Well folks, we are B A C K with more fine food ideas. Sorry for the long gap, but life done got in the way. Prostate surgery, Radiation and Hormone treatment really put me back. Then lovely Penny had to take a fall and break her leg. After 8 days in the hospital and 2 weeks of in-patient therapy, she is really doing well.

I did a ton of cooking during her recovery, but nothing new.

That brings us to this week's endeavor.

I got to thinking. What do I look forward to?

Growing up in Indiana we waited with great anticipation for High School Basketball season.

And of course, the Indy 500.  

Now that I live in Florida (34 years) I look forward to other things.

Like Gator Football. (Even in the bad years)

AND ........My Bi-Monthly issue of Cooks Country. 

You knew I would get to food eventually.

This month's issue was jam packed with recipe's that I want to try.

SEPTEMBER was Penny's first time back to Master Gardener's Monthly Luncheon since her fall. We always provide lunch for the masses. 

This month I decided to try Cook's Country's version of APPLE SAUCE CAKE.

You can make this with "canned" apple sauce, or you can MAKE YOUR OWN.

I decided to make my own and that's what we are starting with today. 

Then we will cook it down, then make the cake.

You can make this without the cake and just eat it. 

In fact, I have made this apple sauce three times already and boy, do we enjoy it.

Here is what you need for the Apple Sauce.

First, we start with the apples. I used Granny Smith's (for tartness) and 4 Galas' (for Sweetness) Do not use Red Delicious.

Peel and cut up in small pieces. Place in your pot.

ADD, 1 cup of Packed Light Brown Sugar, 1 Cup of water and 1 tsp of sugar. Turn stove to Medium high.

SIDE NOTE: I made this a second time substituting Apple Cider for the water.  It added a bit more taste to the dish. I also made it without cinnamon as we have a friend who HATES cinnamon.)

Stir

Keep stirring. Bring to a boil then turn burner down to low. Cook for 25-30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

When nice and soft, I use an immersible blender to blend it all up. I like to leave a few lumps, so people KNOW it's homemade.

Doesn't that look good???

Let it cool, then pour it into a bowl. Set aside or place in the cold box.

If you are serving this as apple sauce only, sprinkle a bit of cinnamon on the top of each serving.   

To kick it up a notch, use Apple Cider instead of the water, and Pumkin Spice in place of the Cinnamon. I have tried both of these ideas and was very satisfied with the results.

Now let's make the cake!!

Ingredients for the cake

2 1/2 Cups - All-purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp salt

1 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp ground cloves

2 Cup apple sauce

16 TBL unsaled butter, melted and cooled slightly

1 cup PACKED (7 ounces) light brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 TBL vanilla extract

AND THE TOPPING

1 CUP packed (7 OUNCES) light brown sugar.

6 TBL unsalted butter

1/4 cup heavy cream

1/2 tsp table salt

3/4 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted.

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup pecans toasted and chopped.

Adjust oven rack to middle position and pre-heat oven to 350.

Spray a 13 x 9-inch baking pan with vegetable oil spray.

Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, ginger, nutmeg. and cloves in a medium bowl.

Whisk applesauce, melted butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla together in a large bowl.

Add the flour mixture to the applesauce mixture and whisk until combined.

(Or take the lazy way out and use your stand mixture...)

Transfer the mixed batter to the prepared pan and smooth with a rubber spatula.

Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out CLEAN.

(about 30-35 minutes) Rotate the cake halfway thru the baking process.

While you are waiting, have a nice cold adult beverage.

Place cake on a wire rack and set it aside to cool.

Make sure you keep it out of the 'Grover' zone.

Now we can make the topping.

Combine the Brown Sugar, butter, cream and salt in a medium saucepan.

Cook over medium high heat until the mixture is thickened, and large bubbles are bursting on the surface.

Remove from heat and let cool for 10 minutes, then whisk in the confectioners' sugar and vanilla until smooth.

Working quickly spread icing evenly over the cake.

Sprinkle your nuts, (insert bad joke here) over the top of the cake.

Doesn't that look great?? Tasted great as well. And it was a big hit with the Master Gardeners group.

Normally I don't use nuts, as I really don't care for them. But they went perfectly with this cake and elevated it to the next level.

I will definitely make this recipe again. And I hope you make it as well.

I also encourage you to subscribe to Cooks County. I have never made a recipe from them that I didn't like.  Just CLICK HERE.

And join us here again as we explore the fascinating world of cooking.

See you then.

God speed, Mother Nature.

RESTAURANT REVIEW - BIG MAN'S CAFE

 We are back, and we thank you for joining us.

This episode is for my Ocala and Central Florida friends. (Unless you want to use up some Delta miles and come visit.) 

Today we depart for the norm and go out to eat. We do not do this often and are very fussy about the type of restaurant we patronize.

Here are my restaurant rules.

It must be local.

I never visit the same place more than once a year. (If possible)

The exception is LAKIS Greek/Italian. We've been going there for over 30 years.

We never go out more than twice a month.

If we are going to spend a lot of money, I want the food to be spectacular and worth the amount of funds spent. In other words, it has to be better than we can make at home. (That's a tall order)

With that in mind, we wanted to give BIG MAN'S CAFE (1011 NE 14TH ST) a try. We have been seeing all the great reviews and wanted to see how accurate they were. 

Penny and I both love SOUL food and our favorite is a 30 minute drive so this place would be perfect (4 miles) IF it lived up to it's hype.

So off we went on another culinary adventure.

It was just after the lunch hour when we arrived. We were greeted at the door with a laugh and a smile. (Good start)

We were given menus as we sat down, by another smiling face.

We both asked for Unsweet Tea, and it arrived promptly.

Penny ordered the Fried Chicken, while I went with the Smothered Pork Chops.

We sat and chatted with the servers while we waited for our lunch to arrive. I have never met a friendlier group of people. 

I commented to Penny that they were happy in what they were doing, and embracing life.

How cool is that ??

Let's get to the food !!

The Pork Chops were very tender with just the right amount of gravy. They were a bit on the thin side, but with two of them I had more than enough. (I brought some home)

The proportions were LARGER than you normally get in a restaurant. You will NOT go home hungry.

The fries and Onion rings were typical of a restaurant, but still VERY good. If you have great entrees, the sides will take care of themselves.

Penny liked the Fried Chicken and brought a lot of it home.

As we ate the Big Man himself came over to the table to ask how we were doing and how we liked our lunch. I wanted him to know how much we appreciated the meal and the atmosphere. 

The great food aside, the atmosphere raises this establishment above the bar. When you get treated the way we were, you want to go back often. Their smiles and attitude brightened our week.

I do not know a ton about Soul Food. All I know is it is GOOD. If you have not tried it, you should embrace the culture and the history. 

Good food, huge portions, and a smile. Great ingredients for a great restaurant.

You know how I said I only went to a restaurant once a year ?? I lied.

This one I will go back to.....again....and again....I have more menu items to try.

God Speed, Mother Nature

BAKED HAM WITH SCALLOPED POTATOES

Welcome back for more fun in the kitchen.

This is our first BLOG of the new year. We got a bit sidetracked in 2022.

We started off the year with Prostate Surgery, moved to the loss of a nephew, and finished the year with a case of COVID.

All in all 2022 was like two bonus tracks on a YOKO ONO album. (In other words...... IT SUCKED !!)

But we are back and hoping for a Better 2023.

Today, we are making a wonderful Ham to go along with a new recipe I found on line.

Penny and I had a craving for ham and decided that scalloped taters would go well with the ham.

We really like the ROYAL HAM, and once in a while we can actually find one.

So, with ham in the cold box, I went searching for a new Scalloped Potato recipe. 

My search led me to A SOUTHERN SOUL

This recipe looked interesting so let's give it a go,

They say the prep time is 15 minutes, but plan on more (30-45 minutes.)

Are we ready ???????

Start with the Ham.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. 

Remove from package and take out the little plastic plug.

In a large baking pan add 2 Cups of water.

Place the Ham in the center of the pan, and cover tightly with foil.

Place in a pre heated 350 degree oven for 2 hours or until internal temp reached 160 degrees.

No let's start on the taters.

Ingredients

¼ cup butter






1 medium onion, thinly sliced

3 cloves garlic, minced

¼ cup flour

2 cups milk

1 cup chicken or vegetable broth

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

3 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, thinly sliced

1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves

We start with peeling and slicing the Potatoes. (I used Russets)

If you are using a Mandolin, BE CAREFULL!!!!!! Use a glove for your protection.















Butter a 9×13 baking dish and set aside.






In a medium-size pot, melt butter. Add onion and cook for 5 minutes until translucent. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute.















Sprinkle in flour, stir to combine, and continue to cook for 1-2 minutes.






Carefully pour in the stock and whisk to combine with flour mixture. 



Add in the milk, salt, and pepper, whisking all together. Bring the mixture up to a simmer and continue to whisk until sauce has thickened. Remove from heat.






Layer half of the potatoes in the prepared dish. 



Sprinkle on half of the thyme and Parmesan cheese.


Ladle over half of the sauce and repeat layer of potatoes, remaining sauce, thyme and cheese.





 Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.



Remove foil and continue to cook for 30 minutes until bubbly around the edges. Set oven to broil and cook for 1 to 2 minutes until potatoes are golden brown on the top.

While you wait play with the dog and have an adult beverage.



2 is better !!!!





Same with beer !!!

Oh, we are about done !!!



Remove from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes. Season with additional salt and pepper if desired and serve.



With the Ham placed on a cutting board, cut into little pieces.



Time for D I N N E R  !!!!



So, how do we do ????? 


The Ham came out perfect. These hams are NOT overly salty and are as tender as can be.

The Potatoes were a surprise !! Penny pointed out to me that the ONLY cheese in this was PARMESAN. I have hated Parmesan Cheese since I was a kid. Penny has taught me that my hatred is for the Cheese in the GREEN can. Over the years I have started to use just a bit on Pizza and Marinara Sauce. And green cans NEVER grace our pantry.

So I figured I should give it a try. And boy was I rewarded !!!

This was the best Scalloped Taters I have ever eaten.

The cheese sauce was NOT overpowering.  The only thing I would have done different is to either cook them longer OR slice the potatoes a bit thinner.

Other than that, WINNER WINNER POTATO DINNER !!!!!

And it make for great LEFT OVERS the next night !!






We paired it up with a pre made POT PIE. More on that in a later episode.

This was sooooooo goooooood !!!! You should try it.

You can thank me later.

That's all the time we have for today, see you all next time.