Bison Pot Roast with Dill Sauce

I have been working a lot of overtime lately, and having a nice warm fork tender pot roast waiting for me when I get home is enough to soothe the stress away. My trusty Crock Pot is always bubbling away with something yummy in it. And this time of year, when the weather gets chilly, pot roast is what I crave.

I always used a beef chuck roast in my Crock Pot. But lately, I have been using Bison. It tastes just like beef - seriously! This is not the "tastes just like chicken" line. And it is leaner and better for you. Bison has 67% less fat than beef, and 46% fewer calories. Bison can be healthier than chicken. But it is a bit expensive and sometimes hard to find. So if you want to use beef, go right ahead - it all works the same.

 Bison Pot Roast with Dill Sauce
1 1/2 lb chuck roast (bison or beef)
1 large onion, sliced
1 cup low sodium beef stock
1/2 cup white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon dill weed
1 cup low fat or fat free sour cream
3 tablespoons whole wheat flour
2 tablespoons canola oil
fresh ground black pepper

In a hot skillet with oil, sear roast on both sides until brown and place in slow cooker. In same skillet, saute onion until caramelized and put on top of roast. Combine broth, vinegar and dill weed and pour over roast. Season with fresh ground black pepper and cook on low for 9-10 hours. When ready to serve, remove roast and wrap in aluminum foil to keep warm (be careful - the roast is very very tender). Turn slow cooker up to high and allow broth to bubble. Mix flour with about 1/2 cup of water and pour into bubbling broth to thicken. When thick, stir in sour cream. Serve beef with pasta and a drizzle of sauce. Garnish with a sprinkle of additional dill weed if desired.

If you are using a beef chuck roast, you will see a lot more liquid and fat in the pot after cooking. You may want to skim off the fat, and remove some of the broth (keep about two cups or so) before making the sauce. My roast was cooked in a 3.5 quart cooker. If yours is a larger slow cooker increase the amounts on all of the ingredients.

Chana Dal

I was the kid that hated all vegetables. In fact I had a long list of foods that were unsuitable for consumption - liver, fish and at a secure position at number three - beans. And then one day as an adult I tried hummus. Suddenly a light was shed on the humble legume. While I am still a bit skittish about beans in general and have a bit of hesitation when confronted with them (I blame this on residual conditioning from childhood) I do find myself wanting to try new ways of eating them. Some little beanies are kind of yummy, and downright good for you.

Chana Dal
1 cup dry chana dal
3 cups water
l large onion, diced
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 tablespoon fresh cilantro
kosher salt
fresh ground black pepper

Pick through the dal to make sure nothing but beans remains. Combine dal and water in a small crockpot (I used my 2.5 quart) and cook on low for about eight or nine hours. If you don't use a crockpot, you could simmer the dal in the water until tender. In a skillet, saute the onion in the olive oil until caramelized. Add to the dal with the tomato paste, cilantro and garam masala and cook for a few minutes. Puree the mixture to your desired consistency and serve with bread as a spread or dip, or add a bit more water and tomato paste for a soup. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Turkish Pasta with Meat and Yogurt Sauce

(Yoğurtlu Kıymalı Makarna)
My taste buds' trip to Turkey is long overdue. They have had their bags packed and have been patiently waiting for me to get cooking what is one of the healthiest cuisines in the world. It's also one of the largest, full of history and influencing all of the countries around it. So off I went to imagine myself at the Bosphorus, wandering the streets of Istanbul and smelling the fragrance of the spice market. I got lost for a while, and it made me really really hungry, so I cooked up this beautiful pasta dish. It may be simple food - but there is nothing like it around here. Very yummy!

Turkish Pasta with Meat and Yogurt Sauce

8 ounces extra lean ground beef (97/3), or bison
1 medium Onion, chopped
1/2 cup all natural fat free yogurt
4 cloves Garlic, minced
2 tablespoons Tomato paste
2 tablespoons Extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon Canola Oil
1/4 teaspoon Ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon Sweet Hungarian paprika, divided
1/4 teaspoon Ground cinnamon
Kosher Salt
Fresh ground black pepper
cooked pasta

For the meat sauce:
Saute chopped onion in 1 tablespoon olive oil until golden and translucent. Add two of the cloves of minced garlic and lean ground beef and saute until meat is cooked through. Stir in tomato paste, cumin, and 1/8 teaspoons of sweet paprika and cinnamon. Turn heat to low and keep warm.

For the yogurt sauce:
Mince two of the garlic cloves and combine with one pinch of kosher salt and mash into a paste. Add to yogurt and set aside and allow to come to room temperature. I used organic fat free plain yogurt, but you could use regular yogurt too.

For the oil drizzle:
Combine 1 tablespoon canola oil with additional 1/8 teaspoon of both cayenne pepper and sweet paprika. Heat in microwave safe container for 30 seconds until warm. Set aside. Butter is most commonly used for this and you could use it instead of canola oil.

Makes two servings:
Serve 3/4 to 1 cup cooked pasta (I used whole wheat fusili) with 1/2 of the meat sauce and a dollop of yogurt. Drizzle with a few drops of the oil. Garnish with fresh cucumber slices.

Chicken Madras

I have been looking at this recipe of my Grandmother's for a while. Let's face it, I love a good curry. And while I realize that most of the dishes I serve are probably more influenced by the British and are not always authentic Indian, they are delicious. This recipe called for fresh green apples. I saw some brilliant Granny Smith apples in the market today, and I knew that the time had come to give Grandma's Chicken Madras a try.

Chicken Madras
1 lb skinless boneless white meat chicken, cut into chunks
2 medium onions, finely chopped
2 medium green apples, peeled and diced
2 tablespoons Madras curry powder
2 tablespoons flour
1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 cup chicken stock
salt and pepper to taste

Saute chicken chunks in oil until just cooked through and remove from skillet. Saute onions and apples, sprinkle with curry powder and flour. Stir and cook for two minutes and then add broth and bring to a boil. Add chicken and cook on low heat for about 30 minutes. Add more broth as needed if curry becomes too dry. Serve over steamed rice.

Grandma Harvey's original recipe calls for a 3 lb boiler/fryer cut up and seasoned with salt and pepper and browned in 1/4 cup of butter instead of canola oil. For my somewhat healthier version above I also used low-sodium fat free chicken broth, stone-ground whole wheat flour and brown rice. The curry powder I used was Sun Madras Curry powder which already contains salt. I found that it was salty enough to properly season everything and just needed a few grinds of black pepper.

Crunchy Spicy Chickpeas

My house is full of snackers. Somebody is always running in and out of the kitchen with some form of snack item. Yet, aside from my homemade salsa and an accompanying bag of tortilla chips - there are no typical junkfood snacks in the house. We have apples and cheese, lot of nuts and old fashioned non-microwave popcorn galore as well as the most sought-after snack in the kitchen - the fresh raspberry. Apparently somebody bought me some raspberries the other day. I never saw any of them. So this little crunchy bean is our newest snack item. It's spicy and hot and is crunchy like a nut, yet packed with nutrition. And it's easy and cheap to make.

Crunchy Spicy Chickpeas
2 14.5-ounce cans chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons canola oil
salt to taste

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Drain and rinse chickpeas well. Allow most of the moisture to dry off (I twirled them in my salad spinner) and put into a large bowl. Add oil and seasonings and toss in the bowl until all chickpeas are well coated. Spread chickpeas on a sheet pan in a single layer and bake in the oven for approximately 45-50 minutes. Shake sheet pan around about every 15-20 minutes while cooking to allow the peas to brown evenly. Allow to cool thoroughly and enjoy!

Greek Salad

Horiatiki
Last week I took a vacation to the beautiful state of Virginia to see all sorts of places. Our first two nights were spent in Charlottesville. One evening after a long day of sightseeing we went to the local shopping plaza in search of something yummy to snack on. We happened upon Mykonos Cafe and dined on a delicious Greek salad and cucumbers dipped in hummus. It was a yummy meze treat. And I am hooked. My mouth waters at the thought of crispy greens and cucumbers tossed with feta. Oh my! I couldn't help trying my own version.

Greek Salad
Fresh crisp Romaine lettuce or any variety of greens
English cucumbers diced
Kalamata olives
Red onions, sliced
Fresh grape tomatoes
Feta cheese packed in brine

Combine the greens, olives, cucumbers, tomatoes and onions with some of the Greek dressing (recipe below) and toss to coat all of the veggies. Serve with crumbled feta and a quick grind of pepper.

Greek Dressing
1 1/2 cups extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1 tablespoon dried Turkish oregano

Combine ingredients in a jar and shake thoroughly. Allow the dressing to sit at least a day before using.

Fried Rice

But Not Too Fried!
This recipe is not the fried rice you find at a Chinese buffet. It isn't greasy or bland, and it isn't predictable. Fried rice is not supposed to be predictable - it's meant to reflects what veggies and meats you had on hand. So this recipe too should be treated with flexibility. If you don't have one thing, add another. Don't eat pork? Use chicken instead. Don't eat meat at all? Add more veggies, egg or tofu. Whatever you do, this recipe will still be packed with flavor and healthy too.

Pictured above is the recipe using steamed brown rice, grilled marinated pork, egg beaters and mixed veggies.

Fried Rice
8 cups of steamed rice
1 pound of marinated grilled meat, cubed
4 eggs, beaten
2 medium onions, chopped
1 package Dole broccoli slaw
2 large carrots, diced
4 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
2-3 tablespoons Sriracha
1/8 teaspoon ground white pepper
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Saute onions and carrots until onions are barely transluscent. Add broccoli slaw and stir for an additional two minutes or until barely tender. Add eggs, meat, rice and seasonings and heat through.  Add more or less soy sauce and Sriracha as desired.

Hoisin Marinade
4 tablespoons Hoisin sauce
4 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice wine
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 minced garlic cloves

Marinate meat (pork, chicken or beef) for at least two hours or overnight.

Chicken Spread

This simple appetizer comes from my sister Kathy. She made it for us one Christmas, and forever it has become a flavor I associate with the holiday season. But I also use this for snack day at work and just for nibbling at home. Serve it on a few crackers, add a piece of fruit and you have a quick lunch.

Chicken Spread

1 can 4.5 oz can Swanson's white meat chicken
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup chopped onion

Mix ingredients well using a fork to shred chicken into the cream cheese and onion mixture. When well combined, refrigerate overnight to allow the flavors to blend. Serve chilled with crackers.

Rissoles

This recipe is dedicated to cyber buddy Andrew, a witty meatball who inspired me to research and create my own rissoles. I had never heard of these meat croquettes before. But what I have learned is that they are best known in the UK and Australia and are budget conscious veggie and meat mixtures perfect for deep frying or grilling on "the barbie". You can add almost any type of vegetable you have on hand, and serve them with a variety of condiments. I served mine grilled with Asian sweet chili sauce.

Rissoles
1 pound lean ground beef
1 small zucchini, shredded
1 small carrot, shredded
1 medium onion, diced
1 large egg
4 cloves garlic, minced
4 tablespoons plain bread crumbs
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 tablespoons barbecue sauce
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper

Saute vegetables in a few tablespoons in a skillet until softened and set aside to cool. If you are using leftover vegetables you can skip the sauteing and just mix your pre-cooked veggies with the meat. When cool, combine vegetables with meat, egg, bread crumbs, tomato paste and barbecue sauce and form into small slightly flattened balls (about 1/4 cup each). If you wish to fry, you can coat the meatballs with additional bread crumbs. Allow to chill in the refrigerator so that they will be nice and firm when cooking.  Fry in hot oil (about 1/2 inch deep in a deep skillet) or grill. Gently turn rissoles over and grill or fry on the other side. Serve with barbecue sauce, chili sauce or even gravy.

Coconut Clodhoppers

I dread the thought of making cookies. I don't know where this comes from, but because of it but I avoid baking at all costs. We all have obstacles to overcome! Actually, I don't think I could ever bake a better cookie than my sister Kathy. People stop in their tracks when she brings out her cookies. I swear she could be a millionaire cookie mogul if she would find herself a commercial kitchen and get baking. As for me, I can melt stuff really good - like these Coconut Clodhoppers.

Coconut Clodhoppers
1 box honey graham cracker cereal
6 cups white chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups sweetened coconut
1 1/2 cups crushed salted cashews

Combine cashews, cereal and coconut in a large mixing bowl. Melt white chocolate in a double boiler and pour into mixing bowl. Mix well and spread on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper and chill until solid. When hardened, break into little pieces and enjoy.

Fried Cornmeal Mush

I have a really good memory. At least that is what family tells me. I can remember the tiniest detail of people and travels from years past. I get these sudden images that flash in my mind. Among them are memories of my grandmother. She made me this dish once - at her cabin in the Laurel Mountains. My mom also made it for me, along with that mysterious food "scrapple", reputedly containing all parts of the pig - even the squeal. I would eat it all for breakfast, but mush was my favorite. Delicately crispy on the outside, creamy warm on the inside and dripping with real maple syrup.

Mush used to come in these little tubs in the refrigerated section of the grocery. But why anyone would bother buying the pre-made stuff when it's so easy and cheap to do it yourself is beyond me. I was thinking of adding fresh corn to it also. You might call this stuff polenta. I call it delicious.

Fried Cornmeal Mush
4 cups water (set 1 cup aside)
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1/2 teaspoon salt
vegetable oil for frying
flour

Combine cornmeal, salt and one cup of cold water in a bowl and combine well. Bring remaining three cups of water to a boil. While boiling, pour cold cornmeal and water into the boiling water and whisk to smooth any lumps. Cook on medium low to low heat for 20 minutes or until cornmeal becomes a thick smooth paste. Be careful with the heat as it cooks and stir constantly, because it can bubble like hot lava as it thickens.

Pour hot cornmeal into a Pyrex loaf pan and refrigerate overnight. When ready to cook the next morning, invert pan onto a dish or cutting board and cut 1/4 inch slices. Dredge in flour and fry in skillet with hot vegetable oil until golden brown on both sides.

Serve with butter or with your favorite syrup.

Zucchini Fritters

(Beignets de Courgette)
It happens every summer. Like invaders from an alien planet, zucchini start appearing everywhere. At first they seem harmless vegetables, but soon as the summer draws on they grow until they become the size of an infant. Everyone seems to be trying to get rid of them. What to do? Eat. Adopt these green babies and fry them up.

Zucchini Fritters

2 small Zucchini shredded (about 1 pound)
2 large Eggs beaten
1/2 cup Flour 

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon Salt
Fresh ground black pepper to taste
2 pinch Cayenne
4 cloves Garlic minced

Shred zucchini in a bowl. Add other ingredients and mix well. The mixture should be mostly zucchini in small amount of loose batter. Heat about 1/2 inch of oil in a cast iron skillet. Drop batter by tablespoons into the oil and fry for a few minutes until the edges become brown. Flip fritter over with a spatula or slotted spoon and fry the other side until both sides are golden brown. Drain on paper towels and serve as they are or with marinara sauce.

Dill Weed Dip

This addictive recipe came to me from Audrey, who is blessed with a very large garden full of fresh vegetables during the summer months. No matter what the season, when dining at Audrey's, you will find mostly fresh vegetables served in salads and home baked bread. She claims to not like cooking, but is always a taste of the earth's abundance when I go there. This is adapted from one of her staples. 

Dill Weed Dip

8 ounces mayonnaise
8 ounces sour cream
1/2 teaspoon Accent (monosodium glutamate)
3 tablespoons dill weed
1 tablespoon garlic salt

Combine all ingredients and allow to sit for a few hours to blend the seasonings. You can also add less dill weed and an equal amount of other herbs, such as chives, onion flakes, parsley or whatever you wish. Most people I know are shocked that I would use MSG, but they seem to be unaware of what it actually is. Studies have shown that most people only have reactions when they think it is in the food. It's pretty neat stuff actually. It is derived from seaweed and makes the flavors bolder. But like all sodium products, one should use it sparingly - only enough to enhance the flavor and no more. Feel free to omit the ingredient if you wish.

Pineapple Teriyaki Steak Salad

Nothing beats a juicy steak. Just thinking about it makes my mouth water. I am truly a carnivore and the beef beastie is my favorite along with the pork beastie. I grill steaks outside all year long, but in the summer I love it best with a cool crisp salad and some fresh fruit. This dish has all three together for the perfect hot weather meal.

Pineapple Teriyaki Steak Salad

Marinade:
1/2 cup pineapple juice

1/2 cup soy sauce
4 tablespoons cider vinegar
4 tablespoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon ground ginger
2 cloves garlic finely chopped 

Dressing:

1/3 cup pineapple juice

1/3 cup rice wine vinegar (cider or white vinegar work too)

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon sugar

Marinate two pounds of steak (flank or skirt steak) in the marinade overnight. Grill until perfect (for me perfect is medium rare) and allow to sit for 5-10 minutes. Slice thinly and serve on a bed of fresh romaine with fresh pineapple and a splash of dressing. Enjoy!

Pickled Purple Eggs

To the uninitiated, they look like alien spores out of a cult 70s sci-fi film. Touch them and a creature conjured from the imagination of H.R. Giger will burst forth and implant in your viscera. Run! No, wait, they are only Pickled Purple Eggs! Harmless little eggs which are a fixture of Pennsylvania salad bars and farm markets, or anywhere there is a population of Amish or Mennonite cooks. Pickled eggs were first made as a way to preserve eggs using leftover pickle juices. The Pennsylvania Dutch brought this technique, and it continues today with the area's Amish, who still live as their ancestors did without electricity.  This recipe is in homage to my own Pennsylvania Dutch ancestor - Elizabeth Barth who was born in May, 1770 and lived in Lancaster PA.

Pickled Purple Eggs
1 dozen eggs
1 14.5-ounce can of sliced or small beets
1 cup cider vinegar
1 cup water
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 stick cinnamon
4 whole cloves
4 whole allspice berries

Hard boil eggs and cool immediately in ice water.  Using eggs which are a few weeks old makes them easier to peel. Set aside and allow to cool.

Combine beets, vinegar, water, sugar and spices and simmer for 10 minutes. Cool.  Peel eggs and add to cooled liquid. You can keep the beets with the eggs to pickle, or use separately. Refrigerate for two days to a week before eating. The eggs can keep in the refrigerator for up to two months.

Bulgarian Salad

(Shopska Salata)
 I first discovered this delicious salad on one of my trips to the Pittsburgh Folk Festival.  After eating the small sample (I had been sampling everywhere!) I decided to try to replicate the recipe. Since then, it has been made in ample batches each week during the hot summer months. Actually, I am surprised at how quickly this salad is consumed! Now that the warm weather is here and the requests are for "light food", this salad will once again be part of the weekly menu. If only I could keep up with the demand...

Bulgarian Salad 
4 large Cucumbers
3 medium Tomatoes chopped
1 medium Green peppers chopped
2 tablespoon Sugar
1 tablespoon Kosher Salt
1/2 cup Vegetable oil
1/2 cup Red wine vinegar
8 ounces Feta cheese, crumbled

Peel cucumbers and slice in half. Remove seeds with a spoon and chop into 1/4 inch squares. Place into a large bowl. Add green peppers and tomatoes. Pour vinegar and oil on vegetables and sugar and salt. Mix vegetables and dressing mixture and refrigerate for one hour to allow the flavors to combine. Serve with crumbled feta cheese.

Saffron Rice and Corn

(Arroz Amarillo y Maiz)
I love to cook with rice, and this version of a Latin American dish is one of my favorites. I pair this bright flavored rice with pernil, tacos and rotisserie chicken. And sometimes I just toss chicken in the rice and use the combined mixture as a main dish.

As always, the better the ingredients, the better the dish. And this is sometimes hard for me as I do my best to keep a tight food budget. Unfortunately, I love cooking and trying new flavors. I try to keep to my philosophy of using inexpensive staples with one or two star ingredients. I think that the food traditions of nations who have been challenged throughout history to feed their people have the most to teach about this idea. It is these people who can produce food that is extraordinary using inexpensive staples such as rice or beans with amazing depth of flavor. They are my inspiration. My star ingredient today is saffron - the most costly seasoning in the world. My favorite is Penzeys Coupé Spanish Saffron. It is one of their best saffrons, packing the most flavor and color into those little pinches. A little goes a long way, and I can't resist it. The fresh cilantro is costly in the grocery, but I keep four large pots of it growing on my porch.

Saffron Rice and Corn
4 cups chicken broth
2 cups long grain white rice
2 cups sweet corn
1 cup chopped onion
1 bunch fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
2 pinches saffron threads
1 bay leaf

In a pot, bring chicken broth to a boil. Add rice, saffron, bay leaf and olive oil and boil for one minute before covering and turning to low. Simmer on low for about 20 minutes or until liquid is absorbed into rice and rice is tender. While rice is cooking, saute onion in butter in a skillet until translucent and just barely golden in color. Set aside. When rice is finished, remove bay leaf and add onions and corn. Stir and warm until corn is heated through. Add cilantro and serve.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Bacon Bars

Warning: this blog post contains pork which may not be suitable for all viewers. Oh yes, three sinful delights all combined into one treat - bacon, chocolate and peanut butter. After posting my favorite peanut butter bacon sandwich, it only seemed natural to add the chocolate. After all, to many devotees, bacon is indeed meat candy. The combination of smoke, sweet and salt are combined beautifully into one delicious treat. 

Chocolate Peanut Butter Bacon Bars
2 lbs lean smoked bacon
2 16-ounce bags semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup peanut butter chips

Line a cookies sheet with aluminum foil and set aside. In a skillet, fry bacon strips until crispy, making sure that all of the bacon is cooked and evenly done. Crumble into pieces and set aside. In double boiler, melt semi-sweet chocolate chips until smooth. Microwave 1/2 cup of peanut butter chips until smooth. Add 2/3 of the bacon to the chocolate and pour into cookie sheet, spreading to a thin layer. Pour remaining bacon pieces along with the peanut butter chips on top and press gently into the chocolate. Chill in the refrigerator until set. Cut into small bars and serve.