Pork & Bean Chalupas . . . slow cooked & full of flavor


     This slow cooker meal was packed with flavor. It was inspired by a recipe that Sandi Dutt shared with me when I interviewed her for my monthly cooking column in Abilene’s Reflector Chronicle (11/29/11).
     Must admit that it is the first time I’ve cooked beans in the slow cooker – this recipe omits pre-soaking; the beans go directly in the pot. They were both tender and flavorful in just seven (7) hours on the High setting.
     I made just a half batch of the recipe since I was just cooking for three . . . and we gobbled it up. Even my mom, who is recovering from surgery and hasn’t had a good appetite, cleaned her plate. Made me wonder why I hadn’t make the full recipe.

Pork & Bean Chalupas
3 lbs. pork loin
1 lb. dried pinto beans, washed -- these do not require advance pre-soaking (Since I was at my mom’s during a snow storm, I used great northern beans since that was what she had on hand)
2 cloves garlic, crushed or finely chopped
1 large onion, cut into wedges (I used red but white or yellow would work, too)
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 (4.5 oz.) cans whole green chilies
1 bay leaf
1 to 1½ teaspoons ground cumin
½ to 1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon salt
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Flour tortillas – either white or whole wheat
Suggested toppings for serving: grated cheese, chopped onions, shredded lettuce, sour cream, guacamole, hot sauce, etc.

1.  Put above ingredients, except tortillas and toppings, in a slow cooker; cover with water. Add lid.

2.  Cook on Low temperature (about 200°) for 10 hours or cook on High for several hours and then turn to Low. My beans and meat were perfectly tender and flavorful after 7 hours of cooking on a high setting.
This is what it looked like after 7 hours.
For serving: Warm tortillas, add meat and bean mixture and topping of your choice.
To warm the tortilla, I set them on top of the slow cooker lid..
Sandi’s original version of the recipe, along with lots of other slow cooker recipes that were contributed by both Sandi and her daughter Abby Dutt Markley, can be found in the
11th edition of Home-Cooking—Dickinson County Style. All editions of the cookbook sell for $4.95 + tax at the Historical Society; mail-order deliveries sell for $8.50. Contact Dickinson County Historical Society, 412 S. Campbell Abilene, Ks. Phone: 785-263-2681

When to add salt to a pot of bean? The old school of thought was that no salt should be added until dried beans were tender and completely cooked. Supposedly salt interfered with the ability of beans to become tender. However, here are the latest thoughts . . .
You can add salt to your beans at any time, says Lynne Bigwood of the Northarvest Bean Growers Association. “According to research, dry beans cook faster when salt is added because salt helps break down the cell walls,” she says. But don’t expect a miraculously quick-cooking pot of beans, warns Dr. Barry Swanson, professor of food science at Washington State University: Salt only affects the rate of softening by a matter of minutes when used at the concentrations we find palatable.
--Information from Chow 

Recipe without photos . . .
Pork & Bean Chalupas
3 lbs. pork
1 lb. dried pinto beans, washed (these do not require advance pre-soaking)
2 cloves garlic, crushed or finely chopped
1 large onion, cut into wedges (I used red but white or yellow would work, too)
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 (4.5 oz.) cans whole green chilies
1 bay leaf
1 to 1½ teaspoons ground cumin
½ to 1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon salt
--------
Flour tortillas – either white or whole wheat
Suggested toppings for serving: grated cheese, chopped onions, shredded lettuce, sour cream, guacamole, hot sauce, etc.

1.  Put above ingredients, except tortillas and toppings, in a slow cooker; cover with water. Add lid.
2.  Cook on Low temperature (about 200°) for 10 hours or cook on High for several hours and then turn to Low. My beans and meat were perfectly tender and flavorful after 7 hours of cooking on a high setting.
For serving: Warm tortillas, add meat and bean mixture and topping of your choice.


Smothered Boneless Pork Chops . . . in velouté sauce


Smothered Pork Chop with
Mashed Potatoes

Tonight Barry cooked in my mom’s kitchen as she is recovering from knee replacement surgery. I bought boneless pork chops and Barry decided to make smothered pork chops. If my mom was in the kitchen, she’d mix a can of mushroom soup with an equal amount of liquid (probably milk) and throw it over the chops. But, Barry decided to prepare a simple velouté sauce (a variation of a basic while sauce that is made with broth rather than milk; velouté is a French term meaning velvet). The procedure he followed is outlined (in more detail) in our Basic White Sauce or Béchamel Sauce posting.

Smothered Boneless Pork Chops
3 thick boneless pork chops (or cut thick chunks from a pork loin
Seasoned flour for dredging (all-purpose flour seasoned with salt, pepper and paprika)
3 to 4 tablespoons olive oil
About 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (or use seasoned leftover seasoned flour and omit the salt called for as the next ingredient)
1 cup+ chicken broth or stock
Additional salt and pepper to taste

1.     Dredge pork chops in seasoned flour, shaking off excess.
2.     Heat 1 or 2 tablespoons olive oil in a pot on medium to medium high temperature. Add chops and sear on both sides. Remove from pan.
Pork chops have been seared on both sides.
3.     To the pan, add enough olive oil to equal about 2 tablespoons; stir in 2 tablespoons of flour and cook for 3 to 5 minutes.
4.     Stir in chicken broth and continue to stir or whisk until sauce thickens. Taste and add additional salt and pepper (or any other seasonings) as needed.
Barry is whisking the sauce as it thickens.
5.     Immerse the seared pork chops in the sauce, cover and place in a 325° to 350° oven for 30 minutes to an hour (we left them an hour for fork tender chops). Note: If chops are thin, bake for a shorter time period.
Barry immerses the seared chops into the sauce.
After about an hour in the oven, this is what they look like . . . and they have their own ready-made gravy!
Recipe without photos . . .
Smothered Boneless Pork Chops
3 thick boneless pork chops (or cut thick chunks from a pork loin
Seasoned flour for dredging (all-purpose flour seasoned with salt, pepper and paprika)
3 to 4 tablespoons olive oil
About 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (or use seasoned leftover seasoned flour and omit the salt called for as the next ingredient)
1 cup+ chicken broth or stock
Additional salt and pepper to taste

1.     Dredge pork chops in seasoned flour, shaking off excess.
2.     Heat 1 or 2 tablespoons olive oil in a pot on medium to medium high temperature. Add chops and sear on both sides. Remove from pan.
3.     To the pan, add enough olive oil to equal about 2 tablespoons; stir in 2 tablespoons of flour and cook for 3 to 5 minutes.
4.     Stir in chicken broth and continue to stir or whisk until sauce thickens. Taste and add additional salt and pepper (or any other seasonings) as needed.
5.     Immerse the seared pork chops in the sauce, cover and place in a 325° to 350° oven for 30 minutes to an hour (we left them an hour for fork tender chops). Note: If chops are thin, bake for a shorter time period.

GREEN EGGS – Egg Salad for a CROWD and a Dr. Suess MENU!



I like them I do! Green Eggs Sandwiches . . .
for you, and you, and you.

Mmmmm, I like these, too! I like ham sandwiches. How about you?

Or, if you’d like something new . . . Try a combination of the two!

     We really did not serve green eggs at our Parents as Teachers Family Connection this evening! However, egg salad garnished with parsley did find it’s way onto the Dr. Suess-themed buffet table . . . along with the ham!
     Not really sure that many people want to make egg salad for 50 but since there were a few requests for the recipe, here goes. I began with the recipe in the 8th edition of Food For Fifty by Grace Shugart and Mary Molt . . . and added some Dijon mustard, black pepper + paprika + also adjusted the amount of some ingredients (I used less mayo and pickle relish) – all of those adjustments are indicated below. However, the final step requires tasting and adjusting, and I must admit that I didn’t keep track of those extra additions . . .other than I added a few extra squirts of Dijon, a little extra salt and pepper and a little more paprika.
     Also, I started to take photos but then questioned if anyone really wanted to make that much egg salad . . . so I didn’t really photograph the process. Besides, for those of you who want a more family oriented egg salad recipe, here’s a link and it does contain step-by-step photos — Egg Salad Sandwiches 

Egg Salad for 50 (allows 2 oz. of filling for 50 sandwiches) 
1 ¾ - 2 cups mayonnaise (start w/ smaller amount & add more if needed)
½ - ¾ cup pickle relish (start w/ smaller amount & add more if needed)
2 teaspoons salt (I use Kosher)
½ teaspoon white pepper + ½ teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
About ½ cup finely diced onions (the recipe called for 1 tsp. onion juice but I think it needs the finely chopped onions for flavor)
Heaping ¼ cup Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons paprika
For garnish: fresh parsley (chopped) & additional paprika

1.     Peel eggs and coarsely chop (I used an egg slicer – cutting the egg first one way and then the other). Place in a large bowl.
2.     Add remaining ingredients, except the garnish, and mix gently.
3.     Taste for seasoning and adjust to suit your preference. Add additional mayonnaise if needed, etc.
4.     Garnish – I sprinkled the top with paprika and arranged parsley around the edge.
Note Those in attendance could select the bread of their choice and pile it with egg salad or ham, or both.

And what goes with green eggs and ham? Here’s the rest of tonight’s menu:

One Fish. Two Fish. Will you have a Goldfish? (gold fish crackers)
For even more fun . . . Smiling veggies, grown in the sun!

It’s time to move . . . Pick up you feet, Grab some milk & a treat!
(Rice Krispie Treats / Cartons of Milk)

Fun with Veggies — Veggie Trays . . . with faces!

Aren't these the cutest veggie trays? I think they are perfect for the little children at tomorrow night's Parents as Teachers Family Connections. But, I'm thinking that they would bring a smile to people of any age!
I just dumped tubs of grape tomatoes on a platter, positioned two condiment cups filled with dip, and one black olive each,  for the eyes. Cauliflower florets became ears with sprigs of hairy thyme protruding! Baby carrot are standing up for the nose and black olives form the mouth. He/she looks good enough to eat!
Hadn't realized this veggie face looked like Groucho Marks (look him up if you don't know who he was) until I uploaded this photo to the blog! Thought I was making a black olive mouth but it very much resembles a mustache . . . with a grape tomato tongue peeking out. I stood baby carrots up (among the broccoli florets) for eyebrows. Again condiment cups of dip with black olive inserted in each become the eyes.

Green Rice -- from Barry’s Valentine’s Menu


Valentine's Dinner
I think I had the best dinner reservations in town last night – dinner for two, complete with wine and flowers. On the menu: Marinated & Seared Steak, Oven Roasted Cauliflower and Green Rice. Barry even crafted some small metal flowers (everlastings) out of a sheet of stainless steel; he added them to a little pottery vase that our niece, Erin, glazed and decorated last summer.


About the Green Rice
Basically, Barry combined spinach leaves with cooked brown rice (we cook it in a rice cooker and usually double the amount needed so there are leftovers; it can also be frozen), to create green rice.
Spinach – it’s nutritious and versatile. Fresh spinach leaves can be served fresh as a salad or cooked for a vegetable. That’s why we like to keep a bag of it on hand.

Green Rice
This is another one of Barry’s toss and go dishes so here’s a general idea of what he does . . .
Olive oil
Fresh spinach leaves
Cooked rice – we prefer brown
Chicken stock
Kosher salt & coarsely ground black pepper

1.     Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.
2.     Throw in several handfuls of spinach, depending on number served and your preference. Sometimes he adds just a little and other times he adds lots. Add cooked rice. Sauté for several minutes. Note: Onions and garlic could also be added to the dish at this point.
3.     Add enough chicken stock to moisten; season to taste with salt and pepper (or, add other favorite seasonings). Heat through.


Recipe without photos . . .
Green Rice
This is another one of Barry’s toss and go dishes so here’s a general idea of what he does . . .
Olive oil
Fresh spinach leaves
Cooked rice – we prefer brown
Chicken stock
Kosher salt & coarsely ground black pepper

1.     Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.
2.     Throw in several handfuls of spinach, depending on number served and your preference. Sometimes he adds just a little and other times he adds lots. Add cooked rice. Sauté for several minutes. Note: Onions and garlic could also be added to the dish at this point.
3.     Add enough chicken stock to moisten; season to taste with salt and pepper (or, add other favorite seasonings). Heat through.