Simple Recipe

Need A Simple Recipe? Try One of These!

 simple recipe
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What Makes a Simple Recipe

A good simple recipe will be:
  1. Easy to make, but very good. If it doesn't taste good, it's not worth making no matter how simple it is.
  2. Use ingredients that are easy to find. It's not simple if you have to go to more than one store to find everything.
  3. Use only a few dishes so clean-up is minimal. Who wants to make a simple dish that uses every pot and pan in the house!
  4. Appear to be more work that it really is. Sure a peanut butter sandwich fits the above, but everyone reading this knows how to make it.
There are many simple recipes that could be listed here. Take for example, a grilled steak and baked potato. That is about a simple recipe as you will get. But you won't find it here because we try to list dishes that don't appear to be simple recipes. You may even already know how to make some of these simple recipes. But this is a perfect place to find new cooking ideas.

Try the simple recipes below and see for yourself that a simple recipe is just as good as a complicated recipe.

Stuffed Mushrooms Fast and Easy Chicken Marsala Easy Lasagna Simple Chili Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad
Bisquick® Drop Biscuits Simple Tzatziki Dressing Quick Chicken Pita Sandwich Simple Twice Baked Potatoes Simple Quiche

Simple Ingredients

A simple recipe will not have too many ingredients. You should be able to buy everything you need for these dishes without lugging a giant shopping cart through the store. Except for some basic essentials every kitchen should have, these recipes will have no more than five or six ingredients.

The basic essential ingredients to have on hand in your kitchen are:

  • Kosher salt - It tastes better than regular table salt. We don't know why.
  • Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • Vegetable Oil (Corn or Canola)
  • Butter or Margerine
  • Sugar
  • Flour
  • Milk
  • Eggs
  • A good selection of quality herbs and spices
A sample of herbs and spices to have on hand:
  • Black Pepper
  • Garlic, both powdered and the fresh pre-chopped in a jar
  • Chili Power
  • Paprika
  • Poultry Seasoning
  • Cumin
  • Curry Powder
  • Oregano
  • Bay Leaves
  • Basil
This, of course is just a suggestion. If you don't eat or like any one of these, then of course don't use it. In most cases buy the small container. If you use something often, then buy a larger container. Don't buy the biggest container possible just because ounce per ounce it's cheaper. After some time it will get old and you will end up either using it when it's bad and ruining a simple recipe or throwing most of it out.

Stuffed Mushrooms

Give these a try for your party. A very simple recipe, but watch how fast these things disappear. Stuff then ahead of time and refrigerate. Then pop them under the broiler about 15 minutes before you need them.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb bacon
  • 2 packages of cream cheese
  • about a pound of white button mushrooms (the regular kind you find at the store), fresh, not canned

Directions

Cook the bacon until crisp, and drain the grease off. (For less work use the pre-cooked bacon and cook in a microwave) Crumble up the bacon and mix with the cream cheese.
Pull the stems off the mushrooms and stuff the cream cheese mixture inside the caps.
Put all of these on a cookie sheet and broil (not too close to the broiler) until the cream cheese just starts to brown.

Note: The smaller mushrooms are the best

Simple Chicken Marsala

This simple recipe for the traditional Italian dish tastes great and by leaving off the typical flour coating, you save some time and some calories.

Ingredients

  • 4 boneless, skinless chicken breast, pounded flat
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 packages pre-sliced button mushrooms (the regular kind you find at the store), fresh, not canned
  • about ¾ to 1 cup of Marsala Wine. This will be in the wine section of any large supermarket

Directions

In a non-stick frying pan, melt the butter and the olive oil.
Saute the chicken breasts in the the oil/butter mixture. When the chicken breast just start to brown, add the mushrooms.
Cook the chicken and mushrooms until the chicken is just about done. Add in a little of the marsala wine to deglaze the pan and stir it in. Then add the rest of the wine.

Continue to cook for a few more minutes until the wine is reduced and you have a nice, not too thin sauce with the chicken and mushrooms.

Easy Lasagna

The layering of the lasanga is the most complicated part of this otherwise simple recipe. But don't worry about it too much and the usual time-consuming recipe can be done rather quickly.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 pounds sweet Italian sausage (remove the casing if you can't find uncased Italian sausage)
  • 1 box of NO-BOIL lasagna noodles
  • 2 jars (22 to 25 ozs) of your favorite spaghetti sauce
  • 32 oz. ricotta cheese
  • 16 oz. small curd cottage cheese
  • 16 oz. grated mozzarella cheese. When layering, save some of this for the top.
  • 3-4 oz. grated parmesan cheese, optional

Directions

Pre-heat oven to 350°F. In a skillet, brown the sausage. Drain and pat down with paper towel to remove most of the grease.

Using a non-stick spray, olive oil, or butter, grease a 13 x 9 x 3 baking dish.

Layer the ingredients into the pan, starting first with some of the sauce, then about 1/3 of the noodles. After that layer them however you like, putting a layer of noodles in the middle and another on top. Put some sauce on the top layer off noodles and finish it off woth whatever cheese is left.

Cover with foil and bake for 50-60 minutes.

After 50-60 minutes remove from oven and check. It should be bubbling around the edges and a knife inserted directly in the center should come out VERY hot. If not, return to oven for another 5-10 minutes.

Remove the foil bake another 5-10 minutes until the top is just starting to brown.

Remove from the oven and let it let for 10 minutes or so before cutting.

Simple Chili Recipe

This is quick, easy, and a great chili recipe. The most difficult part (besides chopping the onion) is making sure you add enough chili powder.

Ingredients

  • 1 or 2 teaspoons shortening or vegetable oil
  • 1-1/2 to 2 pounds of good quality lean ground beef or ground sirloin.
  • 1 large white onion, chopped
  • 3 heaping tablespoons good quality chili power.
  • 1 tablespoon paprika
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder (NOT garlic salt)
  • salt and black pepper to taste
  • 1 large can (about 25-32 oz) Ranch Style Beans
  • 1 large can (about 25-32 oz) pinto beans
  • 1 small can (about 15 oz) kidney beans (optional)

Directions

Coat the bottom of a big pot (6 quarts or so) with oil or melted shortening. Cook the meat, onions and all the powdered ingredients over a medium heat until the meat is slightly browned. Stir this a few times while it's cooking.

When the meat is almost done, add the beans. Rinse the cans with a little water to get all of the sauce.

At this point your chili should be slightly watery. If it's not, add a little more water (or beer). Let this simmer for about 20 minutes or so, stirring occasionally.

Let this cook for about an hour and a half, stirring and tasting occasionally. If you think it needs more flavor, add more seasoning, like chili powder.

It can be ready to eat any time after the meat is cooked but gets better after about an hour or so. And it is better still the next day.

Simple Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad

Almost everyone likes this super simple recipe, and it's really easy if you use a good quality, pre-made Caesar dressing.

Ingredients

  • boneless, skinless chicken breasts, 1 for each serving you're making
  • 1 or 2 bags of pre-cleaned and chopped romaine lettuce
  • 1 jar of Caesar salad dressing. This is often found in the produce section of your grocer.
  • 1 package of Caesar Salad or Garlic Croutons
  • Grated parmesan cheese

Directions

Season the chicken with a little salt and pepper, then cook on the grill or in a greased skillet until browned and done.

While the chicken is cooking, mix the lettuce, croutons (use however many you like) and enough salad dressing to coat it all. Use more or less depending on what you like.

When the chicken is done, slice each breast diagonally.

On each serving plate, put some of the dressed lettuce and top with a sliced chicken breast. Finish by sprinkling each with some parmesan cheese

Bisquick® Drop Biscuits

This simple recipe comes off the side of a Bisquick® Box. These things are great and super easy to make. If you have never tried them, now is the time.

Ingredients

  • 2¼ cups Original Bisquick® baking mix
  • ⅔ cup milk

Directions

Mix the Bisquick and the milk until a soft somewhat sticky dough forms. No kneeding necessary (or desired).
Using two spoons, drop small balls of the dough onto a cookie sheet.
Bake in a pre-heated 450° oven 8-10 minutes or until they are as brown as you like.

Simple Tzatziki

Tzatziki is the white Greek sauce that comes on gyros or is served with Greek dishes. Below is a great recipe to make this at home.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup plain yogurt (not vanilla)
  • 2-3 heaping tbsps grated cucumber.
  • 2-4 tsp chopped garlic (use the prechopped stuff in the jar to save time)
  • 1/2 lemon
  • salt

Directions

Peel part of a cucumber and then using a cheese grater, grate off about 2-3 tablespoons. Mix this with the yogurt.
Stir in the garlic, salt and juice of the 1/2 lemon.
Let it sit, refrigerated for about 20 minutes and then taste. If you think it needs more garlic, cucumber, salt or lemon then add a little more.
It will be ready to use in about an hour but the flavors really develop over a few hours or overnight.

Quick Chicken Pita Sandwich

This is an easy take on the chicken sandwich found in many Greek resturaunts. Serve it with the Simple Tzatziki above.

Ingredients

  • 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  • garlic powder
  • curry powder
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • curry powder
  • salt and pepper
  • chopped tomatoes
  • chopped cucumber (if making Tzatziki, use what is left from that)
  • chopped green onion
  • 4-6 pita breads

Directions

Season the chicken breasts with the salt pepper garlic and curry. Then brown in the olive oil.
While browning, chop the tomatoes, cucumber, and onion. Also, heat the pita breads in the microwave or toaster oven.
When the chicken is done, slice across the grain of the meat, and serve on the pita bread topped with the cucumber, tomatoes and/or onion.
Top it off with either the homemade Tzatziki dressing, or a ready-made salad dressing like blue cheese or caesar.

Fast and Simple Twice Baked Potatoes

Twice baked potatoes are great! Here is a quick recipe you can use to make fantastic Twice Baked Potatoes in a fraction of the time as normal.

Ingredients

  • 4 large Russett potatoes (Russet potatoes are the normal brown potatoes used for baked potatoes)
  • 3-4 tbsp butter or margarine
  • 1/2 cup to a cup or so of grated cheddar cheese, sharp or mild whichever you prefer
  • 3 or 4 finely chopped scallions (green onions)
  • a few tablespoons of milk
  • salt and pepper

Directions

Microwave the four potatoes on high just until done. Test with a fork. This may take 10-15, maybe even 20 minutes depending your microwave.
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
When the potatoes are done in the microwave, remove and let cool for about a minute, then cut each potato in half lengthwise.
Now, being careful, scoop some of the potato out of each of the halves and put it in a bowl. You don't need to get real close to the skin, but try to scoop out enough to leave a potato skin shell a little more than 1/4 inch thick.
Into the potatoes in the bowl, mix in the cheese, butter, onions and milk. Mix this until its a mostly smooth consistency like mashed potatoes. Salt and pepper to taste.
Fill the eight potato shells with the mashed potato mixture until they're very full or until you run out.
Sprinkle with a little more grated cheese and place in the pre-heated oven for about 5-10 minutes or until the cheese is melted.

Simple Quiche

Quiche is a great way to use up extra leftover vegetables and this recipe makes enough so you'll have plenty of leftovers.

Ingredients

  • 2-pack of frozen pre-made DEEP DISH pie crusts.

Filling

  • 8 eggs
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1-1/2 cups mayonnaise
  • 4-5 chopped shallots or 1-2 small chopped onions
  • 2 lbs frozen and defrosted spinach, drained
  • 3-4 cups of grated swiss cheese
  • 1-2 cups sliced mushrooms, sauteed first
  • salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Mix all the filling ingredients very well.
Dump the mixture evenly into the two crusts.
Bake for around 45 mins at 345°F, until the top is firm and golden brown.
You can make this simple recipe with almost any vegetable/cheese combination that you like, just make sure you have eggs and mayonnaise.
Freeze any leftovers and microwave later for a quick meal or snack.
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