Final Thanksgiving Menu

Turkey
Smoked Salmon
Smoked Bratwurst
Sweet Potato Casserole
Mashed Potatoes
Gravy
Rolls
Stuffing
Cranberry Sauce
Fruit Salad
Light and Zesty Coleslaw
DRINK: Apple Peach Sunrise
DESSERT: Pineapple Upside Down Cake and Pumpkin Cheesecake

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Topping:
4 T. Butter
2/3 C. Brown Sugar
16 oz. Can Sliced Pineapples
Maraschino Cherries
2 T. Pineapple Syrup from canned pineapple
Melt butter in 9x13 baking dish, add brown sugar, and syrup. Arrange pineapple rings and cherries. Set aside while you make the batter.

Batter:
2 2/3 C. Flour
1 1/2 C. Sugar
4 t. Baking Powder
1 1/3 C. Milk
1/2 C. Butter
2 Eggs
2 t. Vanilla
Combine flour, sugar and baking powder. Add milk, butter, eggs and vanilla. Beat on low until blended. Beat on medium 1 minute. Spoon over topping mixture in pan. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Light and Zesty Coleslaw

16 oz. Pkg. Coleslaw Blend
2 C. Fresh Broccoli, chopped
1/4 C. Green Onions, sliced
3/4 C. Italian Dressing
1/4 C. Orange Marmalade
1/4 t. Celery Seed
11 oz. Can Mandarin Oranges, drained

In large bowl, combine coleslaw blend, broccoli and onions; stir gently to mix.

In small bowl, combine dressing, marmalade and celery seed; blend well. Pour over coleslaw mixture; toss to coat. Add mandarin oranges; toss gently. Cover; refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving.

Thanks Kaylynn

Kaylynn is bringing sodas, rolls, and sweet potatoes!! I am especially excited about the sweet potatoes! I didn't plan on making these because I didn't think anyone else really wanted them until Kaylynn suggested them! Yay!

Cherry Glazed Turkey

Cherry Glazed Turkey
2 T. Sage
1 t. Salt
1/2 t. Pepper
1 Whole Turkey (12#)
1/2 C. Cherry Jam
1/4 C. Ruby Port

Heat oven to 325. Mix sage, salt and pepper; rub into turkey skin. Rub salt on the
inside cavity of the bird. Fasten neck skin of turkey with skewer.
Tuck legs under band of skin at tail or tie together with heavy string.

Place turkey on rack in shallow roasting pan, breast side up. Cover turkey loosely with
foil; roast 3 hours. Meanwhile, mix preserves and port, set aside.

Uncover turkey. Roast 45 minutes to an hour and half more, brushing turkey with glaze
frequently, until thermometer reads 180 and legs move easily with lifted or twisted.
Remove stuffing from oven after 40-50 minutes of baking time.
Place turkey on warm platter; cover with foil to keep warm. Let stand 15-20 minutes
for easiest carving.

For a larger turkey:
15-22 pounds 3 1/2 - 4 hours
22-24 pounds 4 - 4 1/2 hours
24-29 pounds 4 1/2 - 5 hours

These times are for UNSTUFFED birds, and are just guidelines, not strict times, you need to cook your bird until the thermometer reads 180 degrees. DO NOT UNDER COOK YOUR BIRD!

Thank You Suzi

Suzi has offered to bring pumpkin cheesecake for thanksgiving. That will give some choices for dessert. Thank You

Thanksgiving Menu- First Edition ;0)

OK. Here's the first edition to the Thanksgiving Menu, the month is still early, I'm sure it will change. I will start posting recipes for these items shortly.

Cherry Glazed Turkey
Smoked Salmon
Smoked Brauts
Mashed Potatoes
Gravy
Rolls
Stuffing- My SIL is making this, her recipe sounds yummy, I'll ask for permission to post.
Cranberry Sauce
Fruit Salad
Light and Zesty Coleslaw
DRINK- Apple Peach Sunrise
DESSERT- Pineapple Upside Down Cake with Vanilla Ice cream.

Chocolate and Peanutbutter Chip Banana Muffins

I didn't get any pictures of these super yummy muffins because we ate them up so diggidy dang fast!!

Chocolate and Peanut Butter Chip Banana Muffins:
2 1/2 C. Flour
1 t. Baking soda
1/2 t. Salt
1/2 C. Chocolate Chips
1/2 C. Peanut Butter Chips
1/2 C. Margarine
1 C. Sugar
2 Eggs
3 Bananas, smashed
1 t. Vanilla



Preheat oven to 350.

Combine flour, baking soda, salt, and chips, set aside.

Mix together margarine and sugar until fluffy, beat in eggs one at a time. Stir in
bananas and vanilla.

Slowly mix in powdered ingredients, mix until well blended.
Bake 415-20 minutes.


mmmmmmmmm Oh So Yummy

White Chili

Thank You Jan for putting this idea in my cute little head. I googled and found this recipe at www.cdkitchen.com it is one of my favorite recipe web sites. I'm going to try making this chili on Sunday. Sunday I also have to make pretzels, dog biscuits, rice krispy treats for CJ's bake sale. So check back Sunday night or Monday morning for all new recipes. In the mean time here's the White Chili recipe:
Serves 8
Ingredients:
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 pound skinless boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 cans (15-ounce size) great Northern beans, rinsed and drained
2 medium zucchini, diced
2 onions, chopped
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 cup frozen corn kernels
1/2 cup fat-free sour cream
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper, to taste


Mix the broth, chicken, beans, zucchini, onions, cumin, garlic, and chili powder in a slow cooker. Cover and cook on High until the chicken is cooked through, about 3 1/2 hours. Stir in the corn and sour cream; cook until heated through, about 5 minutes longer. Season with the salt and pepper and serve.

Per serving: 193 Cal, 3 g Fat, 1 g Sat Fat, 34 mg Chol, 264 mg Sod, 19 g Carb, 6 g Fib, 21 g Prot, 64 mg Calc.
This recipe from CDKitchen for Chicken White Chili serves/makes 8

Turkey Chili with Black Beans

1 1/2 pounds Ground Turkey
2 Cloves Garlic, minced
2 Onions, chopped
2 Bell Peppers, any color, chopped
1 pound can Kidney Beans
2 15oz. cans Black Beans
2 1 pound cans Crushed Tomatoes
6 1/2 oz. can of Mushrooms
1/2 C. Chili Powder
2 T. Vinegar
1/2 t. Allspice
1/2 t. Coriander
2 t. Cumin
1 t. Salt

Brown the turkey, onion, and bell pepper, and then drain the fat.

In a LARGE pot mix all the ingredients, bring to a boil and then simmer for a minimum of 3 hours.

I like to add different flavors of peppers depending on my mood. I look for whatever looks extra yummy at the farmers market or the grocery store. When adding the extra peppers, do not brown them with the turkey, just chop them up and add them to the chili before you boil.

This makes a lot of chili, be prepared to freeze leftovers.

KFC Recipe Out Of The Vault!

from www.msnbc.msn.com :

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Pssst. The secret’s out at KFC. Well, sort of.
Colonel Harland Sanders’ handwritten recipe of 11 herbs and spices was removed Tuesday from safekeeping at KFC’s corporate offices for the first time in decades. The temporary relocation is allowing KFC to revamp security around a yellowing sheet of paper that contains one of the country’s most famous corporate secrets.
The brand’s top executive admitted his nerves were aflutter despite the tight security he lined up for the operation.
“I don’t want to be the president who loses the recipe,” KFC President Roger Eaton said. “Imagine how terrifying that would be.”
The recipe that launched the chicken chain was placed in a lock box that was handcuffed to security expert Bo Dietl, who climbed aboard an armored car that whisked away with an escort from off-duty police officers.
Eaton’s parting words to Dietl, “Keep it safe.”
So important is the 68-year-old concoction that coats the chain’s Original Recipe chicken that only two company executives at any time have access to it. The company refuses to release their names or titles, and it uses multiple suppliers who produce and blend the ingredients but know only a part of the entire contents.
Dietl, a former New York City police detective, assured Eaton that the iconic recipe would be safe.
“There’s no way, shape or form ... that anybody is going to get their hands on this recipe,” he said. “And if they get their hands on this recipe, they have to take me with them.”
His security firm is also handling the security improvements for the recipe at headquarters, but he wouldn’t say what changes they’re making.
KFC executives said they decided to upgrade security after retrieving the recipe amid preparations to add a new line of Original Recipe chicken strips.
The recipe has been stashed at the company headquarters for decades, and for more than 20 years has been tucked away in a filing cabinet equipped with two combination locks. To reach the cabinet, the keepers of the recipe would first open up a vault and unlock three locks on a door that stood in front of the cabinet.
Vials of the herbs and spices are also stored in the secret filing cabinet.
“The smell is overwhelming when you open it,” said one of two keepers of the recipe in an interview at company headquarters.
The biggest prize, though, is a single sheet of notebook paper, yellowed by age, that lays out the entire formula — including exact amounts for each ingredient — written in pencil and signed by Sanders.
Others have tried to replicate the recipe, and occasionally someone claims to have found a copy of Sanders’ creation. The executive said none have come close, adding the actual recipe would include some surprises.
Sanders developed the formula in 1940 at his tiny restaurant in southeastern Kentucky and used it to launch the KFC chain in the early 1950s.
Sanders died in 1980, but his likeness is still central to KFC’s marketing.
“The recipe to him, in later years, was everything he stood for,” said Shirley Topmiller, his personal secretary for about 12 years.
Larry Miller, a restaurant analyst with RBC Capital Markets, said the recipe’s value is “almost an immeasurable thing. It’s part of that important brand image that helps differentiate the KFC product.”
KFC had a total of 14,892 locations worldwide at the end of 2007. The chain has had strong sales overseas, especially in its fast-growing China market, but has struggled in the U.S. amid a more health-conscious public. KFC posted U.S. sales of $5.3 billion at company-owned and franchised stores in 2007.

Sorry...

Sorry I haven't posted any yummies. Kyle and I have both been sick. It's hard to tell if something that I made is any good when you can't taste any thing. I'm starting to feel better, so stay tuned!

Bread, without the fancy kitchen appliances

I wanted to make bread this week. I put it off because I thought, I don't have a bread machine and I don't have one of those giant stand mixers. It's going to be too much trouble. Well I googled around and found out that I was WRONG! Here is what I found. This recipe makes the yummiest yummiest bread, and it is so super easy.

2 Loaves of Bread

1/2 C. Milk
3 T. Sugar
2 t. Salt
3 T. Butter, just barely melted, not boiling hot
2 packets or 4 1/2 t. Active Dry Yeast
2 C. Warm Water
5-7 C. Flour, the amount of flour you use depends on what sort of flour you have

First heat the bowl by filling it with hot water and then dumping it out. Mix the warm water and yeast until there is an even consistency. It should look like this...

Now add the butter, milk, sugar, and salt. Mix until well blended. It should look like this...

Then add 4 C. of flour to begin, then slowly add flour 1/4 C. at a time until the dough no longer has the consistency of glue and is more dough like. A little stickiness is ok, but it shouldn't be capable of being a glue alternative. It should look a little like this...


Next you will kneed the dough for 10 minutes. I have limited kitchen space so I just kneed right in the bowl. It's easier and less messy that way. You could clear a work space and dust it with flour and kneed your bread there. After you are done kneading place the dough back in the bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour. Your dough should look a little like this...


I use this time to clean up my mess so that I have a work space for the next step.

After the dough has risen for an hour it should be roughly double the original size. Take it out of the bowl, divide it in half, give it a few punches to deflate it back down to sized. 1 loaf at a time shape the dough into a rectangular size with one side being roughly the length of the bread pan and the other side being about a bread pan and a half long.

Now you just roll it up just like a giant cigar. Tuck the ends underneath with the seam. Place it in your bread pan (spray pan with a non stick spray first), cover and let rise for another hour. I start my oven to preheat to 400 towards the end of this hour.




Bake at 400 for 30 minutes. Immediately remove from the pans and allow the bread to cool before slicing. TaDa! You have a bread that is tasty and you can easily spell all the ingredients! I don't know how to spell or pronounce half of the ingredients on the store bought bread label.

Chicken Ramen Salad

I'm not sure if that is what this is really called, but it's something that my MIL (mother-in-law) makes every so often. I have been craving it for a couple weeks now. I finally called her and asked how to make it. Well, actually first I called my SIL (sister-in-law) and she just told me to google it, I found a ton of recipes, none that seemed just right. So here it is:

Chicken Ramen Salad
Rotisserie Deli Chicken, pulled to pieces
1 Head of Cabbage, shredded or finely chopped
1 Medium Onion or a few Green Onions, chopped
Sesame Seeds to taste
1/2 C. Slivered Almonds
2 packages Top Ramen Chicken Flavored Noodles, raw and crushed

2/3 C. Vinegar
2/3 C. Sugar
2/3 C. Oil
Seasoning packets from the Top Ramen

Mix together the chicken, cabbage, onion, sesame seeds, almonds, and noodles.

Blend vinegar, sugar, oil and seasoning packets.

Pour vinegar mixture over salad.

Refrigerate. Eat. Yum.

**For a healthier version try using baked chicken instead of the deli chicken.**



So now you and I don't have to google the recipe anymore! Yay!

Welcome

So I realized how many of my blog posts have a food theme. So I thought I would make another blog devoted to something that I've learned that I really love. I love to cook. That doesn't mean I want to spend all my time in the kitchen preparing complicated meals, get real. I am always with 2 kiddos at my feet. I need food that is tasty and good for us. So here's my attempt. We will see how it works. We will also see if I can get my kiddos in the kitchen and helpful. Wish me luck!