Masterson Mashed Potato Salad

When Mom and Dad were first married, Dad decided he wanted to know what mashed potato tasted like so he told Mom (who was anxious to please Dad since she was a new bride) that his mother mashed the potatoes in the potato salad. Back in those days, it cost too much to make long distance phone calls (they lived in California and their families lived in Illinois), so Mom and Dad had to figure out the recipe on their own. This is what they came up with. When they went home a couple of years later, Mom asked Grandma Masterson how she made it. She said she had never heard of it! Dad was just curious and lied to her. He liked it so much that he never told her any different. We have made it this way ever since with just a few minor adjustments. 

This is one of those recipes that doesn't really have measurements.

From Sandi: 

I cook 5lbs of potatoes and mash them (with butter, but no milk). Mix miracle whip, mustard, and vinegar (or pickle juice), (to taste) then mix with potatoes. Add onion and dill relish. After everything is mixed in, add chopped boiled eggs and fold gently. After putting it all in your container, garnish the top with sliced boiled eggs. 

How many eggs? 

Almost 12. Depends on how many slices you want on top. I usually put 4 or 5 in the salad. 

Sherri's Notes 

I use the hand masher so that some of it is lumpy. 

Use about ¾ stick of butter. 

Use the same ingredients for deviled eggs (i.e. mayonnaise vs. miracle whip and Dijon mustard vs. yellow mustard) and the same ratio to taste. 

Deviled eggs (increase amounts according to taste for amount of potatoes): 

 • 1/3 cup mayonnaise

 • 1¼ tsp Dijon mustard

 • 3/4 tsp white vinegar

 • 1/4 tsp salt 

 I used 8 large eggs rather than 12. Cut up 5 in the salad plus the ends of the remaining 3. Then sliced the remaining 3 to put on top. Could have used 9 large eggs and put 4 on top for the 5 lbs. of potatoes.

Seafoam salad

Another from Grandma Gilmore


1 large box lime jello
1 large can pears
1 - 8 oz package cream cheese (softened)
2 envelopes Dream Whip, prepared per pkg. directions

Mash pears only in a separate bowl.

Add water to pear juice to make 3 cups. Boil liquid & add to jello mix in serving bowl. Add the mashed pears & cream cheese.
Fold in prepared Dream Whip.
Chill & serve

Chicken Stew

You know how you get some dish in your mind and you obsess over it until you eat it? Well, I started obsessing over chicken noodle soup or chicken & dumplings, but with Tom being on a low-carb diet, I can't make them. So, I got creative and came up with this concoction. It was delicious and Tom loved it, too!

 Ingredients:
1 whole chicken, at least 5 lbs.
2 Tablespoons butter
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 pkgs. (16 oz/1 lb) packages Tuscan-Style vegetables (I used Safeway Kitchens brand) with broccoli, red peppers, mushrooms & onions
1 yellow onion, chopped
6 ½ cups chicken stock & broth
½ cup heavy cream
½ teaspoon thyme
2 Tablespoons parsley (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Roast chicken in a cooking bag following cooking directions for the cooking bag (necessary to generate lots of chicken stock). Boil the gizzards and either toss or give to the dogs. Shred cooked chicken. Retain stock, mix with the water that you boiled the gizzards in, and add canned chicken broth to make 6 ½ cups.

Sauté chopped onion and Tuscan vegetables in butter and olive oil over medium heat. Stir in thyme then pour in chicken broth. Add shredded chicken. Bring to a boil. Cover pot and simmer for 20 minutes.

Pour heavy cream into the pot. Add minced parsley if using. Cover pot and continue to simmer for 15 minutes.

Serve with fresh baked bread (but don't let Tom eat it).  

Substitutions:
You can use a rotisserie chicken instead of a fresh chicken, but you will lose the tasty stock. You can use canned chicken stock instead, but it really is not as good. But, it's a lot easier and faster, so go for it!

Capellini Caprese

I made this for Mom for lunch one day, and she loved it.  She took the leftovers home and shared with Sherri, and I think Sherri enjoyed it too!  I like to make it once it awhile because it tastes so good, and it's so easy.  I got it from Kraft (but I tweaked it just a little).

INGREDIENTS:

1/2lb.  capellini (ANGEL HAIR) or spaghetti, uncooked

1 cup  KRAFT Tuscan House Italian Dressing (or Zesty Italian Dressing)

1 onion, finely chopped

2cloves  garlic, minced

3cups  halved grape or cherry tomatoes

2 cups  KRAFT Shredded Low-Moisture Part-Skim Mozzarella Cheese

1/3 cup  fresh basil, finely sliced

INSTRUCTIONS:

COOK pasta as directed on package.

MEANWHILE, heat dressing in large nonstick skillet on medium-high heat. Add onions and garlic; cook and stir 2 min. Add tomatoes; cook 5 min. or until heated through, stirring occasionally. 

DRAIN pasta. Add to tomato mixture; mix lightly. Sprinkle with cheese and basil.  Mix well.

Substitute 3 tomatoes, chopped, for the grape or cherry tomatoes.

Special Extra

Add 2 pkg. (6 oz. each) OSCAR MAYER Deli Fresh Grilled Chicken Breast Strips with the tomatoes.

I prefer the Zesty Itialian dressing, and I use more than the recipe calls for.  Several of the reviews stated it was a little dry.  I use half the bottle.  

Fast and Easy Burritos

The last standing El Taco in Tucson.

Remember the green chili burritos from El Taco? Those were so GOOD!! They were so hot that they would clear out your sinuses. And they were the best food to eat when you were recovering from a cold or the flu. I know, it doesn't sound right that you would want spicy food when you are just getting over the flu, but they really hit the spot. Unfortunately, all but one of them in Tucson closed down. The one that is still open is 12 miles from home and it is only open from 7am-5pm Mon-Fri so we don't visit it that often. That's what necessitated the creation of our faux El Taco Green Chili Burrito recipe. And, since both of us are recovering from a cold right now, we had to make it which gave me the opportunity to take pictures for our recipe blog! Don't worry, our recipe is not as spicy as El Taco's so you won't clear out your sinuses (unless you want it to be).

Ready to start chopping and cooking

Ingredients:
3 lbs. ground beef
1 yellow onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, diced
1 container of frozen green chile (Baca's brand is best, but we just tried Authentic New Mexican from Walmart and it is just as good)
Salsa Verde to taste (that's green salsa for your gringos)
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Saute diced onion, garlic, and ground beef in large frying pan until beef is browned. Add the green chile (no need to thaw before adding) and salsa verde. Heat on med-low until heated through.

Ready to serve

Wrap in your favorite flour tortilla and serve with refried beans and Tom's Favorite Guacamole (Tom buys special low-carb tortillas from Sprouts).

Tom's low-carb burrito

Or, if you want to try something different, serve it as a lettuce wrap.

Green chili with a dollop of guacamole
on a lettuce leaf ready to wrap.

All wrapped up and ready to eat.

For those of you that are adventurous and want it to be spicy enough to clear out your sinuses, use a container of frozen Hot green chiles instead of the Mild. If that's too hot for you, then just use half a container of the hot with a full container of the mild. But then you will need to increase the meat to 5 lbs. and add a second yellow onion and a few more cloves of garlic.