Fried Chicken and Cheesesteaks

French onion soup is one of my FAVORITE things to order in a restaurant. But a few years ago, I also started making it at home. It isn't hard, but it does require patience, and attention. First, slice a whole pile of onions. I normally cut them in half, and then slice into half moons. Note that my pot was almost full at the beginning. (I don't remember exactley but about 8 of those great big softball sized sweet onions would do) Start a soup pot over medium heat. Add a little oil to the pan, and start cooking. Stir occasionally. We're trying to both soften the onions and release a lot of liquid. Keep stirring every few minutes. Note the brown bits I just stirred up. Every time you stir make sure to stir every bit of the bottom of the pot. Eventually it will become a dark caramel color. Keep cooking, and keep stirring. Once it gets to this stage I add a little liquid each time I stir (apple cider, water, or chicken broth). We still want to get the color a bit darker, but don...

Pizza is pretty easy to make, and I generally like the results when I make it as home just as well or better than ordering a pizza. Definitely tastier than frozen pizzas. It is also an excellent way to use up bits of leftover veggies, meats, and cheeses. For this pie I used a bit of leftover salami, a leftover sausage, a few tomatoes, some garlice and cheese. Preheat oven to 425. Don't be afraid to use a ready made crust if you're short on time: If using fresh tomatos, slice them and drain on paper towels (otherwise they'll make your pizza soggy) Slice leftover meat (salami, bacon, sausage, pepperoni, roast beef, turkey, roast pork .... ) into little bits. Fresh garlic is wonderful on this as well - just make thin slices. I used pizza sauce from a jar this time around. If you have a jar of spaghetti sauce at the back of your fridge, use that. If you have a little can of tomato paste, mix it with equal part water or red wine, and mix in Italian herbs (basil, o...

Remove the brined pork chops from the fridge. I like to sear them in a grill pan briefly to add color: Pour one quart of applesauce into pan (if your jar says "Motts" on the side, it will turn out just fine!): Lay pork chops on top. Bake to an internal temperature of at least 135. If you work for the FDA feel free to go all the way to 165, but I really don't find it necessary. If you don't have a thermometer handy just cut into one to peek (what you see above is BEFORE they were baked - that pinkness is no good in the final product).

Why brine, you ask? It infuses the meat with flavor, and is something of a guarantee against tasteless shoe leather meat. Works great with turkey as well! The leading actors: Salt (1/3 Cup), Sugar (1/2 Cup), Loose Decaf tea (scant 1/4 cup) - mix these into 4 cups boiling water. The supporting actors: ginger, whole cloves, whole allspice, whole peppercorns, onion (fresh or dried). Add to the boiling mixture: This smells wonderful. Too bad for you this isn't a scratch and sniff blog! Add a cup or two of apple cider: When the mixture is cool enough, put the pork chops in plastic bags: Pour the brine over the pork chops, and refrigerate overnight:

Did you know that sweet potatoes are very good when you treat them like potatoes? They don't really need the brown sugar or the marshmallows. These are pretty easy. And these are pretty good. Leftovers were excellent with a buffalo steak tonight! Peel and chop some sweet potatoes into bite size pieces: Layer in a plastic bag, sprinkling generously with paprika, salt, black pepper, garlic powder and thyme, and dried onion (or onion powder). How much? I don't know. Just keep sprinkling over each layer. Add a drizzle of olive oil, seal the bag, and shake it up baby now ... twist and shout. These are actually better if you let them sit in the fridge overnight before baking. (but if you want to bake them right away they'll still be mighty tasty) Spread on a baking pan and bake at 450. Yes, I said 450. The heat helps them get crispy. Stir every 10-15 minutes. They are finished when soft enough to stab with a fork AND as crispy as you like them. ...