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Sunday Dinner on a Saturday, Part 2 – Braised Cauliflower and Yorkshire Pudding

To go along with the slow-roasted chuck roast dinner I made this past Saturday I chose a couple of new side dishes to give a try. The first comes from the Cook’s Illustrated Cookbook and is for a browned and braised cauliflower with garlic, ginger and soy. Cauliflower is in season right now so the price is not bad for a fresh head if you can get one. I like fresh much better than frozen as the frozen seems to get very limp and soggy quickly while if you cook the fresh right it was stay nice and crisp. This is a very easy recipe that only takes a few minutes to put together.

Browned and Braised Cauliflower with Garlic, Ginger and Soy

1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 head cauliflower (about 2 pounds), cored and cut into 1-inch florets

2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

1/4 cup water

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

1 tablespoon dry sherry

2 scallions, minced

Pepper

Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add the cauliflower and cook, stirring occasionally, until it is beginning to brown, about 6 to 8 minutes.

Clear the center of the skillet and add the ginger, garlic and sesame oil. Cook, mashing the mixture into the pan, until it is fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir the ginger mixture into the cauliflower and cook for 30 seconds more. Reduce the heat to low and add the water, soy sauce, rice vinegar and sherry. Cover the skillet and cook until the florets are tender but still offer some resistance when they are poked with a paring knife, about 4 to 5 minutes. Add the scallions and toss lightly to distribute. Season with pepper to taste and serve.

I really enjoyed the Asian flavor that this dish had. The ginger and soy really come through nicely and the garlic adds just the right touch, making this a great side dish. I would use this side again, perhaps with a chicken dish next time as I think it would lend itself quite nicely to that type of meal.

I also decided to take a shot at making Yorkshire pudding. Now I can remember having this as a kid and it was pretty good, but I had never attempted to make it before myself. I saw various recipes out there to give it a try, but I decided to go with this one from Alton Brown. It seemed the most basic and the one that I could least screw up, so I figured I would give it a shot. The worst that could happen is that I ended up throwing everything away. Thankfully, it all turned okay.

Yorkshire Pudding

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

4 large eggs, room temperature

2 cups milk, room temperature

1/4 cup beef drippings, divided

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Leave 2 tablespoons of the beef drippings in the pan and place it in the oven.

Place the flour, salt, eggs, milk and the remaining 2 tablespoons of drippings into the bowl of a food processor or blender and process for 30 seconds. Pour the batter into the hot roasting pan and bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until it is puffed and golden brown. While the pudding is cooking, carve the roast and then serve the pudding with the roast.

For my first try at this, I think it went okay. The taste was there as I remembered it, but it did not puff up nearly as high as I thought it would. Everyone else thought it was okay, but I think I will need to try this one again at some point to try for better results. It could be that my oven temperature is a little off and that made the difference in the height of the puff. Whatever the case, it still turned out okay.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for some more recipes. I still have a sausage in the slow cooker recipe I tried, Michelle’s apple pie that she made this weekend, a new banana bread recipe and a few other things to try out this week. until next time, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

3 Comments

Posted by MikeG on October 7, 2013 in Cooking, Dinner, Side Dishes, Vegetables

Tags: Alton Brown, braised cauliflower, browned and braised cauliflower with garlic ginger and soy, cauliflower, Cook's Country cookbook, Yorkshire pudding

Breaking Through on Bagels and Cole Slaw

10 Jul

A suggestion had been made to me a while back about making my own bagels. I had thought about it before and it always seemed like there was a lot of work involved in doing it so I never really gave it much thought until recently. I did some looking around for bagel recipes, trying to find one that would not be difficult to make and could be done in my small kitchen without a lot of fuss. After doing some searching, I came upon this recipe from The Sophisticated Gourmet and it seemed basic enough and easy enough that it would be worth my first shot, even if it is 95 degrees outside. Who doesn’t love a nice bagel for breakfast or as a substitute for your bread on a sandwich?

New York-Style Bagels

2 teaspoons active dry yeast

1 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 1/4 cups warm water (you may need 1/4 cup more, I used a little more than this)

3 1/2 cups bread flour, plus extra for kneading

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

In 1/2 cup of warm water, pour in the yeast and the sugar. Do not stir. Let the mixture sit for 5 minutes, and then stir the yeast and sugar mixture until it all dissolves in the water.

Mix the flour and the salt in a large bowl. Make a well in the middle and pour in the yeast and sugar mixture.

Pour half of the remaining warm water into the well. Mix and stir in the rest of the warm water as needed. Depending on where you live, you may need to add anywhere from a couple of tablespoons to 1/4 cup of water. You want your final results to be a moist and firm dough after you have mixed it.

On a floured countertop, knead the dough for 10 minutes until it is smooth and elastic. Try working in as much flour as possible to form a firm and stiff dough. Lightly brush a large bowl with oil and turn the dough to coat. Cover the bowl with a damp dish towel. Allow the dough to rise in a warm place for 1 hour, until the dough has doubled in size. Punch the dough down and let it rest for another 10 minutes.

Carefully divide the dough into 8 pieces (you can use a scale for this if you have one and want to be exact; I just eyeballed it to try to get equal portions). Shape each piece into a round. Take a dough ball and press it gently against the countertop or other flat surface you are working on, moving your hand and the ball of dough in a circular motion, pulling the dough into itself while reducing the pressure on top of the dough slightly until you form a perfect dough ball. Repeat the process with the other 7 dough rounds.

Coat a finger in flour, and gently press your finger into the center of each dough ball to form a ring. Stretch the ring to about 1/3 the diameter of the bagel and place the bagel on a lightly oiled cookie sheet. Repeat the process with the remaining dough.

After shaping the dough rounds and placing them on the cookie sheet, cover them with a damp kitchen towel and allow them to rest for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Reduce the heat. Use a slotted spoon or spider skimmer to lower the bagels into the water. Boil as many as you are comfortable with at first without overcrowding. Once the bagels are in, they will begin to float to the top within seconds. Let the bagels sit in the water undisturbed for 1 minute, then flip them over to boil for another minute. Extend the boiling time to 2 minutes per side if you would prefer a chewier, more New York-style bagel.

Once all the bagels have boiled, transfer them to a lightly oiled baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.

I only made plain bagels this time out since it was the first time I was trying them, but you could certainly add a wide variety of toppings to the bagels. Things like sesame seeds, poppy seeds, caraway seeds, minced onion, minced garlic or anything else can be used. You want to add your toppings after you remove the bagels from the boiling water and apply an egg wash to the bagels before you put the toppings on and then put them in the oven. The work time wasn’t bad even though it involved kneading dough in the summer heat for me, which wasn’t a lot of fun, but it was certainly worth it. I was very happy with the final results and the bagels tasted delicious. All said, I think it was pretty easy to do for a great result and a lot cheaper than buying a bagel from the bagel store or deli.

We used the bagels with dinner last night to make chicken salad sandwiches and they were delicious. I also tried Alton Brown’s coleslaw recipe to go along with dinner last night. There are a few nice ingredients in this one that give some great extra flavor.

Alton Brown’s Coleslaw

1/2 head green cabbage, thinly sliced

1/2 head red cabbage, thinly sliced

1 carrot, thinly sliced

1/2 cup buttermilk

2 ounces plain yogurt

2 ounces mayonnaise

1 tablespoon pickle juice

1 teaspoon dry mustard

1 tablespoon chives, chopped

Kosher salt, as needed

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Generously salt the cabbage and drain in a colander for 3 hours. Rinse thoroughly and dry. In a separate bowl, combine all of the ingredients except the cabbage and carrot. Whisk to combine evenly. Toss the cabbage and carrot with the dressing.

Salting the cabbage first helps to pull out a lot of the moisture from the cabbage. You could just as easily use a bag of coleslaw mix if you have one hand and get the same results. I love the added flavor that the yogurt, buttermilk, pickle juice and mustard give to the slaw. It has a nice, tangy flavor and a little bite to it that is very enjoyable.

That’s all there is for today. Check back next time to see some other new recipes I will be trying in the next few days. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

1 Comment

Posted by MikeG on July 10, 2013 in Breads, Salad, Side Dishes

Tags: Alton Brown, Alton Brown's coleslaw, bagel recipe, bagel recipes, bagels, coleslaw, New York style bagels

Alton Brown’s Cold-Fashioned Potato Salad

14 Jun

I’ve been making potato salad recipes for years and years now. All along, I’ve really just been using the same recipe. I have these standard Hellmann’s potato salad recipe that you used to find on the back of the jar that I’ve been using all this time and it is always worked well. This last time, when I decided to make some potato salad as a side dish for dinner, I wanted to try something a little bit different. I went searching for recipes and came across this one from Alton Brown on the Food Network’s website. I don’t think I’ve ever tried a recipe of his that I haven’t liked, so I thought I would give it a try.

Cold-Fashioned Potato Salad

2 1/2 pounds red potatoes, large diced
3 tablespoons cider vinegar
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon mustard powder
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon
1/2 tablespoon very thinly sliced garlic
3 tablespoons finely chopped cornichons
1/2 cup small dice red onion
1/2 cup thinly sliced celery
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Place the potatoes into a large heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven. Cover the potatoes with cold water and place the pot over medium heat. Cover the pot and bring to a boil. Immediately reduce the heat and remove the lid. Gently simmer until the potatoes are fork tender, about 5 to 6 minutes. Drain the potatoes and place them in an ice bath to cool. Remove the skins from the potatoes. Slice the potatoes into rounds and place them into a zip top bag. Add the vinegar and toss to coat all of the potatoes. Place the bag into the refrigerator overnight.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the mayonnaise, mustard, parsley, tarragon, garlic, cornichons, onions, and celery. Once everything is evenly combined, add the potatoes and season with salt and pepper. Allow the salad to chill in the refrigerator for at least one hour before serving.

If you have never used cornichons before, they are those little tiny pickles that you can find in many of your local supermarkets. I did not have any red potatoes on hand, so I did use some russet potatoes instead and I think everything turned out just fine. Adding the vinegar ahead of time and allowing the potatoes to marinate overnight does seem to make a good difference in the taste. There were also a few things in this salad that I never added before, including the cornichons, garlic and mustard powder. You can really taste the mustard powder and it does come through quite nicely. I would certainly recommend this recipe and I’ll be using it again. The salad tasted even better the next day once it had time to sit and the flavors were allowed to meld.

That’s all I have for today. Check back again next time to see some of the recipes that I’ve tried out this week, including a pork chop with cherries, a crispy high roasted chicken and potatoes recipe and some others that I have been working on. Until next time, enjoy the rest of your day, and enjoy your meal!

3 Comments

Posted by MikeG on June 14, 2013 in Cooking, Cooking Websites, Potatoes, Salad, Side Dishes

Tags: Alton Brown, cold-fashioned potato salad, food network, potato salad recipe, potato salad recipes

It’s Time For a Roast, Where’s Shecky Greene?

06 Nov

Okay, so it’s not really that kind of roast, but I decided I wanted to do an entire roast dinner tonight to try to make clean up as easy as possible for all of us here. Michelle had picked up a boneless leg of lamb roast that she wanted for dinner this week. I looked through some of my cookbooks for different recipes, and everything seemed pretty straightforward and not very exciting. I wanted to try something else, so I turned to my Twitter account and posed a question to some food experts to see what kind of response I would get. Bon Appetit gave me quite a list of recipes to choose from to make the lamb. America’s Test Kitchen and Christopher Kimball both gave me some good tips as well, but nothing really jumped out at me that I felt like I really wanted to try, so I kept asking. And then I got an answer I liked from Alton Brown. He gave me the link to a recipe of his called “Silence of the Leg O’ Lamb.” While this recipe does call for the lamb to be grilled, that wasn’t really an option for me in New York in November. He also uses a charcoal grill, which I do not have, so I had to modify the recipe a bit to be roasted in the oven.

Roasted Boneless Leg of Lamb

1 sirloin end leg of lamb, boned

4 cloves garlic

8 fresh mint leaves

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 teaspoon kosher salt

2 teaspoons black pepper

5 tablespoons Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 sprigs fresh rosemary

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Roughly chop the garlic cloves in the food processor. Add the mint and repeat. Add the brown sugar, salt, pepper, mustard and oil and blend into a paste. Spread the paste evenly on the meat side of the roast. Roll the leg into a roast shape and tie with butcher’s twine. Place the lamb in a shallow roasting pan and roast for about 20 minutes per pound, until the internal temperature of the lamb reaches 135 degrees. Remove the roast from the oven. Cover with foil and let the lamb rest for 15 minutes before slicing and serving.

The paste made more than enough to also do the outside of the lamb, which I also did, creating a nice crust on the outside of the lamb. It was cooked perfectly and tasted wonderful. The hint of mint coming through the mustard was great and I loved the garlicky flavor that went throughout the meat. I roasted some potatoes in the same pan with the lamb and they got some of the same mustard crust on them, which made them extra crispy on the outside.

For a vegetable, we had picked up a nice head of cauliflower. I find steamed cauliflower to be very bland and frankly, kind of smelly and not always appealing. I decided to try roasting it instead and I am glad I did. It seemed to make all the difference in the world in taste, flavor and smell and since I was roasting in the oven already anyway, it made it just as easy.

Roasted Cauliflower

1 head of cauliflower, cored and cut into florets

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Arrange the cauliflower florets in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle the olive oil evenly over the florets, then sprinkle with the salt. Toss to coat the cauliflower evenly, then spread the florets out evenly.

Roast the cauliflower, stirring 1 or 2 times, until golden brown and crisp-tender, 25 to 35 minutes. Transfer the cauliflower to a warmed serving bowl. Serve immediately.

I loved the way it came out this way and would make it like this all the time. I can also use some of the leftovers to make some cauliflower soup for later on this week.

That’s it for tonight. Check back later on this week to see what else I come up with for meals. I have some more chicken ideas for this week and also have some cod to make, so we’ll have to see what I can find. Until then, enjoy your evening and enjoy your meal!

2 Comments

Posted by MikeG on November 6, 2012 in Cooking, Dinner, Lamb, Vegetables

Tags: Alton Brown, americas test kitchen, bon appetit, boneless leg of lamb, boneless leg of lamb roast, Christopher Kimball, lamb, roast leg of lamb, roasted cauliflower

Good Eats Meatloaf and Roasted Green Beans

24 Oct

I love meatloaf. I know I have said that on here many times, but it’s always worth repeating. When we got out somewhere, if it’s on the menu I want to try it. Of course, some times I am disappointed by the results, but hey, you still have to try, right? So tonight when I decided to make meatloaf, I turned to a recipe from Alton Brown and his “Good Eats” program. I like a lot of the things he makes (and he’s great to follow on Twitter if you are on there) so I figured this recipe was a no-brainer. It got a lot of good reviews from people on Food Network’s website also, so I had to give it a try.

Good Eats Meatloaf

6 ounces garlic-flavored croutons
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 onion, roughly chopped
1 carrot, peeled and broken
3 whole cloves garlic
1/2 red bell pepper
18 ounces ground chuck
18 ounces ground sirloin
1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 egg

For the glaze:
1/2 cup ketchup
1 teaspoon ground cumin
Dash Worcestershire sauce
Dash hot pepper sauce
1 tablespoon honey

Heat the oven to 325 degrees.

In a food processor bowl, combine croutons, black pepper, cayenne pepper, chili powder, and thyme. Pulse until the mixture is of a fine texture. Place this mixture into a large bowl. Combine the onion, carrot, garlic, and red pepper in the food processor bowl. Pulse until the mixture is finely chopped, but not pureed. Combine the vegetable mixture, ground sirloin, and ground chuck with the bread crumb mixture. Season the meat mixture with the kosher salt. Add the egg and combine thoroughly, but avoid squeezing the meat.

Pack this mixture into a 10-inch loaf pan to mold the shape of the meatloaf. Onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, turn the meatloaf out of the pan onto the center of the tray. Insert a temperature probe at a 45 degree angle into the top of the meatloaf. Avoid touching the bottom of the tray with the probe. Set the probe for 155 degrees.

Combine the ketchup, cumin, Worcestershire sauce, hot pepper sauce and honey. Brush the glaze onto the meatloaf after it has been cooking for about 10 minutes. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes. Allow it to rest for 10 minutes, covered, after removing from the oven. Slice and serve.

This recipe is great. The meatloaf and the glaze have a nice combination of bite from the hot sauce, cayenne and chili pepper and a sweetness from the honey. We all loved it and I’ll definitely be making this one again.

I decided to serve this with some boiled potatoes and green beans. I love green beans too, and I am always looking for a new way to make them. I came across this recipe from Williams-Sonoma that is simple and tastes great from the roasting.

Roasted Green Beans and Carrots with Red Onion

3/4 pound green beans, trimmed
1/2 pound carrots, peeled and cut diagonally about 1/4 inch thick
1 red onion, sliced
2 large garlic cloves, very thinly sliced
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon ground cumin
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Preheat an oven to 350°F. Place an 8-by-11-inch heavy roasting pan or a very large, ovenproof fry pan on the rack.

Bring a large saucepan three-fourths full of water to a boil over high heat. Add a pinch of salt and the green beans. Cook the beans until they turn bright green and are just tender, 1 to 2 minutes. Drain the beans and plunge them into a bowl of ice-cold water to stop the cooking and drain again.

In a large bowl, toss together the beans, carrots, onion, garlic and olive oil. Sprinkle with the cumin, season with salt and pepper, and toss again to thoroughly combine. Transfer the vegetables to the preheated pan and spread them evenly. Roast, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender and lightly browned, 45 to 55 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper.

It was a something different to do and I like roasting vegetables. The flavor seems a little more intense when you roast them. You could easily add other vegetables to this if you wanted to, choosing some other fall root vegetables like parsnips, turnips, or sweet potatoes.

We also made some of the all-purpose gravy I have made before, because you must have gravy with meatloaf. Overall, it was quite a good meal.

Well, I have a doctor’s appointment tomorrow night, so I am not sure I’ll get a meal in, but we’ll see what happens. Until next time, enjoy your evening and enjoy your meal!

2 Comments

Posted by MikeG on October 24, 2012 in Beef, Cooking, Dinner, Gravy, Vegetables

Tags: Alton Brown, boiled potatoes, food network, good eats meatloaf, meatloaf, roasted green beans, roasted green beans and carrots with red onion

Let’s Have Some Lemon Roasted Chicken

23 Oct

I haven’t had much of a chance to do any cooking the last few days. We have been running here, there and everywhere and either haven’t been home to make dinner or have just gone for quick solutions because I haven’t had time or energy to cook. Tonight, however, I was determined to cook. We had nice whole chicken and I wanted a quick and easy recipe. I came across this one from Williams-Sonoma that is a simple one dish meal. I had to modify the recipe very slightly since the original recipe is designed to be made in a special pan sold by Williams-Sonoma that acts as a roaster, holding the bird over the pan itself so you can roast the vegetables in the bottom. I don’t have that pan (and it seems kind of pricey to me anyway) so I just roasted everything in one pan and that was it.

Lemon Roasted Chicken with Rainbow Carrots and Fingerling Potatoes

1 chicken, about 4 pounds

Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

6 large, fresh thyme or rosemary sprigs

2 bay leaves

2 garlic cloves, smashed

1/2 lemon

2 tablespoons butter, at room temperature

1 1/2 pounds baby rainbow carrots, peeled and tops trimmed

1 pound fingerling potatoes, halved lengthwise

2 tablespoons olive oil

Remove and discard the fat from the chicken cavity. Rinse the chicken inside and out and pat dry with paper towels. Lightly season the cavity with salt and pepper. Place 4 of the herb sprigs, 1 of the bay leaves, all of the garlic and the lemon inside the cavity.

Tuck the wings behind the back. Using kitchen twine, lift the neck end of the breast, then pull the twine around the wings and under the chicken. Bring the ends of the twine up over the breast and cross over at the leg end of the breast, pulling tight. Bring the ends of the twine around the drumsticks and tie in a knot. Let the chicken stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees.

Rub the outside of the chicken with the butter and generously season with salt and pepper. In a large bowl, stir together the carrots, potatoes, olive oil, the remaining 2 sprigs of herbs and the remaining bay leaf, and season with salt and pepper. Transfer the vegetables to the base of the roasting pan and spread evenly. Place the chicken on top of the vegetables and roast, stirring the vegetables halfway through, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers 170 degrees, about 45 to 50 minutes.

Transfer the chicken to a cutting board, cover loosely with aluminum foil and let rest for 10 minutes. Carve the chicken and arrange on a warmed platter with the vegetables and serve.

Of course, I couldn’t find any rainbow carrots around here in any of the markets. I just used regular carrots instead, but the rainbow carrots would look great and add some great color to the dish. The chicken itself roasts up nicely and the skin was crisp. You get the faint hint of the lemon and rosemary throughout the chicken and the potatoes and carrots are roasted nicely and have great flavor. Overall it was quite a nice dish.

Tomorrow night is meatloaf night here, and I’ll be using the Alton Brown recipe from Good Eats, so check back for that one. Later on in the week I do plan to make either some beef stew or soup, I haven’t decided which yet. I also have some chicken thighs and I have a recipe I plan to use for them perhaps Thursday or Friday. I also bought some egg roll wrappers and thought I would have a stab at making them, so check back for that recipe as well. Until next time, enjoy your evening and enjoy your meal!

Oven Barbecued Ribs, Broccoli Slaw, Slow Cooker Pork Chops and a Meal Plan Menu

05 Mar

I took the weekend off to spend some time with the family, but now it’s back to the blog. Yesterday, we had a nice meal of Oven Barbecued Baby Back Ribs and Broccoli Slaw. It made us all think about summer coming fast since the weather has been so mild this winter. Oven Barbecue Ribs are great to make any time of the year. You can use any store-bought sauce that you like, or a dry rub, or make your own sauce. I often use a dry rub or make me own sauce, and I’ll post those recipes as we get into the warmer weather. Yesterday I just used Sweet Baby Ray’s Barbecue Sauce, which is our sauce of choice. There’s not much to oven barbecuing ribs, so the recipe is quite quick.

Oven Barbecued Baby Back Ribs

1-2 racks pork loin baby back ribs (about 2-3 pounds each rack)

1 1/2 cups barbecue sauce, homemade or store-bought

Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Lay the ribs, meaty side up, on a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet. Wrap the pan tightly with foil. Roast for 2 hours. Remove the foil and brush the meaty side of the ribs with barbecue sauce. Continue to roast, uncovered, until the bones have separated from the meat, about 1 hour longer.

That’s all there is to it. You can do the same with spareribs if you prefer them; I like the taste of the baby back ribs better myself. I served this with a nice broccoli slaw. This slaw has a little kick to it, but you can eliminate the red pepper flakes from the recipe if you prefer something milder.

Broccoli Slaw

1 cup shredded carrots

2 cups shredded broccoli slaw

1/2 medium red onion, thinly sliced

1/4 cup cider vinegar

1 lime, zested and juiced

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

In a large bowl, combine the carrots, broccoli slaw and red onion. Set aside. In a small saucepan, add the vinegar, lime zest, lime juice, salt, sugar, red pepper flakes and the black pepper. Bring to a light boil over low heat. Remove from the heat and allow to cool for a few minutes. Add the olive oil to the vinegar mixture, pour over the vegetables and toss together to combine. Refrigerate until serving.

It made for a nice, refreshing dinner. Tonight’s dinner, following along with my schedule, is a slow cooker meal. Tonight I am making Slow Cooker Pepper Pork Chops. This is a recipe I got from Alton Brown of the Food Network. It takes a little prep work as the pork chops need to be brined overnight, but it’s definitely worth it.

Slow Cooker Pepper Pork Chops

2 cups vegetable broth or water

1/2 cup 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 salt

3 apples, cored and sliced

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 or water, 1/2 cup salt, brown sugar and peppercorns in a medium saucepan and set over medium-high heat. Cook just until the salt and sugar dissolve, then remove from the heat and add the ice. Place the pork chops into a gallon zip-top bag along with the mixture and seal. Place in a plastic container and refrigerate overnight.

Remove the chops from the brine, rinse, and pat dry. Season on both sides with salt and set aside. Place the apples in the slow cooker. Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Saute the pork chops on both sides until golden brown, approximately 5 to 6 minutes per side. Once browned, place the pork chops into the slow cooker atop the apples.

Add the remaining 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil to the pan followed by the onions and saute until they begin to brown, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the chicken broth to the pan to deglaze. Add the black pepper and the thyme and stir to combine. Transfer this to the slow cooker, set to high, 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.

If you want to leave the slow cooker in the morning and not have to turn anything down, you can leave the pork chops on low the whole time and cook for 8 hours. I am serving this meal simply, with some white rice and steamed vegetables (cauliflower and broccoli).

As for the meal plan for this week, here is what I am making:

Monday: Slow Cooker Pepper Pork Chops, White Rice, Steamed Vegetables

Tuesday: Trinidadian Chicken Stew

Wednesday: Hamburgers, Oven Fries, Oven-Fried Onion Rings

Thursday: Fettuccine Alfredo

Friday: Monkfish ( I haven’t decided how I am cooking it, but I did buy it and freeze it).

They are all simple, tasty meals. By the way, I won’t be eating the fettuccine, I’ll be having crab-stuffed trout that day, so I’ll post both recipes, but they will both be delicious :). I think that covers everything for tonight. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to leave a note and say hi. Until tomorrow, enjoy your meal!