White Chili with Chicken Soup

I got this recipe from my mother in law Janet-- I'm not sure where it originally came from!

15 oz can white beans
1/2 Tbsp veg oil
1/2 medium onion diced
1 1/2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb chicken diced
8 oz can white corn
1 tps cumin
1/4 tsp oregano
1/2 can (2 oz) green chilies
1/2 cup chicken broth
juice of half a lime
1/4 cup chopped cilantro

Place white beans in a large pot; set over low heat.
Saute onion and garlic in oil until golden. Add diced chicken, saute until nicely browned. Add to beans along with corn, cumin, oregano, chilies, and chicken broth. Simmer uncovered for 20 minutes. Just before serving, stir in lime and cilantro. Sometimes I need to add more water.
We serve with chips and garnish with sour cream, cheddar cheese, and lime wedges.

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Recipe, originally called Hershey Banana Bread, came from my sister in law Amy

1 cup mashed bananas (3 small)

1/2 cup shortening or APPLESAUCE

2 eggs

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 cup sugar

2 cups flour

1 cup chocolate chips

Grease bottoms only of two loaf pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-50 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes. Remove from pans to wire rack. Cool completely.

Wright's Apricot Chicken

I got this recipe from my mother in law Janet, who uses her own homemade apricot jam, which makes this amazing!

1 cup apricot jam
1/3 cup orange juice concentrate
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup brown sugar

4 chicken breasts
white rice

Combine jam, orange juice, soy sauce and brown sugar in a bowl. Pour over chicken breasts in a baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until chicken is well done. Serve with rice. Also great on the barbeque!

HOMEMADE PIZZA: MARGHERITA STYLE

Recipe originated from Erin Russell

DOUGH:
2 tsp yeast
1/2 cup very warm water
2 tsp sugar
Let sit a few minutes until foamy. Add:
1 1/2 cups more warm water
2 tsp salt
5-6 cups flour
Cover and let raise for a couple hours. It's so much better it you do this, so start your dough mid afternoon when you want pizza for dinner!

SAUCE:
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
3-4 cloves garlic, chopped coarsely
Basil, some oregano, 1 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp sugar
Heat in small saucepan while mashing with a potato masher. Cook over medium high heat for about 10 minutes.
(Or use any good bottled sauce)

Preheat your pizza stone in 500 degree oven.
Cut your ball of dough in half (save other half for a second pizza or breadsticks).
If you have a pizza peel, sprinkle it with cornmeal so you'll easily be able to slide the pizza onto your pizza stone when you're ready to bake it.

Shape one of the halves into a disc then roll into a large flat circle and place it on the pizza peel.
Brush the dough lightly with olive oil.
Spread some of your sauce around. Lay thin slices of mozzarella cheese (or shredded is fine) over your entire pizza. Sprinkle basil (chopped fresh is AMAZINGly good) and a little salt and pepper over the pizza. Lay thinly sliced fresh tomatoes around your pizza. You can add a little more basil and salt and pepper if desired. Then I like to grate a little fresh parmesan cheese over the top of the whole thing.
Carefully slide the whole unbaked pizza from the peel onto your preheated pizza stone. Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes, until the cheese slightly starts to brown.
When you pull it out, let it sit for a minute before cutting into it. Careful, it's really hot!!!


(pictured is a miniature version I made once from leftover dough)

Ginger Squash Soup

Recipe from Elaine at WVC

1 medium Butternut squash
1 large sweet onion
1 piece ginger about an inch long

3 carrots
5 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup cream or half and half
salt and pepper to taste
Sour cream
Cilantro for garnish

Halve the squash and scoop out the seeds, then roast in the oven (covered w/foil so it doesn't brown) until very tender.

While squash is cooking, take a soup pot and melt a little butter in it. Roughly chop and add onion, carrot, and peeled ginger. Saute this for 5 to 7 minutes (make sure it doesn't brown). Add the chicken stock and simmer until very tender.

When the squash is done, scoop out the flesh and add to the pot. Using a food processor or blender, process the soup in batches until all is smooth- place back in soup pot. Add the cream and warm to serving temperature. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve with a dollop of sour cream and chopped cilantro sprinkled on top.

You can make this sweeter by using more carrots or less so by more squash. Also works great with cooked pumpkin!

Kentucky Browns

Justin found this on the food network. It takes some work to get everything together but it is delicious!
I'll try to make the directions simple:

Cook up some chicken in a frying pan. Make some french toast in another frying pan (cinnamon is good). In another frying pan, start some bacon cooking. In a saucepan, make a white cheese sauce starting from a rue and adding milk, mozeralla cheese, parmesan, even some cheddar is fine. Slice up some tomates, slice the chicken up a little, turn the oven on to broil and get ready to assemble. It goes like this:

Place a piece of french toast on an oven proof plate. Put a dab of cheese sauce on top. Then place some chicken slices, tomato slices, and top with some bacon slices. Ladle some cheese sauce over the top of everything, and broil in the oven just slightly until you see the cheese sauce slightly brown.
DELICIOUS! Careful though, it's hot!

More detailed instructions can be found at http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_37222,00.html

World's Best Chocolate Chip Cookies

Thanks to my sister Kathryn for finding this new recipe online somewhere. I like it better than the recipe that was my favorite for years! Be sure to add PLENTY of chocolate chips!

3/4 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup butter (not margarine) slightly softened

1 Tbsp vanilla

2 large eggs slightly beaten

3 cups flour

3/4 tsp baking soda

3/4 tsp salt

3 cups chocolate chips

Drop onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake in 350 degree preheated oven for 10-12 minutes. The trick is to take them out slightly before you think they're done, and let them sit on the hot pan for a minute before taking them off.

Tonkatsu Chicken

This is a fun and easy dinner that we like a lot at our house. It's kind of the designated last-minute meal at our house: it's fancy enough but doesn't take much time or effort. This is how I make it:

White Rice done in the rice cooker

Tonkatsu Sauce- made by Kikkoman and found near sweet n sour sauce in the oriental isle.

Frozen chicken breasts- as many as you need

Place frozen chicken in a frying pan with a little oil, on medium high. Season with a little salt and pepper or garlic powder, or italian seasoning. Brown on both sides, then immediately put the lid on and turn the heat down to low. After about 15 minutes check to see if chicken is nearly cooked through the middle. When it is, remove the lid, turn the heat back up to med high and cook most of the liquid off (you can slice the chicken up first if you want it that way).

Serve with a little Tonkatsu Sauce over the chicken and rice. Also serve a vegetable like broccoli and/or a salad.

Herb Roasted Pork Loin

from the internet

This is probably my family's all-time favorite meal. It makes everyone happy and it's very easy!

5 lbs boneless pork loin
1 tsp rubbed sage
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 clove garlic, crushed

Combine above in bowl. Rub thoroughly all over pork. Place pork in an uncovered roasting pan on the middle oven rack. Bake at 325 degrees for about 3 hours. I actually put it in the crockpot on high for 4 hours, or on low for 8 hours.

In about the last hour of cooking the roast, place the following in a small saucepan:
1 c sugar
2 Tbsp cornstarch
1/2 cup vinegar
1/2 cup water
4 Tbsp soy sauce

Heat, stirring occasionally, until mixture begins to bubble and thicken slightly. Brush roast with glaze 3 or 4 times during the last 1/2 hour of cooking. Pour remaining glaze over roast, and serve. We usually have rice too, with some glaze over the top.