What's Cooking?

[Smalls21]

I love meat loaf. Use the bacon thing myself. Use ground venison. Also do it on the smoker. Not bad if I do say so myself.

a smoked venision meatloaf wrapped in bacon? Where do i sign up? sounds amazing!

[ness]

Is Amber wearing a scarf or a towel? I can understand a towel before digging into that but it's a little warm for a scarf. But I've got one and I know how they are about fashion.

I couldn't help but notice the "Kansas" on her shirt. I can only assume something positive follows?

[rps]

While Nancy and I lived in London (2000 - 2002) we got in the habit of watching the Brit cooking shows. I won't rant on how bad most Brit tv was. Just trust me when I say the cooking shows were the best option. After we came back home, for a while we continued the habit with American shows. This was 2003 - 2004 -> before Guy Fierri, before cake wars, before the black box shows that require you to use caramel corn. Of those we watched, we treated Emeril as the comic relief. We would sit and laugh at the mistakes and the way his words slurred as the show went on. Having defamed him, I will now admit that the recipe I use the most frequently from any of those shows came from his show. One night he featured what I have since learned was a riff on a James Beard recipe ... Horseradish Cole Slaw. I just finished making a batch for the side to tonight's ribs. I figured some of you might want to have this recipe.

Check it out: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/horseradish-coleslaw-recipe.html

[rps]

Two racks of baby backs, well covered in home made magic dust, just went into the hickory smoke. My mouth is watering already.

My sister in law asked for my rub recipe. I had to hem and haw and tell her i did not really have one. So I wrote this down:

Magic Dust – A Template for Barbeque Rub

Some people have a master barbeque rub recipe locked away and measure spices with calibrated gram scales. Others use rubs sold at grocery stores and add one or two items to make it their own. I do neither. I have a rough template that I vary each time. This recipe is the template with some suggestions for the tweaks that may suit you.

Notes: I mix the rub and place it in a shaker so I do not have to actually rub. The amount should be sufficient to “rub” two pork shoulders.

Base Ingredients:

1 Tbs. Chili Powder

1 Tbs. Paprika or Smoked Paprika

1.5 Tbs. Brown Sugar or Sweetener

1 Tbs. salt

2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon oregano

Tweaks Ingredients: (add at least one, or all, as taste dictates)

Cavenders Greek seasoning

Penzy’s Northwoods seasoning

Penzy’s Bangkok Blend

Garam Masala

Chinese Five Spice

Creole Seasoning

[BilletHead]

Huevos Rancheros,

on the menu for this evening,

BilletHead

[BilletHead]

Pizza,

Well worked up the chanterelles found Thursday, a mix of regular and cinnabar. Cooked some onion, chopped garlic and added the chanterelles for a stir. Then some chopped prosciutto to the mix. A bit more cooking and stirring. A couple store bought pizza crusts ready. A slather of jarred sauce of roasted garlic and tomato on the crust. Not too much. Out of the skillet the heated mix goes down, then mozzarella cheese, fresh basil from the garden, first tomatoes from the garden too ( sliced cherry). Then some shredded pecorino romano topped it off. Then into the outdoor gas grill to melt together. We did two and glad we did. I got one crust too done burnt really so right before eating we got double topping on one pie Pretty tasty and with all the busyness of all the toppings you could still taste the shrooms. This is worth repeating,

BilletHead

[Mitch f]

Mr Billethead, please call me when it's time to eat. I couldn't be much help in the cooking part.

Is there anything you make that's just mediocre???

[BilletHead]

Oh my yes Mitch there are many meals like grilled cheese, plain old baked tater and of course junk food

BiletHead

[ness]

Dang. Dang. Dang. Dang. Dang. Sorry if I missed anyone. What a great run on here!

So I'm at the grocery store tonight, list in hand and meals planned for the next few days. I always swing by the meat department to see what kind of stuff they've got prepped (kabobs, stuffed chops, etc.), or to see what seafood they've got out. I've become pretty friendly with one of the ladies at the counter -- she has a real knack for engaging the customers, talking about whatever the day's offerings are, etc. It doesn't hurt that she's pretty cute, has a great smile and this sweet foreign accent (which turns out to be Czech). OK, I admit I don't just go by the meat counter to see the food. So, tonight Veronika (with a K!) was pitching these chicken breasts -- butterflied, with roasted red pepper, swiss cheese, and asparagus inside. She'd sold 15 so far today, and there was only one left. I bit. You know how it goes. (I'll figure out what to do with the rotisserie chicken I already had later).

Decided to poach it in chicken broth seasoned with onion and garlic powder and bay leaves. Brought liquid to a boil, then added the chicken breast. Simmered for a few minutes covered, then turned off the heat. After about 15 minutes, the breast registered 165. I removed the breast, strained the liquid and added it back to the pan where I had made a roux. Added some parsley and finished it with a cold pat of butter. Pretty light but flavorful sauce. Served it with some steamed broccoli. Tasty.

[BilletHead]

Figures this is the part of the chicken she sold you, all good my boy except for the broccoli.

BilletHead