A Twist to Green Beans

My daughter hates green beans and over the years i have tried to make them in soo many ways but this is one of two ways she will eat them. (they other way is fresh and stir fried in garlic) This is so easy and the end result is really tasty, even my veggie hating kiddies will eat these : )

2 cans green beans, drained (i used one can french cut and one can kitchen cut)
about 3 teaspoons minced garlic in oil
granulated onion
garlic powder
badia or sazon complete seasoning (i used sazon)
seasoned italian style bread crumbs (i used progresso)
1/2 stick butter or margarine (can use unsalted if desired)


Put beans in a glass casserole or baking dish. Add dabs of butter over top of beans. Sprinkle minced garlic over beans

Sprinkle granulated onion over top of beans

Sprinkle garlic powder over top of beans

Sprinkle with Complete Seasoning and Seasoned italian bread crumbs

Toss gently and bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 20 to 30 minutes

Nana's Potato Pancakes (Placki Kartoflane )

My sister used to visit me with a grocery bag containing potatos, flour, onions and sour creme. These are what she expected me to cook lol. Delicious little potato pancakes. Nana was polish and called them Placki Kartoflane.Poch was her maiden name lol cant get more polish than that . Serve with sour creme or apple sauce

3 large potatoes peeled and cubed to fit in blender or food processor (nana grated them by hand)
1 onion chopped small pieces
1 to 2 eggs (batter should be gooey and not fall apart easy)
salt pepper and garlic powder to taste
a few tablespoons of flour to bind the mix together
sour cream or apple sauce to top em off if desired


1
Put potatoes in blender or processor and turn to a pulpy consistancy. Add onion and seasoning and blend. Add egg and flour. Mix should be gooey and not fall apart easy. If not gooey add second egg. Add more flour for binding if needed. Mix should drop from spoon not pour from it.
2
Heat oil in fry pan and when water beads when dropped in, add mix by large tablespoonfuls to oil. Cook until crispy on one side, then flip over and do the same on other side. (about five or six minutes each side)
3
Transfer to plate with paper towel to catch extra grease. Serve hot so they are crispy when serving. Yop with sour cream or applesauce if desired

Nana's Pierogies

My Nana would take me to my cousin Jeannies house every year to make these. We would roll out the dough and they would let me help cut them, fill them and seal them. I felt like such a big part of the process. However I must say the best part was eating them : )

I enjoy them best with potato and cheese, however you can also fill them with potato and saurkraut or potato and spinich and cheese as well as many other combinations.

Serve them boiled with butter, or pan fried with onions or deep fried like they do at the fairs.

Try them topped with salsa or even pasta sauce. Your imagination is your only limit to how you can fix em up!

My fav way to eat them is pan fried with onions or scallions and lots of butter! Or deep fried then brushed with a bit of butter

Nana always made my tastebuds happy :)

2 1/2 to 3 cups flour
1 egg
3/4 cup warm water
2 t oil
1/2 t salt
POTATO AND CHEESE FILLING
1 1/2 to 2 lbs baking potatoes (i like mine plump so i use more)
2-3 t butter
1 small vidalia onion, chopped fine
1 clove garlic, minced
grated cheddar cheese (amount depends on how cheesy you like yours..so between 4 to 8 oz)
salt pepper and garlic powder


Mix the flour and salt in a deep mixing bowl.

Add egg, oil and water to make a medium soft dough.

Knead dough on a floured surface until the dough is smooth.
Do NOT over knead dough or it will become tough!

Divide your dough into two parts and cover them. Allow to set covered for at least 15 minutes.

Prepare Filling:
Boil potatoes until they are soft. Drain and return to pot.

Melt butter and oil on medium heat, add onion and garlic and cook about 2 minutes. Just till onions are softened. Lower your heat and cook until onions are lightly browned or carmelized. Season with salt and pepper. ( You can add more butter while cooking to avoid the onions burning)

Add onions once they are cooled to potatos. Then add cheese. Mash until all large potato lumps are gone and cheese and onions are blended into potatoes. Add salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste. Set aside.

Prepare pierogies:
Roll the dough out thin on a floured surface. Cut circles using a large biscuit cutter, or the mouth of a large glass. Place a spoonful of potatoe and cheese filling in each circle and fold over to make a half circle. Make sure no filling is near the edges. Press the edges together with your fingers to seal each pierogi. Making sure they are sealed well so filling doesnt come out while cooking. Put filled pierogi on a floured surface and cover with a tea towel to keep them from drying up.

( you can seal them with a little water & press down on edges with a fork to help keep them from coming apart while cooking)

Cooking Pierogies:
COOKING: Drop a few pierogies (about 6)into a large quantity of rapidly boiling salted water. (I add oil to the water to help prevent them from sticking together)
Do not cook too many at a time or they will not cook correctly.
Stir VERY gently with a wooden spoon to separate pierogies and to keep them from sticking to the bottom of the pot or each other.
Boil for 3-4 minutes or until they are puffed up.
Remove pierogies from water with a slotted spoon or skimmer and transfer to a colander to drain completely.
Transfer to a deep dish, and generously add melted butter to prevent them from sticking.

Serve with melted butter and fried onions

To reheat: Pan fry in butter until browned and serve with onions or scallions, or deep fry and brush with butter before serving (I love them this way)


Freezing:If you choose not to cook all the pierogies at this time, you can refrigerate uncooked pierogies for several days or freeze them for several months.

Crisp and Spicy Fried Potatoes

I love everything spicy lol, these I season with cajun spice and I must admit I add a lot! But you can add as little or as much as you want. These are simple and easy and a great addition to any meal! I served them with my Chicken Fajitas the other night : )

Crisp and Spicy Fried Potatoes

                2 lbs red potatoes cut into wedges

                garlic powder, salt, pepper, and cajun spice

                veg oil

                a few pats of butter

Boil potatos for a few minutes but not all the way through. Just long enough to soften them a tiny bit. Then drain well, careful not to bruise (they should not be really soft) Allow to cool off completely.

 

In a large bowl add potatoes and seasoning to taste. I add alot of garlic and cajun spice) and gently toss potatoes till completely covered. Add more seasoning if needed to cover all potatoes.

 

 

In a large skillet heat veg oil and add potatoes. 

 

 

Fry until cooked through and the outsides are browned and crispy. 

 

 

 

Add a few pats of butter to top and gently toss potatoes. Fry a few minutes more. 

 

Stuffed Baby Portobello Mushrooms

Since I will be making these tonight I thought why not post the recipe. There are so many recipes for stuffed mushrooms but my family finds this to be there favorite.

Ingredients:
15 to 20 baby portobella mushrooms. the larger in size the better
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup chopped green onion (3 medium)
1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper
1 1/2 cups soft bread crumbs
2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 tsp complete seasoning
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon butter or margarine
extra virgin olive oil
Grated Parmesan cheese, if desired


1. 1 Heat oven to 350ºF.
2. 2 Twist mushroom stems to remove from mushroom caps. Finely chop enough stems to measure 1/3 cup. Reserve mushroom caps.
3. 3 Melt 2 tablespoons butter in 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Cook chopped mushroom stems, onions and bell pepper in butter about 3 minutes, stirring frequently, until onions are softened; remove from heat. Stir in bread crumbs, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Add melted butter to dampen if necessary. Fill mushroom caps with bread crumb mixture.
4. 4 Melt 1 tablespoon butter in rectangular pan,(I use non stick baking spray) 13x9x2 inches, in oven. Place mushrooms, filled sides up, in pan. Drizzle with olive oil and if desired Sprinkle with cheese. Bake 15 minutes.
5. 5 Set oven control to Broil. Broil mushrooms with tops 3 to 4 inches from heat about 2 minutes or until tops are light brown. Serve hot.

Colcannon, Irish Mashed Potatoes

My kids quite honestly prefer my mashed potatoes to any others but I have this recipe and since I am posting recipes for Saint Pattys day I figure I will include it. Traditionally it was served on Halloween, but now many people make this all the time. I stick to my family famous mashed potatoes but these are quite good also if you are not one of the people who hate cabbage. For more yummy Irish foods you can check out this cookbook,full of yummy Irish recipes! The Art of Irish Cooking

Ingredients:

* 8 to 10 potatoes
* 2/3 cup milk
* 6 scallions
* 1.5 cups boiled green cabbage or curly kale (I use cabbage sauteed in butter instead I like the way it tastes better than boiled cabbage and i am not at all fond of kale)(cabbage should be finely chopped before adding to potatoes)
* 2 tbs butter (melted)
* 1 tbs chopped parsley
* Pepper and Salt to taste


Boil potatoes in cold salt water until tender. Drain well and let dry a bit. Put potatoes back in warm pot and mash.

Boil milk and add to mashed potatoes,then add chopped scallions and beat until fluffy. Toss the cooked cabbage, finely chopped, gently in the melted butter. Add the potatoes, together with the parsley, and fold well. Season generously with pepper and taste for salt.

When serving I make an indent in center of potatoes and add a bit of butter or you can sprinkle with additional scallions or parsley.