Portuguese Bean Soup

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Portuguese-Bean-Soup-II/Detail.aspx

This was very tasty soup. I didn't know what portuguese sausage was though and couldn't find any where I looked, So I used spicy pork sausage instead.

Modifications:

1 lb hot ground pork sausage (instead of 2 lb portuguese sausage)

extra ham to make up for less meat

extra quart of water (though it really should be an extra 2 quarts since most of the liquid was absorbed during cooling)

1 tablespoon of chicken stock base (equivalent to 3 bullion cubes)

For next time:

Add 4 quarts water total.

Add 2 T chicken stock base.

Put in half the amount of pasta called for.

Hamburger and Macaroni

http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/hamburger_and_macaroni/

This was very tasty. I added a green bell pepper (chopped) and sauteed it with the onions since I had one I needed to use. David liked it quite a bit. We put grated cheese on top.

Rugelach (cream cheese cookies)

This is from Joan Nathan's Jewish Holiday Cookbook.

THE DOUGH:

8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

Confectioners' sugar

APRICOT FILLING:

1 cup thick apricot preserves

3/4 cup walnuts, roughly chopped

CHOCOLATE FILLING:

1 cup (about 8 ounces) shaved bittersweet chocolate, preferably imported

1/4 cup sugar

CINNAMON-SUGAR FILLING:

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted

1/2 cup sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1. To make the dough, place the cream cheese and the butter in an electric mixer fitted with the paddle. Cream at a low speed until combined, about 2 minutes. Add the flour and mix until a very soft dough is formed, about 2 more minutes.

Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line 2 cookie sheets with baking parchment.

3. Mix the ingredients for the apricot or chocolate filling and divide the dough into 4 balls. Roll the balls out into 4 circles about 1/8 inch thick and 9 inches in diameter. Spread the apricot or chocolate filling over the dough. If using the cinnamon-sugar filling, brush the melted butter on first, then the combined cinnamon and sugar.

4. Using a dull knife, cut each circle of dough into 16 pie-shaped pieces about 2 inches wide at the circumference. Roll up from the wide side to the center. Place the rugelach on the parchment-lined cookie sheets. Bake in the oven on the middle and lower racks, switching after 12 minutes, also switching back to front. Continue baking about 13 more minutes, or until golden brown. Remove the rugelach to racks to cool. Sprinkle the apricot and chocolate rugelach with confectioners' sugar just before serving.

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DH and I made 1/4 this recipe and used the apricot filling. It was yummy, but the jam oozed out during baking and turned black and gummy, which gave it a burnt flavor. Next year we'll do the chocolate filling instead.

Potato Latkes (pancakes)

This is from Joan Nathan's Jewish Holiday Cookbook.

10 medium russet or baking potatoes

2 medium onions

2 large or 3 medium eggs

1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour, bread crumbs, or matzah meal

Salt and white pepper

Vegetable oil

1.

Peel the potatoes if the skin is coarse; otherwise, just clean them well. Keep them in cold water until ready to prepare the latkes.

2.

Starting with the onions, alternately grate some of the onions on the large holes of the grater and some of the potatoes on the smallest holes. This will keep the potato mixture from blackening. Press out as much liquid as possible and reserve the starchy sediment at the bottom of the bowl. Return the sediment to the mixture. (or use a food processor)

3.

Blend the potato mixture with the eggs, flour, and salt and pepper to taste.

4.

Heat 1 inch of oil in a frying pan. Drop about 1 tablespoon of mixture for each latke into the skillet and fry, turning once. When golden and crisp on both sides, drain on paper towels. Serve with yogurt, sour cream, sugar, or applesauce.

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When I made this for DH and me, I used 4 potatoes (did not peel), 1 egg, 1 onion, and 2 T matzah meal. We ate it all in one sitting.
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Update 12/2012:
I made this with 2 peeled potatoes, big long ones. Like 8 oz each or so. Plus 1 egg and 1 egg white, and 3 T matzah meal. I think I forgot the onion, but it was good still. I didn't realize I'd forgotten it until just now. It was an appetizer for 4 people, with some extra left. I served with sour cream and homemade applesauce (6 peeled chopped gala apples, cooked in heavy pot, added 1/2 tsp chinese 5-spice powder and 1 T lemon juice).

Goulash with Potatoes

This recipe is from the Pressure Perfect cookbook.

3 slices bacon, finely chopped

1 large onion, coarsely chopped

2 T red wine vinegar

2 T tomato paste

1/4 cup sweet paprika

2 t caraway seeds

1.5 cups beer or broth

2 bay leaves

1 tsp salt (omit if using salty broth)

3 lb beef chuck, veal shoulder, or pork shoulder cut into 1-inch chunks

2 lb medium red-skinned potatoes, peeled or scrubbed and halved

1/2 to 1 tsp dried thyme or marjoram

salt and freshly ground pepper

sour cream, for garnish

Heat a 4 qt or larger pressure cooker. Add the bacon and cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until it begins to render some of its fat. Stir in the onions and continue cooking until they begin to soften, about 1 minute.

Stir in the vinegar, tomato paste, paprika, and caraway seeds. Cook for 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Stir in the beer, taking care to scrape up any browned bits sticking to the bottom of the cooker. Add the bay leaves, salt and meat. Set the potatoes on top.

Lock the lid in place. Over high heat bring to high pressure. Reduce heat just enough to maintain high pressure and cook for 16 minutes (beef) or 8 minutes (veal or pork). Turn off the heat. Allow the pressure to come down naturally (takes like 20 min). Remove the lid, tilting it away from you to allow steam to escape.

Skim off fat from top if possible. Remove bay leaves. Stir in the thyme or marjoram and season well with salt and pepper. Let the stew rest for 5 minutes (The potatoes will absorb some of the liquid and thicken the stew.)

Put into bowls and top with dollop of sour cream.

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This could use some carrots or green beans, and more seasoning. The recipe says you could put green beans in at the end during the resting phase, or put carrots in at the beginning and chop them up later (leaving them in larger sections will help them retain more flavor, apparently).

Anyway, it was good and we enjoyed it.

Gyros and Tzatziki Sauce

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Gyros-Burgers/Detail.aspx

http://greekfood.about.com/od/dipsspreadspures1/r/Tzatziki.htm

I used the two recipes posted above to make Gyros with Tzatziki sauce. I halved the sauce recipe. This was very tasty! It was a bit more involved to prepare since I had to make a sauce & meat mixture, but was really good. I also found some thin gyro style wraps (that look like pitas but don't have an air pocket) that were fabulous.

Butternut Squash Pasta Sauce

http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/butternut-squash-pasta-sauce

This was ok. I had butternut squash ravioli once at Trio in Salt Lake City, and this was my attempt to recreate it. It did not work. It would have been better if there had been chunks in it, like crunchy fried onion or garlic, or unseasoned croutons or something. I froze what we didn't use and hope to make it into soup another time.

Navy Bean Soup with Ham

I baked a ham (no glaze). I saved the ham water and used it as stock in this recipe.

Ingredients:

1 lb navy beans (or white..I really can't tell the difference)

4 T oil

2 large onions, chopped

2-3 carrots, chopped

2-3 stalks celery, chopped

3-5 garlic cloves, minced

6 cups chicken broth (or ham broth if you've got it)

3 cups water or broth ((use water if you are going to be clever and boil a ham bone in in the soup to get more flavor). I used chicken broth here. I might have added more so there was enough liquid. I forget.)

2 bay leaves

1 T italian seasoning

2 large potatoes, chopped

chopped ham (2 cups?)

directions:

I think I soaked the beans overnight and then made the beans in the crockpot. Cooked on low for 8 hrs I think, along with ham broth.

Saute onion, carrot, celery, and garlic until softish. Add beans (soaked or fully cooked) and the rest of ingredients. Boil until veges are cooked. (or for 2 hrs if beans were only soaked)

note: (I got this recipe off of the back of the Safeway Navy Beans wrapper. It says to use a 2 lb ham hock and cook it for 2 hrs with all the ingredients (and soaked beans). Then says to remove ham hock, cut ham off of it and return to soup.)

Turkey Chili with White Beans

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Turkey-Chili-with-White-Beans-3090

I have made this according to the directions, as well as in the pressure cooker. It is good either way.

For the pressure cooker:

I browned the turkey and soaked ~1.5 cups dried white beans for 6 hours (longer is fine for sure, soak at least 4 hrs I think though). Rinse the beans. Then I put it all in my 4 quart pressure cooker pot with the rest of ingredients (raw chopped onion) and brought it to pressure, then cooked for 15-20 min, then let sit for 10 minutes off heat (so to let it naturally depressurize), then pulled off the pressure regulator and let the rest of the steam escape. Turned out great.