I sent my personal shopper on an expedition today to find the biggest cutting board she could find. And find one, she did. It's big, and I love it. My dear mother had only a very small board on which to chop veggies, olives (for cream cheese and olive sandwiches), etc., and I was given a very nice cutting board when I was married. Then, several years later, we were told that wood was not a good thing to make a cutting board from and they came out with those mottled plastic numbers that ruin knives. I have one of those, but I rarely use it. Anyway, I got rid of the wonderful board I had for many years, and from which we never died of salmonella or any other harmful bacteria.
So now, I have a new board and I can't wait to use it. I shall put away the mottled plastic board forever, I think, although it is light weight, and might be good to keep around for a while. And I shall get rid of my small wood board which is almost broken in half, but which I wash every day and bleach often, thus causing it, I'm sure, to have had such a short life span.
Tonight for dinner, I think I'll make -- oh, no, that's right, I have to go to Bible study/prayer group tonight, so we're having Digiorno pepperoni pizza. I'll get to use the board when I cut the pizza! Then it will be christened and I can use it for as long as I am able to use a cutting board.
ttfn
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Saturday, September 19, 2009
I can smell it now
I can smell the smells of our house in Runnemede now. It's Saturday afternoon. That means mom has put on the roast for our dinner tonight. We almost always had roast something (lamb, beef, pork, veal) on Saturday night. Leftovers, usually ground up meat made into shepherd's pie, on Sunday. The Sunday meal, was made after dinner on Saturday night.
Yes, mom's roast was something to taste. She had a large, hammered aluminum pan which she used solely for making roasts. She would put an onion, cut up into chunks, into the pot, after she had browned all four sides of the roast. She simply salted and peppered the meat before she browned it. Then she added the onions, and turned down the heat. About half-way through the cooking process, she added two cups of water. This became the gravy.
My dear mother was so strong. She had to have been. She did so much on Saturday night. And as I think of the things she did, I wonder where the energy came from after contending with four children all day. But she did a lot after dinner each Saturday, and one was to get the meal ready for Sunday.
She would get out the grinder, and it came with a "C" clamp, and clamped onto the edge of the kitchen table. She would stuff the left over meat, little bits at a time into the meat grinder while I or my sister held a bowl under the place where the meat came out, and she would add that meat to the left-over gravy from the roast the family had dine on shortly before. Then she would have already cooked extra potatoes at dinner time, and took out enough for mashed potatoes to put on top of the ground up meat/gravy mixture. The mashed potatoes were spread over the ground meat, and she would then wrap the bowl -- an oven proof bowl -- in plastic wrap, and it was ready for Sunday dinner. All she had to do was pop it in the over at 400 degrees for 1/2 hour, and we were set to go.
About 1/2 hour was all my father could wait for dinner. He came home after church every week, hungry, hungry, hungry. But we all were hungry, and were so glad when the "pie" was finished, the peas (we always had peas with shepherd's pie) were cooked, and the salad was fixed. If we were on schedule, dinner was served at 1 PM. It usually took dad about 1/2 hour after he finished preaching to get away from people and get home. Mom got home only about five minutes ahead of him, so the food would be in the oven and he knew it was cooking and would be ready in about 1/2 hour.
Back to Saturday -- I talked about my mom's strength. Well, she also always made a breakfast cake, baking it on Saturday night, so it would be available on Sunday morning. I'm afraid, the Sunday morning thing wasn't such a good idea, as it was usually dried out some, and not very good, but my father liked it, and that's what was important. I never did like those coffee cakes she made.
And then came the scrubbing and cleaning. Everything was moved out of the kitchen (the table mostly) and mom scrubbed the floor, down on her hands and knees, and then wiped it with a clean wet cloth. No one could walk on it until it dried.
Then, and only then, did she head to the bathroom and give my brothers their baths, and make sure my sister and I had taken our baths. After which she scrubbed the bathroom floor.
Finally, after we were in bed, she studied her Sunday School lesson -- the one she had to teach on the morrow.
Now, if you've read this BLOG you will find that there is a recipe embedded in this story. If you find it, and use it, you will enjoy it.
Yes, mom's roast was something to taste. She had a large, hammered aluminum pan which she used solely for making roasts. She would put an onion, cut up into chunks, into the pot, after she had browned all four sides of the roast. She simply salted and peppered the meat before she browned it. Then she added the onions, and turned down the heat. About half-way through the cooking process, she added two cups of water. This became the gravy.
My dear mother was so strong. She had to have been. She did so much on Saturday night. And as I think of the things she did, I wonder where the energy came from after contending with four children all day. But she did a lot after dinner each Saturday, and one was to get the meal ready for Sunday.
She would get out the grinder, and it came with a "C" clamp, and clamped onto the edge of the kitchen table. She would stuff the left over meat, little bits at a time into the meat grinder while I or my sister held a bowl under the place where the meat came out, and she would add that meat to the left-over gravy from the roast the family had dine on shortly before. Then she would have already cooked extra potatoes at dinner time, and took out enough for mashed potatoes to put on top of the ground up meat/gravy mixture. The mashed potatoes were spread over the ground meat, and she would then wrap the bowl -- an oven proof bowl -- in plastic wrap, and it was ready for Sunday dinner. All she had to do was pop it in the over at 400 degrees for 1/2 hour, and we were set to go.
About 1/2 hour was all my father could wait for dinner. He came home after church every week, hungry, hungry, hungry. But we all were hungry, and were so glad when the "pie" was finished, the peas (we always had peas with shepherd's pie) were cooked, and the salad was fixed. If we were on schedule, dinner was served at 1 PM. It usually took dad about 1/2 hour after he finished preaching to get away from people and get home. Mom got home only about five minutes ahead of him, so the food would be in the oven and he knew it was cooking and would be ready in about 1/2 hour.
Back to Saturday -- I talked about my mom's strength. Well, she also always made a breakfast cake, baking it on Saturday night, so it would be available on Sunday morning. I'm afraid, the Sunday morning thing wasn't such a good idea, as it was usually dried out some, and not very good, but my father liked it, and that's what was important. I never did like those coffee cakes she made.
And then came the scrubbing and cleaning. Everything was moved out of the kitchen (the table mostly) and mom scrubbed the floor, down on her hands and knees, and then wiped it with a clean wet cloth. No one could walk on it until it dried.
Then, and only then, did she head to the bathroom and give my brothers their baths, and make sure my sister and I had taken our baths. After which she scrubbed the bathroom floor.
Finally, after we were in bed, she studied her Sunday School lesson -- the one she had to teach on the morrow.
Now, if you've read this BLOG you will find that there is a recipe embedded in this story. If you find it, and use it, you will enjoy it.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Another yummy broccoli dish
This is a made-up -- or from scratch -- type dish.
All you need is a casserole dish and the following ingredients:
broccoli (I'm using 1/3 of a large bag of frozen broccoli, barely cooked and drained)
two chicken breasts, cooked and cut into chunks
two cans of cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup rice
Swiss cheese
Put all ingredients into a casserole dish, stir to mix, and top with the cheese to cover the dish. Put in 350-degree oven for 1-1/2 hours. Test to see if the rice has cooked (I sometimes have trouble getting the rice to be soft rather than crunchy (yuck). If the rice is cooked, then the dish is ready to eat.
As for me: after I take it out of the oven, I grate some fresh parmesan cheese over the top of the already cheese-topped dish. It just adds a little spice to the dish.
ttfn
All you need is a casserole dish and the following ingredients:
broccoli (I'm using 1/3 of a large bag of frozen broccoli, barely cooked and drained)
two chicken breasts, cooked and cut into chunks
two cans of cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup rice
Swiss cheese
Put all ingredients into a casserole dish, stir to mix, and top with the cheese to cover the dish. Put in 350-degree oven for 1-1/2 hours. Test to see if the rice has cooked (I sometimes have trouble getting the rice to be soft rather than crunchy (yuck). If the rice is cooked, then the dish is ready to eat.
As for me: after I take it out of the oven, I grate some fresh parmesan cheese over the top of the already cheese-topped dish. It just adds a little spice to the dish.
ttfn
Monday, September 7, 2009
Potato salad
Today is a holiday. Every warm-weather holiday we had potato salad. I think my mom made the best potato salad ever, and I have faithfully preserved her recipe. No muss, no fuss, just plain potato salad.
I use:
10 medium size potatoes
5 eggs
several stalks of celery
mayonnaise
mustard
vinegar
My mom's potato salad had no sugar, and rarely would she add pickles. If she added pickles, they were of the dill variety. I prefer potato salad straight, no additives.
So I boil the potatoes and eggs in the same pot. I do not peel the potatoes before cooking them. And if they are thin-skinned potatoes such as the red potatoes or Yukon golds, I don't skin them after I cook them either. I leave the skins on and just smash the potatoes with a potato smasher, or I cut the potatoes into small pieces, depending on how pretty I want to make the salad, and how much time I have. The potatoes have been salted when they are cooked. I put a tablespoon of salt in the water.
Then I put into this two cups of chopped celery. And I chop up the eggs (after I peel them).
I add enough mayonnaise to moisten the potatoes, a tablespoon of mustard, and a teaspoon of vinegar.
That's it. Tastes delicious if you like a non-sweet potato salad.
One variation I've tried is to use bottled ranch dressing with the mayonnaise and omit the mustard and vinegar. That tastes good as well.
ttfn
I use:
10 medium size potatoes
5 eggs
several stalks of celery
mayonnaise
mustard
vinegar
My mom's potato salad had no sugar, and rarely would she add pickles. If she added pickles, they were of the dill variety. I prefer potato salad straight, no additives.
So I boil the potatoes and eggs in the same pot. I do not peel the potatoes before cooking them. And if they are thin-skinned potatoes such as the red potatoes or Yukon golds, I don't skin them after I cook them either. I leave the skins on and just smash the potatoes with a potato smasher, or I cut the potatoes into small pieces, depending on how pretty I want to make the salad, and how much time I have. The potatoes have been salted when they are cooked. I put a tablespoon of salt in the water.
Then I put into this two cups of chopped celery. And I chop up the eggs (after I peel them).
I add enough mayonnaise to moisten the potatoes, a tablespoon of mustard, and a teaspoon of vinegar.
That's it. Tastes delicious if you like a non-sweet potato salad.
One variation I've tried is to use bottled ranch dressing with the mayonnaise and omit the mustard and vinegar. That tastes good as well.
ttfn
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Sour kraut
Did I spell that correctly? I don't know. You get the idea.
Sour kraut wasn't popular at our home when I was growing up. It stunk (or is it stank?) up the house. I didn't think it tasted all that good, either. But, my father loved it. So every once in a while my mom would open a can -- yes we had canned SK back then -- and put it in a pot with a small pork roast -- had to stretch that meat to feed a family of six.
Now I know it's not SK season. It's still summer. Oh, really? Well, out here where I live now, it's been like fall, and that is SK season. And I also live in a high-German-content area, so SK is something we eat year round.
I have two favorite SK dishes. One is a Reuben sandwich. Easy to make: rye bread, corned beef sliced super thin and piled high on the bread (the key is the corned beef must be sliced thin), SK, and most people like Russian dressing on the sandwich. I prefer it "dry."
My second favorite is pork and SK.
Last week I gave you all a recipe for pork loin roast. Usually I have some left over, from which I either make soup or pork and SK. You see, I'm all for easy, and left-over pork roast with SK (never canned, always packaged from the butcher) is very easy to make. All I do is put the left-over pork and remaining gravy in a pan, and then pour one quart of SK over that. Simmer it for a few hours, long enough to make the house stink, and you have a great supper.
ttfn
Sour kraut wasn't popular at our home when I was growing up. It stunk (or is it stank?) up the house. I didn't think it tasted all that good, either. But, my father loved it. So every once in a while my mom would open a can -- yes we had canned SK back then -- and put it in a pot with a small pork roast -- had to stretch that meat to feed a family of six.
Now I know it's not SK season. It's still summer. Oh, really? Well, out here where I live now, it's been like fall, and that is SK season. And I also live in a high-German-content area, so SK is something we eat year round.
I have two favorite SK dishes. One is a Reuben sandwich. Easy to make: rye bread, corned beef sliced super thin and piled high on the bread (the key is the corned beef must be sliced thin), SK, and most people like Russian dressing on the sandwich. I prefer it "dry."
My second favorite is pork and SK.
Last week I gave you all a recipe for pork loin roast. Usually I have some left over, from which I either make soup or pork and SK. You see, I'm all for easy, and left-over pork roast with SK (never canned, always packaged from the butcher) is very easy to make. All I do is put the left-over pork and remaining gravy in a pan, and then pour one quart of SK over that. Simmer it for a few hours, long enough to make the house stink, and you have a great supper.
ttfn
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Potatoes au gratin
Or scalloped potatoes, I don't which is which. But let's just say this dish is made with potatoes, onions, heavy cream, butter, and Parmesan cheese. It's easy and so very, very good.
I have a mandolin (a gadget that slices the potatoes very thin). I use five potatoes for a 9x12 casserole/baking dish.
Oven is set at 350 degrees, and I cook this for 1-1/2 hours.
INGREDIENTS:
5 medium sized potatoes (Yukon golds are the best, but use your own favorite)
1 large onion, sliced into thin slices
2 cups grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup heavy cream (you can use skim milk if you prefer, or half and half or regular milk, but heavy cream works best)
salt (to taste)
pepper (to taste)
1 stick of butter
Slice up five potatoes (I leave the skins on) into very thin slices.
Put 1/3 of the potatoes on the bottom of the dish, 1/3 of the sliced onions, add 1/4 cup heavy cream, and 1/4 stick of butter, salt and pepper, and 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese.
Repeat this two more times. You will have extra butter and extra cheese and extra cream on the last repeat. You can use them or not. I used the extra cheese on the top layer and it makes a nice cheesy crust.
This dish is so easy and it is so delicious. Rave reviews from the eaters, and no left overs.
I have a mandolin (a gadget that slices the potatoes very thin). I use five potatoes for a 9x12 casserole/baking dish.
Oven is set at 350 degrees, and I cook this for 1-1/2 hours.
INGREDIENTS:
5 medium sized potatoes (Yukon golds are the best, but use your own favorite)
1 large onion, sliced into thin slices
2 cups grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup heavy cream (you can use skim milk if you prefer, or half and half or regular milk, but heavy cream works best)
salt (to taste)
pepper (to taste)
1 stick of butter
Slice up five potatoes (I leave the skins on) into very thin slices.
Put 1/3 of the potatoes on the bottom of the dish, 1/3 of the sliced onions, add 1/4 cup heavy cream, and 1/4 stick of butter, salt and pepper, and 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese.
Repeat this two more times. You will have extra butter and extra cheese and extra cream on the last repeat. You can use them or not. I used the extra cheese on the top layer and it makes a nice cheesy crust.
This dish is so easy and it is so delicious. Rave reviews from the eaters, and no left overs.
Roast pork with cranberry wine reduction sauce
I'm not about to get into the "sauce"/"gravy" wars rhetoric here, but the "sauce" for this roast (some would call it gravy) is to die for, or so I've been told many times.
Yesterday, Alan's brother David, and his wife, Libby, came for an overnight stay and I thought I'd make something that I do well, and from which we really enjoy any leftovers -- pork loin roast. I had my shopper get one at the Kroger Butcher shop. It was four pound roast. Pretty big.
I marinated for about 4 hours in a concoction of seasoned salt (1 tablespoon), garlic salt (1 tablespoon), 1/2 cup huckleberry vinegar (you can use raspberry vinegar instead), and 1/4 cup olive oil.
When I thought it was time to put it in the oven (I allowed 2 hours for the roast at 350 degrees) I first braised it on all sides. I set that pan aside for the cranberry wine reduction.
I put the roast in a pan over one bulb of garlic halved. I didn't do anything else but just cut the bulb in half cross-wise, not between the cloves. And I placed the roast on top of this. This was to make the "gravy" more tasty.
After 1-1/2 hours I poured 1 cup of water over the roast to add to the pan drippings. Then after two hours I removed the roast from the oven and let it rest for 20 minutes before cutting into it.
NOW FOR THE SAUCE: I used the pan drippings from when I braised the roast and poured a whole bottle of cranberry wine in this pan and added one pat of butter, then I simmered it for the two hours while the roast cook. It was reduced by about one-half, and it was delicious instead of "gravy."
However, I also made gravy from the pan drippings that the roast in the oven made. Remember I had poured one cup of water over the roast? Well I added another cup of water to that, and brought that to a boil. I used a whisk to get any roast remnants from the pan. Then I added cornstarch to thicken it.
When I use cornstarch to thicken I used equal parts cornstarch and water which is stirred to mix and no lumps, whisk the mixture in, slowly, and when it starts to thicken, I stop pouring the cornstarch and water. I usually use 1/2 cup water, but rarely use the whole 1/2 cup of the mixture. I guess I waste a bit of cornstarch, but hey, it's cheap, and I'd rather than too much thickener than not enough.
That's how you make my favorite pork roast.
We had no leftovers, but if we had, I would have make pork roast soup, which is the same as my vegetable soup, but I use pork instead of beef. Good stuff.
Yesterday, Alan's brother David, and his wife, Libby, came for an overnight stay and I thought I'd make something that I do well, and from which we really enjoy any leftovers -- pork loin roast. I had my shopper get one at the Kroger Butcher shop. It was four pound roast. Pretty big.
I marinated for about 4 hours in a concoction of seasoned salt (1 tablespoon), garlic salt (1 tablespoon), 1/2 cup huckleberry vinegar (you can use raspberry vinegar instead), and 1/4 cup olive oil.
When I thought it was time to put it in the oven (I allowed 2 hours for the roast at 350 degrees) I first braised it on all sides. I set that pan aside for the cranberry wine reduction.
I put the roast in a pan over one bulb of garlic halved. I didn't do anything else but just cut the bulb in half cross-wise, not between the cloves. And I placed the roast on top of this. This was to make the "gravy" more tasty.
After 1-1/2 hours I poured 1 cup of water over the roast to add to the pan drippings. Then after two hours I removed the roast from the oven and let it rest for 20 minutes before cutting into it.
NOW FOR THE SAUCE: I used the pan drippings from when I braised the roast and poured a whole bottle of cranberry wine in this pan and added one pat of butter, then I simmered it for the two hours while the roast cook. It was reduced by about one-half, and it was delicious instead of "gravy."
However, I also made gravy from the pan drippings that the roast in the oven made. Remember I had poured one cup of water over the roast? Well I added another cup of water to that, and brought that to a boil. I used a whisk to get any roast remnants from the pan. Then I added cornstarch to thicken it.
When I use cornstarch to thicken I used equal parts cornstarch and water which is stirred to mix and no lumps, whisk the mixture in, slowly, and when it starts to thicken, I stop pouring the cornstarch and water. I usually use 1/2 cup water, but rarely use the whole 1/2 cup of the mixture. I guess I waste a bit of cornstarch, but hey, it's cheap, and I'd rather than too much thickener than not enough.
That's how you make my favorite pork roast.
We had no leftovers, but if we had, I would have make pork roast soup, which is the same as my vegetable soup, but I use pork instead of beef. Good stuff.
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