Menus from weeks that worked! To jog my memory

M: Cheese Pizza
Tu: Meatballs and polenta
W: roasted chicken w/ veggies and dessert
Th: Girl's Night Tea (Daddy working late)
F: Pumpkin Waffles with pecans and marscopone
(bought an extra chicken for enchilada casserole)

Green Tomato Hash


Well, never in my life did i think i'd be eatin' green tomatoes, but since gardening in the Pac NW--especially tomatoes in the garden--it can be a supurb year where no one dares looks at a neighbour for fear they'll pass along yet another grocery sack of produce from their garden, or it can be a year known as the "Summer of Lettuce and Peas"

When we had a cooler and wetter than usual summer a few years ago (the first time i joined a CSA) there was an overabundance of greenies from the CSA and our garden. My mom figured there had to be some use for them, so we scoured the internet, and this is a recipe she found from southern cooking on About.com.

Baked green tomato hash casserole is made with leftover meat, beef, or pork, and potatoes.

Ingredients:
•2 cups leftover chopped beef, pork or ham
•1 cup diced raw potatoes
•2 tablespoons butter
•1/2 cup diced green tomatoes
•1/4 cup chopped onion
•salt and pepper, to taste
Preparation:
Combine ingredients; mix well. Turn into a buttered casserole and bake at 325° for 1 hour.
Serves 4.

I've been making this with shredded beef or pork, Spanish style, which adds lots of flavour. Hubbie has an unsatisable palate for all things hot, so we've tried it with some jalapenos on his part too (it's that growing up in El Paso that taught him to love all things spicy--aka 5 star spicy. The kind of spicy that is so hot, you utter to yourself a Hail Mary or two and you tell your food, "I'll see you....later", just before you take the first bite.) Yeah, it's that kinda hot. Ei yi Ei!!

Grandpa Neal's Thumbprint Cookies


These and butterscotch pie or cookies, i always remember my mom's dad making. luckily, Mom wrangled the recipe from him, so we can still make them and rekindle our fond memories of Grandpa!

1 cup shortening (Grandpa & Mom use Crisco, i use butter at room temp)
1 - 3oz pkg of cream cheese
1 cup sugar

Mix these together until blended.

Add 1 egg yolk and the vanilla. Stir well.

Add 2 & 1/2 cup flour.

Roll into a ball, place on greased cookie sheet. Make a thumbprint in each cookie. Here i've seen variations--some people dip the cookie into finely chopped nuts of some kind, then fill with a 1/2 tsp of your favourite jam.

Bake 15-17 minutes or until golden brown.

Please let them cool completely!! Especially because the jam will be sooo hot--children especially have to be watched if they help you make these!!

GRANDMA DUB'S GOULASH

is a recipe from my dad's mom, Virginia. it would be interesting to see if i could come up with something other than Campbell's spaghetti in a can!!


1 1/2 lb ground beef
l med onion, chopped
8 oz mushrooms, sliced
2 large cans or 4 small cans Campbell's spaghetti (like Spaghetti o's only spaghetti but I guess you could use Spaghetti O's)
8 oz can tomato sauce
parmesan cheese, grated

Cook onions and mushrooms in skillet sprayed with Pam until onions are tender, then add ground beef and cook til brown. Stir in Campbell's Spaghetti and tomato sauce, reduce heat and cook until thoroughly heated. After dishing out on plates, sprinkle with grated parmesan.

Enjoy. This is a fast and super easy dinner that kids and adults both love. Serve with crusty bread.