3T Chicken Pot Pie
I have served this deliciousness last weekend. The cowboys spent days working on our new shelters for the cows. Calving season is coming!
Easy dinner, yet with a few extra additions, you can impress your family and friends.
What to have on hand:
- 1 pound of skinless, boneless chicken thighs
- Seasoning for roasting the chicken: paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper, fresh rosemary, olive oil - 1 tsp of each
- Ready to use pie dough - I buy Pillsbury pie dough (you will get two sheets in one pkg)
- 1/2 bag of frozen pearl onions
- 1 bag of frozen veggies of your choice (I have used broccoli, cauliflower and carrots combo. I use fresh veggies from my garden in the summer, but the frozen veggies in the winter will be just fine as well).
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons flour
- Seasoning for the sauce: two sprigs of fresh rosemary (chopped up into small pieces), 3 garlic cloves (chopped), 1 tsp paprika, 1 tsp seasoned salt (regular salt is fine too), 1tsp pepper, 1/2 tsp nutmeg (use it, it will add so much flavor)
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup milk
- 1 egg
Directions:
- Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
- Take the pie dough out of the fridge and bring it to room temperature.
- Coat the chicken with paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper, fresh rosemary, olive oil and roast on a cookie sheet with a rack for about 30 minutes. Check the meat, flip it and roast for another 10 to 15 minutes.
- Let the chicken cool and in the meantime, let's start on the sauce.
- In a big size frying pan melt the butter and include all of the veggies along with the rosemary and garlic. Let the veggies be nicely coated in the butter.
- Add the flour and constantly stir for about a minute, so you don't burn it.
- Slowly pour in the chicken stock and the milk. Continue stirring and the sauce will start to thicken.
- Let's spice it up - mix in all of the spices: paprika, seasoned salt (regular salt is fine too), pepper and nutmeg.
- Simmer on low during the time you will be cutting up the chicken into bitesize chunks. Add the chicken and stir.
- Turn of your sauce and get your ramekins ready. I have used four individual ramekins, but you can certainly use one big pie dish.
- Cut your dough about an inch bigger than your dish. I have used my cookie cutters to cut out fun western designs. You can use whatever you have at home or leave it plain!
- Ladle your sauce with chicken into each of the ramekins, leaving about an inch at the top. Put your dough circles over the top and firmly press around the edges. Put your cookie design on the top. Slit three small holes into each of the dough tops. The sauce will bubble during baking and needs to have an escape route, so you don't end up with a huge mess.
- Crack the egg, whisk it with a splash of water and brush it all over your dough. This will bring nice color to the dish.
- Put the ramekins onto a cookie sheet and bake for about 30 minutes. Check for doneness and if necessary bake for additional 5 minutes.
Let's talk the salad!
- My mother-in-law Diane makes the most delicious salads! Anytime they come over for a dinner, she has the task of bringing one of her tasty creations. Why? My cowboys don't like fancy salads that often. Butter lettuce with Ranch is their favorite option. Bummer for me! So, we have compromised.. I have used lettuce, roasted walnuts and homemade ranch dressing. It satisfied everybody. Here is the Pioneer Woman Ranch recipe.
Dobrou chut! Bon Appetite!
Fancy Dinner under 30 Minutes - Schnitzel
Schnitzel with rice and asparagus is your everyday fancy dinner. It is very often requested by our son aka "Top Ranch Hand". I like making Schnitzel, because it can be so versatile. I can use pork, fish or chicken. Let's face it.. anything breaded is really good and you will score big brownie points with your crowd.
What is Schnitzel? A thin piece of meat that is breaded (flour, egg, breadcrumbs) and fried to perfection.
Best cuts to use: boneless pork chops, chicken breast, cod, tilapia, etc. Pork chops and chicken breast should be thin. I like to use my handy dandy kitchen hammer. Cover your meat with clear foil, so you don't end up wearing all the meat juices and pound away on both sides. The meat will be thin in no time.
Seasoning: You can't skip on seasoning. Season both sides of the meat with salt, pepper and paprika. You can certainly use Lemon Pepper Seasoning on fish.
Dipping stations: Once your meat is thin, seasoned, it is time to bread it. Use one dinner plate for flour, second dinner plate for egg with a splash of milk - whisk it, third dinner plate for seasoned bread crumbs - you can use Italian, garlic or Panko breadcrumbs are all great choices. Pat the breaded meat with your hands to make sure all sticks together. If you have time, but not necessary, put the meat in the fridge for about 30 minutes. This ensures, all of the flour, egg and breadcrumbs will stick to the meat.
Cooking time: Heat up a cast iron pan, pour in about 4 tablespoons of oil and 1 tablespoon of butter. Trust me, the butter makes it extra good. Fry the meat on medium heat for about 5 minutes on each side for chicken, 4 minutes for pork and fish. I usually check that the meat is done in the middle, especially the chicken.
Sides: Mashed potatoes are always a hit. I have served our dinner with wild rice. You can make fancy rice scoops with your ice-cream scoop. (Restaurant tip). Steamed or roasted asparagus with fennel will be another great addition to your plate. Lemon! Don't forget it! Lemon is a nice garnish for your plate, but use the juice on your meat right before you serve it. Just a few drops over the cooked meat.
Leftovers: If you have any! Schnitzel sandwich - rye bread, mustard, pickle and Schnitzel. The best travel lunch. My mom made these sandwiches for all of our road trips.
Appetizer: This was very popular for one of our dinner parties: Cut up your Schnitzel (this time chicken or pork would be the best choices) into bite size pieces, put it onto a buttered and toasted french baguette that was also cut up into bite size pieces, top it with a sliced pickle. Use a toothpick to secure and serve it on a big platter. You can also put a little bit of spicy mustard on the bread. Voila!
Dobrou chut! Bon Appetite!
What is a Rib Steak?
We all know how delicious a Rib Eye Steak is, but what is a Rib Steak? Well, let me tell you that Rib Steak is even better than Rib Eye Steak. The Rib Eye is boneless and the Rib Steak includes the rib bone and is often called a "Bone-In Rib Eye Steak". Rib Steaks are also the same as Prime Rib. When combined as a multiple Rib Roast Section and roasted, it is Prime Rib. When each bone section is sliced and then grilled, it becomes a
Bone-in Rib Steak.
Now, how do we cook it?
You can grill it or we cooked it last night in the cast iron pan. The important step that many people forget is to bring the meat to room temperature (at least 30 minutes), dry it with paper towel and adequately salt it.
If you are grilling the steak, cook it low and slow. If you are using a cast iron pan, make sure to heat the pan first, then pour in one tablespoon of canola oil and I also include a little bit of butter. Let it heat up again. Sear the meat on both sides, the pan should be screaming hot and sizzling. I would say about two minutes on each side, check out the nice crust on our steak. Transfer the meat onto a cookie sheet with a rack, pour your oil and butter mixture from the cast iron pan onto the meat and put it into 475 degree oven for three minutes to finish the meat. Don't move from the kitchen, you can easily overcook the meat! Take the meat out of the oven and let it rest for about 4 minutes, cover it with foil.
Time to cut the steak and enjoy this wonderful cut. I have served the steak with loaded cauliflower mash. (Steamed cauliflower, 1/2 brick of cream cheese, 1/2 cup of shredded cheddar, 2 chopped up green onions, 2 cloves of chopped up garlic. Mix it all together, you can also use a little bit of your steaming liquid to make the perfect texture. Sprinkle with more cheese and bacon pieces).
Gulas -Polish Sausage with Gnocchi - Dinner under 30 Minutes
What is Gulas? It is a traditional Czech meal, tasty savory sauce that is easy to make and will become a staple in your home. Gulas is typically served with beef stew meat, but we have found out that Polish sausage is even better and faster to prepare. Dinner is served under 30 minutes.
Things to have on hand:
- 3T Ranch Polish sausage - cut up
- 1 onion - small dice
- 1 green pepper - small dice
- 4 cloves of garlic - chopped up
- 1 tablespoon paprika (Hungarian Paprika is the best)
- 1 teaspoon caraway seeds (no biggie, if you don't have it, but adds a nice flavor)
- 2 tablespoon canola oil or naturally refined coconut oil
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 5 cups of liquid (water, chicken stock or beef stock - use whatever you have at home)
- 2 pkgs dry gnocchi (you can buy these in the pasta isle)
- 1 tablespoon butter
- parsley for garnish
- salt and pepper to taste
- garlic bread - Who doesn't like to dip bread into a tasty sauce?!
Let's get cooking:
- I love my new cast iron pot that I got for Christmas, but you can use any big frying pan that will hold all of the food.
- Cut up onion, pepper and garlic.
- Sauté the veggies in one tablespoon of oil until translucent. Take it out of the pan, add another tablespoon and sauté the sausage. My guys like to have a nice crust on both sides.
- Put the veggies back into the pot, add 1 tablespoon of flour and stir until the flour has nice light brown color.
- At this time also add your spices, but keep stirring! Paprika, caraway seeds, salt and pepper.
- Slowly add the liquid and continue stirring until flour and spice mixture is absorbed into the liquid, no lumps. The flour will help to thicken your sauce.
- Simmer for about 20 minutes. The sauce should have consistency of a pasta sauce. You can certainly add more water, if your sauce becomes too thick.
- OK, now onto the gnocchi. Melt one tablespoon of butter in a frying pan (again cast iron works the best) and sauté the gnocchi. This will take about 8 minutes. We like to have a nice light brown crust on the gnocchi. We prefer this method of cooking vs boiling it. You will end up with crunchy outside and soft inside.
- You are ready to serve! Garnish with parsley. I forgot, but it was still a hit!
Dobrou chut! Bon Appetite!
Tips for Cooking Grassfed Beef
We are currently in the process of getting our beef certified through the American Grassfed Association!
American Grassfed Association (AGA) defines grassfed animals as those that have eaten nothing but grass and forage from weaning to harvest, have not been raised in confinement, and have never been fed antibiotics or growth hormones. In addition, all AGA-Certified Producers are American family farms and their livestock is born and raised in the U.S.
As I was filling out our application, I came across a few handy tips on cooking grassfed meat. It sure makes a difference to cook the meat properly!
We will keep you posted on our certification progress!
Tips for Cooking Grassfed Beef!
http://www.americangrassfed.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Tips-for-Cooking-Grassfed-Beef.pdf
Does a Calf Need a Checkup?
The two weeks over Christmas and New Year are sure busy on the 3T Ranch. We scramble last minute like everybody else to get the last Christmas presents, get few more things from the grocery store, cook a delicious meal or two, "OD" on the Christmas cookies, enjoy our awesome presents and watch plenty of College Football Bowl games. This year, we have also celebrated Peanut's 1st birthday. We threw a big ladybug bash for her and her little friends. She was our surprise Christmas baby last year! OK.. I'm getting to the point of this post! But, there is a "little" bit more for us to do..
No matter the season, weather or how tired we are, we still have to tend to our animals, everyday, twice a day! It has been cold, snowy and just not nice, so we have been postponing the weaning of our calves. Our animals do best with minimum stress, so we try to work them in the most gentle manner. Some of our calves are reaching the point of 800 lbs and such a "big baby" doesn't need to be nursing anymore. As all of us moms know, nursing takes a lot of calories and we needed to make sure that mama cows are gaining good weight over the wintertime to prepare for the birth of their new babies in the springtime. Some of the cows are starting to wean on their own as they mostly eat grass, hay in the winter time, but some of them still didn't want to give up their tasty milky snacks. (Peanut.. hint, hint.. Neither does she want to give up her tasty milky snack)!
The sun finally started to shine and we've decided that it was a good day to wean the calves. The cowboys patiently waited over a couple of hours to separate the calves from the cows as they came one by one into the corrals to water. Much easier to separate them in a peaceful manner then herd everybody in the same spot and then separate them. Their is plenty of times when we need to herd the older cows, but we needed to be gentle with these "big babies". Every calf went through his or her checkup. What is a calf checkup? We check their coats, all of them get their deworming solution, pinch them with a needle to deliver their vaccines and everybody gets a tasty probiotic to help their guts adjust to their new only grass diet. As you can see from the picture below, the cowboss was very happy with the weight of the calves, 800 lbs calf is a stellar achievement not just for any mama cow.It pays off to do things the right way, without hormones or antibiotics, we can still produce some fine animals!
After their checkups the calves get their own pasture with a never empty hay feeder to allow them to graze anytime of the day, so they can keep putting on weight even during the wintertime. We have found out that the best way to wean calves is to keep them close to the mamas. The two pastures are separated only by our corrals. This allows the cows and the calves to come and check on each other anytime of the day. It helps that they can see and smell each other.
As you can see, working cows is a family production, everybody contributes. Well, Peanut and I were mostly just for the "looks" this year, but pretty soon our small cowgirl will start her own training.. Well, she already did.. Grammy and Papa got her a cow rocker that she loves and rides all the time.
Ranch life is the best! Happy New Year from the 3T Ranch!
Shrimp Appetizer
I'm always trying to come up with new recipes to add to our "3T Ranch Food Rotation". The new item has to be approved by my cowboys before it can make it to this prestige list! Trust me, when I say my guys love my cooking, but they are also picky on what they add to our list. I got a shrimp dip recipe from my best friend Carrie many years ago that has been our staple for holidays and family celebrations. I thought that maybe I can tweak it and make it a little bit more festive to serve to my family as we ring the New Year. My practice run has turned out even better than I expected! The shrimp cups didn't last very long. Easy, festive and delicious.. you should give it a try!
Ingredients:
- 24 uncooked shrimp
- 2 scallions - chopped
- 1 tablespoon of fresh dill - chopped (you can use dry dill, but fresh is much better)
- 1 cup of arugula
- 1/2 block of cream cheese - softened
- 2 tablespoons of milk
- 12 wonton wrappers
- cooking spray for mini muffin tin
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil (garlic olive oil is great for this recipe, but any olive oil will do)
- 1/2 tablespoon of Wildtree Spicy Carne Asada seasoning (variation: 1/2 teaspoon of chili powder, 1/2 teaspoon of cumin and 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder)
- salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
- Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray mini muffin tin with cooking spray and arrange wonton wrappers in the 12 cups. Spray the wontons again with the cooking spray. Bake for about 5 to 7 minutes until golden brown and crisp.
- In a bowl combine softened cream cheese, scallions, dill, salt and pepper. Use electric mixer to combine all ingredients for nice smooth texture. Add one tablespoon of milk at a time to make the dip nice and smooth, but don't make it too runny!
- Pour olive oil into a skillet and turn it to medium heat. Throw in your shrimp along with the seasoning. I have used the Wildtree Spicy Carne Asada as I had some left from one of their parties, but you can certainly make your mix with chili powder, cumin and garlic powder. Cook until pink with a nice crust. (Note: What makes a good crust? Dry your uncooked shrimp in paper towels, so you don't steam your shrimp instead).
- Time to assemble! Put your wonton cups on a plate, on the bottom of the cups put a few leaves of arugula. This will give the cups a nice peppery taste. Next layer is the dip and each cup gets topped with two pieces of shrimp. Serve immediately.
Happy Birthday Cowboss/Prime Rib Roast
It is a weeklong birthday celebration at the ranch. We like to go all out for birthdays. Nothing better than to surprise the Cowboss with few unexpected, non-requested presents and of course great dinner or two or in this year's case.. three great dinners.
We had family over on Sunday to watch the game. Go Broncos! Well, they didn't win, but there is always next time. Our new smoker arrived a few weeks ago and since then the Cowboss have been producing culinary wonders. Smoked ham and chicken, pork green chili nachos, carrot cake, well you get the picture here. Nobody leaves the 3T Ranch hungry!
But the awaited meal was delivered on the actual birthday night. We have been saving the Prime Rib Roast for this special occasion. I was a little nervous, little intimidated and very excited. I sure didn't want to mess up this meal! I have read through at least 10 recipes, bought a new meat thermometer and finally went for it!
Our prime rib roasts are about 2 lbs, perfect size for the four of us, second helpings and steak and egg breakfast in the morning.
Prime Rib Roast
- 3T Ranch prime rib roast bone in- 2lbs
- 3 rosemary sprigs
- 3 thyme sprigs
- 5 garlic cloves - minced
- 2 tablespoons of salt
- 2 tablespoons of crushed peppercorns
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
- Horseradish sauce:
- 2 tablespoons of horseradish
- 1&1/2 tablespoons of mayo
- 2 dashes of Worcestershire sauce
Directions
- Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Pour olive oil all over the roast and rub it like you mean it!
- In a bowl put together chopped up rosemary, thyme, garlic, salt and peppercorns. I have used our small handy dandy mini food processor, but you an certainly chop it up as well. Mix it together and rub it all over the meat. Press the mixture into the meat.
- Put the roast onto a rack in a roasting pan and cook it at 500 degrees for about 15 minutes. This will give the meat a nice crust.
- Lower the temperature to 250 degrees and cook the meat for another hour or until the thermometer is about 140 degrees.
- Our beef is grass fed/grass finished, therefore, very lean. The cooking method should always be low and slow!
- Let the meat rest for about 10 minutes and make sure to cover it with foil. You don't want the tasty juices to run all over your cutting board.
- I have served this culinary wonder with popovers and wild rice.
- Mix the horseradish sauce and serve!
I would say, I made my guys pretty happy. After all, the prime rib was really easy to make. Happy Birthday Cowboss!
P.S. Whiskey tasting dinner is coming up on Thursday. Not a bad week for the birthday boy! Stay tuned for whiskey finger licking recipes!
3 Ingredients that you should add to your kitchen
Caraway Seeds
Caraway seeds are a great addition to mashed potatoes. Boil your potatoes and during this process, add about 1 tablespoon of caraway seeds. Caraway seeds have a warm, sweet, and slightly peppery aroma. The seeds will get soft and add a new twist on your mashed potatoes. Check out these health benefits!
Marjoram
The round, light green to light gray-green leaves possess a pleasant aromatic odor and have a warm, slightly bitter taste. I like to use dry marjoram in Potato Latkes. Add about 1 tablespoon of dry marjoram into the shredded potato mixture.
Parsley Root
Parsley root is light beige, shaped like a carrot, but slender like a parsnip. The flavor is described as a taste between celery and carrots with a little parsley leaf and turnip. Parsley root is delicious in potato salads. Peal and cook your parsley root with potatoes and carrots when making a potato salad. Cut up the soft parsley root and include it in your potato salad. Great texture and taste!