Country Rye Bread

I found another delicious bread recipe a couple of weeks ago. It's a yummy, rustic bread that went great with our beef stew!


In the photo the bread almost looks two-toned. Sorry -that's my shadow. It's not really that dark of a bread. I did cut the recipe in half, since I only needed one loaf for my little family. Here is the link to the original bread recipe, and I'll list the measurements for a half-recipe below!

1 package dry yeast (1 1/8 tsp)
1 1/2 cups warm water
1 1/2 cups rye flour
3 Tbsp molasses
1/2 Tbsp olive oil
1 1/4 tsp salt
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup bread flour, divided
cooking spray
1-2 tsp cornmeal
1 Tbsp bread flour

Hooray for AllRecipes.com

I love allrecipes.com. If you haven't gone there and looked around, you should. One of my favorite things is their ingredient search. Another little tip about allrecipes are their free printable cookbooks. Their most recent ones are a back-to-school cookbook, and a Halloween cookbook.

Here's the link

Andy's Fondue

For those of you always wanting to know....here's my fondue recipe. I made it yesterday and finally bothered to write it down!



Andy's Fondue
(4 servings as main dish, 6-8 as Hors D Oeuvres)

1 1/2 cups white wine**
1/2 tsp minced garlic
3 Tbsp lemon juice (or the juice of one lemon)
1 lb Gruyere cheese, grated**
2 1/2 Tbsp flour
dash of nutmeg
1/8 tsp black pepper

for dipping:
1-2 baguettes, cut into chunks
2 small granny smith apples, cut into chunks
1-2 cups cauliflower florets (bite-size pieces)

Prepare bread, apples and cauliflower for dipping. Set aside. Grate the cheese, and place into a ziplock. Add the flour, close ziplock and shake to coat flour.

Heat fondue pot (electric recommended) to medium-high. Add wine and simmer for 4-5 minutes. Add minced garlic, simmer for 3 minutes. Add lemon juice and reduce heat to medium low. Add grated cheese one handful at a time, stirring constantly. As each handful melts, add another one. Continue to stir and add cheese until it is melted and smooth. Reduce heat to low. Add dash of nutmeg and black pepper, then serve.

**You may substitute the following for the white wine:
1 cup chicken broth + 1/2 cup water
1 cup vegetable broth + 1/2 cup water
1 cup white grape juice + 1/2 cup water

**other notes: Emmentaler cheese can be added to the Gruyere. Just have a total of 1 lb of cheese, grated. ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS add the lemon juice. It helps to make a creamy fondue.

My Pre-Thanksgiving Tradition

Every fall, when the weather turns colder I begin the countdown to Thanksgiving. When I look at the calendar and see that my beloved turkey dinner is still TWO FULL MONTHS away, I decide I must have turkey now. So every year (no joke!) we have at least two and sometimes three, Pre-Thanksgiving Turkey Dinners. Our first one for this year is scheduled for this Sunday.

Now these Pre-Thanksgiving Turkey Dinners are the real deal. Turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing, cranberry sauce, dinner rolls.... no short cuts here. Thank goodness for those little bone-in turkeys! They are smaller and don't take nearly as long to cook.

Happy Pre-Thanksgiving everyone!

Week 31 Menu

Monday - eat out
Tuesday - Fondue (oh, and salads!)
Wednesday - Fresh Pasta Primavera
Thursday - Chicken Taco Pie
Friday - Chicken Noodle Soup & Grilled Cheese
Saturday - Mom's Potato Soup
Sunday - Pre-Thanksgiving Dinner No. 1

Week 31 Recipes

Chicken Taco Pie
from Lion House Classics

1 cup chopped onion
2 Tbsp cooking oil
2 Tbsp taco seasoning (or to taste)
1 3/4 Tbsp chili powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
3 cans (10.5-oz each) cream of mushroom soup
1 1/2 cups sour cream
3 cups cubed cooked chicken
6-8 tortillas
1 cup Monterey Jack cheese, shredded

In skillet, cook onion in oil until tender but not brown. Add seasonings, cream of mushroom soup, and sour cream; heat and stir until smooth and warm. Add chicken. Grease a 2- to 3- quart flat casserole and cover bottom with torn up, oiled tortillas. Spread half the chicken mixture on tortillas. Top with additional oiled tortillas, then cover with remaining filling. Sprinkle with shredded cheese. Bake at 350 degrees until hot and bubbly. Makes 6-8 servings.

Baked Rigatoni with Roasted Vegetables

I love this dish. It is one of my favorite ways to sneak vegetables to my family. Roasting them makes them sweet, and adding them to pasta with sauce is a great disguise. Any combination of vegetables works great. Besides the ones listed below, I've also used carrots, celery, broccoli, mushrooms, a few unidentified green things from the bottom of the veggie drawer....

ready-to-roast vegetables

Baked Rigatoni with Roasted Vegetables
(4 servings)**

1 small zucchini
1 small summer squash (a.k.a. yellow zucchini)
1 medium onion
1 green or red pepper
4 Roma tomatoes (or small regular tomatoes)
4-5 Tablespoons olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 tsp dried Italian herb mix
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 pound (8-oz) rigatoni pasta
1 1/2 cups marinara sauce (use your favorite store-bought)
1 cup mozzarella cheese, grated
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Prepare veggies (except garlic) by cutting into 1-inch cubes. Place on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle salt, pepper and Italian herbs and toss to coat all veggies. Roast vegetables until tender (about 15 minutes). Remove from oven, add minced garlic clove and lightly toss veggies. Set aside.

Reduce oven heat to 375 degrees.

Boil pasta in a large pot of salted water for about 8 minutes, until almost done. Don't fully cook pasta because it will finish softening when the dish is baked in the oven later. Drain pasta and return to large pot. Add roasted vegetables, marinara sauce, 1/4 cup of the Parmesan cheese, 1/2 cup of the mozzarella cheese. Gently mix until everything is combined. Taste to see if it needs a bit more salt or pepper for your taste.

Pour mixture into a baking dish (this fits in an 8x11 size). Top with the rest of the cheeses. Bake for 15-20 minutes until cheese is melted and pasta is warmed through.

**note: This dish is easily doubled. Double the veggies, use 1 lb of pasta, 3 cups sauce and double the cheeses. Should fit into a 9x13 pan. Baking time will increase by 10 minutes or so.