Asparagus Frittata

There are many reasons I love a frittata.  Not only does it taste great, but you can put anything in them.  I mean anything.  I have 3 little kids and no one has ever used the word organized when referring to me.  So that being said I love any recipe in which I can throw in bits of leftovers and turn them into something fantastic.  I like to start my day with eggs.  That protein keeps me full and steady.  I can always tell when I have not had my eggs because around three o'clock I am raiding something, anything.  It's not pretty.  So for this reason eggs are good for my waistline.  You will see that this dish is a complete meal.  This is honestly things I had on hand.  I am not a cooking show where I magically happen to have a tablespoon of minced garlic.

For this Frittata I used:

8 Tudor Hall Farm Free Range Eggs
Tudor Hall Farm Asparagus
Almost a whole link of Tudor Hall Farm Sweet Italian Sausage
Small Yellow Onion
Bow-tie pasta
Butter
Salt
Pepper
Cheese


This first step is to turn on your boiler.   You will be putting your skillet in the oven so make sure that the handle is heat safe.  If not you will need to cover it in Aluminum foil.  If you are not sure, grab the foil.

These are my frittata fixins all cut up.  The sausage link is left over from when I made pizza the other night.  The sausage was a topping.  I had some steamed asparagus.  I am just using the tips because I am using seconds.  The good stuff went to market.  Because it was cold this week, there was not as much asparagus.  People may not call me organized but they do call me resourceful.

These are the pretty brown eggs that I used.  I used 8 eggs because I am feeding a crowd, but also I am using a 14 inch pan.  I have read other recipes that suggest 6 eggs for a 12 inch pan.  I do not like cold eggs and I don't think they reheat well.  So if I was making this just for myself I would use 2 or 3 eggs in a 6 inch pan.

I just remembered that I had bow tie pasta in the fridge.  My brain is still slightly foggy because I have not had enough coffee.  But I am doing a little dance because now my frittata will be a complete meal.  It will have protein, vegetables, and a carbohydrate. I should note that I did not use all of this pasta.  I just used a handful.

I sauteed my onions in some butter. I probably used a teaspoon.  I am using a non-stick pan so I really don't need the butter.  I like the taste of it.  I try not to use too much, but again I love the taste.  I use real butter. Butter and eggs are wonderful.  And the fake stuff, well it's fake.  Not only are many brands made with stuff I can not pronounce, I am not fooled.  I will eat the real stuff in moderation.  This frittata will have 6-8 servings. In my opinion a teaspoon of butter is worth it.  If you are using raw asparagus this is where you would add it so that it cooks a little bit.  Then when it's bright green and your onions are soft you will add the eggs.

These are my eggs.

Once your onions are soft, and if using raw asparagus it's bright green, throw in the rest of your stuff.  You want to heat it all through.

I like to really whisk my eggs.  I get them so they have a nice foam on top.  The more air you trap in them at this point the fluffier your eggs will be.  Like whipped cream it is the fat in the egg that holds onto the air.  This is why there is no whipped milk, it's whipped cream.  And when you add heat that air expands making a nice fluffy egg.  So if you don't trap the air you have nothing to puff up.  I get my bowl on the side and really go after them.

I forgot to add my handful of pasta.  So here it is.

Spread your fixins out evenly and then pour in your eggs.

Once I add the eggs I turn the heat down to medium.  The outside starts cooking first. I take my spoon or spatula and pull that into the middle so that the raw egg can replace it.  You do this a couple of times around the pan.  Once it's set but still liquid in the center it's time for the broiler. You will need to broil it until it's brown on top and the eggs are set, but not rubbery.  I think mine was in there about 5 minutes, if that. 

Here it is turned out on my cutting board and I am about to yell for my children to come over. I did sprinkle a cheese over it.  I used a colby because that is what I had open and it needs to be used.  But Swiss or Fontina or even Bleu with the green asparagus would be wonderful flavor combinations. 

Enjoy!

That Bag of Bones in the Freezer.....

On my first post about Roasted Chicken I wrote that I have a bag of bones in the freezer.  To me this is yet another reason to buy a whole bird.  I love a whole bird for a couple of reasons.  1.) It has been processed the least.  This is important because the fewer hands knives and what have you touch my bird, the fewer bacteria that are inevitably on said hands knives and what have you touch my bird.  2.) You get the most for your money.  Many times you are paying for someone to cut it up and put it on a fancy plastic tray.  I do not need this. I have a knife and I do not want your plastic tray.  3.) And the most important is that you can make stock out of the bones. If you have never made stock before, I think you will be surprised at how easy it is to make.  But you will also be surprised at how wonderful it tastes.


For this stock I used:

3 onions
3 carrots
3 ribs of celery
2 Tablespoons of Dried Rosemary
2 Tablespoons of Dried Thyme
3 or 4 Bay Leaves
Bag of Frozen Chicken Bones
Water

These are my veggies waiting to be chopped up. 

These are my Carrot, Celery, and Onion chopped up.  You can see I really like onion.  

Heat about a tablespoon of oil in your pot.  

Toss in your chopped onion, carrot and celery and give them a good saute.

I am using dried herbs because I don't have fresh ones on hand.  Later in the season I will be using fresh.  These are Thyme Rosemary and Bay Leaves.

Once your veggies get going good throw in the herbs.  Tossing them in now will get the oil out of them and into your stock.  Plus it will make your kitchen smell amazing.

You want your vegetables to start to caramelize.  Those dark spots on the bottom of the pot are the good stuff.  Not only will it make your stock a beautiful color, it will add a great flavor. 

It's time for the bag of bones.

Throw in your bones and cover with water.  

Bring to a good simmer. You don't want it boiling so hard it comes flying out of the pot, but you want the water moving so that it extracts all of the good stuff out of the bones and your herbs and veggies.  

I let this one simmer for almost 2 hours.  I was doing some cleaning and cooked dinner.  But you want it to get a nice color.  You are flavoring the water with all of your good veggies and bones.

Then you want to strain out all or most of your solids.  I use a colander over one of my stainless bowls.  

I think pour it through a finer sieve.  This gets anything you missed.  I like to pour mine into 13 x 9 pans.

I cool mine in these pans.  I am a huge fan of rapid cooling methods.  Earlier I talked about how I like the whole bird because it is handled the least.  This is along the same lines.  You might remember from chemistry class that the more surface area a liquid has the faster it cools.  This is important because you want your foods to travel through the "temperature danger zone" as fast as possible.  So the faster my boiling liquid at 212 degrees can get to 42 degrees the better.  Yes it is an additional pan to wash but this is a step I feel is important.  I am going to store this in the freezer and it could take me a couple of months to use it.  I also don't like the idea of pouring hot liquid into plastic containers.  It gives me the willies.  Yes that is a technical term.  Just ask my Mother.

As soon as my stock is cool enough to touch, I transfer it to my containers and head to the freezer. All but 1 of these containers holds 2 cups.  I feel that is a manageable amount of stock.  Plus I want it to freeze quickly.  Not only does a gallon of  liquid not freeze as fast as you might think, the only thing to do with that much is to make a giant pot of soup.  Now whenever I need it I can just defrost it and throw it in.  One of my favorite things about home made stock is all the flavor with very little sodium.  There is some sodium naturally in the chicken but I did not add any salt.  This way I can have all the savory goodness, and it's healthy too.

Pot Roast

There is nothing better on a cold day than a steaming Pot Roast.  I love this dish because it's one that you can fix and forget.  In this recipe I used a Rump Roast but you could also use a Chuck Roast.  I actually prefer the Chuck Roast.  The bones give it more flavor. I put mine in my slow cooker at noon and it was ready at 6:30pm.  I cooked mine on high, but I think it would be better on low all day long.  This dish is very forgiving.  Even though I love to cook, I don't always have time to do it.  It only took me 27 minutes to prep this dish.  That included taking the pictures, sending someone to time-out, removing something from someone else and a good game of peek-a-boo!

For this recipe I used:

Rump Roast
3 Onions
3 Carrots
1 1/2 pounds of potatoes
Grape Tomatoes
15 oz. Can of Tomatoes
1 1/2 c of Red Wine
Thyme
Rosemary
Bay Leaves

This is the Rump Roast I used.  You will notice.  My roast is frozen. I peeled off the plastic and placed it right on the veggies.  Please use your favorite cut.  Mine is the Chuck.

These are the veggies I used.  I like red potatoes.  I also threw in a little red onion because it needed to be used up.  I am always throwing in a little bit of this and that.  

These are my veggies all chopped up.  I don't get too fancy. I just try to make sure that the pieces are uniform so that they cook at the same rate. 

Make a nest with your veggies on the bottom.  Place your roast on top.  I like to place the fat side up. Fat equals flavor.  This way as it cooks, the fat can run down over the meat and veggies. 

Add the rest of the veggies.

I like to use fresh herbs when I have them on hand.  In the winter, I use dried.  The trick is to use a lot.  That is probably at least a tablespoon of thyme,1 1/2 tablespoons of rosemary and 3 bay leaves.  I also like to use kosher salt and fresh ground pepper.  With the kosher salt, I don't have to add as much to get the flavor  I want.  The salt tastes saltier to me.  

Sprinkle your herbs on top.

Tomatoes and wine.  This is a merlot.  I use whatever I have on hand.  This is a great way to use up leftover wine.  

Add your tomatoes, wine and about 1 1/2c water. Cover and let your slow cooker do all the work.

This dish also reheats well.  This is a picture of our leftovers.  I made this on Monday night for my family to eat for dinner while I went out with some friends.  So it was last nights dinner as well.  Yum!

Grilled Asparagus

This goes great with Pork Chops or anything you are grilling. You will find that most of these recipes are super simple and don't involve lots of ingredients.  When you start with good food you can't really go wrong.


For this recipe you will need:

Tudor Hall Farm Asparagus
Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper

Select your bunches of asparagus.

Wash them in cold water.

Drain.

Toss evenly with Olive Oil.  We use a baking sheet but you could just as easily use a big bowl.

Sprinkle with Salt and Pepper.

Place on the grill. Dad has a special grate that keeps them from going through the cracks.

Flip it over to make sure it cooks evenly. When it is your desired doneness remove from the grill.  I like it still a little crunchy.  Make sure you watch to make the ends don't get too crispy.

Serve!  

Dad's Not So Secret Pork Chops

Although I love to cook, I am not one to turn down a free meal.  Especially when it comes from Mom and Dad.  Yum!  These days Dad does much of the cooking and he loves to grill.  He is really really good at it.  One of my favorites is his Pork Chops.

For this recipe you will need:

Tudor Hall Farm Pork Chops
Garlic Salt
Garlic Powder

Preheat your grill on High for at least 10-15 minutes.  Unwrap your chops and sprinkle one side with garlic salt and the other side with garlic powder.

Place your chops on the grill and then turn your grill to low.

Let them sear on each side. Then turn them several times so that they cook evenly.  I like to use tongs so that the juices stay inside the chop.

When they look like they are "sweating" they are done.  They will be the slightest bit pink inside.  Many people were raised to think that pork had to be cooked into an oblivion.  But with animal care as it is today, medium pork chops are not only ok, they are tasty as well.

Serve them up to the hungry folks inside.  My oldest son who is 2 honestly ate this entire pork chop.  Dad patiently cut it up for him.  This pork chops would go great with the Grilled Asparagus!!  I believe to round out or meal we had corn from the freezer.  My daughter is always amazed at the silk in it.  I guess the person in charge of shucking got tired.  It was probably me. Enjoy!