New Year's Black Eyed Peas

Let me start by saying I am generally NOT a fan of black eyed peas. My parents have made them all of my life and I have all but flat out refused to eat them until today. It's time I put on my big girl bib and try them out. After the clock struck 12 last night, I threw all of this in the crock pot, and it was ready by lunch time today. Surprisingly, they were not terrible. Who knew? I'm liking the world of dried beans/peas so far. Next up to try is curried chick peas with stewed tomatoes and butternut squash. I'll let you know how that goes. Hopefully I can make those photos look less gross than these. :)

Ingredients:
1 pkg dried black eyed peas
2 tsp salt
1 box (or 2.5 cans) of chicken broth, low sodium
4 pieces of bacon, sliced
1 vidalia onion, chopped
2 cloves minced garlic


Instructions:

1. Bring 6-8 cups of water to a boil in a large pot. Pour in dried peas, and boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Drain peas.
2. Add bacon, salt, onion, garlic, and peas to crock pot. Cover with chicken broth.
3. Cook on low for 8-10 hours, or until peas are tender.

As a note, these were pretty good with some hot sauce as well. Enjoy!

Garlic Green Beans

Tis the season for potlucks! I was looking for a way to dress up green beans without making a green bean casserole, so I did some research online and came up with this hybrid for last night's Christmas party. Highly recommended - the balsamic vinegar makes the difference. FYI, this recipe makes 8 servings, but I doubled it for my efforts last night.

Ingredients

• 6 slices bacon, chopped
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 pounds fresh green beans, trimmed and snapped
• 8 small new potatoes, diced
• 1 large clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup chicken broth
• 1 1/2 teaspoons white balsamic vinegar
• salt and pepper to taste

 

Directions

1. Place the chopped bacon in a skillet, and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until evenly browned. Drain the bacon pieces on a paper towel-lined plate.
2. Melt the butter in a skillet with a lid over medium-low heat, and cook and stir the onion until translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the cooked bacon, green beans, potatoes, garlic, and chicken broth. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer over low heat until the green beans are tender, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle with vinegar, salt, and

Thanksgiving Feast!

I had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Something about holidays that celebrate cooking just makes me happy! While not directly responsible for all of the above, The corn pudding was mine. It turned out pretty well - and I highly recommend it!

Corn Pudding

Ingredients:

4 oz softened cream cheese

1 can creamed corn

3/4 c frozen corn, thawed

1/2 c cornmeal

1/2 chopped onion

2/3 c milk

3 Tbsp melted butter

1 egg, beaten

1 Tbsp sugar

1/2 c shredded cheddar

salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and grease/butter a 1 qt casserole dish.

2. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl.

3. Spread the mixture evenly into the casserole dish.

4. Bake 50 minutes, or until center no longer looks runny. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.