Sweet and Sour Meatballs

Another allrecipes.com favorite.  My kids like meatballs, but it's fun to try something different other than marinara sauce.  I like to use homemade meatballs, but you can always use those frozen pre-made ones.  I always add chopped sweet peppers to any sweet and sour type meals, I don't know why, but I do and it taste good.  Of course my kids pick them out, but I don't care.  I like to make this recipe in my crock pot in the morning, and then at dinner time the house smells wonderful and dinner is ready :)

• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 egg
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 cup dry bread crumbs
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce

Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine beef, egg, onion, bread crumbs, salt and pepper. Roll into meatballs about 1 to 1 1/2 inches in size.
2. In a large skillet over medium heat, saute the meatballs until browned on all sides.
3. In a separate medium bowl, mix together the water, vinegar, ketchup, cornstarch, sugar and soy sauce. Pour over the meatballs, and allow sauce to thicken. Continue to heat until the sauce just starts to bubble.

 

Mushroom Barley Pilaf

Shawn really likes mushrooms, which I think is weird, but anyway I try to find ways to cook with them.  This recipe makes a nice flavorful side dish.  

recipe courtesy of Allrecipes.com

• 1/4 cup butter
• 3 cloves garlic, pressed
• 1 small onion, minced
• 2 cups sliced mushrooms
• 1/2 cup dry sherry
• 2 (13.75 ounce) cans chicken broth
• 1 cup pearl barley
• 2 teaspoons dried basil, or to taste
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Melt butter in an oven safe large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Stir in garlic and onion, and cook, stirring occasionally until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the mushrooms, and cook until the mushrooms have softened and released their liquid, about 5 minutes more. Stir in the sherry, and simmer for 1 minute. Add the chicken broth, barley, and basil; bring to a boil over high heat. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and boil for 5 minutes.
3. Cover the Dutch oven, and place into the preheated oven. Bake until the barley is tender, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Stir in chopped parsley before serving.

ENJOY!

Pita's and Hummus

My sister lives in Israel (Hi Sister!) and this recipe is in honor of her.  I was a little nervous about homemade pita's, but they are delicious and really so easy.  And, hummus is just as simple.  My sister tells me that they use hummus in place of mayo on sandwhiches and I think I just might have to try that, I am sure it adds lots of flavor.

Let's start with the Hummus.  The recipe is so simple, but it does call for one ingredient that you probably don't have in your kitchen and that is Tahini.  Tahini is basically a sesame seed butter.  It is really good and adds tons of flavor, but if you don't want to buy it you can use regular peanut butter, or some sesame oil for the flavor.

1 can garbanzo beans (I reserved a little of the liquid and added later to adjust the thickness)
1-2 cloves of garlic, chopped
4 T. lemon juice (or 1 fresh lemon squeezed)
2 T. Tahini
1 tsp. salt

I just made my hummus really basic, but you can also add 1/3 cup chopped parsley (but I don't really like parsley so I left if out).  You can also blend in an avocado if you like those.  Put all the ingredients in the blender and puree until desired consistency.  To serve drizzle with olive oil on top and enjoy.

My favorite way to eat Hummus is with Pita chips.  NOT the store bought ones, those are gross.  You can use store bought pitas covered with olive oil, garlic pwd, salt, basil, oregano, and anything else you want.  Then toast them in the oven (around 425) for 8 minutes until crispy, but here is my recipe for homemade pita's.

1 T. yeast
1 1/8 cup warm water
1 T. oil
3 cups flour (you can use wheat flour also)
1 tsp. salt
pinch of sugar

Disolve yeast in water.  Stir in the flour and salt.  Stir into a ball and knead until smooth.  Divide into 6 balls and roll out in circle about 1/4 thick.  Cover with towel and let rise 45 minutes.  Flip pita's upside down onto baking sheet and bake at 500 for about 8 minutes or until browned and puffed.  They bread comes out hard, but will soften and flatten as they cool.
Enjoy!!

Homemade Granola Bars

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  Ingredients

  • 4 1/2 cups rolled oats
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2/3 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 cups miniature semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Lightly grease one 9x13 inch pan.
2. In a large mixing bowl combine the oats, flour, baking soda, vanilla, butter or margarine, honey and brown sugar. Stir in the 2 cups assorted chocolate chips, raisins, nuts etc.
3. Lightly press mixture into the prepared pan. Bake at 325 degrees F (165 degrees C) for 18 to 22 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool for 10 minutes then cut into bars. Let bars cool completely in pan before removing or serving.

taken from www.allrecipes.com

BBQ Chicken Pasta

BBQ Chicken Pizza is a favorite around our house and that is why when I saw this recipe I had to try it.  I can't even remember where I found this recipe.  While this wasn't my favorite dinner, it was super easy and the kids sure did like it and had seconds the next day for lunch (which is rather unusual, my kids are picky).  It is kind of like a deluxe hamburger helper type meal, you cook it all in a skillet on the stove.  It's definitely worth a try :)

1 T. Olive Oil
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cute into bite-size chunks
1 red onion, diced
3 cups water
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/2 tsp salt
12 ounces penne pasta
2/3 cup barbecue sauce
1/3 cup sour cream
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup sharp cheddar

In large (12 inch) skillet heat olive oil and cook chicken and onions.  When chicken is cooked through remove from pan.

In same pan add the water, chicken broth, penne, and salt. Bring to boil and simmer for 12-15 minutes, until the liquid is almost absorbed, the pasta is tender and the mixture is thick and syrupy.  Stir in the barbecue sauce and sour cream.  Add in reserved chicken and onions, and shredded cheese's.  Stir to combine and until everything is heated through

Serve immediately.  Garnish with additional red onions, shredded cheese, and if you like cilantro I think it would go great as a garnish.  Shawn and I also thought it would be better to use Gouda cheese, rather than mozzarella, since that is what we use on BBQ chicken pizza and love it.

Orange Knots

Can you tell I have been cooking breads and rolls a lot lately??  Another great classic recipe.

2 tsp. yeast
1 tsp. salt

1 1/3 cup milk, scalded

2 T. orange peel

2 beaten eggs

1/4 cup orange juice

1/2 cup butter

1/3 cup sugar

Mix yeast, sugar, salt, in bowl.  Add milk and let proof for a few minutes.  Mix in orange peel, orange juice, and softened butter.  Mix in 2 cups flour and beat well.  Add eggs and mix well.  Add remaining ingredients until you get a soft dough.  Let sit for 10 minutes.  Knead dough for 10 minutes until smooth.  Let the dough raise until it is doubled (1 hour).  Punch down and let rest for a few minutes. Roll dough into rectangle and cut into long stripes.  Roll each strip lightly under fingers and loosely tie into a knot.

Arrange on greased baking sheets and tuck ends under.  Cover and let rise until almost double, about one hour.  Bake at 400 degrees for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.  Cool on rack and cover with glaze.

Glaze:

1 tsp. grated orange peel

2 T. orange juice

1 cup powdered sugar ( I added a little more because I like a thicker glaze)

Winter Fruit Salad

This is a really great salad.  The dressing is yummy and sweet and it's loaded with fruit.  It does go soggy pretty fast, so don't make it too far in advance.

Dressing:
1/2 C sugar
1/3 C lemon juice
1 tsp. dijon mustard
2 tsp. chopped onion
1/2 tsp. salt
2/3 C oil
1 T. poppy seeds


Salad:
I head iceburg lettuce, chopped
4 oz. shredded swiss cheese
1 cup cashews
1 cup craisins
2 apples, chopped
2 pear, chopped

Mix salad ingredients together and pour in dressing.  Mix well and serve.

Rosemary-Lemon No-Knead Bread

This recipe is from a Williams Sonoma cataloge and it is soooo good.  It takes a while to rise (18 hours), but very little effort and NO kneeding.  Baking the dough in the cast iron pot makes the crust so crispy and good.  I love my Le Cruset cast iron pot and use it for everything (roasts, soup, chicken, braising, bread, veggies, etc.).  They are expensive, but well worth it!


3 cups flour
1/4 tsp. active dry yeast
1 3/4 tsp. salt
2 tsp. fresh rosemary, chopped
2 tsp. lemon zest
cornmeal as needed.


n a large bowl, combine the flour, yeast, salt, rosemary and zest. Add 1 5/8 cups water and stir until blended; the dough will be shaggy and very sticky. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Let the dough rest at warm room temperature (about 70°F) until the surface is dotted with bubbles, 12 to 18 hours.

Place the dough on a lightly floured work surface. Sprinkle the dough with a little flour and fold the dough over onto itself once or twice. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest for 15 minutes.

Using just enough flour to keep the dough from sticking to the work surface or your fingers, gently and quickly shape the dough into a ball. Generously coat a cotton towel, preferably a flour sack towel (not terry cloth), with cornmeal. Put the dough, seam side down, on the towel and dust with more flour or cornmeal. Cover with another cotton towel and let rise until the dough is more than double in size and does not readily spring back when poked with a finger, about 2 hours.

At least 30 minutes before the dough is ready, put a 2 3/4-quart cast-iron pot in the oven and preheat the oven to 450°F.

Carefully remove the pot from the oven. Slide your hand under the towel and turn the dough over, seam side up, into the pot; it may look like a mess, but that is OK. Shake the pan once or twice if the dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes. Cover with the lid and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover and continue baking until the loaf is browned, 15 to 30 minutes more.

Transfer the pot to a wire rack and let cool for 10 minutes. Using oven mitts, turn the pot on its side and gently turn the bread; it will release easily. Makes one 1 1/2-lb. loaf.

Homemade Italian Bread

This dough makes a large batch of Italian Bread (three loaves).  It is a pretty classic dough that can be shaped anyway you want.  The key to making a nice crispy crust and chewy inside it the misting you do while it's baking.  (another Allrecipes recipe)

3 cups warm water
1 tsp. white sugar
1 T. active yeast
1 T. salt
7 cups flour

Add sugar and yeast to the warm water and let proof.

Stir in 4 cups of flour and beat until smooth.  Cover and let rest for 15 minutes.

Beat in the salt and then add enough remaining flour to make a stiff dough.  Knead until it is smooth and soft.  Turn in a greased bowl, cover, and let double in size.

Once doubled, punch down and divide into three.  Place back in bowl, cover, and let rise.  Once doubled again, punch down and form into three fat footballs (or circles or ovals or rectangles or whatever you want).  Grease heavy cookie sheets (I like to use my baking stone, it gets really nice and hot when I pre-heat it) and sprinkle with corn meal.  Place the bread on the sheets, cover with a towel, and let rise.

Once rise, mist with water and place in a preheated 450 degree oven.  Mist loaves with water (about every 4-5 minutes) and turn occasionally while they bake.  Bread is done when golden brown and sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom.

Favorite Breadsticks

We had the missionaries over for dinner the other night.  They seriously asked for my breadstick recipe (what 19 year old boys ask for a recipe).  This is a tried and true breadstick recipe that I've used for a long time.  I got it from HERE, I love their recipes!!

1 1/2 cup warm water
1 T. sugar
1 T. yeast
1/2 tsp. salt
3-4 1/2 cups flour

Combine yeast, sugar, salt, and water.  Let proof for a few minutes.  Next mix in flour until dough starts to pull away from sides, you might not need all the flour.  Let dough rise until double (about 45 minutes), then roll into big rectangle and spread melted butter and garlic salt over dough.  Use pizza cutter to cut long strips (usually about 12) and drape over your finger and twist.  Place on greased pan and spread with another coat of melted butter and I like to sprinkle on oregano, basil, parsley, parmesan cheese, and anything else that sounds good.  Cover and let rise for another 30 minutes and then cook at 425 for 10-12 minutes.  I also like to make these with cinnamon and sugar for a fun treat.

Honey Of An Oatmeal Bread

Another one of my favorite bread recipes.  This recipe is for a bread machine, but since I don't have one I just make it the normal way I make yeast breads and bake it.  It's really good!

1 cup water
1 T. veg. oil
1/4 cup honey
1 tsp. salt
1/2 cup rolled oats
2 1/3 cups bread flour
1 tsp active dry yeast.

Mix ingredients together in bread machine (or I just mix them together like I mix any yeast dough).  Let rise once, punch down, put in greased pan and let rise again.  Bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until golden brown.

Simple Carne Asada

Wow, it's been a while since a post. Here is a fun fresh mexican dinner. Shawn and I actually saw a recipe similar to this on Dinner, Drive-Ins, and Dives, or as Shawn says, "the Triple D". We always watch this like at 11:00 at night and then we fall asleep hungry. I like this recipe because it is really fresh and simple. It is not your standard taco and has a unique flavor with all the onion and cilantro.

1 lb. ground beef

1/2 onion

2 T. lime juice ( or one fresh lime)

Cook beef and onion until cooked through and then turn off heat and add lime juice.

1/2 onion, finely chopped

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

1-2 T. lime juice (about one fresh, but I really didn't measure I just squeezed until it tasted right)

Mix these 3 ingredients together for the cilantro/onion relish.

Warm tortillas and layer with beef, cilantro/onion relish, favorite salsa, and a little cheese. You can serve with a lime slice for a little extra kick.

ENJOY!

Beach Street Lemon Chicken Pasta

This pasta tasted pretty delicious to us and we didn't even add the cheese!  It is light and a little citrusy, but not to much.  Good, good pasta.

1 lb. of whatever pasta you like
2. T olive oil
Zest from one lemon
Juice from one lemon
1/2 c. chopped green onion
1/4 chopped fresh parsley
Salt and Freshly ground pepper
Parmesan Cheese

Marinade:

1/2 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic
2 Tbl. Cajun seasoning
2 Tbl. Lemon Juice
2 Tbl. minced parsley
1 Tbl. brown sugar (more if yo like it sweeter)
2 Tbls. Soy Sauce
2 Chicken breasts sliced (you could also make this with shrimp)

-Combine marinade and let do its thing for 1-12 hours.
-Cook marinated chicken with marinade sauce
-Cook Pasta in separate pot
-Combine juice of one lemon, zest, olive oil, green onions, and fresh parsley together
-Add hot pasta to parsley mix along with chicken.
-Add cheese, salt and pepper to your liking and serve warm

Baked Yam and Potato Casserole

This is a great vegetable side dish. A little prep with all the slicing, but worth it.

• 2 large sweet potatoes, thinly sliced
• 3 large potatoes, thinly sliced
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 4 tablespoons butter, divided
• salt and pepper to taste
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup vegetable broth
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 2 tablespoons dry bread crumbs
• 1 tablespoon dried parsley (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.
2. In the prepared dish, make a single layer of sweet potato slices. Place a few onion slices on top, dot with butter, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Repeat, alternating layers of white and sweet potatoes.
3. In a small bowl, or measuring cup, combine flour and broth. Pour over potatoes.
4. Sprinkle cheese, bread crumbs and parsley over the potatoes. Dot with remaining butter. Cover.
5. Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour, or until potatoes and onions are soft.

Much to the dismay of my husband I don't usually follow directions exactly, specifically when it comes to measuring ingredients. I made a few small changes here also. First I didn't actually measure the potatoes and yams, I just cut a bunch and layered them in the dish and I didn't measure the butter either. I just dotted each layer with a few pieces of butter. I used Italian flavored bread crumbs so I didn't use any parsley. Other than that, I followed the recipe and it turned out great :)

Sweet Potato Enchilada

My husband and I have become accidental vegetarians here in Jerusalem.  Meat is expensive and we are poor.  Thus, I've been unearthing all kinds of meatless dishes that don't have anything to do with Tofu.   I have been surprised at the filling and delicious meatless main dishes that abound.  Here is one of our recent favorites.

(can you tell I stole this right from allrecipes.com?)

Ingredients

• 5 sweet potatoes
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 4 green onions, chopped (I used carmelized white/yellow and it was fine)
  
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin (optional)
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil for frying
• 12 (7 inch) corn tortillas (I used flour and it turned out great)
  
• 1 (19 ounce) can enchilada sauce
• 1 (8 ounce) package shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over medium heat, and boil the sweet potatoes until tender, about 30 minutes. Cool and peel the sweet potatoes.
2. Place the sweet potatoes in a bowl, and mash them with the cream cheese, green onions, chili powder, cumin, oregano, salt, and pepper until well mixed.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C), and grease a 13x9 inch baking dish.
4. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-low heat, and fry the tortillas, one at a time, for about 30 seconds per side. Remove the tortillas with tongs, and drain on paper towels. (unless you use flour tortillas)
   
5. Place about 1/3 cup of sweet potato filling down the center of each tortilla, roll it up, and place filled tortillas seam side down in the prepared baking dish. Pour enchilada sauce over the tortillas, and sprinkle with Monterey Jack cheese.
6. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 30 minutes, until the enchiladas are bubbling and the cheese is beginning to brown.