Recipe #88 - Passo Gravy

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This recipe was one that my friend (who works at one of highest rated restaurants in Memphis) got me for Thanksgiving dinner. Now my mother wasn't too excited about having a ham gravy with the turkey, so she still made her turkey gravy as well. We ended up with two gravies and A LOT of leftovers... 

Saute ham to cook and render any fat.

Add onions, garlic, peppers and celery to ham. Sweat for 6-8 minutes. 

Deglaze the mixture with 5 quarts chicken stock, the veal stock and cream. Simmer for 20 or so minutes. 

Add ruex little at a time for thickening. I couldn't find any ruex, so I mixed flour with a little water and poured into the gravy through a very, very time holed strainer. (I don't usually like doing this in large amounts because the straight flour messes with the consistency of the flavors. But it's a great quick fix!)

Side note: Apologies for the lack of pictures in the last two steps. I guess that's what happens when I try to cook 6 recipes simultaneously! 

Seeing as we had too much food on the Thanksgiving table this year (as if that is ever possible), the Passo Gravy made an EXCELLENT topping for our biscuits the next morning for breakfast. Actually, it made so much that we had it several mornings in a row just trying to use it up. Not that that was a burden, the gravy was very rich and flavorful. It seemed to get better each day to. It's never bad to have a great ceipe like this in you back pocket. I will be making this one again!

Rating: 10

Time: 1 hour (ish)

Serves: 10

Ingredients: 

1 pound Passo ham (or what ever you can find that's not deli sliced ham), finely diced

1 1/2 large yellow onions, finely diced

1 1/2 green peppers, finely diced

3 celery sticks, finely diced

1 tablespoon chopped garlic

1/2 gallon chicken broth

1 cup veal stock (or beef stock if you can't find veal, bc I never can!)

1/2 quart 40% heavy whipping cream

Ruex medium brown (can use flour and water if you can't find it)

Recipe #74 - Stuffed Lamb Shoulder with Garlic Sauce

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This recipe is courtesy of Chuck Hughes from Iron Chef. I found it on FoodNetwork.com. Surprisingly enough, my mother has never made it before, so it was a learning experience for the both of us. On a side note, I know that there are a lot of pictures on this post, but I really didn't want to leave any of them out. Enjoy!

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Take out the lamb and rinse well.

Unroll and flatten the lamb as best as possible. Mine was very thick in a lot of areas, so I had to butterfly it to make it more flat.

For the stuffing:
In a bowl, mix carrots, leeks, celery leaves, parsley, chives, and chervil (if you could find it).

Stuff the lamb shoulder, spreading the herb stuffing over the surface, leaving a 1-inch border. Season the herb mixture with salt and pepper.

Roll the lamb up, tie it up with string at 1-inch intervals, brush it with olive oil and season the meat with salt and pepper.

With a sharp knife, make small incisions in the meat and insert the halved garlic cloves.

In a large oven-proof heavy skillet, heat canola oil on high. Add the lamb leg (or shoulder) to the skillet and sear on all faces until browned, about 10 minutes.

Add the veal (or beef) stock and garlic head. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat and put into the oven for about 2 hours for medium, or using a meat thermometer until it reads 165 degrees F for medium or 170 degrees F for well done.

Remove the lamb leg from the skillet and keep warm. 

Mash the roasted garlic in the sauce in the skillet. Strain over a medium-size stockpot and cook until reduced by half. Whisk in the butter. Season with salt and pepper and keep warm.

Slice the lamb leg.

Serve with the roasted garlic sauce and Recipe #75 - Spicy Yams. 

Rating: 9

Time: 3 hours 5 minutes

Serves: 6 to 8

Ingredients:

Stuffing

1 carrot, finely chopped

1 leek, finely chopped

1/2 celery root, peeled and finely chopped

1/4 cup celery leaves, chopped

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley 

2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives

2 tablespoons chopped fresh chervil

3 cloves garlic, cut in half

Sauce

4 cups veal stock (or substitute for beef stock if you can't find veal)

1 head garlic, cut in half

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons butter, for finishing sauce 

Lamb

1 (4-pound) boneless lamb shoulder (or leg like I used, which is a little more expensive, but worth it).

Canola oil, for searing lamb

Special equipement: butcher's string (which the butcher added for me upon request when I bought the lamb).

Recipe #70 - Better Than Carol's Meatloaf (aka Chris' meatloaf)

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This is my father's personal meatloaf recipe. He has always said that he can cook three things better than my Mom: chili, spaghetti sauce (aka meat gravy) and meatloaf. So, of course, I had to include this recipe in my blog (no matter how much Mom hates the name of it).

Lightly toast bread in the oven. Let cool, then crumble into small pieces. Four slices should make about 3 cups.

Preheat over to 350 degrees F. Mix meat with eggs. Add onion, bell pepper, all seasoning and bread crumbs. Mix until thoroughly combined.

Add half the tin of soup and mix everything well. Turn into greased loaf pan or glass casserole dish and pour remaining soup over the top, smoothing it evenly over all.

Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Serve over mashed potatoes (preferably recipe #69) and asparagus.

Rating: 9
Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Serves: 6
Ingredients:
(Note: Pictures above show the recipe doubled, ingredients listed below is the actual recipe singled.)
1 1/2 cup soft bread crumbs
1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
2 beaten eggs
1 medium-large onion, finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
1/8 teaspoon ground sage
1/2 teaspoon ground thyme
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons snipped parsley, finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg (secret ingredient)
1 green pepper, chopped
1 can Campbell's condensed tomato soup

Recipe #69 - Grammy's Mashed Potatoes

Every Thanksgiving my Grammy Ann made these garlic mashed potatoes. Everyone, especially my sister Teresa, looked forward to eating the garlic, cheesy mess of awesomeness. In an attempt to make these even more amazing, I made 3 changes to the original recipe:

1. I used real potatoes instead of the potato flakes.
2. I substituted actual garlic cloves rather than the garlic powder. 
3. Instead of Cheddar cheese, I used extra sharp white cheddar cheese

Cut potatoes into 1-inch cubes and place into a large pot of water. Bring to boil. Cook for about 20 minutes, or until potatoes brake apart easily when forked. 

Drain water. Add the butter, sour cream, cream cheese, cheddar cheese, garlic and salt. Mash together well. Pepper to taste.

I forgot to take an end picture, but I made it with the "Recipe #70 - Better Than Carol's Meatloaf" so I'll just post this picture twice. 

But they turned out amazing! It was surprisingly spicy. I guess the mixture of the fresh garlic and sharp cheese gave it an unexpected kick, but very, very good. I would strongly recommend this recipe to everyone.

Rating: 10
Time: 1 hour
Serves: 8
Ingredients:
5 pounds rustic potatoes (not red)
4 tablespoons butter
1/4 sour cream
1 teaspoon salt
8 ounces cream credit
4 extra sharp white cheddar cheese
5 cloves of garlic
Freshly cracked black pepper to taste

Recipe #52 - Garlic Roasted Fingerling Potatoes

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I found this one in a Simply Southern magazine I bought (for $7.99! Ridic, I know). But I have been getting tired of filtering through all the recipes online. It's literally exhausting. 

Preheat oven to 400º. It said to line a large, shallow roasting pan with aluminum foil, but I don't like cooking with aluminum foil. So I used wax paper to line the cookie sheet. 

In a large bowl, combine olive oil, parsley, salt, garlic powder, and pepper, whisking to combine well. Add potatoes, tossing to coat. 

Arrange potatoes in an even layer in prepared pan. Bake for 1 hour, or until potatoes are lightly browned and tender, stirring occasionally.

And they're finished. These were amazing. I served them with steak and a Caesar salad. I think that I could have left them in a little longer to make them a little crisper. Other than that. Perfect. 

Rating: 10

Time: 1 hour 15 minutes; Prep time: 15 mins, Cook time: 1 hour

Serves: 8 -10

Ingredients:

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1 1/4 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

5 pounds small fingerling potatoes, halved lengthwise