inexpensive – Page 7 – Simply Delicious: The Cookbook Project

17-65: Giant Caramel Rolls

Jamie Martin Group 17: Baked Goods, Section 3: Desserts & Baked Goods March 16, 2017November 8, 2020all-purpose flour, baked goods, baking cups, breakfast, brown sugar, brunch, butter, caramel, chopped, cinnamon, dark corn syrup, dough, easy, eggs, filling, gift ideas, granulated sugar, herbs and spices, inexpensive, melted, nuts, pastry, pecans, proofed, rolls, salt, Silpat, snacks, untested, vegetarian, yeast

A recent Sunday brunch called for a special treat: 17-65: Giant Caramel Rolls. Similar to “sticky buns“, these rolls have been taunting me for a while. I decided to make a batch and drop them off for brunch–that way most of them gets eaten by everyone else.

Don’t get me wrong–there’s still two in my freezer as I type this. But that’s better than ALL of them. Plus, there wasn’t room for all of them–I still had 16-14: Orange-Almond Cake in there, too. The rest of these ended up in my mom’s freezer instead.

2-10: Spinach Salad

Adam Martin Group 02: Salads, Section 1: Appetizers & Starters March 15, 2017October 4, 202012-11-08 dinner, 4-92 week, appetizers, bacon, chopped, creamy, diced, Dijon mustard, dinner, dressing, easy, eggs, favorites, fried, garnish, gluten-free, Hutton house, inexpensive, julienned, lemons, lunch, mayonnaise, mushrooms, pan-fried, party food, pork, radishes, revisited, roach motel apt, salads, side dish, sliced, sour cream, spinach, vegetables

The card for 2-10: Spinach Salad is great because it has notes and reviews from the attempts of two other chefs I really admire, Jamie and her mother. From the date of the original note, I can deduce that Jamie’s mom made this recipe almost 25 years ago. She gives a succinct review, “Very Good, Very Easy.” Jamie’s equally positive review of her attempt at making this recipe 9 years back is encouraging. Making this salad for dinner one night after work is a super easy task and I agree with the previous reviews written on the card.

Simply Delicious helps you learn in so many different ways. Not only do I get a recipe for a salad, I get some history about the main ingredient: SPINACH!

Editor’s note: I made this as part of a “fancy dinner” in my first apartment, a year or two after college. I was so happy to have a kitchen and table to call my own, I invited some friends over, busted out a few Simply Delicious recipes, and threw a “fancy” dinner party, complete with table settings and after-dinner coffee.

5-14: Thai Chicken Omelette

Jamie Martin Group 05: Eggs & Cheese, Section 1: Appetizers & Starters March 12, 2017October 13, 2020Asian, bean sprouts, boneless, breakfast, canola oil, chicken, chopped, cilantro, cooked chicken, cubed, curry paste, curry powder, dairy-free, diced, dinner, easy, eggs, filling, French, healthy, herbs and spices, inexpensive, lemon balm, lemongrass, lunch, omelette, Oriental, parsley, pasta/noodles, peanut oil, rice, rice noodles, sautéed, sesame oil, sliced, soy sauce, sriracha, steamed, tamari, Thai, tomatoes, untested, vegetable oil

Looking for a way to use up some leftover chicken for breakfast or lunch? 5-14: Thai Chicken Omelette doesn’t require a ton of ingredients, but makes for a light yet hearty meal. Omelettes are something Simply Delicious does quite a bit of (5-33: Omelette Stacks with Rice, 5-21: Omelette with Herbs, or 5-9: Swiss Cheese and Crouton Omelette are just a few examples), but this one’s definitely a decent take on it.

Simply Delicious mentions the Thai cuisine featuring lots of fruits and vegetables, but this recipe doesn’t have much in the way of produce, other than maybe the bean sprouts. Try substituting sautéed squash or carrots for a vegetarian alternative to the chicken.

16-9: Raspberry Tart

Jamie Martin Group 16: Pies & Cakes, Section 3: Desserts & Baked Goods February 21, 2017July 30, 2020all-purpose flour, baked goods, baking powder, bread crumbs, butter, cookie cutters, creamed, dough, eggs, fairly easy, filling, French, fruit, gift ideas, graham crackers, granulated sugar, inexpensive, jam/jelly/preserves, party food, pastry, pie crust, raspberries, sifted, snacks, springform pan, stand mixer, strawberries, tart, tart pan, untested, vegetarian

Here’s a simple dessert that’s easy for a dinner, gift, or even just a snack. 16-9: Raspberry Tart is exactly what it sounds like–pie crust in a tart pan filled with raspberry preserves and topped with bits of dough. Simply Delicious uses a simple drop method for the dough topping, but I think we can do better than that. 🌟

Why did anyone think that amorphous blobs of dough were an acceptable tart topping? 🤷‍♀️

1-18: Club Sandwich

Jamie Martin Group 01: Hot & Cold Appetizers, Section 1: Appetizers & Starters February 20, 2017January 28, 2020American, appetizers, bacon, chicken, chili sauce, cooked chicken, dairy-free, dinner, dressing, easy, garnish, green olives, grilled, iceberg lettuce, inexpensive, ketchup, layers, lettuce, lunch, mayonnaise, New York, pan-fried, radicchio, restaurant-style, sandwiches, sliced, spinach, Tabasco sauce, toasted, tomatoes, toothpicks, turkey, untested, vegetables, white bread, whole wheat bread

In honor of Presidents Day today, here’s a classic American dish: 1-18: Club Sandwich. Wikipedia claims the club sandwich (or “clubhouse sandwich”) originated in late 19th century New York. It’s not hard to find one these days, and while the Simply Delicious version is not quite restaurant-sized (usually they’re HUGE), it’s still a hearty lunch or dinner option. 🇺🇸

I have no idea what’s going on with their picture or description of this sandwich–their picture only shows one layer (no middle bread) and the order of ingredients they describe above doesn’t match the recipe. I think I’m sticking with the recipe version.

17-50: Cornmeal-Jalapeño Biscuits

Adam Martin Group 17: Baked Goods, Section 3: Desserts & Baked Goods January 11, 2017November 8, 2020all-purpose flour, appetizers, baked goods, baking powder, baking soda, biscuit cutters, biscuits, breakfast, butter, buttermilk, chopped, cilantro, cookie cutters, coriander, cornmeal, cumin, cut in, dough, easy, egg-free, gift ideas, granulated sugar, herbs and spices, hors d'oeuvres, inexpensive, jalapeño peppers, lunch, melted, minced, parsley, party food, salt, side dish, Silpat, snacks, untested, vegetarian

Making biscuits is quick and easy, especially when following this recipe for 17-50: Cornmeal-Jalapeño Biscuits from Simply Delicious. One of my favorite rainy-day activities, I enjoy baking because the warm oven heats up the house nicely. The only feeling that can beat it is sitting by the fireplace.🔥

A recipe like this could be cooked similar to a cornbread in a cast iron skillet placed near a fireplace hearth. That would be really old school, but I prefer using this biscuit method because each biscuit is baked with its own crunchy, delicious crust.

This recipe is so versatile. You can make the biscuits small for appetizer-sized portions or you can make dinner sized biscuits as a side dish.

17-45: Light Coffee Rolls

Adam Martin Group 17: Baked Goods, Section 3: Desserts & Baked Goods January 7, 2017November 8, 2020all-purpose flour, almonds, baked goods, breads, breakfast, butter, chopped, coffee, dough, egg wash, eggs, fairly easy, gift ideas, granulated sugar, grated, inexpensive, kneaded, melted, milk, nuts, party food, proofed, rolls, salt, sliced, snacks, untested, vegetarian, yeast

17-45: Light Coffee Rolls were made as part of a gift box for a family friend. These coffee rolls can hardly be described as “light” in my opinion. The batch I made came out rather heavy, but buttery and delicious. 😋

The rolls were best served fresh from the oven, upon cooling, the rolls got heavier and less airy.

16-54: Lemony Cottage Cheese Pie

Adam Martin Group 16: Pies & Cakes, Section 3: Desserts & Baked Goods January 5, 2017November 5, 2020all-purpose flour, almonds, baked goods, breakfast, butter, cheese, chopped, cottage cheese, cream cheese, creamy, dessert, dough, egg whites, egg yolks, eggs, fairly easy, filling, flute, granulated sugar, grated, hot desserts, inexpensive, kneaded, lemons, melted, nuts, pie crust, pies, springform pan, stiff peaks, tart pan, untested, vanilla extract, vegetarian, zested

Whenever I think of lemons, I can’t help but think of Lemongrab from Adventure Time, my favorite, lemon-insipred, animated character. From my research, there are two other major characters who are lemon-themed, Lemon Meringue from “doll commercial hidden in a cartoon” Strawberry Short Cake and Honey Lemon, one of the main characters from Big Hero 6, a 3D animated feature film released by Disney in 2014 . I haven’t had a chance to check this movie out yet, but if it ever pops up on Netflix, I’d watch it. Now that my rant about cartoon characters is complete, enjoy this entry about 16-54: Lemony Cottage Cheese Pie, a really weird lemony pie. 🍋

Serving this pie on top of a tapestry featuring a creepy little girl must somehow enhance the flavor of this otherwise weird lemony pie. The background tapestry is probably the most interesting and tasteful part of the entire photograph.

6-41: Chicken Breasts with Tomato Salsa

Adam Martin Group 06: Poultry & Game, Section 2: Main Courses January 3, 2017October 15, 2020basil, black pepper, boneless, breasts, broiled, cast-iron, chicken, chopped, dairy-free, diced, dinner, dried herbs, easy, egg-free, garlic, gluten-free, green onions, grill pan, grilled, healthy, herbs and spices, inexpensive, Italian, lime juice, limes, lunch, minced, olive oil, party food, Roma/plum tomatoes, salsa, salt, scallions, skinless, thyme, tomatoes, untested, vegetables

I like dishes that are easy enough to prepare on a weekday night. 6-14: Chicken Breasts with Tomato Salsa teaches you to make a simple salsa to put on top of some tasty chicken breasts. 🍗

I really enjoy dishes like this for dinner: simple and flavorful ingredients which combine to make a nutritious, Simply Delicious meal.

17-48: Buttery Vanilla Rolls

Jamie Martin Group 17: Baked Goods, Section 3: Desserts & Baked Goods December 29, 2016January 19, 2023all-purpose flour, baked goods, baking cups, breakfast, brushed, butter, cake yeast, Christmas, dough, egg wash, eggs, fairly easy, filling, food processor, granulated sugar, holiday baking, inexpensive, kneaded, melted, milk, party food, pastry, powdered sugar, rolls, salt, snacks, untested, vanilla extract, vegetarian, XMAS 16, yeast

In my holiday baking batch from last year (XMAS 15), I included 17-67: Coconut Crescents to offer some variety to the endless types of cookies. 🍪 17-48: Buttery Vanilla Rolls were included in this year’s holiday baking (XMAS 16) for much the same reason, although I think I ended up with a better mix of items this year. 🎅🏼

I liked that these were baked in muffin cups as well–I thought that might make them easier to pack up and distribute/ship as gifts. To make them holiday-ish, I sprinkled them with a bit of red and green decorating sugar while they were cooling. 🎄