Saturday, August 11, 2018

Food secrets

Sorry I have been so absent-lots going on in my life and then I got an attack of gout-it was doing better but now seems like it is refusing to go away-I do natural remedies which take longer but I cant find my old standby Goutrin….

Anyway-Gout makes me think about FOOD and I seem to type the same recipes for people over and over so I am going to share my favorite go to-semi easy crowd pleasers-sorry I don't know metric measures and mostly I do them by eye anyway....

THAT salad you make:

Butter lettuce-it takes about one head for 2 people
Avocado-at least one, two is better -cubed
Mandarin Orange segments well drained on paper towels-I can
Gorgonzola cheese crumbles (optional)
Pine Nuts-toasted lightly-I know they are so expensive here-you could use slivered almonds but it ain't the same
Real bacon crumbles-about 2 slices crisp (optional)



I like Girard's Champagne or Old Venice Italian, Ken's Steak House Vidalia Onion is alos interesting but a little too sweet for me-you want a sophisticated Vinaigrette but NO DIJON



Combine what you decide to use in a bowl=dress lightly and toss I usually put the nuts on top at the end.

If you want a more luncheon style salad add poached chicken breast and some green grapes
A friend of mine prefers Shrimp and cucumbers (peeled and diced)

You Can't Ruin MEATLOAF:
Yes, you can...

I usually make 3 pounds at a time bu adjust the ingredients by the pound

3 lbs 80/20 ground beef-don't use sirloin or extra lean it will be dry and flavorless
1 package Jimmy Dean Spicy Sausage ( You can use regular but the sausage makes a huge difference
3 potatoes (medium) grated and drained on paper towels
3 yellow onions grated
1 package Lipton's Onion Soup and dip mix
3 eggs-4 if the eggs are small
1 can evaporated milk (you may also need a little water)
some quaker or steel cut oats maybe a cup or less-panko bread crumbs will also work
season with salt and pepper-you can also add garlic powder, onion powder etc



Mix in a large bowl start with meat and sausage then add the rest of the ingredients one at a time
Leave the liquid till the end and then add to make a wet mixture use the oats or bread crumbs to get the texture you need for it to hold its shape

I use a 9 x 13 baking dish-you can also divide the mixture into loaf pans
for the 9 x 13 I literally throw small handfuls into the pan starting at one end and working across till the dish is filled-I then use my fingers and poke holes in the top in a pattern evenly about 2 inches apart-do this on the loaf pan as well

OPTIONAL- If you want a "glaze" or topping you can do ketchup or a blend of ketchup, yellow mustard and a splash of balsamic about 15 minutes before the loaf is done paint the top liberally and continue baking-I usually take the rest of the "glaze" and heat it and serve it along side

If you can get SOY VEY Teriyaki with Pineapple marinade-add half the bottle to the meat mixture and heat and serve the rest-more interesting than ketchup and a change from normal meatloaf



If you like the idea but you want LESS MEAT

Take a huge can of Sauerkraut (bottled if you can get it)-put it in a bowl (large) grate in 2 or 3 potatoes, a couple onions and peel and grate a couple granny smith apples-mix this all well-add a liberal dose of caraway seeds

Lightly butter a 9 x 13 baking dish spread the Sauerkraut mixture evenly in the dish

I like all beef franks (hot dogs) you can use brauts or other sausage-spilt them length wise to make a pocket-fill with your choice of cheese-cheddar or swiss are best IMHO wrap with bacon and lay on top of the kraut-bake at 375F for about 45 minutes-till the bacon is cooked

The meatloaf should cook for 50 minutes more or less at 350F

I like real green string beans sautéed in bacon fat and butter (splash of lemon juice) and sprinkled with gorgonzola as a side with the meatloaf -its full of potato's but you may want mashed potato's anyway-so make this recipe:

Those twice cooked mashed potato casserole things:

Peel, cube and cook enough potatoes to serve the people you need to-I like to cook them in Chicken stock-drain and coarsely mash-stir in 1/2 pint of sour cream, a small stick of cream cheese and 1/2 stick of Butter-season to taste-I like to add some finely chopped shallots, parsley and a dash of cayenne-you can add finely crumbled crisp bacon of finely chopped ham-Drop by spoonfulls into a baking pan again I use a 9 x 13 and bake with the meatloaf for the last 30 minutes-be sure a dot the top liberally with pats of butter and sprinkle with paprika

The easiest dessert in the world:

Buy a good pound cake at the market slice into 1 inch slices on a plate-you need 2 slices per serving

You need some really good seedless red raspberry preserves (I use Knott's Berry Farm) or you can also use Bon Maman Cherry preserves



I like a splash (liberal) of Frangelico in the jam and a tiny bit of lemon juice



Put the Jam in a small saucepan (with the booze and the lemon juice) and heat lovingly till warm but not boiling

Toast the pound cake in a frying pan using BUTTER-just enough to brown lightly don't burn it and don't use so much butter it goes soggy

You can use whipped cream I prefer extra rich cool whip-holds us better and less work



On a dessert plate place one piece of the pound cake-then on the cake a LARGE dollup of the whipped stuff drizzle gently with the warm jam 2nd piece of pound cake making a sandwich of sorts and drizzle the top with more warm jam-sprinkle with something festive toasted almonds, sprinkles-even fresh berries if you must and serve-this is best eaten WARM-someone or two is going to ask for more-be prepared-whatever if leftover you can make a trifle to eat the next day

A quick Variation of this uses lemon pound cake-store bought lemon curd-crème fresh-a drizzle of lemoncello and a sprinkle of shaved white chocolate

want more?

Chocolate pound cake-chocolate mousse-raspberries and top with hot fudge nuts and whipped crème

The whole idea is a sandwich with toasted cake a yummy filling and served warm-the variations are endless

If I have done my job here you have a meal-the time before last time my friends the Van Dijks were in from The Netherlands we had a variation of this menu and they seemed to be OK with it-I think I had 7 or 8 for dinner in my tiny place

Enjoy-if you share please give me credit






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