Jessica's Bread and a bread-rising tip

A good friend gave me this recipe a couple of weeks ago. I got my mixer fixed finally (what a nightmare), and this was the first thing I made with it. It is so delicious. The whole family raved about it. I made it for the second time tonight. The pictures are actually mine for the first time!

Put in bowl: 1 TBsp yeast
1/4C warm water
About 3/4 T sugar
Wait until frothy.

Add: 1/2 C mashed potatoes (leftovers or instant)
1 C warm milk
1/4 C bean puree (white beans)
1/4 C Sugar
1 tsp Salt
Add: 1 egg
1 c white flour (from 2 c)
1 C wheat flour (from 2 c)
1/4 C Vital wheat gluten
1 T honey, optional

Add: The rest of the flour (1 c each) or more until it doesn't stick to the sides of the bowl.

Knead for about 6 minutes. Let rise for an hour. Put into pans or shape into rolls. Let rise another hour or until doubled. Bake at 350/375 for about 20/25 minutes. (Jessica covers her after about 17 minutes so it doesn't get too brown.)

A couple of other notes (from Jessica).....
You do not need the gluten if you are doing all white flour.
On the second rise time, I set the microwave to 2 minutes and run it empty....then put my loaf pans into the warmed microwave to rise there. **I've never heard of this before. I tried it and it worked great. Didn't take long to rise at all.**

Meatball and Cheese Bake

I've had this in my recipe book forver and finally decided to try it. Matt says it's his new favorite. Trayton likes it. Spencer hates it, of course. Don't know what he has against meat.... It is very rich(?). Don't know if you can say that about a main dish. I would probably do less cheese cream mixture next time or more meatballs and noodles to make the sauce go further.

1 lb. ground beef
1/2 c. dry bread crumbs
2 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
1 tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. oregano
1/8 tsp. pepper
2 eggs, beaten
1/3 c. milk
3 tbsp. cooking oil
3 tbsp. chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
3 (8 oz.) cans tomato sauce
1 tsp. sugar
1 c. water
1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese
3/4 c. sour cream
1 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
1/8 tsp. salt
8 oz. wide egg noodles, cooked & drained
1 c. shredded Cheddar cheese

Combine ground beef, bread crumbs, 2 tablespoons parsley, Parmesan cheese, 1 clove garlic, 1 teaspoon salt, oregano, pepper, eggs and milk. Mix lightly but thoroughly. Shape into 20 meatballs. Brown in hot oil and remove from pan.
Remove all but 3 tablespoons oil from pan. Add onion and garlic clove; saute until tender (do not brown). Stir in tomato sauce, sugar and water. Add meatballs; simmer, uncovered for 20 minutes.

Combine softened cream cheese, sour cream, 1 tablespoon parsley and 1/8 teaspoon salt; blend well.

Spoon some sauce into bottom of a 9 x 13 inch pan. Top with noodles. Spread cream cheese mixture over noodles. Top with sauce, then place meatballs in rows on top. Sprinkle with Cheddar cheese. Cover loosely with aluminum foil. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Makes 8-10 servings.

Chocolate Mash

I have to post this "recipe" because it's something I eat quite often but I haven't found anyone else who appreciates it nearly like I do yet.

I mix this up when I need a quick treat and am too lazy to make anything else. I tell myself it's okay to have quite often because it's healthy.

I swear my dad used to make this when I was little, but he says he doesn't remember.

Put some chocolate chips into a bowl and add some peanut butter. Microwave for 30 seconds. Stir. Microwave for another 20 seconds or so until melted. Stir again.


Add:
Quick Oats
Chopped nuts
Wheat Germ
Wheat Bran
Anything else you can find that looks good (toffee chips, etc)

You'll need to have a glass of water handy.

The boys think it's nasty because it gets stuck in your throat. Matt won't even try it and came up with the name. I think it's yummy!

Chicken Roll-Ups

These are similar to chicken pillows, but yummier (and more fattening)

Pillows:
2 cans Reduced Fat Pillsbury Refrigerated Crescent Dinner Rolls
1 (10 3/4 oz) can 98% fat free cream of chicken soup, undiluted
3/4 cup grated cheddar cheese or swiss cheese (or any cheese of choice)
1/2 cup milk

Filling:
4 ounces cream cheese (very soft)
2 tablespoons butter (very soft but not melted)
1/2-1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 tsp minced onion flakes
2 cup cooked chicken breasts, finely chopped (or cooked turkey)
1/2-3/4 cup finely grated cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp seasoning salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper (or to taste)
2 Tbsp. milk
1-2 cup grated cheddar cheese (for topping)

Set oven to 350°F. Spray a 9x13 dish with cooking spray. Mix together milk, 3/4 cup cheese and undiluted chicken soup (can season with black pepper if desired).

Mix the soft cream cheese with butter until very smooth, then add in garlic powder. Add in the chopped chicken, onion, and cheddar cheese. Mix well until combined. Add in 2 tablespoons milk; mix to combine (add in a little more if the mixture seems too dry). Season with seasoned salt or white and black pepper to taste. Unroll the crescent rolls. Place 1 heaping tablespoon chicken mixture (or a little more) on top of each crescent triangle, then roll up starting at the thicker end. Drizzle a small amount of soup mixture on the bottom of the dish. Then place the crescent rolls seam-side down on top of the creamed mixture in the casserole. Drizzle the remaining sauce on top (you don't have to use the full amount of cream sauce, just use as much as desired) and sprinkle with 1 cup (or more) grated cheese, or amount desired. Bake for about 30 minutes.

Spencer saw this on Pinterest and claims that he found this wonderful recipe. It has since become one of his favorites.

Baked Fried Chicken

I found this on Pinterest. I thought it was delicious. Spencer isn't really a meat person, so he's the only one that wasn't quite so sure about it.

Place thawed chicken breast (about 2 pounds) strips in a bowl of milk. Let soak for 20-30 min.

Mix in a Gallon Size Ziploc or Large Bowl:
1/2 tsp. Salt
1 T Season All
3/4 tsp Pepper
1 c. Flour
2 tsp. Paprika

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut 1/2 stick of butter into a few pieces and place in a 9x13 pan. Melt butter in pre-heated oven. Spread melted butter around the bottom of the pan. Lightly spray the pan, if needed, to make sure that there are no dry spots.

Shake excess milk off of chicken and completely coat each piece with the seasoning mix. You can either shake the chicken in the bag, until coated, or dip each piece in the bowl until coated. Place each piece of chicken in the pan. Cook for 20 min. Turn each piece of chicken and continue cooking for 20 more minutes, or until cooked through.

Meatballs

My sister made these for our annual New Year's party. We dipped them in sweet and sour sauce or cheese. Very yummy. You can also make a soup with them. Here's the link: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/italian-wedding-soup-recipe/index.html

Ingredients
3/4 pound ground chicken
1/2 pound chicken sausage, casings removed
2/3 cup fresh white bread crumbs
2 teaspoons minced garlic (2 cloves)
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
1/4 cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan, plus extra for serving
3 tablespoons milk
1 extra-large egg, lightly beaten
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Cook in chicken broth for 8 minutes (for small ones).