Farewell to February...

Jayne at Grain of Salt is tired of winter and so are a few of our blogging buddies! So here's a goodbye to February from me as well!



Farewell to February...



and a big hello to Spring to come! and soon!

Spring to me means vegetable gardens and planting Heirloom tomatoes. I'm only just learning about flowers and gardening from my internet friends. To me it's all about the food :)



Lettuce for salads...



Beautiful Bouquets of flowers...






and best of all... grilling!



We grill in the winter sometimes, but it'll be nice to do it when it's light outside and we're not shivering :)

When you're ready for grilling, these are my two most favorite rib recipes. Although I am always on the lookout for more...

This one comes from my good friend, San! Her recipes always have that secret ingredient and they always work! This one has Cherry Cola. and it's so good! From Bon Appétit to me by way of San!



Grilled Spareribs with Cherry Cola Glaze
Bon Appétit | July 2002
from San

4 12-ounce cans cherry cola (flat)
2 cups cherry jam or preserves
2/3 cup Dijon mustard with horseradish
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons malt vinegar or apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon hot pepper sauce

7 1/4 to 7 1/2 pounds well-trimmed pork spareribs

Boil cherry cola in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat until reduced to 1 1/2 cups, about 45 minutes. Stir in next 5 ingredients. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until mixture is reduced to 2 1/2 cups, stirring occasionally, about 35 minutes. Transfer glaze to large bowl. (Can be made 1 week ahead. Cover; chill. Bring to room temperature before using.)

Position racks in top and bottom thirds of oven and preheat to 325°F. Sprinkle ribs with salt and pepper. Wrap each rib rack tightly in foil, enclosing completely. Divide foil packets between 2 rimmed baking sheets. Bake until ribs are very tender, switching positions of baking sheets halfway through baking, about 2 hours total. Cool ribs slightly in foil. Pour off any fat from foil packets. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Keep covered in foil packets and refrigerate. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour before continuing.)

Prepare barbecue (medium-low heat). Cut each rib rack between bones into individual ribs. Set aside 1 cup glaze. Add ribs to bowl with remaining glaze and toss to coat. Grill ribs until brown and glazed, turning to prevent burning, about 5 minutes total. Serve, passing reserved glaze separately

and this one from Sue at the Cooking Forum. Always gets raves.



Grilled Roadhouse Baby Back Ribs
posted CF CookingRVC (Sue)

2 large racks pork baby back ribs
salt
coarse ground black pepper

SAUCE:
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/4 cup minced fresh onion
1 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup tomato paste
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
1 3/4 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon bourbon
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper -- coarse
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon paprika

To make the ribs, cut each large rack of ribs in half so that you have 4 half-racks. Sprinkle a light coating of salt and a more generous portion of coarse pepper over the top and bottom of each rack. Wrap the ribs in aluminum foil and bake in a preheated 300 degree oven for 2 1/2 hours.

As the ribs cook, make the sauce by heating the oil in a medium saucepan over medium/high heat. Sauté the onions for 5 minutes or until they start to brown. Add the remaining ingredients and bring mixture to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for 1 1/4 hours, uncovered, or until sauce thickens. Remove from heat and set aside until the ribs are ready. Preheat your barbecue grill.

When ribs are finished in the oven, the meat should have pull back about 1/2-inch from the cut-ends of the bones. Remove the ribs from the oven, let them sit for 10 minutes or so, then remove the racks from the foil and put them on the grill. Grill the ribs for 3 to 4 minutes per side. They should be slightly charred in a few spots when they're finished. Brush barbecue sauce on the ribs while they're grilling, just before you serve them. Don't add the sauce too early or it will burn.
Serves 2 (full-racks) to 4 (half-racks).

Check out more Farewells to February...
Jayne, A Grain of Salt
Susan, Savoring Time in the Kitchen
Kathleen, Cuisine Kathleen
Barb, Foley's Follies
Debbie, Mountain Breaths
Marsha, Marsha's Garden
Cynthia, Events Only

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Everything old is new again...

Reruns. Dinner from the freezer. Ancho Beef Chili. Heat it up, add two kinds of beans, red kidney and pinto, and toss together a big salad, becomes a great dinner with no fuss at all. This time no sad, little overcooked corn muffins. I solved that issue with a box from Entenmann's!




Click for the recipe

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There's that chicken again...

Our favorite homecooked dinner. It really doesn't get any better than this. Quick, easy and delicious! and my absolute favorite, lemon! Woodie's famous Chicken Piccata. I had previously posted about my daughter's English project with her friend to make dinner and film it for the class. But all you got to see was an empty plate and some dirty dishes! Here it is again. Last night's dinner. With extra sauce for the brown rice and the green beans!




Click here for the recipe!

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Let the good times roll...

Laissez Les Bon Temps Roule!

You're all invited to Suzy's Mardi Gras Party!  Help Suzy celebrate, she's originally from Louisiana and is now living in the Pacific Northwest! So everyone is invited to join in on the fun!

Everything I know about Mardi Gras is from my friends, Suzy and Cindy! Suzy's celebrating big time over at her blog, Kitchen Bouquet! Stop over and join the party, everyone's invited! My contribution is Cindy's Chicken and Sausage Gumbo. I haven't had the chance to make it yet, but every other recipe from Cindy has been a winner, her Lousiana BBQ Shrimp has always gotten raves, so trust me, and if you like gumbo or shrimp, give these a whirl!

Chicken and Sausage Gumbo

from CindyMac
Printable Recipe

6 boneless chicken thighs

Flour

salt, pepper, and cayenne

vegetable oil for frying

1 cup chopped onions

1 cup chopped green bell peppers

1 cup chopped celery

half a bottle of dark roux heated over low heat in cast iron skillet after chicken has been fried and cooled, oil removed. Then add vegetables to soften.

about 8 cups chicken stock

1/2 pound Andouille smoked sausage or any other good smoked pork sausage, cut into 1/4-inch slices

2-3 teaspoons teaspoon minced garlic

hot cooked rice

green onions, sliced

Remove excess fat from the chicken pieces. Combine flour, salt, pepper, and cayenne in paper bag. Toss in thighs and shake to coat.

In a large cast iron skillet heat about ½ inch of oil until very hot (375º to 400º). Fry the chicken pieces until crust is brown on both sides, about 6-8 minutes per side; drain on paper towels. Let oil cool, then remove from skillet, leaving as many of the browned particles in the pan as possible.

In a medium-size bowl combine the onions, bell peppers and celery.

Place the stock in a 5½-quart saucepan or large Dutch oven and let simmer while you cook the veggies.

Add roux to skillet over low heat and stir while it melts down. Then add veggies and cook till soft, stirring constantly. Takes about 10 minutes or so.

Bring stock to a slow boil, then add the roux mixture by spoonfuls, stirring until dissolved between additions. Add the garlic and sausage and let simmer for 40 minutes. Last 5 minutes add chicken.

Serve over rice and top with green onions.

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Louisiana BBQ Shrimp

Source: CindyMac

Printable Recipe

1 – 1 1/2 lbs. large shrimp

1 stick butter, melted

3 tablespoons Worcestershire

1/4 teaspoon cayenne

1/2 teaspoon coarse salt

1/4 teaspoon fresh-ground pepper

2 teaspoons fresh thyme (or 1/2 teaspoon dried)

1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary

1 tablespoon olive oil

DEHEAD shrimp if necessary, but don't peel. Place in a shallow dish (I use a pie pan). Mix remaining ingredients together and pour over shrimp. Cover and place in the refrigerator to marinate for 2-3 hours. BAKE in preheated 350 degree oven uncovered for 15-20 minutes. Serve with French bread to sop up all the wonderful juice.

 Food on Friday at Carole's Chatter 

 

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When you have over ripe bananas...

make banana bread!

Today was a rainy, just plain gloomy day! Until the smell of banana bread started to fill up the kitchen! If you have really brown bananas that are going nowhere but the trash, mash them up and make this moist, dense and most delicious quick bread. You can't miss. I didn't even burn it. This time.




Banana Nut Bread
from The Fannie Farmer Cookbook, Eleventh Edition
Source: Cooking Forum
Printable Recipe

3 ripe bananas, well mashed
2 eggs, beaten
2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts (or more!)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a loaf pan. Mix the bananas and eggs together in a large bowl. Stir in the flour, sugar, salt and soda. Add the walnuts and stir to blend. Put the batter in the pan and bake for an hour. Remove from the pan and cool on a rack.

Sometimes I add a couple splashes of Myer’s Rum (Dark rum)

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I love vacation...

More time for cooking! Takeout is great, no complaints, but sometimes there is nothing like a good home cooked meal! This was it. Mostly. I almost didn't even mess up. Well, a little but it worked out. I was going to make vegetable fried rice and really over cooked the rice this morning. Then I forgot to make more, getting busy doing nothing. The other day I undercooked it. Crunchy rice is a lot better than mushy rice. I need to learn to pay attention. My third grade teacher was absolutely right. So was my fourth and fifth, too! A quick call and two containers of vegetable fried rice was on it way! I'll post my recipe for the fried rice even if I screwed it up this time. It's really easy and it's really good! It's from a cooking class I took a couple years ago.

Had all the time in the world today, so I got to looking at the hundreds and hundreds of recipes I saved to try. Found one that has been on the list for so long. This one is from the Cooking Forum at gardenweb. I should have made it sooner. It was great. I found a peanut sauce recipe online and played around with that, and a Thai cucumber salad that turned out to the best one I've tried yet!



Asian Chicken Lettuce Cups
source: Ann
Printable Recipe

Use this as an outline.
Measurements are just approximate. I don't measure anything.

1 pound of chicken breasts
1 minced garlic clove
1 or 2 teaspoons minced ginger
1/2 cup chopped onion
3 green onions chopped
fresh squeezed lime
lots of fresh chopped cilantro
1 or 2 tablespoons peanut oil
chicken broth
salt
Peanuts (optional)

Coarsely grind chicken breasts in food processor.

Heat oil and sauté the ground chicken breasts. Do not brown. Add the garlic and the ginger. Add a little chicken broth to stop the meat from sticking. Simmer until meat is cooked. Season with salt.
Remove from the heat and add the chopped onion, green onion and cilantro. Squeeze the lime over mixture and stir. Top with peanuts.

SAUCE:
season to suit own taste

1/2 cup rice vinegar
1 or 2 tablespoons of garlic chili sauce or Thai sweet chili sauce
teaspoon of honey
minced ginger
minced garlic
1 or 2 tablespoons sesame oil
salt

To serve, spoon on to lettuce leaves and drizzle on a little of the sauce.
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This dipping sauce is just an adaption of whatever I found online, I looked at a few recipes and just threw it in the pot and stirred! Makes me a pot stirrer?

Peanut Dipping Sauce

1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
1/3 cup water (don’t pour all at once, you can add more or less depending on the consistency you like)
4 teaspoons sugar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon lime juice
1/2 teaspoon chili oil (I used more)

Combine peanut butter, water, sugar, soy sauce, rice vinegar, lime juice, and chili oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Heat just until mixture begins to bubble, then cover the pan and remove it from the heat.

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Thai Cucumber Salad

1/3 cup rice vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon course ground black pepper
1 large hothouse cucumber, peeled and sliced very thin
1/2 red onion. sliced very thin
1/2 - 1 small hot chili, sliced very thin (I used jalapeno)

In a small pan, combine vinegar, sugar, water and salt; cook over medium heat, stirring, until liquid boils and sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. Place the sliced cucumbers, onions and chili in a bowl, pour marinade over cucumbers; stir to blend. Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 hours.

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Vegetable Fried Rice
from VIKING COOKING SCHOOL
Printable Recipe

The key to excellent fried rice is to begin with well-chilled rice; accordingly, this recipe is a delicious way to use leftover rice. The sauce includes a Chinese wine known as Shaoxing that is made from fermented rice. The flavor is similar to dry sherry, which is an acceptable substitute.

5 tablespoons peanut oil, divided
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
4 cups cooked long-grain rice (preferably jasmine), chilled*
1 small white or yellow onion, chopped
1 medium carrot, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice, blanched**
1/2 cup fresh or frozen green peas
1/2 pound fresh shiitake mushrooms, cleaned, stems removed and discarded, caps very thinly sliced
1 tablespoon Chinese Shaoxing rice wine (or dry sherry)
1/4 cup Japanese soy sauce
6 whole green onions, very thinly sliced, reserve 1/4 cup green tops for garnish
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Coat a large wok with 1 tablespoon of peanut oil; place over medium-high heat and heat
through. Add the eggs, swirling around to coat the bottom of the pan and form a crepe-like sheet of "omelette". When the eggs are just firm and barely cooked through, slide the "omelette" onto a plate; when cool enough to handle, finely chop and set aside until needed. Wipe out the wok with a paper towel.

If the rice has formed lumps, break them apart with wet hands.

Place the wok over high heat; add the remaining 4 tablespoons of peanut oil and heat through.

Add the onion, carrot, peas and sliced mushrooms; stir-fry for 1 minute. Add the rice wine (or sherry) and stir-fry one minute more.

Add the rice and toss to coat with the oil and vegetables. Stir in the soy sauce and green onions, then season to taste with salt and pepper. Stop stirring and let the rice cook, undisturbed, until it is slightly crisp, about 2 minutes. Stir the rice again, breaking up any new lumps that have formed.

Add the reserved egg and green onions to the wok, and stir to combine; serve immediately garnished with additional green onions.

* For the best fried rice, use leftover rice that has been chilling in the refrigerator for at least a day. Freshly cooked rice can produce a mushy finished product. If you can't wait a day, spread the rice out on a parchment-lined baking sheet and place in the refrigerator, uncovered, for several hours.

** To blanch the diced carrots, bring a pot of salted water to the boil. Cook the carrots until just tender, about 1 to 2 minutes. Plunge in an ice water bath to stop the cooking process; drain well, and set aside until needed.

Make It Ahead: The Vegetable Fried Rice may be prepared in advance and reheated just before serving.
Variation: Add shrimp, tofu, Chinese sausage, pork or chicken for a more substantial dish.

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A little of this and a little of that...

In my house, today was clean out the frig and see what you end up with for dinner day! So I did. It's been a very long week, and we've mostly ordered in. The vegetable drawer was looking mighty sad, needed to use up what I could and then start fresh tomorrow morning, shopping for the week.

I grabbed a couple zucchini, some portobello slices and a couple tomatoes that would never be pretty in a salad. Sauteed them up with some olive oil and threw in a can of artichoke hearts and the juice of a Meyer lemon. Lots of salt and pepper and it came out really good. The tomatoes cook down and make it kind of saucy. The lemon made it taste pretty bright. Not bad for a last minute throw together!



I had a couple rib steaks for us, and skirt steaks for the kids!



A frozen cheesecake that I thawed and cut into hearts and topped it with hot fudge and strawberries. A pretty nice dinner, all in all!



Happy Valentine's Day!

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