Food In Many Forms

It's starting to get cold outside, and food that sticks to your insides are starting to look more appealing. Paula Deen's Shrimp and Wild Rice Casserole was just what I needed to warm me up before going out for Halloween! (Just a few alterations) Ingredients 1 (8-ounce) package wild rice 1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined 1 teaspoons butter 1/2 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped 1/2 onion, chopped 1 (10 3/4-ounce can) condensed cream of potato soup 1/4 cup freshly grated Pepper Jack Cheese Salt and pepper Directions 1. Cook the rice. 1/4 wild rice, 3/4 basmati rice with 2 1/4 cups water for 45 minutes. 2. Cook the onions, peppers, and shrimp together with a teaspoon of butter. 3. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. 4. In a large bowl, combine the rice, soup, 1/4 cup of cheese,shrimp and vegetables. Add salt and pepper, to taste. Mix well. 5. Spray a 9-inch square aluminum cake pan or an 11 by 7-inch glasscasserole dish with vegetable spray. Place the mixture in the pan a...

I finally got a chance to use my AMAZING new cookie recipe book.There was a bake sale friday to raise money for Children's Literacy and pumpkin bars seemed like the perfect thing two days before Halloween . I quadrupled the recipe from 16 bars to 64 bars, and it was definitely less than I expected; I guess those 64 bars are pretty small. Scaling up the recipe also gave me an excuse to use less oil, which I am always trying to do. Quadrupled Harvest Pumpkin Bars (makes 64 bars) Ingredients 1 cup canola oil 8 large eggs 2 15 oz cans pumpkin puree 2 teaspoons cinnamon 1 teaspoon ground ginger 1 teaspoon nutmeg 4 teaspoons salt 4 teaspoons baking powder 5 cups AP Flour Pecans, for topping Directions Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine oil,  eggs, pumpkin, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, salt, and baking powder in a large bowl and use a mixer to combine. Stir in flour gradually and mix. Pour batter into several pans and bake for 30 minutes, taking them out half-way in between to spread peca...

The Scenario: It's midnight . I don't want to do homework. There are four large apples staring at me across the room in my lovely fruit bowl. There are pre-made pie crusts in the fridge. I am going grocery shopping tomorrow. I need to clear out the fridge before I go...  Darn, I guess that means I'm making pie .  (And in case you're wondering, it's supposed to be a flower.) Ingredients 1 Premade Double Crust Pie Pastry 6 Cups Of Fresh Skinless Chopped Green Apples 1 Cup Of White Superfine Sugar 2 Tablespoons Of Real Softened Unsalted Butter 2 Tablespoons Of White All Purpose Baking Flour 1/4 Teaspoon Of Freshly Ground Nutmeg 1/8 Teaspoon Of Fine Ground Table Salt 1 Teaspoon Of Freshly Ground Cinnamon Instructions Preheat your oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit, or 225 degrees Celsius. Take out a nine inch pie dish, and carefully add into it the bottom crust pastry layer. Next take out a small mixing bowl, and sift together the white superfine sugar, white all purpose...

I was looking for a Baked Pear recipe. This one from Disney Family was easy and hard to resist (see above). If you don't have a melon baller or a peeler (like me), slice the pear, cut off the skins and cut the slices into small chunks.  Juicy pears are the star of this flavorful baked dessert. Hands-On Time: 1 hour Ready In: 2 hours Yield: 2 servings Ingredients 1 ripe pear (Bosc, Anjou, or Bartlett) 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided Pinch of cinnamon Pinch of nutmeg 1 teaspoon plus 1 tablespoon packed brown sugar 1/4 cup all-purpose flour Pinch of salt Directions Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Cut the pear in half lengthwise. Scoop out the seeded centers with a teaspoon or melon baller. Then spoon out most of the flesh onto a cutting board, leaving the pear shells intact. Put the shells in a baking dish. Chop the scooped pear into bite-sized pieces and transfer to a small bowl. Cut 1 tablespoon butter into small pieces and add to the bowl. Your child can add the cinnamon,...

Chicken may be healthy, it may be cheap, but I am still scared to cook it. The threat of Salmonella is constantly in my mind every time I use a new utensil or dish. My biggest mistake is overcooking it. Without a thermometer, I always err on the side of caution and cut up the chicken into small pieces so I can make sure every piece is cooked through. I couldn't do that for this recipe since I had to cook them whole, and they actually turned out really moist and flavorful. Ingredients •4 4 oz chicken breasts •Olive Oil Pam •2 Tbsp flour for Breading •6 oz white wine •1 garlic clove •1 bay leaf • Salt and Pepper Directions  Slice the chicken breasts along the length to obtain large, medium-thick slices. In a large frying pan pour the extra virgin olive oil and add the crushed garlic clove and a pinch of salt. set a layer of flour on a flat dish and dampen the slices of chicken one by one on each side, until you have covered the entire slice with a thin layer of flour. Avoid clumps of...

My recipes need to be turned in next week, so I was in a scramble to find a good vegetable side dish after making some very lackluster spinach cakes. I needed more bright color, which initially made me think of spinach, but eggplant also has a beautiful color . The big issue with eggplant that I always hear is that it soaks up oil very quickly, so I reduced the olive oil from 5 tablespoons to 1 tablespoon, and it turned out great! I served it with toasted French bread and spread the eggplant mixture on top like a crostini - delicious! Ingredients 1 tablespoons olive oil 1 1 1/2-pound eggplant, unpeeled, cut into 1/2-inch cubes 1 medium onion, cubed 4 large garlic cloves, chopped 1 14 1/2-ounce can diced tomatoes with Italian seasonings in juice 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar 1/3 cup chopped fresh basil Directions Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add eggplant, onion, and garlic cloves. sauté until eggplant is soft and brown, about 15 minutes. Add d...

A week or two ago, one of my classmates in Foodservice lab made a butternut squash and spinach pasta with balsamic vinegar and sage. I tried to copy hers using a recipe from Sandra Lee and it turned out really well. I cooked the squash in the oven, while cooking pasta on the stove. When they were both done, I threw them together in a bowl and covered them with aluminum foil I used on the baking sheet. Then, I quickly cooked the spinach in the pot I used to make pasta with a little bit of Pam. Minimal cleaning required! Ingredients 1 (20-ounce) package peeled cubed butternut squash 2 tablespoons honey 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar 1 tablespoon lemon pepper seasoning 3 tablespoons olive oil Directions Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a large bowl combine all ingredients and mix to coat the squash. Place squash on a nonstick baking sheet or a baking sheet lined with foil. Bake until the squash is tender and brown about 30 to 35 minutes making sure to flip the squash after 15 minutes.

I needed to go grocery shopping yesterday, but with two exams this week, it just isn't happening until tomorrow. So, for once, I checked the freezer last night to see what I could defrost. I found Imitation Crab Meat - the kind you find in salad bars and is pre-cooked. I figured the worst case scenario was that I would eat it straight out of the bag as a snack. Well turns out inspiration came at the right time and I had delicious and light crab cake sandwiches for lunch! Ingredients: Whole wheat bread, 2 slices I package (7 oz) Imitation Crab Meat Two stalks of celery, finely chopped 2 Tbsp onion, finely chopped 4 Tbsp stone-ground mustard 2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce  Zesty lemon seasoning, to taste Pepper, to taste  Sliced Cheese (optional) Directions: Mix together last 7 ingredients in a bowl and spread on toasted bread. Grill in George Foreman grill or panini maker until warm, or cheese is melted.

My mom always makes the best stuffing at Thanksgiving and Christmas - just celery, onion, butter and Pepperidge Farm stuffing . She would always make twice as much and leave half of it uncooked in the refrigerator. Everyday I would have a small bowl as a snack or as part of the meal, and at the end of the week, the flavors have all marinated together and the stuffing is absolutely delicious . I had a bunch of leftover oatmeal bread that was going to go bad, so I bought some celery today and made homemade stuffing.  All the recipes I found said to use poultry seasoning , a mixture of thyme, sage, marjoram, rosemary, black pepper and nutmeg, but it just didn't smell the same as my mom's. Some recipes said to use parsley , and some suggested garlic or garlic powder, but any recipe with sausage or apples or cranberries is just overly extravagant. It's definitely going to take a couple tries to get this right. Celery and Onion Stuffing Ingredients 1/2 loaf sl...