Green Beans Almondine

Ingredients:

1/2 lb bacon
1 c slivered almonds
3/4 c chopped onions
2 pkg fresh young green beans (whole)
salt and pepper to taste

Snap beans to remove the tips. Wash and set aside. Put bacon in a skillet and fry until crisp. Remove bacon from pan, break in 1/4 inch pieces. Drain on a paper towel. Pour off fat from skillet all but 1 tbs. Saute onion and almonds. Add green beans and stir fry until beans are cooked (about 5 minutes). Add salt and pepper to taste. Put in serving bowl and top with bacon bits.

Variations:

Substitute bacon with butter. Melt butter in a pan, add onions and almonds. Blanch green beans separately and allow to cool. Saute onion and almonds with butter in a skillet. Stir in the green beans and season with salt and pepper.

Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients:

2 lbs potatoes
1 tsp salt
2 oz butter
4 tbs whole milk
2 tbs sour cream
salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp paprika

Peel and quarter potatoes. Put potatoes in a steamer and sprinkle with salt. Cover and steam until tender (about 20-25 minutes). When potatoes are cooked, remove from the steamer and drain off water (if any). Put in a sauce pan and cover with cheese cloth for about 4 minutes. Add butter, milk and creme. Beat at slow speed to break potatoes up, then increase speed to high and whip until smooth. Add more salt and pepper if you feel it needs it. Sprinkle with paprika for color.

Meat Loaf

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c slice white bread (crumbed or cut in small pieces)
1 1/2 lb ground beef
1/2 c chopped onion
1/2 c chopped green bell pepper
1/4 tsp dry mustard
1/2 tsp ground thyme
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1 can tomato soup
3/4 c celery (chopped finely)
3/4 c carrots (grated)
1 egg (beaten)

1 Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. In a mixing bowl, combine all ingredients and about 1/2 of the tomato soup. Mix well using your hands. Form meat mixture into a loaf and place into a greased meat loaf baking pan and pour remaining tomato soup over the top. Bake for 1 hour or until meat is done. Serve with mashed potatoes and green beans.

Variations: You can replace tomato soup with ketchup or barbecue sauce. Instead of using celery, you can use parsley.

Creamy Fruit Salad (American Style)

Ingredients:

1 can of Fruit Cocktail (8 1/4 oz)
1 sm apple (unpeeled and diced)
1/2 c seedless green grapes (halved)
2 bananas (peeled and sliced crosswise)
5 Marachino Cherries (halved)
1/4 c Mini Marshmallows
1/2 c Whipping Cream

Drain fruit cocktail. In a large bowl combine fruit cocktail, bananas, apple, grapes, cherries and marshmallows. Fold in whipped cream and refrigirate. Just before serving, garnish salad with strawberries.

Potato Salad

Although, potato salad is an American recipe, I see many Filipinos preparing this dish at parties. Most of the time, however, it doesn't taste and look the way it should be. Here, is a simple and quick recipe for you to try.

Ingredients:

4 lbs russet potatoes
3 large hard-boiled eggs
1/2 c mayonnaise
1/2 c teaspoon celery seed (optional)
1 tsp dry mustard (optional)
1/2 tsp ground pepper
3 tbs cider vinegar
3 stalks celery (chopped finely)
1 red bell pepper (diced)
1 med. onion (finely diced)
3 scallions (thinly sliced)
1 tsp paprika

1. Place potatoes in a large pot with enough water to cover by several inches. Bring to a boil over high heat, add 1 tbs salt. Lower heat and simmer until potatoes are tender. Drain into colander. Peel potatoes, and cut into 1-inch dice while still hot. Drizzle with vinegar and set aside.

2. Take two hard-boiled eggs, peel and cut into 1/4-inch dice. Add mayonnaise, celery seed, mustard, 2 tsps salt, and black pepper in a large bowl and whisk to combine. Add potatoes to mayonnaise mixture. Add celery, red pepper, onion and scallions. Mix well. Chill in the refrigirator for 30 minutes before serving. Garnish with the third egg cut into 1/4-inch thick rounds and paprika.

Variations: You may also use pickle relish and mustard while skipping the scallions and red bell pepper. Not sure with other Filipinos out there, but I like mine with lots of mayonnaise!

Roast Chicken

Ingredients:

1 3 lb whole chicken (rinsed and patted dry)
3 ribs celery (cut into third)
1 large onion (cut into quarters)
1 lemon
salt and pepper to taste
2 tbs olive oil
6 cloves garlic (roughly chopped)
2 tbs unsalted butter
4 sprigs rosemary (roughly chopped)
2 fresh bay leaves
1 c dry white wine

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

2. Season the chicken both inside and out with the salt and pepper. Squeeze the lemon halves over the chicken. Place the onion, celery and bay leaves inside the cavity.

3. In a bowl, combine half the rosemary, olive oil and butter. Rub the chicken both inside and out with the mixture and place in the roasting pan.

4. Place the pan in the oven and roast the chicken for 40 to 50 minutes, or until the juices run clear. To test for doneness, insert a thermometer in the thickest part of a leg. It should register at 160 degrees internal temperature. Remove the chicken from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes before carving.

Gravy:

Pour off excess fat from pan and return to heat. Whisk in chicken stock, roasted garlic, white wine and chopped rosemary, scraping up the bits on the bottom of pan. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Reduce gravy by half, until thickened.

Apple Pie

Ingredients:

4 large cooking (green) apples
1 tbs lemon juice
2/3 c granulated sugar
1/2 c light brown sugar (firmly packed)
3 tbs flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
dash nutmeg
dash allspice or ground cloves
pastry for 2-crust 9-in pie
2 tbs butter
2 ready pie crust

Filling:

Peel, core, and quarter apples; cut into 1/4-inch slices (you should have 6 cups of apple slices) In a bowl, toss apple slices with the lemon juice. In a separate bowl, combine granulated sugar, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ground cloves. Pour the dry ingredients with the apples and toss to coat.

Pastry:

Roll half of pie pastry to a 12 inch circle on a lightly floured surface. Fit pastry into a 9-inch pie plate; trim overhang to 1/2 inch. Spoon apples into the prepared pastry shell; cut butter into very small pieces and sprinkle over the apples. Roll out remaining pastry to an 11-inch circle. Cut several slits in pastry to allow steam to escape. Cover pie and trim overhang to 1/2 inch. Turn edges under flush with the rim; flute all around to make a stand-up edge. Bake pie at 425 degrees for 40 minutes or until top is golden brown and juices are bubbling up. Cool on wire rack.