Chalupa

Another recipe from my sister-in-law, Rachelle. This is a family favorite.

Chalupa

1 lb. pinto beans (soaked in water overnight, then rinsed and drained the next morning)
3 lbs. pork roast
7 c. water
1/2 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. salt
2 Tbsp. chili powder
1 Tbsp. cumin
1 tsp. oregano
two 4 oz cans chopped green chilis

Place all ingredients in heavy pot (I also have used the crockpot on high for 6 hours and then put on low until ready to shred and serve). Cover and simmer for about 5 hours. Cook until roast falls apart. Break up roast (remove any bones). Uncover and cook until thick (about 30 minutes).

We eat it on tortilla chips or in tortillas; top with cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream, salsa (whatever your favorite condiments are). We are going to be trying this over rice tonight (without the condiments). I am sure it could be used on navajo tacos or taco salad shells, too.

Italian Vegetable Soup

A recipe from my sister-in-law, Rachelle. She brought this to us one night and we all loved it.

Italian Vegetable Soup

1 lb ground beef
1 c. chopped onion
1 c. thinly sliced celery
1 c. chopped carrots
2 cloves garlic, minced
16 oz canned, chopped tomatoes
15 oz. tomato sauce
15 oz. kidney beans, undrained (Rachelle drains and rinses beans and increases the water.)
2 c. water
5 tsp. beef bouillon
1 Tbsp. parsley
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. basil
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 c. shredded cabbage
1 c. canned green beans (Rachelle uses the whole can.)
1/2 c. elbow macaroni (Rachelle uses closer to 1 cup, and I am assuming it is cooked based on the the recipe instructions--I have not yet made this recipe, but will be this week.)

Brown the beef. Add all ingredients except the cabbage, beans and macaroni. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer 20 minutes. Add cabbage, beans and macaroni and simmer. Serve with parmesan cheese.

Bagels

I got this recipe from my friend Lindsay and will try it soon:

Bagels

These turned out soooo YUMMY!!!
I am going to try making Honey Wheat ones later in the week.
The secret to GREAT bagles is Boiling them.....

Homemade bagel recipe

4 cups bread flour

1 Tbls sugar

1 1/2 tsps salt

1 Tbls vegetable oil

2 tsps instant yeast

1-1/4- 1-1/2 cups of warm water.


Mix all the ingredients in a bowl. You don't have to worry about soaking the yeast when you use instant yeast (most yeast sold these days is instant yeast). The dough should feel stiff, but add the extra water if it's really stiff, or you can't get all the dry flour incorporated.

Plop the dough down onto the counter, and knead for about ten minutes, or until the dough is uniform and smooth.

Cut the dough into 8 equal sized balls, and let rest for 10-20 minutes.

Pre heat your oven to 425.

Now, take each of the dough balls and using two hands, roll it into a little snake on the counter. When the snake is longer than the width of your two hands, wrap it around your dominant roiling hand. The dough rope should be wrapped so the overlapping ends are together at your palm, near the start of your fingers. Now take the two overlapping ends, and use your palm to squish/roll these two ends together. Once the dough is fused, you should have a perfectly circular bagel-to-be! This is the only part of the process that can take a little practice before your bagels will look really professional. Don't get discouraged if they don't look perfect, it just takes practice!

Let your bagels rest on the counter for about 20 minutes, and meanwhile, bring a pot of water to boil, and grease a large baking tray lightly. You can just rub a splash of vegetable oil and rub it around.

After the 20 minute wait, your bagels will start to look puffy, and it's time to get them boiling! Add them as many at a time as you can to your boiling water without crowding them. Boil for about a minute, turn them over, and boil for another minute. Take them out a let dry for a minute and then place them on your oiled baking tray. Repeat until all the bagels are boiled.


Add the tray to the oven, and after 10 minutes, flip the bagels over, bake for another ten minutes; and they're done!

Let them cool for at least 20 minutes, get the cream cheese ready, and feast on what's got to be one of the best weekend brunch treats possible!


You can add any toppings you like to these. To make sesame, onions, poppy seed, caraway etc. etc. bagels just have a dry plate ready with the seed or spice topping spread out on it. After the bagels have come out of the boiling water, place them face down onto the seeds, and then place the seed side up onto the baking tray. Bake and flip as for plain bagels.

Broccoli Cheese Soup

Another one from my mother-in-law, and of course, it is the best!

Broccoli Cheese Soup

2 Tbsp. butter
3/4 cup chopped onion

Cook in large pot until onions are tender and clear.

Add:

6 cups water
6 chicken bouillon cubes

Heat to boil and add:

12 oz. twisty noodles
1 tsp. salt

Cook for a few minutes, then add:

broccoli (my mother-in-law uses two 10 oz. pkgs. of frozen broccoli and I use a head or two of fresh broccol--only the florets)
1 tsp. garlic powder

Cook 5 minutes with lid on pot, then add:

6 cups whole milk (I have used skim and others before, but whole is best)
2 lbs. Velveeta cheese, cubed

Cook until melted, stirring frequently. Add a teaspoon (or less, if you prefer) of pepper (white or black).

Serve hot with bread or rolls (orange rolls are a nice combo--salty and sweet) and a garden salad.

Chicken Casserole Supreme

Easy and super filling for those ever-growing and super hungry kids (I have 8). Healthier if served with a large garden salad. ;-) I double or triple this recipe for my family.

Chicken Casserole Supreme

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast (I usually cube mine before I cook it.)
1 onion, chopped
3/4 cup butter, melted
6 oz. crushed Ritz crackers
1/4 to 1/2 cup water
1 (10.75 oz.) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 cup cheddar cheese, grated

Saute chicken and onion until cooked and tender. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium bowl blend butter and Ritz crackers. In a bowl mix Cream of Chicken soup and 1/4 to 1/2 cups water (you want don't want it too liquidy). In a 2 qt. casserole dish layer the chicken/onion mixture, then the soup/water mixture, then cheddar cheese and lastly, the butter/Ritz cracker mixture. Bake uncovered for 30-35 minutes. Serve over rice.

San Francisco Chops

My family loves this recipe:

San Francisco Chops

In a large crockpot add the following:

6-8 boneless pork chops
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp. canola oil
5 Tbsp. broth (I used chicken)
4 Tbsp. soy sauce
3 Tbsp. brown sugar
1/4 to 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper
2 tsp. cornstarch
2-3 cups water (you need to keep an eye on this to make sure the pork never gets dry--you can add more water as needed)

Set on low for 8 hours or high for 6 hours. When finished it should be very tender and moist with some broth/juice still in crockpot. Serve over cooked egg noodles.

Judy's Meatloaf

This is the best meatloaf in the world, because there aren't any tomatoes in it. ;-) Also from my mother-in-law.

Meatloaf

In a blender combine 1/2 cup milk and 1/3 cup chopped onion.

In a large bowl add 3 pounds ground beef (80%-90%), 3-5 slices white bread (crumbled fine) and 2 eggs. Mix thoroughly with hands or large wooden spoon. Add in salt and pepper (probably a teaspoon salt and half a teaspoon pepper) and milk/onion mixture. Mix. Press into 13 X 9 baking dish and bake at 350 degrees F for 1 1/2 hours.

Goes great with green beans and mashed or roasted potatoes.

Judy's Chinese Chicken Salad

This is my favorite Chinese Chicken Salad recipe. I got it from my mother-in-law.

Chinese Chicken Salad

Dressing (I usually double or triple this)

4 tbsp. rice vinegar
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
4 tbsp. sugar
1/2 cup oil (I usually do a combo of canola and sesame oil)

Heat all, except oil, in a saucepan over low to medium heat until dissolved. Let cool. Add in oil.

Salad

chicken breasts (cooked, cooled and diced--about half a breast per person)
half a head of iceberg lettuce
one green leaf lettuce
half a head of green cabbage (sliced thin)
2 green onions (sliced thin)
about 1 cup coarsely chopped nuts (I used pecans and almonds), lightly toasted
1/4 cup sesame seeds, lightly toatsted

Toss all together in a large bowl.

Something Crunchy

My mother-in-law uses a can of fried wonton noodles that you can find in the Asian section of your local grocery store. I like to take fresh wonton wrappers (usually in the produce section), slice them thin and fry in oil for a couple of minutes (drain on paper towels). I have also used broken corn tortilla chips in the past.

You can toss the fried wonton noodles into the salad at this point and add the dressing and toss together. Or you can leave the fried wontons and dressing separate and let everyone add their own. This also helps with leftovers, as adding the dressing will make the leftover salad and wontons limp and unappetizing.

Serve with rolls or good bread. (Photo to follow.)