Texas Sheet Cake

We were conscripted to make our niece's favorite cake for her first birthday at college. We decided we could stick it in a pizza box for transport and delivery so she wouldn't have to clean and return a pan. This of course meant we had to cut a rectangular cake down to a square and find a home for the leftovers ;)

 

Texas Sheet Cake

Ingredients:

2 c flour

2 c sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 c butter (1 stick)

1/2 c oil

1/4 c cocoa

1 c water

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 c buttermilk

1 tsp baking soda

 

----------------------

 

frosting

 

1/2 c butter (1 stick)

1/4 c cocoa

3 Tbsp milk

3 c powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla

 

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.   Grease and flour a cookie sheet (the silver ones 1/2 sheet size work best).

 

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar and salt.   In a medium sauce pan, combine and bring to a boil the butter, oil, cocoa, and water.   Add the cocoa mixture to the flour/sugar mixture and mix well with an electric mixer.   add the eggs, vanilla, buttermilk, and soda, and mix well again.   Pour into prepared cookie sheet.   Bake for 20-22 minutes (or until a toothpick comes out clean).   Frost with chocolate frosting when cool.

 

for frosting:

Put the powdered sugar in a mixing bowl.   melt butter in a small saucepan and add cocoa.   Remove from heat and add milk.   Pour cocoa mixture into powdered sugar.   Mix well (starting on low speed) until creamy.   Add vanilla and mix until of spreading consistancy.   If it is too thick, add more milk a little at a time.   If it is too thin, add more powdered sugar.

 

Number Of Servings: that all depends, but generally 15

 

Preparation Time: 10 min. mixing, about 20 min baking, 1 hour cooling, 10 min. frosting

Smoky Slowcooker Pork Roast and Pulled Pork

Smoky Slowcooker Pork Roast and Pulled Pork

This recipe came maxi-sized for funerals and other parties. We don't have a roasting pan, so we make do with a slowcooker. Original recipe attached for comparison.

We often chop and mix the rub the night before so we can toss this into the crockpot on the way out the door. 

Mike’s Slow-n-Low Pork Roast - Quartered and Slowcookered

Meat rub - Ingredients for rub:

• 1 TBSP seasalt

• 1 TBSP garlic (granulated or powder) – I like granulated

• 1/2 TBSP black pepper

• 1 TSP ground cumin

• 1/2 TSP ground sage

• 1/4 TSP ground thyme (or just a dash)

3.5-4 lb boneless butt pork shoulder roast

1 pounds/ 2 large onions

1 pounds/ 4 medium carrots

2 Tbs Liquid Smoke 

1 bay leaf

1 cup broth 

Instructions (20 minute prep time):

0. Chop vegetables to final desired size (You can remove them or mix them into pulled pork as preferred)

1. Combine rub seasonings

2. Either pat rub onto sides of the meat with hands, or place meat in crockpot with tongs, then sprinkle rub on top and roll meat in the rub until it's absorbed on all sides

3. Place seasoned meat in crock pot, fatty side down

4. Add liquid smoke and bay leaf 

5. Add carrots and onions for flavor. Keep meat and veggies as low as possible for maximum liquid coverage. 

6. Add 1 cup of beef broth. If absolutely necessary to cook, add a little more liquid to almost cover meat as necessary for the slowcooker. This can be avoided if you have a low snug fit and you'll be able to turn meat a few times.

7. Cook on low for 8 hours (may be slightly less time depending on your oven). The pork will be ready once the meat has reached an internal 195 degrees and has the desired texture.

8. Remove meat from heat to rest for 10 minutes. Then, remove fat from top of meat, then slice, pull or chunk meat as desired. 

9. You quickly create pulled pork by beating in a stand mixer and adding a desired BBQ sauce.

---

And the original:

 

Mike’s Slow-n-Low Pork Roast

13-16 lb boneless butt pork shoulder roast (Costco $1.69-1.99/lb)

Liquid Smoke – ½ bottle

3 pounds onions (if desired)

5 pounds carrots (if desired)

Meat rub - Ingredients for rub:

• 4 TBSP seasalt

• 4 TBSP garlic (granulated or powder) – I like granulated

• 2 TBSP black pepper

• 1 TBSP ground cumin

• 2 TSP ground sage

• 1 TSP ground thyme

Instructions (20 minute prep time):

1. Combine rub seasonings

2. After rinsing meat, either pat rub onto all meat surfaces with hands, or spread rub on cookie sheet and dab meat in the rub on all meat surfaces

3. Place seasoned meat in roasting pan, fatty side up

4. Add ½ bottle liquid smoke and 2-3 bay leaves at the bottom

5. Add 1 cup of beef broth 

6. Add 5 pounds of carrots and 3 pounds of onions for flavor

7. Roast in oven 400 degrees (or electric roaster pan) for 20 minutes, then turn down to 225 degrees for approximately 11 hours (may be slightly less time depending on your oven). The pork will be ready once the meat has reached an internal 195 degrees.

8. Remove meat from heat to rest in its juices for 30-45 minutes. Then, remove fat from top of meat, and pull or chunk meat as desired

Your home will smell lovely all day, and your hungry eaters will be ready to feast on this simple and yummy meal.

Cranberry Applesauce Muffins

Classic repost 

So it's entirely possible we buy 5 or so bags of raw cranberries every holiday season-since that's the only time they're available- just to make these muffins a few times each year.

Cranberry Applesauce Muffins

Ingredients:

• 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 egg, beat
• 1 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup ground oats
• 1/2 cup Brown sugar
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries, chopped
• 1/2 cup pecans

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350*F. Grease and flour a muffin tin, or use paper liners.
2. In a small bowl, mix together applesauce, oil, and egg.
3. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.
4. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in applesauce mixture. Stir until just moistened. Fold in cranberries and pecans.
5. Spoon into muffin cups, 2/3 full.
6. Bake at 350* for 25-30 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
7. Cool in pan 2 minutes before removing.

Original ingredients:

• 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 egg, beaten
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries, chopped
• 1/2 cup pecans

My modifications and notes.

• Used 1 1/4 cup applesauce and 1/4 cup oil. Next time I make this I will use 1 1/3 cup applesauce and leave the oil out completely.
• Used 1 cup whole wheat flour and 1 cup white.
• I used brown sugar instead of white.
• Added a bit extra cinnamon.
• Didn't use pecans.
• I couldn't find fresh or frozen cranberries at the grocery store, so I used whole berry cranberry sauce. (I actually dumped out the can in a bowl, sifted through it and pulled out the berries. Though I threw in a couple spoonfuls of the jelly part too, for good measure, I guess.)
• Made half the batch with cranberries, and the other half with frozen blueberries.
• Only baked them for 24 minutes. Keep an eye on them.
• These were awesome! They are very moist and tasty. It's a very good base muffin recipe and I'm going to try future incarnations of it with different types of berries. (Maybe raspberries? Mmm...)

Creole Red Beans and Rice

One of the first, regular, and most enduring recipes from my years serving down south is Red Beans and Rice. More than jambalaya or gumbo, this is the regular staple, and we served it once a week at the soup kitchen in Laurel.

When I started at OIT, we had a Mardi Gras potluck, and with some suggestions, Elizabeth found a version of this recipe. Everyone loved it, and my Baton Rouge native student said it's the best Red Beans he's eaten past the Rockies. 

The southerners want it hotter, but you can use as little spice as suits your palate. This comes out as a nice, thick stew, so half the time I skip the rice altogether.

Creole Red Beans and Rice

Stew:

1 pound dried red beans

7 cups broth, [or water + 2 tablespoons Better Than Bouillon]

1 red bell pepper, chopped

At least 2 hot peppers (Jalepeno, Serrano, etc.)

2 medium onions, chopped

3 celery stalks, chopped

3 carrots, chopped

3 garlic cloves, chopped

1 tablespoon Creole seasoning (Tony Cachere’s More Spice is the real deal)

2 tablespoons hot sauce (or vinegar if you're watching the heat)

1/2 pound andouille sausage, sliced (I generally just use hot links)

Toppings:

Hot cooked rice

Hot Sauce

Garnish: sliced green onions

Preparation

Place stew ingredients in a 5-quart slow cooker.

Cook, covered, 8-10 hours or until beans are tender. Serve with hot cooked rice.

Biscuits 'n Gravy

E! loves comfort food, and Biscuits 'n Gravy is one of the most comfortable things you can eat. Unfortunately she's not a fan of black pepper and won't let me put pepper in things (though I might have snuck a pinch into this batch of gravy).  You could always serve the gravy on toast if you don't have time or delicious buttermilk. I could go for a tall, refreshing glass of buttermilk right now...

Brown the sausage before starting the biscuits; we aim to have the gravy ready slightly before the biscuits. We've been cutting the biscuits with a 2.5" drinking glass, but we eat these often enough that we're getting a biscuit cutter.

We didn't have shortening tonight, but we did have grandma's jar 'o bacon fat in the fridge, so we were still able to get a dual fat action with added delicious bacon flavoring.

Hand patted Buttermilk Biscuits

2 cups flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons shortening
1 cup buttermilk

Brown Sausage if you're making gravy.
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Combing flour, salt, baking powder and soda. Using fingertips, rub butter and shortening into flour mixture until you get a crumbly mixture; don't dally, you don't want to melt the fat.
Pour in the buttermilk and stir until dough comes together. It will be sticky.

Turn dough onto floured board and fold dough onto itself 4 or 5 times. With flat hands, press out into a 1/2" thick round. Cut biscuits straight down with a 2" cutter, minimizing left over dough. Place biscuits on cookie sheet with edges touching so they can help each other rise. Collect leftover dough and gently form into another round to cut more biscuits; try not to work the dough too much.

Press your thumb into the middle of each biscuit so it cooks more evenly. Bake at 450 until gold on top, 15-20 minutes.

Sausage gravy that I'm not allowed to put pepper in

1 pound Breakfast Sausage
1/3 cup All-purpose Flour
4 cups 2% Milk
1/2 teaspoon Onion Salt
1/2 teaspoon Garlic Salt
[1 to 2 teaspoons Black Pepper ]

Chunk and Brown the sausage. Lower heat and sprinkle the half the flour over all the meat. Stir in the flour until it's soaked up, add the seasoning salts and continue adding the rest of the flour until it won't take anymore. Cook the flour into the sausage on low heat for at least 3 minutes.

Stir in the milk a little at a time. Raise the heat and cook until thick, about 11 minutes. If it's too thick, splash in some more milk. Taste to adjust seasonings. Serve immediately over biscuits.

Thai Peanut Noodles

When I was still single, invited this guy over for dinner. In an effort to impress him, I made this chicken/noodle/peanut sauce recipe. As we were eating, he was like, "Peanut butter noodles!" I was so annoyed that he would describe my practically gourmet meal in such a mundane way. Alas, that really is what it is, so now we just embrace it.

 

The above picture was taken tonight when we threw something tonight. It's delicious! We used leftover noodles, and frozen veggies on the side. Also, this version was meatless, but it can be made with chicken as well. This meal is also super fast, which makes it even better.

Thai Peanut Noodles

AKA


 Peanut Butter Noodles

• 1/2 cup green onions, diced
• 4-5 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup shredded carrots
• ~ 2-3 cups cooked long pasta noodles (spaghetti, linguini, fettuccine, angel hair, etc.)
• 2 Tbsp sesame oil 
• 1/2 cup shredded carrots
• Optional: shredded or diced chicken

Sauce: 

• 1/2 Tbsp ground ginger (or 1 Tbsp fresh)
• 1/4 cup honey OR 2 Tbsp brown sugar
•  1/3 cup peanut butter (chunky preferred)
• 3 Tbsp soy sauce
• 3 Tbsp rice or apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 Tbsp chili-garlic sauce

Instructions:

•  In a wok or large skillet, heat sesame oil. Add cooked pasta, green onions, carrots, and garlic. Mix well and allow to heat through.
• Meanwhile, in a small sauce pan, combine all sauce ingredients over medium heat. Stir until heated through and peanut butter is completely melted.
• Pour hot sauce over noodle mixture. Combine.
• Garnish with additional chopped green onions and chopped peanuts. Serve with additional steamed vegetables. (We often use broccoli and cauliflower, but any stir fry vegetables work too.)

Canadian Cheese soup

Soup season is upon us! Soup is among my favorite classes of food.  Scott likes cheese soup, and was dreaming about how they are serving cheese soup at the Cannon Center tomorrow, so I looked up a recipe, and we made some. The recipe called for Canadian bacon, which we didn't technically have, but since it's basically ham, we did have that.

I made homemade mozzarella cheese last night and we were looking at things to make with the leftover whey. I made honey whole wheat bread (also pictured below), and we used whey instead of water to make our broth for this soup. We didn't even think that there could be potential problems with the chemistry of the dish (e.g., if there was still rennet and acid in the whey, it might curdle the soup, just like it curdled the cheese), but it seemed to have worked out. Served it with steamed broccoli and homemade honey whole wheat bread.

From: 10/2/16

Update 10/11/17:
Somehow the recipe didn't make this post, so here's  one we've tried since. We subbed regular bacon this time:

Canadian Cheese Soup

3 cups chicken broth
4 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
2 celery ribs, diced
1 medium carrot, diced
2 small onions, diced
6 ounces Canadian bacon, trimmed and diced
2 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup milk
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese
1/8 teaspoon black pepper and/or 1 Serrano pepper finely diced
- Maybe some extra flavor with a splash of Worcestershire sauce and/or cider vinegar

Mix vegetables and broth together in a soup pot and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
Melt butter in a sauce pan then add flour. Cook for a few minutes for a nice golden roux. Whisk milk into roux and keep stirring while bringing to a boil for a couple minutes

Mash broth boiled veggies with a potato masher; you still want some chunks when you're done. Add ham/bacon and leave on low heat. Slowly whisk in milky roux. Remove from heat, add cheese and stir until melted.