Saturday, April 23, 2011

Steamed Green Beans

Original Recipe Yield 4 servings
Ingredients

1 pound fresh green beans, trimmed
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 cloves garlic, sliced
1 pinch salt
1 pinch ground black pepper
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar (or use a mix of rice vinegar and balsamic!)
3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Directions

Set a steamer basket insert into a large saucepan and fill with water to a level just below the steamer. Bring to a boil. Add green beans, and steam to your desired degree of tenderness, or about 5 minutes.
Once the beans have cooked, transfer them to a serving bowl. Toss with olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper, white wine vinegar, and Parmesan cheese. Let stand for 10 minutes. Remove garlic slices and garnish with parsley before serving.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Lemon Pepper Chicken Bake

Lemon Pepper Chicken Bake

Ingredients:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 Tablespoons soy sauce
1 Tablespoon butter or margarine, melted
3 Tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest (substitute lemon pepper)
1 teaspoon honey
½ teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon dried thyme (substitute Italian Seasoning)

1. Preheat oven to 375 f
2. Combine soy sauce, melted butter, lemon juice, honey, pepper, seasoning.
3. Lightly coat baking dish with non-stick spray
4. Arrange frozen chicken in dish (I lightly flour and pan sauté first)
5. Spoon mixture over, cover loosely with foil, bake 25 min.
6. Turn each piece over, baste well, and continue to cook until done.

I use the flash frozen chicken breast tenders so ignore where it says “4 chicken breasts”. I generally allow 3 pieces per person and the sauce recipe above is adequate for 9 pieces. Last night I used the entire bag of chicken and tripled the sauce recipe.

I dust the chicken pieces in flour and quickly brown them a bit in some oil, and then transfer to a baking dish coated with PAM. (I know, higher in fat and calories, but it tastes a lot better!)

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Together We Can Change The World

It's Shake and Bake (And I Helped!)

OK maybe you have to be as old as me to remember Shake and Bake commercials - but have you ever picked up a package and read the ingredients? Or done the math to see what you are paying for bread crumbs and a plastic bag?



Here you go...this is super yummy. Kids WILL eat this stuff! It stores well in the freezer.

Prep - 5 minutes
Servings - 8 +/-

4 cups dry bread crumbs
1/3 vegetable oil
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon celery salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon dried minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon dried minced onion
1 pinch dried basil
1 pinch dried parsley
1 pinch dried oregano

In a large resealable plastic bag combine all ingredients - seal bag - shake well.

Use this to coat chicken and other meat before baking.

NOW....if you are using it fresh you can easily substitute fresh herbs and garlic/onion. To dress it up add some nice grated Parmesan cheese!

Here's some wiki history:
Shake 'n Bake, manufactured by Kraft Foods, is a flavored bread crumb-style coating for chicken and pork. The product is applied by placing raw meat pieces in a bag containing the coating, closing the bag, and shaking so the particles adhere. The coated meat is then baked in the oven.
Shake 'n Bake mimics the texture on the outside of fried foods and is similar to a bread crumb coating. It provides a baked, alternative preparation to that of fried chicken and other fried foods that use cooking oil. Shake 'n Bake has been marketed as a healthier[1] and less greasy alternative to frying, with slogans like: "Shake 'n Bake: It's better than frying" and "Why fry? Shake 'n Bake." First introduced in 1965 by General Foods, it is currently marketed under the Kraft brand.

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Mystery Pudding - Updated for 2011

Sift together:
        1 1/2 Cup Flour
        1 Cup Sugar
        1 Tablespoon Cinnamon
        3/4 teaspoon salt
        1 1/2 teaspoon soda

Mix:
        2 Slightly beaten eggs
        1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
        1 14-16oz can fruit cocktail (in syrup)
         1 medium apple, peeled and chopped


Combine both mixtures. Pour into a greased 11x13 pan

Sprinkle with:
        ½ Cup brown sugar
        ½ Cup chopped walnuts - or pecans!

Bake 1 hour at 3258
Serve warm with whipped cream
Serves 12

Mystery Pudding - The Original Recipe

Sift together:
        1 Cup Flour
        1 Cup Sugar
        ½ Tablespoon Cinnamon
        ½ teaspoon salt
        1 teaspoon soda

Mix:
        1 Slightly beaten egg
        1 teaspoon vanilla
        1 14-16oz can fruit cocktail

Combine both mixtures. Pour into a greased 11x13 pan

Sprinkle with:
        ½ Cup brown sugar
        ½ Cup chopped walnuts

Bake 1 hour at 325
Serve warm with whipped cream
Serves 12