Embracing Him

Earlier this week a big Nor’easter blew in and the snow kept us indoors for the day. When the weather turns cold and frightful like this, I prepare comfort food to help warm us up. Beef stroganoff is the perfect cold weather meal: hearty, comforting, and relatively simple to prepare.

I’ve prepared this stroganoff with beef cubes, sirloin, and even ground beef. No matter which cut of beef I pull from from the freezer, we always enjoy the results.

Serve the stroganoff over the traditional egg noodle or opt for rice instead. Just be sure you offer some type of pasta or grain to absorb this yummy sauce. And if you’d like a lighter version, use low fat sour cream. We find that the stroganoff still takes great.

Beef Stroganoff
1 pound beef cubes or sirloin
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup butter
1 onion, chopped
1 tablespoon minced garlic
8 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced
1/4 cup white wine
2 cups beef broth
1 cup sour cream

Season the beef with salt and pepper and dredge it in flour. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the beef and brown it in the skillet. Remove the beef from the skillet and set it aside.

Stir in onion and garlic and sauté until slightly tender, about 5 minutes. Mix in mushrooms, and cook over medium heat for 2 minutes. Stir in the wine and beef broth and cook until slightly thickened.

Stir in sour cream and season to taste with salt and pepper. Simmer for 30 minutes or until meat is tender. Serve over egg noodles or rice.

Photo: Courtesy of sergeant killjoy (Flickr)

The other day I had a taste for pork chops, so I ditched my planned menu and made pork chops instead. I had accidentally purchased a can of crushed pineapples instead of the chunk pineapples we usually eat and I didn’t want them to go to waste. I combined the pineapples with a few of my other favorite pantry ingredients and created a tasty sauce perfect for pork chops.

I always season and brown the meat in a pan before I toss it into the Crock Pot. I think the searing locks in the seasonings and makes the meat more flavorful. However, you can skip this step if you wish and just place the chops in the Crock Pot as is.

Barbecue Pineapple Pork Chops
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup teriyaki sauce (you could use soy sauce instead)
1/4 cup barbecue sauce
1/4 cup white wine
1 (20 ounce) can crushed pineapple
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 red pepper, sliced thin
1 onion, sliced thin
4 to 6 pork chops

In a medium sized bowl, combine brown sugar, teriyaki/soy sauce, barbecue sauce, wine, crushed pineapples, ginger, and minced garlic.  Place pork chops in the Crock Pot and cover with the sauce. Cook on low for 4 hours. Add the peppers and onion to the Crock Pot in the last half hour of cooking.

Photo: Courtesy of Camra_ Art (Flickr)

Last night, as I was sifting through my recipe file in preparation for my March menu plans, I came across a marvelous chicken recipe I had not yet shared with you. Shame on me!

I found the recipe a couple of years ago and since then it has remained one of my favorite “go to” main dishes because it’s delicious, easy to prepare, and I always have all the ingredients on hand. Though recipe calls for specific measurements I eyeball the amounts and use enough to suit our tastes.

I find that 1/4 cup oil is not enough, so I usually end up using between a 1/2 cup and 3/4 cup of oil. I like the chicken to be very garlicky, so I up the amount of garlic to a 1/4 cup. If I follow the recipe as is, I always run out of breading, so I begin with at least a 1/2 cup of bread crumbs and a 1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese.

Here are a few suggestions you may wish to consider. Pound out the breasts to thin them. You’ll need a larger baking sheet to rest the chicken on, but you’ll speed up the cooking time. Season the chicken to enhance the flavors. My favorite seasonings for this dish are salt, pepper, a bit of lemon juice, and basil.  Though these chicken breasts taste great as is, I’ve found they make an awesome base for Chicken Parmesan. Once you top them with tomato sauce and cheese and add a side of pasta you’ve got a terrific meal.

Garlic Chicken Breasts
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup dry bread crumbs
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place the garlic and oil in a shallow microwave safe dish. Heat the mixture for one minute to warm the garlic and olive oil and to blend the flavors.

In a separate dish, combine the bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese. Dip the chicken breasts in the olive oil and garlic mixture, then into the bread crumb mixture.

Place the chicken in a shallow baking dish. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, until no longer pink and juices run clear.

Photo: Courtesy of charlotte.blak (Flickr)