Weekly Cooking Thread ~ April 16, 2011

FreeRepublicCooks | April 16, 2011 | libertarian27

[libertarian27]

Welcome to the 19th installment of the FR Weekly Cooking Thread.

Looking for something new to make or made something new that came out great? Please share a 'tried-and-true' recipe or two - or all of them:)! for fellow FReepers to add to their 'go-to' recipe stack of Family favorites?

Here's the place to share and explore your next favorite recipe.

[libertarian27]

You can say this for ready-mixes - the next generation isn't going to have any trouble making pies exactly like mother used to make. ~Earl Wilson~

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April 16 National Eggs Benedict Day * Day of the Mushroom

April 17 National Cheese Ball Day

April 18 National Animal Cracker Day

April 19 Garlic Day * Amaretto Day

April 20 Pineapples Upside Down Cake Day * Lima Bean Respect Day

April 21 Chocolate-Covered Cashew Truffle Day

April 22 Jelly Bean Day

[libertarian27]

Weekly Cooking Thread Ping List

(to be added/deleted just request on the thread here/or PM)

Last week’s Recipe Recap:

Bread* 56 Dinner Rolls
Dessert* 45 Chocolate Peanut Butter No-Bakes
Drink* 12 LIME ICED TEA
Meal* 4 Roast Beef with Gravy
Meal* 5 Oatmeal Pancakes
Meal* 9 CORNED BEEF HASH IN BELL PEPPERS
Meal* 14 ham steak
Meal* 20 Asian Style Flank Steak
Meal* 27 Latin Style Flank Steak
Meal* 29 Smoked sausage
Meal* 32 The Very Best Rumaki
Meal* 34 Breakfast Cups
Meal* 37 Better than Olive Garden Alfredo Sauce
Meal* 38 Flank Steak Roulade
Meal* 64 CHICKEN TETRAZZINI
Side* 33 My carrots-Bizzy Bugz

Link to last week’s thread:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/chat/2702197/posts?page=77#77

[TheMom]

This is my grandmother’s King Ranch Casserole recipe. I have not made the following recipe (my husband is not big into casseroles), but have eaten it plenty of times and it is yummy.

Albia’s King Ranch Chicken

1 cup chicken broth
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can mild rotel tomatoes
24 oz pkg. grated cheddar cheese
1 small diced onion
2 ½ lbs cooked & chopped chicken breast
8 – 10 corn tortillas

Mix chicken broth, cream of mushroom, cream of chicken and rotel tomatoes is sauce pan. Heat just to boil and remove from heat. In a large casserole pan that has been sprayed with Pam, place a layer of tortillas, chicken and cheese. Repeat, making 2 – 3 layers. Pour sauce mixture over contents of casserole and top with cheese. Bake at 350 for 25 – 30 minutes or until nice and bubbly.

[libertarian27]

Method help/request

I’m making pork gravy for 70 people tonight for a pork loin meal- eek!

I’ve got a gallon of pork broth ready (made Pernil this week) and will most likely use the Argo cornstarch recipe. I’m looking for technique hints....should I make the whole thing in one shot or do them in batches. How do you think I should go about this? Beside buying bunches of gravy mixes- lol.

[TheMom]

I would do it in batches, then mix them all together.

[Melchior]

How about a delicious cookie for a diabetic?

[John 3_19-21]

Depending on what and how much other food is being prepared you will need roughly 2-3 ounces of gravy per serving. You can count on some people wanting less and some more, but that number should work. 2 gallons is a safe bet.
Here is a recipe I would use
½ cup vegetable oil
3cups diced onion
2 cups diced green pepper
2 cups diced celery
2 cups diced carrots
6 cloves garlic chopped
1 bunch fresh Italian parsley chopped
1 gallon fresh made pork stock
1 1/2 gallons water
2 tablespoons gravy master or kitchen bouquet (caramel color)
1/3 cup Better Than Bouillon ham base (or 4 -5 bouillon cubes)
½ teaspoon thyme leaves
2 teaspoons cracked black pepper
Salt to taste

1 Place oil in a large pot and brown the onions, peppers, celery and carrots for 15-20 minutes on med-med-high until well browned and aromatic. (this will give your gravy that home-made flavor).
Add add remaining ingredients and simmer until liquid is reduced by 30% (leaving 2 gallons or so).
Pour gravy through a strainer mashing the vegetables while you do to get every last drop of flavor.
Place gravy back on the stove and bring to a boil. Thick with either flour and water or cornstarch and water method.
Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes to fully cook starch or flour.

You can do this in two pots if you don’t have a big one

Hope this helps.

[Silentgypsy]

Do I detect an experienced church supper meister? Second guess would be kids’ clubs organizer lol!

[dunblak]

i always put the cornstarch in a blender with some of the stock before i add it to the rest of the ingredients to make sure it has no lumps...

[Flamenco Lady]

When I last made a large quantity of gravy using broth I made a roux by melting butter on very low heat and adding an equal amount of flour to it and cooking it out on the lowest heat possible for 1-2 minutes to get rid of the flour flavor. (I prefer to use spelt flour for my gravies since it gives the gravy a fuller flavor).

I then gradually add broth to the roux stirring pretty constantly and gradually bring the heat up and stir it until it thickens. I use two tablespoons of spelt flour for every cup of broth and an equal amount of butter).

I also like to add a little brewed coffee to my gravy to give the gravy a richer flavor. I usually wait until the very end and use it to thin the gravy just a little bit until it is the perfect consistency.

I have used this recipe to make half gallon batches of gravy numerous times and gallon batches of it every Thanksgiving for years and it comes out perfect for me every time.

[Bizzy Bugz]

This is a recipe from a famous restaurant in Birmingham, AL.
Cobb's Corner Cupboard, owner Mrs Virginia Cobb
One of her signature dishes.
Roulage (cream filled chocolate roll)
6 ounces semi sweet chocolate
6 large eggs,separated, the whites at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 cups well chilled heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
In small heavy saucepan melt the chocolate with 3 tablespoons water over low heat, stirring, and let the mixture cool. In a bowl with an electric mixer beat the egg whites for 30 seconds. Beat in 1 cup of the sugar, a little at a time and beat for 4 minutes or til thick and pale. Fold in the cooled chocolate carefully. In another bowl beat the egg whites til they hold soft peaks, stir 1/4 of them in the in chocolate mixture gently Then add the remaining whites gently.
Butter a jelly roll pan with butter. Line with wax paper and extend about 2 inches over the side. Butter the paper.
Turn batter into pan and bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. Let cool in pan covered with a dampened dish towel for 30 minutes
Remove towel and lift paper just to loosened cake. Sift cocoa power over cake. Cover cake with buttered sheet of wax paper. buttered side down and a baking sheet. Invert unto baking sheet and peel off paper carefully.
Beat cream in chilled bowl til soft peaks, beat in remaining 1/2 cup sugar and vanilla. Beat til it holds stiff peaks and spread over cake.
Beginning with a long side roll up jelly roll fashion. Roll seam side down onto plate.
Cake keeps covered and chilled for up to 12 hours. Serves 10
Rather long but well worth the time.

[Bizzy Bugz]

This is a recipe from a famous restaurant in Birmingham, AL.
Cobb’s Corner Cupboard, owner Mrs Virginia Cobb
One of her signature dishes.
Roulage (cream filled chocolate roll)
6 ounces semi sweet chocolate
6 large eggs,separated, the whites at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 cups well chilled heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
In small heavy saucepan melt the chocolate with 3 tablespoons water over low heat, stirring, and let the mixture cool. In a bowl with an electric mixer beat the egg whites for 30 seconds. Beat in 1 cup of the sugar, a little at a time and beat for 4 minutes or til thick and pale. Fold in the cooled chocolate carefully. In another bowl beat the egg whites til they hold soft peaks, stir 1/4 of them in the in chocolate mixture gently Then add the remaining whites gently.
Butter a jelly roll pan with butter. Line with wax paper and extend about 2 inches over the side. Butter the paper.
Turn batter into pan and bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. Let cool in pan covered with a dampened dish towel for 30 minutes
Remove towel and lift paper just to loosened cake. Sift cocoa power over cake. Cover cake with buttered sheet of wax paper. buttered side down and a baking sheet. Invert unto baking sheet and peel off paper carefully.
Beat cream in chilled bowl til soft peaks, beat in remaining 1/2 cup sugar and vanilla. Beat til it holds stiff peaks and spread over cake.
Beginning with a long side roll up jelly roll fashion. Roll seam side down onto plate.
Cake keeps covered and chilled for up to 12 hours. Serves 10
Rather long but well worth the time.

[Tamar1973]

Tuna Kimchi jjigae (Tuna Kimchi Stew)

Kimchi jjigae with 돼지고기 dwaegi gogi (pork), Spam processed ham or 두부 dubu (tofu), are common variations of the dish. Avoiding pork for religious reasons, I was pleased to find 참치김치찌개 chamchi kimchi jjigae, or kimchi stew with tuna, on the menu of a restaurant near Kangwon National University in Chuncheon, a lakeside city in the mountains northeast of Seoul. I first tasted that version in the mid-'90s and have been making it ever since.

This has been my go-to kimchi jjigage recipe for more than 10 years.

Tuna Kimchi Jjigae makes 1-2 servings

1 teaspoon grapeseed or other oil with a high-temperature smoke point
1 cup chopped kimchi
1 can white albacore tuna, packed in water
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups kimchi "juice" (top off with fish or chicken broth)
1 teaspoon Japanese dashi powder
1-2 teaspoons Korean gochujang or gochugaru (to your taste)
1 teaspoon sesame oil

Directions

1. Heat the pan, and add the oil. Saute the chopped kimchi and garlic until the kimchi barely becomes soft.
2. Add the water, dashi and gochujang/gochugaru and allow the mixture to boil for 10 to 15 minutes.
3. Add the tuna — it's already fully cooked — and continue to boil for about five more minutes.
4. Add the sesame oil immediately before serving so the flavor comes through.
5. Serve it with a grilled cheese sandwich — try my version with kimchi — for a Koreafornian spin on the classic tomato soup combo.

[Bizzy Bugz]

Sorry about the double post

[grapeape]

If you want to add flavor without item in the finished sauce just add them to the boiling stock before you add the water cornstarch mixture. Then when the flavors meld just filter out the ingredients and then thicken the gravy with the cornstarch. The gravy will look cleaner. So many flavors go with that dish that it really depends on what part of the country you're from more than what is considered great.

[libertarian27]

Thanks guys!

OK, I think I better make two gallons! And do it all in batches, just to make sure.

I wasn’t going to do any vegetable additions but I like that recipe and will incorporate.

I’ve got a lot of pork fat - and since ‘pork fat rules’ hopefully I’m half way there :>)

Thanks again.

[illiac]

Here is a good diabetic cookie my wife loves...

CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

1/4 c. margarine
1 tbsp. granulated fructose
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3/4 c. flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Cream together margarine and fructose, beat in egg, water and vanilla. Combine flour, baking soda and salt in sifter. Sift dry ingredients into creamed mixture, stirring to blend thoroughly. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop by teaspoonsful onto lightly greased cookie sheet about 2 inches apart. Bake at 375 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes. Makes 30 cookies.

[libertarian27]

Balsamic Caramelized Onions with Golden Raisins Sauce

[I adjusted this recipe I found on a chat site - It’s really good!]

1 Sweet Onion Sliced (all purpose onions don’t really cut it here)
4T Butter
2 T Brown Sugar (Original recipe called for 4T - too sweet for us - adjust as desired)
1/2 Cup Golden Raisins
4T Balsamic Vinegar
1/4 Cup Marsala Wine

In a saute pan cook the onions in the butter until golden, add the brown sugar, raisins and balsamic vinegar and cook to incorporate @5 minutes or so - finish off with Marsala wine - cooking for a few minutes (add additional butter at the end to finish if desired - I’ll hold back a Tablespoon at the beginning and throw it in at the end)

Great with pork tenderloin. Bake, grill or pan fry the pork, slice into medallions and add to sauce to coat and heat thoroughly.

(I’m going to make a bunch of this too for tonight’s dinner ... oops, I better get going - I’ve got sauce and gravy to make!)

[Flamenco Lady]

Last night I made the Three Grain Pilaf that Netizen posted on the March 26th thread (post 90) for my family. Since my husband will not eat anything with curry in it I substituted with 1 1/2 tsp. of our favorite Mrs. Dash seasoning instead of the curry powder in the recipe. I used a little more of the Mrs. Dash, since it is not as strong a seasoning as the curry would have been. My family absolutely loved this Pilaf. They ate every last grain of the pilaf.

We had roast chicken and my own cauliflower gratin recipe with it. I had not made the gratin for years since cauliflower is one of those vegetables my husband will not even touch. I only got away with cooking it last night because he had been with me when I saw cauliflower on sale at the grocery store and mentioned that I wished he liked it since I love it. He told me to go ahead and get some and just make it up for myself and who ever else wanted it, since most nights he prefers to skip vegetables altogether anyway. I bought the cauliflower!

Everyone except my husband tried the cauliflower right away and loved it and said it was especially good with the Three grain pilaf. They all started putting a little of each in every bite and said that it was the best combination they had ever eaten. My husband has never heard every family member rave about a vegetable like they did last night, so he actually decided to try the cauliflower and found he actually liked it. He even went on to say that he loved the combination of it with the pilaf and he would definitely eat it again. A victory!

If any of you have a family member who hates cauliflower, you might try this recipe and if you can get them to try it, you might just convince them to eating it every once in a while.

Cauliflower Gratin

1 head cauliflower cut into large florets
5 tablespoons butter, divided
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1 c grated Swiss or other white cheese
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1/2 of a small onion or 1/4 of a large onion, finely chopped
1/4 cup fresh bread crumbs

Blanch cauliflower florets in boiling salted water for about 2 minutes and then drain and set aside.

While the cauliflower is cooking melt three tablespoons of butter on low heat. Remove two tablespoons of the melted butter to reserve for your topping. Then stir in flour to the remaining butter in the pan and continue cooking on low heat for 1-2 minutes to get the flour taste out of the roux.

Add milk and gradually increase the heat stirring constantly and continue cooking until the white sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon.

Stir in pepper and nutmeg. (Do not add salt. There is enough salt in the Parmesan cheese for the entire recipe).

Remove from heat and slowly add about ¾ c of the Swiss cheese and about ¼ cup of the Parmesan cheese a little at a time making sure the cheese is all melted before going on to the next step.

Pour half of the white sauce into the bottom of either a 9X9 baking dish or a 8X13 depending on how many florets you have. Place the cauliflower florets on top of the sauce and sprinkle the onions on top. Pour the remaining half of the sauce on top of the cauliflower.

Top with the remaining Swiss cheese, the bread crumbs, and the remaining Parmesan cheese, in that order. Drizzle the top with the butter you had set aside.
Bake in a 375 degree oven for about 25 minutes or until the top is nicely browned.

[radpolis]

Hi, I am a classically trained chef.

If you already have a lot of pork stock on hand, you basically have the gravy done.

Just reduce the stock until it gets the flavor you want.

If the stock is weak, then you can fortify with the aromatics—celery, onion, and carrots, and bouquet garnie/sachet(thyme, pepper corn, bay leaf, parsley). Whatever you like, actually. You really don’t need any artificial flavor enhancers.

But my suggestion is reduce it, even if you add that stuff. The reduction is what fortifies the flavor.

And remember to strain it.

Then add roux to strained stock.

You can make roux of any fat and flour. Normally, the fat is butter.

You can even use rendered pork fat for the roux.

The proportion is one part flour, one part fat.

To make roux, melt butter/fat, add flour, mix, then when it starts to bubble and puff up a bit, take it off the heat to cool.

Note: Don’t overcook the roux and wait for it to cool before you add to hot liquid.

Also, don’t add salt to the gravy until the end. Believe it or not, salt is the most important ingredient, but in a reduced gravy, don’t salt until you are finished or the end product will be too salty.

You don’t need to make in batches. You can make everything in one big stock pot. And make the roux in a saute pan.

Last note: You should skin the gravy of oil, particles or white stuff that floats in the stock.