1 medium each: lemon, lime and orange

1 pouch Shake and Bake Original Seasoning

4 small boneless skinless chicken breast halves

Preheat oven to 500. Grate peel from half of each of the fruits. Combine with the contents of the coating mix. Cover chicken evenly with the mixture following directions on package.

Cut fruit into thin slices. Arrange with slices slightly overlapping on bottom of foil-lined 13 x 9 baking pan which you have greased. Top with chicken.

Bake for 30 min or until chicken is done. Serve with the fruit slices with rice and fresh green beans.

*You can also microwave about 1/2 orange marmelade and sprinkle contents over chicken before serving over rice.

Buy cubed steak (this is much more tender than just buying round steak and having to  pound it tender)

Mix 1 egg with 1 1/2 cups buttermilk

2 cups flour mixed with 3 teas garlic powder, 1 teas dried parsley, salt and pper

Cut steak into small pieces, as this makes it easier to work with. I cut each piece into the size of 3 to 4 bite sizes. Dip each piece into egg mixture and then into flour mixture, being sure that each piece is covered well with flour. Do this until you have coated each piece of steak and layed it out to dry while finishing the entire package.

When finised coating the steak, bring about 1 cup of oil in a large skillet to sizzling. With a fork, lay pieces of steak, not touching another piece into skillet. Brown well on each side and lay out on a plate, which you have covered in paper towels. Continue till all steak pieces are browned on both sides.

In the remaining oil, lower heat to low and slice 1/2 onion into pan drippings. Stir continually so it won’t burn. Add about 1/3 cup flour, sprinkling it over the onion/drippings mixture. Sprinkle more salt and pepper to taste and add 1 can of beef broth and stir until thicken. I usually add 1/2 can of French Onion soup mixture also. If this mixture is not think enough, add cornstarch mixture of 1/2 cup water which you have stirred in 1 tables cornstarch, to the broth mixture stirring constantly (use a whip if needed).

Layer steak into a greased dutch oven and pour broth mixture over meat. Bake in 350 preheated oven for 45 min. Serve with mashed potatoes or rice and fried okra, green beans and sliced tomatoes.

2 large eggs, beaten

2 cups panko bread crumbs

1/2 cup flour

1/2 teas celery salt

1/2 teas garlic salt

1/2 teas cayenne pepper

4 large skinless, boneless chicken thighs, lightly pounded*(I use 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, which I have pounded slightly between two sheets of waxed paper)

1/2 cup oil

Place a rimmed nonstick baking sheet on the lower rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 450. Put the beaten eggs, panko and flour in 3 seperate bowls. Season the flour with the celery salt, garlic and cayenne. Dust the chicken with the flour, then dip in the egg and finally in the pank, pressing to help the bread crumbs adhere.
Pour the canola oil onto the preheated baking sheet. Carefully dip the chicken in the oil, being sure to coat both sides evenly, and set them on the baking sheet. Bake for about 20 to 25 min until they are golden brown and crispy. Turn halfway through and drain on paper towels before serving.

This is a great way to have your “fried chiken taste” without all the oil normally used to make the chicken crispy. Serve with a fresh salad and Sweet and Sour Green Beans, which I am putting on the blog in a minute. They are so good and good for you. Great taste and low calorie.

In keeping with our Memorial Day Picnic Theme, I know you must be wondering if all I ever cook is desserts. Most of the time, I actually do have meat and veggies, but dessert is just where my passion for cooking lies. Usually it is me that always offers to bring the cakes or pies, because they are just so much fun to make. But these shrimp are so great and a great dish to take to a picnic or eat out on the patio. Just be sure to carry them to a picnic in a good ice chest.

To make cleanup easier, bake in a disposable foil pan. This recipe is from another Southern Living magazine, July 2006

4 lbs unpeeled large fresh shrimp

2 lemons, cut into wedges

2 bay leaves

1 cup butter, melted

1 cup ketchup

1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce

4 garlic cloves, chopped

3 tables Old Bay seasoning

1 teas dried rosemary

1 teas dried thyme

French Bread

Place shrimp in a 13×9 pan; top with lemon wedges and bay leaves.

Stir together the butter and next 6 ingredients. Pour over shrimp

Bake uncovered at 400 for 35 min or until shrimp are pink, stirring every 10 minutes. Discard bay leaves. Serve with the French bread. So simple but oh so good.

This is one of the sauces that I have used for 35 years and it is so easy. You can pour it over chicken or pork and if you are in a real hurry, buy Tyson’s breaded chicken nuggets (just follow the directions on the box as to how to bake them before adding to this sauce)  or buy some at either WallMart deli (which I have to tell you is delcious) or Chicken Express and go home and cup up and serve with this sauce with rice and you have yourself a great and quick Chinese meal.

1 tsp inst coffee

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 tables cornstarch

1/4 teas salt and dash of pepper

1/2 cup vinegar

2 tables catsup

1 ( 8 3/4 oz can) of undrained pineapple chuncks

1 medium tomato, cut in chunks

1 bell pepper 1/2 onion, sliced in pieces

1 tables salad oil

In large skillet cook bell pepper and onion in hot salad oil. When veggies are slightly tender (but not limp) transfer to plate and set aside. In skillet, mix remaining ingredients except the pineapple together with a wisk so that the cornstarch is dissolved. Then add the pineapple and tomato, bell pepper and onion. Pour over chicken or pork over rice.

One of my most favorite things to order when we go out is crab cakes. Some are just so rich and flavorful that you just want to savor each bite. The following recipe was in a Southern Living back in 2001 and is such an easy and delicious crab cake. If you prefer a spicier crab cake, add some finely chopped bell pepper, onion and Old Bay seasoning to your taste.

1/2 cup mayo

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1 tables dijon mustard

1 tables worcestershire sauce

1/2 teas hot sauce

1 lb fresh lump crabmeat, drained

1 cup crushed saltines (that’s about 20 crackers)

1 qt vegetable oil

Stir together first 5 ingredients; fold in crabmeat and saltines. Let stand 3 mins. Shape mixture into 8 patties. Place on a wax paper lined baking sheet; cover and chill 1 hour.

Fry crab cakes, in batches, in hot oil in large skillet over medium-high heat 3 to 4 min on each side or until golden. Drain on paper towels. Serve with tartar sauce.

Note: To saute crab cakes, cook iin 3 tables butter or oil in a large nonstick skillet 3 to 4 min on each side or until golden instead of frying in oil.

*FYI Crab Cake Rules

Start with absolutely fresh crab. Add an egg or some mayo to moisten the meat; season to taste. Use your hands to gently add in just enough breadcrumbs or cracker crumbs to bind the mixture together; form into cakes.