Tips for Easier Cooking

Cooking Tips
• Always cook with a sink of hot soapy water at the ready. It makes for easier cleanup.
• Write the date and your opinion along with any adjustments on your recipes. I also make a note in the index i.e. VG (very good), etc. for future reference.

Meats
• Don’t flour roasts before you brown them. All you’re browning is the flour and the meat is not sealed to hold in its juices.
• Always allow roasts, steaks, etc. to sit on a cutting board for 10 minutes, with a foil tent over, before you carve it. This allows the juices to sink back into the meat.



Fruits
Bananas
• To unpeel bananas the easiest way, start from the bottom.

Tomatoes
• Place unripe tomatoes in a brown paper bag. Store in a cool dark spot. This is also great for all the green tomatoes you rescue from your garden at the end of summer.
• Don’t store tomatoes in the refrigerator. They lose their flavor.

Vegetables
• Steam vegetables to retain bright color and crispness. Place a metal steamer in your saucepan. Add chicken stock, white wine, and water to below the bottom holes. The stock and wine add a little extra flavor and the alcohol cooks away.

Dried and Canned Beans
• When cooking beans for soup, stews, and the like, add a teaspoon or so of baking soda to the mixture. This cuts the negative intestinal reactions to beans and does not affect the flavor or cooking.

Fresh Green Beans
• Add a paper towel to the plastic bag when you store green beans in the refrigerator. It absorbs the excess moisture so the beans stay fresh for a longer period of time.

Celery
• What to do with those extra stalks that you don’t need, but don’t want to throw out at today’s prices? Chop and sauté in a mix of olive oil and butter. Store in small containers, and freeze until needed.

Garlic
• Use a garlic press instead of chopping. The press brings out more flavor and you’ll use less garlic.

Lettuce

• All types need moisture to stay fresh. When buying head lettuce, look for the longest stem. Scratch the nub with your nail and place a damp paper towel over the end. Store in the fridge, preferably the crisper drawer.
• Leaf lettuces should be rinsed in cool water, wrapped in a dish towel or other cloth, and store in the crisper drawer of your fridge.
• Remoisten the lettuce after each use to retain freshness.

Mushrooms
• Clean mushrooms just before using. Wipe with a dry paper towel to remove the growing soil.
• Loose mushrooms keep reasonably well in a paper bag and stored in the refrigerator.

Onions
• Cut the root end off onions first. This allows the crying gas to escape.
• When cleaning green onions use a piece of paper towel to pull off the slippery end and not have your fingers smell.
• When the recipe calls for a small amount go ahead and sauté the entire chopped onion. Divide out what you need at that time. Freeze the remainder in small containers until needed.

Salads
• Make your salad early in the day and never worry about it turning brown or mushy. Use a good size plastic bag to toss your salad without the dressing. Gently shake the bag until well mixed. Store the bagged salad upside in the serving bowl. Pop it into the fridge until you’re ready to serve. Pull the bag from the bowl, add dressing, and you’re good to go.
• Add your salad ingredients to a large bowl. Gently toss until well mixed. Cover with a damp paper towel and store in fridge until you’re ready to add dressing and serve.

Dairy
Cheese
• Spray your cheese grater with a little Pam. The cheese won’t stick and cleanup is a breeze.
• Grate your own Parmesan, Asiago, Swiss, etc. fresh when you need it. The blocks will keep in your fridge for months if you cover tightly with cling wrap or aluminum foil, then store in a plastic bag.

Eggs
• Peeling hard boiled eggs is easy. Crack the shells gently against your sink, then place them back in the cooking pot filled with cold water for a few minutes, then peel.
• Store peeled hard boiled eggs for up to five days in a glass container. Be sure to cover the eggs with water. Change the water every few days.

Milk
• Children of any age should not drink expired milk, but adults can without a problem.

Additional Tips
Bread
• Don’t store bread in the refrigerator. This dries out the bread.
• Bread freezes well for up to one month.

Brown Sugar
• When light or dark brown sugar hardens place it into a plastic bag. Add a slice of white bread and seal. Within hours the sugar is back to a usable state.

Cooking Oil

• Test if the oil is hot enough for frying by adding a small piece of white bread to the heated pan. When the bread quickly toasts golden the oil is ready.
 
Herbs
• Chop fresh herb leaves easily. Place the whole leaves into a cup and snip with scissors.

Pasta
• Don’t add oil or salt to the cooking water. Those additions make it difficult for the sauce to cling to the pasta.

I'll be back Monday with Vonnie Hughes. Until then...

Happy cooking!

Sloane Taylor
Twitter
Amazon Author Page

Spice Up Tonight

with a terrific dish from my friend, author Holley Trent. And for dessert try one of Holley's delicious books. Take it away Holley!

This meatloaf spin-off has ground up tortilla chips. Its airier texture is due to rolling the meat rather than patting it into shape. This dish is a perfect substitution for pickier eaters, and the cheese in the middle adds a little something for the kiddos.

Holley’s Tex-Mex Meatroll
2 lbs. lean ground beef
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. mustard powder
½ tsp. cayenne pepper
½ tsp. ground black pepper
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (can substitute Pepper Jack)
3 cups crushed corn tortilla chips
¼ cup mild salsa

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Mix meat, egg, and seasoning in a bowl.

On waxed or parchment paper, pat the meat mixture into a rectangle as wide as your loaf pan or slightly less wide than the width of your paper if you're baking on a cookie sheet.

Cover the surface of the beef with the tortilla chips. Just eyeball it. You don't need to use the full three cups - just make sure you have good coverage.

Spread the cheese over the top. Pretend you're building a pizza.

Take one end of the paper and roll the meat as if it were sushi, but don’t catch the paper in the roll. Gently tease the roll to the end and carefully transfer to a greased pan.

Pat the ends so they're rounded and the ingredients inside don’t fall out.

Brush the top of the loaf with salsa. Water it down a bit if doing so makes it easier to spread.

Cover with foil. Mold it against the roll a bit to provide structure to the meat holds its shape as it cooks.

About 45 minutes in—when the roll has firmed but not completely cooked—remove foil. Apply another brushing of salsa.

Bake until a thermometer reads 160°F.

Let the meatroll rest for at least ten minutes before cutting.

While your dinner is baking, check out my fun Christmas FREE READ Boughs of Halle only at Musa Publishing.

Ex-hipster Erin Posey is too cool for Christmas. But, when her mother announces she’s driving up to North Carolina to visit her prodigal daughter, Erin engages in a last-minute scramble to deck the halls of her bungalow. In a night rife with frustrations, a tree salesman named Halle takes pity on the frazzled school photographer and helps her get into the holiday spirit.

When the tree’s twinkle lights turn on, the magic Erin feels doesn’t have a thing to do with the joyous season. She knows she needs to mend her strained relationship with her mother, so once all the tinsel has gone on, she sends Halle on his way.

The handsome stranger has got quirky Erin pegged better than anyone she’s ever met. She wants him to return, but is her charm like mistletoe? Does the magic exist only when she’s up close, or will thoughts of her be enough to draw Halle back for a New Year’s kiss, too?

Holley Trent is the author of Executive Decision, Mrs. Roth’s Merry Christmas, and Her Resident Jester – all available now from Musa Publishing's Calliope Romance Line.

To see all of Holley Musa Publishing books, please click HERE.

Learn more about Holley Trent on her blog and follow her on Twitter.

It's Wednesday, so What's Cooking? Pork Chops

One thing I've always had trouble cooking was pork chops. They usually tasted good, but never failed to be tougher than the soles of my shoes. After years of failed recipes, not to mention embarrassment, I finally took matters in hand and created today’s recipe.

Like all the menus posted here, this has been prepared many times for tough critics and has always been well received. Give it a try and, please, let me know how your critics respond.

Marinated Pork Chops Braised in White Wine
Boiled Potatoes
Steamed Asparagus
White Wine – Soave Bolla

Marinated Pork Chops Braised in White Wine
1 teas dried sage or 4 fresh leaves
1 teas dried rosemary or 5 fresh sprigs
1 teas dried thyme or 5 fresh sprigs
1 teas pressed or finely chopped garlic
Freshly ground pepper to taste
Olive oil
4 pork chops with or without bones 1 inch thick
¾ cup dry white wine
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp chopped parsley fresh or dried – optional

Lay herbs into a glass dish large enough to hold the chops in one layer. Sprinkle garlic over the herbs. Carefully pour about 1 cup olive oil into dish so as not to disturb the herbs, then add the pepper. Lay the chops across the herb mixture. Add more olive oil until the chops are barely covered.

Marinade in the refrigerator for 2-5 hours. Turn the cops once during the time you’ve allowed.

Remove dish from fridge 1 hour or a little less before cooking. The meat cooks better if it’s nearer room temperature.

Preheat the oven to 250 F.

Add a little of the marinade to a medium size frying pan and heat on medium high until the oil shimmers. Add the chops and brown about 3-4 minutes on each side until golden brown.

Transfer the meat to an ovenproof plate. Pour off all but a thin film of oil, add ½ cup of the wine and bring to a boil. Return the chops to the pan. Cover and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook for 30 minutes, basting with the pan juices occasionally, until they are tender when pierced with the tip of a sharp knife. Return the meat to the ovenproof plate, cover, and set in oven while you finish the potatoes and asparagus.

Prepare the sauce just before serving dinner. Skim as much fat as you can from the braising liquid and pour in the remaining ¼ cup wine. Boil it over high heat, stirring and scraping in any browned bits that cling to the bottom and sides of the pan, until the liquid has reduced to a syrupy glaze.

Off the heat, swirl in the butter and parsley, pour over the pork chops and serve.

Boiled Potatoes
1 Idaho potato per person
1 cup Chicken stock
1 bay leaf or 1 tbsp dried basil
Tap water
Freshly ground pepper to taste
Butter to taste

In a medium size saucepan add chicken stock and the herb you choose. Peel potatoes, rinse, then slice in thirds, place into pot. Add tap water to cover the potatoes by about an inch or so. Too much water and the potatoes will be soggy. Not enough and they’ll be raw on the sections above the water.

Cover the pot and heat on medium until the potatoes come to a boil. Adjust the heat and/or the lid to maintain a decent boil, but not a hard one, until potatoes are fork tender. It takes about 15 minutes after they begin to boil.

Drain and return potatoes to pot. Discard bay leaf. Stir in butter and pepper and serve.

Steamed Asparagus
1 bunch asparagus
½ cup chicken stock
½ cup dry vermouth
Tap water
2 tbsp butter
Metal vegetable steamer

Add chicken stock and dry vermouth to a medium size saucepan. Insert vegetable steamer, then add tap water to just below the bottom holes.

Snap off the ends of the asparagus and trim the spears to fit your saucepan. Add spears and cover. Bring to a boil over medium heat, adjusting the heat to a strong simmer. In 4-5 minutes the asparagus should be crisp tender.

Lay asparagus in a serving bowl, then spread the butter over them and serve.

Happy Cooking!

Sloane Taylor
website

Great Food, Fun Atmosphere

Texas Roadhouse, with its cool western decor and music, has become a large chain restaurant, specializing in steaks. The man who started the popular company is Kent Taylor. The attentive manager told us, Mr. Taylor's goal was to create a restaurant serving top quality meats affordable to families. In our opinion, he more than achieved his goal.

Legally, I can't display an image of this award winning restaurant. Click here for the full effect along with locations and menus.

We've dined twice at Texas Roadhouse with our good friends Janine and Dennis, and support the restaurant's registered motto - Legendary Food, Legendary Service®. Mr. Taylor, along with his team, surpasses most family restaurants with their excellent made-from-scratch-for-each-order food.

I heartily recommend the fried pickles which are battered and deep fried pickle chips served with Ranch or Cajun Horseradish sauce for dipping. It's an unusual appetizer, but well-worth the experience.

The pork chops, rib-eye steaks, and prime rib are beyond belief for quality of meat and superb cooking. Prepared to perfection, the meats are solid and savory.

Our last visit was a disappointment as the service was less than stellar. Three female bartenders stood at the far side of the large horseshoe bar chatting away while a full contingent of customers signaled for refills on their adults beverages. The "Excuse me" and/or polite gestures did nothing to break up the ladies' important conversation or their laughter.

The kitchen runner brought out the food with no clue who got what and the order taker did not interrupt her chick chat to help him. After it was squared away, there we sat, yummy food waiting to tease our taste buds and not an eating utensil or napkin in sight.

I couldn't stand it any longer and finally waved until our bartender bothered to look in our direction. She acted surprised we'd want another drink or a fork to eat the now cold food.

Studs and I intend to go back to Texas Roadhouse in Dyer, Indiana, but we need a little time to forget this last experience.

I'll be back tomorrow with a Tuesday Teaser. Until then...

Happy Eating!

Sloane Taylor
Sweet as Honey...Hotter than Hell
www.sloanetaylor.com