Crab Stuffed Twice Baked Potatoes

Posted on January 23, 2012 by Andrea

There’s been a lot of experimenting going on with crab here at the HQ. Both Scott and I adore crab and while crab cakes are tasty, sometimes you need a little more out of life.

I’ve been hesitant in the past to mess around with crab because it is a pricey protein option and the idea of messing something up didn’t sit well with me.

However I reached a point where I realized that if we don’t experiment in the kitchen we won’t grow as cooks. And that doesn’t do anyone any good. So in the name of Embracing Cooking, I decided to start experimenting more with crab.

And that lead to twice baked potatoes!

Andrea’s Crab Stuffed Twice Baked Potatoes

2 Large Russet Baking Potatoes, scrubbed

8oz Crab Claw Meat, drained, rinsed, and checked for shell

1/2 Red Pepper, finely chopped

1/2 Green Pepper, finely chopped

1/4 Red Onion, finely chopped

4 Slices of crispy bacon, chopped

Keep It Simple: Sauteed Chard with Rice

Posted on January 19, 2012 by Andrea

The other day I was craving something warm for lunch. I enjoy having big salads and fresh fruit at lunch but sometimes I want something warm. Especially in the colder months! It’s hard to cozy up to a nice big salad when it’s 17 degrees outside.

We had some leftover rice from the previous night’s dinner and I had some chard that needed used up. Combine the two and you’ve got a great lunch!

It was super quick to put together. I sauteed up:

1/4 Onion, sliced
1/4 Green Pepper, sliced
Once large bunch of chard, chopped
Shredded carrots
A few broccoli florets

Sauteed in some olive oil with a pinch of salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, chili powder, and garlic powder.

Added in the leftover rice at the end and cooked just long enough for it to heat through.

Spooned in bowls, topped with a bit of shredded cheddar and a few dashes of hot sauce.

Country Ribs with Sauerkraut

Posted on January 17, 2012 by Andrea

Where I come from, pork and sauerkraut is what you eat on New Year’s Day to welcome in the New Year and hope that it brings you some luck.

Homes all over will smell like kraut that day and grocery stores have sales on the stuff starting a few weeks before New Year’s.

It’s just not New Year’s if you don’t have pork and kraut. Scott embraced this tradition with open arms. Not really surprising since his previous tradition was boiled cabbage and ketchup.

Um.

I would wager a guess and say that this dish is probably a little tastier than that.

It’s also made with beer, onions, and peppers. Plus being tossed in a crockpot. Winner!

Andrea’s Country Ribs With Sauerkraut

4-6, Country Style Pork Ribs

1 32oz Jar of Sauerkraut, drained (but not rinsed!)

1 Onion, sliced thin

1 Green pepper, sliced thin

1TBSP Brown Sugar

1C Dark Lager Style Beer (I used Great Lakes Eliot Ness)

Big Pinch Red Pepper Flakes

Keep It Simple

Posted on January 12, 2012 by Andrea

For Christmas 2011, one of the gifts that Scott gave me was a large cast iron skillet. I’ve talked about my love for cast iron before and I was not so subtly hinting that I would really enjoy a larger skillet.

I have a 9in cast iron skillet which is perfect for some things but not perfect for everything. A larger one would allow me a little more variety of uses.

Oh Christmas my wish came true and I was gifted with a 12 inch cast iron skillet. I even got a little handle holder and trivet for it as well!

Every year for Christmas Dinner, Scott and I enjoy a standing rib roast. It’s our once a year splurge and so worth every penny!

This year, I put my brand new cast iron skillet to work right away by using it for Christmas Dinner. It worked out perfectly!

It wasn’t long before I used it again to roast some veggies. Scott was having leftovers and I was in the mood for some veggie action. I chopped up some:

Roasted Veggie Dip

Posted on January 5, 2012 by Andrea

Dip was something that my family had at every party and every kind of gathering. We are a dip loving folk and when I started dating Scott, he discovered he is a dip loving person as well.

Then dips kind of got pushed aside for a while here at the HQ, and now I’m looking to bring them back. I’ve been recreating a lot of my favorite flavors of dip and using Greek yogurt instead of sour cream.

So far I’ve been successful! The first dip I made was a roasted veggie dip that’s creamy, full of dill punch, and roasted veggie goodness.

Andrea’s Roasted Veggie Dip

1/4 Small or Medium Red Onion, chunked

1/2 Red or Green Pepper, chunked

1 Small or Medium Size Carrot, peeled and chunked

2 Cloves of Garlic

1 1/2C Greek Yogurt

1 1/2TBSP Dried Dill

Pinch of Cayenne Pepper

Salt and Ground Black Pepper

1/4tsp Garlic Powder

1/4tsp Onion Powder

Sweet Potato Pie

Posted on December 8, 2011 by Andrea

Pumpkin pie is one of those items that I stopped making for our Thanksgiving dinner a few years back. Don’t get me wrong, I love pumpkin!

But we have it all the time and I use it in a lot of different applications. Sweet potatoes were something that was completely traditional for Scott to have at Thanksgiving so we couldn’t skip them.

What to do? They had to be part of the menu yet as a side dish would put us way over the edge.

I decided to remove them as a side dish and return them as dessert.

This has worked out very well! We’re still getting sweet potatoes for the big day but not as a sticky gross mess (sorry but that whole marshmallow thing needs to go!). Instead it’s served up in pie form!

And if you’ve got folks who claim they hate pumpkin (GASP!) you can serve them this instead!

This year I experimented a little and added a crumb topping and some good rum into the mix.

Leftover Idea: Turkey Nachos

Posted on December 5, 2011 by Andrea

Everyone else is starting to post holiday cookie recipes and I’m over here still talking turkey.

This is my last leftover post and then you are free to put Thanksgiving behind you. Or if you’re like us, you’ve got leftovers in the freezer and might be pulling them out soon to make this.

It was two days after Thanksgiving and I wanted to use up a little bit more turkey before it was wrapped up and placed in the freezer. I thought of making sandwichs and I knew soup was right out.

I wanted something fun and a little different. Plus it was a game night and game foods started running through my head.

I finally settled on nachos!

Turkey nachos, easy, different, and fun to eat.

Andrea’s Turkey Nachos

Leftover Turkey, cubed or shredded

1/2 Red Onion, chopped

1 Green Pepper, chopped

1 Carrot, shredded

1 Can Pinto Beans, drained and rinsed

1C Frozen Corn

Leftover Idea: Potato Pancakes

Posted on November 30, 2011 by Andrea

Growing up, we ate these all the time. Almost every time we had mashed potatoes, my mom would make potato pancakes with the leftovers. This was what I knew potato pancakes to be.

It wasn’t until I moved away to college in central PA that I learned most people call latkes potato pancakes. Imagine my surprise when I ordered potato pancakes at a restaurant once and was served up latkes instead of what I know as potato pancakes.

No worries, I adore latkes because I will eat potato just about any way you want to serve it to me!

I honestly am not sure how my mom made her potato pancakes but this is how I do mine.

Amounts on ingredients will vary depending on how much leftover mashed potatoes you have. If there’s a lot, you will probably need to up the flour and egg amounts.

Andrea’s Potato Pancakes

Leftover Mashed Potatoes

3TBSP White Whole Wheat Flour

Tip: Soaking Potatoes

Posted on November 28, 2011 by Andrea

I’m not sure if you’re aware of this but I am a gigantic fan of Triple D. You know, the Food Network show with Guy Fieri, Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives.

Every week I’ll watch the mini-marathons on Monday and Friday evenings. And so help you if you try to stand in my way and prevent me from watching the show because I will take you out.

I even have an app on my phone (TV Diner, awesome, you should totally get it) to help me find spots featured on the show.

It’s a great way to introduce local and independent restaurants to folks plus I learn a lot of great tips. On one episode I saw, a diner soaks their fries in water for 24 hours before frying them. It helps them achieve a really crispy fry.

You don’t say?

I’ve tried it and it does help make for a crispy fry, and I make my fries in the oven.

Spicy Shrimp and Crab Corn Chowder

Posted on November 10, 2011 by Andrea

Scott and I were out to dinner recently and he ordered some corn and jalapeno soup as a starter. The soup flavor was great, there was bacon in it providing a smokey background and the corn stood out. As I always do, I started trying to figure out how I could make this at home.

I had some crab that needed to be used and it occured to me that I could make a sort of crab and corn chowder. I pondered over this for a few days until I had a set idea in mind. Then I put it into motion and came up with a chowder that just might be one of my favorites.

Andrea’s Spicy Shrimp and Crab Corn Chowder

8oz Lump Crab Meat

2C, Frozen cooked shrimp (if using fresh, about 10-12 peeled and deviened shrimp)

1/2 Large Onion, chopped

2 Carrots, peeled and chopped

2 Ribs Celery, chopped (if you have some of the leafy hearts, use those)