Braised Bratwurst & German Style Potatoes

From Rachael Ray via The Food Network



Ingredients:
4 large Idaho potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
Salt
2 pounds bockwurst or bratwurst (veal or veal and pork)
Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling plus 2 tablespoons
4 slices center cut bacon
1 small yellow onion, chopped
1/2 cup white wine or white balsamic vinegar
2 rounded teaspoons sugar
1 cup chicken stock
1 generous handful flat-leaf parsley, chopped
Freshly ground black pepper

Directions:
Halve larger potatoes and leave small potatoes as is, cover with water, bring to a boil, season with salt and cook until tender, about 8 to 10 minutes.

Place sausages in a cast iron skillet, add 1/2-inch of water and a drizzle of oil. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium and let the sausages heat through as the water evaporates. Shake pan and let the casings crisp up until they burst, 3 to 4 minutes, and are golden brown. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Put a medium skillet on the stove with a drizzle of olive oil and heat over medium-high heat. Add chopped bacon and render 2 to 3 minutes then stir in the yellow onion and cook for 5 minutes with the bacon to soften.

When potatoes are cooked, drain and add to bacon and onion. Douse the pan with vinegar and sprinkle with sugar. Pour stock evenly over pan, add the parsley and some pepper and turn off the heat. Stir the potatoes 1 minute to form a starchy sauce and combine flavors.

Halve crispy sausages and serve with the potatoes alongside.

Comments:
There's some cabbage slaw thing that I skipped on this recipe. Cuts the prep pretty much in half. This recipe wasn't too difficult. I just had time coordination problems. It takes so long for water to boil. I want one of the induction cooktops that boils water in 90 seconds or whatever. Too bad they're completely out of my price range. Boo.

Anywho, Adam didn't like the vinegar in the potatoes, but was fine with the meat. Why am I not surprised?

Holiday Baked Ham

From Taste of Home



Ingredients:
1 fully cooked smoked half ham (6 to 7 pounds)
1 tablespoon whole cloves
1/4 cup apricot preserves
1 tablespoon butter
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

Directions:
Place ham with fat side up in a shallow roasting pan. Score fat in a diamond pattern; insert cloves into cuts. Bake, uncovered, at 325° for 1 hour and 15 minutes. In a small saucepan, combine the preserves, butter and mustard; heat through. Spoon over the ham. Bake, uncovered, 30 minutes longer or until a meat thermometer reads 140°. Remove cloves before slicing ham.

Comments:
This is what I made for our Christmas dinner, actually eaten Christmas Eve.



I left out the cloves because they're gross. I'm not a ham person, but the glaze was pretty good. Once I got rid of all that fat there. Yuck. I filled up mostly on vegetables. I'd try this one again though. It actually was done in the time they prescribed, unlike most pork recipes that seem to take twice as long to reach the right temperature...

Weekly Menu 12/26 through 1/1/10

Saturday 12/26 - Tilapia Baked in Couscous

Sunday 12/27 - French Onion Soup Mac & Cheese

Monday 12/28 - Lasagna Roll-Ups

Tuesday 12/29 - Carne Asada Tacos

Wednesday 12/30 - Chicken Taco Burgers

Thursday 12/31 - Tortellini-Shrimp Caesar Salad

Friday 1/1 - Braised Bockwurst with German-Style Potatoes

Teriyaki Pineapple & Pork Chops

From Taste of Home



Ingredients:
1 cup unsweetened pineapple juice
4 bone-in pork loin chops (8 ounces each)
1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary or 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 fresh pineapple
1/2 cup teriyaki sauce

Directions:
Place pineapple juice in a large resealable plastic bag; add pork chops. Seal bag and turn to coat; refrigerate for up to 2 hours.

Drain and discard marinade. Combine the rosemary, garlic powder, salt and pepper; sprinkle over chops.

Peel and core pineapple; cut into eight spears. Grill chops and pineapple, covered, over medium heat for 4-6 minutes on each side or until a meat thermometer reads 160° and pineapple is tender, basting occasionally with teriyaki sauce.

Comments:
This is so simple - especially since Adam manned the grill. Ha ha! We skipped the spinach part of the original recipe and boiled up some edamame. Adam has recently become obsessed with it. So much so that we drove to Milwaukee today to Trader Joe's JUST FOR EDAMAME. So sad. Seriously people, if you know where we can get edamame in the shell closer to here (that'd be Neenah), let me know. At least the weather wasn't horrible.

Anyway. The flavor of the pineapple and teriyaki together is mighty good. I'm not a fan of pork, but I ate my whole chop.

Omelet Croissants

From Taste of Home



Ingredients:
3 eggs
1 tablespoon water
1 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules
1 green onion, finely chopped
2 tablespoons finely chopped sweet red pepper
1/4 teaspoon lemon-pepper seasoning
1/2 teaspoon butter
2 croissants, split
4-1/2 teaspoons ranch salad dressing
4 slices Canadian bacon
4 slices Muenster cheese
1/2 cup fresh arugula
4 thin slices tomato

Directions:
In a small bowl, whisk the eggs, water and bouillon; set aside.

In a small nonstick skillet over medium heat, cook the onion, red pepper and lemon-pepper in butter until tender.

Add egg mixture. As eggs set, push cooked edges toward the center, letting uncooked portion flow underneath. When eggs are completely set, fold omelet in half and cut into two wedges.

Spread croissants with salad dressing. On croissant bottoms, layer the bacon, omelet, cheese, arugula and tomato. Replace croissant tops.
Cook on a panini maker or indoor grill for 2-4 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Comments:
The picture above is Adam's - no tomato. Here's mine - with tomato, no spinach:



Yeah, I subbed spinach for the arugula since that's what I had here and we (well, ok, Adam) like it better. Also swapped Canadian for regular bacon and ranch dressing for mayo. I can't make an omelet to save my life. Once again I ended up scrambled eggs. There must be a secret I don't know...

Anyway, overall, good recipe. Adam was confused as to why you'd use croissants and then smoosh them in a panini press. He has a point, but the flaky texture is still present, although in a smooshed capacity.

(Drunken) Risotto with Grilled Chicken

From Everyday With Rachael Ray



Ingredients:
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon grill seasoning, such as Mccormick Montreal Steak Seasoning
6 skinless, boneless chicken thighs (about 1½ pounds total)
1 ounce dried porcini mushrooms
4 cups chicken broth
1 medium onion, finely chopped
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1½ cups arborio rice
2 cups Barolo (dry Italian) red wine
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh rosemary
2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Pecorino Romano cheese
2 cups arugula, shredded
2 cups baby spinach, shredded

Directions:
1. Preheat a grill or a grill pan to medium-high. In a shallow dish, combine the balsamic vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, 3 tablespoons of the EVOO and the grill seasoning. Add the chicken thighs and turn to coat evenly with the marinade.

2. In a small saucepan, heat the dried mushrooms and chicken broth over medium-low heat.

3. In a large skillet, heat the remaining EVOO, 2 turns of the pan, over medium heat. Add the onion, season with salt and pepper and cook for a couple of minutes to soften. Add the rice, stir to coat and cook for 1 minute. Add half of the wine; when it has been absorbed by the rice, stir in the remaining wine and the rosemary. When all of the wine is absorbed, ladle in some of the mushroom broth.

4. Place the marinated chicken thighs on the grill and cook for 7 to 8 minutes on the first side and for 5 to 6 minutes on the reverse side.

5. Add a ladle of the mushroom broth to the risotto every few minutes, stirring occasionally and cooking until absorbed. Remove the softened mushrooms from the broth and chop; add to the risotto. Cook the risotto until creamy and al dente, 20 to 22 minutes. Remove from the heat; stir in the butter and cheese.

6. Thinly slice the grilled chicken. Divide the risotto among shallow bowls and top each serving with the arugula, spinach and sliced chicken.

Comments:
I skipped the wine and mushrooms since I don't like either and Adam doesn't like the wine. (Also skipped the arugula and spinach, obviously.) I subbed additional chicken stock for the wine. Risotto's a little labor-intensive, but so worth it. Yum-a-licious. I grilled the chicken inside on the George Foreman since Adam was too involved in the football game to be bothered to turn the grill outside on. Men... :)

Sailor Sandwiches with Caesar Mayo

From Taste of Home



Ingredients:
1/4 cup 2% milk
1/4 cup cornmeal
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 cod or haddock fillets (6 ounces each)
1 tablespoon butter, melted
CAESAR MAYO:
4 teaspoons grated Parmesan cheese
4 teaspoons mayonnaise
4 teaspoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon ground mustard
1/4 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
SANDWICHES:
2 kaiser rolls, split and toasted
2 lettuce leaves
1 small tomato, thinly sliced
2 slices sweet onion

Directions:
Place milk in a shallow bowl. In another shallow bowl, combine the cornmeal, flour, cheese and seasonings. Dip fish in milk, then cornmeal mixture.

Place on a greased broiler pan; drizzle with butter. Broil 4 in. from the heat for 8-10 minutes or until fish flakes easily with a fork.

Combine the mayonnaise ingredients; spread over rolls. On roll bottoms, layer the fish, lettuce, tomato and onion. Replace tops.

Comments:
Fairly simple, although I never know when fish is done so I usually end up calling Adam over to check. I don't like fish and the fact that I ate half of this sandwich is pretty amazing. The mayo is yummy - I saved the leftovers of that and will probably throw it on something tomorrow for lunch. The fish is ok, but not my thing. Adam said it would be fine without the "sandwich" part too.

Weekly Menu 12/19 through 12/25

Saturday 12/19 - Sailor Sandwiches with Caesar Mayo

Sunday 12/20 - Drunken Risotto with Grilled Chicken

Monday 12/21 - Omelet Croissants

Tuesday 12/22 - Christmas Party for my workplace

Wednesday 12/23 - Teriyaki Pineapple and Pork Chops

Thursday 12/24 - Our Christmas dinner - we've got a ham in the freezer and I'll probably go with something like this

Friday 12/25 - Christmas dinner at Adam's parents' house

Marinated London Broil

From Cooking Light



Ingredients:
1/2 cup chopped shallots
1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons fresh thyme
1 teaspoon dried oregano
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 (2-pound) boneless top round steak, trimmed
Cooking spray
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions:
1. Combine first 8 ingredients in a large zip-top plastic bag. Pierce steak with a fork. Add steak to bag; seal. Marinate in refrigerator 2 hours, turning every 30 minutes.

2. Preheat broiler.

3. Remove steak from bag; discard marinade. Scrape shallots and garlic from steak; discard shallots and garlic. Place steak on broiler pan coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle steak evenly with salt and pepper. Broil 4 inches from heat for 6 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Let stand 10 minutes before slicing against the grain.

Comments:
I had vacation this afternoon (and all next week - woo!) so I had the time to marinate this for two hours, turning every half hour. I cooked it 6 minutes each side on the high broil setting and this is how it came out. A little under-done for my tastes (I'm a "no red, absolutely no chance of my food moo-ing at me" kind of girl) but Adam liked it. He was more taken by the cornbread stuffing. Yes, Stove Top, but we'd never had the cornbread stuff. I think I probably picked up a box by mistake, but he is now insisting we get more. *sigh*

Project Feed Me Recap

So, I kind of missed the end of the nine weeks, but better late than never right?

Week 1: Chili
Week 2: Tuna
Week 3: Mac & Cheese
Week 4: Boxed Dinner
Week 5: Peanut Butter
Week 6: Beans
Week 7: Canned Fruit
Week 8: Canned Veggies
Week 9: Boxed Rice



We took our food along to the meeting on Tuesday since we were having a food drive. We collected a lot of food! Probably four times what we got last year. I'm thinking it helped that we put a note in the newsletter and had a raffle with each item getting you a free ticket.

I didn't win anything. Boo.

Thanks to Natalie for coming up with the concept and leading the pack. Hope she puts together another one!

Sausage, Potato, and Cheese Waffles

From Everyday With Rachael Ray



Ingredients:
1 link sweet Italian sausage (about 3 ounces), casing discarded
1 baking potato, grated and excess water squeezed out
4 tablespoons butter
1 3/4 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 1/4 teaspoons pepper
2 cups milk
2 large eggs, lightly beaten

Directions:
1. In a medium skillet, cook the sausage over medium-high heat, breaking it up with a fork, for 5 minutes. Add the potato and butter, lower the heat and simmer until the butter is melted, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool, about 10 minutes.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cheese, parsley, salt and pepper. Stir in the milk and eggs until smooth. Stir in the sausage-potato mixture.

3. Using a waffle maker, cook the waffles according to the manufacturer’s directions.

Comments:
Now first off, let's just say these waffles are named in kind of mis-leading manner. Yes, there is sausage, potato, and cheese in the batter. But you don't taste the cheese or potato. And only taste the sausage when you bite into a chunk. Mostly what you taste is pepper and baking powder. So go easy on the pepper.

All in all, not a hard recipe to figure out. I don't really do waffles so much so Adam ended up manning the waffle iron. Division of labor and all that... I'm not sure I really liked these too much for the aforementioned imbalance of flavors. Or maybe I just don't like waffles. Who can say?

Breaded Pork & Mozzarella Stacks with Broccoli

From Everyday With Rachael Ray



Ingredients:
1/4 pound mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced
8 pork cutlets (about 2 pounds), pounded thin
Salt and pepper
1/4 cup flour
2 large eggs, beaten
1/4 baguette, finely ground (about 3 cups breadcrumbs)
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 head broccoli—broken into small florets, plus stems peeled and thinly sliced crosswise

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 250°. Divide the mozzarella among 4 pork cutlets; top with the remaining 4 cutlets. Season with salt and pepper. Place the flour, eggs and breadcrumbs in three separate shallow bowls. Coat the pork stacks in the flour, then in the eggs, then in the breadcrumbs.

2. In a large skillet, heat 1/4 cup olive oil over medium-high heat. Add 2 pork stacks and cook, turning once, until golden, 4 to 6 minutes. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined baking sheet and keep warm in the oven; repeat with 3 tablespoons olive oil and the remaining 2 pork stacks.

3. Wipe out the skillet and return to the heat. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, the garlic, broccoli and 2 tablespoons water; season with salt. Cook until crisp-tender, 3 to 5 minutes. Serve with the pork stacks.

Comments:
Since I was only making two I skipped the whole oven part. One thing I'll never understand is why they tell you to use so much more flour/breadcrumb mixture than you'll ever need. 3 cups of breadcrumbs for four "stacks"? That's ridiculous and a total waste of bread. I had a little less than one cup in the bowl for two and used less than 1/4 of them. I don't get it.

Anyway, simple prep and execution, though I never seem to be able to get my oil at the right temp to cook the meat but not burn it a bit. Eh, still tasted fine, and just look at that cheese ooze out! I might not have been at my best since I had a creepy audience most of the time I was in the kitchen tonight:



That's Carly on the counter on the left, Connor is in the hall, and you can see part of Ted on the right side on the floor. JC was in the cat room eating, otherwise I'm almost certain I could have had all four of them staring at me at one time. Freaky!

Christmas Party 2009

We had a decent turnout - maybe 20 people - which makes it hard to say we won't do it again. The hit of the party was our new Keurig coffee maker:



So easy, not too ridiculously expensive.

I didn't make as much food as I had last year (although I did manage to blow a circuit and completely fry a surge protector. Whoops.) and most of the leftovers we did have were taken by Chris and Sarah. We just have a lot of cookies. I mean, dozens. I'll probably take them to work this coming week before they get too stale.

All told, a success. We'll have to see where things are when we determine if we do this again next year.

Weekly Menu 12/12 through 12/18

It's been a rough couple of weeks. My grandfather passed away on the 3rd so right after our Christmas party last Saturday we hopped on a plane to Pittsburgh. The whole trip was one thing after another - messed up bookings, lost reservations, cancelled flights. But the service was nice and it was good to see relatives we don't get to hang with very often. And then we came home to 5 feet of snow in the driveway and a week's worth of work that hadn't gotten done. Sometimes being an adult sucks.

Anyway, we're back and getting caught up. I'd backtrack and post this past week's menu, but it was mostly eating out while out of town and leftovers from our party (although Adam's brother-in-law was nice enough to take most of those home with him so we didn't have too much sitting here.)

And so we move onward to this week:

Saturday 12/12 - Breaded Pork and Mozzarella Stacks with Garlic Broccoli

Sunday 12/13 - Adam's grilling some steaks

Monday 12/14 - Chicken in the slow cooker

Tuesday 12/15 - Christmas Party for my professional association

Wednesday 12/16 - Marinated London Broil

Thursday 12/17 - Sausage, Potato, and Cheese Waffles

Friday 12/18 - Chicken Quesadillas (Biggest Loser Cookbook)

Spicy Turkey (or Chicken) Jack Flats

From Everyday With Rachael Ray



Ingredients:
1 pound store-bought pizza dough
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
2 onions, thinly sliced
Salt and pepper
8 ounces pepper jack cheese, shredded
1/3 cup mayonnaise
2 cups shredded Butter-Basted Turkey meat
One 5-ounce bag baby spinach
Lemon wedges, for serving

Directions:
1. Position a rack in the lower half of the oven, place an inverted large baking sheet on the rack and preheat to 500°. Divide the pizza dough into 6 pieces and roll into balls; transfer to a lightly floured surface and cover with a towel.

2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions, season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and golden, about 12 minutes.

3. Stretch the dough balls into 7-inch rounds. Brush each round with 1 teaspoon olive oil; place on 3 sheets of parchment paper.

Comments:
I altered the recipe a little bit. (What? I never do that...) I used chicken because, well, that's what I have. This was from the November issue and I guess you're supposed to use leftover turkey. I do have a turkey downstairs in the freezer, but since we didn't host the meal here, I had no leftovers. Also, I skipped the pizza dough fuss and just bought flatbread at the store. Much easier if you ask me. So, other than that I stuck to the plan. These were tasty - not too spicy.

Cheeseburger Meatloaf

From Everyday With Rachael Ray



Ingredients:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for greasing
1 red onion, finely chopped
2/3 cup ketchup
2/3 cup bread crumbs
2 large eggs
1/2 cup bread-and-butter pickle chips, chopped
1-1/2 pounds ground beef
8 ounces cheddar cheese, cut into 1/3-inch cubes

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 400°. Lightly oil a rimmed baking sheet. In a medium skillet, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring until slightly softened, about 3 minutes.

2. In a large bowl, combine the ketchup, bread crumbs, eggs and pickles; mix in the onion. Crumble in the beef, add the cheese and mix together. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet and shape into a 4-by-12-inch loaf. Bake until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center registers 160°, about 35 minutes.

3. Let the meatloaf rest for 5 minutes before slicing.

Comments:
This was pretty simple. I skipped the cooking of the onions step, and they still had a nice crunch when the meatloaf was done. All in all, a great combination of things. Of course, Adam noted it could be even better if it was BACON cheeseburger meatloaf. *sigh* That man and his bacon obsession... The picture is kind of gross, but I think that's because I didn't wait 5 minutes to slice it and the new light in the kitchen is messing with the camera and I can't get a good picture of anything in there.

Unintended Hiatus

I'll be back soon - after I clean up the chaos of unexpected vacation from work during month-end and a blizzard.