What's for dinner?

Started by Homegrown Tomatoes, October 17, 2007, 04:08:34 PM

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Homegrown Tomatoes

We were supposed to have had two guests for supper last night... ended up with many extras... and we all squeezed around the table and kitchen bar and managed to fit.  I think there were 12-13, but never got a real accurate count.  I found out about thirty minutes before hand that more than two were coming.  Thank God the house was already pretty much cleaned by the time I found out that it "might" be more than two!  I threw two pans of chicken in the oven covered in diced tomatoes, garlic, rosemary, and oregano and sprinkled with cheese and a bit of olive oil.  Then I started pulling corn out of the freezer that I put up during the summer.  We ended up with the chicken, corn on the cob, long green beans, sliced tomatoes and homemade biscuits.  And I was only a few minutes late getting it all on the table because we had to wait on the biscuits to get done.  Whew.  It was good even though thrown together...  I make good biscuits.  I wish they were better for you, because I could eat them every day.

Redoverfarm

HT biscuits has been a chore for me.  You will have to give out the recipe and directions.  Maybe it's just a guy thing. ;D


Homegrown Tomatoes

my buttermilk biscuits:
Tastes even better with real buttermilk, but the dry variety sold in the baking aisle in the store will work too.

2 c. all purpose unbleached flour
3/4 t. salt
3 t. aluminum free baking powder, give or take
1/2 t. baking soda
1/3 c. butter (much easier if the butter is at room temp.)
3/4 c. buttermilk

Before you start, turn the oven on to 425* to warm up and set the butter out so it can soften.  Mix the dry ingredients and then cut in the butter with a fork or a pastry cutter until it looks like coarse cornmeal.  Add the buttermilk and stir until it forms a ball of dough.  Coat it in flour and either roll or pat out until it is 3/4-1" thick.  Cut out biscuits and bake in a cast iron skillet until the tops are light brown.  Take two and butter 'em while they're hot.  Sometimes I use some whole wheat flour, sometimes just plain flour.  After you've made them a few times, it just takes a minute or two to make them (minus the baking time).  If you use something besides a cast iron skillet to bake them, you might raise the temp a few degrees.  Usually takes between 10-13 minutes to bake them.

Sassy

Quote from: glenn kangiser on October 24, 2010, 08:55:58 PM
Dinner and desert?

We had a lot of large Zucchinis from the garden so I wanted to see what I could do with them besides bread and fry.  Came up with this from the net.....



Mock Apple Crisp

Looks pretty good and could have fooled me if I didn't make it... first thing I have baked in years I think....




Tastes pretty good too. [hungry]

Found it here.

http://www.ehow.com/how_4446895_up-all-those-extra-zucchinis.html



Read more: How to use up all those extra zucchinis. | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_4446895_up-all-those-extra-zucchinis.html#ixzz13KdUcQfR

Note that the 1 1/2 butter is 1 1/2 cups, not cubes.

I used up two about a foot long and 3 to 4 inches dia.  Cut in half lengthwise, scooped out the seeds, peeled and cut to make them look like apple slices about 1/2 inch thick.

The recipe from above link:

"Mock Apple Crisp"

# "Mock Apple"
8 cups of zucchini seeded and chopped (about 1/2 inch pieces)
2/3 cup lemon juice
1 cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg

"Crust"
4 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 butter
1 tsp. cinnamon

1.

In large saucepan cook and stir zucchini and lemon juice on med/low heat for 15-20 minutes. Next, add 1 cup sugar, 1 tsp. cinnamon, 1/2 tsp. nutmeg. Simmer for 1 minute. Remove from heat and set aside.

2.

"Crust"
Combine flour,cinnamon, and sugar. Cut in cold butter until mixture resembles crumbs. Stir 1/2 cup of this crumb mixture into the zucchini mixture.
Press 1/2 of the remaining flour mixture into a greased 13'x 9'x 2' baking pan. Pour zucchini mixture over top then top with remaining crumb mixture.

3.

Bake at 375 degrees for 35-40 minutes.

It is equally good warm or cool, but the best way is with vanilla ice cream. Hope you enjoy!!


Yesterday, Glenn made his mock apple pie for the dinner after church.  There were several ladies in the kitchen getting all the food set out.  They cut Glenn's pie & tried some of it - and were all raving about, wondering who had made the delicious apple crisp!  Anyway, someone told them that Glenn had baked it & it was zucchini - they all said in unison "no way!"  It was so funny!  BTW, there wasn't any left over  :(  everyone wanted the recipe... 
http://glennkathystroglodytecabin.blogspot.com/

You will know the truth & the truth will set you free

bayview


"Mock Apple Pie" . . .    Thanks for the recipe!

/.
    . . . said the focus was safety, not filling town coffers with permit money . . .


Homegrown Tomatoes

Tonight it is my girls' night to cook supper, as it is every Tuesday.  I have the stuff for them to make guacamole again, but then I'm also thinking maybe I'll teach them to make chicken enchiladas.  They LOVE Mexican food, so they'd probably be happy to do it.

MountainDon

We love green chili chicken enchiladas.

We found some rice based tortillas to help with avoiding wheat and gluten. We don't like them for burritos but with Hatch medium green chili sauce they made a good enchilada.
Just because something has been done and has not failed, doesn't mean it is good design.

glenn kangiser

Quote from: bayview on November 08, 2010, 02:03:52 PM

"Mock Apple Pie" . . .    Thanks for the recipe!

/.

Made a couple more since.

I now add 2 packets of Hot Spiced Apple Cider mix to the cooking lemon juice and Zucchini.  Even harder to tell it's not apples.

Also allow the top to brown a little even if it takes another 10 to 20 minutes - depends on the oven.

You can also up the zucchini to as much as 12 cups or so - add a bit more lemon juice.  I used about a cup of lemon juice today.

I also add extra cinnamon and nutmeg.

Experiment - adjust to suit you - then enjoy it... [hungry]

"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

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Homegrown Tomatoes

Well, Don, we didn't use tortillas either tonight!  Turns out the ones I just bought and stored in the fridge, which don't "expire" for another week, were moldy all along one edge.  So, seeing as we had the filling all ready to go and were just in want of tortillas, I rushed and made a stack of blue corn crepes instead.  The crepes were different sizes and not perfect circles because our stove isn't quite level, so instead of wrapping stuff up in them, we layered them like a lasagna.  It should be interesting. ??? :o  If nothing else, the kids make good guacamole at least. 

Glenn, I am really wishing I had some squash to try your recipe with.... it looks great. 


Sassy

Homey, you're welcome to come over & get some  :)

Your talking about tortillas & stuff to put in them made me think of something I make out of spinach or Swiss chard.

I steam the spinach or chard, add some green onions & cilantro & then melt pepper jack cheese in it & mix it together - then I brown the flour tortillas & put the mixture in them - yummy, for some reason, I just love them - they always seem to hit the spot & it's easy to fix.  Besides, you're getting your vegetables.

BTW, I got up this morning & Glenn surprised me with a mock apple crisp right out of the oven!   Yummm, it was good - had some for breakfast!  I'd been saying, "I sure wish we'd had some of that apple (zucchini) crisp left over" - all I'd had was a little bite of it at the dinner at church.
http://glennkathystroglodytecabin.blogspot.com/

You will know the truth & the truth will set you free

Homegrown Tomatoes

It was GOOOOOD.  They planned to make flan, too, but ran out of time because of making crepes, so, we improvised!  A dozen eggs, some sugar, cream, pinch of salt, cinnamon, and vanilla into a small lidded casserole, and all that into a stock pot with 4" of water up the sides of the casserole, lid on, heat on, and voila!  steamed egg custard that wasn't beautiful to look at, but tasted pretty darn good.

glenn kangiser

Homey, yesterday I picked about 40 lbs of zucchini.  Big ones - had to use the wheelbarrow to bring them in from the garden.  I'd be glad to share. :)
"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

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Windpower

I am not sure if I have posted this one before

but today is chili day

I added some of the poblanos (anchos) from our garden this year

so far it smells wonderful


Ding Dong Eight-Alarm Chili
Gourmet  | September 2003

recipe reviews (53) photo my notes find out more user rating
88% would make it again


yield: Makes 8 servings

active time: 1 3/4 hr

total time: 6 1/2 hr (plus 1 to 2 days for flavors to develop)

'80S THE COSBY SHOW
In the well-appointed Huxtable kitchen ("The Drum Major" first aired on February 4, 1988), Cliff explains to his family...

more ›

Ingredients
2 oz dried ancho chiles (4 large), stemmed and seeded
6 large garlic cloves, 3 of them finely chopped
1 tablespoon salt, or to taste
1 1/2 tablespoons ground cumin
1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder (not pure chile)
4 lb well-marbled beef brisket or boneless chuck, trimmed and cut into 1 1/2- to 2-inch pieces
3 to 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 (28- to 32-oz) can whole tomatoes in juice
1/4 cup canned chipotle chiles in adobo
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
1 1/2 lb white onions, chopped (4 cups)
1 tablespoon dried oregano (preferably Mexican), crumbled
1 to 4 fresh serrano or other small green chiles, finely chopped, including seeds (1 is fine for most tastes; 4 is the eight-alarm version)
1 (12-oz) bottle beer (not dark)
2 cups water
2 1/2 cups cooked pinto beans (optional; 30 oz), rinsed if canned


Accompaniments: cubed avocado; chopped white onion; shredded Cheddar; chopped fresh cilantro; sour cream
print a shopping list for this recipe


PreparationSoak ancho chiles in hot water to cover until softened, about 30 minutes. Drain well.

While chiles soak, mince 1 whole garlic clove and mash to a paste with 1/2 tablespoon salt, 1/2 tablespoon cumin, and 1/2 tablespoon chili powder. Pat beef dry and toss with spice mixture in a large bowl until coated.

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a wide 6- to 7-quart heavy pot over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then brown beef in 3 or 4 batches, without crowding, turning occasionally, about 5 minutes per batch (lower heat as needed; spice mixture burns easily). Transfer beef as browned to another bowl. (Do not clean pot.)

Purée anchos in a blender along with tomatoes (including juice), chipotles in adobo, cilantro, remaining 2 whole garlic cloves, and remaining 1/2 tablespoon salt until smooth.

Add enough oil to fat in pot to total 3 tablespoons, then cook onions and chopped garlic over moderate heat, stirring and scraping up brown bits from beef, until softened, 8 to 10 minutes. Add oregano, remaining tablespoon cumin, and remaining tablespoon chili powder and cook, stirring, 2 minutes. Add chile purée and 1 chopped serrano and simmer, stirring, 5 minutes. Stir in beer, water, and beef along with any juices accumulated in bowl and gently simmer, partially covered, stirring occasionally and checking often to make sure chili is not scorching, 2 hours.

Taste sauce, then add more serrano if desired and continue to simmer, partially covered, until beef is very tender and sauce is slightly thickened, 1 to 2 hours more. (If chili becomes very thick before meat is tender, thin with water as needed.)

Coarsely shred meat (still in pot) with 2 forks and cool chili completely, uncovered, then chill, covered, 1 to 2 days to allow flavors to develop.

Reheat over low heat, partially covered, stirring occasionally, until hot, about 30 minutes. Add beans (if using) and simmer, stirring, 5 minutes


Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Ding-Dong-Eight-Alarm-Chili-108488#ixzz15I0qfhiE
Often, our ignorance is not as great as our reluctance to act on what we know.

Homegrown Tomatoes

Korean curry and rice here tonight... tasted good.  Ate too much.  :)


muldoon

I am quoting somthing from about a year ago.  I have continued to fine tune my chili recipe.  Have made it 4 times this fall. 
Funny enough, I won the chili contest at work with it 2 weeks ago.  Out of 9, they thought it was the best.  Good enough I am making it again tonight by request for tomorrows "Thanksgiving potluck" at work.  I am just revisiting the post to bring it up with the changes I think make it a tough better than before. 

Biggest changes:
1) drop the beans.  No beans.
2) no need for as many dried spices, more fresh peppers. 
3) dont add the tomatoe sauce and such in, let the meat simmer in the season for 20-30 minutes first. 
4) add some venison sausage, this year I have been using the cheese & jalepeno venison sausage I made the Monday after opening weekend.  It is 75 venison/25 pork, cheddar+garden jalapenos. 

Quote from: muldoon on January 03, 2010, 01:24:53 AM
I have been playing with this recipe all fall, and have made it 5 times in the last few months.  I even took some deer meat to Colorado to make it for my inlaws; made it again for new years day at my aunts house.  It's gotten great feedback and reviews.  I think it's worthy of being called a damn good chili recipe.

big batch - but it can be halved easily enough.

4 lbs ground deer meat - this was ground 80% verison, 20% pork.  the deer was from thanksgiving weekend. 
3 tomatoes
2 green bell peppers
2 green poblano peppers
2 serranos
3 jalapenoes
2 bunches of spring onions/scallion onions
2 big yellow onions
2 big red bell peppers
1 15 ounce can goya black beans  -- nope.  dont need these. 
Quote
1 14 oz can del monte diced tomatoes
3 8ounce cans hunts tomatoe sauce
paprika
garlic powder  -- nope, put some smashed garlic in with the meat and onions at step one. 
Quote
ground cumin
cayenne pepper
chili powder
dried chopped onion

-- nope.  these are just weak.  add 2 or 3 habaneros to the pepper compliment.  or just some more serranoes if you want it slightly milder.  As for dried onion, what was I thinking? 
Quote
mustard seeds
kosher salt



veggies all washed and prepped.  these are going on the grill. 



grilled the peppers and tomatoes and spring onions until blackened.  turn every now and then, cook them over fire until they are slightly blistered and blackened.



at the same time inside, heat up a big pan and toss in some olive oil. 
cut the yellow onions up and begin cooking them in the pan, once they start to soften up a bit and are getting carmlelized add the meat.  brown the meat and the onions together. 



back at the grill, once the peppers are done and nicely blistered and black, submerge them in ice water, blanching them to stop the cooking.  under the sink run cold water and was them off.  the black part can easily be peeled right off the peppers and disacrded.  Whats left is is a very sweet and roasted flavored pepper.  the black part is bitter - thats why you remove it.  Once you peel off the blackened bits, sliced and chop them into chunks about nickle size.   Once the meat is all browned, add the shopped peppers in. 



after about 5 minutes, it should look like this:

---
DUMP the spices in here.  dont let it dry out.  add a beer or so if needed.  Let it simmer for about 20 minutes for that meat to really soak in the spices. 

3 tablespoon ground cumin
1.5 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon mustard seeds

This is also when I add the sausage.  It's been grilled outside, then sliced thin, then cut in half, so each "chunk" is about 3/8" cubed or so. 

Quote

once the liquid from the peppers has filled the pot up a bit -like above picture -
add:
1 can diced tomatoes
3 cans tomatoe sauce
3/4's a bottle of beer.  lucky you gets the rest. 
mix it up well and let it sit for about 10 minutes.

simmer 3 hours.



--
serve with chopped onions, shredded sharp cheddar cheese, frito scoops, cold beer. 
(the chili is not that spicy, as we have small kids we "spice up" our bowls, this is done with some extra spicy hot sauce added just into the final bowl and mixed in.)



OlJarhead

On the menu today :)

Dinner Rolls made from home milled flour (Honey Whole Wheat recipe)
Smoked Turkey (mesquite)
Smoked Ham
Roast Turkey (that's right, we do two!)
Riced (or mashed not sure yet) potatoes
Turkey Gravy
Southern Cornbread Dressing (mom's recipe that came across the country in a wagon I hear)
Cranberry Jelly
Olives (black)
Green Bean Casserole
Pumpkin Pie

And I'm probably forgetting a few!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone :)

glenn kangiser

Sassy is working so her church friends invited me over..... all of the above I think and more plus a full platter of desert - I mean just for me - taking a small sample of most of the desserts... I'm over stuffed - then they sent me a plate and a container of food to take home... something to be thankful for right there.... :)
"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

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MushCreek

I did a full Thanksgiving dinner yesterday single-handed, since the wife had to work. I do the turkey on the smoker, with a drip pan underneath. The smoky drippings then go into gravy! I made pies from scratch, and a huge loaf of country french bread. It comes out almost as big as the turkey. To top it off, we were entertaining my son's girlfriend's family for the first time, so the pressure was on. Luckily, I didn't screw anything up. I guess if you do something enough times, you kinda get the tune in your head.
Jay

I'm not poor- I'm financially underpowered.

OlJarhead

Quote from: MushCreek on November 26, 2010, 08:15:52 AM
I did a full Thanksgiving dinner yesterday single-handed, since the wife had to work. I do the turkey on the smoker, with a drip pan underneath. The smoky drippings then go into gravy! I made pies from scratch, and a huge loaf of country french bread. It comes out almost as big as the turkey. To top it off, we were entertaining my son's girlfriend's family for the first time, so the pressure was on. Luckily, I didn't screw anything up. I guess if you do something enough times, you kinda get the tune in your head.

Good show!

I never use the drippings from the smoker but I use a 'wet' pan in my Weber Bullet (the pan is full of water which helps keep the temp just right and provide moisture). so I might not want to.

Anyway,  [cool] on the going it alone and doing it the hard way!  I LOVE to cook for Thanksgiving that way :)  TO me it's the only way!

Shawn B

Made some fried pumpkin the other morning. Cut the pumpkin in approx 1/2 thick  long strips. Put them in a egg/milk wash and then into a hot cast iron skillet of oil (I like coconut oil). cooked approx 7-10 minutes a side, or until very tinder. Just before lifting spoon on a mixture of brown sugar and cinnamon. Serve with maple syrup and fresh fruit/berries, apply more brown sugar and/or cinnamon as needed. Coffee, hot apple cider to wash it down  :) :)
"The natural liberty of man is to be free from any superior power on Earth, and not to be under the will or legislative authority of man, but only to have the law of nature for his rule." Samuel Adams


glenn kangiser

"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

Glenn's Underground Cabin  http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=151.0

Please put your area in your sig line so we can assist with location specific answers.

Homegrown Tomatoes

I made whole wheat sweet potato rolls, but since the sweet potatoes were still baking, I substituted some pumpkin we grew.  They were really good but I forgot the salt... good thing I had salted butter.  Cranberry-orance sauce, roast turkey, corn on the cob, baked whole sweet potatoes with cinnamon and butter, broccoli/cauliflower salad, coleslaw, homemade down to grinding the wheat for the crust apple and pumpkin pies (pumpkin pies were made with our chickens' eggs, pumpkin we grew, and honey from our bees.... hopefully next year we can add to that list milk from our goats... we ground the wheat, but didn't grow it.)  Girls also made an extra pumpkin pie and took it to our neighbor.

Shawn B

Pinto beans, onions, ham, cornbread..
"The natural liberty of man is to be free from any superior power on Earth, and not to be under the will or legislative authority of man, but only to have the law of nature for his rule." Samuel Adams

glenn kangiser

Winter is a great time for barbecuing any day of the week.  We always have a nice bunch of Oak coals going in the old 1920 Round Oak wood stove.  It is our everyday heater and keeps the place nice and toasty all winter long.

We have a barbecue basket that works great after the wood is burned down.  Tonight on the way home I stopped and got some well marbled Black Angus chuck steaks.  The chuck steaks they carry here are our favorite of all cuts....nice and juicy and cut like warm butter.  I rubbed them down on both sides with Montreal Steak seasoning then sizzled them to a crisp for a few minutes on each side...... yummy....  [hungry]



I mixed up some Mormon Potatoes and Sassy made a salad with fresh red and green leaf lettuce from our garden... last night we had fresh broccoli, cauliflower and Swiss chard.

Grub was fine and I'm full as a tick.... [waiting]
"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

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sparks

Every year at Christmas I try to buy something for the household....an new flatscreen or some other sort of the latest piece of uneccessary crap.

Well, this year I got a quarter beef .....the freezer is full......190 lbs of it!!!  ($452...did I get burnt??)


However, the wife thawed out this chunk of meat...sirloin roast I believe....and cooked it in the crock pot for around 8 hours.  With tators, onions, and some green stuff.

Best beef I've had in decades!!!!

The guy at the meat locker said it came from a small farm here in NW IL.

Gonna have it again for breakfast in the am.  :)      With toast. :D


sparks
My vessel is so small....the seas so vast......