Chef in the House
Cowboy Style Supper
- Sour Dough Biscuits
- Sour Dough Starter
- Ranch House Tomatoes
- Fresh Garden Beans
- Cookie Dust
- Chuck Wagon Fried Potatoes
- Chuck Wagon Roast Beef
- Easy Dutch Oven Cobbler
Sour Dough Biscuits
2 Cups Flour
1 Tablespoon Sugar
1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
3/4 Teaspoon Salt
2 Cups Sourdough Starter (see below)
2 - 3 Tablespoon Bacon Fat
Mix dry ingredients in bowl then incorporate sour dough.
Do not over knead the dough or your biscuits will be tough.
Grease your baking pan with bacon fat.
Pinch off walnut sized pieces of dough, coat liberally with bacon fat and nest the biscuits se they are touching together in the pan.
Bake in a 350 degree oven until golden brown.
Sour Dough Starter
Soften 1 package of active dry yeast in 1 quart lukewarm water in a large crock or bowl.
Add 2 Tbsp. sugar and 4 cups of all purpose flour.
Beat to mix.
Cover with a kitchen towel and place in a warm place to sour for 2 to 4 days.
After mixture has reached desired sourness, keep in refrigerator.
Ranch House Tomatoes
Choose 4 to 6 very ripe, large tomatoes.
Slice into 1/2 inch thick slices and arrange on a platter.
Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Drizzle Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Balsamic Vinegar over the top of the tomatoes .
Lightly cover with shredded Asiago and Parmesan cheese.
Scatter freshly chopped parsley and oregano over the top then garnish with mini radish slices.
Fresh Garden Beans
Fresh Green Beans (1 pound)
4 Tbsp. Bacon Fat
1/4 Cup Almond Slices
1/4 Cup Fried Bacon Pieces
Salt and Pepper to taste.
Balsamic Vinegar to taste.
Cookie Dust to taste. (see below)
Blanch the desired amount of fresh garden green beans until slightly tender.
Melt bacon fat in a frying pan over medium heat.
Add bacon pieces and bring up to temperature then add the blanched green beans and almond slices.
Add Balsamic Vinegar, salt and pepper to taste .
A touch of Cookie dust or seasoning of your choice also makes a flavorful touch.
Cookie Dust
In a small bowl mix equal measures of Chili Powder, Paprika, Salt, Ground Ginger, Black Pepper, Ground Cumin, Onion Powder, Garlic Powder, Ground Thyme, and Cayenne Pepper. Pour into a dredger of your choice and sprinkle over broiled meats, into soups, flour dredge for meats, etc.
Chuck Wagon Fried Potatoes
4 to 6 large potatoes.
1 Vidalia Onion
Salt and Pepper to taste.
Cookie Dust to taste. (see above)
1/4 Cup Bacon Fat.
Pre-heat bacon fat in a cast iron skillet over medium heat.
Slice potatoes and onions into thin slices and add to the skillet with bacon fat.
Stir frequently to prevent mixture from scorching.
When potatoes and onions have cooked to a golden brown color and are tender add salt, pepper and Cookie dust to taste.
Chuck Wagon Roast Beef
1 Beef Roast (cut and size of your choice - chuck roasts work very well)
Cooking Oil
Salt and Pepper
Flour
Cookie Dust (see above)
Liquid Smoke
French Onion Soup Mix
Whole Bay Leaves
Carrots
Onions
Pour cooking oil in a skillet to a depth of around 1/4 inch and pre-heat for the beef.
Trim beef roast and cut into smaller sections for seasoning and dredging.
Use a baking pan to create a dredging mixture of flour and a liberal amount of cookie dust. The right proportion will give a definite color to the flour as well as the aroma of the seasoning.
Take each of the beef roast sections and sprinkle with salt and pepper on all sides.
Apply and rub in the Liquid Smoke.
Move the beef sections to the dredging pan and coat the beef very well with the dredging mixture.
You may now move the beef to the pre-heated skillet and begin the browning process.
Brown the beef on all sides until the beef is well caramelized and close to a dark brown in color.
Follow the directions on the package of French Onion Soup to make a soup base.
Pour enough of the soup base into a Dutch oven or roaster to bring the liquid to a depth of 2 inches.
Add 4 whole dried bay leaves and add the browned sections of beef.
Cover the roaster or Dutch oven and cook at 350 degrees until the roast is very tender. Around 3 1/2 to 4 hours.
Approximately 1 1/2 hours before the roast beef is finished cooking add peeled and sectioned carrots and onions to the roast.
Easy Dutch Oven Cobbler
1 Can of pie filling (blueberry, apple, peach, etc.)
1 Cup of flour
1 Stick of melted butter
1/4 Cup Sugar
Pour the contents of the can of pie filling into a medium sized, greased pie pan.
Mix the flour, sugar and enough melted butter to create a topping that is crumbly in texture.
If the topping seems dough like in texture use a little more flour.
Sprinkle the topping on the pie filling and bake in a 350 degree oven until the topping has reached a golden brown color.
If your are going to experiment with Dutch oven cooking remember that every 2 charcoal briquettes equal 50 degrees in temperature.
In most cases a 350 degree oven will require about 18 briquettes - top and bottom.
To brown biscuit and other baked products load the top of the Dutch oven a little heavier as the bottom of the oven is closer to the item being cooked. This allows for even baking.
