I think I enjoy the cooking more than eating, there is nothing better than to watch the smile grow after someone’s first bite. Note from Steve: I am a flow of thought writer and apologize up front if I lose you. My family is used to it.
Memories of my Mother in-law Rose’s typical Sunday Dinner inspired our Xmas dinner. picture homemade pasta, sauce, meatballs, lasagna, roasted potatoes & carrots, bread and some times some Braciola and or a pork roast. I did cut back on the pasta have to watch the carbs you know. I remember her asking if you wanted seconds and she would hold your plate in one hand (so you could not pull it away) and load up your plate with more than you first plate full held.
Anyway made Lasagna, meatballs, sauce, loaf of Italian bread, Lyn mad her version of menese (sp) soup (similar to Italian wedding soup), Italian wedding cookies that melted in your mouth, moist chocolate pistachio cake. Like I said no pasta we had enough in the lasagna.
I hope she approved and was smiling from above. Love and miss you Rose.
Our grandchild Sofie enjoyed the meal she was quite active in Gail’s tummy after.
In our house Tuesday is taco for dinner day . It does not necessarily have to be in a taco shell it could be burritos, salads, fajitas well last night I had some ground turkey which I made tacos salad but to shake it up I found this dressing that sounded interesting . I did not have everything it called for so I substituted. It had a bright citrusy flavor and I had my doubts but when combined with the taco seasoning it was surprisingly good.
Classic, crunchy, flavor-packed taco salad requires the most delicious Taco Salad Dressing. This one combines tangy citrus juice with honey and paprika for the perfect sweet and sour balance.
3/4 cup Meyer lemon juice (or *regular lemon juice)
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup blood orange juice (or * navel orange, tangerine, or grapefruit juice)
3 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons honey
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano or Mediterranean oregano
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
* I substituted
Instructions
Mix. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and whisk until combined or place all ingredients in a Mason jar, seal tightly and shake until combined. Taste and add more salt, lime juice, or honey to suit your tastes.
My Dad used to call it Israeli Salad said he learned it from and Indian in the war but he said that about most everything. Anyway it was Wednesday which is salad night at our house so I open the fridge and went to town.
Pear, kale, lettuce, brussels sprouts, mushrooms, zucchini, green pepper, broccolini, celery, carrots, radishes, roasted chickpeas, bacon and I added some mayo to the balsamic vinegerete dressing we had.
Ok it was Taco Tuesday and I had planned to make Black Bean Butternut Squash Burritos but when I looked I had no black beans and only 1 tortilla wrap so what to do. I had frozen some blue corn taco shells and I had a can of navy beans, so I went with it.
Ingredients:
1 medium butternut squash, peeled, cubed, & roasted
1/2 cup uncooked short grain brown rice (yields: 1.5 cups cooked)
1-2 tsp olive oil
1 cup chopped sweet onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 red pepper, chopped
1 tsp kosher salt, or to taste
2 tsp ground cumin, or to taste
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, or to taste
One 15-oz can white navy beans (about 1.5-2 cups cooked), drained and rinsed
1. Preheat oven to 425F and line a large glass dish with tinfoil. Drizzle olive oil on squash and give a shake of salt and pepper. Coat with hands. Roast chopped butternut squash for 45 mins. or until tender.
2. Cook brown rice
3. In a large skillet over medium-low heat, add oil, onion, and minced garlic. Sautee for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Now add in salt and seasonings and stir well.
4. Add chopped red pepper, navy beans, and cooked rice and sauté for another 10 mins. on low.
5. When butternut squash is tender remove from oven and cool slightly. Add 1.5 cups of the cooked butternut squash to the skillet and stir well. You can mash the squash with a fork if some pieces are too large. Add cheddar cheese and heat another couple minutes.
6. Add bean filling to tortilla along with desired toppings. Wrap and serve. Leftover filling can be reheated the next day for lunch in a wrap or as a salad topper. now that they are rolled lightly spray the tortilla with cooking spray and crisp in pan over medium heat. Start with seam side down . I have also placed under a broiler watching carefully of course.
Juicy honey garlic pork chops with caramelized edges ready and on your table in less than 15 minutes! smothered in the best 4-ingredient sauce!
I had some center cut pork chops from ButcherBox and I was wondering what to do with it. Maria had given us some Mike Hot Honey so I though honey mustard but after checking out a few recipes on line I decide to modify this one from Café Delites. I only had two chops so I split them in half. I think next time I won’t cut in half. Anyway this was pretty darn good.
This Honey Garlic Pork Chops Recipe is so easy you won’t believe it when it’s done! No marinating needed, this recipe is an incredibly quick and delicious way to serve bone in or boneless pork chops — seared until golden then simmered and broiled (or grilled) in the most amazing honey garlic sauce!
INGREDIENTS
4 pork chops bone in or out
Salt and pepper, to season
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
6 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup honey Steve Note: I used Mike’s Hot Honey
1/4 cup water (or chicken broth)
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar (or apple cider vinegar, or any white vinegar)
How
Preheat oven broiler (or grill) on medium-high heat. Season chops with salt, pepper and garlic powder just before cooking.
Heat oil in a pan or skillet over medium high heat until hot. Sear chops on both sides until golden and cooked through (about 4-5 minutes each side). Transfer to a plate; set aside.
Reduce heat to medium. Melt butter in the same pan, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Sauté garlic until fragrant (about 30 seconds). Add the honey, water and vinegar. Increase heat to medium-high and continue to cook until the sauce reduces down and thickens slightly (about 3-4 minutes), while stirring occasionally.
Add pork back into the pan, baste generously with the sauce and broil/grill for 1-2 minutes, or until edges are slightly charred.
Garnish with parsley and serve over vegetables, rice, pasta or with a salad.
Optional
Baked Pork Chops:
Preheat oven to 390°F | 200°C.
Sear seasoned chops in a hot oven-proof pan or skillet over medium-high for 2 minutes per side — get them crisp.
Remove chops and make your sauce following the recipe above (Step 3).
Baste with sauce and bake in the oven for about 10-15 minutes, or until reaching your desired doneness.
Broil/grill for 2 minutes to get those caramelized edges!
Butcher Box
If your interested in great grass fed beef plus chicken, pork seafood and more check it out.
Lyn and I decided this will be added to our rotation so here it is again with slightly different twist .
Want to thank Martha for sharing this with us.
Extremely simple to prepare and cook, tender and delicious.
INGREDIENTS
1 pork tenderloin (1 to 1 1/2 pounds)
1 to 2 tablespoons spices or seasonings (See Recipe Note)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
How
Heat the oven and pan. 10 to 20 minutes before you plan to cook, place a large cast-iron or oven safe skillet on the middle rack in the oven and heat the oven to 450°F. The skillet will heat along with the oven.
Season the pork. Pat the pork dry with paper towels and trim off any large pieces of surface fat. Mix any spices being used with the salt and pepper in a small bowl. Rub the spice mix onto the pork on all sides.
Swirl the pan with oil. Using oven mitts, carefully remove the hot pan from the oven. Add the oil and swirl to coat the bottom of the pan.
Roast the pork for 10 minutes. Place the pork in the pan. (It’s fine if your pork tenderloin is a little long for the pan; just bend it to fit as we did here.) Return the pan to the oven and roast for 10 minutes.
Flip the pork, reduce the heat, and roast another 10 to 15 minutes. Flip the pork. Reduce the oven temperature to 400°F and continue roasting 10 to 15 minutes more. The pork is done when its internal temperature registers 140°F to 145°F in the thickest part, 20 to 25 minutes total.
Rest for 10 minutes before serving. Transfer the pork to a clean cutting board, tent loosely with aluminum foil, and let it rest for 10 minutes before slicing crosswise. For extra-thin slices for sandwiches, cool the pork completely, then refrigerate before cutting.
RECIPE NOTES
Seasoning the pork: You can keep this pork simple and season with just salt and pepper, or you can rub it with any favorite spices or salt-free blend of spices.
Brisket is the Zelig of the kitchen. It takes on the character of whoever cooks it. In the early part of the 20th century, when ”The Settlement Cook Book” reigned supreme in American Jewish households, recipes for savory briskets of beef with sauerkraut, cabbage or lima beans were the norm. As tastes became more exotic, cranberry or barbecue sauce, root beer, lemonade and even sake worked their way into recipes. Here, Coca-Cola is the secret ingredient, along with ginger.
The result is sublime and the dish only improves if it’s cooked a day in advance of serving it. However, you can prepare and serve it the same day, if you’d like, though you may want to use a fat separator to strain the fat from the finished sauce. Several readers commented that the original cooking time and temperature on the recipe (3 hours, including 1 hour uncovered, at 350 degrees) was inaccurate. We’ve retested and adjusted the recipe, so the brisket now cooks for 5 to 6 hours, covered, at 325 degrees. Please also note that this recipe is not kosher for Passover. #Cooking
As you can see it was well received.
INGREDIENTS
Yield: 12 servings
1first-cut brisket, 6 to 7 pounds, rinsed and patted thoroughly dry2
1medium onion, peeled and quartered
1x 2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled, cut into chunks
6 large cloves garlic
1cup ketchup
½cup dry red wine
¼cup cider vinegar
¼cup soy sauce
¼cup honey
¼cup Dijon mustard
1tablespoon coarsely ground pepper, or to taste
¼teaspoon ground cloves
1½cups Coca-Cola or ginger ale Steve Note: I used Ginger Ale maybe will use Root Beer next time
½cup olive oil
PREPARATION
Step 1 Let meat stand at room temperature for 30 minutes before cooking. Heat oven to 325 degrees.
Step 2 Place everything but the soda, olive oil and brisket into a food processor, and process with steel blade until smooth. Pour the mixture into a large bowl and whisk in soda and olive oil.
Step 3 Place brisket, fat side up, into a heavy baking pan just large enough to hold it, and pour sauce over it. Cover tightly and bake for 3 hours. Turn brisket over, cover pan, and bake 2 to 3 hours more or until fork-tender. Cool, cover brisket and refrigerate overnight in cooking pan.
Step 4 The next day, transfer brisket to a cutting board, cut off fat and slice with a sharp knife against grain, to desired thickness. Set meat aside. Remove any congealed fat from sauce and bring to a boil on top of stove.
Step 5 Heat oven to 350 degrees. Taste sauce to see if it needs reducing. If so, boil it down for a few minutes or as needed. Return meat to sauce and warm in oven for 20 minutes. Serve warm.
Lyn and Maria (Niece that is living with us) are on an anti-inflammatory kick so being their chief cook and bottle washer I made them this chicken Pho soup from woman’s Day which Ly used to gently hint what she wanted for dinner. It was Thursday which is chicken dinner day after all. Personally I can’t stand the smell of fish sauce, but it does add great flavor. Don’t tell them I held my nose and only used half of what it called for while putting it in.
Ingredients
4 whole star anise
4 whole cloves
1 small cinnamon stick smashed Steve Note: they were all the same size how the heck do I in know if it was small 😊
1 tsp coriander seed crushed
½ tsp black peppercorns
A 2” piece of ginger quartered then smashed
½ red onion, coarsely chopped
½ Fuji apple Steve Note: I only had honey crisp
1 ½ lbs bone-in chicken thighs, skin removed and discarded
2 TBS fish sauce divided into 1TBS
3 oz instant rice noodles
5 cups of water
Bean sprouts, sliced red chili and red onion, mint or cilantro and lime wedges for serving.
How
Press Sauté on instant Pot and add spices and cook stirring occasionally, until fragrant 3-4 minutes
Add ginger and chopped onions and cook stirring occasionally 4 minutes
Add apple, chicken, 5 cups of water. And 1 TBS of fish sauce cover and cook on high pressure for 22 minutes.
Let release naturally, then release any remaining pressure and open lid
Transfer chicken to plate. Strain broth discarding and remaining solids.
Return the broth to the pot and add noodles and let sit until tender 3-4 minutes.
Meanwhile shred chicken discarding bones return to pot and stir in remaining Tbsp of fish sauce.
Gourmet Dad, Don’t Let The Title Fool You 