Sausage and Cheese Kolaches

My sweet friend Vicky gave me this recipe. It is a tried and true recipe from her mother-in-law. They are 300 calories each, and one is pretty filling in the morning. The first time I tried to make these, I didn't use a thermometer. If you have never made homemade dough before, I would recommend using a baking thermometer. If you don't want to buy one, make sure the milk/water is warm (not lukewarm), but not scorching hot. I burned and killed the yeast the first time I made these, and the dough never rose. The second time I made them, they turned out great!

Ingredients
2 envelopes yeast (or 4 1/2 tsp yeast)
1/4 cup water
1 Tbsp sugar
2 cups milk
1/2 cup plus 1 Tbsp butter
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp salt
2 egg yolks, slightly beaten
6-7 cups sifted flour
softened butter, as needed
20 sausage links (we like the already cooked Eckridge breakfast sausage)
10 slices of cheddar cheese

Directions
1. In a small bowl dissolve yeast in warm water (110 degrees). Sprinkle sugar (1 tbsp.) over water mixture and let stand ten minutes to proof yeast.
2. Warm milk to 110 degrees, stir in butter and 1/2 cup sugar. Let butter melt into milk mixture.
3. Pour milk and yeast mixtures into large bowl. Add salt and egg yolks.
4. Slowly add 6-7 cups of flour. Knead dough on a lightly floured board (10-15 min). Use extra flour if dough is too wet.
5. Place in bowl, cover and let rise until double (1-2 hours). Punch down dough.
6. Divide into 2 parts. Form each part into a ball and roll out like a pie crust only larger in diameter–about 1/8 – 1/4″ thick.
7. Divide each circle into 9-10 wedges.
8. Place a half slice of cheese on the wide end of the wedge. Then place a sausage on the cheese. Wind up wedge beginning at the wide end. Seal well, making sure that ends of rolled kolaches don’t have open spots where cheese can run out.
9. Place kolaches on cookie sheets and let rise, covered, about 1 hour.
10. Bake at 350-375 degrees 10-20 minutes.
11. Brush with softened butter and cool on a rack.

Store in a single layer in refrigerator as stacking the kolaches, especially if they’re still a little warm. You can put them into big freezer bags to keep longer. They only take about 45 seconds to heat up in my microwave. So quick and so yummy!

The Best Cereal Ever

About a year ago, I was introduced to Mom's Best cereal. Delicious. And healthy. Well, healthier than all those other cereals. It is regular priced at $2.29 at Kroger, but about 2 weeks out of each month it is $1.99. There is usually a $0.75 coupon which you can print twice per computer on the website. That makes it $1.25 a box for delicious cereal. That's pretty exciting for me because I'm not a huge cereal person. Below are my favorites. (They only have four kinds at the Kroger in Bryan - Toasted Wheatfuls, Oats and Honey Blend, Mallow Oats, and Honey Nut Toasty O's, but they have a much bigger selection in bigger cities.)


This one is the best. Hands down. So much better than Golden Grahams. They had this in Dallas (Richardson) when we lived there last summer.


This one is my favorite of the ones available at Kroger.


If you are a fan of Lucky Charms, this one tastes just like it.. yum. I want to try the raisin bran one, and honey-ful wheat, but they don't have those here. I have tried the toasted cinnamon squares, but I like cinnamon toast crunch better than that one. They also sell oats. Go print a coupon and try some! (It's in the organic section, with the Kashi cereals.)

Sour Cream Enchilada Casserole

My mom has made this recipe for years, and my brother and I love it. It's my brother's favorite recipe.

Sour Cream Enchilada Casserole
Southern Living, 1982 Annual Recipes
Serves 8

Ingredients
1 cup water
1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp picante sauce, divided
12 corn or flour tortillas
2 lbs ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1 to 1-1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
2 tsp ground cumin
1 Tbsp chili powder
1 tsp garlic powder
3/4 cup ripe olives, sliced (optional)
1/2 cup butter or margarine (my mom uses 1/4 cup smart balance)
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1-1/2 cups milk
1 (16-oz) carton commercial sour cream (can use low fat)
2 cups (8-oz) shredded Cheddar cheese

Directions
Combine water and 2 Tbsp picante sauce in a large shallow dish. Place tortillas in picante sauce mixture; let stand 5 minutes. Drain.

Cook ground beef (or ground turkey) and onion in a heavy skillet until brown; drain off drippings. Stir in salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, olives (optional), and 1/4 cup picante sauce; simmer meat mixture 5 minutes.

Melt butter in a heavy saucepan over low heat; add flour, stirring until smooth. Cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Gradually stir in milk; cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until thickened and bubbly. Remove from heat, and add sour cream; stir until well blended.

Place half of tortillas in a 9x13x2 inch baking dish. Pour half of sour cream sauce over tortillas; spoon half of meat mixture evenly over sauce. Sprinkle half of cheese mixture over meat mixture. Repeat layers with remaining ingredients. Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes.

Carnitas

So so so good. I still don't understand how these ingredients make such delicious, flavorful pork. I thought I had cilantro in our fridge, but it had gone bad. So, for those cilantro haters, you can still enjoy this recipe! I had it again for lunch, and it does great for leftovers too. Pork butt was on sale for $0.88/lb at Kroger this week, so that's what I used. I spend about an hour cutting all of the fat out though. I bet it would work just fine with a pork loin. Whenever it goes on sale for $1/lb, you know what I'll be making!

Carnitas
Tasty Kitchen member The Noshery

Ingredients
3 lbs boneless pork shoulder, cut into cubes
3/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
1/2 whole lime, juiced
7 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp kosher salt
1 Tbsp cumin
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped (optional)
1/4 cup chicken or beef stock
2 Tbsp olive oil

Directions
In a slow cooker, combine all ingredients (except olive oil) and stir. (I browned the meat before I added it to the slow cooker, but this is not a necessary step.) Arrange the pork so it sits as a single layer at the bottom of the pot. Set slow cooker to High for 4 hours or Low for 8 hours.

Once the pork is done, it should be tender enough that you can shred it with a spoon. Heat a pan with the olive oil. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the pork from the pot to the pan in batches. Fry the pork until brown and crispy, breaking it up as you fry it. Do not crowd the pan with pork for best results. (You do not have to do this step. It still tasted delicious before this step, but I did it anyway.)

Serve on tortillas garnished with chopped onions, avocado, fresh cilantro and lime wedge. (I served them with guacamole, sour cream, Chipotle cilantro-lime rice, and cheese.)

Banana Bread

Money Saving Mom has baking days a couple times a month, and she makes this every time. I didn't substitute any of the oil with apple sauce, but I'm going to try it next time for a little healthier version.

Banana Bread
Money Saving Mom

Ingredients
2 cups flour (all-purpose, whole-wheat, or a mixture of both)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup vegetable oil (or 1/4 cup applesauce and 1/4 cup oil)
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
3-4 bananas, mashed
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
3 Tablespoons milk

Directions
Stir together dry ingredients. Beat together remaining ingredients. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and blend until just combined. Pour into greased loaf pan and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until toothpick inserted into the bread comes out clean. Cool in pan for 10 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack.

**I made the banana bread again this week with half wheat/half white flour and half oil/half applesauce, and it is still good. It is heavier/denser, but still yummy for breakfast.

Crispy Southwest Chicken Wraps

I wasn't sure what I was getting myself into with these. They remind me of the quesadillas at Freebirds. (This is how they make them, except they fold the tortilla in half rather than into a burrito.) mmm. These turned out a lot better than I thought they were going to. Brett asked me if they reheat well if we could triple the recipe and make it a staple. Apparently, he thought they were pretty good. :o)

Crispy Southwest Chicken Wraps
Tasty Kitchen member Melanie

Ingredients
1 cup cooked rice, warm or at room temperature
½ Tablespoon (1 ½ tsp) chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin powder
½ teaspoons garlic salt
1 cup cooked, shredded chicken
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 whole green onion, thinly sliced (white and green parts)
½ cup diced red or green bell pepper
¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1 whole lime, juiced
6 whole burrito-sized flour tortillas
2 cups shredded cheese (combination Of monterey jack And sharp cheddar)
½ cup sour cream (optional)

Directions
Mix rice together with chili powder, cumin and garlic salt. Add remaining ingredients except for tortillas, cheese, and sour cream. Sprinkle cheese over tortillas, leaving 1/2-inch border around edges. Drop a little bit of sour cream in a line down the center of each tortilla, then arrange chicken and rice mixture down the center of each tortilla. Sprinkle some more cheese on top of the chicken and rice mixture (to ensure the tortilla gets cooked shut).

Fold the two sides of the stuffed tortillas over, leaving edges open. Spray the top (folded) side with cooking spray (I sprayed them with olive oil with my handy dandy sprayer from Bed Bath and Beyond). Heat a large nonstick skillet (or griddle) over medium heat for 1 minute. Arrange 2 wraps, seam-side down, in pan and cook until golden brown and crisp (2 to 3 minutes). While that side is cooking spray the opposite side. Flip the burrito over and cook the other side for 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate and repeat with remaining wraps. Serve.

New Orleans Style Shrimp Creole

I have been in a cajun mood recently, but all of the authentic recipes that I was finding had clam sauce or shrimp shell stock... not too appealing. I ran into this recipe on Tasty Kitchen this weekend. Granted, I don't know what authentic shrimp creole tastes like, but this is really good and really easy.

New Orleans Style Shrimp Creole
Adapted by Tasty Kitchen member Frank

Ingredients
1 lb medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp olive oil
3 Tbsp flour
1 cup yellow onion, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
1 cup green bell pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped (I used five)
8 oz can tomato sauce
14 oz can chicken broth
1 tsp lemon juice
2 whole bay leaves
1/8 tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp white pepper
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper (I used 1/4 tsp - warning - spicy!)
salt, to taste
2 cups boiled rice (I used two success boil-in-bags)

Directions
In a black cast iron pot, melt butter. (I don't have a black cast iron pot, so I used a 12" frying pan with lid.) Add the oil. Over medium heat, saute the onion, celery, green bell pepper, and garlic for about 5 minutes. Add the flour and blend well. Add the tomato sauce, chicken broth, lemon juice, bay leaves, black pepper, white pepper, cayenne pepper, and salt. Bring to a low boil then reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Add shrimp, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes longer. Remove the pot from the heat and allow to stand at room temperature for about 10 minutes before serving. Serve over cooked rice.

Pasta with Classic Pesto

This is a great meal for a busy night. You can make the pesto in the time it takes to cook the pasta. It may be cheaper to buy bottled pesto, but this is so much better!

Classic Pesto
The New Best Recipe

Ingredients
1/4 cup pine nuts
3 medium garlic cloves, unpeeled
2 cups packed fresh basil leaves
2 Tbsp fresh parsley leaves (optional)
7 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
salt
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, more to taste
1/2 cup reserved pasta cooking water
1 lb pasta (long & thin or fusilli)

Directions
1. Toast the nuts in a small, heavy skillet over medium heat, stirring frequently, until just golden and fragrant, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer the nuts to a plate.

2. Add the garlic to the empty skillet. Toast, shaking the pan occasionally, until fragrant and the color of the cloves deepens slightly, about 7 minutes. Let the garlic cool, then peel and chop.

3. Place the nuts, garlic, herb(s), oil, and 1/2 tsp salt in a food processor. Process until smooth, stopping as necessary to scrape down the sides of the workbowl. Transfer the mixture to a small bowl, stir in the Parmesan, and adjust the salt to taste. (The surface of the pesto can be covered with a sheet of plastic wrap or a thin film of oil and refrigerated for up to 3 days.)

4. Bring 4 quarts water to a rolling boil in a large pot. Add salt and pasta to the boiling water and stir to separate the noodles. Cook until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta cooking water, drain the pasta, and return it to the pot.

5. Stir 1/4 cup of the reserved pasta cooking water into pesto. Toss the hot pasta with the thinned pesto, adding the remaining pasta cooking water as needed. Serve immediately or let cool to room temperature.