Braided Hot Sandwiches

I should definitely come up with a more creative name for this most delicious meal. Several years ago a woman from church shared a variation of this recipe with me and it has been a family favorite ever since. Basically it is a hot meat and cheese sandwich with anything extra you decide to throw in.

This past week I whipped up six of these (we were sharing four with another family) in not much time at all.

Braided Hot Sandwich

First:

Make your bread dough (a real simple recipe is just perfect).

2 cups hot water
1 Tab. yeast
2. Tab. sugar
1 tsp. salt
4 cups flour
optional: 2 Tab. spices (I used this yummy mix from TJ Max called Parmesan Garlic Bread Dipping Blend)

Let rise about an hour (or stick it in your warmed oven if you are short in time until the dough rises to double).

Then:

Divide dough up. The dough recipe above will make three Hot Sandwiches.
Roll the dough out so it is a nice rectangle (maybe like 10" X 16")
Next use your pizza cutter or knife and make 1 1/2" slices all down the side of the dough (see below)
Then put all your fillings in the inside. This is where you can great creative.
Here are some ideas that I have tried:

--mustard, ham, cheese
--pesto (mixed with ranch), turkey, cheese
--marinara, ham, peperoni, cheese
--meat, cheese
Then you braid the dough. First you fold down the top of the rectangle a bit and then just start "braiding" the dough. Really it is a fake braid because you are just crisscrossing your dough strips.Gently lift of the braided sandwich and lay it on your greased and cornmeal dusted pan. Don't forget this next step...take one egg YOKE blended with 1 T. of water and brush the tops of all the sandwiches. One egg yoke was enough for all six of my sandwiches.
Let rise for a bit (maybe a 1/2 hour or stick in the fridge if you are not wanting to cook them for a couple of hours). Then Bake at 350 degrees until golden brown (probably 15-20 minutes).

They are delicious and look very pretty. If you are a veggie lover you could throw in some sliced olives, red peppers, artichoke hearts, or any other nasty veggie you can think of (just kidding...just I really am just a meat and cheese girl).

Serve with homemade french fries or chips and a tasty salad. Super yummy!

Spaghetti alla Carbonara

I had this dish last night at a church function--so super yummy! She served it in a beautiful dish with sliced toasted bread. Such a yummy flavor and very simple!

Spaghetti alla Carbonara
(Gourmet Magazine)



1/2 lb bacon (or more, thick sliced)
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1/4 cup white wine (or chicken broth)
1 # spaghetti noodles, cooked
3 large eggs
3/4 Cup Parmigiano-Reggiano, finely grated
1/3 Cup Pecorino Romano, finely grated
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cracked black pepper

Brown bacon in pan, then add onions and cook till medium brown (pan will get dark on bottom but don't worry). Add wine (or broth) to deglaze the pan, boil, reducing liquid in 1/2.

Cook spaghetti in salted water till al dente.

In large mixing bowl whisk together eggs, Parmigiano-Reggiano, Pecorino Romano, salt and pepper. Add bacon mixture to this and whisk in.

Drain spaghetti and while hot add to egg/bacon mixture. Toss spagetti to coat (the hot pasta cooks the eggs slightly).

*I added some parsley for color, and shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano on top. Another idea is to add red pepper flakes for some heat.

Cheddar Chicken Pie

Super tasty. Even three of my kids tried it and thought it was good. I called it scrambled egg pie. Birch could even eat it because it only has 3 eggs in the whole pie.

Cheddar Chicken Pie

Ready in an hour or less

3 cups (12 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese, divided

10 ounces frozen or fresh broccoli

1 1/2 cup cubed cooked chicken (or sausage or bacon or nothing)

2/3 cup chopped onion (or a little green onion or nothing)

1 1/3 cup milk

3 eggs

3/4 cup biscuit/baking mix (see below)

3/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

In a bowl, combine 2 cups cheese, broccoli, chicken, and onion (if using); spread into a greased 10 in. pie pan. In an small mixing bowl, beat the milk, eggs, biscuit mix, salt and pepper until smooth. Pour over broccoli mixture. DO NOT STIR.

Bake at 400 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until knife comes clean in the center of the pie. Sprinkle with remaining cup of cheese. Let stand 5 minutes and then serve.

****Since I did not have any biscuit mix I looked up online and found out how to make it. It was SUPER easy.

3/4 cup flour

2 T. powd. milk

1/8 tsp. baking powder

2 T. shortening

I used pre-cooked bacon bits from Costco instead of the chicken and it was very tasty and easy.

Chicken Tortellini Soup

Time to pull the soup ladle out again. The kids actually saw their breath this morning as they walked to school. I actually am not a big soup eater so this means that the following recipe is really worth trying. The recipe was passed on to me by a friend but can't you claim a recipe after you have made it several times and altered it a bit?

Chicken Tortellini Soup


Saute: 1/4 c. onion and 1/2 c. celery in 2 T. water (I actually totally skipped this step)

Stir in: 2 c. milk
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can chicken broth or 2 c. chicken broth
4 boneless chicken breasts, cooked and cut up
1/4 tsp. basil
1/8 tsp. pepper
garlic salt to taste

Heat above and add one package of frozen tortellini (or ravioli noodles are good too) and cook according to the package.

Optional additions: 1 shredded carrot, or steamed broccoli, spinach, or steamed zucchini, or corn

White Bean Chilli

There are two ways to make this--the quick way and the slower cheaper way. The quick way you would use canned beans and diced up chicken breasts. The cheaper way you would cook the beans yourself and use a whole boiled chicken that would then need to be de-boned. I just did the cheaper lengthier method but it was worth the time.



Here is the quick method recipe:

2 T. Olive Oil
1 med. chopped onion
1 minced garlic clove
3 chicken breasts
9 oz. corn
2 cans Great Northern Beans (Navy beans)
7 oz. can green chilies
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. coriander (I didn't have any of this)
1/2 tsp. oregano
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
3 cups chicken broth
3 T. lime juice

Directions: Saute first four ingredients and then add the rest of the stuff in and heat for about 20 minutes.

Toppings: sliced limes, corn chips, sour cream, cheese, salsa

The lengthier method:
Dump about 16 oz. of dried Navy Beans into cold water. Bring to a boil for 2 minutes. Turn off heat. Then let sit for one hour. Next drain the beans and add the chicken broth and seasonings to your beans and cook for about two hours. Meanwhile, cook your whole chicken and de-bone. Once the beans are done cooking add the cooked diced chicken and corn. Serve w/ toppings.

TACO BURGERS

TACO BURGERS

1 lb. ground beef (I used turkey burger)

1 pkt. (1-1/4 oz.) Taco Seasoning Mix

1 can tomato soup

8 hamburger buns, split

BROWN meat; drain. Add seasoning mix and soup. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer 10 min., stirring occasionally.

FILL buns with the meat mixture.

I served them with salsa, lettuce, and cheese; though most of us just had the meat mix and cheese.

Lemon-Pesto Cream Pasta with Chicken

Lemon-Pesto Cream Pasta with Chicken



INGREDIENTS:
2 boneless chicken breast halves sliced thinly
1 whole lemon
Dash of red pepper flakes
2 teaspoons garlic
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth
1 (8 ounce) package pasta (I used bow tie noodles)
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup Pesto
1/2 cup fresh Parmesan
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
Steamed broccoli

DIRECTIONS:

1. Squeeze lemon on chicken breasts and add, garlic, red pepper flakes, and black pepper. Let sit for 1/2 hour.
2. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, season the chicken broth with the remaining garlic and lemon juice. Bring to a boil and add pasta. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until all liquid is absorbed, about 25 minutes. Add more water if the noodles are not done and you run out of liquid.
3. In another pan, heat oil and quickly cook chicken. Add cream, pesto, Parmesan, and lemon zest. Cook, stirring, over low heat for 5 minutes. Add cooked noodles and steamed broccoli. Remove from heat and let stand 5 minutes. Stir thoroughly before serving.

Bread Bowls

Delina's Bread....Bowl style

So, this was totally an experiment-- Delina said we could be creative with the shape of the bread right? So while making soup on Wednesday, I wondered if the recipe would work if I tried to make a bread bowl...here is the pic of the bread while rising

And here is the DELICIOUS final product!! It was SO yummy! and my kids thought I was the coolest because I served them soup in a bowl made of bread! For two or three minutes I was an awesome mom- and then I asked Addison to clear the table and I lost THAT status!





Broccoli Cheese Soup
3/4 cup butter
3/4 cup flour
4-6 cups milk (depending on how thick you like it)
2-3 cups cheese (depending on how cheesey you like it)
1 head broccoli
2 Chicken Breasts
salt and pepper to taste

Bake Chicken and cube. Stem and steam broccoli, cut into small pieces. Melt butter and whisk in flour, add milk and cheese. Cook on low until cheese is melted. Add broccoli and chicken. Cook on low for at least 10 minutes.

Balsamic and Rosemary Roast Pork Loin

Ingredients:

• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp fresh ground black pepper
• 2 tbsp fresh chopped rosemary
• 1 tbsp ketchup
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
  
• 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 cloves chopped garlic
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 2-3 pound boneless pork loin roast

Preparation:

In a small mixing bowl, whisk together all the ingredients, except the pork loin. Place the pork into a plastic freezer bag and pour in the marinade. Press out air, seal the bag, and marinate the pork for 3 hours to overnight.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Take pork out of marinade (save marinade--see below). Sear pork at high heat for 10 minutes and then lower heat to 350 degrees F. Bake until the internal temperature reaches 145-150 degrees (about 50 minutes). Remove and let the pork loin rest for 10 minutes before serving. Slice and serve with some of the marinade drizzled over the top.

(Can be grilled -- wrap in tin foil then grill)

Note: the marinade can be reduced in a saucepan while the pork is resting, if a thicker, more intense sauce is desired. After reduced then pour/spread over cooked loin.

Serve with rice, garlic mashed potatoes, or wild rice.