Food for the soul

It's Sunday, and I paid my gratitude to God for all of my blessings. This life and the beauty around us were a gift and I am thankful for it. When I pray, and I do every night, I thank the All Mighty for these gifts, and I ask forgiveness for my shortcomings, and for the hearts of those that do evil  be changed. I pray for the children of the world, to be protected from harm, and to be able to live in peace, security, love, and to know no hunger or fear.

 Now I share my gift of cooking, with a few recipes we enjoy at the many celebrations we have in our circle. Please make sure all food leftovers are stored properly after use.

 Spinach Dip

 Ingredients

1 box (10 oz.) frozen chopped spinach,defrosted,and squeezed dry
 1 container (16 oz.) sour cream*
 1 cup Hellmann's® or Best Foods® Real Mayonnaise ( any good mayonnaise)
 1 package Knorr® Vegetable recipe mix ( or any brand vegetable dry soup mix)
 1 can (8 oz.) water chestnuts, drained and chopped (optional) ( I opt yes)
 3 green onions, chopped (optional) ( I definitely opt yes)
 Directions Combine all ingredients and chill about 2 hours. Serve with your favorite dippers to your favorite people.

 *TIPS: To lighten up dip, substitute 1 container (16 oz.) nonfat plain Greek yogurt for the sour cream.
 Serve with crackers, or in a bread bowl, I used Mountain Bread here, but, most any large round loaf will do, and the Hawaiian bread is s good with this also. with the bread scooped out and used for dipping on the side, or fresh vegetables.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

 

 Hot Garlic Artichoke Dip

Ingredients:  2 8-oz. Packages cream cheese (light works great), softened 1 c. Mayonnaise (no Miracle Whip or fat free mayonnaise, although low-fat Mayo also works great) 1 c. (packed) shredded Parmesan cheese  1 12-oz. Jar MARINATED artichoke hearts, drained and chopped 6-7 cloves garlic, minced Instructions: Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl, mix the softened cream cheese with the mayonnaise and shredded Parmesan cheese. Gently add in the chopped artichoke hearts and minced garlic. Place the mixture into a 9″ pie plate (or divided evenly among smaller dishes) and bake for 25-30 minutes or until it’s lightly browned and bubbly on top. Serve hot with slices of bread , pita chips, and/or tortilla chips. I usually put this in a bread bowl, also. Warning, this IS addictive.  How about a nice Sunday ( or any holiday or any day:):)  Lasagna? Ingredients 1 pound ground beef 1 large jar of good Pasta Sauce, such as Prego with Sausage ( or your choice or make your own, I will add a recipe. some days there is just not enough time, is there?)  2 garlic cloves, minced 1 small onion, diced 2 tablespoons Olive Oil  2 teaspoons sugar 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon pepper  2 eggs 3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley ( or dried 1 tbs) 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg ( just do it)  32 ounces whole milk Ricotta cheese 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese 9 lasagna noodles, cooked and drained 4 cups ( 16 ounces)  shredded whole milk mozzarella cheese, divided  ( Yes you CAN use lower fat cheeses, and it will taste good... we just prefer the full flavors, and do not eat Lasagna often enough to give up those flavors)  In a large skillet, cook beef in the olive oil over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Add the onion, garlic, sugar, seasoning, salt and pepper, and saute until onion and garlic are softened. Add the sauce. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. In a large bowl, combine eggs and parsley. Stir in the  ricotta, nutmeg,  and 1/2 of the Parmesan cheese. Spread 1 cup of meat sauce in an ungreased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. Layer with three noodles, 1/2 of the ricotta mixture, 1 cup mozzarella, 1/3 of the meat sauce, then repeat this layer. Top with the remaining noodles, meat sauce, the remaining Parmesan cheese and mozzarella (dish will be full). Sprinkle with additional Italian seasonings if you like.  Cover and bake at 375° for 50 minutes. Uncover; bake 20 minutes longer or until heated through. Let stand for 15 minutes before cutting. Yield: 12 servings.

Tips: 1. A trick learned from The Barefoot Contessa, Ina Garten. Place the  uncooked lasagna noodles into the baking dish, in with the hottest tap water., and allow them to sit in the water for 20 minutes. Drain.Then use as directed in the recipe. No boiling, no breaking, what a cool idea. 2. The best no boil lasagna noodles that I have used in a lasagna dish are the Barilla brand. If you use those, you will need a few more noodles pretty near the entire box, as they are shorter. Follow the directions for baking by covering the pan tightly , and these come out very well, and are tender and thin.

Bolognese Sauce

Ingredients

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 celery stalk, coarsely chopped
1 carrot, coarsely chopped
1 pound ground chuck beef
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes ( not drained)
1/4 cup flat-leaf Italian parsley, chopped ( or 1 tbs dried)
8 fresh basil leaves, chopped ( or 1 tbs dried)

1 tbsp dried oregano flakes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

In a large sauce pan,  heat the olive oil. When almost smoking, add the onion and garlic and saute over medium heat until the onions become very soft, about 8 minutes. Add the celery and carrot and saute for 5 minutes. Raise heat to high and add the ground beef. Saute, stirring frequently and breaking up any large lumps and cook until meat is no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes, parsley and basil and cook over medium low heat until the sauce thickens. Season with salt and pepper. This will take approximately 1/2 hour. 

This sauce can be kept refrigerated 3 days, and served with any past dish.  If you like sauce a bit thicker, you can add a can of tomato paste and 1-2 cans of water, adjust the salt and pepper to taste, and add 2 tbs of sugar to cut the tartness. Fussy children? Chop the veggies fine, and they will never notice.

You can also double this recipe, and freeze it for the next time.

Caesar Salad/ Dressing

Ingredients

1. • 2 small garlic cloves, minced
   • 1 teaspoon anchovy paste
   • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
   • 1 teaspoon Dijon-style mustard
   • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
   • 1 cup bottled mayonnaise
   • 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan

   Preparation

2. 1. In a bowl whisk together the garlic, the anchovy paste, the lemon juice, the mustard, and the Worcestershire sauce, add the mayonnaise, the Parmesan, and pepper to taste, and whisk the dressing until it is combined well. Toss the dressing with salad greens or serve it as a dip with crudités.  Don't forget to add really good croutons. ( I sometimes add tomatoes, red onion, and cucumber slices ,as well. I am a rebel like that.)

3 Bean Salad

• 1 can (15 to 16 ounces) cut green beans, drained
• 1 can (15 to 16 ounces) cut yellow wax beans, drained ( or chick peas)
• 1 can (about 16 ounces) red kidney beans, drained
• 1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper or use a combination of red and green
• 1 cup sliced red onion ( or green onions , including the whites minus the roots)
• 1/2 cup cider vinegar
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1 tsp celery seed
• 1/8 tsp cayenne or red pepper powder

Directions:

In a medium bowl add 4-10 of the ingredients, blend with a whisk. TASTE it, it's OK. Adjust to taste.

Drain the liquid from the 3 cans of beans and add to the bowl, then toss with the dressing. Add the onions and peppers, toss well, and chill for at least 3 hours, stirring occasionally.

Tips:

Add 2 chopped cloves of garlic
Add black beans, cannellini beans, cut corn, or whatever floats your boat, in place of one of the other beans, or add it all.
Add bacon bits, or chopped hard boiled eggs at serving.
Serve on it's own, or serve with green salad.
Use your imagination. it is OK to play with your food!!!

Everyone that likes to cook needs at least 1 great knife in the kitchen. This knife needs some heft to it, and can be used for multiple purposes, and stay sharp. I do not like serrated knives for that very reason, they cannot be sharpened at home, and will dull, then tear food apart versus cutting and slicing.This does not mean you have to spend a small fortune  on this knife, they can be found on sale, and some are very affordable to begin with. 

Since I owned and operated a small restaurant for several years, I have a nice knife collection, but, those cook/ Chef knives are my go to staple.  I do not buy a lot of " gadgets" , like a garlic press, and my cook knife can deal with the chopping much cleaner faster, and less annoying clean up.

Good lesson here:

                   
We are making BBQ Chicken tonight, using an Applewood Dry rub, cooking til near done, then topping with BBQ sauce to finish off. We have seasoned some Russet Potatoes, to add to the grill, tightly wrapped in aluminum foil, and we will be having the cole slaw and 3 bean salad as our sides. I can smell it!!!!

My Cole Slaw recipe is in my Let's talk about Food blog.

Check out the knives at Amazon. Remember, if you buy through my links, you are helping donate to https://www.nokidhungry.org/, without spending anything extra.