Zesty Oven Steak Fries

Steak fries are more satisfying than regular fries. But all store bought or restaurant variations have a more pillowey texture than what I have normally made at home. So I decided to take another stab at it.

Rather than just relying on the oven to bake these potato wedges of differing sizes, I went to the microwave. I poked holes with the tines of a fork into whole potatoes and microwaved about 8 or 9 of them for 5-6 minutes. Once done, and slightly cooled, I cut the potatoes into wedges. The microwaving seemed to help the potatoes with their final texture. Once the wedges were baked in the oven, they came out crispy on the outside, and more like a baked potato on the inside.

I also like this particular set of spices to turn these potato wedges into something zesty. I originally used 2 teaspoons of salt, but quickly discovered it was too much. I’ve dropped it to 1 teaspoon.

Printable Version

• 8 medium russet potatoes
• 1/2 c. grated parmesan
• 1 tsp. salt
• 2 tsp. garlic powder
• 2 tsp. paprika
• 2 tsp. black pepper
• Olive oil for drizzling over potatoes

1. Heat oven to 450-degrees
2. Spray a cooking sheet with cooking spray
3. Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl.
4. Rinse potatoes and pierce the skin with a fork. Arrange on a microwave safe plate and heat in microwave for 5-6 minutes. (You still want the potato to be firm.)
5. Remove from microwave, and cut potatoes into steak fry sized wedges.
6. In a large bowl, drizzle the potatoes with the olive oil and mix with you hands until evenly coated.
7. Add potatoes to your bowl of dry ingredients and coat well.
8. Arrange potatoes on a single layer on baking sheet and bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown.

 

Technorati Tags: potato,wedges,jo-jos,steak fries,zesty,oven fries,potatoes,french fry,fries

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Slow Cooker Root Beer Pulled Pork

I picked up a Crock Pot Slow Cooker on Black Friday. So I was eager to put it to good use. So while searching for slow cooker recipes, I found one for pulled pork that really stood out.

You know how two ingredients should never go together in a recipe, such as a Krispy Kreme doughnut and a hamburger. Well surprisingly, root beer and pork loin goes together quite well.

Yea it sounds weird. But it turned out great. I just put the pork loin in the Crockpot, sprinkled with some salt and pepper, added the onions and garlic and set it for 8 hours. Once it was done, I could still smell the root beer and it gave it a unique flavor, but not overpowering at all. I imagine you could also use regular beer.

Be sure to drain the meat well before adding your barbecue sauce. I missed that step, and ended up putting the meat through a strainer to get rid of all the extra juices.

Printable Version

Ingredients

• 1 (2 pound) pork tenderloin or pork shoulder
• Salt and pepper
• 1 (12 fluid ounce) can or bottle root beer
• 1 medium onion, sliced into half rings.
• 2 garlic cloves, cut in half
• 1 (18 ounce) bottle your favorite barbecue sauce
• 8 hamburger buns, split and lightly toasted

Directions

1. Place the pork tenderloin in a slow cooker; pour the root beer over the meat. Cover and cook on low until well cooked and the pork shreds easily, 6 to 7 hours.
2. Drain well.
3. Stir in barbecue sauce.
4. Serve over hamburger buns.

Note: the actual length of time may vary according to individual slow cooker.

Technorati Tags: pulled pork,root beer,pork,sandwich,barbecue,slow cooker,crock pot,soda,loin,shoulder

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White Chocolate Fudge with Pecans

I love white chocolate and it’s also approaching the holidays. So I wondered if it’s possible to make white chocolate fudge. Sure enough there’s plenty of recipes out there. I opted to try one that was simple and had the least amount of ingredients.

I’ve melted white chocolate chips before and they always seemed to have a higher melting point as compared to regular chocolate chips. Of course, I could be wrong since they seemed to melt just fine in the sweetened condensed milk.

I also wondered how in the world would this fudge set up, when it’s just white chocolate chips and sweetened condensed milk. Well, I don’t know how it works but it sets up great. Just chill the finished fudge for two hours, cut into squares and then it’s good at room temperature.

The best way to describe this fudge is creamy, but has a texture more like fondant (used to decorate cakes). But don’t let that scare you. It’s an incredible change to the holiday platters of chocolate fudge.

Printable Version

Ingredients

• 3 cups white chocolate chips (1 12-ounce bag plus half of another)
• 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk 
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 c. pecans

Directions

1. Pour the chips, condensed milk and vanilla into a medium saucepan. Put the pan on the stove and turn the heat to low. (Stir occasionally while you prepare pan).

2. Line an an 8-inch pan with foil. This makes it easier to remove the fudge when it’s time to cut.

3. Stir the chips and milk until they melt together, about 3 minutes. Stir in pecans. Pour the fudge into the pan.

4. Put the fudge in the refrigerator and chill until firm (about two hours, you can speed it up with the freezer). Lift the fudge from the pan and remove the foil. On a flat surface, cut the fudge into small squares to serve.

Variations:

Feeling festive? Use 1 1/2 cups shelled pistachios and 1/2 cup dried, sweetened cranberries instead of the pecans.

Adapted from Rachael Ray

Technorati Tags: rachael ray,white chocolate,fudge,pecans,holidays,christmas,candy bar,confection,white fudge,pistachios,cranberries,sweetened condensed milk

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Ultimate Southern Macaroni & Cheese

This past Thanksgiving I was treated to some comforting, homemade macaroni & cheese, so I had to share the recipe. Now many of us have come to the conclusion that mac and cheese should be swimming in sauce. We can thank box dinners for that idea. But real macaroni and cheese is so much heartier.

I’ve eaten homemade macaroni and cheese before. But each recipe was hit and miss. Often times the whole dish was heavy or the cheese just turned it into a greasy mess. But not this recipe.

It has a great cheesy flavor, but even more significant, the pasta came out fluffy instead of weighed down. This is the recipe I’ll stick with from now on.  

Printable Version

Ingredients

• 1 lb elbow macaroni, cooked - al dente, drained well
• 2 overflowing cups of sharp cheddar cheese, shredded or cut into 1/4-in cubes
• 1 can evaporated milk
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 2 eggs, beaten
• Season salt - to taste
• Fresh cracked black pepper - to taste
• Dash or two or three or four of cayenne pepper

 

Directions

1. In a bowl, mix cooked and well drained macaroni and cheese together.
2. In another bowl whisk together eggs, milk, sugar and seasoning.
3. Pour egg/milk mixture over mac and cheese mixture, stir until well incorporated.
4. Pour into baking dish or tin, cover with foil.
5. Bake at 350 degrees for about an hour.
6. Remove foil, turn on broiler - broil top of mac and cheese until golden brown and bubbly.

Technorati Tags: macaroni and cheese,southern,recipe,mac and cheese,pasta,cheddar

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Turkey Talk....

I think a lot of people are intimidated be the turkey especially when it comes to cooking that perfect turkey that the in-laws will be critiquing from here to eternity. Truth be told cooking the perfect turkey isn't really as tough as it looks. I use the brining method to ensure moist meat and brush the turkey with bacon fat and herbs to get that crispy skin and that amazing golden brown color. The brining is simple all it is really is a mixture of water, salt and sugar if you desire sugar. The turkey sits in the solution breast side down for 24 hours and then is removed rinsed and seasoned. I then render a few pieces of bacon and reserve the fat. I mix it with my desired seasoning and fresh chopped herbs and brush the entire turkey. I base the turkey throughout the cooking process and that it! Here's how mine turned out!

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Mac -N- Cheese Anyone?

I have tried and tested dozens of recipes for baked macaroni and cheese and I have come across some very good ones, however I wanted to come up with one that give you the most bang for the buck meaning lots of cheese and the perfectly cooked pasta and a awesome mouth feel all around. I think I came up with one that just may fit the bill, I cooked this one for thanksgiving as part of a delightful feast. I say give it a try and if you want to tweek it a bit feel free!

Ingredients
1 lb elbow macaroni, cooked - al dente, drained well
2 overflowing cups of sharp cheddar cheese and colby cheese mix, shredded or cut into 1/4-in cubes
1/2 can evaporated milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 Tbsp sugar
2 eggs, beaten
Season salt - to taste
Fresh cracked black pepper - to taste
Dash or two or three or four of cayenne pepper


Directions
In a bowl, mix cooked and well drained macaroni and cheese together.
In another bowl whisk together eggs, milk,cream, sugar and seasoning.
Pour egg/milk mixture over mac and cheese mixture, stir until well incorporated.
Pour into baking dish or tin, cover with foil.
Bake at 350 degrees for about an hour.
Remove foil, turn on broiler - broil top of mac and cheese until golden brown and bubbly

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Thanksgiving-the fallout

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. Of course the fallout after this huge meal is the guilt. After all, we’re eating upwards of 3,000 calories. Luckily Lean Cuisines are on sale at the grocery store. Maybe I can eat those at least until Christmas. :-)

Thanksgiving is centered around the food. But this year I didn’t even have to cook. It’s good to know a chef. He put together this great meal for us.

A wonderfully brined and moist turkey with macaroni and cheese, green beans and bacon and dinner rolls (store bought). We also had the choice of three deserts; chocolate cake, peach pie with a crumb topping, and sweet potato pie. I loved the sweet potato pie because it had a non-gummy texture and wasn’t overly spiced so the sweet potato flavor came through.

Even Zoie, my smart little border collie mix, got a Thanksgiving plate. You can see her extremely worried face as if she wasn’t going to get anything. But she got all the fixings and she even ate the green beans. It probably helped they were cooked in bacon.

So I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. Now I need to prepare for Christmas, and that means cookies. I’m sure I’ll be testing a few recipes that you’ll see here soon. Wish me luck!

Technorati Tags: Thanksgiving,2009,green beans,turkey,macaroni and cheese

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