that's some good cookin'

My 5 Favorite Kitchen Tools

May 15, 2013 by Terri @ that's some good cookin' 2 Comments

My daughter, Tricia, recently asked me to name my five favorite kitchen tools, the tools I cannot live without. It only took a nano second to name #1 on my list. My knives; sharp, sharp, sharp.

Please note: I am not promoting the brands of the products shown here. I enjoy using these products and am simply showing you what I have at my house.

Number 1: Good Quality Kitchen Knives

Long ago, back in my college days, I took a class about household equipment (don’t laugh). It is probably the best class I have EVER taken because it addressed every day living necessities and practicalities. If it comes with a house, we learned about it. We even learned about the engineering of refrigerators and freezers, driers, washing machines, dish washers, vacuum cleaners–all of it. We spent quite a bit of time on kitchen equipment and it was in that class that I learned about knives. Beautiful, gloriously constructed, sharp knives.

Right after the knife class, I went out and bought my first real knife. It was amazing. Cutting a tomato was like slicing through warm butter. The knife glided effortlessly through that tomato. Magnificent.

Last year for Mother’s Day my family bought me a new set of knives. Woohooo! They have been an absolute joy to use and I protect them as if they were newborns.

This was my initial set of knives. It includes the following: 3 1/2″ paring knife, 6″ utility knife, 8″ chef’s knife, bread knife, scissors, and 9 ” sharpening steel (for honing). I later added a carving knife and a boning knife. I’d like to get a 9″ chef’s knife, especially after using my daughter’s 9″ knife. The 9″ knife allows for a more complete follow-through when cutting.

This is the carving knife. It does a beautiful job on roasts and hams. Glides right through the meat.

The thinness and flexibility of this blade allows great handling.

As per Tricia’s instructions, I just got my knives professionally sharpened. Yes, they are only a year old, but knives need to be sharpened professionally yearly. We are lucky enough to have a local company that makes house calls. Katie got in on the sharpening deal, too, and neither of us had to be without our knives for more than an hour. Sa weeet!

I’ll do a knife tutorial on another post in the future, but I will share with you one tidbit of information. The “sharpening steel“, otherwise known as the rod against which chefs appear to be sharpening their knife blades is not really for sharpening knives. It is for honing knives. Honing serves to straighten the sharp cutting edge of the blade, which develops microscopic dents or nicks and tends to curl under. The blade may still feel sharp, but will cut as if it is dull. Honing makes a sharp blade better, refines the edge and straightens it, so to speak.

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Number 2: Cutting Boards

I bet you didn’t see that one coming (snicker). If you’re gonna have a great knife, then having a good, knife-friendly cutting board seems to be a logical extension. For about ten years I used a wooden cutting board. Wood is a great option because it is very knife friendly. However, I switched many years ago to a durable style of cutting board that can be cleaned in the dishwasher. I really like the idea of keeping my cutting surfaces sanitary and I enjoy being able to put bleach on my boards whenever I want that extra measure of sanitation, especially after prepping poultry. No, I am not a germaphobe. Let’s just say that I am very aware of “what’s out there” in the germ world and I choose to take appropriate precautions, especially with my food.

I have several sizes of cutting boards in my kitchen. Different needs, different sizes. My most often used board is large enough to accommodate stacks of several vegetables at once. I simply cut each vegetable and then push it to one side of the board while I work on the next vegetable. It is also great to have a board that is big enough to accommodate carving a turkey without the turkey pars falling onto the counter top. In essence, big job = big board; small job = smaller board.

A word of caution: please do not use glass cutting boards. They are definite knife killers, plus it is difficult to cut food well on them.

I have two of these boards in different sizes that I recently bought. I also have several similar boards, by other manufacturers, in other sizes. I have used my oldest boards for 15-20 years and they are still going strong. Dishwasher safe and relatively knife friendly, they are a dream.

Here’s a pic of my newest cutting board loaded with beautiful fresh-cut vegetables (except for tht cute little baby corn). Click on the link be taken to a fun Southwestern Stir-Fry.

My favorite green cutting board has been with me for many, many years. This pic is from one of the earlier posts on my blog. The pic of the Sourdough-Parmesan-Artichoke Stuffing was updated last year. This is my family’s all-time favorite stuffing/dressing.

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Number 3: Non-slip pads

Again, back to the sharp knives and the cutting boards. To help keep my cutting boards from slipping while I work, I put a piece of gripper material under the board. They are made of a spongy, non-slip material often used as shelf and drawer liners. They can be found in rolls at home improvement centers, grocery stores, and places like Bed, Bath, and Beyond. I picked mine up at the grocery store, pre-cut and in pretty pink and yellow; they were hanging in one of the isles. They are great. How did I ever live without them?

Oh, I remember how I used to live without them. I used a damp paper towel or a damp dish cloth under my cutting board. The gripper fabric is great because not only does it keep the board from moving, it can also be rinsed off if it becomes soiled.

This is “Grip-It” brand shelf liner. There are other similar brands of shelf liners on the market. The Grip-It brand works very well under cutting boards. Additionally, it is washable, even in the washing machine. It can be ordered on Amazon (click on the picture) if you cannot find this or a similar product in a store near you.

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Number 4: Vegetable Peeler

This is an “OXO” brand vegetable peeler. It can be purchased in many different stores including Walmart and Target. Williams-Sonoma has this peeler and two other types of OXO peelers right now for $14.95. Generally, this vegetable peeler retails for about $9.00, give or take a few cents. It is completely worth the money.

Clearly, I am all about things that cut. Dull prep instruments are a huge frustration for me. Can’t stand them. For me, using a dull knife or vegetable peeler is like trying to run a marathon wearing chainmail. You can get the job done, but dang, what a nightmare. So, number 4 is a good vegetable peeler. I like this one because it fits well in my hand and is sharp. I have had my current peeler for about five years (I think ) and am just now noticing that I need a new one.

Here’s the OXO peeler in use for shaving the fibrous outside of the broccoli stem. The accompanying photo is of Steamed Broccoli with Cheese Sauce and Pancetta–soooooo good.

Number 5: Pots and pans

Gotta have a good set of pots and pans. After all of the food prep (see #1-4 above), a good set of pots and pans is a must. Again, referring back to that household equipment class from long ago, I learned so much about what makes a good cooking pot.

For many years (30!) I used the same set of pots and truly enjoyed them. They were durable and cooked many a good meal. Last year I bought a new set of pots. I probably could have gotten lots more mileage out of my old pots, but I really wanted some new pots.

I love stainless steel pots with an aluminum clad bottom. Copper clad is also great. My pots have all of these elements. And I bought them at Costco. Yep Costco pots. They are doing a spectacular job, although I have had to learn to use them. They heat very well, and I find that I have to use lower heat with them. Additionally, the lids are designed to channel the water from the steam back into the food product. Anyway…these are very nice pots for an extremely reasonable price.

Disclaimer: Pots are very, very personal. Wars have been started over pots…maybe. I am NOT encouraging anyone to buy these pots. They have mixed reviews, generally it seems to be love/hate reviews. Everyone has different expectations and different cooking styles or skills. What works well for one person may not be acceptable to another person. All that I am going to say is that I have a set, my daughter has a set that she bought a year before I bought mine, and one of the chefs for whom she worked has a set of them. We are all satisfied. ONE MORE THING: I paid less than $200.00 for these pots. Don’t buy them on Amazon. Wait for them to come back to Costco. They show up once or twice a year.

Banana Pudding 711 And in this pot, we have a crazy-good pudding that became a part of a Southern-style Banana Pudding. I could eat a pot of this pudding all day!

So, there you have them, my top five favorite kitchen tools. They are a joy to use and are the basis for many happy meals at my house.

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Peanut Butter Cookies with Coconut Oil

May 9, 2013 by Terri @ that's some good cookin' 2 Comments

I had a patient a while back that told me she was treating her husband’s Alzheimer’s with coconut oil. I thought, “Hot diggity dog! I’m gonna get me some of that!”

Kidding.

What I really thought was, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” This was closely followed by the thought, “Who am I to refute a claim for which I have no empirical evidence on either side of the issue.”

Actually, what I really thought was, “Oh. YUM!”

And there you have it.

The first jar of coconut oil that I bought was, at best, unimpressive. It didn’t really even have a coconut smell to it. However, I saw the mother load of all jars of coconut oil at Costco a few months later and had to buy one. It was extra virgin, organic and promised to be wonderful. Only the best will do for my future brain function, after all.

All joking aside, though, there was a noticeable difference between the two jars of coconut oil. The jar from Costco looked different, softer and somewhat more translucent, plus it actually smelled like coconut. Heavenly sigh.

The first thing I did was to use some of it for popping popcorn. I tried some of the popcorn fresh out of the popcorn popper–no salt, no butter. It tasted lightly of coconut. I just kept eating the popcorn plain, handful after handful. “Aren’t you going to put anything on your popcorn?” my husband asked.

Politely, but firmly I responded, “I see no need for superfluous additions to popcorn which has clearly transcended such earthly encumbrances as salt or butter. Do not attempt to dissuade me with suggestions from your uneducated and misguided palate. Clearly, we are no longer compatible as popcorn companions. I shall remove this bowl of ethereal nectar from your presence and retire to my personal chambers with it.”

I talk like that all of the time. A veritable cornucopia of syllabically arranged consonants and vowels, all perfectly concise in their delivery. I’m very sure of myself. Just ask anyone who really knows me. (Stop snickering, John!) (syllabically–keep that word in mind for your next round of Scrabble.)

To tell you the truth, I have been watching cartoons for hours today with my grandsons and I was testing myself to see if I had any part of me left that didn’t laugh at potty humor. In defense of these particular cartoons, Twisted Whiskers, they were really well done and quite funny, especially one with a dog who talked like Jack Benny…”Oh, Dennis…”. (Google Jack Benny if you are not familiar with him. Funny man.) Gavin (6) and I were belly laughing at some of the characters’ antics.

Head shake. Okay, I’m back. Let’s talk about coconut oil in peanut butter cookies. Peanut butter cookies are my all time favorite cookies. It’s the one cookie that I cannot stop eating. When I decided to start experimenting with coconut oil in cookie making, peanut butter cookies seemed like the perfect fit.

Prior to adding the dry ingredients, the dough was quite loose; much more liquid than it is when working with butter or shortening. Although the coconut oil is solid when initially added to the dough, it quickly melts as it is mixed. After adding the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, the dough becomes stiff and looks oily. If you find the dough too oily or soft, simply chill it, covered, for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator. I put my dough in the refrigerator for several hours, while I took care of other necessities–namely watching the afore mentioned cartoons. I also saved some of the dough and baked it the following day. It worked well on both days.

Peanut Butter with Coconut Oil

Yield: Makes 3 1/2-4 dozen cookies

Recipe slightly adapted from Epicurious

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups flour, spooned into the measuring cup, then leveled with a straight edged item of your choosing :)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon (optional, but excellent)
7/8 cup coconut oil, (I used coconut oil in a soft solid state. It liquifies at 76 Degrees F.)
1 1/2 cups crunchy peanut butter
3 large eggs
3/4 cup white granulated sugar
1 1/3 cups brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Instructions

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the baking soda, baking powder, salt, flour, and cinnamon. Set aside.
In another large mixing bowl, with an electric hand mixer, beat together the coconut oil and peanut butter.
Add the eggs and beat. The mixture is going to be rather soupy at this point.
Add the white sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla. Mix well.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Stir until combined. It may be easiest to use your hands for this procedure.
If the dough seems too oily or soft, cover and put it in the refrigerator to chill for anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour. The dough can be kept covered in the refrigerator for several days.
When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
Roll dough into 1-inch balls. Place 12 balls of dough, evenly spaced, on a standard sized cookie sheet. Press each ball of dough with the tines of a fork to make a cross-hatch pattern. The dough may be somewhat crumbly, give it support with the fingers of one hand while pressing the dough with the fork in the other hand. Reshape edges as desired.
Bake for about 9-10 minutes for chewy cookies and 11-12 minutes for crunchy. 10 minutes in my oven gave the cookies a chewy middle with slightly crunchy edges.

Notes

Be sure to spoon the flour into the measuring cup and then level with a straight edged tool. Scooping causes the flour to be compacted in the measuring cup. This will cause too much flour to be added to the cookie dough, making a heavy, crumbly dough and cookie. This dough will store well in the refrigerator for up to 3 days if kept in an airtight container.

http://www.tsgcookin.com/2013/05/peanut-butter-cookies-with-coconut-oil/

Sorry. No step-by-step pics. I’m too busy watching cartoons and admiring Gavin’s artwork.

Update on Tricia and Ander

May 5, 2013 by Terri @ that's some good cookin' 6 Comments

Sunday is always a good day to count one’s blessings; a good way to begin the week. Last week I wrote about my daughter, Tricia, and her new baby boy, Ander, who was born 8 weeks early on April 27, 2o13. The past week has been full of challenges and blessings.

Despite Ander’s early birth and the fact that he is in the NICU, Tricia is the one with ongoing drama. After Ander’s birth, Tricia’s blood pressure continued to remain high. She was given medication to help lower her blood pressure and was also kept on magnesium sulfate until the following day at 11:00 AM to help protect her against having seizures. Preeclampsia can be deadly. (Did anyone see the episode of Downton Abbey where Lady Sybil Branson dies from preeclampsia/eclampsia?)

Left pic: Tricia’s face at the time her labor was induced. Right pic: 5 days later the edema was completely gone.

The picture on the left is of Tricia’s swollen legs and feet the week she was hospitalized prior to giving birth to Ander. The picture on the right was taken about 5 days after Ander was born. It makes me want to cry when I see how much fluid Tricia was holding.

By Monday afternoon Tricia had stabilized to the point that she could come home. However, she was readmitted to the hospital the very next day because her blood pressure was again high, her headache was worsening, and her vision was blurry. Her blood work showed marked changes and she was diagnosed with HELLP syndrome. HELLP is an acronym for the following:

H- hemolysis (the breakdown of red blood cells)
EL- elevated liver enzymes (which indicate that the liver is not functioning well)
LP- low platelets counts (platelets help the blood to clot–low platelets mean that blood will not clot well–bad plan for a woman who has recently given birth)

It is very rare for a woman to develop HELLP syndrome after delivery. Poor Tricia, she was put back on magnesium sulfate. That can be a really mean drug with unpleasant side effects.

Anyway, Tricia was finally released…again, the following evening. She gets better each day, but her headache lingers and she still has to take medication for her blood pressure. She faithfully drives up to the hospital to see Ander several times a day and participates in his cares.

Now that we are on the subject of Ander, oh my gosh he is absolutely darling! I got to see him Friday evening and fell in love with him all over again. As I rested my hand lightly on his little belly, he was moving his tiny arms and hands around. He kept tapping my hand and wrist during his wiggling. I could have stayed there forever, feeling his soft touch.

Ander has come a long way in the past week. He learned to breath regularly on his own and was taken off of the CPAP. If you have never had occasion to encounter a CPAP, it is simply a machine with a mask or short tubes that fit into the nostrils which uses gentle air pressure to keep the airway open. People with sleep apnea use these compact machines at night to keep their airways open and to regulate their breathing. (Many people have sleep apnea. Do you? Read more about sleep apnea and CPAPs here.)

Ander at about 3 days old. Tricia is resting her hand on his head. You can see how small Ander is with Tricia’s hand as a size reference.

Another milestone happened just today, Ander has developed his “rooting” reflex. This very important reflex is also a part of the all important sucking reflex which Ander also seems to be mastering, too!

He has responded well to breastmilk through his feeding tube. He will be squirming around, indicating that he is hungry, and then as soon as he senses the milk in his stomach, his eyes sort of roll around, and than he gets really still and falls asleep.

A baby’s development can be greatly enhanced by “skin to skin” contact. Both Tricia and Tim have had some quiet time with Ander, holding him next to the bare skin on their chests. Ander seems to love this time. Tricia says that he snuggles against her and goes to sleep. I’m sure that the sound of his mother’s heartbeat is very familiar and comforting to him.

Ander is still a little guy, weighing only 3 pounds 10.5 ounces. The amount of breast milk put through his feeding tube is being increased incrementally. The doctors meet together each morning and decide on an individual plan of care for the day for each baby in the NICU. I have been so amazed at how carefully each detail is monitored. Everything is performed on a schedule, every task, even a bedding change, is scheduled for a specific time. Caring for these fragile preemie babies is an art as well as a science.

Gavin and Kade have both been to see Ander in the NICU. They are allowed to see him twice a week. Gavin (6) is a bit hesitant about Ander. I asked him today why he feels this way around Ander and he said, “Well, he is new. I haven’t seen him with our family yet. I don’t know him.”

Kade (3), on the other hand, has been absolutely thrilled about Ander’s arrival. He has just jumped right in and helps take “care” of Ander. He loves to touch Ander and talk to him. Today he even took it upon himself to locate Ander’s binky and put it in his (Ander’s) mouth. As you can see from the picture below, the binky is about as big as Ander’s head.

So, there are many things for which I am thankful today. I am thankful for a daughter whose health is returning, a daughter whose life has been preserved. I am thankful for a new grandson who has brought so much love to our family. I am thankful for the opportunity that I have had to participate in my grandchildrens’ lives–taking Gavin to school, making meals for them, helping with homework, attending soccer and basketball games, brushing teeth, giving baths, and reading bedtime stories. I am thankful to have the opportunity to be of service to my daughter and son in-law. I am most thankful to a loving Heavenly Father for providing me with the strength and ability to enjoy my family and I am forever grateful to him for his loving mercy particularly over this past week.

This picture both warms my heart and makes me laugh. Ander likes to be awake, looking around at whatever his immature baby eyes can see. I suspect that he sees more than just us mortals. He responds to his parent’s voices when he hears them coming into the NICU by lifting his head and squirming. He already knows to whom he belongs, knows who loves him, knows when he is safe and warm. This little guy is clearly a testament of God’s love and mercy.

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Ugly Enchiladas with the BEST Homemade Red Enchilada Sauce

May 3, 2013 by Terri @ that's some good cookin' 4 Comments

Bah! I have seriously been working on this recipe for weeks. Here’s the low down:

The first time I made it, I thought that I was so clever using a pressure cooker. Yea, umm, I was all set to post that one on the day of the Boston Marathon. The recipe was complete with great step-by-step photos and as I was preparing to take photos of the finished product I learned about the bombing. Could my timing have been worse? Definitely could NOT post that one.
The second time around, I decided to use the slow cooker. It worked great, but the photos of the finished product were disappointing.
The next day as I was assembling some more enchiladas to make better “finished product” pictures, my daughter’s baby crisis started and I made the remaining enchiladas for her family.
In light of everything that has happened in my life over the past week, it seemed ridiculous that I was stressing over posting ugly enchilada pictures. Let’s be honest, when you go to a Mexican restaurant, what does the food on your plate look like?????? Messy, ooey, gooey deliciousness, right? Say “yes”. You know it’s true.
If you want to see prettier enchilada pictures, look at the pics on Green Chili Chicken Enchiladas and Cheese Enchiladas. The one above? It’s real life, baby; the way enchiladas really look when I make them for my family–every square inch covered in glory.

Salsatory Revelation

The #1 thing that makes these enchiladas so great is the homemade sauce. I love to reverse engineer the recipes of prepared food products by reading ingredient labels on cans or bottles. However, it was only recently that I became “inspired” to look at the label on a can of enchilada sauce.

Now here’s a true confession (so embarrassing): I did not know that enchilada sauce was tomato based. I thought that it was chile based. The label on the enchilada sauce left me unconvinced.

Channeling Sherlock Holmes (can you channel a fictional character?) I searched the internet as well as some Mexican cookbooks that I have had for years. The internet lead me to recipes using both tomatoes and whole chiles + spices, as well as recipes using only tomatoes + chile powder + spices. My Mexican cookbooks gave me a measure of comfort in the fact that only one of them contained a recipe for enchilada sauce.

The next logical step was to come up with a good, edible, blog worthy recipe. In the end, I imagined myself eating a really great enchilada sauce and thought about how I could achieve that flavor. The resulting answer surprised me and when I put my theory to the test, the forthcoming sauce was excellent. It even passed the son in-law test.

About the Beef for the Enchiladas

Since the pressure cooker option is temporarily out of favor, I turned to my old friend, the slow cooker in order to get beautifully tender beef and an exceptionally flavorful broth.

The beef chuck roast is seasoned with salt, then browned in a small amount of oil. It is then placed in the slow cooker, sprinkled with chipotle chile powder and cumin, and surrounded by onions and smashed garlic. Beef stock is added and the slow cooker is turned on high. The beef cooks until it is falling-apart-tender.

After cooking, the liquids, onions, and garlic are blended until smooth and become the supporting base of a delicious enchilada sauce. You are going to LOVE this recipe!

Shredded Beef Enchiladas with Homemade Red Enchilada Sauce

Yield: 16 enchiladas, about 8 servings

Recipe by Terri @ that's some good cookin'

Ingredients

For the Beef

2 pounds chuck roast
salt, to taste
2 tablespoons oil of choice (I used canola oil)
1 1/2 cups beef stock
2 medium onions, large dice
4 large cloves fresh garlic, smashed and rough chopped
1/2 teaspoon chipotle chile powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

For the Red Enchilada Sauce:

2-3 cups reserved beef stock from cooking the roast
all of the cooked onions and garlic pieces
1 can (28 ounce) tomato puree
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon granulated onion
1 teaspoon chipotle chile powder
1 teaspoon Mexican oregano
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

For assembling the enchiladas

16 6-inch corn or flour tortillas
1 can (15 ounces) black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (7 ounces) whole green chiles, drained and diced
12 ounces (weight) grated sharp cheese

Toppings: Choose any of the following

Avocados, cut as desired
Sour cream
Chopped cilantro
Guacamole
Fresh tomatoes, diced

Instructions

For the Beef

Salt the roast on both sides, amount per personal preference. Set aside.
In a large pan, heat the oil over medium high heat. Brown the roast on all sides. Lower heat if necessary to keep the roast from burning or the oil from smoking.
Place the well browned roast in the slow cooker. Add the beef stock.
Sprinkle the roast with chipotle chile powder and cumin. Scatter the onions and garlic over the roast and around the inside of the slow cooker.
Cover slow cooker with lid. Cook on high for 6 hours or on low for up to 10 hours until the beef is fork tender. Remove roast from slow cooker and set aside to cool. RESERVE the cooking liquid, onions, and garlic.

For the Enchilada Sauce

With an immersion blender or in a standard blender, blend the reserved beef stock, cooked onions and garlic until smooth.
Add the pureed tomatoes and the remaining enchilada sauce ingredients. Stir or blend well to combine.
Transfer to a 3 quart pot and heat over medium heat until bubbly. Continue to cook the sauce at a low boil, adjusting heat as necessary, for 20 minutes, stirring as needed, until sauce has reduced slightly. It should be somewhat thickened, but still loose.

For Assembling the Enchiladas

While the sauce is cooking, shred the beef. The beef will be very tender and falling apart, so shredding is very easy. Simply pull the beef apart with two forks.
In a large bowl, stir together the shredded beef, black beans, and green chiles. Stir in approximately 1/2 cup of the prepared enchilada sauce.
Warm the tortillas. A microwave works well for this. I warm the tortillas in the open package for 1 minute on 50% power. Then, divide the stack in half, flip the stack so that the outer most tortillas are face to face and in the middle of the stack, and heat for another 1 minute on 50% power.
Working with one tortilla at a time, spread a thin coating of the enchilada sauce, about 2 tablespoonsful, on one side of the tortilla.
Place some of the shredded beef mixture down the center of each tortilla (maybe about 1/4 cup, maybe a little bit less). Sprinkle some cheese over the beef mixture. Spoon about 1-1 1/2 tablespoons of enchilada sauce on top of the cheese.
Wrap one edge of the tortilla snugly around the beef mixture and roll up. Place seem side down in a 9- x 13-inch baking dish.
Pour the remaining enchilada sauce over the prepared enchiladas. If there is extra sauce, it can be served separately for those who prefer more sauce or it can be placed in an air-tight container and frozen for future use.
Sprinkle with the remaining grated cheese over the top.
Bake at 350-degrees F until cheese is melted and the enchiladas are heated through, about 20-30 minutes.

Notes

Suggested sides or toppings: Refried Beans, Simple Mexican-style Rice, guacamole or sliced avocados, diced tomatoes, shredded lettuce, sour cream, or other toppings of preference.

http://www.tsgcookin.com/2013/05/ugly-enchiladas-with-the-best-homemade-red-enchilada-sauce/

Chuck roasts work well for enchiladas. They have a great “fall apart” quality for shredding when cooked in a slow cooker. Sprinkle both sides of the roast with salt before browning.

Heat a frying pan until it is nice and hot. Add two tablespoons cooking oil, then add the roast. Brown on one side, turn it over and brown the other side.

Put the browned roast in the bottom of a slow cooker.

Pour 1 1/2 cups of beef stock over the roast.

Toss the onions (large dice) and smashed garlic on top of the roast and around the sides of the slow cooker.

Add the cumin. Cumin and chipotle chile are added twice to this mean: once on the meat and then again to the sauce. Yum!

Sprinkle the chipotle chile powder over the whole shootin’ match. This brings a bit of heat and a wonderful smoky flavor to the roast.

When the roast has finished cooking and is falling apart (woohoo!), take it out of the slow cooker and set aside on a cutting board to cool. When cool enough to handle, shred or pull the meat apart with two forks. The meat is so tender that it requires very little effort in the shredding process. Longer/larger pieces can be rough chopped into smaller pieces with a sharp knife.

The “gravy” that is left behind in the slow cooker is outstanding all by itself. It makes a fantastic base for the enchilada sauce. Make sure that you have at least 2 cups of cooking juices. Having up to three cups is okay. Just eyeball it. The cooked onions and garlic are not part of the liquid measurement, but they are used as part of the sauce. With an immersion blender or in a standard blender, blend the cooking liquid, onions, and garlic until smooth. Oh boy, so delicious!

This is the part where true beauty happens. Add the tomato puree, chili powder, ground cumin, granulated onion, powdered chipotle chile, Mexican oregano, granulated garlic, and ground black pepper to the gravy. Mix well. I used the immersion blender for this.

Put the sauce into an appropriate sized sauce pot. Bring to a low boil over medium heat. Cook, stirring as needed, for about 20 minutes until the sauce has thickened slightly and the flavors are well infused. Adjust seasonings as needed. This sauce is brilliant! (I’m using the word ‘brilliant’ as the British use it; not ‘brilliant’ as in superlative intellect.)

While the sauce is saucing, finish preparing the filling ingredients for the enchiladas. I prefer to dice canned whole green chiles rather than using canned diced chiles. It has been my experience that the cans of diced chiles have too many pepper “skins” in them. I feel that I get more bang for my buck if I dice the chiles myself. If you’d like to roast your own fresh green chiles to add to the sauce, then all I have to say is YOU ROCK!

Put the shredded beef, black beans, and diced green chile peppers in a large mixing bowl.

Pour about 1/2 cup of enchilada sauce over the filling ingredients. Stir everything together.

Things are starting to get really exciting now. Working with one warmed tortilla at a time, spread 1 1/2-2 tablespoons of the enchilada sauce on one side of the tortilla. Put approximately 1/4 cup beef mixture down the center of the tortilla. Sprinkle with some grated cheese. Spoon some of the enchilada sauce on top of the cheese. Oooooooo, this is looking and smelling great!

Roll up the tortilla nice and snug around the filling. Place in a lightly greased baking dish. Depending on how many enchiladas you are making, two dishes may be required.

Top the enchiladas with the remaining sauce. How much sauce to use is a judgement call on your part. I personally prefer a goodly amount of sauce.

Sprinkle the top of the enchiladas with a generous amount of cheese. Generosity is saintly, but that is just my opinion. Take it for what it is worth. Bake the enchiladas in a preheated 350-degree F oven for 20-30 minutes until the cheese is melted and the filling is hot.

Sprinkle top with chopped cilantro, if desired. Serve with refried beans, Mexi-rice, sour cream, sliced avocados or guacamole, diced tomatoes, shredded lettuce or other items of personal preference.

Filed Under: Mexican/Tex-Mex/Mexi-Cali

Preeclampsia

April 27, 2013 by Terri @ that's some good cookin' 11 Comments

Ander. 3 pounds 14 ounces. 16 inches long. Born at 32 weeks–8 weeks before his due date.

April 26, 2013 3:00 PM

Most of the time my posts are about food, fun, and family. Today…let’s talk about something different. Let’s talk about family and preeclampsia.

If you are not familiar with it, preeclampsia is a serious condition which can happen to pregnant women and involves the following:

High blood pressure (hypertension) — 140/90 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg) or greater — documented on two occasions, at least six hours but no more than seven days apart
Excess protein in your urine (proteinuria)
Severe headaches
Changes in vision, including temporary loss of vision, blurred vision or light sensitivity
Upper abdominal pain, usually under your ribs on the right side
Nausea or vomiting
Dizziness
Decreased urine output
Sudden weight gain, typically more than 2 pounds (0.9 kilogram) a week

I’m bringing up preeclampsia because it has suddenly and unexpectedly become a very real part of my daughter’s, Tricia, life. Tricia is 32 weeks pregnant–full term is 40 weeks. Technically, the baby is not due for another 8 weeks. However, it is highly probable that he will come much earlier. In fact, sometime between now and the next two weeks because the doctors will induce labor. We’re just hoping that Tricia’s condition will stabilize and that the baby will have more time to grow and develop in utero. (See follow up post here.)

April 23, 2013 10:00 AM

Tricia calls me from her OBGYN’s office where she has gone for her monthly check up. There have been some unexpected complications in her pregnancy and she is being taken up to one of the local hospitals–a hospital that is equipped to care for women with preeclampsia and infants who are born before 35 weeks gestation.

Tricia asks me if I would be willing to pick up Gavin (6) from school and Kade (3) from Tim’s work. She had thought that she would only be at the doctor’s office for about an hour, so Tim had taken Kade to work with him.

I collect the boys and bring them back to my house. Later in the day, Tricia calls to tell me that she is to be on strict bed rest and that she most likely will deliver the baby before 35 weeks. She is 32 weeks at this time; 8 weeks out from her due date.

Mentally I do a quick review of my work schedule, and then I start to panic. How am I going to be able to help my daughter AND go to work?

April 23, 2013 11:00 PM

It has become obvious to me that I need to ask for time off from work. I’m worried. I calculate that I am going to need to take off for about a month. Tricky, at best.

Come what may, my daughter and her family require my help. What good is it being a nurse if I can’t put those skills to use in behalf of my own family? Additionally, I am a wife and mother first and a nurse second. That’s just the way I roll.

April 25, 2013 5:30 PM

My boss agrees to let me have a month off to take care of my personal needs. I am so grateful. Thank you, Marianne.

April 26, 2013 8:00 AM

Tricia calls me at home and asks me to meet her at her OBGYN’s office at 9:00 AM. I’ve been asleep for about 4 hours after coming off of a challenging shift at work. I’m a little bleary-eyed and tired, but I know that my daughter needs me, so I rally myself, roll out of bed, and throw on some clothes. I am suspecting that it might be a long day, so I grab a few things to keep me entertained–my laptop and my camera.

April 26, 2013 9:00 AM

I meet Tricia at her doctor’s office. She looks tired, but is positive. The doctor comes into the room and a few moments later I find myself driving Tricia up to one of the local hospitals. Tim, Tricia’s husband, has a critical business meeting in Park City and will catch up with us at the hospital in a couple of hours.

April 26, 2013 10:00 AM

We get Tricia checked in at the hospital. The doctor has called ahead, so everything is ready and waiting for us when we arrive–including the room where Tricia will rest while she is undergoing various tests and is being monitored. Things move very quickly and within a few minutes Tricia finds herself in bed wearing a hospital gown and sporting a newly placed IV.

I don’t say anything, but in my heart of hearts I know that Tricia will not be coming home tonight.

Monitors are attached to Tricia’s abdomen. One of the monitors tracks the baby’s heart rate, another of them tracks any contractions which Tricia might have.

Blood work is drawn and Tricia and I settle down to wait for the results. Tricia has been working on a crocheted blanket for the baby. She had the forethought to bring the blanket so that she could work on it while we waited.

The baby is doing fine; he has been a wiggling wild man throughout the day. Tricia, on the other hand, is not having a particularly good day. She has all of the afore listed symptoms of preeclampsia excluding the upper abdominal pain.

In addition to the above symptoms, her lab work is not looking good. Her liver enzymes are rising, her platelets are falling, there are large amounts of protein in her urine, and her urine output is decreasing. In short, Tricia has severe preeclampsia. And the baby? His growth has fallen two weeks behind where he ought to be at this time.

She is being admitted; length of stay is indefinite.

Oh, and one more thing. I forgot to mention that today is Tricia’s birthday. Happy 28th, sweetie.

April 26, 2013 8:00 PM

John and Katie brought the boys up to see Tricia. We celebrated her birthday in her hospital room. Tim brought a little cake from our family’s favorite bakery. It was decorated with the bakeries signature spring flowers made out of frosting.

Gavin (age 6) gave Tricia a sparkly ring for her birthday. He says that since his mom loves sparkly things, he wanted her to have a new ring to wear. He gave her a ring last year, too. Both rings are large, inexpensive pieces of costume jewelry and they are absolute treasures. Gavin is such a thoughtful, kind little boy. He told Tricia that the rings had stretchy bands so that they would fit her fingers no matter how swollen her fingers became.

April 26, 2013 10:40 PM

Tricia’s symptoms have gotten worse. She is being moved to another room. It is the room where she will be given pitocin to induce labor, the room where her baby, Ander, will be delivered and quickly passed through a window into the NICU (neonatal intensive care unit).

Magnesium sulfate is being infused through Tricia’s IV to prevent seizures. The possibilities of seizures or stroke are high with preeclampsia.

Over the past few hours I have watched Tricia’s edema increase throughout her body. Her feet, legs, hands, and face are getting very puffy. Sometimes I feel like I want to cry because of what she is going through. It is difficult for a mother to watch her child suffer, particularly difficult when I, as a nurse, know the physiology behind the suffering. Somehow, though, I know that God will take care of everything.

This was about 1 hour after we first arrived at the hospital on 4/26/13

As you can see, the edema in Tricia’s face has increased significantly after 12 hours.

Her feet and legs look as if someone has blown them up like balloons.

April 27, 2013 12:10 AM

The nurse has just started the pitocin infusion. It will begin Tricia’s labor. The doctor says that the baby will most likely be born in 6-8 hours.

Tim and I were given a tour of the NICU. I saw a set of twins, 32 weeks, who were born about 4 hours ago. They are beautiful and not as small as I had thought they would be. It gives me increased hope for little Ander’s well being.

April 27, 2013 2:59 AM

An alarm has gone off in another room. There are a lot of hurried noises in the hallway.

I can hear the doctor saying that one of the other patients has been given terbutaline and that if things don’t improve in 20 minutes, everyone should be “ready to roll”. Terbutaline is used to stop pre-term labor. It makes me sad to think that someone is suffering the trauma of delivering a baby far too early. Tricia’s situation is critical, but at least there is hope for a positive outcome.

April 27, 2013 3:11 AM

Things in Tricia’s room are quiet. Both she and Tim (Tricia’s husband) are asleep. Tricia’s epidural is in place, so she is not feeling pain from any contractions that she may have. However, she has developed a severe headache. The nurse has given her tylenol 975mg followed about an hour later by compazine. They are not helping, but somehow Tricia is able to sleep. I suspect that her ability to sleep is a mixture of exhaustion and the compazine.

Her urine output has increased: a good sign.

April 27, 2013 3:20 AM

The nurse has just come back into the room. As it turns out, Tricia has not been asleep. Her head pain is too severe to sleep. She has just been lying in the bed quietly, trying to get through the pain. She looked over at me from her bed and I gave her a sympathetic smile. She was able to give me a painful little smile back. I’m sad that she is suffering.

April 27, 2013 3:29 AM

Tricia’s headache is continuing. The nurse has just given her some Fentanyl in her IV. She has also increased the pitocin infusion. I think that this is maybe the 5th or 6th increase since the Pitocin was started.

I just heard a newborn cry from another room. It sounded like a healthy cry.

April 27, 2013 3:40 AM

The fentanyl worked fast. Tricia’s headache is gone. Yay!

April 27, 2013 4:21 AM

Tricia and I have been having a quiet conversation while we wait for Ander. It’s like a sleepover…without any sleep and definitely no fun involved. The soft, steady sound of Ander’s heart is keeping us company through the monitor. Conversations in a darkened room in the wee hours of the morning are intimate. Things from the heart get said when there is only the sound of voices to give light to the darkness.

April 27, 2013 4:27 AM

Tricia’s headache has returned, just as bad as it was previously. The nurse is going to check to see if she can give Tricia some more medication for it.

April 27, 2013 7:28 AM

I slept for a couple of hours curled up in a chair, resting my head on a blanket on one arm of the chair and then sometime later on the other arm. Tricia hasn’t delivered yet. As a matter of fact, she hasn’t dilated past a 2. So, they broke her water a few minutes ago in an effort to get things moving. She’s being really great through all of this and is looking forward to welcoming little Ander into the world.

It is strange, but I sense a change in the whole event. Ander has been so active for the past 24 hours, but now he is quieter, as if he is conserving his energy for the coming birth. I am sending more prayers heavenward, needing Heavenly Father to step in and help us all through this. Yesterday I felt confident, but now I feel concern creeping in and wrapping itself around my positive thoughts.

April 27, 2013 9:03 AM

Still only dilated to a 2. Ander heart rate is in the safe zone.

Tricia’s headache and high blood pressure continues. She vomited her oral pain medication. I asked the nurse if it would be possible for Tricia to have some Zofran to help with the nausea. After I had done so, I realized that it might have been too intrusive of me. No nurse likes to have a patient’s family member who is also a nurse tell them what to do. When the nurse returned to the room with the zofran, I tried to smooth things over by thanking her for the great care that she and the other nurses had given Tricia. It seems to have been the right thing to do and any tension that may have existed has been cleared.

We have kept the room dark because the light hurts Tricia’s eyes and increases her headache. The only sound in the room is coming from the monitor where Ander’s heartbeat continues to let us know that he is okay. I doze off again.

April 27, 2013 10:30 AM

I awaken to Tricia’s urgent voice. “Tim! Call the nurse! The baby is coming. Hurry, he’s coming out! I can feel him coming out and I can’t stop him! Call the nurse, Tim, call the nurse!”

As I was trying to scramble over to Tricia, the nurse walks in. She checks Tricia and sure enough, the baby is ready for his grand entrance. The next few minutes are filled with the sounds of the nurses telling Tricia not to push and Tricia saying that she doesn’t think she is going to be able to not push.

I try to stay out of the way and choose to sit on the couch and watch intently.

April 27, 2013 10:37 AM

The doctor has been notified that delivery is imminent. While we wait, two other doctors enter the room on standby, ready to intervene if necessary. Both of them examine the baby to get a perspective on his presentation. We knew from the ultrasound from the previous day that the baby was head down in good position. However, the two doctors and two of the nurses who have examined Tricia are feeling what they think is an elbow wedged up by his head. Apparently Ander is posing for his glorious entrance.

Nurses from the NICU open the window into Tricia’s room through which the baby will be passed. They are gowned, gloved, and masked and one of them stands ready with a blanket resting across her open hands to receive Ander the moment after the cord is cut.

Tricia has a couple more strong contractions before her doctor arrives. She doesn’t push. Her epidural isn’t working anymore, so the moment is tense.

April 27, 2013 10:50 AM

The doctor finally arrives. She checks the baby, also, and agrees that Ander most likely has his elbow raised up by his ear.

We wait for Tricia’s next contraction. It doesn’t come. Doctors, nurses, Tim, Tricia, and I wait. Tricia is in that ever popular, undignified position a woman assumes preparatory for delivery.

We continue to wait; everyone is poised for action.

April 27, 2013 11:05

Ander is suddenly with us. His little body parts are all present and accounted for…they just didn’t enter the world quite the way everyone had thought they would. At some point Ander had flipped himself head up and came out feet, or rather, foot first followed by his little butt and his other foot. Luckily he was little so that being in a breech position was not a problem.

I was holding my breath, waiting for Ander to cry. I needed to hear him make a sound. After a few eternally long seconds he let out a soft little cry, then was silent. “Make another cry,” I thought. “You need to make another one.” Centuries passed while I waited. Randomly I noticed that he looked like his older brother. Then he cried again and was immediately scooped up and handed off through the window to the waiting NICU nurse. The window was closed and the blinds were lowered.

The tears were streaming down my face as I stared at the window through which Ander had disappeared. I returned to my place on the couch and watched while the doctors and nurses attended to Tricia.

April 27, 2013 11:30 AM

The window opened again while the medical staff cleaned up Tricia and her room. The nurse who had taken Ander made the announcement. 3 pounds, 14 ounces. APGAR scores 7 & 8, and he was nice and pink. Everyone cheered. He was a good weight considering his early birth and his APGAR scores were good. And he was pink. I started crying again and saw no reason why I should stop. I was so grateful for a safe delivery.

April 27, 2013 5:23 PM

I have seen Ander. He is beautiful, precious beyond belief. Just as Wordsworth said, “Trailing clouds of glory…”

Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting:
The Soul that rises with us, our life’s Star,
Had had elsewhere its setting,
And cometh from afar:
Not in entire forgetfulness,
And not in utter nakedness,
But trailing clouds of glory do we come
From God, who is our home:
Heaven lies about us in our infancy!

~ William Wordsworth

A candid moment that I was able to photograph through a window in the door that lead into the NICU.

One last precious look from dad before putting Ander back in the isolette. There will be more looks like this as Ander stays in the NICU, learning life skills like breathing and how to eat.