Recipe: Chicken Soup

1 whole fryer chicken (3.5 to 4.5 lbs)4 carrots, sliced
4 stalks celery, sliced
1 onion, diced
3 bay leaves
1 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp thyme leaves
1 tbsp salt
8 cups water.
4 cups uncooked egg noodles

Add all ingredients except the noodles to a crock pot and cook on low for 8 hours. Remove chicken and add noodles. Set crock pot to high and cook an additional 30 minutes. Shread the chicken meat and return to crock pot. Allow meat to warm back up and serve. Gosh, that was easy, wasn't it?

Allthough egg noddles are the most familiar, you can use any form of noodle including gluten free vairents. If using rice, add two cups of uncooked long grain rice in lieu of noodles.

Recipe: Tzatziki Sauce

16 oz plain greek yogurt
1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded, and diced fine
2 cloves garlic
2 tbsp fresh mint leaves, chopped
1 tbsp fresh dill weed
Juice of 1 lemon (about 2 tbsp)
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil.

Wrap diced cucumber in a paper towel or kitchen towel and gently press to drain excess liquid. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and fold togather. Allow to sit refridgerated for at least 2 hours before servering.

Know what you're serving it with? Try going all dill for fish, or all mint and substitute red wine vinegar for lemon juice with red meat. Also great on its own as a dip!

Recipe: Fish and Chips

For the chips:
4 potatoes

For the batter:
2 cups AP flour (gluten free: 2 cups rice flour)
1 tbsp baking powder (gluten free: also add .5 tbsp baking soda)
1 tsp salt
1 12 oz bottle of beer (gluten free: 1.5 cups club soda)

1.5 lbs firm flesh white fish (cod, tilapia, etc)

1 gallon of oil for frying (canola, peanut, corn, etc)

Make the batter by combining all ingredients in a large bowl. Mix to the consistency of pancake batter and refridgerate at least 15 minutes, but no more than an hour.

White the batter is chilling, make the chips. Cut potatoes into your favorite shape and soak in water to remove excess starch. Dry well and fry for 4 to 5 minutes in 325 degree oil. Work in small batches. After all fries have been cooked, crank the oil to 375 and refry to potatoes for 4 to 5 minutes. Drain on paper towles (or a brown paper bag) and hold in a warm over.

Cut fish into workable peices and coat in batter. Fry for 3 to 5 minutes in 350 degree oil, until crust is golden brown and fish has been cooked throuogh (will depend on what kind of fish and how much you fry at once)

Strawberry filling for pierogis

Dessert Pierogis
1 lb strawberries, diced
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp flour
2 tbsp melted butter

Combine in bowl and set aside for at least 1 hour to allow sugar to dissolve. Stuff pierogies as with the previous recipe, being careful not to allow sugar syrup to touch edges.

Boil and then fry the pierogis until golden brown. Serve with ice cream or other accompaniments.

A note on frying:

Boil the pierogis before frying them. Make sure they've been drained and thoroughly dried before adding them to hot oil. Never fry food with excess water or ice crystals.

Potato and Cheese Pierogis

Filling:

4 medium potatoes, peeled and boiled.

1/2 stick butter

1/2 onion, chopped
1 cup cheddar cheese

Saute the onions in the butter. In a mixing bowl, combine potatoes and sauteed onion and butter mixture. Add cheese and blend together. Allow to cool before proceeding. You may refrigerate this over night.  (Note on salt: I boil my potatoes in VERY salty water. You may want to add a a teaspoon or two to your mixture)

Dough:

2 eggs
1 (8 ounce) container sour cream

¼ cup water

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon baking powder

Add wet ingredients to a mixing bowl. mix together and add dry ingredients. Bring dough together, if dough is too dry add a tablespoon of water. If too wet and sticky add a tablespoon of flour. Knead for 10 to 15 minutes.

To stuff:

Working with small portions, roll dough out to 1/8 inch thickness. Using a three inch biscuit cutter or appropriate substitute, cut rounds as efficiently at possible. Use about one tablespoon of stuffing per three inch round. Pinch to close. If dough has dried out (like I said, use small batches), dab your finger in water and wet the edge to help seal. Dough left after cutting can be kneaded to gather to get more rounds.

To cook:

Boil pierogis until they float, about 3 to 5 minutes. After boiling you may serve with your favorite sauce. Sour cream is traditional as well. I like to saute onions in a pan and toss pierogis allowing them to brown slightly.

Recipe: Crab Cakes

¼ cup mayo

1 egg

½ lemon, juiced. Half lemon to show

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp ground mustard

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp salt

1/3 cup cracker crumbs

1 tbsp old bay.

Quarter bell pepper, diced

2 green onions, sliced

1 lb crab meat

oil to fry with (recommend: peanut oil, canola oil, or corn oil)

Drain crab meat and set aside. In a large bowl add mayo, egg, lemon juice, seasonings, and cracker crumbs. Mix to combine, it should have the consistency of pancake batter. Add crab meat, bell pepper, and green onion. Gently fold together. Set aside for at least half an hour, you can make this earlier in the day and refrigerate it if you like.

Divide the crab mixture into 4 hamburger-sized patties. Preheat a large pan and add just enough oil to cover the bottom. Over medium heat, cook the crab cakes 2 at a time, 5 minutes per side. Do not overcrowd the pan. 

Recipe: Buffalo Chicken Dip

Our first episode has been edited and almost ready for upload! Here is the first recipe: Buffalo Chicken Dip.

5 Cups cook chicken, shredded
1 bottle (12 oz) hot sauce.
1.5 Cups Diced Celery (about 4 stalks)
16 oz cream cheese (1 large tub or two blocks)
1 8oz bottle Ranch dressing
Shredded mexican cheese blend

In a pan, toss chicken and hot sauce. Add celery and mix. Add cream cheese and allow it to melt. Add ranch dressing and stir until well combined. Transfer to a 9x13 glass baking pan. Back at 350 degrees for at least 30 minutes. Allow to cool at least 20 minutes before serving.

Serve with tortilla chips.