Friday, March 25, 2016

French Dip Sandwich


I've been craving a French Dip Sandwich for weeks. This week was going to be an extremely hectic one in our family so what comes to the rescue for me?  The Crock Pot!!!!!

You will love this simple recipe and can use a large cut of beef and extra liquid to provide more leftovers for your week.

2 - 2 1/2 lb. chuck roast
Granulated Garlic
Onion Powder
Salt 
Freshly Ground Black Pepper
2 cans beef consomme 
Sliced Swiss Cheese
Hoagie Rolls (toasted)

Set crock pot or slow cooker on low setting.  Coat roast liberally with next four ingredients. Place in crock pot and slowly add beef consomme.

I let my roast cook for 12 hours on low. Then I took two forks and shredded the meat.

Toast the hoagie rolls under the broiler until golden brown. Load up the rolls with the shredded beef and top with sliced cheese. Add more beef on top of the cheese. 

Ladle the beefy brothy goodness into a bowl and dip in your sandwich and ENJOY!

Sunday, March 20, 2016

Great Northern Beans & Lolly's Cornbread






One of my favorite meals will always include beans and cornbread. For this batch, I had a pound package of Great Northern Beans in the pantry.  Great North Beans are large, white beans that resemble a lima bean in shape with a delicate distinctive flavor. I normally add a ham hock, chopped ham, or bacon to beans while they cook. This time, I used a rich chicken stock that added a wonderful flavor to the beans.

If possible, allow time for soaking the beans overnight in cool water or, at the very least, for a few hours. Pick through the beans and discard any that are shriveled. Place in a large bowl and cover with cool water by at least 2 inches.

When you're ready to cook the beans, drain the water and place in a large Dutch oven. Cover with fresh water (or chicken stock) and bring to a boil. Reduce to a gentle simmer and cover, leaving the lid a little askew to allow the steam to escape. Stir the beans occasionally and add more water or stock if necessary.

Simmer until beans are tender and cooked through. Add salt to taste as the beans near the end of their cooking time.

If you have a delicious pot of beans, cornbread is a MUST!

Here's my simple, easy cornbread recipe.

2 cups of self-rising white cornmeal
2 cups buttermilk
2 T. bacon grease

Yes, that's it.  That's the entire recipe.  

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  

In a medium mixing bowl, add cornmeal and then slowly stir in buttermilk until it's well blended.  

Put the bacon grease in a cast iron skillet and heat it over medium heat until a drop of the batter sizzles.

Pour the batter into the skillet and bake until golden brown about 20 - 25 minutes. Remove from oven and let rest in skillet for a few minutes before turning out onto a serving plate.


Sunday, March 13, 2016

Lemon Pepper Salmon Patties with Creamy Lemon Sauce



Regular readers of the blog know how much I love salmon patties. I'm always willing to play with ingredients and come up with new flavor variations. This may be my most perfect batch yet!

For the salmon patties:

2 cans boneless, skinless salmon, drained
2 T. self-rising flour
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 - 2 t. lemon pepper
salt to taste
2 T. minced onion
1/4 cup vegetable oil

In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients, except vegetable oil. Shape salmon mixture into patties and place on a plate.  Set aside.

Pour oil into a cast iron skillet over medium high heat. When oil shimmers, place salmon patties into skillet, a few at a time. Cook for 3 - 4 minutes on each side. Remove from skillet and drain on paper toweled line plane.

Repeat until all patties are cooked. Serve immediately with creamy lemon sauce.


Creamy Lemon Sauce

1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
2 T. lemon juice
2 t. lemon pepper

Whisk all ingredients together in small bowl. Refrigerate until time to serve.

Simply Southern Supper


This is one of my favorite types of suppers. Beans, greens, cornbread, salmon patties, and ALWAYS creamed potatoes.

This time I decided to jazz up the salmon patties with lemon pepper and played around and made a creamy lemon pepper sauce to serve alongside.  Individual recipes for this great supper will be posted soon.

Saturday, March 5, 2016

Top O'the Morning Hash



It's almost St. Patrick's Day! I am more than ready to use my Shamrock Green Fiestaware and see shamrocks and four leaf clovers everywhere. This morning I was in the mood for sausage, and for eggs, and yes for potatoes. But I am always in the mood for potatoes. Here's a nice change of pace breakfast. If you don't want to chop a fresh onion for only 2 tablespoons, feel free to use dehydrated minced onions. I did and this dish turned out perfectly.

1 lb. of your favorite ground breakfast sausage 
2 cups of cubed peeled potatoes
1/4 cup chopped red or green bell peppers
2 T. chopped onion
6 eggs
2 T. milk
salt and pepper to taste

Crumble sausage into a large skillet. Add potatoes, peppers, and onion.  


Cook over medium heat until sausage is browned and potatoes are fork tender. Stir occasionally to keep from sticking. Drain off any fat drippings.


In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, and salt/pepper. Add to sausage mixture.


Gently scramble until eggs are set but not dry. Serve hot. Refrigerate leftovers.


That looks good enough to eat!


Wednesday, March 2, 2016

Cheddar Macaroni & Cheese with Chicken and Broccoli




It's amazing how quickly you can prepare a true comfort food meal with a few pantry and refrigerator staples. I had some left over cooked chicken and decided that would be a great addition to this dish. The cheese sauce was made in the 9 minutes it took the pasta to cook. A few minutes in the oven to brown the bread crumbs and dinner was served!

8 oz. elbow macaroni, about 2 cups, uncooked
12 - 16 oz. chopped frozen broccoli, thawed
4 T. butter
1 1/2 t. dry mustard
1/4 t. freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup all purpose flour
2 1/2 cups milk
3 cups (12 oz.) shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
salt to taste
2 cups shredded, cooked chicken

1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs
2 T. melted butter

Cook the macaroni in boiling salted water following package directions, adding the chopped broccoli about 1 minute before the macaroni is done. Drain in a colander.

While the macaroni is cooking, in a large skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. Stir in the mustard powder, pepper, and  flour and continue cooking, stirring, for 2 minutes. 

Gradually whisk the milk into the flour mixture. Cook, stirring, until the sauce is thickened and bubbling.

Add the cheese and continue stirring until the cheese has melted. Taste and add salt, as needed.

Add the drained macaroni, broccoli, and chicken and stir to combine thoroughly.

Transfer to a large buttered baking dish.

Sprinkle with the bread crumbs and drizzle with melted butter.  Bake at 375 degrees for about 15 minutes or until browned.


Tuesday, March 1, 2016

Pappardelle con Salsiccia e Piselli (Pappardellle with Sausage and Peas)


A few weeks ago, I came across this cookbook for $1 in an antique store in Cave Spring, Georgia. Published in 1999, this recipe has been waiting patiently for me to come across it and cook this delicious meal tonight!  I believe that!  By the time the water boiled for the pasta to cook, the sauce was almost finished. The pasta finished cooking within a minute of the sauce being thickened and ready to toss together. This is a great weeknight meal.


1/2 lb. Italian sausage, casings removed
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup shelled tiny green peas
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
12 oz. pappardelle pasta (You can use either fresh or dried pasta for this dish.)

Warm a large non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Add the sausage and cook, stirring to break up any lumps, until no longer pink, but not browned, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer sausage to a cutting board and chop finely.

Wipe out the pan and place over medium heat. Return the sausage to the pan along with the cream and bring to a simmer. Cook until the cream thickens about 5 minutes. Add the peas, salt and pepper and simmer until the peas are tender and the flavors are blended, about 5 minutes longer.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add 1 T. salt and the pasta. Cook, stirring frequently, until al dente. Drain well.

Place the pasta in a warmed shallow serving bowl. Add the sauce and toss to mix evenly. Add the cheese and toss again. Serve immediately.