Life at the Lazy L

[David In Indy]

I like to make mine with Southern Comfort -

<hiccup!>So do<hiccup!>...I!   

[LazyLJack]

Because I mentioned it, I thought I'd share:

SUPER SIMPLE SOUFFLE

No beating of egg whites for me! This is easy and it puffs up and looks like a real souffle. Think of it, me a cowboy from Lightning Flat, cooking French!

2 Tbsp. butter
3 Tbsp. flour
1 1/4 cups milk
1 1/2 cups (4 oz) shredded cheese. Gruyere is best, but you can substitute Swiss or Cheddar
3 eggs, lightly beaten
chopped parsley, pepper, nutmeg

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Lightly grease a 4 cup oval gratin dish. In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour and cook until it begins to sizzle, then whisk in the milk and bring to a boil, whisking constantly. When it is thickened (won't take long), remove from heat and season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Stir in the grated cheese, eggs, and parsley. Pour into the gratin dish. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the souffle is puffed and browned.

This serves me and Ennis just fine, but some folks might stretch it to three servings.

You can add cooked spinach, chopped and drained with the cheese and eggs if you want to make a spinach souffle.

Betcha never guessed that Jack Twist would know how to cook a souffle! Well, you guessed wrong!

Enjoy...hugs to all,

Jack

[Kazza]

Hey Jack, just wanted to pop in and wish you and all at the Lazy L a Happy Thanksgiving. We don't have this holiday in the UK, but I was in the US once at this time (San Fran actually) and had a ball. The rest of the trip was a blast too.

So, what are you getting for Ennis? You can tell us, we won't let it slip 

Karen (who has to go to work tomorrow to a very boring 4 hour meeting instead of indulging in yummy food and too much wine).

[Lumière]

Because I mentioned it, I thought I'd share:

SUPER SIMPLE SOUFFLE

Enjoy...hugs to all,

Jack

Hey Jack!

Our Canadian Thanksgiving was over a month ago .. I wish I had the US Thanksgiving holiday off as well!   

Thank you for that souffle recipe!  Can't wait to try it!

Hugs to Ennis (who I can only dream will leave a message here for us one of these days..  )

Thanks to you and Ennis for being such a HUGE part of our lives!  MUAH!

~Lucise

[LazyLJack]

Hi everyone,

I just wanted to drop in an give you all a Thanksgiving update.

Ennis and I had a quiet day together yesterday. Since it was just the two of us, I roasted a chicken, instead of a turkey. Truth be told, we both like chicken better than turkey! Billy and Scott came over late in the day for coffee and dessert. They both seem very happy and Ennis and I are happy for them. Billy told me, privately, that things are still touchy with his dad, but the fact that Scott joined them for Thanksgiving shows that he is coming around. Scott's family, on the other hand, is not as accepting, and that seems to be weighing heavily on both of them.

We had our family Thanksgiving two weeks ago, up in Wyoming. As we usually do, Ennis and I had a week of hunting, then wrapped up the week at Cecelia's house. Junior and her family came up from Laramie, and all of Cecelia's and Lewis's children and grandchildren were there, so it was quite a crowd. KE was there. He is living with Cecelia and Lewis, now, and his bungalow is for sale. He is very weak but he is a tough old nut and hanging in there. Hospice is coming to the house and his pain and other symptoms are in control, so we are thankful for that.

Today a package arrived from LL Bean in Freeport, Maine. Jenny always sends us a Christmas wreath and we are glad she does because frankly, the Christmas wreaths they sell around here are pretty scrawny looking. Kelly is doing well--still pregnant with a month to go. They know it's a boy and have decided to name him Christian, whether he is born on Christmas or not!

I am going to go check out the leftovers thread to see if I can come up with new ideas for our chicken...or maybe I'll just make that old standby: Chicken a la King.

Take good care, everybody.

Here is a picture of the wreath:




Jack

[Jeff Wrangler]

Hey, Jack,

So I got to thinkin' while I was outta town over this long holiday weekend. You got yourself a favorite chili recipe?

Many thanks, friend.

Jeff

[LazyLJack]

Jeff, my friend...

My chili is still the basic one found in my old Joy of Cooking which I have embellished over the years. Nothing real fancy but Ennis likes it and I do too. We both like our chili with beans, lot of folks don't, so of course, you could leave them out.

JACK'S SIGNATURE CHILI CON CARNE

1 onion, chopped
3-4 cloves garlic, chopped or minced
1 lb ground beef (use very lean and you won't need to drain off the fat)
1 can (14 oz) chopped tomatoes (you can you "Mexican style" if you want)
1 can (14 oz) dark red kidney beans
salt to taste
1 tsp sugar
2 tsps to 2 Tbsp chili powder

Brown the onion and garlic in 1 Tbsp olive oil. Add the ground beef and brown. Add remaining ingredients. Cover and simmer one hour or more, adjusting the chili powder as needed.

Serve on white rice or spaghetti (Cincinnati style!) garnished with onions, cheese, chopped tomatoes, and chopped avocado.

In a pinch, I have been know to use McCormick's Chili-O mix. (Don't tell Ennis!)

Jack

[Jeff Wrangler]

Many thanks, Jack! I prefer my chili with beans, too. 

Serve on white rice or spaghetti (Cincinnati style!) garnished with onions, cheese, chopped tomatoes, and chopped avocado.

Now, ain't that inner-estin'? Never heard it referred to as "Cincinnati style," but my mother used to serve chili with spaghetti (she'd cook the spaghetti and then mix it into the chili)--claimed she learned that from a neighbor, who was a Girl Scout leader. Of course, my mother, being a Pennsylvania German cook, her idea of seasoning chili was to wave the can of chili powder over the frying pan of chili. 

I like to eat my chili over rice, though I usually try to use a long-grain and wild rice mixture, or brown rice. It's better for you--especially the brown rice. You oughta try that on Ennis some day. 

You serve it with a side of corn bread? Makes for good eatin'! 

[LazyLJack]

Corn bread is a definite side, and I like this recipe:

RICH CORN CAKE

1 cup yellow cornmeal
1 cup flour
4 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cream of tartar
3/4 tsp salt
1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup milk
2 eggs, well beaten
4 Tbsp butter, melted

Preheat over to 425 degrees. Butter a 9 x 9 x 2 inch pan. Combine the dry ingredients (cornmeal through salt) and mix well. Quickly add the remaining ingredients (sour cream through melted butter). Stir just to mix. Spoon into pan and bake for 20 minutes. Cool and cut into squares.

You can also cook in a muffin tin; will make 1 dozen corn muffins. If you have a cast iron cornstick pan, this batter will work in that too.

ENJOY!

Jack

[Jeff Wrangler]

Friend, that corn bread sounds real good. Need to try that some day. Thanks! 

"Corn stick pan"? You mean one of those little baking pans that'll mold something to look like little ears of corn? So that's what they call those things?