Thursday, February 24, 2011

Hominy Casserole
a la Grandma Martineau

1 lb hamburger/ground beef
1 large can hominy
1 can cream of chicken/mushroom soup
1/2 can green chili
shredded cheese

Brown beef and drain grease. Add hominy, soup and green chili. Top with grated cheese. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes.
Swiss Steak
a la Mom

1 round steak
2 onions, sliced
2 green peppers
2 large cans of tomatoes

Brown steak, after cutting off all visible fat, and cut in portion sizes. Place in a 9x13 pan. Layer peppers, onions and tomatoes on top. Cut up whole tomatoes. Cover with foil and bake at 350 for at least an hour.

*Chef's note: this is great with baked potatoes!
Stuffed Pepper Cups with Mom's Spanish Rice
a la mom

1 lb ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1/2 c rice
1 c grated cheese
3 green peppers
1 lb can tomatoes
1 t Worcestershire sauce
1/2 c water

Cut off tops of green peppers, and cook about 5 minutes in salted boiling water;drain. (For crisp pepper, omit precooking) Brown beef and onion, season with salt and pepper. Add tomatoes, water, rice and Worcestershire sauce. Cover and simmer until rice is tender, about 15 minutes. Stir in cheese. Stuff pepper cups and stand upright in pan. Bake, uncovered at 350 for 20-25 minutes.

for freezer: make rice as directed, without stuffing in pepper cups. defrost, and bake according to directions.

Spanish Rice
a la Grandma Martineau

Use above recipe, except sub a can of green chilies for green peppers. Save the cheese for the top. Put mixture in 9x13 pan and sprinkle generously with cheese. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.
Stuffed Shells
a la Mom

1 (12 oz) pkg jumbo pasta shells
2 lbs Ricotta cheese
8 oz Mozzarella cheese, grated
1/2 c Parmesan cheese
1 pkg frozen chopped spinach
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 T Italian seasoning
1/4 t pepper
4 c spaghetti sauce (mom likes Prego)

Cook pasta 9 minutes in boiling water. Drain and rinse with water. Cook spinach and drain, squeezing out juice. Combine spinach, cheeses, eggs and seasoning. Blend well. Fill shells with cheese mixture. Pour some sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 pan to cover. Place shells in a single layer, pour sauce over top of shells. Cover with mozzarella cheese (save a bit out). Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until hot. It usually makes more than one pan full.

pop these in the freezer, defrost and bake as directed.

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Carrot Cake Cookies
a la Carlie

1 1/2 c flour
1 t cinnamon
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
3/4 c brown sugar
1/2 c (1 stick) butter, softened
1 egg
1/2 t vanilla
1 c grated carrots, about 2 medium
1/2 c walnuts
1/2 c raisins or chopped dried pineapple

Mix dry ingredients in medium bowl. Cream butter and brown sugar at medium speed. Add egg and vanilla to butter mixture and beat well. Stir in flour mixture. Stir in carrots, walnuts and dried fruit. Bake 350 for 12-14 minutes or until cookies are set and slightly browned around the edges. Leave on warm pan 1 minutes after removing from oven before moving to cooling rack.
Cranberry Oat Mini Chip Cookies
a la Carlie

1 c quick oats
1/3 c flour
1/4 c wheat flour
1/2 t baking powder
1/4 t baking soda
1/3 c butter, softened
1/3 c sugar
1/4 c brown sugar
1/4 c creamy peanut butter
1 egg
1/2 t vanilla
1/3 c dried cranberries or cherries, coarsely chopped
1/3 c mini semisweet chocolate chips

Stir together dry ingredients in medium bowl. Beat butter, sugars and peanut butter in a large bowl at medium speed until creamy. Add the eggs and vanilla, beat until well blended. Add the oat mixture on low speed until just blended. Stir in the dried fruit and chips. Bake 8-10 minutes at 375. Cool the cookies on the sheet for one minute before removing to cooling racks.

Monday, February 21, 2011

Homemade Root Beer
a la Martineau family recipes

5 gallons water
5 pounds sugar
5 pounds dry ice
2 oz root beer concentrate

Dissolve sugar in water. Add flavoring. Add dry ice. Let brew for 45 minutes to an hour with lid on tightly.
Chef's note: Use cold water and it will be more fizzy.
Pumpkin Muffins
a la Tina

1 1/2 c flour
1 t baking powder
1 c canned solid packed pumpkin (not pie filling)
1/3 c vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 t pumpkin pie spice
1 1/4 c plus 1 T sugar
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1 t cinnamon

Mix cinnamon and 1 T sugar in separate bowl and set aside. Whisk all ingredients except flour together until smooth. Add flour slowly.
Fill muffin cups 3/4 full and sprinkle with cinn/sugar mixture. Bake about 25-30 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean. Leave in pan on rack to cool for 5 minutes, then transfer to rack to cool completely.
Chef's notes: I didn't have pumpkin pie spice, so i used cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice in a 4:1:1 ratio. In retrospect, I would have doubled the spices to give it a little more kick.
Molasses-Ginger Cookies
a la Tina

2 c flour
2 t ground ginger
1 t cinnamon
1 t cloves
2 t soda
1/2 t salt
1/2 c finely chopped crystallized ginger
1 c packed dark brown sugar (preferably muscovado)
1/2 c vegetable shortening, room temp
1/4 c unsalted butter, room temp
1 large egg
1/3 c molasses
demarrara sugar for rolling

Combine flour, spices, soda and salt in medium bowl- whisk to blend. Mix in crystallized ginger. In a large bowl, beat butter and shortening until blended, and brown sugar and beat until well combined and fluffy. Add egg and molasses, beat until blended. Add flour mixture and mix until just blended. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 350. Grease/line 2 baking sheets. Spoon sugar in thick layer on small plate. With wet hands, form dough into 2 inch balls. Roll in sugar to coat completely. Place 2 inches apart and flatten a bit.
Bake cookies 10-12 minutes, until slightly cracked on top, but soft to the touch and moist inside. Cool on cooking sheet 1 minute. Transfer to cooling rack.
Coconut Rice
a la Irene Monson

2 c Basmati rice
3 1/2 c water
1 c sugar
1/2 t finely ground cardamon
2 1/4 c grated coconut, slightly toasted
1/3 c pistachios or cashews
1/3 c raisin, soaked to soften
1 T butter

Soak rice for 1 hour and drain. In medium saucepan, bring water, sugar and cardamon to a boil. Add rice and return to boil. Cover tightly and cook 10 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and cook an additional 10 minutes, covered. Remove cover and let cook on low for an additional 2-3 minutes, stirring to dry it up a little bit. Mix and serve.
Crazy Crunch Popcorn
a la HV ward cooking group

1 1/3 c sugar
1 stick (1/2 c) margarine
1/2 c light Karo syrup
1 t vanilla
2 quarts popped pocorn
Mixed nuts

Add mixed nuts to popcorn. Cook syrup to 280 degrees, using a candy thermometer, stirring constantly. Pour syrup over popcorn and mix well. Spread out on waxpaper and let cool. Break into chunks
Crock Pot Pork
a la Barbara Wright

2 lbs pork tenderloin
2 c salsa
2 c brown sugar

Toss it all in crock pot on low for 6 hours. Shred and serve over rice, or in tortillas.

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Cranberry Bread
a la Grandma Martineau

2 c flour
1 c sugar
1/2 t baking powder
1/2 t baking soda
1 t salt
1 egg, beaten
2 T melted shortening
3/4 c orange juice
2 T hot water
1/2 c nuts
2 T orange rind
1 c cranberries

Mix dry ingredients, add to wet. Fold in nuts, cranberries and orange rind. Bake 1 hour at 350 in 2 greased pans.

Chef's note: these are also really great in mini-loaf pans for giving away. I also like to toss in a bit of cinnamon with the dry ingredients.
Bubble Bread
a la Martineau Family

24 frozen rolls
1/2 c butter
1/2 c brown sugar
1 pkg butterscotch pudding
cinnamon

Grease a Bundt pan. Place rolls in pan. Melt butter and sugar and pour over rolls. Sprinkle pudding mix and cinnamon over rolls. Let set overnight. Bake in the morning at 350 for 30 minutes.
Cornbread
a la Grandma Martineau

2 c flour
2 t baking powder
1/2 c sugar
1 t salt
2 c corn meal
4 eggs, beaten
2 c milk
1/2 c shortening or oil

Sift together flour, powder, sugar and salt. Add corn meal, eggs, milk and oil and blend together. Pour into greased 9x13 pan. Bake at 425 for 20 minutes.

Chef's note: you can easily half this and put in an 8x8 pan.