Homemade Baked Italian Meatballs

Baked Italian Meatballs 

INGREDIENTS:
1 pound ground beef or turkey, or half of each
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 small onion, diced , or 1/3 tsp onion powder
1/3-1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 TB Italian seasoning [oregano+thyme]
1/2 tsp basil or marjoram
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1TBSP milk

1 Egg
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese , or 1/4 cup powdered from can
1/2 cup bread crumbs or panko crumbs

Makes 20-24 meatballs , *Mine were about 1.2-2 inches in diameter and it made 16 DIRECTIONS:  1. Preheat an oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C), and line baking pan with parchment paper [ or aluminum foil sprayed with cooking spray] 2. Place everything in bowl and mix thoroughly. Form into 1 1/2-inch meatballs, and place onto baking sheet.  3. Bake in the preheated oven until no longer pink in the center, 22-25 minutes.  Instead of baking these, you can simmer them in Maranara or meat sauce, Covered, for 30-35 minutes on medium low .

Ham Salad

Sadly, I am the only person in my family who will eat this. Silly young souls don't know what they are missing since they won't even TRY it. I don't get that at all, as I have adored ham salad sandwiches since I was their age. But I digress...
Just means more for me, which is awesome because I LOVE this stuff on sandwiches! I'm talking 2+ inch thick sandwiches full of this goodness horked down in seconds kind of love them! Honestly, I have to just stand in the kitchen and eat mine rather than bring it to the table because the wolfish, fiendish way in which I devour them would quite possibly alarm and/or traumatize my impressionable wee ones.
It's not pretty, but, dude, They. Are. Good.
This is one of those things that I will NEVER eat from a deli or a store. It REALLY has to be fresh from my own [or my mother's] kitchen for me to trust it. I mean, have you seen that disgusting pink mush they slap between two slices of bread and call ham salad? *shudder*, *shudder*

Ham Salad for Sandwiches

Ground or finely chopped cooked ham- 3 cups [I sometimes use thin sliced deli ham and just chop it super fine]
Celery- 1 cup chopped - [I go with about 4 ribs because I like it super crunchy]
Prepared yellow mustard- 1-2 TB [depending how much you like your mustard. Start with 1 and add to personal taste]
Reduced fat Mayonnaise- 1/2- 3/4 cup
Sweet relish- 3 TB or more [Adjust amount according to saltiness of the ham, really helps to tone that down]
1 teaspoon grated onion, or 1/8 tsp onion powder--**optional**

Directions

Mix all the ingredients until well blended.
Spread on sliced bread of choice to make a sandwich, or serve with crackers.

Cajun Shrimp Scampi Po-Boy Sandwich

serves 4

1 1/2 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined
2-3 tsp Emeril's original Essence [or your favorite Cajun seasoning]
4 cloves garlic, minced or crushed
4 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
3/4 cup white wine
3 TBSP fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup chopped green onions- 2 whole green onions  [you can substitute a bit of white onion for this]
2 TBSP chopped fresh parsley, [or 2 tsp dried]
1.5 tsp basil
1.5 cup finely grated parmesan cheese- FRESHLY grated from block
1/2 cup Panko bread crumbs


1 loaf fresh French or Italian bread, about 22 inches long, cut in half lengthwise- or hollowed out baguette


In a large saucepan, melt butter with olive oil, saute garlic and green onion until tender. 
Add salt, seasonings, lemon juice, pepper, wine and parsley, then add shrimp and cook until colored pink. 
The Panko crumbs are used to thicken, so stir in a little at a time until desired sauce thickness is reached. 
I also added a bit more Parmesan to shrimp sauce, as well as on top-- but I'm a cheese addict, so do as you will...


Spoon over slightly hollowed out and lightly toasted [at least the bottom] loaf of preference.

Chicken and Caramelized Onion Pub Grub Sandwich

Simple deal here:
1 large [or 2  small] chicken breast and 1 large onion makes 2 servings.
2 TB butter or margarine

Cook chicken in your preferred method [I like to boil mine], cool, then shred.
Or, alternately, I have sliced chicken breasts thin and cooked alongside the onions.

Like so

 I cooked these together over medium heat about 10 minutes, stirring at regular intervals. Then topped with cheese, covered until melted and  covered the buns that had been lightly buttered and toasted.
********************
OR:
Slice Hoagie Roll in half.
To make caramelized onions - just slice thinly and cook gently and slowly in a little oil and butter on medium heat.  Try not to stir too often.  Cooking slowly is the secret here. Add a pinch of sugar and they will begin to look and smell delicious.**Takes about 10 minutes.**

 After onions are cooked, removed from pan and set aside on small plate,  Don’t wipe the pan, but place opened hoagie rolls face down directly on all that yummy oniony goodness. Be sure to slide them around and sop up all of the browned butter and onion bits. On medium heat, should take 3-4 minutes to toast nicely.
 Once  toasted load with shredded chicken and caramelized onions.  Finish off with a good helping of grated cheddar, swiss, parmesan, or mozzarella cheese [ ok, are you sensing that just about any ol’ cheese you like will work here?]- then melt under the broiler.
 Good as is, or with a bit of ranch dressing.
Also, if you’re hankering for a bit of kick, try adding a dash of cajun seasonings to the onions as they cook.

Chicken Bruschetta Hot Hoagies!!

I created THE most delightful open faced hot sandwich last night!!

I was hankering for some bruschetta, but we don't really eat appetizers here and I couldn't actually feel good about just gobbling up absurd amounts and calling THAT dinner. So I thought, huh, need some more protein, why not add a bit of shredded chicken and make it like those hot hoagies?? Why not indeed??!?!
 So that exactly what I did. Cooked some chicken in a sauce pan on the stove [I like the boiling thing because I can take the breast straight from the freezer and boil it up in about 25 minutes. I then have a sort of mild chicken broth at my disposal as well.]
I then diced up the tomatoes I had in the fridge and stirred that all together with my pesto basil/garlic goodness. Slathered it on some french bread and topped it with plenty o' Mozzerella cheese and baked it on a cookie sheet at 350 for about 15 minutes until the cheese was melted.
It was F-A-N-T-A-S-T-I-C!! My husband and I both stared at our plates forlornly when they were empty and yearned for more. Next time I'll know to make a larger portion.
  Here's the recipe!!

Chicken Bruschetta Hot Hoagie
4 servings

1 loaf french bread halved horizontally
2 or 3 chicken breasts cooked with your preferred method, then shredded when cooled [ about 2 cups worth]
6-8 Roma tomatoes, or 3 medium, or 2 large vine ripened--diced

3 TB Olive Oil
2 TB dried basil
2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
dash black pepper to taste
1 TB Balsamic vinegar
2 TB chicken broth [ I used some of the water I'd cooked the chicken in]
1 TB grated Parmesan cheese
** I put all of this in a coffee cup and microwave it for 30 seconds to get the garlic and salt dissolved and activate the basil aroma. Stir it up to be sure the grainy stuff is actually dissolved.**

Before the glorious cheese is added

Stir everything together and spread over the bread topping with plenty of glorious Mozzerella. Place on cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes until cheese is melted.
 Enjoy!!!

Chicken [Spinach] and Cheese Hot Open-faced Hoagies

Ok, I just finished having this for dinner tonight and had to post this new recipe I found *thanks to Melanie at www.melskitchencafe.com* right away because it was SO delicious I simply had to share it!

1 loaf French bread, cut lengthwise [ I used a loaf seasoned with Rosemary and garlic]
2 cups cooked, shredded chicken (in a pinch, you can use two large cans chicken breast)
1/2 cup light mayo
1/2 cup reduced fat sour cream
2 green onions, thinly sliced (white and green parts) [*I put these in a cup with about a tsp of butter to soften them up in the microwave for about a minute, stirring halfway through]
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/3 cup fresh parsley, chopped (or 2 tablespoons dried)
2 cups shredded cheese (I used a combo of monterey jack and sharp cheddar cheese)
*Optional* I LOVE adding about 1 cup of thawed chopped spinach [ or fresh spinach] to these.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place french bread on large baking sheet. Mix all topping ingredients together in a bowl. Spread topping evenly on top of both lengths of french bread. Bake for 15-20 minutes until bubbly and edges are lightly browned. Slice into pieces and serve immediately.

Amazing Pecan Chicken Salad

makes enough for 5 or 6 sandwiches

**great on crackers too**

3 cooked chicken breasts, shredded or cubed
2 stalks celery, diced small
1 cup red/ green/ black grapes, halved or quartered
1 or 2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 cup chopped pecans

1/4 cup sunflower seed kernels

1/4 sliced toasted almonds
2-3 tsp dried Dill
1-2 tsp spicy mustard
1/4 tsp onion powder
1 cup mayonnaise

1 tsp powdered chicken bouillon [or 1/2 tsp salt]

1/2 non-fat plain Greek Yogurt
1 tsp dried orange peel

*optional* 1 tsp dried orange peel
*optional* 1/2 cup cubed apple, skin on


toast bread of choice and line bread with leaf or two of lettuce for sandwiches.