Ingredients

• 9-inch pie shell, cooled
• 2.5 lbs of Bermuda onion, sweet onions, or leeks
• 3 tbsp butter
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
• (1 tbsp minced fresh herb or 1 tsp dill or celery seed)
• 4 strips of fried bacon or crumbled, cooked sausage

Method

• Preheat oven to 450°F.
• Melt butter in a heavy saucepan. Add the onions. Stir and cook over low heat until they are translucent. Cool them well.
• Combine and heat slowly until blended the eggs, sour cream, salt, pepper, and herbs. Pour mixture into the pie shell. Bake the pie in a 450° oven for ten mintues.
• Reduce the heat to 300° and bake until crust is light brown, about half an hour.

2020-10-28: Tonight I tried the recipe for the first time. I used the quick cornmeal crust from "Diet for a small planet." Poured in the onion mixture. I cooked it at 450° for ten minutes. The recipe said to add another 30 minutes at 300°, so I checked it at 25 minutes. Still too runny. I was cooking in a square Pyrex dish 8.5" by 8.5", which takes longer to heat, so I assumed I would have to adjust the cooking time. I added another 10 minutes. Still too runny. I added another 20 minutes. Still too runny. Added another 20 minutes. Still too runny. Added another 20 minutes. Okay, it's probably cooked now. Please, God, let me not kill me or my guests.

I put it in the fridge overnight. Ate it the next evening. Pretty good. Outside of slicing the onions, this is a quick and easy recipe.

• 2 cups yellow cornmeal
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp brewers yeast
• 3 tablespoons oil
• 1/2 to 3/4 cup of hot seasoned stock (or enough to make a stiff batter)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Mix and pat into an oiled deep 9-inch pie pan or cake dish. Bake for ten minutes before filling.

From "Diet for a small planet" by Frances Moore Lappé

2020-01-28: This is the first time I'm trying this crust. Truth to tell, I didn't think it would work. I didn't really believe the corn meal would hold together without an egg, but it did.

I didn't add brewer's yeast. By mistake I used an entire teaspoon of salt. I kept adding liquid until all the loose corn meal was gathered up, which probably took one cup or one and a quarter cups of water in total. One recipe I saw suggested that if you were cooking in a glass dish (as opposed to a metal pie pan) that you should reduce the cooking time by one quarter or one fifth. That sort of made sense to me since it would continue cooking for a bit when you took it out of the oven, so my 8.5 x 8.5 inch square Pyrex dish I put in for only 8 minutes. When it came out of the oven, it hadn't browned, but it looked like it would work. I was quite surprised.

The crust worked well. I made it too thick on the sides, so cutting the driest top part took some elbow grease.

SERVINGS: 5

• 2 pounds chicken breasts
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper (+ shake red pepper flakes)
• 1/2 lime
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 shallot (large, or 1/2 onion, chopped)
• 1 green bell pepper (chopped)
• 1 jalapeño pepper (seeded and minced)
• 3 cloves garlic (minced)
• 2 teaspoons cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or more)
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 15 ounces crushed tomatoes
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Start the Ranchero Sauce by sauteing 1 large shallot or 1/2 onion, 1 green bell pepper, and 1 jalapeno that’s been seeded and minced in 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive in a large, deep skillet (10-12″.) Season with salt and pepper then saute until the vegetables are tender, 5 minutes.

Add 3 cloves minced garlic, 2 teaspoons cumin, and 1/4 teaspoon (or more or less) cayenne pepper then saute for 1 more minute.

Add 4 cups chicken broth and 15oz crushed tomatoes then bring the liquid to a boil. Turn the heat down just slightly then boil until the mixture has reduced by half (about 3 cups,) which will take around 20 minutes. A splatter screen is really handy especially towards the end when the Ranchero Sauce get’s really thick. Most grocery stores sell them for a couple bucks these days but if you can’t find one just place a lid partially on top with the open part facing the back of the stove.

After reducing, the Ranchero Sauce will be thick and flavorful. YUM! Taste then add salt and pepper if necessary.

When you’re ready to make the Crock Pot Ranchero Chicken, to a 5-6 quart crock pot add 2lbs chicken breasts, 2 cups chicken broth, the juice from 1/2 lime, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, a couple good shakes of red chili pepper flakes, and a partridge in a pear tree. Just wanted to see if you were still reading. :) Add 2 cups Ranchero Sauce then place a lid on top and cook on low for 5 hours or until the chicken shreds very easily.

2020-01-20: Made the sauce for the first time. Really liked it. Didn't add any salt or black pepper.

2020-04-04: Made it again today. This time, since I didn't have two more cups of chicken broth, I used four cups of the sauce in the crockpot. So tasty. Next time I might let the sauce thicken a bit more or run it through the blender after removing the meat.

Ingredients

• 1 28-oz. can tomato puree
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• Chopped onions, 1 or 2
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• 2 carrots, peeled, grated
• 1 potato, grated
• 1 or 2 teaspoons of salt
• 1/4 crushed bay leaf
• a pinch of marjoram, thyme, or savory
• 2 cans (10.5 oz each) of beef consomme
• 21 oz of water (that is, two cans of water)
• 1/2 teaspoons ground black pepper
• 1 pound of lean ground beef

Method

Mix it all together except the beef. Start on a low boil. Pick the raw beef into pieces a bit smaller than a marble and toss in the simmering liquid. Simmer till done. That's right: no need to brown the beef in advance.

Notes: there are ten thousand variations. I often throw in 1/4 tsp of cayenne of other hot pepper. If I don't have marjoram, thyme or savory handy, sometimes I'll sprinkle in a bit of generic Italian herbs.

My cousin asked:

- I couldn't find beef consume. Can I sub beef broth?

- How long is "until done?"

My answer:

Beef consomme is just double strength beef broth, so instead of two cans of consomme plus two cans of water, just use four cans of beef broth. "Until done" is when the meat is cooked through and the veggies have a texture you like; I'm never precise about that for this soup. And because the carrots and potatoes are grated, they cook up quickly.


The only tricky ingredient here is tomato puree (not paste). Makes a very smooth texture. If that doesn't work, a similar sized can of diced tomatoes that has been run through the blender should work fine.

This has now become one of my standard recipes.

Ingredients

• 28 oz. of Macayo's mild red enchilada sauce
• 10 white-corn tortillas (roughly 8 inches in diameter)
• About a pound of Mexican four-cheese mix

Method

1. Pour enough enchilada sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 casserole dish to cover the bottom.
2. Pour enchilada sauce on a dinner place. This is how you will moisten the tortillas. For each tortilla, moisten the tortilla on the bottom side and then put about half a handful of cheese on top, roll it up, and put it in the casserole dish. Repeat till they are all done.
3. Pour the rest of the enchilada sauce over the tortillas.
4. Pour the rest of the cheddar cheese over the top.
5. Put the casserole in the oven at 350 for 25 minutes.

Things don't get much simpler than that.

If you are interested, here is the list of my experiments that preceded it.

While I was growing up, my mom made this dessert fairly frequently, although with a recipe twice the size. My version makes 4-6 servings.

Ingredients

• 1.5 cups of milk
• 4 oz of cream cheese, softened, broken into smaller pieces
• 3.4 oz of lemon instant pudding mix
• 8 graham crackers
• 1 cup of butter, melted

Method

1. Crush the graham crackers. Mix with butter. Press in the bottom of a 6"x8" container.
2. Pour milk in blender. Blend on low. Add cream cheese piece by piece.
3. Add pudding mix till blended.
4. Pour pudding mix in container. Chill in fridge till it comes to the consistency of firm pudding.

I liked this. The crust was too hard, though. Next time I should try 6 graham crackers and 1/4 cup of butter. It will be more crumbly, but easier to scoop out of the pan.

2019-08-24

Ingredients

• 1.5 cups of milk
• 4 oz of cream cheese, softened, broken into smaller pieces
• 3.4 oz of lemon instant pudding mix
• 6 graham crackers
• 3 tbsp of butter, melted

Method

1. Crush the graham crackers. Mix with butter. Press in the bottom of a 6"x8" container. This will be pretty loose. Don't add much more butter or the crust will be too stiff to scoop out neatly.
2. Pour milk in blender. Blend on low. Add cream cheese piece by piece.
3. Add pudding mix till blended.
4. Pour pudding mix in container. Chill in fridge till it comes to the consistency of firm pudding.

This turned out great. Next time I'll try 4 tbsp of butter.

There is a standard Russian holiday dish called Салат из крабовых палочек "Crab stick salad." I made it a couple weeks ago, and then thought I'd like to do a variation with green chiles. I think this may become one of my signature dishes. It's really simple.

Ingredients

• 1 lb. artificial crab, chopped as small or big as you like
• One 14-oz can of corn, drained
• One 7-oz can of green chiles, drained
• Mayonaisse, enough to bind the other ingredients together
• Salt & pepper to taste

Mix it all together. Serve it up. I usually just eat it with a spoon, but it would be good on crackers or in a sandwich.

2020-03-18: I made it again today. This time I had a can of creamed corn, so I didn't use mayonaisse. Adequate. Next time I'll go back to regular corn plus mayonaisse.

The last time I made this was the day my great aunt Edna Mae died. She was wise and tough.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4G5Y2ghqEQ

Ingredients

Gravy

• 2 tablespoons of whole coriander seeds
• 2 green cardamom pods
• 1/4 cup of ghee
• 1 medium diced onion
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 tablespoon chopped ginger
• 1 pound of fresh spinach
• 1 chopped Serrano chile
• 1/4 tablespoon of lime juice
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 1/2 cup of water
• 6 oz feta

Chonk

• 2 tablespoons ghee
• 1 teaspoon of cumin seeds
• 1/4 tsp red chile powder
• 1 pinch of asafoetida (hing)

Method

Sauté 2 tablespoons of whole coriander seeds and two green cardamom pods in a quarter cup of ghee on medium heat until they start to brown. Add the diced onion. Cook until translucent, and mix in a minced garlic clove, a tablespoon of chopped ginger. Cook briefly till you can smell the aroma of the garlic and ginger. Add the fresh spinach a bit at a time till it wilts down. Once the spinach has wilted, take the pan off the heat, add the chopped Serrano chile, lime juice, and salt, then throw everything in a blender and blend it into a chunky paste. Add that mixture back into your pan on low heat, along with a half cup of water, and fold in 6 ounces of feta cut into cubes.

While that warms up, in a small pan or butter warmer, add two more tablespoons of ghee and a teaspoon of cumin seeds on medium-high heat. Once the cumin seeds start to brown, add red chile powder and asafoetida, and pour the spice-oil mixture (that’s the chonk!) over the top of the saag paneer. Serve with rice or roti.

Ingredients

• 1 Cup Apple CIder Vinegar
• 1/2 Cup ice water fill 1/2 cup measure with ice, then add water to fill
• 1/2 Cup granulated sugar
• 4 garlic cloves
• 2 pints grape tomatoes
• 1 English cucumber
• 1/4 red onion
• kosher salt to taste

Method

1. Place vinegar and sugar in a small saucepot. Bring to simmer and stir until sugar is dissolved, set aside. Add the garlic and ice water.
2. Cut tomatoes in half lengthwise and place in large bowl.
3. Using a mandolin (or thinly slice by hand) slice the cucumber and onion. Place in a bowl with tomatoes, mix together. Of if you are going to let them soak overnight, don't add the tomatoes till the end.
4. Add vinegar mixture and place in refrigerator for at least an hour. Stirring every 20 minutes or so. Serve and enjoy!

Source: video

Ingredients for the chicken

• 300 gms chicken breast boneless
• 1 tsp ginger paste
• 1 tsp garlic paste
• 1 tsp Kashmiri red chilli powder
• 1/2 tsp salt or to taste
• Oil to pan fry

Ingredients for gravy

• 500 gms roughly slit tomatoes
• 100 gms roughly cut onions
• 1 tbsp garlic paste
• 50 gms cashew
• 1 tsp kasoori methi
• 1/2 tsp garam masala
• 4 tbsp sugar
• 2 tbsp kashmiri chilli powder
• 5 tbsp butter
• 3 tbsp cream
• 2 tbsp malt vinegar / 1.5 tbsp White Vinegar
• Salt to taste

Method

• Marinate the chicken with ginger paste, garlic paste, red chilli powder. Salt and keep it aside for 15 to 20 minutes.
• In a pan heat some oil, then fry the marinated chicken pieces in it. Once done place it into a bowl.
• In the same pan add onion, oil, a spoonful of butter. Once the onions are cooked, add tomatoes and cashews.
• Add some water and garlic paste, salt, malt vinegar, sugar, garam masala, and chilli powder. Evenly mix it and let it simmer for 15-20 minutes
• Churn the mixture into fine puree with a hand blender.
• Strain it back into the same pan. Make sure there is minimal wastage.
• Add butter, cream, chicken and kasoori meethi. Let it simmer for 5-7 minutes.
• Garnish it with cream and kasoori meethi.

2019-01-18: I tried the recipe for the first time, but didn't have all the ingredients. Here are my comments.

• I substitute Szeged paprika instead of Kashmiri chili.
• I used rice wine vinegar instead of malt vinegar.
• I didn't have garlic/ginger paste, so I substituted chopped garlic from a jar and ginger paste from a plastic container.
• I used curry powder instead of garam masala.
• Make sure to cut the chicken into thin chunks.

I like the result. It was rather more savory than the butter chicken I had the other day at Curry Corner.