Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Recipes, Recipes, Recipes

More recipes! My lovely friend, Sam Jones, has requested quite a list of the listed recipes. I could just email them to her... Or I could post them here for everyone to enjoy! I chose that option.

THE SECRET LIFE OF HUMMUS

So… I LOVE hummus. Like, I know you say you love hummus, but I REALLY LOVE hummus. The Sabra brand in the store and one other are the only ones that compare to real Mediterranean hummus (or the restraurant versions I've experienced). They are supper yum and I could eat the whole container with a spoon, BUT it’s still not as good as the restaurant one. I’ve attempted to make hummus before, and it was okay, but just not as good. I discovered a year or so ago that tahini is the secret to hummus. Since that discovery, I have been on the hunt for tahini. Who knew it was so hard to find where I live?! I finally found it at a gas station, of all places, in Slidell that sales Mediterranean food. It looks like a jar of liquidy peanut butter. I followed the recipe I found exactly except for one fun fact the guy at the gas station told me!

This very nice Mediterranean man told me the secret to great hummus! It sounds crazy… but it works! So follow the recipe but make two small adjustments. Before you dump the chick peas in the food processor, heat them up just a little bit. Maybe like 45 seconds. Just enough to give them a little warmth. And then… the secret! Add 1 cup of ice. Yes ICE! It sounds crazy but somehow it works! It makes is silky smooth just like they serve it in Mediterranean restaurants. Mix all the ingredients with the ice in the food processor until all the ice is crushed. It should be a creamy, smooth, velvety texture. Drizzle a little olive oil on top and sprinkle with paprika or salt and pepper to make it all pretty! Serve with warm pita bread or pita chips or spoons! Okay well only serve it with spoons if I’m there. I told Mr. Nice Mediterranean man that I’d keep the secret, but he gave me permission to share.



CHICKEN CHEESE BALL
 
1 big can of canned white meat chicken
1 package of dry ranch dressing mix
1 package of cream cheese, softened
1 small package of nuts (I liked chopped pecans or sliced walnuts best)

Drain chicken and shred in a bowl with a fork, it comes out of the can in chunky pieces. Mix thoroughly with cream cheese and ranch mix. I use a fork and just stir and smash and stir and smash until it all looks the same. Now… get messy! Scoop all of it up with your hands and roll it into a ball. Roll the ball up in plastic wrap and let chill as long as you can. You can do it as little as 30 minutes or as long as overnight. Roll it in the nuts before serving. If transporting roll in nuts and cover with plastic wrap again. Serve with crackers or toast.

I bring this to almost every potluck or party food type thingy I go to. So easy and EVERYONE loves it.


STUFFED TURKEY BURGERS
 
1 lb of ground turkey
seasonings
1 egg
bread crumbs (or crushed crackers)
sliced onion
sliced mozzarella (or any cheese you like)
spinach leaves
mushrooms
Whatever you want to stuff with!

1 lb makes two BIG burgers or 3 medium burgers. 4 are doable, but they are really small and hard to form with the stuffed stuff (that’s fun to say). Mix meat and what ever seasonings you like (I used Tony’s, red pepper flakes, onion powder, garlic powder, and parsley flakes). Use seasonings generously. Turkey is blander than ground beef. Mix in the egg and a little bread crumbs to make it stick and hold. If you are making 2 burgers, separate meat into 4 equal sections. If you are making 3 burgers, separate into 6 sections. Flatten our each section. Take one section and top with a slice or wedge of cheese, sliced onions, spinach leaves, etc. Don’t use too much! It won’t close if you do. Take another flattened section and place it on top. Fold and mash the edges together until all the stuffed stuff goodness is packaged inside the meat. You can grill these or bake them. I’ve done it both ways. If you bake, bake at 350 for 30ish minutes. You have to judge your oven. Turkey is poultry so make sure it is done, but don’t overcook. Just watch it close. On the grill 7-10 minutes on each side. Yummy on a bun or without! I like them with A1 too. Good with homemade onion rings or sweet potato fries or potato salad!


ROASTED PINENUT AND FETA COUSCOUS

Make couscous per package instructions (which is boil 1 cup of water, a little salt, a little butter, then add 1 cup couscous, stir, remove from heat, cover for 5 minutes, fluff with a fork). This makes 2 cups of cooked couscous. I use the tricolor couscous which some Walmart’s, Rouses, Wholefoods, and other grocery stores sell.

I replaced the water with 1 cup of chicken stock for more flavor. Instead of adding butter, I drizzled some EVOO in the liquid.

After the 5 minutes I added about 1/4th of a container of feta and 1 bag of pine nuts. Walmart sales toasted pinenuts on the baking isle now. Then I added almost the entire container of lemon juice from the little lemon juice bottle.


SCALLOPED POTATOES

I didn’t change this recipe in the slightest. I know it sounds weird and not like traditional scalloped potatoes and like it won’t be cheesy but oh my stars it’s good! Don’t change it! The thyme and nutmeg make it. It’s so good! Perfect for a Thanksgiving side dish. AND I mean… hello… Tyler Florence made it! My once-upon-a-time-future-husband-until-I-realized-he-was-married made it!

Please DO NOT try to slice all these potatoes by hand! I started doing that, and then realized my cheese grater has a slicer on the slide. Use a slicer! There is no way you can get them as thin as they should be by hand plus it is way quicker!



TWICE BAKED POTATOES

Instead of using 4 big potatoes I used 8-10 small red potatoes. I did it exactly like the recipe. Be careful when you scoop not to break the shell/skin since it holds the filling. I also used Real Bacon bits instead of bacon. These are really good! They are really pretty as well. I topped mine with green onions.



HASH BROWNS CASSEROLE
(Stefaney Lockwood's Recipe)

2 pounds frozen hash browns
1/2 cup melted margarine
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup minced onion
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 pint sour cream
2 cups grated cheese (I use cheddar)

Thaw potatoes. Mix first 8 ingredients together and place in a 9x13 casserole dish. Add topping. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes to an hour. You can use low fat soup and sour cream and 2% cheese for a lower calorie casserole.

This recipe makes a lot! Perfect for a potluck or side disk. I made it for me with baked apples for dinner. I ate leftover MANY times and still had quite a bit to freeze.

Stay tuned! More recipes requested by Sam (and posted for everyone to enjoy) to come!

2 comments:

Sam Jones said...

yummmmyyyyyy!!!!!!

Unknown said...

The hummus hint is so crazy but I can't wait to try it!