Thursday, December 20, 2007

Super easy roasted dinner for company


This is a great, delcious dinner that is so simple to make. You can put it together the night before and just move it from fridge to oven. Stir a few times and voila!

6 chicken legs
4 large potatoes (or 3 potatoes and a few turnips), cut in large cubes
6 carrots, sliced into thick rounds
6 onions, peeled and quatered
6 cloves garlic, peeled
Italian dressing (bottle or made from mix)
lemon (opt)
rosemary (opt)
salt

Place veggies in a large baking dish. Pour Italian dressing over them - the amount is up to you. You want enough to moisten them well, but no need to drown them.

Place chicken on top of veggies and brush generously with dressing. Squeeze lemon over it all.

(If preparing for the next day, cover and refrigerate now.)

Bake in preheated oven at 350 degrees. Stir every 20 minutes or so. Add more dressing if veggies begin to dry out. Bake until veggies are soft with crisp edges and chicken is 180 degrees at thickest point. Sprinkle with salt and rosemary just before serving.

Chewy oatmeal raisin cookies



3/4 cup butter
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup white sugar
1 egg
1/4 c water
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups oats
1 cup flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves

Cream butter and sugars until fluffy. Add egg, water and vanilla and beat well.

In a separate bowl mix together oats, flour, salt, baking soda and spices. Stir dry ingredients into wet. Mix in drained raisins.

Drop on a cookie sheet by small spoonfulls. Bake in preheated oven at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Serve with milk for dunking.

Spinach and bacon tarte



1 recipe Kari's favorite pizza dough

Spread out the dough to make a thin crust. Let rest while preparing toppings.

Mix together:
1 cup steamed spinach, drained and chopped
1/3 cup fromage en faiselle, creme fraiche, ricotta or sour cream
1/2 cup goat cheese
2-3 cloves crushed garlic
pinch of nutmeg
pinch of salt

Top with:
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
8-10 slices bacon, crumbled
sun-dried tomatoes (opt)

Bake in preheated oven at 425 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until crust is browned.

Italian dressing from scratch

1 tablespoon garlic salt
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons oregano
1 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon basil
1 tablespoon parsley
1/4 teaspoon celery salt
1 tablespoon salt

In a small bowl, mix together the garlic salt, onion powder, sugar, oregano, pepper, thyme, basil, parsley, celery salt and salt. Store in a tightly sealed container.

To prepare dressing, whisk together 1/8 cup white vinegar, 1/8 cup balsamic vinegar, 2/3 cup olive oil, 2 tablespoons water and 2 tablespoons of the dry mix.