Ham Glaze

It seems as if now when you buy a ham they are 'kind' enough to put in a glaze packet.  From what I read of the ingredients it consists of a granulated sweet substance and a gelatinous goo.  Mmm, yum.  Lets face it, the best thing about a glazed ham is the sweetness it adds to the salty tones of the ham.  I can't say that my glaze is the best, but I've never had a single complaint, except that maybe every morsel wasn't drenched in it.
Ingredients: Honey and brown sugar.  That's it!
All you need to do is drizzle the honey over the ham, covering as much square footage as possible.  Then pack- literally, with your hands- the brown sugar onto the honey.  Bake uncovered per the hams heating instructions.  The sugars will brown and get all crispy so be sure to keep an eye out for any burning.  If things get a little too dark just cover with a little piece of foil over that area. 

Basic Math

What does 7.91 lbs or pork loin at $1.99 a pound equal-
18 pork chops
1.5 lb roast
2 lb breakfast sausage

I go to Sam's club about once a month and come home with a whole pork loin anywhere from 7 to 9 pounds.  With this, a sharp knife and some FoodSaver bags, I can get enough pork to feed my family for at least a month! 

Here is my recipe for the breakfast sausage:
(It is a combination of several recipes, from several sources)

2 lb pork loin (I use the fattiest end)
2 heaping tsp dried sage
1 T sugar
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp nutmeg
a few red pepper flakes

Using a meat grinder, mine attaches to my stand mixer, grind the meat using the fine disk.  Add all the spices and mix thoroughly with your hands.  Yes, your hands.  They are the best mixing tool ever.  Divide this up into about 12 patties.  Place them on a parchment paper lined baking sheet and stick in the freezer until frozen solid.  I leave mine in overnight.  Then place them in a zip top bag, label and pop back into the freezer until needed.  Then just take out however many you need, thaw in the microwave and cook up as usual.

Definately NOT Kosher...

How do you make six servings of a meal for under $5 TOTAL?  I know most of you are saying that it is impossible but take my word for it- it is not only possible but delicious.
Ham and Beans
1 lb ham trimmings/ends/assorted pieces (I found this at our Super Walmart for $2.99 and was really surprised that it was good quality meat)
1 lb dry navy beans ($0.59)
2 cans chicken broth ($0.59 each)
1 T sage
Big handful of salt
1 T corn starch, optional
The night before add dry beans and salt to a really big bowl.  Cover the beans and an additional 3 inches above with heavily salted water.  I've found that this way the beans soak up the salt with the water and have better flavor than salting them afterward.
In the morning drain the beans and add to a large crock pot.  Trim any fat off the ham and chop into bite size pieces.  Add these along with the chicken broth and sage to the crock pot and add enough water to raise the water about 2 inches above.  Stir and cover set pot on low all day, about 8-10 hours.  Occasionally check to see if water is running low, if so add just enough water to come to the top of the beans and ham.  If you like a really thick Ham & Beans like I do, add a T of corn starch to cold water to dissolve and add this in about the last 15-20 minutes of cooking.

Sloppy Joe, sloppy, sloppy Joe

Manwich, schmanwich. I want real food!

Yesterday was a day that screamed for something warm, hearty and comforting for lunch.  I had cooked, crumbled ground beef, hamburger buns and peppers.  Hm, Sloppy Joe's!
A while back after reading the ingredients on a Manwich can I was surprised.

INGREDIENTS:
Tomato puree (water, tomato paste), high fructose corn syrup, distilled vinegar, corn syrup, less than 2% of: salt, sugar, dehydrated onions, dehydrated red and green bell peppers, chile pepper, tomato fiber, spices, guar gum, xanthan gum, dehydrated garlic, carob bean gum, natural flavors.

 Yes, the 2nd, 4th and 6th ingredients are sugar!  And exactly what are guar gum, xanthan gum and carob bean gum?  I want a sandwich not candy!  

The first couple of recipes I tried were OK, but around here OK isn't good enough to get a second try.  The one I tried last night was THE ONE!  http://www.recipezaar.com/Manwich-Copycat-198485 

I did make some changes, so here is my version:

1 lb ground beef, cooked, drained and crumbled

1 cup ketchup

1 T mustard (I used Jack Daniel's mustard because I don't like the neon yellow stuff)

1 8 oz can tomato sauce

1 T chili powder

1 T paprika

1 small chopped onion

1 chopped green pepper

1 T chopped garic

Saute the onion, pepper and garlic until softened but not mushy.  Mix everything else in and heat through.  

Yesterday I made six pounds of this stuff, that is how good it was.  No, we didn't eat it all.  We had a little less than a pound for lunch, another pound in the fridge and the rest was put into freezer bags and well, frozen.  In the time it took me to make lunch, I made another 5 meals!

Saving by making- bread, baby!

Give us this day...

I jumped in head first and landed in flour.  I was at Satan's (aka Sam's Club) a quite a while ago and saw they had 25 lb bag of bread flour for $7.  A loaf of bread at the grocery costs, when on sale, $2.50.  Stand back, I'm about to do math.  That's 2.5 divided, no multiplied, carry the zero, that's not right.  My brain hurts, let's just say that if I waste (shame) most of the flour I will still have saved a frillion pennies.  And with Gryffin eating PB&J's like crazy and toast with breakfasts, we go through a lot of bread.  Plus with Fall Soup season on the brink, what's better than some fresh bread with soup?
For years I've struggled with bread machines.  When they first came out I wanted one so bad.  Mike and his Mom bought me one for my birthday one year. I used the hell out it until it gave up the ghost.  Got another one used and ran it into the ground too.  

I used to think mixing, kneading, proofing, waiting made for a whole day to make one loaf of bread.  And sometimes it does, depending on the recipe.  However, I've found a recipe that in less than 1 hour, most of it resting time, I can have a loaf of bread in the oven.
This recipe is from breadworld.com and is so quick, easy and delicious it's unbelievable that it requires so little work.

Rich White Bread (Food Processor recipe) Makes 1 loaf. 3 cups all-purpose flour 2 tablespoons sugar 1 envelope FLEISCHMANN'S RapidRise Yeast (or 2 1/4 teaspoons) 1-1/4 teaspoons salt 3 tablespoons butter or margarine, cut into pieces 1 egg 3/4 cup warm water (120° to 130°F) Directions Insert metal blade in food processor bowl. Add flour, sugar, undissolved yeast, and salt; process 5 to 10 seconds to combine. Add butter and egg. Begin processing, then slowly pour warm water through feed tube just until dough forms a ball, about 10 to 15 seconds (all water may not be needed). Continue processing for 60 seconds to knead dough. Carefully remove dough from processor bowl to lightly floured surface. Cover; let rest on floured surface 10 minutes. Roll dough to 12 x 7-inch rectangle. Beginning at short end, roll up tightly as for jelly roll. Pinch seam and ends to seal. Place, seam side down, in greased 8-1/2 x 4-1/2-inch loaf pan. Cover; let rise in warm, draft-free place until doubled in size, about 30 to 45 minutes. Bake at 375°F for 30 minutes or until done. Remove from pan; let cool on wire rack. Nutritional Information: Per serving: Serving size: 1 slice (1/12 of recipe) calories 159; total fat 4g; saturated fat 2g; cholesterol 25mg; sodium 280mg; total carbohydrate 27g; dietary fiber 1g; protein 4g.

Just as an example, the other day I had the ingredients out, mixed and covered for the first rise in 5 minutes.  That gave me a 10 minute break to put on some eggs to hard boil, clean up the mess, empty and refill the dishwasher.  Then it was roll, put in the pan and cover for another 30.  During that time I put on my makeup, did my hair, brushed my teeth and ruined them with a cup of coffee.  Then the bake time was spent playing with Gryffin.
Fresh, home made bread with only about a 15 minute investment of time. It took me longer than that to wrestle the behemoth bread machine to the counter, plug it in and program it!  Not to mention all the time saved by not having to curse at it, clean it and figure out why the crust was nasty.

Jambalaya- but no craw fish pie-ya

We love Jambalaya. Looooove. We used to use the Zataran's mix, then they changed it and all I could taste was salt. Even their low sodium (which is a joke) tasted like a rice covered salt lick. I looked everywhere for an easy and quick Jambalaya recipe that I didn't have to drive to Louisiana for the ingredients to. Paula Deen saved me.
I love that Southern Belle. I haven't had a recipe of hers yet that wasn't the bees knees. They aren't exactly figure friendly but, dang if they ain't good. Besides, going to college in Tennessee gave me a love of Southern food that I still can't shake after almost 20 years.
This recipe is a two part-er. First, there is the mix of dry ingredients that you can keep in an air tight container for just about ever. I believe one year for Christmas I actually packaged it up to give as gifts. Second, is the wet and meaty.
Jambalaya Mix
1 cup long grain rice
3 T dried minced onion
1 T dried parsley flakes
4 T beef bouillon cubes ( I omit this altogether and add a can of chicken stock and reduce the water to 1/2 cup)
1/2 t dried thyme
1/2 t garlic powder
1/2 t ground black pepper ( I omit this too )
1/4 t cayenne pepper ( I only use 1/8th because my son isn't quite ready for the level of spice we like yet)
1/4 t salt ( yup, I leave this out as well )
Combine it all together and store in an air tight container.
Jambalaya
2 1/2 cups water (unless you aren't using the bouillon cube in the mix, then it's just 1/2 cup and a can of chicken broth)
1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes & chilies
1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
1 lb meat of your choice ( I generally use more though. My usual is 1 lb sausage and a 1/2 lb shrimp. I've used it with chicken, kiel basa and ground beef too)
In a Dutch oven or large pot cook any kind of meat you might be using, except seafood. Add everything else and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cover and reduce heat to simmer and do not touch for 20 minutes. Add the shrimp at the end and cook until just pink. Let this sit for a few minutes until most, if not all the liquid is absorbed.
I serve this with, of course, cornbread!
Now, if you are looking to make dinner even easier... got a rice cooker? Throw the mix and liquids in the bottom and the cooked meats in the steamer basket. I tried this the other night and this is what I got: picture above.
It was awesome!
Want a faster version: use minute rice. Brown the meats, add the liquid and bring to a boil. Add the mix, cover and let sit for 5 minutes. That is all there is to it!
Want a vegetarian version: omit the bouillon and use the 2 1/2 cups water. Instead of meat, add black beans, pinto beans and corn.
Now how is that for versatile!

Sun-dried Tomato Fettucini with Chicken

Sun-dried tomato cream sauce with chicken and fettucinni

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into strips
1 T olive oil
1 heaping t of chopped garlic
1 T butter
1 can low sodium chicken broth
1/3 c sun dried tomatoes, chopped
12 oz box of fettucini
1 cup  fat free 1/2 and 1/2
1 T dried basil
Salt & Pepper to taste




In a large pot of salted water boil the fettuccine per box instructions.  In olive oil lightly brown chicken and remove.  Turn of heat and add butter, garlic and 1/3 can broth.  Scrape up all the yummy bits from the bottom of the pan.  Add the tomatoes and remaining broth and bring to a boil until tomatoes are tender, about 10 minutes.  Reduce heat and add 1/2 and 1/2 and basil, bring to a low simmer until the sauce coats the back of a spoon.  Add chicken back to sauce and salt & pepper to taste.  Serve over fettuccine.

Miso love this soup!

Miso Soup

3 packets Dashi (Bonito flakes)

4 quarts water

2 T red Miso (soybean paste)

2 T white Miso

3 T Wakame flakes (dried seaweed)

1 block extra firm tofu, cubed

3 green onions, sliced thin

In a large stock pot of water, bring the Dashi to a boil and reduce by 1/3.  Remove Dashi packets and discard.  Lower the heat to just below simmer.  Add both Miso to a small bowl and ladle in some of the broth, whisk to dissolve.  Add this back to the pot along with the Wakame, tofu and green onions.  Serve immediately.

Miso soup has many health benefits.  Researchers have found that a bowl of Miso soup a day can greatly reduce the risk of many forms of cancer.  It is high in antioxidants and helps strengthen the immune system.  It is loaded with nutrients. Miso provides protein, vitamin B12, vitamin B2, vitamin E, vitamin K, choline, linoleic acid, lecithin, and dietary fiber.  All this and its delicious!

Summer Treat!

In the summer I could eat nothing but popsicles and snow cones.  I crave cold and sweet.  Well, if you can make ice cubes you know how to make popsicles but what about snow cones?  I don't have one of those really cool Snoopy Snow Cone makers.  Hell, I don't even have a blender!  I do have a food processor though and that baby chops ice like there is no tomorrow.  You can buy snow cone flavor syrup but I don't.  I have those little water flavor powder packets though. 

Snow Cones
2 cups ice cubes
1/2 or 1 individual serving water flavor packs

Put the above in a food processor and pulse until you have snow cone consistency.  That is it!

Target even has Margarita flavored ones so a frozen margarita with or without tequila is easy and cheap too.

Snack Attack!

Penny Popcorn

Gryffin and I love popcorn.  Let's face it, it is the perfect snack.  It can be salty or sweet and its not that bad for you.  Plus, you can eat a ton since it has very few calories.  The commercially made, chemical flavored stuff has been reported to give the manufacturer's employees cancer just by making it.   Don't have an old fashioned stove-top or air popper?  Neither do I, you can make microwave popcorn in a brown paper lunch sack.  I used one of the recipes for it via.www.allrecipes.com.  If you've never visited this mecca of deliciousness, you should.  All of their recipes are rated by the users.  I have yet to be led astray but don't attempt anything under 4 stars.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup unpopped popcorn kernels, can be found in the same isle as the pre-packaged stuff but usually on the bottom shelf.
• 1 teaspoon vegetable oil (I used canola)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste

Directions

In a cup or small bowl, mix together the unpopped popcorn and oil. Pour the coated corn into a brown paper lunch sack, and sprinkle in the salt. Fold the top of the bag over twice to seal in the ingredients.
Cook in the microwave at full power for 2 1/2 to 3 minutes, or until you hear pauses of about 2 seconds between pops. Carefully open the bag to avoid steam, and pour into a serving bowl.  

Before I poured the fluffy goodness out into a bowl I added a couple pats of real butter and shook it up to melt and coat.  It worked beautifully!  Real butter popcorn tastes so much better than the fake stuff. 

Now there were quite a few unpopped kernels but you get that with any popcorn and there weren't enough to make it non cost effective. This happens when the kernels get too dried out.  You can remedy this by keeping your kernels in an air tight container and adding a teaspoon or two of water to them.

I vow never to buy the gross, cancer causing, synthetic flavored, has to use the word butter in parenthesis stuff again!

Menu Monday!

I always make a menu for at least a week every week.  This week I've actually challenged myself to make a menu for the whole pay period, which for us is two weeks.  Over the years I've found that having a menu solves so many problems:

• the What's For Dinner issue- I think my husband and I spent the first year of our marriage dealing with this one.  With a menu all we have to do is look at it and we know exactly what is for dinner.
• the What Can I Make With This problem- when there is either an empty or overflowing pantry starring you in the face it can be really overwhelming.  
• the No Money For The Tummy quandary- if I go to the grocery store without a plan all I come home with is ice cream, chips, wine and an empty wallet.  Not a bad combo, I admit; however, when you have a family to feed every night its not exactly a good thing.
• the No Time For That problem- some things take longer to cook than others and knowing what I need to get the job done is on hand gives me more time.  And more time is ALWAYS good.

Most of my menus follow what I call the Protein Formula.  No one wants to eat chicken for dinner every night so mixing it up is essential.  Also, since meat is usually the most expensive part of the meal it allows me to make up the cost with side dishes depending on just how pricey the protein is.  I never have the same protein the same way two nights in a row.  For example, if I make chicken one night I will make beef the next, or if I make hamburgers one night I will have steak the next.  Having ground beef or chicken two nights in a row is boring and tends to lead to no one wanting to have leftovers for lunch. 

Here is my menu for the next two weeks just to give you an idea.

Monday- Beef Stroganoff with peas

Tuesday- Dijon Tarragon Chicken with rice, carrots and broccoli

Wednesday- Sloppy Joes with BBQ beans and cole slaw

Thursday- Italian Breaded Pork Chops with asparagus and corn

Friday- Kiel Basa and cabbage with red potatoes

Saturday- Mystery night... maybe leftovers or eat out

Sunday- Lasagna with salad

Monday- Bourbon Chicken with rice, broccoli and carrots

Tuesday- Tuna casserole with peas

Wednesday- Jambalaya (sausage and shrimp) with corn bread

Thursday- Beefy Cheesy Pasta, aka home made hamburger helper with salad

Friday- Breaded fish, mac-n-cheese and lima beans

Saturday- Pork Roast with spicy sweet potatoes and corn

And this is the recipe for tonight's dinner, Beef Stroganoff.  It's quick, easy and contains absolutely no cream of crap soup like most recipes for this done on the cheap.

Beef Stroganoff
(feeds 6)

1 lb lean ground beef

1lb wide egg noodles

1/3 cup dried mushrooms

1 small onion, chopped

1 T garlic, chopped

1 T paprika

1 T black pepper

2 t dried mustard

1/2 to 1 cup fat free half and half or milk

1 to 2 cups low fat sour cream
(these are determined on how creamy or saucy you like it)

Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil.  While this is being done break up the dried mushrooms and put in a small bowl.  Brown and drain the ground beef along with the onion and garlic and return to pan.  Once the water is boiling add enough water to cover the mushrooms to rehydrate.  Then add a handful of salt to the pot and add the noodles.  Cook until just tender. Drain the mushrooms and add them along with the spices, half and half and sour cream to ground beef.  Stir to combine over medium heat.  Drain noodles and you can combine it all or serve with the sauce poured over.

Back in my element

I was able to spend time today coming up with a menu for the week, doing the monthly Sam's run, making a loaf of bread, trying a new recipe and making an awesome dinner for my family.  These are the little things that I really enjoy but lately haven't had the time and energy at the same time to do it.
Tonight's dinner was blackened Tilapia, roasted potatoes with chive and steamed carrots.  I cook a lot, but really don't make fish very often.  Mostly because my favorite way to have fish is fried, but when I found this recipe it looked so good.  It was too.  I changed several things from the original recipe like not using lemon juice or celery salt and didn't use as much oil or serve on white bread with the remaining oil poured over.  Ewww.  This is what I did:

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons paprika
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano, crush this in your had to release the oil
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme, crush to release the oil
• 2 teaspoons Kosher salt
•  
• 5 Tilapia fillets
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Directions

• In a small bowl mix all of the spices together.
• Coat both sides of the fish with the spice mixture, rubbing it in to the fish.
• Let sit at room temp for no more than 30 minutes, but at least 15 so that the spices soak in.
• In a heavy skillet, heat the oil until almost smoking and carefully add fish.

Cook on each side 2 - 3 minutes.  Be sure not to over cook, the fish is done when it flakes easily with a fork.


Next time, I'm going to serve it over some Cajun seasoned rice.  Hey, that sounds like an awesome meal for Mardi Gras!

From a loaf to a ball

My meatloaf and meat ball recipe is exactly the same.  Why?  Because I'm lazy.  Because I make them in very large batches using similar ingredients.  Here is my recipe for both:

Meatloaf/Meatball Recipe
1 lb ground pork
3 lb lean ground beef
1 cup frozen tri-color pepper strips, chopped and thawed.  (Buying them this way is much cheaper than buying fresh peppers)
1 large onion, diced
1 cup quick oats
1 large egg
1 - 2 Tablespoons steak seasoning (I use McCormack's Montreal Steak)
1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 350.  In a VERY large bowl mix everything together.  If mixture is too wet add more oats.  If too dry, add another egg.  This should be able to hold its shape without falling apart or being too sticky.

Divide this into two.  Take one half and divide into two loaves.  Place a cookie rack in a large baking pan or use a broiler pan and place the two loaves onto this, be sure to spray whatever you use with non-stick spray.  Combine 2 Tablespoons mustard, 1/2 cup ketchup, 1/2 Tablespoon chili powder and a pinch of cayenne.  Pour this on top of the loaves during the last 15 minutes of cooking time.  Bake until internal temperature is 165, about and hour.
With the remaining mixture, form into 1/4 cup balls.  I use a 1/4 cup cookie scoop because I'm lazy.  Place the balls into a mini muffin pan that has been sprayed with non-stick spray.  Bake for 30 minutes.  I usually do this when we are eating one of the meatloaves that have just come out.  When its time to use just toss them in your favorite spaghetti sauce.
Allow the extra meatloaf and the meatballs to cool completely then freeze.  Just let them thaw overnight in the fridge and reheat.
In the time it takes to make one meatloaf, you can make 2 meatloaves and 2 dozen meatballs.  This is enough for us to get two meatloaf dinners, along with leftovers for lunches for two days and meatballs enough for 3 to 4 spaghetti and meatball dinners or up to 8 meatball sandwiches.
This technique also works well when making lasagna.  I never make just one at a time because I'm lazy.

Dim sum good vittles

Ok, this one is really good and really easy.  We had it tonight for dinner and I could have eaten a lot more than I did.

Bourbon Chicken  (don't ask me why because unfortunately there isn't any bourbon it)

• 2 lbs boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces 
• 1 large carrot, sliced
• 1 large broccoli crown, cut into bite-size pieces, stems removed 
• 1 -2 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1/4 teaspoon ginger
• 3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/4 cup apple juice
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons ketchup
• 1 tablespoon cider vinegar, or red wine or rice
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 1 T corn starch
• 1/4 cup cold water

 


In oil, cook chicken until lightly browned and remove. Add remaining ingredients except for broccoli and carrots, heat over medium heat until well mixed and dissolved. Add chicken, broccoli and carrots and bring to a hard boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.  Dissolve corn starch in cold water and add, cook until desired consistency.  Serve over rice.