Recipes

This is a top level page for all the recipes we've collected.

A not so fancy meal

Yesterday I had an odd lunch and thought I should share my recipe since it's 1) original, 2) not likeley to be enjoyed by a wide audience. There are several other recipes that I've shared recently, but this one is pretty neat. Without further ado, the recipe: Directions: Toast pita. Heat chik patty. Smear peanut butter on pita. Sprinkly on hot sauce. Slap chik patty in the middle. Eat. Smile :) I followed it up with a hunk of smoked gouda, but that's not strictly necessary.

delicious "thai" peanut sauce

This is a delicious peanut sauce. I can't really say that it fits a particular cultural style, but it is a blend of various different recipes and most closely resembles a "Thai Satay" sauce. peanut sauce oil soy sauce peanut butter coconut milk (optional) curry paste (optional) cilantro (optional) garlic (optional) onion (optional) brown sugar (optional) hot sauce to taste 1) coat the bottom of the pan with just enough oil to cover it and put over low heat 2) add in peanut butter stirring frequently until peanut butter is melted (NOTE: don't let it sit on the heat and burn, this is very sad when it happens) 3) dice and add in garlic, onion, cilantro and brown sugar (well, my super dried out brown sugar needs to be diced, maybe not yours) 4) add in soy sauce, stir until it's a homogeneous consistency 5) add in coconut milk and curry, again, stirring until homogeneous 6) add in hot sauce and/or peppers Eat. Generally speaking I like this sauce so much that I end up licking the sauce pan at the end of the meal.

Delicious Banana Bread recipe

I always buy bananas and forget to eat them, so why not turn brown bananas into a tasty treat! 3 1/4 cups flour 2 teaspoons baking soda 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1 teaspoon nutmeg 1/2 teaspoon salt 4 eggs 2 1/3 cups sugar 1 cup vegetable oil 3 cups partly mashed bananas 1/4 cups creme fraiche or sour cream 2 teaspoons vanilla 1 1/3 cups walnuts Prehead oven to 350. Butter 2 9X5 pans and dust with flour. Mix together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt into bowl. Beat together eggs and sugar with electric mixer until thick and pale mixture forms a ribbon when beater is lifted. Mix in bananas, creme fraiche, and vanilla. Fold in flour mixture and walnuts. Bake for 1 to 1.2 hours!

Delicious French Toast with Orange Juice and Vanilla

Ingredients: And Add These According To Taste (a dash each): Whisk with a fork (or a whisk) to get a good mix. Fry in a pan (buttered or non-stick) for a few minutes on each side until browned. For a bonus add more of the spices onto the toast as it fries up in the pan to really bring out those flavors. To go all out garnish with a slice of orange and some fruit salad in addition to whatever topping you choose.

Delicious Orange Ginger Carrots Recipe

This recipe is for a wonderful side dish that even your kids (or husband) will eat. The carrots end up being very sweet and the ginger adds a really nice spike to the flavors.

Ingredients for Ginger Carrots

Instructions for Cooking Ginger Carrots

Place carrots in a large skillet, cover with water and bring to boil.

Reduce heat, cover and simmer until crisp-tender, drain.

Add zest, juice, butter, honey, ginger, salt and pepper and stir over medium-high heat until carrots are glazed. Garnish with minced parsley.

Deliciously Simple Chicken Enchilada Recipe

Here's a recipe for enchiladas from sister Bree. The best part about this recipe is the ease of making it and the relatively awesome quality of the food:

Ingredients for Chicken Enchiladas

1 Rotisserie chicken from the grocery store
1 can of enchilada sauce
1 package of corn tortillas
1 pound of cheese
1 pan that will fit in your oven
Extra filling as you desire (jalapenos, veggies, beans, rice, whatever)

Feeds about 4

Instructions for the simple Chicken Enchiladas

  1. Pre-heat oven to 350
  2. First pull the meat off of the rotisserie chicken. This is easiest to do right after you get home from the grocery store while the chicken is warm.
  3. Next, prepare any filling items.
  4. Next, heat a fryin pan on the stove over medium heat, put the tortillas into the pan one at a time and flip after a few seconds. The goal is just to get them warm so they won't crack when you roll them, so you could also do this in a microwave, or steamer, or oven.
  5. Shred the cheese in a grater
  6. I like to get an assembly line setup next with tortillas on one end, a bowl of the enchilada sacue, a bowl of chicken bits, a bowl of each filling, etc. Then you take a tortilla, dip it in the sauce, fill it, roll it, and lay it in my pan. Repeat until the pan is full.
  7. Pour remaining cheese (I like to put some in
  8. Stick the pan in the oven and wait. You're not cooking them, so you only need to wait as long as it takes for everything to get warm and for the cheese and tortilla edges to get a little browned.

At this point, you can make some sides or a salad (or a margarita) - turning off the oven if the enchiladas are done - and then you're all set for dinner.

The benefit of the rotisserie chicken is that it's generally very tender and juicy and with minimal work you get a great filling.

German Chocolate Caramel Brownies - Really Damn Good

This is a recipe from Mom Kneser. Greg's Tip: when you add in the chocolate chips and caramel into the middle you can also add bacon. Bacon adds a very subtle flavor and a little crispiness. I recommend using bacon that you have cooked fully - highly crispy bacon. Remember: Bacon makes everything better. Ingredients: Next: Bake 350 degrees for 15 to 18 minutes. Do not overbake. (Lick your finger & hit the bottom of the pan in the center. If it sizzles, it's done. OR look at the edges of the pan. The batter should be just starting to pull away from the sides.) Cut into SMALL pieces, 4 doz or more. Tips: 1. The caramels are sometimes hard to find because all stores locate them differently. Sometimes they're across from the vegies, sometimes near the bakery, sometimes near other bulk products. If you don't locate them, ask where the bulk Brach's candy is. 2. My original recipe listed step 2 as the first thing to do, but I learned that if you don't start the caramels melting, they might not be ready to drizzle when the first layer is baked.

Knaddison Habanero Serrano Salsa

This is based on a recipe from Saveur magazine, but they didn't use as many peppers. Super Secret Recipe habanero peppers -2 serrano peppers -2 cilantro several sprigs, diced onion 1/2 medium white garlic several cloves tomatoes 1 large can, diced or peeled 1) Peppers: remove the stems, slice, and remove the seeds if you desire a flavorful but less spicy salsa 2) put the tomatoes, garlic, and peppers in a pot and boil for 20 minutes 3) after boiling, mix everything together in a food processor or such, lighter mixing for a chunkier salsa but a finer mix will better spread all the flavors/spice.

Swedish Pancakes Recipe - Plett Pan

Here's my recipe for "Swedish" pancakes. They are very light little mini crepe kind of things and call for the use of a special pan that has 7 little divots in it.
### The Pancake Recipe: In a mixing bowl with a _good pouring lip_: * 1 egg (or 2 whites) * 1 cup flour * 1+1/4 cup milk * 1 tbsp sugar * 1/2 tsp salt Mix with a whisk to make them nice and fluffy. Get the pan hot. Using a stick of butter where you have peeled the wrapper back, apply butter to the circles of the pan. Then pour the batter into the divots and cook on one side. When the tops are starting to get a little firm, use a mini-spatula or a knife to flip them. When they are all done you can pick up the whole pan and turn it over above a serving tray to get the pancakes off in one swoop. Can you guess which recipe we searched for fifteen minutes this morning before we made it? Top with syrup, fruit, jelly, powdered sugar, etc. Serves 3 when served alongside some fresh fruit and maybe a little sausage patty.

Here's a photo of what the "plett pan" or "swedish pancake pan" should look like:

Vegetarian Eggplant Lasagna - For after the Spinach Scare ends

We made this recipe tonight. It's delicious. 1 medium eggplant, fresh 1 head spinach or 1 package frozen 1 pkg. lasagna noodles 1 pint cottage cheese (low fat if you prefer) 1 jar Favorite meatless sauce 1 sm. pkg. Mozzarella cheese Salt and pepper Several plump tomatoes Parsley, oregano, etc. Preparation: Cut eggplant in rounds thinly sliced, lay on paper towels and lightly salt, lay another paper towel on top and continue layering with eggplant rounds, salt, paper towel etc. Place a heavy pan on a cookie sheet on top of stack, let sit for at least 1/2 hour to 2 hours. This makes the eggplant softer and tastier. Wilt spinach (or defrost spinach) and drain as much water out with a colander as possible). Cook lasagna noodles until tender. Mix cottage cheese with spinach in a bowl, salt and pepper and season to taste. In a casserole pan, spread a light layer of sauce. Add layer of noodles, layer of eggplant, sauce, layer of cottage cheese, spinach mix, another layer of noodles and repeat process until pan is full or desired height achieved. Top with remaining Mozzarella cheese, tomato sauce and cover evenly with thinly sliced peeled tomatoes. Sprinkle on parsley flakes. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 to 60 minutes, until eggplant is soft and has changed a brown color. Naturally we skipped the spinach part because of the current spinach scare, but spinach seems like a reasonable thing to add next time.