Archive for the ‘Main Dish’ Category

Crockpot Recipes

Tuesday, February 9th, 2010

Slow-cooker Minestrone

3 cups water
1-1/2 pounds stewing meat, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 medium onion, diced
4 carrots, diced
14-1/2 oz can tomatoes
2 tsp salt
10-oz package frozen mixed vegetables OR your choice of frozen vegetables
1 Tbsp dried basil
1/2 cup dried vermicelli (We couldn’t find vermicelli, so we used orzo instead.)
1 tsp dried oregano
Added 1 15-oz can cannellini beans, because minestrone should have beans in it
grated Parmesan cheese

1. Combine all ingredients in slow-cooker. Stir well.

2. Cover. Cook on Low 10-12 hours or on High 4-5 hours

3. Top individual servings with Parmesan cheese

Also, we don’t add that much salt to our food.  We have sea salt in a grinder and I probably just added a couple turns of that.  I’m sure it wasn’t 2 teaspoons.

The 3 of us (Gary, Emily, and me) all loved it!  It was gone in a matter of days.

California Chicken

3-lb chicken, quartered
1 cup orange juice
1/3 cup chili sauce
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp molasses
1 tsp dry mustard
1 tsp garlic salt
2 Tbsp chopped green peppers
3 medium oragnes, peeled and separated into sections  OR
1 13-1/2 oz can mandarin oranges

1. Arrange chicken in slow cooker.

2. In separate bowl, combine juice, chili sauce, soy sauce, molasses, dry mustard and garlic salt.  Pour over chicken.

3. Cover; cook on Low 8-9 hours

4. Stir in green peppers and oranges. Heat 30 minutes longer.

Variation:

Stir 1 tsp curry powder in with sauces and seasonings.

Stir 1 small can pineapple chunks and juice in with green peppers and oranges.

Plus, I made Chunky Cinnamon Applesauce in the crockpot, from Two Peas and Their Pod.

I love using my crockpot, because you can set it up with a minimum of work, then go about your day, and supper’s made when you come home at 5 or 6pm. I made the applesauce during the night, then transfered the applesauce to a container to go in the fridge, washed the crock, and got the California Chicken all set to go.  I’ve used it 3 times in the past two weeks.

Today, it’s been snowing all day!  There are probably 7-9 inches on the driveway and it was very much NOT done snowing yet.  The snow is almost up to Jasmine’s belly.  I need to measure from belly to end of legs, to find out how many inches that is.  Emily did not get a snow day and my clinic hours went on, as scheduled, so no slacking for us! I’m glad I had nowhere to go tonight!

Tags: , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Dog, Kids, Main Dish, My Life, Recipes, Weather | 2 Comments »

Yummy Summer Salad

Sunday, June 7th, 2009

Chicken Pasta Salad with Blueberries

Blueberry Vinegar:

1 cup fresh blueberries
2 cups white vinegar
2 T. sugar

Salad:

1 (9-oz) pkg. frozen French-cut green beans, thawed
3 cups shredded cooked chicken breasts(about 1-1/2 lbs.)
3 cups cooked spiral pasta (cooked without salt or fat)
1 cup fresh blueberries
3/4 cup thinly sliced celery
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions
2 T. finely chopped fresh oregano
1/2 cup, plus 2 T. plain low-fat yogurt
1/4 cup plus 1 T. reduced-calorie mayonnaise
3 T. blueberry vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp coarsely ground pepper
Lettuce leaves (opt.)

Blueberry vinegar: Place blueberries in a sterilized 1-qt. glass jar. Combine vinegar and sugar in a non-aluminum saucepan over high heat. Cover and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and pour vinegar mixture over blueberries. Cover and let stand at room temperature for 3 days. Strain blueberry mixture through several layers of cheesecloth into decorative jars; discard blueberries. Seal jars with a cork or other airtight lid. Yield: 2 cups

Salad: Place green beans between paper towels and squeeze until barely moist. Combine green beans, chicken, pasta, blueberries, celery, green onion and oregano in a large bowl. Combine yogurt, mayonnaise, blueberry vinegar, salt and pepper in a bowl; stir well. Pour over chicken mixture; mix gently. Cover and chill 2 hours. Serve on a lettuce-lined plate, if desired.

Yield: 6 servings (about 1-1/2 cups)

Cooking Light March 1995 (I think.  Can’t find magazine issue anymore and can’t verify online, either.)

Tags: , , , , , , ,
Posted in Finished Project, Main Dish, My Life, Recipes | No Comments »

Yummy recipe!

Wednesday, April 9th, 2008

The Rachael Ray dinner was delicious.  I just finished eating it for the second time tonight!  We cooked up 6 chicken breasts, at once, since that would make 2 supper’s worth of sandwiches for the 3 of us.  We only made half a recipe (8-oz of pre-shredded cabbage), of the cole slaw and that was easily enough for 2 night’s worth, for the three of us.

It was also nice, that I’d done most of the hard work, on Monday night, since on Tuesday, I had to work at 5pm.  My hubby and daughter only had to assemble the sandwiches, and serve the coleslaw for last night’s supper.

Emily and I also know now, that in the absence of lemon juice to keep the avocado fresh, we can keep the second half in the peel, face-down on a plate, covered tightly with plastic wrap, to be able to use it the next night.  We meant to buy a lemon, but we forgot.  We also forgot to buy the green onions for the cole slaw.  Maybe next time!

It was definitely worth all the hard work of juicing 3 limes!  They are harder to juice, than lemons.

We had a sunny day today, which was nice, after all of yesterday’s rain.  It’s also supposed to rain tomorrow night.  That’s better than Duluth, MN, who is under a blizzard warning for tomorrow night!  Ugh.  Temp was in the low 50’s today.

I recently finished a new Monthly Dishcloth KAL.  This one was a spring scene with flowers in a field, called The Meadow.  It was designed by Lindy,  She’s only 16.  Doesn’t she do a great job?

Spring scene with flowers and a sun

Tags: , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in 2008 Dishcloth Challenge, Finished Project, Kids, Knitting, Main Dish, My Life | 1 Comment »

Version 2.5

Monday, April 7th, 2008

I upgraded tonight, but see that I lost my pretty decorations! It all works, but I don’t have time to fuss with the design! Maybe in the morning. I really have to go to bed. Also, the chicken that I cooked for tomorrow night’s supper, needs to be put into the fridge, now that it’s cooled a bit.

We are making a Rachael Ray 30-minute meal, although, what I did tonight, took longer than 30 minutes! LOL!

Honey-Lime Grilled Chicken Sandwiches and Five Vegetable Slaw

I marinated and cooked the chicken tonight, along with making the cole slaw!  Haven’t tried the chicken, but the cole slaw is delicious!

Tags: , , , ,
Posted in Main Dish, My Life, Recipes | 2 Comments »

New snow!

Tuesday, February 13th, 2007

This morning, Sheboygan wasn’t in the snow advisory.  Then around 3pm, it started snowing and quickly became heavy.  Then they announced we WERE in the snow advisory area!  LOL!  We had already figured that out.  Now it’s about 8pm and we have several inches on the ground and it’s still coming down!  I have to go pick up my kids from pep band very soon and I’m not looking forward to it, since the roads are a little slippery!  Ugh.  Oh well, the new snow looks so pretty now.  The old snow was getting dirty and icky looking.

The kids and I had breaded porkchops for supper, with steamed broccoli and cauliflower, and baked potatoes with sour cream and cheese.  Yummy!  I’ll post the recipe for the pork chops, when I get back from picking up the kids!  Off I go, into the snow!

Breaded Pork Chops:

Prepare Pork Coating Mix (below). Dip 4 pork rib or loin chops, (1/2 to 3/4 inch thick), into 3/4 cup milk.  Shake each in Pork Coating Mix, coating both sides.  Cook on rack in shallow pan in 425 degree oven until done and brown, 30-35 minutes.
4 servings

Pork Coating Mix

2 tablespoons yellow cornmeal
2 tablespoons whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground sage
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon paprika

Shake ingredients in medium plastic or paper bag.

Yummy.  It smelled so good in my kitchen with potatoes baking in the microwave and the pork chops roasting in the oven!  I should cook at home more often.

Posted in Dog, Kids, Main Dish, My Life, Recipes, Weather | 2 Comments »