Sloppy Lennys

Thursday night, I made vegan sloppy joes for the first time, using beautiful Puy lentils. I didn't find them to be at all a replacement for regular sloppy joes, but for sloppy lennys, they were mighty tasty! I've been wanting to try my hand at them for awhile now and I will absolutely make them again, but probably for lunch on a day when I'm the only one I'm cooking for, as my wife eschews everythibg lentil and my son wasn't keen on this particular application of them. I served them with mini tater tots and a delicious grapefruit & olive salad from the Williams-Sonoma Salads cookbook. My cookbook club, Wild Mangoes in the Kitchen, is having a free pick this month and that's the one I have chosen. Sloppy Lennys Cooking spray or 1/2 tbsp. oil 1/2 onion, chopped 1/2 green pepper, chopped 3 cloves garlic, minced 1 tsp. chile powder 1 tsp. dry mustard 1/4 tsp. cumin Dash turmeric 2 c. cooked lentils (Any kind is fine, but I like the way the Puy lentils retain their shape for this recipe.) 8 oz. tomato sauce A drizzle of molasses, to taste A healthy splash of apple cider vinegar Salt & pepper, to taste (a hearty pinch & a good grinding) In a large skillet, coated with cooking spray or oil, cook the onion and green pepper on medium until softened. Add garlic and spices and cook until fragrant, 30-60 seconds. Add the rest and cook 15-20 minutes. Serve on buns. Actually, this would probably make really tasty lettuce wraps or be good in a bowl, simply spooned up like a stew. Serves 4. Because I can't seem to follow a recipe without tinkering with it, this is my take on the Williams-Sonoma recipe: Grapefruit & Olive Salad A handful of red-leaf lettuce (or your favorite salad greens), torn into bite-sized pieces 1/2 ruby red grapefruit, peeled & sectioned (with membranes removed) A handful of your favorite pitted olives (I used kalamatas this week, but will try Castelvetranos or Frescatranos next.) 1 tbsp. Dijon vinegar A splash of apple cider vinegar A splash of grapefruit juice A pinch of sugar A scant pinch of salt A good grinding of pepper A splash of good quality, extra-virgin olive oil Place lettuce on a salad plate. Scatter grapefruit sections and olives on top. Whisk together the rest and drizzle over salad. Serves 1.

May 2018 Meal Planning

-Spaghetti, salad, garlic toast
-Italian pot roast, egg noodles, asparagus, chocolate icebox cake
-Ham quiche, salad, fruit
-Caesar snapper, parmesan rice, salad
-Broiled brie and pear sandwiches, fried potatoes, buttered radishes, salad
-Steak with spring garlic and rosemary, green beans, curried rice salad, spiced fruit salad
-Stuffed burgers on garlic buns, chips, radicchio and endive salad with goat cheese and walnuts
-Muffuletta, mashed potato salad, veggies & dip
-Chicken salad with raspberry vinaigrette, rolls, fruit
-Smothered chicken, mashed potatoes, corn, Shaker sugar pie
-Beef stroganoff, eggs noodles, salad
-Pork chops with sauce chien, baked potatoes, green beans
-Stacked grilled cheese, chips, succotash
-Sloppy joes, tater tots, corn
-Aloo gobi masala, basmati rice, cucumber salad, naan
-Chicken with wine & herbs, potato casserole, broccoli au gratin
-Pork loin with green peppercorns, herbed new potatoes, endive, pear, and roquefort salad, meringues with berries
-Shakshuka, good bread, salad

Lagniappe:
-Affogato punch
-Dipsy devil with crackers
-Pimiento cheese with crackers
-Fish Eyes
-Toffee mocha dessert
-Ginger fizzes
-Olive cheddar puffs
-Veggies with peanut dip
-Amaretto slush
-Butter mints
-Mexican omelets
-Fried egg sandwiches with pepper jack
-Double chocolate scones
-Toffee
-Dark & Stormys
-Enchilada bean dip with tortilla chips
-Waffles
-Salad with caper dressing

Italian Pot Roast, May 6, 2018

Yesterday, I wanted to make my wonderful wife something homey and delicious before she had to travel this week. As much fun as eating in restaurants can be, with the right company, it's not her favorite thing to do when traveling for work. She often just goes to whatever restaurant is closest to the hotel. So, cozy food it is, for the Sunday of a travel week! I also wanted to have the afternoon free to do something with the family, instead of being tied to home with something in the oven. So, I spent a little time in the morning getting an Italian-accented roast in the slow cooker and a chocolate cake in the icebox.

That cake was a bit of a disaster. I was using a modern recipe, from a modern magazine like Real Simple, so it never occurred to me that there would be eggs in a no-bake recipe. If I hadn't been feeding it to my toddler, I wouldn't have worried so much about it, but given a two-year-old salmonella poisoning isn't on my bucket list. So, I had a dilemma. Toss it all out (because, of course, I mixed everything up before reading the recipe) or bake it like I do my key lime pie? I decided that I might as well bake it, since it might turn out okay. If it turned out badly, well, I was just going to toss it, anyway. I burned the tips of the ladyfingers a bit, but not much. Most of them collapsed into the filling, though, and the filling was flat as could be, so it looked a fright. I chilled it, though, and gave it a try. Wee Boy wasn't interested in dessert at all (could be the ice cream I put in his before dinner "milk cocktail") and the wife took one bite and pushed it away. I thought it was a hot mess, but a pretty tasty one, so I saved the rest of it. If you want the original recipe, you can find it here. In the future, I will be using the tips on this page to help me stay safe while using raw eggs in uncooked desserts.

While the cake was a bit of a flop, the roast was a roaring success! I couldn't believe how much Wee Boy devoured. I served it with egg noodles and lush, silky asparagus from the farmers market.

Italian Pot Roast

2 1/2-3 lb chuck roast (We happened to have a London broil in the freezer, so that's what I used)

Salt & pepper

14 oz. diced tomatoes, with juice

1 white onion, sliced into thin half moons

8 oz. cremini mushrooms (or whatever sort you like), halved

4 cloves garlic, crushed

A couple teaspoons Italian seasoning

1 tsp. basil

1 tsp. oregano

A pinch of fennel seeds

A sprinkling of garlic powder

A couple teaspoons cornstarch, dissolved in cold water

Sprinkle both sides of the roast with salt and pepper. Place in slow cooker. Top with everything but the cornstarch. Cook on low 8 hours. Remove roast and mushrooms to a platter and tent with foil. Place remaining juices in a pan and heat, with cornstarch, until thickened. Next time I make this, I'm going to tip some wine into the sauce, too. Serve with roast. Serves 4-6. 

Black-Eyed Pea, April 7, 2018

On April 7, 2001, my wife and I went on our first official date, at The Winds Cafe in Yellow Springs, Ohio. We indulged in brie and steak and all sorts of other wonderful things. We talked and talked. On April 7, 2018, we had a considerably less fancy dinner to celebrate our anniversary. We took our wee boy with us. At nearly 2 1/2 years old, he is not currently fit for fancy restaurants. I'd been curious about Black-Eyed Pea and had just gotten a gift card in my Easter basket, so it seemed like a logical choice. I was a little nervous it wouldn't be that great, but figured if it wasn't, it wouldn't be the end of the world. Luckily, though, it was yummy, indeed.

We shared the fried green tomatoes and the Buffalo chicken tenders for appetizers, although most of it came home with us. The tenders were, in fact, very tender inside and perfectly crisp outside. The sauce was a bit sweeter than I prefer my Buffalo sauce, but still good. The fried green tomatoes were stunningly good, just the right thickness and cooked just right. I was a bit surprised that they were served with ranch instead of a remoulade sauce or something like that, but it was good.

For my main course, I chose the chicken-fried chicken with cream sauce, mashed potatoes with gravy, and fried corn. I'd been planning to order fried okra, but was convinced by the waitress to get the corn because I "can get fried okra anywhere." I was a bit puzzled by that statement, since we're in Colorado, not Tennessee, but figured, "Yeah, fried corn isn't that common out, either." My wife had ordered it and I was worried I would have dinner plate envy, if it was as amazing as the waitress suggested. Well, it wasn't much my cup of tea. I was actually a bit shocked when it arrived at the table, to be perfectly honest. My wife and wee boy loved it, but I was somewhat appalled. Somebody had decided it was a good idea to batter an entire ear of corn and fry it! I mean, the batter was good batter, but it was way over the top for me! I ended up peeling it off and leaving it behind on my plate. The corn underneath was pretty good for restaurant chain corn on the cob and for this time of year, but I wouldn't order it again. My chicken, though, was delicious and the mashed potatoes were very flavorful, all lumpy and earthy.

My wife's ribeye was very, very juicy and full of goodness. She had a broccoli rice casserole, along with the fried corn. It seemed a bit loose, for lack of a better word, to me. Wee boy wanted fish and chips, with a side of mac and cheese. He was the most excited about the big fries, dipping one after the other in tartar sauce.

We were happy to see that they offer their desserts in either cup or bowl size, so we were able to get smaller versions of two different desserts. I was deeply disappointed in the cherry cobbler, in which the cherries had turned into a weirdly congealed, chewy mess. However, the banana pudding was smooth and yummy, if a bit short on the Nilla Wafers.

Blintz Casserole with Strawberry Orange Mango Sauce, Brunch, April 7, 2018

I don't actually love blintzes, but it seemed like it would be fun to try my hand at a blintz-like breakfast casserole, anyway. My poor wife was expecting it to be like the scalloped pineapple I made for Easter, so she was a bit disappointed with it. I liked it pretty well, although if I'm going to indulge in a sweet brunch, I want it to be outstanding. Our wee boy ate it with great gusto. I'm happy to have some leftover strawberry orange mango sauce. I think I'll have to pick up some good vanilla ice cream to finish it off. It would be easy to make with any kind of berries or frozen fruit. I'm thinking I'll try it with straight-up mangoes next, perhaps over some big, fat waffles.

Blintz Casserole

4 oz. cream cheese, room temperature (neufchâtel would work nicely here, too)

8 oz. ricotta

4 eggs

1/2 tbsp. sugar + 1/8 c. sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 stick butter, melted

1/2 c. flour

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 c. orange mango juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat the cream cheese, ricotta, 1 egg, 1/2 tbsp. sugar, and vanilla together until well-mixed to make filling. For batter, beat butter with 1/8 c. sugar and 3 eggs. Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, and juice. Beat well. Pour half the batter into a greased 8x8 baking dish. Top with filling, spreading as evenly as you can. Cover that layer with the remaining batter. Bake until firm and golden on top, about 45-50 minutes. Cut into squares and serve with sauce. Serves 4-6.

Strawberry Orange Mango Sauce

16 oz. frozen strawberries (sub any fruit you like), thawed

2 tbsp. sugar

1 tbsp. cornstarch

1/4 c. orange mango juice

Place all ingredients in a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, mashing berries with a wooden spoon as they cook. Simmer, whisking, until thickened (about 5 minutes). Cool before serving. 

Long Ziti with Meat Sauce, April 6, 2018

My wife loves making pasta for dinner. Recently, I can't recall where, she found long ziti. Friday night, she made it with doctored Classico red sauce. She added onions, peppers, garlic, Italian seasoning, sweet Italian sausage, and shredded parmesan. It was heavenly, although the thick noodles were a bit unwieldy. She served it with a bagged Caesar salad and some grocery store ciabatta which she slathered with garlic butter and parmesan before baking. Delish!

Tuna Melts, April 5, 2018

I'd intended to have brisket and all kinds of yummy sides like tzimmes on Thursday, but we realized while we were out and about that we had forgotten to thaw the meat. The good news was that we were both more in the mood for tuna melts, anyway, and our wee boy eats those like a champ. He's not terribly picky in general, but he loves tuna melts! I was tired and it was wonderful to realize I could change gears from a big, somewhat labor-intensive feast to this simplest of meals--tuna melts, chips, and wedges of a glorious Cara Cara orange. Had I been feeling more ambitious, I would have dumped a salad out of a bag. Ha ha! I decided to try making the tuna salad with half mayo and half Miracle Whip, to very good effect. I liked the extra tanginess it added quite a bit. I always use chopped celery, sweet pickle relish, salt, pepper, and not much else. That night's tuna melts were either Wonder bread with American cheese or 17-grain bread with marble cheese. Me, I like mine with toasted Wonder bread and American cheese.

Fajitas, April 4, 2018

I had book group on Wednesday, so my dear wife made supper while I was away. At book group, we discussed Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel, ate cheese, salami, and other yummies, and drank wine. I wasn't starving when I got home, but walking in to the yummy smell of my wife's chicken fajitas was terrific! She used a Frontera Grill sauce as the base, but she always does a lot of doctoring and this time was no exception. She also served us Goya refried pinto beans, which we'd never had before but enjoyed, and apple slices.

Bacon & Bleu Meatloaf, April 3, 2018

When winter is encroaching on spring, as it frequently does here in Colorado, a good comfort dinner is perfect. The weather's been all over the place and I'm not averse to having a great leftover meatloaf sandwich when the outside temperature is in the 70s, either, but this dinner was perfect for the snowish weather. I made a different kind of meatloaf than usual, adding blue cheese where I seldom use cheese at all and adding bacon both crumbled within and laid across the top. It was delicious! My wife doesn't like blue cheese and didn't detect it at all, while I felt like it added to the overall flavor fulness, without being aggressive. I made mashed potatoes, corn, and veggies with Caesar dip to go along with the meatloaf.

Bacon & Bleu Meatloaf

5 or so strips bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled (save grease)

1/2 small onion, chopped

2 lb. ground beef

2 eggs

1/2 c. mayonnaise

1/2 c. dry breadcrumbs

1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

4 oz. blue cheese crumbles

3 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

4 or 5 more slices bacon, uncooked

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cook onion in bacon fat (it's fine to sub olive oil, though) until translucent and softened. Mix together everything but the uncooked bacon. Pat into a loaf, either in a regular loaf pan or in a 13x9 baking pan. Top with uncooked bacon strips. Bake about an hour and 15 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes or so before slicing to serve. Serves 6. 

Caesar Veggie Dip

1/2 c. mayonnaise

1/4 c. sour cream

1/4 c. shredded parmesan cheese

Juice of 1/2 lemon

3 cloves garlic, minced

Pea-sized dollop anchovy paste

Salt and pepper, to taste

Fresh veggies for dipping (we had baby carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, and sugar snap peas)

Mix everything but veggies together. Serve with veggies. Makes enough for 4. 

Orange Rosemary Sticky Rolls, April 2, 2018

I don't usually get too fancy with Monday morning breakfasts, but this morning, I felt like making something a little special, since we didn't have any kind of special Easter brunch, just eggs and toast. Not that eggs and toast aren't lovely. Just ask Carrie Newcomer. Anyway, I had all the ingredients for Susan Wittig Albert's lemon rosemary sticky rolls from her China Bayles novel, Bittersweet, so I decided to make those. Alas, I discovered that I didn't have the lemons called for, so I decided to riff on it by subbing an orange. I want to try the recipe the way she wrote it, as her recipes are always excellent, but for now, my version was pretty dang good! The rolls weren't terribly pretty, though, as they stuck to the pan, so were rather disheveled. I had more than enough filling and glaze. Guess I should try to figure out something else to do with them.

Orange Sticky Rolls

1 c. sugar

1/4 tsp. allspice

Zest and juice of 1 orange (you need 3 tbsp. orange juice altogether)

Minced leaves of 1 sprig fresh rosemary

3 tbsp. butter, room temp

7.5 oz. tube crescent rolls

2 oz. cream cheese, room temp 

1/2 c.powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix sugar, allspice, orange zest, and rosemary together. Add 2 tbsp. juice and butter. Mix well. Spread over crescent dough, then divide into 8 along perforations. Roll from wide end to pointy end, not sealing too tightly. Curve corners slightly inward. Place on baking sheet. Bake 11-13 minutes. Mix cream cheese and powdered sugar together, along with the remaining tablespoon of orange juice. Slather on finished rolls. 

Easter Dinner, April 1, 2018

Easter dinner is nearly always the same menu for me, the same menu my grandmom made when I was growing up, for the most part. We have ham, au gratin potatoes, asparagus, rolls, and some kind of dessert. My wife is usually in charge of the ham and potatoes (just boxed, doctored up). She often takes care of the rolls, as well, leaving asparagus and dessert to me. However, I really want to learn to make good yeast rolls from scratch, so that may become my job, if I have any success at all. Since she's not much of a lemon buff, I don't usually go with my first Easter instinct, which is to make some kind of lemon pie or cake. Often, I make the lamb cake my grandmom made. Other times, just a simple white cake with white icing and pastel sprinkles.

This year, though, I made a carrot cake. I used to hate carrot cake, but it's been growing on me in the last few years, especially with cream cheese frosting. I just made a boxed cake mix yesterday, with tub frosting, not nearly as good as from scratch would be. I forgot I have my friend Nicola's secret family recipe for carrot cake. Next time I make it, I shall use that. However, for last night, the Duncan Hines mix was not the worst thing in the world. Y'all should have smelled the wonderful aromas floating from my kitchen! I decided to try the non-iced edges look when my tub of frosting fell short of a thorough coat of icing all over. I actually really liked how it turned out. I tossed some large polka dot sugar confetti atop the cake, much to the delight of my wee boy, who ended up helping with that part (while tucking a few bits directly into his mouth).

I made a couple different things this year, too. I made scalloped pineapple and strawberry Jello Jigglers--so retro! The Jigglers were my son's favorite part of the meal. The pineapple wasn't as good as the version I remember from women's group at church when I attended as a kid with my grandmom, but it was tasty. It was less pineapply and more bread and eggy than that, but my wife loved it. It would make a nice brunch dish. I'll make the church version next time, if it's in the Taste and See cookbook.

Scalloped Pineapple

1 stick butter, room temperature

1/2 c. sugar

4 eggs

20 oz. can crushed pineapple

6 slices white bread, cubed (I just left the crusts on my Wonder bread)

1/4 c. milk (I used 2%)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream the butter and sugar together. Beat in eggs. Mix in pineapple. Gently add cubed bread and milk, combining thoroughly. Place in a greased 2-quart casserole and bake for an hour. Serves 6-8. 

Swedish Meatballs, December 13, 2017

Being of Swedish stock, I like to celebrate St. Lucia Day. St. Lucia is the patron saint of Sweden and her feast day is traditionally celebrated there, in part, with the oldest daughter of the family, clad in a white gown with a red sash, wreath of candles on her head, starting the day by bringing special coffee cake to the family in bed. I didn't get my act together to make the coffee cake (I actually usually do sweet buns) this morning, so I decided to skip the Van De Kamp fish I had planned for dinner and make the Swedish meatballs we picked up the last time we were at IKEA. I'd also gotten the sauce packet they sell, so I was able to use that cheat, too. I usually make my meatballs and sauce from scratch, using my cousin Lenore's recipe. However, it was great to be able to throw this together in no time, with very little effort. 15 minutes in the oven for the meatballs, 5 minutes to mix up the sauce, boil some egg noodles & season them with butter & dill, toss a bag of salad in a bowl, and done.

Chile Cheese Egg Bake, December 12, 2017

It was breakfast for dinner last night, with a scrumptious and super cheesy egg bake, sausage patties, fresh fruit, and maple cornbread with molasses maple butter. Boot adores cornbread--I wish y'all could have seen the two giant wedges he has. One great benefit about having your kids move back in with you for a bit is that there's much, much less food waste. Honestly, I would skip the maple syrup in the cornbread next time and just serve it with the butter, which is sweet enough for anyone. The bread and butter recipes came from Bon Appetit, although I modified the butter.

Chile Cheese Egg Bake

10 eggs, beaten

1/2 c. flour

1 tsp. baking powder

Pinch of salt

Grinding of pepper

8 oz. diced green chiles (I prefer Hatch chiles)

16 oz. lowfat cottage cheese

16 oz. colby jack cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Add dry ingredients to eggs. Mix in everything else. Place in greased 13x9. Bake 30-35 minutes. Cut into squares for serving. Serves 8-10.

Maple Cornbread

2 1/3 c. cornmeal

1 c. flour

4 tsp. baking powder

1 1/4 tsp. salt

1 stick cold butter, cut into small cubes

1 1/3 c. buttermilk

4 eggs

3/4 c. maple syrup

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter a 12" cast iron skillet (you can also use a 9x9 baking pan). Pulse dry ingredient briefly in a food processor or mix well by hand. Cut in butter until it resembles coarse meal. Whisk the buttermilk, eggs, and syrup together. Add dry mixture and stir just until moist. Put in skillet. Bake until golden brown, about 45 minutes. Serves 10-12. 

Maple Molasses Butter

1 stick butter, softened

1/8 c. maple syrup

1 tbsp. dark molasses

Mix well and serve with the above cornbread or any other sturdy bread. 

Orecchiette with Garden Sauce, December 11, 2017

I very seldom make pasta sauce from scratch. I almost always get a jar of Newman's sauce of some sort or another, brown some ground beef, and add some parmesan and extra seasonings while warming the sauce. I really like my pasta that way. However, I was inspired by an Ina Garten recipe from her Cooking for Jeffrey, orecchiette with farm stand pasta sauce. I am a much lazier cook than Ina, however, and she would probably be appalled to see what I did with her creation. Ah, well. Sorry, Ina! I served it with a complete bastardization of her kale salad, as well as some crusty Pugliese bread from the local grocery. It was tasty and made a ton. Luckily, Boot really loved it and made it vanish in just a couple days. I'd been looking at it, as I put away the leftovers, and wondering how on earth we were ever going to eat it all. By all means, try her recipe, but this is quite serviceable.

Orecchiette with Garden Sauce

Good olive oil

1/2 red onion, finely chopped

4 stalks celery, finely chopped

4 small carrots, peeled & finely chopped

6 cloves garlic, minced (or a couple tbsp of the pre-chopped stuff my wife likes to keep on hand)

28 oz. can San Marzano tomatoes

14 oz. can petite diced tomatoes

1/2 c. dry red wine (I used Pinot Noir)

6 oz. tomato paste

A handful fresh basil, cut in chiffonade

A handful Italian parsley, minced

1 tbsp. sugar (normally, I would be resistant, but I've been reading about how it helps tame the acidity of the tomatoes)

1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper

Salt and pepper

24 oz. orecchiette

Good quality parmesan, shredded

In large, heavy pot, heat some olive oil on medium heat. Add onion, celery, & carrots, cooking until they are tender, 10-15 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant. Add tomatoes, wine, tomato paste, basil, parsley, sugar, red pepper, a pinch of salt, and a good grinding of black pepper. Bring to a boil. Lower the heat, cover, and simmer about an hour. Cook the pasta, drain, and add to sauce, stirring to mix completely. Heat through. Serve with cheese. Serves 8-10. 

Kale Salad with Pancetta

1 tsp. anchovy paste

1 large clove garlic

1 tbsp. Dijon

Juice of 2 lemons

Salt & pepper

2/3 c. olive oil

1 bunch Lacinato kale, stems removed

2 oz. pancetta, diced

A handful of garlic croutons

A handful of shaved parmesan

Whiz everything up to the kale in a food processor until it emulsifies. Stack the kale leaves and slice them into thin ribbons. Toss with just enough dressing to coat the kale. Cook the pancetta in a little hot olive oil until browned and crisp. Drain on paper towels. Add croutons to the pan and toast. Toss pancetta, croutons, and shaved parmesan with the kale. Serves 2-4. 

Kielbasa and Kraut, December 10, 2017

My wife and I spent Sunday afternoon trying to wrap up shopping for Wee Boy. When we arrived home and realized we needed to figure out supper, neither of us could figure out anything that sounded very good. She'd been talking about getting barbecue and I pored over the menu online, trying to find one thing that didn't make me feel ill just thinking about it. I often enjoy barbecue, done well, and especially pulled pork. When we lived in Cleveland, we'd often venture out to Bubba's Q. In Columbus, it was trips to City Barbecue (with their alluring banana pudding). In Michigan, we'd discovered Union Woodshop, in Clarkston, and were impressed. However, I just was not feeling it, even though I think Dickey's is okay. I finally decided I could manage a kielbasa sandwich, even though I was secretly (okay, maybe not so secretly) hoping she'd just bring me a chicken sandwich from Burger King.

What she came home with, however, was something that made me very happy, indeed. She'd managed to stumble upon something we both actually felt like eating. Kielbasa and kraut! She got two different kinds of smoked sausage, actually. She and Wee Boy cut them up and chucked them into a pan with a big ol' jar of Vlasic sauerkraut. She was sorry she forgot to put in the apple. I was relieved! I don't like apples in my kraut. She served it with leftover mashed potatoes and more corn. Y'all should have seen Wee Boy shoveling in the potatoes, the kraut, the corn, the sausage! He completely loved the meal. I expect him to be a big fan of my annual New Year's Day White Dinner, too.

Oven-Fried Chicken, December 9, 2017

By Saturday, Jeannene was feeling well enough to cook. I think the cold affected what she was hungry for because all she wanted, all weekend, was comfort food. Saturday night, that turned out to be oven-fried chicken, with Bob Evans mashed potatoes and corn. She loves to mix the corn and potatoes together. In this case, they were all mixed together and covered in chicken gravy! She was in heaven! Me, I like to keep mine separated and I am happy as a clam.

The chicken was incredibly flavorful. She usually does Shake & Bake, which I don't find terribly memorable. She tried a different kind, one we'd never seen before, because neither of us can resist trying something we've not had. I think it was maybe called "Kentucky Colonel's" or something along those lines, just hinting at the 11 herbs and spices without slipping into the dangerous territory of copyright infringement. The coating tasted delicious, but didn't quite achieve a crisp texture. It was a bit floppy and my wife was disappointed with it until she tried it and realized the chicken inside was very juicy and the coating tickled the tastebuds very pleasantly. Me, personally? I would definitely use it again, but for chicken that's actually fried. I think it would be the perfect combo of great taste and pleasing texture.

Taco Loco, December 8, 2017

My wife arrived home from work on Friday completely bushed. She's been fighting a sinus infection, but hasn't been willing to miss work. By Friday, typically her night to make or obtain dinner, she was totally done. She walked in the door and asked if I'd be willing to run out for Mexican food, she didn't care where. The easiest thing to do would have been to head for the 24-hour drive-thru Mexican place in town. However, I've been wanting to take her to Taco Loco ever since Wee Boy and I met Barbara & Les there before going to the concert on the lawn with them over the summer.

Barbara says each place in town is good for a particular thing. For me, Taco Loco is definitely a carnitas joint. I was so impressed with their deliciousness! So, I got a carnitas platter, a chicken chimichanga with sides of beans and rice because Wee Boy adores beans & rice, an order of chips & salsa with guacamole, and a chorizo and cheese dish I thought was going to be like the cheesy dip you usually see at Tex-Mex places. It was not at all like that, but it was yummy tucked into a tortilla. The carnitas were as luscious as I remembered. The chicken chimi, on the other hand, was not very great. It was fine, but nothing special at all. I wasn't nuts about the salsa, either. It was the very liquidy sort that's brownish and vaguely red. But those carnitas! Worth the trip!

Pizza & Wings, December 7, 2017

We had this great plan to have every Thursday be Leftoverpalooza night. We would waste less food & clear out the fridge for the weekend grocery shopping. I came up with the idea a few months ago, but hadn't written it into my formal menu planning until this month. We have yet to do it. Either we end up with no leftovers or we don't feel like eating them or something else comes up.

Last Thursday, when I told my wife it was Leftoverpalooza, she said, "I've got dinner." She came home with two huge pizzas from Papa Murphy's, one with spinach, chicken, and sausage, the other with pepperoni. She added extra cheese. She loved the chicken one, I loved the pepperoni one. Boot's girlfriend and I often joke about how similar Boot and his mother are--and how much alike we two are. Sure enough, she loved the same pizza I did, while Boot sang the praises of his mom's favorite. However, she and Boot were aligned on the hot wings Jeannene brought home from the grocery to have with the pizza--they weren't that hot and they didn't know what we were talking about!

Puerco Asado, December 6, 2017

Yesterday, I remembered in time that I meant to marinate my pork roast so we could have puerco asado for supper. The smell permeated the kitchen even before I started cooking it, making it smell like nochebuena, Christmas Eve. My wife had urged me to buy some plantains and hoped I would make something yummy and Cuban. Fried pork chunks, masitas de puerco, is my very favorite Cuban dish, but this one is much less labor-intensive, so I tend to make it a lot more often. As usual, I served it with black beans, white rice, fried ripe plantains (maduros)--although, they could have been sweeter and more to my liking if they'd had a few more days to ripen--and a butter lettuce salad with avocado slices and sweet onion slivers. I could just put the dressing in a glass and drink it--or pour it over my pork, which is what I did last night. This pork is also great with mojo criollo to accompany it. Yum! For the dressing, simply whisk together about 1/2 c. Spanish olive oil with the juice of 1 lemon until it emulsifies. Season with salt and pepper.

Cuban Puerco Asado

5 lb. pork loin

4-5 cloves garlic

1/2 tsp. oregano

Salt & pepper

1/4 c. lime juice

1/4 c. orange juice

1/4 c. Spanish olive oil (non-Spanish okay, too)

1 c. dry red wine

Several hours before cooking, score the pork all over with a knife. Pound the garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper into a paste. Rub all over pork roast. Add juices, oil, and wine to the roast (I use a large ziploc bag) and marinate a minimum of 2 hours. Overnight is even better. Make sure you turn it every so often. 

I love black beans over white (usually jasmine, for me, but I used basmati last night because we find ourselves with oceans of it and I was able to locate it more quickly than the jasmine rice) rice. I would cheerfully eat it with a salad as a tasty lunch. I like to sprinkle mine with some chopped onions. My wife likes shredded cheese on hers. I very seldom make my black beans from dry beans. If that's your thing, go ahead and start them soaking when you start the pork marinating the night before. Otherwise, here's a cheater version I usually use:

Quick & Easy Black Beans

1/2 c. Spanish olive oil (again, any good quality olive oil is fine)

3-4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 onion, chopped

1 green pepper, chopped

2 cans blqck beans (not drained)

1 tsp. cumin

A few dashes hot sauce (if you like it)

1 tbsp. red wine vinegar (also optional, but I think it really brightens it)

Salt & pepper

Chopped onions (garnish)

Heat oil. Cook the garlic, onions, & pepper until they are soft. Add rest and heat through. Serves 4-6. 

Pumpkin Pancakes, December 5, 2017

I'd intended to make roast pork, Cuban-style, for dinner Tuesday night. However, I completely forgot, until about half an hour before I needed to start cooking, that I needed to marinate the meat. Whoopsie! Luckily, I had all the ingredients on hand for Wednesday night's planned dinner and it required no advance prep at all, so I was able simply to flip the nights.

I made a big ol' pile of pumpkin pancakes, an entire package of bacon, and an entire package of sausage patties. I also handed out Cuties to anyone who wanted them, in a nod to healthfulness. I'm so happy they're back in season! May I pause for just a moment to gripe about my local grocery not carrying Bob Evans sausage, though? Not that Jimmy Dean is horrible, but, for this Ohio girl, Bob Evans is the best. I could quit griping and submit a product request for that, lacinato kale, Italian parsley, and Goya Spanish-style chorizo (so I don't have to go to World Market every dang time I want chorizo), I suppose. Anyway, it was a mountain of food and, at the end, the only scrap that was left was a lonesome half piece of bacon. The pancakes vanished particularly rapidly, largely down Boot's gullet. I had no idea he would be so crazy about them. Personally, I thought they needed a bit more of all the seasonings and a bit more pumpkin. Next time, I'll up the amounts. You maybe should, too, but here's what I did. It was a good thing for Boot's girlfriend, who is not a big fan of pumpkin.

Pumpkin Pancakes

1 1/4 c. flour

3 tbsp. brown sugar

2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. each cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg

Pinch salt

Pinch cloves

4 eggs

1 stick butter (plus more--or oil--for cooking)

3/4 c. pumpkin purée

1 1/4 c. milk

Dash vanilla

Whisk dry ingredients together. Beat egg whites to stiff peaks. Set aside. Melt the stick of butter and gradually stir into egg yolks. mix in pumpkin, milk, & vanilla. Add to flour and mix well. Fold in egg whites. Heat a little butter or oil in a skillet or on a griddle. Drop batter by 1/4-1/3 cup measures into skillet/onto griddle, a few pancakes at a time, & cook through until lightly browned on each side. As you finish pancakes, remove them to a 250 degree oven to keep them warm. Serve with warm maple syrup. It also occurs to me that some toasted pepitas would be lovely sprinkled on top.