Fried Chicken and Cheesesteaks

Life with three kids gets interesting.    Someone, probably someone with the same last name, left the freezer open a little bit ... enough that the ice bucket had chilled water and most of the food thawed.     Including a whole quart of New Jersey blueberries frozen for a winter pie.   I also had three ready-for-baking overripe bananas.  So I decided the only course of action (besides tossing thawed meat and cleaning the freezer) was to make muffins - a LOT of muffins: Melt (or better yet brown !) a two sticks of butter.    Stir in three mushed overripe bananas.  Cool a little bit then stir in 1 1/2 cups of milk and a cup of sour cream, then 5 eggs, 1 Tablespoon vanilla and if you have it on hand a dash of orange oil .     Then add one cup of brown sugar and one cup of white sugar.  In a separate bowl measure 7 cups of flour, 1 teaspoon salt and 3 Tablespoons of Baking powder (YES TABLES...

A most excellent addition to a late Winter or Spring Brunch menu.    It's a lighter chicken salad - no mayo or dairy in the dressing - so pairs well with a buttery croissant.     Serve a scoop in the center of a strawberry and pecan salad or just with some saltines for a quick lunch.   1st:   roast two chickens   (or grab a rotisserie from Wegmans or Costco or your favorite place) 2nd:   make the dressing: 1 Tablespoon roasted garlic powder 1/2 teaspoon rosemary powder or some chopped FRESH rosemary.   (if you only have dried needles skip them) 1 tsp dried chives 1 tsp dried savory 2 tsp dried thyme 1 tsp salt    1/4 C toasted dry onion pieces OR one large sweet onion, chopped and caramelized Add enough water to reconstitute the dried herbs (and onions if applicable) add:  1 cup whole grain dijon mustard 3/4 cup honey 1/2 cup red wine vinegar 1/4 cup olive oil Pick the m...

 So Philadelphia, the home of my youth and my home again now, has a rich culinary heritage.       Pies and chicken and veggies from the Pennsylvania Dutch influence.    Breads and salamis and cheeses from the multiple European influences.   Soft Pretzels from German immigrants.   And of course spectacular pizza, pasta, hoagies and cheesteaks on every block, normally by 2nd or 3rd generation of family ownership with a Greek or Italian surname.    What you don't find too often here ... BISCUITS.    But I married a man of Southern heritage, South Carolina to be precise, and I decided 2017 would be the year of the biscuit.    A few things I've learned: 1)  Self rising flour expires.    Of course in most cases if flour is in a Tupperware canister it doesn't really go BAD ... so I didn't worry about how old mine might be.   (only later I realized it was p...

My husband asked recently about a mushroom soup, so when I was at the grocery store recently I picked up a big package each of sliced baby portabellas and sliced white button mushrooms.    This their story.   1st, starting yesterday, roast a chicken and make stock overnight from the bones.     WHAT?   You didn't want to roast a chicken just to make mushroom soup?   Ok.  In that case you'll need about 1.5 quarts of chicken or veggie broth.    Rinse the mushrooms well, while your soup pot or dutch oven heats with a turn of olive oil.     Add the mushrooms, cover and let them cook down.    Stir once in a while.      Meanwhile crush up a good handful of a more flavorful dried mushroom into some hot stock.   I had dried porcinis on hand, but there are lots of different ones available.    Once the mushrooms are...

Ingredients: 2 blocks of cream cheese, softened about 1/2 cup mayo about 1/4 cup sour cream large splash of lemon juice splash of worcestershire sauce 1 T prepared horseradish 1 T prepared mustard (dijon or stoneground preferred) 1/2 cup grated parmesan or romano, plus a few tablespoons more for sprinkling 1 can (16 oz) crab meat - claw meat is fine Mix the ingredients above, then spread in a casserole dish.    Sprinkle w/ cheese, then bake at 350 until hot and bubbly - about 40 minutes.    (nothing raw, so you're just heating/melting - so oven temperature is flexible if you're also heating something else)

A successful experiment today!   I wanted to make a savory rosemary shortbread to accompany the cheese tray for tomorrow (Thanksgiving).  Preheat oven to 300.   Line baking pan w/ parchment paper.  (13 x 9 or 8 x 8) In food processor, (double it, processing in two batches for a 13 x 9 pan, or just this for a 8x8 one): 2 cups all purpose flour 1 tsp salt leaves only from a few sprigs of rosemary some fresh thyme 1T minced toasted onion 1/2 cup sugar then after that is well blended (maybe a minute?), add: 2 sticks butter pulse until blended.   Dump into prepared pan. Repeat all ingredients again, in same order, if making a 13 x 9 pan.     Press into pan, and then use parchment paper to gently round the edges back onto the dough (vs having bits of dough stuck to the parchment).     Bake for approximately 75 minutes of spectacular scent.  Cool about ten minutes and th...

Want to reheating leftover pork loin or beef roast?   For a crowd?  Without making beef jerky?  Try this. Slice the roast as thinly as you can, and place the slices in a glass pie plan.  Add some type of fearful liquid (broth, gravy, stock, au ju, etc).  If you happen to have some sauteed mushrooms, carmelized onions or the like, even better.   Cover tightly with foil and place in a low or warm oven.  (anything 400 or lower - throw it in while you cook something else if appropriate).   Heat until warm. Your leftovers just might be better than the first serving!