MMMMMM...Pig

We love pork at our house: pork chops, bacon, pork shoulder, tenderloin, ribs, ham. We love it ALL. In fact it is probably our favorite meat...if you discount steaks, salmon, shrimp, crab...

Alright, the truth...we are meat-a-tarians. But we are picky in our old age. Last year we got hooked on pastured pork that is processed and cured locally. Last year we got 1/2 a hog...this year a whole hog thanks to Healthy Acres Farms. They have been fantastic to us and I look forward to getting much more over the next few years.

Buying the whole hog is definitely the way to go when you are a meat-a-tarian. Especially a picky one. And while I love complex food, here are some of my favorite standby's for that moment when I look at the clock and think...AHHHHH! Where did the day go?? or the day when you know if you don't start dinner with breakfast there will be no dinner.

Pork Roast

I have several versions of flavoring, but they all work about the same. Take a roast (cheap shoulder/butt roast) sear on all sides (if you want), place in crock pot with other stuff and cook for at least 5 hours, 8 if you can. I usually put them in with breakfast, 2 meals...1 cleanup. My kinda day. The hardest part is smelling the yumminess all day long.

Italian Version: 1/2 jar spaghetti sauce, 1 can tomatoes, some onion and peppers, some garlic, whatever seasoning you have on hand that seems like it would work

Drunk Pig: 1/2 bottle of white wine, chicken broth, onion, mushroom

Mexican Version: jar of salsa, 1 C water (vary with size of pork...should cover 1/2 way up), 1 can rinsed black beans, 1 bag frzn corn (add 1/2 hour before ready to serve), onion, peppers or what ever other veggies you got floating in the fridge

American Version: Bottle of favorite bbq sauce and water

All the recipes are great the next day on a hard roll as a sandwich.

Sausage Lentil Soup

We use ground sausage, but this works with any kind including kielbasa or brats.

Brown in large sauce pan with diced onion, carrot, and celery. Follow direction on back of lentil bag and add all the ingredients to the pot. It looks a little monochromatic, but super yummy.

Pork Chops

Get your skillet good and hot. Add Olive Oil. Season chops with salt and pepper, slice onion and mushrooms (I have also used shallot, leeks, and green onions in place of the regular onions...all work).

This works best if chops are about 1-1.5 inches thick, if thinner cook less time!!!!

Place chops in skillet and sear for 1-2 min, turn over and add onion and mushrooms. Cook for about 5 min on a reduced heat until onions begin to go limp. Add some white wine (nothing too sweet) cover and cook till done (maybe 15 min...check often, the more you cook the more you know). Pull chops out when they reach 155 on meat thermometer put on plate with foil on top. turn heat up on veggies and reduce sauce to 1/2, remove from heat (not just turn off) add1/4 C cream and stir while it thickens.

Serve with sauce on top.

I know it seems like a lot of steps, but most of this is just getting the pork cooked through.

Sage Pork Chops:

1 bowl with bread crumbs and sage (1 TBS ish)
1 bowl with an egg beaten with 1 TBS water
1 bowl with flour

Heat oven to 350

Heat skillet on stove, add olive oil to coat liberally (don't be afraid of it...add a little more)

Pat pork dry, dredge in flour, then egg then breadcrumbs. Place in hot pan, sear for 1-2 min on each side. Put skillet in oven. Cook for 15 or so more minute.

Yogurt the Easy Way

I have always liked yogurt, but when I went to Europe, I fell in love with it. Then I came back and thought what I had always known was only ho hum. Then I met Natalie and she unlocked the secret for me. It was so easy, just make it my self. But could it really be that simple. Yep! Now, it takes me about 25 min from start to finish and it tastes soooooo good.

What I use:

Non-electric Yogotherm

ABY-2C Yogurt Culture (you can get the yogotherm here too)

1/2 Gal whole milk (make sure it isn't ultra pasteurized; I find that local non-homogenized works best, but that is a personal choice)

Heat milk to 150, cool back to 110. Stir in 1/8 tsp of culture. Transfer to yogotherm. Set for 6-8 hours. Transfer carton to refrigerator. Done.

No Fail Recipes

Many of my friends think I cook complicated meals all the time. Truth is, those are the only ones I tell people about. So, in an effort to come clean here are some of my quick no fail chicken recipes. I will follow with some pork, beef, and seafood later.

Roasted Whole Chicken:

1 whole chicken, remove gizzard package and such and rinse with plain water
3 TBSP Olive Oil
1-2 garlic gloves diced
Rosemary (fresh or dried)
Sage

Preheat oven to 400

Mix Olive Oil, garlic, rosemary and sage (don't know how much but guessing 2 tsp rosemary and 1 tsp sage). Take hands and separate with out tearing skin from meat. Take some of the mixture and rub in between, rub rest on top.

Put chicken in roasting pan...or any pan...and put in oven. Turn oven down to 350 immediately. Cook for 20 min per lbs. If chicken skin starts to crisp before done, cover loosely with foil.

Serve with or without skin.

I usually have enough left overs for tacos or curry or soup.

Cheater Chicken Parmesan:

4 Boneless Skinless breasts
Italian seasoned Bread Crumbs/or bread crumbs and mix in some basil and oregano
1 jar spaghetti sauce
4 slices Mozzarella cheese
Parm cheese from deli section shredded not grated

Preheat to 350. Heat skillet with a little olive oil. Dredge Chicken breasts in bread crumbs. Crisp in oil, about 3 min per side. If skillet is oven proof, put a couple of spoonfuls of sauce on top with a slice of cheese and some grated cheese. Bake for about 30 min. You can also transfer to oven proof dish if skillet is not oven proof.

Serve with pasta

Easy Chicken Cordon Blue:

4 Boneless Skinless breasts
4 slices of ham
4 slices of Swiss cheese (or provolone or jack)
Jarred Alfredo sauce

Preheat to 350. Make a pocket in the chicken. Stuff with cheese and ham. Place in oven proof dish. Bake for about 30 min. Serve with sauce on top and rice.

Honey Mustard Chicken:

4 cuts of chicken...preferably skinless, but doesn't have to be boneless
1/2 C honey
2 TBSP Dijon or brown spicy mustard

Preheat to 350. Mix honey and mustard in oven proof dish with a dash of cayenne. Dredge chicken as you place in dish. Bake for 30 min. Serve with rice.

Chicken Salad

So I never think what I make is exceptional, but everyone loves my chicken salad so I thought I would post the recipe. I have never measured any of the ingredients, so it is all approximations.

Usually I save all the bits of chicken that aren't enough for a meal and freeze them. After a couple of chickens I usually have enough.

1 C chicken shredded
1/2 C red grapes quartered
1/2 C celery and carrots finely diced
1 green onion...green part only finely diced

Put all of that in a bowl. I also like walnuts in mine, pecans taste good too, but I didn't like almonds in it. You can add apples if you want to make it a bit crunchier.

Add some thyme (fresh is best) about 2 sprigs chopped up

Now for the sauce...I use one dollup of mayo and a dollup of greek yogurt or sour cream. But you can do all plain yogurt or all mayo if you like. And then a bit of honey (about 1-2 tsp).

Put this in the with the other ingredients and stir. If it isn't moist enough, add more dollups till it is how you like it.

Now season with some salt and pepper.

Great with a salad, or as a sandwich.

Missing my farm

So after all of my work here in GA, I miss my farm! If you are in the KC area, look up the Bryants at their farm. Dana has great prices and super fantastic stuff!!! You won't be sorry.

Granola Bars

We have been searching for a granola bar for a while now. Gabe likes the shiny wrappers. The last 5 attempts to get him to eat the homemade ones have failed miserably. But now I have one.

Dry Ingredients:
3 cups Rolled Oats
1.5 cups Brown Rice Cereal
1 cup Whole Wheat Flour
1 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Salt

Wet Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup Peanut Butter
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup Brown Rice Syrup
1 tsp Vanilla

2 cups of add ins (we use nuts, seeds, and chocolate chips...but anything will do)

Mix dry ingredients. Heat wet ingredients until all melted and bubbly (about 5 min after butter melts on medium heat). Mix wet and dry then add the add ins. Put in a greased 9x13 pan and bake at 325 for 5 min. Cool, cut, then put in freezer to harden. Package up and store in air tight container or fridge.

A couple of hints...use natural Peanut Butter so you are not adding more sugar. 1/2 Cup of chocolate chips is plenty. You can use 1 Cup of butter and eliminate peanut butter. You can use more rolled oats and not Brown Rice Cereal. You can use all honey if you don't have the brown rice syrup.

I got 24 bars out of these.

These are modified from Kitchen Stewardship and Passionate Homemaking.

Food is for Eating

I know, this seems like a duh sorta statement. But how many times do you 'save' food till it goes bad?

I am terribly guilty of saving fruit too long thinking it can't just be put out as part of dinner or eaten as a late night snack because it is too expensive or such a treat.

So this summer, I vow not to 'save' my fruit. I can eat it (or my kids can) anytime. Really, it can be part of dinner, a snack, breakfast, or for before bed. I am going to use good food to feel good.

Great e-book

I am a sucker for a recipe book. However, I really love snack recipes. Lately we have been eating junkie stuff and I can tell a difference. We are all just a little off...well, more off than usual. Here is a new e-book put out byKitchen Stewardship. I have already bought the book, and I can't wait to start making the Soaked Granola Bars.

Bread

The purpose of this blog is to be a repository of all the recipes I have found and like. Hopefully you all will enjoy them too.

I have been experimenting with breads looking for a whole wheat or mostly whole wheat that is still light and airy. Here is the one I like the best. It also makes pretty good rolls. If you plan to freeze your rolls, cook a little underdone and freeze. They will reheat much better. Also, put a wet paper towel in the microwave when you reheat to reduce drying.

My recipe is modified from another blog Breadexperience.com. They have pictured instructions if you want to check them out.

Whole Wheat Bread Recipe
Makes: 2 9-by-5-inch loaves


Ingredients:

1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast
Pinch of brown sugar
1 cup warm water (105º - 115ºF/40º - 46ºC)
1 1/2 cups tepid buttermilk (90ºF/32ºC)
1/4 cup maple syrup, honey, or light molasses (I use honey)
1/4 cup canola oil, plus extra for greasing
1 tablespoon salt
4 1/2 cups whole wheat (wholemeal) flour
1 cup whole grain bread flour
1 cup regular bread flour
1T gluten or bread conditioner (I like the one from King Arthur Flour)

Proof yeast in water with brown sugar for about 10 min.

Meanwhile, mix 2 C WW flour, honey, oil, salt in a mixer with paddle attachment till creamy. Add yeast mixture and continue mixing. Add gluten/conditioner. Add rest of flour 1 C at a time till it pulls away from edge. Switch to dough hook. Continue adding flour till a sticky ball.

Put in greased bowl, turn once, allow to rise till 2x size (1-1.5 hours)

Punch down. Divide in two. Hand knead each section into a rectangle shape the length of your pan and 3x as wide. Fold in thirds. Place in bread pan. Allow to rise again in warm area (on top of oven works great). Should take about 45 min.

Bake at 350 for 30min. Bread should sound hollow when you tap on it. Cool completely on rack. I usually freeze on loaf and eat the other right away.

Enjoy!!!

The Inagural Post

For those that follow my family, you know that we have been cooking more from scratch lately. However, I am always dismayed by the titles of the websites I use...Passionate Homemaking, Cooking the Hard Way, etc. I don't like spending all my time in the kitchen, so this is my attempt to find good nutritious recipes and put them in one place with easy (cheating) steps to make it go quicker.