Cooking/Recipes

[Hedge]

thank goodness we have a walk in pantry...or our kitchen counter tops would be filled with gadgets!!! lol...panty is starting to look like the appliance dept in Canadian Tire!!! Mom hates clutter on the couters. She likes lots of room to make messes! But she loves kitchen gadgets! She loves cooking/baking...I'm so lucky or I could go to IKEA and see what kitchen stuffs they have? She organizes the cupboards/fridge/freezers a lot...

Bad Spellers of the World ... Untie!

[Mr. Pooka]

I need a walk in pantry! I'm I've just got all my cooking things piled in random places around the house... Dehydrator in front of the TV, new cast iron pan on the Cat Tree, slow cooker under some books over there...

[Hedge]

just cut rhubarb for stewed rhubarb! hmmm...

Bad Spellers of the World ... Untie!

[Rayvin_Kittiy]

Dec 19, 2021 15:34:18 GMT -5 Hedge said:

last year I got my mom the instant pot for Christmas ... loved it!
this year I'm thinking of air fryer?
anyone have both?
Pros and Cons ... instant pot vs air fryer?

I dont have an insta pot although it seems like it would be a neat thing to have. I do have an air fryer though and they are pretty awesome for when you want things hot and crispy and dont what all the heat and electricity from the oven. they also cook things pretty well, ive made a whole tri tip in our air fryer that came out delicious.

[Mr. Pooka]

Chocolate Ice Cream

The easiest and best ice cream!


All you need is a wide mouth jar, at least double (plus a bit) the size of the ingredients. A wide mouth mason jar is fine, I use a large Salsa jar (one of those double sized ones).


1 Cup of Heavy Whipping Cream
1 1/2 tbsp. of unsweetened Coco Powder
2 1/2 tbsp. of confectioners swerve, or other sweetener of choice.
1 tsp. of vanilla


Pour everything into the jar and shake till it doubles in size... about 3-5 minutes.
Put the jar in the freezer for 4-6 hours.
done!

This makes two big servings, (-8

That's it... super perfect and better then any chocolate ice cream I've ever bought!


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Extra Notes.

Don't leave this in the freezer for to long and only make as much as you want to eat. Without an ice-cream maker it'll freeze solid. All is not lost, you'll just have to let it sit out for a while and it'll still taste great.

I like to freeze peanut butter (in a container lined with parchment for easy everything) and chop it up to add to my choc ice cream. Idk if it changes anything, but I usually shake the ice cream up for a while, then add the peanut butter because in my imagination it won't all sink to the bottom or clump up.

Heavy Whipping Cream can be expensive (about $6 a litre here) but that much will make you the equivalent of 5-8 of those little Haagen-Dazs containers which cost more than the cream for one go!


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I got this from Joe Duff originally and his recipes are very reliably great, (-8


www.thedietchefs.com/keto-chocolate-ice-cream-made-in-a-mason-jar/

[Mr. Pooka]

While neither cooking nor a recipe I've got a simple and cute... food hack I guess?


Several years back I bought Pooka these cute kitty cat measuring cups (to go with her cat apron, (-8). They're pretty adorable and I've seen tons of other cute/cool/kitschy things similarly since then.


Also, We are very careful about what and how much we eat these days for our various health reasons.


Combine those two things and what you get is perfect little premeasure snack bowls. It can be super easy to over eat some snacks like nuts and cheese, especially if you are counting your macros for any reason, but if you use these measuring cups as serving bowls they come pre-set with the correct amounts and you know exactly how much of something you're eating all while being quirky and cute, (-8

Now I've got my eyes on a few more sets because they are fun and very useful!

[wolfrysk]

Here's the peppermint patty recipe! ^-^ Keep in mind I haven't made these yet (I'm going to) but the person that posted the recipe swears by them

[wolfrysk]

Okay so

Peppermint Bark
Is very much a "feel it with your heart" type of thing, in my opinion XD

When I make it, personally, I like equal amounts of dark and white chocolate - some people like more dark, some people like more white, and some people like milk chocolate as opposed to dark chocolate!

I use:

12oz white
12oz semi-sweet/dark
QUALITY OF YOUR CHOCOLATE is paramount in this recipe, so if you can afford to splurge on good chocolate (be they bars or chips or whatever), do that
- peppermint extract (you can use oil but you have to be SO careful about using oil because if its potency)
- peppermint candy pieces (you can crush candycanes, peppermints, or even buy predone candy pieces/sprinkles, this is completely your taste)



-Prep a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat - I use paper

- Melt your dark chocolate first - I use the microwave method because, frankly, its easy and works just fine. Microwave on high for 30 second increments, stirring thoroughly after every 30 seconds until melted.
Spread on your baking sheet on the paper - you can make this as thin or thick as you like. Once that is done, pop it in the fridge for 10min so it can cool and set slightly but not completely (if you want to swirl your bark, cut this time in half if you do it at all)
Now and EXTRA note: I like my bark to be minty minty, so I put some in both layers of chocolate, not just the white. Start with 1/4tsp and add to taste

- Melt your white chocolate and peppermint extract (again i say start at 1/4tsp and work your way up) using the same method as the dark. Once smooth, retrieve your dark chocolate and pour the white over

- Immediately sprinkle peppermint candy pieces over

- Return to fridge to set (~20min or until firm, this will depend on how thick your bark is)

- Cut it if you want or do it the fun way and break it up by hand

[Cryptic]

Okay so I couldn't find the same recipe I use and I only have a list of ingredients on hand but this is what I have and I'll jot down the instructions.

Zuppa Toscana (Olive Garden Copycat Recipe)



Ingredients:

1 tbsp olive oil

4 slices of bacon
1 package of spicy italian sausage

2 cloves garlic
1 yellow onion
3 cups spinach
3 russet potatoes (though personally, I never use more than 2 good sized potatoes)

4 cups of chicken broth
1 1/2 cups heavy cream



Instructions:

1. Dice onions. Quarter the potatoes and cut them into thin slices. Mince or grate the garlic.
2. Cut the bacon into bite size pieces and cook them in the olive oil, when almost done add in the italian sausage. (if you don't like spicy then you can choose whatever kind you prefer!)
4. Drain excess fat.
5. Once the meat is browned, add in the onions and garlic and cook until fragrant, about a minute.
6. Add in the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Let it simmer for about 10 to 15 minutes.
7. Stir in the cream and let it warm through.
8. Stir in the spinach and let it wilt, no more than a couple minutes.
9. Season with salt and pepper!

You can add things like grated parmesan, red pepper flakes, etc.
The original recipe calls for kale if you prefer that! (or as we were talking about, I bet a roma tomato would be quite nice in this)

[Cryptic]

Oh and here's the chicken meatball soup recipe, it is very tasty and I do recommend.

tasty.co/recipe/chicken-meatball-soup

[Mr. Pooka]

Broth Basics



It is very simple and easy to make your own broth. It's very satisfying (to make and eat), frugal, cuts food waste and you can control all the ingredients that goes into making it.


Basic Broth

Bones
Water
Salt (optional)


Simply add the bones to a pot, sprinkle with salt if using and cover with water. Bring to a boil, then turn it down to a simmer and cover. Cook for 4-12 hours.

Drain the liquid and toss the bones.

Done.


Cool and use. You can also freeze or can extra.

The broth should be thick when cooled like a big pot of jello, though it will liquify with a bit of heat (or often even room temp)


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While super basic there are a lot of notes and hints that come with the above recipe. It is very hard to mess up...


Kinds of bones - Almost anything will work and mixing different types is usually fine. If you are sticking to common bones, like chicken, turkey, beef and pork, they will all work well together. A few kinds of bones with strong flavoured meats will overpower a broth... not necessarily bad if that's what you want though. You can mix and match chicken and ham bones with only a little flavour diff, but if you add a single lamb bone into a huge pot of chicken bones you will have Lamb broth, which is yum, but any subtle chicken flavour is going to be over powered.

What about other ingredients? - You can add other things if you like. Vegetable scraps are great. You can add some strong dried spices that take a long time to pass on flavour if you know what you are going to do with your stock, like rosemary. I like to keep my broth simple and add the extra flavours when I use the broth in a diff recipe.

Cooking Time - To get a good broth out of some chicken bones you will need at least four hours of cooking time. Larger bones and different animals may take longer. You cannot overcook your broth though, so the longer you cook it the better. Many people like to cook chicken bones until they disintegrate into the broth so they use every little bit and waste nothing as well as get extra vitamins and nutrients.
[/quote]

How many Bones to cook? - So, you can make a very nice broth with very few bones. I've made some with a the leftover bones and bits from a single chicken... that being said, you are going to be cooking this for a long time and the most efficient use of your time and electricity is to make big batches. It takes the same amount of electricity to simmer one chicken skeleton as it does 20. Plus you have a lot of broth when you are done for many many future meals (or a huge meal for a big get-together!)

Cooked or Raw Bones? - Both will get you yummy broth. Most people end up with bones as the remains of a meal and I think they are more common, but you can also buy bones for broth or save pieces that you are not planning on eating, like turkey necks or chicken backbones or wingtips. Personally I like to still cook those because I feel like I get some better flavour, but that's probably just personal taste. (for example, when I cook a turkey, I add the neck and giblets we don't prefer to the turkey pan to cook, but when they are done I add them to my broth bag in the freezer)


Save all your bones in the freezer! A simple large ziploc usually does the trick, (-8 Plus add ever little bit of interesting leftovers to the bag... like that bit of gelatin in the bottom of your Rotisserie chicken, that's pure flavour right there. It all adds up and makes your broth even better, (-8


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I like to portion some of my finished broth for planned future uses. For example, if I know I like to make a certain rice dish that uses a specific measurement of liquid (say 2 cups) I'll package some bags with that exact amount so I am all ready for certain recipes!


You can use your broth as the base for tons of soups, stews and recipes! It adds great flavour, extra nutrients and reduces food waste, (-8


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Bone Broth

There is a difference between Broth and Bone Broth. The major difference is the time involved in simmering your bones. If you follow the instructions above you will get broth. If you simmer your ingredients for 24-48 hours, of even longer you get closer to bone broth. This changes the flavour only a little but you do get even more vitamins and nutrients from the bones and many people swear by it. If you go this route I'd suggest using a slow cooker instead of your stove though, because you'll be cooking for literal days and it's just plain safer and more convenient! Some people will even cook poultry bones like this until they are completely dissolved, often maintaining an Ever Stew format where they keep a slow cooker going for very long durations, taking liquid for consumption and recipes as needed and just adding more water as needed and bones/ingredients as the happen. I've done this a couple of times and was generally happy with the result! ...with one minor exception. Theoretically this is super easy, but I found the strong smell of cooking at all hours started to drive me crazy, lol... like I had trouble sleeping when I could always smell chicken soup in the background! If I had a separate room, like a garage, I'd do this way more often, (-8

[Mr. Pooka]

Mr. Pooka's Stew


There are a lot of ways to make soups and stews but I have a solid basic that always works out and that I can never get enough of. It's also very versatile and easy to make, especially if you've made some broth from the above recipe! I usually make large batches of that broth and that will net me many pots of stew.

Ingredients.

Meat
Hearty Vegetables
Herbs and or spices
Tomato Paste
Broth


1 - Cook some meat in your stew pot. It doesn't have to be fully cooked, but frying it now will add a lot of yummy flavour. The long cooking time will take care of any bits that don't get fully cooked at this stage.
2 - Cover in a lot of hearty vegetables, things that will stand up to at least a couple of hours of cooking.
3 - Add your chosen spices or herbs
3 - Add a half a tin of Tomato Paste
4 - cover that all in broth.
5 - Simmer for at least two hours

This will keep well if refrigerated and it also freezes very well, including in individual portions.


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So, that's a bit vague huh? What sort of meat, veggies and spices you ask? Whatever you've got or like. Use this to make your fav or experiment with something that's getting a bit old in your freezer. Each time you make it it'll be a bit different, but also familiar.

For Meat, my current favorite is Pork. I buy large Pork loins when they are on sale and cut them into pork chops, but there are always some wonky end bits and they are the first to go into the stew pot. You can also dig into your pork chop collection later when you find out how good the stew is, (-8 That being said you can use anything you've got, just cut it up to bite sized pieces or smaller. Chicken, Turkey, any poultry really, beef, pork, lamb, moose... really just anything. This kind of cooking benefits from purchasing what are usually the cheapest cuts of meat, the tough stuff (like beef round) or irregular (like a pork joint, or even hocks). Mabey try something fun like mixing two kinds of meat! I'll often buy large pieces of different kinds of meat and cut them up into useable pieces for us, some as roasts, some steaks/chops and others just frozen in bags labelled 'bits' that I'll add to things like this stew, (-8

One extra tiny meat note, you can also add more delicate meat like say, some homemade meatballs, but I'd add them later because they will probably fall apart if you cook them for a few hours.

Second note, if you are concerned about fat or count calories, you can always trim your meat. Personally I eat a LOT of fat these days (it's a diabetic's friend if you don't mix it with carbs) and love the flavour of slow cooked fatty bits in my stew.

For Vegetables, our go to is low carb hearty veggies, with the main stable being Cabbage, but also I'll add turnip or rutabaga, daikon, radishes, celery, mushrooms, jicama... I also tend to sneak some higher carb veggies in there because you only get a bit in each portion, like carrots and peppers. If carbs mean nothing you your diet/lifestyle, potatoes, carrots, squash, onions, peppers and more are all awesome here.

I have made this with just meat and cabbage in the past and it's still terrific!

One Vegetable note, again, if you don't count your carbs, a really nice addition here is beans (precooked or dry), barley and any other soup type mix in. I LOVE barley and beans but can only eat them in very tiny amounts these days, so sneaking a bit into my stew is a great way for me to enjoy them, but if I didn't have to watch my sugars I'd add lots more, (-8

Second vegetable note; You can add less hearty veggies in later. Peas, corn and the like. If you add them to early they might just disintegrate into the soup! I like to add lots of green beans if I have them about halfway through cooking, (-8

Spices and Herbs; again, use what you like! Many meats have traditional complimentary spices but it's all personal choice. I like dried herbs like Rosemary in stews like this because they benefit from long cooking times. Serious though, you can make this with just salt and pepper and it'll be delicious. Heat is also optional and up to personal pref here! I like some cayenne in mine sometimes, (-8

The Tomato Paste is your secret weapon here. Just a half a tin of the stuff will totally make this stew magically delicious. You can add a whole tin if you prefer but I find a half tin does it for whole big pot of soup, and I freeze the other half in a bag to go into the next soup. Alternately, you can add a tin of tomatoes when you are adding your liquid, which is also nice, but the tomato paste is your true secret ingredient here, (-8 (you can add both as well, but it'll up the carb count!)



Extra notes, this is a very economical stew! If you plan ahead with your ingredients or use whatever is on sale you can make a huge pot very inexpensively!

[tierasa]

Mr. Pooka

I just found this recipe and immediately thought of you, Mr. Pooka.

Keto Bacon Egg Cups
These keto bacon egg cups are the perfect way to start the day. Whether you're going low carb or you just love meat, you'll adore these.

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes
Cook Time 34 minutes minutes
Total Time 49 minutes minutes

Servings 6
Calories 923kcal

Equipment

muffin pan (12 holes)
Ingredients
1 lb pork sausage mild
1 lb pork sausage hot
1 lb Bacon
1 cup cheddar cheese
6 large Eggs

Instructions
Get out your ingredients.
Preheat the oven to 400° for five minutes
Wrap bacon around the bottom side of a muffin tin.
Secure with toothpicks.
Place into the oven and bake for 10 minutes.
Remove from the muffin tin and set aside. Wash the muffin tin for use in next step. Keep the oven on.
Remove sausage from the package and combine in a large mixing bowl.
Remove ⅔ cup at a time. This should give you 6 equal portions
Form each portion over the bottom of the muffin tin to create the bowls. Place into the oven and bake for 12 minutes.
Remove sausage bowls from the bottom of the muffin tin, place on rimmed baking sheet and add the bacon ring into the center of each bowl.. *keep oven on*
Next, add a spoonful of shredded cheddar cheese to the center of each bowl.
Carefully crack an egg into each sausage bowl.
Place back into the oven and bake for 10 minutes, or to preferred egg consistency. 10 minutes will give a runny/ over easy finish.
Adjust cooking time to your liking.
Drizzle with Sriracha.
Enjoy every bite!

Notes
If cooking your own bacon for this recipe, only cook it until it's just done. Don't crisp it. It needs to be pliable to wrap around the muffin tin.
You can use pre-cooked bacon to save time and make wrapping easier.

Nutrition
Calories: 923kcal | Carbohydrates: 2g | Protein: 43g | Fat: 81g | Saturated Fat: 29g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 11g | Monounsaturated Fat: 34g | Trans Fat: 0.4g | Cholesterol: 364mg | Sodium: 1656mg | Potassium: 608mg | Sugar: 0.2g | Vitamin A: 600IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 179mg | Iron: 3mg

[Mr. Pooka]

That looks wonderful tierasa! I make a similar thing called Salami cups... similar but replace the bacon with salami and skip the bacon precook part. I really want to try a bacon version! ...and I've never used sausage meat in it like that either which sounds so yummy, (-8

This is a must try and I'll have to report back, (-8

[Mr. Pooka]

Keto Bread (almond flour)

This came out amazing and was the best keto bread I've made! Now, it's a touch fragile and I'd liken the texture to something like a banana bread, but that still makes it perfect.


2 cups almond flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
3 tablespoons ground flaxseed
4 large eggs
1/2 cup butter melted
1/2 cup water

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Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a 8 x 4-inch loaf pan with parchment paper.
In a small bowl, add the almond flour, baking powder, and salt and mix well. In a large mixing bowl, use a hand mixer to beat together the flaxseed, eggs, butter, and water until frothy and bubbles appear. Gently stir through the dry ingredients until combined.
Transfer the batter to the lined pan. Bake the bread for 40 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean.
Let the bread cool in the pan completely, before slicing and serving.



This recipe comes strait from this site...

thebigmansworld.com/keto-almond-flour-bread/




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Like I mentioned above, the bread is a little soft, like banana bread or a no-rise bread. It's strong enough to slice and make a sandwich or toast though, (-8 Now, just because of the texture, I'm going to try this again and make a sweet bread. I'll prob start with a lemon poppyseed one, because YUM! (-8 (I'll swap some water for lemon juice and add some sweetener and lots of seeds, but won't change the basics) I'll tell you how it goes, (-8


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ADDED LATER

So, I made the lemon poppyseed bread version and it's amazing, (-8

The only changes to the recipe above were...

Added some Lemon Extract and a bit of lemon juice to the liquid.
Added about 1/2 cup of sweetener to the dry.
Added a bunch of Poppyseeds.

That's it!





I think it was perfect and I'll absolutely be making again (and trying some variations... I want coconut next!). I also think this would take a classic lemon cake glaze very well if you wanted to be fancy and lemon things up even more, (-8 I would have added lemon zest if I had any as well, which would be nice.