Lee's Fried Corn

My mother’s brothers can cook. ALL of them get it in in the kitchen! For years, my Uncle Lee has made this dish. It is soooo Southern, bacon, ham, butter, onions, peppers, garlic, BAYBEY!! During the holidays we would form alliances so that whomever wasn’t going to be home to eat it fresh out of the skillet, the other would hide some away. It is THAT good! This is the number one requested ("like one of my jams" word to JD) dishes when any of us head to Dallas to visit him and his family!

 

Now once I got a tad more health conscious I had to lighten it up a bit. Not by much mind you but it is less of everything without missing any of the flavor. For convenience, I often use frozen corn, I eliminated the ham and the flour and I added herbs and fry the corn in olive oil mostly...I love butter.  The colors in this dish just scream FRESH! Again, this is another recipe that can be easily suited to your tastes! Hope you enjoy!

 

What you will need:

• Pat of butter
• 1 – 2 Tbsp Olive Oil (or whatever cooking oil you have on hand)
• Small red onion diced, or half of a large one (you can certainly use a white or yellow onion)
• Half green pepper, diced
• Half red pepper, diced
• 4-5 cloves of garlic, minced
• Bag of frozen corn
• 3 strips of cooked bacon crumbled to bits
• Black and cayenne pepper to taste
• Couple of stems of fresh parsley chopped or 2 tsp dried, optional

 What to do:

• Place the butter and olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.
• Place onion and peppers in oil/butter mixture and cook until good and soft, about 5-7 minutes, stirring often.
• Add garlic and cook another 5 minutes stirring often.
• Add corn; give mixture a good stir to incorporate all of the ingredients
• Cover with lid and cook, stirring often, for 10-15 minutes or until corn is cooked through and begins to brown. You may need to add another pat of butter or tsp of oliveoil but this is optional (the steam usually gives you the moisture you need).
• During the last 5 minutes of cooking add the bacon pieces and stir.
• Top with parsley.

Linda's Salmon Croquetts

First off, my mother sets it off in the kitchen! The. End. When we were growing up cans of salmon were a mainstay at our crib. It was cheap and filling! With three mouths to feed you better believe we ate plenty! When I got out on my own I never purchased a single can! I was too high brow for some canned fish (EYEROLL)

Couple of years ago LBeezy comes to visit (she always cooks when she visits!) she whips up a batch with her famous from scratch biscuits with Blackburns syrup! Bay bey, you would have never thought I'd ever had any. We bashed! I asked and she rattled off the recipe like nothing and I've been making them ever since! The recipe is simple: can of salmon, half chopped onion, pepper, tblsp self rising flour and the same of cornmeal, garlic powder, and for extra kick cayenne, fried in olive oil. So delicious!

I KEEP a can in the pantry now...not so high brow anymore!  Hope you enjoy!

Linda's Salmon Croquettes

What You Will Need

• 1 Can Salmon
• 1 small onion, chopped
• I egg
• About 1-2 tbsp of self rising flour
• About 1-2 tbsp cornmeal
• Garlic powder, pepper, salt, cayenne to taste (I never use salt)
• Enough Olive Oil to fry but NOT deep fry (You can certainly use a different type of frying oil)

What To Do

• Add olive oil to a frying pan and heat on medium high heat
• Mix remaining ingredients
• You want the consistency such that you can easily form round patties with a spoon.  The mixture shouldnt be drippy but it shouldnt be dry either
• Place rounded patties in hot oil and fry until golden, about 3-5 minutes per side depending on the size of your croquettes
• Drain on paper towel and enjoy!

  

Chocolate Kahlua Brownies

 

These brownies right here...gave me chocolate brown butter LIFE.  The frosting is heaven! The brownie is chocolately moist goodness...just all around a delicious brownie.  The brownie is so rich I promise you only need a small square...if you can contain yourself of course.

 

Chocolate Kahlua Brownies w/Brown Butter Frosting
Adapted from http://www.recipegirl.com/2009/06/15/fudgy-kahlua-brownies-with-browned-butter-icing/

 

What You Need:

 

BROWNIES:
2½ cups all-purpose flour
½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 cup unsalted butter
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1½ cups brown sugar
2 large eggs
½ cup + 2 Tbsp. Kahlua (or another coffee liqueur), divided

ICING
¼ cup butter (½ stick)
2 Tbs kahlua
1 Tbs whipping cream
2¼ cups powdered sugar (more or less)- sift after measuring

 

What To Do:

• Preheat oven to 350° F. Line a 9×9-inch pan with foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray.
• In a medium bowl, sift flour, baking powder and salt; set aside
• Set a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water (pan shouldn’t be touching the water). Place butter and chocolate chips in bowl and stir until melted and smooth. Remove from heat and let cool a bit.
• In a large bowl with an electric mixer, mix sugar, eggs and 1/2 cup kahlua. Pour in buttery chocolate mixture and beat until mixed well. Mix in dry ingredients and beat just until combined.
• Pour brownie batter into prepared pan. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until top cracks slightly and toothpick inserted in center comes out mostly clean (it might be slightly gooey on the bottom of the toothpick- that’s ok!) Remove brownies from oven and immediately brush warm brownies with 2 Tbsp. of kahlua. Let brownies cool completely. I like to refrigerated them after they have cooled down a bit.
• Prepare Icing: Place butter in saucepan and heat until lightly browned. Remove from heat and add kahlua & whipping cream. Whisk in powdered sugar until you have the consistency that you desire (you should be looking for a thick, smooth icing that is still pourable). Pour on top of cooled brownies and spread to edges to cover completely. Refrigerate until set. Chilled brownies are easiest to cut… use a large, sharp knife and you’ll get nice, clean cut

Big Blueberry Muffins

Adapted from http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/To-Die-For-Blueberry-Muffins/Detail.aspx

I have a co-worker from Louisiana.  Her family has a blueberry patch (is it called a patch?). Every season, she and her husband and the rest of the family visit to pick blueberries; it’s sort of a fun, family tradition.  She always brings me several pounds that are supposed to last me until the following year...that never seems to happen! One of the reasons are these oh so good muffins. We recently had them for New Year’s Day brunch. Not only did they not last I made more the next morning! I always use this recipe to make six jumbo muffins but this could easily make twelve regular sized. Slather on a pat of butter hot out of the oven....swoon!

A note: I never make the crumble listed on the original recipe! I can't imagine them being any better with it! Enjoy

What you will need:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup white sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 egg

1/3 cup milk

1 cup fresh blueberries

What to do:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease (I use pam with flour) muffin cups or line with muffin liners.
2. Combine flour, sugar, salt and baking powder in a bowl, set aside.
3. Place vegetable oil into a 1 cup measuring cup; add the egg and milk. Mix this with flour mixture.
4. Fold in blueberries. Fill muffin cups about ¾ full.
5. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until done

Forty Clove Chicken

So as you can see I have been MIA. Not for naught! I am preparing a fanciful website to accommodate my hobby! Details are forth coming. *Rubbing hands together* on to the cooking!

It was a cold, cloudy day in H-Town yesterday and nothing but comfort food would do! It is a rare day in Houston when it is cold AND sun-less AND rainy during the fall months! I took full advantage of this opportunity and made some yummy goodness. This chicken cold rocked the party! It used simple flavors and easy techniques. The recipe, which I got from here, made me want to lick my screen when I first saw it! But alas, I maintained my composure until I could chef this up in my own kitchen!

The recipe called for thyme but I used a mixture of thyme and tarragon and I imagine you could use whatever dried herb you had on hand to make this dish. I also used cut up chicken pieces (sans bone in chicken breasts) and cooked this all in one pan. I used more broth than called for because we like it saucy round these parts! The chicken was moist, the garlic was melt in your mouth delicious and the tarragon thyme sauce was divine over wild rice.

This recipe has been officially added to my arsenal! Hope you enjoy!

Forty Garlic Chicken
Adapted from For the Love of Cooking Recipe Blog

8 Chicken pieces (except bone in breasts)
3-4 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Tbsp Dried Thyme
1 Tbsp Dried Tarragon
Salt and pepper to taste
40 cloves of garlic crushed with knife
2-3 Tbsp butter
1 -2 Tbsp all purpose flour
1 can chicken broth
2 Tbsp whole milk

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees

Peel and crush 40 cloves of garlic, set aside.

Place chicken pieces (I used 2 legs, 2 thighs and 5 wings) in a large bowl. Pour olive oil over chicken; add salt, pepper, thyme and tarragon. With your hands, mix so that the chicken is pretty evenly coated.

Heat a large skillet over medium high for a few minutes. Place chicken pieces in hot skillet and sear on both sides; about four to five minutes per side. Once seared, move chicken to a plate while you start the sauce.

In the same skillet, lower the heat and add garlic sautéing for 4-5 minutes, stirring often. Add the chicken broth making sure to scrape the bottom of the pan. Add additional thyme and tarragon according to your tastes.

Place chicken back into skillet with juices, cover and bake for about 30-40 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Once chicken has baked, carefully remove chicken and garlic from baking dish to a platter.

Over medium heat add butter, let it melt. Add flour and milk and stir until there are no more lumps, about 2-3 minutes. As sauce begins to thicken either place chicken pieces back into the pan and continue thickening for a few minutes or let sauce thicken and pour over chicken.