Category Archives: Main Dishes

Chicken Pot Pie

19 Wednesday Sep 2012

Posted by in Autumn, Casseroles, Chicken, Comfort Food, Freezer meals, Main Dishes, Nostalgia

≈ Leave a Comment

Print pagePDF pageEmail page

This recipe is great for freezing. I put the filling in my Emile Henry Gratinee bowls, top with crust and put the whole thing in a freezer bag. Once they are frozen the dishes can be stacked to take up less space. I can get 4 or 5 individual servings from this recipe. Sometimes I double it so I can have extra to freeze.

Crust:

1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
salt
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled, cut into small pieces
3-4 tablespoons milk

Filling:

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large onion chopped
1 large carrot chopped
2 large potatoes
3 tablespoons all purpose flour
2 cups chicken broth
2 cups cubed cooked chicken
1 cup peas (fresh or frozen)
1 cup half and half
1 teaspoon dried tarragon
salt and pepper to taste

To make the crust, stir the flour, Parmesan, and salt together in a bowl. Using a pastry blender or two knives, cut the butter into the flour mixture until it looks like coarse meal. Pour in 3 tablespoons of milk and mix quickly with a fork until moistened. If the dough is dry add one more teaspoon of milk. Gather the dough together and wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator while you make the filling.

To make the filling, melt the butter in large non-stick pan. Add the onion, carrot and potatoes and cook, stirring, until the onion is softened. Add the flour and stir for one minute until the vegetables are coated. Stir in the broth. Bring to a boil and reduce the heat and simmer until slightly thickened, about 3 minutes. Stir in the peas, half and half and tarragon. Simmer about five more minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Spoon the filling into a deep 2 quart baking dish.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to fit the inside dimensions of the baking dish. Trim off any rough edges. place the dough on top of the filling. Bake in a 400F degree oven until the crust is golden brown, 35-40 minutes.

Treebeard’s Red Beans and Rice

12 Monday Sep 2011

Posted by in Comfort Food, Main Dishes

≈ Leave a Comment

Print pagePDF pageEmail page

Treebeard’s is a Houston institution. I love to eat there and always  have red beans and rice. I found this yummy recipe at Food.com It is really close to the original.

Ingredients-
1 lb dried red kidney beans
2 quarts water
2 medium onions, chopped
2 stalks celery, with leaves, chopped
1/2 large bell pepper, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoons thyme
1 1/2 teaspoons oregano
1 1/4 teaspoons garlic powder
1/4 teaspoons cayenne pepper (you can always add more)
2 bay leaves
1 lb smoked sausage, cut in 1/2 inch slices

Directions-
1-Sort and wash red beans. In a large soup pot, add 2 quarts cold water and red beans. Let soak overnight. (To speed up process, you can bring them to a boil, simmer 2 minutes, remove from heat and let stand 1 hour before the next step). DO NOT DRAIN WATER!

2-Add onions, celery and bell pepper to beans and bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to simmer about 1 1/2 hours, or until beans are soft . Do not stir more than necessary.

3-Stir in seasonings and sausage. Simmer 30 minutes more. Remove the bay leaves.

4-Meanwhile cook a pot of rice and serve the beans over hot cooked rice, garnished with shredded cheddar cheese and chopped green onion.

5- Don’t stir more than necessary because you don’t want mushy beans. If you want thicker beans remove the lid during the last 30 minutes of cooking time or remove 1/2 cup of the beans and mash them before returning to the pot.

Texas Brisket

06 Saturday Aug 2011

Posted by in Comfort Food, Main Dishes

≈ Leave a Comment

Print pagePDF pageEmail page

While we lived in Saudi Arabia the women’s group published a cookbook, A Taste of Jubail. It’s an interesting book because of the cultural diversity in Jubail during that time. I have discarded many cookbooks over the years, but I find myself clinging to this one for two recipes. There are many great recipes in this book and now that I think about it a really great one for sweet and sour shrimp. (I better post that, too). The two that I have used over and over are for Texas Brisket and Homemade Barbecue sauce. I’m making both of these today. We are having a few friends over for dinner tomorrow.

Texas Brisket
Ingredients-

1 4-5 pound beef brisket
2 large cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground sage
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Method-
Preheat the oven to 225 degrees. Rub minced garlic into both sides of the brisket. Combine remaining seasonings in a small bowl and mix well. Rub seasonings into both sides of the brisket. Set brisket, fat side up, on a large piece of aluminum foil and wrap tightly. Transfer foil wrapped brisket to a shallow, foil lined roasting pan.  Bake until tender, about 8 hours. I never test it, I just bake for 8 hours and it is always done. I usually cook this the day before I am going to serve it because it needs to be cold to get good slices. If you don’t care about slices and don’t mind it being shredded you can serve it right out of the oven with homemade barbecue sauce. (recipe below).

Homemade Barbecue Sauce

06 Saturday Aug 2011

Posted by in Comfort Food, Main Dishes

≈ Leave a Comment

Print pagePDF pageEmail page

2 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup prepared chili sauce (I use Heinz the most. Maggi is good if you can get that brand)
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup cider vinegar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon molasses
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon paprika

Method-

Melt butter in a skillet over medium low heat; add chopped onion. Cover and cook until translucent, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Blend in the remaining ingredients. Bring sauce to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Serve at room temperature

Shepherd’s Pie

04 Monday Jul 2011

Posted by in Comfort Food, Main Dishes, Nostalgia, Pies

≈ Leave a Comment

Print pagePDF pageEmail page

I had never made a shepherd’s pie until we moved to London 10 years ago. (Has it really been 10 years since I have lived in the USA?) It doesn’t seem that long. It was quickly added to Rick and Alex’s list of favorites. Alex even ordered a giant portion of it at the Cheesecake Factory when I was in San Antonio last week. I told him that it was really simple to make and that I would post the recipe here. This recipe is adapted from the Leith’s Cookery Bible by Prue Leith and Caroline Waldgrave. They run a cooking school in London.

Ingredients-
1 to 1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1 onion, finely chopped
8 oz frozen mixed vegetables
2 tablespoons flour
2 cups beef broth (made with bouillon cubes)
*2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
*2 teaspoons tomato paste

Topping-
2 lbs mashed potatoes and grated cheddar

Method-
Brown the ground beef and chopped onion in a large frying pan. Add the vegetables and mix well. Next sprinkle with the flour and mix to coat the ground beef and vegetables and cook for about 30 seconds until lightly browned. Slowly add the beef broth and bring to a boil stirring continuously until the sauce is thickened. Stir in the Worcestershire sauce and tomato paste and add salt and pepper to taste. Tip the mixture into an ovenproof dish and top with the mashed potatoes and cheese. Bake at 400 degrees about 20-30 minutes until the potato is slightly brown and crusty.

* The Worcestershire sauce and the tomato paste are key ingredients in this recipe it will not taste like a true shepherd’s pie without them.

Creamy Shrimp and Broccoli Fettucine

10 Wednesday Feb 2010

Posted by in Main Dishes, Pasta, Seafood

≈ Leave a Comment

Print pagePDF pageEmail page

This recipe is courtesy of Elise at Simply Recipes
Ingredients

* 2 to 3 cups broccoli florets, cut into bite-sized pieces
* 1 pound fettuccine (use rice-pasta for gluten-free version)
* Extra virgin olive oil
* 2 cups heavy cream
* 2/3 cup white wine
* 6 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
* 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* 1 pound peeled, deveined shrimp (if using frozen shrimp, defrost by running cold water over them for a few minutes)
* 2 Tbsp finely chopped fresh parsley
* Salt

Method

1 Fill a large 8-quart stock pot at least half full with water and with 1 Tbsp of salt; bring to a boil.

2 While the water is the large stockpot is heating, bring a smaller saucepan (2-3 quarts) half filled with water to a boil. Blanch the broccoli in the boiling water for 1 minute. Remove from heat. Drain and run the broccoli under cold water to stop the cooking. Set aside.

3 Cook the pasta in the large pot of boiling water according to the directions on the package (anywhere from 3 to 12 minutes, depending on the type of pasta you have) until al dente, or still slightly firm. Drain and toss with a little olive oil to keep from sticking.

4 While the pasta is cooking, combine the cream, wine, garlic, and black pepper in a large skillet and bring to a simmer over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer for 7 to 10 minutes until the mixture thickens.

5 Add the shrimp and cook 2 to 3 minutes, until the shrimp have turned pink on all sides. Toss in the broccoli and the parsley. Mix in the fettucini. Salt to taste.

Serves 6.

College Pasta

31 Sunday Jan 2010

Posted by in Chicken, Main Dishes, Quick and Easy

≈ 1 Comment

Print pagePDF pageEmail page

This is a quick, easy, and good poor man’s meal.

2 chopped up chicken breasts (little square inch or so pieces)
1 can green beans
1 can stewed tomatoes
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon basil
salt and pepper to taste

Cook any pasta you want. Put a little olive oil in a pan, and cook up chicken. Once chicken is cooked through add green beans and tomatoes, let them heat up. Add spices and let simmer. Drain Pasta, put other stuff on top. Delicious!

Blast from the Past!

10 Sunday Jan 2010

Posted by in Casseroles, Main Dishes, Nostalgia

≈ 1 Comment

Print pagePDF pageEmail page


Recently, Rick and I were discussing how our eating patterns have changed over the years. I grew up eating more meat and potatoes and he grew up eating casseroles. I had never eaten a casserole until I met him and ate his mother’s cooking. So after we married I cooked many casseroles. I thought you might enjoy having some of these recipes and it might even be more fun to cook some of them at a reunion or another time when we are together. Let me know if you decide to try out any of these nostalgic recipes.

Grandma Carruth’s Chinese Hamburger

1 pound ground beef
1 chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
3/4 can water
2 tablespoons or less soy sauce (the original recipe called for 1/4 cup and it was too salty I haven’t made this for ages so it might still be really salty with 2 tablespoons)
1/2 cup raw long grain rice
1 small can of the crunchy type chow mein noodles (do they even make these anymore??)

Brown meat and vegetables in a frying pan and drain the grease. Combine everything except the chow mein noodles and put in a casserole dish and bake covered at 350 for 20 minutes. Sprinkle noodles on top and bake for an additional 10 minutes

Grandma Carruth’s Rice Casserole
This was always served as a side dish to ham. The recipe originally called for 1 stick (4oz) of butter. I have reduced to 2 tablespoons and have even left out the butter entirely and it is much better. One stick just makes greasy rice, but we actually ate that way when she cooked it.

2 tablespoons butter
1 cup long grain rice
1 can French onion soup
1 soup can water
Sliced almonds

Melt butter and combine with rice, soup and water in a casserole dish. Sprinkle almonds evenly on the top and bake covered at 350 degrees for 60 minutes

Nana’s Chicken Chestnut Casserole
6-8 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup diced celery
1 cup sliced water chestnuts
1 cup long grain rice
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon lemon juice
3/4 cup mayonnaise
2 cans Cream of Mushroom soup
1 cup soft buttered bread crumbs *(see directions below)
1 package slivered almonds (optional)

Cook rice according to directions and set aside. Boil chicken breasts with onion and a little poultry seasoning, salt and pepper until done. Cut chicken into bite size pieces and put in a 9 X 13 pan. Top with celery, water chestnuts and rice. Mix lemon juice, salt, mayonnaise and soup until well combined. Pour into pan and fold all the ingredients together. Top with bread crumbs and sprinkle with almonds. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

*Bread Crumbs
I used sliced bread or leftover buns for this. I would grate several on my grated to make soft crumbs. Then melt 2 or 3 tablespoons of butter in a non-stick frying pan and add the crumbs stirring until just browned.

Tuna Rice Casserole
This is from a Relief Society Cookbook

1/2 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped green pepper
4 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
1 1/2 cups milk

3/4 cup raw long grain rice cooked
1/4 cup chopped pimento
1 can tuna drained
1/4 teaspoon thyme
1/4 teaspoon curry powder
1/4 teaspoon marjoram

Brown the onions and green pepper in butter. Add the flour and stir until the vegetables are well coated. Slowly add the milk and stir until thickened. Stir in the remaining ingredients and bake in a casserole dish at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Vegetable Couscous

30 Friday Oct 2009

Posted by in Main Dishes, Side Dishes

≈ 1 Comment

Print pagePDF pageEmail page

I often add shredded chicken, too.

1 can (14 1/2 oz) vegetable broth
1 cup plain couscous
1 medium carrot, grated
1 red pepper, diced
1 small yellow summer squash, sliced and cut in half
1 small zucchini, sliced and cut in half
1/2 cup finely chopped red onion
2 garlic cloves, pressed
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 can (15 oz) garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 teaspoon each curry powder, ground cumin, and salt
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
snipped fresh parsley

In a small pan, bring the vegetable broth to a boil. Add couscous, cover and remove from heat. Let stand five minutes.

In large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat until hot. Add vegetables and garlic; cook 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally or until vegetables are crisp-tender. Stir in garbanzo beans, curry powder, cumin, salt, and red pepper flakes. Mix thoroughly. Add couscous; continue cooking 1-2 minutes or until heated through. Sprinkle with parsley.

Lindsey’s BBQ Chicken Sandwiches

30 Friday Oct 2009

Posted by in Lunch, Main Dishes

≈ 1 Comment

Print pagePDF pageEmail page




Thanks to my friend, Lindsey, for this yummy recipe. We crave BBQ on this side of the pond.

Thanks for posting Lindsey’s great recipe, Ally! I made these today and we loved them and it was so easy. It makes 5-6 sandwiches.

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
Salt and pepper
1 onion finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 1/3 cups barbecue sauce
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar (this is the key to make the chicken taste awesome!)
Hot pepper sauce (just a dash)
6 kaiser or French rolls, split
6 ounces shredded cheese (Monterey Jack, Provolone, or Mozzarella)

Season the chicken with salt and pepper and place in a heavy pot with the onion, garlic and just enough water to cover (about 1 1/2 cups). (You could also use chicken stock for a richer sauce, or go half and half with chicken stock and water.) Add the barbecue sauce, vinegar and a few drops hot sauce and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, about 15 minutes. Remove the chicken from the sauce and shred with two forks. Boil the sauce, skimming occasionally, until reduced by half, about 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the shredded chicken and heat through. Spoon the mixture onto the rolls and top with the cheese.

Just a little rambling… it’s great if you need to take a meal to someone, it works well if you want to make it in advance and keep it warm in the crockpot and it makes great leftovers.