The weekend following Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving wasn't just Thursday for us. It went through the weekend. My in-laws came up from south Florida and spent Thanksgiving and through the weekend with us. We always look forward to their visit. The Cisco Kid not only looks forward to their visit but jumps out of his skin with anticipation on when they get here.

Last Thanksgiving I posted many recipes of my dinner. Now I have some more that I will post over the next few days. Deviled eggs, brown sugar spiced ham and carrots, stuffed mushrooms, eggplant parmigiana and cream of mushroom soup.

The Italian traditional thanksgiving starts at 11:00 am and doesn't end until late evening. We start with the antipasto. That consist of... Cream of mushroom soup, eggplant parmesan, Roasted red pepper and basil cheese cake with pesto, stuffed mushrooms, deviled eggs, antipasto salad, black olives, green olives and sweet gherkins. Later that evening we have the traditional turkey, stuffing, pashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, turkey gravy, braciole, sausage, mozzarella and tomato salad and rolls.

The desert table was loaded with everyone’s favorite. Pineapple & cherries, apricots dipped in chocolate, fruit, apple pie, coconut custard pie, banana cream pie, pecan pie and assortment of nuts.

For me, it is the leftovers I look forward too. It took me three days to cook the Thanksgiving dinner. I buy and extra large turkey so I have some leftover. This year I got a 22 lb turkey. I like the Turkey cooking bags because it cooks that size turkey in 4 hours. I also don't have to worry if the turkey will be dry. It is always cooked to perfection. The up side to all this cooking and abundance of food is I will do very little cooking all week long because of those leftovers. I could make a quick variety of things with all the leftovers. I will make..... Turkey Croquets, turkey pot pie, turkey stew and turkey salad.

My Deviled eggs.
When I make Deviled eggs I always make at least two dozen eggs. These egg's don't last long at all. They are very simple and not many ingredients are used.

I start by putting the eggs in cold water and bringing the water up to a boil for ten minutes. I then turn off the stove and let them sit in the water until the water becomes room temperature. Approximately twenty minutes.

I then peal all the eggs and cut them in half. I use the yoke and any broken egg whites for the creamy mixture. Put all the egg yolks and broken egg whites in a bowl and mash. Add 1 cup of mayonnaise with olive oil, salt and pepper to taste. Once they are done sprinkle with paprika.
 

I use a fork to make this creamy mixture.

 Tomorrow I will post some more recipes. 

  

The Chief can cook!!

Yesterday I had a very long and busy day. The Cisco Kid is growing out of everything so fast. We went shopping and bought him some shoes and clothes. After we left the Mall, I went to my booth and put some items in there. We didn't get home until 4:00 and I was too tired to cook. The chief took over and made a wonderful meal.

He made garlic red mashed potatoes, brown mushroom gravy, buttered peas and grilled steak. 

It was so good!!!!

For the past two month The Cisco kid has been eating the same dinners that we eat. In the past I have been one of those moms that made a separate meal for my son. He would argue and disagree when I tried to serve him what we ate and instead of arguing with him it was easier to make him a separate meal. I had to pick my battles and fighting at dinner was not one I wanted to pick. All he would eat for the main course is; chicken Tenders, grilled cheese, pizza, hamburgers or hotdogs. For the sides he would only eat; peas, raw carrots and corn. Other foods were yogurt, PB& J, and he does go through two gallons of milk a week. Now I am not going to go through the potato chip and desert group. He will ditch all of the above for those in a second. Two months ago I came to the end of my rope and told him that I am tired of cooking two different meals every night and he was going to eat what we ate. I told him, it was not up for debate or discussion he was going to eat what we ate!!!! I am relieved to say he is eating Teriyaki grilled chicken, BBQ grilled tenderloin, grilled steak. I am still working on the vegetable part of it but at least the main course is much healthier than what he ate in the past.

Cucumber and Barley Salad

Last night I was craving a vegetable salad without lattice. I gathered all the vegetables I wanted in the salad and then I thought I needed to make it hardy. First I thought about putting grilled chicken in it but I didn't have any defrosted. I was looking through my can items and found some chick peas, which I love. Then I saw the pearl barley. Perfect! These two items will make the salad not only hardy but full of protein and fiber.

Salad ingredients:

1 large Cucumber

1 cup diced Green bell pepper

1 cup diced Vidalia onion

1/2 cup chopped fresh Parsley, two tablespoons for dressing

2 cups of Cherry Tomatoes sliced in half

1 can Chick Peas

2 cups of cooked Pearl Barley

Garlic and Butter Croutons

6 oz. Tomato Basil Feta Cheese, 2 oz. for the salad dressing

2 cloves of chopped Garlic, 1 clove for the salad dressing

Add all ingredients together in a large bowl except for the Feta Cheese and croutons.   Add them when you are ready to serve the salad. 

 

Pearl Barley, Cook according to the direction on the package. Let cool before adding the vegetables.

Salad Dressing:

1 clove of chopped Garlic

2 tablespoons of fresh chopped parsley

2 oz. Tomato Basil Feta Cheese

1 tea. salt

1 tea. pepper

½ cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

¼ cup of water.

Mix all ingredients together until it is creamy.

White Chicken Chili

Now that fall is in the air it is time to pull out the big pots and make a big batch of chili. I like to freeze it so we can have it all season long. This time I am trying something different. I am making White Chicken Chili. Now some people say that white chicken chili is supposed to be made with everything white. But I never follow the rules. I added some color.

One carton of Chicken Broth
I used 2 cans of red kidney beans
If 2 cans of beans are not enough beans for you than add 2 cans of white pinto beans one large green pepper chopped into chunks
One onion chopped into chunks
5 breasts of chicken, chopped into chunks
2 packets of Mc Cormack White Chicken Chili seasoning packets
For extra vegetables in my chili I added some mushrooms
One very large pot

Sautee all the vegetables in a small amount of olive oil and set them aside। Sautee the chunked chicken breast in a small amount of olive oil until they are thoroughly cooked. Add the chicken broth and both packets of seasoning mix. Stir until all the spices are dissolved. Now add the sautéed vegetable and empty the cans of beans in the pot with all the bean juice. Simmer for 30 minutes and you will have a delicious chili.

Stromboli

These Stromboli's can be served as an appetizer or a main course. Both could also be served with a side of tomato sauce.

Ingredients:
3-1 lb fresh or frozen dough. I use Bridgeford frozen Ready Douth.
2- 6 oz. package of sliced pepperoni
1 lb. of 98% fat free ham, sliced 1/4 inch in length
2 large green bell peppers, sliced 1/4 inch thick
4 cups Shredded Mozzarella cheese
1 egg scrambled
Your favorite Tomato Sauce for dipping

Directions:
Roll the dough to the size of 19 inches x 6 inches. That length will depend on if you like a thinner or thicker crust. If you like a thicker crust, roll the dough to 15 inches x 5 inches. I like a thin crust. That is what you see in the picture. I prefer to fill them with pepperoni, ham, green bell pepper and mozzarella cheese. You can fill them with anything you like. I do recommend that with any ingredients you may use, always include the Mozzarella cheese.
Scramble one egg and set aside. Once you have rolled out your dough, start layering all your ingredients down the center, starting with the pepperoni and ending with the Mozzarella. Now you can start to close the Stromboli by bringing both sides of the dough around and overlapping them. Then fold the two ends closed. If your dough will not stick together you can dip your fingers into the scrambled egg and run it along the seam.

Place the Stromboli on a greased or lined cookie sheet seam side down. Generously rub the scrambled egg all over the Stromboli’s.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or golden brown.

Serve with a side dish of tomato sauce for dipping. These ingredients will complete 4
Stromboli's.

Serving the Stromboli as a main course
Cut Stromboli in half and serve with a side of tomato sauce. Serves 8

Serving the Stromboli as an appetizer
Cut into 2 inch pieces and place on a serving tray with tomato sauce. Approximately 80 pieces.

Hints: When cutting the bell pepper into your 1/4 inch slices, slice the two ends off where it curves. The curves have a tendency to puncture through the dough.

Thanks Kim from "Pair Slices"and Heather from Oswalds Cuties for participating in "What would your children say"? Wednesday.