Sandwich Filling for a Crowd

Original Recipe and My Revised Recipe

Looking back, so many of the prepared foods eaten when I was a child are no longer considered a healthy choice. The main ingredient of this sandwich filling is a processed meat you can’t seem to find any longer in the grocer’s deli. Grandma’s recipe did incorporate cooked chicken if you preferred but it was the original that I loved. For a special treat I do go the bologna and pork loaf but cut the recipe way back from the 6 loaves of bread, etc, to a 4 serving proportion … Just enough for a treat but not for a full on wedding reception. Now I have to say my Grandmother was well known for this recipe by her family & friends. And I feel pretty lucky to have found it written down by her niece many years ago. Problem is Grandma was a change up artist. What she had in the pantry might find its way into the mix. My Mother too had a way of changing her Mother-in-law’s recipes. Mom made it tuna. It can even go just eggs. Or how about turning this into a salad instead. It all can be done with this recipe. Have you ever heard, ‘no one can make it like Grandma?’ Need I say more!

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Chicken Pot Pie Granny Style

Not my Granny’s! My Granny Martha could can, pickle, and preserve. Cook? Not so much! Orlando has delicious recipes from his Granny and this is one. The crust looks amazingly flaky. Wait until you see a slice of this pie! Orlando and I go way back. We both worked at the same company in Raleigh (actually Morrisville), North Carolina. He was my immediate superior and I’m afraid I gave him headaches. Medical research is beyond demanding. Taking on this job seemed like a good idea at the time. After training I would eventually work out of my home. (Be able to take care of my aging Mother.) Fuzzy slippers and PJs ’till noon … How hard could it be! I was forewarned about the 65% travel time. I just didn’t realize the 65% was in addition to 40 hours of work. Something like that! Mother was on her own and not happy! The Fresno airport had no direct flights to where I was headed. Three connections later I dragged myself into the hospital. Immediately I was on! As I’m typing here … why am I missing this job!! Ha! There were perks! Maybe mostly for my friend Ed who loved baseball. He’d meet up with me in US’s baseball towns and we’d take in a game. Houston, Boston, Raleigh-Durham, etc … Visalia not so much. I’m very proud of my work with this company. Orlando was impressive. He was busy reining in people like me and flying all over the country too.

Hope you enjoy this recipe, and I have more from Orlando! I asked for a picture of Orlando to post. He attached a video of him singing, “All I want for Christmas.” It’s not even July!

 

Use peas, or asparagus or broccoli florets with the potato, celery, carrots and onion. This is jam packed.

Make your favorite 9″ pie crust or use a store bought (2 crust in a pinch!)

 

Thank you Orlando and to your Granny too!
Photos and recipe courtesy of Orlando

 

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Smoked Peri Peri Chicken

Smokin’ Hot Chicken

Juicy chicken guaranteed! This recipe is made with the help of Nando’s Peri Peri Sauce. And because I didn’t get the extra hot variety a few drops of Malagueta pepper juice & several whole peppers were added. I always suggest making the marinade the night before … giving time for flavors to peak. Some experts feel a dry rug is best with smoking but I find either a dry rub or marinade acceptable. There’s no flare up with dripping sauce or juices with my smoker which I talk about here. The water barrier pretty much puts an end to charcoal burned chicken. If you’ve smoked before you know the time element. Let’s get started!

You may or may not have difficulty finding these products. This is a great place to reference Nando’s Peri Peri history. For sauce purchase, Amazon and World Market.

Malagueta Peppers may have been purchased at R-N Supermarket, Tulare, California or a local Save Mart. But again can be found on Amazon.

You may not need the extra Malagueta Peppers if the Nando’s Sauce has the right heat for you.

If you haven’t a smoker and wish to try an oven method, here’s my recipe.

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More than Chicken Soup

This chicken soup is not just for flu or cold season but if your family is stricken this More than Chicken Soup may help soothe those miserable symptoms. A friend of mine was under the weather and I just had to try this recipe. We’ve all heard of the benefits of chicken soup. But all chicken soups are not equal. Do chicken soups leave you searching for flavor? <yes, often> Do you find the chicken bland no matter how spicy the broth? <yes, often> Not here! The chicken is spiced up & oven roasted, adding to soup just before serving. I was a little tentative about the recipe since my friend is not into curry. Nope! The recipe doesn’t have curry powder but it has several spices (no turmeric) found in curry. He loved it! Yep, he feels much better today.

Thank you Baker by Nature for this Flu Fighter Chicken Noodle Soup recipe. Please forgive me if I change it ever so slightly.

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Chicken Chili Soup

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Melissa has been kind enough to share recipes in the past and here’s another. Melissa is my colorist, friend, and a perfectionist. So anything she shares with me I know will be delicious. We share common ethnicity and our love of Portuguese food. She loves linguica as much as I and gave me a quick pea soup recipe with linguica I’ll be posting soon too.

Forgive me Melissa if I tweak this a bit. If you are a true Portuguese cook you use your hands as measuring utensils and taste for correction.  It’s perfect!

Try this too!

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Oven Fajitas & Classic Enchiladas

Oven Fajitas & Classic EnchiladasTwo thumbs up! Love no fuss dishes that have the food on the table in a flash. These Oven Chicken Fajitas are not too spicy and the chicken is so juicy good. If you’re looking for something healthy, simple, presents well (cook & serve in a paella pan) and is delicious, this is it! The Classic Enchiladas take just a little longer to put together but let’s admit it, the clean up, yikes! I love both of these recipes. The fajitas are pretty much a complete meal. By adding the perfect garnish to the enchilada it too can be a meal in itself.

As I have said so many times enchiladas are a family favorite. I have many recipes, here, here, here & here. The significance of this recipe, it unlike the others is made with a tomato base. And as a classic, cheese is the only filler. Hope you enjoy these recipes. We sure did!

If you are interested in an enchilada sauce from pod to finish … Try mine! And here are two wonderful enchilada casseroles, Green & Red. As I said, we are big on the enchiladas!

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Chicken Spaghetti Casserole

Chicken Spaghetti CasseroleIt’s been a busy month and while food is always a priority I haven’t been cooking much. For the past month I’ve been flipping a house … you’re becoming a regular Leona Helmsley, says a friend. Ha! So not. I’ve been doing a lot of the cleaning and detail work myself. AND I just got back from my first trip to New York City … My youngest son playing Carnegie Hall. Check out his site, here. Much adventure with a little stress calls me back into my kitchen for a little cooking/baking therapy. Okay, so my first recipe here isn’t spectacular. It is a kid’s favorite, easy to put together and feeds a crowd. I say it works for that potluck this summer. Spicy? no Chicken filled? yes You just have to try it!

I’ll be putting up photos of my house flipping soon. Here are a few of the before.

House flippingAnd guess what we found under this carpet! Yes, beautifully finished wood floors and more, here.

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Chicken Divan Pie

Chicken Divan PieWhat do you do when you have leftover cooked chicken and an overabundance of broccoli? You make this delicious pie. And because it was a pasta Sunday I added egg noodles. Absolutely delicious. We’ll be making this one again soon. Change up the pasta, add turkey or tuna instead of chicken and substitute cottage cheese for ricotta. I guarantee this recipe will work with substitutions. This is a great make ahead meal that can easily be frozen after baking for another day.

 

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Chicken (or Pork) Chipotle Soup

Chicken Chipotle SoupJust in Time for National Soup Day! One of those delicious soups that puts together in less than 15 minutes. The chicken, pork, or shredded beef is precooked for a quicker meal. But the option of adding uncooked chicken is given here too … just add on an additional 15 minutes to complete the cooking process. 

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Green Chile Soup

Green Chile SoupA favorite of mine. It’s a basic recipe that can be dressed to your taste or served in the basic form. Another great tasting soup to enjoy this winter!

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