These. Are. Amazing. I can say that without bragging because it’s not my recipe; I just made ‘em.

This is a Mark Bittman (I love him) recipe that I scribbled down on a piece of paper without much documentation; I’ll assume it’s either from one of his NYT articles or from How to Cook Everything. These [...]]]>

These. Are. Amazing. I can say that without bragging because it’s not my recipe; I just made ‘em.

This is a Mark Bittman (I love him) recipe that I scribbled down on a piece of paper without much documentation; I’ll assume it’s either from one of his NYT articles or from How to Cook Everything. These top every single homemade tortilla I’ve ever made or eaten, and they’re quick and easy to boot. NO BRAINER.

You will need:

• 1 1/2 cups (7 oz) AP flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 Tbsp. lard (yes, lard, people — don’t be afraid)
• 1/2 cup warm water

To make:

1. Dust off your food processor and dump in the flour, salt and lard; pulse about ten times to cut in the fat
2. With the machine running, add the water till the dough kind of all the sudden comes together in a ball
3. Dump it on the counter and knead by hand for about one minute, then wrap in plastic wrap to rest for at least 15 minutes, but up to all day at room temperature
4. Cut the dough into six pieces and heat a large (cast iron if you have it) skillet for 4-5 minutes on medium; roll out or press the tortillas till they’re quite thin, then cook for about 1-2 minutes on each side, till little browned spots appear. Eat immediately (duh), or keep warm by wrapping in a towel, or cool then keep in the fridge in a large zip top bag.

I used these to make quesadillas with some leftover steak and cheese, but they’re also heavenly for veggie wraps, or slathered in butter and cinnamon sugar and rolled up for breakfast. Enjoy!

Y’all, I have somehow done it again. AGAIN I have a lovely camera lens that is now in two pieces. I don’t even know how, but I do know that iPhone photos of food aren’t quite the same. Better than nothing, though, right?

This is based on the Honey Roast Orange Chicken recipe [...]]]>

Y’all, I have somehow done it again. AGAIN I have a lovely camera lens that is now in two pieces. I don’t even know how, but I do know that iPhone photos of food aren’t quite the same. Better than nothing, though, right?

This is based on the Honey Roast Orange Chicken recipe from The Minimalist Cooks at Home by Mark Bittman. The Yankee and I both loved it!

You will need:

• 1/2 cup soy sauce (lower sodium kind is great)
• 1/2 cup honey
• salt and pepper
• 1 tsp. minced garlic
• 1/2 tsp. ginger
• 3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

To make:

1. Preheat oven to 375F
2. Combine everything but chicken in a bowl and whisk to combine
3. Lay chicken breasts in a single layer in a cast iron skillet or baking dish and spoon over about half the sauce
4. Bake at 375F for about 40 minutes or until chicken is cooked all the way through, turning over halfway through cooking to keep it evenly coated in the sauce
5. When chicken is done move it to a plate to rest, then pour remaining sauce into the skillet; cook uncovered on medium high until sauce reduces and thickens
6. Slice chicken into strips (against the grain) and serve over rice and vegetables, using thickened sauce to finish it all off. So tasty!

This was so fast and easy. Let me know what you think!

One Particular [...]]]> We had one glorious almost-70-degree day here in Nashville and it made me SO READY for spring rightnowthisinstant. This, of course, made me want a good salad! I found this dressing recipe in Rick & Lanie’s Excellent Kitchen Adventures, which I love. The recipe is insanely quick, easy and good, which I also love.

One Particular Kitchen: Bayless Family Caesar Salad
Prep time: 5 minutes
Ingredients
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 3 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
• 1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• Pinch salt
• 1 Tbsp. water
Cooking Directions
1. Crush peeled garlic (putting it in the microwave for about 5 seconds first will make this easier) into a 2 cup glass jar with a lid
2. Add all remaining ingredients into the jar, cover tightly and shake
3. Store in jar in the refrigerator for up to two weeks

Enjoy, y’all. Spring is coming!

My method has evolved a bit over the years, and my friend Vanessa pointed out recently that my super lazy method never [...]]]> I’ve been making yogurt for about three years now, and no matter how I do it one thing never changes: each and every time I am amazed that it actually turns into yogurt. Amazed.

My method has evolved a bit over the years, and my friend Vanessa pointed out recently that my super lazy method never made it to the blog; I’m here to remedy that. My sweet friend Ginger from Mars Hill (it’s huge; I’m sure you’ve heard of it) taught me this one, and it’s brilliant.

You will need:

• 4 cups milk
• 1/2 cup dry milk powder
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla or maple syrup
• 1 Tbsp. starter yogurt (1 Tbsp. of a previous batch, or of any yogurt that says live and active cultures; ideally one that does not have pectin)

Three steps!

1. Turn your oven on to 350F for one minute and turn it off, and turn the light on in the oven
2. In a heavy saucepan (I use an enameled cast iron one) heat milk to 180F and whisk in remaining ingredients; let it cool to 120F and plop in the tablespoon of starter yogurt
3. Put a lid on the saucepan and stick it in the slightly warm oven for 5-8 hours or overnight

THE. END. Do you see what I’m saying? Lazy and easy. Please to enjoy.

There are a thousand variations of this recipe floating around, but this is how we do it — always Christmas morning [...]]]> Due to the great camera debacle of 2010 I’m afraid I don’t have a picture of this. You’ll just have to trust me on its deliciousness. Or, you know, make it. It is the yum.

There are a thousand variations of this recipe floating around, but this is how we do it — always Christmas morning breakfast, and sometimes New Year’s morning breakfast as well (because, hey — more cheese!)

Ingredients

• 1 sheet frozen puff pastry (I use Pepperidge Farm; no they do not know I exist)
• One 8 ounce wheel brie cheese
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup cranberries, pecans or walnuts, optional
• Platter of crackers and or apple slices
• 1 egg
• 1 Tbsp water

Cooking Directions

1. THAW THE PUFF PASTRY (what? I may have forgotten this once or twice). When I remember I do it overnight in the fridge so it is ready to go in the morning
2. Lay the pastry sheet flat and slice the brie in half so you have two wheels of roughly equal thickness
3. Put one half-thick wheel on the sheet of pastry and top with brown sugar and any nuts or cranberries you want to use, then top with the other half of brie. Fold the pastry up around the brie and pinch the seams closed. If you feel so inclined you can tie it shut with a bow of cooking twine; pretty and helpful
4. Whisk the egg and water together and brush over the pastry; this will help the seams seal and give the whole thing a lovely shine
5. Bake on a cookie sheet (the cheese could overflow a little) at 375 for 20-30 minutes or until pastry is browned and brie is all melty. Serve with crackers and or apple slices

Go make it! Let me know how you love it. And, uh, take a picture for me.

I looked around at a lot of different taco sauce recipes and none of them seemed exactly right to me, so I kind of cobbled together my own according to what I had on hand. Very tasty!

Combine these:

I tried, y’all. I really tried. But this is just one of those suppers that tastes a million times better than it looks.

A few months back I tried to make something out of an old cookbook of my mama’s; it was similar to this but used polenta and unseasoned ground beef. It was… dismal. So [...]]]>

I tried, y’all. I really tried. But this is just one of those suppers that tastes a million times better than it looks.

A few months back I tried to make something out of an old cookbook of my mama’s; it was similar to this but used polenta and unseasoned ground beef. It was… dismal. So last night I decided to make up my own version. Success! SO tasty and good gravy it smelled amazing. The Yankee ate three helpings for supper; this counts as a thumbs-up, no?

You will need:

• One pound ground beef
• One packet taco seasoning
• Water
• One cup shredded cheese (I used cheddar)
• One box Jiffy corn muffin mix
• 1/3 cup milk
• 2 eggs

1. Preheat the oven to 400F
2. In a deep skillet (I obviously used cast iron) brown up and drain the ground beef; add in taco seasoning and 2/3 cup water and let it simmer (i.e. follow directions on taco seasoning packet)
3. Mix up Jiffy cornbread according to package directions, but use two eggs instead of one to give yourself a little extra batter
4. Turn off the heat under the ground beef and sprinkle on shredded cheese; spread cornbread batter over the top and bake at 400F for about 15-20 minutes or until cornbread is lightly browned on top

That’s it! This is perfect for a quick fall supper that tastes like you put hours of work into it. So warm and filling without you actually having to stand over the stove forever and a day. What’s not to love?

Disclaimer: Jiffy cornbread does not know that I exist; I just love the stuff.

Y’all will not believe how easy this was! The fact that it cooks in the slow cooker is such a bonus, too, because what’s better than coming home to supper already done?

Ready for a long list of ingredients? You will need:

So intimidating, [...]]]>

Y’all will not believe how easy this was! The fact that it cooks in the slow cooker is such a bonus, too, because what’s better than coming home to supper already done?

Ready for a long list of ingredients? You will need:

• A pork roast
• Water
• Salt, plus onion powder, rib rub, or whatever spices sound good
• BBQ sauce
• Buns

So intimidating, right?

Now to create the goodness:

1. Put pork roast in a slow cooker and sprinkle on salt and whatever spices your little heart desires; I did onion powder and a rib rub Yankee had in the cabinet. Add enough hot water to fully cover the roast and turn the slow cooker on low; ignore it for the next 8-12 hours or so, depending on size
2. After it’s cooked through remove meat to a cutting board and chop it up, discarding fat and any bone; pour the water out of the slow cooker (pork broth! Feel free to freeze it for later use)
3. Serve! Either on a plate or on a bun, topped with your favorite BBQ sauce

Side note: some folks return the chopped meat to the slow cooker and add in BBQ sauce so they can cook together for a bit; I don’t because I find that cooking the BBQ sauce down makes it too sugary

How easy was that? This is great with green beans!

Enter: Jason’s Guac Starter. It’s made by a local guy, which is awesome, and I can pronounce everything in there. Also awesome. AND [...]]]> I resisted “guacamole mixes” for years. I mean, what exactly is IN those little packets of “spices,” “flavor enhancers” etc.? Likely stuff I can’t pronounce. And you KNOW how I feel about that.

Enter: Jason’s Guac Starter. It’s made by a local guy, which is awesome, and I can pronounce everything in there. Also awesome. AND it’s stuff I put in my guacamole anyway, so it’s a triple threat of awesomeness.

Plus? It’s GOOD.

I’m a woman converted.

So here’s what guacamole looks like in the OPK household these days:

To make this you will need:

• Two ripe avocados
• Two roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
• 1/2 cup Jason’s Guac Starter
• Salt to taste
• Eight ounces lump crab meat
• Chips (duh)

Quick assembly:

1. Scoop out the avocado into a bowl and mash with a fork, then stir in guac starter and diced tomatoes; taste and add salt as necessary
2. Top with eight ounces crab meat, drained
3. Nom nom nom all the while reminding yourself that avocados are the good fat

Disclaimer: I spent my own monies on Jason’s Guac Starter and was not compensated for this post. I am not a paid spokeseater, I am merely a crazed fan.