Mustard Potato Salad

Got this recipe/idea from my friend Stacey’s step mom. I was informed by my two Cajun friends Stacey & Lori that when you make gumbo, you have to serve it with mustard potato salad. So I got the recipe via text from Stacey of what her step mom puts in hers and added and adjusted a few things to make it my own (of course). So you can do this with gumbo, or just by itself. It’s good either way!

So I started by boiling 6 eggs for about 15 minutes

once the eggs are boiled, I drained them and then placed them in a bowl and submerge the eggs in cold water and placed them in the fridge until I was ready to peel them

Then I peeled 5 red potatoes and rinsed them

Then I cut them into bit size chunks

then I placed them in a pot and filled it with water and brought the water to a boil and boiled the potatoes (for about 15-20 minutes) until they were firm, but not hard, and not mushy.

Then I drained them

Then I grabbed  a large bowl and placed the drained potatoes in the bowl

Then I grabbed the eggs I boiled before

peels them and then chopped them up

then added them to the bowl with the potatoes

Now chop up 1/2 a red onion, small dice

add to the bowl with the potatoes and eggs

Now I have done this recipe before with sweet pickles, but I LOVE dill pickles so this time I did it with dill pickles

first, added a little pickle juice (about a tbsp)

I used 3 stacker pickles and chopped them small

Then added them to the boil with the potatoes, eggs and onion

Then I added the following:
2 kinds of Cajun/creole seasoning because I LOVE Cajun/Creole seasoning
Miracle Whip
Yellow mustard
Salt
Pepper

First I added about 3/4-1 Cup of Miracle Whip (I knew this recipe was good because the recipe called for Miracle whip, I know most people like their potato salad with Mayonnaise, My mom, and grandma always made their potato salad with miracle whip, and that how I make mine and like it)

Now add the mustard (about a tbsp)

Now add the pepper, I added a lot. As I LOVE pepper. I didn’t measure but if I were to guess I would say about 1 tsp

Then add in the Cajun/Creole seasoning and I did about 1/2 tsp each

Stir everything together and add 1/8 a tsp of salt. I did very little because the Cajun/Creole seasonings are pretty salty. Taste the salad for the seasonings and add more if needed.

So my mom would also sprinkle paprika over her potato salad when it was all done, so I decided to do the same so I went with smoked paprika to add a little extra flavor


So cover the salad and put it in the fridge and let it chill for a couple hours. Then serve either with gumbo or with whatever you want! Either way its yummy!

Here’s the recipe:

6 eggs, boiled
5 red potatoes, peeled and boiled

start by boiling 6 eggs for about 15 minutes

once the eggs are boiled, drain them and then place them in a bowl and submerge the eggs in cold water and place them in the fridge until ready to peel them

peel 5 red potatoes and rinse them, cut them into bit size chunks
place them in a pot filled with water and bring the water to a boil and boil the potatoes (for about 15-20 minutes) until they were firm, but not hard, and not mushy.
Then drain them
Grab a large bowl and place the drained potatoes in the bowl

peel eggs and chop them up
then add them to the bowl with the potatoes
Now chop up 1/2 a red onion, small dice

add to the bowl with the potatoes and eggs

add a little pickle juice (about a tbsp)

I used 3 stacker pickles and chopped them small
Then add them to the boil with the potatoes, eggs and onion

Then add the following:
2 kinds of Cajun/creole seasoning
Miracle Whip
Yellow mustard
Salt
Pepper

First add 3/4-1 Cup of Miracle Whip
Now add the mustard (about a tbsp)
add the pepper, about 1 tsp
Then add in the Cajun/Creole seasoning and I did about 1/2 tsp of each

Stir everything together and add 1/8 a tsp of salt. Taste the salad for the seasonings and add more if needed.

sprinkle the top of the salad with smoked paprika to add a little extra flavor, about a tsp

cover the salad and put it in the fridge and let it chill for a couple hours. Then serve either with gumbo or with whatever you want! Either way its yummy!

Hot smoked Sausage with onions, peppers and potatoes

So you will need:

2 red bell pepper
1 green bell pepper
2 onions, (You can use 1, I did 2 because I love onions and feel you can never have too much of them)
4 red potatoes
Hot Smoked sausage
Cajun/Creole seasoning (I chose 2 different kinds to use)

So Start by washing the potatoes and cutting them in half

and then cut the halves in half

So basically cut the potatoes into quarters

Then heat a large cast iron skillet, or large skillet to medium heat, and coat the bottom of the pan with Olive oil

Add the potatoes you chopped up

add seasoning to them, season really well with the Cajun/creole seasoning

I did 2 Cajun/creole seasonings in mine

Let the potatoes cook, flipping occasionally

while the potatoes cook, chop up the red, green bell pepper into chunks and chop up the onions

then add the onion to the potatoes

Set the bell peppers aside, you will add them later

mix in the onions with the potatoes

add more Cajun/creole seasoning, to taste

I love this shit!

Let the potatoes and onion cook, and stir occasionally until the onions are translucent and the potatoes start to soften on the inside and get browned on the outside

While the potatoes and onion cook. Grab your sausage and cut it in half

then cut the piece of sausage in half, length wise

Then heat a grill, or grill pan to medium high heat and grill the sausage. (We don’t have a grill, so I used my cast iron grill pan)

at this point the onions should be nice and translucent, so add the bell peppers to the potatoes and onions

and then guess what?

Yep add more Cajun/creole seasoning! I can NOT get enough of this stuff! I LOVE IT!

stir everything together

turn the heat down on the burner to medium low heat

Then flip the sausage

grill the sausage for another 7-10 minutes until its warmed through and has nice grill marks

Then remove it from the pan/grill and place on a cutting board and cut into chunks

Then add the chunks to the potato, onions and peppers

stir the sausage into potatoes, onion, and peppers

and turn burner off and serve up!

Recipe

• 2 red bell pepper
• 1 green bell pepper
• 2 onions, (You can use 1, I did 2 because I love onions and feel you can never have too much of them)
• 4 red potatoes
• Hot Smoked sausage
• Cajun/Creole seasoning (I chose 2 different kinds to use)

• So Start by washing the potatoes and cutting them in half
• and then cut the halves in half
• So basically cut the potatoes into quarters
• Then heat a large cast iron skillet, or large skillet to medium heat, and coat the bottom of the pan with Olive oil
• Add the potatoes you chopped up
• Cooking and taking pictures #always
• add seasoning to them, season really well with the Cajun/creole seasoning
• I did 2 Cajun/creole seasonings in mine
• Let the potatoes cook, flipping occasionally
• while the potatoes cook, chop up the red, green bell pepper into chunks and chop up the onions
• then add the onion to the potatoes
• Set the bell peppers aside, you will add them later
• mix in the onions with the potatoes
• add more Cajun/creole seasoning, to taste
• Let the potatoes and onion cook, and stir occasionally until the onions are translucent and the potatoes start to soften on the inside and get browned on the outside
• While the potatoes and onion cook. Grab your sausage and cut it in half
• then cut the piece of sausage in half, length wise
• Then heat a grill, or grill pan to medium high heat and grill the sausage. (We don’t have a grill, so I used my cast iron grill pan)
• at this point the onions should be nice and translucent, so add the bell peppers to the potatoes and onions
• and then guess what?
• Yep add more Cajun/creole seasoning! I can NOT get enough of this stuff! I LOVE IT!
• stir everything together
• turn the heat down on the burner to medium low heat
• Then flip the sausage
• grill the sausage for another 7-10 minutes until its warmed through and has nice grill marks
• Then remove it from the pan/grill and place on a cutting board and cut into chunks
• Then add the chunks to the potato, onions and peppers
• stir the sausage into potatoes, onion, and peppers
• and turn burner off and serve up!

Baked Potato Cheese Soup

I just came up with recipe on my own….had some red potatoes that I bought and needed to use them, so I thought how about baked potato cheese soup MMMMM

So the ingredients I used for my soup are:

Sour Cream (can’t have a baked potato without sour cream, I add a dollop or 5 on top of my soup)
Carrots because I always start (pretty much) all my soups with a Mirepoix -“a mixture of chopped celery, onions, and carrots”
Onion
Celery
about a 5 pound bag of red potatoes
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
salt, to taste
milk (we use lactose free as Normy is lactose intolerant)
Extra sharp cheddar cheese (about a pound), that you will grate later
garlic salt (to taste)

not in the picture, but you will need for this recipe:
olive oil
butter
better than bouillon, chicken
water
bacon
chopped green onion

I started by having Normy help me and he peeled all the potatoes

while he did that I peeled some carrots

peeled 5 carrots (to be exact)

cut the ends off the carrots and then cut the ends off the celery and washed them and used 5 celery stalks as well

then I chopped the carrots and celery up into medium sized chunks (I will be pureeing the soup later with a hand blender, so I went with small to a medium sized chop).

chopping away while Normy peels away all the skins on the potatoes

I also chopped the onion as well

Normy filled one size of the sink with cold water for the peeled potatoes to chill in while he peeled all the potatoes (that’s a lot of potatoes)

so once all the potatoes were peeled, I chopped them all into chunks and then threw them in a large pot and filled it with water and then sat the pot on a burner to high heat to be boiled

while the potatoes boiled, Normy grated the big chunk of cheese we bought. (I like freshly grated, not already grated cheese)

boil the potatoes for 30-35 minutes.

I checked mine to see if they were nice and soft by picking a bigger chunk of potato by poking it with a fork

drain potatoes and set aside

then grab a nice big, deep pot and set it on the already hot burner and heat the burner to medium high heat and coat the bottom with olive oil and about 2 tbsp of butter. Let the butter melt all the way

add your Mirepoix – chopped Onion, Celery and carrots to pot

season with salt and pepper, to taste

saute for 5-7 minutes, or until your onions are translucent

then add the chunks of potatoes

season the potatoes with freshly ground black pepper and garlic salt, to taste

stir everything together

at this point I took about 2 cups of the potatoes, onion, carrots, and celery and place it in a measuring cup and set it aside, will add this later after I blend the soup, to add chunks to the soup

then add in water (about 2-3 cups) or vegetable/chicken broth. I added water and then I added in better than bouillon (Read the back of the jar to see how much to add)

then add milk (I added about 2-4 cups) I basically added half water, half milk until it went up to the potatoes so pretty much everything was submerged in liquid.

stir everything together, then let everything come up to almost a boil and then turn the heat down to medium low and then I grabbed my hand blender and blended everything together so it was nice and smooth

so remember how I told you pull aside the chunks of potato, carrots, celery and onion?

After you have blended your soup really well and its nice and smooth, then I added the chunks back in. I know strange to make it all smooth and blend it, just to add the chunks back in. Just thought it would be a nice little treat to be eating my soup and get a chunk of potato, or onion here and there. Stir everything together

Then add in the grated cheese, I added all the cheese Normy grated and then I had more cheese that I grated to top my soup with when serving

I wouldn’t add as much cheese as I did, I think it may have been too much cheese, unless you LOVE cheese then add it all.

Stir the cheese in and let it melt into the soup. Then taste the soup for taste. Add a little more salt, pepper, garlic salt if needed.

Then serve up in a bowl.

I added extra grated cheese I had to my soup

Oh and don’t forget the MOST important topping to the soup, BACON!

I also added chopped green onion

Normy also likes Tabasco on his

and sour cream

Cheeeeeesy

 

Recipe

• Sour Cream (can’t have a baked potato without sour cream, I add a dollop or 5 on top of my soup)
• Carrots because I always start (pretty much) all my soups with a Mirepoix -“a mixture of chopped celery, onions, and carrots”
• Onion
• Celery
• about a 5 pound bag of red potatoes
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• salt, to taste
• milk (we use lactose free as Normy is lactose intolerant)
• Extra sharp cheddar cheese (about a pound), that you will grate later
• garlic salt (to taste)
• you will need for this recipe:
• olive oil
• butter
• better than bouillon, chicken
• water
• bacon
• chopped green onion

• I started by having Normy help me and he peeled all the potatoes
• while he did that I peeled some carrots
• peeled 5 carrots (to be exact)
• cut the ends off the carrots and then cut the ends off the celery and washed them and used 5 celery stalks as well
• then I chopped the carrots and celery up into medium sized chunks (I will be pureeing the soup later with a hand blender, so I went with small to a medium sized chop).
• chopping away while Normy peels away all the skins on the potatoes
• I also chopped the onion as well
• Normy filled one size of the sink with cold water for the peeled potatoes to chill in while he peeled all the potatoes (that’s a lot of potatoes)
• so once all the potatoes were peeled, I chopped them all into chunks and then threw them in a large pot and filled it with water and then sat the pot on a burner to high heat to be boiled
• while the potatoes boiled, Normy grated the big chunk of cheese we bought. (I like freshly grated, not already grated cheese)
• boil the potatoes for 30-35 minutes.
• I checked mine to see if they were nice and soft by picking a bigger chunk of potato by poking it with a fork
• drain potatoes and set aside
• then grab a nice big, deep pot and set it on the already hot burner and heat the burner to medium high heat and coat the bottom with olive oil and about 2 tbsp of butter. Let the butter melt all the way
• add your Mirepoix – chopped Onion, Celery and carrots to pot
• season with salt and pepper, to taste
• saute for 5-7 minutes, or until your onions are translucent
• then add the chunks of potatoes
• season the potatoes with freshly ground black pepper and garlic salt, to taste
• stir everything together
• at this point I took about 2 cups of the potatoes, onion, carrots, and celery and place it in a measuring cup and set it aside, will add this later after I blend the soup, to add chunks to the soup
• then add in water (about 2-3 cups) or vegetable/chicken broth. I added water and then I added in better than bouillon (Read the back of the jar to see how much to add)
• then add milk (I added about 2-4 cups) I basically added half water, half milk until it went up to the potatoes so pretty much everything was submerged in liquid.
• stir everything together, then let everything come up to almost a boil and then turn the heat down to medium low and then I grabbed my hand blender and blended everything together so it was nice and smooth
• so remember how I told you pull aside the chunks of potato, carrots, celery and onion?
• After you have blended your soup really well and its nice and smooth, then I added the chunks back in. I know strange to make it all smooth and blend it, just to add the chunks back in. Just thought it would be a nice little treat to be eating my soup and get a chunk of potato, or onion here and there. Stir everything together
• Then add in the grated cheese, I added all the cheese Normy grated and then I had more cheese that I grated to top my soup with when serving
• I wouldn’t add as much cheese as I did, I think it may have been too much cheese, unless you LOVE cheese then add it all.
• Stir the cheese in and let it melt into the soup. Then taste the soup for taste. Add a little more salt, pepper, garlic salt if needed.
• Then serve up in a bowl.
• I added extra grated cheese I had to my soup
• Oh and don’t forget the MOST important topping to the soup, BACON!
• I also added chopped green onion
• Normy also likes Tabasco on his
• and sour cream

German Potato Salad

Got the recipe from here

3 pounds red potatoes
1 pound bacon, chopped
1 large red onion, diced
3/4 cup cider vinegar
1 tablespoon mustard seeds
1/4 cup canola oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper
8 green onions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves

Place potatoes in a large pot and cover with cold water.

Boil for about 45 minutes or potatoes are tender. How I make sure they are tender enough is poke a fork into the biggest potato if its not tender then boil until tender.

Drain, and cut the potatoes into cubes when cool enough to handle. Place the potatoes in a large bowl

Place a large pan on stove and heat burner to medium high heat. Add the bacon

and cook until crisp. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and drain on a paper towel-lined plate.

Add the onions to the rendered bacon fat and cook until soft,

about 7 to 8 minutes.

In a bowl or measuring cup add the vinegar and mustard seeds

then whisk in the canola oil and season, to taste, with salt and pepper.

add bacon and onions to the potatoes

Then add parsley

Add the dressing to the potatoes, bacon, and onion and toss gently to coat.

Then add in the green onions

Mix everything together really well then taste and season with more salt and pepper if needed

I made this potato salad for a BBQ at our friends Allan & Karen…

Check out the other foods at the BBQ

Artichokes al la Margaret

Roasted tomatoes, Fresh Mozzarella and white beans with Olive oil and balsamic vinegar drizzled over the top, and topped with chopped basil al la Karen

Fire Crackers al la James

Steaks!

Dinner!

Yummy Food with Great company!

 

Recipe

3 pounds red potatoes
1 pound bacon, chopped
1 large red onion, diced
3/4 cup cider vinegar
1 tablespoon mustard seeds
1/4 cup canola oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper
8 green onions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves

Place potatoes in a large pot and cover with cold water.
Boil for about 45 minutes or potatoes are tender. How I make sure they are tender enough is poke a fork into the biggest potato if its not tender then boil until tender.
Drain, and cut the potatoes into cubes when cool enough to handle. Place the potatoes in a large bowl
Place a large pan on stove and heat burner to medium high heat. Add the bacon
and cook until crisp. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and drain on a paper towel-lined plate.
Add the onions to the rendered bacon fat and cook until soft, about 7 to 8 minutes.
In a bowl or measuring cup add the vinegar and mustard seeds
then whisk in the canola oil and season, to taste, with salt and pepper.
add bacon and onions to the potatoes
Then add parsley
Add the dressing to the potatoes, bacon, and onion and toss gently to coat.
Then add in the green onions
Mix everything together really well then taste and season with more salt and pepper if needed

Sausage & vegetable minestrone soup

Found this recipe on…YEP! Pinterest! Gosh what did we do before Pinterest? I LOVE Pinterest! That’s where I find ALL my recipes these days!

Recipe

•6 ounces italian sausage (about 2 medium sausages, casings removed)
•1 medium yellow onion, coarsely chopped
•2 carrots, diced ( I pulsed the carrots, celery, and garlic in a food processor together until diced)
•3 stalks diced celery, diced
•4 cloves garlic, diced
•¾ teaspoon dried thyme
•3-4 small red potatoes, chopped into ¼”- ½” pieces

•Two 14.5-ounce cans diced tomatoes
•2½ tablespoons tomato paste
•6-8 cups chicken broth
•1 bay leaf
•15 ounce can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
•15 ounce cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
•2½ cups orecchiette pasta, cooked al dente (I used shells as I couldn’t find Orecchiette pasta)
•3 handfuls fresh spinach leaves
•½ cup dry white wine
•About 1 cup parmesan cheese, grated
•Kosher salt and pepper

1.Add the sausage to a large heavy bottom pot, and cook over medium-low heat

until lightly browned, stirring occasionally, but leaving the sausage in small chunks.

2.Add the onions,

carrots,

celery,

garlic,

potatoes,

and thyme

and cook, stirring occasionally, over medium-high heat until the vegetables begin to soften, about 8 minutes.

3.Push vegetables to the side of the pot

and add tomato paste to the cleared area.

Cook the tomato paste, stirring, until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Stir to combine the tomato paste with the vegetables in the pot.

4.Add the canned tomatoes,

6 cups of chicken broth,

bay leaf,

1 tablespoon salt,

and 1½ teaspoons pepper.

5.Cook on medium-low uncovered for about 30 minutes,

until the vegetables are tender.
6.Discard the bay leaf. You can make this part of the soup in advance and refrigerate it or freeze it after this step.
7.When you’re ready to serve, add the beans

and cooked pasta

to the soup and heat through.

If the soup is too thick, add some more chicken broth.
8.Add the spinach,

stirring to combine, and cook until the leaves wilt.

9.Add the white wine and stir to combine. Add more salt and pepper to taste.

10.Serve with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese.

Here is that recipe for you again:
•6 ounces italian sausage (about 2 medium sausages, casings removed)
•1 medium yellow onion, coarsely chopped
•2 carrots, diced ( I pulsed the carrots, celery, and garlic in a food processor together until diced)
•3 stalks diced celery, diced
•4 cloves garlic, diced
•¾ teaspoon dried thyme
•3-4 small red potatoes, chopped into ¼”- ½” pieces
•Two 14.5-ounce cans diced tomatoes
•2½ tablespoons tomato paste
•6-8 cups chicken broth
•1 bay leaf
•15 ounce can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
•15 ounce cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
•2½ cups orecchiette pasta, cooked al dente
•3 handfuls fresh spinach leaves
•½ cup dry white wine
•About 1 cup parmesan cheese, grated
•Kosher salt and pepper

1.Add the sausage to a large heavy bottom pot, and cook over medium-low heat until lightly browned, stirring occasionally, but leaving the sausage in small chunks.

2.Add the onions, carrots, celery, garlic, potatoes, and thyme and cook, stirring occasionally, over medium-high heat until the vegetables begin to soften, about 8 minutes.

3.Push vegetables to the side of the pot and add tomato paste to the cleared area. Cook the tomato paste, stirring, until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Stir to combine the tomato paste with the vegetables in the pot.

4.Add the canned tomatoes, 6 cups of chicken broth, bay leaf, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1½ teaspoons pepper.

5.Cook on medium-low uncovered for about 30 minutes, until the vegetables are tender.

6.Discard the bay leaf. You can make this part of the soup in advance and refrigerate it or freeze it after this step.

7.When you’re ready to serve, add the beans and cooked pasta to the soup and heat through. If the soup is too thick, add some more chicken broth.

8.Add the spinach, stirring to combine, and cook until the leaves wilt.

9.Add the white wine and stir to combine. Add more salt and pepper to taste.

10.Serve with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese.

Chipotle and Lime Roasted Potatoes

Recipe adapted from http://www.insockmonkeyslippers.com/

•1 1/2 to 2 pounds red potatoes
•1 tablespoon + 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
•1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
•1 chipolte pepper from a can of chipolte peppers in adobo sauce*
•2 teaspoons adobo sauce
•1 garlic clove
•1 tablespoon lime zest
•1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
•2 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro

*chipolte peppers in adobo sauce can be found canned in most major grocery stores.

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.

With a knife, slice the potatoes in half.

Place the halved potatoes in a medium bowl. Drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil over the potatoes.

Add salt

and toss until the potatoes are thoroughly coated with oil and salt.

Place potatoes on baking sheet or cast iron skillet (like I did)

I added a little garlic salt as well, to taste

then place them in the oven for 30 to 35 minutes,

stirring once, until golden and can be easily pierced with a fork.

2. While the potatoes are cooking: Remove one chipolte pepper from the can and mince (chop into small pieces). Place in a large bowl. Using the adobo sauce that the peppers are packaged in, add 2 teaspoons of sauce to the minced pepper in the bowl.

3. Peel and mince the garlic glove. Add it to the bowl as well.

4. Next, add the lime zest,

lime juice,

and the remaining 2 teaspoons of olive oil.

5. Whisk everything together until combined.

6. Once the potatoes are done and still hot, pour them into the chipolte lime dressing.

Add cilantro

and gently stir to combine, making sure every potato is covered. Plate and serve.

Roasted Red Potatoes and Leeks

Just made this up. I love leeks and I love potatoes, so I thought I would put the two together and create something…

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

So grab 7 red potatoes and 3 leeks. Wash the potatoes.

So cut the root part off the leek and the green part like so

Then cut the leek in half, length wise

and chop the two halves up

Place in a medium-sized bowl filled with water and let them soak, leeks are very dirty, there is dirt in all those layers! So toss themaround in the water and soak a little and the dirt falls to the bottom of the bowl.

while the leeks soak for a few and work on the potatoes.

Half the potatoes

then cut those halves in half again

Do this to all the potatoes

and place them in a medium bowl and drizzle olive oil on the potatoes

Then add some Mrs. Dash to potatoes. I added quite a bit cause I am Jamie and I like a lot (of everything).

Stir the potatoes around again and make sure they are all coated with the olive oil and Mrs. Dash

Place potatoes in cast iron skillet or oven safe skillet

Then drain the leaks and let them drain on a paper towel for a minute, then sprinkle them over the potatoes

bake the potatoes for about 30 to 45 minutes or until fork tender

then take them out of the oven and add a few pads of butter, so about 2 tbsp total

stir the potatoes around a little so they all get butter on them…

serve potatoes nice and hot and buttery…

 

Beer Cheese Kielbasa Soup

So I came up with recipe one Friday evening and it was chilly outside I wanted to make Beer Cheese soup. But I felt the soup needed a protein so I decided at the last-minute to add in Kielbasa. I thought about adding ham but thought the Kielbasa would taste better so I went with it and this is what I came up with…

So you will need:

8 Red potatoes, Peeled
1 Yellow onion, Chopped
2 cloves of garlic, Minced
1 12 oz Bottle of Fat Tire beer
32 oz of Chicken Broth/Stock
Kosher Salt & Freshly Ground Black Pepper, To taste
Half Pint Heavy Cream
8 oz of Extra Sharp Cheddar Cheese, Shredded/Grated
13.5 oz Polish Kielbasa
(Not shown in this picture but I added it)
4 tbsp of unsalted butter
Corn Starch
Garlic salt

So start by peeling 8 medium red potatoes, and wash them

and then place them in a pot with some water

make sure all the potatoes are completely submerged in the water

and then boil the potates until they are fork tender 30-45 minutes

then drain them

Place the potatoes into a food processor

and add a little chicken stock

Blend a little, then add a little more stock and cream

then I changed my mind and added all the cream

and then blend until the potatoes are nice and smooth

Instead of using flour to thicken my soup I do the potatoes like this as it adds as a thickener instead of using flour and milk.

Now grab a stock pot or dutch oven and preheat it to medium heat and melt 4 tablespoons of butter

melt it completely before adding the onions

ok the butter is melted now add the chopped onions

Saute them until they are translucent about 7-10 minutes

stirring occasionally
then once they are cooked to your liking
add the minced garlic

MMMM garlic

Stir that around with the onions and butter for about a minute.

Now add in the good stuff, the beer

I actually don’t like beer. I do like it in food, but I don’t drink it ewwww

Pour the whole bottle in

foamy

cook that a couple of minutes and stir it around a little

Then add in the rest of the chicken broth

32 oz of chicken broth total is what I used

now add in the potatoes that you blended earlier

Stir it around, maybe even whisk it some so that it blends all together

Then I take about a cup of the potatoes and broth and spoon it into a measuring cup

and add in about 3 tablespoons of corn starch

mix it well with a fork or whisk

and then add it back to the soup

and whisk everything together

I like really thick beer cheese soup

Then add in some garlic salt to taste (Lawry’s Garlic Salt with parsley is my FAVORITE garlic salt to use always)

stir

Then add in some freshly ground black pepper, to taste

then I pulled out my handy-dandy hand blender and blended the soup

Blend it until its nice and smooth. Makes for a smooth, silky, beer, cheesy good soup

Then taste it, test it for seasoning.

I ended up adding in more garlic salt

then I blended it more to make sure to get any chunks out and make sure everything was all mixed in really well

Then I had Normy grate/shred the cheese for me

Hey Normy do you like grating the cheese?

He sure does!

I had him grate 8 oz extra sharp cheddar and I had about 4 oz of Monterey jack that I had and decided to use it too

Place the cheese in the soup

and stir it in and melt

Now let the soup simmer and warm all the way through and let the cheese melt while you cook the Kielbasa.

I used my Cast iron grille pan to cook mine

once cooked all the way through. 10 minutes! I just guessed. I cooked them until they looked done.

Then pulled them off and let them cool for a minute and then sliced them like so

and then cut into little chunks like so

the added them to the soup

stir in

let them simmer in the soup for 10-15 minutes and then serve

You could add more grated cheese or green onions as a garnish or eat just as is…

Cheesy, creamy and salty from the kielbasa and a hint of beer! This is the perfect MAN soup!

Potato Salad, & Dinner at Mom’s

So last Sunday my mom invited Normy and I over for dinner! YAY! My Brother was going to smoke some ribs with my dad’s smoker and my mom was going to make her cucumber, tomato salad (that I LOVE).  So I offered to make potato salad and then cupcakes for dessert…I ALWAYS offer to bring more than I should, But that is how I roll…

So for my potato salad I got a 5 pound bag of red potatoes. My brother is 6′ 5″ and he eats a lot. So I had to make a lot of salad for him.

Throw the potatoes in a big pot

and fill it with water, (make sure the pot is big enough so that all the potatoes fit and are submerged in the water).

Then place the pot on a burner and turn up to medium high heat

I added a little salt to the water as well.

I boiled the potatoes for about 30 minutes and I poked them with a fork and the bigger ones weren’t quite fork tender, so I boiled them for another 15 minutes…

Then while the potatoes were boiling I got the eggs boiling too.  I got a medium-sized pot and filled it with water and very gently placed 8 eggs in the pot and brought it to a boil and boiled for 25 minutes

Once the eggs are done, I drain them and then place them in a boil and fill it with cold water and place in the fridge. I have done this a few times and it seems to help when peeling them. The shells come off easier. So I leave them in the fridge for about an hour or so.

Once the potatoes are done, drain them and let them dry for a few and chop them up when you are able to handle them. Chop them into bite size pieces and plop them into a big bowl.

You could peel the skin off or leave it on the potatoes, I left it on. Chop all potatoes up.

Then you can start adding the veggies. dice up 2 stalks of celery

Then peel and dice up two carrots

Then dice up one large red/purple onion

Then peel the 8 eggs that you put in the fridge earlier

Chop those up and add them to the big bowl as well

Then add in salt and Pepper

then get another medium-sized bowl and to that you are going to add in Miracle Whip, about 2 cups. (My mom makes her potato salad with miracle whip and I do too, tastes better to me)

then add it about 2 tbsp of grainy mustard

Then add in some yellow mustard

I just went with it and did this all on taste

Then get a ranch packet and add that to the bowl as well

Mix everything together

Then add to the potatoes and veggies in the big bowl

and mix everything together really well

once everything is well incorporated, sprinkle a generous amount of paprika over the top

Looks and tastes SO good!

Then cover the bowl

and refrigerate it over night for best results.

Then the next day pack it up and bring it to mom’s house…

My bro likes to cook too. He came up with this concoction…

This has JAMIE written all over it, and he said he made it up with me in mind…

It has:
smoked BACON
Onions
red bell pepper
mushrooms
garlic
Worcestershire sauce
splash of balsamic vinegar
pepper
He knows his sis toooo well! (I had three helpings of this) I will be making this in the near future with steak!

John stirring his John concoction

Normy and My bro. John is 6′ 5″, one tall dude

My big bro

You know I had to get a picture of me and my bro

Then mom was making her cucumber salad. She makes hers like her mom and I LOVE the way my mom makes it:

Fill a bowl with white vinegar and a little sugar, and peeled and sliced cucumbers

then add onions

then add tomatoes

Stir together

add salt and black pepper

stir some more then set in fridge to let the flavors mingle. It’s better to do this salad the night before as well.

These two people met, fell in love and did it and made ME! They created perfection between the two of them! ME! hahahahaha

Mom’s Deviled eggs, I make mine the same way she makes hers!

smoked ribs and pork my bro smoked for us

my bro can EAT! Look at his plate! And he doesn’t gain a pound!

Mom’s cucumber salad

Jamie Potato Salad

Normy eating some smoked ribs!

What a great way to spend a sunday!