Country Sun-Dried Chicken

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 T. butter

1 T. Olive oil

Flour ¼ tsp. salt

¼ tsp. pepper

1 cup heavy cream

3 shallots, minced

1 3oz. pkg. cream cheese

2 cloves, minced

Handful sun-dried tomatoes, hydrated, minced

2 T. lemon juice

crumbled bacon

Directions:  Dip chicken breast halves in mixture of flour, salt, pepper.  Make sure to 

lightly coat both sides.  Warm olive oil and butter in a skillet over medium heat.  

Cook chicken 6-7 minutes, or until no longer pink, turning once.  Remove and keep 

warm.  Add cream to the skillet, raise heat to medium-high and stir, scraping up 

browned bits sticking to the bottom of the pan.  Add shallots, garlic, tomatoes, and 

bacon, to taste.  Cook 2 minutes; stirring frequently, or until cream thickens.  Add 

cream cheese, stirring frequently until melted.  Stir in lemon juice and season with 

more salt and pepper to taste.  Spoon mixture over chicken to serve.

Comment:  Good with rice.

Chicken & Noodle Dumplings

10-12 cups water

1 whole chicken, cut up with bones

1 ½ tsp. salt

2 bay leaves

1 small onion, chopped

3 stalks celery, chopped

1 cup carrots, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

6 parsley leaves, chopped

1 T. lemon juice

Dumplings

2 ½ cups flour                     1 ¼ tsp. salt

1 T. baking powder             1 cup + 2T. milk                        

Directions:  Bring the water to a boil in a large pot.  Add the chicken, ensuring that the chicken is fully covered.  Add salt, onion, celery, carrots, garlic, bay leaves, and parsley to the pot.  Reduce heat to simmer and cook the chicken, uncovered, for 2 hours.  The liquid will reduce by one-third.

When the chicken has cooked, remove from stock.  Debone.  Try to keep chicken in larger pieces and return to stock.  Add lemon juice.  Salt and pepper to taste.

Begin dumplings.  Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and milk in a medium bowl.  Stir well until smooth.  Sometimes needs more flour.  Let the dough rest 10 minutes.  Roll the dough out onto a floured surface to about ½” thickness.

Cut the dough into small squares (use pizza cutter) or use a biscuit cookie cutter for small round dumplings.  Drop the dough into the simmer stock.  Use all of the dough.  Dumplings will first swell and then slowly shrink as they partially dissolve to thicken the stock.  Simmer for 30 minutes until thick. Stir often.  Remove bay leaves.  Serve.

Comment:  From Cracker Barrel.  If you want thicker stock, add milk/flour combination to the broth ..

Manicotti & Sauce

Sauce:

2 cans (1 lb.) crushed tomatoes

2 cans tomato soup

16 oz. tomato paste

2 large cans water

2 T. Basil

1 onion, chopped

1 tsp. garlic powder

½ tsp. pepper

½ tsp. oregano

Crepes:

6 eggs

½ cup water

1 ½ cups flour

¼ tsp. salt

Filling:

2 lb. Ricotta cheese

12 oz. Mozzarella cheese

1/3 cup Parmesan cheese

2 eggs

1 tsp. salt

¼ tsp. pepper

Directions:  Combine sauce ingredients in large pot.  Simmer.  To prepare crepes 

make sure eggs are room temperature.   Beat crepe ingredients together. Place a 

small amount of vegetable oil in small frying pan.  Prepare crepes as if making very 

thin pancakes.  Cool crepes.

Divide cheese filling amongst crepes.  Roll up.  Grease shallow baking pan and coat 

bottom with small amount of sauce.  Line filled crepes up in dish.  Pour some sauce 

over crepes.  Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.  

Serve with more sauce.

Comment:  Feel free to use store bought manicotti noodles instead of crepes.  

Follow package instructions, then stuff with cheese filling.

Classic Spaghetti & Meatballs

Meatballs:

2 1/3 cups panko bread crumbs

1½ cups buttermilk

3 large eggs, lightly beaten

2 lbs. ground beef

1 lb. ground pork

6 oz. thinly sliced prosciutto, chopped fine

3 oz. Parmesan cheese, grated (about 1 ½ cups)

6 T. minced fresh parsley leaves

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 ½ tsp. powdered gelatin, dissolved in 3 T. cold water

Salt & Pepper

Sauce:

3 T. olive oil 1 ½ cups grated onions

6 garlic cloves, minced ½ tsp. red pepper flakes

1 tsp. dried oregano

6 cups bottled tomato juice

3 (28 oz.) cans crushed tomatoes

6 T. dry white wine

½ cup minced fresh basil leaves

3 T. minced fresh parsley leaves

Sugar

Grated parmesan for serving

Directions:  Meatballs:  Place wire rack in 2 foil-lined rimmed baking sheets.  Adjust 

oven racks to lower-middle and upper-middle positions and heat oven to 450 

degrees.  Combine bread crumbs and buttermilk in large bowl and let sit, mashing 

occasionally with fork, until smooth paste forms, about 10 minutes.  

Add eggs, beef, pork, prosciutto, Parmesan, parsley, garlic, gelatin mixture, 1 ½ tsp. 

salt, and ½ tsp. pepper to bread-crumb mixture.  Using hands, gently mix until 

thoroughly combined.  Lightly form about ¼ cup mixture into 2-inch round meatball; 

repeat with remaining mixture to form approximately 40 meatballs.

Spray wire racks with non-stick cooking spray and place meatballs, evenly spaced, 

on racks; roast until browned, about 30 minutes, rotating trays from front to back and 

top to bottom halfway through. 

Sauce:  While meatballs roast, heat olive oil in large Dutch oven over medium heat 

until shimmering.  Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and 

golden around edges, 6 to 8 minutes.  Add garlic, red pepper flakes, and oregano; 

cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 30 seconds.  Stir in tomato juice, 

crushed tomatoes, wine, 1 ½ tsp. salt, and pepper to taste.  Increase heat to medium-

high and bring to simmer.  Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until slightly 

thickened, about 15 minutes.

Remove meatballs from oven and lower over temperature to 300 degrees.  Gently 

add meatballs to sauce, cover pot, and place in oven.  Cook until meatballs are firm 

and sauce has thickened, about 1 hour.

Pasta:  Prepare spaghetti per package instructions.

To serve, stir basil and parsley into sauce and adjust seasoning with sugar, salt, and 

pepper.  Serve with grated Parmesan.

Comment:  Very good. Worth the effort. Huge batch, but freezes well.

Chop Suey

¼ cup butter

1 ½ cups lean pork

1 cup chopped onion

1 tsp. salt

1 cup chopped celery

¼ tsp. pepper

1 can drained mushrooms

1 cup water

1 can drained bean sprouts

Thickening:

2/3 cup cold water

2 T. cornstarch

4 tsp. soy sauce

2 tsp. sugar

Directions:  Melt butter I hot skillet.  Add pork, stir and sear quickly.  Add onions 

and fry for five minutes.  Add celery, salt, pepper, and hot water.  Cover and cook 

five minutes.  Add drained sprouts and mushrooms.  Mix thoroughly and heat to 

boiling point.  Add flavoring and thickening.  Stir lightly and cook five minutes.

Comment:  Good served over Chinese noodles or potatoes