Blueberry Pie

I've never made a blueberry pie in my life. I wanted to make a pie with the blueberries we picked at the local farm. It turned out really good and was very easy to prepare. Enjoy.

Ingredients:

- 3 to 4 cups of Blueberries - fresh or frozen (without syrup) (3 cups if you like a thin pie, 4 cups if you like it a little higher!)
- 7 Tablespoons corn starch
- 3 Tablespoons water (or grape juice)
- 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
- One 9 inch pie crust (see this page for the world's easiest flour pie crust recipe and directions http://pickyourown.org/piecrust.php!) or you can use a graham cracker crust (http://pickyourown.org/grahamcrust.php) I used a store bought to make it faster though

Spices:
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice
One 9 inch deep-dish Pie Plate - (grocery stores sell both disposable pie pans and glass pans. Get the deep type!

Sweetener:
2/3 cup granulated (ordinary table) Sugar

And now, choose the topping you prefer:
Crumb topping (my preference, again):
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup butter or margarine

Dough topping:
See the pie crust recipe and double it to make extra to roll out as a topping to cover the pie

Directions:

Step 1 - Make the pie crust (I used premade)
Now is also a good time to get the oven preheating to 375 F.

Step 2- Wash the blueberries
Just rinse them in a colander or sieve in cold water, no soap.

Pick out and remove any bits of stems, leaves and soft or mushy berries. It is easiest to do this in a large bowl of water and gently run your hands through the berries as they float. With your fingers slightly apart, you will easily feel any soft or mushy berries get caught in your fingers.

Step 3 - Mix the dry filling ingredients.
Combine the 2/3 cup sugar,, 7 Tablespoons of corn starch in a bowl and mix well! Some people like 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon and/or 1/4 teaspoon of allspice, mixed in, also. That's optional, but it is nice!

Step 4 - Mix in the liquids
Add the 2 Tablespoons of lemon juice, and 3 Tablespoons of water (or grape juice) and stir it up.

Step 5 - Add the blueberries to the pie crust
Add the blueberries to the pie crust. Just pour them in! There's lots of air space and it will cook down, so don't worry if they mound up about an inch (2.5 cm) above the edge of the plate.

Step 6 - Pour the liquid mix into the pie
Just pour the mixture of sugar, juice, etc. into the pie all over the blueberries. If it is a gloppy liquid, don’t worry, just pour it somewhat evenly over the top. But it doesn’t take perfection; it will smooth itself out in the oven.

Step 7 - Make and add your topping
If you want the crumb topping, just mix
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup flour
- 1/4 cup butter or margarine
together in a small bowl and sprinkle it over the pie.

If you want to the dough topping instead, roll out a circular section of dough that you made in step 1, to 1/8 inch thick, then place it over the pie. Seal it against the edges with the pie crust, and make decorative slits with a knife.

Step 8 - Put the pie in the oven!
Cook the pie at 375 F (or 190 Celsius) for 1 hour.

Step 9 - Remove when the pie is golden and pie is bubbling
Check to see if it is bubbling and crust is golden brown. If if not, check every 3 or 4 minutes until it is.

Step 10 - Enjoy!
Set the pie on a rack to cool and enjoy! Here is a slice of the finished pie! Serve warm with ice cream. Refrigerate after it is cooled. It easily lasts a week in the fridge.

Recipe is from http://pickyourown.org/blueberrypie.php
This website has tons of recipes, information on local farms, etc. Enjoy.

Stove Top Mac-n-Cheese

I have finally found a great and easy stove top mac-n-cheese recipe. I am not a huge fan of the processed boxed stuff and all of my attempts at crock-pot and oven versions haven't worked out. This was very easy and creamy. The recipe below is enough for a family of 4 to eat as a side dish. If you want it as a main meal, I would suggest doubling.

Ingredients:

1/2 pound elbow macaroni
4 tablespoons butter
2 eggs
6 ounces evaporated milk
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Fresh black pepper
3/4 teaspoon dry mustard
10 ounces sharp cheddar, shredded

Directions:

In a large pot of boiling, salted water cook the pasta to al dente and drain. Return to the pot and melt in the butter. Toss to coat. Whisk together the eggs, milk, hot sauce, salt, pepper, and mustard. Stir into the pasta and add the cheese. Over low heat continue to stir for 3 minutes or until creamy.

Recipe from the Food Network here.

Hearty Chicken & Noodle Casserole

This is an easy but yummy noodle casserole. Everyone liked this one. The recipe below is for 4 servings. I doubled the recipe since I wanted some left overs (if you double the recipe, use a 3 qt casserole dish).

Ingredients:
1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Campbell's® Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup (Regular or 98% Fat Free)
1/2 cup milk
1 cup frozen mixed vegetables
2 cups cubed cooked chicken (I used canned chicken)
2 cups medium egg noodles, cooked and drained
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

Directions:
Heat the oven to 400 degrees F. Stir the soup, milk, vegetables, chicken, noodles, Parmesan cheese and black pepper in a 1 1/2-quart casserole.

Bake for 25 minutes or until the chicken mixture is hot and bubbling. Stir the chicken mixture. Top with the cheese. Let stand until the cheese is melted.

Serving Suggestion: Serve with a steamed vegetable blend: broccoli, cauliflower and carrots, and a Caesar salad. For dessert serve fresh strawberries topped with whipped topping.

Recipe courtesy of Campbell's® Kitchen

I forgot to take a picture of the final dish, but you can see a picture here:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/hearty-chicken-noodle-casserole-recipe/index.html

Homemade Chicken Fingers

I normally use a different recipe, but wanted to try out something new. Thanks to Brandy L. for the recipe.  This is now a staple in our house. 

Ingredients:
1 cup dry bread crumbs (Panko bread crumbs are HFCS free)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons dried basil
2 teaspoons dried thyme
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
3/4 cup butter, melted
2 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes (I used 12-15 chicken breast tenderloins)

Directions:
1.In a shallow bowl (I used a gallon ziplock bag to make an easier clean up), combine the bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese and seasonings. Place butter in another shallow bowl. Dip chicken in butter, then roll in bread crumb mixture.
2.Place in a greased 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pan. Bake, uncovered, at 400 degrees F for 15-20 minutes or until juices run clear. (I also poured the extra butter in the bottom of the pan before I put them in the oven)

These were very good and flavorful. I served with baked french fries, corn and white gravy. I had them for lunch today and they reheated very well.

These cupcakes were so yummy and very easy. Andrew and Chris really enjoyed them. (thanks Amber K. for the recipe)

Ingredients:
3/4 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 cup canola oil
3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup natural applesauce
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups finely shredded carrots (about 2 medium carrots)
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons finely chopped walnuts
4 ounces 1/3 fat cream cheese (recommended: Neufchatel)
3/4 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners. (I used mini muffin pan and large muffin pan)

Sift together the first 6 ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk the oil, brown sugar and eggs until well combined. Whisk in the applesauce, vanilla and carrots. Add the dry ingredients and mix until combined. Stir in 1/4 cup of the chopped walnuts.

Divide the batter between the muffin cups. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

With an electric mixer, beat together the cream cheese, confectioners' sugar and lemon zest until smooth and creamy. Frost the cooled cupcakes and sprinkle with the remaining 2 tablespoons chopped walnuts. The cupcakes should be stored in the refrigerator.

notes:
I did double the icing recipe since cream cheese comes in 8 oz not 4 oz. If you want more than 12 cupcakes, I would suggest using the mini muffins or double the recipe.


Recipe from the food network here

Stuffed Peppers

These were so yummy and very easy to make. I did not eat the pepper, but Chris did. He thought they were great and wanted me to make them again. Next time I will used 6 peppers instead of 4. Thanks to Kashmira P. for the suggestion.

Ingredients:

4 - 6 Peppers (I used green, but you can use yellow or red)
1 pound hamburger meat (or ground turkey or chicken)
1 can of tomato soup or tomato sauce
2 cups white or brown rice (cooked)
cheese to taste (I only had cheddar, but it tasted just as yummy as mozzarella)
onion powder
garlic salt

Directions:

Preheat the oven at 350

Brown the meat and season with onion powder and garlic salt while cooking (I didn't measure, just added enough to make it smell nice). While the meat is cooking, cut the tops off the peppers, and clean out the seeds. Once the meat is done cooking, I layered the ingredients in the peppers. Meat, rice, tomato sauce, cheese, then repeat. I have heard other versions where all the incredients are mixed in a bowl and then used to fill the peppers. I think that this is just a preference thing. I also made sure the last step was cheese on top.
Baked at 350 for 30-40 minutes.

Roasted Garlic and Mushroom Risotto

I am still trying out new recipes. Here is another one that happens to be a kid favorite. We added in grilled pork chops seasoned in paprika, garlic powder and basil.

Ingredients:

1 head garlic
2 1/2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 (14.5-ounce) cans chicken broth
3 cans water
1 medium onion, chopped
1 (8-ounce) package sliced mushrooms
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 1/2 cups long-grain rice
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup grated Parmesan


Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Slice the top off the head of garlic. Put it on a large square of aluminum foil and drizzle 1 teaspoon of the extra-virgin olive oil over the exposed cloves. Wrap the foil around and over the garlic. Roast until it is soft, about 50 minutes to 1 hour. Remove from the oven and let cool.

Pour the 2 cans of broth into a saucepan, over low heat, and add 3 cans of water. Bring to a simmer.

In a large, heavy bottomed skillet, heat the remaining olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion and saute for 3 minutes. Add the mushrooms, season with salt and pepper, to taste, and cook until the mushrooms release their juices, about 5 minutes. Add the rice and cook for 1 minute to toast.

Add 2 ladles full of hot broth to the pan and gently stir the rice. Cook until most of the liquid has been absorbed. Adjust the heat so that the pan is just gently bubbling. Continue adding broth and stirring until all the broth is used and the rice is cooked but not mushy, about 20 to 25 minutes. Once the rice has absorbed all the liquid and is nice and creamy, stir in the butter, Parmesan and the garlic pulp. Cover and let rest for 2 minutes. Transfer to a serving dish and serve hot.