OLIVIA SIPE: Deviating from recipes with yummy results
Copy article link
Save
I dont know about yall, but when I find a recipe I like, I prepare it the same way, every time, for decades. Not today! For instance, Ive known for years the less canned tomatoes are processed, the better they are. Hence, the whole tomatoes; you puree them. Diced, not petite diced, tomatoes. There was more tomato flavor and the larger pieces of tomato added good texture. Paul Prudhomme poultry magic is the only component carved in stone. However, it is a tiny bit too salty for my taste and right hard to find in the grocery store. Found it! And found a recipe that is very close. Therefore, Ill use half store-bought and half salt free homemade to season my future soup.
Theres as many potato salad recipes is there is grandmas who make the best potato salad in the world. Todays recipe will never take the place of my nor your old family favorite, but is a nice change now that mayonnaise is more expensive than gold. It also keeps better in the cooler at a picnic.
You could look off toward Atlanta and call tater tot casserole shepherds pie, but I have one friend who wouldnt even go to the table for anything called shepherds pie, but will eat two helpings of tater tot casserole.
The first time a customer asked me to make green bean casserole, I read the onion can and refused. Ive learned better. It is a tasty dish and traditional on a lot of Thanksgiving tables. Todays recipe is my effort to reproduce it with fresh green beans. My good neighbors, Sharon and Jackie, brought me a plate of delicious food for Easter dinner and I vowed to learn to make fresh green bean casserole. Todays recipe isnt as delicious as theirs, but it is a very close second.
Tomato Soup
1 tablespoon each: butter, bacon drippings, oil
1 cup very finely minced celery
cup very finely minced sweet onion
1 (28 ounce) can whole tomatoes, pureed
1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes
2 tablespoons Paul Prudhomme Poultry Seasoning Blend, or to taste
2 cups chicken stock, or to taste
Pinch of sugar, optional
In a large Dutch oven, cook celery and onion until soft and translucent. Add remaining ingredients. Bring to boil. Reduce heat; simmer 30-45 minutes.
If the tomatoes are a bit whangy the sugar mellows them right out.
Paul Prudhomme Seasoning Blend according to a copied recipe
1 teaspoons salt, optional
teaspoon cayenne pepper
teaspoon granulated garlic (powdered will do)
teaspoon paprika
1 cup half and half
4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature, cut in small blocks
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, divided
French fried onions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with Pam.
In a medium sauce pan, bring water to boil. Add beans; return to boil. Cook 5 minutes. Drain and pour beans into the prepared baking dish. In a medium skillet, melt butter, add flour and stir until bubbly and lightly golden. Add salt, pepper and garlic powder. Stir about 30 seconds. Add stock and half and half, stirring constantly. When thickened, add cream cheese. Stir until cheese is melted. Add one cup cheddar and stir until smooth. Stir in two-thirds of the french fried onions. Pour over beans. Top with remaining cheddar and one-half cup or so of the onions. Bake until bubbly and onions are golden.
Tater Tot Casserole
1 pound ground beef (80/20)
cup diced onion
1 can cream of mushroom soup
cup half and half
1 (1 pound) bag frozen mixed vegetables
2 tablespoons butter
16 ounce bag of tater tots
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with Pam.
In a medium skillet, cook onions until translucent. Add beef, stirring to crumble until no pink shows. Pour beef mixture into the prepared pan. In a medium size sauce pan , cook vegetables with butter in a small amount of water about three minutes. Drain, spread over beef. Stir together milk and soup. Pour over vegetables. Top with tater tots, laid closely together. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake until mixture is bubbly, tots and cheese are golden
Wednesday, April 19, 2023 at 3:30 am