Cooking several vegetables together in one pot means easier cleanup and faster meals. I made this chicken meal yesterday. No hot oven and few pots and pans to wash!
Dinner Under Pressure Encore
Filed under cooking, Green Beans, Healthful Eating, kitchen equipment, Vegetables
Rachel’s Awesome Brownies
My mother-in-law makes the best brownies. Today I asked for her secret, and she agreed to share her recipe. As it turns out, her recipe came from an ancient (at least 50 years old) Sunbeam Mixmaster cookbook. She doubled the brownie recipe then added her own touch to produce this awesome tasting batch of brownies. There is no box mix on the market to rival these!
RECIPE
Rachel’s Awesome Brownies (modified from Sunbeam)
These are big sellers at our church bake sales.
Ingredients:
- 1½ cups sifted flour
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. salt
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 cup shortening or butter, softened
- 4 eggs, unbeaten
- 2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 4 squares (4 oz.) unsweetened baking chocolate, melted
- 2 cups chopped pecans or walnuts
- 1½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- In large mixing bowl, sift together flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder.
- Add softened shortening (or butter), eggs, and vanilla extract to the dry ingredients. Mix on Medium (4) for one minute.
- Add melted baking chocolate and nuts. Mix for 30 seconds.
- Fold in chocolate chips.
- Pour batter into a 9″ X 13″ greased baking pan.
- Bake for 35 minutes. Check for doneness using a toothpick or cake tester.
- Remove pan from oven and allow brownies to cool before slicing.
- Cut into equal sized squares and serve.Yield depends on the size of squares cut.
I don’t use the adjective awesome often, but these brownies deserve the descriptor. Yum!
REVISITING THE RANCH: KING RANCH CHICKEN CASSEROLE
My healthy version of King Ranch Chicken posted three years ago is still my favorite, but I wondered if I could make it “hasty” without sacrificing the “tasty” part of the meal.
I consulted my good friend Betty (as in Betty Crocker) and her version takes shortcuts I decided to try. The biggest difference in my version and hers is my casserole soaks in the refrigerator for several hours before baking. Mine also has more ingredients. So if you’d like to make this casserole for your next covered dish dinner and you’re short on time, try Betty Crocker’s version. It’s tasty enough for my family, and a bit less work for me, although I still have to have my fresh cilantro garnish at the end. 😉
Remove from oven and top with chopped cilantro.
Filed under casseroles, chicken, cooking
Oodles of Noodles=Low-calorie Fun.
Too much cooking and too much eating have led to too much weight! While I hate the word diet, I’m on one now to drop pounds. A recent addition to my kitchen gadget collection is a vegetable spiral slicer. Many brands are available. I chose a handheld model by Spiralife.
The spiral slicer creates several long strands of vegetable pasta.
For my first adventure in spiral slicing, I steamed a squash medley for a side dish. Using one yellow squash and one zucchini, I produced enough “noodles” for two pasta dishes or three side dishes. I tossed with a tablespoon of butter for a side, but next time I plan to use a pesto sauce for an entrée.
Steam pasta over low heat just until tender. Or you can boil it if you don’t have minimum-moisture cookware.
A side of squash medley served with chicken and mashed potatoes.
Bottom line: The Spiralife is worth the purchase. I may even consider upgrading to a fancier model!
Handheld vegetable spiral slicer by Spiralife
Filed under cooking, Healthful Eating, pasta, Zucchini
HASTY TASTY MEALS BLOG 