Nothing is better on a cold winter day than a big bowl of stew. And while most people think of beef at the mention of stew, chicken is a great substitute for those looking to cut back a little on their red meat consumption. The following recipe, which I came up with after contemplating what to do with leftovers from …
Fall is in the air, with the possibility of Jack Frost making his first appearance any day. And that means some gardeners are scurrying about, deciding which plants to cover and which vegetables to pick — tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, cucumbers, squash. The list can go on and on and on. A proliferation of fresh veggies means only one thing to …
An Easter Sunday ham dinner is a tradition in many families. And a day-after-Easter ham bean soup is probably on the menu for just as many families, maybe more, especially in these days when our usual large gatherings are whittled down due to social distancing amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The spiral ham that Therese and I prepared Sunday is going …
There’s nothing more comforting in times of uncertainty than a good meat-and-potato meal. Or a pasta dish with ground beef or Italian sausage. And if you can throw in some good vegetables, all the better. Just about everyone has a family favorite when it comes to this type of food. For some people, it’s a main dish, for others a …
My dad was a heckuva cook, and boiled dinner was one of his specialties. He generally made it in the winter, when a bowl of something warm was the perfect answer to the cold weather. I have many fond memories of big bowls of boiled dinner, served with dash of vinegar. It was a meal in itself and one that …
The holidays wouldn’t be complete without a good assortment of cookies, bars and the like. At least that’s the way it was in our house when I was growing up. My mom always made sure we had plenty of goodies around Christmas, which was very pleasing to her three growing boys and their dad. I have fond memories of her …
The late, great American chef Julia Child, in her “Mastering the Art of French Cooking,” described fricassee as “halfway between a sauté and a stew.” In a fricassee cut-up meat is first sautéed, then liquid is added and it is simmered to finish cooking. A stew includes liquid from the beginning. For me, someone who doesn’t think cooking is a …
Leftovers are usually a given when you host Thanksgiving Day dinner, even if everyone eats too much. There is always some leftover stuffing, squash, scalloped corn and the like besides the star of your feast — the turkey. Even if you sit down for a slice or two of turkey on a bun(s) around suppertime, there often is plenty of …
Skillet meals are a quick and easy way to cook fresh garden vegetables, especially tomatoes, carrots, onions and cabbage. Add a little meat to the mix, and you have a well-balanced dish that is full of vitamins, fiber and protein. The following recipe took only about a half an hour to prepare, which gave me plenty of time to work …
Okra isn’t a vegetable kids who grew up in northern Minnesota would hear much about in their formative years. In fact, many of them probably never had an inkling about the flowering plant in the mallow family. I can attest to that. My first exposure to the plant known in many English-speaking countries as ladies’ fingers or ochro was probably in the …
When it comes to meat sauces for pasta, just about everyone has their favorite. Spaghetti lovers generally prefer a sauce that contains ground beef and Italian sausage. Some people even like to add ribs to the mix. Ragu is also a popular choice, both the Bolognese (finely chopped ground beef, veal or pork) or Neapolitan (chunky beef or pork taken …
Most hotdishes or casseroles are perfect for those working folks who don’t have all day to prepare a meal — or those who are just looking for a something that is quick and tasty to put on the table for supper. As a retiree, I usually have a lot of free time, so it doesn’t matter if it takes an …
Leftovers. Almost all families have them, and they can pose a dilemma — if you let them. But creative cooks know that their limitations are endless. Perhaps the best use I can think of for leftovers is a pot of soup. Consider that roast chicken or beef that you had for Sunday dinner. Either would be a great starter for soup. …
Winter is the perfect time to make soup. I won’t argue with that, although soup during any season with fine with me. Vegetable soups, whether they are made with fresh, frozen or canned veggies, are among the most popular of soups. The reasons are myriad: They make a great appetizer or a main courses. They are relatively quick to make and …
There are a lot people who relish leftovers. But there probably are just as many who view them as a nuisance. You can count me among the former. I believe there are a lot of leftovers that are better the second day. Chili, for one, comes to mind. It’s also a food that can’t really be made in small batches, especially …
Chicken ala king is one of those dishes that’s not only been a staple of many families over the years but also one that can be made with a variety of ingredients. As the name implies, chicken is the star of the creamy entree, which also features vegetables. But which ones complement the chicken can vary from recipe to recipe. Generally, …
Have you ever eaten a dish that seems to be intoxicating? I’m sure we all can name a dessert or two that would fit into that category, especially if it contains alcohol. Perhaps a cake recipe with beer, an ice cream sundae topped with wine-soaked fruits, dessert cocktails, ice pops made with wine. And even ones without booze, such as Better Than …
Homemade soups are awfully hard to beat. And when eating out, there’s something soothing about knowing that a restaurant’s soup is made from scratch. Maybe the reason is that you are a soup maker yourself or your mom or dad was accomplished at that, too. Both are true in my case. I usually make a pot of soup at least three …
Nothing takes the chill off a cold winter day than a big bowl of soup. That’s probably been true since early man started throwing meat and vegetables in a pot over an open fire pit. One soup that’s been around a long time is borscht, which is derived from an ancient soup originally cooked from pickled stems, leaves and umbrels …
Anyone who has contemplated making bean soup for the first time and goes to the internet looking for a recipe will likely find one that suits his or her tastes. That’s because there’s hardly any limit to the number of bean soups that a cook can make. Perhaps the main reason is that beans come in all shapes, colors and sizes, and when you …
Hunting season has arrived in the Northland. For many cooks, that means it’s time to start digging through their recipe boxes for some tasty wild game dishes. Over the years, I’ve listened to some of my readers complain about wild game recipes because they can’t “bear” the thought of eating magnificent Canada geese, which mate for life, or a Bambi, with whom they …
“Wouldn’t today be a great day for soup?” That isn’t what you’d expect to hear most cooks asking in the middle of July in the Upper Midwest. But those were my exact words to myself Wednesday, and I bet that’s exactly what a lot of other people have been querying the past couple of days with the cool, wet weather we’ve been experiencing. The …
One-pot ― or one-pan ― meals are a boon to households where both parents work. And this time of the year, when a lot of time and energy goes into baking holiday goodies, even those who are retired can find them a nice time-saver. They take very little time to put together, cooking time is minimal, and one-pot meals require a lot less …
Side dishes are just as important as the main course when it comes to holiday celebrations such as Thanksgiving Day dinner. It’s always been that way in our family. From the time we used to go to my Grandma and Grandpa Menard’s in the 1950s and ’60s to our smaller get-togethers these days, side dishes have played a big role …
Two 5-gallon buckets of carrots. What’s a guy to do? Well, in my case, scrubbing and drying them is the No. 1 priority. After that, the fun begins. As you might have guessed, I recently dug the carrots from my garden. I waited until we had a good frost before harvesting them because the plants respond to the cold by turning starches into …
Anyone who has enjoyed a day in the field in pursuit of ringneck pheasants knows how nice it is to return to hunting camp for a tasty home-cooked meal. I recently returned from my third trip to western North Dakota, where wily roosters did their best to outsmart me. Luckily, I was in pretty good company, so a few birds …