Cream of onion, bean and sweet potato soup with Rivels

This is based off a Menonite recipe I found in an old book.  It's quite good.

3 or 4 medium onions, coarsely chopped
4 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and coarsely chopped
3 c. pinto beans, dry
2 c. ham, chicken or turkey
32 oz chicken or beef stock
2 c. water

Cream base:
3 tbsp butter
3 tbsp flour
1 c. sour cream
1 1/2 c. milk
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp oregano

Rivels:
1 egg
flour
2 pinches salt
1/4 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Start early in the day by pouring boiling water over the beans in a large bowl and let them soak for 4-5 hours. 
Make the rivels.  Put an egg into a stand mixer bowl and put the mixer on medium while gradually adding flour.  Add the seasonings, and add flour until the rivels are small dry lumps.  This mass of loose dough should be dry and you can easily crumble with your fingers.

After soak, prepare the onions and potatoes, add the stock and water to a large soup pot.  Add the beans and cook on med-high for 30 minutes.  Check the beans for tenderness.  Turn heat down and let to low and add the potatoes, onions and meat.

Meanwhile prepare the cream base.  Start with butter and flour in a saucepan and make a roux, adding the sour cream, seasonings and blending it smooth.  Gradually add the milk afterward.  Once it's thick and creamy, add it to the soup and blend it.  Add the rivels to the soup.  Add salt to taste.

Cook on low until the potatoes are tender. 

Buttermilk Biscuits

½ c unsalted cold butter, diced
2 c all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2/3 c buttermilk
1 T unsalted butter, melted

Instructions
Preheat oven to 450F.
Add the flour, baking powder, salt, and butter into a food processor and pulse until mixture is crumbly (alternatively, this can be done in a bowl with a pastry cutter).
Add the buttermilk and stir with a fork just until flour is moistened.
Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead 2-3 times. Roll or pat dough out to ¾-inch thickness. Cut with a 2- or 2½-inch biscuit cutter. Place biscuits on a baking sheet.
Bake at 450 for 10-14 minutes or until golden. Remove from the oven and brush with melted butter. Makes 8-12 biscuits depending on the size biscuit cutter you use.

Bret's Ham, Cabbage and Bean Stew

Ingredients

This is a fantastic recipe for after you've bought a spiral-cut (or not spiral-cut) ham and have a bunch of ham leftover and a big meaty bone.  Start this early in the day

1 ham bone with meat and fat still to trim off,
3 c. chopped ham
3 c. pinto beans, dry
2 c. rice
1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
5 carrots, chopped
1 half head of a large green cabbage, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
1 tsp sea salt, more to taste
1 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp white pepper
3/4 tsp oregano
3/4 tsp basil
3/4 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp rosemary
3/4 tsp paprika
2 tsp garlic
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp worcestershire sauce

Prep
Begin by soaking the beans.  Put the beans in a large bowl and cover with boiling water.  Let this sit for 2 hours.  Wash the rice once or twice and cover it with boiling water to soak too.  While that's going on, get a big soup pot, and fill it halfway with water, add the ham bone and whatever trimmings are still attached (after stewing the bone and trimming the remaining bits, I got about 2 cups of chopped ham)  Get the water up to boiling and then reduce it down to a low-med rolling boil.  Let that go for 2 hours, adding water as necessary to bring the water over the bone.

Once the broth has a good hammy taste, pull the bone out, let it cool and dump in the beans after straining them.  Let the beans cook for 20 minutes on high before adding the vegetables and other seasonings. 

While waiting for the beans to cook, trim all remaining meat and fat off the bone.  Don't be shy about adding the fat back in--it's delicious and not that bad for you.  If you're shy of 3 cups, chop up some of the remaining ham and get it to 3.  Add the ham and rice to the stew as well as everything else.

Let it cook on low for 45 min more to make sure the veggies are all cooked.  This should get quite thick and may require more water.  Add as necessary.

German Ham and Cabbage Casserole

4 c. coarsely chopped ham, or available meat
16 ounce dry macaroni, or 2 lbs potatoes
1/2 head cabbage, chopped well
1 1/2 c. sauerkraut
6 tbsp butter
3/4 c. flour
5 c. milk
1 c. dry white wine or sherry (NOT cooking sherry)
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. caraway seeds
3 1/2 c. shredded cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9x13 inch casserole or other similar sized dish.

NOODLE VERSION:
2a. Cook noodles according to package directions in salted water. Strain out water and dress with a small amount of oil to keep noodles from sticking together.

POTATO VERSION:
2b. Peel potatoes.  If they're large, chop them in half or quarters to have pieces the size of a large chicken egg.  Boil the potatoes not quite fork tender.  Remove from water and cut into 1/4 inch slices.

3. while the potatoes/noodles are cooking, chop the cabbage.  The cabbage should be partially cooked before mixing into the casserole.  Use a large pot, fill with 2 quarts of water and bring to a boil.  Once boiling, add all the cabbage and parboil for 3 minutes.  Drain immediately and set aside.

4. I used a spiral-cut ham for this and just coarsely chopped up 4 cups worth of meat.  There was still plenty left for other things!

5. Make the roux: in a large saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat until foam subsides. Sprinkle in the flour and stir for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in milk, salt, pepper and caraway seeds. Stir frequently until the sauce thickens, about 5 to 10 minutes.  Stir in sherry and move to next step.

6. Mix the meat, cabbage, sauerkraut and sauce in with the noodles/potatoes. Pour mixture into the casserole dish. Stir in the shredded cheese.

7. Bake for 40 minutes or until the cheese is melted and casserole is heated through.

Bret's Apple, Cheddar and Beef Shepherd's Pie

I love British and Irish cooking.  It's very basic and the Shepherd's pie is a favorite pub food type of dish.  This is a delicious and intriguing variation on it.  I thought of the combination of apple, cheddar and beef and thought it would be good.  I'm glad I was right.  The mushrooms and the carrot give a little bit more variety to the texture without detracting from the play of sweet and savory flavors between the main three actors.  If you can get it, serve with Branston Pickle--it's divine.

serves: 4-6
prep time: 1 hour
cook time: 30 min

Ingredients Crust:
4 lb's Idaho or Russet potatoes, peeled
2 eggs
2/3 c. bread crumbs, panko will due, or food process old stale bread
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/3 c. pan drippings (from filling below)

Filling:
2 lbs ground beef or sirloin/top round, sliced into 1 cm cubes
4 large granny smith apples, cubed; 1 cm
1 lb mushrooms, white or brown, halved or quartered
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
4 carrots, coarsely chopped
2 tbsp worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp dried oregano
LAST:
2 c. cheddar cheese cut into 1 cm

Gravy Ingredients:
remaining liquid from cooking the filling (~ 1 c. maybe)
1 tbsp butter
3 tbsp flour
1 1/2 c. milk
1/4 c. dry sherry
salt to taste
worcestershire sauce to taste

Oven @ 400 F

Filling Method:
------------------
If the potatoes are very large, halve or quarter them.  Boil until cooked and fork-tender.

While potatoes are cooking, use a large dutch oven and begin browning the beef.  Add all the remaining ingredients except the cheddar cheese.  Cover and cook on med-low for 10-15 minutes to cook all the vegetables.  Once the carrots are cooked, you're good.  Use a colander and drain the filling mix into a large bowl, saving the liquid.

Reserve 1/3 of a c. of the liquid for the mashed potatoes.

Gravy Method:
------------------
Begin making a roux out of the remaining liquid.  Add 1 tbsp butter, 3 tbsp flour, and gradually add in 1 1/2 c. milk, the wine, and seasonings, stirring over a medium-low heat.  Stir and cook until it's thick but still runs and has a light caramel color.  Pour into the filling and mix it around.

Mashed Potatoes Method:
-------------------------------
Put the boiled potatoes in a mixing bowl and use either an electric mixer or potato masher.  Add the eggs, seasonings, bread crumbs and liquid.  Mash until relatively smooth.

Assembly:
Use roughly half of the potatoes to line the bottom of the dutch oven.  The thickness should be 1/2 an inch (not quite 2 cm).  Take the potatoes up the sides, making a 'crust' of mashed potatoes by about 4 cm.  Layer in half of the filling and cover with half the cheese cubes.  Add the other half of the filling on top, and spread the remaining half of the cheese.  Spread the remaining potatoes over the top and sides, attempting to seal the filling on all sides with a crust of potatoes.

Bake in oven @ 400 F for 30 minutes, till crust is crispy and cheese is melted.

Serve with Branston Pickle

Pulled Pork

1 teaspoon corn or sunflower oil
1 (5 pound) pork loin roast or pork shoulder roast
1 cup barbeque sauce
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp light brown sugar
1 tablespoon prepared yellow mustard
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp liquid hickory smoke seasoning
2  large onion, chopped
2 large cloves garlic, crushed
1 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme

Put the oil in bottom of a slow cooker.  Roll the meat around to coat.
Add all other ingredients and stir it well.  Cook on high for 5 or 6 hours until the pork is starting to get tender and easily shreds with a fork.