Simple Clam Chowder

From Taste of Home



Ingredients:
2 bacon slices
2 cups chopped onion
1 1/4 cups chopped celery
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
2 garlic cloves, minced
6 (6 1/2-ounce) cans chopped clams, undrained
5 cups diced peeled baking potato (about 1 pound)
4 (8-ounce) bottles clam juice
1 bay leaf
3 cups fat-free milk
1/2 cup all-purpose flour (about 2 1/4 ounces)

Directions:
Cook bacon in a large Dutch oven over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan, reserving 1 teaspoon drippings in pan. Crumble bacon; set aside. Add onion, celery, salt, thyme, and garlic to drippings in pan; cook 4 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

Drain clams, reserving liquid. Add clam liquid, potato, clam juice, and bay leaf to pan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes or until potato is tender. Discard bay leaf.

Combine milk and flour, stirring with a whisk until smooth. Add flour mixture to pan; bring to a boil. Cook 12 minutes or until thick, stirring constantly. Add clams; cook 2 minutes. Sprinkle with bacon.

Comments:
This is a recipe Adam picked out a while ago. It didn't really turn out so well. It was way too thick. I did quarter the recipe so perhaps that affected things. In any case, not likely to try this again.

Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms

From Taste of Home



Ingredients:
20 to 24 large fresh mushrooms
2 tablespoons finely chopped onion
2 to 3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 pound bulk pork sausage, cooked, crumbled and drained
3 tablespoons seasoned bread crumbs
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes
1 egg white

Directions:
Remove mushroom stems from caps. Set caps aside (discard stems or save for another use). In a small skillet, saute onion and garlic in butter until tender.

In a large bowl, combine the sausage, bread crumbs, Parmesan, parsley and egg white. Stir in onion mixture. Fill the mushroom caps; place in a lightly greased 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pan.

Bake at 350° for 10-15 minutes or until mushrooms are tender and tops are browned. Yield: about 2 dozen.

Comments:
Stuffed Mushrooms were on a sale a few weeks back at the grocery store so they were on the forefront of Adam's mind. And since we had some extra sausage when I made another batch of the family pleasing pizza I figured what the hey. These were pretty simple and since Adam has eaten every last one of them I guess they tasted ok too. I set my bar pretty low.

Pork Schnitzel

From Taste of Home



Ingredients:
6 boneless pork cutlets (1/2 inch thick and 4 ounces each)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons seasoned salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 eggs
1/4 cup milk
1-1/2 cups dry bread crumbs
2 teaspoons paprika
6 tablespoons vegetable oil

Directions:
Flatten pork cutlets to 1/4-in. thickness. In a shallow bowl, combine the flour, seasoned salt and pepper. In another bowl, beat eggs and milk. In another bowl, combine bread crumbs and paprika. Dip cutlets into flour mixture, then into egg mixture, then into crumb mixture.

In a large skillet, cook pork in oil, a few pieces at a time, for 3-4 minutes per side or until meat is no longer pink. Remove to a serving platter; keep warm. Yield: 6 servings.

Comments:
We actually used a flavored pork tenderloin to make this schnitzel. It turned out pretty well although I wasn't much of a fan. Then again, I'm not too keen on most pork. Bacon excluded. :) I just ate a lot of Stove Top. Yum.

Teriyaki Burgers

From Taste of Home



Ingredients:
1/2 pound lean ground beef
2 hamburger buns, split
4 slices deli ham (3/4 ounce each)
2 pineapple slices
3 tablespoons reduced-sodium teriyaki sauce

Directions:
Shape beef into two patties. Grill, covered, over medium heat for 4-5 minutes on each side or until no longer pink. Serve on buns with ham, pineapple and teriyaki sauce. Yield: 2 servings.

Comments:
I was a little hesitant with the teriyaki sauce, never having cooked with it before. I probably could have gone a little heavier with it. You could hardly taste it at all. Other than my constant problem of making the burgers way too small for the buns, this was a successful dinner.

Adam Makes More Pies

For the Pumpkin:
Ingredients:
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
2 large eggs
1 can (15 oz.) 100% Pure Pumpkin
1 can (12 fl. oz.) Evaporated Milk
1 unbaked 9-inch (4-cup volume) deep-dish pie shell
Whipped cream (optional)

Directions:
Mix sugar, cinnamon, salt, ginger and cloves in small bowl. Beat eggs in large bowl. Stir in pumpkin and sugar-spice mixture. Gradually stir in evaporated milk. Pour into pie shell. Bake in preheated 425° F oven for 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350° F; bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack for 2 hours. Serve immediately or refrigerate. Top with whipped cream before serving.


For the Pecan:
Ingredients:
1 cup Karo® Light OR Dark Corn Syrup
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) pecans
1 (9-inch) unbaked or frozen deep-dish pie crust

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Mix corn syrup, eggs, sugar, butter and vanilla using a spoon. Stir in pecans. Pour filling into pie crust. Bake on center rack of oven for 55 to 60 minutes. Cool for 2 hours on wire rack before serving.

Comments:
He liked the pumpkin so much the first time he made a couple more. He also made pecan because, I don't know, he was struck by the desire to do so. Whatever works. He took one of each to a Thanksgiving potluck at his work. They were a hit. That other thing in the middle there is a loaf of sourdough bread. I'm not sure how that turned out. I didn't get to eat any of it.