Two of my friends asked me for these two fruit salad recipes.  They are actually from two other friends who are amazing cooks.  They are both versions of a salad that is a signature dish from a tea room here in the Knoxville area.   I make them a lot when we have company or for a retreat breakfast or brunch because it can be made the day before.  For Ron it is a must have with ham or pancakes.  So if there are leftovers from one night then I know I have to make pancakes the next morning.  When we go over menus before retreats he even makes sure that is how things work out for him.  It is also great with plain or vanilla yogurt and granola.

Keep these ingredients in your pantry and freezer.  They are perfect for taking to a sick friend or a potluck.

Tea Room Salad version #1

1 can peach pie filling

1 can pineapple chunks, well drained

1  small container frozen sliced strawberries in syrup, thawed

Combine well and serve either chilled or at room temperature, but store it in the refrigerator.

Tea Room Salad Version #2

1 large can peaches in lite syrup, drained

1 small can pineapple tidbits, undrained

1 container frozen, sliced strawberries in syrup, thawed

1 small box vanilla pudding

2 tbsp. Tang drink powder

Combine fruit and sprinkle pudding mix and Tang over the top.  Stir and let sit for about thirty minutes for the pudding and Tang to dissolve.

I like the second version the best, but will never turn down the first one.

By the way – Ron, the kids, and I are getting ready to take a two month sabbatical for some much needed rest and renewal.  We are taking our motorhome and taking a grand tour of the west.  We started a new blog for our friends and family to keep up with where we are and what we are doing.  The address is www.roamingbulls.wordpress.com and we would love to have you follow along!

I had lunch with some friends today and we were talking about pickles and growing cucumbers and I told them I had some recipes they might like, so I thought I would share them with everyone.  It has been a while.

With the popularity of gardening growing I’m sure many of you are about to have an abundance of cucumbers.  Sometimes those little plants produce like crazy!  I can’t grow anything because of my chronic black thumb, but someone always has a basket full of cucumbers and zucchini at church in July and August.  Or they are just cheap.

The first recipe is for freezer pickles.  I don’t have the equipment to can pickles and I am afraid of pressure canners, so I have never tried to make traditional pickles.  But one of my friends had homemade freezer pickles once at a ladies’ luncheon and they are very good and sooo worth trying.  I’ve also served them as a salad with tomato chunks in them.  Yum!

Sweet Freezer Chips (Pickles)

1 medium white onion

2 1/2 lb. cucumbers; about 5 medium, unpeeled, sliced 1/8″ thick (I slice them on the thickest setting of my food processor.)

2 tbsp. salt

2 quarts ice cubes

4 cups sugar

2 cups cider vinegar

Thinly slice onion and separate rings.  Mix cucumber slices and onion slices with salt in large bowl.  Cover mixture with ice cubes and refrigerate for 2-3 hours.  Drain off water and discard unmelted ice cubes.  DO NOT RINSE!  Pack cucumber and onion slices in freezer containers, filling to within 1 1/2 ” of top.  In 2 quart pan combine sugar and vinegar.  Bring to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves.  Pour just enough hot syrup over cucumber and onion slices to cover.  Place lids on containers.  Cool, then freeze for at least one week.  To thaw, place container in the refrigerator for at least eight hours.

Makes 3 pints.

This cucumber salad is similar to the creamy cucumber salad at Petro’s.  Nothing says summer quite like it.

Creamy Cucumber Salad

4 large cucumbers, sliced very thin

1 tsp. salt

2 cloves garlic, minced

dash black pepper

2 tbsp. white vinegar

2 tbsp sugar

1/2 pint sour cream

Put salt on cucumbers in a bowl and let stand 1/2 hour.  Add garlic, pepper, vinegar, sugar, and mix well.  If it tastes flat add a little more vinegar.  Too vinegary?  Add more sugar.  Add sour cream and mix well.

Enjoy!

Jollof Rice

My friend Jason was talking smack the other day on his blog about people ignoring their blogs and not writing enough.  Well, I’m sure this post is not fast enough for him, but cut me some slack.  I’ve got three kids for Pete’s sake.  And for what it’s worth I have a Facebook page but I do not Twitter.  I just figured out Facebook.

Anyway, our elementry kids at church are traveling around the world on Wednesday nights learning about the different countries where we have missionaries.  Their final night in each country we give them a chance to try some of the food that is traditionally eaten in that country.  Two weeks ago they finished up Ghana, West Africa, which is not the easiest country to find food from.  At least with Mexico and China there is a restaurant and grocery on every other corner.  A friend sent me a link to this website: www.foodbycountry.com which gives easy recipes for a lot of countries around the world.  We had Jollof Rice, bread balls, and fried sweet plantains.  I was surprised that the kids loved it!  It is surreal when a nine year old asks you for a recipe.  It was also super easy.  Here it is:

Ingredients

• 1¼ cups white rice
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast
• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 1 can (6-ounce) tomato paste
• 3 cups chicken broth

Procedure

1. In a saucepan sauté rice and onion in oil.
2. Cover and cook until onion is translucent and soft.
3. Cut chicken into ½-inch cubes and add to sauté mixture.
4. Mix in tomato paste and then broth.
5. Bring mixture to a boil.
6. Cover pan and reduce heat to low.
7. Cook until rice is tender, liquid is absorbed, and chicken is cooked, about 20 to 25 minutes.

Makes 8 servings.

I did add some garlic, salt, and Italian herbs, because they were handy.  You could probably add whatever you are in the mood for.  I returned the cookbook where I found the bread balls recipe to the library before I wrote it down but I will get it if anybody really wants it and my kids remind me.  They were good, but a lot of messy work that I’m not sure I want to repeat.  Besides, I’d rather just make a Krispy Kreme run if I wanted some deep fried dough.

For the sweet plantains, if you would like to try them, at Kroger in the produce section look for the funny looking large green bananas.  With them there may be some yellow versions.  (Or you can buy a green one and wait for it to turn yellow.  Peel them and you will find a hard banana.  Slice into inch thick slices and fry in hot oil until golden.  They are similar to a sweet potato.  In fact the green ones are often prepared like a white potato.  Plantains are a staple in many countries.  I learned how to make them from my sister’s mother-in-law who is Colombian.

Many years ago a book came out that was full of recipes of how to cook for an entire month in one day.  At the time we only had Emily and I thought it would be a good thing for us since we were so busy with church stuff.   Yeah.  So, I tried it once.  It was a trend that worked for some but did not work for others.  What did not work for me was the recipes that I thought my family would like weren’t so hot or they all just seemed to be the same.  Most of all they did not work because the expensive ingredients, mostly the meats, weren’t always on a good sale the week I needed to cook. Fast forward to today and I still haven’t mastered the program.  (I’m not always the sharpest crayon in the box.)  But I am trying.  What does work for  is to do partial meals.  Pre chop the meat and put it in a marinade, pre cook the meat and have it in recipe size portions, etc.  I haven’t done it much lately, but as summer is getting started and we are getting busier, now is a good time to start again.  Here is the plan I am following for this month, not including any recipes.

A few weeks ago a friend told me about a place here in town where you can get boneless skinless chicken breasts for $1.60 a pound.  The catch is you have to buy forty pounds at a time.  Now pick your jaw up off the floor and I will tell you how to make this work.  First of all I did not buy forty pounds of chicken.  Well, I did, but then one friend took ten pounds of it and another friend took twenty.  (She is more ambitious and organized.)  I also bought a ten pound roll of ground chuck for $1.79 a pound, just for some variety in our meal planning.  By splitting up the chicken that makes it very much more manageable.  Now that I have put away ten pounds of chicken, though, I might just do twenty next time.

First,  I made a list of the meals I thought we might have and picked out some new recipes and then wrote down how much chicken I needed for each and how it needed to be prepared.  For two of the dishes it was just a matter of cutting them into strips or chunks and then pouring a marinade over all.  For two others it was cutting them into chunks for homemade nuggets and serving sized pieces for a baked dish.  The chicken breasts are jumbo sized and just huge so out of one breast i was able to get three serving pieces.  The rest I put in my crockpot to cook through and then I will chop that up and put it into two cup portions for casseroles.  It’s still cooking so I’m not sure how much there will be, but I think I will have enough for eight to ten meals out of a ten pound bag of chicken.  And it took me less then an hour to cut up all that chicken and start the crock pot.

For the hamburger roll I am going to make some mini meatloaves, a few hamburgers, some Salisberry steaks, and cook the rest and freeze in two cup portions for casseroles.   One pound of cooked hamburger is two pounds.  This should be enough for another eight meals and that will take care of the month of April for me.  Plus I did not spend so much out of our food budget that I don’t feel like I can’t get enough food for breakfasts and lunches, plus a roast if one is on sale.

If you are worried about having the freezer space, don’t be.  I store everything in Ziploc Freezer Bags (do not go generic on this) and squeeze all the air out and flatten.  Make sure they lay flat while freezing and they won’t take up as much room in the freezer AND (most important) they will not take as long to thaw.  The Press and Seal Wrap is also great for burgers and such.  By wrapping them all individually it helps me  to only get out what I need, especially for when Ron and Emily are at camp or on a retreat.

Well, hopefully that will help you out some.  I will try to post some of the recipes I’m using as we go through the month.  Plus my friend Jason says I am a blogging slacker and I’m tired of his whining.  (Just kidding, Jason.)  If you live in the Knoxville area and want to know more about my chicken place send me an email or Facebook me and I will give you the information.

Yup, I’ve got another recipe. I made bread pudding in my crock pot tonight and one of my friends begged me to post it ASAP. I don’t have any work tonight and am not terribly distracted so I actually remembered.

When I was growing up my grandmother and grandfather always wanted to go to buffet restaurants. Have you ever been to a buffet that did not have bread pudding? I’m pretty sure that is the only reason my grandmother wanted to go there. Oddly it’s one of the few desserts I don’t remember her making. So, anyway, while growing up I would not touch bread pudding with a ten foot pole. That was old people food! So a few years ago (pre-Katrina) our youth group went to New Orleans on a mission trip. We ate at a fabulous restaurant called the Gumbo Shop and Ron wanted the bread pudding. So I said I’d split it with him and discovered how insanely wrong I had been. Bread pudding is the ultimate comfort food.

While cleaning out the recipe file I mentioned in the previous post I found this recipe which I thought would be good for church tonight. Well, I did not make enough. Of course it was a little light on the dessert table tonight. Next time I’ll use my big crock pot and double it because I sure don’t mind bringing home some leftovers!

Raisin Bread Pudding

6 cups bread cubes (basically a 4 quart crock pot needs to be half full)
4 eggs
2 cups milk
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
1/4 cup raisins
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Sauce:
2 cups powdered sugar
2 tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla

Place bread cubes in a greased slow cooker. In a bowl beat eggs and milk. Stir in sugar, butter, raisins, and cinnamon. Pour over bread and stir well. Cover and cook on high for one hour. Reduce heat to low and cook for three to four more hours, or until a thermometer reads 160 degrees.

Before serving combine the sauce ingredients well with a fork and serve on the side with the bread pudding.

Hope you find it as yummy as I did!

So, Ron has informed me that I am in a recipe rut and we have been eating the same thing over and over. In an effort to revamp our meal time repetition I have been trying out some new things and going through my old cookbooks and recipe files. I just threw away probably two hundred recipes from my file. No lie. Some of them I looked at and wondered what on earth I was thinking and others I just realized I would never make because either no one in the family would eat them or I would never make them because they were too hard. Actually making up my own recipes has been more appealing to me lately.

Anyway yesterday as I was trying to come up with something that would not require a trip to the grocery store I came up with a new chicken recipe that was pretty good. I had a package of three chicken breasts and wanted to do something that did not involve cream of chicken soup or stuffing. (Remember, I’m in a rut.) I found an old recipe for parmesan breaded chicken and was all set for it when inspiration struck. The instructions required to roll the chicken in a mustard mix before rolling in the bread crumbs. I was toasting some old Italian bread to make crumbs (a job I meant to do a few weeks ago) when I noticed the gigantic half empty barrel of pretzels on the fridge. Hmm, that might be interesting. Anyway, this is what I came up with: (BTW, I did make the bread crumbs.)

Pretzel Chicken Strips

2 cups crushed pretzels
3 chicken breasts, sliced into strips
1/2 cup honey mustard
1/2 cup margarine, melted

Combine honey mustard and margarine in a large bowl. Add chicken strips and combine until they are well coated. Let sit in the refrigerator for a while to marinate. Roll chicken strips in pretzels and place on baking sheet. Bake at 375 for 25 – 30 minutes, or until done. Serve with honey mustard on the side for dipping.

Hope you all like this! I used honey wheat braided pretzels, but I think it will work with any kind. Also, if you aren’t a fan of honey mustard, I’m sure a spicy brown will work if that is more to your liking.

Enjoy!

I had to make a dessert tonight for church and had one of those moments where I really wasn’t in the mood.  In fact, I almost stopped and bought something.  But it was that or go to Sonic tomorrow for happy hour, so I went home and made something.  I didn’t really feel like looking for a recipe but I knew I had a French vanilla cake mix (my favorite) and a can of peach pie filling so I thought maybe I could figure something out.  Because the peach pie filling is pretty wet I did have to mess with the ingredients a bit.  Well, anyway it was a big hit and a lot of people want the recipe.  So, here it is:

Peachy Keen Cake

1 box French vanilla cake mix

1 can peach pie filling

1/3 cup oil

3 eggs

1/4 cup water

Preheat oven to 350.  Combine all ingredients well.  Spray 9 x 13 pan with cooking spray.  Spread cake batter evenly in pan and bake 35 – 40 minutes or until cake is golden brown and pulling away from the sides of the pan.  Remove from oven.

Glaze

2 cups powdered sugar

2 tbsp milk

1 tsp vanilla

Combine with a whisk and pour over warm cake.

This cake is wonderful served warm.  Hope you like it.

Hold it! I know when you first read that you thought, “Eeeew!” But I promise it is delicious. I made it for the Green Room at the Tennessee Christian Teen Convention and it was a big hit.

I will add this one caveat. Due to the peanut butter salmonila situation I would not use the Nestle Tollhouse Swirled Milk Chocolate and Peanut Butter Morsels called for in the recipe until the recall blows over. I’d add a link for more info about it, but it’s late and I’m tired. If you are concerned do a Google search for “contaminated peanut butter” and I’m sure you will get lots of info. The recall only involves institutional peanut butter such as pre-packaged and factory use, like Little Debbie Peanut Butter cracker sandwiches, stuff like that. This means your favorite brand of peanut butter you by in a jar off the shelf is safe. So therefore, you should so make this cheese ball!

1 8 oz package cream cheese, at room temp.
1 cup powdered sugar
3/4 cup creamy or chunky peanut butter (not all natural)
3 tbsp. brown sugar
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips
Graham cracker sticks or honey wheat pretzel braids

Beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, peanut butter, and brown sugar in a large mixer bowl until blended. Spoon onto a large piece of plastic wrap and bring up all four corners and twist tightly so that it makes a ball.

Freeze for 1 hour 30 minutes or until firm enough to keep its shape. Place chocolate chips in flat dish. Remove the plastic wrap from the ball and roll until completely covered.

Cover well and freeze for two more hours or until time to serve. (After two hours, of course.) Thaw at room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes and serve with graham cracker sticks and pretzel braids.

I hope you all enjoy this. It’s a great one to make with the kids, too!

We here in Knoxville are enjoying the first snowy day we have had in about five years. A whole 3/4 of an inch. They even canceled school. I’m making Emily do school anyway because of the inauguration. She is not thrilled. I made this soup for my family last week when we had a very cold day. You can start with the base and then season as desired. You also can use any pasta or even leave it out. I use the alphabet pasta because Aiden loves it.

Alphabet Soup

1 pound hamburger or ground trukey
1/2 cup chopped onion (I used frozen)
1 minced garlic clove
1 bag of frozen mixed vegetables
1 family size can tomato soup
1 bottle tomato juice
1/2 box alphabet pasta (about two cups)
1 tbsp each of the following:
Worcestershire sauce
Italian seasoning
dried basil
dill weed
2 tsp of the following
garlic powder
salt
pepper

Brown hamburger with onion and minced garlic. Drain well. Add all remaining ingredients EXCEPT pasta. Simmer for about thirty minutes, stirring often. Add pasta and simmer for 10 more minutes until the noodles are soft. If soup seems too thick you can add a little bit of water.

Serve with sour cream and paremsan or shredded cheddar cheese, crackers, and breads.

You can season it any way you like, what I listed is what I used. If I were not serving kids I might have added a dash of tobasco or some chili powder. The vegetables can be varied also. I even threw in some leftover green beans from the night before. This is also a great “keep on hand soup” because it’s all stuff you can just keep in the freezer and pantry.

Enjoy!

I love pork chops. They have long been one of my favorites but they can be ruined just as easily as perfect. Dry pork chops aren’t too good. My friend, Mandy, said she found a perfect pork chop recipe. I hope she will post it in a response (hint, hint) so you can have it, too. In the mean time this is the tasty version I made tonight.

Cola Pork Chops

1 cup cola, any flavor (I used Coke, I don’t know if diet will work)
1 cup ketchup
6-8 pork chops (not too thick)
brown sugar

Preheat oven to 350. Layer pork chops in a 9 x 13 pan. Combine cola and ketchup and pour over pork chops. Sprinkle brown sugar over all. Bake uncovered 45 – 60 minutes.

This was very yummy. Great with corn pudding and broccoli. Hope you all like it!