On The Road Again (Breakfast Quiche)

Well, it's back on the road tomorrow. So I'll have to set this project aside until I get back home. This was a nice meal to have after church this morning.
I did substitute breakfast turkey sausage and used two eggs and one egg white.


BREAKFAST QUICHE

1/2 lb bulk pork sausage
1 3/4 cup unthawed Ore-Ida Country Style Hash Browns
3 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp dry mustard
Pinch black pepper
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
1 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese

Thaw potatoes and dry on paper towels. Then salt and pepper and set aside. Crumble and fry sausage 4 or 5 minutes over medium heat or until lightly browned. Drain grease and transfer sausage to a buttered 1 quart casserole. Top sausage with hash browns, beat eggs with milk, Worcestershire, mustard and pepper and pour over potatoes. Sprinkle with Cheddar cheese and Parmesan. Bake in a 350 F oven about 35 minutes or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean. Serves 4.

Mom and Tamale Pie

This recipe really reminds me of having dinner with Mom and Dad and sitting around the 1950's yellow kitchen table in the very small kitchen.

TAMALE PIE

1 lb ground beef
3/4 cups water
1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce
1 can (8 oz) corn niblets, with liquid
1 pkg (1 1/4 oz) Old El Paso Taco Mix
1/2 tsp onion flakes
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp chili powder
1/4 cup sliced black olives (optional)
7/8 cup yellow corn meal
1 cup water
Sour cream (optional)

Brown ground beef in a 10 inch skillet and drain fat. Add 3/4 cup of water and stir in Taco Mix, onion flakes, cumin, chili powder, tomato sauce and corn including liquid. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in olives and pour into an 8 inch round or square baking dish.
Sprinkle corn meal over meat mixture, and carefully pour 1 cup of water into a spoon and float it on top of the corn meal. Wrap in foil and either freeze at this point or bake wrapped in foil in a 400 F oven for 40 minutes. Then unwrap and bake for 10 minutes. A dollop of sour cream is a good addition.
If frozen, heat wrapped in foil at 425 F for 45 minutes, then heat an additional 15 minutes unwrapped.
If thawed, heat wrapped in foil at 400 F for 45 minutes, then heat an additional 10 minutes unwrapped.

I made guacamole dip, too. Salsa is good with it, also.

The Doctor Will See You Now (Lemon Baked Chicken Breasts)

Carol discovered this recipe while waiting for a dermatologist appointment. It came out of Gourmet magazine. She wrote it down on the back of a receipt.
We got home tonight at 5:30 and sat down for dinner at 6:30.

LEMON BAKED CHICKEN BREASTS

4 split chicken breasts
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 cup dry white wine
2 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp thyme, crumbled
Salt and pepper

In a cast iron skillet heat butter and oil over medium heat till foam subsides. Add chicken and sauté, turn till golden brown.

Remove chicken to baking dish and pour off excess fat. Add wine and thyme to hot skillet and deglaze. Pour the pan juices over chicken and salt and pepper. Sprinkle with lemon juice and bake in lower 1/3 of oven at 400 F for 30 minutes or until tender. Baste the chicken with the juices.

We served this with brown rice and green beans.







We had dessert, too! My niece, Leah, helped make the brownies.

5th Grade Chef Class ( Lemon Cheescake)

I remember taking a "Chef" class in 5th grade. One of the elementary school teachers gave the class. It met on Friday afternoons and it was just for the boys. I volunteered to make cheescake.


LEMON CHEESECAKE

8 oz Philadelphia cream cheese
1/2 cup milk
1 pkg instant lemon pudding mix
1 1/2 cups milk
9 inch graham cracker pie crust

Slowly blend 1/2 cup milk into cream cheese and stir until smooth. Add 1 1/2 cups milk and pudding mix; beat with egg beater for 1 minute. Pour at once into graham cracker crust. Chill 1 hour until set.

Cara me a way (Kielbasa and Cabbage)

I did a word search in Mom and Dad's cook book. I only have four more recipes that call for caraway seeds. Of course, I didn't have any caraway. So it was off to the store. Now I'm set for the next decade. This was very good. I'd cut back the red pepper to 1/8 tsp next time, though.
KIELBASA AND CABBAGE

6 slices bacon
1 head cabbage (2 lb) cut in 8 wedges
1 large onion, chopped
2 tsp sugar
1/2 cup water
2 tsp caraway seed
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp seasoned salt
1/4 tsp red pepper, crushed (optional)
1 lb Polish Kielbasa, cut in 6 pieces (3 inches each)

Fry bacon until crisp in a large skillet and set bacon aside. Secure outer leaves of each wedge with a toothpick. Add cabbage wedges, onion, water, sugar and all the spices to the bacon drippings. Cook covered 15 minutes, turning cabbage wedges at least once. Add Kielbasa and continue cooking covered an additional 10 to 15 minutes or until cabbage is at desired tenderness.


Do not allow to cook dry, add water as needed. Top with crumbled bacon. Serve with salt water potatoes and a pat of butter. Serves 6.

I Found A Leek(Cream of Broccoli Soup)

I made soup for dinner. Carol did all the chopping. This was the first time we'd ever cooked with leeks. They are a lot bigger than I imagined.

I used light butter, only 3 Tbsp of flour and fat free half and half. It cuts the calories in half and it still tasted great. I also pureed the soup before serving.


CREAM OF BROCCOLI SOUP

1/4 cup butter or oleo
2/3 cup diced leek, white and some green tops
1/2 cup diced onion
1 1/2 cups diced celery
3 to 3 1/2 cups chopped broccoli flowerets
6 tbsp flour
2 cans (10 oz ea) chicken broth
1/2 cup water
1 cup half and half
1/4 tsp thyme
1/4 tsp salt
Pepper to taste

In a 4 quart pot, melt butter over medium heat. Sauté leek, onion and celery 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender-crisp. Add broccoli, reduce heat to low, cover and continue to cook for 10 minutes or until broccoli is almost tender. Blend in flour until evenly distributed, and cook for 1 minute. Gradually stir in broth and water. Add thyme, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and simmer for 3 minutes, stirring constantly, until slightly thickened. Continue to cook until broccoli is tender. Slowly stir in half and half and heat until soup is hot. Do not boil. Makes 1 1/2 quarts. May be frozen.

Rainy Days And Saturdays(Dijon Pork Chops)

This is a great recipe to make when you have a little extra time. It was a windy, rainy day here so it seemed to be just the right time to try this one. I doubled this recipe because I had five chops. I used 1" chops. I was a little concerned that they would need to cook longer than the time shown. It worked out great though. I used the second to the lowest level in the oven.


DIJON PORK CHOPS


2 pork chops
Shortening
Salt and pepper
1 1/2 tbsp Dijon mustard, divided
1/2 small onion, minced
1 pkg McCormicks pork gravy mix with 1 cup water
1/4 tsp marjoram
3 tbsp sour cream
1/2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp white wine
1/2 can (4 oz) mushroom pieces, drained
1/2 tsp parsley flakes

Trim fat from pork chops and render in frying pan or use shortening to brown the pork chops. Salt and pepper pork chops and spread both sides with half of the mustard. Place in a cooking-spray coated baking dish in a single layer.
Sauté onion in frying pan juices for about 5 minutes. Prepare the gravy in the frying pan and add the remaining ingredients and heat. Pour sauce over pork chops and cover the baking dish tightly with foil. Heat in a 350 F oven for 40 to 50 minutes. Serve with sauce over steamed rice.

Carol and I were enjoying a glass of malbec wine while I prepared this. So rather than using white wine I used the bottle that was open. I think I liked the flavor of the red wine rather than the white. I also used fresh mushrooms. I sauted them along with the onions.