Lasagna

Charlie said it was really good but I think it isn't my best effort.

World's Best Lasagna Allrecipes

It takes a little work, but it is worth it.By John Chandler

Cook:  2 hrs 30 mins Additional:15 mins Total:3 hrs 15 mins Prep:30 mins Servings:12

Ingredients 

• 1 pound sweet Italian sausage 
• ¾ pound lean ground beef 
• ½ cup minced onion 
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed 
• 1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes 
• 2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste 
• 2 (6.5 ounce) cans canned tomato sauce 
• ½ cup water 
• 2 tablespoons white sugar 
• 1 ½ teaspoons dried basil leaves 
• ½ teaspoon fennel seeds 
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning 
• 1 ½ teaspoons salt, divided, or to taste 
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper 
• 4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley 
• 12 lasagna noodles 
• 16 ounces ricotta cheese 
• 1 egg 
• ¾ pound mozzarella cheese, sliced 
• ¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese 

Directions

• Step 1 In a Dutch oven, cook sausage, ground beef, onion, and garlic over medium heat until well browned. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce, and water. Season with sugar, basil, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, 1 teaspoon salt, pepper, and 2 tablespoons parsley. Simmer, covered, for about 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.
  Step 2 Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook lasagna noodles in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes. Drain noodles, and rinse with cold water. In a mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese with egg, remaining parsley, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
  Step 3 Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
  Step 4 To assemble, spread 1 1/2 cups of meat sauce in the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking dish. Arrange 6 noodles lengthwise over meat sauce. Spread with one half of the ricotta cheese mixture. Top with a third of mozzarella cheese slices. Spoon 1 1/2 cups meat sauce over mozzarella, and sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers, and top with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Cover with foil: to prevent sticking, either spray foil with cooking spray, or make sure the foil does not touch the cheese.
  Step 5 Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil, and bake an additional 25 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes before serving.
  

 

Ribs in the smoker

 It was a nice day when I got these ribs but then it turned cold and rainy for the next few days.  Today was the day it finally let up enough to fire up the smoker. Also made some copycat KFC slaw.  I thought I'd be daring and serve pasta instead or potatoes but then winped put and made potatoes anyway.  The pasta was with mushrooms and nuts and the sauce was made with crème fraîche.

Creamy Pasta with Mushrooms  KC Star Mar 2022

fine salt

1 lb. linguine or fettuccine

1 T. olive oil

1 T. butter

1/4lb.  mushrooms, sliced

2 cl garlic, thinly sliced

1 T. fresh rosemary, Plus more for serving

1/2 C dry white wine

8 oz creme fraiche

black pepper

1/2 C roasted hazel nuts, coarsley chopped

Boil pasta. Drain, reserving 1/2 C. pasta water

Heat oil and butter over high heat, add mushrooms , stir occasionally until they dry out a little and turn golden, about 5 minutes, adjusting the heat as needed.  Add garlic and rosemary, cook until fragrant, 30 sec. Add wine and reduce slightly- abt. 1 min.  Fold in creme fraiche  and stir until it makes a smooth sauce.  Add a couple  T. pasta water add pasta, stir well to combine. add more water if needed. Portion into bowls and top with nuts and rosemary

Potato cakes
4 russet potatoes, riced
2T salt
3 oz cheddar or parmesan
4T. butter
1/2 C. flour
1.2 tsp black pepper

Mix all ingredients, fry in shallow layer of oil until browned on both sides. 

KFC Coleslaw Copycat recipe
Prep Time 15 mins Total Time 15 mins
 
KFC Coleslaw Copycat - make your restaurant favorite right in your kitchen! Perfect for the summer BBQ's and potlucks!

1/2 C. mayo
1/4 c. milk
1/4 C. buttermilk
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1 and 1/2 tbsp white or apple cider vinegar
2 and 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
4 cups shredded then diced cabbage about 1/2 of a medium head
1 medium carrot
1/4 medium yellow onion minced

Instructions
Shred the cabbage and carrot and dice finely.
Mix all veggies in a large mixing bowl.
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the dressing ingredients. Pour over the veggies and stir all with a wooden spoon.
Cover the bowl with a saran wrap and place in the fridge for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.

Stir again before serving.

Ribs were prepared the night before by removing the silver skin, rubbing with mustard and a dry rub, then next day smoked with apple wood at 250 degrees for three hours, spritzing with apple juice every 30 min. or so and painting with a thin coat of bbq sauce for the last 30 minutes.

we had Buffalo wing tonight.

 I used Alton Brown's recipe where the wings are steamed, dried in the refrigerator and baked about 40 minute then tossed in Buffalo sauce. Corn was steamed and pineapple is fresh cut.

ST Patrick's Day dinner

 

I always make home made corned beef  brisket.  Always.  We also had parsnips, rutababa, carrots. potatoes and soda bread and soda scones.

The potatoes and cabbage were boiled.  Cabbage in corned beef water, the rest of the vegetables were steamed.  For the Corned beef, go to any year before this one and click on March. The scones are from a new-to me- recipe and we really liked them.  They will become a regular from now on.

 

Irish Soda Scones

Ingredients

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour 

2 teaspoons baking powder 

1/4 teaspoon baking soda 

1/4 cup granulated sugar 

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 

1 stick cold unsalted butter 

1/2 cup dried currants 

2 teaspoons caraway seeds 

1 cup cold buttermilk 

1 cup confectioners' sugar 

2 tablespoons whole milk 

1/4 teaspoon grated orange zest

Directions

Step 1 Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, granulated sugar, and salt.

Step 2 Cut butter into small pieces; work into flour mixture with your fingers or a pastry cutter until dough resembles coarse meal. Add currants, caraway seeds, and buttermilk; stir until just combined.

Step 3 Scoop 1/3 cup-size mounds of dough onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, spaced 3 inches apart. Bake until bottoms are golden, 15 to 20 minutes. Let cool completely on sheet.

Step 4 Meanwhile, combine confectioners' sugar, milk, and orange zest. Drizzle over scones; serve.

Steak and potato pancakes

Potato cakes

4 russet potatoes, riced

2T salt

3 oz cheddar or parmesan

4T. butter

1/2 C. flour

1.2 tsp black pepper

Mix all ingredients, fry in shallow layer of oil until browned on both sides. 

 

Mediterranean Chicken Skillet

 

This was dinner tonight.

Mediterranean Chicken Skillet

This single-skillet recipe is impressive enough to make it company-worthy, but easy enough to make on a weeknight. It’s important to minimize moving the chicken and the onions as they cook in order to help them brown nicely and to reduce the chance of their releasing excess liquid into the pan. Pro tip: Keep a clean bowl or sheet tray handy when you’re making a single skillet meal such as this; that way, you can easily take items out of the pan and set aside as needed. 

Active:30 minsTotal:45 minsYield:Serves 4 (serving size: 1 chicken thigh, 3/4 cup  vegetables in sauce)

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided 
• 4 (5-oz.) bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs 
• 1 ¼ teaspoons kosher salt, divided 
• 1 teaspoon black pepper, divided 
• 1 large red onion (12 oz.), cut into 1/2-in. slices 
• 4 cups cherry tomatoes 
• 8 ounces fresh green beans, trimmed 
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic 
• 1 tablespoon drained and rinsed capers 
• 1 ½ teaspoons chopped fresh oregano, plus more for garnish 
• ⅓ cup dry white wine 

Directions

• Step 1 Preheat oven to 450°F. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high. Sprinkle chicken on all sides with 3/4 teaspoon of the salt and 1/2 teaspoon of the pepper. Place chicken in skillet, skin side down; cook, undisturbed, until brown and crispy, about 8 minutes. Flip, and continue to cook until browned on other side, about 4 minutes. Transfer chicken to a plate. (Chicken will not be cooked through.)
  Step 2 Place onion slices in skillet in a single layer over medium-high; cook, undisturbed, until slightly charred, 4 to 6 minutes. Flip, and cook until charred on other side, about 2 minutes. Transfer to plate with chicken.
  Step 3 Add tomatoes and remaining 1 tablespoon oil to skillet; cook, undisturbed, until blistered, about 4 minutes. Add green beans, garlic, capers, and oregano; cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Stir in white wine. Place charred onions on top of tomato mixture; nestle chicken into tomato mixture.
  Step 4 Bake in preheated oven until a thermometer inserted in thickest portion of chicken reaches 170°F, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from oven, and garnish with oregano.
  © Copyright 2022 MyRecipes. All rights reserved.

Printed from https://www.myrecipes.com 03/07/2022

 No pictures, just a note here so I'll remember about the soup I made with left overs with the chicken thighs.  I put the bones from the thighs, the skin that I trimmed off, an onion, celery and carrot in water with two chicken legs and let simmer for 2 hours.  When it was cool enough to handle. I thew away all the vegetables and skin. I pulled all the good meat off the bones and legs and added them back to the broth along with some cut up pieces of Zatarain sausage, onion, parmesan rind, a dash of white wine vinegar and cooked them briefly and put them in the pot along with some orzo, tarragon, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper to taste.  It made about 3 or 4 small bowls of very tasty and well gelled soup. Next time I make it, I will add some spinach and maybe substitute Italian sausage for the other sausage.