Angie's Chicken Swiss Bake

                                                                           
My sister Angie has lived away from home most of her adult life. When I say 'away from home' I mean far-off places such as Japan, Hawaii, and Georgia. She is currently residing near Augusta and seems to like it. She's come home to visit over the years, but she is always ready to head back to her own neck of the woods. Growing up, Angie was not one to experiment in the kitchen, but once married, she became a good cook who enjoyed feeding her family.
Angie stayed home the majority of the past 20 years in order to raise her children. She is now working for Lens Crafters and enjoys her job. Her daughter, Gabby, often does the cooking for the household, and I am sure she has learned all she knows from Angie.
This dish is easily made and good enough for company. To round it out add some mashed potatoes, green beans, and homemade biscuits for a rib-sticking meal.


Angie's Chicken Swiss Bake

4 chicken breasts (boiled or baked and cut into bite-sized pieces)
4 slices Swiss cheese
1 can (10 3/4 ounces) cream of chicken soup*
1 soup can milk
16 ounces sour cream*
Small bag Pepperridge Farm Stuffng Mix*
Butter

Lightly grease a 13"x9" pan. Layer items in order in pan; dot with butter, cover with foil. Bake at 350 degrees for one hour, then uncover and bake another 15 minutes.

*You could make a medium white sauce using chicken broth for the soup.
*Make sure you buy real sour cream without additives.
*You could make your own stuffing mix from day old bread and spices.

Kym's Baker's Clay

                                                                         
If you read the beginning of this date's blogs you read that Kym made salt dough ornaments for Tim and Carrie when they were very young. Kym loves to do crafts, and salt dough crafts is one she's enjoyed making over the years. This is a craft you can do with your children. These make cute gifts for Christmas.

Kym's Baker's Clay

2 cups flour
1/2 cup table salt
3/4 cup water

Place flour and salt in a large bowl and blend well together. Add 1/2 cup water and continue to mix for a few minutes then slowly add the remaining water. While turning the dough into a ball, work in any dry flour or salt left at bottom of bowl. Knead dough for five minutes.
Roll dough out to about 1/4" thickness, and cut with cookie cutters of your choice. To attach extra pieces such as eyes, legs, arms, etc, use 1 drop of water. With a toothpick, make a hole at the top big enough for a string or ribbon to go through when finished.
Place ornaments on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake dough at 250 degrees until hard, about 15 minutes. When cool, pain with acrylic paints; let dry. Finish with one coat of varnish to help keep product for years.

Kym's Potato Casserole

                                                                               

                                                                                      
Everyone seems to make this dish and so it is not truly just Kym's, but since she is the one who originally sent me this recipe, I am including this as part of her recipes. I do believe every church cook book across our fine nation has this exact same recipe in its covers, or one very similar. Great recipes get passed around and become popular with everyone. And everyone adds their own tweak to this recipe in one form or another. I rarely add the corn flakes, much to my Bob's chagrin, and some people add all soup and no sour cream. However you like this dish, here is Kym's recipe:

Kym's Potato Casserole

2 pound bag of frozen hashbrowns, thawed
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. salt*
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 can (10 3/4 ounces) cream of chicken soup, undiluted*
16 ounces of sour cream*
10-16 ounces of Cheddar cheese, grated
1 1/2 cups crushed corn flakes*
1/4 cup melted butter

Pour 1 stick melted butter over thawed potatoes in a large bowl. Add salt and pepper; blend. Add onion, soup, sour cream, and cheese. Stir well. Pour into a 13"x9" pan. Combine corn flake crumbs with 1/4 cup melted butter and sprinkle over top of casserole. Bake at 325 degrees for 45 to 60 minutes until hot and bubbly.

*Use sea salt, if possible.
*You can make your own 'soup' by making a basic medium sauce using chicken broth.
*Make sure your sour cream is pure without any additives such as guar gum.
*Try to buy organic, if at all possible in order to avoid using GMO corn.

Kym's Cream of Broccoli Soup

                                                                                 

Kym loves soups~bean, potato, onion, and broccoli. Soup served up with a fresh salad and a hearty loaf of homemade peasant bread would round out this meal for any family. This is one of those soups that would be good served for lunch or dinner.

Kym's Cream of Broccoli Soup

1 bunch of fresh broccoli
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup flour
7 cups milk*
4 chicken bouillon cubes*
2 tsp. season salt (optional)*
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 cup Cheddar cheese, grated*

Chop broccoli very fine and cover with water, cook until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain and set aside. Melt butter in a heavy-bottomed 6 quart pot. Stir in flour and cook until bubbly. Add milk, seasonings, and bouillon cubes; whisk constantly until thickened and just beginning to bubble. Stir in broccoli, then cheese. Stir till cheese is melted and well-blended into soup. Serves 5-8

*If this is too rich for you, substitute 4-5 cups of the milk with chicken broth. If you are lactose intolerant, then substitute all chicken broth for the milk.
*If using bouillon cubes then make sure they are a brand such as Herb-Ox that is MSG-free. If using chicken broth you can omit these all together unless you want a richer tasting soup.
*Real sea salt (pink or grey) can be used in place of the seasoned salt.
*You can also make your own seasoned salt in order to avoid the MSG in Lawry's and similar products.
Here is a good recipe that might work for you:
http://www.food.com/recipe/lawrys-original-seasoned-salt-copycat-425753
*You might like to double the cheese if you really like yours cheesy.

Kym's Poor Man's Steak

                                                                            
Kym loves home-style foods that are easily prepared, tasty, and sticks to the ribs of those who eat them. This is one of those meals that is perfect for a cold fall day when you want something a little out of the ordinary, but cheap and easy to prepare. Your kids will love this dish as it is warm and comforting. Those of us who are older will recognize this as Salisbury Steak, a dish we all grew up with. I've made this for my family and my kids all loved it, especially Robert. This is started the night before you want to serve it, and it does take some preparation and planning, about 2 1/2 hours before you want to have dinner, but it is worth the effort and time.

Kym's Poor Man's Steak

2 pounds hamburger*
1 egg
Salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 cup milk
1 cup fine bread crumbs*
Flour*
Extra Virgin Olive oil or lard
1 can Cream of Mushroom soup, diluted with 1 can water or milk*

Mix together the first 5 ingredients;  pat in the bottom of a 13"x9" pan. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Cut into cube steak-sized squares. Pour about 1/4 cup oil in a heavy skillet and warm to medium heat.Dredge each meat square in flour, coating all sides, then place in skillet to lightly brown on all sides. As meat browns, place back in 13"x9" pan. Once all meat is browned and returned to pan, pour the cream of mushroom soup, diluted into the pan, covering the meat. Bake uncovered at 275 degrees for 2 hours.

*Ground chuck or round steak would be a leaner choice.
*Bread crumbs are easily made by placing any bread you'd like in a food processor or blender and then make into crumbs to measure out for this dish. Leftover sourdough would be excellent.
*Unbleached flour would be a better choice.
*It is very easy to make your own mushroom soup base instead of buying canned soups. Here is a link to an easy and quick mushroom soup recipe~
 http://www.professorshouse.com/food-beverage/food/homemade-mushroom-soup.aspx

Kym's One Pot Macaroni and Beef

                                                                         
This is one of those meals that can be made in about a half hour and served to a hungry family without much thought or preparation, and yet is filling and easily rounded out with a loaf of fresh bread and a salad. Who needs Hamburger Helper@ when such easy and nourishing meals as this can be so easily made?

Kym's One Pot Macaroni and Beef

1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
2 cups elbow macaroni, uncooked
2- 8 ounce cans tomato sauce
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. Worcestershire Sauce

Brown ground beef with onion and green pepper in a large skillet. Stir until crumbly; drain. Add remaining ingredients and half cup water; mix well. Simmer, covered for 25 minutes or until macaroni is tender. Add more water, if necessary. Serve immediately. Makes 4 1/2 servings

Kym's Happy Home Recipe

                                                                          
                                                                          
Since today is Kym's birthday I figured I would type in her recipes. Kym is 50 today, and she had her first round of chemo today for stage 4 cancer of the lung that has metastasized and gone to her endocrine glands and pancreas. We are hoping and praying for a miracle, but in the meantime, there is life for her to be lived, and she needs to focus on getting well.
Kym has never been one who enjoyed cooking or baking too much, though she has done both over the years. She prefers to sew or do crafts, to play games on Facebook, and to hang out with her friends. She has made many beautiful keepsakes over the years for others to enjoy~mainly in cross stitch, and I have been the lucky recipient of some very nice pieces, as have my children. She's also made many homemade Christmas ornaments for each one of my children. The first ornaments were made for Tim and Carrie and were made of salt dough. After about 15 years, these fell apart and crumbled. Then she discovered she loved to cross stitch and all other ornaments have been cross stitched.
One of the 'recipes' Kym sent to me around twenty years ago is one on a happy home as she has always loved poems and folksy-style, heart-felt sayings. So I will include this as a tribute to her today for her birthday, and a prayer to God Most High that she will have many years to enjoy her own happy home.

A Happy Home Recipe

4 cups of love
2 cups of loyalty
3 cups of kindness
1 cup of friendship
5 Tbls. of hope
2 Tbls of tenderness
4 quarts of faith
1 barrel of laughter

Take love and understanding, mix it thoroughly with faith. Blend with tenderness, kindness, and hope. Add friendship and loyalty; sprinkle abundantly with laughter. Bake with sunshine. Serve daily with generous helpings of love.