Potato Salad

Summer is right around the corner. Along with that wonderful time of year comes invitations to picnics and potlucks. What are you going to take? This is my favorite recipe for potato salad. There is nothing weird in it but it does have an ingredient you don't normally taste in potato salad...BACON! Yum! Bacon makes everything taste good. This recipe makes a ton so if you're making it for just your family you'll need to cut the recipe in half or even in thirds. I hope you enjoy this as much as I do.

POTATO SALAD

8 lbs. potatoes, peeled, cut, and boiled
1 lb. bacon, from the deli is best, cooked and cut up
6 dill pickles, diced
12 eggs, boiled and chopped-save some pretty slices for the top
1 jar mayonnaise
2 1/2 heaping T. mustard
salt and pepper to taste
paprika

1. Combine mayo and mustard, add diced potatoes, bacon, diced pickles, and chopped egg. Add salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with egg slices. Sprinkle with pepper and paprika to make it pretty.
2. TIP: For perfectly boiled eggs, start timing as soon as the water reaches a full boil. Let them boil for 10 minutes. Immediately rinse with cold water and let cool. Also, older eggs are easier to peel. Doing them this way you avoid the greenish looking yolk and older eggs won't stick to the shell.
   

Montreal Steak Marinade

Nothing makes me long for summer like the smell of outdoor grilling. Last week we had unseasonably warm weather. We were craving steak, so early in the day I whipped up this easy marinade and we satisfied our appetites. It's a little on the salty side, which I love, so if you're not so keen on salt, cut back on the Montreal seasoning by about a tablespoon. This week's snow on the daffodils made me realize that summer is still a few weeks away, but it was nice to enjoy it for a few days.

MONTREAL STEAK MARINADE-cooks.com

1/2 c. olive oil
3 T. McCormick's Montreal Steak Seasoning
2 T. soy sauce
3 crushed garlic cloves (1/2 T.)
2-3 steaks

1. Combine ingredients in a large zip top bag. Add steaks and let refrigerate for at least one hour.
2. Grill about 5 min. each side for steaks that are a little pink in the middle.
   

Grilled Chicken Sandwich

Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone! I hope you have your green dinner planned.

Today's recipe comes from the newspaper again, (J.M. Hirsch-Associated Press.) This is a very easy and delicious marinade that makes a tender, juicy chicken sandwich. I would dare say it rivals most grilled chicken sandwiches that you would order at a restaurant. The recipe said to let it marinate for 30 minutes. I mixed mine up after lunch and let it refrigerate for a few hours. I recommend outdoor grilling because for some reason, that makes all the difference in the flavor.

GRILLED CHICKEN SANDWICH

4 T. olive oil
2 T. apple cider vinegar
3 cloves crushed garlic
2 t. salt
1 t. ground black pepper
1 t. ground ginger
1 t. smoked paprika (regular will work fine.)
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
4 buns
red onion slices
mayo
red leaf lettuce
tomato slices

1. Combine the oil, vinegar, garlic, salt, pepper, ginger, and paprika in a large Ziploc bag. Mix well.
   
2. Pound chicken breasts to between 1/4 and 1/2-inch thick. Add chicken to the marinade in bag. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes, longer for more flavor.
3. Grill chicken breasts about 6 minutes on each side until juices run clear. The key is low heat. Don't rush it.
   
4. Brush buns with olive oil and grill slightly 1-2 minutes.
5. Assemble sandwich with toppings and serve.
   

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