French Dip Sandwiches (Our Best Bites)

Story:
The extent of my meat dishes, sadly enough, is mostly limited to frozen chicken breasts, ground beef, and an occasioual ham.  So when I make something different, Ben warmly welcomes it.  Especially this dish... he loves a good sandwich, and French Dip is one of his favorites.

I bought myself the beautiful "Our Best Bites" cookbook for Christmas last year (2011).  Ummm... LOVE IT!  I love their food, their photos, and their clear instructions.  So good.  I highly recommend it.  I found this recipe in there; I've made it twice and Ben was pretty much drooling both times.  Thumbs up.

Ingredients:
2 T olive oil
1 (2 1/2 - 3 pounds) beef roast
Kosher salt
Ground black pepper
2 (1 ounce) packages dry onion soup mix
2 C water
2 (14.5 ounce) cans beef broth
1 (16 ounce) package sliced Swiss cheese
Hard/Crusty rolls

Directions:
Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.  While the oil is heating, sprinkle all sides of the roast with kosher salt and pepper.  Carefully place the roast in the pan and sear it on all sides. This shouldn't take more than a few minutes--you just want to quickly brown the roast to add flavor and seal the juices.

Transfer the roast to your slow cooker.  Sprinkle onion soup mix over the roast and add water and beef broth.  Cook on high for 4-6 hours or on low for 8-10 hours. (OBB recommends: You can also cook it on high until it begins to boil and then switch the heat to low; the meat is more tender.)

When the meat shreds easily with a fork, shred the entire roast.  Serve on sliced crusty rolls with a slice of Swiss cheese.  I like to put these under a broiler/in my toaster oven to toast the bun and melt the cheese.

Serve with the juices from the slow cooker as au jus for dipping.  Sooooo good.

German Pancakes

Story:
My mom made these German pancakes for special breakfasts for us, on occasion.  I don't know how my mom had a way of making everything feel special.  Megan says she does things "fancy."  I love that about my mom.  She would do these pancakes up in two round cake pans and they come out of the oven soooo puffy and buttery and beautiful.  She would have sliced peaches on a bowl on the tableclothed-table served on our glass dishes with two separate glasses--one with milk and a miniature glass with juice.  She would even have a little glass bowl of powdered sugar you could use the teaspoon to sprinkle some on top of the pancakes.

Unfortunately for my children, I now make these when I'm in need of a quick dinner.  Sorry, kids.  Don't have that wonderful "fancy gene."  I usually have the ingredients on hand so I can whip 'em up real quick and finish the breakfast dishes that are still left in the sink while the pancakes are in the oven.  I don't even own a tablecloth.  I'm not sure how my mom did it...

I have TWO VERSIONS of this recipe, prepared basically the same way. The first is my mom's recipe, it is much air-ier and fluffier.  The second was in the Crestwood 1st Ward's ward cookbook, submitted by a friend, Heather D.  It is denser and thus more filling for lots of tummies.  Needless to say, I usually prepare the latter.  My mom prepared them in, like I said, two round cake pans.  I keep it simpler and use a 9x13 casserole dish (used for both versions).

Ingredients:
MOM's Version:
6 eggs
1 C flour
1 C milk
dash of salt
3 T butter

HEATHER's Version:
10 eggs
1 1/2 C flour
1 1/2 C milk
(she didn't call for it, but I still use a dash of salt)
1/2 stick butter

Directions:
Mix all the ingredients in a blender.  Place the butter in the bottom of 9x13 and place in oven while it is preheating (careful not to burn the butter).  Bake at 400 degrees for 25 minutes (Mom's version) or 425 for 20 minutes (Heather's version)... until poofy and lightly browned on top.  Serve immediately.  Sprinkle with peaches, berries, and powdered sugar.

(My kids pour syrup on them, but I still have enough "fancy" left in me that I can't destroy the dish with it.... out of respect for my mother, I guess.)

Easter Quiche

Story:
Easy! Easy!

We just moved into a new ward a couple of months ago, and they do a big "Easter Egg-stravaganza" on the Saturday before Easter every year.  It was a lot of fun!  They had a nice breakfast and inflatable jump-ies and egg hunts and balloon games and tug-of-wars and even a (get this...) a chicken chase!  Yes, one of the men in the ward has some chickens and he would tie dollar bills around the legs of the chickens and then set them loose in the yard... the kids who caught the chickens,  got to keep the dollars!  It was great.

Anyway, they had people volunteering to bring dishes to the breakfast, and trying to "jump right in," I signed up to bring an "Easter Quiche"-- for which they handed out a recipe so they were all the same and it kept it simple.  It turned out yummy!  I liked it because it had the flavor of my family's traditional CHEESE STRATA that we have every year on Christmas morning, but it was much easier. (Sorry, Mom.)  I decided to add it on here.  It's pretty basic... at the Breakfast, it was served just as a side dish with whole wheat pancakes, loads of fresh fruit, and hot sausage... well, here it is:

Ingredients:
1/2 C melted butter
10 eggs
1/2 C flour
1 t baking powder
2 C cottage cheese
2 C shredded cheddar blend cheese (I used a cheddar/jack blend)

Directions:
Mix all the ingredients well.
Pour into a 9x13 pan.
Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes (until the top is browned).

..."Easy-Peasy-Lemon-Squeezy..." as Gretchen says.

Ham & Lemon Asparagus

Story:
I've made this several times over the last 3 months, but every time I have to turn on my Roku and go to the "AllRecipes.com" channel and scroll through to find the video to make it.  So to make my life easier next time I want to make it, I thought I'd just post the recipe here.  It's really good and a really easy way to make asparagus as a side dish.

Ingredients:
Olive oil
Ham (just some... diced, torn into pieces, chopped, whatever)
Asparagus (however much you want or have)
Minced garlic (I just use a little of the bottled kind)
Lemon wedge

Directions:
Heat a swirl of olive oil in a pan over medium-high heat.
Toss in your ham and fry it up for 3-4 minutes until ham is crisp.
Add your trimmed asparagus.  Toss in the olive oil until coated.
Add 1/4 C water and put the lid on quirckly.  Leave lid on for 1 minute to steam.
Take lid off and add some minced garlic.  Then put the lid back on for 1 more minute.
Take off lid and toss some more until the asparagus is cooked how you like it. (I like mine a little more on the crisp side than soggy, so don't cook toooo much longer.)
Transfer the asparagus and the ham to your serving plate.  Squeeze lemon over the top.  (He says you can put on a little grated parmesan cheese too, but I keep forgetting to try that.)
It's delish!  Even my kids love this... well, maybe they just pick off the fried ham... but I love it!

Chinese Chicken Salad

Story:
My mom got this recipe from a family friend Julie R. (mother of my friend Traci U.).  I think my family discovered the delicious-ness of this recipe when I was in high school. It's been a family favorite ever since.

I remember making this a few times for my roommates back in the college days when we took turns for Sunday dinners.  For some reason this afternoon, as I was putting the salad together, I was feeling a little nostalgic for the good times at "The Riv."  Here's to you: Em, Lee, & Tiff!

Ingredients:
Salad:
1 head cabbage, sliced thinly
1/2 C sesame seeds, toasted in butter
1/2 C sliced almonds (I like to toast these too.. with a little sugar)
4-8 green onions, chopped
2 pkgs ramen noodles, crushed (no seasoning)
2-3 chicken breasts, cooked & cubed or shredded

Dressing:
3/4 C rice vinegar
1/2 C (+2 T) peanut oil
4 T sugar
1 t "accent" seasoning
1 t salt
1 t pepper

Directions:
Mix dressing ingredients. Stir well.
Prepare all salad ingredients and put in a large serving bowl.
Pour dressing over salad and stir very well to mix thoroughly.

Notes:
Tonight I made it with the chicken pulled off of a Costco rotisserie chicken... delish!
This salad is as good (if not better) the next day.

Starburst Icebreaker

I'm not going to turn this blog into a crafting blog or anything... but I did want to record one simple activity I did with the Cub Scouts last week.  I am a new den leader (never done this before!) in a brand new ward (don't know anyone!).  So I did a little icebreaker activity that the boys enjoyed and was helpful to me.

I had a bowl of Starburst candies and asked each boy to take a handful.  Of course, they took BIG handfuls, so that would work for my benefit.  For each color Starburst they had, they had to tell me something about themselves.  Here's the code:

RED = a FACT about you.  (birthday, # of siblings, etc)
ORANGE = something you are GOOD at.
YELLOW = something you do NOT like very much.
PINK = something you LIKE a lot!

Simple and fun.

Sausage & Asparagus Jambalaya-ish Dish

Story:
I've been meaning to post this one for a long time.  I really like this recipe!

It was introduced to me by my friend Shawn D.  I've talked about her before.  She was my back-door neighbor and friend when we lived in KY.  We were in a dinner group together for a looong time, and this was one of her recipes... although this version is kind of a dumbed-down version.  She's a little more "gourmet" than I am.

I've doubled this recipe and it turns out nicely.  I guess it's kind of like a jambalaya, though I'm not chef enough to know specifics. 

Ingredients:
1 pkg smoked sausage (or kielbasa or whatever)
4 C chicken broth
1 T olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1/2 C mushrooms, sliced
2 T butter
2 C rice (I've used Uncle Ben's converted rice, and it works nicely)
2 C sliced asparagus, cooked crisp-tender
1/2 C shredded Parmesan cheese, divided
1/4 C parsley, chopped
(salt and pepper to taste)

Directions:
Cut sausage into half-inch cubes.  Set aside.
Bring 4 C broth to a boil.  Then reduce heat to low.
Heat olive oil in a skillet.  Add the cubed sausage, the onions, and the mushrooms and saute for 3-4 minutes.
Add butter and rice.  Cook, stirring constantly for 2 minutes. (My brother says the point here is to toast the rice before cooking it.)
Add about 1 C of broth at a time until absorbed.  Keep stirring.
Remove from heat and stir in the cooked asparagus.  Stir in 1/4 C of the Parmesan cheese and the parsley.
Top with the remaining cheese and serve.

A little pesto...

We've kind of discovered that Ben's body doesn't like mayonnaise.  But he loves deli sandwiches in the lunches I pack for him.  So we were considering options, and he suggested PESTO to moisten it up a little, and WE LOVE IT.  It's a super easy way to add great flavor to otherwise boring turkey sandwiches.  Give it a try!

Linguine with Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Story:

I love it. But I'm the only one in my family that does. Ha!

Found it in Southern Living magazine in 2010.

Ingredients:

1 package linguine (16 oz)

1 jar sun-dried tomatoes in oil (7 oz)

1/4 C pine nuts

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 C extra virgin olive oil

1 package crumbled feta cheese (4 oz)

2 T fresh basil, cut into thin strips

Directions:

Prepare the linguine according to the package directions.

Drain tomatoes, reserving 2 T oil. Cut tomatoes into thin strips.

Heat the pine nuts in a large skillet over medium-low heat, stirring often, for 5 minutes (or until toasted and fragrant). Remove nuts from skillet

Increase heat to medium and saute garlic in 2 T of the reserved oil and the additional olive oil. Saute for about a minute or until garlic is fragrant.

Stir in the tomatoes and then remove from heat.

Toss together the tomato mixture, the hot cooked pasta, the feta cheese, and the basil in a large serving bowl. Sprinkle with the toasted pine nuts.

Enjoy! ...even amidst the complaining from the children... It really is good.

Baked Banana Oatmeal

Story:

Admittedly, I can no longer claim to be refined-sugar-free. However, when I was (and I hope to muster up the drive to do so again!), I found this breakfast recipe that I loved. I only made it a couple of times, because, well, it takes a while to cook. And when I come downstairs for breakfast, I'm usually ready to "eat now" not after "bake for 35 minutes" - y'know? I will also add that my kids liked it too. It was kind of like banana bread meets oatmeal...

Ingredients:

3 eggs

2 very ripe bananas, mashed

3 C old-fashioned oats (or quick oats)

1 1/2 C milk

1/2 C raisins

1/3 C honey

1/4 C canola oil

2 t baking powder

2 t cinnamon

1 t vanilla

Directions:

In a bowl, lightly beat the eggs then add the remaining ingredients. Stir until well combined. Let the mixture set for at least 10 minutes for the oats to absorb some of the liquid.

Stir the mixture again, and then spread into a (well greased) 8x8 baking pan. (MrBreakfast.com says you can use two small loaf pans too; I haven't tried yet.)

Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.

To serve, cut into squares. Tada!

Note:

Happened across this one from mrbreakfast.com too!