It's Potluck Season: Dishes to Share

I always think of this month as the start of Potluck Season. First we have Memorial Day, then graduations, Fourth of July, family reunions and weddings, then lastly Labor Day. A person can never have too many potluck recipes. Today I was looking through a copy of the charity cookbook from the Ladies Auxiliary in Flint, Michigan. I've had this cookbook around 20 years or so. I've made small changes to the recipes to reflect my family's tastes.

Big Bean Pot

12 ounce package bacon

3 medium onions, diced or sliced very thinly

1 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/3 cup vinegar

1/4 cup ketchup

1 (15 ounce) can kidney or red beans, drained

1 (15 ounce) can butter beans, drained

2 (16 ounce) can maple baked beans

Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Cook the bacon until crispy, drain on paper towel, and when cook enough, crumble. Drain most of the bacon grease out of the skillet and saute the onions until lightly browned. Add all of the other ingredients to a Dutch oven, roaster, or large casserole dish, and stir til combined. Bake, uncovered for 60-70 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

Hash Brown Casserole

(this is quite different from the one I usually make.)

2 cups shredded Cheddar or Colby cheese

1 (10 3/4 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup finely diced onion

1/2 cup finely diced green and/or red pepper

1/4 cup butter, melted

1/4 tsp. ground black pepper

1 32 ounce frozen, shredded hash browns, thawed partially

1 cup crushed corn flakes

1 tbsp. butter

Grease 9x13 baking dish. In large bowl combine cheese, soup, sour cream, onion, peppers, 1/4 cup butter, pepper and mix well. Fold in potatoes. Turn the mixture into the pan. Toss together the corn flakes and 1 tbsp. butter. Sprinkle over potato mixture. Bake in 350 degree F. oven for one hour or until the casserole is browned and the potatoes are tender. Serves 8-10

Sauerkraut Casserole

Ingredients:

2 pound kielbasa links, cut into 1 inch sliced

1 large sweet onion, sliced very thinly

1 27 ounce can sauerkraut, undrained (or a bag)

1 cup water

1/2 c. packed brown sugar

2 tsp. caraway seed

In a skillet cook sausage and onion until sausage is lightly browned and onion is tender; drain off any grease. Stir in sauerkraut, water, brown sugar and caraway. Transfer to a casserole, cover and bake at 350 degrees F. for an hour. Makes 6-8 servings.

Rotini Pasta Salad

1 8 ounce bottle Italian dressing, any type

3/4 cup mayonnaise

1 tsp. Italian seasoning

2 cups rotini, cooked, drained and rinsed in cold water

1 cup broccoli flowerets

4 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese, or tiny cubes

1/2 cup chopped red pepper

1/2 sliced or shredded carrots

1/2 c. thinly sliced and halved red onion rings

Optional: 1/4 cup sliced olives

Mix dressings and seasonings in large bowl. Add the other ingredients and mix gently. Chill. Makes 12 servings.

Coconut Cake

1 package butter/yellow cake mix

1 1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 cups flaked coconut

8 ounce container whipped topping

Prepare the cake as directed in a 13 x 9 inch pan. Cool 15 minutes then poke holes in the cake with a fork. Meanwhile combine the milk, sugar and 1/2 cup of the coconut in a pan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 1 minute. Spoon this mixture over the warm cake. Cool. When cool fold 1/2 cup of the coconut into the whipped topping. Spread over the cake evenly. Sprinkle with the remaining coconut. Chill overnight or all day if made in the morning. Store any leftovers in the refrigerator.

Triple Treat Torte

2/3 cup chopped peanuts, dry roasted

1 cup flour

1 stick butter, cut in pieces

1/3 cup peanut butter

8 ounces cream cheese, softened

1 cup confectioners' sugar

1 cup frozen whipped topping

1 (4 1/2 ounces) instant vanilla pudding

1 (4 1/2 ounces) instant chocolate pudding

2 3/4 cup cold milk

Mix peanuts, flour and butter till it resembles crumbs. Press into a greased 9x13 inch pan and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Cool. Blend peanuts, cream cheese, powdered sugar and whipped topping. Pour over cooled crust. Mix the puddings with the milk til smooth and spread over the peanut layer. Top the cake with more whipped topping and garnish with shaved chocolate.

On OFL we have a nice Memorial Day menu:

http://oldfashionedliving.com/Memorial-Day-Menu.html

Homemade Pizza For Six or More

I've tried a lot of pizza crust recipes over the years. They were either more like bread dough, or took too much preparation. I also needed something that was very flexible as far as doubling or even making three times the amount. The recipe below finally passed the test. It's easy, tastes like real pizza dough, and can be made cheaply.

The recipe made as is will make three thin round pizzas the size of a round pizza stone, or metal pizza pan. I double it to make one round pizza and three rectangle baking sheets with crust the regular thickness. I buy a jar of yeast, rather than the small packets. It saves money, and I store it in the refrigerator to keep it fresh.

Pizza Crust Base Dough

Ingredients:

2 1/2 tsp. or .25 ounce yeast

1 tsp. granulated sugar

1 cup warm water

2 1/2 cups flour

2 tbsp. oil

1 tsp. salt

Place the yeast, sugar and warm water in a mixing bowl. Stir to combine it all-- it won't completely dissolve, but will be close. Allow this to sit for 10 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients and stir with a large spoon until a dough is formed. I then oil my hands and knead it in the bowl lightly 5-6 times.


Allow this to sit for ten minutes. Divide the dough between the pizza pans.


The dough can be pressed onto the pan with your hands, but I found that a pastry rolling pin works perfect for rolling the dough while it's on the pan itself. Mine is about 4 inches wide. I start out taking out a section of dough, and shaping it as you see in the above picture. I roll it out to each end, then roll up on the one side, and down on the other, lengthwise. At this point it's easy to stretch or push the remainder of the dough to the edges.

Notes: This recipe can be doubled or tripled easily. This is the most flexible pizza dough I've ever worked with. You can pull gently to stretch it, or use the rolling pin as I did, or a combination of both. It's equally as good when it's thick or thin. My teens and their friends like it when I get the dough and toppings ready, then let them top the pizzas themselves.

Pizza Toppings: I use one jar of inexpensive pizza sauce, mozzarella cheese, hot sausage or Italian sausage, pepperoni and ham. I also saute thinly sliced sweet onion until it's caramelized, then add a drained can of mushrooms, heating until they are warmed through. This really adds a lot of flavor to the pizza.

Cooking: I bake each pizza on the middle rack of the oven at 450 degrees F. I check it a couple of times, and remove when the cheese is lightly browned like the picture above. The time will vary depending on your oven and the thickness of the dough.

~Brenda

White Chicken Chili Dinner

This week I made White Chicken Chili and thought you all might like the recipe. It's VERY simple. This is NOT the recipe on the back of the packet; so ignore those instructions.

White Chicken Chili

You'll need:
One packet of McCormick White Chicken Chili mix
2 cans beans, Northern Beans, Pinto, or Black. (Mixing is fine)
3-4 boneless chicken breasts
1/2 cup Minute White or Brown Rice

In a soup pot saute the chicken breasts until no longer pink. Season them with garlic powder and chili pepper. Cool the chicken, then cut into smaller chunks. Put them back into the same pan. Add the beans, chicken and the envelope of seasoning. Add about 4 cups of water to the pan. I admit I just add it until it looks good. Bring to a boil and add the rice. If it's white, place on the lid, remove from heat and let it rest 10 minutes. If it's the quick brown rice, place on the lid, boil for 5 minutes and remove from heat to rest for 10 more minutes.

Serve as is, or add a tablespoon of Cheddar cheese to the bowl before putting in the chili. I add salsa and serve tortilla chips with it too.

You'll note this is different from the instructions on the packet. I love the seasoning, but the recipe didn't do much for me, so I experimented until I came up with this.

It's really good leftover. It should make about 4 servings, possibly 5 depending on how big the bowls are. If you have a larger family double the recipe. The rice turns this into a one pot meal, but you can leave it out if you wish.

~Brenda