Spur of the Moment

Spur of the moment.  That's what tonight's supper was.  Well, not really.  I actually pulled chicken out to thaw yesterday knowing I would use it for tonight's supper.  But the chicken was the only thing I had planned.  My son had been begging for cookies with M&M's in them and I remembered seeing a recipe in the cookbook that used M&M's, so I figured we could make those today.  While caring for a sick little girl, the last thing on my mind was a well-balanced meal (or pictures, for that matter, so no pictures this time).  So the menu ended up looking like this:

Menu

Poppy Chicken (p. 161)

Tossed Salad (no recipe)

Monster Cookies (p. 306)

While I was cooking the chicken tenders, we started mixing up the cookie batter.  Now, I didn't have butter OR crunchy peanut butter.  So I called the recipe contributor and asked her opinion about using Crisco instead of butter.  She said that her family always used part shortening in their cookies so to go ahead and try it.  Instead of peanut butter, I used creamy almond butter.  The cookies were probably not as sweet as they would have been had I used peanut butter (since what I used had no sugar in it), but they were plenty sweet enough for us.  Judging from the information I got over the phone, the cookies probably would have been a little softer if I had used butter.  Mine weren't hard or crunchy (except for the second round that I put in to bake after dinner while we were playing a game---and then promptly forgot about.  So those went into the trash.), but neither were they "moist and chewy," as we say in my family.  These are a GREAT cookie to make for special occasions or when you really are craving an all-around good cookie.

After the first batch of cookies came out of the oven, I put in the Poppy Chicken.  I had mixed the rest of the ingredients together while the cookies were baking.  I often make what I call "Poppyseed Chicken," and when I make it, I mix the poppy seeds in with the sour cream and soup.  I also usually use a little chicken broth and put some cayenne pepper in it for seasoning.  This time I made it according to the recipe.  It was good.  We all enjoyed it.  It didn't have the same kick that the one I usually make does (because of the cayenne), but it still had plenty of flavor.  It was also interesting having the poppy seeds on top rather than in the mixture.  Not a big deal either way, just interesting.  If you've never made a chicken casserole like this, I would highly recommend trying it.  It is easy, filling, and has a wonderful texture. 

Now, I think I'll go have a cookie.  

Special Delivery

Writer’s block.  I can’t figure out how to start this entry.  Nothing profound or clever is coming to mind.  The reason for this may be partially due to the fact that I didn’t get to eat any of what I made.  I was making a meal for a couple who just had a baby and decided it would be a good opportunity to make more recipes from the cookbook.  I can’t tell you how they turned out as far as taste, but they smelled and looked good!

Menu

Pineapple Casserole (p. 65, top one)

Green Beans with Tomatoes (p.77)

Ruth’s Chris Potatoes (p. 80)

World’s Best Pork Loin (p.165)

Storebought Mini Boule

The easiest recipe was the Ruth’s Christ Potatoes, but that was because I had made it for our family the day before and made enough for both meals at that one time.  So, I guess I did eat one thing I made. . .and it was quite delicious.

The pork was very simple to prepare and smelled fantastic.  I almost cut some off to taste it, but I showed restraint and saved it all for my friends.  I love that this recipe is  prepared and cooked inside aluminum foil as it made clean-up super easy.  This would be a good dish to fix on a Sunday morning, especially if your oven can be timed to turn on at a certain time. 

The pineapple casserole was also easy to make.  I lined my baking dish with foil so that I could lift and transfer the casserole to a disposable container.  I have started using disposable containers when I take meals to people so they don’t have to worry about washing and returning extra dishes.  I know many of you do that already, as I have experienced your generosity and fabulous cooking!  But back to the casserole.  The recipe says to mix pineapple, 5 T. sugar, flour, sugar, etc.  However, it should read “mix pineapple, 5 T. juice, flour, sugar”, etc.  After it baked and cooled, I lifted it out and put it into a different container.  It worked beautifully. 

The last thing I prepared were the green beans.  The mixture looked quite lovely and colorful.  It is always a pleasant change to have a fresh, new way to prepare a standard food.  I wrote instructions on how to heat up the food on the lids of the containers.  Hopefully, they were able to enjoy the foods almost as if they were right out of the oven.  I have seen the couple since, and they look fine, so at least I know I didn’t poison them.  And for those of you who are so faithful in serving others through meal preparation, thank you!  Your labor of love does not go to waste---(there is a pun in there somewhere. . .)!