My Favorite Recipes

These are my tried and true favorites...the recipes I turn to when company is coming and I need a "sure thing" on the table.  These are the recipes that have been made over and over...some I've made for over 20 years. Try a few...and let me know what you think!

Chicken:  Barbecued Herb-Mustard Chicken


In the late 1980s my mother in law introduced me to this recipe from Sunset magazine.  She made it frequently for family get-togethers and Brian and I continue to make it on a regular basis. In fact, when I make it, I quadruple the recipe and fill up the freezer for easy-to-make meals at a later date.

Something else I should mention, is that it's worth trying even if you don't like mustard.  I HATE mustard.  Hate it. I don't even scrape it off of things...I simply won't eat mustard-y foods.   Yet I LOVE this recipe.  And speaking of mustard, the type/brand of mustard you use does matter. I've mentioned two easy-to-find national brands that work well with this.  But I've had it with other mustards and it's just not the same. 

Beef:  Marinated Flank Steak

This recipe really needs a better name because "marinated" doesn't describe the soy-ginger-garlicy goodness that leaves you drooling.  There are many similar marinades out there with different names, and I'm sure they're all good.  But I have no need to even try them because this one is so damn good.   And while the title says "flank" steak, it also works well with sirloins.  The flank is best, but for the budget dinners, it does wonders to a cheap sirloin.

Make sure to use fresh ingredients...onions, ginger, garlic.  None of that dried stuff, please.   

Pie:  Old-Fashioned Apple Pie


This recipe came from the McCalls cookbook we got for a wedding gift 21 years ago.  I've been making it ever since.  You can pretty much count on it for Thanksgiving and Christmas at my house.  Even if I make another pie, I still make the apple.  It's not a holiday meal without my apple pie.  When we have benefit pie auctions, my apple pie brings in a solid bid each time.  What can be better than that?  Pies for charity!!

When I first began making this I used the Pilsbury refrigerated pie crusts.  Now I make my own crust, but if you're looking for a short-cut, get the Pilsbury crusts.

Cake:  Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting


Incredibly moist carrot cake and the creamiest cream cheese frosting ever.  Make sure you thaw out the cream cheese before mixing so it's not lumpy.  Since the shredded carrots are the most time-consuming part of this recipe, I've found a short-cut:  I buy a bag of carrots and shred all of them in the food processor (using the fine shredding blade).  Then I bag them up in 4 cup servings, and freeze them!  I usually have a few bags of shredded carrots in my freezer.  When I need (or want!) to make this cake it's super easy to grab a bag of carrots...you don't even need to defrost them...just dump them in the mixing bowl.

Stir-Fry: Kung Pao Chicken

This is another recipe we've been making for 20 some years.  The only downside is that I haven't found a way to freeze parts of it for a make ahead meal....something to work on this summer!  Anyway, I just love the flavors in this sauce...so much better than any jarred/premade sauces you can pick up at the grocery store.  And, you can add just about any veggie to make it to your liking.  Shrimp or tofu is easily added or substituted for the chicken too.


Cookies:  Van's Chocolate Chip Cookies


The first thing you may notice is that these aren't so chocolate-y.  Don't let that stop you.  I'm not a fan of a lot of chocolate, and prefer to use about half the recommend chocolate chips in my cookies.  The linked recipe will give you a generous amount of chocolate!

This recipe comes from a woman named Van, whom I met when we lived in Indiana. These were the first home-made chocolate chip cookies that I fell in love with.  They just always turn out perfectly.    Van said the key was the Fleishmann's margarine and the Gold Medal brand flour.  I don't mess with perfection, so I always make them as she did.

Pudding:  Rice Pudding


The ultimate comfort food.   This version is baked in a water bath, leaving a creamy rice mixture on the bottom with custard on top.  Soooooooooo good!!

Pasta:  Baked Macaroni and Cheese


This is one of my newer favorites, as I've only been making it for 5 years.  I love the creaminess. Cook's Illustrated insists it's because of the colby cheese...which I've had difficulty finding at times.  It seems it used to be more readily available, but now I just find colby-jack, which is not what you want.   So go on a colby hunt. It's worth it!

Another plus....it's just as easy to quadruple the recipe and make up a bunch of pans to freeze.  I LOVE having this on hand in the freezer for some quick comfort food. When someone's in need and meals are being arranged, I can always volunteer immediately because this is stocked in my freezer.  It's kid-family friendly, vegetarian, and not spicy...all great pluses when you're cooking for someone recovering from an illness.

Alcoholic Beverage:  Minty Mojitos


Refreshing and light...perfect for a warm summer evening.  Kids seem to like the virgin versions of these too...just leave out the rum for theirs!  When you make this recipe, leave some room at the top.  That way you can adjust the taste....adding a bit more simple sugar, rum, or lime.  I tend to like a bit more lime!

Potato Dish:  Smoky Scalloped Potatoes




Another more recent favorite from Cook's Illustrated.  This is just soooooo darn good.  Creamy and cheesy.  It's a little time consuming and not anywhere near calorie-conscious so it gets made once a year for Thanksgiving or Christmas.  It fits in nicely with my holiday meal schedule, as it needs a 425 degree oven which is exactly the same as my cornbread and apple pie...so the three of them can cook up right after the turkey comes out of the oven.  Oh, and it can be assembled the day before, which helps with holiday stresses!

Appetizer:  Herbed Puffs

Hot little mouth-watering morsels of cheesy-herby goodness.  Can be made ahead and frozen. Enough said!

Dip:  Cilantro Dip



The best party dip.  Pour over a block of cream cheese and serve with water crackers. This one's been making the rounds within my circle of friends for several years.  You can make it as hot or mild as you like (just add the jalapenos a little at a time until it's just right for you). 

Holiday Meal Plan



When it comes to Thanksgiving and Christmas, I pretty much make the same dishes each year.  While that might seem boring, most of these dishes are only made for the holidays, so we look forward to them each year.

My holiday meals usually include the following dishes, which are all freshly home-made:

• Apple Streusel Coffeecake (morning)
• Turkey
• Tofurky
• Gravy
• Mashed Potatoes (or Scalloped Potatoes)
• Cornbread
• Broccoli with Garlic Butter and Cashews
• Green Beens with Pecans
• Sausage Stuffing
• Vegetarian Stuffing
• Apple Pie
• Turkey Pot Pie (for the day after)

The prep work and timing for these dishes could be overwhelming if I didn't do a lot of work the week before.  In this meal plan you'll find the shopping list, recipes, and a schedule for all the prep work.

The beauty behind this plan is the prep bowl chart.  I line up all my bowls, number them, and get out the ingredients. Then I fill the bowls assembly-line style.

Easy Meat Lasagna with Hearty Tomato-Meat Sauce

While lasagna is pretty darn simple to make, it seems mine always were just so-so.  It was a meal I made without a recipe (one of the few) but it wasn't anything special.  So, wanting a knock-your-socks-off lasagna, I turned to Cook's Illustrated.  As usual, they've figured out how to do it right.  This was DELICIOUS. 

Easy Meat Lasagna with Hearty Tomato-Meat Sauce
(Cook's Illustrated)

Meat Sauce

In a dutch oven (I use a 5 qt. one for a single batch, or a 7 qt. one for a double), heat up:
     1 TB olive oil

Add and stir until softened (about 2 minutes):
     1 finely chopped medium onion

Add and stir until fragrant (about 30 seconds):
     6 minced medium garlic cloves

Add, stir, and cook about 4 minutes:
     1 pound mixture of ground beef, pork, or veal (I used 1/2 lb. ground beef and 1/2 pound     ground pork)
     1/2 tsp salt
     1/2 tsp pepper

Add, stir,  and bring to a simmer:
     1/4 C heavy cream
Cook until the liquid evaporates and just the fat is left (about 4 minutes).

Add, stir, and cook for about 3 more minutes:
     1 28 oz can tomato puree
     1 28 oz can diced tomatoes, drained

Set sauce aside.

Cheeses

Get out 1 small bowl, 1 medium bowl, and 1 large bowl.

Fill the small bowl with:
     1/4 C grated Parmesan cheese

Fill the medium bowl with:
     1 lb. shredded Mozzarella cheese

Fill the large bowl with:
     1 C grated Parmesan cheese
     15 oz whole-milk or part-skim ricotta cheese (I used part-skim)
     1 slightly beaten egg
     1/2 C chopped fresh basil
     1/2 tsp salt
     1/2 tsp pepper
Mix together until creamy. 

Have on hand:
     12 no-boil lasagna noodles from an 8 or 9 oz pack (I used Ronzoni brand)

Assemble Lasagna

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Spread 1/4 C of the meat sauce over the bottom of a 9 x 13" baking dish.

Place 3 of the noodles on top of the sauce for the first layer.  Spread  blobs of ricotta cheese mixture across the noodles (about 3-4 TB per noodle).  Sprinkle some mozzarella on top of the ricotta (about 1 1/3 C per layer).    Spoon 1 1/2 C of the meat sauce over the cheeses, spreading evenly.

Repeat the layering process.  On top of the last three noodles, spread any remaining sauce, sprinkle with 1 1/3 C mozzarella, and then top with the 1/4 C of Parmesan in the small bowl.

Lightly spray a piece of foil with cooking spray and cover.

Cook, covered, for 15 minutes.  Remove foil, and continue cooking for about 25 minutes, until the cheese is a spotty brown and the sauce is bubbling. 

Cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Freezing:  This freezes well.   Line your baking dish with foil, and prepare the lasagna.  Freeze the baking dish until the lasagna is frozen solid (overnight is great).  Remove the foil "package" from the dish, and wrap in heavy duty foil or vacuum pack with a FoodSaver.    To re-heat, remove the lasagna from the extra foil or the FoodSaver bag.  Place it back in the 9 x 13" pan and allow to defrost.    Follow the cooking directions above.

Creamy Baked Four-Cheese Pasta

It's no secret that I'm a huge fan of Cook's Illustrated.  My husband is a fan of pasta and cheese.  I mean, what's not to like?  On one of my busy nights, he took control of shopping and dinner and treated the family to this cheesy pasta dish.  Definitely a crowd pleaser!!  And, oh, so simple. 

Creamy Baked Four-Cheese Pasta
(Cook's Illustrated)

Topping

In a food processor, process with the steel blade until coursely ground:
     4 slices white sandwich bread, torn up
     2 TB melted unsalted butter

Toss with
     1/4 C grated Parmesan cheese

Set aside.

Pasta and Cheese

Heat the oven to 500 degrees.

Cook until al dente:
     1 lb penne pasta
When finished, drain, return to poss and toss with:
     1 TB olive oil

Melt:
     2 tsp unsalted butter

Add to the butter, stirring until golden, about a minute
     2 tsp all-purpose flour

Whisk in and bring to a simmer:
     2 C heavy cream
Whisk frequently until it's thickened.

Remove from heat and add:
     1/4 tsp salt
     1/4 tsp pepper
Cover to keep warm.

Combine in a large bowl:
     4 oz shredded fontina cheese (about 1 1/3 C)
     3 oz crumbled Gorgonzola cheese (about 3/4 C)
     1 oz grated Pecorino Romano cheese  (about 1/2 C)
     1/2 oz grated Parmesan cheese (about 1/4 C)

Add the cooked pasta to the cheese and pour in the hot creamy mixture.  Cover and let sit for three minutes.  Remove cover and mix until the cheeses are melted and all ingredients are combined.  Place in a 9 x 13" baking dish, and sprinkle with the bread topping.  Bake until the topping is golden brown, about 5-10 minutes.  Serve immediately.

Variations:

1)  Add a  14.5 oz. can of drained, diced tomatoes to the pasta when you add the creamy mixture.    Add 1/4 C chopped fresh basil just before you put it in the baking dish.

2)  Skip the salt and instead add 4 oz chopped prosciutto and 1 C frozen peas to the pasta when you add the creamy mixture.

Lasagna with Pesto

How did we ever live without pesto?  And why did it take us 25 years to learn about it?  We were introduced to it at a Bloomington, Indiana restaurant we used to frequent.  Just simple pesto and pasta, but oh, so good!  That was back in the early 90s.   Turning to my can't-live-without cookbook, San Francisco Encore, I've been making pesto ever since.  
And, along with that recipe for pesto was another recipe which has been a favorite of ours for nearly 20 years:  Lasagna with Pesto.  This recipe calls for lasagna roll-ups, which is a fun way to present lasagna.  You could just as easily place the lasagna noodles flat in the pan.  But I love the ruffled edges of this dish, so I've always rolled them!

Lasagna with Pesto (San Francisco Encore)

1 lb ricotta cheese

1 ½ C freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1 C shredded mozzarella cheese

½ C minced fresh parsley

½ C minced green onion

½ tsp minced garlic

1 egg yolk

1 tsp dried basil

½ tsp marjoram

salt to taste

freshly ground black pepper

1 pound lasagna, cooked, rinsed in cold water and drained.

Pesto Sauce (see below)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a shallow baking dish. Combine all the ingredients except noodles and Pesto Sauce. Blend well. Taste and correct seasonings. Spread some of the filling over each lasagne noodle. Roll up jelly-roll fashion. Stand vertically in the baking dish in a single layer. Spoon Pesto Sauce over the top of each roll. Cover and bake for 30-40 minutes, or until bubbly and heated through. Serve immediately.

To freeze:  I have two ways to freeze this.  One way is to make the filling and simply freeze it before you  assemble the lasagna.  This is simple, but requires more work later.  

The second way to freeze it, is to partially cook the noodles so they're still pliable enough to roll, but not quite al dente.  Line the pan with foil, assemble the lasagna, and then flash freeze the whole pan.  Once frozen, remove from dish (still in foil) and place in a freezer bag.  Remove air or vacuum pack.  To reheat, defrost, remove from bag, place back in same pan, and cook as directed.

Pesto Sauce

2 C fresh basil leaves (or 3 T dried)
½ C olive oil
2 TB pine nuts
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp salt

½ C freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 TB butter, softened

In a food processor or blender, combine the first 5 ingredients. Transfer to a bowl. Beat in the cheese by hand, incorporating evenly. Beat in the butter.

To freeze the pesto, they recommend doing freezing it without the butter and Parmesan, and adding those in just before using it. However, I will admit that I have frozen this pesto without these ingredients, and with the butter and Parmesan. I haven't noticed much difference, so I just freeze the whole recipe! 

Grilled Chicken with Sesame Noodles

Today was a great food prepping day. I made five batches of the Herb Mustard Chicken for an end-of-the-school-year BBQ for Linfield's chemistry department (students, faculty, and families), two batches of Cajun-Curry Chicken, and I tried a new recipe for tonight's dinner.

Tonight's dinner was delicious! It was spicy, yet flavorful. Sometimes that's a hard balance to find. Many times spicy sauces are just a bowl of heat, without much taste. This was a killer sauce: little bit of sweetness from the brown sugar, a bit of nuttiness from the sesame oil and peanut butter, and some zing from the hot sauce.

I like spicy foods, so it's rare that I will suggest using a little less heat. In this recipe, I'd use about 1 1/2 tsp of the hot sauce if you like foods moderately spicy; 1 tsp if you like it fairly spicy, and so on. Feel free to start with a little, do a taste test, and add a bit more until it's to your liking. Now, it might matter what kind of hot sauce is used, because all brands are not equal in their hotness. The above suggestion would work with any brand. Since you're making the sauce, you may as well make it to your liking!

Grilled Chicken with Sesame Noodles
(Cook's Illustrated)

Classic sesame noodles can be a tricky dish, with gummy noodles, dry chicken, and bland sauce. We developed a few techniques to avoid those problems. Here's what we discovered.

* Rinsing the cooked noodles well eliminates lots of starch, which can turn the cold pasta gummy.
* Tossing the pasta with the sauce directly after rinsing keeps the pasta moist.
* Grilling the chicken over high heat lets it cook through before drying out.
* If traditional Asian sesame paste is hard to find, a combination of peanut butter and sesame oil makes an excellent substitute.

If you prefer, you can substitute 12 ounces dried spaghetti for the Asian noodles.

Serves 4 to 6
3 cloves garlic , minced
2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
1/2 cup soy sauce
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 teaspoons hot sauce (I used Tapatio Salsa Picante...see above note)
3 tablespoons light brown sugar
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds)
1/4 cup peanut butter
Table salt
1 pound fresh Asian noodles
6 scallions , sliced thin


1. Bring 4 quarts water to boil over high heat. Meanwhile, whisk garlic, ginger, soy sauce, vinegar, hot sauce, brown sugar, and oil in small bowl. Toss chicken with 3 tablespoons garlic mixture in bowl. Puree remaining garlic mixture and peanut butter in blender until smooth.

2. Add 1 tablespoon salt and noodles to boiling water and cook until al dente. Drain well, rinse under cold running water until cool, and drain again. Toss noodles, peanut sauce, and scallions in large bowl. Adjust seasonings.

3. Grill chicken breasts over high heat until cooked through, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Slice chicken and serve with noodles.

Shrimp Pasta Salad with Cucumber and Dill

This morning Katie declared that she was going to make dinner for the family tonight. I really didn't know what to expect. I was thinking a tortilla with beans or something creative yet possibly inedible. When I went to the store I asked her what she needed for her dinner. She asked for 1 pound of peeled & deveined shrimp and fresh dill.

Later I was tinkering on-line, and Brian was watching basketball, while we listened to Katie working in the kitchen. She washed, chopped, prepped, and cooked like a little pro! Every now and then she had a question (What does "al dente" mean?), but for the most part she just worked quietly and efficiently. Suddenly she declared that dinner was ready. I walked in the kitchen just as she was putting the final touches on the dish...sprinkling fresh dill, salt and fresh ground pepper in the bowl, as she mixed it up.

Unfortunately, I'm not a fan of seafood. Katie LOVES shrimp, cucumbers, and pasta, and was thrilled to find a dish that included so many of her favorites. I ate it without the shrimp, and Katie was quite happy to take my share for herself!

In the end, Katie declared that while it was good, it wasn't her favorite. It had a heavy lemon-dill flavoring from the dressing. Next time, she said, she'd keep the dressing separate, rather than mix it all together....which was her polite way of saying she liked the shrimp, cucumbers, and pasta!!

So, though this one won't become a family favorite, I was just too tickled with what she made that I had to share. Who knows? You may just love it...especially if you're a fan of lemon and dill flavoring!

Pesto Parmesan Chicken

This is a relatively easy recipe that was inspired by a dish from Entree Vous. Since I'm always looking for more recipes that call for pesto, I was eager to try making this.

Pesto Parmesan Chicken

Ingredients:
6-8 thinly sliced* skinless boneless chicken breast halves
1 C pesto sauce (recipe here)
1 1/2 C finely grated Parmesan cheese

Place the chicken in a bowl and pour the pesto over the pieces, covering well. Place the Parmesan in a shallow bowl. One at a time, place the chicken pieces in the bowl of Parmesan, spooning cheese onto the top to coat.

Place the coated pieces in a baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees or until thoroughly cooked.

*Because many chicken breast halves are very thick, I usually slice them horizontally to make them thinner. They grill/bake faster, and the outsides don't tend to get as dry while waiting for the thick middle part to cook.

If freezing, line a jelly-roll pan with waxed paper, and place the chicken pieces on it. Flash-freeze. Once completely frozen, place inside a freezer bag, squeezing all the air out of it (or vacuum pack it), before putting it back in the freezer.

Serving suggestions: Serve with pasta, adding a little extra pesto sauce and Parmesan cheese on top. Chop up and use as a pizza topping (on a white sauce garlic-y pizza).

Chicken Tequila Fettuccine

Happy New Year! Not being a fan of Black-eyed Peas, we skipped the traditional holiday meal and made pasta.

I came across this recipe sometime last year from Allrecipes.com. This is a great southwestern twist on the classic Fettuccini Alfredo. The cilantro and jalapenos give it a little kick without being too spicy. It definitely has a kid-friendly flavor.

Tonight I made it for our meal exchange. I found it very easy to make in bulk (4 x the recipe) and would definitely consider making it for a large group. It wasn't as time consuming and labor intensive as some recipes can be.

Chicken Tequila Fettuccini

Chop:
1 1/4 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breasts

Pour over chicken and set aside:
3 TB soy sauce

In a medium saucepan, saute over medium heat for 4-5 minutes:
1/3 C chopped fresh cilantro
2 TB minced garlic
2 TB minced jalapeno peppers (seeds, membranes, and all...it's really not spicy!)
2 TB butter

Add:
1/2 C chicken stock 3 TB tequila 2 TB fresh lime juice

Bring the mixture to a boil and cook until reduced to a paste-like consistency. Set aside.

In a medium sized skillet, saute
1 TB butter
1/4 red onion, chopped *
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/2 yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/2 green bell pepper, sliced

Cook
1 lb fettuccini

When the peppers and onions have softened, add the chicken and soy sauce. Toss and add the reserved tequila/lime paste and cream. Bring to a boil. Gently simmer until chicken is cooked through and sauce is thick. Toss with well drained fettuccini and garnish with cilantro. Serve.

*This nifty little gadget shown in the onion picture helps make nice neat onion slices. It pierces the onion and allows a knife to cut between the tines, making nice even slices. When I'm chopping an onion, I first slice off the top, and remove the onion skin. I leave the end (w/roots) on until the very end. This keeps the onion together, making it easier to work with. I then cut slices one way (as shown) and then turn the onion 90 degrees to make perpendicular cuts. (The onion will resemble one of those "blooming onions" from Outback Steakhouse.) Then I turn the onion on its side and start cutting the ends, getting nice little chopped onion pieces.

Denti d' Elefante with Bell Peppers and Swiss Chard

Sounds fancy, doesn't it?

I just finished sorting through all my digital pictures, getting them all into organized, labeled files on the computer (backed them up too!). In doing so, I found some food pics I had forgotten about.

The first is for Denti d' Elefante with Bell Peppers and Swiss Chard, more commonly known in our household as Pasta with Red Bell Peppers and Swiss Chard. It comes from my favorite pasta cookbook, The Classic Pasta Cookbook by Giuliano Hazan (son of famed Italian chef Marcella Hazan). The book is now out of print, but if you can find it, I highly recommend buying it. The recipes are wonderful, and in true Dorling Kindersley style, full of pictures, and step by step instructions.

Denti d' Elefante with Bell Peppers and Swiss Chard

In a large pot, bring water & 1 TB of salt to a boil. Cook al dente (soft, but still firm...not mushy)
1 lb. denti d'elefante (tube pasta)

Heat in large skillet over medium high heat:
3 TB extra virgin olive oil

Add, and cook until lightly browned:
4 cloves garlic, crushed

Remove the garlic and add until lightly browned:
2 red bell peppers, chopped into 3/4" squares

Reduce the heat to medium, and add:
1/2 lb Swiss chard leaves, roughly chopped
2 TB water

Season lightly with:
salt
freshly ground black pepper

Cook until the vegetables are tender.

Add:
2 TB butter

When the pasta is ready, drain it, and add it to the skillet.
Add and toss to mix:
2 TB balsamic vinegar
1/3 C freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese

Serve immediately.

Chicken Parmigiana w/Linguini

So, this week was my turn to cook for our meal exchange group. For the first time in a long time I really didn't know what I would be making. The beginning of November kind of caught me by surprise! Thinking* my favorite hand-trimmed chicken breasts were on sale at Albertsons this week, I chose to make Chicken Parmigiana.

I love the recipe I have from San Francisco Encore. It's pretty straightforward, and just plain ol' yummy!

Over the years I've made it in different pans with different cooking tools, and I think I've finally found the perfect combo for breading/sauteeing chicken pieces: the 7 qt. Calphalon One Sauteuse (not the non-stick one) pan, and a stiff beveled turner from Pampered Chef. This particular turner wedges its way under the pieces, and the pan (seasoned with a little butter & oil) browns the chicken nicely, but also allows for a release that keeps the breading ON the chicken! Getting this step down is truly the key in making this dish.

Seasoning the pan with butter & oil....this was a tip I picked up from my Cook's Illustrated magazines. The oil helps with the stickiness, and the butter allows for better browning. Good to know!!

Now that you know how to cook the dish, here is the recipe:

Chicken Parmigiana (San Francisco Encore)

Preheat the oven to 325º.

Pound to a thickness of 1/4":
6 half boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I slice these so they are half the thickness, and then do a little pounding.)

Combine in a shallow bowl:
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper

Mix in a separate bowl:
½ C dry plain bread crumbs
½ C Parmesan cheese

Dip the chicken into the eggs and then into the bread crumbs.

Heat oil (and butter...my addition!) in a heavy skillet. Quickly brown the chicken on both sides. Remove to a shallow baking dish.

Our off any oil remaining in the pan. Add and saute briefly:
1 clove garlic, minced

Stir into the pan, and bring to a boil:
2 C tomato sauce**
1/4 tsp dried basil
salt to taste
pepper to taste


Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Stir in:
1 TB butter

Spoon the sauce over the chicken.
Sprinkle over the chicken:
½ C Parmesan cheese

Cover and bake for 30 minutes.

Uncover, and arrange over the chicken:
8 oz. mozzarella cheese slices

Return to the oven and continue baking until the cheese melts.

To serve it to the three other families, I placed the chicken pieces on a bed of cooked linguini. It was a much better presentation than just putting the chicken right in the pan. Next time I'd add a little more sauce for the linguini.

My daughter (a vegetarian for 18 mos. now) used to call this Pizza Chicken and would devour it! Now, to make it for, I will bread and sautee some pieces of extra firm tofu. Works just fine!

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this one!!


*Uh, no...they weren't on sale. I discovered this on cooking day, and by that time there was no going back. Dang it!!

**We used to make this dish regularly, but for some reason hadn't made it for many years. When I started canning a few years ago, I made waaaaaaay too much tomato sauce! So I purposely looked for recipes that needed tomato sauce. Since that time, I've been making this dish for company, to bring to families, and for our own dinners.

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

The picture on the cover of my new "Cover and Bake" cookbook was calling out to me. After deciding that I would make it for our meal exchange in October, I decided that I actually needed to TRY it before feeding it to four families!

No worries...recipes from Cook's Illustrated haven't failed me yet. And this time was no exception. I chose "Baked Macaroni and Cheese" from this cookbook, despite having about a dozen of their Mac 'n Cheese recipes to choose from (2 from this book, and many others from past issues).


Baked Macaroni and Cheese (Cover & Bake)

<-------The ingredients.

The recipe (which I doubled, and split into three pans; one for last night, and two to freeze):


Cook until al dente: 1 pound elbow macaroni

While that is heating up/cooking, add to a large (6 qt. +) pot, and heat (on medium) until melted:
6 TB unsalted butter

Add to the butter:
1 medium clove garlic, minced
1 tsp dry mustard
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Cook for about 30 seconds, and add:
6 TB (3/8 C) flour

Stir constantly until golden.

Slowly whisk in, and bring to a simmer:
1 3/4 C low-sodium chicken broth
3 1/2 C whole milk

Cook until large bubbles are on the surface (about 5-8 minutes). Remove pot from heat.

Mix in:
16 oz colby cheese, shredded
8 oz extra sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Add the drained pasta to the cheesy sauce, and stir until well-mixed.

Pour into a 9 x 13" baking pan and sprinkle with:
4 slices of sandwich bread, which have been crumbled in a food processor

Bake at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes, until golden on top, and bubbling on the edges.

To freeze: Prepare the recipe as stated above, but do not add the bread crumbs. Make sure to line the baking dish with heavy duty foil before adding the macaroni and cheese. Cover the dish and freeze overnight. When completely frozen, turn the dish upside down to remove the food/foil lining. Vacuum seal or wrap in Saran Wrap/foil and place in the freezer. Upon taking the food out of the freezer, unwrap and remove any plastic wrap. Place the foil lined food back in its original pan, and thoroughly defrost. Bring it to room temperature before placing in the oven. Sprinkle with the bread crumbs at this point.

Family/neighbor reviews: Katie said I could definitely make this again....her highest compliment. My friend, Tara, who is part of my meal exchange group, was a bit leery when I told her I was thinking of making mac 'n cheese next month. She swore no one in her family would eat it. She was so skeptical, I made sure to add, "It won't be from a box; it'll be home-made!" Still not sure, I brought a small bowl of it to her last night. Let's just say it was eaten quickly, and I was given full approval to make it for the meal exchange!