Recipe - Best Pot Roast

 Because of food allergies, we've had to adjust and adapt recipes at our house. And because of that, I've found the best way to make a tender, juicy, flavorful pot roast. Trust me, this is delicious and very easy.

Best Pot Roast with Gravy

2-3 lb beef roast (a cut with more fat will be a better pot roast but any cut will work)

1 c. prune juice

1 c. sliced onions

1 t. salt

1/2 t. ground black pepper

1/2 t. powdered ginger

3 T. flour

1/3 c. cold water

Lightly grease the sides of a covered roaster pan. This helps make clean up easier later.

Spread onions in the bottom of the pan. Place roast, fattiest side up, on top. Sprinkle with the seasonings, then pour the prune juice over top.

Cover and roast in a 325°F oven for 1 1/2 hours. Baste with the juices in the pan and check doneness - it should shred easily and be tender. Roast for another 30-60 minutes. Rule of thumb is about 45 minutes per pound of roast.

When it is done, remove from the pan to a platter, cover with foil, and let rest. Strain onions out of juices and place with roast. KEEP THE JUICES! Add enough water to measure 2 c. of drippings. Make sure you scrape the dark stuff out of the roaster pan. It's great for flavor. Put the drippings into a saucepan.

Stir the flour into the 1/3 c. cold water until it is smooth. Stir it into the drippings. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. It should thicken. Boil and stir for one minute. Taste and add salt and pepper if needed.

Shred the roast into chunks. Serve with plenty of vegetables, rice or mashed potatoes, and the tasty gravy you just made.

*If you aren't allergic, you can add chopped carrots and celery with the onions.

*A teaspoon of dry mustard powder is also very tasty sprinkled over the roast with the ginger.

Recipe - Best ever White Chocolate Cranberry Cookies

 No nuts, because I'm really not a fan of nuts in cookies. But the lemon zest really takes this over the top. Don't skip it!

White Chocolate Cranberry Cookies

1/2 c. butter, softened

1 1/2 c. sugar

zest of 1 lemon

1 t. vanilla

1 t. baking powder

1/2 t. baking soda

1/2 t. salt

2 eggs

2 1/4 c. flour

1 1/2 c. white chocolate chips

1 c. dried cranberries

 Cream butter, sugar, lemon zest, and vanilla together until light colored and fluffy. Scrape down the bowl and keep creaming for another minute or so. Add in baking powder, baking soda, salt, and eggs. Beat together until very light colored and smooth, about 2-3 minutes, scrape down the sides a couple of times.

Add in flour, white chocolate chips, and cranberries. Stir just until it comes together as a dough. Cover and let it sit for about half an hour.

Heat oven to 375°F. Scoop cookie dough into balls, about 1 1/2 tablespoons of dough per cookie. Place on lightly greased baking sheet with a couple inches between cookies, they will spread a bit. Bake for 8-10 minutes, until very light browned on the edges. Let cool before removing from the baking sheets.

Makes 3-4 dozen cookies.

Dan's Pudding

 My son is dealing with lymphoma and food allergies. Not a fun combo. One of the few foods that's sitting well for him is pudding. Made from scratch to avoid the stuff he's allergic to. This is his recipe. It takes a lot of effort, mostly standing at the stove stirring and stirring and stirring and stirring..., but it's very tasty. And very rich, definitely not anywhere close to diet. And right now, any calories we can get in him are a plus. So it's worth the effort.

I just made a half gallon of the stuff. That should last him a few days. Maybe.

Dan's Pudding

2 c. cream (half and half or whipping)

1 c. sugar (organic cane sugar for him)

2 c. milk (2% or whole)

6 T. flour

1/2 t. salt

1 t. vanilla

1/4 c. butter

In a 2-quart saucepan, heat cream and sugar over medium low heat. Stir constantly until it comes to a low boil. Keep stirring for five minutes.

Mix milk, flour, and salt, whisk until as smooth as you can get it. Add to the cream mixture, straining through a fine strainer to get all the lumps out.

Stir constantly (I use a flat whisk). Keep stirring until it barely comes to a low boil. That's just a few big bubbles. It will thicken up some before it hits this stage. Once it's bubbling a little, stir over low heat for 20 minutes. Set a timer and just keep stirring.

Remove from the heat. Stir in butter and vanilla. Pour into serving dishes and chill. It will thicken up more as it cools.

Banana variation:

Chop up a banana or two and stir in with the butter and vanilla.

Makes 1 quart of pudding, which is anywhere from one really big serving to eight small ones.

Super Simple Spinach Dip

 I adore spinach artichoke dip, but the commercial ones have things that give me problems, like artichokes. So here's my take. It takes 3-4 hours, but most of that is waiting for the slow cooker to do its thing.

Super Simple Spinach Dip

1/2 c. diced onions, sweet preferred

2 T. butter

1 t. minced garlic

1 8 oz pkg cream cheese

1/4 c. milk

1/3 c. mayonnaise

1 t. ground black pepper

1/2 c. chopped dill pickles OR pickled brussels sprouts OR marinated artichokes OR 1/4 c. capers

3-4 c. fresh spinach (I like to use the baby spinach/chard/kale mix)

Dump onions and butter in small crockpot (2-3 quart size). Cover and cook on high for about 1 1/2 hours, until onions are starting to brown. Stir in garlic. 

Drop cream cheese on top, pour milk over. Don't worry about stirring it. Cover and cook for about 30 minutes, until cream cheese is hot through.

Add mayonnaise, pepper, and pickles. Stir thoroughly.

Coarsely chop spinach. Add on top of other mixture. Pack it in if you like lots of spinach in your dip. Cover and cook on low for about an hour.

Stir spinach into cream cheese mixture. This can get messy, just keep trying to get the spinach coated in the cream cheese. Cover and cook on low for another 15-20 minutes, until spinach is wilted and dip is hot through.

Serve warm or cold. Store in the refrigerator.

Makes 3-4 cups of dip.

Imposter Tom Kha Gai

 I can't find a good Asian grocer around here that carries fresh produce. I can't find another grocer that carries lemongrass, galangal, or lime leaves. So I found a way to fake it. Not quite the same taste, but still pretty good.

This version is pepper, tomato, and potato free.

And cilantro free. I hate the devil weed. Add it if you want but it's not going to get listed in the ingredients.

Imposter Tom Kha Gai, slow cooker style

1 T. butter

1/3 c. onion, minced

1/2 c. sliced mushrooms

1 t. minced garlic

2 t. fresh minced ginger

1 c. white yam, peeled and diced

1 c. carrots, sliced

1 small can sliced water chestnuts

2 T. chicken bouillon

1 t. ground black pepper

1 t. salt

1 T. lime ponzu OR 2 t. soy sauce and 1 t. lime juice

2 T. lemon juice

2 sprigs fresh thai basil

1 c. cooked chicken, diced OR cooked shrimp

1 14-18 oz can coconut milk (not the sweet dessert kind but the cooking kind)

OPTIONAL:

1/4 c. chopped peppers - red bell, jalapeño, thai chili, or whatever

1/2 c. chopped broccoli

1/2 c. sliced zucchini

1/3 c. fresh spinach

1/2 c. chopped kale

1/2 c. chopped chayote squash (stays crispy!)

Heat crock pot on high. Add butter, onion, mushrooms, garlic, and ginger. Let cook for an hour, stirring about halfway through.

Add yams, carrots, water chestnuts, chicken bouillon, salt and pepper. Add just enough boiling water to cover. Cook for 2-3 hours, until vegetables are soft.

Stir in remaining ingredients and whatever optional ones you want to add. Add more hot water if needed. Cover and cook for one more hour, until hot through and all vegetables are cooked.

Serve with rice and garnishes like chopped green onions, chopped hot chilies, chopped peanuts, fresh thai basil leaves, and lime wedges.

Makes between 4 and 10 1.5 cup servings, depending on how many extra vegetables you add and how much extra broth and/or water you add.

Sweet Asian Dressing

 This is like that white salad dressing served in Thai, Japanese, and Sushi restaurants.

Sweet Asian Dressing

1/2 c. mayonnaise

5 T. rice vinegar

2 T. sugar

2 T. sesame oil

1 T. soy sauce

1/4 t. garlic powder

Mix everything together using a blender or a mixer. Cover and refrigerate for an hour before serving.

Makes about 1 c.

Broccoli Cheese Bites

 Broccoli Cheese Bites

2 eggs
2 c. cooked broccoli, chopped small
1 c. shredded cheese

1/4 c. finely chopped sweet onion

1 t. onion powder

1/2 t. garlic powder

1/2 t. black pepper

1 c. fine bread crumbs (panko, crushed croutons, GF panko, etc)

Beat eggs. Stir in everything else. Mix until it's all combined.

Shape into balls or tater tot fingers, about 2 t. of mix per ball. Place on oiled baking sheet leaving space between each ball. Spray the tops with baking spray or brush with oil.

Bake at 400°F for 18-25 minutes, until lightly browned and crispy.

Serve with Ranch or blue cheese dipping sauce.

Makes about 3 dozen bite-size appetizers.