Roots n Leaves Hash

This recipe comes from the collaborative minds of Beast and Laurel. We had some greens that were needing cooked, and this is what came of it.

Ingredients:

3-4 tbsp oil
2 medium parsnips
1 rutabaga
1 turnip
5-6 small red potatoes
1 bunch swiss chard
1 small onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp smoked paprika
2 tsp oregano
Salt & pepper to taste
1 egg, fried
1 kielbasa  (or other smoked sausage)

Dice up all the root veg, and toss into a hot pan with the hot oil. Cook for 5 minutes. Add the herbs and seasonings. Cook for another 5 minutes, then add the sausage. Fry till the root veg and sausage are almost browned. Toss in the cut up swiss chard. Cook till everything is browned and crispy, stirring as needed so as to not burn.

Plate the veg mixture, topped with the fried egg. A little smoked Chipotle tabasco, some grated cheddar, a dash of ketsup.. yum!

For the vegetarian, fry the sausage in a separate pan, and add to the plate after the vegetables.

 For those watching carbs, here's your break down. A single serving, roughly a cup and a half of hash = 34ish grams of carbohydrates. 

1 medium parsnip - 19 grams
1 rutabaga - 24 grams
1 turnip - 6 grams
1 small red potato - 34 grams
1 cup swiss chard - 1 gram
1 small onion - 6 grams
1 clove garlic - 1 gram
1 tsp smoked paprika - 1/2 grams
2 tsp oregano - 0 grams
Salt & pepper to taste - 0 grams
1 egg, fried - 1 gram
1 kielbasa - 21 grams

Oven-baked Country Style Bar-b-qued Pork Ribs

  

1 1/2 - 5 lbs. country style pork ribs, with or without bones
½  c. lemon juice
2 medium onions, sliced
2 c. water
1 ½  c. ketchup
½ c. vinegar
4 tbsp. brown sugar
2 tbsp. Soy sauce
1 tbsp. paprika
2 tsp. mustard
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper

½ tsp. Paprika

Line an 8x12 Pyrex casserole dish with a heavy foil. Trust me, this is IMPORTANT to your sanity when clean up time comes. Make sure the foil is up the sides as well, as this sauce is a pain to get off!  Put half the chopped onion in the bottom of the pan.

After trimming off the excess fat, place the ribs in the pan and sprinkle the remaining onion over the top. Pour the lemon juice over the ribs, and then brown in a preheated 375°F oven for 45 minutes, uncovered.

While the ribs are browning, combine the rest of the sauce ingrediants in a large pot and slowly bring to a simmer on top of the oven.

When the ribs have browned, pour off most of the liquid in the pan (save the onion) and add the sauce. It should be enough to fully cover the ribs. Add more water if needed, depending on how many ribs you have.

Cover the pan tightly with foil and bake at 425 degrees for 2 hours. Uncover the pan and bake for about 30 minutes more until the sauce cooks down. The meat should just about fall off the bones and the sauce is about half its original volume. We used boneless pork ribs, and they were DELICIOUS!

Crock Pot Chicken Marengo

Chicken Marengo was supposedly served to Napoleon after the battle of Marengo in Italy in 1800.  Don’t know if that’s really true, but I can tell you that it’s delicious.  It can be served over french bread, but we like it over rice.

 

1 whole chicken, chopped up and skinned
salt and pepper
1/4 cup flour
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced or pressed (or 1 tsp minced)
1 cup dry white wine
1 14-1/2 ounce can diced tomatoes
1 cup chicken broth
1 teaspoon dried thyme
12 ounces mushrooms, washed, dried and sliced
1 tablespoon cognac (optional)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil

As most crock pot meals, this recipe is fairly simple.Mix salt, pepper and flour in a bowl and dredge chicken breasts in it. Saute breasts in butter and oil until brown.  Place in crock pot.  Add onion and garlic to pan and saute about 5 minutes.  Add rest of ingredients, except fresh basil.  Stir and pour over chicken.  Cook on LOW 6-8 hours or HIGH 4-6 hours. Add fresh basil about 30 minutes before serving.  If using dried basil, add along with other ingredients.  Serve over bread or rice.

Split Peas & Smoked Ham Hocks Soup

Cold winter day. Wind is howling outside. Frost is covering every inch of anything exposed.. what better time to whip up a pot of something warm, thick, and delicious? If you are in the Pac Northwest, I recommend getting your ham-hocks from WinCo. They seem to have the best prices AND the best quality for their hocks. Lots of meat, little price, good deal.

You can cut this recipe in half, if you have a smaller family, or don’t like to deal with left overs. I make a LOT, and we take it for lunches.

2 bags dried split peas

6 cups chicken broth

6 cups water

1 onion, diced

3-4 celery stalks, sliced

4-5 cloves garlic, chopped

3-4 medium carrots, sliced

4 decent sized smoked ham hocks

In a large stock pot, heat 2-3 tablespoons oil. Add the onion, celery, garlic and carrots. Cook until tender and starting to brown, about 5 minutes. Add the water and stock, bring to a boil.

While this is coming to a boil, make sure you rinse and sort your peas. Make sure there is not sand or other chunky ‘things’ in them. They being a natural product, sometimes ‘foreign materials’ can sneak into the bags. Just give them a quick rinse, poke through them a few times, and you should be good.

After the stock/veggies come to a boil, add the peas, and lower the heat to medium. Add the ham hocks, and let cook until desired consistency. Some people like it thin, like soup. I prefer mine thick, like a chowder. Watch your fluid levels. If it gets too dry, add more stock or water. Too wet, let it cook longer. I typically allow mine to cook slow for a few hours.

This goes great with home made Parker House rolls, or garlic bread.

Potato Bacon Chowder

What’s better on these cold winter days than a hearty pot of potato soup? My mom used to make this all the time, but her recipe was always watery, which I never cared for. So I tweek it a bit, and made it this way instead.. I made a double batch, and between the three of us here at the house, it literally lasted four days, then was gone. Good stuff, and again, simple to make.

 

 

 

Ingredients

2 cups peeled, cubed potatoes

1 cup water

8 bacon strips

1 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped celery

1 tablespoon chopped garlic

1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted

1 3/4 cups milk

1 cup sour cream

1/2 teaspoon salt

Dash pepper

1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley

Directions

In a covered 3-qt. saucepan, cook potatoes in water until tender. Meanwhile, cook bacon in a skillet until crisp; remove to paper towels to drain. In the same skillet, saute onion, garlic, and celery in drippings until tender; drain. Add to undrained potatoes. Stir in soup, milk, sour cream, salt and pepper. Cook over low heat for 10 minutes or until heated through (do not boil). Crumble bacon; set aside 1/4 cup. Add remaining bacon to soup along with parsley. Sprinkle with reserved bacon. You can add some finely chopped chives, and grated cheese to the top as well. This truly brings out the flavours!

Hibernian Cider-flavoured Chicken

Hibernia is the Latin name for Ireland. This braised chicken dish, flavoured with cider and mushrooms, is made with typical Irish foods.

 

1 frying chicken, about 3 pounds, cut up

Salt & pepper

All-purpose flour

3 to 4 tbsp butter

1 slice bacon, diced

1 medium leek, white part only, cleaned and sliced

1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms

1 cup heavy cream

½ cup apple cider

Fresh watercress leaves (garnish)

Rinse chicken pieces, pat dry. Pull of and discard skin. Season with salt & pepper. Dip each chicken piece into the flour to coat lightly on all sides.

In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add chicken pieces and brown on all sides. With tongs, remove the chicken to a plate and keep warm.

Add the bacon and leeks to the drippings in the pan. Sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Add mushrooms; sauté about 3 minutes. Return the chicken pieces to the skillet. Pour in the cream and cider. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, covered, until chicken is tender, about 35 minutes. Season with salt & pepper, and serve garnished with watercress leaves. Makes 4 servings.

This dish can be made ahead of time, and cooked just before serving.

Smothered Turkey with Walnuts

A native of Persia, the large wrinkled walnut, a name derived from "wealth", meaning strange or foreign, became erroneously known as "English Walnut" because the nuts were carried around the world in English trading ships. In Gaelic lands walnuts came to be associated with feast day dishes as they were thought to bring good luck and good health.

Specialties called "smothered" include foods mixed or covered with other foods, a kind of hash. This one can be made easily from left over turkey, chicken, or any other sort of poultry you may have. Serve with a green salad and warm scones or soda bread for a brunch or supper!

2 tblsp butter
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
1/2 cup fresh asparagus (optional)
1 tsp curry  powder
1 tsp paprika
1 cup stale bread crumbs
4 cups diced cooked turkey
1/2 cup turkey gravy
salt & pepper
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley


In a large heavy skillet melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add onion, celery, and asparagus. Saute until vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in curry and paprika; saute about 1 minute. Add the bread crumbs, and saute until golden brown, about 5 minutes.

Add the turkey and gravy to the mixture in the skillet. Season with salt & pepper. Reduce heat to medium-low, and cook, covered, to blend the flavors, about 10 minutes. Stir in the walnuts, cream, and parsley. Increase the heat to medium high, and cook, stirring occasionally, until heated through, about 5 minutes. Spoon into a dish to serve. Makes 4-6 servings.

This dish can be partially made ahead, and cooked just before serving.