A special treat...

Several years ago I visited Alaska during the week of the Iditarod... it was a fun experience! But it was sure cold... so, I visited Humpy's Great Alaska Alehouse for a night out on the town (and interestingly enough was introduced to heated toilet seats and heated water in the toilet bowl... but I digress...)

I am happy to report that the highlight of my visit at Humpy's was that I got to taste this for the first time in my life!





It's a beer, a Belgian beer to be exact... and it's packaged with a cork and a bottle cap. It's not your typical beer, as it's kinda "sparkly"... so it takes you by somewhat of a surprise.




Lindeman's offers several different flavors... my favorite is Kriek (black cherry). This is a "once in a while" treat for me... and I sure relish the time spent with my Lindeman's...





What special treat do you look forward to?



enjoy your time in the kitcen...

My Sunday routine...

By far, Sundays are my favorite day of the week - for many reasons!

I'm up before the sun rises and enjoying my coffee at home... see I only get to enjoy my coffee at home 2x a week. The rest of the week... I'm sipping it while driving to work. And at that point, it's more of an act of survival than enjoyment... so I cherish my coffee-at-home mornings. But that's just the beginning...

Then I head to church, catch up with some friends and hug a few necks...

Then? The next few hours are all about food... need I say more?!

You can find me at the same grocery store at the same time every Sunday (and it's so much of a ritual that I run into the same couple every Sunday morning who are there at the same time as me - we ARE creatures of habit, apparently...)

Above is an example of this week's produce bounty... interestingly, the weekly bounty doesn't change much from week to week. Every now and then there will be something different in this mix... but this is what it usually looks like. Bell peppers, green onions, garlic, crimini mushrooms, avocadoes, yellow onions and cilantro. I bring them home, unwrap them from those nasty plastic bags and prep them for storage... wanna see what I do?


Green onions:

They don't usually need to be washed. I just wrap them up in a paper towel (to catch their moisture and keep them fresh). From here - they go right into the veggie drawer.

Cilantro:

Same thing as the green onions. I wrap the bunch in a paper towel to catch the moisture - which keeps the bunch fresh.

Crimini mushrooms:

Personal note: I prefer these to button mushrooms because they seem to have a bit more flavor when sauteed...yum!

Cleaning - Someone once told me that if you rinse mushrooms they soak up water and get rubbery when cooking. Instead, I wipe off the caps and sides of the mushroom with a SLIGHTLY damp cloth. This helps to remove the grit and dirt without allowing them to soak up water. Then I store them in a bowl lined with a paper towel (to soak up any additional moisture).

Storage - The mushrooms then get stored on a shelf in the refrigerator - not in the veggie drawer. Not sure if that's the "right" or "wrong" thing to do - not sure that I care either way.



What I do with other veggies:

Whole green pepper - store loose in the veggie drawer (most definitely NOT in the plastic produce bags). Once they are cut open and partially used, they get loosely wrapped and put back in the veggie drawer until I use the rest of it.

Celery/Carrots - in the bags they were sold in, in the veggie drawer.

Lettuce - wrapped in a paper towel, in the veggie drawer. I was the leaves once I get ready to use them.

Poblano peppers - these may be the only item that stay in their plastic bags once they get into my veggie drawer. Reason? I use them rather quickly... and I need that big to steam them in once I've roasted them over the flame.


At room temperature, but in a cool, dry place...
Avocadoes, yellow/red/white onions, garlic, shallots, potatoes, squash, etc...


And my citrus/fruit?
At room temperature, typically like this or on a platter as a kitchen table center piece.




Isn't this pretty... I love these colors...


The rest of the afternoon usually consists of assembling/making breakfasts and lunches for the work week... trying out a new recipe for dinner (or making a good "comfort food" dish, like Sundays at home used to be)... napping... watching football or baseball or whatever the season may be... being creative in the stamp room or reading or more napping...

I love Sundays! I'm sure you can understand why...



enjoy your time in the kitcen...

RECIPES: 1 night, 2 new recipes... and "wife-of-the-year award"...

I was feeling bold and adventurous today... after spending most of the day in my favorite chair, reading my current favorite book and working up a true appetite. I decided to try out 2 new recipes tonight: Tender Pork Tenderloin and Perfect Potatoes Au Gratin.

Talk about ambitious. And just you wait... it gets exciting and dangerous at the end...

Starting with the pork tenderloin: Pat it dry on all sides...

And quick ... find your garlic!



Next: cut a few cloves in half and smell the garlic...



You need these cloves sliced thin... so I sliced up about three or four cloves...



With a small knife you make little cuts into the tenderloin and slide the garlic slivers in... mmm...



Then sprinkle with the seasonings: I used kosher salt, ground black pepper and ground cumin.



Lower the tenderloin into hot oil ... and brown on all sides.



Turn every 3-4 minutes to brown on all sides...



Then you'll add the goodness that keeps this so moist... dry white wine and chicken broth.



Carefully splash the broth mix into the Dutch oven or skillet, cover and slide into hot oven.



Approximately 45 minutes later you have this...



A moist pork tenderloin that has reached at least 150 degrees F... keep it covered and let it rest for a while.



And when it's ready... move it to a cutting board and find your best knife...



But first, take a look at those beautiful garlic slivers poking up out of there... can you smell them?!



Thinly slice and serve up ... but first ... don't forget about the potatoes... let's back up for a bit and start at the beginning...

Well, I'll let the Pioneer Woman show us in all her glory. Check it out: Perfect Potatoes Au Gratin.




And for those of you who read all the way through this to read about the exciting and dangerous portion of tonight's dinner... and, this is how I won the "wife-of-the-year award".

My hero-of-a-hubby is on very strong antibiotics this week and cannot, I mean C-A-N-N-O-T, consume any alcohol. Fast forward to sitting down with this yummy-looking, fantastic-smelling plate of food and taking a few bites. My hero-of-a-hubby asked me what the meat was cooked in and I explained "chicken broth and white wine" and he just about jumped out of his chair. He had taken 2 or 3 bites and, wait... what is that?! He tasted something similar to wine...

Enter the "wife-of-the-year award"...

I promise... I will N-E-V-E-R make that mistake again! But I do get to enjoy the rest of the tenderloin... all-by-myself...


RECIPE: Tender Pork Tenderloin
Recipe courtesy Parade magazine (Oct ’01)

Ingredients
1 ½ - 2 pound pork tenderloin
3 clove of garlic, thinly sliced
Salt and pepper, to taste
¾ teaspoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 ½ cup chicken broth
½ cup dry white wine

Preparation
Preheat the oven to 400°F.

With the tip of a sharp knife, make deep little slits all over the tenderloin and insert the garlic slivers. Season with salt, pepper, and cumin.

Place the oil in a Dutch oven and sear the tenderloin well on medium-high heat on all sides (3-4 minutes on each side), turning the meat over as it browns.

Add the chicken broth and white wine to the pan and place it in the oven for approximately 45 minutes (or until meat thermometer inserted into middle of largest part reads at least 150 degrees F . Remove it and let it rest for 10 to 12 minutes (covered), before carving. It will continue to cook as it sits. Slice and serve immediately.




enjoy your time in the kitcen...

my fav mac n' cheese...

it's perfect... it's heavenly... it's amazing... it's mouthwatering...

it's delectable... it's tasty... it's tempting... it's out of this world!

it's my favorite mac 'n cheese... E-V-E-R!!!

excuse me for a few moments....

it got a little ugly this afternoon... but it was yummy!

(my hero-of-a-hubby is out golfing ... so i didn't even have to share...)

btw - it's from Trader Joe's... it's found in the frozen food section... it's hard to wait 25 minutes while it's in the oven.

but it's worth the wait...

tip from Lori: about half-way through the cooking time, take it out of the oven and stir it up with a spoon. make sure it's mixed well... it cooks more evenly if you do!

enjoy your time in the kitcen...

RECIPE: Hearty Ricotta-Stuffed Shells

Isn't that just beautiful!

Well, let's get right into it then, why don't we?! We need these things, plus a few others... like a wooden spoon, saute pan, boiling cauldron of water, a hot stove, etc... you know... the usual...



But first, let's do a quick zoom on that beautiful garlic... oh how I love garlic!



OK, and on to the other ingredients... oh, and have I told you how much I love kosher salt?! (How are those chefs in NYC going to be able to hold back?! (what?!)



Next step? Dice up your onion, and slide it into the hot oil. I love the sound when the onion hits that hot pan... sizzle, sizzle...





OK, back to the garlic... oh how I love garlic!



But it gets even better when you smash open those cloves with the side of a knife! Go ahead, just take a whack!



And pretend like there's a picture of diced up garlic { right here }... come on, use your imagination!


Next step, we add the meat to the sauted onions...



And let it brown, keep stirring...



And then comes the garlic... oh how I love garlic! (Tip: I usually wait to add the garlic in with the meat... if I had added it with the onion it would have run the risk of cooking a little too much and browning. And you don't want brown garlic... it's bitter, and no longer loveable. Ick... and we don't want ick.)



So when the meat is done cooking, turn off the heat and let it cool. Because you're going to mix it in with the cheese mixture... and you don't want it to melt the cheeses.



But here's a challenge... while you're tending to the meat, you can multi-task! Add your cheese mixture together, starting with the eggs.






Then you add the seasonings... and start adding the cheeses... first start with the parmesan cheese...



And then add some more cheese... some mozzarella this time...



And while you're at it... why don't you add some more cheese... ricotta, this time...



Mix well...



Next? You guessed it... add the cooled meat mixture...



And repeat, mix well...



Now, on to watching a pot of water boil... after all, it IS possible.

You know the first few steps... water in pot, flame under pot... let the party begin!




But my favorite part of the whole process... throwing the kosher salt in just at the right moment... and a small hurricane takes place in the hot pot. Isn't that fun?!



And then I always add some olive oil to the water when boiling pasta (someone once told me it helps the pasta from sticking together).



So, let it come to a full rolling boil... and we're almost there...



Then we slide the jumbo shells into the hot pot... and set the timer, following the instructions on the package.



Approximately 9 mins later... we have reached "al dente"!



And it's time to drain the salty water... move carefully... it's hot!



Before you can stuff them, you'll need to allow them to cool down. Flop them out on a cookie sheet ... and just about the time you're ready for them, they'll be ready for you. (Aren't they just gorgeous?!)



So spread out about cup of marinara sauce into your casserole, so it completely covers the bottom of the pan and into the corners...



And back to the ricotta mixture... it's time to stuff those shells...



Using a rather large tablespoon, spoon it in to overflowing...



Yet again, isn't this beautiful?! But we're only just beginning...



Gently place your beautifully stuffed shell into the corner of the casserole and let the assembly line begin...







And top it off with some more sauce...



... and more cheese...



And then bake it... and then hide it from your husband otherwise THIS happens. (Half of the pan was gone before I could grab the camera.)



(Nah, I just forgot to take the picture again... I blame it on the garlic!)



Hearty Ricotta-Stuffed Shells
Adapted by Lori Tisdale

Ingredients
1 package jumbo shells
1 pound ricotta cheese
2 cups mozzarella cheese, grated
¼ cup parmesan cheese, grated
2 eggs, slightly beaten
½ tablespoon dried parsley
½ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon ground pepper
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 pound ground hamburger
1 cup onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
24 ounces marinara sauce

Instructions
Prepare shells according to package instructions, to al dente. Be careful not to overcook pasta.

In a large sauce pan, heat olive oil over medium-high heat until it ripples. Add diced onion to hot oil and sauté until translucent. Add diced garlic and ground hamburger and continue to cook until hamburger is browned completely. (I usually salt/pepper this as well, just enough to taste.) Set aside to cool slightly.

In a medium mixing bowl – combine eggs, salt/pepper, parsley and nutmeg. Mix well. Add ricotta cheese, 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese and parmesan cheese – mix well. Add the cooled hamburger to the cheese mixture – again, mix well.

Slightly cover bottom of a 9” x 11” x 13” pan with marinara sauce.

When pasta is done cooking, spread the shells out on a cookie sheet to cool (so they can be handled while stuffing). Immediately stuff the shells with a large tablespoon full of cheese/meat mixture.

In the casserole, arrange stuffed shells in a single layer. Pour remaining sauce over shells and top with remaining 1 cup of mozzarella cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minute or until sauce/cheese bubbles. Allow to cool about 10 minutes before serving.


So, I first made this at some point in high school. I remember learning to make this with my Mom's help. She encouraged me to be creative... and I remember not wanting to use spinach... so instead used meat. I was rather proud of this at the ripe young age of maybe, 15? 16? Well, here's the recipe I wrote up in 1990 ... and I've taken it a step further and changed it just a bit more since then. But here's the proof... see that teenage bubble writing?! Oh yeah... good times!





enjoy your time in the kitcen...