GOODBYE CROCK POT

I went to Wal-Mart tonight to grocery shop. This isn't where we normally go but my son picked me up from the dentist and had to make it to soccer practice so I just told him to drop me off there since it was close to his high school. It was so weird and wonderful to go by myself and not be in a hurry.  By the time my husband picked me up i had a full cart. I decided to make Home-made Macaroni and Cheese in my crock pot. I got the recipe from a friend. So I got home and started mixing everything. I plugged in the crock pot and set it on high. About 15 minutes later I remember to add milk. SO I added the milk and thought it needed more cheese. I stirred the mixture a few times and checked on it about 15 minutes later. Ok I haven't made this in a few months but it didn't look right. I tasted it. Why wasn't it hot. I unplugged it and plugged it in again. I waited another 15 minutes. Ok enough, it's been been hour.  My crock pot died. Hurray! One less thing in my cabinets. It's now in the trash. I transferred the noodle to a casserole pan and baked it in the oven. It was good because now I have half a pan of macaroni and cheese.


My Easy Macaroni and Cheese


Cook 1 pound of elbow noodles until the are almost done.
Drain and put into a large bowl.
Add 1 whisked egg, 1 stick of butter, i can evaporated milk, 1 cup milk and some pepper.
Add some cheese about 2 cups. I use cheddar and whatever we have in the refig.

Mix well and cook in a crock pot on high for 30 minutes or until cheese is melted. If you want to bake it but into a casserole dish in the over at 325 degrees for 45 minutes or until cheese is melted.

MAMAIN'S CHEX MIX

Every Thanksgiving I make a double batch of Chex mix to give with Christmas gifts to my big family. The original recipe came for a friends mother who made us a large zip lock bag to eat on our ten hours drive ten years ago to our present home in Aiken SC. I never really wrote my version down. I would just call Nancy every year to ask for her version. Her dear mother "Mamain" died last year and I always think of her this time of year. We miss you Mamain fondly named by her grandchildren because she was the Main Mama. Here is her version with my kid friendly one below because we have several kids in the family with peanut allergies.

Mamain’s Trash                                                                   Nancy Zwiers
Garlicky, crunchy and yummy.  Trash will keep for weeks if you can get your kids and spouse to always put the lid back on tight.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 large bag of stick pretzels (1 lb bag)
• 1/2 box Cheerios
• 1/2 box Kix cereal
• 1/2 box Corn Chex
• 1/2 box Rice Chex
• 1 lg can of mixed nuts & amp; 1 qt. of pecan halves (Walmart currently sells a large 36 oz clear plastic jug of mixed nuts under the Great Value brand – I use that if I’m short on pecans )
• 5 sticks of unsalted margarine (you can use salted, your trash will just be a little saltier)
• 3 – 4 TBLSP of garlic powder ( I use 4)

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.
2. Dump first 5 ingredients into a very large roasting or broiling pan.  (The pan I use is approximately 17” x 12” x 5” and this recipe fills that pan to the top.  If you don’t have a roasting pan that large, you’ll need to reduce your proportions on the ingredients accordingly.)
3. Pour nuts on top of the cereal spreading evenly across the top.
4. Melt the margarine in a small saucepan and then stir in garlic.  (The garlic will not dissolve but you need to stir it in well right up until you pour it over the cereal.  Otherwise, you’ll be left with a clump of garlic in the bottom of your saucepan…and that’s hard to distribute evenly over the cereal.)
5. Pour the melted garlic butter across the top of your trash.  Then use a wooden spoon to quickly and carefully turn the cereal, pretzels and nuts to coat everything in the pan with the garlic butter.  (Note:  Always stir carefully because the Chex cereal crumbles very easily.  Also, it’s inevitable that some pieces of cereal – usually the Chex – are going to end up saturated with the garlic butter.  These pieces will dry while the trash is cooking and it is only a problem for those who don’t love garlic.  But you shouldn’t let “those” people have any of your trash anyway.)
6. Bake in preheated oven for 4 hours….turning the trash with a wooden spoon every hour or so to re-coat cereal and keep whatever is on top from burning.
7. Remove from oven, cool and store in air-tight container(s). 
8. Enjoy! 

Frances' Chex Mix




INGREDIENTS

• 1 large box of stick pretzels
• 1 box Cheerios
• 1 box Kix cereal
• 1 box Corn Chex
• 1 box Rice Chex
• 4 sticks of  margarine
• 4 TBLSP of garlic powder

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.
2. Dump first 5 ingredients into a very large aluminum roasting.
3. Melt the margarine in a small saucepan and then stir in garlic.  (The garlic will not dissolve but you need to stir it in well right up until you pour it over the cereal.  Otherwise, you’ll be left with a clump of garlic in the bottom of your saucepan…and that’s hard to distribute evenly over the cereal.)
4. Pour the melted garlic butter across the top of your trash.  Then use a wooden spoon to quickly and carefully turn the cereal, pretzels to coat everything in the pan with the garlic butter.  (Note:  Always stir carefully because the Chex cereal crumbles very easily.  Also, it’s inevitable that some pieces of cereal – usually the Chex – are going to end up saturated with the garlic butter.  These pieces will dry while the trash is cooking and it is only a problem for those who don’t love garlic.  But you shouldn’t let “those” people have any of your trash anyway.)
5. Bake in preheated oven for 2 hours….turning the trash with a wooden spoon every 30 minutes.
6. Remove from oven, cool and store in air-tight container(s). 
7. Enjoy!

BUTTERBALL BONELESS TURKEY BREAST ROAST

I have to re-pete this post. It's the one most people look up. I good another turkey breast last night. The instruction on the bag doesn't tell you how long to cook it, they only say to 170 degrees. I have a talking thermometer but I couldn't find it. I tried the small one I found. The dial didn't move. Then I used the medium one, the dial didn't move, so I dug some more looking for my big talking thermometer. I couldn't turn it on. I unscrewed the battery cover. The batter is attached to the panel so you can't just replace the battery. I put it back in and all it did was make static noises. I cooked the turkey for a total on 75 minutes. My son came in to cut the turkey after i ate a small piece. It was pink inside. Back in the oven for 20 more miniatures. I wasn't taking chances. The turkey was very good but I felt like Goldie Locks looking for bowl of porridge. Now I guess I buy a new meat thermometer and throw the rest away.

 

I don't cook much at all but one thing I like to cook is Butterball turkey breast. I've served them to my family for about eight years. I remember buying the breast with bone in and it was more than I wanted to deal with. Most of the time I pull the netting off and cook it frozen. Yesterday I cooked it thawed with the netting which stuck to the skin. I thought this isn't good for us with low vision so I called Butterball and they were very helpful. The woman I talked to said she cooks this often. She suggested pulling the netting away from the thawed meat to it won't stick and putting oil and seasoning on it. I'm going to try that method next time. The way I roast it is with olive oil and Shapley's seasoning with is a local seasoning from Mississippi. This is an affordable meal at $10 for the turkey. I've listed their instructions below with their contact information. 

 Thaw in Refrigerator (not at room temperature)

• Place unopened roast on a tray in refrigerator for 1 1/2 to 2 days, or until thawed.
• To thaw more quickly, place unopened roast in cold tap water for 3 to 5 hours. Change water every 30 minutes to keep turkey cold.
• When thawed, keep in refrigerator until ready to cook.

Prepare Roast

• Remove clear plastic netting and package. Refrigerate gravy packet until ready to use. Leave string netting on roast. Drain juices and lightly pat with paper towels.
• Lift string netting and shift position on roast to make removal easier after cooking.
• Cover roast with no-stick cooking spray. Additional basting is not necessary.

Visit our How-to section to learn the best methods for cooking your turkey.

Slow-Cooker Instructions:

• Place THAWED roast, skin side up, flat in 8” diameter slow-cooker.
• Add 1/2 cup water.
• Cover, cook on low 7-1/2 hours to internal temperature of 170 degrees as measured with a meat thermometer.
• After 4 hours, check temperature at center, ends and near top for food safety. Turkey must reach 140 degrees within 4 hours.

Microwave:

• Place THAWED roast in microwave on a shallow microwave-safe tray.

• Microwave at 30% power for 30 minutes, turn roast over. Microwave an additional 20 – 30 minutes on 30% power.

• Remove from oven, wrap in foil, let stand 10 minutes.

• Check for doneness with a meat thermometer. Temperature in center of roast should be 165 – 170 degrees. If roast is not done, continue cooking on 30% power checking temperature every 5 minutes.

• Remove netting and slice.

NOTE: Microwave ovens can vary due to wattage, age and line voltage. Time can also vary due to initial temperature of product, size and shape of product, standing time. It is important to test for doneness using a meat thermometer.

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