Berks County Potato Dumplings

6 uncooked potatoes
10 slices bread
Salt and pepper to season
1 onion, grated
1 teaspoon minced parsley
2 eggs, well beaten

Pare potatoes and grate.  Soak bread in cold water and squeeze out as much of the water as possible.  Mix together bread, salt, pepper, grated onion and parsley.  Add grated potatoes and eggs; mix well.  Form into balls, roll in flour gently; drop into boiling salted water, cover closely and cook for 15 minutes.  These dumplings are excellent with sauerkraut, stewed chicken or meat.  Serves 6.

With Hominy Grits (Farina) - Omit bread.  Prepare potatoes as above, place in a cloth and squeeze as dry as possible.  Add 2 cups hot cooked hominy grits. 

Grama Thode's Knödel & Grama Musial's Kuggelie

Grate raw potatoes fine, put into cheesecloth to drain potato water.. squeeze to get the liquid out..

mix with egg, flour, salt and pepper… form into small baseballs, and put a square of bread in the center of the ball.  

Put into gently boiling pot of water and boil until they float to the top…. 

Another one was Grama Musial’s kuggelie…

same grated and drained potatoes, mix with eggs and flour and crisped bacon crumbled and fried bits of onion.. or fried bits of smoked pork, put into loaf pan and bake for about 1.5 hours till done….. serve sliced or refry slices… yummy!!! 

Olive Garden’s Chicken Gnocchi Soup

Olive Garden’s Chicken Gnocchi Soup

Seen on Frugal Antics of A Harried Homemaker from copykat.com

Ingredients:

• 1 cup chicken breasts, diced and cooked (can use canned chicken or turkey)
• 4 Tbsp butter
• 4 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 quart half and half (can use evaporated milk)
• 1 14 ounce can chicken broth
• 1/2 cup celery, sliced
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup carrots, shredded
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 cup fresh spinach, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• salt and pepper to taste
• 16 ounce package gnocchi

Preparation:

In a large stockpot, saute the onion, celery and garlic in the butter and olive oil. When the onion is clear, add the flour and form a roux. Stir and cook a minute. Add the half and half . Meanwhile in another pan, cook the gnocchi. Add the carrots and chicken to the stockpot. Stir often and when it gets thicker, add the chicken broth, gnocchi, spinach and seasonings. Cover and heat through.

I made this in a crock pot and let simmer for a while, adding the gnocchi and spinach towards the end when we were getting ready to serve it.

Now, I need to go stock up on some meat. Lots and lots of meat.

Slow Cooker Cheeseburger Soup

Slow-Cooker Cheeseburger Soup

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 medium garlic cloves, minced
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3 medium celery ribs, chopped
• 1 pound ground beef
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 3 cups canned chicken broth, divided
• 1 (12 ounce) can evaporated milk (I used low-fat)
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 1/2 tablespoons Worchestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
• 8 ounces cubed cheese (I used Velveeta)
• additional cheese for topping, if desired

Instructions

1. Preheat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic, onion and celery to skillet and cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Remove from skillet and place the vegetables in the bottom of your slow cooker.
2. In the same pan, brown your hamburger meat. Drain, and add meat to your slow cooker.
3. In a small cup, combine flour and 1/2 cup of broth. Whisk to combine, making sure it’s smooth and lump-free. Add the mixture to your skillet, and then slowly pour in the remaining 2 ½ cups of broth. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, and allow to cook until just thickened. Pour over meat in slow-cooker.
4. Stir in your remaining ingredients, through the black pepper. Cook on low for 2 hours. Just before serving, add in your cheese and stir until it is melted. Top with additional shredded cheese, if desired.
   

Borrowed from http://kitchenmeetsgirl.com

Skinny Eggplant Rolatini

(From SkinnyTaste.com) 
This decadent, cheesy Italian comfort dish is my favorite way to enjoy eggplant and now that the weather is getting cooler, a great excuse to turn on your oven. Thin slices of eggplant are baked, then stuffed with ricotta, parmesan and spinach and baked with my homemade marinara sauce and topped with melted mozzarella cheese. Folks, this dish is restaurant quality (without the frying and extra fat you'd get in a restaurant).

If you're thinking your not a fan of eggplant, I know this recipe will change your mind. The eggplant is sliced so thin (I used my mandolin for perfect even slices) that it literally melts in your mouth once it's baked. A serving is super generous, you'll be stuffed for under 250 calories. And it's meatless, so you can save this for meatless Mondays (but honestly I can eat this every day).

In the past I've sliced my eggplant a little thicker, but trust me, it's just not the same. I prefer to use two medium eggplants so my slices all come out even in size (can you say OCD?) and I save the odd-sized pieces for another recipe (chop it up and simmer it in marinara for a delicious Eggplant and Tomato Sauce). But if you prefer to use one large one and don't mind all your rolls coming out different sizes, go for it. This recipe is a little more time consuming, so save this for the weekend when you can play some music and sip some wine while you cook… Bon Appetit!




Best Skinny Eggplant Rollatini with Spinach
Skinnytaste.com
Servings: 5 • Size: 2 rollatini • Old Points: 5 pts • Points+: 7 pts
Calories: 227 • Fat: 10 g • Carb: 18 g • Fiber: 5 g • Protein: 17 g • Sugar: 0 g
Sodium: 370 mg (without salt) • Cholesterol: 66 g 

Ingredients:

• 2 medium Italian eggplants, cut lengthwise into 10 (1/4-inch thick) slices (21 oz total when sliced)
• kosher salt and fresh black pepper, to taste
• 1 1/2 cups quick marinara sauce
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 cup part skim ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese, plus more for serving
• 8 oz frozen spinach, heated through and squeezed well
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 cup (4 oz) shredded part-skim mozzarella (Polly-O)

Directions:

Cut the 2 ends off the eggplants. Cut the eggplants lengthwise, into 1/4-inch thick slices until you have a total of 10 slices about the same size. It's easiest to do this with a mandolin.

Sprinkle the eggplant with kosher salt to help remove excess moisture and bitterness from the eggplants. Set aside for about 10 to 15 minutes. Pat dry with a towel.

Preheat oven to 400°F.  Season the eggplant with a little more salt and pepper,  then arrange on two parchment-lined baking sheets.  Cover tightly with foil and bake until eggplant is tender and pliable but NOT fully cooked, about 8 to 10 minutes.

Spread 1/4 cup marinara sauce on the bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish.

In a medium bowl, beat the egg then mix together with ricotta, Pecorino Romano, spinach, garlic, 1/4 tsp salt and 1/8 tsp pepper.

Pat eggplant dry with paper towels.  Dividing the ricotta-spinach mixture (about 2 generous tablespoons each) evenly and spoon onto one end of each eggplant slice, spreading to cover.  Starting at the short end, roll up slices and arrange them each seam side down in the prepared dish.  Top with remaining marinara sauce and mozzarella cheese and tightly cover with foil.

Bake until the eggplant is very tender, about 60 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool 5 minutes before serving with additional Pecorino Romano if desired.

Cheesy Chicken Salsa

Cheesy Salsa Chicken

Cheesy Salsa Chicken with
Cheesy Broccoli Orzo

What You Need:

• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 4 wedges Laughing Cow Light Swiss Cheese
• 1/2 c salsa

How You Do It:

1. Carefully split each chicken breast making a pocket inside, mindful not to cut all the way through the chicken.
2. Spread one wedge of cheese on one side of the chicken (inside).  Top with salsa.
3. Place in a baking dish and cover with foil.
4. Bake at 350*, covered 20 minutes.  Then remove foil and bake an additional 20 minutes until the chicken is fully cooked.

Recipe courtesy of cohenfood.blogspot.com 

Italian Ricotta Cookies

1/2 lb. butter
2 c. sugar...
1/2 tsp. salt
1 lb. Ricotta
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
Grated rind of 1 orange
4 1/2 c. flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
Cream butter; add sugar and continue creaming. Add egg and Ricotta and vanilla; beat well. Sift together flour, baking powder and baking soda, salt; add to batter.
Drop about a teaspoon of dough on ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 350 degree oven about 10 minutes until edges are lightly browned. Cool.

FROSTING:
2 c. confectionery sugar
1/4 c. butter
3 tbsp. milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla
Mix well and put on top of cookies and sprinkles.