HazMat Update

I feel like I need to go out and buy some of those noise cancelling headphones that the plane jockeys wear out on airport runways! I now have 4-floor fans (2 less than earlier), one HUGE dehumidifier and two HEPA Air Scrubbers running in my basement and I swear it's noisier than Gerald R Ford Airport! Not to mention that my electric meter is spinning so fast that it resembles a Huey!

Forgot to mention

ALL the carpeting and the tiling in the basement had to be torn up and discarded - sheesh, what a hassle!

A very busy weekend - the good and the bad

The good news is that the wedding and reception were just WONDERFUL! It was great to see family and friends again - many of whom I hadn't seen in 15 years or so. I'll post some pics a little later. The food went over very well - lots of nice comments (and I still have just a lil bit of lasagna left over to savor!

The bad news is that the HazMat crew spent about 3 1/2 hours here yesterday. We had a MAJOR sewer backup from the City sewer line into our basement on Sunday, the day after the wedding. At the time there were probably 20 friends/relatives here and we had to shut off water to the whole house and squeeze our butt cheeks together for about 6 hours. We bailed and vacuumed a couple of hundred gallons of effluent from the basement and carried it outside to the back lawn before the City came and cleared the blockage in the main line. Considering what germs would be contained in the normal stuff that runs in a sewer line is bad enough but it was compounded by the fact/worry that there's a hospital about 2 1/2 blocks on the upside of the blockage and I don't wanna THINK about what might be contained in THEIR sewage!

But the basement is dry once again and should be disease free. Antimicrobials and steam cleaning plus 6 fans and a HUGE dehumidifier ran all night. Homeowners insurance will cover it but we're pursuing it with the City insurance first. Many thanks to Carl and Jude for pitching in and helping so much when we were bailing. If it hadn't been for the wedding guests/family that were here, I could never have done it alone - I would have just walked away and checked into a hotel.

Thursday Eve

I've been super busy this week - decorating the house, shopping and preparing parts of the two BIG entrees for the wedding reception on Saturday. Today I finished the two hotel pans of homemade lasagna )in case you didn't know, a 'hotel pan' is one of those large pans that fit into a large metal chafing pan). Homemade pasta noodles, homemade sauce, homemade ricotta cheese. Also finished the chicken dish - chicken cubes with browned sausage, green peppers, onions, mushrooms and a lot of spices in a savory sauce..... it'll be served over rice. I'll put it ll together on Saturday.

Still more decorating to do but not too much - I think we're in pretty good shape. Just have to get the music organized and put onto an iPod for the ceremony. I'll post pics after the fact.

Monday Morn

Sorry I haven't been posting much lately - I've been decorating the house for my daughter's upcoming wedding this Saturday. The rest of this week will be almost entirely dedicated to cooking the foods for the reception (here also).

Stay tuned!

Thursday Morn

I haven't been outside yet but there's a bunch of snow on the ground and it's still falling and blowing.

Made a coupla gallons of tomato sauce last night for my homemade lasagna that I'll finish next week. After the storm leaves I'll have to buy a couple of gallons of milk to make my ricotta cheese for the lasagna.

Tuesday Eve

The onion soup is wonderful - I have one in the fridge and three in the freezer. Also made a pot roast w/gravy and some riced potatoes for dinner. In the next coupla days I'll be doing a lot of cooking in preparation for the wedding reception I'm catering in about 10 days.

Tuesday Morn (3)

The onions are now a golden color - doin GREAT! Maybe about 20 more minutes on LOW and they'll be the mahogany color I desire!

Tuesday Morn (2)

Well I decided to once more tempt fate and get out the most dreaded, the nastiest, the most deadly kitchen appliance I own. Yes, I'm talking about a MANDOLIN. Guaranteed to cleanly remove unwary fingertips and anything else that gets in it's way. But I escaped injury with not even a NICK! I sliced up three LARGE sweet onions (but I DID leave the last few cuts for my trusty knife - no sense tempting fate too much!).

Onions are now 'sweating' and the project is underway!

Tuesday Morn

There's a BIG storm coming lasting over the next few days so I'm already back from shopping and it's only about 7:15AM! I guess I'll be snowblowing driveways and walks but I really don't wanna haveta go out and drive.

I'm still on my quest for onion soup and will start all over this morning. New recipe and slightly different ingredients. I'll let you know how THIS batch turns out later today.

Monday Eve (2)

I am sooooo bummed........ the onion soup was NOT up to my expectations....... I trashed it all. It was either the smoked paprika or the wine - perhaps both.

Anyhow, I'm still on my quest for Onion Soup and I'll shop and cook tomorrow - stay tuned for tomorrow's result.

Monday Eve

I've been really busy today so I didn't start cooking until late this afternoon.

Dinner tonight is more left-overs. A hot chicken, open-faced sandwich (made fron the left-over roast chicken from the other night and some mashed taters). It's gonna be awesome.

PLUS, in anticipation of the upcoming (BIG) snowstorm on Wed & Thursday, I had an inspiration for homemade Onion Soup. Soooooooo, the soup is almost finished and I'll put it into onion bowls in about an hour and await the snowstorm in a coupla days.

JUST the thing when one comes in from the cold!

Sunday Morn

I went to a wonderful concert last night and ate out so I had no post about dinner last night.

Since today is Sunday and I have a lot to do, I'm dipping into the freezer for one of my stuffed peppers. It's going to be SO good!

Friday Eve

A fellow 'foodie' forwarded this recipe to me. Come to think of it, I think I MADE this one time!


Jose Cuervo Christmas Cookies

1 cup of water
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup of sugar
1 tsp salt
1 cup of brown sugar
1 cup lemon juice
4 large eggs
1 cup nuts
2 cups of dried fruit
1 bottle Jose Cuervo Tequila

Sample 1 level cup of the Cuervo to check the quality. Take a large bowl, check the Cuervo again, to be sure it is still of the highest quality, pour another level cup and drink.

Turn on the electric mixer. Beat one cup of butter in a large fluffy bowl. Remove butter paper wrapper from bowl.

Add one teaspoon of sugar..Beat again. At this point it's best to make sure the Cuervo is still OK, try another leveler cup ...just in case.

Turn off the mixerer thingy.. Break 2 eggs and add to the bowl and chuck in the cup of dried fruits, pick the frigging fruit off floor...
Mix on the turner. If the fried druit gets stuck in the beaterers just pry it loose with a drewscriver. Sample the Cuervo to check for tonsisticity.

Next, sift two cups of salt, or something. Who giveshzasheet. Check the Jose Cuervo. Now shift the lemon juice and strain your nuts. Add one table. Add a spoon of sugar, or somefink. Whatever you can find.
Greash the oven.

Turn the cake tin 360 degrees and try not to fall over. Don't forget to beat off the turner. Finally, throw the bowl through the window, finish the Cose Juervo and make sure to put the stove in the dishwasher.

CHERRY MRISTMAS

Friday Morn

OK..... I'll admit it........ I, too, had an affair with Tiger Woods........ now I'm just waiting for my hush money from the golfing superstar.

Seriously, my roast chicken last night was absolutely scrumptious! LOTS of leftovers in the fridge and about a gallon of stock prepared and ready to freeze today.

Although my daughter in Coopersville got about 7" of snow, we only received about 1/2" here in Hastings - but more is on the way....

Thursday Morn

I've come to the conclusion that, despite all of the great food that I love to cook (and to eat!), few things are as comforting to me as a morning piece of crispy, chewy TOAST. Now I'm not talkin' about yer tasteless, vanilla white bread. My local market bakes ciabatta bread in a dome shape and I think it's wonderful - especially when I can find loaf that hasn't been sliced yet. I like a thick slice, toasted so that the outside is crispy yet the inside is warm and really chewy. With REAL butter! Yummmmmmm.

OK, it hasn't started started snowing here yet so I'm going to the market to pick up some more essentials - many for the future cooking necessary for the wedding I'm catering here.

But, in anticipation of a couple of days when I'm NOT gonna wanna go out, I'm roasting a chicken.

Monday Morn

Had a GREAT weekend down in NC visiting relatives that I hadn't seen in a long time. A great meal of spaghetti and especially the key lime pie!!

Sunday night was finally the night for hot turkey sandwiches - OMG soooooo delicious!

Don't know what I'll make for tonight yet.... but home to Michigan tomorrow.

Friday Morn

Going OUT to dinner tonight! Chinese!! I haven't had Chinese in a l o n g time - should be great!! (and I don't have to cook!)

Thanksgiving Eve

Had a wonderful turkey meal today...... and two small turkey sandwiches tonight! waHOO! STILL plenty of leftovers!

Thanksgiving Morn

Turkey and stuffing are in the oven - nothing fancy, just the traditional style. Made my pearl onions in cream sauce yesterday cause it's ALWAYS better when reheated. Giblets are simmering.

Only things left are the potatoes and some winter squash. It will be a wonderful meal!

Tuesday Afternoon

Making homemade pizzas tonight for a small gang. Got my pizza peel and pizza stone. Dough is ready, sauce is ready, already sliced the onions, mushrooms, red & green peppers, the homemade meatballs, the bacon and the slivered the pepperoni, . I'll let people tear their own pieces of ham and fresh basil for the top. They're gonna put their own toppings on and I'll just have to bake 'em!

They're gonna be AWESOME!

Monday Eve (2)

Just a photo of the sea bass plate

Monday Eve

Made a SPECTACULAR dinner tonight AND also found the grocery store of my dreams!

Those of you from Michigan should recognize the store named Meijers. It's a GREAT store (kind of a combination of a WalMart and a great grocery. And I always thought that it was the BEST grocery I'd ever seen. But I was in a grocery store today that was about the same size as Meijers but was ENTIRELY grocery! It's called Wegmans.

Found fresh Sea Bass, pan fried it gently and also made mashed taters w/a taste of Parmesan and sauteed asparagus with garlic and a sprinkle of lemon. ABSOLUTE HEAVEN!

Sunday Eve

Spent a wonderful saturday evening with great friends in Newport News, VA. Wonderful meal sat night of duck and a potato souffle! And today for lunch, OYSTERS!!! Had both fried oysters and grilled oysters with a corn/tomato salad.

Thursday Afternoon

I know, I know..... I haven't blogged in a couple of days...... no big reason other than I had nothing exciting to report. Had a hamburger last night - big deal.

BUT TONIGHT

On my last night here in Western Michigan (before a 10-day trip back East), I've made some au gratin potatoes (with Gruyere cheese) and am grilling a couple of chicken thighs.

HINT: if you wanna make it rain here, go light the grill!! sheesh!

Anyhow, the thighs are with my family recipe baste and they're gonna be GREAT!

Although I'll be out of town, I'm sure I'll still be cooking so, to all you diehards, follow along. Posts to come!

Tuesday Morn

Had chicken last night. Sauteed a couple of chicken tenders and was makin' myself a garlic sauce to go with 'em. Went to add just a bit of lemon juice (from a bottle) and added MUCH too much.

POOF!

LEMON CHICKEN!!

(But it was still quite tasty!)

Sunday 4:15pm

Just browned, drained and froze 5 lbs of ground beef and Italian sausage in preparation for some HUGE lasagnas that I'll make in a couple of weeks.

Sunday Morn

No new recipe today - just leftovers for dinner (stuffed pepper and a bit of chicken from yesterday) - they'll BOTH still be tasty!

My back is officially OUT due to quite a bit of time spent in my attic yesterday. It's a large attic but you can't really call it a 'walk - in', more like a 'crouch - in'..... had to clean up stuff on the floor and sort stuff since my 'ex' left it in such disarray. Good news is that I got a bunch done - back news is that I can barely move today.

So, COOK, EXPERIMENT and ENJOY! If you ever wanna share recipes, email me at tomwheeler@me.com and I can post 'em here..... or start your own blog.... I think there's a way I can possibly link to it from here.

Saturday Morn

The stuffed pepper last night was WONDERFUL! The 'gravy' was so full of flavor (and meat!) that I could only eat HALF of a pepper though - s'OK, I saved the other half - maybe tomorrow.

Today I've got another of those hankerings to have chicken. Just took a frozen breast from the freezer. Will pound it flat, flour, egg and crumb it and saute. Top it with some sharp mustard, a thin slice of ham and then provolone and under the broiler for a sec. I hope I have some roasted peppers in the fridge! They are EXCELLENT underneath all those layers of flavor!! Mashed potatoes as a starch but I wanna find some fresh veggie at the market.

Friday Afternoon - JAZZ

I found this thru FaceBook but I'd imagine that you could get there just thru the url..... it's a free stream of jazz music and all you have to do is become a 'fan' (perhaps you DO have to be thru FB, I'm not sure)..... but, if you like jazz (like I do!), check it out!

http://jazzmusicnetwork.net

Fri 1:30 EST

Pepper is defrosting.........sauce is made and cooling but I CAN'T KEEP MY TASTING SPOON OUTA IT!!!!! It is sooooooo scrumptious.

Which brings me to another point - TASTE and recipes

Recipes are merely guidelines to SOMEONE ELSE'S TASTE. Yes, for something you've never made before, they're a good guideline. But a recipe is NOT the same as 'baking directions' - baking depends on exact measurements to achieve a desired result. Recipes are guidelines but you must feel free to add, subtract, substitute, season to MAKE IT YOUR OWN!

Sorry - got interrupted by a salesman at the door but, on the walk back to the puter, I just HAD to taste the Sunday Gravy once again...... OMG!!!!!

OK..... remember that I'm a single guy, cooking only for myself. If I ever make something for 'company', I'll make what I want, to MY taste. I hope they like it, but, HEY, I don't own a restaurant and don't need to cook to other people's tastes. AND NEITHER DO YOU!

Cook.... adapt...... change....... experiment! AND NEVER GIVE UP!

Lecture over....... read chapter 5 before our next class..... LOL

Friday Morn

Gonna have one of my stuffed peppers for dinner! Now all I have to do is to make a sauce - think I'll make my version of 'Sunday Gravy'. I researched the origin/meaning of Sunday Gravy and the best (compilation) I could come up with was 'an American term for a tomato-based sauce including extra pieces of pork and/or beef along with the cooking juices thereof, often simmered for hours.

Most of the recipes I've seen introduce some pork ribs/spare ribs into the sauce as well as beef so I went a step further and added some left-over chunks of pot roast along with some gravy to a homemade marinara along with some additional spices.

I've gotta get that simmering if it's gonna be ready - there are SOME things that always taste better after cooling and reheating and I've found that THIS is one of 'em! So I've gotta get it heating so it can cool and I can then reheat for the stuffed pepper later!

Thursday Eve - the MOST succulent Pork Chop!

You may recall an earlier post here where I tried brining a pork tenderloin. Well the other day I saw a couple of thick pork chops at the market marked down to less than $4.00 total! I froze one and brined the other. Used a variation of the commercial 'Oven Fry' technique (dredge in egg, then bread crumbs (actually a combination of bread crumbs and Panko crumbs), then into a shallow pan in a 425 oven for about 20 minutes (turning halfway through).

The result was a juicy, not over-cooked, ultimately succulent, crispy pork chop. Served with (what we grew up with as) creamed potatoes (cooked, diced potatoes in a cream sauce [with some grated Gruyere that I fished outa the fridge]).

AWESOME!

Thursday Morn-I envy TV Chefs

I LOVE to cook (as if THAT'S not obvious!) and I really like the cooking shows on TV. But just ONCE I'd like to see an entire episode dealing with all of the off-camera people that HAVE TO CLEAN UP ALL THOSE PANS, BOWLS AND CUTTING BOARDS between 'takes'. It must be nice to be a chef in a restaurant setting - being a guy who can just COOK and never has to scrub pots or broiler pans - who never has to empty and then reload the dishwasher just to find the chinois - to be the guy that HAS more than one of each size of whisk (the one you need is ALWAYS dirty, ya know).

I mean, let's take "Boy Meets Grill" with Bobby Flay..... I really like that show! BUT..... does he, like, get a new grill for each episode??? The last time my grill racks looked like that it was still sitting in the showroom! Or pick ANY show (Ina's "Contessa", Guy's "Big Bite", Tyler's "Ultimate"... ANY of 'em) and take a look at their ovens. Granted, they are probably self-cleaning models but even THOSE need some elbow grease. "Put the chicken in at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes to crisp the skin..." CRISP THE SKIN???? That'd leave a layer of grease spatters that would take a whole CAN of EASY-OFF to remove in MY oven!

And can we talk about their 'Magic Sinks"? "Scoop the mixture out of the bowl and into the pan and we'll put the bowl in the sink" - next thing you see is that that bowl has DISAPPEARED!!! I WANT ONE O'THOSE SINKS!!!

I do my best to clean up after myself while I'm working in the kitchen - washing pots, loading the dishwasher etc. but it often piles up while I need to stay and keep stirring the polenta or sauteing the onions. I don't MIND cleaning up, I guess, I just wish it didn't take more time than cooking the meal in the FIRST place!

OK..... rant over.

Wednesday Afternoon

I was planning a thick, leftover pot roast panini sandwich for dinner when I realized that I needed a tomato. So I went to the local market. A SALE ON GREEN BELL PEPPERS!! WooHOOO! Bought three and came home, defrosted some ground beef, added a chopped (precooked) Italian sausage, some left-over homemade tomato sauce from the fridge, added some Italian seasonings and some sauteed onions and a big helping of grated cheddar. Made a small portion of Basmati rice and added THAT.... and........ VOILA! STUFFED PEPPERS!!!!

I didn't par-boil the peppers (as usual) cause I'm gonna freeze these..... and when heated again, the peppers always get even too tender.......

INTO THE FREEZER!!!!! They'll be GREAT!!!!!!

Wednesday Morn-Pot Roast Recipe (long)

Someone utilized the new checkboxes at the end of each post and checked the "I want the recipe".... sooooo here goes.

Lately I've been using bottom round roasts (smaller ones - cause they've been on sale!) but you could also use chuck. Chuck will take a little longer to trim after cooking, though, but it has more fat to make the meat really tender.

I've cooked these in pots ON the stove but lately I only use the oven. My fave is a big cast iron pt with a cover (cover is necessary!)

First, depending on the size of the roast, heat the pot on the stove under medium heat and saute some bacon (I always cut my bacon in half and I use anywhere between 3 HALF pieces to 6 half pieces. Cook until crisp. EAT THE BACON - YOU DESERVE IT!! LOL)

Next, salt & pepper the roast on all sides and brown in the bacon fat ON ALL SIDES. It should be deep brown. Remove to a platter.

Melt about 2 Tbsp butter in the pot and saute onions, chopped celery (big pieces) and carrot pieces. Salt & pepper. Saute only until light brown and add 2 - 3 shots of a good red wine. Stir to scrape up brown bits. Also add about 1 Tbsp tomato paste or perhaps 1/4 cup tomato sauce. Add whatever spice/herbs you like at this point - basil, dill, parsley, thyme.... any of these or any combination.

Return the roast to the pot and add beef STOCK to just below 1/2 way up the roast - remember, you're BRAISING, not BOILING.

COVER and put into a preheated oven at 325. Start watching a football game, mow the lawn or otherwise find something else to do for about 1 1/2 hours. Remove the pot and turn the roast and replace into the oven. Watch the second half of the game or a Netflix movie for another hour or hour and a half, depending on the size of the roast.

Remove from the oven and place on the unheated stove for about 20 minutes, still covered.

Now, remove the roast to a cutting board and cover with foil.

Either strain the stock or, ideally, use a chinois (look it up if you don't know what that is). If you used chuck, the stock will have a bit of fat in it. You COULD cool it and skim it OR you could just buy a handy gravy separator and pour off the stock and discard the fat. I usually put the stock into a smaller pot at this point. It may be necessary to reduce the stock (boil). I always use flour to thicken but use what you're comfortable with (like cornstarch). Whichever you're using, remember that it doesn't thicken until it boils. So start with HOT stock, stir in a little thickener, reheat while whisking, judge thickness and repeat as necessary.

NOW you can check the seasoning and salt & pepper as necessary.

ENJOY! - I hoe this is what you were looking for :-)

Tuesday Morn

Made another Pot Roast last night. Yeah, I know, it seems like I'm overdosing on pot roast lately but truthfully, it's REALLY inexpensive (cheaper than hamburger often) and can make a delicious meal (or three or four!).

Anyway, TOM'S TIP FOR THE DAY! (LOL)
I've been experimenting with my pot roast (and gravy) for some time now. Don't overlook adding even MORE layers of flavor to the inexpensive but satisfying meal. i.e. after you brown the meat, remove it from the pot and saute some onion, celery and carrots (big chunks). Then before you return the meat to the pot, deglaze with a couple of shots of a nice red wine and add either some tomato paste (I love the stuff in the toothpaste tube!) or even some leftover spaghetti sauce, warm again and then add the roast. Now add enough beef stock (NOT broth - see below) to come 1/2 way up the roast or so. Cover and braise about 2 - 2 1/2 hours at about 300. Naturally add whatever spices you like before cooking - I really like a little basil. You'd be surprised the depth of flavor that the wine and tomato add to the roast and to the resultant gravy.

OK - Stocks vs. Broths There is definitely a place for broths but personally I hardly ever use them. Stocks, on the other hand, are traditionally made using the bones of whatever flavor and are a much more concentrated flavor (usually with MUCH less salt!!). The result is more flavor, less salt and a more satisfying 'mouth coat' to whatever you are making. Yes, they're a bit more expensive, but you're worth it!

Monday Morn - Wine Stoppers

In response to a recent comment, I'm posting just a few pics of some of my recent stoppers. I used to have a picture gallery online (actually, it's still there) but the pics are of my older stoppers and I just don't find the time to update them all.

So, here are some pics of some more recent ones. For some reason these pics don't post here in the order I intended so the reference in one of them to the 'previous pic' makes no sense - but you'll get the idea.

Sunday Eve

The new method of sealing the edges of the ravioli works WONDERS - NO MORE CRIMPING THE EDGES!! Crimping only toughens the edges and they NEVER cook properly.

The meat ravioli were awesome...... with a simple tomato sauce and some buttered bread, it was a wonderful meal! And I still have about 25 of them frozen!

And dessert was awesome also - a Bill Knapp's glazed cruller..... ohhhhhh heaven.

Sunday Afternoon

As if homemade pasta isn't messy ENOUGH, my first batch was much too dry..... wouldn't roll well at ALL...... soooooo off to the store to buy more ingredients (that were on the shopping list but I didn't need right away) and another batch (with an extra egg) is now resting in the fridge.

I had already made a meat filling (with ground beef and sausage and a bit of my homemade ricotta) so that'll keep. Now I just have to wait an hour and then start to roll (AGAIN!)

I'll let you know how it turns out.

Saturday Afternoon

I just HAD to have chicken today.... don't know why.... just HAD to. Went to the market but the cheapest chicken was a whole fryer. Sooooooo, a roasted chicken is dinner tonight - WELL within the budget! (Just hate to have the whole 'clean-up thing' but I'll cope.

BTW, Please, PLEASE leave a comment (or at least check something under RESPONSES)....... ya gotta understand that I have absolutely NO idea just how many people view this blog unless someone comments..... and sometimes I feel like it's kinda pointless. So leave a repsonse - either a Comment or a Resonse and let me know that you're there. Otherwise this seems kinda pointless.

Friday Afternoon

My burger patty is made/formed..... had to buy 2 lbs of ground beef to get the sale price today so I had to find a use for the rest. Made 2 other burgers that I'll freeze and to the balance, added some cooked Italian sausage and some spices/herbs, sauteed onions and the last of my fresh ricotta cheese to make a tasty filling for my next batch of homemade ravioli (which I should probably do this weekend!).

OK, even I was confused....

To leave a comment now, you just have to click on the text that says i.e. "0 Comments" or "1 Comment" (or whatever) beneath each post. You can then type/add a comment. OR you can just use the Reactions check boxes and NOT type in anything - either/both. Just helps me to know if anyone other than my immediate family is reading this drivel....... LOL

More Friday Morn

You may notice that I've added another way of 'commenting' below the Comments section - it's call Reactions. Feel free to use it.

Friday Morn

Well it's only 30 degrees outside this morning but it's supposed to warm up to about 50 by mid-afternoon. I think I'm just gonna grill a burger tonight - haven't grilled in a coupla weeks. w/cheese, LT & Mayo and maybe bacon on a toasted bakery roll! If I get really ambitious, I'll make some homemade french fries - nowadays that's cheaper than buying a bag of chips!

Thursday Afternoon

Woke up early this morning (1:45am)....... coffee...... took my usual pills....... a few hours later I was feelin' kinda queasy. Could be all that I ate last night or the little sleep that I got..... I dunno..... anyhow, I decided to cook something easy tonight.

Tonight: sauteed chicken tenders over chicken dressing, then baked..... mashed potatoes, sauteed summer squash. Should be great!

Wednesday Afternoon

Made my 'Beef Stew' (more accurately termed, 'Pot Roast Stew')..... big chunks of leftover pot roast, diced potatoes, carrots (both par boiled), pearl onions and, of course, GRAVY! The peas will go in last (just to heat).

Don't know if I wanna spend the time to make biscuits or just serve over Ciabatta bread...... will prob go with the easier of the two.

It's gonna be A W E S O M E !!!

Meanwhile, I'm watching (for the first time) "Heroes"..... still on season 1

Wednesday Morn

How could I have forgotten about fried rice?!?! It was wonderful! I just kept eating it and eating it until it was all gone!

No idea what's for dinner tonight but it'll probably have something to do with leftover pot roast...  Rain/snow flurries forecast so maybe..... a STEW!

Tuesday Afternoon

I JUST thought of something I haven't made in AGES! And it sounded so good I'm gonna make it for supper tonight.

CHICKEN FRIED RICE!!!!

Rice is already partially cooked and in the fridge, now I just have to saute a couple of chicken tenders, chop some veggies and I'm ready!

Monday Noon

My braised bottom Round Roast was exceptional! And the gravy was the best I've ever made!! (And I've made a LOT of pot roast gravy!)

It was SO good I just HAD to take a thin slice of it this morning just to prove I wasn't dreaming........

A little shopping today - some essentials but I found the same sale on that roast in another market - will freeze that one. Where else can I get three or four meals for about $5.10????

Guess what's for dinner tonight? (But I promised someone that I'd freeze about a cup of that gravy just for them).

Sunday Morn

Actually 'Plan B' last night was probably better than Plan A would have been! I found a oneless chicken breast in the freezer, defrosted it and pounded it thin. Flour, egg and Panko crumbs and a saute with an oven finish for a couple of minutes and then lightly spread with a sweet honey mustard. Along with a baked potato, it was wonderful!

Today I'm gonna braise that bottom round roast I got on sale for $1.99/lb.... wooHOOOO!

DAMN!

RATS! A FIRST for me...... grrrrrrr......... I had prepared my 'one-skillet-meal' for tonight...... a kind of meal we used to call 'Spanish Rice' back home (cooked rice, hamburger, tomato sauce - along with my own spices and chopped carrots, chopped onions and chopped celery)...... it smelled great! A misnomer, I know, but whatever.

So it was basically all cooked and I was just keeping it warm in the skillet on the stove. 

AND I FELL ASLEEP!

I awoke to a burned mess and a smell of of burned food!

OK.... PLAN B........ (don't know what PLAN B is, but.......)

Saturday Morn

Cleaned the kitchen this morning - I'm getting SO tired of dirtying so many dishes just to make a single meal for myself... Tonight is going to be something SIMPLE - don't know what yet but if it's gonna take more than one pot/pan I'm not doin' it!

Then I haveta hide from the Trick or Treat-ers....... hate to do that but, on my street, we can easily get upwards of 700 ghosts/goblins and at this point it's a choice between feeding kids candy or paying for healthcare.

BTW my efforts to eat on $3.50/day are falling a little short. Right now I'm at about $5.50 - BUT I DID buy meat etc that's still in the freezer so that will even out over time. 

Happy Halloween all and don't forget to 'Fall Back' tonight.

FRIDAY MORN

Raining once again and a good stay to stay inside. Am cooking up a small batch of pasta sauce and adding some homemade meatballs. Also baking a cake to satisfy my sweet tooth.

Already vacuumed, will work on some other cleaning thing a little later.

Thursday Morn (2)

WOOHOOOO!! A sale day at the market!!!!  Spent a lot more than I intended but I got some great deals! Bunches of broccoli $1 ea, 26 oz cans of spaghetti sauce $1 ea, large bottom round roasts reduced from $4.29 to $1.99/lb (WOW) AND Johnsonville sausages on sale too (they're poaching right now and then to the freezer)!

Now usually I don't purchase canned/bottled spaghetti sauce because I prefer to make my own BUT I've had really good luck 'doctoring' some basic spaghetti sauces (like I bought today) and making them taste pretty darn good. So I figured for $1, I couldn't go wrong. 

Thursday Morn

Sorry everyone..... I've been a little busy and not cooking very much. Was invited out to breakfast by a friend yesterday so I wasn't very hungry at dinner. Just had that little piece of leftover stuffed chicken breast with some leftover potatoes (YES, I DO have leftovers....LOL).

BUT I had purchased (on sale, natch) a thick piece of chuck that I had to get cooking so I braised that last night. I'll finish that today and that'll be dinner! Have a couple of things to pick up at the store so I'll also look for some fresh veggies - got a craving for something fresh and green (green beans? asparagus? - we'll see....). I also might pick up some boneless chicken breasts (gotta LOVE chicken!) 'cause it's on sale this week. 

Next week is supposed to be MUCH colder so get ready for stews and soups next week!

Tuesday Morn

Was tired last night so I went to bed early. Unfortunately that means that I AWOKE early (3:00am). Continued reading "THE LOST SYMBOL" over coffee. Then, for a break, went to the garage and finished 5 new stoppers. Need to make a few more if I'm going to display at the Arts & Crafts Show on Nov 14th.

Later this morning I need to cook the rest of the ravioli as well as the sauce and make the salad - am bringing lunch to friends at the local bank today.

Never Afraid To Admit My Mistakes

OK..... that recipe doesn't work...... granted, my chicken breast was extra large but NO amount of time at 450 would brown it..... and it still wasn't done on the inside. I should have stuck a little more with the original. 

So.........

Forget the crumbs...... stuff the breast as written. 

Brown the breast in a saute pan and bake at 350 for 25 minutes. 

THAT should do it.

In my defense, the taste is just AWESOME..... just a difference in cooking methods.

On the plus side, probably no one has read this (or will) so I'm sure I haven't spoiled anything.

The Plan for Dinner Tonight

I originally saw this recipe used with Blue cheese and the chicken breast wrapped with bacon. I've modified it a bit and think it's even BETTER! Sorry it's so long but so many people have been requesting recipes that..... well, here it is....... adjust the quantities for the number of chicken breasts you're making.

Boneless, skinless chicken breast (on sale this week)

Cream cheese, softened (for 1 breast I used about 3 oz)

sliced bacon (1/2 slice per breast)

chopped chives (can use dried)

bread crumbs

Panko bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 425

Fry the bacon until crisp, drain and chop fine.

Add some chives and the chopped bacon to the softened cream cheese and let stand for at least 30 minutes (to let the dried chives soften)

Make a mixture of 1/2 and 1/2 bread crumbs and Panko crumbs.

Cradle the chicken breast in your hand with the thicker side UP. Insert a very sharp paring knife into the thick side, make an opening about 1 1/2 inches long. Move the paring knife to cut a 'pocket' inside the breast without any exit wound. 

Stuff the breast 'pocket' with the cheese mixture.

Rub just a bit of olive oil onto the breast and season the breast with salt and pepper

Roll breast in bread crumb mixture (You could make this simpler by using Shake n' Bake, I suppose)

Bake on a foil-lined pan for about 20 minutes.

NOTE: In order to bake more evenly and avoid the cheese possibly running out the slit in the breast, I used one of those adjustable roasting racks that allows you to adjust the width of the rack. This way, the breast can roast upright with the slit on the top!

Posts/Comments

It should be easier to post a 'comment' now - I think I've figured out the proper settings in this blog. Forgive me.

Monday Morn

The ravioli was WONDERFUL! Above you'll see a pic of the first batch I made. I did 45 ravioli total and could've done probably 60 but ran out of filling. There's also a pic of the 'left-over' dough after using the new ravioli stamp - works like a charm!

Seriously, if you've never tried making your own pasta, you should. It's very easy and would be a great family activity! 

Sunday Morn

Just finished making 45 ravioli...... could've made a few more but I ran outa filling (will have to adjust that whenever I make more - could've prob made 60 total).

The new KitchenAid roller attachment is a GODSEND!!!!! It made rolling the dough almost effortless! And I could use both hands to guide the input and output of the dough. I also used th new ravioli stamp mentioned in previous blog - they look VERY professional!!

I took pictures but will have to reduce 'em to post them here. Look for a future blog as well as one on how thy taste later tonight. Most are going to some friends for lunch on Tuesday so I won't cook those until Tuesday Morn.

Sat Late Afternoon

OK, I've decided on ravioli (prob cause I want to use my new ravioli stamp). Made the 3 cheese filling and the dough for the ravioli. Won't roll it till tomorrow. The filling is WONDERFUL! The sauce is what is called Sunday Gravy - a meat juice base with meat in a  tomato sauce - a very hearty and flavorful sauce to contrast with the (somewhat) bland cheese ravioli.

Ricotta Comparison

OK.... so I DID go out and buy a tub of Ricotta. First of all, it cost $3.30. Second, the contents are only about 1/3rd of the volume of what I made. Result: it's DEFINITELY cost effective to make your own. Taste results: difficult - BUT there's a HUGE difference in consistency! The store-bought version is much more grainy, almost 'sandy' in comparison to the creamy consistency of the homemade version. 

Since this 'cheese' would be in a hot dish (and melt), I would DEFINITELY make my own as opposed to buying it over-the-counter. (Of course, if I lived in a large city and had access to a big Italian deli, I might change my mind).

Saturday Morn - Ricotta Success!

Another cool, rainy day   :-(

At least my ricotta experiment is a big success! Almost lie a very, very fine cottage cheese. I'm not a big ricotta fan but it's a main ingredient in lasagnas and cheese ravioli so I'm glad it turned out so well. As for taste, that's difficult for me to determine - I hesitate to go out and BUY a tub of it to compare tastes but I may have to do that. 

Cost for the resultant approx 3 cups was roughly $2.50.... I guess I'll HAVE to buy a tub now in order to compare both taste AND price.... but....... since last night's chicken pie was at $0.00 maybe I can afford that.

Haven't decided whether I should make lasagna or cheese ravioli. I just received my dandy ravioli 'stamp' (imagine a cookie cutter but thicker w/scalloped edge).... HEY.... I just found a pic of it. - it's at the top of the post here. EITHER way, I get to use my new KitchenAid Pasta Roller attachment - waHOOO! (Yeah, I know..... "Small things amuse small minds".....  :-)....)

I'll keep blogging.... though I still have no idea how many people read this.

Friday

It's a cold and rainy day..... so what do I do? COOK, of course! 

I've already made a batch of 'faux' ricotta cheese - saw the recipe in a cooking mag and just HAD to try it. I've never been a big fan of ricotta but it's an essential for lasagna and considering my recent forays into homemade pasta, I figured I should try it. Easy recipe.... now draining in the fridge until tomorrow. Guess that means I'll be making lasagna sometime this weekend.

Speaking of lasagna, I DID buy the pasta attachment for my KitchenAid stand mixer - it came today.... cant WAIT to try it. It should make the whole pasta-rolling process much easier and quicker. The only thing is that the gradations on the roller go from 1 - 8 and the thickness levels are just backwards from the old hand-crank model I WAS using. Will just have to remember that when it's time.

Haven't decided whether it's my (last) bowl of 'chili stew' tonight or a chicken pie I made with last night's roast chicken. EITHER is gonna be awesome!

Dinner, Thursday

Had an AWESOME roasted chicken w/mashed taters and green beans. Enough left-overs to make 2 chicken pies (one small for me and a larger one for some friends) AND a half breast also!

Memories, memories..........

Thursday Mid-day

The day started out fairly nice but soon turned to rain. Was going to grill but decided to stay indoors and am roasting a small chicken ($4). I should get at least three meals out of that - waHOO! Spent $12.53 at the grocery - needed a gal of milk (for some homemade ricotta cheese-more on that as I make it), spices, the chicken, a loaf of ciabatta bread and some cream cheese (also for a meal-to-come). 

So right now, since I started keeping track, my daily average is about $6.26 (my goal was $3.50, remember?). But that'll go way down as have have meal after meal.

BTW, I'm not adding in costs of things that I already have in the house - that would be too complicated. It'll average out over the course of time.

I'll post last about the final meal tonight.

Oops - I forgot

I also added about 1/3 cup of rice to the mix and let everything simmer till it was cooked.

First 'budget' dinner

If you read the last post, you know what this is all about. Tonight's dinner is something I call 'Chili Stew'. I can't eat regular chili (the cost of the subsequent TUMS would ruin my budget!).

So, I had some left-over pot roast (VERY tender!) - cut it up into smaller pieces, added a can of chili beans, a little left-over homemade pizza sauce, some chopped green pepper and red pepper (both already in stock),chopped onion and garlic and some spices. VOILA! CHILI STEW! It needed a bit of salt and I ate it with some buttered bread - AWESOME!

Total cost - $0.00

Personal Budget and a change in spending

Sheesh! I got word the other day that my healthcare insurance is increasing by about 300%. That's gonna put a MAJOR crimp in my budget and force some hard decisions. Until the house sells and I can move to a more temperate climate (and save on Michigan heating costs), one of the few budget items I can control is food. Soooooooo, I've established a new goal..... low-budget meals. At least some of you know that I have a long-standing habit of eating only once/day. I've been that way for years now and it works for me. Now - the budget. I'm establishing a goal of $3.50/day. I know that sounds really low but it's a starting point. And I'm NOT intending to eat $1.00 double cheeseburgers at Burger King, or eating a whole bunch of Hamburger Helper (or dog food!) either!

Consider, I can buy a decent size pot roast for maybe $6 - $7 and have at least three meals out of it. Add potatoes or another starch and some veggies and I think it's doable. I'm gonna chart my expenditures and will adjust after a couple of months.

Yes, I'll be cutting back (mainly on more expensive cuts of meat) but, then again, I've been buying all my meats on sale lately anyway. And since it's only ME, I'm going to start being really creative.

So, you'll see some changes in my food blog here.... I'l keep you up-to-date on how the budget is looking (yeah, I anticipate some nights when I entertain or perhaps splurge but it's a 'goal').

BTW, this new budget thing does NOT include alcohol or tobacco - waddya think, I'm CRAZY! (I WOULD be if I had to include those!)

Stay tuned! And, as always, feel free to comment.

Family Pics

FINALLY here are some pics from my visit to Ann Arbor. 

Mezzaluna Success!

The mezzaluna was a BIG success!! The taste was great, none of them exploded or broke while cooking and the filling stood up to a light Alfredo sauce I made to go with 'em. They DID take a bit longer than expected to cook. Most recipes say that they're done when they float to the top of boiling water but mine were VERY underdone at that point. It took a couple more minutes before they were tender. 

A bit of browsing on the web, and I discovered the reason - I had let them dry on a cutting board for about 2 hours before cooking. If I had cooked them immediately, it would have reduced the time.... but no matter...... next time I'll know.

I might be getting to the point that I think about investing in a pasta-rolling accessory for my KitchenAid stand mixer. NOT that I'm opposed to the exercise I get cranking my handcrank pasta roller but, being the only person performing the whole operation, I always feel like I need to be an octopus with one hand holding/guiding the dough and another guiding the output of the dough and yet another turning the crank. I think it would go a whole lot faster with an electric model. (You see 'em in use on Iron Chef a lot)

Anyhow..... what I would do differently next time: I definitely want to experiment with more/different fillings....... I rolled the dough to a #4 setting on my pasta machine but I think I'll go to a #3 next time... no thinner, tho.... I think they wouldn't stand up. I may even try to make some for "Fried Ravioli" next time! And I may even try adding flavors to the pasta itself!

So, all-in-all, it was a HUGE success! What a sense of accomplishment!

Oh......... and then I opened my mail and found that my Health Insurance was jumping from $186/mo to $532/mo....... CRAP!!!!    C'monnnnnnn National Health Care!!!!!!

Forgot to mention

Technically these probably be referred to as 'ravioli'...... they're 'mezza luna' (trans. - half moon) pastas.

About 1:40pm

OK the filling was made (meat, onions, garlic, parmesan and a little cream) and then I started on the dough. The dough is always a long process - would be MUCH faster with 2 people, I'm sure!. I didn't know what thickness of dough to roll it (my pasta maker has settings from 7[thickest] to 1 [ultra thin]). In the past for noodles I've gone down to 1..... recipes varied in their recommendations so I guessed and rolled it to a '4'...... cut the sheets with a 3 1/4" round cookie cutter. Painted the edges with egg wash and spooned in the filling. Then I pinched the edges in my fingers and finally used a fork to crimp each edge. You should be able to see pretty well in the two pics.

Right now they're drying a bit. Will report on the taste either later tonight or tomorrow morn.

Even MORE Monday Morn

Looks like a nice enough day to mow the lawns. In preparation, I noticed that it looks like it's going to be much like last year when the three Maple trees (ranging from Large to HUGE - prob ranging from 80 - 150 yrs old) in my (enclosed) back yard WON'T color and fall until there's 6 inches of snow on the ground! They're still bright GREEN!!!  SHEESH! Not that I enjoy raking, but I hate the mess those soggy leaves leave when spring finally arrives. 

MORE Monday Morn

Going forward with the ravioli(see earlier post). Been reading ravioli filling recipes and decided to make a beef filling . Also ordered a round ravioli stamp (about $7).... wish I had one today, but........

Thinking of an Alfredo style cream sauce for the ravioli.......

Stay tuned.....

And

COMMENT!

Monday Morn

First of all, thanks to those who've commented (in other online venues like FaceBook etc) about this blog. Truthfully, because of the very nature of this free blog, I have no way of knowing just how many people are reading it (yeah, yeah, OK.... sometimes I wonder if ANYone is reading it!).

Anyhow, last night was a simple dinner - a small grilled steak, potatoes and some peas. Nothing to comment on - it was tasty.

This morning I was, for some reason, thinking about pirogues or ravioli. They have slightly different recipes for the 'pasta' outside and traditionally have totally different fillings, but my mind was thinking basically about them because of their shared, similar shapes. Since I'm trying to use up meat from the freezer, I think I'll make some homemade ravioli. I don't think I have to roll the dough as thin as I have for noodles/spaghetti and the extras (I'm SURE there'll be a bunch of extras!) should freeze well.

Look for the results tomorrow!

And please, leave a comment here (or a question)..... if only to let me know that you're reading the blog. My paranoid personality thanks you....   ;-)

Early Friday Morn re: PORK Brining

Yeah, yeah......I know I haven't posted for a few days but THIS one is really worth it for you fellow 'foodies' out there.

I saw a short piece on the internet on 'brining'. Now most of us have heard about the benefits of brining turkeys (moist white meat etc - Alton Brown did a whole show on it on Food Network). But the piece I saw was about brining PORK - specifically pork chops. The lean meat of a pork chop reacts similarly to a turkey breast (moistness).

So I figured that it should react the same with a piece of pork tenderloin. I had two smallish pieces in the freezer and decided to do a grilling comparison. I made a brine (very similar to the short internet piece I saw) of water, salt, sugar, spices and apple juice) and immersed one piece of tenderloin. The other piece, I simply marinated in my normal pork marinade (a homemade Italian salad dressing).

I grilled both pieces on the grill. When I figured they were done, I brought them inside and let them rest for about 5 minutes. I started by slicing (from the larger end of the tenderloin) the marinated piece. When I got to the 5th slice, I moved to the brined piece and sliced it likewise. I then sampled both of the 5th slices. The brined piece was noticeably more juicy!!

I must say, though, that the brining process doesn't seem to impart much flavor so the next time I think I'll use a basting sauce while grilling it. 

So there's my experiment in brining PORK - I'M A CONVERT!!!!

If anyone wants more info on the brining recipe, leave a comment and I'll post it.

Tuesday Afternoon

I tried a new recipe for my pizza dough last night - WHAT A DIFFERENCE!!! I found a wheat gluten additive that you add to the regular OO flour. A great difference in elasticity of the dough!! As always I used my homemade sauce and this time added slivered onions, slivered green peppers and sliced homemade meatballs - all with some provolone and a bunch of mozzarella........ it was wonderful!! I like a really fresh taste to my ingredients so I don't use a lot of spice on my pizza..... this one was just AWESOME!! I pit the pizza stone on the bottom rack in the oven and preheated to 500 degrees then used my pizza slip (peel) to slide the completed pizza onto the stone.

Seriously, if you haven't tried making your own pizza crust, you should!!!

Sunday morn

Had a great day yesterday with Jem (Jeremy) and Mariah in their new house...... cooked pot roast (a request, since he hadn't had it in a long while), mashed spuds, summer squash & carrots...... dessert was brownies with ice cream.

Mariah's parents are coming over this am and I've already made a breakfast casserole and will assemble a bacon/onion frittata in a little while.

Then it's back to Hastings

BTW, hats off to Jeff (a fellow 'foodie') who sent me a couple of very interesting articles to read!

In Ann Arbor

Awoke at 3:45am...... bought a GREAT magazine at CVS (open 24 hrs)....."Fine Cooking"..... I may have to subscribe! 4 cups of coffee at Big Boy while I read most of it. Next, food shopping (BIG list) for tonight's dinner (pot roast etc) and tomorrow's brunch for  8  (a big bkfst casserole plus a frittata)

Can't wait to see Jem & Mariah and their new house!!

Almost ready to leave

Going to Ann Arbor to visit my son and his partner, Mariah in their new home. Projects to do there.... and cooking! Had to pack cooking pots and some pie plates (perhaps for a quiche or two for Sunday Brunch!).

My poor PT Cruiser is almost full! YIKES! LOL  A rainy day to drive but I can take my time. Will try to post some from there this weekend.

Thursday dinner and the weekend

Dinner was just scrumptious! Sliced the steak into thin slices (but I didn't have any mushrooms - rats).

Will be in Ann Arbor for the weekend visiting my youngest son and his girlfriend - they bought a house there a couple of months ago and I haven't seen it yet. Evidently he has some 'projects' for me too. My daughter & grand daughter will be coming down also so that means that I'll be cooking a big dinner on Saturday night.