| Mrs. 'Boro: Family favs can make a dinner quick, delicious |
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By: JEANNE BRAGG, Post Columnist
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Posted: Sunday, August 9, 2009 7:42 am
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I went to Knoxville for a family function and was introduced to a quick, fun dinner by sister Randy.
My sisters are all wonderful cooks, and Randy is publishing a cookbook (Beyond Ramen--An Entertaining Guide for Twenty-Somethings) as I write.
Here is one of her recipes for barbeque.
Put a small piece of pork tenderloin (the kind that comes two to a package) in a crock-pot on low and pour in one whole bottle of Kraft Honey Barbeque Sauce (no substitute). Cook all day until the pork falls to pieces. Serve on hamburger buns with cole slaw.
At home I found that my barbeque sauce got so thick I had to thin it with water. So next time I put a pork sirloin roast in the crock pot with about a half inch of water and didn’t add the barbeque sauce until after four hours. It was great and easy.
I don’t know what they put in that Kraft Honey Barbeque sauce, but it HAS to be full of high fructose corn syrup or something to give it that great flavor. It must be quite popular because I’ve noticed national stores marketing their own brand.
I also served a side of baked beans. There were no leftovers as I had hoped.
My mother’s cooking forte was sandwiches. She grew up around kosher delicatessens and could make a mean sandwich (a hero to her sons-in-law) but had a few other signature dishes. Her baked beans was one of them. Mother was called “Bootsie” by her grandchildren, and I would like to share that recipe with you.
“Bootsie’s Baked Beans”
Drain most of the liquid from a 40-ounce can of pork and beans (Van Camps is my first choice; Krogers second). Pour into a 2-quart baking dish.
In a skillet, sauté about four strips of bacon (cut it into pieces with scissors) with one small diced onion. Add all to beans.
Add 1 TB yellow mustard, 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce, 1/3 C Ketchup (or barbeque sauce if you have leftovers), and 1/2 C brown sugar. Mix and taste to adjust seasonings.
Cook in preheated 375-degree oven for about 45 minutes or until bubbly. Serves 6-8.
This and the barbeque would be enough for a meal, or you could bake some of those great frozen Ore-Ida seasoned French fries or make cole slaw.
My mother-in-law Annie Bragg was the best cook I have ever known.
She doesn’t cook any more but nobody cooked like Annie. My sisters said that her secret was slow and deliberate; a veritable challenge for me because I never do anything slow.
Annie raised her own garden and canned her own vegetables and shared some of those skills with me. I can cook “country” but Tommy doesn’t prefer “country” anymore.
For her coleslaw, Annie would slice about half a head of her cabbage very thin into a large mixing bowl then add a grated carrot and about 3 TB grated onion (I buy the prepackaged “homestyle” –not shredded – slaw).
In a coffee or “teacup” she would put about 3/4 C mayonnaise, 1 tsp celery seed, about 3 TB vinegar and 3 TB sugar, mix it well and pour it over the slaw.
This, too, can be adjusted to taste (if it’s too tart, add more sugar; if it’s not “creamy” enough, add more mayonnaise, etc.)
Another easy fix for a fast meal.
I hope you’ll enjoy some of my family favs ... and share more with me at jbragg@murfreeesboropost.com.
‘Til next week.
P.S. – Just read the Barbeque Sauce label: First ingredient: High Fructose Corn Syrup. How did I know ? |
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