07.20.08
Posted in spagetti
at 12:00 am
This is a recipe I have developed over a number of years. This is the only spaghetti sauce my family will request! Very easy to make. I hope your family enjoys it as much as mine does! Even Dylan a friends son LOVES this sauce.
Patti’s Spaghetti Sauce
1 1/2 lbs ground beef
1 package Italian Sausage Links cut into slices
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil light
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced (to taste)
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon basil
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
salt to taste
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
2 (16 ounce) cans tomato sauce
1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes or 3 medium fresh tomatoes peeled and diced
8 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced and sauteed in butter (optional)
Brown the ground beef,Italian Sausage, drain, add the onion and garlic in olive oil with bay leaves, oregano, basil, Italian Seasoning, salt and pepper.
Add tomato paste, tomato sauce and diced tomatoes.
Stir well and bring to a simmer over medium heat.
Cover and simmer for 1 1/2 hours. Add the mushrooms during the last five minutes of cooking.
Serve with over any kind of pasta your family enjoys. serve with a big salad and lots of garlic bread and Parmesan cheese.
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07.19.08
Posted in Southern Specialities
at 12:00 am
This is a great recipe that I received from a friend many years ago. It is for a truly delicious BBQ. I make this whenever I get a true desire to jump in the car and drive home. All the while I know I can not do that but the desire is still there to go home. I know how E.T. felt when all he wanted to do was go home.
So Natasha this ones also for you.
The Best North Carolina BBQ:
2 each pork shoulder roast 6 pounds each, bone in, rind removed
12 cloves garlic peeled minced
3 cups apple cider vinegar
Sauce
12each garlic cloves minced
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4cup broth reserved pork-simmering liquid
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon black pepper freshly ground
3 1/2 cups cider vinegar
Final Sauce
1 1/2 cups sauce reserved sauce from above recipe
1/4 cup broth reserved pork-simmering liquid
1/3 cup barbecue sauce smoky-flavored
salt to taste
Hot pepper sauce for use at the table
Place the roasts, the garlic, and the 3 cups of vinegar in a very large deep stockpot or flameproof casserole.
(If necessary, divide the roasts, garlic, and vinegar evenly between 2 smaller pots.)
Add water to cover by at least 2 inches and bring to a boil over high heat.
Reduce the heat, partially cover, and simmer for 2-1/2 hours, adding boiling water as needed to keep the meat covered. Or cook in a crock pot for 6 – 8 hours on low.
Remove the roasts from the pot, reserving the cooked garlic cloves and 1/2 cup of the pork-simmering liquid.
Place the roasts on a rack in a large roasting pan.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Meanwhile, prepare the Sauce.
In a large bowl, mash the cooked garlic to a paste with the salt.
Add 1/4 cup of the reserved pork-simmering liquid, the sugar, cayenne, pepper and 3-1/2 cups of vinegar and mix well.
Remove 1-1/2 cups of the Sauce and set it aside to be used later in the Mixing Sauce.
Use the remaining Sauce to baste the pork as it roasts.
With basting brush( I use the kind that look like a string mop)or paintbrush, baste the roasts with Sauce and place them in a 350 degree oven.
Immediately reduce the heat to 300 degrees.
Cook for 2 hours, basting every 15 minutes and turning once or twice.
Use all of the Sauce (but none of the reserved Sauce).
Remove the pork from the oven and transfer to a large chopping board.
Spoon or pour all fat out of the roasting pan and set the pan aside.
Do not wash it.
The pork roasts should be a little crusty on the outside and very tender and moist inside.
Discard the bones and remove any fat.
With a heavy large knife, chop/shred the lean pork .
Transfer to a large bowl and cover loosely to keep warm and moist.
Proceed immediately to make the Final Sauce.
Place the empty, unwashed roasting pan over very low heat and add 1/2 cup of the reserved Sauce.
Scrape the pan to loosen caramelized juices and browned bits, stirring quickly and constantly so none of the flavorful liquid evaporates.
Pour every last drop of this sauce;essence of barbecue sauce; back into the remaining reserved Sauce.
Add the 1/4 cup of reserved pork-simmering liquid.
Stir in the smoky-flavored barbecue sauce and season with salt to taste.
This Final Sauce will mellow considerably as the barbecue ripens. Add half the Final Sauce to the chopped pork and mix well.
Gradually blend in the remaining Final Sauce.
Let cool, cover tightly, and refrigerate for at least 12 hours to let the flavor develop.
(Chopped barbecue can be prepared in advance and refrigerated for up to 2 days, or frozen for up to 2 months.)
Let return to room temperature before reheating, covered, in a microwave oven or 300 degree conventional oven or very slowly in a pot on the stove or even in a crock pot set on low for 4 hours. Just remember to stir several times.
Adjust the seasonings as necessary and serve hot.
Cole slaw is traditional with chopped barbecue, and hot-pepper sauce is a must. Along with plenty of Sweet Tea (recipe posted earlier).
Hope ya’ll enjoy this dish.
Hope to see ya’ll soon.
Cat I miss you.
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07.18.08
Posted in Southern Specialities
at 11:53 am
Hi There
I am moving to North Carolina at the end of this year and Im a traditional New Zealand gal. Are there any suggestions you can give me on southern cooking or the food in the south? I will have a good look at your website and see what I can get from that but if you have any ideas, tips etc please let me know. Thanks, Natasha
Natasha,
What part of North Carolina? Food in the south is made with a lot of love. It is made with care and lots of bacon fat. I have switched to using Olive oil in place of the bacon fat in several recipes but in a few you really need the bacon flavor. Also Barbecue is a main stay in the south. I will try an put up a few recipes that I have for Carolina Barbecue for you. I already have a few up. Also barbecue is regional so each area of the South has their own special way of preparing it. Also find a good country restaurant in the area you will be living and try several different dishes. The vegetables down south are fantastic. I stay away from chitterlings though. They are just not my thing but I will post a recipe for them also. I have not eatten them since I was a child.
I will answer what ever questions you have about the South. Just email them to me? I hope you enjoy your time in the South. Also try to visit a Waffle House while in North Carolina. They are a restaurant that serves waffles of course but they also serve country ham,smothered hash browns,and several other southern dishes. And of course they have “Sweet Tea” which is a great southern drink. The recipe for Sweet Tea is on the web sight.
Patti
This recipe is for Natasha in New Zealand . I hope you enjoy your stay in North Carolina when you get here. Let me know what you think of the South. I love it down home and I sure hope you do also.
“Chitterlings or pork intestines are a favorite among Southern families. Traditionally, they are prepared during the holiday season, but deep freezing makes them available year round. Be sure to wash any surface and your hands thoroughly with a bleach solution to avoid contamination while handling raw chitterlings. Chitterlings are said to be very good,but I have not eaten them since I was a child. Be certain to pass the vinegar and hot sauce. Enjoy!!!”
SOUTHERN CHITTERLINGS:
10 pounds frozen cleaned chitterlings, thawed
1 onion, roughly chopped
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon minced garlic
Soak the chitterlings in cold water throughout the cleaning stage. Each chitterlings should be examined and run under cold water, all foreign materials should be removed and discarded. Chitterlings should retain some fat, so be careful to leave some on. After each chitterlings has been cleaned, soak in two cold water baths for a few minutes. The second water should be clearer. If not, soak in one more bath.
Place the chitterlings in a 6 quart pot, and fill with cold water. Bring to a boil, then add the onion and season with salt, garlic and red pepper flakes. Be sure the water is at a full boil before adding seasonings, or the chitterlings could become tough. Continue to simmer for 3 to 4 hours, depending on how tender you like them. Serve with spaghetti or turnip greens. Be certain to pass the vinegar and hot sauce.
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