Leave a Comment

Posted on September 6, 2020 by auntlelo

This is one of the easiest, yet most impressive, meals you can serve on a holiday weekend. With very little labor and prep, you can feed a number of people a healthy portion of shrimp, sausage, corn and potatoes. The key is really have it all ready to add to the pot at the right time and standing ready so you don’t overcook the shrimp. I use the standard recipe from OLD BAY as my guide, but I add more or less of various ingredients to suit our personal tastes. Yum!

INGREDIENTS:

4 quarts (16 cups) water
1/2 cup Old Bay Seasoning
2 tablespoons salt
8 medium red potatoes, quartered
2 large onions, cut into wedges
2 pounds lean smoked sausage, cut into 2-inch pieces
8 ears fresh corn, shucked and halved crosswise
4 pounds jumbo (21 to 25 count) shrimp, shells on
Cocktail Sauce and lemon wedges for serving

INSTRUCTIONS:

Bring water, Old Bay Seasoning and salt to boil in 12-quart stockpot on high heat. Add the potatoes and onions and cook about 8 minutes. Add smoked sausage and cook for 5 minutes. Add corn and cook for 7 minutes. Add in shrimp and cook for 4 minutes or just until shrimp turn pink.

Scoop the shrimp, sausage and fixings out of the liquid and onto a large platter or serving dish. Serve it with lemon wedges and cocktail sauce.

You can use whatever type of smoked sausage you like. I use Cajun Andouille sausage because we like a little extra spice.

Grammy

Leave a Comment

Posted on September 6, 2020 by auntlelo

This is a recipe from my mother-in-law and it is a very well “traveled” cake. When she had zucchini in abundance, she would make these, wrap them well and freeze them. She nearly always brought one with her when she and my father-in-law came to visit us in Missouri. It’s a very easy recipe, uses pantry staples and can be adjusted to accommodate those who have gluten allergies by simply replacing the all-purpose flour with a good GF cup-for-cup replacement flour.

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup “sour” milk (add 1 tsp. white vinegar to milk and let stand for a few minutes to thicken)
2 eggs
2 1/2 cups flour
4 tablespoons cocoa
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups shredded zucchini
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup grated coconut
1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS:

Cream together butter, oil and sugar. Incorporate the eggs, vanilla and sour milk until well blended. Add the dry ingredients. Stir in the shredded zucchini. Pour into a greased 9 x 13 baking pan. Sprinkle top with chocolate chips, coconut and nuts. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes.

To freeze, cool cake completely. Turn out of pan onto a sheet of plastic wrap. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap, then with foil. Let defrost at room temperature before serving.

Grammy

Leave a Comment

Posted on August 31, 2020 by auntlelo

I set out to find a recipe that would allow me to use some of my leftover smoked pork loin. After all, variety is the spice of life, right? This recipe for Easy Garlic Ginger Glazed Sticky Pork came from the FoodieWithFamily.com site. This was an easy recipe made with ingredients I had on hand, including my leftover pork loin, and the finished product rivaled a Chinese restaurant dish you’d want to order again and again. Serving note: I served this with a side of sauteed baby spinach dressed with a few dashes of sesame oil. You need a fresh vegetable like spinach or broccoli to balance the sweet spiciness of this dish.

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 pounds boneless center cut pork loin, cut into 1/4 inch slabs and then 1/4 inch strips, about 3 inches long (Note: I used my leftover smoked pork which was cooked to a medium. Adjust the cooking time if using pork that is already cooked or partially cooked)
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon canola or peanut oil
5 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
2 inch knob of fresh ginger (I never have fresh ginger on hand. A substitute, which I used, is ground ginger. A 1 inch piece of fresh ginger equals about 1 1/4 teaspoons of ground ginger.)
1/2 cup mild honey (the lighter the better)
2 tablespoons to 1/4 cup sriracha (Remember, this is a matter of personal taste and it’s easier to add a bit more than to fix a dish if you start with too much spice.)
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar or white wine vinegar

INSTRUCTIONS:

It’s very important to have all of your ingredients chopped, measured, prepped and ready to go before you start the cooking process. This moves pretty quickly once you start cooking.

In a liquid measuring cup, whisk together the honey, sriracha and vinegar. Set aside.

Pour oil into a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium high heat and swirl to coat. Let it heat until the oil shimmers. While the oil is heating, season the pork strips with the salt and black pepper, tossing with your hands to coat it evenly. Carefully add the pork to the oil in the pan, working in batches if necessary to avoid overcrowding. Brown uniformly, moving the strips around the pan. Remove the pork to a plate.

Add the garlic and ginger to your pan, stirring until fragrant. About 30 seconds.

Raise the heat to high and pour in the sauce mixture. Bring this to a boil, stirring frequently. When the sauce is very “bubby and thickened like warm honey,” add the pork strips back in and toss to coat evenly. Continue reducing the sauce until it’s a thick, sticky glaze on the pork.

Serve immediately over rice or noodles.

Leave a Comment

Posted on August 20, 2020 by auntlelo

There’s nothing like a pan of slow cooked baked beans. Every family has its very personal take on what makes the perfect baked beans, not unlike the family meatloaf recipe or the spaghetti sauce recipe. Other than a few basics, there’s really no wrong way to do this. In fact, this dish is a very subjective recipe – it’s all about your personal tastes and preferences. Some like sweet, some like spicy, some like thick and some like more liquid. This is the way I make baked beans and it suits our family. I must be doing something right because I am frequently assigned to bring the baked beans to our family events. Enjoy!

To make an 8 x 8 pan of baked beans use the following amounts. When making for my big family gatherings, I make these by the gallon.

INGREDIENTS:

4, 15 oz. cans pork and beans ( if you like your baked beans thicker, drain part of the juice from each can, but be careful not to drain all of it or your beans will be dry)
1/4 cup molasses
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/8 cup dried minced onion
1/8 cup dried minced green pepper
(If using fresh onion and green pepper, increase amount to 1/4 cup each)
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
1/2 cup BBQ sauce of your choice (I like using Sweet Baby Ray’s Honey Chipotle if I’m making chicken or turkey and Sweet Baby Ray’s Sweet and Spicy if I’m serving beef or pork)
2 slices thick cut bacon, cut in half

INSTRUCTIONS:

Mix together all ingredients except the bacon in an 8 x 8 baking dish. Lay bacon over the top. Bake in a slow oven, about 300 degrees, for about 2.5 to 3 hours. Baking these low and slow is the key to achieving lovely thick baked beans. You can also put these on your smoker alongside your meat selections to slow cook. The smoky flavor is an added bonus.

For an extra kick, add some minced jalapeno peppers to your baked beans. You can also add a bit of BBQ rub for extra seasoning.

Grammy

1 Comment

Posted on August 11, 2020 by auntlelo

It’s beautiful. It’s healthy. It’s diabetic friendly. It’s gluten free. And, most important, it tastes great! This is a dessert dish I discovered, made by the Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa. It’s a great way to use those beautiful fresh summer berries without adding too many of those sinful diet no-no’s. In my version, I used strawberries, blackberries and raspberries. I didn’t make the sauce the original recipe called for, and I substituted Splenda for the sugar to make it more diabetic friendly. I think I may have found my new replacement for when those cheesecake cravings hit!

INGREDIENTS:

1 15 ounce carton of ricotta cheese (the original recipe, linked above, gives directions for making your own if you prefer)
2 tablespoons sugar or sugar substitute
2 tablespoons liquid honey
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 cups fresh strawberries, hulled and quartered
2 6 oz. packages fresh raspberries
2 6 oz. packages fresh blackberries

INSTRUCTIONS:

Place the ricotta cheese in a bowl and stir in the sugar, honey and vanilla. Set aside at room temperature for up to 2 hours.

In another bowl, combine the berries.

To serve, spoon the berries into a dish and place a large spoon of the ricotta mixture on top. You can dress the dish with the Fresh Raspberry Sauce (recipe provided in the link above). I skipped the sauce and simply served the fruit and ricotta as an easy everyday dessert.

Use the berries you love the most. The more variety, the prettier the presentation and the yummier the dish!

Grammy


Leave a Comment

Posted on August 5, 2020 by auntlelo

We love all kinds of Mexican or Mexican inspired foods. It’s no wonder I branched out and tried out Mexican themed casseroles that were quick, easy and used pantry staples I always have on hand. This recipe has no hard and fast amounts that you need to use. In fact, the beauty of it is that you can use this as a guide or starting point and use what you and your family like. It’s a great way to use up a little dab of this and a little dab of that, too.

INGREDIENTS:

boneless skinless chicken breasts (use as many as you need – this is also great reheated)
taco seasoning
salsa (whatever brand or type you like)
black beans, drained and rinsed
frozen or canned corn, drained and rinsed
sliced black olives
shredded cheese (I typically use shredded cheddar, but you can use anything you like. I used a combination of shredded cheddar and shredded pepper jack in the version photographed as I had a little bit left of each kind in the fridge.)
green onions, thinly sliced both white and green parts (for garnish)
fresh cilantro, for garnish)
sliced jalapeno, optional

INSTRUCTIONS:

Place the chicken breasts in a baking dish. Sprinkle the tops with taco seasoning, covering the tops of each piece. Spoon salsa liberally over the tops of each piece of chicken. Sprinkle the black beans, corn and black olives over the chicken. Cover the top with shredded cheese.

Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for about an hour. Remove foil and check the thickest breast with a meat thermometer to ensure you’ve reached 165 degrees. If you don’t have a meat thermometer, put a knife into the thickest breast and make sure the juices run clear.

Before serving, sprinkle the green onions, cilantro and jalapeno over the top. This is great served with a dollop of sour cream and a little sliced avocado on the side.

This recipe is great for using up leftover corn or black beans and bags of shredded cheese. No one will ever know they’re eating leftovers…

grammy

Leave a Comment

Posted on August 2, 2020 by auntlelo

This dessert will always remind me of my Mom. She always made the best cream pies when we were kids and chocolate was my personal favorite. She worked at a local grocery store called Renner’s Market and Tuesday was her day off. That was the day she cleaned house, did laundry and meal prepped for the rest of the week. And, that was the day she made some sort of dessert sure to knock our socks off.

Her chocolate pie always had a meringue topping. But, for some reason, most of my family prefers whipped cream these days. The filling for this chocolate pie is also the same one I use for chocolate pudding, which was always my requested dessert when I got to choose.

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup flour
1/3 cup cocoa
1 can evaporated milk
Enough whole milk added to the evaporated milk to total 4 cups
4 egg yolks, beaten
1 stick butter
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
Pie crust, blind baked and cooled (This filling recipe makes 1 generously filled deep dish pie or 2 regular pies)

Sift together the flour and the cocoa in a large heavy bottomed saucepan or dutch oven. Add the sugar and the 4 cups milk. Mix well. Heat on medium until mixture is hot. Add some of the hot liquid to the beaten egg yolks, mixing well to temper the egg mixture. Gradually add back to the pie filling, whisking constantly. Continue whisking until the filling thickens to a pudding consistency. Remove from heat. Add in the butter and the vanilla, whisking until both are incorporated.

Pour into prepared pie shell and cool completely. Cover and refrigerate. Add whipped cream, or meringue, to top before serving.

There’s no such thing as too much filling. With as many grandchildren as I have wanting to lick the spoon, you need to make extra to have enough left for the pie!

Grammy

Leave a Comment

Posted on July 26, 2020 by auntlelo

I’ve been spending some time trying to adapt some of my go-to comfort foods into things that are just as comforting, but healthier versions. This chicken and rice dish offers comfort, flavor, healthy ingredients, and is gluten-free. It’s also a terrific way to use up the last of a bag of carrots of some stalks of celery hanging around in your refrigerator. The inspiration for this recipe came from this Food Network version.

INGREDIENTS:

2 tablespoons canola oil
3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, sliced in half to make cutlets
kosher salt
black pepper
paprika
About a cup and a half of carrots, diced or cut into rounds
About 3-4 stalks of celery, diced
1/2 medium yellow onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 cup brown rice (I used Basmati)
4 cups low sodium chicken broth

INSTRUCTIONS:

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Season the chicken to taste with kosher salt, black pepper and paprika. Place the chicken in the skillet and saute until just golden, about 3 minutes on each side. Remove the chicken to a platter.

Add the carrots, celery and onions to the oil in the skillet and saute, stirring, until softened, about 4 minutes or so. Stir in the garlic and the rest of the spices and seasonings and cook about 1 minute more.

Stir in the rice and let cook, undisturbed, about 2 minutes to toast the rice slightly. Pour in the broth and stir to combine. Add the chicken back to the pan. Bring to a boil and cover, lower heat to a simmer and cook until the rice is tender and the chicken is cooked through, about 20-25 minutes.

This is a great way to use those odds and ends from the fridge. If you have leftovers, you can add more chicken stock and turn it into chicken and rice soup!

Grammy

Leave a Comment

Posted on July 17, 2020 by auntlelo

I need to eat a more healthy diet and went in search of some recipes that I could add to a collection that would provide some good flavor while also watching the fats and sugar. I found this recipe at the cookincanuck.com and it checked all the boxes for health, flavor, low fat, low sugar and as a bonus it’s also gluten free. It paired really well with some simple salmon and a salad.

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil, divided
  • 1/2 yellow onion, chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 cup brown rice (the author suggests basmati)
  • 1 cup vegetable broth
  • 1 cup water
  • 8 ounces mushrooms, sliced (choose a mushroom you enjoy, but a flavorful one like shitaki will make your dish shine)
  • 1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme
  • 3 tablespoon minced flat-leaf parsley
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

INSTRUCTIONS:

  • Heat ½ teaspoon olive oil in a medium saucepan set over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until soft, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
  • Add the rice and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.
  • Stir in the vegetable broth and water. Bring to a boil, cover saucepan and reduce heat to low.
  • Cook until all of the liquid is absorbed, about 35 minutes.*
  • Heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a large nonstick skillet set over medium-high heat.
  • Add the mushrooms and cook until starting to brown, about 4 minutes. Stir in the thyme and cook for 30 seconds.
  • Add the mushrooms, parsley, salt and pepper to the rice, and stir to combine. Serve.

The taste and the texture is very changeable depending on the type of brown rice and the type of mushroom you choose.

Grammy

Leave a Comment

Posted on July 8, 2020 by auntlelo

I am a big fan of bar cookies. I am also a big fan of chai tea or chai latte. Finding a recipe that perfectly blended those two things was a big win! I normally make these at Christmas, but I love having one with a cup of tea or coffee all year round. They start with a sugar cookie bar recipe that came from the Food Network. They offered 50 Bar Cookies that were made from a few base cookie recipes and I was hooked. I’ll be offering these up throughout the year as I need to supply baked goods for family events, work, etc., whenever we are able to return to something resembling a normal life. In the meantime, make them for yourself and practice making them pretty!

INGREDIENTS FOR THE BARS:

2 sticks butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 1/2 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
2 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 chai tea bags

INSTRUCTIONS:
Whisk the 1 1/2 cups sugar, 3 eggs and 1 tablespoon vanilla into the melted butter. Stir in 2 cups flour, 1/4 teaspoon salt and the contents of the 2 chai tea bags.

Bake at 350 degrees in a 9 x 13 greased pan for 25 minutes. Let cool then drizzle with glaze. Let the glaze dry and set and cut into bars. Store in a sealed container.

INGREDIENTS FOR THE GLAZE:

1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons hot brewed chai tea

INSTRUCTIONS:

Whisk together the ingredients until smooth; drizzle over the cooled bars. Let glaze set before cutting.

I’ve tried several variations on the chai tea ingredient. I’ve used the tea bags. I’ve used Chai Latte K-Cups. I’ve used Chai spice. Each variation turned out well. These bars are that easy.

Grammy

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 1,616 other subscribers

Blog at WordPress.com.