NuWave Chicken Cordon Bleu with Brussel Sprouts

OK I cheated.  I used the Barber Foods Cordon Bleu.  They make it almost as good as you can homemade.  The difference is the reduced cooking time in the NuWave.

1 Box Barber Chicken Cordon Bleu
2 lbs of fresh brussel sprouts
1/2 yellow onion
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cloves of garlic
Garlic salt

Cut the ends off the brussel sprouts and wash.  Cut the onion up into edible sized portions.  Chop the garlic and add all three to a small baking dish.  Cover and toss with the olive oil and spice with garlic salt.  Set aside.

Put the Cordon bleu on the 4" rack in a bread pan. and cook for 10 minutes.  Remove the chicken and place the brussel sprout mixture in and cook for 15 minutes on the 1" rack.  When time is done, flip the rack, put the brussel sprouts under the rack and the chicken on the 4" rack for 10 minutes.  When time is done the internal chicken temperature should be 165 or greater.

CHICKPEA CRUST PIZZA MARGHERITA

CHICKPEA CRUST PIZZA MARGHERITA

If you want slightly crispier crusts, bake the pizza shells in the middle of the oven for 5 minutes before topping them.

Start to finish: 1 hour

Servings: 4

1 1/2 cups (6 1/4 ounces) garbanzo bean (chickpea) flour

1/2 teaspoon table salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 1/3 cups water

1 1/2 cups chopped tomatoes (cut into 1/2 inch pieces)

Heaping 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided

5 ounces coarsely shredded mozzarella cheese (about 1 cup)

1/2 cup shredded fresh basil

Into a medium bowl, sift together the chickpea flour, table salt and pepper. Add 1/3 cup of water and whisk until the mixture has the consistency of a smooth paste. Add the remaining 1 cup of water, 1/2 cup at a time, whisking until the batter is smooth with each addition. Let stand for 30 minutes while you prepare the remaining ingredients.

In a colander, toss the tomatoes with the kosher salt. Set over the sink or a large bowl and let drain for 15 minutes. Transfer to paper towels to dry, then in a medium bowl combine them with the garlic.

Heat the oven to 400 F.

In a 10-inch nonstick or stick-resistant skillet over very high, heat 2 teaspoons of the oil. Whisk the batter and add a quarter of it (about 1/2 cup) to the skillet. Tip the pan to spread the batter evenly over the bottom of the skillet and reduce the heat to medium-high. Drizzle 2 teaspoons of the oil on top of the pancake, spreading it with a rubber spatula and cook the pancake until nicely browned on the bottom, 3 to 4 minutes. Peek underneath the pancake to see if it is browned. Do not attempt to flip it until it is browned.

Flip the pancake and cook for an additional 2 to 3 minutes, or until browned on the second side (it will not brown as much on the second side). Transfer the pancake to a sheet pan, browner side down. Repeat the procedure with the remaining batter and oil to make 3 more pancakes, transferring them as they are done to the sheet pan. You will need 2 sheet pans.

Divide the tomatoes among the 4 pizza crusts, then top each with a quarter of the cheese. Bake the pizzas in the middle of the oven for 5 to 6 minutes, or until the cheese is melted. Cut the pizzas into wedges, sprinkle the basil on top and serve immediately.

Nutrition information per serving: 370 calories; 200 calories from fat (54 percent of total calories); 22 g fat (7 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 20 mg cholesterol; 690 mg sodium; 24 g carbohydrate; 5 g fiber; 6 g sugar; 17 g protein.

———

From The Tennessean July 8, 2015

Asparagus Soup

1 lb Asparagus

1 pinch of Sugar

1 tbs Butter

2 oz flour

1 Cup chicken of beef stock

1 pinch of nutmeg

1 egg yolk

1 tbs liquid cream/half and half

1 bunch of fresh green onions

Wash and peal the asparagus, remove any hard parts and cut it in little pieces. Bring a pot of salted water to a rolling boil and add the asparagus and a pinch of sugar. Boil till the asparagus is nice and soft, drain but be sure to save about one and 3/4^th cups of the asparagus broth and set aside.

Melt the butter in a pot and add the flour. Stir the mixture until the flour is incorporated, and then cooked until at least the point where a raw flour taste is no longer apparent. Add asparagus broth and stock.

Bring the soup to a nice boil and season to taste with salt and nutmeg and thicken it with the liquid cream/half and half and egg yolk. Add the parboiled asparagus bits and  fresh chopped green onion.  If you need to thicken add some flour in 1/4 cup warm water before adding to the soup.

Irish Beef Stew

1 1/4 lbs boneless beef short ribs cut into 1 1/2 in cubes
salt
6 tbsp butter divided
6 cloves garlic, chopped
4 cups beef stock
2 cups water
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp thyme
1 tbsp worcestershire sauce
1 bay leaf
1 large onion chopped
4 carrots chopped
3 lbs of yukon gold potatoes cut into 1/2 inch chunks
1/2 tsp pepper



Season the beef well with salt.  Add 4 tbsp of butter to a large dutch oven over medium high heat.  Cook the beef until browned on all sides.  Add the garlic and stir for about a minute then add the beef stock, water, tomato paste, thyme, worcestershire and bay leaf.  Bring to a simer then reduce the heat to low and cook for an hour.
In another skillet use the remaining butter adding the onion, carrots and cook until the vegetables have just started to soften and brown.  Set aside
After the hour put the potatoes and sauteed vegetables in the pot and cook until the potatoes are soft; about 40 minutes.

Adult version Mac - Cheese

1 zucchini grated
1/4 tsp salt
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 pkg frozen chopped spinach defrosted (or chop up a bag of fresh)
1 cup pasta shells
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp plus 1.5 tsp flour
1.25 cups Sargento shredded cheese (mozzarella, havarti, swiss, or a blend)
1.5 cups milk
1 tsp thyme
Lemon juice
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 375.  In a colander toss the zucchini and salt let sit 15 minutes then squeeze out any remaining liquid out of the zucchini.  In a large saute pan heat the olive oil then add the garlic and cook for a minute.  Add the zucchini stir, and cook for a minute. Then add the spinach, stir until overall heated then transfer to a bowl, salt and pepper to taste.  Sprinkle with a little lemon juice.
Cook the pasta reducing the normal cooking time by one minute.
Drain the pasta and add it to the bowl of vegetables.
In the saute pan add the butter.  Melt until foamy, add the flour and whisk together.  Cook whisking constantly for two minutes, it will turn golden brown.  Pour in a little milk whisking to combine and then add the rest of the flour and whisk to remove the lumps.  Bring to a boil until it thickens.  Stir in the cheese and whisk until melted then remove from the heat.
Pour this sauce over the combination in the bowl and stir.  Transfer to a buttered baking dish. Stir together the thyme, bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese and sprinkle over the dish.  Bake 40 to 45 minutes.

Rosemary Pork Roast

Another easy slow cooker meal you have ready today or tomorrow depending on the temperature you use to cook this delicious meal.  You can use any type of pork roast/pork loin just remember to tie it together with butcher twine if you use a pork loin roast.

About 2 lbs of pork
Fresh Rosemary
6 garlic cloves chopped
1 lemon, slice in half then slice one half into four or five thin slices
olive oil
canola oil
1/2 cup chicken stock
1/4 cup chicken stock
Salt and pepper

Dice the rosemary up, throwing out the center main stem and toss into a bowl.  Add the chopped garlic cloves and 1/4 cup of chicken stock.  Mix this up and leave in the bowl.  Place the pork roast into the bowl rubbing the mixture all over the pork roast and letting it rest in the bowl, pour a drizzle of olive oil over the resting roast while you prepare the slow cooker.  If your slow cooker gets hot enough to brown meat then all you need to do is add 1/4 cup canola oil to the pot, turn it on high and add the pork roast.  Brown the pork roast on all sides.  Pour 1/2 cup chicken stock into the bowl to get all the spices and flavoring from the bowl and then once the meat is browned pour that mixture into the pot.  If you need to brown the meat in another pan, once browned and placed into the slow cooker, pour the mixture from the bowl into the frying pan first, mix it around and then into the slow cooker.  Place sliced lemon on top of the roast along with salt and pepper to taste.

 Bring the mixture to a boil or as warm as your slow cooker can get it for about ten minutes then turn it down to a low simmer.  Cover and cook until internal temperature on meat thermometer shows pork is cooked (always use a meat thermometer) should be about 4 to 6 hours.
Gently remove pork roast - will fall apart.  Add another 1/2 cup of chicken stock and then thicken with corn starch (two tablespoons into 1/2 cup water - stir then pour)  Makes great gravy!

Johnsonville Italian Breakfast Casserole

A variation on my hash browns breakfast casserole  but this uses a variation on the cheese used and the addition of sausage.  Johnsonville offers many types of sausage and is my go-to sausage when I'm anywhere other than NY where I can get real deli Italian sausage!  Otherwise I think you'll love this recipe!

1 large package of frozen hash browns
7 eggs
1 cup of milk
1/4 package of mozzarella cheese
4 Johnsonville sausages (choose whichever variety you prefer)
Italian Seasoning
Sargento 4 cheese grated mixed package cheese and use 1/2 the bag
PAM
1 tsp Turmeric
1 tomato
1/2 onion chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
Stick of butter

In a medium saucepan melt a few patties of butter and brown the sausages.  In a bowl take the eggs and scramble them mixing thoroughly.  Add Turmeric, salt and pepper to taste and mix in the milk.  As the sausages are browning take them out one at a time and slice them up, returning them to the pan.  In the meantime prepare the casserole by spraying the casserole dish ( 9 x 12 x 2) with PAM and spread the frozen hash brown potatoes out in the pan. Take the rest of the butter and cutting into patties place them on top of the potatoes.  Once done pour the eggs and milk mixture thoroughly over the potatoes and butter as evenly distributed as you can.
As the sausages are cooked take them out and place them on top of the potatoes - spacing them out best you can.  When the sausages are out of the pan add the chopped onion and garlic, cooking them for a few minutes until they are soft.  Once cooked spread that mixture on top of the casserole as evenly spread out as possible.  On top of this add the mozzarella cheese and then the 4 cheese mixture.  Sprinkle italian seasoning on the entire mixture.  Cook at 350 for 60 minutes, turning pan around once during cooking to ensure even cooking.

 The Sargento 4 cheese mexican is the closest combination to the 4 cheese italian mix I can find.  I only use Sargento only because it is the closest thing to shaving the cheese yourself without any added anything.

Like I said earlier we use Johnsonville cheddar in this recipe but there are many varieties to choose from.

 

Quiche Petits Pains (Quiche Breakfast Rolls)

This breakfast recipe turned out better than I expected it to be on the day I made it but not as good as I had hoped it to be on subsequent days, i.e. leftovers.  Too soggy/soft for a tasty leftover meal.  Despite that I did eat them for several days after making them.  The key here is to either make less or save these for an occasion when there is company.

Ingredients:
1 container of refrigerated french bread dough
1 package of shredded cheddar cheese ( look for a blended cheese mix )
1 package of creamed spinach
5 eggs
1 yellow onion
3 garlic cloves
4 slices of bacon
Tarragon
Salt and pepper

In a medium frying pan start cooking the bacon.  In the meantime dice up the garlic clove and about a third of the yellow onion.  Once the bacon is about halfway cooked put the onion and the garlic into the pan.  Remove the bacon a strip at a time and slice the bacon into thin strips and return to the pan.

Cook the mixture until the onions and the garlic are soft.  In the meanwhile turn the oven on to preheat to 350.  Spray a baking sheet with PAM.

 Once the onions are cooked take the creamed spinach and add that to the pan.  Continue to cook the mixture until the creamed spinach is thoroughly cooked and spread evenly with the bacon and onion mixture.  Add to that the scrambled eggs and once they are cooked and mixed in with the other ingredients it's ready to be placed on the dough.










Open the bread dough and slice the dough into quarters.  Ladle the spinach mixture into each of the sections, top with the shredded cheese and fold the ends up covering the mixture.  Here's where you can do a number of things with this.  I put too much in each section making them massive - delicious but massive.  With this same amount of filling you could use two french bread dough packages and make 16 mini breakfast rolls instead of the 8 I made using one french bread package.  I'd probably add two more eggs if I were to make the 16 recipe.

Cook until the bread is golden brown, about 10 to 15 minutes depending on your oven.

Easy Chili

While Chili has always been a staple in our house for years, I make it less and less as time takes it toll on the tummy - it just does not tolerate the spicy as much anymore!  This chili is not that spicy and easily modified.

Ingredients:
1lb ground beef
2 Cans Ventti Chili
1 can diced tomatoes
1/2 jar Alfredo sauce
Celery salt
Thyme
Garlic salt
Garlic cloves
1 medium yellow onion
Tabasco sauce
Good spicy mustard (not baby shit mustard)
Bag of grated Mexican cheese

One last ingredient -- a bag of Chili flavored, or regular flavored, Fritos.

OK, here's the easy part, you're going to throw everything in the pot in two easy steps.  First put your crockpot on high to cook and brown the meat and cook the diced onions and garlic cloves at the same time.
While the meat is browning go ahead and open all the cans.  If you want to stretch this for a larger family or you don't like as much meat in your chili then use the large Vietti chili cans plus a can or two of regular or spicy chili beans.

With the meat browned and all the cans opened just pour everything into the pot, reducing the temperature to the lowest setting.  Sprinkle a little celery salt, about a 1/4 teaspoon of garlic salt, another 1/4 teaspoon of thyme, couple of shakes of pepper,  a few shots of tabasco sauce (your call), three teaspoons of the mustard and let it all cook for at least 4 hours -- best for a day.  About 15 minutes before serving, sprinkle the top of the chili with mexican cheese mix.

Once you're ready to eat, place a bed of Fritos on the bottom of a medium bowl before spooning on the chili.  Monica likes more Fritos than chili!