Thread: just wanted to share tonight's dinner with you guys..

I was watching Cowboy Kent make some Gravy and thought to myself, 'Man I really want some of that..." Problem was I didn't have any biscuits to go with. So I improvised a little bit. Bed of rice, layer of beef & scrambled egg, topped off with gravy and some crushed Ritz crackers. Chucked it in a 10" Iron Skillet and baked it for 20 minutes just to get everything about the same temperature (didn't want the gravy drying out too much either).





Might look a bit better if the gravy hadn't picked up some color from the seasonings and scrap left in the pan last use. But it sure tastes good regardless. And while I'm thinking about it, for this purpose I sprinkled a little McCormick Montreal Steak seasoning into the gravy.

A little RANGERS game night home made pizza with basil and banana peppers and lots of garlic!

Originally Posted by OCDshaver

My family were/are horrible cooks. I learned to cook mostly out of necessity. Being an adventurous eater or trying new things was not rewarded. Foodwise we did go from strength to strength. I can't blame my mother too much. She learned from her mother who was quite possibly the worlds worst cook on the planet. Everything she made was horribly over cooked, under seasoned, devoid of any herbs or spices (NO exceptions), and smelled like death.

My mother was a basic cook and did alright but I was mostly self taught till about 30 when I exploded. I had a knack for it and took some basic cooking classes at a very good school and just took off. I wanted to be the guy who could cook all the homestyle classics from roasts to meatloaf to chicken soup,Gumbo,rice pudding,Salisbury steak and Swedish meatballs etc. if you wanted an award winning Texas Law Chili con Carne or Green Chile then I wanted to be the guy you went to and my heroes were Chuck wagon cooks and old southern chefs with the white jackets and black bow ties who could make it all. And also I have always been enamored by train dining cars and the whole miniature palace in a small space kind of thing. Like remember in Disney's 20,000 leagues under the sea where Nemo is rattling off all the delicacies at the dining table that the Nautilus chef had prepared while the guests are being served with fine china and oh so Victorian decorum....that stuff gets me cranked.While I'm not into milk of sea snake,they could have just as easily been serving a fine coconut rice pudding and the Chef would be me in my dreams.

Originally Posted by Nightblade

My mother was a basic cook and did alright but I was mostly self taught till about 30 when I exploded. I had a knack for it and took some basic cooking classes at a very good school and just took off. I wanted to be the guy who could cook all the homestyle classics from roasts to meatloaf to chicken soup,Gumbo,rice pudding,Salisbury steak and Swedish meatballs etc. if you wanted an award winning Texas Law Chili con Carne or Green Chile then I wanted to be the guy you went to and my heroes were Chuck wagon cooks and old southern chefs with the white jackets and black bow ties who could make it all. And also I have always been enamored by train dining cars and the whole miniature palace in a small space kind of thing. Like remember in Disney's 20,000 leagues under the sea where Nemo is rattling off all the delicacies at the dining table that the Nautilus chef had prepared while the guests are being served with fine china and oh so Victorian decorum....that stuff gets me cranked.

My wife surprised me last year for my 60th birthday...with a Dinnah Train Ride...I love Trains and love to eat..what a combo....it was a big surprise and a great time. It's was a train up in the White mountains of NH...5-6 courses of Excellent food.

Originally Posted by Nightblade

My mother was a basic cook and did alright but I was mostly self taught till about 30 when I exploded. I had a knack for it and took some basic cooking classes at a very good school and just took off. I wanted to be the guy who could cook all the homestyle classics from roasts to meatloaf to chicken soup,Gumbo,rice pudding,Salisbury steak and Swedish meatballs etc. if you wanted an award winning Texas Law Chili con Carne or Green Chile then I wanted to be the guy you went to and my heroes were Chuck wagon cooks and old southern chefs with the white jackets and black bow ties who could make it all. And also I have always been enamored by train dining cars and the whole miniature palace in a small space kind of thing. Like remember in Disney's 20,000 leagues under the sea where Nemo is rattling off all the delicacies at the dining table that the Nautilus chef had prepared while the guests are being served with fine china and oh so Victorian decorum....that stuff gets me cranked.While I'm not into milk of sea snake,they could have just as easily been serving a fine coconut rice pudding and the Chef would be me in my dreams.

Sounds awfully similar to where I've been, and possibly where I'm headed. Fortunately my grandmother and mother were pretty good cooks. Not fine dining type stuff, simple Southern cooking, but for the most part the one thing I was never late for was dinner. Cause it was always good eats. Unless for some reason they got the notion to cook scrapple. Anyway, I've learned a little from both over the years.

Grandma taught me how to bake. Mostly junk food, cookies, cakes, cupcakes etc. Guess it's grandparent's jobs to spoil the youngins. Mom taught me how to cook 'real' food. And of course, since I picked up a bunch of cast iron and actually began using what I know, I've started to expand the repertoire to include Chuck Wagon style stuff. Dem's good eats!

Originally Posted by Marshal

the one thing I was never late for was dinner. Cause it was always good eats. Unless for some reason they got the notion to cook scrapple.

I'll eat your scrapple if you don't want it.....I love scrapple !

Originally Posted by Nightblade

My mother was a basic cook and did alright but I was mostly self taught till about 30 when I exploded. I had a knack for it and took some basic cooking classes at a very good school and just took off. I wanted to be the guy who could cook all the homestyle classics from roasts to meatloaf to chicken soup,Gumbo,rice pudding,Salisbury steak and Swedish meatballs etc. if you wanted an award winning Texas Law Chili con Carne or Green Chile then I wanted to be the guy you went to and my heroes were Chuck wagon cooks and old southern chefs with the white jackets and black bow ties who could make it all. And also I have always been enamored by train dining cars and the whole miniature palace in a small space kind of thing. Like remember in Disney's 20,000 leagues under the sea where Nemo is rattling off all the delicacies at the dining table that the Nautilus chef had prepared while the guests are being served with fine china and oh so Victorian decorum....that stuff gets me cranked.While I'm not into milk of sea snake,they could have just as easily been serving a fine coconut rice pudding and the Chef would be me in my dreams.

I started to cook in my college years. I didn't intend to be a good cook or anything. I just wanted to be able to make a few things to feed myself and give myself another option from the bad food my family made. After doing it a few times I found I liked it. And I was making good tasting stuff. I just got more and more ambitious with it. Then after being in the workforce for about six years and being really unhappy with a 9-5 office job, I wanted to change careers and cook. So I used a loophole in the company's tuition reimbursement plan to fund going to culinary school at night. I was completely under rested but I was in heaven. I really felt like I was doing what I was meant to do. I was good at it. I worked well in the kitchen environment and caught on fast. All the cooking and reading I had done prior to enrolling served me well. While others were grasping the basics, I could obtain a deeper understanding because what was being taught was not completely foreign to me. And I was a very rare breed at school because I was in both sides of the courses, sweet and savory. In culinary school, or even in professional kitchens, you are either on this side or that. Financially I had some problems that prohibited me from making that change in career. But I return to school when money and time permits me to take classes or when my bad ankle is capable of me standing on it for days on end. So now I just cook at home and tell you guys about it.

I hear ya on the rigors of kitchen work. I did a few gigs but then it got old very quickly as a job. It made me old quick. Now I just cook as well and enjoy it. Some can handle it better than others.

well we were supposed to get 2 feet of snow...

but that didnt happen...
but I did cook up some pork brasciola stuffed with salami, parmesan & herbs, some chicken meatballs, veal ricotta meatballs, hot italian sausage and ground up turkey & beef with chopped onions, shredded carrots, red peppers and garlic and a nice home made red wine...

then added some san marsano tomatoes, fresh herbs and some parmesano reggiano to make it complete...

went out to shovel while it was simmering...
then made a little penne' rigotti... and a nap was required shortly there after...

Baked Tarakihi (a local fish), with fresh home made peasant bread.