ALMOST COOKING

Many of my friends see me as a very humble person but it isn’t a false humility. I am pretty honest about my strengths and my deficiencies. And I can honestly say that I am not a great cook.

As a mother, I have raised wonderful children. I am not humble about that.

My 8 grandchildren assure me that “Nana rocks.”  I am not humble about that.

In my years of employment, I took great pride in my efficiency and organization skills as a secretary/administrative assistant. I am not humble about that.

But, in the kitchen I am not efficient or organized. Truth is, I am an Almost Cook. I can buy ingredients, read a recipe, and put together a meal. But the meals are not usually pretty or delicious. They are filling and often interesting.

I prefer using four ingredients or less for a recipe. And even then, I struggle. One evening I made a taco casserole that got great reviews and my brother-in-law, David, asked about the recipe.

 1. Cook the meat

2. Put in baking dish

3. Tear up tortillas and lay on meat

4.  Sprinkle cheese generously on top

5.     Remove tortillas and cheese

6.    Put meat back in skillet

7.     Add taco seasoning and cook

8.    Reassemble the casserole

Recently I made the Nice Cream shared below and forgot the vanilla extract. Three ingredients and I forgot one of them. I left out 1/3 of the recipe.

So I share with you these very easy recipes from my kitchen to yours.

 

 TASTY-EZ CHICKEN

 (From a United Methodist Men’s meeting. Church men can cook!)

10 chicken breasts or thighs

1 small bottle Russian Dressing (Difficult to find so I often substitute Catalina Dressing.)

1 packet onion soup mix

1/2 small jar of apricot preserves

Lay chicken in a 10x13 baking dish. Mix the other three ingredients and pour over the chicken.

Bake at 350 for about 1 hour.

 

NICE CREAM

(A Weight Watchers recipe with 0 points)

1½ cup(s), sliced unsweetened frozen strawberries

2 large, ripe bananas

½ tsp vanilla extract

Peel bananas and cut them into 1-inch chunks. Place them in a large zip-close plastic freezer bag. Seal and freeze until frozen solid, 2 to 3 hours.

Place frozen bananas and frozen sliced strawberries in food processor; puree, scraping down side of bowl with rubber spatula. Add vanilla extract and pulse.

Serve immediately or, for a firmer texture, transfer to a container and freeze until ready to serve; allow to soften about 10 minutes at room temperature. Garnish with fresh berries and mint leaves if desired.

Serving: 1/2 cup

 

SIMPLE FRUIT SALAD

(My children and now grandchildren use this one a lot. Sometimes we substitute apple for peach pie filling. A family favorite for every big dinner.)

4 bananas

1 container of frozen, sweetened strawberries

1 can drained chunk pineapple

1 can peach pie filling

Mix and refrigerate.

 

 

My favorite recipes are simple. It is still possible to mess them up, but less ingredients helps the odds! If you have any four ingredients or less recipes, feel free to share them in comments. We Almost Cooks need your help.