BBQ Baked Beans

I made these for the first time to serve at our summer party this past weekend. They came out good and were well received. The recipe is a keeper. This is actually a recipe form Famous Dave's that I received with my last shipment I ordered from the of their BBQ sauces and rubs. I ate there with my brother Ron and Deb in Omaha when we were back there a few years ago and we became fans of the taste of their sauces and grilling rubs. This recipe uses one of the their BBQ sauces, but you could use your favorite as well, though the taste will of course be different.

Grill or fry until blackened 8 oz. of mild smoked sausages. (The ones I bought said mild but have a kick to them which was good in this recipe) You can also smoke them again on your grill which I did not do. Once cooked, cut each sausage lengthwise and then in quarters. Then cut quarters into slices. Set aside.

You'll need 1/3 cup chopped green bell pepper and 1 cup chopped onion, 1 (28 oz) can baked beans, and 1 bottle (20 oz) of Famous Dave's Rich and Sassy BBQ Sauce.

Saute peppers and onions just until onions are slightly softened. Add sliced sausages, beans and BBQ sauce. Stir to blend. Simmer over low heat for 20 minutes. These are better made 10 hours to 2 days ahead of time. Cover and place in fridge for the flavors to meld well. This is a must. The taste really does improve. Enjoy at your next BBQ.

Pesto Chicken Packets

Made these the other night for dinner and they were delicious. This entree is on our menu rotation now.

To make two entrees: Slice 1 zucchini, chop 2 Roma tomatoes and clean 4 to 8 green onions, saving the white and mostly pale green parts for the recipe.

Cut heavy duty foil into 12 to 15 inch long pieces. One per entree. Drizzle a a little EVOO on the center of each piece of foil and place a boneless, skinless chicken breast on each. Spread each breast with a tablespoon of pesto. Pile the half of each veggie on each chicken breast, starting with zucchini and ending with green onions.

Spread another 2 to 3 tablespoons of pesto on top of each one. Bring foil up and seal top then sides to make a leak proof packet. Place packets on a baking sheet and bake in a preheated 355 degree F oven for about 35 to 40 minutes. (You can also cook these on your grill using indirect method, grill preheated to medium. Close grill when cooking for about 25 minutes.

When finished cooking, carefully open each packet. There is a lot of steam, be careful. It created lovely juice when cooking. I removed from packets and served a top steamed brown rice. Buon Appetito!

Eating Light - Quick and Easy Chicken

I had defrosted boneless skinless chicken breasts without having a meal planned for them. I wanted something quick and easy so made this dish using what was in the fridge and pantry.

Cut boneless skinless chicken breasts into bite sized pieces. Saute crimini mushrooms in a large nonstick skillet. After a few minutes add 1/4 cup dry white wine and chicken pieces. Continue to cook until chicken is white on the outside.

Stir in a jar of your favorite pasta sauce (I recommend Barilla roasted garlic with this dish), 1/2 to 3/4 cup dry white wine and fresh or dried basil or thyme. Cover and simmer until chicken is cooked though, 15 minutes or so.

Serve over brown rice or Barilla Plus multigrain pasta and sprinkle with fresh parsley. You could also add sliced zucchini to this dish near the end of cooking time. Another thought is to top the brown rice with cooked spinach or another favorite vegetable and then top with chicken and sauce. This could easily be made without the wine though it adds great flavor.

Crab Feed

Last evening our dinner group got together at Verona and Bill's for their annual crab feed. We all had a great time!

Fig conserves on cream cheese to spread on crackers. Thanks to Kathy and Bob for turning me onto this. Delicious!

Hot pinwheel appetizers.

The wine bar stocked with good wine!

Verona's table. She always does such a great job.

Her crab centerpiece.

Crab bowls hold the bread and there were more of them for the empty shells.

Garlic Bread.

The main event - crab cioppino.

Penne pasta with Alfredo sauce and strips of chicken.

Okay, I am sure the followers of my healthy life-style quest are wondering if I ate all this food or not. Nope. My splurge for the night was the prosecco and red wine and one pinwheel appetizer. I realize I didn't get a picture of the green salad that was also on the table. I piled my plate with greens and topped it with a few strips of chicken breast from the pasta, dressed with a little balsamic vinaigrette and that was my dinner. I did put of piece of the garlic bread on my plate and stared at for what seemed a long time. Half way through dinner I asked David if he would like my piece of bread. I have not been eating white flour or French bread because I am addicted to it. I was able to let it go, feel full and satisfied with the salad and wine. I did have a bite of crab too. For sessert there was sugar-free apple pie and lemon custard pie. I love anything lemon so it was a bit hard to pass that up, but I did opt for the sugarless apple pie and ate the filling and left the crust. It was delicious with a cup of decaf.

Low-Fat Chicken, Leek, and Mushroom Casserole

This isn't like your mother used to make! This casserole has great fresh flavor and no added fat. This is a recipe I adapted by Martha Stewart. She cut out the use of high fat and sodium canned soups. Go Martha! I just cut back on the use of olive oil in the recipe and used 1% milk instead of whole milk.

1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 2 large)
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons EVOO (Martha's recipe 5 tablespoons)
1 leek, white and pale green parts only, coarsely chopped and rinsed well
1 celery stalk, cut into 1/2-inch dice
10 ounces crimini mushrooms, halved if large (I used a 10 oz bag of thickly sliced)
3 tablespoon flour
3 tablespoons sherry
2 1/4 cups store-bought low-sodium and 98% fat free chicken broth
3/4 cup 1% milk (Martha uses whole milk)
1 dried bay leaf
8 slices dense multigrain bread, crusts removed, slices cut into triangles
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/3 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese (1 ounce)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Season chicken with salt and peeper on both sides. Heat 1 teaspoon (2 T) oil in saute pan over medium-high heat. Cook chicken until golden brown on 1 side, 3 to 4 minutes. Flip, reduce heat to medium, and cook until cooked through, about 10 minutes more. Transfer chicken to a plate, and return pan, with drippings, to medium heat.

Heat remaining 1 teaspoon (3T) oil in pan. Add leek, celery, mushrooms, and a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are golden brown and tender, 8 to 10 minutes. (Reduce heat if vegetables brown to quickly.) Stir in flour, and cook, stirring often, for 2 minutes. Add sherry, stock, milk, and bay leaf, and cook, scraping up browned bits from bottom, until thickened, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Discard bay leaf.

I was watching President Obama's speech at the Democratic retreat while cooking last night

Arrange bread on bottom of a 2-quart oval baking dish (I sprayed with nonstick cooking spray first), overlapping slices slightly. spoon half of the vegetables and sauce over bread. Slice chicken crosswise ,1/2-inch thick, and arrange on bread. Top with any accumulated juices from chicken. Spread remaining vegetables and sauce over chicken, sprinkle with parsley and Parmesan cheese, and bake until golden brown and bubbling, 25 to 30 minutes. Let stand for 15 minutes before serving.

Note" The hearty multigrain bread works best in this casserole. It will maintain its texture unlike a softer white-bread loaf, which may become gummy. The bread beautifully absorbs the flavors of the chicken, pan juices, and fresh crimini.

Enjoy with no guilt!

Light Spinach and Mushroom Strata

Before I cooked dinner last night I tossed together a healthy strata for brunch today. I love spinach so I loved every delightful mouthful.

6 eggs
1 cup 1% milk
1 pkg frz chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry (get all the water out of it you can)
1 cup diced mushrooms
1 cup shredded Jack cheese
4 slices Double Fiber whole Grain Bread, crusts removed, cubed

Pam an 8x8-inch glass baking dish. arrange bread cubes in bottom. Whisk eggs and milk together in a bowl. stir in spinach, mushrooms, Jack and black pepper to taste. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Bake in a preheated 350 degree F oven for 45 or so; until eggs are puffed, cooked through and strata is bubbly and brown. Makes 6 servings

In each serving there is lots of spinach and mushrooms, 1 egg, less than 1 slice of double fiber whole grain bread, 1/6 cup Jack cheese and 1/6 cup 1% milk.

In My Pursuit of Using What I Have.......

I am still making use of what is in my freezer and pantry. Last night for our dinner I made White Bean and Sausage Stew. I discovered soaked white beans in the freezer as well as garlic sausage, and from the pantry I took diced tomatoes, chicken broth, balsamic vinegar and dried garlic and herb bread crumbs. From the fridge came white wine and Parmesan cheese. I utilized all these ingredients in the dish.

In the pot I sauteed chopped onion and minced garlic in a little olive oil. Then added the chicken broth, white wine and drained canned diced tomatoes. I brought it to a simmer, and let it cook, covered, until the beans were tender and began to fall apart, about 1 1/2 hours. I used the back of a wooden spoon to mash some of the beans to give it a creamy texture.

Then I added the garlic sausage, sliced in about 1/2-inch pieces. I allowed this to cook for about 5 minutes or so to heat the sausage. (These sausages was already cooked, so I did not precook them.)

Then I added balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper to taste, and cooked for a few minutes to mellow the vinegar flavor.

Poured into a flameproof casserole, sprinkled the top with dry garlic and herb bread crumbs mixed with grated Parmesan cheese and placed under the broiler for a minute or so until lightly browned.

Ready to serve. This really is a quick and easy take on French cassoulet. I will make it again, but next time will use less balsamic vinegar or omit it all together, and will try a chicken and herb or lamb sausage.

NOTE 9/22/08 -- Leftovers prove that the balsamic vinegar should stay but perhaps cut it down by a tablespoon. The falvor is much more mellow the second day and important to the taste of the dish.

Creative, Happy and On the Go, Two

When I was a little girl, my Italian grandmother used to can onion wedge pieces in wine vinegar and we would dip them in good-quality olive oil as a snack. I haven't had them since. My grandmother died when I was only 7 years old so it has been a very long time. (I shall not say just how long that is!) Today I canned wedge pieces in red wine vinegar and slices in white wine vinegar. Both have a touch of sugar and a teaspoon of whole peppercorns. I am looking forward to dipping the wedge pieces in olive oil, and the slices will be a good condiment for many things. I will be giving some of these as gifts as well.



My home made canning processor. Just place a folded kitchen towel in the bottom of a good sized pot (this is my Italian grandmothers spaghetti pot) and you are set.

White vinegar, sugar and pepercorns, slowly heating to dissolve sugar.


Processing jars filled with sliced onions and white wine vinegar syrup in a water bath.

Processing the wedge pieces in red wine vinegar syrup in awater bath.

Wedges in red wine vinegar.

Sliceds in white wine vinegar.

Meyer lemon juice in pot to make Meyer Lemon Jelly.


Sugar and pectin waiting to be added. This recipe called for 14 cups of sugar to 8 cups of Meyer Lemon Juice. It takes a lot of patience to keep stirring over medium low heat to dissolve the sugar completely. Then it is brought to a rolling boil over medium high heat while sirring constantly (another slow process) then the liquid pectin is added, brought to a boil again and boil for 1 minute, reove from heat, skim foam quickly and fill your jars. Seal properly and put in water bath for 10 minutes if using 1/2 pint jars, 15 minutes for pint jars.

The dishcloth in the bottom of the pot works like a dream. The jars stay put and keeps the jars off the bottom of the pot.

I used half pint jars and ended up with 16 jars. This is not a clear jelly. I am looking forward to tatsing it. More gifts for friends and family.

Dinner tonight was prepped by Trader Jor's. I just had to brown and finsih off in the oven; stuffed pork chops. They are actually very tasty, though their directions made them too cooked for us and a nit dry.

I accomplished a lot as you can tell by the items crossed off my list. I thoroughly enjoyed the time in the kitchen playing!

Jars of strawberry as well as raspberry freezer jam waiting out the 24 hour setting up time. They will go in the freezer tomorrow morning.

Raspberry jam. I ran out of small jars and saw these at Walmart today while I was out shopping for my grandsons. They are made by Ball and are for freezer jams. They are plastic "jars" and the lids screw on. Great idea, and they are reasonably priced.

The smashed raspberries and sugar setting for 10 minutes before the pecton is added. I started the day at 5 AM and it is now 10 PM and I have to admit I am exhausted. Perhaps tonight I will sleep past 2:30 - 3 Am. That is when i have been waking up all week. I am ready for a complete nights sleep.

Rose and I

Wednesday was the Newcomers monthly luncheon. I am the historian this term so was there taking pictures. It is wonderful seeing all the ladies, but I have to say (and only because O know the woman who set this up doesn't know about my blog) that this restaurant and food was the worst. Ane it costs us $18 a piece. The fruit tray had fresh strawberries, grapes and cantaploupe and then there qas a pile of mixed fruit out of a can! It is a combination Mexican-Italian Resturant (yep, you read that right, eye roll) and there was no Mexican food on the buffet menu we were served, and the pnly 2 things Italian were a pasta dish and garlic bread. Outside of that there was BBQ pulled pork, BBQ chicken tenders (so salty it burned the inside of your mouth), potato salad, spinach salad, the fruit and a chocolate mousse cheesecake.

That's Gemma on the left and Carmen on the right, and nice ladies as well in the middle.

Ladies lined up for the buffet. The curtains were terrible in this room and made it dark and dreary, and one window actually had a sheet drapped for a curtain! Eye roll.

Barbara and Paulette.

I think this is a great shot and the background worked out as well. This portrait type shot needs to be blown up and framed.