I’d like to welcome our latest Guest Chef here on Cooking With Court. Ashley has been a dear friend ever since we met back in 2002. She was a junior in HS and a VERY good clarinet player! Ashley was a band student at the HS where I did my student teaching during my senior year of college. She and her husband, Larry, were both students of mine during my time there and I’m so thrilled that we’re still in touch!

Ashley is a fantastic photographer and she’s always got these delicious meals that she’s making. She’s the perfect fit for a guest chef here on Cooking With Court and I’m so happy she agreed to share one of her favorite recipes with us today!

If you’re looking for the perfect “comfort food recipe,” here ya go…

Thanks Ashley!

My husband and I are high school sweethearts and have been married for nearly three years now. (Incidentally, I also met Court in high school too, she was our student teacher in band.) We just bought our first house in Des Moines, Iowa. We’re learning by trial and error how to complete the many renovations our vintage house needs. Cooking is a way to temporarily escape from the house projects. I learned to cook under my mom’s instruction, but it hasn’t been until recently that I’ve really learned to love it! Somewhere along the line I figured out that cooking and baking is just another way to express artistic talent and share it with others. I love carefully arranging food, photographing it, and sharing it with family and friends. When Court asked me to be a guest chef I couldn’t resist the temptation to share with a few new friends!

Chicken Pot Pie

Ingredients:

2 cups of cooked chicken- either shredded or cubed (it could even be left over chicken)

1- 15 oz can of chicken broth

3/4 cup of warmed cream or milk

1 cup of frozen carrots

1 cup of frozen peas

1/4 cup finely chopped onions

3-4 small red potatoes

3 tablespoons butter

6 tablespoons of flour

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp sage

1/4 thyme

black pepper to taste

pie crust

Directions:

1. Melt the butter over medium heat. While the butter is melting, chop the onion.

2. Add the chopped onion to the melted butter. Cook until the onions are softened- about 2 or 3 minutes.

3. Combine flour, salt, pepper, sage, and thyme in a bowl. Stir dry ingredients to evenly combine them. Add the dry ingredients to the melted butter and onions and stir to create a roux.

4. Cook the roux until the flour smells toasty- about a minute or two.

5. Warm the cream or milk in the microwave for 1 minute and then add to the roux. Whisk while adding the milk to the roux. It will create a thick paste. Gradually add the chicken broth to the mixture.

6. Add chopped potatoes, chicken, frozen carrots and peas. There’s no need to thaw the frozen vegetables.

7. Simmer over med low heat while you line a pie tin with pie crust and preheat the oven to 450°

8. Fill the pie crust with the gravy and vegetables. Place an additional crust on top and seal the edges.

9. Bake the pie at 450° for about 20 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.

Allow the pie to cool for 15 minutes. This will allow the gravy to thicken slightly before serving.

Here’s step-by-step photos…

 

Spinach Balls

Today we welcome one of my best friends, Alison, to Cooking With Court. Alison and I met almost 2 years ago on a local forum for newlyweds. We initially started chatting because she and I have the same career, only at 2 different hospitals in our area, but we also soon found out we have sooooo much more in common than just our jobs, it’s a wee bit scary! HA! Alison and I quickly became very good friends and we can be found a couple times a month at a local coffee shop or restaurant talking for hours on end.

Like me, Alison really loves to cook and I asked her to share one of her favorite recipes with you all.

So with that…heeeeeeeeerrrrrrreeee’s Alison!

My name is Alison and I really enjoy food- cooking it, eating it, sharing it! Most of my childhood memories involve some kind of food. These spinach balls are a family favorite! They are like gold sitting in the freezer! They are never absent from the appetizer extravaganza on Christmas Eve! My job was always to drain and squeeze the water out of the spinach! Besides my love of food I have another love of my life, My Husband Geoff. We have been married for almost 3 years and have enjoyed every minute of it! We share a love for camping, going on cruises, biking, going to our favorite home improvement store, and the TV show The Biggest Loser! We are also currently training for a local half marathon! Although our parents would love for us to provide them with grandchildren they have our cute, lovable fur child Lily to tide them over!

I was so honored that Court asked me to contribute to her fantastic cooking blog and am blessed to call her my friend!

Spinach Balls

2 10 oz packages chopped spinach (drain and squeeze the water out)

2 cups Pepperidge Farm Herb stuffing mix (the dry crumb type)- roll with rolling pin to break up large crumbs

1 medium onion finely chopped

6 large eggs slightly beaten

3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (the kind that comes in the can)

1 tsp garlic salt

1/2 tsp. ground thyme

1/2 tsp. pepper

3/4 cup softened margarine (DO NOT USE BUTTER)

Mix all the ingredients together. Chill for 1 hour in the refrigerator. Roll into balls the size of walnuts and place on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper or parchment paper. Put cookie sheet in freezer. Remove from cookie sheet when frozen, put into a zip top bag and store in freezer until needed. Bake frozen for 15-20 minutes in a preheated 350 degree oven. Makes about 4 dozen spinach balls.

Carol’s Pumpkin Bars

It’s that time again! Things have been so weird, schedule-wise, since I got back from my trip a couple weeks ago so I apologize for the delay in posts!

Life gets in the way when you’re busy making plans, ya know?

I’d like to take a moment to introduce yet another fabulous guest chef. Carol is a co-worker of mine and a fabulous RN on our nursing unit. She’s been a wonderful friend to me since I started my new job last year and she’s a FABULOUS cook!

Carol and I are always swapping cooking stories at work and I asked her right away to give me one of her recipes to share with all of you! I’m so happy she agreed and I’m sure you all will be also!

So here it is…

Carol’s Pumpkin Bars

2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1 cup oil
4 eggs
2 cups canned pumpkin or squash

Mix above ingredients well. Bake for 25 minutes at 350 degrees in a greased jelly roll pan.

Frosting:

1 – 3 oz. cream cheese
6 tbsp of butter
1 tsp vanilla
1 3/4 – 2 cups of powdered sugar
1 tbsp milk or cream

Beat the above ingredients well for the frosting and spread on cooled bars.

New England Sausage Gravy on Herbed Biscuits

I’d like to take a moment to introduce our Guest Chef for the month of February!

E Scot Fuller comes to Cooking With Court from the beautiful state of Maine. Scot and I met back in 2000 where we spent 3 fun-filled days together at a Music Education Conference/Convention held in Indiana. I was immediately drawn to his incredibly fun personality and even though we have not seen each other in person since, he remains a good friend.

In reconnecting with Scot over the past couple of years, I have discovered he has quite the passion and love for cooking, and has even started his own in-home personal chef/catering business called Newfangled Eats. His culinary creations never cease to amaze me and I knew immediately that he needed to be a guest chef and share some of his masterpieces with you all.

You can check out Scot’s business website and learn more about him HERE!

Thank you, Scot for being such a great friend and for sharing with my readers! I wish you continued success in the future.

“Although sausage gravy is often thought of as a traditional southern food, you’ll be hard pressed not find it on the menu of any good “Yankee” breakfast dinner. In this recipe, I combine the traditional savory gravy with a touch of sweet maple syrup and delicious herbs baked into a classic country biscuit. You are sure to enjoy!”

Prep & Cook Time: 1 hour
Servings: 6-8

Herb Biscuit

2 cups all purpose flour
2 tsps. baking powder
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. fresh chopped thyme
1 tsp. fresh chopped parley
1 tsp. fresh chopped rosemary
1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick), room temperature
3/4 cup milk

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. In a mixing bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix in fresh chopped herbs.

3. Using your fingers, rub in the butter to the flour mixture until the butter is well incorporated. Add the milk in three parts stirring until a soft dough is formed.

4. Turn dough onto a floured surface and kneed for 30 seconds. Roll dough to 1/2 thickness and cut with a 1 1/2 to 2 inch biscuit cutter. Gather dough and roll again until you have 6-8 biscuits.

5. Place biscuits on the lined baking sheet and bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.

While biscuits are baking, start the sausage gravy.

Sausage Gravy

1 12oz package bulk sausage (found in the meat department)
5 tbsp. butter
1/2 cup all purpose flour
6 cups whole milk
1/2 cup real maple syrup
Salt & Pepper to taste

1. Break sausage into small chunks and brown in a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat until evenly brown. Remove sausage from pan using a slotted spoon, leaving the drippings in the pan.

2. Add the butter to the sausage drippings stirring till fully melted. Add flour and stir until smooth. You’ve just made a roux!

3. Reduce heat to medium and continue to cook roux until light brown. Gradually whisk in milk and cook until thickened. Whisk in maple syrup and season with salt and pepper. Stir in the cooked sausage .

4. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook 12-15 minutes. Taste the gravy and add more salt and pepper to taste. Gravy will continue to thicken. If gravy become too thick, stir in more milk to your liking.

5. For plating, cut 1 herb biscuit in half and ladle sausage gravy on top. Garnish with diced chives or parsley. Serve with Paprika Home Fries.

Paprika Homefries

Prep & Cook Time: 40 minutes
Servings 6-8

6-8 medium size red or yellow skin potatoes, washed with skins
1/4 cup olive oil
2-3 tbsp. paprika
1 tsp. herb and garlic seasoning
2 tbsp. kosher salt
1 tbsp. pepper

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spray lighly with non-stick spray.

2. Dice the potatoes into 1/2 inch cubes. Try to make the dice as evenly as possible so that the potatoes cook evenly.

3. in a large mixing bowl, toss the diced potatoes with the remaining ingredients except the pepper.

4. Pour the potatoes onto the lined baking sheet and roast for 30-35 minutues. When pototoes can be easily pierced with a fork, remove from oven and sprinkle with pepper.

Pepper is added at the end because it would burn at 450 degrees.

Doris’ Very-American Chop Suey

Happy New Year from Cooking With Court! As we welcome in 2010, we’ll also start the new year off right with our very first “GUEST CHEF” feature on the blog! Throughout the year, I’ll be featuring guest chefs as they share their favorite recipes with you all. I’ve got several more people lined up in the next couple of months, so keep checking back!

Who better than to start this whole Guest Chef feature off than my very own MOM! 🙂 My Mom and my Grandma are two of the best home cooks I’ve ever known. I might just be a wee bit biased, however… And if it weren’t for them, this blog never would have existed. Some people have their “food idols” like Bobby Flay, Julia Child, Paula Dean, but I’ve got my very own in my Mom and Grandma.

So without further delay, I bring you…my mother.

My name is Sue and I am the proud mother of Court from Cooking With Court and most honored to be guest chef for the month of January. I consider myself more a good cook than a chef. I live in Florida with my husband, Steve, of 37 years and our youngest daughter, Kimberly. I come from a long line of good cooks for which I am very thankful. The Chop Suey recipe I am sharing with you is one of my Mom’s that we grew up on, and one I had to learn to make without a recipe to follow. I did my best to come up with one and trust you will enjoy it as much as my family.

Doris’ Very American Chop Suey

1 Tblsp. Veg. Oil

1 1/2 # Pork Loin Cutlet or Bottom Round Steak or a combination of both. (You can ask your butcher to cut the meat in bite size pieces. Some grocery stores have Chop Suey meat already prepackaged and sometimes ground in small pieces. Either is okay.)

1 small Onion, diced
Salt and Pepper
Flour and Soy Sauce
White Rice
Chow Mein or Rice Noodles

In a Dutch Oven, brown meat in vegetable oil along with onion and seasonings. When meat has browned, pour enough water over the meat just to cover. Place lid on Dutch Oven and simmer on medium low for 2 hours. Taste the juice to see if it needs any salt as covering the meat with water can sometimes dilute the taste but keep in mind too that you will be adding Soy Sauce which will also add some saltiness to the taste.

Combine about 1/3 cup of Flour with 1/4 cup Soy Sauce and about 1/8 cup Water and whisk until smooth. You may need to add a little more Flour if it seems thin. You are using the mixture as a thickener just as you would in making gravy so should be of that consistency. Bring meat to a boil and slowly add flour mixture as you whisk. The gravy will thicken.

I spoon the Chop Suey over White Rice and top with Chow Mein or Rice Noodles for crunchiness. Serve with a salad or fresh rolls. You could also add some diced celery during the simmering time and when done a can of Bean Sprouts for added flavor. Enjoy!