Food for Thought

Picture This: A Hot plate is presented in front of you. On this plate you see Smothered cabbage with bits of country ham, thinly slice pieces of onions and green bell peppers. On top of this smothered cabbage, is a single large piece of a Fried Chicken thigh and on top of that Country/Chicken Gravy! I don't know about you, but I would be raising my eyebrows and shaking my head with the thought: "I have done it again with His Blessing".

This recipe took 2 days prior to the "actual" cooking" which was about 1&1/2 hrs(this includes the frying of the chicken). IT IS Totally worth those 2 days! Of course, a much quicker version can be made and I have done this too, with good results..but if you want "Great"..and you have the time over the holidays..Go For It!

2 Days before: Brine the Skinless Chicken Thighs in 1/2 cup of salt and 1/2 cup of sugar to 1 gallon of water, for 6 - 8 hrs. in the refrigerator. Rinse well. Now place Brined, Skinless Chicken Thighs in a large plastic baggie and pour *Real Whole Fat Buttermilk on top of the chicken, making sure it is entirely covered. Set in refrigerator for 1-2 days.

Part One: Smothered Cabbage

4 Slices of Salted Fat Back, (rinse well under cool water to remove some of the salt)
Place Salted Fat Back in a large Iron Pot and place on medium low heat; fry for about 10 minutes on each side.

Add: 1 package (about 4-6 ounces of country ham slices) and cook for about 5 more minutes.

To this mixture add: 1 large sliced onion and cook for about 5 minutes;

Then add: 1 whole cabbage (Thinly sliced) along with 1 sliced green bell pepper

Do Not add any liquid.  The oil from the fatback and country ham will be enough.

On medium low heat, allow this mixture to cook down with a lid on top for about 30 minutes. Check and taste. Cook more, if you want it more soupy tasting.

Part Two: Country Gravy


Ok, I cheated a little on this one. The  reason being, that this saves time and I am doing all 3 of these recipes at the same time and am cleaning up as I go along.

1 pkg. of McCormick's Country Gravy (cook as directed on package)
1 jar of Heinz Chicken Gravy
Mix the two together after cooking the packaged gravy and place in a container. Set Aside.

Part Three: Country Fried Chicken


2 quarts of Peanut Oil (medium/high) in a very large iron pot (12 quart)- use a piece of an un-popped kernel, when it pops, oil is ready for frying.

Add, about 4 more slices of the rinsed salted fat back while waiting for the kernel to pop; then remove fat back.

Place your *Favorite Chicken breader in a large dish. Add about 1 Tbsp. of Paprika and 2 teaspoons of garlic powder.  Stir well.

Take the Soaked Buttermilk Chicken and dip it into the breader mixture. Cover both sides very well. Add no more than 3 pieces to the hot oil. Cover and cook for 7 minutes. Flip chicken over and cook (without cover) for an additional 7 minutes. Drain on a paper towel.

Now "Plate" this mixture: Smothered Cabbage, Country Fried Chicken Thigh and lastly on top of Chicken, Country Gravy.

Enjoy!


The fryegirl2u

You know that small bag of popped popcorn that you maybe  sharing with someone (or not)..totally enjoying it; knowing there will always be more where that came from?

Scenario: A single un-popped kernel or a half-popped kernel has been noted by you or that other person. Do you throw the bag away or give the small half-popped or un-popped kernel to someone else? In your mind at all times, the left-over un-popped popcorn will always be just that..why take the chance of possibly cracking your tooth , since you know you can always pop another bag of popcorn? If, the 3rd person wants it, even up to the last minute; good for that 3rd person; and if not; the bag will eventually wind up in the trash can anyway.

P.S. I Absolutely Will Always  Love Popcorn! It equates in the same category as : "The air that I breathe". However, I  will take that single half popped popcorn kernel and eat it very carefully, with the thought that it will never quite taste the same again. Wouldn't it had tasted Great if this popcorn had been shared in a 3-way from the start no matter what the circumstances were? Just a Thought....

Here's a Recipe for all of the Beautifully Fluffy Popped Popcorn minus the un-popped or half-popped kernels.

1 bag of your favorite Freshly Hot popped popcorn (go ahead and use the microwave)
1 Large bag of M& M's or Peanut M & M's
(and if your daring; a squeeze of chocolate syrup along with some skinny pretzels)

Toss this mixture in a large bowl and Enjoy!


Thefryegirl1u

                                                  
                    It's That Time of Year-AGAIN!
                    (The proverbial Potluck)

A Dear Friend asked me for an easy recipe to take to work for a potluck lunch. I kept in mind that he is a very health conscience (including body) person-aka "a  triathlete". I had to think: Something low fat, nutritious, eye appealing, yada-yada-yada... along with a great taste.

Now I must say that he can hold his own in a kitchen (minus the Italian Flat bread that was cut up to look like bacon and browned in a skillet)-It sounded like bacon, but tasted like aged cardboard.YES, I had to go there...but with that said, the rest of the breakfast was fantastic!

This Black-Eyed`Pea Salad recipe took him 3 hrs to make! I am even laughing now as I recall the tedious meticulous way he had to chop the veggies ensuring not to include any foreign objects such as a finger. He wanted to make substitutions, however I adamantly was yelling "NO Substitutes" over the phone. Here is My Version of this salad:

                 Black-Eyed Pea/Black Bean Salad      
                 (serves 6-10 Health Conscience People)
 "1hr from start to finish with a food processor / 3hrs without:)"                                                                                            

1 cans of Black-Eyed Peas (15.5 ounces), rinsed, drained and set aside
1 can of Black Beans (15.5 ounces or thereabouts), rinsed, drained and set aside
1 small can of Mexican Sweet corn, rinsed, drained and set aside
HINT: All 3 can be tossed together afterwards and then set aside.
In a Food Processor:
CHOP:
1 medium sized sweet red onion
2 TBSP green onions (include green stuff)
2 Roma tomatoes, seeded and cored
1 garlic clove
1 each: green and red bell pepper, seeded and cored
1 celery stick
1 jalapeño pepper
2 TBSP parsley
2 TBSP cilantro

Take this mixture of veggies/ herbs and toss in with the peas/beans-Set Aside. Take out a larger bowl and combine:
1/8 cup Canola oil
1/8 cup olive oil/
1/4 cup balsamic wine vinegar
1 tsp. sugar
a dash of cumin
a dash of cayenne pepper
Lawry's Seasoned salt and black pepper to taste

Whisk the oils, vinegar, salt, sugar, peppers and cumin. Take your mixed beans, veggies and herbs and combine it all into the vinaigrette mixture. Let this mixture marinate at least 8 hours in the refrigerator.

Dish this salad up in a decorative bowl such as "Old World Temp-tations" line (my personal favorite oven to table bakeware) and serve it along with Pita Crackers from Trader Joes or your own favorite crunchy condiment.


Enjoy!


The Frye Girl2U

I had a taste for a quick-fix veggie cannelloni. I had ate at a local Italian restaurant about a year ago, called Raggazi's. I had ordered the Spinach/Cheese Cannelloni.I thought I had died and went to heaven! Each mouthful was an explosion of flavors. Here is my version which takes less than an hour and can feed 4-6 people.
*********************************************************************************
1 box Frozen Bertolli Spinach and Cheese Cannelloni
2 cup fresh mozzarella cheese
1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted
1/2 cup Parmesan Reggiano cheese
8 oz. baby Bella mushrooms, quartered
1 jar Bertolli Marinara Sauce
1 jar Bertolli Alfredo with Garlic Sauce
2 tsp. basil
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

Follow directions on box. Before placing cannelloni in the oven at 350 degrees, mix 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese, the whole milk ricotta cheese and the pine nuts together. Place dollop size spoonfuls onto cannelloni. Sprinkle mushrooms, 1/2 jar of the Bertolli Marinara sauce. Mix the mozzarella cheese and the Parmesan cheese together. Sprinkle on top of the cannelloni. Sprinkle basil, salt and red pepper flakes. Place into oven and bake for 45 - 50 minutes.

Heat up the Bertolli Alfredo sauce with garlic. (About 2-3 minutes). Pour a large circular dollop of Alfredo/garlic sauce onto plate. Spoon out 1 cannelloni, sauce and mushrooms and place on top of the white sauce. Serve with a nice Italian dense bread. *I make my own olive oil dipping sauce. Just add 1/3 cup olive oil, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp. basil, 1 1/2 tsp seasoned salt, 1/2 tsp black coarse pepper. Whisk or shake away.That's it.

Enjoy!
TheFryeGirl2U