Membership

Hey everyone. So I'm starting to get curious how many people actually read this thing. I'm hoping you guys will join the site and sign up for a membership. I know it's a pain in the butt and I'm sorry I'm asking. If you don't want to join could you just at least comment on this post with a present or here like attendance in school. I'd greatly appreciate it.

I'm excited because I found out I might have helped my first stranger with this blog. Renee had a friend who needed something to cook and Renee suggested she read this. To who ever used this, if they did, I hope it helped!

Chicken Tenders and Fries

This one is for Kevin. Almost everytime I've ever gone to get fast food with him (which has been a lot of times over the past 13 years) he's gotten this meal. I wanted to make it healthier by baking the chicken and fries instead of frying them.

about 1 lb. Chicken tender pieces or breast cut into tender shapes
1 cup panko bread crumbs (you can use any breadcrumbs but panko makes it really crunchy)
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1 cup buttermilk
olive oil
package of frozen french fries
salt and pepper

Directions
1. preheat oven to 500 degrees. Cover a baking sheet with a light coat of olive oil.

2. Pour buttermillk into a plastic bag and place chicken into it. Allow to meld for 15 to 30 minutes.

3. Place breadcrumbs and cheese onto a plate with a pinch of salt and pepper. Dredge chicken in this mixture and tap off extra. You want a thin coating.

4. Place on baking sheet and drizzle with a little more olive oil and place in oven. Cook for 12 minutes or until golden brown.

5. Cook fries according to package directions. Sprinkle fries with salt right after cooking so it sticks better to the fries.

I just eat mine with a lot of ketchup but feel free to use ranch or any dipping sauce of your choice.

Beef Stew

This is one of my all time favorite meals. It just screams homey and the warm and comforting taste is like a big hug on a bad day. And I'm not even overstating this. I really like beef stew haha. I made this because while visiting my cousin Alexa in boulder we talked about food and this meal came up. My other cousin, Jenna, wanted it too and since I was home this past weekend I decided to make it for her and some other friends who were over. The pressure was on this time though because two friends who hadn't tasted my food before were trying it and I wanted to impress. I believe I was successful at this since there wasn't any stew left after the meal and I made a double portion!

I love this dish because it's cheap but filling. You buy cheap meat, add lots of veggies, and then rice which is just dirt cheap. Feel free to add more veggies if you want to stretch the amount of beef stew. You can add zucchini (cut into half moons), green beans, or broccoli florets. Just add these in the last 5 minutes of cooking so they don't get soggy.

Ingredients:

olive oil
1 pound of beef stew (it may also be called beef for stewing, it'll be cut into chunks)
1 small onion, thinly sliced
2-5 cloves of roughly chopped garlic (2 if you like garlic, 5 cloves if you LOVE garlic!)
1 14 oz can of diced tomatoes
1 32 oz box of beef stock (the box is best because you can reseal it if you don't use all the stock but if you want to buy cans go for it, you'll prob need 2 14 oz cans and if it's not enough to cover beef, add some water)
3 medium size russet potatoes, cut into bite size chunks
3 carrots, peeled and sliced into rounds/half moons

Directions:

1. Brown beef in olive oil in a large, deep pan, over medium high heat. You want the outside to be really caramelized and this will take some time. As you brown beef, liquid will come out. allow this to evaporate and keep cooking until all sides of beef chunks are deep golden brown. Stir every minute or 2 so sides don't burn.

2. Slice onions and garlic while beef browns and when beef has enough color, add both to pan. Allow onions to caramelize down for about 5-10 minutes, this adds more flavor to the sauce.

3. Add can of tomatoes and allow to cook for a minute.

4. Add beef stock. You want all the beef to be covered with liquid. (that last sentence is basically the definition of a stew). Allow liquid to come to a simmer then cover and lower heat to low.

5.Let the beef cook for a minimum of 1 and ½ hour. The longer the better. You want the meat to be really tender, falling apart even. If beef becomes uncovered with liquid, add more stock or water until beef is totally submerged again.

6. After your happy with doneness of beef, add potatoes and carrots. Allow these to cook for about a half hour. Once you add the potatoes and carrots, start making the rice. This way they should both be done about the same time.

7. Once potatoes and carrots are tender, add extra veggies (see above note) if your going to and cook an extra 5 minutes.

8. Serve by putting a good amount of rice into a bowl, season with salt, then spoon beef stew over top. Make sure to add lots of the stewing liquid because rice will soak it up and this adds more flavor.

Fried Egg Sandwich

I love a fried egg sandwich. It's definitely a special breakfast treat cuz it's not the healthiest way to start the day but it's just so good! To balance this one out I think I'll do some sit up because I'll be cooking for friends most of the weekend so I'll probably eat a lot of it haha. It's also a relatively quick breakfast which is nice. and a tip for any hung over fans out there, it's a great hangover fix!

Ingredients:
1 egg
2 pieces of bread
2 slices bacon
1 slice american cheese

This makes one sandwich so multiply by number of sandwiches you want to make.


Directions:

1. Toast bread and butter. set aside.

2. Crisp bacon in a dry saute pan until done to your liking. Drain on paper towels

3. Empty pan of most of bacon fat leaving about a teaspoon in the pan. Crack an egg into the pan and season with salt and pepper.

4. Let cook for 1 minute on medium low heat. Flip egg over and place cheese on top. Cover pan with lid and steam cheese and egg for about 2 minutes for runny yolks and 4 minutes for hard set.

5. to build sandwich: place egg onto one piece of toast. Place bacon on top, you usually need to break it in half to fit on sandwich. Put the other piece of toast on top and cut sandwich. Try to cut sandwich in middle of yolk so it runs into sandwich and you can dip it and it makes it extra yummy.

Weiner Schnitzel with Mashed Potatoes

This meal is a family tradition. We usually eat it on holidays like christmas or thanksgiving if we don't make duck and dumplings (coming soon). It's best to use veal for this dish because it's really tender but if you have issues with using veal or simply can't find it (in most stores you need to order veal ahead) You can use thinly sliced beef. Make sure to tenderize it by hitting it with a mallet to thin out. You want the meat, veal or beef, to be about smaller then a 1/4 inch thick but bigger then an 1/8th inch thick.

To make the mashed potatoes extra delicious, you can add some sour cream while mashing or heavy whipping cream for a creamier mouth feel. You can add fresh herbs like chives or scallions if you have them. Roasted Garlic is a great addition and so is some crispy bacon and some shredded cheese (coming soon) . I'm sure i'll come up with some more interesting things to do with mashed potatoes as time goes on.

Ingredients:
veal cutlets (2-3 per person depending on size and appetite)
flour
egg
bread crumbs
salt and pepper
canola oil
russet potatoes (1 medium size per person)
milk
butter
LEMON

Directions:

1. peel potatoes, cut into chunks, and place in a pot of cold salty water. Bring water and potatoes to a boil together for more even cooking of potatoes.

2. Bread veal while cooking potatoes. Set up a type of assembly line. One plate for flour, one for eggs (beaten with a fork), one for bread crumbs. Season each of these plates with salt and pepper because this will season the crust and make sure to season the meat itself before breading!

3. Coat veal on flour plate and shake off excess. Place into egg plate and lightly coat. Place into bread crumbs and lightly coat. Make sure coats aren't too thick or crust will come off when frying. Also make sure to get every where on meat so every bit has a bit of delicious crust.

4. Heat oil in a medium sauce pan that will fit 2 -3 veal cutlets to medium high heat. you want the oil about 1/8th inch up the side of the pan. Place breaded veal into pan and cook about 2 minutes on each side or until crust is golden brown. Put finished fried pieces on a plate with paper towels.

5. While frying up veal mash the potatoes. Time it so the potatoes have finished cooking (takes about 20 minutes till fork tender) while your frying. Add a splash of milk and a few pats of butter and lots of salt. Mash everything together and add more milk to change consistency or more butter and salt to your taste.

6. Serve weiner schnitzel and mashed potatoes on big platters with a lot of fresh lemon wedges. Squeezing the fresh lemon over the schnitzel makes it like 10 times more delicious so try this!

Leftover Green Tacos

So I know the name sounds gross, but it's near Halloween and gross food is in order! haha. It may sound weird but it tastes delicious. Almost all the ingredients in here are green. There's a distinct sweetness to this taco so if you like spicier food feel free to add some spice (you'll see where below)

For the meat I used some leftover pot roast that needed to be used. Tacos are a great way to use leftover meat of any kind. I've made tacos from chicken and pot roast to deer. I made this recipe for me and it made 4 tacos with a little extra of the avocado crema. (my attempt to use spanish) so multiply the recipe to serve as many people that your feeding.

I put everything, all the sides, inside a taco but feel free to mix and match flavors. If you want a healthier taco, serve as a soft taco but I figured since there are so many veggies in this that the hard shell would balance it out.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup leftover pot roast (at room temp)
4 corn tortillas (wrapped in a dish towel and heated in microwave for 30 seconds to make pliable)
1 cup canola oil for frying ( you want about a 1/4 inch layer of oil in pan)

For sides:
1/2 onion, sliced thin
1 green bell pepper, seeds removed and sliced into thin strips
1 cup grated cheese (your choice here, you can go mexican or use any cheese you have. Iused pecorino)
sliced romaine lettuce
lime wedges

For Avocado Crema:
1 ripe avocado
1/4 cup of light sour cream
1 lime, juiced
salt and pepper to taste
about a tbs. of finely chopped onion
1 tsp. oregano
1 tsp. rec chili flake ( add more for spicier taste in taco)

Directions:
1. Make Avocado Crema by combining all ingredients in a bowl and stir together. Allow the flavors to meld in the fridge while mixture is covered in plastic wrap. (have plastic wrap lay right on top of mixture so avocado doesn't turn brown.

2. Grate cheese, slice lettuce and cut limes into wedges and set aside. I use paper plates for less clean-up later.

3. Heat 2 tsp. of canola oil in a pan and add thinly sliced onions and bell pepper. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper. Allow to caramelize over medium heat until everything is browned.

4. Heat up oil in a sauce pan to fry tacos. You'll need about a 1/4 inch of oil up the side of a large saute pan. Place leftover pot roast in middle of heated tortillas. When placing into oil, fold in half and put into pan. Fry for about a minute on each side or until tortilla is crisp and golden brown. Allow tacos to dry on paper towels and cover with a dish towel to keep warm.

5. When tacos are finished serve with all the sides.

Eggs Over Easy, Hash Browns, and Bacon

The best start to the day is a big breakfast. It just makes you feel good and happy when your full plus it gives you a ton of energy and you burn it off throughout the whole day. I usually start off my busy days with just a scrambled egg since that takes about 2 minutes but since I have some time on the first day of my weekend, I wanted to cook something special.

For the hashbrowns, you can use potatos you grate yourself. I used a half potato from another recipe that was in my fridge. If your going to grate it yourself, you need a grater with large holes! You want the potatoes to be long thin strips and this can only happen with large holes. I suggest getting a box grater and sticking some needle nose pliers into each hole to make them just slightly bigger.

Ingredients:
2 pieces of bacon per person your serving
1 egg per person your serving
1 cup frozen hash browns per person your serving (in freezer section of grocery store) You'll have hash browns for weeks or you can add it to soups as a quick veggie.
pat of butter

Directions:
1. Cook bacon on medium high heat in a saute pan. Keep turning so bacon doesn't burn. Cook to desired crispness. (I like mine almost burnt. crispy and salty, yum!)

2. Put hashbrowns in a paper towel and wring out any excess water. Put in saute pan with about a teaspoon of bacon fat. Allow to cook for 5 minutes, moving around just a little. Then try to flip all the hashbrowns over at once like a pancake and let cook another 5 minutes

3. While hashbrowns are cooking go ahead and make the eggs. Put the butter in a smaller saute pan and allow to melt over medium low heat. Crack eggs into pan and season with a pinch of salt. Allow to cook for about a minute then cover pan with a lid and turn heat to low. Let egg finish cooking with steam until it's done to your liking. ABout 2 minutes for runny yolks and 4 for hard set.

4. Serve everything together on a plate so when your eating eggs, the yolks run into the hashbrowns and make everything delicious. You can eat it with a little ketchup, salsa, or hot sauce, pretty much anything you'd eat with eggs or hashbrowns can go on here.