Braised Chicken Breasts with Lemon Herb Gravy

Braise: to cook (meat, fish or veg) by sauteeing in fat and then simmering slowly in very little liquid.

**not my picture, just an example of what braising looks like**

This is one of those recipes I tend to make a little differently depending on what I have on hand. I'll explain. Here's what you NEED:

• chicken breasts
• salt & pepper
• chicken broth
• cornstarch (or flour, just need something to thicken the gravy)
• butter (or olive oil)
• juice of 1 lemon

Heat your butter (or oil) in a skillet over medium heat (braising means keeping it at a low temp the entire process).

Salt & pepper the chicken on both sides & add to pan once the butter is melted. Sear just a little on each side over medium to med-hi heat.

From here you can add whatever seasonings you want to add flavor to your chicken (and eventually your sauce). I usually add:

• herbs de provence (mix of savory, fennel, basil, thyme, rosemary, lavender)
• bay leaf
• parsley
• onion flakes (or real onion)

But you could add anything you want from garlic to paprika, etc. Mix in the flavors that you like.

Turn down the heat to med-low, cover and let cook. Check the chicken every once in awhile for doneness and add chicken broth if there's no liquid in the bottom. There should be enough liquid just to kind of cover the bottom of the pan. Maybe a little more.

When the chicken is cooked through, remove from pan & cover.

Turn up the heat to bring the liquid to a boil, adding more broth and seasonings (salt, pepper, herbs, etc.). Once it's boiling, you can stir in a mixture of about a spoonful of cornstarch mixed with more broth. This should thicken up quickly.

From here, you can just season as you like. I usually add a little more salt and pepper at least.

Add lemon juice & stir.

When it tastes good to you, it's done. Pour it over the chicken and serve with rice.

This is what it kind of looks like. I'll upload my own pic next time I make it!

Beef Barley Soup

I just made this up as I went along. Obviously you can follow the basics and totally make it your own.

• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 large carrots, peeled & chopped
• 5 garlic cloves, minced
• olive oil
• flour
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 2 large red potatoes, skins on, cut into cubes
• some kind of beef, preferrably stew meat, but leftover chunks of chain meat is great too
• dried parsley
• beef stock/beef broth
• 1/2 cup pearl barley

Heat about 2tbsp olive oil over medium-high heat.

Roll onions, carrots & garlic around in some flour, then add to the pot. Stir to coat. Saute about 5 minutes so onions begin to soften.

Add meat. Stir to combine.

Add enough broth so that everything is covered by at least 2 inches of liquid.

Add can of tomatoes (juices and all), and bring to a gentle boil. Add potatoes and barley.

Cover, turn down heat to about medium, maybe medium-low.

Let simmer for about 40 minutes until potatoes and barley are fully cooked.

Salt & pepper to taste.

Other things you could add include:

- 1 tsp worchestershire sauce

- shredded cabbage, mushrooms, celery, etc.

(Hearty soup in the hands of my sick husband...)

Beka's Unconventional Risotto (using no cheese, and stock from christmas turkey)

I received arborio (risotto) rice as a Christmas gift from a close friend of my mother's (thanks, Val!) and was dying to make a lovely creamy winter risotto. I have no fancy parmesan cheese. And instead of using chicken stock, I was interested in using the leftover stock I'd made from our Christmas turkey. So this was definitely a creative adventure. The result? The best risotto I've ever made (according to me as well as my husband). It was creamy, comforting and filling just like a risotto should be, but it was lighter without the cheese. And the homemade turkey stock created a lovely post-holidays flavor that just overwhelmed us. It was fantastic! So the next time you roast a turkey, make that stock and save it for a risotto. It's delicious. And hey, who needs to spend $6-8 on fancy cheese when it's so good without it? Leaving out the cheese made it understated enough for a side dish. Not nearly as heavy. Anyway, here's what I did:

• about 6 cups turkey stock (leftover from holiday turkey, in my case), but you can always use chicken stock, even from a can, I won't hold it against you
• 1 stick unsalted butter
• 1 onion, very finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, very finely minced
• 2 cups arborio rice
• 2/3 cup dry white wine (room temperature)
• sea salt & freshly ground pepper

Put the turkey stock in a saucepan and keep at a gentle simmer. Melt half the butter in a large, heavy saucepan and add the onion. Cook gently for 10 minutes until soft, golden and translucent, but not browned. Add garlic and saute for additional 3-5 minutes.

Add the rice and stir until well coated with butter and heated through.

Pour in the wine, boil hard until it has reduced and almost disappeared. This will remove that raw alcohol taste.

Begin adding the turkey stock, a large ladle at a time, stirring gently until each ladle has been almost absorbed into the rice. The risotto should be kept at a bare simmer throughout cooking, so don't let the rice dry out - add more broth as necessary. Continue until the rice is tender and creamy, but the grains are still firm. This should take about 20 minutes, depending on the type of rice used (check package instructions).

Taste and season well with salt and pepper and beat in the remaining butter.

Turn off the heat and let risotto rest for a few minutes to finish absorbing the rest of the liquid and to set up. Serve immediately after. I hit it with a generous amount of salt and pepper before serving. If it's a bit sticky, add a little extra hot broth at the end to get the right texture.

One Pot Pork Chops, Gravy, & Veg

Made this up today based on the contents of our fridge and the fact that it's freezing outside. Started out sauteeing two thick boneless pork chops in the pan and then just kept adding stuff. Turned out lovely:

• 2 thick boneless pork chops
• 1 can chicken broth
• rosemary
• salt
• pepper
• pearl onions (I used a combination of yellow, white and red)
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1/2 cup milk
• cornstarch

As always, vary this a million different ways based on what you like and what you have in the fridge that needs to get used up....

Sprinkle chops with salt, pepper, and a pinch of rosemary and sautee in pan to brown both sides.

Add 3/4 of the chicken broth and start tossing in chopped garlic, onions and potatoes. Cover for a bit to cook veggies.

Uncover, add butter & milk. Stir remining chicken stock with a bit of cornstarch and add to thicken.

Cut up chops, put them in little crocks and cover with the veggies and broth/gravy/sauce. Sprinkle a little extra salt & rosemary on top.

Quick. Easy. Comforting. And it's not even soup, for once.

Banana Bread

Don't throw away those mushy nanners! I was making dinner tonight and noticed that there were 3 bananas left in the fruit bowl that were kind of beyond the peel'n'eat stage. I felt guilty and crappy because money is tight as hell and here we are wasting good produce and vitamins and junk like that. Then I remembered that you could use them to make banana bread. Or at least that's what I've been told. I've never made bread of any kind and generally avoid any kind of baking. But I looked up a recipe anyway and it turned out that we had all the necessary ingredients. So I made that joint.

• 1/2 cup melted butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups mashed ripe bananas
• 1/3 cup water
• 1 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• Spices (amounts are up to you but a little goes a long way): nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, vanilla

Preheat oven to 350.

In a large bowl, beat sugar & butter.

Add eggs, bananas & water & beat until blended.

Add flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt & spices (add all or just the ones you want, it's entirely to your taste). Mix until blended.

Stir in walnuts.

Pour into loaf pan (I used a souffle dish and it worked fine).

Bake for 55-60 minutes.

Cool in pan for 10 minutes.

This was so easy (and I suck at baking). It was also delicious. So next time your bananas are going bad, get crackin.

Wayne's Fried Chicken

When we were younger, Wayne worked at Planet Hollywood. Everyone there loved the "Chicken Crunch" fried chicken. The key to it is the sweetness of the Cap'n Crunch (yes, that's exactly what I said). This is Wayne's adaptation. Make a lot. People can not stop eating this stuff. He doesn't measure so I made him estimate the amounts. It's about trial and error, and what you like.

• Flour ("about a cup")
• Cornflakes ("about a cup" crushed)
• Cap'n Crunch ("about a cup" crushed)
• 1 Egg
• 1 - 1 1/2 cups Milk (buttermilk is especially good but not necessary)
• sugar ("maybe 1/4 cup")
• garlic powder
• salt & pepper
• chicken wings, or breasts cut into strips
• 1/2 tsp thyme (EASY on the thyme!)
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp marjoram
• 1 tsp dried onion flakes
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• canola oil (for frying)

For batter, mix egg, milk & sugar in one bowl.

Mix the rest of the dry stuff in another bowl.

Soak meat in wet bowl, dredge in dry. Quickly dip again in wet & dredge in dry.

Fry in canola oil (boiling on high in a large pot or in a fryer) until brown.

Orange-Roasted Baby Carrots w/ Honey

• 1.5 lbs slender baby carrots
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp (or more) orange zest
• 1/3 cup fresh orange juice
• 1.5 tsp honey
• fleur de sel (it's fancy sea salt, folks)

Preheat oven to 400. Arrange carrots in a single layer on rimmed baking sheet (used pyrex). Add 2 tbsp olive oil & orange peel; sprinkle with salt & pepper & toss. Pour OJ over; cover tightly with foil & roast until crisp-tender (about 10 minutes). Remove foil. Increase oven to 450. Drizzle honey over the carrots. Roast uncovered until carrots are tender & browned in spots (about 10 minutes more). Transfer carrots & any juices to platter. Drizzle lightly with additional olive oil & sprinkle with fleur de sel.

Mixed Berry Cobbler

My husband called this "so good it's ridiculous".

• 2lbs mixed berries
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 3tbsp raw sugar
• 2 tbsp cornstarch
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 2 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 6 tbsp chilled, unsalted butter (whatever, I used salted), cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• 1 egg
• 3/4 cup heavy cream
• 1/4 cup finely minced crystallized ginger

Preheat oven to 375. Lightly butter a 9x13 inch baking dish. In a bowl, combine the berries, lemon juice, the 1/2 cup of sugar, the cornstarch, cinnamon & ground ginger and toss to coat the berries evenly. Pour the berry mixture into the prepared baking dish, spreading evenly.

Combine the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, baking soda & crystallized ginger in a food processor & pulse briefly to mix. Add the butter & pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg & cream. Pour the egg & cream into thae processor & pulse just until the topping mixture holds together.

Using a soup spoon, place dollops of the topping evenly over the berries, leaving a 1-inch border uncovered around the edge of the dish. Sprinkle the raw sugar over the top. I also sprinkled a few more tiny pieces of crystallized ginger over the top as well.

Place the dish on a rimmed baking sheet (in case it boils over. mine didn't though.). Bake cobbler until the top is golden & the berry filling is bubbling - about 35 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack & let cool for 10-15 minutes.

Using a large spoon or spatula, scoop out the cobbler onto individual plates and seriously consider serving it with creme anglaise. Seriously.

Pan-Roasted Beef Tenderloin w/ Rosemary & Garlic

This is a Williams-Sonoma recipe. They included a recipe for a bordelaise sauce to go alongside the meat. We made it. It turned out like crap. So if I were you I'd just make a little pan gravy and call it a day. It's awesome even without the sauce. Melt. In. Your. Mouth.

• 1 beef tenderloin roast (that you maybe even butchered yourself?) 2.5-3lbs
• 3 fresh rosemary sprigs
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• salt & pepper
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 400. Let the roast stand at room temp. for 30-40 minutes. Set the roast on a clean work surface & lay the rosemary springs lengthwise along the roast. Using kitchen twine, tie the rosemary to the roast at 2-inch intervals (like above).

Rub the roast with garlic & season with salt & pepper. Preheat a large saute pan over med-high heat & warm the vegetable oil. Add the roast & brown, 3-4 min per side. Transfer the skillet to the oven & roast, turning occasionally, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of the meat registers 125 degrees (for very rare to rare), 15-20 minutes. Or cook it longer if you have bad taste. Yeah I said it. Transfer the roast to a cutting board, cover loosely w/ aluminum foil & let it rest for 5 minutes. At least.

DE-lish! (dammit I sound like rachel ray)...

Pan-Seared Scallops w/ Apple-Onion Marmalade, Bacon & Cider Sauce

This is even better than it sounds. Perfect for autumn.

• 6 slices lean bacon
• 18 large sea scallops, patted dry
• 1 cup apple cider
• salt & pepper

For the marmalade:

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 large vidalia onion, cut through the stem into thin wedges
• 1 large golden delicious or other baking apple, cored & cut into thin wedges
• 1/4 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• ground black pepper

Making the marmalade:

In a large fry pan over medium heat, warm the olive oil. Add the onions & cook, stirring often, until they begin to soften, about 15 minutes.

Stir in apples & cumin seeds. Cook, stirring, until the onions are golden & the apples begin to soften, about 30 minutes more. Add the cider vinegar, salt & pepper and remove from heat. Set aside.

For the scallops:

In another large fry pan over medium-high heat, fry the bacon until crisp, 3-5 minutes. Using tongs or slotted spatula, transfer to paper towels to drain. Discard all but about 1 tbsp (a light coating) of the bacon drippings from the pan.

Sprinkle the scallops lightly with salt & pepper. Return the fry pan to med-hi heat. When the pan is hot, add the scallops a few at a time & cook, turning once, until lightly browned on both sides, about 1 minute on each side. Transfer to a plate & keep warm while you cook the remaining scallops. When all the scallops are cooked, add the apple cider to the pan & boil until reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Pour any juices that have collected on the scallop plate into the fry pan. Remove from heat.

Meanwhile, reheat the marmalate over med-low heat until heated through. Serve creatively:

Brined Roast Turkey

A-la Alton Brown:

• 1 14-16lb frozen young turkey

For the Brine:

• 1 cup kosher salt
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 1 gallon vegetable stock
• 1 tbsp black peppercorns
• 1 1/2 tsp allspice berries
• 1 1/2 tsp chopped candied ginger
• 1 gallon heavily iced water

For the Aromatics:

• 1 red apple, sliced
• 1/2 onion, sliced
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 cup water
• 4 sprigs fresh rosemary
• 6 leaves sage
• canola oil

I. 2-3 Days Before Roasting:

Begin thawing turkey in the refrigerator or in a cooler kept at 38 degrees.

Combine the vegetable stock, salt, brown sugar, peppercorns, allspice & candied ginger in a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Stir occasionally, to dissolve solids & bring to a boil. Then remove from heat, cool to room temperature & refridgerate.

II. Early on the Day or the Night Before:

Combine the brine, water & ice in a 5-gallon bucket. Place the thawed turkey (with innards removed) breast side down in brine. If necessary, weigh down the bird to ensure that it is fully immersed, cover & refrigerate or set in a cool area for 8-16 hours, turning the bird once halfway through the brining.

Preheat the oven to 500. Remove the bird from brine & rinse inside and out with cold water. Discard the brine.

Place the bird on a roasting rack inside a half sheet pan & pat dry with paper towels. Combine the apple, onion, cinnamon stick & 1 cup of water in a microwave safe dish & microwave on high for 5 minutes.

Add steeped aromatics to the turkey's cavity along with the rosemary & sage. Tuck the wings underneath the bird & coat the skin liberally with canola oil. Roast the turkey on lowest level of the oven at 500 degrees for 30 minutes. Insert a probe thermometer into the thickest part of the breast & reduce the oven temperature to 350.

Set the thermometer alarm to 151 degrees. A 14-16lb bird should require a total of 2-2 1/2 hours of roasting. Let the turkey rest, loosely covered with foil or a large mixing bowl for 15 minutes before carving.

Makes 10-12 servings.

Martha Stewart's Elaborate-As-Hell Potroast w/ Winter Vegetables & Pan Gravy

From my parents 39th anniversary menu. I don't think it's the best pot roast recipe out there, but it was good and fun to make. Man, that Martha is detailed...

For Browning Meat:

• 3-4lbs chuck roast, tied if necessary
• coarse salt & freshly ground pepper
• sunflower or other neutral tasting oil

For Aromatics:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion, peeled & thinly sliced (1 1/2 cups)
• 1 medium carrot, peeled & coarsely chopped (3/4 cup)
• 1 celery stalk, coarsely chopped (3/4 cup)
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled & thinly sliced
• 1 dried bay leaf
• 1/4 tsp whole black peppercorns
• 3 sprigs fresh thyme

For Braising Meat:

• 1 tbsp all-purpose flour (plus more, if needed)
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar (plus more, if needed)
• 1 1/4 cups water

For Garnish Vegetables:

• 3/4lb turnips (about 3), peeled & cut into 1 1/2 inch wedges
• 3/4lb new potatoes (about 12 small)
• 3/4lb carrots (4-5 medium), peeled & cut into 3-inch lengths

I. Brown the Meat

Pat meat dry with paper towels, then season on all sides with salt & pepper. Heat a dutch oven over high heat for 2 minutes. Add enough oil to barely coat the bottom of the pot & heat until simmering.

Sear the meat until golden brown, turning to cook on all sides evenly, about 8 minutes. Martha says, "don't be tempted to turn the meat too soon, or it will tear; instead, wait until it easily releases from the pot". Um, ok. If there are lots of blackened bits on the bottom of the pot, wipe it clean with a paper towel, or deglaze with a little water & then discard.

II. Cook Aromatics

Reduce the heat to medium. Add the olive oil & all of the aromatics and cook, stirring fairly often, until the onion is translucent, 2-3 minutes. Martha says, "you may need to increase the heat after a minute or two if the onion isn't softening, but only slightly. If the garlic or onion begins to burn, add a little water & stir up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan." I told you she's elaborate.

III. Braise Meat

Sprinkle the flour into the pot & stir to coat everything evenly; cook the flour just long enough to remove the starchy taste without taking on any color, about 30 seconds.

Add vinegar & water and bring to a boil. Deglaze pot, scraping up browned bits from the bottom. Put the roast in the pot, the water should come only about 1 inch up the sides of the meat. Reduce the heat so the liquid is simmering, not boiling, and cover the pot tightly with the lid.

While the meat is braising, turn it every 30 minutes; the meat should be almost tender. Martha says, "a sharp knife inserted into the center should meet little resistance after 2 1/2 t0 3 hours." Thanks.

Remove the meat from the pot. Strain braising liquid through a sieve (fine), pressing on the solids to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard solids.

IV. Finish Braising w/ Garnish Vegetables

Return the roast & the strained liquid to the pot. Nestle the garnish vegetables around the roast, submerging them a bit in the liquid. The liquid should almost reach the top of the vegetables.

Bring the liquid to a boil, then simmer until the vegetables are tender, 15-20 minutes. The meat should be very tender by now and give no resistance (again, thanks Martha) when pierced with a knife. The meat will be firm enough to slice; if you want it to be falling-apart tender, cook 30 minutes more.

V. Finish Sauce

Transfer the meat & vegetables to a serving platter, leaving the sauce behind (there should be about 1 cup). Cover & keep warm near the stove. If the sauce is too thin, heat until reduced. Martha shares - "be mindful of the saltiness, since the more the sauce is reduced, the saltier it will taste". You could also thicken it with a bit more flour, whisking until smooth. Add a small amount of vinegar if necessary, to balance the flavors.

Let the roast stand for about 20 minutes, then slice to desired thickness. Spoon some sauce over pot roast & vegetables to moisten. Serve with remaining sauce on the side.

*whew!*

Autumn Apple Cake w/ Hot Caramel Sauce

From my parents 39th anniversary menu:

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3 apples, peeled & grated
• 1/4 cup butter

For the caramel sauce:

• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup whipping cream
• 1 tsp vanilla
• salt

Preheat oven to 350. Spray an 8-inch square cake pan with non-stick cooking spray or grease pan & set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter with sugar. Beat in egg. Stir in flour, walnuts, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda & salt. Fold in apples.

Pour into prepared pan & bake for 30-40 minutes or until cake is done & toothpick comes out clean. Cut in squares when cool & serve with hot caramel sauce.

To make caramel sauce, melt butter in saucepan over low heat & then add remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Continue stirring for 5 minutes or until sauce thickens. Remove sauce from heat & serve over apple cake squares.

**image stolen from wordpress.com**

Roasted Leg of Lamb with Fancy Gravy

This takes a little work but it's well worth it for special occasions. What's more, there are ways to change it up and make it your own. Read on and I will show you....

• Olive oil
• 1 Boneless leg of lamb (mine was 5lbs), butterflied
• Kitchen twine
• Now, when they debone the leg, it becomes less of a roast and can sometimes even be rolled out flat. You could roll it out flat and cook it that way if you want. Or you can do what I did and roll it out, fill it with some kind of goodness and then tie it back up. This is what I did. I used: 1 small jar of Classico pesto. You could fill it with anything your heart desires (fresh herbs & garlic, stuffing, veggie puree, etc.)
• Kosher salt
• Ground black pepper
• 1/2 - 1 cup water
• 2 tbsp demi glace (we'll come back to that)
• 1 tbsp butter

Ready? Now some of this isn't as easy as it sounds so I'll tell you where I had trouble. The first thing you're going to do is preheat your oven to 350 (not too bad so far).

Next, prepare any filling you want to go inside the lamb (or in my case just open the jar of pesto and be done with it).

Grab your leg and unroll it. See all those creases? Fill the center and creases, spoonful by spoonful, with the pesto (or whatever you decide to use).

Fun part - I don't know how you would do this without help so if you have a friend or roommate around, recruit them. It will make things easier. Now that the lamb is ready for the oven, we have to put it back together. This may mean rolling it up or just closing it (depending on how it was butchered). Seriously, you'll figure it out. It has all these loose parts that we want to keep together so we're going to truss our lamb by tying it back together. Take the kitchen twine and wrap it around the far end of the lamb, and tie it tightly in place. Repeat this every 2 inches or so until the entire bad boy is done. Here is a lovely example of a trussed leg of lamb:

In a roasting pan over med-hi heat, warm enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan (well that part was easy).

Add the lamb and brown on all sides, 4 to 5 minutes per side. This is simple enough, I know. But we're talking about a pan that has hot oil popping in the bottom of it and you're trying to flip a 5lb roast. So be careful, stand back, and be sure to use oven mitts.

Transfer the pan to the oven and roast covered for 45 minutes, and then uncovered for 30. Basically you're done when your thermometer reads 130 from the very center of the lamb. These temps are for medium-rare. Add more if you like your meat a little more on the done side.

Once you've taken the pan out of the oven, you still need to let it rest. So transfer the lamb to a carving board or something, cover loosely with aluminum foil and let rest for 15 minutes.

Ok. Fancy gravy time. Before we get started, here's the deal. Demi Glace is awesome, but expensive. I use it for special occasions. It's just a super condensed rich sauce made from meat, wine, veggies, spices and good things like that. You could make your own demi glace. I'm going to try it soon. But in the meantime, you can pick it up at most gourmet stores. I use More Than Gourmet brand:

Demi Glace Gravy:

Skim the fat from the pan and set over medium heat. Add the demi-glace and water and cook, stirring to scrape up the brown bits from the pan bottom. (My mom's trick for getting the fat off the top: put a soda cracker gently on top of the gravy. It soaks up the fat but not the gravy itself.)

Strain the sauce into a saucepan, set over medium heat and let it cook for a minute or so. Whisk in butter and season with salt & pepper.

Snip the strings and thinly slice the lamb across the grain.

I served mine with mashed potatoes:

PG County Pork Chops

I call it PG because it includes ketchup and canned soup in the ingredients and it's only 4 steps. All thats missing is cornflakes and it would be full on ghetto. Still, it's quick, cheap and really really good.

• 4 pork chops
• garlic powder
• salt
• pepper
• 1 can cream of chicken soup
  3/4 cup milk
• 3 tablespoons ketchup
• 5 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

Brown chops on medium-high heat with garlic, salt & pepper.

Put chops into roasting pan.

Combine remaining ingredients and pour over chops.

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

**Serve with purple drink**

Garlic Pot Roast

This really is just a standard pot roast recipe. I stole the basics of it from Martha and made some changes to make it my own. I suggest you do the same. You could add mushrooms, replace the potatoes with celery, use water instead of broth, add more wine....

• 1 boneless beef chuck roast (about 3lbs)
• 10 cloves garlic, peeled and halved lengthwise
• 2 tsp coarse salt 1/2
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 2 tsp vegetable oil
• 1.5 c chopped carrots
• 1.5 c baby carrots
• 1.5 c chopped red potatoes (skins on)
• 1 can of beef broth
• 2 bay leaves

1. Using the top of a sharp paring knife, make 20 small evenly space slits about 1.5 inches deep all over the roast. Insert garlic pieces into the slits as far as it will go.

2. In a dutch oven, heat oil over high heat. Carefully add meat & sear on both sides until well browned (4-6 minutes per side).

3. Add salt, pepper, onion, carrots, potatoes and bay leaves as well as 2/3 cup (or more) of the beef broth.

4. Cover and reduce heat to med-low & cook for 3 - 3.5 hours, turning 2-3 times until very tender. Add more broth or a little red wine as needed so that there is always a little liquid in the bottom.

5. Transfer meat to a cutting board & let stand 10 min before serving with vegetables and drippings.

Standing Rib Roast

Special occasions call for rib roast. This has been the gospel according to martha. The end.

• 1 tbsp lemon pepper
• 1 tbsp paprika
• 1.5 tsp garlic salt
• 1 tsp dried rosemary, crushed
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• standing beef rib roast (recipe rub is for a 6-pounder)
• 2 cups beef boullion

Combine lemon pepper, paprika, garlic salt, rosemary & cayenne pepper; rub over roast.

Place roast with fat side (don't we all have a fat side?) up in a large roasting pan.

Insert a meat thermometer and bake uncovered at 325 until roast reaches 130 for medium-rare. (Actually, the temp. for medium rare is 140 but it will continue to cook after you remove it from the oven...)

Allow 23-25 minutes per pound for rare, 27-30min per pound for medium (160) and if anyone wants it darker than that, they can put theirs in the microwave because I'm not letting you ruin an entire standing rib roast because one person likes their meat overcooked. We good? Ok.

Let stand 15 minutes before carving.

Don't forget the best part - the Au Jus:

1. Pour the meat juices from the roasting pan into a glass measuring cup and skim off the fat.
2. Add boiling bouillon to pan & stir to scrape the bottom of the pan and get everything all mixed in.
3. Stir in the mean drippings and serve on the side.

Mom's Ham & Bean Soup

There are few things I love more than being in the kitchen with my mom. I try so hard to absorb as much information as possible so I can have my recipes turn out like hers. They never do. The beauty of this recipe is it's simplicity. She doesn't overwhelm it with all kinds of seasonings and extras (a bad habit of mine). So the lesson is, keep it simple and you'll be able to bring out the best flavors of your main ingredient. Simple. Lovely. Again, there aren't amounts on some of the ingredients because you should add an amount that you like. Make it your own!

• 1 leftover ham bone (ours is from Easter. Apparently ham keeps longer than regular meat because it's been cured. Makes sense but I didn't know that. Did you?)
• one 1lb bag of dried navy beans
• celery, chopped fine
• onion, chopped fine
• carrots, chopped fine
• bay leaves
• cornbread (to go on the side with your cucumber & vinegar salad) - these are my moms direct instructions. If you're making ham & bean soup, you clearly will be making cornbread to go with the cucumber & vinegar salad.

Rinse the beans & cover with water in the pan.

Put them on the stove, bring to a boil and skim off the froth. (or you could soak them overnight).

Reduce heat & add the ham.

Let them cook until the beans get soft (at least an hour).

Add chopped celery, carrots, onion, bay leaves & maybe some celery leaves for added flavor.

Simmer until the beans are completely tender and your family can't stay away from the pot anymore. Also, as my mom suggests, consider serving with cornbread, and a salad of cucumbers and vinegar. I love my mom :-)

Quick Homemade Brownies

You do not need a mix. Making brownies from scratch takes practically the same amount of time. Give this a try, it's a can't-miss:

• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 large eggs
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/3 cup cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup flour

Preheat oven to 350.

Mix oil & sugar until well blended.

Add eggs & vanilla, stir until just blended.

Mix all dry ingredients in a separate bowl.

Stir dry ingredients in with the oil & sugar.

Pour into greased 9x9 square pan.

Bake for 20 minutes or until sides just start to pull away from the pan.

Cool completely before cutting (or you'll have a mess on your hands)!

Corn Chowder

Perfect for a rainy day:

• 4 tbsp butter
• 1 white onion, chopped
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1 large potato, chopped
• 4 cups corn kernels, fresh cooked or frozen
• 1/2 tsp thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 cup cream or half & half
• 6 more tbsp butter (optional)

Saute onions in butter until they are tender & translucent. Add the corn, potato, chicken broth & herbs. Simmer for 25 minutes.

Puree soup in blender, return to pot. To make it a little thicker, puree half or just skip this step entirely.

Before serving add the cream and additional butter.

Salt & pepper to taste.