"I love it when we are all together at your house, Grammer!"

It's Sunday, and I am at my mom and dad's house in Abilene, Kansas.  The whole fam damily is here.  

Shawn, (that's me), Meriam and her husband Tate, their three kids, Hogan, Jadyn, and Tiger, Mom and Dad, Nancy and her son Keil, (Kolby her oldest was in Wichita, and Kane the middle one was in Kearney), Heather  and her husband Kevin, and their three kids, Malorie, Audrey, and Miller were present and accounted for.  

The night before we had decided on Beef Stroganoff for dinner.  I could eat this with a spoon, a fork, a knife, or any implement you have.  I love (that is not too strong a word) my mother's beef stroganoff.

Recipe:  (Although, it never tastes as good as when my mother makes it.)

This recipe is for 15 people with hearty appetites and very few leftovers.

4 lbs of tenderized top round.  Cut this into strips, and dredge it with flour that has been mixed with salt and pepper.  Brown this in canola oil in the largest skillet you have.  Don't crowd the meat, or you will get gray meat instead of that carmel brown color you want.   Take the meat out, but don't get rid of the oil.  

Slice three large onions and add them to the canola oil.  Cook until tender and then add the meat back into the skillet,  add 3 cups of water and 3 tsps of beef bullion granules and let come to a boil.  Back the heat down to a simmer and let cook until the meet is so tender you can cut it with a fork.   

Now not all of my family likes mushrooms, so we cook them separately and people add them when they are getting ready to eat.  

Some people serve Stroganoff over egg noodles, not here, we are rice people, and we serve it over a big bed of white fluffy rice.  5 cups cooked with 10 cups of water for this big group.  

The vegetable was a big bowl of steamed broccoli and we had Garlic bread to sop up whatever stroganoff gravy that was left on the plate.  

Dessert was Nanaimo Bars with Vanilla Ice Cream.  The recipe for these luscious bars can be found at the Food52.  

The most excellent thing about the whole day was that we were together and having a great time.  My dad, who has Alzheimer's was chasing the kids around the house and actually remembering their names.  He had a super time, even though it is hard for him to keep everybody straight.  My niece Malorie who is 16 told me that she loved spending time at Grammer and Papa's house.  It was a great day.  Full of laughter and fun.  

Family

I went to visit my family in Abilene this week.  It has been a week of awesome days and challenging ones too.  I showed up last Friday at my parents' house.  When I got there Mom had made the classic pot roast, carrots and potatoes.  I love this meal. It's totally comfort food.  

Saturday was when the festivities began.  My sister Meriam, her husband Tate and their three kids got to Abilene Friday night as well, and we all decided to meet up to plan the meal for Saturday.  We had gone over to Heather and Kevin's, that's my other sister and  her husband to greet them.  Saturday's menu consisted of corned beef sandwiches on rye  bread, with swiss and homemade sauerkraut that my sister Heather made.  

(insert picture of rueben sandwich right here. )

It may sound crazy, but we don't worry about what we have for a meal, it may not sound like it goes together, but usually it is awesome.  My sister Meriam makes these wonderful egg rolls.  Usually, she makes them with pork, but since I don't eat pork, she made them with shredded chicken.  

Meriam's Egg Rolls

1 package of egg roll wrappers

1 package of pre-shredded coleslaw mix, without the dressing

1 rotisserie chicken, shredded

garlic salt

onion powder

salt and pepper

soy sauce

mirin ( japanese rice wine vinegar)

and a dash of hoisin sauce

Mix the coleslaw mix, the chicken and all the seasonings together to form the filling.  

Wrap the mix in an egg roll wrapper and there you have it.  Awesomeness!  

Fry the egg rolls in canola or peanut oil that has been heated to 350 degrees.  When they are golden brown they are ready.  

So dinner Saturday consisted of Grilled Rueben Sandwiches, Meriam's Egg Rolls, Potato Chips, Welton Onion Dip, (1 container sour cream, 1 packet of dried onion soup mix, and 1 tsp of  worstershire sauce), and wilted lettuce salad.  My mom puts green lettuce leaves from two heads of lettuce and 1/2  cup of chopped green onions in a bowl, she  cooks up about  10 slices of bacon, leaving the fat in the frying pan.  She  breaks up the bacon and adds it to the salad, and then in the grease, she adds 1/4 to 1/2 cup of vinegar, along with 1 tbs of sugar  and it sizzles in the bacon fat, and then she adds the whole shebang to the salad.  It wilts the lettuce and makes a great dressing.  

We had Blackberry cobbler and ice cream for dessert.  The cobbler was made with two of my mom's pie crusts (2 cups flour, 1 cup shortening cut to resemble small peas, add 5 - 6 tbs of water and mix with a fork.  Divide into two disks and put in fridge to chill.  Roll out and use. )  I put one crust in the bottom and another over the blackberries ( 3 pints of blackberries, rinsed, 1/2 cup sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon, and 1 tbs cornstarch.)  Sprinkle the top with sugar and bake until the berries have released their juice and the cobbler is bubbling.  

Well, It Wasn't Really Dinner

The night before last, I cooked some of the venison that Rob had shot in the fall. It was the really tender blackstrap and we had decided to slice it rather thinly before we froze it. You have to be careful with venison because it is so lean it will dry out into leather very quickly. Because of this I have taken to marinating it with all kinds of wonderful spices, oils, and acids. I drizzled this batch of meat in olive oil, garlic, a seasoning mix called 21 season salute that you get from Trader Joe's, and the juice of a lemon, this was probably a pound of meat. I let it sit for a while and then put it on the grill. You have to watch it very carefully so it doesn't burn or dry out. 

 The meat was amazing! It had great flavor and I served it with sautéed onions and zucchini. So I had leftovers for my lunch the next day. I hate eating leftovers the same way twice so this is what I came up with. 

 A VENISON TACO

 This makes four tacos, enough for two people. 

 4 ounces of the cooked marinated blackstrap, this is the primo part of a deer.  The piece that is so tender you can cut it with a fork.  

1 very small zucchini

1/4 onion.  I had sautéed these with some garlic the day before.  

1/4 tsp minced garlic

1/4 tsp cumin

1 very thin lice of brie per taco

4 corn tortillas

and 1/4 tsp salt.

Cook the meat and the zucchini just to the point they are hot.  Remember they were cooked yesterday.  If you are not using leftovers, sauté them and cook the venison on the grill until pink in the middle.  

Pile it on a corn tortilla that has been grilled, or cooked in a little olive oil in a frying pan.  Add the brie, fold the taco and enjoy.  

Here We Go Again, Once Again, And Again!

It's been a year, I know it, well almost a year since I've put anything in here, and I want to start up again, you know school is going to start up again, and it's going to get crazy, and so let me add one more thing to my plate.

Last night we had salmon for dinner. I love it when we grill out and then eat in the back yard. I love my backyard. It's green and filled with birds, and it's cool.

Friday and Saturday Rob and I were in Reno. We were looking through all the things we have from his mom's house in the garage. I don't think we'll ever be through with this stuff, but someday. I'm digressing. We went to Costco and they had wild sockeye salmon, not the filet, but the whole fish. I had to have one. We bought it and headed home to Elko.

There are probably 100 ways to fix salmon, but sometimes, the easiest is the best. I cut two or three hand fulls of thyme and put it in the cavity of the fish with slices of lime, salt and pepper. I slathered the skin with oil, and put it on the grill. Cook at about 350 - 400 for 30 minutes.

I served that with roasted eggplant, red peppers, and asparagus. (This is called escalivada in Catalan). Cut them in strips, (not the asparagus), douse it with olive oil and kosher salt and grill until they are soft and a little charred.

The final side was a rice blend sauteed with onions, mushrooms, garlic and tomatoes. When you have finished, the saute, add a little parmesan cheese. It's quite good.

So think about the leafy green backyard, the cool sound of water running from the sprinkler next door and enjoying life with your husband in the backyard.

Roasty Toasty

I have to admit it. I am the luckiest girl in the world. My husband, Rob, got me the best gift for my birthday this year. He got me an oval 5 quart Le Crueset dutch oven. It's gorgeous, and I use it all the time.

Yesterday, I made a venison roast in my new pot. Oh was it easy.

1 22 ounce venison roast
1 packet of lipton onion soup mix
1/2 cup red wine
1 onion sliced thinly
3 cloves of garlic minced
1/2 lb. of carrots
3 tbs. olive oil.
your favorite seasoning blend
s and p to taste

rinse and dry the roast and then season with s and p.
In your dutch oven, heat the oil very hot, and sear the outside of the roast. Remove it from the pot, and then add the onions, and garlic cloves. Saute and then add the soup mix, the wine, and your favorite seasoning blend. Return the roast to the pan and put it in a 275 degree oven for a couple of hours, or until the roast is done to your satisfaction.

I served this with comfortable rice from Sunday and sauteed asparagus.

Comfortable Rice

I've always loved rice-based dishes. I think it's because my dad loves rice. I guess you can't be from Arkansas and not love rice, since they have many rice fields there. On Sunday, I grabbed a roast chicken from the grocery store. What a great thing they do, to roast a chicken so you don't have to. Frequently, I have to stretch to come up with a side dish that isn't potatoes. Here's Sunday's.

Comfortable Rice

1 onion diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
8 ounces of mushrooms, sliced
2 tbs. olive oil.

Saute the veg in the olive oil until the onion is translucent.

Add: 1 cup rice

2.5 cups of chicken stock, and the seasoning blend of your choice.

Bring to a boil, reduce heat and let simmer until the liquid is all absorbed.

I then cut up a tomato in small dice, and garnish.

Rob said it was like a comfort food, so it became comfortable rice.

2011: Off to a Flying Start

1/11/11: What a cool date! It's really cold here. The computer says 21 degrees, but I'm not buying it. Maybe 2 degrees, but the cold I got me thinking today about my family and I thought that Chili would be the perfect meal.

When we were kids we knew it was winter because the chili pot came out. My mom is famous for her chili. People come from near and far for it, and I can't count the times the pot was licked clean in the coach's lounge at a wrestling tournament in Goodland or Garden City.

I think the best thing about my mom's chili is that it won't blow the top of your head off. It's rich and hearty and oh so good with saltine crackers or on a piece of toast for breakfast. That may be one of my most favorite breakfasts. I think it ranks right up there for my sister Heather too! My dad loves a chili cheese omelet made with Mom's leftover chili.



I have to say it's one of the easiest things you can make. Here goes:

Mom's Rich and Hearty Chili

2 14.5 ounce cans of kidney beans in chili sauce
1 14.5 ounce can of tomato sauce
1 chopped onion
1 small can of diced green chilis (mild)
1 lb of hamburger
1 - 2 tsps of chili powder
1 - 2 tsps of cumin (this is my addition)

Brown the hamburger in a pot and drain off the grease, then add the onion and saute it until it is golden. Add the kidney beans, the tomato sauce, the green chilis and the seasonings.

Season with salt and pepper to taste and let cook for a couple of hours to make the flavors meld.



Saltine crackers! A must have for this chili, or a good loaf of crusty white bread if you are out of saltines. Oh, you can top this with diced raw onion and cheddar cheese and it's just great that way too.