Hugs Kitchen

It’s been awhile since I posted, but I’m alive and well in Southern Vermont. Today is one last warm Sunday, and I have roasted chicken planned because it was on sale at the Price Chopper this past week. Two big roasters and they’ll be going into the oven soon.

I wish I didn’t have to turn the oven on, but it’s the plan and it’s healthy, too. Roast chicken, broccoli (with cheese sauce to those that want it), and mashed potatoes. A good, healthy dinner for everyone. I’m trying to be more aware of that.

Lisa and David are working on Halloween decorations out front. Blow-ups will be going up soon. Both Megan and Nellie are helping. Feels like home here today.

Today was the first day that made me feel that spring was coming. Temperatures in the mid-40s, mixed sun and clouds, a steady breeze all day. The ground turning into mud, the rivers bank full. The snow banks that were so big this year turning into smaller and smaller dirty little mounds. I keep saying to myself, “it can’t last. no matter what we get now, it can’t last” Warm days, cold nights. Sap starting to run. Vermont mud everywhere you go. The air somehow freshening. A little sinus pressure with the change of the weather systems. Some small spring bulbs pushing up through the ground here and there. Yes, spring.

Took a walk at lunchtime today. I need to start walking more. I start physical therapy on Monday for some strengthening on that left side. I have some leg weights that have adjustable weights. I just might get to use them soon.

I love to cook. And I have to admit that I love to eat good food as well.   Soon, we’ll be flying off to Nashville, TN just shy of a week.  I hope to check some good BBQ while I’m there.  And some good music.  And some quality time with my very patient husband.

See you soon and will share more information about our trip.

After the unseasonably warm temperatures here in Southern Vermont, I realize that Sunday dinner roasted in the oven will soon take a back seat to how to feed the family quickly and without heating up the house.

Chicken roasters are on sale at Price Chopper this week for only 88 cents a pound. I stopped this morning and got two that I’m roasting for dinner. One was 6, the other 6 1/4. I like to roast start the roasting at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, then down to 350 for the remaining time. It takes about 2 – 2 1/2 hrs for this size bird, unstuffed.

Unwrap the roasters. Put the giblets, neck, etc into a small saucepan, cover with cold water and turn on a low heat. Rinse the chicken with cold water. Drain from end to end. Turn the wings under and place in roaster pan. Since I had two roasters, I put them in my great, big turkey roaster.

I love the flavor of rosemary, marjorum, and thyme on the roasters, but some of the folks in the house are food texture picky. They don’t like the texture of the rosemary, especially. So I put them in my spice grinder into almost a powder.

I usually combine soft butter, and some olive oil, then mix in the herb mixture, I put this under the skin and rub all over the chicken. A bit of salt and pepper. And it’s ready for the oven.

Today, I only had some hard margarine. I tried to soften it in the microwave, but it melted. So I added the olive oil. Set up each chicken and poured some into the space under the skin. Set them back down, and then poured the rest all over the chickens. I sprinkled the herb over the top, maybe a little too think.

I covered the roasting pan with aluminum foil. Put in the oven at 350 for 1 1/2 hrs. Then removed the aluminum for the last hour and it came out great. Pictures to come as soon as I get a chance to download them from the camera.

This is the recipe for Creamed Dried Beef from hugs.org. We make it x4 for our big crew, serve it with mashed potatoes and a vegetable. On my plate, I generally mix the vegetables in with my potatoes and scoop the Creamed Dried Beef over it all. Any leftover goes into the fridge for the next day, but I rarely find any left when I get home from work!

MMMMM—– Recipe via Meal-Master ™ v8.05

Title: Creamed Dried Beef
Categories:
Yield: 1 Servings

1/4 lb Dried beef
2 tb Butter
1 tb To 2 flour
1 c Milk
Hot buttered toast

Pick meat in small pieces, brown in butter.
Sprinkle on flour and stir. Slowly add milk; cook
until slightly thickened. When it boils, pour it
over a platter of toast and serve at once.

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MMMMM—– Recipe via Meal-Master ™ v8.05

Title: Valley Chicken
Categories:
Yield: 4 Servings

3 1/2 lb Chicken; cut up
ds Salt
ds Pepper
ds Thyme
1/4 lb Bacon; diced
2 tb Oil
1/2 lb Mushrooms; sliced
1 sm Onion; chopped
2 Apples; peeled and sliced
1/4 c Dark rum
1/2 c Apple juice
1/2 c Heavy cream
2 tb Finely chopped parsley
Hot cooked rice

Season chicken with salt, pepper and thyme. Render
bacon, remove from pan and add oil. Brown chicken
in hot fats. Add bacon, mushrooms, onion and
apples.

Heat rum, ignite and pour, flaming, over chicken.
Add apple juice; cover and simmer until chicken is
tender, about 40 minutes.

Arrange chicken on heated platter. Stir cream into
sauce and heat through. Pour over chicken; garnish
with parsley and serve with rice.

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MMMMM—– Recipe via Meal-Master ™ v8.05

Title: Mild Curry Powder
Categories:
Yield: 1 Mix

2 tb Cumin
1/2 ts Crushed red pepper
1/2 ts Mustard seeds
1/2 ts Ground ginger
2 tb Ground coriander
2 ts Turmeric

Pulverize to a fine powder. Store airtight.

Makes 1/4 cup.

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MMMMM—– Recipe via Meal-Master ™ v8.05

Title: Honey Baked Chicken
Categories:
Yield: 4 Servings

3 lb Cut up chicken
1/3 c Butter; melted
1/3 c Honey
2 tb Mustard
1 ts Salt
1 ts Curry powder
Hot cooked rice

Arrnange chicken, skin side up, in a 13x9x2″ pan
and top with combined remaining ingredients,
except rice. Bake at 350° 1 1/4 hours, basting
occasionally. Serve with hot rice.

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Enough about the weather. Here’s a tasty recipe that Carolyn posted to hugs.org. It sounds like a good one to try for one of those cold days. After all, garlic and cream what’s not to like??

MMMMM—– Recipe via Meal-Master ™ v8.05

Title: Chicken Breasts with Garlic Cream & Onions
Categories:
Yield: 4 Servings

1 1/2 c Chicken broth
10 sm White onions; peeled
3 Whole cloves
1/4 ts Tarragon or thyme
4 tb Butter
4 tb Oil
4 tb Flour
Salt and pepper
2 Chicken breasts; split and
.. skinned
1/2 lb Mushrooms; sliced
2 Cloves garlic; minced
1 c Light cream

Insert cloves into one of the onions. Bring broth,
onions and tarragon to a boil; reduce heat and
simmer until tender, about 10 minutes.

Melt 2 tablespoons each butter and oil in a large
skillet. Combine 2 tablespoons flour, salt and
pepper in a bag and shake chicken. Brown chicken.
Add onions and broth, cover and cook gently 20
minutes.

In a different pan, sauté mushrooms and garlic in
remaining butter and oil. Add remaining flour,
season and stir until smooth. Add cream, stir
until smooth.

Remove chicken and onions to a platter and keep
warm. Combine broth and cream sauce and heat until
smooth, stirring constantly. Adjust seasonings and
pour over chicken.

Makes 4 servings.

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Here I sit in the early am at my kitchen table in Southern Vermont. Cup of coffee next to the computer. Some folks here have gone off to work, the rest are still in bed. Yesterday, we had a big, unexpected snowfall. It is snowing again this morning, and the wind is whipping around what we got hit with yesterday. It is definitely winter here in the sun belt of Vermont.

I can hear the occasional scrape of the snow plow going by, but no traffic. The roads are still snow covered. No salt or sand laid out that I can see. Luckily, we went to Connecticut and saw my father and brother earlier in the week. If we had planned for this weekend, we would have hit the weather in the traveling. I have a little Dave Ramsey-style baby emergency fund but I wouldn’t want to spend it that way!!

Still, I have to admit that the snow is beautiful.

A good day for baking bread, I’m thinking. Back to work tomorrow, so I have to get my laundry done, and I left the kitchen a wreck yesterday. But I’m thinking that the aroma of bread baking is just what we need today.