Loaded Ham &Potato Soup

Loaded Potato soup

12 slices bacon

2/3 cup margarine

2/3 cup all-purpose flour

7 cups milk

3 large baked potatoes, peeled and cubed

1/2 C. diced ham

1/2 chopped red bell pepper

4 green onions, chopped

1 1/4 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

1 cup sour cream

1/4 C. heavy cream

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions

1. Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium heat until browned. Drain, crumble, and set aside.

2. In a stock pot or Dutch oven, melt the margarine over medium heat. Whisk in flour until smooth. Gradually stir in milk, whisking constantly until thickened. Stir in potatoes and onions. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently.

3. Reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes. Mix in bacon, cheese, sour cream, salt, and pepper. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until cheese is melted

Christmas Eve Dinner

Rib Roast, baked new potatoes,  cream horseradish sauce, shrimp cocktail, green beans in bacon vinaigrette, deviled eggs, challah bread and raw veggies.

Rib Roast with Horseradish Sauce

New Potatoes baked with rib roast

Shrimp in Cocktail sauce

Raw Vegetables, pickles and olives

Deviled Eggs

Green beans with bacon vinaigrette dressing

Challah bread

Ingredients:

• 2 pkt dry yeast (4 1/2 tsp)

• 5 C bread flour - all purpose will do (unbleached) - You may need more or less

• 1/4 C sugar

• 2 tsp salt

• 1/2 /cup butter (or margarine) room temp

• 1 C hot water (120F) - optional pinch of saffron

• 3 large whole eggs

• 1 egg white

• 1 egg yolk (from the above egg) beaten, mixed with 2 Tbs sugar and 1 tsp cold water

• Optional - poppy seeds

Method:

Prepare a 1/2 sheet pan with a Silpat, parchment paper, or cooking spray.

If using the saffron (to add color to the dough), let it steep in the warm water until the water turns orange (about 10 minutes).

In a stand mixer bowl, combine the yeast, 2 C of flour, sugar, salt and butter (or margarine).

With mixer on medium speed, add the hot water and beat with the flat beater for about 2 minutes, scrape the bowl occasionally.

Add the eggs and the egg white (not the reserved yolk mixed with sugar and water).

The batter will be thick. Beat on high speed for 2 minutes.

Change to the dough hook.

Continue to add flour, adding about 1 C at a time until the dough is no longer sticky.

If the dough is still moist, add a little flour at a time until the dough cleans the sides of the mixer bowl.

Knead by hard or in mixer with dough hook for 10 minutes.

Place dough in a large greased bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled - about 1 hour.

After it has doubled, punch down and hand knead out the bubbles.

Follow the braiding recipe and shape a 6 braid Challah.

Brush the shaped loaf with the egg yolk / sugar glaze. (If using the poppy seed, sprinkle on now).

Allow the loaf the rise, uncovered until doubled - about 1 hour.

While the dough is rising, preheat the oven to 400F

Bake until the loaf is shiny brown, about 40 to 60 minutes.

Test with a toothpick. It should come out clean and dry. 

The loaf is fragile, so be careful and place on a cooling rack.

*This recipe is meant for 2 loaves but I made it into one. 

That loaf is 20" long and 6" to 8" high.

If you don't need one that big, make 2 smaller ones

__________________

Chuck Love

Rib Roast    remove from refrigerator 2 hours before cooking time

7 lb. rib roast, salt & pepper all over the roast, roast with potatoes.

Heat oven to 500º, Roast 45 minutes, reduce oven to 325º, roast for 30 minutes, raise temp to 450 and roast until 130º… 20 to 40 minutes, approx.

Meanwhile, make sauce

1 C. heavy cream

pinch pepper

dash hot pepper sauce

3 Tbsp. horse radish

whisk cream to stiff peaks, season with white pepper, hot sauce and horseradish

Remove roast from oven, cover with foil and let rest at least 20 minutes.

Green beans with bacon vinaigrette

2 lbs. green beans, cleaned & stemmed

6 sl. bacon

2 shallots. sliced

2 Tbsp. cider vinegar

2 Tbsp. whole grain mustard

2 Tbsp. olive oil

Boil beans 5 minutes or so, drain, cool.  Cook bacon crisp, save 2 Tbsp. bacon fat & heat with shallots.  Stir in remaining ingr., toss & reheat green beans.

Cut raw vegetables and crisp in cold water.  Make deviled eggs. boil shrimp, make cocktail sauce.

Pork loin marinated in brandy and cider

Baked potatoes, asparagus with Hollandaise and cranberry chutney. 

 For dessert, pineapple and homemade egg nog.  

For the pork chops after marinated overnight, I cooked down marinade to 1/2 cup then used that liquid to deglaze the pan after the pork chops were browned. 

 For pork tenderloin or pork chops

Combine: 

2 cup apple cider

1/2 cup cider vinegar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup bourbon

3T dijon mustard

1T minced fresh ginger

1 t salt

1/2 t pepper

Marinate the pork at least 6 hours. (I usually marinate it overnight). Pat dry. Grill or roast pork. Boil marinade down to 1 cup - use as sauce. 

Cranberry Chutney

4 cups fresh cranberries

1 cup water

2 cups sugar                             

2 cinnamon sticks

6 whole cloves

1 teaspoon salt

2 tart apples, peeled, cored and diced (i use granny smith apples)

2 pears, peeled, cored, and diced

1 small yellow onion

1 cup raisins

1/2 cup crystallized ginger, diced or 1 teaspoon of dried ground ginger

Directions Step-By-Step

In a deep 6 quart saucepan, bring cranberries, water, sugar, cinnamon sticks, cloves and salt to a boil over medium heat.

Stir frequently for about 10 minutes, until cranberries start to make a popping sound.

Once cranberries begin to pop, reduce heat to simmer. Add diced apples, pears, onion and raisins, and continue stirring frequently until mixture begins to thicken. (10 to 15 minutes.)

Remove from heat. Stir in ginger. Cool to room temperature. Remove cinnamon sticks and cloves before serving.

Recipe makes about 3 quarts. I heated my jars and poured in the hot cranberries, sealed the jars with canning lids and turned them upside down until cool. This seals the jars slightly, enough to store them in the refrigerator for a couple of months. Plenty long enough to get you through the holidays.

Egg Nog McCormick’s

Serves: 10

Serving Size: 1/2 cup

3 cups milk

1 cup light cream

3 McCormick® Gourmet Collection Cloves, Whole

2 sticks McCormick® Gourmet Collection Cinnamon Sticks

1 piece (3-inch) McCormick® Gourmet Collection Vanilla Beans, Madagascar , split in half lengthwise and seeds scraped

1/2 teaspoon McCormick® Gourmet Collection Nutmeg, Ground

6 egg yolks

3/4 cup sugar

Directions

Bring milk, cream, whole cloves, cinnamon sticks, vanilla bean and nutmeg just to boil in medium saucepan on low heat. Beat egg yolks and sugar in medium bowl until pale yellow in color and fluffy. Gradually add 1 cup of the hot milk mixture, mixing with wire whisk until well blended. Gradually whisk mixture back into the remaining milk mixture in the saucepan. Cook and stir on medium-low heat 3 to 5 minutes or until mixture thickens and coats the back of a spoon.

Strain into large bowl. Cool slightly. Cover.

Refrigerate overnight or until well chilled.

John Madden's Stew

Someone asked me if I had a good beef stew and I remembered this one that I used to make a long time ago.  I don't know why I stopped making it. It is still very good.  We had it while watching the football game.

  JOHN MADDEN'S STEW 

    1/2 t. pepper 

    1/4 t. salt 

    2 1/2 lb. round steak (cut into 1/2"cubes) 

    2-3 T oil 

    2 Lg. onions, chopped 

    2 Sm. bell peppers, chopped 

    2 stalks celery, chopped 

    1 Lg. clove garlic, chopped 

    3 Lg. carrots, chopped 

    4 Med. potatoes, cubed 

    1 Sm. turnip, chopped 

    1 Sm. rutabaga, chopped 

    3 cans Swanson beef broth 

    5-6 drops Tabasco sauce (more or less to taste) 

    1/8 t. leaf savory, crumbled 

    1/8 t. leaf marjoram, crumbled 

    3 T. parsley, chopped 

    Fry meat. Remove. Saute' onion, pepper, celery, and garlic 10 minutes. Place those veggies

    into a stew pot and add carrots, potato, turnip, rutabaga, broth , Tabasco, savory, and

    marjoram. Bring to boil, add meat. Cover and simmer 1 1/2 hours! 

Cassie's Latest Birthday Cake

 Charlie did the Mario art work.