Favorite Recipes! :)

[chac54]

How sad is it to loose all desire to cook and have pain when eating but on the other hand nI am better off than many my age. This is said not to illicit sympathy but just a matter of fact.

I'm sorry Br, I can't even fathom what you have been through. -Hugs-

 

[br6205]

TY, Chac, but as I said I am alive & that is far better than those who did not survive.

 

[tampa24]

Yes, they do both pressure, sautee and slow cook settings.

Thanks!

 

[peterh6308]

I am very lucky to have been raised in a home where my mom cooked everything homemade. She is one of those cooks who can make something awesome out whatever is in the fridge!! She taught me and my 5 siblings how to cook "she said when you eventually move out you're not going to eat fast food" My mom being Native Indian and my dad being Mexican we all learned how to make tortilla's and Indian frybread, and one of us had to make them every morning!! I luckily picked up her cooking skills and can pretty much make anything from scratch. My specialties range from a variety of nationalities, but I would say in order of great tasting my Mexican food I can make everything homemade, classic American comfort foods (meatloaf, chicken & dumplings, bbq etc), Italian food, Chinese and Japanese to round up the top 5. I'm not being critical of anyones cooking utensils, but I don't own a crock pot, rice cooker or pressure cooker I make everything on the stove, oven or on the grill!!! My husband told me once that good food and ass is all I can ask for!!!!

 

[br6205]

I am very lucky to have been raised in a home where my mom cooked everything homemade. She is one of those cooks who can make something awesome out whatever is in the fridge!! She taught me and my 5 siblings how to cook "she said when you eventually move out you're not going to eat fast food" My mom being Native Indian and my dad being Mexican we all learned how to make tortilla's and Indian frybread, and one of us had to make them every morning!! I luckily picked up her cooking skills and can pretty much make anything from scratch. My specialties range from a variety of nationalities, but I would say in order of great tasting my Mexican food I can make everything homemade, classic American comfort foods (meatloaf, chicken & dumplings, bbq etc), Italian food, Chinese and Japanese to round up the top 5. I'm not being critical of anyones cooking utensils, but I don't own a crock pot, rice cooker or pressure cooker I make everything on the stove, oven or on the grill!!! My husband told me once that good food and ass is all I can ask for!!!!

I shared a home where my working mother made everything from scratch & carried it over in my cooking.

 

[tampa24]

I am very lucky to have been raised in a home where my mom cooked everything homemade. She is one of those cooks who can make something awesome out whatever is in the fridge!! She taught me and my 5 siblings how to cook "she said when you eventually move out you're not going to eat fast food" My mom being Native Indian and my dad being Mexican we all learned how to make tortilla's and Indian frybread, and one of us had to make them every morning!! I luckily picked up her cooking skills and can pretty much make anything from scratch. My specialties range from a variety of nationalities, but I would say in order of great tasting my Mexican food I can make everything homemade, classic American comfort foods (meatloaf, chicken & dumplings, bbq etc), Italian food, Chinese and Japanese to round up the top 5. I'm not being critical of anyones cooking utensils, but I don't own a crock pot, rice cooker or pressure cooker I make everything on the stove, oven or on the grill!!! My husband told me once that good food and ass is all I can ask for!!!!

Great story Peter. I remember another wonderful story you shared (on another site maybe?) about making a holiday meal that shocked your late husband. MHRIP He was rather suspicious/mildly concerned when he saw that you had no powdered packet (or not even a store bought jar from Dow Chemical perhaps) to make gravy. haha I hope you'll consider sharing that story again. It was really heartwarming.

 

[tampa24]

I fully admit that I am not a cook per se. It's only been since Covid that I really started getting into cooking more complex meals. My lack of experience and confidence is also why I like recipe videos that show you absolutely step-by-step what should be done and when. lol

Having said that, I'm pleasantly surprised when I can ocassionaly pass along some kitchen tips to people who claim to be, (or are) very good cooks. I was chatting one time with an 80-ish y/o friend from Jersey. He loves to cook and he really likes to bake also. He mentioned that he and his husband would be making their annual Italian Christmas cookies soon . It's a huge process for him and his husband. He explained that they make several, several dozens of various recipes and they serve them at some of the parties and gatherings they host at home. They make enough extra for their own personal enjoyment of course. But they also give them away as gifts to friends and neighbors. So he was telling me it can sometimes be a full one or two day project, depending how ambitious they are in both the quantity and variety of recipes. He said he does most of the prep, and his (much younger) husband helps him with the actual baking and does all of the cleanup.

So upon hearing this I casually asked if he used parchment paper for baking the cookies. He said no. That he had never used it. He didn't quite know what it was. I was rather shocked by that because he portrayed himself as a rather ambitious and experienced baker. I quickly explained to him that he really should try it. I told him how parchment paper often prevented the bottoms of cookies from getting that burnt black circle on the bottoms. And how with parchment paper, the bottoms of the cookies came out with a much more uniform golden brown that most of us strive for. That you don't get the broken or mutilated cookies that get ruined because the spatula couldn't break that seal as well and get exactly in betweeen the bottom of the cookie and the metal sheet.

Plus the cleanup of the baking sheets is an absolute breeze. The pans hardly get dirty at all. A few good swipes of the soapy cloth (after all the baking is completely done) will usually have the pans ready to be put away. But if you just put the cookies directly on the metal sheet (or some dough inevitably smears) then you've got more scrubbing and elbow grease ahead of of you with the crusted on burnt crumbs in order to to clean them up. But especially if you are making baked goods in bulk, you would have to stop and clean each sheet in between uses. Not so with the paper.

So my friend tried parchment paper for the first time for his Christmas cookies. They loved it of course! haha The ease and the lack of constant cookie sheet cleanup really speeded up their process. And they appreciated that the bottoms of the cookies were of better quality. The cookies were less likely to burn in general since they could remove them from the hot sheet almost immediately if they felt they needed to. So now they pretty much never do sheet baking or cookies without it. haha

 

[br6205]

T am glad you started band enjoy it now, Tampa.

 

[mikeyank]

I fully admit that I am not a cook per se. It's only been since Covid that I really started getting into cooking more complex meals. My lack of experience and confidence is also why I like recipe videos that show you absolutely step-by-step what should be done and when. lol

Having said that, I'm pleasantly surprised when I can ocassionaly pass along some kitchen tips to people who claim to be, (or are) very good cooks. I was chatting one time with an 80-ish y/o friend from Jersey. He loves to cook and he really likes to bake also. He mentioned that he and his husband would be making their annual Italian Christmas cookies soon . It's a huge process for him and his husband. He explained that they make several, several dozens of various recipes and they serve them at some of the parties and gatherings they host at home. They make enough extra for their own personal enjoyment of course. But they also give them away as gifts to friends and neighbors. So he was telling me it can sometimes be a full one or two day project, depending how ambitious they are in both the quantity and variety of recipes. He said he does most of the prep, and his (much younger) husband helps him with the actual baking and does all of the cleanup.

So upon hearing this I casually asked if he used parchment paper for baking the cookies. He said no. That he had never used it. He didn't quite know what it was. I was rather shocked by that because he portrayed himself as a rather ambitious and experienced baker. I quickly explained to him that he really should try it. I told him how parchment paper often prevented the bottoms of cookies from getting that burnt black circle on the bottoms. And how with parchment paper, the bottoms of the cookies came out with a much more uniform golden brown that most of us strive for. That you don't get the broken or mutilated cookies that get ruined because the spatula couldn't break that seal as well and get exactly in betweeen the bottom of the cookie and the metal sheet.

Plus the cleanup of the baking sheets is an absolute breeze. The pans hardly get dirty at all. A few good swipes of the soapy cloth (after all the baking is completely done) will usually have the pans ready to be put away. But if you just put the cookies directly on the metal sheet (or some dough inevitably smears) then you've got more scrubbing and elbow grease ahead of of you with the crusted on burnt crumbs in order to to clean them up. But especially if you are making baked goods in bulk, you would have to stop and clean each sheet in between uses. Not so with the paper.

So my friend tried parchment paper for the first time for his Christmas cookies. They loved it of course! haha The ease and the lack of constant cookie sheet cleanup really speeded up their process. And they appreciated that the bottoms of the cookies were of better quality. The cookies were less likely to burn in general since they could remove them from the hot sheet almost immediately if they felt they needed to. So now they pretty much never do sheet baking or cookies without it. haha

Great post Tampa. Two points. I have also discovered and use YouTube videos to learn how to cook something. My method is to look for a short video as my attention span can be short and watch the steps. Then I look for a second similar video. If they agree, I go with it. If they disagree, I check a third. And I go with a consensus. Then I try the recipe and if necessary look for more suggestions. But often two short videos give me enough info.

Second, I too learned about parchment paper for baking on YouTube. I am currently into roasting vegetables and as you said, it expedites clean up immensely. YouTube is a great tool in learning how to do so many things in life including cooking!

 

[br6205]

Up late or early, Mike?

 

[peterh6308]

Great story Peter. I remember another wonderful story you shared (on another site maybe?) about making a holiday meal that shocked your late husband. MHRIP He was rather suspicious/mildly concerned when he saw that you had no powdered packet (or not even a store bought jar from Dow Chemical perhaps) to make gravy. haha I hope you'll consider sharing that story again. It was really heartwarming.

I'll post it again in November

 

[mikeyank]

Up late or early, Mike?

Actually neither. I sleep with my iPad next to me, (sad as a fit young man would be preferable ), and I rarely sleep straight through the night and so when I awakened to a loud YouTube video playing, I often roll over and click on the Broke Straight Boys forum tab to see if anything new has been posted on any of the discussion threads. I saw Tampa’s very relatable post and replied and rolled back over and went back to sleep.

 

[br6205]

You are worse than me!

 

[tampa24]

I'll post it again in November

Sounds good! And an appropriate time.

 

[BrokeStraightBoys]

Such a great thread. I am remodeling my kitchen area so I will be cooking again soon. Let see those recipes coming in.