Old Fashioned Eating

Chicken Salad

Amanda — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 14:51:30 +0000

I made Mark Bittman’s “Quickest Chicken Stock” over the weekend, which left me with 12 cups of chicken stock and 4 pounds of cooked chicken. I used some of the stock in split pea soup and froze the rest for later. The chicken got turned into chicken salad!

I’m personally not a fan of chicken salad, but the husband is. He made two sandwiches right away and will have this for work lunches this week. Olive oil mayonnaise made this slightly healthier.

Recipe link: Chicken Salad

Hamburger Stroganoff

Ben Kubs — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 11:26:37 +0000

This recipe was another replacement for a staple for me growing up: the pre-packaged beef stroganoff.

1 pound lean ground beef
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon beef bouillon
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
4 ounces mushroom stems and pieces, drained
1 cup water
1 cup sour cream
2 cups noodles or rice, cooked
3 tablespoons unbleached flour

Directions:

Cook and stir the meat, onion, and garlic in a large skillet until the meat is brown. Drain off the excess fat.
Mix in the flour, bouillon, salt, pepper and the can of mushroom stems and pieces. Stir in the water and heat to boiling, reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes.
Stir in the sour cream and heat until just hot.
Serve over the noodles or rice, if desired, and garnish with chopped parsley, if you wish.

Split Pea Soup

Amanda — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 19:44:48 +0000

I attempted a split pea soup nearly a year ago with awful results. There wasn’t enough liquid and I didn’t have an immersion blender. It was disastrous, but my friends choked it down.

Now, I have a new recipe, an immersion blender, and pretty green soup! Friends, you can come back now…

Recipe link: Split Pea Soup (I cut the recipe in half)

Many split pea soup recipes call for ham, but this one does not. There was plenty of liquid (four cups of homemade chicken stock) and lots of veggies, onions, and garlic. All good things!

Cocoa Fluff

Amanda — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 16:16:48 +0000

My grandmother can’t remember where she found this recipe, but it was definitely on a box for something from a long time ago. At least while I was a child, she always made this as a frosting for angel food cake for my mother’s birthday. I think I probably enjoyed it more than my mom did, which is why I finally asked for the recipe.

It’s chocolate, sweet, and fluffy…the stuff childhood memories are made of.

I know. My frosting skills leave something to be desired.

Cocoa Fluff

Mix in chilled bowl 1 cup heavy cream, ½ cup sifted confectioners’ sugar, ¼ cup cocoa, dash of salt. Beat until stiff enough to hold point.

Spice Cake

Best Spinach and Artichoke Dip

Ben Kubs — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 12:29:17 +0000

This spinach and artichoke recipe is my “go to” recipe when I need to bring something to a party or a dinner. It is simple to make and only takes about 30 minutes to finish. Plus it is filled with all kinds of splurge things like butter, cream cheese and sour cream. This particular batch was made for a Christmas party and it was a big hit.

You can find the recipe for at: http://www.cooks.com/rec/doc/0,161,131181-249198,00.html

Southern Biscuits

Amanda — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 12:47:42 +0000

I didn’t actually make these biscuits, but my husband did! (I did take the picture…) He’s a man of few words, but did say that these were fun and easy to make. I can tell you that they tasted amazing. Much better than store-bought and just as good as your favorite breakfast place. What else would you expect from an Alton Brown recipe?

Link: Southern Biscuits

Orzo with Parmesan and Basil

Amanda — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 22:33:48 +0000

The finder’s fee for this recipe actually goes to Ben, but it’s become a favorite in our house, too. Orzo gets sauteed in butter, simmered in chicken broth, then combined with Parmesan cheese and basil. It’s a really simple and satisfying side dish.

Link: Orzo with Parmesan and Basil

Chicken and Stuffing Casserole

Ben Kubs — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 13:13:33 +0000

This was one of those use up some stuff in the cupboard recipes. The chicken needed to be used up and the vegetables had a layer of ice an inch thick on them. Still, this made for a simple and fast casserole with plenty of leftovers and fufilled the task of emptying out some of the freezer and cupboards.

Ingredients

2 pounds chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
1 package frozen mixed vegetables, thawed
1 jar chicken gravy
1 package stuffing mix

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Prepare the stuffing as directed on the box.
In a 9×13 pan layer the chicken and vegetables. Cover with gravy.
Spread the stuffing over the top.
Bake in over for 20-25 minutes until stuffing is golden brown and casserole is heated through.

Vanilla Pudding

Amanda — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 00:10:59 +0000

I got the bug to make pudding from scratch this week after the husband bought some Jell-O pudding cups for his lunch. My favorite pudding is butterscotch, but I settled on vanilla because it seemed easier. (When trying new recipes, sometimes I have to play confidence games with myself.)

This was a messy experience, but overall it was pretty easy, and the results are definitely worth it. The vanilla flavor really stands out. You just need to follow the directions to make sure you don’t scorch the mixture (stir constantly means stir constantly!).

Brownies

Shrimp Pasta Salad

Ben Kubs — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 23:51:06 +0000

This is another side dish (like the mac and cheese) that is really easy to make and for whatever reason is always what I am hungry for when eating steak. This was a New Year’s Eve side dish to go with the beef tenderloin. We always have the ingredients for this handy which is what makes it such an easy dish.

Ingredients

1 can mini shrimp
1 package frozen peas
1/2 pound small shells
3/4 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons sugar

Directions:

Cook the shells according to the directions to al dente. When done, drain and rinse in cold water.
Add the shrimp and thawed peas.
Combine the mayonnaise and sugar together. Then mix into pasta and shrimp.