Oktoberfest- Davis Style

I had grand ideas of having our very own Oktoberfest right here in the Davis household. But, we ended up downgrading a little bit. I made Bratwursts, and Sauerkraut. But the potato dumplings and German beer that I had planned to pull together this week ended up as boiled red potatoes and a Miller Lite. Just being home together snuggled up on the couch watching the most recent Harry Potter movie together made the night just fine in my book. 

First I browned the Bratwursts. Then I dumped them and the sauerkraut into a crock pot with some beer, pepper, and a few sprinkles of hot sauce. I let them cook for a few hours while I went to the Severna park / Glen Burnie football game, and when I came back, we had our own little German feast. I boiled some red potatoes and just put some salt, butter, and sauerkraut on top. Delish!

Picnic By the Lake

We went camping last weekend near Cumberland, MD.

We had a picnic by the lake. I made chicken salad with bits of apple and onion.

Greg skipped stones.

The dinner I made was hamburger casserole, ground beef, sliced red potatoes, a chopped onion, beef bouillon, and salt and pepper with diced tomatoes on the top. We cooked it in the coals for about 40 minutes. A warm and hearty meal!

Leftover potatoes make great hash browns the next day. And a Coleman stove makes it all the easier ; )

Another Word for Delicious...

I looked up some synonyms for the word delicious today. I realized that I've been horribly overusing the word, and like all things that are overused (your most comfortable pair of jeans, an old toothbrush, a dog's squeaky toy) it's just getting worn out. However, I discovered that there aren't, in fact, any words that mean just that: delicious. Some words get close. Delectable, tasty, scrumptious, are all nice, but none get the job done just right. Delectable doesn't really roll off the tongue too easily and scrumptious sounds too Aunt Jemimah for my taste. Yes, there are other words, but I wouldn't necessarily be thrilled if someone said, "oh Allison, your Turkey Roulade is just toothsome!" Divine is nice, but not specific enough. A nice gesture, for instance, might be considered divine. Just washed bedsheets can be heavenly, and a good back scratch can be gratifying. Other than delicious, yummy was the next best choice, but what self-respecting want-to-be cook says "yummy" all the time? No, I think delicious will just have to do. Sorry for the redundancy, but my overused, worn out word will be just fine.   

 

My midday snack:  I spread olive oil and basil on some french bread and sliced some sweet, firm tomatoes. 

Then toasted them up!

Some fresh mozzarella on top...

 

Melted in the oven with a sprinkle of basil, and oh so delicious! A perfect lunch.

Soupe Du Jour

I went to a cooking class at Baltimore International College last week, which was simply titled "Asian Cooking." I went with my mom, who lived in Thailand for 4 years and who I, as a child,  remember cooking fried rice and other Asian dishes for family gatherings. (So she's pretty credible, right?) We were expecting to learn about the proper Asian chopping and cutting techniques or making a perfect Pad Thai from scratch with fresh lemongrass, or maybe some sushi rolling.  But alas, the class was all about how to make "Chinese" food. I put Chinese in quotation marks because I guarantee that no real Chinese people would ever eat this food. We had fun because of the preposterousness of the recipes and situations.  I would go back for another class, if for nothing else, just the fun of it!

Here I am plating the Mandarin Chicken. Look good? Think again. I almost had to spit it out!!! It was so so so nasty! Everyone in the class was trying to be polite and eat it, but the room suddenly got really quiet. No "yums" could be heard. When the chef tried it, it was soooo awkward. He didn't flinch though!

Here I am pointing to the pot of sweet and sour sauce. It tasted like real sweet and sour sauce from a Chinese carry-out. Want to know what's in it? 1 gallon of vinegar. 1 gallon of sugar. 1 gallon of ketchup. Red and yellow food coloring.... oh and a.....crap load of water. No measurement. A crap load. Literally, the chef took a bucket to the faucet that had dirty dishes piled around and "creek creek creek" turned on the spigot. He filled it with a crap load of water, then dumped it all into this pot that simmered on the burner. Hmmmm. I am totally not used to industrial size or restaurant cooking. I'll stick to my tiny kitchen cooking.

There were a few good things that came out of it. I learned to fold wontons and make wonton soup, which was actually really tasty. I might try to make that recipe soon. Not too soon, but soon enough. I also learned to make some really good lettuce wraps. I've made them before, but these were meat-less and had really good crunch, so I'll try those as well.


Speaking of soups, they can really be hearty meal when chili seems to heavy, but a salad seems too light. Here's the corn chowder I told you I was making last week.

My recipe calls for green pepper, which creates a great flavor. But if you don't like green pepper- don't add it. The soup really takes on the flavor and you won't like it if you're not a fan of green pepper.

Saute the onions and green peppers in 1 tablespoon of oil until slightly soft.

Add the corn, potatoes,  and chicken broth. I used frozen (organic) sweet white corn. Yellow would be a prettier contrast if you want more color. Also- I used carrots, but the recipe calls for chopped potatoes. Either way tastes great! Then, simmer, covered for about 10-15 minutes or until veggies are tender. Stir occasionally. 

In a small bowl combine flour, salt, and black pepper. Stir milk into flour mixture; add to corn mixture in pot. Cook and stir until slightly thickend and bubbly. Cook and stir for one minute more. Add bacon (if using). I used a tablespoon of butter to add some richness.

After simmering and thickening I served it up and added some more pepper (as I always do) and paprika and parsley for color. It tastes so fantastic with crab, if you can get lump crab meat or pick it yourself in the summertime.

Here's the list of ingredients:
6 ears or 3 cups of froze whole kernel corn
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped sweet green pepper
1 tablespoon cooking oil
14 ounces of chicken broth
1 cup cubed potato (and/or carrot)
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 of a teaspoon of black pepper
11/2 cups of milk

optional:
3 slices of crispy-cooked bacon, crumbled
2 tablespoons snipped fresh parsley

I hope you enjoyed my thoughts about soup, whether it be the chowder of this day or the wonton of that!

All in the Family

After the intense summer heat of the last few weeks, I was thrilled to finally feel some cold weather rolling in. The month of October is definitely made for pumpkin. I think about all of the memories from being a little kids and picking our own pumpkins at the farm near my grandmother's house. Therefore, I was determined to make a pumpkin pie this weekend, half to eat, and half because I just wanted to fill the house with the aroma of pumpkin and graham cracker crusts baking. However, instead of  normal pie, I opted for a pumpkin chiffon, which uses gelatin and sets in the fridge instead of being baked in the oven. Hence, no pumpkin smells wafting through the house. But it tastes so delicious, that my pumpkin spice candle will just have to do the trick for now.

As you can see, I enjoyed some of the fruits of my labor before waiting to photograph.

If you've read some of my other posts, you probably know that my favorite season is fall. I think it runs in my family. We were always out jumping in piles of leaves and taking walks through the neighborhood on cool evenings. I still love it! I also love camping in the fall. Greg and I are going camping in a few weeks with some friends, and I can't wait to make food by the fire!

Foil Packs Cooking Away!

This meal came from foil packs that we made last year on a camping trip. I had never heard of foil packs before this, but they're a great idea, really easy and yummy! We just chopped up some veggies and ground beef, added some oil, salt, and pepper at home and wrapped it in tin foil and stuck them in the cooler. Then we cooked them in the fire for about 15-20 minutes.

Coffee

Michael's Pasta

Kabobs

Cobbler

Eggs and Sausage

Weirdly, I love campfires, but I don't really like s'mores. I roast marshmallows because it's fun, but I usully don't eat them. Greg likes to bring peanut butter for his s'mores.

Shenandoah, Virginia 2009

Cunningham Falls, Maryland 2010

Hunting Creek Lake, MD

The name says it all...

I'm looking forward to hiking and sleeping outside before it gets too cold! I guess it just runs in the blood. My sister, Sarah, just came back from a camping weekend with friends, what a cool idea for a birthday party...I wonder where she thought of that! ; )

Anyways, I'm making corn chowder tonight...hopefully it goes well. Last time I made it was traumatizing because I misread the recipe and added 1 tablespoon of pepper instead of 1 teaspoon. It was horrible. I'll let you know how it turns out this time. Thanks for reading my thoughts about food!

Balsamic Chicken

Balsamic Vinegar is awesome. Add a little chicken broth and slurry, (whisked flour and water) and you have a delicious sauce.

Asparagus is the easiest veggie to make. Cut off the bottoms and saute in butter and garlic on medium heat, add salt and pepper and voila! Crunchy and delicious.

• 10 cloves garlic
• flour for dredging
• 4 boneless chicken breast halves
• salt and pepper
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil (I like canola oil)
• 1/4 cup Balsamic Vinegar
• 1 1/4 cups chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 2 tablespoons water

Preheat the oven to 350 and peel and smash the garlic.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Put the flour on a large plate. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels and season all over with salt and pepper. Coat the chicken in the flour and shake off any excess. Add the oil to the hot pan and swirl to evenly coat. Lay the chicken in the pan smooth side down. Scatter the garlic around the chicken. Turn the chicken once it so it cooks on both sides evenly (about 5 minutes per side). Transfer the chicken to a baking pan and bake until cooked through, about 10 minutes. Leave the garlic in the skillet.

Pour the vinegar into the hot skillet. Use a wooden spoon to scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Boil until almost all the vinegar evaporates and it gets a little syrupy, about 1 minute. Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil.

Mix the flour and water together to make a thin paste (slurry) whisk the slurry into the broth and boil until the sauce thickens, about 1 minute more.  Season the sauce with salt and black pepper. Add any collected juices from the chicken to the sauce. Put the chicken on a plate, pour the sauce and garlic on top and serve.

Pie in the Sky

Sheppard's Pie. It was certainly a "pie in the sky" endeavor, especially trying to find minced lamb in September. I know it's a little early to be pulling out the St. Patrick's Day menu, but it was a special request this week. I am still working on it, but this recipe was much better than most we've tried. Greg found the recipe online. He said that it was more "legit" because the guy used grams for the measurements, hence he must be European. Hence, he must know how to make bangin' Sheppard's Pie. Obviously.

 

 

 We never did find minced lamb, although I'm sure a trip over to whole foods would have done the trick. So, this is just plain ole' ground beef. I'm sure the lamb would have tasted much much better. 

Ok, I know it's a little weird, but I love seperating the egg yolk from the whites. I think the yolk is so cute, just sitting there like a little, yellow..... ball of cuteness. I broke the first one, but this one stayed intact the whole time. It's the simple pleasures....

See the yolk still sitting there in the potatoes, like a little cherry on top of a sundae?

 

 

Ta Da!

 

It was pretty successful. Greg had three helpings of leftovers the next night, so I suppose he kinda liked it.

The Recipe - 

For the meat filling:

• 1/4 cup of olive oil
• 1 medium onion diced
• 5 garlic cloves minced
• 1 lb of minced lamb
• 1 dried bay leaf
• 1/2 white wine
• 2 medium carrots diced
• 1 cup peas 
• 1 cup of beef broth
• 2 tablespoons of tomato sauce (puree)
• a dash of Worcestershire sauce 
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper

Potato Filling:

• 2 pounds of potatoes ( I used 5-6 red potaotes)
• 1/2 cup of milk
• 1/4 cup of softened butter
• 2 small egg yolks
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• a few pinches of nutmeg

Directions:

Fill a pot with water and a pinch of salt. Boil washed halved potatoes uncovered for about 20 minutes or until tender. Drain and remove peels.

Meanwhile, heat up a large pan with olive oil and cook diced onions on medium heat until slightly translucent (about 10 minutes). Then, add garlic and stir for another 30 seconds. Add bay leaf, minced beef, and white wine. Deglaze by boiling over high heat for about 1 minute. Stir in tomato sauce and cook until liquid is reduced by half (about 7 minutes). Add carrots, peas, broth, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper. Cover the pan and simmer at low heat for 15 minutes. Heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Add the potato ingredients and mash together. Scoop the meat filling into an oven-safe dish. Spread the potato topping on top. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until the potatoes are golden. Serve hot.

Thanks for reading my thoughts about food! Enjoy the recipe!