1   3 pound boneless center cut pork loin roast
salt & pepper to taste
1 32-oz jar of Berlin style sauerkraut
2 tablespoons extra light olive oil
1 pkg Liptons onion soup mix
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 can whole berry cranberry sauce (best of you make your own cranberry sauce)
1/2  cup cranberry cocktail

Directions:

1.  Heat oven to 325 (F)
2.  Drain and rinse sauerkraut, set aside.
3.  In Dutch Oven heat olive oil over medium-high heat and brown roast on all sides.  Salt & pepper to taste.
4.  In medium bowl, combine sauerkraut, cranberry sauce, brown sugar, onion soup mix, and cranberry cocktail and mix well.
5.  Pour sauerkraut mixture around browned pork roast, cover tightly, and put in 325 (F) oven for three hours.
6.  At no time during roasting, check the roast.  At the end of three hours remove from oven and let set for about 15 minutes before carving and serving.
7.  Slice the roast, layer on serving platter and surround with the cranberry sauerkraut.

​Enjoy.

2 soft white dinner rolls 
6 - 8 oz bulk breakfast sausage
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 small Granny Smith apple, peeled, coarsely chopped

Heat oven to 375 (F).  Spray 1 1/2 quart casserole with cooking spray.  Meanwhile in 10-inch frying pan, cook sausage over medium heat, stirring frequently, until no longer pink.  Drain on paper towel lined plate.

In medium bowl, beat eggs, milk and syrup until well blended.  Cut rolls into 3/4 inch cubes; add to egg mixture.  Stir to coat.  Stir in sausage and apple.  Pour into casserole.

​Bake 35 - 40 minutes or until puffed and golden and knife inserted in center comes out clean.  Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

This Saturday evening is a very quiet evening at home for the cast is still on my leg (for its last weekend).  So I am looking at the larder and trying to figure out what to make for dinner...as well as perusing cookbooks.  A meatless cassoulet recipe caught my attention and it ended up being the "blueprint" of the recipe I made for this Saturday night dinner/supper.

1 cup vegetable stock
1 garlic clove, minced
4 teaspoons cornstarch
1/2 cup white wine
1 13-oz package Hillshire Farms smoke turkey kielbasa sliced into 1-inch slices
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 15-oz cans cannellini beans, drained
1 15-oz can kidney beans, drained
1 15-oz can garbanzo beans, drained
2 4.5-oz can button mushrooms, drained
1/2 teaspoon thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon Italian Parsley flakes
1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon
2 bay leaves

Heat oven to 350 (F).  In small saucepan combine broth, garlic and cornstarch; blend well.   Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat, stir in wine.

In large bowl, combine broth mixture and all remaining cassoulet ingredients; stir to combine.  Pour into un-greased 3-quart casserole.  Cover.  

Bake at 350 (F) for one hour.  Remove top and bake 15  - 20 minutes longer.

​Serve in bowls with crusty French bread.  A red wine and a simple salad would accompany this meal perfectly.  Makes about 4 - 5 servings.

I'd found this recipe on the NYT and it sounded so good that I had to give it a try.  There are adaptions I've made to the original recipe...yet it is pretty close to the original.

2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3 large eggs, beaten
3 cups Panko bread crumbs (or as needed)
Kosher salt as needed (I used Lakeland brand "Good With Everything Sea Salt")
black pepper as needed (the Good With Everything Sea Salt is seasoned, so I did not season with pepper)
Olive oil for frying (I used extra light mild)
5 cups Simple Tomato Sauce (my recipe is also posted on this blog...last night)
1 cup finely greated Parmesan cheese
1/2 pound fresh mozzarella, torn into bite sized pieces (I used shredded mozzarella)

Heat over to 400 degrees.  Place chicken thighs between two pieces of parchment or plastic wrap.  Using a kitchen mallet or rolling pin, pound meat to even 1/4-inch-thick slices.  (For me the kitchen mallet worked best).

Place flour, eggs and panko into three wide, shallow bowls.  Season meat generously with salt and pepper.  Dip a piece in flour, then egg mixture, then coat with panko.  Repeat until all the meat is coated.

Fill a large skillet with 1/2-inch oil.  Place over medium-high heat (with my stove Medium is plenty hot).  When oil is hot, fry cutlets in batches, turning halfway through, until golden brown.  Transfer to a paper towel lined plate.

Pour a thin layer of sauce over the bottom of a 9" by 13" baking pan (I used instead the large cast iron skillet in which I had browned the chicken).  Sprinkled 1/3 of the Parmesan over sauce.  Place half of the cutlets over the Parmesan and top with half of the mozzarella.  Top with more sauce, sprinkled with another third of the Parmesan, and repeat layering, ending with a final layer of sauce and Parmesan and mozzarella.

Transfer pan to oven and bake until cheese is golden and casserole is bubbling, about 40 minutes.  Let cool a few minutes before serving.

Serves 6

​Enjoy.

Ok, I am ready to embark on marking a recipe for Chicken Parmesan from "scratch" this weekend.  The first part that needs/needed to be completed was the "Simple Tomato Sauce."  This sauce is versatile and can be made for any type of pasta dish that one wants to make...just adjust accordingly.  Here is the recipe...which I got from the NYT...and my adjustments are in parenthesis.

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (I used a very light Italian olive oil)
4 garlic cloves, thinly slice (I used two garlic cloves garlic coarsely chopped, and one small yellow onion finely chopped).
1/4 teaspoon red chile flakes...optional
2 (28-oz) cans whole or diced plum tomatoes
2 sprigs basil or 1 bay leaf (I used 1/4 tsp dried basil, 1/4 tsp dried oregano, 1/4 tsp dried Italian seasoning and 1 bay leaf).
(I also used 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese, tablespoon grated Romano cheese, and 1 tablespoon sugar)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (I did not use any salt because the tomatoes were salted and the Parmesan and Roman cheese add their own "saltiness" to the flavor.)
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

In a large skillet (I used a 5-quart stock pot which was perfect) over medium heat, warm the oil.  (Add the onion and stir and cook until translucent), the add the garlic and chile flakes and cook for another 30 seconds to one minute.

Stir in tomatoes (and all the rest of the ingredients).

(Bring sauce to a boil, reduce heat cover and simmer on low for one hour.  After one hour hour, remove cover and let pot continue to simmer for another 20 - 25 minutes uncovered.)

This is a great past sauce "as-is."  However, you can also freeze...or in my case refrigerate overnight and use for making Chicken Parmesan tomorro.

​Enjoy

This is actually a Korbel Vineyard recipe that came to me in an email.  When I went to make it, I could not find Korbel Rose at my local market so I had to use another brand.  This recipe is a "keeper" and it is perfect for summer or spring brunches.  Thank you Korbel.

Add 3/4 - oz. Chambord Black Raspberry Liqueur and 2-oz cranberry juice into a shaker with ice.  Shake and strain.  Top with 4-oz Korbel Brute Rose.  Garnish with a strawberry or a raspberry.

​Enjoy