Cornbreads

I have several recipes for good cornbread so here they all are!

My grandmother's cornbread:
1.5 cups self-rising cornmeal
3/4 cups sweet milk
1 cup water
1 egg
grease

Mix cornmeal and milk. Add water and mix well. Add egg and blend well. Put 2-3 tablespoons of shortening in a 9 or 10-inch skillet. Let grease melt and get hot. Sprinkle cornmeal over hot grease and brown lightly. Pour cornbread mixture in skillet and bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes until done.

Mexican cornbread:
3 cups self-rising cornmeal
3 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup oil
2.5 cups milk
3 eggs
1 can Mexicorn
3/4 cup grated cheese
1/2 c chopped bell pepper
2 pods hot pepper, chopped

Mix well and pour into prepared skillet and bake for 30-40 minutes at 400 degrees.

Broccoli-Cheese Cornbread:
1 pkg Mexican cornbread mix (bought)
4 eggs
1 stick margarine
1 pkg frozen chopped broccoli
2 c grated cheddar cheese
1 large onion, chopped
1 tbsp onion powder

Melt margarine in skillet. Beat eggs. Add onion, cheese, broccoli and melted margarine. Stir in cornbread mix. Pour into a greased black skillet and bake at 325 degrees for 40 minutes.

Chicken and Dressing

With the Holidays around the corner, I thought this would be good to post. It is my grandmothers and it makes enough to serve about 50 people so unless you are feeding that many, don't forget to scale it down!

1 large package of chicken- legs and thighs
1 large package of chicken- breasts
2 boxes Stove Top stuffing, chicken flavor
4 9-inch rounds of cornbread
8 chopped onions
4 tbsp sage
2 tbsp salt
2 tbsp black pepper
2 cans cream of chicken soup
2 cans cream of celery soup
12 eggs, beaten
2 gallons of chicken broth
6-8 c of bread crumbs (loaf bread, buns, etc)

Boil chicken in 2 large pots for about an hour. Have cornbread made ahead of time and crumbled. Remove chicken from both. Pour broth into large pan. Add soups and mix well. Add crumbled cornbread, stuffing mix and bread crumbs. Mix well. Add all other ingredients. Mix well. Pull chicken from bone, cut in bite-size pieces and mix in dressing. Pour dressing into large 12x19 pan or 2 9x13 pans. Bake at 325 degrees for about an hour or until done. Dressing is better to make ahead and freeze.

Chicken and Dumplings

4-5 large chicken breasts
5 qt water
1 can cream of chicken soup
salt and pepper to taste

Dumplings:
3 c self-rising flour
1/4 c shortening
1 c to 1-1/4 c milk

Boil chicken in water, add salt and pepper. Let boil over medium heat for about an hour. Remove chicken from broth. Let chicken cool while making dumplings. Add can of soup to the broth and mix well.

Dumplings: In large bowl, put flour and cut in shortening, resembling pie crust. Add milk. Stir to make dough. Roll out on floured surface to about 1/8-inch thick or so. Cut in strips and cut strips in about 2-inch pieces. Have broth boiling, add chicken (cut into bite-size pieces), add strips, one at a time, stirring occasionally. When all dumplings are in, place lid on and simmer 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

This recipe is my grandmothers. She has made it countless times and it is always the best!

Chicken Noodle Soup

4 chicken breasts boiled and cut into pieces
2 qt water
8 chicken bouillon cubes
5-6 cups egg noodles
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 8 oz sour cream

Bring water to boil, add bouillon cubes. Add egg noodles and cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Add soup and heat thoroughly. Add chicken. Just before serving stir in sour cream. This recipe is from a lady at our church, delicious!

Easy Chili

2 lb browned hamburger meat or vegetarian "meat" crumbles
4 cans chili beans
2 packs dry chili mix packets
2 cans tomato paste or tomato sauce

Combine all ingredients and simmer. Serve with crackers, sour cream and cheese! This recipe is just for a simple basic chili. Of course you can add things to make it your own!

Quick and Easy Calzone

The great thing about this recipe is that you can use whatever vegetables you have on hand. There are many different variations to the Calzone. The original recipe I found was for a broccoli and cheese calzone using simply ricotta cheese, cooked broccoli, and mozzarella. I decided at the last minute not to go this route and to make the calzone my own. Traditionally, however, Italians would make calzones using leftover vegetables from the day before. So use your imagination and put your own spin on this easy to make recipe!

1 can refrigerated Pillsbury pizza dough
1/4 cup of Ricotta cheese (more or less depending on your taste)
1 cup of marinara sauce or pizza sauce
1/2 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese
1 roma tomato sliced
1/4 cup sliced mushrooms
4 thinly sliced cloves of garlic
1/4 cup of diced ham
2 tbs of melted butter

Heat oven to 425. Roll out the pizza dough onto a pizza stone or pan. Spread Ricotta cheese over the dough leaving an inch of dough around the edges. Spread pizza sauce on top of the ricotta. Add garlic. Add tomatoes, mushrooms, ham, and/or other toppings of your choice. Sprinkle liberally with mozzarella. Carefully fold over and bring the edges up and pinch together to keep sealed. brush top with melted butter and bake for 15 minutes.

Stuffed Peppers

1 lb ground beef
6 Bell Peppers (any color)
2 tbs chopped onion
2 cloves finely chopped garlic
1 cup rice
15 oz of marinara/spaghetti sauce
1 tsp salt
1 cup shredded mozzarella

Heat oven to 350. Brown beef with onion. Add garlic, salt, rice, and 1 cup of sauce. Stir over med heat until hot. Meanwhile, cut the tops off the peppers and clean them out. Add them to boiling water and cook for 5 mins. Place peppers into an ungreased pan and fill with beef mixture. Pour the rest of the sauce over the peppers and top with mozzarella. Bake for 1 hour. Enjoy!!

Note: to make this vegetarian you can substitute beef for crumbled boca burgers and firm tofu. I followed the same recipe to make 2 vegetarian peppers except I browned the crumbled tofu (half a package) with 1 crumbled boca burger. Then I added rice, garlic, and sauce. And continued to follow the rest of the recipe.

King Ranch Chicken

I have never had a dish requested by as many people or as often as this one. I was famous for it in college and didn't divulge how easy it is to make until after I graduated and moved. :)


~Shredded cooked chicken. I have often used leftovers from any other chicken I've recently made.
~Torn up corn tortillas. White or yellow, it doesn't matter.
~Grated cheddar. The more the happier your family will be.

In a medium sized bowl, mix:
~1 can of cream of mushroom (fat free is fine)
~1 can of cream of chicken (fat free is fine)
~ 2 cans of diced tomatoes with green chiles OR 3 cans of Rotel


In a casserole dish, layer in the following order:
~sauce
~tortillas
~sauce
~chicken
~cheese
~tortillas
~sauce
~chicken
~cheese
~tortillas
~sauce
~cheese


Cover and bake at 375 until the cheese bubbles. Put a pan on the rack underneath to catch any cheese that bubbles out. (I've been known to microwave it in a pinch, but it always turns better in the oven.)


Serve it with a dollop of sour cream. My family eats it w/ tortilla chips instead of forks. :)

Enjoy!