House Dressing-Secret Recipe Club

Who could resist a visit to a blog called “Smells Like Brownies.”  This was my assigned blog for this month’s Secret Recipe Club.  Melissa has been blogging since 2011 and is the stay-at-home mom of two little ones.

Of course, cookie lover that I am, I headed straight for the cookie index.  I wasn’t disappointed and found recipes for Brown Sugar Shortbread, Oatmeal Butterscotch Chip Cookies, Gooey Vanilla Bean Tea Cakes and Double Chocolate Buttermilk Cookies which my husband is currently stealing from the cookie jar.  I also found Spicy Tuna Burgers and Pecan Crusted Salmon.  Melissa doesn’t eat meat or poultry, so there are a lot of great veggie and fish recipes on the site also.

Now I was planning to post about one of the cookie recipes, but I came across a post that had a recipe that was so easy, so quick and so versatile that, after I made it,  I just knew that it had to be shared.  Melissa wrote about a dressing that she  loved which was served at a place called The Cheese Shop in Colonial Williamsburg.  Well, move over Ranch, I have a new love.

Now when I say I love this stuff, this is how I have already used it.

I had it on roasted cauliflower.

Then as a dip for chicken fingers.

With roasted potato slices.

And on zucchini patties.

Then actually as a dressing on a wedge of lettuce.
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I have even been guilty of grabbing a spoon and taking a little bite directly from the jar.  From now on, I will always have this in my fridge.  If you like mustard at all, please give this wonderful recipe a try.

It is worth it to buy the mustard seeds for this if you don’t have them on hand.  The dressing does get more kick the longer you keep it.

Make this dressing/dip, then visit Smells Like Brownies, and get some great new cookie recipes.

“Cheese Shop” House Dressing
from It Smells Like Brownies

I c. high-quality regular or light mayonnaise (I used Best Foods)
1 T. high-quality Dijon mustard
1 T. Worcestershire sauce
1 large clove garlic, minced (I like garlic so may have used a bit more)
1 t. turbinado or light brown sugar (I  used the brown sugar)
pinch salt
pinch fresh ground black pepper
1 t. mustard seeds

Combine all ingredients except the mustard seeds in a food processor or blender.  (I used my mini food chopper).  Process until the garlic is smooth and the mixture is well blended.  Turn into a container with a lid.  Stir in the mustard seeds.  Chill several hours to allow flavors to blend.  Serve with crusty bread, raw or cooked veggies, chicken fingers, over lettuce, just wherever you want.  Makes a little over a cup.

If you would like to join in the fun of Secret Recipe Club, visit this page.

An InLinkz Link-up

Southern Cola Barbecue Sauce-Secret Recipe Club

It is time once again to post the recipe for this month’s Secret Recipe Club.  This month I was assigned This Mama Cooks on a Diet.  Although Anne-Marie has been blogging since 2004, her blog was new to me.  Her tag line is Healthy Recipes & Lifestyle Tips for Busy Moms, and her blog is packed with just that.

I found many healthy recipes that I will be making such as Maple Roasted Vegetables, Maple-Sugar Ginger Roast Pork, Chicken, Sweet Potato and Apple Skillet and many others.  Because I planned to make some oven-barbecued, country-style pork ribs, the recipe I chose was Southern Cola Barbecue Sauce.
 
However, before we go there, I must share a great tip that Anne-Marie posted about making dips with World Harbors Marinades.  This is one of those “slap yourself upside of the head and think why didn’t I think of that” ideas.  The basic idea is to mix equal amounts of the marinade and sour cream, Greek yogurt or tofu sour cream to make a somewhat healthy dip.  I tried this with some World Harbors Maui Mountain Sweet ‘n Sour sauce that I had on hand and loved the result.  Now I know just what to do with those little bits of different sauces I seem to accumulate in my refrigerator.  I will use them to help the veggies go down.

Now on to the real recipe.  Because she is trying (as am I) to avoid high fructose corn syrup, Anne-Marie used a product called Pepsi Natural.  I looked everywhere and could not find it.  Since this recipe was posted in 2009, I suspect that Pepsi Natural didn’t “make the cut”; and like many healthy products that we say we want and then don’t buy, it was discontinued.  Since my hubby MUST have a can of Pepsi each day, we always have it on hand.  I just “bit the bullet” and used that.  The lemon and orange juice gave the sauce an underlying citrus “spark” that I really liked.

In her post Anne-Marie mentions the difficulty of finding commercial barbecue sauces without high fructose corn syrup.   Bull’s-Eye B B Q Sauce does not list high fructose corn syrup on it’s label.  This product is made by Kraft and should be nationally available.

I used one cup of the sauce to marinate the country-style pork ribs, for about 8 hours.  I baked the ribs in a 375 degree oven for about 1 1/2 hours, basting with the reserved sauce every 15 minutes.  I also turned them at that point.  I put the ribs on a broiler pan (both pieces of the pan sprayed very well with non-stick spray).  I did begin to get a little char on the pork towards the end of the cooking time.  Next time I will pour about a cup of water in the bottom of the broiler pan when I put the ribs in the oven.  I served the remaining sauce at the table to pour over the ribs.

Southern Cola Barbecue Sauce
adapted from This Mama Cooks on a Diet
1 c. Pepsi
1/4 c. lemon juice
1/4 c. orange juice
2 T. Worcestershire sauce
1 c. ketchup
2 T. dark brown sugar (I just used light)
2 T. light molasses (spray your spoon with non-stick spray for easier measuring)
1/2 t. grated lemon peel
1/2 t. ground ginger
1/2 t. garlic powder
1/2 t. onion powder
salt and pepper to taste (I didn’t use these)

Combine all ingredients.  Place about 1 cup in a plastic bag and use to marinate pork, chicken or beef several hours or overnight, turning often.  Put remaining sauce in a container and refrigerate.  Remove meat from refrigerator about 30 minutes before cooking to remove the chill.  While meat is resting, pour reserved sauce in a small, heavy sauce pan.  Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.  Reduce heat, and simmer about 20 minutes, stirring often, until sauce has reduced and thickened somewhat.  Remove some of the sauce to brush on meat while is baking or grilling.  Serve remaining  sauce on the side.  Any remaining sauce can be refrigerated up to 2 weeks.

Perpetual Green Onions and a Dip Recipe

Back in November, one of my Friday Finds was a tip about keeping green onions in water from Homemade Serenity.  She indicated that the onions would last indefinitely.  I was anxious to try this out.   As I said then, I never seem to have green onions when I need them.  We live a long way from town so I don’t just jump in the car and go buy some.  Most of the  time I would just sub regular onions, but the taste is not quite the same.

Around Christmas, I finally remembered to buy a bunch of onions.  I put them in a little jar with water to see what would happen.  Well, the onions just keep growing and growing.  I have cut some off and used them many times.  They grow fast as I will show here:

This photo was taken on Sunday, January 22, 2012.  I had just cut some onions off to use in a recipe.

This photo was taken on Friday, January 27, 2012.  You can see how much growth there has been with some of the onions.

I do not have a particularly sunny place to leave these and just set them on my kitchen window sill during the day.  You can almost see them grow.  I pour the water out of the jar and put in fresh every three or four days.

Here is a picture of one of the onions.  You can see the new growth growing out between the old growth that was cut off.  I have no idea how long this bunch will last; but, at this point, it has been a month.  A pretty good return on a .44 investment, I think.  Green onions are on sale this week so I am going to purchase one more bunch and add them to my jar.

Of course, now my challenge is that I have lots of green onions so they go in almost anything I can think of.  We don’t eat green peppers so I use the onions in recipes that call for green pepper so I at least get the color.  If I want some of the white part, I just take a whole onion out of the jar and use it.  There is an outside layer that forms on the white that needs to be stripped off as well as the root removed.

One place that I use the onions is in this dip recipe.  You can play around with the basic recipe and add cheese, bacon, seasonings, etc.   I often use Greek yogurt in place of the sour cream.

Green Onion Dip
from Best Foods Mayonnaise

1 c. mayonnaise, low fat or fat free is OK
1 c. sour cream, low fat or fat free is OK or use Green yogurt
1/2 c. sliced green onions
1/2 c. parsley sprigs
1 t. Dijon mustard
1-2 cloves garlic, crushed

Blend all ingredients together in a blender or food processor until almost smooth.  Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours.  Makes 2 cups.

Laura over at Real Mom Kitchen recently posted a recipe for Bacon and Green Onion Cheese Ball that I am going to try very soon.

This idea seems to really work.  If you like green onions, you might want to give it a try.

Linking to:  Strut Your Stuff
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Cooking with the Journal-Easy Homemade Dip Mixes

This time of year I am usually trying to recuperate from all the food splurges of the holidays.  I am sure many of us are doing that.  This means that I am trying to eat more vegetables, so I eat more celery sticks, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, snow peas, etc.  I  try to keep these around to snack on to stave off  the hunger pangs.

The problem is, by themselves, I find vegetables are kind of boring.  Using a dip makes vegetables a little more interesting.  Unfortunately, most commercial dips are full of chemicals and fat; not a good combination if you are trying to lose a little weight.

Here are a few homemade dip mixes that can be mixed with low-fat or fat-free sour cream, Greek yogurt, low-fat or fat-free cottage cheese( blended in a blender) or a combination of these.  I also like the combination of half of any of the above and half low-fat mayo.  These all use common pantry shelf or refrigerator ingredients and go together quickly.  Since I am easily bored when it come to food, I usually halve the ingredients and mix with a half cup of the sour cream or whatever so that I can change the dip up every day or so.

The recipes are from Farm Journal’s “The Thrifty Cook”, 1974.

Onion/Cheese Dip Mix
1 T. instant minced onion
2 T. grated Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 t. instant beef broth mix
1/4 t. garlic powder

Combine all ingredients.  Mix with 1 c. sour cream, blending well.  Chill at least 30 minutes, but several hours is better.  Makes 1 c.

Curry Dip Mix
1 T. instant minced onion
2 t. curry powder
1/4 t. instant minced garlic
1/4 t. salt

Combine all ingredients.  Mix with 1 c. sour cream, blending well.  Chill at least 30 minutes, but several hours is better.  Makes 1 c.

Bacon Dip Mix
2 T. real bacon bits
1 T. instant minced onion
1 t. instant beef broth mix
1/4 t. instant minced garlic

Combine all ingredients.  Mix with 1 c. sour cream, blending well.  Chill at least 30 minutes, but several hours is better.  Makes 1 c.

Taco Dip Mix
1 T.  instant minced onion
1 1/2 t. instant beef broth mix
1 t. chili powder
1/2 t. ground cumin
1/4 t. salt
1/8 t. instant minced garlic

Combine all ingredients.  Mix with 1 c. sour cream and 2 t. ketchup, blending well.  Chill at least 30 minutes, but several hours is better.  Makes 1 c.

If you are doing as I am, try these to help the veggies go down a little easier.

Linking to:  Tuesdays at the Table
Tasty Tuesday
Totally Tasty Tuesday
Tempt My Tummy Tuesday
This Weeks Cravings

Cooking with the Journal-Corn 'N' Bacon Dip

Here is a handy little recipe for a great dip to use with vegetables, crackers, or chips.  It has a wonderful corn, garlic, bacon flavor and is made with ingredients one usually had in the pantry and refrigerator.  It was originally called a “chip” dip, but we rarely eat that kind of snack around here any more.  I usually serve it with various veggies and/or crackers.

I now use Greek Yogurt for half the sour cream to make the dip a little healthier.  I like more garlic, so usually use at least three cloves.  The original recipe called for an 8 oz. can of whole kernel corn.  I don’t buy that size so I just use a 16 oz. can of either whole kernel or cream-style corn instead.  I think that it has more corn flavor with the cream-style corn.   Cooked, frozen corn can also be used.  This means there is more corn (and it’s a veggie, remember?) in the dip.    If made with whole kernel or frozen corn and half sour cream/half Greek yogurt, the dip will be stiffer, almost a spread consistency.  If made with all Greek yogurt and cream-style corn, the dip will be "gloppier".  (Is that a real word? )  The precooked, crumbled bacon bits seem to hold up better in the dip if it will be stored for a few days.  I always fry up some fresh bacon and crumble it for a garnish on the top.

Corn ‘N” Bacon Chip Dip
Cooking for Company
Farm Journal Books, 1968

1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened
1 c. dairy sour cream, low fat is fine (can use half to all Greek yogurt)
1/4 c. mayonnaise, low fat is fine
2 cloves  or more garlic, minced
1/2-1 t. Tabasco sauce or Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce
8 slices bacon, crisp fried and crumbled or about 1/2 c. precooked, crumbled bacon bits
1 16 oz. can whole kernel corn, drained or 1 1/2 c. frozen corn, cooked or 1 can (16 oz.) can cream-style corn

Gradually blend sour cream and mayonnaise into softened cream cheese.  Mix together very well.  Stir in remaining ingredients.  Chill at least 1 hour to blend the flavors.  Makes 3-4 c.  This will keep for a week or so in the fridge unless I have gone at it with a spoon.

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