Recipe Thread

[Nina~ 431]

nina - my grandma used to make squash casserole. she would boil it in water with salt & pepper. when it was soft she's mash it and mix in 1 egg, bit of butter, and crushed ritz crackers. I don't know exact amounts for the butter or crackers. then she'd bake it in the oven for a bit.

no cheese?

[GabiandVi 34]

In an attempt to get myself back on topic:

Carmen's Caper

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef

1/2 c. chopped onion

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

1/2 lb. spaghetti

1 - 19 oz. can diced tomatoes

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 c. grated cheddar

Brown beef & onion in frying pan. Sprinkle with salt & pepper. Stir. Transfer to bottom of 2-quart casserole dish.

Break up spaghetti for easier serving. Cook according to package directions. Drain. Layer over meat. Pour tomatoes over top. Spoon soup over tomatoes. Cover with cheese. Bake uncovered in 350F oven for 30 minutes until hot & cheese is melted. Cover halfway through cooking if cheese starts getting dry. Serves 6.

Okay. Now you've got me thinking pastitsio and I'm in a daze.

[Amby 490]

no cheese?

not that I know of, but when I tried to make it I added parmesan (the real stuff).

[sachinky 465]

In an attempt to get myself back on topic:

Carmen's Caper

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef

1/2 c. chopped onion

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

1/2 lb. spaghetti

1 - 19 oz. can diced tomatoes

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 c. grated cheddar

Brown beef & onion in frying pan. Sprinkle with salt & pepper. Stir. Transfer to bottom of 2-quart casserole dish.

Break up spaghetti for easier serving. Cook according to package directions. Drain. Layer over meat. Pour tomatoes over top. Spoon soup over tomatoes. Cover with cheese. Bake uncovered in 350F oven for 30 minutes until hot & cheese is melted. Cover halfway through cooking if cheese starts getting dry. Serves 6.

That sounds easy and delicious. I'm gonna give it a try this week.

[elmcitymaven 9,712]

I know what it is and everything, but I don't care. That all just sounds dirty.

It is delicious and wonderful and I think I have a picture somewhere of my last one.

[ValerieA 350]

That sounds easy and delicious. I'm gonna give it a try this week.

It is awesome, and takes nothing to make! I add more cheese because I am a total nut about cheese, but my mom makes it this way and it is still nummy.

[Nina~ 431]

not that I know of, but when I tried to make it I added parmesan (the real stuff).

I will give it a try this week. I think I will add a little ricotta with the parmesan to give it a creamy texture. Thanks Amby.

[ValerieA 350]

Nina/Amby, what kind of squash? I want to find a recipe for butternut squash, I love that stuff.

It is delicious and wonderful and I think I have a picture somewhere of my last one.

That photo really didn't help your case.

[Nina~ 431]

Nina/Amby, what kind of squash? I want to find a recipe for butternut squash, I love that stuff.

I was intending to make it with zucchini and yellow squash because that is what I have on hand. My husband hates butternut squash, so I dont have any recipes for that.

[Amby 490]

val - yellow squash or zucchini

[elmcitymaven 9,712]

Nina/Amby, what kind of squash? I want to find a recipe for butternut squash, I love that stuff.

That photo really didn't help your case.

INFIDEL

[Nina~ 431]

It is delicious and wonderful and I think I have a picture somewhere of my last one.

Who are you and what have you done with Charles' fingers?

[William33 110]

Ever try Chinese steamed buns? They rock!!!

Here is one recipe to try:

Steamed Buns

DOUGH

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup boiling water

2/3 cup cold water

2tsp yeast

FILLING

1/2 pound boneless, skinless chicken, coarsely chopped

3 tablespoons finely chopped ginger

1/4 cup chicken broth

2 tablespoons oyster-flavored sauce

1 tablespoon hoisin sauce

2 teaspoons soy sauce

2 teaspoons sesame oil

1 teaspoon Chinese rice wine or dry sherry

1/4 teaspoon white pepper

DIPPING SAUCE

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon minced green onion

2 teaspoons grated ginger

Prepare dough: Place flour in a bowl. Add boiling water, stirring with chopsticks or a fork. Gradually stir in cold water mixed with yeast, mixing until dough holds together. On a lightly floured surface, knead dough until smooth and satiny, about 5 minutes. Cover and let rest for 30 minutes.

* Ideally, you should make the dough the night before and refrigerate for 8 hours. Second best is 3-4 hours rest in the fridge.

Saute chicken and add all other filling ingredients. Combine dipping sauce ingredients in a small bowl.

On a lightly floured surface, roll dough into a cylinder, then cut into 28 equal portions. To make each bun, roll a portion of dough into a 4-inch circle about 1/8-inch thick; keep remaining dough covered to prevent drying. Place a rounded tablespoon of filling in center of dough. Gather edges of dough around filling; pinch and pleat to seal.

Place buns, seam side up, in 2 heatproof dishes. Let buns rest for 5 to 10 minutes before steaming.

COOKING

Prepare a wok for steaming. Cover and steam buns, one dish at a time until filling is cooked through.

Serve buns hot with dipping sauce on the side.

Ah, I forgot how many holes there are in this recipe.

You should cut squares of parchment paper or waxed paper to place the buns before rising and during the steaming process. This will prevent sticking on the steamer. Be sure to remind guests to remove the paper! I have witnessed paper eating... People seem to like it....

Edited June 2, 2010 by William33

[Kathryn41 3,205]

hmmm - well that was weird - I just typed the following in and when I pressed post it just disappeared! So, trying again. . .

I made this a number of times last year and it was great - even better than lasagna made with pasta! I've also included eggplant along with the zucchini to give it added texture - it was awesome both ways!

Zucchini Lasagna

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cup zucchini or yellow squash - sliced 1/4" thick (or a mixture of both)

1 lb lean ground beef

1/2 large onion, chopped

2 tomatoes, cut up

1 6 oz can tomato paste

1 garlic clove, minced

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried basil

1/2 tsp dried thyme

(or you could use 2-3 tsp Italian Seasoning instead)

1/4 cup water

salt and pepper (several shakes of each)

1 egg

3/4 cup cottage cheese or ricotta cheese (or a mixture of both)

8 oz shredded mozzarella cheeze

1 tsp flour

Directions

Boil the zucchini until tender (although I have used it without boiling it and it seems to work just as well). Drain and set aside

Fry the beef and onions until the meat is brown and the onions tender. Drain fat. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, spices and water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 10 minutes or until the mixture reduces to 2 cups.

Beat the egg until blended, then add in cottage cheese and half the shredded mozzarella cheese. Mix together.

In a 1 1/2 qt baking dish arrange half the meat mixture to cover the bottom. Layer with half of the zucchini, then all of the cottage cheese mixture. Top with the remaining meat and then finish with a layer of the remaining zucchini. Spread the rest of the shredded mozzarella overtop.

Bake uncovered at 375 degrees F for 30 minutes. It will serve 4.

Note - the sauce is pretty mild with the above, I actually make it spicier so you can be generous with the seasonings if that is what you want. This dish is really, really flexible so you can play around with the ingredients to a fair degree.

Edited June 2, 2010 by Kathryn41

[Peikko 1,575]

Quick chicken soup - and variations.

I only recently learned to make chicken soup that truly tastes like chicken, and not some weak brothy nothingness. The secret, somewhat surprisingly to me, is to seperate the process of making the stock and then make the soup. I'm a somewhat lazy cook so I don't do all the finesse things, but it's probably worth it if you like making those sorts of efforts. Anyway, as with anything worth eating, start with GREAT ingredients.

One, fresh chicken - the best quality you can afford but really, try to avoid anything battery (factory farmed) if you can - it's worth the extra cost.

Salt - again, use sea salt at the very least, not the table salt stuff

Water.

Quarter the chicken and place in a large pot, sprinkle over a good pinch of salt and cover with water. Bring to a boil, turn down and simmer. As it simmers, (this is one of the things I don't do, largely because I don't ever see any scum - perhaps a good quality chicken reduces that problem?) skim off anything that looks like scum. I'll simmer it for about an hour, but as soon as the chicken falls off the bone, your are done. Leave to one side and cool. Separate stock from chicken. It's a good idea to do this overnight if you wan to get rid of the extra fat from the chicken.

Chop one/two large onions

Smash one/three cloves of garlic

Finely chop a couple of celery stalks

Chop 2 carrots (optional)

Jalapeno peppers (1 - 2) (optional)

Mushrooms (optional)

Put approx half a cup of oil (I like olive, but whatever you like - some will find the flavour of olice too strong and that's fine) in another large pot and warm gently, add the chopped onions/garlic and still on a gentle heat, saute until transparent (seriously, low heat). Add the other vegetables you are using and saute gently until soft.

Wild rice mix

Pureed frozen sweet corn (optional)

Add some sort of thickener - I like using a wild rice mix, but any rice is good - or you can substitute with potatoes or even pasta. Add pureed frozen sweetcorn if you want a chowder type texture (it's really good with the Jalapeno option)

one can white beans - cannelini is my favourite in this.

Add the can of beans.

Take the chicken stock and skim off any fat at the top (really easy if you made the stock the day before) and add into the rice (potatoe/pasta) mixture

Simmer until the rice (potatoes cook/pasta cooks) plumps up. Just before you serve, add back in however much of the cooked chicken you want to add in - more and it's like a stew, less and it's more of a soup and heat through.

Serve with some crusty bread. Yummy!