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What'cha Cookin' Tonight II

We made oatmeal creampie cookies last night. I added a bit of maple syrup to the batter and this made the cookies thinner and gave them a little bit of extra oomph flavor-wise. (thinner cookies are better for the creampies)
 
I've been doing Sa lot of intense cooking lately. Gulasch two days ago. Soupe au choux yesterday. Today we will have poireau bistro style (it's just leeks in creamy sauce). I was thinking of doing cassoulet tomorrow, but that is quite a lot of work. also made onion-, beet-, cucumber and various other pickles. and fermented carrots.

We made creampie last night.

I did see you saying you wouldn't mind having another baby, but this is soon.
 
I found an old camembert that had got hidden, and it is really dried out. I thought I had better bake it, to make sure there is nothing alive that would hurt me. It now tastes of twiglets.
 
2 lb package frozen fully cooked meatballs
1/2 onion, chopped
1/2 onion thin sliced
1/4 cup brown sugar or honey
1 envelope onion soup mix
1 can beer or ale
12 buns, split and toasted
Swiss cheese

Put meat balls in slow cooker or heavy covered pot over low heat.
Mix chopped onion, soup mix, sugar/honey, and Beer/ale.
Pour over meatballs and stir to cover.
Cook covered at low until heated through, about 45 minutes to and hour.
Sauté sliced onions in oil or butter until starting to caramelize.
Assemble sandwich--meat balls, cheese, onions on a toasted roll.

For party food, split a meatball. Sandwich around a piece of cheese, skewer with a toothpick. Serve warm.
 
An in the news:

SNAKE FOR SNACK

Florida may soon encourage eating invasive Burmese pythons, if it’s safe

BY CHRIS PERKINS
SOUTH FLORIDA SUN SENTINEL

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Donna Kalil estimates she’s eaten a dozen pythons in the past three years or so. That’s not including the python jerky, says Kalil, a python hunter for the South Florida Water Management District. “I eat that several times a week, because I take it out with me on python hunts and I eat it out there.” State officials would like to see more people like Kalil putting pythons on the menu — not because of their nutritional value but as another way to encourage hunting to control their population.

Burmese pythons are considered an invasive species in Florida. The voracious appetite of these apex predators disrupts the food chain in environmentally fragile areas such as the Everglades. Believed to have begun their Florida invasion after owners released them into the wild, pythons have boomed in population and the state has struggled to rein them in. “We would like to use consumption as another way to encourage people to remove pythons in Florida if the meat is safe to eat,” Carli Segelson, a spokesperson for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, wrote in an email. “The study will help ensure that is safe.”

Other invasive species are consumed — most notably lionfish — as a way to control their populations. Some people even eat iguanas. But there’s a concern about eating pythons, and it’s one the state has started to research: The massive snakes, like some fish, could be full of mercury, a neurotoxin that is dangerous to humans. That’s why the Florida Department of Health is working with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to conduct tissue samples on pythons to determine whether they contain too much mercury for human consumption. If the levels are safe, get ready to make new entries in your Florida invasive species cookbook.

Python is good in chili — or so Kalil says. She also likes it in stir-fry. But her favorite way to eat python is to pressure-cook it for 10 or 15 minutes, sauté it with onions and garlic, and add it to pasta and sauce.

Kalil, a Miami native who gave up her real estate job to hunt pythons full time, said the meat is rubbery and tough if you don’t prepare it properly. The pressure cooker makes it more tender, she said. And the taste? “I don’t really want to say like fish, because it is more the texture of fish,” Kalil said, “but it definitely does not taste anything like fish; it tastes more like chicken.” Or, maybe, another white meat. “I’m going to say pork,” she said. “More like a pork chop, maybe.”

The Environmental Protection Agency and the Food and Drug Administration say the safe limit for mercury is 0.3 parts per million. Some of the Everglades pythons registered more than 100 times that. “The pythons were hundreds of parts per million,” Darren Rumbold, a Florida Gulf Coast University professor. More recently, a study found pythons in southwestern Florida near Naples had concentrations of less than 5 ppm. “We have one of the worst mercury problems in the world in the Everglades and South Florida,” said Rumbold, who was among the study’s authors.

The reason is that rainfall carries pollutants from the air to the ground and marshes in the Everglades convert the mercury into a form that is dangerous for humans. The state is working to develop guidelines for safely eating pythons, and Kalil is “thrilled” about the efforts. “If they’re finding really high level of mercury in specific areas … that means there’s something going on with our environment,” she said. “And wouldn’t it be wonderful to use the pythons to determine where the pollutants are coming from and getting into the Everglades and be able to shut that down?”

As for the idea of eating pythons, Kalil clearly likes that, too. She’s eaten three of Florida’s most popular invasive species — lionfish, iguana and python. Lionfish is her favorite, followed by iguana, and then python. And she encourages more people to give it a try.
“If you could do the trifecta of all three,” she said, “you could help the environment and still have some meat on your table.”




Renee Yousefi, left, and Donna Kalil bag an 8-foot Burmese python along the C-304 levee in Miami-Dade County in July 2018. Kalil quit her real estate job to hunt pythons full time. (JIM RASSOL / SUN SENTINEL)
 
Because of the new supercovid, my Christmas diner plans have changed, and I have one result and one question.

I have been trying out low carb stuffings. I made 3, all based on butternut squash and onion. I was amazed how much they are like stuffing, more in texture that taste if I am honest, but considering how different the ingredients are I was surprised how good they are. The sausage meat one was unsurprisingly the best, but the chestnut one was great as well.

The question is what is the best way to roast what you are left with after you take the crown of a turkey off? We are sharing the Turkey with my sister who is no longer coming over, and she prefers the breast while we prefer the legs. However, if I roast it as it is there will be a lot of exposed flesh, not covered in skin, which I think will dry out. I think I should either disarticulate the hips and tie the legs over the exposed flesh, or remove the legs and cook them for Christmas day (it will be plenty of meat) and cook the hips and spine in a stew another day.
 
I made chicken stew yesterday in the slow cooker. No recipe, just tossed random things into it and came back six hours later.

Chicken breasts on a bed of Yukon Gold potatoes. About 650 ml of chicken broth. Seasoned with paprika, potassium salt, MSG, garlic, and Cajun. Topped with half a cup of flour. Then I piled a bunch of frozen broccoli, corn, and peas on top.

Came out great. Tastes even better the next day.

Spoiler :
 
The question is what is the best way to roast what you are left with after you take the crown of a turkey off? We are sharing the Turkey with my sister who is no longer coming over, and she prefers the breast while we prefer the legs. However, if I roast it as it is there will be a lot of exposed flesh, not covered in skin, which I think will dry out. I think I should either disarticulate the hips and tie the legs over the exposed flesh, or remove the legs and cook them for Christmas day (it will be plenty of meat) and cook the hips and spine in a stew another day.
I decided to use skewers to hold the legs over the exposed fresh:
Spoiler Raw meat :

 
I ran across a very good chunky slaw

Chunky Slaw

Dressing
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup plain yogurt
3 tablespoons wine or cider vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 Tbsp green onions, shaved

Salad
1 small cabbage, chopped
6 cups fresh broccoli florets
2 green onions, thinly sliced, 2 Tbsp reserved
2 celery ribs, sliced
12 pea pods, halved
1 small green pepper, chopped
1 medium cucumber, chopped
1 cup chopped walnuts, toasted

Shave 2 Tbsp of whites from a couple of green onions, reserving tops for the salad
Make dressing and refrigerate
Toast nuts

Assemble first six items of the salad
Toss with dressing
Gently mix in cucumbers and top with nuts

This is very low fat. Except for the nuts you can make it completely non-fat. However, a dollop of mayonnaise or sour cream adds a lot of creaminess. My mother would make a salad of broccoli and cauliflower florets with a green onion and a creamy slaw dressing.

J
 
Cayenne pepper is WAY hotter than black pepper. I used a teaspoon of it in a recipe that I would normally use a tablespoon of black pepper. With the black pepper the dish would have a little kick, but not be "hot"... with the cayenne pepper it was way too hot, runny nose hot... not quite inedible, but getting a little too close for comfort.
 
The question is what is the best way to roast what you are left with after you take the crown of a turkey off? We are sharing the Turkey with my sister who is no longer coming over, and she prefers the breast while we prefer the legs. However, if I roast it as it is there will be a lot of exposed flesh, not covered in skin, which I think will dry out. I think I should either disarticulate the hips and tie the legs over the exposed flesh, or remove the legs and cook them for Christmas day (it will be plenty of meat) and cook the hips and spine in a stew another day.
My approach is to rub the entire bird down in olive oil prior to baking, and put it in the oven breast-down. That way the juices run down into the breast, making it moist and juicy, and the oil seals the moisture in. Then I flip it over for the last few minutes to get the breast-skin golden brown.
 
I ran across this and had to post it.
Restaurant Tortilla Soup

Stock
20 quarts water
2 whole chickens
2 can tomato paste
2 head garlic, peeled and halved
2 large onion, peeled and quartered
2 bunch cilantro
salt and pepper

Simmer until chicken floats, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
Pour off liquid
Removed and shred chicken meat, set aside

Soup
Stock
1 oz oil
2 head garlic, minced
3 cup chopped onion
5-8 serrano peppers, seeded and minced
4 chipotle chiles in adobo, minced
30 corn tortillas, cut up into pieces (thickness the soup)
1 can tomato paste
1/2 cup lime juice, or to taste
dash sugar
shredded chicken

In the emptied stock pot, sauté garlic onions and peppers.
Return stock and add remaining ingredients.
Cook until tortillas dissolve
Use an immersion blender until smooth.
Add a portion of the shredded chicken
Cool and refrigerate overnight
The restaurant does not add the meat back in, so it is served as a smooth soup, garnished with lime, cilantro, and sour cream. I would pureé the stock veggies and add them to the stock as well as adding back part of the shredded chicken.

The recipe makes five gallons (you could use a 10 pound bag of leg quarters or 10-12 pound turkey), but is easily cut in half. You can make and freeze 10 quarts of stock and use them two at a time.

The rule of thumb is that one pound of bone-in chicken makes 1 cup of cooked meat. You probably do not want to use all of it in the soup. The rest would make excellent salad.

J
 
I'm been making mushroom stroganoff follow this recipe, but without the beef. I made it once with the beef, but found it to be just as good with only mushrooms. It's probably one of my favorite new recipes of 2020. It's pretty easy, the ingredients have a decent shelf live so I can make it a couple times over a few weeks to use them up, and it tastes great.

For the Stroganoff:

2 Tbsp butter
1/2 medium onion finely chopped
1/2 lb brown mushrooms thickly sliced
1 garlic cloves minced
1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1 cup beef broth
3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup sour cream
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp dijon mustard
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper

To Serve:
1 Tbsp green onion to garnish
8-12 oz egg noodles to serve

-------------

Place a large deep pan or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add 2 Tbsp butter, chopped onion and sliced mushrooms. Sautee 6-8 minutes or until liquid has evaporated and onions and mushrooms are soft and lightly browned.

Add 1 minced garlic clove and sautee 1 minute until fragrant. Add 1 Tbsp flour and sautee another minute stirring constantly.

Pour in 1 cups beef broth, scraping any bits from the bottom of the pan then add 3/4 cup whipping cream and simmer another 1 to 2 minutes or until slightly thickened.

Stir a few Tablespoons of the sauce into 1/4 cup of sour cream to temper it so the sour cream doesn’t curdle then add it to the pan while stirring constantly.

Stir in 1 Tbsp Worcestershire, 1/2 tsp dijon mustard, and season with 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper, or season to taste and continue simmering until sauce is creamy.
 
Judith made some excellent baked potato soup. More tonight with peel and eat shrimp. That's my idea of fast food.

Loaded Baked Potato Soup

1 package (12 oz) bacon
1 onion, chopped
6 cups chicken stock
2 lb potatoes, baked, skinned, cubed
1/2 cup flour
1 quart buttermilk
1/2 tsp powdered dry mustard
2 1/2 cups cubed melting cheese (such as Velveta)
8 oz plain yogurt
S&P
1 cup cooked ham, diced
3/4 cup sliced green onions

In a skillet, cook bacon until crispy. Remove, crumble and set aside, reserving drippings.
In the same pan, sauté onion in 2 Tbsp drippings until almost tender, 5-6 minutes.
In a six quart pot bring stock to boil.
Add onions and potatoes and cook until potatoes are very tender.
Measure remaining bacon drippings and add oil to a total of 1/2 cup.
In the same skillet, add flour make a light roux.
Gradually stir in the milk.
Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with whisk, until mixture is thickened and bubbly.
Reduce heat to low. Slowly add mustard and cheese, stirring constantly until all is melted.
Add cheese sauce to soup. Stir in ham, half of the bacon, the yogurt, and 1/2 cup of the green onions.
Cook until thoroughly heated. Adjust seasonings.
Top servings with remaining bacon and green onions.
It's an old restaurant trick to use excess baked potatoes to make potato salad. This is another same vein.

If you do not want to bake your potatoes, peel and cube, then boil in the stock until fairly tender. Add onions and proceed as before. The actual recipe calls for milk and sour cream. I substituted yogurt and buttermilk since there is plenty of fat.
 
Judith made some excellent baked potato soup. More tonight with peel and eat shrimp. That's my idea of fast food.

Loaded Baked Potato Soup

1 package (12 oz) bacon
1 onion, chopped
6 cups chicken stock
2 lb potatoes, baked, skinned, cubed
1/2 cup flour
1 quart buttermilk
1/2 tsp powdered dry mustard
2 1/2 cups cubed melting cheese (such as Velveta)
8 oz plain yogurt
S&P
1 cup cooked ham, diced
3/4 cup sliced green onions

In a skillet, cook bacon until crispy. Remove, crumble and set aside, reserving drippings.
In the same pan, sauté onion in 2 Tbsp drippings until almost tender, 5-6 minutes.
In a six quart pot bring stock to boil.
Add onions and potatoes and cook until potatoes are very tender.
Measure remaining bacon drippings and add oil to a total of 1/2 cup.
In the same skillet, add flour make a light roux.
Gradually stir in the milk.
Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with whisk, until mixture is thickened and bubbly.
Reduce heat to low. Slowly add mustard and cheese, stirring constantly until all is melted.
Add cheese sauce to soup. Stir in ham, half of the bacon, the yogurt, and 1/2 cup of the green onions.
Cook until thoroughly heated. Adjust seasonings.
Top servings with remaining bacon and green onions.
It's an old restaurant trick to use excess baked potatoes to make potato salad. This is another same vein.

If you do not want to bake your potatoes, peel and cube, then boil in the stock until fairly tender. Add onions and proceed as before. The actual recipe calls for milk and sour cream. I substituted yogurt and buttermilk since there is plenty of fat.
Who's Judith?
 
I am not a huge fan of pancakes but my mom gave me a recipe for pancakes that have ricotta cheese in the batter and they're delicious. I had pancakes, biscuits and gravy and bacon for dinner last night.
:yumyum:
 
First barbie for nearly 2 years

[EDIT] I had not noticed how big that image is. Downsampled one above, for full size see attachment, only because I have already uploaded it so I may as well.
 

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you mean to the sausages? yeah, god help em :D
Yeah, a little dark. They took only a couple of minutes to go like that, it was a really hot bit of the fire. It was a very thin layer that was burnt, they tasted fine.
 
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