WP asked what my family’s three favorite dishes are and I’ve listed them here.
My recipes a colorful collection because my family is pretty diverse, so we have always been at each other to pony up and bring these to our family gatherings.
I pulled the recipes off line because I’ve been making them ( and enjoying them since I had teeth ) almost my entire life and I make them from memory.
These recipes are great because they’re basic and you can easily adjust the ingredients to suit your taste.
I hope you enjoy these as much as we have!
Godfrey Family
1969
Seafood Enchiladas
Photographer Unknown
Filling:
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- ½ pound fresh crabmeat
- ¼ pound shrimp – peeled, deveined and coarsely chopped
- 8 ounces Colby cheese, shredded
- 6 (10 inch) flour tortillas
Sauce:
- 1 cup half-and-half cream
- ½ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup butter, melted
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried parsley
- ½ teaspoon garlic salt
Directions
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Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
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Make the filling: Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. Stir crabmeat, shrimp, and 1/2 of the Colby cheese into the skillet.
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Arrange a large spoonful of filling across the center of each tortilla, then roll tortillas around filling. Place enchiladas, seam-side down, into a 9×13-inch baking dish.
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Make the sauce: Heat half-and-half, sour cream, melted butter, parsley, and garlic salt in a saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring often, until lukewarm and well blended. Pour over enchiladas, then sprinkle remaining cheese over top.
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Bake in the preheated oven until crab and shrimp are cooked and cheese is melted, about 30 minutes.
Authentic Filipino Pancit
Photographer Unknown
- 4 boneless chicken thighs
- 1 (8 ounce) package dried rice noodles
- 2 tablespoons soy-based liquid seasoning (such as Maggi®), or to taste
- 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- ½ large head cabbage, thinly sliced
- 2 carrots, julienned
- 1 teaspoon garlic salt
Directions
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Bring a pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add chicken thighs and boil until no longer pink in the centers and juices run clear, about 30 minutes. Strain broth into a bowl to reserve. Shred chicken thighs using 2 forks.
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Place noodles in a large bowl and pour in hot chicken broth, adding hot water to cover if needed. Set aside until noodles are softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Blanch noodles with cold water and drain well. Place into a bowl and add soy seasoning, 1 tablespoon olive oil, and sesame oil. Mix well and set aside.
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Heat remaining olive oil in a skillet or large wok over medium-high heat. Saute garlic in the hot oil until it begins to brown, about 1 minute. Add onion and cook for 2 minutes. Add chicken, cabbage, and carrots. Stir-fry for 3 to 4 minutes; season with garlic salt. Mix chicken mixture with noodles, add soy seasoning to taste, and serve.
Toad in the Hole
Photographer Unknown
For the batter:
- 4 large eggs
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 pinches cayenne pepper
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup whole milk
- ¼ cup cold water
For the sausages:
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 4 links pork sausage
For the onion gravy:
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 large red onion, minced
- kosher salt to taste
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 cups chicken broth
- ¼ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- 2 tablespoons onions, spring or scallions (includes tops and bulb), raw
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh chives, or to taste
Directions
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Prepare batter: Combine eggs, salt, pepper, cayenne, 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon flour, and milk in a large bowl; whisk thoroughly until batter is very smooth and no lumps remain. Whisk in water. Cover and let rest at room temperature for 1 hour.
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Prepare sausages: Heat vegetable oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add sausages and cook until browned, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Remove from the heat and transfer to a buttered 9×12- or 9×13-inch baking dish. Pour oil from the skillet over the sausages; brush oil with a pastry brush all over the bottom and up the sides of the dish.
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Start onion gravy: Melt butter in the same skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and salt; saute until soft and starting to brown, 5 to 6 minutes.
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While onion is cooking, pour batter in and around the sausages. Place in the center of a cold oven and turn temperature to 500 degrees F (260 degrees C). Set oven timer for 30 minutes.
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While toad in the hole cooks, finish onion gravy: Stir in flour and cook for about 2 minutes. Whisk in chicken broth and return to a simmer. Add Worcestershire sauce and balsamic vinegar and simmer until gravy thickens up and reduces, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to low and stir in green onions. Taste and adjust seasoning.
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When timer goes off, remove toad in the hole from the oven; it should be browned and puffed. Spoon gravy over the sausages and garnish with green onions and chives.
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Serve with extra gravy.
Chef’s Notes
I used British bangers, but any pork-based sausage will work.
You can use lard or clarified butter in place of vegetable oil, and any onion in place of red onion.
