Last week we made Jambalaya in celebration of Mardi Gras and the beginning of the Lenten season. For dessert we made our version of the King Cake, using a cream cake mix and adding glaze and decorative sugars. Here’s the recipe for making Jambalaya for a crowd. You can use a spicy Andouille sausage, or just a good smoked link sausage if you want to keep it less spicy for a big crowd, or make some of each. Adding shrimp can also be an option, but since there are so many people out there with shellfish allergies we chose not to add it. We made our batch this time with just chicken and mild smoked sausage.
Sausage and Chicken Jambalaya for 500
Make in 10 full size 4” deep steamtable pans, 50 servings per pan
Per pan: Total:
(4#) 40 pounds cooked chicken, white or dark meat, shredded or chopped
(#4) 40 pounds andouille or mild smoked link rope sausage, sliced
(10 cups) 100 cups diced onions
(5 cups) 50 cups chopped celery
(5 cups) 50 cups chopped green peppers
(1/3 cup) 3 1/3 cups chopped garlic
(8 cups) 80 cups (40 pounds) long grain rice
(46 oz or 5 ¾ cup) 57 ½ cups Bloody Mary Mix or use V-8 juice (10 46 oz cans)
(46 oz) 10 46 oz cans Chicken Stock
(2 TBSP) 1 ¼ cup Creole or Cajun seasoning
(1/2 can) 5 #10 cans diced tomatoes
Saute sausage over medium high heat, add shredded or chopped chicken to brown. Divide into steamtable pans.
Saute onions, celery, green pepper and garlic until tender. Mix with chicken and sausage. Refrigerate in pans overnight or proceed to finish recipe.
Add liquids, seasoning, tomatoes and rice to pans. Cover with foil. Cook at 350* convection for 1 ½ hours, stirring halfway. Add additional liquid as needed after stirring halfway through cooking (may need up to 2 more cups of either tomato juice or chicken broth if rice isn’t tender and all liquid has been absorbed.) Cooking time will be longer if pans were refrigerated overnight. When rice is done, remove foil and continue to bake pans for an additional 20 minutes if a light brown crust on top is desired.
We made 24 King Cakes in bundt pans, glazed with powdered sugar frosting. We opted not to hide the babies in the cakes to avoid a choking hazard. You can see them hiding in the decorations on the dessert table if you look closely.
It’s one of our most popular menus of the year at Calvary Lutheran Church when Pizza Ranch brings us their Crispy Ranch Chicken. Our kitchen volunteers will provide the homemade Cheesy Church Potatoes and Salad Bar to round out the meal. For dessert, we’ll have Ice Cream and other frozen dessert bars . Dinner is served from 4:45 to 6:15 pm, followed by worship, led by the Praise Band, at 6:30.
Sometimes politics and casseroles cross paths, and a friend at church shared this fun article with me about a campaign taking advantage of the Tater Tot Casserole to win over voters. A dedicated group of volunteers from Calvary Lutheran has been making our version of this casserole once a month for years down at the Cornerstone Rescue Mission. http://www.cornerstonemission.org/
Here’s our recipe for Tater Tot Casserole for a Crowd:
Tatertot Casserole: 400 servings (40 per 4”deep full size steamtable pan)
80 # ground beef, 90% lean
3 jars French onion soup base
Divide beef into 10 4” deep pans. Divide soup base evenly among pans and stir into beef. Brown in convection oven set at 275* stirring often until browned, or brown on griddle or on stovetop in skillets.
To beef/soup mixture, add:
10 #10 cans green beans, drained
10 50 oz cans cream of tomato soup
10 50 oz cans cream of mushroom soup
Mix together and top casserole with:
40# tater tots
3 #10 cans cheddar cheese sauce (107 oz per can)
For each pan use:
8 # ground beef
1 can green beans
1 can tomato soup
1 can mushroom soup
4 # tater tots
32 oz cheddar cheese sauce
Bake for 1 hour at 350* uncovered. Stir and bake another 45 minutes. Cover with foil and bake another hour at 325*.
In case you can’t open it, I’ll do a little cutting and pasting of it here.
Senator Amy Klobuchar’s Taconite Tater Tot Hot Dish, named after a rock mined in the Iron Range of Minnesota, was the star of a house party on her behalf in Newton, Iowa. Credit…Tamir Kalifa for The New York Times
A Classic Midwestern Dish Becomes a Talking Point in Iowa By Kim Severson
Hot dish, the Minnesota-specific church-supper stalwart that cooks in other parts of the country might mistake for a casserole, is no stranger to hard work.
Early versions of the dish — traditionally a mix of protein, starch and vegetables held together with a creamy sauce baked until it bubbles — helped conserve meat during World War I and fed farm families during the Depression. Topped with Tater Tots or mixed with rice, more modern renditions offer working parents an inexpensive way to get dinner on the table after a long day.
Now, hot dish has been conscripted to help Amy Klobuchar, the senator from Minnesota, win the Democratic nomination for president.
In a series of events that began in New Hampshire last summer and continued this month in Iowa, Ms. Klobuchar has been feeding her recipe, blanketed in Tater Tots, to voters at gatherings the campaign calls Hot Dish House Parties.
The actual making of the hot dish, however, falls to campaign workers. In Iowa, that worker is Andy McGuire, 63, a physician who is also the state campaign chairwoman.
Hot dish has as many variations as there are cooks. Dr. McGuire has made her own version for years, using frozen mixed vegetables, onions, hamburger and condensed cream of mushroom soup, which some Midwestern cooks affectionately call “the Lutheran binder.” It’s topped with Tater Tots.
The senator’s recipe omits the frozen vegetables, adds garlic and tucks the Tater Tots between two layers of shredded pepper Jack cheese.
Ms. Klobuchar’s hot-dish recipe.
Here’s our recipe for another good hot dish, the Cheesy Church Potatoes (Hashbrown Casserole), that we’ll be serving this week.
Calvary’s Cheesy Church Potatoes
Serves 600
Makes 30 half size disposable steamtable pans, 20 servings/pan
120# shredded hashbrowns (24 5# bags), thawed
8# melted butter
12 50 oz cans cream of chicken soup
10# cheese, grated cheddar
18# sour cream
8# diced onions (4 2# bags frozen onions), thawed
16 Tbsp salt (1 cup)
Divide above ingredients into 12 batches: Each batch will fill 2 1/2 pans and make about 50 servings
2 bags hashbrowns (5# per bag)
2/3 # melted butter
1 50 oz can cream of chicken soup
3/4# grated cheese
1 ½# sour cream
2/3# diced onions
1 1/3 TBSP salt
Bake pans covered at 350*, stirring once after about an hour. Cook for about another 45 minutes covered. Stir again, and top with cornflake mixture. Bake an additional 15-20 minutes uncovered until browned.
It’s October already, can you believe it! The forecast for tomorrow is cold and rainy with a chance of snow in the morning, a perfect day for some German comfort food. Did you know that kuchen is the official state dessert of South Dakota? We order our kuchen from Pietz’s Kuchen Kitchen in Scotland, SD. http://www.kuchenkitchen.com/ Tomorrow we’ll be serving their blueberry, strawberry rhubarb, cherry, peach and cottage cheese flavors.
Mix together dry cake mix, eggs, extract, pie filling and chocolate chips, and stir until just combined. Pour batter into greased pan.
Bake at 325* convection for 45 minutes or until center of cake springs back or toothpick comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool.
Glaze:
Melt chocolate with butter and milk, either in double boiler or in microwave (about 1 1/2 minutes on high). Stir in sifted powdered sugar and beat until well blended. Spread over cooled cake. (It’s best to do one cake at a time, because glaze will be difficult to spread on cake as it cools.)
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (12 cups)
2 Tbsp butter (Total: 1 1/2 cups)
1/4 cup milk (Total: 3 cups)
1 cup powdered sugar (Total: 12 cups)
Top cakes with cool whip or whipped cream and a maraschino cherry to serve.
First of all, I apologize for the lack of menu postings the last 2 weeks due to illness and travel. I probably need to get a blog assistance to keep things current when I can’t get to it. I heard they had about 300 in attendance for each of the last 2 weeks. Sometimes it’s hard to get out when the weather is so cold and icy, but the Wednesday meals and services still go on unless school is cancelled. The church website archives the videos of services that you can watch if you want to see what you missed when you can’t get there in person. Here’s the link to the service last week. The Wednesday school kids sang and Pastor David’s message focused on building relationships within the church https://vimeo.com/318734666
Menu for February 27, 2019
Chicken Pot Pie, Fruit Salad and Salad Bar
Chocolate and Vanilla Marble Cake
Here’s the recipe we made for the cakes. We will frost them with pre-made vanilla and chocolate frosting.
Chocolate Marble Sheet Cake
This recipe makes 4 half sheet
pans for 120 servings. Cut 5×6 for 30 pieces per pan.
Make recipe 3 times for 360 servings in 12 half sheet pans.
6 cups butter (3#),
softened
9 cups sugar
Beat butter and sugar in mixer until creamy.
Add 12 eggs, a
few at a time, just until blended after each addition.
Add 4 Tablespoons vanilla
Whisk dry ingredients together:
15 cups flour
6 Tablespoons baking
powder
1 Tablespoon salt
Add flour mixture alternately with 6 cups half and half, at low speed, just until blended.
Divide 8 cups of the batter into a separate bowl. Stir in 1
½ cups unsweetened cocoa, 1 cup hot water and 1 ½ cups sugar.
Spread vanilla batter into 4 greased half sheet pans. Spoon chocolate batter on top and swirl into
vanilla batter with a knife.
Bake at 300* convection for 25-30 minutes. Cool completely before frosting.
Dinner is served from 4:45 pm to 6:15 pm. All are welcome! Please bring your friends and neighbors, enjoy dinner together and stay for worship afterwards from 6:30-7:15.
We ask that you help us cover the food costs of our meals by contributing whatever you can to our donation jar when you sign in. Our suggested donation is $5 for adults and $3 for children. Thank you for helping us keep this ministry going.
At the last meal before our Christmas break, we served over 500 people lasagna, salad, garlic bread and black forest cake. The live nativity worship service that followed dinner was outstanding, thanks to our staff and worship team. All of the Wednesday school preschoolers up through 5th graders sang beautifully for us as we heard the Christmas story and watched the angel, the shepherds, the holy family and the wise men gather near the altar. It was a wonderful reminder of why we come each week to learn and worship together.
We had some good help in the dining room too, as we welcomed home some of our college students who pitched in to serve.
The black forest cake was a favorite, rich and chocolatey with cherry pie filling mixed in, topped with whipped cream and a cherry.
Here’s the recipe:
Black Forest Cake
440
servings: 11 cakes 12x20x2 inch pans.
Cut each in 40 pieces (8×5)
Each Cake: (Make 11 times)
2
pkg (18.25 oz each) devil’s food cake mix with pudding (Total: 22 pkg)
6
eggs (Total: 5 ½ dozen)
2
Tbsp almond extract (Total: 22 Tbsp)
2
21 oz cans cherry pie filling (Total: 462 oz, about 5 #10 cans)
Mix
together cake mix, eggs, extract, pie filling and chocolate chips, and stir
until just combined. Pour batter into
greased pan.
Bake
at 325* convection for 45 to 50 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center
comes out clean. Remove from oven and
cool.
Glaze: Melt chocolate with butter and milk. Stir in powdered sugar. Spread over cooled cake. For each cake, make 1x. For 11 cakes, make the total in parentheses.
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (11 cups)
2
Tbsp butter (Total: 22 Tbsp)
4
Tbsp milk (Total: 2 ¾ cups)
1
cup powdered sugar (Total: 11 cups)
Top with cool whip or whipped cream and a cherry.
You gotta love Pastor Becky’s Christmas spirit!
Last week we made a meal that kids really loved, and the grown-ups didn’t seem to mind either: chicken strips, mac and cheese, salad and pudding dirt cups.
Here’s the ingredients you need to make 400 Dirt Cups:
Dirt Cups
10 gallons cold milk, 2% or whole
5 28 oz pkgs Chocolate Instant Pudding & Pie Filling
If you need to serve a big crowd, here’s the recipe in large quantities.
Mean and Lean Meat Loaf, adapted from Disney’s Family Cookbook
For 480 servings, make the recipe 12 times, divided into 15 shallow steam table pans, lined with pansavers to make clean-up easy, or use disposable full size pans. Press 3/4ths of each batch into each pan flat like a cake. Combine the other 1/4 from each batch to make 3 extra pans. (We did this because the full 10# batch seemed too thick for the shallow steam table pans. (If you want, go ahead and make them thicker and just use 12 pans, but they may need to cook a little longer.) When done, cut into 32 pieces (8×4) for the 15 pans, or 40 pieces (8×5) if using 12 pans.
Mix ingredients well. Don’t over mix or the resulting meatloaf will be too dense and dry. Bake at 325* convection for 1 hour, covered with foil. Mix total ingredients for the sauce and divide evenly on top of partially baked meatloaves. Bake an additional 30 minutes, or until internal temp reaches 160*. Let sit for 10 min. before slicing.
See you in church! Volunteers are always welcome in the kitchen and dining room. Just stop in and ask how you can help.
We are taking off Halloween night from church activities so you can enjoy Trick or Treating with your family.
See you next Wednesday night for roast beef dinner!
A few photos of our pasta meal on October 17th:
Need a big batch brownie recipe? We made this one 3 times, for 480 brownies. Only 1 pan leftover after serving 400 people.
Hershey Syrup Brownies
160 brownies
Makes 4 cake pans 20x12x2, cut 5×8 for 40 servings per pan
2 pounds softened butter
8 cups sugar
32 eggs
1 #10 can (8 pounds) Hershey’s Chocolate Syrup
8 cups flour
3 tablespoons vanilla
Cream butter and sugar together in mixer until well blended. Beat in eggs, the the chocolate syrup and vanilla. Add flour and combine just until well mixed. Divide batter into 4 greased cake pans. Bake at 325* convection for 30 minutes. Top cake with warm frosting.
Frosting for 4 pans:
1 ¼ cup sugar
¾ pound butter
1 ½ cups milk
4 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
Boil the sugar, milk and butter. Remove from heat. Add the chocolate chips, stir until melted. Spread frosting on brownies.
Last Wednesday, we had a good crowd of 400 for our hamburger cookout. Here’s a look at the dining room scene. We hope to see you again next week. Bring your friends!
The S’mores Bars were a pretty big hit. They are really gooey and rich (and a pain to cut), but worth the trouble I think. Here’s the recipe for 1 pan. We made 12!
S’mores Bars Servings: 576
12 pans/ 48 bars per pan: Make in 12x18x2 inch pans. Cut 6×8
To make 1 pan at a time:
Crust layer:
4 cup graham cracker crumbs
6 TBSP sugar
1/2 tsp salt
12 TBSP butter, melted
Combine ingredients and press into bottom of pan and along sides. Refrigerate until chilled and set.
Brownie layer:
12 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped (or bittersweet chocolate chips, may use semi-sweet)
1 1/2 cup butter (12 oz)
6 eggs
2 1/2 cups sugar
2 cups flour
2 tsp salt
1 TBSP vanilla
Melt chocolate and butter in microwave about 1 minute, until melted. With hand mixer, beat sugar and eggs, then add melted chocolate and beat until smooth. Stir flour, salt and then vanilla into mixture. Spread brownie layer over graham cracker crust. Bake at 350* convection for 30 minutes, or until center is set when pressed with fingertip.
Topping:
7 oz marshmallow fluff (marshmallow cream)
2 TBSP milk
Whisk marshmallow cream and milk together, then spread over brownie layer.
8 oz miniature marshmallows
2 cup mini chocolate kisses
4 whole graham cracker boards, broken up
Sprinkle kisses and marshmallows over marshmallow topping, then scatter crumbled graham crackers over the top. Bake at 350* convection for 5 minutes, or until kisses are glossy and the marshmallow topping is set. Let cool in the pan, then cut into bars.
Total ingredients for 12 x recipe:
48 cups graham cracker crumbs (about 12# graham crackers)
72 TBSP (4.5 cups) sugar
6 tsp salt
4.5 # butter
144 oz (9 #) bittersweet chocolate
18 cups (9 #) butter
72 eggs (6 doz)
30 cups sugar
24 cups flour
24 tsp (8 TBSP) salt
12 TBSP vanilla
12 7 oz marshmallow cream jars
1 ½ cups milk
24 cups mini chocolate kisses
48 graham crackers
The worship service last week included a “Blessing of the Backpacks” for our kindergarteners. Here’s a look at those energetic and adorable Calvary kids:
A perfect cake around Valentine’s Day. Actually, any day is a good day for this cake. Change up your jello flavor and pie filling topping or use fresh fruit for variety. It’s a classic.
20 servings (We doubled the recipe to bake in our 12x20x2 inch cake pans, serves 40. Then we made it 10 times to serve 400 slices)
1 package white cake mix (eggs, water and oil will be needed as directed on the box, depending on which kind of cake mix you buy)
1 package (3 oz) cherry Jello
1 ½ cups boiling water
1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
2 cups whipped non-dairy topping
1 can (21 oz) cherry pie filling
Prepare cake mix according to package directions. Bake in greased 9 x 13 baking pan at 350* for 30-35 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.
Dissolve jello in boiling water. Cool cake on wire rack for 5 minutes. Poke holes all over top of cake with a fork or wooden skewer. Gradually pour jello over cake. Cool for 15 minutes. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until fluffy. Fold in whipped topping. Carefully spread over cake. Top with pie filling. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.
Calvary Lutheran Lasagna
464 Servings: This recipe makes 29 pans. We use half size disposable pans, 2 1/2” deep x 9 x 13 inches. Each pan is cut into 16 pieces (4×4)
20 pounds lean ground beef (at least 90% lean)
40 pounds Italian bulk sausage (may use mild or spicy, or a combination)
10 pounds pepperoni slices (just a rough estimate)
15 pounds chopped onions
5 #10 cans tomato sauce, or may use Marinara Sauce or Spaghetti Sauce
2 #10 cans tomato paste
14 cups hot water
1 ¼ cups beef soup base or beef bullion concentrate
3 ½ cups dried parsley
3 ½ cups dried Italian seasoning
2 cups minced garlic, or ¾ cup garlic powder
18 pounds cream cheese, at room temperature
15 pounds cottage cheese
10 pounds sour cream
7 dozen eggs
30 pounds (3 10# cases, 32 5 oz noodles/case) of frozen “no boil” lasagna sheets, keep frozen
25 pounds shredded mozzarella cheese
5 pounds shredded parmesan cheese
Saute onions with olive oil on griddle until softened and clear but not browned. Brown ground beef and sausage, draining off as much grease from the sausage as possible. Divide onions and meats into 4 large roasting pans. Divide tomato sauce, tomato paste, and seasonings evenly into the four roasters. Dissolve beef base in hot water, divide evenly into the roasters. Bring to a boil and simmer at least 10 minutes.
Beat eggs and set aside. Using large mixer, beat cream cheese until smooth. Beat in the sour cream and cream cheese and mix well. Add in the beaten eggs and stir until well combined.
Each pan of lasagna will have 3 layers. To assemble, spoon about 1 cup of meat sauce into the bottom of each pan. Add a frozen noodle sheet, then a layer of 2 cups meat sauce, 2 cups cheese sauce, about 4 ½ ounces of shredded mozzarella, and 16 pepperoni (laid down 4×4). Repeat a second time exactly the same. After the 3rd layer of noodle sheet, put the cheese sauce first, mozzarella, then the meat sauce and pepperoni on top. Cover with a sheet of parchment paper, then cover tightly with foil. Pans may be refrigerated overnight.
If baking right away, keep covered and bake at 350* for 45 minutes (325* convection), or until center temperature is at least 165*. Uncover, sprinkle a layer of parmesan cheese on top, and return to oven for 15-20 minutes to lightly brown the top.
If baking after refrigerating, keep covered and bake at 300* (275* convection) for 2 hours until up to 165*. Finish as above.
Let rest about 10 minutes before cutting and serving.
Serve with a fresh Italian style garden salad and bread sticks or garlic bread.
Italian Garden Salad
400 servings
60# American Salad Blend (Iceberg, Romaine, Radish, Red cabbage, carrots)
As requested by a blog reader, here’s the recipe for the Chicken Pot Pie that we made for dinner this week.
Chicken Pot Pie
Makes 2 full size steam table pans (12x20x2), 48 servings
For 528 servings, make recipe 11 times (22 pans)
Total amount for 22 pans is in parentheses following the amount to use for 2 pans
5# cooked, shredded Chicken Breasts (Total 55# Pre-cooked) May use 140# uncooked, bone-in chicken breast or 80# boneless breasts and prepare as below)
5 ½ # frozen Mixed Vegetables (60#)
1# Chopped Onion (11#)
Vegetable or olive oil for sautéing
1 #3 Can (51 oz) Cream of Chicken Soup (11 cans)
1 #3 Can (51 oz) Cream of Mushroom Soup (11 cans)
3 Cups Milk (2 gallons, plus 1 cup)
2 tsp Pepper (7 TBSP plus 1 tsp)
1 TBSP Thyme (11 TBSP)
3 TBSP flour (2 cups plus 1 TBSP)
2 ½ Pastry Sheets. May use either pie crust dough or puff pastry dough (27 ½ sheets) 1 full sheet doesn’t cover, so use about ¼ of another sheet to cover the top.
If using uncooked chicken breasts, season chicken with salt and pepper and bake on foil lined baking sheets at 350* for 20-30 min. Shred or chop cooled chicken.
Sauté onion until translucent in olive or vegetable oil.
Stir together soups, milk, flour and spices
Stir in chicken and onion
Boil mixed vegetables until heated through and add to the rest of ingredients. (May add vegetables frozen and increase cooking time in the oven)
Pour into pans lined with Pansavers liners, or spray with non-stick spray, or use disposable pans
Bake covered at 350° for about 45 min. until hot and bubbly
Stir and top with pastry sheet
Bake uncovered at 375* for about 30 min. or until brown and internal temp is 180. Let stand 15 minutes before serving to thicken up the sauce.
Cut pastry top 4×6 to make it easy to serve.
Fruit pizza was a welcome taste of summer, as temperatures outside dipped into the single digits and the snow began to blow in. Fresh blueberries, strawberries and kiwi were on sale this week at the local grocery store, so we piled it high on the shortbread crust. Here’s the recipe on a previous blog post: Fruit Pizza
We are taking off Halloween night from church activities so you can enjoy Trick or Treating with your family.
thenewchurchsupper 