Mac and Cheese!!

As I already stated, I'm making mac and cheese - but thanks, Rachel, b/c your suggestion worked!! I'll post the recipe later - I'm at work and obviously very busy. :)

Mushroom and Swiss Chicken

I'm repeating one meal from last September (mid-month switch) that rec'd favorable ratings. If you want the recipe here it is: http://supperswitches2.blogspot.com/2010/09/mushroom-and-swiss-chicken.html.

February - Choice?

Is anyone opposed to another choice this month, since I'm about to go make a big variety of different things?

Soup or Chicken

Sorry to be so boring, but I'm thinking about doing the Pascali Soup or the Grilled Chicken again. Please let me know which you'd prefer. Thanks.

Sonia's Lasagna - February

Ingredients

• 1 lb Italian sausage
• 3/4 lb ground beef
• 1/2 c minced onion
• 2 crushed garlic cloves
• 28 oz crushed tomatoes
• 12 oz tomato paste
• 13 oz tomato sauce
• 1/2 c water
• 2 T sugar
• 1 1/2 t basil
  
• 1/2 t fennel seeds
• 1 t Italian seasoning
• 1 T salt
• 1/4 t pepper
• 4 T chopped fresh parsley
• 12 lasagna noodles
• 16 oz ricotta cheese
• 1 egg
• 1/2 t salt
• 3/4 lb sliced mozzarella cheese
  
• 3/4 c grated Parmesan cheese
• 
  

Directions

Cook sausage, ground beef, onion, and garlic over medium heat until well browned. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce, and water. Season with sugar, basil, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, 1 tablespoon salt, pepper, and 2 tablespoons parsley. Simmer, covered, for about 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook lasagna noodles in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes. Drain noodles, and rinse with cold water. In a mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese with egg, remaining parsley, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

To assemble, spread 1 1/2 cups of meat sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Arrange 6 noodles lengthwise over meat sauce. Spread with one half of the ricotta cheese mixture. Top with a third of mozzarella cheese slices. Spoon 1 1/2 cups meat sauce over mozzarella, and sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers, and top with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Cover with foil: to prevent sticking, either spray foil with cooking spray, or make sure the foil does not touch the cheese.

Bake for 25 minutes. Remove foil, and bake an additional 25 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes before serving.

Pressed Chicken Breasts with Dried Cherries

Recipe is modified from Williams-Sonoma's Everyday Roasting Cookbook

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves 6-7 oz each

1/2 c. pitted dried sweet cherries

1 large shallot, minced

1/8 c. (1 oz) lemon juice

1 1/2 T olive oil

grated lemon zest

1/4 t. dried summer savory

1/4 t. dried thyme

1/4 t. coarse salt (or to taste)

1/4 t. pepper (or to taste)

***Pressing the meat during and after roasting intensifies the sweet-tart nature of the cherry-stuffed chicken breasts. Their pretty red centers are revealed when the slices are arranged on a platter.

***COOKING TIP: Use 2 large glass baking dishes that are the same size (ex: 2 pie dishes)

4 servings

-Working with 1 chicken breast half at a time, place the meat flat on a cutting board. Holding the meat firmly in place, use a small, sharp knife to cut a horizontal slit down 1 side and through the center of the meat, leaving 3 sides uncut.

-Spoon 1/4 of the dried cherries into each pocket. Firmly press on each breast with your hand to flatten the meat and seal the edges together. Arrange in a single layer in a non-aluminum dish.

-In a small bowl, stir together the shallots, lemon juice, olive oil, lemon zest, summer savory, thyme, salt, and pepper. Spoon The shallot mixture evenly over the chicken breasts. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to 24 hours.

-Preheat a broiler (griller). Transfer the chicken to a broiler pan, reserving the marinade, and place under the broiler about 4 inches from the heat source. Broil until the meat is browned on top, 4-5 minutes.

-While the chicken is browning, pour the reserved marinade into a small saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil and remove from the heat.

-Remove the chicken from the broiler. Set the oven at 375 F. Transfer the chicken pieces to a shallow baking dish large enough to hold them in a single layer. Pour the marinade over the meat, and set another baking dish directly on top of the meat. Roast until the juices run clear when the meat is pierced at the thickest point, 15-20 minutes.

-Remove from the oven and set 2 or 3 heavy cans or 1 or 2 bricks in the top (empty) baking dish to weigh it down. Let rest for at least 20 minutes or for up to 30 minutes before serving.

-Transfer the chicken to a cutting board, and cut across the grain into slices. Arrange on a warmed platter, revealing the cherry stuffing. Spoon the dish juices over the top. Garnish with parsley.

SHORT HAND COOKING INSTRUCTIONS for Switches:

1)Thaw

2)Broil Chicken (without marinade) 4-5 minutes on Broil

3)Roast Chicken (with marinade) 15-20 minutes at 375 F

(Roast covered either as noted above with 2 glass dishes OR I think that some of you may have accidentally baked your dishes with the plastic wrap covered with foil so the plastic doesn't melt/burn:)

4)Allow to rest for 20-30 minutes (before uncovering)

I think that we just ate ours with a LOT of veggies when I first made this in the summer but I think it may also go well with rice or a pilaf dish even a baked potato.

Doro Wat (an Ethiopian chicken curry) - January

1 1/2 c chicken
1 c onion
1 T minced garlic
1 T lemon juice
1 t salt
1 t ginger
1/4 t cardamom
1/8 t nutmeg
1/8 c butter
3/8 c water
1/8 c white wine
1 T paprika

Cooking Instructions. Combine onion, garlic, lemon juice, salt, ginger, cardamom, nutmeg and butter in saucepan. Simmer for 2 or 3 minutes. Add water, wine and paprika. Cook briskly for 3 to 5 minutes (until the sauce is consistency of cream). Add chicken. Cover and simmer for half hour.

Reheating Instructions. Thaw completely and reheat in a saucepan.

Choices for January....

So I am COMPLETELY out of freezer space unless I go get a chest freezer this week, and my in-laws ordered pizza instead of eating up some pork chops, so even though I planned on making manicotti this week, I thought I would offer a variety of other things if people were interested.  This will help me empty some of the redundancies in my freezer (making room for swapping), so I can still participate and enjoy everyone else's cooking as well!

Let me know what ya'll think. I was thinking of still making 4 manicotti (instead of 6), so your options would be:

2 Wild Rice and Nut Bake (wild/brown rice, walnuts, almonds, and pine nuts, blend of cheese, eggs)
2 Shrimp/Fish Curry (shrimp, cod, and scallops in a creamy curry sauce) with a bag'o'rice
3 Margarita Pork Chops (boneless chops, margarita mix, s&p)
3 Manicotti ( actually already have all the ingredients to make 8 of these, so if folks all want this I can).

Let me know thoughts - is it making this too complicated? (Say yes so I can tell Arch I'm buying a freezer instead of a kitchen table that doesn't wobble...)

;-)
Obviously a little obsessed with the freezer meal concept.

Cheese Steaks (from December)

This is another from Fix Freeze Feast, it makes 3 entrees, 6 servings each.

1 pkg (6 lbs) sirloin tip beef or other beef suitable for slow cooking (some of you got sirloin tip and some got english pot roast, depending on what was on sale)
6 tsp beef bouillon granules (I use cubes)
3 c water
3 large green bell peppers, cut into strips
3 large onions, cut into strips
18 slices deli cheese (cheddar, monterey jack, or swiss) (I included provolone)
18 long bread rolls (hoagie rolls - Kroger has them, I haven't seen them at Meijer though I've looked...)

3 two gallon freezer bags, labeled
3 one gallon freezer bags
3 one quart freezer bags
Plastic wrap

On hand for cooking each entree: 2 tsp veg. oil, foil

1. Rinse and trim beef as desired. Cut beef into three equal pieces, place a piece of beef into each 1 gallon freezer bag. Into each bag measure 2 tsp bouillon (I did 2 cubes) and 1 c water. Seal bags.

2. Divide bell peppers and onions evenly among the 1 quart freezer bags. Seal.

3. If necessary, divide cheese and rolls into three portions of 6 each, enclose in each plastic wrap (rolls and cheese separately).  Obviously I skipped this step, hoagie rolls come in packages of 6 and cheese in packages of 8, so I went with that.

4. Place a bag of beef, a bag of peppers and onions, a stack of cheese slices, and a packet of rolls inside each 2 gallon freezer bag.

Seal and freeze.

To Cook:

1. Thaw in fridge or not. Dump beef bag into slow cooker or big pot on low heat, cook for 5-6 hours, until the beef is tender and pulls apart easily with a fork. Shred beef, reserve broth for dipping.

2. Preheat oven to 350. Heat oil in large skillet over med-high heat, stir fry veggies until soft, about 3 minutes. Divide beef and veggies evenly among the rolls, add a slice of cheese, close and wrap in foil (I just covered mine in foil). Heat in the oven for 10 minutes. Unwrap and EAT! Add horseradish mayo or broth if you want.

Cost analysis: I bought the meat and cheese on sale, so this didn't end up being astronomically expensive: about $10.23 per entree, or $1.71 per serving.  On the high end (compared to pasta or beans, or burritos which average 75 cents per burrito, depending on what you include), but I think for a meat-intensive meal it worked out nicely, a little cheaper than some of the chicken dishes I've done. And tasted GREAT. Freezer space is definitely an issue with these, though.  For those who weren't there, I ran out of space so all I froze was the meat, and kept the buns/cheese in the fridge until swap day.