Things I can cook

[Johnny]

I've been trying to think of things I know how to cook. Obviously I left things off, such as spaghetti (because I use sauce out of a jar) and various 'normal' sandwiches (although I included burgers -- go figure). I'm not trying to be all-inclusive. Just trying to make myself a little list that I can look at from time to time and say, 'I think I'll make that this weekend.' (There are four columns.)

Breakfast	          Lunch	                                Lunch or Dinner	         Dinner
Biscuits & Gravy	  Burgers	                        Burgers	                 Baked Salmon with Dill Crème Sauce
Crêpes (sweet)	          French Omelettes	                Crêpes (savoury)	 Black Beans
Hash Browns	          Gravlax Smörgås with Hovmästarsås	Fish & Chips	         Cajun Salmon
Omelettes	          Lamb Kebab	                        Fish Tacos	         Cheese Manicotti
Pancakes	          SPAM Musubi	                        Niku Maki (beef crêpes)	 Cheese Ravioli
Potato/Bacon/Egg Fry-Up	  SPAM Salad Sandwiches		                                 Chipotle Salmon
Waffles	                  Toasted Spinach & Havarti Sandwich		                 Chipotle-Cheddar Cornbread
			                                                                 Colcannon
    			                                                                 Cornbread
			                                                                 Corned Beef & Cabbage
			                                                                 Dirty Rice
			                                                                 Dungeness Crab with Red Potatoes & Corn
			                                                                 Ham Hocks & Black-Eyed Peas
			                                                                 Ham Hocks & Collard Greens
			                                                                 Pinto Beans
			                                                                 Red Beans and Rice
			                                                                 Roast Beef & Yorkshire Pudding
			                                                                 Roast Leg of Lamb
			                                                                 Roast Turkey
			                                                                 Spanish Rice
			                                                                 Steak au Poivre
			                                                                 Steaks
			                                                                 Teriyaki Salmon

Hm... Looks like I need to add Carnitas, and crock-pot BBQ Beef to the list. And I forgot the soups. Oh, well. I'll add them later.

[Johnny]

Thought of a couple of others.

Capellini alfredo con funghi
Capellini alfredo con pollo

(I like capellini better than fettuccine.) It's yer basic alfredo sauce (heavy cream, butter, Parmesan cheese), with either portobello mushrooms or chicken. Either way, they're sautéd in olive oil and garlic with a little pepper.

Then there's fettuccine alfredo with crab. That's the same sauce with crab meat in it, and fettuccine instead of capellini.

[Zuul]

Oh, fettuccine alfredo with crab sounds really good.. I may have to do that the next time I make an alfredo sauce.

[Sarahfeena]

What counts, Johnny? Stuff you can cook without a recipe at all? Well, then I can make a killer grilled cheese sandwich!

Let's see, I can make chicken a bunch of ways, like the Honey Pecan Chicken my husband invented, or lemon chicken, that kind of thing.

Mostly I'm good at making casseroles, though, and baking, and all of that pretty much needs recipes to get them right.

[Hatshepsut]

That's a tasty dinner list!

I wouldn't cook any of the baked/leavened items on your list without a recipe (waffles, biscuits, cornbread, etc.) because foods with baking soda/baking powder tend to be a bit risky if you get the proportions way off, and I don't make stuff like that often enough to have them memorized.

Speaking of gravlax, I just made a dip for a party that consisted of garlic, chopped gravlax from your recipe, cream cheese, and fresh Indian borage from my garden. It was a huge hit, and there was a Norwegian there who thought it was awesome that I made my own gravlax.

[Johnny]

What counts, Johnny? Stuff you can cook without a recipe at all?

What counts? I don't know, really. Some things I'll have a recipe out, since I don't make them often; and other things I just make. Some things are too mundane to be put on the list, and some are on the list even though they're mundane. So if you're making your own list, make your own rules!

there was a Norwegian there who thought it was awesome that I made my own gravlax.

Nice!

[Myrnalene]

the Honey Pecan Chicken my husband invented

I'm starving and that sounds good. Please post the recipe somewhere.

[Sarahfeena]

I'm starving and that sounds good. Please post the recipe somewhere.

I'll post it right here:

4 chicken breasts
Oyster crackers or saltines, crushed but not super fine
1/2 stick butter
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup coarsely chopped pecans

Coat chicken in crushed crackers and sear on both sides in hot oil. Bake in oven at 350 until done.

While chicken is baking, melt butter and honey together. Add pecans. With about 5 minutes left in baking time, pour about 2/3 of honey mixture over the chicken. Use reserved honey mixture to pour over chicken when served.

That's it, it's super easy. We usually serve this with rice, it seems to go with the sauce.