JAMSquared

I have started watching Sandra Lee’s Money Saving Meals. I love how she makes delicious looking food and she tells you how to save money doing it. When Justin visited a few weeks ago, I decided to try out her chicken fried steak with sawmill gravy. Now I’m not a big gravy fan and I would prefer not to slather my food in anything, but THIS GRAVY IS TO DIE FOR. The gravy recipe is true keeper in my book. I also tried her round 2 recipe, cheddar biscuits and gravy, but I wasn’t the biggest fan. The biscuits seemed a little dry. Of course, I cheated and heated up the gravy in the microwave so maybe that made a difference.

Chicken Fried Steak with Sawmill Gravy

Chicken Fried Steak

Source: Sandra Lee

Ingredients:

• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup cornmeal
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 cayenne pepper
• salt and freshly cracked black pepper
• 4 cube steaks, about 1 to 1.25 pounds
• 1/2 cup canola oil

Directions:

In a pie pan, whisk together the egg and milk. In a second pie pan, combine the flour, cornmeal, paprika, and cayenne, salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste.

Season the beef with salt and pepper and dredge the steaks in the flour mixture. Shake off any excess, then submerge them in the milk and egg. Dredge them again in the flour mixture. Make sure both sides are well coated with the egg mixture before dredging them for the second time. Dust off the excess flour and set aside.

Heat the oil in a deep skillet (I used my cast-iron skillet) over medium high heat. Add the steaks and fry until their coatings become golden brown and crisp, about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove them to a plate lined with a brown paper bag or paper towels to drain. Arrange them on servings plates and serve with the Sawmill Gravy.

Yield: 4

Sawmill Gravy

Source: Sandra Lee

Ingredients:

• 12 ounces breakfast sausage, small diced (patties maybe used and broken into small pieces) – I used 16 ounces ground sausage and would recommend using only 12 ounces but I didn’t know what else I would do with the 1/4 pound of sausage leftover from the package.
• 3 tablespoons canola oil
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups milk
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
• salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Directions:

Brown the sausage in a cast iron or heavy-bottomed skillet, over medium heat. When fully cooked, remove the sausage from the pan and set aside.

In the same pan, over low heat, add the canola oil. Whisk in the flour and cook, constantly stirring, until the flour turns a pale golden color, about 5 minutes. Slowly whisk in the milk and thyme and bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the gravy has thickened, about 5 to 10 minutes. Return the reserved sausage to the skillet and season with salt and a generous amount of black pepper. Serve alongside the Chicken Fried Steak.

Yield: 4 + (I reserved 1 cup for the Cheddar Biscuits and Gravy)

A few weeks ago, I wanted something quick to make for dinner. This is the result, Cheesy Beef Pasta. James enjoyed it, so I will be making it again.

Cheesy Beef Pasta

Cheesy Beef Pasta

Source: me

Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground beef
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 10.75-oz. can condensed tomato soup
• 1 10.75-oz. can cheddar cheese soup
• 1 1/3 cups water
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2 cups uncooked variegated spiral pasta
• 1/2 cup shredded cheese (I used Monterrey Jack since that is what I had on had, but feel free to use Cheddar or another variety)

Directions:

In skillet over medium-high heat, cook beef and onion until beef is browned, stirring to separate meat. Add soups, water and Worcestershire sauce. Heat to a boil. Stir in pasta. Cover and cook over low heat 12-15 minutes or until pasta is done, stirring often. Sprinkle with cheese.

Yield: 4-6 servings

I made this for dinner Tuesday night and James really enjoyed it. It is somewhat of a cross between two dishes that are in our regular meal rotation and it will be entering our regular meal rotation. I changed it up slightly to fit what I had on hand.

Chicken 'n' Chips

Chicken ‘n’ Chips

Source: Taste of Home: The Busy Family Cookbook

Ingredients:

• 1 can (10.75 ounces) condensed cream of chicken soup
• 1 cup (8 ounces) sour cream
• 2 tablespoons taco sauce - I used salsa
• 1/4 cup chopped green chilies - I used half a 4-ounce can of chopped green chilies
• 3 cups cubed cooked chicken - I used frozen grilled chicken strips, chopped
• 12 slices process American cheese
• 4 cups broken tortilla chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F.

In a bowl, combine the soup, sour cream, taco sauce and chilies. In an ungreased shallow 2-qt. baking dish (I used a square baking dish), layer half of the chicken, soup mixture, cheese and tortilla chips. Repeat layers.

Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until bubbly.

Yield: 4-6 servings

A few weeks ago, I made this utterly delicious Choco-Holic Cake for my friends when we got together to make cards for the troops.  I actually didn’t make the glaze, as I had run out of time, but the cake was still delicious and so moist. I found the recipe on one of the baking sites I like to go to, VeryBestBaking.com. You can set up an account and put recipes in your recipe box for later perusal.

Choco-Holic Cake

A few nights later, I made Chicken Pasta Toss for dinner and it turned out beautifully. We enjoyed it and James said I could make it again. That’s a big thumbs up from my picky husband.

Chicken Pasta Toss

Chicken Pasta Toss

Source: Taste of Home’s Simple & Delicious, March/April 2008, page 25

Ingredients:

• 10 ounces uncooked spaghetti
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 3/4 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cubed
• 1/3 cup chopped green onions
• 1 teaspoon salt (I use kosher salt)
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/4 teaspoon rubbed sage
• 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• dash cayenne pepper
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley (I used less dried parsley since I forgot to pick up some fresh at the store)

Directions:

Cook the spaghetti according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, saute garlic in butter. Add chicken, onions and seasonings; cook, uncovered, for 3-5 minutes or until juices run clear.

Stir in cream. Bring to a boil. Reduc heat; simmer, uncovered, for 4-5 minutes or until slightly thickened.

Drain spaghetti; toss with chicken mixture. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and parsley.

Yield: 4 servings

I subscribe to posts at Is My Blog Burning, a foodie blog resource. That is how I found out about the Cook’s Book Club hosted by Meena. I finished May’s book mid-month and even cooked a dish inspired by the book the last week of May, but I’m late posting about it, so probably too late to be included in the round-up, but oh well. I really enjoyed the book and I think will need to search for more titles by the author at my public library.

Serving Crazy with Curry by Amulya Malladi is about a family coming together. It starts with Devi, the main character, attempting to commit suicide, but her plan is foiled when her mother Saroj, who has a key to her rented townhome, lets herself in when Devi doesn’t answer so that she can put some mangos in the refrigerator. After leaving the hospital, Devi comes to live with her parents to recover. Not wanting to answer the questions her family is sure to ask, Devi decides not to talk. Instead she starts cooking in her mother’s kitchen. Saroj doesn’t like it, as the kitchen has always been her domain, but she doesn’t do anything about it as she doesn’t want to risk pushing Devi over the edge again. Devi cooks a fusion of south Indian food and a mix of whatever she feels like. In turn, her family rallies around her, enjoying her kitchen creations. They each discover that how they previously defined success and failure aren’t accurate.

Part of the Cook’s Book Club was to cook/bake a dish inspired by the book. Most of Devi’s kitchen creations are Indian fusion dishes, so I thought I’d make make Devi’s Cajun Prawn Biriyani. Never having cooked Indian food before and being fairly limited to taste-testing Indian food, I needed help. So I googled biriyani and came across Route 79‘s Chicken Biriyani dish, which was very useful. Devi’s recipe in the book listed ingredients, but no measurements, so using Route 79′s recipe and my best guess, I came up with the following.

Cajun Prawn Biriyani

Devi’s Cajun Prawn Biriyani

Ingredients:

• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
  
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  
• 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
  
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
  
• 1/8 teaspoon ground oregano (what I had on hand)
  
• 1/4 teaspoon sage
  
• 1/4 teaspoon thyme
  
• 1/4 teaspoon rosemary
  
• 2 cloves minced garlic, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 pound tiger prawns, shells removed
• 1 cup basmati rice
• 3 1/2 cup water, divided
  
• 2 tablespoons butter, divided
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 cardamon pod, split
• 3 cloves crushed
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon (I thought I had some cinnamon sticks, but I didn’t)
• 1/4 cup chopped onion

Directions:

In large ziploc bag, combine onion powder, cayenne pepper, black pepper, white pepper, paprika, ground oregano. Add sage, thyme, and rosemary after pinching between fingers to release goodness of herbs. Add 1 clove minced garlic, Worcestershire sauce and lemon juice. Add prawns, seal bag and toss to coat. Refrigerate 30 minutes to 1 hour.

In a small bowl, combine rice and 1 3/4 cup water. Let sit for 20 minutes. Drain rice, removing as much water as possible. In medium saucepan over low heat, melt 1 tablespoon butter. Saute bay leaf, cardamom seeds, cloves and cinnamon until fragrant. Add onion, saute until softened. Add rice and stir to coat. Add remaining water and bring to a violent boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt remaining butter in large skillet. Add prawns, cook for approximately 3 minutes on each side. Serve over rice

Yield: 4

Overall I wasn’t impressed by the dish. The prawns were too spicy for my liking, but not bad. The rice wasn’t what I was expecting and overall I didn’t care for it. My husband, who loves shrimp, didn’t give his nod of approval for a repeat of this dish in our house. I think I will try basmati rice again (partly because I have some left from my purchase), but I think I will try a more traditional recipe next time.