Salisbury steak dinner something else!

Just in a different sort of mood so slave decided to cook something different. This is an easy, warm meal guaranteed to melt the ice!

Ingredients:

1 lbs ground beef

medium yellow onion

3 Tbs old fashioned Oats

¼ cup chopped onion

1 Tbs oil

1 egg

1 Tbs low sodium Worcestershire sauce

¼ tsp paprika

½ tsp Herbes de Provence

1 can beef gravy

½ head cauliflower

1 can chicken broth

½ lbs fresh green beans

1 Tbs oil

=====

Directions:

Pre heat oven to 400 degrees 

 

Clean and snap the green beans, toss with 1 Tbs oil. Spread on a cooking sheet and sprinkle with kosher salt. Set aside.

Cut the cauliflower into small florets and place in a dutch oven with 1 can chicken broth. Cover, bring to boil then turn down to a slight simmer.

 

Slice the onion very thin. Slave used a mandolin for this. Heat 1 tbs of oil over a medium low heat. Add the onion, you will know if the heat is too high if it sizzles. This cooks low and slow, you just want to caramelize them. Sprinkle with paprika and herbs. Stir occasionally for about 20 minutes. In the last few minutes the onions will start to turn a nice brown.

While they are “sweating” mix the ground beef with the oats, onion, and egg. Mix in the Worcestershire sauce. Form into 4 patties or loafs.

When the onions are done, remove them to a small plate and put the patties into the skillet. Raise the heat to about half way and cover for about 4 minutes.

Turn each over and cook for another 4 minutes. They should be a nice crusty brown. Don't worry about them not being cooked at this point.

Spray a baking dish and place the four patties in with spoonful of onions on each. Pour the caned gravy around them, cover with foil and place in the oven along side of the tray with the green beans. Let them bake for 20 minutes.

The cauliflower should be cooked very soft by now so let it drain well. The drier the better. Now mash this just like you would potatoes, only without the milk or butter. (No it will not be the same as mashed potatoes but it will be good, especially with that gravy from around the steaks.)

slave wishes it had better pictures to show each step on this, but the phone-camera just was not cooperating!

This is a no big deal dinner, but it is very good and not that bad for you. Enjoy some comfort food once in a while.

Slave hopes this warm meal will help defrost your family.

Serving his Master Indy

socialslave

To satisfy and restore.

To nourish, support and maintain.

To gratify, spoil, comfort and please,

to nurture, assist, and sustain

…..I cook!

Please buy slave's cookbook:

The Little Black Book of Indiscreet Recipes by Dan White http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F315Y4I/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_vAT4sb0934RTM via @amazon

Baked Egg Rolls

Yes, You get egg rolls with that!

 

A good friend was coming over to watch the NHRA races as they resumed for the year. Slave wanted to do something different so it thought “how about making some egg rolls?” This is not a difficult recipe and it does not involve deep fat frying, but rather baking. Slave realized just a bit too late that it would have turned out better looking if the rolls had been sprayed with cooking spray first. However first times are for learning and the taste was so very good with little prep time needed.

Ingredients:

1 pkg Cole slaw mix slave found one that was for Chinese slaw!

2 tablespoons canola oil

3 green onions, chopped

1 clove of garlic, minced

1 teaspoon fresh grated ginger

2-3 tablespoons low salt soy sauce

10 ounce can of cooked chicken, shredded

10-12 egg roll wrappers

-----------------------------------------------

Pre heat oven to 400 degrees and parchment line a baking sheet.

 Minced Garlic   Chopped Green Onion     Grated Ginger

Chop the green onions, mince the garlic and grate the ginger first and have them ready to add. Note when grating the ginger, peel the piece of root, expect a large amount of ginger to stay in the grater holes, so have a spare brush handy to brush it out.

Open the can of chicken, drain well and pull it apart with two forks.

Heat oil over medium heat in a skillet. Add the green onions and saute for two minutes. Add garlic and saute for an additional minute

Mix in the soy sauce and the ginger. Stir in the chicken and the slaw mix. Stir carefully and cook an additional two to three minutes.

Remove from heat and assemble the rolls.

Lay one egg roll wrapper on wax paper covered counter with one corner pointing towards you (so it looks like a diamond.)

Spoon two to three tablespoons of mixture into the center of the wrapper. Use less than you think you will need. Fold the bottom corner over the mixture. Then fold in the right and left sides. and roll jelly-style. Brush a small amount of water on the top corner and roll it up like a carpet and the top will seal the wrapper. 

 

Place seam side down on a lined baking sheet. Continue with remaining wrappers.

Spray each one with some cooking spray.

Bake for about 10 minutes, then turn each on and continue for another 10 mins.

===========================================

Here is an easy sweet and sour sauce to serve along with these.

Sweet and Sour

Ingredients:

1 C. chicken broth

1 clove garlic, peeled and minced

½ C. orange marmalade

¼ C. balsamic vinegar

1 tsp. Dijon Mustard

¼ tsp. Red pepper flakes

Directions:

Heat the chicken broth to a simmer with the garlic and red pepper flakes. Stir in vinegar and mustard, then add marmalade slowly until it is dissolved. Let cool before using.

OR: if you are in as hurry, dress up some jar sweet and sour sauce with a touch of Dijon mustard and Orange marmalade!

Also try the Honey Mustard sauce with a 5oz container of non-fat plain Greek style yogurt, 1 Tbs of Mustard and 2 Tbs of honey.

NOTE: if your store does not have the Chinese Cole slaw mix use what they have. Or Shred 2 ½ C. cabbage and about ¼ C. of carrots. 

 

Hope you try these out the next time an occasion calls for hot appetizers.

Happy to Serve my Master Indy

socialslave

To satisfy and restore.

To nourish, support and maintain.

To gratify, spoil, comfort and please,

to nurture, assist, and sustain

…..I cook!

Please buy slave's cookbook:

The Little Black Book of Indiscreet Recipes by Dan White http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F315Y4I/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_vAT4sb0934RTM via @amazon

Healthier Chicken Fettuccine Ortaggio

Healthier Chicken Fettuccine Ortaggio

Fat-free half-and-half gives a creamy taste to the pasta, chicken, and mixed vegetables in this 20 minute dinner.
Here is another dish named by slave in hopes that it will become a family favorite. Its a meal all to itself with meat, pasta and vegetables. Go ahead and add a nice chilled Pinot Noir or, like slave, a bottle of cold water!
This would also make a great dinner for February 14th. If that is the case, all you have to add is a small dish of dark chocolates and some Dom Pérignon! ♥

 

Ingredients

• 1 9 ounce package fettuccine Whole wheat is best
• 1 pgk frozen Mixed Vegetables slave found some with corn, carrots and asparagus
• 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• ½ teaspoon thyme
• ½ cup fat-free half-and-half
• ½ cup shredded Parmesan
  
• 1 Tbs. Balsamic vinegar
  

Directions

Cook pasta according to the directions on the package, but don't salt the water. Three minutes before the pasta is supposed to be done, add the vegetables to the pot. Do this slowly a little bit at a time. You want to keep the water boiling. Finish cooking then drain, and reserve ¾ cup of cooking liquid. 

Meanwhile, cook chicken in a large skillet on medium-high heat until lightly browned and juices run clear. If you pound the chicken down flat it will cook much quicker. Set chicken on plate and cover with foil. Leave about 2 Tbs. of drippings in the pan.

Add onion to the hot pan and saute for 3 minutes in the leftover drippings. Add garlic and thyme, and cook another minute. Add the vinegar and stir to loosen any bits from the bottom of the pan (the fond). 

 

 

 Stir in pasta and vegetables very carefully. The skillet will be full!

 

Add the cooking liquid, and half-and-half. Cook 2 minutes. Stir in the Parmesan Cheese until melted through. Toss the pasta and serve on large platter. Arrange the pieces of chicken on top.

You can make more of a sauce if you use a full cup of the half and half and a full cup of the cheese.

However remember when you use something that is “Fat Free”, that usually means that instead of fat they have added sugar. Which the body then turns into fat! So you have to decide which you want to have.

This tasted so good to slave when it was being served tonight it was a real effort to get up from the table and pack the left-overs away.

Happy and grateful to be serving my Master Indy

socialslave

To satisfy and restore.

To nourish, support and maintain.

To gratify, spoil, comfort and please,

to nurture, assist, and sustain

…..I cook!

Please buy slave's cookbook:

The Little Black Book of Indiscreet Recipes by Dan White http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F315Y4I/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_vAT4sb0934RTM via @amazon

Memories of Toddle House Banana Cream Pie cookies!

Memories!

Back in the Fifties, before slave was in the fifth grade. There was a special destination that my mother would drive my brother and I to. The Toddle House.

It was a little diner about a mile away from where we lived. Of course we could never afford to eat there, but they did have a most fantastic treat. It was what they called an “Ice Box Pie” - “Banana Cream” and it was covered in whipped cream. This was the one extravagance that my mother could swing for her kids. After all it was 15 cents a slice! We couldn't do that every week, but once in awhile was OK. I guess that made it all that much more special. 

At one time there were hundreds of Toddle Houses around the country but the name was sold out in the early 60's and all traces disappeared by the 80's.

When slave decided to made a banana cream tasting cookie, it just had to be a “Toddle House”. This is a very easy recipe. Now these cookies freeze very well so portion them out into freezer bags of 4 or 5 cookies each, and stick them into the back of the unit.

When you make it a treat like that it will be all the more special for your loved ones.

Memories of Toddle House Banana Cream Pie cookies!

Ingredients:

1 pouch Betty Crocker® sugar cookie mix (1 pound 1.5 ounces)

1 -3.4 oz box Banana Cream instant pudding mix
2 eggs
3 tbs. butter, or margarine, melted

1 teaspoon banana extract
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 drops yellow food color

1 ½ c. white vanilla baking chips
===================

Directions:

In a large bowl, combine the two mixes with the butter.

Add eggs, banana & vanilla extracts, and the food coloring.

Beat until mixed well.

 

Stir in baking chips. The dough will be very stiff.

On cookie sheets, lined with parchment paper, drop dough with 1½ tablespoon-size cookie scoop or by rounded tablespoonfuls about 2 inches apart. Slave always keeps a bowl of water handy to dip fingers into. This makes handling of the dough much easier.

 

Bake at 350F for about 10 – 12 minutes, or just before the edges turn golden. Do not overbake!

Allow to cool on cookie sheet 2-3 minutes.
Transfer to Cooling Rack.
Makes 2½ dozen cookies. 

 

Slave hopes these little treats will make memories that last for you and yours.

 

Happy to be serving my Master Indy

socialslave

To satisfy and restore.

To nourish, support and maintain.

To gratify, spoil, comfort and please,

to nurture, assist, and sustain

…..I cook!

Please buy slave's cookbook:

The Little Black Book of Indiscreet Recipes by Dan White http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F315Y4I/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_vAT4sb0934RTM via @amazon

Chicken Fettuccine Armando

slave might sound like Sophia Patrillo, but picture this: Rome, in 1908

A man named Alfredo di Lelio was trying to make a living working in his mothers restaurant. His wife was pregnant and having trouble keeping food down. So he takes a common dish called “fettuccine al burro” and adds much more butter to it. She liked it! It worked. He started to serve it to his guests. One night in 1927, an American couple on their honeymoon liked it so much that the next day they presented Alfredo with a fork and spoon made out of pure gold! It was the first “super star couple”: Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks.

PLEASE NOTE CLARIFICATION FROM THE GRANDSON, ABOUT THIS STORY and the correct dates!  Thank You Again Ines Di Lelio!

Well with their endorsement EVERYBODY had to try it. His restaurant became a must visit for all American tourists visiting Rome.

Today in American Italian-style establishments you will see “Fettuccine Alfredo” on all the menus. But not so much in Italy or even most of Europe! It's an “American Thing”.

Basically a pasta dish made with cheese, butter, and cream. What's not to love? Except all the fat!

slave calls this: Chicken Fettuccine Armando

It is NOT loaded with cheese, butter and cream. Instead its creaminess comes from steamed cauliflower. So it should have its own name and since Armando was the son of Alfredo, and without him “in the oven” as it were, who knows if this dish would ever have been made! Yes, that is how food legend portrays the story of this yummy, gooey comfort food. Hungry? Lets go!

Ingredients

1 lbs chicken breast tenderloins
2 cups cauliflower florets, about ½ head of cauliflower
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
8 ounces whole grain fettuccine pasta
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil or canola if that's what you have.
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ cup low-fat evaporated milk
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
¾ cup frozen petite peas, thawed, (4 ounces)
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tbs unsalted butter
1 tbs. chopped fresh parsley, plus extra for garnish
1 ½ tsp. finely grated lemon zest optional

 Directions

 

1. Put the cauliflower, broth, and 1 cup water in a small pot; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Adjust the heat to maintain a simmer and cook until the cauliflower is very soft, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool 5 minutes. Carefully puree cauliflower and all the liquid in a blender until very smooth; set aside.

2. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta until al dente, 8 minutes. Drain well, reserving about 1 cup pasta cooking water.

3. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Sprinkle the chicken tenderloins with salt and pepper to taste. (slave chose these because it just wanted a taste of chicken and this only cost $2.31 for the package). Saute until golden brown and thoroughly cooked. About 5 mins both sides.. they cook very fast!

Remove to a plate, add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Next the cauliflower puree and evaporated milk and bring to a simmer. Cook until slightly thickened, 5 minutes and season with salt and pepper. Stir in the peas until heated through, 2 minutes. Toss in the cooked pasta, Parmesan cheese and about ½ cup of pasta water if needed until the noodles are coated but the sauce is still loose. Remove from the heat and toss in the butter, chopped parsley and lemon zest. (If the sauce seems thick, adjust the consistency with the remaining pasta water). Serve immediately sprinkled with chopped parsley. 

==============================

Note: in the pictures, slave used much less pasta than called for. This is NOT one of those restaurants where they can hardly carry out the huge platters of food!
No it does not taste like it had a ton of butter, cream, and cheese. Still it has a great natural taste! Slave thinks you will enjoy it!

Serving my Master Indy
socialslave

To satisfy and restore.

To nourish, support and maintain.

To gratify, spoil, comfort and please,

to nurture, assist, and sustain

…..I cook!

Please buy slave's cookbook:

The Little Black Book of Indiscreet Recipes by Dan White http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F315Y4I/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_vAT4sb0934RTM via @amazon



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