Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Sandwiches

It’s not that I hate my job, OK? It’s just that there’s too much of it. It’s always getting in the way of the stuff I really want to be doing. Like cooking. And blogging. And blogging about cooking. And running. And reading. And taking a dog I don’t have on a walk. And playing with my kids. And shopping for cute boots. And anyway, my job has been getting in the way of what I want to be doing so much that I haven’t blogged for two months! So it’s totally fitting that this month is slow cooker month. Because lately, I don’t have time to cook and blog and blog about cooking. So I’ll make this real short and sweet.

Having a slow cooker is like having a sister wife who has stayed home all day slaving over a delicious meal. Except the sister wife is a robot and she doesn’t plan on stealing any kind of domestic goddess credit for herself and instead showers all of the praise onto me as soon as I walk in the door.

"It smells delicious in here Amber. And you look great today!"

We had some friends coming over for the Seahawks game so I asked my sister wife to make pulled pork sandwiches. Sister wife worked hard. I accepted the praise. It was totally delicious.

Pulled Pork Ingredients
3 lbs boneless pork shoulder
1 can (12 oz) tomato paste
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
3 crushed cloves of garlic
1 cup Sweet Baby Ray’s Hickory and Brown Sugar sauce

Rolls/buns of choice
Coleslaw

Cole slaw Ingredients
1 package rainbow slaw
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt to taste

Directions
Spray slow cooker with cooking spray. Combine all pulled pork ingredients except the Hickory and Brown Sugar sauce. Cook for 6-8 hours. Sometime in between, combine Coleslaw ingredients, cover and place in the refrigerator. Shred the pork when it’s done and add the Hickory and Brown Sugar sauce. Serve on toasted buns or rolls topped with Coleslaw.

 

 

 

 

 Now if only my sister wife could clean the bathroom...

BBQ Beer Brats {Barbeque Month}

This ‘aint nuthin but a man meal, peeps.

As far as I know, it’s actually a crime if you’re caught barbequing without a beer in your hand. But rest assured, this recipe takes your safety with the law to another level by adding beer to your BBQ.

BBQ Beer BratsAdd two cans of light beer to a big pot, throw in some raw brats, boil until they are a disgusting looking gray color, and then grill. We like these so much we don’t even bother with a bun and just stick our yummy bites of beer soaked juicy goodness straight into some yellow mustard. Simple as that. Oh, and you can also throw in a bunch of onion rings into the beer and cook them along with the brats, then add them to the top of your dog.

Easy Phò

Yummy Final Product

The Beauties were lucky enough to get together last weekend and do what we do best: eat & drink! We were especially celebrating this Beauty and soon to be mama!

Beautiful Ems

Since I am in a month of retirement, after the weekend I got to go to Emily's to keep celebrating and I made dinner for her and Curtis since they both had to work. I love noodle soup and one of my very favorites is Phò.  Phò is a Vietnamese noodle soup but my favorite part is all the fresh herbs and condiments that dress it up. The biggest problem with finding a recipe that qualified as easy since they all seem to include strange cuts of meat (oxtail anyone?) and it takes hours to make the broth. Even in retirement, I don't have the patience to spend four hours making broth. But I was not deterred! There had to be a cheater way that is just as good and I think I found it!  This was yummy, easy, and a perfect meal on a cold winter night in the Northwest with some of my favorite people & furry friends.  You can also make it vegetarian very easily.  

You can find the original recipe here.

Ingredients in Cheesecloth

Easy Pho

Ingredients:

2 Boxes Beef Broth (could use Chicken or Vegetarian)
1/2 Tsp Anise
1/2 Cinnamon Stick
2 Whole Cloves
1 Tsp black peppercorns
1  slice fresh ginger root
1 T white sugar
1 T fish sauce

1 package cooked Udon Noodles (you can find in the fresh/veggie section usually)

2 packages thinly sliced pork (you could use chicken or mushrooms)

Toppings:

Sriracha
Hoisin Sauce
Chopped green onion
Chopped fresh cilantro
Chopped fresh basil
Bean Sprouts
Limes, quartered

Put anise, cinnamon, cloves, peppercorns, and ginger root in cheesecloth and tie up.  Side note: We had an adventure with this. Emily had the cheesecloth but we had to do a little searching for tying it.  I probably wouldn't have even had cheesecloth but I found these at Bed, Bath, & Beyond.  If I had a kitchen, I would get some for mine.

Emily doesn't it know it yet but I bought her some!

Simmer spices in the two boxes of broth for 1 hour. Add meat of choice and simmer for 1/2 hour. The udon noodles need to be warmed up or put in boiling water for just a few minutes. If you are more of a Missy cook (aka cheater), and like we did you can put the broth and meat on top of noodles and then microwave for a minute.   Add condiments and enjoy!   The longest part of this meal is the chopping.

Amber's Award Worthy Chili

It is seriously stormy outside. Like stormy, stormy. The kind that turns an umbrella inside out, the kind that makes the middle of the day look like midnight, the kind that makes you want to say, "Ef off, work" so you can go home and cuddle by the fire, watch a movie, and drink a hard cider while a steaming pot of chili cooks on the stove… Do you see where I’m going here?

When Emily posted this month’s ingredient “Cocoa” I was a bit uninspired. I know, call me a crazy person. Can I even call myself a woman? But I just love love love savory food and dessert is usually a thing I do only because everyone else is doing it. But then I ran into Andrew Robinson, a fellow parent at the daycare where I take my kids, who also loves to cook who also happens to be a BATF follower, and we had an inspiring conversation, whilst peeling off children’s coats and hanging out by the sign in sheet. “Chili,” he said. And I was sold.

Turns out, like, all of the famous and award winning chili recipes have cocoa in them. That’s what all the people on Google tell me--it's like the secret ingredient to chili success. So I found a few ‘award-winning’ recipes and made up my own. Some had all beans and some had all meat and I thought to satisfy the carnivore in my husband and the herbivore in me, I’d do a little bit of both. And to satisfy the beer lover in both of us, I chose to add a bit of that too. It was super delicious. My 5 year old ate his entire bowl (mixed with a lot of sour cream to minimize the spice) and my 2 ½ year old only had one bite. So, there’s a 50/50 chance your kids will like it. And if you don't have small children, I recommend you add a lot more spice to this recipe! Some hot sauce, chili peppers, and anything else you can find.

My verdict on the cocoa: Though it wasn't noticeable at all, I have chosen to believe my chili wouldn't have been as good without it. Now, can I call my recipe "award-winning" too? Next up, a chili cook-off so I can officially add that to the title.

Amber’s Award-Winning Chili

Ingredients

1.5 lb. lean chuck, ground

1 lb. lean pork, ground

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 finely chopped onion

8 oz. hunts tomato sauce

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can pinto beans

1 can kidney beans

1 cup water

1 can beer

3 Tablespoons chili powder

2 tablespoons instant beef bouillon (6 cubes)

2 Tablespoons ground cumin

2 teaspoons paprika

2 teaspoons oregano leaves

2 teaspoons sugar

½ teaspoon ground coriander

1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa

1 teaspoon cornmeal

1 teaspoon flour

1 Tablespoon warm water

Directions:

1)      In a large saucepan, brown meat. Drain the fat.

2)      Add onion and garlic and soften

3)      Add the tomato sauce, tomatoes and beans and mix well

4)      Add water, beer, chili powder, bouillon, cumin, paprika, oregano, sugar, coriander and cocoa

5)      Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer for at least 2 hours.

6)      In a small bowl, mix cornmeal and flour, then add warm water and mix well.

7)      Stir into chili and cook, covered for an additional 20 minutes

Garnishes

I chose to add all of the below garnishes, just to add a bit more fun and flavor.

1)      Sour cream

2)      Shredded cheddar cheese

3)      Chives and/or green onions

4)      Heavy dash of hot sauce

Yow! Lookin' hot.

Sides

Tortilla chips or sourdough bread! This would have been excellent in a bread bowl.

May Recipe: Mexican Meatball Subs

Let me start with a confession - I love Mexican food. In fact, one might say I am obsessed with Mexican food. Someone asks - where should we go for lunch? I say - Mexican. My husband asks - what should we have for dinner? My list of possible answers - tacos, fajitas, enchiladas, nachos or take out Mexican. So since I'm responsible for the May recipe, I have to go south of the border in honor of Cinco de Mayo. As I was searching for the recipe, I did a little reading about the holiday. Cinco de Mayo recognizes the Mexican army's defeat of French forces in the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. It is mainly celebrated as a regional holiday in the state of Puebla in Mexico but has taken on a life of it's own in the United States, where it is viewed as a celebration of Mexican culture. And food of course :)

Instead of standard fare, I wanted to try something a little different. I thought this recipe looked fun, easy and most importantly, delicious! Enjoy!

Ingredients

1 pound ground meat (beef, pork, turkey or any mixture of these)

1/4 cup finely crushed tortilla chips

1 large egg, beaten

1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped plus 3 whole sprigs

1/4 cup onion, finely chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

3 teaspoons ancho chili powder, separated

2 teaspoons ground cumin, separated

Kosher salt

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

2 cups canned fire-roasted diced tomatoes

4 crusty sub rolls, halved

Diced avocado, chopped green onion and crumbled Mexican cheese for garnish

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350. Mix the meat, tortilla chips, egg, chopped cilantro, onion, 1 clove minced garlic, 1 teaspoon chili powder, 1 teaspoon cumin and salt to taste in a bowl. Roll into 16 small meatballs.

Heat the olive oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the meatballs and lightly brown, turning as needed, about 5 minutes. Add the remaining minced garlic, chili powder and cumin. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, the sprigs of cilantro and 1-1/2 cups water and season with salt. Bring to a simmer, then cover and reduce heat to low. Cook until the sauce thickens and the meatballs are tender, about 15 minutes.

About 5 minutes before the meatballs are done, toast the rolls in the oven. Place the rolls in individual bowls and top each with 4 meatballs. Drizzle sauce over the meatballs, then pour the remaining sauce into the bowls so the bread can soak up the sauce. Top with avocado, green onion and Mexican cheese.