Mashed Potato Pancakes

Having mashed potatoes left over is normal, but they never reheat the same. So, I have begun making them into potato pancakes and they are very good.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups mashed potatoes
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan Cheese
• sea salt
• black pepper
• 1 tsp. canola oil

Directions:

1. heat the oil in a non-stick skillet on medium-high
2. mix all ingredients well
3. drop spoonfuls of mixture into the skillet and flatten each with a spatula
4. cook until golden brown - about 3 minutes on each side

makes 6 pancakes

Cauliflower/Leek Gratin

Ingredients:

• 1 head cauliflower, cored and cut into florets
• 2 leeks, end and dark green removed, cut into 1/2 inch circles then halved
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 tbsp. all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan
• sea salt
• black pepper
• 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
• 1 tbsp. butter, cut into 1/4 inch squares

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. In a large bowl, combine cauliflower, leeks, cream, 3/4 cup Parmesan and mix well
3. Add salt and pepper to taste
4. Transfer mixture to a 2 qt. baking dish, cover tightly with foil
5. Bake 30 minutes
6. In a small bowl, combine breadcrumbs with 1/4 cup Parmesan
7. When baking has completed, spread the breadcrumb mixture evenly over the cauliflower and leeks
8. Dot with the butter
9. Return to oven and back another 10-15 minutes until topping is golden brown

Serves 6

Slow Cooker Spinach Alfredo Lasagna

Ingredients:

• spaghetti sauce:
• 2 tsps. olive oil
• 1/2 small onion, chopped fine
• 2 tsps. minced garlic
• 28 oz. peeled an diced tomato
• 4 tsps. basil
• 4 tsp. oregano

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a large sauce pan
2. Add onion and garlic
3. When onions are clear, add tomatoes, oregano and basil
4. Bring to a boil and simmer about 20 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• Spaghetti sauce made ahead
• 8 oz. lasagna noodles, cooked less than package instruction until just limp
• 15 oz. ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper
• 32 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese
• 10 oz. chopped spinach, cooked, drained and dried
• 15 oz. Alfredo sauce

Directions:

1. Cook the beef, onion and garlic in a large skillet until meat is browned
2. Add spaghetti sauce
3. Cook until warm
4. Combine ricotta and Parmesan cheeses and add pepper
5. Spread 1 cup of mixture in a slow cooker
6. Layer 4 noodles over the meat
7. Layer 1/2 cheese mixture over the noodles
8. Layer 2 cups of mozzarella cheese
9. Layer with 4 more noodles
10. Layer spinach
11. Layer Alfredo sauce
12. Continue to layer rest of ingredients, topping with the remaining mozzarella 
13. Cover and cook on low for 4 hours

8 servings

We ate 2 servings for dinner, plan to have 2 more servings 2 days later, and froze rest in 2 servings each portions.

Chili

Ingredients:

• 5 lbs. ground beef
• 2 lbs. turkey sausage
• 3 tbsp. chili powder
• 1 tbsp. paprika
• 1 tbsp. cumin
• 2 tbsp. garlic salt
• 1/3 tbsp. red cayenne
• 28 oz. peeled tomatoes
• 1 large diced onion

Directions:

1. Put all ingredients into a large pot or slow cooker - simmer on low for as many hours as you have
2. Remove from stove or slow cooker and place in refrigerator
3. Next morning, skim off fat, put back into a large cooking pot and simmer for an hour
4. Taste and add picante sauce and jalapeno peppers to your taste
5. Simmer all day
6. Day 3 - Simmer again, adjusting garlic and chili powder and other spices to your taste

Enjoy on a cold day.

Eggs Florentine

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp. butter
• 1 tbsp. all-purpose flour
• sea salt
• black pepper
• 1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
• 1 cup milk
• 5 oz. baby spinach - roughly chopped
• 4 eggs
• 4 slices beef or turkey bacon (we like the beef better)
• 2 English muffins - split and toasted

Directions:

• Melt butter in a saucepan on medium heat
• Whisk in flour and cook about 20 seconds
• Whisk in milk and mustard and cook until mixture is thickened and smooth
• Add spinach and cook about 2 minutes, stirring to make sure all spinach is wilted and coated
• Cook bacon until done
• Poach eggs to taste, seasoning to taste

Assembly:

• Place 2 halves of muffins on each of 2 plates
• Spoon spinach mixture over each muffin half
• Cut each piece of bacon in half and arrange on top of spinach
• Top each with an egg
• Serve

Serves 2

This one was a real test since it was a merger of 2 totally separate recipes - one for 1 person and the other for 4. I made several changes and it come out very tasty.

Roasted Turnips and Leeks with Parmesan

Ingredients:

• 2 turnips, peeled and cut into 1/2 wedges
• 1 leek, dark green removed, sliced in 1/4 inch pieces
• dash cayenne pepper
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• sea salt
• black pepper
• 1/8 cup grated Parmesan

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees
2. Coat bottom of baking sheet with oil
3. Combine all ingredients and toss so vegetables are coated
4. Arrange turnips and leeks in single layer on the baking sheet
5. Cook 30 minutes - flip vegetables over at 15 minutes
6. Serve

Serves 2

Roasted Potatoes and Carrots with Dill

Ingredients:

• 2 small gold potatoes, cut in half
• 4 carrots cut lengthwise and in half
• Olive Oil
• Sea Salt
• Black Pepper
• Dill

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees
2. Toss potatoes and carrots in olive oil to coat - baggies work well for this
3. Arrange potatoes and carrots on a baking sheet
4. Season with salt and pepper to taste
5. Cover with 2 tsps. dill or to taste
6. Cook about 40 minutes - carrots and potatoes should be tender
7. Serve

Serves 2

Turnip and Potato Mash

Ingredients:

• 2 turnips, peeled and diced (about 1/3 inch each side)
• 2 small gold or new potatoes, diced (about 1/3 inch each side)
• sea salt
• black pepper
• 3 tbsp. butter

Directions:

1. In a medium sauce pan, boil potatoes and turnips in water about 20 minutes - should be tender
2. Drain water, add butter and mash.
3. Add salt and pepper to taste

Serves 2

Sauteed Chicken with Capers

Ingredients:

• 2 boneless chicken breasts
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• sea salt
• black pepper
• 3 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
• 1 1/2 tbsp. butter
• 1 tbsp. capers in brine
• 1/2 tsp. of the brine

Directions:

1. Place chicken breast in Ziploc baggie, seal, cover with a towel and pound with a meat tenderizer to an even thinness
2. Place flour in a bowl, and add salt and pepper.
3. Heat olive oil on medium high
4. Coat the chicken with the flour and cook in the oil until golden brown on each side
5. Remove chicken from oil and place aside - keep them warm
6. Add vinegar to the oil and cook about a minute
7. Add butter, capers and brine to the oil and vinegar, cook until butter is melted
8. Pour sauce over the chicken and serve

Potato and Leek Frittata

Potato and Leek Frittata

Ingredients:

• 4 eggs
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 small leek
• 1 small potato
• sea salt
• black pepper
• 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees
2. Cut dark green and end off the leek, halve it lengthwise, then slice the two halves thinly
3. Cut the potato into cubes - about 1/4 inch each side (I do not peel the potato)
4. Heat the oil in a non-stick, ovenproof skillet over medium heat
5. Add leek and potato to the oil
6. Add salt and pepper to taste
7. Cook about 5 minutes
8. Whisk eggs in a bowl
9. Add eggs and cheese to the skillet and combine all ingredients completely
10. Cook about 2 minutes - just enough to set the eggs
11. Transfer skillet to oven and cook about 10 minutes - top should be set and golden
12. Serve

Makes 2 servings

Polenta and Sausage

Ingredients:

• 2 tsps. olive oil
• 1/2 white onion, thinly sliced
• 1 pound casing-less turkey sausage (regular or Italian - I use regular for breakfast, but Italian for dinner)
• 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• sea salt
• black pepper
• 18 oz. Polenta (we used to call it corn meal mush), sliced into 1/4 inch rounds
• 1/2 cup chicken broth

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. In a large electric skillet, heat the oil.
3. Add onion to oil and cook on medium 5 minutes.
4. Add sausage and cook about 8 minutes - breaking it up as it cooks
5. Add garlic and cook another 30 seconds
6. In a 2 quart baking dish, layer Polenta (on end - not flat) and spoonfuls of the sausage mixture
7. Pour broth over the top
8. Bake for 25 minutes

Serves 4

Fish Sticks

Fish Sticks -- Make your own

Ingredients:

• 3 eggs
• 3/4 lb. tilapia or any white fish - cut into strips 1" by 3"
• 1 cup cornmeal
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup canola oil
• sea salt
• black pepper

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, 2 tsp. sea salt, 1/4 tsp. pepper. Add fish, making sure all portions of the fish are coated.
2. In another bowl, combine the cornmeal and flour. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
3. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. I use an electric skillet for even heating. 
4. Piece by piece, remove fish strips from the egg mixture and dredge in the meal mixture making sure each piece is covered completely and transfer each piece to the skillet. Cook on each side until golden brown - about 6 minutes each side. When done, place on paper towels to drain excess oil.

This made us 4 servings, and reheated well in the oven the next day.