INGREDIENTS:

6 hot sausages

6 sweet sausages

2 cans whole tomatoes (Red Pack)

1 plum tomato (imported)

2 or 3 small cans of tomato sauce (DeMonte)

1 8 oz. can of paste (Contadina)

4 cloves of garlic (crushed)

2 large onions (chopped )

¼ cup water

1 tbsp. Olive oil

1 tsp. dry Basil or a few leaves of fresh

1 tsp. dry Parsley or a few leaves of fresh

½ tsp. sugar

¼ tsp. oregano

2 large bay leaves

¼ salt

¼ pepper

DIRECTIONS:

Mom cooked this in her large pressure cooker. I use a very large pot with a lid. Brown the sausages on med-low heat in olive oil and drain. I cook the sausages and meatballs in the oven. Then, add them to the pot and cook them in the sauce to add more flavor to it. Mom fried all the meat directly in the pot, then added the sauce ingredients next starting with the tomatoes first.

In a blender, chop one can of the Red Pack whole tomatoes and add this to the pot with the meat. In the blender, chop the one can of imported plum tomatoes and add this to the pot. Add 3 cans of DeMonte sauce and one can of paste next. In a blender, add the chopped onion and crushed garlic in water and pulse in the blender until finely chopped, then add to pot of sauce.  Liquefy last can of Red Pack whole tomatoes in the blender, and add to pot. Add all seasonings: 1 tbsp. Olive oil,1 tsp. dry Basil, or a few leaves of fresh,1 tsp. dry Parsley or a few leaves of fresh, ½ tsp. sugar, ¼ tsp. oregano, 2 large bay leaves, ¼ salt, ¼ pepper.  Add about a ¼ cup of water to the blender to gather up what is left at the bottom and then add that to the pot. Cover and cook at least 1 hour.

NOTES

See Ma’s Meatballs, Chicken Parmesan, Shrimp Parmesan. She also added a piece of pork for my sister and meatballs to every batch she made.

Tuesday and this morning I made Jennifer chicken salad for lunch. I had made the chicken on the grill after marinating it overnight in salad dressing. You can use any leftover white meat skinless boneless chicken breast. I have even cut the chicken breast right off a whole roasted chicken or one I have I’ve made chicken soup from. The breast meat from chicken in the soup gets diced up and put into the fridge, while all the dark meat goes into the soup.

INGREDIENTS:

Chicken Stock INGREDIENTS:

1 whole 6 to 7 pound raw chicken

2 medium onions quartered

2 large peeled carrots cut into one inch pieces

1 large clove garlic peeled

4 celery stalks cut into one inch pieces

5 quarts water

½ tsp. dill

½ tsp. white pepper

¼ tsp. thyme

¼ tsp. marjoram

1 bay leaf

½ tsp. rosemary

½ tsp. Savory

5 or more chicken bouillon cubes instead of salt to taste

1 tbsp. Fresh parsley (chopped)

Chicken Salad INGREDIENTS:

2 chicken breasts diced

½ cup mayonnaise

2 celery stalks diced

1 carrot grated

Pinch of onion powder

Pinch of paprika

Pinch of white pepper

Pinch of salt

DIRECTIONS

Begin by making chicken stock/soup. Remove kidneys, neck or any parts that may be inside the cavity of the chicken. Place the chicken in an extra-large pot with all the chicken stock ingredients. Bring to a boil and cook for 2 to 3 hours or until chicken falls apart.

Remove chicken and cover with foil until it cools and can be handled. Strain soup stock through fine mesh strainer and discard vegetables. Reserve stock for soup.

Once cooled, dice chicken breasts (reserve dark meat for soup if desired). Whisk mayonnaise with spices. Mix in chicken breasts, celery, and carrot to the mayonnaise and spices. Serve on toast or a bed of lettuce.  

© Russ Ahrens and The Magic of a Perfect Pairing,2021

This is pre mushroom, roasted red pepper, artichoke hearts etc..

GADGETS:

Salad Spinner , Chef’s Knife and Cutting Board

INGREDIENTS:

• Iceberg or Romain Lettuce
• 4-6 slices Di Lusso Genoa Salami
• 4-6 slices Hormel Slicing Pepperoni
• 4 slices provolone cheese
• 4 ounces of sliced Mushrooms (1/2 small can)
• 2 roasted red peppers
• ½ Tomato (optional)
• 1 slice Red onion (optional)
• Wishbone House Italian Dressing
• 1 Tsp. red wine vinegar
• 1 Tsp. cider vinegar
• Shake of Italian seasoning
• Shake of fresh crushed black pepper

DIRECTIONS:

Wash, dry, and rip lettuce into bite size pieces and place on a large plate. Cut salami, pepperoni, and provolone into quarters and place on lettuce. Top with mushrooms, roasted red pepper, tomato, marinated artichoke hearts, pepperoncini, and onion. Sprinkle black pepper, Italian seasoning, cider vinegar, red wine vinegar and then add Wishbone dressing over the whole thing and mix well.

NOTES:

Serve with pizza

The Drunken Chef (AKA – Russ)

© Russ Ahrens and The Magic of a Perfect Pairing,2023

We covered how to make OMELETS in the “HOW TO COOK AMERICAN STYLE” section of this website. To me, this is a fundamental dish and part of learning how the whole cooking process works. There is LOTS of science going on here, and the omelet is an American breakfast staple. The “frenchy” version of this omelet is “creamier” or as I like to say—”not cooked all the way.” Cooking eggs, even this simple omelet leads into making custard one day or French Ice Cream the next. The basic ingredients only change a bit along with the cooking process. Next, we should try making French Toast or bread pudding. Soon enough, you will learn how to make Crème Brulèe.

COOKING UTENSILS NEEDED:

Bowl

Whisk or fork

“Butter” or “dinner” Knife

Pan (8 inch non-stick pan) with cover

Chef’s knife and Cutting board

Cheese Grater (optional)

INGREDIENTS:

2–3 eggs

1 tbsp. milk per egg

1 tablespoon butter

1-3 drops of Tabasco per egg

Steamed Vegetables (broccoli, asparagus, mushrooms)

Cheese (Cheddar, Swiss, American, Monterey Jack, and salsa)

Salt and Pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

Scramble the eggs using a fork or whisk. Add milk instead of water; this makes the eggs a little softer and fluffier when cooked. Preheat pan on medium heat and add a pat of butter. Remember not to make the pan too hot because burnt butter tastes nasty. Pour in egg mixture and cover.  When the egg is cooked through, add your vegetables and cheese to the left half of the egg (if you’re a righty). Cover to heat. Flip second half of egg over vegetables and cheese. Remove from pan and serve on a warm plate.

Tip: I use fresh baby spinach that is not steamed when making my spinach and swiss cheese omelet.

Quick tip: Steam vegetables like chopped broccoli tops in the microwave in a small amount of water ahead of time. Drain off excess water and reheat when ready.

Serving suggestion:

Bacon, Sausage, Grits, hash browns and or toast.

You can stuff your omelets with almost anything including chili and cheddar cheese.

NOTES: I always remember when I was a kid my mother adding a few drops of Tabasco sauce and black pepper to the scrambled eggs and omelets just before cooking them. 

I grilled. Yes, I can hardly believe it myself. It’s been crazy busy lately but I grilled. I made marinated skirt steak and Grilled Zucchini. Did I grill with beer in hand? Yes I did, but I only had enough time for one as this cut of beef cooks quickly!

I put the zucchini on the grill when I turn the temperature down under the steak, but cook the zucchini on high! Try not to overcook it, otherwise you will have yucky mush.

Skirt Steak Recipe

COOKING UTENSILS NEEDED:

INGREDIENTS:

1 pound skirt steak trimmed and cut in half

MARINADE:

½ cup Lawry’s Sesame Teriyaki Marinade

or

Kikkoman’s Teriyaki Marinade

½ tsp Powdered Ginger

½ tsp Garlic power

2 tablespoons Soy sauce

DIRECTIONS:

Peel and trim the skirt steak if your butcher has not removed the silver skin and trimmed it for you. In a Pyrex baking 9×13 baking dish, or better yet, a zip top bag, mix together the marinade. Add the steaks and coat well. Marinate the steaks at least 2 hours but preferably 24 hours (overnight).

Heat your barbeque or prepare the coals for cooking. Start by cooking steaks at a high temperature. Grill approximately one minute on each side. Reduce heat to low and cook until desired doneness. I prefer my skirt steak to be cooked just prior to medium, maybe medium rare, although some people prefer them a little more cooked with no pink.

NOTES this is one of my favorite summer barbeque recipes served with grilled vegetables, corn on the cob or potatoes! This also goes great with beer or a nice old vines red Zinfandel from Sonoma County, like St. Francis.

Be well, eat well, drink well, and be merry!

-The Drunken Chef (Russ)

Click here for the Grilled Zucchini Recipe