Butter Baked Chicken, Biscuits, and Gravy

 Butter Baked Chicken, Biscuits, and Gravy

I found this recipe ages and ages ago in an older church cookbook.  It sounded so homey and good that I had to make it right away and it did not disappoint.  The original recipe does call for a can of biscuits, but I've made my own for this and frankly I see no reason to ever buy a can of biscuits.  You could sub in the frozen biscuits, if you don't make your own.  But for those of you who want to use canned biscuits, feel free to do so.

The biscuits bake in the gravy, which is something that is unusual, but I find it very delicious.  The tops get nice and brown, the bottoms are not soggy, but they aren't dry on the bottom either.  

I have used bone in pieces of chicken to substitute for the boneless chicken breasts.  I don't recall adding extra time for cooking because the dish cooks so long anyway.

Ingredients:

4 Boneless Chicken Breasts

1 14-oz can evaporated milk

1 cup flour

1/2 tsp. each salt and pepper

1/2 c butter

1/4 cup water or broth

1 10 ounce can cream of chicken soup

1 can biscuits (8 piece)

Preheat oven to 425 F.  Melt butter in a 9 x 13 baking pan.  

Pour a little of the evaporated milk in a large bowl.  Mix flour with salt and pepper.  Dip chicken pieces in milk and then dredge through the flour.  Save any remaining flour.

Place chicken in the pan with melted butter.  Cook for 30 minutes.  Turn Chicken.

Mix soup, broth/water and remaining flour well.  Pour around the chicken.  At this point, add in your biscuits to the pan, too.  Bake about 30 minutes until gravy has slightly thickened and biscuits are browned.

This is such a good cozy sort of meal to serve on a cool rainy day!

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Brunswick Stew

 

Brunswick Stew is an old recipe, dating back to pilgrim days when this country was raw and new and a refuge for those fleeing the Puritan wars in England.  Original recipes call for wild boar, squirrel, rabbits etc.

In the South I grew up in, Brunswick Stew has many variations and people have strong opinions about it.  Mama and Granny made their stew with a mix of cooked pork shoulder and boiled chicken.  Some folks add cooked ground hamburger (or venison) to their stew.  Some stews are sweet and thin, some are thick and meaty.  Some have tomato sauce as well as tomatoes.  It really does come down to what type most closely resembles what you're accustomed to eating.

In the small town where I once lived, there were two barbecue places that they sat right across the highway from each other.  A friend and I would have barbecue for lunch at least once a month and we had to go to BOTH restaurants because we did not agree on the Brunswick Stew.  The barbecued meats were equally good, but the Brunswick Stews were vastly different!

A Barbecue restaurant will usually offer a variety of meats.  Pulled pork, BBQed ribs, chicken quarters and these days you might find beef Brisket, but it was not common in decades prior to this.  The meat is smoked onsite. If you order the dinner, the plates are served the same regardless of which meat choice you make.   You get a serving of meat, two slices of white bread, coleslaw and Brunswick Stew.  If you order pulled pork, you generally get dill pickle slices to go with it.

Generally, when I serve Brunswick Stew, I keep it simple.  The recipe has plenty of meat in it and because I serve it in generous bowls, I don't feel the need to add a pulled pork sandwich on the side.  If we're especially hungry or it's especially cold a wedge of cornbread is a welcome addition.

My recipe base for Brunswick Stew comes from The Culinary Arts Encyclopedic Cookbook.  I have altered the recipe.  When I first made it, there was something missing and after tasting it Mama told me just what it was.  There were two ingredients that were required to give it the taste that I'd grown up on.  I've added those, increased the tomatoes and voila!  Taste memory is satisfied with every bite.

This recipe makes a lot.  My Dutch oven was full.  We ate big deep bowls for supper one cold night and then I put up 13 cups in the freezer.  So be prepared to freeze leftovers.

Brunswick Stew

1 whole chicken, cooked, meat pulled from the bones

2 onions, diced

2 tablespoons fat of choice

2 15-ounce cans diced tomatoes

1 can whole kernel corn, do not drain

2 cups frozen small green butter beans

1 cup frozen Green Garden Peas

7 cups water (I used broth from cooking the chicken)

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

Salt and pepper to taste

1/4 c. ketchup (start with 2 tablespoons and increase to your taste)

1/ 4 cup vinegar (start with 2 tablespoons and increase to your taste)

Tabasco or hot sauce of choice (optional)

Heat fat in a large Dutch oven or stock pot.  Cook diced onion in fat until translucent.  Add all ingredients except the ketchup and vinegar. Bring to a boil then slow simmer for a couple of hours.  Add ketchup and vinegar to suit your taste.

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Ropa Vieja (Cuban Shredded Beef)

Years ago, I loved to watch a program called "Donna's Day" and she made Ropa Vieja.  It sounded absolutely delicious.  I thought about it for years, but I never made it.  Then Mandy In the Making shared her Crocktober Video with three recipes.  One was for Ropa Vieja.  She and her family raved over it as they ate.  I was determined to make it.

I made Biria Beef last year and it was good...but it had a long list of ingredients and a lot of steps.  It's my opinion that this recipe is every bit as good and it's much easier to make.  

I did not follow the recipe as Mandy made it.  She followed the original author's recipe which sounds awesome. I just didn't have one ingredient and then I started my roast from frozen in the slow cooker rather than thawing and searing as she suggested.  I can only imagine the added flavor searing the meat would give.  But I'll share how I personally made it because it was so good!

Ropa Vieja

2 pounds Beef Chuck roast

15 ounces tomato sauce

1 green bell pepper, sliced

1 diced, seeded jalapeno (the recipe calls for a 4 ounce can of green chilies but I was out)

1 medium onion, sliced

2 tablespoons tomato paste

2 teaspoons dried oregano

2 teaspoons salt

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon vinegar (I used apple cider)

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Place roast and all ingredients in a slow cooker.  Cook on HIGH for 6-8 hours.  As I said, I started mine from frozen and it cooked up just lovely.  

When fully tender, shred the meat and put back into the juices in the pot.

We made Burrito Bowls with a lovely Cuban Black Beans and Rice.  I made a corn relish to add to the bowls, too.   We topped with shredded cheese and had tortillas on the side.  We had some of the beef in tortillas the next day and that was delicious as well.  I'd love to try a bit as a quesadilla...

If you think this will be very tomato-y, it's not.  I don't know why it's not but it's not.  It is just full of flavor and tender. 

I had a ton of leftovers which I froze.  The recipe said the leftovers would freeze well. 

If you're looking for a different spin for your Taco Tuesday, give this recipe a try.  It's so good!

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Sausage and Apple Stuffed Acorn Squash

 

I found this recipe this week when I was planning meals and thought I'd give it a try.  The truth is, as I said on my Blue House Journal post, I love the look of acorn squash and butternut squash and all the winter squashes... But my enthusiasm wanes the moment I start planning to cook one.  I've tried myriads of recipes and to date none of them have been what I'd call a keeper.  Not one of them made me excited to think, "Winter squash are in season, oh boy!"

Well, this year I got smart and bought the very smallest squash I could find.  I thought I'd get to decorate with them for a little while, but they were not the keeping sort.  It was time to cook or plan to toss in another week.  I opted to cook.  

And then began the search for a 'new' recipe.  

I found a recipe on Paleo Running Momma's site.  I highlighted her recipe in the post.  I didn't have all of the ingredients listed but I took inspiration and ran with it.

Sausage and Apple Stuffed Acorn Squash

2 Acorn squash, about 1 pound each

Cut the squash in half, seed and then place on a baking sheet.  Roast at 350F until just tender.  I did this a couple of days ahead.  

1 pound pork sausage 

1 large apple, finely diced

1 onion, diced

1 tsp. dried crumbled sage

1 tbsp. fresh rosemary, finely minced

1 tbsp. garlic, minced

salt and pepper to taste

Cook the sausage until just brown, crumbling well.  If needed, add 2 tbsps. butter or oil to the pan. Once the sausage is lightly browned, add in the diced apple and onion.  Season with the herbs and garlic.  Once the apple is tender, salt and pepper to taste.

Salt the insides of the acorn squash.  Fill with stuffing, packing it down slightly.    Bake until squash and filling are fully hot at 350F.  Since my squash had been in the fridge it took about 40 minutes to come up to full temperature.

It was at this point I found myself wishing I had some sort of sauce or gravy to in the meat mixture.  In the end, after viewing several more recipes online I thought I'd just put shredded cheese on top.  Most recipes recommended Parmesan.  I was going to use cheddar, which I had, but then I saw the log of Smoked Gouda we'd bought last week at Sam's Club.  I thought the creaminess and smokiness of the Gouda would suit the filling.

This was absolutely delicious.  John ate it all and then told me he'd happily eat it again.  Which was great since we have leftovers, lol.

Chicken with Spinach and Sundried Tomatoes and Gnocchi

 

I saw a recipe recently that reminded me I had spinach and sundried tomatoes in the freezer.  Then I saw another recipe entirely for another chicken dish that I can't find.  But I remembered one ingredient in that dish and happened to have purchased it.  I decided to make up my own recipe for this dish and it turned out soooo good.   John's no fan of spinach but he ate every bite and told me "It isn't bad!"  

By the way, I dislike recipe titles that include the bulk of your ingredients but I am not creative enough today to figure out a better name for this recipe.  

The recipe I'm sharing will feed three.  Just double ingredients to feed more folks.

Chicken With Spinach and Sundried Tomatoes and Gnocchi

1 chicken breast

1/4 cup Italian dressing 

1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes (NOT in oil)

Cook on low heat in slow cooker until chicken is done.

Add:

5 ounces baby spinach (mine was frozen fresh)

1 tsp. garlic

half of a 7.5-ounce container of cream cheese with chives and onions

1/2 cup of half and half

I cooked this on medium for about an hour since my spinach was frozen, then mixed well.  If you need to thin the sauce add more half and half or some of your pasta cooking water.   Then add:

1/2 of a 1-pound package of Gnocchi, cooked and drained.  

Heat through and serve.  This serves three generous servings.

Chicken Shawarma

 

I've been trying Chicken Shawarma recipes for years and finally created a recipe we absolutely love.  John complimented me on it multiple times tonight as we ate and again after.  I wish I'd followed my inclination and taken a picture of my plate because it came together as a pretty meal once it was plated up.

I had put Chicken Shawarma on our menu plan for the warmer months because it can be grilled or cooked on the stovetop.  Tonight I baked it in the oven which worked very well.  

To arrive at this recipe, I sat down and read several and then combined similar elements.  Then I read through all the recipes and determined what I had on hand and what sounded good to me.  I made up a combination of spices that were well-balanced.  I plan to make this mixture up in bulk and keep it on hand for ease in preparing this dish.

You'll note that ground cloves and ground coriander are included.  I highly recommend you use both ingredients.  The cloves add depth and the coriander is almost floral and balances out the cloves nicely. I no longer had ground coriander on hand, but I did have whole coriander seeds which I crushed and used.

Not all Shawarma recipes include yogurt.  I have tried recipes that do and recipes that don't.  I think the yogurt helps hold moisture in the chicken and keeps the spice mixture on the meat.  

For tonight's meal I cut the chicken into strips but you can leave the pieces whole if you'd like.  I knew I was going to cook mine in the oven this evening.

Do give it a try.  I'll share serving suggestions with the recipe.

Chicken Shawarma

Serves 4.

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts (you could also use boneless skinless thighs)

1/2 cup thick Greek yogurt

1/2 tsp. ground cloves

1 tbsp. of each:  Turmeric, Garlic, Paprika, ground Coriander, Cumin

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. black pepper

Juice of half a lemon

1 whole onion cut into thin strips

Olive oil

Warm pitas

Combine the yogurt, spices, seasoning, and lemon juice.  Mix well.  Add chicken and coat well.  Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for 3-4 hours.

On a foil-lined sheet pan, pour enough olive oil to coat the foil.  Top with the onion slices and then lay chicken over the top of the onions.  I spread any remaining yogurt mixture over the top of this, too.

Bake at 425F for about 15 minutes.  Pour off any accumulated watery juices in the bottom of the pan and return to the oven to cook for another 10 minutes.*remember this was for sliced strips of meat, not whole pieces.  Use a thermometer to ensure meat is at a safe temperature if cooking whole pieces.

Serve meat and cooked onions in a warm pita. 

Serving suggestion: Rice Pilaf, Cucumber, Tomato, and Feta Salad, Pickled Red Onion, Warm Pita.   We topped our meat with pickled onions too.  This was so very good.

Rice Pilaf simply means rice cooked with other ingredients.  I made my own, you can buy boxed mixes.  You could also substitute Couscous.  

Good Dinners Fast: Chicken and Pasta Soup

It was pouring rain Tuesday, and I was chilly.  I had a menu made for the week, but I wanted soup...and yet, it being so near spring, I didn't want an old-fashioned super hearty sort of soup.  I wanted something just a bit lighter and different.

This is the recipe I made up as I went.  It was so good!  John told me repeatedly how much he liked it.  It was the perfect sort of soup for an almost but not quite spring day.

Chicken and Pasta Soup

1 large chicken breast, cut into chunks

1 small to medium onion, chopped

1 large stalk celery, cut into small pieces

1 medium carrot grated (This is the way John prefers it.  You can slice it if you like.)

Olive oil

Garlic (about 1 teaspoon minced)

1/2 teaspoon each: lemon pepper, onion powder, salt and pepper

6 cups chicken broth

2 cups pasta (I used whole wheat rotini)

1 cup whole milk

2-3 tablespoons cornstarch

2 tbsps. butter

1 cup white wine

Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven to medium high.  Add in chicken and after cooking for 3 or 4 minutes, add in onion, celery and carrot.  Allow to cook for five minutes more.  Add garlic and cook about another minute.

Add broth and seasonings and bring to a gentle rolling boil.  Lower heat, cover and let bubble gently for about 20 minutes.  Uncover and turn up heat to medium high.  Add uncooked pasta and cook until past is tender about 9 minutes.  Add wine and butter.  Mix cornstarch with milk and add to soup, stirring and heating until broth thickens slightly.  

Good Dinners Fast: Chicken and Sun-dried Tomato Pasta

The original recipe for this dish is at the website Julia's Album.   Like most cooks, I altered the recipe slightly to accommodate what I had on hand.  This was very good and my take on it was not so far off the original that the flavors would have been altered.  If you're looking for 'something different' and chicken is on the menu, I think this recipe is a great one to try.

The recipe as it was written in the original looks complicated and has a long list of ingredients.  Honestly, it's not a hard recipe to make. Even with me cutting up my own chicken breasts and shredding mozzarella, I daresay the meal was on the table in around 30 minutes.  If you use the cut of chicken she lists and pre-shredded mozzarella, I think you can beat my time.

Julia's Chicken and Sun-dried Tomato Pasta

8-ounces Penne Pasta (I used a whole wheat rotini)

water recommended for pasta

1 teaspoon salt

3 garlic cloves, minced

4 ounces sun dried tomatoes (I sliced mine prior to cooking them)

2 tbsps. Olive oil

1 pound chicken breast tenderloins (I used diced chicken breast)

1/2 tsp. salt (I increased this amount)

1/2 tsp. Paprika (also increased this one)

1 cup Half and Half

1 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese (Do not use fresh mozzarella.  You want the aged mozzarella)

1 tbsp. basil (I used 1/2 tsp of dried basil)

1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes

1/2 cup reserved pasta water

salt to taste

Bring water to boil.  Add pasta, cook until al dente.  If you drain, be sure to reserve some of the pasta water.

Heat olive oil over medium low heat in a large frying pan.  Add garlic and tomatoes and cook gently, stirring often for about 1 minute.  Do not let your garlic burn!  Remove from pan and set aside.

Increase heat to high.  Add 2 tbsps. more oil if needed.  Toss chicken with seasonings.  Add to pan and cook for 1 minute on each side.  Remove from heat. (I cooked mine a little lower heat and a little longer, until the outer pink had turned white).  

Add Sun-Dried tomato and garlic mixture.  Also add the half and half and mozzarella. My alteration here: I added 1/4 cup of the ricotta cheese I made earlier this week.  Bring to a gentle boil.  Immediately reduce heat to simmer. Stir gently until cheese melts.  If sauce seems a little too thick, add pasta water a little at a time until it reaches the consistency you desire.  Add seasonings and pasta and toss well.

Leftover Makeover: Al Pastor Tacos from Pork Chops

 

I baked pork chops last week and we ended up with two whole chops as leftovers since Caleb refused to eat the night, we had them.  I contemplated what I might do: make a stir fry dish, make fried rice...all sounded good, but I wanted something different.  I came up with the idea of trying to recreate a sauce packet I'd bought on clearance a few months ago that was absolutely delicious.  It was a Mexican sauce with a citrus base.  We'd used chicken with the sauce, but the packet had called for chunks of pork.

Here's my take on that sauce packet meal.

Tacos al Pastor

2 cups chopped cooked pork (you can use butt or shoulder meat or tenderloin in place of the chops)

1 red onion, thinly sliced

2 tsps. minced garlic

half a packet of taco seasoning mix (about 1tablespoon)

Juice drained from a 20 ounce can of pineapple tidbits (about 3/4 cup)

1 cup pineapple tidbits

olive oil

Heat olive oil in skillet and cook onion over medium heat for 3 minutes or until just soft.  Add garlic and cook 1 minute at most.  Add meat, taco seasoning and the pineapple juice.  Stir until meat is well coated then lower heat to low and allow to simmer for 5 minutes or so.  Add pineapple tidbits and hat through.

I served this meat mixture on tortillas (soft tacos) with finely shredded red and green cabbage, a drizzle of Ranch dressing (using more of the leftovers in the fridge), and shredded cheddar cheese.  My family all exclaimed over how good these tacos were and told me to remember this recipe!  I love when I throw random things in a skillet and the family raves over them.

Slow Cooker Apple Butter

 

Apple Butter

8 large apples, pared, cored and quartered then diced or sliced

1/8 tsp salt

1 tsp. orange peel

1 cup of apple cider or water

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup white sugar

3 tsps. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp each of allspice, nutmeg, cloves

2 tbsps. lemon juice

 I decided to use my crockpot to make the apple butter.  The original recipe calls for making apple sauce (using an additional 1/4 cup liquid).  I skipped this step and just dumped everything into the crockpot.   

I started my crock on low and when this proved to be too slow, I moved the heat up to High for four or five hours, then reduced it to Low once more and allowed all of this to cook for about 20 hours total.   

My crockpot runs a little hot in one area, so I was careful to stir frequently.  I also smashed apples as they were tender enough to break up.  

The next morning, I allowed this to cool for about an hour, then put the apple mixture into my blender and blended on low until it was smooth.  If you do this be sure to remove the center of the lid to allow steam to escape.

Barbecue Meatballs

 

I've seen Ruth Ann Zimmerman make Cheddar Meatballs and they look so good every time I see one of her photos.  I thought they were Barbecue Cheddar Meatballs...So that's the recipe I went looking for online.  Then I looked at her recipe.  Two different things.  However, by that point, I'd gotten my mouth fixed, as we say in the South, for some Barbecue Cheddar Meatballs.  So I pursued that recipe instead.  

Of course, I didn't follow that recipe either.  You know me.  I always just use another recipe as a jumping off point.  What I ended up doing was making my usual meatball mixtures. I followed Ruth Ann's recipe only in the matter of what size to make the meatballs.  These are not tiny meatballs.  Think tennis balls.  1/2 cup meat mixture per meatball.  Then I looked at the sauce on Six Sisters website on their version and decided that I wanted to do that, but again, not exactly.  I added my own spin there as well.

What we ended up with was a really good supper entree.  It was comforting and cozy, the exact sort of thing you'd want to eat on a cold brisk autumn day, or even one that was warm but just looked dreary out the window. 

Here's what I'd change in the future. I shredded cheese to put in the meatballs.  It literally just disappeared.  Perhaps the flavor was there but the bit of melty cheese I was looking for wasn't.  In future I think I'd be prone to dicing into fine cubes and mixing it in that way.  Or skipping it altogether and perhaps serve it with some shredded cheese on top.  Shredded mixed with the meat mixture seemed a waste of effort and an additional cost in my opinion. I'll include that in the recipe as I made it that way the first time, but just know this is my opinion.

The leftovers of this were really good, too, by the way and improved in the reheating process.  Do give this one a try!

Barbecued Cheddar Meatballs

1 pound ground beef

1/2 cup diced onion

2 cloves finely minced garlic

1 egg

1/2 cup breadcrumbs

1/4 cup milk

1/4 cup barbecue sauce

salt and pepper 

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese 

Sauce:

1 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes

1/4 cup brown sugar (NOT packed)

1 1/2 cups barbecue sauce

Preheat oven to 375F.  Mix all the meatball ingredients except cheese.  Once the egg and all is well incorporated then add cheddar if using.  Form mixture into large meatballs.  Ruth Ann's recipe said 1/2 cups. I guesstimated and formed roughly tennis ball sized meatballs.  I think I ended up with a dozen meatballs total.    Place in baking pan.

Mix sauce ingredients. Pour over meatballs.  Bake until baked through, roughly 30-40 minutes.  This is not the way the Six Sisters recipe reads.  They combine sauce ingredients and pour over top after the meatballs are done.  I did things my way and really appreciated the caramelization of the tomatoes and Barbecue sauce over the meat.

These meatballs can be served over grits, mashed potatoes or rice.  I think they'd make a terrific meatball sub, too.  I'm going to try them served that way one day soon.  On a butter toasted hoagie bun, topped with Cheddar and put under the broiler. Gosh that would be good!

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Philly Cheesesteak Sloppy Joes

 

Katie forwarded this idea to me a couple of weeks ago.  I scanned through the ingredient list and realized that every item was something we generally have on hand.  I looked up the full recipe and tagged it for the future.

I wanted an easy meal Friday night and not one that I'd already planned.  We'd had a cooler (relatively compared to the last three weeks of high 90's low 100's) and it was drizzling rain.  It seemed a day for a comforting sort of easy meal.

I pulled up the recipe once more and decided it's day had come.  Oddly, I stuck pretty hard to the original recipe with only minor alterations due to outages in my kitchen.

Philly Cheesesteak Sloppy Joes

1 pound ground beef

1 medium onion

1 medium green bell pepper

8 ounces mushrooms (I used a 6.5 ounce can of mushrooms since I had no fresh on hand)

Salt and pepper to taste

1 tsp. steak or burger seasoning blend

1 tsp. powdered garlic (use fresh or minced if you have it, I didn't)

2 tbsp. ketchup

1 tbsp. Worcestershire Sauce

1/4 cup A-1 steak sauce (or store brand)

1 cup beef broth

2 tbsps. cornstarch

Other:

Hamburger buns, 6-8

A mixture of sharp cheddar and mozzarella cheeses, shredded  (original recipe called for Provolone slices)

Brown beef over medium heat, then add onions and peppers, mushrooms, salt, pepper, seasoning blend and garlic.  Cook until onions and peppers are just tender.  Add sauce ingredients and mix thoroughly over medium heat.  The sauce will thicken slightly.  

Warm buns.  Spoon on mixture then top with shredded cheeses. 

Recipes says six servings.  I think you can manage eight easily.

This was delicious.  It was a big heat with the whole family.  I will definitely be rotating this into our menu plans in future.

Simply Delicious Pork Chops

I've seen a recipe a few times on YouTube shorts with pork chops that intrigued me.  It was the use of a Sour Cream and Onion dip that I wondered about.  Now you might know this but California Sour Cream and Onion dip is one of my favorites.  I make it with half the amount of onion soup mix just to reduce the saltiness.

In need of a meal this week, I decided to make the recipe I'd been seeing online.  I thought I'd try this recipe but it's so hot just now that I didn't want to turn on the oven at all. I didn't have room in the toaster oven for a pan to fit the size of my chops.  I decided to use the slow cooker and that evolved into tweaking the recipe a bit.

I opted to make this a one pot meal.  It was a huge hit with all four of my household members.  I'll definitely do this again and I'll likely keep it as a slow cooker meal.

Simply Delicious Pork Chops

4 1 inch thick well trimmed center cut pork chops (I used bone in)

1/2 packet instant onion soup mix

1 1/4- cups sour cream

4 medium potatoes, sliced 1/4 inch thick

1/2 of a medium onion, cut into slices

Seasoning of choice (I used a Montreal Steak Seasoning)

Spray slow cooker with non-stick spray.  Layer potatoes and onions in bottom of pan.  Place chops on top, then season with Steak seasoning (or your choice of seasoning).  Mix soup mix and sour cream.  Spread over top of chops and onto any exposed potatoes.  Put on lid and cook for 5 hours on High heat.  I find my own slow cooker is a bit fast so I lowered the temperature to Medium after about 4 hours.

Caleb ate every bite, Katie remarked on how good it was and John told me while the sides I'd served were good, the pork chop and potato dish was the real star.  I was very pleased with the way this turned out.

Skillet Mock Street Corn

 

I loved that this recipe was so simple and had so few ingredients.  It was a super tasty side to our spicy Crock-Pot Birria Tacos.  Super quick to prepare as well!

Skillet Mock Street Corn

2 15-ounce cans whole kernel corn, drained (or sub in 4 cups frozen)

2 tbsps. Butter

1 tbsp. fresh lime juice

4 ounces cream cheese

1 tbsp. fresh cilantro or 1/4 cup diced green onion

Heat skillet.  Melt butter and add corn, stirring and heating for a few minutes then add in the lime juice and cream cheese.  Stir until well blended and heated through.  Toss with cilantro or green onion.

I'd think if you had cream cheese with chives on hand this would go as well with the corn and you could skip the cilantro or green onion entirely. 

Crock Pot Birria Tacos - A bit Spicy!

 

A couple of years ago, Katie made Birria tacos and brought me a sampling.  I thought it was pretty good, if a little too hot for my tastes.  Recently when we went out to the new Mexican restaurant, I tried their version.  It was far too mild.  Just call me Goldilocks, despite my brunette head, okay?

I decided to try my own hand at this dish, and I have to say after eating them tonight that I was well pleased.  I had everything I used on hand, as part of my usual pantry ingredients.    While I tend to avoid recipes with a load of ingredients, these are all necessary for the flavor profile.  I know I served this on the first day of August, but it would be a lovely warming dish to serve once the weather is cold.  

I will say that I think you're wise to taste test the chipotle in adobo sauce to see how warm it might be and then add accordingly.  I've recently learned that chipotle peppers are actually smoked jalapenos in a seasoned sauce.  And jalapenos can vary widely in heat index.  I've had chipotles that were just pleasantly smoky tasting and barely warm.  These were fairly hot, so I added five. I knew I wouldn't be adding the Guajillo peppers the recipe called for and I didn't want to compromise the taste of the sauce too much. The Consommé was still a bit spicy but in a very pleasant tongue and lip tingling way. 

You'll have chipotle peppers left over (and tomato paste too, most likely).  Just scoop the peppers and a bit of sauce into individual piles on a cookie sheet covered with parchment and freeze, then pop the puck into a baggie to save to use later in other dishes.  Or more Birria!

I'll share the link to the recipe that Katie forwarded to me and then I'll post the ingredients I myself used as the recipe.  

I liked the broth I teste so well that I sipped a cup of it yesterday after I'd finished cooking the roast, before blending the broth and other ingredients into the thick consommé we had today for dipping.  And yes, I did keep the beef and the broth in the fridge for 24 hours before reheating and serving as tonight's meal.  

Click on the title to go to the original recipe on Pinterest.  And read on for how I made it.

Crock Pot Birria Tacos

2-pound boneless chuck roast

2 tbsps. olive oil

salt and pepper

5-6 Chipotle Peppers in Adobo sauce

1 small onion, sliced

8 smashed cloves garlic

32 ounces of water

14.5-ounce can of fire-roasted tomatoes 

4 tsps.  beef bouillon powder

3 bay leaves

1 tsp. ground ginger

1 tbsp. cumin

1 tbsp. tomato paste

1 tbsp. dried oregano

1 tbsp. dried cinnamon

1 tsp. ground ginger

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

Salt and pepper the roast, then brown in a hot pan.  Now add all the other ingredients and cook on low heat for 8 hours.  It smells amazing as it's cooking.  

Remove meat and then blend the remaining sauces and ingredients in the pan. I allowed mine to cool completely, since I was serving it the next day.  If you are blending hot liquids, then please do it in small batches and follow all precautions.

The original recipe says to save the fat.  My roast was so lean that there was no fat on the broth at all.  There is a good reason for saving that savory fat though if you have it.  You'll want to heat the fat in a frying pan and use that to fry the corn tortillas for serving the tacos.  I can tell you this does add another layer of flavor to this dish.  

Shred beef.  Mix with 1-2 cups of the Birria Consommé, just enough to moisten it.  Heat and serve remaining Birria Consommé on the side for dipping.

This meat mixed with the blended sauce reheated extremely well the next day.  The consommé has a slight thickness to it once blended.  I didn't think we needed all of it for the meal, so I put 1.5 pints of it into the freezer.  I'm just going to reuse that next time I decide to make Birria Tacos.  I mean it's already fully seasoned...It would also make a great soup or chili base.

I served this on homemade flour tortillas with a side of a mock street corn (I'll share that recipe next) and a salad.  We topped the tacos with cheddar, diced green onion and Kate and I opted to have cilantro as well.  We both like the flavor of cilantro.  Caleb and John passed on that.  

Ham and Broccoli Pie

 

Karla, friend and reader, went online to hunt for this recipe.  I do believe it's the same as the one I was reminiscing about, though I don't think my former recipe called for fresh broccoli.  I'm pretty sure it called for frozen.   I recall it being very good.  Will my 60 something self like it as well as my 20 something self?  We'll see!

I would love to try this sometime substituting chicken for the ham.  I think the flavors would work just as well.

HAM AND BROCCOLI PIE

1 bunch fresh broccoli 2 stalks celery, sliced 1 onion, coarsely chopped 2 tbsp. butter, melted 2 tbsp. cornstarch 2 tsp. dry mustard 1/4 tsp. marjoram 1/4 tsp. grated lemon rind 1/8 tsp. pepper 2 c. milk 2 tbsp. lemon juice 2 c. chopped cooked ham 1 recipe pie pastry Separate broccoli into flowerets. Place in large saucepan with 1/2 inch boiling water. Simmer, covered, for 5 minutes; drain. Saute celery and onion in butter in skillet for 3 minutes. Combine cornstarch, mustard, marjoram, lemon rind and pepper in medium saucepan; stir in milk gradually. Add celery and onion mixture. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Boil for 1 minute; remove from heat. Stir in lemon juice, broccoli and ham. Pour into 2 quart casserole. Roll out pastry; cut into strips. Arrange lattice-fashion over top; flute edge. Bake at 375 degrees for 35 minutes or until golden brown. Yield 4-6 servings.

Just an afterthought...I wonder if this would be just as good with a cheese sauce instead of the lemon sauce?  I will say the lemon sauce is so light that it is perfect for a summer day.

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Spoon Bread Ham Supper

Recently I came across a very good price on a half shank ham that was a bit less than $1 a pound.  I bought it, cut it into two meatless portions and the shank bone portion which had plenty of meat on it.  I cooked it in the crockpot last week while I was out one day and we've been eating off that meat in some form or another.  We had a ham supper, ham sandwiches, a few bits of ham tossed into a German potatoes and today I decided that was enough.  I was beginning to feel as I do at Christmas when we've eaten an overload of turkey.  

I removed what meat I could from the bone and made one more recipe and put that shank bone, with plenty of meat yet, into the freezer.  I look forward to a pot of Fifteen Bean Soup when really cold weather rolls around once more.  That won't be for months yet.

I reminisced on Blue House Journal about two recipes I'd made often in the early days of my first marriage.  One was a Spoon Bread Ham Supper dish.  The other was a Ham and Broccoli Pie.   

Both were in a Woman's Day 365 Menus and Recipes magazine that was specially published.  I think there may have been more than one volume of this published.  I bought my own copy in the late 1970's and I used that magazine often to try out new recipes.  It is from that same publication that I found my first really good homemade brownie recipe.  There was an almond cake that I really liked, a sausage stuffed acorn squash, and these two dishes.  I know there were other recipes as well.

Thank you to friend and reader, Karla, who took time to look up both recipes for me.  The recipe below reads exactly as I recall the one in the magazine reading.  That's how I made it and how I served it.

Spoon Bread Ham Supper
1/2 cup chopped green onion with tops
5 tablespoons butter, melted
1 package (8 1/2 oz) corn muffin mix
1 cup chopped cooked ham
2 eggs, slightly beaten
2/3 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon prepared mustard
1 1/2 cups (6 oz.) shredded cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon sesame seed

Saute onion in 1 tablespoon butter 5 minutes. Combine corn muffin mix, ham, 2 tablespoons butter, eggs, milk, mustard and 1 cup Cheddar cheese. Add onion and mix just until blended. Pour into buttered 1 1/2-quart casserole. Top with remaining 1/2 cup cheese and 2 tablespoons butter and sesame seed. Bake in preheated 375 degree oven for 35 to 40 minutes. Cut in wedges and serve hot with Mushroom Sauce*. 4 to 5 servings.

*Mushroom Sauce: stir 1/3 cup milk into 1 can (10 3/4 oz0 condensed cream of mushroom soup. Heat to boiling; simmer 2 minutes, stirring constantly.

Ironically, I didn't see Karla's comment with this recipe until I'd decided to wing it and make my own version.  I used the Jiffy Corn Casserole recipe as my Spoonbread topping.  I added in some of my homegrown chopped green onions and I did not sauté it in butter.  It was absolutely delicious, and we didn't miss the Sesame Seed or Mushroom Sauce at all.

Let me know if you try either variation of the recipe and tell me how you liked it.

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Broccoli Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breasts with Homemade Ranch Mix

 

Early this week, Katie asked if I'd make Spinach stuffed Chicken.  I haven't made it in ages and it did sound good, but no spinach on hand, neither fresh nor frozen.  When I told her this, she said, "Then try some Broccoli and Cheese stuffed breasts instead."  She knew full well I had a LOT Of the little individual packets of broccoli frozen in the freezer, courtesy Sam passing me the extra lunch food items given out by the school.

I didn't look up a recipe.  I just thought about how I'd want it to taste.  I debated on plain cheddar and broccoli, but I wanted a little something more.  I happened to see a short video of someone making a Ranch Cheese Ball...And that's where my mind began to come up with a plan.

Now I will tell you that I'd planned to use a packet of dry Ranch seasoning.  I didn't have one on hand, but we've often enough dumped a bunch of herbs, garlic and onion powder into mayonnaise and milk and made our own.  That's what I did.  I'll share my herb and seasoning mix below this recipe.

It turned out to be quite good!  Here's my recipe:

Broccoli Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breasts

6 ounces softened cream cheese

1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

1.5 cups finely chopped broccoli florets

Ranch dressing mix (see below for my homemade dry mix)

3-4 boneless skinless breasts

Butterfly breasts.  I cut a line down the middle of the breast and then filleted either side of the line.

Mix cream cheese, broccoli, seasoning, cheddar well.  Divide into portions and put a portion at the smallest end of each breast then roll into bundles.  Mine were like long jelly rolls.   I placed mine in a slow cooker on High for two hours then cooked on low for two more hours.  

This served three but could easily have been halved to serve more with an additional side dish.  I served it with Mashed Potatoes and a salad.

 My Ranch Mix

1 tsp. Chives

1 tsp. dried Celery leaves

1 tsp. Dill Weed

1 tbsp. Parsley flakes

1 tsp. Tarragon leaves (in future, I'll half this)

1 tsp. onion powder

1 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. Lemon pepper

This was quite good but the Tarragon kind of took over the other flavors a bit.  I'm not accustomed to using Tarragon but there it was on the herb and spice shelf so in it went.  I would have liked the tang of buttermilk powder and that's why I decided to add the lemon pepper.  I really liked that added touch.

I mixed a little of this with some salt and sprinkled over the top of my chicken.  

My family all liked it.  Katie and John both complimented me on this dish and I found it to be quite good myself.  

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Contest Winning Corn Moussaka

I found the original of this recipe in a 1980 Better Homes and Gardens Magazine.  It was a contest winner dish at that time.  It appealed to me on the basis that it used corn and ground beef, both of which I typically had on hand.  I didn't keep cottage cheese on hand then, but I felt the recipe was economical enough I could afford that addition to my budget.  Nowadays, I'd probably substitute in a Bechamel sauce.   

This recipe stood the test of time.  I have made it on average at least twice a year since 1980.  In a household where I typically 'shake things up' often and am always trying new recipes.  

Recently I've added allspice and oregano to the sauce base.  You really do want the warm flavor of cinnamon and allspice in this casserole for that indefinable flavor.  

Corn Moussaka

1 17-ounce can whole kernel corn, drained

1 1/2 pounds ground beef *

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1 8 ounce can tomato sauce

1/2 tsp garlic salt** 

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground allspice

1/2 tsp oregano

2 slightly beaten eggs

1 1 /2 cups cottage cheese with chives, drained*** 

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded

slivered almonds (optional)

Spread corn in an ungreased shallow casserole, 10 x 7.  In medium skillet, brown ground beef.  Drain fat if necessary.  Add flour; cook and stir for 1 minute.  Add tomato sauce, flour, garlic, and cinnamon.  Pour over corn in dish.  Bake at 350F for 15 minutes. 

Mix cottage cheese and eggs.  Spread over warm meat mixture.  Top with cheeses.  Sprinkle almonds on top of the cheese.  Bake 10-15 minutes more. *I usually end up baking a little longer.  The cottage cheese topping should be just soft set.  If it is a little wobblier than you feel comfortable with, cook up to 1/2 hour, but check every five minutes.  The point is not to cook the cheese dry and hard atop the meat mixture.****

  *I've never used more than a pound of meat in this recipe

**I use 1 teaspoon minced garlic

***/****I have never noticed the part where it says to drain the cottage cheese! You could easily skip the draining and just add in a couple of tablespoons of flour and stir well.   I add 1 tablespoon dried chives to plain cottage cheese.

You can skip the whole cottage cheese thing and just make a 2-cup recipe of Bechamel sauce.  I stir two beaten eggs into my sauce to make it 'set' up nicely.  

NOTES:  I just made an Eggplant and Potato Moussaka.  My take was that I'd rather have used the meat filling from this recipe.  And next time I will!

You can use either sliced grilled Eggplant or thick slices of Potato that has been well browned on both sides in this dish.  Layer the vegetables and meat the way you do in Italian Lasagna.  Adding a bit of grated Parmesan between layers and to the top of the dish is delicious.  

Banana Pineapple Bread

This recipe came to me with two stainless steel loaf pans I'd purchased a couple of years ago.  I tried it then and found the recipe problematic.  It was good, but it definitely needed some work.  For one thing the loaf pans are about half the depth of a standard loaf pan.  The recipe came with each pan.  And according to the recipe, it would fit in the one pan.  I could tell just reading through the quantity of ingredients that was not going to work. I think at the time I baked my first trial run of the batter by dividing it in half, putting some in each pan.  And I do recall I had issues, but the overall taste was good and a nice change from my usual banana bread recipe.

So, I tried this recipe again this week when I had two very ripe bananas.  I won't tell a fib: it's still a problem recipe but it's sooo good!  I'm going to send it out here and the next time I try it I will note any changes I make.  I'll also submit the recipe as it was written and write what my experiences were this time around.

Banana Pineapple Bread

3 cups flour

2 cups sugar

1 tsp. baking powder

3/4 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

3 eggs

1 cup drained, crushed pineapple

3 ripe bananas

1 cup oil

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup chopped walnuts

The recipe states to mix all dry ingredients in one bowl and all wet ingredients in a second bowl then combine them.  Mix in nuts.  It says to bake in 'bread' pan and doesn't mention greasing or spraying the pan.  It goes on to say bake for 40-50 minutes at 350F.

First, I'll tell you what I did wrong.  I had two bananas.  I didn't drain my pineapple exactly, but I kind of did as I dipped it from the can and into my measuring cup.  I figured with the lack of the third banana the added moisture wasn't going to be a problem.  I purposely cut back the sugar to 1.5 cups.  It just seemed excessive with the pineapple, even though it was packed in juice.

I have a load of walnuts and could have used them, but I also had a bag of cashews in the cabinet that are going uneaten and decided to use a cup of those instead.  Yes, they are salted.  I didn't see that as a problem.  I figured with all the sweetness in the loaf the salt wasn't going to be too dominant.

I did grease my pan.  I couldn't imagine the bread coming out of the pan otherwise.  

I was using the stainless-steel loaf pans that this recipe came with another dish.  Those are 8x3 x2.  I poured all of the batter into the regular loaf pan (9 x 5), the one that is an actual loaf bread pan.  It filled it to the brim.  I knew I was in trouble then.   Didn't stop me though it did make me pause.   

Next time, I'll bake it in the extra-long (16 x 4) pan I bought, the one meant to make angel food cake in a loaf form.  I have a 13-inch-long pan but feel it would still be too small for this amount of batter.  Alternatively, I could bake a half dozen or even nine muffins and the regular loaf...Just thinking here to give you all ideas.  

I baked it for 50 minutes.  When I inserted my pick off center it came out clean, but I noted a suspicious extra jiggle.  Good for Quiche or egg custard.  Not so much with bread.  I checked in the center, and it came out coated in batter.  At that point, we had to leave home for a birthday party.  I left it in the oven, though I did shut it off.  When I returned, I checked the loaf again with my stainless-steel pick and it still came out coated in batter.  I reheated the oven, kept the loaf in the oven the whole while and baked for an hour more, checking it periodically.  The pick never did come out clean.  I don't know if I kept hitting a big piece of banana or not, but I couldn't justify baking it any longer. At that point, I simply pulled it from the oven because the outer edges were getting a bit overdone.  

Later note:  It was just a very moist bread but definitely cooked through.  Still think next time I need to use two regular loaf pans or the longer Angel Food Cake pan that I have on hand.

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