Thanksgiving Stuffing

You can't have Thanksgiving without Thanksgiving Stuffing. And this is an easy and delicious way to make it!  If this is the way my mom is going to bring it to the table, so will I!

INGREDIENTS

2 boxes Chicken Stuffing (Stove-top)
1 c. diced celery
1/2 c. diced onion
2 cans chicken broth
3/4 c. butter

DIRECTIONS

Combine broth, celery, onion, and seasoning packets in a medium sized saucepan. Heat over medium heat and bring to a boil. Lower heat to medium low and simmer covered with lid for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and add butter. Stir until melted.

Pour dried bread crumbs into a large bowl. Pour broth mixture over bread crumbs, stirring to moisten all crumbs. If necessary add more broth or water to make a soft stuffing but not soggy. 

Place stuffing in a buttered 9x13 dish.

Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes. Cover top with foil if stuffing is drying out or browning too much. 

Crockpot: You may put stuffing in a buttered crockpot on low for 3-4 hours.

Optional: Some people like to add cooked crumbled sausage to the stuffing before baking. Serve with cranberry sauce. 

Stir Fry Noodles

Stir Fry Noodles are such a quick, delicious, and versatile side dish or meal for any night of the week. Easy to add protein or any of your favorite veggies or keep it simple just like my kids prefer!

INGREDIENTS

8 oz bag of stir fry or lo mein noodles
3 T. soy sauce
1 T. sugar
1 T sesame oil
1 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp sriracha, or to taste
1 T. vegetable oil
1-12 oz. package of frozen Asian vegetables, thawed

green onions, sliced (optional)

DIRECTIONS

Prepare the noodles according to instructions on the package. Cover and keep warm. In a bowl, combine soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, ginger, sriracha and garlic powder. Stir and then set aside.

Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add vegetables and cook for 2 minutes. Add noodles and cook for an additional 2 minutes. Add sauce and stir until heated and noodles are well coated. Top with sliced green onions and serve immediately. 

Fried Won tons

 INGREDIENTS

Won Ton wrappers
1- 8oz. package cream cheese, thawed
2 green onions, finely chopped
oil for frying
spring roll sauce for dipping

DIRECTIONS

To make Fried Won Tons, mix cream cheese and green onions until well combined. Scoop about 1 T. of cream cheese mixture onto each Won Ton wrapper. Moisten the outer edges of the wrapper and then crimp the top part of the wrapper to seal the edges. Fry Won Tons in a pan of oil heated to 350 degrees for 2-3 minutes or until crisp and browned. Serve with spring roll sauce. 

Pho Soup

 

INGREDIENTS
spice packet for Pho (found at Asian market)
water, large pot approximately 8 quarts
1 medium onion, peeled and halved 
3 inch piece of ginger, halved lengthwise 
salt, to taste

Toppings:
rice noodles, cooked according to package instructions
Protein such as thinly sliced beef  (can be cooked in the hot broth), cooked chicken, tofu, shrimp, hard boiled egg
summer squash, sliced
green onions, sliced
cilantro
jalapeño, sliced
fresh mung bean sprouts
Thai Basil
sliced mushrooms
limes, cut into wedges
soy sauce
hoisin sauce
sriracha
spicy chili crisp jar (found at Asian store)

DIRECTIONS
Roast spices in a pan on medium heat for approximately 5 minutes to help release the fragrance and oil in the spices. Put spices into the mesh bag and add to a large pot of boiling water with onion and ginger. Reduce heat to medium low and let simmer for 30-45 minutes. Once broth is flavored to your liking, remove and discard spices, onion, and ginger and season broth with salt. (The broth doesn't need a lot of salt because you will be adding soy sauce which is very salty). The broth is now ready for any of the toppings you feel like adding. Because we make such a big pot of broth I like to keep it separate and add toppings to our individual bowls so everyone can make theirs how they like. Also we can save leftovers for another meal, everything stays fresh and the broth can be easily reheated. I love how versatile this soup is, fresh and void of unnecessary artificial ingredients that store bought pho soup bowls contain. Some of my favorite toppings are rice noodles, summer squash, green onions, cilantro, jalapeño slices for a little kick, fresh mung bean sprouts, limes, soy sauce, hoisin sauce and a tsp. of spicy chili crisp. Delicious!

Homemade Fruit Rollups

 

INGREDIENTS

4 c. plum puree (or any fruit puree combination....we have tried Strawberry, Strawberry Blueberry, Strawberry Blackberry, Strawberry Raspberry, and Plum. All have been delicious.)
1 package MCP pectin
1 c. sugar

DIRECTIONS

Use fully ripe or slightly overripe fruit. Wash and cut away any bruised or spoiled portions. Take out seeds if using fruit that has a pit. Puree fruit in a blender or food processor. If using raspberries or blackberries we like to try straining most of the seeds before going onto the next step. Stir sugar into puree. Mix well until dissolved. Slowly add the MCP pectin and stir until smooth. 

Lay parchment paper on cookie sheet or dehydrator tray. Spread 1 1/2 cups puree in border. Smooth puree with rubber spatula or tilt cookie sheet to evenly spread puree. Refrigerate any unused puree.

For conventional oven:

Set temperature control at lowest setting or 150 degrees F. Two cookie sheets may be placed in the oven at the same time. Rotate trays every 3 hours. Drying will take up to 18 hours.

For dehydrator:

Set temperature control at 140-165 degrees F. and dry for 6-8 hours.

Remove rolls from tray while still warm. Cut and roll to desired size. Rolls may be stored up to 1 month w/o refrigeration. For longer storage, place in freezer up to 1 year.

*My neighbor shared with us this box of plums. They were so small but very sweet. Perfect for making these fruit rollups. Can also use any other type of fruit in this recipe. 

Dehydrated Apples

 

INGREDIENTS

apples, any variety (I like a sweeter apple like fuji)
lemon juice or fruit fresh
water, for soaking cut up apples
cinnamon, optional

DIRECTIONS

Peel and slice apples. If you have an apple peeler it will save you tons of time. Soak sliced apples in lemon/water for 5 minutes. Lightly sprinkle with cinnamon if you prefer. Place on dehydrator trays and dry for 10-12 hours. Store in gallon zip lock bags or plastic containers with lids. Can be stored in freezer for 6+ months. 

Ava's Spring Rolls

 

INGREDIENTS
1 pack super thin Spring Roll wrappers from Asian store.
1 egg
oil for deep frying
sauce-Mae Ploy spring roll sauce or panda express sweet and sour sauce
Filling:
1 lb. ground meat (sausage, turkey, beef)
1 c. julienned/minced carrots
handful of mung bean sprouts
1 c. green beans, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1/4 c. diced onions
1 T. minced garlic
salt and pepper to taste
*can add other veggies such as cabbage, mushrooms, water chestnuts, etc.

DIRECTIONS

Filling:

Heat large skillet on medium heat. Add about 2-3 T. of oil. Add meat and cook for about 5 minutes. (skip oil if meat is not lean).  Add garlic and onions and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Add carrots and green beans. Mix and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Add any other desired veggies along with the carrots and green beans. Add sprouts, salt and pepper and cook for 2-3 minutes. Turn off heat and set aside.

Wrapping:

Beat 1 egg in a bowl for sealing wrappers. Lay 1 wrapper flat with a corner facing you. Scoop about 1 T. of filling (do not include any juice) onto the wrapper. Roll bottom corner over the filling. Keep rolling until the mid-part of the wrapper. Fold both sides of wrapper towards middle. The roll should look like an envelope. Continue rolling until only a small corner is left. Brush some egg wash on the top corner and seal the roll.

Deep frying:

Heat oil in a pot

When ready, deep fry spring rolls until light brown. Serve with sauce.

Cindy's Sourdough Bread

INGREDIENTS

500 g. Bread flour

120 g. sour dough starter

330 g. water

After resting for 20 min add:

12 g (1 T) salt

25-40 g. (1/4 c) water

DIRECTIONS

After dough ingredients have been combined, let rest in a covered bowl for 3-5 hours, folding and turning every 30 minutes to an hour. The last time let rise for 2-3 hours. Carefully remove dough loaf and place on a parchment sheet of paper. Cut several slice marks on top to let air release during baking Place a 6 qt. dutch oven pan with lid into the oven and heat to 500 degrees. Add dough loaf to pan and reduce temperature to 435 degrees. Bake for 30 minutes covered, and then 10-15 minutes uncovered. Remove from pan and let cool a little before slicing. 

Molten Chocolate Cakes

 

INGREDIENTS

2 T. butter, melted
2 T. unsweetened cocoa
3/4 c. butter, cut into pieces
3 (4 oz.) bars semisweet chocolate, broken into chunks
1/2 c. whipping cream
1 1/4 c. egg substitute
3/4 c. sugar
2/3 c. all-purpose flour
powdered sugar
heavy cream whipped topping, optional
sliced strawberries, optional

DIRECTIONS

Brush 16 muffin pan cups with 2 T. melted butter. Sprinkle cocoa evenly in the cups, shake around and dump out any excess. Put pan in the refrigerator to firm up the butter. 

In a large saucepan, cook 3/4 c. butter and chocolate over low heat, stirring often, until melted. Slowly whisk in heavy cream and then set aside.

In a large mixing bowl combine egg substitute and sugar. Beat at medium speed with an electric mixer for 5-7 minutes or until slightly thickened. Slowly add chocolate mixture and flour, beating until blended. Pour the batter into muffin cups, filling each to within 1/4 in. from tops. Cover and chill at least 1 hour before baking. 

Bake at 450 degrees for 10-11 minutes or just until the edges of the cakes spring back when lightly touched, but the centers are still soft. Take out of the oven and let stand for 3 minutes before loosening the edges with a knife. Quickly invert cakes onto a baking sheet. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve warm if you prefer with whipped topping or strawberries. 

Thai Peanut Noodles

 

INGREDIENTS

4 packages dry ramen noodles, discard seasoning packets
2 T. olive oil
2 c. shredded cabbage
4 green onions, chopped
1/2 c. sliced carrots
1/4 c. fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
2 T. chopped peanuts
1 lime, sliced

For the sauce:
1/2 c. peanut butter
1/2 c. reduced sodium soy sauce
4 cloves garlic, minced
4 T. honey
2 T. freshly grated ginger
2 T. rice vinegar
2 tsp. sesame oil
2 tsp. Sriracha, or to taste

DIRECTIONS

In a medium bowl, whisk together ingredients for the sauce and then set aside. 

In a large pot of boiling water cook noodles according to package directions and then drain well.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add cabbage, carrots and green onions. Cook for 2-3 minutes. Stir in noodles and add sauce. Combine well and continue to cook until heated thru, 2-3 minutes. 

Serve immediately, garnished with cilantro, peanuts and lime wedges. 

Note:* Definitely can make this a meal and add 1 large chicken breast, chopped and cooked to the noodles. My kids just prefer w/o.