Potatoes, Ham and Eggs in a cast iron skillet.

These little cast iron skillets are awesome vessels for an easy breakfast dish.  In this dish I used some left over oven roasted potatoes and peppers along with some fresh sliced mushrooms I picked up at the farmers market yesterday.  I diced up some ham and added that as well.  Preheat your oven to 500 degrees, and put a pizza stone on the wire rack.  Those it's not as good as a wood fired oven, it's the best way to approximate that style of cooking.  As it heats up, wipe the skillet with some olive oil and put in your potatoes, mushrooms and ham.  When the oven reaches 500, pop in your skillets for about 5 to 10 minutes, until the contents are hot and sizzling.  Next step, take out the skillets one at a time and crack two eggs over the top, salt and pepper and return them to the oven.  Cook them until you get the doneness on your eggs you desire.  Remove and serve with a couple slices of toast.

Bulk Spices are the way to go!

As you can see from the pic, the prices on buying spices in the bulk section of your grocery is the way to go.  I've posted this in the past, but wanted to share an example of what they really cost!

That's your tip for the day!

Kevin

Sous Vide Chicken Thighs

In December I ate a double cut pork chop at a hotel restaurant that is in a small town near my house.  I like pork, and a pork chop is one of my favorite cuts for sure.  When this dish came to the table, I was shocked how flavorful and tender it was...only to find out their method of cooking was to Sous Vide it, then finish it on the grill.

For Christmas this year I can say that I am now the proud owner of a Joule Sous Vide machine.  So far, I've tried Pork and Chicken...both came out amazingly well.  This method of cooking maintains the proper temperature, and allows you to impart flavor better than any other cooking method I've seen to date.  Here are a few pic's of Chicken Thigh's we did this week.  If you haven't tried this method of cooking.....do a bit of research and pick up a Sous Vide unit that will work for you and is in  your budget.  I'm super happy with my Joule!

Joule Web Page

Roast Beef Hash

If you are like me, it's always great to make roast beef with potatoes and carrots, however we always seem to have a ton of leftovers.  I intentionally buy a larger beef roast than I will need for the express purpose of making this dish.  You will need a grinder of some kind, either the type that is hand cranked, or the one like I will share...an attachment for my KitchenAid Mixer.  So let's get started.  

As you can see in the picture, there is leftover potatoes, carrots and roast beef.  To that, I add an onion and some parsley.  This mixture is run through a grinder on a rough grind...you don''t want it super fine by any means!

Once  you grind the mixture, the next step is to fry it up in  your favorite skillet...I use cast iron.  I do this on a medium heat and let it sit for a bit to develop a crust, then turn it / mix it up again and then let it sit to brown.  Do this until you reach the doneness you desire.  As you can see in my pic below, I like my hash done pretty well because I serve a fried egg over the end result, or as you can see in this pic.....grilled sausages.  Season to your liking and enjoy that in some cases...the leftovers are better than the original meal!