Thai Shrimp and Lemongrass Soup

2 quarts chicken stock
1/2 ounce lemongrass
2 packages cellophane noodles (2 ounces each)
2 tsp minced garlic
1 1/4 tsp minced fresh ginger
2 tsp sesame oil
3TBS soy sauce
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
1 1/2 TBS nam pla (Thai fish sauce)
1/2 tsp sriraja (Thai hot sauce) or Tabasco
3 TBS rice wine or dry sherry
1 TBS cornstarch
3 TBS water
1/2 pound small mushrooms quartered
2 TBS fermented black beans, rinsed
1/2 pound peeled shrimp, coarsely chopped
3/4 cup scallions sliced
2 tsp lime juice

Simmer the stock with the lemongrass in a covered saucepan for 1/2 hour. Meanwhile, soak the noodles in water to cover for 20-30 minutes, then drain and if desired cut into 2" pieces. Set aside. To the stock, add the garlic, ginger, sesame oil, soy sauce,, red pepper flakes, nam pla, sriraja and rice wine. Cover and simmer 10 minutes. Strain off the solids. Combine the cornstarch and water. Bring the soup to a boil and whisk in the cornstarch mixture. Return to a boil and add the noodles and simmer 5 minutes (can be made ahead at this point). Add the mushrooms, black beans, shrimp, and scallions. Return to a boil and cook 1 minute. Remove the soup from the heat, stir in the lime juice and serve.

Makes 2 1/2 quarts


(Lemongrass infuses much of Thai cooking giving a lemony edge to soups. Dried lemongrass must be soaked first or cooked in a liquid and then strained.)

Freezer version: Thaw the stock, mushroom mixture and bring to a boil on top of the stove add the soaked noodles and coarsely chopped shrimp for 5 minutes. When shrimp is cooked at the lime juice and serve:)
Enjoy!
Jennifer

From The Frog Commissary Cookbook

Chicken Pot Pie with Biscuit Topping

1.5 lbs boneless chicken breasts or 4 c. shredded cooked chicken

4 tbls butter

1/2 c. flour

2 c. chicken stock

1.5 c. whole milk

3 tbls sherry

couple drops lemon juice, to taste

salt and pepper, to taste

3 pinches ground nutmeg

2 tbls butter

1 onion, chopped

3 carrots, sliced 1/4" thick

2 celery stalks, sliced 1/4" thick

3/4 c. frozen peas, thawed

3 tbls fresh parsley

Frozen buttermilk or southern-style biscuits

Cook and shred chicken breasts to make 4 cups. Melt 4 tbls butter in large saucepan over med-low heat. Add 1/2 c. flour and whisk until smooth. Cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, add 2 c. chicken stock and whisk until smooth. Increase heat to medium, slowly whisk in 1.5 c. whole milk, bring just to a simmer, stirring constantly, and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the chicken and sherry and cook for 1 more minute. Remove from heat and season to taste with lemon juice, salt and pepper, and nutmeg.

In separate skillet, melt 2 tbls butter over med-high heat. Add onion, carrots, and celery. Cook, stirring often until barely tender, for about 5 minutes. Stir the veggies into the creamed chicken mixture along with the peas and parsley. Pour the chicken & veggie mixture into a greased 9x13 pan (or two 8x8). Place frozen biscuits on top of chicken mixture. Bake, uncovered, at 400 degrees until hot and bubbly and biscuits are lightly browned (about 25-35 minutes).

To Freeze: Prepare according to above directions but do not bake. Package frozen biscuits in separate baggie to be placed on top of chicken mixture just before baking (biscuits should remain frozen).

Serving Day: Thaw chicken mixture 24 hours in fridge. Do not thaw biscuits. Remove foil and plastic wrap and place frozen biscuits on top. Bake according to above directions.

Spaghetti and Meatballs

Meatballs
1 pound lean ground beef
2 tablespoons chopped onion
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 teaspoon dried oregano
3/4 teaspoon salt
Dash black pepper
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg

In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients; toss lightly to mix well. With teaspoon or melon ball scoop, shape mixture into small balls (makes approximately 30 3/4-inch balls).

Pour enough vegetable oil into the bottom of a skillet to lightly coat the skillet. Brown meatballs in the oil over medium-high heat. Remove and drain.

Sauce
2 cans (14.5 ounces each) petite diced tomatoes
1 can (28 ounces) Furmano's Crushed tomatoes (preferably with basil, if you can find it)
1 can (6 ounces) tomato paste
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 bay leaf (remove after cooking)
1 cup Chianti or Cabernet Sauvignon

In a large Dutch oven over medium heat, combine all ingredients. Stir. Add meatballs. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, one and a half hours, stirring occasionally.

Chicken d'Iberville

from Southern Living

Ingredients
Casserole
• 2 (3-pound) whole chickens
• 1 cup water
• 1 cup dry sherry
• 2 celery stalks
• 1 onion, quartered
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon poultry seasoning
• 2 (6-ounce) packages long-grain and wild rice mix
• 1/2 cup butter or margarine
• 2 (8-ounce) packages sliced mushrooms
• 1 bunch green onions, chopped (about 1 cup)
• 1 (8-ounce) carton sour cream
• 1 (10 3/4-ounce) can cream of mushroom soup
Topping
• 1 sleeve round buttery crackers, crushed (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 1 (6-ounce) can French-fried onions, crushed
• 1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder

Preparation
Bring first 9 ingredients to a boil in a large Dutch oven; reduce heat, cover, and simmer 1 hour or until chicken is done. Remove chicken, reserving broth in Dutch oven. Let chicken cool. Pour broth through a fine wire mesh strainer into an 8-cup liquid measuring cup; discard solids.

Cook rice according to package directions, substituting 4 1/4 cups reserved chicken broth for water and omitting butter. (Add water to broth to equal 4 1/4 cups, if necessary.)

Skin, bone, and coarsely chop or shred chicken. Melt 1/2 cup butter in a large Dutch oven over medium heat; add mushrooms and green onions, and sauté 10 minutes or until tender. Stir in rice, chicken, sour cream, and soup.

Spoon mixture into 8 (2-cup) casserole dishes, 8 (5 1/2- x 3 1/2- x 2-inch) mini-loaf pans, 3 (8-inch or 9-inch) square baking dishes, or 1 (4-quart or 15- x 10-inch) casserole dish.

Stir together crushed crackers and fried onions. Stir in 1/4 cup melted butter, paprika, and garlic powder. Sprinkle casserole evenly with cracker mixture.
Bake, covered, at 350° for 20 to 30 minutes. Uncover and bake 5 to 10 more minutes or until bubbly.

To make ahead: Cover casseroles tightly with foil, and freeze unbaked up to 1 month. Thaw overnight in refrigerator. Bake as directed. (Casserole may also be baked frozen. Plan to double the baking times.)

Short-cut method: Use 2 deli-roasted chickens (about 2 pounds each) in place of boiled chickens or 1 1/2-2 pounds of chicken breasts poached in water. Use 1 cup dry sherry and 3 1/4 cups (26 ounces) canned chicken broth to cook rice. (This is what I did.)

Meatloaf "Muffins" with Brown Sugar-Ketchup Glaze

Glaze
½ cup ketchup or chili sauce
4 tablespoons brown sugar
4 teaspoons cider vinegar or white vinegar

Meat Loaf
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 large eggs
½ teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoons ground black pepper
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
¼ teaspoon hot pepper sauce, such as Tabasco
½ cup whole milk or plain yogurt
2 pounds meat loaf mix (50% ground chuck, 25% ground pork, 25% ground veal) – NOTE: I just use ground beef, and usually the 93% lean ground beef
2/3 cup crushed saltine crackers (about 16) or quick oatmeal or 1 1/3 cups fresh bread crumbs NOTE: I use dried bread crumbs
1/3 cup minced fresh parsley leaves NOTE: I sometimes use dried in smaller amount or omit altogether

1. FOR THE GLAZE: Mix all ingredients in a small saucepan; set aside
2. FOR THE MEAT LOAF: Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Heat the oil in a medium skillet. Add the onion and garlic; sauté until softened, about 5 minutes. Set aside to cool while preparing the remaining ingredients. NOTE: I used dehydrated onions soaked in the egg mixture, skipped the sauté and added the garlic directly after mincing.
3. Mix the eggs with the thyme, salt, black pepper, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, hot pepper sauce, and milk in a medium bowl. Add the egg mixture to the meat in a large bowl along with the crackers (or crumbs), parsley, and cooked onion and garlic; mix with a fork until evenly blended and the meat mixture does not stick to the bowl. (If mixture sticks, add more milk, a couple tablespoons at a time, until the mix no longer sticks.)
4. Divide the meat mixture into 9 muffin tin cups and shape. Brush glaze on top and bake for 35 minutes or until meat thermometer registers 160 degrees. Simmer the remaining glaze over medium heat until thickened slightly and serve along side meatloaf muffin.

To freeze:
Wrap each uncooked muffin in plastic wrap and place in a freezer bag. Prepare glaze and place in separate freezer baggy. Thaw meat-muffin in refrigerator prior to cooking. Cut glaze out of freezer baggy and place in saucepan for thawing. Follow remaining instructions.

*Note: This prepares 9, but I distribute 6 to each person in the group and made the regular amount of glaze.

Manicotti

14 manicotti shells (I used Barilla)
1 pound (2 cups) part-skim ricotta cheese
1 tablespoon parsley
1 clove garlic, minced
1 egg, beaten
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
24 ounces spaghetti sauce (I used Bertolli Tomato and Basil)

Mix ricotta cheese, parsley, garlic, egg, salt, pepper, Parmesan cheese and mozzarella cheese until well-blended. DO NOT COOK manicotti shells. Stuff manicotti shells with the cheese mixture and return the stuffed shells to the plastic trays they came in. (A large Ziploc bag works great as a make-shift pastry bag to pipe the cheese mixture into the manicotti shells. Simply spoon the cheese mixture into the bag, cut off a small portion of one of the bottom corners and squeeze the cheese through the hole into the shells.) Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and place in a gallon-sized Ziploc freezer bag.


Serving day instructions:
Defrost stuffed shells in the refrigerator. Pour 1 1/2 cups spaghetti sauce evenly over the bottom of a greased 13x9x2 baking dish. Place manicotti noodles in the sauce. Pour the remaining portion of sauce plus 1/2 cup hot water over the manicotti noodles (I just added the hot water to the jar and shook to incorporate.)

Cover tightly with aluminum foil. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 1/2 hours or until the manicotti shells are tender. Top with mozzarella or Parmesan cheese if you wish.

Soy/Ginger Marinated Flank Steak

1.8-2 lb. flank steak
1 c. soy sauce
1/3 – ½ c. packed brown sugar
1 Tbsp. chopped ginger (may use bottled)
1 Tbsp. chopped garlic (may use bottled)
¼ c. vegetable oil (NOT olive oil)

Cut flank steak into 1” strips against grain and place in 1 gallon zip lock bag. Set aside. In blender combine soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, ginger and blend briefly. Slowly add the vegetable oil while the blender continues to whirl, about 15 seconds. Taste and adjust ginger or garlic to your liking. Pour directly into zip lock bag and refrigerate. Let marinade for at least 4 hours. Place on medium-hot grill and grill to liking.

This freezes really well. Once marinating, make sure all the air is out of the freezer bag and lay it flat on its side on a cookie sheet. When needed, just thaw in fridge and grill.