Countrified Hicks: February 2022

Monday, February 28, 2022

The Ultimate Classic Wedge Salad Recipe

You just can’t go wrong with a classic wedge salad. Crispy iceberg lettuce with all your favorite salad toppings are good any time of the year.

The only true ingredients you need for a wedge salad would be iceberg lettuce and salad dressing but to me, you need more. Some things we like to top the lettuce wedge with include:

· Cherry tomatoes

· Hard boiled eggs

· Croutons

· Cucumbers

Some other options could include:

· Crispy crumbled bacon

· Grilled chicken

· Thinly sliced onions

· Thinly sliced radishes

· Bleu cheese crumbles

· Dried cranberries

· Avocado

Take the head of iceberg lettuce and cut it in half from the top down at the stem. Cut each half again so you get 4 quarters. Rinse each wedge and shake to remove excess water.

Place the wedges on individual plates and top with your choice of toppings. I like to finish by sprinkling on some black pepper and then at dressing right before serving or serve the dressing on the side.

With a wedge salad, I prefer to use homemade Catalina, homemade Ranch, Homemade Thousand Island Salad Dressing or Homemade Italian dressing.

You can serve a wedge salad with pretty much any meal but I like to serve it with my Ranch Pork Chops, Tater Tot Chicken Pot Pie or with Ribs.

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Sunday, February 27, 2022

How to Make Ghee & What the Heck is it?

Ghee is clarified butter and is so lovely and delicious that you will fall in love with it at first bite! It is ultra-rich and so smooth. And even better, it is shelf-stable, meaning it can keep on your counter at room temperature without going bad for several weeks or months.

Clarified butter is just real butter that has been simmered and strained to remove all the water and milk solids. The end product is very clean and has a sweet flavor. It makes the perfect cooking oil too because it has a high smoking point of 482 degrees.

To make ghee, take unsalted butter and melt it down slowly. I generally do a few pounds at a time. I turn my stove onto simmer or the lowest setting and just let it simmer for awhile. As it cooks, skim off the solids that gather on the surface. Allow it to continue to cook until all the milk solids sink to the bottom of the pan and the liquid becomes clear. This is your ghee or clarified butter.

Ghee before it solidifies...so lovely.

Continue to cook it for several more minutes until the milk solids on the bottom turn golden brown. Allowing the milk solids to darken is what gives your ghee the flavor and beautiful color.

Now strain the milk solids out with a sieve and the liquid is your ghee. Put it into a mason jar with a lid and allow it to cool. Be sure you ladle only the ghee into the jars. You do not want any of the browned milk solids. As the ghee cools, it solidifies like coconut oil.

Ghee and butter both comprise of nearly 100% fat, but ghee may be the better choice for people with lactose or casein sensitivities. Ghee may also be better for high-temperature cooking but butter has a sweeter taste that may be more suitable for baking.

I love to fry food in ghee but it is also awesome on toast or on top of muffins, on baked potatoes, on homemade bread and on cast iron skillet cornbread. Yum!

What is your favorite way to use ghee?

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Saturday, February 26, 2022

The Last Caesar Salad Dressing Recipe that You Will Ever Need

This Caesar salad dressing is super creamy and is bursting with such amazing flavor that is SOOOOOO much better than any store-bought variety!

It is even better than ones you can find at your favorite restaurant. It is that good. It is not only great for a salad but makes a great dip for a nice mezze platter alongside some crudités.

· 1/3-1/2 c. olive oil

· ¼ c. Parmesan grated cheese

· 2 lg. egg yolks or ¼ c. egg substitute (similar to Egg Beaters)

· 3 cloves garlic, chopped

· 2 T. lemon juice

· 1 T. Dijon mustard

· 1 T. anchovy paste

· 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

· 1 tsp. salt

· 1 tsp. pepper

· 1 tsp. sugar

Blend together all of the ingredients in a blender until smooth. It will probably take a minute or two of blending to get it smooth and creamy. Once it is creamy, pour into a mason jar or other airtight container with a lid and refrigerate for 8-10 hours before serving.

Great to use on your classic Caesar salad, with some lovely veggies or as a dip. I also love to use it as a marinade forchicken, as a dressing for some pasta, or even to use in potato salad to give it a different flair. I have even used it to dress a cheeseburger. So many possibilities...