Well friends, the White Death is upon us again today, and with an overnight low of 6 degrees Fahrenheit, we must make use of our comfort foods!
I tweaked this recipe a few months ago and I thought I would share it with you all, just in case you are FREEZING like us! It is important to remember that these are guidelines, and you must always taste your cooking, and make it your own!
Shay's Cheesy Potato Soup
-1lb. pack of bacon, chopped
-2 medium-large white onions, diced
-1-2 cloves chopped (or 1-2 tbsp minced) garlic (in a pinch, you can skip this and season to taste with garlic powder later)
-3/4 c. white wine or domestic beer (may omit if you don't like this flavor)
-5lb. bag of red potatoes, diced. You may peel if you like, but I don't.
-2 2lb. cartons of chicken stock
-1 2lb. "loaf" of velveeta
-2 pints heavy whipping cream
-1 bunch green onions (for garnish, may omit)
-Shredded cheddar cheese (for garnish, may omit)
Chop up a pack of bacon and fry it in a LARGE stock pot. Remove the bacon from grease and set aside.
De-glaze the pot with some (no more than 3/4 cup) white wine or domestic beer.
In bacon grease, cook two chopped onions until they begin to become translucent. Add garlic towards the end of this phase, but not too early (so you avoid burning it).
Add chopped red potatoes, and add enough chicken stock to cover them (usually at least 1.5 large cartons, might be up to 2).
Cook the potatoes.
Add chopped velveeta and heavy whipping cream. You will add the heavy whipping cream as needed/to taste. The amount you need will vary based on how much bacon grease you end up with, how much of everything else you used, etc. Basically, you're aiming for creamy, rich, and unhealthy!!!
Let ingredients mix thoroughly.
Season to taste with salt, pepper, garlic powder, etc. At this point, you may want to add some of the shredded cheddar to thicken things up, or make it more cheesy.
Serve topped with bacon, shredded cheddar, and green onions (if desired).
We Poor Connoisseurs like to enjoy this with soup accompanied by "Cheddar Bay" Biscuits. (You can find the biscuit recipe on a box of Bisquick, add some shredded cheese to the dough, and then top with garlic butter and parsley.)
Most importantly, ENJOY! Also, if you take a statin-blocker, you might want to double up your dose before this meal!
Showing posts with label food for thought. Show all posts
Showing posts with label food for thought. Show all posts
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Monday, September 20, 2010
A few thoughts on food (particularly deviled eggs).
So I was making some of my (kind of) famous deviled eggs recently, and I had some thoughts I felt might be worth sharing. That sounds narcissistic but I don't mean it that way at all.
I don't know how many times Nick and I have had conversations about how peoples' number one mistake in cooking is over-complicating things in an effort to make them better.
As I mentioned before, my deviled eggs are (kind of) famous. It is probably the only thing I am ever asked to contribute to family functions, but I am happy to do so. Now, I don't fancy myself a gourmet in any sense of the word, but I do make pretty damn good deviled eggs. People have apparently tried to replicate their awesomeness without luck.
I don't have any secret ingredient.
The only secret about my deviled eggs is that there is no secret.
I will say that blending your filling mixture with an immersion blender makes ALL the difference, but as for the ingredients of said mixture, I use five, and ONLY five. Boiled egg yolks, mayonnaise, mustard, salt, and pepper. I have been deviling eggs since I was a wee girl trying to help my mom prepare holiday meals. I have perfected the craft and have been doing it the same way for years. I have never and will never use a recipe. I always make different amounts of eggs, and the eggs are not always the same size, though I do prefer Extra Large or Jumbos. I can tell a lot about the flavor by the texture and consistency of the filling, but I still taste it. I cannot stress enough how important this step is. Why would you feed something to people without first tasting it to see if it is any good? That just doesn't make sense. If you are making something that you cannot taste due to raw ingredients, try and get everything together that you can taste before adding anything that must be cooked. Tuna patties come to mind. I use egg as a binder, but I taste and make sure everything tastes good before I put the eggs in.
Now, back to the deviled eggs, I use MAYONNAISE... not Miracle Whip. This is important in the flavor profile I like in my satanic ovum. The mayo must be cold or it will separate, especially if you subject it to an immersion blender. As Alton Brown says, that makes it NOT good eats. Also, I put enough mayo in to clog an artery or five, but that's why they are good people! I don't use any vinegar, relish, sugar, or anything else weird. Maybe that's what you're into but I am not.
I like things simple and delicious. I am not a food snob, and I can appreciate fine cuisine, but sometimes a chick just needs some McDonalds french fries. I think there can be artistry in all cooking, whether it be hamburger helper or five-star french fare. You can really spruce up a 'Helper and you can really mess up simple things. The worst cooks are those who follow recipes and never learn what they're about. I suppose it's like people who can read music but don't learn how to improvise or come up with anything original.
Just remember this, more ingredients does not mean better taste. Keep it simple, and in the wise words of RuPaul, "Don't f*ck it up".
Shay.
I don't know how many times Nick and I have had conversations about how peoples' number one mistake in cooking is over-complicating things in an effort to make them better.
As I mentioned before, my deviled eggs are (kind of) famous. It is probably the only thing I am ever asked to contribute to family functions, but I am happy to do so. Now, I don't fancy myself a gourmet in any sense of the word, but I do make pretty damn good deviled eggs. People have apparently tried to replicate their awesomeness without luck.
I don't have any secret ingredient.
The only secret about my deviled eggs is that there is no secret.
I will say that blending your filling mixture with an immersion blender makes ALL the difference, but as for the ingredients of said mixture, I use five, and ONLY five. Boiled egg yolks, mayonnaise, mustard, salt, and pepper. I have been deviling eggs since I was a wee girl trying to help my mom prepare holiday meals. I have perfected the craft and have been doing it the same way for years. I have never and will never use a recipe. I always make different amounts of eggs, and the eggs are not always the same size, though I do prefer Extra Large or Jumbos. I can tell a lot about the flavor by the texture and consistency of the filling, but I still taste it. I cannot stress enough how important this step is. Why would you feed something to people without first tasting it to see if it is any good? That just doesn't make sense. If you are making something that you cannot taste due to raw ingredients, try and get everything together that you can taste before adding anything that must be cooked. Tuna patties come to mind. I use egg as a binder, but I taste and make sure everything tastes good before I put the eggs in.
Now, back to the deviled eggs, I use MAYONNAISE... not Miracle Whip. This is important in the flavor profile I like in my satanic ovum. The mayo must be cold or it will separate, especially if you subject it to an immersion blender. As Alton Brown says, that makes it NOT good eats. Also, I put enough mayo in to clog an artery or five, but that's why they are good people! I don't use any vinegar, relish, sugar, or anything else weird. Maybe that's what you're into but I am not.
I like things simple and delicious. I am not a food snob, and I can appreciate fine cuisine, but sometimes a chick just needs some McDonalds french fries. I think there can be artistry in all cooking, whether it be hamburger helper or five-star french fare. You can really spruce up a 'Helper and you can really mess up simple things. The worst cooks are those who follow recipes and never learn what they're about. I suppose it's like people who can read music but don't learn how to improvise or come up with anything original.
Just remember this, more ingredients does not mean better taste. Keep it simple, and in the wise words of RuPaul, "Don't f*ck it up".
Shay.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Forgotten Caps
Nick:
When trying to decide on your weekly meals, remember the lowly, and often overlooked by the general population, mushroom. Mushrooms can easily become the star of your meal and a great cheap substitute for meat, and not much else could be as simple to prepare. All you really need is one or two large portobello mushroom caps per person, some garlic, olive oil, butter, and salt and pepper. Once cooked in a pan until soft or grilled on a bbq, these tasty woodland morsels can rival a good steak any day, and hands down beat many of the cheaper cuts that you will find in your local grocery. So don't be afraid of your fungal friends, chances are you will enjoy them more than you think.
When trying to decide on your weekly meals, remember the lowly, and often overlooked by the general population, mushroom. Mushrooms can easily become the star of your meal and a great cheap substitute for meat, and not much else could be as simple to prepare. All you really need is one or two large portobello mushroom caps per person, some garlic, olive oil, butter, and salt and pepper. Once cooked in a pan until soft or grilled on a bbq, these tasty woodland morsels can rival a good steak any day, and hands down beat many of the cheaper cuts that you will find in your local grocery. So don't be afraid of your fungal friends, chances are you will enjoy them more than you think.
Friday, March 26, 2010
A few thoughts on Turkey
Nick:
Turkeys are one of those familiar items that we all prepare, or at least try to prepare, on several occasions throughout the year. To many people the thought of cooking a turkey fills them with dread, but this does not have to be so. Turkeys are not only relatively easy to cook, but delicious and should be enjoyed more than two to three times a year. You can typically find good deals on turkeys throughout the year, and these deals should not be passed up. There are a few tips and trick I would like to share with you to make your turkey cooking and consuming more enjoyable. First and foremost, if you are not completely in love with turkey legs buy the turkeys that are free of them. You may need to buy two of these breast only turkeys depending on how many people you are feeding and how many leftovers you want, but they are much more approachable and easier to cook well than their leg bearing counterparts. Secondly, throw away your turkey bags, boxes, iron maidens, and attachments. These items are no more cohesive to a moist turkey than the weather and should be avoided if simply for the ease of cooking the darn thing. The real secrets to a great turkey are simple: a good digital cooking thermometer and BUTTER. Lots and lots of butter. When you are preparing your turkey make a pocket between the skin and the breast with your hand and fill that sucker with butter seasoned with whatever you like, then rub the outside with butter as well. Make that turkey think that it was just in a cage fight with Paula Deen. After that simply roast your little legless friends in a roasting pan with a combination of white wine, water, beer, stock, or whatever liquids you like under the rack and covered with tinfoil on 325 until your digital thermometer reads about 160, making sure to uncover your birds at about the 145-150 mark so they can brown up a bit. Turkeys are simple, delicious, and often times very affordable,and should not be relegated to holidays out of fear and mistrust. So go out and buy yourself a turkey, and when you are enjoying that leftover turkey sandwich when everyone else at school or work is eating bologna, you'll thank me.
Turkeys are one of those familiar items that we all prepare, or at least try to prepare, on several occasions throughout the year. To many people the thought of cooking a turkey fills them with dread, but this does not have to be so. Turkeys are not only relatively easy to cook, but delicious and should be enjoyed more than two to three times a year. You can typically find good deals on turkeys throughout the year, and these deals should not be passed up. There are a few tips and trick I would like to share with you to make your turkey cooking and consuming more enjoyable. First and foremost, if you are not completely in love with turkey legs buy the turkeys that are free of them. You may need to buy two of these breast only turkeys depending on how many people you are feeding and how many leftovers you want, but they are much more approachable and easier to cook well than their leg bearing counterparts. Secondly, throw away your turkey bags, boxes, iron maidens, and attachments. These items are no more cohesive to a moist turkey than the weather and should be avoided if simply for the ease of cooking the darn thing. The real secrets to a great turkey are simple: a good digital cooking thermometer and BUTTER. Lots and lots of butter. When you are preparing your turkey make a pocket between the skin and the breast with your hand and fill that sucker with butter seasoned with whatever you like, then rub the outside with butter as well. Make that turkey think that it was just in a cage fight with Paula Deen. After that simply roast your little legless friends in a roasting pan with a combination of white wine, water, beer, stock, or whatever liquids you like under the rack and covered with tinfoil on 325 until your digital thermometer reads about 160, making sure to uncover your birds at about the 145-150 mark so they can brown up a bit. Turkeys are simple, delicious, and often times very affordable,and should not be relegated to holidays out of fear and mistrust. So go out and buy yourself a turkey, and when you are enjoying that leftover turkey sandwich when everyone else at school or work is eating bologna, you'll thank me.
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