We're ready~

ust Buzzing Along

 

We are ready for the thundering herd of friends and family arriving at 1:00 tomorrow.  Today there were six workers here preparing for this party.  The party is for two graduates, one of whom cannot get to his own party thanks to the Army Ranger School.  He will be with us in our thoughts and toasts.  We have an exciting announcement as well later in the day.  There is an obscene amount of food waiting to be displayed and two servers who have worked with us before. I's say we are ready.

Beth and the Cincinnati Lechler women leave on the 10th for Paris and Italy. Beth deserves this break, she works so hard pleasing others. I know she will enjoy the company and the energetic women who will be urging her on to enjoy and use every moment of the trip.

The next party is July 4th here at Many Branches and that will be for JD Lechler.

I wonder how many dishes I will forget to serve this time.  One Thanksgiving there were seven dishes that never made it to the table. I simply forgot them and didn't miss them.  I do love the do ahead items so that I can be a part of the party  rather than being tied to the kitchen.

Almost party time~

Sunday the 29th is the big spring graduation and feast party.  AND, I have help on the day so that my guests won't have to be working with me all day and into the evening.  The Smith duo is coming to the rescue AGAIN.  I try to get them for all the big events and they are so good and fun to be around.

I have never seen the flowers do so well so early on; it must be the rain.  This is Nate's passion flower and it is glorious already.  Andy has tomatoes on the vine which he is very pleased to show all who come.  We have heads of broccoli so there will be several salads at this party. The kale is taking over so I will have to send some south with the Cincinnati gang.  I expect there will be over twenty coming from Cincinnati and we welcome them with open arms.

I have been cooking up a storm and one dish I am eager to try is black bean and couscous salad.  I am figuring on five salads.  The black bean salad has corn and so many colorful things, I think it will be a hit. Much of the menu, however, is macho since the two graduates are men.  So far I have done: two cheesecakes which we will top with homemade raspberry syrup and fresh fruit; lasagna roll ups; brat and mixed bean soup; chicken and noodles; chili;buffalo chicken for sliders; spiral cut ham roasted with a special topping; chicken meatballs, baby ribblets in BQ sauce;Pam is bringing six pies; an Asian rice dish;there will be a large cheese tray; a large pasta salad, and, a tomato, basil and mozzarella cheese offering; a crab loaf; Brussel sprouts fixed two ways; and there will be those famous roast beef sliders and Ina Garten's ham, cheese and grainy mustard in puff pastry.  I may have left something out, but you get the picture of plenty.   Oh yes, mac and cheese with pepperoni; and marinated pork medallion sliders.  We may have to rolls the guests down the driveway when they leave for home.
A busy day casserole:
I spend a lot of time staring into my pantry(s) I picked Andy's first crop of broccoli today and wanted to use it right away for lunch and dinner. I spotted  a bag of Trader Joe's brown rice medley and started putting things together for a casserole. This rice and broccoli dish is so simple I hesitate saying what is in it because... I used a can of Campbell's cream of chicken soup, a cup of mayo, some hot sauce, a shot of Lea & Perrins worcestershire sauce,and  a bit of broth to loosen it up. I buttered the baking dish and put in the cooked rice and the blanched broccoli and spooned on the soup mixture topping it all off with a layer of shredded cheese.  Popped it in a 350 oven for 30 minutes and Andy tied in to it before leaving for classes at OSU. So far Andy, Brooks, Christian and I have eaten this delight and we all approve. (You could put in some sour cream in the soup mix, but I didn't have time and we didn't miss it.)

Life is good, but busy

Spring~ at last

Lechler glass made by Fenton for us in the 80's

Life just gets more busy as time goes by.  We are not a couple who seek excitement, but it comes to us none stop. I have had enough excitement in my life to do me to the end.  I have had my share of quiet days and days where I had nothing pressing to do but to enjoy myself and I thought that was what happened in old age but I was wrong...again. (As my mother used to say.)  I must not lament excitement, it is usually the good kind but the busy kind.  I have lost track of the parties and events coming up here at Many Branches.  I am just taking one day at a time and filling the freezer with good recipes and delights of different kinds for the guests.

Beth and Mike are hosting a small party here this week end because Brooks is leaving for Ranger School after graduating the Citadel.  We hope he can get back from duty to enjoy his planned graduation party on the 29th, but once the army gets you, you are theirs to do with what they want.  Hence, Beth is sending him off with his second party and we are hopeful for his and Daniel's party on the 29th. That will make three, and that is enough to send him off in style.  He has great things ahead of him.

Today is plumber's day here.  This house was built the year I was born and the pipes are getting a work out with all the family and guests.  We expect the plumbers to be here most of the day and I hope never to see another plumber as long as I live.  We try to keep up with repairs  and maintenance so that we can continue to live happily here as long as we last. (We need a lawyer and a plumber in this family; they charge about the same and handle similar material.)  So heads up graduates.

Today I have a big pot of mixed bean and brat soup burbling away so whom ever comes and goes can help themselves. But I am trying this new recipe making two loaves one for now and one for the party freezer. Crab cake casserole.  Since I have trouble with crab cakes falling apart, I think I might have better luck with this recipe from Food and Family.

Crab cake casserole.

2 eggs
1/2 cup miracle whip dressing
1 cup water
1 package stove top stuffing mix for chicken
12 ounces of crab meat drained and flaked
1 each red and yellow pepper, chopped
1 stalk celery chopped
4 green onions divided and sliced
6 tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese, divided

oven 375

Whisk first 3 ingredients in medium bowl until blended.  Add stuffing mix, crab meat, peppers, celery, half the onions and 1/4 cup cheese; mix lightly. Let stand 3 min.

Press crab meat mixture in to bottom of sprayed 8-inch square baking dish. Press firmly.
Bake 25 min. or until golden brown and sprinkle with remaining cheese and onions.  Let stand 10 min before cutting or it will fall apart.

I am making a raw Brussels sprouts salad for the party. It is beautiful and delicious.  Then I am going to saute some of the raw, thinly sliced sprouts with pine nuts and Parmesan cheese to serve warm.

Ingredients

1 cup slivered almonds

2 pounds Brussels sprouts

1/4 cup olive oil or 3 tablespoons olive oil and 1 tablespoon truffle oil

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2 tablespoons finely sliced chives

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

3 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°. Place almonds on baking sheet. Bake 10 to 12 minutes, or until golden brown. Set aside to cool. Meanwhile, slice Brussels sprouts as thinly as possible. In large bowl, whisk together olive oil, lemon juice, chives, salt and pepper. Add Brussels sprouts, almonds and Parmesan cheese. Toss until combined.

From the N

Puff pastry with ham, cheese and grainy mustard

This is a recipe from the Barefoot Contessa and is so simple. Thaw a box of puff pastry in the frig over night.  Spray a baking pan. Roll out one sheet of puff pastry. Use an egg wash around the edges to seal the two pastry sheets together.) Lay one sheet  on the pan and cover the sheet with mustard of your choice. I used grainy and hot mixed.  Place several slice of deli ham all over the mustard.  Place your favorite cheese slice on top of the ham and little round pickles over the entire thing.  (She didn't use bacon, but I had crisp bacon from breakfast, so I added that.) Roll out your next and last sheet and cover the entire thing. Making sure there is enough egg wash to seal the package.  Barefoot didn't put the poppy see stuff on top, but we liked it that way and as you can see, Brooks doesn't mind it at all.  Oven for around 25 minutes until it is puffed, brown, and beautiful enough for a picture.

The chicks are coming home to roost and they are hungry!  I am in the kitchen dreaming up new ideas for their parties and they are my thing tasters.  This is Brooks who graduated from the Citadel with many honors and as a second lieutenant and NOW HE'S HUNGRY.  The army Ranger's School gets him next and I don't want to send him away hungry.

Pecan Morning Casserole

Cooke Road has been closed for several days and we like that, but we are not getting our newspaper and I missed the Cook's Corner this morning.  I got on line and here is the first recipe that caught my eye.  This reads deliciously and when Joe and Glenda come to visit , staying a few days, I am serving this. It's a pecan breakfast casserole. But first:

   Roast beef sliders, recipe on a previous post .Andy is wild about them. and so was the Appliance Guy who was fixing one of my dishwashers.

PECAN MORNING CASSEROLE

Makes 8 to 10 servings

1 loaf raisin bread, cubed (Carfagna's babka would work well here too.)

1 package (8 ounces) breakfast sausage links, cooked according to package directions 6 eggs 1 ½ cups milk 1 ½ cups half & half 1 teaspoon vanilla ¼ teaspoon nutmeg ¼ teaspoon cinnamon 

For the topping: (We use only ½ of this) 1 cup brown sugar ½ cup butter or margarine 2 tablespoon maple syrup 1 cup pecans

Coat a 13-by-9-inch pan with nonstick spray. Cube bread and put in pan. Cut sausage into bite-size pieces. Mix with bread. In large bowl, beat eggs, half & half, milk, vanilla, nutmeg and cinnamon until blended. Pour over bread/sausage.

For topping: Combine sugar, butter, syrup and pecans, and spoon over casserole. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate 8 hours or overnight. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Bake for 1 hour (35 to 40 minutes in convection oven) or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean.

This must be breakfast time on Cook's Corner.  You've probably made this, but in case you have not, those little tater tots are tasty especially when baked to a golden crunch.

TATER TOT BREAKFAST CASSEROLE

Makes 8 servings

1 bag (1 pound) frozen tater tots, baked until golden 8 eggs 1 pound breakfast sausage (or bacon) 1 medium green bell pepper, chopped 1 medium onion, chopped 1 cup of grated cheddar cheese Salt and pepper, to taste

In a casserole dish, bake tater tots until golden (about 15 minutes). While they bake, cook the sausage or bacon until almost done, then add chopped peppers and onions and cook until vegetables are softened. Beat eggs in a bowl. Spread meat mixture on top of tots and then pour eggs over. Bake until fluffy and slightly browned. Top with cheese and bake just until melted.

From allrecipes:

 

Charleston Breakfast Casserole

• Prep
  20 m
• Cook
  50 m
• Ready In
  1 h 20 m

Recipe By:Scott M.

"An easy, crowd-pleasing breakfast or brunch idea. Try playing with the ingredients to dress it up or down, depending on your occasion."

Ingredients

• 12 slices bacon
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 3 cups croutons
• 2 cups grated Cheddar cheese
• 6 eggs

• 1 3/4 cups milk
• 1 bell pepper (any color), diced
• 1 tablespoon prepared mustard
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain, crumble and set aside.
2. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
3. Melt butter in the microwave, or in a small pan on the stove over low heat. Spray a 9x12 inch baking dish with vegetable spray. Place croutons in the bottom of the dish, and drizzle with melted butter. Sprinkle with grated Cheddar cheese.
4. Crack the eggs into a bowl, whisking to break up the yolks. Add milk, peppers, mustard, salt, and pepper, and beat until well-combined. Pour over the croutons and cheese, and sprinkle with crumbled bacon.
5. Bake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to stand 10 minutes before serving.

Allrecipes

Look how big Andy's Russian kale has grown already!

Four dishes down and many more to go

So far, for Daniel and Brooks' graduation party I have made two cheesecakes and 2 dishes of lasagna roll ups. I will try to do a dish  a day (ahead) because we are expecting a big crowd for this event.  There are so many do ahead, delicious dishes and that is a real time saver and leg saver. There will be a lot of men at this party, so to fill them up, they want FOOD.  I am considering having serving help this time; that too cuts down on the serious serving and clean up.

Matt is in charge of the outside and is doing a great job.  Beth is in charge of the house and decorations. Andy is in charge of the pool.  I am in charge of the food. Mike and Nate are in charge of their work but lend a hand as the party grows closer.  Everyone has to pay their way for things to get done.  

Meatloaf done in French cast iron.  These will be sliced for meatloaf sliders. Manly. Yep.
                                             

lasagna roll ups

Mother's Day sliders

       

Baked Roast Beef and Provolone "Tea" Sliders on Everything Buns

4 Reviews

Recipe courtesy of Jeff Mauro

SHOW:

The Kitchen

EPISODE:

Love You a Brunch, Mom

    

Baked Roast Beef and Provolone "Tea" Sliders on Everything Buns

 

---

   I am for sure doing this for a party.  You know those Hawaiian buns?  Slip the entire set of buns out of the wrapper and slice the entire set of buns horizontally so you have one piece which is the entire bottom and then the top set.  In a buttered baking dish slide in the whole set (entire bottom section of the package of buns) and start layering the following ingredients.  After it is layered, brush it with the buttered seasoning mix and bake it in the oven for 10 minutes until it is browned and the cheese is melted.  Take it out of the oven and according to the lines cut out each of the sandwiches which looks like the picture.  When it comes out of the oven it looks like a sheet of Hawaiian rolls.   But they are tiny sliders.  Who knew?  This is what happens on Mother's Day this year.  Only Andy and I are here and he is studying and I am watching cooking shows, many I have never seen before.  But this one really spoke to me.  Note:  It is NOT easy to cut the buns in one piece horizontally...at all. So I squeezed them in next to one another, put them in the oven for 10 minutes and had to cut them in servings any way, so what makes the difference.  Andy was wild about them and the Appliance Guy fixing one of the dishwashers loved them too.                            

---

Ingredients

• 
  
  1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) butter, melted, plus additional for buttering baking dish
• 
  
  1 tablespoon poppy seeds
• 
  
  1 tablespoon sesame seeds
• 
  
  3/4 teaspoon dried minced garlic
• 
  
  1/2 tablespoon dried minced onion
• 
  
  Pretzel salt or kosher salt
• 
  
  1 package Hawaiian sweet rolls
• 
  
  1 1/2 pounds shaved RARE roast beef from the deli counter, preferably a premium brand like Boar's Head
• 
  
  2 cups crispy French-fried onions
• 
  
  1 pound sliced sharp provolone
• 
  
  1 cup spicy pickle rounds
Add Checked Items To Grocery List

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the bottom of a 13-by-9-inch baking dish.
• Stir together the melted butter, poppy seeds, sesame seeds, dried garlic, dried onion and 1 teaspoon salt.
• Without separating into individual rolls, slice the top half of the bread off the bottom. Place the bottom portion of the rolls in the prepared baking dish. Layer the shaved roast beef on top, then the crispy onions, then a layer of provolone, then top with layer of pickles. Place the top section of the rolls on the sandwich stacks. Stir the spiced butter and then liberally brush over the tops of the rolls until entirely coated.
• Bake, uncovered, until the cheese is ooey gooey and the tops of the rolls are golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Cut into sliders with a large chef's knife.

Recipe courtesy of Jeff Mauro

party ideas for a varied graduation crowd

Note: I will keep adding to this pos

This is Brooks and his mother, Beth.  He is graduating today Summa Cum Laude from the Citadel and his party, here, will be over Memorial Day.

I found this on Pinterest and when I make it I am going to place hash browns on the bottom of the Portobella mushrooms and then bake the egg on top of the hash browns. I will spice up the potatoes with peppers or something to give them a kick because everything else is bland.  This is such a good idea.

This Santa Fe salad is self explanatory.  One can see each ingredient.  I think this will be a good do- ahead and make a stunning presentation. Also found on Pinterest.

 from Art and the Kitchen 

 from Healthy Recipes

PREP TIME

15 mins

COOK TIME

30 mins

TOTAL TIME

45 mins

Strata, breakfast casserole,  french toast bake or bread pudding. It doesn't matter what you call this, it's totally delicious and can be made ahead so it's great for feeding a crowd!It tastes like a cross between a quiche, french toast, and an omelette.

Author: Nagi | RecipeTin Eats

Serves: 8

INGREDIENTS

• 10 oz / 300g bacon, diced
• 6 eggs
• 1¼ cups milk (full or low fat)
• ¼ tsp salt (ordinary table sale) or ½ tsp sea salt flakes or kosher salt
• Black pepper
• 7 cups (lightly packed) baguette / french stick cut into 2 cm / 1 inch cubes (preferably slightly stale)
• 2 cups grated cheddar cheese (Note 1)
• Parsley, finely chopped (garnish - optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Heat a large non stick pan over high heat. (Use a bit of oil if not using non stick). Add all but 2 tbsp of bacon (reserve for topping) and cooked until lightly browned. Remove from the fry pan and drain on a paper towel.
2. Whisk the eggs, milk, salt and pepper in a bowl.
3. Place the bread in a large ziplock bag. Pour in the egg mixture, 1½ cups cheese and cooked bacon (reserve the uncooked bacon). Seal and massage the egg into the cubes. Set aside in the fridge for at least 30 minutes (until all the egg is soaked into the bread) or overnight.

To Cook

1. Preheat oven to 180C/350F.
2. Spray a 21cm/8" springform cake tin (Note 2). Pour the bread mixture into the cake tin, pat down to compress and scatter with remaining uncooked bacon and remaining ½ cup cheese. Cover loosely with foil or with a pan lid.
3. Bake for 25 minutes, then remove the lid and bake for a further 10 minutes until bubbly and golden on top.
4. Allow to rest for 5 minutes before removing the springform and cutting into slices to serve. Garnish with parsley if using.

NOTES

1. You can substitute with any other flavoured melting cheese eg. tasty, gouda, Monterey Jack.

2. If you don't want to make this in a springform pan, use a 10"/25cm square baking dish. Also, you can mix the bread and egg mixture straight into the baking dish instead of in a ziplock bag. The ziplock bag is used to prevent egg mixture from leaking from the springform pan while it is set aside.