Chicken or Beef Broth

I call it broth but it's really stock since it has the veggie and meat cooked with it.

Broth

4 chicken breasts with bones and skin (or pkg thighs or a beef roast or beef soup bones)
a handful or two of each: carrots, celery, onion, all chunked up
few grinds of sea salt
couple cracks of fresh pepper
up to 10 cups water


Add vegetables salt and pepper to crock pot.
Add water. My crock pot can hold 10 cups of water. Make sure yours does not fill past the lid lip.

Cook on low for 6-8 hrs. Take chicken out and shred for other meals like chicken and noodles . You can use the vegetables if you want. You will want to rinse off the chicken gunk so your dish looks nicer and not dirty looking.

You can use it right away or I put mine in a large container and stick in the fridge. Once it's cooled the fat is sitting on top and I can take it off before putting it into 2 cup containers in the freezer to use for later. 2 cups measures seem to work best for me.

I love to make my own broth. It's MSG free and low sodium AND it tastes so much better. It's so easy to make and I get a meat I can use for dishes too.

To can in jars...process for 20 minutes at 10 pounds.

Grilled Pizza

Grilled Pizza

2-1/2 cups warm water
3/4 cup shortening
3/4 cup sugar
3-1/2 teaspoons salt
2 eggs
2 Tablespoons yeast
8-1/2 cups flour (I use 6 cups bread flour and 2-1/2 cups fine ground wheat)


Favorite pizza toppings and shredded cheese


Add eggs, water, shortening, sugar, salt, eggs, and yeast in large bowl.
Mix with whisk until shortening is pulverized.

Add wheat flour and whisk.

Add rest of flour and mix. You will have "Hulk" fingers but soon it will....

all blend into a nice ball with a little bit of kneading. Place in greased bowl and cover.

Let rise for one hour. Will almost double in size.

Punch down and pinch off small balls. This one was about 5 ounces. Personal pizzas take less dough than larger ones. You won't want your pizza too large or the dough could rip when you flip it.

Roll as thick as you like. A thinner crust will be crispier.

You can freeze ahead uncooked with wax paper in between. Wrap well and take out as needed. Thaws quickly. You can also grill them all ahead and wrap in plastic wrap or get a large 2 gallon freezer bag (make sure you don't make your crust too big or it won't fit.) 

If you plan to use within a few days put in a greased gallon bag. This batch made at least 5 personals, 5 mediums and enough dough to do almost as much again. You can 1/2 the recipe to make less.

Making the completed grilled pizza takes some coordination. Take your cheese out ahead to take chill off or use a fresh mozzarella shredded for even better melting power. Add all of your toppings (except cheese), including sauce to a small pan to heat. Meanwhile, work on cooking dough.

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Place dough right on grill grates. No need to grease. It won't stick.

After browned, but not burnt, flip with tongs being careful not to tear. Cooking for just a moment to take the 'wet' away from the other side. Transfer to a pizza peel or flat cookie sheet.

Add heated toppings, including cheese and return to grill. Grill pizza, turning as needed to keep from burning until yummy melted and crust is browned.

Remove from grill, cut, and enjoy!

This one was broccoli, cooked chicken with alfredo sauce.

**If you are using precooked dough that you had previously frozen, add your toppings to the dough (straight from freezer is ok) and slide it onto a pizza stone that has been preheated in a 450 degree oven. Cook for about 10 minutes.  Perfecto!

Mushroom Gravy

Mushroom Gravy 

2 Tablespoons butter
8 ounces sliced/cleaned mushrooms
few dashes of salt
2 Tablespoons flour
2 cups chicken or beef broth or milk (for cream of mushroom)
Dash or two of dried thyme


Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat.


Add mushrooms and salt.
Stirring occasionally, cook for approximately 15 minutes or until soft. The salt will make them left off their juice and then it will evaporate. Allow to brown a little in the pan.

Add flour and mix well. Cook for about 1 minute.

Add broth a little at a time to incorporate without lumps. Add thyme.

Cook for another 15-20 minutes until thickened and everything is cooked through.

Serve over hamburgers, steak, potatoes. Anything your heart desires!  You can also use it to make tater tot casserole.

Meatloaf Patties

Meatloaf Patties

olive oil

1/2 cup onion, diced

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1-1/2 Tablespoon chicken broth

1 teaspoon tomato paste

1 pound ground beef

2-1/2 Tablespoons bread crumbs

1 egg

1/2 c ketchup (or more to your taste!)

Chop/dice onion. I do mine pretty small  so there are never any crunchy onions in my meatloaf.Cook onions in oil with salt/pepper until completely cooked. Turn off heat. Add Worcestershire sauce, broth, and paste. Mix and cool a little. Mix eggs and bread crumbs...Add tomato/onion mixture to it. and beef. Form into 3-4 hamburger patties. Put on jelly roll pan (cookie sheet with sides) and drizzle with ketchup. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until done. To grill... Heat ketchup separately  mostly to get the chill off. Grill meatloaf patties on medium heat for for 5-6 minutes. Flip, add ketchup and grill for another 5-6 minutes.
You can make more than one batch at a time. TO FREEZE....Form patties and put on wax paper lined cookie sheet. Freeze and then bag. To cook, thaw and cook according to directions above.

Catfish Parmesan

Catfish Parmesan

4 catfish fillets with or without bones
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup milk
1 cup bread crumbs
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons minced garlic (or less depending on your taste and strength of garlic)
1/4 cup fresh parsley (or 1 tablespoon dried)
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
nonstick cooking spray


Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Rinse fillets and pat dry. Combine eggs and milk in shallow bowl. Combine remaining ingredients in another shallow bowl.
Dip fillets in egg mixture and then into bread crumb mixture. Coat fillets evenly and pat firmly. Arrange fillets in greased baking sheet. Spray fillets lightly with cooking spray

Bake uncovered for 15 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. (1/2 pound whole fillets (no heads) cook for 25 minutes) Serve as is or with tartar sauce.