Entree’s
This is what you WANT to eat.
I am sending you this recipe I found in a novel and made it tonight. I tweeked it a bit (as usual) and it was really delicious. -Moogie
Pre-prep
Find the beef marrow bone! We asked the butcher at Magruder’s and he said, “Sure – for a dog or to cook? I keep them in the freezer.” He brought out a marrow bone to show us and then took it back and cut it into 5 pieces for us.
Ingredients
- 4 lbs chuck roast
- 1 beef marrow bone (see above)
- Coarse sea salt
- Freshly ground pepper
- 1-2 Tbsp. olive oil
- 6 large shallots, whole
- 6 large cloves garlic, whole (I forgot to buy, so used a lot of the diced garlic I keep in the refrigerator instead)
- 1 carrot, chopped
- Zest of ½ navel orange, peeled in two long strips
- 1 16 oz can whole tomatoes
- 1 cup full-bodied dred wine
- 1 cup chicken stock (yes, chicken stock)
- 1 bouquet garni (6 sprigs parsley, 1 bay leaf, 8 sprigs thyme, tied w/string
- I confess I didn’t have the makings for bouquet garni. I had fresh parsley and used that, put in 2 bayleave, and 2 or so teaspoons of dried thyme, so I had to look for the bay leaves when it was done. The parsley melted into the stew!
- 5 carrots, cut into 1 ½-2 inch pieces
- 12 cremini mushrooms (I had Baby Bellas and used those)
- 1-2 red bell peppers, cut into large chunks
Directions
- In a large Dutch oven, brown the meat and marrow bone on all sides, sprinkling generously with sea salt and black pepper, 15 to 20 minutes (or less….). Remove the meat and bone, set aside.
- Add the olive oil, shallots, garlic, chopped carrot, and orange zest. Cook until softened, about 10 minutes (or less).
- Return the meat and bone to the pot and add the tomatoes (crush tomatoes between your fingers) with juice, wine and stock. The sauce should come about three quarters of the way up around the meat. Add the herbs. Bring to a simmer.
- Cover and put in the oven for 1 ½ hours. Turn the meat and cook for another 1 ½ hours. (I used chuck steak so It was thin. I didn’t need to turn It over).
- Add the carrots, mushrooms, and bell pepper. Cook for another 40 minutes, until the vegetables are cooked, but not mushy!, and the meat is fork-tender. Discard the bouquet garni.
- Cook a bag of extra wide egg noodles and time it so they are done when the vegetables are ready.
- I broke the beef up in the pot, took the bay leaves out, and emptied the marrow bone into the pot and removed the bones. I left the orange peel in and warned people not to eat them.
- Pour the egg noodles over the top and stir in. We ate it as a one-dish meal.
- Tastes even better the next day! Chill it in the refrigerator and reheat for dinner. If you need extra liquid, use equal parts chicken broth & red wind.
Tags: Beef
This is a great hit for a crowd! Perfect for those winter game days as it's very delicious, easy to make and inexpensive.
Ingredients
- 4 split chicken breasts, bone-in and skin on
- 3 medium onions, diced
- 4 Bell Peppers, any color but green(I like 2 reds, 1 yellow and 1 orange. But get what looks best) seeded and de-veined.
- 4 cloves of garlic minced
- 2-28oz cans of whole peeled tomatoes(I prefer the Italian San Marzano) - Crush the tomatoes in a blender or food processor into small chunks. Buy whole and crush yourself to ensure you get the best stuff.
- 1 can of Cantelloni beans
- 1 can of Artichoke hearts
- Fresh Basil
- ~2 Tbs Chili Powder
- ~1/2 Tbs Cumin
- Chili Flakes(great flavor and somewhat spicy, but not a barn-burner), as many as you want
- Cayenne Pepper(hot hot hot), as much as you can handle
- 1 Bay Leaf
- Olive Oil
- Small container of Chicken Stock ~8oz
Preparation
- Preheat oven 350o
- Sweat the diced onions over low heat and olive oil with a bay leaf till translucent ~10 minutes. Add the garlic and after a minute or two add the bell peppers and stir for a couple minutes.
- Add the Chili Powder and Cumin. I used estimated amounts, as I never measure the stuff. I would use a 4 parts chili powder to 1 part cumin ratio. If you wish your chili to be spicy add the Chili Flakes and Cayenne Powder. The Chili Flakes have a lower gradual heat buildup while the Cayenne packs a serious punch. Stir to incorporate and cook the spices almost like you would a roux for a minute or two. You could also add Tabasco, but I don't think it's needed. You can always add it later when correcting the taste.
- Deglaze with the chicken stock, return to a boil and add the tomatoes. Reduce the heat to a simmer and stir occasionally!
- Add the beans and the artichoke hearts. Make sure you drain the liquid from the cans, but pour about 1-2Tbs of the bean liquid into the chili.
- Cook the chili for about 20-30 minutes for the flavors to meld!
- While you were doing all the above you should have washed, dried, oiled and seasoned the chicken. Placed them on a baking sheet. When the oven is at temperature, cook the chicken for about 20-25 minutes. Just make sure you don't overdo the chicken!
- When the chicken has cooled after cooking, cut the chicken against the grain into small cubes. You can shred it as well, just don't make the pieces too small!
- Add the chicken to the chili and simmer for another 30 minutes. If you are feeling the need for deliciousness, add some of the chicken fat drippings from the sheet pan to the chili. Just don't tell anyone!
- Correct the seasoning with salt and cracked pepper.
- Serve immediately, or cool till needed. It's delicious re-heated. Serve with cheddar cheese, sour cream, chives or whatever suits your fancy!
You can also make the chili the day before and reheat to serve. In all honesty, it's better this way as you've given the chili more time to meld all it's flavors.
Tags: Bell Peppers, Chicken, Chili Powder
This recipe is inspired by one of my favorite Italian restaurants, Pastina's. Delicious chicken in a rich sauce served with either pasta or rice. It's savory, sweet and very comforting!
The idea here is to have just cooked chicken breasts in a savory sauce served over your choice of pasta or rice. Overcooking the chicken will make the chicken rubbery, so don't overdo it! This dish comes together at the last moment before serving, and is best served family style in a big deep platter.
Ingredients
-
4 chicken breasts
-
1 bunch Asparagus
-
1 32oz box Chicken Stock
-
About 1 to 2 cups Cream Sherry(the more you add the sweeter it'll be!)
-
1 large onion diced small/fine
-
1 package of baby bella mushrooms, sliced thin(about 1/4 inch)
-
5 cloves garlic, smashed and diced
-
Some Pancetta(it's an Italian bacon) diced small. About 1-2 Tbs when diced.
-
~1 Tbs Capers
-
2 Tbs AP Flour
-
Butter and Olive Oil
-
Some fresh curly parsley
-
1 Bay Leaf
-
Rice or Pasta (my preference is pappardelle pasta)
Preparation
- There is 4 components to this dish that will be put together right before serving. They need to be added at the very last minute so you don't overcook the chicken and the asparagus.
- Chicken Breasts
- Sauce
- Asparagus
- Pasta
- Wash and dry the Chicken. Using plastic wrap, pound the chicken breasts with a mallet so they become uniformly thick of about 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch. Salt both sides and set aside. Heat a large skillet with a little Olive Oil enough to coat the bottom of the pan over medium high heat. Sear each side of the chicken to a nice crispy brown and just about cooked. Remove the chicken and wrap in tin foil on a plate. Carryover heat will finish cooking the chicken.
- Reduce the heat to a medium low and add the pancetta and cover. Let the pancetta render out for about 3-5 minutes making sure it does not burn. You might need to add a little more olive oil to help it out.
- Add the sliced mushrooms and the bay leaf and turn the heat up to medium high. Stir occasionally and when the mushrooms start browning add the garlic and stir for another 1-2 minutes.
- Add the finely diced large onion and reduce the heat to a low medium. Add the cream sherry to deglaze. Does it smell good yet? It should!
- Sweat the sauce on low heat till the onions are translucent and you've reduced the sherry by around half, around 5-10 minutes. At this point add the flour and stir to incorporate. Continue to cook for another 3-4 minutes on low heat.
- Add most of the box of the chicken stock and the capers. Crank the heat to high to boil. Once boiling reduce heat to simmer. (if you don't boil it for a couple of seconds the flour will not thicken the sauce)
- While you let the sauce simmer, Steam the asparagus till tender and then blanche in cold water. Drain and set aside for platting.
- While you were doing all that above, you were also bringing salted water to a boil for the pasta too.
- When your pasta is about halfway done, add some butter to the sauce. The butter will finish the sauce and give it that lip smacking texture and finish that it was missing before. How much to add? That's up to you....But I would do at least 2 Tbs.
- Once the butter is incorporated, add the asparagus and chicken to the simmering sauce to heat both through.
- Drain the pasta and toss with a dash of olive oil. Place in the bottom of a serving platter. With a tong, place the chicken on the pasta neatly and then pour the sauce all over it! Garnish with plenty of the fresh parsley and serve immediately!
Note: You can use another cooking wine if you prefer it over the cream sherry.
Tags: Asparagus, Chicken, Mushrooms, Pancetta, sherry
Deer mista delishush
Here is a modified but yummy for your tummy mmmmeatloaf - Ivy
Ingredients you will need to make this tasty comfort food:
- 1 pound of 80 something % lean ground beef ( or you can substitute the burger with ground turkey or chicken, the 90 something % lean is to dry for this )
- 1 1/2 tsp of Italian seasoning ( the all in one taste enhancer)
- 1- 2 tsp of brown sugar
- 1/8 - 1/4 cup of ketchup
- 1 cup of oatmeal or add until all the ingredients are cohesive.
- 3 oz of plain yogurt (365 brand from you local whole foods works best )
The original recipe actually calls for one egg but I didn't have any eggs one time I was making it and used yogurt for my binding agent.
The above is basically a host for additive ingredients and you can add what ever your taste buds desire. I.e. below.
- Half a red pepper cut into 5/16" squares.
- Celery if desired again cut into 5/16" squares.
Method:
- Mix all the ingredients in a medium size mixing bowl. Roll into a ball and place into a round 7" pyrex bowl about 5 - 6" deep. Press into baking bowl creating a mound shape loaf. Then squirt some ketchup on top and smooth out to cover the entire top and sprinkle oatmeal and press into the ketchup so that it also covers the entire top.
- Bake in a 350 degree oven uncovered for about 30-40 minutes. Remove from oven. Then remove from baking dish and place on serving plate.
- Let set for about 10 minutes and slice into 1/2" thick slices and serve.
- I know you're saying. Eee yogurt and ketchup. But trust me it's really good. Makes it nice and moist. Not dried out like an ala moogie meatloaf.
- My neighbor who is a fabulous gourmet cook and wouldn't even think of making meatloaf let alone eat it made it. And now it is one if her most requested recipes from her grandchildren.
Enjoy. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm
Tags: Ground Beef, Ground Chicken, Ground Turkey
Here's an easy way to make homemade Ravioli's without having to make the fresh pasta. Instead of using fresh pasta dough, this recipe calls for Wontons, making it the perfect size and shape to make wonderful Raviolis.
Ingredients
- 2 packages of Wonton skins(sold at your megamart)
- Mixture to put into the Ravioli, has to be cold! -( Duxelle is really good )
- Small bowl with water
- Small circle cookie cutter - 2.5 inches in diameter
Method
At first you will only want to do one at a time, till you get the hang of it. Your goal is to take two wonton wrappers and place a small filling in the middle. You will "glue" the two Wonton skins together by a little water. As you shape the ravioli's between your fingers squeeze out as much air as possible and make sure you keep the filling in the middle of the Ravioli.
- Start by making sure your filling is cold and you have a baking sheet sprinkled with flour ready for finished Ravioli's.
- On a clean, flat and DRY work surface place a 4 wonton wrappers in a horizontal line with 4 more directly above this line(so 8 in total). As you get better and quicker at this, you'll be able to do more at a time.
- Place 2 compressed teaspoons worth of filling in the middle of each wonton of the bottom row.
- With the first wonton, either with your finger tip or a small brush, wet the edges of the wonton wrapper around the filling.
- Take the first wonton of the top row, and place over the wonton with the filling on the bottom row.
- At this point you need to seal the top to the bottom. Everyone will have their own way of doing this that works for them. I recommend you try out different ways to see what works for you. And don't get discouraged when the first one is a disaster. It took me a couple try's before I got my method down. This is how I do it:
- Start by sealing the bottom right corner.
- Work each corner separately moving in a circle. I find it easier to do this while holding the ravioli in my palm.
- After the corners are placed, slowly squeeze out the air from the ravioli while keeping it's shape.
- Place the Ravioli on a flat surface and with a circle cookie cutter make your ravioli!
- Place finished ravioli on the baking sheet. Once the baking sheet is full, place in the freezer. When frozen, either use or place in a bag for future use!
As you can see, this is a labor of love. But it is well worth your time!
Tags: Wonton Skins
This recipe is always a big hit for a large crowd. Easy to make and serve. If you have having people over, this will please everyone!
Ingredients
Chicken:
- 6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 4 1/2 T fresh lime juice
- 3 T vegetable oil
- 1/4 t cayenne pepper
- 6 medium cloves garlic, crushed
Black Bean Sauce:
- 1 cup canned black beans, drained
- 1/2 cup unsweetened orange juice
- 2 T balsamic vinegar
- 1/4 t salt
- 1/8 t black pepper
- 2 medium cloves garlic, crushed
(Note: I usually double the black bean sauce because it's so popular)
Topping:
- 3 cups water
- 1/2 cup red bell pepper, chopped
- 1 purple onion, coarsely chopped
- chopped fresh cilantro for garnish
Method
For Chicken:
Wash and dry chicken and place in ziplock bag. Combine next 4 ingredients in small bowl and blend thoroughly. Pour over chicken and marinate 8 hours or overnight. Grill chicken over moderate heat until no longer pink inside, basting with marinade.
For Black Bean Sauce:
Combine all ingredients in food processor and process until smooth. Place in small saucepan and cook over moderate heat to thoroughly combine flavors (at least 30 minutes). (Can be made 1 day ahead, refrigerate, and reheat prior to serving.)
For Topping:
Bring water to boil in medium saucepan. Add red pepper and onions and blanche 30 seconds. Drain and immediately plunge into ice water to stop cooking process. Set aside. (Can be made 1 day ahead and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature or gently reheat before serving.)
Serves 6
Tags: Black Beans, Chicken, Limes
Don kept giving me the thumbs up sign while he was eating this stew!!
Serves 4-6
PRE-PREP
- Frying pan large & deep enough to hold all ingredients
- Prepare a green salad and set aside
- Put rice on to cook before you start the stew
INGREDIENTS
- 2 – 4 Tbsp olive oil
- 2 limes, juiced (Have more just in case)
- ½ tsp salt (or more)
- ½ tsp pepper
- 1 lb. cod fish, skinned & cut in 1” chunks
- 1 lb. bay scallops
- 1 lb. shrimp, peeled & cleaned
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 1 cup red bell pepper
- 6 cloves garlic (1 Tbsp)
- 1 14oz can diced tomatoes, undrained
- 1 can light coconut milk (Trader Joe’s)
- 1 bunch chopped cilantro
- Optional: 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped
- Hot Sauce
DIRECTIONS
- In a medium bowl, stir together 1 Tbsp of olive oil, lime juice, salt, and pepper. Add fish cubes & scallops, tossing to coat and set aside.
- Heat remaining oil over medium-high heat in a and add the onion, bell pepper, garlic & jalapeno (if using). Saute 4 minutes until onion is tender but not brown.
- Add the undrained tomatoes and coconut milk to the onion mixture and bring to boiling, reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Before you stir in the fish mixture, taste to see if the sauce needs more salt or lime.
- Stir in fish/scallop mixture, shrimp, and cilantro. Return to boiling, reduce heat.
- Simmer uncovered for 5 minutes or until fish just flakes easily with a fork and shrimp turns opaque, stirring occasionally. DO NOT OVER COOK OR THE FISH WILL BE TOUGH.
- Serve the stew ladled over hot cooked rice in a shallow bowl.
- Can sprinkle more chopped cilantro for garnish.
- Pass hot sauce to dash on top, if desired.
Serve the green salad on a separate plate.
Tags: Bay Scallops, Cod Fish, Shrimp
This recipe comes highly recommended from my uncle Jim. Asado Negro is a Venezuelan pot roast and what makes it so special is the bittersweet sauce. Very tantalizing. Sure to be a hit for the whole crowd!
Ingredients
- 1 cup white sugar
- 2 teaspoons brown sugar
- 2 cups white wine vinegar
- 1 cup dry red wine
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 4 lbs beef bottom/round roast
- 5 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
- 1 large Spanish onion, peeled and thinly sliced
- 2 stalks celery, chopped
- 2 leeks, white and light-green parts only. Washed well and thinly sliced.
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 green & 1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and thinly sliced.
- salt and pepper to taste
Preparation
- Preheat the oven to 375o.
- Combine white sugar and 1 cup water in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Boil sugar syrup without stirring till you reached the caramel stage(see making candy).
- At the caramel stage, add the brown sugar, vinegar and wine carefully. Cook until combined and set aside.
- Heat the oil and butter in a Dutch-Oven large enough to hold the meat on medium-high. When the fat is shimmering, sear the roast on all sides and set aside on a plate.
- Add the aromatics. Garlic, onions, celery, leeks and the bay leaves. Saute until softened and starting to take on a brown color. Deglaze with the worcestershire and soy sauce. Once incorporated, add the roast back to the pan and season with salt and pepper.
- Cover the roast with the bell pepper slices and caramel sauce. Lid, and place in the oven to cook for around 2 1/2 hours, or until fork tender. Baste and rotate the meat every 45 minutes.
- Remove the meat and place on a platter covered with tin foil. Rest for at LEAST 30 minutes.
- If the sauce is not think enough, remove the vegetables and place around the roast(discard the bay leaves). Then boil the sauce over med-high heat till thickened.
- When the sauce is ready, slice the roast against the grain. Return the meat and the vegetables to the sauce and re-heat to desired temperature.
- Check for seasoning and garnish with cilantro right before serving!
Tags: Beef, Sugar
Lasagna for the new millenium. Fast and easy because the recipe calls for pre-made marinara sauce, no boil lasagna noodes, pre-shredded cheese, etc.
Pre-prep
Preheat oven to 350
Decide which non-reactive 9 X 13 (or there abouts) baking dish you are going to use
***What is a non-reactive baking dish ***
Ingredients
- 2 10 oz. boxes, chopped spinach
- 1 lb. mushrooms, cremini, sliced
- 1 onion, yellow, chopped
- 2 Tbsp garlic, chopped (more or less)
- 1/2 cup sherry
- 2 cups ricotta cheese
- 2 cups grated Italian 5 cheese blend (or more)
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 2 tsp oregano, dry (would be better with fresh...)
- 2 tsp basil, dry (would be better with fresh...)
- salt & pepper to taste
- 1- 25 oz jar good quality marinara sauce (or more if necessary)
- 9 to 12 lasagna noodles: No boil variety (or more)
- 1 cup water
Panic Mode: More noodles, another part of a jar of marinara sauce, and some more cheese.... See directions below
Directions:
You need to know that I have a problem actually following recipe directions, so this is sort of what I did.
Thaw out the spinach, drain, and squeeze the liquid out. The only way I see doing this is by clumping the spinach in your hands and squeezing until there is no more juice.
Historical Note: Grandma Tuso said the spinach had to be chopped fine, so this would be the point where you chop the already chopped spinach to her specifications!
- Saute the onion, mushrooms & garlic in olive oil, add some sherry, and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the ricotta cheese, 1/2 the grated cheese, egg, spinach, oregano, basil, mushroom mixture, salt & pepper.
- Spray the baking dish with Pam
- Spoon 1 cup sauce in the baking dish
- Put a layer of noodles down
- Put a layer of the cheese mixture
Repeat the layers
Panic Mode: This is the point where I paniced because it looked too thin in the baking dish. I made another layer of just sauce and cheese. So maybe buy more cheese, sauce & noodles and add it to the cheese mixture so it is thicker in the baking dish.
Whatever you decide to do, the final layer is noodles with sauce and 1 cup cheese sprinkled on top.
The original recipe said to pour 1 cup of water around the edges, cover tightly with aluminum foil, and bake for 1 1/4 hours. I left out the water, but maybe it would have been better with it,
Whatever you do, let it stand at least 15 minutes or more to set up before you serve it.
I served it with a big green salad w/balsamic dressing and grilled vegetables.
Tags: Cheese, Garlic, Lasagna Noodles, Marinara Sauce, Mushrooms, Onions, Ricotta, sherry, Spinach
INGREDIENTS:
- 2 whole chickens, washed, patted dry
- 5 carrots, peeled, cut into 4ths
- 5 celery ribs, cut into 4ths
- 3 yellow onions, peeled, quartered
- 2 Tbsp Kosher Salt
- 2 tsp cracked white pepper (or fresh ground black pepper)
- 2 lemons, halved
- 12 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 Tbsp olive oil
- 4 Tbsp butter, room temperature
- 4 sprigs fresh Rosemary, chopped
- 2 sprigs fresh Rosemary, whole
- 4 bay leaves, whole
DIRECTIONS:
- Position oven racks so that when the roasting pan is in the oven the chicken will roast in the middle of the oven, then turn heat to 400.
- Mix the butter, olive oil, garlic & chopped Rosemary together and set aside.
- In large, greased roasting pan: arrange the prepared carrots, celery & onions in the bottom and set aside.
- Mix the salt & pepper together and season the chickens with it, inside & out.
- Cut the lemons in half and squeeze over the chickens, inside & out.
- Rub the chickens with the butter, oil, garlic, rosemary mixture, inside & out, .
- Place the bay leaves, rosemary sprigs, and lemon haves in the chicken cavity.
- Place chickens in roasting pan, breast side up, on top of the cut-up vegetables.
- Roast the chickens, uncovered, in the 400 degree oven for approx 1 hour 15 minutes (juices run clear - 160 degree on thermometer in thickest part of leg).
- Remove chickens from oven and let them rest 10-15 minutes before carving.
Tags: Carrots, Celery, Chicken, Garlic, Lemon, Onions, Rosemary
INGREDIENTS:
- 2 Tbsp vegetable Oil
- 2 onions, chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 4 tsp garlic, minced (or more)
- 2 tsp fresh ginger root, grated
- 6 whole cloves
- 4 inches cinnamon stick, crushed
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp Garam Masala
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- salt to taste
- cayenne pepper
- ----dash for people sensitive to spicy
- ----more - original recipe call for 1 tsp!
- 2-15 oz cans chickpeas/garbanzo beans, drained
- 1-15 oz can diced tomatoes
- 2 sweet potatos/yams/yukons, cubed to approx size of chickpea
- Vegetable Broth as needed
- couscous or rice
- Nan bread
DIRECTIONS:
- In large pot/frying pan - fry onions & bell peppers over med heat until tender.
- Stir in garlic, ginger, cloves, cinnamon, cumin, coriander, Garam Masala, cayenne, turmeric, and salt. Cook for 1 minute over med heat, stirring constantly.
- Add chickpeas, canned tomatoes, potato cubes, and enough vegetable broth just to cover. Cover & simmer on very low heat until potatoes are done.
- Serve over cous cous, rice, whatever.
- Delicious w/Nan bread
- Tasted better the next couple of days after the flavors had blended!
Tags: Bell Peppers, Chickpeas, Garam Masala, Garbanzos, Garlic, Ginger, Onions, Sweet Potatoes, Tomatoes, Turmeric, Vegetable Broth
I originally got this recipe from Moogie to help feed a bunch of hungry fraternity guys. Over time I have tweaked the recipe to make it more and more my own and also make it more and more delicious. I've also had many people taste it and just love it. The dish may not be perfectly presentable, but I can't think of anything else that is such a comfort food. I recommend that you take this recipe and use it as a guide to making it your own.
All the ingredients here are not exact. It all depends on how big you want to make your enchiladas and how you want to stuff them. The basic idea is to stuff tortillas with goodness and then bake them. Simple. Depending on your desired spice level, you can add more cayenne or take it out all together. Chili powder is not spicy so you don't want to skimp on that!
Ingredients
- 1 package of 10 tortillas
- 1 roasted chicken(from grocery store) shredded. If I have the time I like to get fresh chicken thighs and grill it myself. It adds a ton of flavor when their grilled.
- 1 large onion, Julienned
- 1 Bell Pepper(pick a color), Julienned
- 4-6 cloves of garlic, minced
- Lots of shredded cheese. I prefer sharp cheddar and monterey jack.
- 1 8oz Heavy or ligh whipping cream
- Homemade Enchilada sauce. (It's ok if you get a can)
- 1 can black beans, drained
- 1 Pyrex Dish, 9x12
Small Extras
- A little Olive Oil
- Salt
- 1/4 tsp Cracked Black Pepper
- 1/2 tsp Cumin
- 1/4 tsp Cayenne Pepper
- 1 Tbs Chili Powder
First Steps
- Start by shredding the chicken using a fork. Set aside in a bowl, covered with tin foil.
- Sautee the Onion, Garlic and Bell Pepper in a cast iron skillet on high heat. Let the skillet heat up so you hear it sizzle. While you are constantly stiring so the veggies don't burn, add the chili powder, cayenne and black pepper. Don't add salt at this point as it will draw the water out of the veggies and we don't want that. Then add some olive oil and stir. Once veggies are crisply sauteed, set aside from the heat.
- Grate the cheese and set aside in a bowl, covered.
- Prepare you assembly line. I like to have a plate where I roll the enchiladas in, placing them in the pyrex dish afterwards. So have a plate and pyrex dish next to each other. All the ingredients need to be in a semi circle around it for easy acces.
- Time to make enchiladas! Follow assembly line below. But first preheat oven to 350F.
ASSEMBLY LINE
- Pour a dash of cream and enchilada sauce on plate, enough to coat one side of the enchilada
- Add 1 tortilla to the plate and swirl around so the outside is covered with the liquids
- Layer a small line of beans horizontally
- Add a layer of shredded chicken
- Add a layer of the sauteed veggies
- Add a layer grated cheese
- Spoon some enchilada sauce over all layers and sprinkle some salt over it all
- Roll up the enchilada and place in pyrex dish
- Repeat till pyrex dish is full
- Pour more cream and enchilada sauce over the top of all of them in the pan so the liquid comes up 1/3 of the depth of the pyrex dish
- Sprinkle some cheese on top for good looks
- You are done with the assembly
Cook and Enjoy!
- After you have assembled your enchiladas in your dish you want to put them in the oven for 25-30 minutes. Remember everything is already cooked, so you are just warming everything through and letting them "get to know" each other.
- Remove from oven and let sit for 15 minutes before serving.
- Garnish with a dallop of Sour Cream, a dallop of Guacamole and a dash of tabasco. Enjoy!!!
Tags: Bell Peppers, Black Beans, Black Pepper, Cayenne Pepper, Cheddar Cheese, Chicken, Chili Powder, Cream, Cumin, Enchilada Sauce, Garlic, Olive Oil, Onions, Tortillas
You need to start this dish the night before you are going to eat it. It is delicious served over rice.
Ingredients:
- 16 chicken pieces - breasts or thighs - skins removed
- 1 head garlic - peeled and pureed or minced
- 1 cup white wine
- 1 cup pitted prunes
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/2 cup red wine vinegar
- 1/2 cup capers
- 1 tsp of the caper juice
- 1/2 cup Spanish green olives
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup dried oregano
- 6 bay leaves
- salt & pepper to taste
Directions:
- Place chicken pieces in a large zip-lock bag OR in a large bowl.
- Mix the rest of the ingredients together
- If using the bag, pour the mixture over chicken, seal the bag, squeezing out as much air as you can, place the bag in a large bowl and refrigerate overnight.
- If using the bowl, pour the mixture over chicken in the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
When you are ready to cook the next day:
- Oil a baking dish large enough for all the chicken pieces.
- Place the chicken pieces in the baking dish and pour the marinade over them.
- Bake uncovered at 350 for 50-60 minutes or until chicken juices run clear
Tags: Brown Sugar, Capers, Chicken, Green Olives, Olives, Prunes, White Wine
These wings are not for people that love their buffalo wings deep fried and ultra crispy. These wings are for people that love wings where the meat literally falls off the bone.
Ingredients:
-As many young chicken wings as you think you can eat.
-Your favorite buffalo sauce. I like Franks Red Hot Buffalo Wing, No Fat, No Calories.
-Fat Free Bleu Cheese Dressing
-Fresh Celery
-Fresh Carrot Sticks
This is how its done:
Pre-heat the oven to 500 degrees Fahrenheit, that’s right, HOT. If you have a convection oven don’t use it here if you don’t have too, it is better on a traditional bake setting.
Spray a baking sheet with non fat cooking spray and arrange the wings on the sheet (or multiple baking sheets if you think you are a big Man/Woman). Each wing/drumstick has a skin side, I like to put the skin side up while baking, it might just be my OCD but I think they cook better like this.
Cook the wings for 20 minutes in the center rack. After 20 minutes the wings will be fully cooked, but we are not done with them yet.
Take them out of the oven, and set your broiler as high as it goes. Let it heat up while you take the time to turn every wing over.
Once the broiler is up to temp re-insert the wings on the top rack and let them get slightly browned.
Take them out, turn them over again, and re-insert so that they get browned on the other side. They are going to be popping, smoking, and dancing all over the pan but this is normal. Just let them do their thing until they look gorgeous.
When they are finished throw them into the biggest bowl you can find and dump you choice of buffalo sauce on top of them. Be very careful because a little sauce goes a very long way.
This is the fun part. Toss the wings by either flipping them around with tongs or by actually tossing them in the air.
Serve with some celery, carrots and bleu cheese and you will be in Buffalo Wing heaven.
Tags: Bleu Cheese, Carrots, Celery, Chicken Wings
This is such a comfort food dinner for my family. I serve it with fresh pasta, and the casti iron skillet looks great coming from the oven straight to the table. If you don't have a cast iron skillet you can use another oven-safe skillet.
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs chicken breasts
- 1/2 cups flour
- 1 egg
- Bread crumbs
- Fresh basil
- Fresh Mozzarella
- Ground Parmigian
- 28oz Can Crushed Tomato
- spoonful of tomato paste
- 1 small onion diced
- 3-4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 bay leaf
- Dried Basil and Oregano
- Salt and Pepper
- Olive Oil
Directions
Sauce first
- Sautee garlic and onion in small saucepan until translucent with some olive oil.
- Add crushed tomatoes and spoonful of tomato paste.
- Add some basil, oregano, salt and pepper.
- Stir and let simmer with a lid.
Prepping the Chicken
- Preheat oven to 350F
- Take the Chicken and flatten it a little with a mallet. You don't want to make it super thin.
- Prepare the assembly train for the chicken. Flour, egg then bread crumbs. Add some of the ground parmigiana to the bread crumbs.
- Brown the breaded chicken on each side in the cast iron skillet with a little olive oil. About 2 minutes per side. Once browned set the chicken aside.
- Once the skillet has cooled, clean it a little with a paper towel and add the sauce into the skillet.
- Place the chicken cutlets into the sauce. Make sure they are submerged.
- Place basil leaves on top, then place some sliced fresh mozzarella on top of the basil. Then add some parmigiana above that.
- Place in oven for 30 minutes.
- Take out and serve over pasta!
Tags: Basil, Cheese, Chicken Breasts, Mozzarella, Parmesan, Tomatoes
This is a great dinner for camping. It's easy and tastes great! I like to cook this in a cast iron 7 qt dutch oven directly over your campfire, but you can also cook it on a stove.
Ingredients
- 2.5 lbs Sirloin(sirloin tips work best) cut into small bite-size cubes
- 2 large onions, roughly chopped
- 2 Bell peppers(red, yellow or orange)
- 1 small package of baby carrots
- 1 8oz container of mushrooms, chopped finely
- 4 stalks celery, chopped into 1/2 long pieces
- 2 garlic bulbs(yes it's a lot...but you'll see)
- 1 qt Beef Stock
- 1 small can tomato paste
- 1 8oz can vegetable broth
- 1 stick butter
- 1-2 cups flour
Spices
- 2 Bay leaves
- 1 Tbs of Cumin powder
- 1 Tbs of Chili Powder
- 1 Tbs of Rosemary
- 1 Tbs of Thyme
- 1 Tbs of Paprika
- 1 Tbs Garlic powder
Note: I add spices to dishes as I see fit. I probably added more garlic powder than 1Tbs and added a little more than 1 Tbs of the Chili Powder. So adjust as you see fit. If you like Cumin, add more and if not, add less.
Directions
- Once you have a nice campfire going you will want to prepare the garlic bulbs for roasting in the fire. Also after washing the bell peppers you want to roast them on the campfire as well till slightly roasted. You don't need to get them completely black, but you can if you want. I like it with just a couple spots of charred skin.
- While someone in your camp group watches the peppers you want to prep all the other vegetable ingredients and set aside on a plate or bowl. That would be the Onions, Carrots, Mushrooms and Celery.
- At this point the peppers should be done. If you really charred the skin you want to wait till they are cool enough and remove the skin. If you didn't char the skin too much, you can just cut them into small strips and add them to your pile of veggies.
- Take your cast iron dutch oven and rub the inside with a little butter and place over the fire. If you fire pit does not have a grate you can place it on a rock in the fire and place coals around the dutch oven. You want to have easy access to your pot so don't place the pot in a part of the fire that will make it hard to get to.
- Once your pot has gotten hot add the beef cubes to it and brown the beef for a couple of minutes. De-glaze the pot with the beef stock and make sure that you get all the crunchy tid-bits on the bottom of the pot disolved.
- Add the rest of the veggies.
- Add the vegetable broth, tomato paste and about two full glasses of wine.
- Add ALL the spices and the roasted garlic cloves.
- Stir and let simmer for about 2-3 hours. Make sure you keep an eye on it because if the fire gets to hot the stew will boil too much.
- Once the stew is close to being done, around hour 2 you will want to make the Roux with the stick of butter(yes yes) and flour. I would use a small saute pan and use a stove instead of the campfire because you can better control the heat.
- When you are just about ready to serve the stew add the roux and stir well. Let the stew simmer for another 10-15 minutes.
- Take the pot of stew off the fire and let sit for 10 -15 minutes and serve. Be careful, it's HOT!
NOTE: When using beef in stew you either want to barely cook the beef or over cook it. Barely cooking the beef keeps it tender. But after it's been cooking for a while the meat will become very chewy , but as you continue to cook the meat the collagen in the meat(it keeps the musle strands together) will break down and make the meat very tender.
Tags: Beef, Beef Stock, Bell Peppers, Carrots, Celery, Mushrooms, Onions, Tomato Paste
I make this all the time at home and I have it down to a 20 minute meal! I keep turkey burger patties in my freezer and they thaw in 2 minutes in the microwave.
Ingredients
2 Lrg Russet Potato
2 4 oz Burger Patties (thawed & broken up)
1 Sm. Onion Diced
1 Ea Carrot Diced
2 Rib Celery Diced
1 Cup Baby Peas
1/4 Lb Mushrooms sliced
1/2 ts Thyme
1 Tbs Worcestershire or A-1 Sauce (or both)
1 Cup Stock
1 ts Corn Starch (In a slurry)
1 Tbs Oil
Method:
Place the potatoes in the Microwave over and cook till tender about 10 minutes. Keep turning the potatoes so they cook evenly.
In a hot saute pan add oil, onion, celery, and carrots, sweat the vegetables and add the burger. Saute this mixture till the meat is cooked and add the mushrooms, cook this mixture for a couple minutes and add the thyme. Pour the stock and Worcestershire into the pan and bring it to a rapid boil. When the vegetables are tender , add the peas, turn down the heat and add the corn starch slurry. Stir the mixture together and cook until the sauce is hot and thick. Check the flavor and add Salt & Pepper to taste.
Cut the baked potatoes into cubes on two plates and divide the sauce over both potatoes.
Try adding more vegetables, Tomato or Wine!
Makes 2 portions
Tags: Carrots, Ground Beef, Mushrooms, Onions, Potatoes
Ingredients
3 Lb Lean Pork Shoulder or Butt (Cut into large pieces.)
1 Can Orange Juice Concentrate
3 Tbs Ground Cumin
3 Tbs Oregano
1 Doz Cloves Garlic Chopped
4 Ea Bay Leaf
2 Tbs Chef Spice = Equal Parts of Granulated Garlic, Granulated Onion, Pepper & Salt
3 Cups Water to use as needed to keep the roasting pan from drying out!
Method:
Set aside Pork and Chef Spice.
Place the Concentrate & Herbs in a large bowl or zip-lock bag and mix well. Add to this marinade the pork pieces and toss together well. Let the marinated pork sit for several hours or over night.
Remove the pork pieces from the marinade to a roasting pan and set the remaining liquid aside for later. Place the pork uncovered into a 375 oven with 1 cup of water and cook it for one hour. When the meat is brown, turn it over, pour the marinade over it and sprinkle the meat with half the Chef Spice. Put the meat back into the oven and cook it for another half hour. Turn the meat again, making sure to baste it with the pan drippings( add water if needed) and add the remaining Chef Spice. Cover the meat tightly, with foil and place it back in the oven for one hour. Don't let the pan cook dry; check it from time to time and add water if needed the bottom of the pan the keep it from burning.
Remove the meat from the oven and check it for tenderness, it should be fork tender. If the meat is not tender return to the oven for more cooking. When it is tender, place the meat in a warm place to rest about 10 to 15 minutes. Remove the meat to a bowl and shred it by using a masher, a fork or your hands and keep it warm. Place the roasting pan over the burner, discard the bayleaf and make a quick pan sauce by reducing the juices. Make sure to scraping the pan and add water if pan it is too dry dried out. Pour the reduced pan drippings over the meat and toss the mixture together.
Serve the Carnitas with fresh salsa and hot tortilas or as a taco filling!
Makes 2 Lbs cooked meat or 8 portions.
Tags: Pork Shoulder
Osso Bucco is basicly a pot roast made with a cut from the leg bone. It can be made with Veal, Beef or Lamb and it should cook for hours. This is the richest most flavorfull meat dish there is.
Ingredients
4 Large Veal Leg Cuts ( substiuite Lamb or Beef but it must have the bone with marrow exposed)
1 Med Onion Large Dice
3 Carrots Large Dice
3 Celery Ribs Large Dice
2 Cup Port Wine
1 Cup Demi Glase substituite Ox Tail Soup Mix
2 Bay Leaves
8 Red Potato or Yukan Gold cut into wedges
1/4 Bunch of Fresh Thyme or 1/2 Tsp Dry
1/2 Cup Tomato Paste
Salt & Pepper
Olive oil
Large Braising pan with a lid!
Method:
Sprinkle salt & pepper on the meat and set it aside. Place a large, heavy braising pan on high heat and when pan is hot add about 2 Tbs Olive Oil. Place the meat in the pan and brown it on both sides then remove the meat to a plate and set aside. Add the vegetables to the hot pan and more oil if needed. Reduce the heat and cook the vegetables till they begin to sweat. Remove the vegetables to the meat plate and add wine to the pan. Add wine to the pan and reduce it by half, add Demi Glace and Tomato Paste, bring to a quick low boil and pour the sauce into a container and set aside.
Place the meat in the pan, add Bay Leaf & Thyme to the bottom of the pan. Place the potato's in the pan and cover with the vegetables. Pour the sauce over the whole thing and cover with a lid. Place the pan in a 350 oven and bake for 2 hours. Check the meat with a fork, it should be very tender, if not cook it longer.
Serve one leg cut along with vegetables and potatoes. I suggest a side dish of baby peas.
You can add mushrooms if you like and baby vegetables for a more upscale dish.
Garnish your plate with the left over Thyme!
Makes 4 portions!
This can be cooked up to a week before and reheated in the same pot in only half an hour!
Tags: Carrots, Celery, Onions, Port Wine, Potatoes, Veal
This recipe may seem long and complicated, but it isn't. It just takes some time to brine and to cook! In the end the time spent makes the turkey well worth the wait!
Ingredients
- 1 fresh or defrosted turkey - 12 lbs works well in standard weber grill
- 1/2 cup melted unsalted butter
- 2 quarts Turkey or Chicken Stock
- 2 quarts Turkey or Chicken Broth
- 2 large yellow onions, quartered
- 4 large carrots, roughly chopped
- 4 celery stalks, roughly chopped
- palmful of black peppercorns, whole
- 2 bay leaves
- 4 cherry wood chunks or 4 small handfulls, soaked in water for at least 30 minutes
- 2 quarts apple juice
- 1 cup kosher salt
- 2 Tbs dried Rosemary
- 2 Tbs dried Thyme
- 1 Tbs dried Sage
- 1 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
- 3 quarts cold FILTERED water
Hardware
- Standard Weber charcoal grill(22inches wide)
- Aluminum baking pan from grocery store(the kind that's $3 bucks and you can crush and throw away). This will be filled with water and used in the grill to help regulate the temperature. It will be directly next to the charcoal.
- Roasting pan with rack that fits inside your grill and can hold the turkey.
- Fat separator for liquids
- New trash bag that can hold your turkey
Instructions
Day before the BRINE
- Combine brine ingredients except water and mix until salt is disolved in a mixing bowl.
- Take turkey out of package and remove neck and giblets. Set those aside in the fridge for tomorrow.
- Wash turkey in cold water and place inside a NEW trash bag.
- Pour brine over turkey in trash bag and add the cold water. Tighten trash bag so turkey is submerged in the brine and you've taken out most of the air. NOTE: It is important that when you brine the turkey you keep the turkey breast-side down so that it will always be submerged in the brine. It's okay if the back is not completely covered by the brine.
- Place the trash-bag-turkey in a container that can fit in the fridge over-night. If not, put it in a cooler with A LOT of ice. If placing it in a cooler, you will need to check every couple hours to make sure that there is enough ice to keep the turkey cold.
Day of Dinner
- Remove the turkey from brine, wash and dray. Let it sit for at least 2 hours before cooking to bring to room temperature. This is vital in cooking a turkey, as it will help the turkey cook evenly.
- You will need to prepare your grill for indirect heating and you will want a large tin foil pan to fill with water to help regulate the internal temperature of the inside of the grill. You want the temperature of the grill to be between 300F and 350F. NO HIGHER. My method of indirect heating here is to have the tin foil pan in the middle of the bottom grate with the lit charcoal all by the top of the tin foil pan with some of the charcoal coming down each side of the pan.
- Place the chopped onion, celery, garlic, carrots, bay leaves and whole peppercorns into the bottom of the roasting pan. Also add the giblets and the neck to the bottom of the roasting pan. Place rack for turkey in roasting pan. Pour in all stock and broth into bottom of pan so that it comes a little over the bottom of the roasting rack.
- Place turkey breast-side down into the roasting rack that's in the roasting pan and baste with some of the melted butter. NOTE: Because the turkey legs take longer to cook we will cook the turkey with the breast-side down in the liquid to slow down the cooking of the breast meat. After an hour you'll flip the turkey over so that the back is in the liquid, exposing the barely cooked breast meat to the heat and smoke!
- Once your grill is ready for indirect heat at 300F-350F, add 2 of the soaked wood chunks to the coals. You will want to position the coals under the part of the grate that flips open for easy access later.
- Place the roasting pan on center of the cooking grate with the legs closest to the charcoal heat source.
- Cook the turkey with the lid closed for 1 hour.
- After 1 hour, to maintain the heat you will need to add more charcoal(8-12 unlit briquettes). Also add the remaining soaked cherry chunks to the coals.
- At this point you will also very carefully turn the turkey over so the breast-side is face up. Continue cooking turkey with the lid on as before.
- After another hour baste the turkey with more butter! At this time you will also want to take the temperature of your turkey. The turkey is done when the internal temperature of the thickest part of the thigh(not touching the bone) reaches 175F and the the breast meat reaches 165F. NOTE: The turkey will continue to cook after taking it off the grill and the temperature will continue to rise another 5F-10F. Therefore you will want to take it OFF the grill before it reaches those "Finished" temperatures.
- Once the turkey is 5F-10F below the finishing temperatures take it off the grill and place the turkey on a carving board covered loosely with tin foil.
- Overall cooking times can vary depending on size of the turkey and how hot your grill is. I'd say for a 12lb turkey, you're looking at 2.5 to 3.5 hours. Or more if you cook at a lower temperature.
Lets make GRAVY
What to do with all that wonderful liquid? Oh man. That stuff is what dreams are made of! I recommend saving some of that liquid for soups later on, while using some of that liquid to make gravy!
- Strain liquid and remove all solids.
- Use the separator to remove the fat.
- Reduce the liquid you want for gravy in half to concentrate flavors. So start with double what you want to end up with!
- While reducing make a golden roux with a 1/2 stick of butter and enough flour(adding just a little at a time).
- When the liquid has reduced in half, lower heat and add the roux while stirring.
- Once the roux has been incorporated and it's boiled a little you will have GRAVY!
CARVE TURKEY AND SERVE WITH GRAVY!
ENJOY!
NOTE: It is important that when you brine the turkey you keep the turkey breast-side down so that it will always be submerged in the brine. It's okay if the back is not completely covered by the brine.
NOTE: Because the turkey legs take longer to cook we will cook the turkey with the breast-side down in the liquid to slow down the cooking for the breast meat. After an hour you'll flip the turkey over so that the back is in the liquid, exposing the barely cooked breast meat to the heat and smoke!
NOTE: The turkey will continue to cook after taking it off the grill and the temperature will continue to rise another 5F-10F. Therefore you will want to take it OFF the grill before it reaches those "Finished" temperatures.
Tags: Apple Juice, Carrots, Celery, Cherry Wood, Chicken Stock, Onions, Peppercorns, Turkey
This is Aunt Chelsa’s recipe
Ingredients
|
|
2 cups
4 cups
1 ½ tsp
2 Tbsp
10
3 oz.
½ cup
1 bunch
Some
Some
Some
|
Rice, white, raw
Water
Salt
butter
Eggs, beaten
Parmesan cheese, grated
Parsley, fresh, minced
Green onions, minced
Olive oil
Salt
pepper
|
Instructions
-
Cook rice: Bring water, salt & butter to a boil, add raw rice. Bring back to a boil, turn the heat down and simmer for 20 minutes, covered.
-
Transfer the rice to a large mixing bowl.
-
Preheat oven to 350o.
-
Oil (pam) a 10 X 12” pyrex cooking dish.
-
Fry onion & parsley in oil and stir into the rice. Add salt & pepper to taste.
-
In another bowl beat the eggs.
-
Stir eggs into the rice mixture.
-
Stir in parmesan cheese.
-
Pour into the pyrex cooking dish.
-
Bake about 30 minutes.
-
I have had this served warm or cold. Warm is better.
Tags: Eggs, Green Onions, Parmesan, Rice
(More comfort food – this recipe was given to Grandma by her dear friend, Dorothy Quaid)
Ingredients
|
|
4 cups
½ cup
1 can
1 cup
½ cup
1 7-8 oz. bag
½ cup
|
Summer squash, sliced thinly
Onion, chopped
Soup, cream of chicken
Sour cream
Carrots, shredded
Stuffing mix, herb seasoned
Margarine, melted
|
Instructions
-
Preheat oven to 350o.
-
Prepare (pam) a 10 X 12” pyrex cooking dish.
-
In sauce pan: cook sliced squash & chopped onions in water for 5 minutes and drain.
NOTE: Maybe just parboil or steam them…
-
In a bowl: mix the soup, sour cream & shredded together. Add the squash & onions.
-
In another bowl: mix the stuffing mix with the margarine.
-
Spread ½ of the stuffing mix in the pyrex dish.
-
Spoon the vegetable mixture over the top.
-
Sprinkle the remaining stuffing mix over the top.
-
Bake about 30 minutes
Tags: Carrots, Cream of Chicken, Summer Squash
(This dish of Grandma’s was one of the three favorite dishes when we were growing up!)
(This was taught to my mother by her mother-in-law, Grandma Dot)
Ingredients
|
|
5
1 lb. **
1
Some – 2 Tbsp?
some
some
some
Opt: some
|
Potatoes
Ground Beef
Onion, yellow, diced
Flour
milk
Salt
Pepper
Opt: Onions, red
|
Instructions
-
Start by peeling the potatoes, cutting them in cubes, and boiling them until tender. You can do this while preparing the meat mixture. THE LEWIS rule is that you do NOT mash the potatoes.
-
Meanwhile, in a large frying pan, brown the ground beef & onion.
-
When browned, add the flour and stir around to brown it a bit.
-
Slowly add enough milk to make a gravy consistency.
-
Add salt & pepper to taste & simmer for a bit.
-
Serve the gravy over the potatoes.
NOTE
**Grandma Dot’s theory was, if you had money, you used more ground beef. If you were short on money, you used milk & flour.
**We ate it without any extra toppings, but Grandma always gave Grandpa diced raw red onions to sprinkle over the top.
Tags: Ground Beef, Onions, Potatoes
Ingredients
|
1 large
Some (lots)
Some (lots)
1 sm bottle
1 box or more
some
|
**Salmon fillet, skinless
**Salt, Kosher OR crystallized sea salt
Sugar, granulated
Liquid Smoke
Sugar, brown
Pepper, black
|
PREPARING OR BRINING THE SALMON
-
After you have managed to skin the salmon fillet, check the salmon for any large bones poking out by running your hands over the fillet. Use needle nose pliers or tweezers to remove any you find.
-
Use ½ & ½ sugar & salt or up to 2 parts sugar to 1 part salt. Pack the salmon with copious amounts of salt & sugar on both sides. Let it sit for 2 hours up to 12 to 18 hours. Put a weight on the thick part of the filet. The salmon will get juicy because the salt is pulling the moisture out and it will also get leathery feeling.
-
Using almost a whole bottle of liquid smoke, rub it into the salmon on both sides and for best results, let marinate over night, turning often if you can. (I have done it at the last minute and only let it marinate a couple of hours.)
TO BAKE/BROIL IN OVEN
-
Either next day or 2 hours later: Preheat oven to 300o.
-
Rinse the salmon & place salmon on a rack on a cookie sheet and coat the face up side liberally with ½ of the brown sugar.
-
Bake at 300o for 15 minutes until tender. In this case, less is more. If you cook it too long it will get tough. Don’t overcook!
-
Take it out of the oven and place in a cool area so that it cools down fast. Freezer is best.
-
When completely cooled preheat the oven broiler, sprinkle with **black pepper, and coat the top with the rest of the brown sugar,
-
Place under a hot broiler until the brown sugar on top is brown and caramelized looking. WATCH because it burns quickly.
-
Remove from the broiler & cool before serving.
TO COOK IN WEBER
-
Rinse the salmon
-
Put 8 – 10 coals in one side of the barbeque kettle and put the lid opening on the other side. This will draw the smoke over the salmon.
-
Use some hardwood chips (not sawdust ones) and wet them so they smolder. Add them to the coals as needed so there are copious amounts of smoke coming out of the top of the closed kettle.
-
Add more coals if the fire gets too low. Remember that you want very little heat when smoking, so don’t add any more coals then what you need to keep a fire going.
-
It will take about an hour or so, depending on how much heat is in the kettle. You can adjust the top opening to keep the fire low. Remember that you are looking for smoke, not heat.
TO SERVE
-
Place the filet on a large platter
-
Flake the salmon a bit so people don’t try to take big, main dish size servings!
-
Serve with cream cheese & small bagel pieces or crackers.
-
Good for a brunch or hors d’ oeuvres. YUMM!!
NOTE
**Costco sells them skinless OR have the butcher remove the skin. If you have to do it yourself, Rick says to take a sharp knife, start at the tail end, skin side down, pull skin tight, keep knife flat, and SKIN it. Good luck…
** Kosher salt is best.
**The more pepper, the spicier the salmon will be.
Tags: Liquid Smoke, Salmon
(This is a recipe that Sharon told me over the phone)
Ingredients
|
|
Catfish fillets (or I used chicken Breasts)
Cheese, cheddar, grated
Cheese, jack, grated
Chili powder
Four
Egg, beaten
Corn tortilla crumbs
oil
Rice (side dish)
Black beans(side dish)
Green salad (side dish)
|
Instructions
-
Preheat oven to 350o.
-
Prepare an appropriate size pyrex baking dish.
-
Mix the cheese together with the chili powder.
-
Put some of the cheese mixture between 2 catfish fillets (or pounded chicken breast). You might have to hold them together with tooth picks.
-
Dip the fillets in flour, then beaten egg, then the tortilla crumbs.
-
Brown breaded fillets in a small amount of oil in a frying pan
-
Place the fillets in the pyrex baking dish and finish cooking in the oven – maybe 30 minutes.
-
Serve with rice, black beans & a green salad.
Tags: Catfish
From Terry – Delicious but Ancho Chili Sauce is spicy
Ingredients
|
8
8 slices
|
chicken breast halves, boneless, skinless
cheese, Monterey Jack (optional)
|
Marinade for Chicken
|
½ cup
6 Tbsp
¼ cup
2 Tbsp
2 Tbsp
1 Tbsp
1 Tbsp
1 ½ tsp
½ tsp
|
lime juice, fresh
soy sauce
vegetable oil
sugar, granulated
oregano, fresh, chopped or 2 tsp dried
rosemary, fresh, chopped or 1 tsp dried
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
1 1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
|
Ancho Chile Sauce
|
3 whole dry
1 cup or so
2 Tbsp
½ cup
2 Tbsp
1 Tbsp
1 tsp
½ tsp
|
ancho chilies, stemmed, seeded, & torn to bits
boiling water to cover
lime juice, fresh
mayonnaise
sugar, brown
oregano, fresh, chopped OR 1 tsp dried
rosemary, fresh, chopped OR 1/2 tsp dried
cumin, ground
salt & pepper to taste
|
Instructions
-
Prepare the marinade and pour over chicken in either a flat pyrex dish or in a ziplock bag. Let sit in marinade overnight.
-
Place the dried chilies in a bowl and pour over enough boiling water just to cover. Let sit for 30 minutes.
-
Drain the chilies, reserving about 1/2 cup of the liquid for pureeing.
-
Puree the chilies, 3 Tbsp of the soaking liquid & the lime juice until smooth. Add more of the liquid if too stiff.
-
Whisk mayo, brown sugar, oregano, rosemary & cumin together in a small bowl. **Add the pureed chilies.
-
Add salt & pepper to taste
-
Cover and refrigerate, but try to serve at room temperature. This sauce can be made up to 3 days ahead.
-
Grill or broil the chicken.
-
Place a slice of jack cheese over each slice, letting it melt
-
Serve w/the Ancho Chili Sauce on the side
Tags: Ancho Chilies, Chicken, Limes, Monterey Jack Cheese
Ingredients
|
1 whole
1 cup
1 can
1 can
1 small
Some
some
|
Chicken, cut up and skinned
Rice, raw
Consommé, chicken
Soup, mushroom
Onion
Paprika, ground
Parsley, dried
|
Instructions
-
Preheat oven to 350o.
-
Prepare a 9 x 12” pyrex baking dish
-
Place raw rice in the bottom of the pyrex dish
-
Lay the chicken piece on top of the rice.
-
Mix the consommé, mushroom soup & minced onion together and pour over the chicken & rice.
-
Sprinkle with paprika & parsley
-
Cover tightly.
-
Bake for 1 to 1 ½ hours.
Tags: Chicken, Cream of Mushroom, Rice
(Sharon like to call this recipe Braised Beef)
Ingredients
|
2 lbs.
¼ cup
1 large
1 large
1 cup
1
Some
1 large can
1-2 tsp
1 tsp (to taste)
½ tsp
1 tsp
|
Beef, chuck or sirloin, cubed
oil
Onion, diced
Tomatoes, chopped
Wine, red
Bell pepper, chopped
Parsley
Green chili, diced
Cumin powder
Salt
**cloves, ground
**sugar
|
Instructions
-
In large pot, brown beef in oil.
-
Add onions and stir around awhile.
-
Add all other ingredients. Bring to a boil. Lower to simmer and let cook for at least 2-3 hours.
-
Serve over rice with tortillas on the side.
** Sharon liked to add cloves & sugar to this recipe.
Tags: Beef, Green Chili, Red Wine
(This dish of Grandma’s was one of the three favorite dishes when we were growing up!)
(This is the original recipe given to me by Grandma YEARS ago – before Mexican food was eaten across the country, before they sold tortillas on the East Coast, AND before they sold tortilla chips at the grocery store.)
Ingredients
|
2 lbs.
1 large
1 12oz can
2 cans
3 Tbsp
Some
1 10oz. bag
1 sm can
½ lb.
|
Ground beef -
See Uncle Rick’s vegetarian mix below to substitute for beef!
Onion, diced
Corn, creamed
Tomato sauce
Chili powder
Pepper
Corn chips (not tortilla chips)
Olives, sliced, w/liquid
Cheese, cheddar, grated
|
Instructions
-
Preheat oven to 350o.
-
Prepare (pam) a 10 X 12” pyrex cooking dish.
-
In large frying pan: Fry ground beef & onion together until meat is browned.
-
Add tomato sauce, chili powder & pepper to the ground beef mixture in frying pan and cook for 5 minutes.
-
In large bowl: mix corn chips, creamed corn, olives & MOST of the cheese – save some cheese to sprinkle over the top.
-
Add meat mixture to the corn chip mixture and stir to mix ingredients.
-
Spoon into the pyrex dish.
-
Sprinkle with the remaining cheese
-
Bake about 30 – 40 minutes uncovered.
Vegetarian Beef Substitute ala Rick –
To substitute for ground beef, use equal parts of carrots, celery & onion and grind them to the texture of ground beef. Add some beans –either grinding them up or use refried.
Cook all this in soup stock until cooked down a bit, then follow the directions for putting the casserole together without the ground beef.
Tags: Cheddar Cheese, Corn Chips, Ground Beef
(This dish of Grandma’s was one of our family’s favorite dishes when we were growing up!)
Ingredients
|
6 (more or less)
1 lb.
2 Tbsp
1 med
2 cloves
1 10-12oz. can
1 sm can
2 Tbsp (or more!)
½ tsp (to taste)
dash
Opt:
½ med
1 can
|
Potatoes (for mashed potatoes)
**Ground beef
Olive oil
Onion, yellow, chopped
Garlic, minced
Corn, whole kernel
Tomato sauce
Chili powder
Salt
Pepper
Opt:
Bell pepper, chopped
Tomatoes, diced
|
Instructions
-
You need to make mashed potatoes while you are cooking the hamburger mixture.
-
In a large frying pan, sauté the onion, garlic & (opt: bell pepper).
-
Add the ground meat and cook until browned.
-
When browned, add the chili powder, tomato sauce & corn. And the canned tomatoes if you are going to use them. (Grandma adds some water if the consistency is too thick, but be careful because you don’t want the mixture too soupy.)
-
Add salt & pepper to taste & simmer on low for a bit or until ready to serve.
-
To serve – and this is important: leave the hamburger mixture in the frying pan, spoon mounds of mashed potatoes around the edge of the frying pan so the potatoes just rim the pan and you can see the hamburger mixture in the middle. Serve directly from the frying pan.
-
The never ending family debate --- which is the mud and which is the river??
NOTE
You can substitute ground chicken or turkey, but you need to add some cooking oil
Tags: Ground Beef, Potatoes
Ingredients
|
1 ½ piece portion per person
|
Chicken breasts, boneless & skinless
|
|
Some
Some
1
1 cup
¼ cup
Some
Some
Some
|
Flour
Oil/margarine
Onion, chopped
Milk
Vermouth
Salt
Pepper
Cheese, swiss
|
Instructions
-
Pound the chicken breasts between wax paper until flattened.
-
Dip them in flour.
-
Brown them in a frying pan in oil and set aside.
-
Saute the onions in the frying pan you used to fry the chicken, adding more oil if necessary.
-
Add some flour to the frying pan and stir around till browned.
-
Combine milk, vermouth & bouillon (somehow diluted).
-
While stirring the flour, oil, onion, drippings mixture in the frying pan, slowly mix in the milk mixture, stirring constantly. Cook until the sauce is thickened. (I use a wire whip for this.)
-
Put all the chicken breasts into whatever size pan you need and pour the mixture over them.
-
Top with grated swiss cheese.
-
Bake at 350o for 30 minutes.
NOTE
I know - this is a very sketchy recipe as given to me by Grandma. She has very little use for measuring equipment and hardly every used them when we were growing up. She always measure by pinches & handfuls.
Tags: Chicken Breasts, Swiss Cheese, Vermouth
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