Potato Gnocchis, from Mashed Potatoes

While I didn't get any pictures of them finished, here they are. I was too busy eating. You can use leftover mashed potatoes and it really is easy.

1. To about 4-6 cups of mashed potatoes, add 1 egg, and 1/2 cup of flour at a time, mix until it has a semi-firm consistency that hold its shape. (About like play dough)
2. Roll out into snakes about 1-2 inches wide and cut into pieces about 2 inches long
3. Turn each cut piece onto its side, pressing thumb in center to make a well
4. In a pot of boiling water, with salt and oil added, drop 8-10 gnocchis in
5. When they float, they are done, drain and serve with your favorite sauce

Meatballs

I made these for meatball subs and for some sauce. Its nice to have spaghetti and meatballs for lunch and this recipe makes a whole lot.

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs ground beef
• 1 lb Italian sausage
• 1 c bread crumbs, regular or Italian
• 1 green pepper
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 medium to large onion
• 2 tbsp worcestershire
• 1/4 c grated romano
• 1 egg

Directions:

• In a food processor, combine garlic, green pepper, and onion, pulse until minced
• In a large bowl, combine above mixture with meats, egg, worcestershire, bread crumbs, and cheese
• Roll into balls and place on baking tray
• Bake at 325 for 30-45 minutes

Dinner Rolls and Scotcharoos (not together though)

Rich and Tender American Dinner Rolls, from p. 455 of the America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook. This is an oldie, I made them at Thanksgiving. I will never go back to Pilsbury rolls, ever. I can't believe how simple they are to make. I wish I had known sooner.

This was my daughter's birthday scotcharoo "cake." I made mushrooms and a cat from marizpan.

Scotcharoos:

Ingredients:

• 1 c. sugar
• 1 c. light corn syrup
• 1 generous c. peanut butter
• 6 c. Rice Krispies cereal
• 1 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 c. butterscotch chips

Directions:

1. Melt sugar and corn syrup in a pan over medium heat until sugar is dissolved--it should not be grainy and should be just about boiling.
2. Add above mixture and peanut butter to cereal in a big bowl, mix well
3. Press into a 9 x 13 pan
4. Allow to cool
5. Melt chocolate and butterscotch chips together on stove top or in microwave, mixing well
6. Spread over cooled mixture, allow time for frosting to set

You can decorate it any way you like.

Phoencian Bread

This is "Phoencian Bread" (pita bread) from my son's history activity book, Story of the World Vol. 1. It is one of the activities from the chapter on Phoencia. We ate ours warm, with honey and the others stuffed with ham and cheese. The latter is not very accurate but it was yummy, escpecially while the bread was warm.

St. Ambrose

This is my take on a Milanese dish, credited to St. Ambrose. I made this for his feast but never got around to posting it.

Ingredients:
Chicken:

• 4 chicken breasts pounded flat
• 1 cup bread crumbs
• sea salt
• 2 tbsp grated hard cheese, like romano or parmesean
• 1 egg
• 3 tbsp water

Sauce:

• 10-12 button mushrooms, sliced
• 1 shallot, minced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 5 tbsp butter
• 1/2 c white wine (I used Chardonay)
• 1/4 chicken broth
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• pepper
• 2 tsp corn starch
• 1/8 c half and half
• olive oil

• 1 lb of pasta boiled, drained

Directions:

1. Pound chicken to about 1/2 thickness
2. Mix grated cheese with breacrumbs, cheese, pepper, and sea salt to taste
3. Beat egg with water
4. Preheat oven to 400 and start water for pasta
5. Coat chicken in egg and then in bread crumbs, placing on an ungreased, rimmed baking tray
6. Cook in oven on 400 for 15-20 minutes

For the sauce:

1. While chicken cooks and pasta boils, sautee mushrooms in a pan with olive oil, butter, shallots and chicken broth over medium heat
2. When mushrooms are tender, add garlic, cook 1-2 minutes, and then add wine
3. Mix cornstarch with cold half and half (I put mine in a cup and stir it around with a fork)
4. Add cornstarch mixture, and stir
5. Season with pepper to tasteServe chicken over pasta with sauce on top, garnish with grated cheese

St. Lucy's Braids

I did not have any little candles for these or candied fruits, so I used M&M's. The recipe was delicious and came from here. I used toothpicks to hold each layer together. It was absolutely delicious, I can't wait to make it again next year.

Chicken Sandwich with bacon, swiss and honey mustard

Ingredients:

• 4 boneless chicken breast, cut in half and pounded to about 3/4 in. thick
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2 c. flour
• 2 c. bread crumbs
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 8 rolls
• 8 sliced swiss cheese
• 8 strips of bacon, cut in half and cooked
• prepared honey mustard sauce

Directions:

1. Mix paprika, garlic powder, salt and pepper with flour
2. Flour chicken, dip into egg and then into bread crumbs, laying on a baking sheet
3. Bake at 400 for 15-20 minutes, turning once
4. Assemble sanwiches, with bacon, swiss and honey mustard.

Spinach and Feta Stuffed-Chicken

Ingredients:

• 4-5 chicken breasts
• 1 pkg. frozen, chopped spinach, thawed and drained of excess liquid
• 8 oz feta cheese, crumbled
• 2-3 strips of bacon per chicken breast
• paprika
• pepper
• toothpicks

Directions:

1. Combine spinach with feta and pepper to taste.
2. Slice chicken breasts down the middle to form a pocket (you could also pound them out)
3. Stuff chicken with filling and seal up with 2-3 tooth picks
4. Wrap 2-3 pieces of bacon around chicken
5. Sprinkle with paprika
6. Bake on 325 for one hour or until juices run clean on chicken
   

Meat Loaf-- My family's way

Ingredients:

• 1 lb bulk Italian sausage
• 2-3 lbs ground beef
• 1 c. Italian bread crumbs
• 1 egg
• 1 medium onion
• 1 large green pepper
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/2 tsp oregano
• 1/2 tsp basil
• 2 tbsp worcestershire
• 1/4 grated parmesean or romano cheese
• 1 15 oz can tomato sauce

Steps:

1. In food processor, add garlic, green pepper, onion, pulse until minced
2. Add all ingredients EXCEPT tomato sauce in a large bowl and mix well
3. Shape into loaf in along pan and pour tomato sauce over the mixture
4. Bake, covered on 325 for about 1 hour or until loaf is firm or thermometer registers 160 in center

Sometimes we serve this with mashed potatoes and spoon the pan sauce over them.

Thankyou Grandma, for passing this one down.