Recipe Completion Progress

As of  3/6/2011 I have completed 31 of 63 recipes in the Pioneer Woman Cooks cookbook.


Sides

1. BBQ Jalapeno Poppers - Done
2. Pico De Gallo
3. Guacamole
4. PW's Potato Skins
5. Katie's Roasted Corn Salad
6. Hot Artichoke Dip
7. Sangria
8. Olive Cheese Bread
9. Onion Strings
10. Twice Baked Potatoes - Done
11. PW's Creamy Mashed Potatoes - Done
12. Creamy Rosemary Potatoes - Done

Breakfast

1. Cinnamon Rolls - Done
2. Iny's Prune Cake with Buttermilk Icing
3. Buttermilk Biscuits
4. Egg in the Hole - Done
5. Basic Breakfast Potatoes - Done
6. PW Breakfast Burritos - Done
7. Breakfast Bowls
8. Marmalade Muffins - Done
9. Migas - Done
10. French Breakfast Puffs
11. Maple Pecan Scones - Done
12. Huevos Hyacinth - Done
13. Edna Mae's Sour Cream Pancakes

Lunch

1. Simple, Perfect Chili - Done
2. Marlboro's Man's Favorite Sandwich - Done
3. Spicy Pulled Pork 
4. Macaroni and Cheese - Done
5. Beans and Cornbread - Done
6. Sheried Tomato Soup - Done
7. Pizza Crust - Done
8. Potato Leek Pizza - Done
9. Tomato Basil Pizza - Done
10. Cowboy Calzone - Done
11. Perfect Pot Roast
12. Chicken Pot Pie
13. Chicken Spaghetti - Done

Dinner

1. Chicken Fried Steak
2. Meatloaf - Done
3. Fried Chicken
4. Braised Beef Brisket
5. Cheese Grits
6. Ribeye Steak with Whiskey Cream Sauce - Done
7. Homemade Ranch Dressing - Done
8. Comfort Meatballs
9. Simple Perfect Enchiladas - Done
10. Linguine with Clam Sauce - Done
11. Lasagna
12. Penna Ala Betsy
13. Roasted Beef Tenderloin - Done
14. Burgundy Mushrooms - Done

Dessert

1. Creme Brule
2. Patsy's Blackberry Cobbler
3. Perfect Pie Crust - Done
4. Flat Apple Pie - Done
5. Chocolate Sheet Cake
6. Mocha Brownies
7. Oatmeal Crispies
8. Pineapple Upside Down Cake
9. Peace Crisp with Maple Cream Sauce
10. Red Velvet Cake
11. Angle Sugar Cookies

Restaurant Quality Meal

Last week I was down and out with a stomach bug so I have not been cooking a lot lately.  Now that I have been feeling better, I decided to pick back up from where I left off.  The next meal on the list was Burgundy mushrooms and Ribeye steak with whiskey cream sauce.  I love mushrooms and this recipe described these as so good that guests at her house have fainted from these because they were so good.

The mushrooms are simmered in a stock pot for six hours in a dry red wine, butter, and bouillon.  This made the whole house smell awesome.  After six hours of simmering, the lid to the stock pot is removed and they simmer for another three hours to reduce the stock.  Needless to say, I had to start cooking at 8:00am to be able to eat around dinner time that same day.

The whiskey cream sauce starts out with some sauteed onions and whiskey.  Note to self... alcohol is flammable... when adding alcohol to a hot pan, there is a good chance that it will flame up a little bit.  Just a word of caution if you are not expecting a flame!  

While this is reducing, I seasoned the steaks and threw them in my new stainless steel skillet.  Non-stick spray does not do much in this kind of pan... your bets bet is to melt some butter in the pan to keep the meat from sticking to the pan (this also improves the flavor because everything tastes better with butter).

I had a lot going on the top of the stove, so I popped some frozen broccoli into the microwave.  I needed to have something else (healthy) as a side dish for this meal, so that worked out pretty good for me.

The kids are not big steak fans, so they had chicken nuggets while Tina and I got to enjoy our meals.  I have to say this was the best steak I have ever made.  The mushrooms were awesome and they melted in your mouth.  By far the greatest meal I have ever made. 

Not sure what I plan to cook next, but I hope it is half as good as this meal!

Looking forward to "eating" with you again soon!

Mark

If it is worth making, it is worth making right!

Last weekend I invited a friend from work over for dinner and decided to cook something from my cookbook.  I decided to cook the chicken spaghetti recipe in the book.  It was a simple sounding recipe that turned out to be a lot more work than I anticipated.

The first step was to cut up a full chicken a boil in a stock pot.  This was not too bad, but cutting up a raw chicken is a little tricky.  I also do not have a stockpot (Christmas gift idea!) so I had to make the chicken fit in the dutch oven that I have.  It was a tight fit, but I was able to get it all in there.

After the chicken was done I removed the meat and saved two cups of the broth.  I then used the remaining broth to cook the pasta noodles.  This was a pretty neat idea for me since I have always just used plain water (boring) for cooking pasta.

While the pasta was cooking, I prepped the rest of the ingredients and shredded the chicken.  Once the pasta was done cooking, I mixed everything together.  Now let me tell you, the pioneer woman's number of serving is usually around eight and I only need to feed four.  This means that everything that I have made from her cookbook has barely fit in the mixing bowls and cooking dished that I have.  That woman must have some monstrous cookware to handle these servings.

Once everything was all done it smelled so good that we tore right into it before I took any pictures.  I have nothing to show for this recipe for my followers.  I am sorry my friends, but I will do better next time. 

This one was a very good meal, 4 out of 5 notches on the belt (although I needed to let my belt out a little bit after I was done if that tells you anything)

Next up are Burgundy Mushrooms and Ribeye Steaks... yum!

Looking forward to "eating" with you soon!

Mark