Monday, November 30, 2009

Stuff it!


I am pretty much a traditionalist when it comes to Thanksgiving dinner. The main course is turkey, period. Each year though, I try to come up with a new version of stuffing (dressing). They say it's stuffing if it goes in the bird and dressing if cooked in a pan. I do both. This year I made stuffing "muffins".

1 box Jiffy
1c. frozen corn
1 teas. sage
1 box Rice a Roni
1 onion
2 stalks celery with leafy tops
1 lb. turkey sausage
Emeril's seasoning
1 can Swanson chicken broth
1 egg

You need to cook a pan of Jiffy cornbread a few days ahead. Add a cup of frozen corn (just put corn in a colander and pour some hot water over it to thaw) and 1 teaspoon sage to the batter.
On the day you are making the stuffing, cut the cornbread into cubes and spread on a cookie sheet. Bake at 325 until golden brown.
Cook a box of Rice a Roni wild rice.
Chop an onion and two celery stalks including leafy tops. Saute in olive oil until onion is translucent. You can use the frozen trinity mix ( about 1 1/2 c.)
Remove onion and celery and in the same pan cook 1 lb. crumbled turkey sausage.
Drain off any fat.
In a large bowl, combine cornbread, rice, onion, celery and sausage.
Moiston with chicken broth (1/4-1/2 c.).
Season with 2 teaspoons of Emeril's seasoning. I make my own with the recipe from his website.
At this point, taste it. If you used unseasoned sausage, you may want to add more seasoning.

Stuff turkey, chickens or hens.
Whisk an egg and add it to the stuffing that is left. Mix. Put in prepared muffin pan. Mound tops like muffins. Bake at 325 for 30 min.

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Pumpkin Patch Chili


I was reading an article about what to do with leftover pumpkin and one of the suggestions was chili. It sounded a little strange but I really like pumpkin so I gave it a try. We were having a chili cook-off at work and there were quite a few vegetarians so I created this recipe. Needless to say it was a hit in spite of some people saying "you put what in this chili?" Once they tasted it, they were hooked on pumpkin.
The recipe is for vegetarian but you can add your favorite meat to it. I've used turkey sausage, ground beef, "bambi" and for my husband the carnivore added chunks of beef. Just cook the meat and pour off any fat and toss it in. I like to put it in the crockpot and just let it cook on low.

You can put it in 1 qt. freezer bags. Fill bag with about 2 c. of chili. Stand it up and fold the top down to get the air out. Seal the bag and lay it flat. Bags take up less space in the freezer and will thaw quicker.

The main ingredient here is Libby canned pumpkin. It has no added sugar, salt or artificial ingredients. You don't want pie filling, just a big can of pureed pumpkin. You can use 3 cans of kidney or pinto beans if you don't want black beans or chickpeas (garbanzos).


1 chopped onion or you can use frozen trinity mix (celery, onion and green pepper
2-3 garlic cloves (smash with the flat side of a knife and you can easily take the skin off and then chop)
Pam spray
1 lb. turkey sausage, "bambi", ground beef or beef chunks (optiona
1 can Libby pumpkin (1 lb. 13 oz.
1 can Swanson vegetable broth (you can use chicken or beef broth if using meat)
1 can diced tomatoes with green chili
1 large can crushed tomatoes
1 can black beans (rinsed and drained)
1 can chick peas (rinsed and drained)
1 can kidney or pinto beans (rinsed and drained)
1 cup corn (canned or frozen)
3 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1 chipotle chili chopped and adobo sauce (only if you like it hot, hot)
or
1-2 jalapeno seeded and chopped (only if you like it hot)
1 teaspoon oregano

Spray skillet with Pam. Cook onion and garlic until the onions "sweat" and are soft. Brown meat in same pan. Drain off any fat. Put everything in the crock pot and stir to combine. Cover and cook on low for about 6 hours.




Sunday, November 22, 2009

Dawg gone good cornbread


This cornbread is a staple whenever we have chili or barbecue at the tailgate. Also, when the guys go off in the motorhome to the car races they have to have some. I guess then it might be Nascar cornbread. It doesn't matter what you call it, the end result is always the same where someone is fighting over the last piece, or in one case someone is hiding some for later. What you always hear is "that was dawg gone good cornbread".

It can be made in two 8x8 or one 9x13 pan. It freezes well if you can hide it fast! You can use fat free sour cream and non-fat milk with no problem. I'm not a big fan of fat free cheese as it never seems to melt quite right but I guess you could use that too.

2 boxes Jiffy cornbread (no there is no substitute)
1/2 c. milk
2 eggs
15 0z. can creamed corn
4 oz. can chopped green chilis
8 0z. sour cream
1 1/2 c. shredded cheese (Mexican 4 cheese from Walmart or Kraft)

Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl, combine eggs and milk. Mix in Jiffy. Mix in corn, chilis and 1 c. cheese. This is all just mixed by hand not mixer. Gently fold in sour cream. Pour into prepared pan. I use Crisco spray. Sprinkle remaining cheese over the top. Bake for 30 minutes plus. You need to check at 30 min. and it is done when top is golden brown and it starts to pull away from the sides of the pan.