This recipe does not require a lot of ingredients, just time.  But you don’t have to watch these ribs all day.  You only need a couple of hours in your oven (or grill if you have a pan that can fit).  This is a braising method instead of a roasting or grilling method.  You should grill them and slap on as much sauce as you want.  I have a few sauces I like from the local grocery store.  You could make your own, too.  I have previously written about that as well.

Your list of hardware for this dish is simple.  A roasting pan large enough to hold your ribs, a bottle of beer (non-alcoholic is also acceptable), and some of my Big Daddy’s meat rub.  You could just use salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder if you don’t have the other ingredients to make the rub.  You will also need aluminum foil to cover the pan.  Don’t forget to remove the membrane on the back of the ribs; it’s not great eating.  Cook these ribs for three hours at 300F; you should be golden.  You can even make these a day ahead, let them rest for about five minutes, then put them in the fridge.  You must pour off the juices before you refrigerate them.  Otherwise, you will have to contend with the solidified fat.  The next day you can remove the ribs and cut them into portions of two or three ribs, then fire up the grill and start saucing.

Find the delicious recipe below, and I hope you enjoy it!

Braised Ribs

Ingredients:

1 – 2 racks of ribs (side or backs are fine)
1 bottle of beer (you could substitute chicken stock if you’d rather)
A few tablespoons of Big Daddy’s Meat rub.

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 300F.
• Remove the rubbery membrane from the back of the ribs.
• Cover the ribs with the meat rub.
• Place them in a roasting pan.
• Pour in the beer and cover the ribs with aluminum foil.
• Braise for 3 hours.
• Let the ribs rest for 5 minutes, then pour off the liquid.
• Portion your ribs and sauce.
• Grill if you’d like to get that charred crust from the bbq sauce.
• Enjoy!

I set out to find a taco seasoning that wasn’t extremely spicy and one that my kids would enjoy.  I thought that by making my own, I would know what goes in it and be able to adjust it.  The bonus is that, because I already have the ingredients, it costs me nothing to get more life out of these spices.  Plus, this is an easy recipe that requires only a handful of ingredients that most of us already have.

Here is my taco seasoning recipe; I hope you enjoy it.

Taco seasoning

Ingredients:

2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp paprika
2 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp cumin
1tsp onion powder
1.5 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp oregano
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp ground pepper

Directions:

• Mix all the ingredients in a medium bowl.
• Add to a shaker or container.
• Use 1 – 2 tablespoons in tacos, with ½ cup of water.
• Keep in an airtight container, and this recipe will keep for up to 3 months.

According to Harry Paris (2015), the dessert watermelon, as we know it, originated in Africa.  While the watermelon most of us are more familiar with now, the seedless, was created in 1939 by a Japanese scientist.  According to the Agricultural Marketing Resource Center (AgMRC, 2021), approximately 85% of all watermelons sold in the USA were seedless.  The seedless variety is the perfect fruit for this recipe.

For the whip cream topping, I added a stabilizer.  I did this because whipped cream, even with tough peaks, will eventually dissolve, and on a hot day, you want to keep it stable.  So, you can go to the local grocery store and look for whipped cream stabilizers in the baking aisle.  Follow the directions on the package, and if you want to make this vegan, find yourself some vegan whipping product, the stabilizer is vegan, or at least the one I bought was.  My three seconds of Googling tells me coconut cream is best for a vegan option.

Some alternative ways of preparing this cake include cutting the watermelon into uniform rounds.  You can use a cake pan to get an idea of how thick each layer should be.  Just keep your hands on top of the watermelon and the cake pan on the bottom.  Use a sharp serrated knife to make your layers.  After that, follow the directions below, but add whipped cream to each layer and the top.

Here is the recipe for an effortless and delicious dessert.

Watermelon Cake

Ingredients:

• ½ of a peeled watermelon
• 2 cups of heavy cream (or substitute)
• 1 tbsp powdered sugar (or more for taste)
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 package of whipped cream stabilizer

Directions:

• Peel and cut your watermelon halfway along the width (between the ends).
• Whisk the heavy cream in a stand mixer or by hand until soft peaks form, then add the sugar and vanilla.
• At stiff peaks, whip in the stabilizer.
• Taste the whipped cream and make sure it is to your liking.
• Start covering your watermelon half with the whipped cream.
• Add sprinkles or your favorite nuts or seeds to the outside.
• Cut out a slice and enjoy!

References
AgMRC.  (2021, August).  Watermelon.  Retrieved from AgMRC: https://agmrc.org/commodities-products/vegetables/watermelon
Paris, H.  s.  (2015, Feb 26).  Origin and emergence of the sweet dessert watermelon, Citrullus lanatus.  Retrieved from NIH Nathional Library: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4512189/#:~:text=Conclusions%20The%20diverse%20evidence%2C%20combined,by%20approximately%202000%20years%20ago.

I had some leftover large tortillas from a taco night, and we also had some Swiss cheese.  I was trying to think of something to write about, so I grabbed some ham and warmed it up.  I then melted the cheese slightly and added some scrambled eggs to a tortilla.  It turned out well, and thus I got a recipe.

Cooking seems intimidating to some, but it is very effortless for others.  Creating recipes is a whole other world to many, though.  Creating recipes is easy enough.  If you find a recipe you like, you work with it.  Try it in its original written form a few times, then change an ingredient.  If you, for example, always use iceberg lettuce for your tacos, try romaine.  If you make mac n cheese according to the package directions, add some shredded mozza.  These little changes are what make recipes unique.  Soon you can try putting things that might not belong together and try them.  Many recipes in history were discovered this way.  Caesar Cardini is one example.  You might know him from his most famous recipe, Caesar salad, invented in Mexico.  Another recipe that we might not realize was pure luck was the chocolate chip cookie.  The inventory added broken chocolate, thinking it would melt, and voila, we have the chocolate chip cookie.  Sometimes playing in the kitchen can invent a dish that makes you rich!

I know this won’t make me millions of dollars, but I hope you enjoy it a million times.

Ham and Swiss Breakfast wrap

Ingredients:

2 large tortillas
4 slices of black forest ham
2 pieces of Swiss cheese
4 scrambled eggs

Directions:

• Heat a medium frying pan over medium-high heat.
• Add the 2 slices of ham overlapping each other slightly.
• Add 1 slice of Swiss cheese broken in half.
• Place the ham and cheese onto the center of a large tortilla.
• Scramble the eggs and season with a bit of salt and pepper.
• Place the scrambled eggs on top of the ham and cheese.
• Fold two sides in, roll the unfolded side, or eat like a taco.

You will notice that I chose to caramelize the onions.  I do this because it brings out a great flavor profile.  If you like more onions then double this up, 3 onions did not produce very much, and I only added a small amount to each layer.

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I have.

Scalloped Potatoes

Ingredients:

4 tbsp bacon fat or butter and oil mixed
3 onions – sliced.
4-5 cloves of garlic sliced.
3 tbsp flour
1 cup chicken stock
2 cups milk
8-9 yellow potatoes, or less depending on the size of vessel.
Salt
Pepper
2 cups cheddar

Directions:

1. Add 1 TBSP of oil to a non-stick pan and carnalize the onions over medium low heat.
2. Set them aside to cool.
3. Preheat your oven to 400F.
4. Heat 3 tbsp of oil and flour the pan and stir until it just starts to cook, add the chicken stock and milk for your roux.
5. Add the potatoes to a skillet or glass tray in a single layer.
6. Top with half the onions and half the cheese
7. Add the rest of the potatoes, onions and cheese.
8. Pour the milk sauce over the potatoes.
9. Cover the skillet with aluminum foil and put it in the oven for 1 hour and 30 minutes.
10. Uncover and cook for another 30 minutes.

It’s Caprese Salad.  It’s delicious, colourful, and simple to make as an appetizer.  It is theorized that this salad was created after WWI as an ohmage to Italy.  It is, after all, the colours of the Italian flag.  Green, white, and red.

I chose to use bite sized ingredients for this recipe and used toothpicks to put it all together.  Drizzle some balsamic dressing on it to add some extra flavour.

Since my head is pounding right now, here is my recipe.

Caprese Salad

Ingredients:

1 package of cherry tomatoes

1 package of mini bocconcini cheese

1 package of basil

12 toothpicks

Directions:

• Add one of each ingredient to a toothpick.
• Drizzle salad Balsamic vinegar on it OR dip in the vinegar.
• One bite and enjoy!

I chose not to remove the fat from the loin, and I wanted it to render a bit for a sauce and keep the loin moist.  I made a slice in the side of the meat and carefully continued to cut and roll back the meat so it would lay flat.  Once flattened out, I seasoned the inside, then added the apples, brie, and sage.  I rolled the loin and tied it off with a simple knot and some butcher twine.  I seasoned the outside and baked it at 350F until it reached 170F.

I used my v-slicer (or mandolin if you have one) for the apples.  I wanted thin slices of the apples to lay them out evenly.  I cut the brie about a quarter inch thick and used a few pieces.  I chose to leave the sage whole but removed the leaves from the stem.

After roasting, I let the meat rest for 20 minutes, then sliced thick slices for eating.  Thinner slices would also be good, but not too thin if you want to keep some meat and cheese.  I paired the meat with great sides like mashed potatoes and steamed carrots.

I hope you enjoy making it for your family and friends.

Stuffed Pork Loin

Ingredients:

1 full-sized pork loin (between 5.5 and 7 pounds)
2 apples – sliced very thin.
1 small wheel of brie – cut 1/8” – ¼” slices.
1 package of fresh sage (found at your local grocer in the produce section)
Salt
Pepper

Directions:

• Preheat your oven to 350F.
• Start by slicing into the side of the pork loin. Continue to cut until the loin is butterflied.
• Season the inside liberally with salt and pepper.
• Place the apple slices in two rows down the length of the pork.
• Add the sliced brie, then top with the sage.
• Grab the top of the pork loin and roll it towards yourself. Keep the fat side up, though.
• Tie some twine around the roast and make simple knots, or watch a few videos on tying meat.
• Roast until the internal temperature of the meat reaches 170F.
• Allow the roast to rest for ten minutes, then slice.
• Enjoy!

I made some liberal adjustments to a basic gumbo recipe.  For instance, you’ll see that I used red peppers rather than green ones.  I also neglected to thicken with a roux.  A good gumbo requires a brick-red coloured roux.  This is more difficult to achieve on the stovetop, as it quickly goes from dark brown to black.  Alton Brown’s Good Eats addressed this issue by baking the roux.  I decided to use cream rather than thickening it with flour and butter.  I also used a newer ingredient, Old Bay.  I bought it to make one of Alton’s recipes, which I can’t recall now, but I figured I should try to use it since I bought it.

You will notice that I use a minimal amount of chicken stock.  I made some stock from a few old carcasses I had frozen.  Then I took the broth and froze it in ice cube trays; each cube was about two tablespoons.  A perfect portion size if you only need a few cubes.  Two cubes would equal ¼ cup, so four is ½ cup.

This is a great, creamy recipe with a little bit of spice.  The combination of Old Bay and Cajun spice is excellent; adding cream calms it down for the little ones.  You could use andouille sausage as a substitute if you want to go more authentic.  I hope you enjoy making this recipe!

Cajun Sausage and Shrimp Over Capellini

Ingredients:

1 tbsp olive oil
1 half pound of Italian sausage
1 pound large shrimp – peeled, deveined, tails removed
2 red peppers – diced
1 onion – diced
2 stalks of celery – diced
3 cloves of garlic – sliced
1/2 cup chicken stock
2 cups of heavy cream
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 tbsp dried parsley
1-2 bay leaves
1 tsp cajun spice
1/2 tsp old bay
2 teaspoons of kosher salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 package Capellini pasta, optional

Directions:

• Heat a large skillet and some olive oil over medium-high.
• Once the oil simmers, add the sausage and cook for five minutes until both sides are seared.
• Transfer to a plate or bowl and set aside.
• Turn the heat to medium.
• Add the onion and garlic and cook until the onion turns translucent.
• Add the celery and red pepper and sweat for three more minutes.
• Add one teaspoon of salt.
• Add the chicken stock and deglaze the pan (scrape the browned bits and loosen them).
• Add the Old Bay, Cajun spice, thyme, and parsley.
• Stir to combine.
• Add the sausage, heavy cream, and bay leaves.
• Turn the heat up to high and bring it to a boil.
• Reduce the heat to medium-low and let the cream simmer and reduce slightly.
• Meanwhile, heat a pot of salted water for the pasta on a separate burner.
• Add the shrimp to the cream sauce and stir.
• The shrimp is cooked when it is red.
• Add the remaining salt and pepper.
• Once the water comes to a boil, add the Capellini and boil until al dente, about 8 minutes (check the package instructions first for timing).
• Strain the pasta once cooked.
• Add some pasta to a plate and spoon on the sauce.
• Enjoy!

It started with an idea for chicken roulade a few months ago.  I tried it with different ingredients and wasn’t happy with it.  This time around, when I reworked the recipe, I found a variety that worked well.  I might consider adding brie to the mix, but this recipe was satisfying.  I served it with quenelles of garlic, horseradish mashed potatoes, and steamed carrots.  I have not thought about doing quenelles since culinary school.  I was reading a subreddit on food and saw someone do them with another dish, and I felt I needed to try it.  Digression aside, I was delighted with how this dish turned out.

When I was looking at making this dish, I was thinking about a time when we rolled together turkey to make the light and dark logs that you sometimes see at Christmas time in the grocery store.  We had put stuffing in it, and when you cut the roll into slices, you had turkey and stuffing in one.  I looked up a few recipes to see what it might look like using chicken, which we know is a smaller bird.  This chicken’s size makes this recipe slightly more complicated but tasty.

To make this work, you’ll require a rolling pin, a meat mallet, some plastic wrap or a zip-top bag, and a flat surface.  I like to wear nitrile gloves, but that is a personal choice.  Put your chicken breast in a bag or between two sheets of wrap and either roll it with the rolling pin until you get 1/8-inch thickness or pound it out to that same thickness.  Be careful with pounding it out; you want to be firm enough to flatten the breast but not so firm that you tear it.  I choose to use my mallet for this procedure.  Once the meat is flattened, you’ll need more plastic wrap for rolling.  You will lay the breasts down, overlap the thighs, season with salt and pepper on the inside, then Parmesan cheese, mozzarella, and provolone.  Grab the thigh end of the plastic wrap and start rolling the chicken in on itself.  Firmly press the ends to roll evenly, and once you reach the end, tightly wrap it with the plastic.  Start rolling the plastic to tighten the meat up and tie the ends.  Put the chicken in the fridge for an hour, then preheat your oven to 375F.  Once you grab the chicken from the refrigerator, season the outside with salt and pepper, and you can wrap bacon around it as I did or cook it as is.  Line a sheet pan and parchment or aluminum foil sprayed with pan spray.  Cook the chicken to 165F internal temperature for about 30 minutes, and let it rest for five more.  Slice it up and enjoy!

Three Cheese Chicken Roulade

Ingredients:

6 chicken breasts
9 chicken thighs
Salt
Pepper
6 slices of provolone cheese
9 slices of mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan
9 slices of bacon

Directions:

• Lay out 2 feet of plastic wrap on a cutting board.
• Lay down a single chicken breast and cover it with another sheet of plastic,
• Roll it out to 1/8-inch thickness.
• Repeat with all the breasts and thighs.
• Remove the sheets and get a clean piece of plastic wrap about 2 feet long as well.
• Layer your breasts two wide and three thighs below.
• Season liberally with salt and pepper.
• Add 1/8 of a cup of grated parmesan, 3 slices of mozzarella, and 2 slices provolone cheese.
• Grab the top of the plastic wrap and start rolling towards yourself, while trying to keep the chicken rolling tightly on itself.
• Continue rolling the log until it is very tightly packed and tie off the ends.
• Chill in the fridge for up to one hour
• Before removing the chicken from the fridge, heat your oven to 375F
• Grab a baking tray and line it with parchment or aluminum foil, cover the foil with pan spray
• Remove the chicken logs and unwrap them.
• Season the outside of the chicken liberally with more salt and pepper.
• Wrap them with bacon, if using.
• Transfer carefully to the cooking sheet and bake until they reach an internal temperature of 165F, it should take about 30 – 35 minutes.
• If you add bacon, you will also need to broil the bacon to get it to crisp up. You will need to watch it very carefully for up to three minutes.  Once the bacon looks darker and is getting crispy, then pull out the chicken.  If you do not watch it carefully it will burn very quickly.
• Rest the chicken for 5 minutes before slicing.

Enjoy!

Dr. Chris Palmer, M.D., was the guest on this show.  Dr. Palmer is a graduate of Harvard Medical School.  He is currently the Dean of Postgraduate and Continuing Education at McLean Hospital and an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School (Dr. Chris Palmer M.D., 2023).  My understanding is that he has been making the rounds of interviews with multiple podcasts or T.V. shows.  He discussed the ketogenic diet on the podcast I was listening to.

For those that are not aware of what “keto” is, in more simple terms, it focuses on reducing carbs and increasing fats (Harvard Health Publishing, 2020).  Doing this correctly is supposed to cause your body to start burning ketones.  Ketones are a natural chemical reaction our bodies make when our liver breaks down fat (Diabetes U.K., 2023).  So, by burning more ketones, we are supposed to burn more fat and lead a healthier life.

So, am I all in on a diet?  Well, no.  But I do think there is something about keto diets that makes for a decent argument.  According to experts, keto diets have been used on epileptic children when other forms of intervention did not work (Harvard Health Publishing, 2020).  That would be medication and surgery.  The keto diet is known to reduce episodes in pediatric patients, but only as a last resort.  I take away from this that we need to check in with a medical professional and a trained dietician to plan and utilize this diet efficiently.

Another con to this diet is people with diabetes.  Type 1 is more at risk, but even type 2 can suffer from ketoacidosis (Diabetes U.K., 2023).  Ketoacidosis is a buildup of acid in a diabetic’s bloodstream.  This can be fatal if not appropriately managed.  Being the spouse of such a person, I would be devastated if my partner and I tried a diet that landed her in the hospital.

After listening to this podcast and Dr. Palmer’s arguments for these types of diets, I felt that, at the very least, a severe reduction in carbs would be a good solution for us.  Not a drop to the point where we eat zero carbs, but maybe 30 or 60.  I would like to try and stay under 75g of carbs a day.  We’ll see how I do.

I was looking up a keto recipe I could attempt when I discovered a broccoli recipe with shredded chicken.  I didn’t like the recipe, so I created this one while keeping the idea of broccoli with shredded chicken.  You’ll notice I use half a pound of cream cheese and two cups of heavy cream.  I also try to steam the broccoli before adding the cream and cheese.  If you like your broccoli crunchier, I suggest skipping the steaming and adding the cheese and cream.  The broccoli will still cook with the sauce; you should have some al dente broccoli.  I also used my pre-shredded chicken; I had leftovers from my enchilada recipe.  The enchilada sauce on the chicken gave the cream sauce an excellent little addition.

“Keto” Creamy Broccoli Chicken

Ingredients:

4 cups shredded chicken
1 pound of broccoli florettes
½ onion – diced
3 cloves of garlic minced
8oz of plain cream cheese – cut into 1” cubes
2 cups of heavy cream
¼ cup of chicken broth
1 tbsp olive oil
4 cups shredded cheddar
Salt and Pepper

Directions:

• Preheat your oven to 350F.
• Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper and bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes until they reach 165F.
• Once fully cooked, allow the chicken to rest for five minutes before shredding it with a fork.
• Place a large skillet over medium-high heat.
• Pour the oil, onions and garlic into the pan and bring up to heat.
• Sweat the onions and garlic for 2 minutes, then add the broccoli and chicken stock
• Cover the pan and allow the broccoli to steam for 2 minutes.
• Add the cream cheese and the heavy cream. Cook until the cream cheese is melted into the cream.
• Add the shredded chicken and stir to coat.
• Add the cheese and allow it to melt.
• Serve over rice or noodles.

References
Diabetes U.K.  (2023).  Ketones and Diabetes.  Retrieved 02 2023, from diabetes U.K.: https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/managing-your-diabetes/ketones-and-diabetes
Dr.  Chris Palmer M.D.  (2023).  About Chris Palmer.  Retrieved 02 2023, from Chris Plamer M.D.: https://www.chrispalmermd.com/chris-palmer/
Harvard Health Publishing.  (2020, 08 31).  Should you try the keto diet? Retrieved 02 2023, from Harvard Health: https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/should-you-try-the-keto-diet