Ruth's Italian Chicken Wings

When Nathan and I first moved to Redding, CA, we missed having close family and especially grandparents for our children.  We ended up adopting the older ladies in our ward as their "grandparents" and one of our favorites was Ruth Bingham.  She was half Italian and every time I came over she taught me another recipe.  This one was my favorite.  It's a little time intensive, so I reserve it for special occasions, but the ingredients are pretty simple. 
 

 Italian Chicken Wings:
2 Peppers, large chopped
2 Onions, large chopped
Saute in Olive Oil till softened
Add 1 T. Basil, Oregano, and Parsley
Add Seasoning Salt to taste
Pour in 1 small can of tomato sauce and 1 cup of water, simmer till the wings are done cooking

Wings:
Fry in Olive Oil until the wings are browned all the way 
Drain the excess oil and then add the cooked onions and peppers.  Simmer 30-60 minutes until the wings are softened.  Serve with pasta.

Baked Stuffed Tomatoes

This is a favorite recipe in our family....even from my tomato haters.  The spices are amazing, and I feel healthier just from eating it.  I found the recipe from a website tied to the Forks over Knives movie.  It is simple enough that Brandon was able to make the batch shown above.  I always double the recipe.

Baked Stuffed Tomatoes
4 lg tomatoes (scooped out)
1 c. cooked couscous

Saute:
1 med diced onion

Add:
1/4 c. water
2 t. cumin
1/2 t. tumeric
2 cloves garlic
1 t. paprika
1 T. boullion

Cook 2 minutes.  Add:
1 c. garbonzo beans
3 c. fresh spinach chopped (or frozen will work)
2 T. raisins
2 T. pinenuts (or walnuts)
Salt/Pepper

Stuff Tomatoes and bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees. 

Laundry Soap

Years ago I went to a class to learn how to make laundry soap.  I was pretty skeptical that it would a) be easy, b) actually clean my laundry, c) be cost efficient and worth my time to make it, and d) smell as good as my usual laundry soap.  I am still making it, so that answers all my concerns!

Laundry soap:
2 c. grated Fels-Naptha Soap
Dissolve in 1 pint of warm water over the stove on medium.
Once fully dissolved, add 2 c. borax and 2 c. washing soda.  Stir till dissolved.
Add 2 gallons of warm water and stir till mixed well.  Take off heat and it's ready to go.  

Some people store it in a bucket, but I like to pour it back into the cleaned out milk gallons and just pour it into my washing machine.  It gels up when it cools, so I just shake it and then use it.  You can use half of what you would use of liquid soap, and it truly works just as well as any commercial laundry soap for pennies compared to dollars!

Mexican Chicken Corn Chowder and Roasted Sweet Potatoes

This is a great recipe to use leftover Thanksgiving turkey that I got from my friend, Kirsten, at a party.

Mexican Chicken Corn Chowder
1 1/2 c. chopped chicken (or leftover turkey)
1/2 c. chopped onion (or you can use 1 T. dried)
1 clove garlic
2 c. chicken broth
3/4 t. ground cumin
Bring to boil, simmer 5 minutes.  Then add:
2 c. cheese shredded
2 c. milk
1 can cream style corn
1 can diced green chiles/jalepenos-depending on preferred spiciness
1 dash hot pepper sauce
1 tomato, chopped
cilantro (opt.)
 

Roasted yams are easy and delicious.  Just coat with olive oil, salt, and pepper.  Roast for about an hour until they are caramelized and delicious.
 

Chicken Fried Steak

Chicken Fried Steak is one of my mom's recipes.  It is a favorite Sunday dinner at our home.

Chicken Fried Steak
Salt and Pepper both sides of pounded round steaks (I also like to use California Garlic).
Coat in flour and fry in hot oil till cooked through and well browned.

White Gravy
Drain the excess grease and add flour and chicken bouillon to the remaining oil.  Scrape the bits of meat until you have a proper roux.  Then carefully stir in milk, mixing well to prevent lumps until you have the right thickness.  

We always serve this meal with mashed potatoes and peas.....easy and yummy!
 

Homemade Pasta Lasagne

My mom's grandfather was Italian, and one of her favorite foods is pasta.  I have happy memories of her making pasta on the kitchen counter.  I have her recipe and find it much easier with a pasta roller that I picked up at a garage sale years ago for a few dollars.  Lasagne is much easier, when you just need two pieces for each layer.

Pasta (Grandma Julie Ann Cunningham Frey)
4 c. flour
1 t. salt
1/2 T. oil
5 large eggs
Mix on counter and gradually add water.  It should have a very thick texture, so add less water than you think you need.

Place in a plastic bag and let set before you roll into pasta.  You can roll it out and freeze it to cook later or dry it, but I love to make it fresh the best.  Roll out with lots of flour to keep it from sticking.  This is especially good when you get semolina flour, which is specifically meant for pasta, but everyday flour works fine as well.
 

Lasagne
Layer #1, #2, #3, and #4 three times and then top with extra mozzarella and cheddar cheese.

Layer #1:  Pasta (homemade or dried that has been cooked)

Layer #2:  1 container Ricotta Cheese, 1/2 c. Parmesan Cheese, and 1 egg mixed together

Layer #3:  Spaghetti sauce-canned or homemade (cooked Italian sausage is optional).  For a richer sauce add cream.

Layer #4:  Mozzarella shredded cheese

Bake for an hour at 350 degrees.

This is another meal that freezes wonderfully.  I like to make several pans and freeze the extra for future meals.  

Hill and Valley Pancakes

This is a great breakfast recipe I got from my sister, Lenaya.

Hill and Valley Pancakes
1 c. milk
1 c. flour
6 eggs
1 shake of salt

Melt 1/2 cube of butter on bottom of pan.  Sprinkle cinnamon sugar on top.  Bake 15 minutes at 450 degrees.