Vicki’s Chuck Wagon Beans - a Huckleberry Above a Persimmon

During the long cattle drives, the chuck wagon was the headquarters of every cattle outfit along the trail. The cowboys ate their meals there and it was where a recounting of the day and the smell of over overcooked coffee. Skippy, the most popular man in camp cause he was cook did not take to a lot of back talk. When the trail boss mentioned almost under his breath, “Beans again” ?

Skippy took off and hit his side with his floppy hat.

“Shucks, you ain’t some kina granger is you? Maybe you don’t know why we got these beans? Why beans is an Ace in the Hole. Why, we was in Missouri, a surrounded by injuns. We done shot all our lead ‘til was agone. Did not pay it no never mind neither. We start just a loading beans instead til the hullabaloo settled down and them injuns just up and left.”

After that, no one said any more about beans.

1 ½ Pounds ground beef

1 Yellow onion, chopped

8 Ounces hickory smoked bacon, chopped

1 32-Ounce can Campbell’s Pork and Beans

2 15-Ounce cans Ranch Style Beans

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/3 yellow mustard

1 Tablespoon garlic powder

1 Cup chicken stock

¾ ~ 1 cup Heinz Tomato ketchup

Worcestershire sauce

Salt and pepper to taste

In a oven-proof pot that has a good lid, cook bacon to its starts to render then add chopped onion and cook until onion has become tender but not brown. Now add the ground beef breaking it up with a wooden spoon. Stir frequently to turn meat to insure an even browning. Stir in sugar, mustard, and both types of beans, ketchup, garlic powder and chicken stock. Preheat oven to 300 F. Simmer beans on stove top on medium until they start to boil. Cover and cook in the oven for several hours. Taste and correct sweetness and seasoning as required.

It’s a Huckleberry Above a Persimmon

Chinese Salt and Pepper Shrimp (aka Salt-Baked Prawns)

In an authentic Chinese restaurant, the shrimp is cooked head-on with their shells until crispy so they eat like potato chips. This dish, from the south of China, is neither baked nor cooked with any large portion of salt. When eating these, the secret is to chew thoroughly.

1 ¼ Pound whole medium shrimp² (pinch off feelers)

2 Teaspoons minced fresh ginger

1 Tablespoon minced garlic

1 Thinly sliced jalapeno pepper (red is hotter than green)

4 Green onions, sliced

Salt for blanching water

Cornstarch enough to coat shrimp (2-3 Tablespoons)

½ Cup peanut oil

Salt and Pepper to taste

Soak the shrimp¹ lightly salted cold water for 30 minutes.

Bring a large pot of slightly salted water to a boil. Blanch shrimps for 10 seconds then quench in cold water. Blanching improves firmness. Drain and pat shrimps as dry as possible with paper towels.

Mince both garlic and ginger and set aside. Have ready cut up green onions and jalapeno. (Retaining the jalapeno‘s white-seed portion retains the hottest portion of the chile. I like hot so I leave it in.)

Heat wok on high. The secret of cooking these is to not excessively brown the coating otherwise they will be over done.

Lightly coat the shrimps with the cornstarch. When the wok is hot, add the oil. Shake off excess cornstarch, and, when the oil is very hot (385^o F), stir fry the shrimp in batches. (Make sure the shrimp are completely covered with hot oil.)

Pour off the oil but retain. Turn out the shrimps onto a paper towel-covered plate. Reheat the wok; add back one tablespoon of oil. When oil is very hot, stir fry garlic, ginger, jalapeno, and green onions until fragrant. Add back the shrimps and toss well. Correct seasonings. Serve immediately on a pre-heated platter.

Notes:

1. Medium shrimp are younger the jumbo shrimp hence the shells are not as tuff.

Yellow Rice (Arroz Amarillo)

This is a dish of yellow fried rice and the ingredients other than rice (shown below) are anything you want. In my version, the rice is flavored with Peruvian Aji Amarillo chile powder, garlic, jalapeno, shallots (could be sweet onions) chicken stock, and chopped poblano chilies. Top the rice with your choice of protein to make a whole meal.

Rice Ingredients

Pinch of Turmeric

½ teaspoon American Spice Yellow food coloring (Colorante Amarillo) or Badia Yellow Coloring

Pinch saffron

Pinch Aji Amarillo

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

3 ½ Cup water

2 cups Thai jasmine long grain rice

Use a sauce pan equipped with a tight fitting oven safe lid. (If you do not have an oven safe lid, use three layers on tin foil making a tight seal.) Place water in sauce pan; bring it to a full boil. Add colorants, spices, and rice. Cover with tight fitting lid. Bring back to boil. When boiling, place pot in a 350 F preheated oven. Set timer for 35 minutes. After 35 minutes, remove from oven with oven mitts. Remove lid. Spill out rice on a half sheet pan with a lip. Cool then place uncovered in the refrigerator to get cold.

1 Teaspoon Aji Amarillo chile powder

1 chopped seeded jalapeno (red ones look good)

1/3 Cup homemade chicken stock or more as needed

1 chopped poblano chile

1 Clove chopped garlic

3 Chopped shallots

3 Scallion greens chopped

3 tablespoons corn oil

Correct seasoning with sea salt and fresh ground black pepper

Heat a wok until hot, add oil, jalapeno, poblano, shallots, and garlic and stir-fry briskly. Stir in cold rice; stir-fry flipping with spatula to separate rice grains. Add Aji Amarillo chile powder and chicken stock. Stir in scallions. Season with salt and pepper. Taste and correct seasonings as needed. Serve hot.

The yellow collorant is to be found in the Mexcian section of a Mexican market or online. To make this into a whole meal, top with broiled lobster, or large gulf shrimp, or broiled chicken.

Moo Goo Gai Pan - Chicken and Mushrooms

Moo goo mean mushroom, Gai means chicken and pan means sliced. When the chicken is cut so thin and cooked so quickly, it remains wonderfully tender.

1 Cup Chinese (Napa) cabbage, white portions, sliced ¼ wide, 2 inches long or substitute 2 inch long thin slices of celery

1 Can drained sliced water chestnuts

1 Cup snow peas, washed in cold water

2 Boneless, skinless chicken breast, sliced in thin slices

1 Cup baby cremini mushrooms, stemmed, quartered

1 Clove garlic, minced

1 Tablespoon minced fresh ginger

3 Tablespoons shallots, thinly sliced or substitute thinly sliced Vidalia onion

1 Carrot peeled, sliced into thin shreds (optional)

1+1 Tablespoons peanut oil

1 Pinch crushed red pepper (optional)

1 Pinch white pepper

1 ½ Tablespoons cornstarch

1 Teaspoon white sugar (optional)

1 ½ Teaspoons soy sauce

1 Teaspoon fish sauce

1 Teaspoon Mirin

1 Tablespoon rice wine or sake

1 Teaspoon rice wine vinegar

¼ Cup chicken broth and a little more, later, if needed

In a small bowl, add cornstarch, sugar (optional) then mix in soy sauce, fish sauce, rice wine, Mirin, vinegar, and ¼ cup of chicken broth. Set the cornstarch mixture aside until needed.

Heat wok over high heat. When hot, add a tablespoon of oil, garlic, ginger and the pepper. Stir fry the chicken slices until all traces of red are gone. (Save chicken in a bowl.)

Wipe out wok.

Heat wok over high heat. When hot, add a tablespoon of oil. Stir fry water chestnuts, shallots, snow peas, Carrots (optional), and cabbage or celery until all the vegetables are hot. Return the chicken to the wok and add mushrooms. Add cornstarch mixture and stir fry and toss until thickened. Correct seasoning adding more chicken stock as required. The suace will not achieve its full thickness until it has returned to a boil. Sauce should be thickened but slightly runny. Serve over steamed jasmine rice.

Vicki’s Crunchy Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies

 These make a tender delectible cookie with little chew and a little crunch.

1 Cup sweet butter

1 Cup packed brown sugar

3/4 Cup white sugar

1 Cup crunchy peanut butter

2 Eggs

1 1/2 Cups all-purpose flour

2 Teaspoons baking soda

1/2 Teaspoon salt

1 Cup quick-cooking oats

Preheat oven to 350 F.

In a large bowl, cream together butter, brown sugar, white sugar, and peanut butter until smooth.

Beat in the eggs one at a time until well blended.

Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt and stir the dry ingredients into the creamed mixture.

Mix in the oats until just combined.

Drop by teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake for 10 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until just light brown.

Do not over-bake. Cool and store in an airtight container.

Mary King’s Fruitcake Cookies

A moist satisfying cookie with the holiday flair that is addictive. Mary knows her way around the kitchen.

1 Cup salted softened butter (2 sticks)

1 ½ Cup brown sugar

2 Eggs

2 ½ Cup all purpose flour

1 Teaspoon baking soda

½ Teaspoon salt

1 Teaspoon cinammon

½ Container of fruit cake mix

3 Cup of chopped pecans

Cream butter, sugar and add eggs.  Cream til fluffy. 

Add dry ingredients to it.  Stir in fruit and pecans.

Drop 2 inches  apart on greased cookie sheet.

Bake @ 375 F or 350 F for 12 mins.

Let cool on cookie racks.

Libby’s Pumpkin Rum Cake

A moist, delicious cake with a lovely tasty rum glaze. The best I ever had.

3 Cups all-purpose flour

3 Teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 Teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 Teaspoon ground cloves

1 Teaspoon ground ginger

2 Teaspoons baking soda

1 Teaspoon salt

1 Cup sweet butter softened

1 Cup dark brown sugar

1 Cup granulated sugar

4 Eggs

1 (15 Ounce) can Libby's canned pumpkin

1 Teaspoon vanilla

Butter Rum Glaze

1/4 Cup butter

1/2 Cup white or brown sugar

2 Tablespoons water

2 -3 Tablespoons dark rum

Preheat oven to 325. Grease 12 cup bundt pan.

Combine flour, spices, baking soda and salt in a bowl. Beat butter, brown sugar and granulated in a large mixer bowl and until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well between each addition.

Add pumpkin and vanilla extract and beat well. Add flour to pumpkin mixture, 1/3 at a time, mixing well after each addition. Pour into prepared bundt pan.

Bake for 60-70 minutes or until toothpick inserted in middle comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes.

While cake is cooling make Butter Rum Glaze. Melt butter in a saucepan; stir in sugar and water. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in rum.

Poke holes all over cake with a wooden skewer. Pour half of glaze over cake. Let stand 5 minutes and then invert onto plate. Make holes all over top of cake and pour remaining glaze over the top.

Cool completely.