Easiest Recipe Ever!

I have made this twice and it turns out awesome each time.  The only problem, it takes 8-10 hours to make.  If you have a day at home, go ahead and put this on.  Your mouth will be watering after 4 hours.

Crock Pot Pork and Cabbage (original recipe)

1 head cabbage, chopped
pork tenderloin (probably could do 2 at the same time if needed)
sea salt or kosher salt
chicken stock

1. Put the cabbage at the bottom of a crock pot.
2. Place pork on top.
3. Sprinkle salt all over liberally.
4. Add enough chicken stock to coat the bottom of the pan.
5. Put it on low for 8-10 hours.
6. Check at 6 hours and the pork should fall apart.  If not, add more chicken stock and continue to cook.

It's ok if the cabbage looks burnt or stuck to the sides of the pan.  It will all come together in the end. Yum-O!

Simple, Quick Soup

After several heavy meals, we were in search of a light soup for dinner one night.  I stumbled upon this one for Chicken Noodle, but didn't have the chicken or noodles.  I liked the base recipe so I started to experiment with what ingredients I had in our kitchen.

From Foodnetwork.com Tyler Florence's Chicken Noodle Soup

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 medium carrots, cut diagonally into 1/2-inch-thick slices (I chopped mine more finely and used baby carrots)
2 celery ribs, halved lengthwise, and cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices (I chopped mine more finely)
4 fresh thyme sprigs (used 1tsp dried)
1 bay leaf
2 quarts chicken stock, recipe follows (I used store-bought)
8 ounces dried wide egg noodles (omitted)
1 1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken (used some corned beef I had in my freezer)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 handful fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped

Place a soup pot over medium heat and coat with the oil. Add the onion, garlic, carrots, celery, thyme and bay leaf. Cook and stir for about 6 minutes, until the vegetables are softened but not browned. Pour in the chicken stock and bring the liquid to a boil. Add the noodles and simmer for 5 minutes until tender. Fold in the chicken, and continue to simmer for another couple of minutes to heat through; season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with chopped parsley before serving.

Family Factor: surprisingly good
Stomach Factor: good and mild
Time Factor: very quick

The good news is that I think I found my first recipe for gluten free (omitting the pasta) cooking during Christmas week!

Weekday Gumbo

Now that the weather is turning cooler, it's time to bring out the warm, gooey casseroles from a 1960's Daughter's of the Nile cookbook that of course I have touch up with a little modern ideas.  Cook the entire batch and freeze half for later in the winter when you really don't feel like cooking.

From 'We'll Diet Tomorrow Volume II' Cookbook:

Chicken Gumbo Casserole

3 T butter

1 C onions, chopped

1/2 C green peppers

1 t Worcestershire sauce

1-2 cans Chicken Gumbo Soup (we used Progresso)

1 can boned chicken (or rotisserie) 

2 C cooked rice (recipe called for Minute Rice, but we'll leave that alone - see my post about perfectly steamed rice and only cook for 15 minutes)

1. Melt butter in skillet and add onions and green pepper.  Cook until brown.

2. Add rest of ingredients and mix well.

3. Pour into a large casserole dish.

4. Bake at 350 for 20-30 mins.

Family Factor: we were very surprised!
Time Factor: pretty quick - good throw in the oven weekday meal
Stomach Factor: can make it what you want

Quick Side Dish

Potatoes are a staple at my house.  I'm always looking for a quick way to make them as I usually don't have the hour it takes to bake them whole.  I came across this recipe recently and tried it on some friend over for dinner.  We all agreed they would also make a good breakfast side!

From allrecipes.com:

Roasted Rosemary Onion Potatoes

1 small onion, finely chopped

2 T vegetable oil

2 T chopped fresh rosemary (or ½ t dried)

1 t chopped fresh thyme (or ¼ t dried)

1/4 t salt

1/8 t ground black pepper

1 1/3 pounds potatoes, cut into 1-inch chunks

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Grease a large baking sheet with a rim.

2. Mix onion, vegetable oil, rosemary, thyme, salt, and pepper in a large bowl

3. Add potato pieces and toss to coat. 

4. Spread potatoes into prepared pan in a single layer.

5. Bake, turning occasionally, until potatoes are lightly browned and tender when pierced with a fork, 20 to 25 minutes.

Family Factor: really good!
Time Factor: pretty quick
Stomach Factor: very mild

Tackling the things you have not mastered

This year I'm taking my quest to a new level.  Trying to master the things in cooking that I have never been able to master or too scared to try.  So far, I have tried making pasta, yeast bread, polenta, fried chicken and burritos. The burritos were a surprising success.  This recipe makes a lot of filling, but it can be frozen in easy to use servings for a very quick dinner.

From Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook:

Super Burritos
1 lb meat (recipe says beef, but use anything you have as leftovers - see note below)
1 C chopped onion
1/2 C sweet bell pepper
1 clove garlic minced
1/4 C water
1 T chili powder
1/4 t ground cumin
1/4 t salt
1 C cooked rice
4 oz can diced green chile peppers, drained
10 inch tortillas
1/2 C shredded Monterey Jack or cheddar cheese
1 C chopped tomato
2 C shredded lettuce
Guacamole
Salsa

1. To make the filling - in a large skillet, combine meat (see prep instructions below), bell pepper and onion until soft and tender.  Drain off the fat.  Stir in water, chili powder, cumin and salt.  Cook about 5 minutes until most of the water has evaporated.
2. Wrap tortillas tightly in foil and put in the oven to preheat at 350 for ten minutes.
3. Spoon 1/2 C of filling into each tortilla just below the center.  Top filling with cheese and tomato.  Fold bottom edge up over the filling.  Fold opposite sides in and over filling.  Roll up from the bottom.  Secure with toothpicks if needed.
4. Arrange burritos, seam side down on a baking dish.  Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes or until heated through.  Serve warm with lettuce, guacamole or salsa.

Note about using left over meat: if you have any type of meat left over, put it in a stock pot with 1 cup of stock (doesn't matter what type).  Bring it to a simmer and continue to simmer until it breaks down into shredded or soft bits.  You can do this with chicken, pork chops, beef, or lamb.  I made it with chicken, pork and lamb.

Family Factor: really good, but even better for breakfast the next day!
Time Factor: pretty quick
Stomach Factor: if sensitive, don't use a lot of chili powder