Perfect Crab Cakes

- serves 4 as a generous main course or 8 as an appetizer -

Adapted from The Dean & Deluca Cookbook by David Rosengarten, Joel Dean, and Giorgio Deluca

Ingredients

Canola or safflower oil for oiling the baking sheet
3/4 cup thick mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons whole-grain mustard
1 large egg, lightly beaten
2 pounds lump crabmeat, picked over to remove cartilage
Lemon wedges as an accompaniment

Procedure

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F and lightly oil a baking sheet.
2. Whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, mustard, and egg in a mixing bowl until combined well. (I realize now that the last time I made these, I seasoned lightly with salt and pepper at this point. It seemed odd to me that it wasn't part of the instructions. I don't know if it made a big difference or not.) Gently fold in the crab with a rubber spatula until just combined.
3. Gently form the mixture into eight 1-inch thick cakes and transfer to the baking sheet.
4. Bake the crab cakes for 15 minutes or so, or until lightly golden. Run a spatula under them once or twice to make sure they’re not sticking. When the cakes are ready, put them under a preheated broiler for 2 to 3 minutes, or until they’re lightly browned on top. Remove from broiler and let stand on the baking sheet for 5 minutes. Serve with lemon wedges.

Chicken Enchiladas

1 (1 pound) loaf processed cheese food, cubed
1 (16 ounce) container sour cream
2 (10.75 ounce) cans condensed cream of chicken soup
8 fluid ounces evaporated milk
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 (10 ounce) can chicken chunks, drained
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chile peppers
10 (10 inch) flour tortillas

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

In a medium size microwave safe bowl, combine the processed cheese food, sour cream, 1 can of soup, and evaporated milk. Stir together, and heat in microwave oven until smooth, stirring at intervals. Add cumin to taste, and set aside.

In a medium size bowl, combine the chicken, remaining can of soup, shredded cheese, and green chile peppers. Drop spoonfuls of chicken mixture in center of tortillas, and roll up. Place in a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking dish. Pour reserved sour cream mixture over all.

Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes

Since I am cooking for one, I would adapt this recipe, taking the concept of ingredients into mind and adjusting the amounts accordingly. My chicken preference . . . frozen tenderloins from the freezer section . . . saute and cut into strips.

Credit: Dorie

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Momsmenuplan/

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Peanut Butter and Jelly French Toast

12 slices bread 3/4 C. peanut butter 6 T. jelly or jam 3 eggs 3/4 C. milk 1/4 t. salt 2 T. butter or margarine Spread peanut butter on six slices of bread; spread jelly on six other slices of bread. Put one slice of each together to form sandwiches. In mixing bowl, lightly beat eggs; add milk and salt and mix together. Melt butter in large skillet over medium heat. Dip sandwiches in egg mixture; coating well. Place in skillet and brown both sides. Serve immediately. 6 servings. Dorie http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Momsmenuplan/

Bean Facts

1 cup of dried beans equals 8 ounces

1 cup of dried beans equals 2 to 3 cups of cooked beans

1 pound of dried beans equals 6 cups of cooked beans

One 15 to 16 ounce can of beans, rinsed and drained, equals 1 1/2 to 2 cups