What’s Cookin’ in the Country?

I took the easy out yesterday; we had Thanksgiving Day leftovers for dinner! It was the first time for the leftovers, so I enjoyed them!

However, the day after Thanksgiving, while my company was still here, I wanted to have a completely different menu. I always enjoy Italian food after a rich meal of turkey and dressing, so I tried a new pasta dish; Company Baked Ziti. I was able to make the whole dish ahead of time and put it in the freezer. It made two 10 pie plates full! So all I had to do while my family was here was take it out of the freezer to thaw, then pop it into the oven. I added a salad and rolls and we were set! It was very good and indeed Company worthy!

Company Baked Ziti

Tossed Salad

Make-Ahead Butterhorns

Picture – My Recipes

Company Baked Ziti
Ingredients
1 lb. ground beef
1 lb. sweet Italian ground pork sausage
1 onion, chopped
2 (26-oz.) jars spaghetti sauce
1 (16-oz.) pkg. ziti pasta, cooked
1 (16-oz.) pkg. sliced provolone cheese
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preparation
Brown beef, sausage and onion in a skillet over medium heat; drain. Stir in sauce; reduce heat to low ad simmer 15 minutes.
Layer in a greased 13″x9″ baking pan as follows: half the pasta, provolone cheese, sour cream, half the sauce mixture, remaining pasta, mozzarella cheese and remaining sauce.
Top with parmesan cheese. Cover and bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until hot, bubbly and cheeses are melted.

This roll recipe is from Taste Of Home and is so good, and is such a time saver! Confession: My rolls didn’t look as pretty as the picture below. More on that story on Wednesday’s post!

Picture – Taste of Home

Make-Ahead Butterhorns
Ingredients
2 packages (1/4 ounce each) active dry yeast
1/3 cup warm water (110° to 115°)
2 cups warm 2% milk (110° to 115°)
1 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
6 Eggs
2 teaspoon salt
9 cups all-purpose flour, divided
3 to 4 tablespoons butter, melted

Directions

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Add the milk, shortening, sugar, eggs, salt and 4 cups flour; beat for 3 minutes or until smooth. Add enough remaining flour to form a soft dough.

Turn onto a floured surface; knead lightly. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 2 hours.

Punch dough down; divide into four equal parts. Roll each into a 9-in. circle; brush with butter. Cut each circle into eight pie-shaped wedges; roll up each wedge from wide edge to tip of dough and pinch to seal.

Place rolls with tip down on baking sheets; freeze. When frozen, place in freezer bags and seal. Store in freezer for up to 4 weeks.

Place on greased baking sheets; thaw 5 hours or until doubled in size. Bake at 375° for 12-15 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from baking sheets; serve warm or cool on wire rack. Yield: 32 rolls. I make my rolls a little smaller and get about 48 rolls!

Are you eating leftovers from Thanksgiving? Or do you opt for a totally different flavor like Mexican or Italian after the holiday is over?

With love from my Country kitchen,