Mexican Yellow Rice Casserole

                                                                                                                  

1/2 cup grated cheese

1 lb. ground beef or ground turkey 

1 pkg. taco seasoning

1 cup cheddar cheese soup

1/4 cup chopped onion

1 cup crushed taco chips

 1 can stewed tomatoes, chopped

1 pkg. yellow rice mix

1/4 cup milk

1/4 cup sliced black olives

1 can drained black beans

Lettuce, sour cream, fresh cilantro and tomato wedges to garnish

Brown ground beef or turkey, add taco seasoning, add tomatoes; simmer 10 minutes. Cook rice according to package. Heat soup and milk until creamy. In a large 13 x 9 casserole dish, layer ground-beef mixture, then rice, beans and soup. Sprinkle onions and olives on top. Top with grated cheese. Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Serve on bed of lettuce and top with tomato wedges and crushed chips.

Roasted Chickpea Snackers

                                                                                                                                         

Spray with olive oil cooking spray or drizzle with olive oil 

2 c canned chickpeas, rinsed and drained    

 1/4 t garlic powder    

 1/8 t red pepper flakes (or 2 t Cajun seasoning)

  

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Lightly coat a rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray. Spread chickpeas on baking sheet and sprinkle with garlic powder and red pepper or Cajun seasoning; toss to coat. Roast on bottom rack of oven, shaking pan about every 15 minutes, until browned and slightly crunchy, about 45 to 50 minutes. (The chickpeas will still be somewhat soft. Cook longer for desired texture.) Cool before serving. Yield about 1/2 cup per serving.

Potato Rolls

                                                                                                                    

2 packages active dry yeast( I used instant yeast 4 1/2 t)*see note

½ cup warm water (105 - 115 degrees)

1 ½ cups warm milk (105 - 115 degrees)

¾ cup instant potato flakes

½ cup butter softened

½ cup sugar

½ t salt

2 egg yolks, slightly beaten

About 4 ½ flour, divided (You may use all purpose or self-rising flour. If you use self-rising flour, you should reduce the salt to ½ teaspoon.)

4 tablespoons butter melted (for brushing tops of rolls)


*Note: When using instant yeast, mix dry yeast into flour. Heat water and milk to 110 degrees, cool to 105 degrees and add to all other dry ingredients. Do not overheat, it will kill the yeast. Adding the egg yolks, and butter to dry mixture. Add 1/2 c of yeast flour mixture to this mixture. Stir to incorporate. Let rise for 30-45 min.

Directions for active dry yeast:

Dissolve yeast in ½ cup warm water and let stand 5 minutes. In a large bowl, combine yeast mixture, 1 ½ cups warm milk, ¾ cup potato flakes, ½ cup butter, ½ cup sugar, and ½ teaspoon salt. Mix well. Stir in 2 slightly beaten egg yolks and ½ cup flour. Cover with a towel, plastic wrap, or aluminum foil, and let rise in a warm place, free from drafts for 30-45 minutes. (Batter will look spongy.)

Gradually stir in enough of the remaining flour to make soft dough. Cover and let rise in a warm place 1 hour, or until dough is doubled in bulk. Punch dough down. Turn onto a lightly-floured surface, and roll out to ¼-inch to 3/8-inch thickness. Cut into 2 ½-inch circles. Brush with melted butter. Make a crease across each circle, and fold over to make the rolls into Parkerhouse-style. Place on greased cookie sheets, and let rise in a warm place 20 minutes, or until dough is doubled in bulk. Bake at 400 degrees for 10-20 minutes, or until golden brown. This makes 4 dozen rolls.

Spudnuts Knock Off with Maple Glaze

                                                                                                                            

1 cup milk

1 pkg. yeast

1/2 cup water

1 cup cooked, unseasoned mashed potatoes

2/3 cup shortening

1/3 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. salt

3-4 cups flour

Scaled milk and cool to lukewarm.  Dissolve yeast in warm water with 1 tsp. of sugar.  When it gets foamy, add to milk.  Combine next five ingredients and beat well.  Gradually add in flour to make a soft dough.  Make sure not to add too much flour.  The dough shouldn’t be a sticky mess, but too much flour will make your doughnuts dense.  Roll out to 1/2” thickness and cut with a doughnut cutter, if you have one.  I don’t.  So I improvised with a large cup I had and a washed out prescription bottle to cut the inner hole.  Place on a greased cookie sheet and cover.  Let rise for at least one hour.  Then fry in oil.  Drain well on a paper towel.  While still warm, but not hot, dip in maple glaze.

Maple Glaze:

1/2 cup butter

3/4 cup evaporated milk

1 cup brown sugar

1 1/2 tsp. maple flavoring

1 lb. powdered sugar

In a saucepan, melt the butter.  Add milk and brown sugar, heat until just bubbly.  Remove from heat and add flavoring.  Add powdered sugar until desired consistency.  You want it thin enough you can dip the top of your doughnut in, yet not runny.

Firecracker Shrimp

                                                                                                                                                     

25 large tail-on shrimp deveined

15 eggroll/spring roll wrappers, cut in half diagonally (2 triangles)

Oil for frying

Marinade

1 tsp. minced garlic

1/2 tsp. grated ginger

1/2 tsp. sesame oil

1 tsp. soy sauce

1 tsp. sweet chili sauce

1 tsp. cornstarch

Cornstarch “paste” (mix well to form paste)

1 Tb cornstarch

1/4 cup water

Combine marinade ingredients in bowl, marinate shrimp for 20 minutes.

Pat the shrimp dry with a paper towel. Wrap each shrimp in  eggroll/spring roll wrapper half. Seal with cornstarch paste.

Fry in hot oil (375) for 3 minutes, until golden brown and shrimp is cooked through. Serve with sweet chili sauce.