Hot from My Kitchen

Tonight I made myself dinner, and was reminded of one of my favorite "devices" for cooking pasta. It is called Fasta Pasta Microwave cooker.

I love this thing, and have had it several years now. You simply add your pasta, a bit of salt, and the water to the appropriate line, place into the microwave and set the time required for that type of pasta. My spaghetti usually takes about 15 mins. Carefully, as it is HOT now, carry to your sink, put the top on, and strain right through it, and voila! Perfectly cooked pasta! Very little mess to clean up, no waiting for water to boil..  This is a great tool for cooking potatoes, also, and other veggies.

Tonight's dinner : Pork Cutlet Parmigiana, Spaghetti, and Large Salad

I make the cutlets ahead of time, by cutting up a fresh small pork loin, center cut, into 1/2 slices.  I dip them in egg, then bread them either in cracker crumbs, or bread crumbs. Place on a rack, over a cookie sheet to place into the freezer, then place into freezer bag when frozen, separated by parchment paper. Then I take out what I need the day I plan to use them.  Tonight I made 2, as my husband works evenings. More importantly, he joined a  Biggest Loser Contest at work,  which cost $40 to join, and has a potential 700 dollar prize at the end of 6 weeks, and he had better win our money back! LOL

The cutlets are then fried in pan with olive oil,( any vegetable oil can be used, olive oil is healthier)  on both sides, then put into a shallow pan for going into the oven at 375 degrees. Top with some tomato sauce, Italian Seasonings, and parmigiana, and some Mozzarella if you like, and bake until the cheeses are melted and browned slightly. Remove from oven, and unlike me, turn the oven off. ( no comment).

Serve over the pasta. Add a tad bit more cheese if preferred, Yes, please. Add a nice big salad. Bam!

One of my other favorite kitchen appliances is.. and I mean I LOVE this one... an electric pressure cooker... remember those scary stove top versions? These are the bomb, and used correctly, not the kind that blow up.

Mine is a different brand, that was sold by Home Shopping Network Outlet a few years ago, and does not have quite so many settings. Still, mine has a rice, soup, saute, pressure cook, steam, slow cook, and warm settings. Can you say perfect rice with no boil over or mess? Can you say tender stew in 30 minutes? Can you say one pot meal? I can and do!  Check out the link below if you want to browse Amazon for these, or check out the store of your choice. There are all brands, functions, and sizes. LOVE IT! You can use the saute setting to brown up your onions , or meat, and then add in the rest of the ingredients for soups and stews, and roasts... then go to the next setting.. all in one pot. Marvelous!

Electric Pressure Cookers

Beef Stew in ? 20 mins?

Ingredients:

• 3 lb. boneless stewing beef, cut into 1-inch
    cubes( I do not like the stew meat bought packaged in the store, so, I usually buy a steak such as London Broil, or a roast I cup up myself )
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 3 Tbs. olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups red wine
• 1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces ( small bag of baby carrots, no peeling)
• 2 celery stalks, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1/2 lb. new potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch pieces ( I am sure I use more potatoes)
• 1 Tbs. tomato paste
• 1 1/2 cups beef stock
• 3 fresh thyme sprigs( I add 2 bay leaves)

Directions:

In a large bowl, toss the beef with the flour, salt and pepper to coat evenly. Set an electric pressure cooker to "brown" according to the manufacturer's instructions and warm the olive oil. Add half the beef and brown on all sides, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. Repeat with the remaining beef and transfer to the bowl.

Add the wine to the pressure cooker and bring to a simmer, stirring to scrape up the browned bits. Add the beef, onion, garlic, carrots, celery, potatoes, tomato paste, stock and thyme and stir to combine. Cover and cook on "high" for 20-30 minutes according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Release the pressure according to the manufacturer's instructions. If the liquid is too thin, transfer the beef and vegetables to a serving bowl, set the pressure cooker to "brown" and cook until the liquid is reduced to the desired consistency. Pour the liquid over the beef and vegetables and serve immediately. Serves 6.

  Courtesy of: Williams-Sonoma Kitchen. 

Tips: 

Add some fresh mushrooms to the saute process ,leave out the potatoes and add sour cream at the end= Beef Stroganoff , serve over noodles.

The Hungarian Goulash, and Beef Stew go very well with Sweet and Sour Red Cabbage, on the side!!!

Make sure the pressure cooker  regulator is closed for pressure cooking, and lid locks in place. 

When finished cooking, you can either release the pressure manually, or the electric pot should do it on its own, the lid should not open until it has released the pressure. Most electric models, will then go to warm setting, if not attended to at that point. ( Just read the manual, even I did at first.)

Jewish Penicillin?  aka Chicken Soup

 Starve a fever, feed a cold. Ever hear that?

" Does it work? History seems to think so.  The first recorded writing of chicken soup as a prescribed cure for the common cold was made by Persian physician Ali Sina Balkhi in the 10th century. Has modern science found any truth to this? Sort of.

In 2000 a study was conducted at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha and chicken soup was put to the test.

Using blood samples from volunteers, he showed that the chicken soup inhibited the movement of neutrophils, the most common type of white blood cell that defends against infection. Dr. Rennard theorizes that by inhibiting the migration of these infection-fighting cells in the body, chicken soup essentially helps reduce upper respiratory cold symptoms.

Taken from: http://www.pressurecookerdiaries.com/pressure-cooker-recipes/dinner/chicken/chicken-soup-recipe/

 Homemade chicken noodle soup, one of the most basic of comfort foods. Generation after generation has passed this restorative recipe down and homemade chicken soup made in your kitchen with fresh vegetables on a cold winter day just can’t be beat.  Let’s begin:
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 8 minutes under high pressure
Serving Size: around 6 – 10
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 chicken breasts or about 1 and 1/2 pounds boneless chicken thighs
3 or 4 carrots, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 cup frozen peas
1 cup frozen corn
2 celery stalks with leaves
6 cups Swanson Chicken Stock
1 bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup egg noodles (can substitute more rice)
3/4 cup rice (can substitute more noodles)
2 tablespoons parsley
2 tablespoons lime juice

Step 1: Ingredient prep: Chop the Vegetables, Brown the chicken

Dice up all of the vegetables into various sizes of your liking.

Chop the vegetables

 Next, heat 1 tablespoon of oil on medium heat and cook the chicken until browned on all sides, about 5 minutes. Remove the chicken and set it aside on a plate. We will be dicing it up while the veggies are cooking.

Step 2: Add the vegetables, rice and noodles

Add the rest of the ingredients

 Add the other 1 tablespoon of oil and all of the vegetables (onions, carrots, celery) to the pot. Cook them for about 2 minutes stirring occasionally. While they are cooking now is a good time to dice up the chicken into small pieces. Now add the broth, bay leaf, parsley, peas, corn, salt, and pepper and scrape up any little stuck bits that may be at the bottom of the pan.  Add the rice and noodles.

Step 3: Cook under pressure for 8 minutes

Return the chicken to the pressure cooker, lock the lid, and bring the pot to pressure on high heat. Once the pressure cooker has indicated that it is at pressure by releasing a steady steam, immediately reduce heat to the lowest level to maintain this pressure. Cook for 8 minutes.

  

 Once the time is up carefully open the lid angled away from you, salt and pepper to taste, serve and be soothed.

Delicious homemade chicken soup

"I was 32 when I started cooking; up until then, I just ate." ~Julia Child  "

***Please note: The above recipe uses and shows the stove top pressure cooker. If you are using that , great, if not follow the soup setting on your electric model, and the manual!  I also prefer to cook my noodles separately, as, I like them to have a firmer texture than when boiled in the broth, and the rice will thicken this up, if you cook it directly in, and leave much less broth. Just an FYI. ***

Enjoy!