Braised Green Beans

Growing up, Mom always made green beans with a little ham, bacon, or new potatoes; in any combination ~ or just plain bacon grease.  I still like them prepared any of those ways, but this new version makes me happy too!

The green beans are braised in chicken broth that’s doctored up with garlic cloves and thyme.  Add a drizzle of olive oil and a little salt and pepper, and enjoy this dish that is a Martha Stewart recipe. 

In my way of thinking, you can never have enough fresh green beans in the summer time ~ I hope you try this quick braise!

Braised Green Beans

Ingredients:

1 cup chicken or vegetable broth

5 peeled cloves garlic

1 pound trimmed green beans

2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves

Salt and pepper, to taste

Extra-virgin olive oil

Lemon slices

Method:

In a large skillet, bring broth and garlic cloves to a simmer over medium-high heat.

Add green beans and thyme and cover.

Cook until desired amount of tenderness.

Season with salt and pepper.

Drizzle with olive oil.

Serve with lemon slices.

Delicious!!!  I wonder how this would be with a sprinkling of shredded nutty, salty Parmesan over the top?

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog, @My Kind Of Cooking.  She has unique tips on Tuesdays and yummy recipes every Friday!

Creole Catfish with Vidalia-Olive Relish

President Ronald Reagan declared June 25th National Catfish Day in 1987, due to its symbolism of American summertime fun.  Catfish is also the fifth (see #5) most popular fish in America.

I know a lot of you, like me, think it’s great and the rest of you, wouldn’t dream of cooking up a batch; however, you should try this recipe for baked catfish. It just might cause you to like catfish!

Catfish takes on the flavors that it’s cooked with and in this case, spices add snap to the catfish, while the sweet onions and tangy olives in the relish make this dish mouthwatering delicious!

This simple catfish recipe is adapted from Cooking Light.  If you don’t like corn meal, substitute flour.  The blackened seasoning adds a definite kick to the fish ~ adjust to your liking.   Fried catfish is delicious, but baking it is a great change of pace and a healthy alternative.  It’s spicy delicious with the relish!

Creole Catfish with Vidalia-Olive Relish

Ingredients:

1 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon canola oil

1 cup Vidalia onion, chopped

½ cup chopped red bell pepper

3 tablespoons chopped pitted green olives

3 tablespoons chopped pitted kalamata olives

2 tablespoons water

1 teaspoon thyme

½ cup corn meal

1 tablespoon paprika

1 tablespoon Old Bay Blackened Seasoning

1 teaspoon garlic powder

4 farm-raised catfish filets

Method:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.

Add onion and bell pepper and sauté for 5 minutes.

Add olives, water and thyme and cook for 1 minute. Set aside.*

On a plate, combine corn meal, paprika, Old Bay Seasoning and garlic powder.

Dredge catfish filets through corn meal mixture, pressing and coating fish well.

Place fish on a non-stick baking pan that has been coated with 1 tablespoon canola oil.

Bake until fish flakes easily.

Serve with relish.

*Chill relish in refrigerator before serving, if desired; or, serve at room temperature.

This is some spicy delicious Creole catfish!

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog, @My Kind of Cooking for great tips and delicious easy recipes! 

Fresno Potatoes

Potatoes are so versatile ~ you can even make a battery with them!  Check it out here...

It was in South America, about 5 thousand years ago, when scientists believe the first potato was cultivated.  The Incas learned how to mash and dehydrate them into what they called chunu, which could be stored up to 10 years; guarding against crop failure.  The tuber was first introduced to the colonies in the 1600’s by the British governor of the Bahamas, then on to the White House where Thomas Jefferson served the spuds to his guests.  From then on, the potato has grown in popularity to become one of the most widely used foods around the world. 

I love potatoes, pretty much any variety, prepared any way. When I first came across this recipe, I knew it was a must try ~ potatoes, bacon, onion and cheese.    The only puzzling thing about this dish is, why the name Fresno?  Do you know?

This would be a great side dish for about any meal; perfect for anything from brunch to a cook out!  Try this if you are a potato lover too!

Panko & melted butter ready

To the oven

Fresno Potatoes

Ingredients:

4-6 potatoes—I used red potatoes

6 slices crisp bacon, crumbled

6 green onions, thinly sliced

1 cup milk

1½ cups sour cream

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Salt and seasoned pepper, to taste

¼ cup Panko crumbs

5 tablespoons butter, melted

Method:

Boil potatoes, until just tender but not cooked all the way through, about 25 minutes.

When cool enough to touch, peel and cut into ¼” thick slices.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a greased 9” x 13” baking dish, layer half of the potato slices.

Top with half the bacon and onions.

Stir milk into the sour cream and season with salt and pepper.

Spread half the mixture over the potato layer and sprinkle with half the cheese.

Season with salt and pepper.

Repeat layers.

Sprinkle Panko over the top of the potato mixture and drizzle butter over all.

Bake uncovered for 30 minutes until golden brown and bubbly.

Serve hot

ENJOY!

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog, @My Kind of Cooking for great tips and delicious easy recipes! 

Quick Dill Pickles

The worker at the farmers' market brought in a basket of Kirby cucumbers while I was there yesterday, so I bought some to make this recipe of Martha Stewart’s that I’ve been hanging on to.

The word “quick” got my attention, and that they are, no canning involved.  There’s a great blend of pickling spices and garlic to go with the vinegar and a little sugar.  I let the flavors mingle in the refrigerator over-night and popped a couple in my mouth early this morning.  Yum!  They’re good and crisp, a little salty.

 These are definitely worth making!  To me, nothing makes a sandwich taste better than a dill pickle topping it, or on the side ~ plus a handful of potato chips!

Quick Dill Pickles

Ingredients:

1 pound Kirby cucumbers, sliced

2 tablespoons coarse salt

1 cup water

1 cup white vinegar

1 tablespoon pickling spice

2 teaspoons salt

1 clove garlic

A few sprigs fresh dill

1 tablespoon sugar

Method:

Toss sliced cucumbers with coarse salt.

Chill 1 hour.

Rinse and drain.

Combine remaining 7 ingredients.

Stir well to dissolve sugar.

Add cukes and chill in a quart container overnight (or up to 1 month).

Happy Pickling!

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog, @My Kind Of Cooking.  She has unique tips on Tuesdays and yummy recipes every Friday!

Pork Medallions with Blackberry Chutney

Imagine wearing a long-sleeved shirt tucked into long pants ~ a hot summer day under the scorching sun ~ trudging through the field, with a basket swinging from your hand ~ heading toward the blackberry brambles by the creek…

Photo credit:  JCorblis

We picked baskets full of large, juicy blackberries and carried them back to the kitchen for Mom to bake her mouthwatering blackberry pies.  There was a price to pay though ~ torn clothing, and scratches on our hands from the briars plus, a few bug bites on our necks.  Not to mention, magenta-stained fingers.  It was all worth the effort though ~ because of a slice of fresh blackberry pie later.

Those days, growing up on the farm, are long over.  My blackberries come from the farmers’ markets now ~ not as plentiful, nor as good as fresh-picked, but delicious nonetheless for blackberry cobblers and pies, jam; and even as a snack with a piquant cheese, or a sauce made from the recipe below.

This blackberry chutney, a Martha Stewart recipe, is the perfect accompaniment to pork medallions.  It’s a sweet and fruity sauce, with the sharp tang of sherry vinegar, which enhances the meat.  If you like blackberries and pork, you’ll really like this!

Pork Medallions with Blackberry Chutney

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons butter, divided

2 large shallots, thinly sliced

¼ cup sherry vinegar

¼ cup dark-brown sugar

1½ cups blackberries

Salt and pepper

1 pork tenderloin (1½ pounds), cut into 1-inch slices and flattened slightly with your palm

Method:

In a large skillet, melt 1 tablespoon butter over medium heat.

Sauté shallots until tender.

Add vinegar, brown sugar and blackberries and cook until mixture is syrupy and some of the berries have collapsed, about 10 minutes.

Season with salt and pepper.

Remove to a bowl and set aside.

Add 1 tablespoon butter to skillet.

Season half of pork with salt and pepper and place in skillet. 

Cook until golden brown.

Repeat with remaining pork.

Serve pork medallions topped with chutney.

ENJOY!

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog, @My Kind Of Cooking.  She has unique tips on Tuesdays and yummy recipes every Friday!

Garlicky Pattypan Squash with Spinach

 Pattypan squash ~ I don’t believe I’ve ever seen it in the produce section of the grocery store or at the farmers' markets here. 

Photo credit:  liseed.org

Anyway, they caught my eye at a specialty market recently as they are colorful and resemble tiny flying saucers with ruffled scalloped edges.  I bought a pound of them and when “Googling,” learned they are a summer squash.  The name “pattypan” derives from “a pan for making a patty.”  The ones I bought were yellow, but they can also be white or green.  Its French name, pâtisson, derives from a Provençal word for a cake made in a scalloped mould. 

Pattypan squash has creamy flesh on the inside that is somewhat sweeter than other summer squash.  This recipe is adapted from one by Bon Appétit.  The squash has a mellow taste, being sautéed with spinach that is perked up with plenty of garlic.  Do not sauté for long as the squash can turn to mush quickly.   I will be looking for the cute pattypan squash at the farmers' markets here soon!

Garlicky Pattypan Squash with Spinach

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium Vidalia onion

1 pound small pattypan squash

4-5 cloves garlic, crushed

2 cups fresh spinach leaves or frozen and drained well

Salt and seasoned pepper, to taste

2 tablespoons lemon juice

Parmesan cheese, for sprinkling

Method:

Heat skillet to medium-high and add oil.

Add onions and sauté until almost tender.

Reduce heat to medium.

Stir in squash and garlic and sauté until squash is tender and can be pierced with a fork.

Combine spinach with the squash mixture and cook until spinach is wilted.

Season with salt and pepper.

Squeeze lemon juice over all.

Sprinkle Parmesan on top and serve.

ENJOY!!!

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda, at My Kind of Cooking! She gives great tips on Tuesdays and great easy recipes on Fridays.

Happy 4th of July & I'll be back later...

Here’s wishing you all a

Happy

Safe &

Delicious

4^th of July!!!

I’m sad to say, my dear sister-in-law, Barb, has lost her 4 year battle to ovarian cancer.  She is in good hands now, and free of pain and suffering.  I’ll be away for a while…

Peach Fluff

I kid you not ~  when I was young, Mom must’ve served strawberries in one form or another ~ from jam to strawberry shortcake ~ with every meal in the summer…

So ~ when I saw this recipe, it was for Pink Fluff, using strawberries; Mimi stated that other fruits substitute well.  We all like peaches here, so I’m calling it “Peach Fluff.”  If 
you don’t know Mimi, you can find her blog of mouthwatering recipes right here.

According to Mimi, this is a recipe from her mom’s very old sorority cookbook.  It originally called for dream whip and Mimi updated it with heavy cream.  It is delicious and a perfect summer dessert!

The sweet ripe peaches are combined with whipped cream and topped with a brown sugar crumble.  Then place the pan of deliciousness in the freezer for a cold summer dessert.  Remove it from the freezer 10-15 minutes before serving to make slicing easier.  You want it slightly soft to taste all the flavors and make it easier to eat. 

Try any combo of fresh fruits you like, blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, peaches or strawberries, whatever is in season.  Cut the ripe fruit into 1” to 2” chunks and freeze on a rimmed cookie sheet until frozen solid before making the dessert. 

We all quickly decided, this dessert is a summertime keeper and I will be making it again soon!  You just have to try it to find out how ambrosial it is!  It’s food for the gods!

Peach Fluff

Ingredients:

1¼ cups flour

1/3 cup brown sugar

½ cup butter, melted

¼ cup chopped nuts -optional

2 egg whites

1 cup sugar

1 (10-ounce) package frozen peaches (or fresh peaches, cut into chunks and frozen)

1 cup heavy cream

2 tablespoons lemon juice

Method:

Combine the flour, brown sugar, and nuts, if using.

Mix in the melted butter and crumble on a rimmed cookie sheet.

Bake in a 350 oven for 10 to 15 minutes, until golden brown. 

Remove from oven and cool. Reserve about 1/3 cup for topping.

Sprinkle the remaining crumbs in the bottom of a 9x13 pan.

In the bowl of a stand mixer beat the egg whites, sugar, lemon juice, and frozen strawberries until light and fluffy, about 15-20 minutes.

Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl once or twice to make sure there are no big chunks of fruit.

In a separate bowl beat the heavy cream until about double in volume and slightly stiff.

Fold the cream into the berry mixture.

Pour into the prepared pan, sprinkle with reserved crumbs and freeze until frozen, about 6 hours.

Cut in serving size pieces and garnish with fresh peaches.

It’s divine, it’s delicious, and great for the 4th!

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog, @My Kind of Cooking for great tips and delicious easy recipes!