Southern Favorite: Cheese Straws

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups butter, softened
1 (1-pound) block sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded
1 1/2 teaspoons salt 1 to 2 teaspoons ground red pepper
1/2 teaspoon paprika
4 cups all-purpose flour

Preparation

Beat first 5 ingredients at medium speed with a heavy-duty stand mixer until blended. Gradually add flour, beating just until combined.Use a cookie press with a star-shaped disk to shape mixture into long ribbons, following manufacturer's instructions, on parchment paper-lined baking sheets. Cut ribbons into 2-inch pieces.Bake at 350° for 12 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to wire racks to cool.

Southern Favorite: Chicken Fried Steak

INGREDIENTS

* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 teaspoon pepper
* 4 (4 ounce) cube steaks
* 38 saltine crackers, crushed
* 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, divided
* 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
* 2 teaspoons salt, divided
* 1 1/2 teaspoons ground black pepper, divided
* 1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
* 4 3/4 cups milk
* 2 eggs
* 3 1/2 cups peanut oil
* Garnish: chopped fresh parsley

* add to recipe box Add to Recipe Box
My folders:
* add to shopping list Add to Shopping List
* add a personal note Add a Personal Note

DIRECTIONS

1. SPRINKLE salt and pepper evenly over steaks. Set aside.

2. COMBINE cracker crumbs, 1 cup flour, baking powder, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, and red pepper.

3. WHISK together 3/4 cup milk and eggs. Dredge steaks in cracker crumb mixture; dip in milk mixture, and dredge in cracker mixture again.

4. POUR oil into a 12-inch skillet; heat to 360 degrees. (Do not use a nonstick skillet.) Fry steaks 10 minutes. Turn and fry 4 to 5 more minutes or until golden brown. Remove to a wire rack on a jellyroll pan. Keep steaks warm in a 225 degree oven. Carefully drain hot oil, reserving cooked bits and 1 tablespoon drippings in skillet.

5. WHISK together remaining 1/4 cup flour, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon black pepper, and 4 cups milk. Pour mixture into reserved drippings in skillet; cook over medium-high heat, whisking constantly, 10 to 12 minutes, or until thickened. Serve gravy with steaks and mashed potatoes. Sprinkle with parsley, if desired.

Thanksgiving Favorite: Cuban Roast Turkey

1 (12-14 pound) turkey, fresh or thawed
Salt and fresh ground pepper
8 tablespoons unsalted butter

Marinade:
1 head garlic, broken into cloves and peeled
1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 cup lime juice

The day before, remove the giblets and any lumps of fat from the turkey cavities. Wash the turkey well and blot dry. Season the inside with salt and pepper. Loosen the turkey skin from the meat. To do so, start at the neck and tunnel your fingers, then whole hand, under the skin to separate the skin from the breast meat. Slide your hand down to loosen the skin over the thighs, drumsticks and back. Work carefully so as not to tear the skin.

Prepare the marinade. Mash the garlic and salt to a paste in a mortar with a pestle. Pound in the pepper, cumin, and oregano and last of all the lime juice or sour orange juice. If you do not have a mortar and pestle, puree the ingredients in a blender. Add 3 tablespoons marinade to the main cavity and 1 tablespoon to the neck cavity. Place the remaining marinade under the skin. Work over a roasting pan to catch any runoff from the marinade. Place the bird in a large plastic bag with any excess marinade. Marinate the turkey overnight in the refrigerator, turning several times.

Heat the oven to 300 degrees F.

Thinly slice the butter and place half of the slices under the skin. Melt remaining butter. Truss the turkey and place it, breast side up, on a rack in a roasting pan. Brush the skin of the bird with some melted butter. Loosely drape a large piece of cheesecloth over the skin, then pour the remaining butter and marinade over the cheesecloth. Roast the bird for 2 hours. Baste with the juices and melted butter that collect in the pan. Lift the cheesecloth from time to time to keep it from sticking to the bird. Increase oven temperature to 350 degrees F and roast for 1 hour. Increase the heat to 400 degrees F and remove the cheesecloth from the turkey. Roast 15-20 minutes, basting frequently.

When cooked, the skin will be golden and the leg juices will run clear when pricked with a fork. The internal temperature should be 185 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer and the drumstick should feel loose when wiggled.

Transfer the turkey to a platter or cutting board. Let stand for 15 minutes before carving. Strain the pan juices and serve in a gravy boat on the side.

Southwestern Favorite - Lime Beef And Totillas

4 medium limes
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup olive oil
12 corn tortillas
1 small onion
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
4 small tomatoes
1 (1 1/2 pound) flank steak
2 medium avocados
1 teaspoon chili powder

About 5-6 hours before serving:

Grate peel and squeeze lime juice. Chop onion. In 13 x 9-inch dish, combine lime juice, lime peel, onion, chili powder, red pepper and salt. Add steak, turn and marinate for 4-5 hours, turning several times.

About 1 hour before serving:

Remove steak from marinade. Pour marinade into a 1-quart saucepan, heat to boil, boil 5 minutes and pour into small bowl. Beat with fork while adding olive oil in thin stream. Set aside.

Cut tomato wedges, cut avocados into thin wedge, and warm tortillas in oven.

Grill steak 5-10 minutes. Cut in thin diagonal slices.

Tex Mex Favorite - Chicken Chimichanga

Chimichangas de Pollo

1 (3 1/2 pound) whole chicken
6 cups water
1 medium onion, studded with 2 whole cloves
2 stalks celery
2 large whole garlic cloves, peeled
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons shortening
1 large onion, thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 large tomato, cored and diced
1 jalapeno chile, chopped
1/4 teaspoon crushed leaf basil
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon crushed leaf oregano
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
8 flour tortillas, warmed

Garnish:
2 cups sour cream
1 cup guacamole
2 cups grated Cheddar cheese
Shredded lettuce (optional)
Tomato wedges (optional)

Place the chicken, water, onion, celery, 2 garlic cloves, and bay leaf in a medium-size stewing pot. Cook chicken at medium heat for approximately 1 1/2 hours, or until the chicken is tender. Allow chicken to cool, remove meat from bones, and chop.

Place shortening, sliced onion, and 1 minced garlic clove in a medium-sized skillet and saute mixture at medium heat until onion is tender. Add the chopped chicken, tomato, jalapeno chile, and remaining seasonings and simmer at low heat for 10-15 minutes.

Place approximately1/2 cup of chicken mixture horizontally across the bottom half of each tortilla. Do not extend the mixture beyond 1 1/2 inches at the sides and bottom. Fold the sides in over the filling and roll the tortilla jellyroll style. Secure each roll with a wooden pick.

Heat 2-inches of shortening in a heavy pan at medium-high heat.

Fry each rolled tortilla in hot shortening until crisp and lightly browned. Drain on absorbent towels.

Assemble the chimichangas by placing each rolled tortilla on a plate and garnish with 1/4 cup of sour cream, 2 tablespoons of guacamole,1/3 cup of cheddar cheese, lettuce, and tomato wedges.

Yield: 8 servings

South American Favorite - Flank Steak With Chimichurri Sauce

1 (1 1/2 pound) beef flank steak
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup white wine vinegar
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup minced parsley
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper

Cut diamond pattern 1/8 inch deep into both sides of beef. Place beef in non-reactive dish. Shake remaining ingredients in tightly covered jar. Pour 1 cup of the sauce over beef. Cover remaining sauce. Cover and refrigerate beef, turning occasionally, at least 4 hours.

Remove beef from sauce. Grill beef 4 or 5 inches from medium coals, turning and brushing with sauce once, until desired doneness, 6 to 8 minutes on each side for medium. Cut beef diagonally across the grain into thin slices.

Serve with reserved sauce.

North African Favorite - Chicken Marrakesh

1 frying chicken, skinned and cut in quarters
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon crushed coriander (or 1/2 tablespoon powdered)
1 tablespoon dried oregano (or 1/2 tablespoon powdered)
3 cloves garlic
, chopped
Good handful regular green olives
1/2 cup olive oil
1 lemon, thinly sliced

Sprinkle chicken with salt and arrange in baking pan
. Sprinkle with lemon juice, coriander, oregano, garlic, and olives. Pour olive oil over it. Cover with lemon slices and bake at 325 degrees F for 1 hour.

Serve over couscous.