Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Potato Leek Soup Recipe

Thanks to www.hillbillyhousewife.com for this warm, winter soup recipe that is perfect for a family night dinner. Try the Alton Brown version and puree the soup to make it fancy for when guests come over. 





Recipe type: Soup
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
  • 2 stalks celery, chopped
  • 2 medium onions, peeled and chopped
  • 1 cup cauliflower, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, grated or minced
  • 2-3 leeks, cut lengthwise, then rinsed and sliced
  • 4-5 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
  • 7-8 cups of vegetable stock
  • A handful of spinach or other greens, chopped
  • Salt and pepper
Instructions
  1. Heat the olive oil
    in a large pot over medium high heat. Add the carrots, celery, onions,
    cauliflower and garlic and stir to coat with oil. Jamie Oliver recommend
    putting the lid on askew and letting the ingredients cook for about 10
    minutes this way.
  2. Add the potatoes
    and soup stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium, put on the
    lid on the pot and cook for another 10 minutes.
  3. Finally, add the
    spinach or greens and let cook for another 3 minutes or so, until they
    have softened. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

Monday, January 13, 2014

Winter Veggie Mix







So my husband made this last night and it turned out great! The house smelled like sweet cinnamon and  nutmeg even though neither are in the recipe. The veggies took on a very sweet smell when baked for 45min on 350 degrees. They come out almost like a potato hash and are much better for you. You can tweak this recipe by adding sweet potato and eggplant or any other winter veggie in season right now.


1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon of black pepper (to taste)
1/4 Rosemary (dried and ground)
1/4 teaspoon of thyme
1/2 teaspoon of fresh chopped garlic
2 Tbls of Virgin Olive Oil

Chop and peel: (Yes, your hands will get tired)
6 Turnips (Not the greens but the root veggie)
1 Butternut Squash
2 Acorn Squash
2 Rutabaga

Bake on a cooking sheet for 45 minutes at 350 degrees.

How to serve a pretty and fun cocktail


Friday, January 3, 2014

Shrimp & Grits

Here is a really great shrimp and grits recipe that I found. My two favorite ones are Emeril Lagasse's and Pat Conroys. I will dig those out of my kitchen and post both for you.
Shrimp and Grits

Recipe from John Martin Taylor’s cookbook Hoppin’ John’s Lowcountry Cooking, published by Bantam

Prep Time:
1 hr 5 min
Inactive Prep Time:
--
Cook Time:
1 hr 0 min

Level:
--

Serves:
4 servings

Ingredients

4 cups milk
2 tablespoons butter
Salt
Freshly ground white pepper
1/2 cup stone whole grain grits
2 ounces grated white Cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 pound link smoked sausage, cut in half and sliced 1/2-inch thick
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
Freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup dry sherry
2 cups Shrimp Stock, recipe follows sticks of cold butter, cubed
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh parsley leaves
1 cup of the Sweet Corn Relish, recipe follows

Directions

In a saucepan, over medium heat, add the milk and butter. Season with salt and white pepper. Bring the liquid to a boil. Slowly stir in the grits. Reduce the heat to medium low and continue to cook for about 1 hour or until the grits and tender and creamy, stirring every 10 minutes to prevent the grits from sticking. Add some water during the cooking process if the liquid evaporates to much. Remove from the heat and stir in the cheese. Reseason with salt and white pepper if needed. Set aside and keep warm. In a saute pan, over medium heat, heat the oil. Add the sausage and render for 2 minutes. Add the garlic and saute for 30 seconds. Season the shrimp with salt and black pepper. Add the shrimp and continue to saute for 2 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and add the sherry. Place the pan back over the heat and flame the sherry, shaking the pan back and fourth several times until the flame dies out. Remove the shrimp from the pan and set aside. Add the stock and bring the liquid to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium low and mount in the butter. Add the shrimp back to the sauce and simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in 2 teaspoons of the parsley. To serve, spoon the grits in the center of each shallow bowl. Spoon the shrimp mixture over the grits. Garnish with the corn relish and remaining parsley.

SHRIMP STOCK
Recipe from New New Orleans Cooking, by Emeril Lagasse, published by William Morrow
8 cups uncooked shrimp heads and shells (from about 1 pound large shrimp)
2 onions, peeled, halved and sliced
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 lemons, halved
8 bay leaves
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon dried leaf basil
1 teaspoon dried leaf thyme
1 teaspoon dried leaf tarragon
1 teaspoon dried leaf oregano
3/4 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
2 teaspoons salt
4 quarts water, cold or at room temperature

Rinse the shrimp heads and shells quickly under cold water, and place them in a stockpot with the remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes. Turn the heat up to medium and cook for 30 minutes. Allow to cool thoroughly, strain and refrigerate. Keeps for 1 month. Yield: 3 quarts

SWEET CORN RELISH
1 red bell pepper seeded and chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 very large sweet onion, such as a Wadmalaw or Vidalia, chopped (about 2 cups)
2 cups chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped fresh chili peppers, such as jalapeno
3 cups white vinegar
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon celery seeds
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
6 cups sweet corn kernels (from about 12 ears)

Put everything but the mustard, turmeric, and corn in a nonreactive pot and simmer for about 5 minutes. Put the mustard and turmeric in a small bowl or teacup and mix together with some of the hot liquid from the pot, then add the mixture to the pot along with the corn. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for another 5 minutes. Pack the mixture into 6 (1/2 pint) sterilized jars, seal, and process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes. Serve this condiment with poultry, beans or rice. Yield: 6 1/2 pints

Thursday, January 2, 2014

Crock Pot Coq Au Vin (Chase away that winter chill with warm French food)




Crockpot Coq Au Vin Recipe Ingredients
  • 8 Chicken thigh pieces
  • 3 Bacon slices (Pancetta does nicely)
  • 1 teaspoon Salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried Thyme
  • 8 Small white onions (pickling onions)
  • 1/4 cup tomato paste
  • 2 cups good red wine
  • 2 teaspoons Chicken stock powder
  • 1 Clove crushed garlic
  • 1/2 lb (250g) button mushrooms
  • 2 tablespoons Butter
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons Cornstarch (cornflour)
  • 2 tablespoons cold water
How To Cook Crock Pot Coq Au Vin
Cook the bacon and chopped onion in large frying pan until the bacon is crispy. Transfer to crockpot. Season the chicken with the salt and the thyme. Place the chicken thighs in the frying pan and brown on all sides. Transfer to crockpot.
Peel the whole onions and chop the mushrooms. Brown these in thefrying pan then add to the slowcooker. Pour the wine into the frying pan,stir to loosen all the tasty brown fried bits. Add the chicken stock powder and tomato pastestir until it has dissolved. Pour this over the chicken and add the crushed garlic to the crockpot.
Cover and set the heat to low for about 4 - 6 hours. Just before you are ready to serve, mix the cornflour and water to a paste and add to the Coq au Vinto thicken it up. I like to serve Crockpot Coq Au Vin with mashed or boiled potatoes because you can soak up the red wine gravy.