Cooking with KP

Easter Morning Eggs Benedict Casserole

I found this recipe a few years ago in Taste of Home Magazine. It is a perfect brunch dish and great for Easter breakfast. Please note that you have to mix the casserole and refrigerate overnight.

CASSEROLE

12 ounces Canadian bacon, chopped

6 English muffins, split and cut into 1-inch pieces

8 large eggs

2 cups milk

1 teaspoon onion powder

½ teaspoon pepper

¼ teaspoon paprika

HOLLANDAISE SAUCE:

4 large egg yolks

½ cup heavy whipping cream

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

½ cup butter, melted

Use a 9x13 rectangular or 10x10 square dish so that you can cut the baked casserole into squares for easy serving. Place half of the Canadian bacon in greased baking dish; top with English muffins and remaining bacon. In a large bowl, whisk eggs, milk, onion powder and pepper; pour over top. Refrigerate, covered, overnight.

Preheat oven to 375°. Remove casserole from refrigerator while oven heats. Sprinkle top with paprika. Bake, covered, 35 minutes. Uncover; bake 10-15 minutes longer or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

Begin the sauce the last 5 minutes of baking the casserole. In top of a double boiler or a metal bowl over simmering water, whisk egg yolks, cream, lemon juice and mustard until blended; cook until mixture is just thick enough to coat a metal spoon and temperature reaches 160°, whisking constantly. Reduce heat to very low. Very slowly drizzle in warm melted butter, whisking constantly. Serve immediately with casserole.

PS: If you just don't have time to make the sauce, these are two package sauces I highly recommend International and Knorr's. Both are easy and delicious!

Roasted Veggie Flatbead

My husband always makes this to go with his baked ziti. It is so tasty. I could have it as the main course. He found this basic idea/recipe on Two Sisters and made a few changes.

1 lb fresh yellow squash

1 ½ lb fresh zucchini squash

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

¼ tsp salt

¼ tsp freshly ground pepper

1 lb. 100% whole wheat pizza dough (set it out at room temperature for 1 hour)

10 toes/buds pre-roasted garlic

½ lb fresh mozzarella

8-10 leaves fresh basil

1 sprig fresh oregano

no-stick cooking spray

Preheat oven to 375ºF. Slice yellow squash into circles. Cut zucchini in half, width-wise, and cut into strips. Place on a large baking sheet and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for 25 to 30 minutes or until light golden brown.

Spray no-stick cooking spray on a large baking sheet. Use a mini rolling pin to spread pizza dough on pan. Bake for about 10 minutes.

Slice fresh mozzarella into circles and cut each in half. Place on dough.

Top with cooked squash, zucchini, and garlic. Bake for an additional 15 minutes or until cheese is melted and dough is lightly crispy.

Rinse and dry fresh herbs. Use kitchen shears to chop herbs over flatbread. Use a pizza cutter to serve.

Pork Meatballs and Italian Sausage Bake Ziti

Do you need a large entree for a family dinner or pot luck supper? A huge family meal is a custom in my husband’s family on Palm Sunday. This is Mike’s Palm Sunday Pork Meatball and Sausage Bake Ziti recipe. It serves 16-20 people.

1 yellow onion

1 lb. Italian style pork meatballs

2 ½ lbs. mild Italian fresh sausage links

two 13.25-oz boxes penne pasta

three 26-oz jars marinara sauce (We use Emeril’s)

2 Tablespoons Italian Seasoning blend

1 Tablespoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon sugar (always add a little sugar to tomato sauces)

3 cups mozzarella shredded cheese

2 cups Parmesan cheese, freshly grated not the green can kind

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Slice onion.

In two large sauté pans on medium heat, brown pork meatballs and sausage links for about 5 minutes. Add sliced onions to sauté pan and cook an additional 5 minutes, rotating sausage and meatballs. Set sautéed onions aside. In a large baking dish, cook sausage and meatballs until they are cooked throughout, about 7 minutes. Slice into ½ inch pieces.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add penne pasta to pot and cook according to directions on box, about 12 minutes. Stir sauce and onions into pasta.

In a large baking dish, fill the bottom of the dish with a layer of pasta with sauce. Next, sprinkle shredded mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Follow with a layer of sliced meatballs and sausage. Repeat layering- pasta, cheeses, and finally meatballs and sausage. Lastly, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake for about 30 minutes or until hot.

Note: You can also include 2 cups of ricotta cheese and put dollops of it when you are adding the cheeses.

Impossible Taco Pie

I can’t claim this delicious and easy dish as my own. There are several versions online. It is quick, it is easy, but it is oh, so tasty. Make this pie an extra-special creation with garnishes. Offer small bowls of sour cream, guacamole, diced onions, sliced scallions, purchased or homemade salsa, and sliced black olives. For a hearty dinner, add a tossed salad and corn bread muffins.

1 pound ground beef

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 (1.25-ounce) packet taco seasoning (approximately 2 tablespoons)

1 (4-ounce) can chopped green chili peppers (mild, drained)

1 1/4 cups milk

3 large eggs

3/4 cup biscuit baking mix (e.g., Bisquick)

2 tomatoes, diced

1 cup shredded Mexican blend or sharp cheddar cheese

Heat oven to 400 F.

Grease a 10-inch glass pie plate.

In a large skillet over medium high heat cook the ground beef and onion until beef is browned and no longer pink, stirring and turning frequently. Drain well.

Add the dry taco seasoning mixture to the drained ground beef and onion mixture; stir to blend the spice mix into the beef. Spread the ground beef mixture in the greased pie plate. Top the beef mixture with the chopped chili peppers.

In a bowl, whisk the milk with the eggs until well blended. Add the baking mix and whisk or beat until smooth. Pour the batter over the chili pepper layer.

Bake for 25 minutes and then top with shredded cheese. Bake for about 8 to 10 minutes longer, or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Immediately sprinkle diced tomatoes on top of hot pie when it is removed from oven.

Cool the taco pie for about 5 minutes before slicing and serving.

Serve with sour cream and your favorite taco garnishes.

Leave leftover pie in the pie pan, cover tightly with foil or plastic wrap, and refrigerate for up to 3 days. To reheat, cover with foil and heat at 325 F for about 25 minutes, or until hot. The recommended safe temperature—USDA—for leftovers is 165 F.

Smothered Seven Bone Steaks

My mother often called seven bone steaks GRAVY chops because she would chop the larger steaks in half and then she smothered them in onion gravy. Seven bones steaks in gravy was one of my favorite meals growing up. These steaks have gotten rather difficult to find, but you can ask the
butcher to cut a few for you. You won't regret it, I promise!

2.5-3 pounds of 7-bone steaks (bone-in) or round steaks
2 Tablespoons Cajun Seasonings (use seasoned salt if you don't have this)
1 Tablespoon garlic powder
1/2 Tablespoon pepper
2 medium onions--chop one and slice the other in rings
2 cloves/toes garlic, finely chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped --I like to use a red bell pepper for this
2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
3-6 cups beef stock (Add 1 cup at a time)
3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 Tablespoons olive oil
2 Tablespoons canola oil

Use a large skillet with a lid. Mix Cajun Seasoning, garlic powder, and pepper in a small bowl. Season both sides of steaks with Cajun seasonings, garlic powder and pepper. Don't toss the remaining seasons--you will add to the gravy later. Heat olive oil in skillet. Add steaks and sear/brown/fry for 2-3 minutes per side. Remove steaks from skillet and set them in a plate. Do not remove any grease/oil remaining in skillet. Add chopped onions, bell pepper, chopped garlic and saute over medium heat for 4-5 minutes until onions begin to soften. Push vegetables to one side of skillet and 2 tablespoons of canola oil, then add flour, stirring constantly to make a dark roux (about 4-5 minutes). Slowly add 1 cup of broth at a time and mix in roux and vegetables. Add broth until gravy is a slightly thin consistency. Add remaining seasoning blend and Worcestershire sauce. Return steaks to skillet. Cover with gravy. Top steaks with sliced onion rings. Once gravy boils, reduce to simmer. Cover with lid and simmer 2-3 hours. Turning steaks mid-way. Serve steaks and gravy over rice or mashed potatoes.

Chicken or Turkey Salad

As the weather gets warmer, no one wants to stand in front of a stove cooking for hours. Also, after the holidays, we are all looking for easy ways to use leftover turkey. Lots of cooks have their version of chicken or turkey salads. Here is mine. You can use a store bought rotisserie chicken or just use leftover chicken and/or turkey. Makes great sandwiches or spread on top of crackers. It also tastes
great on a bed of lettuce or just as it is! Enjoy!

4 cups cooked, chopped chicken or turkey

1 cup chopped celery

¾ cup diced onion

1 cup seedless grapes, halved (You can use red or green grapes—your choice)

¾ cup dried cranberries or golden raisins

1 Granny Smith apple, cored and diced (don't peel)

1 cup roasted pecans, chopped (See recipe below)

1-1.5 cups mayonnaise

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ground black pepper

To make salad, place all ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir to incorporate everything. Feel free to add more mayo if you want it moister. Cover and keep refrigerated.

To roast pecans, preheat oven to 300 degree. Place a sheet of parchment paper on a rimmed baking sheet. Pour 1 pound of pecan halves in a single layer on top of parchment. Cut 3 Tablespoons of butter into small pieces and scatter butter pieces on top of pecans. Bake for 10 minutes; stir and bake for 5 more minutes. Watch carefully so that they don’t burn. Let cool for 20 minutes. Keep in airtight container for up to 2 weeks—great snack!

Kay's Marinated Heirloom Tomatoes

With their vivid colors and delightful taste, heirloom tomatoes make a perfect side dish or salad. I love to marinate them and serve them on a bed of lettuce and sprinkle a little feta or goat cheese on top. Here is my favorite way to marinate them.

2 cups of small/cherry/grape size heirloom tomatoes, rinsed and sliced

1/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup red wine vinegar

1/3 cup olive oil

1 Tablespoon Italian seasoning blend (I use McCormick)

1 Tablespoon parsley, diced

1 Tablespoon minced garlic

1 Tablespoon grainy brown mustard

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/4 teaspoon salt

Slice tomatoes and put in bowl with a tightly fitting lid. Sprinkle salt on tomatoes. In a blender, blender together all other ingredients and pour on top of tomatoes. Put on lid and give a shake. Refrigerate for 2-6 hours or overnight. Serve on lettuce and top with cheese if you like.

Note: I sometimes add 1/4 cup of diced red onions to this . I put onions in with tomatoes and then add the marinate.

Cheaper Cuts of Beef Don't Have To Be Tough

Most people avoid the cheaper cuts of beef because they tend to be tough. With 8 children and three adults in our home, my mother had to find ways to tenderize the cheaper cuts of beef. One way to cook "down", as my mother used to say, a tough cut of beef steak is to season both sides of the steak with garlic powder, seasoned salt and pepper. Lightly brown the steak in a large skillet and on top add a diced green bell pepper, medium onion, a bay leaf, parsley flakes, a few dashes of Worchestershire sauce, and a can of diced tomatoes. Cover with lid. Let the steak simmer for 30-50 minutes. Remove lid and thicken juices by cooking 5-10 more minutes. You can also do the same with a cheap beef roast in a crock pot. Add all the ingredients in crock pot and cook on low for 6-8 hours. The flavor is simple, amazing and great with mashed potatoes.

Fall Vegetables for a Healthy You

As the fall approaches, we will all start to stay indoors more hours. This will lessen our vitamins, such as vitamin A, D, and K, which are enhanced by sunlight. Below are a few vegetables you might want to increase in your diet as the fall and later winter days approach. Besides, they are very tasty. In fact, in the next few weeks, I will be posting recipes that incorporate many of these delicious veggies.

Sweet potatoes and yams are very rich in carotenoids, vitamins A, B6, C, potassium, iron and fiber and are delicious when baked and eaten plain (without butter) or used in soups, casseroles or stir-fries.

Bell peppers are great sources of potassium, manganese, fiber and vitamins A, B, C and K. These sweet peppers are flavorful additions to salads and healthy stir-fries. You can choose from a rainbow of colors, including: green peppers,yellow peppers, orange peppers,and red peppers.

Summer and winter squash are rich in carotenoids, vitamins A and C, potassium, magnesium and fiber and can be served alone or added to many dishes.

Just a few tips for you...

Spray your Tupperware with nonstick cooking spray before pouring in tomato- based sauces. No more stains!

Use lifesavers candy to hold candles in place on your next birthday cake! Kids love them.

Stuff a miniature marshmallow in the bottom of a sugarcone to prevent ice cream drips!

Zap garlic cloves in the microwave for 15 seconds and the skins slip right off!

If your celery begins to wilt in the fridge, fill a large cup half full of water and place celery in the cup. Put back in the fridge for two hours--it will be crisp. (Learned this from my mother).

Cooking Myth Busted

A Potato Can Save a Salty Soup or Stew. True or False? False. "This is an attractive idea, but it doesn't work because potatoes are not particularly absorbent," says Wolke, who conducted his own soup-and-potato experiment for his Cooking Myth Busters book. "There is no reason they would attract salt." If you remove the raw potato from the soup, the potato will taste salty, but so would a sponge — it has simply soaked up some of the salty liquid. Still, there is hope for salty stews: Adding a bit of vinegar or sugar can "cancel out" the saltiness by giving your taste buds competing flavors.

Super Moist Turkey

If you are looking for a way to get a moist turkey, you might try one of these family hints:

1--bake the turkey upside down--breast down for the first half of the cooking time. It will help the darker meat cook more thoroughly and the fatty juices of the darker meat will drip down to the breast and add moistness. Use a deep roasting pan for this.

2--bake the turkey with the breast up, but rub it with butter, garlic powder and pepper only. Do not salt the skin. Instead, mix salt in a cup of warm water and pour that cup of salted warm-not hot-water inside the cavity of the turkey. The salt water will steam up into the turkey, making it very moist.

3. bake the turkey with the breast up and slice two lemons and one orange in halves. Place the halves inside the seasoned turkey and the juices will steam into the meat, adding moisture and flavor.

Hint of the Week

Here is something I learned from my wonderful Mother, the greatest cook I have ever known. When you have just a small serving of cooked vegetables leftover from dinner, don't throw them away. Keep a large plastic container in the freezer and put the vegetables in the container. Mix them--carrots, corn, green beans, broccoli, etc. When the container is full make a pot of soup or stew. Also, if a recipe calls for 1/2 a chopped onion, chop the whole onion and add the half to the freezer container. My mother made the best vegetable soups from this idea.

Hint for the Week

With Fourth of July quickly approaching, you might be thinking of making Deviled Eggs. If you want perfectly boiled eggs, place eggs in a large pot and completely cover with cold water. Do not layer eggs on top of one another. Bring water to a rapid boil for 2 minutes, reduce to simmer and let eggs simmer 8 minutes, return to boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and empty hot water and fill pot with cold water. Let sit for 5 minutes. To peel easily, slightly crush shell in your fist and roll on counter with a firm grip. Of course, you don't want to push through the egg, but by making the shell crack in many small pieces, it is easier to peel. My father saw this on a cooking show years ago and taught me this. It truly works.