The Charmed Kitchen

Blueberry Crumble

If you are pressed for time and need a really easy dessert you might want to try this one. This would make a great dessert for a picnic or cookout. I started with a jar of homemade blueberry pie filling, but you can use store bought. I topped it with an oatmeal crumble mixture and popped it in the oven to get all toasted and bubbly. It took longer for the oven to preheat than it did for me to assemble this dish. Great for dessert as is, or topped with ice cream. Not too sweet, it could easily work for a brunch, too. I used blueberry pie filling but you could use whatever fruit pie filling you prefer.

Blueberry Crumble

1 can blueberry pie filling – I make my own so I used homemade*
1 c. rolled oats
2/3 c. flour
½ c. brown sugar
2 t. cinnamon
½ t. salt
¼ c. butter
3 T. half and half – you could also use milk or whipping cream

Place pie filling in a deep dish 9-inch pie pan. In mixing bowl combine the oats, flour, sugar, cinnamon and salt. Cut in the butter. Drizzle the milk over the oat mixture and stir to blend. Place oat mixture over the blueberry pie filling. Bake in a preheated 375-degree oven for 30-35 minutes- or until bubbly and the crumble topping has become golden. Serve warm or cold. Tastes great plain but also good topped with ice cream or whipped cream. Serves 4-6.

* You can also make the filling using fresh or frozen berries. In medium saucepan combine 3-4 cups of berries with ¾ cup of sugar, ¼ cup lemon juice and the zest of a lemon. Bring to a boil and add 2 tablespoons of cornstarch (or Clear Gel if you have it) mixed with 3 or 4 tablespoons of cold water. Bring to a boil, stirring often. Mixture should be nicely thickened. Depending on the berries I sometimes use a little more cornstarch.

Cucumber and Carrot Salad

With cookouts and picnics it seems there is always a need for more salads. Sometimes I am in the mood for old favorites. Other times I am looking for something a little different. Here are some salads I have made that my friends and family really enjoyed. If you are looking for a salad for the holiday weekend – or any time – I think you will find one here that you and your family will enjoy.

Cucumber and Carrot Salad

This refreshing salad combines carrots and cucumbers in a simple dressing. So easy and fast. Perfect side for your picnic or barbecue.

4 cucumbers, peeled, leaving strips of skin

1 c. coarsely shredded carrots

1 c. thin sliced sweet onion

1/3 c. vinegar- I like cider vinegar in this dish

2 T. Balsamic vinegar

¼ c. oil

1 T. sugar

1 ½ t. salt

Fresh ground pepper

Slice cucumbers. Combine vegetables in bowl. Combine dressing ingredients and pour over the vegetables, tossing to coat well. Chill at least 1 hour before serving, Spoon over lettuce, if desired. Serves 4-6.

Cornbread Salad

 A little different- people always seem to like this salad. Also a nice way to use up stale cornbread, too. 🙂

4 c. crumbled cornbread or corn muffins

1 c. shredded mild cheese

1 sweet red pepper seeded and diced

1 c. diced celery

½ c. diced green onion

4 hard-cooked eggs, peeled and chopped

¼ c. chopped parsley

1-1 ½ c. mayonnaise or salad dressing, sometimes I use potato salad dressing or even slaw dressing

2 c. diced fresh tomatoes

1 c. toasted pecans

paprika for sprinkling on the top, optional

Place cornbread and next 6 ingredients in a medium bowl. Stir in dressing until desired moistness is achieved. Chill and stir in tomato and nut just before serving. Sprinkle with paprika if you like. Serves 6.

Note: You can add whole kernel corn also if you like.

Sweet Potato Salad

A nice twist on potato salad.

 3 large sweet potatoes

2 c. corn kernels, fresh off the cob preferred but frozen is O.K.

2 ribs celery, sliced

1 sweet onion, diced

1 c. sweet pepper, seeded and chopped

2-3 T. fresh parsley

1/3 c. oil

1 t. Dijon mustard

3 T. apple cider vinegar

1 T. lemon juice

1 clove garlic, minced

Salt and pepper to taste

½ c. cashews

In medium saucepan boil or steam potatoes until tender, about 20-25 minutes. Remove with slotted spoon and place in a large bowl of ice water. Add corn to saucepan and cook until just tender about 2-3 minutes. Drain corn and add to ice water with the potatoes. Once the vegetables have cooled down drain them and peel and cut the potatoes into bite-sized pieces. Place potatoes and corn in a mixing bowl with remaining vegetables. Combine remaining ingredients, except cashews, in a jar with a tight-fitting lid and shake well before pouring over the sweet potato mixture. Toss to blend and chill until ready to serve. Add cashews just before serving. Serves 6.

Multi- Bean Salad

1 lb. cooked green beans, sliced

1 can lima beans, rinsed and drained

1 can dark red kidney beans, rinsed and drained

1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained

1 medium sweet onion, chopped

1/2 c. chopped fresh parsley

1 c. apple cider vinegar

1/4 c. sugar

1/4 c. oil

2 T. Italian seasoning- or whatever herb blend you like

1 T. hot sauce, or to taste

Salt and pepper to taste

Combine beans with onions and parsley in a medium bowl. Combine remaining ingredients in a small bowl and pour over the bean mixture. Stir well and chill a couple of hours before serving. Serves 8.

Cornbread Salad

Sweet Potato Salad

Multi Bean Salad

Pesto Potato Salad

Just in Thyme Potato Salad

Mustard Potato Salad

Artichoke and Edamame Salad

1 lb. edamame  (fresh soybeans)*

1 can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped

2 c. cooked corn

1 c. chopped sweet onion

1/3 c. olive oil

1/2 c. cider vinegar

1 t. sugar, optional

fresh chopped parsley

fresh chopped basil

salt and pepper to taste

To prepare edamame steam them, in their pods, until tender, about 8 minutes. Place in cold water. Once cool enough to handle slip the edamame out of their pods. Discard pods and place edamame into a mixing bowl.  Add remaining ingredients and stir to mix well. Chill until ready to serve. Serves 4-6.

* A lot of stores have them in the freezer section. They are in the pods. The pods are not edible. If you don’t have edamame you can substitute fresh lima beans.

Cauliflower and Broccoli Salad

1 small head cauliflower, trimmed and broken into bite- sized pieces

2 broccoli crowns, cut into bite- sized pieces

1 sweet pepper, seeded and chopped

1 c. shredded cheese- I used a sharp cheddar

8- 10 slices of bacon, cooked and chopped

1/2 cup of mayo – or more according to your taste

salt and pepper to taste

Steam the cauliflower and broccoli until just tender/crisp. About 5 minutes in a microwave steamer, 6 minutes in a conventional steamer. Place in a bowl to cool down then combine with remaining ingredients and stir to combine well. Adjust seasonings, if needed. Serves 6-8.

Smoky Succotash Salad

1 lb. lima beans, cooked and cooled

4 c. corn off the cob, cooked and cooled

1 sweet pepper, seeded and chopped

1-2 c. cooked ham, diced

Dressing:

2/3 c. sour cream

3 T. apple cider vinegar

2 T. sugar

1 t. grated ginger

1 t. hot sauce, or to taste

salt and pepper to taste

Combine veggies with the ham in medium bowl. In small bowl stir together dressing ingredients until smooth and toss with the veggie mixture. Chill until ready to serve. Serves 6.

Artichoke and Edamame Salad

Cauliflower and Broccoli Salad

Smoky Succotash Salad

Mom’s Macaroni Salad

For summer cookouts we always had this salad. Back in the days when it was called macaroni, not pasta. I loved it then and I love it now. I won’t say I don’t make other pasta salads. I do. I make all sorts of combinations, but this is the salad that brings me home. Mom used mostly mayo, with a little salad dressing like Spin Blend. She felt it gave the salad just a little more zing. She added quite a few hard cooked eggs and I think they add a richness to the salad. My dad would cut up the celery and green onions for her. Mom liked the veggies cut into a fairly small dice in this dish and Dad had wicked knife skills.  I love the image of them cooking together. So here it is- a family recipe wrapped up nicely with some memories, too.

Mom’s Macaroni Salad

1 lb. uncooked pasta, shells are preferred
Salt and pepper
Mayonnaise, about 1 cup
Salad dressing, like Spin Blend or Miracle Whip, about ½ cup
3-4 ribs celery, sliced thin
4-5 green onions, trimmed and sliced thin
8-12 hard-cooked eggs, cooled and peeled

Cook pasta according to package directions, but do not overcook. Rinse with cold water and drain well. Place drained pasta in a large bowl and sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Add dressings and vegetables and stir until well mixed. You may want to add more dressing to suit your taste. Chop eggs and stir into salad. Adjust seasonings if needed and chill before serving. Serves 8-10.

Thai Chicken Salad

When it is just too hot to cook, a nice main dish salad can be the answer. This Asian inspired chicken and pasta salad it light and satisfying at the same time. I used some mint from my garden, which gave it such nice fresh flavor. I think with the amount of mint in my yard, any recipe to use some of it is a good thing. Sometimes I also add some fish sauce to the dressing. This recipe can use a chicken you cooked yourself – or a precooked chicken from the store.

Thai Chicken Salad

1 (3 lb.) chicken, cooked, skinned, meat shredded
8 oz. angel hair pasta, cooked and drained
2 T. coarsely shredded fresh mint leaves
1/2 c. chopped cilantro
1 tomato
1/2 c. olive oil
1 garlic clove
1/2 t. red pepper flakes, or to taste
1 T. plus 1 t. soy sauce
1 T. plus 1 t. fresh lemon juice – lime juice works, too
1 1/2 t. brown sugar
Lettuce leaves for lining the platter

Place chicken meat and pasta in bowl and combine. Mix remaining ingredients, except lettuce, in blender until smooth and toss with chicken mixture. Salad can be served immediately or chilled. Line serving platter with lettuce leaves and spoon over chicken mixture. Serves 4.

Creamed Spinach

Some foods are just about more than food. Creamed spinach always makes me think of my mother. I can remember watching her make creamed spinach, thickening the sauce and watching her stir the spinach mixture as it became thickened and bubbly. She would let me stir it, to keep it from sticking. It was always one of my favorite dishes- as a kid and today. Mom really liked spinach. She also made pork chops Florentine, occasionally rolled spinach inside a boneless turkey breast and made a wonderful spinach salad with a sweet and sour dressing, hard cooked eggs and croutons. Here is her recipe.

Creamed Spinach

2 (10 oz.) packages frozen spinach or 2 lbs. fresh spinach, washed and stemmed
1 T. butter
1 c. milk – or half and half
2-3 T. flour
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 t. dill weed
Cook spinach in a small amount of water and drain when heated through or wilted. Return spinach to pot and add butter. Place milk and flour in jar with tight fitting lid and shake until well mixed. Add to spinach and cook, stirring constantly until thickened and bubbly. Season to taste and serve.

Mom’s Breaded Chicken

I miss the big family picnics we had when I was a kid. My Dad and I would go early in the morning to pick out our favorite location and get tables arranged. Then he would start a fire in the grill and make us bacon and eggs in the cast iron skillet. Everyone started arriving soon after that. Well, not everyone. My Mom and one of my aunts would always come a little later. That is because they were finishing up the breaded chicken that was always a part of these picnics. She wanted it to be served nice and warm. It would have been breaded the day before. My mom felt that when you breaded the chicken ahead of time it seemed to help the breading to stick better. I do it the same way today. This isn’t fried chicken. The breaded chicken is lightly browned in a skillet then finished off in the oven. It is crispy on the outside and nice and juicy inside. It is also a lovely memory for me of time spent with family. Here are the directions for how she made it.

Mom’s Breaded Chicken

Chicken pieces, skinned and boned if desired
salt and pepper to taste
Parsley
Paprika
Garlic powder
eggs
Milk
Bread crumbs
oil

Wash chicken pieces. Season with salt and pepper. In bowl combine milk and eggs with seasonings. I use 1 egg with enough milk to make a thin batter for every 4-5 pieces of chicken. Keep in mind that the size of the pieces matters. Wings will need less batter than legs. Place bread crumbs in a shallow dish or in a plastic bag. Dip chicken pieces (1-2 at a time) in egg mixture, turning to moisten completely. Then place in crumbs and turn or shake to coat evenly. Repeat with remaining chicken until all of it is breaded, adding to your egg and bread crumb mixtures if needed.
At this time you can cover and refrigerate the chicken for several hours or overnight if desired. You can also go ahead and cook it right away. Mom suggests you bread the chicken the night before so it will stick better, but hey, you’re an adult, do what you want.
To cook the chicken, heat 1/2 inch of oil in a heavy skillet and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Foil a roasting pan and then place a rack inside. Once the oil is hot, brown the chicken pieces several at a time, turning to brown evenly. Place the browned chicken on the rack in the baking dish and continue to brown remaining chicken. Place chicken in oven and bake until chicken is cooked and juices run clear when chicken is poked. Cooking time will vary depending on the size of the pieces, how much you browned them and how many you are cramming in one pan. Baking time will be from 45 minutes to an hour usually, but check a large piece of chicken near the middle of the pan to be sure.
This is a real summer favorite and the baking on the rack helps fat to drip off, giving you fried chicken flavor with fewer calories. This chicken can be served hot, warm or cold.

Blueberry Crumb Cake

I love blueberries in pretty much anything. I cook with them all the time. This is one of my favorite blueberry recipes- and that is saying a lot. It is a classic and always a favorite when I make it for friends and family. The cake is moist, tender and delicate but the magic is that crumb topping. Because it isn’t frosted, this cake is a also great dessert choice for cookouts and picnics. No melting frosting to worry about.

Blueberry Crumb Cake

For cake batter:
2 c. flour
2 t. baking powder
½ t. salt
½ stick (¼ cup) butter, softened
¾ c. sugar
1 egg
½ c. milk
1 pint blueberries
For topping:
½ c. sugar
¼ c. flour
½ t. cinnamon
½ stick (¼ c. butter, chilled and cut into bits)
Combine dry ingredients and set aside. In mixing bowl with electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and milk. Add flour mixture gradually until just mixed in. Fold in blueberries. Grease and flour an 8 or 9-inch square baking pan and add prepared batter. Combine topping ingredients until they resemble coarse crumbs. Sprinkle over batter in pan and bake in a preheated 375-degree oven and bake for 35-45 minutes. Use toothpick to test.
Note: I have used a 9-inch round pan and it worked fine.

Bacon Tomato Mini Quiches- Gluten Free

I love these little quiches for picnics and summer parties. They are great to take along anywhere. They can be served warm or cold. The crust is a combination of zucchini, rice, egg and cheese. The filling for these is made from bacon and tomato- but I have vegetarian filling options listed at the bottom of this post. So simple and cute, too. While the recipe makes 12, I find I can usually get a few extra out of a recipe. They freeze well.

Bacon Tomato Mini Quiches – Gluten Free

Crust:
1¾ c. shredded zucchini
1¼ c. cooked rice- white or brown
1 egg
¼ c. grated Parmesan cheese

Mix all ingredients together.

Filling:
8 slices cooked and crumbled bacon
1 c. shredded cheese – I like Swiss, but use what you like
1 tomato, seeded and diced
½ c. chopped sweet onion

Combine ingredients in small bowl. Set aside until ready to use.

Custard:
1 1/3 c. half and half
4 eggs
½ t. each basil, garlic powder, paprika and salt
1/8 t. pepper

Place in medium bowl and whisk together until smooth.
Grease 12 muffin cups. The mixture will fill 12 cups very full- but you can make your quiches a little smaller, if you like and make a few more. Pat 2 tablespoons of the crust mixture into each muffin cup. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 10-12 minutes. Cool before filling. While baking and cooling crusts prepare filling of your choice and custard. Spoon 2 tablespoons of filling over each cooled crust. Spoon about 3-4 tablespoons of the custard over the filling. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 15-20 minutes. Can be served warm or cold.

Other fillings:

Tomato, broccoli, mushroom:
In 1 T. butter, sauté 1¼ c. sliced mushrooms, ¾ c. chopped fresh broccoli and 1/3 c. diced onion. Cook until tender, cool. Stir in 1 C. shredded cheddar cheese and 1 tomato, seeded and diced.

Spinach and onion:
Combine 1 10 oz. package frozen spinach, cooked and drained well, with ½ c. diced onion and 1 c. shredded Swiss cheese and ½ c. diced sweet red pepper.

Strawberry and Lavender Ice Cream

If you are looking for a slightly different ice cream flavor you might think about spicing it up. I added lavender blossoms to my strawberry ice cream and ended up with a truly wonderful confection.  You can get creative and add other seasonings to make your homemade ice cream special. Cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, basil, lemon peel, pepper and other spices and herbs can all add interest to your frozen desserts. Open your mind up to experimenting and see what you can come up with. I made this the other day and wanted to share the recipe with you.  Can’t wait to make it again.

Strawberry and Lavender Ice Cream

2 c. chopped strawberries

1 c. sugar

1 T. lavender blossoms

1 T. vanilla

2 c. cream or  half and half or a combination. You can also use some milk or even almond or rice milk.

Additional sugar to taste

Place strawberries, lavender, vanilla  and sugar in saucepan and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and chill. Combine chilled berry mixture with cream. Add additional sugar if you like. Remember that once it is frozen the ice cream will not taste as sweet so make this mixture a little sweeter than you want the final product to be. How much sugar you add varies with personal taste and how sweet the berries are. Place in an ice cream maker and process according to manufacturer’s directions. Once finished put in an sir- tight container and place in freezer. Makes about 1 quart.