Cheater Traditional Favourites

Real Easy Twists on Special Occasion Favourites
(without spending a day in the kitchen)

Stuffed Chicken Rolls  (Turkey & Stuffing)

6 boneless skinless chicken breasts*
2 cups bread crumbs
½ cup minced onion
½ cup minced celery
2 tbsps. butter
1 tsp. poultry seasoning
Salt and pepper
¾ to 1 cup milk or water 

Place one chicken breast at a time in a large Ziploc bag. Gently pound the bag with the bottom of a frying pan until chicken is flattened.  Sauté onions and celery in butter until softened.  Mix into bread crumbs.  Add seasoning and milk/water.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Will be moist enough to form a ball. 

Place about ½ cup of stuffing in the centre of a piece of chicken.  Roll chicken around stuffing and place joined side down on a greased baking dish.  Repeat with remaining chicken.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.  Over-cooking results in dry chicken.

REAL EASY TIP Use fresh chicken. Flash frozen chicken breaks down during the tenderizing making it difficult to roll.

Cabbage Roll Casserole  (Family Tradition Cabbage Rolls)
* This recipe is also known as Lazy Man Cabbage Rolls

1 ½ lbs ground beef
1 small onion, minced
1/3 cup uncooked long grain rice
Salt and pepper
4 cups shredded cabbage (I use prepared coleslaw mix)
1 jar of sauerkraut, drained
1 litre of tomato or vegetable/tomato juice

Brown meat with onions and season to taste.  Mix in uncooked rice.  In a large casserole dish, layer 2 cups of cabbage, 2 cups drained sauerkraut, meat mixture, another 2 cups cabbage and 2 cups sauerkraut.  Pour tomato juice over casserole, just until juice is seen around edges. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 ½ to 2 hours.

REAL EASY TIP  You may not take need to use the full litre of juice. I like to avoid the spillage in my oven and the casserole being too ‘soupy’.  This freezes well but do not use aluminium foil as a cover when freezing tomato-based casseroles.

Pecan Pie Slice  (Pecan Pie)

1 ¼ cups flour
¼ cup brown sugar
½ cup butter, softened
1/3 cup butter, melted
1 egg
1 cup brown sugar
2 tbsps. cream
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup pecans

Mix first three ingredients until crumbly.  Press into greased 9” x 9” pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.  Mix remaining ingredients and spread over warm base.  Return to oven and bake for 25 minutes until light brown. 

Pumpkin Dump  (Pumpkin Pie)

1 – 19 ounce can of pumpkin
1 – 13 ounce can evaporated milk
1 cup sugar
3 eggs, beaten
4 tsps. pumpkin pie spice
1 yellow cake mix
¾ cup butter, melted

Mix pumpkin, milk, sugar, eggs and spice.  Pour into a greased 9” X 13” pan.  Shake cake mix over the pumpkin mixture, breaking up any lumps.  Pour melted butter over the top.  Bake for 50 – 60 minutes.  Serve warm with whipped cream.

Easy Black Forest Cake  (Black Forest Cake)

1 devil’s food chocolate cake mix
1 large tin of cherry pie filling
½ package of marshmallows

Place marshmallows in a greased 9” x 13” pan.  Mix cake as directed on box.  Pour over marshmallows.  Cover cake with cherry pie filling.  Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.  Marshmallows come to the top, cherries to the bottom.  Serve with whipped or ice cream.

~ All recipes, food preparation and layout by Leah Richardson ~
~ Photos by PennyMoffittPhotography.com ~