It’s a good thing I know the beginning of The Campus Survival Cookbook so well because the first 42 pages are missing. When scanning the cover, I brought only the cover and its attached pages to the computer. They’re around here somewhere, but it’s not essential I find them—yet.
The initial pages talk about stocking your kitchen, the importance of breakfast, and where cuts of meat come from. Only then does it get into the recipes. So even though it’s 42 pages, I’m missing only the first two and one-half recipes. (The one-half will be explained at a later date.)
The week’s start with Monday, and Monday is always chicken. So here is the menu for:
MONDAY – First Week – MONDAY – First Week – MONDAY –
(That’s how it appears, more or less, in the book.)
- Beginner’s Chicken
- Buttered Noodles
- Canned Peas
Beginner’s Chicken: Using a cut-up fryer, place pieces skin side down on a broiler pan, dab it with butter or margarine, and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Turn pieces skin side up (the recipe even reminds you to close the oven door!), dab with butter, etc, and bake for another 30 minutes. One alternative is to place the chicken under a broiler for the last 10 or so minutes for crispier skin. You can also use barbeque sauce in place of the butter or margarine.
The Sides: For buttered noodles, follow the package directions. For peas, open the can and heat. The key to the instructions is timing everything to finish together.
My, How Times Have Changed
The closest simple (but healthier) chicken recipe came from the American Heart Association Cookbook. It also called for a cut-up fryer, which I haven’t been able to find for many years. Lemon Baked Chicken Thighs didn’t appeal to me, so I opted for barbeque sauce.
You can find a vast number of recipes for barbeque sauce, but I’m quite fond of KC Masterpiece Original flavor. So I skinned the thighs, placed them “skin” side down on the broiler pan and basted them with the sauce. After 30 minutes, I turned them over, basted again, and baked for another 30 minutes.
They came out with slight broiler marks and were delicious! (I should have taken a picture.)
Revised Sides
Noodles and chicken go together well in soups and casseroles, but I wasn’t thrilled about them separately on the plate. So I substituted Uncle Ben’s Rice Pilaf for the noodles.Not only was it super-easy (90 seconds in the microwave), it’s a bit more nutritious. (I think, although I’m no dietician.) They were so yummy, I had two helpings.
In case I haven’t said it loud enough, I do not peas. At all. And canned vegetables are so mid-20th century. So I bought some fresh broccoli and steamed it in the microwave. I added a little lemon juice, garlic powder, a spritz of olive oil (I love my oil mister), pepper, and just a wee bit of salt. They were ok, but not as crunchy or flavorful as I’d have liked.
I washed it all down with an Artisan Vintners Guild chardonnay, which was quite lovely. (It even had a screw top.)
Stream of Conscience 