Cooking with KP

Oven Roasted Asparagus with Lemon and Garlic

Delightfully tasty and wonderfully easy. This recipe is my daughter's and we enjoy it so much!

Two bunches of asparagus, woody ends removed and cleaned.

2 lemons--one juiced and the other cut in thin semi-circles

3 Tablespoons olive oil

2 Tablespoons of minced garlic (found in jars in supermarket)

1 Tablespoons fresh cracked pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place cleaned asparagus on long baking sheet. Drizzle and toss with olive oil until fully coated. Add pepper and garlic and toss again. Drizzle the juice of one lemon on top of asparagus. Toss one more time. Lay slices of lemon on top of asparagus. Roast in oven for 12-15 minutes until just tender.

Perfectly Glazed Carrots

I love carrots any way they are fixed. In fact, I love the raw, too. But, my family enjoys them glazed as in this recipe. I created this based upon what I remember my mother doing.

3 pound bag of baby carrots, rinsed
3/4 cup honey
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 stick butter
1/2 Tablespoon lemon or orange zest
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Place carrots in a large pot and cover with water. Bring to boil on stove top. Let them boil for 5 minutes, reduce heat to medium and let continue to cook for 10-15 more minutes or until you reach your desired level of crispness. I like my carrots to have a bit of crunch left, but many people like them very soft. Drain carrots in colander. In a large skillet, melt butter. Add in all other ingredients and mix well. Bring to a boil. Add drained carrots. Mix them around so that the are coated in honey mixture. Reduce temperature to simmer and cook, tossing around occasionally, for 10 minutes.

Prime Rib with Garlic Herb Butter

My husband adapted this recipe from one that appeared on Facebook a few years ago. It makes for a tender and delightfully seasoned main course. You can top it with a gravy or a nice horseradish sauce. I have included the recipes for both below the prime rib recipe.

5 -8 pound prime rib/boneless prime rib roast
1/2 cup of unsalted butter (one stick), softened but not melted
1/2 cup of salted butter (one stick), softened but not melted
4 Tablespoons minced garlic (7 cloves)
2 Tablespoons fresh minced rosemary
2 Tablespoons fresh minced thyme
2 Tablespoons fresh minced parsley
1 Tablespoon fresh ground pepper\

Gravy will need
2 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
2 cups beef broth/stock

Horseradish Sauce
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup light sour cream
2-3 Tablespoons prepared horseradish
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Dash of pepper
Dash of garlic powder

Preheat oven to 500 degrees Fahrenheit. In a large bowl the roast will fit in, mix softened butter, herb, garlic and pepper to make a paste-like mixture. Place roast in bowl and rub butter mixture all over it. It should be completely coated. Place roast on top of roasting rack in roasting pan. Do not cover. Place roast in oven and bake for 60 minutes. Then turn oven off. leaving roast inside. Do not open oven. Let roast remain in oven for 3 hours. Remove from oven and let rest for 10 minutes prior to slicing.

You can use the pan drippings to make a gravy. Pour the pan drippings into a saucepan over medium heat.Add the 2 Tablespoons of all-purpose flour, whisking until there are no lumps, then add 2 cups of beef stock/broth, stirring and bringing the sauce to a boil.

To make horseradish sauce, simple mix all ingredients in a bowl. Cover and chill for at least 2 hours before serving. You can make this the day before.

Garlic Alfredo Sauce for Pasta, Chicken or Shrimp

Here is a simple but delicious homemade alfredo sauce that is wonderful over pasta or with chicken or shrimp. It is also excellent with some small diced broccoli added.

3 Tablespoons butter

3 Tablespoons onion, finely diced

2 Tablespoons minced garlic

3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour

3 ½ cups half-and-half
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon paprika

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon pepper

1 ½ cups shredded Parmesan cheese (not the green shaker kind--FRESH)

In a large saucepan, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and cook for 4 minutes, stirring frequently, or until onion is tender. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add flour and cook, whisking constantly, for 2 minutes. Gradually add half-and-half, whisking constantly. Cook, whisking constantly, for 8-10 minutes or just until mixture comes to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Add cheese, stirring until melted and smooth. Serve over pasta with roasted chicken or sautéed shrimp. Makes about 3 cups.

Brown Sugar and Pepper Vidalia Onions

You can either bake or microwave these onions. The recipe is the same no matter which way you prepare them. These onions taste great and are an awesome side dish with any meats.

3 Vidalia onions or yellow sweet onions, peeled and cut in half horizontally to make 6 pieces
1 stick of butter or margarine, sliced into 12 pieces
6 Tablespoons of brown sugar
2 Tablespoons of pepper

In a baking dish with oven/microwave proof cover, place 6 slices of butter. Sprinkle each cut side of the onions with pepper. Place one half onion, cut side down, on one of the slices of butter. Sprinkle more pepper on the tops of the onions.
Sprinkle the brown sugar on top of the onion halves. Place a pat/cut of butter on top of each onion. Put cover on baking dish. Microwave for 6 minutes on high and then check for tenderness. If not soft, microwave for 3 minutes more. There should be a brown sugar glaze forming in the pan. Spoon over eat onion as you serve them on plates. If you decide to bake them, you will follow the same directions, but you will bake them for 40 minutes in a 400 degree oven.

Cornbread Confetti Salad

This versatile salad recipe can be mixed all together or layered. The first time I tasted this wonderful dish was at a potluck dinner. Two people had brought this confetti salad and they both had used the same recipe, but one mixed it all together and the other layered it, so this is not truly my recipe. The only thing I added was the lime juice, which I truly think gives it an extra kick.

SALAD:

1 package (8-1/2 ounces) corn bread/muffin mix (Jiffy is the best for this)

1 can (15.5 ounces) whole kernel corn, drained

1 can (15 ounces) pinto beans or light red kidney beans, rinsed and drained

1 can (15 ounces) black beans, rinsed and drained (Please note: My husband hates black beans, so when I make it for us--no black beans)

3-4 Roma/plum tomatoes, chopped

1 medium green pepper, chopped

1 medium sweet red pepper, chopped

1 large purple onion, chopped
1 can (2.5 ounces) sliced black olives, drained

1/2 cup chopped green onions

1 lime, juiced (about 2 Tablespoons)

10 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled

2 cups (8 ounces) shredded sharp cheddar cheese

DRESSING:

1 cup (8 ounces) sour cream

1 cup mayonnaise

1 envelope ranch salad dressing mix

MIXED ALL TOGETHER:

Prepare corn bread according to package directions. While cornbread is baking, mix dressing in a small bowl. so that the flavors can meld togethers. Remove cornbread from oven. Cool completely; crumble. In a large bowl, combine the corn, beans, tomatoes, peppers, and onions. Toss them in the lime juice. Then add bacon, cheese and crumbled corn bread. d. Just before serving pour over salad and toss.

LAYERED:

Prepare cornbread according to package directions. While cornbread is baking, mix together dressing. Remove cornbread from oven. Cool completely and crumble. In a small bowl, mix together pinto and black beans. Toss in lime juice. In a large bowl, preferably a glass trifle bowl, begin layering the ingredients. Put 1/3 of the cornbread in the bottom, then top with 1/3 of each of the other ingredients in this order—corn, beans, tomatoes, green pepper, black olives, red pepper, purple onion, green onion, bacon, dressing, cheese. Repeat until you reach the top. I like to add a bit more bacon, black olives, and green onions at the top with the last cheese layer.

Cool Whip Cookies

Spring always makes me think of pastel colors and quick and easy cooking! Cool Whip cookies combine those two things for me. You can use any flavor cake mix you like, but I prefer lemon, strawberry, orange, and white.

Here is the standard recipe when using lemon, strawberry or orange cake mix.

1 (18.25 ounce) pkg. cake mix in lemon, strawberry or orange flavor
1 (8 ounce) container of frozen whipped topping, thawed
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups of confectioner's sugar, shifted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, combine whipped topping and the beaten eggs. Slowly sprinkle in cake mix, mixing well. Batter will be sticky. Drop by teaspoonfuls into confectioner's sugar and roll lightly to coat. Place on ungreased baking sheet or on parchment paper on baking sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to wire rack to cool.

Changes if using white cake mix.
With the white cake mix, you can use any color food coloring you want--Use pink or light blue for a baby shower. I like to use light purple and light blue for Easter.
Follow the same recipe steps, but add 1.5 teaspoons of almond extract when mixing the whipped topping and eggs. After mixing in the dry cake mix, add a few drops of food coloring until you get the shade you like.
You can also opt out of using food coloring and leave them white. Also, instead of rolling the cookies in confectioner's sugar, you can roll them in coconut or rainbow sprinkles

At Christmas, you can use red and green food coloring and add peppermint extract instead of almond.

Note: This is not my recipe creation, it has been around a long time.

Cheaper Cuts of Beef Don't Have To Be Tough

Most people avoid the cheaper cuts of beef because they tend to be tough. With 8 children and three adults in our home, my mother had to find ways to tenderize the cheaper cuts of beef. One way to cook "down", as my mother used to say, a tough cut of beef steak is to season both sides of the steak with garlic powder, seasoned salt and pepper. Lightly brown the steak in a large skillet and on top add a diced green bell pepper, medium onion, a bay leaf, parsley flakes, a few dashes of Worchestershire sauce, and a can of diced tomatoes. Cover with lid. Let the steak simmer for 30-50 minutes. Remove lid and thicken juices by cooking 5-10 more minutes. You can also do the same with a cheap beef roast in a crock pot. Add all the ingredients in crock pot and cook on low for 6-8 hours. The flavor is simple, amazing and great with mashed potatoes.

Fall Vegetables for a Healthy You

As the fall approaches, we will all start to stay indoors more hours. This will lessen our vitamins, such as vitamin A, D, and K, which are enhanced by sunlight. Below are a few vegetables you might want to increase in your diet as the fall and later winter days approach. Besides, they are very tasty. In fact, in the next few weeks, I will be posting recipes that incorporate many of these delicious veggies.

Sweet potatoes and yams are very rich in carotenoids, vitamins A, B6, C, potassium, iron and fiber and are delicious when baked and eaten plain (without butter) or used in soups, casseroles or stir-fries.

Bell peppers are great sources of potassium, manganese, fiber and vitamins A, B, C and K. These sweet peppers are flavorful additions to salads and healthy stir-fries. You can choose from a rainbow of colors, including: green peppers,yellow peppers, orange peppers,and red peppers.

Summer and winter squash are rich in carotenoids, vitamins A and C, potassium, magnesium and fiber and can be served alone or added to many dishes.

Just a few tips for you...

Spray your Tupperware with nonstick cooking spray before pouring in tomato- based sauces. No more stains!

Use lifesavers candy to hold candles in place on your next birthday cake! Kids love them.

Stuff a miniature marshmallow in the bottom of a sugarcone to prevent ice cream drips!

Zap garlic cloves in the microwave for 15 seconds and the skins slip right off!

If your celery begins to wilt in the fridge, fill a large cup half full of water and place celery in the cup. Put back in the fridge for two hours--it will be crisp. (Learned this from my mother).

Cooking Myth Busted

A Potato Can Save a Salty Soup or Stew. True or False? False. "This is an attractive idea, but it doesn't work because potatoes are not particularly absorbent," says Wolke, who conducted his own soup-and-potato experiment for his Cooking Myth Busters book. "There is no reason they would attract salt." If you remove the raw potato from the soup, the potato will taste salty, but so would a sponge — it has simply soaked up some of the salty liquid. Still, there is hope for salty stews: Adding a bit of vinegar or sugar can "cancel out" the saltiness by giving your taste buds competing flavors.

Super Moist Turkey

If you are looking for a way to get a moist turkey, you might try one of these family hints:

1--bake the turkey upside down--breast down for the first half of the cooking time. It will help the darker meat cook more thoroughly and the fatty juices of the darker meat will drip down to the breast and add moistness. Use a deep roasting pan for this.

2--bake the turkey with the breast up, but rub it with butter, garlic powder and pepper only. Do not salt the skin. Instead, mix salt in a cup of warm water and pour that cup of salted warm-not hot-water inside the cavity of the turkey. The salt water will steam up into the turkey, making it very moist.

3. bake the turkey with the breast up and slice two lemons and one orange in halves. Place the halves inside the seasoned turkey and the juices will steam into the meat, adding moisture and flavor.

Hint of the Week

Here is something I learned from my wonderful Mother, the greatest cook I have ever known. When you have just a small serving of cooked vegetables leftover from dinner, don't throw them away. Keep a large plastic container in the freezer and put the vegetables in the container. Mix them--carrots, corn, green beans, broccoli, etc. When the container is full make a pot of soup or stew. Also, if a recipe calls for 1/2 a chopped onion, chop the whole onion and add the half to the freezer container. My mother made the best vegetable soups from this idea.

Hint for the Week

With Fourth of July quickly approaching, you might be thinking of making Deviled Eggs. If you want perfectly boiled eggs, place eggs in a large pot and completely cover with cold water. Do not layer eggs on top of one another. Bring water to a rapid boil for 2 minutes, reduce to simmer and let eggs simmer 8 minutes, return to boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and empty hot water and fill pot with cold water. Let sit for 5 minutes. To peel easily, slightly crush shell in your fist and roll on counter with a firm grip. Of course, you don't want to push through the egg, but by making the shell crack in many small pieces, it is easier to peel. My father saw this on a cooking show years ago and taught me this. It truly works.