Friday, September 10, 2010

September Meals

BBQ Pork Sandwiches - Amanda

5 Bean Soup and Whole Wheat Bread - Britta

Herbed Eye-of-Round and Twice Baked Potatoes - Cheryl

Taco Soup - Diana

Rosemary Chicken Alfredo - Jeana

Lemon Rosemary Chicken and Oven Roasted Potatoes - Julianne

IKEA Swedish Meatballs and Homemade Rolls - Julie

Chicken Breasts with BalsamicVinegar and Garlic - Kim

Italian Chicken and Panzanella Salad - Kimberly

Barbecued Spareribs and Roasted Potatoes - Melanie

Rosemary Chicken Alfredo

Cook alfredo noodles per package instructions. Grill desired amount of chicken and spice to taste (I used a general "Italian seasoning")

Sauce:
1/2 cup butter
1 (8oz) package cream cheese
2 tsp garlic powder
2 cups milk
6 oz grated Parmesan cheese
1/8 tsp pepper

Melt butter in saucepan. Add cream cheese and garlic powder, stirring with whisk until smooth. Add milk a little at a time, whisking out lumps. Stir in Parmesan and pepper. Remove from heat when sauce reaches desired consistency. Toss noodles with sauce and top with chicken and mozzarella cheese. Top with desired spices (I used rosemary, and Italian seasoning).

Homemade Rolls

3/4 cup shortening
1 Tbsp. salt
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs

Cream above ingredients well in a mixer. Then add:

1 1/2 cups warm water
4 1/2 cups flour
4 tsp. yeast

Mix all ingredients well. Sticky dough. Let sit 1 hour. Stir down. Shape into rolls or put in fridge until needed.

For crescent shaped rolls, split dough into 2 or 3 depending on how large you want your rolls. Roll them out into circles and cut like a pizza. Spread with melted butter then roll them up starting at large end first.

Let rise about an hour or until almost double in size. Bake at 350 for 15-25 minutes.

IKEA Swedish Meatballs

The meatballs are all fully cooked. You can heat your meatballs in the oven in a dish or I like to defrost them in the microwave and then put them in an empty fry pan. This was you can get a nice brown to them.

Boil or bake the potatoes.

The gravy is easy - boil 1 cup water, then add the 1/2 cup cream (defrosted) and the packet. Stir well. Simmer for 3 minutes.

Serve meatballs, potatoes and gravy with Lingonberry Jam (Lingonberries are similar to cranberries but not as tart) on the side.

Roasted Potatoes

potatoes (peeled or unpeeled)
salt and pepper
olive oil
rosemary and/or thyme

Cut potatoes in medium-sized chunks. Toss with olive oil and salt and pepper. Sprinkle a couple tsp of rosemary and/or thyme over the potatoes and toss to coat. Spray a cookie sheet with Pam and pour the seasoned potatoes out on the cookie sheet. Bake for about 30 min. at 350 until done.

Barbecued Spareribs

3-4 lbs. pork spareribs
1 Tbsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
2 onions, chopped
2 Tbsp. vinegar
1 tsp. chili powder
2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/4 c. water
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/4 c. catsup
1 tsp. paprika

Sprinkle spareribs with salt and pepper. Place in a roaster and cover with onions. To make sauce, combine remaining ingredients and pour over meat. Cover and bake at 350 for about 2 hours. Baste and turn ribs once or twice. Uncover last half hour for browning. Makes 6 servings.

BBQ Pork Sandwiches

3 lb pork roast.
3-4 whole garlic cloves
1 med onion
2 cups water
1 18 oz. bottle of sweet baby rays BBQ sauce (for later after the meat is all the way cooked and shredded)

Place the first 4 ingredients in the slow cooker and cook on low for 8-12 hours
Drain liquid, remove cloves and shred the pork with two forks. Make sure you remove any fat chunks.
Pour the BBQ sauce, salt and pepper to taste. Serve on Hamburger buns and enjoy!

Taco Soup

Directions:
Boil 1 can v-8 juice & 1 can tomato soup. Add 1 package chili powder or taco seasoning. Squeeze lime juice into mixture. I have already done this for you. All you need to do is heat it on the stove or in the microwave.

NOTE: When we make this, we do it the way above. I know that many people like beans and canned tomatoes in their taco soup. So, I also added a can of beans and diced tomatoes to my meal. I also added an extra amount of seasonings so you can add more to your taste. If you want to add any of these things, do so before you heat it up.

Toppings: chips, shredded cabbage, sour cream, grated cheese, onion, green peppers, lime

Other ideas: chopped tomatoes, chopped olives, ground beef

Oven Roasted Red Potatoes with Rosemary and Garlic

1 1/2 pounds small new red potatoes (about 15), scrubbed and dried
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 to 6 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon fresh or 1 teaspoon dried rosemary

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Pare a narrow strip of peel from the middle of each potato. In a large bowl mix the oil, garlic, and rosemary; add the potatoes and toss well. Transfer the potatoes to a shallow baking pan and roast until potatoes are tender when tested with the tip of a knife. Serve hot. These can also be chilled and served with fried chicken or ham.

Lemon Rosemary Chicken

Use fresh herbs and lemon juice to give plain baked chicken fantastic flavor. This combination of flavors also works well with turkey cutlets or white fish fillets.

Ingredients

1 spray(s) cooking spray
1 pound(s) uncooked boneless, skinless chicken breast, four 4 oz halves
1/2 tsp table salt
1/4 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
1 tsp olive oil
2 tsp fresh lemon juice, or more to taste
2 tsp rosemary, fresh, chopped
2 tsp parsley, fresh, chopped
1/4 cup(s) canned chicken broth
1/2 medium lemon(s), quartered (for garnish)


Preheat oven to 400ºF. Coat a small, shallow roasting pan with cooking spray.

Season both sides of chicken with salt and pepper. Transfer chicken to prepared pan and drizzle with oil; sprinkle with lemon juice, rosemary and parsley. Pour broth around chicken to coat bottom of pan.

Bake until chicken is cooked through, about 30 to 35 minutes. Garnish with fresh lemon and serve. Yields 1 chicken breast half per serving.

Herbed Eye-of-Round

3 lb eye of round roast
⅓ c olive oil
¼ c grated onion
1 tsp dried basil
½ tsp dried marjoram leaves
½ tsp dried thyme leaves
¼ tsp pepper
Salt

Combine everything but the roast and salt. Pour into plastic bag, add roast and marinate overnight.

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees. Sprinkle salt all over the meat and place in a roasting pan or baking dish – make sure the fatty side is face up. Do not cover or add water. Place the roast in the preheated oven. Reduce the temperature to 475 degrees. Roast for 18 minutes (6 minutes per pound) then turn off the oven and let the roast sit in the hot oven until the internal temperature reaches 130 degrees. Do not open the door at all during this time!

Remove roast from oven and let sit 20 minutes. Slice thin against the grain, top with leftover juices from pan.

(Not recommended for crock pot)

Twice Baked Potatoes

6 medium baked potatoes2 Tb butter, melted
½ c sour cream
¼ tsp salt
½ c shredded cheddar
Chopped green onions and crumbled bacon (opt.)

Slice baked potatoes in half lengthwise. Scoop out most of the insides and mix with remaining ingredients. Add milk to thin if needed. Scoop potatoes back into skins. Top with green onions and bacon. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until hot.

Italian Chicken and Panzanella Salad

Italian Chicken Marinade

Half a 16oz bottle Italian-style salad dressing
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon salt
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

Directions

1. In a shallow baking dish, mix the salad dressing, garlic powder, and salt. Place the chicken in the bowl, and turn to coat. Marinate in the refrigerator at least 4 hours. (For best results, marinate overnight.)
2. Preheat the grill for high heat or preheat a skillet.
3. Lightly oil skillet or grate. Discard marinade, and grill/cook chicken 8 minutes on each side, or until juices run clear.


Panzanella Salad (bruschetta in a bowl)

1 loaf Italian bread, torn into bite-size pieces
1/3 cup olive oil
kosher salt and pepper to taste
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup olive oil
3 medium ripe tomatoes, cut into wedges
3-5 basil leaves, shredded
3-5 mint leaves, shredded
3 TBS red wine vinegar
¼ cup green onion diced
¼ cup olive oil
1 medium cucumber


Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
2. In a small bowl combine red wine vinegar and green onion
3. In a large bowl, toss bread with 1/3 cup olive oil, kosher salt, pepper, and garlic. Lay bread on a baking sheet, and toast in the preheated oven until golden, about 5 minutes; allow to cool slightly.
4. While the bread is in the oven, dice tomatoes and cucumber. Whisk 1/4 cup of olive oil into the red wine vinegar mixture.
5. Gently toss together the bread, tomatoes, cucumber, basil and mint. Toss with the red wine vinaigrette and let stand 5-10 minutes before serving.

Chicken Breasts with Balsamic Vinegar and Garlic

4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
salt and pepper to taste
3/4 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons olive oil
6 cloves garlic
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
3/4 cup chicken broth
1 bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon butter

Directions

1. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Rinse the mushrooms and pat dry. Season the flour with salt and pepper and dredge the chicken breasts in the flour mixture (see #4). Heat oil in a skillet over medium high heat and saute the chicken until it is nicely browned on one side (about 3 minutes).

2. Add the garlic. Turn the chicken breasts and scatter the mushrooms over them. Continue frying, shaking the skillet and stirring the mushrooms. Cook for about 3 minutes, then add the vinegar, broth, bay leaf and thyme. Cover tightly and simmer over medium low heat for 10 minutes, turning occasionally.

3. Transfer the chicken to a warm serving platter and cover with foil. Set aside. Continue simmering the sauce, uncovered, over medium high heat for about 7 minutes. Swirl in the butter or margarine and discard the bay leaf. Pour this mushroom sauce mixture over the chicken and serve over noodles.

4. Note: Several reviews I read said they did not use the flour mixture. They liked it better without the flour mixture.