Comfort Foods Part One (Recipes): Street Prophets Sunday All Day Brunch
In times of stress we often look to comfort food to help us get through. Comfort food is food that soothes the psyche as it provides nourishment. It often is a food that we remember from our childhood. It can be a favorite dish that was made by Mom or Grandmother. It is rarely a gourmet dish. It is just plain solid home cooking.
In a reader's opinion poll by About.com, the following are the top 25 foods stated as comfort foods by respondents: apple pie, baked beans, banana pudding, beef stew, brisket pot roast, chicken and dumplings, chicken pot pie, chicken soup, chili, chocolate chip cookies, corn on the cob, fried chicken, gelatin, green bean casserole, hot dogs, ice cream, macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes, meatloaf, potato salad, pumpkin pie, shepherd’s pie, spaghetti, tomato soup, and tuna casserole.
I have recipes for a lot of these and thought I'd share them with you. I'm going to split this into two diaries with part two coming on Thursday because of the number of recipes.
Apple Pie
Serving Size: 8
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2 pie crust (9 inch)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons cornstarch
½ cup sugar
½ cup light brown sugar -- packed
8 medium Granny Smith apples -- peeled, cored, and sliced
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Heat oven to 375°F. Line 9 inch pie plate with dough.
Mix apples with cornstarch, sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and lemon juice. Mound apple mixture in pie plate and dot with butter.
Cover the filling with second piece of dough. Flute edges and cut slit in top.
Cover edges and bake for 20 minutes.
Remove foil or pie edge cover and bake for and additional 20 minutes or until golden and filling is bubbly.
Cool on rack.
Per Serving: 397 Calories; 17g Fat (37.0% calories from fat); 3g Protein; 61g Carbohydrate; 4g Dietary Fiber; 12mg Cholesterol; 299mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1½ Grain(Starch); 1 Fruit; 3½ Fat; 1½ Other Carbohydrates.
Crockpot Baked Beans
Serving Size: 12
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2 pounds small white beans
½ cup brown sugar -- packed
2 large onions -- cut in chunks
¼ cup dark molasses
¼ cup maple syrup
6 ounces no salt added tomato paste
3 tablespoons dijon mustard
1 tablespoon low sodium Worcestershire sauce
12 ounces cherry cola
Soak beans in water overnight.
Drain beans. Add all ingredients to a crockpot and stir to coat beans. Cook on low for 8 to 10 hours or until the beans are cooked through.
Per Serving: 347 Calories; 1g Fat (3.0% calories from fat); 17g Protein; 70g Carbohydrate; 20g Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; 83mg Sodium. Exchanges: 3 Grain(Starch); 1 Lean Meat; 1 Vegetable; 0 Fat; 1 Other Carbohydrates.
Southern Banana Pudding
Serving Size: 8
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
3 large eggs -- separated
¾ cup sugar
¼ cup all-purpose flour
3 cups 2% low-fat milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
50 vanilla wafer cookies
5 bananas, whole -- sliced
⅛ teaspoon cream of tartar
Heat oven to 350°F.
In top of double boiler over medium heat whisk together ½ cup sugar, flour, and milk
Whisk in egg yolks and stirring constantly cook until thickened and mixture reaches 170°F. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and let pudding cool.
In a 1½ quart baking dish spoon a small amount of the pudding on bottom and spread evenly. Place a layer of cookies over pudding.
Add a layer of bananas over the cookies.
Continue layering pudding, cookies, and bananas for 2 to three layers ending with pudding on top.
Whip egg whites with cream of tater and ¼ cup sugar to form a meringue. Spread on top of pudding.
Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until meringue turns golden.
Per Serving: 407 Calories; 11g Fat (24.4% calories from fat); 8g Protein; 70g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 86mg Cholesterol; 188mg Sodium. Exchanges: 0 Grain(Starch); ½ Lean Meat; 1 Fruit; ½ Non-Fat Milk; 1½ Fat; 3 Other Carbohydrates.
Spicy Beef Stew in a Crockpot
Serving Size: 8
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2 pounds chuck roast -- cut in 1" pieces
4 medium potatoes -- cubed
4 medium carrots -- sliced
1 medium sweet onion -- chopped
2 cloves garlic -- minced
21½ ounces low sodium tomato soup, canned
2 cans water -- soup cans
1 cup Burgundy
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon paprika
¼ teaspoon pepper
½ teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon dried basil
½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon dried sage
½ teaspoon dried marjoram
1 tablespoon low sodium Worcestershire sauce
2 bay leaves
Coat stew meat with flour, salt, paprika and pepper. Place in crockpot.
Place rest of the ingredients in the crockpot.
Cook on low for 8 to 10 hours or on high for 4 to 5 hours. Remove bay leaves before serving.
Per Serving : 382 Calories; 19g Fat (48.2% calories from fat); 21g Protein; 26g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 68mg Cholesterol; 366mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1½ Grain(Starch); 2½ Lean Meat; 1 Vegetable; 2 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.
Yankee Pot Roast
Serving Size: 8
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2½ pounds chuck roast -- trimmed
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
¼ teaspoon seasoned pepper
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 medium sweet onion -- diced
1 clove garlic -- minced
1 cup carrots -- diced
1 cup celery -- diced
2 large Yukon Gold potatoes -- diced
1 tablespoon low sodium Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon no salt added tomato paste
½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon dried rosemary
1 cup red wine
½ cup low sodium beef broth
Heat oven to 350°F.
Mix flour, salt, and pepper together. Dredge meat in flour mixture. Keep any extra flour.
Heat oil in Dutch oven to medium and brown roast on all sides. Remove from pan.
Deglaze the pan with 1/4 cup of the wine scraping up all the brown bits
Add Worcestershire sauce, thyme, rosemary, tomato paste, carrots, celery, and onions and cook until starting to soften. About 8 to 10 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
Return meat to pan. Add the remaining wine and the beef broth pouring around the sides of the pan and not on the meat itself.
Cover and cook for 2 to 3 hours or until meat is almost cooked all the through.
Add potatoes and cook for an additional 20 to 30 minutes.
Remove roast from pan along with vegetables. Cover with foil to keep warm.
Strain and defat the gravy.
Pour strained gravy into a small saucepan. Heat to boiling. Add remaining flour mixture and boil stirring constantly for about 5 minutes until mixture reduces by 1/3 and thickens.
Serve gravy over meat and vegetables.
Per Serving: 413 Calories; 27g Fat (63.4% calories from fat); 24g Protein; 11g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 82mg Cholesterol; 294mg Sodium. Exchanges: 0 Grain(Starch); 3½ Lean Meat; ½ Vegetable; 3½ Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.
Chicken and Dumplings
Serving Size: 10
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
1½ pounds skinless boneless chicken breasts
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 ounces mushroom caps -- sliced
½ cup carrot -- diced
½ cup celery -- diced
1 small onion -- diced
1 clove garlic -- minced
1 cup frozen peas
64 ounces low sodium chicken broth
¼ cup sherry
½ teaspoon seasoned salt
¼ teaspoon seasoned pepper
1 cup low fat evaporated milk
1 teaspoon poultry seasoning homemade -- see recipe below
Dumplings
2 cups all-purpose flour
½ cup yellow cornmeal -- finely ground
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1½ cups buttermilk
Melt butter with olive oil in large Dutch oven and heat to medium-high. Add chicken and brown on both sides. Remove chicken to plate.
Drain excess fat. Add mushrooms, celery, carrots, peas, and onion. Cooked until softened and starting to brown.
Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
Add sherry and cook stirring up all the browned bits.
Add salt, pepper, poultry seasoning, and broth to pan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat. Add chicken and cover pot and cook for 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.
Remove chicken to a plate to cool and shred chicken into bite size pieces.
To make dumplings sift together dry ingredients. Add buttermilk and stir gently to combine.
Add chicken back to pot along with milk. Stir to combine. Bring back up to a simmer. Reduce heat.
Drop dough on top of soup. Wrap a kitchen towel around lid and partially cover and simmer for 35 minutes.
Per Serving: 338 Calories; 7g Fat (18.4% calories from fat); 31g Protein; 36g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 48mg Cholesterol; 864mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1½ Grain(Starch); 3 Lean Meat; ½ Vegetable; ½ Non-Fat Milk; 1 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.
NOTES : The towel will absorb the steam condensation so it doesn't drip back on the dumplings.
Poultry Seasoning
Serving Size: 16
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2 teaspoons ground sage
2 teaspoons dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried marjoram
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
½ teaspoon dried parsley
½ teaspoon celery seeds
Mix everything together and store in a jar with a lid.
Per Serving: 2 Calories; trace Fat (31.4% calories from fat); trace Protein; trace Carbohydrate; trace Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; trace Sodium. Exchanges: 0 Grain(Starch); 0 Lean Meat; 0 Fat.
Chicken Pot Pie
Serving Size: 8
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2 whole 9 inch pie crusts -- see recipe
1 pound skinless boneless chicken breast -- cubed
½ cup carrots -- diced
½ cup celery -- sliced
1 small onion -- diced
1 cup frozen peas
1 large Yukon Gold potato -- diced
1 teaspoon poultry seasoning homemade -- see recipe above
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
4 tablespoons unsalted butter -- divided
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1½ cups 2% low-fat milk
¼ cup white wine
3 cups water
Heat oven to 425°F.
Bring water to a boil and add potatoes and carrots. Boil for 15 minutes or until softened. Drain.
Add 2 tablespoons butter to large skillet over medium heat. Add chicken, onions, and celery. Cook until chicken is browned and onions and celery have softened. Deglaze pan with wine scraping up all the browned bits.
Add potatoes, peas, and carrots to chicken mixture along with salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning. Mix well.
Heat 2 tablespoons butter in saucepan over medium-high heat. Add flour and cook for 1 minute. Slowly add milk stirring constantly until boiling. Stir and cook until thickened. Remove from heat.
Add sauce to chicken mixture mixing well.
Place one pie crust in bottom of pie pan pushing up the sides.
Pour chicken mixture into pie pan.
Cover top with second pie crust. Pinch top and sides together and cutting several slits in the top.
Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until pastry in golden brown and filling is bubbly.
Per Serving: 381 Calories; 20g Fat (47.1% calories from fat); 19g Protein; 31g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 52mg Cholesterol; 519mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1½ Grain(Starch); 2 Lean Meat; ½ Vegetable; 0 Non-Fat Milk; 3½ Fat.
Chicken Noodle Soup
Serving Size: 6
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
3 tablespoons unsalted butter -- divided
1 cup celery -- diced
1 cup carrots -- diced
1 small onion -- diced
1½ pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
½ teaspoon poultry seasoning -- see recipe above
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
¼ teaspoon seasoned pepper
1 teaspoon low sodium Worcestershire sauce
¼ teaspoon celery seeds
48 ounces low sodium chicken broth
½ cup white wine
4 ounces egg noodles
Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in large saucepan. Add chicken and cook until golden on both sides.
Pour out excess chicken fat and melt remaining butter. Cook onions, celery, and carrots until softened.
Add broth, wine, poultry seasoning, salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, and celery seeds. Heat to boiling.
Reduce to a simmer. Cook for 15 minutes.
Shred chicken and return to pot. Add noodles and simmer for another 10 to 15 minutes or until noodles are tender.
Per Serving: 328 Calories; 8g Fat (23.3% calories from fat); 40g Protein; 20g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 99mg Cholesterol; 807mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1 Grain(Starch); 5 Lean Meat; 1 Vegetable; 1 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.
Out of This World Chili
Serving Size: 8
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 pounds chuck roast -- cubed
1 large sweet onion -- diced
3 large cloves garlic -- minced
1 large green bell pepper -- seeded and diced
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon paprika
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons ground cumin
4 tablespoons chili powder -- use less if you don't want it too spicy
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
29 ounces no salt added diced tomatoes -- drained
4 ounces green chilies -- drained and diced
8 ounces no salt added tomato sauce
½ teaspoon Tabasco sauce
2 tablespoons low sodium Worcestershire sauce
31 ounces low sodium kidney beans, canned
1 cup red wine
2 ounces four-cheese Mexican-style shredded cheese
Heat oil in a large pot or Dutch oven on medium-high heat. Add meat, onion, and green pepper. Cook until meat is browned on all sides and vegetables are softened. Drain.
Add garlic and dried spices. Cook for 30 seconds.
Add rest of ingredients except kidney beans and cheese. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat. Cover and simmer for two hours stirring frequently.
Add kidney beans. Uncover and simmer for 30 minutes to an hour stirring a couple of times.
Serve with cheese sprinkled over top.
Per Serving: 501 Calories; 26g Fat (48.8% calories from fat); 28g Protein; 34g Carbohydrate; 11g Dietary Fiber; 72mg Cholesterol; 464mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1½ Grain(Starch); 3 Lean Meat; 1 Vegetable; 3 Fat; ½ Other Carbohydrates.
NOTES : You should have 2 pounds of meat after removing the fat and gristle and cutting it into cubes.
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Cookies: 64
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
¾ cup sugar
¾ cup dark brown sugar
1 cup unsalted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg
2¼ cups all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon salt
12 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ cup walnuts -- diced, optional
Heat oven to 350°F.
Cream together the butter and both sugars.
Add vanilla and egg and mix well.
Add flour, baking soda, and salt and mix well.
Add chocolate and nuts.
Roll into 1 inch balls and place on ungreased cookie sheet.
Bake 10 to 12 minutes.
Per Cookie: 93 Calories; 5g Fat (47.5% calories from fat); 1g Protein; 12g Carbohydrate; trace Dietary Fiber; 11mg Cholesterol; 31mg Sodium. Exchanges: 0 Grain(Starch); 0 Lean Meat; 1 Fat; ½ Other Carbohydrates.
NOTES : You can use pecans or other nuts or leave them out.
I have just started to receive the first of the many bills from my July hospitalization for pneumonia. Needless to say I can't pay these. I am up to over owing $7,500.00 in bills now and have no idea how I can pay these and still pay rent and put food on the table. Any help you can provide by buying my art and jewelry and scarves would be greatly appreciated.
You can find prints of my artwork and photography on my Fine Arts America account.
You can find my jewelry for sale here.
You can find my scarves for sale here.
I am having a Fall Sale here on selected jewelry.
Comments
Southern cornbread
I learned this one from my Texas grandmother when I was about six. To this day I have trouble eating any kind of soup or stew without it, and can make it in my sleep.
3/4 cup cornmeal
1 1/4 cup flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
3 tbsp cooking oil
1 egg
Milk
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Coat inside of loaf pan or small cast iron skillet with 1 tbsp cooking oil, heat in oven.
Mix dry ingredients together. Add egg, 2 tbsp oil and enough milk to make a fairly stiff batter. Turn immediately into hot loaf pan or skillet. Bake at 425 degrees for 20-25 minutes, until cornbread is light brown on top.
I usually double the recipe (don't double the salt) and make it in a normal size cast iron skillet (9 x 13 baking dish also works). The original recipe used bacon grease instead of oil, which is out of this world good but not for your arteries.
Please help support caucus99percent!
The difference between Southern and Yankee cornbread
is that Yankees add sugar.
There is no justice. There can be no peace.
If it has sugar it's not cornbread
I call it corncake. Gotta stand in solidarity with my rebel forebears on this question, if in few others.
Please help support caucus99percent!
With you and several big chefs on that, Dd
Half of my forebears were Southern. I treat cornbread as a savory and make it that way with amendments. Still looking for a 'Mexican cornbread' that elicits Mexico and not a US version.
Hey! my dear friends or soon-to-be's, JtC could use the donations to keep this site functioning for those of us who can still see the life preserver or flotsam in the water.
I don't usually flavor my cornbread
But eat it with foods that have their own flavor. You might try adding a teaspoon of epazote ("Mexican oregano") if you want to eat it with Mexican food. That herb is the secret ingredient in black bean soup to make it taste authentic -- that and a bottle of Negra Modelo.
Please help support caucus99percent!
I have to agree,
no sugar in the cornbread. Raggedy Andy, from the Texas panhandle says, "then it's cake, not cornbread." Yup, gotta agree.
"The “jumpers” reminded us that one day we will all face only one choice and that is how we will die, not how we will live." Chris Hedges on 9/11
I love me some "corncake".
I make both but being the sugar addict that I am I do prefer it with some sugar. The most delicious recipe I have tried is the one linked below but I do cut out a lot of the sugar and oil. It has so much sugar and honey that I am afraid it could start the cornbread war between north and south.
http://leitesculinaria.com/99959/recipes-buttermilk-cornbread.html
Mundus vult decipi, ergo decipiatur.
Strawberry Shortcake
using sweet cornbread as the base is yummy. I make a version with the sweet cornbread and I macerate the strawberries with a splash of oj, honey and candied ginger and then lots of whipped cream, natch.
" “Human kindness has never weakened the stamina or softened the fiber of a free people. A nation does not have to be cruel to be tough.” FDR "
That's a great idea
My grandmother used to make about 1 1/2 inch wide strips of pie crust which she would bake on a cookie sheet, then brush the strips with butter when done. We'd roughly crumble the pie crust for strawberry shortcake. It was heavenly.
Please help support caucus99percent!
Yum! No one in my family baked, sadly.
But fortunately my friends had mothers and grandmothers who did, so I did get to experience glimpses of that world - one mother made cinnamon twists with leftover pie crusts, which I adored so much that she would make a little batch for me and put them aside for when I came over.
My mother was a fantastic cook but mostly just chose not to, so my brother and I sustained our body weights throughout childhood mostly courtesy of Banquet Pot Pies, Swanson TV Dinners, Chef Boyardee and Franco-American spaghetti. I stayed overnight at a friends once and ate dinner with her family and almost swooned at eating real mashed potatoes with actual lumps in them - not the watery, chemical tasting stuff I was used to in its own little aluminum compartment.
Oddly, I did become a pretty good cook, if I do say so, teaching myself from cookbooks. Even so I was late to and very intimidated by baking. It's not my forte, although I enjoy making bread.
" “Human kindness has never weakened the stamina or softened the fiber of a free people. A nation does not have to be cruel to be tough.” FDR "
Cinnamon twists
My grandma did that with leftover pie crust, sorta.
She'd roll it out, coat with butter, sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon (or sugar and baking cocoa), roll it up, bake it, then cut it into pieces after it cooled.
She'd keep them in an old coffee can, and I knew just where to find it!
Have you ever tried the pie crust recipe in the original Betty Crocker cookbook? The one with the red and white checkered cover? That's the one I have used, and I'm no Baker, but it always turns out well. Flaky and tasty.
Hey DD, oil should be bacon grease
And the pan must be cast iron. Or so says my North Texas matriarchs from both sides.
That makes the crust amazing!
I'm with you on stews and soups. A warm buttered piece on the side, and a crumbled piece mixed into your bowl. Same for a "mess" of beans.
Omg, slow cooker pintos made with pork, greens made with pork, southern fried "taters", and cast iron cornbread! Pork in all the southern goodies is what I've missed the most since my son went vegetarian. Nom nom!
My grandmother would heartily agree
She used to make cornbread in old iron muffin tins, which allowed for more crust. I've never done it as an adult, but have often wondered why not.
Please help support caucus99percent!
Were they in the shapes of corn cobs?
Both grandmas, and a great grandma had those. The great grandma's set was so old, the muffins just looked like sticks.
Wonderful memories!
Nope, though I've seen those
These were regular muffin tins, but old and seasoned and made of cast iron. The cornbread muffins were one of my favorite foods growing up.
Please help support caucus99percent!
(duplicate post)
Please help support caucus99percent!
"Comfort food" means one thing to me: mashed Idaho potatoes.
I don't cook with recipes, but I make them with heavy cream and lots of butter--the proverbial heart attack on a plate. I don't have them often, so I am hoping everyone survives my particular brand of comfort. Everything else is just food. It can be yummy or not, satisfy a craving or not, but only mashed potatoes = comfort.
I'mf lucky that my comfort food is so easy to make.
The only corn bread I ever had was fried.
It looked like a pancake, and it was delicious. My husband makes a great chicken and dumpling from scratch. One whole chicken in the pot makes the stock. MmmmMmm good. The one food I haven't had in a long, long time is hot polenta covered in meat sauce and sprinkled with parmesan cheese. That's an old Italian staple.
"Religion is what keeps the poor from murdering the rich."--Napoleon
Polenta is halfway to cornbread
Not sure why the Italians did not go all the way. Grits=polenta to me. Except in a restaurant. I could be a foodie.
Hey! my dear friends or soon-to-be's, JtC could use the donations to keep this site functioning for those of us who can still see the life preserver or flotsam in the water.
That sounds like RI Johnny Cakes
Rhode Islanders amuse themselves with arguing about whether johnny cakes have the "h" in the name or not, are made with milk or just boiling water, whether they are thin or thick and whether maple syrup is heresy or not. Woe be to the restaurant that serves them since they doom themselves to countless lectures by the self-appointed docents of the Johnnycake Authentication Council who roam freely about the southern part of the state.
IMO they MUST be made with the Kenyon white corn meal :
Johnny Cakes
" “Human kindness has never weakened the stamina or softened the fiber of a free people. A nation does not have to be cruel to be tough.” FDR "
It was a local diner, and the owners were from the south.
They listed them on the menu as corn bread. There were as thick and big around as a medium/large size pancake. I've had it baked. I'm not crazy about baked. Too thick and too dry. They were without gravy. Maybe that was why.
"Religion is what keeps the poor from murdering the rich."--Napoleon
Today's planned production: Berry Buckle via NYT
A butter batter with mixed summer berries. My freezer is full of blueberries, raspberries and cherries. So this will be a double-comfort food by goodness and by making room in my freezer for winter supplies. I am room-temping the eggs and butter.
[and Michele, I have never used unsalted butter at home, most low Na diets also reduce butter use for fat. Never tasted side-by-side butters.]
Hey! my dear friends or soon-to-be's, JtC could use the donations to keep this site functioning for those of us who can still see the life preserver or flotsam in the water.
Comfort food for me
are the following, all made by my mother who died in 1993: hot, homemade flour tortillas (with or without yeast) with butter; hot, homemade bread with butter; sopaipillas; warm, freshly made natillas; asparagas on toast with bechamel. She was not a great cook, in fact, she was a vegetarian in a meat world. She ate meat, but she couldn't cook it well, so...
I'd come home from school, and if dad wasn't eating at home for dinner, she'd say, "I just pulled that bread out of the oven. There's the butter." Or some version of one of the fooda mentioned above. There was other stuff, beans, rice (not rice as most would think, a soup), quelites, basically, it was fend for yourself night. Except for asparagus night. It was never made when dad was home. It was just for us girls - the true vegetarian coming out in my mom.
I can only make the natillas. Nothing else tastes quite the same as mom's version. I don't eat meat anymore, myself. Gave that up three years ago.
Now I get it, mom.
"The “jumpers” reminded us that one day we will all face only one choice and that is how we will die, not how we will live." Chris Hedges on 9/11
I laughed with a friend (now dead) about no spouse nights.
We could feed the kids popcorn some nights. Those were the days. Now I have visiting kid(s) who want me to whip up a grand meal with dietary requirements. I am not adapting fast enough for changing dietary demands. Good thing most of the year it's just me!
Hey! my dear friends or soon-to-be's, JtC could use the donations to keep this site functioning for those of us who can still see the life preserver or flotsam in the water.
RA, what is (are?) natillas?
I know I could Google it, but I'd rather hear it from someone who makes it (them). If that's rude, I'm sorry, just say the word, and I'll look it up.
Yum, fresh tortillas; and yum asparagus!
It's a soft pudding.
My Puerto Rican mother would call it crema.
Mundus vult decipi, ergo decipiatur.
Thank you
I know about flan, which I think is Mexican (or TexMex since that's what I was raised around), but never that.
Thanks!
A lot of Latin American countries have
Their versions of flan and they are all delicious. Spanish natillas are similar to creme brule. Mexican natillas are thickened with cornstarch. Are are delicious because sugar.
Mundus vult decipi, ergo decipiatur.
A wonderful vanilla pudding with
whipped egg whites folded in and with cinnamon sprinkled on top. Yummy!
"The “jumpers” reminded us that one day we will all face only one choice and that is how we will die, not how we will live." Chris Hedges on 9/11
Pot pie & Chicken N Dumplings mmmm
I have a seriously easy cheating way to make both, but the pot pie has caused me to, embarrassingly, have to give out the recipe.
2 frozen, deep dish pie crusts
3 or so, frozen chicken breasts, boiled & hand shredded (or cubed - my kids preferred shredded)
1 can cream of celery soup (originally was cream of chicken but in a pinch substituted celery & found it better)
1 large or 2 small cans mixed vegetables (Veg-All)
Thyme, dried (no idea how much)
Start to boil chicken - I add thyme to water but no salt because of salt in veggies and soup.
Separate frozen crusts. Put one in oven to prebake (250-300?). Pop other one out of pan upside down on wax paper to thaw.
*You can mix veggies, soup, and thyme now, but the smaller canned vegetables can get mooshed up that way.
Pull bottom crust from oven when golden brown. Set aside.
Pull cooked chicken from water. Let cool enough to handle. I put it in the freezer if I'm starving. Hand shred or cube when cool. BE SURE TO REMOVE THE NASTY GRISTLE BITS AND ANY FAT.
In large bowl, mix chicken, soup, and thyme well. Carefully add veggies, and mix.
Add mixed ingredients to cooked bottom crust. Top with raw crust, pinching off excess. Poke a happy face into crust to vent.
Bake at about 300-350 until crust golden brown. Might have to add foil around crust edge if your oven is like mine to keep edges from burning.
Cool on pie rack 10-15 minutes to the wails of hunger in the background because of the smell.
Now that my son doesn't eat meat, I make it without chicken.
That sounds great!
I am saving this one too. Thanks!
Marilyn
"Make dirt, not war." eyo
Thank you!
I have saved all of these recipes and look forward to trying them!
Marilyn
"Make dirt, not war." eyo
I make apple "pie" with no crust, since high cholesterol runs in
my family so I shouldn't do those fats. Just spray a pie tin or casserole dish with nonstick spray, fix apple pie filling, cover and bake. All the cinnamony apple deliciousness (and still warm, sweet and comforting) without all the fat!
Please check out Pet Vet Help, consider joining us to help pets, and follow me @ElenaCarlena on Twitter! Thank you.
There are recipes for pie crust made with oil,
and there are solid fats that don't contain cholesterol, if you miss having pie crust. (The 'Can't Believe' butter substitute tastes good for baking, if you were raised with butter in your crust, but my Mom used plain old Crisco.)
I don't really miss it, because I always liked the filling best
anyway. But I may check out the oil crusts out of curiosity. I was under the impression that without a solid fat, the crust won't have the correct flaky texture. Crisco and ICBINB do still have saturated fat, which raises cholesterol, although maybe less than butter. But liquid oils are usually unsaturated, so I could have those.
Please check out Pet Vet Help, consider joining us to help pets, and follow me @ElenaCarlena on Twitter! Thank you.
Butter makes the best pie crusts
... my grandmother always told me. Her secret was using white vinegar in place of water, which unfailingly made a light, flaky crust. Years later I read in a cookbook written by a chemist why the acid changed the structure of the crust as it baked. My grandmother knew that decades before.
Please help support caucus99percent!
Sharing my favorite comfort food recipes . . .
Inspired by the Real Food and Slow Food movements and my mom's cooking, this past year I have been trying to learn to cook things from scratch.
Mostly, I have sucked as a cook. My mom was fabulous - could have been a chef. I was the 3rd daughter, so my job was to do dishes and milk cows. Not cooking. Now though, much later in life I would like to prepare food that is delicious, and have succeeded with a few recipes.
I don't have my mom around anymore to help me, but have found that AllRecipes.com is a great resource. The best thing is what you get from the comments and reviews. I almost never make the recipe in it's original form. I am going to share my three favorites so far, and make a note of the changes I have made.
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/21392/boudreauxs-zydeco-stomp-gumbo/
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/218794/chicken-and-gnocchi-soup/
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/25202/beef-stroganoff-iii/
It was a discussion in Resilience that convinced me to try making my own noodles. Takes a little extra time but is so worth it! I put 2 cups flour, 3 eggs, and about 2 tablespoons of olive oil in my food processor. Mix it until it looks crumbly and then dabble in some water until it makes a ball. Knead on a floured surface. Wrap in plastic and put in the fridge. Then I use a pasta maker thing I bought at a garage sale to make the noodles. I have corn meal in a cake pan to mix them in as I go, so they don't stick together. Cook about 5 minutes in boiling salty water.
The last comfort recipe I want to share is for bread. I use a bread machine and had about 100 failures before I finally found this one on food.com. I have lost track of the original, but here is how I make rolls. I use the bread machine for mixing and kneading. Put ingredients in the bread machine in this order.
While the bread is mixing in the bread machine, check to see if you need to add a bit of flour. It should be forming a smooth ball and not look sticky. After the first rise in the bread machine I take it out. First I turn my oven on warm. Then I use lard to grease the pan and my hands and form the rolls by turning the dough inside out and pinching it at the bottom. I turn off the oven and put in the pan of rolls to rise. Once they are double, I turn on the oven to 325 degrees and set the timer for 20 minutes. You should watch them at the end in case they look done sooner. After you take them out, slather the tops with butter.
One of my daughter's friends called them "love buns."
One final note: I taste everything often to check the seasonings. My last step on all of the first three recipes is usually to add a bit of seasoned salt. I don't use Lawry's because it is too salty for me. Right now I use the Aldi's brand.
The rest of you who are experienced cooks know you should taste things! But I didn't really get that part until now. I was afraid to taste, for fear it may suck. Sigh . . . .
Marilyn
"Make dirt, not war." eyo
So glad you're rediscovering home cooking! It's one of life's
little pleasures, I think.
Yes, taste testing is crucial! For the most part, when in doubt I under-season. Then after flavors have time to blend I can taste test and add more. Lots easier than trying to take it out! Or suddenly needing a bunch more ingredients to dilute spices that are too strong.
Please check out Pet Vet Help, consider joining us to help pets, and follow me @ElenaCarlena on Twitter! Thank you.
Good advice
Thanks!!
Yes . . . I can see that it is hard to go back. I have made things too salty and really wasn't able to fix it.
Marilyn
"Make dirt, not war." eyo
I don't use salt - also for health reasons. With the recipes you
list here, you could probably do without. Peppers, rosemary, garlic, etc., all give lots of flavor. So use herbs and spices, go extremely lightly on the salt.
Please check out Pet Vet Help, consider joining us to help pets, and follow me @ElenaCarlena on Twitter! Thank you.
Thank you for the recipes, Michele
Although they are not comfort food for me in the strict sense of the word because I did not know about chicken and dumplings or pot pies until my mid-30's, I sure like them. Chicken pot pie is among my favorite meals ever. And biscuits and gravy, I love biscuits and gravy.
Mundus vult decipi, ergo decipiatur.
me too
I'm glad to see more restaurants offering it here in California as a breakfast option. Most are passable as good. I haven't found any that is GREAT yet. It's generally been a problem of so-so biscuits but good gravy or good biscuits but so-so gravy. Apparently, it's hard to get both just right.
easy peasy comfort food for me lately
1 box Trader Joe's Mac N' Cheese -- the good one, not the light version
2 hot dogs cut into chunks -- either Nathan's or Hebrew National
1 small can diced green chiles, liquid squeezed out (optional if you want to spice it up a bit) -- I got this idea from Trader Joe's Hatch Chile Mac N' Cheese but the Mac N' Cheese itself didn't seem as good as the red box version, plus there was just a smattering of green chiles and I wanted more punch so now I get the red box Mac N' Cheese and add my own green chiles. Just make sure you squeeze out as much liquid from the chiles as you can, otherwise the Mac N' Cheese will be a bit runny and loose.
___________________
Cut up two hot dogs (and add optional chiles) into a bowl large enough to add Mac N' Cheese.
Heat TJ's Mac N' Cheese in microwave for half the time as directed on box.
Scoop out thawed Mac N' Cheese into bowl with hot dogs and stir.
Heat combined dish for the remainder of the time directed on Mac N' Cheese box.
Stir and eat.
It's a quick dish to prepare without much fuss when I just want something quick and easy to eat. 5-6 minutes and you're done. You can even save time by cutting up the hot dogs while the Mac N' Cheese is thawing in the first half of cooking in the microwave.
My partner thinks it's gross. Some of you may think so, too.
It hits all the right notes for me when I've gone too long without eating. Carbs, fat and protein all in one dish to satisfy. Sometimes, if I've made chili I'll make a chili mac. Equally satisfying. I have yet to find a prepared chili that I like, canned or otherwise, to dump into my Mac N' Cheese so hot dogs are usually the default.
We could have an entire essay and a long thread about chili.
Just sayin'. And it's getting to be chili season again.
Hey! my dear friends or soon-to-be's, JtC could use the donations to keep this site functioning for those of us who can still see the life preserver or flotsam in the water.