Pollo con Piña

This is one of my favorite recipes that I brought home from my mission in Spain.  I got this from a member in the Valencia branch...she was originally from the Canary Islands and she told me that is where the recipe originated.  She was sick (cancer) and my companion and I did service by cleaning and ironing for her.  She would cook for us. She gave my trainer and I pretty blank books that we could write down the recipes in.  They were delicious (even the Sopa de Ajo (Garlic Soup)).  I received one letter from her after I came home in 1997 - she'd gone back to the Canary Islands.  I haven't heard from her since, so I'm not sure of her whereabouts or if her cancer came back or what. But every time I make this (and it is now a favorite of my husband and kids) I think of Mercedes.


Mercedes, me and her son, Alejandro
February 1996
Valencia, Spain

My original copy of the recipe - I'd only been in Spain a few months, but I couldn't remember certain cooking terms in English (or figure out how to translate right) I couldn't figure out "brown the chicken" just got it figured out to cooking it not frying it :)

As you can see it is very well used...I think, next to my recipe for Tortilla it is the most used page in this book!

Pollo con Piña

from Mercedes Mendez in Valencia, Spain






1 chicken cut in small pieces (or chicken breasts, or things or even tenders)


1 large can of pineapple rings (with juice)


2 beef bouillon cubes


250 g margarine (about 1 ½ cubes)


Flour


Water






Clean the chicken, coat with flour. Set aside. In a frying pan, melt margarine. Brown the chicken. Put browned chicken in a 9” x 13” pan and set aside. In the leftover margarine, add the pineapple juice and the bouillon cubes. Stir well, until boiling and the bouillon cubes have disintegrated. Mix 1 tsp of flour in 1/3 c. of water (just so flour is mixed well). Mix into margarine mixture. Strain mixture (if necessary) and pour over chicken and cook 30-45 minutes in oven at 350° to 375°.






This is good served over rice or mashed potatoes. You may need additional pineapple juice – especially if you want it saucier to pour over rice or potatoes. Then I add an additional bouillon cube as well.

Bisquick Garlic Cheese Biscuits

Joshua fixed these to go with our Pollo con Piña the other night...they were delicious.

I think what really makes them great is using Homemade Bisquick :)

2 c. bisquick

¼ c. margarine or butter, melted


2/3 c. milk

¼ t. garlic powder


½ c. shredded cheddar cheese





· Heat oven to 450. Mix baking mix, milk and cheese until soft dough forms; beat 30 seconds.


· Drop dough by 10 to 12 spoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet.


· Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown. Mix melted oleo & garlic powder; brush over warm biscuits before removing from cookie sheet. Serve warm.





**I sometimes add a little garlic powder to the bisquick as I mix in the milk. These taste a lot like the biscuits at Red Lobster. They go great with spaghetti. Joshua’s always turn out better than mine!







Homemade Bisquick Mix


Makes 7 cups





3 cups white flour


3 cups whole wheat flour


3 Tbsp baking powder


1 Tbsp salt


1 cup shortening





1. Whisk flour together in a large bowl with baking powder and salt until well blended.


2. Cut in shortening with a pastry blender until mixture resembles fine crumbs.


3. Store mixture in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 months.


4. Use whenever your recipe calls for BISQUICK.





**the original recipe that I found on the Internet had you sift the dry ingredients together three times…using a wire whisk is much easier and gives the same results. It also called for 6 cups of white flour, but we like doing half whole wheat and half white flour.

Inside Out Pizza

Inside Out Pizza (from Lacie Benton~Winters)

Crust:
5 c. flour
2 T. sugar
2 t. salt
2 T yeast (2 pkgs)
1 ½ c. warm water
½ c. warm milk
2 T melted butter

Filling:

Any pizza toppings you desire. Can include pizza sauce in it and have extra for dipping, or can just have it for dipping and not put any inside the pizza.

Mix dry ingredients (use only ½ total amount of flour) and then add wet ingredients. Beat on medium for 3 minutes. Slowly add remaining flour. Change to dough hook when needed. Let rise 1 hour. Roll out, put filling on half of dough. Fold over and seal. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes. Brush top with egg whites if desired.

This is another one that Joshua will take cold in his lunch to school.  It freezes pretty well, too.  I usually get 2 pizzas out of this and we've eaten one and froze the other for later.