Beef Stroganoff

Ingredients:

•12 ounces chopped onion
•2 tablespoons minced garlic
•24 ounces sliced mushrooms
•1/4 cup olive oil
•1/2 cup dry sherry
•2 1/2 cups consomme' or beef stock
•1 cup water
•1/4 cup butter for roux
•4-6 tablespoons flour for roux
•2/3 pound of sour cream
•2 pounds thinly sliced cooked beef strips
•Sour cream for garnish, if desired (I like it rich)
•Chopped parsley for garnish
•1 pound fettuccine pasta (for buffet service I use Bow Tie or Farfalle so I don't have pasta flopping around when dishing up)
Instructions:

•Heat a skillet or sauté pan over medium-low heat until hot
•Sauté onions, mushrooms and garlic in olive oil until onions start to turn translucent
•Add the sherry and cook 2 more minutes to incorporate flavor
•Add Consomee' and water (or beef stock) and bring to a boil
•In the meantime, cook the pasta according to the package directions (al dente') in four quarts of water in a stock pot and drain well
•Pour back into the same pot it was cooked in and put on a burner that has been turned off to remove any moisture on the pasta (keep pasta warm)
•Make the roux
Heat a small skillet or sauce pan over medium-low heat
When the pan is hot, melt the butter
Add the flour to the butter and stir with a wire whip or wooden spoon until the roux is smooth
•Continue cooking 2 minutes and then slowly add the roux to the sauce while stirring until the sauce is the correct thickness
•If you are serving the stroganoff immediately, add the cooked meat to the sauce and cook over medium heat until hot throughout
•Remove the stroganoff from the heat and add the sour cream, stirring well
•Put back on medium heat and cook a few minutes, but do not boil
•Plate the pasta and ladle the sauce over and garnish with more sour cream and parsley

Ham and Red Eye Gravy

Ingredients:

•Six 1/4 inch thick slices of quality ham
•1/4 cup packed brown sugar
•1/2 cup strong coffee
•A touch of water if absolutely necessary
Instructions:

•Sauté ham over low heat, turning several times
•Remove ham from the skillet and keep warm
•Stir brown sugar into pan drippings
•Cook over low heat until sugar dissolves, stirring constantly
•Add coffee and simmer to reduce and thicken (about 5-8 minutes)
•Return ham to the skillet to reheat if desired, then plate ham
•Serve gravy over ham

Stuffed Pork Chops

Ingredients:

•4 center-cut loin pork chops cut at least 1 inch thick
•1/4 cup of olive oil or vegetable oil
•Salt and Pepper to taste


Ingredients For Stuffing:

•3/4 cup diced celery
•1/4 cup chopped onion
•2 tablespoons butter
•3 cups dried cornbread crumbs or dried bread crumbs
•1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
•1/8 teaspoon black pepper or to taste
•1/2 teaspoon dried, crushed sage
•1/4 teaspoon poultry seasoning
•1/4 cup craisins (sun-dried cranberries)
•2 tablespoons chopped pecans (optional but delicious)
•1 cup cool chicken broth
Instructions:

•Turn pork chops on side and using a sharp knife slice through the pork chops horizontally to form a pocket
•In a skillet over medium-low heat, saute the celery and onion lightly in the butter until tender but not browned
•Add the remaining ingredients, adding the chicken stock a little at a time and mix the dressing lightly after each addition (add just enough to make the dressing slightly moist, neither dry nor soggy)
•Taste and add more salt and pepper in necessary
•Stuff the pork chops with the stuffing mixture, setting the remaining stuffing aside; fasten the pocket openings with toothpicks
•In a large skillet, lightly brown the pork chops over medium heat in olive or vegetable oil; turn carefully to brown both sides
•Remove chops to a plate and pour off oil, if necessary
•Place chops back in the skillet if the skillet is oven-proof or place the chops in a baking pan and add a few tablespoons of water or chicken stock or milk or white wine
•Cover the pan and bake at 350 degrees F for about 45-60 minutes or until the chops are cooked through, tender and reach an internal temperature of 155 degrees (use your meat thermometer) - be careful not to over-cook
•Place remaining stuffing in a small casserole, cover and put in oven 30 minutes before pork chops are done
Serve with pan gravy, if desired



Pan Gravy Instructions:
Preparation time: 5 minutes. Makes 1 cup



•Remove your stuffed pork chops from the pan and place them where they will remain hot
•Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of drippings
•Blend into the drippings, 1-2 tablespoons of flour
•Stir with a wire whisk until the flour has thickened and until well combined and smooth
•Continue to cook slowly and stir constantly until light brown
•Degrease the pored off drippings (spoon off the fat from the top of the drippings) adding enough milk or cream or water or chicken stock to make 1 cup and then slowly add to the pan while stirring
•Simmer 2 more minutes and season the gravy with salt, pepper and other seasoning or herbs of your choice
•If the gravy is too thick, thin with more stock

Pork Spareribs

Ingredients:

•3 pounds pork spareribs, cut into two rib pieces
•Salt and black pepper
•1 quart of the secret barbecue sauce
Instructions: Oven Method

•Salt and pepper the ribs
•Place the ribs in a roasting pan with inside of ribs down
•Place the ribs in a 300 degree F oven until browned (about 1 hour)
•Drain fat from pan
•Spoon about 1 cup of the sauce over the ribs to coat them with a thin layer
•Turn the ribs over and coat with more sauce
•Bake 45 minutes
•Turn and coat the ribs with the remaining sauce
•Bake until tender (about 40-60 minutes more)
Instructions: Slow Cooker Method (Crock Pot):

•Salt and pepper the ribs
•Brown the ribs in a skillet over medium low heat
•Pour enough sauce in the crock pot to cover the bottom
•Put one layer of ribs in the cooker and pour a thin layer of sauce over the ribs
•Put one more layer of ribs in the cooker and pour a thin layer over those
•Continue layering until all the ribs are in the cooker
•Pour remaining sauce over the ribs
•Cook on high heat for one hour
•Turn heat down to low and cook about 6 hours or until very tender
Instructions: Boiling:
(Spareribs are sometimes boiled and it does speed up the cooking time)

•Place the ribs in a large stock pot and cover with boiling water
•Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 30-45 minutes or until the ribs are tender
•Drain and place ribs in a shallow or low roasting pan
•Pour my secret barbecue sauce over the ribs, cover and refrigerate for 2 hours
•Drain excess sauce into a bowl (do not leave excess sauce on the ribs or they may burn while grilling
•Grill ribs for 30 minutes, basting with the sauce frequently the last 15 minutes of cooking

Chicken Pasta

Ingredients:

•3 tablespoons clarified butter
•Flour
•1 teaspoon fresh garlic, minced
•1/2 teaspoon salt
•1/4 teaspoon white pepper
•4 tablespoons white wine
•1/2 cup heavy cream
•12 ounces fettuccine, cooked
•8 ounces chicken breast, thin sliced
•2 ounces mushrooms, sliced
•4 ounces zucchini, julienne
•2 ounces Parmesan cheese, shredded
Instructions:

•Heat a sauté pan to hot and add clarified butter
To clarify butter:

•Melt butter over very low heat
•Skim off what comes to the surface
•Slowly pour off the oil part into another container
•Discard the solids


•Flour chicken, shake off excess and add to the pan the garlic, salt, white pepper and mushrooms
•Sauté until garlic turns white
•Deglaze the pan with white wine (pour wine into skillet around edges) and sauté one minute longer to thicken the sauce
•Add zucchini, fettuccine noodles and heavy cream •Sauté until heated through and cream sauce is reduced to a thick consistency
•Correct seasonings to taste
Turn onto plates or into pasta bowls and garnish with Parmesan cheese!