Chicken Broccoli Braid

We had this last week. Not the best. It was very edible and could possibly be good, but I didn't like it enough to waste my time on it again. Of course I didn't use refrigerated rolls, I used my own crescent dough. While my dough is better than what you can buy, it cooks up differently so maybe it was not the best dough for this (but maybe it was; I don't know). According to other reviewers comments I cooked the broccoli a little before. That was a good idea, but I didn't cook it quite enough so it was still crunchy. I also wouldn't waste my nuts in it. I did shape it like a wreath so I didn't have any doughy centers. That was very good idea. We all thought it looked fantastic---until we ate it! Caleb even said, 'Mom, are you going to take a picture of this for your blog?' No, because that requires extra effort and delays the time when the young ones will quiet down from finally getting something to eat! So you will just have to use your imagination!

Sloppy Joes

I needed a quick-to-eat and quick-to-serve meal tonight since we had Pack meeting at 6:30. So we had Sloppy Joes. Not my favorite, but it served it's purpose. Here are the recipes:

Buns These are pretty good. I'd like to eventually tweak them, but they are good with pulled pork sandwiches and Sloppy Joes. I'm still working on better options for hamburgers.

Filling

1 lb. hamburger cooked with 1 chopped onion and 1 chopped green pepper (drain and rinse fat)

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp mustard

3/4 cup ketchup

3 tsp brown sugar

Simmer together.

We also had a green salad with tomatoes and pickled cucumbers. In the past I would have served chips with this, but I haven't bought chips (other than corn chips) for several months and it saves so much money not to mention so much healthier (which is probably my biggest reason).

New Bread Recipe

I've had this bread recipe in my file for quite some time and am just getting around to making it. I shouldn't have waited! I set it to be done Sunday morning. Thankfully I had a piece before leaving for ward council because there were only crumbs around when I got home. The 2nd batch I added some seeds (sunflower etc.) as recommended by one reviewer. I liked it, but everyone else said they like the first loaf better. Only change I made in my first loaf: added a little flax seed. Yum! This will definitely go into our rotation of breads.

Monday Night Dinner

Tonight for dinner we had spaghetti, broccoli, pickled cucumbers and garlic bread. Here are the specs:

Spaghetti

This is not outstanding spaghetti sauce, but it's easy and in my opinion better than from a jar.

Brown 1 lb. hamburger with 1 chopped onion. Drain then rinse off fat. Add 1/2 packet spaghetti sauce mix, 1 can tomato sauce, 1-2 cans water depending on your preference (you can thicken later if desired) 1/4 cup ketchup, 2 TBSP Worcestershire sauce, garlic salt and pepper to taste.

Broccoli with Cashews (This was OUTSTANDING! All of my cooked veggie dislikers loved this!!)

1 1/2 lb. fresh broccoli, cut into bite sized pieces

1-2 TBSP butter (The recipe calls for 1/3 cup, I cut back just a little, but it would still be flavorful with much less)

1 TBSP brown sugar

3 TBSP soy sauce

2 tsp white vinegar

1/4 tsp pepper

2 cloves garlic

1/3 cup chopped salted cashews

Cook broccoli, boil for 7 minutes or until tender but still crisp. Drain. Put butter on broccoli, stir until melted. Add remaining ingredients, stir until well coated. Serve immediately.

The first time I made it, I think I forgot the vinegar. The 2nd time, I put the vinegar and didn't like it nearly as much. The third time, I put half the vinegar. I definitely prefer it with half or no vinegar. You can judge that for yourself.

Pickled Cucumbers (not an exact science; tweak as desired)

1 part white vinegar

1 part water

1/2 part sugar

1 garlic clove

pepper

sliced onion (optional)

Add sliced cucumbers and marinate in fridge for a few hours.

Garlic Bread

1/4 cup butter softened

1/2-1 tsp garlic

1 TBSP parsley flakes

Spread on 1/2 loaf of bread. Broil until toasted.

This is my standard white bread--it makes excellent sandwiches, toast, garlic bread, croutons, French toast and yummy to eat just plain.

Homemade White Bread

1 cup warm water

1/4 cup oil (or less--oil gives it a soft texture, sometimes I want a firmer texture and use quite a bit less)

1 1/2 tsp salt

4 TBSP sugar

3 cups bread flour

1 TBSP yeast

Put in bread machine. Enjoy in a few hours!

Dutch Oven Potatoes & French Bread

An old standard around here is Stove top Dutch Oven Potatoes. Everyone loves it and when I season it right, I'm happy! Here's how I do it:Preparations:

Cook 1/2lb. bacon (when I find my pictures, I'll describe how I do it.) Crumble and reserve.

Slice 1 onion,

Peel and slice 5-10 potatoes, depending on size and how many you are serving

Peel and cut into large match sticks, 5-10 carrots, depending on how much you like carrots

Fry one slice of bacon in the bottom of the Dutch Oven Pan. When crispy, remove from pan and add 1 sliced onion. Sprinkle generously with pepper and fry slightly. (just 2-3 minutes) Layer sliced potatoes and carrots together in about 1/2 " layer (or just enough to cover the onions). Sprinkle generously with salt (I like Sea Salt for potatoes) and lightly with pepper. Add another layer of potatoes and carrots. Sprinkle generously with garlic salt, a little sugar (abt. 1 TBSP) and pepper. Repeat these steps until all of the vegetables are in the pan. Add about 3/4-1 cup water depending on how many potatoes you have. You can always add more later or simmer with the lid off to let water evaporate, but we don't like them too dry. Stir lightly to remove most of the onions off the bottom. Put on lid and simmer. Stir 2-3 times during cooking to distribute seasoning and taste to see if more is needed. Don't stir too many times or your potatoes will go mushy. While cooking, crumble bacon, slice cheese and chop 5-6 green onions. When the potatoes are done, turn to low and sprinkle with bacon and green onions. Cover with sliced cheese. Cover until cheese is melted. Tweak as desired!

French Bread

1 1/4 cups warm water

3 TBSP olive oil (omit if you want a chewier bread; I do both ways depending on my mood)

3 TBSP sugar

1 1/2 tsp salt

4 cups flour

1 TBSP yeast

Place ingredients in bread pan. Select dough cycle.

When dough is done, put on cupboard sprayed with Pam. Roll into large rectangle. Cut the rectangle into 3 pieces.

Roll each piece tightly and roll the ends to taper. Place on greased cookie sheet. Brush with egg/water mixture (1 TBSP water). Make deep diagonal cuts in bread. I use a fork to hold the bread in place while I cut. If I don't, it slides around and getting uniform cuts is difficult. The fork lines don't show much in the end.

Let rise until doubled in size. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes. For crispier bottoms, sprinkle corn meal on your pan. For extra crispy crusts put another cookie sheet of water in the oven at the same time. (TIP!! Let the water pan cool before removing, but set the timer for an hour or so so that you remember to take it out. It will be hot, but not as hot.)

This is what the bread looks like just before putting it in the oven. As you can see, I'm not a perfectionist as to how it looks! It always gets eaten just the same. . . )

(I guess I should have taken a picture of the cooked bread :( )

Grilled Chicken

Today for Sunday dinner we had Grilled Chicken (rub recipe below), rice, corn on the cob, lettuce salad, rolls and strawberry shortcake. I love a well rounded Sunday meal that everyone loves. This is one of them.

BBQ Rub

1 1/4 cup white sugar

1/2 cup salt

1/4 cup paprika

1 1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup pepper

Stir together. Rub on meats 10 minutes before grilling. Store extra in a sealed container. (I make this about once a year and store it in a ziplock bag in the fridge.) This is great on chicken, pork, beef and fish. It is one of our favorites for shish kabobs.

Dinner Rolls

1 egg

1/2 cup warm water

1/2 cup warm milk

1/4 cup softened butter

1/3 cup sugar

1 tsp salt

4 cups flour

1 TBSP yeast

Put all ingredients into the bread pan. Select dough setting. When complete, melt 1/4 cup (I've been using less lately--still yummy) butter. Cut dough into 2 pieces. Roll into circles one at a time and spread with half of the butter. Cut into 16 wedges. Roll up starting at the wide end. cover with wax paper and let rise for 1-3 hours. Bake at 400 for 10-12 mins.

Strawberry Shortcake

Make white cake mix from the box.

Mix 1/2 of a package of cream cheese with sugar to taste. Start with 1/4 cup or so. After well mixed, add Cool Whip until desired creaminess. Spread on cooled cake.

Make 1 package of Strawberry Junket. Add strawberries. When that cools, spread on the cake. Keep cake refrigerated.

Sandwiches, Veggies and Dip

Lazy dinner night:

Ham, cheese & lettuce sandwiches (left over ham from Sunday dinner) on cracked wheat bread. (Recipe below.)

Veggies with dip. (I only made about 1/4 of this recipe; it was good, but wished I would have stuck with my Bon Appetit seasoning instead of the season salt.)

Cracked Wheat Bread

1 1/8 cup hot water

1/4 cup (or less) oil

1/3 cup cracked wheat

1/3 cup honey

1 1/2 tsp salt

1 TBSP dry milk

1 cup wheat flour

2 cups white flour

1 TBSP yeast

Choose whole wheat cycle. Add about 1 hour extra to soften cracked wheat.