Elementary Chef

Starting a diet is not easy. The hardest part is getting used to a new way of eating. We started Weight Watchers the first full week of January. Here is how I get used to eating on a diet.

I buy frozen meals. It teaches you about portions as well as having the exact calories to your dish. What I do is start out with 4 frozen meals a week and cook one day a week. The weekends is every man for himself and is usually very ‘potpourri’ when it comes to mealtime. As the weeks progress, I take one more day off the frozen meal plan.

This gives me time to find recipes and work into the budget any extra ingredients we need. Seriously, have you seen the price of extra virgin olive oil? I hate trying a new recipe when it’s going to cost $20 to buy everything I need. I prefer to space that cost over a few trips.

Next week I will be down to 2 frozen meals and three cooked meals. It’s time to do some menu planning.

This is my husband’s favorite cookie. It’s called no bake cookies and are so easy it’s a shame we don’t make these more often. But once again, it seems like when the holidays roll around, we make these and not any other time of the year. While they are no bake cookies, you will have to use your stove top.

Here are the ingredients -

3 cups one minute oatmeal
4 tablespoons cocoa
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Heat cocoa, milk, butter, and sugar until it boils. Then add vanilla, peanut butter, and oats. Remove from heat. Then on wax paper, drop a spoonful at a time to make the cookies. Let cool and eat up.

I had a panic moment early today as I couldn’t find my cookbook! Ack! I knew it had to be in the kitchen, so I finally spotted it on the makeshift pantry that in reality is a bookshelf. The first cookie recipe I wanted to share was tea cakes. Recipes on the Internet for this are not the same as the one I have. The one I use has very few ingredients. This is a quick and easy cookie recipe. It’s also a good cookie to use with cookie cutters.

Here are the ingredients -

3 eggs
1 cup shortening
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups flour

Mix all ingredients into a pan of sifted plain flour(if you self rising flour, then leave out salt and baking powder). Stir until dough is stiff enough to roll out. Either dip out dough by the spoonful onto a baking sheet or roll out on a floured board to use cookie cutters. Bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes or until lightly brown on the edges.

Are you ready for the most wonderful time of the year? My favorite Christmas food has to be cookies! It seems that this is the only time of the year we make these wonderful sweet treats, so I gobble them up at every opportunity.

So this week at Elementary Chef, I’ll be sharing my absolute favorite Christmas cookie recipes. Each day I will be posting a cookie recipe. You can expect these cookies to be delicious and simple. There’s one cookie recipe that makes a lot of cookies - perfect for those holiday cookie swaps.

One of my husband’s favorite Christmas traditions is decorating Christmas cookies that his mom made every year. She would make the icing and then color it different colors. We will start that tradition this year at our house plus we are going to build a Gingerbread house. It should be fun and a great tradition that we will all enjoy making and eating.

We always spend Thanksgiving with my family and then travel the day after to visit with my husband’s family. This year I plan to make two items for Thanksgiving. One is the grape salad recipe that was posted earlier this month. The next item is stuffing.

My mom always makes dressing - which is different than stuffing. Dressing calls for cornbread where stuffing uses plain bread. I have never made stuffing before but want to attempt it since it is my mother-in-law’s recipe. She passed away a few years ago, so I really want to learn to make some of her delicious culinary creations. I want my daughter to learn how to make it one day.

The problem with my mother-in-law’s stuffing recipe is that there are no measurements. Everything is ‘to taste.’ I’m hoping that it will be edible at least. It will probably be a learning experience, too. When I do make it, I will be writing down how much of everything I add so that I can adjust the recipe next time.

My mother-in-law always called it Portuguese stuffing but after Google searching, I can’t find any recipes similar to it. Her stuffing calls for -

Bread
Celery
Onion
Salt and Pepper
Banana Pepper Juice
Cinnamon

First you cook the celery and onion down. Then pour it over the bread that is torn apart. Then add other ingredients. Add water or broth. Like I said, the recipe is very non-specific.

We will see how it goes. If I get really stuck, I can call my sister-in-law who has made the stuffing for years. The past few years we have arrived too late to watch it being made. Hopefully the stuffing will be edible.

Many people are getting ready for Thanksgiving and possibly guests who will stay with them. I have always loved Thanksgiving. It’s the kick off to the holiday season and is a wonderful holiday because it’s a time for visiting and eating. Here is an easy recipe that can be used at every meal this Thanksgiving. Best of all, it’s easy, fast, and simply delicious.

Cheese Danish

2 packages of Crescent rolls
2 packages 8 oz. cream cheese
1 cup of sugar

First, set out cream cheese until it’s soft. Then mix it with the sugar in a bowl. One you have it mixed well, set aside. Then take a 9×13 inch pan and unwrap one package of crescent rolls. Line the bottom of the pan with these. There’s no need to grease the pan. Now add the cream cheese/sugar mixture on top of the crescent roll dough. Spread it evenly. Then top it with the second package of crescent rolls.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Place in oven and cook for thirty minutes or until top is lightly brown. Remove from oven and let cool.

To add more flavor, add your favorite jellies or jams to the mix before cooking. You can even use fresh fruit if you like.

This makes a great breakfast pastry or a nice dessert. Plan to make more than one because this creation will go fast. Cheese Danish is one of my favorite desserts at Thanksgiving. It ranks right up there with pecan pie in my book. It’s a shame since it is so easy to make that we don’t make it more often. But it’s like many treats, it just tastes better during the holidays.

The first time I tried grape salad was at a Christmas party last year. It looked interesting and the cook must have known that people would be skeptical to try it. She had written out the ingredients and placed it beside the salad so that everyone would know exactly what was in this different creation. After reading that it had cream cheese, I knew I was sold and dipped out a spoonful on my plate. That was a great decision as this creation was really yummy. It’s also easy to make, which is always a plus.

Here is what you will need -

1 8 oz. Pkg. Cream cheese
1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar
1 8 oz. Pkg. Sour cream
1/2 tsp. Vanilla
2-3 lbs. Red seedless grapes

Topping:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup toasted chopped pecans

First lay the cream cheese out until it is soft. This will make it much easier to work with. Mix together the cream cheese and sugar. Once you have it well beaten together, add the sour cream and vanilla. Mix it well. Now fold in the grapes. Once those are well mixed in, top the salad with the brown sugar and pecans.

Cover and store in refrigerator until you are ready to serve it. It’s best if the salad has a chance to chill overnight. This makes about 10-12 servings. This recipe is easily doubled if you are making it for a larger crowd.

This recipe is a great one for those holiday get-togethers or office parties. It’s a no fuss, great tasting, salad that even Scrooge would enjoy. Make it low calorie by using low-fat sour cream and low fat cream cheese.

Chicken Rotel is a very easy casserole dish that is both easy and delicious. For those who especially love rotel dip(Velveeta and Rotel tomatoes) will enjoy Chicken Rotel. It’s just a few ingredients. More can be added to give if desired. My college roommate used to make this, so I make it from memory.

You will need -

Cooked chicken(boiled, broiled, pre-cooked, doesn’t really matter)
Velveeta cheese
1 can Rotel tomatoes
1 bag of Doritos tortilla chips

Cook and cut up the chicken into 1 inch - or bite-sized chunks. Lay the chicken in a casserole dish and cover with a layer of Doritos. You can crush the Doritos or mix them together with the chicken. Once you have about an equal ratio of chips to chicken, cut up the Velveeta cheese and cover the top with chunks of Velveeta. Next pour the can of Rotel on top of the cheese.

Place in the oven at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. If you really like cheese, then add more. You could also add vegetables like corn to make the casserole more tasty and interesting. Substitute chicken for meat for an interesting creation, too. Or even try soft tortillas for a different taste as well.

Chicken Rotel is very easy and is made easier if you buy pre-cooked chicken. I usually just buy the chicken breast and cook them. If you buy the chicken pre-cooked, be sure to select some that is not seasoned or is seasoned with something that will go with the Rotel/Mexican taste of the casserole.

So if you need a quick recipe for supper or a casserole to take to a get-together, chicken Rotel is a good choice.

There’s nothing like a grilled cheese sandwich. It is one of the easiest and crowd pleasing lunches around. Substitutions can be made to this yummy sandwich to make it even more delectable.

For the basic grilled cheese sandwich, you’ll need:

Slices of American Cheese
White bread
Butter
Skillet

First take your bread and cheese to make your sandwich. Over a medium heat, melt some butter. Smear it on the bottom of the pan. Place the sandwich on the skillet. Then after one minute or so, turn it over with a spatula. Cook for another 1-2 minutes until brown.

Now to make it even more delicious, try adding different types of cheeses. Or add ham to make it a ham and cheese grilled sandwich. That’s always a treat at our house. There’s just something about the sandwich being grilled that makes it restaurant quality.

The grilled cheese sandwich is fast to make and filling. So, for those of us who want to spend as little time as possible in the kitchen, this is one dish that should be on the menu.

Sausage balls are an easy appetizer and are perfect for Thanksgiving since they will help to satisfy hungry stomachs while waiting for dinner. Thanksgiving dinner is usually served at 5pm. Everyone begins to gather around 12noon to watch the football games. So we are hanging out all day and need something to snack on. When you have to smell turkey, dressing, pumpkin pie, and other goodies you naturally want to eat something. A serving of sausage balls makes a heaping of them and just a few will help tide over your hungry bunch.

Ingredients -

4 cups Bisquick
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
2 lbs. hot or mild sausage

Mix all ingredients until they are mixed well. Break up the sausage beforehand so that it is easier to mix it together. Next pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees.

Spoon out the mixture and place on a cookie sheet. Now place in the over for 30 minutes. Let it slightly cool and then place onto serving tray. It really is that simple.

This recipes makes a lot of sausage balls - around 60-75 depending on how big of balls you make. You can freeze any cooked sausage balls that you don’t need.

Sausage balls is not only a quick and easy appetizer, but it’s cheap. Also clean up shouldn’t take that long. This kind of appetizer is great for when you are expecting a crowd - like Thanksgiving. You could use a fancy platter or just toss these into a casserole dish. You might want to have toothpicks nearby to make serving a little easier.

Sausage balls are a yummy food for any occasion. Try them this holiday for a way to tide over the hungry masses.

One of the easiest recipes that I cook is one that I found on the back of a Campbell’s soup label many years ago. Everyone just loves it and it’s super easy to make. It’s even easier if you just buy the Taco Bake kit from Old El Paso.

This is from the kit since I was being totally lazy. For the kit all you have to do is brown your ground beef, drain, add water and seasoning. Let is simmer for a few minutes. Then layer it and add toppings. Cook at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.

The homemade version is slightly more complicated but not too much. First the ingredients -

8 soft tortillas
1 can tomato soup
1/3 cup milk
1 pound ground beef
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 pack taco mix

First cut up the tortillas into one inch squares. Set aside. Next brown the ground beef. Drain. Then add the seasoning mix and 1/3 cup water. Let is simmer down and then add the tomato soup, milk, and half the cheddar cheese. Once it is mixed well, remove from heat. Then place the tortillas into a casserole dish. Next add the ground beef mixture and stir it up. Cover with either a lid or aluminum foil. Cook for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove from oven and top with the rest of the cheese. Then recover the taco back so that the cheese melts. Let is stand for 5-10 minutes to cool. Then serve.

This makes about 4 servings. Sometimes I mix it up by adding corn and taking away the tomato soup to give it more of a Southwestern flavor.

You can substitute ground turkey and low-fat milk to make the taco bake a bit healthier.

Eclairs are a delicious pastry that it always a treat to get at the bakery. There is an easy dessert that uses the same flavors that are in an eclair that is simply divine. I made this a lot around the holidays as it’s a good alternative to pies and cakes. Best of all it’s super easy. Here’s what you will need:

2 8 ounce tubs of Cool Whip
2 packages of instant vanilla pudding
4 cups of milk
1 can milk chocolate icing
1 box graham crackers

Begin by mixing together the vanilla pudding mix and milk. When it’s mixed well, fold in the Cool Whip. Now set this aside.

Take a 9 x 13 pan and line the bottom with a layer of graham crackers. Next take the mixture and spread in a layer of it. Then place a layer of graham crackers on top of it. Then place another layer. Continue until you have no more mixture.

Layer the top of the cake with graham crackers. Next take the milk chocolate icing and spread it on top of the graham crackers. You might want to soften up the icing a bit in the microwave for a few seconds to make it easier to spread.

Once you have added the chocolate icing. cover it and place it in the refrigerator. Let it get good and chilled before serving.

This is a crowd pleaser and calories can be saved by using 2% milk, lowfat graham crackers and sugar-free pudding.

This is easy to make and cleanup is simple as you really only have the mixing bowl and beaters.

It’s best to serve it with a spoon as the graham crackers soften up. For a different variation, use a different flavor of pudding like chocolate or mix it up by using both - alternating between layers.

In our house, not a day goes by that we don’t use the microwave. Usually it’s to warm up something or use the timer. It still gets really messy sometimes. The last thing I want to do when it’s time to eat is clean the microwave, so food splatters are really hard to clean up. If I would just wipe down after use, then it would stay a lot cleaner. Why is it really hard to start good habits but bad habits are not a problem at all?

When I do clean the microwave, I first use a mixture of vinegar to loosen up that dried food. Start with a microwave safe bowl or glass. Next add a cup of water and a teaspoon of vinegar. Place it in the microwave for 3-5 minutes. Don’t immediately open the microwave door. You can put off cleaning just a few minutes longer and give the steam more time to work.

Now you can take your dishcloth and easily wipe off any food residue. It works great. If you still have stubborn spots, microwave the mixture for a few more minutes.

Wash your glass microwave plate with the rest of your dishes.

I always hated to clean the microwave as it was awkward to try to spray cleaner and then to scrub off the food spills and splatters. Vinegar is an amazing product and you should always have some on hand as it’s a great cleaner, laundry softener, and you can cook with it, too.

What makes this work well is really the steam. You can also use a cut lemon or Dawn dish washing liquid if you don’t have vinegar on hand.

Hi, I’m Lynn and I’m the new blogger for Elementary Chef. Since Hamburger Helper is banned from our kitchen(relied on it way too much in the early years of our marriage), I’m challenged to come up with meal ideas that will please everyone. What pleases me most is something simple and requires little cleanup. For the past few months, we’ve been eating a lot of frozen meals as it’s just been too plain hot to heat up the house. Now that it is cooler, it’s time to hunker down and once again start preparing more meals in the kitchen.

At Elementary Chef, I’ll share those recipes that work well for us. I promise that it will be simple and use as few ingredients as possible. Each week I will share one main dish, a dessert, and an appetizer along with cooking and entertaining tips.

I look forward to sharing what (little) I know about cooking and learning from you your favorite tips, recipes, etc.

Tortilla Wrap

And don’t forget these fabulously zesty and kid-pleasing Clementine recipes! (Yes, you can substitute oranges!)

New clothes … new teachers … new friends … Yes, going back to school brings many new and exciting changes; however, year after year the brown bag special seems to include the same
boring basics. Case in point, the average American child consumes a whopping 1,500 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches by the time high school graduation rolls around. While everyone loves a classic PB&J every now and then, the culinary experts at Santa Barbara Bay Foods agree it’s time to
add some punch to the student lunch!

The good news is that sandwich solutions are easily within reach. For example, simply swapping out your run-of-the-mill mayonnaise for your favorite dill or onion dip can add an interesting depth of flavor to a sandwich or wrap. This school year, why not try the following easy, delicious sandwich recipes featuring best-selling dips and spreads from Santa Barbara Bay:

Southwestern Deli Wrap
Ingredients:
— 1 large tortilla (your choice of whole wheat, flour or sun-dried tomato varieties)
— 1/4 lb deli-sliced turkey or ham
— 1 tbsp Santa Barbara Bay Caramelized Onion and Roasted Garlic Dip
— 2 tbsp shredded cheddar or Jack cheese
— 1/2 medium ripe avocado, diced
— Chopped sun-dried tomatoes
— Shredded carrots
Directions: Lay tortilla flat and cover completely with onion and garlic dip. Distribute deli meat evenly across the tortilla and sprinkle with cheese, avocado, sun-dried tomato and carrots. Roll all ingredients up in the tortilla and cut in half to serve.

Dill-iscious Salmon Sandwich
Ingredients:
— 1 sandwich-size bakery roll
— 1 filet grilled salmon
— 1 tbsp Santa Barbara Bay Garden Dill Dip
— 1 tsp capers
— Sliced tomato
— Sliced red onion
— Romaine or baby lettuce
Directions: Open bakery roll and spread dill dip on each side. Arrange lettuce, onion and tomato on the bottom half of the roll as desired. Top with grilled salmon, capers and roll top, and enjoy.

Armed with these unique recipes, it’s easy to boost your back-to-school sandwich arsenal from ho-hum to yum-yum.

In addition to the product varieties used in these sandwiches, Santa Barbara Bay carries a traditional line of premium refrigerated dips, spreads and salads, with popular flavors including Spinach, Artichoke,
Chili Con Queso, Raspberry Chipotle, Roasted Garlic Ranch and Cajun Krab Dips. Full product descriptions, featured recipes and distribution information are available online at ttp://www.santabarbarabay.com.