Cowan Cowboy Chili (aka: Escalante Beans)

Recipe by: Karen Griffin

I'm hoping not, but I might possibly be murdered for posting this recipe for anyone to see. I wasn't told this was a secret recipe so hopefully I'm not divulging a family secret...
These are sooooooooooo good. I make them for Finn's birthday party every year, and they are, to my knowledge, made every year for the Escalante 24th of July Liston-Pollock-Meisenback-Griffin-etc family party.

You will need:
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 lb bacon
- 1 cup onion, chopped
- 2, 15 oz cans Pork and Beans
- 2, 15 oz cans Ranch Style Pinto Beans
- 1 cup ketchup
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 T liquid smoke
- 3 T white vinegar
- 1 small can diced green chilies


Directions:
In a skillet, cook bacon, remove and break into pieces. In same skillet, brown ground beef and onions in bacon juices. Put all in a slow cooker with beans.
In a small bowl combine ketchup, brown sugar, liquid smoke, vinegar and green chilies. Add mixture to ingredients in slow cooker.
Stir well, cook low to warm up. Remove lid after heated to let thicken up.

EVERYBODY loves them. Seriously.

Sweet Corn and Bacon Empanadas

These are great for two reasons: they are yummy, and you can make them up ahead of time and freeze till ready to bake. Love them for brunch, lunch or dinner parties. They also make great midnight treats!


You Will Need:
- 2 anaheim chile peppers
- 3 strips bacon
- 2 cups fresh or frozen sweet corn kernels
- 1 1/2 cups shredded white cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup diced scallions

-your favorite pie dough, either homemade or store bought

Directions:
Have your pie dough made up and ready to go.
Roast chile peppers over a gas burner or in a hot oven until they're blackened and blistered. Wrap chilies in damp paper-towels for about 10 minutes, until cooled off and skin peals off easily. Peel chilies; discard skin. Slit chilies lengthwise, scrape out and discard seeds, remove stem, and dice chilies. Should yield about 1/2 cup diced chilies.
Fry bacon in a saute pan over medium-high heat until crisp. Remove to a paper-towel-lined plate.
Pour off all but 1 tablespoon fat from pan; add corn; saute over medium-high heat until edges of corn begin to brown, about 8 minutes. Stir in bacon, chilies, cheddar, and scallions. Chill filling thoroughly.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Roll out pie dough on a work surface, lightly floured if necessary. Using a 3 1/2 " biscuit cutter, cut circles from dough; repeat with remaining dough, rerolling scraps once. Arrange dough rounds on prepared baking sheet.
Place 1 T filling in the center of each round. Fold rounds in half, pinch to seal, then crimp edges with a fork. (Freeze if desired.)
Blend one egg yolk with 1 T water; brush over empanadas. Sprinkle empanadas with smoked paprika; then bake until golden, 15-18 minutes.

Leek, Potato and Bacon Casserole

Our lovely friends Andrea and Ben came over for dinner on Sunday night. We had a delicious bruschetta made by Andrea (yummm, bruschetta is one of my favorite things! I could eat it all day long.) We also had COUNTRY STYLE SPARE RIBS (recipe here), fruit salad, and this leek, potato and bacon casserole. When I read the recipe for some reason I thought it would turn out more like au gratin potatoes. I obviously didn't read it very closely. It was delicious, and not totally weird as a dinner side, but if I make it again it will be for breakfast or brunch I think.

Leek, Potato, and Bacon Casserole:
Cook time: 1 hour 30 min, serves: 4
Recipe from Foodnetwork.com

Ingredients:

- 2 leeks, white and light green (about 6 ounces)
- 6 slices smoked bacon
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, plus for brushing the pan
- 3 teaspoons kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 2 medium red potatoes, diced (about 8 ounces or 2 cups)
- 2 cloves smashed garlic
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- 6 large eggs, beaten
- 1 1/2 cups half-and-half
- 6 ounces Jarlsberg Swiss cheese , grated (about 2 cups)
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Directions:Preheat the oven 325 degrees F.
Butter an 8-by-8-inch square glass casserole dish. Halve the leeks lengthwise, and then cut them crosswise into half circles (There should be about 1 3/4 cups.). 

Put the cut leeks in the basket of a salad spinner, or a colander set in a bowl, and fill with water. Swish the leeks around to flush out any grit. Lift the basket from water--don't pour the water off or you will pour any grit right back over the leeks.
Heat a medium skillet over medium heat and fry the bacon until crispy, about 5 minutes. Transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate to cool, then crumble. Discard all but 1 tablespoon of the pan drippings, add the butter and leeks, and season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and some pepper. Cook until tender, about 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, put the potatoes in a small saucepan with the garlic, thyme, and 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt and water, to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat, then drain. Discard the thyme and garlic and add potatoes to the leeks.

In a medium bowl whisk together the eggs and half-and-half, then stir in the leek mixture, 1 cup of the cheese, the bacon, and nutmeg. Season with 1 teaspoon of salt and some pepper. Transfer the mixture to the prepared dish:

cover with foil and bake until just set but still moist, about 55 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside. Position a rack in the upper part of the oven and preheat the broiler. Scatter the remaining 1 cup cheese over the casserole and broil until the cheese browns, about 3 minutes. Set aside for 5 to 10 minutes before serving. Unmold or serve from baking dish.

Black Bean Soup

Nothing really to say that I didn't already say about navy beans. Beans are good.

So says Zonya.
So say I.

Recipe by: Me (and my neighbor Tessa)
Serves: 4

Ingredients:

- 5 pieces of bacon, large chopped
- 1 onion, diced
- fresh ground pepper (to taste, about 1/8 tsp)
- 1/4 tsp cumin
- 1/8 tsp Cayenne pepper
- 2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 tomato, diced, and sour cream to serve

Directions:

In a large soup pot or dutch oven cook bacon until done and almost crispy. Add onion. Cook until onion begins to turn translucent.

Add seasoning, beans and broth. Cook over medium heat for about 45 minutes, or until beans become tender and broth begins to thicken. Serve with fresh diced tomatoes and sour cream.

3: Fancy Baked Beans

Because I don't get to post as often as I'd like, I've decided to make my time on the computer count. Today I've posted six awesome breakfasts that, since making them the first time, I have craved over and over again. My favorite of the six has to be the breakfast puff pastry. It is super easy and delicious, and I probably make it twice a week because I love it so much. Enjoy!


Recipe from: ReadyMade Magazine, Feb/March 2010
Recipe by: Neil Roake

Prep time: 8- 12 hours
Cook time: 2-3 hours, depending on prep
Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

- 1 lb navy beans
- 3 onions, cut into 8ths
- 7 oz smoked salted pork (I wasn’t able to find smoked salted pork, so I just used plain salted pork)

- 2 t dry mustard
- 2 t Worcestershire sauce
- 3 bay leaves
- 8 ½ cups water
- one 15 to 16 ounce can of diced tomatoes
- 1 T salt
- 1 t white pepper

Directions:

Soak the navy beans over night.

If you don’t want to soak them over night that’s ok, you just need to allow an additional 45 minutes of cook time.

In a heavy-bottomed large pot, place the soaked beans, onion, salted pork, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, and bay leaves.

Boil in water with the lid on for 1 ½ hours. Now add the can of tomatoes and salt and pepper to taste.

Cook for an additional 30-45 minutes with the lid off. The water may dry out and scorch the bottom of the pot, so keep an eye out.
This is really great when served for breakfast along side toast and a fried egg. So delicious and filling, these beans may sound odd as a breakfast treat, but I tried it and loved it! Plan on making them for your lover after a night of passion (you will have to plan ahead) and they will be impressed…

6: Breakfast Puff Pastry

Because I don't get to post as often as I'd like, I've decided to make my time on the computer count. Today I've posted six awesome breakfasts that, since making them the first time, I have craved over and over again. My favorite of the six has to be the breakfast puff pastry. It is super easy and delicious, and I probably make it twice a week because I love it so much. Enjoy!


Recipe from: ReadyMade Magazine, Feb/March 2010
Recipe by: Neil Roake

Cook Time, including prep: about 30 minutes, Serves: 2-4 people

Ingredients:

- one sheet of puff pastry, thawed
- one egg, beaten
- thin cut strips of red and/or yellow bell pepper
- cherry or grape tomatoes
- onion, sliced thin
- pancetta slices

You could really top this breakfast pizza with whatever sounds good. Other ideas could include asparagus or sliced chorizo sausage. It’s also yummy if you add on a fried egg before serving.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
As I noted above, allow your puff pastry to thaw. It doesn’t need to be thawed completely, if you pop it in the oven while it is still a little firm or icy just be prepared to give it a little longer cook time. Brush the inside of the pastry with the egg wash, leaving about a 1 inch boarder for the crust. (This is me applying egg wash with a paper towel because my basting brush gave up on me a few months ago and I still haven't replaced it. Ghetto? Deal with it.)

Toss your vegetables lightly in some olive oil and salt and pepper, and arrange your vegetables however you like on the pastry. I leave the meat and add it on last, so that it will crisp up and not get soggy from the juices of the veggies.

Bake in 350 degree oven for anywhere between 12 to 20 minutes, until your vegetables are nice and roasted, and your puff pastry is golden. The magazine suggests serving with a chunky tomato chutney or an arugula pesto but I love mine as is. I hope you love it, since discovering this recipe I now make it at least twice a week. It’s as good as a quick light dinner as it is a yummy breakfast.