2 c. tomato sauce
2 c. chicken broth

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat and add rice. Cook, stirring constantly, until puffed and golden. While rice is cooking, sprinkle with salt and cumin.

Stir in onions and cook until tender. Stir in tomato sauce and chicken broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes. Fluff with a fork.