In Honor of Veterans Day...

Veterans Day originated as “Armistice Day” on Nov. 11, 1919, the first anniversary marking the end of World War I.  Congress passed a resolution in 1926 for an annual observance, and Nov. 11 became a national holiday beginning in 1938.

U.S. Army Private Bill 1965

President Dwight Eisenhower signed legislation in 1954 to change the name to Veterans Day as a way to honor those who served in all American Wars.

As of 2016, there are 18.5 million veterans living in the United States, according to the Census Bureau.  A large proportion of the veteran population, 9.2 million, are aged 65 and older, while 1.6 million are younger than 35.

Odds are that someone in your life has served the military, and my someone is my dear husband, Bill.  He proudly served in the United States Army from 1965-1968, with most of his service time in Bamberg, Germany, ending in Ft. Leonard Wood, MO as Sgt. E5, Machine Gun Instructor.

Sgt. Bamberg, Germany, Sept., 1965

Sgt. E5, Machine Gun Instructor Ft. Leonard Wood, Mo.  1968

Many thanks to Bill and all veterans across the country, who served in defense of our great country, protecting our freedom.  God Bless you all…

Happy

Veterans

Day!

Midwestern Chicken and Noodles over Mashed Potatoes and My 8 Year Blogiversary!

Spoon chicken and noodles over what?  Mashed potatoes, really!  Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it!

It isn’t soup, it’s not a potpie, it’s a hotdish ~ it’s thick and creamy noodles topping a mound of mashed potatoes.

Creamy, rich gravy smothers bites of savory chicken, chewy noodles and mashed potatoes. You haven’t eaten Midwestern food until you eat this for supper!

We like mushrooms with the noodles, skip them if you don’t.  Chop up and add carrots or celery, if you desire.  I poached chicken breasts, but I’ve also picked the meat off a rotisserie chicken when in a hurry.  

It may not make a pretty picture, but it more than makes up for it in goodness.  And if you have leftovers, it’s your lucky day!

Chicken and noodles over mashed potatoes is a great hearty homestyle one-dish meal for a crisp evening, any day of the week!

As a side note ~ I was recently reminded that I  have been blogging for 8 years now.  I started this blog October 29, 2009, that's a lot of posts!  Back then, I just wanted a way to organize and document family recipes.

I look back and cringe at some early posts, the writing, the photos.  But what makes up for that is the great people I have virtually "met" along the way.  I feel like I truly know many of you who share the same passion I do:  food.

I've seen a lot of blogs come and go over the years and I've learned a lot along the way from reading what you share ~ whether your travels, books you've read, music you like, food from your kitchen or in restaurants, I've enjoyed it all!

Thank you for all for visiting here and your positive comments!  

And I give a special thank you to our older son, Bill, Jr., Bubba here on my blog, for helping me to start it all!  Couldn't have done it without you, son! 

Here's to 8 more years... 

Yield: 4-6 servings

Midwestern Chicken and Noodles over Mashed Potatoes

Midwestern hearty chicken and noodles at it's best!

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 medium white onion, diced
• 8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
• 1 large jar of Heinz Homestyle Chicken Gravy
• 1 can Cream of Chicken Soup
• 4-6 cups chicken broth, divided
• 1/4 cup flour
• 8 ounces egg noodles
• 2 boneless chicken breasts, cooked and diced
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• Enough mashed potatoes for everyone

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. In a large skillet, or pot, melt butter over medium heat. Add onions and mushrooms, and sauté until cooked.
2. In a liquid measuring cup or blender, whisk 1/4 cup broth and flour until smooth, no lumps. Stir into skillet mixture.
3. Add remaining broth, gravy and soup to mixture, stir well, bring to a boil.
4. Add noodles. Cover and cook until noodles are almost tender, about 7 minutes. Add more broth if needed.
5. Stir in chicken and heat through. Add additional salt and pepper, if needed.
6. Serve immediately over mashed potatoes.

notes

Add more broth or water as needed, the noodles soak it up.
This dish should be just a touch soupy, but much thicker than a noodle soup.  
Takes about 1 hour, total time to prepare.

Enjoy!

It's Nutter Butter Ghosts Here!

Ghosts, maybe with the exception of Casper the Friendly Ghost, are a whole lot creepy to me; however, the little ghosts here are irresistible and don't bother me at all! 

They're super fast and easy to make...

Dip Nutter Butter cookies in melted white chocolate chips and use two mini chocolate chips for eyes.

Melt the white chocolate chips in a microwave and dip one end of the cookie.  Place the eyes on the ghosts while the white chocolate is still soft.  

Place on wax paper until chocolate sets.  

Voila!  Nutter Butter ghosts for your ghouls and goblins to gobble up! 

Happy 

Halloween 

everyone!

Fall's Quintessential Vegetable ~~~ Roasted Acorn Squash Stuffed with Rice

Roasted acorn squash, fall’s quintessential vegetable, is made even better with a hearty mixture of rice, made with Parmesan cheese and a bit of crisp-fried bacon.

  

This recipe here is pretty much everything I like about fall food cooking.  It’s easy.  It uses fresh vegetables from the market.  It’s tasty delicious.  And it’s cozy and comforting.  The only hard part is cutting the squash in half.

This stuffed squash is good for a week night dinner like we just enjoyed last night, but flavorful enough to serve at a holiday dinner this for company this fall.  

I used white long-grain rice, but wild rice would be great with the squash.  There’s a hint of sweetness in the squash itself, use brown sugar or not. 

 

Crispy bacon crumbs and Parmesan make for a heavenly addition to the savory dish.  

The flavors of this simple side are so spot on ~ delicious with its amazing flavors and great for these cooler days!

Yield: 4 servingsAuthor: Pam

Roasted Acorn Squash with Rice Stuffing

A good side of stuffed acorn squash with a rice filling that compliments many main dishes.

prep time: 20 MINScook time: 1 hourtotal time: 1 hours and 20 mins

INGREDIENTS

• 2 acorn squash, halved lengthwise and seeds removed
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon celery seed
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon seasoned pepper
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 1 cup long-grain white rice
• 3 strips cooked crisp bacon
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Heat oven to 450 degrees.
2. Place squash cut-side up on a baking sheet, brush 1 tablespoon of melted butter over the tops and insides of squash halves. Roast in oven until fork tender, about 40 to 55 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, place 1 tablespoon of melted butter in a large skillet over medium heat. When it foams, add brown sugar, onion, celery seed, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until just softened, about 5 minutes.
4. Add broth and rice, bring to a boil; cover and reduce heat to low. Cook until liquid is absorbent, about 20 minutes.
5. Remove from heat and stir in Parmesan and bacon.
6. Carefully scoop out 2 to 3 tablespoons flesh from each squash half and stir into rice mixture.
7. Divide rice filling among the roasted squash halves. Drizzle remaining tablespoon of butter over top.
8. Continue roasting for 5 minutes, until warmed through.
9. Serve

Enjoy! 

The Only Cornbread Recipe You'll Need: Dragonwagon's Skillet-Sizzled Corn Bread!

She, Crescent Dragonwagon, that is, came to understand, cornbread “not only is hot, just baked cornbread delicious, it evokes ~ powerfully ~ the heart, soul, and taste of home.”

Amen!  CORNBREAD, I love cornbread!

After making this cornbread, I know why it was the single most requested recipe at the Dairy Hollow House in Eureka Springs, Arkansas!

I’ve tried what seems like a ton of cornbread recipes and I’ve made more than one from this great cookbook by Crescent Dragonwagon.  I’m just trying to figure out what took me so darn long to make this one!

Crescent Dragonwagon is her real name ~ read here ~ or buy her great cookbook, if you want to know more about it.

Dragonwagon’s cookbook, The Cornbread Gospels, is a surprising eccentric read, filled with curious antidotes and tales along the cornbread trail from the Appalachians to the Rockies to the Green Mountains.  I was hooked from the beginning to the end ~ this is just not a recipe book to take up space on your kitchen counter, it’s at home in any room.

Here’s a sample of what Crescent Dragonwagon has to say about this cornbread:

"This is the cornbread I served when I owned and ran Dairy Hollow House; it was its single most requested recipe.  It is the first Southern food I ever learned to fix and the one that started me on my cornbread journey.  I learned how to make it in the Fort Greene section of Brooklyn, New York, in 1969, when I was very young and living in a brownstone with 7 other people.  Viola, the soft-spoken lady friend of a kind neighbor, taught it to me.  Viola was from Georgia, and it was she who initiated me into baking cornbread in an already-hot skillet.”

Cornbread batter over sizzling butter-oven ready!

To me, the secret of this recipe may just be the already-hot skillet that’s filled with melting butter that’s brought to a sizzle.  And stone-ground cornmeal only makes the bread even better.  If you’ve been around my blog a while, you know it’s stone-ground cornmeal and grits in my kitchen.

This cornbread truly surprised me, and Bill too.  It is simply delicious!

Thank you, Crescent Dragonwagon for the great recipe, great cookbook!

Author: Pam

Dairy Hollow House Skillet-Sizzled Cornbread

This cornbread recipe, courtesy of Crescent Dragonwagon, is the best you will ever make! Use stone-ground cornmeal for a crispy crust, made in a sizzling iron skillet. It is my "go-to" cornbread recipe!

prep time: 15 MINScook time: 20 MINStotal time: 35 mins

INGREDIENTS

• Vegetable oil cooking spray
• 1 cup unbleached white flour
• 1 cup stone-ground yellow cornmeal
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon salt (I added ½ teaspoon)
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• 1¼ cups buttermilk
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 egg
• ¼ cup mild vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons butter, or mild vegetable oil

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375°.
2. Spray a 10-inch cast iron skillet with oil and set aside.
3. Sift together flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt into a medium bowl.
4. In a smaller bowl, stir baking soda into the buttermilk.
5. Whisk in the sugar, egg and the ¼ cup oil.
6. Put the prepared skillet over medium heat, add the butter, and heat until butter melts and is just starting to sizzle.
7. Tilt the pan to coat sides and bottom.
8. Pour wet ingredients into the dry and combine them quickly, using as few strokes as possible.
9. Scrape batter into prepared pan and bake the cornbread until it is golden brown, about 20 minutes.
10. Let cool for a few moments, and slice into wedges to serve.

This cornbread is the créme de la créme of cornbread! 

Enjoy!

A Taste of the Islands, Cuban Mojo Pork Loin Roast

Here you go, 
if you’re craving a spicy taste 
of the islands…

Most Cuban’s make Cuban pork roast, Lechón Asado con Mojo, by roasting a whole pig that has been slow-coked in a pit or a Caja China over charcoal, with skin that is nice and crispy. 

For most of us, it is much easier to use a smaller cut of pork, such as the traditional pork shoulder or picnic cut and roast it in the oven.  

I went even further and swapped the fatty pork shoulder with a boneless pork loin roast to cut the large amount of fat and roasted it on a roasting pan rack in the oven.  

The flavor here comes from the mojo, the citrusy sauce, marinade…  

This mojo is a great combination of tangy and savory flavors.  It’s a mishmash of several different, similar recipes I saw while surfing the internet ~ basically citrus juices, spices and oil.  

It’s Cuban mojo pork loin roast with unbelievably tender meat and crisp, crackly skin!

Make Cuban sandwiches out of the leftovers!

Yield: 4-6 servingsAuthor: Pam

Cuban Mojo Pork Loin Roast

Try this pork recipe for a taste of the islands.

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 pounds boneless, pork loin roast
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon ground oregano
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon each, salt and pepper
• 3 teaspoons lemon juice
• 3 teaspoons lime juice
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• ¼ cup sherry

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Place pork roast in a zip top bag.
2. In a small bowl, combine remaining ingredients, pour mixture over pork.
3. Marinate in refrigerator for a couple of hours, or overnight.
4. When ready to roast, place meat in roasting pan or rack, reserving marinade.
5. Roast until completely cooked (145°), about 1½ hours, basting occasionally.
   Let roast rest for 10 minutes, then slice.
6. Serve

Enjoy!

Well-seasoned Sautéed Shrimp w/Tomatoes, White Wine, Cavatappi and Feta

Are you thinking feta cheese is just for Greek salads?  This recipe I’ve got for you today just might change your mind!

This light easy-to-make dish comes with a couple of our favorite ingredients, shrimp and feta cheese, pulled together with the help of a chunky herb-infused tomato sauce. 

Way back when it first started, I was addicted to the Food Network ~ not so much these days.  More than once, I recall hearing it said on the network:  pairing seafood with cheese is a "no-no."

I’m guessing there are some cheeses that would be true of, but seriously?  Certainly not all cheeses.  Who made up that rule anyway, and why? 

Begin this dish by sautéing  onion, and garlic; stir in seasonings and diced tomatoes in their juice, plus a healthy splash of white wine for added flavor in the sauce.  

Stir in sautéed shrimp, parsley, and cooked pasta to the mix; serve with a good brand of briny, tangy, sharp-flavored feta scattered over the top.

How could all this not be good?


Sautéed Shrimp w/Tomatoes, White Wine, Cavatappi and Feta

 Ingredients:

• 3 cups uncooked, dried cavatappi pasta
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon seasoned pepper
• 2 cans (14 1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
• 3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

Method:

1. Cook pasta according to package directions, drain and set aside, keep warm.
2. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onion, cook and stir 5 minutes until tender. Add garlic and seasonings, cook 1 minute longer.
3. Stir in tomatoes and wine. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, simmer, uncovered, 5-7 minutes or until sauce is slightly thickened.
4. Add shrimp and parsley, cook 5 minutes or until shrimp starts to turn pink, stirring occasionally.
5. Add cooked pasta, toss and heat through for 1 minute.
6. Remove from heat, sprinkle with cheese. Let stand, covered, until cheese is softened.

Printable recipe

Enjoy!