Barbara's Chicken Salad

Another gluten-free lunch from our coast trip. Barbara Higdon made a chicken salad that is out of this world.  I will definately make it again.  With her permission, I am posting this on my blog.  Hope you enjoy it as much as our hiking group did.  Serves 6

Printable Version:
https://sites.google.com/site/whatscookingsherry/barbara-s-chicken-salad

Ingredients for the Dressing:
1 cup mayonnaise
4 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
5 teaspoons honey
2 teaspoons poppy seeds
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Ingredients for the Salad
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I use Members Mark canned chicken from Sam’s Club—much easier and delicious!
3/4 cup pecan pieces, toasted
2 cups red seedless grapes
3 stalks celery, thinly sliced

Method

In a bowl, combine mayonnaise, vinegar, honey, poppy seeds, salt and pepper. Refrigerate until ready to dress the salad. This can be prepared up to 2 days ahead.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Place the chicken breasts in one layer in a baking dish with 1/2 cup water. Cover with foil and bake 25 minutes until completely cooked through. Remove cooked chicken breasts from pan, cool at room temperature for 10 minutes, then cover and refrigerate.

When the chicken is cold, dice into bite-size chunks and transfer to a large bowl. Stir in pecans, grapes, celery and dressing. 

Egg Muffins

One of our hiking buddies is gluten intolerant so all our dishes were gluten-free.

I just got back from the Coast with my hiking buddies. We were each responsible for one meal, and Becky Upchurch made these with banana bread and fresh fruit.  They were awesome and we loved the idea that you could freeze them and take them out to eat on the go or for a sit-down meal like we had.  We also decided that you could add your favorite meats, like canadian bacon, and other vegetables to your taste. Loved them. Forgot to take a picture of the banana bread, but the recipe will follow the muffins. Our trainer from Health Link, Claudia Ramirez submitted this to The Express News.

Ingredients for Muffins:
1-3 teaspoons spinach or any fresh vegetable
1 teaspoon lean turkey sausage, cooked and seasoned with onion and 1/2 teaspoon cumin
egg substitute

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly spray cooking spray into each hole in the muffin tin. Layer spinach, turkey sausage, and egg substitute into each tin. Bake 20 minutes or until firm.

Ingredients for Pamela's Banana Bread
4 tablespoons melted butter
1/2 cup sugar or honey
2 eggs beaten
1 cup banana, mashed
1 3/4 cup Pamela's baking and pancake mix
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup nuts (optional)

Turkey Meatloaf

This recipe calls for 5 pounds of ground turkey breast so I have cut everything back for 1 pound.  My mom gave me this recipe and I'm not sure where she found it, but it has become a staple at our house because it is healthy, but oh so good.





Printable Version:
https://sites.google.com/site/whatscookingsherry/turkey-meatloaf

Ingredients:
1/2 medium-size onion, chopped
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves or 1/8 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1/3 cup chicken stock
1 teaspoon tomato paste
1 pound ground turkey breast
1/2 cup plain dry bread crumbs
1 large egg, beaten
ketchup for top of the meatloaf
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
In a medium saute pan, over medium-low heat, cook onions, olive oil, salt, pepper, and thyme until translucent, but not browned, approximately 15 minutes. Add the Worcestershire sauce, chicken stock, and tomato paste and mix well. Allow to cool to room temperature. I made this is the morning and then ran some errands while it cooled.Combine the ground turkey, bread crumbs, egg, and onion mixture in a large bowl. Mix well and shape into a retangular loaf on an ungreased sheet pan. Spread the ketchup evenly on top. Bake for 1 1/2 hours until the internal temperature is 160 degrees F. and the meatloaf is cooked through. (A pan of hot water in the oven under the meatloaf will keep the top from cracking.) I have a meatloaf pan that has a double pot.  The top pot has holes to allow the grease to go into the bottom pan. Serve hot, at room temperature, or cold in a sandwich.


Energy Bars

I do not care for raisins or dates in my bars so I substituted 1 cup dried cherries. This is not a sweet bar, but I found it to be a nice on-the-go bar.  Recipe comes from Ellie Krieger-- The Food you Crave. Not sure I will make them again


Ingredients:
Cooking spray
1 cup quick-cooking rolled oats
1/2 cup shelled unsalted raw sunflowerseeds
1/2 cup toasted wheat germ
1/4 cup whole-grain pastry flour or whole-wheat flour
1/2 cup dried apricots
1/2 cup raw almonds
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup pitted dried dates
1/2 cup nonfat dry milk
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/3 cup pure maple syrup
2 large eggs
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 9" X 13" baking pan with cooking spray.
Place all the ingredients, except the maple syrup and eggs, in a food processor and pulse until everything is finely chopped. Add the syrup and eggs and pulse until the mixture is well combined . It will resemble a coarse paste.
Transfer to the baking pan and spread evenly to cover the bottom. Bake until lightly browned, about 20 minutes. Allow to cool for 15 minutes., then cut into 24 bars. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for about 3 days or wrap individually and freeze for up to 3 months.

Salmon Cakes

Canned salmon is such a good thing to keep in your pantry.  It is always nice to know that I can have salmon cakes just by opening a can and adding a few ingredients that I usually have on hand.

Printable Version:

https://sites.google.com/site/whatscookingattheedwards/salmon-cakes

Ingredients:

1 small can of salmon makes 4 cakes

1 egg yolk

1 Tablespoon scallions

1/8 cup bread crumbs

wheat germ for breading or use extra bread crumbs

vegetable oil for frying

Drain and pick shells out off salmon.  Combine 1st 3 ingredients. Add 1/8 cup bread crumbs. Form into patties and dust with additional bread crumbs or wheat germ. Fry 2 minutes on each side.

I keep a jar of wheat germ in the freezer. This is about the only thing that I use it for so it lasts me forever.

Honey-Ham Eggs Benedict

This is the breakfast that I made for Jud for Valentine's Day.  I will be making it again. If you have an aversion to eating raw eggs, don't use this recipe.  Jud loves dark chocolate and H.E.B. stopped selling his favorite mini-hershey's dark chocolate in a package several months ago. He has missed his after-dinner chocolate so I found a package of these that are different, but all dark chocolate. He was a happy valentine. This recipe comes from February 2012 - Cooking Light.


Printable Version:
https://sites.google.com/site/whatscookingattheedwards/honey-ham-eggs-benedict

Ingredients:
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/4 cup white wine
2 tablespoons chopped shallots
2 egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh tarragon
1/2 cup butter, melted
2 teaspoons white vinegar
6 large fresh eggs
6 slices Italian rosemary ham (I just used black forest ham)
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons honey
3 English muffins, split and toasted
Directions:
1. In a saucepot over high heat,bring white wine vinegar, white wine and shallots to a boil. Cook 2 minutes more or until liquid is reduced to 1 tablespoon. Remove from heat.
2. In a blender, blend egg yolks, tarragon and wine reduction 15 seconds or until smooth. With blender running, slowly drizzle in butter. Blend 30 seconds or until mixture thickens; set aside.
3. In a saucepot over medium-high heat, bring white vinegar and 2 quarts water to a simmer. Drop in eggs, 1 at a time. Cook 4 minutes or until egg whites are set, being careful not to boil. With slotted spoon, remove eggs from water; drain on paper towels. In skillet over medium heat, cook ham in vegetable oil 2 minutes, turning once and brushing with honey. Layer ham, eggs and sauce on toasted muffins.
I have an egg poacher, so I use that. I've never been very good at using this method, but I know it is the prefered way among chefs.  I never claimed to be a chef.

pizza dough

Once you have a recipe for a good pizza dough, the toppings are endless. I used some Kiolbassa sausage that I fried-up to render out the grease. In the past, I have used cooked ground meat, canadian bacon, and bulk sausage. I rolled out the pizza dough and pressed it into a large baking sheet.  You could certainly make some smaller pizzas, but this is what I usually do. This makes enough for Jud and I to have pizza for two meals. The pizza dough is from Martha Stewart.


Printable Version

https://sites.google.com/site/whatscookingattheedwards/pizza-dough

Ingredients:
1 cup warm water (110 degrees F)
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1 quarter-ounce package active dry yeast
2 3/4 - 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for bowl and parchment paper
Cornmeal, for pizza peel or baking sheet
Assorted toppings such as cheese, carmelized onions, roasted tomatoes, thinly sliced artichoke hearts, pine nuts, and sauteed mushrooms
Directions:
1. Pour 1 cup warm water into a small bowl. Add sugar, and sprinkle in the yeast. Using a fork, stir the mixture until the yeast is dissolved and the water has turned tan. Let stand until foamy, about 10 minutes. In a food processor fitted with the metal blade, combine 2 3/4 cup flour and the salt, and pulse 3-4 times. Add the yeast mixture and the olive oil. Pulse until the dough comes together, adding more flour as needed until the dough is smooth, not tacky, when squeezed. Transfer to a clean work surface, knead 4-5 turns and shape into a ball.
2. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, smooth side up. Cover tightly with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour. Remove the plastic wrap and place your fist in the center of the dough to punch down. Fold the dough back onto itself 4-5 times.
3. Divide the dough into 4 equal portions, if making 4 eight-inch pizzas or just roll this on to your baking sheet that has been prepared with a light dusting of corn meal to keep from sticking.
4. Cover with toppings of your choice and bake 5-7 minutes at 500 degrees.

I usually cook it about 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees. If you choose to make the 4-8" pizza crusts, these freeze really well.