Bean soup with mustard greens (or not...)

At the conclusion of a big project this spring, Mary from the United Way gave all involved packets of seeds. I chose mustard greens. I'd never grown, nor eaten them before... but, tonight I noticed that the greens had gotten to big for salad. So... found out this was good. It's similar to the winter bean soup recipe, but way faster.

2 tsps olive oil
1 cup diced onion
1 carrot, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 lb ham, diced
1 tsp thyme
2 bay leaves
2 19-ounce cans great northern beans, rinsed and drained
29 ounces of chicken broth (2 cans)
2 cups chopped fresh mustard greens (optional)
salt and pepper

Heat oil in a stock pot over medium heat. Add onion, carrot and garlic. Saute 3 minutes until soft. Add ham and cook for two minutes. Stir in thyme and bay leaves, then add beans and broth. Bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat, partially cover and simmer 20 minutes. Remove and discard bay leaves.

Add mustard greens and simmer 1 mintue, until greens wilt. Remove from heat, and sesason with salt and pepper.

Strawberry Freezer Jam

If your mom and my mom shared recipes - this is the one they used to make strawberry jam. I seriously don't understand why people think this is so complicated. It's easy. It will bring back memories of mom and grandma - or, it will create memories in the minds of your kids.

BTW - if you can't find the recipe - it's in the yellow sure-jell box. Seriously. Who knew?

2 cups crushed strawberries
4 cups sugar
one YELLOW box Sure Jell Pectin (no, you can't replicate this recipe with anything else)

Wash and rinse the containers you'll be using to store the jam. I prefer glass jam jars designed for freezing, capped with rings and lids. Some people go for plastic - your call.

Crush berries one cup at a time, using a potato masher. Or, if you don't have one, pulse in a blender. Do NOT make the strawberries into a liquid. Jam is supposed to have bits of fruit (hence, the potato masher)

Measure exactly two cups of the crushed berries (seriously, no more, no less, or you'll have issues.)

Measure exact amount of sugar and mix very well into the fruit. Let stand for 10 minutes, stirring every few minutes.

Stir pectin and 3/4 cup water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil on high heat, stirring constantly. Boil one minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.

Stir pectin mixture into fruit. Stir constantly until sugar is completely dissolved and not at all grainy - about three minutes.

Pour into the containers you prepared earlier, leaving 1/2-inch space at top for expansion during freezing. Cover. NOTE: if you're using lids and rings, your not trying to seal them, just close them.

Let stand at room temperature 24 hours until set. Refrigerate up to three weeks. Otherwise, store in freezer for up to a year.

The recipe says to thaw in the freezer, but my family prefers to spread on warm toast direcly from the freezer.

Cheesy Broccoli Rice and Chicken

This is based on a recipe from the famous soup maker. I adapted the recipe this weekend to feed about 6 people.

1 tbsp oil
4 -6 chicken breasts (no more than fit in a single layer on the bottom of your largest skillet)
1 can condensed cream of broccoli soup
1 can condensed cheddar cheese soup
1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups water
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp pepper
4 cups rice
1 cup of cheddar cheese (or a little more)

Heat oil over medium heat. Cook chicken breats, turning occasionally until cooked through. Drain any excess liquid.

Mix soups, milk, water, paprika and pepper. Whisk thoroughly.

Pour soup over chicken. Heat until boiling. Remove chicken and keep warm. Add rice. Simmer for five minutes. Taste the rice. If it's done, yea! If not, simmer for two more minutes, and taste again. Repeat until done.

Arrange chicken on a platter, put rice over the top and cover with cheddar cheese.

Steamed broccoli is an excellent accompaniment.

Big Boy Strawberry Pie

Never made a pie? Start with this one... it's really hard to screw up.

1 prepared pie crust (bake according to package directions)
1 cup sugar
2 TBSP corn starch
1 3 oz package strawberry jello
1 quart fresh strawberries
1 TBSP lemon juice
1 TBSP butter

In a saucepan, combine sugar and cornstarch. Mash 1 cup of whole berries. Add water to crushed berries to make 2 cups. Stir into sugar and cornstarch.

Cook, stirring over medium heat until boiling. Boil for 2 minutes.

Remove from heat, add butter, jello and lemon juice. Stir until jello dissolves. Chill until partially set.

Spoon 1/3 of mixture into pie shell. Add rest of berries to pie shell. Pour rest of mixture over the top. Chill at least one hour (overnight is better.)

Sherve with whipped cream.

Onion-Roasted Potatoes

Sometimes, the best recipes are found on the side of the box :)

1 envelope name-brand onion soup mix (or beefy onion, or mushroom and onion, whatever sounds good)
2 lbs potatoes, cut into large chunks
1/3 cup olive oil

Preheat oven to 450 degrees
In a large bowl, mix all ingredients thoroughly - use your hands! Pour into a 9 x 13-inch baking pan. Bake, uncovered, stirring occasionally for 40 minutes, or until potatoes are tender and golden brown.

Broccoli and Potato Fritatta

This is a conglomeration of multiple recipes I found on the internet. My family likes it - and it's fabulous with Tomato and Basil Cheddar Cheese.

1 1/2 cups potatoes - washed, peeled, and cubed into bite size pieces
2 cups chopped br0ccoli florets
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup sliced green onions (or chopped regular onions)
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp rosemary
1 tsp thyme leaves
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
9-12 eggs (depends on how "eggy" you like it - don't be shy!)
1/4 cup milk + 2 tablespoons milk (for 9ish eggs) - 1/2 cup milk (for 12ish eggs)
1 cup cheddar cheese

Boil water in a medium saucepan (enough to cover both potatoes and broccoli). Add potatoes. Cook 7 minutes or until just tender. Add broccoli, cook one minute longer. Drain well. (The multi-cooker I got for Christmas works fab for this - thanks mom!)

Heat oil in a large skillet on medium heat. Add onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add potatoes and broccoli and mix well. Remove from heat.

Coat a 9 x 13 baking dish with non-stick spray or butter. Add the potato mixture, spreading evenly over the bottom.

In a large bowl, mix oregano, rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper. Add eggs and milk. Whisk until well-blended. Pour egg mixture over potato mixture.

Bake in a 425 degree oven for 15 minutes (until eggs are mostly set) sprinkle with cheddar cheese and bake 5 more minutes. - Cook longer for more eggs

Note: the original recipe called for thinly sliced tomatoes on top of the egg mixture. I didn't have any, but it sounds good. Seriously though, Tomato and Basil Cheddar Cheese. It's amazing.