My sister Susan, requested this recipe. I intended to copy paste and send it to her, but discovered it wasn't in my documents! Yikes! 

So, here it is!

Enjoy!

Mags

Mom’s Potato Casserole

 

12 medium russet potatoes (4 lbs.), peeled and cubed

½ cup butter (1 stick), room temperature

8 oz. cream cheese, room temperature, cut into pieces

8 oz. sour cream, room temperature

2 tsp. salt

¼ tsp. pepper

¼ tsp. paprika

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Boil potatoes, drain, then mash.

Melt butter in same pan that boiled potatoes over low heat. Add cream cheese. Remove pan from heat. Beat with wooden spoon until mixture is smooth. Add mashed potatoes to butter mixture. Add sour cream, salt and pepper. Beat until smooth. Taste for flavor.

Spread evenly in greased 9 x 13-inch baking dish (I use a glass Pyrex pan) or any other shallow 2.5-quart casserole pan. Sprinkle with paprika.

Bake at 350 for 35 min.

Tips & Tricks:

·         Cube potatoes to the same size. If the potatoes are smaller, they will cook more evenly and quicker.

·         Instead of just mashing, use a potato ricer (like a sieve with small holes the potato is squished through).

·         Have the cream cheese and sour cream at room temperature. It will incorporate with the hot potatoes better and smoother.

·         Sometimes I use white pepper instead of black pepper as it seems to be a bit more ‘peppery bite’ and you don’t have the black specks dotting the potatoes.

·         Can be made ahead and refrigerated. Take potatoes out of refrigerator 2+ hours prior to baking.

·         When they have been refrigerated, place pan in cold oven so the glass pan will slowly heat up along with the potatoes.

Foodie Friday -- Easy Coleslaw Dressing

Here's another quick and easy side dish recipe that I made at a recent pool party shindig.

I threw it together the night before. Just be sure to stir it in the morning and right before you put it on the table.

Enjoy!

Easy Coleslaw Dressing

1 cup mayo

2 Tbls. sugar
2 Tbls. cider vinegar
2 tsp. black pepper
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. dry mustard

1 or 2 bags of shredded coleslaw mix (green and red cabbage, carrots)

Whisk all dressing ingredients together in plastic container with lid, large enough for 8-10 cups. Add cabbage mixture.

Refrigerate 4-6 hours, or overnight.

Toss well before serving.

Tips & Tricks:

·         You can add 1/8 tsp. celery seed . . . but don’t bother if it isn’t already in your pantry.

·         It seems like a lot of pepper, but it gives it a nice kick.

·         When I added the first bag of cabbage, it filled the container to the top. Simply snap on the lid and shake, and then wait about 10-15 minutes for the dressing mixture to break down the cabbage before adding the rest of the vegetables. Repeat as often as necessary.

 

Foodie Friday -- Applesauce

It's a sad statement about today's kids when they don't realize applesauce doesn't come in a jar. I found this out about a year ago when my daughter had a friend over and they were trolling for snackage. The little girl didn't know you can actually make applesauce.

As astounded as I was about this, my hubby told me that not everyone can cook, nor do they have the desire or the time to cook. *insert gasp*

But what do they do with apples that are starting to get a little soft, or mealy, or just taking up space in the fridge? Oh, I suppose you can make a pie, or strudel, or muffins, but applesauce is just too easy not to make. You need at least four apples, preferably green Granny Smiths, and sugar, water and cinnamon.

 Easy-peasy.

Applesauce

4 apples, peeled, cored, and chopped in ½ chunks

Sugar (Splenda works well, too), a Tablespoon or two, depending on apple tartness
Cinnamon, I didn’t measure it, but shook it heavily
Water

Place apples in medium saucepan; add enough water to come to the top of the apples. Place pan over medium-high heat and bring to boil. Cook apples for about 15-20 minutes, checking for softness and water level, add more water if apples are too dry.  While the apples are cooking, add sugar and cinnamon, stirring/tasting until desired color/taste.

When apples appear to be mushy smush apples into sauce using hand blender or potato masher. Taste for flavor and consistency.

Add more water, sugar or cinnamon, if desired.

If it’s too thin, then cook a little more water out.

*be careful. It’s thick and splashing apples can become like tiny napalm bombs*

 Enjoy those leftover apples!

Foodie Friday -- Lemon Curd Cake--Redo

Today is my hubster's birthday!

EDIT note: I took pictures, but obviously the light wasn't nearly bright enough! Hopefully, I'll get better!
Happy Birthday, Sweetie!! I LOVE you! You are my sooooouuuul-mate. *snork* *inside joke*

In honor of his birthday, he requested Fleming's Chipolte Mac n' Cheese for dinner . . . and nothing else, except Lemon Curd Cake . . . which I am currently making.

So for today's Foodie Friday we are playing REDO Day. Here are those recipe links:

Fleming's Chipolte Mac n' Cheese

Lemon Curd Cake

Enjoy, Peeps!

FOODIE FRIDAY -- Edamame Succotash

I don’t know about you, but I was never a big fan of succotash. For those of you lucky slobs who have never had the pleasure of eating it, succotash is usually a mixture of lima beans and corn. Corn, I like. Lima beans, not so much. They taste like I would imagine a teenager’s gym locker would smell like. The texture isn’t much more pleasant with the slimy little kidney-shaped beans that have a gnarly grainy texture with zero flavor.

This explains why I don’t eat succotash . . . until I found this recipe.

I don’t know where I found this recipe, but since I feel like it’s a winner then it must be a Bon Appetit recipe. But then again, when you add bacon to anything--it’s a winner of a recipe.

The only difficult part of this recipe is shelling the edamame. In the long run, this recipe is worth the soggy fingers.

Edamame Succotash

2 Tbls. toasted sesame oil

½ cup finely diced red onion
1 tsp. minced garlic
2 thick strips applewood-smoked bacon, finely chopped (1/3 cup)
1 cup frozen edamame, thawed
½ cup fresh corn kernals (frozen works well)
¼ cup small diced red bell pepper (I don’t use)
Kosher salt and white pepper

In large skillet, heat the sesame oil over medium heat. Saute the onion and garlic until softened, about 2 minutes. Add the bacon and cook until it has rendered its fat and begins to crisp, about 5 minutes.

Add the edamame, corn and bell pepper and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Season with ½ tsp. salt and 1/8 tsp white pepper. Remove from heat and serve hot.

 Enjoy, Peeps!

FOODIE FRIDAY -- Parmesan Cheese Grits / Haricot verts

I prefer this cheese grits recipe over the other one that I posted. It actually comes out perfectly every single time. It might be largely due to the fact that this is a Bon Appetit recipe and I have yet to have one of those fail on me.

--Though I must confess that I cancelled my subscription to BA due to the fact they refuse to quit advertising cigarettes. But I’m not here to vent, I’m here to share this recipe!

This recipe was designed to be paired with grilled smoked pork chops. Hormel makes smoked boneless chops, so just look around for them near the ham in the meat section. Toss the chops on a hot grill, and cook until light brown and heated through, about 4 minutes per side. But instead on Sunday night, I cooked a ham steak (warmed up actually) in a pan, high heat to get a slight sear--yum!

And I made  haricot verts (prepackaged in Wal-Mart veggie aisle). Microwave the green beans. Melt 1 Tbls. bacon fat in skillet, toss in one small diced shallot, sauté until translucent, add cooked haricot verts and toss to coat. Salt and pepper to taste.

--For those watching your weight: 1 Tbls. of bacon grease is 3 WW points. This amount of beans is three servings. So you get the yummy flavor of bacon for a mere ONE POINT! Much better than eating dry beans, isn't it?

Parmesan Cheese Grits

4 cups chicken stock

1 1/3 cup quick-cooking grits (Wal-Mart cereal aisle), or yellow corn meal
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
¼ cup butter, room temp, diced

Bring stock to boil in heavy large saucepan. Add grits in slow steady stream, stirring constantly. Reduce heat and simmer until grits are thick, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat. Mix in cheese and butter. Season with salt and pepper. Keep warm.

Enjoy this nice well rounded dinner.

FOODIE FRIDAY -- Coleslaw with Vinaigrette Dressing

This will be a short and sweet post this week.

I like cabbage, but the fam does not. In fact, I've been relegated to heating up sauerkraut on the grill (just wrap it in double foil and toss on the shelf above the main grill)--{totally nummy with grilled bratwurst and German mustard!}. If your fam doesn't eat cabbage, it can get funky-monkey in no time. So I opt for the packaged pre-shredded stuff, though it's more expensive this way.

Two weeks ago on the Weight Watcher website, a well-known chef took julienned (thin shreds--like lettuce on your fast food tacos) collard greens, cabbage and carrots. Basically, she took a few liquid ingredients (oil, balsamic and other herbs) mixed them together and poured it over her raw veg, toss to coat and refrigerate for 2-3 hours to soften the cabbage.

Well, guess what? You can do this, too! But it's even easier if you use salad dressing!

Coleslaw with Vinaigrette Dressing

2 cups shredded cabbage mixture (0 WW points plus)
2-3 Tbs. light oil-based salad dressing (btw 3-4 WW points plus, depending on the dressing-calculate it out)

Toss in small sealed container and refrigerate. One very nice single serving as it breaks down the tough leaves.

I used Newman's Light Roasted Garlic Balsamic dressing, but think of the other options:

 Newman's Own Lite Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing

Newman's Own Lite Cranberry Walnut Dressing

Newman's Own Lite Honey Mustard Dressing

Newman's Own Lite Lime Vinaigrette

Newman's Own Lite Low Fat Sesame Ginger Dressing

Newman's Own Lite Raspberry & Walnut Dressing

Newman's Own Lite Red Wine Vinegar & Olive Oil Dressing

Newman's Own Lite Roasted Garlic Balsamic Dressing

Newman's Own Lite Sun Dried Tomato Dressing
There you go! A different type of coleslaw for every day of the week!

 

Enjoy, Peeps!

 

FOODIE FRIDAY -- Fleming's Macaroni and Cheese

A few weeks ago, the hubster took his “girls” to Flemings Steakhouse for a Valentine’s Day dinner. We had an exceptional meal as always, but I need to remember to order my steak medium and NOT medium-rare. Most places will cook meat on the well done side, EXCEPT high-end steakhouses. As much as I love my steak to moo when I eat it, I do draw the line at the “cool red center”.

Anyhoo, Fleming’s Macaroni and Cheese was a huge hit with the family . . . again. Hubster looked it up online--doncha just love the Internet?!--and found three similar, but different recipes. We went with this one from food.com.

Hubby is the chef on this recipe!

The pasta we used looked like an octopus arm with suction cups. J

If you want more heat with the bread crumbs, add up to 1 more teaspoon of chipotle powder.

And this recipe is E-V-I-L!! Roughly, one cup of this mac and cheese is almost 1,000 calories! You have been warned!

Fleming’s Steakhouse Chipotle Cheddar Macaroni and Cheese

Pasta:

1 lb pasta (cavatappi or curly, or a sturdy large shape.)

2 tsp. salt
1 Tbls. vegetable oil

Sauce:

¾ cup diced onions (green onion, leeks or shallots)

½ cup butter
3 Tbls. flour
2 cups heavy cream
3 cups half-and-half
2 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. ground white pepper
¾ lb smoked cheddar cheese; grated (it’s a white cheese) each pkg was 7 oz, so we used all 14 oz.
¼ lb cheddar cheese, grated

Bread Crumbs:

1 Tbls. vegetable oil

1 tsp. dried chipotle powder (gives heat, but not much flavor)
¾ cup panko bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In large pot, bring 1 gallon of water to boil. Add 2 teaspoons salt and pasta and cook for 8-9 minutes. Drain pasta and cool under cold running water. Pasta should be slightly firm. Toss drained pasta in oil and reserve.  

Melt butter in large sauce pot over medium heat. Add onion and sauté for 4-5 minutes. Add flour and cook 1-2 minutes but do not brown. Add cream, half-and-half, kosher salt and white pepper.

Bring pot to a simmer. Cook until sauce is thick about 5-6 minutes. Blend cheese into sauce (cheese will thicken it even more) and add cooked pasta.

Pour pasta and sauce into 9 x 12 - inch baking dish.

In a sauté pan over medium-high heat, add oil and chipotle chili powder. Heat for 30 seconds, until pan starts to smoke. Remove from stove and stir in bread crumbs.

Sprinkle bread crumbs over the pasta and bake for 15-20 minutes until golden. Cool slightly before serving.

 Enjoy!!

FOODIE FRIDAY--Sweet Potatos with Pecan Topping

This recipe has become a Thanksgiving tradition with my family, instead of sweet potato with marshmallows on top. Now, I can’t take credit for this one as my sister, Carolyn, was the one who instigated this recipe into our traditions, and now, my brother Jim has taken over the preparation since C isn’t able to visit as much as she had in the past (the logistics of living in Michigan vs. Texas). The recipe was originally from a cookbook called BEST OF THE BEST FROM TEXAS.

I have never made this recipe so tweak it as necessary. And yes, I do believe that this recipe is at least tripled for our family gathering! But just looking at it, I would be tempted to add some ground spices to the sweet potatoes (nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon) and richen it by using half-and-half instead of the milk (since I don’t buy whole milk).  If you do make adjustments, then sample mixture PRIOR to adding the raw eggs.

Sweet Potatoes with Pecan Topping

3 cups sweet potatoes, cooked and mashed

¼ cup milk
1/3 cup butter, melted
1 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs, beaten
½ tsp salt

TOPPING:

1 cup pecans, chopped
1 cup brown sugar
3 Tbls flour
1/3 cup butter, melted
1 cup coconut, optional (the family had never prepared it with coconut)

Mix mashed sweet potatoes, milk, butter, vanilla, eggs and salt. Spoon into a 1 ½ quart oiled casserole.  

Combine topping ingredients and sprinkle over sweet potatoes. Bake at 375° degrees F. for 25 minutes.

Serves 6.

Enjoy!

FOODIE FRIDAY--Rice Pilaf with Peas and Pine Nuts

Tired of the same old, same old white rice? I know I’m bored eating it. So the key is to find an easy recipe to punch it up.  Here’s another tried and true Bon Appetit recipe.

If you can’t find pine nuts, substitute almonds: slivered or sliced.

You can use mixed grain wild rice instead of white, but allow a slightly longer cooking time.

TO TOAST NUTS: place in skillet on stove top over medium heat, tossing occasionally until toasted and nutty smelling. WATCH THEM! They will seem to take forever, but then will burn when you turn your back . . . trust me on this.

Rice Pilaf with Peas and Pine Nuts

1 Tbls butter

½ onion, finely chopped
¾ cup long-grain white rice
½ tsp. ground turmeric
2 cups chicken broth
½ cup frozen peas
¼ cup toasted pine nuts

Melt butter in heavy medium saucepan over medium heat. Add chopped onion and sauté until tender, about 3 minutes. Add rice and turmeric and stir 1 minute. Mix in broth. Cover and simmer over low heat until rice is almost tender, about 15 minutes. Add peas, cover and continue simmering until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to bowl and sprinkle with toasted pine nuts.

Enjoy!

FOODIE FRIDAY--Broccoli Salad (side dish)

Here’s another quick and easy side dish recipe for summer. I have NO idea where I got this recipe, but I have a feeling I got it from one of my phlebotomy friends when I worked night shift at the hospital. There are all sorts of variations of it floating around the internet. Even people who don’t like broccoli tend to like this recipe since the dressing cuts the strong sulfurous compounds in the veg.

Broccoli Salad

1 bunch broccoli, cut into small florets

1 lb. bacon, cut into small pieces and cooked until über crispy
½ cup raisons
½ cup sunflower seeds
1 small purple onion, finely chopped

DRESSING: mix together in separate bowl

½ cup mayonnaise
½ cup sugar
2 Tbls. vinegar

Toss broccoli, raisons, sunflower seeds, onion and ½ of bacon in sealable container (Tupperware/Gladware). Pour on dressing. Stir/toss to coat. Refrigerate 3 hours or overnight, periodically mixing to redistribute dressing.

Sprinkle with reserved bacon prior to serving.

 And there you have it--another quick, easy AND make ahead side dish!

Enjoy!

FOODIE FRIDAY--Barbeque Sauce/Baked Beans

Continuing the summer pool party theme, I’ll share with you my baked beans recipe—and yes, you cook it in a slow, low oven for hours! There really isn’t much special about this recipe, except I mix in my homemade BBQ sauce. I don’t know why people buy BBQ sauce when it is so simple to make. This recipe can be tweaked to sweeten or spiced according to your taste.  And when you buy the canned beans, go for the most basic baked bean. I use Van Camp’s baked beans; if it isn’t available, then choose the generic brand.

Baked Beans

3-16oz. cans baked beans

½ to ¾ cup salsa, (I used Herdez medium)

½ cup finely chopped onion (or 1 Tbsp dried minced onion)
½ to ¾ cup barbeque sauce

Mix all ingredients together in 9-in. square Pyrex dish. Everything is to taste, or until it looks right. Bake at 275 degrees for 4-5 hours.
There are so many varieties of Catsup or ketchup, you should pick your favorite brand and use it. BUT refrain from adding the salt until last as many brands over salt their ketchup

Barbeque Sauce

¾ cup tomato ketchup

2 Tbls. vinegar
2 Tbls. Worcestershire sauce
Dash of cayenne pepper (or more if more heat is desired)
1 tsp. paprika
½ tsp. black pepper
1-2 tsp chili powder {(I use Pendry’s Top Hat blend) and probably more than this}
Salt, to taste

Combine ingredients, adjust seasonings to taste. Add water, if needed to thin out.  I usually double this recipe and make it in a large ketchup bottle.

If you want smoky-flavored, add liquid smoke
If you want more heat, add your favorite hot sauce, more cayenne, minced jalapeños or habaneros, or whatever.
More bite, add more black pepper
If you want more onion, add it
Make it for you!

 Later, Peeps!

Herb Roasted Potatoes

I believe this recipe was originally written down at a Weight Watcher's meeting years ago, but when I searched through my book of Bon Appetite recipes, I found many recipes that were similar.  If you want to change the herbs to Herbs de Provance, or use Lemon Pepper, or whatever, go right ahead!  That is the beauty of these easy-peasy recipes. Enjoy!

Herb Roasted Potatoes

Prep time: 5-15 minutes

Cooking time: 1 hour

Oven temp: 375 degrees F.

Russet potatoes, peeled, cubed into ½-in pieces (I used 5 small/medium potatoes-feel free to try red, blue, Yukon gold, or whatever you have available)

Olive oil

Italian seasoning

Garlic powder

Salt

Black pepper

Minced dried onions (fresh onions will burn in the oven)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Place cubed potatoes into 9-in square Pyrex pan.  Drizzle with olive oil, shake seasonings over potatoes.  Toss with hands until coated (the potatoes, though your hands are coated, too!). Add more seasoning, if desired.

Place pan in center of oven for one hour.  Set timer for 30 minutes.  When 30 minutes are up, using metal spatula, flip potatoes over (they might stick to the pan). If they don't seem to be cooking, increase the oven's temp 25 degrees, if it is cooking too quickly, lower the temp 25 degrees Cook for 30 more minutes.

They should look golden brown, like this. This should also give you an idea of how much of the Italian herb seasoning I used.

Sorry, this is from my phone . . . deal with the picture quality.  I placed our plates in the oven to warm, they ended up too hot, so be careful.  A warm plate will keep the meal warmer for longer. Uh, I shouldn't have to say this, but I will DO NOT DO THIS WITH A PLASTIC PLATE!

Served with pan-fried ham steak (@ 1/3 inch thick slice of bone-in ham) and peas.  Heated plates in the oven to keep meal warm.  Excellent!

Enjoy!
Later, Peeps!