SIDE DISHES
CHICKEN SALAD
This is one of my mom's favorite recipes. Cook four chicken breasts then cut into bite-size pieces. Then in a large bowl, combine with:
  • 3 ribs of diced celery
  • 1 diced red onion
  • 4 cups of red and/or green grapes, sliced into halves
Separately create "dressing". 1-2 cups of mayonnaise. 3-4 tsp sugar. 1-2 tsp white vinegar. 1/4 cup of orange juice.
CORN PUDDING
In a large bowl mix the following:
  • 4 cups of corn kernels (thawed frozen or cooked on the cob)
  • 4 TSP sugar
  • 1 TSP salt
  • 2 eggs, slightly beaten
  • 1 cup of milk
  • 4 TBS flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
Pour into a greased baking dish. Place dish in a baking pan of water. Bake in 350 degree oven for 1 hour.
MACARONI AND CHEESE
Cook 16 oz of elbow macaroni. Drain. Put in oven safe baking dish. Layer in cut pieces of cheese. 

Separately in a large pot, on low heat, melt 6 TBS of butter with 6 TBS of flour. Stir constantly until the mixture starts to foam. Add 3 1/2 cups of milk and raise heat to medium. Can use some half and half if it's on hand. Stir constantly until the mixture thickens. Stir in cheese until it melts. Pour the mixture over the macaroni. Bake in 350 degree oven for 30 minutes.
MACARONI SALAD
This is the recipe that drove me batty and lead me to creating my own set of recipe pages. I could never remember the mayonnaise to vinegar ratio, I'd Google a recipe just to find the answer, and be sucked into a vortex in which someone shared their life history, then had to scroll past thousands of nonsense Google ads before reaching the ingredients. The ratio is 4 to 1. Basically, 1 cup of mayonnaise to 1/4 cup of vinegar. Through all that Google, I did eventually discover the best macaroni salad: Chef John's. Although it's Chef John's YouTube video that has the two game changing techniques: pickle the ingredients and shake the pasta dry before adding the sauce.
  • 1 cup of mayonnaise
  • 1/4  cup of vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons of mustard - I'm showing an image of plain mustard below but this is an ingredient to experiment with
  • Half the diced mix of 1 green bell pepper, 1 red bell pepper, and 1 red onion (I use the other half in eggs during the week)
  • 16 oz. of elbow macaroni (I've experimented with close styles to elbow macaroni but they don't work as well)
Patience is the key to this recipe, exemplified by the two key techniques. First, I mix the sauce in the morning. This allows the peppers and onions to pickle a little, allows the sauce to meld a bit, and I think it makes a huge impact on the quality of the final product. Once the mayonnaise, vinegar, mustard, and vegetables (after the first three are whisked together) are combined in a mixing bowl, the bowl goes in the refrigerator for 3-4 hours. You'd be nuts to unnecessarily add sugar to this dish. I don't see any reason to veer with additional or different vegetables. The mustard used makes a big taste difference. Chef John recommends dijon. I've been using a dill flavored mustard. The mustards "accent" will come through in the taste.

Boil and drain the pasta. The second of Chef John's key techniques is to wait about five minutes after draining the pasta before adding the sauce. Shake the sieve periodically until the macaroni starts to stick together. When you begin to see the macaroni bonding to one another, you'll know the sauce will be able to bond to the macaroni. Ideally, put the macaroni salad in the refrigerator for another 3-4 hours then give it a refresh stir before serving.