Buttermilk fried chicken

4 chicken drumsticks and/or thighs or 1-2 chicken breasts
1/3 c flour
1/2 t dried thyme, savory, or basil

1/4 t salt
1/4 t onion powder
1/4 t pepper
1/4 c milk (or buttermilk or sour milk-3/4 t lemon/vinegar and add milk to fill up to 1/4 c)

1 egg
saltines or other crackers
3-4 T cooking oil

Gravy (optional)
2 t flour
1/2 t instant chicken bouillon
dash peper
2/3 c milk

1. Combine flour, herbs, salt, onion, pepper in one dish. Put milk and egg in other dish. Cut chicken into 3rds if using chicken breast. Dip in flour, then milk, then flour again or try crackers or other coating for 3rd bowl.

2. In large skillet, cook chicken in oil over medium high heat, turning to brown evenly. Cook on medium low until cooked through (155 degrees). Remove chicken and keep warm.

3. For gravy, add flour, bouillon, and pepper to skillet. Add milk, cooking and stirring until thickened and bubbly, Stir one more minute.

Pizza dough

Adapted from https://www.tasteofhome.com/article/best-pizza-dough/?_cmp=TestKitchenInsider&_ebid=TestKitchenInsider4272020&_mid=342074&ehid=DF99C6F6E8C0170D81E608E939849B33828286C1&os_ehash=DF99C6F6E8C0170D81E608E939849B33828286C1

Ingredients: 
1 c warm water (110-115 degrees)
2 t. sugar, divided
1/4 oz active dry yeast (2 1/4 t.)

3 c (plus extra as needed) bread flour (or all purpose does ok; 1/4-1/2 cup wheat flour and/or corn flour are also good substitutes for some of it. We keep whole wheat pastry flour on hand)
1 t salt
1 t each basil, marjoram, oregano and garlic powder
1/3 C. oil (vegetable or olive)

1. Combine water and 1 t sugar, add yeast. Wait 5-10 minutes for it to proof (bubbles on surface).

2. Combine 3 C flour, 1 t. sugar, salt, garlic powder, herbs. Make a well in the center and add yeast mixture and oil. Stir together, adding more flour if too sticky.

3. Knead for 6-8 minutes (adding flour or water as necessary).

4. Rest in a greased bowl for 30 minutes, then put bowl in fridge over night.

5. Remove dough from fridge and let come to room temperature. Split in two for two small pizzas or use whole for one large pizza. Roll out on a lightly floured surface and place in a greased pan (pizza pan or springform pan or other pan appropriate to size and style).

6. Add marinara/pizza/spaghetti sauce, cheese, other toppings (mushrooms, tomatoes, pepperoni, etc). A good sauce makes a big difference. 

7. Cook at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes. 

Cottage pie

Ingredients: 
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
8 ounces (cremini) mushrooms, diced
2-3 medium carrots, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound ground beef (or lamb for shepherd's pie)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons flour
1/2 cup dry red wine
2 cups (beef) stock
2 tablespoons tomato paste (1/2 of a 6 oz can)
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 bay leaves
2 sprigs fresh rosemary (or equivalent dried)
2 sprigs fresh thyme (or equivalent dried)
1 cup frozen peas (or peas and carrots)
1 cup frozen corn
Sea salt and freshly-cracked black pepper

Add a crunchy topping? Butter cracker crumbs or crunchy fried onions? Or cook it inside an actual pie crust?

Mashed potatoes for topping (see below):
-2.5 pounds (5 medium potatoes) potatoes (russet, Yukon gold, etc)

-1/4 cup butter
-1/2 cup whole milk, or more as needed
-2 ounces cream cheese
-sea salt and freshly-cracked black pepper

Mashed Potatoes Directions: 
Halve the potatoes and cover with cold water. Salt the water. Bring the potatoes to a boil, and boil until fork tender. Drain the potatoes, and then mash. Season with salt and pepper, add 3 T butter (save the remaining 1 T to put on top) and continue to mash. Mix in cream cheese and milk, and mash until the potatoes are smooth and lump-free. Taste, and adjust the seasoning and milk to your preference.

Pie Directions: 
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

2. In a large braiser or sauté pan, cook the onion in the olive oil until softened, add the garlic and ground beef, and continue to cook until the meat has browned. (Leave at least 2 T fat in the pan. If there's not enough room, meat can be removed for cooking vegetables and added back in later.) Add the mushrooms and carrots and continue to sauté until the vegetables are just tender.

3. Sprinkle the mixture with flour and stir until coated. Add the red wine and bring to a simmer. Add the beef stock, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, bay leaves, rosemary, and thyme.

4. Simmer until the sauce thickens slightly (about 8-10 minutes). Add the frozen peas and corn.

5. Season well with salt and pepper and remove the bay leaves, rosemary and thyme sprigs.

6. Place the meat mixture into a large baking dish or keep in the large braiser (needs to be big enough or it makes a big mess, bubbling over the top. Try 9x13.) Top with a thick layer of mashed potatoes. Cut up 1 T of butter and top to promote a golden crust. Add crunchy topping if desired?

7. Place the baking dish above a parchment-lined baking sheet to prevent spills. Bake for about 18-20 minutes, or until the potatoes begin to turn golden brown. Broil for extra browning, as desired. Garnish with fresh herbs, and serve warm.

Pepitas

1. Put squash seeds in the fridge for 2-4 days to dry out. 

2. When you're ready to bake, mix with olive oil, salt, garlic powder and chili powder to taste.

2. Roast at 350 degrees for 10-20 minutes, until golden.

I've tried a variety of seasoning mixes, (taco seasoning, curry and brown sugar, etc), but usually come back to what I do in #2 above.

Pecan Pie Bars

Ingredients:

CRUST:
- 1 1/2 cups all flour
- 6 tablespoons butter, softened
- 2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt

FILLING:
- 2 eggs, slightly beaten
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 3/4 cup corn syrup
- 1 1/2 tablespoons butter, melted
- 3/4 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 1/4 cup chopped pecans
- 1/3 to 1/2 cup miniature chocolate chips (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a 7x11" or 9x9" glass pan.

Beat flour, butter, sugar, and salt in large bowl with electric mixer (or use pastry blender) until crumbly. Mixture will be dry. Press firmly in pan. Bake about 20 minutes or until lightly browned.

Mix the eggs, sugar, corn syrup, melted butter, and vanilla in a bowl until well blended. Stir in pecans (and miniature chocolate chips, if desired). Pour over the baked crust; spread evenly.

Bake about 25 minutes or until filling is set. Cool completely.

Rhubarb Crumble

3 C fresh or frozen rhubarb (1/2 in pieces), thawed if frozen
1 C diced apples (peeled if skin is thick, we used some really good Pazazz apples with skin on)
1 C strawberries, sliced (and thawed, if frozen, raspberries and blackberries are also decent options)
2 T sugar (original says 1/3 C, but doesn't need it. Could try honey or other sweetener)
1/2 t. cinammon

1/2 C flour
1 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt
4 T cold butter

1 T. brown sugar (original says 2/3 c, but if you add ice cream, it doesn't need this much sugar)
3/4 C quick cooking oats
Pecans, optional
Ice cream or yogurt, optional

1. Combine first 5 ingredients in 8x8 pan. Drain excess moisture, especially if using previously frozen ingredients (and thaw those ingredients before combining with sugar and cinnamon).

2. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in brown sugar and oats (and pecans). Sprinkle over rhubarb mixture.

3. Bake at 350 until lightly browned 40-50 minutes (might need to turn up the temperature at the end to help with browning. I did 400 for last 6 minutes). Serve with ice cream or yogurt (Noosa is a good sweet yogurt to use if you cut out a lot of the sugar in the recipe or Siggi's is a good low sugar yogurt if you keep a lot of the sugar in the recipe).

Cheddar Ham Soup

It's like a healthier version of mac and cheese, with veggies instead of noodles!

2 C potatoes, diced (and peeled if you'd like)
1 1/2 or 2 C water (or broth)
1/2 c sliced carrot (I made coins and cut bigger ones in half)
onion (I used dried minced onion with broth mixture and frozen chopped onion in cheese sauce)

1/4 c butter, cubed
1/4 c flour
1 1/2 or 2 C milk (I used skim with some heavy cream, recipe says 2%)
1/2 t. salt or much less (depends on if you use salty ham and stock or not)
1/4 t. pepper
2 C cheddar cheese
1.5 C fully cooked ham, cubed
1 C frozen peas (peas and carrots worked fine for us)

noodles, optional (it tastes like mac and cheese, so adding noodles can make it more appealing to kids)

1. In a saucepan, combine first 4 ingredients and bring to a boil. Simmer covered, about 10-15 minutes (depending on size of chunks)

2. In another saucepan melt butter with some more onion for a few minutes. Stir in flour until smooth. Add milk, pepper, and salt to taste. Boil for 2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in cheese until melted. Add to undrained potato mixed. Ham and peas can be added to either mixture, if one is finished before the other.