Cole Slaw

So, I love good homemade Cole Slaw. Not to toot my own horn, but I think I got it down pretty well. The Cole Slaw mix you get in the store is such a rip off and tastes like poop. Cole Slaw is cheap and easy to make and you will never buy the mix again. Follow a few simple rules and yours may turn out as tasty as mine.

1. Apple Cider Vinegar- If you want the tastiest Cole Slaw, you need to use Apple Cider Vinegar, not white vinegar, not red wine vinegar, Apple Cider only. Got it? Good.

2. Celery Seed- If you think you make good Cole Slaw and you don't use celery seed you are mistaken. Celery seed is a must, it gives it a little crunch, great flavor, and simply makes it taste like Cole Slaw. Use it!

My recipe is pretty simple, course I never really measure, I just add enough until it tastes how I like it, but I will try to estimate for all you folks out there in the Blogosphere.

Makes about 4 Servings

1/2 Head of Green Cabbage

1/4-1/2 Head of Red Cabbage

1 Carrot (grated)

1/2 Cup of Mayo

1-2 tbls of Apple Cider Vinegar

1- tbls of Sugar

1/2 tsp of Celery Seed

Salt and Pepper to taste

Half the head of cabbage, then cut into very thin shreds and mix with your carrot. I like to mix my "sauce" all together before I add it to the veggies. If you don't like it as creamy, use less mayo, if you like it creamier, add more. It's your world, I'm just livin in it. When you're happy with the "sauce" toss with the veggies to combine. Best made a day ahead to let everything come together. Enjoy!

Bacon Turkey Burgers

Decided to make some deluxe turkey burgers that turned out juicy and really tasty.  I used 99% lean ground turkey fried them in the iron skillet and finished them in the oven.  They turned out really flavorful and juicy...

Ingredients:

1/2 lb ground turkey (2 1/4 lb patties)
2 cloves of garlic
Parsley
1/4 Red onion
Chopped green olives
Bread crumbs
1 egg
salt
pepper
cayenne pepper
Gouda
Hickory smoked bacon

I combined the ground turkey, chopped garlic, parsley, chopped red onion, green olives, bread crumbs, egg, salt, pepper, and cayenne.  Cooked in the skillet and finished it in the oven with hickory smoked bacon and Gouda cheese melted over the top, put on a nice roll.  For the side I thinly sliced red potatoes, lightly seasoned and cooked them in the oven until they are almost crispy.

Pulled Pork Crock Pot Style

So it was way to cold to use the smoker with 6 inches of snow on the ground so I had to use the trusty crock pot again.  I used a dry rub with sliced onions and parsley, let it sit overnight and then added about 2-3 cups of water and some liquid smoke to give it some smokiness.  About 8 hours later it fell apart...


Ingredients:  Serves 6 (with some leftovers)

4 lbs of Boston Butt (pork shoulder)
1 red onion
Parsley
1 tablespoon of liquid smoke
garlic powder
cracked pepper
salt
ground mustard
cumin
paprika
cayenne pepper

Dry Rub:

Garlic powder
pepper
salt
ground mustard
cumin
paprika
cayenne pepper

Loose chop the onion and parsley and put on top of the pork.  Cook on low for 8-10 hours.  Shred the pork with two forks (should fall apart almost on its own).  Drain the liquid (great for other dishes later) and add the pulled pork back in the crock pot with a little juice and enjoy. 

Bacon Butter

Yeah. Thats right. Bacon Butter.

Ingredients:

1 stick of unsalted butter; room temp
3 strips bacon cooked and crumbled
2 scallions, sliced
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 tsp honey
salt and pepper to taste

Process:

Add bacon to food processor and chop until consistency of bacon bits. Add all other ingredients and blend until combined. Keep at room temp for best spreadability.

Nachos Carnitas

I attended an all dude, nfl playoff, mariokart on Wii, beer drinking, food-fest on Sunday. I had been wanting to make carnitas but since, another buddy already had the entree covered, I made my carnitas into nachos by adding fresh jalapenos, red onion, sour cream, cilantro and queso fresco. Turned out pretty good, however, I zested the oranges and limes before I baked that carnitas, and the exposed pith made the braising liquid too bitter. I got the recipe off of this blog:

http://www.bakingbarrister.com/2010/12/party-pork-pork-carnitas.html

Beef and Noodles

I made some pretty good beef and noodles last Sunday. The meat was really tender and fell apart. The more I put food in the crock pot I realize it never steers you wrong.

Ingredients for 4-6 servings:

2 lbs of beef (whatever is on sale at your store), cubed

2-3 cloves of garlic

1 chopped onion (red or white)

Salt

Pepper

Fresh Parsley

Olive oil

Cayenne pepper

Beef broth

Mushrooms (optional)

Green onions

Whipping cream (1 pint)

2 tablespoons of butter

Flour

Spicy Mustard

Rosemary

Egg Noodles

Sour Cream

First, I cubed about 2 lbs of beef (round, shoulder, whatever you want to use) and added salt, pepper, cayenne, fresh parsley, garlic, chopped onion and a little olive oil and let it sit overnight.

After it marinated overnight, add to crock pot with enough beef stock to cover the meat (I also use the leftover broth from other dishes and freeze it until I want it again). Add the mushrooms if you want them in the dish. Cook on low for 6 hours or until the meat is tender and falls apart with a fork.

Cook your egg noodles, al dente (we used about half the bag but adjust based on how many people you are cooking for).

In a pan melt: 2 tablespoons of butter, add a 1-2 ladles of beef broth from the crock pot and about half to three quarters of the whipping cream (depending on how much sauce you want). Stir in rosemary, salt, pepper, 1 tablespoon of spicy mustard and bring up to a boil to thicken. If you need to thicken a little more add a spoonful of flour and whisk.

Drain the beef broth from the crock pot (freeze it if you want to use again, which I recommend). Combine the beef, noodles and cream sauce in the crock pot, cook for a few minutes to thicken and combine and serve. Add a little sour cream and chopped green onion to each bowl and serve.

Jalapeno Cornbread with Honey Lime Butter

Sooo ... I had some left over braising liquid from my Mexican Pot Roast Tacos, and I didn't want to waste any of it. (Andy: You are the self-proclaimed braising king; do you ever use your left over braising liquid for anything?) I reheated it, reduced it, and blended it all together in my stand blender. Next, I tossed the sauce with some rigatoni, corn, and andouillee sausage. Topped it off with some shredded pepper jack cheese, baked it in the oven in a casserole dish, and I was sitting pretty. I decided to serve it with some jalapeno cornbread with honey lime butter. The butter was fantastic! One teaspoon of lime zest, one tablespoon of honey, and a bunch of butter (I only had unsalted butter, so I added some sea salt). I took the easy way out and used a box of T.J.'s cornbread mix, but I wish I would have made my own. (T.J.'s is a little too sweet for my liking.) Anyway, I just added a bunch of chopped jalapeno to the mix and cooked it in my cast-iron pan, which is the only acceptable way to cook cornbread - period.