Thai Peanut Salad

My friend Shiela shared this recipe not too long ago.  I made it one night and loved it.  Not only was it tasty and fresh and the perfect summer salad, but it was easy to make.  It's versatile, too-- I add water chestnuts and sometimes pea pods to it, but you can add or leave out whatever you want!

I just knew it would be a hit with my family and could hardly wait for the next family gathering so I could bring it along.   When my sister invited us all over for a day-after-the-Fourth-of-July picnic (yes, it would have been easier to just say July 5th picnic), I knew it was time to showcase this salad.  I was so excited.  I even started it at midnight, after returning home from a 4th of July party, and got the noodles cooked so that they would be nice and cold for sure in the morning.

I awoke in the morning and promptly lit the grill for the chicken, even before I made my morning cup of tea.  That's how excited I was about bringing this rock star salad. 

I mixed up the salad, plated it and had my regular food-blog-photo-op with it (Useless Info: do you know I probably take about 35 shots of the same angle hoping for a good picture for this blog?  I used to think it was hard work getting a group photo of all 8 of the grand kids in our family-- getting them all to look and smile at the same time-- that's nothing compared to trying to get a decent shot of a plate of food!).  Anyways, after the photo-op, I neatly packed up the salad in a bowl and tucked it into the fridge so it could get nice and cold for the picnic.

Fast forward to the picnic.

My dad mentions he made a new salad for the picnic.  A spaghetti salad.  Jokingly, I say, "It's not a Thai peanut salad, is it?"

I mean really, what are the odds? 

My dad answers, "Yes, it is."

And proceeds to tell me what's in it-- basically the same things as mine!!!

We laugh (awkwardly) and move beyond it and start talking about something else, like the weather or some other fluffy subject, while I'm secretly in my head cussing about the fact that we have two of the same salads and now my salad won't be the hit!  (okay, who am I kidding-- it wasn't secretly and it wasn't actually even in my head).

Fast forward to when one of my sisters arrive....  carrying a big pasta bowl.

Again, jokingly, I say, "that isn't a Thai Peanut salad, is it?"

Wait for it...

...

...

...

Wait for it...

...

...

...

I don't even need to tell you, do I?

She brought a Thai Peanut salad.

*Deflate.*

So, while it was so much fun to finally have a family gathering to bring my salad to, three of the four family's at the gathering brought the same salad, with minor alterations.  I had to eat some of all three, of course.  Here they are together on one plate-- you can definitely see the similarities but also the differences.

Here is the recipe for the salad I brought--  which for some reason, didn't taste as rock star-ish as I wanted it to that day!  It's really a perfect potluck recipe-- but you may want to check ahead of time to make sure that nobody else is bringing it!

Thai Peanut Chicken Noodle Salad


1 cup Kraft Asian Sesame Dressing
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 cooked boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into chunks
2 Tbsp. crunchy peanut butter
2 Tbsp. honey
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper
1 pkg. (1 lb.) thin spaghetti
4 green onions, sliced
1 cup chopped cilantro

Directions
Cook spaghetti as directed on package. Toss cooked chicken chunks with 1/4 c. Asian Sesame Dressing. Mix remaining dressing mixture, peanut butter, honey and crushed red pepper.

Drain spaghetti. Add to chicken mixture with peanut butter mixture and all remaining ingredients; mix lightly. Serve warm or chill in fridge for 4 hours before serving.

Split Pea Soup

If you follow this blog, I'm sure you won't be surprised to hear that I had some split peas on hand that needed to be used up. (No, not opened peas... just a bag or so extra!) This is my very basic split pea soup recipe that both my husband and I love.

Directions:

Rinse entire bag of peas and put into a pot with:
4 cups chicken broth
4 cups water
1 ham bone

Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.

Remove ham bone; cut meat from bone and put the meat back into the broth.

Add:
1/2 cup chopped carrots (these need to be either diced or parboiled since mine always end up a tad too crunchy)
1/2 cup diced potatoes (do not need to be parboiled)
1/2 cup chopped onion
salt and pepper to taste

Simmer for another 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Easy Chicken Parmesan

Ingredients:

4 boneless chicken breasts, pounded to 1/2 inch thickness
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
seasoned bread crumbs
2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil
sliced or shredded Mozzarella cheese
1 jar (16 oz) spaghetti sauce
Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Whisk together the egg and milk. Dip the chicken breasts in milk and egg mixture and then in bread crumbs.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Brown the chicken in the hot oil on both sides until golden, about 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Set chicken in a baking dish.

Sprinkle mozzarella cheese on each chicken breast (as much as you'd like... I covered mine completely).

Pour 1 jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce over all pieces. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and a little more mozzarella.

Bake at 350° for about 25 to 30 minutes, or until bubbly. Serve with spaghetti, garlic bread and a nice green salad.

Brains For Dinner!

For Halloween dinner, I usually try to come up with something quick and fast, but still gruesome and fun.

Try serving spaghetti from a skull Halloween bucket, along with some chicken fingers with the tips dipped in paprika (to make fingernails) to gross out the family but still get something hearty in their bellies before heading out trick-or-treating!

Cheesy Potato Soup

This is a recipe that my dear friend Carmel shared with me a few years ago. She gets a lot of flack from people about this soup recipe since it is not in any way healthy or good for you. People see the recipe and call it "Heart Attack Soup" or mention how their arteries are clogging just from scanning the ingredients list. BUT...... one taste of this soup usually stops the comments in their tracks. It's one of my favorite comfort foods. Everything in moderation, right?

Directions:



1 stick butter
1 med onion - minced
1 cup grated carrot
1/2 cup of chopped celery

Saute these together until tender. I usually just chop the onions and carrots.

Add: 4 cans cream of potato soup
1 lb Velveeta cheese, cut into small chunks
8 oz sour cream
4 cups milk
salt and pepper to taste

I usually put this in a big crock pot and just slow cook it all day, but you can make it in a pot on the stove, as well.

If you make it on the stove, just heat, stirring occasionally until hot and melted. The same goes for using the crockpot, just use the cover. And throw the "never open the lid of a crockpot" rule out the window with this soup. You'll find yourself checking, stirring and tasting often with this one!

Carmel's disclaimer- There are a lot of ways to make this healthier....reduced fat soups, sour cream, don't use as much butter/margarine, fat free milk, etc.

But who would want to do that? Make it the fatty way and enjoy it! I've been known to throw in broccoli, cauliflower and/or bacon and ham bits on occasion.

Campfire Cabbage

Here is another easy side dish to make in a unique way. This is a recipe I found when looking for foil-packet meals for camping. I made this at home in our fire bowl on our patio. It tasted really good and my kids loved it, too!


Ingredients

Head of Cabbage (possibly two, depends on the amount of people)
Butter
Salt
Pepper

Directions:

Cut the cabbage up into wedges.

Cut up the butter and add a couple teaspoons/tablespoon to each wedge, sprinkle the seasonings for taste.



Place individual wedges in foil and wrap tightly.

Place foil wedges in a fire.



Let cook for about 30 minutes, turning occasionally and going back and forth between embers and flames.

- If you cut the head of cabbage up into greater than 4 wedges the cook time is reduced slightly.

Cucumbers and Vinegar

Mmmm.... does anything scream summer more than cukes and vinegar salad? This was a staple growing up in my house. Ironically, I just got off the phone with my mom asking her for the ratio of vinegar and water. I'll never need to write this recipe down-- it's that simple. And so delicous to eat on a hot summer day like today.

Ingredients:

1 cucumber
1 onion
salt and pepper
1 tablespoon or so of sugar
1/2 cup vinegar
1/2 cup cold water

Slice the cucumber and onion and put in a bowl. Sprinkle with sugar, salt and pepper. Mix vinegar and water and add to bowl. Refrigerate until ready to serve. (this is so refreshing when it's ice cold)

Grilled Cheese Sandwiches, a la camping style!

We went camping over the weekend and I tried to make as many creative meals as possible. I have vivid memories of camping as a child and using pie iron to make a wonderful campfire treat using bread, butter and pie filling. I used the same pie irons to make our lunch one of the days (and of course the fruit pies at night). If you like to camp, or even like to have recreational fires in your own yard, I highly suggest a pie iron! You can make so many yummy treats and it's almost as fun to make them as it is to eat them.

You make a grilled cheese sandwich just as you would at home in your kitchen:

Butter one side of two slices of bread and place a slice or two of cheese between the bread.



Place the sandwich, butter sides out, into the pie iron.



Place the pie iron onto some hot coals and leave there for a few minutes. I actually continually open the pie iron up to check it because it burns fast! I think we ended up cooking it for about 2-3 minutes on each side... but be sure to check it often!



Each sandwich you make after the first one will not take as long since the pie iron will be hot.

Granola

This is Alton Brown's recipe for granola that my mom shared with me last year. The first time I made it, I didn't add any dried fruit to it. I just ate it plain or on top of yogurt. My husband ate it by the bowlful with milk and a spoon. I made it again last night and added dried cranberries to it. I can't stop eating it this morning! The cranberries add such an unexpected flavor and texture burst.

Ingredients

3 cups rolled oats
1 cup slivered almonds
3/4 cup shredded coconut
1 cup cashew nuts (optional)
1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp brown sugar
1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp maple syrup
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 tsp salt
1 cup raisins (optional)

Directions

preheat oven to 250­°

In large bowl, combine oats, nuts, coconut and brown sugar.

In a separate bowl, combine maple syrup, oil and salt.

Combine both mixtures and pour onto 2 baking pans. Cook for 40 -50 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes to achieve an even color. Watch your time!

***The recipe calls for transfering the granola to a large bowl when you remove it from the oven, but I actually dump it out onto a paper grocery bag that I had cut open. The granola will keep cooking a bit after you take it out of the oven, so I spread it out to cool it faster. Otherwise I think it may get a little overdone if it was grouped in a bowl.***

Remove from oven and transfer into a large bowl. (or spread on grocery bag)

Add raisins if you prefer and mix until evenly distributed.

May substitute dried cranberries or dried chopped apricots for raisins.

Crockpot Breakfast Casserole (or Hotdish as we say in Minnesota)

This was a recipe I tried out for Father's Day. The recipe comes from my friend Robin. I changed the recipe to fit our needs quite a bit, so I'll include both recipes (mine is in green). It tasted pretty good... a lot less eggy than I thought it would be. The next time I make it, I'll use less potatoes so I get more eggness in it.

It certainly was nice waking up and having breakfast hot and ready!

Crockpot Breakfast Casserole

1 (28 oz.) Bag Ore-Ida Frozen Potatoes O'Brien, thawed slightly (I just used Southern Style Hash Browns-- I knew my kids wouldn't touch it if it had peppers in it and mine weren't slightly thawed)
1/2 Cup Diced Onion
1 Pound Lean Ham, diced ( I used 1 lb bacon, diced, uncooked)
2 Cups Fat Free Shredded Cheddar Cheese (Mine wasn't fat free... I don't believe in fat free... :) )
1 Cup Skim Milk (I used 1% milk)
3 Cups Egg Substitute (I substituted the substitute with 1 dozen real eggs)
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Pepper (this seemed like a lot... I used only 1/2 tsp and it still was peppery)

Spray crockpot with non-stick cooking spray.

You will make three layers. Place 1/3 of the potatoes into the bottom of the crockpot, followed by 1/3 of the onions, 1/3 of the ham and 1/3 of the cheese.

Repeat this step two more times ending with the layer of cheese.

Beat together the egg substitute, milk, salt and pepper; pour it over the layers in the crockpot.

Here it is when I first added all the ingredients. The egg is in there, too... but it can't be seen. I was worried about that, but it fluffed right up by morning.

Cover and cook on low for 9-10 hours overnight.

Here it is in the morning when I woke up:



Cut into 8 wedges when ready to serve. (my five year old thought we were having birthday cake for breakfast!)

*I actually just placed a cutting board over the top of my crock pot and flipped it out onto that before slicing it. And I did originally cut it into 8 wedges, but they are HUGE wedges! So you can slice it even smaller and get at least 16 servings out of this.

I'll make it again but will use the potatoes that are requested next time. I think the Potatoes O'Brien would make it taste fantastic!

Sliced (imagine how pretty it would be if I had used the potatoes with peppers in it! Oh the colors!!) :

Macaroni "Crackaroni" Salad

My dear friend Gretchen shared this recipe for Macaroni Salad. Her husband coined the phrase "Crackaroni Salad" when he describes it because it's so good and he isn't able to stop eating it. Tonight at dinner, my own husband asked me why it was called Crackaroni Salad and when I explained to him about Gretchen's husbands reasoning, my own husband didn't show much reaction. Ironically, as we finished up dinner, he was almost licking his bowl clean and said, "Will you just get this stuff away from me?????" I think he finally caught onto why it's called Crackaroni Salad.


4 cups uncooked elbow macaroni (1 box Barilla elbows)
1 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/3 cup white sugar
1 Tablespoon prepared yellow mustard
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 stalks celery, chopped
4 hard boiled eggs, chopped

Cook macaroni, hard boil eggs. Chop up eggs and celery, add to macaroni. Mix dressing ingredients separately, then pour over and toss to coat.

Sliced Baked Potatoes

This is a new recipe I tried today. I think they are pretty good and look sort of fancier than a regular baked potato. I think I took mine out too soon, however, since they were still a little crunchy. Or maybe I should just slice then thinner next time? I'll definitely try them again.

Ingredients
4 medium potatoes
1 tsp. salt
2-3 Tbsp. melted butter
2-3 Tbsp. chopped fresh herbs or 2-3 t. dried herbs (parsley, chives, thyme, etc.)
4 oz. grated Cheddar cheese
1 1/2 T. grated Parmesan cheese

Directions
Scrub and rinse potatoes; do not peel. Cut into thin slices, almost but not quite all the way through. You can put the handle of a wooden spoon under the potato to stop the knife from cutting through.

Put potatoes in a baking dish; fan them slightly so they are open a little. Sprinkle with salt and drizzle with the melted margarine. Sprinkle herbs over margarine.

Bake at 425 degrees F for about 50 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle with cheddar and Parmesan cheeses; return to oven for 10-15 minutes until lightly browned, cheeses melted, and potatoes are soft inside when touched with a fork.

Corn Flake Chicken Kiev

My mom used to make an awesome chicken dinner that was called "Corn Flake Chicken". I've shared the recipe with many friends and it has been coined a hit! Tonight, I decided to try a new take on it-- and turned ordinary Corn Flake Chicken into Corn Flake Chicken Kiev! My family ate it all up... and it was so easy to make. I didn't really follow a recipe, but I paid attention to how much I added of each ingredient:

Ingredients: (you'll need to adjust to make more)
2 chicken breasts
1 cup of Corn Flakes cereal, crushed
8 tablespoons butter, divided
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon seasoning salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh parsley, chopped

Directions:
Pound chicken to be about 1/4 inch thin.
Season chicken with salt, pepper and garlic powder.
Slice 4 tablespoons of butter into chunks and place 2 tbsp worth of chunks in a line in the center of each piece of chicken.
Sprinkle with parsley.
Tuck long sides of chicken in, and roll up from a short end, rolling as tightly as possible. Secure with toothpicks.

Melt remaining 4 tablespoons of butter.

Add seasoning salt to crushed cornflakes in a large bag or bowl.

Drudge each piece of chicken through the butter, coating completely and then through the corn flake mixture.

Place seam side down in a baking dish and pour remaining butter over the top of the chicken pieces.

Bake at 375° for 45 minutes or until juices run clear in chicken.

Sticky, Gooey, Yummy, Spicy Baked BBQ Chicken

You. Must. Try. This. Chicken.

It's a recipe that is excellent the night you make it and serve it hot. It's a recipe that is excellent the next day when you take it out of the refrigerator and serve it cold. It's not at all healthy... perhaps that's why it tastes so good? It's sweet, yet spicy.... sticky, yet smooth..... crunchy, yet tender.

Ingredients
4 whole chicken breasts, boneless, skinless
seasoned salt
garlic salt
pepper
2 tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
1/2 bottle BBQ sauce
honey 1/2 cup
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup flour

Directions

Slice chicken into 1/2 inch strips (can use any size or type to suit your needs, works well with wings). Place the chicken in a in large bowl and coat with Worcestershire.
Sprinkle with seasoned salt, garlic salt and pepper. Put oil into frying pan and heat to med/high to fry chicken.

In a bowl, coat pieces of chicken with flour. Fry chicken in a skillet with oil on medium/high heat until golden brown.

Mix BBQ sauce and honey in a small bowl.

Place chicken on a cookie sheet or oven pan. Brush or drizzle BBQ mix over chicken and bake at 400F for 10 min.

Remove chicken - baste again with BBQ mix and return to oven and bake for an additional 10 minutes. (I actually just stir it around in the pan and then put it back in the oven)

Substitutions can be used for most ingredients. The important part is to fry, then bake with the BBQ sauce.

And just for giggles-- I thought I'd add a picture of the chicken I use for myself. I don't actually eat meat-- but I still cook it for my family. This is one recipe I would be missing out on because of being a vegetarian. So I substitute Morning Star Farms Chik'n Strips for the chicken breasts and follow the recipe as written. Here is what my fake chicken looks like when it's done:

Chocolate Chip Waffles

My kids love waffles-- I will bake up a ton and freeze them so we have them on hand all of the time. I usually make half a batch of regular waffles and half a batch of chocolate chip waffles. The chocolate chip ones are perfect for grab-and-go breakfasts on school mornings since there is no syrup required. A little blast of chocolate in each bite! Who doesn't like to start their mornings off with chocolate?

Ingredients

1 3/4 cup flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp sugar
3 eggs, separated
7 tbsp oil (which is 1 tbsp less than 1/2 cup)
1 1/2 cups of milk
A handful or two of chocolate chips

Directions

Sift all of the dry ingredients, except the chocolate chips, in a large bowl.
Beat egg whites stiff in their own bowl.
Add yolks, oil and milk to dry ingredients.
Beat until there are no lumps in batter.
Fold in the egg whites.

Using a measuring cup, pour batter on prepared waffle iron. Quickly sprinkle some chocolate chips on the batter before closing the iron lid.



Cook waffle for two minutes or until steam output slows down.

Crockpot Chicken

This is an easy, yet fabulous recipe that I got from a friend a few years ago. I make it quite often for dinner at our house. The chicken literally falls off the bone when it's done. I rarely use the wine that and just substitute with apple juice or more chicken broth instead. And I always make soup with the leftovers in the crockpot!



Maureen's Crockpot Chicken

1 whole chicken, cut up
1 c. chicken broth
1/4 c. dry white wine
1 1/2 t. seasoned salt
1/4 t. pepper
1/4 t. dried basil
6 carrots, sliced
2 celery ribs, sliced
1 onion, sliced

Layer veggies, then chicken pieces in crockpot. Mix seasonings & liquid, & pour over chicken & veggies. Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours.
(My helper)

If desired, remove chicken & vegetables and thicken sauce with 2 T. butter mixed with 2 T. flour, cooking on high until thick. (If I'm making soup, I don't do this)

My panel of judges: