Fabulous Family Recipes

December 24, 2016December 24, 2016

Sweet & Sour Potato and Green Bean Salad

Sweet & Sour Green Beans and Potato salad

This recipe is still in the refinement phase which means that I may come back and adjust the amounts slightly in order to “perfect” it. Please check back as I like to try things out multiple times before calling them done.

2 lb. red skinned potatoes, cut into quarters lengthwise and the cut across to make wedges. Don’t over cook, keep them al dente!
2 lb. green beans, ends trimmed, steamed
3 good sized shallots, minced fine
1 lb. bacon (I just tried this new California bacon with no nitrites and was very happy with the flavor and quality)
1/8 cup white vinegar
3 tsp. sugar
3 tbsp. finely chopped parsley
3 tbsp. olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

I cook the bacon, potatoes and green beans ahead. I have them in a large shallow baking dish in the oven to keep them warm while I prepare the dressing. The shallots go in the pan with the olive oil. Once the shallots are cooked clear on a medium heat add the vinegar then sugar. Pull the pan out of the oven add the dressing and mix thoroughly. Salt and pepper to taste. Cut the bacon into good sized chunks so it retains its flavor next to the dressing and only add it just before serving, same with the parsley.

December 13, 2016December 13, 2016

Garlic Bread

Simple, fast, delicious. Goes great with soups, stews and Italian food.

Crusty sourdough bread
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tbsp. heaping) fresh chopped parsley

Either let the butter sit out to soften or cut it up with a knife and cream it with a fork. Add the other ingredients and mix. Spread on crusty sourdough and toast in the toaster oven. Looks and tastes amazing. For a treat add some fresh garlic as well.

December 10, 2016November 13, 2017

Turkey Bone Broth Soup

This batch of soup actually contains bones from chickens and turkeys that I collected over the recent months. I have about two freezer bags full of both bones and vegetable trimmings like celery and carrot ends, green onion ends and parsley stems. I try to squeeze the air out every time I reseal the bag to keep the ice buildup down as the air at the beach is moist.

I put them in a stock pot and cover them with water added very little salt and pepper and cook them for 24 hours. The next step is to pour off the broth through a colander and into a bowl so that all of the bone and vegetable mass is strained out. I do set aside the bone/vegetable leftovers taking out all of the large pieces and picking through the remaining meat to return to the stock.

I bring the stock back up to a boil and add the following chopped vegetables one and 1/2 onions, one bag of carrots, one entire head celery 1/3 of a bunch of parsley, choppped salt and pepper thyme and chicken bouillon to taste. On the side I cook four cups of brown jasmine rice separately and I only added 3 of the cups of cooked rice that at the very end before serving. Careful, the rice will soak up some liquid.

The turkey meat was very lean and there was not much fat so I added a small amount of olive oil. In addition I included 1/4 cup of malt vinegar to extend the flavor pallet. You always have to be careful with the amount of vinegar that you add to recipes, go slowly and taste frequently as you can’t take it back out once its added.

You had better be prepared to either store a large amount of soup , give it away to friends and family, or have a large party.

1-1/2 large yellow onions chopped
1 bag carrots, peeled and cut into coins
1 head celery, sliced thin to cook quickly
3 cups brown jasmine rice, fully cooked
1 tbsp. dried thyme
5 tbsp. (heaping) of Knorr chicken bouillon
1 cup chopped fresh parsely
1/4 cup malt vinegar (could be apple cider vinegar as well)
Salt and pepper to taste

December 3, 2016

Sauteed Spinach

Simple, tasty recipe and a great way to prepare spinach or kale.

One bag frozen spinach
One yellow onion, diced
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. white balsamic vinegar
pinch ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp. crushed red pepper
salt and black pepper to taste
if you have it – 1 tsp. bacon grease

Put half the olive oil in a sautee pan on medium low (and bacon grease if you have it) and cook the onions until clear, soft and sweet. Add the bag of frozen spinach and turn heat up to medium high to melt it. Once the spinach is no longer frozen add the remaining olive oil and turn heat down to just medium. Clear a place in the center of the pan, add the vinegar and then mix it all together along with the nutmeg and crushed red pepper. Salt and black pepper to taste.

Notes:

Olive oil can be increased by using your judgement. What I go for is just a hint of a sheen and a rich, savory taste.
Crushed red pepper: careful with this one, it can be over done, especially if you’re cooking for children.
If you wanted to get really daring you could use more bacon grease, especially with kale.

November 19, 2016December 13, 2016

Vegetarian Southwestern Breakfast Pie

This is delicious and reheats in the microwave for a super-fast, very healthy breakfast, it’s vegetarian!

4 medium potatoes, boiled and sliced into wedges
1/2 large onion diced
one package soyrizo
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. oregano (finely ground)
12 eggs
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp. baking powder
4 heaping tbsp. chunky salsa (as spicy as you like)
2 tbsp. olive oil
8 oz. package of Mexican cheese blend

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Sautee onion in olive oil until clear then add soyrizo, cumin and oregano and brown, set aside. In a bowl crack 12 eggs and whisk in baking powder, flour, milk and salsa.

Place potatoes evenly spread out in your shallow baking dish. Add chorizo and onion mix evenly across this. Put in 4 oz. of the cheese then add the egg mixture and top with the final 4 oz. of cheese. Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

October 16, 2016October 16, 2016

Potatoes Au Gratin

I believe I got this recipe from my sister Janeen.
Ingredients:

2 lb. potatoes peeled and sliced thin
2 tblsp. butter
2 tblsp. flour
1 medium shallot
2 cloves garlic
Rosemary
1/2 cup heavy cream
1-1/2 cup Gruyere divided into 2 portions
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
3/4 cup beef stock

Pre-heat oven to 350. In sauce pan on stove melt butter, add flour, garlic, shallots, rosemary, pepper, stock, salt, cream but do NOT boil. Add the first half of the cheese. Layer potatoes in a greased baking dish. Pour mixture over the potatoes, sprinkle second portion of Gruyere on top. Bake for an hour and 30 minutes or until golden brown in places and the potatoes are done when tested with a fork.

October 16, 2016October 16, 2016

Transylvanian Goulash

This recipe was shared with me by my Mom, Ann Barczay Sloan.

Ingredients:

Bacon grease
1 lg. yellow onion diced into 3/8″ cubes
1 lg. green bell pepper, de-seeded, cleaned and diced
1-1/2 lb. Pork shoulder cubed
4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tsp. caraway seeds
3 bay leaves
Salt and Pepper to taste
Paprika (My Mom recommends Szeged brand, sweet, not hot.)
2 cans sauerkraut, drained
1/2 cup Sour Cream

Preheat oven to 350. Brown the pork in bacon grease, salt and pepper the meat then add in onions and bell peppers until onions are translucent. Add garlic and stir that until it is cooked. Add paprika to cover/color meat, its an eyeball thing. Truth be told its hard to add too much paprika. Add caraway seeds and bay leaves then add the sauerkraut. Bring to a low boil, cover it and cook for 5 minutes. Move to oven for 40 minutes. 10 minutes before the time is up stir in the sour cream. Serve with boiled potatoes.

October 16, 2016October 16, 2016

Hungarian Stuffed Peppers

The filling portion has actually been pulled OUT of the pepper here.

My Mom, Ann Barczay Sloan, shared this recipe with me.

Ingredients:

6 bell peppers (green, red, a mix, all OK)
1 lb. ground beef
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. salt
1-1/2 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
5 tblsp. cooked rice
3 tblsp. tomato sauce added to meat
1 can tomato sauce (minus the 3 tblsp. used above)
2 tsp. sugar (for sauce)
1 tsp. paprika (for sauce)

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix the ground beef, pepper, salt, paprika, garlic powder, cooked rice and 3 tblsp. of tomato sauce in a mixing bowl. Cut the tops off of the pepper and clean out seeds and extra veins of white material to maximize the available room for stuffing.

Stuff all of your peppers and place in a baking dish.

In a sauce pan on the stove pour remaining tomato sauce, sugar and paprika and heat until very hot/steaming and then ladle or pour over the peppers carefully so that they are uniformly covered/coated.

About 15 minutes into the 30 minutes cooking time you can open the oven and baste the peppers using the sauce (see photo below) that’s forming around them. Actually you could baste as many times as you’d like and they’ll probably be even more delicious. These are done when the peppers are soft but still hold together.

NOTES: this can be served with boiled potatoes, the sauce goes great with them.

October 15, 2016October 15, 2016

Mediterranean Chicken

I struggled for a name for this dish and settled on this as the most accurate. It mixes European (Italian, Hungarian) and North African (Tunisian) flavors. It’s easy to make and really reheats well.

Ingredients:

2 tbsp. olive oil
10 Chicken thighs
One large yellow onion, diced
2 bell peppers, one red, one green, deseeded and sliced longitudinally
1 tbsp. freshly chopped garlic
2 tbsp. white balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup raisins
one bottle Classico Roasted Garlic tomato sauce
2 tbsp. harissa (I found mine at Trader Joe’s. Add more if you want it hotter)
1 cup sliced mushrooms

Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees. I have a large ceramic coated metal roasting pan that’s shallow. On the stovetop I add the oil oil and then brown the chicken on a low flame because I want to get them nicely cooked before I put them in the oven. After you’ve flipped and browned the 2nd side of the chicken start adding the vegetables, you might boost the flame a little. I go onions, then bell peppers, then garlic, the raisins, then balsamic vinegar, then tomato sauce, then harissa. The mushrooms I stir in right before moving the dish to the oven for 20 – 25 minutes to finish it off.

I served mine with pine nut couscous but it would go great with linguini or other pasta.

Notes: you could easily add more garlic! Tastes even better the next day, reheats well in the microwave.