Dinner

CHICKEN PACKETS

1 package of cream cheese (softened)
1 1/2 cups chopped leftover chicken or turkey
2 tbsp mayonnaise or yogurt or sour cream (whatever is in the fridge)
1 tbsp chives or chopped onion
1 tbsp milk
salt and pepper to taste
2 Pillsbury crescent roll packages
melted butter
Italian bread crumbs, regular bread crumbs, crushed croutons, whatever you have that resembles crumbs :)

Take the two packages of Pillsbury crescent rolls. Use the crescent roll dough and form approximately 8 - 10 circles. Mix the ingredients above and divide evenly among the dough circles. Roll up and pinch to close. Dip in butter or margarine and then into the crumbs.
Bake on a sprayed cookie sheet until golden brown.
We enjoy a salad with these. The best thing about this recipe is that crescent rolls have an expiry date of usually almost 2 months, as does cream cheese. I keep them both in my fridge for a rainy day. I also bag leftover chicken or turkey and put in freezer for this meal.

Here is one of our favorite, fresh from the garden meals. If you have a zucchini hater, you really can't taste it much. My whole family absolutely loves this:

GARDEN SUPPER

1 medium zucchini, quartered and sliced
1 onion, diced
6 medium tomatoes, diced (or one large can tomatoes)
1 can mushrooms, drained
1 clove garlic, minced, or dry garlic to taste
Salt and pepper to taste
12 oz noodles (we like the three-color spiral noodles)
Parmesan cheese (fresh grated is VASTLY superior to the stuff in a shaker can...I buy a huge wheel and grate it and keep it in a freezer bag...YUM!)

Saute the zucchini and onion in a little olive oil till soft. Add the remaining ingredients except the noodles and heat through. Add a little water to make it "saucy" if necessary. Meanwhile, cook the noodles and put in a 13x9 pan. Mix in the sauce and top with cheese. Put in a warm oven till cheese is melted and then watch it disappear. My family of seven eats this whole pan (oldest 10yo, youngest 8mos, but he does eat some of it!) so adjust amounts accordingly. You can also throw in other veggies, like green beans, etc.

These freeze really well. I often double the recipe and freeze one panful for another time.

2 1/2 c. chopped, cooked chicken
16 oz. sour cream
1 1/2 c. shredded cheddar cheese
1/3 c. chopped onion
12 flour tortillas
1 1/2 c. salsa

Combine chicken, 1 c. sour cream, 3/4 c. cheese, and onions. Mix well. Soften tortillas in the microwave (just stack them on a plate and cover with a moist paper towel and zap for a minute or so.. to make soft enough to wrap and not crack). Top each tortilla with 1/4 c. chicken mixture and roll tightly up. Place seam side down in a greased 9x13. Top all these with salsa. (freeze at this point if you want to) Bake at 375* for 25 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining cheese and top with sour cream.

And while I'm at it [says Debbie vdH], here is another easy and yummy chicken recipe I found while searching for the enchilada one. I have to double this for our family.

1 T. oil
1 lb (about 3) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips
16 oz jar thick and chunky picante or taco sauce
12 soft taco shells (or tortillas)
1 c. shredded lettuce
1 c. shredded cheddar
1/2 c. sour cream

Heat oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add chicken, cook and stir until no longer pink. Stir in picante sauce, reduce heat to medium and simmer 10-12 minutes. For some reason, it says if using taco sauce, to increase simmer time to 20 minutes...I have no idea why.

Fill each shell with 3 T. chicken filling. Top with lettuce, cheese and sour cream.

I just put the skillet of chicken-picante mixture in the center of the table, with bowls of lettuce and cheese and sour cream on the table, and the plate of warmed taco shells, and everyone assembles their own the way they like it.

MEATBALL SUB CASSEROLE

1/3 c. chopped green onion
1/4 c. seasoned bread crumbs
3T. Parmesan cheese
1 lb. ground beef
OR in place of all the above, you can use pre-made meatballs from SAMS...a real time-saver
1 loaf Italian bread cut into 1" slices (I made my own and it worked fine)
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/2 c. mayo (the original recipe says not to use light or fat free, I did use light, and it turned out just fine...so I'm not sure why)
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 c. shredded mozzarella
28 oz. jar spaghetti sauce
1 c. water
2 cloves garlic, minced

1. In a bowl combine onions, crumbs and Parm. cheese. Add beef and mix well. Shape into 1 inch meatballs. Place on a rack in a shallow baking pan, and bake at 400* for 15-20 min. or until no longer pink. OR Just use the pre-made ones :) you do not even need to reheat them at this
point.

2. Meanwhile, arrange bread in a single layer in an ungreased (I did grease, you decide) 9x13 baking pan. You will probably not use all the bread.

3. Combine cream cheese, mayo, and seasonings, and spread this mixture over the bread.

4. Sprinkle with 1/2 c. mozzarella (I used more)

5. Combine spaghetti sauce, water, and garlic. Add in meatballs. (I added the frozen pre-made ones and just simmered it awhile on the stovetop while I was doing the steps above). Then pour over the cheese mixture.

6. Sprinkle with remaining cheese and bake uncovered at 350* for 30 minutes.

PIZZA CASSEROLE

1 c. dried lentils
4 c. water
salt
1 lb. ground beef or sausage
1 med. onion, chopped
1 jar (28-32 oz) spaghetti sauce (our favorite is Ragu chunky vegetable Primavera)

Crust:
4 c. cold cooked rice (any kind)
4 eggs, beaten
1 c. small curd cottage cheese
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese
1 1/2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese

Combine lentils and water in a pot, bring to a boil, cover and simmer 30 minutes, or till tender. Drain. Return to pot and mash. Add salt to taste. Saute beef or sausage and onion until meat is browned. Drain. Season to taste. Add mashed lentils and spaghetti sauce, blend well and set aside.

For crust, combine rice, eggs, cottage cheese, and cheddar cheese, mix well. Spread this in a greased 9x13 baking dish, pressing rice mixture up the sides to form a crust. Spread meat mixture inside this crust. Top with mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. Bake 350* for 40 minutes or until hot and bubbly. NOTE: for a softer cheese topping, bake casserole about 25 minutes without cheeses, then top with cheeses and finish baking.

This recipe feeds six.

2 cups chicken- cooked, deboned, and cubed
1 cup of chicken broth
2 cans cream celery soup-no water added
2 cans mixed vegs-do not drain
salt and pepper to taste

Mix together so that you have no soup lumps and chicken and vegs are evenly distributed in a 13 x 9 casserole dish.

1 cup Self Rising flour
1 cup Buttermilk
1 stick margarine or butter-melted

Whisk this together until smooth and spoon onto the top of the chicken and vegs. It will sorta float on the broth.
Bake 350 degree oven for about 45 minutes until the topping is golden brown and either like a biscuit or dumplings.
This can be made ahead and frozen without the topping and then just thawed topping put on and baked.

Buy 5 lb. of cracker meal (keep the excess in the freezer in a sealed container for when you make this again) and buy 3 lb. of freshly ground pork shoulder (it's important that it's shoulder). you'll need eggs too - @ 6 - 12 total.

I'll give you this step by step - it was hard for me to figure out before I finally sat down and worked out how to actually make these!

1. Open the pork and set it out first.
2. Put @ 1 - 2 lb. of the cracker meal into a large deep bowl and set it out second.
3. Beat 3 eggs and put them on a dinner plate and set it out third.
4. Line a cookie sheet with wax paper or saran wrap and set it out fourth.

To make the cutlets:
1. Using two TBL, scoop up some of the pork and drop it into the cracker meal. Roll it around with the spoons so it gets cracker meal all over it and you can pick it up without having pork stick to your hands everywhere.

2. Roll it kind of like a playdoh ball. Keep dropping it into the cracker meal as needed so it isn't sticky. Now sort of pat it out to about the size of a hamburger patty in your hands and lay this in the egg plate.

3. Using a spatula or tongs, turn this over in the egg so both sides are coated, then drop it back into the bowl of cracker meal.

4. Scoop some cracker meal over the top of it so you can't see it (you'll be able to feel where it is). Now press down with your hands to flatten out this mound. After a few pushes, turn this over and press some more. Then finally, pick it up and finish flattening it out with your hands *in* your
hands. The right thickness is a little thicker than two computer cd's stacked together. The whole thing is coated with cracker meal.

5. Lay the veal on the cookie sheet and make the rest - you'll fit @ 7 on one cookie sheet.

6. Put the cookie sheet into the freezer and let these get hard for about 35 minutes, then put them into a freezer bag and seal it.

This recipe will make @ 36 cutlets total.

TO cook the veals:
1. Heat the oil up in a cast iron skillet VERY hot.
2. Drop in the cutlets with tongs CAREFULLY.
3. Cook until brown on one side, then flip and brown on the other side.
4. Drain on a paper towel a couple of minutes, then salt slightly and put on buns, and serve however you like (most people here eat them with ketchup, mustard, and extra pickles).

These will keep in the freezer for a while - I'd guess 3 months or so.

You might try substituting ground meat of any kind - hamburger, turkey, venison, emu, ostrich (OK, I just got back from the State Fair, can you tell?) - or a combination of them for a different, delectable dinner.

Are y'all getting tired of grilled hotdogs 'bout now? Then try.... COW ON STICK, aka Marinated Flank Steak (my husband is the culprit for the name. It looks like the marinated grilled meat served in the Philippines which sailors call "Monkey on a Stick").

Juice of one lemon
2T Worcestershire Sauce
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 large clove of garlic
3T olive oil
several stalks of chopped green onion
2T celery seed
2T Dill weed
1t ground black pepper
1/4 cup red cooking wine (I use more)

Mix ingredients together in 9x13 pan Cut flank steak across the grain into thin strips, then place in marinade. Cover, let marinate for 6-12 hours (the longer the better!) in the refrigerator. Before grilling, thread strips of meat on shish-ka-bob skewers. (I use bamboo type skewers--3 lbs of flank steak makes about 25 "sticks.") Grill. Alternatively, you can marinate the whole flank steak in the marinade, and grill whole. Slice thin to serve.

In a plastic bag combine the following: 1 egg, beaten; 1 cup buttermilk; 1-1/2 t. garlic powder. Cut 6 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts into half inch strips and place in the bag. Refrigerate for 2-4 hours.

In another bag combine the following: 1 cup flour; 1 cup seasoned bread crumbs (I've substituted wheat germ for half); 1 t. salt; 1 t. baking powder.

Drain chicken, discarding buttermilk mixture. Place chicken in the bag with the flour mixture and shake to coat. The original recipe says to fry in an electric skillet on 375 for 4-5 minutes. I bake mine in the oven in 3 T. melted butter at 375 for 25 minutes. Turn the chicken after the first 10 minutes. My family gobbles these up! I hope you enjoy them!