Our Favorite Recipes!
We love to cook, do you? Here are some tried and tested recipes we love. Pull out the apron, invite some friends and family over, and enjoy!

Glazed Pork Chops
From: Cooking Light 5 Ingredients/15 Minutes Cookbook-page 106 Southern Living
Great menu if company’s coming: sweet, tangy pork chops, steamed green beans, and French rolls.
Ingredients:
4 (4-oz) boneless center-cut pork loin chops (1/2 inch thick)
Cooking spray
1/8 teaspoon ground sage
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup minced onion
1/4 cup currant jelly
1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

Trim fat from chops. Coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray; place over high heat until hot. Sprinkle chops with sage, salt, and pepper; add to skillet, and cook 1 minute on each side. Reduce heat to medium; cook chops 4 to 5 additional minutes on each side or until done. Transfer chops to a serving platter; keep warm.
Add onion to skillet; cook over medium heat 2 minutes, stilling often. Reduce heat; add jelly and mustard, and simmer 2 minutes or until glaze is reduced to 1/4 cup. To serve, spoon glaze over chops. Yield: 4 service

Melt-in-Your-Mouth Roast
From: Homestyle Cookbook-page 207 Southern Living
This roast really lives up to its name. Its rich flavor is achieved by just a few simple ingredients. Be sure to cut the roast in half before placing it in the slow cooker-this ensures even cooking for large cuts of meat.

Ingredients:
1 large onion, sliced 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 teaspoons salt 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon pepper 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 (3-4lb) rump roast, cut in half
1/4 cup water

Place onion in a 4-quart electric slow cooker. Combine salt and pepper, and rub on all sides of roast. Cook roast in hot oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until browned on all sides. Remove roast from skillet, and place on top of onion in slow cooker. Add Worcestershire sauce to skillet, deglazing skillet by scraping particles that cling to bottom. Pour Worcestershire sauce mixture over meat and onion.
Cover and cook on High setting 1 hour. Reduce to Low setting, and cook 7 hours or until meat is very tender. Remove meat and onion to a platter; cover and keep warm. Combine flour and water, stirring until smooth. Stir flour mixture into drippings in cooker. Cook, uncovered, on High 10 minutes or until thickened and bubbly, stirring occasionally. Yield: 8 servings

Chewy Oatmeal Spice Bars
From: Homestyle Cookbook-page 162 Southern Living
Here’s a soft oatmeal bar cooking that takes mere minutes to make-enjoy it with a tall glass of milk.

Ingredients:
1 cup butter or margarine, softened 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup sugar 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 1/2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
2 large eggs 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour 1 (3.5oz) can flaked coconut
1/2 teaspoon salt 1 cup raisins

Beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy; gradually add 1/2 cup sugar and 1 1/2 cups brown sugar, beating well. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Combine flour and next 5 ingredients; add to butter mixture, beating well. Stir in vanilla and remaining ingredients. Spoon batter into a greased 13 x 9-inch pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool slightly before cutting into bars. Yield: 2 dozen

VELVET CORN SOUP - Contributed by Jim Chudd

3 oz. Boneless Chicken Breast, minced
3 egg whites
3 Tbs. water
1 can (14 ½ oz) cream style corn
4 – 5 c chicken broth
2 Tbs. cornstarch mixed with 2 Tbs. cold water
3 medium mushrooms sliced thin
1 bunch green onions, sliced
2 Tbs. minced ham

1. Add 3 tbs. water to the minced chicken to fluff and combine with the egg whites carefully.

2. Bring broth to a boil and add corn. Return to boil.

3. Add the cornstarch paste slowly and allow to boil until thickened.

4. Reduce heat to low and add the chicken/egg mixture slowly with stirring until blended.

5. Add the onion, mushrooms and ham and keep hot until serving.

Serves 5 – 8 as a first course.

SEA SCALLOPS WITH CILANTRO GREMOLATA AND GINGER LIME BEURRE BLANC  - Contributed by Jim Chudd

Serves 4 (main course) or 6 (first course) Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 30 min

For gremolata
1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro
1 small garlic clove, minced
Finely grated zest of 1 small lime (3/4 teaspoon)

For beurre blanc
2 tablespoons minced shallot
1 tablespoon finely grated peeled fresh ginger
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1/4 cup dry white wine
1 stick 1/2 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon pieces
White pepper

For scallops
24 sea scallops (l ½ lb), tough muscle removed from side of each if necessary
2 tablespoons butter

Make gremolata:
~ Stir together cilantro, garlic, and zest in a small bowl.

Make beurre blanc:
~ Simmer shallot and ginger in lime juice and wine in a small heavy saucepan until liquid is reduced to about 2 tablespoons.
Whisk in butter 1 tablespoon at a time, adding each new piece before previous one has completely melted and occasionally lifting pan from heat to cool mixture. (Sauce must not get too hot or it will separate.)
Pour sauce through a fine sieve into a bowl (discard solids), then return to cleaned pan.
Season with salt and white pepper and keep warm while cooking scallops.

Saute scallops:
Pat scallops dry and season with salt and pepper. Heat butter in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking,
then saute scallops, turning once, until golden and just cooked through, 4 to 5 minutes total.

Sprinkle scallops with gremolata and serve with sauce


Modified from Gourmet April 2002 p. 130

ORANGE PORK TENDERLOIN - Contributed by Jim Chudd

1 Whole Pork Tenderloin (1 - 1.5 lbs)
1 Tbs Butter (softened)
1/4 tsp Dried Thyme, Crushed
Dash Cayenne Pepper
3/4 Cup Orange Juice
1 Tbsp Flour (Or Preferably 1/2 Tbs Arrowroot or 3/4 Tbs
Corn Starch)
1/2 Tbs Sugar
1 tsp Aromatic Bitters (Angostura or equivalent)

Preparation Time: 10 Minutes
Cooking Time: 30 Minutes

1. Remove all visible fat from tenderloin.
2. Spread butter (or if not soft, cut into thin pats and distribute) over tenderloin in a shallow baking dish.
3. Sprinkle thyme and cayenne over tenderloin/butter.
4. Pour orange juice over and around tenderloin.
5. Roast in 375o oven for 30 minutes (155o - 160o on meat thermometer).
6. Remove tenderloin to cutting board.
7. Measure sugar and bitters into a small saucepan (1 1/2 cup).
8. Add remaining liquid from baking dish to saucepan and stir to dissolve sugar.
9. Whisk in flour/arrowroot/corn starch quickly (be sure to mix with equal amount of cold water if using flour or corn starch to avoid clumping - arrowroot is preferred).
10. Cook and stir until mixture boils and thickens, adding additional thickener until the sauce is the consistency of thick gravy.

11. Cut tenderloin into 1/2 - 1 inch slices and serve with sauce over top.

Serves 3 - 4.

Suggested Accompaniments:
Long Grain and Wild Rice
Petite Garden Peas
Gewurtztraminer (Wine)

HASH BROWN CASSEROLE - Contributed by Jim Chudd

One 26 oz. Bag frozen country style hash browns
2 cups shredded colby cheese
¼ cup minced onion
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
½ cup beef stock or canned broth
1 cup milk
3 tablespoons butter, melted
dash garlic powder
1 teaspoon salt

1. Combine the first three ingredients in a large bowl.

2. Combine the remaining ingredients except for half of the butter in a smaller bowl and mix well. Pour this mixture over the potato mixture and mix well.

3. Heat the remaining butter in a large ovenproof skillet over medium heat.

4. When the skillet is hot, spoon in the hash brown mixture and cook stirring occasionally until hot and all the cheese has melted (about 7 minutes.)

5. Put the skillet in the oven and bake for 45 to 60 minutes at 425oF or until the surface of the hash browns is dark brown.

Serves 4 – 6 as a side dish.

Seared Ahi Tuna and Avocado Tartare - Contributed by Jim Chudd

1 6 oz ahi tuna steak
3 ½ Tbs extra virgin olive oil
1 Large avocado peeled, pitted and diced
1 serrano or jalapeno chile, seeded, deveined, minced
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/3 cup chopped red onion
¼ cup fresh lime juice
2 tsp chopped fresh oregano

1) Heat heavy skillet to medium high.

2) Brush tuna with ½ Tbs olive oil; sprinkle with salt and pepper.

3) Place tuna in skillet and sear until brown outside and almost opaque in center (about 3 minutes on each side)

4) Cool tuna; dice finely.

5) Combine tuna, remaining 3 Tbs oil and all remaining ingredients in a medium bowl.

6) Using fork, mix just to blend.

7) Season to taste with salt and pepper and chill. If holding for more than 3 hours, put avocado pits in mixture to hold, but remove prior to serving.

8) Serve with baguette rounds or tortilla chips.

Yield: about 2 1/3 cups

Source: Bon Appetit, September, 2004, p. 196