Let me tell you about Shirley. She's the most lovely person at the hospital. On the occasional Sunday morning at the hospital, the unit clerk will set the call bell to page and Shirley will sing a gospel song, piped into all the patient rooms. Once when one of my patients was on her way to heaven, the family heard this, and requested that Shirley come in the room and sing to mama, which she did without hesitation. Then, a little while later, when the mom passed, Shirley came back in the room and sang again. This resulted in the family asking her to sing at the funeral. She has the voice of an angel, and the sweetest disposition. I made pistolettes once and took them to work, and she flipped over them. She has asked me to make them for her son and herself for Christmas and I am more than happy to oblige. So here's how you do it:
Cut the ends off 12 pistolettes, and with a long fork, scoop out the middle. (I always save the insides in a freezer bag for breadcrumbs later). Then, with the Temptations singing Standing on the Top, chop 1 onion, add it to 1 lb ground beef in a skillet, and cook.
Cook a small pkg of chopped broccoli according to pkg directions, omitting salt.
Once the meat is brown, drain it and add 1 1/2 tsp worcestershire sauce, sprinkle in a little garlic powder and some cajun seasoning. Then add 1/2 lb velveeta, and cook on low to melt cheese. Jackson Browne is singing Your Bright Baby Blues, and all is right with the world.
Once the cheese is melted, add the broccoli to the meat mixture, and begin stuffing the pistolettes. Once each one is stuffed, replace the end that was cut off earlier, and secure it with a toothpick. Toby Keith is singing Who's Your Daddy? (you are, baby!)
Once all pistolettes are stuffed and their lids are secured, brush with melted butter and sprinkle with garlic powder. If you are serving them right away, place them in a 450 oven and cook 8-10 minutes til light brown. Careful---they burn easily.
I'm not cooking these, so i placed them in the freezer, and will deliver them to Shirley with baking instructions.
Sure hopes she knows what a blessing she is.
Speaking of blessings---here's a personal footnote:
Those of you who know me know that Dan is history---and all I can say about that is good riddance.
But I have been monumentally blessed with a husband who truly loves me, and although I think I'm a pretty neat chick, I don't know why in the world this man can forgive and forget the way he has. Of course, the hurt I felt in the marriage was little by little over the years, culminating in the break-up, but still I would never have expected him to do what he has done to prove to me that he's the right man for me, after the way I hurt him. So I will do all I can to encourage him and let him know he's loved and appreciated. My mom will be so happy!
L
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Friday, December 11, 2009
Texas Torte
There's a Christmas party at my second job at 5pm today, but I won't be able to attend, because I agreed to work at the hospital to allow the Rehab nurses to attend their own Christmas party. Still, I wanted to contribute something to my coworkers, and in keeping with the mexican theme they came up with, I decided to make this dish. I got this recipe many years ago from a lady I worked with, who, sadly, died a few years later of cancer. So this is dedicated to Kathy.
I set the oven to 350 to preheat, the Ipod to shuffle, and was greeted with Grover Washington Jr's "One Must Forgive". This man was probably the best smooth jazz sax player ever, and I could listen to him all day. This was a pretty long song, and the prep for this dish is fairly quick.
In a large bowl, I broke 2 eggs, added 2 tablespoons flour, 1/3 cup milk, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a 4 oz can of chopped green chiles. With a fork, I mixed all this together, then set about grating the cheese. Of course this can be done with a food processor, but that takes all the fun out of cooking for me, and it was pretty therapeutic to grate cheese to this beautiful song. I was nearly finished grating the 1/2 lb of monterey jack when the song went off, and Five O'clock World by the Vogues came on. This was a short song, and I barely got half of the 1/2 lb of cheddar grated before it went off, and I was serenaded by Seal singing Don't Cry. I finished up the grating, mixed everything together, and poured the mixture into a parchment paper lined 8x13 pan. You can use non stick spray, I just prefer the paper.
Into the oven, and I set my chicken timer for 35 minutes, and cleaned up to Just Ask the Lonely by the 4 Tops. Now I wait, listening to Alright by Darius Rucker. Don't you just love that guy?
Anyway, I will deliver this yummy dish at 1pm today when I go into town, and I hope they enjoy it.
My thanks to Kathy.
I set the oven to 350 to preheat, the Ipod to shuffle, and was greeted with Grover Washington Jr's "One Must Forgive". This man was probably the best smooth jazz sax player ever, and I could listen to him all day. This was a pretty long song, and the prep for this dish is fairly quick.
In a large bowl, I broke 2 eggs, added 2 tablespoons flour, 1/3 cup milk, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a 4 oz can of chopped green chiles. With a fork, I mixed all this together, then set about grating the cheese. Of course this can be done with a food processor, but that takes all the fun out of cooking for me, and it was pretty therapeutic to grate cheese to this beautiful song. I was nearly finished grating the 1/2 lb of monterey jack when the song went off, and Five O'clock World by the Vogues came on. This was a short song, and I barely got half of the 1/2 lb of cheddar grated before it went off, and I was serenaded by Seal singing Don't Cry. I finished up the grating, mixed everything together, and poured the mixture into a parchment paper lined 8x13 pan. You can use non stick spray, I just prefer the paper.
Into the oven, and I set my chicken timer for 35 minutes, and cleaned up to Just Ask the Lonely by the 4 Tops. Now I wait, listening to Alright by Darius Rucker. Don't you just love that guy?
Anyway, I will deliver this yummy dish at 1pm today when I go into town, and I hope they enjoy it.
My thanks to Kathy.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Uh Oh Time For Beans and Cornbread Again!
Okay, so the Thanksgiving holiday is over and done, and this year no turkey!!! My mom baked a wonderful Petit Jean ham (15 pounds), and once all the carving was done she asked me if I had a pot big enough to cook it in (with beans of course!). Well, I did what all good foodies do---I lied and said yes. I mean, I can work this out, right?
So this morning, with the rain falling softly outside, and everything lovely and dark out, I got to work on that bone. Naturally, it was too long for my pot, but that wouldn't stop me. After trying the meat cleaver (didn't work), I just put that big boy in the pot with a good 1/3 of it sticking out and started boiling. I turned it often, so both ends would cook (and to keep the food spoilage police from my door), and once done, I stripped it so clean you would have thought buzzards had been on it.
With all those lovely chunks of ham floating around in the simmering broth, I poured in a bag of great northerns, and let it go. Ipod was set to shuffle, so all the while I listened to a veritable cornucopia of music, including Tears for Fears, Nickelback, Conway Twitty, Gary Allen, and Harry Chapin. Good company when cooking, I say.
I also say: Bring on the cornbread!!!!
So this morning, with the rain falling softly outside, and everything lovely and dark out, I got to work on that bone. Naturally, it was too long for my pot, but that wouldn't stop me. After trying the meat cleaver (didn't work), I just put that big boy in the pot with a good 1/3 of it sticking out and started boiling. I turned it often, so both ends would cook (and to keep the food spoilage police from my door), and once done, I stripped it so clean you would have thought buzzards had been on it.
With all those lovely chunks of ham floating around in the simmering broth, I poured in a bag of great northerns, and let it go. Ipod was set to shuffle, so all the while I listened to a veritable cornucopia of music, including Tears for Fears, Nickelback, Conway Twitty, Gary Allen, and Harry Chapin. Good company when cooking, I say.
I also say: Bring on the cornbread!!!!
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
A Mellow Day
Now that I've gotten my soup craving under control (last week I made Potato soup, Creamy Vegetable, paired with crawfish cornbread---yummm, and Cheesy Crawfish Tail soup), I'm ready to move on.
After working at my sweet little second job, I came home at 3 to the red and yellow bell peppers I bought on sale just for this meal. It's a mellow kind of day--cloudy outside, no stress from work, no one coming over, and just me, the peppers, and jazz music on the tv.
First, I cut the tops off the peppers and cleaned out the insides. Rather than your standard tomato sauce meatloaf rice concoction that is usually associated with stuffed peppers, I decided to take inspiration from a former friend. I cooked ground beef with onions and garlic, and added a can of undiluted cream of mushroom soup and some sliced mushrooms, seasoning with worc. sauce, creole seasoning, and celery flakes. I then spooned this mixture into the 4 decapitated peppers and replaced their heads. Into a preheated 350 oven to cook til the peppers are softened, then take the lids back off and top with grated cheddar cheese. Back into the oven to melt the cheese, and you almost have a crustless version of hamburger pie! I plan to serve this with wild mushroom risotto (you can buy this in a box at Target, and it's FABULOUS).
I got so into the rhythm of the cooking steps and the music that I didn't even take note of the songs floating around me, but the silky sounds couldn't have been a more perfect accompaniment to what I was doing. A glass of Barefoot cabernet doesn't hurt, either.
Enjoy!
After working at my sweet little second job, I came home at 3 to the red and yellow bell peppers I bought on sale just for this meal. It's a mellow kind of day--cloudy outside, no stress from work, no one coming over, and just me, the peppers, and jazz music on the tv.
First, I cut the tops off the peppers and cleaned out the insides. Rather than your standard tomato sauce meatloaf rice concoction that is usually associated with stuffed peppers, I decided to take inspiration from a former friend. I cooked ground beef with onions and garlic, and added a can of undiluted cream of mushroom soup and some sliced mushrooms, seasoning with worc. sauce, creole seasoning, and celery flakes. I then spooned this mixture into the 4 decapitated peppers and replaced their heads. Into a preheated 350 oven to cook til the peppers are softened, then take the lids back off and top with grated cheddar cheese. Back into the oven to melt the cheese, and you almost have a crustless version of hamburger pie! I plan to serve this with wild mushroom risotto (you can buy this in a box at Target, and it's FABULOUS).
I got so into the rhythm of the cooking steps and the music that I didn't even take note of the songs floating around me, but the silky sounds couldn't have been a more perfect accompaniment to what I was doing. A glass of Barefoot cabernet doesn't hurt, either.
Enjoy!
Monday, October 19, 2009
Potato Soup---Loaded
You're wondering---the soup or the cook, right? Alas, it's the soup. Although I am getting a little serenity help from a Chardonnay wine cube from Tar-Jay.
Anyhow, this is how it's done:
Cut Yukon Gold potatoes into a little bigger than bite-size cubes to the Cruisin by Smokey Robinson, and while those are coming to a boil, and your 4 slices of bacon are in the oven getting crispy, dice purple onion and fresh garlic to the tune of the Commodore's Brick House.
While the potatoes and bacon cook, pause to plug in the ipod and play a little air guitar to Heart's Crazy on You (don't you love that song!), and head to the computer to document your progress.
Here comes Lou Rawls with Save Your Love for Me, and the potatoes are done! Drain them, reserving the water and returning it to the pot while the potatoes cool. It isn't important that they cool, but it is important they don't cook anymore right now. Robert Palmer, in an appropriate moment, is singing Some Like it Hot, while the steam from the potatoes fogs up your glasses, and you then heat oil for the saute. In go the onions, while you dig through your spice box (yes, spice box, because my walk-in pantry is reduced to a footlocker), and OMG WTH is my whole nutmeg???? Oh, whew, found it.
Okay, now that I've calmed down and found the white pepper and celery flakes (Bloody Mary, yeah!) I can enjoy the Temps singing Hey Girl I Like Your Style. Add garlic to the onions on the stove, and go back in time with Tears for Fears: Shout. Thanks, Dan. (got some good tunes from him.)
Now I've put the sauteed onions and garlic in the reserved potato water and back on the burner, and crumbled the garlic. Time to chop green onions and grate some cheese!
Uh oh--while chopping green onions, have to take a break to dance my ass off to Jr Walker's Pucker up Buttercup!
Into the boiling pot go a package of cheese and sour cream potato flakes, plus a pkg of plain potato flakes, a tablespoon of butter, about a cup and a half of chicken broth, and about a cup of whole milk, with a little 1/2 and 1/2 for extra creaminess. Then toss in the grated velveeta, and stir til melted. Grate in some whole nutmeg (trust me), a pinch of cayenne pepper, white pepper and salt to taste, celery flakes, and add the cooked potatoes back to the pot, put the lid on, turn off the stove, and pour yourself a glass of wine and sit down and enjoy Moondance by Van Morrison, knowing you have silky heaven in a bowl waiting for you.
enjoy.
LeAnn
Anyhow, this is how it's done:
Cut Yukon Gold potatoes into a little bigger than bite-size cubes to the Cruisin by Smokey Robinson, and while those are coming to a boil, and your 4 slices of bacon are in the oven getting crispy, dice purple onion and fresh garlic to the tune of the Commodore's Brick House.
While the potatoes and bacon cook, pause to plug in the ipod and play a little air guitar to Heart's Crazy on You (don't you love that song!), and head to the computer to document your progress.
Here comes Lou Rawls with Save Your Love for Me, and the potatoes are done! Drain them, reserving the water and returning it to the pot while the potatoes cool. It isn't important that they cool, but it is important they don't cook anymore right now. Robert Palmer, in an appropriate moment, is singing Some Like it Hot, while the steam from the potatoes fogs up your glasses, and you then heat oil for the saute. In go the onions, while you dig through your spice box (yes, spice box, because my walk-in pantry is reduced to a footlocker), and OMG WTH is my whole nutmeg???? Oh, whew, found it.
Okay, now that I've calmed down and found the white pepper and celery flakes (Bloody Mary, yeah!) I can enjoy the Temps singing Hey Girl I Like Your Style. Add garlic to the onions on the stove, and go back in time with Tears for Fears: Shout. Thanks, Dan. (got some good tunes from him.)
Now I've put the sauteed onions and garlic in the reserved potato water and back on the burner, and crumbled the garlic. Time to chop green onions and grate some cheese!
Uh oh--while chopping green onions, have to take a break to dance my ass off to Jr Walker's Pucker up Buttercup!
Into the boiling pot go a package of cheese and sour cream potato flakes, plus a pkg of plain potato flakes, a tablespoon of butter, about a cup and a half of chicken broth, and about a cup of whole milk, with a little 1/2 and 1/2 for extra creaminess. Then toss in the grated velveeta, and stir til melted. Grate in some whole nutmeg (trust me), a pinch of cayenne pepper, white pepper and salt to taste, celery flakes, and add the cooked potatoes back to the pot, put the lid on, turn off the stove, and pour yourself a glass of wine and sit down and enjoy Moondance by Van Morrison, knowing you have silky heaven in a bowl waiting for you.
enjoy.
LeAnn
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Don't you just hate it?
Don't you just hate it when you find something you really like, and then it's no longer available?
It happens to me all the time, and it's infuriating. I happened upon a bottle of chocolate martini mixer a few months back, and once it was gone (and I was hooked), I went looking for more, only to find it nowhere. Then one day I went into a store and found espresso martini mix, which was also yummy. Once that was gone, I went to the company's website, AND IT'S NOT EVEN ON THERE! WHAT'S UP WITH THAT??? Well, not to be bested, I began to experiment, and voila! I've learned to make my own. All it takes is some prepared espresso (yes, I have an old-time espresso pot) and some simple syrup, which is nothing more than 1 part water and 2 parts sugar boiled on the stove for about 5 minutes. Let all this cool and mix the syrup into the espresso to your taste. Add vodka, and oh boy! If you like chocolate, add chocolate (I like the hershey's dark syrup), and use a microplane to shave a fine layer of chocolate (like dove dark candy) on top of the prepared martini, and it's heaven in a glass! Sometimes we have to improvise when we live in hickville.
Bottoms up!
LeAnn
It happens to me all the time, and it's infuriating. I happened upon a bottle of chocolate martini mixer a few months back, and once it was gone (and I was hooked), I went looking for more, only to find it nowhere. Then one day I went into a store and found espresso martini mix, which was also yummy. Once that was gone, I went to the company's website, AND IT'S NOT EVEN ON THERE! WHAT'S UP WITH THAT??? Well, not to be bested, I began to experiment, and voila! I've learned to make my own. All it takes is some prepared espresso (yes, I have an old-time espresso pot) and some simple syrup, which is nothing more than 1 part water and 2 parts sugar boiled on the stove for about 5 minutes. Let all this cool and mix the syrup into the espresso to your taste. Add vodka, and oh boy! If you like chocolate, add chocolate (I like the hershey's dark syrup), and use a microplane to shave a fine layer of chocolate (like dove dark candy) on top of the prepared martini, and it's heaven in a glass! Sometimes we have to improvise when we live in hickville.
Bottoms up!
LeAnn
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Walked Out This Mornin', Got Myself a Grill
I'd like to start by asking: WTF happened to my followers? I sure hope somebody fixes this soon.
Anyway, decided to pick up a grill today. Been in the mood for a little smoky taste. After careful shopping (looking for the cheapest), I brought it home and put it together, and voila! There's now a grill on my patio. Company's coming for supper tonight, so I'm cooking a pork roast on it.
I've already made a couple of salads, and they are chillin in the fridge. I'll also have some pasta with portabello mushroom sauce, and maybe some corn. A couple espresso martinis and I'll be in la-la land. I've got some jazz on the ipod (even though it's not raining), and life is good. My dinner companion is due any minute, so I'll sign off for now, with a special nod to my aunt Melanie in Tx. I'm happy that you are happy, and that's from my heart. Good talking to you after so long. Let's keep doing that. Ok there's the doorbell-gotta run.
L
Anyway, decided to pick up a grill today. Been in the mood for a little smoky taste. After careful shopping (looking for the cheapest), I brought it home and put it together, and voila! There's now a grill on my patio. Company's coming for supper tonight, so I'm cooking a pork roast on it.
I've already made a couple of salads, and they are chillin in the fridge. I'll also have some pasta with portabello mushroom sauce, and maybe some corn. A couple espresso martinis and I'll be in la-la land. I've got some jazz on the ipod (even though it's not raining), and life is good. My dinner companion is due any minute, so I'll sign off for now, with a special nod to my aunt Melanie in Tx. I'm happy that you are happy, and that's from my heart. Good talking to you after so long. Let's keep doing that. Ok there's the doorbell-gotta run.
L
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
A Perfect Rainy Day
That's what I'm talkin' about! It's been raining off and on for 4 days, and I just love it. After putting in 7 hours at my second job (Thank You, God, I love it), it was off to the store for bread making supplies. I had thrown out all my flour and potato flakes while unpacking and a moth flew out of the box, and to make a long story short, I know all about the moth plague, and didn't want any more of it. So there I was, at the checkout, paying for the supper I'm cooking Thurs night, when I realized that what I actually came for (bread flour and regular flour) was not in my basket. So back through the checkout after getting these items, and on to the house, praying the rain would continue forever. My friend and co-worker Charlotte had told me (after my aforementioned illness) that if I needed ANYTHING to let her know. Well, I needed her mother's potato bread recipe, that of course I lost in the move. True to her word, she handed it over within a day or two, all typed up and pretty!
So here I am, with the rain softly falling and the ipod kicking (Michael Buble got me started with his Sinatra-esque Summer Wind), warming milk to pour into the bread machine. John Denver took me home on the Country Road while i mixed the dry ingredients (bread flour, salt, sugar, potato flakes), and Gato Barbieri's sax seduced me while I made a well in the dry ingredients and added the yeast. 4 chunks of butter in each corner, and I set the bread machine to dough and let it do it's thing. It's still doing it. When done, I'll put the dough into a bread pan and bake it in the oven for the most perfect loaf of potato bread you have ever seen. In the meantime, I'm gonna listen to Barry White tell me he's gonna luv me luv me luv me, and try to resist the overwhelming urge to call him a liar.
If you want this recipe, just leave the request in my comments. I'm happy to share.
L
So here I am, with the rain softly falling and the ipod kicking (Michael Buble got me started with his Sinatra-esque Summer Wind), warming milk to pour into the bread machine. John Denver took me home on the Country Road while i mixed the dry ingredients (bread flour, salt, sugar, potato flakes), and Gato Barbieri's sax seduced me while I made a well in the dry ingredients and added the yeast. 4 chunks of butter in each corner, and I set the bread machine to dough and let it do it's thing. It's still doing it. When done, I'll put the dough into a bread pan and bake it in the oven for the most perfect loaf of potato bread you have ever seen. In the meantime, I'm gonna listen to Barry White tell me he's gonna luv me luv me luv me, and try to resist the overwhelming urge to call him a liar.
If you want this recipe, just leave the request in my comments. I'm happy to share.
L
Burnin' Down the House
Mishaps do occur in my kitchen from time to time, but this one nearly scared the bejesus out of me. One day last week I came in from work and decided to get creative in the kitchen. After cutting chicken breasts into bite size pieces and marinating them in italian dressing, I decided to incorporate some anduille sausage that had been languishing in the fridge for a week. I like to brown the chicken quickly, so I set my favorite skillet on the stove and set the heat all the way to high. I was multitasking as usual, chatting with an old friend online, and said "brb-need to start the chicken before the pan gets too hot". well, the pan was smoking, which seemed like a good thing, but I went ahead and reduced the heat a bit before adding about a tablespoon of olive oil. Apparently the temperature of the pan exceeded the burning point of the olive oil, and before I could blink, I heard POOF and there were flames licking the underside of my upper cabinets. Panicking, with my 6 month lease flashing before my eyes, I doused it with a glass of water, and immediately wondered if that was the best thing to do. It didn't help much, but shortly the flames died down enough to get the pan into the sink with water running full blast. My apartment was filled with smoke, and I opened the patio door to help clear it. I realized at this point that I had left my online friend Mike hanging, so I dashed off a quick note to let him know I would be back once the smoke cleared, evoking the old ROFL response from him. I wasn't going to be discouraged from creating, though. Once I got everything cleaned up, I started over, and the chicken, sausage and pasta was just delicious, thank you. Warning: please don't try this at home!
Friday, September 4, 2009
Beef Tips-LeAnn Style
On tonight's menu, we have beef tips over rice. I got the rice (Uncle Ben's, of course)started while the Intruders were singing Love is like baseball (3 strikes you're out, but apparently I didn't learn this lesson, and went for a 4th and even possibly a 5th. Time to get a clue, huh?)
Then on to a pound of pretty stew meat that I cut into small pieces while War wondered Why Can't We Be Friends? Next I diced an onion, and sauteed in a little olive oil. I then set the onion aside and tossed in the meat, while Stevie Wonder serenaded me with Sir Duke. Once the meat was browned, I removed it and let it mingle with the onions (how you durrin?), and hearing Diana Ross (accompanied by the Temps) crooning Someday We'll Be Together (keep dreaming, sister), I added 2 cups of water to the pan to deglaze, and dumped in 2 pkgs brown gravy mix, whisking fervently to remove lumps. Toss in a small palmfull of dried bell peppers, and let simmer a few minutes, whisking as needed. At this point, Cheryl Lynn is singing Got To Be Real (and I wholeheartedly agree). Meat, onions, into the gravy! I had to add a little extra water, because you don't want it too thick with all that beef, as it has to distribute well over all that rice.
Now we simmer for about 10 minutes or so, just to make sure all the flavors marry. You may add mushrooms at this point, but since they went on the pizza last night, I'm fresh out.
Wondering about that aforementioned pizza? Let me give you a quick rundown:
Frozen pizza from Target (Buffalo mozzarella and sun-dried tomato). I added marinated artichokes, pepperoni, fresh basil and rosemary (all supplied by Dan), grated cheddar (because I didn't have any mozzarella), fresh grated parmesan, and sliced mushrooms. Onto the pizza stone and into the oven. 8 mins later, into our stomachs! Got all my pictures, sconces, etc. hung on my walls and my apartment is now my lovely home! Thanks, Dan. You're a peach. Even my landlord, who came over with his little german helper lady, said it looks beautiful. Think I'll light some candles tonight just to see how pretty it is.
Ok, the rice is almost done, the tips are done, I have a glass of cabernet/shiraz (this is from one of Target's cubes--love those!), and James Brown is grunting on the TV. Time to change the channel, lol.
L
Then on to a pound of pretty stew meat that I cut into small pieces while War wondered Why Can't We Be Friends? Next I diced an onion, and sauteed in a little olive oil. I then set the onion aside and tossed in the meat, while Stevie Wonder serenaded me with Sir Duke. Once the meat was browned, I removed it and let it mingle with the onions (how you durrin?), and hearing Diana Ross (accompanied by the Temps) crooning Someday We'll Be Together (keep dreaming, sister), I added 2 cups of water to the pan to deglaze, and dumped in 2 pkgs brown gravy mix, whisking fervently to remove lumps. Toss in a small palmfull of dried bell peppers, and let simmer a few minutes, whisking as needed. At this point, Cheryl Lynn is singing Got To Be Real (and I wholeheartedly agree). Meat, onions, into the gravy! I had to add a little extra water, because you don't want it too thick with all that beef, as it has to distribute well over all that rice.
Now we simmer for about 10 minutes or so, just to make sure all the flavors marry. You may add mushrooms at this point, but since they went on the pizza last night, I'm fresh out.
Wondering about that aforementioned pizza? Let me give you a quick rundown:
Frozen pizza from Target (Buffalo mozzarella and sun-dried tomato). I added marinated artichokes, pepperoni, fresh basil and rosemary (all supplied by Dan), grated cheddar (because I didn't have any mozzarella), fresh grated parmesan, and sliced mushrooms. Onto the pizza stone and into the oven. 8 mins later, into our stomachs! Got all my pictures, sconces, etc. hung on my walls and my apartment is now my lovely home! Thanks, Dan. You're a peach. Even my landlord, who came over with his little german helper lady, said it looks beautiful. Think I'll light some candles tonight just to see how pretty it is.
Ok, the rice is almost done, the tips are done, I have a glass of cabernet/shiraz (this is from one of Target's cubes--love those!), and James Brown is grunting on the TV. Time to change the channel, lol.
L
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Beef Stroganoff, the fun and easy way
I must be a real freak of nature, because cooking this meal has me so excited. It really doesn't take that long to cook, but I've been doing things gradually just because I so love puttering in the kitchen. After getting up early and having my coffee on the patio, I went on to the store and bought the ingredients. They didn't have what I was looking for in a sirloin steak, but the very nice lady in the meat section offered to cut one for me. I was given a choice of 3 steaks, and I ended up with the perfect one. Dinner is set for 6ish, but at 4 I couldn't stand it anymore. I went ahead and cut the steak. This is very important. You have to cut it against the grain, and you don't want any tough fat pieces in there, so it did take some time. Jr Walker and his Allstars carried me through this process, first with Shotgun (a song excellently redone by Gerald Levert on the videography Standing in the Shadows of Motown), then I switched the IPOD on over to Pucker Up Buttercup, then What Does It Take, and finished with These Eyes. The man could blow a sax like nobody else. The meat went back into the fridge, with the trimmings saved in the freezer for making broth later. I poured the peas left over from yesterday into a pot to heat up later, and noticed that SOMEBODY had eaten almost all of the sausage out of it, so I cut up a little more, sauteed it and added it to the pot of peas. I'm talking about purple hull peas here, and if you aren't from around these parts, you probably don't know what I'm talking about. They are similar to blackeyed peas, but a million times better. All you need to make a meal is the peas, well-seasoned, and a pan of cornbread (the cornbread must be crumbled onto your plate, with the peas and pea juice ladled on top), add some pepper sauce, and you've got supper.
Anyway, that's done, so I'm having a beer, with music on the IPOD in the kitchen, and Sirius on the patio, so I'm a happy camper at this point.
Ok, this is how ridiculously easy this meal is to make: slice about 1 lb sirloin steak into thin pieces, cook in a hot pan with a little oil. You may have to do this in batches, because you want a little sear on your meat. Take the meat out and set aside. To the pan add about a cup of water and stir to deglaze the pan. Add 1 pkg beefy onion soup (the dry stuff), 1 can cream of mushroom soup, mix well, and when it begins to simmer, add the meat. Cook this for about 10 minutes, turn off heat, stir in 1/2 cup sour cream and serve. I doubled this recipe today, and I got a little too much water in it, so I'm simmering a little longer to get rid of the water. These measurements are not set in stone, if it seems to need more water, add it, but remember that the sour cream will also add volume at the end, so don't go overboard.
It may seem odd that I am making a semi homemade meal, knowing I love to cook from scratch, but I have made the "from scratch" version, which calls for a buttload of ingredients, and I honestly can't tell the difference in taste.
Enjoy! (Kool and the Gang is on the tv---gotta dance!)
Anyway, that's done, so I'm having a beer, with music on the IPOD in the kitchen, and Sirius on the patio, so I'm a happy camper at this point.
Ok, this is how ridiculously easy this meal is to make: slice about 1 lb sirloin steak into thin pieces, cook in a hot pan with a little oil. You may have to do this in batches, because you want a little sear on your meat. Take the meat out and set aside. To the pan add about a cup of water and stir to deglaze the pan. Add 1 pkg beefy onion soup (the dry stuff), 1 can cream of mushroom soup, mix well, and when it begins to simmer, add the meat. Cook this for about 10 minutes, turn off heat, stir in 1/2 cup sour cream and serve. I doubled this recipe today, and I got a little too much water in it, so I'm simmering a little longer to get rid of the water. These measurements are not set in stone, if it seems to need more water, add it, but remember that the sour cream will also add volume at the end, so don't go overboard.
It may seem odd that I am making a semi homemade meal, knowing I love to cook from scratch, but I have made the "from scratch" version, which calls for a buttload of ingredients, and I honestly can't tell the difference in taste.
Enjoy! (Kool and the Gang is on the tv---gotta dance!)
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Alone again, naturally
Been in my new apartment nearly a week. Mom came today to help unpack, and soon to be ex hubby brought me a washing machine. Finally getting things together. I hung curtains once they left, making it feel a little more like home. I fed the two visitors peas and cornbread, seasoned with andouille sausage, and Mom pitched in some store bought fried chicken. There's oldies on the TV music channel, and a glass of cabernet in front of me, so now I'm chillin'. My sister, cosmomartini, texted me a pic of her dessert at Macaroni Grill. The Bitch. I've invited Dan for supper tomorrow, and I'll make an entry about that later. This is a dish I haven't cooked in awhile, and I've had a hankerin for it. It's a dish best shared with someone, because it's just too good to eat alone. I noticed a GINORMOUS bbq grill all lit up and smokin in the parking lot of my apartment complex, so I think I'll mosey on out and see what's up. Maybe mingle a bit.
Till next time
L
Till next time
L
Monday, August 17, 2009
OOPS!
In my last blog titled Pickin the Chicken, I failed to mention what to do with all that reserved broth. Add about 2 cups to the finished product before putting it into the oven to heat. It needs to look a little wet. Then bake, covered, in a 350 oven till hot and cheese is melted, stirring occasionally.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Pickin the Chicken
Yesterday was my first day back to work, and it couldn't have been better. That's what happens when you turn your problems over to the Man upstairs. Therefore, I came in and baked a fudge pecan pie. Dan told me that he loves those, and I made one once and loved it, but hubby (soon to be ex) said it was a perfect waste of a good pecan pie. Hurt my feelings. Besides, what kind of person doesn't like chocolate? Bygones. I had to baby it due to this turbo oven, but I think it's passable at least.
Anyhoo, Dan's been gone a week, and comes home today, and it's time to cook! I let him know last night he needs to be hungry on two levels (wink), and he said no problem there. Had to meet the ex at the storage building so he could get his stuff (cause he doesn't want to help pay the bill anymore), and that's okay. Actually met him at McDonald's for breakfast. I'm thinking he may have a girlfriend because he was so nice. Girls, if you don't already know, listen to this:
when you split with a man, and he is being a butt, just hope and pray he gets a woman soon. Because when he does, you don't get anymore crap from him. But I digress.
The morning was good, and Bill was very nice and it was like old times. When we parted, he hugged me, and that's the way it should be after 16 yrs.
Now to the chicken.
Boiled the thighs as soon as I got back, then let them cool while preserving the broth. When they were cool and it was time to get busy, my Barry White cd went into the player. I was pickin the chicken off the bone to Can't Get Enough of Your Love, as well as What Am I Gonna do with you.
(it takes awhile). Once the broth came back to a boil, I dropped in 3/4 box of bowtie pasta (use Barilla--trust me on this). I had to take a dance break as Barry belted out First, Last, Everything. This takes the entire living room, hallway, and kitchen. In fact, I had to replay that one. Then as Barry was telling his woman to "take off your brassiere, my dear" I was checking the pasta for al dente doneness. Once done, I took it out of the pot with a slotted spoon, again reserving broth, only this time I poured it into large measuring cups. I tossed together the chicken, pasta, and a cube diced Velveeta. Not the little bitty one, and not the Magnum PI one, but the one in between, and you'll just have to figure out the weight because I'm not digging thru the trash just to tell ya. I added a can of cream of mushroom soup and about 8 shakes of Cavender's Greek Seasoning. All the while Barry is asking "What am I gonna do with you?"
Don't get me started. I had a few black olives, so I sliced them and added them to the mix. And I'm gonna heat up a can of Ro-Tel tomatoes to add at the table. This is a good twist on this recipe, but I don't trust my stomach just yet to put it into the pot, so if Dan wants it, he'll have to add it to his plate. I also made a batch of garlic-cheese biscuits (ala Red Lobster), all sitting in a row ready to go into the oven at the appropriate time. This is so easy. Just follow the biscuit recipe on the Bisquick box, but add grated cheddar and garlic powder. Or, if you trust your own instincts, do as I did: throw some bisquick in a bowl, add a dollop of sour cream, grated cheese, minced roasted garlic, and milk. The batter needs to be sticky. Put some flour or bisquick on your wooden board, put your biscuit batter on it, and knead in the xtra flour till not real sticky but not dry. Roll out, cut to the size you like ( I just use a jar or glass), and bake on parchment.
Yum Yummmmm. To be healthy, this meal will be rounded out with my favorite---Broccoli!!!
I'm having a cardiac procedure tomorrow a.m. Pray for me. Dan is on his way. Pray for him.
He's gonna need it!
L.
Anyhoo, Dan's been gone a week, and comes home today, and it's time to cook! I let him know last night he needs to be hungry on two levels (wink), and he said no problem there. Had to meet the ex at the storage building so he could get his stuff (cause he doesn't want to help pay the bill anymore), and that's okay. Actually met him at McDonald's for breakfast. I'm thinking he may have a girlfriend because he was so nice. Girls, if you don't already know, listen to this:
when you split with a man, and he is being a butt, just hope and pray he gets a woman soon. Because when he does, you don't get anymore crap from him. But I digress.
The morning was good, and Bill was very nice and it was like old times. When we parted, he hugged me, and that's the way it should be after 16 yrs.
Now to the chicken.
Boiled the thighs as soon as I got back, then let them cool while preserving the broth. When they were cool and it was time to get busy, my Barry White cd went into the player. I was pickin the chicken off the bone to Can't Get Enough of Your Love, as well as What Am I Gonna do with you.
(it takes awhile). Once the broth came back to a boil, I dropped in 3/4 box of bowtie pasta (use Barilla--trust me on this). I had to take a dance break as Barry belted out First, Last, Everything. This takes the entire living room, hallway, and kitchen. In fact, I had to replay that one. Then as Barry was telling his woman to "take off your brassiere, my dear" I was checking the pasta for al dente doneness. Once done, I took it out of the pot with a slotted spoon, again reserving broth, only this time I poured it into large measuring cups. I tossed together the chicken, pasta, and a cube diced Velveeta. Not the little bitty one, and not the Magnum PI one, but the one in between, and you'll just have to figure out the weight because I'm not digging thru the trash just to tell ya. I added a can of cream of mushroom soup and about 8 shakes of Cavender's Greek Seasoning. All the while Barry is asking "What am I gonna do with you?"
Don't get me started. I had a few black olives, so I sliced them and added them to the mix. And I'm gonna heat up a can of Ro-Tel tomatoes to add at the table. This is a good twist on this recipe, but I don't trust my stomach just yet to put it into the pot, so if Dan wants it, he'll have to add it to his plate. I also made a batch of garlic-cheese biscuits (ala Red Lobster), all sitting in a row ready to go into the oven at the appropriate time. This is so easy. Just follow the biscuit recipe on the Bisquick box, but add grated cheddar and garlic powder. Or, if you trust your own instincts, do as I did: throw some bisquick in a bowl, add a dollop of sour cream, grated cheese, minced roasted garlic, and milk. The batter needs to be sticky. Put some flour or bisquick on your wooden board, put your biscuit batter on it, and knead in the xtra flour till not real sticky but not dry. Roll out, cut to the size you like ( I just use a jar or glass), and bake on parchment.
Yum Yummmmm. To be healthy, this meal will be rounded out with my favorite---Broccoli!!!
I'm having a cardiac procedure tomorrow a.m. Pray for me. Dan is on his way. Pray for him.
He's gonna need it!
L.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Left to My Own Devices......
With my main squeeze out of town for the week, I've had to find something to fill my day, aside from the doctor appointments (3 this week!), and what do you suppose I turn to? You got it.
Chocolate chip cookies. So far the best recipe I've found is Hershey's Perfect Chocolate Chip cookies (it's on their website). I ran into a couple of challenges, though. As I'm not in my own place, and all my kitchen goodies and gadgets are in storage, I had to get a little inventive. From my previous posts, you know that I fashioned a smoker out of a used disposable grill (I'm so proud of that one), so I knew I could overcome the obstacles facing me. First, there's no mixer here. Dan cooks, but he doesn't bake. There also are no large mixing bowls. Digging around in the cabinet, I found an old food processer and knew then that cookies would be forthcoming.
Now that I no longer have satellite tv I can't listen to Sirius music while in the kitchen, so I turned on the local oldies station on the receiver connected to bose speakers in the living room and while the house rocked, I got started.
Lady Marmalade led me through creaming the butter and sugar in the processer. In fact this procedure was continuing through Al Green's Let's Stay Together, as the equipment at hand is ancient. Finding no large mixing bowls, I ended up adding the flour, salt and baking soda mixture to the processer. Ozark Mountain Daredevils sang about Jackie Blue during this phase.
It took a while, as I had to stop and scrape down the sides occasionally (and pray the machine didn't break down under the strain). Believe me, I was watching for smoke.
I stirred in the chocolate chips, then paused for a dance break when the Temptations busted into Can't Get Next To You (love that song). I dropped the batter onto a parchment lined baking sheet, and the baking was under way. Now this oven seems to have one temperature--HOT--so I had to watch my babies carefully. They came out perfectly. I piled them on a plate, took a picture with my phone and sent it to Dan in Florida. Ok, some women send pics of themselves, I send pics of food. Wait til he gets a pic of the surprise I'm making for his return home! I'll chronicle that in my next post.
Way to go to my sis (www.cosmomartini.blogspot.com) on her first foray into ribs. She says they were delicious. That just swellzeded up my heart.
Stay tuned food fans!
Chocolate chip cookies. So far the best recipe I've found is Hershey's Perfect Chocolate Chip cookies (it's on their website). I ran into a couple of challenges, though. As I'm not in my own place, and all my kitchen goodies and gadgets are in storage, I had to get a little inventive. From my previous posts, you know that I fashioned a smoker out of a used disposable grill (I'm so proud of that one), so I knew I could overcome the obstacles facing me. First, there's no mixer here. Dan cooks, but he doesn't bake. There also are no large mixing bowls. Digging around in the cabinet, I found an old food processer and knew then that cookies would be forthcoming.
Now that I no longer have satellite tv I can't listen to Sirius music while in the kitchen, so I turned on the local oldies station on the receiver connected to bose speakers in the living room and while the house rocked, I got started.
Lady Marmalade led me through creaming the butter and sugar in the processer. In fact this procedure was continuing through Al Green's Let's Stay Together, as the equipment at hand is ancient. Finding no large mixing bowls, I ended up adding the flour, salt and baking soda mixture to the processer. Ozark Mountain Daredevils sang about Jackie Blue during this phase.
It took a while, as I had to stop and scrape down the sides occasionally (and pray the machine didn't break down under the strain). Believe me, I was watching for smoke.
I stirred in the chocolate chips, then paused for a dance break when the Temptations busted into Can't Get Next To You (love that song). I dropped the batter onto a parchment lined baking sheet, and the baking was under way. Now this oven seems to have one temperature--HOT--so I had to watch my babies carefully. They came out perfectly. I piled them on a plate, took a picture with my phone and sent it to Dan in Florida. Ok, some women send pics of themselves, I send pics of food. Wait til he gets a pic of the surprise I'm making for his return home! I'll chronicle that in my next post.
Way to go to my sis (www.cosmomartini.blogspot.com) on her first foray into ribs. She says they were delicious. That just swellzeded up my heart.
Stay tuned food fans!
Sunday, August 2, 2009
The Way To A Man's Heart...
Is, I am convinced, through Hamburger Pie. And that's all I'm gonna say about that. It's been a couple of months since I made this little dish as a thank you gift for getting my tire changed at work, and yesterday I decided to make it again. The endless rain gave inspiration, as did the recipient. Here's how it's done:
Place IPod into speaker system, set to shuffle songs, and get busy.
Chop onion to the crooning sounds of Trisha Yearwood and Aaron Neville singing Patsy Cline's
I Fall to Pieces, then saute in olive oil while chopping garlic. When Al Green begins to lament that he's Tired of Being Alone, add garlic, stir, then add 1 1/2 lbs ground chuck and brown while Chicago sings Saturday in the Park. Continue cooking to Gypsy King's Bamboleo (yes, I now even enjoy Latin Jazz, believe it or not). Drain, then stir in 1 can Cream of Celery soup and a few good shakes of cajun seasoning, while Al Jarreau and Randy Crawford team up for Your Precious Love. You have to stop to wipe the tears of laughter from your face as you remember your sister singing this one in the car on the way to Memphis. Add a small can of sliced mushrooms and a handful of dried bell peppers (trust me). While the mixture heats in the skillet and you wash a few things up in the sink, the Temptations belt out Cloud Nine. Place bottom crust in pie pan, pour in meat mixture, and top with shredded cheese, then top with second pie crust. Ottmar Liebert's Snakecharmer is the perfect accompanying song for this task. Watch Dan walk around kitchen like he needs to do something, but let him know it's all under control.
Sprinkle a little cajun seasoning on top crust and into 350 oven, pour a glass of Pinot Noir and enjoy while waiting for crust to brown. Voila! Do try this one at home, and let me know what you think.
Place IPod into speaker system, set to shuffle songs, and get busy.
Chop onion to the crooning sounds of Trisha Yearwood and Aaron Neville singing Patsy Cline's
I Fall to Pieces, then saute in olive oil while chopping garlic. When Al Green begins to lament that he's Tired of Being Alone, add garlic, stir, then add 1 1/2 lbs ground chuck and brown while Chicago sings Saturday in the Park. Continue cooking to Gypsy King's Bamboleo (yes, I now even enjoy Latin Jazz, believe it or not). Drain, then stir in 1 can Cream of Celery soup and a few good shakes of cajun seasoning, while Al Jarreau and Randy Crawford team up for Your Precious Love. You have to stop to wipe the tears of laughter from your face as you remember your sister singing this one in the car on the way to Memphis. Add a small can of sliced mushrooms and a handful of dried bell peppers (trust me). While the mixture heats in the skillet and you wash a few things up in the sink, the Temptations belt out Cloud Nine. Place bottom crust in pie pan, pour in meat mixture, and top with shredded cheese, then top with second pie crust. Ottmar Liebert's Snakecharmer is the perfect accompanying song for this task. Watch Dan walk around kitchen like he needs to do something, but let him know it's all under control.
Sprinkle a little cajun seasoning on top crust and into 350 oven, pour a glass of Pinot Noir and enjoy while waiting for crust to brown. Voila! Do try this one at home, and let me know what you think.
Friday, July 31, 2009
A Grateful Heart
This Blog will not be about food or music. I'll get back to that soon. Today I want to declare my gratitude to God, my family, friends, and the staff at Minden Medical Center and Willis Knighton Medical Center. Shortly after splitting with hubby and moving out of my home in Minden (it finally sold), I developed a life-threatening condition that my recovery from is nothing short of miraculous. I do not feel lucky to have survived, I feel absolutely blessed. This was not luck, but the hand of God directing all medical personnel in my treatment. I am blown away by this and the quality of care I received. I thank God for my life, and for not letting my mother's heart be broken. I have received excellent care at home by my mother and my special friend Dan since leaving the hospital, and my sister did things for me in the hospital that no sister should ever have to do. My friends at work, and they know who they are, have been a blessing to me through this ordeal. It's times like this you discover who your true friends are, and trust me, I know who mine are (and are not). So it is with a grateful heart that I acknowledge each and every one of you, and say thank you. You are in my prayers daily.
LeAnn
LeAnn
Monday, May 18, 2009
The King and I
It was to the strains of the Paul Simon song of the same name that our mother found out we were taking her to Graceland. I had been stupefied to learn that she had never been, and when my sister called to say she had made all the arrangements, it was on like a pot of neckbones.
Mom and I made the 3 hour trip to my sister's and we were on our way the next day before we finally caved in and told her the destination. I've never seen her so happy. Beale street was excellent as always, with big ups to BB King's Ribs. I showed mom around the Hard Rock Cafe, and we caught a couple of Elvi in the clubs. Graceland wore us out, but it was a good tired. My favorite line of the weekend: What happens in Vegas started in Graceland.
Thursday, back home in Minden after attending a seminar at my workplace, I got in the cooking mood. Graceland was still fresh in my memory, so I tuned in to the Elvis channel on satellite radio, which is wired all the way into the kitchen, and got cooking. While Elvis sang a live version of Hound Dog, I stirred up some shrimp dip, to go with Fritos and the turkey, pepper jack cheese and avocado sandwich I would have for supper. Once I got that in the fridge I moved on to the fun part. Suspicious Minds led me into the cream cheese mixture of my Marvelous Marbled Cream Cheese Chocolate Muffins. I was cracking eggs into the chocolate portion when If I Can Dream came on, and pouring the mixture into muffin tins to Hunka Burnin Love. I began to swirl the cream cheese mixture into the muffin batter, but had to pause long enough to pay homage to my God and Country when Mr Presley began to croon American Trilogy. Into the oven to bake, and that's how the King and I made muffins.
I must now take a moment to give tribute to Wayman Tisdale, a great contemporary jazz musician whose untimely death has shocked and saddened me. If you haven't heard his version of Kool and the Gang's Get Down On It, you are missing a real treat, and I dare you to remain seated while it plays. My heart goes out to his family, and I hope I can speak for my fellow jazz junkies when I say he will be greatly missed. I for one will miss the thrill of listening to new music from this talented guitarist.
Onward and upward, I am about to grind some fresh pork sausage, and this weekend, I will attempt to recreate BB's ribs. (Thanks for the recipe, Donita!)
I'll post again to report my success (I hope!)
Mom and I made the 3 hour trip to my sister's and we were on our way the next day before we finally caved in and told her the destination. I've never seen her so happy. Beale street was excellent as always, with big ups to BB King's Ribs. I showed mom around the Hard Rock Cafe, and we caught a couple of Elvi in the clubs. Graceland wore us out, but it was a good tired. My favorite line of the weekend: What happens in Vegas started in Graceland.
Thursday, back home in Minden after attending a seminar at my workplace, I got in the cooking mood. Graceland was still fresh in my memory, so I tuned in to the Elvis channel on satellite radio, which is wired all the way into the kitchen, and got cooking. While Elvis sang a live version of Hound Dog, I stirred up some shrimp dip, to go with Fritos and the turkey, pepper jack cheese and avocado sandwich I would have for supper. Once I got that in the fridge I moved on to the fun part. Suspicious Minds led me into the cream cheese mixture of my Marvelous Marbled Cream Cheese Chocolate Muffins. I was cracking eggs into the chocolate portion when If I Can Dream came on, and pouring the mixture into muffin tins to Hunka Burnin Love. I began to swirl the cream cheese mixture into the muffin batter, but had to pause long enough to pay homage to my God and Country when Mr Presley began to croon American Trilogy. Into the oven to bake, and that's how the King and I made muffins.
I must now take a moment to give tribute to Wayman Tisdale, a great contemporary jazz musician whose untimely death has shocked and saddened me. If you haven't heard his version of Kool and the Gang's Get Down On It, you are missing a real treat, and I dare you to remain seated while it plays. My heart goes out to his family, and I hope I can speak for my fellow jazz junkies when I say he will be greatly missed. I for one will miss the thrill of listening to new music from this talented guitarist.
Onward and upward, I am about to grind some fresh pork sausage, and this weekend, I will attempt to recreate BB's ribs. (Thanks for the recipe, Donita!)
I'll post again to report my success (I hope!)
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Beans and Cornbread Had a Fight---Beans Knocked Cornbread Out of Sight
Well, this is the vacation edition of this blog. Enjoy.
I needed a little R&R from the day to day Eat Sleep Save Lives (suck up to family members of drug addicts), and so hubby and I took a vacation. Friday night was a bust---the state park we were to camp at was full, so on to the first rv park we could find and that's exactly what we got.
However, no to be deterred, we headed up to Mountain View AR the next day and were not terribly disappointed. Except when we stopped on the side of the road and I had to pee, and was assured by hubby that nobody could see me with all the van doors open. then, he shut the back door, and to my chagrin, there was a pickup truck parked behid us with a man in the passenger seat looking straight at me and my lily white you know what. what fun what fun.
on to mountain view where we met my sister, cosmomartini@blogspot.com and her hubby. Had a good time on the mountain top at the folk festival center, seeing all the old-time craft demonstrations. cosmo and i especially enjoyed the hoe cakes, cooked on a wood burning stove, with peach chunky. the fried peach pie was heavenly. Supper that night was less than heavenly.
At the Angler's Inn, hubby naturally had to have the fried catfish. I opted for the special of the night, which was prime rib. My first clue should have been when the waiter asked how I wanted it cooked. I replied "um, rare" with inflection tantamount to "you idiot". The slab of meat I received was well done. And gray. I quickly sent it back, telling Bill that the cook was probably in the kitchen right now saying "what do I do, it's all overcooked, and you can't uncook it". Sure enough, I was told that a mistake was made and all the prime rib was overcooked. I chose to cancel the order and partake of the "salad boat". I think this boat had a leak, because the salad was floating in water. The baked potato I ordered had been cooked probably the day before, and barely reheated. I'll let my sister post her experiences in this restaurant on her blog http://www.cosmomartini.blogspot.com/. But at least hubby's meal was satisfactory. On to Eureka Springs the next day. The mountains were beautiful. Our campsite breakfast consisted of sausage and eggs, with toast, cooked on the trusty electric skillet. Lunch was at a wonderful place in town called Local Flavor. I had the turkey, avocado and pepper jack cheese on sourdough, with cole slaw on the side. Hubby had the Eyetalian beef (his pronunciation). I have already written an online review. Absolutely delicious. We enjoyed the sites of this excellent tourist destination, and back at the campsite, I fashioned a smoker from a disposable grill and aluminum foil and water-soaked hickory twigs (I am quite proud of myself on this). The smoked pork chops were excellent. Now to the beans and cornbread. This is the only town I have ever been to where many restaurants advertise beans and cornbread. What a great idea! We stopped at Grandma's Beans and Cornbread and picked up both pinto and great northern beans and slabs of cornbread to go with our smoked porkchops. Again, heavenly. If only I had the funds, I would open a Beans and Cornbread restaurant. Cause my beans kick butt!
In case you are wondering where the music is in all this, go back to the label for this post. If you remember on Tv some years back, there was a series on TNT (I think) called Dinner and a movie. Beans and Cornbread was the theme song. I thank my sister's attention to detail on this, because I honestly never noticed.
Stay tuned to this blog, because sis and I are whisking Mom away to a surprise destination for Mother's Day. I'll tell ya all about it. Different Bat Time, Same Bat Channel.
I needed a little R&R from the day to day Eat Sleep Save Lives (suck up to family members of drug addicts), and so hubby and I took a vacation. Friday night was a bust---the state park we were to camp at was full, so on to the first rv park we could find and that's exactly what we got.
However, no to be deterred, we headed up to Mountain View AR the next day and were not terribly disappointed. Except when we stopped on the side of the road and I had to pee, and was assured by hubby that nobody could see me with all the van doors open. then, he shut the back door, and to my chagrin, there was a pickup truck parked behid us with a man in the passenger seat looking straight at me and my lily white you know what. what fun what fun.
on to mountain view where we met my sister, cosmomartini@blogspot.com and her hubby. Had a good time on the mountain top at the folk festival center, seeing all the old-time craft demonstrations. cosmo and i especially enjoyed the hoe cakes, cooked on a wood burning stove, with peach chunky. the fried peach pie was heavenly. Supper that night was less than heavenly.
At the Angler's Inn, hubby naturally had to have the fried catfish. I opted for the special of the night, which was prime rib. My first clue should have been when the waiter asked how I wanted it cooked. I replied "um, rare" with inflection tantamount to "you idiot". The slab of meat I received was well done. And gray. I quickly sent it back, telling Bill that the cook was probably in the kitchen right now saying "what do I do, it's all overcooked, and you can't uncook it". Sure enough, I was told that a mistake was made and all the prime rib was overcooked. I chose to cancel the order and partake of the "salad boat". I think this boat had a leak, because the salad was floating in water. The baked potato I ordered had been cooked probably the day before, and barely reheated. I'll let my sister post her experiences in this restaurant on her blog http://www.cosmomartini.blogspot.com/. But at least hubby's meal was satisfactory. On to Eureka Springs the next day. The mountains were beautiful. Our campsite breakfast consisted of sausage and eggs, with toast, cooked on the trusty electric skillet. Lunch was at a wonderful place in town called Local Flavor. I had the turkey, avocado and pepper jack cheese on sourdough, with cole slaw on the side. Hubby had the Eyetalian beef (his pronunciation). I have already written an online review. Absolutely delicious. We enjoyed the sites of this excellent tourist destination, and back at the campsite, I fashioned a smoker from a disposable grill and aluminum foil and water-soaked hickory twigs (I am quite proud of myself on this). The smoked pork chops were excellent. Now to the beans and cornbread. This is the only town I have ever been to where many restaurants advertise beans and cornbread. What a great idea! We stopped at Grandma's Beans and Cornbread and picked up both pinto and great northern beans and slabs of cornbread to go with our smoked porkchops. Again, heavenly. If only I had the funds, I would open a Beans and Cornbread restaurant. Cause my beans kick butt!
In case you are wondering where the music is in all this, go back to the label for this post. If you remember on Tv some years back, there was a series on TNT (I think) called Dinner and a movie. Beans and Cornbread was the theme song. I thank my sister's attention to detail on this, because I honestly never noticed.
Stay tuned to this blog, because sis and I are whisking Mom away to a surprise destination for Mother's Day. I'll tell ya all about it. Different Bat Time, Same Bat Channel.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Real Men DO Eat Quiche
I stayed at the house in Minden yesterday. Had some shopping to do, now that all the fruits of my kitchen labor have taken up residence around my middle. Back to low carb for awhile to get back into my britches.
Back at the house, with no one but me to enjoy the music, I decided to cook the meals I would need for my long weekend at work, because when I get home at 8pm, I'll eat anything I can get my hands on if what I really need to be eating is not readily available. Again, I was in a motown mood, listening to WayBack Wednesday on the Grambling station on the way home, so I turned on Sirius Soultown and got busy.
First, I prepared two quiches, crustless, of course, so I wouldn't be tempted by biscuits and gravy at work. While the 4 Tops sang Sugar Pie Honey Bunch, I mixed up the first one, which consisted of 1/2 a dozen eggs, 1/2 cup of heavy cream, grated cheddar cheese, a dash of ground chipotle pepper, chopped ham and chopped green chiles. Poured that into a deep dish pie pan, and on to the next, while "Superfly" played. The second quiche was made with the same number of eggs and cream, but to this one I added fresh mozzarella, a little basil and oregano, a little chopped ham, shitake mushrooms, grated parmesan cheese, and topped it with thin slices of proscuitto rolled around mozzarella. It was so cute! Into the oven at 350 for a hour and on to the taco meat for taco salads (sans chips, sadly). Listening to the Djay Jeff Fox (the fox that rocks the box!!!) crank out 60's and 70's music from motown and stax records got that job done, with a break when I just had to dance to the Contours "Do ya love me". (remember from Dirty Dancing?) Good thing there was no one there to see that spectacle. Grey's Anatomy has it right--'dancing it out' is a really good stress reliever. But what a downer for this song to be followed by Kool and the Gang's shameful and disappointing effort at a sequel to Jungle Boogie called Spirit of the Boogie. This one should have been pronounced and left on the table.
I threw together a little tuna salad with curry powder for good measure (and low carb snacking), and when the mess was cleaned up, I had two beautiful quiches. This morning, packing up to spend the day in Village, I almost didn't bring quiche for hubby, because I am selfish about my diet food, but then guilt hit me (plus the realization that I had way more than I needed), and put several slices of each in tupperware for him. He loves my quiche. And he's a real man. So there.
On the way to Village, I stopped at Maria's and gave her a piece of the italian quiche, and would have given her more, but she's not supposed to have dairy, and I don't want to add to her problems in that department. Maria is such a fun tester of my culinary endeavors, it was really hard to stop at that little sliver. My sister commented that i made a blog faux pas (sp?), so allow me to remedy that right now. www.cosmomartini.blogspot.com. there. and sorry about that.
Oops. Gotta run---time for my massage. We'll be having pork chops tonight. They are thawing on the roof as I type. Love to all.
LeAnn
Back at the house, with no one but me to enjoy the music, I decided to cook the meals I would need for my long weekend at work, because when I get home at 8pm, I'll eat anything I can get my hands on if what I really need to be eating is not readily available. Again, I was in a motown mood, listening to WayBack Wednesday on the Grambling station on the way home, so I turned on Sirius Soultown and got busy.
First, I prepared two quiches, crustless, of course, so I wouldn't be tempted by biscuits and gravy at work. While the 4 Tops sang Sugar Pie Honey Bunch, I mixed up the first one, which consisted of 1/2 a dozen eggs, 1/2 cup of heavy cream, grated cheddar cheese, a dash of ground chipotle pepper, chopped ham and chopped green chiles. Poured that into a deep dish pie pan, and on to the next, while "Superfly" played. The second quiche was made with the same number of eggs and cream, but to this one I added fresh mozzarella, a little basil and oregano, a little chopped ham, shitake mushrooms, grated parmesan cheese, and topped it with thin slices of proscuitto rolled around mozzarella. It was so cute! Into the oven at 350 for a hour and on to the taco meat for taco salads (sans chips, sadly). Listening to the Djay Jeff Fox (the fox that rocks the box!!!) crank out 60's and 70's music from motown and stax records got that job done, with a break when I just had to dance to the Contours "Do ya love me". (remember from Dirty Dancing?) Good thing there was no one there to see that spectacle. Grey's Anatomy has it right--'dancing it out' is a really good stress reliever. But what a downer for this song to be followed by Kool and the Gang's shameful and disappointing effort at a sequel to Jungle Boogie called Spirit of the Boogie. This one should have been pronounced and left on the table.
I threw together a little tuna salad with curry powder for good measure (and low carb snacking), and when the mess was cleaned up, I had two beautiful quiches. This morning, packing up to spend the day in Village, I almost didn't bring quiche for hubby, because I am selfish about my diet food, but then guilt hit me (plus the realization that I had way more than I needed), and put several slices of each in tupperware for him. He loves my quiche. And he's a real man. So there.
On the way to Village, I stopped at Maria's and gave her a piece of the italian quiche, and would have given her more, but she's not supposed to have dairy, and I don't want to add to her problems in that department. Maria is such a fun tester of my culinary endeavors, it was really hard to stop at that little sliver. My sister commented that i made a blog faux pas (sp?), so allow me to remedy that right now. www.cosmomartini.blogspot.com. there. and sorry about that.
Oops. Gotta run---time for my massage. We'll be having pork chops tonight. They are thawing on the roof as I type. Love to all.
LeAnn
Saturday, April 11, 2009
turnips and chicken and biscuits, oh my!
The turnip greens were a success, thanks in part to the musical strains of Rev Al Green, the Isley Brothers and Gladys Knight and the Pips. The meal was complimented with pork chops rolled in bread crumbs and baked in the oven, and buttermilk cornbread.
Yesterday, (Good Friday), hubby was off work and was busy attaching metal skirting to the bottom of the house to keep dogs and other critters from taking up residence. My poor Batman and his buddy Tiger (aka Hansel) don't know what to do with themselves. For those of you who don't already know, Batman is our dog, and Tiger is my erstwhile stepdog, owned by my brother in law across the street. Anyhoo, my youngest son, Hunter, came over to make a little money to support his texting habit, and moved lumber from what was supposed to be my patio, but now will become my Florida room (!), and I of course was busy overseeing all of this. After I removed the package of chicken breasts from the roof (put there to thaw out more quickly, and keep away from wet noses in the process), I deboned them, and flattened them with a cast iron skillet. This is best done to the opening beat of Jimi Hendrix's Foxy Lady. I then seasoned them with salt and pepper, placed thin slices of hickory smoked ham (we did that ourselves, yay us), and topped them with thin slices of Gruyere cheese. I then rolled them, dipped them in egg and rolled them in a mixture of seasoned breadcrumbs and panko. Then into the oven for my version of Chicken Cordon Bleu. Add garlic mashed potatoes and a green salad, and you have my hubby Bill saying HONEY! with a full mouth.
Today we have to drive to Texarkana to pick up the motorcycle now that the recall item has been repaired, so last night I got out the crock of sourdough starter and commenced the biscuit making process. Being hormonal, there is no warm place for dough to rise in my house, so I put the bowl on a heating pad on the lowest setting, covered it and this morning Voila! I had a beautiful dough for making sourdough biscuits. Add Bill's homemade pork sausage and some milk gravy and you have two people stuffed like dog ticks. No music accompanied breakfast, just the constant chatter from Fox News, compliments of Bill. If Directv would let him, he would subscribe only to this channel.
Well, on to Texarkana (or as hubby says: Texakaner).
Footnote to my sister cosmomartini, and my friend maria: thanks for following!
LeAnn
Yesterday, (Good Friday), hubby was off work and was busy attaching metal skirting to the bottom of the house to keep dogs and other critters from taking up residence. My poor Batman and his buddy Tiger (aka Hansel) don't know what to do with themselves. For those of you who don't already know, Batman is our dog, and Tiger is my erstwhile stepdog, owned by my brother in law across the street. Anyhoo, my youngest son, Hunter, came over to make a little money to support his texting habit, and moved lumber from what was supposed to be my patio, but now will become my Florida room (!), and I of course was busy overseeing all of this. After I removed the package of chicken breasts from the roof (put there to thaw out more quickly, and keep away from wet noses in the process), I deboned them, and flattened them with a cast iron skillet. This is best done to the opening beat of Jimi Hendrix's Foxy Lady. I then seasoned them with salt and pepper, placed thin slices of hickory smoked ham (we did that ourselves, yay us), and topped them with thin slices of Gruyere cheese. I then rolled them, dipped them in egg and rolled them in a mixture of seasoned breadcrumbs and panko. Then into the oven for my version of Chicken Cordon Bleu. Add garlic mashed potatoes and a green salad, and you have my hubby Bill saying HONEY! with a full mouth.
Today we have to drive to Texarkana to pick up the motorcycle now that the recall item has been repaired, so last night I got out the crock of sourdough starter and commenced the biscuit making process. Being hormonal, there is no warm place for dough to rise in my house, so I put the bowl on a heating pad on the lowest setting, covered it and this morning Voila! I had a beautiful dough for making sourdough biscuits. Add Bill's homemade pork sausage and some milk gravy and you have two people stuffed like dog ticks. No music accompanied breakfast, just the constant chatter from Fox News, compliments of Bill. If Directv would let him, he would subscribe only to this channel.
Well, on to Texarkana (or as hubby says: Texakaner).
Footnote to my sister cosmomartini, and my friend maria: thanks for following!
LeAnn
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
my first time!
This is my first installment on this or any blog, and I'm a little scared! Hope it turns out well. Just messing around, trying to set up this site.
I love to cook, and nothing inspires me more than a rainy day. I love to turn on the stereo, usually jazz music, and go to the kitchen and create. I'm always collecting recipes and trying them out, but most of the time, I come up with dishes from my imagination. I'll be sharing my culinary forays (successful or not!) and the music that accompanies each session in this blog. If anyone out there is interested, please feel free to comment. My husband, Bill, has set the theme for tonight's meal, as he went to the store while I was working and bought turnip greens, with the ambitious intentions of cleaning and cooking them for us, but alas, guess who the job has fallen to? This won't be the most adventurous meal, but I plan to make the most of it, with some pork chops and cornbread.
I'll keep ya posted. I may just have to put on some motown music to get in the mood for this one.
I love to cook, and nothing inspires me more than a rainy day. I love to turn on the stereo, usually jazz music, and go to the kitchen and create. I'm always collecting recipes and trying them out, but most of the time, I come up with dishes from my imagination. I'll be sharing my culinary forays (successful or not!) and the music that accompanies each session in this blog. If anyone out there is interested, please feel free to comment. My husband, Bill, has set the theme for tonight's meal, as he went to the store while I was working and bought turnip greens, with the ambitious intentions of cleaning and cooking them for us, but alas, guess who the job has fallen to? This won't be the most adventurous meal, but I plan to make the most of it, with some pork chops and cornbread.
I'll keep ya posted. I may just have to put on some motown music to get in the mood for this one.
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