It's Octoberfest Y'all

Ok, ok, I have sort of started to embrace my Midwestern life....well, maybe a Polish or German life really. I now love many things that are foreign to my upbringing. Merck's cheese spread, cheese curds, bratwurst, any sort of encased meat and italian beef (the list goes on) are sadly some of my favorite things to eat now. My obsession with bratwurst rivals my obsession with wine and with beef. I will say though that nothing satisfies more than a grilled brat. So the other night, I made this super easy 4-ingredient dinner. My husband had three servings of this. He loves any sort of grilled brat. Add sauerkraut, mustard, onion, and Giardinara and he is one happy man.

Try this recipe now. Feel free to use turkey sausage if you prefer, but those don't really make much of a rotation at my house. If using turkey, you may need to add some additional fat so they don't dry out on the grill.

Jarred sauerkraut and beer

Quickly grilled onions to add to the sauerkraut mixture

Grilled sausages on top of sauerkraut, onion and beer mixture. Be sure to nestle them down into the sauerkraut.

Grilled Sausage and sauerkraut. Serve with hot mustard and pickled hot vegetables.

Grilled Sauerkraut and Bratwurst (Potentially serves 6, but for us, 3 servings)*


6 Fresh Bratwurst
1 Onion (sliced)
1 28 ounce jar of sauerkraut
1 lager beer


*This can be made in the oven instead of the grill. Simply saute onion and sear sausages in a pan. Then pour sauerkraut in a oven safe casserole dish. Place browned sausages and onion on top of sauerkraut, pour beer in and bake for 30-60 minutes at 350.


1) Preheat grill. Make a medium sized fire with coals on one side
2) While you are waiting on the fire, quickly saute one onion in a little bit of EVOO. 
3) Place onions in a grill safe casserole dish. You can use a skillet too, but only copper, stainless steel or cast-iron. 
4) Cover with sauerkraut. Set aside until ready to go on the grill 
5) When the coals are ashy, place the sausages on the hotter pot of the grill
6) Monitor the sausages. Turn them when they begin the brown. Make sure they don't burn
7) When browned, simply place casserole dish on the hotter part of the grill. Add sausages on top of the sauerkraut and pour beer in. 
8) Make sure you sort of bury the sausages in the sauerkraut and beer mixture
9) Cover the grill
10) You may want to check to make sure that the mixture is simmering not boiling 
11) Cook for 30 minutes on a covered grill
12) Serve with mustard and Giardinara. YUMMERS!

Fall in a Bowl!

I love the fall (except that for us, it means that winter is just around the corner and Chicago winters are tough). Fall reminds me of butternut squash, apples, braised meats, soups, pumpkins and fallen leaves. I made a recipe that was inspired by Emeril. I don't often like him but I have had to get creative and think out of the box since giving up carbs. My husband and I went on an adventure to Wisconsin this weekend. We bought brats from a meat market in Lake Geneva, had lunch in Lake Zurich with our friends, and hiked in Eagle, Wisconsin before returning home. This is the supper I made when we got home. It was a one pot meal with tons of flavor.

Apple Brandy Chicken with Cabbage (serves 4)

6 organic Chicken thighs with skin and bone
3 slices thick cut bacon or 6 slices thin bacon diced
2 granny smith apples diced
1 bulb of fennel sliced
1 head cabbage sliced
1 large onion sliced
1 cup no sugar added apple juice
1/3 cup Brandy or apple brandy
1/2 cup chicken stock
Salt and Pepper
1 TBL of fennel seed (optional, but delicious)

1) Get out your biggest dutch oven. Mine is a 7 quart red beauty that I got for my birthday from Pat
2) Dice your bacon and put it in the pot
3) Brown the bacon. While this is happening, start your prep
4) Slice your fennel first in half vertically. De-core (like an apple) and thinly slice
5) Slice your cabbage first in half (vertically) De-core and then thinly slice
6) Slice your onion and dice your apple after it is de-cored too
7) Remove cooked bacon to a plate and remove all but 2 TBL of bacon fat. Fat=flavor!
8) Salt and pepper your chicken thighs on both sides. (make sure that you are working with medium hi heat)
9) Place chicken SKIN-SIDE DOWN in the pot. It will be crowded, but give it some time
10) Let them cook for 5 minutes or so. Take a peak and see if there is a crust
11) Flip chicken (the first side should be beautifully browned)
12) Remove chicken and begin cooking your vegetables. I poured out some of the chicken fat before adding the vegetables. It is your choice. 
13) Fennel and onion go in the pot first (saute maybe 5 minutes)
14) Remember to season every layer as you go. Lightly salt and pepper the fennel and onion
15) Add 1/2 of your cabbage. Begin to saute the cabbage
16) After 5 minutes, add the rest of your cabbage
17) Add your fennel seed. Season with salt and pepper. Remember to do this with every layer of food
18) Once the second batch of cabbage is wilted slightly, add your brandy. Stir the brandy and it will help to deglaze your pan...i.e. pick up yummy bacon and chicken bits from the bottom. Let it evaporate
19) Place chicken on top of cabbage mixture
20) Scatter apples around the chicken (I don't like mine mushy. Add them earlier if you want)
21) Carefully pour one cup of apple juice and some chicken stock around the chicken and cabbage
22) Put a top on and let it cook on low heat for 45 minutes to an hour
23) Serve in bowls with juice
24) Garnish with fennel fronds (the green tops you cut off the fennel) and some diced raw apple
25) This was YUMMERS as my hubs says. It was not too sweet. The brandy and the apply juice produced a slightly sweet rich sauce.

*There is a caveat. I like crispy chicken skin. I removed the chicken from the pot at the last minute and crisped the skin on my cast-iron griddle. This is unnecessary, but I liked the effect.

Thick cut bacon rendering in the pan

Chicken browned in the bacon drippings

Sauteed fennel and onion. The brown on the bottom of this pan is called the FOND. It is flavorful and the brandy helps to pick up those yummy brown bits. 

Arrange your chicken on top of the cabbage mixture. Scatter apples around the chicken at this point

Finished product. Raw apple and fennel fronds are great garnishes for this meal. 

Spice Rubbed Flank Steak=Yum

Um, yeah. We eat a lot of beef in my house. Like a lot. My husband loves flank and skirt steak, which is fine with me since they are cheaper and leaner than ribeyes and strips. They are perfect for a busy home cook and a week night dinner. Of course, I cooked it too rare and had to throw the hubs' steak back on the grill. Sigh, he has not acquired my taste for rare meat. A rub, like I have discussed before, truly works wonderfully on a flank or skirt steak. This was a grass fed flank steak from Whole Paycheck that I had frozen in my freezer. I thawed it out on Tuesday and rubbed it with a rub on Wednesday before work. Wednesday night....steak dinner. Here is what I did.

Grass-Fed Flank Steak (feeds 4)


1 pound of flank steak
1-2 TBL of EVOO
1 TBL of rub (I used my blackening seasoning which includes salt/pepper)

1) In the morning, take out steak and pierce it with a fork all over. Rub it with the spice mixture and a good splash of olive oil. Rub the mixture into the meat. Put it in a baggie or wrap it back up in the butcher paper
2) When you come home, take it out on the counter to get ready for the grill (at least 30 min)
3) Set up medium sized grill with coals on one side
4) It is ready when the coals are glowing but slightly ashy. Put meat on hot part of grill (over coals)
5) Cook for a total of 12 minutes for medium rare
6) Flip after 5-6 minutes
7) Let rest 5 minutes
8) ALWAYS ALWAYS slice flank, skirt, tri-tip, and brisket AGAINST the grain. Look at the grains in the meat. Cut the opposite direction of the grain

Spice rubbed steak after 12 hours 

After spending 10 minutes on the grill. It is easy to see the grain running horizontally

Sliced and ready to eat, but too rare for the hubs

Thank goodness we are both carnivores in my family. I love steak, like a ton. Cheers!

The Wonderful World of Vegetables

Cast-iron Cooked Vegetables

Caramelized broccoli, peppers, and onions

I love my griddle. Seriously. It is the best kitchen gadget I have. Get one now. It caramelizes meats and veggies perfectly. At my house, we eat a lot of vegetables and I cook some sort of veg every single night. My hubs is sort of ambivalent about vegetables and always always leaves them for last on his plate.  I love thinking of new ways to cook them, but sometimes the simplest approach is the best. A little olive oil, salt, pepper and bam....delish vegetables. My trusty cast iron griddle makes it super easy for me to make them taste good. Veggies have lots of natural sugars in them. With the help of the super hot griddle and some oil, they turn crunchy and have little tasty brown bits on them. The brown bits equal flavor.

Always preheat the griddle (medium heat) before using it. It must be hot. Before putting the veggies on the griddle, toss them with salt/pepper and 1-2 TBL of EVOO in a big bowl. Make sure they are seasoned and evenly coated with oil. Then simply place chopped vegetables on the griddle. Make sure the cast iron griddle is on medium heat. Turn your veggies several times throughout the cooking process. To see if they are ready, pull a veggie off and cut it open. Cook it to desired doneness, anywhere from 10 minutes for green beans and peppers to longer periods like 20 minutes for broccoli.

THE ART OF ROASTING

*If you don't have a griddle, use a super hot 450 oven. Put the cookie sheet or sheet tray in the oven as it preheats. Then when you put the veggies on the tray, they immediately start to cook and caramelize. There is nothing worse on earth than soggy steamed vegetables. Gross.

You can cook almost any vegetable by roasting them (or using your cast iron griddle). Cauliflower, broccoli, green beans, brussel sprouts, asparagus, bok choy, peppers, onions, zucchini, squash, tomatoes, mushrooms etc. For some vegetables, cast iron will not be appropriate. Beets, acorn squash, potatoes, butternut squash have longer cooking time and are ideal for oven roasting. When roasting, try not to crowd the cookie sheet.

Paprika dusted butternut squash ready for the oven

Become comfortable with this cooking method, your food will taste better as a result. In addition, never overcook your veggies. They should be al dente (to the tooth) and have some bite to them. If you need help learning how to do this, cut a veggie open after 5-10 minutes and taste it. Then assess if they need longer. Check again after 5 more minutes. The end result should be perfectly cooked and delicious. Sometimes it is trial and error before you are comfortable roasting vegetables. Think about the veggie itself. If it is long and skinny like green beans or asparagus, it will have a shorter cooking time like 10 minutes. Cauliflower and broccoli take a longer amount of time. The butternut squash in this picture required around 50 minutes of roasting. I dusted hot spanish paprika on the squash with salt, pepper and oil before going into the oven.

Perfectly roasted brussel sprouts and mushrooms

The brussel sprouts required a two step cooking process. I cooked the mushrooms first. I cut them into quarters and sauteed them in 1 tbl of oil until water was released and they were tender. I then put them aside and added them to the roasted brussel sprouts toward the end of cooking. Always halve brussel sprouts and allow around 20-25 minutes to roast. Coat with oil, add salt, pepper and put them on your preheated cookie sheet. They are delicious and make a frequent appearance at my house in the fall and winter.

Vegetables are truly a wonderful thing. Roasting them brings out their natural sugars and really makes them an enjoyable part of the meal versus just a side dish that people eat because they have to.

Super Delicious but Sadly not Gluten-Free Chicken Pot-Pie!

Chicken Pot-Pie before cooking

Golden Brown Deliciousness: Pot-Pie after cooking

So I made this pot-pie last year (obviously before changing my diet) in the winter time. It is the perfect winter food because it is rich and satisfying and warms your cold bones. I took some store-bought help and bought puff pastry. It is easy to use and makes this recipe far less time consuming. I also used a rotisserie chicken (super time-saving tip for busy home cooks). WARNING: This is not a recipe if you are dieting or gluten free or short on time.

Chicken Pot-Pie (Serves 6)

1 Rotisserie Chicken (chicken pulled off the carcass. You need around 4 cups of chicken)
1 Onion diced
2 Carrots diced
1 10-ounce container of mushrooms sliced
1 Cup of Frozen Peas
1 box store bought frozen puff pastry* (must be thawed the night before)
1/2 stick of butter
3 TBLS of flour
4 cups of Chicken Broth (kept HOT or at least warm)
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 sprigs of thyme, picked of leaves and chopped
3 TBLS of EVOO
Salt/Pepper

*Before starting this recipe, remember to thaw out your puff pastry the night before. Also you will need to clean the chicken off of the rotisserie chicken. Chop the chicken. Freeze the carcass for stock if you want.

1) Chop carrots and onion into a small dice; pick thyme leaves and chop

2) Slice Mushrooms

3) Heat up 2 TBL of EVOO in a big heavy bottomed dutch oven (medium heat). Saute mushrooms until soft. Don't be alarmed when the mushrooms soak up all the fat. Just wait and don't add more fat. They release moisture as they cook. Season them to taste when they are finished cooking.

4) When mushrooms are cooked, remove them and set aside. Add the 1/2 stick of butter and 1 TBL of EVOO to the pan and begin cooking the onion and carrot. Saute until soft. Season with salt/pepper.

5) Turn your burner heat down to medium-low. Add the 3 TBLS of flour to the onion, carrot and butter mixture. Whisk constantly. Essentially, you are making a roux* (a roux is a mixture of flour and fat that acts as a thickening agent. They are used frequently in soups, sauces, gravys and in cajun cooking like jambalayas and gumbos).

*It should get thick and become paste-like. Remember to stir the whole time. If it is too thick and not all of the flour is mixed in, just add more fat like EVOO. When you have a paste, add the warm chicken stock to the mixture. Whisk the broth and roux together. Let it simmer for several minutes on low heat until the stock is thickened. If too thick, add more broth, but only in 1/2 cup increments stirring the whole time (There really is no exact science to cooking. Baking is a different story, but using store-bought pastry hardly counts as baking). Turn off the burner. Then add the chicken, peas, mushrooms, thyme and heavy cream. Stir until well mixed. Taste (always taste as you go) and season accordingly. Set aside while you deal with the puff pastry.

6) Flour your counter and unfold the puff pastry, which usually comes folded into a square. Simply and carefully unfold it like you would a piece of paper that is folded it up. It comes in a box and is really easy to use. Lay it flat on the counter. You can roll it with a pin if you want. Honestly, I don't own a rolling pin. I just unfolded it and made sure that there were no visible seams. If a seam existed, I pulled the dough to cover it. It was super easy.

7) Spray or grease your casserole dish

8) Pour chicken mixture in the casserole dish

9) Put pastry dough on top of the chicken mixture. Cut off excess

10) I made designs with the extra (this is optional)

11) Crimp the sides of the dough like making a pie (see picture for what it should look like)

12) Make 3 or 4 slits in the dough to allow steam to release. Season the pastry with salt and pepper

13) Place on a big cookie sheet in case the pot-pie overflows

14) Bake for 45 minutes to one hour at 350 or until the crust is golden

Enjoy this recipe. I remember how yummy it was.

Easy Egg Bake

Egg Bake before cooking

I like to take ideas from cook books and make them my own. I tweak them for my needs and what I have in the kitchen. This recipe is super versatile and was really tasty. It is perfectly appropriate for my diet and any low-carb peeps out there. My husband enjoyed it and he certainly has not given up any carbs. Whatever you do, get creative. Use leftover vegetables, like peppers, onions, tomatoes, broccoli, asparagus, zucchini and potato. You can also use WHATEVER meat you have on hand. I used bacon because it is the most delicious meat on the entire planet. Sausage, ground beef, or leftover bratwursts would also be super delish. Feel free to make this as big or as little as you want. Remember, if making this casserole bigger, you will need more vegetables, more meat, more seasonings, and more eggs etc. Cooking time may need to be extended too if the casserole is super big!

Easy Egg Bake (Serves 2)

3 large organic eggs (splash of milk for eggs)
1/4 cup shredded or sliced cheese (I sliced cheddar from a block)
1 handful of cherry tomatoes
1 handful of leftover zucchini
2 slices of thick cut nitrite/nitrate free bacon (use more slices, if thin)
Salt/pepper as needed
1 TBL Bacon grease from rendered bacon for cooking veggies
Splash of hot sauce (optional)

1) Chop bacon
2) Cook it in small skillet until the fat is rendered out and the bacon is crispy. Remove bacon and set aside
3) Drain all but 1 TBL of the bacon fat (I keep my bacon fat in a jar for other uses)
4) Saute vegetables in the bacon fat
5) Meanwhile, mix your eggs very well (add a splash of cream or 1/2 and 1/2) and season with salt/pepper
6) Pour eggs into a greased small baking dish (I used a small Le Creuset gratin dish suitable for two people)*
7) Pour vegetables and meat into the eggs. Move around so all of the veggies and meat are evenly spread out
8) Add cheese on top. Add salt and pepper and a splash or two of hot sauce
9) Bake uncovered in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes. The eggs will have set when ready. If you have doubts, cut into it slightly and take a peak. No big deal if your casserole has a cut in it!
10) Enjoy with fruit for a nice healthy breakfast

* You could also use muffin tins. Make sure that you grease or spray the tins before adding the egg mixture. Fill them up as you would cupcakes...about 3/4 of the way full.

Casserole after cooking. The cheese is melted and the eggs are set!

This egg bake would make a nice week night dinner as well. Serve with a salad and you are done. Enjoy!

Really Good Pork Tenderloin

Grilled Mustard Pork Tenderloin

I went to a baby shower for my awesome Zumba teacher yesterday. I decided to bring pork tenderloin sandwiches because who does not like pork tenderloin sandwiches? I remember going to parties in the South and there always being a tray of pork tenderloin with a basket of rolls and Jezebel sauce. I wanted to put my own spin on these sandwiches and update them a little. I rubbed mine in mustard and let sit for one day. I grilled them, sliced them, and served them with three different sauces. Remember, buns are certainly optional. My hubs was my official taste tester and he voted the Teriyaki reduction as being the best. Here is what I did.

Pork Tenderloin with Three Sauces (Serves 4) 


1 Pork Tenderloin (I used 3 loins because it was for a party)
1/4 cup of dijon mustard
Salt and Pepper
EVOO
Dinner rolls (optional)

For Sauces:

Mayonnaise
Chipotle in Adobo Peppers
Sour Cream
Mustard
Teriyaki
Orange Marmelade or Apricot Preserves
Salt/Pepper
EVOO

For Pork: 


1) Season both sides of pork tenderloin with salt/pepper
2) In a plastic baggie, mix mustard and olive oil (maybe like 2-3 Tbls of EVOO)
3) Add pork to the baggie
4) Make sure the pork is coated and then place in the refrigerator
5) Let sit 12-24 hours
6) When it is time to cook the meat, start your grill. I made a small fire because I didn't have much charcoal and did not want to make a huge fire that would burn my pork.
7) Place pork on hot side of grill when coals are ashy. If the fire is too big and the meat is smoking, cover the grill and it will calm it down a bit
8) Flip the pork when one side is browned (maybe like 4 minutes per side)
9) When both sides are browned and caramelized, put the cover on the grill so they will cook slowly
10) If cooking the pork ahead of time and reheating, pull the pork when the internal temp registers 140
11) If cooking and eating immediately, pull the pork at 155. It will continue to cook off of the grill

This pork was so good. They were smoky and tender. Maybe the best tenderloin I have ever made. The mustard tenderizes the meat. Try this recipe now. Seriously.

I made three different sauces. Sauces are simple, but fancy. They do add something to your food and make your friends and family think you worked really hard!

Chipotle Mayo


Mix one cup of store bought good quality mayonnaise with two (or 3) finely chopped chipotle peppers. Chipotle peppers come in a can and are simply pickled jalapenos. They are quite spicy so be careful. Mix together, taste and then season with salt/pepper. Simple and yummy. Serve this sauce with sandwiches or fish tacos!

Mustard Sour Cream Spread


Mix one cup of full fat sour cream (reduced fat is okay) with 1/4 cup dijon mustard and 1/4 stone ground mustard. Mix well. Taste and add salt/pepper as needed. This sauce is wonderful for beef or prime rib.

Teriyaki Reduction


This sauce is simple, but absolutely delicious. I didn't eat too much of it because there was gluten in the teriyaki sauce that I bought. Did you know that soy sauce has gluten in it? Use Tamari for gluten free soy. Anyway, I poured about 10 ounces of teriyaki sauce in a sauce pan and let it reduce, reduce, and reduce. It was thick and super salty. To decrease the saltiness, I stirred in 1 TBL of mustard, 1 TBL of orange marmalade (apricot preserves would have been awesome too!) and 1 TBL of EVOO. I stirred vigorously and it came out perfect. Use this sauce as a glaze for pork tenderloin, ribs, or chicken. 

*Remember that when glazing meats, only glaze them in the last 5-10 minutes of cooking. There is a lot of sugar in this glaze, so it will burn VERY easily. Only glaze at the end. The same is true for BBQ chicken or ribs.

Cheers!

Pan-Fried Pork Chops

So, I am a Southerner. We love fried food. I never actually eat it, but the thought of chicken-fried steak or buttermilk fried chicken certainly makes me think about when I lived in Arkansas and my mom would make chicken fried steak once a year. We would have cream gravy and mashed potatoes. Yumm-o. Since giving up carbs, I have wanted to see if I could make Southern staples without using flour or gluten. Enter Almond Flour. Now, granted this is not the same taste at using flour, but my husband and I liked these pork chops just the same. 

Pan Fried Pork Chops (Serves 2)

2  1-inch pork chops (whatever cut you like. I think mine were center cut)

1  Cup Almond Flour (Bob's Red Mill Almond Meal/Flour)

1  Egg

1  Splash of cream or whole milk

1  Splash hot sauce

1/4 Tsp of dried herbs

Salt and Pepper

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1) Dry pork chops with paper towel

2) Lightly pound with a mallet to tenderize 

3) Salt and Pepper the chops; Set aside

4) Get out two bowls; one for almond meal and one for egg/milk

5) Whisk one egg in one bowl. Add hot sauce, salt/pepper

6) Pour one cup of almond flour in the second bowl for dredging

7) Put one chop in the egg. Coat both sides. Let the excess drip off

8) Then place the eggy chop in the flour. Press down and then flip, making sure that the flour is on both sides
9) Do the same thing to the other chop. Set aside for up to 15 minutes
10) Using medium heat, heat the oil in a heavy bottom skillet. Only use enough to coat the bottom
11) To test the readiness of the oil, sprinkle a tiny bit of flour into the oil. If is bubbles, it's ready
12) Place chops in the oil and cook until brown on one side (3-4 min). Remember, the chops should bubble in the oil. If they are not bubbling, the heat is too low. Additionally, don't put those chops on high heat. They will burn. Flip when browned. Cook until both sides are browned and the meat is cooked.
13) Use your meat thermometer to test the doneness of the meat. Pork should be pulled at 155-160.
14) Serve with a lemon wedge and whatever side you desire.

These were wonderful. I liked the crunchiness of the crust. In retrospect, I wish I had soaked the chops in buttermilk all day to ensure tenderness or perhaps a brine of equal parts sugar and salt in a bowl of water would have been a good idea. They were fine just the way that they were.  Cheers!

THE BEST BREAD EVER!!!!! Seriously.

No-Knead Bread ready for the oven

Bread baked to absolute perfection!

In an attempt to diversify this blog and post something other than meat, here you go. This is the best bread you will ever eat! Run, don't walk and go make this bread. It is f'in good.  Seriously, I can't bake. I am not exact or patient enough. This is a bread recipe we got from our next door neighbor. Before giving up gluten, this was just about my favorite things to eat. Give me some butter and some fresh bread and I was a happy camper.

This recipe was taken from the New York Times who took the recipe from a baker in NYC. This is called no-knead bread because seriously, this is the easiest bread you will ever bake.

Here is what I did. Remember that the options are endless. The picture is of walnut, cinnamon and raisin bread. It is perfect just plain. Add herbs or sun-dried tomatoes or olives. My neighbor added figs and walnuts. OMG!

No-Knead Bread (this is for plain bread)

3 cups of bread flour (extra for dusting)
1/4 tsp instant yeast (ours was like the super instant yeast)
1 5/8 cups of water
1 and 1/4 tsp salt
450 degree oven
5 qt or small dutch oven with lid or cast iron pot with lid

*This requires a lot of rising. So make it the night before and have it ready for the next night.

1) Combine flour, yeast, and salt in a bowl. Slowly add water to the mix. It should be shaggy and sticky. Cover with plastic wrap and leave for 18 hours. First step....done! Dough is ready when there are bubbles on it. Make sure the dough is in a warm place. We were making bread in the wintertime, so we had to take our bread upstairs to rise because Chicago is brutal in the winter.  Since going no-carb, this bread does not enter our house. Poor hubs.

2) When the dough is bubbled, you are ready for the next step. Put some parchment on a sheet pan or cookie sheet (might be a good idea to grease the parchment). Take out the bread with rubber spatula and put on parchment. You can fold it,* but I never did...too lazy for that. I seriously just plopped it on the parchment and covered it with a towel.

*After the bread rises for 18 hours, the original recipe calls for putting the dough on a floured surface and folding it several times. My neighbor and I deem this step unnecessary. We move the dough straight from the bowl to the parchment lined cookie sheet. Whatever you decide, the dough needs to rise two more hours. Cover it with a damp kitchen towel. The first picture depicts what it should look like.

3) As oven preheats to 450, put the cast iron or dutch oven pot in the oven. This step helps make a crust on the bread. The pot will be super hot. In the meantime, cut out some parchment that fits in the bottom of the pot. It can be a guesstimate. You really can't mess this up.

4) Carefully remove the bread from the parchment and put it in pot when the oven is ready. Wear your oven mits. That pot should be hot.  COVER!!!! and put it in the oven. It does not matter if it looks sloppy. With parchment, it is a cinch to get out.

5) Bake covered for 30 minutes. Remove cover and bake 15-30 minutes. It will be golden brown and will make your house smell amazing.

Note: if you want to add things to your dough, add it before you have added the water. Mix it well with the dry ingredients. Don't overmix after the water has been added. This is true of all baked goods. You will have to play around with it. The recipe above is for plain bread. If adding ingredients like raisins or dried fruits, you may need to change around how much water you add. Dried fruits soak up liquid. Regardless of the ingredients you add, the dough should be sticky and thick. As always, altitude affects baking. We are on flat land, so mountain bakers will likely have to play around with it.

Enjoy this recipe for me. I would totally eat bread if this was placed in front of me. Call me weak, but this bread will change your life. Thanks to my Polish neighbor for turning me on to this one. They have not bought bread in 2.5 years. Cheers.

Heaven on a Plate

Marinated Wings before Grilling

I am now finding myself obsessed with chicken wings. I don't know why this is the case. My Whole Paycheck has organic and free-range chicken wings that are amazing. This week, I bought two different packages including the drumsticks and the wings. They were DELISH! The morning before I cooked them, I seasoned them up with homemade blackening seasoning, which was a mix of paprika, pepper, salt, cayenne, and garlic and onion powder. The recipe for this rub can be found on the blackened pork chop post.  I put them in a baggie with the seasoning and some EVOO and threw them on the grill that night. My hubs and I enjoyed them immensely, putting our arms on the table and chewing the meat off of the bone. This is not a meal for dainty eaters or for those that don't like bone-in chicken.  

Blackened Chicken Wings and Drumsticks (Serves 4) 

2 packages of wings (around 3 pounds)

2 TBL of blackening rub or your favorite rub (if your rub has salt, be careful how much you add)

Olive Oil

1 big baggie or bowl for marinating

1) Start up your grill with your coals on one side. I used a lot of charcoal because I had a lot of chicken

2) When it is ready, spread the charcoal out around the entire grill

3) Put chicken on the grill 

4) Cover your grill if it is super hot (don't let that chicken burn)

5) Flip the chicken when a nice crust has formed. You want crispy skin on all pieces

6) Be mindful that chicken wings cook faster than small drummies

7) Cook until the juices are no longer run pink. Cut one open if you have doubts

8) Let the chicken rest for five minutes while you get everything else ready

9) Serve them family style. Mine were so good with all that crispy skin

Don't be scared to cook these cheaper and less desirable pieces of meat. Chicken breasts are super expensive and honestly don't have enough fat for my taste. 

3 More Ideas

These wings can be coated with anything. 1) If you like BBQ wings, brush your favorite sauce on the wings at the last minute because the sauce will burn (maybe like 2 minutes before they are done).  2) If you want grilled buffalo wings, mix up butter and hot sauce and then coat the wings with the sauce after they are grilled. Maybe about one cup of hot sauce and 3 TBL of butter. Serve with bleu cheese. 3) For an Asian flare, grill as described and serve with a dipping sauce. Mix 1/4 cup soy sauce or gluten free Tamari, 1 Tsp of brown sugar, a splash of sriracha sauce and 1/2 tsp fresh ginger. Garnish with cilantro leaves and lime wedges. Remember to always taste your food. If it does not taste good to you, change it up. Be kitchen adventurers!

Plate of Perfectly Cooked Blackened Wings

Easy Sausage and Cabbage Bake

This recipe was taken from Mark Sisson, who wrote the Primal Cookbook. It is a Paleo friendly meal, but could be served with potatoes on the side. I like the idea of cooking things in one pot and this one is super easy for busy home cooks. We ate ours with mustard and giardinara, which is spicy pickled vegetables packed in oil. My hubs can not eat any sort of sausage without giardinara. I am somewhat addicted to it too. I think I may need to come up my own recipe using olive oil instead of the commonly used canola oil.

Sausage and Cabbage (serves 4)


1) Preheat oven to 375.
2) Thinly slice green cabbage
3) Thinly slice pork kielbasa. Ours was nitrite free. If using turkey, add more fat to the recipe.
4) Scatter cabbage in a baking dish
5) Place sausage on top of cabbage in one even layer
6) Dollop bacon grease or butter on top of the sausage
7) Salt and Pepper the entire thing
8) Cover the casserole and put in oven for 30 minutes
9) Remove foil and cook for 10 more minutes
10) Serve with mustard or hot pickled vegetables (whatever you like!)

This was a winner. The cabbage was cooked perfectly and honestly, there is no better combination than cabbage and sausage. I actually assembled mine the day before so when I got home, I could immediately put the casserole dish in the oven. Enjoy!

Cowboy Ribeyes

Man oh man, do I love meat...my sister and I cooked a 2.5 pound bone-in ribeye (or cowboy ribeye). It was massive and probably would have cost close to 100 dollars in a steak house. It was so gorgeous. We decided to cook it a little differently than I normally do. Now, I am a tried and true believer in grilling steaks. My husband really can't eat a steak any other way. My sis wanted to prepare it "au poivre" style which really means that course ground pepper is pressed firmly into the steak. When the steak is done, you make a pan sauce with heavy cream and cognac. Traditionally, this preparation is for leaner pieces of meat because the sauce is super rich. But, being good southern girls and die hard meat eaters, we decided that we might as well put this decadent sauce on top of a huge ribeye. Damn, it was f'in good! Here is what we did.

Cowboy Ribeyes "au Poivre" (serves two serious meat eaters with leftovers or a normal family of 4)

1 2-2.5 pound bone-in ribeye (we shopped at whole paycheck for this steak)
2 tbls of peppercorns pounded with a mallet
1-2 tbls of course kosher or sea salt
3 sprigs of Thyme
1 cup heavy cream
1/3 cup cognac for deglazing
Shallot or finely diced onion
1 garlic clove
Butter
Olive Oil

1) Smash peppercorns with a mallet in a baggie. Mix salt and pepper together and put on a plate. Firmly press steak on both sides into the salt and pepper mixture. It is a lot of both, but this steak is huge so you want to flavor it. Let sit for several hours to penetrate the meat.

2) Melt butter and olive oil in the pan. Get the pan smokin' hot. We used a ceramic Le Creuset pan, but castiron would have been preferable.

3) Put steak in hot pan. Sear the fire out of it. DO NOT TOUCH IT! Let it cook for five-seven minutes and then take a peak at the steak. You will likely need to turn the heat down to medium after the initial sear.

4) After 5 minutes, dump out browned oil (ours was butter and it looked black so we got rid of it and added more fat). Then replace some oil and flip steak. Let cook for five minutes.

5) Sear the sides of the meat where all that luxurious fat is. It makes a difference. My sis took tongs and pressed the steak on each side into the pan. It sizzled a lot, but really cooked the fat well.

6) Depending on how you like your steak, you can finish this steak in a 350 oven. Using a meat thermometer, take the meat out when it is five degrees below the desired temperature. There is carry over cooking. We opted against finishing in the oven.  We continued to flip the steak, but turned our heat down. The second side had the MOST AMAZING CRUST I HAVE EVER SEEN!!!!

7) Once steak is done, tent it with fool on a plate. Turn down heat and add onion and garlic. Saute quickly. Remove the pan from the heat and then add the cognac. Light it on fire with a lighter. It will blaze, but it really helps cook off the alcohol. Put it back on the heat and stir.

8) Add cream and thyme. Let reduce and thicken. This sauce is soooo freakin good. It can be used on any meats really.

9) Slice meat after 10 minutes of resting. Be careful to cut around the bone. Save the bone for stock!

2.5 pound bone-in ribeye

Peppercorn encrusted steak cooking on first side

Perfectly cooked steak resting (look at that crust!)

Sliced ribeye cooked rare

10) Spoon sauce over the meat. It only needs a little bit.

11) Serve with desired sides, such as a green salad or roasted asparagus. We served ours with roasted yellow beets and a spanish red wine called Tres Picos. Cheers!

Colorful Eating

Arkansas tomatoes, fresh fried egg, bacon, avocado and mixed vegetables

I think that we eat with our eyes first. My obsession with food is often viewed as strange by those in my life. Just because it is breakfast doesn't mean that food should not be pretty and taste good....there is a t-shirt posted by a paleo blog that reads "I don't Eat Crap!" This is my philosophy. I posted this picture because of the colors. It was absolutely delicious. I have been eating veggies for breakfast because they add bulk to my protein. Since changing diets, I have been eating more vegetables than I have ever eaten. It is a good thing.

An easy thing to do for breakfast is to heat up last night's vegetables or add some fresh vegetables and cook them in the fat from the egg and bacon. Always season every layer and pay attention to the way the food looks on your plate. If I am bored, I will eat things I shouldn't. If the plate is pretty and interesting, I am much happier.

Pizza Soup

So I am always coming up with things to eat and drink that are different. I made pizza soup last night. We got home from a short vacay and I didn't have anything to eat for the week. I usually do all of the cooking or at least some of it on the weekends. I decided to make some soup, seeing as how it was 58 degrees last night. Soups are really a versatile food. You can do just about anything with them! I included the ingredients of a pizza in this soup. My husband will probably have bread or pasta with his, but I will just eat it as is. With this soup, you can add hamburger or sausage to the pepperoni (for a meat busters pizza). Olives, broccoli, tomatoes etc are also good. It is versatile. Be creative.

Pizza Soup (serves 4) 

5 ounces of nitrite-free pepperoni
3 stalks celery (diced)
2 large carrots (diced)
6 ounces button mushrooms (sliced)
1 green bell pepper
16 ounce can of tomato sauce (I used organic Muir Glen)
16 ounces water
1 tsp italian seasoning
EVOO
Wine for deglazing

Pour about 1 tbl of olive oil or butter in the pan. Slice up the pepperoni and cook it in the fat. Let the fat rinder (you want to keep that delicious stuff). Remove from pan. Saute onion and mushrooms first. Let the mushrooms brown. Add salt and pepper. Deglaze with wine. Let that evaporate. Then add pepper, carrot, and celery. Saute until soft. Add the tomato sauce and water. Stir and add italian seasoning (fresh herbs would be awesome here!). Let simmer for 30 minutes. Add back in pepperoni. Serve with pasta, rice or bread (for non-paleo eaters). I will just top mine with some mozzarella and eat as is. I calculated the calories in this soup using myfitnesspal and it is around 215, which is not bad for dinner.

The Good Life

This past weekend, my family and I were at our lake house in Heber Springs Arkansas. Wow, it is such a beautiful view from our balcony. We love sunsets. It was such a fun time to sit on the deck and have yummy food and good wine. We had the most amazing sunset on Saturday night....one of the best I have EVER seen. It is in those moments, that I realize how lucky I am to have all that I do. I feel very complete and whole after being there.