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Conference turris::cooks

Title:How to Make them Goodies
Notice:Please Don't Start New Notes for Old Topics! Check 5.*
Moderator:FUTURE::DDESMAISONSec.com::winalski
Created:Tue Feb 18 1986
Last Modified:Thu Jun 05 1997
Last Successful Update:Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:4127
Total number of notes:31160

2269.0. "SIMPLE BUT IMPRESSIVE" by TRNPRC::BAKER () Wed Feb 21 1990 21:02

    Please help me. I need a SIMPLE, yet impressive receipe to use for a
    dinner for two on friday night. I would like chicken, beef and am even
    willing to try seafood.  All that I ask is that it only take about an
    hour to an hour and a half AND that it makes me look as good as it
    tastes. I have been told that it will be an impossible task to impress
    someone with my cooking ( I'm about as bad as they come) by people who
    have eaten my cooking, but I have faith that there is some clever
    person out there who will come to my rescue. Please try to make it
    something other than Fajitas (I already impressed with this one and
    it's starting to wear thin- want the receipe?) or oriental style. But
    if you think it'll work I'll give it a shot!!!! THANK YOU!!!!! 
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2269.1 How about this !!!SNOC02::BELLCHAMBERSThu Feb 22 1990 01:2540
    SOUR CHERRY CHICKEN
    
    T'is delicious and very colourful, this recipe is for 4, however I
    believe that you can successful halve the sauce quantity.  Serve with
    hot crisp green veggies (broccolli, whole green baby beans, snow peas
    etc) or salad.
    
    Ingredients:
    
    Boned chicken breasts
    dark soy sauce
    lemon slices
    fresh ground black pepper
    
    Brush the chicken with soy sauce.  Place a slice of lemon on each
    breast and season with pepper.   Line a griller (broiler ?) pan with
    foil and grill the chicken until tender and serve with the sour cherry
    sauce.
    
    Sour Cherry Sauce:
    
    2 Tablespoons cider vinegar
    4 Tablespoons brown sugar
    2 Tablespoons cornflour  (Cornstarch ?)   
    1 425g (14oz) can black cherries, 
    pitted, drained and juice reserved (approx 14oz tin)
    1 cup of chicken stock
    1 tablespoon of grated orange rind
    1 tablespoon of grated lemon rind
    1/2 cup of orange juice
    2 tablespoons lemon juice
    
    Place vinegar and sugar in a saucepan, bring to the boil, and cook
    stirring constantly until the mixture caramelizes.  Blend cornflour
    with 2 tablespoons of cherry liquid, and place remainder of liquid in
    the saucepan also add stock, rinds, juices and cherries cook for a
    further 3 minutes.   Add cornflour paste, stirring until thoroughly
    combined.  Stir until sauce thickens. 
    
    
2269.2fresh vegies are at farm stands, remember that!ASABET::C_AQUILIAThu Feb 22 1990 08:2924
    i have seen several notes in this file that will help you.  i needed
    the same type of information and started one myself.  unfortunately i
    have yet to find it for you.  i did do a directory/title=romantic
    and came up with note 401.  they have some helpful ideas... although
    easy may not be that easy to find in that note....
    
    if you like italian, (i know that you didn't specify that but you did
    specify chicken) you could always do as one man stated and go out and
    buy some prego spaggetti sauce with mushrooms, some mozzerella cheese
    and some perdue done it chicken cutlets.   this will make a fantastic
    chicken parmesean.   you could boil some pasta for a side dish and if
    your creative you could make a salad... some french bread with garlic,
    get the picture.  his note i think was in chicken parts something or
    other... or maybe 178, i'm not sure. its really simple to make a nice meal,
    you just have to make sure to watch things carefully, not to let
    anything burn (or undercook for that matter) and have atmosphere... a key to
    a nice dinner that some don't need; but some do.  
    
    
    hope you find what your looking for.  if i find anything else i'll let
    you know.  please keep us posted as to your progress.  thanks!
    
    cj
    
2269.3LONDON BROILCTD044::HERNDONKristen, 526-2244Thu Feb 22 1990 08:5138
    If there is anyway you can get a little more cooking time, this
    would be great.  You can even put it together the night before:
    
    My mom always called this:
    
    London Broil
    
    1 1/2- 2 lb london broil
    1 can French onion Soup
    4-5 carrots (enough for 2)
    Small potatoes (peeled) or just cut up large potatoes 
    Mushrooms (optional...I use 2 8 oz cans)
    Reynolds Oven Cooking Bag (Medium Size or larger)
    
    NOTE:  You can also buy the vegies frozen and already cut
    
    Put the London Broil in the cooking bag then put the bag in a 
    9x13 pan.  Empty the Soup then Mushrooms over meat.  Put vegetables
    all around on the sides.  You can do all this the night before.  Don't 
    Forget to cut 5-6 slices on the top of the bag to let steam escape.
    
    Cook at 325 for 2 hrs (I like the meat real tender and use about
    1 hr per pound)
    
    GRAVY:
    
    Remove the meat/vegies from the bag and put them on your serving
    dish.  Empty the juice into a sauce pan and bring to a boil. 
    You may not want all the mushrooms in your gravy so take out what
    you want.  Mix 1 TBL Corn Starch or Flour with 1/2 cup water.  Empty
    into sauce pan to thicken.  You may want it thicker so adjust as
    necessary.
    
    I ladle some of the gravy over the meat and put some fresh parsley
    on the side.  You can also sprinkle parsley over the potatoes.
    Serve this with a nice red wine....you'll love it (and it's easy)
        
    Enjoy...Kristen
2269.4try an oven stufferDELNI::J_LEMMONThu Feb 22 1990 11:2016
    
    Try a Perdue Oven Stuffer Roast Chicken.  They're foolproof! The
    directions are right on the back of the package that the chicken is
    wrapped in - you can't go wrong.  All I do is wash the chicken,
    sprinkle it with a few seasonings and put just a little water in the
    bottom of the pan (I find this makes the bird even juicier).  I usually
    cover the chicken with a foil tent then take it off for about the last
    hour so the chicken will brown up.
    
    I did this just last week end in fact.  I had my in-laws over for
    dinner.  I served the chicken, baked potatos, fresh steamed carrots,
    and fresh spinach.  Wow, were they impressed!  And, it was soooooo
    simple!!!
    
    Good Luck!
    Joanne
2269.5a seafood suggestionLEDS::BLODGETTThe fjords are calling me...Thu Feb 22 1990 11:569
    Buy about 1 lb. (or a little more) of sea scallops. Rinse scallops and
    drain on paper towels. Heat skillet (on med. heat) when skillet is hot
    drop in scallops and 1-2 Tblsp. butter. Saute for 5-10 minutes depending
    on size. (I always eat one to make sure they're done) Servs with
    Country Inn brand rice Alfredo and a green salad.  I rinse/peel veggies
    for salad first, then start the rice, then assemble the salad and cook
    the scallops. Start to finish 30-45 minutes.
    
    Martha
2269.6{ chicken with cheese/vermouth sauce }TOLKIN::SWEENEYThu Feb 22 1990 14:2827
    
    
      This is easy and tasty: I don't have a name for it, but here 
      goes :
    
      Two Boneless,skinless chicken breast, cut in half again to 
                   end up with four pieces.
    
      One can Campbells Cream of Chicken 
      1/4 cup grated Parmasean Cheese
      1/4 cup white Vermouth (dry)
      1/2 pkg Mushrooms optional 
      2 tbsp Butter
      2 cups rice  
    
      Preheat oven to 350. 
      In  a casserole or other deep oven proof pan w/cover
      Place soften or melted butter, and chicken pieces.
    
      In a mixing bowl, add soup, vermouth and cheese. Stir together
      until blended. Cover Chicken with sauce, add sliced mushrooms
      on top if desired. Cover casserole, cook one hour.
    
      Start rice 1/2 after chicken, serve chicken over rice (or noodles).
    
      Serve with salad, veggies etc with white wine. Very tender chicken,
      excellent taste w/cheese, vermouth and soup sauce.
2269.7Hope this Helps....Bachelor Beef WellingtonRHODES::HACHEI Like (M)IkeThu Feb 22 1990 17:4840
    I laughed watching my brother do this for a dinner party last Saturday
    night, (whenever he cooks, I make it a point to visit his kitchen
    because he takes shortcuts in the oddest places...) but when 8 of
    our friends sat down to dinner, we were all singing his praises...it
    was fantastic.
    
    He calls it "Bachelor's Beef Wellington"
    
    Tenderloin Steaks (yes, the expensive ones) 1 per person
    Frozen Pie Crusts about 1 per person...but you could probably do
                      1.5 or 2.0, defrosted
    Pate (at the local deli, specialty store, etc) 1 oz per person
    
    Put the steaks on a cookie sheet covered with tin foil and broil
    on both side until browned (not long, maybe a 5 minutes, each side)
    
    Take out of the oven, and put the steaks aside to cool completely.  
    Take tin foil off cookie sheet.   
    
    When steaks are cool, take each pie crust, and on a well floured
    surface cut away the round "sides" so you have a square of pastry, 
    make one pastry for each steak.  Put steak in center of pastry, 
    spread top of steak with 1 ounce of pate and seal pastry over top 
    of steak, use water to seal the seams of the pastry together.  Make 
    pretty designs (he just did different geometrical shapes) from cut 
    outs of scrap pastry.  Use water when applying designs to each steak 
    "package".  
    
    Glaze each beef wellington with 1 egg plus 1 tablespoon of water
    lightly beaten together.  Put clean sheet of tin foil on cookie
    sheet and put wellingtons on it.  Put in the oven and bake at 375
    until knife carefully inserted to center of steak comes out hot.
    
    Serve with baby carrots (frozen is easiest) and boiled new potatoes
    (there was a note about them posted fairly recently).  
    
    Dessert can be super premium ice cream and some pepperidge farm
    cookies etc...
    
    dm
2269.8Sole au RoquefortTAVIS::JUANMon Feb 26 1990 04:3416
    4 sole fillets
    1/2 lb. Roquefort or blue-cheese
    1/2 lb. 9% fat cream cheese
    margarine (or butter)
    black pepper
    salt
    fines herbes

    Get an oven baking pan, butter it (with margarine), lay down the sole
    fillets side by side.

    Mix Roquefort and cream cheeses, (Roquefort should remain coarse),
    cover fish with cheese mixture, sprinkle with salt, pepper and fines
    herbes, cook in hot oven for 15 minutes, until begins to brown.

    Bon Apetit
2269.10Bon Appetit!POLKST::CLIFFORD_VIMI ALMAFri Mar 09 1990 15:222
    Try the recipes in notes 2183 & 2188.  They both taste good, look
    good, and complement each other.  Good luck.