
Coq Au Vin, a chicken with red wine sauce, is famous French comfort food that is simple to make and delicious.
Gourmet Food on a Budget - Recipes, Methods, and Meal Planning - Ever Forward, Ever Flavorful

Coq Au Vin, a chicken with red wine sauce, is famous French comfort food that is simple to make and delicious.

With just the two of us, a regular chicken is just too big, so I started buying Cornish Hens. They come two to the pack, at 1 1/2 pounds each. A one-half bird is enough to feed one person. Cornish hens taste just like regular chickens and are not baby chickens. For more information, please see the Wikipedia article on Cornish Game Hen.
I love barbecued chicken, but barbecues have been outlawed in our city, so I am stuck with less conventional ways of barbecuing. Last year, I bought a cast iron grill/griddle just for the purpose of barbecuing steaks and making pancakes. It also does a fine job with chicken, and I use the top of my wok to cover foods so they can completely cook. Of course, I have to have my windows wide open, and I shut off the bedroom where the fire alarms are to prevent them from going off. My grill/griddle is easy to clean, just put it in water while it is still warm, but not hot.
I used Hoisin sauce because my son had expressed a desire for Chinese food the day before, but you could use whatever barbecue sauce is your favorite. I served it with Same Day Fried Rice and we had ourselves an Asian feast!
Can you use freshly cooked rice on the same day to make fried rice? No, you can't. But, if you use this same-day fried rice method, you can cure your craving any day. You will be surprised at how easy this is.

It rained today, and it's a bit chilly, the night before Halloween. Social media is talking about killer clowns coming out in my city, so I'm double-locking the doors, just to be on the safe side. It's a perfect night for apple pie.
Someone gave me a can of apple pie filling and a package of frozen puff pastry. When I received the gift, I put both away, thinking I would use them for other things. But, today, I realized I could put them together and make a wonderful pie. There is no need for a pie pan, just a sheet pan, and some parchment paper to keep the pastry from sticking. Of course, you could use other fillings, cherry or blueberry would be great.
This Chicken Marsala with gnocchi is a perfect fall dish that is easy to make but will also impress your guests. Enjoy with a glass of white wine.

Chicken with Wine Cream Sauce is rich and delicious served with noodles and broccoli.
Labor Day is such an important day to remember those who fought for good working conditions and a living wage. It's also a fine excuse to make some good food. Whilst looking through Paula Deen's Southern Cooking Bible, I came across a recipe for pork roast which gave me the idea to make this pork loin roast with tangy lemon sauce.
Pork loin roast is one of my favorite meats. I like mine on the rare side, just pink on the inside. I usually give the end slices to Spane because he likes his a little more cooked. There is no excuse for serving a dried out, gray colored roast of pork. Armed with a good instant thermometer, you can serve perfect pork at 140 degrees. Just make sure to let the roast rest for about 10 minutes before carving it. I use an electric knife because it makes the nicest slices.
If you want to make this on the grill, more power to you! Pork roast is great on the grill, but you have to use the Indirect method. This means you put a pile of hot coals on one side of the grill, and a pan of liquid under the meat, which gives the meat a nice, steamy place to slowly cook. If you want, you can use beer, wine or fruit juice for the liquid.
Recipes in this PostDon't you hate the same old thing? I love Jambalaya and with that in mind, I have Polska Kielbasa on hand. I was all ready to make it tonight, but then I looked at the ingredients placed nicely on the counter, ready to go, and I decided I just didn't want it tonight. Maybe because it is September and fall is coming quickly, and I wanted something to remind me of the cool days to come. Maybe it's because I had some lovely red potatoes and a half a head of cabbage I wanted to use up. I also wanted something really simple that I could cook in one skillet.
Do you have issues when you try to saute potatoes to make home fries? Do they burn on the outside, and stay hard as rocks on the inside? There is hope, and it's called a microwave oven. Simply cut up your potatoes, put them in a microwave safe bowl, cover with water, and cook using the Potato button, about 12 minutes. Then drain the potatoes and add them to your skillet. Since they are already cooked, you just have to season and brown them.
Recipes in this PostI have been a fan of Chinese Chicken Salad since the 1980's when I first had it. Everyone once in a while, I have all the ingredients to make it. This afternoon, Spane and I went and had a very filling lunch at Everest Burgers, so we didn't want a heavy or big dinner. I asked him if salad would be good, and he said yes. Then I went to my pantry and saw that I had Mandarin oranges, I knew what to make.
This salad has everything but the chicken, and if you happen to have cooked chicken, you are more than welcome to add it to this salad. Make sure you have a sharp knife because you will be chopping the greens and the onion into small pieces.
You could add other fruit to this salad as well, like lychee nuts, or even cherries. I had unsweetened coconut chips which had just enough sweetness, sweetened coconut would be too powerful, so I don't recommend it. Please choose whichever Asian salad dressing you like, we like Girard's Asian Dressing.