From the Kitchen - Outside the Nest

Crock Pot Turkey Breast

I hate to remind everyone, but Thanksgiving is a mere 4 weeks and 5 days away.

Canada already celebrated theirs on October 13th.

Today's recipe will get you thinking about that all important day.

And, it just takes a little time to prep, then let it cook away.

I start with the chopped vegies,

which I saute in a bit of olive oil.

 No, 3 cloves of garlic is not too much. Believe you, me, it's just right.

Then I mix the chicken broth base with water.

Meanwhile, back at the stove,

I drop in some flour, and give the vegies a powdery stir.

I add the broth mixture, the sage,

the bay leaf.

Here's what I like to use. I  can find these all year long, and when they're done cooking,

it's all meat, little throw-away.

The turkey breast comes in a nice, neat, little package, all rolled up, with no bone to pick. I place it in the crock pot,

add the vegie broth,let it cook.

Oh the aroma, the smell, the salivating while I wait for it the get done.

Once it's done cooking, I strain the gravy and heat it even more on the stove.

Then slice, serve, and commence to eating.

It's never out of season to eat some bird.

Try it, and you'll say: 

"This is the best turkey breast I ever ate. 

Oh my, how moist. 

How come I didn't know this recipe before?"

Any way you say it, is it ever good.

Happy Saturday

Crock pot Turkey Breast

1 Tbsp olive oil

1/2 of a medium onion, chopped

4 mini carrots, chopped

1/2 of a rib of celery, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

8 Tsp all-purpose flour

1-1/2 Tsp chicken broth/soup base powder

1-1/2 C +2 Tbsp water

1/2 Tsp dried ground sage

1 bay leaf

1 (3-4) lb boneless, rolled turkey breast

Salt and pepper

Heat olive oil in skillet over medium -high heat. Add onion, carrot, celery and garlic and cook until onion is soft, about 8-10 minutes. Stir in flour and cook until golden, about 2 minutes. Stir in soup base, water, sage and bay leaf. Season turkey with salt and pepper, and place in crock pot with skin side up. Pour vegetable mixture over top. Cook on low 5-7 hours, until internal temperature reaches 165°. Remove breast from crock pot and cover with foil to keep warm. Remove liquid from crock pot and strain into small pan. Heat liquid over medium heat until thickened, about 15 minutes. Slice turkey and serve with gravy.

From the Kitchen - Outside the Nest

Cheesecake Shots

These are not to be confused with jello and pudding shots. Which I don't imbibe in.

These are creamy, thick, easy goodies that pleasure the dessert pallet. 

And, I'm still cleaning out my frig before I hop on the moving van.

And, for all my single friends, and even those not so single, who just want a little something at the end of your meal, you're gonna love these. I ga-ron-tee it.

I had a partial pack of cinnamon grahams in the cupboard, so I threw one in the mini-chopper and gave it a whirl. Works great if the crackers aren't so crisp any longer.

Then I sprinkled the crumbs in the bottom of 4-ounce containers. No butter, no baking.

Next comes the cream cheese spread,

powdered sugar,

cool whip. Mix it all together, and divide into the containers, on top of the crumbs.

I topped each with some spreadable fruit, snapped on the covers, and placed them in the frig that I've been trying to clean out.

Neatness doesn't count here. Taste does.

And those plastic containers?

Well, they're the only ones that I kept out of my vast collection of plastic.

My new nest will have glass.

Except for these little gems.

Oh my. It's like eating tangy marshmallow cream with fruit on top and crumbs on the bottom.

2 bites or 3, or even 4 if you are a dainty eater.

Anyway you eat them,

are they ever good.

Happy Saturday.

Cheesecake Shots

1 long cinnamon graham cracker

1/2 C reduced fat plain cream cheese spread

1 Tbsp powdered sugar

1/2 C frozen whipped topping, thawed

3 Tsp spreadable fruit, any flavor

Crush graham cracker into crumbs, divide into the bottom of 3 (4 oz.) containers. Place cream cheese spread into small mixing bowl, stir until softened. Add powdered sugar and whipped topping and mix well. Divide into containers. Add 1 tsp. spreadable fruit to the top of each. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour.  3 cheesecake shots

From the Kitchen - Outside the Nest

Spaghetti Bake Dish

It was really an accident that this recipe developed.

You see, I am getting ready to move to a new nest,

so I need to try to clear out the old nest.

Which means, use up what's in the refrigerator and freezer. 

This is really just something I threw together,

and well, I'll be making this again and again,

especially during casserole season, also known as fall thru the following spring.

I started by chopping some green pepper and red onion that I had in the freezer. I added a clove of fresh garlic.

Next came that lonely quarter pound of ground beef,

waiting to be grilled. Sorry, not this time.

Then I added the part of a can of diced tomatoes and black beans that I had left over from the batch of Southwest Chicken Soup that I featured several weeks ago. Next came that dab of salsa that had no chips to go with it. Yummy.

While that was going on, I was cooking up a handful of  whole wheat spaghetti to el dente. I think that means just until you can put a dent in it. In other words, it's going to have a little chew to it.

I poured my meat concoction over the dented spaghetti,

added sour cream and messed it around,

topped it with shredded cheddar, and baked it.

Youza, this is really, really tasty.

Add a green vegetable, and there you got it.

Any kind of meat would work. The black beans are added protein. There are vegetables in the mix.

Any way you bake it, is it ever good.

Happy Saturday

Spaghetti Bake Dish

1 ounce whole wheat spaghetti

1/4 pound ground beef

1 Tbsp chopped green pepper

1 Tbsp chopped red onion

1 clove garlic, chopped

1 C canned, diced tomatoes

1 C drained black beans

1/4 C salsa

1/4 C fat free sour cream

1/2 C reduced fat shredded cheddar

Preheat oven to 325°. Spray a one-quart casserole with cooking spray, set aside. Prepare spaghetti according to package directions, until el dente. Drain. In small skillet sprayed with cooking spray, sauté green pepper, onion and garlic, until soft. Add the tomatoes, beans and salsa, heat through. Place spaghetti in prepared casserole dish, top with meat mixture and sour cream, and stir. Top with cheese, cover and bake 25-30 minutes, until heated through and bubbly, and cheese is melted. 3 servings

From the Kitchen-Outside the Nest

Coconut Krispies

A long time ago, in a far-off land, which was the house that I resided in prior to the house I am currently residing in, I had a recipe kinda like this one. The original recipe used butter-flavored oil.

I lost the recipe. Probably because when I moved to this current home, I down-sized my cookbook collection.

The only thing that I could do was try to recreate the recipe all on my own.

After numerous tries, I have something quite similar.

I start with brown sugar. I make my own by squiggling molasses into granulated sugar and mixing it with a fork. No more hard, lumpy brown sugar hiding in the cupboard.

 I add the plain granulated sugar after the brown is mixed.

Then the oil. I use olive oil. Yes, that's right. Olive oil. Vegetable or canola oil can be used as well.

Mix it together, add the egg.

Measure the vanilla very carefully by tipping the bottle up and adding a dollop. Or, you can follow the recipe and measure it out exactly.

The leavening is next,

then the butter sprinkles(which I get from the local Amish store),

along with the flour, coconut, krispies, and chocolate chips. (sorry, I didn't take the picture sideways. It uploaded that way).

 Mix. Taste. 

You gotta taste the cookie dough.

I think that's a law or something.

I haven't died yet from eating raw cookie dough.

Put 'em on the pan, slip them in the oven.

You're gonna wanna bake them until they have nice golden-brown cheeks.

And there you have it.

Try them, you'll like them.

Are they ever good.

Happy Saturday

Coconut Krispies

1/2 C Olive oil                                   

1/2 C brown sugar                   

1/2 C granulated sugar                     

1/4 C liquid egg product or 1 egg     

1 Tsp vanilla extract                          

1/2 Tsp salt                             

1 Tsp baking soda                   

1 Tsp cream of tartar                         

8 Tsp butter sprinkles                        

1-1/4 C +2 Tbsp all-purpose flour               

1/2 C flaked coconut                         

1/2 C krispy rice cereal                      

1/4 C mini chocolate baking chips

           

Preheat oven to 375°. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mat. Combine oil, sugars, egg and vanilla, mix well. Add salt, baking soda, cream of tartar, butter sprinkles and flour, mix well. Add coconut, cereal and chocolate chips, stir until mixed. Use cookie scoop, drop dough on baking pans, press flat slightly. Bake 9-10 minutes, until lightly browned. Remove from oven, and cool on baking sheet on rack. 2 dozen