Sunday, December 5, 2010

Progressive Dinner: Brie


Pillsbury
Pastry-Wrapped Cranberry Brie
A flaky crescent roll crust encases creamy brie and tart cranberry sauce. It's an easy yet impressive appetizer.
Prep Time: 20 Min
Total Time: 1 Hr 20 Min
Makes: 12
INGREDIENTS:
1
can (8 oz) Pillsbury® refrigerated crescent dinner rolls
1
round (8 oz) Brie cheese (do not use triple crème Brie)
3
tablespoons whole berry cranberry sauce
1
tablespoon apricot preserves
1/2
teaspoon dried rosemary leaves, crushed
2
ripe medium unpeeled pears, thinly sliced
User Rating: full starfull starfull starfull starempty star
DIRECTIONS:
  • Heat oven to 350°F. Unroll dough and separate crosswise into 2 sections. Press dough into 2 (7-inch) squares, firmly pressing perforations to seal.
  • Cut cheese round horizontally to make 2 rounds. Place 1 cheese round, rind side down, on center of 1 dough square. (Do not remove rind from cheese.) In small bowl, mix cranberry sauce and preserves. Spread over top of cheese; sprinkle with rosemary. Top with remaining cheese round, rind side up.
  • With small cookie or canapé cutter or sharp knife, make 1/2- to 1-inch cutouts to look like poinsettia petals from each corner of remaining dough square. Roll 3 small pieces of dough into 3 small balls; set cutouts and dough balls aside. Place remaining dough on top of cheese round. Press dough evenly around cheese, folding top edges over bottom edges; press to seal completely. Place on ungreased cookie sheet.
  • On 7-inch square sheet of foil, arrange dough petals to look like a poinsettia. Place balls in center on top of arranged petals. Lift foil square with poinsettia and place on cookie sheet next to wrapped cheese.
  • Bake poinsettia 8 to 11 minutes or until light golden brown around edges. Lift with foil from cookie sheet; cool. Continue baking wrapped cheese 25 to 30 minutes longer or until golden brown. Remove from cookie sheet; place on serving plate. Place poinsettia on top of wrapped cheese. Let stand 15 minutes before serving. Serve warm with pears.
High Altitude (3500-6500 ft):
No change.
Nutritional Information:
1 Serving (1 Serving)
  • Calories 160
    • (Calories from Fat 80),
  • Total Fat 9g
    • (Saturated Fat 4 1/2g,
    • Trans Fat 1g),
  • Cholesterol 20mg;
  • Sodium 270mg;
  • Total Carbohydrate 15g
    • (Dietary Fiber 1g,
    • Sugars 7g),
  • Protein 5g;
Percent Daily Value*:
  • Calcium ;
Exchanges:
  • 1/2 Starch;
  • 0 Fruit;
  • 1/2 Other Carbohydrate;
  • 0 Skim Milk;
  • 0 Low-Fat Milk;
  • 0 Milk;
  • 0 Vegetable;
  • 0 Very Lean Meat;
  • 0 Lean Meat;
  • 1/2 High-Fat Meat;
  • 1 Fat;
Carbohydrate Choices:
  • 1;
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Progressive Dinner: Southern Sweet Potato Casserole

10 sweet potatoes
1 stick butter, cut in pieces
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup honey
2 tsp. vanilla
2 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
3 large eggs beaten
2 1/2 cup hot milk

Topping:
1 cup flour
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 tsp. salt
1 stick butter, chilled cut in pieces
1 cup chopped pecans (I did not do this for the dinner)

Bake sweet potatoes at 350 for 1 hour until tender. Put on pan or line rack with foil because they will spit juice and make a mess below. Cool 10 minutes, then peel. In a large bowl beat potatoes on low speed; beat in butter. Add sugars, honey, vanilla, salt and nutmeg. Blend well.  Add beaten eggs; beat for 2 minutes. Reduce speed to low; gradually add hot milk. Preheat oven to 350. Butter a 9x13 dish. Pour and spread potatoes. Mix together topping until mixture resembles course meal. I did mine with a few pulses in the food processor. Stir in Pecan if you are so inclined. Sprinkle on potatoes and bake 35-40 minutes until topping is golden.

You can make and freeze (freeze topping separate). I always make a couple weeks before Thanksgiving. Just set on counter in the morning and cook later. Needs about 7 hours to thaw.

Progressive Dinner: Wassil

1 gallon of apple juice
1 cup of Tang powder
2 tablespoons mulling spices

Bring to a boil and let simmer for 30 minutes

Progressive Dinner Spinach Craisin Salad with Tangy Poppyseed Dressing

Salad:

Spinach
Romaine
Toasted Almonds
Red Apple Slices
Craisins
Little bit of red onion thinly sliced

Dressing (mix in blender except poppy seeds)

1/2 Cup Sugar
1 Cup Cider Vinegar
1 1/2 Cups Oil
2 teaspoons dry mustard
2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon minced onion
2 tablespoons poppy seeds

Progressive Dinner Sassy Sauce


Susan’s Sassy Sauce (Good on Pork and Salmon)


Ingredients:

Champagne vinegar (White wine vinegar is cheaper and works also)
Soy Sauce
Red Chili Flakes
Garlic
Minced Onion
Brown Sugar
Tomato Paste
Salt
Butter (one stick)


Combine in saucepan

½ Cup Champagne vinegar (White wine vinegar is cheaper and works also)

½ Cup Soy Sauce

1 tsp. red chili flakes

1 TBS garlic

2 TBS minced onion


Simmer and reduce 50 percent. Watch that it doesn’t boil over. It will. You can bring this to a boil first to get it going. It takes about 45 minutes. Maybe a little more, maybe a little less.

Add to reduced sauce:

½ Cup Soy Sauce

2 Cups brown sugar

2 TBS tomato paste

½ tsp salt

Simmer 3 to 5 minutes. Take off heat. Whisk in 1 stick of butter cut in pieces. 

Progressive Dinner Pork Loin from allrecipes.com, served with Sassy Sauce


Pork Roast With The World's Best Pork Loin Rub
recipe image
Rated:rating
Submitted By: National Pork Board
Photo By: branchan
Servings: 8

"Rubs are mixtures of spices that act like a dry marinade. The can be applied 10 to 20 minutes before cooking or longer to intensify the flavor. This rub also works well on chops or tenderloin. Serve with roasted potatoes and steamed vegetable medley."
INGREDIENTS:
2 1/2 pounds boneless pork loin roast
1 1/4 cups brown sugar
2/3 cup sugar
3 tablespoons coarsely ground black
pepper
2 tablespoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons ground ginger
4 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
4 1/2 teaspoons onion salt
1 tablespoon dry mustard
1 1/2 teaspoons crushed red pepper
(cayenne)
1 1/2 teaspoons ground red pepper
(cayenne)
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
3/4 teaspoon dried thyme, crushed
DIRECTIONS:
1.Stir together brown sugar, sugar, black pepper, salt, ginger, garlic powder, onion salt, dry mustard, crushed red pepper, ground red pepper, cumin, paprika and thyme in small bowl. Heat oven to 325 degrees F. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of the brown sugar mixture* evenly on all sides of the pork roast; use your fingers to rub into pork. Place roast on rack in shallow roasting pan. Roast, uncovered, until internal temperature is 150 degrees F., 40 minutes to 1 hour. Remove from oven. Cover with foil; let stand 15 minutes before slicing.

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Boston Market Squash Casserole ( So Yummy)

This comes from Juli K.


Boston Market Squash Casserole ( So Yummy)

Ingredients:
4 1/2 cups Zucchini (diced)
4 1/2 cups Yellow Squash (diced)
1 1/2 cup Yellow Onion (chopped)
1 Box Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix (prepare as directed on box)
1 1/2 Sticks of Butter
8 ounces Chedder cheese
3 Cubes of Chicken Bouillon
1 teaspoon Garlic (minced)
1 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Ground Pepper
1/2 teaspoon Thyme
1 tablespoon Parsley (chopped)


Directions:
Prepare Jiffy Mix as directed, set aside to cool.

Place zucchini and yellow squash in a large saucepan and add just enough of water to cover. Cook on medium low heat just until tender, remove from heat. Drain squash, reserve one cup of water for casserole. On medium low temperature place all of the butter in large sauce pan and sauté the onions until the onions turn clear, add salt, pepper, thyme, and parsley. Add chicken bouillon cubes and garlic to onions, stir. Add drained squash and diced cheese, stir. Crumble corn bread in squash and pour the reserved cup of water and mix well. Place squash mixture in a 13"x11" baking pan that has been sprayed with a non-stick spray. Cover casserole and place in a preheated oven at 350 degrees. Bake for 50 - 60 minutes.

Remove cover the last 20 minutes of baking time.


I hate onions, so i don't add them to the recipe.
      

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Chocolate-Pecan Pie

I'm making this recipe for the progressive dinner. John's grandma used to make it every year. It is easy and good. But I also found a recipe at this link that I'm going to have to try:

http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/chocolate-pecan-pie-vi/Detail.aspx

It uses sweetened-condensed milk instead of corn syrup and looks awesome. Maybe I'll make it before and make a switch, if it's better.



Chocolate-Pecan Pie

From http://www.pillsbury.com/videos/pillsbury-product-videos/refrigerated-pie-crust-videos/chocolate-pecan-pie

How can pecan pie be even better? Add chocolate! It's all so easy when you use an unroll-and-fill refrigerated pie crust.
Prep Time: 25 Min
Total Time: 2 Hr 30 Min
Makes: 10
INGREDIENTS:
1
Pillsbury® refrigerated pie crust, softened as directed on box
1
cup light corn syrup
1/2
cup sugar
1/4
cup butter or margarine, melted
1
teaspoon vanilla
3
eggs
1
cup semisweet chocolate chips (6 oz)
1 1/2
cups pecan halves
10
pecan halves
1/2
cup whipping cream, whipped
User Rating: full starfull starfull starfull starhalf star
DIRECTIONS:
  • Heat oven to 325°F. Make pie crust as directed on box for One-Crust Filled Pie using 9-inch glass pie plate.
  • In large bowl, beat corn syrup, sugar, butter, vanilla and eggs with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Reserve 2 tablespoons chocolate chips for topping. Stir in remaining chocolate chips and 1 1/2 cups pecans. Spread evenly in crust-lined pan.
  • Bake 55 to 65 minutes or until deep golden brown and filling is set. Cool completely, about 1 hour.
  • Line cookie sheet with waxed paper. In small microwavable bowl, microwave reserved 2 tablespoons chocolate chips on Medium (50%) 1 to 1 1/2 minutes or until melted; stir. Dip each of 10 pecan halves in chocolate; place on lined cookie sheet. Refrigerate 15 to 20 minutes or until chocolate is set. Garnish pie with whipped cream and chocolate-dipped pecans. Store in refrigerator.
High Altitude (3500-6500 ft):
Heat oven to 350°F. Bake 50 to 55 minutes.
Nutritional Information:
1 Serving (1 Serving)
  • Calories 540
    • (Calories from Fat 280),
  • Total Fat 32g
    • (Saturated Fat 12g,
    • Trans Fat 0g),
  • Cholesterol 90mg;
  • Sodium 180mg;
  • Total Carbohydrate 59g
    • (Dietary Fiber 2g,
    • Sugars 33g),
  • Protein 5g;
Percent Daily Value*:
  • Calcium ;
Exchanges:
  • 2 Starch;
  • 0 Fruit;
  • 2 Other Carbohydrate;
  • 0 Skim Milk;
  • 0 Low-Fat Milk;
  • 0 Milk;
  • 0 Vegetable;
  • 0 Very Lean Meat;
  • 0 Lean Meat;
  • 0 High-Fat Meat;
  • 6 Fat;
Carbohydrate Choices:
  • 4;
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.