Hoppin' John Soup (New Year's Good Luck Food!)

I'm sure everyone has heard that eating black~eyed peas on New Year's Day will bring you a year of good luck.

Well, why tempt fate? Eat some good luck!

I have a simple, delicious recipe for Hoppin' John Soup that I'm sure your entire family will like.  There are tons of different recipes for this dish, but I like mine because its quick to prepare, and great tasting.  It also calls for canned peas which eliminates the longer prep time for dried peas...YAY!

HOPPIN' JOHN SOUP

1 lb. Andouille Sausage, sliced 1/2" thick

(I use ground pork sausage in place of this, cooking the sausage in a skillet until it is evenly browned first)

2 (14 oz.) cans chicken broth

1 (6oz.) pkg Rice-A-Roni long grain & wild rice mix

2 (15oz.) cans black~eyed pea's

1 (14oz.) can diced tomatoes, undrained

2 c. water

1 c. cooked collard greens

(I always used frozen chopped spinach in place  of the collard greens)

S&P to taste

In a large stockpot combine the sausage, rice mix with the seasoning packet, black-eyed peas, tomatoes, chicken broth, collard greens, and water.
Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Season to taste and bring your family some good luck!


This is a really great soup to serve with corn bread, and you can find my recipe by clicking this link: {{QUICK CORN BREAD}}


Note: Don't worry about thawing and squeezing dry the spinach or collard greens. Just toss them in!

Spinach & Potato Perogies

Spinach & Potato Perogies

Dough

3 1/2 c. flour
3 Eggs
1 c. of warm water 
3 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. sour cream
3 Tbsp. cottage cheese
Salt & Pepper


Combine the eggs, water, oil, sour cream and cottage cheese. Mix in the flour, salt & pepper and work until dough forms. Knead into a smooth ball and refrigerate for 30 min.


Filling
4 potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 medium yellow onion, finely diced
1 clove garlic, minced (or 1 tsp. bottled minced garlic)
1 c. frozen, chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
pinch of nutmeg (optional)
salt and pepper to taste
1 c. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
3 Tbsp. olive oil, or canola oil
Chopped green onions for garnish


Boil cubed potatoes until just tender, set aside. Saute onion with garlic until the onions are translucent. Add spinach and season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg.  Add spinach and stir until spinach has broken up. Drain and mash the potatoes, (saving a little of the water) then add the spinach mixture to potatoes and combine. Add a little bit of olive oil for flavor and additional salt to taste. If potatoes are too dry, you can add a little bit of the reserved potato water to make it more creamy.


Remove the dough from the fridge and roll out to about 1/4" thickness. Cut out 3-4 inch diameter circles and fill each round with 1-2 tsp. of the spinach filling. Fold in half, sealing shut by pressing seams together with a fork or using a dumpling crimper.

This is an example photo only. Your dough will be thicker.

 You can purchase this dumpling crimper HERE

Bring 3 Quarts of water to a boil. Carefully place 4-5 perogies in the boiling water and cook for 15 minutes or until dough is soft. You can also bake them in the oven at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, be sure to use a greased cookie sheet.

You can also pan fry the perogies by heating a heavy frying pan or dutch oven over medium high heat. Add 4-5 Tbsp. olive oil to heated pan, and place perogies in the pan on their sides.  Cook 7-8 minutes per side or until they are golden brown.


Serve with sour cream.


Linking with:

Slow cooker Tamale Pie

This is a recipe that my family and I really like. It is pretty easy to put together, and it tastes great!

Slow cooker Tamale Pie

1 lb. ground beef, cooked and drained

1 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. chili powder

1/4 tsp. black pepper

1 (15 oz.) can black beans, rinsed & drained

1 (14 1/2 oz.) can tomatoes with mild green chili's, undrained

1 (10 oz.) can enchilada sauce

2 green onions, chopped

1 c. shredded cheddar or Mexican style cheese

1 pkg. (8 oz.) Corn bread/muffin mix + ingredients to make it.

Combine the cooked ground beef with cumin, salt, chili powder and pepper. Place in the bottom of a 4-5 qt. crock pot.  Stir in the beans, tomatoes, enchilada sauce,and onions.
Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or until heated through.
In a small bowl, combine the muffin mix and required ingredients. Spoon over meat mixture, cover and cook 1 additional hour, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Sprinkle with cheese, cover and let stand about 5 minutes.
Serve with sour cream and salsa if desired.

I have made this several times, but I use my recipe for cornbread in stead of the package mix.

It is more flavorful, and is a little larger in portion.

You can find my fast and simple cornbread recipe here.

Some helpful tips:
Whenever I buy fresh ground beef I cook up 2-3 lbs. with a diced onion and S&P.  I then bag each pound separately in freezer bags, and freeze them.  You can put the frozen, cooked beef back into a skillet, add about 1/4 c. of water and reheat quickly, or simply heat in the microwave.

I have also emitted the ground beef altogether and used red beans, kidney beans and black beans instead. I actually prefer this version, but my family likes the original one best.


                           We've linked up this recipe with a fun linky party:

                Fantastical Sharing of Recipes Twisted Thursdays ( 1-19-12)

Quick Corn Bread

Quick Corn Bread

1 c. flour

1 c. yellow cornmeal

3 Tbsp. sugar

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1 c. milk

1/2 c. vegetable oil

2 large eggs, lightly beaten.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Spray a 9" square baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.
Combine the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl.
In a smaller bowl whisk the milk, oil and eggs together.  Pour the milk mix over the dry and using a fork stir just until combined.  Don't over mix!  Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan and bake 20-25 min. or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Fabulous served warm!


This recipe easily adapts for muffins or bread made in a skillet.  Just watch the cooking time by checking for the done-ness with the toothpick.

WISHING YOU THE SWEETEST OF CHRISTMAS'!

We wish you and your family the sweetest, yummiest, and warmest of Christmas' ever!

Relax, enjoy, eat LOTS of delicious foods, and have yourselves a Merry Big Christmas!

I love the Coca Cola Santa!

I also love Retro Holiday Clipart!

An image that reminds me of my childhood

This just made me smile :)