Big Mike's Pork Chops and Rice

This is a simple recipe adopted from a Trisha Yearwood recipe. I like dishes you can throw in the oven and forget while you make the rest of dinner.

Ingredients
4 tablespoons butter
1 cup long grain white rice
4 pork chops, bone in
salt or steak and chop rub to taste
1/2 teaspoon pepper
One 10-ounce can beef broth, plus more if needed
4 onion slices (red or yellow), separated into rings


Directions
1- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2- Season pork chops on both sides with salt and pepper or your favorite steak and chop rub.
3- In a medium skillet, melt 1 tbs. butter over high heat. Brown pork chops on both sides to get a nice crispy crust and color, about 4 minutes per side. Remove from heat and reserve.
4- In the same skillet, melt 3tbs. butter over medium-low heat. Add the rice and saute until it is light brown, about 5 minutes.
5- Spread the rice in a 9- by 13- by 2-inch casserole. Arrange chops on top of the rice. Pour the broth and 2/3 cup water over the chops. Spread the onion rings over the chops and sprinkle them with the pepper. Cover the dish with aluminum foil and bake until the pork chops are tender, about 45 minutes.
6- Change the oven to broil, add a bit more broth if the rice is dry and return the dish to the oven for a couple of minutes until the pork is browned.

Serve with green beans, green bean and tomato salad or other green and red dishes for contrast, color and presentation.

Picture above is half recipe for two, utilizing red onions.

Dill Pickle Soup

As seen on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives
Recipe courtesy Ted Wietrzykowski, Polish Village Cafe

My wife is Polish and loves dill pickle soup.
I finally learned how to make it for her. It's pretty simple,
and it tastes great.

Ingredients
5 tablespoons butter or margarine
5 medium carrots, shredded
2 cups low sodium chicken broth
2 large potatoes, cubed (about 2 cups)
3 large dill pickles, shredded
3/4 cup flour
1 cup sour cream
Salt
Pickle juice

Directions
Saute carrots and potatoes in a saucepan.
Combine 3 cups water, chicken broth, butter, carrots and potatoes in the saucepan. Bring to a boil and cook until the potatoes are tender. Add the pickles and continue to boil.

Meanwhile, whisk together the flour, sour cream and salt in a separate bowl. Add enough water to make a paste, then slowly, to avoid curdling, add the mixture to the soup to thicken. Bring to a boil, then remove from the heat. Add pickle juice, to taste.

Big Mike's Greek Roasted Stuffed Peppers

Everyone has a stuffed pepper recipe. I borrowed the concept of mine from Ellie's Greek-Style Stuffed Peppers. After making it, posting the results getting some feedback from friends and family I modified it and the results were outstanding. The biggest thing I changed was to roast the peppers before stuffing them. I like the peppers to be softer than the original recipe made and I love the extra flavor from the roasting process. I also added lamb to the meat mixture. I mean, hey, this is supposed to be a Greek recipe, right? It doesn't matter if you make red or green peppers, you'll love this recipe.

Ingredients
1/2 pound lean ground beef
1/2 pound ground lamb
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1 medium zucchini, coarsely grated (about 2 cups)
1 small onion, minced (about 1 cup)
3/4 cup white rice (cooked)
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3 large red or green bell peppers, halved lengthwise, cores and ribs removed
2 (14 1/2-ounce) cans stewed tomatoes
3/4 cup good marinara sauce
1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese

Directions
Cut and core the peppers, then place them on a roasting pan open side down and broil them in the oven for 5-10 minutes (until they are scorched a bit and softened).
You can do this on the top burners of your stove also, I prefer doing them all at once in the broiler.
Remove from broiler and let cool.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl combine the beef, lamb, spinach, zucchini, onion, rice, egg, oregano, salt and a few grinds of pepper. Mix until thoroughly combined.

In another bowl combine the stewed tomatoes and marinara sauce and mash with a potato masher until the tomatoes are broken into smaller pieces.

Arrange the pepper halves cut side up in a 9 by 13-inch baking dish and fill each pepper half with the meat mixture. Pour the tomato marinara mix over the peppers. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake until the meat mixture is completely cooked and the peppers are tender, about 25 minutes longer.
Sprinkle with the feta cheese and serve.

Big Mike's Sausage Gravy

I've grown to have high expectations when I go out to eat because, frankly, I can usually cook something as good or better myself if I stay home. This is really true of breakfast. When I ask for my hash browns to be well done, I know what I'm expecting - nice crispy hash brown potatoes- not greasy grill tasting frozen potatoes. Omelets - don't get me started!

The last time I went out for breakfast I asked for well done hash browns and biscuits and gravy. Pleh, it was awful. More often than not, restaurant hash browns taste like burnt grease to me, but how can you screw up biscuits and gravy?

My recipe is simple and it makes the bomb gravy. I confess, I use store bought biscuits, like Pillsbury Grands or Grands Jr. I'm still working on my baking skills.

Ingredients
1 pound breakfast sausage (I use Bob Evans original)
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
3 cups whole milk
1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt (Lowry's is fine)
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper, more to taste (I like lots)
Biscuits, fresh out of the oven, for serving

Directions
1- Break the sausage into small pieces and add them in a single layer to a large heavy skillet. Brown the sausage over medium-high heat until no longer pink. Reduce the heat to medium-low.
2- Sprinkle on half the flour and let it soak into the sausage and cook. Add the rest little by little. Stir it around and cook it for another minute or so, then pour in the milk slowly, stirring constantly.
3- Cook the gravy, stirring frequently, until it thickens. This may take about 10 minutes.
4- Sprinkle in the seasoned salt and pepper and continue cooking until very thick and luscious. If it gets too thick too soon, just splash in another 1/2 cup of milk or more if needed.
5- Taste and adjust the seasoning.

Spoon the sausage gravy over warm biscuits and serve immediately!

Makes 4-6 servings

Giada's Beef and Cheese Manicotti

Giada's Beef and Cheese Manicotti

This dish took a lot of prep and a lot of thought. For example, I used a baggie with the corner trimmed off like a pastry bag to stuff the manicotti. I've never done this before, but it just seemed like a better idea than trying to stuff those pastas with my fingers or a spoon.

This turned out fantastic. I don't think I will change a thing.

Ingredients
4 teaspoons olive oil
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
1 pound ground beef
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
14 (8-ounce package) manicotti
1 (15-ounce) container whole-milk ricotta
3 cups shredded mozzarella
1 cup grated Parmesan
2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 cups marinara sauce
2 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces

Directions
Heat a heavy medium skillet over medium heat. Add 1 teaspoon of the olive oil, onion and ground beef. Season with salt and pepper. Saute until the meat browns and the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, and cool.
Brush 1 teaspoon of oil over a large baking sheet. Cook the manicotti in a large pot of boiling salted water until slightly softened, but still very firm to the bite, about 4 to 6 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the manicotti from the pot to the oiled baking sheet and cool.
Meanwhile, combine the ricotta, 1 1/2 to 2 cups mozzarella cheese, 1/2 cup Parmesan, and parsley. Add the garlic, salt, and pepper to taste, and mix. Stir the cooled meat mixture into the cheese mixture.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Brush the remaining 2 teaspoons of oil over a 13 by 9 by 2-inch glass baking dish. Spoon 1 1/2 cups of the marinara sauce over the bottom of the prepared dish. Fill the manicotti with the cheese-meat mixture. Arrange the stuffed pasta in a single layer in the prepared dish and spoon the remaining sauce over.
Sprinkle the remaining 1 1/2 cups of mozzarella cheese, then the remaining 1/2 cup of Parmesan over the stuffed pasta. Dot entire dish with the butter pieces. Bake the manicotti uncovered until heated through and the sauce bubbles on the sides of the dish, about 30 to 35 minutes. Let the manicotti stand 5 minutes and serve.

Tyler's Chicken Enchiladas

This recipe from Tyler Florence is a lot of work in prep time, about an hour. But it is so worth it. These are the best enchiladas I've ever made.

Total Time: 1 hr 15 min
Yield:16 enchiladas, 8 servings
Level: Intermediate

Ingredients
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 1/2 pounds skinless boneless chicken breast
Salt and pepper
2 teaspoons cumin powder
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon Mexican Spice Blend
1 red onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup frozen corn, thawed
5 canned whole green chiles, seeded and coarsely chopped
4 canned chipotle chiles, seeded and minced
1 (28-ounce) can stewed tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon all-purpose flour
16 corn tortillas
1 1/2 cups enchilada sauce, canned
1 cup shredded Cheddar and Jack cheeses
Garnish: chopped cilantro leaves, chopped scallions, sour cream, chopped tomatoes

Directions
1. Coat large saute pan with oil. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Brown chicken over medium heat, allow 7 minutes each side or until no longer pink. Sprinkle chicken with cumin, garlic powder and Mexican spices before turning. Remove chicken to a platter, allow to cool.
2. Saute onion and garlic in chicken drippings until tender. Add corn and chiles. Stir well to combine. Add canned tomatoes, saute 1 minute.
3. Pull chicken breasts apart by hand into shredded strips. Add shredded chicken to saute pan, combine with vegetables. Dust the mixture with flour to help set.
4. Microwave tortillas on high for 30 seconds. This softens them and makes them more pliable. Coat the bottom of 2 (13 by 9-inch) pans with a ladle of enchilada sauce. Using a large shallow bowl, dip each tortilla in enchilada sauce to lightly coat. Spoon 1/4 cup chicken mixture in each tortilla. Fold over filling, place 8 enchiladas in each pan with seam side down. Top with remaining enchilada sauce and cheese.
5. Bake for 15 minutes in a preheated 350 degree F oven until cheese melts. Garnish with cilantro, scallion, sour cream and chopped tomatoes before serving.

Serve with Spanish rice and beans.

Giada's Chicken Cacciatore

Adapted from Giada De Laurentiis' recipe on Foodnetwork.com. I used boneless skinless meat to reduce the fat and I used some pickled red peppers I had leftover from another recipe instead of a fresh red bell pepper.

She claims you can make this in less than an hour. Not me! It took me all of 90 minutes from start to plating. 

Total Time: 60-90 min

Yield: 4-6 servings

Level: Easy

Ingredients

4 boneless skinless chicken thighs

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts halved crosswise

2 teaspoons salt, plus more to taste

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste

1/2 cup all purpose flour, for dredging

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 large Italian style pickled red peppers 

1 onion, chopped

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

3/4 cup dry white wine

1 ( 28-ounce) can diced tomatoes with juice

3/4 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth

3 tablespoons drained capers

1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano leaves

1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh basil leaves

Directions

1. Sprinkle the chicken pieces with 1 teaspoon of each salt and pepper. Dredge the chicken pieces in the flour to coat lightly.

2. In a large heavy saute pan, heat the oil over a medium-high flame. Add the chicken pieces to the pan and saute just until brown, about 5 minutes per side. If all the chicken does not fit in the pan, saute it in 2 batches. Transfer the chicken to a plate and set aside. 

3. Add the bell pepper, onion and garlic to the same pan and saute over medium heat until the onion is tender, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. 

4. Add the wine and simmer until reduced by half, about 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes with their juice, broth, capers and oregano. 

5. Return the chicken pieces to the pan and turn them to coat in the sauce. Bring the sauce to a simmer. Continue simmering over medium-low heat until the chicken is just cooked through, about 30 minutes for the breast pieces, and 20 minutes for the thighs.

6. Using tongs, transfer the chicken to a platter. If necessary, boil the sauce until it thickens slightly, about 3 minutes. Spoon off any excess fat from atop the sauce. Spoon the sauce over the chicken, then sprinkle with the basil and serve.

Chicken cacciatore is not a pasta dish. Serve with mashed potatoes or palenta and some green vegetables.