Crepe Filling II

Have I mentioned before that I love crepes? I started thinking about these crepes early one Saturday morning and started making them before I realized that I didn't have enough bananas or whipping cream. My wonderful husband offered to go to the grocery store early on a Saturday so I could finish cooking up our breakfast. He likes them too so he wasn't too annoyed about the last minute dash to the store. Making something yummy to eat is never a hassle at this house.

I got this recipe in a handout from a church meeting several years ago. The recipe called for strawberries but I used a mixture of strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries. If you wanted to substitute peaches for the berry mixture that would work also. Just use what's in season or in your freezer and whip up a yummy breakfast or dessert.

CREPES

Go here for my basic crepe recipe.

Cream Filling:

1 c. whipping cream
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 block cream cheese (4 oz.)
3 T. cottage cheese (I eyeball it, if it looks like you need more, add a little more.)
3 chopped bananas

1. Let the cream cheese come to room temperature. Beat until smooth, add sugar and mix well.
   
2. In a separate bowl, whip the cream. Stir in vanilla. Add the whipped cream to the cream cheese mixture.
   
3. Add cottage cheese and chopped bananas to the cream.
4. Chill until ready to fill crepes.

Topping:

1 1/2 c. cut-up fresh or frozen fruit (Strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries are a good combination. You could also use peaches.)
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. water
1 T. cornstarch
1/4 t. almond extract

1. Heat water to boiling.
2. Stir in sugar until dissolved.
3. Whisk in cornstarch and almond extract.
4. Stir in fruit and cook until slightly thickened.
5. Serve over filled crepes.
   

Your favorite meal

So I'm wondering...what is your favorite meal? If you had to choose your last meal what would you choose. Or, if you were stranded on a desert island, what would you be craving, with the exception of water to drink.

I'll go first. I'm not sure I could pick just one, so I'll list two of my favorites. One meal would be spinach tortellini with creamy mizithra cheece sauce, sour dough bread, and an Italian soda. My other favorite is a perfectly cooked steak, medium well, with mashed potatoes and black pepper gravy. Now if I were on a desert island my choice might be a little different. Maybe something like a frozen raspberry lemonade like the one you can get at the Olive Garden.

Please post a comment and share!

Oven-fried Chicken

We dug into this before I remembered to photograph it so please forgive the lack of visual aid. There are two things that make this chicken great. By dredging the chicken in the flour and then dipping it in the milk it stays nice and moist. The second fabulous thing is the crunchy, cornflake coating. I love crispy little bits on fried chicken but I don't like to eat the skin. This way I get to have what I want. Serve it up with mashed potatoes and corn on the cob and your family will thank you.

OVEN-FRIED CHICKEN

1/4 c. flour
1 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
1 t. onion powder
1 c. cornflake crumbs
1 1/2 c. milk
4 chicken breasts

1. Mix together the flour, salt, pepper, and onion powder in a bowl.
2. Set up a dipping station with three bowls. The first one with the flour mixture, the second one with milk, and the third bowl with crushed cornflakes.
3. Pound the chicken so it is about 1/4-inch thick.
4. Dip the flattened chicken in the flour, then the milk, then the cornflake crumbs.
5. Place a little bit of oil in a cookie sheet. Probably about 2 T. You can line the cookie sheet with foil for easy clean up.
   
6. Lay the coated chicken breasts in the cookie sheet.
7. Bake uncovered at 375 degrees for 25 minutes. Turn the chicken over and bake for another 25 minutes. Serve immediately.
   

Chicken Bacon Pizza

Who doesn't love pizza? That's right, everyone loves it! This recipe is much better than the cheap $5 Little Caesar's or a yucky frozen pizza, which by the way I got for free the other day. See how unappetizing that frozen pizza is below?!? (When I opened the box all of the toppings were in one frozen lump on the side of the thin cardboard crust. Very disappointing!) I don't think it requires too much effort to mix up a batch of dough and slice up some toppings. It's well worth it to create a meal that everyone loves. Sometimes we do a pizza a bar and let the kids add what they want to their own personal pizza. Other days we make one big one. Two of our favorites are this chicken bacon that I will list the ingredients for and Hawaiian (you know, the old ham and pineapple.)

Recently a local grocery store had a promotion where you purchased the pizza stone and received several grocery items for free. (See ugly pizza on the side!) I had been thinking about buying one because my old one broke. I decided there was no better time to buy than when I could get some groceries for free...I guess the salad and Texas toast was worth it.

PIZZA DOUGH

1 c. + 2 T. warm water
2 1/2 t. yeast
1 t. sugar
2 T. olive oil
3 c. flour
3 t. salt
1/2 t. basil (optional)
1/2 t. oregano (optional)

1. Combine water, sugar, and yeast in a mixing bowl. Let it proof (sit) for 5 minutes. It should look frothy.
2. Add olive oil, salt, basil and oregano.
3. Add flour a 1/2 c. at a time. When all flour is incorporated knead for about 5 minutes. The dough should be soft and springy.
   
4. Let rise for 30 minutes or until it doubles in size. This is a good time to cut up your toppings.
5. Heat oven to 400 degrees. If you are using a pizza stone put it in a cold oven.
   
6. After dough has rested, roll out and shape.
7. Remove hot stone, place dough on stone and bake for 5 minutes.
8. Remove dough from oven, add sauce and toppings. Bake until golden brown. It usually takes me about 15 to 20 minutes for the edges to look nice and golden.
   

SAUCE

1 c. ranch dressing
1 garlic clove, crushed
2 t. basil
1/2 c. Parmesan

1. Combine above ingredients well and spread on pizza dough.

TOPPINGS

2 chicken breasts, cooked and diced
2 -3 green onions, sliced
3 Roma tomatoes, diced
1 pkg bacon, cooked and cut up
2 c. mozzarella cheese, shredded

Wheat Bread

I discovered my new favorite wheat bread recipe in this week's Deseret News food section. The article recommended using white wheat and adding wheat gluten (gives the dough elasticity and improves texture) and dough enhancer (helps the bread rise and gives a lighter texture.) The results were perfect! It was soft and squishy and had a great flavor. It wasn't too dense like most whole wheat bricks...I mean loaves! It took me about 15 seconds to mill my wheat, about 15 minutes to mix it up, an hour and a half of rising time, and 25 minutes in the oven. That's what I love about bread, minimal preparation, most of the time the dough is doing it's own work, and I get the delicious results at the end. If you've been collecting wheat for your food storage, this is the recipe to try it out on.

WHEAT BREAD

2 1/2 c. warm water
1 1/2 T. yeast
6 - 7 c. whole wheat flour
1/3 c. honey
1/3 c. vegetable oil
1 1/2 T. dough enhancer
1 T. wheat gluten
1 - 2 T. milled flax seed (optional-yay extra fiber!)
2 1/2 t. salt
1 t. vegetable oil to coat hands for hand-kneading

1. Combine warm water, yeast, and 2 c. flour in a large mixing bowl. Let sit for 15 minutes.
2. Add honey, oil, dough enhancer, gluten, flax seed, and salt.
3. Mix flour in a 1/2 cup at a time. Continue adding until the dough begins to clean the sides of the mixing bowl. The dough should be smooth and elastic. Be careful not to add too much flour or the dough will be too stiff and dry.
4. Knead by hand 7 - 10 minutes or about 6 minutes with an electric mixer.
5. Let rise until double, about 1 hour.
6. Punch down and shape into two loaves. To do this I roll it into about a 7 x 13 rectangle (eyeball it.) Then roll it up into a loaf shape. Pinch the bottom seam and ends. Place in greased loaf pans.
7. Let rise until double, about 30-45 minutes.
8. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 - 30 minutes until golden brown. It should sound hollow when tapped.
9. Brush with butter and let cool on racks.

*Just a note: I buy dough enhancer and vital wheat gluten at Kitchen Kneads in West Jordan. I've also seen it at Macey's.
*I halved the recipe because I only wanted one loaf and it turned out great. As I've mentioned before, I would rather bake bread every day and eat it fresh than settle for day old, dried out bread. However, I did have a little bit of bread left over and was surprised to discover that it was still just as soft the next day. This was an amazing recipe.

Beef Stew

Yesterday I tried two recipes from the newspaper that turned out to be successful. One was a slow-cooker beef stew that I just happened to have most of the ingredients for. I didn't have a can of beef broth so I used water and beef bouillon and the frozen peas I thought I had could not be located in either freezer. That didn't stop me because the beauty of a stew, is that you can add more of another ingredient to make up for one that you might not have on hand. I plugged the slow-cooker in at 2:00 p.m., started the homemade bread, and by 6:00 dinner was ready to be served. You've got to love a success like that!

BEEF STEW-Deseret News-Beverly Mills and Alicia Ross

1 c. cubed white potatoes (I used 3 potatoes to make up for the missing peas.)
1 c. baby carrots (I used about 1 1/2 cups, leave them whole.)
1 c. diced celery
8 oz. sliced fresh mushrooms
1 1/2 lbs. lean beef cubes (I cut up half of a cross rib roast.)
1/2 of an envelope dry onion soup mix (Lipton)
2 bay leaves
1 T. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 t. dried thyme (I used ground thyme.)
1/4 t. black pepper
1 can beef broth (I used 2 c. water + 2 t. beef bouillon.)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can diced tomatoes with juice
1/2 c. frozen green peas
3 T. cornstarch + 3 T. water

1. Cut up all vegetables and stew meat.
2. Layer ingredients in the order listed above except for the peas and cornstarch. The potatoes and carrots need to be at the bottom in order to cook completely. Do not stir until later.
3. Cover and cook: crock pot 8 - 10 hours; slow-cooker on medium 4 hours. At 8 hours (or 3 1/2 hours depending on what kind of appliance you used,) remove lid, stir well and add frozen peas.
   
4. Mix the cornstarch with water and combine well. Gently stir in half of the cornstarch. Add remaining cornstarch as needed to reach desired consistency.
   
5. Serve immediately.
   

Italian Nachos

No, I haven't fallen off the face of the earth. Honestly, I've been making some of our old stand-by meals and I'm working the bugs out of a couple of recipes. Oh, and we've been eating out more than we should...speaking of which, one of my favorite appetizers comes from Johnny Carino's. I love their Italian nachos. This dish consists of crispy pasta chips that are drizzled with Alfredo sauce, and covered with meat, cheese, and veggies. Yum! It can be served as a side or a main dish and would be a fun and unique party food. Just line up the ingredients, put the Alfredo in a fondue pot and let your guests build their own nachos.

ITALIAN NACHOS

CHIPS
wonton wrappers (Found in the refrigerated produce section of the store.)
oil for frying

TO MAKE CHIPS

1. Heat oil over medium heat. Drop a small piece of a wonton in to check the heat level. It should immediately float to the top and get covered with tiny air bubbles.
2. The wontons come shaped in squares. While the oil is heating, slice them diagonally so you end up with two triangles. This makes them easier to eat. I usually use half of a package for 4 people.
   
3. Drop the triangles into the hot oil making sure they stay separated from each other. Fry on each side for about 30 seconds. They should be slightly browned. Drain on a paper towel and set aside.

TOPPINGS
1 c. mozzarella cheese, shredded
2 roma tomatoes, diced
2 green onions, sliced
2 chicken breasts, roasted and thinly sliced
black olives, sliced
jalapenos

1. Shred, slice, and dice all toppings.
   
2. Cook the chicken. I sprinkle it with salt and pepper or Morton's Nature's Seasoning. Thinly slice it.
   

ALFREDO SAUCE

1 T. butter
1 T. flour
2 c. half and half
1/2 c. Parmesan cheese, shredded
1/2 t. black pepper
1 t. salt
1 chicken bouillon cube

1. Melt butter, then add the flour to create a roux. Let it slightly brown. It will be very thick.
2. Slowly whisk in the half and half. Once the mixture is combined add the bouillon cube. Once small bubbles appear around the edge of the pan, allow the sauce to simmer, whisking constantly, for about 5 minutes. The sauce will still look a little runny.
   
3. Add the salt and pepper.
   
4. Add the Parmesan. This will thicken up the sauce. If it seems to thick after the cheese melts, slowly whisk in a little more half and half or milk until it reaches a consistency you like.
   

ASSEMBLY

1. Place chips on plate and add desired toppings. Top off with several spoonfuls of sauce. Serve immediately.