Recipes by RC

Chicken Fingers

I love chicken fingers and make them several different ways, this seems to be my family's favorite recipe.

Take appropriate amount of chicken tenders and cut them in half to make them roughly the size of fingers.

Soak the fingers in buttermilk while you go to Church.

When you get home, crush a bunch of Cheez-Its crackers, add some sesame seeds ... Add a little bit of garlic powder, a little pepper, and a little cayenne pepper. (The amount you use depends on how big a batch you are making, I usually make a cookie sheet full and use approximately ¼ teaspoon of each.)

No need to add salt as the crackers have enough in them.

Remove fingers from buttermilk and drain, turning several times to get rid of most of the buttermilk or they will get soggy.

Dredge the fingers in the cracker mixture and place on a cookie sheet that has aluminum foil on it that has been lightly sprayed with oil.

Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes, turning the fingers after 15 minutes.

Remove and enjoy.

Try some of my favorite dippin' sauce with them. (It's down the page a bit.)

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Coffee Finger Jello

½ c. cold water
2 cups strong coffee, hot. I used two packages of Starbucks Via. The coffee needs to be strong.
1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated milk)
3 packages of Knox unflavored gelatin

1. Place ½ c cold water in a bowl.

2. Sprinkle 3 unflavored gelatin packets over the water. Let sit until the gelatin blooms, about 10 minutes.

3. Stir in the hot coffee and mix until the gelatin is completely dissolved.

4. Stir in the can of sweetened condensed milk.

5. Pour into glass pan that has been lightly sprayed with Pam. Thickness of finished jello depends on the size of the pan. I used a 7 x 11 pan and the pieces were about ½ inch thick.

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Meatball Hero Sandwich

Nonstick vegetable oil spray
1½ pounds lean ground beef
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 large eggs
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley (preferably Italian)
¼ cup crushed cornflakes
3 large garlic cloves, minced
2½ teaspoons dried oregano or Italian seasoning
½ teaspoons ground pepper
½ teaspoon salt
3 cups purchased marinara sauce
Shredded mozzarella cheese
6 long Italian or French rolls, split lengthwise, toasted

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray heavy large baking sheet with nonstick vegetable oil spray. Combine ground beef, grated Parmesan cheese, eggs, chopped fresh parsley, crushed cornflakes, minced garlic, dried oregano, ground white pepper and salt in large bowl and blend thoroughly. Using moistened hands, shape meat mixture into 1½-inch rounds and place on prepared sheet, spacing evenly. Bake meatballs until just firm to touch and cooked through, about 20 minutes.

Bring marinara sauce to simmer in heavy large saucepan. Add meatballs to sauce and simmer until sauce thickens slightly, about 15 minutes. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Rewarm over low heat before continuing.)

Butter rolls and place under broiler to lightly brown. Remove and gently press center of bottoms of rolls to compact slightly. Spoon 5 or 6 meatballs into depression in each roll. Spoon enough sauce over to coat. Sprinkle top of meatballs with shredded mozzarella.

Return to broiler to melt cheese.

Place tops of rolls over and serve.

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Mexican Chili Cheese Burgers

It's best to use plum tomatoes inside the burger as they're less watery than other varieties. If you prefer to use fat-free cheese, you'll save about 4 grams of fat per burger.

Ingredients

1 pound ground round
1 cup chopped seeded plum tomato
¼ cup minced fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 teaspoons minced seeded jalapeño pepper
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon pepper
Cooking spray
4 (¾-ounce) slices reduced-fat Monterey Jack or cheddar cheese
¼ cup fat-free sour cream
4 (1½-ounce) hamburger buns
4 iceberg lettuce leaves
8 (¼-inch-thick) slices tomato
Grilled onions (optional)

Preparation

Combine first 9 ingredients in a bowl; stir well. Divide mixture into 4 equal portions, shaping into ½-inch-thick patties.

Prepare grill. Place patties on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 6 minutes on each side or until done. Place 1 cheese slice on top of each patty; cover and grill an additional minute or until cheese melts.

Spread 1 tablespoon of sour cream over top half of each bun, and set aside. Place patties on bottom halves of buns; top each with lettuce, tomato, onions (if desired), and top half of bun.

Yield: 4 servings

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RC's Favorite Dipping Sauce

Mix approx ½ Mayo and ½ yellow mustard, then add a little Heinz 57 sauce.

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RC's Sticky Buns

I am not saying this is the easiest recipe here, but it is worth the effort.

Sassy's granddaughter likes them so much she begs Sassy to make them.

Ingredients:

1 Pkg. active dry yeast
¼ Cup granulated sugar
¼ Cup warm water
¾ Cup warm milk
¼ Cup shortening
1 tsp. Salt
1 Egg
3½ Cups sifted flour
2 tbsp. melted butter
¼ Cup packed brown sugar
1½ tsp. cinnamon
1 stick butter
1 Cup packed brown sugar
¼ Cup dark corn syrup
¼ Cup chopped nuts (optional)

Instructions:

In large bowl, sprinkle yeast and ¼ C. granulated sugar over warm water; stir until dissolved.

Add warm milk, shortening, salt, egg, and 1 Cup flour.

Using mixer at low speed, beat until well blended. Increase speed to high; beat 2 minutes.

Stir in enough additional flour to make a soft dough, Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface, knead until smooth and elastic, (about 5 minutes).

Place in large greased bowl, turning over dough so that the top is greased. Cover with a towel and let rise in a warm place until doubled (about 1 hour).

Punch down dough, cover and let rest 10 minutes, meanwhile, combine 1 stick butter, 1 Cup brown sugar, and ¼ cup dark corn syrup in a small pan, slowly bring to a boil and let boil for 30 seconds, pour into a 13x9x2 baking pan, add nuts to top of mixture if desired.

In small bowl, stir together cinnamon, and ¼ Cup brown sugar.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough into a 15"x10" rectangle.

Brush with 2 tbsp. melted butter, sprinkle with cinnamon mixture.

Starting with one long side, roll up jelly-roll fashion. Pinch seam to seal, Cut into 15 equal slices. Arrange slices, cut side down, on top of brown sugar mixture in pan.

Cover and let rise until doubled, (about 45 minutes).

Bake in 375° F oven 20-25 minutes or until golden brown, Immediately invert onto platter. serve warm,

Yield: 15 Rolls

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Stuffed French Toast

1 loaf French Bread
3 Tablespoons Any Flavor Fruit Spread (You Can Also Use Jelly, Jam, Or Fresh Fruit)
½ packages Cream Cheese (4 Oz), At Room Temperature
2 whole Eggs
1 Tablespoon Cinnamon
½ cups Skim Milk
2 Tablespoons Butter
Powdered Sugar

Heat skillet or electric griddle to 325° F to 350°F.

Cut french bread into 2-3 inch wide slices. Then, with a paring knife, go back and cut halfway into each slice, in the center, creating a 'pocket' that your fruit mixture can be stuffed into.

In a bowl, place the room temperature cream cheese and three tablespoons of fruit spread of your choice. (I used strawberry jam and chunks of fresh strawberries.) Combine well.

In a separate bowl, break 2 eggs; add cinnamon and milk and combine well.

Now, take fruit mixture and stuff into the 'pockets' of your French bread slices. Place on a baking sheet.

When done stuffing each piece of bread, completely coat each piece in egg mixture. Make sure all sides are covered. Do all pieces before starting to fry.

Put 2 tbsp. (you can use less!) of butter into a hot skillet and melt completely. Add all of the bread to the skillet and cook roughly about 3-6 minutes on each side, until it reaches a nice golden brown. You want to make sure the cream cheese mixture heats through.

Put on plate, dust with powdered sugar ... Serve.

You can set out the syrup if you wish but it was plenty sweet for me without any.

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Sweet, Salty Frito Candy

DANGER !!!!! YOU WILL NEVER WANT OTHER CANDY AFTER THIS!

2 Cups, Pretzels
1 Cup Fritos
8 Mini Peanut Butter Cups
1 Stick Unsalted Butter (8 tbsp.)
½ Cup Brown Sugar
1½ Cups Semi-Sweet Chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350°F. and line a 13x9 inch pan with parchment paper.

Place Pretzels and Fritos in a heavy duty baggie or other bag, lightly crush by hand (break into ¾ inch or smaller pieces but don't pulverize).

Chop up mini Peanut butter cups into small chunks mix with crushed pretzel/Frito mix and dump into pan.

Place butter in a small non-stick saucepan and melt over medium heat.

When butter is melted, stir in Brown Sugar. Bring to a full boil and boil for 1 minute, stirring once or twice.

Pour over Frito mixture and bake for 8 minutes. Remove pan from oven and sprinkle chocolate chips over hot candy.

Return to oven for 1 minute to soften chips.

Remove from oven and spread softened chips over the bars.

Cool at room temperature until you feel the pan is cool enough to transfer to your refrigerator, then transfer to refrigerator to set the chocolate.

When Chocolate is set, lift from pan and break the candy as you would toffee or peanut brittle. You can eat it cold or let it come back down to room temperature.

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Tortilla Soup

Started with a recipe on this but added some other stuff and loved it ... Hope you do too!

Ingredients:

1 medium yellow onion, chopped
2 teaspoons fresh garlic, minced
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
4 cups chicken stock
½ cup chopped green pepper
1 - 15 oz. can tomato puree
1 - 15 oz. can corn
1 finely minced jalapeño pepper (adjust to your heat liking) - (optional)
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper (optional)
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon chili powder (optional)
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
½ teaspoon hot sauce (optional)
4 teaspoons flour mixed with ¼ cup of water
1 pound cooked chicken, cubed or pulled
1 cup cream
8 ounces processed cheese, 1-inch cubes

Directions:

Sauté oil, garlic and onions in large pan or Dutch oven until soft.

Add the rest of the ingredients.

Bring to low boil, then reduce heat and simmer at least 20 minutes.

After serving soup, pile tortilla chips on top of the soup.

Optional: Garnish with freshly chopped cilantro and/or sour cream.