The Official What's For Dinner thread:Thursday 1-24-08? Recipe finder in OP. Enjoy!

[Zandy595]

We're going to my parent's house for dinner. They're doing Chicken on the Can (some people know it as Beer Butt Chicken). Mom's also making Paula Deen's Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies.

DS and I are off to the beach.

 

[TigerKat]

We're having some friends over for the Saints game today. I started cooking yesterday as 2 dishes needed to be made in advance - Asian baby back ribs (this is a new one) and my tried and true Sweet and Sour Macaroni salad (which my friends say is addicting). I'd be happy to post it, if anyone is interested. We're also having grilled chicken, Glynis's ranch potato salad and Lindsay's Kahlua cake.

 

[lucas]

We're having some friends over for the Saints game today. I started cooking yesterday as 2 dishes needed to be made in advance - Asian baby back ribs (this is a new one) and my tried and true Sweet and Sour Macaroni salad (which my friends say is addicting). I'd be happy to post it, if anyone is interested. We're also having grilled chicken, Glynis's ranch potato salad and Lindsay's Kahlua cake.

I want to try the ranch potato salad but I am not a terribly huge ranch dressing fan. Have you made it before?

 

[Tarheel Tink]

Have some chicken bone-in breasts in the crockpot for Sticky Chicken (my way of explaining Sticky Chicken Breasts ). We will have that with potato pancakes (leftover mashed potatoes), salad and broccoli.

Dessert is intended to be Cinnamon-Pecan Streusel Coffee Cake- even if it rocks I can't give the recipe because the mix comes from a gourmet food company great sales section when I was ordering something months ago. It comes in a coffee can-type canister from Europe.

 

[TigerKat]

I want to try the ranch potato salad but I am not a terribly huge ranch dressing fan. Have you made it before?

No, this is the first time for me. I know many others have tried it and raved about it, but as far as how "ranchy" it is - I'll let you know.

 

[lucas]

Just wanted to say I love this thread - it gets me out of my regular cooking rut. I will post a few of my recipes, too.

 

[lucas]

We are going out to eat today but later we will have my cream cheese cake. Everone loves this cake. Recipe looks long but it is really easy. This is the first recipe I am posting, hope you like it.

CREAM CHEESE CAKE

Crust:
2 sticks salted butter, melted
½ cup sugar
3 cups graham cracker crumbs
pinch of cinnamon

Cream Cheese Middle:
16 oz cream cheese, softened
½ cup sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla

Topping:
16 oz sour cream
1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Combine crust ingredients and press into square 13 x 9 pan. (I use brownie/lasagna pan.) Refrigerate crust for ½ hour.

Mix softened cream cheese well with ½ cup sugar.
Add eggs one at a time, then add vanilla.
Spread mixture over crust and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Cool in refrigerator for a couple of hours.

For topping, mix sour cream with 1/3 cup of sugar, then add vanilla. Also cool in refrigerator for a couple of hours.

After both have cooled, pour topping over cheesecake and spread evenly.
Bake again at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.
Refrigerate again for several hours or overnight before cutting.
Cut into squares. (I place each square into a paper muffin cup for presentation.)

 

[Dislifer]

We're having some friends over for the Saints game today. I started cooking yesterday as 2 dishes needed to be made in advance - Asian baby back ribs (this is a new one) and my tried and true Sweet and Sour Macaroni salad (which my friends say is addicting). I'd be happy to post it, if anyone is interested. We're also having grilled chicken, Glynis's ranch potato salad and Lindsay's Kahlua cake.

I'd like the recipe for the Sweet and Sour Macaroni salad! Thanks

 

[Mermaid02]

We are having spaghetti and meatballs. I took some homemade sauce (my version anyway) out of the freezer and I will make some meatballs in a little while. Also making garlic bread and salad. This meal is always welcome in this house. Everyone loves spaghetti. I plan on eating around 4:30 around the beginning of the Pats game. My dh worked all night so he won't be up too late tonight.

For tomorrow I just ran into a fantastic sale at the grocery store! Boneless ribeyes for 4.99 a pound! So tomorrow is going to be grill night here!

 

[OceanAnnie]

The burrito bake was really good and super easy.

Burrito Bake

8 flour tortillas
1 can (taco bell) refried beans
1 lb cooked ground beef w/taco seasonings added (follow directions on seasoning package)
approx. 2 cups shredded cheese (I used a 4 cheese blend)
sour cream
lettuce
tomatoes
salsa

Preheat oven to 350. Grease pie plate. Put 4 flour tortillas on the pie plate. Layer 1/2 of the refried bean mixture over the tortillas, on top of that layer 1/2 of the meat mixture, top with 1/2 of the cheese. Repeat layers starting with another 4 flour tortillas (refried beans, meat, cheese). The recipe called for another top of 4 flour tortillas, but next time I make it I'm omitting that layer. Too much bread for us. Bake for 30 minutes or until heated throughout and cheese melted. We added the tomatoes, lettuce, salsa, and sour cheese once our slices were on our plates. It's a nice twist on burritos! (I got the recipe from last year's holiday Kraft food and family book.) It's a keeper for us.

 

[lucas]

The burrito bake was really good and super easy.

Burrito Bake

8 flour tortillas
1 can (taco bell) refried beans
1 lb cooked ground beef w/taco seasonings added (follow directions on seasoning package)
approx. 2 cups shredded cheese (I used a 4 cheese blend)
sour cream
lettuce
tomatoes
salsa

Preheat oven to 350. Grease pie plate. Put 4 flour tortillas on the pie plate. Layer 1/2 of the refried bean mixture over the tortillas, on top of that layer 1/2 of the meat mixture, top with 1/2 of the cheese. Repeat layers starting with another 4 flour tortillas (refried beans, meat, cheese). The recipe called for another top of 4 flour tortillas, but next time I make it I'm omitting that layer. Too much bread for us. Bake for 30 minutes or until heated throughout and cheese melted. We added the tomatoes, lettuce, salsa, and sour cheese once our slices were on our plates. It's a nice twist on burritos! (I got the recipe from last year's holiday Kraft food and family book.) It's a keeper for us.

That sounds good - I'm gonna try it.

 

[TigerKat]

I'd like the recipe for the Sweet and Sour Macaroni salad! Thanks

Will post it for you in a bit!

 

[castleview]

Tonight is Spaghetti with Broccoli in a Garlic Olive Oil sauce.

1/2 cup olive oil
5 cloves garlic, chopped
Touch of salt (optional)
1 lb. pasta, cooked
1/2-1 cup parmesan cheese (to your liking)
1 lb. broccoli, chopped

Steam broccoli. Cook garlic in olive oil on low for a few minutes. Pour garlic sauce over cooked pasta, add broccoli and parmesan cheese. Toss

 

[CEDmom]

Tonight is our anniversary (12 years ) so I'm making DH one of his favorite meals, pot roast, smashed potatoes and butternut squash.

I don't really have a recipe for the pot roast, but here's what I do:

I start with a nice piece of chuck.
Season it with salt and pepper.
Then I make several slits in the meat and insert a clove of garlic in each.
In a big oven safe pot I brown the meat about 5 min on each side.
Then I add a onion - sliced up and let it brown a few minutes.
Then I add some beef stock and some wine until the meat is almost covered. If I have some tomato paste I add a heaping spoonful as well and also throw in a bay leaf.
I then covered the the pot with a double layer of foil and seal it well around the edges.
I put the meat into a 325 oven for about 3 hours.

I do mine the night before so that I can get off as much fat as possible before serving.

 

[CEDmom]

The burrito bake was really good and super easy.

Burrito Bake

8 flour tortillas
1 can (taco bell) refried beans
1 lb cooked ground beef w/taco seasonings added (follow directions on seasoning package)
approx. 2 cups shredded cheese (I used a 4 cheese blend)
sour cream
lettuce
tomatoes
salsa

Preheat oven to 350. Grease pie plate. Put 4 flour tortillas on the pie plate. Layer 1/2 of the refried bean mixture over the tortillas, on top of that layer 1/2 of the meat mixture, top with 1/2 of the cheese. Repeat layers starting with another 4 flour tortillas (refried beans, meat, cheese). The recipe called for another top of 4 flour tortillas, but next time I make it I'm omitting that layer. Too much bread for us. Bake for 30 minutes or until heated throughout and cheese melted. We added the tomatoes, lettuce, salsa, and sour cheese once our slices were on our plates. It's a nice twist on burritos! (I got the recipe from last year's holiday Kraft food and family book.) It's a keeper for us.

This sounds really good. I'm definitely going to have to try it.

 

[nucpharm29]

Making some bbq beef in the crockpot tonight--probably also make some fries to go along with it.

 

[TigerKat]

Tonight is Spaghetti with Broccoli in a Garlic Olive Oil sauce.

This is one my family will love!!

 

[OceanAnnie]

Here's another one! I've been making banana bread using this "recipe" and it always turns out great. A few days ago I sustituted zucchini. Quick and easy. We all love the banana bread and zucchini bread. It only takes minutes to prepare prior to baking!

Great for all of those bananas (or zucchinis) that don't get eaten in a timely manner.

Banana or Zucchini Bread

1 package of extra moist yellow cake mix (follow directions on package but reduce water to 1/2 a cup)
3 ripe bananas (or 3 small zucchini for zucchini bread)
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350. Grease two loaf pans. Follow directions on package of extra moist yellow cake mix. Reduce the water that's called for to 1/2 a cup. Add sliced bananas (3) or zucchini. Add nuts if you want. Blend well. Pour mixture into loaf pans. Bake for about an hour. Check for doneness with a toothpick. It may need a little more baking time depending on the size of the bananas or zucchini.

The more bananas or zucchini you add, the less water you'll need. I still play around with the recipe some. Depending on if I have more bananas (or zucchini) I'll adjust the baking time and/or the amount of water. The bread always got gobbled up! It's delicious!

 

[TigerKat]

Sweet and Sour Macaroni Salad

1 (8 oz) pack elbow macaroni
3 medium carrots, scraped and diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium cucumber, peeled and chopped
1 large tomato, peeled and chopped
1/2 c. vegetable oil
1/2 c. cider vinegar
1/3 c. sugar
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper

Cook macaroni according to package directions; drain, rinse with cold water; drain again.

Combine macaroni, carrots, celery, onion, cucumber, and tomato. Combine remaining ingredients; mix well. Pour over macaroni mixture; toss gently. Cover and chill 8 hours.

 

[Dislifer]

Thanks TigerKat! I'm going to copy and paste that into my recipes and try it next time I make a macaroni salad!