Sunday, October 21st, 2012 - Pulled Pork

Recipe:

2 lbs. pork shoulder
12 oz. coke and room temperature
favorite barbecue sauce
favorite spices and herbs

Place pork in a slow cooker and turned on to low.  Rub pulled pork with kosher salt, pepper, and ground mustard, then rub with some barbecue sauce.  Pour in two-thirds coke and one-third water until it's halfway up the meat.  Cook for 6 hours on low.  Pull it apart and then add more barbecue sauce before serving.

Sunday, October 14th - Chicken with Mushrooms and Artichokes

Recipe: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2010/04/chicken-with-mushrooms-and-artichokes/

Ingredients

• 8 whole Chicken Legs Or Thighs
• Salt And Pepper, to taste
• 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 16 ounces, weight White Mushrooms, Sliced
• 5 whole Garlic Cloves, Minced
• 1/2 cup White Wine, Or More To Taste
• 2 cups Chicken Broth (More As Needed)
• 1 whole 14.5 Ounce Can Artichoke Hearts, Drained , Rinsed, And Patted Dry
• 1 cup Heavy Cream
• Freshly Chopped Chives To Taste
• Freshly Grated Parmesan
• 16 ounces, weight Pasta - Cooked And Drained

Preparation Instructions

Salt and pepper chicken pieces.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken pieces and brown for 1 to 2 minutes. Remove chicken from skillet.

Add sliced mushrooms to pan with the garlic, and stir around and cook for a couple of minutes. Add wine and cook for a minute while it evaporates.

Pour in chicken broth---you should have enough for it to be very liquidy. Stir to deglaze the pan, the add chicken back to pan. Add artichoke hearts. Put the lid on the skillet and continue cooking over medium-low heat (or in a 375 degree oven) for 30 minutes, checking to make sure chicken broth doesn't completely evaporate. (Add more as needed).

Remove lid and reduce heat to low. Remove chicken from pan. Pour in cream and shake/stir to distribute. Add chives, then add chicken back to pan. Put lid on pan again and cook for an additional 10 minutes to thicken sauce. Stir and check for seasonings; add salt and pepper to taste.

Pour over cooked pasta. Top with more chives and Parmesan. Yum!

Changes: I only did half this recipe and that was already enough for two nights of food.  I used boneless skinless chicken thighs and that was fine.  I also added dried basil at the end instead of chives and I liked that better.

I liked the taste of the canned artichokes, so this is a keeper.