Monday, February 16, 2015

Meatballs for Spaghetti

Meatballs:
1 1/4 pounds ground sirloin
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce, eyeball it
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs, a couple of handfuls
1/4 cup grated Parmesan, Parmigiano-Reggiano or Romano cheese
2 cloves garlic, chopped
Salt and pepper
Mix beef and Worcestershire, egg, bread crumbs, cheese, garlic, salt and pepper. Roll meat into 1 1/2 inch medium-sized meatballs and place on nonstick cookie sheet or a cookie sheet greased with extra-virgin olive oil. Bake balls 10 to 12 minutes, until no longer pink.

Turkey Tacos

1 - 1.25 lb ground turkey
1 can salsa
1 can black beans
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin

Cook the ground turkey. Add the salsa, black beans, chili powder, and cumin and mix it all in. simmer 20-30 minutes.

Can eat as a lettuce wrap or with taco shells. Also great on a taco salad or just by itself topped with some cheese!

Slow Cooker Coconut Chicken Curry

  • 2 large carrots, peeled and diced
  • 1 small onion, peeled and sliced into thin strips
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 medium green bell pepper, seeded and sliced into thin strips
  • 1 medium red bell pepper, seeded and sliced into thin strips
  • 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts or chicken thighs, cut into cubes
  • 2.5 ounces tomato paste
  • 1 (14 oz) can coconut milk
  • 1 tsp salt
  • freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 1 tbsp curry powder
  • 1 tbsp garam masala
 
  1. Begin by layering carrots and onions in the bottom of your slow cooker. Add garlic and peppers.
  2. Layer chicken cubes on top of veggies.
  3. In a medium bowl, whisk together tomato paste, coconut milk, salt, pepper, curry powder and garam masala.
  4. Pour over chicken and veggies.
  5. Place lid on slow cooker, and cook on high for 3 1/2 hours or low for 5 hours.
  6. Serve with brown rice.  (To cook perfect brown rice, cook in a pressure cooker!)
http://www.superhealthykids.com/slow-cooker-coconut-chicken-curry/

Baked Ziti

1 lb Italian Sausage
1 green pepper
1 onion
1 lb noodles
1 jar spaghetti sauce
mozzarella cheese

Cook the sausage in a pan and then cut it into slices. Dice the green pepper and onion and cook in the grease from the sausage. I throw the slices of sausage in when this is cooking so they are crispy on the outside. Cook the noodles. Mix the sausage and veggies, noodles, and sauce in a casserole dish.Sprinkle cheese on top and cook in the oven at 350 for about 30 minutes (til the cheese is melted).

Breakfast Hash

1 potato
1 onion
1 green pepper
butter
6 eggs
milk
salt and pepper
bacon, ham, sausage (any breakfast meat)


Dice the potato, onion, and green pepper. Heat up skillet with a little bit of butter on it (If you decide to have bacon or some other meat, cook  the meat first, put it on a plate, and use the leftover grease instead of butter). Throw in veggies and cover. Cook til soft. Whisk 6 eggs with a little bit of milk (maybe a tablespoon) and salt and pepper. When veggies are done cooking add in eggs and scramble.

Sarah's cupcakes and icing

Hey Megs,

The recipes are below.  The cupcake recipe really does make 30 cupcakes or about 90 mini cupcakes.  The icing recipes each made enough for me to ice about 24 cupcakes.  It really depends on how much icing you use though.  I used a piping bag and size 1M (I am pretty sure) tip from my friend to pipe it on and it was really easy and looked a lot better then when I just spread it on with a knife.  I used this site http://www.ourbestbites.com/2012/05/how-to-frost-cupcakes/ to teach myself how to pipe it on. 

I had some extra from the icing and froze it in a Tupperware for about a month and then just thawed it out on the counter and used it for my birthday.  It was just as good even after being frozen, so if you have extra you could throw it in the freeze until the next party.  

I would not just moms big mixer as the bowl gets hot and melts the icing.

Sarah

Vanilla cupcakes:
http://www.marthastewart.com/353205/billys-vanilla-vanilla-cupcakes
Yield Makes about 30 cupcakes

Ingredients

    • 1 3/4 cups cake flour, not self-rising
    • 1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
    • 2 cups sugar
    • 1 tablespoon baking powder
    • 3/4 teaspoon salt
    • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch cubes
    • 4 large eggs
    • 1 cup whole milk
    • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (it is best if you have a vanilla bean and cut off one end then squeeze the juice/pulp out and use that)

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line cupcake pans with paper liners; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine flours, sugar, baking powder, and salt; mix on low speed until combined. Add butter, mixing until just coated with flour.
  2. In a large glass measuring cup, whisk together eggs, milk, and vanilla. With mixer on medium speed, add wet ingredients in 3 parts, scraping down sides of bowl before each addition; beat until ingredients are incorporated but do not overbeat.
  3. Divide batter evenly among liners, filling about 2/3 full. Bake,until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 17 to 20 minutes.  For regular cupcakes I use 1/4 cup of batter.  For mini cupcakes I use 1 T of batter, the small pampered chef cookie scoop is 1 T and works great.  I would bake those 8-10 mins.   
Vanilla Icing:
Classic Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
  • 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks or ½ pound), softened (but not melted!) Ideal texture should be like ice cream.
  • 3-4 cups confectioners (powdered) sugar, SIFTED
  • ¼ teaspoon table salt
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract (it is best if you have a vanilla bean and cut off one end then squeeze the juice/pulp out and use that)
  • up to 4 tablespoons milk or heavy cream
Instructions
  1. Beat butter with a mixer with the paddle attachment on medium speed until fluffy.
  2. Add 3 cups of powdered sugar and turn your mixer on the lowest speed (so the sugar doesn’t blow everywhere) until the sugar has been incorporated with the butter.
  3. Increase mixer speed to medium and add vanilla extract, salt, and 2 tablespoons of milk/cream and beat for 3 minutes. If your frosting needs a more stiff consistency, add remaining sugar. If your frosting needs to be thinned out, add remaining milk 1 tablespoons at a time.
  4. Once everything is added beat again on medium speed until fluffy.
Chocolate Icing:
  • 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks or ½ pound), softened (but not melted!) Ideal texture should be like ice cream.
  • 3-4 cups confectioners (powdered) sugar, SIFTED
  • 1/2 cup cocoa powder SIFTED
  • ¼ teaspoon table salt
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • up to 4 tablespoons milk or heavy cream
Instructions
  1. Beat butter with a mixer with the paddle attachment on medium speed until fluffy. 
  2. Add 3 cups of powdered sugar and 1/2 cup cocoa powder and turn your mixer on the lowest speed (so the sugar doesn’t blow everywhere) until the sugar has been incorporated with the butter.
  3. Increase mixer speed to medium and add vanilla extract, salt, and 3 tablespoons of milk/cream and beat for 3 minutes. If your frosting needs a more stiff consistency, add remaining sugar. If your frosting needs to be thinned out, add remaining milk 1 tablespoons at a time.
  4. Once everything is added beat again on medium speed until fluffy.
White Chocolate Raspberry Icing:
White Chocolate Raspberry Buttercream Frosting Recipe
Author: MANDY – Baking with Blondie
Recipe type: dessert
Serves: 24
Ingredients
  • 4 oz white chocolate chips
  • ¼ C heavy cream
  • 1 stick unsalted butter, softened (but not melted!) Ideal texture should be like ice cream.
  • 3-4 cups confectioners (powdered) sugar, SIFTED
  • 1 t pure vanilla
  • ¼ t salt
  • 3-4 T defrosted frozen raspberries
Instructions
  1. Method:
  2. In a medium saucepan, bring heavy cream to a gentle boil. Immediately pour over white chocolate in a separate bowl (don’t add chips to hot saucepan, the chocolate will overcook) Stir until smooth.
  3. Beat butter with a mixer with the paddle attachment on medium speed until fluffy.  Add in powdered sugar until fully incorporated. It will take a while.
  4. Turn mixer speed to low and pour in white chocolate cream mixture. Increase speed to medium and beat until smooth. Add in salt and vanilla.
  5. Mixing on medium speed, beat in raspberry puree to desired consistency. Increase speed to fully incorporate. Add more powdered sugar or puree to desired consistency.
  6. Once everything is added beat again on medium speed until fluffy.

SAGE DRESSING RECIPE FROM PROVO TEMPLE CAFETERIA

*from Dwight Aitken


½ lb bread pieces

1 stick celery, chopped
¼ onion, diced
2 Tblspoons butter
1 egg
¼ tsp sage
½ tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
Put bread pieces into aluminum pan.  Sprinkle sage, salt & pepper over bread pieces.  Break egg into pan.  Sauté celery and onions in butter.  Mix sautéed vegetables with bread pieces.  Add milk until bread is moist but not soggy.  Bake in oven at 350 degrees, stirring occasionally.  (We add  more sage, depending on taste,  as well as more celery.  We usually double or triple the recipe…so we can have leftovers of course!)