Recipes - December

You may have looked at my google calendar and saw on December 9 "8 Polish Christmas foods" and thought, "WTF?" There's a Veggie Tales Christmas song called the "8 Polish Christmas Foods I bring to the Party" and Baba (and Zippy) love it, so we are attempting to recreate the song. If you aren't familiar with the Veggie Tales you should be. Search on Youtube for it. So far, I've got the Kielbasa (which, btw, Target has the lowest price on), pierogies, poppy seed cake (technically, they are lemon poppy seed muffins, but close enough), boiled potatoes topped with dill weed. I need simmered gulpkie and fried hoosiecheekies. I'm on a mission (from gawd).

December 11:

Easy Stuffed Shells

Zippy doesn't like Ricotta cheese, so that limits our Italian recipes. I like stuffed shells, the kids like to eat, so I found a recipe that doesn't use Ricotta cheese. Yeah!

Ingredients:

1 pkg (12 oz) jumbo pasta shells

1 jar (26 oz) spaghetti sauce

36 frozen cooked Italian meatballs, thawed

2 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to package directions; drain and rinse in cold water. Place 1/2 c sauce in a greased 13x9 baking dish. Place a meatball in each shell; transfer to prepared dish. Top with remaining sauce and sprinkle with cheese.

2. Cover and bake at 350˚ for 35 minutes. Uncover; bake 5-10 minutes longer or until bubbly and cheese is melted.

December 14: Creamy Chicken and Biscuits (sorry Ben, this one has peas in it)

Ingredients:

1 tsp oil

12 oz boneless, skinless chicken thighs, fat trimmed, cut bite-sized

1 c baby carrots, halved lengthwise

8 oz sliced mushrooms

2 cans (10.75 oz each) condensed cream of chicken soup

1 1/3 milk

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

1 c bisquick

3 tbsp chopped dill

1/3 c frozen peas

3 scallions, sliced

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 400˚. Heat oil in an 11 to 12 inch nonstick ovenproof skillet. Add chicken and cook over medium-high, stirring often, 3 minutes or until lightly browned.

2. Stir in carrots and mushrooms. Cover and cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms release some of their liquid and carrots are almost crisp-tender.

3. Stir in soup, 1 cup of the milk and the mustard until blended; bring to a simmer. Meanwhile, mix Bisquick, 1 tbsp of the dill and the remaining 1/3 c milk in a small bowl until blended.

4. Stir remaining 2 tbsp dill, the peas and scallions into skillet. Remove from heat and spoon 8 dollops biscuit dough on top. Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until biscuits are golden and cooked through.

December 15: Marinara Sauce with noodles

Ingredients:

2 tbsp olive oil

2 minced garlic cloves

Pinch of red-pepper flakes

2 28 oz cans whole tomatoes with their juice

Salt and pepper

Directions:

1. In a large pot, heat 2 tbsp olive oil, 2 minced garlic cloves, and a pinch of red-pepper flakes over medium until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes.

2. Add two 28-ounce cans whole tomatoes with juice, crushed; season with salt and pepper. Cook at a rapid simmer, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 15 minutes.

December 16: Chicken Alfredo Potatoes

Ingredients:

4 potatoes

1 bag (14 oz) frozen broccoli florets

1 c shredded chicken

1 c jarred Alfredo sauce

Directions:

1. Pierce potatoes a few times with a fork and place in microwave. Microwave on high for 8 minutes.

2. Cook broccoli following package directions. Place shredded chicken and Alfredo sauce in a small saucepan and heat gently, about 4 minutes.

3. To serve, cut each potato in half lengthwise. Place 1/4 of the broccoli over each cut potato. Spoon equal amounts of the chicken and Alfredo sauce mixture over each potato.

December 17: Leftovers

December 18: Pizza (Happy Birthday to me! I'm not cooking today)

December 21: Creamy Pasta with Chickpeas

Ingredients:

1 lb asparagus, cut into 1-inch pieces (my hubby is a total asparagus hater - I usually substitute green beans)

1 red pepper, chopped

1/2 tsp each salt & pepper

8 oz penne pasta

1 c (15.5 oz) chickpeas, drained & rinsed

1 package (4.4 oz) light, spreadable herb cheese (such as Boursin)

Pinch nutmeg

Directions:

1. Generously coat a medium-size nonstick saucepan with nonstick cooking spray; heat over medium-high heat. Add asparagus, red pepper and 1/4 tsp each salt and pepper to pot. Cook, stirring, for 6 minutes. Remove and keep warm.

2. Cook penne in boiling salted water for 12 minutes. Drain; reserving 1 c pasta water.

3. Return pasta to pot. Over medium heat, stir in asparagus mixture, remaining 1/4 tsp each salt and pepper, chickpeas, cheese and nutmeg, adding reserved pasta water as needed to thin sauce. Serve immediately.

December 22: Honey Teriyaki Chicken

Ingredients:

1/2 c honey

2 tbsp rice vinegar

2 tbsp soy sauce

4 garlic cloves, minced

2 tbsp peeled and finely grated fresh ginger

Coarse salt and ground pepper

8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 3 lbs total)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 475˚. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. In a large bowl, mix honey, vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, 1 tbsp salt, and 1/2 tsp pepper. Add chicken and toss to coat. Transfer chicken and sauce to baking sheet.

2. Bake chicken, skin side up, basting occasionally with pan juices, until well browned and cooked through, 25 to 30 minutes. Serve chicken drizzled with pan juices.

December 23: Leftovers

December 24: Surf & Turf - We'll be grilling. Its kind of turning into a Christmas Eve tradition. We are having steaks and shrimp. Yum and yum.

December 27: Roast Turkey - okay, before you lynch me and say, "No more turkey! Ever! Blah!" I know a lot of people are going to have a ton of leftover turkey. Gotta use that up before it goes bad and since we'll be having the traditional hamburgers and malts on Christmas Day, we won't have turkey. :-)

December 28: Hot Turkey Salad with Sage Biscuits

Ingredients:

1/4 c mayonnaise or salad dressing

2 tbsp Bisquick Original baking mix

2 cups cut-up cooked turkey

1/4 c shredded Cheddar cheese

2 medium stalks celery, sliced (about 1 cup)

2 medium green onions, sliced (1/4 c)

2 1/4 c Bisquick

3/4 c milk

1/2 tsp dried sage leaves

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 425. Mix mayonnaise and 2 tbsp baking mix in medium bowl until well blended. Stir in turkey, cheese, celery, and onions; set aside.

2. Mix 2 1/4 c baking mix, the milk and sage just until soft dough forms. Turn onto surface generously dusted with baking mix; gently roll in baking mix to coat. Knead gently 10 times. Roll 1/2 inch thick. Cut with 1 1/2 inch round cutter dipped in baking mix. Place close together around edges of ungreased square pan, 9x9x2 inches.

3. Spoon turkey mixture into mound in center of biscuits. Bake uncovered 18 to 20 minutes or until biscuits are golden brown and salad is hot.

December 29: Turkey & Pasta with Peanut Sauce

Ingredients:

6 oz fettuccine or linguine

2 c fresh pea pods or 6 oz frozen peapods

1 c chicken or turkey strips, cooked

1 c (8 oz) pineapple chunks, drained

1/4 c chicken broth

2 tbsp creamy peanut butter

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp lime or lemon juice

1/4 tsp red pepper

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, put pea pods and turkey in colander. Pour hot cooking liquid from pasta over pea pods and turkey. Drain well. Return pasta, pea pods, and turkey to pan. Add pineapple.

2. In a small saucepan, combine chicken broth and peanut butter. Stir with wire whisk until peanut butter melts. Stir in soy sauce, lime juice, and red pepper.

3. Add sauce to pasta.

December 30: Turkey & Dumplings

Ingredients:

2 tbsp butter

2 stalks celery, chopped

1 package (8 oz) sliced fresh mushrooms

1 c frozen chopped onions

1 tsp crushed garlic

3 c leftover turkey, chopped

2 c frozen peas and carrots

1 can (14 oz) reduced-sodium chicken broth

2 packets (.87 oz each) turkey gravy mix

1 1/2 c Bisquick

3/4 c sour cream

2 tbsp finely chopped fresh sage

1 tsp black pepper

Directions:

1. In a Dutch oven, melt butter over medium heat. Add celery, mushrooms, onions and garlic; cook for 2 minutes.

2. Add turkey, peas, carrots, and broth. Whisk in turkey gravy mix. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.

3. Meanwhile, make dumplings. In a medium-sized bowl, combine baking mix, sour cream, sage and black pepper, stirring until a soft dough forms. When soup comes to a boil, drop heaping tablespoons of the dumpling dough into soup.

4. Maintain a low boil and cook, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Cover and cook 10 minutes more. Dumplings are done when they are dry in the center. Ladle soup and dumplings into soup bowls and serve hot.