PIE

FIRST: Begin with an excellent homemade crust

Ingredients

• 2½ cups of flour (all-purpose)
• ½ cup cold shortening (I use the Crisco sticks, half a stick per crust)
• ¾ cup cold butter (I use salted butter, 1½ sticks)
• ½ tbs. kosher salt
• 1½ tbs. sugar
• 6 tbs. of ice water, add 1 or 2 more if necessary

 

 

Instructions

1. Pulse the dry ingredients in a food processor, to mix.
2. Add the cold shortening in pieces. Pulse a few times.
3. Cut the butter in chunks and add to mixture. Pulse until the butter chunks are about the size of pencil eraser.
4. Add the water a little bit at a time and lightly kneed into dough. (6 tbs. should be enough, only add more if crust is too crumbly to work into a ball)
5. Split the dough in half, roll in balls and wrap in plastic wrap.
6. Chill in the refrigerator at least 45 minutes.
7. Roll out pie crust on floured surface.
   

 Hi,
It is almost berry and fruit pie time.  Will give you the recipe for all the best pies....and you can freeze them.  Haul them out for Thanksgiving/Christmas.  They thaw well also.  Have a berry/fruit picking time with your girl friends, freeze the berries/fruit, have a "pie baking" party at a later date and enjoy.  If you don't like picking fruit, buy a box of already-picked-fruit....but hold a "pie baking" party.  The stress-relief is unbelievable.  It will save you a ton of money in therapy from your stressful job.
Pie making, next on the blog.

Second on the agenda:

Cheesy Chicken with Bacon and Avocado Quesadillas

Rating: 5

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients:

• 8 medium flour tortilla shells
• 3 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless, cut into bite-sized pieces
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup green onions, diced
• 8 strips of bacon, cooked & crumbled
• 1 to 2 avocado diced
• mild cheddar cheese shredded
• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 limes

Instructions:

1. First thing first, cook the bacon, drain it well and crumble it. To reduce some of the fat, place it on paper towels. Don't discard all of the bacon drippings, keep about a tsp of it and add the diced green onions to it and cook about 3 minutes until softened.
2. Add the chicken, make sure it's cut into bite size pieces and keep sauteing for about 5 min until chicken is thoroughly cooked, turning over the chicken pieces, to make sure all sides are cooked. Add the salt and pepper and stir.
3. Remove the chicken mixture from the pan into a plate.
4. In a clean skillet, add a bit of the butter and melt. Add a tortilla and move it around until it's buttery. Now the fun stuff begins. Add a little bit of the chicken and onion mixture to half of the tortilla, a bit of bacon, a bit of avocado and a bit or lots of cheese, depending on how you like it.
5. Now flip the other side of the tortilla over and pat it down. Now flip it over and cook on the other side until the other side is nice and golden. It looks amazing. Cut this into two pieces using a pizza cutter. Repeat these steps with the remaining tortillas. Serve this with some sour cream on the side and squeeze some limes over the quesadillas and you've got yourself an awesome meal.

A bit of comedy first!!  My cats are just like this cartoon!!

Animals here at the ranch, big or small, are quite funny!!

A very fun and great recipe!!!

Quickie Posole

Posole is a Mexican dish, New Mexico subspecies. It’s a chile or stew with hominy. Most of the recipes I’ve seen are in a red base, but I like it in a chile verde base. So get:

One 29 ½ ounce can of Juanita’s* chile verde.

One 4 ounce can of diced chile peppers.

One 15 ounce can of hominy, drained.

Toss in a pan, heat, and consume.

*Juanita can really cook. It’s a brand of Mexican comidas that I usually find at Safeway. Her chile verde is better than anything I‘ve made from scratch. Besides, you don’t have to mess around peeling tomatillos and stuff.

Hi my viewers at the Ranch,

Dreamed up a WONDERFUL recipe for pizza!!!  The garden is bringing forth the most wonderful tomatoes!!  With a little effort, you will never dial for take-out again.  First of all, make Rachael Ray's pizza dough recipe, but with a twist.  Have an abundance of tomatoes?  Freeze them, they freeze well.  

Dough:

3/4 cup lukewarm water

1 Tablespoon active dry yeast

1 teaspoon sugar

2 1/4 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

3 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Directions:

1.  In a small bowl, stir together the lukewarm water, yeast and sugar.  Let stand until foamy 3-5 minutes.

2.  Instead of using a stand mixer, I simplified things.  I whisked together the flour and salt, whisked the yeast and olive oil, until shaggy.  I combined the two and put into my bread-maker on the "dough" setting.  It kneaded the dough for about 6 minutes, then I covered it with plastic wrap and let it double in size (it took about an hour).

3.  Transfer the dough to a greased, well seasoned cast iron skillet.  (I bought the skillet used....needless to say, it is VERY well seasoned.)

If you choose a whole-wheat dough, use 3/4 cup whole wheat flour and 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour.

Now time to make your pizza.  Depending on family preference, you can add any toppings you prefer.  Italian sausage, fresh fish, pepperoni, olives, peppers etc....the sky is the limit.  I chose pepperoni to start....but don't add them yet!!

Ingredients:

Skillet Pizza Dough

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 clove garlic, smashed and peeled

(or spice world chopped garlic 1 tsp.)

2 cups grape tomatoes, quartered

Salt and black pepper (to taste)

2 1/2 cups mixed cheese, shredded (I used cheddar, pepper jack and provolone because that is what we had)

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

Directions:

1.  Press the pizza dough into a greased, well seasoned cast iron skillet.

2.  Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  In another non-stick skillet, heat 1 Tablespoon olive oil over medium heat.  Add the garlic and cook, stirring for 5 minutes until the garlic is toasted.  

3.  Add the tomatoes, season with the salt and pepper and cook, stirring for a minute more.  Remove from the heat and let cool for 2 minutes.

4.  Drizzle the remaining 1 Tablespoon olive oil over the dough.  Spoon the tomato mixture on top.  Leave a 1/2 inch border.

(tomato, garlic and olive oil spooned on)

5.  Bake until golden and bubbly (about 25 minutes).

 (pepperoni added)

(baked 25 minutes before cheese added)

6.  Sprinkle the cheese, crushed red pepper and oregano on top and bake until the cheese is melted and a golden brown.  (around 5 minutes)  Let cool in the pan for 20 minutes before serving.

(final product)

7.  WOW

My husband also said it was excellent re-heated the next day.  Can make this gluten and meat free also.  Love Love.