Love Hummus !

Love homemade hummus !!   I made two for a neighbor's pool party  .. on the left is a spicy chili, roasted garlic and basil .. on the right , a roasted red onion , thyme and fresh garlic :))  MmmmMmmm just add some 9 grain crackers and your set ! Total cost for both $5 ( 20 people snacks worth ) The garlic & herbs were from my own garden too , making it extra special :)

#Simplegoodfood #GoodfoodCheap #RichsgoodFood ..
Here is one of my original recipes for hummus    :

http://richfletchersgoodfoodrevolution.blogspot.ca/2010/11/roasted-red-pepper-garlic-hummus.html
     

Turkey Meatball Pan Pizza

It is that time of the year when I have to start using up what's in the freezer , partially to save money , and b/c it is a good thing to do :)  Makes room for new deals , and creations.    Found some ground turkey ... and my first thought was meatballs ...  second thought was I wanted pizza ...  So ...  Hahahaha

Turkey Meatball Pan Pizza 


Ingredients : Makes (1) 12 x17 Pan Pizza

Crust - 2 cups of flour - 6 Tbsp EVOO - 1 1/3 Cup Hot Water- 4.5 Tsp Pizza Yeast - 1.5 Tsp Sea Salt - 1 Tsp Dehydrated Garlic & Basil - 1 Tbsp Sugar  ( In large bowl , mix dry ingredients well, add the wet and using two wooden spoons , mix and knead for about 6 minutes , spread out using your fingers into an oiled baking tray )

Pizza
- 3 Tbsp Sauce , I used my Spicy Smoky Sweet Ketchup ( SSS )
- Two Cups of grated cheese ( I blended mozzarella and 5yr old cheddar )
- 1 each small Red, Orange & Jalapeno pepper , sliced thin
- Good handful of cremini mushrooms , sliced 
- 2 slices good quality bacon , chopped - 1 red onion , sliced thinly -  9  Small Turkey Meatballs 


Meatballs ( Makes about 16 ) 
1 lb ground turkey -1 large egg -1 handful breadcrumbs - 4 cremini mushrooms , small diced 
1/2 onion , small diced -1/2 jalapeno - 2 cloves of garlic, minced - chili powder, s&p. l&p rosemary to taste
Mix well , form into smaller than golf ball sized balls ...  quickly fry in a pan until crispy on all edges at medium high heat, remove and drain . 



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Peace, Love and Good Food :)
Rich

Oven Baked Garlic and Chili Scotch Eggs

Growing up , Scotch Eggs were a once or twice a year treat :) Usually when Mum was going to change the oil in the chip pan ...  as deep frying these is the tradition way , and it makes a big mess of your oil .  So ... In the interest of saving some $$ on oil , and choosing a healthier option , I chose to try and bake them .  First time for me , up until this point every one I have ever eat has been deep fried .   Here goes nothing!!

Ingredients:    (Makes 5 Eggs)

1lb of ground pork ( sausages out of their casings )
7 Large Eggs , Free range prefered
1 heaping TSB of Chili Powder
1 heaping TSB of dehydrated garlic chips ( or a couple of cloves minced )
1 TSB of dried basil
Sea Salt and Pepper to your own taste
Several dashes of Lea & Perrins
2 cups of bread crumbs
3 TBS of oven safe oil ( Sunflower )


Step One : Hard Boiled Eggs

Fill a large pot ( i used 8 quarts ) with water , put your eggs in , brings to a soft boil , simmer for one minute and then take pot off the heat to cool down,  leave at least 10 minutes ... then you can dunk the eggs in cold water and start peeling .


Step Two : The Meat

Crack one egg into a mixing bowl , add the pork , chili , garlic and basil and about 2/3 a cup of bread crumbs ... Mix until well blended and has a slightly sticky texture :)
Preheat your oven to 375F

Step Three : Make the Ball

Grab one egg .. and a handful of pork mix , I like to flatten it out , should look like the photo below this , and be almost enough to wrap around the egg, pretend your making large meatballs is the method , and soon the whole egg will be covered







Step Four  : Egg Wash & Bread Crumbs

Pour the remaining bread crumbs onto a plate , and whisk up an egg and a splash of water in a bowl... take each pork wrapped egg, and gently roll in the egg wash , then onto the bread crumb plate , keep going till they are all breaded :)





 

Step Five : Oven Time

Assemble your scotch eggs on a Sunflower oiled baking sheet , and into the 375F oven they go
Total cook time was 30 minutes

 

 

Step Six : Make em Even

 I set my timer to go off every ten minutes .. gently , roll the eggs around on each ten , after twenty minutes they should start getting some colour !

 

 

Step Seven : Rest

On a clean kitchen towel , or paper towel , nestle your eggs in and cover , leave them for five minutes .

 

Step Eight : Enjoy

Hot or cold your choice , I prefer mine hot ...  I like to quarter mine and sprinkle with a little hot smoked paprika .

 

That is it :) I do hope you have enjoyed this post !  What did you think of the new format ? I tried to make it a little more recipe-ish :)

I would love to hear how it went if you try this.

Peace , Love and Happy Scotch Eggs !   

7 Pepper Birthday Chili

Whats your favourite Birthday meal ??   Mine is a nice juicy steak, with a jacket potato ... but this year for the first time in ages , birthday dinner with Mum ( We share the same Bday ) was a few days early ...  leaving me with a big question ... What to have on my Birthday !!   It didnt take long to realize Id been craving chili all month .. so Chili it was !!    Simple, Good Food !

Basic Ingredients ( I dont cook with a recipe , or even write anything down hahaha )

2 lbs of Ground Beef from local butcher
2 large mexican sausages from local butcher
1 lb of braising steak , Crossrib - Flour for dusting
4 tins of Beans ( Unico , 3 Red Kidney , 1 Romano ) - I prefer dried , but am using up old stock
2 large sweet red peppers
2 large chili peppers
2 cayenne chili peppers
6 long green chili peppers
3 small dried red chili peppers ( Very hot ! )
8 medium onions
1 head of garlic
1/2 tin of chipolte peppers
2 green bell peppers
1 pint of dark ale
1 pint roasted tomato sauce ( Homemade )
1 quart of stewed tomatoes ( homemade )

Chili Powder, L&P, Sea Salt & Black Pepper

Start by sauteing the onions ...  transfer to slow cooker when done 

Next step, the beef , best to add flavour here , chili powder, S&P, L&P, and half the can of beer 

 In the meantime,  I rinsed and boiled the tinned beans ... rinsed again and added to the slow cooker

While the beef is browning ... add in the beans, stewed tomatoes , and roasted tomato sauce 

Once the ground beef has finished, add the sausages , and cubed and flour dusted steak ..   just need to brown these , then add to the slow cooker 

Once done with frying ...  use the other half of the beer to deglaze the pan , add to the slow cooker, this is some amazing flavour here !  

Its starting to look like chili :))   Let simmer for 2 hours 

Once the base chili has simmered , its time to add the peppers in for the last 1 to 2 hours of cooking 

All sliced and diced, and ready for the pot!! 

Five hours after slicing the onions ...  CHILI!    Mmmm its time to eat ! 

The leftovers....  usually i portion this out and freeze it up for easy meals later , this time I decided to pressure can it ...   a future post maybe ??

MmmmMmmm  I do hope you enjoy my spicy chili , this one was quite the sweat inducing bowl of goodness !!  I wouldnt change a thing .. but if your not a big fan of spicy, i would cut back considerable of the hot peppers and add more sweet :)

Don;t forget , you can always follow the daily fun over at https://www.facebook.com/RichsGoodFood

Peace, Love and Good Food to everyone !
Rich

Sausage n Mushroom Frittata

I love making frittata's !  They are such a simple and easy way to use up leftovers, you can make a personal sized one  or  a quick meal for 4 or 6 people .   As for ingredients the options are endless..  for me ,  Cheese and Eggs are the only must have .. well maybe garlic too!   

This season, we have a new vendor at the Farmers Market , CrosswindFarms :) A local goat farm , that specializes in goat cheeses ..  and even sell some of the meat.  I ended up with some of their sausages... and what better way to use up the extras than to make a frittata! ! 

You will need an oven safe frying pan for this dish :)

Start off by prepping your veggies ..  Mushrooms, Onions,  Peppers, Broccoli, Grape Tomatoes ..  

Start off with the mushrooms and onions, a nice pat of butter will help out here , just long enough to get some colour on them . 

Finish chopping everything while that is happening . Bite sized is best . The Goats sausage was very good, nice texture and very meaty !
Throw whatever you like for seasoning in with the veggies, I went with chili powder and basil  :) 

Chili Beef Loaded Poutine

I have to start by saying that I love a good proper poutine ,  nice gravy , well cooked chips ( fries ) , and squeaky cheddar cheese curds, best served in a paper bowl , and enjoyed with a plastic fork.  I honestly believe they taste better when someone else makes it for you!  Hahahaha  every once in a while I try at home... so far 3 not so amazing creations.    Then I tried again after a two year break ...  and Wow!  I finally nailed it ! Hahahaha so very far from traditional , but.. it was GOOD!!   Here is how I made it :)) It was mostly all leftovers from a couple of different meals too :))
Enjoy!  

The Leftovers :)   Pan gravy, caramelized onions and mushrooms, and a mildly spicy chili spiced ground beef . Here is a link to make my basic gravy :)
http://richfletchersgoodfoodrevolution.blogspot.com/2010/12/who-doesnt-love-gravy.html

First up , make the chips ...  I MUCH prefer them well done
Here is how to make my chips :)
http://richfletchersgoodfoodrevolution.blogspot.com/2010/12/easy-hand-cut-chips.html

The leftovers...  almost forgot about the roasted red peppers :))   I spread everything out, poured the gravy into pyrex  .. and into the toaster oven it all went , at 325 - 350 for about 20 minutes ( same time as the chips took basically )

Simple and Easy Pulled Pork : Good Food , Cheap

Ive been meaning to get to this one for well over a month,  I must admit it slipped through the cracks lol .  A request from a friend reminded me that I never did actually finish this post , just got as far as uploading the photos.  Now , like making chili , or gumbo there are a million different ways to go about making a pot of pulled pork and I'm sure more than a few people have a very strong opinion on it :))  What I'm making here , is the simple and easy method.. just a few minutes prep and the slow cooker does the rest !!  

What you will need :  Makes approx 16 servings 

1 Large smoked pork shoulder -                $8.00 for 8lbs on sale 

--  Please note , when using a commercially smoked piece of pork DO NOT add any more salt.  I made that mistake once , and it was almost inedible.  

5 or 6 medium red or white onions             $3.00 for 10lbs = $ 0.60

2 large utility carrots                                    $ 3.00 for 10lbs = $ 0.25 

6 or 7 cloves of garlic                                   $ 3.00 for 3 heads = $ 0.50

3 hot dried chili ( You decide the heat here ... I should have used 6 !  )  

Chili Powder 

Black Pepper

Hot Sauce & Worcestershire Sauce 

1L of homemade Beef or chicken stock - prefer the beef  ( 4 cups ) - 

                                                   Total Cost $ Under $10.00  , or about 65 cents a serving 

Assemble your ingredients :)  Wash and peel the carrots 

I like to give the pork shoulder a good rinse first , to help remove any excess salt.  Then score the fat to the meat , using about 3/4 to 1" squares. 

IN a hot skillet, quickly give all the sides a little colour :)) 

Meanwhile , back at the slow cooker. I added the rough chopped carrots , beef stock , dried chili , Lea & Perrins, and some Bourbon Street Bad hot sauce for a southern kick :)   I set it to high for the first hour , then its slow and low the rest of the time!  Add a tablespoon or two of chili powder too 

Add the pork shoulder to the pot, lol and this is my BIG crock pot.  You my need to move things around a little :) 

IN the same pan I browned the pork in, give the onions and garlic a quick sizzle. Add them to the pot, and cover the lid.  Check back in a hour. 

IT should look something like this , and start to smell amazing . 

I ended up letting mine simmer for a good 8 hours,  you can get away with 4 or 6 .. but I like 8 .. makes it just fall  apart ! 

Remove the carrots , and get in there with a couple of serving forks.  Shred it well. 

Of course a sample is required to test the seasoning :)) 

Sampling the pulled pork ... plain so I can judge the flavours :))Mmmmm good!!  

Later I added some extras, a little red pepper, onion and mushrooms, on a toasted garlic ciabatta roll!!  

I also turned some into a loaded jacket potato :))
http://richfletchersgoodfoodrevolution.blogspot.com/2011/01/creative-leftovers-pulled-pork-n-beans.html

That's it ,  Its only about twenty minutes worth of work , and the rest is just waiting :))  Sampling is allowed so its all good :)) So what do you think of my latest Good Food , Cheap post ?  Any comments or suggestions are greatly appreciated :)  Happy Cooking !