Johnsonville Pastaville Winner: Baby Bella Sausage Cupcake Surprise

In my continuing effort to learn from my contests entries and losses, I made the winning recipe from the Johnsonville Pastaville Contest (FYI, the winner was not my entry).  The top three winners were in this order; Baby Bella Sausage Cupcake Surprise, Sweet & Spicy Italian Stir Fry and Pappardella with Sizzled Sausage and Mushrooms.  The first thing I noticed about the this group of winners is they are all very simple and use common ingredients.  They were also very common flavors or types of dishes you might see or eat regularly; a red sauce/spaghetti meal, an Asian stir fry and a beef stroganoff type dish.  Most of the sponsors want easy meals that will appeal to a wide audience and the average home cook can make, however you never know just how simple they really want it.  I have seen some contest winners that have simple recipes but one weird or uncommon twist to them, so you never know.  All three of these dishes use everyday ingredients that I already had on hand, so it was easy to whip this up on the fly.

The Baby Bella Sausage Cupcake Surprise were a perfect little spaghetti treat.  When preparing the dish it felt like it should have more spaghetti so I might have slipped a few more noodles in than the recipe suggested.  Definitely a nice treat and a great way surprise for the kids. I will make it again with maybe a few new things mixed in and fun toppings. Congratulations Victoria Lee!  Enjoy this victory!

Recipe Link:
Baby Bella Sausage Cupcake Surprise

CSA - Eggplant and Zucchini Parmesan

Eggplant and Zucchini Parmesan

I have made eggplant parm maybe two times from scratch.  It is kind of like child birth; you forget how painful it is which is why you are dumb enough do it again and mid way through you think, why on earth did I do this again!?!  It is a very hot, messy, and time consuming task to bread and fry all those eggplant rounds. Of course when it comes bubbly hot out of the oven your labor of love is just perfect and you are so pleased you think - hey, I could do that again.  I have heard people talk of buying pre-cooked frozen eggplant slices.  I have searched the frozen food department high and low looking, but have yet to find such an item.  I think it is just a mystical dream product, and since no one I know will admit to actually using them, I still can't find them.

With this recipe I used both eggplant and zucchini to create a mixed parm casserole.  And I will admit my cheat;  I used a jar of sauce for this one.  I often make my own sauce, but also keep jars of good sauce on hand; Classico or Paul Newman's.  It was excellent with the jar sauce!  The big leaves of basil layered in were  perfection.


Eggplant and Zucchini Parmesan
Source:  variation on a recipe in  How To Cook Everything by Mark Bittman.

1 medium eggplant
1 large zucchini
Vegetable oil for frying
Flour for dredging - about 1 cup
2 eggs
2 tablespoons of milk
Salt and Pepper to taste
2 cups tomato sauce
2 cups grated mozzarella
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
2 dozen fresh basil leaves

Peel the eggplant and cut into 1/2 inch thick slices.  Salt it if you like.

Side note on Salting Eggplant:  I have been salting eggplants lately, it does seem to make them sweeter and less rubbery when cooked.  I have seen a few ways to do it.  I use to lay the eggplant in single layers on cookie sheets then salt, but they sit in the water that comes out then.  This time I layered them in a colander so the water sort of ran out.  I left them salted in the colander for about 1/2 hour then rinsed them and patted dry with paper towels.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

Heat about 3-4 tablespoons of oil in a large skillet over medium/high heat.  You can use olive oil for better quality.  I find since this process uses so much oil and you really just want to get a crisp fry that vegetable oil is a more economical choice for this process.  Just my opinion.

Use shallow bowls or plates to create a dipping line.  You need 2 plates; plate of flour and plate of egg/milk slightly beaten.  Dip eggplant and zucchini in flour then egg/milk then flour again and drop into the hot oil.  Fry a few minutes each side till golden brown then place on paper lined plate to drain/cool.  You will have to fry the eggplant and zucchini rounds in batches.  This takes a bit of time, but it is the process.

Once all the eggplant and zucchini are fried it is time to prepare the baking dish.  I use a glass baking dish 9X13.  Spoon about 3/4 cup of sauce on the bottom of the pan.  Layer the eggplant on the bottom.  Top with 1/2 the cheese then some sauce and finally top with whole fresh basil leaves.  Now add a layer of zucchini, again top with cheese, sauce, basil then top the whole thing with fresh grated Parmesan. 

Bake 20-30 minutes or until hot and bubbling.  Serve hot or at room temp.  Uses leftovers for Eggplant Parm Sandwiches.  Delicious!

  Salted the eggplant in a colander so the water could properly drain.  Layered them with lots of salt.

I had a huge light green zucchini so I sliced it up and made it with the eggplant.  Nice addition.

Frying them up in the pan!  It really takes a while when you can only fit 4 at a time.

 Resting and waiting for their turn in the parm pan!

 

 Ready for the oven!

Contest Entry - Thanksgiving Quesadillas

 Contest:  Ocean Spray Tailgating Recipe Contest

Entered by me!  Thanksgiving Quesadillas

I haven't blogged in awhile.  My mother-in-law has been visiting so we have been busy, then my computer died.  Just got a new laptop, but haven't set everything up on it so no pics till we get the camera stuff on here.  I have been diligently working on a few recipes for this Ocean Spray contest.  The contest is only open to the 5 New England states, so I am hoping the odds alone will help me in finding a bit of success.  The prize is tickets to a Patriots game which would really build my husband's support of my hobby should I win them.  I tried a few things for this contest; pork with a cranberry marinade and a cranberry meatloaf.  I wanted to put slices of meatloaf on the grill for some cool meatloaf tailgate sandwiches.  They were both good, but just didn't feel very cranberry.  We loved this recipe, it was a hit with all that ate it.  Hope it is a winner.  Just submitted it tonight, we'll see if I hear from the Ocean Spray people.  Fingers crossed!

Thanksgiving Quesadillas
Source - ME!

INGREDIENTS
Marinade
1 Cup Ocean Spray Cranberry Sauce
1/2 Cup Olive Oil
1/4 Cup Red Wine Vinegar
1 Clove Garlic - pressed
1 Jalapeño diced
1/2 Teaspoon Cayenne Pepper

2 lbs Turkey Tenderloin or Turkey Tips
1 Cup Ocean Spray Cranberry Sauce
12 oz Shredded Swiss and Gruyere Cheeses (found this at Trader Joes)
2 Cups Stove Top Stuffing
8 Flour Tortillas
1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil

Prepare the marinade.  Combine all the marinade ingredients and whisk together till mixed will.  Place turkey and marinade in a zip top plastic bag.  Place in refrigerator for at least a 1/2 hour.

Heat grill to medium/low heat.  Place the turkey on the grill and cook thoroughly.  Remove from grill and cut into small bite size pieces, set aside.  Prepare the stove top stuffing.

Quesadilla preparation.  Turn grill up to medium heat.  With a pastry brush, lightly brush vegetable oil on one side of a flour tortilla.  Place tortilla, oil side down on grill.  Top 1/2 of the tortilla with a layer of cheese, then turkey.  Dab teaspoons of cranberry sauce and stuffing on the turkey then top with cheese.  Fold the tortilla in half to create the 1/2 moon shape quesadilla.  Close the grill cover for 1-2 minutes.  Flip the quesadilla, close lid again for 1-2 minutes.  Grill the quesadilla until the tortilla is crisp and the cheese has melted.  Divide the ingredients between the 8 tortillas and repeat the process until all quesadillas are done.  Serve hot and enjoy!

Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

CSA - Cabbage Rolls 

Used my CSA cabbage to create a very old classic dish - Stuffed Cabbage Rolls. My mom use to make these because my grandma use to make them. My grandmother was of German decent from Russia. The story behind the Germans that lived in Russia is interesting and I have learned just a bit from doing a small amount of genealogy. When researching the heritage of Cabbage Rolls, I found many Hungarian and Polish recipes, but also saw a note on Germans in Russia that made Halubtsi or Cabbage Rolls. We learned very little about our heritage from my grandmother because she did not believe talking about the past.  "History, who wants to hear it?  It already happened!" Grandma would say.  No one in the family even knew she lived in Russia until maybe the mid 80's, she never told anyone, she just said she was German. The only connection we have to her German/Russian heritage is in the few classic German dishes she occasionally prepared. 

I never realized how much work goes into making this dish. I think I used every pot and pan in the house! It looked like a man was cooking in my kitchen. The results were great. A big hit with the family, both boys loved it. It takes a bit of time, but a great family dinner with a little family history, even if Grandma never told it to us.

Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
Recipe Source:  American Harvest Cook Book by The American Academy of Chefs
I prepared a variation of the recipe in this book by Thomas A. Berg, CEC, AAC, Chef/Owner of Thomas Berg Catering, Minneapolis, MN

Ingredients

3 Tablespoons margarine
1 1/2 cups chopped onions
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
One 35oz can peeled tomoatoes in juice
2 cups tomato sauce
Juice of 1 lemon
1 head green cabbage (about 3 pounds)
2 pounds ground beef or turkey
1 small onion, grated
3 eggs lightly beaten
1/4 cup white rice
2 tablespoons ketchup
salt and pepper
8 oz pitted prunes chopped
1/2 cup dark raisins
Juice of 1 lemon

Fill large pot 2/3 full of water.  Bring to a boil and salt.

To prepare sauce, heat the margarine (I used olive oil), in medium saucepan set over medium heat.  Add the chopped onions and cook, stirring until soft, about 10 minutes.  Add the brown sugar and tomoates, crushing them with your fingers as you add them to the pan with their juices. Add tomato sauce and lemon juice. Stir, bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and cover.  Cook, stirring occasionally for 1 1/2 hours.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly grease a large, nonreactive baking dish and set aside.

While the sauce cooks, prepare the cabbage.  Using a parking knife, cut a cone-shaped incision in the bottom of the cabbage to remove the core.  Place the cored cabbage in the boiling water, reduce heat, simmer 15 minutes.  Drain, cover with cold water and drain again.  When cool enough to handle, peel off the leaves whole.  You should have 16-20 good leaves.  Set aside.

To prepare filling, combine ground meat with grated onion, eggs, rice and ketchup; season with salt and pepper.  Mix by hand, adding 1/2 cup of water if necessary, until mixture is moist but still thick.

Place about 1/4 cup of filling in the center of each leaf.  Fold the bottom of the leave over the filling, fold in sides, then roll to enclose securely.  (I use toothpicks to help secure too).  Repeat with the remaining filling and leaves till complete.  Arrange seam side down, in baking dish.  Sprinkle with prunes and raisins then spoon the tomato sauce over the top.  Cover the baking dish and bake for 1 1/2 hours.




Post-boiling.  Peeling the leaves off individually.  Some rip, but they all came off pretty well.  There was no Cabbage Patch baby inside. Don't you always think there will be?  He he.

I used more rice in the filling than this recipe suggested.  I also added some paprika and a few other spices.  My mom always secured the rolls with toothpicks.  It was always a tricky dish to eat because you had to look out for the toothpicks. 
 
          





Topped with piping hot sauce!  I omitted the prunes and raisins as I just didn't have any, but they sound really good.  Will definitely add them next time I make this.









Bubbling hot out of the oven.  The sauce has a rich, deep flavor very different than a classic Italian red sauce.  It was delicious!  Just like Mom and Grandma use to make.

Chipotle Chicken Quesadillas

Contest: Cinco de Mayo Recipe Challenge on Mixingbowl.com - entered by me

This is my ultimate "Go-To" recipe. Quesadillas are the top of the rotation list. When I moved to New England from Texas one of the things I missed most was good Tex Mex food. The first few years I was here everyone I met would insist on dragging me to all the "great Mexican places" in the greater Boston area. It became uncomfortable for all involved. My friends would be so excited and proud to bring me to a great restaurant only for me to be disappointed and horrified at what these restaurants call Mexican food. I realized my friends, who I feel are smart people with good taste, had no idea what good Mexican food was. There is a restaurant up here that combines Cajun and Tex Mex. You get dirty rice with your enchiladas. It is so wrong and no one up here knows it is wrong. This became all too much for me to handle, so I finally gave up, stopped trying the "great new Mexican places" and started cooking my own Tex Mex. I made quesadillas a few times for friends and now it is all people want me to make. I get bored with my original recipe so I change it up often with whatever is in the fridge. The best was a lobster quesadilla with Havarti cheese and corn. Yum! We made them last summer on the last day of our Cape vacation, it was all the stuff we were going to throw out of the fridge before giving up the rental. I just started playing with the Chipotle peppers and have been loving them! I entered the Mixing Bowl contests with this Chipotle recipe, the peppers are a great addition to my basic quesadilla.

Variations:
Remove the chipotle, add any of the following: fresh cilantro, red bell peppers, corn, black beans, and use any kind of cheese you like. I often use cheddar. I have made veggie quesadillas with mozzarella cheese and fresh summer squash. You can really put anything between two tortillas and as long as there is enough cheese to hold it together, it is a quesadilla. Clean out the fridge!

Chipotle Chicken Quesadillas

Ingredients: 1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion roughly chopped
1 4oz can diced green chilies
2 boneless chicken breast cut into bite size pieces
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin powder
1 tablespoon chipolte peppers in adobo sauce
8 oz shredded Monterrey jack cheese
salt and cayenne pepper to taste
8 medium four tortillas
1-3 tablespoons olive oil for grilling
Directions:
Heat one tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet, add onions and chilies, cook until the onions are soft. Add chicken and brown the chicken with the onions and chilies. Add chili powder, cumin and chipotle pepper in the last few minutes of cooking. Salt and pepper to taste. Remove skillet from heat.

On large work surface, place 4 flout tortillas and evenly divide the chicken mixture over the 4 tortillas. Spread the chicken evenly over each tortilla. Top chicken with shredded Monterrey jack cheese and top with a tortilla. Heat a large flat skillet with oil. Place one quesadilla at a time on the hot skillet, grill 2-3 minutes each side till golden brown and the cheese inside is melted to seal the quesadillas. Slice into 4 quarters with a pizza cutter, serve warm with a side of sour cream and salsa.

This is a really unappealing picture of my beautiful quesadillas. I'll have to take a better picture next time I make them.

Spinach Stuffed Prom Chicken

Contest: Cooking Light - Ultimate Reader Recipe Challenge - submitted by me

In the hotel business any stuffed baked chicken breast is simply called "Prom Chicken". It is the cheapest chicken dish on a banquet menu, it is the chicken option at every banquet event you ever attended, and you definitely had it at your prom. There are so many variations of Prom Chicken since you can stuff a chicken with so many things. If it is rolled up into that little breaded pod it is Prom Chicken. The versatility makes the classic Prom Chicken recipe an ideal entry into recipe contests. I entered this Spinach Stuffed Prom Chicken in a Cooking Light contest. Using the sponsors products was not hard, but calling it healthy might a challenge. The rules of this contest state the recipe must meet the health requirements set by Cooking Light. I am not skilled at calculating the fat, calories or general nutrition for a recipe and I am not naturally a healthy cook. Who knows if this recipe will even qualify, but it is a good recipe just the same. The three year old loved it and asked for more which only proves - you can never go wrong with the Prom Chicken!

I forgot to take a picture of this one. :-( Rest assured there will be other Prom Chickens and I will get a good picture in the future.

Spinach Stuffed Baked Chicken Breast

Ingredients
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1 Clove Garlic - crushed
1 lb Fresh Spinach
2 Boneless and Skinless Chicken Breast
1 Tablespoon Sargento Reduced Sodium Provolone Cheese
1 Tablespoon Sargento Reduced Sodium Mozzarella Cheese
1 Tablespoon McCormick Perfect Pinch Italian Seasoning
1 Egg-Land's Best Egg
2 Tablespoons Flour
2 Tablespoons Panko Bread Crumbs

Preheat oven to 30 degrees.
Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Add fresh spinach and toss with oil/garlic. Continue tossing until spinach is wilted, approximately 5 minutes. Remove spinach from heat.
Pound chicken breast between two sheets of plastic wrap to about 1/4 inch thick flat pieces. Season each chicken breast with McCormick Perfect Pinch Italian Seasoning, then top each chicken breast with Sargento Reduced Sodium Provolone and Mozzarella cheeses. Drain and squeeze dry the spinach. Place approximately 2 -3 tablespoons of spinach down the center of each chicken breast. Roll up both chicken breast and pin with toothpicks to create a sealed chicken roll.
Prepare a plate of flour, bowl with beaten Egg-Land's Best Egg and separate dish with Panko bread crumbs. Roll and dust each chicken roll in flour, then dredge in egg and roll in Panko. Place both complete chicken rolls in a 8X8 inch baking dish and bake at 350 for approximately 20-30 minutes.

Zesty Lime-Fish Tacos

44th Pillsbury Bake Off Category Winner Winner of Dinner Made Easy Category - Kellie White's Zesty Lime-Fish Tacos

I am not sure how this made the final four. It is ok, but I just don't see a million dollars. Making tortillas out of biscuits was very creative, time consuming, but creative. It didn't really make a tortilla but more like a gyro bread. This bread product would have been better paired with chicken kabobs and feta to make a Greek style gyro then a taco. This was my first time using chipotle chiles in adobe sauce; what a powerful, flavorful little can of POW! These chiles will be making a come back in other recipes in my future.

I have been a bit out of control today. I did pull of making 3 of the 4 final recipes. Hope to post the results for all.

Zesty Lime-Fish Tacos

INGREDIENTS

1	lb tilapia fillets (about 4)
1/2	cup fresh lime juice (2 to 3 limes)
3	cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/4	cup Pillsbury BEST® All Purpose Flour
1/4	cup yellow cornmeal
1	can (16.3 oz) Pillsbury® Grands!® Homestyle refrigerated buttermilk biscuits (8 biscuits)
6	tablespoons Crisco® Pure Canola Oil
1 1/2	tablespoons chipotle chiles in adobo sauce (from 7-oz can), finely chopped
1/2	teaspoon salt
1/4	teaspoon pepper
1/2	cup salsa
1/2	cup sour cream
1 1/2	cups shredded cabbage

DIRECTIONS

1.	Heat oven to 200°F. Cut each fish fillet lengthwise into 4 strips. In shallow glass dish, mix 7 tablespoons of the lime juice and garlic. Add fish; turn to coat. Let stand while preparing biscuits.
2.	On work surface, mix flour and cornmeal. Separate dough into 8 biscuits. Press both sides of each biscuit into flour mixture, then press or roll into 6- to 7-inch round.
3.	In 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat 1 1/2 tablespoons of the oil over medium heat. Add 2 biscuit rounds; cook about 1 minute on each side or until golden brown and cooked through. Place on cookie sheet; keep warm in oven. Cook remaining rounds, adding 1 1/2 tablespoons oil to skillet for each batch. Wipe skillet clean.
4.	Heat same skillet over medium-high heat. Add fish and lime juice mixture, chiles, salt and pepper; cook about 5 minutes, turning fish once, until fish flakes easily with fork.
5.	In small bowl, mix salsa, sour cream and remaining 1 tablespoon lime juice.
6.	Using slotted spoon, remove fish and divide evenly among biscuit rounds. Top each with cabbage and 1 to 2 tablespoons salsa mixture. Fold biscuit rounds in half over filling. Serve with any remaining salsa mixture. Garnish with lime wedges, if desired.

Deep Dish Chicken Cordon Blue

Contest: 44th Pillsbury Bake Off Top 100 Finalist - Entered by Amy Warren

I was planning on slowing down my Taste Test Month, but our life just got crazy and I need to cook to keep my mind at rest. Our house got picked to be on a national TV show! Not sharing all the details on a blog until I get the OK from the producer. We have just over a week till the show starts taping and they don't want me to do anything to change my house until they get here. It has not even been 24 hours and I am so antsy! I can't keep my mind still and I want to go on a cleaning spree but the tv show wants me to wait, so the only thing I can do is cook and blog. Get ready for lots of posts!

We had this dish tonight for dinner. Hate to be a harsh critic or mean blogger, but this really does not get my vote for a million. I get the idea and find it creative to put these flavors together in a casserole, but I just didn't love it. My husband liked it and the 3 year old ate it so it was not a disaster by any account. I just found it too heavy and while it has likeness to Chicken Cordon Blue, I was not fooled. It was a super rich casserole.

Seriously, stay tuned, so much more to come this week. Gotta cook! I will make several sweets/dessert type Pillsbury 100's this week. We are going to find that million dollar recipe!


Deep Dish Chicken Cordon Blue by Amy Warren

INGREDIENTS

1	can (8 oz) Pillsbury® refrigerated crescent dinner rolls (8 rolls)
2	tablespoons LAND O LAKES® Unsalted or Salted Butter
1	tablespoon Crisco® 100% Extra Virgin Olive Oil or Pure Olive Oil
1	medium onion, thinly sliced
1	clove garlic, finely chopped
1	box (13.25 oz) frozen baked honey-battered chicken tenders, thawed, cut into 1/2-inch pieces, or 1 deli rotisserie chicken (2 to 2 1/2 lb), shredded
16	slices (1 oz each) Muenster cheese
1/4	cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4	cup mayonnaise or salad dressing
2	tablespoons Dijon mustard
2	teaspoons lemon juice
1	teaspoon honey
1	teaspoon horseradish sauce or cream-style prepared horseradish
1/2	teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves or 1/8 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1	lb shaved cooked brown-sugar or maple-glazed ham (from deli)

DIRECTIONS

1.	Heat oven to 375°F. Spray 13x9-inch (3-quart) glass baking dish with Crisco® Original No-Stick Cooking Spray. Unroll crescent rolls in baking dish; press perforations to seal. Bake 10 to 13 minutes or until light golden brown.
2.	Meanwhile, in 10-inch skillet, heat butter and oil over medium heat. Add onion and garlic; cook 2 to 3 minutes, stirring frequently, until softened. Remove from heat; stir in cut-up chicken tenders.
3.	Place 8 slices of the Muenster cheese over baked crust. In small bowl, stir Parmesan cheese, mayonnaise, mustard, lemon juice, honey, horseradish sauce and thyme until well blended. Spoon half of the mayonnaise mixture evenly over cheese on crust.
4.	Spoon chicken mixture evenly over mayonnaise mixture on crust. Spoon remaining mayonnaise mixture evenly over chicken. Cover chicken evenly with ham. Top with remaining 8 slices Muenster cheese.
5.	Bake 15 to 20 minutes longer or until cheese is melted and filling is thoroughly heated.

As you can see I tried a few cheeses; Swiss and Gouda. Maybe it was the Gouda that left the heavy feeling, the Swiss was better. Worth a try if you are a Cordon Blue fan.

Cheery-Cherry Chicken with Crispy Onion Grits

Contest: French's Cook Off 2009 - Erin Ronouf Mylroie

Winner of the People's Choice Award

As a child of the south, you would think I would love a good recipe with grits, but I was kind of not excited about this recipe. We only had a grits a few times when I was a kid. My parents are both from Illinois, so they would make grits every now and then when they felt like trying to be Southern. My mom never made them right and they always put maple syrup on them because they didn't know how to eat grits. Maple syrup is not right, so I was never too impressed with grits and never made them myself. I first had good grits in college when I worked at the Fredonia Hotel, they made a jalapeno cheddar baked grits. Yum.

I made this recipe tonight for dinner and while cooking the chicken I almost chickened out on the grits and made mashed potatoes instead. I only had 2 potatoes and one had been gnawed on by a baby so mashed potatoes were out and grits were in. This turned out to be a really great dish! I was surprised how good the honey mustard and cherry were together, not too sweet but packed with flavor. I thought the grits would seem out of place and the French's Onions seemed like more of an after thought than part of the recipe, but again I was wrong. Grits and French's Onions were a great base for this chicken! I would use it anytime instead of couscous or rice. This recipe is proof, I need to go outside my comfort zone to win contests. Loved this dish and I will make it again.

Cheery-Cherry Chicken with Crispy Onion Grits by Erin Ronouf Mylroie

Ingredients:
1 tbsp FRENCH'S® Classic Worcestershire Sauce
2 tbsp FRENCH'S® Honey Mustard
3/4 cup FRENCH'S® French Fried Onions
1 lb chicken breasts, boneless, skinless
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup cherry preserves
1 cup instant grits
2 tbsp chopped parsley
26 oz water
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Directions:

Sprikle chicken with 1/2 teaspoon pepper and FRENCH'S Worcestershire sauce. Heat oil in heavy large skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken and cook for four minutes per side, or until nicely browned. In a small bowl combine FRENCH'S honey mustard, 1/4 cup water, and cherry preserves. Add to chicken in pan and bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for five minutes or until sauce is warmed through and chicken is cooked through. Meanwhile, bring 3 cups of water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Slowly whisk in grits and 1/4 teaspoon salt; reduce heat to low and cook for 6 minutes, or until thickened, stirring occasionally. Keep grits warm Chop FRENCH's Fried onions into small pieces. In a medium bowl, combine parsley and FRENCH'S fried onions. Stir 1/2 cup mixture into grits. To serve, divide grits between each of four bowls. Cover with one chicken breast and cherry pan sauce. Sprinkle with remaining FRENCH's onion/parsley mixture, dividing evenly, and serve. Yield: 4 servings, Prep Time: 25 minutes

Turkey Swedish Meatballs

Contest: French's Cook Off - my own entry

Love this recipe, but didn't figure it had much of a chance in the French's contest. It isn't super original, but it is a family crowd pleaser, even the baby can eat this. I was inspired by Ikea meatballs, the best part of visiting an Ikea Store. This is a regular in The Rotation at our house. Enjoy!

Turkey Swedish Meatballs

Ingredients:
1 cup FRENCH'S® French Fried Onions
1.25 lb Ground Turkey
1 Egg
1/4 tsp Allspice
1/4 tsp Nutmeg
2 tsp Butter
1 12 oz Jar of Chicken Gravy
1/2 cup Sour Cream
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
Directions:
Mix together ground turkey, French's French Fried Onions, egg, allspice, nutmeg, and salt. Form 16 golf ball sized meatballs. In large skillet melt butter over medium/high heat. Drop meatballs into the pan. Rotate every 2-3 minutes till meatballs are well browned on all sides and cooked through. Remove meatballs from pan and keep warm in a separate dish. Turn heat down to low then add jar of gravy. Stir scrapping the bottom of the pan and mixing the butter and drippings into the gravy for 3-4 minutes or until gravy is hot. Mix sour cream into gravy and stir for one minute. Serve meatballs topped with gravy and fresh cracked pepper.


There really is no way to take a pretty picture of meat with gravy. Trust me though, good meal!

Southwest Mini Cresent Burritos

Contest: 44th Pillsbury Bake Off Top 100 Finalist by Sharon Shelton

Testing month continues! I didn't get a chance to enter this Pillsbury Bake Off but I am already preparing for the next one. In the meantime, I figure I should try as many of the Top 100 Finalist recipes as I can. The top 100 go to Orlando, Fl to participate in the live Bake Off. The winner will be awarded one million dollars on April 12th. Crazy! A million dollars for a recipe!

Tonight's recipe got a great review from the husband and 2 year old. I liked how easy it was to make. I was able to pull this dinner together in minutes with a screaming baby on my leg (it has been a rough week around here). Big vote for ease! I liked the flavor, as I love all things Tex-Mex, but not sure if it is a million dollar recipe. Great meal, just not a crazy original use of Pillsbury product. Easy for me to make such bold reviews when I can't even get a response from any contests. Just sharing my thoughts. I would highly suggest this for a quick, family pleasing dinner!

Southwest Mini Crescent Burritos
By Sharon Shelton

INGREDIENTS
1 box (9 oz) Green Giant® frozen chopped spinach, thawed, squeezed to drain
1 cup shredded cooked chicken breast
1/2 cup canned black beans, drained, rinsed
1/2 cup Green Giant® Valley Fresh Steamers™ Niblets® frozen corn
1 cup shredded pepper Jack cheese (4 oz)
1 package (1 oz) taco seasoning mix
2 cans (8 oz each) Pillsbury® refrigerated garlic butter crescent dinner rolls (16 rolls)
1 EGGLAND’S BEST egg white, beaten
3/4 cup sour cream
3/4 cup salsa
DIRECTIONS
1. Heat oven to 375°F. In large bowl, mix spinach, chicken, beans, corn, cheese and taco seasoning mix; set aside.
2. Unroll 1 can of crescent dough; press perforations to seal. Press or roll into 13x9-inch rectangle. Cut rectangle in half lengthwise, then cut crosswise into thirds to make 6 squares.
3. Spoon about 1/4 cup spinach mixture onto center of each square. Bring up one side of dough over filling and roll up, folding in sides as you roll. Pinch seam to seal. On ungreased cookie sheet, place rolls seam sides down and 2 inches apart. Repeat with second can of dough and remaining spinach mixture. Brush rolls with egg white.
4. Bake 14 to 18 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Cool 10 minutes. Serve warm with sour cream and salsa.


Pretty little pockets!

Steak Gorgonzola Quesadillas

Contest: French's Cook Off 2009 - My own entry

I really thought this recipe had a chance. 1. It is trendy with the steak and Gorgonzola. 2. Quesadillas are always a hit. And 3. I thought it was very creative to make the quesadilla on the grill. But it didn't win. This was the first big contest I entered and it was a bit intimidating. I guess it was also a first for French's and by looks of a huge success for them, not so much for me. They received over 2,000 recipes and likely a million hits on their website. French's Marketing folks did a great internet campaign with this one. Voting was all on-line, they encouraged entries to make a YouTube video and you could link it to Facebook and probably Twitter, I didn't participate in that part. The contest had 20 finalist, 10 as judged by the French's people and 10 based on popular vote. The top recipes had over 20,000 votes! Who are these people!?! I thought I was doing good when I reached 100. Just like high school, I quickly realized I had no chance with the popular vote. I held out hope for this recipe, but got no response. I still like it.

Steak Gorgonzola Quesadillas

Ingredients:
1/4 cup FRENCH'S® Classic Worcestershire Sauce
2 cup FRENCH'S® French Fried Onions
1/4 cup Olive Oil
1.5 lb Flank Steak
1 cup Crumbled Gorgonzola Cheese
8 8 Inch Flour Tortillas
3 tbsp Olive Oil
1 cup Sour Cream
Directions:
Create a marinade with 1/4 cup French's Classic Worcestershire Sauce and 1/4 cup olive oil. Marinade meat while preparing grill and other items or overnight if time permits. Grill flank steak over medium flame. Approximately 5-7 minutes per side or until it reaches your preferred degree of done. Slice flank steak in angular cuts against the grain to create small strips of steak for quesadillas. Using a pastry brush, brush olive oil on one side of 4 flour tortillas. Place tortillas, oiled side down, on grill over low heat. Immediately top tortillas with steak, crumbled Gorgonzola cheese and French's French Fried Onions then top with another flour tortilla. Using pastry brush apply olive oil to top tortilla. This should take a few minutes, once complete flip quesadillas and close grill cover cook an additional 2-3 minutes or until tortillas are crisp and cheese has melted to sealed quesadillas together. Remove from grill. Repeat with remaining flour tortillas and ingredients. Slice quesadillas in half with pizza cutter and serve with a sour cream on the side.

Focaccia Fish Cakes

Contest: Gorton's Grilled Recipe Renovation

I had to give my family a break tonight from recipe testing as we returned to a meal from "The Regular Rotation" as my husband calls it. That is actually how he rates new recipes, it gets either a simple "Good!" or "Ok, but not for The Regular Rotation". That is how I know it didn't work. I can also tell how bad a meal was by how many English muffins my husband eats later in the night. If the toaster oven is humming at 9pm, that means dinner was not up to par with "The Regular Rotation".

It has been a busy week of testing. This week I have been working with Bisquick and the Gorton's Grilled Fish. I also did a little Pillsbury experiment with sugar cookie dough, it didn't work out so well. But with every failure, comes inspiration for change, I plan another test with the cookie dough soon. I will share all my Pillsbury stuff in the future. Contesters are all very supportive people and are rarely dirty competitors, but I still am not posting any recipes or ideas until they have been submitted to the contests. Don't want anyone poaching my foods!

The following is something I came up with using the Gorton's Grilled Fish Fillets. Larger than crumb chunks of Focaccia bread give this fish cake a great texture. And you just can't go wrong with Panko for a great crispy and crunchy finish. Hope you enjoy!

Focaccia Fish Cakes

2 Gorton's All Natural Italian Herb Grilled Fillets (1 package)
3/4 Cup Stale Focaccia Bread cut into 1/2 inch crumbs
2 Eggs
3 Green Onions Chopped
1 Tablespoon Parmesan Cheese
1 Tablespoon Romano Cheese
1/4 Cup Chopped Fresh Parsley
1 Cup Panko Bread Crumbs
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil

Sauce
1/2 Cup Jarred Tomato Sauce
1 Tablespoon Italian Salad Dressing
1 Tablespoon Mayonnaise

Microwave the 2 Gorton's All Natural Italian Herb Grilled Fillets on high for 5 minutes. Fish should be nearly cooked through. Chop the fish into small pieces and set aside to cool. In separate bowl mix Focaccia crumbs, eggs, onions, Parmesan Cheese, Romano Cheese and Parsley. Ensure the fish is now cool to touch, then mix it into the bowl. Create 8 fish cakes like you would a hamburger patty. Roll fish cakes in Panko bread crumbs until coated evenly.

Heat olive oil in large skillet over medium/high heat. Add fish cakes and cook each side for about 5 minutes until golden brown on each side.

To prepare sauce, mix jarred tomato sauce, Italian salad dressing and mayonnaise till smooth.

Serve fish cakes topped with sauce. Enjoy!



I really need to get a better camera or lighting or something to create better food pictures. I have been shopping the discount racks for a few good display plates. My boring tan Crate and Barrel plates are not doing the dishes any favors.

Uncle Bernie's Fish Soup

Contest: Gorton's Grilled Recipe Renovation, www.gortons.com

I learned to cook by closely following recipes. A rule breaker I am not, so I never swayed from the instructions even by a pinch. You can imagine how flustered and stressed I was when I started cooking with my artist uncles, Bernie and Joe. The Uncles are the very definition of Recipe Crashers, but they are also a great inspiration as I create new recipes. I swear, Joe can make a gourmet meal out of only condiments.

My first year in Boston I lived in The Uncles' basement and pretty much spent all my free time cooking in their fully equipped kitchen. We all gain a bit of weight that year and I learned that the meal will not be ruined by a little variation to the recipe. That did not stop me from totally freaking out when Bernie tried to add stewed tomatoes to my chicken fried steak, some things can't be varied. This is my Uncle Bernie's Fish Soup recipe, he swears he does not want any of the prize should I win this contest, he just wants his name on the recipe.

Challenge in this contest: Gorton's Grilled Fillets are all ready spiced and they each changed the soup and made it something different. Some flavors just didn't work well. The butter flavor was best with this simple broth recipe. The butter added a bit of depth to the soup. Hope the Gorton's folks like it.


Uncle Bernie's Fish Soup

3 Tablespoons Butter
2 Medium Onions chopped small
1 Carrot chopped small
3 Cups Chicken Broth
1/3 Cup Smooth Peanut Butter
1/2 Teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
2 Packages (4 Fillets) Gorton's Roasted Garlic & Butter Grilled Tilapia Fillets
1/4 Cup Half & Half
Salt & Pepper to taste
2 Cups Fresh Bean Sprouts
1 Cup Fresh Watercress

Melt butter over medium heat in large deep skillet. Add onions first, cook a few minutes then add the carrots. Cook vegetables for 5-6 minutes until soft and the onions are translucent. Whisk in the chicken broth, peanut butter and cayenne pepper. Bring to a slow boil then turn down to a simmer for about 8 minutes. Add 4 Gorton's Roasted Garlic & Butter Tilapia Fillets, cover and cook for 8-10 minutes till the fish is cooked/poached. Stir in half & half, then salt and pepper, simmer for additional 2 minutes.

To serve use 4 large shallow soup bowls. Place a big handful of fresh bean sprouts (about 1/2 cup) in the bottom of the bowl. Top the bean sprouts with a smaller handful of fresh watercress (about 1/4 cup. Place a single fillet in each bowl on top of vegetables then divide the broth between all four bowls. Enjoy!


Sauteed Veggies


Peanut butter and broth


Poach the Gorton's Tilapia Fillets


Fresh bean sprouts and watercress. Crunchy goodness!


And serve!

Sloppy Rolls

Contest: Best Messy Recipe Contest by Bounty Paper Towels on Mixingbowl.com

Well this contest seemed right up my ally. There is not a meal in my house that does not end up messy. My next home improvement is installing a garden hose and large drain in my kitchen. Two young boys, enough said. Still initially I was stumped by this one, all I could think was Sloppy Joes. I love Sloppy Joes! Thinking... how can you make Sloppy Joes a party food? Eggrolls! And thus... Sloppy Rolls.

If you like this recipe go to Mixingbowl.com and vote for it on the contest page under Best Messy Recipe, Sloppy Joes by Cooking4Fun. Contest ends 2/12/09.

Sloppy Rolls

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion - diced small
1 green bell pepper - diced small
2 cloves garlic - minced
1 lb ground beef
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1 cup water
1/2 teaspoon corn starch
1 6 oz can tomato paste
1 package egg roll wrappers
1 cup vegetable oil (or your favorite frying oil)
1/2 cup Velvetta cheese
1 egg white



Directions:
Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions, peppers and garlic. Cook 8-10 minutes until the vegetables are soft. Add 1 lb ground beef, cook till fully browned. Drain off fat. Return to heat add the spices; salt, pepper, paprika, chili powder. Then add water and tomato paste. Mix well heating through then add corn starch to thicken. Simmer for additional 10 minutes until the mixture is thick.

Using egg roll wrappers prepare egg rolls placing 1 heaping tablespoon of sloppy joe meat and a few 1 inch chunks of velvetta. Roll the egg rolls as directed on the egg roll package using egg whites to seal rolls. Heat frying oil in large skillet over medium high heat. Fry egg rolls in batches, 5-6 at a time. Cook on each side 2-3 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oil and place on cooling rack with paper towels lined under. Serve hot!



This recipe is the first that I have received a buzz on. Very excited to see people are actually looking at the stuff I post and a few people liked it. Cool.