Tzaziki Sauce

peel and slice cucumber (remove seeds).  Salt and sweat it before placing in blender. 

Place a whole cucumber in blender. Drain juice.

Add sour cream (not sure how much, assume smallest container).

Add garlic powder to taste.

Add lemon juice to taste.

Add reserved cucumber juice for desired consistency.

also tried this with greek yogurt (plain)  

Stacy and Mark went to Tarpon Springs, FL for our 12th anniversary.  Mark questioned the owner of the Plaka restaurant for this recipe, so they probably deserve the credit.

Chili- St. Paul Style

A good basic chili with which the Jansens grew up. 

---Meat---
1 lb. ground beef
2 onions, chopped
salt, pepper
---Beans---
1 can chili beans
2 can kidney beans
1 large can tomatoes (whole) - I used fire roasted and it was good.
---Spices---
1 T sugar
2 t chili powder
2 T chipotle powder
1/4 t ground oregano
1 t cumin
1 t basil
---Bonus Item---
1 T dried epazote (herb that reduces flatulence) - available at Penzey's


Brown meat and put in crock pot.  Add all the other items.  Low for all day.  Note that a double recipe does not fit in a large crock pot.  Also, I added the chipotle powder (and changed to fire roasted tomatoes) from my Mom's original recipe.  I have had good luck with Penzey's Chili 3000, 6000 and 9000 instead of all of the spices, but the spices are the original version per Mom.

Deedee's Dumplings

Basic Recipe (Serves 12).  Made four batches for 12 people w no leftover

DUMPLINGS
1 - 1/2 C Flour
1 egg
1-1/2 T Butter (Use butter instead of shortening)
1/3 C Liquid (usually chicken bouillon or broth)

Mix this in the food processor.   Roll it out and slice then into 1/2" x 3" strips.  Best to roll out the dumplings and use a lot of flour so they do not stick.  Let them sit for awhile.

MEAT
Use about equivalent of 1/2 chicken per recipe.  If a pre-roasted chicken is used, take the meat off and shred it.  Thighs, etc. have better flavor.

BROTH
Chicken bones put in a pan with onions, carrots, celery, put in oven to roast until it's brown.  Add some water.   Don't skimp on broth.

Deedee likes the vegetable broth.  They do two cartons of vegetable, one of beef, then chicken broth. Throw dumplings in broth for 15 minutes max.  Drop in one by one and stir.
Then throw in the shredded chicken at end and heat it up

If Quinn is present, add one batch.

HISTORY
Recipe came from Grandma J. She always made dumplings with flour, milk, baking soda.  Deedee cold never get hers to turn out, so Deedee played around with recipes and arrived at this final version.  

Cindy McCain's Oatmeal-Butterscotch Cookies

3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cups rolled oats
1 2/3 cups butterscotch chips
 

Heat oven to 375°F

1. In a large bowl beat the butter or margarine, granulated sugar and brown sugar together. Add the eggs and vanilla, beating well.
2. In a medium-size bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture; stir until blended. Stir in oats and butterscotch chips. Drop by tablespoonfuls about 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets.
3. Bake for 10 minutes, until the edges begin to brown. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.