Tomato Pie II

I wanted to try a twist on my tomato pie -- a more summery/less Italian version -- more savory, herby? It's a little lighter of flavor and ou can taste the individual flavors within much better. 

 Tonight's tomato pie dinner was made with 100% local ingredients. In fact the cheese and the milk were purchased from my little dairy farmer man Saturday AM at the Lititz market. I cannot emphasize enough all the benefits of buying local grown food -- it blesses the farmer, us, the earth, the local economy....over the last 4 weeks we have shifted our grocery purchases to 80% + local without increasing our grocery budget. Imagine if we all just shifted $10-20 to our local markets each week the impact it would make!?  But you can use whatever you like. (That's my soapbox for the day!)
I make another tomato pie that is more of an Italian dish.....lots of fresh garlic, caramelized onions, a layer of fresh pesto, lots of fresh basil and oregano, and lots of mozzarella and fresh parmesan cheese. This is a more summery version.


3 large or 5 small tomatoes seeded and chopped
8 oz raw or sharp cheddar freshly shredded
3-4 oz fontina shredded
1 stick organic butter
2 T fresh Greek oregano, chopped
1T fresh Rosemary, chopped
5fresh basil leaves, chopped
2 T dill
1T garlic powder
1T each: dried parsley, dried oregano
3 c unbromated, unbleached organic flour
2 t baking powder, aluminum free
1 t salt
2 T olive oil
1 c raw spinach
Sea salt to taste

Crust:
Add flour, baking powder, 1 t salt, 1 T dill, 1/2 T dried parsley and oregano to mixing bowl and mix thoroughly. Cut butter into flour mixture, add  1/2 of each type of cheese, and add 1/2 cup milk. Mix together into a dough. Add enough flour so not sticky and can rolled. You may need more milk or flour depending on type of milk and flour you are using. Divide dough in half and roll out1 ball. Fit into pie plate, poke fork hole in bottom and bake in a 350 preheated oven for 12-13 minutes, NOT browned......

Tomatoes and Layers:
In a medium bowl add tomatoes, rest of spices, sea salt to taste (usually 3 twists of my salt mill), 2-3 T of assorted cheese, olive oil. Toss together and add into pie plate.
Arrange spinach in a nice layer atop the tomatoes.
Use all but 2 T of cheese and sprinkle all over spinach layer.
Roll out remaining dough and place on top of pie......I usually cut it into triangles and piece together so juices and cheese can ooze through a bit.
Sprinkle top of pie with remaining cheese and bake until bubbly and light-golden brown. Allow to cool 30 minutes before serving.

Serves 5-6
 

        Chicken 'n Biscuits

Chicken N Biscuits
Hated this, or any gravish dish, as a kid. Not sure if it was Mom's cookin' or just a kid thing, but I literaly have never tried it since. I was so surprised! Even pregnant and feeling interestingly, it was really good.....very Lancaster County!

Now, I didn't exactly measure ANYTHING, so please bear with me...fortunately, it doesn't really require exacts.

Chicken Part:
2 cups chicken, cubed or shredded, cooked or not -- whatever you have (I often have shredded chicken in serving sizes in the freezer from cooking multiple whole chickens on a prep day -- perfect for occasions such as this) -- today, I just tossed it in  raw and let it simmer in the broth and it worked perfectly
3 cups broth
1 cup carrots chopped into 1/4 inch pieces (you could also add frozen peas or chopped celery, too, if you'd like -- I'm not a cooked celery or cooked peas fan so I skipped those)
salt and pepper to taste
1-2 T arrowroot powder
1 cup milk
( I use whole, raw milk which is extra yummy)

Add all ingredients into a pot EXCEPT arrowroot powder and milk. Let simmer about 45 minutes. Add milk and arrowroot powder and whisk over low heat until begins to thicken. Turn Off heat and pour into casserole dish.

Biscuits:
You can use whatever biscuit recipe is your favorite! My biscuit recipe is always kinda thrown together and very not exact -- always tastes good, though...sometimes quite wet, sometimes like a dough... I figure you can always add more flour or more milk and make them whatever texture you prefer.

Approximately:
3 cups flour
1 t sea salt
3/4 cup cheddar
, freshly shredded
3 t baking powder
1 egg
1 cup milk
3 T butter, cold
3 T palm oil shortening, solid

Mix together dry ingredients. Add cheese. Mix. Add shortening and butter. Pinch together mixture. Add egg and milk. Mix together. You may need to add a little more milk so dough is a little wettish -- think this helps to keep them from drying out as they cook.

Drop as clumps into chicken soupy stuff. I added too many biscuits and it absorbed most of the soup....so you may want to add just 8 or so.
Bake at 375 until done. Ours were a little golden brown on top but still nice and soft. Depends how you like your biscuits......
 

Creamy Mac N Cheese, 
     with whole wheat noodles

I experiemented a whole lot to find a way to make macaroni and cheese healthy and good tasting to the kids. It took the kids a while to get used to having whoel wheat pastas but within a couple weeks they were completely switched over and now prefer them. Once in a while I use organic white noodles made from unbleached, unbromated flour -- and even if it says organic I still check to make sure it does not contain enriched flour (it's crazy how you can be tricked into believing you are eating healthy food when it isn't even remotely healthy). Now, I also want to point out that we actually do not eat many dishes requiring store bought pasta, even organic, whole grain pastas because these are still mostly processed at high temperatures and contain little actual nutrition.
Someday in the near future I will have some contraption that will help me make homemade pasta simple and easy and we will then eat pasta to our heart's content. Until then, it's an occasional treat or last minute meal........

Macaroni and Cheese

1 box whole wheat elbows, cooked and rinsed with cold water
8 oz cheddar, freshly shredded (I never buy store bought shredded -- it's dry, processed, and doesn't melt well)
2 cups milk
1/2 stick butter
1/4 c whole wheat flour
1/2 t cumin
1/2 t sea salt to taste, add more if you like
3 oz cream cheese if I have it on hand

Spray small/medium saucepan and add butter to melt over very low heat. Add 1/2 cup milk and flour and whick together over the low heat (add cream cheese here if you are using it). 
 Add remainder of milk and heat to hot but not boiling and add cumin and salt. Add 3/4 cheddar and melt together sirring continually. I use a mini whisk for this which works amazing.
Pour noodles into a greased casserole dish. Pour milk-cheese mixture over top and evenly coat. Sprinkle remainder of cheese over the top.
You can either freeze at this stage or bake at 350 for about 20 minutes or until slightly browned on top.
Serves 6 as a meal, 8-10 as a side dish.


For adventurous families add cooked shredded chicken, tuna, or mushrooms before freezing or baking.


 
This is a great easy meal that I often through together when I don't want to spend much time preparing dinner or I need something last minute. It is super simple.

Ingredients:
1 lb lean ground meat (beef or turkey, I prefer Shadybrook 93% lean turkey or organic, grass-fed beef)
6 -7 medium potatoes, washed, chopped into 1/2 pieces
oregano, 1/2 t
salt and pepper to taste
1 T coconut oil
3/4 cup chicken broth or chicken stock (homemade is very best because of al it's wonderful properties but I use low sodium free range organic from the store as well, which is fine!)

Brown beef in pan with oregano, salt and pepper. Spray a casserole dish, add coconut oil, melted, and toss in the potatoes and beef. Mix thoroughly. Add broth, cover tightly with foil and bake about 45 minutes in a 350 degree oven (or until potatoes are soft). Serves 5-6.
 
Well, time is running short before dinner tonight and I only finished half of the grocery shopping yesterday so options are limited. Time for taco pasta -- one of the few dishes we serve in the Myers Kitchen that everyone eats! I am not a Hambuger Helper fan but this is pretty good for a not-casserole-lover. The kids love it! (They are big on noodles and casseroles).

Taco Pasta...Our version of homemade hamburger helper
2 1/2 c elbow noodles (I use organic, whole wheat)
1 Package Simply Organic Taco Seasoning mix
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 t garlic powder
1 lb ground turkey or beef (preferably organic, grass fed)
1 cup milk
1 1/2 c water
4-6 oz cheddar, shredded

Ground meat in large pot or saucepan. Add elbows and all other ingredients except cheese. Stir together, bring to boiling, reduce to simmer and cover, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes or until noodles are softened. Turn off stove, add cheese and stir.
You may add toppings if you desire -- Tony and I prefer some extries, but the kids do not. It's really yummy with organic sour cream, chopped tomatoes and black olives or maybe even some salsa or guac!

Serves 6