This Boar’s Head pastrami is so good, and makes an even better grilled cheese sandwich for those who want a little extra umph!
Author: kellyjunot
Quick and Delicious Dinner
This summer, our local Waco Downtown Farmers Market welcomed a grilled cheese sandwich vendor called The Cheddar Box There were several different sandwiches offered, all sounded wonderful. However, they were eight dollars! Now I see why.
A couple of weeks ago, I went to Whole Foods in Dallas. They were having cheese tastings and demonstrations. I thought of the grilled cheeses at the farmers market, and purchased several different cheeses. An Irish Cheddar, a smoked cheddar, a Stilton blue and cheddar combo, and a couple of more. By the time I left I realized I’d spent $50 on cheese.
So naturally, when I got home, I decided to make a meal out of it! I used French bread, unsalted butter, and lots of cheddar cheese.
Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
French bread Cheddar cheese -2 kinds Softened butter
Butter the bread on one side. Slice the cheese fairly thinly for easy melting. Use lots! In a medium sized coated skillet, place the bread butter side down, then add the cheese. Place another slice of buttered bread on top. Cook on one side until golden brown, flip, butter the browned side again. Cook the second side until golden brown, flip and butter that side. I read about the buttering at the end in a magazine. It suggested that the extra butter made it crispier and prettier.
Samosas
Samosas
A samosa is a savory Indian stuffed pastry. It is usually stuffed with potatoes, peas, onions, and spices. It’s traditionally vegetarian, but is also good with beef or chicken.
This was my first attempt to make them, so they’re not as beautiful as I would like, but they tasted great!
Samosas
1 package (2) refrigerated pie shells
Filling
1 cup frozen peas
2 large potatoes (red or russet)
1 tablespoon butter
1 c finely chopped onion
2 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon chopped ginger
1 teaspoon dried coriander
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
¾ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
cooking spray
Set the frozen peas out to thaw.
Cut the potatoes into small squares, about 3/4″ each. Boil potatoes until tender. Drain potatoes, roughly mash, and set aside.
While the potatoes boil, chop onion, shallot and ginger. Heat butter in a medium saucepan. Add onions, shallots, ginger, mustard seeds, coriander and salt. Saute until onions are soft.
Add onion mixture to the potatoes along with the lemon juice, peas and cayenne. Fold ingredients together gently to avoid smashing the peas.
Preheat the oven to 425°. Roll out ready-made pie shells on a floured surface, just enough to make them nice and even-slightly thinner than they originally come. Cut the dough into 4 inch circles.
Spoon filling onto half of the dough circle, fold the empty side over the filling. Pinch the edges to seal the samosa.
Spray the tops of the samosas with cooking spray. Bake on a lightly greased sheet pan or pizza stone for 15 minutes, then lower the heat to 375°, and bake for 10 more minutes or until golden brown.
Most samosas are in triangle shapes, but I found it much easier to fold them into half-moons like an empanada.
List for the fridge!
A well-stocked refrigerator is just as important as the pantry. Going to the store every time you want to cook, like I said before, won’t be necessary if you keep a few items on hand at all times.
milk 2%
heavy cream 16oz
butter 2lbs
Dijon mustard
prepared horseradish
ketchup
lemons – Don’t use those little plastic bottles; fresh is best!
limes – Same as the lemons; fresh, I tell you!
refrigerated pie crust – Good when there’s no time to make crust!
Romaine lettuce
grape tomatoes
Chicken Fried Rice
Chicken Fried Rice is easy to make and delicious!
After I posted a Pantry list yesterday, I made this, and remembered items I failed to include. So I’ll say here that every time I think of something to add to the Pantry or Fridge, I’ll just edit those lists.
Fried Rice
1-2 tbsp. cooking oil
1 tbsp. chopped ginger
1 tbsp. chopped garlic
1 bunch chopped green onions (separate the white from green)
¼ chopped red bell pepper
2 tsp. rice wine vinegar
1 ½ tbsp. soy sauce
1 dash sesame oil
1 large cooked chopped chicken breast
2 c cooked rice
1-2 tbsp. Hoisin Sauce
3 large eggs
Optional: 1 jalapeno pepper or serrano pepper and cilantro
Finely chop ginger and garlic together in a food processor. Heat oil in a large nonstick sauté skillet. This time I used bacon grease left over from the morning, and it might well have made the best batch ever! When oil is hot, add ginger, garlic, bell pepper, and the white part of the green onions. Sauté until fragrant. Add the rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, and chicken. Reduce liquids until veggies are almost dry. Add the rice and cook, stirring constantly until the rice is very hot. Add the Hoisin and combine completely with the rice. Cook until the rice begins to stick to the bottom of the pan. Push the rice to one side of the pan. Add the three eggs and scramble them hard, then mix the rice and eggs together, adding the green onion tops last. Serve with sliced peppers and cilantro.
Stock Your Pantry
Keeping a few items in the pantry at all times makes it easy to make most basic meals, and some fancy ones without having to run to the store every time you want to cook.
Produce
garlic
Use whole cloves of garlic only. NEVER the jar. Anthony Bourdain has a comment on garlic from a jar. He says, “Garlic is divine. Few food items can taste so many distinct ways, handled correctly. Misuse of garlic is a crime…Please, treat your garlic with respect…Avoid at all costs that vile spew you see rotting in oil in screwtop jars. Too lazy to peel fresh? You don’t deserve to eat garlic.”
ginger
shallots
onions – sweet, purple
potatoes – red and russet
Spices
Kosher salt
pepper corns and a good pepper grinder
garlic powder – NOT garlic salt
Tony Chechere’s Original Seasoning
ground cumin
bay leaf – whole
corn starch
Canned
diced tomatoes
tomato sauce
tomato paste – I buy canned, but you can get it in a tube for using in small amounts
Packaged
pasta -Barilla mini penne, mini farfalle (bowtie), lasagne, vermicelli
bread crumbs – Panko and Progresso
unbleached flour –Be sure not to get self-rising flour because it contains ingredients like baking powder and baking soda. If you are making a recipe that calls for “flour,” it will likely be sans other ingredients.
granulated white sugar
light brown sugar
dark brown sugar
kayro syrup
molasses
Why a food blog?
reason for this blog is so I can share tips for eating well at home. It seems like people eat out a lot today because of busy schedules, but sometimes they just lack ideas for what to cook.
This blog will be a compilation of my favorite recipes. It will include tips for keeping a stocked pantry and refrigerator ready to cook anytime.
Each time I cook something, I will try to make note of any important details that might make a difference in the dish. I’ll use this handy journal to do so.
Here’s an example of what I might write in my journal :
Stay tuned for the answer.
Bayou Comfort Food
Six More Weeks of Winter!
Since Punxtsutawney saw his shadow, I thought I’d post a recipe for gumbo just in case we’re in for six more weeks of winter. This will keep you warm when the weather gets cold!
Chicken and Sausage Gumbo
- 1 large bell pepper
- 4 stalks celery
- 1 large onion
- 1 bunch green onions
- 1 tbl sp oil
- 1 10 ounce bag of frozen okra
- 2 cans chicken broth + 2 cans water
- ¼ to ½ cup dry roux (This is available at HEB in the seafood section)
- 1 whole chicken – cut into pieces
- 2 links andouille sausage (HEB)
- Tony Chachere’s Creole Seasoning (Original) http://shop.tonychachere.com/seasonings-c-8030.html
6 cups Cooked rice DO NOT ADD RICE TO GUMBO! Serve gumbo over rice in individual serving bowls.
Chop bell pepper, celery, onion, green onions (reserve green onion tops for later).Heat oil in a large soup pan; add chopped vegetables. Season with Tony Chachere’s. Saute until onions are clear. Add chicken broth and water. Dilute roux with a little cold water to make a smooth mixture. It should be cake batter consistency. Spoon the roux mixture into the vegetable/chicken stock mixture. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer for 35-40 minutes. While that is cooking, cut your chicken into pieces, sprinkle liberally with Tony Chachere’s, and slice your sausage into rounds about as thick as you like it. After the 45 minutes goes by, put your chicken pieces into the pot. If the liquid does not cover the chicken, add enough water to make sure that happens. Cook that for about 45 minutes, then add the sliced sausage and okra. Cook for 15 more minutes. Test the chicken with a fork for doneness.
**If you don’t like okra, leave it out, or put it in at the beginning with the other vegetables so it will cook down until it’s unrecognizable.
Serve gumbo over white rice.
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chezjunot 