Alfredo sauce

At Sam's club the other week Sal and I picked up some ravioli...one type being "grilled chicken and four cheeses with a hint of garlic". For some strange reason I don't particularly like chicken with tomato-based sauces...so I decided to try an alfredo! :D
After making this, I found I really enjoyed the sauce. I can see how it is quite customize-able, allowing you to use different cheeses if you like! I made the traditional type with parmesan. The only negative aspect of this meal was that it was too cheesy (for my taste). I thought the ravioli was going to be much more "chicken" than "cheese"...and I was wrong. :-P

Anyway, here is the recipe. It's super easy!

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup (half stick) butter
• 1 cup heavy cream (you can find this by specialty milks (soy) and creamers)
• 1 clove garlic (minced, crushed, pressed, whatever!)
• 1 1/2 cup parmesan--don't use the kind you think of for spaghetti in the green shake container, I recommending using the flakey kind, or grate your own. It'll melt down easy and taste the best!)
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley (I didn't have any and it tasted fine, but I could see how this would be nice!)



So easy!

• Something to eat with the sauce! As I mentioned, I used chicken ravioli

Delicious, extremely cheesy!

 Directions:

1. Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat.
2. Add cream and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir often. The butter and cream don't mix super well, but just keep stirring and heating. This is normal!
3. Add garlic and cheese, whisk quickly, heating it all through. It'll take a little bit for the cheese to melt and it might be clumping, so the whisking is definitely necessary. If you don't have a whisk, of course you can just use a fork!

   

   
   

4. Stir in parsley (if you're using it) and serve over your noodles or ravioli or ... ! :D

Sorry I don't have a picture of the sauce over the ravioli, but it looks pretty much just like what you'd expect alfredo to look like, maybe just a little bit thinner than your average Italian alfredo. Note that if you let the sauce sit or have left over you are storing, make sure you stir it up again well as some of the ingredients separate after resting.

INFO: boneless, skinless chicken breast

Here are a few useful links I stumbled upon about chicken:

Easy Crock Pot Chicken Recipes
http://busycooks.about.com/od/recipesbycourse/a/morechickencp.htm

Background on boneless, skinless chicken breast (pg 1)
http://busycooks.about.com/od/chickenrecipes/a/howtocookchixbr.htm

Methods for cooking boneless, skinless chicken breasts (pg 2)
http://busycooks.about.com/od/chickenrecipes/a/howtocookchixbr_2.htm

Slow-cooker pulled pork

Alright, I'm going to apologize because this post is going to be entirely pictureless (in terms of my own pics). But it's really that easy...you don't need me to show you pictures. You need 3 things to make pulled pork.

Ingredients
1. 1 package pork shoulder (1-2 lbs): I buy this "bone-in" but you can go boneless. I prefer bone in because it seems to have more flavor and is often cheaper. Pork shoulder is probably one of the most inexpensive pork you can get. Not bad at all!

2. your favorite bbq sauce: I use sweet baby rays

3. a can of rootbeer: I use a can (12 oz) of A&W

...that's it!

You need special equipment that can be used for so many awesome dishes: a slow cooker! The popular brand everyone has heard of (and also the one I use) is Crock Pot! You can get a cheap slow cooker (ours was only $17 at Meijer) at your local supermarket or department store!

Directions
1. Place pork shoulder in crock pot.
2. Pour rootbeer over pork.
3. Place lid on crock pot.
4. Let cook on low for approx 7 hours.
5. Turn off the heat to the slow cooker and get out a large plate.
6. With tongs or a utensil that will let the liquid run through, pick up the meat and place on the plate. Be careful, the meat and the liquid will be boiling hot!
7. Spread the meat out on the plate so it can cool a bit. The meat should be VERY tender...falling off of the bone and "pulling" apart easily when touched.
8. Let the meat sit for about 10-15 minutes to cool off so when you are pulling it apart you're not burning yourself.
9. Make sure you wash your hands, then begin to "pull" the meat. I'm not sure if there is a culinary technique or special name, but what I do is just use my clean, bare hands to pick up the pieces and remove any fat, placing it in a separate pile from the meat, which I toss into a small pot. The fat is usually whitish in color and feels very different from the meat--it's sort of gooey. You'll know exactly what it is when you touch it. Just feel your way around every piece of the meat removing the fat. You can also rip up the meat at this point, but you don't have to since as you stir in the bbq sauce it'll pretty much fall apart on its own.

It'll probably look something like this
(pic from http://www.lifesambrosia.com/2009/08/slow-cooker-pulled-pork-recipe.html )

10. Once you have all your meat in the pot, stir in your bbq sauce to taste on medium heat. How much you add really depends on how much meat you are working with. With 1.5 pounds, I probably add around 1/3 cup. I like to just coat the meat and then if those consuming it want to add more, they can do so once they serve their portion onto their plate. I stir on medium heat because from the resting and pulling it loses some of its warmth.
11. At this point, your meat should be coated in sauce and separated into pieces just from the stirring. And you are done!

You can eat your pork as-is or you can serve it over some bread or a hamburger bun. I also like to make the sides french fries (or some sort of potato) and cole slaw. Enjoy!

Chicken Marsala

As I look through the pictures I've taken of the meals I've made recently, I am kind of annoyed because I have only taken pictures all the way through of ONE dish; however, I have 4 unfinished sets of pictures :(. For now, I will obviously post the completed one and I may still post some of the others just with less pics. Sorry! It's hard when preparing a meal and you have multiple burners going, chopping up some veggies, to stop and think to take a picture, haha!

Anyway, this one is a meal I made because Sal said he would love to have it...chicken marsala!!!

This recipe is very quick and quite easy! It looks a lot more impressive than the work it requries, which is always nice. ;) The only thing about this recipe that may be a little off-putting is the spice mix you make to apply to the chicken. I had to buy a few spices I didn't own, but personally since I enjoy cooking it's good to build my spice collection for future dishes! What I am going to list below is made in bulk for uses beyond this recipe. Right now I have the left over sitting in a jar for future use and if you personally know me or live by me, let me know and I can share some with you if you're interested in doing this recipe!

Ok, so let's get started. What you need:

• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon spice mix (listed below)
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut in halves (vertically, not horizontally)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 3 cups sliced mushrooms
• 3/4 cup Marsala cooking wine (found near vinegar in your local grocery store)
• 1 cup chicken stock (found near soups)
• salt and pepper
• optional: chopped chives for garnish

Spice mix (called Essence, made by Emeril Lagasse):

• 2 1/2 tablespoons paprika
• 2 tablespoons salt
• 2 tablespoons garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
• 1 tablespoon dried leaf oregano
• 1 tablespoon dried thyme

Directions:

All the spices for the rub (not pictured: salt!)

 1. I started by combining all of the spices in a jar, shaking well to mix them up.

The spices in my jar all mixed together.

 2. Cut your chicken breasts in half and pound them down (tenderize) so they are quite flat and the same thickness across. (This is because we're frying them and you want everything to cook evenly).

looks nasty! I also cut off the fat (the white, goopy stuff on the raw chicken)

3. Mix the flour and a tablespoon of the spice mix in a shallow bowl or small plate.

4. Take the pieces of chicken (one at a time) and put them in the flour-spice mix, covering the piece completely with the mix. Set aside. Do this for all 4 pieces. This process is called "dredging".

5. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until very hot (but not smoking).

6. Add 1 tablespoon of butter and cook the chicken breasts until golden brown on both sides. I cooked each side for 3 minutes.

just added the chicken

Other side, finishing up!

7. After the chicken has cooked, remove to a plate and set aside.

8. In the same pan add 1 tablespoon of butter and add the mushrooms.

pick any kind of mushrooms you like...I chose a mix!

 9. While the mushrooms are cooking, continuously stir them around so they don't burn. They are ready when the edges are golden browned. (You can test taste to see if they are cooked.)

10. Add the Marsala wine and bring to a boil. Since the wine has alcohol, it will "burn off" so the liquid amount will reduce almost by half after a few minutes. Stir during this time. You'll see some black/brown specs, this is normal and correct!

11. At this point, add the chicken stock and cook for about 3 minutes until the sauce thickens a little bit.

I did not buy enough mushrooms, so your pan will probably look more full!

12. Lower the heat to medium (it should have been at medium-high the entire time up to this point) and return the chicken breasts to the pan. Continue to cook until they are cooked through and the sauce is a little more thickened (5-6 minutes). Remember, the chicken is cooked through when it is no longer pink, the juices run clear, and the chicken is kind of "stringy" looking.

13. Swirl in the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, add salt and pepper to taste. You may garnish with chives and serve immediately.

I did not garnish with chives.

And there you have it! Chicken marsala dish. It is great served over a bed of rice or noodles.

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Source: I found this recipe from Food Network.com and take no credit in coming up with it for myself!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/chicken-marsala-recipe/index.html

Recipe from "New New Orleans Cooking", by Emeril Lagasse and Jessie Tirsch. Published by William and Morrow, 1993.

Apologies...made up for with bacon

Alright, sorry I haven't made a post in probably months (I'm afraid to even check). I continue to make new dishes and desserts, but to be quite frank, I have been too lazy and/or too forgetful to post and go through the picture-taking process. I plan on stepping it back up, though.

Although this isn't a recipe, I will post a nice little tip.
Ever tired of the bacon grease mess? Well, there's a nice way to avoid all of that... (or at least MOST of it, heh):

Bake your bacon!

I bet some may be skeptical, but I promise it's just as good as--or even better than!--pan cooking. All you need is:
-bacon
-an oven
-some aluminum foil
-a flat baking sheet
-a metal cooling rack (I bought one for $5 from meijer specifically for bacon, haha!)
-patience to check the oven

(click images to enlarge)

before I put them in the oven

about 10 minutes in

BLTs for dinner! (totaly cook time ~16 m)

So all you do is...
1. Line the baking sheet with the foil and curve up the edges to create a "grease trap".
2. Then set the cooling rack on top.
3. Place your strips of bacon on the cooling rack, and there you have it! This will cause the bacon to crisp up, the grease to fall down through the rack onto the foil.

4. Place the baking sheet (plus the stuff piled on it) in the oven.
5. Set the oven to 400 F (do NOT preheat!!!)
6. Bake for 12-20 minutes. This all depends on how crispy you want your bacon, etc. So keep an eye on it.

When you remove your bacon, you can just carefully move your cooling rack to the sink and fold up the aluminum foil (with all the grease) and throw it right into the garbage! It's quite a simple clean up. The cooling rack will be a little greasy, so you'll have to wipe that down, but at least it's not all over your stove top and YOU, haha :)

This is very nice way to cook a lot of bacon at once. I am using a small rack and have 16 pieces on there at once!

Notes:
-As a warning, don't get discouraged if the first time you try this you over-cook your bacon. Just take down the time you took your bacon out and do it a little shorter the next time.
-You'll hear the bacon begin to crackle around the 10 m mark (at least that's when I hear it). Don't be freaked out, this is normal! Just the fat bubbling away...
-Like any way you cook bacon, leave a little bit of room in between the strips when you lay them out so they don't get stuck together.

ENJOY!

Ron Swanson (from the TV show "Parks and Rec") eating a bacon-wrapped turkey leg, lol!