Friday, May 30, 2014

JUNE SPECIALS

Hey Everyone! I know it's been awhile. But my oven is broken so therefore I have not done much cooking. I will be posting some cold recipes soon and some that you can do in the microwave. But first I wanted to let everyone know that I am now at the Wagoner Indoor Farmers Market so come check me out! Also June is a great month to host a party. Instead of the normal 20% free product, this month we are offering 30% free product!! It's a great deal and I will be there every step of the way to ensure your party is a success!!

Sunday, May 4, 2014

Apple Bourbon Country Style Pork Ribs - Yes in your Bean POT!

We had a beautiful, hot day here in Northeast Oklahoma. Wow the temperatures are already starting to soar and it is only early May. It looks like we may be in for a hot one this summer. But it was a beautiful Sunday and we had a wonderful Sunday dinner with some friends. We had left over coleslaw from yesterday and baked beans with some heavenly delicious and tender Pork Ribs.

My favorite ribs are the county style ribs. They are juicy and tender and I think are a much better cut then baby back ribs.  I tried something new today and did the with apples. Apples and Pork are a wonderful combination!!

For this recipe your are going to need your bean pot, about 4 - 5 lbs worth of Country Style Pork Ribs, Salt, Black Pepper, Apple Jelly, Bourbon, brown sugar, barbecue sauce, Cider Vinegar and Thyme. You will also need 3 cooking apples. Old fashioned cooking apples like a Macintosh, Rome or Jonathan taste perfect with these ribs but any tart eating apple works also. Since I could not find any of the cooking apples at our local grocer I used Granny Smith apples.

Now my husband and I both really like our Bourbon during hunting season, but once hunting season is over I really stop drinking it that much. So I sent my husband out the other night to pick me up a small bottle so I could use it to cook with. Ladies, never send your husband out for bourbon because this is what he may bring home.


Does this look like a small bottle of bourbon to you???

Now gather up all your ingredients and set them out, because it's just so much quicker if you have everything handy.

 
You are going to want to season your ribs with some salt and pepper and let them soak in some bourbon while you prepare your apple bourbon mix.
 
 
Next in a medium size bowl whisk together a cup of apple jelly (I use Smuckers apple jelly, it is normally natural and pesticide free), 3/4 cup bourbon (any bourbon will do but we prefer Bullit Bourobon, 1/2 cup packed brown sugar, 1/2 Cup Cider Vinegar (Be sure to use Cider, distilled white will not give the flavor you want), 1/2 Cup Barbeque sauce and 1/2 Tsp Thyme. 
 
Next layer your ribs and your Apple bourbon mix in the bean pot. Pour any leftover mix over the top of the ribs and move them around so it makes it's way all the way through your pot of ribs.
 
 
I know it looks a little gross going in but they are wonderful coming out. Put these in the oven with the lid on at 275 degrees for about an hour and a half. Take the ribs out of the oven and place your 3 medium apples, cored and quartered in the pot. Now you make have to take some of the ribs out and move things around to get them to fit. If they don't all fit that is okay. You don't have to use all 3 apples.

Place your ribs and apples back in the oven at 350 degrees now for another 2-3 hours. Depending on your oven you may need to check periodically to see if they are done.

Once complete take them out of the pot and serve on a pretty Celebrating home platter.  Strain your cooking liquid and you can serve with the ribs. I hope you enjoy these as much as we did. The ribs were so tender that they were falling apart as we pulled them out of the pot.


Please let me apologize for not having a better picture.  My family and friends would not let me take them time to arrange them and move stuff off the counter. But they were just that good!!

Saturday, May 3, 2014

Bean Pot Coleslaw - Yes you can use your Bean pot for Cold Food!

Did you know that you can use your bean pot for Cold foods? Well yes you can! It's easy and your Bean Pot will keep your food cold for hours. I simply put my bean pot in the freezer ahead of time so that it's nice and cold when you are ready to use it.

Today we our making a summer/picnic favorite; coleslaw. I have several coleslaw recipes I like to use. Today we are making a fairly classic and simple coleslaw with a mayonnaise dressing.

Your first step would be to obviously put that bean pot in the freezer. Now you could make your coleslaw in the bean pot but I like my pot to be ice cold so I prepare my coleslaw in a bowl and then transfer to my bean pot once it's cold enough. 

Your going to need one firm head of Green cabbage, about a 2 pound cabbage. 1-2 Large carrots, peeled, 1/2 Small sweet onion such as a Vidalia, peeled and finely chopped, 1/2 cup diced salad  pickles or chopped sweet pickles, 1/2 Cup mayonnaise (don't skimp here, use real mayo not light mayo or miracle whip) and salt and pepper to taste.

You will  need to remove and discard any bruised or undesirable outside leave from the head of the cabbage and then quarter and core the cabbage using a large chefs knives, or the shredding blade of a food processor. Then shred your cabbage.

 
 
 
Next step will be to wash and peel 1-2 carrots then grate. Add to your cabbage mixture.

 
You will next need your Vidalia onion, pickles mayonnaise, salt and pepper. Add them to your cabbage/carrot mixture and mix together. Some people stir with a spoon but I find it mixes better if you use your hands. Of course be sure to wash your hands first and remove any jewelry you may be wearing.  Below is your finished product.

 
Coleslaw is a super easy summer side dish and if you don't like to chop and shred you can always buy the prepackaged Coleslaw and put in your beanpot. It keeps it cold and you can always say you made it from scratch!

Friday, May 2, 2014

Crock Pot To Bean Pot Conversion

Happy Friday Everyone! Before I get seriously blogging some awesome bean pot recipes I thought I should share a little Crock Pot to Bean Pot Conversion for you. This way you can convert back to a Crock Pot if you need to and if you already have a Bean Pot or want to purchase one you can start converting your favorite recipes over to use in a Bean Pot. (Seriously, you should have a bean pot) If you don't have a bean pot yet and would like to get one please click the link on the right side of the page "Buy My Products"  This link will take  you to my Celebrating Home Website where you can purchase your very own bean pot and many of our other wonderful stoneware items! I will also occasionally add links here to where you can buy specialty grocer products I use in my recipes.

CROCKPOT                                                                BEAN POT IN OVEN AT 300 to 350 Degrees

1-1/2 to 2-1/2 Hours On High                                                  15 to 30 Minutes
or 4 to 6 hours on Low

2 to 3 Hours on High                                                                35 to 45 Minutes
or 6 to 8 hours on Low

4 to 5 Hours on High                                                                50 Minutes to 3 Hours
or 8 to 18 Hours on Low

Now this chart is a basic guide, times may vary depending on your oven and you should check all meats and poultry to ensure it is thoroughly cooked before serving.

With that being said, you can see a bean pot can cook a lot faster than your crockpot and still keeps your meats and poultry moist and tender. Now if your like me and you like for the food to cook slower and longer so you can get that extra nap in, take your oven down to 250 or 275 and add about an hour to an hour and half longer for it to cook. But be sure to check your food occasionally and your water levels so that it doesn't dry out. I will usually add an extra half cup of liquid to the pot for good measure. 

The best way to find out the best temperature and time is to try it out. Or follow my blog and recipes and follow the instructions I provided. Because most of my recipes have come from trial and error and lots of dried out or over cooked food.

Happy Converting and check back with me on Saturday when I show you how to use your bean pot for cold items. This Saturday it will be Coleslaw!

Sunday, April 27, 2014

What a great Sunday! Cajun Turkey Breast in your bean pot

Good Sunday Everyone! Well the weather man totally let us down here in Northeast Oklahoma today. I was ready for some storms, instead I got a few clouds maybe a sprinkle but nothing significant. By 3 o'clock the sun was shining and the wind was blowing and it turned out to be a beautiful day.

But this morning I though the weather was going to be bad, and my favorite thing to do on rainy, icky days is cook and nap. With my bean pot I get to do both. I decided to cook a turkey breast in my bean pot so it could be cooked slow and give me a few hours worth a nap. We also had roasted asparagus with red bell peppers and Cranberry Orange muffins. I felt as full as the bar on 3 for 1 beer night after dinner!

So lets get to the cooking. For this you will need 1 cup of water, beer, stock, or wine. You can even use soda if you like. I used red wine. You will also need a 3-4 lb Turkey Breast and your favorite cajun seasoning (or you can cheat and buy the Cajun seasoned Turkey breast. I did this time around, because, lets face it a lot of us are moms around here and like to cut corners when we can). When I do use a Cajun seasoning one of my favorites is Tony Chacheres which you can get at most grocers.

 
As you can see here I have a small ball of foil out. You need this to put at the bottom of your bean pot to set your Turkey on. I find that the whole turkey cooks better if it is not submerged in liquid.  This is a simple recipe and takes no real prep time at all. Which is why I love it! First thing to do is pre-heat your oven while prepping your turkey. I cooked mine at 325 F for about 2 hours. Now the time can change depending on the weight of the turkey breast.
 
First step is place the foil ball in the bottom of the pot.
 
 
Next step is to pour in your liquid. I used a red wine I had left in the fridge that was no longer consumable. Well let's face it ALL wine is consumable but mine today had been opened in the fridge for a day or two so I used it.
 
 
As you see it doesn't take up much space and does not come over the top of your foil, which is what you want. The red wine is in there to give you that extra moisture in your pot to keep your meat from drying out. It makes it tender and juicy later! Now you are almost finished. It's time to place your turkey breast in the pot. If you have a fatty side to your turkey place it facing the bottom.
 
 
 
Alright put a lid on that baby and put him in your oven. If you used a breast larger than 3-4 lbs after hour 2 you may want to check on its progress periodically to make sure you don't over cook it.  And now for the grand finale! Your timer is going off, your turkey has reached it's prime internal temperature of at least 165 F. You take it out of the oven, take of your lid and this is what you find.
 
 
It's time to take it out of the pot and slice it up to serve and enjoy. You will be so surprised how
tender and juicy and how much flavor your turkey will have coming out of  bean pot. Give this recipe a try and let me know how it goes for you and if you have any tips or tricks to share to make it better then please share!  Have a great Sunday evening and God Bless!
 
 

Saturday, April 26, 2014

Welcome to Oklahoma's Bean Pot Momma!

Hello! Well, what to say. Welcome to Oklahoma's Bean Pot Momma. I am here to share with you Bean Pot recipes, tips, tricks and sales from Celebrating Home and Penelope Ann. My favorite item to cook with is my bean pot and here I will share my favorite recipes and tips for cooking with a bean pot. Now if you don't have a bean pot yet, you can click the link on the right for Buy My Products and go get yourself one. You will be so glad you did.

Now for those of you who don't know what a bean pot is, well, its a stoneware item from Celebrating home that comes in many different colors and styles. It cooks a lot like a dutch oven or a crock pot but in your stove. You can also use it in the microwave or for cold foods. It will keep you cold foods, cold, for hours!

Thanks for visiting my blog and I look forward to sharing with everyone my favorite recipes and any tips or tricks I may have. I will also occasionally post favorite pictures and favorite things Oklahoma.