Mubba Tatoes

This has been requested by others in the past, and I've never wanted to share it. But since you guys are family, I guess you can have it.

Peel and cube enough potatoes to feed however many people you're trying to feed.

Boil them with a clove of garlic.

Put 1 stick of butter and 1 package of cream cheese in the bottom of the serving or mashing bowl.

Drain the potatoes and dump them in the above bowl.

Mash.

Add a bunch of dollops of sour cream when the potatoes have reached your desired consistency.

The first thanksgiving that we were married, the mashed potatoes became a huge source of contention. Matt told his grandmother that he wanted me to make them, and his sister and brother-in-law both agreed. I'm sure you can fill in the rest...

Chicken and Dumplings

We NEED this one on here:

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
5-6 medium potatoes
a few carrots
Chicken bullion
Bisquick
milk

Cube and cook breasts. Add water, bullion, and cubed potatoes. Boil until they are tender. (Not mashed potato tender, more firm than that). Add carrots, and boil a little longer. Follow the instructions on the bisquick box to add dumplings. (2 cups bisquick, 2/3 cup milk, mix and dropped into boiling soup.)

You can easily make the soup the night before or earlier in the day.

Mexican Casserole

I tried this at an Enrichment meeting, but never have made it. I really liked it. You could probably add some corn to it, as well.

1 1/2 cup cracked wheat or pearled barley (if the latter, reduce water by half)
2 tsp. salt
6 c. water

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef
1 onion, chopped, or 1/2 c. dry onions (throw the dry ones it in the above water)

2 tbsp. worcestershire sauce
1/2 c. sliced black olives
8 oz. can tomatoes (do not drain)
3/4 tsp. garlic powder or 1 clove fresh, chopped garlic

1/4 c. water
1/4 c. ketchup

Bring wheat, salt and water to a boil and simmer for 1 hour (barley option - 25 minutes).
Brown beef and onions
Add meat mixture to the cooked wheat, then add worcestershire sauce, olives, tomatoes and garlic.
Place mixture in a 9x13 pan.
Bake 1 hour at 350 degrees.
During last 15 min., mix water and ketchup and drizzle over casserole.

Cooking Wheat

A previous Enrichment meeting can be thanked for this one.

There are several ways to cook wheat. Here are three:

1. In a pan, bring one part wheat and two parts water, with 1/2 tsp. salt, to a boil; cover, remove from heat. Let stand overnight (at least 10 hours).

2. Put one part wheat and two parts water in a pan with 1/2 to 1 tsp. salt. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer gently for 4 to 6 hours or until tender.

3. Combine one part wheat and two parts water with 1/2 to 1 tsp. salt in a crock-pot or slow cooker. Cover and cook 4 to 6 hours.

Cooked wheat can be stored up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator.

I really hate cooked wheat as breakfast cereal, but Aaron likes it. I think that's because he grew up with it a little, wheras I never tried it until last year. I will eat it as part of a casserole or something.

pudding

Perhaps you remember this one?
Mix up pudding or open a can from Sam's club.
Eat it with your fingers and make an obnoxious slurping sound.
Enjoy giggling insanely in the process.

It works best with chocolate pudding, but I suppose other kinds work too.

Crockpot Chili

For MJ- this is a good one that uses mostly pantry items and is super easy.

Throw the following into your crockpot:

1 lb ground hamburger, cooked with onions
a few cans of tomato sauce (depends on how soupy you want it)
a few cans of diced tomatoes
a few cans of kidney beans, drained
a can of corn, drained (optional)
diced green peppers

Season with chili powder.

I suppose if you know how to do the whole soak beans stuff, you could use dried beans, which would make this even more food storage-esh. You can make it without the meat, but that is quickly rejected at our house. I use frozen green peppers. When I have green peppers that I won't use before they go bad, I just dice them up and put them in a ziploc bag and throw it in the freezer.

Citrus Cranberry Relish

Melissa requested this recipe. Although I do not have any exact measurements for it, I 'll try to post how I do it. It's based of a description Mom had of Grandma Earl's but I have tweaked it over the years. However it is similar to the one on the back of the ocean spray cranberry bag.

Citrus Cranberry Relish
(Jeff calls it relish as to destinguish it from a normal sauce or the stuff from a can.)

1 bag of fresh cranberries (I sometimes buy them ahead and freeze the bag that works too!)
1 cup of sugar
1 apple
a couple clementines, or tangerines, or oranges or a mix (all depends on the budget at the time)
a splash of apple juice, and a splash of orange juice to taste

I rinse the cranberries and toss any that seem to squishy. I core, peel, and slice the apple. I peel whichever citrus fruit I am using and have it in segments. I blend the cranberries in a blender because I don't own a food processor. I am sure a food processor would do the job better. I add some sugar (not all at first) some apples and some orange. I add some water as needed but not much. I continue to use a little of each of the items listed above until I get the balanced taste just right. I usually use more citrus then apple, but more apple juice then orange juice. I usually end up using all the sugar and I always use all the cranberries. Remember it gets redder as the sugar is in with the cranberries, and it always tastes better after it sits for one day, so prepare it 1-2 days ahead of time. Also it gets sweeter with time so you can always add more sugar the morning of Thanksgiving.

Good luck. Sorry it can't be more exact but the measurements really depend on how sweet each item of fruit is, and that varies by the season, year, and location in the country.