Home Cooking for the Holidays

     

     Alyssa Richard, Operations Coordinator, for Laraway's Backpack Program had an idea.  She asked staff to share some of their favorite recipes and she created a recipe book for client families.  Her colleagues answered the call and Backpack's first cookbook is being sent home to families along with Holiday Baskets chock full of holiday treats, gift certificates and hats, gloves and mittens.  Backpack staff solicit donations for these baskets each year from area businesses.  Thank you donors!  Thank you staff!  Thank you, Alyssa, for your really cool idea!
      We share two of the recipes below:

Baked Chicken Nuggets

Prep 20 m        Cook 20 m      Ready In 40 m

Ingredients

·         3 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

·         1 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs

·         1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

·         1 teaspoon salt

·         1 teaspoon dried thyme

·         1 tablespoon dried basil

·         1/2 cup butter, melted

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2. Cut chicken breasts into 1 1/2-inch sized pieces. In a medium bowl, mix together the bread crumbs, cheese, salt, thyme and basil. Mix well. Put melted butter in a bowl or dish for dipping.
3. Dip chicken pieces into the melted butter first, then coat with the breadcrumb mixture. Place the well-coated chicken pieces on a lightly greased cookie sheet in a single layer, and bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.

Easy Sausage Gravy and Biscuits

Prep 5 m          Cook 10 m      Ready In 15 m

Ingredients

·         1 (16 ounce) can refrigerated jumbo buttermilk biscuits

·         1 (9.6 ounce) package Jimmy Dean(R) Original Hearty Pork Sausage Crumbles

·         1/4 cup flour

·         2 1/2 cups milk

·         Salt and ground black pepper to taste

Directions

1. Bake biscuits according to package directions.
2. Meanwhile, cook sausage in large skillet over medium heat 5-6 minutes or until thoroughly heated, stirring frequently. Stir in flour. Gradually add milk; cook until mixture comes to a boil and thickens, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
3. Split biscuits in half. Place 2 halves on each of 8 plates; top with about 1/3 cup gravy.

*Backpack is a public-school-based, behavioral intervention support program.