FREE/BARGAIN — Cookbooks

[GA Russell]

Learn the French Dessert Recipes to Die For - free
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XCBPF8B/

[GtrsRGr8]

Originally Posted by GtrsRGr8

There is only one way to cook okra, by itself
<snip>

I think that everyone would know this, but in case that isn't so . . . .
1. You need to put a tiny bit of oil in the skillet before throwing the breaded okra in it.
2. Somewhere along the line, you will want to add some salt, unless you are on a sodium-restricted diet or something like that.

[Apache]

Salt should also have been added to the dry ingredients before breading the okra.
Apache

[GtrsRGr8]

Originally Posted by Apache

Salt should also have been added to the dry ingredients before breading the okra.
Apache

Yeah, I think that I would have done it at that point, too. It wouldn't stick very well after the okra had been cooked.

Since you live in South Georgia, I'll mention that the restaurant that I was talking about is Ole Times. They are all over south Georgia, up to maybe Warner Robbins, and have at least a couple of stores in north Florida (one in the Panhandle; one in north central Florida).

[Apache]

It is a popular restaurant here. I do not eat there though. I think their food is to salty and most vegetables are over cooked.
Apache

[Little.Egret]

Free


Quick & Easy Microwave Mug Recipes by JR Stevens

Cooking for one? Meals in a mug are a perfect solution for solo dining. They're also quick and easy for busy people and even easier to clean-up after. And they are a convenient and budget-conscious way to eat delicious and healthy meals.


https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XGB8G15/

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B06XGB8G15/

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B06XGB8G15/

[GA Russell]

The Avocado Cookbook - free
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00D61V5H2/

[GA Russell]

Originally Posted by Little.Egret

Free


Quick & Easy Microwave Mug Recipes by JR Stevens

Cooking for one? Meals in a mug are a perfect solution for solo dining. They're also quick and easy for busy people and even easier to clean-up after. And they are a convenient and budget-conscious way to eat delicious and healthy meals.


https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XGB8G15/

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B06XGB8G15/

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B06XGB8G15/

Thanks LE!

[GtrsRGr8]

Originally Posted by Apache

It is a popular restaurant here. I do not eat there though. I think their food is to salty and most vegetables are over cooked.
Apache

I do not get to eat at one much, but when I do, I enjoy it.

I have never have thought that much of anything of theirs was too salty, or that their vegetables were overcooked. I honestly think that the restaurant is just giving people (the majority of people, most of whom are Southerners) what they want.

As far as saltiness is concerned, I think that if they reduced the saltiness it would cause them to lose customers--Americans generally like their foods fairly salty, and Southerners are probably the worst about it. The only food at Ole Times, that I remember, that I thought might be a little too salty is, coincidentally, their fried okra.

It is funny, in a way, how we like many of our vegetables cooked so much that they become close to being mush. Green beans are a prime example. People raised in the Deep South or by parents native to the Deep South (I know that I'm making some broad generalizations here) won't eat them straight from a can, or even freshly picked and steamed. They need to be cooked (boiled, but just barely boiling) for hours. When the liquid gets low, the cook just adds more water to let them boil some more. Oh, and they always have to be seasoned with some kind of seasoned pork--hog jowl, fat back, ham, even bacon--whatever the cook happens to have on hand like that.

That may sound strange to a lot of people. If I hadn't been raised in the Deep South by parents who were natives of the Deep South, I would probably think that it was strange, too.

[Apache]

That is how I was raised, but my tastes have changed. For example I love to roast fresh green beans with olive oil, salt and pepper. I put them in a half sheet pan and cover them with aluminum foil. Roast at 4575 for 10 minutes. Uncover stir and roast for another 10 minutes. Sometimes I will sprinkle with Parmesan Cheese after they are done. Or a squeeze of lemon juice.
Apache

[GtrsRGr8]

Originally Posted by Apache

That is how I was raised, but my tastes have changed. For example I love to roast fresh green beans with olive oil, salt and pepper. I put them in a half sheet pan and cover them with aluminum foil. Roast at 4575 for 10 minutes. Uncover stir and roast for another 10 minutes. Sometimes I will sprinkle with Parmesan Cheese after they are done. Or a squeeze of lemon juice.
Apache

Yeah, if I ever cooked for myself (which I don't now) again, I would be a little bit more adventurous. I keep buying the bargain high-quality Kindle cookbooks with recipes from all over the world so I'll be ready when the time comes.

Actually, what you described sounds good. Lots of veggies taste great grilled. Fruits work good, too. Seems like I even saw where someone grilled watermelon, and it was supposedly good that way. One of these days, I'm gonna start using the outdoor gas grill again and do more roasting of veggies.

I don't eat purely Southern food, by any stretch of the imagination. But, I tell people that it is the only type of food that I can eat every day and not get tired of.

[GtrsRGr8]

Oh, and it might go without saying, but that the grilled stuff tends to be a lot better for your health than the Southern food. So does the olive oil versus the oils (and grease) that Southern food traditionally has in it.

However, most Southern cooks have made changes. Probably, at one time, almost all Southern cooks used lard to cook with (rather than Crisco, etc.), but I haven't known of one who used lard since about 1980 (and you wouldn't believe how much she did use!), and she was in her early 90's (it couldn't be too unhealthy, then, could it? ha) at the time. The last that I noticed, at least one grocery store here carried lard, but it wasn't prominently displayed and there wasn't much shelf space devoted to it.

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by GtrsRGr8

There is only one way to cook okra, by itself (e.g., not in a dish combined with other things like tomatoes).

First, here's how you don't cook it. You don't boil it, or otherwise do anything to make it slimy. Gross!

The right way to cook okra is to slice it up (you can buy it frozen pre-sliced, at least in the Deep South, and it works out okay). Bread it lightly with corn meal and maybe a little bit of corn flour. You put it in a hot skillet, stir (and maybe flip the pieces) often, and cook it until it's almost burned. Delicious. There is a knack to it, and I haven't mastered it. Sometimes it's okay, most of the time it is not. My 81-year-old mother has it down--it turns out perfect every time. But she's probably been doing it since she was tall enough to see the top of the range.

There's a chain of restaurants in this area which that makes delicious fried okra, but I am all but certain that it is not pan-fried. Somehow they have figured out a way to deep fry it and have it turn out almost as good as the pan-fried okra. One of these days, I'm going to bribe the fry person to tell me how it's done.

Whatever you do, don't make a breading, dip the okra in, and deep fry it. I would rather not eat it at all.

Oh, make sure that you pick out young okra, if you buy it from the produce market or produce department in a grocery store. When the okra has grown too large, it gets fibrous and is unpleasant to eat because of that.

375° oil for about 5 minutes or until it is the color you like. Oh and they sell frozen breaded okra which is good.

[GA Russell]

Pickle Mastery - free
https://www.amazon.com/Pickle-Master...dp/B01L0ZXG0O/

[LJJohnson]

I just finished watching 4 or 5 hours straight worth of Kevin Dundon cooking on PBS, and it was enough to make me decide to get his cookbook (Kevin Dundon's Modern Irish Food, $9.99 on Amazon USA) as soon as it comes down some in price.

But even though I was already sated on our quick-and-dirty supper of eggs with heavily smoked bacon and sweet chili sause on flour tortillas (wife left at 6:00 to babysite our grandchild so son and wife can go out on the town), his show made me want to eat again immediately.

I'm not sure how Irish some of this dishes are (don't think the ancient irish used much teriyaki sauce), but his recipes seem to be delicious ("mind-tasting"), relatively small number of ingredients, and fast & simple & unfussy prep/cooking.

Some that really struck me were

• Savoury Spring Onion & Cheddar Quiche
• Dunmore East Fresh Scallop Tartlets
• Spiced Apple Jellies with Yogurt Mousse
• Trout Fillets with Streaky Bacon and Flaked Almonds
• Baby Leek Gratin with Smoked Gubbeen
• Sticky Glaze Chicken Thighs with Asian Stuffing

I grabbed these recipes from his website (http://www.kevindundon.com/), and he explains them well (if you watch the show, you need to brush up on your Irish to English pronunciations)