How to Roast a Chicken and Make Gravy

Roasting a whole chicken (or turkey) is really pretty simple. Here is what I do with mine:

1. Thaw chicken overnight in the sink or for two days in the fridge. Obviously this requires planning ahead!

2. Unwrap and place breast side down in a roaster. Sprinkle it with salt (here you can get creative and sprinkle it with all sorts of seasonings and flavours but I just do salt and sometimes garlic powder).

3. Bake at 325 degrees for 30 minutes per pound.

4. When it's done it will look nice and browned and will easily come apart. Take it apart, saving the meat and discarding the bones, skin and anything else that doesn't look edible. Save the fat and drippings to make gravy. I put the meat in the slow cooker on keep warm. That way, you can do this ahead of time and keep the meat warm until it's time to eat.

Gravy
Combine the saved drippings with chicken broth until you have 2 cups of liquid. Whisk in (or shake in a gravy shaker) 1/4 cup flour, salt & pepper. Cook in a saucepan on medium heat until thickened.

Chicken Tetrazzini

1 T butter or margarine
chopped onion
1 tsp garlic salt
1 chicken breast, chopped
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup milk
1 cup frozen broccoli florets (microwave for 1 min. so it isn't totally frozen when added)
sprinkle of parsley

Brown the onion, garlic and chicken in the butter until the chicken is cooked through. Add the soup, milk, broccoli and parsley and simmer until hot. Serve over pasta. Also good with parmesan cheese, either added to the sauce or sprinkled on top.

If you are making this for more than 4-5 people, you can use 2 chicken breasts, 2 cans of soup, 1 cup milk and more broccoli.

Spicy Chicken Pepper Pasta

1 T oil
1-2 chicken breasts, chopped
1 tsp garlic salt
1/2 an onion, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
red pepper, cut into strips (optional)
19 oz. can diced tomatoes, undrained

1 cup chicken broth
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (or more if you like it hot)
parmesan cheese

Cook the chicken, garlic and onion in oil until the chicken is cooked through. Add carrots, peppers, diced tomatoes, broth and cayenne. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer about 10 minutes until the carrots are cooked through and liquid is reduced. Serve over pasta, top with parmesan cheese, or you can add the cheese right into the sauce.

Chicken Gyros

Marinate 2 chopped chicken breasts for two hours in:
1/4 cup oil
2 T garlic powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp salt
2 T lemon juice
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp onion powder

Make tzaziki sauce:
2 cups plain yogurt
1 T lemon juice
1/2 a cucumber
1 garlic clove
1 tsp dill weed

Peel and grate the cucumber and squeeze out the juice so the sauce doesn't get watery. Mix with remaining ingredients and refrigerate 60 minutes. This makes a lot of sauce; a half recipe would be enough for one meal.

Once chicken is finished marinating, brown it in a little oil in a pan.

Assemble gyros in pita bread with tomatoes, onions, lettuce, chicken and tzaziki sauce.

Festive Garden Salad

6 cups lettuce
1 cup broccoli florets
1/2 cup slivered almonds
small amount chopped red onion
1/2 cup dried cranberries

Mix together and toss with Creamy Poppyseed dressing. The amounts don't really matter! Toasting the almonds makes this even better.

Potato Salad

4 large potatoes, boiled or baked, chopped into small pieces
6 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup milk
small amount of diced raw onion
salt & pepper
squirt of yellow mustard
bit of sugar
sprinkle of dill weed

Combine the chopped potatoes and eggs in a bowl. Combine remaining ingredients and stir together. Don't be afraid to be generous with the mayo and milk for extra creaminess! Pour over potatoes and eggs; mix well and refrigerate.

Butterscotch Pie

Crust: 
1 1/4 cups graham crumbs
1/3 cup margarine

Melt margarine and stir into graham crumbs. Press into a 9" pie plate. Bake for 10 minutes at 350.

Filling: 
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 tsp salt
2 1/2 cups milk
3 eggs yolks
2 tbsp butter
1 tsp vanilla

In a large microwavable bowl (I like to use my 8 cup glass measuring cup), combine sugars, cornstarch, salt, milk and egg yolks. Microwave on high 9-11 minutes, stirring every 3 minutes, until pudding boils and thickens. Stir in butter and vanilla and pour into pie crust. Cool and top with whipped cream.