Martha A. Cheves's Blog, page 82

Saving Berries From Molding

The information below was sent to me by Author Annette Bergman.  I found it too good not to share.
The key to preventing moldy berries...
Berries are delicious, but they're also kind of delicate.  Raspberries in particular seem like they can mold before you even get them home from the market.  There's nothing more tragic than paying $4 for a pint of local raspberries, only to look in the fridge the next day and find that fuzzy mold growing on their insides.  Well, with fresh berries just starting to hit farmers markets, we can tell you that how to keep them fresh!  Here's a tip I'm sharing on how to prevent them from getting there in the first place:  Wash them with vinegar.When you get your berries home, prepare a mixture of one part vinegar (white or apple cider probably work best) and ten parts water.  Dump the berries into the mixture and swirl around. Drain, rinse if you want (though the mixture is so diluted you can't taste the vinegar,) and pop in the fridge.  The vinegar kills any mold spores and other bacteria that might be on the surface of the fruit, and voila!  Raspberries will last a week or more, and strawberries go almost two weeks without getting moldy and soft.  So go forth and stock up on those pricey little gems, knowing they'll stay fresh as long as it takes you to eat them.  You're so berry velcome! Annette Bergman
Author of:
Things That Make Me Nuts
Return To Tybee
Web site:www.annettebergman.com

Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

The original recipe for this soup called for 2 Tbsp. of flour added to the onions for thickening and 3 Tbsp. of sherry.  I omitted both and added the butter to my onions and added celery which wasn't called for in the original recipe.  I also left out the carrots simply because I don't like cooked carrots.  For my chicken I used 2 plump split chicken breasts using this for my broth.  This version gave me a pot full of chicken and rice with just enough broth to make it perfect.  Due to the seasoning mix included with the rice, no salt was needed.  You could add a little garlic and maybe a touch of sage if you want but I found it perfect as it is for my taste buds.  For the full recipe visit Martha's Recipe Cabinet.

Turnip Slaw

I'm not a turnip fan.  I love turnip greens (yes I'm from the south!) but I've never cared for the turnips cooked.  I did love to eat them like you would an apple though.  I would peel, slice, salt and chow down.  To me they had the flavor of cabbage which I love just about any way it can be served.

One of the men I work with brought in 2 five gallon buckets full of raw turnips from his garden.  He didn't eat them and didn't know what to do with them.  I hate to see anything go to waste so I brought some home to see what I could come up with.  Then it hit me.  Like I said, they taste like cabbage so why not make slaw.  I had drop-in company for dinner and decided to see if I could fool them.  I asked both if they liked turnips and both said NO!  I didn't mention them again until after dinner.

I made the slaw using shredded turnips instead of cabbage.  I did realize that the color was all white so I shredded just enough cabbage to add a few specks of green.  Both of my guests raved about the slaw!  After dinner I told both they had just eaten 'Turnip Slaw.'  Neither could believe it.

More Tidbits - Water

Drinking water after eatingreduces the acid in your mouth by 61 percent

Poppy Seed Chicken

This dish came from a site called The Girl Who Ate Everything
It's called Poppy Seed Chicken and this one is a perfect, easy to make, delicious casserole that you must try!  I made this and served it to my drop-in company and they loved it enough to ask for some to take home.  It's that good!  So here it is.

5 cups chicken breasts, cooked and cubed (I used 3 large split breasts)
1 cup sour cream
2 cans condensed cream of chicken soup
2 cps crushed Ritz crackers (about 1 1/2 rolls of crackers)
1/2 cup melted butter
1 Tbsp. poppy seeds

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Place cubed chicken in a 9 X 13 casserole dish.  Stir together the condensed soup and sour cream.  Pour over chicken.  In a separate bowl stir together crushed crackers, poppy seeds and melted butter.  Sprinkle over chicken and sauce.  Bake 30 minutes, until the top of the casserole is browned and the sauce is bubbly.  Serve plain or over rice. 

Additional ingredients can be added when mixing soup and sour cream:
1 tsp. Worchestire sauce
1 tsp. celery salt
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1/4 tsp. pepper

Comments - I made only 1 change when making my dish.  I used 1 can of cream of chicken and 1 can of cream of mushroom soup.  I might try adding broccoli, maybe a sprinkle of cheese in with the crackers and near the end of baking maybe some French fried onions.  But believe me, this dish needs no additions. 

Banana Nut Rum Cake

This idea came to me when I discovered 2 mini-bottles of rum in the cabinet and some bananas that were ripe and needed to be used, quickly.  The 1/2 cup of rum mixed with the bananas gives this cake/bread a deliciously, unique taste.  The only changes I've come up with so far would be to add coconut instead of or with the nuts.  You could use strawberries instead of the bananas or change the flavor of the cake mix.  This is a must try! See the full recipe by going to Martha's Recipe Cabinet

Baked Chicken

One of the men I work with brought a piece of chicken he had cooked to the office and was heating it in the microwave.  The smell was so appealing that I just had to know what he seasoned it with.  Turns out it was quite simple.  He placed his chicken in a dish, mixed Italian dressing and enough Worcestershire sauce to turn the dressing brown.  He then poured this over the chicken and let it marinate.  When he was ready to cook he coated it with McCormick's Grill Mates' Montreal Steak and then grilled.

When I made mine I used 3 split chicken breasts, 1/2 bottle of Italian dressing and 3 Tbsp. of Worcestershire sauce.  I let the chicken marinate all day and since it was raining I decided to cook them in the oven.  After adding my Montreal Steak seasoning I cooked my chicken meat side down in a 350 degree oven until it was done, about 30 minutes.  I then turned it over and cooked an additional 10 minutes to brown the meat side. 

Comments - This chicken came out so moist and so tasty!  If you don't want to use split breasts, use whatever cut of chicken you want just adjust the cooking time.  My co-worker also said he marinates his steaks the same as the chicken before grilling them.  I can't wait for grilling weather to give that a try.

Buitoni's Grilled Chicken and Spinach Cannelloni

Looks good?  Check out my review for this product by going to The Good, The Bad, The Maybe

Key Lime Bars

Looking for a quick but tasty dessert to have on hand for emergencies?  Check out my review for Krusteaz's Key Lime Bars.

Chocolate Chip Puddin

I better hope my daughters don't read this post.  I always make Banana Puddin for the holidays but this year I didn't.  I want one of my daughters to learn and had hoped they would attempt to continue this tradition.  They didn't and therefore were a bit upset because there was no Banana Puddin for Christmas Dinner.  I've told them that they will have to make it from now on.  Well, a friend requested some so I made a big bowl today.  I normally have the perfect amount of pudding and none leftover but for some reason I made too much this time.  What to do with it?  I got creative and came up with a Chocolate Chip Puddin.  This is so easy to make.  It can be worked up in individual dishes for a really attractive dessert or made in a large bowl.  I personally like the individual dish best.

To make - Place vanilla wafers in the bottom of your dish.  Sprinkle with a few chocolate chips, add another layer of wafers, then another layer of chocolate chips.  Continue until your dish is full.  Make your own vanilla pudding or use a package of cook and serve made using the directions on the package.  While still piping hot, spoon over your wafer/chocolate dish.  Top with a couple of wafers and a sprinkle of chips.  Let cook and enjoy.

My 2 food testers that were treated to this dish both loved it.  One said it almost tasted like a chocolate bread pudding.  This is a dish that you can change to fit your own taste.  You can use different flavors of chips - butterscotch would be good.  You can use chocolate pudding and white chocolate chips or maybe peanut butter chips.  You can sprinkle in a few nuts and/or add a scoop of whipping and a cherry for added flavor and appeal.  Again - Think With Your Taste Buds!