Breastfast Poutine (for dinner from someone who has never had poutine before)

Disclaimer: I have never had proper poutine before.  I have only been to Canada once, and I didn’t really eat anything. I just remember drinking.  Cheap drinks up there, eh?

This week, Henry and I took our newly 2 month old, Graycen Olivia to California to see some Redwoods.  And by “see some Redwoods,” I mean sleep or cry (but mostly sleep) through the entire car ride.  On the way home, we stopped in Bandon, Oregon, for a much needed breast feeding sesh and coffee for mama.  Desperately, I pulled into the first large-ish parking lot, Face Rock Creamery. I changed a diaper, and Henry went inside to scope the coffee. Diaper changed, Henry came out and told me they had ice cream, wine, and cheese. So of course, we all went in. What an amazing little place.  We tasted so many awesome cheeses and I got enough coffee to sustain me for the rest of the drive home.  We bought some cheese curds, just ’cause, and Henry suggested poutine.  When we got home, neither of us wanted to go to the grocery store for what we needed to make proper poutine (which neither of us have had), and so Henry and and I came up with a breakfast poutine idea.

Components:

1. Hand off baby so you can have a drink and cook dinner
2. Take the drink your husband makes you and make it stronger
3. Make sausage gravy
4. Make hashbrowns
5. Layer garlic cheese curds between hashbrowns and gravy.
6. Eat

Lasagna Soup OR It’s Superb Owl day and neither of us are giving a single care.

Over the past 5 weeks, our household has experienced H1N1, sinus infections, bronchitis, and strep throat. Fevers, chills, cough syrup, too many antibiotics. Here we are, beginning February–and Henry woke up with a fever. My cough is returning. I am bone deep tired of being sick. With that said, it’s been a great winter. Wonderful holiday trips to Alderdale and Bellingham. Work at my high school has been going exceptionally well, considering the change in our grading system. Things are plugging along. I am feeling rather optimistic…so much so that I just got done painting my fingernails. And now I am actually doing a blog post. Henry is on hour four or five of homework and I am considering starting dinner.

I chose this recipe based solely on the pictures. Drool.  I mostly followed it. I can’t wait to eat it!

It’s simple. I tweaked it a bit–I thought the addition of spinach at the end would lighten it up a bit and make it more healthy. Now I only wish I had bought some french bread to go with it!

Dinner Breakfast Sandwiches (made with love)

Sometimes the kids are good eaters. Sometimes they are dubious. When I first started making meals for these little people, I had to really sell my food. One night, I made pork chops or something, way back when Henry and I were first dating. “Is this chicken?” one of the kids asked. “Nope. It’s pork.”
“What’s pork?”

Henry, whispered: “Say it’s chicken.”

Jenn: “It’s chicken. And I made it with love.”

From then on, for every single meal I’ve made for them, they always ask if I’ve made it with love. One time, I made chili and put in a can of diced tomatoes. Like clockwork, the oldest asked, “Jenn, did you make this with love?”

“Yes,” I answered.

“Are these pieces of your heart?” She was, of course, referring to the chunks of tomato in her chili. And she doesn’t like tomatoes.

“Yes,” I said confidently.

Henry cut me a look that said: Did you really just tell her she’s eating your heart?

I grinned and she took a bite.

We’re a weird bunch.

Tonight I made breakfast sandwiches with canned biscuits, homemade sausage, muenster cheese, and eggs.

They were cute, filling, and made with lots of love.

Sausage recipe:

• 1.5 pounds of ground pork
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp pepper
• 2 tsp fresh sage (minced finely)
• 2 tsp fresh thyme (minced finely)
• 1/2 tsp fresh rosemary (minced finely)
• 1 T brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp chili flakes

Mix thoroughly. Form into small patties for sandwiches. Fry. Or use to make sausage gravy with those biscuits. Do whatever. It’s good.

(Adapted from Alton Brown’s recipe)

Chicken Sausage, Feta, and Grape Tomato Pasta

I really didn’t do much today. No homework or yoga. I did sweep the kitchen floor and I did go to Market of Choice. I took a nap. See? I’m embarrassed to even reveal how lame my day was.
But, I had a plan for dinner. So, in my twisted little brain, I do feel like I accomplished something today. Dinner was a success. I highly recommend this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 2 fresh Italian chicken sausage

• 1 pint of yellow grape tomatoes

• 1 package of feta

• half of an onion, diced

• four cloves of garlic, minced

• mixture of herbs, minced with the garlic (parsley, thyme, rosemary)

• 1 zucchini, chopped

• half of a cup of chicken stock

• half of a pound of whole wheat pasta

Method: Brown the sausage in some olive oil. I threw them in the pot whole, instead of squeezing them out of the casings. After they were sufficiently browned, but perhaps not cooked all the way through, I set them aside. Next, I sauteed the onion, zucchini, garlic, and herbs in the oil from the sausage. I added the whole grape tomatoes, some salt and pepper, and let it cook together until the tomatoes popped. I kind of squished them, too, so that they would release their juices to make a sauce. I sliced the sausage, added it to the tomatoes, diced the feta added it to the sauce, and added the stock. I simmered it all together until the pasta was cooked. Threw it all together. The end.

In other news, Sriracha Ice Cream Sandwich!

Happy Spring! Sausage Gravy and Snow Days…

I woke up Wednesday morning to a text from a work friend who told me it was snowing. Uh…thanks? Why the text at 5am? 30 minutes before my alarm is set to go off? Then another text: 2 hour delay. Oh. I quickly sat up in bed and threw open the blinds. More snow in Eugene than I’ve seen since moving here. I set my alarm for seven and was woken up around six by another text that said school was canceled. So, here today, Thursday, school is canceled again. With spring break technically starting next week, it looks like I get a week and a half off instead of the standard week. And before falling asleep last night, I told the boyfriend that if I didn’t have school today, I’d get up this morning and make sausage gravy and biscuits for breakfast. It looks like I gotta make good on my promise.

Ingredients:

• Milk
• sausage
• butter
• flour
• onion
• garlic
• chicken stock
• whomp biscuits

Start by browning your sausage in a large skillet. I bought some bulk country sausage yesterday.

 

 

 

 

 

 

After the sausage fries for awhile, add a quarter of an onion, finely diced, and a few cloves of garlic, minced.

 

 

 

 

 

 

After it all fries together for a bit, add a couple tablespoons of flour to the pan. Alternate milk and chicken stock (stirring continuously) into the roux until gravy starts to form.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fry some eggs. Plate it all up. (Oh, yeah. Make some biscuits.)

Potato, Spinach, and Sausage Casserole

I am not a big casserole person.  But this looks so warm and comforting. And slightly trashy. And I’m sick, so don’t judge. You’re just lucky I didn’t top the whole damn thing with biscuits.

I’m not sure if I’ll make any changes; well, knowing me, I probably will.  I think I’ll just take the concept of potatoes, spinach, and sausage and put it together however it best makes sense to me.

Ingredients:

• 8 potatoes (7 russet, 1 sweet)
• a bunch of spinach
• 1 onion
• garlic
• 1.5 pounds country style, bulk sausage
• cheddar cheese
• milk and butter
• salt and pepper

Method:

Peel, chop, boil, and mash potatoes. Add milk and butter, salt and pepper.  Wilt spinach into mashed potatoes. Saute onion, and garlic.   Brown sausage. Make a roux and add a bit of milk to the roux and sausage to make a bit of gravy. Spread a layer of potatoes and spinach in a casserole dish; top with sausage gravy; top with cheese.  Bake until heated through–bubbling and brown on top.

Damn you, Safeway Organic Tomato Sauce

Sausage and Oyster Mushroom Tomato Sauce

• 3 links Italian sausage (one hot, two sweet)
• Oyster mushrooms
• One onion
• Tomato product (sauce, crushed, etc.) from hell: a salty, salty hell (15% Daily Recommended Value of sodium)
• dried basil and oregano
• Grateful feelings because you forgot to salt the sauce as you were making it
• Wine and Sugar to counteract the terrible salt bomb that is Safeway Organic Tomato Sauce
• Frowns and frustrated sighs
• Wine to drink

I will make polenta as soon as I get over my salt frustration.  

In other news: we planted beets and lettuce today.

And we found a millipede in our apartment.  

It’s been an eventful day.  

Sunday Morning Menu Planning

I have really been slacking lately on the weekend cooking and blogging.   I’ve just been too tired and pressed for time to take extra time to plan meals.  But today, from the comfort of my bed, with Hector curled up at my feet, I’ve had the pleasure to search for recipes.

Yesterday, we went to Winco and bought a few items.  I got some peppered bacon, garlic chicken sausage, oyster mushrooms, and a few other things.  I really haven’t found any recipes online that I want to make, but I do have some ideas of my own.

It’s been a long time since I’ve made a pot of potato soup.  Potato soup is one of those dishes that reminds me of my childhood.  Everyone in my family had their own version of this cheap, stretch your dollars sort of meal.  Potatoes, a piece or two of cured or smoked pig product, an onion, celery, a bit of milk, flour.  Simple and uninteresting ingredients that, once combined, turn into something comforting and rather rich and hearty—robust, even.

So, with my bacon and a handful of potatoes, I’ll make some soup today.

With the sausage and mushrooms, I’ve been thinking about some sort of pasta dish.   Maybe pasta with a spicy, chunky sauce.  Or perhaps the sauce could go over polenta.

I also have some tempeh and bell peppers in the fridge that have been patiently waiting in the fridge for me to use. I had intended to make stuffed peppers–but throwing the tempeh and peppers into a pot of chili sounds even better.

Going into this post, I thought I had a stronger plan.  Hmm.  I may end up making nothing I blogged about.  I think I need another cup of coffee and some time in the kitchen.