I love cooking, & I see I have a unique offering of recipes to contribute here. Let's start with Disappearing Green Bean casserole (my specialty is comfort foods):


Ingredients:
1. 1-16 oz package fried onions
2. 1-shallot
3. 3/4 c. whole organic or goats milk
4. 1 tsp. (aprox.) organic butter
5. 1 tbsp. (aprox.) EVOO
6. 1-14.5 oz can organic cream of celery
7. 2-14.5 oz cans of organic green beans
8. ground black pepper
 
Begin by heating your oven to 425. Then finely chop your shallot as you warm your pan to low to medium heat. Add EVOO to pan, then take your stick of butter and grease the pan with it, to taste. Add shallot and saute until lightly browned. Set aside browned shallot. In 2 quart casserole dish combine milk & cream of celery. Add green beans, black pepper, shallot, and about half of the bag of onions. Bake your casserole for 20 minutes, remove from oven top with remaining onions and bake an additional 15 minutes. 

This sounds good! I'll have to use this next Thanksgiving.

(06-01-2011 4:33 PM)dbot Wrote:  This sounds good! I'll have to use this next Thanksgiving.

Oh it is, it is...

I didn't come up w/ this recipe, but it's so good:
Engagement Chicken:

Serves 2 to 4

Ingredients:
1 whole chicken (approximately 4 pounds)
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice, plus 3 whole lemons—including 1 sliced for garnish
1 tablespoon kosher or coarse sea salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
Fresh herbs for garnish (4 rosemary sprigs, 4 sage sprigs, 8 thyme sprigs, and 1 bunch fl at-leaf parsley)
1. Position an oven rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat the oven to 400°F. Remove the giblets from the chicken, wash the chicken inside and out with cold water, then let the chicken drain, cavity down, in a colander for 2 minutes.

2. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Place the chicken breast-side down in a medium roasting pan fitted with a rack and pour the lemon juice all over the chicken, both inside and out. Season the chicken all over with salt and pepper inside and out.

3. Prick 2 whole lemons three times each in three different places with a fork and place them deep inside the cavity. Chicken cavity size may vary, so if one lemon is partly sticking out, that’s fine. (Tip: If the lemons are stiff, roll them on the countertop with your palm before pricking to get the juices flowing.)

4. Put the chicken in the oven, lower the oven temperature to 350°F, and roast, uncovered, for 15 minutes.

5. Remove the roasting pan from the oven. Using tongs or two wooden spoons, turn the chicken breast- side up. Insert a meat thermometer in the thigh, and return the chicken to the oven and roast for about 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes or until the meat thermometer reads 180°F and the juices run clear when the thigh is pricked with a fork. Continue roasting if necessary. Keep in mind that cooking times in different ovens vary; roasting a chicken at 350°F takes approximately 18-20 minutes per pound, plus an additional 15 minutes.

6. Let the chicken rest for 10 minutes before carving. And here’s the secret: Pour the juices from the roasting pan on top of the sliced chicken— this is the “marry me juice.” Garnish with fresh herbs and lemon slices. 

Red Wine Oven Roast:

Ingredients:
• Good oven roast (prime rib, tri tip, etc.) 6-8 lbs.
• 1/2 cup red wine, such as Cabernet Sauvignon or Pinot Noir
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon Cajun or Creole seasoning blend
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar or honey
• Freshly ground black pepper and salt
• 1/4 balsamic vinegar
Preparation:
Heat oven according to specific cut of meat direction. Poke several holes in the top of the roast with a sharp carving fork; put the roast in a large food storage bag or bowl. Pour honey, wine, olive oil, and garlic over roast. Then add salt, pepper, seasoning blend, (or brown sugar), seal the bag, and turn several times to coat thoroughly. Or, turn in the bowl until thoroughly coated and cover the bowl. Let rest 20 min. then add balsamic vinegar again turning and coating meat . Let rest another 10 minutes.
Cook meat as directed.

Sushi Made Easy:

1. Sushi Rice:
A. Ingredients & Tools;
o Botan brand rice . You can technically use any short grain glutinous rice (even brown), but I’ve had the best results with Botan.

o Sushi vinegar. This is sweetened rice vinegar that is easily found at WalMart. If you cannot find it, or have blood sugar issues. You could make it yourself at home with Agave syrup or Splenda, and natural (unsweetened) rice vinegar.

o Bamboo or plastic paddle.

o Wooden, plastic, or glass bowl.

If you have an electric rice cooker, than I suggest making the rice with a 1:1 ratio. 1 cup water: 1 cup water. Otherwise, follow the package directions. When the rice is fully cooked, combine 2 tablespoons of vinegar per cup of rice maximum. If using a glass or plastic bowl you may want to use a tad less vinegar, because wood absorbs the excess vinegar. Use chopping motions with your paddle when mixing to avoid breaking the grains of rice.
2. Rolling Sushi:
B. Ingredients & Tools;
o Bamboo rolling mat.
o Nori paper.

To roll any sushi roll; lay the nori paper flat on the rolling mat, spread a small amount of prepared rice as thinly as possible onto the paper. Add a thin layer of ingredients onto a small section of rice nearest to you. Begin by rolling the section nearest to you over and tightly tucking the end onto the rice. Continue rolling and using the mat to keep the roll tucked as tightly as possible. Set aside roll when finished to let the paper ends bond. After you’ve finished assembling all of your rolls, then begin slicing the rolls with the first roll you assembled. Using the sharpest knife available and cleaning the knife frequently in a bowl of water beside your work area will result in the best looking sushi pieces.
3. Yum Sauce:
C. Ingredients;
o Sweet Chili Sauce.
o Mayonnaise
o Lemon juice
Combine all three ingredients to taste. You can also use the hot sauce with the rooster and Chinese writing on it to make a savory version of Yum sauce.
4. Spicy surimi roll:
D. Ingredients;
o Yum Sauce
o Imitation Crab meat (surimi)
Combine Yum Sauce with crab in a bowl, adding enough sauce to make crab salad. Use as the filling when rolling sushi as directed above. This recipe also makes a great dip.
5. California roll
E. Ingredients;
o Avocado
o Cucumber
o Imitation Crab
Thinly slice vegetables and crab. Use the vegetables as a filling when rolling sushi as directed above.
It is suggested to serve your sushi pieces with soy sauce and a garnish of pickled ginger. Wasabi is also suggested. I prefer to serve lime Ponzu sauce in addition to the other garnishes when I serve sushi.

Slow Cooker Lamb:
1. 4lb butterflied boneless leg of lamb in there.
2. 1 cup ranch
3.1 cup plain Greek strained yogurt.
4.1 lb. of dried chickpeas (soaked overnight separate from the lamb).
5. 1 cup Coors Light,
6.14 oz organic chicken broth,
7.4 large cloves garlic,
8.1 TBS whole peppercorns
9.A few sprigs of rosemary
10.few sprigs of lemon thyme & oregano.
Soak lamb in ranch & yogurt overnight. Add lamb & all ingredients to crockpot & cook on high for 30 min. Next set the temp. to low for the next 8 hours. Serve w/ red wine or a stout beer.