Presidential All Meat Chili

I read a great book recently called "Dinner with the President: Food, Politics, and a History of Breaking Bread at the White House". It was really interesting cover foods and meals favored by all the presidents from Washington to Biden.   What people will, and will not, eat says so much about a person, so it was fascinating to me to see all the presidents tastes. How about the one president who likes his steak well done with ketchup! Ugh.

The book included some recipes at the end, and this recipe was popular with Lyndon Johnson during his presidency.  It was so simple, I just had to try it!  It was a big hit with everyone that I've served it to, so I wanted to share this one.  It does make a bunch, but I would recommend making the full batch and freezing it for future easy mills.

 Link to the LBJ recipe 

12 servings

Ingredients: 

• 4 pounds ground beef (I used 80/20 mix)
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 3-4 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 3-4 tablespoons chili powder, or to taste (I used Extra Hot chili powder)
• 1 tsp cayenne, optional
• 2 cans (15 oz) of diced tomatoes (I used with green chilies)
• 2 can (8oz) of tomato sauce
• 1 can (6 oz) of tomato paste
• 2 to 6 dashes hot sauce, or to taste (optional)
• Salt to taste (likely needs between 2-3 tsp)

In a large pot, cook the ground beef, onions and garlic, over medium high heat.  There's no need to add any olive oil, as ground beef has a lot in it naturally when you use 80/20 mix. Using a flat bottom wooden spoon breaking it into small pieces. 

Drain the meat, there's a lot of fat and water in there that won't add anything to your chili.  Here's how much I got from my 4lbs of ground beef.  I usually put this in the fridge to harden and then throw away the fat.  You could add the watery broth back to your chili if you felt it was too thick.

Add the chili powder, cumin and oregano.  Mix well. Add all the tomatoes, 2 cans of diced tomatoes, 2 small cans of tomato sauce and the can of tomato paste.  Let simmer on medium low for about 30 minutes.  Add the salt gradually, to ensure its just the right amount of salty for you.

I have made this ahead and it keeps, and reheats, very well.  

Serve with grated cheese, chopped onions, jalapenos and cilantro and maybe some sour cream.  This is also great for chili hot dogs or even "chili sloppy Joe's" on hamburger buns.

Blackened Cajun Spice Mix

A pork chop in the blackened seasoning mix, pan fried in a mixture of olive oil & butter, YUM!

Once upon my husband worked at a restaurant for a certified master chef.  The blackened seasoning that they used on fish, sauteed in butter and served over spinach was the bomb. The guy was nice enough to share this with my hubby. 

We've been looking for the recipe for many years now, but could not locate that slip of paper... basically we've been trying to locate it for about 15-20 years!

After years of wondering, we finally located the recipe in a binder of recipes that I had collected to "save" (back before you had the internet... hahaha!).

Here's the recipe that I adapted the measurements so you can make a SANE size recipe at home.  We've been arguing about whether the original has too much salt (which I believe to be true... and my hubby doesn't agree). 

Makes about 2 cups, plenty to share with friends and family!  We use this on fish, chicken, pork and even steak.  It would probably be great on a cauliflower "steak" too.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup kosher salt (use 1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp if you like things salty...)

1/4 cup onion powder or granulated onion (NOT onion salt!)

1/4 cup white pepper

1/4 cup cayenne pepper (if you are afraid of too spicy, you can reduce this to 1-2 Tbsp...)

1/4 cup paprika

1/4 cup dried thyme

2 Tbsp ground pepper

Mix in a bowl with a whisk to fully mix.  Save in an air tight jar, or jars.  Sprinkle liberally onto meats before grilling or pan frying.  

Pork Kimchi Burger

I get that kimchi might not be everybody's favorite thing, but I always, always have been a fan, even back before it was cool! Thanks Mom for being different from every other suburban housewife in the 1970's! 

The inspiration for this came out of necessity, we were staying somewhere in a cabin far from home, and I had packed limited ingredients to use for the weekend to put dinner together for the two of us. I always love a challenge!  I had a package of ground pork that I had brought with us, but only had limited other things to work with (I should have planned better- LOL). In full disclosure, we did travel to the Safeway to pick up some kimchi after I shared my idea with my hubby (who insisted we go get it ASAP), but I used what I already had brought with me (hence the simple ingredients!) for the rest.

About two years ago, we were lucky enough to go to Korea, and boy oh boy, did we have a foodie's paradise adventure.  My hubby likes kimchi just as much as I do.  If you are interested, here's a couple travel posts that I wrote to remember the trip!
Korean Adventure, Part 1

Korean Adventure, Part 2- coming soon!

Serves 4

Ingredients:

Burgers:

20 oz ground pork
1/4 cup green onions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup kimchi, drained (save juice) and chopped fine
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp sesame oil

1 tsp soy sauce

Kimchi Coleslaw:
4 cups green cabbage, shredded (about 1/2 small head)
1/4 cup green onions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup kimchi, drained and chopped coarsely (or more, if desired- I used 1/2 cup)
3 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
2-3 Tbsp kimchi juice 
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp red pepper garlic paste (optional)

4 Buns

Mayo, if desired

Get two bowls out, one for meat mixture and one for your salad.

Chop your green onions finely, add 1/4 cup to each bowl.  Next, chop your kimchi, adding 1/4 cup to each bowl. Shred your cabbage (or use pre-packaged slaw cabbage mixture), add to the salad bowl. Add the vinegar, sesame oil and a bit of salt. Mix the slaw, let it sit and marinate for 30 minutes before serving.

In the meat bowl, add the ground pork to the bowl with green onions and kimchi that you put in there previously. Add in the pork, red pepper flakes, sesame oil and soy sauce. Make mixture of meat (I use latex gloves and mix by hand), shape into patties and grill for about 10 minutes until done.

Assemble the burgers by putting mayo on the buns, add the patty and a generous amount of slaw. Enjoy right away.

Buns, mayo, patties and slaw= Yum

Note- these are just as good served with a side of coleslaw and not on a bun. We found some Franz low carb buns that are delish, so it was great to have a burger!  

Here's the kimchi, ready for chopping.

Chop it pretty finely

Here it is ready for mixing with the cabbage.

I use latex gloves to mix the meat mixture, and shape the patties.

This is the chili garlic sauce I like

Here's my salad, all ready to go. Let it sit for at least 10-15 minutes before serving so the cabbage softens up a little bit.

Patties are all shaped and ready to go on the grill. I put them on wax paper, as it makes it easier to easily over turn onto the grill without deforming the patties by using a metal spatula.  Just my little trick.

Cook over medium high heat for about 10 minutes.  Try not to over cook, you want these to be juicy!

Spicy Jambalaya Stew- Keto Friendly

Opportunity presents itself in different ways.
I found a pack of very spicy hot link sausages in the fridge. Where did these come from? LOL, I know my hubby cannot walk by a Hot Link at the grocery store when does the shopping (I love that about him), but he did complain that these were extra spicy. OK, challenge on... what to do with these?

I had a look in the freezer... chicken breasts, frozen cooked shrimp and mahi mahi.
OK everyone, dinner is in the house! I am now official inspired.

We were quite happy with the end result of this throw together meal. Brown the chicken, brown the fish, saute the onions/peppers, add the sausage and tomatoes. Add some seasoning and heat up.  Viola!  Dinner is served.
We're reducing carbs, so we ate it as a stew, but it would be wonderful over rice too.

Serves 4
Ingredients

2-3 Tbsp olive oil 1 chicken breast, cut into 1" cubes
1 8 oz mahi mahi, or other firm fish, cut into 1" cubes
1/2 onion, diced
1/2 bell pepper, diced

1 tsp garlic, chopped
8 oz prawns, cleaned (cooked or uncooked)
1 hot link, sliced
1 15 oz can of petite diced tomatoes 
1-2 tsp Italian seasoning
Salt & pepper to taste

Over medium high heat, add some olive oil and brown the chicken, removing it to another plate while you brown the fish. Remove the fish to the plate with the chicken. In the same pan, saute the onions, bell pepper and garlic. When they are starting to soften and just starting to brown on the edges, add the sliced hot link and continue to cook until the hot link gets a little color/crispness.  Add the petite diced tomatoes, reserved chicken and mahi mahi (plus accumulated juices), seasoning and the frozen or fresh cleaned prawns.  Bring gently to a boil, adjust seasoning with salt and pepper to taste and serve at once.

We ate this for lunch the following day and we were thrilled with how good it was after reheating.

Braised Pork Ginger Meatballs in Coconut Broth

Such weird times right now.
Everyone's home, everyone's self isolating... trying to get a handle on the Covid-19 pandemic. We're bored, we're stressed, we have to cook our own dinner...

The first time I made this was for our daughter and her boyfriend (now husband!). Everyone was instantly saying YUM!  Spicy, tangy, healthy and satisfying.  This hearty meatball soup is so comforting and warm... like a nice hug that you can't have right now.
This is a quick and easy recipe that comes together in under 30 minutes.

If you didn't have ground pork,  you could use ground chicken or turkey too.  I haven't tried it with beef, but heck, why not?

I was inspired by this recipe on Smitten Kitchen.

Serves 2-3 
Ingredients:

Meatballs:

1 pounds ground pork

1 large eggs

1 tablespoon finely chopped peeled fresh ginger

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 tablespoon fish sauce

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon kosher salt

Broth:

One 13 1/2-ounce can unsweetened coconut milk

3 cups chicken stock

1/4 cup thinly sliced peeled fresh ginger

2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

2 fresh red chiles or jalapeno, thinly sliced, plus extra for serving 

1 cup fresh mushrooms, quartered
1/2 red bell pepper, sliced 

Finely grated zest and juice of 1/2 lime

1 tablespoon fish sauce

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar (optional)
1-2 tsp of garlic red pepper paste (optional)

A handful of fresh cilantro sprigs

1 teaspoon kosher salt

A few handfuls of baby spinach

I mixed all the ingredients together for the meatballs and used a small cookie scoop to make meat balls... they look a bit like meat "splats", but I was in a hurry. You could definitely take the time to roll them into round balls.  Use a small scoop... these were a bit big when eating the soup and maybe half this size would have been better.  I think next time about 1" meatballs, bite size!

Cook meatballs at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes. Go ahead and start the broth while the meatballs cook.

I prepped all the veggies (below).  You can use a different selection of veggies.... if you don't like mushrooms, you could use asparagus, zucchini or more bell peppers. Use what you have.... Got it? Cook it!

While the meat balls are cooking, go ahead and combine all the ingredients for the broth.

Add the meatballs and bring to a quick boil. Serve at once with more lime, as desired.

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Turkey & Sausage Meatloaf with Spinach

I like ground turkey, but I have struggled with the texture of meatloaf made with ground turkey before because it is so crumbly and doesn't hold its shape..  Here's an excellent solution with adding Italian sausage that gives it a denser texture.  I've made this with, and without, the breadcrumbs, so if you are trying to go gluten free, or just don't have breadcrumbs, go ahead and try it without.

We've loved this for dinner a couple of times recently, and the leftovers are excellent for sandwiches too.

Serves 4-5
Ingredients

20 oz ground turkey (low fat)
8 oz spicy Italian sausage
1 egg
2/3 cup fresh bread crumbs
1 tsp garlic
1/2 cup shallots, or onions, chopped
2 cups spinach, chopped
Salt & Pepper


Pre-chop the spinach, onions and garlic.

Call me lazy, but when it comes to half a pound of Italian sausage, I have an excellent easy solution.
LOL

Add the turkey and sausage to the food processor with the egg, crumbs and seasoning.  Mix well and add it to a loaf pan, and smooth the top. Bake for about 1 hour at 350 F degrees.

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Pork Tenderloin with Apples & Onions

I look at the pork tenderloin packs at Costco and feel a bit of dismay.
Whatever can I do with these now?
The two pack actually has two tenderloins in each pack... which give you 4 tenderloins.
A bit much for a small family, or only two, like we are these days.
I do love tenderloin as it's so tender and lean and delicious when grilled.
But what to do in the winter....?
Here's a perfect Fall idea that is very easy and super delicious.
We made this with one tenderloin, which made 2 dinners and 2 lunches.  
The other tenderloin, I shredded into smaller pieces and sauteed like Mexican fajitas.
Again it made 2 dinners and 2 lunches.
The other two? I froze them, after all, there is only so much tenderloin two people can eat in a week.

My husband's comments on this recipe were "I would never order this in a restaurant, but it's really good".  He repeated that after eating this for lunch a day or so later.  I'd say that was a vote of confidence.  I tend to agree, I wasn't sure I would like the sweetness of the apples but I found it balanced by the onions and mustard with the tender pork.
 
My inspiration recipe came from this great site.  Please give it a read if you find my instructions too simple.       

Serves 4
Ingredients


1 pork tenderloins (approx 1 1/2-pound, remove silverskin

2 Tbsp vegetable oil, plus more as needed

Salt and Pepper

1 Tbsp Dijon mustard

2 tsp chopped fresh thyme leaves, or 1 tsp dried thyme

2 apples, cored and sliced (something tangy with a firm texture)

1 onion, sliced

1/2 cup chicken stock

1 Tbsp butter

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Prepare Apples and Onions. I cut the apples in pretty big chunks and I did NOT peel them.

Pat pork dry with paper towels and then rub with oil and salt & pepper.

Heat a tablespoon of oil in a heavy-bottomed oven-safe skillet over medium heat. When the oil is hot and shimmers, add the pork tenderloins and cook, turning occasionally, until evenly browned all over; about 12 minutes. Transfer to a large plate or cutting board. (The pork will not be cooked through).

Keep the pan used to sear the pork on the stove over medium heat. Check the pan, if it looks dry, add a bit more oil.

Add the onions then cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned around edges, about 5 minutes. Stir in 1 teaspoon of thyme (fresh), or 1/2 tsp of dried thyme.

Use a pastry brush (or use your fingers) to rub the seared pork all over with the mustard, more thyme (1 tsp fresh or 1/2 tsp dried), and the black pepper.  

Add the apples and cook for 3-4 minutes more.

Place the seared pork tenderloins on top of the apples and onions, and then slide into the hot 400 degree oven. Roast 10 to 15 minutes or until an internal thermometer inserted into the thickest part registers between 145 and 150 degrees F. Transfer the pork to a large plate and cover with aluminum foil. Let rest about 10 minutes.

While the pork rests, place the pan with apples and onions back onto the stove and turn heat to medium. Add chicken stock and use a wooden spoon to scrape the pan, add the butter and continue to stir.  Taste sauce for salt and pepper, and if desired, add a bit more dijon mustard.

Slice pork in 3/4 inch slices on the diagonal and serve at once over a bed of the apples and onion mixture.
 

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