Five Hungry Souls, One Smart Cook

Ingredients

• 2 (10.5 ounce) cans condensed cream of chicken soup
• 3 (14 ounce) cans chicken broth
• 3 cups shredded cooked chicken meat
• 2 (10 ounce) cans refrigerated biscuit dough

Instructions

1. Combine the condensed cream of chicken soup, chicken broth, and cooked shredded chicken in a large pot over medium-high heat. Stir well and bring the mixture to a gentle simmer.
2. While the soup mixture heats, cut each refrigerated biscuit into four equal pieces.
3. Carefully add the biscuit pieces to the simmering soup, gently stirring them in to ensure they are mostly submerged.
4. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pot, and let it simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the dumplings are cooked through and fluffy.
5. Serve the chicken and dumplings hot and enjoy this easy, comforting dish.

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground beef
• 1.5 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 tablespoon dried parsley
• salt, to taste
• 1 cup rice
• 2 cups water
• 1 tablespoon cooking oil
• 2 small onions, minced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 (14.25 ounce) can tomato puree
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tablespoons white vinegar
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 tablespoon dried parsley
• 0.5 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1.5 teaspoons cumin
• salt and ground black pepper to taste
• 1 (11 ounce) can Mexican-style corn, drained

Instructions

1. Combine ground beef with dried oregano, parsley, and salt to form the meatball mixture. Form into approximately 24 small meatballs.
2. Cook rice with water in a pot until boiling, then cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 20 minutes.
3. While the rice cooks, sauté minced onion and garlic in cooking oil in a skillet until softened. Add this mixture to the ground beef.
4. Brown the formed meatballs in the same skillet, then drain any excess fat.
5. In the same skillet, cook the remaining minced onion until soft. Stir in tomato puree, bay leaf, vinegar, oregano, parsley, chili powder, brown sugar, cumin, salt, and pepper. Simmer until the sauce thickens.
6. Return the browned meatballs to the sauce and cook until they are heated through and no longer pink inside.
7. Once the rice is done, stir in the drained Mexican-style corn.
8. Serve the saucy meatballs over the corn-infused rice.

Ingredients

• 12 frozen dinner rolls, thawed and risen
• 6 slices provolone, halved
• 3/4 cup marinara sauce, plus more for serving
• 12 frozen Italian meatballs, thawed
• 1/2 cup sliced deli peppers
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan
• Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C) and prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Gently flatten each thawed dinner roll into a disc approximately 6 inches in diameter.
3. On each flattened dough circle, place half a slice of provolone cheese, a tablespoon of marinara sauce, a thawed Italian meatball, and a portion of the sliced deli peppers.
4. Fold the opposite edges of the dough up and over the filling, pinching them together to enclose the meatball. Continue folding and sealing the edges until the meatball is completely covered.
5. Place the sealed subs seam-side down on the prepared baking sheet.
6. In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, grated Parmesan cheese, and crushed red pepper flakes.
7. Brush the tops of each meatball sub with the olive oil mixture.
8. Bake for 16-18 minutes, or until the rolls are golden brown and slightly crisp.
9. Serve warm, with extra marinara sauce on the side for dipping.

Ingredients

• 7 oz tofu
• ½ lb ground pork
• ½ lb ground beef
• ½ cup scallion (chopped)
• ¼ cup white onion (chopped)
• ½ cup kimchi (roughly chooled)
• 2 cloves garlic (finely chopped)
• 2 teaspoons ginger (finely chopped)
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon water
• 80 small dumpling wrappers
• dipping sauce (optional)
• ⅓ cup soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar
• ¼ teaspoon korean red pepper

Instructions

1. Drain the tofu by pressing it between paper towels and placing a weight on top for about 15 minutes to remove excess moisture.
2. In a large bowl, crumble the pressed tofu and mix it with ground pork, ground beef, chopped scallions, diced white onion, roughly chopped kimchi, minced garlic, and minced ginger.
3. Add sesame oil, soy sauce, salt, and pepper to the meat and tofu mixture and combine thoroughly by hand until well incorporated.
4. In a separate small bowl, whisk together the egg and water to create a binding wash.
5. Place about two teaspoons of the filling onto the center of a dumpling wrapper. Moisten half of the wrapper's edge with the egg wash using your finger.
6. Fold the wrapper in half over the filling, then create pleats along the sealed edge to secure the mandu.
7. Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil. Carefully add the mandu in batches of 6-7 at a time.
8. Once the dumplings float to the surface, continue to boil for an additional 1-2 minutes until cooked through.
9. Remove the cooked mandu with a spider strainer or slotted spoon and set aside. Repeat with the remaining dumplings.
10. Prepare the dipping sauce by whisking together soy sauce, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, and Korean red pepper flakes (if using).