Chicken Parmesan (kind of)

Bonnie,  check out this Chicken Parmesan recipe.  It's definitely not gourmet food, but it's fast, simple, and flavorful.

Preheat the oven to 350 deg.

Start with our favorite easy sauce.

    2 Cans 8 oz. tomato sauce
    1 tsp dried basil
    1/2 tsp dried oregano
    2 Tbsp butter

Mix all ingredients and heat slowly until the butter melts and all ingredients are blended.

Get out the bag of frozen chicken patties (doesn't everyone have some in the freezer?).  Fish patties or breaded fish fillets are also very good,

Thaw and brown some chicken patties in a frying pan on medium low heat.

Place the patties in a greased backing dish.  Cover the patties with sauce and add some mozzarella cheese.  I use whole milk mozzarella cheese for it's great flavor.

Put the dish in the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes, until the cheese is sufficiently melted.

When the cheese has melted to your liking, switch the oven to broil and slightly brown the cheese.

Put it on a plate, or in a bun with more sauce and enjoy.

Thai Yellow Curry

Hey there Ormond! Remember that awesome yellow curry I had at the Kojin Noodle Shop in Key West?  Well, after some experimentation I finally devised a worthy replica.

I know that you're a purist -- totally devoted to the Hairy Bikers' Great Curries cookbook -- so you'll scoff at my shortcut of using green curry paste.  The flavor was perfectly balanced though, and the jarred paste makes a great substitute when you don't feel like spending all that prep time. One day I'll make Yellow Curry using the Bikers' green curry paste, just to compare.

My Yellow Curry calls for a nice variety of vegetables.

Thai Yellow Curry

Course: Main Dish
Categories: Curry
Source: Bonnie Doty

Serving size: 4 bowlfuls with no seconds or leftovers

Ingredients
2 boneless, skinless chicken breast fillets
1 tablespoon coconut oil
1 can coconut milk (not crème de cacao)
2 tablespoons green curry paste
1 tablespoon demerara sugar
1 tablespoon fish sauce (nam pla)
1 tablespoon cornstarch + 1/4 cup water [Optional: to thicken soup]
1 carrot, julienned
1/2 yellow or orange bell pepper, julienned
1 stalk celery, julienned
1/2 cup shredded cabbage
1/4 cup red onion, chopped
1 teaspoon minced garlic
4 servings cooked jasmine rice (2 bags Boil-in-Bag)
fresh cilantro leaves, chopped (optional)


Directions
1. Cut up chicken breasts into bite-sized chunks, about 1" square.  Heat a big heavy skillet on medium high; when hot (lick finger and touch surface; if it sizzles and burns, it's ready), add the oil and heat until shimmering.  Add the chicken and turn heat down to medium.  Sauté chicken 10 minutes until no longer pink, stirring frequently and keeping in a single layer.  With a slotted spoon remove the chicken and set heavy pan aside (do not drain).

2. In a small saucepan add coconut milk, green curry paste, sugar and fish sauce.  Slowly heat until simmering.  Reduce heat and let stand, or remove from burner and keep warm. Cut up vegetables while sauce is cooking.

3. After vegetables are prepared, start the rice. To make the rice, follow the package directions.

4.  While the rice is cooking, add prepared carrot, bell pepper, cabbage, onion and garlic to the chicken-cooking pan and sauté  gently about 5 minutes.  When cooked to taste add chicken.

5.  [OPTIONAL] Stir 1 tablespoon cornstarch into 1/4 cup cold water in a small dish until well combined. Ladle a bit of coconut milk mixture into the dish and stir.  Add the contents of the dish to the coconut milk mixture, sitting on the stove, and stir to combine.  Add the mixture to the chicken-vegetable sauté pan.

6. Heat to simmer.  The liquid should not be too runny but should also be thin enough to provide a thick soup when combined with the rice.

7. Ladle 1/4 rice into big bowls; ladle 1/4 curry mixture over the rice.  Top with fresh chopped cilantro.

Notes

Normally curry calls for basmati rice but this jasmine rice made my Yellow Curry sensational.

Can use brown sugar instead of demerara if that's what you have.

If you are really aiming for serving four people you should double the recipe.  I don't know too many people who wouldn't ask for seconds of this!

Mrs. Doty's Pumpkin Cake

Kid-friendly pumpkin cake. Not everyone likes pies!

Hi Ormond!  Remember this cake from Thanksgiving? You probably know I've been making this recipe every Fall since 1996 or so. I've changed it up a bit over time, removing some of the sugar and substituting butter for margarine, and these days it tastes even better!

The "crust" layer is simply cake mix, melted butter and an egg.

Made in a 9 x 13" pan, this cake feeds 12 to 15 people, making it a great dessert for a party. It's moist like a pie but has all the substance of a cake, so people who aren't pastry crust fans will eat every morsel.

Assembled ingredients for the pumpkin layer.

The pumpkin layer is very similar to a pumpkin pie, which is my second favorite pie in the whole world. What's my first favorite pie? Buttermilk pie, of course. As the story goes, when I was a very little girl my grandmother always made two pies for Thanksgiving: one was pumpkin and the other, a buttermilk pie, I called Plain Pie. I'll post the recipe for Plain Pie and the history behind it later.

Combine the sugar and spices with the pumpkin, just like pumpkin pie.

You can make this recipe by hand but be sure to whisk the eggs well.

Back in the late 90s I threw a mother/child Halloween luncheon for all the moms and kids in our neighborhood and this cake was what I served for dessert, along with iced cut-out cookies for the little ones who might not like pumpkin.

Smooth the pumpkin layer to make sure it's distributed evenly.

Since you're not a dessert fan, Ormond, whenever I make this cake and have leftovers, the cake calls to me from the fridge. Did you know pumpkin tastes great for breakfast? I power-snack this cake until it's gone from my sight and mind. I wish you liked dessert so I didn't have to scarf down the leftovers all alone.

Ready for the last layer.

Real butter and demerara sugar make the crumbles layer taste so much better!

Cutting in the softened butter, like you would a pastry dough.

Sprinkle the crumbles all over until the pumpkin layer is covered.

Three layers of yum ready to pop in the oven.

Baking this cake releases the wonderful spicy aromas of cinnamon, ginger, and cloves that we associate with Fall and cooler weather. It's a great "Welcome Home" recipe, especially if you bake it right before guests arrive.

The finished cake, cooling on the table.

Wasting no time, I dig right in to have a taste.

Delicious Pumpkin Cake!

Mrs. Doty's Pumpkin Cake

Ingredients

1 package yellow cake mix (remove 1 cup and reserve)

1/2 cup butter, melted

4 eggs

1 29-ounce can pumpkin

1 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

2/3 cup milk

TOPPING:

1 cup reserved cake mix

1/4 cup demerara sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 cup butter, softened

Procedure

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9" x 13" baking pan with Pam.

2.  In a medium bowl mix the cake mix (minus the 1 cup), melted butter and one of the eggs until combined. Press into the bottom of the pan.

3.  In a large bowl combine the pumpkin, sugar, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, three eggs and the milk until well mixed and smooth. Pour evenly over the crust layer.

4.  Combine the topping ingredients loosely and sprinkle crumbles over the top of the pumpkin layer.

5.  Bake 50 minutes or until a knife comes out clean.

Makes about 12 servings.

Mrs. Doty's Pumpkin Cake makes a great dessert for a gathering.