The Busy Parents' Cookbook by members of the December 1995 Parents mailing list
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This is not meant to be low-fat!! We usually only have it for special occasions... like with Christmas Eve dinner.

Salad:
chopped head of lettuce
crisp bacon, broken into pieces (about 1/2 - 3/4 cup)
chopped cauliflower (about 1/2 - 3/4 cup)

Dressing:
1 cup mayonnaise (NOT Miracle Whip!)
1 cup grated parmesan cheese (if using fresh, the texture should be similar to Kraft Parmesan in the can)
sugar (to taste)

I usually mix the dressing together, then mix the bacon and cauliflower into it before mixing into the lettuce. Make sure everything is mixed well before serving.

2 eggs
1/3 cup cracker meal
1/3 cup milk
1 can cream-style corn
2 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp butter

Beat eggs & corn with salt & pepper. Add meal, sugar, & milk. Pour into buttered (ok, “PAMed”) casserole dish. Put butter on top. Bake 1 hour at 350F.

6-8 slices bacon
1 small onion
1 can tomato soup
2 Tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp liquid smoke
2 lbs carrots, cut up and cooked

Fry bacon, saute onion in bacon grease, add soup, brown sugar, and smoke. Mix in carrots. Put in casserole dish covered and bake at 350F for 40 minutes.

1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp oil
1/2 tsp turmeric
a pinch of asofaetida
1 chopped green chili
1 chopped onion
1/2 pound of sliced mushrooms
a fistful of fresh coriander (optional)
salt to taste

Roast cumin seeds in a dry frying pan till dark brown. Add 1 tsp oil (and more as necessary). Add turmeric, asofaetida, green chili, and onion. Fry until onions are golden brown. Add sliced mushrooms, fry until cooked. Add fresh coriander (optional), and salt to taste.

Either use these as a side dish, or use in a sandwich (which sounds weird, but tastes good) as follows:

Toast two slices of bread, butter them. If you don't butter them, your sandwich will turn out too dry! On one unbuttered side, add a couple of spoons of Pace Picante Salsa sauce (medium). On the other side, add the mushroom mixture. Put together, slice and serve.

You can use the same recipe with a different vegetable, and it will taste very different. For example, use zucchini instead of mushrooms, but omit the onions. Once you add the zucchini, cook on low for 15-20 minutes, or on low for 5 minutes, then microwave for 5 minutes.

Syrup:
Bring to a boil 1 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup water, 1/4 cup butter, and 1/2 tsp salt (I usually double this!)

Potatoes:
Boil 6 medium-sized SWEET potatoes -- not yams -- in salted water with skins for 15-30 minutes. Peel and slice.

Bake in greased casserole at 350F for 45 minutes, basting.

A festive dish that's become a favorite.

2-3 lb. butternut squash
4 eggs (slightly beaten)
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar (optional)
1/8 tsp each: pumpkin pie spice, nutmeg, ground cloves
1/4 tsp each: cinnamon, allspice
1/2 cup margarine or butter (softened; melted is ok)
1/2 tsp vanilla
pecan halves

Quarter squash, remove seeds and membrane. Cook in boiling, salted water about 30 minutes or until tender. Drain and cool until you can handle. Scoop meat out of skins and mash.

Add sugars, spices, and margarine to squash. Beat on medium speed about 1 minute, or until smooth.

Add eggs and vanilla. Beat until well blended. Pour into lightly oiled 2-quart shallow baking dish and top with pecan halves. Bake at 350F for 65-75 minutes (or until toothpick in center tests done).

2 pkgs frozen squash, drained
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 small jar pimento, drained
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 egg
salt and pepper

Mix all ingredients together and pour into buttered 2-quart cassorole dish. Top with 1 cup grated chedder cheese and crushed Ritz crackers and dot with butter. Bake at 350F for 30 minutes.

3 lg or 4 md sweet potatoes
1 can (14-15 oz) coconut milk
1 tsp cardamom
1 tbsp brown sugar

Cube the potatoes. Simmer potato cubes in the other ingredients for 30 minutes. You can serve them like that or mash them (that's what I did).

The only thing I did differently the second time around was to double the cardamom (that was definitely better). Next year I may add marshmallows...

The classic New Orleans stuffing. My dad sent me this. I don't know where he got it from. Oh, you have to cook it with a Cajun accent :)

2/3 cup cooking oil
4 ribs celery
2 medium yellow onions, diced
3 medium bell peppers
4 toes garlic, chopped fine
2 tsp ground thyme
2 tsp dried sweet basil
2 whole bay leaves
1 1/2 tsp red pepper (cayenne)
Oyster water from the oysters
1 1/4 cup good chicken stock
1 loaf stale French bread, long type, broken into pieces
2 pints raw oysters (or canned)
1/2 cup Romano cheese
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup sliced green onions
3/4 cup Italian bread crumbs
2 tsp cooking oil
salt to taste

Get cooking oil hot, in a heavy ovenproof skillet, on medium heat. Add celery, yellow onion, bell pepper, and garlic, and saute' for 5 minutes. Add thyme, basil, bay leaves, red pepper, oyster water, and chicken stock. Cook everything together for 5 more minutes, stirring. Remove from heat.

Break french bread into pieces and add to the hot stock and vegetables. Mix french bread in well, until all the liquid is soaked up. Return skillet back to stove. Cook for 10 minutes more on low heat, stirring to prevent sticking. Remove from stove and add oysters, Romano cheese, parsley, green onions and bread crumbs. Add enough bread crumbs to make the dressing moist, not loose or runny. Stir everything together and add salt to taste.

Place dressing in a lightly oiled (2 tsp) casserole dish or roasting pan. Bake in a pre- heated oven at 350F for 35 to 40 minutes.

Note: Add 15 minutes to baking time for crisp and not so moist dressing. Also, stir the dressing from the corners and sides to the center.

2 Tbsp butter
1 cup white rice
1 1/2 cups water
salt

Heat pan. Add butter and melt. Add rice and saute until all grains are coated and rice is heated through (about 3 minutes). Add water and bring rice back to a boil. Stir and cover tightly, turning heat to low simmer. Cook for 17 minutes, then fluff with a fork.

This is the old recipe from Campbell's, without the chicken! We eat less and less meat, so we stopped putting the chicken breasts on top, but we gobble down this rice! It's especially good with sliced mushrooms mixed in.

Can be doubled (or more?). We think this serves 3-4 as a side dish.

Prep: 2 minutes
Bake: 45 minutes at 375F

1 cup rice
1 can condensed, low-fat, low-sodium cream of mushroom soup
1 envelope low-sodium onion soup mix -- Lipton's Recipe Secrets has a variety of flavors now
(omitted: 2 to 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts)

In a bowl, mix condensed soup, 1 can of water, and the onion soup mix. Add rice and stir until mixed well. Spread in a shallow baking dish. (Lay chicken pieces over rice mixture.)

Cover tightly (say, with foil). Bake at 375F for about 45 minutes, until rice is tender. Serve!

Here's a great side dish you can slap together, yet tastes good.

You'll need:

Any type of potatoes.(I keep the small new potatoes on hand..don't have to cut or peel them. Any other kind will do though, leave skins on); use whatever amount you will need and cut them up into 1-2 inch pieces.

Butter or margarine to your liking.

Herbs... Try basil flakes, rosemary, or Jane's Crazy Mixed Up Salt (a garlic salt and herb mixture that is indispensable around my house)

Salt and pepper to taste

Cut up potatoes and boil them until cooked. Coat potatoes with butter to your taste. Herb potatoes to your taste

You can bake the potatoes if you want them crispy, but boiling them is fastest. They sort of taste like the shake ‘n’ bake "potato roaster" package mix, but way cheaper and definitely a bare cupboard meal.

1 2-lb. bag frozen hash brown potatoes, cubed style, partially thawed
2 cans cream of celery soup
1 cup milk
Shredded cheese to your liking
Onions to your liking
1 8-oz. pkg cream cheese, softened

Spread potatoes in 9” x 13” greased pan. Combine the rest of ingredients until smooth. Pour over potatoes. Bake for 1 1/2 hrs. uncovered. I usually watch though cuz my oven cooks fast.

Enjoy!

1 cup milk
1 yeast cake
1/4 cup lukewarm water
1/4 cup sugar
3 cup flour or more
1 tsp salt
1 egg + 1 yolk
1/4 cup shortening

Scald milk and cool until lukewarm. Add yeast which has been soaked in lukewarm water. Add 1 Tbsp sugar and 1 cup flour or more. Let rise for 2 hrs.

Add rest of ingredients (remaining sugar and flour, egg, yolk, and shortening) and let rise 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

Knead good. Roll out and let rise until light. Bake at 375F for just a little and then turn down to 350F or less. Takes about 10 to 15 minutes but watch closely.

Peel potatoes, cut into smaller pieces and put into blender and use "grate" speed. Add onion, salt, and flour to blender. Once it turns into a liquid-like mixture, heat frying pan with oil (I use olive but any will do). Place 1/2 cup of mix into hot oil. Pancake will be brown after a few minutes. Flip onto other side to cook. Drain oil -- put onto paper towel.

You can use jelly, syrup, or sugar on top when you serve... plain is also good.

Based upon Mixed-Grain Pancakes in "100% Pleasure: from appetizers to desserts, the low-fat cookbook for people who love to eat," by Nancy Baggett and Ruth Glick (1994)

I really like hearty pancakes a lot more than the standard ones, so often I make both kinds for pancake breakfasts! We always decrease the sugar and increase the salt 'cause we like the contrast of ever-so-slightly salty pancakes topped with sweet syrup. I absolutely love these pancakes, and I double this recipe so I have leftovers to freeze and then toast up later for lunch or whatever. Good plain or topped with flavored yogurt.

1 cup all-purpose or unbleached white flour
1/2 cup quick-cooking rolled oats
1/2 cup white or yellow cornmeal
2 tsp granulated sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt

Generous 1 1/2 cup buttermilk (I use dried milk powder with the dry ingredients + 1 1/2 cup water + a dollop of cider vinegar; or 1 1/2 cup milk + some cider vinegar)
1 egg
2 Tbsp canola oil

Heat a nonstick griddle over medium heat. Meanwhile, in a large bowl combine the flour, oats, cornmeal, sugar (if using), baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix well. Add the buttermilk or substitute liquids, egg, and oil. Stir until the batter is smooth; it will be fairly thick.

Using a measuring cup, spoon about 1/4 cup of batter for each pancake onto the griddle. Spread the batter out a bit. Cook until browned on the underside, then flip and cook until the underside is nicely browned and the pancakes are cooked through.

If the batter thickens upon standing, stir in some more buttermilk, or milk, or water.

Problems? Comments? Suggestions?
Email the editor, Barbara Laufersweiler (bpeditor@laufers.com)