Spinach and Artichoke Dip

Spinach/Artichoke Dip

2 packs of frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
well
1 large can of artichoke hearts in water (not
marinated) chopped
1-8 oz cream cheese
1 stick of butter
1-8 oz container of sour cream
1 cup  Pepperjack cheese
1 cup shredded parmasean cheese
1 small red onion chopped
Tapitio or Tabasco (depends on how spicy you like it)
Salt & Pepper

Directions:  Melt butter in large frying pan over medium heat.  Add onion and cook until soft.  Add sour cream and cream cheese and stir until all melted and combined together.  Add monterey jack cheese and ¾ cup of parmasean cheese.  When melted add salt, pepper and hot sauce.  Mix in the spinach and artichokes.  Stir until it comes together.  Place in baking dish.  Add ¼ cup parmasean cheese on top.  Bake for 15 minutes at 350.

Serve with sliced sourdough baguettes or crackers.

Potatoes Every Which Way

 Potatoes Every Which Way

With some flexible ideas about how and when to serve them so they’re not always the same and by preparing a few dishes for the freezer if you’re inclined, you can make quick and thrifty work out of that bag in no time. You cannot just freeze potatoes without doing something to them though, or they will turn black and ugly. You can peel and dice and slice and parboil, or make soup or twice baked potatoes or just mashed potatoes.

 ***The mashed potatoes can be a bit runny when you thaw them out, but just heat them up and stir and they’ll be fine. If you boil up the potatoes for mashing, save the water for soups.

Side Dishes
Baked Potatoes
First, of course, the simple but delicious baked potato. Scrub, prick with a fork or small aring knife a few times, and bake at 400 for about an hour. If you’ve got something else in the oven at a slightly different temperature, potatoes are flexible! Just bake them for a bit longer or less and keep an eye on them. If you’re in a hurry, you can microwave them until they’re soft when you squeeze them. If you like crispy skins but are in a hurry, microwave until almost done, and then pop them into the oven at 400 for 10 minutes or so. Serve with some chili over the top for a complete meal.

Twice Baked Potatoes
These are great either for dinner the same night if you’re energetic but they’re also a great side dish to have in the freezer. Bake the potatoes. While they’re still warm, cut in half lengthwise, scoop out the white part and mash them up with butter, milk, and either sour cream or yogurt, some cheddar cheese if you’d like, some ham if you’d like. Put the mashed potato back into the shell and top with a bit of extra shredded cheddar cheese. Either put back in the oven and bake for another 20-30 minutes or wrap them up and freeze them.

 Sauteed Potatoes
 One of personal favorites for breakfast or dinner. Peel (if you like) and dice the raw potatoes. Cook up in bacon grease until done if you’re feeling sinful. For a healthier alternative cook them up in a bit of olive oil or a mixture of olive oil and butter. Add some diced onion and green pepper if you’d like. Use leftover baked potatoes for these as well.

 Oven Fried Potatoes
 Healthier than deep-fried French fries, and easier besides–how can you lose! Get creative with the herbs and spices you put on them. These go great with something as simple as hamburgers and hot dogs.

Corn Chowder
This is a great kids’ favorite around here. Use either canned, fresh, or frozen corn, whatever you have around.

 Leftovers
 Baked Potatoes Become Quick Fried Potatoes
 If you have leftover baked potatoes, you can make quick fried potatoes for breakfast by dicing them and sauteing in a bit of bacon grease or olive oil and butter. You can also fry them up and make breakfast burritos and eat them now or freeze them for later.

 Mashed Potatoes Become Potato Croquettes
 These are so good you may want to mash extra potatoes on purpose so you can make the croquettes for dinner a day or two later. You can also stir leftover mashed potatoes into soups to thicken them up.

 Potato Skins Become an Appetizer
 Peeling potatoes for soups or mashing? Don’t throw them away. SPrinkle with some seasonings and a bit of cheese and bake until crisp.

 Main Dishes
 Shepherd’s Pie
Potato topped beef pie

Couscous Stuffed Peppers

Couscous Stuffed Peppers
Ohio State Fair 2006 Blue Ribbon

6 large bell peppers (any color)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 small zucchini, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups cooked couscous
1 can (15 oz) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 ripe tomato, seeded and finely chopped
1 teaspoon dried oregano, crumbled
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black peper
½ cup fat free feta cheese

Slice tops off peppers to make lid. Scoop out the membranes and seeds and discard. Simmer peppers and lids, covered, in large saucepan, lightly salted. Boil for 5 minutes. Drain. Preheat over to 350 °F. Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add zucchini and garlic and sauté for 2 minutes. Stir in lemon juice. Cook 1 minute and remove from heat. Stir in couscous, chickpeas, tomato, oregano, salt and pepper. Stir in feta cheese. Fill each pepper with the couscous mixture and place up right in a shallow baking dish. Cover with the pepper top and bake just until the filling is heated through, about 20 minutes.

Baking Temperature: 350°F
Baking Time: 20 minutes

Chapatis

CHAPATIS

People in India use chapatis, a flatbread, to scoop up food from their plates. To make it, they roll the dough into pancakes with special wooden dowels, but you can roll out the dough using a regular rolling pin.

2 cups whole-wheat flour
2/3 cup warm water
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
Pinch of salt

Place the flour in a large mixing bowl. Add the water, oil and salt. Mix with a fork and then with your hands. Keep mixing until you can make a ball.

Knead the dough for about 10 minutes. Let it rise for 30 minutes in the bowl, covered with a damp cloth.

Roll the ball into a 12-inch log and cut it into six chunks. Roll each chunk into a very thin pancake, about 7 inches in diameter. Don’t worry about making the dough into a perfect circle – just try to get it as thin as you can.

Heat a cast-iron skillet on medium-high. Place one chapati on the skillet and cook for 30 seconds. Use a spatula to peek under it. When the chapati gets brown spots and bubbles, flip it over and cook for another 30 seconds.

Wrap the cooked chapati in a cloth napkin while you cook the rest of them. Eat them right away with a little butter or margarine, or use as scoops for chicken curry. (The preschoolers ate them with jelly.)

Makes 6 chapatis.