ER Forum Cookbook -- Recipe Posting Thread

[TromboneAl]

Someone once told me they've never had a good low fat meatloaf...so I found one. This loaf packs a lot of flavor and is incredibly good as a cold sandwich the next day on crusty white bread with honey mustard and roasted red peppers (from a jar is fine).

I'll introduce a 'sweat cooking' method that helps you cook onions, peppers and the like without a lot of oil. You can do the sauteing in this with a spoon or two of oil, but thats 20+ grams of fat by itself.

In sweat cooking, use a medium high heat and a teflon pan. Keep a cup of water, wine, beer or stock handy...I use the roasted vegetable stock from trader joes. Put your sliced onions, garlic, whatever in the pan and add just a few teaspoons of the liquid, and start stirring. When the pan runs dry, add a few more teaspoons. If it starts sticking, turn down the heat a little. In about the same amount of time as it would take to cook the veggies in oil, they'll be done with this method with no fat involved, and still brown from the natural sugars in the veggies and liquid used.

In a skillet, saute by either method a half pound of chopped mushrooms and a chopped onion until brown...mushrooms have a lot of liquid in them inherently, so you'll need to use very little added liquid if using the sweat method. About 7 minutes.

Add to the pan 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, and 1/4 teaspoon hot pepper flakes or cayenne.

Those in some parts of the country just said "hey, thats Jerk seasoning!", and thats right. You could also buy a bottle of mccormacks or durkees dry jerk seasoning and use 2-4 teaspoons of that instead.

I get a jerk paste in a jar from Cost Plus World Market called "Walkerswood traditional jamaican jerk seasoning", and it kicks butt: this is the real deal. This is a more traditional jerk rub and has hotter than heck habanero's in it, so if you find this, only use a teaspoon. Some of this rubbed on chicken wings and/or a nice pork tenderloin and then put on the grill is a treat. I've made the paste by hand by pureeing a bunch of green onions, a scotch bonnet/habaneo or jalapeno pepper or two, and a tsp each of salt, black pepper, allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon and thyme.

The jerk seasoning is how we'll counteract the turkeys blandness in the meatloaf.

Add 3-4 tablespoons cider or white vinegar and 2-3 tablespoons mollasses to the pan. Scrape this around for a minute and then scrape it out into a large mixing bowl and let cool for 5-10 minutes. Add 1/2 cup all purpose flour and stir to mix.

Once the vegetable mix is cool, add 1.5 pounds of ground turkey or chicken, 1/2 cup chicken or vegetable stock, 1 large egg (or egg white if you're going lower fat), and the original recipe called for 3/4 cup pickled cocktail onions, but I've made it without and its fine.

Mix thoroughly.

Preheat the oven to 350 and break out the loaf pan, a 5x9ish loaf or bread pan will work, and lightly spray it with cooking spray. The original recipe calls for lining the pan with prosciutto slices, putting in the meat mixture, and then covering the top of the meat mix with more prosciutto. I've made it with and without, its tastier with it but I wouldnt make a special trip to the store and spend five bucks on the proscuitto unless you feel like it.

Cook for about 55-60 minutes, until the loaf just starts to shrink from the pan. Internal temp should be about 160 if you want to measure it with a probe.

Remove from the oven, let stand for 10-15 minutes, turn out onto a plate, slice and eat.

You can sprinkle a pinch of jerk seasoning over the loaf slices if you find on taste testing that you didnt add enough. A shot of Franks Louisiana Hot Sauce is also good.

Dont forget those sandwiches. The honey mustard makes it.

Made with 99% fat free turkey breast, the sweat method on the mushrooms, an egg white, vegetable stock, and minus the proscuitto, this is almost completely fat free. Even with 7% ground turkey, the whole egg, chicken stock and the ham, its still about 1/4 the fat of the average meatloaf.

I've also doubled the volume of mushrooms and halved the turkey once. The result was a little softer than a typical meatloaf...almost a pate consistency...but still good. I suppose you could compose this entirely of mushrooms and textured vegetable protein but I've never tried it.

 

[TromboneAl]

Two recipes, and these are two of my favorites for nearly zero fat meatless meals. Both are from Dean Ornish's book "Eat more, weigh less". My adaptions noted.

Mushroom stroganoff:

The cookbook is creased on this recipe. I like a good beef stroganoff and this is a very decent dish.

1 Cup vegetable stock
2 cups sliced onions
4 Cups sliced mushrooms (recipe suggests mixing types, I can live fine on all small brown mushrooms)
1 Tablespoon GOOD Paprika - flavorless stuff in a 5 year old jar isnt what you need...get some good spanish paprika that has flavor...there are a dozen great recipes that use can use it with...chicken paprikash is one
Big pinch of cayenne or other hot pepper flake/powder - heat to suit your taste
1 Teaspoon grated lemon zest...use a box grater or potato peeler...take as much yellow and as little of the bitter white pith as you can, or substitute a tablespoon of lemon juice at the last minute during preparation
1/2 cup nonfat plain yogurt or fat free sour cream
2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill or parsley...substitute any green fresh herb from your garden if you dont have these, to your taste.

Heat 1/2 cup of the stock in a saute pan, add the onions, cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes. Add mushrooms and simmer 5 minutes more. If while cooking the onions or mushrooms you run out of liquid, add more stock. Add everything else (including the other half cup stock) except the yogurt and dill/parsley, uncover and simmer until slightly reduced, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper. Let stand for about 5 minutes to slightly cool and stir in the yogurt and herbs...if you put the yogurt in while its too hot the yogurt will curdle and clump...not good.

Serve on egg noodles, rice, or polenta. You can make polenta by heating 4 cups water, milk, or stock of any kind (chicken is traditional), add a cup of corn meal, stirring gently, until combined. Keep simmering and stirring until you have a thick consistency. If it gets TOO thick, add some water or stock until you have a thin mashed potato type consistency. Salt and pepper to taste. Add shredded cheese (parmesan/romano is typical), chopped sun dried tomato's, and/or mushrooms if you want something special for a side dish...for this I usually use plain polenta or egg noodles. A big side of the polenta with some chopped sun dried tomatoes and mushrooms with a chicken breast, with a good slathering of jarred spaghetti sauce overall, is a very nice meal...so make twice as much polenta and use the leftovers for your next meal.

Once you do this once, it goes together very quickly. The paprika, lemon zest (or juice) and hot pepper brings up the spice level to offset the lack of beef, and little brown mushrooms (which are simply baby portobello's) give good texture.


Sweet potato stew:

2 cups veg stock
2 cups sweet potatoes cut into 1/2" cubes
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup quartered small mushroom
1/2 cup turnip in 1/2" cube
1/2 cup parsnip in 1/2" cube
1/2 cup slice carrots
1/2 cup soy sauce...a word about soy sauce...if the ingredients include hydrolyzed vegetable protein, keep looking...if the primary ingredient is wheat, pass it by...if the primary ingredient is soy beans, and maybe a little wheat as a secondary, buy it. I use Pearl River Bridge, which has more flavor in a teaspoon than crap like Kikkoman has in the whole bottle.
1/2 cup mirin, sake, or light white wine
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon minced ginger
1/2 cup each yellow and green squash, 1/4 inch slices
3-4 green onions, chopped
12 oz of protein...chicken or extra firm tofu is good, cubed into 1" or less chunks (optional)
A slice or two of old bread (optional)

In a large saucepan, combine everything except the yellow and green squash, and the protein, and simmer for 25 minutes. Add the squash and simmer 5 minutes. Add chicken or tofu and simmer 5 more minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. If its thinner than you'd like, rub the slice or two of bread between your palms to crumb it, directly over the pot. An old french trick to use yesterdays bread crumbs to thicken a soup.

When I make this, I double the amount of stock and sweet potatoes, and use two slices of 9 grain bread for thickening.

The first time I made this (meatless) with guests, my dad ( a devout meat and potatoes guy) got halfway through the bowl before (between slurps) he asked "is there any meat in this...?". When I told him "no", he went back to chowing and said "This is good". I usually double up this recipe overall (with my extra stock and sweets) and freeze half for a couple of weeks later.

There are perhaps a gram or two of fat per hefty serving in both of these recipes.

 

[TromboneAl]

Alternatively, here are two recipes for stock...if you want to make either stock more assertive, lay some or all of the vegetables out in a baking dish and bake at 350 until browned, then simmer them in the water. Its a pain to do but if you get a bunch of 1-2 cup containers and you have room in your freezer, you can go through the trouble once a month. I dont mind the carton stuff though.

Summer stock:
1 medium-sized potato
2 medium-sized carrots
1 cup chopped leek trimmings, the roots and the firm, inner green leaves
1 onion
2 celery stalks plus a handful of celery leaves
3 ripe tomatoes
3 medium-sized summer squash (zucchini or yellow squash)
3 ounces green beans
Approximately 1 cup diced eggplant
6 leaves of chard or spinach
8 whole stalks of parsley
1 teaspoon dried basil or several large fresh basil leaves
1 teaspoon dried marjoram or several branches fresh marjoram
2 bay leaves
Pinch thyme
1 teaspoon nutritional yeast
9 cups water

Winter stock:
1 cup chopped leek trimmings, the roots and the firm, inner green leaves
1 onion
2 medium carrots
3 celery stalks plus a handful of celery leaves
1 cup cubed winter squash, or the squash seeds and skins
2 medium-sized potatoes
1/2 small celery root or the parings of 1 whole root
1/4 cup lentils
Several chard stems
Several chard leaves (or lettuce)
10 whole stalks parsley
5 cloves garlic
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried sage, or 4 to 5 sage leaves
2 bay leaves
1 to 2 teaspoons nutritional yeast

 

[TromboneAl]

LG4N brought up a book in one of the other threads--Jane Brody's Good Food Cookbook, that I pulled off the shelf since he mentioned it. It is dated (the subtitle, as LG4N said, is Living the High Carb Lifestyle). I thumbed through the veggie and fruit sections last night and am going to try a few of the recipes. You might get it from the library--it is a good inspiration for finding new low-fat, low-cal ways to prepare veggies and fruits. I'll post any good ones I try!

Quick Chicken Salad -2 servings

1 pouch Sweet Sue chicken (7oz)
1 tbsp fat free yogurt
1 tbsp lite mayo
1 small apple, diced
1 oz raisins
pepper to taste

This is a standby lunch for us on the low calorie diet at just 252 calories a serving.

Sarah

 

[TromboneAl]

Red Swiss Steak

Round steak cut into 4 or 5 pieces, canned tomatos, fresh onions, mushrooms, green peppers (or medium hot banana peppers), fresh garlic to taste, touch of cayenne, 1 tsp dry beef boullion & black pepper. Cook on medium 8 to 10 hours and serve over rice, noodles or with crusty bread!

Cream Style Swiss Steak

Round steak cut into 4 or 5 pieces, lots of fresh onions, mushrooms, celery and carrots with a can of cream of mushroom soup. Cook on medium 8 to 10 hours and serve over rice, noodles or with crusty bread!

 

[TromboneAl]

Red Swiss Steak

Round steak cut into 4 or 5 pieces, canned tomatos, fresh onions, mushrooms, green peppers (or medium hot banana peppers), fresh garlic to taste, touch of cayenne, 1 tsp dry beef boullion & black pepper. Cook on medium 8 to 10 hours and serve over rice, noodles or with crusty bread!

Cream Style Swiss Steak

Round steak cut into 4 or 5 pieces, lots of fresh onions, mushrooms, celery and carrots with a can of cream of mushroom soup. Cook on medium 8 to 10 hours and serve over rice, noodles or with crusty bread!

 

[TromboneAl]

Barbequed Beef

3 # boneless chuck roast
1 1/2 cups ketchup
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 tbsp Dijon-style mustard
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp liquid smoke flavoring
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder
sandwich buns

Place chuck roast in slow cooker. Combine remaining ingredients in large bowl. Pour barbecue sauce mixture over chuck roast. Cover and cook on Low 8 to 10 hours or 4 to 5 hours on High. (note, crockpot cooking times vary). Remove chuck roast from cooker; shred meat with fork. Place shredded meat back in slow cooker. Stir meat to evenly coat with sauce. Serve on buns.

 

[TromboneAl]

Yup, I use a Crock when I go fishing out in MOntana.

Put frozen chicken breasts in there with a can of cream of mushroom soup, little red potatoes, carrots and onions. - great chicken stew

Pork loins with can of stewed tomatoes - Great Pork roast

Chuck Roast - with the mushroom soup, carrots, onion, little red potatoes - Great beef stew.

Everything is so tender, it falls off the bone! -

 

[TromboneAl]

From my Pennsylvania/German roots: Cut up 6 or more potatoes, put in the bottom. Put in a bunch of fresh or canned green beans on top of the potatoes. Dice up about 2 pounds of ham, put on top. Add a cup or so of water. Cook slowly for about 8 hours, or until the potatoes are cooked. Lovingly known by Grandma as "ham, green beans and potatoes". We grew up on it, and I still cook it regularly today. It's one of my comfort foods.

CJ

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Al, you the man. I knew if I left you alone long enough, you'd self-actuate.

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Heres a couple I think you missed though
Thai Chicken Stew

This has a more or less traditional thai soup base (coconut, ginger, garlic, lime), with a variable protein source and veggies.

1 lb ground chicken or turkey (beef is workable, "gimme lean" or other soy based "ground meat substitute" is also workable). Chunks of chicken or turkey can be used. I generally go for the 99% fat free ground turkey breast I can get for about $1.30 a pound at my local market.

Mix or rub the protein with a tablespoon of chinese 5 spice, a teaspoon or more of hot pepper flakes, and a teaspoon of salt. I grow a variety of chili peppers in the summer and whatever I dont chow down on I dry on an aluminum cookie sheet in the back window of my car...a cheap dehydrator...then I grind them in my blender and put them in tupperware...homemade hot pepper flakes/chili powder. Everyone that gets in my car draws a deep sniff and says "your car smells REALLY good!".

Let your meat mix or rubbed meat stand for an hour in the fridge. Please, no jokes about rubbing your meat.

While thats happening, slice, dice or matchstick a chunk of ginger the size of your thumb, or more, or less. I use a LOT. Use a lot or less. See if I care. Add a similar amount of chopped garlic. Shhh...I use the stuff in a jar most of the time because I'm too lazy to skin and chop it, and I'd rather use an inferior product all the time than a superior one now and then. Slice the white ends of four to six green onions.

Heat a large broad pan and add a tiny bit of olive oil. I have spray cans of olive and canola that work fine for this. Roll the meat (or whatever) mix into 1" balls and add to the pan. The original recipe called for rolling them in flour. I dont, but whatever makes you happy. Brown them nicely all around. When thats done, add all the stuff you sliced and diced above. Toss until fragrant, a couple of minutes. No deep browning is needed here, but do what works for you. You might preserve the garlic until last, since it cooks and turns bitter a lot faster than the other aromatics.

Add one or two cans of coconut milk. You can use full or low fat. More cans = more broth to stuff ratio. I like two. Add one or two cans of stock...chicken or vegetable works well. I use a roasted vegetable stock I get from Trader Joes.

Roughly chop and add 2-4 tomato's, depending on how much you like tomato's. I add 3 romas, seeded and chopped.

Another variable, added veggies. A can of baby corn and a can of straw mushrooms are my base standard. You could add fresh corn or fresh mushrooms. I've put in bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, etc. Use whats fresh and local or buy a couple of big cans or frozen pouches of "stir fry vegetables" and throw those in. In the winter I use frozen and canned, in the summer when its all fresh and cheap, I use what looks good to me. Next time I do this I may add a diced sweet potato.

Simmer over medium heat until everything is warm and the meat is definitely done through.

I then add a green, either fresh baby bok choy or spinach. I got a nice big bunch of fresh spinach this afternoon, still had dirt clods on the roots. Turn off the heat, cover and let the greens "steam down" into the broth.

If you raise any fresh herbs, add a big double handful here. I raise several types of parsley and basil. I add some cinnamon basil leaves, some lime basil, and some italian curly parsley to this at the very last minute. Cillantro would also go well if you have it and you like it.

Serve in a big bowl with the chopped green remainder of the green onions over top and a half a lime to squeeze into the soup...the lime is ESSENTIAL. Big spoons and crusty bread.

After your first time through this, it goes together in about 15 minutes, you can use the fresh local ingredients, and its yummy.

If you're using chunks of extra firm tofu instead of meat, rub those with the same spice ingredients above, chill for an hour, and stir them in at the last minute before serving. Less fat, lower cost, and high protein, plus the benefits of soy isoflavones.

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Since you like butter, how about the easiest Eggs Benedict around?

Warning: once you make this, you will be forced to make it like clockwork. Avoidance is not an option.

Put out as many eggs as you need for poaching, plus two for the sauce. Allow to warm up a little, about 30 minutes.

Separate enough english muffins for your portions, I use the thomas's sandwich size for a little more room. Preheat your toaster oven.

Portion up some canadian bacon, smoked ham, etc. I've used proscuitto and thats my favorite. You can also use a slice of grilled tomato or some cooked asparagus. Be creative. If you'd put butter and salt on it, and its not overpowering, try it here.

Perfect poached eggs: Heat about 2" of water in a non-stick saute or frying pan large enough to hold the eggs..a larger pan is best even if you're only doing 2-4 eggs. When the water is boiling briskly, turn off the heat, add 3-5 tablespoons of white vinegar. This will help the eggs set more quickly. Break each egg into a separate area of the pan. Cover and let stand for 7 minutes. NO HEAT. Towards the end lift the cover and poke the yolks gently with a finger or non-sharp utensil until they're as firm as you like them.

Start toasting the english muffins and set out plates.

Hollandaise in a blender: pre-heat the blender jar by filling it with very hot water and letting it stand a minute. Pour out water from blender. Break two eggs into the blender, add 2-3 teaspoons lemon juice. You can sub orange, lime, or a mix of juice. Blend briefly. Melt a stick of butter in a large measuring cup in the microwave...30 seconds at a time and keep an eye on it. Turn on the blender and add the butter through the hole in the top of the blender container in a stream. You should now have a thick mayonaise consistency. Add a few drops of tabasco, a half teaspoon of dijon mustard, and more salt and pepper to taste if you prefer, run the blender and taste test, continue to balance the seasoning.

Remove the muffins, add the ham (or whatever), use a slotted spoon to drain the eggs and put on top of ham, and top with a few spoonfulls of the sauce.

This should make enough sauce for 6-8 muffins if you're not too heavy handed with it.

Pretty good, beats the hell out of paying $10 a plate for it in a restaurant, and the wait is shorter.

To make a blender bearnaise sauce, make the above hollandaise but use some white or tarragon vinegar (which you can make by adding some fresh or dry tarragon to good white wine vinegar and allowing to stand several days).

In a saucepan, simmer 2 tablespoons white wine, 2 tablespoons tarragon vinegar, 2 tablespoons minced shallots, 1/2 teaspoon fresh tarragon or a pinch of dry, and 1/8 teaspoon of black pepper. Pour this into the blender when its been reduced to about 1 tablespoon of liquid. You may strain it into the blender if you want a smooth sauce. Tarragon isnt a well used herb, so I buy a bunch for this, dry it, wrap it in a paper towel, ziploc bag and freeze it. It will last up to six months in the freezer. Just break off a bit when you need it.

Serve this over red meat, chicken, or fish. Asparagus likes it too.

For a large informal crowd, I'll get a whole round eye roast (its about 2' long - 8-10 lbs), for about $25-30. Its long and 3" thick, looks like a whole tenderloin. Rub with olive oil and roast at high heat - 400 - Until rare or medium rare. You dont want to cook this any further, it'll turn tough as shoeleather. Allow to stand 10 minutes (time to make the sauce and finish your sides), slice about 1/2-1" thick diagonally with an electric knife, and serve with side dishes and the bearnaise. Nobody will notice they're eating round steak with a sauce this good.

If either sauce "breaks", add more lemon juice, more vinegar and/or more butter in small amounts...which one you need more of will depend...if you didnt add enough butter or had too much or not enough acidic. Even "broken" the sauces taste the same, the appearance just isnt creamy

Late edit: I actually managed to produce an even easier hollandaise sauce.

Put a half cup of regular mayonnaise into a bowl. Add a few drops of tabasco, a few drops of mustard, some salt, some pepper, a few tablespoons of melted butter, mix and add lemon juice to thin it. Play with the seasonings until it suits you. Hollandaise in 30 seconds. Basically you're replacing the emulsion process by bringing your own emulsion (the mayonnaise) to the party up front. Also not as bad for you as you're replacing some of the saturated fat laden butter with whatever vegetable oil is in the mayo.

Make it up and substitute some minced lightly sauteed shallots and some tarragon vinegar (float some dry or fresh tarragon in some vinegar a couple of days if you cant buy it) in place of the lemon juice and you've got Bearnaise sauce for red meats.

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Get one or more slabs of baby back pork ribs. You can use this same methodology for regular slab ribs or even beef ribs, but they'll need a lot more cooking time.

Buy a box of extra wide foil...18" wide or more. Pull out an amount a little more than twice as long as the rib slab. Lay it out and put the ribs on top.

We're going to make a rub, but we're not going to rub it in. Simplest is just chili powder. I make a mix of 4 parts brown sugar, one part chili powder, one part cumin, one part black pepper, one part salt, and one part italian seasoning. Be creative. I make a bunch up and put it in a ziploc bag or a canister.

Sprinkle some of this on. You dont want a breaded appearance, so dont overdo it. Consider this as you would heavily "salting" the meat...you want good coverage but too much is not good.

Flip the ribs over so the curved part is face up. Dont bother rubbing this, it wont matter.
Fold the foil over, pinch it off all around snugly (dont rip it), put this in the fridge for an hour or overnight. Or dont, it'll still be ok.

Heat the oven to 350, remove the ribs from the fridge if you put them in the oven on a cookie sheet or something that can catch juice if the packet leaks. You can cook as many packets of these as your oven can handle, just dont stack them. Cook for roughly 60-90 minutes. Open the package at one end and tweak one of the bones. If its just starting to turn in its socket, its done. If the whole slab still has a lot of spring in it, its still underdone. If the bone pulls out, its overdone. Full slab pork ribs may take 2 hours or more...beef ribs even longer...for these you may also want to reduce the heat to 300 and increase the cooking time.

Take them out, and if you like put the wrapped ribs over a large pan and snip the foil in the middle to let the juice out into the pan...this is a good start for a homemade barbecue sauce. If you dont want the juice, do the unwrapping in the sink.

Using scissors or your fingers, unwrap the ribs and either throw them on the grill or under the broiler for a few minutes until they get that brown and crispy look.

Carve them up and serve at the table with sauce on the side.

What we did here was braise the ribs in their own juices and our spice "rub", which has fully infused the meat without any extra work. They're moist, tender, tasty, and above all...easy.

An alternative if you like sticky sauced ribs and dont mind doing some extra work:

After you pinch up the rib foil pack, keep one end open and curved up like a funnel. Add a 1/2 cup of white wine, beer, or whatever floats your boat. A glop of chopped garlic. An extra spoonful or two of brown sugar. A few spoonfuls of balsamic or red wine vinegar. Seal it up. Cook as above. Drain the considerable juices from the foil into a pan. Taste it and add brown sugar, wine, tabasco and/or vinegar to taste. Boil it down until its bbq sauce/glaze consistency, paint it on the ribs, and serve. Dont put them under the broiler or on the grill, the glaze will just burn. Sticky and good.

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Italian beef stew

Cut four pounds of chuck or other stewing meat into chunks about 1-2 inches. Thoroughly brown by whatever means works for you. Drain the fat. Add 2 cups dry red wine, 2 14oz cans diced tomatoes, 1 cup chopped fresh basil or 3 tablespoons dried, 18 (yes, 18) peeled garlic cloves, a big handful of dry sun-dried tomatoes (or add chopped oil packed sun dried tomatoes to the pan when its nearly done) and 1 tablespoon fresh ground black pepper.

Cover and simmer for 1.5 to 2 hours, until beef is tender but not falling apart. If it starts running low on liquid, add more wine. Salt and pepper to taste.

Make polenta (see recipe #3 post)

Make gremolata. This is a raw, fresh seasoning for hearty dishes. Mix 1 cup chopped fresh parsley with a finely chopped garlic clove and 1 tablespoon grated lemon zest. You may use a tablespoon of lemon juice instead of zest if you're not into zesting, and more raw garlic never hurt anyone.

Plate up some polenta and spoon the stew over it. Garnish with a big spoonful of gremolata on top; pass a bowl with extra gremolata at the table.

If you cant find sun dried tomatoes or you have a load of your own from a garden, slice fresh tomatoes 1/4 inch thick, put on a cookie sheet sprayed with olive oil, and dry at 200 degrees for 2-3 hours until shrunken and dark brown. These will keep in the fridge for a week or two.

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

There are also some
here http://early-retirement.org/forums/index.php?topic=4327.0
here http://early-retirement.org/forums/index.php?topic=4340.0
here http://early-retirement.org/forums/index.php?topic=8280.0

This
Get your old slow cooker out.

Put a cup of steel cut oats, or whole oats if you can find them, not the steamed and rolled flat ones.

Add four cups of water, or milk, and if you use water, a half cup to a cup of half and half.

Two cups of dried fruit that you like, I use cranberries and apricots most of the time, dice the larger fruit to berry size if you use them.

A few pinches of salt.

Turn on to Low when you're ready to go to sleep...8-9 hours later when you wake up you'll have perfect smooth creamy hot oatmeal.

Try this once during the day just to make sure your slow cooker doesnt cook too hot/fast, otherwise you'll wake up to burnt oatmeal. The usual regular size crock-pot brand works fine for this...my dad has a small Rival made one that cooks the oatmeal in about 6 hours...if you have one of those and tend to wake up once or twice during the night, flip it on later...

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

here http://early-retirement.org/forums/index.php?topic=4259.0
and here http://early-retirement.org/forums/index.php?topic=4634.0

 

[TromboneAl]

This was posted on the Good Morning America website. I made it for supper this evening and it was absolutely delicious. I substituted Emeril's seasoning for regular seasoning salt and next time I make this I will use less water (1/2 the amount) as I prefer a slightly thicker gravy.

Give it a try. It was wonderful.

Smothered Pork Chops

Ingredients
8 thinly cut (about 1/2 inch thick) pork chops (about 3 pounds total)
2 teaspoons Emeril's Original Essence
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 cups thinly sliced onions
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
4 bay leaves
Two 14 1/2-ounce cans low-sodium chicken broth, or 3 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 1/2 cans water (measured in the chicken broth cans)
1 pound smoked sausage or andouille, cut crosswise into 1-inch slices
1 pound russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
Steamed white rice or rice pilaf, for serving

Directions
Season both sides of the chops with the Essence.
Heat the olive oil in a large heavy pot or Dutch oven over high heat.
Add the pork chops, 3 or 4 at a time, and lightly brown, about 2 minutes per side.
Remove the pork chops and transfer to a platter. Set aside.
Reduce the heat to medium.
Add the flour and stir constantly until the roux is the color of peanut butter, about 4 minutes.
Add the onions, salt, and black pepper.
Cook, stirring, until the onions are slightly soft, about 5 minutes.
Add the garlic, bay leaves, chicken broth, and water and bring to a boil.
Return the pork chops to the pot.
Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 45 minutes.
Add the smoked sausage and the potatoes.
Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low, and cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes.
Remove the bay leaves.
Remove from the heat.
Serve with either steamed white rice or rice pilaf.

Makes 4 servings (2 chops each) or 8 servings

LL

 

[TromboneAl]

--- Recipes to this point added, excluding CFB links above --

 

[Zoocat]

Dynamite Green Smoothie

Big handful of fresh spinach greens
1 orange (MANGO is great too!)
1/2 banana
1 scoop vanilla whey powder

Blend it up with 3 ice cubes. YUM. And all those antioxidants to boot!

 

[Sarah in SC]

Beer drinker's cheese dip

1 can Rotel tomatoes with green peppers
1 block cream cheese (lite is okay)
2 tbsp sour cream (lite is okay)
dash Red pepper flakes
dash garlic powder
dash black pepper
Hot sauce of your choice to taste

Heat in microwave, stirring often.
Serve warm with chips and lots of beer!

Sarah

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Roasted root vegetables

Cut a variety of root vegetables into similar sized chunks, I go for roughly the size of my thumb.

Potatoes, sweet potatoes, yams, carrots, turnips, parsnips, onions (peeled and quartered or use pearls unpeeled - red/yellow/white to mix it up), heads of garlic pulled apart and excess paper removed but leave the last paper coat on each clove. Do the sweet potatoes and potatoes last as they'll start discoloring from exposure to air. Beets are good but put them on their own pan as they'll leak beet juice all over everything otherwise.

Toss in olive oil and spread out on one or more baking sheets. Bake at about 375 degrees for about 30-40 minutes, until they start caramelizing and getting good and brown in spots. Turn once during cooking if you have the chance, although just leaving them to cook works out okay.

Season with a bit of salt and pepper and serve with good crusty bread to squeeze the garlic onto.

Of course, leave out anything you dont like, although roasted parsnips and turnips taste a lot different than boiled/steamed ones...you might like them

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Smoked Oyster Sandwiches

Make a vinaigrette from equal amounts of olive oil and lemon juice (quarter to third cup of each makes 2-4 sandwiches), toss in a minced garlic clove, and a couple of teaspoons of franks red hot sauce or other 'louisiana style hot sauce'. A minced Serrano or small jalapeno will do, but do not use tabasco...too much heat...I guess you could go with just 5-6 drops of tabasco if its all you had, but I like the Franks best. Season with salt and black pepper to taste.

Chop a couple of the inner light green ribs of celery and coarsely shred/tear a head of a nice heavy duty green like mustard greens or watercress. I prefer the mustard greens for their bite.

Toss the celery and greens in a large bowl with the vinaigrette.

Cut open some nice sandwich rolls or a decent sized baguette and scoop out some of the soft inner bread to make a cavity.

Crack open two cans of decent smoked oysters. I like the geisha brand. Lay out a layer of oysters and top with a big handful of the dressed greens.

If you have any leftover greens, add some sliced onion and tomato and serve as a side salad.

Not as good as a deep fried oyster poor boy, but a nice fast substitute.

 

[shiny]

Roma Tomato and Feta Pasta

An easy, but surprisingly elegant vegetarian pasta dish

1/3 cup olive oil (this is an estimate, but don't skimp here)
2 Tbsp minced garlic
1/2 small onion, minced
8-10 Roma tomatoes, sliced into medium sized chunks
4 oz Feta cheese (and ounce or two more for creamier version)
8-10 oz pasta (I like the light texture of brown rice pasta for this dish, but thin spagetti works)
Salt and Pepper

Heat up the olive oil and sautee the onion and garlic until soft
Add the tomatoes and sautee over medium heat until some of the juice is evaporated
Add feta and sautee until melts
Salt and pepper to taste (best garnished with freshly ground pepper when served)

I usually served this with a side dish of sauteed spinach and hot french bread.

This is probably 4 servings, although when I make it we usually have it for dinner then I eat the leftovers the next day and that is it. It is easily altered to suit your needs for serving portions.

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Make your own "Benihana" dinner for 1/6th the price in about 20 minutes, most of which is prep time.

Yeah, I know, half the fun is watching the guy shoot shrimp tails into his hat and your lap.

The prep work can be done hours in advance. Put a layer of plastic wrap on the plates you'll put the meat/seafood on, then another piece of wrap over top of those...then you can stack them in the fridge and re-use the plates the raw meats were on by removing the lower layer of plastic wrap. With the prep work done you've got a very easy saute dinner.

Secrets in the sauces:

Ginger sauce:

Put all ingredients into a blender, run until smooth:

5 ounces sliced onion, rinsed in running water for 15 minutes
2 ounces ginger, peeled and sliced thinly (hint: 'peel' the ginger with the end of a teaspoon)
1 lemon, peeled and chopped, juice squeezed
2 cups soy sauce
1 cup vinegar

Rinse blender and add:

2 cups soy sauce
1/3 cup ground roasted sesame seeds
1 cup whipping cream
1 pinch garlic powder
1 teaspoon dry mustard dissolved in 1 teaspoon water

Blend until smooth.

Slice up your choice of meats or seafood into bite size chunks. Slice shrimp, scallops or calamari in half to make them about a half inch thick and toss in flour to lightly coat. Slice some zucchini into sticks the size of your finger. Chunk up some onions, same size. Slice some very large mushrooms into thick slices.

Cook the mushrooms and onions in separate pans over medium high heat with a little oil until done. Put in serving bowls and cover loosely with foil. Put zucchini in the former mushroom pan and your meats into the onion pan with another spoon of oil, until just done. Put those into serving bowls and toss the seafood into the former zucchini pan with a bit of oil and saute very quickly...they'll only take a minute or two.

Serve with the two sauces in lots of separate dipping size bowls.

 

[bright eyed]

Roasted root vegetables

Cut a variety of root vegetables into similar sized chunks, I go for roughly the size of my thumb.

Potatoes, sweet potatoes, yams, carrots, turnips, parsnips, onions (peeled and quartered or use pearls unpeeled - red/yellow/white to mix it up), heads of garlic pulled apart and excess paper removed but leave the last paper coat on each clove. Do the sweet potatoes and potatoes last as they'll start discoloring from exposure to air. Beets are good but put them on their own pan as they'll leak beet juice all over everything otherwise.

Toss in olive oil and spread out on one or more baking sheets. Bake at about 375 degrees for about 30-40 minutes, until they start caramelizing and getting good and brown in spots. Turn once during cooking if you have the chance, although just leaving them to cook works out okay.

Season with a bit of salt and pepper and serve with good crusty bread to squeeze the garlic onto.

Of course, leave out anything you dont like, although roasted parsnips and turnips taste a lot different than boiled/steamed ones...you might like them

I second the roasted root veggies - one of my favorites!!! I toss w/olive oil, sea salt and dried garlic. Also try cutting up a leak - adds nice flavor! also makes good baby food (i mash the sweet potatoes for the booboo).