Oriental Fried Ramen-Starving Student’s Survival

My granddaughter calls Oriental Fried Ramen Starving Student’s Survival.  That is because this recipe can feed four people for less than $2.00, and she is a starving student in California.  It is a "go-to" recipe for her.

I like to have fried rice as a side dish when I make something Oriental.   Since hubby doesn’t really care for rice, I often make this dish instead.  Use your favorite ramen noodle flavor in this.

Like all recipes for fried rice, you can use whatever veggies that you want in this dish or whatever you happen to have in the fridge.  I rarely make this exactly the same way twice in a row.  I do almost always use onion and red pepper.  This particular time I used carrots and snow peas.  I also sometimes add chopped nuts.

Although I include eggs when I make this, they can be left out, and almost any kind of cooked meat (even bacon) can be used to make it more of a main dish.

The recipe is loosely based on a recipe I found at  - http://busycooks.About.com a number of years ago.

Oriental Fried Ramen
2 pkgs. Ramen noodles, flavor of choice
3 c. boiling water
1 T. vegetable oil
1 t. sesame oil (optional)
1/2 c. chopped onion (regular or green)
1/2 c. chopped red pepper
1/2 c. carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch matchsticks
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 c. frozen peas (or chopped snow peas or sugar snap peas)
2 T. soy sauce
2 eggs, beaten
1 to 2 c. chopped cooked meat or poultry

Break ramen noodles into six or eight pieces and place in a medium mixing bowl.  Sprinkle with the contents of the seasoning packets.  Pour boiling water over noodles and let set while preparing rest of ingredients.  Heat vegetable oil and sesame oil in a medium skillet.  Add onion, red pepper, carrots and garlic.  Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until tender-crisp, about 7 minutes.  Drain noodles well and add to skillet.  Add soy sauce and mix until well blended.  Cook and stir noodles 1 or 2 minutes.  Push noodles to the side of the skillet and pour eggs into the center.  Cook eggs, scrambling and cutting into small pieces as the eggs cook.  Mix eggs with noodles.  Add meat or poultry if using and heat through.  Serve as a side or main dish as desired.  Makes 4 servings.

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Quick, Creamy Chicken Chilaquiles

I am not overly fond of spicy Mexican type dishes, especially those that use salsa.  However, every-once-in-awhile, I find one that I want to try.  This recipe came from the back of a Kraft Mexican Style Queso Quesadilla Cheese package.

Two things made me want to try this recipe.   I had some cooked chicken on hand and also some bits and pieces of tortilla chips leftover from making nachos for hubby for lunch.  The dish  takes less than 20 minutes to prepare which makes it a great weeknight dinner.

I added onions, red peppers and frozen corn to make the recipe more of a one-dish meal.  Since I am a wimp when it comes to heat and did not have any mild salsa on hand (hubby is the salsa eater, and he likes medium), I used half medium salsa and half mild Picante Sauce.

The original recipe called for 3 c. of crushed tortilla chips.  I had only 2 c. on hand, and that amount worked fine.

To save money and calories, in the future I will use only 1 c. to 1 1/2 c. of cheese.  The full 2 cups was a bit of overkill to me.  If you cannot find the Queso Quesadilla cheese, I am sure that Mexican Blend Cheese or Cheddar cheese would work instead.  If I was making this for a potluck or just for me, I would add some sliced ripe olives (hubby doesn't like olives).

All in all, we both liked this dish, and it will go into my regular lunch/dinner rotation.

I wonder, am I the only one who still makes recipes found on food packages?

Quick, Creamy Chilaquiles
1 T. vegetable oil
1/2 c. chopped onions
1/2 c. chopped red peppers
1 c. frozen corn
1 1/2 c. salsa (I used half medium salsa and half mild Picante)
2 c. shredded, cooked chicken
2-3 c. coarsely crushed tortilla chips
1-2 c. shredded Queso Quesadilla Cheese, Mexican Cheese, or Cheddar cheese

Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet on medium high.  Add onion, red pepper and frozen corn.  Cook until onions are tender, about 5  to 10 minutes.  Add salsa and chicken.  Cook for about 5 minutes.  Add crushed tortilla chips and mix well.  Top with cheese.  Cover, cook on medium-low heat 3 minutes until cheese is melted.  Serve topped with sour cream, green onions, and more salsa if desired.  Makes 6 servings.

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Italian Sandwich Casserole

A few weeks ago one of my Friday Finds was a Meatball Sub Casserole from Dining with Leslie.  Since we had our Thanksgiving dinner on Wednesday night, I decided to make this on Thanksgiving.  Sometime I “jump the gun” and don’t plan ahead very well.  That is what happened with this recipe.  I didn’t check the recipe early enough so when I needed to make it, I did not have time to let the cream cheese soften or the meatballs thaw.

Going to Plan B, I checked my pantry, freezer and fridge to see what I could find.  I had purchased the Italian bread so had that and spaghetti sauce in my pantry.  In my freezer I found a pound of browned-up Italian sausage, and in my fridge I found Philadelphia Italian Cheese and Herb Cooking Crème, mozzarella and parmesan cheese.  If I had not found the Italian sausage, I would have used browned-up ground beef and added some Italian seasonings to it.

I thawed the Italian sausage in my microwave and combined it with the other ingredients to make what I call Italian Sandwich Casserole.  My husband and son liked this very much, and it reheated very well in the microwave.

Two changes I will make when I make this again.  I left the bread slices whole, and they were a bit difficult to cut through.  Next time I will cut all the bread slices in half so that I can cut between them.  I will save some mozzarella cheese to sprinkle on the top of the second layer of bread slices along with the parmesan.  My recipe reflects those changes.

Italian Sandwich Casserole
10 slices firm bread such as Italian or Texas Toast, cut in half
1 carton Philadelphia Italian Cheese and Herb Cooking Crème
1 lb. Italian sausage browned or ground beef browned with 1 t. Italian seasonings added
1 (8 oz.) pkg. shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
1 jar (28 oz.) spaghetti sauce
1/2 c. shredded parmesan cheese

Place bread slices on a large baking sheet and put in a 350 degree oven for 3-5 minutes to toast slightly.  Remove and set aside.  Line a 9x13-inch pan with foil.  Place 10 half slices of the bread in the prepared pan.  Cover bread slices with the cooking crème, spreading evenly.  Spread the browned Italian sausage or ground beef over the cooking crème layer.  Sprinkle about 1/3 of the mozzarella cheese over the meat.  Pour spaghetti sauce over the cheese and spread evenly.  Sprinkle with another 1/3 of the mozzarella cheese.  Add the last 10 half slices of bread, placing them over the previous slices.  Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.  Sprinkle the last of the mozzarella cheese over the top along with the parmesan cheese.  Bake 15 to 20 minutes more.  Remove from oven and let stand 5 minutes.  To serve, cut between the bread half slices and remove to plates.  This is very hearty so could make as much as 10 serving depending upon what is served with it and whether it is served for lunch or dinner.

Thanks Leslie for a great idea.  So tell me, do you ever create a dish with ingredients that you have on hand?

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1-Dish Meat Lovers' Pizza Bake

I  am so excited!  I managed to edit the HTML for this blog to add a button for PrintFriendly.  I have never done anything with HTML before.  Of course, it was just a copy and paste thing, but I feel so empowered.  It kind of makes up for my stubbed toe (see previous post.)

Now, if you want to print a post, you can just click the print/PDF button below the post.  It will bring up a page where you can delete the photos and any parts of the post you do not want.  You do need to be on the post's separate page, not on the home page.  (See a more thorough explanation here.)  You can then print or save it as a PDF.  Pretty cool, I think, and I use it all the time.

Fleischmann's Yeast has a web site call Breadworld.com.  They have a category there called 1-Dish that has 39 main dish and dessert recipes that can be made in less than an hour.  I often use recipes from there for our lunches.  I made this dish this week but used all Italian sausage.  The crust for this is more like a biscuit crust.  We prefer our crusts thin, so I halve the dough ingredients.  I make my own pizza sauce and have included the recipe below.  I used a 9-inch round pie pan instead of a square pan.

1-Dish Meat-Lovers' Pizza Bake
1-1/2 c. all-purpose flour
2 envelopes Fleischmann's RapidRise Yeast
2 t. sugar
1 t. salt
3/4 cup very warm water (120° - 130°F)
1/4 c. olive oil

Meat Filling
1/2 pound lean ground beef, cooked
1/2 pound Italian sausage, cooked and drained
1 can (8 ounces) pizza sauce

Toppings
12 to 18 pepperoni slices (about 1-inch diameter)
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan Cheese
1/2 teaspoon Italian Herb Blend

Mix dough ingredients together in a pre-sprayed 8x8-inch baking dish.  Stretch dough out to cover the bottom and sides of dish.  Combine meat filling ingredients and place on dough in pan.  Evenly distribute pepperoni slices over meat; sprinkle with cheese and herbs.  Bake by placing in a COLD oven; set temperature to 350 degrees; bake 30 minutes.  Makes 4-6 servings.

Pizza Sauce-supposed to be like Pizza Hut's
1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce
1 t. dried oregano

1/2 t. dried basil
1/2 t. dried marjoram
1/4 t. garlic powder
1 t. sugar

Combine and let set for an hour to allow flavors to blend or place ingredients in a small saucepan and cook 10-15 minutes.


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Ingredient Spotlight

Tomorrow:  Friday Finds and Frugal Tips

DIY Groceries-Biscuit/All-Purpose Mix

Biscuit or All/Purpose Mix is a very handy thing to have in your kitchen.  I have so many recipes that call for this kind of mix that I have a whole file on my computer.  One can, of course, purchase Bisquick or other commercial mix.  However these are expensive and have chemical and additives many people would prefer to avoid.  The alternative is a homemade mix.

There are a couple of ways to make homemade biscuit/all-purpose mix.  One way is to combine the dry ingredients for a recipe, put that in a zippered storage bag; and add the remaining ingredients when the recipe is made.  This can be repeated as many times as you want.  The advantage of this method is that you do not have to use shortening if you object to that ingredient.  The disadvantage to this is that the mix is restricted to being used in a specific recipe.

To have the mix be truly “all-purpose”, it is usually necessary to have some fat in it.   Over the years, shortening has been the fat of choice to make all-purpose mix shelf stable.  (Although, if you look at the label on Reduced-Fat Bisquick, it says to refrigerated it after opening.)
  
Years ago, county extension services provided directions for a all-purpose mix called Missouri Mix.  The directions for  Missouri Mix can be found here.  There is a link to a PDF version in the upper left corner of the page.  Included are directions for the Missouri Mix in small and large quantities and recipes for using the mix.  Missouri Mix made with half white and half whole wheat flour was my all-purpose mix of choice for many years.  With the addition of the whole wheat flour came the necessity to keep the mix in the refrigerator or freezer.

Now, many people are concerned about the use of shortening.  Missouri Mix uses 1 1/2 cup shortening to 8 cups of flour.  King Arthur put out a Baking Mix that has a slightly smaller ratio of shortening to flour.  Their mix uses 1 cup shortening to 9 cups of flour.  There is also information in this article on making self-rising flour and corn meal and recipes for using the Baking Mix.

If you want to avoid shortening completely, this is a mix that I now make which uses vegetable oil.  It is successful in most recipes   This recipe seems to have come from Weight Watchers, but I don't know that for sure. 

WW Master Mix
5 pounds all purpose flour (about 20 cups)  I use half whole wheat flour
2 cups instant non-fat powdered milk
3/4 cup baking powder (preferably sodium free)
1 1/2 Tablespoons salt
1 Tablespoon cream of tartar
1/2 cup Splenda or other sugar substitute (I leave out)
1 cup oil

In large bowl, combine all ingredients except oil.  Mix together until very well blended, at least 2 minutes so baking powder is well incorporated.  Cut oil into flour mixture until consistency of cornmeal. Store tightly covered in refrigerator or freezer.  Stir well before using.

No matter what recipe one chooses, a homemade all-purpose mix is very handy to have in the kitchen.   

Here are a couple of quick recipes using all-purpose mix:

Canton Crispy Chicken Stir Fry
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 c. all-purpose mix
2 c. diced uncooked chicken breasts (about 3/4 lb.)
2 eggs, slightly beaten
3 carrots, cut diagonally into 1/4-inch pieces
1/4 c. vegetable oil
1 red  or green pepper, cut in thin strips
1 small onion, thinly sliced and separated into rings
1 (20 oz.) can pineapple tidbits or chunks, drained (I prefer the tidbits as they are smaller)

Mix pepper and all-purpose mix in large plastic bag. Stir chicken into beaten egg, remove with slotted spoon. Shake in bag until coated, remove chicken and set aside in single layer.  Heat 1 tablespoon oil in 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Stir-fry carrots 2 minutes; add red pepper and stir-fry 2 minutes. Remove from skillet.  Heat remaining oil. Stir-fry chicken until golden. Add vegetables. Stir-fry until heated through. Stir in pineapple.  Makes 4 to 6 servings

1 2 3 Cookies
1 cup peanut butter (I like crunchy)
1 cup sugar or 1 cup brown sugar packed
1/2 cup boiling water
2 cups all-purpose mix

Combine peanut butter, sugar and water blending well. Stir in all-purpose mix.  Drop by small spoon fulls on to lightly greased baking sheets. Flatten  cookies with a fork dipped in flour. Bake at 400 for 8 to 10 minutes.
Makes  about 6 1/2 dozen.

Tomorrow-Cooking with the Journal-Potato Chip Cookies