KFC Coleslaw

This is a rip off of KFC's Coleslaw which is a sweet tangy and little bit creamy slaw that goes well with BBQ, well, and fried chicken. It wont over power the rest of your food, but will compliment it.

Ingredients:
DRESSING:
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup buttermilk
2 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 1/2 tablespoons white vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper

SLAW:
1 head of green cabbage
1 medium carrot (about 1/4 cup)
2 tablespoons minced onion

Servings: 10-12

Instructions:
Chop cabbage into chunks and shred with a mandolin, or chop it fine by hand. Do the same with the carrots and onion. In my case I used the larger size shredder on my mandolin for the cabbage but used the smaller size for the carrots and onion. Combine them all in a very very large bowl.

Combine all of the dressing ingredients in a large bowl, whisk well. Pour dressing over the slaw and turn to coat well. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving to allow the cabbage to soak up the marinade. Overnight is best.

Recipe From: AmandasCookin.com

Make sure you use a HUGE bowl (or Tupperware) for the initial shred and marinade. One head of cabbage, once shredded, turns into a LOT of cabbage. And you will need to turn and stir etc. I ended up dirtying more than one bowl discovering I was out of room. Once you let things sit over night it will condense down some, but at first you have a LOT of slaw.

I also made up a second batch of the dressing for my own slaw. I would advise, for a more tangy flavor, making the slaw and dressing the night before. Mixing and letting it sit in the fridge turning it over occasional to keep it well mixed. The next morning, drain out the excess dressing and then "reapply" fresh dressing (so you make two batches of the dressing) before serving. This step is not needed, but I thought it gave it a more tangy, less watered down feel to it.

When I made it, I forgot to drain the old dressing off and just added the new, leading to a lot of dressing. I think the drain and redress will produce the best results. If you want to go the extra step redress the slaw but this stuff is tasty without doing anything else at all!

I accidentally used white wine vinegar and not vinegar, because that is what I had, so I guess less of an accident. The slaw still came out fantastic but with a little less bite to it. So if you want to tone it down, white wine vinegar works great, want to kick it up, use regular.

Creamy Artichoke Orzo

A fantastic side or a comforting main dish this rice is a hit. The rice still gets creamy like risotto but stays firm and plump, a little less melt in your mouth and more like a good solid meal.

Ingredients:
2 cups vegetable stock (good stuff, not cheap stuff)
2 cups Chicken stock
1½ cups orzo
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (or mixed Italian cheeses)
6 large artichoke hearts, chopped (14 oz can)
3 tablespoons finely chopped chives
Black pepper, to taste
Optional herbs**

**You could easily add any number of fresh herbs and this would go well. So when your finished, give it a taste and if you have something on hand, feel free to add it.

Servings: 4 meal sized servings, 8 side dish size servings

Instructions:
In a small saucepan, bring vegetable stock to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer.

In a saute pan, add orzo, olive oil, salt, and 2 cups of simmering stock, over medium-low heat. Continue adding stock, ½ cup at a time, stirring often for about 25-30 minutes, letting each addition be absorbed before adding the next until orzo is tender and creamy.

Turn off heat and stir in Parmesan, artichokes, chives, and walnuts. Season to taste with pepper and nutmeg. Serve immediately.

Recipe From: www.babble.com

This is a fantastic main meal or as a side to a nice herbed chicken. It is also much easier and a bit less time consuming that risotto. Even Jason enjoyed the combination of simple flavors, though he did add a tiney drip of Blairs Hot Sauce, but he puts that on everything. I am beginning to be less grossly insulted by this, I just assume his tongue is retarded. He also enjoys crap food as much as he enjoys good food, sometimes I think I married the wrong stomach. In any case this rice dish would even be fantastic without the cheese if you want to please a vegan crowd.

I used my homemade vegetable stock that I had in the freezer and reduced sodium chicken stock from a carton. I think if you used crappy stock alone you would end up with mediocre rice. So make sure your stock tastes good. Even if you just doctor up some canned stock from the store, make sure it is tasty stuff.

If you have access to frozen artichokes, which I do not, this might work out even better than canned. But the canned ones in water worked just fine for me. Don't leave out the chives, they do add something to this dish more than just a splash of color.

Artichoke Gratinata

A much healthier side dish than the standard artichoke dip but with all the flavor still there. Simple flavors combine to make this delicious side dish with a lot less guilt.

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1 pound frozen artichoke hearts, thawed (or 2 cans, drained)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup Marsala wine (or red table wine)
4 tablespoons butter
2/3 cup Italian bread crumbs
2/3 cup grated Parmesan

Servings: One 6x11 baking dish

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Warm the olive oil in a heavy bottom skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the artichoke hearts, parsley, salt, pepper and cook until the artichoke hearts are starting to brown at the edges, about 3 minutes. Add the chicken broth and wine and simmer for 3 minutes. Transfer the artichoke mixture to a 2-quart baking dish.

Melt the butter in the same skillet used to cook the artichokes. In a small bowl mix the melted butter with the bread crumbs. Stir in the Parmesan and top the artichokes with the bread crumbs. Bake until the top is golden, about 10 minutes.

Recipe From: www.foodnetwork.com Diada de Laurentiis

I thought this recipe sounded interesting for Italian night, I really enjoy artichokes, a vegetable I seem to have come to love late in life and this one looked tasty. Turns out it was, it also whipped up in minutes!

The major change I made was to use red table wine, we just couldn't fine Marsala wine, but the dish came out fine. I also doubled the topping because when I put the dish together it just didn't look right. Maybe it was because I used a long narrow dish, maybe in an 8x8 it would have looked better. In any case I think the extra topping added flavor and some crunch. Since I had to use canned artichokes the extra crunch was nice.

Italian Cheese Polenta

No Photo!
Oh Nos!

Jason calls this "Italian Grits" but this was better than any of the other grits I have ever eaten. Smooth, creamy and a great base to put other juicy meats on top of. Add some crusty bread to mop everything up and you have a great dinner.

Ingredients:
2 cups whole milk
2 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 cup polenta or yellow cornmeal
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 ounces Italian cheese, shredded
1-2 tablespoons Italian herbs of your choice
1 tablespoon minced garlic (sauted if using fresh)

Servings: 6-8

Instructions:
In a large pot add the milk, broth, and salt. In small incriments whisk in the polenta/corn meal making sure it is smooth with no lumps. Slowly bring heat up to medium and cook until thick and creamy. Remove pot from stove, stir in pepper, butter, cheese, herbs and garlic. Serve warm or place into a pan, bake and then slice.

Recipe From: AllRecipes.com

Most recipes say you should boil the liquids and then add the corn meal/polenta. However many reviewers said the opposite, that doing this leads to lumpy polenta. Since this was my first time cooking and eating polenta, I opted to follow the masses and went with the cold start and it worked great. This goes together so fast and its so easy, I thought it was pretty good and would make it again in a heart beat.

Corn Casserole

Image To Be Added Later!
Somehow I forgot!

A great dish for a BBQ or pot luck, but a bit rich and calorie intense for everyday eating. Quick, easy and tasty this corn side goes together fast

Ingredients:
1 (15 1/4-ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
1 (14 3/4-ounce) can cream-style corn
1 (8-ounce) package corn muffin mix (recommended: Jiffy)
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
1 cup shredded Cheddar (completely option, your not missing much with out it)

Servings: 6-10 servings depending on how much you want!

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl, stir together the 2 cans of corn, corn muffin mix, sour cream, and melted butter **. Pour into a greased 9 by 13-inch casserole dish (you can cook this in an 8x8 but you need to cook this for closer to an hour). Bake for 45 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven and top with Cheddar. Return to oven for 5 to 10 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Let stand for at least 5 minutes and then serve warm.

**Alternately you can mix in the cheese (if using) into the recipe so it doesn't form that hard crust layer on top if the dish gets a little cold on the way to the BBQ or what ever. Cooks the same, tastes the same.

Nutritional Information: It is a Paula Dean recipe, you don't want to know

Recipe From: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/corn-casserole-recipe/index.html

I have made this dish a few times because it is quick, tasty and corn-tastic. It goes great with BBQ food or pot lucks but I find it a bit rich for a normal everyday side so avoid this one if your on a diet or trying to eat healthy in any way shape or form.

I have cooked this in 8x8 pans most of the time and it comes out just fine, you just might have to cook it a bit longer than if it was in a larger pan. Also, if you under cook this a bit the dish is still fine and still tastes good. Just changes the texture from its normal thick bread like consistency to a more creamy consistency, so don't fret too much about the cook time.

I also don't think the cheese adds too much to the recipe. The last time I made it I tossed in about 1/3 cup, mixed it into the dish and didn't put any on top. Came out just fine. So feel free to play with the cheese. Add it, don't add it. Mix it in, or spread it on top. This recipe is flexible and pretty idiot proof in all reality.