Breaded Pork Cutlet with New Potatoes and Mixed Vegetables

I still had a slight fever today, didn't feel too bad just not ebullient. It's pretty basic, Mitchell's cutlet all ready for the pan. Boil the potatoes and finish with butter and salt. I caramelized a diced onion and pre cooked the carrots in the microwave with 1/4 cup water. I sprinkled a little vegetable stock powder over the onions and a light dusting of flour. I tossed the pan to cook the flour a bit then added the carrots, water and all. In went the peas, bring to rapid boil and cook off most of the water. Serve.

Apple sauce for a condiment. Fern really enjoyed the vegetables. It was a really nice meal.

Colon Clearing Oatmeal Cinnamon Date Cookies

Fern remarked yesterday that these cookies really help keep things moving. My medication causes the opposite problem but the cookies help moderate that too.  The recipe is Quick Oatmeal Cookies from Joy of Cooking with the addition of 1/2 a teaspoon of cinnamon and 1/2 a cup of chopped pitted dates. Here it is for those that don't have a Joy of Cooking yet.

Preheat oven to 350F.

Oatmeal Cinnamon Date Cookies

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup white sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

1 tbsp milk

1 cup flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 cup rolled oats 

1/2 cup chopped pitted dates

Cream butter then cream brown and white sugar into the butter. Add the egg, vanilla and milk, mix. Add flour, salt, soda, baking powder and cinnamon. Mix. Add oats, mix. Add dates and mix. Spoon blobs onto parchment covered cookie sheet. Makes two dozen cookies. Bake 12 minutes or till golden and crisp. I use ceramic cookie sheets that take more like 17 minutes to cook but they cook more evenly. To cook both sheets evenly, during the last few minutes I switch cookie sheets top to bottom and front to back. Three is all that's left of two dozen cookies in only 36 hours.

Cajun Chicken, Rice and Mixed Vegetables

Still sick with the flu. My temperature is over 101F but I managed to put out a not too shabby looking plate. I should have taken the picture before I put the mayonnaise on, or make it more aesthetically pleasing. I'm sick, the food just has to taste good so I can get it down.

My microwave has a moisture sensor in it so it can cook rice perfectly every time, white rice only. I use Basmati rice because it has a pleasant taste. I cook 1/2 cup rice with a teaspoon or two of oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few drops of lemon juice or vinegar.

The vegetables were simple. I microwaved the carrots to par cook them first then finished them in a frying pan. A little salt and a little flour sprinkled over top of the vegetables then toss them to cook the flour taste off for a minute.  Add half a packet of beef stock and a half cup water. Toss and cook the water off. When the vegetables are done, add a  few drops of Chinese fish sauce, toss and serve.

The Cajun Chicken was salted, seasoned with Cajun, brushed with olive oil and BBQ'd for twenty minutes just below high heat. Turning every few minutes so one side doesn't dry out.

I put soy sauce on my rice, Fern likes his plain. It was a really good meal. I could taste it myself but I felt so crappy I couldn't enjoy it. Fern did, which helped a bit.

Salisbury Steak with Kale and Mashed Potatoes

400gm ground beef

1 fresh made pork dinner sausage from Mitchell's

1/4 cup bread crumbs

1/2 tsp salt

black pepper

1/2 tsp ground garlic

1/2 tsp dried thyme

Peel the skin off the sausage and mix the meat into the beef and all the other ingredients.  Form into 3 patties, two big and one small for the dog. Brush with oil on both sides and BBQ till done through. About 15 minutes on high, keep turning them.

Mashed potatoes had only salt, butter and milk added. Kale was julienned then boiled for a few minutes. Drained, salt and butter added along wtih a few drops of white wine vinegar.

6 mushrooms sliced and fried in olive oil and butter. Flour sprinkled over top and let cook a minute. 1 1 packet beef stock powder and 3/4 cup water. Mix it up, get it simmering. Add a bit of flour if needed to thicken it. Let it cook a minute after adding flour to cook off the raw flour taste. Spoon over meat and potatoes.

I wasn't thrilled with the kale but Fern ate his without complaint and I left 1/4 of mine on the plate and the dog ate it with the piece of meat and gravy I left. The dog is so fussy I'm really surprised he liked kale!

Quick Cheese Scones

Half gone already, they're barely cool. These look and taste amazing. 

Scones 

1 1/4 cup flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

mix

1/4 cup butter

cut in with pastry cutter till oatmeal size

2 tbsp sugar

mix

1/3 cup milk

1/2 cup grated cheddar

use a fork to mix into dough. As you press the ball together the moisture slowly migrates throughout, so it can be a bit dry to start. Adding too much milk will ruin the texture. Form a ball, then press into about 1.5 inch disk. With a carving knife cut 3 lines to get 6 segments. Place on parchment covered cookie sheet, top with more grated cheddar and bake at 425F for 12 minutes in the middle of the oven. Higher in the oven scorches them. 

Use currants instead of cheese for a dessert biscuit. This is a really flexible recipe.

Boston Clam Chowder

I was sitting here with Fern watching tv, trying to feel better and asked "Would you like some Boston Clam Chowder" "Yes." So up to the kitchen I went. I got 4 medium potatoes and 1 carrot, peeled, pared to 1/4 inch cubes and boiled in salted water. While that was cooking I finely diced my last 2 strips of bacon, an onion, a stick of celery and 4 cloves of garlic. I opened an 8 oz. can of clams, reserved the liquid and chopped up the clams. When I had the prep work done, the potatoes were par cooked so I drained them, put them aside and put the pot back on the stove. Some olive oil, a little canola and the 2 strips of bacon. I fried them crispy then added the onion. I caramelized the onion before added the garlic and finally the celery. I gave it a minute to cook and added 2 tsp dried thyme. Add the clams and 2 bay leaves. I cooked that for another minute then removed it from the heat.

I took 2 heaping teaspoons of flour and 1/4 cup butter and melt it. I slowly worked the butter into the flour and whisked it smooth.  I slowly added 2 cups of milk, whisking to avoid lumps. I added this to the pot and turned up the heat. I added the potatoes and carrots. I added more milk and a splash of whipping cream to fill the pot, not sure how much but it was a 4 qt pot. Bring to a boil and simmer 10 minutes. Taste for salt. I had to add at least a teaspoon. I also added a little mixed ground pepper. While the chowder was finishing I toasted some alpine bread and buttered it. That was lunch, it was delicious and I feel immensely better!

Breaded Chicken Breast

I have a terrible cold with fever over a hundred but managed to put this together for our dinner.  Fern is sick too, not quite as bad. I put alpine bread crumbs in a plastic bag and added poultry seasoning and mixed ground pepper. I salted each breast first then shook it in the bag to coat.  I forgot to do this but rubbing a little butter on top will brown it better. I put it on a baking sheet and put it in a 375F oven for 30 minutes. The BBQ is faster but harder to get a nice colour on the breading, other than black.

The rice was done in the microwave with salt, olive oil and a few drops of vinegar. Vegetable medley was a caramelized diced onion, 5 mushrooms sliced and seared, a green pepper diced and frozen peas mostly cooked in the microwave, cooled quickly so they finish cooking in the pan. They go in just before serving. To the cooked vegetables I dusted flour over the pan, toss to coat evenly. Cook the flour taste off for a minute then add chicken stock. This is where I realized the stock I just bought at Walmart was tampered with. So I used a packet of chicken stock and about 3/4 cup water. I reduced the stock to a nice gravy. Added the peas. Added some pepper and a few drops of Chinese Fish Sauce. Stir it in and serve. The Fish Sauce leaves an incredible flavour but it cooks off fast in a cloud that smells like dirty socks. So add it, toss and plate.

I squeezed out some mayonnaise onto the chicken. If I'd thought about it I could have made the mayo point the other way so it would harmonize with the shape of the breast. That alpine bread really tastes good as breading or as croutons. The vegetables were the star on this plate, every bite was delicious. That's what the fish sauce does. It took me about 35 minutes to make this. I could have done it in 25 if I'd been feeling better.