Category Archives: Food

Rainbows and Leprechauns

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Happy Belated St Paddy’s Day- All Rainbows and Leprechauns

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Leprechaun Rainbow Stock Photos

I hope your day was filled with Rainbows, pots of gold and Leprechauns. Did you do anything to celebrate? A pint of Guinness or just a green beer?. I made beef stew. Its not quite Irish stew but close. What is the difference between classic beef stew and Irish stew?  According to the internet its all in the meat.  Traditional Irish Stew uses  lamb (mutton) while beef uses, well, beef. 

a very cute and adorable few day old lamb

Lamb stock photo

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Beef Cattle Stock Photos,

I love making stew since we have slow cookers now and I confess, I often cheat by using the McCormick Slow Cooker Beef  Stew seasoning packets.  I’ve found it keeps the prep simple and the flavor consistent. But whether I make it from scratch with beef broth and seasonings or use the packets one step I never skip is browning the stew meat.

I dump all those little meat cubes in a plastic bag with flour, salt and pepper and give them a good shake to coat. Then I toss them into a hot cast iron pan and brown the sides.  Once they are all browned up into the crock pot they go.  (By the way, I started using a liner and it makes clean up a breeze. )

My mom used to add a can of Veg All but I just chop up celery, carrots and onions and lots of potatoes. Any kind will do but I like the Yukon gold the best for my stew.

Beef Stew- Photo credit Deb Neumann

Basic Beef Stew Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

  • 2 lbs beef stew meat , cut in 1 inch pieces
  • 1/4 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/2 teas. salt
  • 1/2 teas ground black pepper
  • 1 1/2 Cups beef broth
  • 4 medium carrots, sliced
  • 3 medium potatoes, diced
  • 1 medium onion , chopped
  • 1 stalk of celery, chopped
  • 1 bay leaf

INSTRUCTIONS:

  1. Place the meat in a plastic bag or large bowl and coat with flour, salt and pepper
  2.  Brown the floured meat and place in your crock pot/ slow cooker
  3.  Add Broth, Vegetables and bay leaf to the slow cooker.  Stir to combine.
  4.  Set Slow Cooker. Cover and cook on low for 8-12 hours or high for 4-6 hours. 

NOTES

  1. You can add other seasonings to taste like garlic, paprika, a dash of Worcestershire sauce for example. Like I mentioned above, My mom always added a can of Veg-All. 
  2.  I’ve used the low setting and the high settings and I have the best luck for tender, fall apart meat with the low setting. Long and slow wins in my house every time but when time is an issue I’d rather use high and a shorter cook time than go without.
  3.   AS mentioned above, the McCormick Slow Cooker Beef Stew Seasoning packets produce a consistently flavored stew and are easy to use and you don’t need the beef broth when you use them. Just water

 

Hope You all Had a great day!

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A Pot of Gold- Internet

 

Crepes or Pancakes

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Crepes or Pancakes

I am so proud of myself. I made crepes for the first time about a week ago. I’d never tried to make these skinny pancakes and don’t know what made me decide to try but I am happy to report they were a success. Now this comes from someone who has never, ever been able to make a decent pancake. (Unless it’s an apple pancake) 

Apple Pancake- Photo credit Deb Neumann

Pancakes are supposed to be easy right? Well I have never been successful. I finally settled on super fat (thick)  Bisquick  pancakes or a trip to IHop for my pancake fix. Then I saw an episode on Food Network about pancakes and it’s been percolating in the back of my mind. After all if I can make a successful crepe I should be able to make pancakes, right?

The Crepes

I think of crepes as a breakfast food so I made my first ones Strawberry but I think  next time I will go for savory instead of sweet. Maybe stuff them with sausage and eggs.  

Photo credit Deb Neumann

 

The recipe was very simple and easy. From Allrecipes.com

Basic Crepes

Prep time- 10 minutes

Cook time 20 minutes (Mine was less)

Total Time 30 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 Cup All Purpose flour
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 Cup milk
  • 1/2 Cup water
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 2 Tablespoons butter , melted

Directions

  1. Whisk flour and eggs together in a large mixing bowl. Gradually add in milk and water, stirring to combine. Add Salt and melted butter. Beat until smooth.
  2. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium-high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle using approximately 1/4 cup of batter for each crepe. Tilt the pan with a circular motion so the batter coats the surface evenly.
  3. Cook until the top of the crepe is no longer wet and the bottom has turned light brown. 1-2 minutes. Run a spatula around the edge of the crepe to loosen and flip to cook the other side. About a minute more. Serve hot.

Pancakes for One

Photo Credit Deb Neumann

Recipe from One dish kitchen

With a successful crepe experience behind me I moved on to my nemesis, pancakes. I was really brave too. I didn’t even use a mix! Pancakes from scratch coming up and wonder of wonders, they were good!

Prep Time- 5 minutes   Cook time – 10 minutes  Total time – 15 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 Cup all purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 Tablespoon sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 large egg
  • 3/4 Cup Milk
  • 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract 
  • 1 Tablespoon salted butter (melted)
  • 1 teaspoon salted butter for the pan/griddle

Directions

  1. In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt.
  2. In another bowl beat the egg and then whisk in the milk, vanilla and melted butter
  3. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix until just incorporated. Lumps are ok. If the batter is too thick add more milk a little at a time.
  4. Melt Butter in a large skillet or griddle over medium heat.
  5. Ladle about 3/4 cup of batter onto the skillet to make a pancake
  6. Cook until bubbles break the surface of the pancake and the underside is golden brown (about 3 minutes)
  7. Flip with a spatula and cook about 1 minutes more on the 2nd side.
  8. Repeat until the batter is used up.

Even with this scaled down recipe there was more batter than I needed for just me. I made two pancakes for me and probably had enough batter left for 3 or 4 more. 

So which one do you want to try first?

 

Enjoy- They are yummy!

Thoughts About Cornbread

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Some Thoughts on Cornbread

 

May be an image of text that says 'The North thinks it knows how to make corn bread, but this is a gross SuPerstition. Perhaps no bread in the world is quite as good as Southern corn bread, and Perhaps no bread in the world is quite as bad as the Northern imitation of it. Mark Twain Sonthern THE Voice'

 

 

 

 

I think Mark Twain got this right. I don’t think I’ve ever had true Southern Cornbread but I’ve had some pretty awful cornbread here in the North. Maybe my sister in law and I should have a cornbread bake off. My sister-in -law is from Charleston, South Carolina and is one of the most fun people I know.  But I digress.

Cornbread is something I don’t eat very often but every once in a while I get a craving for it. When I was working I’d buy the little mix packages that were just add water. Although easy and quick to make the result was  this dry, crumbly stuff that was really pretty bad.  Still bad cornbread is better than no corn bread so I kept doing that until someone gave me a recipe for Boston Market Cornbread. I’m always looking for ways to improve my cooking skills.

Boston Market Cornbread

Boston Market cornbread is a very moist, very sweet, cornbread that is served as a mini loaf.

No photo description available.

Photo credit- Boston Market

I think they are great but is it cornbread? 

When I got the “Imposter” recipe I could see why it’s so cake like. It uses a box of Butter Cake mix as a base. It makes a ton of these little loaves and they also freeze well. I used to make a batch for the office and we’d put them in the freezer so my co-workers and I could have them whenever we wanted.  

Cast Iron Skillet Corn Bread

Boston Market cornbread aside, I still think there is nothing like cornbread that’s baked in a cast iron skillet. You get such a beautiful crust when you bake your cornbread this way. So  I set out to see if I could make a decent cornbread even though I am a Northerner. I think my effort was pretty successful. Here’s the result. 

Photo credit Deb Neumann

 

 

Photo Credit- Deb Neumann

 

Photo credit- Deb Neumann

Cast Iron Skillet Corn Bread Recipe

(Food Network)

 

Ingredients

  • 1 1/4 cups yellow cornmeal
  • 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 teas. kosher salt
  • 2 teas. baking powder
  • 1/2 teas. baking soda
  • 1/3 cup whole milk
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • 2 eggs (lightly beaten)
  • 8 Tablespoons unsalted butter, Melted

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F, and place a 9 inch cast iron skillet inside to heat while you make the batter.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, sugar, salt baking powder and baking soda. Whisk in the milk, buttermilk, and eggs. Lastly whisk in all of the melted butter, reserving about 1 tablespoon for the skillet later on.
  3. Carefully remove the hot skillet from the oven and reduce the oven temp to 375. Coat bottom and sides of the hot skillet with the remaining butter. Pour the batter into the skillet and place it in the center of the oven. Bake until the center is firm and tooth pick inserted in the center comes out clean.  (25-30 minutes) Allow to cool 10-15 minutes before cutting and serving. 

Enjoy! 

 

 

 

Garlic, Broccoli, Mushrooms, and Chicken, Oh My!

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Garlic, Broccoli, Mushrooms and Chicken Stir Fry

What’s not to love? A Stir Fry meal is quick, easy and loaded with veggies. 

 

May be an image of food and text that says 'GARLIC CHICKEN STIR FRY vegetable oil 1 cup broccoli florets 1 cup mushrooms 1 yellow bell pepper 1 Ib chicken breasts salt and pepper 4 cloves of garlic 3/4 cup chicken broth 1 tbsp brown sugar 2 tbsp soy sauce 2 tsp sesame oil 2 tsp cornstarch Cে'

From the recipe critic

Don’t You just Love Stir Fry?

One of my favorite meals is Stir Fry. I started out trying to duplicate the Chinese chicken and broccoli from my local Chinese Take out restaurant. Even after years of trying I just can’t get it right BUT…I have developed some great alternatives. My sister even gave me a WOK for a Christmas present one year. 

Some of my favorite veggies for stir fry are broccoli, asparagus, and/ or mushrooms. 

My new Chicken and Broccoli recipe

Last night I tried a new stir fry recipe. The differences are in the way the sauce is made. This one was real easy and thickened up nice. I hope you like garlic! 

I didn’t use the WOK this time because the recipe called for a large skillet but after making this once I’ll use the Wok from now on. 

One tip- Prep is everything. Have all your ingredients  prepared before you start cooking because it’s going to move fast, especially if you are using a WOK.

Garlic  Chicken Stir Fry

Recipe from The Recipe Critic

5 minute prep time   15 minute cook time

Stirring the chicken, broccoli and mushrooms all together.

Photo from the Recipe Critic

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 Tablespoon + 1 teaspoon vegetable oil (Divided use)
  • 1 Cup broccoli Florets
  • 1 Cup mushrooms (sliced)
  • 1 Yellow bell pepper (cored, seeded and thinly sliced)
  • 1 pound boneless chicken breast (cut into 1 inch pieces)
  • Salt & Pepper to taste
  • 4 Cloves of Garlic (minced)
  • 3/4 Cup Chicken Broth
  • 1 Tablespoon Brown Sugar
  • 2 Tablespoons soy sauce
  • 2 Teaspoons sesame oil
  • 2 teaspoons cornstarch

Instructions

  1. Heat 1 Teaspoon of oil in a large pan over medium heat
  2. Add Broccoli, mushrooms and bell pepper to pan. Cook 5-6 minutes or until vegetables are tender- DO NOT OVER COOK
  3. Remove Vegetables from pan and cover with foil to keep warm
  4. Wipe pan clean with paper towel. (I think this is unnecessary step but it’s in the recipe so up to you) Heat remaining tablespoon of oil over high heat.
  5. Add Chicken to pan in a single layer, season with Salt & Pepper
  6. Cook 3-4 minutes per side or until chicken is browned and cooked through.
  7. Lower heat to medium and add garlic. Cook for 30 seconds
  8. Add Vegetables back to pan
  9. In a Small bowl whisk together the chicken broth , sugar, soy sauce, sesame oil and cornstarch
  10. Pour over chicken and veggies and bring to a simmer.
  11. Simmer 1-2 minutes or until sauce has just thickened
  12. Serve immediately over rice

Photo credit- Deb Neumann

Notes

I left out the bell pepper as I am not a fan but as with most stir fry recipes you can add or subtract veggies to suit your tastes.

I didn’t measure the veggies – just put all the broccoli and mushrooms in- Way more than the 1 C each the recipe called for. Again, your preference.  The veggies are great when they have a well flavored sauce

I’m still looking for a good fried rice recipe if anyone out there has one

 

 

 

 

 

 

Why Does Everyone Hate Meatloaf?

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Tender Juicy Meatloaf

 As part of my project to improve my cooking skills I decided to try to find the reason that everyone seems to hate meatloaf. And I don’t mean the Musician known as Meatloaf.  

Meat Loaf' life in photos

Photo credit- Internet

 

 

I made a meatloaf Sunday. I was in the mood for meatloaf sandwiches so made a small one just so I’d have the left overs. (Like a good hamburger, meatloaf is there – you know you sang it) Anyway, while it was in the oven I was perusing Facebook and saw one of their many “Lists”.  It was foods  Boomers should get rid of or something like that and there was the lowly meatloaf. The Comments were eye opening.

Meatloaf should Never be Dry

Best Meatloaf Recipe [VIDEO] - Sweet and Savory Meals

Photo credit- Flickr

Everyone talked about their mother’s meatloaf. How it was this dry lump of ground meat.  And you know what? They were right! After I thought about it I remembered I didn’t like meatloaf when I was growing up either. One of the first things I did when I was on my own and realized it was learn to cook or starve was to learn to make a juicy, tender meatloaf. 

I am a purist in that I use hamburger meat. I don’t mix it with pork or veal or any other kind of ground meat. You can if you want but I don’t. Next I hate slicing into a meatloaf and seeing lumps of bread. You get that when you just shred up some bread and soak it in milk. No I liked to use the bread to add a bit of flavor. My choice for breadcrumbs? A package of stove top chicken stuffing. But the real trick is the sautéed onion and green pepper. 

To keep the meatloaf from falling apart the onions and green pepper need to be chopped very fine then softened by sautéing for about 4-5 minutes so they will not be crunchy bits. 

If I have chicken broth I use that for the liquid instead of water for a fuller flavor. 

Here’s my Easy, Peasy Meatloaf Recipe

What you need

  • 2 lb ground beef
  • 1 package of Stove top Stuffing mix  (16 oz) for chicken
  • 1 Cup water or chicken broth
  • 2 eggs (beaten)
  • 1/2 C Barbecue Sauce or catsup (divided)
  • 1 small yellow onion
  • 1 small green pepper

Instructions

Heat oven to 375 F

  1. Chop onion and pepper into small pieces and sauté in a little oil at low heat for about 5 minutes. Don’t let them burn. Set aside
  2. Place meat, stuffing mix, water (broth) and 1/4 cup Barbecue sauce/catsup in a bowl.
  3. Gently mix with your hands until just blended.
  4.  Add the Sautéed veggies and blend 
  5.  Line a sheet pan with foil or parchment paper
  6. Shape into a loaf
  7.  Top with remaining sauce/catsup
  8.  Bake 1 hour or until done

 

Meatloaf Sandwich | Leftover meatloaf in a sandwich. Mmm... … | Flickr

Photo Credit- Flickr

I like to try different things with my meatloaf- maybe a dash of Worcestershire Sauce or maybe A1 Sauce for a little extra flavor. I always use onion but sometimes I skip the green pepper if I don’t have one handy. Maybe add some cheese in the center of my loaf. If your bread crumbs aren’t seasoned don’t forget the salt and pepper. When using the Stove top as bread crumbs I skip the salt and pepper. There’s enough in the stuffing mix.

I hope you never have a dry meatloaf again!