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Monthly Archives: November 2013

A Breakfast Special: Homemade Biscuits and Sausage Gravy

06 Nov

Michelle likes to make a homemade breakfast on Sundays and this past weekend was no exception. She had asked me what I felt like having and I had suggested biscuits and sausage gravy. I know it is far from the healthiest breakfast out there, but it tastes really good and it is something we almost never have. I found this recipe from Cook’s Country that was simple and quick to make and didn’t use any ingredients that we didn’t already have in the house, which made it even better to try.

Homemade Biscuits and Sausage Gravy

Biscuits:

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces and chilled
4 tablespoons vegetable shortening, cut into 1/2-inch pieces and chilled
1 1/4 cups buttermilk 

Sausage Gravy:

1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground fennel seed
1 teaspoon ground sage
1 1/2 teaspoons pepper
1 1/2 pounds bulk pork sausage
3 cups milk
Salt

 For the biscuits: Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 450 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Pulse the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, butter, and shortening in the food processor until the mixture resembles a coarse meal. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl. Stir in the buttermilk until combined.

On a lightly floured surface, knead the dough until it is smooth, about 8 to 10 kneads. Pat the dough into a 9-inch circle, about 3/4-inch thick. Using a 3-inch biscuit cutter dipped in flour, cut out rounds of dough and arrange them on a prepared baking sheet. Gather the remaining dough, pat it into a 3/4-inch-thick circle, and cut out the remaining biscuits. You should have 8 biscuits in total.

Bake until the biscuits begin to rise, about 5 minutes, then rotate the pan and reduce the oven temperature to 400 degrees. Bake until the biscuits are golden brown, about 12 to 15 minutes, then transfer the biscuits to a wire rack and let them cool.

For the sausage gravy: Combine the flour, fennel, sage, and pepper in a small bowl. Cook the sausage in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, until the sausage is no longer pink, about 8 minutes. Sprinkle the flour mixture over the sausage and cook, stirring constantly, until the flour has been absorbed, about 1 minute. Slowly stir in the milk and simmer until the sauce has thickened, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and serve over split biscuits. The biscuits can be stored in a zipper-lock bag for 2 days to be used again later on.

It’s a very simple meal that makes a great breakfast. You could just have this alone with your coffee, tea or juice or serve it with an egg over easy or scrambled eggs and you have a really nice breakfast for a weekend. We actually made extra so there was some left over for me to have another day. I just heated some of the sausage gravy up and added a little milk to it to loosen it up and had some with a biscuit. It was pretty darn yummy.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. As always, there’s still lots to come, including more Thanksgiving ideas and recipes to use. Until next time, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by on November 6, 2013 in Biscuits, Breads, Breakfast, Gravy, Pork

 

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Jazzing up the Weeknight Burgers: Gourmet Diner Burgers

05 Nov

I make burgers about once a week, usually on Wednesday nights/ Wednesday is our busy day around here so it is a fast and easy meal that we all seem to like, but I have to admit that it can get a little boring after having it every week. I went looking for some ways to shake burger night up a little bit and then I came across this recipe from Giada De Laurentiis of the Food Network for some Gourmet Diner Burgers with some extra fixings.

Gourmet Diner Burgers

Zucchini Pickles:

1 pound zucchini, sliced into 1/4-inch thick rounds

3 sprigs fresh oregano

2 cups apple cider vinegar

1/3 cup sugar

2 teaspoons black peppercorns

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon fennel seed

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 bay leaf

Parmesan Frico:

1 cup coarsely grated Parmesan cheese

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Roasted Garlic Mayo:

1 garlic bulb

1 teaspoon olive oil

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup mayonnaise

6 cloves roasted garlic

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 teaspoons freshly chopped parsley

1 teaspoon freshly chopped oregano

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Burger Patties:

1 1/2 pounds ground beef

1/2 pound ground lamb

1 tablespoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

3 tablespoons olive oil

Burgers:

6 hamburger rolls, halved

Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling

Roasted Garlic Mayo

6 Burger Patties

12 zucchini pickle slices

6 Parmesan Frico rounds

6 slices bacon

1 onion, diced and sautéed

For the pickles: Place the zucchini slices and oregano in a large jar or heat-safe container. Heat the apple cider vinegar, sugar, peppercorns, salt, fennel seed, red pepper flakes and bay leaf in a medium saucepan, stirring until the sugar and salt have dissolved, about 2 minutes. Pour the pickling liquid and spices into the jar over the zucchini slices. Let the mixture cool completely, uncovered. Cover and place the container in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours and store for up to 6 weeks.

For the Parmesan frico: Place an oven rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Toss the Parmesan cheese, flour and pepper together in a large bowl, making sure the flour is evenly distributed throughout the cheese. Arrange mounds of 2 tablespoons of the cheese about 4 inches apart on the baking sheet and flatten each mound slightly with a spatula to form a 3-inch round. Bake the frico in the oven until they are golden brown, about 10 minutes, rotating the baking sheet halfway through the baking process. Cool the frico on the baking sheet for 2 minutes, then gently transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

For the Roasted garlic mayonnaise: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Cut the garlic bulb in half cross wise and place the halves on a sheet of aluminum foil. Drizzle each side with 1 teaspoon of olive oil and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of kosher salt. Fold up the foil around the garlic halves and then seal the foil into an airtight package. Roast the garlic until it is golden and soft, about 1 hour.

Stir together the mayonnaise, roasted garlic cloves, lemon juice, parsley, oregano, salt and pepper until well blended.

For the patties: In a large bowl, combine the beef, lamb, salt and pepper. Form the mixture into six 4-inch diameter patties, each about 1/2-inch thick. Drizzle the patties with olive oil. Place a grill pan or skillet over medium-high heat. Grill the patties until they are cooked through, about 4 to 5 minutes per side. Allow the patties to rest for 5 minutes.

To assemble the burgers: Drizzle the cut side of the hamburger rolls with olive oil and lightly toast on the grill pan, about 1 to 2 minutes. Spread the garlic mayo over the bottom halves of the rolls. Place the burger patties on the rolls and top each patty with 4 pickle slices, 1 frico round, the sautéed onions and a slice of bacon.

There is some prep work ahead of time that you can do for these if you want the zucchini pickles, and they do taste good, but if you don’t want to put the time into them you can just use regular store-bought pickles instead. Sean and Michelle absolutely loved the Parmesan frico and thought it was great with the burgers and without them. I think it would make a nice appetizer or side for a lot of other meals. As for the burgers themselves, I really liked the flavor and texture you get from having the beef mixed with the lamb. The burgers had a nice, unique flavor and I made some extra and froze them so we can have them again another night. I served the burgers with some homemade potato salad, which is always a favorite around here.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for some more recipes. I have been gathering lots of Thanksgiving sides and ideas to make, so keep watching for them. Until next time, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by on November 5, 2013 in Beef, Cooking, Dinner, Grilling, Side Dishes

 

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Thanksgiving Planning: Baked Ginger Sweet Potatoes and Mashed Butternut Squash

04 Nov

Since I won’t be cooking the actual Thanksgiving meal myself this year, I thought I would get the month started early and try to make a bunch of Thanksgiving side dishes all month long so you have some new things to choose and try for your Thanksgiving meal this year. I recently made two side dishes that would be perfect to use for Thanksgiving. The first is a very simple baked ginger sweet potatoes dish that I got from Chow.com. it is very simple to make, with a wonderful glaze that adds some great flavor to the potatoes.

Baked Ginger Sweet Potatoes

3/4 cup apricot preserves

1/3 cup freshly squeezed orange juice (from 1 medium orange)

3 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon peeled and grated fresh ginger

1 tablespoon kosher salt

4 pounds medium sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced into 1/2-inch rounds

Heat the oven to 425 degrees and arrange an oven rack in the middle position of the oven.

Place the apricot preserves, orange juice, butter, ginger and salt in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring the mixture to a simmer, stirring occasionally, and cook until the butter and the preserves are melted and smooth, about 6 minutes.

Place the sweet potatoes in a large bowl and drizzle them with about 1/3 of the apricot mixture, and, using your hands, toss the potatoes to coat them well with the mixture. Shingle the slices in a 13-by-9-inch baking dish. Cover the dish tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 25 minutes.

Remove the baking dish from the oven and remove the aluminum foil. Drizzle the potatoes with another 1/3 of the apricot mixture and bake the potatoes uncovered for 10 minutes. Drizzle the potatoes again with the remaining 1/3 of the apricot mixture and bake uncovered until the sweet potatoes are tender and the glaze has thickened, about 10 minutes more. Transfer the baking dish to a wire rack and cool for 10 minutes before serving.

The sweetness of the potatoes is enhanced even more by the apricot preserves and orange juice and the ginger adds a nice little bite of spice to the dish. It’s a great tasting dish that goes well not just with your Thanksgiving meal but with any weeknight meal of something like chicken or pork chops.

The second side dish I had made recently is another orange vegetable that is perfect for your Thanksgiving table. It is a very simple mashed butternut squash recipe that I got from Cook’s Country that has a great earthy flavor thanks to the spices it uses in the recipe.

Mashed Butternut Squash

4 pounds butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1-inch pieces

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

Salt and pepper

4 tablespoons butter

2 apples, peeled and shredded (about 2 cups)

1 onion, chopped fine

1 garlic clove, minced

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

3 tablespoons maple syrup

Adjust an oven rack to the upper-middle position and heat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Combine the squash, vegetable oil, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper in a bowl. Spread the squash out evenly on the prepared baking sheet. Roast the squash until it is tender and starting to brown, about 40 to 50 minutes, rotating the sheet halfway through the roasting process.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a Dutch oven over medium-low heat. Add the apples, onion, and 1/4 teaspoon of salt and cook, covered, until the apples are soft, about 5 minutes. Uncover the pot and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the apples and onion are golden brown, about 5 to 7 minutes longer. Add the garlic, cumin, coriander, cinnamon and cayenne pepper and cook until the mixture is fragrant, about 30 seconds. Remove from the heat, cover and set the pot aside while the squash finishes roasting.

Add the roasted squash and maple syrup to the Dutch oven with the apple mixture. Mash the mixture with a potato masher until it is mostly smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.

The mashed squash has great consistency and flavor and will go well with your turkey and other side dishes if you want to make something a little bit different. The apples really help to add some great depth of flavor to the dish and the maple syrup just gives it a final touch that we all really enjoyed. I actually served this with the slow cooker pepper pork chops I made the other night and the whole meal was fantastic.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for some more recipes. I have lots more ideas for your Thanksgiving side dishes, a good turkey recipe, a wonderful lemon cake I making for Michelle’s birthday, a great burger recipe we tried yesterday, some simple battered shrimp and a whole lot more. Until next time, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by on November 4, 2013 in Cooking, Holidays, Potatoes, Side Dishes, Vegetables

 

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An Alton Brown Special – Slow Cooker Pepper Pork Chops

02 Nov

Alton Brown’s recipes are always among my favorites. He seems to take the time to make sure everything is going to be cooked just right so that you get the best taste and flavor out of your dish. This was particularly true of the dinner I made last night that uses his recipe for slow cooker pepper pork chops. Granted, part of the dish is actually made on the stove top before it makes its way over to the slow cooker, but this helps you to get great browning for the pork chops and onions before they go into the slow cooker to get that falling-off-the-bone flavor and texture to them. There is some prep work that needs to go into this one beforehand, which includes brining the pork chops for 24 hours, but it is well worth the effort.

Slow Cooker Pepper Pork Chops

2 cups vegetable broth or water

1/2 cup kosher salt

1/2 cup light brown sugar

2 tablespoons black peppercorns, slightly crushed

1 pound ice

4 (1 to 1 1/2-inch thick) bone-in pork chops

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1/3 cup dried apple slices

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 large onion, julienned

1 1/2 cups chicken broth

1 tablespoon coarsely ground black pepper

1 teaspoon dried thyme

Combine the vegetable broth, 1/2 cup of kosher salt, brown sugar and the crushed peppercorns in a medium saucepan and set it over medium-high heat. Cook just until the salt and sugar have dissolved then remove the mixture from the heat and add the ice to the saucepan. Place the pork chops in a large zip-top plastic bag along with the mixture and seal the bag. Place the bag in a plastic container and refrigerate the pork chops overnight.

Remove the chops from the brine, rinse and pat them dry. Season both sides of the chops with kosher salt and set them aside.

Place the apple slices in the slow cooker. Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large saute pan or skillet over medium-high heat. Saute the pork chops on both sides until they are golden brown, about 5 to 6 minutes per side. Once they are browned, place the pork chops into the slow cooker on top of the apple slices.

Add the remaining 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil to the saute pan followed by the onions ans saute the onions until the begin to brown, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the chicken broth to the pan to deglaze. Add the black pepper and the dried thyme and stir the mixture to combine. Transfer the entire mixture to the slow cooker, set the slow cooker to high, cover and cook for 1 1/2 hours. Decrease the heat to low and continue cooking for another 4 1/2 hours or until the pork is tender and falling away from the bone. Serve.

The brine really helps to add some great flavor to the pork. If you aren’t a big fan of pepper, you might want to skip this one because the pepper flavor from the brine certainly permeates the pork well. I thought it had fantastic flavor and loved the taste of the pepper with the onions and apples. I served this with some simple white rice and I also made a mashed butternut squash, which was a great side dish for the pork and one that you can easily use as a side dish for your Thanksgiving plans. I’ll be posting the recipe for that dish tomorrow.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for more recipes. I am working on a lot of things, including a bunch of dishes that are perfect for Thanksgiving that I will be highlighting throughout the month of November. Michelle’s birthday is at the end of this coming week, so we’ll be doing some Thanksgiving dishes for her birthday since I am not cooking at home this holiday. I’ll also be trying my hand at her birthday cake this year, so we’ll see how that turns out as well. Keep checking to see what is next. Until next time, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by on November 2, 2013 in Cooking, Dinner, Pork, Slow Cooker Meals

 

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Homemade Peanut Butter Cups with a Kick

01 Nov

I am not much of a candy eater myself and I don’t go crazy over chocolate, so I rarely have the occasion to actually make any candy. However, with Halloween just happening, there was a huge influx of candy recipes all over the place to take a look at. I saw a couple that actually interested me, including this one from Food Republic for some homemade peanut butter cups. This version does taste a lot like the famous Reese’s version that you have come to know and love for generations, with one important difference. This recipes is not for the kids as it does make use of some bourbon, albeit a small amount.

Homemade Peanut Butter Cups with Bourbon

1 1/2 packages (11 1/2 ounces) milk or dark chocolate chips

1 shot bourbon

1 cup creamy peanut butter

3 tablespoons vegetable shortening, softened

1/4 cup butter

1 1/2 cups confectioner’s sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners. in a saucepan, add the shot of bourbon and the shortening to the chocolate chips and place over very low heat.

Stir the ingredients until the mixture becomes very smooth. Make sure to add the alcohol to the chocolate when the chocolate is still solid, as adding liquid to already melted chocolate will make it seize up. Allow the mixture to cool slightly, but make sure the mixture is still pourable.

Spoon 1 tablespoon of the chocolate inside the paper cups, covering the bottom half of each cup. Chill the chocolate for 30 minutes, or until cool.

In a bowl, combine the confectioners’ sugar, peanut butter, salt and butter until it is well incorporated. Spoon 2 heaped tablespoons of the peanut butter mixture over the chocolate cups and press down firmly to smooth the peanut butter layer.

Spoon another tablespoon of the melted chocolate mixture over the top of the peanut butter, allowing the chocolate to completely cover the peanut butter layer. If the chocolate mixture is cold and no longer pourable, return the saucepan to the stove over low heat for 1 minute until it is smooth and pourable again.

Chill the peanut butter cups for 3 hours or until firm.

I have to say that this recipe does taste just like a Reese’s peanut butter cup but the bourbon adds a really nice flavor to the entire mix. The recipe makes 12 rather large peanut butter cups and I think you could easily make many small ones on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet if you wanted smaller ones. The one catch is that the paper liners for the muffin tins help to give a nice shape to the candy, which you would lose if you did them free-form. In either case, it is a very easy treat to make that might be great for a party or if you are making some things for a homemade gift basket for the holidays. Most of the time for the recipe is just chilling the candy so it sets well.

That’s all I have for today. Check back again for some more great recipes. There’s still lots more to come as I am trying new things all the time. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by on November 1, 2013 in Candy, Cooking, Dessert, Snacks

 

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