Beans and Rice

This recipe joined the collection because Shad served his mission in Puerto Rico, where rice and beans are a staple.

2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 8-oz. can tomato sauce
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1 can (15.5 ounces) small red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
4-6 cups hot, cooked white rice

In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion, bell pepper, and garlic. Cook 5 minutes, stirring often. Stir in 3/4 cup water, tomato sauce, and oregano. Bring to a boil and stir in beans. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Serve beans over rice.

Chicken Cream Cheese Soup

1 lb chicken (breasts or combination)

3-4 bouillon cubes

1 onion, diced

2-3 stalks celery, diced

1-2 Tbsp butter

2 handfuls baby carrots (about 2 cups sliced small)

4-5 potatoes/sweet potatoes, diced small

1 c milk

1/4 c flour

8 oz package cream cheese

1. Put chicken in pot and cover with water; boil until cooked. Take chicken out of water but keep the broth. When chicken is cool, shred.

2. Saute onion and celery in butter. Put onion in pot and add carrots and potatoes. Add 3-4 cups of broth or enough to cover vegetables. Add bouillon cubes or soup base for flavor. Bring to a boil and simmer until veggies are tender.

3. Add shredded chicken. Mix flour with milk and add to soup. Soften cream cheese in microwave then add to soup in little pieces and stir until melted. Season with salt and pepper.

Notes: I usually just use one, maybe two, chicken breasts.

If you're using sweet potatoes, remember that one sweet potato is equivalent to two or more white potatoes.

I'm making this tonight, and I needed 7 cups of water to cover all of the vegetables/potatoes. I used two sweet potatoes and two white potatoes. I should have only used one sweet potato!

Waffles

I got this recipe out of the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook.

For our family I make a batch and a half, so I put the extra half ingredient measures in parentheses. I eyeball the 7/8 cup.

1 3/4 cups flour (+ 7/8 cup)

1 Tbsp. baking powder (+ 1 1/2 tsp.)

1/4 tsp. salt (+ 1/8 tsp.)

2 egg yolks (+ 1 egg yolk)

1 3/4 cups milk (7/8 cup)

1/2 cup oil (+1/4 cup)

2 egg whites (+1 egg white)

Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form.

Combine flour, baking powder and salt.

In another bowl beat egg yolks slightly. Then add milk and oil.

Add milk mixture to flour mixture. Stir until just combined but still slightly lumpy.

Gently fold in egg whites. Do NOT overmix.

Hamburger Stroganoff

1 lb. hamburger

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/4 cup margarine

2 Tbsp. flour

1 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

4 oz. can mushrooms, drained (or 1 pkg. fresh mushrooms, sliced)

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1/2 soup can milk

1 1/2 cup sour cream

Cook and stir hamburger and onion in margarine until hamburger is light brown. Stir in flour, salt, pepper, and mushrooms. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Reduce heat, add soup and 1/2 soup can of milk. Simmer uncovered for 10 minutes. Stir in sour cream; heat through. Serve over hot noodles or rice.

Cranberry Pork Roast

Our ward is putting together a ward cookbook, and so I've decided to type up the recipes I'm using in my menu plan for the cookbook. I thought that since I was already typing them up, I could post them here. I'll do this a little at a time. The first item on my menu is a family favorite borrowed from Laurel Lloyd in another ward cookbook. Enjoy!

Cranberry Pork Roast

1 (2 1/2 to 3 lb.) boneless pork loin roast

1 (16 oz.) can jellied cranberry sauce

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup cranberry juice

1 tsp. dry mustard

1/4 tsp. ground cloves

2 Tbsp. cornstarch

2 Tbsp. cold water

Salt to taste

In slow cooker, mash cranberry sauce; stir in sugar, juice, mustard, and cloves. Immerse roast in sauce (pour some on top if the roast isn't covered by sauce). Cover and cook on LOW for 6 to 8 hours or until meat is tender. Remove roast and keep warm. Skim fat from juices; measure 2 cups, adding water if necessary, and pour into a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Combine the cornstarch and cold water to make a paste; stir into gravy. Cook and stir until thickened. Season with salt. Serve with sliced pork.

OK - here are my tips:

Sometimes I only use 1 lb. of pork or even pork chops.

I usually end up shredding the pork and mixing in some of the sauce.

I seldom have cranberry juice, so I use apple juice instead.

I never skim fat from the juices or measure how much there is. I just put a wire mesh strainer in the pot and pour all of the juices through that.

10-Week Dinner Plan

I recently came up with a dinner menu for 10 weeks, with no repeats (except for going out for pizza twice). Some people asked me to post the menu. This was the best I can do. If there are specific recipes you're interested in, let me know. I don't have the time (or the inclination) to post all of the recipes!