Breakfast casserole

This can be mostly assembled the night before and you can use any assortment of meat/veggies you have on hand.  Unless I'm making this for a Christmas brunch I leave out the red peppers because I don't care for them.  At Christmas time the red peppers and green onions look festive. 

12 ounces (3 cups) cheddar cheese, shredded
12 ounces (3 cups) mozarella cheese, shredded
8 ounces mushrooms, chopped and sauteed
1/3 cup sliced green onions
1/2 medium red pepper, chopped
8 ounces of cooked ham, diced
1/2 cup white whole wheat flour
1 3/4 cup milk
8 eggs, beaten

In large bowl, lightly toss cheeses together.  Sprinkle half the cheese mixture in ungreased 13x9 baking dish.  Sprinkle mushrooms, green onions, red pepper and ham evenly over cheese layer.  Add remaining cheese. **  Heat oven to 350.  In large bowl whisk flour, milk and eggs; pour over layers in baking dish.  Bake 35-40 minutes or until mixture is set and top is lightly browned.  Let stand about 10 minutes.  Serves 12

** To make ahead, prepare to this point, cover and refrigerate.

If I'm just making this for our family I will generally use a smaller 2.2 qt dish instead of the 13x9.  Here are the ingredient measurements if you use the smaller dish:

2 cups cheddar
2 cups mozarella
mushrooms, green onions, red pepper & ham to cover
1/3 cup flour
1 1/3 cups milk
6 eggs

Granola

After several tries I think I've found the granola I like best.  It is a very basic, classic granola.  This is Alton Brown's recipe, but I prefer to use honey instead of maple syrup and use coconut oil instead of the canola.  I love the hint of salt in this!

3 cups rolled oats
1 cup slivered almonds
1 cup cashew pieces
3/4 cup shredded coconut
1/4 cup plus 2 Tablespoons dark brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
2 Tablespoons maple syrup
1/4 cup coconut oil (or canola)
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup raisins

Preheat oven to 250 degrees.  In a large bowl combine the oats, nuts, coconut and brown sugar.  In a separate bowl combine the honey, syrup, oil and salt.  Combine both mixtures and pour onto 2 sheet pans.  Cook for 1 hour and 15 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes to achieve an even color.  Remove from the oven and transfer to a large bowl to cool.  Add raisins.

I usually leave the raisins out and mix them in on a bowl by bowl basis.  Sometimes I'll add raisins, sometimes I throw in a few chocolate chips, sometimes just fresh fruit and yogurt.

Salsa

Made this easy salsa using tomatoes from Papa's garden.  So good!

whole tomatoes
handful of cilantro
1-2 garlic cloves
1 jalapeno
1 lime
1/2 red onion

Cut an x in the bottom of each tomato, place into boiling water for 1-2 minutes, then into an ice bath.  Remove skin and roughly chop, discarding any seeds and liquids.  Finely chop jalapeno, red onion and cilantro.  Add all to food processor or blender, add 1 or 2 garlic cloves pasted and juice of 1 lime.  Process for a few seconds.

Best Chocolate cake

I've found the best classic chocolate cake recipe.  So dark and rich, rose perfectly flat.  Didn't love the chocolate icing I made with this one, so still searching for the perfect icing.  This is it for the cake part though!  Saw this exact recipe on many sites, not sure who wrote the original.

Ingredients

• Butter, for greasing the pans
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pans
• 2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cups good cocoa powder
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 cup buttermilk, shaken
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter two 8-inch x 2-inch round cake pans. Line with parchment paper, then butter and flour the pans.

Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix on low speed until combined. In another bowl, combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry. With mixer still on low, add the coffee and stir just to combine, scraping the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then turn them out onto a cooling rack and cool completely.
Place 1 layer, flat side up, on a flat plate or cake pedestal. With a knife or offset spatula, spread the top with frosting. Place the second layer on top, rounded side up, and spread the frosting evenly on the top and sides of the cake.

Turkey and artichoke stuffed shells

To be honest this recipe involves a good bit of chopping & grating.  However, it makes a lot and freezes great, so it is one I make often.  I can't tell you how many times I've been saved because I had one of these in the freezer.  Even if you forgot to thaw it, in about an hour it can go from freezer to table.  Definitely my favorite make ahead and freezer meal!  Recipe and picture original here

Ingredients

• 1 (12-ounce) box jumbo pasta shells (recommended: Barilla)
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 large yellow onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 pound ground turkey
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus 1/2 teaspoon
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus 1/4 teaspoon
• 1 (8 to 10-ounce) package frozen artichokes, thawed and coarsely chopped
• 1 (15-ounce) container ricotta cheese
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 5 cups Arrabbiata Sauce, recipe follows
• 1 1/2 cups grated mozzarella (about 5 ounces)

Directions

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and partially cook until tender but still very firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 4 to 5 minutes. Drain pasta.

Meanwhile, in a large heavy skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and the garlic and cook until the onions are soft and starting to brown, about 3 minutes. Add the ground turkey, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the meat is slightly golden and cooked through. Add the artichoke hearts and stir to combine. Remove from heat and let cool.
In a large bowl combine the cooled turkey mixture with the ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, eggs, basil, parsley, and the remaining salt and pepper. Stir to combine.
To stuff the shells, cover the bottom of a 9 by 13 by 2-inch baking dish with 1 cup of Arrabbiata sauce. Take a shell in the palm of your hand and stuff it with a large spoonful of turkey mixture, about 2 tablespoons. Place the stuffed shell in the baking dish. Continue filling the shells until the baking dish is full, about 24 shells. Drizzle the remaining Arrabbiata Sauce over the shells, top with the grated mozzarella. If freezing, cover tightly with plastic wrap and place in the freezer for 1 day and up to 1 month.
To bake, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Bake until the shells are warmed through and the cheese is beginning to brown, about 60 minutes (20 minutes if shells are unfrozen.)

Arrabbiata Sauce:

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 6 ounces sliced pancetta, coarsely chopped
• 2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 5 cups jarred or fresh marinara sauce

Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the pancetta and saute until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and saute until tender, about 1 minute. Add the marinara sauce and red pepper flakes and bring to a simmer. Remove from heat and let cool until ready to use.

Yield: approximately 6 cups

Favorite greek salad

The base salad is from the keeper of the home website.  My kids will actually eat this salad since it doesn't have lettuce!  The Greek dressing is from Allrecipes website.

Favorite Greek Salad

 

1 English cucumber
3-4 tomatoes (this totally depends on the type- Roma, small or large, etc.)
1/4 large red onion (maybe 1/2 a small one?)
1-2 red peppers (again, depending how big they are)
Dice all veggies. I like mine in about 1 inch cubes- it's a nice size.
Add pitted green (Kalamata are great) deli olives (fresh, not canned!), chopped into smaller pieces. Then add as much feta cheese as it takes to mix it well throughout the salad, without scrimping.

Dressing:
1/2 cup olive oil
2/3 cup red wine vinegar
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 1/4 tsp dried oregano
1 1/4 tsp dried basil
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp salt
1 tsp onion powder

You can just whisk all the ingredients together and serve, but the dressing will separate very quickly.  I like to put the vinegar, mustard, onion and garlic powders, S&P in a food processor.  With the processor running add the olive oil in a slow drizzle.  Stir in the dried herbs.  This way emulsifies the dressing and will keep it from separating.

Cilantro Lime Quinoa

Made this twice in the last week it was so good!  Make half recipe for just our family as it makes a lot.  Easy and make ahead.

Lime-Cilantro Quinoa Salad

Ingredients

Salad

• 3 cups cooked quinoa (1 cup dry)
• ¾ cup dried fruit – we used raisins, golden raisins, and chopped dried apricots
• ¼ pine nuts, toasted
• ¼ cup cilantro, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper

Dressing

• ¼ cup lime juice
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• Pinch of salt

Directions

1. Mix all salad ingredients together in a large bowl.
2. In a separate, smaller bowl whisk together all dressing ingredients.
3. Pour the dressing over the salad and mix thoroughly.
4. Can be stored in an air tight container in the fridge.

Yield: 6 – 8 servings


**  To cook quiona:  rinse well, 1 cup quinoa and 2 cups water or broth simmer for 15 mins.

Lemon Meringue Pie

Don't have a picture, but this pie turned out great.  My MIL said it was the best lemon meringue pie she's ever had (and that she's had a lot of them since it is my FIL's favorite!).  Wanted to go ahead and post the recipe so I remember which one I used for next time.

Pastry
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 plus 1 tablespoon shortening (I used half butter, half shortening)
2 to 3 Tablespoons cold water

Filling
3 egg yolks
1.5 cups sugar
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon cornstarch
1.5 cups water
3 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1/2 cup lemon juice


Meringue
3 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
6 tablespoons of sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Pie crust:  Combine flour and salt and add to food processor.  Add cold butter/shortening and pulse until particles are pea size.  With processor running add water one tablespoon at a time, until dough forms a ball.  Shape into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate 45 minutes.  Preheat oven to 475.  With floured rolling pin, roll pastry out 2 inches larger than pie plate.  Fold into fourths, place in pie plate, unfold and press firmly into the bottom and sides of the pie plate.  Trim edges, flute as desired.  Prick bottom and side of pastry thoroughly with fork.  Bake 8 to 10 minutes until light brown, cool on cooling rack.

Filling:  Reduce oven temp to 400.  In small bowl, beat egg yolks with fork.  In 2 quart saucepan, mix sugar and cornstarch; gradually stir in water.  Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and boils.  Boil and stir 1 minute. 

Immediately add half of the hot mixture into the egg yolks, one whisk full at a time.  (tempering - see Alton's Brown's short and helpful video here).  Stir the egg yolk mixture back into the saucepan.  Boil and stir 2 minutes; remove from heat.  Stir in butter, lemon peel, and lemon juice.  Pour into pie crust.

Meringue:  In medium bowl, beat egg whites and cream of tartar with electric mixer on high speed until foamy.  Beat in sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time; continue beating until stiff and glossy.  Do not underbeat.  Beat in vanilla.  Spoon onto hot pie filling.  Spread over filling, carefully sealing meringue to edge of crust to prevent shrinking or weeping.

Bake 8 to 12 minutes or until meringue is light brown.  Cool away from draft for 2 hours.  Cover and refrigerated cooled pie until serving.  Store in refrigerator.