Gastronomic Improv

Sunday Dinner

2009-05-31T17:54:00.004-05:00

Country Fried Steak and Gravy

Cabbage and Onions

Smashed Rosemary Potatoes

Spiced Applesauce Bread

Calabacita Bread

Country Fried Steak and Gravy:

2.5 lbs. chopped beef steak

¾ cup all-purpose flour (plus ½ cup for gravy)

2 tsp. salt (plus 1 tsp. for gravy)

1 tsp. black pepper (plus ½ tsp. for gravy)

1 egg

3 T. vegetable oil

2-3 cups milk

~Heat the oil in a large skillet

~Mix the flour, salt, and pepper in a shallow bowl. Beat the egg in another shallow bowl.

~Batter the steaks in the egg and flour mixture. Cook 5-10 minutes per side or until the middle is no longer pink.

~Add the extra flour to the pan drippings and bits. Whisk and cook for a few minutes. Slowly add the milk, stirring constantly until the desired consistency is reached.

Cabbage and Onions:

1 head cabbage, sliced thinly

3 medium onions sliced thinly (about 2 cups)

3 minced garlic cloves

Salt and pepper to taste (lots of salt!)

2 T oil

~Heat the oil in a large skillet.

~Combine the other ingredients. Cook a pan-full for about 10 minutes. Take that batch up and add more cabbage to the skillet. Continue cooking in batches and setting it off to the side and then add it all back to the skillet (it’s cooked down now, so it’ll all fit) and cook as long as you wish (well, not really, don’t burn it!). I like it “just” cooked, but you can cook it down if you like.

Calabacita Bread

from The Servant (a newsletter for Angel Food Ministries)

3 eggs

1 cup oil

2 cups sugar

2 cups grated, peeled calabacita or zucchini squash

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup nuts, chopped

3 cups flour

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

¼ tsp. baking powder

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325’. Stir together flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder

2. Set aside. Beat eggs and sugar until light and foamy. Add oil, grated calabacita or zucchini squash and vanilla. Mix well. Add flour mixture and stir only until blended. Add in chopped nuts.

3. Pour batter into 2 loaf pans which have been brushed with oil.

4. Bake 50-55 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans.

Chicken Alfredo

2009-03-01T17:10:00.004-06:00

The original recipe is Crock Pot Seafood Alfredo. I was going to take this to church today, substituting chicken for the seafood, but we were "snowed" in* so I ended up making this on the stove for our lunch and supper.

Unlike Stephanie, I already knew how to make a roux so I rearranged the directions and order of ingredients. The basic steps to making a white sauce from a roux are:

Melt butter or heat oil in a skillet.
Whisk in flower, salt, and spices.
At medium heat, whisk in milk or cream and stir continually until thickened. You don't want it to boil. Contrary to most instructions, I do find it necessary at times to leave the sauce alone for 30-60 seconds and let it bubble just a bit. On some days, I can't get it to thicken otherwise. You can add extra flour, but be careful, otherwise it can become lumpy or gummy.
To make this a cheese sauce, stir in some cheese a handful at a time.

Yesterday, I sent my Dad to the store for a few things we needed for the week. I put "Italian blend shredded cheese" on the list to use in this dish. Of course, I'm thinking a blend including parmesan, mozarella, romano, etc... Instead, he comes home with a "pizza" blend of cheddar and mozzarella. *shakes head* I scrounged around and found some parmesan to use for most of the cheese and only used a little bit of the "pizza" blend.

This recipe calls for herbs de provence. I looked this up in The New Proffessional Chef which said that it is an herb blend from Southern France of basil, fennel seed, lavender, marjoram, rosemary, sage, savory, and thyme. I had everything but the lavender and savory, so I mixed together 1/4 tsp. each of basil and thyme and 1/8 tsp. each of the other dried herbs. It smelled absolutely delightful when I stirred these into the butter!

This was enough sauce to coat the 2 lbs. of chicken breast and 1.5 lbs. of pasta that I cooked. This is good eating for a crowd! This tasted a bit different from the Olive Garden alfredo I'm used to, but it was oh so good!

*Not really, just a few inches. But, here in Alabama that's serious and because we drive 40-70 miles to church, we decided to stay home.

Weekly III

2009-02-28T10:26:00.003-06:00

Here are some new websites I discovered recently:

A Year of Crockpotting
Cooking by Numbers
Epicurious
Cooking For Your Crowd

Aunt Bea's Chili

2009-02-28T10:00:00.004-06:00

Yes, I really do have an Aunt Bea. No, she's not from Mayberry. An amazing seamstress, quilter, and cook, she's the best great-aunt in the world. My favorite memories of her always include her southern drawl, big smile, and cooking this amazing chili with her.

Aunt Bea's Chili

2 lb. Ground chuck
1 lg. onion
3, 16 oz. cans of tomato sauce
1 to 1 1/2 cans water
4-6 T. chili powder "Most folks season their chili like it's tomato soup. This is chili, so don't be stingy with the chili powder."
1 T sugar "In the south, you have to throw a bit of sugar in everything." It also helps to cut the acidity of the tomatoes.
1 T soy or Worcestershire sauce

Cook meat and onions until done. Drain, set aside.

In a large pot bring the tomato sauce, water, and soy/rooster sauce to a boil.
Add chili powder and sugar.
Reduce heat to a slow simmer.

Taste add more soy/rooster sauce, chili powder, or sugar if needed.
Let simmer slowly 1-3 hours.
Enjoy!

*Note* Aunt Bea always made two pots of chili, one with beans and one without to compensate the different preferences of the huge family that was constantly coming in and out of Grand Central Station at my great-grandmother's house. I prefer no beans, but it's up to you. And, of course, it's no good unless you have some good 'ole southern cornbread to crumble in your bowl.

Weekly II

2009-02-22T16:27:00.002-06:00

Here a few more sites I've recently run across:

Heavenly Homemakers
Natalie's Kitchen
Meal Planning Mommies

Cupcakes!

2009-02-22T16:19:00.003-06:00

Today I took Peanut Butter Cupcakes and Key Lime Cupcakes to church. The Key Lime ones were gobbled up in a hurry (the frosting was sinful!) and the peanut butter flavor turned out pretty well. I think next time I'll frost the Peanut Butter cupcakes with chocolate. Thanks to Miss Jen for the Key Lime recipe!

Pork Schintzel

2009-02-22T16:14:00.002-06:00

I didn't change a thing about this recipe. While tenderizing the meat I listened to music history lectures and hammered to the beat of Brahm's Hungarian Dance and Rimsky-Korsakov's Russian Eastern Overture. These were some of the best pork chops I've ever had. Maybe it's the music that was pounded into them.

Ground Beef and Biscuits

2009-02-22T16:08:00.002-06:00

Once again, this recipe was found at All Recipes. I really pared it down to the basics.

~Cook ground beef with onion powder, seasoning salt, oregano, and pepper.
~Stir in tomato sauce.
~Make buttermilk biscuits from scratch, brown for about 5 minutes
~Pour meat into casserole dish, sprinkle on cheddar, place biscuits on top, sprinkle on more cheddar.

Verdict: A keeper. :-)

Tater Tot Hot Dish

2009-02-16T20:37:00.000-06:00

Today I tried Tater Tot Hot Dish. After reading some of the comments, I decided to cook the beef ahead of time, omit the oats, and add a layer of shredded sharp cheddar cheese in between the soup/meat mixture and the tater tots. It was an immediate hit that will find its place on our list of favorite comfort foods.

Crock-Pot Enchiladas

2009-02-16T20:32:00.002-06:00

Yesterday I took one of my tried and true improvisations to church.

Crock-pot Enchiladas

This is essentially made up of layering tortillas, cheese, and a meat/veggie mixture. The mixture can be composed of ingredients based on you and your
family's preferences. It may include ground beef, shredded chicken, beans, corn, salsa, green chillies, black olives, etc. The key is to have about 2 lbs. of meat and/or "chunky vegetables." I usually do 1-2 lbs. cooked ground beef, a small can of corn, and a small can of black beans. Then, make sure this mixture is covered with plenty of salsa, you want it good and saucy. I usually do at least 4 cups of salsa.
Once that's mixed together, layer it in the crock-pot. Layer in this order: meat mixture, tortillas, and then cheese. I usually use about 6 large tortillas and 2-3 cups of cheese (I prefer Monterrey jack and Colby or sharp cheddar.)
Cook for 3-4 hours on high, or until heated through and the cheese is melted.
Dish up with extra salsa and sour cream if you like. Serves 8-10 large portions.

The Weekly I

2009-02-13T14:29:00.001-06:00

Once a week I am going to try to share interesting links about cooking and homemaking with ya'll that I've stumbled across throughout the week.

~I have recently discovered the lovely blog of Blessed Femina by Miss Jen. The following two posts especially grabbed my attention:

~Here's a very cute idea for making a handy coupon organizer.

~ The following are some new cooking sties:

101 Cookbooks
Gourmet Sleuth
Play with Your Food

~A friend from church made this adorable birthday cake masterpiece for her daughter's second birthday. (Here's the explanation for the theme inspiration.)

~Here's a new blog about natural health in the home: Happy, Healthy, Home

The Middle Eastern Way to Fry Potatoes

2009-02-12T21:47:00.007-06:00

As a native of the Heart of Dixie, I love fried potatoes. I never dreamed I'd find my favorite version from the Middle East. I had a several limes and a bunch of cilantro left over from the Avocado soup I made last week. So, I searched All Recipes for something that uses a lot of cilantro, and I came up with Cilantro and Garlic Potatoes. It's a Lebanese version of fried potatoes.

Since I had the limes, I tried that in place of the lemon juice. I think that was a bit too strong, I would suggest using lemons. And, I didn't feel like getting into the mess of the Fry Daddy, so I just fried them in a skillet.

I have to say they're the best potatoes in any form or fashion I've ever had. But, don't take my word on it, here's what Daddy said, "You can't leave home."

Wednesday: Cajun Style Corn Soup

2009-02-12T21:43:00.005-06:00

Wednesday I cooked Cajun Style Corn Soup. Very easy and tasty but also very spicy. Next time I think I'll cut down on the cayenne pepper amount.

For convenience sake, I made a few substitutions which included frozen, chopped green bell pepper, canned corn, onion powder, and canned, roasted, minced garlic.

A Fiasco Starring Chops and Blue Cheese

2009-02-12T21:22:00.002-06:00

Tuesday I fixed Pork Chops with Blue Cheese Gravy.

I find it ironic that I decided to start this blog this particular week. Mistakes have abounded this week from the grocery store to the kitchen sink. God is sovereign.

One of those mistakes was forgetting the blue cheese, how do you forget something as important as that? I did. So, I decided to use the Monterey Jack Cheese left over from the burritos, which worked ok, but I definitely want to try this again sometime with the esteemed blue cheese. Ya'll please shoot this absent minded amateur chef a note the week I decide to.

That was only the beginning. The pork chops are to be fried in butter. Simple, right? Except that I forgot Mama's rule she'd told me several times, watch your heat when working with butter. Smoke ensued, that batch of chops was saved, but I decided to bake the rest of them.

So, the last batch of pork chops is in the oven. I sit down to eat lunch and completely forget about them. No smoke this time~pork jerky.

Once the various parts of this dish were saved, substituted, and dressed up, it became a family favorite. The sauce can't be any easier and it's a wonderful comfort food.

So, if you try this recipe, remember:

It's butter not oil.
Blue cheese, blue cheese, blue not green, red, yellow, or purple with pink polka dots. Blue, blue, blue.
To be in a good mood before beginning to cook this dish
And enjoy it no matter the outcome. If it's a fiasco like mine, just laugh. That's one of the main reasons for living anyway.

Monday: Burritos and Oatmeal Cookies

2009-02-10T19:10:00.008-06:00

Sorry folks, I keep forgetting to take pictures, I'll try to remember tomorrow.

Lately I've been suffering from lack of creativity, so I'm relying on recipe websites for ideas. I always end up changing something, and sometimes I only use the recipe as a guideline for what I want to fix that day, or even just what main ingredients to buy. I'm especially using All Recipes for the convenience of an instant shopping list after deciding on my recipes for the week. So, until Summer you'd better get used to borrowed, simple, and easy meals. Expect creativity and gourmet after graduation.

So, Monday, I fixed Burritos, Spinach Salad, and Oatmeal Cookies. At our house, we double recipes, eating the same thing for lunch and supper. Saves a ton of time and stress.

For the Burritos, I used this recipe from All Recipes:

Quick Brownbag Burritos

INGREDIENTS

1 (15 ounce) can black beans
1 cup salsa
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder
8 (10 inch) flour tortillas
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

DIRECTIONS

Rinse beans in cold water, drain well.
Combine beans, salsa, cumin and chili powder in large pan. Cook over medium-high heat for about ten minutes, mashing beans slightly with back of wooden spoon. Stir occasionally, adding a little water if mixture looks too dry.
Spoon bean mixture into tortillas. Top with cheese. Fold each tortilla into an envelope shape, ensuring both ends are tucked in. Eat warm or wrap in plastic to take for lunch.

There are several big meat eaters in my family. Only beans isn't going to cut it, so I added about 1 lb . of cooked ground beef. I really liked the extra flavor the cumin provided.

Oatmeal Cookies

I pulled this recipe from The Martha Stewart Living Christmas Cookbook. I decided to do it spur of the moment and didn't have all of the exact ingredients. I have a phobia of fooling too much with baking specifics, but I dived in anyway. I've given my changes in italics.

Oatmeal Cookies:

Makes 1 dozen large, or 3 dozen small.

1 cup packed light-brown sugar dark-brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature salted butter (I know, a heresy in baking, but it's all I had!)
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 cups rolled oats instant oats
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup wheat germ all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
12 ounces semisweet chocolate, shopped into chunks, 1 1/2 cups raisins, or 10 ounces toffee pieces dark chocolate

Preheat oven to 350'F. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream brown sugar, granulated sugar, and butter, starting on low speed and increasing to medium, until mixture is light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. (I had an interesting experience here since I don't own one of those handy-dandy coveted Kitchen Aid stand mixers. So, to get it to work right, I had to move back and forth between wooden spoon and hand mixer to get the butter and sugars creamed correctly.) Add eggs and vanilla; scrape down sides of bowl with a rubber spatula, and beat to combine.
Place oats, flour, wheat germ, baking soda, and baking powder in a large bowl; stir to combine. Add flour mixture to butter mixture; mix on low speed until just combined, 10 to 15 seconds. Stir in chocolate, raisins, or toffee pieces, as desired.
Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper. Use a large (2 1/2 ounce) or small (1 1/4 ounce) ice-cream scoop to form balls of dough. Place balls about 4 inches apart (2 inches for small) on baking sheets. Bake until cookies are golden and just set, about 18 minutes for large and 14 minutes for small. Let cookies cool on sheets 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. Store in an airtight container at room temperature up to 4 days.

My substituting seemed to work, because they didn't stick around very long! They had a delightful texture: slightly crispy on the outside, and just chewy enough.

Culinary Literature

2009-02-07T20:32:00.004-06:00

The following are some of my favorite cookbooks:

Once-A-Month Cooking
by Mimi Wilson and Mary Beth Lagerborg

Baking Illustrated
by Cook's Illustrated Magazine Editors

The Best Make Ahead Recipe
by Cook's Illustrated Magazine Editors

The New Professional Chef
by The Culinary Institute of America

Summary of Last Week's Culinary Arrangements

2009-02-07T20:10:00.003-06:00

This week I arranged (revised) several online recipes that were new to me:

~Monday~

CcubedN

All I changed with this one is that I didn't do the last step which was baking it in the oven.

~Tuesday~

Aaron's Missouri Burgers

I didn't mess with this one too much. I had some honey mustard salad dressing, so I used that. I also misread the recipe when it came to the onion powder and added a bit too much, which was noticeable in the finished taste.

~Wednesday~

Meatball Potato Supper

This was simple but enjoyable comfort food. Next time I'll salt the potatoes first, they were lacking a bit in flavor. My tweaking to the original recipe was that I used Italian flavored bread crumbs (which helped the meatballs to taste as great as they did), I baked the meatballs, and I used fresh ground black pepper instead of paprika. I hate chopping veggies, so I cheated and sliced the potatoes using the food processor.

Note: If you're going to slice potatoes up ahead, place them in water with a bit of lemon juice until ready for cooking. Otherwise they'll turn brown and be ruined.

~Thursday~

Spinach Rice Casserole

I fixed this today for the first time for guests. I doubled the recipe and added chopped, cooked chicken breast to make it into the main dish. I didn't have fresh spinach, so I used frozen. I used onion powder for half the suggested amount of dried onions and did a combination of cheddar and Colby Jack for the cheese. After reading the comments on seasoning, I used seasoning salt, halved the "rooster" sauce amount (that's what we call it in our home), and added fresh ground black pepper. Everyone seemed to like it!

~Friday~

Avocado Soup with Chicken and Lime

I just used this recipe as a guideline. I didn't do the tortilla strips, and substituted onion powder and minced, jarred garlic, canned tomatoes and jalapenos for the vegetables and seasonings. I also added cumin, seasoning salt, and pepper. Warning: This is quite spicy, but full of good balanced flavor.

Welcome to Gastronomic Improv

2009-02-07T18:00:00.007-06:00

Welcome to the blog of a culinary and musical amateur. Of all the home arts, cooking is by far my favorite. My most delightful experiences in the kitchen are when I have no clue what I'm going to fix for dinner. I dive into an adventure through the cupboards and icebox to arrive at a delectable meal that my family will enjoy. These are my moments of gastronomic improvisation.

At the moment, I'm trying to finish up my journey as a high-school student which will end with graduation this May. Therefore, my culinary pursuits currently consist more of arrangements of existing recipes rather than original compositions. Presently my goal is to feed my family within a specific budget and to not spend more than an hour preparing a meal.

However, I hope to dive into more creative culinary pursuits after graduation. So, dear readers, please be patient if you are awaiting more adventurous endeavors. For the moment, content yourselves with my unavoidable tweakings to new recipes I'm trying. Unless it is baking, I am unable to cook a recipe without changing some aspect of it.

As for the musical inspiration, I am the daughter of an improvising pianist. My dear mother tears the piano up through Southern Gospel and jazz. As far as myself goes, I've taken classical piano lessons for four years, love singing, relish in listening to real musicians, and am trying to pull more improv lessons out of Mama.

So, please enjoy the ramblings of a culinary amateur, listen to good music, and get in the kitchen to whip up some gastronomic improvisations of your own.