Red Chowder

OK, I understand that this should be called Manhattan Clam Chowder but I can't bring myself to call it that and like it at the same time.  Because R.I. Clam chowder is often referred to as "Grey Chowder" I feel it appropriate to use the name Red Chowder.  My traditions have me loving the New England variety and my mom is famous for her corn chowder, however, Steve would prefer the non-dairy variety so this is it.  This was a staple on the Johnson & Wales cafeteria menus and am sure I have a copy of the recipe (makes 400 servings) in my freshman text books.

3# Little neck clams
2 bottles (8 oz) Bar Harbor clam juice
4 slices bacon 1/4" slice
1 Large onion diced
2 stalks celery diced
2 carrots peeled and diced
1/2 green pepper diced
3 cloves garlic diced
4 sprigs fresh thyme
2 tsp oregano
1 tsp pepper flakes
1 cup chicken stock
1 1/2# Yukon gold potatoes diced
1 28oz can San Marzanno tomatoes
1 Tbsp parsley chopped
salt & pepper

Bring 2 cups of water to a boil, add clams, cover and cook about 5 minutes until clams just open (more time for larger clams).  Remove clams and strain and reserve cooking liquid (liquor).  Add water to liquor to make 4 cups, set aside.  Remove clams from shell (discard any clams that did not open).  Chop clams to 1/4".  Set aside.

In a large soup pot render bacon until crisp.  Add onion, carrot, celery, and pepper.  Saute on low for about 10 minutes until vegetables are soft (do not brown).  Add garlic, thyme, oregano, and pepper flakes - saute 2 more minutes.

Add potatoes, reserved liquor, and chicken stock to soup pot.  Cover, bring to boil and cook for 20 minutes.  Break up canned tomatoes with your hands and add to soup pot.  Continue cooking for 15 minutes.  Remove from heat and add reserved clams and parsley.  Season to taste with salt & pepper.  Let sit for 1 hour for flavors to develop.  Reheat gently (do not boil as you will toughen clams).  Serve with oyster crackers or I prefer Vt Common crackers ( http://www.vermontcommonfoods.com/commoncrackers.html )

This Chowder also freezes very well.

Low-Fat Scalloped Potatoes

2 T Butter
3 lbs Yukon gold potatoes - peeled & sliced thin
2 T Flour
1 cup 1% milk
1 cup whole milk
salt & pepper
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 cup grated gruyere cheese

Preheat oven to 350.   Lightly butter 3 quart casserole.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add potatoes and cook until tender, 10-12 minutes.  Drain potatoes and return to pot.
Meanwhile, melt 2 T butter in a saucepan over medium heat.  Stir in flour and cook until just bubbly.  Gradually wisk in both milks, wisk constantly until thinkened, about 3 minutes.  Take off heat and season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg.  Pour sauce over potatoes.
Transfer to prepared baking dish and sprinkle with gruyere cheese.  Bake until heated through, about 10 minutes.  Switch oven to broiler and broil until browned, about 5 minutes.  Let rest 10 minutes before serving.

-Courtesy of Food Network Magazine - December 2010

Hungarian Rakott Krumpli

This is a traditional Hungarian dish that I learned from Steve's family. He always asks for it for his birthday meal. His mother dismisses it as "too simple". Simplicity is probably what makes it such a treat. Being a culinarian, i have tried to embellish this dish only to be told "keep it simple".

4 # small red potatoes
6 large eggs
1/2 # kolbash (Hungarian sausage...I use a hard thin salami), sliced 1/4"
1 T butter
2 T bread crumbs
1 cup sour cream
1 egg, beaten
Hungarian paprika, pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Place potatoes and eggs in stock pot. Fill with cold water. Bring to boil. Boil for 5 minutes. Strain.

Butter a large casserole dish. Coat with bread crumbs.

Mix sour cream with beaten egg. This will be the custard. Set aside.

Slice potatoes 1/4 inch thick. Line casserole with a layer (1/3) of potato slices. Using egg slicer, slice eggs. Top potatoes with 3 sliced eggs. Top with 1/2 sliced sausage. Spoon 1/3 custard over casserole.

Repeat and finish with layer of potatoes and custard.

Sprinkle with a bit of black pepper and paprika.

Bake, uncovered for 40 minutes until heated through.

This makes a great main course with a salad or can be used as a side dish. Also works well for pot luck dinners.

Classic Brownies

I credit Cook's Illustrated magazine for this brownie recipe. The better the chocolate, the better the brownie. Be sure to use cake flour as opposed to all purpose flour, this produces a very tender brownie.

1 cup (4 oz) pecans or walnuts, rough chopped (optional)
1 1/4 cups (5oz) cake flour
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 tsp baking powder

6 oz unsweetened chocolate, chopped fine

12 Tbs (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into six 1-inch pieces

2 1/4 cups (15 3/4 oz) sugar

4 large eggs

1 Tbs vanilla extract

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat oven to 325F. Cut 18-inch length foil and fold lengthwise to 8-inch width. Fit foil into length of 13 by 9-inch baking dish, pushing it into the corners and up the sides of pan; allow excess to overhang pan edges. Cut 14-inch length foil and fit into width of baking pan in the same manner, perpendicular to the first sheet. spray foil lined pan with nonstick cooking spray.

2. If using nuts, spread nuts evenly on rimmed baking sheet and toast in oven until fragrant, 5 to 8 minutes. Set aside to cool.

3. Whisk to combine flour, salt, and baking powder in a medium bowl; set aside.

4. Melt chocolate and butter in a large heatproof bowl set over saucepan of almost simmering water, stirring occasionally, until smooth. When chocolate mixture is completely smooth, remove bowl from saucepan and gradually whisk in sugar. Add eggs one at a time, whisking after each addition until thoroughly combined. Whisk in vanilla. Add flour mixture in three additions, folding with rubber scraper until batter is completely smooth and homogeneous.

5. Transfer batter to prepared pan; using rubber scraper, spread batter into corners of pan and smooth surface. sprinkle toasted nuts evenly over batter and bake until toothpick inserted into center of brownies comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, 30 to 35 minutes. Cool on wire rack to room temperature, about 2 hours, then remove brownies from pan lifting foil overhang. Cut brownies into 2 inch squares and serve.

Roasted Tomato and Black Bean Soup

I found this recipe in Readers Digest (11/2009). It is from Ellie Krieger's So Easy: Luscious, Healthy Recipes for Every Meal of the Week.

7 medium tomatoes, quartered
1 large onion, cut into large pieces
3 garlic cloves peeled
2 Tbs olive oil
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
5 cups low sodium chicken broth
2 (15.5 oz) cans black beans (low sodium)
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp Tabasco Sauce
1/4 cup non fat sour cream
1/4 cup chopped cilantro

Preheat oven to 375F. Toss tomatoes, onion, and garlic with oil, 1/2t salt, 1/4t pepper in a large bowl, then transfer to baking sheet. Roast until garlic has softened, onions have browned, and tomatoes have collapsed, 40 minutes, stirring once after 20 minutes.

Transfer roasted vegetable mixture to a 4 quart saucepan. Add broth, beans, cumin, chili powder, and remaining s&p. Bring to boil, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes.

Remove from heat and blend until smooth with immersion blender. Stir in hot sauce. Garnish each serving with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of cilantro.

Pulled Pork on the Gas Grill

The Patriots season opener was yesterday and I wanted to make some tailgate style food to watch the game with but didn't want to heat up the house. I thought I would try to do a pulled pork on the grill and it came out great. The trick is to cook with low indirect heat for a long time (about 3 hours) and to properly season the meat.

I use a Boston Butt for this dish (it's from the shoulder). Either bone in or boneless is fine.

3-4 pound Boston Butt Roast

Spice Rub:

2 tablespoons Paprika
2 tablespoons Dark Brown Sugar

1 teaspoon Garlic Powder

1 teaspoon Dry Mustard

1 teaspoon Onion Powder

2 teaspoons Kosher Salt

1 teaspoon Chili Powder

Mix the spice rub ingredients and rub onto all surfaces of the roast. Let the roast sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. Meanwhile prepare the grill for indirect cooking. Basically light just one burner and close the lid to preheat the grill. Place the roast on the grill making sure it not over the flame and close the lid. The temperature of the grill with the lid closed should be about 275 - 300. Let the pork cook for about 1 1/2 hours. Make sure you monitor to make sure that the dripping fat does not flare up. If you are doing it right there should be very little smoke. After the initial cooking transfer the roast to a foil pan, baste with vinegar based BBQ sauce (recipe follows) and cover tightly with foil. Place back on indirect heat, cover grill and cook for another 1 1/2 hours). The pork will be done when you poke it with a fork and it shreds easily. Remove pork from grill and let rest, covered, for 20 - 30 minutes. Using 2 forks shred the pork. Toss the pulled pork with a bit more of the BBQ sauce to season. Serve on your favorite roll or by itself with more BBQ sauce on the side.

Mid–South Carolina Mustard Sauce

Makes about 2½ cups

1 cup cider vinegar

1 cup vegetable oil

6 tablespoons Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons honey

4 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce

Ground black pepper

Mix all of the ingredients, including black pepper to taste, together in a medium bowl. (The sauce can be refrigerated in an airtight container for several days.)

Ginger Chicken with Broccoli

This is one of my regular during the week go to recipes. It's easy and quick to make and it scratches my "Chinese food" itch while sparing the excess calories and sodium. This will make about 4 servings.

1# boneless, skinless chicken breast - 1" cubes
1 T sesame oil
1 T soy sauce
1 T rice wine vinegar
2 clove garlic minced
1 T fresh ginger, minced
Fresh ground pepper to taste

Combine the above ingrediants and let marinate for at least 30 minutes

Vegetables:
1 large onion - 1"dice
6 oz fresh mushrooms - sliced
2 carrots - peeled and sliced on angle
2 celery stalks - sliced on angle
1 # broccoli - florrets left whole and stens sliced on angle
2 cloves garlic - minced
1 T fresh ginger - minced
1 thai red chili pepper - sliced (thin red pepper, very hot)
1 T black bean paste
Sesame oil
Cooking spray
Brown Rice

Heat wok. Hit with cooking spray. Add chicken chunks with slotted spoon in a single layer on bottom of wok, reserve marinade. Allow to sear for 1 minute and then begin to stir fry. Cook chicken until browned well, remove from wok and keep warm.
Add sesame oil to wok. Add onion, cook 1 minute, add celery, carrot & mushrooms. Keep the heat high and stir fry for 2 minutes. Add garlic, ginger, and pepper and cook 1 minute. Add broccoli florettes and stems, fry 2 minutes. Add chicken back to wok with black bean paste and reserved marinade. Stir fry until all is incorperated.

Serve over brown rice.

Guido Olives

I made these for Thanksgiving this year and they were a hit. I got this recipe from the Food Networks Guy Fieri.

Ingredients
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup garlic cloves, cut in halves
1/4 red onion, julienned
1/4 red bell pepper, julienned
2 fresh rosemary sprigs, cut in 1/2
1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes
1 teaspoon peppercorns
1 cup large Spanish olives
1/2 cup black olives, seeded
1/2 cup kalamata or jumbo gaeta olives, seeded
1/4 cup whole pepperoncini
1/2 cup baby carrots
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
Directions
In a medium saute pan over medium-low heat, add the olive oil, garlic, onions, red bell peppers, rosemary, chili flakes, and peppercorns. Let saute for 10 minutes.
Add olives, pepperoncini, carrots and vinegar, stir and simmer for 10 minutes over low heat. Serve warm.

Turkey Stock

Just like every year I was able to take the turkey carcass home from my folks Thanksgiving feast. Mom usually makes a 30 pound bird so this is an enormous carcass. I did something different this year and used my 7 quart crock pot to make the stock and am glad I did. I will never make this stock any other way. It came out perfectly.

Trim all of the usable meat off of the carcass (save for the soup you will want to make with this stock). Remove and discard all visible fat and skin. Place bones in crock pot, cover with cold water. Add a chopped onion, 2 chopped celery stalks, a chopped carrot, 3 bay leaves, and 1 TBSP whole peppercorns. Cover, set crock pot to high and cook for 6-7 hours. Strain stock and cool. When cool stock should be gelatinous. I usually remove the thin layer of fat on the top.

This freezes very well. This is the type of stock you want to have around when someone in the house has a cold or flu. Steve says that if you feed this stock to a person on their death bed than they will live another ten years. Enjoy it.

Chicken Tikka Masala

My friend Colleen asked that I post this recipe. I made it for a pot luck dinner with an Indian cuisine theme. I got the recipe from allrecipes.com and it came out great. I did not do anything to spare the calories (I used the heavy cream).

INGREDIENTS
1 cup yogurt
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
4 teaspoons salt, or to taste
3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
4 long skewers

1 tablespoon butter
1 clove garlic, minced
1 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons paprika
3 teaspoons salt, or to taste
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro


DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl, combine yogurt, lemon juice, 2 teaspoons cumin, cinnamon, cayenne, black pepper, ginger, and 4 teaspoons salt. Stir in chicken, cover, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Preheat a grill for high heat.
Lightly oil the grill grate. Thread chicken onto skewers, and discard marinade. Grill until juices run clear, about 5 minutes on each side.
Melt butter in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Saute garlic and jalapeno for 1 minute. Season with 2 teaspoons cumin, paprika, and 3 teaspoons salt. Stir in tomato sauce and cream. Simmer on low heat until sauce thickens, about 20 minutes. Add grilled chicken, and simmer for 10 minutes. Transfer to a serving platter, and garnish with fresh cilantro.

Beef Bourguignon

I fired up the crock pot again this morning with this classic. Like beef stew, use a tougher cut of meat such as chuck or bottom round.

I make this in my 7 quart crock pot.

Trim 4 pounds of stew beef into 1 inch cubes. Get rid of visible fat.

Mix 1 cup of flour with several grinds of black pepper, 2 tsp. thyme, 2 tsp. granulated garlic, 2 tsp. paprika.

Heat 1/4 cup vegetable oil in a large skillet. Working in batches (this morning I did 4 batches in a 10 inch skillet) dredge beef in flour and place in skillet. Allow beef to sear for at least 1 minute on all sides. You should be developing a nice brown color. Transfer to crock pot and do next batch. Add more oil if needed. Do not overcrowd the skillet as you will not get the proper sear and the meat will "juice out".

When all the meat is cooked add 2 pounds of peeled pearl onions and 2 12 ounce packages of fresh mushrooms (sliced in half) to the skillet and saute for 2 minutes. Transfer to crock pot.

Deglaze the skillet with 1 bottle of red wine (Burgundy, Cabernet). Bring to a boil and add to crock pot. Add 3 cups of beef stock to crock pot. Add 4 cloves of garlic, diced, 2 tsp. thyme and 4 bay leaves. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours (more or less). Dish is done when the beef is very tender.

When finished cooking you can eat as is but I like to transfer most of the juice to a sauce pan and reduce (by 1/3) on the stove to concentrate the flavor. I also like to skim any fat that floats to the top. Then I add the reduced defatted juice back to the beef.

Tonight I am serving this with whole wheat egg noodles. Enjoy.

French Onion Soup

Today I made a batch of French Onion Soup. This is my favorite soup of all time (being French Canadian). My father usually orders this when he eats out and it is offered. Even though this soup only has 6 ingredients (for the basic soup), it is the technique that makes it exquisite. I have read, but not verified, that French Onion Soup was the very last meal that Julia Child ate before she passed away in 2004.

I make this recipe in my 13 quart La Creuset enameled cast iron dutch oven.

Slice 10 pounds of onions. Coat dutch oven with olive oil and heat. Add onions. Basically, the pan should be full to the top with onions. Turn heat to high. the idea now is to cook the onions until they are browned and caramelized and about 1/10 their original volume. You will notice that there will be a considerable amount of juice that needs to be cooked out. Today this took me about 2 hours. I have include some pictures of the progress. At this point I add 1/4 cup sugar and this helps the onion during the final browning process. When the onions are dry and the bottom of the pan is browning it is time to deglaze the pan with 1 cup of dry sherry. Bring to boil. Now add 3 quarts beef stock and 3 quarts chicken stock (low sodium), bring to a boil and you are done.

Now, you can eat as is (as Steve is doing right now) or serve it with the classical garnish, a topper of a toasted crouton (toasted sliced day old baguette) and then sprinkled with shredded Gruyere (Swiss) cheese and placed under the broiler until brown and bubbly.

In Julia Child's words, 'Bon Appetite!'

Mom Major's Sweet Wings

Get the biggest, plumpest chicken wings you can find for this recipe. Also try switching the maple syrup with honey.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Prepare 3 pounds of chicken wings: Cut off wing tips (save for a stock), cut the wings in two at the joint. Place wings in a single layer in a glass (easier to clean) baking dish (make sure it has at least a 1 inch side so that the juice does not overflow into oven). Use more than one dish if needed, do not overcrowd pan. season wings with salt & pepper.

Mix together:
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup soy sauce
4 Tbsp brown sugar
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup ketchup

Pour over wings, toss to coat, rearrange in single layer.

Bake uncovered for about 1 hour turning and basting every 20 minutes.

This may seem like a long time to cook wings but it will make the meat fall off the bone, render out most of the fat, and give it a great dark color. If the wings are really big you may need to cook for up to 1 1/2 hours. These are good hot or cold.

Leek Casserole

I think the original inspiration for this came from a recipe I saw in 'Taste of Home' magazine. I love leeks but never seem to use them enough. When prepping leeks slice them in half lengthwise, with the root in tact, and wash thoroughly under cold running water to get all of the sand out.

Butter a two quart casserole and preheat oven to 350.

Prep and slice 1 bunch of leeks. Slice 2 large shallots and 1 red onion. Saute all and put into casserole. Saute 1/2 pound mushrooms and add to casserole. Add 3 fresh thyme sprigs to casserole. Season with black and cayenne pepper.

Mix 1/2 cup low fat sour cream and 1/2 cup non dairy creamer. Pour over leeks.

Mix 1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese and sprinkle over casserole.

Bake for 30 - 45 minutes.

Jimmy's Chili

This recipe is mostly about the spice mixture that I use to make the chili. Make sure the spices you use are less than 1 year old. Throw out those old ones that have been lurking in the back of your cabinet for the past decade. I switch up the protein, I typically use all ground turkey these days.

Spice Mixture
8 Tbsp chili powder
5 tsp Coriander
5 tsp Cumin
3 tsp Granulated Garlic
2 tsp Oregano
1 tsp cayenne

To Make Chili:

Pick through and wash 2 pounds of dried beans (use what ever kind you like, kidney beans have the most fiber). Soak in cold water overnight, drain.

Chop (large dice) 1 large onion and add to 7 quart crock pot.

Brown 1 pound of cubed round steak in saute pan. Add to crock pot. To same pan brown 2 pounds ground beef (or turkey). sprinkle with 1/2 of spice mixture and mix in well. Add 1 small can of tomato paste. Continue cooking for about 5 minutes. Add mixture to crock pot. Add soaked beans. Add 2 28 ounce cans of tomatoes and 2 cups of water. Add 1 diced fresh hot pepper (or more depending on amount of "heat" desired). Sprinkle with remaining spice mixture. Cover and cook on low for 10 hours.

You can substitute 4 15 ounce cans of beans for dried beans.

Turkey Marsala

I haven't added anything in a while so I thought I would plug in tonight's dinner. I got home late from work and wanted to get dinner ready in about 30 minutes (not that I'm competing with Rachel Ray).

Season 3/4 cup flour with several grinds of black pepper, 2 tsp. granulated garlic, 1 tsp thyme, and 1/2 Cayenne pepper.

Lightly pound out 1 pound of turkey breast cutlets and dredge in the seasoned flour.

Heat 3 tbsp olive oil & 1 tbsp butter in 10" saute pan. Saute cutlets 2 minutes on each side (do this in 2 batches). Remove to plate lined with paper towel, keep warm in oven.

Drain excess oil. Add 1 large minced shallot and 1/2 pound sliced mushrooms. Saute on high for about 5 minutes. Season with pepper, thyme, and granulated garlic. Add 3/4 cup Marsala wine. Bring to boil and reduce by 1/2. Add 1 cup beef stock, bring to boil. Add turkey back to pan and baste with sauce. (sauce will still be loose at this point) Simmer for at least 5 minutes. Just before serving reduce heat to low and add 1 tbsp of butter (cut into pieces) and swirl into sauce. Do not boil sauce as the butter will break.

Serve over rice or noodles (we had it with Kashi tonight) and sprinkle with sliced green onions.

The sauce for this dish is thickened by reduction, the flour from the sauteed turkey, and lastly the final liaison of the butter. This dish also works well with chicken or veal.

Turkey Parmesan

This works well with pasta and also makes a good hot sub or a wrap.

CUTLETS

1 # Turkey Cutlets
1 Cup Flour
½ Egg Beaters – beat in 1 T. water
1 Cup Seasoned Dry Bread Crumbs (Progresso)

If cutlets are thick pound out slightly, season w/ salt & pepper.
Season flour w/ ½ t. salt, ½ t. pepper, ½ t granulated garlic, & pinch of cayenne.
Set up counter with 3 bowls for the breading procedure.

Dredge a seasoned cutlet in flour, shake off excess, dip in egg, shake off excess, coat with bread crumbs (press the crumbs into the cutlets for a good coating). Repeat to bread all cutlets. Set aside while making sauce.

SAUCE

1 Medium Onion, chopped
5 oz. mushrooms, sliced
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 28 oz. can San Marzano whole tomatoes (any brand, I look for low sodium content)
1 jar Francesco Rinaldi ‘no salt added’ tomato sauce
Dry basil, oregano, red pepper flakes

Saute onion in 1 T. olive oil for 1 minute. Add mushrooms, cook 4 minutes. Add garlic, 1 t. each oregano, basil, and pepper flakes. Cook 1 minute. Add the juice from the canned tomatoes (careful that the steam does not burn you). Crush the tomatoes in your hand into the sauce. Cover and simmer for 7 minutes. Add jarred sauce, simmer for 10 minutes.

FRYING THE CUTLETS
Heat ½ inch of vegetable oil in sauté pan until hot (drop a small bit of bread crumbs in to see if it begins to fry). Fry cutlets for 2-3 minutes on each side until brown. Do this in batches, do not crowd pan. When done, move to plate lined w/ paper towel.

FINAL ASSEMBLY
Coat bottom of casserole pan w/ tomato sauce, arrange cutlets in a single layer, top each cutlet with sauce (no need to drown cutlets in sauce, save left over sauce to serve along side) Bake uncovered at 350 for 20 minutes (or until bubbly). Sprinkle w/ low fat shredded mozzarella mixed with a bit of grated parmesan. Serve w/ Whole wheat pasta.

Split Pea Soup

Being a rainy Sunday in late September I wanted to put the crockpot back into action. I like to make recipes that freeze well and this is one of my favorites.

Using a 7 quart crockpot (the big one):

Dice 1 onion and 3 carrots - put into crockpot
Sort through 2 lbs of green split peas (look for and discard any rocks)
Rinse peas several times
Add peas to crockpot
Add 1 large can (48 ounces) low sodium chicken broth
Fill same can with water and add to crockpot
Add 3-4 small smoked hamhocks (or 1 smoked turkey leg) to crock pot
Add 3 bay leaves
Cover and cook on low for 6 hours
Soup is done when split peas have turned to mush
Remove hamhocks and dice meat, add back to soup

Enjoy!

Crockpot Chicken Cacciatore

I made this Friday morning and served it over Gnocci. Let me know what you think.

A few of you asked for this:

I use a 7 quart crockpot
Slice a large onion into bottom of Crockpot
Lay 16 skinless bone-in chicken thighs on top of onions (trim all visable fat)
Season w/ pepper, 1 T. oregano, 1 T. basil, 4 cloves minced garlic
Slice a large red pepper and 8 mushrooms and layer on chicken
Pour 2 28ounce cans of whole plum tomatoes on top (I prefer san marzano (any brand))
Rinse cans out with 1/2 cup red wine & 1/2 cup water, pour over top
Add 4 more cloves of minced garlic & 3 bay leaves, stir into tomatoes
Cover and cook on low for 8-9 hours
When done genlty remove chicken thighs (try to keep together) & keep warm
Turn Crockpot up to high and cook sauce for up to 1 hour longer
Add chicken back in & serve w/ pasta, rice, gnocci, etc

Welcome to Jim's Cooking

A friend suggested that I start a blog for things that I like to cook (thanks Kathy). I am going to try to keep this up and post recipes for dishes I make and restaurants we go to.

If you have a questions about cooking or the culinary arts, let me know and I will try to help you out.

Enjoy!