Lime in the sides.

The pork was yummo!  To use another Food Network star's word for delicious.  The side dishes were traditional with a twist of lime.

Daughter bought five humongous ears of sweet corn and a head of green cabbage almost too big for my chef's knife to reach through.
First The corn:
Oldest grandson helped me shuck the corn.  He is so funny.  Three hours after I tried to get to taste the Barbecue sauce straight from the bottle he's still complaining that he won't like dinner, but wants to eat raw corn.

After a quick wash, I cut/broke each ear "half" and laid them in a microwave safe glass baking dish.  (13 X 9 inches) I sprinkled on a bit of salt and black pepper.  The Microplane made fast work of zesting a lime directly over the corn and a reamer made adding the juice of 1/2 lime easy.  Roll em over a couple times.  I sliced 1/4 inch slices from a cube margarine  and then cut each slice in half.  I carefully placed one piece of margarine on each cob section.  I covered the dish with it's microwave safe lid and put the corn in the fridge for an hour or so.

While the sauce was reducing, (see Pulled Pork?) I got the corn out.  In our microwave, that big baking dish requires that the turntable be turned off .  I just loosened a corner of the lid and put the dish in on high for 5 minutes.  Turned it around and gave it another 3 minutes.
Then the salad:

I stripped off the discolored outer leaves and gave the whole head a quick rinse in cold water.  This head was very heavy for its size (like a bowling ball, not a child's ball).  Sizing it up for surgery, I made sure it was FLAT on the bottom before I divided the head in two and removed the core. One half went back into a bag for another meal.  At this point, I really missed the food processor. (a small part broke making the slicer useless).  No trouble.  I just sliced the head into thirds parallel to the core and then shredded each third with the knife.

The rest of the ingredients:
2 ribs of celery, chopped
4 green onions, thinly sliced green and white parts
1/2 cup (+/-) Dried Cranberries
1/2 cup (+/-) Sunflower seeds (we like raw, unsalted)
Juice of 1/2 Lime
1/2 cup (+/-) light Mayonnaise
Salt (a couple shakes and a moment of silence)
Black Pepper (grind it until you think it's enough and then give it one more twist)

Mix it all together and chill an hour or so before dinner.  The sweetness of the cranberries will blend with tartness of the lime.  If your sunflower seeds are toasted, roasted, or otherwise cooked leave them out and add them to each serving.  (they get soggy)

Oh Yeah, the grandson who was going to hate dinner based on a drop of cold barbecue sauce -- He declared the entire meal to be the best he ever ate and asked for triple sauce on his second sandwich!

Pulled Pork?

Daughter went nuts at the store and brought home over $300.00 (US) of fresh meat and produce.  We're eating good stuff, but not fast enough since their schedule has them gone most of the time since she shopped.  She found a fantastic recipe for turkey (pork) cutlet with a rhubarb chutney and made that with about 1.3 pounds of the 4 or 5 pound pork loin  she bought.  The rest of the loin sat in the bottom of the fridge for a few days.

I watch Food Network too much.  Guy Fieri did a thing on pulled pork.  Claire Robinson did a thing on pulled pork.  Paula Deen... Well you get the idea.  I was ready for tender pork with BBQ sauce on a crusty roll with some cole slaw.

Crock Pots were made for this.  I always spray the crock first for easier clean up. (Cooking Spray has made life so much easier.)
I sliced a large onion into the bottom of our 6 quart slow cooker.  Added 1 teaspoon (+/-) ground coriander, 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin, 1/4 teaspoon (scant) ground cloves, and two bay leaves.  Then I salted (very lightly) and peppered (moderately) the trimmed, boneless pork loin pieces (I had three about 1, 1.5, and 2 pounds) and laid them over the onions.

I carefully removed the blasted squeeze top from a 16 ounce bottle of Sweet Baby Ray's Original Barbecue Sauce and poured it over everything.  I added a bit of water (1/4 cup?) to the bottle put the lid back shook it up and poured that in, also.  Then I rolled the meat over a couple times so it was well coated.  Washed my hands, clapped the lid on, set the cook time for 6 hours on high, and went to play on Facebook.

I had to go out a bout two hours later and my son-in-law was concerned about the high heat.  So we agreed to turn it down to low.  It still only cooked six hours.  It temped at 190+ F.

I carefully removed the meat to a bowl and broke it down with a table fork.  Pouring very carefully I put the sauce and drippings into a saucepan on the stove and brought it to a boil reducing it a bit. (From about 4 cups to 3 cups)

We served it on crusty wheat rolls by putting the "dry" meat on then ladling sauce over the meat to the taste of the diner before closing the roll.  We also had Cabbage Salad with craisins and sunflower seeds and roasted microwave corn-on-the-cob with lime "butter".  

Primate Bread

I told the boys I would make Monkey Bread today while they were gone.  (Mommy took them to Silverwood.)  The five year old told me that he was not a monkey so could I make "Dog Bread.""  I told him he wouldn't like bread made for dogs.

Daddy and I are saving the sticky bubbles for Mommy and the boys, but we've devoured a one pound loaf of swirled bread. with extra margarine.

I used my basic Whole Wheat Bread recipe.
2 cups lukewarm water
1 Tablespoon Molasses
1 Tablespoon Oil (canola)
1 Tablespoon Active Dry Yeast
1 teaspoon Salt
6 - 8 cups 100% Whole Wheat flour

Increased the Molasses and Oil to 3 Tablespoons each.
Added 2 eggs and 2 Tablespoons melted Margarine.

I beat 4 - 5 cups of flour with everything else for about 5 minutes in my 6 quart Kitchen Aid mixer.  Cover it up and let it rest for about an hour so the yeast gets working.  I just leave it on the mixer unless the kitchen is cold or drafty.

After it gets all bubbly and starts rising up the bowl I add another cup or three of flour and mix it until it forms a ball.  Give it a couple (2 -3 not more) minutes to build the gluten and take it off the mixer.

Topping:
For the Primate Bread I mixed:
1 1/2 cups finely chopped Pecans
1/2 cup fine shredded coconut
1 cup (packed) brown sugar
2 teaspoons allspice
1 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon cloves
1/4 teaspoon cardamom
Mix thoroughly.

Meanwhile I melted 1 1/2 sticks of dairy free soy margarine.

Assembly:
Spray a tube pan with cooking spray.  IF the pan has a removable bottom wrap it with heavy duty foil to prevent drips and place pan on baking sheet.

Pinch walnut (1 1/2 inch) sized lumps from the dough.  Dip into melted margarine  then roll in spiced sugar and nuts and place in prepared pan.  The pan should only be about  half full when you are done.  It's hard to describe how to lay the lumps into the pan  they should be touching each other without crowding.  remember they will rise about double in bulk.

I used about the recipe to make Primate bread.  The rest of the dough I turned into two small loaves - one plain, the other swirled with left over topping.

As usual, I preheated the oven to 185 F while I was shaping the bread.  Turned off the heat and turned on the oven light.  This makes a great place for yeast doughs to raise.  I left the two loaves and the Primate Bread alone in the warm for about 2 hours. then I turned the oven on to 350 F.  The loaves were done in about 40 minutes.  The Primate Bread took closer to an hour.

The eggs and the extra oil made a very soft dough.  The extra molasses gave it flavor that is often lacking in regular sweet doughs.

Oatmeal Cranberry Pecan Coconut Cookies

The "kids" are going to visit their other parents on the "right coast" by train. So The grandsons and I have been making goodies for the trip. First we made the original  Vanishing Oatmeal Raisin Cookie just reducing the fat to 1/2 cup, adding one-half cup of chopped pecans and substituting allspice for the cinnamon (allergy). They are good cookies but nothing to rave about. They might be better if Quaker told us to rehydrate the raisins before adding them to the dough. I suggest a bit (1/2 cup) of white grape juice, wine, or even plain water. Just let them soak while you prepare the the cookies and add the drained raisins when it calls for them.

Daughter wanted some with craisins instead of plain raisins so last night we made these.

Preheat oven to 350 F

In a small bowl measure

1 cup dried cranberries

1/2 cup white grape juice (or wine, apple juice, water)

Let soak while preparing cookies

On wax paper, or in adequate sized bowl combine:

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground Allspice (or cinnamon)

1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)

3 cups Quaker® Oats (quick or old fashioned, uncooked)

In Large Mixer bowl beat until creamy

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) Dairy free margarine (butter)
• 3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• Add:
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• Beat well, scraping down bowl often.

Add flour mixture carefully. It may be advisable to do this in two or three moves depending on your mixer. Mix well but do not over mix.

• Drain the cranberries and Add them to dough with:
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans (or walnuts, almonds)
• 1/2 cup shredded coconut

Mix it up. (I hit "Rock and Roll" on my big Kitchen Aid Mixer once but it's better if you mix the cranberries, nuts and coconut in by hand)

Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto parchment paper lined cookie sheets. (I use a cookie scoop and have silpats on my wish list. Parchment parchment paper is cheap and almost everybody sells it now.)

Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until light golden brown. Watch the cookies not the time. This last batch took 13 minutes. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire rack. Cool completely. Store tightly covered

These may not make it to the train.

Soba Noodles with my Teriyaki sauce

The other day our oldest daughter and I were in the health food  section of our local upscale supermarket and she found some Organic Soba Noodles on sale.  Normally we would have just purchased the not-cheese, not-sour cream, not-ice cream that we were there to buy, but buckwheat noodles just sounded yummy.

Last night our son-in-law and I made a chicken stir fry that used up almost all the fresh veggies in the house and that I'm having a hard time resisting the leftovers as I wait for the hours to tick down on a 12 hour fast.

The noodles are very starchy so they boiled over FAST.  Also they cook rapidly, so don't over do it.  And yes they do need to be rinsed or they clump.

I believe that meat is an ingredient not an end product.  If you think you need more meat in your stir fry, go ahead.

Sauce:
1/2 cup Low Sodium Soy Sauce
2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
2 Tablespoons Rice Wine Vinegar
2 teaspoons  Sesame Oil
2 rounded teaspoons pureed Ginger (I get mine in a jar from the grocery)
Combine in a jar and shake.

Noodles:
Bring 4 quarts of water to a boiil in a large pot. Add
3 bunches (about 9.5 ounces) Soba
Cook about 3 minutes. drain and rinse.


Meat:
Slice thinly
1 pound (3 or 4 small) Chicken breasts (boneless skinless)
Sprinkle with
3/4 teaspoon Grill Mates® Montreal Chicken Seasoning

Vegetables:
Wash and prep veggies.  Our son-in-law uses a large bowl to hold all the veggies until he's ready to cook.
1 head broccoli, chopped (the stem is good eating peel it and slice it thin.)
2 Bell Peppers, sliced thinly
1 yellow onion, sliced thinly
4 ribs celery, sliced thinly
8 ounces sliced Crimini Mushrooms (Baby Portabellas)
1/8 head green Cabbage, sliced very thin
Prep off to the side:
4 clove crushed garlic
1/4 cup fresh Thai Basil shredded  (We have plants)

In a very hot wok swirl about one tablespoon oil (we used extra virgin olive oil)  add 4 cloves crushed  garlic and the chicken..  Stir and toss until meat is done.  You want the meat to have some brown color but don't burn the garlic.  Add the sauce and bring it to a boil. stir well.  Transfer the chicken, sauce and all to bowl and return the wok to the heat.

Swirl in another tablespoon of oil.  Add all the vegetables.  stir and toss until until crisp tender.

Add back in the chicken and sauce.  Add the Soba and Thai Basil.  Stir and toss (a large fork with your spatula or using a salad set helps here) until everything is warmed through and well coated.

This fed three hungry adults and three boys with at least one serving left over.

Roast Pork Loin with Blueberry Sauce

Claire Robinson did her version on Food Network.  I saw a rerun recently and thought it sounded tasty.  Reading through Claire's recipe I knew I had to make some changes for this group.  The boys don't do spicy and I don't do pectin.  We were out of oranges and the loin Athena bought was over three pounds.  The grandkids seem to think I'm an Iron Chef.

Blueberry Sauce:
In a large saucepan (3-4 quart) over medium heat combine:
1/3 cup  Maple syrup
2 cups    Frozen Blueberries
2 peeled and seeded Tangerines, split into segments  (clean all the pith off!)
2 tablespoons Stone ground mustard (with horseradish)
Simmer for an hour or more until reduced by half more or less

Roast Pork:
Spray rack of broiler pan with cooking spray for easier clean up and non-stick cooking.
Trim any excess (more than 1/4 inch) fat and silver skin from pork loin Remove that plastic popup meat timer!
Rub entire surface of  meat with about 1 of Dijon mustard, sprinkle with salt, and dust with fresh ground black pepper.  (this can be done on broiler pan)

Broil on HI for 5 - 6 minutes (watch it carefully) with the meat about 6 inches from the heat source.  Flip it and broil the other side for 5 - 6 minutes.  Both sides should be beautifully brown.
Reduce oven temp to 350 F and insert meat thermometer.  Bake until internal temperature reaches 165 F.  Remove from oven, cover and let rest for at least 10 minutes.  Slice and serve with Blueberry Sauce.

I have a grandson who hates mustard and he ate thirds of the blueberry sauce.  I served this with a couscous pilaf that was more pilaf than couscous -- lots of veggies.  I want to try the sauce on chicken and turkey.

Secret Recipes and training

Our youngest daughter asked me for my/our potato salad recipe this evening. I said I'd blog it and she got upset because it's our family recipe. She said it should stay in the family.

There's nothing really secret about the recipe some of it I stole from my mother-in-law, some of it is just trial and error that worked out over the years. I finally wrote it down when the kids got old enough to leave home so that they could have the blueprint. I make it a bit differently every time.

We have several "secret recipes" some I haven't written down yet. After some five decades of cooking, I don't know what was my idea and what I took from another cook. I learn new tricks all the time. I can't teach what I do to everyone because I don't what it is that do.

Cooking is an art. The secret is there is no secret. It is all training, practice, and a bit of talent. I've said that wrong. If I compare cooking to painting-- anyone can be taught to smooth paint onto a flat surface, but once in a while someone comes along who can create a three dimensional view with the same paint on the same flat surface. In cooking, anyone can be taught the basics but sometimes there are people who can create substance from nothing. I'm not saying that I'm an artist in the kitchen (Grandma Moses) but I just do what I do based on instinct more than training.