The Burp Rag Chronicles

Dear God In Culinary Heaven

Tonight, I reheated the Teriyaki Pulled Pork from last night.  I made some Idahoan instant mashed potatoes.  I nuked a little Nibblets corn for Sydney.  I fixed our plates and then spooned on some Horizon cottage cheese.

oh. My. GOD.  What a delicious meal!  At the height of their empire-destroying decadence, the Roman aristocracy never ate this well, I guarantee.

Afterward, I cut up a pineapple we picked up at H-E-B yesterday. 

I chose... wisely!  Oh, it's perfect.  Low acid, very sweet, I swear to you it almost tastes like a Pina Colada all by itself.  It's like EATING HAWAII or something.  O sweet nectar. O food of the Gods.  Zeus may have feasted on Ambrosia, but he never tasted anything like this. 

I gave Sydney a bite as I cut up the first quarter, and she kept coming back.  And back.  And back.  "Nuh one, daddy!  Nuh one!"  I think between the two of us, we probably downed a quarter of that thing before I put it up.

But I feel its call... I have the feeling more will be consumed very soon.  I could eat it 'till I'm sick, and that actually might happen.

Oh, but what a way to go!

Teriyaki Pulled Pork

A few weeks ago I got this flyer in the mail - one of those "join our book club and get thirty two books for fifty cents plus shipping!" kinds of things. This one is for cookbooks, presumably because I subscribed to the Rachel Ray magazine a while back.

Leafing through the book, I realize just how much money I wasted BUYING books. We've been going to the library recently, and since cookbooks can be so hit-and-miss, I decided to borrow them, try some recipes out, and if I really end up loving it, I can go buy it.

Anyway, I digress. This leaflet thing had ONE sample recipe in it, from the Taste of Home - The NEW Slow Cooker book. Well the picture looked delicious (they always do) and it was pretty simple (the slow cooker recipes usually are), so I decided to give it a try.

Finally got the gusto to get it cooking today, and while it finished up later than anticipated (around 8pm, too late to eat for dinner) it was worth the wait!! Oh goodness, the pork was so tender and delicious. And the sauce, while I thought it was very olfactorily overpowering at first, was muted and delicious. I also did not think Jarrod would like it since it has teriyaki in it - and even I wasn't impressed with the scent of this brand of sauce (Kikkoman) at first.

But I think, complimented with a pineapple ring as suggested in the recipe, this is a total winner of a recipe. I thought I'd share it with you, my fellow reader.

Teriyaki Pulled Pork Sandwiches
Serves 8

1 boneless pork shoulder roast (3 lbs, trimmed)
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 cup finely chopped onion
1 cup teriyaki sauce, divided
1/2 cup unsweetened pineapple juice
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
8 whole wheat hamburger buns, split
1 can (20 oz.) sliced pineapple, drained
(note: I just used the unsweetened juice from the can of pineapple for the juice required in the recipe. It was a smidge over 1/2 cup, but really... no waste this way!)

1. In a large skillet, brown roast in oil over medium-high heat. Cut in half, place in a 5 qt. slow cooker. Add the onion, 1/2 cup of teriyaki sauce and pineapple juice. Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours, or until meat is tender.

2. Remove roast, set aside. In a small bowl, combine the remaining teriyaki and flour until smooth; stir into cooking juices. Cover and cook on high for 30-40 minutes or until thickened.

3. Shred meat with two forks; return to slow cooker and heat through. Spoon 1/2 cup onto each bun, top with a slice of pineapple.

COOK TIME: 7.5 - 8.5 hours

Tupperware used: Quick Chef (finely chop onions), Saucy Silicone Spatula (scoop onions out of Quick Chef and scrape out measuring cups), Measuring Spoons and Cups (measuring out ingredients) and the WONDERFUL Heat N Serve deep 8-cup dish (to store the yummy goods in the fridge!)

Oh, wow, it was good! Jarrod and I will skip the buns more than likely, but I sure will dish some up and put a pineapple on top and eat it at work! Heck, yeah! :D

I also listed the Tupperware items I used with the recipe. You know, in case you are wondering. ;-)

Cooking

I've decided to add a "Recipe" category to my blog - I so often find a good recipe and want to share it, but then I lose it and it becomes forgotten.

I tend to cook "American" style food mostly because Jarrod doesn't do exotic very well. I love Rachel Ray but I swear to you that if you do not have a gang of sous chefs at your beck and call, most of her meals are NOT 30-minute meals. I also love Paula Deen, but I can't eat a lot of her stuff because it's got some element I can't have. Though I do need to look up her macaroni and cheese recipe, she made it with canned cheddar soup.

So, here be a couple of yummy recipes I want to share.

The first one is from the coupon section of the Sunday paper - the coupon was for Carnation Evaporated milk, so there ya go. It's REALLY yummy. I used Reduced Fat milk, and the texture is a little grainy feeling... next time I am going to try a can of whole and a can of reduced... see how that figures in. Of course it might be the potatoes, I am not sure. I also made mine a little more hammy... like 2.5 cups of cubed ham.

Ham & Tater Corn Chowder

18 frozen potato puffs (tater tots, to you and me)
2 - 14 fl. oz. cans of reduced sodium chicken broth (mine were not reduced sodium)
2 - 12 fl. oz. cans evaporated milk
2 cups cubed cooked ham, 1/2" pieces (mine were bagged pre-cubed ham. I'm lazy!)
1-3/4 cups instant mashed potato flakes
1 - 15-1/4 oz. no-salt-added whole kernel corn, drained (mine was also not no-salt)
2 teaspoons onion powder
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
diced green onions (optional)

PREPARE potato puffs/tots according to package directions.

MEANWHILE, COMBINE broth and evaporated milk into a large saucepan. Bring mixture just to a boil over medium-high heat; reduce to low. Add ham, potato flakes, corn, onion powder, and black pepper. Cook, stirring frequently for 5-8 minutes until creamy and slightly thick. Top each serving with three potato puffs and green onions if desired.

Makes 6 servings. Unless you've had gastric bypass, then it makes 12 servings. It's taken me a week and a half to eat it all.

Aunt Maggie's Mac N' Cheese

1-2/3 cup elbow macaroni (about 7 oz.), cooked and drained (I used whole grain)
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 - 12 fl. oz. can of evaporated milk
1 cup water
2 tablespoons butter
2 cups (8 oz) shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided

PREHEAT oven to 375F. Grease a 2-quart casserole dish.

COMBINE cornstarch, salt, mustard, and pepper in a medium saucepan. Stir in evaporated milk, water and butter. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil. Boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat. Stir in 1-1/2 cups cheddar cheese until melted. Add macaroni, mix well. Pour into prepared casserole dish. Top with remaining 1/2 cup cheese. BAKE for 20 to 25 minutes or until cheese is melted and light brown.

Makes 6 servings.

I realized later that Maggie just uses the same Mac N Cheese recipe on the cans of Carnation milk. But I still call it Aunt Maggie's Mac N' Cheese. ;-)

Enjoy!