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Meet Sally Jane

Sally Jane is my kitchen mascot. My boyfriends mom gave me this beautiful apron quite a few years ago. I used the dress form for photos when I was on a kick to sell everything on Ebay. When we moved into this house I decided to put the apron on it. Pat decided that she needed a hat. I had the perfect one in my closet. Now dubbed Sally Jane. She is now a Sophisticated Southern Girl!

My time spent on Sunday pays off again!!

The pork roast that I braised on Sunday turned out this amazing pasta! A must try. I could not find black garlic, so I just omitted that. The leftover pork will be sandwiches for lunch one day and there will still be some for the freezer. https://www.eatingwell.com/recipe/274157/creamy-cavatelli-pasta-with-braised-pork-shishito-peppers-basil/

A little Italian flare.

A balsamic grilled pork chop with a white bean caprese salad. I used balsamic, brown sugar, dijon, garlic, rosemary and olive oil for the marinate for the pork chops. The salad is from Skinnytaste. https://www.skinnytaste.com/white-bean-caprese-salad/

The leftover bean salad was amended with leftover chicken from last nights ragu, olives, sliced pepperoncini and my favorite bottled dressing(Panera’s mediterranean lemon vinaigrette) And now we have lunch!

Red Wine Braised Pork

This is a 3 hour braise. For a weeknight meal that is not doable. So I braised the pork today for dinner later this week. I used my fat separator, strained the solids and poured the jus and the solid into the blender to puree. Pour the sauce over the shredded pork for later this week.

OM! Chicken Ragu.

I totally skip the step where you brown the chicken. I use shredded rotisserie chicken. Take out this part,

  • Return bacon and chicken to pan (chicken should fit snugly in a single layer); pour in water to barely cover chicken. Bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low and set lid askew. Cook until chicken is tender, 45–60 minutes.
  • Transfer chicken to a clean plate; let cool. Finely shred chicken meat; discard bones and skin.

And then follow the recipe. It is SOOOO good! https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/pappardelle-with-chicken-ragu-fennel-and-peas

A Little Trip to Morocco.

Moroccan Meatballs.

I saw this on an episode of Diners, Drive Ins and dives. And had to make it!

It has amazing warm spices with a bit of heat. Cinnamon, cumin,smoked paprika and harissa. You will have to do the math to convert this to a home recipe. It is in restaurant gallon measurements. https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/moroccan-meatballs-recipe-2059828

One of my all time favorites! Beef Stroganoff.

Stroganoff and mustard roasted brussel sprouts.

I use a beef tenderloin and I put dill and dijon in my sauce. For the sprouts I mix grainy mustard, worcestershire sauce and oil oil toss and roast. This a far cry from the ground beef version that I used to beg my Mom to make for me on Birthdays.