December Cook at Home Group

Hi Ladies,

As the minutes from our November meeting state.... ; )

A reminder we will be meeting at my house on Sunday, December 19, at 7:30 p.m. Our address is 3213 Abraham Drive. Take Hudson Road to 12th Street, go west on 12th Street (heading out of Cedar Falls). The second right is Barnett Drive, take a right onto Barnett and follow until the second left, which is Abraham Drive. Take a left onto Abraham and we are the third house on the left. My cell phone is 319-231-2435 if you have any questions.

And here is what everyone is making:
Susie - soup
Jennifer - mini pizzas
Stacy - chicken
Carrie - cocktail meatballs
Janelle - pasta

Thanks,
Janelle

Cheesy Vegetable Soup

Cheesy Vegetable Soup (Taste of Home)
http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/Cheesy-Vegetable-Soup-4

Ingredients

* 6 cups water
* 1 package (30 ounces) frozen shredded hash brown potatoes
* 1 package (16 ounces) frozen California-blend vegetables
* 4 teaspoons chicken bouillon granules
* 1 pound VELVEETA Pasteurized Prepared Cheese Product, cubed
* 2 cans (10-3/4 ounces each) condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
* 1 cup milk

Directions

* In a large kettle, bring water to a boil. Add hash browns, vegetables and bouillon. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Stir in the cheese, soup and milk; cook and stir until cheese is melted. Serve immediately, or cool and freeze for up to 3 months.

* To use frozen soup: Thaw in the refrigerator. Heat in a saucepan, adding additional milk if desired to achieve desired thickness. Yield: 14 servings.

To use frozen soup: Thaw in the refrigerator. Heat in a saucepan, adding additional milk if desired to achieve desired thickness.

Susie's ~ November Pork Sandwich

2 lbs. Pork Tenderloin
1 cup onion, chopped
1 cup diet soda
1 cup low-sodium barbeque sauce
Hamburger buns (not included in nutritional information)

Put tenderloin in the crock pot. Mix up other ingredients in a bowl and pour over pork. Cook 4-6 hours on high or until tender. take pork out, then shred. Put pork back into juice and stir it up. Put it on a hamburger bun, and enjoy! Makes 8 4-oz. servings.

Number of Servings: 8

Freezer Calzones!

This month you'll each be getting three calzones to make your family happy. I sort of made up the recipe... but I got some of the technical details from this website (http://fabulesslyfrugal.com/) which looks like a good freezer resource.

You'll need:
(1) frozen bread dough - 1 loaf for every 2 calzones you want to make. (I used Rhodes brand).
(2) stuff you want to fill your calzone with! (Pepperoni/mozzarella/pizza sauce, sausage/yellow onion/mozzarella/pizza sauce, and barbecue chicken/gouda/red onion/cilantro... for this round)

Directions for making:

• Let the dough thaw and rise according to the package directions (about 5 hours on the counter OR overnight in the fridge and then a few hours on the counter).
• Cut each dough loaf in half (to make two calzones).
• Roll into a nice thin circle or rectangle.
• Put the ingredients on one half of the dough. Fill it up enough so it's plump but not overflowing.
• Fold other side of dough on top of ingredients.
• Along the edge, use a fork to squish down/seal so the good stuff doesn't pop out.
• Put a few fork holes in the top.
• Brush some egg wash or olive oil on the top to make it nice and golden.

Cook immediately or freeze. (I froze my trial batch so I'm not sure about the baking time... probably 350 for 20 minutes).

To bake from frozen...BE SURE TO REMOVE FOIL AND WAX PAPER BEFORE BAKING.

Good news... I didn't bother to thaw... I popped the frozen calzones directly into the oven (on a cookie sheet) and they turned out well. 350 for 35 minutes.

Most of the other websites I read encouraged you to thaw first, so you could try that if you want to experiment.

See you Sunday!

Salsa Chicken: Jennifer's Oct Recipe

Salsa Chicken (by Mel from Freezer Friendz)
Ingredients:
4 boneless chicken breasts
32 oz. picante or salsa
1 c. minute rice
Flour tortillas
Cheddar cheese
Optional assorted toppings: lettuce, olives, sour cream

Assembly:
Cook chicken and salsa for 10-12 hours on low (or 6-8 on high) in a crock pot. Shred chicken and add rice (uncooked), and cook for 30 minutes on HIGH.

Serving Day:
Serve on flour tortillas with assorted toppings of your choice.

Freezing directions:
Prepare as usual. Thaw completely. Reheat and serve.

Baked Cheesy Chicken Penne

Baked Cheesy Chicken Penne

• 6 tablespoons butter, plus more for baking dishes
• kosher salt and black pepper
• 1 pound penne rigate
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 8 ounces each), halved horizontally
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons flour
• 6 garlic cloves, finely minced
• 6 cups whole milk
• 10 ounces white or cremini mushrooms, trimmed and thinly sliced
• 1 cup sliced oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained
• 1 1/2 cups shredded Sargento provolone/mozzarella mix
• 1 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan (about 6 ounces)

1. Preheat oven to 400. Butter two shallow 2-quart baking dishes. If you're going to freeze one, use a disposable foil pan. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta 3 minutes short of al dente; drain pasta and set aside.
2. While pasta is boiling, heat oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Season chicken with salt and pepper; cook until opaque throughout, 3 to 5 minutes per side. Halve each piece lengthwise, then thinly slice crosswise. While chicken pan is still hot, toss the mushrooms in and saute until golden brown (3-4 minutes). Use a little extra olive oil if needed.
3. In a 5-quart Dutch oven or heavy pot (use the pot I cooked my pasta in), melt butter over medium. Add flour and garlic; cook, whisking, 1 minute. While whisking constantly, gradually add milk; bring to a simmer. Keep whisking frequently as sauce thickens, about 1 minute more. Add mushrooms and tomatoes; cook 1 minute. take the pan off the heat and and gradually stir in provolone and 1/2 cup Parmesan.
4. Add chicken and pasta to pot; season with salt and pepper to taste. Divide pasta mixture between baking dishes. If freezing, place remaining parmesan cheese in a zip-top baggie. If cooking, sprinkle on top.
5. Bake, uncovered, until top is golden and bubbling, about 25 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Freezer instructions:
To freeze, prepare through step 4 and then let pasta cool. Cover pan well with plastic wrap. Place extra cheese in baggie (for topping) on top and then cover entire pan well with foil. Freeze for up to 3 months. To bake, preheat oven to 400. Remove foil and plastic from pan and set cheese baggie aside. Place foil back on pan and bake for about 1 1/2 hours. Remove foil, stir pasta, and top with cheese. Return pan to oven and bake for an additional 15 minutes or until mixture is hot and bubbly throughout.

Cook and swap group - October assignments

I found my post-it from last Sunday's meeting. Here is what you agreed to do in Octo ber

Susie - Beef and pasta
Janelle - pork
Jennifer - Chicken and pasta
Carrie - Soup
Stacy - Beef or chicken

And I think we're meeting on Sunday the 17th at 7:30 at Carrie's house. (She promises to give better directions than me!)