crockpot pork ramen soup

The boyos around here like their noodles.  And I say the boyos because it is a strange ever changing number.  Sometimes it is just two.  Sometimes it is five.  It may have been more.  I find it is how many boys are in the workshop when the need for food happens.  An ever changing number.

I came across a recipe for pork ramen soup and have been thinking that it would a lovely thing to make for the boyos.  And since it was a crock pot recipe, something easy for dinner.

The first thing the recipe called for was broth and my freezer was bare of any broth but bean.  I got out my new to me cast iron broth/porridge pot.  It held about two and half quarts of mushroom broth.  So good!

The ramen turned out very well.  The chili sauce I used had a bit of fire in it so the ramen bit back.  If that is what yours is like, you may wish to cut it back.  This is really easy and very tasty.  But I have many people who like noodles and spice.  Everyone was happy for a dinner and then the boyos had lunch the next day.  Happy bellys.

pork ramen soup

10 cups mushroom broth (with mushrooms in)

2 1/2 pound pork shoulder, boneless

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 cup gluten free low sodium soy sauce

1/4 cup rice vinegar

1 tablespoon New Mexican chili sauce or whatever is your favorite

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/4 cup brown sugar

8 to 16 ounces rice ramen noodles

Brown the pork shoulder in the oil in a skillet.  There needs to be color on all sides. 

In the crock pot, put four cups of broth.  Add all the other ingredients except the pork shoulder and the noodles.  Stir well.  Add the pork shoulder.  Add enough extra broth to cover the pork.  I had about two cups leftover.  Turn on low and cook for six to eight hours.

After the many hours, remove the pork and shred it.  Add the rest of the broth if you wish.  Add the ramen noodles to the broth.  Stir until soft.  Add the pork back in.  Stir and serve.

This is a picture of my bowl.  I got it when it was have eaten.  That was how it was all. 

Slurp!

smoked chocolate chip sables

Our friend Miss A thought it would be a great idea to take Small Mister ice skating outside a few weeks ago.  It was the day we all got the crud.  I am still fighting the crud in terms of energy.  It seems to be very slow coming back.  Miss A picked up a smoked chocolate chip cookie from the artisan butcher shop that also has a deli around the corner.  We find that the shop just misses the mark most of the time with any of their prepared items.  Miss A felt they had just missed the mark with the cookie and felt like I could do a better job.

I had a request. 

So I gave it a try.  The response was:  Cookie.  Is.  AWESOME.

smoked chocolate chip sables

1 cup butter (2 sticks, the highest fat content you can find makes a better cookie, like Plugra but works even without that)

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon fine alderwood smoked salt

2 large egg yolks

2 cups all purpose flour

1 cup chocolate chips

granulated sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar together.  Mix in the salt and egg yolks.  Mix in the flour.  Mix in the chocolate chips.

Prepare baking sheets with parchment paper or silpats.  Take a teaspoon of dough and roll it into a ball.  Place on the cookie sheet.  Mash down with a glass that has a bit of sugar on the bottom.

Bake for 15 minutes or until golden.

The cookies are the ones on the right.  Remember, Miss A says they are:  AWESOME.  The smoke is subtle and I found it could change from each cookie.

There is a new cookie request:  spicy chocolate chip.  Is is all Miss A.

wonderful but too fragile for shipping

I love palmiers.  I know they are easy to make with puff pastry but I will be honest, I rarely have room in my freezer for a premade box of anything unless it contains fish.  Actually, either freezer.  So I have never made them at home. 

When I was flipping through the Martha Stewart magazines at my mom's, I found a recipe for a palmier that did not require puff pastry.  I decided to give it a try.  I will not complain about the Martha Stewart magazine or the recipes or typefaces.  The recipe turned out well.  I had thought about putting it in the Christmas boxes but the end cookie was much too fragile to ship.  Especially since my sister complains about the shape of her cookie arrival already.

I did tweak this a bit.  The first thing I did, since I was testing, was make a small batch.  I will say the batch I made made just enough cookies for a few days.  There are not much to these so it is good to eat them fairly rapidly.  Then, I could not read the typeface well and the directions really did not make sense to me so I did not follow the recipe correctly.  I even had my Beloved read it and he did not much better then I did so I figure it was meant to be.  I think it was a nice change.  And then there were bits of the recipe that were just much too difficult in a home kitchen with a Small Mister helping.  I have always wondered how big the test kitchens for Martha Stewart industries are.  They are not home kitchens.  Let alone home kitchens with a three year old helping.

palmier

Note:  adapted from Martha Stewart

1 cup flour

a pinch of salt

1/2 cup butter

1/4 cup sour cream

2 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons sugar

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

granulated sugar for rolling

Mix the butter, sour cream, and 2 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons sugar together.  Mix in the flour, salt, and cinnamon.  Bundle it up and put in the refrigerator for about an hour.  Just long enough to make the dough not sticky due to soft butter.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.  Sprinkle a flat surface with sugar.  Roll the dough out into a rectangle that is about a quarter inch thick.  Take the long edge of the rectangle and to the center.  Roll the other long edge into the center.  It is a classic palmier shape.  Cut into a quarter inch slices.  Or whatever you can cut without the cookie following apart.  Place on a baking sheet that is covered with parchment paper or Silpat.

Bake for 10 minutes or until the edges are golden.

This batch of cookies was gone within two days.

I feel the need to make more but there just has not been time.  Soon!

salmon creole

It has been an interesting day.  The day started with me looking at the kitchen counter and realizing that the sourdough pancake batter had exploded during the night.  Then the boyos scooped up the batter on the counter to create more pancake batter.  Yes, my life.  My whole day has been:  it looks, go for it, can we change it?  I am tired.  I did not get anything done after work I should have but a few rows of crochet.  It is okay because that where my energy is.

I was at work searching my blog for my recipe of salmon creole.  I was making my list.  And come to find out that I had not written it here!  My Beloved teased me that my blog is going to have to be around indefinitely because it is the family cook book.  He is about right.

I am now documenting the recipe for salmon creole so I cannot lose it.  You can make it quick like I did this evening.  Or you can set it up in a crockpot and let it simmer all day.  Like most things Creole, letting it sitting and simmer and meld makes it taste richer and more flavorful with out changing the ingredients.  The recipe I have also calls for celery and since I rarely have celery in the house, there is none in this version.

salmon creole

2 to 4 tablespoons olive

1/2 to 1 onion, peeled and chopped fine

1 cup sweet bell pepper, chopped fine

4 large cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 bay leaf

1/2 teaspoon thyme

1 teaspoon basil

1 cup broth or water

1 28 ounce can tomatoes, blended

1 teaspoon sugar

about 8 ounces of salmon per person, skinned, boned as much as possible, and cut into chunks

Put the olive oil in a large skillet and put it over medium heat.  Put in the onion and sweet pepper.  Let start to get golden.  Add the garlic and sauté until golden.  Stir often.  Add the salt, pepper, bay, thyme, and basil.  Stir and let cook a couple minutes.  Add the water.  Bring back to a boil.  Add the tomato.  Bring to a boil.  Add the sugar.  Let cook down a bit.

If you were to do this in a crockpot, put the tomato and water in the crockpot.  Add the cooked vegetables and spices.  Mix in the sugar.  Turn on low and let cook for hours.  Watch the amount of water in it, never letting it go to dry.

To both, add the salmon about 10 minutes before you wish to eat.  Cover the pan.  The salmon is done when it is lighter and more opaque in color.

I serve this over rice.

Like most foods I make like this, salmon creole is excellent the first day but the leftovers are even better.  Letting it sit in the refrigerator and meld just makes it that much better.  It always makes me think I should go visit New Orleans soon.  The Christmas season in New Orleans is quite beautiful and Christmas Eve mass at Christ Church Cathedral is lovely.

cheese crackers

My holiday baking got started tonight.  My newly cleaned off worktable is the place for cooling cookies currently.  I stopped the baking around dinner and started again after. 

Tonight we needed a hot dinner but a lot of nights we have what gets called antipasti.  I know it is not right but that what it gets called!  A little salad, cheeses, crackers, cured meats, nuts, dried fruit.  Little bits of each is what our meal is made of.  One of the few issues with it is the little bits of cheese that get left in the refrigerator.  Either the end and no one notices or it is not liked as well or . . .

I was reading the Martha Stewart magazine at my parents' house over Thanksgiving and there were cracker recipes.  One was for cheese and I thought I would give it a try.  Now, I am going to be brutally honest here.  I do not think much of most recipes from Martha Stewart publications.  They are too fussy.  They do not seem to be tested well enough  The typeface is hard to read.  Basically, I used their recipe as a guideline and went from there.  The crackers turned out well.  My only complaint was that I wished I had gotten them crisper.  Next time more heat!

cheese crackers

1 cup flour

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground pepper

2 tablespoons room temperature butter

1 cup grated cheese: brie, jarlsberg, swiss, cheddar, parmesan - any mixture to make 1 cup

1/2 cup whole milk

In a small bowl, mix the flour, salt, and pepper together.  Rub in the butter so it is a cornmeal texture.  Mix in the cheese.  Mix in the milk.  You should have a soft dough.  Add a bit more milk if you need to.  Roll the dough into a log shape.  Cover with cling wrap.  Refrigerate for one hour or until firm.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  Unwrap the dough.  Slice into 1/8 inch rounds.  Place on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper or a Silpat.  Bake for 15 to 18 minutes.  You want brown edges.  

Even not being perfect, these were pretty addictive.  With a slice of proscuitto on them.  Add a bit of dried cranberry.  So lovely!